0 lln 4A - Tuesday, January 20, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 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 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 DAILY Service comes first Students should give back to the community year-round Yesterday, the nation honored the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He may always be most remembered as a passionate fighter for civil rights and equality, but he was also concerned with volunteerism to improve everyone's life. In recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Barack Obama and the King family asked Americans to participate in a National Day of Service. Whether you participated or not, there's no reason to limit King's spirit of community service to one day a year..All peo- ple, especially the students who worked tirelessly to elect Barack Obama, should transition their efforts to activism and work toward a better community. King was an adept community organizer who successfully harnessed his supporters to work toward greater goods. With this in mind, it was suggested that Martin Luther King Jr. Day be recognized as a National Day of Service. This way, King's legacy could inspire people to recognize this day as one in which everyone should give back to their community in some meaningful way. It's certainly worth recognizing the amazing things that volunteer efforts on campus have accomplished in the past few months. Obama's campaign mobilized stu- dents in a more substantial way than any other campaign had in decades. Students believed in the good that an Obama presi- dency could do for the nation, and they volunteered their time and energy to help elect him. Now that these efforts have been suc- cessful, the responsibility of healing the nation cannot be solely placed upon Obama's shoulders. Campus activism must be maintained in order to make our com- munity a better place. It's up to us not to lose sight of our goals now that such suc- cesses have been achieved. Throughout his presidential campaign, Obama spoke of asking Americans to do more to serve their country than simply expecting good to come as a right of citi- zenship. That passion should be re-direct- ed toward cleaning up parks, helping the homeless or any other job that will help out communities around us. It is a continu- ation of the work that Obama was encour- aging his supporters to do all along. There are plenty of places in the Ann Arbor community that could benefit from increased community service. Things as simple as an hour at a soup kitchen or vol- unteering at a daycare can do immeasur- able amounts of good. volunteering can be done right now and will produce immedi- ate results for society. A National Day of Service is a great way to honor King's call to make the country a better place for everyone. But we don't need to wait for next January to start vol- unteering again. Students must channel the spirit of activism that propelled Obama and continue our efforts to improve the country, starting with the Ann Arbor com- munity. Though it may only be officially recognized one day of the year, there is no reason why we can't treat every day as a National Day of Service. Shhh!" - Joe Biden, silencing his wife after she said Barack Obama gave Biden the choice of being either secretary of state or vice president, as reported yesterday by the Chicago Tribune. CHRIS KOSLOWSKI I OUT T STRE E-MAIL CHRIS AT CSKOSLOW@UMICH.EDU IHawdo you feel athe dan) .. He's tePreidentf 'e rtpee jurstces r the a? ocai heatilare ff succem means te wsnsfor- anosmm esionand~t~W se op amton of meica inoa be ndoning ofIL Sodlist mat o e onsFrvabe he ais 0 t! p8 * C* ** 0* * What qualifies the GSIs S everal years ago, during a rath- strate English-language proficiency. boundaries between us and our stu- er difficult office hours meet- Department training sessions often dents. ing, a student told me that I are a term-long course. In addition, This focus is important to under- wasn't qualified to any GSI who grades an upper-level stand. Because GSIs are students s teach political sci- writing course or teaches introducto- well, are close to the age of under- ence because I was ry writing must go through semester- graduates and are something of a earning a Ph.D. in long training courses at the Center middleman between students and English. for Learning Research and Teaching. professors, boundaries tend to blur. Theonlyproblem Beyond formal academic qualifica- with this challenge tions and training, many GSIs have was that the stu- relevant life experiences that help Get to know your dent was wrong: I enrich their teaching. was indeed earning PATRICK Three of my fellow GSIs had jobs instructors. They a Ph.D. in political O'MAHEN as either community or political science. This par- organizers before they came to grad m ight surprise you. ticular student had school, which has influenced how definitely earned they think and teach about politi- the C- grade over which she was ques- cal mobilization and participation. tioning my teaching qualifications. Another worked