4A - Monday, September 14, 2009
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
4
7hLe Mich igan+ ai[g
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ROBERT SOAVE COURTNEY RATKOWIAK
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR MANAGING EDITOR
4
GARY GRACA
EDITOR IN CHIEF
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.
A healthy solution
Congress must pass Obama's health care reform plan
Forty-six million - that's the number of Americans who are
without health insurance. That number includes men and
women, children and students, low-income families and
middle-class workers between jobs, healthy individuals and those in
need of medical care. With the current health care debate stalled by
a steady current of misinformation and alarmism, President Barack
Obama's speech to Congress on Wednesday night was intended to be
a rallying cry for the supporters of reform to come together and pass
a bill. While there are many reforms that should be present in an
ideal bill, it is the obligation of Congress to pass a health care reform
bill that establishes a public health care option for all those Ameri-
cans who have been losing out in the current system for decades.
I'm really happy for you, I'm gonna let you finish, but
Beyonce had one of the best videos of all time."
- Hip-hop artist Kanye West, after taking the microphone from Best Female Video winner
Taylor Swift during her acceptance speechat last night's Video Music Awards ceremony.
CHRIS KOSLOWSKI E-MAIL CHRIS AT CSKOSLOW@UMICH.EDU
(0 y eegethfeting
'ls ah aen
Obama seches, itHi
-He's watclng the words Don' thate me, hatet
ye. owest tennis match yes teleprom s
Prblmsw & in-n clc
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While Congress has been debating a
comprehensive health care reform bill for
weeks, little progress has been made since
conservative protest movements deeply
opposed to health care reform hijacked
the debate. These protests - coupled with
declarations from uninformed, and politi-
cally motivated right-wing leaders - have
succeeded in spreading outright lies about
the proposed bill. These would include for-
mer Republican vice presidential candidate
Sarah Palin's infamous warningthatthebill
would establish "death panels" for senior
citizens. Obama's speech on Wednesday
was an attempt to clear up these allegations
and urge Congress to get back to the task
at hand - assuring that all Americans have
access to affordable health care.
The best way to do that is the public
option. Creatingagovernment alternative to
the expensive, monopolistic private insur-
ance companies is fundamentally necessary
for millions of Americans who can't afford
coverage. As Obama noted in his speech, in
much of the country there are only a few
insurance companies to choose from. Con-
servatives - who claim that competition in
the market is best - must recognize that for
many Americans, there is no competition
in the health care market, leading to pric-
es that are unaffordable and plans that are
incomplete. The public option would inject
more competition into the market, improv-
ing the quality of available plans.
Opponents claim that private sector
insurance plans won't be able to compete
with the government, turning health care
into an entirely government run system.
But a study by the Congressional Budget
Office found that only about 5 percent
of Americans would buy into the public
option. What's more, the private sector
competes with the government in a num-
ber of different areas - including schools
like this one and the mail system - with-
out any harm being done to the private
sector.
Despite worries that taxes will need to
increase to pay for such a plan, Obama's
bill would be completely funded by the
plan's premiums. If the costs outweigh the
revenue, then other parts of the budget
would be trimmed to make up for any rev-
enue shortcomings. And the $900 billion
cost of the bill is hardly unthinkable when
compared with other government expen-
ditures like the more than $800 billion
already spent on the war in Iraq..
An ideal health care reform bill must
also include regulations on the insurance
industry that curtail unfair practices like
dropping people from their plans once
they get sick or placing caps on the amount
of care that they can actually receive. But
the most important component of health
care reform is a public option to foster
competition and make health insurance
much more affordable for all.
any engineering students
recently received the
same e-mail I did about
a research study on
improving opera-
tors of Unmanned
Aerial Vehicles. My
reaction was one of .
both curiosity and
disappointment"
that the University
is participating in r
a study designed to
increase the effec- BEN
tiveness of military CALECA
technology.
UAVs are a weap-
on unlike any other - pilots at home
in the U.S. can engage and kill people
in real time from their control panels
and can view the damage via recon-
naissance cameras on board. But the
complex psychological effects of such
a weapons system are still not fully
understood for either their operators,
military commanders or the public.
These effects need to be fully exam-
ined.
one of the most powerful exam-
ples of military technology employed
against the Taliban in Afghanistan is
the relatively small Predator drones
flying over ground forces, the latest
in a long line of UAVs employed in
war. What was once a device to pas-
sively provide tactical information
to commanders has become a system
that can provide death on demand
for commanders. These unmanned
planes can now deliver guided mis-
siles at suspected enemies and are
patrolled for hours on end by pilots
in the safety of the U.S. But this new
ability to point, click and destroy
from half a world away still isn't fully
understood.
