8AThe Daily Tar Heel Friday. August 23. 1985
Oiar
93rd year of editorial freedom
Arm-: Rk:ki:rt ano David Schmidt
Editor Editor
STUART TONK1NSON SXanaHK fcir
BLN PURKOWSKI Associate Editor
Dick Anderson Associate rjur
Janet Olson Vmversity Editor
. AMYSTYERS News Editor
ANDYTRINCIA State and National Editor
Leigh Williams aty Editor
Mark Powell
Lee Roberts
Frank Bruni
Sharon Sheridan
Business Editor
Sports Editor
Arts Editor
Features Editor
Larry Childress Photo Editor
The worst kind of business
Hijacked aircraft baking on Middle
Eastern runways, bearded men waving
sub-machine guns at a disorderly press
conference, ruined buildings smoulder
ing after a car bomb these are the
televised images most UNC students
associate with terrorism. But such media
spectacles veil a quietly growing aspect
of today's politically motivated attacks
by ununiformed civilians not affiliated
to any government. Businesses and their
bosses are now the targets. With the
number of terrorist incidents worldwide
now climbing 30 a year by one
estimate, a tiny but appreciable risk of
kidnapping, extortion threats, and
violent death awaits students today
planning international careers.
The State Department, using
extremely conservative definitions, says
close to 500 people died worldwide last
year as a result of terrorist acts. The
percentage of businessmen jumped by
a half from 24 to 36. Ransoms paid
for kidnapping victims are funding
further attacks while adding up to a hefty
bill for multinationals. In the South
American nation of Columbia alone
companies are said to have shelled out
$100 million in 1984 to save their
executives skins.
Several options are already discussed
as responses to skyjackings. Retaliation
with conventional military forces, for
example, found many advocates after
the freeing of the 40 American men of
TWA Flight 847 held in Beirut. But the
hijackers local support notwithstanding,
nobody has yet figured out on whom
to take revenge. The terrorist bands
hitting enterprises in Europe and Latin
America are smaller and even more
elusive Spain's far left GRAPO seems
to survive through its jailed leaders'
recruitment of fellow prisoners soon to
be released.
Howard Hunt admirers would prefer
to put the U.S. government in the
business of murdering people. Under
such euphemisms as "assassination" and
"physical liquidation", perceived terror
ists would be killed by either intelligence
agents or paid local groups. But both
options are currently banned by an
executive order and risk exposure, the
death of innocent bystanders, and the
beginning of a spiral of killings.
Where direct action doesn't work,
preparation may. Both the State and
Defence Departments keep anti-terrorist
teams ready. Both have reservoirs of
experience and analysis not available to
many countries. Teams of roving experts
should be funded by this country to
advise foreign governments, just as Drug
Enforcement Administration agents
now counsel how to tackle the narcotics
trade. A discrete name would help to
avoid publicly implying anybody even
has a terrorism problem. When they do,
and someday you may too.
Other side of the headline
The news media are often criticized
by the public for not reporting enough
good news too much of the depress
ing, tear jerking and anxiety provoking
and not enough of the snirit lifting, heart
warming and smile producing. The
reply, more often than not, from us
crankers-out-of-doom is something like,
"Hey, that's the way it is," or that time
honored classic, "We dont make the
news, we just report it." What these
replies lack in sympathy, they sure do
make up for in profundity, don't they?
Well, we'd like to try a new approach.:
Rationalization.
Now before you scoff this off as
another weak-kneed journalistic excuse
for the true explanation of our sadistic
tendencies, let us explain. First, keep
these thoughts in mind good news,
like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder;
one man's calamity might be another's
windfall; and the grass is always greener
on the other side of the headline.
Now, of course, some stories are bad
news. Period. There's just no getting
around the fact that items about tor
nadoes destroying small towns rarely
contain that "other side to the story,"
which, once understood, creates shout
ing matches over the good news bad
news question. Nevertheless, given a
typical looks-like-good-and-bad-news-at-first-glance
type of story, its not too
difficult (with just a little rationalization)
to see how some readers could find "bad"
news to be nothing of the sort, and vice
Clip and save
DEAR DTH:
Last January, you published a Daily
Tar Heel Planning Calendar for the
entire semester. It was a gem, a real time
saver, and I carried it in my purse with
me everywhere I went. Over the summer,
though, I left it in Lenoir Hall, and the
rats chewed it up. Could you please run
it again?
