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8 Tuesday, February 27,1996 Wc\t Satlg (Ear Hrrl Hjuimsb Cimbairis EDfrofl Marc MeCoDim MANAGING EDITOR Peter Roybal managing editor / World VWde Web Electronic Edition; hnp*J/www.unc.eduydth | ill Rely Jo Gamer electronic bntor |vy/ Established, 1893 Hie 103 Years of Editorial Freedom BOARD EDITORIALS Rise ‘N’ Plan IUNC has a unique opportunity to implement a plan outlining six clear goals for refocusing on the classroom, but it may require swallowing a little pride. Wake up, UNC. UNC Faculty Council Chairwoman Jane Brown terms anew plan to improve under graduate education a “wake-up call” for the 16 UNC-system schools. UNC should answer the call and take advantage of the proposals. Last year’s General Assembly told the UNC system general administration to refocus on undergraduate classrooms. UNC-system Associate Vice President for Planning Gary Barnes responded with a plan working toward six overarching goals. Although the goals seem nebulous —includ- ing high-sounding phrases such as “expand the base ofknowledge” and “improve... the quality of life for (North Carolina’s) citizens” the plan lays out feasible strategies to reach these goals, including performance indicators. Even better, money has been set aside—s 24 million in incentives to encourage universi ties’ compliance. Although some argue the declining intellec tual climate on UNC’s 16 campuses cannot be solved by a quick fix, this plan works on improv ing one aspect which can be helped the classroom environment. The plan includes incentives for faculty to teach smaller undergraduate classes, which any one who has taken a 400-person class can appre ciate. The plan also has suggestions to increase the number of students graduating in four years, encourage faculty to spend time with students Blue Light Special Westbound students may have noticed an atypical billboard on 1-40 near Greensboro. The message: Boycott K-Mart. Greensboro’s Pulpit Forum, a group of black ministers, should be commended for their grassroots efforts to organize against Greens boro K-Mart’s apparent racism and low wages, and consumers should take their business else where. K-Mart opened a regional distribution facil ity in Greensboro in 1992, and pays employees between $6.75 to $8.50 an hour. Out of 13 national distribution centers, the Greensboro warehouse pays workers the lowest wages. The Greensboro facility is also the only distri bution center employing mostly blacks and other minorities. In 1993, the Greensboro workers formed a union. Since then, organizers have been illegally fired. The Pulpit Forum’s message is simple: if K- Mart is not going to pay minority workers the same as white workers in other parts of the country, then K-Mart should not get the busi ness of Greensboro’s black community. The ministers organized a massive Christmas boycott of area K-Marts, including setting up tables outside stores to educate consumers on how K-Mart treats its workers. At a time when American leaders preach Bulimm and Advertising: Kevin Schwartz. director/general manager: Christy Mannitl advertising director. Leslie Humphrey, classified ad manager. Tetsuo Matsuda. business manager Ashley Widis, advertising manager. tusinsee Staff: Lisa Rarchie assistant to the general manager. Grace Consacro. assistant manager. Classified Advertising: MkheSe Byrd, assistant manager Wendy Holmes and Radial lomasz. sales Assistant Editors: Melissa MiTios. arts/diversions: Laura Godwin and Suzanne Wood, city: Catherine Blair and Lily Thayer, copy Jim Webb, design: Chris Yates, editorial page: Marshall Benbow and Melissa Steele, features: Daniel NWock. graphics: Jason Kirk and Kathleen Oehler. photo: Todd Graff. Also Morrison and Joe Roiison. sports: Erica Beshears, stale and nabonat Jamie Griswold and Jay Moya, univarsity. Arts/D (versions: Todd Gilchrist musk editor. Wendy Mitchell and Nicole Quenelle, senior matters Jennifer Ahari, Jen Ashlock. Kristin Eaton, Steven Ferrara Alicia Hawley. Jonathan Howie, Aziz Huq. Claire Jams. Kacey Kinard. Dan Kois, Brent Simon. Barry Summerlin. Lily Thayer and Brian Truitt Cartoon: Jason Brown. Jay Hardy. Brian Kahn. Robin Unehan and Joel Teach. City: Diane Blackman. Luther Caldwel. Amy Cappieko. Mary Kathryn Craft Todd Darling. Kata Harrison. Margo Hassebnan. Vic Hendrickson. Leslie Kendrick. Karyn Mitchell. Angela Moore. Gibson Pate. Richard Ray. David Simoneaux. Hilary Sparrow and Jennifer Zahren. Copy: Jennifer Ahari Sara Bidgood. Catherine Blair, Jodie Cook, Lorelei Costa. Courtney Everett JSI Fekfatein. Elizabeth Gardner. Claiborne Hancock. Victor Hendrickson. Dory Jenkins. Michael Kanarek, Korey Karnes, Scott MacDonald. Beverly Morgan. The editorials are approved by the majority of the editorial board, which is