The Daily Tar HeelMonday, April 11, 198815
Opinion
IBIIIBIIIlaBBIBM
Meese,
omeone mentioned to me the
.other day that 110 senior offi-
' rials have either resigned or
have been forced to leave the Reagan
administration since 1980. 1 thought,
finally, some bean-counter has had
enough perseverence to do what IVe
wanted to do for some time now. And
pondering what Ed Meese has been
up to lately, I understood what
another guy told me when he said
"beware of idealogues."
Ed Meese is an idealogue. He's the
last one standing in the Reagan
regiment, but lately, no one wants to
associate themselves with him. Six
ex ed most teaclh vail yes
to pireveoll: teeon piregimaimdies
Teen-age pregnancy is a growing
problem that calls for respon
sible and immediate action.
Every year, about 1 million teenagers
become pregnant in the United
States. We need to do something
about the cold, hard fact that children
are having children.
Given the magnitude of the prob
lem, it isn't surprising that efforts to
promote birth control among teen-
agers have been accelerated. Begin-
nine in the 1970s in St Paul Min-
nesota, school-based clinics were
established in several public school
systems, while contraceptive distribu
tion programs for teen-agers were set
up in several states. Thankfully, we
now have access to information about
the effects of this approach.
Consider some facts. In December
1985 the House Select Committee on
7
Children Youth and the Familv
published a surprising report titled
"Teen Pregnancy: What is being
j o-n u j :
uuiic: i uc icpui i wucu umi ucspuc
cay frliiatirn onH mntrarpnt
dlftrihurio
fiSJTJJ'S
ww. tow r 1
fYiia11v artive teens hemmint nrea
nant, but there has been a huge
increase in the percentage of teens
who are sexually active." (p.378) Year
after year, this conclusion has been
confirmed by common experience.
Even Asta Kenney, the Planned
Parenthood official, says that school
based clinics show little or no effect
on the pregnancy rate; and where they
seem to affect the birth rate, this may
be due to an increase in reliance on
abortion. ("Family Planning Perspec
tives," Jan. Feb. 1986)
The statistics do not prove that
birth control programs have caused
the upsurge in teen pregnancy.
However, the fact is that they have
failed to prevent it. Similarly, it is not
necessarily true that the unprece
dented increase in classroom sex
education over that past 15 years has
caused teen pregnancy to escalate.
But if our methods are failing to
Playboy's sexist messages
myths about proper roles
The letter and column, written
by Irwin and Knorpp respec
tively, in favor of selling "Play
boy" in the Student Stores couldn't
have been farther from the issues
surrounding the treatment of women
in the media. ("Pornography not the
problem," April 4; "Selling Playboy
in UNC Student Stores does not
oppress or exploit women," April 4.)
The point is not whether "Playboy"
is porn, or whether men are "genet
ically programmed" to look at naked
women in magazines. Instead, it is
that in our society, lots of instincts
have to be curbed. Our instinct to
be violent when we are angry is
curbed by law. Our instinct to steal
when we "have not" is also curbed
by laws.
Censorship is rarely the answer to
problems involving the media. But
why is it so easy to condone "Play
boy?" Is it even remotely possible that
the presumed male instinct to look
at naked women in "please have sex
with me" positions could be harmful
to the women's stuggle for equal
treatment? Those of you who claim
to be feminists, such as Irwin, please
consider this: pornography (soft or
hard core) helps perpetuate the myths
and harmful stereotypes that women
constantly struggle with in the home,
the workplace and in just about every
corner of society.
The sexism in "Playboy" is found
in the messages it conveys about the
role of women in our society: that
no matter what, we're supposed to
be pretty and, if at all possible, sexy.
Then, we're allowed to be cool, neat
intelligent people. Knorpp equates
"Playboy" with everyday photo
graphy, when it is clear that it is not.
"Playboy" and its media counter
parts, from violence to advertising,
deal with much more than mere
photographs. They are statements
about women in our society.
He complains about women being
promoted less in the workplace. Well,
Itlheir appAtess,,
Dan Morrison
Guest Writer
senior aides, including Deputy Attor
ney General Arnold Burns and
Assistant Attorney General William
Weld resigned two weeks ago, appar
ently in protest of Ed Meese's lack
of leadership. Citing "personal legal
problems" last Monday, the Justice
Department withdrew James
Knapp's name as the leading candi
date to head the department's crim
Mark Yavarone
Guest Writer
improve the situation, then the
methods need to be questioned.
