Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Feb. 24, 1992, edition 1 / Page 8
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8The Daily Tar HeelMonday, February 24, 1992 MEMlWLEf Mck fit the STUPE NT COhWESS PUWWlOti.., 100th year of editorial freedom ';' Jennifer STEVE POLm, University Editor GULLEN FERGUSON, Editorial Page Editor Neil Amato, Sports Editor CHRISTINA NifonG, Features Editot AiEX De Grand, Cartoon Editor MlTCH KOKAI, Copy Desk Editor GRANT HALVERSON, Photography Editor WlNG, Editor Amber Nimocks, City Editor Eric Lusk, State and National Editor VlCKI HYMAN, Omnibus Editor Jennifer Dickens, Layout Editor JoANN RODAK, Managing Editor Amy Seeley, Copy Desk Editor KATHY MlCHEL, Photography Editor Vote Rashmi Airan for SBP -llla LJTBWY tests TO f In Tuesday's run-off elections, The Daily Tar Heel endorses Rashmi Airan for stu dent body president. Airan's experience, ideas and plans make her by far the supe rior candidate for the office. ' Anyone who has ever believed their fac ulty adviser just was not doing the job in guiding them through their academic ca reer will be interested in Airan's peer ad vising program. The program would give students the opportunity to discuss their academic track with an older undergrad in the same area of study. It would comple pjent faculty advising, not replace it, and provide younger students with the realistic views and practical experience of the people who have actually taken the courses not jiist from those who teach them. Airan is committed to increasing the number of Reading Days and, of course, seeing that they don't fall on Saturdays. IJer experience in Student Congress has given her the opportunity to work inside Jftlie system and see how it operates. This makes her the most likely candidate to be able to institute some of her plans, espe cially in dealing with an academic calendar that the University administration seems to ave set in stone. f '"Politician" seems to have become a ' dirty word in this year's campaigns, but it doesn't have to be. Airan is a politician 'njeaning she is comfortable in student gov- Run-offs: Learn from the mistakes I,. Sequels tend to be weaker than their originals. Very few movies and books have Irnanaged to create solid sequels to block-buster originals. One can only hope the same won't happen to the UNC Elections ;Board and its flop, "Elections '92." Before .'voters return to the polls Tuesday, the Elec tions Board members should eliminate the ruimerpuif misYalceslhar'occurred during ;electiontwo weeks ago. Running out of ballots is one mini-disas-ler that should not happen again. At the Student Union poll site last elections, bal lots for student body president and Daily il'ar Heel editor ran out with 15 to 20 minutes of voting time left. Although voter ;ttjrnout during run-offs is lower than dur ing regular elections, the Elections Board should overestimate the number of voters ;in order to prevent this from reoccurring. ' Long lines plagued heavy voter turnout in spots such as the Union, forcing some Voters to abandon their hopes of voting. Providing more poll tenders could have diminished this problem. Furthermore, the poll tenders need to be better educated on the dos and don'ts of voting and election rules. The controversy over student body president candidate Rashmi Airan and sup porter Mark Chilton partly arose because poll tenders were unaware of Mark's po litical activities and the potential conflicts that could arise by inviting him behind polling tables to put votes in the ballot boxes. All poll tenders should be aware of the Elections Board official who is work ing with them and should then give all questions to him or her. Thus, the Elections Board can ensure that the rules are fol Buslnau and advertising: Kevin Schwartz, directorgeneral manager, manager, Allison Asnwortn, Business manager. Business sltt: Michelle Gray, assistant managerGma Berardino, and ciassmei overusing: Amy uew, uecKy Marquette, Lome raie. production assistant. DiSDlav advertising.: Ashleioh Heath, advertising manager Milton David Hoffmann, Joanna Hutchins. Lynne Sandridge, Brooks Spradling, account executive; unanone weaver, nicki Biair, prooneaaers. Advertising production: Bill Leslie, managersystem administrator, Assistant edilors: Anne Michaud, arts coordinator; Hardy Floyd and latum, features. Chip Sudderth. graphics coordinator; Valerie Fields, piofoorapny.'StewartChisam, Eric David, Warren Hynes and Bryan Strickland, sports; Anna Griffin, sfafeandnalona, Birch DeVault.Ashley t-ogie ana Bonnie Hocnman, university. Ntwiclert: Kevin Brennan. . Editorial writers: Karen Dietrich, David Etchison, Adam Ford, Shea Riggsbee and Will