4 - Tuesday, November 3, 2009
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
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Edited and managed by students at
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GARY GRACA
EDITOR IN CHIEF
ROBERT SOAVE
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
COURTNEY RATKOWIAK
MANAGING EDITOR
What I hope comes out of this study is an
understanding that food stamp beneficiaries
aren't them - they're us."
- James Weill, president of Food Research and Action Center, commenting on a recent study that found that
nearly half of all U.S. children will be on food stamps at some point in their lives, as reported yesterday by MSNBC.
Unsigned editorials reflect te officialrpreosito f the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles
and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
A caltculated strategy
ELAINE MORTON
E-MAIL ELAINE AT EMORT@UMICH.EDU
Change to admissions policy promotes importance of arts
W hen University Provost Teresa Sullivan laughs and con-
fesses to not knowing why the University recalculates
the GPAs of high school applicants, it's probably not a
well-advised policy. Last week, the administration decided to end
this time-consuming practice in order to focus on other aspects of
the admissions process - a welcome change. Recalculated GPAs
removed important classes, including most arts classes, from a
student's GPA. The University should value high school students'
achievements in all courses, not just ones in mainstream subjects,
as a way of encouraging high schools to maintain diverse curricula.
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You're WHAT?
Until last week, the University's policy
was to remove courses that did not fall into
the major academic categories and recalcu-
late each applicant's GPA, though all classes
were still factored in as part of the student's
coursework. But with the policy change,
the University will now simply evaluate the
GPA that appears on an applicant's tran-
script. Administrators claim that GPA isn't
a major factor in the admissions process
in any case, and that this change will save
time.
No matter how little GPA actually counts
toward a student's admission, the calcula-
tion should still include all of a student's
coursework. Arbitrarily removing art class-
es discounts students who worked hard
and received good grades in those classes.
Proficiency in classes that are outside the
English/math/science/history mainstream
is exactly what the admissions office should
be looking for.
For a University that claims to value
diversity, it's wrong to put high school
students who performed well in fine arts
courses at a disadvantage. The arts play a
valuable intellectual role in the education
of many.scuenc.an .-should be treated as.
such. After all, the University offers many
such classes, and excelling in at least some
of them is a necessity for most University
students. Changing this policy, if nothing
else, sends the message that the University
does weigh the merits of all academic sub-
jects.
Sendingsuch a message is more important
than ever. With funding for K-12 education
decreasing across the state to compensate
for the budget deficit, high schools will be
looking for ways to cut costs. Universities
shouldn't be indicating that arts and other
courses are less important and could be cut
to save money. If students don't have access
to these classes in high school, they will be
less prepared to handle the diverse range
of coursework that college offers them.
High schools should try to preserve these
classes, and the University should reward
students who excel in them.
Creating a strong intellectual commu-
nity isn't accomplished solely by evaluating
math, natural sciences, history and English
- the fine arts and other areas are a part
of that too, and the University should use
this change in policy as an opportunity to
give fair consideration for candidates from
.all backgrounds.andncourage-theirintel-
lectual curiosity.
S o Halloween weekend was
pretty dece, right? ("Dece"
is a cool word that I learned
recently. I think,
though I'm not
entirely sure, that
it's an abbreviated
form of "decent" '
and was coined -
like so many of our
modern words -
by Shakespeare.) -
Indeed, I think WILL
many of us had an GRUNDLER
awse time. Admit-
tedly, I didn't think
my Mary Sue Cole-
man costume (Amazon, $49.99) could
be beat, but as the night wore on and
I saw Gumby and The Burger King
and people kept offering me punch,
I began to question my judgment on
things.
But this week's column isn't, unfor-
tunately, about those happy times,
about those few good, clean, dece
costumes that I saw, or about how
students were pinnacles of morality. I
wish it wereI really do. Yet can I let
my conscience stand idly by, smoking
its last cigarettegDoes that mtap;grp
work? The answer toboth questions is
absolutely not.
Therefore, this week's column is
about the consequences of modern-
day Halloween at the 'U' - about bad
costumes - you know, offensive cos-
tumes,.costumes that you wouldn't
want your little sister to see because
she would get nightmares, or ideas.
Well, not really, because by bad cos-
tumes I mean BAD costumes, like
those students who attached card-
board boxes to themselves in order to
look like robots when, in reality, they
looked like cardboard boxes. Hon-
estly, you-just can't help those types
of people. So let's make fun of them,
starting with the delightfully unintel-
ligent person who decided to be a
1. Mustard Container: Honest-
ly, what do you say to a person who
thinks a condiment would be a neat
idea for a costume? Beats me. But is
wearing a yellow frock and a yellow
pointy hat really worth the effort just
to say "squeeze me"? The poor guy
even had "Mustard" written in big
black letters on his chest in case peo-
ple didn't realize that he was, in fact,
mentally unstable. Maybe I didn't
see his friend who was Ketchup or
Hot dog or something, but later on, I
glimpsed his pal who had the insight
and courage tobe a
2. Jar of Milk: Now, this guy had
enough sense to avoid writing "Milk"
on his costume, but come ON! Milk?
You're MILK? Have I got that right?