What is the problem with current
sex education strategies, and what
can really be done to curb teenage
P.regancy? ,me warn yu that my
vew lsn anything yu haven't heard
uciuic, uniu issues ui iigiu aiiu wrung
become the focus of sex education,
sex ed programs are not going to
work.
i. . r . . 1 . .
There is a common objection to
this view. Moral statements, it is
argued, have no place in public school
classrooms. It is astounding how
popular this attitude has become
when one considers that its implica-
tions self-contradictory. Consider
a typical sex education class in a
nubhc school. The teacher nresents
- - - ---------
SlUUCIllS Wlin a taSG IllSlOry, pcmaDS
the story of a young girl stricken with
a crisis pregnancy" Various options
- , - . "
a i c uimusscu: pcrnaps auupuuii,
abortion, single motherhood. After
motherhood. After
the discussion the teacher coneratu-
lates the students and encourages
them to ask questions and feel
comfortable about their sexual atti
tudes. But under no circumstances is
the teacher to espouse one point of
view as being right and another as
being wrong.
Here lies the contradiction. Sex ed
programs in most school systems
develop the attitude that there is no
obiective right and wrong to be
considered in matters of sex. This
statement is a moral statement!
Whether they realize it or not, sex
educators do make statements about
values to their students, and ethical
silence may be the strongest statement
of all.
Since values are a necessary part
of sex education, we need to do what
any loving parent tries to do: teach
Janet Dickman
Guest Writer
if women are going to continually be
portrayed as cute little sexy beings
who smile when they spread-eagle to
a camera, adorable sweet wonderful
cooks who love flowers and perfume
and hate, hate, hate cellulite, and
emotional erotica-bunnies who bum
out at the idea of using harsh abrasive
on their new bathtub, of course they
aren't going to become leaders of
companies! Who in the world would
trust Madge the "you're soaking in
it" nail expert to run a company? Let
alone Miss February . . . And the
workplace is only one example of the
many places where women are not
given equal treatment.
. . . no matter what,
we're supposed to be
pretty and, if at all
possible, sexy. Then,
we're allowed to be
cool, neat intelligent
people.
"Playgirl," on the other hand, is
the exception to the rule as far as
the portrayal of men in the media
goes. The media does put an awful
lot of pressure on men to behave in
certain ways, but "Playboy" is a
classic example of the media's por
trayal of women. Look at it: it is a
famous publication with good arti
cles, too but for whom? The
intelligent male population who reads
and likes to look at pretty, soft, sexy
girls in sexy poses. It is a "men's
world" publication if 1 ever saw one.
So guys, this isn't a "fight against
mother nature," as Irwin claims.
inal division. A few days before that,
retired federal Judge Arlin Adams
snubbed Ed Meese by turning down
the vacant assistant attorney general
spot. .
So the attorney general is staffless,
and the image he gives the Reagan
administration is, well ... in keeping
with the tradition of other Reagan
appointees. We had Donald Regan,
a man who forgot that the president's
name was spelled "Reagan," not
"Regan." We had Labor Secretary
Raymond Donovan step down due
to charges of fraud. Michael Deaver
(Reagan's long-time image-maker)
values that will be to the greatest
benefit of the child. I submit that
there is a broad consensus among
Americans as to what many of these
values are. For example, most of us
would not object to telling an elemen
tary school student that children
should not have sexual intercourse.
Similarly, few parents are offended
by the idea of self-control and a sense
of obligation toward others in sexual
matters, or by the idea that marriage
is the healthiest setting for having
children. Why are we so alraid to
teach these values in the classroom?
There are those who tell me that
I am being impractical. Teen-age sex,
so the argument goes, is here to stay,
and there is nothing that any of us
canf dor to stoP 'lt: More than one
nan ol an Americans have exper
ienced sexual intercourse by age 17.
We might as well get birth control
to as many teen-agers as possible and
hope for the best.
Well, I have news for you. The
contpnt;nn tht tM,n - wJii nnt u
" -to
encouraged to postpone sex is simply
not true. The truth is that some teen-
flpers wi not he enrrmraoerl tn
o -
postpone sex. It a little over half of
the 17 year-olds in this country have
experienced sex, the corollary is that
nearly half haven't. There is no reason
to conclude that values-centered sex
education programs cannot increase
this percentage, not to mention what
they would do to satisfy the deeper
needs of teen-agers.
The choice is ours. We can either
treat the root causes of teen-age
pregnancy with values-oriented sex
education, or we can watch as current
sex education programs and school
based clinics continue to be powerless
against the problems that they were
supposedly intended to solve.