Spears. University: Michael Bradley. John Broadfoot. Meoan Brown. Shannon Crownover, Soyia Ellison, Kathy Ford. Heather Harreld. Valerie Hblbert, Teesha Holladay, Kathleen Keener. Chandra McLean, Jenny Anuraana ietn, Marcia Sweeney, jennirer i aineim, neuy i nompson, iwarcy waisn, jon vvnisenani ana Micnaei woinman. City: Tiffany Ashhurst, Jennifer Brett. Andrea Bruce, Kim Cable, Maile Carpenter, Andrew Cine, Carol Davis, Julie Flick, Chris Goodson, Christy Hardee, Jackie Hershkowitz, Grant Holland, Wendy Perrell, Emily Russ, Kelly Ryan and Brendan Smith, i State and National: Josh Boyer, Tara Duncan, Brandy Fisher, Giilam Hall, Vicki Hyman, Karen Lakey, Laura Laxton, Brian McJunkln, Rebecah Moore, Lars Munson, Adrienne Parker, Jason Richardson, Bruce Robinson Pete Simpkinson and Chris Trahan. Special Assignments: Alisa DeMao, Anna Griffin, Mara Lee, Jennifer Mueller and Gillian Murphy. ' Arts: Lavton Croft. Ned Dirlik. Beth Formv-Duval. Laura Guv. Giant Halverson. Ashlev Harris. Melissa Mankowskl. Charles Marshall Jonathan McCall, Rahul Mehta, Greg Miller. Elizabeth Oliver, Susie Rickard, Martin Scott, Jenni Spitz, Sally Stryker and Ian Williams. . Features: Yi-Hsln Chang, Vicki Cheng, Michael Easterly, Jackie Herskowitz, Thomas King, Mara Lee, Kristin Leight, Robin Lowe, Anna Meadows, Kelly Noyes, Mary Moore Parham, Sonja Post, Winifred Sease and Howard Thompson. . Sports: Mark Anderson, senior writer; Jason Bates, Jennifer Dunlap, Jay Exum, Stuart Gordan, Dave Heiser, Doug Hoogervorst, Matt Johnson, David J. Kupstas, Mary Lafferty, John C. Manuel, Amy McCaffrey, Bobby McCroskey, David Monroe, Jay Stroble and Carter Toole. Photography: Brian Jones, senior photographer; Jonathan Atkeson, Kevin Chignell, Steve Exum, Garth Fort, Florian Hanig, Erin Randall, EVie Sandlin and Debbie Stengel. Copy EdltorsAidy Bechtel, Tiffany Cook, Amy Cummins, Michael Gaudio, Kyle Hooper, Rama Kayyali, Jennifer Kurfees, Mara Lee, Marty McGee, Vlkki Mercer, Mary Moore Parham, Susan Pearsall, Jennifer Reid, Christie Saleh, John Staton, Jacqueline Torok, Rick Twomey, Kenyatta Unchurch, Sara Watson, Amy Weller and Nancy West. srapnict: jonn wserra, Jay Hoseoorougn ana hick btatiie. Cartoonists: Mandy Brame, Mary Brutzman, Lem Butler, Carolyn Flanders and Jeff Maxim. Layout Shane Klein, Ian Leong, Heather Modlin, Teresa Rucker and Sheila Terrell. Editorial Production: Stacy Wynn, manager Lisa Reichle, assistant. Distribution and Printing: Village Printing Company The Daily Tar Heel is published by the DTH Publishing Corp.. a University calendar. uiierswitnqistionsaiioiiiingoroispiayaofflriisingsnouiaoiai 962-0252. Editorial questions should be directed to 962-02450246. Office Suite 104 Carolina Union Campus mall address: C8I S210 box 49. Carolina Union U.S. Mail address: P.O. Boi 3257, Chapel Hill, NC 27515-3257 emment and will be able to work there. She real izes the president's of fice is simply not the best place to begin a career of political cnmuing anu is t J above the ego trips and USy power plays for which i student government is becoming notorious. Rashmi Airan The student body president holds the office for one year and cannot take six months to learn all the ins and outs of the system before actually getting some work done. John Moody, Airan's opponent in the run-off, is correct in his claims that he is outside politics. This lack of previous political involvement is touted as an ad vantage but can only serve to hinder him as a president. He has a platform with no supports a bunch of free-floating, half formed goals and no plan as to how they can be reached. Airan is committed to an open student government free from all the silly bicker ing and clashes of egos. Government exists because of its responsibility to spend stu dent fees wisely. Airan realizes that and will also be looking for additional ways to fund student projects without fee increases. In short, Airan is the candidate who can and will do the job, not just someone who would like to do it. lowed and that controversies won't arise from questionable polling practices. Elections Board members also should be aware of candidates hovering around the poll sites. Student Congress Speaker Tim Moore, who ran for re-election, distributed referendum ballots to students as they walked into the Union poll site. While Moore performed a needed'service for the students in doing this, he also gave himself unfair exposure that other candidates did not receive. This sort of politicking just doesn't sit well and is grounds for lawsuits. To educate voters, candidates and poll site workers, the Elections Board could post a full set of elections rules around the poll sites. That way, anybody who is