20—The Daily Collegian Monday, April 9, 1984 RHAB a By KAREN NAGLE Collegian Staff Writer Students with a gripe or suggestion pertaining to life in the residence halls do not have to face the system alone they have a friend called the Residence Hall Advisory Board. RHAB a department of the Association of Residence Hall Stu dents is an organization with considerable potential as a consum er's advocate for dorm students, RHAB director Joyce Darkey said. The organization can be useful for dorm students in the "landlord-ten ant relationship in the framework of the University," she said. As "ten ants" of the University, dorm stu dents are entitled to voice their opinions, Darkey said. RHAB deals mostly with seem ingly minor aspects of+ dorm life, "but small things can start to eat at you," she said. Reasons students seek out RHAB range from com plaints about dining hall food to complaints of unfair charges for damages, she said. But the full potential of the orga nization has yet to be recognized by students, she said. "RHAB could be one of the most Wives in Reagan Administration say By ANN BLACKMAN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON Carolyn Deaver says her stomach turns all the time. "Inevitably, we'll be criticized for some thing," says Midge Baldrige. Sue Block. was scared of moving to Wash ington, "and I would have been more scared if I'd known what we were getting into." These are Official Wives, married to men in the Reagan administration. And recently they have been speaking out. They say the honey moon is long since over, that it is emotionally exhautting to live in the limelight and that Washington can be a catty and vicious town. They fear the daggers might one day turn on them. • To many, it would seem that Carolyn Deav er, Midge Baldrige and Sue Block should have no complaints. They and their husbands are well-liked, well-respected and have survived three years in Washington with their reputa tions unscathed and their integrity unques tioned. No one is hammering them. But they empathize with friends like White $4.00 for a Large Pizza at Vesuvio's Home of, the*Offer expires 4/30/84 WHOLE WHEAT PIZZA and FRESH ITALIAN BREAD! Open for lunch from 11 a.m. 111 2 a.m. Relax in air conditioned comfort. useful friend for students helpful, influential organizations on campus," Darkey said. Because students remain some what in the dark about RHAB, the organization must concentrate ef forts on letting students know it can work effectively for them, she said. "Our strength and our effective ness really lie in having the students trust us," she said. Darkey said she has tried to place an emphasis on the importance of helping any student that contacts the organization, since "getting something done is , the only way to strengthen the organization." One reason such potential exists for RHAB is that demand for cam pus housing is on the decline, she said. "Housing is going to have to be come more responsive to what the students like," Darkey said. . In the past, demand for' campus housing has been high, Darkey said. But because of an increasing amount of housing in the commu nity and changes in demographics that mean fewer college age stu dents in future years, demand for campus housing will decrease, she said. RHAB acts as a watchdog of the It's Back Come try our delicious grinders and hoagies. 234-8007 128 E. College Ave. FREE DELIVERY FROM 6 PM 'TIL 1 AM House counselor Edwin Meese HI and his wife, Ursula, who have been caught in an awkward spotlight. Many who come to Washington feel they live in a pressure cooker, even those who handle it well. Carolyn Deaver, whose husband, Michael Deaver, is White House deputy chief of staff, said that when one administration family is criticized, all are affected. "It seems to be a function of finding any slight error and making a large thing about it," she said. "It does affect you, whether you're in the (news) article or not. You feel that sooner or later, your time will come." Many cheered when Treasury Secretary Donald Regan said at a press conference that he would not pay for his wife's use of govern ment limousines when she used the cars to attend functions as a "Cabinet wife," such as charity and diplomatic receptions, or to at tend offical events at night. There was no reason to think her actions were "illegal, immoral, unethical or anything else," Regan said. In interviews, several Official Wives said University a function that is needed because the University holds a monopoly over campus housing, she said. When housing officials make deci sions regarding student housing, they do not seek student input, Darkey said. "It's only when we say 'hey you can't do this' " that they consider the students' side, she said. "It's the whole attitude, atmo sphere, philosophy of housing," Darkey said. "They're shocked when we come back as intelligient adults and say `hey'." Students should have more input into housing and food service con tracts, she said. "That contract could be inter preted to mean practically every thing. It's purposefully vague," Darkey said. "How many leases say the land lord reserves the right to raise the rent?" she asked. She said that as consumers, stu dents deserve more input into con tracts. "It all boils down to having hous ing act more like a business, respon sible to their consumers' needs," she said. `ln Washington, when you're in, you're in. You have a title and prestige. But when you're out, it's like you vanish from the face of the Earth.' —Sue Block, wife of Agriculture Secretary Johri Block they have been particularly shaken by the recent controversy surrounding the Meeses. A special prosecutor has been appointed to investigate charges involving