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October 26,1983 Insight Murder: a different deterrent needed Holzer picks the 13 scariest The best of the horror flicks October is the season of the fright film, but a look in today's newspaper shows that Hollywood isn't offering much in the horror or science fiction genre. The recent glut of "teenage slasher films" during the past few years seems to have subsided. Filmgoers are finally sick and tired of slasher films and are refusing to support them at the box office. I But just because the slasher films are disappearing doesn't mean filmgoers are becoming tired of being scared by a good movie. Filmgoers nave reason to resent filmmakers for throwing blood, guts and gore into a o make it scary. Those elements don't problems help bring intense viewing by an au- Leo N. Holzer B dience. When a viewer is involved with the characters, a director can throw a convincing curve into the plot and the surprise of the event can bring shock. A good scary film can be made without an excess of blood. I have seen many films in my life and have chosen the 13 movies which have best scared me. Hitchcock, one of my favorite directors, has two films which appear on my list of the top 13 scariest. The operative word here is scariest. The criterion for my list is simple: these are the 13 films which succeeded best at giving me the willies. They are ranked by release date. • "Nosferatu, the Vampire" — a 1922 German production, directed by F.W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck as the goose flesh vampire. Considering the limitations in silent filmmaking, "Nosferatu" is an unforgettable materpiece. •"The Phantom of the Opera" — the silent. 1925 version starring Lon Chancy as the phantom, Erik. This version, filmed in color, is the finest adaptation of the French story by Gaston LeRoux and has been remade five times. •"The Thing" — the original 1951 production is far better than last year's John Carpenter remake. Based on John W. Campbell's short story, "Who Goes There," the original has two things Carpenter's didn't: a young James Arness portraying the thing and the character of Nikki, a female member of the expedition played by Margaret Sheridan. •"War of the Worlds" — directed by Byron Haskin, this 1953 screen adaptation of HG. Well's novel of an extraterrestrial visit is frightfully realistic. The film stars Gene Garry as Dr. Clayton Forrester and Ann Robinson as his girlfriend Sylvia VanBuren. •"Psycho" — Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 classic about a troubled Norman Bates. Bates is plagued by his mother who will not allow him to pursue his interest of women. "Psycho," starring Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, Janet Leigh and Martin Balsam, is bloody, but its blood is filmed in black and white. During the famous shower sequence, audiences never see the knife entering the body. In the scene, the blood going down tbe drain is Hersbey's chocolate syrup. •"The Birds" - released in 1963, this Hitchcock film featured Tippi Hedren, Rod Taylor, and Suzanne Pleshette. Many people feel that the winged animals in Hitchcock's film are monsters; but, "The Birds" is more than a monster movie. Its premise is that the natural balance might be upset by the use of pesticides and that the friendly birds might begin attacking humans. •"Rosemary's Baby" — this 1968 film directed by Roman Polanski is a terrifying look at witchcraft and a group of satanic worshipers. It stars Mia Farrow as the pregnant Rosemary ' Woodhouse, and John Cassavettes as her husband, Guy. Ruth Gordon received an Academy Award nomination for her supporting role as the weird Minnie Castevet. •"The Night of the Living Dead" — A grainy black and white film directed by George A. Romero in a documentary TV news style. The 1968 film is a cult classic and deservedly so. The film's last 40 minutes—centering on a group of people trapped in a small farmhouse, surrounded by dead, flesh-eating zombies—is intense and unforgetable. •"Phase IV" - the 1974 film boasts no major stars, but features some excellent insect footage. "Phase IV" is another film warning man of the dangers of using pesticides. In it, ants begin to attgckjnan. It is my favorite insect infested film. •"Burnt Offerings" — an old house possesses actress Karen Black in this bone- chilling 1976 film. This fictional tale is better than the stories and films surrounding the house in Amityville, New York. It also features a fantastic cameo performance by Burgess Merideth, as the caretaker of the mansion. •"Jaws" — Stephen Spielberg's second motion picture and the box office champion of 1976. Based