aThe Daily Tar HeelFriday, October 2, 1987
Daily
Star Bl
95 A ew of editorial freedom
Jill Gerber, Eteor
DEIRDRE FALLON, Managing Editor
Sally Pearsall, nuv Editor
JEAN LUTES, University Editor
DONNA LEINWAND, State and National Editor
JEANNIE FARIS, City Editor
JAMES SUROWIECKI, Sports Editor
FELISA NEURINGER, Business Editor
JULIE BRASWEIl, Features Editor
Elizabeth Ellen, Arts Editor
Charlotte Cannon, photography Editor
CATHY McHVGH, Omnibus Editor
Education starts before college
board
Although UNC
is often listed
amnno tbft nremier
public uhi cities, Opinion
North Carolina
high schools have long been a different
story. When the Scholastic Aptitude
Test scores for 1987 were recently
published, North Carolina students
scored 49th among the 50 states
only South Carolina students fared
worse.
Abysmal showings on standardized
tests are nothing new for North
Carolina's system of public education.
In 1986, the state also ranked next to
last. Despite the fact that standardized
tests are only one barometer of
educational progress, they still provide,
useful insight into student
performance.
In North Carolina's case, the scores
reveal a public education system in
need of much improvement. Neverthe
less, the state is beginning to see
payoffs from its growing commitment
to students. In addition to slight
increases in SAT scores during the
1980s, state students also now score
above average on the California
Achievement Test, an annual exam
that measures student performance in
primary and middle schools.
The General Assembly recently
affirmed the commitment to improve
by funding the third and fourth years
of the Basic Education Plan an
eight-year effort to give all public
students an equal education. The plan
will eventually boost school spending
by $800 million a year and allow all
school systems in the state to hire more
teachers and workers, offer more
courses and reduce class sizes.
To improve higher education, the
Board of Governors will impose higher
admissions standards for the entire
system in 1990. Although UNC
Chapel Hill requires three math units
and two years of the same foreign
language for admission, the system's
minimum requirements of only two
years of math and no foreign languages
will not change.
By failing to study a foreign lan
guage, many high school students miss
an opportunity to gain the perspective
of another culture's speech. By stud
ying only two years of math, many
students miss a chance to develop vital
analytical skills.
While admissions standards can
continue to vary greatly within the
system, each school should require
four years of English, three math, two
history and two years of the same
foreign language.
Without these improvements, the
UNC system will continually be forced
to compensate for educational short
comings. As freshman classes are
poorly prepared to meet the demands
of a college curriculum, higher edu
cation is relegated to something less
than its name would imply.
W
hen classes call, just say no
Now is the time to bring a subject
out into the open which until now has
only been discussed in hushed tones.
There are some students, the rene
gades, the outcasts, who indulge in a
dubious activity known in technical
circles as "habitual disregard and
evasion of participatory academic
sessions." Better known, to the
initiated, as "blowing off class."
These pathological idlers are mis
understood their absences are not
a matter of choice, but of forces
beyond their control. A "Family Feud"
style survey of their reasons is in order:
b Hangover. After a night spent in
the clutches of Pepe Lopez, no student
can be expected to sit through a
morning class with that South Amer
ican revolutionary chewing on his
neurons. Not to mention his tongue,
which tastes as if he's-been licking the
salt off the. windshield all night.
b Weather. A Carolina-blue sky, the
smell of popcorn in the breeze,
sunbeams dancing on the bricks
there's nothing to be done but have
a good long Pit-sit. True students of
human nature are inevitably drawn to
those steps, where overheard dialogue
teaches more about human interaction
than any sociology class. Listen . . .
"Y'all are so tan, I hate you! Bye! Call
me!" "What a babe, huh?" "Yeah,
man."
b Vanity. A junior stands in the
doorway of his economics class,
looking around at his fellow students.
Two minutes before class, and already
their eyes are glazed, their jaws slack
and drooling. He knows that if he sits
down, for 75 minutes he, too, will look
like them. A moment's hesitation, then
he heads for Lenoir and pizza.
b Stress. Not necessarily academic.
Personal stress is defined as the body's
repression of the mind's desire to
choke the living hell out of some idiot
who really deserves it. Hands shaking,
stomach knotting, brain strangling . . .
Sometimes it's best just to draw the
shades and listen to Windham Hill
albums.
a Protest. Many people cannot
stand to be in a roomful of silent and
timid students, where the teacher's
questions bounce off averted eyes and
become rhetorical. To protest student
apathy, some students boycott such
classes.
b Sickness. Yeah, right.
Concerned friends and relatives of
truant students must realize that this
habit is not the student's fault it
is a disease. For some, the problem
is like chicken pox; for others, leprosy.
With proper counseling and a little
compassion, perhaps one day even the
most plague-ridden student will be
able to fight the temptation to cut
class, and, in the end, just say no.
