6 4 - Tuesday, January 12, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom C iid ligan BaI*IV Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@umich.edu JACOB SMILOVITZ EDITOR IN CHIEF RACHEL VAN GILDER EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR MATT AARONSON MANAGING EDITOR A university is also a place for the dreaming of great dreams.' - Former University President Robben Fleming, from his March 12,1968 inaugural speech, as recorded in his book, "Tempests into Rainbows." JAMES DUDERSTADT | The legacy of Robben Fleming Unsigned editorials reflect the officialposition ofthe Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. Picking a provost New provost should involve students in policymaking new face will soon be occupying one of the University's most important positions. As announced in an e-mail yesterday from University President Mary Sue Cole- man, University Provost Teresa Sullivan will soon be leaving to become the president at the University of Virginia. On the heels of her departure, the University has an opportunity to bring a new addition to the University's management team. Sullivan's successor should reflect a commitment to diversity and possess financial prowess. At the same time, this opening should be used to right a past shortcoming: the University's failure to meaning- fully engage students in its policy-making decisions. With the passing of former University President Rob- ben Fleming yesterday, we have lost a Michigan leader of great integrity, distinction and compassion. President Fleming led the University during tumultuous years when Ann Arbor was a center of student activism. His great patience, negotiating skills and genuine sympa- thy for the concerns of students and faculty helped the University weather the decade without the destructive confrontations that struck many other universities. His calm, reassuring approach to difficult issues, tempered at times with a disarming sense of humor, served him well in providing leadership throughout these difficult times. During this period of protest and disruption, he had a remarkable ability to build compromise and cooperation out of confrontation. At a time when University students and faculty served as the conscience of the nation on major issues such as the war in Vietnam and racial jus- tice, President Fleming spoke out courageously on many of these issues to provide national leadership in support of the concerns of students and the faculty. President Fleming once observed: "If you start out as president by appointing superb people, you are about three-quarters of the way down the path of success." The leadership team he assembled at the University included faculty members like Frank Rhodes and Harold Shapiro, who would goontobecome two of the most distinguished university leaders of their era (at Cornell, Princeton and, of course, Michigan). During the transitional period following President Harold Shapiro in 1988, while I was serving as the Uni- versity's provost, President Fleming returned for a brief period in an interim leadership role. This provided me with a remarkable opportunity to observe, work with and learn from one of the most able presidents in the Uni- versity's history as he skillfully navigated through the complexities of university activities, state politics, and student concerns with wisdom and understanding. At my own inauguration as University president in 1988, he pulled me aside to caution that a public univer- sity president should never regard the slings and arrows launched by others as personal attacks. Rather, most crit- ics were simply angry at the institution, not the presi- dent. Buthe also acknowledged thatuniversitypresidents made a most convenienttarget for taking out frustrations, which he characterized as "the price of a society in which we place so high a value on freedom of expression." His courage was illustrated by a second comment: "A univer- sity president must develop the capacity to tolerate risk as a necessary characteristic of the position. If you do not occasionally face critical moments when you must put your job on the line in defending or advancingthe institu- tion, then you are likely not doing your job well." President Fleming was always a great fan of Michigan football (after all, he hired Bo Schembechier!), and dur- ing his later years my wife and I were privileged to take him to the home football games. It was clear that people enjoyed seeing President Fleming in attendance at the game as much as he enjoyed the game itself! It is ironic that today many members of the Universi- ty community probably know the name Fleming by the building that bears his name, a formidable blockhouse containing the University administration. Yet, in reality, President Robben Fleming was a Michigan leader who was deeply engaged and supportive of the students and faculty of the University during his tenure, reaching out to listen to and share their concerns and speak out force- fully and courageously on behalf of the University. He will be greatly missed, fondly remembered and always honored for his leadership of the University of Michigan. James Duderstadt is currently a University professor of science and engineering and president emeritus at the University. He served as the University's president from 1988 to 1996. Coleman announced yesterday that Sul- livan will begin serving as the president of UVA on Aug. 1. Coleman intends to select a new provost before that time. UVA chose Sullivan partly because of her success in managing the University's budget amid financial turbulence - and with UVA facing cuts in its own state funding, Sullivan's bud- getary acumen could be beneficial. Sullivan's savvy in managing the Univer- sity's budget was one of her strong points. Among other actions, Sullivan played a key role in the Space Utilization Initiative. Last November, project manager