4A - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, January 27, 2000 atefirtich41,gtttt tt r1 Silence won 't mute ignorance; we must speak up- 420 Maynard Street HEATHER KAMINS Ann Arbor, MI 48109 Editor in Chief daily.letters@umich.eduE Edited and managed by JEFFREY KOSSEFF students at the DAVID WALLACE University of Michigan Editorial Page Editors Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of the majority of the Dailys editorial board. All other articles, letters and cartoons do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily. Too 'Code' for comfort Hazing policy overstep s bounds A nyone who knows me well knows that I love to argue, and I hate to lose. Although I ask a lot from people, I expect twice as much from myself. I have many of opinions, some of which are probably wrong, but still I usually am quite persistent in expressing them. And although I am shy, it takes a lot to" leave me speechless. A distressing con- versation at a house y.. party this weekend, though, silenced me and paralyzed me from action. It was very late - Heather about 3 a.m. - and a Kamins group of 15 people, tired from alcohol adid and the hour, lin- a ins gered on couches at the party. When the hour gets late and the most important choice a partygoer can make is whether to grab one last beer or head to bed, it is a bad time to start philosophizing on any subject. I realize that at such a time, words become slurred, arguments become dis- jointed and obscenities are flippantly spewed. But conversation of course continues, and in this case crossed the line. A ranting partygoer began spouting offensive terms - jerks, pricks, assholes, etc. - to describe a few students at the University whom he does not like. The list of insults grew, eliciting laughs and nods, until one four-letter word slipped out and silenced the room. "They're such Jews." The members of the group being put down are not Jewish. The speaker obvious- ly is not Jewish. In fact, no one in the room was a Jew, except me. The University is a very diverse place. There are nearly 6,000 Jews enrolled at the University, a significant proportion mak- ing it a very popular and comfortable school for Jewish students. So naturally, if a derogatory comment against Jews slips out, people freeze. Everyone stopped, the noise stopped and all eyes turned to me. Several people immediately piped in, "You can't say stuff like that here." I said nothing. I'm pretty fortunate, I guess. That was the first time in my 21 years that I have encountered such a blatant anti-Semitic comment. Of course I've heard the jokes, and yes, I've surely laughed at same of them too. But this use of the single label "J1ew" - the specific name of a people, my people - as a synonym for scum, dirt or. trash tore me inside. At first I was just worried about the peo- ple around me, my close friends, staring at me. They meant no harm. I am sure of that. But I was scared of being singled out, wor- ried about being different, fearful of being pitied. "You can't say things like that," I meek- ly sputtered. A few witnesses tried to mitigate the sit- uation with supporting words, and I appre- ciated their efforts, but all further talk just added insult to injury. So then a change of topic came as a relief. And then I forgot about it ... for a while ... until I started thinking about how I responded. JReports of hazing at the University have surfaced multiple times during the year. The fundamental problem of reporting and controlling hazing raises many concerns about student safety with- in the Greek system. This recent rise in incidents has led Interim Vice President for Student Affairs E. Royster Harper to work to "put more teeth" into the University's hazing policy. She plans to create an anti-hazing hotline and to strengthen relationships with national fraternity organizations. The Interfraternity Council and Panhel are also participating by appointing a joint task force to create specific policies on hazing violations. The University's involvement in making policies for haz- ing should be limited to prevention; it should not punish alleged offenders out- side of committing academic miscon- duct. The effort the University put forth to deal with hazing seems ineffectual and pointless. An anti-hazing hotline requires the voluntary action of the pledge or per- son being hazed to call and report the abuse. But students pledging fraternities and sororities are often unaware of what constitutes hazing. Reassurances from fraternity brothers of the tradition and rit- ual in the hazing seemingly justifies the mistreatment. Why would a pledge active- ly object to poor treatment if it creates a feeling of group unity and historical pride? The proposal of creating greater ties with nationals may also prove meaning- less. The national fraternity organizations have limited power to regulate each indi- vidual chapter on each separate college campus. Unless the national fraternities could place a 24-hour monitor in the houses, any form of interference would be looked upon as just that - interference. But as trivial as the suggestions may be, awareness is the first step in finding a solution. The recent hazing headlines are cause for alarm, but the University must main- tain its primary role as a learning institu- tion. Contrary to what the administration may believe, it is not a criminal justice courthouse. Academic misconduct such as cheating and plagiarism fall under the University's jurisdiction. But it is unreasonable for the University to expel or suspend a student for hazing when the police and