4A - Monday, November 20, 2006 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890 413 E. Huron St. Ann Arbor, MI 48104 tothedaily@michigandaily.com JACK DOEHRING E A DONN M. FRESARD EDITOR IN CHIEF EMILY BEAM CHRISTOPHER ZBROZEK EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS JEFFREY BLOOMER MANAGING EDITOR Unsigned editorials reflect the official position oftthe Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views ofttheir authors. A new day in Washington Dems should seize chance to clean up Congress Americans overwhelmingly voted two weeks ago to change the culture in Washington by entrusting Democrats to lead both houses of Congress. Soon, the lame-duck rub- ber-stamp Republican Congress will be no more, and the legisla- tive branch will begin to function independently again. Believe it or not, this was pretty mild so far, for as big as this game was." - LT. DAN RANNEY of the Columbus fire department, commenting on the nearly 40 arrests made and dozens of fires set following Ohio State's win against Michigan on Saturday, as reported yesterday by the Associated Press. _J : 'L {f' C The last Michigan Man U The incoming Democratic Congress has an ambitious agenda laid out for when it con- venes next January. The Democrats want to raise the federal minimum wage to give a fighting chance of joining the middle class to Americans who earn a low wage. Even President Bush seems receptive to the idea. Democrats also want to eliminate provi- sions in the Medicare statute that prevent the government from bargaining with pharmaceutical companies. The Republi- can Congress instituted those provisions as a favor to the pharmaceutical industry - resulting in higher prices for America's neediest and higher profits for drug com- panies. More important to students, the Demo- crats want to make college more affordable by increasing the maximum Pell Grant and halving interest rates on student loans. By lowering the economic barriers that keep so many young Americans out of college, Congress can expand access to higher edu- cation and help build a highly educated, skilled work force. At the very least, lower interest rates will make it easier to pay for textbooks and beer. To ensure thattheir agenda becomes law, House Democrats last week unanimously elected Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) as the first female speaker of the House. Besides becoming the third highest-ranking offi- cial in the federal government, Pelosi is charged with selecting committee chairs. While selecting her leadership team, Pelosi should be mindful of the culture of corrup- tion that ended 12 years of Republican con- trol in Congress. Exit polls from the midterm election showed that about 40 percent of Ameri- cans ranked the corruption in Congress as the issue that most influenced their vote. Clearly, voters were not enamored with the ethical standards practiced by Jack Abramoff's party. It would be a mis- take for Pelosi to lead the Democrats down the same path Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Tex.) chose for the Republicans - which is why she should distance herself from Rep. Jack Murtha (D-Penn.) and Rep. Alcee Hast- ings (D-Fla.). Murtha, a longtime ally of Pelosi, was deeply involved in the ABSCAM scandal in the 1980s, and a recently released video shows he was clearly open to the idea of accepting money for legislative favors. The incoming Democrats seem to have gotten the message about ethics; last week they soundly rejected Murtha for house major- ity leader despite Pelosi's support for him. Hastings is the second highest-ranking Democrat on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. Yet in 1989, the House - then controlled by Democrats - impeached him for corruption and perjury over allegations he solicited a $150,000 bribe in exchange for lessening a sentence while serving as a federal judge in Florida, and a panel of the Senate removed him from office. Because the ranking Democrat on the committee - Rep. Jane Harman of California - bickers regularly with Pelosi, Hastings is the favorite for chairman. The justified outrage that would come over entrusting an impeached official with overseeing the intelligence community is the best way for Democrats to start off on the wrong foot. Americans shouldn't even have to sus- pect that the men and women elected to represent them in government would use their positions for personal gain. Ethical lapses under Republican rule, includingthe recent convictions of two corrupt Republi- can congressmen, helped Democrats win back control of Congress. The Democrats now have an opportunity to change the culture in Washington by