4A - Wednesday, February 6, 2008 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 7Jbe 4Miidiigan &U3at Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu I've never minded the role of the underdog." - Republican presidential candidate, John McCain, speaking to supporters in Phoenix, as reported yesterday by The New York Times. Looking presidential ANDREW GROSSMAN EDITOR IN CHIEF GARY GRACA EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR GABE NELSON 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. The Daily's public editor, PaulH. Johnson, acts as the readers' representative and takes a critical look at coverage and content in every section of the paper. Readers are encouragedto contact the public editor with questions and comments. He canbe reached at publiceditor@umich.edu. sA slipery slope Proposed limits on student papers threaten free speech The University says it supports the free exchange of ideas. It says it wants students to be exposed to diverse view- points. But the College of Literature, Science and the Arts is another story. The LSA Facilities and Operations Office recent- ly revealed plans to restrict when, where and how student orga- nizations and publications distribute their materials. Shamelessly disguised as a harmless effort to reduce litter and promote safety, this policy would really be an act of unconstitutional suppression of free speech, compromising the autonomy of student publica- tions and offering another example of the University's bad habit of disregarding students. n Sept. 26, 1960, then-Vice President Richard Nixon and then-U.S. Senator John F. Kennedy faced off in the first tele- vised presiden- tial debate. When asked who had won the debate, televi- sion viewers over- whelmingly chose Kennedy, who appeared youth- ful, confident and EMMARIE attractive, while HUETTEMAN radio listeners- declared Nixon the winner in a close contest. But how could the same event be judged in such different ways? It soon became clear that the difference between a Kennedy victory and a Nixon victory was the sweat dripping down the vice president's pale face. It wasn't that Nixon was nervous. Historians attribute his excessive per- spiration to hot studio lights, alack of makeup and the knee surgery he had recently undergone. However, excus- es meant little to television viewers, and Kennedy went on to win the presi- dency by a small margin. America just didn't want a sweaty president. Since that first debate, the prolif- eration of visual media has neces- sitated that candidates present a ubiquitously presidential image. In a cliche sense, that means being a commanding speaker, wearing a tai- lored suit and kissing a generation of confused babies. There are a few forgivable variables - specifically, speaking with a mildly stigmatized accent or following a marginalized Christian creed - that voters will overlook on a case-by-case basis, but those who don't fit the mold generally don't make the cut. Sometime in the past four years, though, that image changed, espe- cially for the Democrats. Suddenly, being multiracial is presidential. Being female is presidential. But being a white male? That's so 2004. It is that shift that has shaped the dialogue of the presidential race. In 2004, the media encouraged bicker- ing about whether military service or the avoidance of military service was more presidential. Today, the media encourages bickering about wheth- er being misty-eyed or dry-eyed is more presidential, a debate that has drowned out the more traditional debates like whether Mitt Romney's Mormonism is a forgivable variable. When John Edwards removed himself from the race last week, he told his supporters that he needed to withdraw so that "history can blaze its path." His departure ensured that the Democrats would have the his- toric nomination of their dreams, but the punch line is that the media, the Democrats and even Edwards him- self have been setting him up for this sacrifice for months. Regardless of his strong platform and keen ability to steer the discussion, Edwards is a little passe, if only because he's a white male. And throughout this primary sea- son, that is precisely the image from which the Democrats have distanced themselves in order to be the party of change, through and through. The CNN/YouTube Democratic debate in July featured Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama center-stage, flanked by white men who were already fad- ing in comparison to these frontrun- ners. By the CNN Democratic debate in South Carolinaon Jan. 21, Edwards was the only white man left. Despite looking quite presidential in his suit and tie, Edwards couldn't match the growing advantage of his opponents. Obama sported a distin- guished hint of gray hair at his tem- ples to complement his Iowa victory. Even Clinton donned a suit, look- ing very presidential after her win in New Hampshire. The Democrats could hardly have been happier. In the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Clinton observed, "What bet- ter way to celebrate the legacy of Dr. King than to look at this stage right here tonight?" With voters anxious to express their discontent with the past eight years, a Democratic preoccupation with change is only natural. Four 4 years ago, the Democratic Party offered up John Kerry as its alter- native; voters declined. This time around, Democrats have found felic- ity in two qualified candidates who believe in change and also happen to look the part. This election, John Edwards is the sacrificial lamb And that's what matters this time around. If the Democratic Party wants to take back the White House, it needs to be seen as the party of change without a shade of doubt. So while Edwards proved a pioneer in shaping its platform on issues like health care and poverty, the Demo- crats were understandably unwilling to take a chance on a candidate who looks like more of the same - espe- cially considering that the