Predator drones are also different
in that pilots watch their strikes in
graphic detail through the drones'
powerful cameras and then return to
their normal lives at home. The tran-
sition is no longer one of days, weeks,
or months. This is not the environ- struck down, will war become an
ment where soldiers share experienc- easier option? Aerospace companies
es as a group. The stress of a pilot on are already working on the next gen-
duty with what is essentially front- eration of drone attack craft that can
line work can have adverse effects avoid detection entirely. Where is the
on his family and friends who often incentive to not make a strike against
can't relate to his experiences or pro- a potential enemy from the air when
vide solace. There have already been they lack any means of directly
reports of abnormally high stress
among Predator pilots, even though
they are furthest from the front lines.
It is psychologically harmful even Remotely-operated
though pilots are now away from
danger. weaponry has
The other issues that affect a w ,
Predator drone operator are similar hidden costs.
to those faced by any military pilot.
As sensor equipment, weapons and
missions become more advanced, the
ever increasing complexity of aerial returning the favor? And how heav-
warfare can lead to asensory overload ily can we rely on a select number of
of the operators just as in manned pilots to operate, drones day in and
aircraft. With Predator drones able day out, actively attacking anything
to patrol for hours and hours on end, they're ordered to?
alert monitoring is required at all The questions regarding the psy-
times and the equipment on a drone chological effects on Predator pilots
can inundate its user with informa- are not resolved, and there is certain-
tion. ly a need to better understand what
During the war in Iraq, a close unmanned remote combat means for
air-support aircraft meant to attack people.
enemies threatening friendly ground By removing pilots from physical
forces accidentally attacked a British danger, are we adding a psychologi-
army convoy repeatedly. The conclu- cal burden that could lead to fatal
sions of the investigation were that mistakes on the other side of the
"cognitive and physical task over- world? Is the graphic nature of the
load" were part of a number of factors scenes they witness through a com-
leading to the mistakes in identify- puter screen something that can be
ing the attacked British vehicles the 'shrugged off on the commute home
planes attacked. It is very possible to family and friends?
that drone operators that aren't fully TheUniversity should nothelp fur-
focused could make a mistake that ther research on weapons technology
could cause a mission to fail or kill that we don't even fully understand
others by accident. Certainly the yet. The nature of war is already
risks increase further if drone opera- changing with the increased preva-
tors are experiencing abnormal levels lence of such weapons, and with
of stress from their work. these changes, people need to reflect
The other factor that very well can on both the advantages and the pit-
be a psychological effect of drone use falls of remotely-operated weaponry.
in wars abroad is a loss of percep-
tion about the cost of war. With our
pilots physically safe from harm and - Ben Caleca can be reached
enemies an order away from being at calecab@umich.edu.
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EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS:
Nina Amilineni, Emad Ansari, Emily Barton, Harun Buljina, Ben Caleca, Brian Flaherty,
Emma Jeszke, Raghu Kainkaryam, Sutha K Kanagasingam, Erika Mayer, Edward McPhee,
Asa Smith, Brittany Smith, Radhika Upadhyaya, Rachel Van Gilder, Laura Veith
SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU
Campus-wide ban is not the Choice to ban smoking
4
problem at stake
TO THE DAILY:
While I respect Mr. Panduranga's thoughts
and his courage to take a stand against the Uni-
versity's plan to ban the smoking of cigarettes
on campus, I find his column extremely ludi-
crous (Keep smoking on campus, 09/10/2009).
Sure, Panduranga and many smokers may find
the ban annoying, but smoking has become a
huge problem in terms of health care for our
country.
Decreasing the places that individuals can
smoke decreases smokers. It happened when
New York City enacted a ban on smoking in
indoor public places and it will undoubtedly
happen at the University. When smokers quit,
the health problems associated with smoking
decrease dramatically. The ban is just one way
that the University is contributing to increasing
the quality of health in America nationwide.
Smoking isn't the only problem that is affect-
ing the wide range of health problems in our
country, but comparing the effects of smoking
to the effects of overeating is like comparing
apples to oranges. Not everyone that overeats
is going to get obese - there are some people
that need to consume higher amounts of fat and
calories than others. This isn't to say that every
smoker is going to die of lung cancer, but the
chances of a smoker acquiring a health prob-
lem are far, far greater than the overeater. Also,
note that the University has nutritional infor-
mation in all dining halls so that students are
influenced to make healthy choices.
Smokers and those against the ban should
stop battling the University and instead use this
energy to find a way to quit the gross habit.
Lindsay Canvasser
LSA senior
should have included more
student voices
TO THE DAILY:
My thanks to Harsha Panduranga for offer-
ing welcome dissent toward the University's
proposed smoke-free campus (Keep smoking
on campus, 09/10/2009). Although I do not
agree with all of his arguments, I must heartily
second the idea that personal choice forms an
important and rather neglected aspect of this
discussion.
