opinions
Practice what you teach
At the onset of each semester, faculty
members outline the consequences students
will face if they are caught cheating. Stu
dents are told that academic integrity is one
of the most important lessons of university
life.
Student cheating, however, is not the only
black veil shrouding the academic integrity
of this university.
On occasion, faculty members have also
succumbed to academic dishonesty.
Cheating, dishonesty and plagiarism can
not be condoned from anyone. But, when
faculty members figureheads and lead
ers at this University claim credit for
work that does not belong to them they are
setting a poor example for students.
According to a recent survey published in
the Chronicle of Higher Education, one
third of scientists surveyed at a major
university suspect a colleague of fraud.
Examples of such behavior varied in form
and degree.
At Penn State, Charles Hosler. University
vice president for research and dean of the
graduate school, said he knows of three
faculty members asked to resign in the past
10 years because of academic misconduct.
Additional cases may not have come to his
attention if they were resolved individually,
he added.
Three cases in 10 years may not sound
like an alarming statistic, but it represents
a significant blemish on the integrity of this
University a blemish which may grow
larger still if the University administration
persists in its "publish or perish" mindset.
In recent years, faculty members have
come under considerable pressure to con
duct research and publish their findings to
meet tenure requirements. Though Univer
reader opinion
On the gulf
"It's time to leave the Persian Gulf." According to
whom? This response is in regard to an editorial opinion
article in the Oct. 22 issue of The Daily Collegain. Ronald
Reagan and U.S. military leaders deployed American
naval forces to the Persian Gulf for a reason: to ensure
neutrality and free, unmolested navigation of the seas.
In the War of 1812, and again in World War I, the United
States involved itself in conflict to protect freedom of the
seas, ensuring free navigation for all nations. The goal of
this nation has not changed.
The editorial statement is full of biased exaggerations
of American involvement in the Persian Gulf conflict. The
article states that "Iran persists in attacking U.S.
Warships . . ." however, there have been no documented
instances of Iranian attacks on U.S. warships. The same
line goes on to say that the United States is "shooting
down jet fighters and bombing radar stations." This is
another exaggeration -- although missiles were fired
against Iranian planes, none were shot down. The radar
stations were given ample warning to evacuate person
nel. There were no violations of the explicit "rules of
engagement."
Is the author of the editorial in question naive enough to
believe that withdrawing U.S. naval forces from the
Persian Gulf will result in cessation of terroristic activ
ities by Iran? If the United States doesn't stop these
terrorist attacks, who will? Maintained American naval
presence is the only deterrent to the continued terrorist
attacks made by Iran on international shipping in neutral
sea lanes. For example, Iranian gunboats fired on an
American observation helicopter, and American Special
Forces sank the aggressor gunboats. Since then, no
American aircraft have come under fire.
The editorial also criticizes the operation against Gre
nada and accuses the president of misleading Congress.
Left out is the fact that Grenada was a completely
The U.S. presidency
Except for a true
During the 1976 presidential elections, our
sixth grade social science class did an
extensive I extensive for 12 year olds) study
of the United States' presidency. One of our
projects was to team up with another class
mate. assume the roles of president and
vice president. and develop a political plat
form. I took the initiative and became
president. I figured such a brilliant mind
and latent leadership abilities as mine
should not be wasted on the vice presi
dential position, which my partner Cindy
was quite content to assume.
Then we had to develop a platform. This
was where the trouble began. I brought up a
few issues and asked Cindy how she felt
about them. "I dunno. You're the president.
You decide." she replied. She was busy
flirting with Dave J. the sixth grade
smooth operator. I decided. She said,
"That's fine." Then when I stood up before
our class to present our platform. Cindy
continually interjected, "I never said that."
I came off looking like a liar and an ass.
Cindy and Dave went to the Halloween
dance together. I decided right there and
then to cross "President" off my list of
potential careers.
The president's job is an awesome respon
sibility and a thankless occupation. I hon-
sity President Bryce Jordan has repeatedly
stated that the primary function of faculty
members is to teach well and advance the
forefronts of knowledge, the emphasis
placed on Penn State's ranking among
research universities nationwide appears to
transmit a different message.
Perhaps then, it is time for the adminis
tration to take a good, hard look at the
pressure it has placed on faculty members
to produce research-oriented material and
uphold the University's ranking.
Penn State's policy for dealing with of
fenders merits another look as well. In the
three instances of academic misconduct
mentioned above, the faculty members
were asked to quietly resign so their dishon
esty would not taint the University's name.
"When you publicly punish a faculty
member for fraud, you're punishing the
University as well," Hosier explained. "I
don't feel its the role of the University to
publicly punish people."
