4 - Friday, February 19, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com 6 E-MAIL DANIEL AT DWGOLD@UMICH.EDU iJbe 1*idigani f &i4. Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu DANIEL GOLD JACOB SMILOVITZ EDITOR IN CHIEF RACHEL VAN GILDER EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR MATT AARONSON MANAGING EDITOR The HILL OLYMPICS If Tray-Boarding was a real sport, Id so be in Vancouver right now! y o 1 c ______L7 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. Solutions for Solo cups City should increase recycling for ease and environment oing green could soon be easier in Ann Arbor. Under the current City recycling program, items need to be sorted into separate bins and many would-be-recyclables aren't accepted. But a partnership between the city of Ann Arbor and the non-profit organization Recycle Ann Arbor promises to spur a much-needed revamp of the city's recycling system. Recycling is a relatively easy way to save the planet - but it could be even easier if steps were taken to streamline the system and make more items recyclable. Ann Arbor authorities should continue to expand the range of recyclable materials and reform the recycling process. Mao To ;Markley: 4 y -' ; - @1 From dreams to doing The city of Ann Arbor is now partner- ing with Recycle Ann Arbor to streamline the city's recycling system and increase awareness about recycling. Ann Arbor currently uses a two-stream method for its recycling. Paper and cardboard products must be separated from metal, glass and plastic. Under the new initiative, the city will switch to a single-stream system this summer in which all recyclables will be collected together. Officials say the reforms will make recy- cling more efficient and allow for a greater array of items to be recycled, including types of plastic that previously weren't recyclable in the city. Currently, only num- bers one and two plastics are accepted in the city. In addition, the new partnership aims to increase education and awareness around recycling. The city is right to make recycling a pri- ority. Aside from environmental benefits like reduction of pollution and conserva- tion of resources, recycling also combats global warming. Materials often generate greenhouse gases both when they are made and when they decompose in landfills. Because recycling is important for keep- ing the-planet's environment healthy, the city should do everything it can to encour- age residents and students to fill their recy- cling bins. One of the best ways of doing that is to make the process easier. About 94 percent of Ann Arbor residents currently .recycle at the curb, according to Recycle Ann Arbor. Making the process easier could increase that percentage. There should be no sorting, no hassle and no rea- son not to recycle. But ease of recycling isn't as important as range. Though the city currently recycles 52 percent of its residential waste stream, according to Recycle Ann Arbor, it should expand its recycling capabilities to include all types of plastic. The mountains of red cups that litter students' lawns and houses - which are marked No. 6 plastics - have been non-recyclable in the city. The new recycling program should accept these kinds of plastics, which would increase the volume of recycled material in the city and reduce waste. Michigan State University accepts plastics numbered up to seven. As painful as it is for University of Michigan students to hear, Ann Arbor should follow MSU's example and recycle all types of plastics. Ann Arbor has a reputation as a green city - so it's unacceptable that recycling is difficult and limited. If the city stays true to its promise to increase the public's knowledge about recycling, residents will have no excuse for throwing out recyclable materials. 've always conceded "coolness" (specifically the Zack Morris kind, not to be confused with the nerd-is-cool kind embodied by the many Screeches scurrying around in Wolverine , apparel) to Ohio State University, the pseudo-alma mater of everyone in my hometown, while maintaining LIBBY the University of ASHTON Michigan's supe- riority in almost every other cat- egory. But not anymore. We, with our wintry complexions and oversized backpacks, just became the envy of the Ivies and Playboy Party Schools alike. We got Barack. Maybe it doesn't help our cool- ness cause that instead of a football, we're throwing our commencement speaker in Michigan State Univer- sity's face, but I expect the electricity in the air the first Saturday in May to rival that of any football Saturday. President Barack Obama serves as an intersection between an apathetic youth and an out-of-touch politico. Our demographic was the only age group to show a significant increase in voter turnout for the 2008 election, increas- ing from 47 to 49 percent according to the US Census Bureau News, with two-thirds of 18-29-year-olds votipg for Obama, according to the Center for Information and Research on Civil Learning and Engagement. When he won, young people around the country flooded the streets, celebrating what felt like our victory. A year and a half after this victo- ry - almost to the day - we'll have the privilege of hosting the man who made the fist bump sexy(er) in our very own Big House. Leading up to this day, it's important forus to think about why he makes our hearts flut- ter so that we stand before him not as the awestruck children we were before we could vote, but as critically. minded young adults, conscious of the reasons behind our Obamania. During the spring of 2008, my fam- ily Seder turned sour when I found myself pitted against my uncle and my grandma's boyfriend, both of whom supported Hillary Clinton in the primary elections. They accused my generation of blindly supporting a man we thought was emblematic of our liberal ideals when, despite his rhetoric