Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

Rocky Wade I Heard The Call Letters To The Editor More I wuz, man, basking in the Kin, lipping Nugrape tod a, laying “Hey dad die . watch ing Oral Roberta on the video, and receiving a Watchtower (tom my local Jehovah Wit new when a voice M from Willing Wade ham Chapel grabbed my heart and yelled “Repent, oh tinner, repent!” And on my humble knees, 1 pledged my heart to end the war in Viet Nam became it wa “In” — in to be agairat my country, you know protect for protect take. Left go protett and be conformists, man. Raite a little bed — its more fun than helping ole man Dick go get a aoiution. The Viet Nam Moratorum came and I tat on my Eugene Talmadge suspenders—no charge for me — i don’t need the education - I enjoy earn ing a check from the New Left for nothing. Teacher* — no teacher* - all they wanted wat a day of rest anyway.’ Mama Lucy called yesterday - the don’t understand. She •orta mad - what the heck ton, hate your country, no man I'm “In”, man — I’m in’. She't the generation gap — the believet In brent feeding, working for a living, fighting for principle!. She’s just a mother, what does the know about tons? today — he don’t believe in peaoe like me. He fought Hitler - what a ding-a-ling that cop killing for peace? Maybe Mama Lucy and the cop can get converted Hke me. Anyway, I’m going ahead bask ing in the am, tipping my Micheiob. listening to the Nitty Gritty D|rt Band, and watching Yoko Ono until the “conflict” endt.’ Open Letter to Students Last year the Student Steer ing Committee wat formed through the Senate as a coun terpart to the CoMegc Study Steering Committee of the faculty. Its purpose was to study the problems Mercer facet in her efforts to provide a liberal arts education. The viewpoint: the student com ponent of the College. The life of this committee has consisted largely of an at tempt to define “liberal arts education” and what problems am imposed upon the defini tion by the present educational system here at Mercer. Mercer is not alone while being in des perate need of change and the committee hat been confront ed with a vast amount of re source material for reading and analysis. The educational system is based on a few twisted premises with many more of the tame woven Into it which, not recently having been adopted, have brought us to the conftontation that we are now having with ourselves and our faculties. Tb be more exact we question such things here as teaching methods—not all but many—course require ments, course offerings, major minor programs, and grading, just to mention the most flagrant. We desire to alter the dis heartening course that an indi vidual must follow to obtain the aU-lraportant degree with out destroying all that exists now—if this in itself is feasible. One of our needs It to Inform you—many of whom are apathetic, unaware, or some thing else—of the injustices that are here in this com munity and of the possible al ternatives and means. Our ef forts must be, it seems, to con front students by pointing out and outlining in red these de ficiencies. The committee con sists of Altn Stahton, John Hill, Charles Bowen, Richard Heider, Judy Senkbeil, Jinx Schwenke, Cal Gough, Ray Woods, Reed Banks, Anne Longman, Tim Pape, and chair man, myself. We may get to a few of you who we know, who read the Cluster, and who see us at work, but many of you must come to us. And to a large degree we need you to effect any real change. Other wise. we are only forerunners and all that happens is a func tion of time. If you would read any of the resources available, contact a member of the committee or the chairman at Box 486. Signed, Deen Doughty Pape LITTLE MAN ON CAMPUS ga&tngn&ss COWEELATE WITH AN **X" FACTO* THAT WILL OSftBCT Dear Editor : Now is the time to unite and fight for the cause of free dom and equality. It has been too long that the women of Mercer have been overlooked by the administration and have had their rights quased. As beautiful as they are, and they are beautiful. It is a pity, and intolerable to have them step ped on to often. How are they being stepped on? Have they been receiving the same rights to housing as .their fellow male students? Or an they being treated as child ren, and put in the care of baby sitters? Maybe they enjoy baby sitters? If so, then they do not have the right to call themselves women and should not be treated as ladies by their fellow men students. But I be lieve that they are women and beautiful to say the least. The Declaration of Indepen dence states: that all men are created equal, that they were endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It must be realized that when you entered into the Uni versity, you were succumbed to the existing contractual pro vision concerning women's housing, in relation to hours and living off campus. But now is the time to change the provi sions of the contract These provisions can be modified by engaging in dialogue with the administration, and perhaps as a last resort, refusal to obey certain petty regulations. In mass this can be done. One can define the purpose Of a higher education not only to be the search for a higher degree of perception through scholarly review, but also a process of transition from ado- lesence to adulthood. Does the confinement of the women aid In their maturation? Does the present policy provide the op portunities to develop responsi bility? Or maybe learn how to cook? Or does this lead to a continuing shelter that is not consistent with the realities of adulthood? It should be resolved by the women of this campus to strive for: 1. Modification of hours, and eventual elimination of hours. 