December 1991 - Binghamton Review

~Btttgbamtott W\.IY DON'T MEN

SEE SEXUAL. WARASSMENT

AS A PROBL-EM

THE

lolA" WOMEN

I MEAN. \.{OW WOULD YOU LIKE IT IF I MADE L-EWD REMARKS TO YOU, DESCRIBED SCENES FROM PORNO MOVIES. OR PATTED YOUR BEHIND?

DO?

I-lO'" MUCH Fe" ALL THREE?

The Feminist Dilemma!

-Sexual Harassment -The Gender Gap -Multiculturalism Unmasked -Cuomo for President? ... and much more

Editor-in-Chief... ............. Mi chael Thomas Malloy Executive Dircclo r.. ......... ...... Adam Brombe rg Publis hing Edito r. .......... .......... Paul D. Schnie r Managing Edito r.. .................... Andy C. Szul Jr Copy Editor.. .. ........ ... ... .. ........... .. .Jo hn Maggio Treas urer...... ......... ........ ... ........... .Jeffrey Weyl

From the Editor.... _...... _._._ .... _............... _.3

Contri blltors All Around Nice Guy ................... ... Peter Kaplan Layout Coordinato r .............. A lexandra Aucone Secretary ... .... .............. Ge rhardt J . Fe ichtimger Pr<Y.:if.rr. .w.r.................... ,......... ~....4 ri'~ }li\ ...... ) ...

Alex Consil vio Kerry MacNamara Jeff Rubinoff Joseph Rose nthal S tcvcn Schwammenfcld David Ho lland T . Kotch W. Gloffke Kevin Jo nes

What is a Deathocrat made ofL ....... 5 The Gender Gap_._ .. __ ... _._._ .. ___ .. _...... ____ _6 The Exploitation of

A 11ll1lni Board Brian Sullivan Katrina Schwing Kathryn Do herty Mathew Carr Jamcs T. Sheka

Mul ticul turalism U nmasked_ .. __ ....... _A

Richard Carr Paul Scolese Van Rusanovs ky Joseph Rosenthal Billy Sc hor

Advi sor.... .. .... ................ ........ Dr. Herb Lo ndo n

Ho norary Advisor...................... Ronald Reagan

"[ shall do nothing in malice, what I'm dealing with is too important for malicious intent . ..

Binghamton Review is an independentjoumaJ o f news. commentary. and a nal ys is publis hed mo nthly. Binghamto n s tudents receive the Review free of charge.

Letters to the ed ito r arc e ncouraged and sho uld be se nt to: Binghamton Review SUNY Binghamto n P.O. Box 6000 Binghamton, Ncw Yo rk 13902-6000.

All submissions to the Review become the property of the Review. T he Review reserves the ri ght to cdit and print any submiss io ns. All opinions

expressed arc those of the author' s and do nol tha t of (he Review.

Sexual Harassment. ....... ____ ..... __ . __ ........ 7 A Call for True Feminism...... __ .......... _._._.9 Run, Mario, Run? ............ ______ ........... __ .. _.l0 The Right Side._ ......... _.................. 12 Utopia Revisited .... _.................. _.... _.. _14 Racial Double Standard?_ ............ __ 19 Nuclear Energy... _____ ..... _... ___ ._._._. __ ._. __ .. __ 15 Book Review__ . ___ ... _...... __ .... ____ .............. 16 A Real Civil Rights Agenda _______ .. _......... 18 M ythinterpretations ... _. __ . _. ______ . _____ ....... ..23

Democracy For the SUNY System When the SUNY Board of Trustees voted to restructure the SUNY student assembly (SUNY -SA) it did a great service for the students of the SUNY system. The trustees decided to rid the SA of the caucus system of voting. This effectively enfranchised the majority of students, who before the change had been denied the right of representation.

Prior to the revolutionary change, the SUNY -SA was completely controlled by the union of various Leftwing special interests. Together, the caucuses controlled twenty-five votes on the assembly, Binghamton only had three votes. Thus by eliminating the caucus system you then even out the voting.

Members of SASU are upset with the change in the SUNY -SA for a number of reasons. First, the domination of the caucuses lead to a low attendance rate for the rest of the assembly. This enabled the caucuses to elect their people to the executive board of the SUNY -SA. These positions carry a stipend of $6000 a year. Next the SASU executive board generally was comprised of the same people who made up the SUNY -SA executive board. A SASU executive board member receives a stipend of $2000 a year.

Effectively, the students of the SUNY system were paying $8000 a year for an executive board which among its efforts lobbied for the right of prostitutes to donate blood.

SASU is now fearful that their very existence is being threatened. The reason for this is that campuses that have a SASU chapter (SASU is only on 11 of the many state campuses) are getting fed up with financing a group that doesn't lobby in the interests of the students it supposedly represents. University center at Buffalo has already kicked SASU off their campus, as has Oneonta. Last year, SASU was almost voted off Binghamton's campus as well. Binghamton students already give SASU approximately $36,000 of our activity fee.

The SUNY-SA legitimized SASU, and it is the restructuring of the SUNY -SA, through the elimination of the caucus system, that has the leftist special interests running for cover. The Trustees should be commended for bringing equality to the SUNY -SA. In my view it's a step in the Right direction.

SUNY-B Evaluated The Common Sense Guide to American Colleges has recently reviewed our public ivy and its findings were mixed, at best. The unfortunate truth, though, is that their evaluation of our campus is right on target.

The book has this to say about SUNY -B:

"In political debate and increasingly in the classroom, SUNY-B tHts the ground to the left, thus encouraging an intolerant intellectual atmosphere, capitulation to the special interest groups, and politicized courses." (page 230 Common Sense Guide to American CoUeges) How can you argue with the truth.

Happy Holidays!

Michael Thomas Malloy

stifling diversity either in campus life or in the classroom. Thei rare few people on campus who would argue that diversity is not an integml part of the college learning experience. The teaching of non-western culture is important and should be ava\\ab\e to all students no matter what their personal background. The problem of diversity arises however when it takes center stage over truth, merit and academic freedom. When a curriculum is chosen solely because it represents a cultural group and not for its academic value then the only ones suffering are the students. An illustration of this was pointed out in a recent Binghamton Review article.

It seems that severnl northeastern colleges are now requiring the reading of a book written by a Guatemalan peasant woman who happens to be a Communist sympathizer. It appears that diversity has become more important than academic merit. Another example is the recent movement to encourdge the teaching of mathematics to ethnic groups according to ancient cultural systems regardless of how outmoded these systems may be. Can this insanity in the name of cultural diversity

M III tic.Lll tllral iSll1 U 11111clSI(ecl 'David Holland

he current politically correct SA. A statement about the acc not campaign on campus is to adequately representing its introduce a multicultural constituency instantly brought canon in order to achieve a forced charges of racism simply because a artificial diversity. This is the so- high proportion of acc called diversity requirement that has representatives happen to be minority come to dominate the liberals' priority students. We can only guess where list of things to forcc down the throats this trend will lead but the of unsuspecting students who don't know the whole truth of the matter. The This hypersensitivity is in diversity requirement is only the tip of a much larger itself a form of censorship movementlhatlhrealens to as students choose to tear the campus community apart. This movement that rernain silent for fear of has deceived so many goes being charged with racism, by the euphemism of multiculturalism. antisemitisrn or offending What the proponents of some other campus group. multiculturalism would have the public believe is that the controversy is simply one between those who would consequences of it are becoming like to see non-Western cultures frighteningly clear. This hypersensirepresented in the curriculum and tivity is in itself a form of censorship those "narrow minded" conservatives as students choose to remain silent who would prefer the University to for fear of being charged with racism, teach only about the ideas of dead anti-Semitism or offending some white men. This is simply not the other campus group. Jt is not the truth. The controversy is complex purpose of this article to call for continues on page and the stakes are high.

Multiculturalism serves to undermine the very values our University was founded on. It would replace the pursuit of knowledge based on merit with the pursuit of knowledge based on statistical diversity.

Multiculturalism stratifies the university along racial, religious and ideological lines. We are quickly coming to be seen not as students or for what we stand for but as members of particular and exclusive ethnic and religious cliques.

Perhaps the biggest threat in this new multiculturnl environment is the hypersensitivity to "politically correct" issues dealing with everything from race to sex to animal Send Letters to: righl~. We need only look to the recent Binghamton Review Marvin the Martian incident for an example of the ridiculous lengths to P.o. Box 6000 which this can be taken. Another Binghamton, New York 13902-6000 example is the current crisis in the

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Binghamton Review

21

'U4£at is a Veathocrat mtufe of?