practicing sound ethics and bringing accountability to those that do not. If voters decide Democrats are as ethically challenged as the Republicans they just threw out, it's difficult to see how the Democrats can build support for their agenda in Congress. When someone like Bo Schem- bechler dies, it's more than just the man or his legacy that we lose. Gone with that giant of an era is a bit of that era itself, a bit of everything that happened to Michigan football, college football and college in general since he first donned the block M in 1969. The University didn't just lose its greatest coach. As the icons of college football's golden age con- tinue to leave us, we lost perhaps the last remain- ing consummate Michigan Man. Schembechler only took over the Wolverines IMRAN in 1969, which is recent consider- SYED ing that other coaching giants, like Pop Warner and Amos Alonzo Stagg, were long dead by then, and Woody Hayes and Bear Bry- ant were already well into building their legacies. Though Schembechler does crack the top 10 in all-time coaching victories for Division I-A college football, his greatness isn't in those 234 wins. Like only a handful before him, and perhaps none since, Schembechler understood the role of the head foot- ball coach in a college community. The coach wasn't just the man leading the troops every Saturday - he was often the most visible face of the University. Bryant used that influence to hasten the lagging winds of integration in Alabama athletics by offering schol- arships to black players. Similarly, Joe Paterno recognized and stressed the importance of academics and the holistic college experience for athletes - leading to especially high gradua- tion rates among his players. And Schembechler, for his part, was always a willing, active voice at the University. Not only was he athletic director from 1988 to 1990 and amen- tor to current players and coaches. Bo also maintained his office at Schem- bechler Hall and - as anecdotes we heard after his passing attest - con- tinued to reach out students at large. His appreciation for the University,not just its football team, was unmatched, as shownby his involvement in raising funds for cancer research at the Uni- versity and his regular attendance of a class in the School of Public Policy this semester. That kind of involvement is hard to fathom today when coaches like Lloyd Carr - compassionate and dedicated as theyare - matter to campus only on game days and, from about mid-Janu- ary to late August, essentially disap- pear from our consciousness. Sure, Paterno and Bobby Bowden trudge on stubbornly, and there are occasional aesthetic throwbacks - Barry Alverez and the sterling suit-and-tie years at Wisconsin, Jim Tressel's sweater- vested tribute to the old ball coach at Ohio State - but the era when a foot- ball coach was a representative of a university is largely over. In the old days, the coach was more than just a coach to his team. In the time of slow rail travel, it took a lot more to recruit a kid from one coast to come play on the other. When you came cross-country to play for Pater- no or Schembechler, it was because you saw a man who loved you, and you trusted him to mold your life. Players today may say they wentcto USC to play for Pete Carroll or to Texas for Mack Brown, but they don't really mean it. Not in the same way. Not when hun- dreds have left school early to cash in at the National Football League. Most football players and many coaches today see their commitment as pertainingto their sport alone. The university community, the college experience, the distinction of student- athlete: These are just words to most big-name football players. There are exceptions - Peyton Manning, our own Braylon Edwards - guys who stay longerthanthey need to, defer the millions awaiting them in endorse- ments and the NFL and return to fin- ish up an experience they appreciate and pick up a diploma. Much like Bo, these are shadows of a bygone era. And it isn't just coaches and players who have changed. The game itself has evolved. With our age's over-commer- cialization looming, there have been all sorts of nominal efforts to protect the sanctity of the game and the purity Schembechler was the last of his kind. of the Michigan (Notre Dame, Ohio State, etc.) brand. The University can try to preserve symbols of the old game (keeping the stadium an ad/alcohol/ skybox-free zone, for example), but as Michigan and Ohio State dueled in a nail-biter last Saturday, you didn't have to look too hard to see how much has changed since Bo first took helm in 1969. Nike swooshes, multi-million- dollar television deals - and who can