Letters
The Dinan Affair (Cont.)
I was glad to see in the April issue that a few alumni, at least, sided with David McLaughlin on the Dennis Dinan controversy. Let me add my vote to theirs.
I spent most of my work years writing and editing for various organizations, both profit and non-profit. It seemed to me then, and still does, that the concerns of the lonely man at the top should hold a very important place in your plans if you edit an official publication. Aside from authority, he may have insights and judgments that are sometimes better than your own, however humiliating that may be. And it is certain that he will have a far broader range of responsibility.
Within these guidelines, I found, there is still room for innovation in format and treatment and even thoughtful protest when the need arises.
Then, at a place like Dartmouth there is such an abundance of worthwhile subjects that have no connection with front-office issues. An example is the article on cancer research by Shelby Grantham in the current DARTMOUTH ALUMNI MAGAZINE. It is a good job of science reporting for the lay reader, it has a strong Dartmouth connection, and Lord knows it is relevant to all of our lives.
Dennis Dinan chose to seek other fields rather than go along with these conventions, as interpreted by the administration. I wish him well as he is certainly an aisle young man. The exposure he has received won't hurt him a bit in the editorial marketplace, if that is the road he wants to take.
Meanwhile, the College and freedom on the press will survive and President McLaughlin, I sincerely hope, will go on calling them as he sees them. I don't think this has the makings of another Dartmouth College Case.
Ridgefield, Conn.
Last week, I had what must be termed an unusual experience for any attorney let alone a Dartmouth alumnus. In two entirely unrelated cases, I was able to cite the Dartmouth CollegeCasern the controlling precedent. Unhappily, I must conclude that I am only half the lawyer that Daniel Webster was because my DartmouthCollege argument only prevailed in one of the two cases.
One judge, with tears in his eyes, ruled that a corporate charter issued by the state of Utah is no less inviolate than one issued by George III. The other judge, a cold-hearted fellow, stated that the fact that our corporation was small was immaterial and that he didn't care how much our slate of directors loved the corporation if the shareholders didn't love the directors.
On a more serious note, I would like to say that I have been thoroughly impressed with the quality of the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine over the past several years. It has managed to objectively report news of the College while at the same time presenting a loving portrait of a campus which so many of us fondly remember.
Unhappily, the recent changes in editorial personnel and policy confirmed my worst feats regarding the appointment of a non-academic to the post of president of Dartmouth College. Those changes reflect a profound Jack of understanding of the need for an absolutely unrestricted exchange of ideas at an institution of the caliber of Dartmouth. I might add that this admonition applies with equal force to those ostensibly liberal members of the Dartmouth Community who would try to silence the usually repugnant Dartmouth Review.
Forgive me for speaking like an attorney, but I submit that Justice Holmes' famous observation about, free speech merits particular attention at Dartmouth College. He wrote: "It [free speech} is . . . not free thought for those who agree with us, but freedom for the thought that we hate. ..."
Salt Lake City, Utah
Being of that ancient group which has seen its 50th reunion arrive, be celebrated, and pass, it is quite amusing to read the heated comments re: the Dennis Dinan affair. It is clearly evident that Dartmouth College has produced a goodly number of second guessers, Monday morning quarterbacks, and self-appointed "holier-than-thous."
For my part, I want to congratulate Charles Widmayer '30, no spring rooster himself, for undertaking the task of holding the Alumn Magazine together during a difficult period. Since I am no longer allowed to offer him a "Wah-Hoo-Wah" and since "Give a Rouse seems insipid, I'll just say, "Thanks, Charlie.
Boca Raton, Fla.
Two letters in the April Alumni Magazine suggest that President McLaughlin could win a reputation for a sense of justice, humanity, and helpfulness to Dartmouth alumni by asking Dennis Dinan to return.
The lovable and effective mayor of New York, the Little Flower, Fiorello LaGuaria, once rectified an error of judgment, and added to his stature by saying: "When I pull a it's a beaut." The simplicity and openness of that statement will open hearts and minds a long way down through time.
Thetford Hill, Vt.
Those Who Can . . .
