1970_12 The Daily Collegian December 1970

              6    THE DAILY COLLEGIAN   Tueaday. December IS. 1970
PASSING THOUGHTS - Two Essays
By O. Avardly
MY LAI AND VIETNAM
. Some Ume ago a book was published entitled 'My Lal-4", in
which the evenU that occurred In
a Vietnamese hamlet are meticulously presented. At first the
of military action In Vietnam,
But as one goes on reading IU
dense pages of facts and testtmo-
nles given by some of the men
Involved, the responsibility for
the murders falls on a series of
Individuals carefully presented
as pathologically sick men and
whose study must be considered
•clinical
of  ti
displaced from the general to the
particular. Now we are not confronted with the Vietnam war,
but with the action of some Individuals whom we can condemn,
without   necessarily  having to
Then the "Parade" section of
the Fresno Bee recently announced the sale of a report —
brought out by a croup of Stanford
University biologists - which,
according to the article, "reveals that while the VS Is saving  tha South.Vietnamese from
the horrors of communism, the
military Is transforming a basically rural agrarian society into
an urban nightmare which Is
economically dependent on the
continued presence of the United
SUtes.* (The report Itself discloses even more nightmares.)
Unless It Is said with Irony,
this Is a paradox related to the
first case which shows a de-
cepUve logic - because lt doesn't
seem probably that the writer of
the article is saying that the Army
is a State within a State. Thus,
the contradiction is seen by the
fact that It Isn't possible to separate the determination of saving
Vietnam   from   the   horrors of
done then is to shift thc
slhility and the object ol
Not long ago at a party, a possible topic for an article In this
paper was suggested to me: the
Influence that the foreign student
exerts on his American counterpart or - In a broader context -
on the American society as  a
person who made this suggestion
was himself a foreign student and
that Just as his face was covered
with a grotesque maskofadrunk,
so were his words covered with
a cultural IntenUon that he was
far from possessing. What was In
him was a childish boasting, a
ridiculous *trlumphallsm," a
temporary antl-Amerlcanlsm, a
mean and false patriotism that I
detest. What was Inhlm that night
was an Imposture, an Incongruity
between his dally behavior and his
words incited by alcohol. Let us
inant. If In the 18th century
French was spoken In the salons
of the merchanUlest bourgeoisie
today EngUsh is spoken In the
flashy boutiques of the Champs
Elysee. And if, as Alain says,
the prerogative of the rich consists In that, by the possession
of certain symbols, they have the
power to transform their fellow
men Into slaves, they then find lt
necessary to 'show* these symbols as :
1  this.  J
e destltut
t  the s
ehrlety dl
t> Of wea
:e of In-
defended, the process dis-
ts fallacy. When there
legltlr
dream nostalgically of a ho
land. Perhaps I did wrong In tu
Ing my back on him In that h
which the apostles use to th
advantage for proselytlsm, b
iervant. It Is
not enough to have the egg (without worrying about how they got
it), they must also crow about It.
And a language or even a brand
of cigarettes can serve this pur-
A Certainty
At times the feeling of surprise
that some of these young foreigners experience In the face of thc
id final defense oflt,
Involuntarily remind me of that
Barbarian which Jorge Luis Bor-
gcs describes who, dazzled by
the beauty of Ravenna, goes over
In which Ught magically comes
from Orient and -Occident at the
same Ume - I said good-bye to
a companero who returned to his
country after four years of
studies In American universities. The long hair that covered
his shoulders, the thick BlbUcal
beard, the shining eyes of the
visionary, the attitude that de-.
fled the hypocritical and the superficial, the simplicity and the
almost poverty of his clothes.
t with tl
id antiseptic
fending   the  c
.   But  I realize
Jt borders is
My h
Justice. And lt is
lucidity - the hangover
■ - that I show him my
he matter reversing his
ugKCStlon: what is more evident
Ivillzalion exerts on the foreign
ides
listen
r foreign students
that are deaf to the Imploring
cries of the world will also he
deaf to one Isolated voice. As a
these students are of bourgeoise
origin, that they belong to the
dominant oligarchies which have
come to an understanding with
"American business* and that
upon returning home to their private circles and enclosing themselves in their castes, theyglory
In the language and customs that
show off this Influence which at
times here some of them have
tried to hide. Consequently, beyond thchigh-soundingwordslhat
might ask for a lukewarm Justice,
beyond anti- American criticisms
formulated In the comfort of each
vernacular language, there exists
this social reality to which the
conduct of many ol the foreign
students adjusts itself sooner or
But none of this Is new. The
privileged classes have always
Imitated   the   society   that   best
The foreign student Is not really
related to the Barbarian: the
world which opens before him
Isn't completely unknown to him
and he doesn't come to destroy
It. On the other hand, the city
of Los Angeles, for example, cannot be like Ravenna. This gray,
inhuman nightmare cannot be the
City; yet on affirming this I don't
13th century who. unable to adapt
themselves to the Industrial civilization, tried in vain to destroy
it. Instead. I believe that what
appears to be true civilization
is only a reflection of I
aspect of the airport ax
more Important — In some way
they negated and Ignored it. He
turned his back on that reality
around him because he went away
in love with the new ideas and
with the new Images which his
fine sensibility had grasped. The
Ideas that were being structured
rationally further Inside of him
vocative and puerile rebellion.
