Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Aug. 28, 1978, edition 1 / Page 10
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"liM" 10 The Daily Tar Hsel Mdnday, August 28. Lou Biuonis, Editor Chuck Alston, Managing Editor Don Woodard, Associate Editor David McKinnon, Associate Editor Bernie R an s bottom, University Editor Mary Anne Rhyne, City Editor David Stacks, State arid National Editor Jaci Hughes, News Editor . . Betsy Flagler, Features Editor Mark Scandling, Arts Editor Lee Pace, Sports Editor Allen Jernigan, Photography Editor C route impasse If recent events are any indication, today will not be a banner day in the history of transportation in this community. As University-financed C route buses rumble along the student corridors of Carrboro, another in a series of meetings will be held to put that service on sounder financial footing. Representatives of the University and Carrboro, along with Student Body President Jim Phillips, will gather once again this morning to negotiate an equitable payment plan for Carrboro bus service. We hope their efforts will be successful. But we aren't optimistic. After all, there haven't been many good days recently for transportation in these parts. The twin problems of growth and poor planning, which have produced almost constant crises concerning parking, housing and water, are now combined in the bus controversy. And like most civic controversies, this one is compounded by the particular interests of the parties involved. Our pessimism stems from the history of the present debate. From Carrboro's first rejection of a contract proposal tendered by the University in April, it was apparent that the two parties, along with Chapel Hill, could find little to agree on except, ironically, 'the desirability of bus service in Carrboro. And they are as far apart now on the means as they have ever been. We believe the blame for the impasse rests with both parties. On the one hand we find the University retreating from its proper responsibilities to Carrboro bus service and its patrons. And on the other hand we find Carrboro attempting to lay additional responsibilities for the service on the University's shoulders, which simply cannot be condoned. The University's contribution to the controversy is two-fold. First, the University has steadfastly refused to contribute more than 50 percent of the C route costs for the coming year. Last year it kicked in 62 percent. So while the University is increasing its contribution from $30,300 to $30,970, Carrboro is being asked to increase from $18,547 to $31,300 all for the same level of service. Second, the University is passing the majority of its costs along to the consumer the students and University personnel who rely on bus service to and from Carrboro by raising the cost of bus passes from $ 18 to $32. Figuring sales of only 1,000 bus passes to Carrboro consumers, it is obvious the University is substantially cutting its losses. We do not meanto imply that the University should continue to shell out 62 percent of the cost of service to Carrboro. We understand the initial expenses for the C route were high, and we think the University should not be saddled with such a proportion indefinitely. But the alchemy used to arrive at the allocation of costs this year is sadly typical of the lack of planning which has marked the history of transportation in this community, and has left Carrboro with little time to turn lead into gold. Carrboro's responsibility for the impasse lies in just the opposite direction. Where the University wants to hold down expenses across the board, Carrboro wants to spend. But Carrboro wants the University to spend, too. Carrboro Alderman Doug Sharer, who has led the fight for his side, has been rather vague about what he wants. But it is safe to say that Carrboro wants more service than it bought last year and it wants the University to pay for a good deal of the extended service. While we can hardly argue that Carrboro doesn't need more bus service, and while we believe the University should foot a larger share of the current tab than it has offered, we do not believe the University should be paying for expanded service at the same rate it paid for establishing the C route. Bus services are generally accepted as a municipal responsibility, and despite the uniqueness of the local situation, Carrboro and its representatives must adjust themselves to the reality of that fact. If Carrboro wants more services, it should increase its own revenues. And increasing revenue is the apparent intention of Sharer and his colleagues in the Carrboro Community Coalition, who now control the Carrboro board. The CCC wants a tax for more bus service but hasn't been able to get it. In light of this fact, their holdout for more money begins to look like an attempt to make the University deliver on the CCCs campaign promises. The impasse has reached the point where the University alone is paying for the first three weeks service. We applaud the University for its recognition that