4A - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, February 7, 2001 e lCict 'c nt ttilg 420 MAYNARD STREET ANN ARBOR, MI 48109 daily. letters@umich.edu An open letter to Bill Martin 9 BRANDEN SANZ DROPPING THE HAMMER EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN SINCE 1890 GEOFFREY GAGNON Editor in Chief MICHAEL GRASS NICHOLAS WOOMER 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 ir, it is with heavy heart and troubled conscience that I write this letter, but the embarrassment can go on no longer. Brian Ellerbe must go. Right now. Bill (may I call you Bill?), you have done a wonderful job in your short tenure as athletic director. The financial situa- tion here at the the University has turned around 180 degrees and that Nike deal - concessions and all - was a stroke of brilliance. I'm not sure if I agree with the whole "luxury box" con- cept in the Big House, but I understand that the football program is this University's cash cow and you will do what you have to. Michigan is once again a premier athletic university. The football team is coming off (another) New Year's Day bowl victory and will announce today what is arguably the best recruiting class in the country. But we are no longer just a football factory. No sir, this isn't your father's Michigan. Our hockey team is once again a national title contender, as are the men's and women's gymnastics teams. The swimming/diving teams are top-ten, as always, and just handed the hated Spartans an ass-whuppin' of Biblical pro- portions. And to top it all off, our wrestling team beat Iowa this weekend. Iowa, Bill. Can you believe that? Probably the single most dominant force in the history of any collegiate sport was just sent packing back to Carver- Hawkeye Arena with its tail between its legs. Yes, these are great days to be a Michigan Wolverine but there is a dark cloud hanging over our collective athletic consciousness. It is a dire shadow that troubles those of us that bleed maize and blue to the point that sometimes even the staunchest hearts shudder in fear and loathing. The basketball team stinks, Bill. Bottom line and end of story. I'm not talking about a lack of greatness here - no, this team has delusions of adequacy. And no, I'm not just pining away for the "good old days" of the early '90s. I realize that keeping this program clean is just as impor- tant as turning it into a winner. But Brian Ellerbe, whom I have met and is a very nice man, is clearly not the right man for the job. I understand we're not extremely talented, Bill. You know as well as I do that maybe only one person on this team could start for Michi- gan State University - and that is a big maybe. But I understand that and can accept it. I realize that Ed Martin's shadow is still looming over this program in the form of possible NCAA sanctions, a fact which makes recruiting extremely difficult. I do not doubt Ellerbe's tal- ent as a recruiter -just his coaching skill. There is an old adage in sports: "A team takes on the personality of it's head coach." You can look at every sport there is and find perfect examples of this. Look at the Dennis Erickson-led Oregon State Beavers, who's trash-talking, blazing speed and unsportsman- like conduct looked eerily similar to the Dennis Erickson-led Miami Hurricanes of the early '90s. Look at the toughness and tenacious defense displayed by Tom Izzo's basketball teams. Look at tremendous work ethic and intensity of our own grapplers, led by Joe McFarland. Taking this into account, let us turn a closer eye towards this basketball team. The team is inconsistent. They are disorganized. They play terrible defense. They have a minimal amount of heart and hustle. And when we are getting our asses handed to us, take a look on the side- lines and tell me what you see. You will NOT see Coach Ellerbe yelling and getting into play- er's faces. What you will see is coach Ellerbe looking lost and staring at the floor with a sick- ly smile on his face. Do you see the connection, Bill? Is it any wonder we have no toughness and no intensity? For the record, I do not have a shrine dedi- cated to Rick Pitino in my apartment. Maybe Pitino is the right guy and maybe not, but we won't know until season's end. What is impor- tant is the fact that this team will not make noticeable progress with Ellerbe at the helm, so I ask you: What is the use of keeping him? Get rid of the guy and promote an assistant coach for the interim period. Associate Head Coach Scott Trost is very knowledgeable about X's and Q's and the play- ers respect him. Furthermore, when I watch a game I can actually see him coaching on the sidelines. Perhaps Trost is not the guy - per- haps it's Assistant Coach Terence Greene or Assistant Coach Kurtis Townsend. Regardless, none of them could do any worse than Ellerbe and we might just get lucky and find a diamond in the rough. Bill, I don't think I'm being unrealistic here. Like the vast majority of fans, students and alumni, I do not expect us to beat teams like Duke, North Carolina and Michigan State for a few years yet - we just don't have the horses.@ All I ask is that we play hard and compete with these teams. I don't think that's too much to ask. Bill, we're supposed to be the Leaders and Best, right? Then why is it I have to hang my head every time the subject of basketball is brought up? Please, do the right thing and help us all walk proud again. Branden Sanz's column runs on Wednesdays. He can be reached via e-mail at hamrhead@umich.edu. MSA disregards students' concerns on campaigning To THE DAILY: I believe that the point of a student gov- ernment is to represent the student body and to support and stand firmly behind what they want and need. The Michigan Student Assembly has claimed that they want to be an involved and important part of not only the University but also the world that we live in. But on Jan. 30 they showed their true colors by rejecting the proposal to pun- ish their candidates violating University Housing policy. MSA representatives are voted into office with the trust of the