10
Friday, October 25, 2002
Board Editorials
Guarding University Interests
The UNC-system Board of Governors should not restrict the ability of UNC-Chapel
Hill or N.C. State University to reach out to the N.C. General Assembly.
Earlier this month, a UNC-system Board of
Governors committee decided to limit the amount
of time that campus-to-legislature liaisons -
bureaucratese for lobbyists - can spend working
the halls in the N.C. General Assembly.
The BOG committee thus made it all the more
difficult to promote the interests of both the UNC
system and its predominant universities.
At first glance, the decision seems logical. If all
16 UNC-system campuses send their own lobby
ists to the General Assembly, the specific appeals
would prompt legislators to question both the unity
of the UNC system and how campus administra
tors are spending their budgets. Additionally, issues
affecting the entire system might get bogged down
because legislators would have to sort out differing
arguments from each campus lobbyist.
But the BOG only will step on its own toes in its
duty to provide a quality education if there is not
some campus-specific representation in the General
Assembly for the UNC system’s flagship universi
ties - UNC-Chapel Hill and N.C. State University.
Although UNC-CH and N.C. State share inter
ests with the other system schools, the two doctor
al institutions have concerns that are light years
apart from schools like UNC-Pembroke,
Appalachian State University and Western
Carolina University.
For instance, both UNC-CH and N.C. State
administrators and lobbyists fought actively this
year to prevent the legislature from seizing over
head receipts - money allotted as part of federal
funded research grants to cover institutional
expenses such as utilities.
But the other system schools, which receive next
to nothing from overhead receipts, are focused
One Overpaid Secretary
The UNC-system Association of Student Governments should re-tailor the vice
president of administration to make it a volunteer rather than salaried position.
Student leaders, after failing to get their way by
going in the front door, are trying the back way.
The UNC-system Board of Governors in its
September meeting rejected an attempt by the sys
tem’s student leaders to hire a full-time profession
al administrator.
But members of the UNC-system Association of
Student Governments decided to get around the
earlier decision by voting Saturday to create anew
position - vice president of administration.
ASG President Jonathan Ducote said the new
vice president will be charged with performing the
mundane operational tasks that prevent him from
doing his intended job.
“I’m being bogged down with paperwork and
can’t do what I’ve been elected to do,” Ducote was
quoted as saying in The Daily Tar Heel.
Although Ducote needs some help so he can do
his job more easily, creating the new position is not
the best way to proceed.
ASG delegates hoped the student administrative
position would alleviate BOG members’ concerns
that a professional administrator would usurp stu
dent direction of the organization.
But the piecemeal compromise falls short in
many respects.
The new student administrator will receive a
salary of $20,000 - half the amount originally allot
ted for the professional employee - to deal with
paperwork and other basic operational tasks.
Such a high salary - paid for by a statewide stu
dent fee increase - is disproportionate to the duties
defined in the administrator’s job description.
The $20,000 salary is even more excessive when
compared to Ducote’s own $5,000 stipend.
UNC-system students should not have to pay so
EDITOR’S NOTE:The above editorials are the opinions of solely The Daily Tar Heel Editorial Board, which were reached
after open debate. The board consists of eight board members, the assistant editorial page editor, the editorial page edi
tor and the DTH editor. The 2002-03 DTH editor decided not to vote on the board and not to write board editorials.
Readers' Forum
Hussein’s VX Nerve Gas, Anthrax
Pose Immediate Risk to Citizens,
Justifies U.S. Military Intervention
TO THE EDITOR:
Terrorism - has it ever been a more potent fear? The
capabilities of Iraq are extreme, and something must be
done to prevent mass murder.
After Sept. 11, 2001, national security was shattered.
America has finally begun to think about prevention. The
only way to prevent future attacks is to find and destroy all
large-scale warfare weapons. Iraq must be searched, no mat
ter what.
The United States is not a teacher asking students, “Who
wants war?” then waiting for a hand-raised count.
In order to prevent future attacks on our nation, we must
to search Iraq for deadly weapons - this is prevention.
So why does Iraq have 3.9 tons of VX nerve gas?
This chemical is sc deadly that one drop to the skin can
cause spasms so severe that you could snap your own spine.
One teaspoon released into the atmosphere can kill
every living organism within ah eight-block radius.
Iraq hoards more than 1.6 million teaspoons of VX. This
is only one of the many weapons that they hold.
Is this not threatening enough for the United States to say
that we need to go in and find Saddam Hussein?
So, Hussein refuses to let the United Nations search Iraq
for these weapons.
Without military enforcement, Iraq will not allow a
search in their country.
The United States is a strong nation and by initiating mil
itary action, our strength will prevail and prove that we can
more on attracting students.
Different universities clearly have different inter
ests at different times, and the BOG reasonably
cannot expect only one full-time lobbyist to cover
all the bases.
