A 4-- The Michigan Daily - Monday, March 20, 1995JmsBNAHTEPLMST Ihe Sidtigun ttIg 420 Maynard' Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan MICHAEL ROSENBERG Editor in Chief JULIE BECKER JAMEs NASH Editorial Page Editors JA~~sR. CR0BNAHF PI7ISS Taking the long, slow monorail to MSA elections Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of a majority of the Daily's editorial board. All other articles, letters, and cartoons do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily. Vote Wolverine Christie, Holley would best lead MSA In this year's campaign for Michigan Stu- dent Assembly president and vice presi- dent, differentiating among the candidates has often been difficult. All are in agreement on the major issues: They want to abolish the Statement of Student Rights and Responsi- bilities (the code), put a student on the Uni- versity Board of Regents, improve campus safety and reject Leadership 2017. Given these similarities, the only way to choose candidates is based on minor issues, experi- ence and style. On the basis of these criteria, the choice is clear: The best leaders for MSA are Mike Christie, Brooke Holley and their Wolverine Party. In the 2 1/2 years Christie has sat on the as- sembly, he has worked harder than almost any- one else to improve stu- dent life. As chair of the Academic Affairs Com- mission, he has been the? driving force behind the effort to lower textbook Chrste costs, meeting with state legislators and pro- viding an expert student voice on the issue. He has also been a key actor in University lobbying efforts, working to obtain the best representation in Lansing for students. As a current MSA member, Holley has also shown herself to be hard-working and competent. Her experience will be valuable in working with representatives on issues of concern to all students. As the candidates agree on all major cam- paign issues, it is on the smaller issues that the Wolverine Party truly stands out. Christie and Holley have made a commitment to minority student retention. They have pledged to reform the meal plan to increase conve- nience for students. They also have vowed to unite the various school and college govern- ments to work together on academic issues. Their platform contains a diverse set of goals - some broad, such as working against repressive policies, and some narrow, such as modifying the meal plan. This wide range of objectives is more creative than some of the other slates, which in large part echo what MSA has historically cared about doing. In addition, Christie's and Holley's lead- ership skills would greatly benefit MSA. They have spoken about the need to elimi- nate partisan bickering on the assembly - and though they admittedly are heading a party themselves, they are more removed from the Michigan Party-Students' Party squabbling than many of the other candi- dates. They are also a well-balanced partner- ship, differing on national political ideology - not a concern in the present elections - but united in their concern for students. They have the most ability to do what MSA needs: Get the job done. For these reasons, Christie and Holley are clearly the best candidates. However, other teams have presented commendable plat- forms and images. The Michigan Party, headed by Flint Wainess and Sam Goodstein, has shown enthusiasm and knowledge about the issues. It also has history in its favor: In the two years the Michigan Party has been in power, its members have done more than anyone in recent memory to improve MSA's credibility among students and administra- tors. Past Michigan Party leaders have con- centrated on issues such as the code and especially the student regent, bringing the student body closer than ever to representa- tion on the board. They deserve praise for their efforts, and whoever is elected should build upon the excellent work the Michigan Party has begun. However, Wainess and Goodstein have been members of the Michigan Party for only a few weeks. While they obviously support the party's platform and past actions, they cannot be elected on the accom- plishments of their prede- cessors. The two have no experience on MSA, and while their tenure as Daily Holley editorial page editors has made them knowledge- able and passionate about student concerns, it does not necessarily qualify them to lead a student government. In addition, were Wainess and Goodstein to be elected - considering the bitter nature of the campaign and the resentment their nomination has cre- ated even among some Michigan Party mem- bers - they would likely be hamstrung in much of what they attempt to do. While this is not entirely their fault, it is a concern nevertheless. Brian Elliott and Fiona Rose of the Stu- dents' Party also care a great deal about student-group funding and student rights, and Rose is impressive in her knowledge and speaking ability. While currently too young and too caught up in ideology to be MSA vice president, she is an articulate and intelligent student who has the potential to be an excel- lent leader in the future. However, despite their good ideas and their passion, Elliott and Rose have not dem- onstrated an ability to go beyond ideology and implement their proposals. They place great emphasis on