4A - Thursday, September 6, 2007
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
74C MIiigan 4aly u
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KARL STAMPFL IMRAN SYED JEFFREY BLOOMER
EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR 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.
FROM T HE D A',Y'
Deconstructing campus
Campus improvements don't target needs
f you feeling like campus is very different from when you left
last spring, you're not alone. With two major entrances to the
Diag torn apart, a mammoth steel skeleton standing where the
new Ross School of Business building will be, the Frieze Building
demolished, Michigan Stadium renovations scheduled for next year
and a whole host of other construction projects going on, it seems
like all of campus is in a state of flux. These latest changes to the face
of campus raise important questions about the right and wrong way
to approach improvement.
I've got God's shoulder to cry on.
And I cry a lot."
- President George W. Bush in an interview with a biographer, as reported by The Associated Press.
CHRIS KOSLOWSKI I 1UT TO PAST"E
You have any plans this s .
week? What a coincidence! rm
Em attending an Anti-Auto. planning to fiebomb that
Milker ralysponsored by thery!a
National Organization of
Cows. You?,nntA 5
- - - - - - - --- --- --- - %
Adthen there was one..
Using the awesome power of hypote-
nuses, the Diag is the University's express-
way of foot travel. It's tough to get around
quickly without it, and more importantly,
it's simple enough that it allows students
to learn their way around pretty quickly.
It makes little sense to block half of the
entrances to the Diag, especially at the
beginning of the term.
Some projects, like the addition to the art
museum, have obvious benefits. The same
doesn't hold true for the bottomless pit that
was dug up in front of the Shapiro Under-
graduate Library. Few people know how to
get around that mess efficiently enough to
still get to class on time. When a project is
causes this sort of much everyday inconve-
nience, we should at leastbe know what the
reason for the inconvenience is.
The Diag maze is just the beginning.
Alum Stephen Ross's $100-million donation
in 2004 led to the demolition of Davidson
Hall, a building comparatively younger and
in better shape than many other University
buildings, to make for an even newer build-
ing. Meanwhile, right next-door, Lorch
Hall, a building that can leave you with
dandruff from drywall and chipped paint,
continues to fall apart. But money talks,
and Ross got his way.
The business school's new building is a
great example of a myopic construction
philosophy that fails to allocate resources
in the way that is best for the University as
a whole.
Instead of at least minimally improv-
ing the existing dorms, which have gone
decades without improvement, the Uni-
versity opted to build a new one - North
Quad. A few lucky students will get a brand
new facility while the rest are crammed
into decrepit places like Mary Markley,
where you can have a bat as your third
roommate.
As much as the University sells itself as
an egalitarian institution, nothing could
look more elitist. Many of these projects
look like wasteful spending and could doom
the University's lobbying efforts in Lan-
sing. While the state deals with a financial
nightmare, the $226 million the University
is spending on the Big House looks pretty
unnecessary. It looks even worse when you
consider that the entire athletic depart-
ment at Appalachian State only has a bud-
get of $9.5 million.
Private donors like Ross have every right
to stipulate how they want their donations
used. However, if the demands of some
donors are not in line with the best inter-
ests of the University as a whole, perhaps
it's time that the University restructured its
donation policy to retain more authority in
deciding how best to use the money.
Most alumni would surely wish their
alma mater to benefit in the best way possi-
ble from their donations and should under-
stand such a change. Perhaps some alumni
would turn away, but the marginal benefit
for the University at large from donations
going where they are most needed dictates
that the University must rethink its policies
and start doing what is best for all of cam-
pus, not just the few.
WYMAN KHUU
11 00 SA L V
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W henAttorneyGeneralAlber-
to Gonzales announced his
resignation last Monday,
everything in the
Bush Administra- A
tion is coming full
circle.Startingback
in 2004, the first
to jump ship was y
then Attorney Gen-F
eral John Ashcroft.
Then a host of dis-
gruntled cabinet GARY
members left in
what seems to be a GRACA
complete overhaul
of the administration, rather than just
the outing of a few bad apples.
Most people, especially liberals,
couldn't have been more delighted.