commenting to the contrary, he had created little change during his political career. From my admittedly naive per- spective, this lack of political con- text for Obama further validated his freshness. His inexperience with a political process that has seemed lifeless and disengaged was an asset rather than a fault. To the voting demographic who most recently left the playground, Obama embodies the most essential qualities we've been taught to seek in a leader. Obama is the ideal communicator - one who values listening and speaking equally. He's smarter than me, and also more humble. He's not bossy or a know- it-all (perhaps to a fault). He com- mands my respect without demanding it. He's in touch with a kind of human component that connects him with the idealistic characteristic of youth. It's as though he is the first major political figure who remembers all the histori- cal wrongs he learned about in middle school and lives with an awareness of his duty to do better than what was done before. Most of all, he has inspired a kind of social revolution wherein the typically uninvolved members of the electorate feel empowered and heard. Obama's personal impact on the national and international com- munities is enough of a justification for my support of his position, both in the oval office and at the commence- ment podium. Obama should focus on action, and so should you. In his promise of the possibility of something better, Obama evoked a spirit in our generation. In electing him, we made a commitment to work with him to realize that possibility. One necessary element of uphold- ing that commitment is holding our- selves, and Obama, accountable for the transition from the passivity to activity, from dreaming to doing. Though the strongest motivations for my support of Obama have more to do with his person than his politi- cal record, my expectations of him as the head of an incredibly burdened administration must be functional. Similarly, our expectations of our- selves as college graduates must be to create a record of progress. A year and a half after we watched, with teary eyes, the ballots being counted, we will stand as represen- tatives of the demographic that most uniformly supported Obama's candi- dacy. And as we watch him watch us, we can remain atop the wave of ideal- ism that carried us to the polls - as long as we do so with recognition of the importance of action in creating the change for which we all hope. - Libby Ashton can be reached at eashton@umich.edu. LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor. Letters should be fewer than 300 words. All submissions become property of the Daily. We do not print anonymous letters. Send letters to tothedaily@umich.edu. YUBO WU| It's East Quad's turn for fixing Olympic updates I am a second-year resident of East Quad, home to the Residential College and the newly formed Global Scholars program. Last fall, I noticed that East Quad had finally gotten rid of asbestos insulation, as well as all the closet doors and dressers. I noticed that our beloved eatery was taken away from us. I noticed the new theater and the partially renovated base- ment. I also noticed having to move out of my room midway through the semester because my room was leaking gutter water. Gutter water. Almost all students on campus and many incomingstudents know that East Quad is one of the oldest and worse-off residence halls. If you're ever in East Quad, stop by the Greene Lounge and hit one of the lounge chairs, and you'll see what I mean (a cloud of dust comes out). It is in desper- ate need of renovation. Though the new theater has brought about some renovation in the base- ment, change remains far away. East Quad continues to fall apart. This semester, sinks unexpectedly overflowed,' resulting in destroyed personal belongings in three flooded rooms in my hallway. And when personal sinks can't be fixed, they are taken away. Forever. There are rooms with holes in the walls where sinks once existed. The boys' bathroom sinks have spewed out black, murky water from the drain. The dishwasher in the cafeteria has broken down - for over a week at times. The sole elevator travels as fast as The Flash, only past his prime and retired. The furnishings of both the Madrigal and Greene lounges are likely older than me. And I recent- ly witnessed a sink overflowing, and the hall director on duty prevented a poor student from calling repairmen because it would cost the hall more for after-hours repair. Yet, what surprises me is that East Quad is the residence hall traditionally used for orienta- tion (the exception being last year, when it was held at South Quad) and Campus Day. The Uni- versity doesn't-appear to care thatcthis hall is the very first impression given to most prospective students. Should such a bad impression be given to parents and future Wolverines? Couzens is scheduled for renovations next year, and Mosh- er-Jordan and Stockwell just got renovated. Why not East Quad? Sometimes, it's hard to reconcile University spending with student needs. The Orion sculp- ture -that big orange metal thing in front of the University of Michigan Museum of Art - costs a significant amount, while East Quad remains without renovations. It's frustrating. Though most of the money for the sculpture came from donations and not from students' pockets, it's hard to understand why the University hasn't put more money into East Quad. The painstaking renovations done on Mosh- er-Jordan and Stockwell cost tens of millions of dollars, and those dorms house around 425 and 400 residents, respectively. However, EQ alone houses about 900 students, which adds up to. more than both of the afore-mentioned dorms combined, and it's not even close to being the biggest hall. East Quad has so much to offer: classrooms, a dark room, a dance studio and even a ceramics studio. Despite