Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Feb. 14, 1984, edition 1 / Page 8
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8The Daily Tar HeelTuesday, February 14, 1984 A stormy courtship 91st year of editorial freedom Kerry DeRochi, Editor EDDIE WOO TEN. Manaoino Editor CHARLES ElLMAKF.R, Associate Editor FRANK BRUM, Associate Editor Kelly Simmons, University Editor KYLE MARSHALL, State and National Editor Michael DeSisti, Sports Editor Melissa Moore, News Editor Michael Tooi.e, City Editor Karen Fisher, reaum-sEditor Jeff Grove, An, Editor CHARLES W. LEDFORD, Photography Editor Election day Today is the University's election day, a day when students have the chance to choose policy and programs to be implemented next year in almost every area of campus life. It's hard to speak of the importance of such elections without sounding like an overzealous patriot, yet, in to day's balloting lies the basic element of student self-governance. At many schools the race for student body president is nothing more than a popularity contest, the winner little more than a symbol. Here, however, the race is for a position on the UNC Board of Trustees, the chance to be the voice and the vote of student concerns. The can didates are serious about their merits and their programs; they deserve serious attention. Seems like old times Of course it's easy to lose sight of the importance of today's elections in the midst of confusing platforms and emotional promises. Many of the candidates look and sound alike; it's difficult to keep them separate. The issues seem the same too; candidates calling for increased student "input" into the newspaper, and a better Student Government. In fact, today's candidates sound the same as candidates as far back as the 1950s when those running for editor called for positive editorial policy, greater service to students and immortal crossword puzzles and comics. Candidates for president at this time were attacking what they would call student apathy, pledging to return government to the individual. Careful choosing No, today's elections minus Frank Winstead vary little from past votes. It can be argued that the same questions arising every year point to the importance of choosing a leader who can handle answering them. Last week, The Daily Tar Heel tried to choose their leaders, by interviewing and observing the candidates for student body president, DTH editor, Carolina Athletic Association president and Residence Hall Association president. The editors then voted on who they thought would be the best person for each office, publishing the decisions in the Wednesday and Thursday editions of the newspaper. Paul Parker emerged as the most qualified, realistic and goal oriented of the student body president candidates. Parker advocates do ing away with the old "paper-shuf fling" committees and replacing them with project-specific task forces that would concentrate on only one problem at a time. Once the committee had achieved its goal, it would be disbanded. Parker has shown that he can produce the results he promises. Last year, he founded and ran the Student Part-time Employment Service, a job-finding agency that has already found jobs For about 2,000, students, Other universities have been so impressed with the program that they have bought the organizational plans from Student Government. ( Jeff Hiday, former associate editor of the DTH and editor of the 1983 summer Tar Heel, has proved himself most capable of taking the DTH forward as the next editor. Hiday has a concrete grasp of both the paper's finances and the historical function of the paper. He has stress ed an increase in University news, the addition of a business desk designed to provide students with information about the job market and the economy as they pertain to students, and advent of a separate elections desk, where individual writers can focus on one campaign each, thus providing better coverage of national and state races in this election year. In a field of candidates for CAA advocating a "better" homecom ing, Jennie Edmundson has distinguished herself as the only candidate willing to take tangible if ambitious steps to raise the awareness of students toward athletics at UNC. Edmundson plans to publish an an nual newspaper detailing all intramural, club and varsity and junior var sity sports so that students will be better informed about how to get in volved in athletics while at school. Mark Stafford is truly the only choice for RHA president. Realizing that alone he cannot accomplish anything, he has stressed cooperation and shared information with the Housing office and the administration. His maturity and poise should win him points with administrators, who will undoubtedly listen to his proposals and complaints in his position as student advocate. The DTH also supports the one-time Student TV fee increase of $;50 per student per semester and the $1.50 per student per semester increase in Student Activities Fees. No matter who students decide is the best candidate for each office, the important thing is that they vote. Today's returns