4 - Friday, January 16, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 6 74L e fi Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu GARY GRACA ROBERT SOAVE COURTNEY RATKOWIAK EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR Unsigned editorials reflectthe official position of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. Crossing city boundaries Pedestrian walkway is an unnecessary infringement T he University seems to have grown concerned that its stu- dents might be having trouble crossing the street. This is demonstrated by a request that the University filed last Sunday asking the city to vacate Monroe Street in order to allow space for a pedestrian mall. The mall would connect the Law Quad to its new extension across the street. While the University thinks the added walking space is necessary, it has forgotten to take into account the negative effects the proposed plan would have on the University's increasingly strained relationship with the city. Caus- ing further harm to this relationship is a bad idea, and at least for the time being, the University should table this unnecessary plan. Waterboarding is torture." - Eric H. Holder Jr., Barack Obama's nominee for Attorney General, on the legal status of waterboarding, as reported yesterday by the New York Times. BELLA SHAH E-MAIL BELLA AT BELLZ@UMICH.EDU "ok it ,1hi . Sprirsg.2 6 6 Rallying the B. S.E.'s The proposed pedestrian mall would complement the 100,000-square-foot extension to the Law Quad. The addition, which will replace the parking lot that now faces Weill Hall across Monroe Street, will be built along the same architectural style as the Law Quad. In an effort to allow safer access to the building 'and create "conti- nuity" between the original complex and the new building, the University hopes to assume control of Monroe Street from the city and convert it into a pedestrian walk- way. But what the University doesn't seem to realize is that the pedestrian mall will also have other, more negative effects. Relations between the University and the city have sometimes been tense, because the University, within its consti- tutional autonomy, doesn't have to listen much to the city. Most recently, the Uni- versity failed to consult with the city as closely as it should have as it prepares to purchase the former Pfizer Inc. facility near north campus. While this deal will fill an empty property, the University won't be paying property taxes, which will put the city out a staggering $5.1 million in tax revenue. In the wake of that financial blow, it's especially important to show respect for city property. The University's plans for the pedestrian mall would require the city to vacate Monroe Street, and while the city has not yet reacted negatively, such a demand could worsen a newly strained relationship. Maintaining a strong relationship with the city of Ann Arbor is essential for the University. One of the reasons students and faculty are attracted to this campus is because it is integrated into a city that, for the most part, maintains well-run ser- vices, a respect for citizens' concerns and an atmosphere unlike almost any other in this state. That atmosphere can't be con- tinued unless the University and the city work together - even when the University doesn't have to. This is not an issue worth straining rela- tions over. Turning Monroe Street into a pedestrian mall isn't necessary for main- taining walkability near the Law Quad. It's hard to imagine that crossing Monroe Street on foot is any more difficult than crossing other roads on campus. A better solution would be to put in a marked cross- walk similar to the one that allows students to cross State Street between Angell Hall and the LSA Building. There is no need to bar vehicles from Monroe Street when a simple crosswalk would accomplish the same task. And aside from the fact that the Univer- sity needs to stop bullying the city, it just isn't that difficult to cross Monroe Street. Law students may be caught up in briefs and case studies, but they haven't forgot- ten to look both ways before they barge into oncoming traffic. Engineers get a bad rap on cen- tral campus. Some of us lib- eral arts majors claim they're overly arrogant, while others might mention a lack of sociability or even a disregard for con- temporary style. I'm just as guilty of saying this as everyoneelse.Some of the accusations NEIL may be deserved -T an "L, S and Play" TAMBE degree really isn't that easy compared to your engineering degree despite what you may think - but I think engineers are incredibly important and catch more flak than they deserve. I'm nearly convinced that if someone saves the world during our lifetime, it will be an engineer. Global issues like climate change, the spreading of disease, malnour- ishment, healthcare and information management are greatly impacted by engineering and the sciences. Engi- neers are making cars more efficient, figuring out how to build bridges and howto develop the next revolutionary materials. Engineers make things like space exploration, prosthetic limbs and personal computing possible. Engineering students - to say nothing of the incredible research that engineering faculty perform - are doing ridiculously awesome things on campus. They are build- ing innovative solar and hybrid cars, human-powered helicopters and con- crete canoes.With the help of the Uni- versity's Center for Entrepreneurship and the student group MPowered Entrepreneurship, engineering stu- dents are forming teams with people from other disciplines like Informa- tion or Business to start new ventures that may ultimately impact the state of Michigan, the United States and the world. Social, political and management problems like racism and terrorism matter, too. But there's something fundamental about problems that engineers tackle because without adequate food, water, shelter