The Daily Tar HeelMonday, November 2, 19929
3
I
Vote Clinton for hope, change
Anew generation of leadership.
That's what Bill Clinton and
Al Gore are offering. Why should
you buy into it, believe that this time
things will be different? Because today's
students have everything to gain and
everything to lose in this election. Our
education, our jobs and our futures are
on the line. Clinton and Gore will bring
vision, commitment and hope to the
White House. They have a plan to put
people first, and it begins with our gen
eration. How many of your friends who re
cently have graduated are still at home
looking for a job? How many of you are
feeling the comfort of knowing that it
will be three or two or maybe one year
until you'U have to face this uncer
tainty? At least you have that time. How
many of you are in my present situa
tion? Graduation is only five months
away, and with no present employment
prospects, I am faced with insecurity in
what the future might hold. The fact is,
folks, it didn't used to be this uncertain
or insecure. Under President George
Bush, the national unemployment rate
in the United States has increased 39
percent in four years. In North Carolina
alone, unemployment has risen a stag
gering 84 percent. Eighty-four percent!
No wonder our futures are filled with
' uncertainty. Seventeen million Ameri
cans can ' t find full-time work, and these
men and women are not lazy or unedu
cated. Many, many of these American
' citizens have college degrees and have
worked at high-paying jobs before.
Unquestionably, it's time for a change
in leadership.
Reviving the economy means invest
ing in people and putting an end to
trickle-down economics. Clinton and
Gore will create millions of high-wage,
high-skill jobs by investing in new tech
nologies that will help the United States
:, compete. Clinton and Gore will pro
mote investment in American business,
. rebuild American industry, and penal
ize big corporations that move over
seas. Do you realize what this means?
Clinton and Gore will make our futures
more certain and secure. That' s reassur-
Literacy: a tool
It's becoming a more common scene:
Students, parents, workers, retirees
and others have been gathering in a
whirlwind of educational partnerships
all across the country. In schools,
rhnrrhps lihrarii nark hpnrhfts nnH
homes, literacy is hot. From Barbara
Bush to the radical student, few would
debate that literacy is not a good thing.
With so much activity going on, though,
it's easy to simply nod in agreement,
"literacy is good," and move on to the
other issues of the day.
I propose we step back from this
whirlwind, take a hreath. and eet a sense
of what is going on when it comes to
literacy. Of course, many are already
closely examining this very issue, but
' too often the discussion is trapped in the
literacy circles.
Not so surprisingly, the heart of this
discussion is the notion of "What is
A vote for Perot is a vote for out-of-touch BushQuayle ticket: Choose Clinton
It is election eve. Do you know where
your country is?
We've heard a lot of rhetoric this
campaign year. Even so, I fear that we
the voters haven't heard enough honest
talk about the many problems our coun
try faces. What is the legacy of the
ReaganBush years? What kind of fu
ture do we want for ourselves? These
are fundamental questions that we must
ask when we go to the polls Tuesday.
A few people were made wealthy by
the ReaganBush era, but for most
Americans, our quality of life is a lot
worse. With wages down and unem
ployment up, people are scrambling to
keep their jobs and provide for their
families. This is a hell of a lot harder
when government services are cut to
feed the ever-mushrooming federal defi
cit, a result of Reagan's "free-for-all"
government policies in the 1980s, which
gave us the savings and loan crisis among
other notable failures.
With health-care costs through the
roof and a college education more ex
pensive than ever before, middle-class
families with sons and daughters our
age are being stretched to their financial
limits. These families are in danger of
joining the swelling ranks of the poor in
Catherine Wilson
Guest Columnist
ing. Definitely, it's time for a change in
leadership.
Clinton and Gore know the key to
America's future is our education. Col
lege education costs have skyrocketed
under Bush, increasing more than 60
percent for in-state students in North
Carolina. But I don't have to remind
you of that. You are feeling the in
crease; yourparents' wallets are feeling
the increase, too. And if you have taken
out school loans to pay for your educa
tion, you will be feeling it even more
when the loan collectors begin to call.
But what about those of you who were
unable to receive school loans or grants?
Those of you who had to sacrifice a full
course load in order to pay your tuition
and fees? After all, Bush slashed $750
million out of student loan programs in
1990.