Mark Yavarone is a graduate
student in the department of Cell
Biology and Anatomy from Belmar,
N.J.
perpetuate
for women
Simply put, it is a fight against the
perpetuation of myths about women
that no longer hold water in our
"gradually-becoming-mo re -egalitarian"
society. Leave "Playboy"
in the Student Stores if you want,
but the next time you look at a
centerfold, try to picture her eating
breakfast, crying, watching television,
having an argument or (God forbid)
being president.
Janet Dickman is a senior history
and Italian major from Cleveland.
Add it yp:
Iused to dislike math. Now I hate
it. At least, I hate it at Carolina.
Before I came here, I heard
UNC was a "research" school, and
professors were more concerned with
research than with teaching. By the
end of my freshman year, I had
already encountered this attitude. But
nothing could have prepared me for
the frustration I would encounter in
my required General College math
course.
In this course, the students have
no syllabus, no warning of approach
ing tests, no idea how much such tests
count, no assigned or even recom
mended homework and generally no
clue what the professor is talking
about. The teacher has no interest in
relating the course to real life or in
explaining the concepts behind cal
culations. Students are just taught to
plug this number here, this number
there. If the formula doesnt work,
all they can do is give up.
Two classes before one exam, the
professor still claimed to have no idea
what the exam would cover but
somehow he had held a review session
the night before. In previous reviews,
the sessions were headed by his
dlSscredlDtt
saw his own image dashed against the
rocks; James Watt couldn't hang; and
Admiral Poindexter and company
were too crafty for their own good.
These are the familiar faces. Well
probably never hear about the other
ignobles who were forced to slither
out of Washington, but they are not
important. What is important is the
signal that Reagan's revolving-door
administration gives to public offi
cials. Granted, previous presidents
have had high turn-over rates, but
Reagan's staff gets the trophy.
It is assumed that people like
Regan, Donovan, Deaver and Meese
1
Chicaplhbune-
mm
1
1T NOT TOT I'M FmVUVOO WERSm. 1 GCTTA
Blacks inmost push aside barriers
n response to William Lampley's
attempt to enlighten the UNC
JLLAfro-Amencan community
("UNC blacks must help themselves,"
March 28), let it be known that
neither the Black Student Movement
nor any one person speaks for every
Afro-American UNC student.
Indeed, there are internal problems
within the Afro-American commun
ity that we must address. One concern
is that there is not a thorough
understanding of or appreciation for
our heritage or the struggles of our
ancestors.
Throughout our history, there has
been a strong tradition of self-help
within the Afro-American commun
ity. We have a legacy of pooling our
resources. Otherwise, we would not
have achieved what we have, despite
barriers some white people are
constantly constructing. Today, that
tradition is breaking down; as we
attain the symbols of success, we also
endeavor to escape the responsibility
of helping others.
Please remember that we and our
parents are taxpayers. We have a
right to be here. Our ethnicity
requires that we counteract psycho-
logical warfare like that of the article
to which I respond. We would not
have to resort to threats if there were
(1) a full commitment to our presence
and (2) trust in the integrity of those
making University policy. Anyone
would resent decisions made for
them. Who would know better than
Afro-American students what we
need to succeed?
Like the Jews, Afro-Americans
have excelled culturally. We created
the only art form born on American
soil jazz. If one would make an
sonnie faculty don't deserve raises
Sharon Kebschull
State Nat '1 Editor
graduate assistant, who solved prob
lems entirely differently from the
professor. It's great to see an alter
native perspective to the material, but
not 24 hours before the exam.
In previous semesters, students
have petitioned against the course,
voiced their concerns to the depart
ment and given the professor unfa
vorable evaluations at the semester's
end. But the course with the same
professor continues.
And the letter of concern and
frustration about the course I wrote
to the chairman was shuffled off to
someone else, although my professor
was supposedly told of my concerns.
So, where does this leave the class?
Well, the median grade on the last
test was a 50. The professor informed
us that this was because we were
reading the word problems wrong.
As a concession, he gave us a
gratuitous 20-point quiz to help us
raise our grades. Although better
than nothing, the original test should
the govemmero
are intelligent, intuitive personalities.
They're considered the cream of the
crop. But somewhere between per
sonal aspiration and public duty,
these men forgot where their allegian
ces should lie. Corporate executives
don't advance by bad-mouthing their
companies; government officials
dont either. But that's exactly what
these men have done. You may not
hear the bad-mouthing come from
their lips, but their actions are quite
loud. By putting personal aspiration
before courtly duty, these men
discredit themselves, their adminis
tration, and the whole idea of what
Richard White
Guest Writer
effort to learn, one would discover
.that our race has produced leaders
in many disciplines: Cleopatra,
Aesop, Hannibal, Aleksander Puskin
(Russian literature), Matthew Hen
son (North Pole), Lewis Latimer
(telephone), Jonas Salk (polio vac-
cme), Alexander the Great, Alex
ander Dumas (French literature), Bill
Cosby, Michael Jackson. ... It is
well-known that many of our
accomplishments have been attri
buted to others or erased from history
books. Much of our culture and many
of our achievements have been stolen.