courts already such matters. The University's purpose is to teach and educate students, not fight crime and punish those who break laws. This issue relays back to fun- damental problems with the Code of Student Conduct, which violates the doc- trine of "double jeopardy." A student should have the same rights within the University as outside of it. Infringing on students' rights is equally appalling as hazing. At times, the Greek system appears only to make problems for the University, in terms of alcohol regulation and hazing, but it is an organization created for stu- dents - not for the University. Even though the new hazing policies seem rather harmless, the University must remain within proper boundaries. Laws and rules created to punish those who haze could also punish those who take a stand. Any regulation the University may place on fraternities and sororities must still abide by the rules set by the constitu- tion. Lack of personal freedom is a prob- lem that always takes precedence. What is our responsibility to handle ignorance? We are all forced to interact with peopfe who do not look like us. sound like us, talk like us or pray like us. We are forced to face situations in which choices must be made Often we won't know which choice is right. I chose to stay silent, and have not y5 forgiven myself. But really was there a better choice? I could have spoken up. I could have gotten angry. Maybe I should have just walked away in silent protest to show how disturbed I felt. Would that have made my point br would I have alienated people further? In the end, I found that really the most hurtful part is that I was hamstrung, wit no clear answer or solution. Still, though, I blame myself. I do not blame the speaker for being ignorant. As simple as it sounds, he did not know better. I do feel guilty though for my silence. I choked then, but I have a column and I have a voice. We all have a responsibility to stand up to discrimination - against ourselves atid others. I was mad at myself that night becauser knew my reticence made it impossible for him to learn how wrong his words were. I had a responsibility that day to stand up against something I knew was clearly wrong. That is what I am doing now. I only hope that next time, whether it Is you or me, we won't let the opportunity and responsibility pass us by. -- Heather Kamins can be reached via e-mail at hbk@umich.edO GIND.N G TIEIN CHIP CULLEN Where there's smoke Seton Hall tragedy signals 'U' needs changes Tragedy beset Seton Hall University last week as a fire in the Boland Residence Hall claimed the lives of three students and left five others in the hospital. The residence hall was ill-equipped to handle the fire, as no sprinkler systems were installed in the dorm. Seton Hall's lack of sprinklers most likely contributed to the magnitude of the fire, as did the 18 false alarms at Boland since the start of the fall semester. False alarms are the norm and the vast majority of dorms nationwide are without sprinkler sys- tems - a dangerous combination, especial- ly when the typical dorm crams 1,000 stu- dents into its quarters. Just recently an elec- trical fire in Mary Markley Residence Hall caused severe damage to a room on the sixth floor. Like Boland, Markley does not have sprinkder systems. Not only should The University add systems to all residence halls, but the state should require them. Several alternatives would not only pro- vide safer dormitories for University stu- dents but would also increase fire education across our campus. The first of these is a change in University policy that would require all residence halls to install sprin- klers. This change in University policy would nicely complement a new piece of Michigan legislation that would mandate fire safety sprinklers in dormitories. University residence halls must also provide students with a clearer picture of what their room's electrical outlets can handle. Not when arriving at school each fall, have no idea over-used electrical outlets provide a serious. fire safety hazard. A simple brochure at new student orientation would provide students with a better understanding of how wonderful the surge protector actual- ly is. Even offering a discounted surge pro- tector to each student would make it obvious how well these handy items actually work. Education is always the most preventive method of fire safety. One only need look at the staircases in South or West Quad to see what not to do architecturally when preparing a building for fire evasion. If students were to try to walk down to the ground floor on the stair- case next to the sixth floor's elevator lobby in South Quad, they would become frustrat- ed. This is because that person would end up on the fifth floor, terribly confused, as the stairs stop on this floor, then start up again on the third floor. If a person attempted to escape a fire using these stairs, they would not only be frustrated, but also in danger. There are many examples of this staircase situation in both buildings, not just on the sixth floor. The most disturbing idea is that both residence halls house at hundreds of students, yet it can be quite confusing for these students to escape a fire in their own building. Re-assessing the University's fire code uncovers many faults with the lack of fire sprinklers, fire education and dormitory Michigan sports fans are better than OSU's TO THE DAILY: After watching the Michigan-OSU hockey game on TV last Friday, I realized one thing: Michigan has the best teams and fans around. I was appalled at the sad behavior of