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4 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, November 12, 2003
OP/ED I
Ulj tE §U ai
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UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
SINCE 1890
LouIE MEIZLISH
Editor in Chief
AUBREY HENRETTY
ZAC PESKOWITZ
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.
NOTABLE
QUOTABLE
Well, we
did notice a
dip in demand at
that time."
- Steve Thies, president of Spartanburg
Steel Products Inc., jokingly referring to
a dip in demand for his company's beer
kegs after President Bush stopped drinking,
as reported yesterday by The New York Times.
SAM BUTLER THE:.SO 'APBOX
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'A Modest Proposal'
JASON PESICK ONE SMALL VOICE
LANSING - does not mark a major policy redirection so it will be cutting its workers' salaries by up to
n a move that sur- much as it formally reaffirms the state's poli- 60 percent in the face of millions in losses. In
I prised only those cies for most of the 20th century through the September, the U.S. Census Bureau announced
political observers time of this announcement. that 33,371 young people have left Metro
old enough to remember Later in the day, state Rep. Jack Detroit in only the last three years.
when Detroit was a Hoogendyk (R-Kalamazoo), who is best Richard Florida, a professor at Carnegie
bustling city that actually known on campus for trying to give the state Mellon University in Pittsburgh, author of
had people on its down- authority effectively to censor the Universi- "The Rise of the Creative Class," a book
town streets, yesterday ty's curriculum because he disapproved of about attracting the young, educated, diverse
Gov. Jennifer Granholm the English Department's course "How to Be demographic to cities, said, "If most of your
stood alongside State House Speaker Rick Gay," announced plans to move the Universi- hair hasn't turned gray yet, Detroit sucks. I
Johnson (R-LeRoy) and Senate Majority ty to a new location "maybe in California or guess Granholm is saying, 'If you can't beat
Leader Kenneth Sikkema (R-Wyoming) to Massachusetts or some place like that." Uni- 'em, join 'em.' "
announce a bold new economic initiative versity President Mary Sue Coleman said Indeed many experts strongly believe that
intended to make Michigan a rival with that a decision has not been made, but that the state of Michigan has for decades fol-
Florida for the reputation of being the most "You can be sure wherever we go, we're tak- lowed a set of policies that have led to results
"old-people-friendly" state in the union. ing the Life Sciences Initiative with us." that young people find unattractive, including
The plan, entitled "Reviving Michigan's There was no word on the fates of Michigan urban sprawl. The Detroit area, the nation's
Manufacturing Base and Outlying Suburbs State University or Wayne State University. most segregated big-city region, is populated
in Order to Hasten the Flight of Young When asked by reporters why she decided by low-rise homes and shopping centers
Educated Residents," calls for a refocusing to discontinue her "Cool Cities Initiative," miles away from the city of Detroit itself.
of state efforts and resources to build more Granholm cited a quote in Sunday's Wash- Detroit does not offer an exciting lifestyle for
expressways, factories and retirement com- ington Post. The quote was from Bruce Katz, recent college graduates. The economy relies
munities. Notably absent from the press director of the Center on Urban and Metro- heavily on the auto industry as well - an
conference was Detroit Mayor Kwame Kil- politan Policy at the Brookings Institution. industry that does not provide the types of
patrick, who was ruled far too young to Katz said Cleveland is getting its act together jobs young, college-educated people work.
attend and was unavailable for comment. and "I believe that if Cleveland had not tried Efforts to tame sprawl draw harsh criti-
Democratic presidential candidate Richard so hard it would look like St. Louis or cism from older suburbanites who feel that
Gephardt, who skipped CNN's Rock the Vote Detroit." Granholm responded, "When the government will infringe on their proper-
debate last week to campaign with old people Cleveland is making fun of your reputation, ty rights. Legal experts say these suburban-
in Iowa, was on hand to applaud the decision, you might as well just give up." ites will likely remain successful in court, but
along with members of the AARP. Gephardt Granholm's announcement comes on the Prof. Florida adds, "They'll grow old lonely
called the state's policy shift "a major victory heels of some bad news for those interested in because their children are going to leave the
for Michigan's voters." He went on to say, reviving Michigan's economy. The Big Three state. They'll be happy just to see their kids a
"This marks a significant departure from the Detroit automakers have been losing market few times a year on holidays."
failed anti-worker policies of the Bush adminis- share to foreign competitors. Plans to revive
tration." Experts on the Michigan economy, the city hit a pothole when the backbone of the Pesick can be reached at
however, told the Daily that the announcement redevelopment, Compuware Corp., announced jzpesick@umich.edu.