Well, there is hope. The Clinton
Gore administration will preserve Pell
Grants for students and guarantee every
American the right to borrow money for
college. They will do this by setting up
a National Service Trust Fund, allow
ing Americans who borrow money for
college to pay it back in one of two
ways: either as a small percentage of
their incomes over time or by serving
their communities as teachers, health
care workers or peer counselors. Sen
sible, isn' t it? Undoubtably , it' s time for
a change in leadership.
On Nov. 3, 1992, our generation can
change history. It is time to put people
first again. Clinton and Gore want to
help you and have plans to do so. The
difference between the ClintonGore
administration and Bush is simple: One
cares about you; the other doesn't and
never will. Vote change on Tuesday.
Vote hope on Tuesday. Vote Bill Clinton
and Al Gore on Tuesday.
Catherine Wilson is a senior politi
cal science major from Castonia and
president of the Young Democrats.
to empower the
Matthew Adams
Guest Columnist
literacy?" Asked 1,000 times, the ques
tion yields 1 ,000 answers. At the turn of
the century, the government considered
you literate if you could write your
name. Nowadays, there are skills-based
tests, reading tests, writing tests and a
plethora of definitions. Ironically,
though, many testers fail to ask their
subjects if they consider themselves lit
erate and why (though the census in the
early part of the century did simply that
to set a literacy number). The important
point here is that your definition of
illiteracy will greatly impact how you
deal with it and why.
One way or the other, though, most
people associate literacy with the ac
Josh Busby
Guest Columnist
this country. And what are the job pros
pects for us when we graduate? Right
now, a college degree guarantees noth
ing. It's not right, and it's not fair. We
can do better.
The Republican Party is out of touch
with mainstream American values and
has pandered to right-wing extremists
and the wealthy. They have essentially
sold us out.
Most Americans want clean air and
clean water and believe our natural heri
tage is worth saving. Most Americans
know intuitively that if you consume all
your natural resources and pollute your
home, your quality of life will decrease.
When the Bush administration says,
"we have to gut the Clean Air Act and
Endangered Species Act because it costs
jobs," they simply don't understand that
our economic success is dependent upon
environmental protection. Many indus
tries care as little about saving jobs as
they do about protecting the environ
ment Corporate executives have fired
workers while raking in multimillion-
Vote for Perot for strong
leadership, change
To the editor:
Ross Pefot represents one of the best
opportunities for true leadership that
America has seen in a long time. When
was the last time we saw a candidate
speaking his mind like Perot does? When
was the last time we saw a candidate
telling the truth the way Perot does?
When was the last time we saw a candi
date shunning the blame game and fo
cusing on what's important like Perot
does? These could be invaluable presi
dential qualities as we encounter the
tough economic and social problems
that lie ahead.
Even if you don't agree with Perot on
all the issues, gauge for yourself the
ability this man has to jump start the
country (emotionally and economically)
at a time when a jump-start is badly
needed. Look at his action-oriented, no
nonsense approach. Look at his deep
commitment to the future of the United
States. Most importantly, look at his
sincerity! We all sense something dif
ferent about Perot as soon as he speaks
it's his refreshing frankness and can
dor. His words come from the heart, not
from some calculation of which com
ments will win the most votes. Isn't it
about time we had a president with
some of these characteristics?
I've heard that Perot's former em
ployees at EDS were willing to do any
thing for him. For some reason, that
doesn't surprise me. A man with his
obviously strong convictions and even
stronger dedication is a natural inspira
tion. When I see someone doing their all
for something they believe in, I feel like
doing the same. And the things he be
lieves in are as central to this country's
heritage as any man's. Despite his
wealth, Perot feels more deeply for
Americans of all backgrounds than any
politician I've ever seen. I hear him say
that he's doing this whole campaign for
the young people and the children, and
I believe him!
We cannot afford to wait until 1996
to see if Perot runs again. Four more
years of status-quo government will
furmerdimtheoutlookforourchildren's
future. WE will have rung up more huge
bills and have less to show for it. The
question facing each of us is not whether
we should risk electing an independent
minded, strong-willed non-politician to
educationally disenfranchised
quisition of some skills or abilities to
read and write at a level that permits
access to general information. The abil
ity to read in itself is deemed the univer
sal honorable goal of literacy programs.