composed of the editor, editorial page editor and seven editorial writers. The Defy Tar Heel is published by the DTH Publishing Cap. a nonprofit North Carolina corporation, Mondeyfriday. according to the Univeaily calendar. Caleri with questions about bifing or display advertising should dial 962-1163 between 8:30 a m and S pm Classified ads can be reached at 862-0252. Editorial questions should be directed to 962-0246/0246. outside the classroom and expand access to non traditional, minority, community college trans fer and N.C. high school students. The high-handed nature of the General Assembly’s demands could be seen as problem atic. They did, however, goad the general admin istration into accomplishing something which should already have been done by the individual campuses. Others contend that no one can present a cohesive plan for all 16 campuses, as each university’s mission and make-up differs. Al though specifics may not coincide, each institu tion strives for academic excellence, which the plan targets. If individual schools created individual blue prints, they could delay the results indefinitely and might not discover new plans anyway. Although it might be insulting to tie financial gain to increasing academic interaction—espe cially to those who do so already for no gain— it is a product of our society. Though the UNC system should not be micromanaged like a corporation, professors cannot live on eloquent words alone. Those professors who perform best deserve the highest recompense. Everyone admits to declining rankings and the need to convince the legislators to fund us. This plan can only help our system. Although we might have to swallow a little pride, it will, in the end, be for the best. “personal responsibility” to people on the lowest rungs of society’s ladder, we can only see the community-based action in Greensboro in a positive light. In a free-market society, K-Mart has the right to pay its workers what it deems realistic. But the workers also have the right to organize for better wages as well as to make sure K-Mart follows the law. Anyone with a family working full-time at $6.75 an hour qualifies for food stamps and sometimes Medicaid. If K-Mart continues to underpay workers, society will pay to bring the workers above the poverty line. K-Mart argues that it pays according to the area’s standard of living. But facilities located in Kansas and Georgia, where costs of living are similar or lower than in Greensboro, pay around sl4 an hour. To further undermine K-Mart’s argument, the National Labor Relations Board is prosecut ing K-Mart for “refusing to bargain in good faith.” The case is clear. Until K-Mart shows it takes the lives of its employees seriously, we should support the workers in their struggle. We can find a sensible leadership example by first turning our attention to the pulpit. Boycott K-Mart, and educate others as to why you’re doing it. THE DAILYTAR HEEL Business ft Advertising Staff representatives Customer Service: Dodie Brodsky. Angela Caruso, Tamara Deloatch. Melanie Feliciano. Melissa Levine. Rachel Lomasz. Jen PMa and Julie Robertson. representatives Display Adverticing: Brendan Biamon. Elain Calmon, Aaron Hendsrlrte, Eileen Hintz. Shannon Hrdlicka. Gidget Lamb. Traci Langdon. Megan Stephenson and Danielle Whalen, account executives Bee Auger. Megan Boyle. Henry Jay. Ed'itofisl Staff Christine Nicoiette. Anna Pond. Dannielle Romano and Kathryn Sherar. Design: Josh Brannon, Stephanie Burge, Jessica Burstsin. Jason Gloege. Greg Kaliss, Andrea Kuhn. Cahie McCraw, Shyam Patel, Amy Quattlebaum. Leslie Wilkinson. Batty Wyner and Alkisti Yiannibas. Editorial: Jenny Blasdell. Georg Buehler. Baker Burleson, Joanna Howell. Alison Roxby and Tadd Features: Tom AcitellL Elizabeth Arnold. Scott Bellow. Matthew Boyatl Lane Dkg, Stephanie Dunlap. Angela Eagle. Melanie Feliciano, Carole Geiger. Austin Geldtr, Emily Gorman, Tejan Hichkad, Jaime Kowsy. Mark Lineberger. Jenna Lippi. Jennifer Maloney. Olivia Page. Louis Rutigliano. David Sihrertteki Cristina Smith. Leslie Ann Teseniar. Jute Twellman, Dana Wind and Mary Cameron Van Graafeiland. Qmphice: Hover Kim. Heather Lewis, Laurie Partes, Anne Riley, Arika Slack. Alena Smith. Mark Weisaman. Uz Welchman and KimShala Wilson. Photography: Suzanne Autrey, Ashley Broome. Kalherine Brown. Kelly Brown Jute HudneU, Celeste Joye. Simone Lueck. Ryan Matthes. Erik Perel and Robin Whitaker. Sped el Assignments: Ellen Flaspoehler and Adam Gusman, senior writers Kari Cohen Erica Luetzow. Sandra Moses, Ha Nguyen, Colby Schwartz. Kathryn iPr NATIONAL NEWSPIAPSt ASSOCIATION ISSN 11070-9436 Offloc Suita 104 Carolina (Man Campus mad address: CM 6210 (ax 41, Carolina Union UJ. Mail stiff-ass: P.O. Oast 3257. Ckopai ML NC 271160267 Jeame FagHe EDITORUL RAGE EDITOR