Frances Mueller estimated that the initiative saved the Uni- versity $185 million in construction costs by managing space efficiently and reducing the need for new construction projects. Like Sullivan, the new provost should possess experience in managing a large and complex budget. More than that, the Uni- versity's new hire should possess a stronger commitment to maintaining affordability for students. As many students face serious financial burdens from tuition costs, avoid- ing tuition hikes like last year's 5.6 percent increase should be a top priority. The Uni- versity's new hire should do everything possible to curtail costs, including halting the University's custom to routinely give pay raises and hire expensive new faculty at students' expense. In making its pick for the position, the University should also demonstrate a com- mitment to diversity. While administrators have expressed a desire to maintain diver- sity among faculty members and the student body, the representation of diverse groups in its leadership ranks doesn't reflect the Uni- versity's supposed commitment. The Uni- versity should aim to improve representation of minority groups at all levels - and that means choosing a provost who will increase the administration's diversity. And the new provost should put the school's diverse student body to good use. Sullivan's successor should show a com- mitment to involving students in decisions that affect them. In the past, Sullivan pur- ported to include students in decision- making by creating student committees like the Student Budget Advisory Commit- tee, which was started in 2008. But these closed-door committees seemed more like an effort to pacify students than to actu- ally gain their insight on policies -that affect them. The provost Coleman chooses should be willing to take earnest action to hear students' ideas, and put them into practice. Sullivan's replacement should possess a balanced set of qualifications that reflects the University's needs. And what the Uni- versity - and the student body - needs is a provost who increases the diversity of University administration and possesses financial and managerial experience to improve conditions for students. WANT TO BE AN OPINION CARTOONIST? E-MAIL RACHEL VAN GILDER AT RACHELVG@UMICH.EDU My top five maize pains EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Nina Amilineni, Emad Ansari, William Butler, Nicholas Clift, Michelle DeWitt, Brian Flaherty, Erika Mayer, Edward McPhee, Harsha Panduranga, Alex Schiff, Asa Smith, Brittany Smith, Radhika Upadhyaya, Laura Veith WILL BUTLER Grinches who stole health care love the University of Michigan. I thank God everyday that I had the opportunity and the incred- ibly good fortune to spend four years of my life here. Like many of my peers, my ticket to this school is paid by loving, gener-I ous, hard-working parents. And I try not to forget that - fortune as I eat my CHRIS daily bowl of Cap'n KOSLOWSKI Crunch with the shiniest of silver spoons. But some- times - as good as I have it - the small stuff gets under my skin. I have little reason to complain, but there are certain things about this place that drive me up a wall. In fact, they are so irritating that I thought I'd share five of them with the hope that maybe a few of you can laugh at our mutual frustration. 1. The Diagsnow-removal carts I like a cleared path on my way to class, but I don't like it when these Satanic sweepers brush a blizzard of snow in my face when I already feel like I'm trekking across Siberia. I understand that constant plowing of the Diag would necessitate even more inconvenient repair work, but perhaps that would be a small price to pay to end the plague of irreversible psycho- logical damage caused by face-to-face encounters with these snow-flinging monsters on narrow sidewalks. 2. The Museum ofArt addition I often hear complaints about the big, red-orange Orion sculpture, but I love it because it draws my attention away from much worse eyesore: the new art museum addition. The new addition sports the most perplexingly awkward architecture on campus. Wedged in between the classical col- umns and ornate stonework of Angell Hall and the original art museum, the boring, out of place UMMA looks like something my four-year-old cousin could have built with a cardboard box. But on the bright side, the fiber-ugly LSA Building now looks like a master- piece in comparison. 3. Washtenaw between South U. and Cambridge If you ever feel like needlessly risk- ing your life, find a friend and two SUVs and drive side-by-side down this narrow, obstacle-ridden thoroughfare. Even in my little sedan, I feel like I'm being forced into playing chicken with opposing traffic. Between the over- flow parking from the First Presby- terian Church that blocks the entire southbound right lane on Sundays and drunken Greek system freshman wan- dering in search of "The Rock," this stretch of Washtenaw becomes the most infuriating street in Ann Arbor. And I didn't even mention, the perpet- ually manned speed trap between Hill and South U. 4.Spicy ChickenPasta is too delicious I don't remember much from my freshman year in Couzens Residence Hall, but I do remember Spicy Chicken Pasta. More delicious than manna, more scrumptious than ambrosia and even better than your grandma's famous apple pie, Spicy Chicken Pasta puts all other entrees in all other din- ing options in Ann Arbor to shame. Why is this bad? Because when I'm eating a steak at the Chop House, I don't want to be thinking about why I'm not eating Spicy Chicken Pasta instead. I've taken a bite of heaven and now everything else tastes like soggy kitchen sponge. Oh, and those who think Chicken Broccoli Bake is supe- rior are fools. Couzens's Spicy Chicken Pasta is just too good. In the early morning of Christmas Eve, the United States Senate passed its version of the health care reform