4A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, February 18, 1999
(he Iidtigan ltafi||lg
420 Maynard Street
Ann Arbor, MI 48109
daily. letters@umich.edu
Edited and managed by
students at the
University of Michigan
HEATHER KAMINS
Editor in Chief
JEFFREY KOSSEFF
DAVID WALLACE
Editorial Page Editors
Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of the majority of the
Daily's editorial board. All other articles, letters and cartoons do not necessarily reflect
the opinion of The Michigan Daily.
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Why waif is wrong and other beauty myths
"I'm sorry but Iam not a maiden fair I woman over 20 is gonna have a hard time heads? I'm sure primordial woman just
am not aprettygirl, Idon't really want to be matching the supposed elegance of a pre- hit herself with a rock until they fell out,
a pretty girl. I want to be more than a pret- pubescent teen. The girls in these mags but all she has to do now is put a Band-
ty girl."-Ani Difranco have bony angles that you can only mea- Aid on her nose, and yank hard until she
never met a woman who was happy sure with a protractor and a ruler. They're removes 20 layers of epidermis. There is
with her weight, about a decade from developing any type a bright side - the pore strip can also
of course I never of curve. There's a reason you don't see reduce snoring and helps you breathe bet-
met one who was Claudia Schiffer or Rachel Hunter any- ter if you play in the NFL. Beyond the
happy, but that's more, they actually became women, and pore strip, I'm sure the ridiculous
another column. I who wants that? These magazines do have Summers Eve commercial doesn't need
also never met a girl articles on healthy body image and the further explanation.
who was haute cou- dangers of eating disorders, but right next Marketing has convinced men that our
ture, heroin chic or to some girl who doesn't eat. (Do not women must match up or be relegated to
pret d porter. (Of worry - she's hooked up to a Glucose IV the post party hook up. After all, you can-
course I don't speak drip between shoots) . not really have a real relationship with a
French, which may The Cosmo Website actually has an woman if she's not in the Sports
have something to advertisement for Jenny Craig, which Illustrated Swimsuit issue. Women, don't
do with this.) Cut asks "Are you overweight?" This is about pay attention to this. Men are stupid
me some slack, I'm Michael as ridiculous as wallpapering an sometimes and while we fall prey to pop-
not a womens stud- Nagant Alcoholic's Anonymous meeting hall ular media too, we also have serious hor-
ies major either, but with Absolut ads. mone issues. (Apparently so do women,
I've got some prob. .fe You expect the worse from glamour see Sarah Lockyer's Tuesday column.) We
lems with the popu- Serial mags, but not media like the New Yorker will salivate at anything in a bikini, and I
lar media's tired por- or Rolling Stone. It's amazing what pass- guarantee if you put Drew Carey in a
trayal of the ideal woman. es as a serious profile of a female musi- Victoria Secret Angel Bra, we'd think
Public enemy number one is the "glam- cian today. twice.
our" magazine. I'm sick of the mythic A typical piece on Jewel usually Finally, lets just lay off Calista
nymphette who slinks her doe eyed angst includes the phrase, "despite her crooked Flockhart and Kate Moss. While they
across the cover of any glossy mag. If the . teeth, Jewel is very well endowed; oh, exhibit the body types of which I am
popular idea of a woman is oil can and she has a new album out too." speaking, they are body types. It is possi-
slathered mascara and a figure that would Male writers especially seem to focus ble that they have really "good metabo-
make Skeletor jealous, count me out. on Alanis Morrisette's nude video, rather lisms. The climax of an Ally McBeal
Take a look at any fashion spread and all than asking why the hell is she thanking episode should not be, "is she gonna eat
you got is soft porn, drug abuse and gun- India? that sandwich?" It doesn't help much to
toting Lolitas. John Keats says truth is Television is even worse. If the booty keep harping on those people who may be
beauty, and the truth is these women real- shaking ghetto queens in Foxy Brown different than us. All we do is generate a
ly don't exist. A friend of mine who videos don't reinforce my point, then just stereotype of what's normal by our stan-
interned at a modeling agency informed watch commercials. The men in corporate dards, and this is the basis of all great dis-
me that the majority of their clients who boardrooms have caught on to the trend crimination like racism and sexism.
front the covers of Elle and Vogue are 13- of selling product by making women - Ifyou would like to lead a mass mili-
16 year olds. These girls would make insecure. As a case study, let's look at the tant movement against Cosmo this
Humbert Humbert think twice. This Bior6 Pore Strip. For the past 200 years, summer e-mail Mike Nagrant
shouldn't come as a surprise, but any what did we do about those nasty black- at mjnagran@umich.edu.
0
Improvements target life sciences programs
B rilliant minds coupled with intense
research and laboratory experimenta-
tion help bestow doctors with the power to
heal. This simplified equation for produc-
ing the miracles inherent in modern-day
medicine often begins at the college level.
Countless hours of study from devoted pro-
fessors and students offer hope to sick peo-
ple everywhere. Keeping pace with the sci-
entific advances of the new millennium,
University President Lee Bollinger plans to
improve vital programs on campus. The 19-
member Life Sciences Commission,
released proposals last Friday that will have
direct effects on the University and life
beyond. The report focuses on five science
topics: genomics, neuroscience, structural
biology, biocomplexity and biotechnology.
