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The Red and Black, Friday. April 29. 1977
jane McAlister
Possibilities of $235 a week
Editorials
The Red and Black
Childish
The allocations process has
been in the news a great deal
this year, with advocates on both
sides arguing the merits of
students controlling student acti
vities fees over those of a
committee composed of students,
faculty and administrators con
trolling the process.
Throughout the fracas, mem
bers of the Student Senate have
argued it is their right to control
the allocation of the student
monies. But in a rather surpris
ing—to us, at least—move
Wednesday night, the senate
voted to give away the remain
ing allocating power it has,
which is that of allocations for
small organizations.
Seante Treasurer Robert Crout
called allocating funds for small
organizations the “shitwork the
senate was willing to do when we
had major allocations” and he
added, “If we’re not competent
to deal with 80 per cent (of
allocations) howcanwe be compe
tent for 20 per cent?”
With an attitude like that, we
have to wonder ourselves. The
childish action of the senate in
approving the motion to give up
its remaining power only streng
thens the administration’s claim
that students are not capable of
allocating the activities fees. If
the senate had done an excellent
job this year in allocating funds
to small organizations, the ad
ministration might have felt safe
to give the total responsibility
back to the students.
As it is, the senate has merely
compounded the error it made
last year in the allocations
process. It has shown itself
incapable of treating the process
with the seriousness it deserves.
actions
Of course, the senate has not
always acted childishly in regard
to allocating money. The alloca
tions committee of two years ago
did an excellent job in dividing
up available funds fairly. But
last year’s committee let petty
personality differences get in
the way of making fair judg
ments. and the result was a
removal of substantial power
from this year’s committee.
We have to agree with SGA
Administrative Vice President
Grant Raeside’s appraisal of the
situation. He said, “The senate
has elected to let loose of any
allocations power it had. It
seems ironic after using this to
recall students, they (the senate)
say we don’t want any alloca
tions power.”
Where is the logic in fighting to
regain lost power, while giving
away what power is left? We
cannot find any.
The senate motion provided
that the remaining power only be
given up for one year, but we
wonder why the senate believes
the administration will give back
full allocations powers next year.
W'e have seen nothing that would
lead us to that conclusion.
We suggest that the senate not
be so eager to give up its
remaining power just because
the type of work left is “shit-
work." Rather, the senate might
consider proving its responsibil
ity and ability to handle well the
job it has left. Not all work is
pleasant, but it has to be done,
and assuming an injured air over
the loss of the glamorous as
pects of a job is not the way to
make the situation better.
Let’s see if the senate can do
a good job at what little bit the
administration lets it do.
In this time of low salaries, high prices
and equally high unemployment, it is
certainly comforting to see that worthy
and esteemed institution that calls itself
the Student Government Association
flinging itself and
our activities fees
boldly into the fray.
I refer to their
recent decision to
hire a law student to
research the feasi
bility of a legal aid
program for stu
dents—a noble and
useful act if ever there was one.
But I fear they may have overreached
themselves in their latest blow against
poverty, that blow being the vote to give
the law student a weekly salary of $235.
Oh no. $235 surely doesn't sound like
much at a time when you could get a car
rebate that totals almost twice that
amount, but as a typical, poor student
who can't afford in the first place, I must
admit that paltry salary seems to be a
fortune.
Jane McAlister is feature editor of The
Red and Black
After reflecting upon my own current
salary of $12.50 per week, I realized I
couldn't even comprehend having that
much money in my possession. My mind
boggles at the possibilities of what a
person could do with just one week's
worth of our proposed law investigator's
salary.
For example:
On one week’s salarv vou could live
by yourself in a two-bedroom townhouse
at River Mill for a month. Or if you were
more economy-minded, you could stay in
Brumby for a quarter and a half.
You could pay a whole quarter’s tuition
or pay sorority (or fraternity) dues.
You could eat dinner at Snelling for 100
consecutive nights.
You could buy all the Top 40 albums.
You could eat a meal consisting of a
Big Mac, french fries and a Coke three
times a day, every day, for almost three
months.
You could fly round-trip to New York
from Atlanta first class.
You could buy a Nikon camera.
You could chew five pieces of Bubble
Yum every day for three years.
You could pay the news editor of The
Red and Black for an entire quarter, or a
bricklayer for a week, or two clerk-typ
ists for the University for a week.
You could buy enough Tabs to give a
Canadian rat cancer.
You could ride the Athens Transit
Buses 783 times before the free student
fare goes into effect.
You could buy a pound of Colombian or
two pounds of homegrown.
You could fund almost half of the
minimum pay increase for a non
academic University employe.
