To the Editor:
In your article about the Student Assembly's report on ROTC ("SA drafts report backing ROTC," March 30), you write that the SA report states: "To remove ROTC would run contrary to the College's 'need blind' admission policy, and would fly in the face of any ideology which bars discrimination based upon economic status." Even though this is only a draft, it is important to correct a common misconception.
What the Assembly report fails to realize is that the U.S. military (and, subsequently, ROTC) is one of the biggest discriminators based upon economic status. The military (and ROTC) amount to economic slavery of the American underclasses. If a person has opportunity because he or she has money, he or she doesn't need to enlist. However, if a person needs opportunity, he or she is given a very viable economic option in the form of the U.S. military. The elite are exempt; the oppressed are pawns of a militaristic government. This is economic discrimination at its finest.
What Dartmouth needs to do is get rid of the ROTC program because it discriminates based not only on sexual orientation but also on economic status. In ROTC's place, Dartmouth should allocate a comprable amount of money for loans and/or scholarships. This would present an option for students needing money to attend this school without enslaving themselves to the U.S. government.
DAVID COHEN '94