The topics may sound overly complex, but
they represent essential medical disciplines
on the rise.
The University currently ranks as No. 21
nationally in the life sciences field. The
report "Challenges and Opportunities in
Understanding the Complexity of Living
Systems" outlines how to improve the pro-
gram, which will bring us closer to the fore-
front of medical understanding. Proposals
entail great strides for students and profes-
sors alike, such as establishing an
Undergraduate Science Center. Allowing
more undergraduate courses and concentra-
tions, this facility will broaden opportunities
to explore science. In addition, the commis-
sion wants to construct a complementary
research site that bridges the Medical
Campus with the North and Central campus-
es. Tentative locations for the buildings exist
in the commission's plans along with ideas
for hiring new staff. Bollinger anticipates
recruiting about 45 people to bring knowl-
edge to each science topic. Also the numer-
ous Michigan Workshops detailed in the
commission's 158-page report call for first
rate scientists from around the globe to help
examine key topics.
By augmenting the life sciences pro-
grams, the University can become a more
reputable place of higher learning.
Acclaimed professors and scientists will be
drawn to the new opportunities for research,
thus increasing the overall standing of the
University. Since the commission looks to
have definitive plans by fall, incoming class-
es will be increasingly more attracted to what
the University has to offer. Significantly,
Bollinger, Vice President for Medical Affairs
Gilbert Omenn and Provost Nancy Cantor
welcome feedback from faculty and students
at the core of the departments who partici-
pate in proposal discussions.
Most people involved support the pro-
posals, but some staff members like biology
Prof. Steve Easter believe too much empha-
sis is placed on biomedical areas. Yet, this
attention to medicine is necessary. The
University lost many high level geneticists
in the early '90s to rival research centers.
Zoning in on medical studies will reassert
the University's esteem, recalling a more
productive time such as the late '80s when
University researchers located the genes of
fatal diseases including cystic fibrosis and
neurofibromatosis. To better the future for
all, the University must delve deeper into
life science today.
Anti-affirmative action speech sends wrong message
By the staff of The Lantem
(U-WIRE) COLUMBUS - Bringing a
speaker to campus who claims racism
doesn't exist is a strange way to celebrate
Black History Month.
That's exactly what's happening
Tuesday, with author Dinesh D'Souza
speaking at the Ohio Union on why affir-
mative action is unnecessary. D'Souza is
the author of "The End of Racism" and
worked in the Reagan White House.
The speech is in part sponsored by the
Ohio Union Activities Board, a group that
brings a broad variety of speakers to cam-
pus. As shown by former Vice President
Dan Quayle's paid stump speech in the fall,
the board has become a tool for conserva-
tives to use Ohio State's money to help
fund right-wing speakers.
Although it's still a stretch, a case could
be made that Quayle has some sort of
broad appeal as the former vice president
and butt of a 1,000 late-night jokes. No
such illusion exists with D'Souza.
The premise of D'Souza's latest book is
that Ronald Reagan has done more positive
and lasting than any other individual in the
20th Century. An Indian immigrant who
came to the United States in 1978,
D'Souza is a darling of conservatives who
love to tout his background as a sort of per-
verse credential.
His major claim to fame is the book
"The End of Racism." Among the book's
arguments is that slavery was not a racist
institution. D'Souza suggests because
there were thousands of slave owners who
had at least partial black ancestry, and that
in some cases those owners were more
cruel than whites, slavery couldn't have
been justified by racism.
Another argument used to support
D'Souza's assertion that institutional racism
doesn't exist is that whites have nothing to
gain from oppression. He claims instead that
the "civil rights industry" oppresses poor
blacks as a way of continuing programs of
racial preference and set-asides.
D'Souza's rhetoric builds to a crescen-
do with his solution: Repeal the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 and replace it with a
new law that prohibits any recognition of
race within the government, but allows it in
private industry.
In other words, make discrimination
legal to cure racism. D'Souza conveniently
turns criticism away from those who dis-
criminate toward those who try to solve the
problems of racism, albeit with imperfect
solutions.
Bringing D'Souza to campus is a good
thing. Ohio State should be a place where
students have a chance to hear from speak-
ers of every political persuasion, right-
wing extremists included.
But the activities board isn't supposed
to be about just bringing in political
speakers, much less only those from only
one side of the aisle. That makes it twice
as offensive that the speech falls right in
the middle of Black History Month.
It's an affront to black students, and
holding a panel discussion afterward is a
mere afterthought to appease critics. The
board has removed any doubt that it's
anything other than an arm of the
College Republicans. An upcoming
change in its leadership must ensure that
it is not controlled by someone with a
political agenda.
D'Souza is part of a bigger wind blow-
ing through this part of the country.
California and Washington have banned
affirmative action, with Michigan targeted
next. Ohio might soon follow, with state
Senator and OSU faculty member Eugene
Watts leading the charge.
