Ithaca College Digital Commons @ IC The thI acan, 1987-88 The thI acan: 1980/81 to 1989/90 11-5-1987 The thI acan, 1987-11-05 Ithaca College Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.ithaca.edu/ithacan_1987-88 Recommended Citation Ithaca College, "The thI acan, 1987-11-05" (1987). The Ithacan, 1987-88. 9. http://digitalcommons.ithaca.edu/ithacan_1987-88/9 This Newspaper is brought to you for free and open access by the The thI acan: 1980/81 to 1989/90 at Digital Commons @ IC. It has been accepted for inclusion in The thI acan, 1987-88 by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ IC. / r Loosen up ... Parents weekend ... NBA preview ... l page 8 page 13 page 25 THE '{he Newspaper For The Ithaca College Community Jssue 9 Novembers, 1987 28 pages* Free Feminist Sag·an denounces 'Star Wars' risks her Encourages Mars life for exploration Carl Sagan, Pulitzer Prize winning firing of missiles. He also charged the author and the person behind the administration with ruining the refugees award-winning television series, United States Space Program, citing Cosmos, denounced President the Challenger explosion of 1986 and BY TOM FLANNAGAN Reagan's proposed Strategic Defense the unreliability o(the MX Missile. ''Sanctuary ·is about crossing Initiative (SDI) in front of an audience "They have converted the United lines," and "sanctuary is about living of 2,000 Monday night at Cornell. States Space Program, once the envy dangerously," Judith McDaniel said SDI, dubbed by the media "Star of the world, into an organization that Tuesday in, Textor 103. The well­ Wars," is a plan for a shield in space can hardly launch anything," Sagan known feminist and peace activist protecting the United ~tates by said. spoke on the subject of sanctuary to rendering incoming ballistic vessels Technology for our benefit a crowd of about I 00 people. "impotent," according to the Presi­ However, Sagan offered, the world McDaniel-began her presentation dent. Sagan, however, claimed that may not be doomed. "The United by reciting a poem from her book, Star Wars can not work; "It can be States and Soviet Union, who have Sanctuary, A Journey. The poem was overwhelmed, outfoxed, is supreme­ put in danger every person on the dedicated to Pedro Ramos, a man she ly dangerous and ruinously expen­ planet, can use their enormous met who had spent several years tak­ sive," he said. ing pictures of dismembered bodies of Explaining why the plan would the innocent victims of the El prove unsuccessful, Sagan said that ' ... We live in an ex­ Salvadoran "death squads." Ramos the imminent deployment of the Star tremely dangerous had sought sanctuary in the United Wars plan may provide an incentive States, was refused, and then went to for a Soviet first-strike attack. The epoch 1n human Canada. McDaniel admitted that her Soviets would not only launch history.' encounter with Ramos was a turning thousands of warheads, but also point in her life, in that it marked her thousands of decays that not even a decision to go to Central America in technological progress for human computer program could detect. benefit and not human destruction.'' order to bring her curiosity about that "We're talking about betting the en- part of the world "one step further." He proposed that the two countries ,,r' - tire human species on an easily out- lead an exploration of Mars, which After reciting the poem, McDaniel . foxed, penneable defensive system,'' continued by reading an essay from has a surface area and climate com­ . /_,, - Sagan said. parable to that of the earth. This, Sanctuary. "I cannot write a book \.... Nuclear obliteration about safe places (sanctuaries] without I along with its dned-up rivers and v'~ "The key point about Star Wars is experiencing the unsafe," she said. In volcanos, lead many to believe in the ·I that we live in an extremely dangerous prospect of extinct life on Mars. order to do this, McDaniel traveled to ~ epoch in human history," Sagan said. Nicaragua with the Witness For Peace "There is enough on Mars to carry the ~ "The United States and Soviet Union imagination,'' Sagan said. delegation. Witness For Peace is an Ughave rigged the planet with 60,000 organization that attempts to change Union of superpowers nuclear weapons." Each side Maybe even more important than the policy of the Reagan Administra­ possesses 10,000 to 12,000 strategic tion concerning Central America, the education gained from this ex­ (long-range) and 15,000 to 20,000 tac­ ploration, would be the peaceful especially Nicaragua, Guatemala and ASTRONOMER CARL SAGAN spoke at Cornell University Mon­ tical (short-range) weapons, Sagan see Sanctuary page 3 day night on Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative program. uniting of the world's superpowers. told a largely