Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Feb. 19, 1992, edition 1 / Page 8
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8The Daily Tar HeelWednesday, February 1 9, 1 992 My ofor Ik d 98th year of editorial freedom Jennifer Wing, Editor STEVE Poun. University Editor Amber Nimocks, City Editor ERIC Lusk, State and National Editor VlCKI HYMAN, Omnibus Editor Jennifer Dickens, Layout Editor JoAnn RODAK, Managing Editor Amy Seeley, Copy Desk Editor Kathy Michel, Photography Editor CULLEN FERGUSON, Editorial Page Editor NEIL Amato, Sports Editor CHRISTINA NlFONG, Features Editor ALEX De GRAND, Cartoon Editor MlTCH Kokai, Copy Desk Editor GRANT HALVERSON, Photography Editor Calling for a Code Convention There has never been any shortage of controversy, politically speaking, on this campus. In the short , span of a month, numerous controversies have arisen over contradictions in the Student Government Code, such as whether it was legal for the Student Supreme Court chief justice to run for student body president. A similar prob lem arose over the appointment of the Elections Board chairman. Both of these debates have sparked interest in the rules and regulations governing our student lead ers. The code is filled with ambiguities and contradictions. For example, the number of voters necessary to pass a referendum, especially fee-related ones, is question able. The code still includes rules about the obsolete campus political parties. A deci sion on the legality of judicial branch mem bers campaigning for themselves would have to be based on the interpretation of unclear legal jargon, rather than the en forcement of an unequivocable regulation. Various student leaders have voiced ad ditional problems with the code. Tim Moore, speaker of Student Congress, says the code needs to be made more specific to avoid time-consuming debates about con tradictions such as the ones that have plagued the summer session congress. Mark Shelburne, speakerpro tempore of Student Congress, says the organization of congress into three majorcommittees needs to be revised. His main complaint is that a third of student congress, the Finance Com mittee, has a huge work overload. Because of time constraints, a quarter of a million dollars in student fees is allocated to stu dent organizations in just one weekend. Congress has very little knowledge of how much money the various organizations ac tually need; by spreading out the financial responsibilities, more educated decisions could be made. Shelburne also pointed out that the code requires a 23 vote by congress to turn an issue into a referendum, denying students the right to vote on many important issues. A majority vote would certainly be more appropriate. Student Body President Matt Heyd feels that the code has unnecessarily compli cated student government. Because of the complexities of the code, students can use it as scapegoat for many different prob lems. With a simplified, more usable code, student government would get a lot more accomplished for students instead of spend ing a great deal of time focusing on govern ment rules and regulations. So far, more important things have taken priority over what would be the long and tedious process of revising the 113 page long document. But in order to ensure the efficiency and credibility of student gov ernment in the future, someone (perhaps an outgoing student body president) has to face this task. Former SBPs and congress speakers, along with local lawyers and Institute of Government officials, could meet in Chapel Hill for a sort of "Code Convention." These folks could meet and hammer out the sticky sections and pro duce a code that would put government on the right track. UNC students will always find worthy, controversial causes to support, but some of the petty political debates could be eas ily eliminated by a revision of those rules and regulations in the code. Renovating the code would not only save time in the future, but it could be the most beneficial task accomplished by gov ernment this year. Take out your own trash Some Chapel Hill residents can't stand the sight of their own garbage. At least, that's the message they are sending town council in response to a pilot curbside trash program in five Chapel Hill neighborhoods. At the Monday night coun cil meeting, some residents complained that the 90-gallon roll-out trash containers were unsightly and that traditional twice-a-week backyard pickup was preferable to the weekly roll-out service. Poor people! Not only do they actually have to