By limiting the ability of UNC-CH and N.C.
State to lobby state leaders, the BOG forces Mark
Fleming, the system’s official lobbyist and a former
N.C. State legislative liaison, to devote more time
on specific campus interests and less time working
for the issues that affect the entire UNC system.
If lobbyists like Fleming are expected to shoul
der the dual burden of promoting the interests of
the entire UNC system and petitioning for impor
tant campus-specific issues then, somewhere along
the line, either the entire system or one of its flag
ship universities is going to be slighted.
The BOG cannot limit the representation of
UNC-CH or N.C. State if it is looking out for the
best interests of the entire UNC system. Much of the
system’s reputation comes from UNC-CH’s nation
al prestige and N.C. State’s outreach to the state.
The BOG, therefore, would advance the entire
UNC system by allowing UNC-CH lobbyists to
push full time on campus-specific issues, such as
the proposed UNC cancer center. The project,
which will benefit the entire state by creating jobs
and promoting health, was shot down this year by
the N.C. House - demonstrating the necessity for
an active and focused campus lobbying effort.
The overall best way to petition for the concerns of
every UNC-system school is to allow the system’s
flagship universities to represent their own interests in
the General Assembly. This allows system liaisons to
concentrate on issues facing the whole UNC system
and gives individual campuses needed flexibility.
the ASG can hire an overpaid paper-pusher.
The hefty salary and a requirement that the new
vice president take no more than eight credit hours
likely will attract candidates more interested in
money and their resumes than in furthering stu
dent interests.
This misuse of UNC-system students’ money is
not permissible. The position should be filled by
a volunteer from within the organization.
Considering the hefty load of paperwork, per
haps multiple volunteers could be used to com
plete the required tasks. ,
But the new vice president should not be paid
four times the stipend of the president to do the
same work Ducote has been doing all year.
The student administrator also will be expected
to lead the search for a permanent, full-time admin
istrator to take over within a year.
This requirement clearly falls outside the bound
aries of the position’s detailed clerical obligations.
The search for someone to manage the admin
istrative side of ASG must be headed by Ducote
himself and other rank-and-file ASG delegates
rather than a glorified clerk.
If the student administrative post entails more
than the mundane paperwork referred to by
Ducote, the ASG should be more upfront with
BOG members and the students statewide about
the position.
Ducote also must run the new post by the BOG
to win its endorsement.
If members of the ASG attempt to sidestep the
necessary BOG approval, they will damage the
working relationship between students and system
officials, endangering the position of all UNC-sys
tem students.
defeat terrorism.
Anthrax, according to CNN.com, a single gram of
anthrax - roughly 1/30 oz. - contains 1 trillion spores, or
enough for 100 million fatal doses if it’s properly dispersed.
Produced in Iraq before the Gulf War, the United
Nations was never able to account for it all.
So, what does Iraq plan on doing with it all?
Is that enough reason to fight Iraq?
I believe so.
Rachel Chan
Business
Freshman
Article Unfairly Implies That High
School Athletes Focus on Studying
Less Frequently Than Their Peers
TO THE EDITOR:
I enjoyed your (Oct. 22) article on how the children of
admission directors choose colleges.
However, your article contrasted my college search,
which includes my participation in intercollegiate athletics,
with others who would appear to be more academically
focused.
This does me and other student-athletes a disservice.
Beyond baseball, my academic qualifications are consis
tent with those of students who attend highly selective insti
tutions.
Matt Lucido
Chapel Hill
Editorial Page
Lucas Fenske
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
Kelly Lusk
SPORTS EDITOR
Terri Rupar
COPY EDITOR
Adam Shupe
ONLINE EDITOR
If you have any concerns or comments about our coverage, please contact Ombudsman Michael Flynn at mlflynn@email.unc.edu or
by phone at 843-5794.
Affirmative Action Doesn't Rob
Whites, Just Gives Opportunities
Affirmative action does not hinder
white people - especially the mid
dle class whites who seem to
despise it most. Still, this is a recurring
theme, and even people outside
the wealthy white population
believe it. If you haven’t heard,
two students have appealed to
the Supreme Court claiming
that they were passed over for
admission to the University of
Michigan Law School in favor
of black students. The case has
been going on since 1997.
First of all, how long are
these two going to whine about
the “injustice” done to them?
For a while now, minorities
have been told to accept past
and current injustices.
Get over it, get off your butt and get a
job have become the motivational mes
sages for minorities to achieve the
“American dream.” So to those who have
the “white man’s burden” mentality and
anti-affirmative-action cries, take your
own advice and please just let it go.
The two students aren’t brilliant. Both
were involved in few extracurricular activi
ties and had 3.3 grade point averages. It’s
not too impressive considering most people
admitted into the University of Michigan
have higher GPAs and more involvement.