student audience. He Sagan further stated that it would cost added that, defining a city in terms of a fraction of Star War's proposed 100,000 people or more, the United $1-3 trillion, though he offered no Akbar tells_ blacks not to f Qrget .. States and Soviet Union could figures. Additionally, "Mars doesn't - . "People's power is m Lneir ability obliterate all the cities on the planet fight back," Sagan announced, ig­ th BY JERILYN VELDOF What result~ w~ ~ dest~Ction to defme who they are based upon with 20,000 strategic weapons niting laughter among the audience. "To make a man a slave you must of a strong Afncan identity. This was their realities of where they came remaining. The project would, Sagan said, first destroy his humanity," a noted done so well "that even ~~w, a hi~- from," Akbar said. The paradox for Reagan: distancing & mining "provide a full sense of purpose to a Afro-American lecturor, author, and -· dred years after slavery, it is very_dif- Afro-Americans in trying to answer Sagan accused the Reagan ad­ dispirited NASA." It is both a model d teacher said Tuesday. ficult f?,r us to ~dei;i:tan _Afncan questions like "who are we?" is that ministration of attempting to establish and stimulant for cooperation bet­ Na'im Akbar spoke on "The people, Akbar said, as bemg pro- the answers are defined in a sense emotional distance between the ween the United States and Soviet .Plight of Minoritr Students .~n _a p~e as op~ 1? savages, barbarians, other than Afro-American: "You're American people and the reality of the Union. Furthermore, it would Predominately White Campus. His trtbesmen, plgJllles ...and other strange constantly trying to affirm yourself by situation when it uses terms such as "staunch the hemorrage of the talk was part of a series of readings, name_s that alw_ays have many see Akbar page 7 "central exchange" in describing the see Sagan page 4 films, and lectures celebrating Black negative connotauons, even though Solidarity Day. these people are very grand, very ------~;;;.;,:;;,:;~;;;:;~~~~...,""""'""""'~~~~~~~~~~~=~~=====:=~-- The Afro-American identity crisis gracious people." White society has was the major theme Akbar discuss- defined Africa as "a place of birth for ed. "It is important to remember and sub-hwnans," he continued. never to forget that we did come here In addition white people convinc- as slaves " he said. ed themselves it was God's will that Akbar' highlighted Afro-American blacks ~ pteir ~ferio~s. If some ?f history in order to help the them c_lidn t belieye ~· ~bar said predominantly black audience see the they still could believ_e m ~ SC1en~ that problem from an African perspective, said that_ Afro:Am~cans w~e innate- instead of a European-American one. ly, genetically infenor to whitepeopl~. "[Slavery] gave us a very unique e_x- . "Part of the_whole academic tradi- perience of America that's very dif- t1on_ of Amenca was !O someho~ fereht from those who chose to come justify slavery as not _bemg a flaw ID here:-voluntarily, waving at old Lady the moral development of E~pean . Liberty standing in the harbor as they ~pies, _but a n~,expres.gon_of · came into Ellis Island." then- white supremacy, Akbar said._ -· , White people defined Afro- "As long as you are identified. ~y- Americans as being less than human someone else ..• you can only ~~rk '!! · in order to justify p~ them into the confin~ of_ Y~~ defini~on, . __ _ slavery, Akbar said. "It was necessary Akbar exp~ed.,.l_'!us IS~-~~ of ,-'· to alter and distort our identity in the confus10n of -1~tity '. 111 ~ -· order to make us fulfill the objectives Americans today. Whit~ ~pl~ ~'7'::_ :: . ofthecapitalists." If Afro-Americans .imposedonAfro-~~-1~. _:_ had come to America with their own that have to do WI~ ~ligious affilia- -- · self-definition intact, they would never tion; ~Js and political~·-for - .. .. _ . : . • . _ . • , . · have· becoine "efficient" ·sJaves, he example. "None of which ~ our , . '. LEAD·.SINGER of INXS, -Michael Hutchenc:e, swgs to an· energetic .crowd at_ Ithaca College s Ben Light added. ,own_/' _h~ .Sf.d;_ ~· ,. ,,: _.. , ,. -,~., ~, ., _" .,,....,·;..G~ym;.:n;;s.ci;;;ium_~,.. s.un.,da;.Y.,· .. See... ._agiii;,e....,14.....,fo.r .. s.t.,o_ry_. __________________________________________. ,' .·:·. ' ;- . , November s, 1 2 THE ITHACAN -987 C.P. Snow lecture opens with CU prof. disease and the conflicting scient·fi BY ERIK .JULES • I IC conflicts that arose during the hear­ data· Seco n ellY, 1t encourages q The first lecture of the 1987 C.P. ings emphasiz.ed traditional problems tioning of the credibility of the sc~es- Snow Series was held Thursday night in policy making that occur when • fi • ICn­ tifilC m ormatton. Also it emoh . in Textor Hall. This year's lecture science plays a role in the decision.