1988_11 The Daily Collegian November 1988

              Page 2-       Tuesday. Novemberl. 1988
The Daily Collegian
The Duke who would be King
•Opinion
Editorial
When looking at the type of human being
that should carry out the responsibilities of the
presidency, competence, compassion and the
ability to make tough decisions are essential
qualifications in possessing the most powerful
.job in the world.
The candidate this year best qualified to ful¬
fill this awesome responsibility is Michael
Dukakis.
Dukakis has displayed quintessential com¬
petence as governor of Massachusetts. He has
balanced nine consecutive state budgets and
turned a state that was left in severe financial
straits by the previous governor into one of
the most economically sound and prosperous
states in the country. He has accomplished
this through ingenuity and fiscal prudence.
Among many commendable attributes Duka¬
kis possesses is his ability to work with com¬
munities to assist the disadvantaged and bring
about the opportunity for success for an over¬
whelming majority of the state's citizens
For example, Dukakis effectively brought
about significantly higher employment to his
state through collaborating with private in¬
dustry, universities and goverment agencies.
By working with these three instrumental par¬
ties he brought about job training programs,
thus freeing thousands off welfare and, most
important, the degradation of unemployment.
Furthermore, Dukakis has proven most suc¬
cessful in dealing effectively with crime.
Contrary to what Republican nominee
George Bush would have Americans believe,
Dukakis has cut crime drastically in Massachu¬
setts.
During the past five years, in fact, the crime
rate dropped more sharply in Massachusetts
than in any other industrial state.
While the third-term governor opposes the
death penalty, he nevertheless has been the
main force that has caused the state .homocide
rate to hold steady at three per 100,000 resi¬
dents^—less than half the national rate.
In a point of fact, Dukakis does not only
sympathize with crime victims but he also has
worked to ensure that their iighu> and misfor¬
tunes do not go unnoticed by the court system.
In this light, Dukakis was praised by the Na¬
tional Organization for Crime Victims in 1986
for his "victims' bill of rights."
Drugs are no doubt one of the most perni¬
cious problems plaguing this country, yet
Dukakis has displayed his ability to deal
with this problem by increasing the state's
police force and bolstering drug education. He
has also worked closely with various
communities in drug programs and rehabili¬
tation.
In fact, President Reagan has said that Du¬
kakis has the most effective drug program in
the country.
It is no wonder that in 1986 Dukakis was
evaluated by his fellow governors as the most
outstanding governor in the nation.
Moreover, Dukakis has shown fortitude to
deal with the difficult problems that have to be
confronted such as the federal deficit and the
drug problem.
Unlike Bush, Dukakis empathizes with the
disadvantaged, the crime victims and those
who are struggling to make it from paycheck
to paycheck and don't know where to turn.
Yes, Dukakis is in truth seeking a "kinder
and gentler nation" that blends competence
with compassion, national defense with nation¬
al economic assistance to those in dire need of
it
No, he is not flamboyant nor the most cha¬
rismatic candidate ever to run for the presi¬
dency. He has even been called boring.
However, he is <t cuiupciciu, pragmatic man
who earnestly believes America can do better
for its populace.
In an impressive fashion Dukakis has
shown, on the state level, that he is capable of
dealing with the pressing problems that are fac¬
ing all of us.
While doing this, he has displayed leadership
and guidance.
He is a Greek immigrant who knows-, first¬
hand, the Vast potential this country has for
dealing adequately with its citizens' needs and
desires.
Michael Dukakis is best qualified to bring a
promising future to those who haven't been
fortunate enough to experience President Rea¬
gan's trickle-down economics.
Michael Dukakis should be our 41st presi¬
dent.
 I	
Reader
"Response
i
to the Daily Collegian Is welcome. Please
send letters o( do more than 250 worda to:
The Daily Collegian, Keats Campus
Building. California State University.
Fresno. Fresno. CA. 93740-004 2. Letters
must be signed and have the author's
name, address and phone number.
Konze questioned
To the Editor,
In response to ihe article "Spikcrs
oul of excuses, running out of lime*
which appeared in the Oci 21 issue of
the Daily Collegian, I would like lo
say how disappoiniing it is to sec
such an unwarranted personal attack
made on the Bulldog volleyball pro¬
gram and on Coach Lcilani Ovcrstrcei.
It is obvious thai the so-called sports
reponer Jennifer Konzc's sole object is
to do harm to the Fresno Stale volley¬
ball program.
