4 - Tuesday, January 9, 2007 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@umich.edu I have to remind people that when Richard Nixon stood his last election in 1972, he was supposed to be in office until 1977, but he was held accountable for Watergate. You can't always wait until the next election." - Legendary investigative reporter and Washington Post Assistant Managing Editor Bob Woodward, speaking yesterday at the "Covering a New Secrecy" forum in the Michigan League Ballroom, ERIN RUSSELL I ' 0 DONN M. FRESARD EDITOR IN CHIEF EMILY BEAM CHRISTOPHER ZBROZEK EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS JEFFREY BLOOMER MANAGING EDITOR Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. Woodward's..Wisdom__ Prestigious panel discusses role of media B ob Woodward of the Washington Post worked to expose the most infamous government cover-up in our nation's history - the ugly Watergate affair that ended Richard Nixon's presidency and put University alum Gerald Ford in the White House. Since then, Woodward has seen several presidents and remains active on the question of governmental secrecy and the responsibility of the media to inform the people. Yesterday, he was a keynote speaker and panelist at an event in the Michigan League called "Covering the New Secrecy," which addressed the current state of media and governmental affairs in our country. The event was insightful and worthwhile, lacking only the pres- ence of a significant number of students. a THs CAFETErIA FOOO t S RE ALLY IVASTY A7ySPPOG AGLY HE CPEALLY HIC-HLEVVELS OP CHEMICAL P PE5EPVAVE$. WELL THE OOO NEWS I6, IF THE FOOO KILLS us, WE WON'T NEE ENSALMINC. _ - ------------------ Straight talk on taxes Since Sept. 11, and the subsequent pas- sage of the Patriot Act, President Bush and his supporters in the Republican Congress have repeatedly told Americans that giving up certain liberties is neces- sary to defeat the threat of worldwide terrorism. Still, the majority of the public was shocked and outraged to hear about unwarranted - and illegal - wiretaps implemented by the National Security Agency, and we reacted similarly to news that the administration has been track- ing the bank accounts of some Americans since shortly after Sept.11. In this environment of secret govern- mental maneuverings and the media's oft- criticized role in exposing - or failing to ex pose - them, it has become increasingly difficult to openly debate how much the government can choose not to tell us and how far the media should go in doing its duty. Yesterday's event brought the issue to our campus. Panelists at the event included Wood- ward, New York Times Managing Editor Jill Abramson, Fox News's Greta Van Sus- teran, former associate counsel to President Bush Bradford Berenson, National Secu- rity Archives Director Thomas Blanton and Law School Prof. Leonard Nieoff. The exchange between these superstar journal- ists and high-ranking public policy experts fostered a rare dialogue on an issue that has been long absent from the popular discus- sion. Unfortunately, despite all that, the event was poorly publicized and therefore only attended by a handful of students. Panelists pointed out the profound importance of the informal checks and balances system between the media and government. The Bush Administration may have erred in its justification for invading Iraq and for the NSA wiretaps, as well as mishandled the Valerie Plame case. But it's the media's job to pursue the facts behind these stories and not allow the gov- ernment to get away with anything, and as Woodward pointed out, the media has also failed in its duty of late. Since Sept. 11, the Executive Branch has made several significant power grabs. Many of these serve no national security purpose while hindering openness in gov- ernment. For example, Blanton said that the Bush White House has classified and continues to classify more "security sensi- tive" documents than any administration since Nixon's. In the past, some classified documents (since declassified) have been found tobe meaningless, and their classifi- cation served no purpose. Several panelists were rightly critical of the media's failure to fully expose the governmental missteps like this unnecessary classification. While it is commendable on the Univer- sity's part to bring big names to campus for a worthwhile event, its management could be improved. Televised to a national audience via C-SPAN, the panel discussion was interrupted by malfunctioning spot- lights and falling banners. Worse, however, was the tepid student turnout, a result of the event's poor publicity and timing that would be inconvenient for many students. It's encouraging that many professors and alums turned out for the event, but it's a shame that more students could not come listen to the all-star panel. ust before Christmas, Jennifer Granholm got up in front of the Lansing press corps and stated the obvious. Michigan, the gover- nor announced, will have to choose between raising taxes and slashing services to make up for the state's massive budget deficit. The Detroit Free Press ran the news as its lead story. Conservatives across the state wentballistic. All this fuss because a politician applied the rules of addition and subtraction1 to the state bud- get. What Gra- nholm was really saying, of course, was thatj she was getting ready to pro- pose some sort DONN M. of tax increase. It was almost FRESARD comical how she avoided saying so outright. She told reporters that balancing the bud- get with spending cuts alone would mean starving public schools and health care. She said Michigan's vot- ers rejected that strategy when they re-elected her over Dick DeVos by a 14-point margin. And she hammered home the