You're an emulsion of butterfat glob-
ules within a water-based fluid?
(Always use Wiktionary to strength-
en your insults.) Couldn't you think
of anything better than a glass jar of
milk? I'm sorry that I'm getting so
upset. Maybe the guy wanted this
type of reaction. In fact, maybe he's
,s ociology major., Mgyb heq Ilently
defended his costume and said, "Oh,
YEAH? Why CAN'T I be a jar of
milk?" Maybe he got punched in the
face by
3. Men in Tights: Noticing a trend?
Yes, guys seem to choose dumber cos-
tumes than girls. This is an estab-
lished biological fact. There were
plenty of men wearing tights last
Saturday night, but I ran into a stag-
geringly awkward guy wearing tights
and a leotard who was apparently
mocking Beyonce's hit song "Single
Ladies." Now, I love "Single Ladies,"
but that's not what concerned me.
The costume was funny, actually.
What concerned me was that after
approximately a nanosecond, the cos-
tume stopped being funny. The guy
didn't try to SELL it, you know? He
just stood there, saying nothing, in his
leotard. Needless to say, I motioned to
something behind him, waited until
he turned around and then bolted.
But the most awkward costume goes
to
This year's
worst Halloween
costumes.
4. MCard Girl: (Rejoice, men!) I'm
not acquainted with this student and
I don't hold anything against her as a
person, but she had possibly the worst
costume ever, a costume so cringe-
worthy that my face still ached the
following morning. What she had
(inexplicably) done was cut a head-
sized hole in a piece of cardboard,
decorate the cardboard so it looked
like a, MCard, and then (l*gera ' the
odd part) she wore it on her face. I
was completely baffled. I thought I
had seen all there was to see when it
came to people dressing up as arbi-
trary objects, but I was wrong. She's
a bit hard to describe, but imagine
a person who headbutts a painting
and then wears it around proudly. I
briefly considered writing "MCard"
on her forehead in big black letters,
but I refrained myself. I mean, I was
the president of the University. What
could I do?
-WillGrundler can be
reached at wgru@umich.edu.
SEND LETTERSTO: TOTHEDAILY@UMICH.EDU
School millage is necessary
for quality education
TO THE DAILY:
Unprecedented cuts to K-12 education fund-
ing have put school districts across the state in
a terrible situation. Here in Washtenaw Coun-
ty, several school districts that had already
balanced their budgets for the year were blind-
sided by the state's severe cuts to education
funding. Ann Arbor's school system alone faces
a $17.5 million shortfall this coming fiscal year.
This is not the result of waste or inefficiency -
Washtenaw County schools have in fact been
cutting their budgets for years. This gap is the
result of a state government that has lost its
sense of duty. We can correct this glaring mis-
take by voting yes on Proposal 1, which would
institute a millage to mitigate the effect of the
state's cuts.
Opponents of the millage argue that schools
should make deeper cuts to their programming
given that families are suffering economi-
cally throughout the county, state and nation.
There is, however, little left to cut. Washtenaw
County schools have already increased class
sizes, reduced custodial staffing, consolidat-
ed administration operations and eliminated
enrichment programs. For some schools in the
county, even cutting all arts and athletics pro-
grams would still not be enough to make up the
gap.
We all know that education is the key to the
revival of Michigan's economy. Also, any small
increases in property taxes will be more than
made up for by the increases in property values
for county residents. Families choose where to
live based on the quality of the public schools,
and good schools will draw new residents to
the area.
For students, most of whom plan to leave the
area after graduation, the future of Washtenaw
County may seem trivial and distant. But the
fundamental importance of education is not.
We encourage students to think about the high
quality primary and secondary education that
many of them received. Taking five minutes to
vote today will help grant tomorrow's children
the same opportunities you had.
Zachary Martin and Evan Nichol
University chapter of the College Democrats
Good sportsmanship starts
at the top
TO THE DAILY:
As a lifelong fan of Penn State football and a
15-year fan of Big Ten football, I appreciate the
opportunity to reach out to like-minded Big Ten
fans. As a frequent visitor to Ann Arbor, I have
found the overwhelming majority of Michigan
fans to be very similar to the overwhelming
majority of Penn State fans, who recognize that
there is no place in college sports for animosity'
toward opposing fans. They welcome us whole-
heartedly to their college, stadium and even
their tailgates. However, both universities also
have a minority of disrespectful, abusive and
embarrassing fans that get enjoyment from the
degradation of others. I would like to see that
change as much as possible at both institutions,
and I believe that both are capable of making
such a change.
Just as Ohio State has made strides to
improve what many Big Ten fans would consid-
er to be the most threatening and abusive Big
Ten game day environment, I.am hopeful that
the Michigan and Penn State will follow suit.
I truly believe that most Michigan fans find
the verbal and physical abuse that my fellow
Penn State fans and I endured on many occa-
sions this past weekend to be just as despicable
as we do when we see Michigan fans treated
the same way in Happy Valley. I believe that it
is time-for the vocal majority of good, respect-
ful fans to demand that there is no place for
bad sportsmanship before, during or after the
game.
