I
4 - The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, December 2, 2003
OP/ED
Ulbe 3kW*an Datig
420 MAYNARD STREET
ANN ARBOR, MI 48109
letters@michigandaily.com
EDITED AND MANAGED BY
STUDENTS AT THE
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
"' I came to this office
to solve problems, not
pass them on to future
presidents and future
generations."
- President Bush, speaking yesterday at a
Dearborn campaign fundraiser, as
reported by the Detroit Free Press.
I
cra~ur~e4 a
~ai
COLIN DALY 'THE MICHIGAN DALY
I
i
"
..n.
R
avr -MIS : ,,,,,,,,,,,,,
o vmP
a\ "
f
i i
'4 I M
I
Bush in Iraq: I'm not staying long - but you are
JESS PISKOR JOIN [HE PISKOR
o President Bush
flew to Baghdad
for Thanksgiv-
ing. He flew in utter
secrecy and had a meal
with a few troops, then
left. You'll notice Bush
had a clear personal
exit strategy: Spend as
little time in Baghdad
as possible, and then get the fuck out.
Now I will admit that Bush's visit ben-
efited the situation in Iraq. After all, he
did give overworked cafeteria workers
some time off by taking over the duty of
serving mashed potatoes. Of course, Bush
might have better spent the time giving
out Kevlar vests. Or assurances that this
occupation would end within soldiers'
expected lifetimes.
This trip was so risky that officials on
Air Force One told reporters that if word
got out that Bush was en route, then they
would cancel the trip. I imagine the direc-
tive went something like this: "If you
reporters don't shut up and report what
we say, I'll turn this plane around, I
swear to God! I'll turn it around! I'm not
kidding!"
Imagine the political failure that
would have been for Bush. The news
would report that Bush was going to
Baghdad to visit troops and then would
immediately report that Bush could now
not go because it was too dangerous to
land in that rocket-propelled grenade-
strewn nation. That image of Bush run-
ning from the chaos of Baghdad would
have been the most telling story of the
war. The fact that Bush was willing to
risk it gives an idea about the importance
he gave this trip.
Why did he find it so important? Well,
it could be that Bush wanted to share
Thanksgiving with the troops who are
sacrificing their lives daily because of his
boastful remarks that terrorists should
bring it on. Maybe he felt that their
morale would be boosted if the comman-
der in chief gave them an extra big help-
ing of freedom fries. But that can't be the
reason. Bush had Thanksgiving with 600
troops. Of the 100,000-plus troops in
Iraq, meeting in secret with a few hun-
dred troops doesn't do shit for morale.
What do you tell the rest of the soldiers?
"Oh yeah, Bush was here last night, but
see, he couldn't stay because Iraq is a
dangerous place and he might be killed at
any moment." Yep, that's gonna boost the
ol' morale alright.
Well, maybe he needed to talk with the
U.S. advisors in Iraq. Bush did meet with
U.S. administrator L. Paul Bremer for a
brief meeting. But can't they do that shit
over the phone? Don't we have billion
dollar satellites to transmit super-secret
messages so our president doesn't have to
fly all over the world like a glorified bike
messenger?
So Bush didn't go for the troops and
he didn't go to speak with Bremer. He
went for you and me and a little day on
the calendar next November that he's got
triple circled in red. Bush went to Iraq
because his last cowboy photo-op on the
aircraft carrier was a big failure. That
footage with the troops is ruined because
the mission is not accomplished, and he
looks like a big chump in a flight suit.
We've got a risk-taker for a president.
Bush loves the thrill of doing what others
deem risky. It makes us unwilling to
question his motives. "How can you
accuse the president of going to Baghdad
for political reasons - he risked his life
to support the troops." That's exactly
what this thrill-seeking president wants
you to think. However, he only went for
political gain.
When he flew out to the U.S.S. Abra-
ham Lincoln, the story was that he had to
make a dramatic carrier landing because
the ship was so far out. In reality, the carri-
er was in sight of land and an easy heli-
copter ride away. But because the trip
appeared risky, it seemed impressive. And
for the most part it works. America loves a
risk-taker. Remember Bush standing in the
rubble of the World Trade Center? It was
impressive because it was risky.
Bush has a history that suggests he
loves risks. Risking other motorists by
driving drunk, risking his life by visiting
Iraq, risking U.S. troops by telling terror-
ists to bring it on and risking international
relations by taking unilateralist stances
reveal a president who loves his thrills.
But for the good of the country can't
someone buy this guy some skydiving
lessons or take him bungee jumping, so
the only person he is risking is himself.
This time the risk taking succeeded,
and Bush got his nice campaign advertise-
ment clip by keeping the cafeteria mis-
sion-accomplished-banner-free. But I
wonder what they did with that banner.
My guess is they cut it up and used it for
napkins. After all, it's not like Bush is
going to need it anytime soon.