student outreach and mo- bilization, but their ability to build a working relationship with University administrators is doubtful. In addition, the Students' Party has behaved shamefully during the cam- paign, playing politics of the dirtiest kind. It is impossible to look kindly upon those who appear more concerned with a partisan game than with effective student governance. Other candidates have presented interest- ing ideas, but none has shown the slightest ability to be effective and realistic student leaders. On the contrary, effectiveness and realism are the Wolverine Party's main strengths. Christie and Holley would be the best at pulling students together, creating consensus and - above all - accomplish- ing what they set out to do. They have shown these skills in their time as representatives, and would no doubt bring them to the execu- tive officer positions. For the best MSA leadership available, the clear choice is the WOLVERINE PARTY. It is often said that college is a world within a world. To some, college is a stepping stone. Bill Clinton spent his days at Georgetown University collecting names and phone numbers and in turn recording them on index cards. According to "First in His Class" by David Maraniss, which chronicles Clinton's rise from student body president to leader of the United States, Clinton had amassed thousands of names by the time he made his unsuccessful run for Congress in 1974. To others, college is their Great Awak- ening, full of kindred academic spirits and powerful ideas that one day might change the course of history. Some students go on to be Rhodes scholars, others write ground- breaking political science theses or hatch chicken embryos. Others go on to gradu- ate schools or write for newspapers. And this is just the tip of the academic iceberg. Among these students are a group of ambitious seven "student leaders" who want to dedicate a year of their life to serve students as president of the Michigan Stu- dent Assembly. With less then 48 hours left before students take to the ballot box to vote for their friends in the upcoming MSA elec- tion, candidates can be seen at dawn in the Fishbowl plastering neon-colored cam- paign posters replete with their photos and cute slogans like "It's time for change" or "Vote for me." In the evening, janitors tear down all the posters in the interest of maintaining campus cleanliness. To the two candidates who awake Fri- day morning as the newly elected court jesters, two things: Pick up your new re- sumes at Kinko's and work to change MSA from the farcical and disorderly dog- and-pony show to an intelligent body that really works to change the face of this world-within-a-world. Focus on issues that really affect stu- dents. Now to the "issues" and ideas some of the candidates have been bouncing around. First: The Code. Every candidate is in favor of abolishing it. Yet no one seems to understand that there are only two ways to dismantle it. First, stage massive student protests in fervent opposition at a regents' meeting or in President Duderstadt's 2068 Fleming Building office. (Please call ahead to notify Walt or Brenna.) Second, ask really nicely. MSA PRESIDENT: Dr. Hartford, please abolish the code. Please? Pretty please? HARTFORD: Well, I'm not sure. Let me get back to you. MSA PRESIDENT: Thanks, I got into a "Private Ivy" law school. Have you seen my resume? It has University of Michigan Student Body President in 18-point type. Second; Campus Safety. While many candidates oppose the Department of Pub- lic Safety, the body responsible for a safe campus, many believe that all students should be safe. I think this can best be done by arming everyone or starting a campus student police force. I believe they tried that in China. It was called the "Cultural Revolution." It wasn't pretty. Third: Most-Favored Nation Trade Status for China. While some MSA par- ties believe that engaging the Chinese will bring about democratization and human rights improvements, other candidates see Washington putting short-term economic interests ahead of principle and good pub- lic policy. Fourth: Student "Bill of Rights," Office Hours and Monorails to North Campus. Who cares? Students already enjoy the protections of the Constitution. Save the political stunts and vapid slogans for when you run for Congress, County Commission or the Bake Sale Committee at your local house of worship. And office hours are for TAs, not for- MSA members. Is this to be a typical' conversation? STUDENT: I have a lot of problems. No money, no food, I lost my loan and I'm having trouble with Spanish 102. MSA PRESIDENT: I feel your pain. How much should I make the check out for? As for a monorail from North Campus to Central Campus - not a chance. Why don't you rejoin us here on the Planet Earth? Save the monorails for Disneyworld. Fifth: Health Care. Lobby Congress to transfer Medicare to MSA. Hey, even MSA might do a better job on this one. Despite the polemic pratfalls of MSA, the petty partisanship and attention to meaningless twaddle, there is a place for a pro-active student government beyond passing out money for T-shirts and self- defense classes. But I've become jaded by years of mind-numbing incompetence and impotency. Candidates, remember that ris- ing tuition pays for student leadership programs. Remember that many students are concerned about campus safety, health care, curriculum and funding but there is not much you can do about it. Pick your battles. Find your issues and fight hard. But remember that you are here first as a student. A title worth infinitely more than president. 