on the best-selling novel by Peter Ben- chley, "Jaws" is a modern-day monster movie with bite. It stars Robert Shaw, Roy Scheider and Richard Dreyfuss Who will forget the first time they heard the heavy bass tracking which accompanied "Bruce," the shark, on his carnage? No sequel will ever stir the public's reaction to the original. •"Halloween" — John Carpenter's classic 1978 thriller spurred the recent glut of slasher films. Upon careful reexamination, the original "Halloween" isn't very bloody. It is simply intense. It has thtfaudience reacting to anything and everything that moves. A run. but nerve- racking experience. *" •"Alien" — this 1979 feature is mislabeled as science fiction by some. It is gothic horror with the Nostromo spaceship replacing Frankenstein's castle. Solid performances by a large cast, which includes Sigourney Weaver. Tom Skerrit and John Hurt, are secondary to the performance of Carlo Rambaldi's horrifying creations of the face-hugger and the alien. Not only is the film disturbing—I had trouble keeping still in my seat—it also features some beautiful scenic and set designs. For those moviegoers who enjoy a good scare, these 13 films are worth seeing even if you have to catch them on late night TV or at an art cinema. In April of 1980 James David Autry stepped into a Port Arthur, Texas, liquor store to buy a six-pack of beer. Autry grabbed a pack, then walked up to the cash register. Shirley Drouet rang up the beer and told Autry, "That will be $2.70." "Here is your $2.70." Autry said, pulling a pistol. He then shot Shirley Drouet between the eyes. A jury, representing Texans who obey the law, sentenced Autry to death by lethal drug injection. Autry appealed in Texas and lost. He appealed in U.S. District court and lost. On Oct. 3 the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, thus allowing the state of Texas to schedule him to die at one minute after midnight Oct. 5. On the evening of Oct. 5, Autry was strapped to a death bed, an intravenous catheter was placed in his arm. Twenty-four minutes before Dave Wilcoxon the people of Texas would have put Autry to death. Supreme Court Justice Byron White called. "Nope," While said. ® It seems that Autry got mad at the lawyers who lost in the Supreme Court. So he hired new attorneys. The new guys were so good that Justice White, who was on the majority of a 5-4 decision that summarily rejected Autry's first appeal, stayed the execution. Justice White, who was an All-American halfback at the University of Coloradtjtothe 1940s, is probably one of those people""wrio believe capital punishment does not deter potential murderers. They are right. It doesn't. But it sure eliminates any possibility of recidivism. Justice White, who is in the College Football Hall of Fame, probably thinks the death penalty is "cruel and inhuman." Perhaps almost as inhuman as being tackled by 270 pound defensive linemen - which happened to White quite often as a member of the Detroit Lions. Byron "Whizzer" White, who's nickname either refers to his ability to make cuts or the sound between his ears caused by too many head blocks, is fearful that Autry's punishment may not be proportional to his crime. After all. $2.70 is an awful lot to pay for a six-pack, even in Texas. That means Shirley Douet's life was worth 45 cents a can. Besides, Autry may have been upset by the fact that Whizzer White is in the Hall of Fame and he isn't - giving Autry all the legal grounds for an insanity defense sometime in the future. The problem of proportionality will always be up for debate when it comes to the sentences given to criminals in noncapital crimes. How it can be an issue in murder trials is beyond me. though. It seems quite simple: A person who murders another person should be removed from the human race. Permanently! The argument over deterrence will go on. Sure, there's no way of knowing if the electric chair, firing squad, hangman's noose, or even lethal drugs prevents criminals from killing liquor store clerks over the high price of a six- pack. As a matter of fact, I seriously doubt that the quick and humane forms of punishment listed above will deter other possible killers. If you want a deterrence factor, a death penalty that really makes people think twice about killing their victims, we'll need a more severe and brutal way to execute murderers. I favor burning at the stake or the slow emersion of killers into boiling water. Now, that would be a deterrent. We could even charge HBO and Show Time for the rights to telecast executions. Think of it. On Saturday we have the baseball game of the week. Sunday and Monday are devoted to