Jordan concurred with Hosler stating that
the University's policy teaches students to
follow federal laws on privacy rights and
teaches them to be humane.
That policy, however, fails in its primary
function to deter other faculty members
from falling prey to the same misconduct.
By shielding those who are caught from the
public eye, it leaves no impression on poten
tial offenders.
If the University wants faculty members
to recognize the importance of academic
integrity, it should make every effort to
show that it is serious about cracking down
on misconduct. But to emphasize that con
cern, it must be willing to soften its "publish
or perish" mindset.
successful mission, due mostly to its secrecy and the
"element of surprise." It is unlikely that the mission
would have been so successful had the legislative branch
and the media, hence the public, been informed of the
operation ahead of time.
Throughout history, this fine nation has sought to
protect neutrality of the seas. Removing naval forces
from the Persian Gulf now would indicate that the United
States is no longer seeking neutrality of the seas.
Arias' prize
Unlike Rick Wetzel (Oct. 22 reader opinion), I was
happy to see Arias win the Nobel Peace Prize, although I
fear he won by default. It has been a few years since
someone from our side of the Atlantic won the prize
outright, so a recipient in this hemisphere was predicta
ble. Who, then, in the Americas deserves the highest
honor in pursuit of peace?
Those who currently represent the "U.S. interest" in
Central America, or for that matter, those who have
represented it for the past 140 years, have pursued many
things, but "peace" would be a grotesque euphemism for
all of them, by my reading.
In the 1850 s, a century before Bolsheviks stormed the
Caribbean, U.S. Marines set afire San Juan del Norte out
of retaliation for Nicaraguan insults to a U.S. ambassa
dor. Later that decade a deluded American appointed
himself president of Nicaragua. Once deposed, he tried
the same in Honduras. From 1912 to 1925, then 1926 to 1933.
the Marines occupied Nicaragua ( just south of the Halls
love of country, what would drive a person to serve in the White House?
estly cannot imagine why anyone would
want to be president. With the title comes
responsibilities that cannot even begin to be
covered by one mortal. I can't balance my
checkbook much less the national budget.
( Although I do have lots of experience in
deficit spending'
The worst part of being president would
be the constant scrutiny of every possible
aspect of one's life by an entire nation. In
what other occupation does a man have to
go on TV to explain to the nation about his
colon surgery? Somehow I think the media
got a little out of hand when they started
showing anatomical diagrams of the sur
gery on the evening news. Tell me the
president is doing well or that he died, but
leave his colon out of it! Would you expect
Joe Swartz down the street to whip out
anatomical drawings and give you the play
by play when he has surgery? And you
probably know Joe a bit better than the
president.
More recently Nancy Reagan's breast has
been front-page news. Call me a prude, but I
really don't see how this is anyone but Ron
and Nancy's business. I'm sure this is a
traumatic enough experience for any wom
an, but to have the whole nation looking at
her on television and thinking, "Nancy only
Matthew Brott
sophomore-geoscience
James lannucci
sophomore-mechanical engineering
Randal Tokar
sophomore-history
has one breast now," is a bit overwhelming.
Despite my sympathy. I had to laugh when I
read a letter from a friend who was writing
as he watched the news.
*IV N.Atf
"Update on Nancy: They think they got it
all, Ron brought her pink roses and Don
Regan volunteered to cut off the other one.
(That was sick and cruel. Also humorous.
That's the way life is. )," he wrote.
The president assumes all of this as part
of his job. He also knows that when he opens
his morning paper he will most likely see
himself attacked in political cartoons and
editorials. Can you imagine being carica
tured in a national publication regularly? I
look grim enough in real life Ed hate for a
cartoonist to get a hold of my weaker
features and exaggerate them. And the
.11; Collegian
Monday, Oct. 26. 1987
1987 Collegian Inc.
Editor
Chris Raymond
Business Manager
Glenn B. Rougier
The Daily Collegian's editorial opin
ion is determined by its Board of
Opinion, with the editor holding
final responsibility. Opinions ex-
of Montezuma). imposing law and order (peace?) by
military force.
Only a man named Sandino and a few followers com
plained that Nicaraguans should make decisions for
Nicaragua. So before the Marines left, they organized a
National Guard led by Somoza, a U.S.-educated profiteer
who had Sandino shot in the back after signing a truce
with him. Somoza's son maintained ties with Washington,
D.C. while benefitting almost exlusively from his produc
tive nation, until not even Americans could stomach his
heartless neglect for his people.