transportation of UNC's people is its first responsibility in this dispute. . We also think the University's move may represent a new recognition of its share of responsibility for the entire situation, and we hope this trend of thought continues. The University should bear in mind its own poor planning for the needs of a college population which has doubled in the last 15 years. But the three weeks of service that the University has provided are merely a stopgap, and the prospect beyond those three weeks is disturbing. The Daily Tar Heel, has learned that Student Body President Jim Phillips will propose funding the C route for University-related passengers with student fees from the General Surplus for the duration of the academic year if an agreement is not in sight after the meeting this morning. While we respect the motive underlying this proposal service for students we believe Phillips' time might have been better spent mediating the dispute. At any rate, we doubt the proposal will gain the necessary Campus Governing Council approval. Beyond this, we think the measure, if it were successful, would seriously threaten the political future of the CCC. And for students to torpedo the efforts of an organization that has shown itself to be almost the only friend they have in Carrboro government is obviously self-defeating. The C-route controversy has been long, confusing and costly. It has also been needless. , Chapel Hill, the University and Carrboro should have negotiated a long-term cost allocation formula long ago. At this point, however, that long term formula must go on the back burner while the present controversy is worked out. The solution to the controversy, we think, lies in a realistic acceptance by all parties that until a long-term agreement is reached, service should be continued. We would suggest that costs be distributed at approximately the same rate as last year and that bus pass prices increase only in proportion to the actual cost increase of the service. But whatever the terms, all the parties must be involved. 1978 86th year of editorial freedom Conference of Black Small towns of ten neglected by Washington 'IN QUOTES' ByTONY MACE The tall black man in the tan suit is Earl Lucas, mayor of Mound Bayou, Miss,, population 3,000. lie sits with his colleague, Andrew Mansfield, mayor of Grambling, Ala., in an empty banquet hall at the Chapel H ill Holiday Innv Both men serve on the governing board of the National Conference of Black Mayors, which met Saturday at the Carrboro Town Hall. The organization deals with the common problems of small rural black communities across the country. Federal urban policy for too long has focused on large northern cities, Mansfield says, and the Carter administration has been no exception. "We've been looking at some programs and suggestions for President Carter, which deal with the inequities we feel are being levied by his administration," Mansfield says. "The federal government has continued to gear its resources toward the urban areas, even though people are now migrating back into rural areas. "We've got the same problems, on a smaller scale, that big cities have, but the federal government has made no provision to deal with them. If we look at Jimmy Carter's record to this point, most of us would agree'that he's not only not delivering, but he has not been amenable to listening," Mansfield says. "The National Conference of Black Mayors has been trying to get an audience with President Carter," Lucas says. "We requested that he sit down and talk to us about it, but he didn't even answer our letter. "We talked to various department heads throughout the federal government, and I'm personally very disgusted with what I see," Lucas continues." "Nixon might have been one of the biggest crooks in the world, but at least under his administration there was a way to tap into the programs to assist our communities. "Today you've got probably the most incompetent staff we've seen. I've got high respect for HEW Secretary Califano. He's probably the only individual in the whole cabinet with any real capability in running his programs," Lucas says. "Patricia Harris is a beautiful lady, she's nice, she's black, but she knows nothing about HUD." President Carter has retained the system introduced by President Nixon which gives control of federal grant distribution to individual states, Lucas says. "Once you do that you put control of these funds back into . the mechanism of state politics. Being from Mississippi, we're already doomed. My town received $4 million for public works. The Mississippi Congressional delegation . went to the Department of Commerce asking them to withdraw the funds from the city. At that point letters to the editor Fall student onslaught brings mild shock To the editor: ' Does the onslaught of returning students this year seem worse than last, or : is it my imagination? For those of us who have been enjoying Chapel Hill's lazy summer days and balmy nights, the sudden return of thousands of students is a mild shock. Mayors