new- school presidential candidate is still a commanding speaker in a tailored suit with plenty of babies to kiss. Emmarie Huetteman is an associate editorial page editor. She can be reached at huetteme@umich.edu. The product of two years of planning, the proposed policy would place unwar- ranted limitations on the content and dis- tribution of student pamphlets, fliers and publications. To circulate publications in an LSA building, on racks with limited spaces, student groups would have to be overseen by the Board for Student Publi- cations or registered with by the Michigan Student Assembly. Even with this initial restriction, material must meet a laundry list of requirements like complying with the University's advertising and content policies. In addition, student organiza- tions would only be allowed to distribute materials from Sept. 15 to Apr. 14, forbid- ding the circulation of publications like the Daily in LSA buildings during the spring and summer semesters and push- ing the first fall semester publication date back two weeks.r The LSA Facilities and Operations Office contends that these extensive restric- tions are necessary to cut down on litter, thus lowering the probability of slipping on loose papers in its buildings. It argues that the overproduction of student fli- ers and publications is to blame for this safety hazard. But rather than address- ing the problem with logical solutions like increased janitorial efforts, looking for solutions along with the student groups supposedly to blame or installing more recycling bins, LSA is seeking to cut off the source of the litter - and the student body's constitutional right to free speech and a free press. A few papers scattered across Angell Hall aren't reason enough to curtail rights that have taken decades to solidify, even here at the University where students have historically fought with the administra- tion to guarantee their editorial control. A little mess is a small price to pay for our right to free speech.. The hollow justification LSA adminis- trators are offering for this intrusion into students' freedom is that LSA buildings aren't "public" because they aren't open to the public around the clock. Therefore, the University's commitment to free speech and the U.S. Constitution are able to be trampled on. But obviously, LSA adminis- trators don't often visit their ownbuildings after 5 p.m. If they did, they would know that they are popular common areas at all hours of the day and night - exactly what is required to be considered "public." The proposed policy is anything but con- tent-neutral, as the administration claims. By restrictingthe number of slots on display racks and giving an immense amount of regulatory power to MSA and the Board for Student Publications, LSA's policy is severe- ly restrictive for papers outside the main- stream or without established audiences. Of course, the LSA policy won't stop at directly regulating the content in student papers. The LSA prohibition of alcohol and drug-related content would apply to advertisements in student publications, which could prove detrimental to some papers' revenue. Because publications like the Daily are financially dependent on advertising, restrictions on advertising might as well be restrictions on content. It is also unclear how the policy would affect materials that are not produced by stu- dents like the Metro Times and the Ann Arbor News. These publications, which offer students valuable information about local events, could potentially be kept of the racks. Most importantly, this policy would hurt students. Ousted from their prime real estate in LSA buildings, student pub- lications would likely have to discontinue circulating during the spring and summer semesters. LSA administrators must have forgotten that news doesn't stop for the summer. Consider this last summer when the University raised tuition, got the final green light to desecrate Michigan Stadium with skyboxes and signed a multimillion- dollar apparel contract with Adidas. The University shouldn't get a free pass to act without the oversight these publications provide. Sure, the LSA policy is supposedly still in drafting stages. But LSA administrators can't take back the two years they consid- ered these proposed restrictions without ever having the common sense to ask for input from the major student groups that will be affected by the policy. It is appall- ing that the only way this university's two main student publications, the Michigan Review and the Daily, were able to find out about this policy was when they reported on it. Unfortunately, it's emblematic of how the University does business now. In an effort to be environmental friend- ly, the LSA Facilities and Operations Office should do itself one favor: Toss this policy into a recycling bin. But don't leave it on the ground because someone might trip. EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Emad Ansari, Anindya Bhadra, Kevin Bunkley, Ben Caleca, Satyajeet Deshmukh, Milly Dick, Mike Eber, Emmarie Huetteman, Theresa Kennelly, Emily Michels, Arikia Millikan, Kate Peabody, Robert Soave, lmran Syed, Neil Tambe, Matt Trecha, Kate Truesdell, Radhika Upadhyaya, Rachel Van Gilder, Rachel Wagner, Patrick Zabawa. SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU RHA president has left assembly reeling These claims ar resent the facts On an almos permits fuel, fo enter Gaza. If Is TO THE DAILY: of anything, it As a president of a council in a of Gazans ahea residence hall here on campus, I am own citizens. appalled by the actions of Andrew trucks carrying Eastman, the Residence Hall-Asso- to enter Gaza ciation president who is being least one occasi charged with indecent exposure. Israeli Security Obviously the incident in question an attempt to is unacceptable for someone who is nitrate, which supposed to uphold the laws of the rockets, under residence hall, but what is worse is Also, in countl what