The North Texas Daily (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 72, No. 15, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 22, 1988 Page: 2 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: North Texas Daily / The Campus Chat and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the UNT Libraries Special Collections.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
■
TtW>, i
PA
ommen
Iff
W%,|;?s
The North Texas Daily
Page 2
Thursday, September 22, 1980
Editorials
No children should be allowed
New bill violates rights
On September 13, President Reagan signed legislation
under the open housing law that extends anti-discrimination
protection to the handicapped and families with children.
The new law enables the government to fine individuals
of organizations up to $100,000 if they have discriminatory
housing practices and it violates citizens' rights.
The problem that this legislation was supposed to solve
is the shortage of family apartment complexes. According
to the new law, no family with children should be denied
housing by an apartment complex if vacancies exist.
Fining apartment landlords because they will not rent
apartments to families with children is ridiculous.
Most of the apartment complexes in question are
specifically designed for people who want to live without
Teaching impediment
children around. Many of the apartments are not equipped
for families; they have no playgrounds or room for them,
and many have less strict swimming pool rules. And
some people just want to live without the normal noise
and fuss that accompanies children.
There are complexes for families. If there are not
enough, apartment investors should wake up and pro-
vide them, thereby making money by satisfying a
demand.
Are there not many contractors looking for jobs? Seems
like a simple case of supply and demand.
“The most important civil-rights legislation in 20
years,” as Reagan calls it, needs to be re-focused to
help all parties involved, and not violate the rights of
those who want to live away from children.
TA's need English skills
Language barriers in a classroom hinder communication
and learning. They are inexcusable and intolerable.
One of the most frequent complaints of NT students
in the 1988 University Student Survey is the poor
English skills of many NT teaching assistants and teaching
fellows. In the survey, administered last spring by
University Planning Analysis, students said difficult classes
and labs were made more difficult by instructors they
could not understand.
This situation is unacceptable. Essential to the duties
of TAs is being able to relate to students — giving
instructions, explaining assignments, answering questions
— all in a clear, concise manner.
For many students, mathematics and sciences present
challenges. TAs and TFs, who frequently are assigned
to teach classes and labs in these areas, only increase
students’ difficulties if the instructors do not have
adequate command of the English language.
It is stated in the NT Faculty Handbook that language
competency and communication skills of all TAs and
TFs should be of primary concern to each academic
department. Judging by overwhelming responses in the
student survey, however, departments are not accomplish-
Cross with caution
ing this necessary duty.
The Texas Legislature now requires TAs and TFs whose
native languages are not English to participate in an
English program geared to improve English-speaking
abilities. The program at NT, called International Teaching
Assistant Program, consists of screening tests and video-
taped speeches for non-native instructors. Lessons in
English, if necessary, will follow.
Hurray for the state Legislature! A program that
successfully evaluates the English skills of prospective
TAs and TFs is needed to ensure high quality instructors.
Let’s hope for students’ sake this program, along with
departments’ past efforts, succeeds in this goal. The
program must be closely monitored to make sure it
succeeds.
Granted. TAs and TFs are knowledgeable in their
teaching fields. Granted, there are not enough Ameri-
cans as knowledgeable about the subjects.
However, teaching is the communication of knowledge.
Regardless of how much a teachers knows, he is useless
to the student if he cannot communicate that knowledge.
And if the teachers at NT are useless, so is the
university.
Drivers must slow down
With more than 27,000 people who come to the NT
campus as students or employees, the traffic congestion
of pedestrians and cars creates a hectic situation.
When drivers ignore the 20-mile-per-hour speed limit
or yield signs at pedestrian walkways, it creates acci-
dents waiting to happen.
On busy campus streets such as Avenue C and Welch
Street, there are walkways at some intersections. By
Denton city law, pedestrians have the right-of-way on
these walkways, and any drivers who do not yield may
be ticketed.
The walkways create an ironic danger. If there were
no protected places for people to cross, pedestrians would
have to watch the traffic carefully before proceeding.
But because of the yield sign on walkways, some don't
look at the traffic.
The high number of drivers v/ho don't yield, and those
who try to beat approaching students to the walkways,
make it dangerous to use the walkways without undue
caution.
Campus police need to enforce the speed limit and
the requirement to yield at pedestrian walkways more
stringently.
Anyone who parks illegally on campus quickly dis-
covers that the police regularly patrol the lots. The police
need to make their presence known on the roads, too.
Nobody ever died by parking illegally. Somebody might
die crossing a street.
It is almost impossible to walk across campus without
seeing someone speeding or ignoring the yield signs on
walkways.
Drivers must obey the traffic laws. However, the
misdemeanor fine shouldn't be the reason. The chance
that someone could be injured, or killed, should be.
"QUESTIONS Amms
w/TH ANNETTE STRAUSS
MAYOR ST*A\)S$,
WHY l S THE*?