bill. Despite being tout- ed as the Senate's early Christmas gift to the American people, progressives like me stand incredibly disappointed and frustrated with the watered-down bill. While I recognize that there is an inherent struggle between idealism and reality in any political battle, this bill fails in any sort of substantive and comprehensive reform. So here is my basic progressive primer on the Senate's health care bill, including what to hate and who to blame. While many debate the actual number of. people it would affect, progressives should make no mistake - the public option is vital. While Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Cali.) and the House Democrats were able to secure a public option in their version of the bill, Senate Democrats were not. The public option provision would create a government alternative health care plan to private insur- ance companies, allowing the government to negotiate payments with doctors and hospitals. The health care system cannot be fixed if Congress allows it to stay in the private sector alone. In order to make health care actually affordable, a public option is necessary to break the monopoly insurance companies have, force competition and finally make insurance com- panies responsible to the people. Some con- tend that private companies cannot compete with public institutions. This is simply not true - they coexist and compete in multiple sectors. The Post Office must compete against FedEx and public schools exist with private ones. Many other countries have private-pub- lic health systems as well, including France, which was ranked first for its health care sys- tem by the World Health Organization. Though it hasn't received the amount of attention the public option has, there is another key element to health care reform: the anti-trust exemption for health insurance companies. The McCarran-Ferguson Act of. 1945 allows for health insurance companies to receive exemptions from the federal anti-trust laws that apply to most businesses. This allows for the insurance companies to collaborate and essentially set prices at any rate they see fit. Because of this exemption, insurance compa- nies indulge in practices like bid rigging and market allocation, all of which reduce com- petition and increase prices for the consumer. 4 While the repeal of the McCarran-Ferguson Act may seem like a simple no-brainer, it was evidently overlooked by the Senate, which was not able to fit it into the bill. We can thank the Republican Party for not allowing the public option or the repeal of the anti-trust exemption in the Senate health care bill. Not a single member of the Grand Oppo- sition Party supported the Senate bill and few made genuine attempts at reform. It is quite clear that the Republican Party stands firmly against the general welfare of the American people's health care. While standing in stub- born opposition to almost every idea proposed by Democratic Party leadership, they must have lacked the time to be able to propose any ideas of their own. Despite American health care being ranked 37th by the World Health Organization, Republicans held ignorantly that America "had the best health care in the world." I cannot stress enough how at fault this party is. The only people it truly represents are corporate insurance companies, insurance lobbyists and the radical fringe right that now controls the party. But the Grinches who really stole health care reform were Senators Joe Lieberman (ID- Conn.) and Ben Nelson (D-Neb.). While stand- ing as the last holdouts for their votes on health care reform, these two senators were effec- tively able to hold health care hostage and ruin Christmas in Grinch-like fashion. Lieberman said that he wouldn't support a public option or an expansion of Medicare - despite support- ing the idea previously - and even threatened to filibuster with the Senate Republicans. Ben Nelson expressed similar concerns but got even more bang for his buck with his "Corn- husker Kickback," a deal that gives the entire state of Nebraska a permanent exemption from its share of Medicaid taxes. The public option and the repeal of the McCar- ran-Ferguson Act are necessary for real health care reform in America. These provisions were not able to make it into the bill because of Joe Lieberman, Ben Nelson and the entirety of the Republican Party. As the conference committee approaches, progressives need to remain strong in their convictions. While lawmaking is a pro- fession of compromise, diluting a bill until it isn't strong enough to make the changes necessary is a mark of bad government. Will Butler is an LSA freshman. 5. The Haven Hall Bazaar So, I've made it through the beggars by the Engineering Arch, the flyer dis- tributors, protestors and preachers in the Diag, and I walk into Haven Hall and somebody shoves free cookies in my face. I blame my freshman fifteen, my sophomore twenty and so forth on these peddlers of all things fatty. Do I want a SO-cent donut? No. Can I resist when I walk in and seea four-foot pile of Krispy Kreme boxes just waiting for me? No! Plus, the tables restrict traffic flow. I'm trying to get to the stairwell, but I'm stuck in the bottleneck, and the Dance Marathon folks just opened a new package of brownies. Damn you and your tasty treats! Luckily, the list of stuff I love is much, much longer. From snowball fights in the Law Quad to Double Stacks in the Michigan Union Wen- dy's, it's great to be a Michigan Wol- verine. So after the Diag preacher guy pins you to the glass wall of the art museum and a brush cart merci- lessly flings snow in your face, smile, spin the Cube, order one up at Blimpy Burger, and remember how fortunate you are. No silver spoons required. - Chris Koslowski can be reached at cskoslow@umich.edu. ANGELA CHIH E-MAIL ANGELAAT AHCHIH@UMICH.EDU ... wav-er.--...-_ .,_.--.- coIk_ GI : L _ N 4 4