inter ested can know what is kosher during elec tions, and it also gives Elections Board members, who are extremely busy during polling hours, an added protection. Finally, the Elections Board has a re sponsibility to count votes as quickly as possible. The candidates, voters the DTH all anxiously await the results. During the first elections, the board counted votes for congress races first a long and boring ordeal that only forced the candidates for the big offices to wait longer. The Elec tions Board would do many people a favor if it dispensed with the more important offices first and then moved into congress votes during the wee hours of the morning. Elections are hell, there is no doubt. But the Elections Board now has the 2020 vision that accompanies hindsight to fix the problems. If run-offs can be concluded this week, with no lawsuits, Elections Board members will have done their job right. Bob Bates, advertising director, Leslie Humphrey, classified id Laurie Davis, office assistantsXMssy Davis, promotions manager. Lean wenaras ana Jennuer lerry, representatives.waa Campbell, Artis, Marcie Bailev. Robert Lee Carson. Carrie Gradv. Anaela Grav. and Ginger Wagoner, account executives;Mat'm Miller, assistant Anita Bentley and Lome Pate, assistants. Aimee Hobbs, copy; Dana Pope, cfy;Shea Riggsbee, editorial; Belh managing; Victu Hyman and Mike Long, Omnibus: Andrew Cline. Mclnnis, Marty Minchin. Maricia Moye, Jennifer Mueller, Cathy Obeile, non-profit North Carolina corporation. Monday-Friday, according to the - iiwDeween8 ua.m.anosp.m.uiassrtieaadscanDereacnerj The DTH: toward a second century of excellence The Daily Tar Heel is entering its 100th year of editorial freedom an incred ible one hundred years of educating stu dents and the University community about the campus. Yesterday marked our 99th birthday, and as history has shown, there is an enormous amount to celebrate. The history supporting the DTH may be the most impressive aspect of this Chapel Hill institution. Journalism greats such as Thomas Wolfe, Charles Kuralt and Ed Yoder have held the DTH editorship, and many other desk edi tors and staff writers have risen through the ranks to become highly respected in their fields. And I have no doubt in my mind that future editors and staff members will continue to reflect the DTH's high caliber. The DTH was first published as an athletics "rag." When the University Athletic Associa tion first published The Tar Heel on Feb. 23, 1893, the following passage was published in that first newspaper to explain the Tar Heel's responsibility to its community: "A weekly paper published at the University of North Carolina, under the auspices of the University Atheletic (sic.) Association, devoted to the interest of the University at large. Issued every Thursday morning. It will con tain a summary of all occurrences in the! Unl'i " versity and village of Chapel Hill. Space will be assigned for the thorough discussion of all points pertaining to the ad vancement and growth of the University." The column further explains that sports news Dissecting the misrepresentations Last semester, Daily Tar Heel staff colum nist David Ball, in a quite effective and finely sharpened piece of satire ("Who cares about the other guy? Try being selfish"), thoroughly misrepresented Libertarian views. We appreciate the opportunity, in this presi dential primary season, to set the record straight with this brief Libertarian primer: Libertarianism is neither radical nor reac tionary, left nor right. Nor is it new. It repre sents the classical liberal (as opposed to con temporary liberal) philosophy upon which this nation was founded. Aristotle, Cicero and John Locke were essentially Libertarians, as were Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry and the ma jority of the Framers of the U.S. Constitution. The basis of libertarianism is an expression of the natural rights of human beings: no first use of force. That is, no person has the right to initiate force against another. From this, liber tarian views on most issues can be deduced the principles are internally consistent. The most basic principle is that all individu als are sovereign over their own minds and bodies; they have a natural right to live their lives and think as they choose as long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equally valid right of others to do the same. Governments have historically and routinely rejected or re stricted this right as they have seen fit. That some of these governments have been demo cratically elected is irrelevant no one has the right to vote the initiation of force upon some one else. The only proper functions of government