4A - The Michigan Daily - Monday, April 3, 2000 CIl E firtict40,an ttilij 420 Maynard Street . Ann Arbor, MI 48109 daily.Ietters@umich.edu Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan MIKE SPAHN Editor in Chief EMILY ACHENBAUM Editorial Page Editor Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorials reflect the opinion of the majority of the Daily's editorial board. Alfother articles, letters and cartoons do not necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily. Tradition requires t's almost time. White Trash Bash: A cele- bration of ugly, unpopular suburbanites was held last Saturday and in I 1 days hundreds will run down the street naked, despite Lee C.'s warnings. April, the great "month of the senior," has come, and that means that I'm getting out of here soon. Years of studying, taking exams and the lot will culminate in a three-hour ceremony that (fingers crossed) will not be rained out. 1. like other seniors, am ready for it: I've got dinner reservations and bought my gener- ic Michigan Book- store cap and gown that I now realize looks a little too syn- thetic. I've got accep- tance letters from grad Jack schools and even the obligatory "Michigan Schillaci alum" t-shirt. Slam It You may be think- ing: Is "Slam It to the "_ _ Left," a self-described cynic who pokes fun at war veterans, activists and other perfectly well-meaning people, about to wax nostalgic about his years at the 'U?' One week he writes about how he can't stand his fellow students, the next he gets sappy because of his impending graduation. Has he gone soft? What's next, a stirring ren- dition of "The Way We Were?" Don't go overboard. I am still cynical, but there's a reason for that. Editorial journalists learn to be analytical, to dissect political and social issues, and often to be less than forgiv- ing in their writing. One learns to write their opinion while at the same time standing back and not getting themselves personally a return to the cynical and sarcastic 'U' should offer co-ed dorm housing involved. This attitude of detachment leads to the cynical sarcasm with which I write this column every other week. But that annoyed. hostile demeanor belies the fact that I will miss a lot about the Univer- sity when I leave. It's not perfect, and I've spent thousands of hours as a writer, editor and columnist cataloging its shortcomings. But understanding something means acknowledging its faults and balancing them against its strengths. The failures and contradictions of this University are what make it both a great place to spend four years and the perfect topic for an editorial. After all, we all have our fair share of con- tradictions - for instance, I've sided with substance in the whole style-over-substance debate, yet my column is named after a Spice Girl's lyric. Among the University's most valuable qualities is its embrace of tradition. We don't step on the 'M' for half a year, we walk through fountains at Orientation and we have all sung "The Victors!" with 100,000 other fans in Michigan Stadium. The Daily has more traditions than you can shake a stick at. I, too, have my traditions. That's why the remorseful warbling stops here. My column has always been sar- castic and perhaps sometimes negative, and despite the Daily columnist stereotype, I can't conclude on a light-hearted note with- out feeling I've done something terribly wrong. So I'm gonna stick to my tradition and present a list of the things that I won't miss about Ann Arbor. On the other hand, I'm breaking with my tradition of not using bullet points as a crutch for disorganized writing, but you'll forgive me. You can assume that I will miss most (if not all) of the things I don't include. The Ann Arbor squirrel mafia. All the work 1. have to put into the Daily racist conspiracy. E The Klan. The people who protest the Klan. e iMacs. * MSA election flyering. MSA election scandals. MSA elections. Lee C.'s hair. People who pronounce Michigamua "M i-shi-gah-moo-ah." Conservatives who complain about the liberal bias in everything. Liberals who complain about the racist bias in everything. People with megaphones. Those people that come up to you and ask to talk about their god. University toilet paper. Finding catty, immature little attacks that most abandoned in the third-grade being written about me in that shit-rag "journal" that only comes out once every three weeks (but still can't find time to be copy edited). Daily letters to the editor. Thanks for reading folks. Over and out. - This is Slam It to the Leftsfinal column for the Daily. He would like to thank thefol- lowing peoplefor supporting him, making him laugh, and allthat crap through the years: Karen, Carvn, Kara, Kristin, Mr Chairman Hoffman, Yapsa, Sujav,jon, Carol, 'L'aurie, Sarah "Locked and Loaded" Lockver, Erin the Marshan, Edit Board '98, Adamy, Chris, * Jennie P. Klong, Blark, Kleinbaum, Yachnin, Zemke, Spai-Dogg, Naheed, Sumeet, Diana, Antj, Sona, Neha, Zak, Mike and Julie. He would also like to thank all of the people he doesn't know that take the time out of their lives to read his column. For the last time, Jack Schillaci can be reached over e-mail at jschilla@,;umich.edu. T7j . EN . T .T .VE'! 1" SP1EA KING T he University is usually on the leading edge of breaking issues and opportu- nities. In 1870 the University was the first large American institution of higher educa- tion to admit women. It is once again time for the University to take initiative and break new ground by being one of the first universities to allow men and women to share dormitory rooms. Already three small colleges in the United States are leading the way in oppo- site sex living arrangements on campus. Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn., Hampshire College in Amherst, Mass. and most recently Haverford Col- lege in Haverford, Penn. are allowing stu- dents after their first year to live with those of the opposite sex in dorm and apartment living facilities on campus. These living options make sense for University stu- dents, as the changes at these colleges were made due mainly to frequent student requests and demands. . The same reasons that existed for stu- dents at these small colleges to desire broader living options also exist for stu- dents here at this University. For example, it is clear that men and women would like to be allowed the opportunity to live together. While this potentially could become a problem if couples decide to live together and then break up in the process, this is something that could just as easily happen for a gay or lesbian couple living together under the current resident hall arrange- ments. Heterosexual students should be given the same freedom and choice to live with their significant other as homosexual students, regardless of what the outcome may be. It is also important to note that a substantial amount of the desire for oppo- site sex living arrangements is made between male and female friends, not cou- ples. Another reason that students frequently request opposite sex living arrangements is that gay and lesbian students often have trouble finding people of the same sex that they are comfortable living with. Homo- sexual students frequently prefer to share housing with students of the opposite sex but typically, as is in practice at this Uni- versity, find University housing regulations that conflict with their preferred living practices. While under opposite sex living options no one could force you to live with anyone of the opposite sex, current stu- dents are forced to live with someone of the same sex when living in University facilities - and that needs to change. Although many colleges and Universi- ties are not even open to considering co-ed living options, this University needs to once again be above that narrow-minded attitude and listen to what the students are telling them. In doing this the University should realize the rational for these student requests, and change our housing policies to meet their needs as well. In accordance with our desire to be the "leaders and the best," the University needs to be the first major educational institution to make sure that opposite sex living is a valid and legitimate student option. THOMAS KULJURGIS Too close for comfort Government intrusion in media must end T n a highly troubling exercise of influ- ence over the media, the federal gov- ernment has been rewarding network television stations and many prominent magazines for including anti-drug mes- sages in their content for the past two years. This situation was created when Con- gress approved a $1 billion, five-year advertising campaign by the Office of National Drug Control Policy in 1997 and also mandated that for every com- mercial or page of advertising pur- chased by ONDCP, one must be given for free. With the good economy pushing advertising rates ever higher, networks and magazines picked to carry ONDCP's ads were eager to find a way to avoid giving away their increasingly- valuable ad space to the government. As it turned out, the ONDCP was eager to offer media outlets a way out of their advertising obligations. A system was set up to credit advertising space to tele- vision stations and publications that included anti-drug messages in their programs and, articles. The result of this deal was the sub- mission of television scripts to ONDCP for review and in some cases the alter- ation at the office's request. Magazines m submitted stories after publication when trying to qualify for the credits. This unprecedented attempt by the govern- ment to alter television programming and magazine articles to carry the mes- sages it wants broadcast sets a terrible precedent for allowing government influence over the media. Also disturbing is the willingness of so many in the media to submit them- selves to this influence in hopes of sav- ing money. The insertion of a few anti-drug lines into a television show may seem fairly harmless or maybe even beneficial, but what is being altered by the government is the attitude about how a subject is treated across a broad range of television programming. The government should not have such extensive control over how the media portrays any subject. Defenders of the magazine arrangement claim that when rewarding advertising credit, ONDCP only looks at already published work and therefore is not exercising control over any magazine's content. Having such large financial incentives can have an effect though, especially in magazines such as Family Circle and Seventeen, that have subjective and value-laden content. News magazines that have submitted articles to ONDCP for advertising cred- it, U.S. News and World Report for example, are being put in the most diffi- cult position. Regardless whether such influence exists or not, publications should never be placed in the situation where producing a certain type of con- tent will result in monetary rewards. It creates suspicion of the motives behind any article about drugs they published and damages the magazine's credibility. By creating a billion-dollar drain on advertising revenues, the federal gov- ernment has created a regime of censor- ship and propaganda through extortion. It will be extremely tempting for media outlets to tow ONDCP's line on drugs when refusing to do so will cost them millions of dollars. The Government should not be get- ting into the habit of trying to address social problems through control of mes- sages in the media. ONDCP's advertis- ing credit program is dangerous to the editorial independence of every media outlet and should be ended immediately. Daily's portrayal of the Greek system is unfair TO THE DAILY: I am upset at the way the Daily, a credible newspaper in every respect, has shone a neg- ative light onl the Greek system here at the University. It began in Emily Achenbaum's column "Get them in the Crosshairs: Vote for Hideki" (3/2400), Achenbaum mentions the Greek system in saying to vote for Hideki "because you didn't get a bid from a certain Greek house because the people with the legacies and Lexuses beat you to it." To me, this com- ment reflects nothing but poor journalism. Stereotyping is not something editors are supposed to do, and this is exactly what Achenbaum is doing. She is blatantly stereo- typing against all fraternities and sororities. Then, Jeffrey Kosseff's column (Shake- speare