Letters

Tuesday, April 16, 1996Caring counts

Editor:

Please permit me to relate an incident which occurred on your
campus Monday evening, April 1. I had driven from downtown Los
Angeles in the pouring rain and arrived at UCLA at approximately
6:00 p.m. for a course on fly fishing.

At the end of class, I proceeded to the parking area and started
looking for my car. A half-hour later, I still could not find it.
Looking across the street, I saw the police station. Reluctantly, I
entered the lobby, thinking that if I could sit down for a few
minutes, I would be OK.

A young man approached me to inquire if he could help. Following
a quick explanation of my predicament, he said calmly that he knew
where my car was parked. He said it was about three-quarters of a
mile away. My brief report that I suffered from high blood pressure
and severe arthritis prompted him to reply that they would run me
over there.

A few seconds later, he got an emergency request for medical
assistance, excused himself, and seconds later, with the siren
blaring, roared off into the night to help some injured person.
Moments later, I was told that they would provide me with a walking
escort. For me, that was a new experience!!

The young man ­ with incredible patience ­ listened to
my stupid story three times as we were walking and said he thought
he knew where my car was parked. After a few minutes, he observed
some skateboarders being very reckless and asked if he could find a
phone and call in a report.

He informed me that he was an English student. He kept me calm,
and reassured me that he would get me "there." Eventually, we
reached the right parking structure. When we came around a corner
and I saw my car, I was very anxious to get home and did not
express my sincere gratitude to him or your fine police department.
Perhaps your records reflect the names of the personnel who treated
me with such understanding and professionalism. Thank them for me
and all the others they help each day.

During my 56 years, I have visited universities in 12 countries,
and around 50 colleges and universities in the United States; UCLA
is magna cum laude in my book. Every time I pay my taxes now, I
will feel a lot better knowing that I am supporting such a fine
learning institution with so many people who CARE.

Philip Whelan

Lost & Found Scholar Fight apathy

Editor:

I was exhausted when I stepped foot through my apartment door
from a hard night’s work. I had been going door-to-door, getting
residents to sign postcards urging members of the state legislature
and Gov. Wilson to reduce student fees by 15 percent.

As I plunked down my box of materials, my roommate asked me a
most disheartening question. "David," he asked me, "why do you
spend so much of your time when students don’t even really care?
It’s not like what you’re doing makes a difference anyway."

I almost cried. Well, you know, not actually cried, but I was
depressed. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. I couldn’t
believe that apathy had encroached the confines of my own home. I
quickly explained to him that I wouldn’t be involved with the
external vice president’s office and Students First! if I didn’t
think that it made a difference. I know the postcards that I help
students fill out, along with the postcards students fill out
throughout the state, do make a difference.

I explained to him that in the last two years, students have
been successful in preventing two reg fee hikes. Because of the
collective effort of students, we have saved ourselves $700 a year
in student fees.

As I told my roommate all this, a confused grin came across his
face and he asked me for the remote control. "Dave," he said, as he
turned to Channel 13 and Pamela Anderson’s well-proportioned body
bounding across the screen, "you’re starting to sound like an
activist." I thought about that for a second. Yeah, maybe I am, but
I did get him and three other of his "smoking" buddies to sign a
postcard. (They thought it was a petition to legalize hemp. You
know, for fabric purposes.)

So, this Tuesday and Wednesday, help out your fellow student
"activists" in the war against apathy by signing a 15 percent Fee
Rollback postcard on Bruin Walk. Even though we have stopped two
fee hikes in the past two years, it is high time we demand back 15
percent of the fees that Gov. Wilson has stolen from us. Who knows?
I might even drag my roommate out there to help.

David Zaheer

Second-year

Political science

Co-director of dorm outreach

External vice president’s officeSurvival of fittest

Editor:

This is in response to Florence Lim’s article about the homeless
("Home front," April 10). The cold, hard truth is that there really
isn’t anything that we can significantly do for the homeless in the
United States; it is not economically possible. Our capitalistic
society allows for one to become rich and successful if he works
very hard at it.

But for all those who have "made it," there have to be others
who don’t, to balance out the proportions of money. Thus, the only
way to alleviate homelessness would be to institute communism. In
that kind of society, everyone is equal and no one is rich or poor.
No one is homeless, yet no one is wealthy. One doesn’t have the
chance to become a success (or a failure, for that matter).

For that reason, I embrace capitalism. What is life if everyone
is equal and there is no competition? While it may be nice to think
that someday the homeless problem will go away, it won’t. It will
only increase.

Now, I am not saying that the homeless are bad people. It’s just
that, economically, things did not go their way. And it’s nice that
people are trying to help the homeless ­ education and job
training are the best way for them to get another shot at success.
But life is not easy ­ and if you’re not a success then you’re
a failure.

In order to become successful, others MUST and WILL fail;
everyone cannot succeed. In America, everyone has the chance to
become a success, yet a lot will fail. Survival of the fittest.

Marlon A. Cicero

Third-year

Applied math