are to defend the country from outside aggression and to protect the lives, rights and property of its citizens. If our country is attacked by a foreign power (first use of force) the govern ment has a responsibility to coordinate defen sive, or retaliatory, force to defend and protect its citizens. It is also proper for the government to punish, through imprisonment or otherwise, individuals who have initiated unwanted force (committed crimes) against others; this is the basis of our system of justice. It involves the use of justifiable defensive, or retaliatory, force as a form of self-defense on the behalf of people. Fraud, theft, trespass and infringements of civil liberties and property rights are proscribed by law, punishable by the government. Govern ment has a proper, just and essential place in the lives of free people. Libertarians are not anar chists. Laws prohibiting the interaction of people with one another as free individuals are unjust, as they involve the real or threatened first use of force. Whether in the financial marketplace or behind bedroom doors, agreements between and among consenting adults are not govern ment business. Laws prohibiting individual behavior that does not forcibly affect others are also unjust. The government should not be in the business of protecting individuals from themselves by prohibiting activities that some deem immoral or risky (while, ironically, using Jennifer Wing Editor in Chief would figure largely into the coverage as would personals and society news. Since those early days, the student newspaper has grown to five days a week and has added "Daily" to its name. What once was a one-page newspaper has exploded into an eight- to 1 2-page newspaper with a 150-student staff behind it. News ex panded beyond religion and athletics to cover all aspects of a diverse and exciting campus. Editorially, the DTH has played a major force in Chapel Hill and the University. The DTH is the place to look for the campus news, and our city coverage has become competitive with local commercial papers. Every year, in novative elements have been added to the DTH, making it one of the best college dailies in the country. In the past year, the DTH has won two national awards ranking the newspaper in the top five of college dailies. And just this year, the all-campus election of the DTH has been changed to a selection com mittee. Such a historical switch is yet another improvement irt the quality of the DTH. Now,' the editor will be chosen for journalistic and leadership qualities, not for political skills. To celebrate our 1 00th year of editorial free dom, the DTH will place a special logo in the masthead every day for a year. In addition, the WindsorSmith Guest Writers force if one declines to obey). A law against Bungee jumping is ridiculous on its face. In the case of laws against the use of certain drugs (and the bloodbath of the resulting black mar ket), we should learn from our history of alco hol Prohibition yes, it is the same thing. The most health-destructive "recreational" drugs are tobacco and alcohol, yet there is currently little clamor to outlaw these. Laws restricting the private ownership of firearms are not only unjust and unconstitu tional; they are also misdirected. Guns do not cause crime individuals, not guns, initiate force against others. Individuals who threaten or initiate force using firearms or any other weapons should be dealt with severely, to the fullest extent of the law. Those who do not should be left alone. The right of the people to keep and bear arms is so fundamental to keep ing a people free from tyranny that it was spelled out specifically as a separate article in the Bill of Rights: the Second Amendment. The Founding Fathers and their fellow citizens knew all too well that one of the first things an oppressive government does is to confiscate privately held firearms. This indeed happened in the post Civil War South, prompting passage of the 14th Amend ment to secure the 2nd Amendment right of Black citizens to protect themselves against state government approved militia groups. Taxation is theft. All of us who qualify as taxpayers must hand over whatever amount is demanded, or force will be initiated against us. Unfriendly people will come to our doors and, if we refuse to pay in full, harm us in some way. Is there a better definition of theft? Much of what the government does is unnecessary. Those services for which there is a real need, such as help for the needy, are provided much more efficiently by private citizens and organiza tions. Private contributions are not wasted on armies of inefficient, well-paid bureaucrats, and the programs are run by