for a major polling By limiting the amount ofpersonal However, there does seem to be firm, which comes in handy when information and access we give to our a lack of knowledge among many you're talking about how public students, we give ourselves author- undergraduate students about the opinion and voting works. Many of ity and autonomy as GSIs. My rela- qualifications of their Graduate Stu- my colleagues who have taught the tionship, role as a parent and other dent Instructors. Every term, I ask popular Arab-Israeli Conflict course aspects of my personal and profes- my sections what they know about have an extensive background in sional life really aren't any of my the background and qualifying pro- the Middle East. One spent a year in students' business. Also, by having cess for GSIs. Almost without excep- Egypt on a Truman scholarship and designated office hours and e-mail tion, I get blank stares. is proficient in Arabic. The second response times, we give ourselves Here's a tip: on the first day of class, has lived in both Egypt and Israel the ability to say no to students who askyour GSIs aboutctheir background. and is proficient in both Hebrew and ask for unreasonable appoint entsr It's unwise to directly challenge their Arabic. The final one has studied in expect e&mail responses 24 touls competence, but it's fine to express Egypt and Syria extensively, is fluent a day or call us on our personal cell curiosity about their experiences. in Arabic and is pursuing research on phones when we haven't handed out Although I can't answer questions how the social networks of Christian- our number. for my colleagues, I can comment on and Muslim shopkeepers might affect Butifwebuild thebarriers between the general qualifications for your religious tensions. our students and ourselves too high, GSIs: theygained admissionto agrad- When I told several of my stu- then we might neglect to share some uate program at the University, usu- dents about the activities of those of our personal experiences and ally a top 10 program in the country GSIs, their mouths dropped open research interests that do have rel- in a given field. Most departments are in surprise. Why don't more under- evance to the subject we teach. Some- highly selective and admit less than graduates know about the depth of times those stories and information 15 percent of applicants. The great their GSI's qualifications? Often, it's illustrate a concept clearly or spark majority of them teach in something because GSIs don't tell them. interest in our field. In short, they closely related to their field - this I suspect our training influences help education. term, I have sections in Introduction our decision not to talk about our . And then, perhaps, fewer students to American Politics, not Shakespear- qualifications, previous experience or will tend to wonder about their GSI's ran Dramatic Conventions. research relevant to teaching. When qualifications. GSIs also go through multiple I took both the CLRT and my depart- training courses before they enter ment's training course, facilitators Patrick O'Mahen can be reached the classroom and have to demon- emphasized creating professional at pomahen@umich.edu. Fraud behind thefractions 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. Letters are edited for style, length, clarity and accuracy. All submissions become property of the Daily. We do not print anonymous letters. Send letters to tothedoily@umich.edu. T SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU University should abandon outdated animal testing TO THE DAILY: As a cardiologist and senior medical adviser with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, I want to refute incorrect statements quoted in your article ('U' under pressure for dog testing, 1/14/2009) and clarify why PCRM oppos- es the University's use of live dogs from Michigan animal shelters in lethal trauma training classes. The University Health Service falsely claims that the majority of Advanced Trauma Life Sup- port courses use animals. In truth, however, the University of Michigan is one of the last institu- tions in the country continuing this outdated practice. In an ongoing nationwide survey of ATLS courses, it was found that over 90 percent of researchers exclusively use non-animal meth- ods, such as cadavers or human patient simula- HARUN BULANA tors. In fact, the American College of Surgeons, which accredits all ATLS programs, endorses the use of simulators. We oppose the use of dogs and other animals in ATLS courses not only because it is inhumane but also because it is not the best way to teach participants how to treat acute trauma injuries. The procedures taught in the University's ATLS course include cutting into the airway, inserting chest tubes, and sticking needles in the lungs, heart, and abdomen. The anatomy is so differ- ent in dogs that the techniques must be revisited later - when human lives may be on the line. The University's students deserve the most advanced trainingmethods available. That means immediately replacing the use of live dogs