Brian McCuskey
The Daily Tar Heel
Editorial Writers: Jim Greenhill, Mike Mackay, Brian McCuskey and Jon Rust.
Editorial Assistants: Julia Coon and Sharon Kebschull.
Assistant Managing Editors: Cara Bonnett, Melissa Daniels, Peter Lineberry and Mandy Spence.
News: Kari Barlow, Jeanna Baxter, Lydian Bernhardt, Matt Bivens, Brenda Campbell, Staci Cox, Meg Craddock,
Sandy Dimsdale, Carrie Dove, Laurie Duncan, Kimberly Edens, Mark Folk, Gerda Gallop, Kristen Gardner, Alissa
Grice, Lindsay Hayes, Kyle Hudson, Michael Jackson, Kelly Johnson, Michael Jordan, Helen Jones, Susan Kauffman,
Sharon Kebschull, Hunter Lambeth, Will Lingo, Barbara Linn, Brian Long, Mitra Lotfi, Lynne McClintock, Brian
McCollum, Leigh Ann McDonald, Justin McGuire, Stephanie Marshall, Myrna Miller, Smithson Mills, Lee Ann
Necessary, Rebecca Nesbit, Susan Odenkirchen, Cheryl Pond, Amy Powell, Charla Price, Andrea Shaw, Mandy
Spence, Bill Taggart, Clay Thorp, Nicki Weisensee, Judy Wilson and Amy Winslow. Brian Long, assistant business
editor. Rachel Orr, assistant university editor.
Sports: Mike Berardino and Patton McDowell, assistant sports editors. Robert D'Arruda, Steve Giles, Dave Glenn,
Dave Hall, Clay Hodges, Jim Muse, Andy Podolsky, Chris Spencer and Langston Wertz. .
Features: Hannah Drum, Carole Ferguson, Jennifer Frost, Laura Jenkins, Corin Ortlam, Lynn Phillips, Leigh Pressley,
Karen Stegman, Kathy Wilson and Julie Woods.
Arts: James Burrus, Scott Cowen, Stephanie Dean, Kim Donehower, David Hester, Julie Olson, Beth Rhea, Kelly
Rhodes, Alston Russell and Richard Smith.
Photography: Tony Deifell, David Minton, Matthew Plyler and Julie Stovall.
Copy Editors: Karen Bell, Cara Bonnett, Carrie Burgin, Julia Coon, Whitney Cork, Laurie Duncan, Bert Hackney,
Lisa Lorentz, Toby Moore, Karen Smiley, Rachel Stiffler and Kaarin Tisue.
Cartoonists: Jeff Christian, Bill Cokas, Greg Humphreys and Trip Park.
Campus Calendar: Mindelle Rosenberg.
Business and Advertising: Anne Fulcher, general manager; Patricia Glance, advertising director; Joan Worth, advertising
coordinator; Peggy Smith, advertising manager; Sheila Baker, business manager; Michael Benfield, Lisa Chorebanian,
Ashley Hinton, Kellie McElhaney, Chrissy Mennitt, Stacey Montford, Lesley Renwrick, Julie Settle, Dave Slovensky,
Dean Thompson, Amanda Tilley and Wendy Wenger, advertising representatives; Stephanie Chesson, classified
advertising representative; and Kris Carlson, secretary.
Distribution Tucker Stevens, manager; -
Delivery Leon Morton, manager; Billy Owens, assistant.
Production: Bill Leslie and Stacy Wynn. Rita Galloway, Leslie Humphrey, Stephanie Locklear and Tammy Sheldon
production assistants. '
Printing: The Chapel Hill Newspaper
Canapes racism takes many faces
ncidents of racism and bureaucratic
apathy do not suddenly rise out of a
vacuum. Rather, they are products of
their environment and are often only the
most visible examples of underlaying
attitudes and practices. This is very much
the case in the confrontation between 14
officers of the University police and the
University administration, as represented
by Security Services Director Robert
Sherman's and Chief Charles Mauer's
reorganization plan and the University
Personnel Department's grievance proce
dure. In this reorganization, which created
12 new positions ranging from major to
sergeant, the 14 officers were passed over
for promotion, despite their seniority and
experience, and personal relationships
seem to have been the primary criteria for
advancement.
What is at work in this, and similar
situations, is not the legalized segregation
of the Jim Crow era or the vicious racism
of the Klan and other hate groups. Instead,
it is a combination of the subtle racism
that pervades our economy, society and
political system and of the lack of
sensitivity and accountability often dis
played by University authorities.