Bremen dark university editor Jitney Foati university editor Wendy Goodman city hxtor Robyn Tomb Hadley state t national editor Jamea Lewis special assignments axroß Robbi Pickerel sports EDITOR Miehefie Cnmpton FEATURES EDITOR Dea Hair arts/diversions editor (Xante LaGoa copy desk editor Conrtney Pher COPY DESK EDITOR Kristin Rohan design hxtor CaniLang PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR (Xm Kirkman graphcs bxtor Miebael Webb EDITORIAL CARTOON EDITOR Amy PnaakwRTTMG coach Jlatill WRBama STAFF DEVELOPMENT Robin Knight Timn Reynolds tnd Jonri Scott Loslio Stophonton, Amy Will* ind Btrry Wynor, assistant account executives. Bnndin Biamon. office assistant A*fftMng Production: Bath Mainig. coordinator. Richard D. Alan. Cindy Hanlay and Jody Matdtawi. assistants Hawadaric Malania Faliciaito Taylor and Sarah Yousaal. Sport* Aaron Baard. David Boyd. Sath Brown. Brian Hamilton. Jonathan dollar. Kimbariy McCuddan, Erin Parrish. Rauban Sack. Haidi C. Schmitt Jay Stone. Tata Sullivan. Lae Tall Kurt Tondorl. Frank Wang and UsaZaranek. Staff Development Robin Berholz. Jan Rumara, Sara Frisch, Mandy Hitchcock and Ty Johnson. State and National: Josh Ahn. Graham Brink. Lm Carmody, Amy Cook. Milana Fischer, Eric Rack. Erin Gull. Tricia Johnson. Jaime Kowey, Jennifer Langs! Andrew Park. Paige Maxwell Megan McLaughlin Jay Munia, Jamas Palmar, Walter Palmar, Dawn Prince, Nicola Quansda. Monika Ruaf, Christina Smith. LaArm Spradling, Ranee Toy. Stephanie VSett Jennifer Wilson and Karri Zarombe. University: Ruth Borland. Jennifer Burleson. IBs Crston, Sharif Durhams. MoSy Fefmet Marissa Ferguson, Susan Hazaldean. Marva Hinton. Daka Jarre! J.C. Johnson. Karri Laz. Matt Ledercq. Erika Mayers. Joseph Millar, Natalis Neiman. Arunime Panda. David Park, John Patterson. Sharron Scott Daw SnaE John Sweaney and Kata Tyson Editorial Production: Stacy Wynn manager. DTH OrtUna: Eddie Bakes. Steven Pakntbar and Jason Purdy. Printing: Wtaga Printing. Distribution: Martin Durrsncp EDITORIAL Be Civilized: Let Snooze Button Start Your Day There are two kinds ofpeople in this world— those who use the snooze feature on their alarm clocks and those who don’t. It’s a convenient wedge issue, like political parties, that can divide a given population into approxi mately equal halves, and you don’t see a lot of crossover between camps. I am a member in good standing of the first group. Without some pressing reason to get out of bed, I have no qualms about hitting my snooze button four or five times my dreams intermingling with the news reports of NPR’s “Morning Edition” until I’m able to stay awake throughout the entire 9-minute snooze interval. It’s such a civilized way to begin the day. Devotees of the snooze button often find it baffling that some people would rather not in dulge in such a harmless luxury and instead prefer to rise automatically, like Dracula climb ing from his coffin, at the first rude tones of the alarm. To me, non-snoozers are the same as cetic, joyless wretches who tell you the best way to get into cold water is just to jump right in. And after you take their advice and plunge in, and your heart seizes up, they say something trite like, “It’s not too bad once you get used to it.” Of course, the early risers look upon those preferring to sleep in as slothful and sluggish, as shiftless laggards who waste the best part of the day. But I disagree. The best part of my day is that brief period of time when fire alarm is telling me to get up and I refuse, dropping my hand down onto the clock and silencing it for a few more blissful minutes. The second best part of my day is when I do it again. The snooze button, and more broadly, the alarm clock itself, are necessities of life in the modem world, since most people rarely get sufficient sleep these days. The average Ameri can now sleeps 20 percent less than a century ago, according to a research group called the Petty Lawsuit May Stem From Shamelesss Motives TO THE EDITOR: Me like debate. Debate good. Problem: I can go home and have an “advi sory meeting” with friends to debate how we fix outbroken washing machine. You, Chancellor Hooker, soon may not be able to do this without a microphone in your face. It seems Good- Citizen Jane has determined that your decision not to open your advisoty meetings to the press can only be a stepping stone to outright Nazi fascism, which you will surely implement post haste after crushing “the people” out of your devilish meetings. I refer to the recent lawsuit, originated by the Greensboro News and Record and picked up by the North Carolina Press Association, for "vio lating the N.C. Open Meetings Law.” We, as citizens and students, must be leery of their motives: do they really want “power to the people,” or just increased revenue from