A LAWSUIT AGAINST
tub city of Dallas
CHARGING RACIAL.
S&SKe&ATtorJ AND
PIScRlMtNATION IN
U>W'ING>mE‘
HOMING
I DON'T
KNOW WHY,..
)
practices:
C:
/HAVOR STRAUSS,
WHY HASN'T 77/fc“
erry UPGRADED
substandard 1 Don't
uu'a/g conditions know
in minority .why,..
Hooj/NO PRoJ^cts. ^
d(
'((
MAYOR, StRAUSS/
WHY Vo YOU
WANT TO
Be "MAYOR"?
/ DON'T
KNOW WHY..
V
■'ll
jui
MAYOR STRAUSS,
WHY Do ALL YouR
ANSWERS SoUWP
LIRE A 6R0REN
RecoRP -PLAYER 7
I Don't Know uny.
> click! ~
I DON'T
KNOW WHY,.-
~ Click!^
I poN'T
K-NoW why..-
click.it
(l
America makes voting tough
American citizens have the right to
vote but no judge has ruled that the
right to register is constitionally pro-
tected.
Lengthy residency requirements and
registration periods that end long before
the actual elections have kept U. S.
voting levels lower than any other
industrial democracy’s except Switzer-
land’s.
Almost every other democratic
country in the world has some form of
automatic voter registration. In Belgium,
Sweden, Germany, and France, more
than 85 percent of all citizens go the
polls regularly on election days.
In America about 50 percent of the
population votes in presidential elections
and about 30 percent in other elections.
While most democracies promote
voting, America works against potential
voters. Several states are quick to purge
people from the rolls for skipping an
election or two. One-sixth of the U S.
population moves every year, and people
who change their homes usually don’t
reregister for years. That’s why Southern
states, with the strictest resident regu-
lations, have low voter turn-uots.
In the 1800s voting was as popular
here as it is in European countries today.
Around the turn of the century, voter
registration was instituted as a way to
curb electoral fraud. It reduced fraud,
but it also reduced voting.
Statistics show that once people arc
registered they vote: 87 percent of
registered voters go to the polls regularly
M. C.
Moewe
in the U.S., according to Raymond
Wolfinger and Steven Rosenstone in
“Who Votes?”
Loosening registration restrictions
would seem a logical way to fight voting
apathy. But federal policy has been
downright hostile to any attempts of
change.
In August 1984 former Texas Gov.
Mark White, Jr., after being prodded
by a voter reform group and several
social agencies that supported it. issued
an order directing public employees to
offer to register citizens applying for
services at government agencies. This
would make it possible to register in
welfare and unemployment offices,
Medicaid and food stamp recertification
centers, or in libraries and departments
of motor vehicles.
The governors of Ohio, New York,
Montana. New Mexico and West
Virginia issued similar orders. By
October the efforts of the government
employees had signed up 325,(XX)
people.
But before the November election,
the Reagan Administration's director of
personnel management threatened to cut
off grants-in-aid to the states if the tiniest
fraction of those funds was used to pay
the salaries of employees engaged in
registration.
White and two other governors can-
celled the orders and opted for a more
passive approach. Voter registration
tables could be set up in lobbies of state
agencies by volunteers, but state
employees were instructed not to hand
out cards or answer questions. The other
governors washed their hands of the
project altogether.
Texas State Rep Ernestine Gloss-
brenner’s motor-voter bill offers a sound
resolution by connecting voter regis-
tration with driver’s license registration.
The bill did not make the floor last
session, but Glossbrenner has made
some revisions and the bill may be
reviewed again next session
However, the bill’s chance of be-
coming law seems slim. Congressional
incumbents have a reason to oppose
reform. A new population of voters
might prove unpredicable and hurt their
re-election chances.
Their arguments against automatic
voter registration, which basically come
down to inflated cost accusations and
fraud enhancement, are running thin.
In Costa Rica, voting fraud is virtually
unknown. After voting, Costa Ricans dip
their thumbs in ink which takes a couple
of days to wear off. It’s cheap and could
promote voting. A blue thumb on
election day would be a symbol that
its owner participated in a patriotic duty.
-Readers' Talk--
Student cites theology, theory of evolution as proof of homosexuality's 'sickness'
Regarding the homosexuality issue:
how can you say that homosexuality is
not a sickness'.’ Doesn’t that depend on
your point of view?
If you take the side of religion, you
realize that most religions view homo-
sexuality as an abomination. Some call
it a crime on the level of murder.
If, conversely, you take the side of
evolution, you find that homosexuality
is an undesirable trait. ... Homosexuals
ignore their main purpose (evolution-
aryily speaking) by not proliferating the
human race. This is deviant behavior
like bestiality or celibacy — evolu-
tionarily speaking.