As a non-smoker, I am admittedly annoyed
by breathing secondhand smoke. But smoking
remains a legal activity and a choice, and I feel
that freedom of choice is much more important
than my own personal convenience will ever
be. Besides, the choice is twofold: smokers can
choose to smoke and I can simply walk else-
where.
One point not mentioned by Mr. Panduran-
ga which deserves attention is that, so far as I
am aware, the University did little to consult
with students until after the decision to
eliminate smoking on campus was already
reached. The University's website is patently
unhelpful. A committee whose stated aims
include "seeking input from students, staff,
and faculty through dialogue and surveys"
does not appear concerned with dialogue over
the plan itself but only with easing its imple-
mentation.
I, for one, would have wished for open, hon-
est debate of this policy before any action was
taken.
My thanks again to Mr. Panduranga for his
column.
Ethan Menchinger
Rackham graduate student
The Daily is looking for a diverse group of strong, informed writers to be columnists
during the fall semester. Columnists write 750 words
on a topic of their choice every other week.
E-MAIL ROBERT SOAVE AT RSOAVE@UMICH.EDU FOR MORE INFORMATION.
PATRICK ZABAWA I
Consider the alternatives
4
Before coming to the University
exactly four years ago, one of my big-
gest fears was that I would become a
liberal. Growing up in a family where
get-togethers with relatives were
more like political action committee
meetings on how to get conservatives
into power, I knew liberals were the
enemy. And my new college was the
epicenter of liberal thought in Michi-
gan. When I arrived, fearful that my
political enemies were all around me,
I took as many jibes at the school's
liberal institutions as I could. While
I never became heavily involved with
any political group on campus, I did
go as far as to start the Facebook.com
group "The Michigan Daily Is Liberal
Propaganda". That group never really
took off.
Eventually, my fears were realized.
I did experience a political change of
heart at the University, but my shift
in political beliefs wasn't toward lib-
eralism. Instead, I came to embrace
libertarianism, a philosophy I hadn't
heard of during my years at home.
And having now graduated from col-
lege and entered the "real world,"
this philosophy means more to me
now than it ever did.
I first made the move toward lib-
ertarianism - a philosophy of total
freedom from government interven-
tion, both socially and economically
- after opening my ears to other
political philosophies. At the Uni-
versity, I let my views be challenged
by those around me. I finally came to
realize that no one, not even the gov-
ernment, knows what's best for me
except me. And while I've continued
to let different arguments challenge
this idea, I now have only stronger
reasons for thinkingthat government
interference is bad for individuals.
Throughout my college career, I
was going through another self-dis-
covery, one that wasn't at all politi-
cal - I was wondering how to live my
life being gay. (This was, of course,
more difficult when I was a conser-
vative.) After four years, I've finally
embraced my sexuality and am ready
to fight for the government to recog-
nize gay marriage as equal to hetero-
sexual marriage.
The funny thing is, I shouldn't
have to fight for gay rights. Hundreds
of companies already recognize their
gay employees' partners and extend
benefits to them, according to the
Human Rights Campaign. My own
company has apolicy against discrim-
ination based on sexual orientation.
They've all embraced gay relation-
ships, so what's left to change?
I have to fight because the govern-
ment has monopolized the benefits of
marriage. What began as a widely-
considered good for individuals has
now become a law that holds gay
people back. The federal govern-
ment won't recognize gay marriage.
It controls Social Security, the big-
gest pension program in the country,
and it only gives survivor benefits to
spouses. It gives special hospital visi-
tation rights to spouses. Child cus-
tody is usually split between married
couples. And the listgoes on. Sowhile
businesses and many religions have
moved to recognize gay relationships,
government has become the battle-
ground through which both sides can
prevent the other from gaining the
upper hand. If government had never 4
gotten involved in the first place,
these hurtful policies would never
have been implemented.
As many groups continue to cam-
paign to increase the power of gov-
ernment for so-called good reasons,
the same opportunities for destruc-
tive-battlegrounds are being created.
If health care becomes entirely gov-
ernment-run and cures for diseases
are developed from embryonic stem
cell research, conservatives and lib-
erals will argue over whether govern-
ment health care plans should cover
these cures and one side's views will
be oppressed.
But if health care is left to the pri-
vate sector - as the institution of
marriage should have been - individ-
uals would be free to choose whether
or not to buy plans that cover such
cures. 4
As new students begin their first
semester at the University, I hope
that like me, they will encounter new
beliefs. And I hope that these new
beliefs will lead them to realize that
no one knows what's best for any
individual, and that the best govern-
ment policy is one that leaves every-
one alone.
Patrick Zabawa is a University alum.
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Send letters to tothedaily@umich.edu.
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