They were Ideas In which all was
clear because all was extreme,
Ideas that proposed a change In
the *uses," the original structures, not just In the abuses, according to Orgega y Casset. He
wanted a new world. These Ideas
nheca
and they also belong tc
rles, begins to be fertilized. It
is here, then, that lt must be
picked up and transplanted. And
it has to be done now, before
the witches come to make the apple trees, bear prickly pears.
Sincerely, I don't know what this
legacy there In his country, but
easy to forget.
n  the v.
ofall
Uhandl, "that which diminishes
human needs rather than increasing them*), a metallc reflection
which perhaps in time will be
converted Into a heap of scrap
iron unless this so-called civilization employs in a more rational
possibilities ol its principle
characteristic: technology. Likewise, the Impersonal and bewildered man who wanders through
the city as if through an absurd,
incomprehensible dream, who is
only an Insignificant piece of a
Machine that needs - like the
Aztec gods needed human blood-
to do our man's ontologlcal condition to survive, this cannot be
the Man that we all await. A
qualitative change in man himself
and therefore In the relationship
of production-man becomes necessary. And this certainty that
begins   to grow in the minds of
e foreign
of friendship the other foreign
students that I know as if they
were white sheep. Then suddenly this 'companero" appears
like a black sheep to keep me
awake. Good. After all, In this
world In which everything works
to put us to sleep, we are thankful that someone keeps us alert.
Theme for
concerned students
He   who  knows   nothing.
do nothing understands
nothing. He who understands nothing Is worthless.
But   he   who   understands
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The Editor
Campus footnotes
Zumwalt on TV
Dr. Eugene Zumwalt, recently
deposed head of the FSC EngUsh
Department, will be Interviewed
tonight at 10 p.m. onKFRE-TV's
•Generation* program.
Zumwalt will be interviewed
by FSC student Richard Opper.
The show is structured as a
"youth speak-out* forum, and the
Zumwalt portion will be an open
discussion.
Also on the program will be a
feature on the Draft Information
Center, located across from FSC
Art show
A Blank Canvas Show, an exhibition of 22 white paintings, will
be presented In the Library Art
Gallery through Jan. 14. The
show Is the work of Assistant
Professor of Art CharlesGalnes'
Coalition speaker
Robin David, representative of
5   Young   Socialists   Alliance.
Trustees
(Continued from Page 1"
will speak at 4 p.m. tomorrow In
the    Cafeteria's   International
The meeting, sponsored by the
Student CoaUtlon, Is designed to
organize a Young SoclaUsts Alliance chapter at FSC. All Interested students are asked to attend.
Dance program
•Works In Progress" will tx
presented from 7 p.m. to 8:3(
p.m. today and tomorrow In thr.
Arena Theater. Sponsored by th(
FSC Modern Dance Department
the program Is designed to "further discussion and criticism o
evolving modern dance presenta.
final decision on the proposals
and has Invited the groups to
appear at the meeting.
Invited to speak on the Issue
are: the Statewide Academic Senate, the American Association of
University Professors, the California Colleges and University
Faculty Associations, the California State Employees Associations, and Ihe United Professors of California.
The State Ad Hoc Committee
on Procurement and Retention of
a Quality Faculty has endorsed
the proposal that only tenured
faculty members within a department should vote on granting
tenure to other members In the
department. It also holds that
assistant professors, some of
whom are now granted tenure,
should not be considered.
