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The Red and Black. Wednesday May 2. 1979
^Perceptions
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\
Festival was fitting
v
J
The festival held in Athens last
week was a fitting tribute to the
arts, fun for University students
and Athens residents and prob
ably one of the most important
things to happen to the city in a
long time.
It was fitting because so many
groups in the city concerned with
furthering the arts receive little
notice from the community at
large.
It was fun because there were
activities all week long that gave
people a chance to escape from
their busy worlds
And the festival was important
because it brought a lot of people
into the downtown area who
might not have gone there
otherwise. After all, this is
downtown Athens, and we have
all been told the downtown area
is dying.
Yes, that is what we've been
told-but the evidence as seen
last week belies the rumor.
In case you managed to miss
going downtown last week, the
town was decked out in grand
style. Green flags lined the main
streets and sidewalk displays
were everywhere, adding to the
festive atmosphere. The Athens
Showmobile set up on College
Avenue provided entertainment
throughout the week as various
groups performed. Almost every
one got into the "act” with
contributions from the Athens
Creative Theater, Clarke Central
and Cedar Shoals High Schools,
and others. The University
sported performances from the
concert band, string quartet,
civic symphony, brass quintet
and the concert dance group.
The festival proves downtown
Athens can be a vital center for
Athens and a place for the
University community to gather.
No one can deny downtown
Athens is in trouble, but as we
have maintained all along, it
should not die and it is certainly
not dead yet.
As construction on the area's
first regional mall gets under
Md), UiC IUMuwim! KJii
downtown merchants will un
doubtedly increase. Two major
department stores-Penney's and
Belks-have announced plans to
move into the new mall when it
opens in 1980, which means some
downtown shoppers might be
tempted to frequent the mall
instead.
The stores already located
downtown should be encouraged
to stay there, and that en
couragement will come in the
form of dollar votes. If the
University community sets an
example for the rest of the city
by shopping downtown, the
future of Athens should be good.
The Downtown Development
Authority should continue to hold
special events downtown to keep
it thriving, and students and
professors should take advantage
of what the downtown merchants
have to offer.
After all, downtown is near
campus, it is charming, and it’s
the only downtown we have.
Problems with
nuclear energy
Cindy Jackson
Philosophical and
spiritual percepts
Kevin Crysler
Throughout my years at this Univer
sity. I have observed a tendency for
people to present their philosophical
and-or religious belief as if it were
absolute fact In keeping with this prece
dent. 1 shall here take the liberty of
candidly stating my perception of our
universe
I believe there is a God. The
probabilities associated with the forma
tion of the physical universe are
astounding 1 define God. therefore, as
the force that caused all things to come
together
Kevin Crysler is a senior in the School of
Business
Physics tells us that we are composed
of atoms, the nucleus of which contain
positive and neutral particles Physics
also tells us that "like'' forces repel one
another. How do protons coexist in the
nucleus 0 What is the binding force of an
atom? Remembering the relationship
between energy and mass. I expand my
definition of God. then, as a force which
simultaneously maintains and creates
our reality God is the integral part of all
matter and the beginning of all energy.
Of course not all of our reality is
physical. Our thoughts, hopes and
dreams are all verv real things They too
are outgrowths of this great pool of
energy we call God In short. God is "All
That Is "
We are each manifestations of this pool
of energy. We each have a vast reservoir
of power from which our reality springs
forth. As we learn to control this power,
we can better control our fate Successful
means of utilizing the ultimate control
we have over our destiny have included
prayer, meditation, chanting, positive
affirmations and other related spiritual
experiences.
It is often difficult for poeople to realize
this spiritual potential because of the
many limiting beliefs that they hold
There are entire networks of beliefs
which preclude real spiritual develop
ment Some belief structures mistakingly
hold that spiritual growth can come only
through physical denial Others maintain
that the individual has no power of his
own. that all power is held by being
outside of the sell
This particular belief system is based
on the concept that God is an entity in
and of itself Th J -> line of thought
maintains that God is somehow separate
from the things he is a part of. It
portrays a rational, thinking, caring
being—a bearded grey haired old man
with a long white robe who sits on a gold
throne, so to speak.
This interpretation of reality places the
ultimate responsibility for what occurs in
the universe on a single, all powerful,
consistent being. Yet we are responsible
for our own lives. And we have the power
to control our individual destiny We each
follow different paths, creating diverse
realities for ourselves, because we are
unique creatures
Which brings me to an interesting
point. With all the vastly different lives
that are being experienced, can all of
them be divided into two simple
categories at death 0 I suggest that life is
too complex, creaturehood too diverse, to
accomodate an eternal classification
system comprised of only two elements.