with superior, human-based methods. John Pippin, M.D., F.A.C.C. The letter-writer is a senior medical research adviser with the Physicians Committeefor Respon- sible Medicine. E-MAIL HARUN AT BULJINAH@UMICH.EDU -M'AY: e~oRGiA PAP. 0WrNefn. PROD T- NltfkTf (ot"If'PGORA MA To cU fit. loosGEO RG IE, ' 'CAPJIc ATE Fomi.NC A Ai n recent weeks, the financial The problem arises when I can't go to world has been rocked by a scan- the bank and claim my own money. dal involving professional inves- When you buya stock or bond, you tor Bernie Madoff. exchange an available good - money Madoff lost as much - for the expectation of a future as $50 billion of his good. In order to claim money from investors' money your asset, you have to find a willing and even caused a buyer. But with bank deposits, you few nonprofit asso- . never exchange anything with the ciations to close bank. The money is still your prop- their doors. Mad- erty, and the bank simply guards it off's embezzlement for you or facilitates transactions. If scheme, however, everyone were to claim their proper- pales in compari- VINCENT ty, there would not be enough money son with the $7 tril- PATSY to satisfy the demand. lion scheme being In the Madoff scandal, inves- perpetrated by the tors were being paid using depos- U.S. government via its from later investors. As long as the fraudulent bank loaning policy there remained a constant flow of known as fractional-reserve banking. new funds, the pyramid scheme kept in fractional-reserve banking, bank working. But when the current finan- managers are constantly deceiving cial crisis hit the economy, many their clients, buying property and investors withdrew their funds and other assets with what amounts to the system collapsed. counterfeit money. Fractional-reserve banking works There are essentially two roles the same way, using guarantees from for banks: making loans and act- the Treasury Department and soci- ing as warehouses to store money. etal pressure to, retain faith in banks A fractional-reserve bank will only and preserve the existing system. keep a portion of your money in your This deception is just as fraudulent as account and will loan out the rest. Madoff's scheme. As soon as people The basic reason why this is an ille- lose faith or withdraw their funds, gitimate form of business is because the system collapses. the banker attaches a false receipt to The typical argument in favor of your money. It is akin to a person pay- fractional-reserve banking goes as fol- ing me to draw them a square circle. lows. Suppose an entrepreneur builds a This being impossible, I'm not deliv- bridge and he sells access to the bridge ering on their request as promised to 1000 people, even though only 100 and have therefore committed fraud. people can cross at any one time. But In a normal business, the own- since only 50 travelers cross each day ers know approximately when they on average, there's no traffic prob- have to pay workers and when they lem. If, however, some treacherous will receive payments from clients. Visigoths were to attack and everyone If owners owe $1 million on a cer- attempted to flee,thebridge's 100-man tain date, they will try to rearrange capacity would not be sufficient to sat- their funds so that they can pay off isfy demand. Since banks knowrough- their debts. With fractional-reserve ly how much money will be taken out banking, this strategy is impossible. and are not afraid of Visigoths, they Although the assets come in regular- can estimate how much money they ly in the form of loan payments, the need to have at all times. bank deposits can't be anticipated. But the difference between this example and fractional-reserve banking is that with the bridge you are paying for access, not ownership. I can't go and claim 300 bricks of the bridge. When you pay a cover charge to a bar, you don't own some section of the bar. Use and ownership are two different things, and this method of banking constitutes fraud. Why the U.S. Treasury is just as bad as Madoff The alternative and superior sys- tem is to have 100 percent reserve banking. The two functions of banks, underthissetup,willbekeptseparate. If a person wishes to save money, they would investinsomethingresembling a certificate of deposit. This would be an investment because the saver can- not claim his actual good before a certain amount of time has elapsed. In order to purchase goods, there would be a separate checking account where you would pay for the bank to hold your money. One hundred per- cent reserve banking may seem more complicated than fractional-reserve banking, but it's the only good way to protect against crises where everyone tries to withdraw their investments. Fractional reserve bankers are essentially counterfeiters. They buy more goods than they can pay for under the pretense of government- sponsored stability. Traditionally, counterfeiters would be on the run from the U.S. Treasury Department. With fractional-reserve banking, though, it's the Treasury committing the crime. Vincent Patsy can be reached at vapatsy@umich.edu.