The Towerlight, February 18, 1977

tl19770218-000 "Thinas rd re I urns. See page 2 o VOL. LXIX. NO. 16 TOWSON STATE UNIVERSITY Weekend riewinf.4. See page o FEBRUARY 18. 1977 ItoY Whitley resigned this week from of Dining Services. his position as assistant director BSU President calls Finegan 'out of touch with blacks' Hanks questions veto tactics by Mike Laughter A $1500 ""compromise"" supple-mentary budget offered by Student Government Association President Joanne Finegan has been deemed ""an insult"" by Black Student Union President Eric Hanks. The episode is another in the continuing saga of a $3300 budget supplentent request initiated by the BSU last semester. Hanks ""was shocked"" at Senate action on the proposal in December. That action involved a veto by Finegan of a Senate bill authorizing the extra money. The Senate was then unable to override the veto. Hanks was incensed by the tactics used by Finegan during the decision to veto. ""Joanne waited nine out of the ten days she had to veto the bill to do so. This put us in a terrible position because we had already made plans to spend the money and Whitley leaves Food Services by Bill Stetka oy Whitley, assistant director of hunting Services, resigned from the University this week. Whitley tendered his two-week tIotice Monday and, after meeting *n ith Al Walsh, director of Dining eryices, left th� same day. :It's normal to do this (leave 'efore the two Week period is up) in lensitive situations,"" said Wayne tchelle, vice president of Business Finance. Dining Services is htloder Schelle's department of the u niversity. The ""sensitive situation"" report- ,(11Y stems from differences be- Ween Whitley and others in the 'fling Services department. Whit-t' said that he didn't like ""the attitude shown toward me since Ile'vember. ""My advice was not being tsu nsidered important,"" he said uefore leaving Monday. ""I was not kept aware of things. Half the things I learned through Towerlight."" At the same time, however, Whitley said he wants it known that ""Al Walsh was fair to Roy Whitley."" Last week, a person sympathetic to Whitley told a Towerlight reporter that Whitley was being pressured by members of the department ""because he's not one Of the team."" Yesterday, two people close to the situation told the same reporter that they agreed with Schelle's opinion that Whitley ""became alienated"" from most of the Dining Services department. All three persons wished to remain anonymous. ""I feel my performance was adequate,"" Whitley said Monday. ""I helped bring them from a $350,000 deficit to a $79,000 profit."" Both Schelle and Walsh credit Whitley with improving the depart-ment's food purchasing, which was a major reason for the profit. ""I give him partial credit for turning the department around,"" Schelle said. ""We're grateful for his contribution. But at this point, I think It's good for him to make a change."" Whitley said he ""probably would've resigned sooner or later anyway,"" adding , ""Their attitude only pushed me to going into my own business quicker."" Whitley is starting his own food service consulting firm in southern Virginia, which he says ""has been a dream of mine for several years."" Walsh cited Whitley's new business as a catalyst for the change, also. ""His long-range ambitions didn't fit our needs,"" he said. Walsh said with Newell Hall soon to open, the department needed a man who could be counted on to be able to run the operation in Walsh's absence. Anderson explains reporting; laps politics and oil companies by Steve Haas sock Anderson, the featured est at Stephens Hall Friday night the SGA Speaker Series, marched -40 the stage 20 minutes late, 1)Dorting a sweater for a vest and ggy pants that drooped unabash- '913' onto his shoetops. itHis suit was a conservative grey. hair was else a conservative qey. , Vet, from the time he opened ihis 1)eech, proclaiming, ""It's nice to ;1)ealt in front of a microphone I can :7,"" the capacity crowd forgot the i .heulY and settled back for an hour of thA ghts into journalism, govern- I nt, corporations, and the interre- '10nahip5 of each. t Anderson, whose investigative 'Porting career began three dec- ,les before the rise of two other hingt on Post reporters of rent acclaim, began by describ-wl his role as ""muckraker"" in iog the UPI-syndicated column itsgied Washington Merry-Go-go,�, 1 want to know what the Ceroment doesn't want me to he said. ""The government kore effective at covering up than 4441 at digging up. I've never known tclOvernment official to call a press 4ferenee to admit a wrongdoing."" ? ql ilegarding government efforts to thsetedit journalists who discover sit!Se ""wrongdoings,"" Anderson 0:4, ""I get disturbed at how many i2Ple believe that the press , presents the facts."" !e 1972 Pulitzer Prize winner hued, ""The people who govern 402tre there because they seek tq;'' and they don't like to thh41,quish it. They'd like to control lifformation the people hear. It's 11, 4,1cOlt for investigative reporters; Are out breaking the ice."" tx;1011lierson described the jailing of Frss editors and two writers in California for refusing to .