trudge out to the corner once a week, lugging their garbage behind them, but they are assailed by the unbearable sight of their own waste. Perhaps such a sight will teach them a lesson one that not only could save the town $400,000 if adopted townwide, but also could raise awareness about the need to reduce waste output. Until now, it's been all too easy for Chapel Hill residents to take a nonchalant attitude about their trash. When all you have to do is toss it out the back door, it's easy to lose track of just how much need less waste you're creating. If sanitation workers do your dirty work for you, you don't mind tossing out that extra bottle or can that could be recycled instead. But now some Chapel Hill residents must face for themselves the mountains of trash they're creating, and they don't like what they see. So the trash is too heavy? Do whatever you can to create less of it. Recycle those items that can be recycled and avoid using dis posable plastic, styrofoam and paper prod ucts when a reusable substitute is avail able. People 65 and older and those with physi cal disabilities should be granted exemp tions for the roll-out program. With those exceptions, it's not asking too much of residents to get a little exercise and save the town some money in the process. And as for those ugly containers, if resi dents can muster enough energy to roll them back behind their houses right after the trash is picked up, they won't have to suffer the sight of them for very long. Trash is indeed an ugly thing. The sooner we realize that, the sooner we'll do something to create less of it. Business and advertising: Kevin Schwartz, directorgeneral manager, Bob Bates, advertising director, Leslie Humphrey, classified ad manager, Aiuson Asnwonn. Business manager. Business stall: Michelle Gray, assistant managenGira Berardino, and Laurie Davis, office assisMsChrissy Davis, promotions manager. Classifies' advertising: Amy Dew, Becky Marquette, Lorrie Pale, Leah Richards and Jennifer Terry, npnsentaSves.OoA Campbell, production assistant. Display advertising: Ashlelah Heath, advertising manager, Milton Artis, Marcie Bailey, Robert Lee Carson, Carrie Grady, Angela Gray, David Hoffmann, Joanna Hutchins, Lynne Sandridge, Brooks Sprad ling, and Ginger Wagoner, account executives, Mariea Miller, assistant account executive; Winone weaver, nicki uiair, proofreaders. Advertising production: Bill Leslie, managersystem administrator; MM Bentley and Lorrie Pate, assistants. Assistant editors: Anne Michaud, artscoordinatorMitty Floyd and Aimee Hobbs, copy: Oana Pope. cfy.Shea Riggsbee, editorial; Beth Tatum. features; Chip Sudderfh, graphics coordinator; Valerie Fields, managing; Vicki Hyman and Mike Long, Omnibus; Andrew Cline, piotoijrapiy, Stewart Chisam, Eric David, Warren Hynesand Bryan Strickland, sports; Anna Griffin, state and national;BKh DeVault, Ashley Fogle and Bonnie flochman, university. Newsclertc Kevin Brennan. Editorial writers: Karen Dietrich, David Etchison, Adam Ford, Shea Riggsbee and Will Spears. University: Michael Bradley, John Broadfoot. Megan Brown, Shannon Crownover, Soyia Ellison, Kathy Ford, Heather Harreld, Valerie Holbert, Teesha Holladay, Kathleen Keener, Chandra McLean, Jenny Mclnnis, Marty Minchin, MariciaMoye, Jennifer Mueller, Cathy Oberte, Anuradha Seth, Marcia Sweeney, Jennifer Talhelm, Kelly Thompson, Marcy Walsh, Jon Whisenant and Michael Workman. Cltv: Tiffany Ashhurst. Jennifer Brett. Andrea Bruce. Kim Cable. Maile Carpenter. Andrew Cline. Carol Davis. Julie Rick. Chris Goodson. Christy Hardee, Jackie Hershkowitz, Grant Holland, Wendy Petrell. Emily Russ, Kelly Ryan and Brendan Smith. stats ant National: Josn uoyer, lara uuncan, brandy nsner, miiam Han, vicki hyman. Karen Lakey, Laura Laxton, Brian Mcjunwn, Rebecah Moore, Lars Munson, Adrienne Parker, Jason Richardson, Bruce Robinson Pete Simpkinson and Chris Trahan. Special Assignments: Alisa DeMao. Anna Griffin, Mara Lee, Jennifer Mueller and Gillian Murphy. Arts: Lavton Croft. Ned Diriik. Beth Formv-Duval. Laura Guv. Grant Hafverson. Ashley Harris. Melissa MankowsM. Charles Marshall. Jonathan McCall, Rahul Menu. Greg Miller, Elizabeth Oliver, Susie Rickard, Martin Scott. Jenni Spitz, Sally Stryker and Ian Williams. (satires: Yi-Hsin unarm, view tneng. tvucnaet tasteny, jacxie rierskowitz, i nomas King, Mara tee, Knsnn Leigni, hodm Lowe, Anna Meadows. Kelly Noyes, Mary Moore Parham, Sonja Post, Winifred Sease and Howard Thompson. Sports: Mark Anderson, senior writer Jason Bates, Jennifer Ounlap, Jay Exum. Stuart Gordan, Dave