will decide the direction of their Student Government and their newspaper and in races as close as these, turnout could be the decisive factor. Choices are there to be made and students have an obligation to help make them. The Bottom Line Freshman and would-be political science major Biffy Bradley has real ly adjusted to life at Carolina. He's assumed all the trademarks of the born and bred Heel. He can recite the names of all the players on the UNC basketball team. He knows by heart the opening and closing times at Purdy's. He seldom attends his 8 a.m. classes. He's arrived. So he strolls onto campus today feeling pretty content; this past weekend the weather warmed up so dramatically he got to wear his Ray bans. At first glance, itx seems like a normal Tuesday, but then Biff notices something different. People are... well, they're talking and argur ing and carrying their student ID's in their hands. They're gathering around cardboard tables set up in places where Biff, even with his Ray bans off, has never noticed tables before. Some ineffable force seems to have galvanized the campus. , He asks a passerby a rather nice-looking person of the opposite gender, to be accurate what's hap pening. "Campus elections," she retorts, her abrupt departure showing a cer tain degree of disdain for Biffs ig norance. Now Biff remembers. He remembers the posters, the speeches oy canuiaates ne neard in nis dorm lounge, the pamphlet his friend Austin showed him. He's pretty ex cited. Biff realizes that' today is indeed a special day. Today is the day when he gets to voice some opinion about who runs the student government, who guides the campus newspaper. As distant as he sometimes makes his concern about such things seem, Biff knows that today is the one day of his academic year when with so little effort but with such important conse quences,, he can act to perpetuate, perhaps even improve, the Carolina life he enjoys but so often takes for granted. And that's the bottom line. By DA VID BALMER Editor's note: Zhang Wenjin, ambassador of the Peo ple's Republic of China to the United States, will speak on Sino-American relations Tuesday night at 7:30 in Hamilton Hall. His lecture is the fourth in the Great Decisions series. It's not surprising that when the world's richest and most populous countries opened diplomatic rela tions five years ago, all the world sat up and took note. Until 1979, the United States had refused to recognize the communist-ruled People's Republic of China. In- , stead, Americans had formally recognized only the Nationalists in Taiwan as the govern ment of China. But growing concerns among Chinese and American leaders about Soviet ambition changed all that. Presi dent Nixon's visit to China in 1972 allayed many of these worries, while paving the way for the restoration of diplomatic relations between China and the United States seven years later. Once the diplomatic channels had been reopened, in 1979, the infatuation of the next two years saw President Carter and China's most powerful communist party of ficial, Deng Xiaoping, sign 35 treaties a myriad of cultural, scientific and technological exchanges. The most controversial of these were those allowing China to purchase military weapons and equipment from the United States. While the combined efforts of the Nixon and Carter administrations produced a Sino-American love affair, the Reagan administration must now either walk down the aisle or break off the engagement. If the United States decides to further solidify its relations with China, the two countries could pursue an unprecedented economic and military partnership. If the United States decides otherwise, the likelihood of a smiliar Sove-Sino partnership would be increased dramatically. Three key questions must be resolved before any lasting relation ship between Washington and Beijing (previously Pek ing) can materialize. The first and most important ques tion involves the future of American relations with Taiwam The second focuses on the selling of American technology to China, and the third regards Sino American trade. When normal diplomatic relations were achieved in 1979, the question of Taiwan was craftily skirted. In a December 1978 communique, President Carter had agreed to sever formal diplomatic ties with Taiwan, ter minate the U.S. mutual defense treaty with Taiwan, and withdraw all U.S. troops from the island. But five months later, Congress spoiled Carter's policy with the Taiwan Relations Act of April 1979. That act requires the United States to sell arms enabling Taiwan "to main tain a sufficient self-defense capability." Of course, this enraged China. Although President Carter managed to temporarily calm the Chinese diplomats, presidential hopeful Ronald Reagan established as part of his cam paign platform the restoration of an "official govern mental relationships" with Taiwan. China was again in censed. Fortunately, President Reagan has not formally fulfilled this campaign promise, but he has increased U.S. arms sales to Taiwan to unprecedented levels. This policy is yet another obstacle, for the Chinese