JUDY IN MORRISON
DEAR JUDY:
Glad to oblige. In fact, some of our
other readers might enjoy seeing it again.
August
1st Week: Go to your first class
or at least get the syllabus from someone
who did.
2nd Week: Have good intentions of
going to the library until an all
campus party dictates a change in your
plans. September
1st Week: Stop someone you know
and ask directions to your class.
2nd Week: Explore the possibility of
declaring your semester Pass Fail.
3rd Week: Look into extracurricular
activities designed to kill additional
study time.
Coke t-t' the national drinking pastime?
By KEVIN MEREDITH
Sandwiched in between the
summer's biggest stories the
Beirut hostage crisis and Reagan's
cancerous polyp there was the
Coca-Cola snafu. With each inci
dent, there seemed to be a lesson.
The hostage crisis taught us that the
American media can be manipu
lated by terrorists. Reagan's cancer
showed us that our president is
mortal, perhaps even "old." But we
haven't yet come to grips with what
the Coca-Cola affair really means.
While most journalists wrote an
essay or two simply acknowledging
the power of the people vs. the Great
Big Corporation, few addressed the
central issue: Why did people care
anyway?
Analysts wrote about that secret,
99-year-old formula that nobody
thought should be changed. But that
wasnt it; Americans just aren't that
sentimental. As many times as the
words "new" and "improved" have
been used to promote a product, no
one has raised a stink. Truth is, sales
probably go up, or advertisers
wouldn't keep saying "new and
improved." Advertisers aren't
stupid, you know.
So I don't think it mattered to
people nearly as much that the
formula was being changed as how
it was being changed. Coke was
being made easier to drink. They
were making it sweeter, and that was
the fatal mistake.
You see, for the last 99 years,
America has been slowly, almost
. imperceptibly adopting Coke as its
national drink, and the national
drink must not be too pleasant to
versa.
Let's take a quick perusal of yester
day's news to illustrate this point:
"Fresh(wo)man class mostly female;
average SAT score reaches record"
-Sounds good. A smarter incoming
class means better students and indicates
that the school is attracting an increasing
quality of applicants, which should
translate into a stronger reputation for
the University; so what if that happens
to include more females than males. Not
so quick. Read a little bit further and
you discover that this abundance of
females also means that guys will act
"cocky, self-absorbed and hard-to-get"
and the women will be forced to search
in faraway lands for dates. Not so good.
"The SAC: Everyone wants to get
in, but will it be ready in time?"
- Sounds bad. Our long-awaited,
beautiful new sports center might not
be ready and well all have to squeeze'
back into Carmichael for an unknown
number of games. In addition to the
sheer anticlimax of it all, those who got
teary-eyed last year saying goodbye to
good or Carmichael will feel pretty silly
reflecting on their nostalgic bad timing.
But wait. If we do go back to Carmichael
those of us who missed the last game
last year can go this year and make fun
of our predecessors who thought they
saw the final game and left for the real
world bragging of their select status.
Maybe that's reaching just a touch,
but you can't say we didn't try.
4th Week: You can't put it off any
longer. Go buy your textbooks from
Student Stores.
October
1st Week: Call Mom and Dad to let
them know you're still alive ... . and to
beg for more money.
2nd Week: Check out the Undergrad
uate Library for prospective dates to
homecoming.
3rd Week: Use Fall Break to catch
up on your sleep.
4th Week: Cut your Chem 11 lab to
pick out a Halloween costume.
November
1st Week: For a change of pace, study.
2nd Week: Vow to cut back partying
next semester.
3rd Week: Special order caffeine
rations in time for final exams.
4th Week: Make ski lodge reserva
tions for the Christmas holidays before
all the cheap spots are booked up.
December
1st Week: Grandmother unexpectedly
"dies." Better tell teacher.
2nd Week: Consider alternate futures
to law and medical school.
3rd Week: Good luck on exams.
. . . And good luck this semester.
consume. Throughout history and
around the world, national drinks
have been an acquired taste, some
thing people often don't appreciate
until early adulthood. It is a source
of identity for a nation. It should
not be a drink foreigners take easily
to. .
Vodka is the best example. Rus
sians drink it straight and in astound
ing quantities, while foreigners
dilute it with non-alcoholic mixers
such as orange juice.