I am distressed by the apparent lack of respect for educationalists and educational institutions displayed in the Corbin advertisement on page 2 of the January-February issue of the Dartmouth Alumni Magazine. As I turned the cover page, staring me in the face was the statement, "If all one company can do to grow is to buy another company maybe the management should go into teaching."
After all, what is Dartmouth but an institution of teachers and others who value education? The attitude of "those who can't do should teach" serves to denounce the entire profession. To find such an attitude not only tolerated but proliferated in the publication representing our own educational institution (the very publication which should rather serve to ameliorate the reputation of educationalists) is upsetting. Although you have stated in your magazine that you are not responsible for the opinions and claims of the individual contributors, you nonetheless do subtly condone the ideas presented by their mere appearance in your magazine.
If Dartmouth does not respect its own profession more than this statement indicates, how can we hope to gain and maintain the necessary respect and support of our alumni and others in and outside of the Dartmouth community? Is the money gained from one advertisement worth that much?
Howard, Colo.
{Mr. Corbin responded that no such slur was intended. Looks like we all dropped the ball on this one. Forthe record, an idea or article's "mere appearance" inthe Magazine emphatically does not imply the Editor's support or approval. Ed.]
The Arms Race
It is encouraging to learn that once again Dartmouth is out in front presently in promoting discussion and education on a subject of concern to us all and one which, incidentally, has been glossed over too long and often in fact has been swept under the rug.
I speak of two articles in the April issue. "The Arms Race and the Life of the Mind' by Stephen J. Nelson, and 2) "A Universal Concern" by Steve Fatnsworth '83 the Under graduate Chair. Both articles give proof that both faculty and students are willing to faceup to one of the most controversial of issues and put their beliefs squarely on the line.
Farnsworth begins with this statemenr. "There is a new movement of hope in America today ..." and though it may be only a gut reaction, I somehow feel this to be true. At the very least a start is under way, something Perhaps long overdue. It is also reassuring to know that President McLaughlin is lending his support toward these discussions.
In any event I applaud Messrs. Nelson Farnsworth. None can yet predict the future of the"new movement," but should it take off with a snow-ball effect, not even the most astute would-be administrators will likely be able to suppress it.
New Haven, Conn.
Balanced Coverage?
I have just received the April 1983 issue of the DARTMOUTH ALUMNI MAGAZINE and I am disappointed that you failed to give balanced coverage to the national debate of arms control and the nuclear freeze issues. On page 16, Stephen J. Nelson gave his thesis, on page 43 Steve Farnsworth '83 followed along in the same vein, and low-and-behold on page 65, there is Farnsworth again extolling the virtues of Sanford Gottlieb '46. All three articles call for disarmament and how wonderful a nuclear freeze would be. No articles with a different viewpoint were published.
How about finding a few people to give the "safety in strength" view point? I am sure a majority of the alumni would not agree with Nelson and Famsworth, particularly those of us who have participated in one or more wars brought on by our military weaknesses, especially in the late 19305. We remember only too well the Oxford debates of the 1930s and Neville Chamberlain who said, if England remains weak we will not antagonize Hitler and he will become a nice peaceful man!
On page 23 of the April issue you "Gave a Rouse" for Major General Anthony Lukeman '54, U.S. Marine Corps. How about an article by him? Or. how about an interview with Rear Admiral Peter Brown '49, U.S.N.R., a classmate of mine, and a distinguished businessman.
Balanced coverage old boy!
Lexington, Mass,
Success
Compliments to Dr. Reeves (and author Campion) and Mr. Sturman on those two stories in the March Alumni Magazine.
The Sturman article ("What is Success") is a reminder of a framed motto done in colorful petit-point that hung in my parents' modest farmhouse.
"He has achieved success who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much."
Can anyone supply the author or origin of
this? Lerner's Alfred Doolittle would have added "with a little bit of luck."
La Jolla, Caltf.
Setting the Record Straight
Through summer vacations and marriage I have been associated with Dartmouth and its environs for over fifty years.