point that the state needs public investment to transform its exhausted economy. Infer what you will. Presumably, Granholm is dipping her toes into the pool before diving into a public campaign for a tax hike - to be announced at her State of the State address next month. State revenues aren't going to improve any time soon, and it's become clear that we'll need more taxes to avoid trash- ing vital services. What's curious is that Granholm would need to be so coy about it at this stage in the game. It's often noted that taxes are a dirty word in Michi- gan politics. Bring up new taxes as an option, and partisan Republicans will tear your throat out. And, yes, Gran- holm is notoriously gun-shy. But this is the governor's second and last term. She has the bully pul- pit, and Michigan is in dire straits. She needs to start telling voters why more taxes can be good for them. There is really only one thing Mich- igan's conservatives will tell you about the state economy: that low taxes attract new businesses and jobs, and high taxes repel them. It's a basic tenet of modern conservatism. Voters have been hearing this gospel for decades, and there are well-funded think tanks dedicated to propagating it. It's scary, really, how many con- servatives can apply anti-tax dogma to any given problem without consid- ering whether it makes sense. In an editorial last week excoriating Gran- holm for her heresy on taxes, the con- servative Oakland Press even argued that "it's pretty obvious the reason the economy is in the tank is because our taxes are too high." Really? I thought the decline of the American auto industry in the face of better for- eign competitors had something to do with it. Granted, tax increases can hurt growth, which is why economists who are weighing the options for new rev- enue sources - a graduated income tax, a tax on services, higher corpo- rate taxes - are taking great pains to figure out which ones will mini- mize the damage. But keeping taxes low won't be nearly enough to attract the new industry Michigan needs to replace its manufacturing economy. Take a look at Alabama. In 2003, Republican Gov. Bob Riley sponsored a ballot initiative to raise that state's ultra-low taxes by $1.2 billion - in part to fix its dismal public school system. Voters, convinced by anti-tax ideologues that the bill would cost 30,000 jobs, rejected it soundly. Two years later, Toyota was look- ing for a location to build a new North American plant. As New York Times columnist Paul Krugman wrote in 2005, Alabama and other southern states clamored to woo the Japanese auto company, offering hundreds of millions of dollars in incentives. But ToyotapickedOntario,foregoinghuge subsidies for a Canadian province with a much higher tax burden than the company's American suitors. Why? Because Ontario's workforce was far better educated than that of any southern U.S. state. Toyota needed workers who could be trained to use its high-tech plant equipment cheaply and quickly. The company's officials pointed to Nissan and Honda, which had run into problems tryingto train unskilled and illiterate workers in their new Mississippi and Alabama plants. State taxes must go up. Will Granholm bite the bullet? It's only an anecdotal case, but it says a lot about why the anti-tax gos- pel doesn't work these days. We're not in the '50s anymore, and the Big Three aren't building big U.S. facto- ries with thousands of low-skill jobs. In today's high-tech environment, we need an educated workforce and good infrastructure to attract new companies. In all likelihood, Michigan's con- servatives will continue to insist that any tax increase is tantamount to economic suicide. It's all they know. But if we're going tofix our problems, someone needs to start telling vot- ers why that approach is wrong. Let's hope Granholm is up for the job. Donn M. Fresard is the Daily's editor and chief. He can be reached at dmfres@umich.edu. 4 I LAUREN MOLONEY EGNATIOS Anew kind of customer In 2003, IBM launched a revolutionary initia- tive to strategically focus on corporate philan- thropy through volunteerism. The On Demand Community, according to an IBM executive "enables (the company) to involve all IBM employees worldwide and give them technology resources (donated computers, other tech sup- plies and cash) that transform the schools and community organizations where they donate their time. (IBM is) taking community service to a whole new level." The initiative is not only transforming community service, but also giv- ing the less fortunate an equal opportunity to reach their maximum potential by providing access to higher education. You, corporate America, are one of the most recognized powerhouses in the world in terms of gross domestic product. One could even argue that you may have mastered the art of capitalism. However, the New Economic Foun- dation offers another benchmark for success. It ranks 178 countries, measuring average life expectancy, conducting surveys on life satis- faction and gauging the consumption of natu- ral resources in each country. Why is it that the United States and other leading economic countries are ranked in the bottom 25 percent of the "Happiness Index" rating? How is it that you can successfully invent almost any product imaginable for an unspeakable profit, yet when it comes to addressing some of the gravest social issues affecting the happiness of your consum- ers, you can barely scratch the surface? What if the solutions to our societal issues meant merely letting go of the inhibiting assumption that corporate social responsibility is corporate suicide? Breathe a sigh of relief, cor- porations. Let the profit reports ease your worst anxieties. Since exploiiting the barely tapped