One need look no further than the ad
campaigns for many literacy programs
to see this sentiment strongly displayed.
Poverty, crime, workplace performance
and homelessness are given the glue of
literacy to tie them all together. If only
these people could read ...
It is a false notion, I would claim, that
the large-scale acquisition of reading
skills at some utilitarian level dramati
cally would affect the above societal
ills. Illiteracy (as loosely defined above)
is as much a result of poverty as a cause.
The ability to read and write is certainly
a factor in affecting one's world, but
just one factor.
What is the point then? It is that
dollar salaries for themselves.
When Bush and Quay le bow to pres
sure from these companies, they feed
our deficit. They fail to take these in
dustries to task for remaining
uncompetitive with Japanese and Ger
man firms who have recognized that
new, efficient environmental technolo
gies make money. We will soon be
buying these products from them like
we buy televisions and other electronic
equipment. Why? They cater to the
, wealthy who are reluctant to modernize
their plants or prepare their employees
for a 21st century economy. Bush and
Quayle care little about most Ameri
cans. They are out of the mainstream.
Most Americans want a united
American community. However, Bush
and Quayle are masters of division.
Their economic policies have forced
more Americans into poverty and con
centrated the wealth into the hands of a
few. Furthermore, Bush and Quayle
have used divisive rhetoric to pit poor
whites, blacks and other ethnic groups
against each other. This stratification
and division threatens to tear the coun
try apart as the "have-nots" fight over
the few good jobs remaining and the
dwindling funds for government ser
the presidency, the question is whether
we can afford not to do so! We might
not get another chance to elect a strong
leader for a long time.
JEFF SLOMSKY
Raleigh
Perot presidency would
give power to the people
To the editor:
For many years I have moaned and
groaned over the platforms of the Re
publican and Democratic parties and
tried to vote for the lesser of the two
evils. I think most of us have dreamed of
a candidate that would represent us with
a little old-fashioned common sense
and draw the best ideas from both par
ties. A candidate with vision and solu
tions! A candidate that realizes that
nothing happens without action. Ross
Perot is that candidate. We cannot pass
up the opportunity to let him work at
solving our economic and domestic
problems. The Democrats and Republi
cans have had many years to solve our
economic problems, but the debt con
tinues to grow. It's a forgone conclu
sion that we will ha ve to make sacrifices
to solve our problems. The big question
is: How will our tax dollars be spent?
I can't believe that any employed or
unemployed person would not want
Perot to father a new industrial revolu
tion. By making our own products, we
employ our own people, our economy
gets better, quality of life gets better,
family economic stress lessens, and
crime statistics decrease. The positive
chain reaction goes on and on. Perot is
a man with solutions.
There is no such thing as a wasted
vote! We must vote our conscience.
How else can we show Washington that
we like the solutions that Perot has to
offer and that we want solutions that are
acted on?
I am sick and tired of the unproduc
tive time and money that is spent on
political conflicts between the Demo
crats and Republicans. An independent
president can draw support and coop
eration from both parties in Congress!
And we have the power to make it
happen! Don't pass up this opportunity
for positive change. Let's get our gov
ernment back in the hands of the people !
BETTY MACBRYDE
Greensboro
literacy should be seen as a tool to
empower the lives of people and their
communities, giving voice to the edu
cationally disenfranchised. Simple lan
guage acquisition, without the tools to
analyze, debate, construct and act, will
not give this voice or affect the menu of
societal problems that are often wedded
with illiteracy.
A social literacy, one that asks what
it is that people need and want, one that
seeks to empower all participants in the
process, one that sees reading and writ
ing as a means and not an end, one that
does not blame the individual for struc
tural problems this is the literacy I
would like to see feeding the whirlwind
of activity.
Matthew Adams is the program di
rector for the Student Coalition for Ac
tion in Literacy Education.
vices cut to the bone after 12 years of
ReaganBush. Meanwhile, corporations
have gotten fat off welfare for the
wealthy through hundreds of millions
of dollars in government subsidies.
Most Americans are pro-choice. Bush
and Quayle can waffle all they like on
this one; their platform is clearly anti
choice in all circumstances including
rape and incest. They are out of the
mainstream.