and calculus couldn't teach these lessons," 327 00) again made derogatory and stereotypical remarks on th fraternity houses on campus. By saing that he lived "down the street from some frat houses" and had "seen the occasional drunken brawl break out at 3 a.m.' I felt that he again was stereotyping as if showing that members of fraternities are the only people on campus that drink to excess. This is not true by any means. Once again, another stereotype. Finally, I am upset at the Daily's coverage of Greek Week. Sure, there have been a few pictures here and there of certain events, but not once has there been a mention in the Daily that the Greek system has raised over S13.000 for charities in the past ten days. Yet when there were alleged hazing incidents at Alpha Epsilon Pi and Delta Sigma Phi, a few girls at a fraternity party got checked into the hospital for alcohol poisoning, FIJI's charter was suspended, the Daily immediately print- ed these stories. So, thanks, Daily. You've really helped the Greek system recently. I thought newspapers were supposed to be fair ... DAVID WENZLER LSA FIRST-YEAR STUDENT Flag burning ban is 'ridiculous' TO THE DAILY Asa general rule, I don't usually respond to editorials, but i think this one warrants a "veteran's" perspective ("Hot issue," 331 00). In the late 70's and most of the 80's, I served as an enlisted man in the U.S. Navy. I have learned much about our constitution in that time and have come to the realization that this document is not "living" as some would believe, but a set of hard and fast God- given rights which our forefathers recognized and placed into law. The right to freedom of speech was considered the ultimate human right by the Framers. The right to burn Old Glory in protest of our governments policies is, in itself, the epit- ome of this right. Citizens must be able to address their grievances to the government they elect. I find it a ridiculous waste of pos- If burning the stars and stripes gets the attention of our elected representatives and forces change for the good of all citizens without infringing on another citizen's rights, then I am all for it. Don't get me wrong, you will never see me at a flag burning. I have way too much respect for what I believe our flag represents to watch someone burn it for reasons I don't agree with. I have personally burned a U.S. flag once in my life. I did it one month after the end of the Gulf War in March of 1991, when the flag 1 had flown constantly in sup- port of our troops became so tattered that it had to be destroyed. While a sailor, I learned that the only two respectful ways to destroy the flag was by burial or burning. I stayed with that flaguntil the last embers extinguished. I then scooped up the ashes and buried them. Patriotism comes in many forms. I still get a chill when I stand and sing our National Anthem. At parades. I make sure that my children stand beside me with their hand over their hearts when the national ensign flies by. Everyone has to find their own way. To those who choose to burn the flag as a means of telling others that something is wrong and needs to be corrected, I salute you. Until I breathe my dying breath, I will always defend-our constitution and the principles for which it stands. I may not always agree with what others say, but I will defend to the death their right to say it. MARK PERREAULT ENGINEERING STAFF Writer shouldn't blame sexual assault victims TO THE DAILY: I was very disappointed by the remarks that Josiah Silverstein made in his letter to the editor ("Assaulted female lacked personal responsibility." 3/3000) concerning a woman who reported that her roommate assaulted her. His victim-blaming comments may have caused additional emotional damage to the survivor and impeded her healing process. While Silverstein suggests that the assailant was responsible for his actions, his primary focus implied that the survivor was at fault woman is passed out and is unable to give consent, having sex with her would constitute 3rd degree criminal sexual conduct (punish- able by up to 15 years in prison) without any additional factors involved such as force or coercion. I agree with Silverstein that individ- uals need to take responsibility for their actions, but I find it extremely disturbing that the survivor, not the assailant, is often blamed for the actions the assailant chooses. ANNA PHILIPS SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK Article stereotyped suicide victims TO THE DAILY: Usually you folks provide objective and unbiased coverage. However, the Daily's about Kurt Zimmer's suicide recent article ("Reason for lTD official's suicide remain unknown," 3/30/00) was far from your nor- mal high standards. The article begins with a paragraph that seems to say. "he seemed like a good guy - there is no way that he could have actually killed himself. There must be foul play." This is a completely erroneous stereotype of peo- ple who commit suicide. Suicide victims (especially adults) are not freaks or loners or people without families or jobs. Rather, they are almost always people who are active, intelligent and involved with their communi- ties. The naive, outdated and incorrect view of suicide victims as America's outcasts sim- ply does not match the reality of this terrible problem. The media gives a lot of attention to the few, outlying examples that arise (i.e. "man shoots 12, then self in post office...") but none to the tremendous number of aver- age, middle-class, hardworking, educated sui- cides that quietly occur every hour. Unfortunately, the death of Vincent Foster, a late Clinton aide, several years ago only rein- forced the public's mental link between con- spiracy and suicide. By making Zimmer's suicide seem like possible foul play, you simply reinforce the negative stereotypes of this sad situation. Maybe you could write a follow-up article describing the massive amount of research which has demonstrated that adult suicides almost always invoke a public reaction of "gee, he seemed like he was so happy..." Instead of DPS spending time and energy FRO&EMS zE FOR Al)) c w You EEtD F ME ~(Ar ROMA CLUE M k t! 0 I q~p -0 a a s a ax s