'Ilie peop{e, tliat s wlio, as the!J aUf wlien tne!J saji

Of purp{e haze ana miCitant ga!Js. 'Iliat s What a Veathocrat s mtufe of.

Ofsu{{en c!Jnies, a60rtion dinies.

'Iliat s what a Veathocrat s mtufe of

Of pseutfo,scho{ars anaguilt trip wa[[owers, hO{[(nV woe ho[[erers anti ho{[ower fo{fewers, emverers, g{(nverers, frivolous 60rrowers.

'Iliat s what a Veathocrat s mtufe of.

Party of the strange ana twistea.

Champion of each vice once nissea at.

9ofoc~rs of tne triea ana true.

See~rs who have not Jil CL'll.

'W7iere RinkJI notions fi.,,! a home, from whence tne ainkJI tfo[[ar is tnrown to an!Jwnere unjustifiea from out the mitfc{[e dass s nitk.

Prettr"fers pressing vague agwtios, tne!J pose as pni(antnropic mentfers.

Pitting dass against dass, these scions of the stu660m ass.

1(jf{ a tree ana risk their might?!!

Jil6ortion? ... 'Wh!J, a Woman s ngfttl Vepict george 'Busft as mat! aggressor, Castro as some quaint professor.

Jilppeasing af{ tyrants who act witft 60ftf vicuna, witft wisnfufness, wist/ufness, 6(issfuf aeacf silence, the!J cheat on their spouses anti 6ack revo{utions Where 9ofaT7( ana macftine guns are posea as so{utions. 'lliey run in circfes, swim in fees, jf!J from responsi6iCities.

Jil criminaf wife earn their pity whi(e victims mount in every city. 'llie poor, the!J sa!J, we he(p upgratfe!

6ut 6ackin 1978 1vitn Vemocrats as the ruCing tenants of 'W7iite :House, Congress, anti the Senate, gas fines grew, injfation soarea!

'Ilie poor tfia 6etter untier J'ora.

Jimmy anti J'ritz foo~a pafe anti want.

'Who can We possi6{!J 6{ame this on?

Bingham/Oil Review

'ITiings are 6aa ... the!J Won t get 6etter.

Its not our fau{t. gO wear a sweater.

Author

Unknown

'Ilie!J spent otlier fo{kJ s .none!J to gamer votes anapraises, {eaving illlie>:fa tcvd-ng 6rac~ts tftat meant automatic raises

J

tnat movea the poor ana mitfe{(e dass, their speciaffritrl/fs , tffe!J sair£, to 6rac~ts where scant !Jears 6efore the riCh anafat ftatf {aia.

Jilna when 'l(Jagan saUf at fast, Inae1(jng nas to gol , tfie!J sail, 'Ilie oft{ wif{ soon 6e aeacfl ana simirar cries of woe.

'Ilie!J cu.rsea ana wurst anafain!J 6urst 1vitn /lgCy nistrionies.

Irif{ationfdr. 'But wfiat tne herr, it can t 6e i\sagallomics !

'Ilie man s success {eft tnem a mess WhtTI ne saUf with rhetoric 6{istery, 'Ilie areatfea reas wi£[ ma~ their 6eas on the oftf asft fieap of historyl Jil6ortion is {etha{ ana communists eviI?!! ah, hOW these ru 6es are uncouth!

'W7iat ga!J 6ashing, Chauvinist, war monger 6igots!

'When 1vi{{ tne!J ever see trutft?

So wnat is a Veatnocrat mtufe of?

'W7iat IS a Veatfiocrat maae of?

Of moraf aespoi{ers, ana striaent annoyers, aevious {Q1t11jers, ana porno mag voyeurs, of pra!Jer interaiction ana sociafist fiction, stupia aecisions anti history revisions.

Of shear a6aication as seot eaucation, equivocation ana scorn for our nation.

Of asinine Jratriciae.

'Bu{Cy for a'l1!l(siael 'Iliat s wnat a Veathocrat s macfe of Page 5

questions of sheer physical strength (something so indubitable that I am not going to waste much space addressing it) and temperament. Out of total body volume. sexual dimorphism accounts for twenty percent. The greatest factor in this difference is muscle. The average man has more muscle and less fat. The more people develop their muscles. the more pronounced the difference becomes. Thus in some Polynesian cultures. where there is comparatively little physical labor, men and women appear more alike than in other societies that demand greater efforts to survive. This leads us to one immediate supposition: Western technology is feminism's greatest benefactor. Any society in which physical labor is required to secure the bare essentials of living. men must predominate.

Thus the West, specifically the West of today •is the least patriarchal society in the history of the world. It is very important to bear this in mind when criticizing our "culture" as especially patriarchal. To do so is to imply some Thus the West, known alternative. No such alternatives exist. Feminism is a truly .specifically the revolutionary project without West of today, is the precedent, and steps taken in its direction are made on utter alien least patriarchal ground. society in the Naturally feminism is not the only innovation in our society. The history of the world. idea of universal suffrage itself is quite new on its present scale. New technologies are constantly altering searchers. Margaret Mead. has our lifestyles in quite fundamental recently written: ways. And yet. do not sex roles serve It is true as Professor Goldberg a purpose outside the division of [author of The Inevitability of labor? Men are not more aggressi~e.

Patriarchy] points out, that all the more violent. than women because claims so glibly made about societies they are taught to be that way. It is ruled by women are nonsense. We their learning, and environment that have no reason to believe that they their aggression. Take away inhibit ever existed ... Men have always been the discipline placed on them by the the leaders in public affairs and the pressures of socialization and they final authorities at home.

The reasons for this dominance really will be more violent. not less. Men are not violent because there is a ~f~~telm Society is regularly

assailed as patriarchal.

Men, it is said. control all aspects of political and social power.

This is often seen as a betrayal of our democratic ideals and as such. something which must be remedied.

And yet nagging questions arise. To what extent is male dominance the result of design? Do traditional women's functions provide society with services it cannot do without?

What will our new society be like?

First let us look at things as they were and as they are. All known societies divided their labors according to sex. Even the so called "model" primitive societies (Hopi, iKung, Bushmen, Tchambuli) where women wield some degree ofpolitical power. strictly divide labor into sexual spheres. And.just as invariably. these spheres correspond. Males hunt and fight; women gather cook. and nurture children. All the somewhat frenzied attempts to discover societies which do not conform to this pattern have failed. As one of the most determined

Page 6

because. men are violent. But, the modern reader asks, are not all these concepts basically outmoded in today' s society?

Doesn't technology, mandatory education, and a generally less strenuous lifestyle work together to subvert the aggressive tendencies?

To this I can only give the answer of hard experience. Where in our society has feminization ofauthority actually

The greatest gift a society could give itself would be to use its technology to best exploit the innate differences between women and men .

.

taken . . the role of the father provider has for all intentions and purposes ceased to exist. Here. divorced from tradition and history. men exist far closer to a state of nature than they do in any of the traditional. "primitive" societies studied by anthropologists. And it is also here that the concept of the sociopath has found its fullest fruition.

American inner cities oJfer an ultimate proof of Lionel Tiger's idea that men define themselves in opposition to women. 3 The distance a young male puts himself from female behaviors is the measure of his status in society. This is exactly how status is measured in Los Angles today. Itis the frrst fruit of the feminization of authority in the United States.

Thus the family, and its divisi~n of masculine and feminine roles. does really have value. Women nurture and support while men instill discipline. Attempts to change these roles, or to entrust them to a single parent lead to disaster. This leads to a fresh alternative. If traditional parent roles are too restrictive, and single parenthood is destructive, then why not turn to the state as· a substitute Continued on page 21 Billghamton Review

The Exploitation of Sexual Harassment

T

he recent "Take Back th e were rejected by mos t A m e ri c~ln Nighl " dcmonSlration o n Ollr womc n. As. columnist Mona Charen campus served as a reminder has no ted : "th e id ea th at NOW o f how the sexual harassment iss ue IN at io nal Organ ization fo r Wo me n I has been hijacked by rad ical fe mi ni st s pc aks fo r Am e ri can wom en is ideology. For those of us unfortunate la ug ha ble." In the wa ke o r thi s enough 11) encounter this iJI-concci vcd ep is ode , the di scourse o n sex ua l d emonstra ti on th ere wa s precio us little indi cation that it had anything to do wi th rcallire sexual harassment co nce rn s, i.e ., rape, battered women Li ke the syndro me , c lc. organized bands of Oagella nts w hich roamed th e European countryside in the M iddle Ages, thi s vociferous group marched thro ugh the res id e nti a l

colleges, pausing at each onc to put on th eir s how. Unli ke

their medi eval co unterparts , these la lter~ day ma lconte nts spouted mdi cal fe mini s t doctri ne a nd preached the gospel of Mal e Ev il.