You could buy 260 pounds of ground
beef at 90 cents a pound, giving you
enough for 1044 quarter-pounders. If hot
dogs are more your style, you could
purchase enough foot-longs to stretch
across the Sanford Stadium football field
and on into the end-zone.
You could go to Six Flags over Georgia
33 times or relieve the bookstore of 10
overpriced $23 textbooks
You could buy 1236 of the 19-cent Bit-
ball point pens, or 783 Varsity ice cream
cones, with or without.
You could send your sweetie a dozen
red roses every day for a week and a
half, or mail her a letter every day for
almost five years.
You could go to the Paris Adult
Theater 78 times.
You could buy 47 bottles of cheap
champagne or almost 100 sets of Tupper-
ware bowls.
You could play 900 games of pinball.
You could get 11,750 boxes of matches,
or 437 packs of cigarettes. If you smoke a
pack a day, that will last you over a
year.
It’s quite wonderful what that lucky
law student will be able to do with our
monetary support. But we must remem
ber $235 a week isn’t that much money at
all...is it?
HI //oiv'-s you A Love uee?
Have' you eee/v saved ? you
LAANTA ZEE W SUDEZHow'l
lellers'lleilers
'Diplomacy best approach to problems'
TO THE EDITOR:
It must be that time of year again.
That time when students once again
realize that the University is a corporate
entity and not an institution whose
primary concern is to benefit students
That time when students must realize
that the University is a political arena
controled by a few of the more ambitious
administrators. Be it a matter of alloca
tions. or simply wading through the
bureaucracy, students cannot effectively
take roles as leaders.
In the last four years here at the
University, I have experienced some
truths many students never become
aware of. Sadly, they all indicate the
power-seeking methods of some of our
administrators Understand that I deeply
respect the University, and its over all
functioning However, even the best long-
range plan may be undermined by
misguided ambitions. Particularly since
last fall quarter, the push hus been on.
And students cannot overcome the well
planned scheme.
This letter may sound bitter, and
rightly so. The concept that student
organizations must be controlled, or
rendered ineffective, must be opposed.
This is the current theme held by some of
our administrative leaders. And it would
appear that only those students who are
willing to submit to the bureaucratic will
may find some pseudo-success for their
organizations. We are in a sorry state of
affairs.
The Student Body Constitution has been
rendered invalid by the overriding of
its tenets by Dean Douglas in the
Allocations process. Article I of the
Constitution grants students the right to
allocate all student activities monies.
Dean Douglas obviously believes he can
do a better job.
The Student Government Association
cannot operate effectively if all its
tangible authority (money) is removed.
It is true that this is not a new idea.
However, only a few students knew of
any ideas to change the allocations
process. And these few were obviously
close enough to the administration to
maintain silence when asked to do so.
The student body has been treated
wrongly. What can be said for adminis
trators or students who would act in such
a manner?
An interesting point in fact is that no
other area of the Student Body Constitu
tion has been brought into conflict. Why
not attack the authority of the Student
Judiciary? Perhaps the working relation
ships among the Student Affairs, and the
Judicial Affairs administrators, or that
the Student Judiciary is not controlled by
students may account for this kind of
sanction.
This letter has one purpose: to question
why the administrators at this University
choose to support some student organiza
tions while attempting to destroy others?
Since my primary concern has been
student government in residence halls, I
must cite one other example I am familiar
with
This example concerns the treatment
received by the Residence Hall Associ
ation as opposed to the treatment the
SGA is currently undergoing Simply
stated, the bombardment of SGA while
favors are being dealt to the RHA is not
an acceptable situation
By the grace of Dr Hallenbeck,
Director of Housing, the RHA has been
the recipient of several ‘'gifts”in the last
year An IBM Selectric typewriter was
loaned to the organization by the Housing
Department. Services such as office
space, office furniture, a telephone and
access to the Department’s Georgia Bond
stationery have been rendered Since this
organization has a low attendance re
cord. and most of its programs are
perpetrated by one or two of its
members, these advantages are hardly
warranted
Dr. Hallenbeck is the national adviser
to the National Association of College and
Unviersity Residence Halls (NACURH)
and rightly so. the RHA at Georgia is his
pet project. However, is this a proper
criteria for the advancement of RHA
over SGA** I think not.
The situation is obvious If students
wish to ben*..;? active and stand out as
leaders, they must do so *he discretion
of the administration
It is true that many students cannot
fulfill leadership roles without constant
guidance However, those of us who take
such roles seriously consider this kind of
domination as a slap in the face We are
considered adults by Georgia law, and we
are students at a major southern univer
sity. We are not children who must be led
like sheep.