Heiser, Doug Hoogervorst, Matt Johnson, David J. Kupstas, Mary Latterly, John C. Manuel, Amy McCaffrey, Bobby McCroskey, David Monroe, Jay Strobleand Carter Toole. Photography: Brian Jones, senior photographer; Jonathan Atkeson, Kevin Chignell, Steve Exum, Garth Fort, Florian Hanig, Erin Randall, Evie Sandlin and Debbie Stengel. Copy EdltorcAndy Bechtel, Tiffany Cook. Amy Cummins, Michael Gaudio, Kyle Hooper, Rama Kayyall, Jennifer Kurfees, Mara Lee, Marty McGee, Vikki Meicer, Mary Moore Parham, Susan Pearsall, Jennifer Reid, Christie saleh, John Slaton, Jacqueline Torok, Rick Twomey, Kenyatta Upchurch, Sara Watson, Amy Waller and Nancy West urspnics: jonn uaserta, jay HoseDorougn ana hick bonie. Cartoonists: Mandy Brame, Mary Brutzman, Lem Butter, Chris DePree and Carolyn Banders. Layout Shane Klein, Ian Leong, Heather Modlin, Teresa Rucker and Sheila Terrell. Editorial Production: Stacy Wynn, manager Lisa Reichte. assistant Distribution and Printing: Village Printing Company The Daily Tar Heel Is published by the DTH Publishing Corp., a non-profit North Carolina corporation, Monday-Friday, according to the University calendar. Callers with Questions about billina or dlsDlav advertisina should dial 962-1 163 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 o.m. Classified ads can be reached at 962-0252. Editorial questions should be directed to 962-02450246. Office: Sulfa 104 Carolina Union Campus mall address: CBI 5210 aoi 49. Carolina Union U.8. Mall address: P.O. Box 3257. Chapel Hill, NC 27515-3257 MEArVflCftTtL AUSTWtfEWK HOMO SAPtfo STUPEAT ' politcciaV 'Uncle Toms' could be Afrocentrics in disguise Uh, girl, she makes me sick. I don't know who told her she was white. She needs to slap a pot of perm in her hair, put on some normal clothes and stop hangin' around all those white people." "I don t know why he is coming into the 'hood now. I don't want to be bothered with him after he has been sleeping with all those white girls. He must have finally been called a nigger and decided that he wanted to come home. I ain't got nothing to say to him." There are so many shades of black and gray, with so many people ready to define each one and assign them as labels. Does being an Afri can American mean having dreds or beads or Rente cloth? Does it mean being very dark- skinned with Afrocentric features? Do you have to listen to a certain kind of music or believe in certain political values to be an African American? Do you have to date only African-American people? I have a very good African-American friend who is a Tri Delta at Duke University. She has no problem with interracial relationships and has been known to date a few white men her self. She absolutely loves Garth Brooks, Randy Travis and Hank Williams Jr. and does not own any Rente of which I know. She probably has no idea who Haki Madhubutt is, but I would not be so quick to label her as being a washed-out sister with no sense of self. I know that she was not brought up in a household that was ashamed of being African-American because she is my sister, and we were brought up in the same home with the same parents. People often ask me how we can be sisters and be so different, as if my sister is an alien African American. We really are not that dif ferent.! admit that I do not especially like Garth jw3r$. kiiiiiiiiiiiiaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiaiiiiiilliliiliiiiiii Erika Campbell 5? With No I Assistance Brooks and have not been kickin' it with a man who was not of African descent, but I still believe my sister and I are very much alike. She does like men who are African-American. She also loves rap and listens to tapes by Naughty By Nature, D.J. Quick, Geto Boys and Too Short. Not to mention the important aspects of being a responsible African-American person. She believes in improving the African-American community and believes all African-American people are indebted to this community and must give back to it. She chooses political leaders based on this belief, and, unlike some people who wear Afrocentricity on their sleeves, she is a registered voter and does not miss elections. My sister says that she believes that African American people, especially educated African American people, who fall into the trap of portraying one style of African-American cul ture allow themselves to be culturally enslaved. I agree with her, and I am proud that I have a sister who is rooted deep enough within her own culture that she can embrace other cultures openly and force them to accept her on her own terms. My