0 0h JIM LASSER 1991-1995 The struggle to the top alone will make a human heart swell - Albert Camus SHARP AS TOAST C 1 d t Z NOTABLE QUOTABLE "We're rebuilding Shapiro mainly because it was the UGLI because it was ugly." - University Regent Laurence Deitch (D- Bloomfield Hills) 0 i ..e, w pml 11 LFTmx~s On-line ADVICE would benefit 'U' To the Daily: Lou Stefanic needs to read the Students' Party budget pro- posal more carefully. Regard- less of his perception of Brian Elliott's and Fiona Rose's pro- posal, the intent is not to cut ADVICE funding but to save $5,000 by moving it off paper and on-line. ADVICE Magazine has been historically touted as a great service MSA provides for stu- dents. In theory it is a good idea - that there should be a service listing student evaluations of courses for students during CRISP. It has typically been printed twice a year. In general, it is done in first-rate fashion, and Lou and Lauren should be lauded for their hard work. However, the true test of a product lies in its results. AD- VICE publishes the results of year-old evaluations. In a year, there can be a large amount of turnover in departments and courses. Some courses are not nfaA afllnl. nro n.. arc nra licly-accessible database through the MSA computer net- work. Alternately, it could be arranged with ITD. It is likely that more students would read ADVICE, especially if it could be accessed 24 hours a day like e-mail. It would be especially convenient in light of the num- ber of people who use UM- CRISPINFO. Bales of current and past ADVICE issues litter the MSA offices, and these in themselves are evidence of the fact that we must take a hard look at how to make ADVICE more accessible. Dante Stella LSA representative Daily ignores non-revenue sports teams To the Daily: I am writing as a student athlete at the University of Michigan. Over the past few weeks, I have been shocked by the lack of coverage of non- revenue sports. Over spring break, four different sports teams (men's and women's cxvmnn'n,.nr..~'c arnd stinmsn'c at NCAAs. Kevin Sullivan be- came a national champion, yet he was hardly mentioned in the small track article on the first page. Instead, readers had to dig to page 6 to read about his ath- letic achievement. The Daily should be committed to report- ing about all outstanding ath- letic achievements, not just those accomplished by the bas- ketball or football teams. These revenue sports have failed to produce even a Big Ten title this year, not to mention an NCAA title. Perhaps the Daily and this University's students should support some of the teams that have accomplished this feat. Alecla Humphrey LSA senior Member of the Michigan women's swimming team Music review shows Daily's incompetence To the Daily: I have been reading the Daily's brilliant critiques of the latest released albums -for the past four years now and have finally felt compelled to write to differ remarkably from mine and from the many hard rock fans in the country. Brian Gnatt's critique of Van Halen's latest record Balance in the March 7 edition of the paper is typical of many of the Daily's musical reviews. If a band is popular, successful or liked by more than a few people then the Daily will be relentless in its criticism, while groups with little musical or singing talent are placed on the mountaintop of the music industry. The latest Rolling Stone gave Balance 3.5/4.0 stars. For the Daily, I will equate this into a grading scale. This is some- where between a B+ and an A-. I understand the Daily does not know what these grades are be- cause it has been an "F" paper for the past four years. The musical review is just a part of the trash. I think I will trust Rolling Stone with reviews of albums before the Daily. On a final note, if the Sgt. Pepper or Led Zeppelin IV albums were released contemporaneously, they would probably be por- trayed as musical garbage by the esteemed Daily Music Re- view. Editors' Note Over the past few weeks, various people on campus have questioned the Daily's position on this semester's MSA elections. Because the Michigan Party's presidential and vice-presidential candidates, Flint Wainess and Sam Goodstein, are former editorial page editors of the Daily, many assumed we had a conflict of interest. Some said we would definitely endorse Wainess and Goodstein because of our previous relationship with them. Others said we would not endorse them because we feared the appearance of bias. The reality is neither. When the Daily makes endorsements, our only consideration is who the best candidates are. We do not endorse people because of our personal relationship with them, nor do we shy away from that relationship and endorse someone else. Wainess and Goodstein are highly respected at the Daily, and they have many friends here. However, that respect and those friendships did not have a bearing on our endorsement.