In other words. I do not believe in heaven
or hell
Jesus Christ said that we shall reap
what we sow Are we all sowing either all
good or all evil? How can any of us
deserve an eternally perfect heaven or
continually depressing hell? There is no
logical criteria for dividing all of man
kind into these two oversimplified
categories
Jesus was an extraordinarily enlight
ened and powerful man who spoke to a
very superstitious and backward popu
lace He tried to simplify extraordinarily
complex ideas in order to lead people
away from their ignorant ideas He was
extremely critical of organized religion
He called himself both the Son of God
and the Son of Man He said. "The
Kingdom of Heaven is upon us ' He
showed us how to utilize a power outside
of our carnal selves and he maintained
that he was a part of that power 'and it.
a part of him.)
Yet. most importantly, he gave us the
Golden rule, and told us to love all. even
our enemy The power of that love cannot
be checked off by petty dogmatic argu
ments.
No matter how we individually define
God. or whether we believe in a God or
not, the central theme of Christ's
message should still have meaning for us
all
May the power of love sustain you
always.
Letters
‘Ethics embedded in our laws ’
"Nuclear |k>werj|K Sgfe, clean energy '*
"We rep**St N%|$ir power is safe,
clean energ>
"Nuclear power is safe, clean energy"
is the stand that most power companies
using nuclear fuel are taking
At least, that was the thrust of the
public relations pitch I got when I
recently visited the Edwin L Hatch
Nuclear Plant at Baxley.
C'ind> Jackson is assistant campus editor
The Red and Black
Unfortunately, the power companies
have a vested interest in nuclear power
and have no other choice but to take this
stand
I’m not sure how many of Georgia
Power's employees disagree with them,
but I know I do
After my visit to Plant Hatch. I
checked out some more facts about
nuclear energy
Fact one Radiation dries not just go
away, it hangs around for about 250.000
years
Fact two At the present time, nuclear
power plants have to store their
radioactive wastes at the plants, which
are actually not equipped for storage
Fact three Radioactivity is virtually
painless when vou are exposed to it and it
can cause leukemia or other forms of
cancer five or more years later
Fact four Plant Hatch did have a
"minor'' radiation leak which had been
there for nearly four years, according to
a recent televised news report (Not Billy
Lovett)
Fact five: At Plant Hatch, some
radioactive gases are released in
"minimal" amounts with the approval of
the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
every month
1 find all of these facts are disquieting
I would like to know what power
companies are doing about these
problems, not that nuclear power is
"safe, clean energy”
Places of storage must be 3et up soon,
but the power companies are waiting for
the government to tell them what to do
Shouldn't they have decided what to do
with the wastes before they created
them 0
Not only must they find a place of
storage, but it better be secure Not only
does it have to be sealed from radiation
leaks, bul rt ha* to survive Irast
250,000 years ot natural and human
disasters.
And how does a person know when
they vo been exposed to radiation? I was
at Plant Hatch the day before it shut
«k»wn Does that mean me and everyone
else there was exposed to the supposed
radiation leak 0 "
Finally, who decides what is "mini
mal" radiation” Is the NRC really that
knowledgeable? They certainly didn't
know what was going on at Three Mile
Island for a while there. Even radiation
from X-rays is dangerous Define
fViuimmar foe. me please.
One representative from Georgia
Power smugly told me that people were
afraid of electricity when it was first being
used, too.
But electricity has no secret dangers,
no unanswerable questions about its
possible effects in 10 or 15 years.
Nuclear power may not be as
dangerous as I think it is, but I would
sure like to know some more answers
before my life is arbitrarily put on the
line by people with a vested interest in
nuclear power plants.
11) THE EDITOR:
I wish to commend Seth Cohen on his
article in the Thursday. April 26 edition
of The Red and Black. I agree with the
supposition that religion and politics are
two separate entities, and that they
should be kept separate.
Taking into consideration the examples
Mr. Cohen cited. I do not usually wish to
drink on Sunday. I do not play pinball,
and I do not believe in adultery—but I do
believe adults should be given the option
of making their own decisions in such
matters.
I understand that this belief is part of
my personal philosophy, but it corres
ponds to my stand on the sometimes
explosive issue of abortion I may not
decide on abortion if I were to become
pregnant, but if I were pregnant, please,
let me make the decision l do not believe
it is within the lawmaker's rights to
withhold these choices from us
Every person has his or her own set of
morals. This is something which cannot
be taken away or destroyed. I fully
realize that laws are to protect the
populace, but I cannot see the need to be
protected from pinball, etc
Mr Cohen states that the Southern
Christian ethic is embedded in our laws
and regulations, and I agree with him
that this ethic does not belong there.
RENE I). SHOEMAKER
‘Can’t compare
Shah, Khomeini’
TO THE EDITOR:
I read the article printed tiled and
Black. April 24) under the topic of
“Technology can’t solve all the prob
lems ’’ The article which was written by
Mr Jack Straus identified the Ayatollah
Khomeini, the leader of Iranian
revolution, as just another dictator
succeeding the previous one, namely the
Shah
How could one compare a ruler such as
the Shah whose human right record is
smeared with blood of Iranian people,
whose regime w as i ailed the most brutal
since the World War II by the Amnesty
International, and over 100,000 people
were tortured and killed by his secret
police iSAVAKi during his 35 years of
tyranical ruling of Iran, and who was
called the worst violator of human rights
in the world by the International
Committee of Human Rights, and who
came to power by the "Zelp" of the CIA;
with Ayatollah Khomeini who con
tinuously opposed the royal oppression
for at least 50 years during which was
harassed, arrested, tortured and sent to
exile, and just a month ago received over
99 percent positive vote of confidence in a
nation-wide referendum?