sister is not unlike many African Americans who find themselves excluded from the community only because they have ties with other cultures. Having ties with other cultures and com pletely giving up your own culture to adopt another are two entirely different acts. I do believe that those people who are too ashamed of their own cultures to know them and admit it are very confused and mentally ill people. Too often, however, those of us who are proud to be African-American place this confused and mentally ill label on people who have chosen simply to portray their versions of African American culture in a manner different from the status quo. When we reject someone of our own culture simply because he believes that being African-American means having the right to express himself and hisculfure in the manner he chooses, we are rejecting sisters and broth ers who may be even more sure of their African-American culture than we are of ours, Names such as "gray," "Uncle Tom" and "oreo" hurt as much as "nigger," and we really should watch the way in which we throw them around. I am ashamed to admit that there was a time when I quickly and ignorantly called people these ugly names without really knowing these people or their beliefs. Now I watch what I say and think before I speak. The very person that you or I may judge on face value to bea"boogie Uncle Tom"could be the most Afrocentric person. On Monday night, a good-looking African-American man wearing a nice double-breasted blue suit spoke in the Black Cultural Center. On face value, he could have been an Unc le Tom or an oreo. But he wasn't. He was Haki Madhubuti, the most Afrocentric of African-American businessmen, who taught all that listened some valuable lessons about aiding the African-American community. Erika Campbell is a senior English major from Chattanooga, Tenn. 'Pseudo-Christians' perpetuate hatred To the editor: "Every female who braids her hair shall be charged with a misde meanor punishable by a fine up to but not exceeding $50" (based on 1 Timothy 2:9). "Anyone convicted of eating bacon shall receive pun ishment of fines up to but not ex ceeding $500 and up to but not exceeding six months in jail" (based on Deuteronomy 14:6). "Any any found guilty of raping an unwed and unengaged virgin shall be fined $50 (payable to the virgin's father) and shall be required to marry her. Divorce is forbidden" (based on Deuteronomy 22:28-29). How would you tike to have laws such as these? This is similar to what you would get if this country's legal system were based on the Bible, as Stephen Knowles has revealed to us in his letter ( Bib lical morality forms basis of U.S. Constitution," Feb. 17). He as sumes that since our "founding fa thers" based our system on reli gion (a debatable point), it is still the best way to run this country. This article referred to the case in which Superior Court Justice Shellie Bowers quoted biblical passages in defense of a verdict against same-sex marriage. In quoting these excepts, Bow ers supported select passages as the basis for some of our nation's la ws(especially the "crimes against nature" laws that make illegal many formsof sexual expressions of love between same-sex and two-sex couples.) Most likely. Bowers would not like to face fines for eating pork or have a daughter marry a rapist, but Bowers does like to use vague quotations to dis criminate against a minority group. So Bower?, as well as many others against non-heterosexuality, makes a judgment about which portions of the Bible to base our lawsbelief systems. How do these pseudo-Chnstians make these judgments? They form their beliefs on what the perceive to be the social norm, or perhaps their beliefs make them feel com fortable. Then they justify them selves by interpreting certain pas sages of the Bible to concur with their beliefs. They ignore the more harsh biblical passages with de fenses such as "the New Testa ment supersedes the Old Testa ment." This inconsistency only perpetuates discrimination and hatred against those who are not part of the mainstream American culture. JOHN D.JOHNSON Junior Math Education Love your Mother Ask for your pizza on a plate Editor's note: The writers are TARP co-chairwomen. To the editor With the recent expansion of services on campus, recycling has become more popular than ever (see campus elections if you need proof). What is being overlooked is that recycling is only one part of the solution. In order to truly con serve our resources and save our landfill space, we must reduce our consumption of