Th e sex ua l hara ss m e nt iss ue , particul arl y the "date rape " hyste ri a, continues to oc a source of inspi rati on for md ical fe mini sts. T hey perce ive , correctl y, that the hys tc ria prov idcs an ideal ve hicle ror th eir cau se . In recent months, Lhe dialog ue o n sexual harassment in the wort..-placc has come to the fore as a conseq uence o r the hy pe s urro u ndi ng the C la re nce Tho mas/A nita Hill faee-o fr. T he primc timc ind ic tm e nt o f Th o m as backfired : th e tac ti cs o f the rad ica l fcmini sts who sough t to ruin Tho mas,

Yet feminist legal theoreticians have sought a way around the law, As we saw with the Thomas hearings, they took a legal matter and framed it ideologically .

..

up as women and men have embarked o n a fresh elTo rt to bring into the rcal m o r rcason an issuc which their conscience does no t permit them to a bandon to media hype a nd the radi cal fc mini s ts' agcnda.

W hat is scx ua l ha rass mcn t'!

Accordi ng to gu idelines establis hed by th e rederal Equal Em plo yment Opport uni ty Com mi ssion (EEOC ) it is a fo ml o f scxual discrimati on, and thu s illegal unde r T itl e VII o f the Civil Rights Aet of 1964. T he EEOC g ui de lincs ide ntify two ro rm s u f sexua l harass me nt in the work pl ace:

SoC1ALIC;T ?~IW

fREiEMA~\(~T

? LAN

COMf'llOMI<;E PL AN

L -_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ .

Hinghamton Ueview

harass me nt in volving c arecr ad va nc e mc nt in re turn fo r se xua l f avo r s a nd "cnvi TOn mc nta l" hamssme nt.

The la ner type covers a broad rangc of poten ti a ll y o frensive be ha v ior w h ic h " u nrea so nab ly inte rferes" with a n ind ivid ual' s. work environm cnt. T he re is co nsiderable lati tude for inte rp rc ta tio n here.

Press urin g a co- wo rker or a n e m ployee for sex ua l fa vors is an obv io us v io la ti o n of the law. But what or a careless rc mark o r a req ues t for a da te?

T he perception of harass mc nt docs no t a utomaticall y define the reality o r the s ituation. Thc law providcs that the be havior in q ues ti o n must be such that a "reasonable person" would find it objecti onable; the accused is o ffe r ed thi s pro te c tiu n fr om hypersensitivc, dcluded o r vindicti,路c 路compl a ina nts. Ye t fe min ist legal theorc ti cia ns have s o ug h t a way aro und the law. As we saw wi th the Tho mas hearings, they took a legal matte r and framed it ideo logicall y.

Guil t and in nocence, truth a nd reason, wcre deemed irrelevan t. Duc process, a nd a ll th a t j a zz'!

O p p ress ive instru me nts of "pa tri archi s m". As lega l thcoris t a nd auth or Shirl cy Robin Le twi n wro te rece ntl y, the fc minists ins ist that "onl y the victim 's (tha t is, the acc use r's) point or view matters: in harass me nt cascs the in tenti on of thc male is in路clcvanl.. .. " A morc recent developme nt in the campaign to pmtect wom cn rrom men is thc "da te rape" hys te ri a which hal) in recent years bee n gc nerated by ccrtain remini slS. T he iss ue ilselr has bcen dis to rt ed , e xaggera ted a nd , ultimately lost rrom sighL If anything, it s peaks of a nced fo r social no rms ( li ke co urt s hips ) go ve rnin g th e rela ti o ns octwcen mc n and wo me n.

As the fe mi nisL'i prese nt itho wever, it is, a n e ffic ie nt ve hi clc fo r th e d iss emi na tion o f radi ca l fe mini s t dogma that o therwi sc would not have a subs tantia l aud ience.

T he cxpl o itatio n of the '\.Iale mpc" pheno me non is a fascina ting example or radical fem inis t ideology barin g its pat ho log ica l sou l. T hc iss ue o r Continued o n page 2 2

A.

The staff of Binghamton Review would like to dedicate this issue to the brave men and women who fought defending the United States of America at Pearl Harbor on December 7th 1941.

On this, the 50th anniversary of, "the day that would live in infamy" we would like to let it be known to those who survived and the families of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice in defense of this great nation that our thoughts and prayers are with you.

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Binghamton Review

groups embrace thi s situation as a means by which to deny a man's respo nsibility in uring thi s period o f great debate, with regard to the abortion issue, many women are left feeling alienated by the very orga ni zations thaI presume to represenl them. Groups, such as Ihe National Organization for Women (N.O. W.), lake a slrong pro-abol1ion position, and claim to work in the interests of women. Howcve r, it is clear, given the number of women opposed 10 abol1ion, Ihal such groups do not necessarily represen t the interests of all women, and certainly work to deny unborn women any rights whatsoevcr.

Such a situation is ironic, given the history of the feminist movement in thi s nation. Originators of the movement fOllght not only to obtain equal ri ghts for women, but also slrugglcd 10 represent the inlerests of o ther oppressed groups, such as Blacks, Nalive Americans, children, and Ihose li vi ng in po\路erty. In facl , many of Ihe early leaders of Ihe women's movement, including Susan B. Anlhony, Elizabelh Cady Slanlon, Lucrelia MOil, and Fanny Wrighl,

Ihe torm IhUI ha. been pUI rorth by Ihe "ProChoitc" movcmen t of today.

Pregnancy has evolved into a burden which denies a woman the abi lity 10 accompli sh as mu c h as her male counterparts.

For example, a pregnancy may prevent a woman from advancing as far in her career as a mal e o f equal ab ilit y might.

Unfortunalely, mlher Ihan devoling it<; e nergy 10 removing the stigma so ofte n associated with pregnancy, the mod e rn "women's" moyeme nt concentrates its efforts on rejecting the very essence o f womanhood, by promoting abortion as a wo ma n's "right" one which will help to solve both personal and social problems.

Howeve r , abortion actually prevents the development or such solutions. Reliance on abortion diverts allention from the slruggle 10 bring about positi ve, permanent changes in women 's li ves, as well as wilhin Ihe sociely which lai ls 10 place Ihe proper value on Ihe unique role of moth erhood. Pregnancy is viewed as a conditi on which prevents women from competing with mcn in the fi ght ror success and ac hi evement. It is most disheartcning that so many of Those feminists who those who call themselves reminists do not devote more or their energy to who promote abortion changing s uch a predominant rights do little, if se ntiment, as well a<; to modifyin g a anything, to represent sys tem which allows for the the feelings and perpetuation of suc h a di stoned and experiences of their unjust percepti on.

Abortion is not the answer to thi s "sisters" who suffer problem.

In facl, il only faciliwles after abortion.

Ihe sexis m associaled wilh c hild rearing. Women have for so long fought to convin ce men to accept were very much opposed to abortion their roles in the childrcaring process. because they viewed it as yet another However, the emphasis on "My Body form of Ihe denial of basic ri ghlS. My Choice," Ihe war cry of Ihe proAbortion represented "an acceptance abortion movement , completel y of the old paternalistic sys tem in di sregard s the man's role in th e whieh one 'ow ned' onc's re sponsibilities associated with dependents."路 bringing a c hild into the wo rld. In It is unfortunate that the search for fact , a man has absolUlely no claims justice, begun by the creators of a over th e unborn c hild his female movement that has accomplished so partner carnes. This denial of me n's m has become 10 1ak':.. ~ghlS has pr()~ ple" the formalion of

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child rearing.

The promo ti o n of abortion as a solutio n to many of the problems aSsoc.;ialed wi th an unplanned pregnancy docs lillie 10 help Ihose who "choose" to let their pregnancies tenninatc natumlly. The women's movement is ce rtainly not devoting the required attention to women who,

Kerry MacNamara

Abortion represented "an acceptance of the old paternalistiC system in which one 'owned' one's dependents. " due to the present socioeconomic sys tem, arc unable to sufficiently pm\路ide for Ihe children they do have.

In slead, so called femini s ls arc fighling 10 preserve Ihe righl of a poor woman to obtai n an inexpensive abortion. But, what ir she docs not want an abortion? Then perhaps she should considcr herseIr selfi sh and roolish for bringing mo re children into the cycle or poverty.