Hey, little rich boy
ARI PAUL I FOUGHT THE LAW
H ave you ever had to Again, the U Party reps flaunted their ing to be Joel Stone's shoeshine boy.
work? Have you rhetoric in opposition to this resolution, only try- "Oh but we're not elitists," they'll cry,
ever had to earn ing to pathetically hide the fact that it has more "we're just wary of those thuggish, pesky
your own way to pay any of a political agenda than the relatively ideolo- labor unions."
fraction of the food and gy-less Students First Party. People have their reservations about orga-
beer you consume or the The Borders strike has every bit to do with nized labor unions, and I can't say I blame them.
exorbitant cost of college students. The Borders workers are asking for As someone who stood on his first picket line
tuition? If so, the University fair wages and benefits, and with high rents and eight years ago, I can say that I've had such
Party, the current minority University budget cuts, students need to be strong conflicts with union leadership that I've
party in the Michigan Stu- ensured that local employers offer adequate pay almost wanted to walk away from it all. Union
dent Assembly, doesn't in order for students to meet Ann Arbor's high bosses can be undemocratic, inept and even cor-
want to represent you. cost of living. rupt. So can CEOs.
I don't purport to be working class, but Students First representative Pierce Beck- Unions, like any large institution, have
even still, I've worked as a pizza delivery ham said at last week's meeting, "Students who their organizational flaws. But despite claims
driver, a painter, a reporter, a salesman and a need jobs need to make a fair wage especially if that unions are a subversive enemy to the
dishwasher to come out financially comfort- they don't have transportation to work off cam- free market, what they really do is give
able at the end of the month at various points pus." employees an avenue to hold their employers
in my life, and I've known very few students In short, people who are not lucky enough to accountable to labor laws. The freedom of
who haven't needed supplementary income be bom into an economic privilege that hands assembly is a gift from the First Amendment,
in addition to their parents' dole cue to meet them enough cash to slide through college need and the idea of pressuring companies to com-
the cost of everyday life, let alone the cost of sources of income, and a corporate, law-break- ply with the law is far from a radical notion.
higher education. ing bookstore that doesn't pay its workers In the case of the Borders strike, try to cast
But I'm starting to think that the members of enough to live in the city in which it's located aside your political dispositions and think of it
the U Party are the lucky few that didn't have to just doesn't make the grade. this way. All the workers want are wages that
do any of this. But some U Party members don't think that meet the community's cost and to have their
The U Party touts itself as a voice of neutral- such peasants have a right to an education in the employer, who is in violation of seven federal
ity, sweeping aside anything political in MSA in first place. labor laws, comply. Borders management wants
order to pass resolutions that affect students, like Joel Stone, a U Party representative voting to strip its workers of their constitutional right to
expanding the spending power of the Mcard. Of against the resolution said, according to the advocate for any of this in addition to ignoring
course, the issue of lowering tuition is notice- official MSA minutes, that students "need to the law. Now who's the subversive?
ably absent from its platform. take into consideration the cost of attending The U Party's cloak of political neutrality is
Last week, MSA was presented with a reso- college and if you can't afford it then you need a sham. It's nothing more than a euphemism for
lution to support the on-strike workers at the to make another choice." these elitists to block any agenda that wishes to
Liberty Street Borders, and U Party representa- That's right, folks. All you kids who don't create any kind of equity for students with eco-
tives with the help of sympathetic Students First come from rich suburbs and are on student loans nomic disadvantage.
anti-worker representatives like Brad Sugar, can just forget about higher education and Paulcan bereachedat
defeated it. upward mobility. But I'm sure there's an open- asvaudumch.edu.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Students, staff should
explore alternate means
of transportation
To THE DAILY:
Regarding the article Students feel A2 does
little to respond to parking problems (11/10/03),
Ann Arbor is roughly six square miles end to
end. There are three different bus systems,
one of which is free to get you from campus
to campus. There are multiple on and off
street paths for cycling. Why then, do stu-
dents bring their cars here in the first place?
forms of alternative transportation.
Walking and biking are fun. When you
incorporate it into your commute you feel better
about yourself, about the role you're playing in
making our environment better and believe me,
you will be a lot happier because you're not sit-
ting in traffic like everyone else.
NEILE RISSMILLER
School of Music
'Biased' viewpoint reveals
Daily's 'abysmal quality'.
To TH w MA LY
nature appeared in the Daily, I was finally and
completely convinced of the wisdom of boy-
cotting an amateurish and irresponsible affair
such as the Daily.
There is an extensive list of griev-
ances that I could list here, but here is the
one that is absolutely appalling to me, and
definitely to the 90 percent of even slight-
ly politically aware Indians on campus:
Comparing the prime minister of India to
Nathuram Godse, the fanatical assassin of
Mahatma Gandhi, is unforgivable and
more importantly fictional, inane and (add
any random 100 negative adjectives here).
Obviously the three biased writers of this
2rticle know little ahout Indian nolitics
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