football. Thursday is boxing night. But on Tuesday we could all sit back and enjoy the "burning or boiling" of the week! A few months of such programing should reduce the number ,of^Jnurders in America significantly. X/ As for those of you whothlnk it might be difficult to find someone willing to light fires under animals like James David Autry, I say this: Anybody got a match? A bit of good news for a change Who* would've thought that an electrician working at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk, Poland would win the 1983 Nobel Peace Prize? Not even Solidarity leader Lech Walesa, the recepient of the award, could quite believe the news himself. But then again, who can honestly say that anyone other than Walesa is more deserving of the award? The Nobel Peace Prize Committee in Norway, which awarded the $194,000 prize money to Walesa on Oct. 5, put himin a class with Martin Luther King, Jr as""""far as social accomplishments are concerned. Walesa's attempt to find a peaceful solution to his country's problems will contribute to a relaxation of international tension, the committee stated. Like King, Walesa too has a dream. Walesa accomplished in the past few years for the Polish working class what the country's pro- Soviet government intentionally disregarded as menial sacrifices in the name of the state: a gain in the human rights struggle. More specifically, the freedom of personal choice — to strike or not to strike against an established set of working conditions. In the midst of constant government harassment and arrest?, Walesa founded in 1&80 the world-renowned "Solidarnosc" or Solidarity, a trade union independent from pro-Soviet rule. As Solidarity later grew in membership (about 10 million at present), confrontations with authorities became inevitable. Walesa was arrested by authorities in Dec. 1981 in an attempt to isolate Solidarity's leader from the movement, and since then he's been in and out of military custody. As a result, some of Solidarity's hard-earned social gains have been shattered. Now the well-loved Polish leader is in the spotlight again, this time in a more positive frame. After being notified that he received the award, he gave a short and humble speech. "I don't regard awards, and especially this one, as my own. I consider this (to be) for the people," he said. And in all due respect, he couldn't be more right. In times like these when our world leaders wholeheartedly immerse themselves in governmental dart-throwing and political chess games, it is refreshing to see that in Solidarity, the striving for freedom and peace is still alive in the human spirit. Unfortunately, we seem to hear about the insane accomplishments of global fighting all too often, while the efforts for true peace are rewarded not often enough. But not everyone was happy to hear the news of Walessa's award. The reaction by War saw officials upon hearing the news was as expected. Walesa was given the award on a "politically motivated" basis, officials announced. Yet Walesa's actions have proved otherwise. No doubt Lech Walesa and the Solidarity movement will continue to be further harassed by Warsaw*authorities, as has been the case in the past. Walesa has already expressed his hesitation to pick up the award money himself because he fears that authorities may not let him back into the country. Nevertheless, the award has given Solidarity a strong shot in the arm, so to speak, as well as a reason to keep on moving forward. Walesa said he plans to donate the prize money to Poland's Roman Catholic Church to help the flow of western world aid to private Polish farmers. Walesa also said he plans to reveal details of Solidarity's future plans some time in December. It is highly unlikely that authorities will compromise about any peace efforts that Walesa may hjing forth, but that shouldn't stop him from trying, and it probably Until then, all that the world can do is watch ... and wait. And hope that the efforts ef Solidarity, through Walesa, will be seen not just in the limelight of the 1963 Nobel Peace Prize, but in a light of its own: a small step for world peace; a giant step for human rights around the world. •" Letters to the editor Dear Editor: As a member of the Arts and Humanities Forum Committee, I had the opportunity to work with Peg Brokenshire fairly often. I found her friendly, helpful, conscientious, open and intelligent. But the procedure which issued in her departure would have been just as arbitrary, inhumane and unjust if she had been a cretinous and incompetent paranoid. It and its administration by Noble. Whitfield and Bassett are excellent illustrations of the abuses