sales of Hooker’s latest cuss-word plastered across their headlines? Ya know, “cash moves everything around me” (Wu-Tang Clan). Situation: harmless little meeting. Press rushes in, in full force. Everyone in room gets “public” and puts on a show, knowing they will be quoted the next day and realizing this will influence the very issues they are discussing before even a partial conclusion can be reached. As Patricia Sullivan, Chancellor of UNC-Greensboro said, “I want open, honest and creative dialogue, which would be stifled if people were concerned about outside interpretation.” Basically, she wants to be able to let down her hair and say, “Shit, you guys! I’m having a bad week. So-and-so is on my case, and the alums with the money want this, but the students cry for change ... Help me out here!” instead of, “The multitude of issues confronting me leaves me to seek your opinions as a recourse.” The life of a Chancellor is public enough. If Hooker invites a few friends over for dinner and begs advice about the crap he cleans up for us day in and day out, do we need spotlights in the dining room for the camera crew and mikes set up around the bouillabaisse so democracy isn’t trampled by his dinner conversation? To the press for their shameless abuse of the justice system, I turn to the eloquent words of Calvin, the dearly-departed tiger sidekick: “BLECCH!” Let’s urge the court to spit out this petty lawsuit like a bad batch of Chocolate-Frosted- Sugar-Bombs. Adam Harrington JUNIOR CULTURAL STUDIES Better Sleep Council. Despite this, the hu man requirement for sleep about eight hours a night has not changed. (Col lege students, inci dentally, are thought by experts to need about 10 hours of sleep a night; the av erage student gets six.) The result is that on any given morn- JEFF (iARKiI.IANO IRONIC DETACHMENT ing, one person in four will get out ofbed groggy, grumpy and sleep-deprived. This can have more dangerous consequences than merely a strong urge to nap. In 1994, more than 200,000 motor-vehicle accidents were at tributed to sleep deprivation, and about 25,000 of those resulted in serious injuries or death. Sleep deprivation has been cited as at least a partial cause in some recent, large-scale disas ters, including the gas leak at Bhopal, India; the Three Mile Island near-meltdown; the Chernobyl disaster; and the grounding of the Exxon Valdez. A 1994 article in the New York Times re ported that the entire three-person flight-crew on commercial airliners could sometimes fall asleep, a bit of relaxed vigilance predictably banned under current FAA regulations. In one extreme incident, the flight attendant tasked with waking up the pilot also fell asleep. All of this renews my belief in an extra 10 or 20 minutes each morning. And because of my strong views on the subject, I pay attention to snooze button design. The feature on my clock is really closer to a strip than a button. It’s a broad, durable piece of plastic designed around Fisher-Price standards for reduced manual dexterity, so that even the most numbed hand something you’ve slept on for hours and reduced to a rubbery, weighted READERS’FORUM The Daily Tar Heel welcomes reader comments and criticism. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 400 words and must be typed, double-spaced, dated and signed by no more than two people. Students should include their year, major and phone number. Faculty and staff should include their title, department and phone number. The DTH reserves the right to edit letters for length, clarity and vulgarity. Bring letters to the DTH office at Suite 104, Carolina Union, mail them to P.O. Box 3257, Chapel Hill, NC 27515 or email forum to dth@unc.edu. Stipends Are Shady Statement About So-Called Leadership TO THE EDITOR: I was appalled to read about sti pends for student leaders in next year’s budget (“Cunningham Presses for Stipends for Next Year’s Student Leaders,” Feb. 19). The only argument for the stipend was that Aaron Nelson could not afford to be student body president without it, because he would be forced to resign as a resident assistant. Well, we all have choices to make and Aaron Nelson made his when he decided to run. Before entering UNC, I was making $30,000 per year. But I made a decision to return to college. However, I do not expect the University to pay me a stipend of $30,000 be cause I was forced to resign my position. I made a choice that will be to my benefit, and in the meantime, I do not expect fellow students to bear the burden of supporting me. Aaron Nelson made his choice and must face the consequences. The office should be a privilege, not an un wanted burden. If that is how it already feels to Aaron Nelson, maybe he should step down before even entering. As for Student Body President Calvin