Eastman has done to the RHA the border cros assembly. movement of g Leaders are people who motivate and Gaza have b their followers to stand and lead tars and Qassar with them, not behind them. After Credible for( reading many pages of RHA minutes, like the World I have come to understand that the on Jan 3 have five RHA executive board members abuse of human who have recently quit did not resign Over the past fe strictly because of this one incident, other groups h but because of his lack of interest in of rockets at Isr what they had to say and what RHA At the same tii really stands for. In the end, not that patients w one of the members who resigned tals due to a la seemed to support Eastman. that starving ct The saddest part of this whole fiasco is that Eastman has hardly flinched in light of it all. Shouldn't a leader feel the least bit remorse- ROSE JAFFE ful for losing his closest people? If I were to lose my board, my coun- cil wouldn't be able to function. The members of my board lead the organization just as much as I do. An executive board is a team, not a hierarchy. And what about RHA?Where will the organization go from here? After the outrage about the Michigan Stu- dent Assembly, then-president Zack Yost had the decency to step down and save MSA some credibility. Will RHA ever be able to be taken seri- ously again? re false and misrep- on the ground. t daily basis, Israel aod and medicine to srael can be accused is putting the lives d of the lives of its Israel permitted g essential supplies even though on at ion according to the y Agency there was smuggle potassium is used to propel the guise of sugar. ess other instances sings that allow the oods between Israel been shelled by mor- m rockets. eign media outlets Tribune in an article documented such nitarian aid to Gaza. w weeks Hamas and ave fired hundreds aeli civilian targets. me, Hamas claimed ere dying in hospi- ck of electricity and hildren were on the verge of death due to lack of food, blaming the problems on Israel. Yet some reports on the ground show that food supplies remain adequate, as sources told The Jerusalem Post in article on Jan. 22. The most recent humanitarian crisis was cynically engineered by Hamas in order to promote hatred of the Israeli people and to rally the support of Gaza's populationbehind Hamas. As long as the Hamas gov- ernment prefers to smuggle rockets and explosives into Gaza to be fired at Israeli citizens instead of invest- iog in the needs of the people, peace will remain a distant dream. Peace can only be achieved through tol- erance and sincere humanitarian action. Tactics of blaming the vic- tim merely prolong the conflict. I hope that the next time anyone claims the media is biased in favor Israel, that person will take a more objective and fair look at the facts on the ground Ari Siegel Business junior The letter writer is an advisorfor Israel IDEA S MIKE EBER Uploading lazy activism Last week, a group of students, myself included, organized the Maize Out March to demonstrate to the University's adminis- tration that students sincerely want an on- campus graduation. In a sense, the effort was successful - graduation is now going to be held on campus. But on top of that, the march had a secondary goal: To prove that our gen- eration of student activism is not relegated to just Internet crusades, but can translate sen- timent into real-life demonstrations. Leading up to the march, the event's Facebook page listed 230 confirmed attend- ees, with about 350 more saying they would "maybe" attend. But in reality, 20 people showed up for the march. I would like to blame poor organization, or the fact that the Daily ran a front-page story on the same day announcing that graduation would be held on campus for the march's poor attendance. However, that's probably not the case. Interactive social networking makes self- expressioneasy,to the pointthatthe ease itself is its flaw. In the case of the graduation debate, a student may feel disappointed about having to graduate off-campus but simultaneously realize that an off-campus commencement could be the most practical solution. At the same time, this student may receive e-mails from peers begging for other students to send e-mails to administrators and demonstrate how angry students feel. Because sending an e-mail or clicking "attend" on a Facebook event is effortless, it's worth the student's time to protest from the comfort of the com- puter. If he or she weighs the option of voic- ing discontent at the expense of missing class to stand outside, the student may decide that expressing disappointment over graduation is not worth risking a participation grade. This is exactly what plagues Facebook communication. Can sending an e-mail or joining a Facebook group equal the sincer- ity of using valuable time to participate in a demonstration? Probably not. But consider it in more personal terms. How does writ- ing "happy birthday" on a friend's Facebook wall, for example, compare to a customary phone call? Although Internet organization might be the grassroots forum of the future, the behavior of the Facebook generation has not caught up with our pre-Internet expectations of human behavior. The poor expression of student dissent against commencement is a perfect of example of this disconnect. For this to change, we must put our money where our mouse is. Mike Eber is an SA senior and a member of the Daily's editorial board. He was one of the chief organizers of the Maize Out March. Ali McKenna LSA sophomore The letter writer is the co-chair of Couzens HallActive Multi Ethnic Organization Letter gets reality of Gaza wrong TO THE DAILY: In a letter to the editor last week, Hena Ashraf claimed that "Gaza is under siege by Israel" and that the American media is biased in favor of Israel because it does not report the "large-scale humanitarian crisis" in Gaza (Coverage of Gaza vigil shows Daily bias, 01/29/2008). Ar r\ief '}4s 5t 0 0 s