student body and are then held responsible to repre- sent student beliefs and ideas. They are cho- sen because of their strong sense of commitment and their passion for fighting for what they believe is right and just. I find it very offensive that they are able to blatantly disregard the concerns of almost 10,000 members of their student body and reject a proposal that is obviously important to many. Residents have expressed their dis- content with status quo and MSA candidates inability to adhere to already set forth rules. When many resident doors have been posted with "no solicitation" signs and the cry has been heard for years to end the constant knocking and badgering, MSA will still not stop and listen to what their students are try- ing to tell them. What kind of student gov- ernment ignores the cry of their peers and is even unable to abide by set university rules? MSA needs to start with their own campus and the needs of their own students before they reach out to solve other problems. CLARISSA KHOURI LSA sophomore Buster Poindexter portrayal was 'nappropriate' To THE DAILY: I couldn't tell if Chris Kula's and Christ- ian Hoard's article/list titled "Afro- Caribbean inspired pop songs rule during MWI t 1romp(Amm I ."-CIE 1F1.tS 1t VG UP t k' Y '[ is OW ITS AY, 80's" in the Feb. 5 Daily was hi not. Either way it lacked some Buster Poindexter, whose song' Hot" was number ten on the list. Buster Poindexter is the al David Johansen. And Johansen's been nothing short of prolific. H known as the lead vocalist in N early '70s proto-punk band, the Dolls. The Dolls' influence oz noteworthy. It wasn't so much putting his list, it was referring to hi "Scrooged" as what he is best without mentioning the releva entire music career. I can appre and Hoard's attempt at humor an article, but wit fails when it apl misinformed. Whether Kula were aware of this misrepresenta it was inappropriate. AA Art and Administration.'s efforts to reduc emissions inade To THE DAILY: The Daily's article on Fe "Alumni ask for reduced gasc fails to mention a key point: The tion has not indicated any will agree to reduce its greenhouse ga to "7 percent below its estimated ISLAMaV ANIT._C IAC. TOP TIScA44p umorous or by the year 2012," as requested by the details on Michigan Alumni for Global Warming "Hot, Hot, Action. The Sustainable University of Michigan Team, a student-led initiative to ter-ego of move the University toward increased envi- career has ronmental and social responsibility, has been e is mostly asking administrators to join leading univer- ew York's sities by agreeing to these reductions for New York more than two years. n music is The standard responses have ranged from "we don't know out 1990 emissions" to "it's song on the too expensive" to "our campus has grown so s role in much that its impossible." However, a grow- known for ing number of countries, cities, companies nce of his and universities have moved beyond excuses ciate Kula and into action, by committing to these seri- d wit in the ous greenhouse gas emissions reductions. * pears to be Students, staff, faculty and now alumni and Hoard have made it clear that the University has the tion or not, responsibility and ability to reduce our cam- pus' contribution to global warming. Yet the LRON NEMEC administration has failed to respond on such Design senior basic issues as providing free bus passes to students (faculty and staff already receive this) and including the Medical and Athletic campuses in energy efficient programs. The 'U' Daily's article leads readers to believe that@ the University is doing all that it can to quate reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This is not true. While the efforts the Daily cites have merit, they fall far short of a comprehensive, b. 1 titled committed effort to reduce emissions. Our emissions" campus deserves more. administra- [ingness to s emissions [990 levels Visibility Week: Let's all celebrate VIEWPOINT Picture this: University of Michigan - February 7th to 16th, 2001 - Visibility Week - a marvelous celebration of the wonderful diversity of this great university. As this year's annual Visibility Week, a time of celebration of and for the Universi- ty's Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgen- der community is upon us, I'd like to reflect on what this week and this community mean to me. This week presents us with a special opportunity to support each other and cele- brate our humanity. Our society does not make it easv for L GRT individuals to move "but, this is incompatible with my religion." But, is it really? All religions with which I am familiar support love and respect for humankind, with which I equate justice, peace and equality. It seems to me com- pletely plausible that one could hold person- al beliefs that run counter to homosexuality or gender variance, yet still support the civil rights of those who are different. I certainly disagree with the religious interpretations of many, yet I support their rights to hold those beliefs and their right not to be discriminat- ed against for holding such views. Some will say, "but it's not natural." We don't really know with certainty if homosex- uality or sender variance is innate. Howev- MIKE SHRIBERG SNRE graduate student The writer submitted the letter on behalf of The Sustainable University of Michigan Team, of which he is a member. Finally, as an African-American gay man, I'd like especially to call on fellow people of color to support the LGBT com- munity. My experiences with other people of color in the University of Michigan com- munity have been extremely positive, per- haps because, we, as people of color, have a deep and abiding understanding of oppres- sion and the importance of visibility to our liberation. While visibility is costly, it is absolutely necessary in order for us to be heard and to claim our space. No oppressed group has ever achieved freedom through silence, for it does, not protect. It is only by being visible and, dare I say, forthright, that iustice for minorities has ever been attained.