This is not to suggest that thcre arem'l any feminists fighting to c reate beller , more accepting e nvironments into which c hildren may be born. Feminists For Lire or Ame ri ca, a group based in Kansas Cily, MO, promoles Ihe phi losophies PUI forth by Ihe early leaders of Ihe women's movcment, and stresses the need for "rea l" answers to the problems faci ng women to day.

Nonetheless, when one examincs proabort ion groups Ihal claim 10 help women with the difficulties assoc iated with pregnancy, onc finds that a ll too ofte n abortion is the favored cure-all. For example, in 19R8, Planned Parenthood pcrl'onncd II 1, 189 abort io ns and provided Co ntinued on page 22 Page 9

Since Cuomo took office in 1983. the state has been on an economic

Adam Bromberg

,-.___ emocrats have been wailing

inflation. Even last year when the . Iforvears for Mario Cuomo to state was in adire fiscal situation and II~"'_ run for president and are a $6 billion dollar deficit, s tate now holdin g th e ir breath in spending went up 7.1 %. Governor anticipation of his decision about Cuomo makes the claim that New 1992. There seems to be a feeling York spends less than other states among Democrats that Cuomo is the and its spending has not grow n faster candidate they have been waiting for than the national average. The facts and can ' finally win them back the are quite to the contrary. In the nine years Cuomo has been governor. the averagestategovernment'sspending grew by 61 % per person and New Despite the fact that York's grew by 81.9%. Last year.

New York spends more the average state spe nt $2,305 per person while New Yorkspent $3,287. per pupil than any other Nice try, governor. state in the country it has Besides the Reagan and Bush administrations. the slate legislature nothing to show for it The is Cuomo 's second favorite education budget of New scapegoat. He blames them for the York is bigger than about 30 fiscal problems in the state. Yet, Mario Cuomo has a power that other state budgets George Bush onl y dreams aboutthe line-item veto. During his nine combined. years as governor. Cuomo has used the veto to trim only $8 1 million in all those nine years. Hugh Carey. presidency. Why? When looking at Cuomo's predecessor, who was also Cuomo's record as governor of New a liberal Democrat, cut over S 1.3 York. one would shudder to think of billion with the line-item veto [rom him as President of th e United States. 1980 to 1982 alone.

The iss ue of rising taxes has been "The everioc;n ing deficits in Albany make Michael Dukakis look one of the greatest concerns for like a fiscal genius and mode l working people in the country. New governor", according to political York has been labeled one of the consuitantRogerStone. At the same nations top ten "tax hells" in the time. Cuomo has traveled the country nation. Combined state and local bashing the economic policies of the taxes are the second hi ghest in the Bush administration. He has blamed nation at 16.4%. New York's tax rate New York' s economic problems on is much hi gher than that of its the federal government for years. The neighbors, making it very hard for fact of the mailer is that since 1983, New York to compete with them . As federal aid to New York has increased New Yorkers continue to suffer, the

by III %. Even in the last few years. state has approved over SI billion in when money from th e feder a l tax and fee increases over the last government started to s low down, three years, including 5500 million Cuomo continued to spend just as if in personal tax increases this last year. their was no limit to the money that While many of the worki ng people of was coming in to th e state.

New York state struggle to make Since Cuomo took office in 1983. ends meet, the state keeps raising spending has gone up 103 %. which their taxes to feed the ever-growi ng is almost three times the rale of state bureaucmey.

Page 10

s lide, despite a good natio nal economy for much of the 1980's. Over 280,000 people have fled New York on a net basis since 1983.

It putsa little dent in Cuomo's theory of himself as sufferin g from a bad national economy.

Cuomo 's argument that the state is suffering because of the national economy

doesn ' t hold much water when you look at how bad New York is compared to the rest of the nation.

More than a quarter of the jobs that have been lost in the las t year throu ghout the nation have been in New York. If it is just the national economy why is our state losing so many more jobs than the other states.

Maybe it is because hi gh taxes are making it harder for businesses to survi ve in the "empire" state.

In

1990, New York's credit rating dropped to the third lowest in the nation. If all the states arc suffering from a bad national econom y as Cuomo says, there seems to be 47 other states that are handling it a lillie bit beller than New York is.

When disc ussi ng New York's spending spree. not only does Cuomo deny that New York spends more than other states, he also talks very proudly about the spending of the s tate. Recently. when ite was questioned about how much the state spends, Cuomo said he was proud of how much New York spends on its domestic problems. He asks why he should be embarrassed that New York spends more on education and health care than all the other states. I'll tell him why he should be embarrassed. because despite what we spend on these the quality of th em is worse than most other states. In New York it costs two and a half times more to treat a patient than it does in California

and care is no better.

Despite the fact that New York spends more per pupil than any other state in the country it has nothing to show for it. The education budget of New York is bigger than about 30 other state budge ts combined. At the same time New York fell from 6th to Binghamton Review

14th in SAT scores out of the 22 has done to the SUNY budget. to the over $100.000 in salary and much states that offer the SAT. Highschool tuition and to the quality of the more for travel expenses and staff graduation rates have decreased fTom education at Binghamton and other from a Western capitalist university.

63.4%in 1982 1062.3% in 1988. All SUNY schools. Cuomo' s disastrous Mazrui received a personal call [Tom this happened while New York state handling of the state budget has Cuomo when he was considering increased filtered down and led to cut backs in whether to come to Bingham ton. aid to sc hools approximately 90% in those years. If funding for SUNY. Many students Cuomo was successful in bringing you measure educational success in are suffering and having trouble Mazrui here and spending so much terms of financial output and creation affording an education here at SUNY money (that the school does not have) of more agencies and bureaucracies, Binghamton. Many professors arc on him. then Cuomo has a lot to be proud of. beingfired,admissionsaredecreasing This last year, Mazrui was also If. however you measure education and services are being cut back appoin ted to the state educational in terms of SAT scores, graduation drastically. All of this is because curriculum committee. Mazrui was rates , and ove rall . . . - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - : : - - - - - - - - , appointed by Thomas educational quality. then Sobol. Cuomo's Cuomo should hang his Commissioner of head in shame.

Education, who MarioCuomofallsinto appointed Leonard the typical liberal Jeffries to head his c urriculum argument of looking at solutions in terms of how committee. Over the much money is spent on summer Mazrui got something and not into trouble when it whether there is a ny was revealed that he improvement. Cuomo has made comments boasts of how New York like, calling Israel spends so much on health " the most arrogan t care, education and other

social services, but never Germany ." mentions thatthis money C uomo's role in is only creating a state bringing such a bureaucracy and not radical to the SUNY improving the problems. system with such a If he were to become high price tag. while president. Cuomo would every other love the way the federal department is government deals with sufferi ng from lack of domestic problems: they funds. shows hi s spend a lot of money and priorities as governor. have nothing to show for Maybe as president, it; he'd feel like he was ' - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - l, he'd appoint Tom right back in Albany.

Cuomo has gone on a wild spending Sobol as Secretary of Education and Besides handling ihe economy, a spree. creating a hu ge state Mazrui as Chairman of the National president must deal with foreign bureaucracy at the expense of the Endowment for the Humanities. affairs as well. First. Cuomo has people. While expanding the state After closely examining the real absolutely no experience in foreign payroll and shrinking the tax base record of Mario Cuomo, one wonders affairs.hehasnottraveledverymuch many items like tile SUNY budget why any Democrat would want him outside the United States. To see have suffered. tobetheirnominee. DespiteCuomo's whatkindofaforeign policy president Cuomo'sinlluence has been felt in great speaking ability. his record is Cuomo would be,just look at what he another way on our campus. abysmal and he would make a terrible said during the Gulf War. He Governor Cuomo was personally president. Mario Cuomo has been a suggested that we could settle the responsibleforbringingBinghamton major player in every Democratic conllict with Iraq by giving Saddam its half million dollar professor, Ali administration in New York since Hussein a piece of Kuwait and maybe Mazrui. Mazrui, a Marxist who has 1974 and therefore he must run on a some oil fields. Now there is a leader constantly called for the demise of theme of ''I'll do for America what I that our allies can look to for the West and thedemiseofcapitalism. did for New York." A pretty leadership and guidance.

Despite the fact that he is so anti- frig hteningprospectfortheAmerican Lets look a little bit closer to home. West and anti-capitalist, he does not people.

Weallknowwhat thestate'seconomy seem to have much trouble accepting

r

Billghar}/foll Review

Page 11

Woodstock was a nightmare; lwas there.

Rain, mud,b.o., and acid.

You didn't miss anything.

-Billy Joel

The SUNY-B Instant Protest Hey, Hey, Ho, Ho, (add your cause here)

has got to go.