seek reunification of Taiwan with the People's Republic and hence regard any friendliness to Taiwan as interference in China's internal affairs. As one retired Chinese soldier put it, "How would you feel if we supported California against you?" President Reagan refers to Taiwan as "Free China." Perhaps the Chinese think that "Com munist California"" has a nice ring to it. A Reagan administration decision in June 1983 to move China into an export category that would allow the Chinese to purchase high-technology computers raises the second problem confounding Sino-American rela tions. The debate has focused on certain hybrid com puter systems which possess dual performance capabilities. On the one hand, these computers can assist China in its economic modernization, but, on the other hand, these systems could also be used to design B-l bombers or simulate ballistic-missile trajectories. The administration's dilemma is whether to contribute to China's economic modernization or to provide sophisti cated technology (with defense capabilities) to a com- munist country. Whereas the Reagan policy on Taiwan shows myopic tendencies, his June 1983 decision re garding this technology question displays vision. The third dispute concerns Sino-American trade. In general, the Chinese are begrudged that fewer than 1 percent of American imports come from China, while China imports nearly 13 percent of its goods from the United States. Most notable is a scrap between the Chinese and American textile industries (in which the most intense battles have been waged here in North Carolina, the nation's leading textile state). Because the Chinese textile industry employs cheap labor, it is able to undercut American textile prices, even after trade tariffs. To settle this dispute, President Reagan compromised with a Vz percent average increase in Chinese textile shipments over the next five years. Nevertheless, for these increased shipments, President Reagan has promis ed a higher trade tariff to offset possible losses to the American textile industry. These three questions face President Reagan as he prepares for his trip to China this spring. He must decide which China would provide both the United States and communist China with stronger economic and defense capabilities vis-a-vis the Soviet Union. He must decide whether China can be trusted with high-technology secrets. And, finally, he must decide whether wooing the Chinese with trade agreements is more important than protecting the profits of American industry. President Reagan must resolve these difficult questions if he hopes to negotiate a lasting marriage between the United States and China. David Balmer is a junior political science major from Charlotte and a member of the Great Decisions Steering Committee. LET TEES TO THE EDITOR Prevent SEEDS from becoming PLANTS To the editor: There has been a great deal of coverage lately on the advent of a new political order. Students Effectively Establishing a Democratic System, with its growth oriented acronym SEEDS, has come to the forefront of campus politics as an alternative voice to traditional Student Government. Embracing all the formalities of the democratic process, SEEDS has sought input from students at an organizational convention, drafted a party platform, and issued forth candidates to take up its banner. The platform addresses issues ranging from student television to divestment, racial integration to women faculty; in short, a political facade spanning the en tire gamut of student supported interests. But SEEDS has all the attributes of a well-worn Ronco commercial: the pro duct that slices, dices and makes julienne fries is not necessarily what it appears, or the answer for the discriminating con sumer. We, as students, purchase the representation we want with our voices. As wise shoppers, we must look, beyond the packaging, and find what the product has to offer us. Caveat emptor, or let the buyer beware, has been a rallying cry for the itinerant consumer. As we approach the elections today, moving with dispatch among the unknown names on the ballot, we should ask ourselves: Why don't we know who we're voting for? Are we not as smart or as worldly as the next guy? Of course we are. As the students of the flagship campus of the University of North Carolina, we are the chosen in and of this state. We are an elite. But elitism has its drawbacks. Sadly, for a large part of our college years, we are full-time students first and citizens of the world second. We glean most of our perceptions of the world, even the state, from wire-service reports and five-minute news spots on the radio. SEEDS stresses that accepting a back-seat role in self-governance is tantamount to subverting the democratic system. But is an entire system necessarily wrong because it fails to address a specific group on a specific issue? It would seem that what we have before us is a case of the blind leading the blind. If SEEDS is the answer to our ail ing democratic system, then surely its members must be our models. And do we see our models abandoning their ivory tower ties to