As a youngster I was a bystander in an animal house scene. More recently, I've read of fights about the Indian, fights about women, fights about year-round classes, fights about The Review, fights about alcohol ad nnauseum yet the alumni continue to loyally support the Big Green by thought, word, deed and big green $.
Thank you, Libby Schmeltzer, for explaining Dartmouth's mystique! I knew it had to be more than the scenery!
When I read Libby's article ("Setting the Record Straight") and the one about the woodchoppers, I thought this is too good to be true, but then the articles about race relations and rape officers made me realize we're still going to read it "like it is"!
Kenmore, N. Y.
Of Kayaks and Whitewater
Perusal of Ted Winterer's article on Whitewater racing in the April issue of the Alumni Magazine became a trip down memory lane for me. As far as I can recall, the piece was accurate even down to the smallest detail, and it nicely evoked the spirit and flavor of the period.
Although Ledyard was pretty much independent of the College, I recall clearly the invaluable assistance given us by the DCAC: kayaks stored under the basketball stands, use of the pool, free publicity, phys. ed. credit, letter awards, and even help with our distinctive uniforms that sported the Indian symbol subtly displayed, but proud.
It is true that Ledyard did not receive a subsidy from the College, but it must be admitted that we never really asked for one, either. It was an interesting experiment seeing just how far a bunch of undergraduates could go on their own without a hierarchy superimposed from above. Yet, the DOC's John Rand always stood by, in the background, ready to help.
Although the article concentrates on just a few who made the international headlines, the roll of honor must also include those tireless students who supported the club's activities during those halycyon years: Daniel, Dewey, Falcon, Fauer, Goldstrohm, Idler, "Skiltis, Albert Sidney, two.Knights, Meyer, Peterson, Riley, Roberts, Rubel, two Ruhles, Salovaara, Thompson, Webster, and Wilson to name just a few. The alumni, too, were instrumental, headed by Pete Knight '32 who raised money to improve 'the clubhouse.
Former Dartmouth Ski Team coach Al Merrill also played a significant role in Ledyard's success abroad. We shamelessly mined Al's vast knowledge of the European racing circuit. The experience he had gained just a few years earlier while with the U.S. Nordic Ski Team he unselfishly shared with us. Most of the success ful strategy designed toward our approach to the 1972 Olympics in Munich was a result o Al's knowledge. Thus Al receives much of the credit for our showing in '72.
It was a pleasure to read that Ledyar thriving today, and that it continues to evolve and keep up with the times. Of particular inter est to alumni are all the improvements along the river bank. It's worth a trip down there this summer to see the action.
Jay Evans '49
P.S. You will find the expression COHAEREMUS inscribed over the fireplace at the Ledyard clubhouse. It is the closing used by old Ledyardites when corresponding with one another. I believe it translates roughly to "We stick together." Amherst, Mass.
The April ALUMNI MAGAZINE article on white water kayaking gave well-deserved and long overdue attention to Dartmouth's dedicated paddlers. However, I was sorry to note the omission of one of the greatest kayakers ever to grace the gates at Ledyard. She is Carol Fisher, Class of 1985 at Dartmouth Medical School.
Carol has won eight of the last ten U.S. titles in the down-river event and has represented this country five times in the World Championships and five times in the Europa Cup. She won the worlds in the team event in 1979 and placed fourth individually.
Along with other Dartmouth-associated U.S. White Water Team members Billy Nutt, Dana Chladek, and Bruce Swomley, Carol will be traveling to the World Championships in Merano, Italy this coming June. Best of luck to Carol, Billy, Dana, Bruce, and the rest of the U.S. Team this summer!
Hanover, N.H
Having been a recreational kayaker at Dartmouth during the late 19605, I enjoyed Ted Winterer's excellent history of the sport.
As for the decline in Dartmouth's pre-eminence in national and international competition, part of the reason is undoubtedly the growth of the sport and the greater white water opportunities in warmer climates, as Mr. Winterer suggests. But I suspect an equally great reason was the departure of Jay Evans from the College and from the Ledyard Canoe Club in the mid-19705. At least from my perspective, it was his dedication, organization, and coaching that inspired paddlers like Walker, Nutt, Burton, and Campbell not to mention his own son Eric.