Why is it that we demand better sportsman-
ship from our players than our fans? I never
understood how normally good, respectful
people feel better about themselves by mak-
ing derogatory, abusive comments or throw-
ing things at the fans of opposing teams. The
same can be said for the boos that welcome
the opposing team onto the field - a group of
18-21 year olds just trying to do their best -
that would not be greeted the same way in any
other scenario. I think that most of that would
change if instead of being egged on by laughter
and cheers from fellow fans, bad sportsman-
ship was properly recognized by jeers and boos
from fans wearing the same colors.
It is in the interest of all local Big Ten com-
munities to encourage the economic stimulus
that traveling fans bring, and consequently
treat opposing teams' fans more like invited
guests. Along those lines, many Penn State fans
were disappointed by the University adminis-
tration's choice to move most of the opposing
team's seats to the top of the end zone sections.
While this type of treatment may be tolerated
in truly inhospitable locations like Morgan-
town, W. Va., it should have no place in Big Ten
athletics. I am certain that traveling Michigan
fans prefer their current seats in the northeast
corner of Beaver Stadium to being strung out
along the highest rows of the north end zone
balcony. For their own interests, they should
not tolerate similar treatment of opposing fans.
In the spirit that competition makes us bet-
ter, it would be nice to add one more Big Ten
competition to see who can be the most wel-
coming and hospitable venue for opposing
team fans to visit. This message needs to start
at the top.
John Duda
Penn State fan
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS:
Nina Amilineni, Emad Ansari, Emily Barton, Ben Caleca, Michelle DeWitt, Brian Flaherty,
Emma Jeszke, Raghu Kainkaryam, Sutha K Kanagasingam, Erika Mayer, Edward McPhee,
Harsha Panduranga, Alex Schiff, Asa Smith, Brittany Smith, Radhika Upadhyaya,
Rachel Van Gilder, Laura Veith
SETH BUCHSBAUM I
Local elections are just as important
0
You couldn't go anywhere on campus around this time
last year without hearing that oft repeated anthem: "Hey!
Are you registered to vote at your current address?" Get-
out-the-vote activists were on every corner, flyers and
stickers were posted on every available space and every
other conversation was about the coming election. People
groaned at the politicians' latest mistakes, talked about
how great they were in the previous night's debate and
waited in line for up to four hours on the first Tuesday in
November in order to support one candidate or the other.
Last year's election night was for some a triumph and
for others a disappointment, but everyone agreed on one
thing: History had been made. The atmosphere on cam-
pus for the whole month leading up to that Tuesday was
more electric than I've seen in my whole life here in Ann
Arbor.4
Tuesday, Nov. 3 (which happens to be today), there will
be another election. There are no national candidates,
there is little drama and relatively few people on campus
are working for and talking about the elections.
But it shouldn't be this way.
Local elections are just as important as national ones.
Your locally elected officials make huge decisions about
your lives that are often undervalued. Zoning laws allow
students to live in some places and not others. Local laws
govern how leasing works and the types of contracts that
can be drawn up. Local governments influence police poli-
cy, the municipal courtsystem, Ann Arbor Transportation
Authority buses - the list goes on and on.
This year's local elections are no different. A contested
City Council race will pit a pro-mayor candidate against
a University student. There is also a millage (property
tax) on the ballot that will define Ann Arbor's education
spending for the foreseeable future. These issues affect
the lives of everyone who lives in Ann Arbor, students or
otherwise.
Some people might claim that their votes don't mat-
ter. That is completely, patently false. During the summer
of 2008, I worked for a political candidate who ended up
losing by eight votes. Elections, especially local ones, are
decided by a tiny percentage of the electorate.
But there is areason forvotingthatgoes above and beyond
the statistics. The reason is not the candidates, the issues or
the fact that a single vote may make a difference. The reason
is that voting is what defines us as a democracy.
The vast majority of people in the United States,
including myself, believe in democracy as a theory and an
ideal. We speak out against dictatorships and for freedom
all across the world - and yet many people don't realize
what their belief in democracy means. The precise reason
we have a democracy is because it gives every citizen a
way to be heard in our society. If we hold these beliefs
and make these claims about the power of democracy but
do not participate in our own democratic government,
then we are a nation of hypocrites, fighting for free elec-
tions all over the world and then not participating in our
own back home. We are a nation of whiners, perpetually
complaining about current conditions and the state of
our lives but making no move to change them. We are a
nation of the uninterested, more worried about what hap-
pens today than decisions that could affect us years in the
future. But I believe that we are also a nation of the con-
sistent - people firm enough in our beliefs that we can
hold them strong. I believe that we are a nation of doers,
knowing when to take action to change something wrong
in the world. We are a nation of the concerned, speaking
out loud about things thatwill affect both us and our chil-
dren.
I believe in a nation where every citizen uses his or her
own voice to bring up what they believe in, and where peo-
ple participate because they know it is their obligation to
apply their beliefs to the issues that affect them directly. I
believe in a nation where we all vote.
Vote today Bring your MCard to the polls. Visit www.
a2gov.org for more information on candidates and propos-
als.
Seth Buchsbaum is the Vice Chair of Voice Your Vote.