forget that the game almost became the "SBC Michigan-Ohio State Clas- sic" a couple of years ago? These changes show us that college football today ain't the game in which Hayes and Schembechler waged their famed "Ten Years War." Commercial- ization and fragmentation have left us today with a brand of football that is fiercely contemporary. As icons like Schembechler continue to leave us, those good old days will soon be a mere memory. There may never be another Michi- gan Man. Imran Syed is a Daily associate editorial page editor. He can be reached at galad@umich.edu. 4 SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@MICHIGANDAILY.COM AMANDA BURNS 'W Redecorating Congress a Schembechler inspired father-and-son trumpeters TO THE DAILY: Bo Schembechler was a very large part of my life, pretty much from the cradle. The day I was born, the guy who lived across the street from us hung a banner on our garage: "Call Bo - It's a Boy!" Well, I never quite materialized into a foot- ball star. Instead, I'm in my third year in the Michigan Marching Band. My dad was also a trumpet player in the band, and he loves to tell people that he started for Bo at the 1972 Rose Bowl. They always ask, "What position did you play?" They're always surprised at the response: "First trumpet. In the band." The guy who laughed the hardest when he heard that joke? Bo Schembechler. I got an opportunity to get my picture taken with Bo during the taping of an ESPN College GameDay segment last Labor Day on the field at Michigan Stadium. Christmas morning, I came downstairs and found a very special gift under the tree. My mom had taken the picture of Bo and me to Bo's office at Schembechler Hall and left him a note asking him to sign it. He did, and he added a special note: "To Aram - A great Michigan man from a great Michigan family! Go Blue - Bo Schembechler." Looking at that picture, it's the greatest com- pliment I've ever received. Bo is the reason I developed my passion for Michigan football. Bo is the reason Iam honored to wear the Michigan Marching Band uniform on Saturdays. He's the reason people like me have such immense pride and love for our University. He's the greatest of the Michigan Men, and I'm glad I have had the opportunity to spend even the smallest morsel of time around him. I'm a better person because of Bo's love for Michigan. Aram Sarkisian RCjunior The letter writer plays trumpet in the Michigan MarchingBand. Bo defined game day on and off thefleld TO THE DAILY: For as far back in my childhood as I can remember, Bo Schembechler and Michigan football were a part of my life. My family and I watched the games and cheered on Michigan with great emotion. We would jump up and down in the living room and yell at the referees. And we'd always wonder, "Can't Michigan throw just one pass?" We were elated on days when Michigan won and down in the dumps after that occasional loss. Even after his retirement from coaching, I looked forward to Bo's commentaries and cri- tiques of the games, and I marveled at all he did especially outside of football. Coach Schem- bechler truly was a special person, not only dur- ing his time coaching Michigan, but also in the subsequent years when he did so much to help and inspire so many. Thank you, Bo. Martha Sweigert Assistant to the dean, College ofEngineering Angelo's generosity, Bo's legacy will be remembered TO THE DAILY: When Bo had his bypass surgery during my time in Ann Arbor, from 1973 to 1977, I lived in the apartment above Angelo's restaurant. Bo was in St. Joseph's Hospital on Glen Street, and there was a media circus in our neighborhood. I recall that some wag wanted to find out exactly how well-known Bo was and sent a get-well card to him with only a picture of Bo on the envelope. It was delivered to him at the hospital. That was a great two-bedroom apartment with a parking place that Angelo rented for $250 a month. If we paid our rent on time, Angelo would give us a loaf of his homemade bread. Michael J. Chandler, M.D. LSA Class of77 UAAO doesn't have right to dictate society's policies TO THE DAILY: When I read the front-page story on Fri- day (UAAO demands society be more open, 11/17/2006), I couldn't help but think that United Asian American Organizations is stepping way out of line. I didn't know that UAAO, or any other student group, could dictate what any other stu- dent group on campus did, no matter how con- troversial the group. Also, there doesn't seem to be much incentive for the group formerly known as Michigamua to publish a list of all its mem- bers (as it already has) if being known as a mem- ber of the group means that you are shunned and