Salient Points

Peninsula Shifts Left "[M]erely to catalogue the damage wrought on the republic by business interests would fill the remainder of this issue."

-Peninsula, April [sic] 1995.

Peninsula Shifts Further Left The latest Peninsula also includes a back-cover house ad, proclaiming, "Peninsula: INTOLERANT." The ad compares the publication to historical figures, including "Susan B. Anthony, intolerant of Only Men Voting." Meanwhile, G. Brent McGuire, who once sent a piece to the Lighthouse condemning women's suffrage, has been demoted: Once on the Council of Peninsula, he is now a mere "Guardian." Coincidence?

Perspective Shifts Right "I found that the kind of progressive liberalism with which I approached people ... was out of step with reality."

-Alex Zakaras, Perspective, April 1995

Attention: Ted Kennedy "It is illegal to hire an unqualified person."

-Jesse Jackson, speaking at the Institute of Politics, April 24.

We Weren't Quite Old Enough "They didn't march for voting rights."

-Jackson, criticizing opponents of affirmative action for not publicly supporting blacks' right to vote, a franchise given them by the 15th Amendment.

Et Tu, Gray Lady? "The Republican majority in Congress breezed through its first 100 days with a string of votes promising a broad range of tax cuts and budget reductions. But when the legislators went home for their recess, they found that the voters were at best confused and at worst indifferent about exactly what the Republicans had done.
"Now as the Republicans return to Washington, they find themselves haunted by the difficult prospect of navigating between the budget cuts they must make and the taxes they want to reduce, a path that will be more hazardous with the 1996 Presidential campaign starting."

-page one teaser for a page 12 article in the April 24 New York Times, as impartial as it is logically sound. (Or didn't you realize that tax cuts and budget cuts are mutually exclusive?)

Channeling Khrushchev "In Evansville, Indiana, Vicki Arnold climbed through the drive-through window of a fast-food restaurant, removed her shoes and used them to beat employees. She said she was upset at a relative having been fired." -The New Republic, May 1

How Not to Improve the Ad Board "In Nashville, Tennessee, two state lawmakers have introduced legislation that would punish vandals, burglars, and flag burners with a caning on the courthouse steps. Said Republican Representative Doug Gunnels: 'I'm not an expert on crime. But people who are involved in more serious crimes usually start out with crimes like this.'"

-Reason, May 1995.

The Party of Tolerance? "Rep. Sidney Yates (D, IL) doesn't know why Hispanic high-school students were offended when he asked them if they owned sombreros and did Mexican hat dances: 'I enjoy the Mexican hat dance ... I bought one of those big sombreros on vacation a few years ago.'"

-National Review, May 1.

A Sheep by Any Other Name "On 3 April the Women's Resource Center (WRC) held a meeting for all interested students to plan a response to the upcoming Playboy visit to [Dartmouth]. In keeping with campus liberals' fixation with buzzwords ... much of the meeting centered on terminology rather than action - the chief bone of contention was what to call the respone to Playboy's presence. The feminists suggested initially that the plan simply be called 'protest.' After heated debate, the 'coalition' concluded that a 'protest' might offend some members of the Dartmouth community. Instead, the WRC will mount an 'oppositional response.'"

-The Dartmouth Review, April 12.

But She Did Give Stock Tips "Hillary Rodham Clinton told disappointed residents of Bangladesh, 'No, we do not have cows in our home.'"

-The New Republic, May 1

Bryant Gumbel Quote of the Week "We'll assume you won't be talking with Senator [Alfonse] D'Amato [R-NY], right? ... It would have to be a monosyllabic converstion, so he could understand, maybe?"

-Bryant Gumbel to Katie Couric, April 6 Today show, quoted in the April 24 Notable Quotables.

Eaters of the World, Unite "The Ministry of Health in countries where the government controls the radio and television should take steps to ensure that other sections of the mass media ... are also involved, so that the public perceives the information to be of relevance to them, as well as beneficial to the government ... It is also recommended that governments recruit specialists in behavioral manipulation who can assess the best way of amplifying the communication."

-Diet, Nutrition, and the Prevention of Chronic Diseases, issued by the United Nations' World Health Organization, as quoted in the May 1 National Review.

Not the Best Role Model "The six new [Black Students' Association] executives list among their goals increasing unity and awareness on the Harvard campus, possibly by sponsoring a lecture series by a famous personality like Marion Barry."

-The Harvard Independent, April 27.

But Can You Fake It? "Imagine four Harvard sophomores going out for a night of clubbing. Upon arriving at their destination, they are asked for identification. Instinctively, deliberately, each reaches into his wallet and pulls out ... a state driver's license.

"This may sound innocuous enough, but when I was in that situation a while ago, I couldn't help but wonder, 'Why aren't we using our Harvard IDs?'" -opening to Jon Caramanica's commentary in the April 27 Independent; note the age of most Harvard sophomores and the usual reason for an ID check.

How to Stay in Office... "If welfare recipients were able to break free from their dependency on government benefits, enabling them to move freely around the country, ... Mayor [Rudolph W. Giuliani] said, 'that would be a good thing' for them. He did not directly answer a question of whether the city would be better off if many welfare recipients left town."

-The New York Times, April 29.

New Ways to Balance the Budget "Visiting Iowa today ten months before the presidential caucuses, President Clinton promised to protect farm subsidies from the deep cuts proposed by the GOP. While Clinton wants to cut the $10 billion program by $1.5 billion over the next five years, Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind) has suggested cuts ten times as large."

-Time Daily News Summary, April 25.

Fit for Battle? "Nyleen Mullaly has sued the Minnesota Army National Guard, claiming that its weight restrictions violate her rights because she has an eating disorder. Mullaly weighs 320 pounds. Regulations say she should weigh no more than 155."

-Reason, May 1995.

Corrections A printing error caused the author's name to be omitted from the previous issue's "Easter in Eliot House." This piece was written by Matt Bruce, and, like most of his beliefs and actions, does not necessarily reflect the views of The Harvard Salient.

Crimson editorial chair Daniel Altman was incorrectly cited as "Dan Altman" in the previous Salient Points. On a similar note, the senior editorial staff of the Salient wish the Crimson to refer to them, respectively, as The Lord '96, Beelzebub '96, Thor '97, and Yahweh '98.