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Show THE CAMPUS THE UNIVERSITY JOURNAL • S0tJTI:IERN UTAH UNIVERSITY• PRIDAY, DECEMBER 5, 1997 . . . '. , Ping tells of murderers (continued from page 1) psychology and sociology of the actual perpetrators of the mass murder, he said. Ping focused on the Reserve Police Battalion 101, a group of 210 men from Hamburg, Germany. On July 13, 1942, the men were initiated into their careers as genocidal murderers as they were ordered to clear the village of Jozefow, Poland, of some 1,800 Jews. The orders were to select out the young men for labor and shoot the rest of the population- around 1,500 men, women, and children. "Major Trapp, the unit commander, was shaken by the order. In explaining the task to the men, he was choked with tears. The then made the m en an extraordinary offer- if any of the police men did not feel up to the tas k that lay before them, they could be excused. Only 10-12 men steppe~ forward. After giving the orders and excusing the men, he said, 'If this Jewish business is ever avenged on - earth, then God have mercy on us Germans.'" Ping related more s tories and showed snapshots taken at the massacre at Josefow. He then discussed the culture of Germany during WWII. He said that the central causal agent was racism; men and women were taught to be anti-Semitic and forced to be faithful to these views. "Twentieth century history is full of governments exploiting conformity. Any man can be programmed to do anything. Many of the police who refused to shoot on the first day overcame their doubts and started to believe more in the cause," Ping said. He said that as the war progressed, Germans became more and more indifferent to the treatment of Jews. The Nazi regime intensified propaganda and punished those who helped the Jews. What became the Holocaust was an inconceivable and unbelievable occurrence. He said, "Those who knew didn' t talk. Those who didn' t know, didn't ask. Those who asked got no answers." "We should not forget the stories and occurrences of our past. These 210 men in the Reserve Battalion 101 were programmed to believe in anti-Semitism. These ordinary men," Ping said in conclusion. "We should not forget this past because we are ordinary men as well." Ping has studied at the Freie University in Wes.t Berlin on a Fulbright Grant, and has been the recipient of a Quadrille Ball Fellowship from the Germanistic Society of America. He has presented papers at numerous professional conferences. Prior to joining the SUU Faculty in 1989, Ping taught at the University of Oregon, Oregon State University, and UNLV. He received bachelor's and doctoral degrees from the University of Oregon, and his master's degree was received from Purdue University. Larry Ping (right) visits with John Ault, psychology department chair, at the farm er's Distinguished Faculty Honor Lecture reception yesterday afternoon. Kennedy readies for lobby post By MYLYNN WATSON JOURNAL STAFF WRITER Each year as the Utah Legislature meets to discuss bills and potential new laws, the state's colleges and universities send an individual to represent them. This year Russell Kennedy, a senior political science major at SUU, will be the Utah Student Association Lobbyist. That organization, made up of student body presidents of 11 colleges and universities, nine publfc institutions, and two private institutions, voted Kennedy into the position in September of 1997. Kennedy said his responsibilities in the position are unique. He said he takes the idea that he is accountable for the interests of more than 140,000 students very seriously. According to Kennedy, Utah lacks the money spent per student in higher education that other states have. The legislative session runs for 45 days in January and February. During that time, Kennedy said he will live in Salt Lake so that he can work in the Capitol Building full-time. He plans to lobby for library resources, technology, and keeping tuition at a reasonable price. He said the most difficult part is being nonpartisan. He has to represent all the students of Utah and refrain from putting in plugs for only SUU. Through this experience, Kennedy said he hopes to gain a knowledge that "as students we can [be] and are effective in the ways which our universities are governed." He said he thinks that many people feel that the average student is not a part of how these institutions operate. He said he believes, however, that students are heard and differences can be made. "Som etimes the legislature can get side-lined, thinking things such as construction are more important than education. We want them to know that students are important too," he said. Kennedy has had three years of experience in the Utah Council of Student Body Presidents. Last year he held the position of governor of the Utah Intercollegiate Assembly. Two years ago, the position was also held by another SUU student, Jodi Hart . Kennedy said he has never seen an institution as effective at grabbing these positions as SUU. The university has had a representative in one of these positions for the previous five years, according to Kennedy. He believes that this really shows "the kind of school we are," and that "we are at t he forefront of state student politics." As Kennedy, who has also been an SUUSA senator and a staff writer and columnist for the University Journal, prepares to leave this campus, he said he "gets very emotional; after all this time my love affair with this campus hasn't ended." He said that he is proud to take an education from SUU with him. "When I walk away physically from SUU," he said, "there will never be a final goodbye." He feels that there is something very magical about this campus and he hopes to find fulfillment in knowing that he tried to repay the school for all he has gained. 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