confront apartheid where it exists, or attacking Soviet policies on nuclear arms? No. They remain comfor tably tucked away behind petitions and committee rooms hammering away at their corporeal image of the undemo cratic system. This is no alternative voice, and if SEEDS' contention is correct, it is nothing more than a remake of an already bad movie. What SEEDS has effectively establish ed is a public relations campaign. Its founding father, Doug Berger, formerly of the N.C. Public Interest Research Group, disassociated himself with party leadership to prevent liberal connections from slighting its image. The party has succeeded in building a straw man out of Student Government, and in the true sense of ad homonym argument, has beaten it to death with attractive, but shallow policies. SEEDS has attacked current student leaders on grounds of resume padding. Is service to the University no longer a creditable act? But SEEDS claims that it is not quality service of course this is a subjective evaluation. It comes from a party that toyed with the idea of black mail politics, the use of the recall clause in the Student Constitution for legislators who did not reflect their beliefs. Recall has its benefits, but not for serving the in terests of single-issue politics. But with enough fertilizer, most seeds gradually turn into plants. We must care fully examine the SEEDS strewn here before us, that we might not all end up PLANTS, (Praising Liberal Activisim, Not Taking Sides). Doc Droze KingswoodvApts. SEEDS perspective For SBP, Gaddy To the editor: There is a widespread misperception of the goals of the SEEDS campus political group; recent articles in The Daily Tar Heel have reinforced these inaccuracies. Monday's article, entitled "SEEDS stresses non-campus issues in elections," along with last Thursday's mention of funding of SEEDS (something we have never sought), are primary examples. While SEEDS proposes to use Student Government to enhance awareness of crucial issues beyond the campus, we ac tually stress campus issues which have the most impact on our lives. SEEDS formed through the organiza tion of students concerned about what is going on around them. Our primary pur pose, therefore, is to increase students' awareness of the world. But our goal in Student Government is, above all, to pro mote concern for the student community. Yet we are also increasing the knowledge of broader issues, ones which are largely beyond the power of Student Govern ment, but not above the concern of students themselves. We think this slight ly expanded role will improve the significance of Student Government. Let's put SEEDS into perspective. We are planting a social awareness in the mind of the individual student. From this we hope a dedication will emerge to work for a better world. Marshall MiUs Jeffrey Bowlen SEEDS members To the editor: During the past 10 days in my cam paign for student body president I have tried to be three things: (1) a student (2) a Southern Lady (3) the real woman can-, didatefor student body president at UNC in 1984. I have always striven for perfec tion while knowing all the time that I would never be completely perfect at anything. It is to my fellow opponents to whom I am most deeply indebted, as I have used their best lines, ideas, workers and. voters whenever possible. They, along with my roommates, teachers, the DTH and potential constituency, have helped make my real dreams of holding this office become a possible reality. I was particularly impressed by the SBP candidates as a freshman. Although everyone I knew was working for Mike Vandenbergh, and 1 felt as though he had the solid foundations of experience as well as lots of plans for future construc tion as president, I voted on that day with my heart based on what I'll call the underdog principle. The parallels to this year's race need not be explained, except to say that I ended up as a late-comer in the winner's cabinet. In this race I have taken no votes for granted, except my own, and I have tried to act as a candi date as I would want a candidate to act by being myself. And even if I don't win this election, I haven't lost either, because I have broken the ice for future women SBP candidates. Though I may have slipped in every forum I have yet to. fall through the cracks, and I have truly loved every minute of acting like the prima donna skater who never bothered with any tradi tional conventions, but who also tried to curtsy every time she was too abrupt or outspoken for the judges, students of UNC. When you vote today remember that while some men ore born to be leaders, other leaders were just born women! MAY THE BEST PEOPLE WIN!! Susan Gaddy candidate for Student Body President Townhouse Apts. For 'DTH' editor: Conway ...Parker To the editor: Well here it is, election day and a uni que election day at that.' We have the op portunity to elect a student body presi dent who is willing to make effective changes in Student Government. Paul Parker- not only understands the issues but also has viable solutions and. the ability to implement them. Parker has worked hard