4A - The Michigan Daily - Monday, January 31, 2000 Iie irbi an ai 420 Maynard Street Ann Arbor, MI 48109 MIKE SPAHN daily.letters@umich. edu rEDITOR IN CHIEF Edited and managed by gEMILY ACHENBAUM students at the studets a theEDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR University of Michigan 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. Lawyers to the left of me, hypocrites to the right Editorial page platform for student ideas A mericans love to loathe lawyers: The wretched mass of Armani-wearing, BMW-driving men and women searching for a harmed or otherwise offended person and the punitive damages that go with them. Those evil vultures hiding in the shadows s# . of hospitals just wait- ... . ing to use terms like. "therewith," "hereto" and "estoppel." As a <. result, states and the U.S. government havex begun a process of tort reform designed to cut the incentives to sue by reducing avail- able damages and restricting the money- Jack making large class- Schillaci action suits.C Conservatives have jumped on the band- x fL ?3i wagon, and more than a few times recently, members of the GOP have claimed that the courthouse doors should be closed to some of the aggrieved. They see lawsuits against the tobacco industry and Microsoft as a means to punish companies for being successful. There is a lot of merit to tort reform. Americans are incredibly litigious - in 1998, 256,787 new lawsuits found their way into U.S. District courts alone, accord- ing to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. Many suits are filed simply to draw a quick settlement because plaintiffs know their cases won't survive a judge and jury's wrath. And some lawsuits are just stupid - Amazon.com sued (and won an injunction against) BarnesandNoble.com for infring- ing their patented one-click book-ordering method. Now B&N users have to - gasp -- double click. Now there's a brilliant, unique idea that needed legal protection. But the type of lawsuit that really gets the blood boiling are those that try to alter something significant in the constitutional or social order. After Brown v. the Board of Education, some states decided the Supreme Court was so wrong that they could nullify their decision. The Warren Court, and to a lesser extent the Burger Court, were decried as anti-democratic when they found many of the rights our generation takes for granted. But now the tide has turned, and conser- vatives find themselves on the plaintiffs' end of lawsuits. It would seem that conser- vatives have got the upper hand using a tool they claim is abused by trial lawyers. From campaign finance to civil rights, courts have been making some serious rightist inroads lately at the behest of conservative groups. Many conservatives complain about the rich trial lawyer lobby that hates them so while at the same time supporting some of the legal machinations conservative judges have made in recent years. For example, George W. Bush, a man who insists his would-be judicial appointees would not use the bench to legislate, has lauded a recent string of Supreme Court decisions that has seen the court acting more activist than it has for years. Similarly, while he brags about cutting junk lawsuits back in Texas, he has filed a legal complaint with the Federal Elections Commission against a Website critical of him (www.gwbush.com), saying that "there ought to be limits to free- dom." Poor thing, he got his little feelings hurt and now he wants the man with the gavel to fix it. John McCain is suing the New York Republican Party over its idiotic primary 'A University, like other organizations, requires a certain unitv. It is organic, a total of interrelated parts, demanding coordination, direction and leadership." - Tom Hayden It is Feb. 9, 1960. Phil Power is the Daily's Editorial Page Editor. Hockey player Red Berenson, then "Michigan's newly eligible center," is about to hit the Wolverine's ice for the first time that week against Michigan State. The Varsity Laundry Company - complete with drive-in service - washes, dries and folds up to five pounds of laundry for $1.00. Tom Hayden, a Daily Staff Reporter, is given half of the edito- rial page for an opinion article titled "'U' Administration: A Critique." While Varsity Laundry is defunct, Power would become a University regent, Berenson the Michigan hockey coach and Tom Hayden, a notorious '60s liberal activist, state senator and one of the University's - and the Daily's - most famous alumni. There is nothing quite like looking through the Daily archives. The yellowed pages tell a striking tale of both campus and national his- tory, from the viewpoint that only a student- written, student-edited and student-managed newspaper can give. It's not what you'll learn in History 161. Simply by being a newspaper, the Daily inadvertently chronicles its own his- tory as well. For 109 years, the Daily has embraced the editorial freedom granted to us by the United States Constitution - the free- dom that allows us to put out this paper. The press is needed to keep tabs on every- thing from national politicians to University professors. But only the opinion page can offer judgment, giving it the unique power to chal- lenge ideas. As one of a mere dozen college papers in the nation financially independent from their respective institution, Tom Hayden could critique the administration without ethi- cal conflict. Hayden's extensive opinion piece attacked the "fragmentation" of the University administration ("Most administrators knew nothing of the curtailed library hours until they read about it in the Daily,") and the adminis- tration's debatable dedication to undergraduate education ("It pays too much heed to public relations and financial needs.") Hayden was just a student voicing his opin- ion to the University community in the only forum available. But the editorial page is not just opinion columns. It is letters to the editor, where readers debate everything from abortion to the Greek system. Editorials, based on 109 