So, how can you claim that homo-
sexuality is not deviant? I’m not making
a moral judgment, but simply pointing
out that this characteristic is unnatural.
Homosexuals seem to find themselves
between the rock of religion and the
hard place of evolutionary theory. Is
there an answer to this dilemma?
Clay Spinuzzi
Denton sophomore
Student touts values
One of today’s most popular phrases
is “you can't legislate morality.”
There is also a general attitude among
people in our society that says, “Who
are you to tell me what to do?” People
want to do their own thing, and they
don’t want others imposing their values
on them
Consider, though, what those attitudes
really mean when carried to their logical
conclusion. If others can’t impose their
values on you, you can’t impose your
values on others. Fair enough, you say.
But, like it or not. there are people in
this world who don’t think anything is
wrong. Charles Mansori didn’t think
murder was wrong. Who are you to tell
him that he can’t murder someone? You
are imposing your values on him.
Recently on the radio talk show, ‘Talk
Back with Bob Larson,” several indi-
viduals, influenced by such "black
metal" bands as Slayer, called in and
told Bob they wanted anarchy: if
someone cut in front of you in line at
the grocery store, "blow ’em away,"
if a girl deserves it — rape her.
. If we can't legislate morality, we
can't legislate against murder, rape,
theft, etc. All we can legislate is a
bureaucracy.
Thus, we have to draw the line
somewhere.
The tendency is to want to draw it
at one’s own values. The only logical
way to draw the line is to legislate
against those things that harm or other-
wise violate the rights of others such
as murder, theft, rape, etc. So, the next
time someone tries to “impose their
rights on you,” remember ... they only
want to do so because they believe such
actions fall into the category above.
This includes abortion, which is
nothing more than killing babies. It also
includes homosexuality and drug abuse
— the major factors in the spread of
Acquired Immune Deficiency Syn-
drome.
... When Christians such as myself
try to persuade lawmakers to legislate
against homosexuality, drunk driving,
abortion, smoking in public places, etc.
we’re only trying to protect society —
and that includes you.
Bryan Dawson
Denton graduate student
Reader says racism lives
It is unfortunate that people think that
racism does not exist. It is alive and
well in these United States Have
you ever heard of the Arian Nations?
Does the name "Ku Klux Klan ” ring
a bell? In most places racism is not as
blatant as it was ... 20 years ago, but
just because burning crosses has gone
out of style doesn’t mean that thousands
of people do not get discriminated
against every day.
The issue is not only black and white.
... People are discriminated against on
the basis of liguistic differences,
religious and sexual preferences and,
of course, physical differences. The
denial of jobs, promotions, housing,
welfare benefits, admittance to restau-
rants and even education occurs daily
on the basis of the categories of race,
language, religion, etc. Look around
you. If you don’t think racism exists,
it is only because you refuse to see it.
We have to remember what has
happened in the past to correct our
mistakes today. ...
Monica Rey
Irving sophomore
The North Texas Daily
w
72nd Year
Atembr* of the
d s^ociafeo
((> * ■>, ci «
—IP
University of North Texas
Southwestern Journalism Congress
PACEMAKER 6 TIMES
ALL-AMERICAN 79 TIMES
STEPHANIE MCCOLLUM, editor
WENDE ZOMNIR, advertising manager
Denton, Texas
SUBSCRIPTION RATE—$16 annually or $8 per long semester and $4
per summer session.
The North Texas Daily, student newspaper of the University of the North
Texas, is published Tuesday through Friday during the fall and spring
semesters and is published weekly during the summer sessions. The
Daily is not published during review and examination periods. The Daily,
a nonprofit newspaper, provides information, commentary, and entertain-
ment for the NT community. It serves as a laboratory experience for
reporting, writing, editing, advertising and photography students in the
journalism department. Students receive grades according to the quality
of work performed for The Daily.
Comments
Comments about advertisements in The Daily should be directed to the
advertising manager at 565-2851. Questions about news stories, sports
stories or features should be directed to the editor at 565-2353.
Letter Policy
Letters from readers are welcome. They should be concise, logical,
and typed or neatly handwritten. Letters will be limited to 250 words in
print, with exceptions made at the editor s discretion Letters are subject
to editing for space and libel. Letters must be signed with classification
and home town, and should include an address and telephone number.
Letters should be mailed to Box 5278, NT Station, Denton, Texas
76203, or taken to The Daily newsroom in General Academic Building
Signed commentaries, cartoons and readers letters reflect the opinions
of the authors and should not be confused with the unsigned editorial
statements of The Daily. Opinions appeanng on this page do not necessanly
reflect those of the University of North Texas students, faculty members,
staff members, administrators or regents
/
»
♦
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
The North Texas Daily (Denton, Tex.), Vol. 72, No. 15, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 22, 1988, newspaper, September 22, 1988; Denton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth722995/m1/2/?rotate=90: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Special Collections.