2. Freedom to Uve where one desires, be it a dor mitory, or a rooming house, or an apartment. Hopefully the student government along with the sororities and other student groups will pursue this matter to the fullest. God help beautiful wo men!!! And may he keep them beautiful!! Yours very truly. The Midnight Righter Dear Editor If the United States govern ment were to hold a referen dum on the Vietnam war in which the youth of the nation were allowed to vote, there is little doubt that the young people would vote the war out of existence. For both legal and political reasons such a re ferendum can and will not be held. Yet if the youth of our nation are resolute there seems to be a way for them to hold their own referendum using a system that has been set up by the government. Each time a SS Form 150 is filed it be comes a statistic within the selective service system. Should a million young people file SS Form 150, it would be a mandate from the youth that the war be ended at once. The filing of the form is not an act of civil disobediance but is a right under the SS system. Since in all but a few cases the board clerk will routinely deny the CO application, the refer endum will add little burden to the members of the nation’s draft boards. It will allow each youth to vote soon after his 18th birthday. Copies of the form could be printed in the newspapers to make sure that the administration did not find itself short of supplies and funds to print new copies of SS Form 150. I encourage all of this na tion’s youth to file a SS Form 150 during the month of De cember. Further I request those that share my concern in this matter to publicize this youthful referendum. Ralph Eno Chairman, Peace and Service Committee Dear Mr. Johnson: It wu with great interest that I read in the Atlanta Con stitution of your newspaper's Interest in bringing peace in Vietnam and of the intense activities you plan for Oct. 15 if a negotiated settlement has not been achieved by that date. As the wife of one of more than 1,400 American service men missing in action and held prisoner In North Vietnam for from one to four years, I can well understand your impati ence to bring this war to a con clusion. Many times during the past 28 months I myself have “ret deadlines” but I have seen them all come and go, while only rumors of peace persist. Inasmuch as the article I read gave no indication that your group is able to offer our nation’s leaders a solution to satisfactorily end the conflict, 1 trust you are open to sugges tions from people like myself who have much at stake in this situation. 1 would like to enlist the help of concerned students at Mercer University, who in turn can arouse students all across this nation, to help reunite so many wives separated from their husbands, children from their fathers and parents from their sons. The families of some 1,000 men missing in action in Southeast Asia suffer in anguish day after day, not knowing whether their loved ones are alive or dead because the government of North Viet nam refuses to abide by the Geneva Conventions of 1949 relative to humane treatment of prisoners of war, which was signed by Hanoi’s representa tives in 1954. On Sept. 11 and 17 a resolu tion was introduced in the U. S. House of Representatives condemning North Vietnam for its most unfair treatment of the American servicemen it holds captive. The Congres sional Record for those dates contains much documented evidence that would be of in terest to anyone concerned about the Vietnam War. One of the items introduced was a transcript of a press conference held recently by two prisoners released by North Vietnam. Lt. _ ,, ... Robert Frishman told of in- r n | „ dignities poor medical tre.t- Religious Socrety of Fnends inld ^ uaU , diet prolong ed solitary confinement, lack of communication with their families and other atrocities too horrible to think about. Like many Americans, from time to time I have wondered whether we and our allies in South Vietnam treat our cap tives any better. A letter from the Provost General of the United States read to the Sept 17 session of the House verifies that the U. S. and her allies do give humane treatment to our prisoners and abide by the pro visions of the Geneva Conven tion of 1949: a. The Government of (South) Vietnam regularly transmits timely lists of prison ers of war held by the Republic of Vietnam to the Central Tracing Agency in Geneva, Switzerland, for transmittal