Most Americans are religious, yet
favor a separation of church and state.
With Bush embracing Pat Buchanan,
Pat Robertson and Jerry Falwell, he has
endorsed their far-right ideology that
seeks to impose their morality on the
rest of us. A flier is being circulated in
N.C. churches that says, "A vote for Bill
Clinton is a sin against God." This kind
of extremist blather, whoever the re
sponsible party is, is indicative of how
far right these groups are. Bush and
Quayle are out of the mainstream.
If you are as unhappy with Bush as I
am, then what is the solution? Some say
both parties are corrupt, and Ross Perot
is the answer. While Perot has ener
gized the debate and forced the candi
dates to address the deficit more
strongly, he hasn't a prayer of winning.
Bush: a candidate for values
In response to the plethora of pro-Bill
Clinton, pro-Ross Perot and pro
abortion letters, columns and car
toons that litter your editorial pages, I
must express my support for President
Bush.
The 1 992 presidential election is cru
cial. America is standing on the brink of
destruction, and our future could well
depend on whom we choose to elect
tomorrow. This nation is in a state of
chaos because we have turned against
God and His ways. Unless we put a man
who stands for godly values into office,
America will crumble. Bush is the only
candidate we can afford to elect this
year.
We have turned against God on the
issue of abortion. This sin is a blight on
our nation. Check your Bible. God re
fused to forgive certain nations because
they ripped open pregnant women, sac
rificed their children for material gain
and filled the streets with innocent blood.
The Lord would not pardon them be
cause of the innocent blood that they
shed. (II Kings 24:4, 2 1 : 1 6, 1 5: 1 6, Amos
1:13) The streets of America are over
flowing with the blood of millions of
innocent babies. If the blood of Abel, to
which Jesus Himself referred in Mat
thew 23, cried out to God from the
ground (Genesis 10), how much more
deafening to the Lord are the screams of
the blood of countless murdered in
fants? A nation with so much blood on
its hands is cursed of God. Abortion is
not a women's rights issue. It is not a
choice issue. It is a SIN. It is a MASSA
CRE. And it is MURDER. God will not
overlook abortion. Bush opposes abor
tion on demand and tax-funded abor
tions (both of which Clinton and Perot
support). It is probable that Roe vs.
Wade will be overturned, or at least
seriously dented, if Bush is re-elected.
If this happens, America will be on its
way to being restored.
Homosexuality is an abomination in
the eyes of God. No legislation, no
nouveau thinking, no new enlighten
ment will ever change that. Remember
Sodom and Gomorrha. (2 Peter 2:6)
God is still God, and sin is still sin.
While there is always forgiveness for
those who repent, there first must be
repentance. A country that condones,
pampers, applauds sin is in for it. "Woe
unto them that call evil good and good
evil ... woe unto them that decree un
righteous decrees." (Isaiah 5:20, 10:1)
Only Bush opposes homosexual rights.
Christians on this campus need to
WAKE UP. The gravity of this year's
election is staggering. God is not pleased
with this backsliding, rebellious coun
try, America is teetering on the edge of
judgment. Yes, in 1992, modern, so
phisticated America is on the verge of
destruction because of her sin. Chris
tians, we are rapidly losing our liberties.
The Pledge of Allegiance is banned in
public schools because of the word
"God." (There's no longer a choice
it's just forbidden by law.) Prayer dur
ing high school graduation was canned
this summer by a Supreme Court deci
sion. There are churches in this nation
that are being sued because people at
tending services are being saved.
But wait! There's more. The govern
ment is telling preachers what they can
and cannot preach from their own pulpit
regarding abortion, even if that means
Disregardingthequestionsabout Perot's
haziness on issues and authoritarian
leadership style, the Electoral College
makes it impossible for Perot to win.
Remember, the presidential race is
winner take all on a state-by-state basis.
A candidate could win a majority of the
popular vote but not have the 270 elec
toral votes necessary to win the Elec
toral College. To win a state and its
electoral votes, the pundits say a candi
date in a three-way race needs to receive
at least 40 percent of the vote in that
state. Ross Perot nationally is receiving
only between 1 4 percent and 1 7 percent
in the polls. Even in Colorado, Perot's
strongest state, he has only about 30
percent support. That's still not enough
for him to win a single electoral vote.