The civil rights movement of the 1950s
and '60s fought and defeated some of the
most obnoxious aspects of racism in this
country, those laws and institutions whose
sole function was the subordination of
blacks and other minorities. Today what
we face, and must fight, is our inheritance
of past injustices and their present-day
manifestations in society. Any casual
Peter Rogers
Guest Writer
observer wandering about our campus
would notice this immediately. Blacks
dominate in the maintenance and service
positions that make UNC a working,
physical entity. As one moves up the scale
of pay and "responsibility," fewer and
fewer blacks are represented. At the top
is the Board of Trustees, where we find
one black out of 13 members, and he,
William Darity, felt sufficiently alienated
from his fellows to consider resignation
earlier this year.
Given such a peality, what is surprising
is not the current University police
controversy, but the general absence of
similar protests. It would probably be too
much to accuse Sherman and Mauer of
overt racism, but their casual drafting of
such a plan perpetuating an unjust status
quo is just as revealing. The villain here
is the unconscious classification of people
by race and a lack of awareness that this
process occurs. Since we have come from
a racist past, it is only to be expected that
we continue to confront a racist present.
The second feature of this affair, the
sluggish and unresponsive behavior of the
University grievance procedure, should
provide an institutional awareness of
problems such as discrimination. Instead,
what we find here is a desire to paper over
problems, or worse, engage in confronta
tion with those who persist in asserting
their rights. Long before this summer's
reorganization, complaints had reached
the personnel department concerning
problems within the University police.
When a crisis finally did erupt the
personnel department delayed its hearing
on the matter and, in the end, offered only
a cosmetic solution. The officers filing
grievances were not paid for the time they
contributed to the investigation, while
others consulted at the grievance hearings
were. Those officers who rejected the
personnel department's recommendations
have been urged by University authorities
not to proceed any further, and in
frustration some are now turning to legal
action.
For a university that aspires to be a
beacon of truth, justice and tolerance, this
is a tragedy. The existence of procedures
on paper and lofty, but often empty,
statements is not enough. What is required
is accountability, and, since this does not
seem to be forthcoming from the institu
tions of the University, it must come from
without. This is why concerned members
of the campus community must scrutinize
and often press the University, to prevent
it from following the practices of the past
when handling the problems of the present.
Today, at 11:50 a.m., there will be a rally
in the Pit in support of the 14 officers,
followed by a march to the University
police station at 12:30 p.m.
Peter Rogers is a senior international
studies major from Chapel Hill.
Speed limit
saves lives
To the editor:
This is an open letter to all
those who commute to and
from work or classes via Air
port Road. I share that road
with you at certain times of the
day and want to make an
urgent request of you for my
own safety. Please observe the
speed limit. The speed limit is
35 mph from Rosemary Street
out to Estes Drive and 45 mph
from there out. Many people
exceed these limits by 10 mph
or more. This suggests to me
that they do not care about the
lives or welfare of anyone else
on the road.
We, the citizens (through our
elected officials and hired staff),
established those speed limits to
protect the public safety and
welfare. If the limits are inap
propriate, we may change them
through the same means.
Meanwhile, we are obligated to
obey them.
Drivers exceeding the speed
limit endanger those who are
not by following too close (in
the vain hope, I suppose, of
egging them to go faster) and
by making it very hazardous to
merge into an adjacent lane.
The speeding driver severely
impairs his ability to avoid
accidents, and also that of other
drivers. I have seen a child dart
out into Airport Road and
almost get killed. Do you want
to be the driver responsible for
a child's death? You may not
care about your own life or the
lives of others, but the law
requires you to respect my right
to live and to protect the lives
of my loved ones.
Besides creating hazards,
your speeding gains you
nothing. While driving at the
speed limit, I usually catch up
with the speeders at a stop light
or where the road merges into
7JPL - I ASKED HIM IF HEVW5 , ' , -
llVffti? ACTUALLY DEAD,- q
AKPHENODPEDB! I
two lanes and traffic slows
down. Try it; you will find you
get there just as soon traveling
at the speed limit. And you are
more likely to get there.
ALBERT HARDY
Systems Programmer
Administrative Data
Processing
Hooray for
free press
To the editor:
, Three cheers for the free
press! This wonderful little
provision in our Constitution
allows me to print. as many
Edgar "Bolt" Upright cartoons
as I please, and allows people
like Lisa Jacobs to write just
as many letters demanding
them to be burned ("Rape
cartoon is degrading," Oct. 1).
Isn't this great? But alas, a few
things need to be clarified.
Jacobs did indeed phone me
at my place of employment and
I tried, with little success, to
explain why I had no qualms
about running the said
"degrading" cartoon. Ill try
again here. Perhaps this time
IH be listened to.
The cartoon, entitled
"Bored," presents a world
created by Upright. In this
world, there lives a man, "Bad
Otto," who likes to fantasize
about women. The last time I
checked, thinking was not a
crime. Furthermore, I don't
think this scene advocates rape.
Bad Otto is, after all,, bad.