which have led increasing numbers of public employees to unionize in self-defense. They are also excellent reasons for the students to insist on changes that protect their interests against the sort of arrogant whimsy exemplified in this case. Not so long ago, academic administrators could release (they never fired anyone) a probationary faculty member with an airy reference to "the good of the college." Things are not perfect, but they have certainly improved for faculty. The requirements of timely notice and written reasons can make even the most highhanded supervisor more responsible. As for the egregious Mr. Noble: If there is no unionization and no change in procedure, I predict a bright future for him. Twelve years ago, he might have become a Dean. Now, his talent and appetite for flatulent moralizing and slimy evasion should enable him to slither up to College Union Director. Hisight Insight is published on Wednesdays during the academic year by the Department of Journalism, California State University, Fresno. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Editorial Board. All other columns, letters and artwork on this page represent the opinions of their respective authors and not necessarily that of Insight's. Letters to the editor will be accepted providing they meet present public standards. Editor-in chief Steve D.Smith Managing Editor Cyndl Guerra Photo Editor Tom Spitz Ad Managers Copy Editor Sport Editor Sheni Solgat Elaine Gil David Wilcoxon Helen Marie Janousek Dan Mooney Reporters: Sere Beste, Nellie Bonllla, Trudy Brown. Maureen Cabral. Shirley Cavella, Renee Christian. Heidi Clinton. Brian Covert. Christy Dennis. Kathy Fraley. Todd Hansen. Rhonda Harrington. Jody Head, Leo Holzer, James Kenney, Cecelia Korn, Anthony Lacava, Victor Leone. George Loewen, Dave Marsh. Dan Mooney, Judy Paredes, Carey Robinson. Rhonda Sjostrom, Kurt Stephan, Debra Vance, Klmberly Washington. John White. Ed WUey III
Object Description
Title | 1983_10 Insight October 1983 |
Alternative Title | Insight (California State University, Fresno) |
Publisher | Dept. of Journalism, California State University, Fresno. |
Publication Date | 1983 |
Description | Weekly during the school year. Vol. 1, no. 1 (Oct. 8, 1969)-v. 29, no. 23 (May 13, 1998). Ceased with May 13, 1998, issue. Title from masthead. Merged with Daily collegian. |
Subject | California State University, Fresno Periodicals |
Contributors | California State University, Fresno Dept. of Journalism |
Coverage | October 8, 1969 – May 13, 1998 |
Format | Microfilm reels, 35mm |
Technical Information | Scanned at 600 dpi; TIFF; Microfilm ScanPro 2000 “E-image data” |
Language | eng |
Description
Title | Insight Oct 26 1983 p 2 |
Alternative Title | Insight (California State University, Fresno) |
Publication Date | 1983 |
Full-Text-Search | October 26,1983 Insight Murder: a different deterrent needed Holzer picks the 13 scariest The best of the horror flicks October is the season of the fright film, but a look in today's newspaper shows that Hollywood isn't offering much in the horror or science fiction genre. The recent glut of "teenage slasher films" during the past few years seems to have subsided. Filmgoers are finally sick and tired of slasher films and are refusing to support them at the box office. I But just because the slasher films are disappearing doesn't mean filmgoers are becoming tired of being scared by a good movie. Filmgoers nave reason to resent filmmakers for throwing blood, guts and gore into a o make it scary. Those elements don't problems help bring intense viewing by an au- Leo N. Holzer B dience. When a viewer is involved with the characters, a director can throw a convincing curve into the plot and the surprise of the event can bring shock. A good scary film can be made without an excess of blood. I have seen many films in my life and have chosen the 13 movies which have best scared me. Hitchcock, one of my favorite directors, has two films which appear on my list of the top 13 scariest. The operative word here is scariest. The criterion for my list is simple: these are the 13 films which succeeded best at giving me the willies. They are ranked by release date. • "Nosferatu, the Vampire" — a 1922 German production, directed by F.W. Murnau and starring Max Schreck as the goose flesh vampire. Considering the limitations in silent filmmaking, "Nosferatu" is an unforgettable materpiece. •"The Phantom of the Opera" — the silent. 