disposables, reuse whatever wecan, then recycle what we have no further use for. The one activity that probably creates the most unnecessary waste on an individual, daily basis is eating. For example, on Feb. 12, TARP (TAr Heel Recycling Pro gram) collected 300 used pizza boxes from trays in Lenoir. These were boxes that were never taken anywhere but to a table inside the building. We fail to see the neces sity of a box when a plate will serve the same function without creating waste. The fact is that an overwhelming majority of the piz zas that were eaten inside Lenoir were from a box and not from a plate. We estimate that at least 2,500 are wasted in this manner every week, roughly 100,000 a year, at Lenoir. It is unconscionable that so much unnecessary waste should be created. Trees are cut down to make those ugly 1 i ttle boxes. These boxes are not recyclable and will go straight to the landfill. If space runs out in Orange County's land fill, a new one will be started, maybe on Duke Forest, or maybe in your backyard. Doesn't it make more sense to just avoid the waste in the first place?? This is what is known as pre-cycling avoiding excessive packaging and dispos able products. We're not asking people to stop eating, but there are responsible ways to go about it, especially on campus. Marriott, the corporation that operates Lenoir, Chase and the campus snack bars, is working for you, a student. You pay for your food; therefore, you have the right to request that it be served as you like. The folks who make the pizzas are friendly and will put a pizza, right out of the oven, on a plate for you. Just ask for your pizza on a plate! And while you're at it, pizza boxes aren't the only disposables that can be avoided. When eating in, use a glass, not a paper cup. Use plastic salad plates and yogurt bowls, not styrofoam ones. Try not to take food out of the dining halls, especially in those huge styrofoam boxes. And remember that you can bring your own reusable mugs for drinks. (Marriott will offer a dis count if you buy their mug, and SEAC has new mugs that will be on sale starting next week) Avoid disposables at every tum. It really takes very little effort to care about your environment and then act on your concerns. Marriott claims that they offer UNC stu dents a choice when it comes to service. Show them that you choose not to waste. CRISTINA PEREZ Sophomore Math NANCY GOLDEN Junior Biology Popular DJ at WXYC deserves second chance To the editor: I was shocked to team that one of the true treasures of Chapel Hill and an institution of the alternative airways, the "Orange County Spe cial" on WXYC, had lost its host of the last 1 1 years. In this ME TOO age of pre-programmed, top-40 babble, the "Orange County Spe cial" was a refreshing three hours of non-commercial music. Triangle Slim, the host of the show for the last 1 1 years, was suddenly fired a few weeks ago. Much of the eclectic and esoteric music heard on the show was from Slim'sprivatecollectionof 10,000 or so pieces. Many of the record ings heard on these shows could literally not be heard anywhere else in the Southeast. Many of the live entertainers on the show were personal friends of Slim and would otherwise not be heard on the air ways. The DJs that replace Slim are also very good, but most of the music they play could be heard on other stations, if one took the time to search the dial. The local vinyl junkies and purveyors of non mainstream music will certainly miss the alternative void filled by Slim. One of the reasons I relo cated from Raleigh to Durham was so I could enjoy this arcane music show every Sunday. I believe WXYC as well as the music junk ies will suffer as a result of this decision. Each year when WXYC did its week-long Begathon, al most one-third of the money was raisedduring this three-hourshow. Slim was working for the re nowned Rounder Record Label and collecting music when the station manager was in the first grade. Hopefully, in the interest of WXYC, the station manager will reconsider his decision, take ad vantage of this valuable resource and allow the radio public expo sure to this wealth of musical knowledge. MALCOLM CARROLL Durham Letters policy Letters should be limited to 400 words. If you want your letter pub lished, sign and date it. No more than two signatures. All letters must be typed and double spaced. Include your year in school, major, phone number and hometown.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 19, 1992, edition 1
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