by the International Red Cross. b. Medical commissions from the Government of Viet nam and the ICRC have identi fied over 800 enemy prisoners who qualify for direct release and repatriation as sick and wounded; for almost two years a group of 40 sick and wounded POW have been pro vided special internment facili ties at Bien-Hoa in the Re public of Vietnam awaiting re patriation to their homes in North Vietnam, but the enemy has refused to negotiate in public or private regarding the repatriation of these sick and wounded PW and refuses to ac knowledge that they do exist. c. Delegates of the ICRC formally reports the results of inspection visits to Geneva and the governments, concerned on a regular basis. d. Enemy prisoners are humanely treated at all times, strictly in accordance with the Geneva Conventions of 1949 as verified by the ICRC (docu mented reports from the Geneva organization were in cluded). e. Enemy prisoners are afforded the opportunity to exchange mail with their homes and in the month of June, for instance, dispatched some 1718 pieces of mail. In addition special visitation arrangements are provided prisoners and their families. In contrast to this, the North Vietnam government allows no inspection by the ln- (Continued on Page 71 RFK OnViolence [ Editor’s Note " HE WEANS HE'LL FLUNK VVWO HE WANTS TO FLUNK-" “The victims of the violence are. black and white, rich and poor, young and old, famous and unknown. They are most important of all, human beings whom other beings love and needed. No one—no matter where he lives or what he doer-can be certain who will suffer from some senseless act of bloodshed. And yet it goes on and on." “Why? What has violence ever accomplished? What has it ever created? No martyr’s cause has ever been stilled by his assassin’s bullet. No wrongs have ever been righted by riots and civil disorders. A sniper is only a coward, not a hero, and an uncontrollable mob Is only the voice of madness, not the voice of the people.” "Whenever any American’s life is taken by another Ameri can, unneceanrily—whether It Is done In the name of the law or in the defiance of law, by one man or a gang, in cold blood or In paarion, in an at tack of violence or in response to violence—whenever we tear at the fabric of life which an other man has painfully and clumsily woven for himaeif and his children, the whole nation is degraded.” "Some look for scapegoats, others look for conspiracies but this much is clear; violence breeds violence, repression brinp retaliation, and only a cleaning of our whole society can remove this sickness from our soul.” “For there is another kind of violence, slower but just as deadly, destructive as the shot or the bomb in the night This is the violence of insUtutions; indifference and inaction and slow decay. This is the violence t hat afflicts the poor, that prisons relations between men because their skin has different colors This is the slow destruc tion of a child by hunger, and schools without books and homes without beat in winter. “We must admit to our selves that our own children's future cannot be built on the misfortunes of others. We must recognize that this short life can neither be ennobled or en riched by hatred or revenge. Our three on this planet am too short and the work to be done t o great to let this spirit flour ish any longer in our land ” It has been brought to my attention that in The Mercer Cluster of September 21, 1969, the headline. “University Joins Moratory um call,” misleadingly implied that the Moratorium is endorsed by the administration. However, this action is supported by the Senate of the SGA and individual members of the student body and faculty, The Cluster always welcomes criticisms and comments. Both make a healthy paper and a healthy university G. Johnson OfflBKgSE SkODgSTTIlE MERCER CLUSTER STALE IV6U 70 Managing Editor . . Lyndon Mayes Typists I Piev, New Editor . Angie Hayes Y. St. Denis, t. Poole li J. News Staff E. Lightfoot, Bandlow. T. Ursets K. Shaw. K. Bryant M Wein Copy Editors fylerUammel stein. G. I opeland. J. Parker. M Glenda 1 ully Swam. r>. Wood. E. Vance, L. Photography Bob Johnson Highnote Public Relations Mgr Renala Feature Editor . . Chuck Jackaon WUlia ms. Jamie Dave son Feature Staff E. Robinaon Layout J Camp B. Davies, D. Brown, T. Kand A. Cooper, J. Hallcn, K. Kron ler, A. Burnt quist. A. Stanton, B. Stanton CohrmnistS Ron Childs politiesl Iditor . . Larry Einklcstein Joe Hobbs, Larry Fmklestein , . , ,, Allen Wallace, Rocky Wade T^.n.fiet 1 Sporta Editor Lou Johnaon A StansTietd Sports Staff B. Owen* The Mercer ( luster i* • weckls Mu S. Hogan. B. Nottingham dent publication published by the . r uiridUfr.n atudenl* of Mercer University The IL K Hammonds ’p' P 1 * 0 "* "“".her it 743-ISI I. eaten IL Stanley. b. Hammonds. P 12l The lddrlu h Boa 2». , . I. . r. u_* Mar car University, Office room J26 AdvartteSng Mgr Jama. Boykins Jnd 32g csc houn „ t Advertising Slsff J. Leetum 9:00-5:00. Monday through Friday Paula Rote Subscriptions are 55.00 THE MERCER CLUSTER • (ktobei l%9«~5