In the 1980 s, the United States has turned to funding
counterrevolutionaries that have little popular backing,
less civilian leadership and no party platform. "Sure, it's
not very peaceful," the argument goes, "but we have to
stop the communists."
Assuming Communist expansion is ample justification
for war, we may exclude the politburo and Castro from
the Nobel list. But just war is. after all, war, so Kirkpa
trick qualifies only for a thousand cheerleaders in Mana
gua and a unit of Contras as her namesake.
So who is left to pursue the cause of peace? Those who
suffer most by the lack thereof: the Central Americas. By
choosing Arias, the Nobel commission implicitly ac
knowledged that as long as (North) American blood is not
being spilled, the United States will not, as a priority
interest, pursue peace in the region. Also acknowledged is
the reality that the protagonists of peace in Central
America must be Central Americans t in the United States
we call this self-determination).
Unfortunately, these nations also will need the cooper-
pressed on the editorial pages are
not necessarily those of The Daily
Collegian. Collegian Inc. or The
Pennsylvania State University.
Collegian Inc., publishers of The
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tions, is a separate corporate insti•
tution from Penn State.
Complaints: News and editorial com
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with the Accuracy and Fair Play Commit-
writer correspondingly attacking my weak
er actions and character flaws would not
help my self-esteem.
But. you protest, the man is an asshole. I
will agree with you to a point there, but
most leaders come off as assholes in one
way or another. It's the only way they can
get up in the morning. They must possess a
certain strength, perchance blindness, to
the criticism bordering on abuse by the
masses or they would have severe persecu
tion complexes. They must also possess a
certain "take charge" attitude, often inter
preted as a spastic impulsiveness.
When I think of the presidents or leaders
of the various clubs and organizations I've
been involved with, the majority could be
classified as assholes to a point. I would not
want to be close friends with these types.
They would make me feel nervous or
inadequate.) Still I applaud their enthu
siam. misguided or misinformed as it may
occasionally be. and I'm content to let them
run the show while I sit in the back of the
room and read my economics textbook. I
may grumble and moan at some of my
leaders' decisions, but I will not attack the
character or integrity of this figurehead,
especially if I voted for him. Neither will I
criticize and berate every decision he
The Daily Collegia
Monday, Oct. 26, 1987
tee of Collegian Inc Information on tiling
grievances is available from Gerry Lynn
Hamilton, executive secretary. Collegian
Letters Policy: The Daily Collegian en
courages comments on news coverage,
editorial policy and University affairs.
Letters must be typewritten, double
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than three pages.
Students' letters should include se
mester standing, major and campus of
the writer. Letters from alumni should
include the major and year of graduation
of the writer.
ation of nations whose primary goals do not include
peace. But rare events such as Nobel announcements
perform the public service of distinguishing between
those who prioritize peace and those who prioritize
alternative ideologies.
There are apparently those who still believe that
democratic (or, more accurately, anti-communist) ideal
ogy is necessarily compatible with peace; however, our
"democratic - policies since 1850 have failed to bear this
out. Furthermore, insofar as our blood does not currently
stain the soil, maybe it is time to entertain the ideology of
those whose blood does the Central Americans.
Booting experience
I wish to respond to Matthew Beechold's letter of
Oct. 22 which criticized Todd S. Christopher's column of
Oct. 16 called, "The art of booting."
I suffered from nausea and vomiting on the Wednesday
and Thursday of the week in which the column appeared.
Needless to say, it was not a pleasant experience. I was
touched by the column because it made me view my
suffering in a totally different light. I would like to thank
Todd for reaching out with his thought-provoking, light
hearted insight. Todd's column made my day.
Robert Luysterborghs
sophomore-administration of justice
makes just because I didn't vote for him.
The presidential figure is the one symbol of
those he represents and should be supported
as such.
I don't mean that all of a president's
policies and viewpoints should be accepted
as the final word and opinion with which all
the constituents must agree. Our govern
ment is built upon the principle of letting
everyone have their say.
We deserve the best our country can offer
in a president a virtual superhero is what
we expect, but we should not be suprised
when our leader occassionally gets trapped
within the confines of humanity. It's a job
where the headaches seem to far outweigh
the glory. Maybe I'm an idealist (I've been
called worse) but the only motivation I can
imagine that would drive a person to run for
president is a true love for their country and
an honest desire to improve the quality of
life for all its citizens. Approaches to this
improvement vary in concept and success
rate, but the motivation behind the efforts
cannot be faulted.
Laura L. May is a senior majoring in
animal bioscience and is a columnist for
The Daily Collegian. Her column appears
every other Monday .
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Dave Dixon
graduate-political science