Show Responding to to Rodney King Terry Dillon Associate Editor Duh Mom duh duhl the immortal words of IN my year five old I would just like to say to the white establishment of Los Angeles Angeles and and also to that jury of their peers in Simi Duh Valley Valley Duh you chick chic chicken en duhl duh Does it really come ome as a surprise to you that in response to our current politic political political c cal a I c craze ra z e 0 of f b bashing ash i n g Democrats and cutting utting entitlements entitlements entitlements of dishing dirt at all those nasty quota requirements requirements requirements require require- ments that people are ar feeling backed into a corner What do you think happens happens happens hap hap- pens when people who already already al already al- al ready have little to lose suddenly suddenly suddenly sud sud- denly have nothing to lose The US U.S. sends more people to prison than any other country among our peer nations Still each year violent crimes crime of rape torture and murder increase And what do dowe we hear from many Americans as the antidote antidote antidote an an- for all this crime o x a M. M Build bigger prisons they shout It costs less to send a man manto manto manto to Harvard than to prison And while it is intuitively obvious obvious obvious ob ob- ob- ob that someone with a Harvard education has something something something some some- thing valuable to lose by committing a violent crime crime- while most street criminals have nothing to lose lose we we still cant can't figure out how that translates to our national problem with crime Duh There are people whining and wailing because we might offer any educational opportunities opportunities opportunities to to prisoners at all They dont don't deserve it the conservatives wail And quo quotas t as' as I It t d discriminates discriminates dis dis- i s- s criminates against white people they wheedle in a really whiney voice What about all those trailer-court trailer white people who have dropped out of high school They need a chance ch nce too L In other words the policymakers policymakers policymakers policy policy- makers seem to say to us Never mind the racism Americans have the right to think how they will Never mind that how we think affects affects affects af af- af- af how we act or what we i t It lj I u. u JP JIn Does D it come as any surprise roes that backed i ia people are feeling a corner allow our police to do Never mind how it affects a verdict We cant can't tolerate these affirmative affirmative affirmative affirm affirm- action programs that tha those damned Democrats put into place 25 years ago We dont don't need those thos programs any more because if we pay for education for better housing housing housing hous hous- ing for community outreach and mental health then we cant can't buy a nuclear powered engine to fly us into outer space when things get really bad around here I answer this way Instead of trying to run away from our problems or to lock our problems away in a concrete cage somewhere or to look the other way when it comes to illiteracy and child neglect wouldn't it be a better idea todeal todeal to todeal deal with these issues head headon on Remember the way we started out to do in the mid- mid We undoubtedly edly could run our entitlement programs more effectively But that is no reason to ditch them Here is what I mean In recent weeks I have heard three novel One of them by Jim Bartleson Bartleson-a a Republican Republican- was to offer reduced tuition to married couples who could understand the privilege of having an elderly elderly elderly elder elder- ly woman living under their guardianship I say privilege because of the wisdom inherent inherent inherent in in- herent in having an intergenerational intergenerational intergenerational inter- inter generational relationship and an enhanced lifestyle of giving and receiving B Bartleson wants to put elderly elderly elderly elder elder- ly medicaid dependents together with students who need a break on tuition thereby reducing overall cost to the government Another sugg suggestion stion came from Ron who pointed out in a recent Private Eye col column that prisoners could be utilized to do recycling recycling recy- recy recycling cling work and thereby reduce the cost of a much- much needed service This would provide the additional benefit of giving convicts important meaningful work to do People who enjoy the benefit of giving and being needed of being useful are people who are better adapted to the responsibility of community life The connection of important important tant tan meaningful work to a sense of self esteem was also touched u n by Jake a Gam Garn q n in inZ I f 1 J J Z Y 0 1 i 4 4 MO i n 1 on Ir 3 i I. I 0 a talk to students recently Garn off offered red the insight in- in in insight sight that public education could be enhanced by re redirecting redirecting redirecting re- re directing welfare recipients into working in the schools schools- s schools in essence to earn their checks The benefit in inhuman inhuman human f terms would be that such persons would feel valued The contribution they would make helping children get a better start in life would help those contributing contributing contributing con con- get their own lives in order The time has come for us to start thinking smarter It is time for us to act to become the leaders for which our countrymen so desperately ly long Now is t that hat r really n y so r 1 esoteric A Duh |