As a former Bulldog volleyball
player (1982-1985). Fresno State
graduate, and Graduate Assistant
Coach (1987 season). I feel very of¬
fended and extremely angry with such
cruel and underhanded reporting.
I have known Lcilani Ovcrstrcei for
six years. From the day she recruited
me, she has been and remains an
extremely fair individual. She treats
all her players with dignity and re¬
spect. Coach Overstreet cares about all
her players: as athletes, as students,
and most importantly, as individuals.
It is ludicrous that Ms. Konze could
step into the position of reporting on
il"-- 1988 volleyball team and reach uk
conclusion that the team's losses arc
due 10 lack of aggression. It is equally
ludicrous to blame Coach Ovcrstrcci's
soft-spoken, positive auiiudc approach
for this alleged lack of aggression.
It's really a pity that our own
school newspaper has 10 stir up
controversy wilhin the athletic
program by printing such piffle. The
only person needing an excuse for the
1988 season is Jennifer Konze who. I
feel, is the most uninformed "reporter"
10 ever.set fool on our campus.
Sincerely.
Kcllic C. Dyer
Boycott justified
To the Editor. _
I am writing this letter to discuss
what has been called lately "The .
Wrath of Grapes." Apparently ignor¬
ance has spoken again and clouded the
picture. I'm writing in hopes of restor¬
ing the clarity.
Byron, Jeremy and friends, do you
actually know what is put on your
food before you eat it? I'm sure that
you don't, because if you did you
wouldn't write with such conviction
for pesticides. So listen as I set the
record straight.
Captan, aJta. Merpan or Ortho, is
a fungicide that is the major chemical
sprayed on grapes and many other
fruits and vegetables. It has potential
hazards for cancer and mutagenicity.
Residues of Captan can be reduced by
washing, yet some still remain on
the surface of the fruit, in ihis case
grapes. Also, Metabolite, produced by
Captan, is carcenogcnic and system¬
atic. If is inside your grapes, thus
washing is of no help. There are other
hazardous chemicals used on grapes,
such as Dimeihoaic, Dicloran, Car-
baryl and Iprodionc which also make
liicir ways into the grape itself.
Let me go on: one third of all
grapes analyzed by ihe California
Department of Food and Agriculture
were found 10 contain one .or more
pesticides. Thirty different pesticides
were dciectecd in grapes. Tin. Z?.\ \.~
registered more than 80 different pest¬
icides for use on grapes, but the
C.D.F.A. and the FDA's routine lab¬
oratory methods can detect fewer than
60 percent of these chemicals. So.
what we have is a situation in which
pesticides are being used and just a bit
more than half can be detected, right?
Well, this gets even more complicated
when you realize that few. Jian 10
percent of our table grapes are even
tested.
You staled that other fruits have the
same chemicals sprayed on them and
no one says anything about it. Let's
look al your examples. Oranges and
Cauliflower are both protected by
thick sheaths of plant matter that ab¬
sorb the pesticides and keep die pro¬
duct practically free of residues, but let¬
tuce is very much like grapes and its
thin membrane-like surface just sucks
up the pesticides, but unlike grapes
Captan is not ihe major chemical,
mcvinphos is. bcucr known as Phos-
ilrin It isn't as dangerous as Captan
only with a potential cause for muta¬
genicity. I think I'm oul of space, but
I'll be back to set you boys on the
correct path.
Vail be good.
T.E. Houseman
Discrimination
To ihe Editor.
I'm writing in response to the
article entitled "Speaker calls for
minority rights" on Thursday, OcL
First I noticed ihai ihcre were no
Hispanics on ihe Board of Regents,
none in top administrative positions
and only a faculty of 23 percent
Hispanics. So my question is. how
many Hispanics applied for these pos¬
itions? From ihe article, all I per¬
ceived was pan of the story. John
Gamboa didn't state how many His¬
panics applied for the positons.
Gamboa also stated the "we are at
ihe end of our rope" and "whatever it
lakes 10 get their attention, then we
arc going to do it." Gamboa is seek¬
ing to have federal money cut off
Please see LETTERS, page 4
the Daily Collegian
Tha Endy OsaaMf to pubJsshed by ihs i»<aoaatad Studanla. kmcpsnsBti of Cahsxma Wala UntoRaUjr.
fnssno snd Ihe ■■■■> staiT dally rurpl Satunlaya. Sundays. —ajaja—I weak, and uramralty holidays.
Tba ajMSM aOoai la kstsalad in (ha Kcala Campua Buildtnf rraana. Calttomia 037*0. Ncws/ediiona]
BLOOM COUNTY
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by Brfcc Breathed