One of us is Wonderful

An honest student actually exists. Thank you, the person who returned my Test ticket. Never has so much been owed to so few, by one,

J.M. Green

OSO on Apathy

I am very concerned on reading the various letters written by Malaysians criticising Tiaw Ngee. Though I am not in total agreement with everything he said, I feel that the criticism hurled at him is not so much the content as the manner of his writing. For anyone to claim that the Malaysians in Wellington are not apathetic, (the main criticism of TN) is naive. Apathy is a bitter yet true fact regarding Malaysians here. Ask yourself this question, how many of you really feel something about the Movick case — even the Cutback issue itself?

How many of you actually care about what is going on at home? How many actually just accept things as they are, never bothering to look deeper into the matter? If anyone does, if he finds that our society has some ills, what do we call them? Commies! Yes indeed, it is a true and fair view to claim that the people are apathetic here.

It is not enough to just accept this and that's the be all and end all. We must do something to change such attitudes, (or apathy never serves any good. It seemed strange to me that many Malaysians had come to expect the association to work for them, not the other way round. The failure of the various functions are due to this. While we are not willing to contribute anything to the functions, we criticised it for being badly run, when the reason for it being badly run was simply that there was not enough manpower. If we wanted to see effective association, we must be prepared to help in whatever way we can. The elections of both associations are just around the corner. If those who think they can do much better than the committee members this year, let those, then, stand, otherwise shut up!

Finally, Fellow Malaysians, it is pointless to argue about apathy. Let us do something about a besides talking!

Persistent Sexism

I would like to congratulate you and your staff on an excellent issue last week. Your special issue on women was both enlightening and constructive. The question that has bothered me for some considerable time, however remained unanswered. Why is it that in some overseas countries, Sweden in particular, where extensive government programs have been carried out, with a view to changing old fashioned ideas about sex roles, women still stay at home and young girls still choose traditionally female school subjects?

Sweden, in an attempt to get more women in the work force, instigated massive legislation, to abolish the sex-role stereotyping they found in their education system. Literature for children was reviewed and in many cases re-written, male pre-school teachers were recruited and other attempts to overcome the traditional prejudices were made. However, despite this large-scale government legislation, research has shown that the children who underwent this form of education in the early 70s, now at school age, persist in choosing school subjects such as needlework in preference to metalwork, home science such as cooking etc. in preference to woodwork, etc.

I am puzzled by this turn of events and somewhat alarmed. Social scientists, psychologists and educationalists have tried everything, could it be that the traditional beliefs about women are so firmly entrenched that even ideologically liberal countries like Sweden are unable to alter?

I would be interested to hear what the males in this country can do, to change these old, outdated and impractical ideas that have been forced down our throats, in the media, at school and all too often at university.

Fat Chance of Success

I see that someone is under the mistaken impression that that scourge of society, namely the Foundation of Druid Practices, has once again come into the fore by advertising that luxury of luxuries; Exosss Groops. Is this country now so unsafe that a true capitalist can no longer screw the unwary for a few more devalued dollars?

I must state that Exosss Groops are no more or less dangerous than an Extra Sensory Pork Sausage in the paws of a ravaged lion which has an acute case of hiccups. To illustrate this I draw your divided attention to the case of Fred Y., a part time Elephant sexer who had seen better sights and days, who although being condensed to the size of a dry cow pat by a rough Tsetse fly which mistook him for the posterior extremity of a stunted Hippopotamus was still identified by the number of stitches in his monogramed EG.

No one has yet tried to relate the large bulls-eye hand embroidered with love and care on the rear of his EG with his rather early demise and nobody shall either.

The bogus testimony given by the Society for the Eradication of Exosss Groops on the behalf of the so called deceased Fred X cannot be counted as valid as Fred X omitted to sign the affidavit presented to him.

Like wetsuits for Hamsters, EG should be taken in moderation and not be combined with bootpolish and Meths. But all being said and you being done EG are still the best thing for chilly mornings or if you prefer (and some deviates do) for chilly nights. So help me to become a millionaire and join the thousands of New Zealanders who are buying Exosss Groops and other crapped merchandise now.

The Environment Resource Centre and the Library

Environment Week at the Students' Association Building helped to draw attention to the new Environment Resource Centre in the library.

When the Resource Centre was described in the Evening Post of June 19, mention was made of the inadequacy of the library to cater for the needs of students of the environment. There was implication that inadequate funding of the library meant that material was not being bought, and complications in using the classification system were preventing rather than aiding students from finding what was there.

There is no doubt that the library already possesses virtually everything which the new Environment Resource Centre plans to obtain except, perhaps, pamphlets; and very much more besides. There are cards representing about 400 books in the Subject card catalogue under the headings Environment or Environmental alone, and this takes no account of the many hundreds of periodical articles in journals which the library possesses, articles which are easily found through the periodicals indexes which the library has. These indexes are a big library's major tools for finding information. The Environment Resource Centre is most unlikely to be able to afford them, if, indeed, they have even been heard of by members of the Centre. The Environmental Impact Reports, of which the library has an almost complete set, are very easily located through the card catalogue. They have been asked for by only 8 students this year, who between them wished to see only 12 issues.