the "fans" at Value City Arena (that name - another thing I won't get into). Did anyone else see this? Yes, someone from OSU behaved like an ass on live televi- sion. (Those in question were fortunate- ly removed from the arena.) I am hoping that the Yost regulars will show up in droves next Saturday and show Ohio State what being a fan really means. We do not throw things on the ice in an unsportsmanlike rage, we do not phys- ically attack the other team when we are losing. Friendly (or maybe not so friend- ly) jocularity is a part of hockey, but the obscene behavior of a few persons last Friday night is unwelcome. I'm looking forward to Saturday, and I hope that we maintain our usual decorum. We have such a great team, it's the least we can do to uphold their dignity. So let's fill the barn on Saturday and show them how it's done. ERIN OROURKE LSA FIRST-YEAR STUDENT Birth control methods should be pro-active TO THE DAILY: In response to Jesse Herzog's Jan. 21 letter "God's opinion on abortion unclear," claiming God created abortion: God did create abortions. They occur nat- urally and we refer to them as miscar- riages. Humans created induced abortions, which is the subject under scrutiny, and these are unnatural and unnecessary, except in rare cases when the procedure can be used to save the life of the moth- er. I, too, used to be avid pro-choice until I choseto terminate a pregnancy which could have and should have been avoid- ed. Here in the United States, with easy access to cheap birth control, there is no excuse for such destructive measures. A better solution: be pro-active, not reac- tive. Promote access to fertilization pre- vention in places where abortion is ille- gal, rather than passing laws to play God. DAISY RATEAU LSA FIRST-YEAR STUDENT Letter's abortion Y A a out several flaws in his argument. While it is true that the Bible is unclear as to "God's opinion" on the subject of abor- tion, Herzog's assertion that God created everything, and therefore, God created abortion, is misdirected. Following his line of thought, God must have created sin, immorality and all of the negative aspects of human life. This illogical assumption is the result of an improper interpretation of Revelation 10, which is not mindful of the context in which verse 6 is written. The verse is speaking of "things" which God has created. These "things," which in other textual references refers to phys- ical objects, include all that is in heaven, on the earth and in the sea. Abortion is not an object, but an act, an unnatural intervention to disturb a natural process. In all of nature, willful abortion of the fetus by its mother is, so far, not observed. To illustrate the shortcomings of Herzog's interpretation, let me use the example of divorce. Did God create divorce? He may have created the people involved in the divorce process, but to say that God created the institution of divorce is hardly an accurate conclusion. To the contrary, God has laid down moral codes throughout the Bible which show His abhorrence with all sinful practices Through Moses, He allowed for divorce in the Pentateuch, but Jesus (per- taining to Christians) said that divorce was not an original institution, but rather the product of man's sinful nature (Matthew 19:8). Also, in Malachi 2:16, it is clear that God hates divorce. To say that a man made institution is God's cre- ation would require that in any mental and physical exercise, God's intentions and thoughts are channeled through man's intentions and thoughts. This would be an abrogation of man's free will, thus the two origins of institutions must be kept separate. Like divorce, abortion is not natural (in mostdcases). Moreover, abortion is unique to the human species, as is mar- riage, and thus divorce (more complicat- ed, but I must be brief). Like divorce, abortion is a man made institution, not originally intended by the laws of nature. .! .-thpr it.isasin nr. not h niP.r1-Q -tnil all the infants and "sucklings" as well as their domesticated animals. It is difficu to ascertain, doctrinally speakin whether this inclusion of newborns is equating their "value" with adults, thus preserving their rights, or if it is, imply- ing that any living being that is tainted with sin is worthy of death. Personally, I support the latter, since contextually speaking, the prior conclu- sion would imply that all humans are on par with animals. Yet I believe in pro-life in most instances. This is my personal stanc Publically, I think that laws basedo moral principles have no place in a democracy that doesn't want to abide by them, especially in the form of sweeping legislation. Rather, the decision to abort a child rests solely on hearts and con- sciences of the parent. All who believe in a final judgement should keep this in mind, as only God has the right to "convict" sinners in the las days. Remember that true freedo includes not just the freedom to be morally equipped, but also the freedom to make mistakes. JOSEPH KIM SCHOOL OF DENTISTRY Basketball team needs to beat Michiga State1 TO THE DAILY: During the last week the Michigan. basketball team has turned hopes of a cameo appearance in the Top 25 to pipe dreams of the NIT. In the game against Iowa, their loss could be attributed to missed free throws. The margin and sty* of their loss to Indiana is not. Everything. fell apart. Ridiculous shot attempts, awful' defense and zero intensity. As a maize, rager, I would hope that this team can. show some sign of life when Michigani Sae mfes to town. '{ Pkti M O ALL I a k p <444#44 0 4444AA, f.OfA I