Meese, includ ing one that Ursula Meese accepted a $15,000 loan from a man who later got a federal job. Friends of Ursula Meese said she was deeply upset by the controversy and that it was exacerbated by reporters and photogra phers who spent two weeks virtually camped in front of the Meeses' house. Finally, she complained publicly. However, Donald Arndt, director of Housing Services, said "there is a lot of input from students" into the contracts. "If ARHS has any opinions what so-ever about what's in the con tract, they are free to tell us," he said. Darkey said University food serv 7 ices is usually receptive to sugges tions made by RHAB. They try to supply what the students want, she said. For example, food services ex panded breakfasts this year in the dining halls to include more options, she said. . "This was something they did because they knew students' wanted it," she said. The effectiveness of. RHAB, al though it has been a part of ARHS for several years; has begun to be ,substantial only in the last two years, Darkey said. • ARHS President Dave Labuskes, at his last meeting two weeks.ago, said Darkey has given RHAB more potential than it has ever had. Last year's director laid a strong foundation for the organization, he said. But, "if he laid the foundation, then Joyce has built the house," Labuskes said. Disney World brings child out in Chinese newspaper By RICK GLADSTONE Associated Press Writer PEKING The enchantment of Disney World brought out the child in China's usually solemn Communist Party newspaper, which dropped the usual condemnations of bourgeois decadence and called the Florida amusement park -a "magical .par adise." "We' enjoyed ourselves so much at the world showcase that we did not want to come home," said Hong Yi in the travel column of yesterday's Peo ple's Daily. "We visited this great fun park for three days and still were only able to see one part of it," Hong marveled. His praises were rare appreciation for American-style entertainment from the state-run press, which pre fers to extol the advances of Chinese communism and criticize U.S. poli cies. Hong told, readers the, park occu pies 28,000 acres a stunning size for any amusement area to the 1 billion Chinese, who must ration precious land for growing food. "Entering Disney World in Orlan do, Florida, is like entering a magical paradise," he wrote. "Every artistic creation is novel and mystical." He was entranced by exhibits of honeymoon `What has gone wrong with the country?" she asked one reporter. ". . .It's unbelieva ble. You should never feel uncomfortable going to church but when you have photogra phers there filming you when you leave . . . Nobody should- have to live that way. No body." Carolyn Deaver said that whether one is a Democrat or Republican, the pressure of having one's professional and private life under a magnifying glass "is deflating and demoralizing." "It reaches a point where you say, "I don't think it's worth it," she said. "It doesn't matter what party you're in . . . To be tried by the press is awful. You have a real churning in your stomach all the time. You're 'under siege. It's not fun." Midge Baldrige, who is married to Com merce Secretary Malcolm Baldrige, said the constant scrutiny discourages people from going into government life. "It will deter • capable people from serv ing," she said. "The country will suffer in the long run. I feel inevitably we'll be criticized for something." Sue Block, who is married to Agriculture cultures from China, Japan, the Unit: ed States, Canada, Mexico and West-, em Europe. The best of these exhibits was China's, Hong said; describing how visitors see replicas of old court-, yards, landscapes and a gate to Pe king from the era when the Chinese capital was a walled city. Hong saved his loftiest compli- . ments for the Epcot Center's 18- floored dome of futuristic exhibits. -, "It is a scientific and artistic mu; terpiece, causing people to gasp in admiration," he wrote. He described hoW visitors ride electric cars through exhibits that take them from the Stone Age to the wonders of computers, space travel and under water civilizations forecast for the 21st century. Such an exhibit is of intense inter-, est in China, which has proclaimed an urgent need for modern technology to, catch up with advanced countries. Hong never explained why the park is called Disney World and did not, mention the creator of the Disney, empire, the late Walt Disney. The People's Daily article was not, China's first exposure to Disney's creations. Official Chinese dele 7 gations have visited Disneyland in • California. long over' Secretary John Block, said in an interview last November that she is friendly with wives of men who have resigned from Reagan's cabinet and are no longer on the official circuit. : "In Washington, when you're in, you're in," she said. "You have a title and prestige. But when you're out, it's like you vanish from the face of the Earth." One woman who knows what life is like in a Washington sandstorm is Leilani Watt, wife of former Interior Secretary James G. Watt, who resigned last October after the years marked with controversy. In a recent interview, Leilani Watt said, "It's the scrutiny in every part of your life that is wearing. It seems that because you are a public official, you're held to a standard of being perfect. You're not perfect." Nancy Reynolds, a lobbyist in Washington with close ties to the Reagan administration, said life in Washington can be like a soap opera. "When you first come, everybody panders to your ego," she said. "Total strangers give parties in your honor. Two years later, the honeymoon is over."
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