Finally, Karl Rove - master political
strategist, Democratic kryptonite and
architect of disasters like the war in
Iraq - was resigning. Likewise, The
New York Times editorial page must
be celebrating Christmas in August
now that Gonzales is out the door. It
spent the last year calling for either
his resignation, impeachment or
assassination - whichever was most
convenient.
As President Bush's inner circle
wilts away,nthough, we need to remem-
ber that there is still only one person
to blame for the mistakes of the last
seven years: The Decider himself.
It's tempting to believe that Bush
has the intelligence of an oyster. He
fumbles his way through speeches.
He talks with a John Wayne-like stub-
bornness that crowds out reason. He
praises his guts over his brain. And if
you've ever seen one of the caricatures
where his face is pasted onto a mon-
Michigan has the
classiest fans of all
TO THE DAILY:
Michigan fans, on behalf of every-
one from Appalachian State in atten-
dance Saturday, I want to thank all
of you. Having not been to a game at
Michigan before, many of us weren't
sure of the reception we would
receive. Before and after the game,
you proved to be the classiest fans I
have ever been around. We sat inthe
middle of Michigan fans supporting
our team loudly and never heard a
negative word from anybody. After
the game it was all congratulations
and handshakes.
In a college sports environment
where opposing fans have to brace
for bad treatment from fans of the
home team, you guys were incred-
ible. I speak on behalf of all Moun-
taineer fans in attendance when I
say we will be cheering for Michi-
gan the rest of the season.
Murphy Post
The letter writer is a graduate of
Appalachian State University.
Henne shares blame
with Carr, both must go
TO THE DAILY:
Amid the cries for Lloyd Carr's
head, there is one question that has
been overlooked: Why is no one call-
ing outquarterback Chad Henne after
another poor performance? Henne's
game has not improved at all since his
freshman season, and he is probably
the biggest fraud at the position ever
perpetrated upon the program. If he
hadn't been surrounded by an aston-
ishing amount of talent during his
four years (Braylon Edwards, Steve
Breaston, Jason Avant, Mario Man-
ningham, Michael Hart, and others),
he would have beenbenched long ago.
Having no ability to carry his team
through its struggles and an inability
to consistently throw the ball deep
are both major liabilities, especially
with the type of offense Michigan
runs, all its other faults aside.
Henne is truly a case where sta-
tistics do not tell the whole story of
a quarterback's performance. If it
weren't for Hart also coming back
this year, I would suggest starting
key's body and he's scratching himself
with a stick, he has anuncanny resem-
blance to Curious George.
This image of the president has led
many to believe that Bush is nothing
more than a marionette, with a hand-
ful of powerful henchmen pulling the
strings behind the scenes. But that
gives these men too much credit. Bush
isn't that dumb.
What Bush is, however, is a bad
manager. It's everyday business for
presidents to allow cabinet members
and advisors to manage their own
functions and make their own deci-
sions. What is unusual about Bush is
his inability to stop and reassess the
situation when his staff is getting out
of hand. Instead of judginghis advisers
by the quality of their work, the Decid-
er has repeatedly trusted them for the
quality oftheir character. Although it's
cute, warm, fuzzy and all-that good
stuff for a president to surround him-
self withgenuinely nice, honest people,
it hasn't produced results.
There is no better example of Bush's
destructive Texan loyalty than Gon-
zales. Widely recognized by close offi-
cials and most of the media as a "nice
guy," Gonzales's actions as attorney
general and White House counsel
have been anything but nice. Probably
anything but legal, too.
As the legal architect behind much
of the war against terrorism, including
the notorious Patriot Act, warrantless
wiretapping and the legal black hole
at Guantanamo Bay, Gonzales made
decisions that polarized the country
and compromised the world's support
for America after the tragedy of Sept.
11. He even had the gall in a January
2002 memo to the president to write
that the new terrorism threat "renders
obsolete Geneva's strict limitations
on questioning of enemy prisoners."
Not a particularly great way to make
friends.
But since his days as governor of
Texas, Bushhas kept Gonzales around.
First he was counsel to the governor;
then he was Texas's secretary of state,
a justice on the state Supreme Court
and White House counsel. Finally he
ended up as attorney general. Ifa few
things would have gone his way, he
might have even been a justice on the
U.S. Supreme Court.