1925 version starring Lon Chancy as the phantom, Erik. This version, filmed in color, is the finest adaptation of the French story by Gaston LeRoux and has been remade five times. •"The Thing" — the original 1951 production is far better than last year's John Carpenter remake. Based on John W. Campbell's short story, "Who Goes There," the original has two things Carpenter's didn't: a young James Arness portraying the thing and the character of Nikki, a female member of the expedition played by Margaret Sheridan. •"War of the Worlds" — directed by Byron Haskin, this 1953 screen adaptation of HG. Well's novel of an extraterrestrial visit is frightfully realistic. The film stars Gene Garry as Dr. Clayton Forrester and Ann Robinson as his girlfriend Sylvia VanBuren. •"Psycho" — Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 classic about a troubled Norman Bates. Bates is plagued by his mother who will not allow him to pursue his interest of women. "Psycho," starring Anthony Perkins, Vera Miles, Janet Leigh and Martin Balsam, is bloody, but its blood is filmed in black and white. During the famous shower sequence, audiences never see the knife entering the body. In the scene, the blood going down tbe drain is Hersbey's chocolate syrup. •"The Birds" - released in 1963, this Hitchcock film featured Tippi Hedren, Rod Taylor, and Suzanne Pleshette. Many people feel that the winged animals in Hitchcock's film are monsters; but, "The Birds" is more than a monster movie. Its premise is that the natural balance might be upset by the use of pesticides and that the friendly birds might begin attacking humans. •"Rosemary's Baby" — this 1968 film directed by Roman Polanski is a terrifying look at witchcraft and a group of satanic worshipers. It stars Mia Farrow as the pregnant Rosemary ' Woodhouse, and John Cassavettes as her husband, Guy. Ruth Gordon received an Academy Award nomination for her supporting role as the weird Minnie Castevet. •"The Night of the Living Dead" — A grainy black and white film directed by George A. Romero in a documentary TV news style. The 1968 film is a cult classic and deservedly so. The film's last 40 minutes—centering on a group of people trapped in a small farmhouse, surrounded by dead, flesh-eating zombies—is intense and unforgetable. •"Phase IV" - the 1974 film boasts no major stars, but features some excellent insect footage. "Phase IV" is another film warning man of the dangers of using pesticides. In it, ants begin to attgckjnan. It is my favorite insect infested film. •"Burnt Offerings" — an old house possesses actress Karen Black in this bone- chilling 1976 film. This fictional tale is better than the stories and films surrounding the house in Amityville, New York. It also features a fantastic cameo performance by Burgess Merideth, as the caretaker of the mansion. •"Jaws" — Stephen Spielberg's second motion picture and the box office champion of 1976. Based on the best-selling novel by Peter Ben- chley, "Jaws" is a modern-day monster movie with bite. It stars Robert Shaw, Roy Scheider and Richard Dreyfuss Who will forget the first time they heard the heavy bass tracking which accompanied "Bruce," the shark, on his carnage? No sequel will ever stir the public's reaction to the original. •"Halloween" — John Carpenter's classic 1978 thriller spurred the recent glut of slasher films. Upon careful reexamination, the original "Halloween" isn't very bloody. It is simply intense. It has thtfaudience reacting to anything and everything that moves. A run. but nerve- racking experience. *" •"Alien" — this 1979 feature is mislabeled as science fiction by some. It is gothic horror with the Nostromo spaceship replacing Frankenstein's castle. Solid performances by a large cast, which includes Sigourney Weaver. Tom Skerrit and John Hurt, are secondary to the performance of Carlo Rambaldi's horrifying creations of the face-hugger and the alien. Not only is the film disturbing—I had trouble keeping still in my seat—it also features some beautiful scenic and set designs. For those moviegoers who enjoy a good scare, these 13 films are worth seeing even if you have to catch them on late night TV or at an art cinema. In April of 1980 James David Autry stepped into a Port Arthur, Texas, liquor store to buy a six-pack of beer. Autry grabbed a pack, then walked up to the cash register. Shirley Drouet rang up the beer and told Autry, "That will be $2.70." "Here is your $2.70." Autry said, pulling a pistol. He then shot Shirley Drouet between the eyes. A jury, representing Texans who obey the law, sentenced Autry to death by lethal drug injection. Autry appealed in Texas and lost. He appealed in U.S. District court and lost. On Oct. 3 the Supreme Court rejected his appeal, thus allowing the state of Texas to schedule him to die at one minute after midnight Oct. 5. On the evening of