condemned by other student groups. UAAO, just like the entire campus, needs to give ex-Michigamua a chance and work with them, instead of attempting to destroy the orga- nization. Matthew Lewis LSAjunior Even before this year's midterm elections, media com- mentators already were making snide remarks about Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) "measuring the drapes" in Speaker Dennis Hastert's (R-Ill.) office in preparation for a Demo- cratic takeover of the House of Representatives. After bemoaning the Republican Party's "thumpin'," President Bush himself joked: "In my first act of bipartisan out- reach since the election, I shared with (Pelosi) the names of some Republican interior decorators who can help her pick out the new drapes in her new offices." Although the remark garnered some laughs, it also revealed that many Republicans may be unprepared not only to face a Demo- cratic majority, but also a female speaker of the House. The traditions that accompany a partisan changeover in the House have long involved redecorating offices and changing desks, but I doubt commentators would have focused on this aspect if the speaker-elect were a man. Perhaps Pelosi's gender should be a topic of discussion, but the discourse shouldn't involve fabric swatches or curtains. The fact that the discussion is centered on these superficial changes only proves Republicans are unwilling to acknowledge the historical significance of our nation's first woman speaker. Certainly some believe gender equality has risen to the point where a female speaker should not be considered news, but Capitol Hill is in many ways still an old boys' club. The congressional women's caucus is proof of this; congresswomen from both sides of the aisle join together not to plan strategic votes or even to advance women's issues, but to create a support network. Issues discussed in the caucus are less political and more practical. Most congresswomen are wives and mothers, and the caucus allows them to share experiences and advice on how to juggle their multiple roles and responsibilities. Pelosi's ascension to speaker should be seen as an impor- tant step for women, but instead it is being hailed as the chance of a lifetime for one interior decorator. The media underestimates the impact of female role models on young girls. In fact, the day after the election, MSNBC news host Tucker Carlson sarcastically asked a guest ifshe felt her life as a woman would be better with a female speaker. For the generation of women already in politics, a female speaker may not seem life-changing, but historical significance is measured in the impact on future generations. For elementary and middle-school girls learning about government, party label takes a backseat to gender. A female speaker of the House will have an impact on how girls view their possible role in politics. In middle school, I worshiped Elizabeth Dole for the simple fact that she was a powerful female senator, something I one day hoped to be. To insinuate that Pelosi is spending her time thinking about end tables and throw pillows is ridiculous and cer- tainly diminishes her role as a political leader. Unfortunately, it seems that the male-dominated power club in our government is not yet ready to admit a female member. It is a grown-up version of playground politics, and the Republicans were just beat by a girl. What's next? Claims that she speaks like a girl? Presides like a girl? Leg- islates like a girl? The American public just rebuked President Bush's neo- con clubhouse, and the last thing the Republican leadership should be worried about is whether the speaker's office has floral wallpaper. And besides, Bush's gesture of lending his interior decorators to Pelosi is unnecessary. I'm sure the San Francisco liberal in her will ensure the speaker's office is tastefully decorated - by avoiding the gaudy southwest chic of the White House. Amanda Burns is an LSA senior and a member of the Daily's editorial board. Editorial Board Members: Reggie Brown, Kevin Bunkley, Amanda Burns, Sam Butler, Ben Caleca, Devika Daga, Milly Dick, James David Dickson, Jesse Forester, Gary Graca, Jared Goldberg, Jessi Holler, Rafi Martina, Toby Mitchell, Rajiv Prabhakar, David Russell, Katherine Seid, Elizabeth Stanley, John Stiglich, Neil Tambe, Rachel Wagner. JOHN OQUISTI : VE .Y -EET r HEY, I JUST GOT THE NEW NINTENDO CONSOLE. IT'S REALLY COOL! YOU WAVE THIS CONTROLLER AROUND TO PLAY THE GAMES! IN THIS SPORTS GAME YOU CAN PLAY TENNIS, OR EVEN BOWL! I'VE ALWAYS DREAMED OF BOWLING! AND NOW FOR ONLY $250 AND $50 FOR A GAME, I CAN AWKWARDLY SIMULATE IT! 7 Cd U A i"yfI .! rOtry !A 1 lll lt 1/11 i