they declared a moratorium on funds for Mound Bayou. They say we've had enough. "Initially, they had computer system handle the application," Lucas says. "So when they fed it into the computer, it didn't know black and white, and we end up number one in the state for receiving this grant. Then the repercussion comes from the Mississippi power structure, and on top of that, the commerce department changes the rules of the game, so we don't get this kind of money anymore. And they direct all future money to the big cities across the country." Black mayors are considering a wholesale shift to the Republican party, Lucas says. "It's obvious that this Democratic thing's not working out. I think the next president might be a Republican, Rep. Jack Kemp, R-N.Y., a personal friend of mine. He's the kind of person who could .pull the two ends of the GOP together." . Lucas is critical of the image of "the New South" as portrayed by the national news media. "They say we've integrated our schools," Lucas says. "Go down South. You got the poorest of white teachers and the poorest of black teachers the good ones have all fled to better places. Ninety percent of the students are black. Where are the white kids? They're in academies, in private schools. It's the same system; it's no different. "And look who controls the public schools. It's the same white system. Bad. checks comldl be Jbsid. mews Editor's note: This advice is prepared by Student Legal Services, which maintains an office in Suite- C of the Carolina Union. UNC students have prepaid for this service and may obtain advice at no additional charge. When students come to college, they usually obtain their first checking account with a bank. It is a convenient way to' organize a student's life, but if a check is bounced (returned for insufficient funds), immediate action is imperative. If a check is returned, your bank will inform you. You then must act immediately. First, find out to whom the bounced check was written. If you have the money, pay off the check. If not, make other arrangements with the merchant. Many merchants charge a penalty for processing returned checks. Your bank also will assess a charge for processing an insufficient check. You can expect to pay up to a total of $10 in penalties for bouncing a check. If the merchant is not contacted and he has been unsuccessful in locating you concerning the check, 1 understand and accept that it is their town too. 1 even perhaps envy their enthusiasm. But at least, they could have the courtesy not to ride around at 3:00 a.m. and honk their horns and yell. At least, they could not throw their empty beer bottles all over the campus, sidewalks, and streets. And finally, at least, they could not constantly occupy all the pinball machines! Midge Wilson Fatuous insight To the editor: Having picked up the initial edition of this fall's Daily Tar Heel, I settled down comfortably on the toilet prepared for the usual phlegmatic amalgam of wasted verbage. Much to my surprise, the record reviews by one Mark Peel jumped out at me, and try as 1 might, I just couldn't skim over that page so I sat literally glued to the seat. Peel has, to be the most enjoyable and effluent music critic to grace the pages of the DTH since Alan Bisbort (a music critic in the early '70s for the DTH and now a respected poet-critic in Washington, D.C.). Peel's faculty for mendacious discernment of musical nuances is truly wonderous. He has an insight to rock and roll that borders on fatuous. His review of the new Boston album was consummate and to the point: the album stinks. Peel's treatment of Ray Davies, master Kink, was nonpareil. My only arguement with Mr. Peel is that he did not pay due attention to the album itself. Misfits is another in a long line of Kink masterpieces and rather than dwell on Davies' outlook on life. Peel might And look where they send their kids. So how is the quality going to improve? Who are they looking after? It's a very dangerous thing when racism gets into the school system. Unless the structure is changed in terms of who controls the educational system, we might be in some real serious trouble in this country. "The racism is something you can't even measure. For example, when my city received $4 million, the banks (in the nearby white community) didn't even want the money. They were so bitter because we received $4 million and their community didn't receive anything. I had to put the money in another bank 140 miles away," Lucas recalls. "They had me in court for six weeks at a time on foolishness, on "Patricia Harris . . . about HUD." Mayor Earl Lucas, eminent domain the right of a city to get a right-of-way. The last time I went to court to get a right-of-way for drainage, the jury awarded the man for less than an acre of land in Mound Bayou, Miss., in a bean field $20,000, because they're trying to create an extra hardship for the community. This is dreadful. There's no land in the whole town almost that you can buy for $20,000. "Then the highway department comes through with the same