I
I
Piskor canpbe reached
atjpiskor@umich.edu.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
GSIs not making as much
money as letter claims
TO THE DAILY:
I was stunned to read fellow alum Thomas
Wharry's response (Though 'U' could do more to
help cover costs, most GSIs 'extremely wel com-
pensated,' 12/01/03) to Ari Paul's recent column
(Mary Sue, can you live up to your own rhetoric?,
11/26/03). Wharry claims that because graduate
student instructors have their tuition waived, the
tuition they do not pay is added to their salary
(as if they received a refund). As the spouse of a
graduate student, a teaching assistant at North-
western University and a former teaching assis-
tant at Northwestern, I am sure that no GSI at
Michigan, Northwestern or anywhere else is
making nearly $40,000 a year. If GSIs did not
have their tuition waived, most (if not all) would
have to rely on loans to pay the difference. If my
husband chooses not to spend $50 a month for
cable TV, does that mean his salary has
increased by $50 a month? Of course not. His
salary remains the same, with the increase being
$50 more retained income a month. The same
goes for money not spent on tuition. If, as Whar-
ry claims, "the majority of GSIs make $6,427
per term plus their tuition waivers," then they
still make $6,427 per term, but they don't have
to go in the red to pay tuition.
JULIE BECK
Alum
Ticket office should give
priority based on credit
hours for Rose Bowl
To THE DAILY:
I am quite upset about how the athletic tick-
et office has decided to handle student football
bowl tickets. The ticket office has decided to
determine who gets tickets by a simple lottery,
assuming ticket requests exceed supply. The
problem with this is 4th- and 5th-year seniors
have no priority over a freshman. A freshman
should not have the same chance for a ticket as a
senior. This is not just the last time Michigan
football seniors have a chance to go to the Rose
Bowl, but also the last time graduating seniors
have a chance to attend a Rose Bowl. Tickets
should be handled by credit hours, just as nor-
mal football tickets are.
BRIAN CHURCH
Pharmacy junior
LETTERS POLICY
The Michigan Daily welcomes letters from all
of its readers. Letters from University students, fac-
ulty, staff and administrators will be given priority
over others. Letters should include the writer's
name, college and school year or other University
affiliation. The Daily will not print any letter con-
taining statements that cannot be verified.
Letters should be kept to approximately 300
words. The Michigan Daily reserves the right to
edit for length, clarity and accuracy. Longer "view-
points" may be arranged with an editor. Letters will
be run according to order received and the amount
of space available.
Letters should be sent over e-mail to
letters@michigandaily.com or mailed to the Daily at
420 Maynard St. Editors can be reached via e-mail
at editpage.editors@umich.edu. Letters e-mailed to
the Daily will be given priority over those dropped
off in person or sent via the U.S. Postal Service.
VIEWPOINT
U.S. should address inequality in the treatment of ADS
BY ANAND REDDI
If several Boeing 747 jumbo jets, filled
mostly with children, were crashing into
Mount Kilimanjaro every day, something
might be done about it. Secretary of State
Colin Powell declared, "AIDS is the most
powerful weapon of mass destruction on
the planet." Although our government
pledges to commit $87 billion this year to
destruction and rehabilitation of Iraq, our
affluent country promises only $15 billion
over five years to curtail the HIV/AIDS
pandemic. This tepid response by our gov-
ernment and its leaders is preposterous.
Unlike other infectious diseases, HIV is
shocking in its pervasiveness. The impact
of the epidemic is seen throughout a multi-
didate Wesley Clark unveiled a $30 billion
package (doubling the Bush administration's
commitment) to tackle HIV/AIDS world-
wide. Bush's plan directs most financing
through agencies controlled in part by the
United States, which impedes programs that
actually work in the developing world. How-
ever, Clark's proposal provides the majority
of money to international organizations
(which have a proven track record in the
developing world) like the Global Fund to
Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. This
is an extraordinary proposal by the general.
The plan has its ideological roots equally in
both the Jewish tradition of Tikkun Olam
which means, "repair the world" and the era-
transforming Marshall Plan. His strategy
centers on his belief that America is not just
the world's "greatest military force, but also
health efforts toward developing strategies
against HIV. I propose that the University
encourage more collaborative partnerships
between its various departments and
schools and African universities to encour-
age biomedical, public health and social
discourse on the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
Paul Farmer, a major voice in the
HIV/AIDS field, reminds us of our shared,
intimate connections with the world com-
munity, regardless of our deep divides in
language, culture and class. Be assured
that the millions of deaths that result from
the propagation of AIDS in the developing
world will not leave the United States
unscathed. A vital message is learned
from the prominent Victorian physician
William Budd describing typhoid fever in
1874: "The disease seldom attacks the rich,
I 1I1~ U~SL UIL~i~I.Vi I~~L4L~. 1L~~ULiiy 1..UV Li ~JUUL'...1II~ VV J±1 1il.±4L'.*~.'