It is apparent that many people, like
LamDlev. sneak before doine their
homework. I suggest that Lampley
reserve his philosophical and literary
efforts to advance his education. I
agree that there are enough "ignor
ant" people in the world.
Afro-Americans have not asked for
sympathy. We have asked that no
more barriers be erected. We want
the opportunity to reach our poten
tial. There lies the problem, perhaps.
We know that we must be twice as
good to earn half as much. Because
we strive for excellence, again and
again, we meet the challenge. Like
the dust, we rise. We have always
attempted to make the best of our
situation.
I agree with Lampley that we are
raised with different standards. We
are raised to be fair, honest and
broad-minded. We are not taught to
hate and to protect power and wealth
at others' expense. If others should
have been curved,
of us are illiterate.
After all, not all
Out of the five problems on the
original test, one was not in the
textbook and had only been demon
strated in class once. Students have
no idea what to concentrate their
studying on, since the professor won't
give them any idea what the test will
cover. And the professor canceled
class the day before the exam, never
even offering to review us himself.
I'd heard that the math department
hates undergraduates, but never was
that clearer than now. This professor
told us at the beginning of the
semester that he didn't like sopho
mores, although he could tolerate
freshmen. Of course, that might be
logical freshmen may not know
how to protest this course, but
sophomores shouldn't be afraid to.
My frustrations go beyond this
department, but they can't get much
sharper than this. I am not sure where
else to. turn in my complaints, but
this much is certain: I am paying for
this class, and if I am paying for my
education, then I expect it to be good,
and I expect to get my money's worth.
Right now, 1 am nowhere near
it means to be a "public official." It
means putting yourself last. It means
taking credit for what is yours. It
means admitting when you're wrong,
and it means setting examples to
others. Loyalty is a good trait, but
not when it makes your boss look
like a fool. It's time for Ed Meese
to leave. And it's time for adminis
tration officials to know that the
consequences of their actions don't
stop in Washington.
Dan Morrison is a junior American
studies major from Detroit.
7nWCFMW1BMB3S. -
not be expected to understand dif
ferent cultures, then why are we
forced to understand Lampley's
culture? Like it or not, we are all
intertwined. People like Lampley
need to be concerned about whether
or not we make it. Recall Nat Turner,
Toussaint L'Ouverture, Malcolm X,
and Martin Luther "King Jr. The
Roman Empire fell when no one
thought it would. The world is
dynamic; nothing lasts forever.
Although issues like teenage preg-
nancy, unemployment, poverty, mis-
education and drug abuse affect the
Afro-American community to a
greater degree, we must realize that
they affect us all.
Lampley is correct. We do have a
responsibility to ourselves; however,
we do not need someone who is
obviously lacking in a firm under
standing of our community to offer
advice. Furthermore, the mere fact
that he resorts to name-calling
("immature," "counterproductive"
and "antagonistic") shows how little
he has to say for himself. Clearly, he
is not qualified to define our human
ity. If we are to continue to contribute
to this society, we must come to
appreciate our similarities and to
understand our differences, or we will
all perish.
If he is genuinely interested in
helping to solve some of these
problems, I extend an invitation to
him to gain some knowledge and to
become active. The bottom line is that
he has said nothing profound,
Richard White is a junior political
science major from Asheville.
receiving face value.
If Carolina expects to remain the
flagship institution of the UNC
system, than it had better recommit
itself to undergraduate teaching, but
quick. The lack of commitment to
preparing students for a career or
graduate school is too often apparent
in professors who seem to prefer
staying in their ivory towers all day
to teaching and advising the 12,000
undergraduates in their care.
And until Carolina rededicates
itself to this priority, I cannot support
its calls for higher faculty pay. As
much as I enjoy this university and
take pride in saying I'm a student
here, I'm not willing to see my tax
money go to a school that has little
regard for undergraduate concerns.
What should be the first priority of
any self-respecting professor to
teach to the absolute best of his ability
is too often at the bottom of the
list. Until teaching takes precedence,
UNC does not deserve increased
funding or the flagship title.
Sharon Kebschull is a sophomore
journalism and religious studies
major from Raleigh.