for students in the past. He founded and directed the Student Part Time Employment Service which is at present the largest organization of its kind in the nation. He has organized a nationwide conferene of the American Association of University Students to be held here in Chapel Hill in March. Parker has distinguished himself as a leader and an administrator witn a gen uine concern for the student body. I en courage everyone to go out and vote to day with a mind to their own concerns Paul Parker for student body president. ...Hecht To the editor: What has impressed me about Greg Hecht is that he has not made wild pro mises. He has many projects for which he has established a solid foundation and realistic ways to complete them. He has done this in the past: He authored the STV referendum, helped restore some federal aid to UNC education, went door to door in the largest district on campus as a CGC representative, and has ac complished much more. His projects are innovative and meet :- the - needs of students. Students can have quality meals at affordable prices, a student television station with widespread access, informa tion about student fees, hopefully later Julie Beaver E. Rosemary St. tuition compensation, deadlines" for medical withdrawls. Students in classes, like Math 30, deserve the check of a student-faculty grievance committee to prevent abuses such as TAs not keeping up with standardized test materials. We can seek legislative limits on phone in stallation rates as Hecht did with some minimum wage legislation. Hecht will give the sense of direction and leadership that Student Govenment needs to ac complish many goals. David Savage Kingswood Apts. To. the editor: The editor of the Daily Tar Heel has a great responsibility to the campus. As the manager of the primary student voice, the editor must be fair, dedicated, and hard-working. John Conway has these qualities. As city editor, Conway learned im portant leadership and organization skills. He also has worked for the paper since his freshman year, a good sign that he intends to give all he can to making the DTH the best that it can be. Conway's platform includes more , sports coverage and a moderate editorial voice. That translates into a full page of intramurals, non-revenue sports, and of course more basket ball and football. In the editorial department, Conway will bring direc tion without malice. He believes the editorial page of the DTH should play an active role in campus issues, leaving the national scene to the better in formed triangle papers. I hope you will take a good look at Conway as you go to the polls today. With three staff writers running, it's easy to get lost in all the platforms and experience. But John Conway has the initiative and ideas to make the DTH an important part of campus life; please take the time to make a dif ference. Vote Conway. Sherri Tesh Old Well Apts. sion. He's idealistic in. that he expects the best from himself and from the paper; at the same time, he's realistic enough to know how to go about achieving the highest quality newspaper possible. Experience is a big plus for Jeff. Jeffs held twice as many positions at the DTH as any other candidate. He's been associate editor of the paper, editor of the summer Tar Heel, a DTH editorial writer, assistant managing editor, assistant news editor and a staff writer for several desks. In addition, Jeffs already worked written for three professional newspapers: The Greensboro Daily News, The Durham Morning Herald and The Charlotte Observer. I feel the combination of creativity ' and leadership Jeffs shown on the Daily Tar Heel, along with the ex perience he's gained in professional newsrooms, has prepared him well for the job of Daily Tar Heel editor. ;Nuf said vote HIDAY, Daily Tar Heel editor. It's logical. ... Susan Sparks Kenan Manuel Hiday To the editor: . Jeff Hiday is the obvious pick for Daily Tar Heel editor. I've come to know Hiday professionally and per sonally and am extremely impressed with his enthusiasm, energy and talent He is demanding but warm his personality is forceful enough to get the job done but friendly enough to develop and maintain high staff morale. Also, as a leader. Jeff displays vi- To the editor: The race for Daily Tar Heel editor is one that students should, just as in the other races, take a look at and decide what or who can make a difference for the better. Certainly, all of the can didates could do a fine job as editor, but only Christine Manuel has pledged from the beginning to help solve the current problems of the paper. Editorials that are well researched and carefully thought out are essential to a good paper. I think this is the main element that sets her apart from the other candidates. This is the main ele ment to make the DTH great. As a student concerned about where the DTH is going, I am going to support Manuel for editor. I hope you as students will make the same considerations. ' Kevin Monroe Student Body President
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Feb. 14, 1984, edition 1
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