OCR Text |
Show The Thunderbird Tuesday October 23, 1984 Page 4 Utah cable TV initiative deserves quick defeat Initiative A, better known as the Cable TV Decency Act, is and a basic violation of the personal rights this nation was founded on. It should be promptly defeated by Utah voters, and even more promptly forgotten. The Thunderbird does not often involve itself in political issues that reach beyond the SUSC campus, but this initiative affects alike. It is a fundamentally us all, students and immoral invasion of our rights of privacy, and the voters should send it into oblivion in November. The proponents of this initiative, while are taking an erroneous course in their battle against pornography. The Thunderbird agrees that pornography is a societal evil even though youd be hard pressed to fairly describe anything shown on cable TV as pornography but this initiative is almost as bad as the problem it seeks to fight. People who are thinking of voting in favor of this initiative should consider how extreme it really is. Under the terms of this proposed act, almost none of the movies made in the past 20 years could be shown on cable TV in Utah not without significant cuts, cuts that are certainly not going to be made by the national distributors. And dont make the mistake of thinking were talking about movies here. There are no movies shown on cable TV in Utah. Even though it has been said before, we think it deserves movies arent restating: people who are offended by these forced to subscribe to the premium channels! Basically, there are two reasons why the Cable TV Decency Act should be defeated: It violates our rights, depriving us of our free choice. It is strange that people who balk at any other form of government intrusion into the family support this initiative. The Thunderbird believes people have a right to choose for themselves what television programs they wish to watch in the privacy of their living rooms. This initiative would strip us of that choice, allowing a group of censors to choose for us. It is ineffective. If people genuinely want to fight pornography, they should use the only completely effective tool available: crusaders persuasion. That way, everyone wins. who base their arguments on the facts win, as do people who are allowed to retain their free agency. There are myriad other reasons why voters should reject this initiative. For one thing it is poorly written, and almost certain to mean another costly court battle and no one really doubts the courts, in their wisdom, will strip it from the law books. Proponents of this initiative evidently dont trust us to decide things for ourselves, but to be honest, we at The Thunderbird dont trust them to decide things for us. God gave us each a brain; let us use them. non-studen- ts good-intentione- d, self-style- d Access Motorcycle safety is everyones concern Access is a weekly column in which members of the SUSC community express views of concern to them. Bradford Lewis is a member of The Thunderbird staff. A motorcycle safety and instruction course, offered for several years by the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, has been discontinued. I am not writing this article to exhort that we should work to raise funds on our own to reinstate the program. I am writing this article to bring to light again some very important facts and ideas that apply to making motorcycling safer for all. If you are, like me, a first time rider, there is one fact above all to keep in mind: of all motorcycle of those involved are between 16 fatalities, and and have been riding less than five months. How can you prevent yourself from becoming another statistic? While there are no guarantees, there are some logical tips to follow. First, familiarize yourself with the Utah Motorcycle Operator Manual or other helpful literature on the subject. Second, start small do not start with an engine size of over 250cc. I made the mistake of doing so, and now I am on crutches and paying for my stupidity. Alway wear a helmet! In Utah alone, there have been over 98 deaths of motorcycle riders from 1981 to July of 1984. Of these 98, only eight of those riders were wearing safety helmets. The Utah Highway Patrol estimates that about of those recorded deaths could have been prevented if the riders had been wearing helmets. Wear protective eyegear. two-thir- Che J05L m m mws Thunderbird snniM'i mm iiiik t in-ri- i I'triv H'hi in t rn VOLUME 79, NUMBER 5 Editor Lvnn Nolan Managing Editor Doug Christensen Copy Editors Bradford Lewis Entertainment Editor Lanai Greenhalgh Senior Staff Writer Ralph Schnock Production Manager Traty Girdwood Amy Page Advertising Manager Laura Wearing Photo Editor Tamara Rumbaugh Assistant Manager Brian Goettlich Sports Editor Stewart Smith Faculty Adviser Larry Baker The Thunderbird is published each Monday of the academic year by and f:r the student body of Southern Utah State College. The views and opinions expressed in The Thunderbird are the opinions of the publications individual writers and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the institution, faculty, staff or student body in general. The unsigned editorial directly above is the opinion of The Thunderbird as a single entity. Letters to the editor must be typed and include the name, student number (if from a student) and phone number. Only the name will be printed. Names will not be withheld under any circumstances and the editor reserves the right to edit letters for length and to preclude libel. Letters must be submitted by noon Friday for inclusion in the following weeks edition. The Thunderbird editorial and advertising offices at 529 West 200 South, Cedar City, UT 84720 Mail at SUSC Box 384, Cedar Citv, UT 84720 (801) 7758. two-thir- Wear the recommended riding gear. (A list is provided in the UHP Motorcycle Operator Manual.) Ride with your headlight on at all times! Use the proper turn signals; but be sure not to leave them on. A quick glance is all it takes to be sure. When braking or slowing down, tap your brake controls lightly at first. Let the driver behind you know you are there. FACT: There are 10 times as many cycles on the roads in Utah in 1984 than there were in 1979. FACT: Motorcycles are between 10 and 20 times harder to see on the road than other vehicles. The old adage that you cant hit what you cant see just doesnt apply here. FACT: In a motorcycle-ca- r collision, the chances There are 10 times more motorcycles on the road now than five years ago. that a rider will be seriously or permanently injured, or killed, are better than The drivers chances of injury are far less. FACT: It has been proven that the majority of collisions between cars and motorcycles are caused by the actions taken by the motorcyclists. Motorcycle safety is everybodys business. Drivers, look out for motorcycles and their riders. Motorcyclists, remember that you share the road you dont own it. Lets work together and make the roads safe for everyone concerned. two-thir- ! |