Burlington, Vt.
NROTC Reconsidered
Although I am pleased the NROTC issue is being reconsidered by the College, I am concerned that the decision-making process that leads to the termination of the program 14 years ago may not have changed much. The March Alumni Magazine states that an 8-member committee has been appointed to investigate the issue. It cites the generic composition of the committee, but not the experience of its members in this subject. There is no clue as to whether any or all of them graduated from the NROTC program or whether personal experience in the program is considered important. I submit that unless a substantial number of the committee members graduated from the NROTC program, the viewpoint of the most knowledgeable group on the subject may be lacking in the committee's deliberations.
I hope the College reinstates the NROTC program. For some students it will be the wrong program and they should not participate in it. But for some students it will be the right program. I was fortunate to be able to make that choice and I feel that I benefited tremendously from the program. I would like today's students to have the same freedom to make their own choices.
San Leandro, Calif.
Dartmouth in Trouble
Ms. Jean Korelitz in the Undergraduate Chair, March 1983, raises too many questions to ask. Therefore, I shall not ask whether it is her idea or Sam Smith's that Sam sought to diffuse tension by attacking a paper boy. Neither shall I ask what does Kim Selmore mean in her objection to being called a "malfactor" (sic); nor shall I ask if that was a spelling mistake, or just a logical extension of a "liberal education." In that direction lies madness.
Instead, let me congratulate Ms. Korelitz on her perspicacity. Indeed, minority matriculation has dropped, because minority applications are falling. This high school teacher knows personally three minority students who didn't bother to complete their applications to Dartmouth this year alone. Instead, the WASP is going to Wellesley; the Franco- American is going to Penn; and the Polish- American is going to Cornell.
Dartmouth is indeed in trouble. Like Ms. Korelitz, I too was "depressed by seeing the College's image subjected to the whims of a few egotistical and immature young men," way back in the sixties and seventies. I was told that they were exercising "academic freedom, and that there was nothing the College could/would do. Dartmouth's present situation has been carefully cultivated over the last two decades. To blame The Dartmouth Review for the situation is like blaming your doctor for diagnosing cancer.
The Dartmouth community needs to get its own act together before it asks the alumni for help. I, for one, am not about to refuse my next issue of The Dartmouth Review because it tells me what I have been saying for years.
Fitchburg, Mass.
I was surprised to read in the January/February issue of the Alumni Magazine that admissions are holding firm. If I were a high admisstudent and all I knew about Dartmouth what I read in the papers, it would never occur to me to apply there. Me, attend a college that apparently condones a student newspaper that ridicules blacks and other minorities, and employs journalistic techniques no doubt inspired by the antics of the Nixon administration? Me live among wild, destructive, misogynistic, nascent alcoholics? Me, support a college whose new president wants the ALUMNI MAGAZINE to function as a mouthpiece for the administration? Not on your life!
It's a good thing that all I knew about Dartmouth when I did apply eleven years ago was that it was a great academic institution in a beautiful place. It does make me wonder, though, just who exactly is applying to Dartmouth and whether they read the same papers that I read.
New York, N.Y.
What Price Self-Defense?
I am dismayed that the DARTMOUTH ALUMNI MAGAZINE finds the activities of a Dartmouth alumnus on behalf of the National Rifle Association worthy of notice (March 1983). Surely there are alumni making more constructive contributions to the health and welfare of our society.
I take exception to writer Shribman's claim that Mr. Cassidy's language is a mix of emotion and reason. It seems the latter element is severely lacking. There surely is no logic or reason in Mr. Cassidy's thoughts that lure my mind.
Mr. Cassidy's claim that no statistics exist linking availability of guns to the crime rate shows a remarkable lack of knowledge from one so active in the gun ownership arena. How does he explain that the homicide rate by guns numbers in the teens in countries with strict gun controls such as Japan, England, and Sweden, while here in the U.S. the rate is in the tens ofthousands?
Does Mr. Cassidy sincerely believe that should a burglar enter his home or place of business, the proper social response is to put a .45 caliber slug between his eyes? More importantly, is he unaware of the enormous body of statistics that shows that the gun he keeps for just such an occasion is just as likely to be used against him, or worse, used accidentally to inflict wounds on his children?