People need to speak against people
like Watts and D'Souza now, before we
have what has taken place in California: A
devastating drop in minority enrollment at
state universities. D'Souza's arguments are
their own undoing, but using the university
coffers to legitimize such people makes a
bad statement about OSU's commitment to
minority students.
- This editorial ran in The Lantern,
Ohio State University's student
newspaper; on Monday.
TENTAT'.Y SPEAKING
I
Discrdio ad
Drug provision must be removed from act
In October 1998, President Clinton
signed the Higher Education Act into
law. The details of this act are currently
being finalized in order to implement the
plan. One of the provisions of the act is
that it suspends federal financial aid to
students who have been convicted of
drug-related offenses under federal or
state law, although they can eventually
regain eligibility for financial aid if they
complete a drug treatment program and
pass two drug tests given without prior
notice. This provision is unfair for sever-
al reasons and should be eliminated
immediately.
Withholding federal aid from students
with previous drug convictions denies
these students a chance to obtain a quali-
ty education. Seeking a college education
indicates a desire for self-improvement;
denying someone that chance is counter-
productive.
This regulation does not account for
many students' desire to change their
lives for the better. Students who have
already been penalized for drug use
should not be punished again by losing
their financial aid.
In addition, this plan would likely
prove most harmful to minorities and
people from low-income areas - often
those who are most in need of financial
aid.
For example, blacks make up only 12
percent of the U.S. population, but
account for a disproportionately large 55
percent of drug convictions. This could
have an adverse effect on campus diversi-
ty, at a time when a diverse student body
is becoming increasingly difficult to
arhie ve
Adding to the detrimental effect of this
resolution is the fact that many students
are not aware of the way in which it will
affect them;
For instance, some people may plead
guilty to a minor drug-related offense in
order to receive a lesser sentence. But
because of such a plea, they may become
ineligible to receive financial aid.
In addition, not everyone may be
aware that they could lose financial aid
that they are currently receiving. This law
does not only target serious offenders. A
person who experimented with marijuana
in high school would be equally liable to
lose their eligibility for financial aid. A
minor offense such as this should not
have such serious long-term repercus-
sions. Smoking one joint should not lead
to the same kind of punishment that
would be given to, for example, a heroin
dealer.
Denying financial aid to students
because of drug convictions, while appar-
ently a way of dealing with drug use
among young people, does not really treat
the underlying problem.
Allowing students who have been con-
victed of a drug offense in the past to
receive financial aid would give them a
chance to attend college and improve
themselves; withholding financial aid
denies them that chance. And this regula-
tion likely will disproportionately affect
minorities, which is not only harmful to
minority students themselves, but to
higher education as a whole because it
could threaten campus diversity. For
these reasons, this financial aid provision
of the Higher Education Act of 1998
shnuld h everturned.
THOMAS KULJURGIS
A VISUAL
ATTACK
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THKFAr
To
Students must
choose their own
identities
TO THE DAILY:
I remember when I first was enrolled in
this school. I was so sure of everything,
where I was going, what was in store for
me, who I was. I think now that I was sore-
ly mistaken. Even now, I have no idea where
I stand. It's easy to be confused. From the
Diag preachers, to the sororities and frater-
nities, to the preppy kids, to the school
clubs, to those people who always seem to
be wearing black, I wonder how I made it
this far without being totally confused.
People have tried to get me to join their
clubs or groups, even the people who said
that no one should be in a club wanted me
to join their group. I always told myself that
being in a group would not be an integral
part of my life, nor the exclusion of all
groups either. I figured that my beliefs and
hobbies were my own and would not be
affected whether I found myself in a group
with similar tastes, or found myself with a
hobby like no other person had. Now, I
don't know what to do.
Maybe it's the brain rot from watching
too much television, or the burn out from
my classes or maybe even the fact that I too
seriously considered the courses of other
people's lives, but now I feel like a lost soul
wandering through campus. I never claim to
be the best or the worst at anything. I know
that for some reason there are those who
find comfort in thinking that they are the
.t htt I Adn't .sM bhid 'strul ois i the
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know that you're not alone in the world. If
nothing else, there is me.
JONATHAN ZAGEL
ENGINEERING JUNIOR
Affirmative action
has many benefits
To THE DAILY:
I am writing in response to Julie
Hermann's letter to the editor ("Affirmative
action must be discontinued," 2/15/99). On the
surface, her question "Why must minority
groups - who insist on equality - demand
special preference?" sounds valid. But people
score that they feel was not graded fairly.
Especially where it has adversely effected
their overall grade in the course. What do
they do if they're really angry? They state
their case as to why they deserve a better
grade. Special preference in this context is
the professor taking time out to listen and
respond accordingly to your defense,
because the fact of the matter is that the pro-
fessor does not have to listen to us at all.
Opponents of affirmative action argue that
a professor should not even take the time
out to listen and respond accordingly.
Now do you think that is right? Are stu-
dents wrong in defending their exam answers?
The fact that we expect professors to listen
and respond to students' complaints is exactly
why proponents of affirmative action demand
authority figures to listen and respond to
I