people who care. Habitat for Humanity is an example effi cient, effective and privately funded. People should be free to support the causes they choose. You may or may not wish to contribute to a cause I believe in that is your choice, and neither I nor the government rightfully may force you to do so. Regardless of your beliefs: Would you force someone who believes abor tion is murder to pay for someone else's abor tion? Our government does. Democrats and Republicans continue to work hard to increase the size of government, its debt, and the authority it has over our lives. The Bill of Rights is becoming "void where prohib ited" as lifestyle choices are banned, firearms outlawed, freedom of the press abridged, free DTH has officially kicked off its special capital im provements campaign to raise $ 1 00,000 by our 1 00th birthday. Tar Heel notables such as Rep. Jim Cooper, journalism professors Jim Shumaker and Chuck Stone, and journalist Larry Keith from Sports Illustrated, among many others, have Est. 1893 100th Year of Editorial Freedom all joined the campaign. With such an impressive and extensive his tory behind it. The Daily Tar Heel is sure to survive whatever storms it may encounter in its next 100 years. I will always be proud to say that I worked for the DTH and that I contributed to its history. Perhaps it's because I'm leaving this place in a week and I'm feeling a little teary-eyed, but I vow I will always support the DTH editorially and, I hope, financially. I have no doubt that the DTH will always be a major player in the University community. I charge future DTH staffs to give the University hell, don't ever be intimidated by egotistical politicos and remember your ultimate mission providing the readers fair and accurate cov erage. As long as the staff remembers these "ideals, I have no fear that the DTH1 wflhsteatl fastly remain a Chapel Hill institution. Happy Birthday. Jennifer Wing is a senior English major from Greenville. of Libertarians trade infringed and the fruits of people's labors seized. These two parties differ only on why they want to trash the Bill of Rights and, to some extent, which parts. Both cheerfully uti lize the real and threatened first use of force to support their personal and collective causes, which change and expand with the scent of votes and the growth of government. They have no internal consistency; compromising their principles, they blow this way and that on political winds. We no longer have to "be" Republicans or Democrats to participate meaningfully in the political process. For people who are not com pletely comfortable with the right, left or middle (middle no direction), who believe in Liberty and who would prefer to see voluntary coopera tion, rather than force, determine the nature of human relationships there is the Libertarian Party. It by far the largest of the "other" parties and is growing rapidly. The presidential ticket is quality, coed and will be on the ballot in all 50 states this November. An informational and organizational meeting of the newly forming UNC Libertarian Party will be held at 7:45 p.m. ' Wednesday in Union Room 224. You may call I (800) 292-3766 for more information on this meeting or oh the party in general. As for us i I give us Liberty ... i Dana John Winhorst is a graduate student in. J environmental health studies from Minneapolis lis. Kate Smith is a sophomore French major, from Asheville. S Column policy TheDailyTarHeelwelcomesreadercom ments and criticisms. We attempt to print as many letters to the editor as space permits. The Daily Tar Heel does not print re sponses to responses. If a letter is criticized in a folio wing letter, the original letter writer may not respond. Letters to the editor and guest columns should be mailed to The Daily Tar Heel of fice or dropped off in the green box marked "Letters to the Editor" located outside of the Daily Tar Heel office located in the rear of the Carolina Student Union. People interested in writing guest col umns should contact The Daily Tar Heel in advance. Interested writers should speak to Jennifer Wing or Cullen Ferguson. Guest columns should generally range in length from 800-1 ,000 words. Timely columns will be given priority over less pertinent topics. Because of developments with campus elections, guest columns selected for open slots may not be printed before Spring Break. When writing letters, please follow these guidelines: All letters must be typed and double spaced. : If you have a title that is relevant to your letter's subject, please include it.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 24, 1992, edition 1
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