Cunningham, maybe he hasn’t been in touch with the student body, but we are fed up with increased student fees. Although the article does not mention any increase in student fees because of the stipends, every dollar spent comes from somewhere... and that is mainly from students’ pockets. In the long run, the student body will foot the bill for these “paychecks.” Mr. Cunningham should think twice and put the well-being of the student body ahead of the 2Jlj* Batty (Ear Uml prosthesis can thump down on the clock and arrest that annoying, minor-key beeping. But if today’s snooze buttons are good, tomorrow’s will be better. The design process marches forward. This past Christmas anew, astrologically enhanced alarm clock hit the mar ket. You program in your birth date and each morning, when the snooze button is activated, the clock tells you your horoscope for that day. I suppose this helps you make the decision of not only when to get out ofbed but whether you should even bother getting out ofbed at all. Gillette’s Braun subsidiary has put itself on the forefront of snooze technology with its new est alarm clock, due in stores in March. When the alarm goes off, people who feel they aren’t yet ready to take on the day can simply wave a hand or foot or pillow in the path of an infrared beam, thus stopping the alarm for eight more minutes. The best alarm dock, especially for people who have a hard time waking up each morning, uses light instead of sound. Exposure to bright light in the morning resets the body’s 24-hour circadian rhythm, which in turn makes people less groggy when theywake and less tired all day. Unfortunately, the device costs about $750, which means it will be a long time before I pick up such an item to replace the $8 Westdox I bought at the drugstore. Researchers in the field have advice forpeople who don’t get enough sleep: always go to bed and wake up at the same time each day, take only short naps in the afternoon and don’t try to catch up by sleeping in on weekends. All of this sounds good on paper, but it’s much harder to put into practice, espedally for stu dents, whose schedules vary widely from day to day. Instead, my advice is this: sleep as much as you can, and when the alarm goes off, hit snooze and sleep for another nine minutes. Jeff Garigliano is a graduate student in journalism from Bayport N.Y. well-being of Aaron Nelson before pushing for these stipends. That will, in the long run, be of most benefit to this campus and its students. Christopher £ Roberts SENIOR BIOLOGY Article Mistakes Asian and Asian-American Studies TO THE EDITOR: We are writing this letter in response to Maggie Schleich’s article, “Students Want Asian Cur riculum,” which appeared in the Feb. 23 edition ofThe Daily Tar Heel. Let us begin by saying we are happy the DTH has finally taken an interest in the activities of the Asian Students Associa tion. While we’re sure Ms. Schleich had only the best of intentions when she wrote the article, her misunderstanding of ASA’s initiatives and the curriculum already provided by the school ex emplified the University’s ignorance. Fact one: UNC already has an Asian Studies curriculum. Fact two: ASA is circulating a petition to create an Asian American Studies curriculum, not"... requesting the creation of an Asian Studies pro gram.” It is sad we even have to write this letter, considering she quoted the petition in her second paragraph, by writing, “The petition calls for ‘the creation of studies specifically devoted to the Asian American experience.’” The fact that the DTH is unable to make the distinction between Asian Studies and Asian American Studies is disappointing, to say the least. The fact of the matter is that Asian Americans have a4OO-year-old history in America, and they have played an integral role in the shaping of modem American society. In this age of multiculturalism it is important for people to learn about all the different ethnic groups that have come together to create American society and culture. Last semester, the first-ever Asian American class (not “one of the first in UNC’s curriculum”) in the entire UNC system, was offered and it was hugely successful, with enroll ment by students of all cultures and backgrounds. It is only with continued administrative, faculty and student support that Asian American classes continue to be taught at UNC. We hope in the future the DTH and the entire University com munity will support the drive for an Asian Ameri can curriculum so critical mistakes like this will not happen again. Albert Hwang JUNIOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES AND PHILOSOPHY JejfHuang SENIOR BIOCHEMISTRY
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Feb. 27, 1996, edition 1
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