If you’re going to claim you were robbed,
at least present an exceptional resume to
prove you have a right to make that claim.
P
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Office Hours Noon-2 Friday
Daniel Thigpen
UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Aaron Fitt
SPORTSATURDAY EDITOR
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PHOTO EDITOR
Sarah Sanders
WRITING COACH
TIFFANIE
DRAYTON
AMERICAN
DREAM
DEFERRED
Barometer
moving into the homeless shelter in the meantime.
&
officials to expand it to include Franklin Street bars.
Tar Heel Quotables
“He was in a position where he couldn’t
extend his thumb out.”
Athletic Trainer Dan Hooker
On quarterback Darian Durant's injury in the Saturday
game. Not only is Durant out for the regular season, he
also had to cancel his plans to hitchhike across the country.
“This is our reality. Everybody wants to kill
us. We know this.”
Volleyball Player Malaika Underwood
On playing away games. Why don't you spend more time
on the game instead of watching "Conspiracy Theory."
Alex Kaplun
MANAGING EDITOR
Jon Dougherty
CITY EDITOR
Addie Sluder
FEATURES EDITOR
Beth Buchholz & Tiffany Pease
DESIGN EDITORS
Michael Flynn
OMBUDSMAN
Through it all, the University of
Michigan continues to uphold that a
diverse student population is beneficial.
Good for it.
Some white people have a
story about the scholarship, job
or position they didn’t get
“because a less-qualified black
person got it.” That’s usually
not the case, but if it happens
to turn out that way, so what?
A minority’s rejection likely
worked in that same white per
son’s favor at some point.
And I don’t hear anyone
complaining about the students
who get into UNC based on the
family alumni clause. I promise
you won’t find many minorities
who can list their grandfathers as alumni
on their admissions applications. Should
white affirmative action be eliminated too?
Most minorities are taught that getting
passed over for a white person is likely and
that you just have to work twice as hard to
achieve. Many whites are taught that it’s
normal for them to get a job rather than a
minority and realize early it rarely happens
in reverse. We all have become accustomed
to these unwritten rules, so outrage is
inevitable when they are challenged.
The biggest argument against affirmative
action is that it is outdated and that every
thing is fair game in present-day America.
Please give me a break - or don’t, because
God forbid I actually ask for one in 2002.
Not in My Backyard
The Chapel Hill Town Council voted
to halt duplex construction. The
council suggested students look at
Get on the Bus
Fare-free busing has contributed to a
39 percent increase in bus ridership.
With the success of the fare-free
program, students are lobbying
abu iaily Qlar Hppl
Lizzie Breyer
PROJECTS EDITOR
Elyse Ashburn
STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
Nick Parker
ARTS St ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR
Cobi Edelson
GRAPHICS EDITOR
Minorities are disproportionately
imprisoned, live in projects more than sub
urbs, have higher mortality rates and have
more members in prison than in college.
And let’s not forget that most white
men after graduation from a mediocre
school likely will get a better salary than
the few minorities who actually graduate
from good ones. When all these statistics
are eliminated and things are truly equal,
I will gladly reject affirmative action and
every other social program.
But race-based programs are not only
needed; they’re common sense. Affirmative
action does not threaten people who are
against it but only the status quo that works
in their favor - only minutely though.
Before I’m accused of exaggerating, I
am aware that not every white person is
wealthy or against affirmative action or
that people who oppose it don’t have rea
sons besides selfishness.
But for those who have nothing to lose
at affirmative action’s hands, it all comes
down to one simple principle: The world
is not enough, and apparently neither are
the power, money or prestige that they
hold. If you happen to fall under the dou
ble “W” - white and wealthy - take more
time to count your blessings and your
money and less time defending why oth- .
ers don’t deserve to at least strive for what
likely was handed down to you.
Reach Tiffanie Drayton at
drayton@email.unc.edu.
What Distribution?
Fewer students than expected
picked up a bracelet Tuesday.
Basketball just can't compete with
4g%
the student State of the University Address.
That Fabulous Fair
This year's State Fair includes
delicacies such as fried twinkies,
fried pickles and fried candy.
Health officials have declared a
...
FfT
statewide dietary emergency until the fair closes.
“I’ve never seen anything as big. He’s so
fun. I wish I had a pet like him.”
10-YEAR-OLD FAIRGOER CHRIS SCHIOT
On the 1,100-pound, pig at the State Fair. Just tell your par
ents it followed you home and that you'll take real good
care of it not like those dead goldfish you never fed.
“I just wanted to touch the pooch.”
Suspicious Person on Jones Ferry Road
Explaining why he was on private property. Given the
stress of modern life and classes, wouldn't we all be
happier if we took a little time to touch the pooch?