Dark beer is something of a
national drink for the British Isles.
Most Americans have never seen
real dark beer, which probably
wouldn't go over well here. Real
dark beer looks and tastes" like
maple syrup, except without the
sugar, which has been replaced with
old coffee grounds. But they drink
it over there; they probably even like
it. '
The South, while not a nation in
a political sense, but still large and
distinct, used to have moonshine,
and might still in some places where
staple crops won't grow. Like the
song about the little town in Ten
nessee says:
Ain 't no corn can grow on Rocky
Top
Ground's too rocky by far.
That 's why all the folks on Rocky
Top
Get their corn from a jar.
We can assume that 'jarred corn,'
weighing in at about 160 proof for
a good batch, is an acquired taste
Yankees and other foreigners don't
automatically appreciate.
So how can I compare Coke with
vodka, moonshine or dark beer?
Coke, after all, is sweet, non
alcoholic and, most of all, comes
1 1
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in a red can. True, but like its
alcoholic partners, Coke has a bite.
It stings. It's not as easy to drink
as Pepsi, or Sprite, or orange juice,
for that matter.
And like other national drinks,
it's bad for you. While it doesn't
leave you with a hangover, it
contains caffeine, carbonation and
plenty of calories. IVe been told that
a penny soaked in Coke for a certain
amount of time will come out shiny.
(What's in that secret formula,
anyway hydrochloric acid?)
Most of all, Coke does what any
good national drink should do: It
implies a toughness of national
character. That's what the folks at
Coca-Cola tried to take away, and
that's what the people" fought to
keep. Imagine what would have
happened if Coca-Cola had
announced, on the other hand, that
the new Coke would be harder to
drink, with less sugar and more bite.
Bill Cosby might have come on
television and said, "You know, I
just cant drink this stuff anymore."
Sales might not have shot up, but
I don't think the masses would have
rebelled the way they did, either.
Or maybe sales would have gone
up, Pepsi would have been wiped
out and we would be spared any
more transparent commercials
about disillusioned teen-age girls
discovering Pepsi, or square archeol
ogists in a future Pepsi-state uttering
the party line when asked about an
old Coke artifact: "I haven't the
slightest idea." v
But Coke is back, still hard to
drink, "classic" now. It won't affect
your driving, but it's still tough
enough for America, red can
notwithstanding.
Kevin Meredith is a graduate
student in journalism living in
Chapel Hill
me Mate explicitly that
ve la participation of all the Sot
frican communities on matter t
common concent.
I believe there should exist atruc
tures to reach th -I of co-responsibility
and par t I firmly be
lleve that tr and accept
ance el lr
Mack peopk
their own sti represtw a ma
terial part at atlon.
I believe in vatic neighbor.
Not neighbor all out elections
and then stop t. their mysteri
ous way. I would, however, like
sped my Government' posit
' regard, namely, that tndepa
mot be forced upon any cm
p- jf the black i
. the national states meant
aiutton will have to be found
jf legitimate rights.
The future of these communities
snd their constitutional arrange
ments will have to be negotiated with
leaders from "
well as tram
Yaw Km
But let me.
You must knos
no unfulfilled
life la South Al. .
-tonal states as
ranks.
' Stand
ink with you.
stand. I have
nt In political
I m standing
communities .
South African I
citizens and sht
within political
boundaries of I
d fourth chanv
notP"J;1
consideration si
aapartofthe
South African
xotnmodstcd
ons within the
jhUr..i. --
Secondly, a
ber c4 Pri"
solution. And
- icsHIMl
taken Into ac-
count and that provision be made for
participation In Institutions on the re
gional and or group basis. We must
be practical In this regard. But I know
for a fart that most leader In their
own right in Si ca and reason
able South Al 111 not accept
the principle at t. one vote in a
unitary syster an arrange
ment would lee itnatlon of one
over the other would lead to
where I'm standing because people
asked me to stand here.
It you don't like my way of thtnl
If you don't like the direction I
In. It Is the right of the r
I am not prepared to lead white
South Africans and other minority
groups on a road to abdication and
suicide.
Listen, my friends, listen. Destroy
white South Afr
in this subcont
rica, and this cuiry -.11 orltt utu
factions, strife, chain and poverty
Alternative Is Bloodshed
Together with my policy state
ments earlier tM in Prla
ment. I see w
night In this
manifesto for a new South Africa.