Oct. 5, Autry was strapped to a death bed, an intravenous catheter was placed in his arm. Twenty-four minutes before Dave Wilcoxon the people of Texas would have put Autry to death. Supreme Court Justice Byron White called. "Nope," While said. ® It seems that Autry got mad at the lawyers who lost in the Supreme Court. So he hired new attorneys. The new guys were so good that Justice White, who was on the majority of a 5-4 decision that summarily rejected Autry's first appeal, stayed the execution. Justice White, who was an All-American halfback at the University of Coloradtjtothe 1940s, is probably one of those people""wrio believe capital punishment does not deter potential murderers. They are right. It doesn't. But it sure eliminates any possibility of recidivism. Justice White, who is in the College Football Hall of Fame, probably thinks the death penalty is "cruel and inhuman." Perhaps almost as inhuman as being tackled by 270 pound defensive linemen - which happened to White quite often as a member of the Detroit Lions. Byron "Whizzer" White, who's nickname either refers to his ability to make cuts or the sound between his ears caused by too many head blocks, is fearful that Autry's punishment may not be proportional to his crime. After all. $2.70 is an awful lot to pay for a six-pack, even in Texas. That means Shirley Douet's life was worth 45 cents a can. Besides, Autry may have been upset by the fact that Whizzer White is in the Hall of Fame and he isn't - giving Autry all the legal grounds for an insanity defense sometime in the future. The problem of proportionality will always be up for debate when it comes to the sentences given to criminals in noncapital crimes. How it can be an issue in murder trials is beyond me. though. It seems quite simple: A person who murders another person should be removed from the human race. Permanently! The argument over deterrence will go on. Sure, there's no way of knowing if the electric chair, firing squad, hangman's noose, or even lethal drugs prevents criminals from killing liquor store clerks over the high price of a six- pack. As a matter of fact, I seriously doubt that the quick and humane forms of punishment listed above will deter other possible killers. If you want a deterrence factor, a death penalty that really makes people think twice about killing their victims, we'll need a more severe and brutal way to execute murderers. I favor burning at the stake or the slow emersion of killers into boiling water. Now, that would be a deterrent. We could even charge HBO and Show Time for the rights to telecast executions. Think of it. On Saturday we have the baseball game of the week. Sunday and Monday are devoted to football. Thursday is boxing night. But on Tuesday we could all sit back and enjoy the "burning or boiling" of the week! A few months of such programing should reduce the number ,of^Jnurders in America significantly. X/ As for those of you whothlnk it might be difficult to find someone willing to light fires under animals like James David Autry, I say this: Anybody got a match? A bit of good news for a change Who* would've thought that an electrician working at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk, Poland would win the 1983 Nobel Peace Prize? Not even Solidarity leader Lech Walesa, the recepient of the award, could quite believe the news himself. But then again, who can honestly say that anyone other than Walesa is more deserving of the award? The Nobel Peace Prize Committee in Norway, which awarded the $194,000 prize money to Walesa on Oct. 5, put himin a class with Martin Luther King, Jr as""""far as social accomplishments are concerned. Walesa's attempt to find a peaceful solution to his country's problems will contribute to a relaxation of international tension, the committee stated. Like King, Walesa too has a dream. Walesa accomplished in the past few years for the Polish working class what the country's pro- Soviet government intentionally disregarded as menial sacrifices in the name of the state: a gain in the human rights struggle. More specifically, the freedom of personal choice — to strike or not to strike against an established set of working conditions. In the midst of constant government harassment and arrest?, Walesa founded in 1&80 the world-renowned "Solidarnosc" or Solidarity, a trade union independent from pro-Soviet rule. As Solidarity later grew in membership (about 10 million at present), confrontations with authorities became inevitable. Walesa was arrested by authorities in Dec. 1981 in an attempt to isolate Solidarity's leader from the movement, and since then he's been in and out of military