Repeat until President DeFleur caves in.

As we go to press, Mario Cuomo ",ay or may not be on the verge of announcing his bid for the presidency. He has~ however, made clear the if he does, it will be because he believes this country needs decil'ive leadershipNational Review 1211611991

\IIE.'I<~ LOOI<Ii'lG 1'01< P, f~W GOOI) I'WI't.~ 10 ~p.,C1-l OLlR \<.10'0 HE.l<e ~ \Xl p.,i'l,\, Or '\'OU Hp.,V~ '" i"EI>CI4It-K:; C~RTlrICp.,TE?

Leuving sex ro Ihe feminisls is like lelling your dog vacation at rhe laxidermisr'.l- - Camille Paglisa

We foughr 100 long and hard to make people slap saying hlacks looked alike- bUll say Us afar grealer evillhal many people say blacks Ihink alike.-Associate Justice Clarence Thomas

Top Ten Reasons I went to S.U.N.Y.Binghamton IO)That raw sewage smell!

9) Because I want to wave canes at professors too.

8) To see if President DeFleur really does cackle like a chicken.

7) Where else can I get the "facts" about Korean Textile workers & Greyhound strikers?

6) Just what is this PC stuff anyway?

5) Those great games played at Orientation.

4) To learn Newspeak.

3) To find new ways to hate America.

2) To learn world history (,"vi sc~ c~ition.)

I) Because no dead, white, European males are allowed on campus .

L ___

_

.-=.

Marshall B. Steeves

A

nother of his to ry's great ass ump ti o n o f o mni science in empires, the Soviet Union, co n ~u m e r markets is causin g. the is dis integ rati ng fro m people or the USSR increasingly

withinin -- in large meas ure as a

result of th e slale co nt ro l of the economy. A s oolh an economic and a soc ial rorce, socialism has rai led to live up to its billing as a panacea ro r all the ills o r society. Worse yet, other the course of the last seven decades, it has s ubjugated milli o ns under the pretext o r producing a ')ust" society.

Western intellectuals on th e Left and the Righ t have ig no red the

evidence of socialism' s failure for many ycars. Thcy have been del uded

either by the beli ef th at socialism marked the way to an egalitarian social order or by the crusade against what was perceived as a worldwide ma rc h d o wn th e road La to talita riani s m. But cIass icalli beral. o r libertarian , thinke rs have, alm os t rrom the beginning, unders tood the impossi bilit y and ill og ic or collec ti vis t eco no mic plannin g.

Ludwi g von Mises identiricd the inherent flaws of socialis t economic calc ul atio n as early as 1920, when he pointed o ul in Et.:olJomic Ca/culatioll ill The Socialist COllllllo m veallh that priees are a direct o utcome of the interacti o n o f participants in thc market and canno t be detcnnined by ccntral planners, be they autocrats or democrats. No one person o r group can poss ibl y possess the requi site knowledge o r individual cons umers' preferences for goods and services.

Those preferences are expressed in the prices consumers are willing to pay. Markct prices or goods re flec t the subjecti ve valuatio n given them by indi vidual cons umers; they a rc nut related to some m ystical inherent worth calculated rrom capital or labor inputs. The Soviet state's fa llacio us

se ri ous hardship.

In 1947 Mises exposed the myth or the s uccess of Sovie t sociali sm in

Page 14

perestroika, u(resttuclonrig 'ur [n~ '

" It is nothing short of idiocy to announce that the experience of Russia has demonstrated the superiority of public control of production. "

no thing short or idiocy to anno un ce that the experie nce of Ru ss ia has demonstmlCd the superiority or public control of producti o n." F.A. Hayek readdressed the issue as recently as 1988, whe n he arg ued in The Fatal eotlceil: 17Je Errors of Socialism that "one of the mos t inl1uential political move me nts of o ur time , socialism, based o n demonSlIabl y raise premises and led by some or the most intelli gent representatives of o ur time, endangers th e standard of livin g and the life itselr of a large proportion or o ur exis ting populatio n."

Sovie t eco nomy a nd do mes ti c policies, mus t objectively be viewed as a monumental rai lure." Gorbachev has been unable to embrace the free market and to di vorce his government fro m the e ntrenc hed centralized bureaucracy.

In th e ir zeal to ac hi eve an egalitarian society, liberals in the West have ove rl oo ked th e inefficiency and moral corrupti on of socialism. not to mention the sacrifice o r individual ri g hts to its uto pian goals. In light or the proven incapaci ty or govemmentto produce the society they des ire , pro po ne nts or the redi s tributi o ni s t s tate mu s t now answer two question s: ho w can the s tate be morall y s uperior to the individua l, and ho w can the slate effectively meet the needs of its ci tizens?

While the cgalitarians or the world enthu sed over the ·'fairn ess" of the Sovie t sys tem, consclVativcs mi stook the mili tary strength or the Soviets as a s ign o f economi c s tre n g th .

continues on page 21

Mom's House®

WElCOME ~

Marshall 8. Steeves Is a research assistant at the Cato Institute in Washington, D.C.

Edward H . Crane, president or thc Cato Institute, after visiting the USSR in 198 1, no ted [hal Soviet society "appears 10 be c rumbling from within ... Pco ple survive a t s ubsiste nce level, beaten down by their o ppresso rs a nd generally unaware af how people live o n the o uts ide." A nd in a speec h delivered in Moscow las t September critici z in g Go rbac hev' s alleged rerorms , Crane said, "his policy or

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IJilJg hamlolJ Review

right to raise new safety issues at any time, even after these approvals were grantcd.

Thc anti- nuclear crowd is also bold enough to suggest our own Fortunately, licensi ng rcfonns have government could do nothing if been proposed thal would sc uie someo ne s uddenly reali zed a mallers before the fi rst shovel of dirt complete plant was s itting in is tossed. Regrettable. though. only quicksand, next to a volcano, right a "no-nukes" move ment desperate to smackdab in the middle of a major stop nuclear power at all costs stands fauillinc. The truth is, of course, our in the way of this progress. federal government would no t o nly In their zeal to lid the planet or this relain the right to change its mind "d asta r d Iy" tec hllo logy, en v ironmental ex trem is ts arc thoroughly misrepresenting the impact or the proposed reforms.

Regrettable,

路 Nuclear Energy magine enrolling in a course on modern aerospace engineering ami then finding out on the IIrst day of class you will be s{X:nuing the entire se me ste r s tudying the dynamics of the Wright Brothers' Kitty Hawk !light. Then imagine tldving from class to the nearest deli only to discover that a hilchingposl

I

for horse and buggies stands where

the parking lot should be. Your foremost thought at thi s point would probably be, doesn't anyone around here keep up with the times?" Well, someone looking at the way our nation curre ntl y licenses nuclear power plants would no do ubt have the same questions.

Today's nudear power plants arc licensed under a two step system that dates back to the 1950' s when commercial nuclear power was in its infancy. Under thi s sys tem , utilities can break ground and pour concrete before all their blueprints arc fini shed.

After the plant IS bUIll, however, they have to fil e another application to geL the thing running. But just as tx,bbysox and Chuck Berry gave way

to the Rccboks and Me Hammer, nuclear power also changes and evolved over the years. Modem plants can now be fully designed before cons tructi on ever begins.

Claiming that the refo rm s "would

completely undermine public participation in the licensing process," these concerned (or sho uld we ~ay "confused') citizens are spinning tall tales, since nothin g could be further from the truth.

Under the old process, the public had only two (;hances to participate when the utility requested a construction permit and when it request an opcrJ.ting license.

Undcr the new process, thoug h, Joe Sixpack and Mary Housewife have not two, but (count 'cm) four s uch chances to spea k their mind ; during appro"al o f the J csig n, site, and construction/ope ration license, and before the compl eted plant is ever allowed to start pumpingout any juice. As if this isn't enough , members of the public would al~o have the

=

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GU!'IT: '\EWit~F"

Binghnmtoll Review

James T. Sheka

though, only a "nonukes" movement desperate to stop nuclear power at all costs stands in the way of this progress.

about a plant' s license but could also slam its gates shut if it was discovered tu be a threat Lu publi(.; health ur safety.

As there is more than ample opportu nities for every Tom, Dick. and Harry (and Mary) to have their say in Ihe licensing proc('~s.I), Ihe is.~lIc of public participatio n is obviously just a smokesc reen for the no nukers.

If they were honest, they would admit that what they really object to is not an 路i magined lack of public participation but rather nuclear IX'wcr iL<;elf and the reality that a new nudear power plant might actually get buill.