Read the statements I made with the.
opening of Parliament
statement I made tnwr
Parliament session.
r tonight's speech
be various population groups m
hern Africa. Since then, we have
to contend with the escalating
mce within South Africa.
t pressure from abroad In the
i of measures designed to coerce
jovemment into giving In to vanV
. Our enemfc
id without Soul
our peoples. T
ibreachable rill,
prevent us Iron
ting peaceful i
ns.
negotiation la
4uT negotiation
It will lead toj
T the progress at
rt Alrtca. Those
monopolise all pt
doubt about wha
such power. One
their methods ar
when I made that stater,
lament. 1 received iiuis
a prominent membeia of tl
est em world, heads of govemmen ,
telling me that they agree with me.
And I repeat tnnignt, repeat to-
riiament, and
ory.
. amies is a
. 3 committed
also have
Violent and bra
lead to totalltari
ends. Their action
their words. The!
panacrws such as
freedom and Just
tloas4ea ve no dotd
that we already I
the ongoing extension of democracy
In South Africa are the true targets of
their violence.
I wish to deal with another matter
raised by people who put pressure on
South Africa from outside and from
within. From certain International,
v- the
of
4- 4-" O
night what I sr
mat is the en-
The vtolen
warning tour
to peaceful
warning to ti
Our warnlnu . our readiness
to negotiate snouau not be mistaken
for weakness. I have applied much
sell-discipline durirg the past wee .
id months. I've been lenient and '
-rt. Don't push us too far. r
r too far ut your own ne
gotiation Is not
How do we but
our cultures,
which are dema
heterogeneous so
Let the F
We are resolves
to do so In two ft
Firstly, by lettb
By letting the pe s
their leader. By
all these leaders.
We will not prescribe, and we will
not demand. To do so would be to take
only. We will give so that others can
also give towards a better future for
each and every one.
Secondly, the overriding common
denominator Is our mutual Interest in
each other's freedoms and well-
I
" 1
r ii
HON
The American Dream goes to Europe
By JOHN GIBBS
Thanks to tolerant parents and a favorable
exchange rate, I was able to join the flood of
Americans traveling overseas this summer. In
Europe we were treated to the usual whirlwind
tour of cathedrals, castles, beer gardens, an Alp
or two and, of course, a lot of train stations
and airports. We walked around enjoying the
local color, saw a lot of other Americans enjoying
the local color, and snapped a bunch of pictures
to be filed away in some desk drawer until the
long-awaited photo album commemorating the
Summer of 5 can be assembled.
My memories of those two months come back
to me in a series of images. 1 recall the summer
solstice festival in Austria, the Grand Bazaar in
Florence, and the splendor of the Vatican. At
times we felt lost and frightened. President
Reagan told Americans in Europe not to fly out
of the Athens airport because of the danger of
terrorism, so we took the trains. Yet in Italy
we were told that thieves had been known to
gas train compartments and steal the passengers'
money.
Yet the images that stand out strongest in my
mind involve the reaction displayed by most of
the Europeans toward the United States. In spite
of the fact that a great many American tourists
were loud, obnoxious and insensitive, we found
that the Europeans we met maintained a strong
belief in the wealth and power of this country.
In England, a "large" landowner who farmed
1,500 acres of prime Lincolnshire pastureland
marveled over the vastness of the American
Midwest. In Greece, a friendly cafe owner
claimed that he could only earn enough money
to ensure that he would die in his local village,
while in the United States he could be rich beyond
his wildest dreams. And in Naples, a university
student gazing out over the ragged Neapolitan
skyline asked me if there were slums in America.
Certainly the myth that. America's streets are
paved with gold is just that a myth. Yet after
seeing beggars on seemingly every sidewalk in
Rome, it becomes harder to bemoan a 7 percent
unemployment rate here. That is not to say that
ours is a perfect nation it is not. Yet the vast
potential of the United States appears unprece
dented. With a huge fertile country, a largely
well-educated, wealthy population, and tremend
ous influence throughout the world, the United
States occupies a unique position. The Horatio
Alger ideals of the last century may be harder
to achieve today, yet people can still succeed
through hard work and determination. The same
cannot be said of many of the European countries
we visited.