This points to the fact that the trouble may lie in lack of familiarity with the techniques needed by students to locate material in the library itself. Admittedly no classification system will permit all books on different aspects of the environment to be shelved together. However, by consulting the Subject card catalogue first, books should be located easily.

Students who have any difficulties finding material on the environment (or any other topic) should ask the Reference Dept. staff, who are there to help them. Both Reference and Periodicals Dept staff are always glad to show students how to locate periodical articles on a particular topic. We are interested in you and want to help you. We cannot approach you, but you can approach us. I hope this letter will encourage more of you to do so.

Ra, ra, ra for the music student who complained about the state of the listening facilities in the library. The record collection is good, but the equipment is stuffed, headphones don't work sometimes, interference is frustrating, adequate staff service minimal (one has to wait in a line of people for varying periods of time in order to relisten to a track, or to avoid one of the numerous scratches) and sometimes listening in the art exhibition area is very inconvenient (with other people interfering and not being able to read the score properly (and why are the music scores not closer to the records?)

In my view the whole system needs to be considered with an eye to complete replanning. Perhaps there should be a music room in the library with records and listening facilities, with scores near by, and with suitable staff to run it.

A Closet Editor from Auckland

Most letters to student papers reveal their author's opinions to be in line with, or opposed to, those of the staff. (Alternatively they have no opinions, only the desire to see their words in print.) Somehow Salient has polarised opinion so well that word of your exploits has penetrated to the independent republic of Auckland; I read in a letter to Craccum that not only is the editor of Salient biased, but he even admits it.

Leaving aside the question of an editor's right to bias, which I believe in, let's see just how biased Salient is. After leafing through a few back issues in the Auckland studass reading room, both of Craccum and Salient, it seemed to me that relative to the controversy and bias existing around Salient live or six years ago, today's atmosphere is quite mellow. This probably has nothing to do with changes in people's character — I'm sure we would still disagree completely on political questions, for I am still fundementally conservative (rightwing) and you, no doubt, are still fundementally radical (left-wing for want of a better label).

Much more likely there is less to fight about. Vietnam is a continuing story, but the role of western powers has diminished. The civil rights campaigns, and the struggle to remove corruption and oppression within western societies are far from over, but the movements for reform have been much strengthened simply by recognising that the problems exist, and a consensus in favour of solving them.

Additionally, your critics accuse you of journalistic incompetence. Even in Craccum, articles have appeared criticising (humourously) Salient's grammar and spelling - on one occasion nothing appeared amiss with the passage from Salient they held up to ridicule, so I asked the Craccum staff why it was printed. They swore somebody in the typesetting staff, some imp, had "corrected" their copy! and this sort of sabotage will continue in Salient or Craccum so long as either rag continues to employ staff with a sense of humour.

There is no question that typography and layout show more imagination than they once did; the July 3 issue demonstates also that staff are aware of the Power they wield - which letter-writers ignore at their peril.

All contributors to a paper write because they like to see their words in print and read. This is no bad thing provided ideas clothe words with form. In the absence of ideas, only ego remains, and we have something akin to indecent exposure. Part of an editor's job is to discourage this, as it leads to terrible temptation. If a letter or article betrays an infantile mind or ulterior motives, you can publish without comment and watch the poor author turn slowly, slowly, in the breeze - which in the Capital can be brisk.

The titles you give to letters can damn or praise in advance. If provoked beyond endurance, you can append short comments whose effect is to humiliate the writer and destroy his reasoning, beyond appeal. It is a source of constant amazement to me that anyone should be willing to set themselves up as a public Aunt Sally. But where there are students, there also are fools, not excepting myself.

Salient staff are in a fine position to Praise, as well. In particular I note the close relationship between the president of VUWSA (Lindy Cassidy) and Salient. Here in Auckland Craccum keeps [unclear: Mery] Prince very firmly in his place, without being hostile. Perhaps Mist Cassidy deserves her good press. But looking at her "card" in the July 3 issue, I am inclined to suspect that someone on the staff is worshipping from afar. Who wrote those cards, anyway?

I hear you have been in hospital lately. Me too. Whatever was wrong I hope you have recovered fully. Best wishes for the rest of the year, and long live Muldoon!

Snoopy in exile

Teacher Assessment — Part I

Love, 331.

Social-Imperialism Stooges object

Another attack on the Council for World Peace in Salient. Question, why does Salient not support world peace or will it do so only on terms dictated by Huo Kuo-Feng? Question two: who are the members of the Council who did not receive invitations? Question three: their are two people from the University Students Association on the committee yet they haven't attended a meeting for 4 months — why? Some answers would be appreciated.

Issues on a Platter

No doubt, after the holiday recess, these issues will seem distant and less important and a few more political freedoms will have been eroded or just brushed under our Bremworths!!!

Dianne Yates

Low Profile Modesty

Listening to Radio Active the other day I couldn't help thinking how much the jock calling himself Gary O'Keefe sounds like Gary Lewis, one of the station's big shots. Is Lewis merely being modest (as I first thought) or are we witnessing the results of some campaign to make every jock sound like the boss?