They know these rcfonns arc criticaJly needed if nuclear energy is going to help power uur naLion intu lhe IIc,\ .l century. But th ese naysaye rs and their accomplices who insist o n blowing smoke see m determined to keep America at the hitchingposl.l

James T. Sheka is an alumni of the Binghamton Review.

Page 15

. ..... .. .... . .

;..

"

Book Review

..

.' : y s themselves... " In the chapter on the judicial branch, the issue of flag burning is brought up by the author.

0' Rourke seems to think that this issue was a fad by newspapers, magazines, and television news. With the issue concluded. he says that it was "another fashionable principle gone out of style." On May 14, 1990. the case of flag burning was argued before the Court. Four weeks latcr the Court said that no. flag burning cannot be made illegal. The point he makcs is that the whole debate was quickly forgotten and also that uFor all we know. the Supreme Court decides cases by playing nude games of Johnny-on-a-pony."

Where does the taxpayers dollar go? If you don't pay your taxes. you'll be fined. If you don't pay the finc, you'll be jailed. If you try to escape from jail. you'll be shot Thus. I-in my role as citizen and voter am going to shoot you-in your role as taxpayer and rope suck-if you don't pay your share of the national tab.

0' Rourke says that he is a real Republican. unlike the current president, and he wouldn't raise taxes if he were elected. His statistics indicate that our government is spending $4900 on each person. Only 4.8% of the population filed income tax returns of more than $50,000.

Therefore, he concludes that "95% of Americans are on the mooch. " PJ. 0' Rourke has spent two and a half years examining the American political system. Of the five hundred and thirty-five members of congress. he says that maybe a handful are blameless for the problems within our system. The American people are also to blame, they are the whores as well. Most people are ignorant of our democracy, our "parliament."

Though on the same DOte, Washington is accused of making the system boring and rather difficult to understand. This humorous account of politics in Washington D.C. tells the reader that everyone should take a long, deep look at our system and not to simply accept a vague definition found in highschool civics textbooks.

: : O'Rourke says that with the convention it didn't matter if one Jeffrey was a Democrat or a Republican beParliament of Whores: cause neither one stands for anything Weyl A Lone Humorist Attempts he believes in. Except for Jesse to Explain the Entire U.S. Jackson. "the advocate for people Government. who believe themselves to be excluded from Western culture, [who] P.J. O'Rourke was the only 1988 presidential canAtlantic Monthly Press didate to exhibit any of it." At least PJ. O'Rourke begins his novel with Jackson was not boring and bland, a question: "What is this oozing but O'Rourke was drunk at the time. behemoth, this fibrous tumor, this The winner of this "bland" elecmonster of power and expense tion was George Bush. who doesn't hatched from the simple human desire get picked on too much by O'Rourke. for civic order?" The answer, of He had something to say about Bush's course, is the federal government of cabinet appointments, but most the United States of America whose notable was William Bennett. You real problem, acconling to 0' Rourke, had to love a man who'd made that is that it is too boring. The American many schoolteachers mad. Bennett population holds no fascination in always seemed to say, "Anybody our system of government whodoesn'tknowwhat'swrongwith whatsoever. In Parliament of Whores, America's schools never screwed an 0' Rourke offends all aspects of our el-ed [elementary education] major."

And of rowse. Bush appointed Jack federal system and the public as well.

In a most hilarious way, one that may Kemp to Secretary of Housing and have not been previously deemed Urban Development 0' Rourke says possible towards politics, P.J. that it was "a bold stroke or a mean O'Rourke displays the government prank to make the only real as a three conservative in the crowd go down to Ita bold stroke or a ring circus. the ghetto and explain the Laffer He fi rst curve." Also ridiculed is Dan Quayle. mean prank to follows the by him answering the question "Can make the only real 198 8 a person be too dumb for conservative in the presidential government?" ele ctions Mr. 0' Rourke followed a crowd go down to which leads congressman around for a day to find the ghetto and the reader out exactly what he does. He does explain the Laffer i n to a say that they are not by any means curve. 1I detail ed lazy. In fact, he earns every penny of humor ous his salary. Research shows that this analysis of Congress, the President, congressman has a salary "less than the Supreme Court, the Bureaucracy, what a shortstop hitting .197 makes." and the Federal Budget He is curious The other whores in our system, the as to where "our" money is going. public, seem to think that too much According to him it is spent in the money js g.ivc.fI ..t.ru:f»1:,9reSW1JC» &};Jp nation's Orog.lJU~[Y, "1:lgi1Clll\Unl" says tha\''-wt;: ~'11reilC'cDlS-naVtf~trol:.... "very foreign", and defense policies. a remarkable bargain." So much for Everything he observes and comically Congress. l.~ticizcs leads us up to his conclusion Of the executive branch, the about our government: It is we the President is a "divine priest-king", people who are the whores in this not like other government officials. parliament of boredom. In fact. The President is the one that is always something as "boring" as a national watched. On the other hand. the conv~~~~~!~isc~scd~~i~n!~hi~·~s_~~~~_J~u~s:~ti~ce~s~co~f-.!th~e~~S.u~pr~e!!:m~e~C~o~u~rt~w~a~tc~h_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _~ Page /6 Binghamton Review

I

TAKE DRUGS YOUR

If you think drugs cost a lot now, wait until after college.

They could cost you a career.

Last year alone. America's

LOSE ALL

businesses lost more than $60 billion to drugs. So this year, most of the Fortune 500 will be . administering drug tests.

Failing the test means you won't be considered for employment.

And that's one hell of a price to pay.

WE'RE PUTTING DRUGS OUT OF BUSINESS. I'arlnership fOf a Drur路 Free ",."rica Binghamtoll Review

Page 17

A Real Civil Rights Agenda Edwin Fe ulner

would require action on several fronlS. low-paid workers; make some ronn AMoun g th em: of \\'ork mildatory for all welfare -Remove obstacles to entrepre- programs serv in g the ab led bodied; be the lawyers. who have bee n handed a new bag of tri cks to neurs. Economi c liberty is a funda- and enac t "enterpri se zone" legisla"prove" dis<.:rimi nalion - even when mental civi l ri g ht, and a forgulLen ti o n, wh ich would red uce tax and onc. An amlY or regulatio ns a t every reg ul ato ry barrie rs and encourage none exists, More important, legislati on em- level of gove rnm e nt continues to business investment in the inner city.

A ny civi l rights agenda must be braced by Presiden t Bush will do con fo und entrepene urs. These li llie to advance true civi l rights. In - regu lati ons - from minimum wage grounded on these pi ll ars of s tead , it signa ls a lame ntable lapse in laws to occupational li censing laws- empowclment. Thc cxisting array of articu la tin g a na ti onal dvil rights serve morc to limit competition than fedcm l progmms doesn' t empowcr Slrdb'Cdy. T<Xl many 01" the difficulities to promote public health and safley. the poo r; it empowers bureaucrats -Introduce parental c ho ice in edu- and social service ''providers'' who faci ng women and mi nonics in the The usual victi ms of prosper by managing the lives of workforce are still being secn o nly cation. through the narrow lensc of di scrim i- America's substandard schools are others.

Our idea of empowerment , by na ti on. T he empha" is remains o n inner-city children -typically from vic timi zation, instead of new ways 10 families who cannot afford to buy co ntast, is dcri ved from the market their way into better schools. The economics ilnd cia'isical li ocmlism. expand opportuniti es.

W hat is respo nsible for the solution is to empower these families That means helping all Americans by cX lmord inarl y high r.J.tes unem- as consumers. By giv in g parents lax expa nd i ng oppo rtunities, no t ploymen t in our i nner cities'! Why Creuil"i or vouc hers, lhey cl)Uld ilfforu rcd is tributing them . It is power, no t arc th ere morc black men in prision to se nd th eir ki ds to schools of their as contro l ove r others, but as the thun in college? Despite the claims choice -even to pn\'iatc sch(x)ls - and freedom to control o ne's own alTair01" th e c i v il r ig ht s lo bby, the poor-quaJit}' public schools would one of the essential ing redients of ins tuti ona lizcd raci sm is a mere be compelled to dean up their ac t. li berty.

-Make welfare a ladder, not a w hisper in a acaophony o f econom ic and social ills. permanent crutch. The rederal We need a new vision of civil rights, gove rnment must reduce we lfare one based on e mpowerment - o ne dependency and reward those who Edwin Fe ulner is president of The that gives indi viduals the ability to work. Amoung the key reforms: Heritage Fou ndati on, a Washingtonchoose the conditions und er w hi c h Expand the earned income tax credit, based public policy research InstlLute. the y work a nd li ve. Suc h a vis ion whidl suppleme nts the earnings if

T

he big winners from the latest c ivil rights package wi ll

or

I

" age IX

Bingham ton Ueview

ast week we took the opportunity to attend the seminar promoting the Yusuf Hawkins movement that was sponsored by the Black Student Union.