However, the committee said
that It sees two problems related
to tenure. One Is associated with
the "difficulty of dismissing, demoting or suspending" tenured
faculty members who after receiving tenure, 'become Incom-
ty members who engage in "conduct that is unprofessional.*
"We do not feel that these
problems can be dealt with adequately by extending the probationary period," the committee's  statement  says. «What is
specific statement of professional ethics and a formal system of
to Competence.*
The Council of State College
Presidents has endorsed aU three
of  the Chancellor's proposals.
The committee will also hear
from the faculty organizations on
new disciplinary and grievance
procedures   for  academic per-
The new procedures give Dumke authority to set up new machinery which substitutes a hearing officer for a panel of faculty
members. Final authority on a
grievance or dlsclpUnary action
is in the hands of Dumke, not the
faculty.
The new procedures have come
under attack by many faculty organizations because they claim
they are too restrictive and deny
faculty members their constitutional rights.
The committee Is scheduled to
take action on only o
proposals for salary 1
and administrative and support
staff which lag from one to 15 per
cent behind those paid for similar
positions In private Industry and
Other educational institutions.
Burtner
(ConUnued from Page 1)
on the absolute power of the administration. Freedom at Fresno
State is at the mercy of the personal prejudices of a small group
of administrators and faculty
cronies, many of whom have limited academic and administrative credentials.
■Internally, the college Is Incapable of correcting Itseif. I
have spent over 12 years of my
academic life In developing those
Further Information may b
obtained from Valerie Pinker
222-6100.
Fourth hour
A reading of *Romeo and Jull
et". the first In a series of facul
ty-student readings,
sented at 3 p.m. Wednesday
Industrial Arts 101.
The Fourth, Hourolferlnglsdi-
rected by Terry Miller, assistant
professor of speech arts.
pre-
Trumpeter Dennis  Mack  and
will present their senior recital
at 1 p.m. tomorrow in the Music
Building Recital Hall.
Accompanists for the program
will be pianist Ena Bronstelnand
the FSC String Orchestra.
Christmas Party
Children from the North Avenue and Fresno East Community
Centers will be the guests ofHo-
man Hall at Its annual Christmas
party  for  underprivileged chll-
i, games and a
by Santa Claus wl
highlight the event, scheduledfo
7:30-9 p.m. tomorrow at th
hall. Gifts for the childrenwer
financed through a "blood drive
which  netted  $300  earlier   thl
LETTERS
(Continued from Page 2)
students and discuss grievances,
related to their everyday Uves,
signed to correct those grievances. Bring them to the Con-
l Convention.     A stu-
responslble to, buy controlled
by, the students could have tremendous Impact, while a government of administration lackeys
and pollllcos can only do what
lt was designed to do - frustrate, pacify and control other
students. A student body united
under an independent Union of
Students could affect not only the
dull routine of everyday student
lefe, but even the purposes to
which the college Is put. A
strong and united sludent body
could even affect off-campus
problems. like stores that charge
exhorbltant prices, or apartments with exploitative rents or
menu of accountability and due
process have been denied to the
faculty by the Trustees under the
Influence of the governor and the
chancellor. Thus, the Internal
affairs at Fresno State College
have been left to the whim of
petty men who are encouraged
by their superiors but know no
check by their colleagues. A
college that was well on Its way
to becoming a university Is now
_ reduced to a service function for
the agribusiness community. The
faculty Is demoralized and the
students stand tn disbelief over
faculty Inaction.*
Burtner's resignation, which
was effective yesterday, signifies
a complete withdrawal of the
chemistry department from the
His resignation follows that of
Dr. Stephan A. Rodemeyer,
assistant professor of chemistry
and senator forthe Department of
Chemistry, and Dr. Heyward
Moore, Jr. associate professor
of PoUUcal science and senator-
at-large forthe Academic Senate.
Both Rodemeyer and Moore
I the Execu-
passlng a resolution stating FSC
President Dr. Norman A. Baxter
•acted with the best Interests ot
the college In mind* in domoUng
Engllsh Department Chairman
Dr. Eugene Zumwalt, as reasons
for their resignations. They also
cited increasing 'repression* on
Burtner told tha CoUegian yesterday his resignation will be
•welcomed by the conservative
faculty who seemingly do not prefer tbe Irritation of liberal
thought.*
Burtner also said his withdrawal from the Academic Senate
was made on the basis of the
Executive Committee's action In
■supporting the president without
investigation and on the basis
of personal conversations.*
tlve
last    I
Assembly
(Continued from Psge 1)
front the coUege.*
•This Is a faculty problem,
and lt is the Academic Senate's
responsibility to reopen all channels of communication and find
soluUons  for these problems.'
.  Think
it it.
.  Maloney
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