-Tal sources to the court. '""uclges tend to identify with people in power. Every newspaper-man in' this country is subject at any time to a jail term without trial for an indefinite period for refusing to divulge his sources,"" he said. ""The day I tell my sources, I won't have any sources,"" he said. Anderson noted, ""In the Consti-tition, it says the government shall make no laws to abridge freedom of the press. On the day that we lose freedom of the press, on that day, you lose your freedom."" Following his lengthy introduction to investigative reporting, Anderson launched into a variety of topics. ""I've spent the last year trying to find out about Jimmy Carter. His shipmates (in the Navy) remember him being cool under fire,"" Anderson explained. ""A President ought to be tough. ""But there's no advance test for a President,"" he added. ""We'll have to see him under fire."" Regarding Carter's campaign promise to streamline the burgeon-ing government bureaucracy, An-derson said, ""The bureaucracy runs this country and operates under the theory that any directive you don't like will go away if you study it long enough."" While describing members of the bureaucracy as pigeons ""flapping for the President and not going anywhere,"" Anderson still felt Carter was as likely as anyone to cut the payroll. Referring to the energy topic and U.S. dependence on overseas sources, Anderson stated, ""That makes us tremendously vulner-able."" He described the Federal Power Commission as a ""branch office"" of oil and gas producers, urging price deregulation of gas when ""(gas companies) weren't going broke at 29 cents per 100 cubic feet, why is it they can't make ends meet at $1.42?"" Anderson claimed that the gas producers have the resources available but are witnitotoing gas for a higher price. Gas is being switched from interstate to unregu-lated intrastate pipelines ""and they waste it making Hefty trash bags,"" he said. ""They give priority over hospitals, schools and factories. ""It seems to me that the nation that first landed on the moon and developed nuclear energy can find another source of energy. If the gas and oil companies owned the sun, we'd all be using solar energy today,"" he said. Anderson criticized tax incentives as ""welfare"" for energy producers, who pay 11/2 to 2 per cent in taxes, and instead of putting excess funds into development, put the money into domestic or even Swiss banks. ""How is that going to help the economy,"" he asked. ""I am fundamentally opposed to welfare,"" Anderson continued. ""If we're going to have welfare, I'd rather give it to the poor than to Ted Jamieson (head of Exxon Corp.). It seems to me these people would use the welfare for food."" After pointing out the disastrous results of a President who consider-ed himself ""sovereign, not servant, of the people,"" Anderson conclud-ed, ""The government understands that the information belongs to the people . . , but they use 'secret' stamps to censor the news."" ""You almost have to be a muckraker to understand that this country can stand the truth,"" he said. In response to h query about who investigates the investigative re-porter, Anderson noted that the Pentagon, FBI, IRS and CIA were among his evaluators and quipped ""When you go around with seven government agencies investigating you, it keeps you virtuous."" Noting his somewhat, constant criticism of the government during his appearance, Anderson ended the session stating, ""Understand that these people are doing their best, most of them. You are the final judge."" it was near the last day of classes,"" he said. Hanks had several evaluations of the performance of the current SGA president. ""It seems like Joanne is completely out of touch with black people�she seems 'to exist in a vacuum. I don't see her as being a good leader just because she:s had four vetoes that have failed to be overridden,"" he said. The latter part of the statement refers to a recent remark by Richard Andrews, former SGA Parliamenta-rian, who praised Finegan's effec-tiveness on the basis of the number of vetoes that have withstood an override vote by the Senate. The money involved in this controversy was supposedly to be used to pay for more black speakers, fashion shows, art exhibits and possibly an extra dance. Hanks defended the BSU's quest for the extra $3300 by strongly emphasizing that the BSU is the only outlet for entertainment and cultural endeavors for TSU blacks. He commented, ""Things are not fine and dandy for blacks as it may seem. Do you ever see any blacks at places like the Pub? There are not many places that cater to black people specifically. We need our own entertainment."" Hanks thinks that there is a covert type of racism on campus that centers around neglect, saying, ""It's easy for the majority to overlook the needs of the minority."" Constitution accepted The SGA's revised constitution was accepted by 126 of the 204 students who voted in last week's referendum. The new constitution will take effect immediately. Other questions and results are as follows: Question 2: Do you feel all Student Government Association budgeted organizations should hold their elections at the same tithe, place and date? Yes: 90. No: 99. Question 3: Do you feel fraterni-ties and sororities should be allowed to be budgeted with Student Government funds? Yes: 55, No: 138. Question 4: Do you feel the mandatory meal plan for resident students is justified? Yes: 19. No: 172. Question 5: As a resident stu-dent, I feel security in the residence halls is: a; adequate, b) inadequate. a) 60. b) 62. Question 6: I feel that security in general is: a) adequate, b) inade-quate. a) 108. b) 74. Question 7: Do you feel that more dormitories are needed? Yes: 137. No: 44. Question 8: Would you patronize the Tiger's Lair (Pub) if it were open 6 days a week with extended hours? Yes: 141. No: 55. Question 9: Do you feel political orgnizations should be allowed to be budgeted with Student Government Association funds? Yes: 54. No: 136. Question 10: Do you feel that affiliated (non-budgeted) organiza-tions should be required to deposit their funds in the Student Govern-ment Association general account? Yes: 42. No: 144. Question 11: Would you advocate the addition of a $5 cultural and community fee to the student fee? Yes: 41. No: 159. Jack Anderson t a. Ilk 1%* BSU President Eric Hanks accused SGA President Joanne Finegan of being ""comi3letely out of touch with black people."" TL photo by Ray Vaughn Drop-out rate directly related to fee rises by William Lombardi Dorothy Siegel, vice president for Student Services, said she sees a direct correlation between insuffi-cient -financial resources and the drop-out rate at TSU. Lonnie McNew, Dean Siegel's assistant, agreed with her statement and said he guesses that 60 per cent of TSU 's drop-outs leave because of financial reasons. Health, academic, and personal reasons constitute the balance of the withdrawals process-ed by McNew. Siegel and McNev0 cite inflation, higher operating cost's and decreas-ing state aid as prohibiting many students from continuing or even initiating a higher education. More money is being funneled into higher education in Maryland, said McNew, ""but the percentage per student is less."" Siegel added that ""the hardest hit are the middle income groups."" McNew attempts to personally contact each withdrawing student and explained that some fail to realize ""how easy it is to come back."" In'fact, most who drop out do return, usually within two years, to continue their education. For this reason, McNew calls them ""stop-outs"" instead of drop-outs. From his observations, McNew has evidence that many students are taking a semester off and are working to fund their college education. He was also surprised to find that many students carrying fewer than 12 credits per semester are working between 40 and 60 hours per week. Having noted the ramifications of increased higher education fees, Siegel views her findings as applicable to other Maryland state colleges and universities. For every $100 increase in fees, 1.5 per cent of the students terminated their college education, Siegel said. Siegel stated the goals of state-supported colleges and uni-versities: to make low-cost higher education accessible to as many citizens as possible. She went on to say that the state ahould sustain more of the cost so that fees would not present such a formidable barrier to students desiring a higher education. Right now Siegel sees no method to stabilize the rise in comprehen-sive fees if state support declines or , remains at a stand-still. Finegan 'very much opposed' to Dinings's coupon rebate by Kathy Paseuzzi SGA President Joanne Finegan said in a memo to Al Walsh, director of Dining Services that she is ""very much opposed to the $15 coupon allocation"" proposed by Dining Services to return last semester's surplus to the students. Finegan remarked that she is ""sure the intention . . . is a good one,"" but she feels students would prefer reduction in the price of the meal plans or a cash rebate. She said that students who choose the $370 meal plan ""do so with the knowledge that they will spend $370 or less"" on food that semester. She said the plan to make the bonus books unrestricted provides ""a margin of flexibility"" to students. Finegan suggested that greater flexibility would result if coupons remained negotiable for longer periods of time. ""For example, February coupons would be good from Feb. 1 to Mar. 5."" Finegan also discussed the differ-ent amounts of money available each week to students on the food plans. She claimed that the difference in allocations could total as much as $5.36. ""In other words, you can eat during February you can eat about 11/2 days' worth of food per week over and above what is allocated for April."" Finegan added that she must ""call to question the entire monthly allocation system."" She claimed that this system makes it difficult for light eaters on the food plans to sell coupons, since other students are ""reluctant to buy coupons without being sure they will be used before they expire. Light eaters have to become coupon hawkers or lose money,"" she said. Finegan went on to attack several situations that she felt were ""more inconvenience than anything else."" She said that when these problems are confronted several times daily, they ""can become very annoying."" She asked that Walsh consider posting menus at the cafeteria entrance and that the use of ""wasteful and unwieldy"" plastic tableware be stopped. She also mentioned that food is ""cold before the first bite is taken,"" because the arrangement of the lines necessi-tates choosing the entree first. Walsh mentioned that he had already taken action on some of the problems pointed out by the memo, although ""there will be no changes in the food plans this semester."" He plans to install blackboards in the cafeteria entrances so that the day's menus can be listed. He also explained that the use of plastic tableware was ""just an interim thing, to insure that there'd be enough for the football ban-quet."" He said this measure was necessary because of the high rate of pilferage of the stainless steel utensils. He said that menu boards at each food line list all the food included in the entree, and that he thought that ""more reliable'? than depending on workers in the lines to tell each student. "