No scapegoats
left in Bush's
White House.
The same scenario is true for Bush
loyalist Harriet Miers, who Bush nom-
inated for the Supreme Court (and
then withdrew that nomination under
pressure). Instead of reining in these
two officials as their decisions became
greater political liabilities and danger-
ous mistakes, Bush stayed true to his
friends.
While his loyalty is honorable,
there must have been one Texas lesson
Bush forgot to learn:You have to know
when to hold 'em and whento fold 'em.
A little Texas loyalty may have never
hurt anyone, but it sure has left Amer-
ica reeling
Gary Graca is an associate
editorial page editor. He can be
reached at gmgraca@umich.edu.
SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU
freshman quarterback Ryan Mal-
let and working toward next year.
Thankfully Michigan football will
be rid of both Carr and Henne at the
end of the year. In fact, Carr's dogged
loyalty to a player that should be rid-
ing the bench is another of his weak-
nesses.
Michigan fans had to suffer
through three years of John Navarre
before being "rewarded" with a 10-
3 senior year that included a classic
Lloyd bowl loss. Given Carr's predict-
ability, it shouldn't come as too much
of a shock that he is once again allow-
ing a mediocre quarterback to drive
the team into the ground. Athletic
Director Bill Martin should be sent
out west with a wheelbarrow full of
money and a mandate not to come
back unless California head coach
Jeff Tedford is on the plane with him.
And if Tedford wants the plane, he
can have that too.
Fred Vescio
Alum
No reason to blame
Carr more than others
TO THE DAILY:
I feel the pain that washed
through Wolverine Nation on Sat-
urday. What I don't understand is
all the negative comments pointed
at head football coach Lloyd Carr. If
he really hated The Maize and Blue,
why would he still be coaching? It
just seems as if fans are looking for
a scapegoat and Carr is the easiest
target. Why blame the players for
being cocky and believing that the
game would be an easy win? Is it
that hard to congratulate another
team? Are we that stuck up? There
are more games to play, and that
is what we should be focusing on.
There is no guarantee that a new
coach would do better.
Jennifer Johnson
LSA freshman
Carr represents old
school at its worst
TO THE DAILY:
Let's not mince words here. Lloyd
Carr is a lousy coach. Sure, he's a nice
man and he runs a clean program,
but he is still a lousy coach. Let the
record speak for itself. He has some-
how managed to lose the last two
games of the season three years is a
row. Of late, he is 1-6 against Ohio
State and 2-3 against a generally so-
so Notre Dame squad. He now has the
distinction of being the first coach of
a ranked Football Bowl Subdivision
(formerly Division I-A) school to lose
to a Football Championship Subdivi-
sion (formerly Division I-AA) oppo-
nent after Saturday's disgusting loss
to Appalachian State.
In an interview after the game,
Carr took full responsibility for the
loss, although he was not specific
enough regarding how he was to
blame. He just rambled on about how
"we didn't do this and we didn't do
that." Even though he took the blame,
he kept emphasizing the word "we."
Let's be more specific: Carr alone is
the one who has failed time and time
again.
InSaturday'sgamethereweremany
things that went wrong, but Michigan
still could have won in the end. On
Michigan's last possession, it could
have hung on for a 32-31 win if the
offense had gotten just one more first
down. Yet Carr went ahead with his
usual predictable plays, and we failed
to pick up the game-clinching first
down.Afterafailedfield-goalattempt,
an unprepared defense allowed the
Mountaineers to slice through it like a
hot knife through butter.
When you can't afford to concede
yardage and first downs, you must
put pressure on the quarterback. It's
analogous to not having to defend
against the home run in baseball if
a long fly ball will beat you anyway.
But Carr has shown several times
over the years that he doesn't get it.
He is old-school football at its stub-
born worst.
There is speculation that Carr may
retire. If he does, Michigan must not
make the mistake of simply bringing
up another assistant from within the
program. The Athletic Department
needs to clean house and get a com-
petent coach like Florida did when it
brought in Urban Meyer. The Wol-
verines have the most storied football
program in the country and plenty of
money to spend. They owe it to the
107,000-plus fans who show up every
week to do what is necessary to win
in the 21st century.
Robert Fairman
Ann Arbor
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