As Jacobs reports, I did in
fact say that rape is a reality.
There happen to be people in
this world who think about
rape. And just because Upright
presents one of these people in
his cartoons, in my newspaper,
is no reflection on his views of
rape or mine .
It's the same old story. Two
years ago, DTH editors ran the
"God is dead" quote by
Nietzche, and suddenly were
called secular scum. Last year,
a cartoonist who portrayed two
administration officials who
were ignorant about racial
problems was declared a racist.
A few words about "under
ground" cartoons: In the '60s,
this genre sprung up, and was
fueled by cartoonists who
refused to censor "taboo"
subjects such as sex and drugs
(eek!). Unfortunately, there are
still the Lisa Jacobs out there
who aren't ready for this kind
of openness and awareness.
Like I said, this is one helluva
country we live in, huh? Here
in the good ol' U.S. of A, we
Americans aren't forced to do
anything! And that's why I
would advise Jacobs never to
pick up "I.E. The Cartoon
Newspaper" again.
One more thing. I would love
to hear anyone's view on this'
subject. However, please don't
call me at work. Try 929-1108,
or write P.O. Box 2598, Suite
138, Chapel Hill, 27515.
ADAM COHEN
Chapel Hill
Mam hath no vanity Mice license plates
all is upon us now, which in addition
to changing leaves, shorter days and
other such eivens, means the
"nation's automakers" as they are
invariably described in the media are
releasing their 1988 models. Early returns
indicate that more and more cars will take
the aerodynamic styling popularized by the
Ford Taurus. "Aerodynamic styling" is
synonomous with four-wheeled jelly bean.
Cars have always fascinated me. Indeed,
the first word I learned to spell was "Ford"
because my mother drove a gas-guzzling
Ford station wagon. It was the kind with
fake wood on the sides, a true family
truckster, a sort of motorized Motel 6 for
long interstate trips to visit grandparents.
But the point of today's diatribe is not
monolithic station wagons long rusted out,
but rather, on a physically insignificant
aspect of automobiles: the vanity license
plate.
The vanity license plate is a relatively
new feature in automotive history. It serves
as a state-sanctioned brand to distinguish
a car owner from the motorized herd.
Vanity license plates identify motorists in
a variety of ways.
Some drivers use them as a form of
occupational advertising. This is usually
limited to successful professionals who
drive expensive cars. A friend of mine in
Philadelphia knows a wealthy plastic
surgeon whose Rolls Royce reads "DR.
Chris Chapman
Guest Writer
NOSE." Oftentimes walking to class, I see
a black Mercedes convertible with the
license tag "CRE8MBAS" in the parking
lot behind the business school.
Other times, vanity tags are used merely
to announce the driver's name. The plates
are often monograms, such as "CLW."
These plates are used to commemorate
some romantic attachment. Married
couples will get plates that combine their
intials, like "CLW-KDW." Maybe it's just
me, but proclaiming your love on a license
plate seems kind of cheesy. Wouldn't a
Whitman's Sampler be easier?
Some vanity plates are used to remind
other motorists of just what car they're
following. Licenses like "BIMMER" or
"560 SL" clue in the uniformed driver that
he is following an expensive bit of
machinery. Other drivers combine their
intitials with the cars model as in "KTK
RX7." Still others emphasize particular
attributes of their cars, as in "HOT Z,"
which I saw adorning a fire-red Camaro.
Other license plates signify team affili
ations. Michael Jordan's "UNC-23" would
fall into this category, as would "HEELS
3" currently parked in the Granville lot.
Some license plates proclaim Tar Heel
allegiance, often by combining the drivers
intials with UNC, as in "JDK-UNC." This
affectation is not limited to Carolina. In
Kansas City this summer, I came out of
a store into the parking lot to find a Honda
with a Duke window sticker bearing the
license plate "BLUDEVIL."
Most vanity license plates are fairly silly,
but there are some whimsical ones. In the
Granville parking lot one can find a
Volkswagen Beetle tagged "MORNIN', "
which is complemented a couple of rows
away by a car with the tag "EVENIN'. "
Two of my favorite tags were on a pair
of Porche 911s. One read "4MYFUN." The
other read "I'M QUIK," which is a silly
plate, but at the time I saw him he was
being ticketed for speeding. Not quick
enough, I guess.
Of course, North Carolina drivers need
not limit their self-expression to the back
license plate. Because the state only
requires one tag, drivers have the whole
front plate. This has led to calamities like
the air-brushed multi-colored beach scene,
often found with labels like "Myrtle Beach
Days," with "Days" spelled D-A-Z-E. How
clever.
Chris Chapman is a junior economics
history major from Overland Park, Kan.
His license plate reads JO-C57819 which
means "Johnson County, Kan., registra
tion number C-57 8 19."