The idea behind the seminar was to make students aware of racism and the need to eliminate it. Few would disagree wi th that goal but the proponents of the BSU have suggested a means to it that is hypocritical in its design.

The primary drive of the film and the speech given by Moses Stewart, father of Yusuf Hawkins, was the death of Yusuf in 1989. Many of the things Mr. Stewart said were true; there were racial motives behind the death of Yusuf Hawkins and those motives exist in the minds of others as well as th~ accused of his munler.

However, in order to be fair and avoid being one-sided in talking about racial issues, you must include both sides of the story. Mr. Stewart told a tale that only gave half of the facts. During his entire hour long discourse, not one reference to the woman who was brutally raped and beaten in Central Park last year. The fact that her attack

L

was ba~ed solely on her being white seems to have escaped Mr. Stewart's attention.

Why is it that in this nation (especially here at SUNY -B) racism is only called as mush and made into an issue when it is directed toward blacks? Why wasn't there a march through Central Park in protest of the racially motivated attack committed there? Why weren't such noteworthy men like AI Sharpton. Moses Stewart, and Louis Farrakhan out there in Central Park defending what they would have you believe are the ideals of racial equality? The reason is that they don't consider what happened to that woman to be an act of racism worthy of their attention as the champions of racial justice. Whereas the hoax of Tawana Brawley procured

by Sharpton and his entourage to attract attention was definitely a more noble cause. Their purpose, acconling to themselves. is to promote racial equality. If that is true. why was Moses Stewart saying things like, "I was glad to see that there are some of the white people out there supporting us .. J was disappointed to see that more bothers and sisters didn't show

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up." Mr. Stewart. in the hope of promoting a balanced society as he proclaims, should have been more than happy to have support from anyone. If he were Alex to be pursuant with his own ideals, he Consilvio should have desired an equal number Jeff of all races.

Rubinoff The BSU and its supporters would have you believe many aspects of this University are inherently racist.

Would you be surprised if AI Sharpton or Moses Stewart agreed that Marvin the Martian is a racist? Probably not.

Do you think if Marvin had a white face there would be many protesters?

It is important for all students to ask themselves why it is that perceived racism against blacks always takes precedence against all other forms of racism. Most of you may remember that when the Nintendo promotional fair was here, there were no complaints from the Italian community at the figure of Mario. As an Italian student, [ find nothing offensive about Mario or what he represents. If things like video games and cartoons characters are racist. perhaps it is time we redefine racism. [s it racist, for example to use the slogan, "Black is beautiful?" It's not and I don't think many of members of the white community would object to anyone saying it. Would it then be equall y acceptable to go around saying, "White is beautiful?"

Although no one would have any legal recourse, it would undoubtedly draw unfavorable looks from the school's black students. I think it's time we eliminated this double standard and stopped branding people as rclCists for saying what amounts to the $ame thing.

Finally, the death of Yusuf Hawkins was a tragedy and there was no reason for it to have happened. However, his death shouldn't be used by hypocritical publicity hounds as a vehicle to draw media coverage and stir up racial tensions. Instead, we should learn to see all forms of racism, not just when it is against blacks, a~ a threat to coexistence and understanding.

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Governor Mario Cuomo offers you his words. Now consider his actions:路 Governor Cuomo claims that New York's deficit is the result of a miserly federal government. His own budget office, however, estimates that this year New York will receive 13 percent more in federal grants than it received last year. Since 1983,federal aid to New York has increased by 111 percent.

Governor Cuomo and the state legislature approved over $1 biUion in tax and fee increases in each of the past three years,including $500 million in personal income tax increases this year.

Governor Cuomo just approved a 7.1 percent increase inspending, despite the state's $6 billion dollar deficit.

Governor Cuomo item vetoed almost $1 billion in spending earlier this year but then agreed to restore spending for porkbarrel and other itemsthat brought the total increase in spending to $3.5 billion.

Governor Cuomo approved spending increases of 103 percent since he took office in 1983, almost three times the rate of inflation over this period.

Governor Cuomo's budget office admitted - less than a month after the state budget was adopted - that New York already faces a $1.8 billion deficit next year.

Governor Cuomo and the state legislature approved one-shot fiscal gimmicks that prompted the state comptroller to file a lawsuit and contributed to a drop last year in New York's credit rating, now the third lowest in the nation.

Governor Cuomo and the state legislature have run New York's economy into the ground. Since 1983, over 280,000 people have fled New York on a net basis.

Governor Cuomo: It's time to stop talking.

There's work to be done - and undone.

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I The Gender Gap-continued from page 6 mother? In response, I really must point to two experiments in communal I motherhood. First there is the Soviet example. In the early years of the Bolshevik power, there were concerted efforts to eliminate the family. The ultimate result was a society in which patrian;hy is far more powerfully entrenched than it is in the West. Men have the ascendancy in all fields of endeavor in the USSR and it has been so from the very beginning of the experiment. A I second, more telling, example is to be found on the Israeli kibbutz. Here again, the ideal set out by the system's founders was the elimination of sex roles. And within thirty years of the founding of the kibbutz system, traditional sex roles had reasserted themselves. Today, work on the kibbutz is divided into sexual spheres, with women preparing food and nurturing children, and men laboring in the fields and working with heavy machinery.

Is it possible then, looking at the examples of other feminist experiments and at catastrophe in urban America, that we are headed on the wrong track? I really believe that we are. At the tum of the century George Simmel asked: "What great difference would it make if numbers of women had increased access to education and professional careers?"

These were, Simmel believed, male concerns. To enter into them did make women free. It merely made them into inferior, artificial men. The greatest gift a society could give itself would be to use its technology to best exploit the innate differences between women and men. This is precisely what has happened on the Israeli kibbutz. And it is the very antithesis of what is happening in America today. The restraining, enlightening influence of motherhood is being rendered obsolete, but nothing is being put in its place. The reason for this is not the inadequacy of the welfare state. It is the fact that there is no substitute for motherhood, and a society which seeks to abolish it does so at its own peril.

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Multiculturalism--continued from page 4 truly intend to help students prepare for productive lives or is that no longer the objective of our colleges and universities?

Perhaps the most damaging effect of multiculturalism is the fragmenting effect it is having on the student community. Worst of all is that our University administration is actually encoumging this stratification. The idea of a search for universal truths based on our common humanity is quicldy disappearing. At one time it was路the common tie of learning that bound the student body together.

Today it is being replaced by factionalism that divides us on the basis of race, religion and sex. What once held us together is now tearing us apart. Studenl4i are beginning to sec themsclves as members of distinct

cultural cliques battling with the rest of the campus community for recognition. Worse still, they are encouraging others to view them solely as members of these respective groups.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with ethnic groups being proud of their heritage or wanting to socialize with members of their own group.

When this stretches to the point of becoming exclusive of other groups problems begin to develop and deep divisions are cut in the student community. When multiculturcllism reaches this stage-and it is fast approaching-then it has gone full circle and begins to encourage ethnocentrism and to discourage the very diversity it claims to hold so dear.

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Utopia Revisited--continued from page 14 Republicans administrations have propped up Gorbachev' s regime with loads, direct aid, and other subsidies in the name of maintaining the current "refonnist" Soviet regime. It is ironic that the same individuals who called for the dissolution of the Soviet empire are unable or unwilling to acknowledge the ongoing economic crisis for which the centrally planned economy, especially the military buildup of the 1960s and 1970s, is responsible.

The Soviet system is crumbling from within as its leaders struggle to institute token retonns while retaining its bureaucratic infrastructure. Long before the current crisis, libertarians, unfettered by delusions of Soviet success, has pointed out not just the oppressive effects of socialism but its patent failure as an economic system as well. [n the marketplace of ideas, sodalism has proven to be the greatest hoax of the 20th century.

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.-- 'Femllilsni:-c~~tb;~~d f~;· ;;~-9'- -.-.. -···--~::e~:::::~~;~~~~mS;-· prenatal care to only 3.415 mothers.

In addition, this organization, the nation's largest single provider of abortions, provides prenatal care to just one-tenth of one pereent of all women having babies. 2 The pm-abortion movement, again. claiming to represent the interests of women, chooses to ignore the pain and the regret so many women experience after exercising their right to choose. Nancy Jo Mann decided to have an abortion after her husband deserted her. The psychological impact of the abortion so significantly affected her that she founded Women Exploited by Abortion (WEBA), a self-help group with over 13,000 members. Olivia Gans went alone to the abortion clinic where she had her suction -aspiration abortion at the startofherfouI1h month ofprcgnancy.