Weren't Iranian Christians and other
minorities which constitute six percent of
the population, among the 99 percent who
voted affirmatively? Didn't Father
Ernest Cardinal, a south American
Christian leader, give his words of honor
to the Ayatollah? And didn't Iranian
Christian and Jewish communities
support their Muslim brothers and sisters
to topple the Shah’ Mr Straus, you
mentioned the execution of pro-Shah
individuals; can you identify any
innocent among those whom have been
arrested and trialed'’ Is it not a fact that
all of them were well-known corrupted
elements of the Shah's regime? Do you
not assume that many angry mothers
who lost their sons and daughters under
the Shah were anxious to see these
criminals executed? A few days ago. Mr.
Hoveyda, the Shah's most popular prime
minister, during a televised press
interview admitted that he was respon
sible in re-establishment of capitulation
in Iran and in practice of political arrests
and tortures; he apologized to all people
whose kins were tortured and killed
under the government which he headed!
Didn't the people who were killed by
him have the right to live? Why do you
not mention a word about them’ Perhaps
you are impressed by the grossly
distorted picture of Iran which every now
and then shows up in the media! As Mr
Anthony Lewis, the Atlanta Journal
correspondent, indicated on Jan 3
"Until very recently, most of the press
kept telling Americans that, as Time put
it last June 5, the Shah has a broad-base
of popular support" or he is the great
modernizer of the East!
The problem is that you are treating a
post-revolutionary situation as a normal
one. I should like to call your attention to
the fact that there still are many active
agents of disbanded SAVAK secret police
who probably would not hesitate to
receive some "help" again and repeat
the history; persons like Mr Hoveyda
would be just the right ingredianls for
such disastrous historical repetition and
for those who are willing to fish in
troubled water To illustrate the point I
mention the assassination of the new
army's chief of staff and the unsuccessful
attempt on premier Bazargan's life
Quotation from Dr. James Cockroft,
sociology professor of Rutgers University
is, I hope, helpful to create some attitude
of moderation, which you claimed Mr.
Khomeini lacks, in you. Mr Straus "We
of the west run a grave risk of pushing
the people of Iran beyond even their
courageous tolerance of hardship and
misunderstanding when we accuse their
highest religious authority (equivalent to
a Pope in other contexts) of bigotry or
savagery "
KAKSIIAD ABOLFATHI
‘Pinball machines
aren’t damaging’
TO THE EDITOR:
Tell me the truth now The article
about pinball in the April 19 issue of The
Red and Black was really supposed to be
in The Rude and Bleak
Can Mr. Bridges really be serious
Woolworths sells toy pinball machines
Besides, a pinball machine can't be half
as damaging as a toy gun After all.
today I am a mass murderer because my
parents let me play with guns (toy > when
1 was little.
I think the debate going on in the
letters section is very interesting It’s
good that some people are able to respect
other’s right to believe as they wish, but
more often they are sure that they are
absolutely right (both sides) concerning
this matter. I don’t place too much faith
in organized religion but they do give
some people something to believe in And
it’s not that I want to knock God (by
whatever name) just the groups that
claim to be his only instrument
I admired very much the editorial
by James Kitfield. There was a good deal
of sound reasoning plus the fact that we
got to see ourselves from another point of
view It was also nice to see a little open
fUg waving Things still aren t perfect
(will they ever be?) but I don't see how
there could be any real doubt that our
system gives the people the best
(realistic) chance
RONNIE BRAXLKY
m Red and *BlacK
Staff
F treatise *4 Mar Cathy M I am
f.ramI Miuirr Ed Stamper
\d vert I* in a miugn Charles Ruaaell
editor* Scntt Jumps Gary Pouts.
Winston Skinner
Campus editor Justin GilHm
C«t> editor Brian O Shea
restarts editor Tammy Savage
Fnlrrtaknmrat editor Ben Fugitt
Np«r<* editor Norm Reilly
Photo editor Mai Hrooka
IGA Today coordinator Helen King
Graphic designer Wayne E Natl
t **i«tant rimym editors Rnbhy Byrd. Cindy Jackson
\««utant city editorv Sett, Cohen. Vincent Papsidero
Vssistaat feature* editor Km Voung
tuMaM «port* editor Frank Malloy. Andy Cook
Editorial sootaum Joel Andress
Vdveriuing representative* Greg Griffith Donna Peavey Donna hatchford. M1U1 Saul Brenda Shell
Linda Spikes Lu Wilson
Classified advertising manager Sharon Gillooiy
Production manager Kenny York
Graphic coordinator Frank Lee
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