But perhaps his most glaring use of fault) reasoning is in his claim to the rights of private property "It's like all of a sudden saying that TV is illegal and all sets will be confiscated. Can Mr. Cassidy cite any cases in which a TV was used by an enraged husband to kill his wife in the heat of a family argument? Or when was the last time a crafty burglar, in the dark of night, broke into a home with a loaded caliber TV hidden in his coat pocket? Whete does Mr. Cassidy's right of private property end? Suppose I feel I need a dozen grenades,2 bazooka, and a crate full of TNT to myself? Is this, too, guaranteed by the Second Amendment? ,
As an emergency physician, I am all too fa- miliar with the results of private gun ownership in this country murdered spouses, accidentally killed or crippled children, and an alarming attitude that with a gun by my side I am safe and secure. Nothing could be further from the truth.
Denver, Colo.
In the past I have found the Alumni Album section of the DARTMOUTH ALUMNI MAGAZINE excellent in highlighting Dartmouth alumni who are leaders in their fields. I do not take exception to the fact that J. Warren Cassidy '63 may be a leader in his field as an executive of the National Rifle Association; however, I do take exception to the fact that his efforts were titled "A Just Cause" and also exception to many of his assertions.
When Mr. Cassidy asserts that a vast majority of the handguns in the United States are never used in a crime, he ignores the bulk of the problem with handguns. The vast majority of domestic violence resulting in severe morbidity and fatality occurs as a result of these handguns.
As a physician having practiced in an emergency room setting, I commonly confront the victims of handgun use face to face. For every patient I have seen injured or killed by handguns during the course of a crime, I have seen ten or more who have been injured because of accidental discharge of a weapon or, more commonly, as a result of domestic violence. I see this as quite a high price to pay for the illusion of self defense and certainly not "A Just Cause."
Mr. Cassidy and the National Rifle Association focus on the Second Amendment in their defense of unrestricted handgun ownership. However, the NRA interpretation of the Constitution is being challenged in the courts. A recent U.S. Court of Appeals ruling in the seventh circuit in Illinois concerning the Morton Grove, III., case supported the strong handgun ordinance of this township and dismissed progun arguments. The ruling concluded that "it seems clear that the right to keep arms is inextricably connected to the preservation of a militia and that "the right to keep and bear handguns is riot guaranteed by the Second Amendment."
Luckily for the health and welfare for the American public, the forces of handgun control are growing and gaining in momentum while the arguments of the handgun porponents are being critically examined-in the courts, in the voting booths, and in the hearts of all Ameri- cans.
North Vassalboro, Me.
At the Movies
I write to correct an error in the recent article on Darttmouth alumni in motion pictures ("mouth at the Movies," Nov. '82). In the 1961 production of Hamlet, David Birney '61 Paved Hamlet and Michael Moriarty '63 Played Laertes. the great pleasure of being the Stage manager the production, and I know that Professor Emeritus Henry B. Wil- liams, who directed the production, would wish me to keep the cast list straight. After twenty years of directing undergraduate productions, I still look back on this one with great affection and respect.
Chicago, Ill.
A Quality Issue
I was delighted to see Charlie Widmayer at the head of the masthead of the ALUMNI MAGAZINE which gave me reason to understand what a quality issue this April 1983 issue was.
I would like to get a half dozen more copies to pass around in Omaha because of the amazing article on cancer by Shelby Grantham.
Ross McIntrye, the Director, is from Omaha and in fact I interviewed him for Dartmouth some years ago.
I was amazed at the agility of the author in getting through all those technical terms and disappointed only that Ross' class was not mentioned sso that everybody would know he was a Dartmouth graduate.
His father, who was head of the Pharmacology Department at the University of Nebraska Medical School, died a few years ago, but his mother would welcome the article which I will get to her.
Omaha, Neb.