years of precedent, are the voice of the Daily - the voice of students. Editorials will always follow a 'liberal' vein - pro-choice, pro-edu- cation, pro-student. We have taken on every- thing from the war in Vietnam to the war over the stadium's halo. We seek out columnists and publish letters with different views. The com- bination of ideas on the editorial page yields a product like Hayden's ideal university - it requires unity. It is a sum of interrelated parts. In the conclusion of Hayden's aforemen- tioned piece, he wrote that University adminis- tration "Prefers to reflect society, not challenge it." Newspapers reflect society. Individuals challenge society. The editorial page aspires to do both. E a l -- Emily Achenbaum, Editorial Page Editor scheme. Steve Forbes recently threw a catty little lawsuit GW's way, alleging that some of the signatures that got the latter on the New York ballot were duplicates. The only question remaining is why the trial lawyer lobby isn't dumping money on the Elephants. Granted the ACLU is still fighting its way through the courts, but with federal judiciary stacked as it is and Orrin Hatch sit- ting on his hands in the Senate Judiciary Committee, there is little hope for another lib- eral legal revolution like the one America experienced in the '50s, '60s and '70s. The Supreme Court, staffed with several Republican appointees put there to end the judicial legislation of courts past, has been giving the term "judicial activism" new meaning. In light of the gridlock between the still-scraping-the-egg-off-its-face White House and the couldn't-get-something-done- if-it-had-to Congress, the Court has seized the political opportunity and has been redefining what the United States is. Among their stellar achievements include blanket immunity for organs of the states from age (and perhaps other) dis- crimination cases because the justices decided there was insufficient evidence of such bias. It has also decided that many fed- eral laws requiring states to act in a certain way are invalid. In "The Moral Basis of a Free Society," Forbes has described the Warren Court as spawning "a proliferation of increasingly bizarre lawsuits" and creating "a judiciary that often acts like an imperial aristocracy hurtling decrees down on the rest of us." Indeed. Oh, Mr. Forbes, your legal team is on line two. -- When Jack Schillaci is a federal judge, he will make being George W Bush unconstitutional. He can be reached over e-mail at jschilla@umich.edu. T TAT'.VE LYSPEAK: NG I THOMAS KULJURGIS ~~~ * ..._____. ..- s_.__--. 0 v ...,_. g . - -: _ U"' Gender not included 'Freshman' discriminates against women N otice anything different about the Daily today? Our new editors have brought in several style changes, including attributing students in their first year at the University as "freshman" instead of "first-year students" in all sections except for the editorial page. It's a small change - one most might not even notice, let alone care about. But we are, as a paper, making a statement to the University administration, who use the word "freshman" in their operations. The Daily has used the term "first-year stu- dent" instead on "freshman" for 13 years. On April 13, 1987, the Daily's editors stated the following in a front-page infog: "Beginning today, the Daily will use gender-inclusive lan- guage. This means, for example, changing freshman to first-year student, chairman to chair, and congressman to member of Congress. By changing our language we can change ideas about stereotypical gender roles. The change may shock - people or sounds wrong, but all change seems odd at first." Changing back to "freshman" from "first-year student" more than a decade later may seem odd as well. But the Daily is not, by any means, taking a step backwards. "Freshman" is the title given to new stu- dents by the University. The Daily must accu- rately name people in articles by their official titles, from a quoted SNRE sophomore to University President Lee Bollinger. The goal of the news, arts and sports sections is to report with accuracy, whether the Daily agrees with the name given to new students or not. The current editors believe using the word "fresh- man" is more accurate than "first-year stu- dent." But the Daily's editorial page is at liberty make judgement calls: "First-year student" other institutions. The editorial page precedent is rooted in equality for all. This has always extended to women's rights, be it abortion or discrimination in the classroom. The 1987 Daily editors may have been a bit ahead of their time, but they were right on: "First-year student" is preferable to "freshman." The word "freshman" is inherently exclusive.: "Freshman" was appropriate 150 years ago when colleges and universities were first founded in the United States - when women were simply not allowed to attend college. The University of Notre Dame and Amherst College are only two of several prestigious institutions that did not admit women until the 1970's. Not everyone is offended by words like "freshmen," yet they would find it wrong to refer to Julie Peterson as a University spokesman when she is clearly female. Why can the suffix "man" easily blanket both sexes, but the reverse is considered ridiculous: "Policewoman" referring to both male and female members of the police force? Impossible. "Congressman" referring to both male and female members of Congress? No problem. But there is a problem -parts of the English language are exclusive. Language can, and should, evolve. After all, it was once acceptable and common to refer to African- Americans as 'colored.' The University needs to evolve. Why does a University that champions political correct- ness and leveling the playing field by defend- ing its affirmative action policy in court still refer to first-year students as freshman? Has the ever-politically correct administration sim- ply overlooked this issue? Bollinger should not ignore this inconsistency and act of gender exclusion - even if