She regretted her decision and writes in "Olivia's Story,": "For myself there is a personal loss because I don't know my child. But the greater loss is that you don't know my child, or any of the children we've lost through abortion." Ms. Gans is the founder of American Victims of Abortion (A VA).) Women Exploited, a third group, was founded in 1975 by four women who suffered emotionally after having their abortions. They write: "We feel abortion is a denial of a woman's right to be supported through a difficult pregnancy, of her right to give birth to the baby within her, no matter what the circumstances may be. We have found one of the true tragedies to be that thewoman must bear all of the gUilt, suffering, depression and feeling of aloneness after an abortion. "4 It may be so that some women experience absolutely no feelings of regret after abortion; however, as evidenced by the existence of the above noted groups, many women suffer profoundly. Those feminists who who promote abortion rights do little, if anything, to represent the feelings and experiences of their "sisters" who suffer after abortion.

Clearly this article docs little to delBte the abortion issue on moral grounds.

However, what it does do is address Page 22

the manerof the feminist movement and its present promotion of abortion rights. The true question is, just who are these socalled women's groups representing? They do not represent women who possess a ProLife sentiment. They do not represent all of the women who have fell themselves to have been "exploited" by abortion.

They do not wholeheartedly support women living in poverty who need alternatives to abortion. They do not represent women who seek success and equality without rejecting their roles as mothers. And, they certainly do not represent the unborn women whom their political agendas allow to be destroyed.

What is needed is a true feminist movement which gives better representation to the female population. The energy presently being devoted to promoting abortion

denying a woman's unique ability to bear children. Such an ability does distinguish women from men, but this distinction should not be one which carries with it a handicap for women.

Rather, it should be recognized as the precious gift that it is. Just as other cultures point to their contributions to society with pride, women should be able to present their children as the most significant contributions of all. It is time for the true feminists to step forth, proclaiming a celebration of Woman, with all of her diverse talents and unique abilities, and to create the best environment possible for her to exhibit her womanhood.1 Ipolilica/ Woman. Summer 1986. p. 11.. r'Planned Parenhood Federation of America 1989 Services Report," PPFA. pp. 911.

3"Olivia's Story," United States Catholic Conference. Washington D.C.. 1986.

4by "Women Exploited." Sun Life, Thaxton.

VA.

Harassment--continued from page 7 rape, as such, is not honestly of Economics, draws his own addressed; f'clther, there fs an provocative conclusions; he has objectification of all males as rapists. recently written: Furthermore. it is proclaimed that It is along these lines that we discover an important but liulesexual violence pervades all noticed convergence between relationships between men and radical feminism and Islamic women, even the voluntary ones. This fundamentalism.

By campaigning is a thinly camouflaged resurrection against the thing called "date rape," of the extremist position declared the feminist creates immense hatred two decades ago by the lesbian and suspicion between men and "separatist" feminists, i.e., that the women. so that the feminist advice heterosexual union, and the sexual to any woman going out on a date is act thereof, is a direct analogy to to establish a virtual contract governing what will happen in the male oppression of women, and thus course of an evening. This is to to be avoided. destroy the free and easy relations Pcll"cldoxically, there is a strong ncobetween men and women which puritan tendency here which has have long characterized the Western unconsciously been incorpomted into world... It paraillels the the radical framework. Men want fundamentalist campaign to restore sex and women don't. This is an the old ways in the Islamic world. outmoded conception of sexualityThe disintegration of social indeed, it is positively Victorian. In traditions has left a vacuwn in modern a recent essay in The New York Western society. Radical ideologies, Times. one woman wrote "this so- spawned by Marxist doctrine, have called feminist movement peddles an failed to present an alternative to the I image of gender relations that denies fonns produced by millenia of human female desire and infantilizes civilization. As we enter the twentywomen." To progfFss is, in fact, to first century, men and women of : regress. reason and imagination shall have to Kenneth Minogue, professor of find a third way. political science at London School ,... -.. -----------'- - - - - - - . - - - - - -______.. _ .. _____ .... I

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ecent ly, w hil e reading a magazine I saw a reference to Robin Hood that repeated the age-old myth that he, Robin Hood, "ro bbed from the rieh and gave to the poor." It has often ti ckled me that this well-loved lale has been di storted

and misunderstood to such a point

that no one wou ld even think twice about thi s phrdSe. Fo r thi s is hardly an accurate depicti o n o f w hat the sto ry is about. Think about the story of Robin Hood rcal no t the

he retrieved money from an over taxing repressive government and returned it to the people who earned it new politi call y correct film with Kevin Costner) ; Robin Hood did no t "rob from the rich , and gLve to the poor", but rather he retrieved mo ney from an ove r-taxing repress ive government and returned it to the people who earned it.

Which, ironi cally, is a big part of what the Reagan revoluti o n of the SO's was all about. I say "ironicall y" because many of hi s detrac tors often referred to him as a reverse Robin Hood. They said he " took from the poor and gavc to the rich," but, alas, thi s is but mode m myth filled with many of the same types of di sto rtions and misunderstandings as the original Robin Hood myth, Ronald Reagan took money from nobody, He stopped the US Government from over-taxing

the workin g people o f thi s natio n; and after all it is the working people, the productive members of society, for whom thc govern ment sho uld be working, Nor the nooworking, blood

Binghamtoll Review

s uc kin g leec hes to who m a ll th e government handouts go. (Y cs, I even mean your fin anc iaJ aid.)

However, you need not g9 LO Washington to find a modem myth being spun. Right here o n this campus many myths have been created. For example, if you are to listen to what the school wo uld tell you about OFF!, o ne of the I.:o ll egc's many newspapers, you would hear the myth that it is to serve th e needs o r the many SUNY -B students who li ve off campus. Well, in fact U,e only purpose OFF! servcs is to put o ut propaganda o f the far Ic n . It is nothin g but a spring board for what Jim Tarlia and o thers o f hi s ilk thin k is politicall y co rrec t cnough to print. After a ll , how many SUNY -B stude nts (ofT campus or no t) arc Ko rcan Textile wo rkers? As I see it the only poli tically ho nest papers o n thi s campus a re 'I7,e Billg/WIllIOIl RevielV and Lookillg Left fo r both openl y admit that th ey havc a particular political predisposition and don't even try to say that they are neutral.

Another ca mpus myth is that we st uden ts li ve in a tin y intell cctual Utopia w here we arc free from crime.

In fact, many c rimes are committed on the SUNY campus each semester and many more occ ur in the areas off campus frequented by stude nts. But, the administratio n actively tries to portray the Uni ve rsity as a pristine environment fre e 01" s uc h earthl y worries. All you would havc to do is ask the Public Safety office and you can di scovc r tha t the cri me free U nivers ity is definitel y a myth (at least here at SUNY -B.) By the way, Public Safety is not, as the myth wo uld have it, just a security force or "rcnt-a-<:op." They arc trained as and wi th the New York State Troopers and must maintain the same level of commitmen t, eoumge, and dedicati o n as an y ot her law cnforcement organization. O ne could

casil y make the argument that thcy show mo re courage and commitment because they perfonn th e ir tirel ess duty witho ut the aid of a hand gun.

Am I saying that Public Safety should

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They are trained as and with the New York State Troopers and must maintain the same level of commitment, courage, and dedication as any other law enforcement organization be carryin g guns? No. I do n't have e noug h info rmati o n to make tha t decision and neither do mos t of the people on campus (not even bad caltooni sts at o ther student papers.)

The only o ne s who do have the know ledge to make that dec ision are the Public Safety officers themselves.

But, be certai n that the o nes to make th at dccision sho uld NOT be a n administration hell bent o n maintaining thi s myth of a crime-free Utopia.

Lastl y, thc most disturbing myth is practiced by stud ents, faculty and mem bers o f th e community here in the Binghamton area. I am of course speaking of people who Ulink it is OK to re main in th e o utside lane of thc Jo hn son City tmlTic circle even if they are goin g three qualters of the way around. Yes, I mean the people who block you from gett in g orr a t your turnoff because they think it is OK to make a fu ll revolution in the o utside lanc. The ones that think the inside lane is for people who never want to get orf the circlc, But, be fo rcwarned that the next person you block may be a n over- taxed ncwspaper writer who just stol e a gun fro m a rcn egade Publi c Safety offi cer.

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