{Dr. Mclntrye is a member of the Class of 1953 Ed.}
Just a word to express my relief on finding the current March, 1983, ALUMNI MAGAZINE a bit easier to read than issues of the past year. The print being about the same, the improvement is apparently because the number of lines for an average principal page has been reduced from 69 to 60, and for the Alumni Notes and Obituary pages from 80 to 71. Many of us older alumni have deteriorating eyesight in my case from hardening of the retinal arteries making small crowded print hard to read. Any further steps toward greater legibility will be welcome.
North Hampton, N.H.
Pacifism: a Definition
I appreciate the fine job Steve Farns worth did in describing my work in the peace movement (April issue). The New York Times story Steve quoted, however, contained an error, which he repeated. The fact is, I am not a pacifist.
A pacifist is someone who is committed to the practice of non-violence. Pacifists oppose the use of military force on principle. This is a view I respect but do not fully share.
Although I can imagine few situations in a nuclear-armed world where military force could resolve conflict with some semblance of ration- ality, I think there may be some. Therefore, I don't fit the definition. I believe, nonetheless, to avoid catastrophe nations must render nucle- ar and conventional arms and must create a political climate which would preclude their use.
I am very glad to see Dartmouth taking the lead in dealing with this issue.
Washington, D.C.
An Historic Note
It seems to me that Rog Allen (in his letter in the April issue) in comparing the relationship between the ALUMNI MAGAZINE and the administration with that between a newspaper and its commercial publisher is barking up the wrong tree. The commercial publisher's objective is to make a profit; the non-profit publisher whether school or college, a cooperative, a library, a hospital, or whatnot is concerned with service. At times there may be a variance between divisions of a non-profit organization, but it doesn't follow that the chief officer of the organization alone can say "thou shalt not."
And further on freedom of opinion: I worked during my student days as a student assistant in the President's office, when Charlie Widmayer was Director of Publicity. At the same time I was a member and secretary of The Dartmouth Union. During the winter of my senior year there was a strike of the workers at the Vermont Quarry Works. At the D.U. we collected clothing and distributed it to the strikers. Some time later I found out, through filing correspondence, that the president of the company had written Mr. Hopkins concerning a sizable contribution to the college. But the company president objected to the D.U.'s support of the strikers. Mr. Hopkins could have spoken to me at any time when we passed in the office and Said, "Ed, look this is very embarrassing, " or something stronger. But there was not a word.
Certainly if a college president felt that he had to keep everything in line, this was one time. But not a word.
This illustrates the difference between a leader who believes in academic freedom and one who wants to run a tight ship. Ernest Martin Hopkins will always stand dear to me as a true academic leader.
Arkville, N. Y.
Civil Disobedience?
I'm sorry to see that even with the change in management the ALUMNI MAGAZINE still indulges sleazy and unsubstantiated attacks against the student editors of The DartmouthReview and their outside supporters.
A recent edition of the "Undergraduate Chair" addressing the issue of race relations on campus offers as "proof" of growing racial tensions the "fact" that I was "scared to death" in the presence of a black professor. The author, presumably lurking behind some bush, analyzed from thirty paces my reaction when one Professor Bill Cole passed me on the street on his way to greet several student acquaintances. The author left out the following facts: 1. The students Professor Cole was approaching were all black, and all friends of mine. One was a close neighbor freshman year; another was my adviser when I was an undergraduate advisor. 2. I had just left class with two of the three students, and in fact we had just been discussing my recent editorial in The Dartmouth Review: 3. All three of the black students take strong exception to The Dartmouth Review on political grounds.
The point is that despite what the ALUMNI MAGAZINE claims, Dartmouth students of all backgrounds do regularly disagree, and as befits an academic institution, do so civilly.
Which leads neatly into a consideration of people like Bill Cole and Sam Smith with whom civil disagreement seems impossible.
Yes, I was scared of Bill Cole; I continue to be. After ail, several days before the incident described in the ALUMNI MAGAZINE, Professor Cole had, over the telephone, threatened me and my staff. And several days before that he had banged violently on the dorm door of our female staffer.
By selectively excluding some facts, and obscuring those facts you do include, it. is the ALUMNI MAGAZINE that is contributing to misunderstanding and tensions on campus.
Hanover, N.H.