these awesome resources, they go unnoticed because all that students seem to remember from orientation is an old building without air conditioning. The problem is simple: Renovating big dorms dis- places too many students and the University loses a sizeable chunk of housing. Perhaps if the University could afford multiple minor renovations instead of shutting down one full residence hall, there would be no need to per- form such overhauls in the future. The ancient furnishings on the ground floor lounges could simply be refurnished. The showerheads could. be elevated a foot higher so the majority of us don't have to bend awkwardly to avoid making out with a stream of hot water. And the displacement of students could be minimized after North Quad is opened. Half of EQ could be shut down and renovated and repeated for the second half. For now, future generations of EQ Wolverines will have to endure the confusing stairways, bending over to shower and the lumpy couches in the lounges. Yubo Wu is an LSA sophomore. You know your weird Uncle Marty who's going through a mid-life crisis? He's com- pletely out of touch with reality and tries to overcom- pensate by getting a flashy red sports car? That's exactly - what the Winter 4 Olympics are like. They're like your weird, old rela- tive who comes up LINCOLN to you at a familyB gathering and asks BOEHM if you've heard of the band "The John Mayers." These Olympics are so weird aren't they? But at the same time I kind of love them, just like my Uncle Marty. Five days ago, I spent two hours in front of the TV watching the biath- lon. For those of you unfamiliar with this incredibly outdated and wacko event, it involves would-be serial kill- ers cross-country skiing with rifles strapped to their backs, which they occasionally pull out to shoot at tar- gets. The weirdest part about watch- ing this event live on television was the enthusiasm the NBC broadcasters had for it. They were discussing the event as if it was the Superbowl. "The biathlon is one of only three events that the United States has never medaled in, which is shocking. Today could be the day that all of that chang- es. Ladies and gentlemen, you could be witnessing history in the making!" What I didn't understand at the time was why is it so "shocking" that the U.S. hasn't ever medaled in this ridiculous - borderline psychotic - sport? Unlike the Eastern Euro- pean and former Soviet countries that dominate the biathlon, we have grocery stores and gun control laws. This is how people in Uzbekistan feed their families! They strap on their skis and guns and go out hunting. Can you imagine if I grabbed a rifle and started skiing down State Street. after a snowstorm? This would be the interaction: Crazy evangelist standing on a soap-box: "Oh my God, he's got a gun! Someone call the police!" Then 15 to 30 minutes later the police would show up and find me skiing by Zingerman's, rifle in hand. Police Officer: "Drop the weapon!" Me: (Laughing) "Oh no officer, you see, I'm just training for the biathlon. My dream is to be the first American to win-" Police Officer: "I said drop the f****ng weapon!" Then I'd get tased or something. So at this point in the Olympics, we have incredibly outdated events that look to have been prevalent in third-world countries back in the eighteenth century. Like that weird relative, completely foreign and impossible to relate to... but I love it! Now, fast forward three days and I'm lying in bed watching snow- boarder Shaun White win a gold medal in the Olympics while wearing baggy pants and looking high off his ass. White won the halfpipe compe- tition Wednesday night with a move called the Double-McTwist, which ironically is what Ihad for lunch. Over the course of three days, we went from one weird event extreme to another. Now the Olympics are trying way too hard to be "cool" and in touch with young America. These aren't the X Games - these are the storied and historic Olympics. I don't want anyone to be able to win a gold medal while wearing baggy pants. That's just my rule. I think everyone should have to wear those spandex jump suits that show off their junk. And despite Michael Phelps's incred- ible success, there shouldn't be any Olympic events that you can do just as well in - if not better - while high. So I was cross- country skiing down State Street... The Olympics adding the halfpipe and all of these crazy snowboarding events to the schedule is just like my uncle coming up to me and asking if I've heard of the band "The John Mayers." He has good intentions, but he should know where and when to stop trying to relate to me. Know exactly who or what you are, Olympics/Uncle Marty. If you are going to air crazy events like the biathlon and ski-jump - which I love - then you should rightfully market yourself as the Summer Olympics crazy younger brother who collects dead insects. Don't try to pretend that people take these events as seri- ously as they do the 100-meter dash or swimming events. Like my Uncle Marty, the Winter Olympics are weird as shit, but that's why we love them. I'm sick of this mid-life crisis they're going through. I just want my weird, rifle-bearing uncle back. - Lincoln Boehm can be reached at isboehm@umich.edu. *I EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Nina Amilineni, Jordan Birnholtz, William Butler, Nicholas Clift, Michelle DeWitt, Brian Flaherty, Jeremy Levy, Erika Mayer, Edward McPhee, Emily Orley, Harsha Panduranga, Alex Schiff, Asa Smith, Brittany Smith, Robert Soave, Radhika Upadhyaya, Laura Veith The Daily is looking for a diverse group of passionate, strong student writers to join the Editorial Board. Editorial Board members are responsible for discussing and writing the editorials that appear on the left side of the opinion page. E-MAIL RACHEL VAN GILDER AT RACHELVG@UMICH.EDU FOR MORE INFORMATION.