LETTERS: Actions, not wasted words

To the Editor: Exum's contention concerning "the Church's shameful inactivity in the years leading up to the war in Europe" is painful and false. The Church -- like such bodies as the International Red Cross, and the World Council of Churches -- did not waste its time and resources denouncing the Nazi regime directly; only the death of Jews and Christians would result from such vain gestures. The Church, instead, used her influence to provide a means of escape. It is estimated that through Pope Pius XII, 80,000 Jewish lives were directly saved during the war. As a former Israeli diplomat in Italy succinctly put it: "The Catholic Church saved more Jewish lives during the war than all the other churches, religious institutions and rescue organizations put together. Its record stands in startling contrast to the achievements of the International Red Cross and the Western democracies." Oscar Schindler, responsible for saving the lives of some 3,000 to 4,000 Jews, is today justly lauded and remembered. Do Pius XII and the Church he led through darkness, who rescued 80,000, deserve any less? Said Albert Einstein in 1941, "Only the Church stood squarely across the path of Hitler's campaign for suppressing truth. The Church alone has had the courage and persistence to stand for intellectual truth and moral freedom." Seth Scanlon College '01 Alternate accounting To the Editor: In Tuesday's DP, it was reported that Alternate Spring Break has to pay off a SAC debt of more than $500 ("SAC releases figures on FY98 student group debt," DP, 2/2/99). This is simply not true. Many years ago, ASB did run up quite a debt to SAC, but due to the hard work and organization of last year's coordinators and participants, all of that debt was worked off. Last week SAC gave us the same $500 debt figure. First of all, we are still negotiating with SAC about this, because our books say we had a surplus. I'm sure other groups are doing the same thing. Perhaps in the future, SAC should wait until the end of these negotiations before publishing damaging reports. Second, these debt figures were given to us almost halfway through the second semester. This delay is the source of many problems for ASB and other organizations, as we have to set our budgets early on in the first semester, going on our books, not SAC's. Adam Herzog Wharton '00 Financial Coordinator Alternate Spring Break Writing on the wall To the Editor: While the administration's continuous efforts to improve the campus are commendable, I do have one concern regarding the proposed new Wharton building ("Wharton releases building plans," DP, 2/2/99). No one seems to have brought up a small issue: The wall of the former bookstore facing 38th Street advertised all sorts of things: from welcoming sorority pledge classes to performing arts shows. It is obvious that the new building will not incorporate such a tradition. I for one will be sad to see it go. I suggest working a "message wall" into the design of the plaza in front of the new undergraduate entrance. This would preserve the approximate placement of the wall, allowing those going down Locust Walk to see the ads. Another possibility would incorporate such a wall into the revamped Superblock or in the Perelman Quadrangle. Since neither of these ideas is particularly concrete, I invite the University community and the administration to come up with a suitable replacement. Vladimir Yakopson College '00 Insensitive remarks To the Editor: I find it somewhat sad that in Tuesday's sports section next to an article about a coach coming under fire for making insensitive remarks about the disabled ("English national soccer coach in trouble," DP, 2/2/99) your crack staff included in the Sports Night Editors box the comment, "no retards on this team." Perhaps your staff should come under the same fire and people should be calling for their resignations. Matt O'Connor Wharton MBA '99