I commend Rob Hancock and Grant
Raeside for their attempts to negotiate
with Dean Douglas. As an act of
diplomacy, this may be the best way to
approach the problem. In any case,
students who see this situation as it
really is know somehting must be done
LARRY STANLEY
‘Power of love
is a myth'
TO THE EDITOR:
Recent letters and comments appear
ing in The Red and Black have issued
urgent cries for “love" between the races,
they contend that we are all one in tne
eyes of God Well, God is not the one who
is responsible for my oppression How we
appear in his eyes is not relevant. Only
those that need the approval of some
"transcendent being” before they can
treat their fellow human beings as such,
find this significant.
The only thing that is important to me
is what those “righteous white Christians”
do after they leave those "holy worship
places" on Sunday, namely, the
perpetuation of a white racist system
All of a sudden, the victims of over 200
years of racial oppression are supposed
to find "love" in their hearts for their
oppressors. Granted, if love was power I
would be more willing to issue the same
urgent cry. However, the love my
grandmother gave in the raising of white
children, the love my grandfather
preached about, the love expressed
through Dr Martin L King's life and
blood have not alleviated black people's
suffering The power of love is a myth! It
is an illusion!
The men that run this country are not
motivated by love When we prayed for
love, they bombed our churches; when
we marched for love, they beat us and
threw is in jail; when we begged for love,
they shot us on our knees This is why I
say, without reserve or apology, I ain't
laving nobody!
To those that urge that we forget skin
color and treat each other as individuals.
I ask. how can I be an individual when so
many decisions that affect me daily are
determined by the fact that I am black?
I am a victim of discrimination not
because of my personal characteristics,
but becuase I am black!
I realize that the common denominator
of black people’s oppression is not that
we are Christians or Democrats or
Republicans. We are discriminated
against for no other reason than the color
of our skin. To suggest that we adopt
some objective standard in our daily
lives is to suggest that we make
ourselves more vulnerable to racism.
How can anyone be so naive ?
Most of the comments appearing in The
Red and Black have focused on
individual acts of racism. Individual acts
of racism should not be our concern. We,
as black men and women, can adequately
deal with these as they confront us. Overt
acts of racism can be met with overt acts
of self-defense.
It is the institutionalization of white
values and concepts that black people are
forced to use as points of references that
we who are labeled "black racists" are
so vehemently opposed. The SAT, GRE,
NTE, and LSAT are excellent examples
of this institutionalization of white values
and concepts. I am just plain sick and
tired of being told that Shelley is relevant
and James Weldon Johnson is not; that
Aristotle is more important than WEB
Dubois. From whose point of reference?
I refuse to give a privileged position
to the values and concepts of a society
that has only used "blackness" as a
negative pole of reference and defines
black people as "anti-values"
It is only through the acquisition of real
power, not love, that the black people will
be able to neutralize the effects of racism
in this country. Then, and only then, will
we be able to sit down at the table of
brotherhood to talk about love Love is
no solution when one is on the bottom. It
is a luxury black people can no longer
afford.
E. DEAN HENDERSON
'Campus leaders
student insult 1
TO THE EDITOR:
I am faced with a problem with the
.administration of the Traffic Safety
Department. I have beeli taking a
temporarily handicapped person to
classes lor the past few weeks. I went to
Mr Marvin E VanVleck. director of the
Traffic Safety Department, and asked for
a special medical parking permit for my
car I received a B-zone to park near
Hark Hall 1 asked for a Special Reserve
temporary permit hut was told that I
could park in the SR lot anyway since
“Those damn faculty will be going to
lunch and there will be empty spaces."
On April 18, I came out to find my car
towed away and a $20 parking ticket for
parking in a tow away zone I went to
see VanVleck who said that he never told
me I could park in the SR lot I appealed
to Traffic Court and requested a hearing.
After receiving one, I was told that I was
innocent of parking in a tow away zone
illegally but still had to pay the $10
towing fee.
Just because I am innocent I need to
pay for an administrative mistake -1
refuse to pay for the screwing of a
student's integrity. If I turn to the
administration for help, all I receive are
deaf ears and sadistical smirks. I just
want to make a public outcry of the insult
to the student's intelligence dealing with
matters concerning our heralded leaders
This cannot go on and I want to publicly
protest to the studentson this campus as
to what is going on concerning our rights
and privileges.
WILEY C. CONNER, HI
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Letters are subject to editing
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Black, 309 Journalism build
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by 309 Journalism building.
Till': KKDANl) BLACK
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