custody. As a result, some of Solidarity's hard-earned social gains have been shattered. Now the well-loved Polish leader is in the spotlight again, this time in a more positive frame. After being notified that he received the award, he gave a short and humble speech. "I don't regard awards, and especially this one, as my own. I consider this (to be) for the people," he said. And in all due respect, he couldn't be more right. In times like these when our world leaders wholeheartedly immerse themselves in governmental dart-throwing and political chess games, it is refreshing to see that in Solidarity, the striving for freedom and peace is still alive in the human spirit. Unfortunately, we seem to hear about the insane accomplishments of global fighting all too often, while the efforts for true peace are rewarded not often enough. But not everyone was happy to hear the news of Walessa's award. The reaction by War saw officials upon hearing the news was as expected. Walesa was given the award on a "politically motivated" basis, officials announced. Yet Walesa's actions have proved otherwise. No doubt Lech Walesa and the Solidarity movement will continue to be further harassed by Warsaw*authorities, as has been the case in the past. Walesa has already expressed his hesitation to pick up the award money himself because he fears that authorities may not let him back into the country. Nevertheless, the award has given Solidarity a strong shot in the arm, so to speak, as well as a reason to keep on moving forward. Walesa said he plans to donate the prize money to Poland's Roman Catholic Church to help the flow of western world aid to private Polish farmers. Walesa also said he plans to reveal details of Solidarity's future plans some time in December. It is highly unlikely that authorities will compromise about any peace efforts that Walesa may hjing forth, but that shouldn't stop him from trying, and it probably Until then, all that the world can do is watch ... and wait. And hope that the efforts ef Solidarity, through Walesa, will be seen not just in the limelight of the 1963 Nobel Peace Prize, but in a light of its own: a small step for world peace; a giant step for human rights around the world. •" Letters to the editor Dear Editor: As a member of the Arts and Humanities Forum Committee, I had the opportunity to work with Peg Brokenshire fairly often. I found her friendly, helpful, conscientious, open and intelligent. But the procedure which issued in her departure would have been just as arbitrary, inhumane and unjust if she had been a cretinous and incompetent paranoid. It and its administration by Noble. Whitfield and Bassett are excellent illustrations of the abuses which have led increasing numbers of public employees to unionize in self-defense. They are also excellent reasons for the students to insist on changes that protect their interests against the sort of arrogant whimsy exemplified in this case. Not so long ago, academic administrators could release (they never fired anyone) a probationary faculty member with an airy reference to "the good of the college." Things are not perfect, but they have certainly improved for faculty. The requirements of timely notice and written reasons can make even the most highhanded supervisor more responsible. As for the egregious Mr. Noble: If there is no unionization and no change in procedure, I predict a bright future for him. Twelve years ago, he might have become a Dean. Now, his talent and appetite for flatulent moralizing and slimy evasion should enable him to slither up to College Union Director. Hisight Insight is published on Wednesdays during the academic year by the Department of Journalism, California State University, Fresno. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the Editorial Board. All other columns, letters and artwork on this page represent the opinions of their respective authors and not necessarily that of Insight's. Letters to the editor will be accepted providing they meet present public standards. Editor-in chief Steve D.Smith Managing Editor Cyndl Guerra Photo Editor Tom Spitz Ad Managers Copy Editor Sport Editor Sheni Solgat Elaine Gil David Wilcoxon Helen Marie Janousek Dan Mooney Reporters: Sere Beste, Nellie Bonllla, Trudy Brown. Maureen Cabral. Shirley Cavella, Renee Christian. Heidi Clinton. Brian Covert. Christy Dennis. Kathy Fraley. Todd Hansen. Rhonda Harrington. Jody Head, Leo Holzer, James Kenney, Cecelia Korn, Anthony Lacava, Victor Leone. George Loewen, Dave Marsh. Dan Mooney, Judy Paredes, Carey Robinson. Rhonda Sjostrom, Kurt Stephan, Debra Vance, Klmberly Washington. John White. Ed WUey III |