There is nothing that Ross Perot can
do to rum that around. Since he charged
the Bush administration had doctored
photos of his daughter to ruin her wed
ding, Perot's support has leveled off.
What Perot is doing is drawing change
oriented voters away from Clinton. Polls
indicate the race is narrowing not be
cause Bush is gaining popularity but
because Perot is drawing more voters
away from Clinton, despite the way
Perot hammered Bush on the economy
Sunshine Franklin
Guest Columnist
reading a passage of the Scriptures.
Worship services at a church in Vir
ginia were interrupted by police who
issued warrants to arrest several church
members, detained worshipers from
entering the prayer room and forced
people to file through a check point,
among other atrocities. The police vio
lated 1 5 federal and state laws by doing
this. Churches might soon lose their
tax-exempt status, meaning that the
government will, among other things,
start taxing tithes and offerings. (But
our tax money flows freely into the
grubby hands of obscene art producers
like pervert, uh, Robert Mapplethorpe.)
And the Federal Communications
Commission, which deals with the ra
dio and television airwaves, is in the
process of creating a bill that would
provide for the arrest of any pastor who
preaches that homosexuality is a sin on
the air. Yes, the arrest. It's happening.
Bush is in favor of the Voluntary School
Prayer Amendment and the Parental
Choice in Education Voucher Plan,
which retains liberties for and accessi
bility to private and religious schools.
Bill Clinton opposes both of these.
(Some pro-choice guy he is. What a
double standard.) Our religious free
dom is at stake. It's already slipping
through our fingers. Bush is the only
candidate this year who can help us hold
some ground. I'm scared to imagine
what America will be like for Christians
if Bush does not win.
If the leader of this country does not
uphold a godly standard, then we' ve got
the blind leading the blind, and they
both fall into a pit. America is hurtling
headlong into hell. Do we want a smarmy
adulterer (that's Clinton) behind the
wheel so he can stomp on the accelera
tor and drive us faster to Gehenna? Do
we want a nasally dropout (that'd be
Perot) who wants to buy our way out of
judgment? Lord have mercy. We must
turn from our wicked ways. America
must turn from her wicked ways. There
is not another way to restore the coun
try. Economic plans, health care, tax
increases, social programs these are
the arm of the flesh. The arm of the flesh
cannot help a nation that will not ad
dress the root of its problems. That root
is sin. Turn from sin (abortion, homo
sexuality, rebellion, blasphemy, etc.)
and God will hear, forgive and heal.
America turned 500 years old this
year. Will God continue to shed His
grace on this country if we keep shoving
Him out the door? Will He Shbw'mercy
to those who trample on' the blood of
His Son Jesus? THIS IS A CRITICAL
ELECTION. Bush is the only candidate
this year who takes the right position on
the most important issues. He is the
only candidate who has demonstrated
any moral fiber, who has not buckled
under the "popular" (or at least the most
vociferous) view, who has stood for and
will stand for God. So PLEASE. Turn
from your wicked ways. And pray for,
and VOTE for, the man who sticks to
the commandments of the Lord.
Sunshine Franklin is a junior educa
tion major from Cary.
and his building up of Saddam Hussein' s
military before the Persian Gulf War.
Every four years, the Republicans
call the Democratic presidential candi
date a "liberal." Clinton is a moderate's
moderate. He and Al Gore formed the
breakaway Democratic Leadership
Council that sought to modernize the
party's "tax-and-spend" reputation.
Clinton realizes that government can
not do everything but that government
has an important role to play in provid
ing essential public services that benefit
us all. Clinton's vision is thoughtful and
fresh, praised by Democrats and Re
publicans alike. He is the only candi
date who can beat Bush. A vote for
Clinton is in all of our best interests.
A vote for Perot is a vote for Bush. It
is a vote for the status quo. It is a wasted
vote for change. If you are considering
a vote for Perot, please realize he cannot
win. If you are as unhappy about Bush's
failure as most Americans, I strongly
urge you to vote for Clinton. He's the
only hope we have to turn this country
back before it's too late.
Josh Busby is a senior political sci
ence and biology major from College
Station, Texas.