emininet domain, and gets 100 acres for less than that. That's the other side of the coin on this New South. It's very real and it's taking its toll on us. And I don't think it's going to change in my lifetime. "And you talk about all the new industry moving down from the he can swear out a criminal arrest warrant for the bad check. In addition, he can resort to civil litigation to recover the amount of. the check. Students should be aware that if they are summoned to appear before the magistrate concerning the payment of a check, it could be a judicial proceeding adverse to your interests. Seek legal advice before paying off the check to the magistrate, since you may, in fact, be pleading guilty to a criminal offense. This guilty plea becomes have done better to get to the point Misfits is a great album, and the Kinks are a group that the Carolina Union would do well to actively seek for a concert. Finally, I would like to request that the talented Mr. Peel review my latest album, a collection of rock and country tunes in .the John Prine-Moe Bandy vein. Among the tunes are "A Day in Danville (Is Like a Month Anywhere Else)", "If Coulda's Were Shoulda's, I Wouldn't Be Here Right Now", "You Stink", "I'm a Hedonist, But I Don't Enjoy It", "Don't Stop", and the title tune "Sweet and Sour D, That's Me." Peel can reach me at 929 362 1 if he truly cares about local talent, as he appears to. Otherwise, he is an effluent limpet. John H. Dunlap Wanted: SENIORS To the editor: . In past years graduating seniors have had little chance to voice opinions on senior activities as well as their own graduation ceremony. As a result, few activities are planned to climax four years in Chapel Hill and many seniors don't participate in their own graduation ceremony. In an effort to combat this problem and allow seniors to mold their own activities as well as design the graduation ceremony, the class officers are forming an advisory committee. The committee will be responsible for planning career orientated activities as well as social ones. Sign-up sheets are at the Carolina Union from Monday, Aug. 28 until Friday, Sept. 2. Any interested senior is North. And you see the federal government offering subsidies so the industries can relocate here. But who are those programs for? They're helping the industry. Well, they say, we're creating jobs. Another plantation, that's what you're creating," Lucas says. "You may say they used to hang black folks in Mississippi, they used to drag them behind cars but now they've learned a new game from the north. The basic principle of the exploitive arrangement remains the same. It's not much different working for $2.65 an hour in a field picking cotton than it is working in a factory for the same wage. "In the factory near Mound Bayou they didn't used to allow blacks to exceed janitorial work. But we filed a discrimination suit and now they put knows nothing Mound Bayou, Miss. them on the assembly line. And look who the first supervisor was a man who'd completed the sixth grade. And they had told us you had to have completed the 11th grade or an equivalency test to be supervisor. "And here, all of a sudden, the sixth grade students who were once janitor rise to be supervisors. Now what was the rationale behind that? It's a matter of loyalty. Before anyone could get hired he had to tell the man that he's an all right boy and that he won't cause trouble. It had nothing to do with skill. That's the kind of squeeze that's going-on- all over the South." Tony Mace, a senior English major from Chapel Hill, is a staff writer for the Daily Tar Heel. DTHJoceyn PettHxw part of your criminal record, and future employers frequently inquire about criminal convictions. ADVICE FOR THE DAY: 1 . Avoid bouncing checks by keeping your checkbook balanced and keeping an up-to-date address on your checks. 2. If you inadvertently bounce a check, settle up immediately with the merchant. 3. If you have further problems, seek legal advice. urged and encouraged to apply. Qo heels! Joan Templeton, senior class president Lieida Love, senior class vice president Wolfpack Frlsbee To the editor: I have learned since having my letter printed in your paper last semester that NCSU shall be the last major school in the Research Triangle to form a Frisbee club. I am pleased that Carolina and Duke already have clubs and 1 hope yours shall continue to strengthen. As we are just forming, we probably will not be ready for competition until the spring, but at that time, we would welcome a contest. For any information about the sport or scheduling, write to: N.C.S.F.C. 209 Turlington Hall P.O. Box 04238 N.C.S.U. Raleigh, N.C. 27607 John E. Truitt Jr. NCSU Letters? The Daily Tar Heel welcomes contributions and letters to the editor. Letters must be signed, typed on a 60-space line, double spaced and accompanied by a return address. Letters chosen for publication are subject to editing.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Aug. 28, 1978, edition 1
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