social sector, IBM reportedly held $91 billion in U.S. revenue in 2005 and continues tobe rec- ognized as the leading information technology company in the world. It's about time IBM and other companies' leadership efforts extermi- nate this illusionary fear that has stagnated cor- porate social responsibility efforts for decades. In generating more revenue than any national or global institution on earth, you, America's most powerful entities, have assumed the responsi- bility to step up as our leaders. So, corporate America, as you sit back and calculate the costs and benefits of assumingthis leadership role, here is a message for you: Wait- ing around for the perfect theory to emerge to justify exactly how being a socially active cor- poration will lead to your maximized profit is useless. However, what has and will frequently emerge is a newfound wave of socially active corporations like IBM that have and will con- tinue to gain a competitive advantage in their respective industries. As the corporate social investment trend continues to grow, we as consumers will become more conscious of and educated on the expanded role of companies today. The hour has arrived when we, as edu- cated consumers, are starting to demand more than material satisfaction. Are you, corporate America, ready to meet our needs? Lauren Moloney Egnatios is an LSA senior. Societyformerly known as Michigamua remains nameless SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU political turmoil. It was President Ford's passing that reminded me how proud and fortunate I am to be an American, a member of the Grand Rapids community and a Michigan Wolverine. Thank you, President Ford, TO THE DAILY: for all your yearsc Last year we produced a documentary on the history of the Michigamua controversy from 1902 to 2006. We ended Mark Krhovsky the film with a statement from the "Pride of 2006" saying LSA junior the "Pride of 2007" would announce a new name last fall. So does anvone know the new name?_ of service. A4 OVUC 1yU1CK1Wt1 1W141 If'vou Ca Jamie Shenk and Dean Ho Shenk is an Engineering senior and Ho is a LSA senior. its prob TO THE DAIL Generation X should recognize Although tI (01/08/2007) Ford's considerable legacy wireless conn selves, I am di TO THE DAILY: the University It isn't every day that you watch the national news and network. witness history, let alone history taking place in your Katherine] own hometown. On Jan. 2, I saw one of the most moving inaccurate, be and influential moments of my young life, the homecom- ibility issue i ing of former President Gerald Ford. network is as This son of Grand Rapids was a noble man, a courageous of computerV leader and an altruistic father. Yet, as a 20-year-old Gen- standard). Th eration X-er, I knew little of his legacy or policies. that is not co The ceremonies that took place last week served as the sense tha a significant reminder for me. The passing of Presi- ent (802.11b a dent Ford has given me a second chance to show my the issue here gratitude to my grandfathers who valiantly served in 802.11b wirele our country's military. As a young American, my peers less protocol. and I often overlook the service and sacrifice that was As the arti demonstrated by Ford's generation. It's moments like University bu last week, although solemn and painful, that should University's r wake up the younger generation who call themselves the right equi Americans. having proble Ford achieved so much during his term. After he was be wise to ch thrust into office, he managed to accomplish the insur- University fox mountable task of uniting people and healing a nation. work." His spirit has transcended, and in doing so he has again united the U.S. government, the American people and Daniel Shin the community of Grand Rapids in a time of war and LSAfreshman on'tget wireless, ably your own fault "Y: he article On campus, a wireless headache did state that the main problems with ectivity can be fixed by students them- sturbed by the incorrect assumption that 'does not employ a standardized wireless Musbach's response to the problem is ecause she is assuming that the compat- is on the University end. Any wireless sumed to, be compatible to the protocol wireless signals (802.11b being a popular ere is no such thing as a wireless network .mpatible. It could be not compatible in t the wireless protocol might be differ- and 802.11c, for example), but that's not , because the University is employing the ess network - the most widely used wire- icle states, the problem is not with the t with students' computers. It is not the esponsibility to make sure students have pment to access the network. If anyone is ims with the wireless network, it would eck the computer before criticizing the r having an "incompatible wireless net- Thumbs: Auto show edition The newly revamped Chrysler Town and Country minivan is so spacious that it boasts "Swivel 'n Go" second row seats that actually swivel to face the third row. Melting ice caps, dying seals, hottest summers on record - as long as you've got a center table big enough for a poker party, is global warming really your problem? The Chevrolet Volt concept car, introduced this week by General Motors, can go up to 40 miles on battery power, recharging itself by burning minute amounts of fuel. See, we're not against all gas-guz- zlers - as long as they guzzle to the tune of 150 miles per gallon. Editorial Board Members: Reggie Brown, Kevin Bunkley, Amanda Burns, Sam Butler, Ben Caleca, Devika Daga, Milly Dick, Jesse Forester, Gary Graca, Jared Goldberg, Jessi Holler, Rafi Martina, Toby Mitchell, Rajiv Prabhakar, David Russell, Katherine Seid, Elizabeth.Stanley, Jennifer Sussex, John Stiglich, Neil Tambe, Rachel Wagner. 4