Nonetheless, an important problem with the
reaction we received in Europe is that it becomes
easy to overstate its significance. Viewing the
United States as a receptacle of hope for the
free world, or a Utopian society, seems just as
unrealistic as calling us an imperialistic, war
mongering nation. . The fact is that we lie
somewhere in between. Yet an entire summer
of seeing Italian kids wear Washington Redskins
T-shirts, or listening to Dutch students sing
"Born in the USA," or hearing how lucky we
are to live where we do, does tend to create a
renewed sense of national importance. Although
such a reaction might be unrealistic, knowing
that the American Dream still exists is an
extremely heartening feeling. And if it is not dead
in Europe, then maybe it still has a chance here
as well.
John Gibbs is a junior history major from
Lynchville, Va.
Confessions of a 'DTH' journalist
By SHARON SHERIDAN
"I can't believe you're still here," said one of
the editors as he left the DTH office at 3 a.m.
"You must be crazy."
I suppose I was crazy to spend 10 hours in
the newspaper office to ensure the special feature
page I had organized was finished properly. But
then, I'm a journalist. We do things like that.
I do things as a journalist I never would dream
of doing as a normal human being. I ordinarily
wouldn't volunteer to ride in a stunt plane, for
example. I tend to get motion sickness just
watching a car chase at the movies. But I'd seize
the opportunity immediately if I thought I could
get a good story out of it.
When I had a car accident, my editor shook
his head.
"You didnt need to do that," he said. "You
already wrote a column this week."
Journalists are easy to spot. We're the ones
watching out for everything but our own safety.
Well calmly descend into a volatile crowd of
demonstrators as though our notepad or tape
recorder were a talisman against bodily harm.
Well follow protestors into a nuclear power plant
and get arrested for trespassing.
Some journalists have emptied their pockets
of all identification, dressed as bums and
wandered the streets to see what life was like
for the homeless.
When I was a freshman, the dormitory fire
alarm once went off about 4 a.m. Despite my
roommates' protests, I refused to leave the room
until I had located a notepad and pen. If the
building was on fire, I figured it was my duty
as a DTH reporter to take notes. It didn't occur
to me that I might burn up in the process.
My roommates decided the next time the alarm
sounded they would drag me outside and argue
later. I decided to start sleeping with a notepad
and pen near my bed.
Journalists may take risks. They may work
overtime to perfect a story. But they don't give
articles early to their editors. It's probably a rule.
Real men don't eat quiche. Real women don't
pump gas. Real journalists don't finish articles
early.
I know. I'm an editor. My writers are terrific,
but they are more likely to wheedle an extension
from me than turn in a story before deadline.
And I know from years of writing that the
preparation time for every article expands to fill
the time available.
One of my favorite scenes in the Lou Grant
TV series is where a reporter calls Lou and tells
him he's got a great story in the making, but
needs a little more time to work on it.
"When," asks the editor, "have you ever called
and not said you needed a little more time?"
Journalists get to meet many interesting
people, including well-known public figures.
Among others, I've interviewed politicians,
hockey players and a country music star. The
danger in this is that we often refer to such people
by their last names in newspaper articles. I
sometimes worry that one day 111 be introduced
to someone famous in a social setting and forget
my manners.
I picture myself at the White House, dressed
in my best clothes, shaking hands with the
president. Later, I try to get his attention, and
I shout across the room, "Hey, Reagan."
Journalists also love to have people respond
to their stories. It needn't be a complimentary
response. Actually, I get excited when I receive
any letters whether or not they relate to anything
IVe written.
This summer, I wrote a story about life as
a single woman in a particular city. My
hypothesis was that it was difficult for single
women, particularly professionals, to meet men
they might like to date, especially if the women
did not enjoy the bar scene.
I apparently struck a nerve. The phone calls
started the morning after the story ran. Then
came the letters.
I was surprised by the variety of responses,
but I was glad to receive them. It meant people
read what I wrote and cared enough to let me
know what they thought about it.
People liked my article. People disagreed with
my article. People liked it but thought it was
depressing.
Some wanted me to print the male point of
view. Some wanted to know if I discovered any
good places to meet people. Some men wanted
to get in touch with some of the women I
interviewed.
If nothing else, I discovered I had a future
as a lonely hearts club adviser if I failed as a
journalist.
Sharon Sheridan, a senior journalism major
from East Setauket, N. Y., is features editor of
The Daily Tar Heel.