October 13. 1969 The N. C. Essay Page 4
From SGA President'
by DAVID WOOD, Staff Reporter
Ira David Wood, President of
the Student Government Association
is a senior acting major in the
college division. He was a high
school senior the first year of the
school and has been a part of much
of its growth. In this article he
writes about his plans for this
school year.
We -- you, me, all of us as the
future generation of artists find
ourselves, this year, in an inter
esting, delicate and terrifying po
sition. It is as simple as saying:
We are a part of a system that we
know we have to change, and the way
is hazardous to say the least. If
this is news to you, you're already
a step behind.
The Administration apparently
had miscalculated when it thought ii
could mollify the critics and buy
more time by withdrawing 60,000 men
and reducing draft calls. "Token
ism!" complained Senator Fulbright.
And Senator Hugh Scott of Pennsyl
vania, the Senate Republican leader
just seemed to provoke the doves
when he called for a 60-day mora
torium on criticism.
It may not have sounded that
way to the White House, but Con
gressional critics insisted they
were trying to be helpful and
strengthen the President's deter
mination to end the war. None was
yet questioning the President's sin
cerity about ending the war.
"He sure as hell wants to get
out," said Senator Mike Mansfield of
Montana, the Senate majority leader,
who, for the last nine months, has
counseled patience among his fellow
doves. But the critics were growing
more skeptical that the President
actually had any plan for ending the
war or for withdrawing all American
troops.
Concerned Skeptics:
"I don't think he has a defi
nite plan although he may have
thought he had one," said Senator
Mansfield in his most pointed crit
icism thus far of Mr. Nixon's Viet
nam policy.
Skeptics were also increasingly
concerned that the Administration,
sailing under the flag of "Vietnam-
ization" of the conflict, was drift
ing into a policy of keeping 200,000
American troops indefinitely in Viet
Nam. They were becoming fearful,
too, that in the coming period of
indecision the White House was being
pulled by the military and the hawks
toward escalation if no progress was
made in the Paris negotiations.
About four or five years ago
America began to experience changes
in the arts that led out late Presi
dent Giannini to say: "We are moving.
He was right then, four or five
years ago, but the forward movement
of theatre in America is, as it has
always been everywhere, stormy and
dangerous, with swift and dizzying
turning points. We have now reached
a turning point.
It is of value to know this be
cause each turning point brings with
it a great potential of good and
evil. The elements are there wait
ing for us to tip the scales -- one
way or the other.
In speaking out once again,
therefore, the war critics main
tained they were only trying to tell
the President that he would have bi
partisan Congressional support for
much more vigorous steps to end the
war.
However, there was little dis
position to endorse the approach of
Senator Charles E. Goodell, Repub
lican of New York, of establishing a
terminal date of December, 1970, for
the withdrawal of r all American
troops. The underlying emphasis of
many of the doves was that the with
drawal of tropps was not nearly so
important as the political steps to
end the war.
In this context Senator Mans
field proposed the United States
initiate a cease-fire that would be
followed by a proposal for all-Viet
namese elections leading to the for
mation of a coalition government in
Saigon. From the Republican side a
similar suggestion came from Senator
Charles H. Percy, Republican of
Illinois, who proposed that the
United States respond to the reduced
level of fighting by "suspending
offensive ground action as long as
the enemy takes no advantage of che
situation."
Pressure also mounted among
these long-weary critics for the
United States to sever its alle
giance to the Thieu-Ky Government in
Saigon. Senator Harold E. Hughes,
Republican of Iowa, for example, was
drafting a resolution calling for
the United States to end its commit
ment to the Saigon regime if it did
not agree within 60 days to the es
tablishment of a broadly based pro
visional government for South Viet
nam.
(Cont. on Page 7)
Seeing this, then, I hope I do
not cross paths with anyone failing
to realize and assume some responsi
bility to the arts and their lives
which they have hopefully dedicated
to them.
Responsibility is a wonderful
challenge really. It molds the self
(Cont. on page 9)
LOCAL N E S P A P E R
(oont. from page 1)
The format of the paper will
be typical, including a calendar of
cultural events at the schools and
in the community.
Dealing primarily with social
issues such as draft counseling,
drugs, and student movements, the
paper will also be open for cre
ative writing covering any topic.
The editors are encouraging
any and all participation in hopes
that all the schools in the Winston
Area will be represented. Any
criticisms, inquiries or support is
welcomed and should be addressed to
Kirk Fuller, telephone 722-7744.
STUDENT n 0 R A T n R III n
(aont. from page 1)
their spokesman said. The National
Mobilization Committee has poised
forces with student organizers. In
a joint news conference, they pledged
the most massive, and we hope, final
demonstration against the war". In
Chaoel Hill, the very conservative
Y.A.F.(Young Americans for Freedom)
has opposed the protest and threatened
to sue UNC professors for breach of
contract if they do not show for
classes that day. Otherwise, many
organizations are backing the movement
with enthusiasm. Two dozen Democratic
Senators and Representatives have
pledged their support of students, in
cluding George McGovern and Eugene
McCarthy, (Two Democratic presiden
tial candidates in the last campaign),
and. Republican representatives Mark
Hatfield and Charles Goodell.
The Reform Jewish leaders have
endorsed the antiwar protest to coop
erate with youths to end the war.
"Now is the time for millions of Ameri
cans to convey, clearly, and respon
sibly, their profound concern of the
present direction of American policy
in Viet Nam".
PRESSURES n 0 II H T ON NIXON
(aont. from page 1)