The Drily Utah Chrwdde, ttcdacsday, Jaauary 2, lf3S tun ., JiltllMttlKlin'ILtUlliH'IIWMIllillUlUIUMltlljrtilXIUij , EDITORIAJ arr lint l..Hi w ffi i srfy sfiairioin:g daft cf dlccyEous, omifeSr We're msd &s hell. After a two-webreak (translated fun, sun and leisure,) the University of Utah bureaucracy seems intent upon making things as difficult as possible. Enough is enough. There is simply no logic to be found in beginning a quarter in the middle of the week. A Wednesday no less and the day after New Years to top it off. It just doesn't make sense. And the problem gets worse. Students from out of state are forced to travel during the hectic New Years holiday weekend to settle into apartments and dorms and to make classes on time. All the warnings about drunk drivers, highway death tolls and admonitions to avoid travel during the weekend obviously did ek lUIi Sv uax&vm NC(s CSA "THIS WELL OtSOJ&STHE- - I, r not take these unfortunate students into account. The university is unjustifiably students jeopardizing the safety of and students who travel during the holidays. We fail to see the pressing need to begin classwork in the middle of the holiday week, rather than waiting until the next Monday as most other universities and public schools do. Next year will we begin classes on a Thursday or out-of-sta- te Friday? The rationale behind the tuition policy is almost as ludicrous as that behind the Jan. 2 starting date for the quarter. All tuition and fees must be paid by Friday, Jan. 4. That means students have two whole days to settle schedule and pay hassles, deal with financial aid foul-utuition without a late fee. their This all makes even less sense when one considers that the Registrar's office allows a week and a half for students to resolve class conflicts, obtain add and drop cards and to vi M GrioDdies leading a silly cmusade ever-increasi-ng on any more effective than preregistration. Students who receive financial aid will allegedly deadline if be awarded aid before the two-wethey file their paperwork on time. Still, as many will attest, filing on time does not guarantee the efficiency of the Financial Aids office. The policies just don't make sense. It is time to reevaluate the university's scheduling of tuition and commencement dates but this time, with the student in mind. ek Chronicle The Daily Utah Chronicle is an independent student newspaper published during fall, winter and spring quarters, excluding test weeks and quarter breaks, by the University Publications Council. Editorials reflect the opinion of the editorial board, and not necessarily the opinions of the student body or the administration. Subscriptions are $25 year, $10 an academic quarter. All subscriptions must be prepaid. Forward all subscription correspondence, including change of address, to the Business Manager, Daily Utah Chronicle, 240 Union, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 841 12. semi-Grinch- Grinchy people who seem to live for the fun of getting Christmas trees, carols and creches banned from public places," Will writes in a 1979 Newsweek column. "These people advertise themselves as agree. Each side currently concerned with this issue feels it is being abused, Greenfield says: One feels it is being denied its religious consolation, the other feels it is being told it doesn't belong. friends of freedom, naturally. Their aim is to get the First Amendment contrused to say that carols sung, or trees and creches displayed, on public property constitute the unconstitutional 'establishment of religion.'" Will notes a certain meanness in trying to silence the singing of "Silent Night," or "a disagreeable delight in using the community's laws divisively, to abolish traditions enjoyed by neighbors." Will is right about one thing: The position adopted by the American Civil Liberties Union rejecting religious symbols in public places is an unenviable one. While many of us are concerned about giving our spare quarters to the Salvation Army and fret over whether our fathers will wear the plaid ties we've bought at Nordstrom, members of the ACLU are forced to get bent out of shape over plastic figures of baby Jesus and the like. Grinches fit into a militant Assuming the category makes it easy to dismiss their cause as a highly unpleasant one that unfairly deprives communites of traditions which, it can be argued, do less to enhance particular religious philosophies as they do to reinforce a common culture. (I would dare say most of us enjoy the sound of children singing "Silent Night," whether or not so-call- Editor-in-Chi- ef Managing Editor Associate Editor Editor Editorial Editor Sports Editor Arts Editor Gty Editor Night Editor Photography Editor Asst. Sports Editor Asst. Copy Editor Asst. Arts Editor Asst. Editorial Editor The Jeff Arlington Peter Behle Richard R. Adams Debbie Eldredge Milne Laura Adams Mark Saal Kathryn Samuel Marilyn Abildskov Scott Woodruff AlanOvermoe JohnYoungren Dory Donner Fara Warner Matt Lalli Photographers Business Manager Ad Representatives much-preach- but ed little-practic- ed notion of tolerance is in order, and not only for December when we are forced to reconcile religious beliefs with political principles in difficult ways. What could be more attractive than community leaders inviting both a Nativity scene and a Hanukkah symbol to decorate a statehouse? In a state like Utah, where there are a good many who don't feel like they "belong" because the majority of the state's residents belong to the dominant Mormon religion, what could be more admirable than officials demonstrating restraint and not placing a creche in a public spot out of simple respect for those in the And wouldn't it be nice if minority minority religion-wis- e. groups everywhere did not have to demand gracious treatment? My point is that there are options beyond what the absolutists on either side would have us believe. And the options had better be considered because, as Greenfield puts it, this is one of those fights that can only make things worse no matter which side wins. ed Reporters es; anti-crec- he "Every December they crawl out of the woodwork, Editorial Board: Laura Adams, Richard Adams, Jeff Arlington, Peter Behle. News But because the creche and many other inspiring artifacts of the holiday season do stand for specific religious ideas, and precisely because it is easy to dismiss uncomfortable ideas, most of us guard against immediate judgments on this issue. Besides, most Grinches are, in the words of another columnist, Meg Greenfield, only people who are not wholly at ease with the notion of "clearing the evidence of Christian exultation off every inch of public ground." Greenfield freely calls herself an ambivalent soul but one who is also "vaguely but persistently disturbed by the trend to introduce ever more elements of Christian liturgy into the practices of the state." Greenfield admits, and correctly, that the crusade is excessive at times. She also concedes, if it comes to fighting in the streets, she will be numbered among the Grinches. "But I think there is a better way," she writes. I Marilyn Abildokov however, tuition already had to be paid when most students had only a rough idea of how about its message at all.) OPINION BY finalize their schedule. By this deadline, in-pers- we buy into its religious message or even think Nightly newscasts during December were full of what has become an intriguing holiday tradition in this country: fighting over the creche. The American Civil Liberties Union, adopting the role of the Grinch who stole Christmas, as columnist George Will puts it, seemed to spend much of the. season defending the principle of separation between cKarch and state by trying to rid public places of all Nativity scenes and Hanukkah symbols. ps many hours they would be taking and their schedules were still tentative. The news about tuition policies only gets worse. Next fall, students will be required to pay all tuition and fees two weeks before classes begin. If a student fails to pay on time, all preregistered classes will be canceled. It is doubtful there are more than a handful of students on campus that get the schedule they need when they preregister. It will still be possible to pay during the first week of school during registration, but that is seldom - Marva Bickle Shauna Bona Lisa Carricaburu Mike Prater Darren Hawkins Margaret Hess Earl Cline Steve Griffin . . : Accountant Accountant Assts Classifieds Production Manager Asst. Prod. Manager Production Assistants Kay Andersen Ron Jackson Mary Safi Lori Baucum Holly Miller Robb Welch Audrey Anderson" Heather Allen Todd Crosland Julie Lund Janice Austin Jay Krajic Rob Forsgren Robert McOmber . . . Julia Jenkins Steve Hausknecht Typesetters Jerry Stanger Jill Aggeler Rodney Dallin Marianne Macfarlane Cartoonist MarkMcCune