and energy, it's game over for humanity. Without the physical world around us functioning properly, it seems unlikely that social problems would be our most pressing need. It's not a stretch to use the expression "lights out" if engineers fail to solve these gripping problems. The ability to profit from innovation is obvious. But it's too narrow-minded to think that profitability is the only reason to develop new technologies. Engineers have a civic duty to advance the public good because some societal problems certainly cannot be solved without their attention. But while they have the potential to encourage great social change, engineers may not be aware of their responsibility to do so. And, if they are, can they be expected to live up to such an obligation? I've spoken to more than a few engineers in the past few weeks about the possibility that they might save the world, and I always get one of two responses. The first is a wave of humility. Engineers always point out that engineering doesn't matter on its own. They seem to be quite aware of the symbiotic relationship that engineers need with the rest of the professional world to solve problems. They mention that it takes politi- cal support from the political types and the inspiration to do good from the social justice and environmental types. Engineering students, as much as they publicly snub their noses at the students of liberal arts disciplines, appreciate the contribution that an English literature, anthropology or economics major can make when solving problems. Will engineers beableto save the world? The second response is a feeling of uncertainty. Do engineers believe they can save the world? I'm not so sure. Some that I've gotten to know might evenbereluctantto acceptthisrespon- sibility. Speaking to a few engineers at a luncheon last week, an engineer sit- ting near me mentioned that it's diffi- cult to maintain a worldly perspective as an engineer because the disciplines in engineering are distinct and well- defined. But engineers, you have to believe. So do the rest of us. Whether or not engineers save the world, I think the work that they do is vital to our advancement as a soci- ety. We need everything from cleaner 4 power to rehabilitative medicines and super-nifty computers, and engineers create those technologies. So even though a diversity of knowledge and training really helps in problem-solv- ing, engineers have a special place in my heart. If you see an engineer today, I dare you to give them a high- five. Rally the B.S.E's. Neil Tanbe can be reached at ntambe@umich.edu. SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU Daily ignores Gupta's many professionalfailings Arder cite th of aggression that they qu since it was the Holocau: TO THE DAILY: The question The Daily's article on Sanjay Gupta's nomina- bombings an tion for Surgeon General (Alum Gupta nominated egg question for surgeon general post, 01/14/2009) leaves out Israel in 194 his considerable negative features. For exam- decide wheti ple, Gupta has very little background in public down to ask health, preventive medicine or administration. into Palestin He has also openly opposed progressive health tion by Pales reform, going so far as to cite false information Obviously to denigrate single payer health care (e.g. in answer. In an his error-laden attack on Michael Moore's film resulted intl Sicko) and repeating the health insurance lobby's citizens, whi distortions of single payer health care. Despite Hamas' hidi mounting evidence to the contrary at the time, use of huma he publicly downplayed concerns about the dan- the Palestini gers of Vioxx, which killed thousands of people in Ann Arbo and was removed from the market a year later by of blaming e its manufacturer, Merck. solution. I ce As a media figure, he has been"disturbingly and AMI wi cozy with the pharmaceutical industry. He co- to achieve la hosts Turner Private Networks' monthly show one-sided ar "Accent Health," which airs in doctors' offices cause at all. around the country as a major conduit for tar-' geted ads from the drug companies. In the Jeff Simon 2008 election campaign, his reporting on John LSA senior McCain's health proposals was misleading and implicitly positive, giving undeserved credence Harsh to McCain's claims that buying private health insurance on the open market is a financially activist viable option for most Americans. Jamie Jee TO THE DAI School ofPublic Health graduate student Patrick Z- side of prog In Gaza conflict, both sides demonstrate truly going o is as an example of Israel's "history n and occupation", which suggests estion Israel's very right to exist, this migration of Jews to escape st that resulted in Israel's founding. n of why the rocket attacks, suicide d incursions occur is a chicken-or- that dates back to the founding of 48 - and perhaps before. Thus to her Israel or Hamas is justified boils ing whether the migration of Jews ne in 1948, or the subsequent reac- tinians, is justified. , the question of peace is difficult to ny case, Israel's military actions have he death and suffering of many Gaza ch mustbe seen as unacceptable. Yet, ng of weapons in civilian buildings, n shields and failure to provide for an people is also unacceptable. We or and those overseas must, instead ach other, try to work out a detailed rtainly hope that groups like SAFE ll spend more time discussing "how sting peace" than presenting these guments which do not further the From A2 to NYC ci ILY: aba ress sal n ( sive ets. that miss the point ofpeace Yes, progress guration tick is a lot moret TO THE DAILY: trying to go to W In the recent viewpoints regarding the conflict The College D in Gaza, the Daily asked pro-Israel writers Rachel activists. We are Goldstein and Daniel Neumann (Israel's defensive health care, the mission, 01/15/2009) and pro-Palestinian writ- and prison refor ers Andrew