only by language - any longer. The University should drop the word Daily should refrain from using Lord's name in vain TO THE DAILY: I am writing in reference to the Jan. 28 issue of the Daily. First of all. I want to thank all of the seniors for their dedicated service in managing the Daily, one of my favorite newspapers in the world. Good luck seniors and thanks. But one of the articles, titled "We'd be lygin if we said that the women's basketball team won." by Dena Kern, caught my atten- tion. The article featured a picture of Michigan football player Tommy Hendricks tackling a Penn State opponent. Under the picture, in bold print, appeared the name "Jesus," and directly below, also in bold print, appeared the word "Ass." Granted. to some people that may seem slightly amus- ing, but to me, a Christian, it was very offensive. I really don't feel there is a need to use my Lord's name in vain, especially in the context it was used. I believe the author used Jesus' name here to express her frus- tration about the fact that PSU guard Helen Darling prevented Michigan guard Stacey Thomas from driving to the hoop, during the recent Michigan vs. PSU women's bas- ketball game. In fact, maybe a better word such as "jerk" or even "idiot" could have been used. In my opinion, that would have been fun- nier, or should I say funny. So please from now on lay off the name of my Lord and Savior, and keep up the good work! FRANK LODESERTO LSA SENIOR Article objectified women TO THE DAILY: I have to say that I am very disappointed in the Daily for publishing Chris Grandstaff's, Jacob Wheeler's and Albert White's columns on Jan. 28th ("American men deprived of sex, Steffi says," and "Joe Smith writes tennis.") I understand that this issue was meant to be humorous as the seniors said goodbye, but I found their arti- cles to be quite offensive. Grandstaff and Wheeler focused their article on sexually-deprived American men being obsessed with breasts. At one point they wrote, "They don't just look at my ass. They love my tits too. Butt (sic) they never notice my best feature, my ass." Their arti- cle is terribly degrading to women and con- tributes to our objectification. Although the Daily would never publish an article that insults a particular racial orkethnic group. they seem to think it's okay to degrade women in this way. They also include the following quote, "As a professional I have to admit that I too love grabbing breasts." This statement reduces women to objects and normalizes I'l \-" G' ,,, ;: , . r- {IwIprg tdu200W 04MAN, MNY MOM US5ED'TO SN ME COOKIES. NOW SAE SENDbS ME AVAEMERGENCY 'FIRE E AP .ADR. _ 0 contributing to it. I really don't want to open my school newspaper to increase my knowl- edge and instead see myself objectified and violated on its pages. KIRAN ARORA SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH STUDENT vates. A few simple steps can mean the difference between life and death, MIKE KENNEDY LSA JUNIOR Movie review ! C 44 t Last issue does not missed the mark f~~~kd~'.AI'u rt" r bI IUJV JuUI 1 IG II.-LIL integrity' TO THE DAILY: In the three years I have been here, it always kind of shocks me that a newspa- per would suspend its journalistic integri- ty so its editors can print their farewell issue. While I understand it's probably "all in fun," give me a break. I certainly hope no visitors to the University pick this issue up. I wouldn't want them to think this is what the Daily is like, or for that matter, take it as a representation of the University as a whole. STEPHANIE MASTA LSA JUNIOR Fire safety should not be taken lightly TO THE DAILY: I agree completely with the editorial position that the State of Michigan should mandate sprinkler systems for all resi- dence halls ("Where there's smoke," Jan. 27). The New Jersey tragedy, though, should serve as a reminder about fire safety to students who live both on and off campus. Every year, fire kills approx- imately 4,000 people in the the United States which is more than all other natur- al disasters combined. Eighty percent of those fire deaths occur in residences. Also, approximately one hundred fire- fighters are killed in the line of duty each year. Students must always keep fire safety TO THE DAILY: We strongly disagree with the Jan. 24 review, "Teen flick 'Down' in Stiles, script." The Daily arts writer brutally bashes and destroys the performance of Freddie Prinze, Jr. and Julia Stiles in the new romantic come- dy "Down to You" Not only do we disagree with the mere one star it was given. but we feel that the personal stabs made on the actors were uncalled for. We think it should first be stated that the film attempts to target the teen audience with a cute romantic comedy, not a deep, intense, Academy-Award winning drama. Likewise, neither Prinze nor Stiles are running for a Golden Globe, so if that's what you're looking for you shouldn't have gone to see the movie. There was not one second where Prinze failed to charm the audience with his gorgeous looks and killer smile and for that he deserves no less than four stars The article also criticized that the charac- ter of Imogen_ Would you want to see more of Freddie or Julia? Yeah, that's what I thought! We think "Down to You" successfully created a funny, real-world type, romantic comedy filled with optimism, which is what girls can relate to and is what they come to the movie to see. It's cute. It's funny. And it's a "feel-good" movie The movie may not get an Oscar nomination, but it is evident that this was hardly the movie's intention g It does, however, take an original and creative approach to the generic romantic comedy we are accustomed to. The so- called "faux inspired" sequences, when the characters were witness to each other's memory, was a refreshing change. And the movie cannot be responsible for any jealousy; a whiny, pessimistic. bitter, ex-girlfriend viewer may have for the "perfect relationship between Al and Imogen." And as for the "afterschool spe- cial" ending what else would you expect 0 I