Dalack and Bre Arder (An appealfor tice Committee human rights, 01/15/2009) to answer three ques, paign to push G tions: "What is the nature of the conflict, what reforms in our p can be done to stop the fighting in Gaza and how ommended by t can both sides achieve lasting peace?" Instead of Issue-specific ca answering the most important question - that of necessary to wor achieving peace - both sides did the usual finger- always out in th pointing. do not always in' Dalack and Arder attempted to answer the street. This does question of achieving a lasting peace, but to no It just means our avail. Instead, they suggested that the root of adapting to thatc the problem is Israel's "disproportionate and... savage forms of punishment" which "compel" Justin Schon Hamas to fire rockets into Israel. Dalack and LSA Sophomore riticism of liberal s unfounded wa's criticism of apathy on the ive activists is unfounded and ack of understanding of what is Hope not in Obama, 01/14/2008). activists are trying to get inau- Who wouldn't? However, there progressives are doing than just ashington. emocrats includes many of these actively working on issues from environment, women's issues m. For example, the Social Jus- is working on a postcard cam- overnor Granholm to fight for orison system that have been rec- the Department of Corrections. mpaigns like these are what are k on right now, and they are not e open. Unlike a campaign, they volve people waving signs in the not mean we are any less active. r work has changed, and we are change. Some people come-into college with a vision. They follow it all the way to Paris or Hong Kong. The rest of us grap- ple for a little while. Over break, I real- ized that it wasn't' so hard to figure = out where I wanted to be in five years. The hard part was giving myself per- mission to chase all of the hopes I've MEG had for so long. YOUNG I want to live in New York. It's cli- che, but in a way that seems like a euphemism for "that city will eat you alive." No, I didn't invent the genre: pin- ing-for-the-city stories have been told before. Hell, with 95 percent of the world's population on 10 percent of its land, nearly all of us have a story like that. But at their core, those sto- ries are all about beating the odds. They're about getting the 'big break' or surviving on a shoestring. It led me to wonder if people from small cities like Ann Arbor have what it takes. Growing up here, I thought I'd turned out a little green. Ann Arbor is a poor boot camp for big city living. It's the kind of place where you can get your wallet returned to you. You can treat bookstores and coffee shops like your own living room. No one will wake you if you fall asleep on a couch. Strangers almost always wel- come spontaneous conversation. It's a friendly old college town we live in. But in other ways, this Michigan town doesgive you an accurate taste of th'e big-city. To start with, the rent here is ridiculously expensive. We have good food - you can find great Thai, Indian, Korean, Jamaican and Middle Eastern food on the cheap. There's a bit of nightlife and too much shopping. The art, films and music on the weekends are just enough. But I wanted to get to the big leagues. I realized that there was a differ- ence between laying plans and lying to myself. I needed to know howI felt in the thick of it. After New Years, I flew to New York - mostly to see how it fit and how adequately Ann Arbor had prepared me. It happened in the East Village. Walking out of a dizzying bookshop and into the street, I passed the crowded cafes. Forty-second Street looked to me like a moonscape, like I didn'tbelong there. I opened the door to a 24-hour Ukrainian restaurant, and I had to hurry to grab a bar stool. And maybe it was this brief reminder of Ann Arbor, but suddenly, my confi- dence was re-lit. Too many people will tell you that New York is dangerous. Okay, sure. Don't take it from me: I am Midwest- ern and as street-smart as the bulldog in Homeward Bound. But there were people on the streets and subways late into the night, so you're always in good company. The place has changed since the 1970s and 80s (and no, it's .not all thanks to Giuliani). I had cause to feel like a sitting duck, schlepping my rolling suitcase all over Queens, Harlem and Manhattan. But most everyone is too busy with their own lives to notice. Every neighborhood had its own character to explore. After one day, After East Village, I treated it a bit more like home and relaxed there. We enjoyed the little things, the sub- ways and people there, as much as our strolls. In Brooklyn Beach, Little Italy and Chinatown we had no idea where we were going, and got the most out of figuring it out. The best things I've seen here weren't even in my guidebook. It seems to me that the pleasure of living in New York is always stumbling on some gem that shakes up your daily routine. Six months ago, I was so anxious about my future and my plans. But what I know now is that Ann Arbor prepared me for New York in ways I'd never even realized. It may not be where I want to stay, but thanks to this little town, I know where I want my big-city dreams to carry me. Meg Young can be reached at megyoung@umich.edu. I learned to stop worrying about living in a big city. my friend and I began to grasp how many people come to New York only once in their lives and have to care- fully schedule themselves into the major museums, shows, and iconic sights. People wait in the cold for hours to try to see what New York has to offer. They shell out for taxis and 4 tickets, while the city itself becomes a blur. a LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor. Letters should be less than 300 words and must include the writer's full name and University affiliation. All submissions become property of the Daily. We do not print anonymous letters. Send letters to tothedoily@umich.edu. a 4