4A - Wednesday, September 29, 2010
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
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CHRISTINA SUH
JACOB SMILOVITZ
EDITOR IN CHIEF
RACHEL VAN GILDER
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR
MATT AARONSON
MANAGING EDITOR
ikBorae r
Think Blue for prostate cancer
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.
Give us Google instantly
Ann Arbor is the right testing city for Google Fiber
The race to be one of Google Fiber's pilot sites has inspired
a lot of excitement in Cities vying for the new Internet
service. Ann Arbor - which has yet to change its name
for the cause, unlike Topeka, Kansas - is still in the running to
receive this ultra-high-speed Internet. Google Fiber would pro-
vide fiber-to-home network that is said to run 100 times faster
than most Internet services currently available. Bringing Google
Fiber to Ann Arbor would have huge benefits for students, the
University and the city as a whole. The community should con-
tinue its enthusiasm, and Google should see that Ann Arbor is
the right city to test Google Fiber.
*I
According to the Sept. 12 article in the
Daily, Ann Arbor currently ranks fourth
in community support levels for the effort
to attract Google Fiber. Another Michigan
city in the running is Grand Rapids, which
currently ranks second. These rankings,
which come from fiberforall.org, mea-
sure community support by way of social
media websites, tracking statistics such
as Facebook group members and Twitter
followers. There is currently no informa-
tion regarding whether these rankings
will impact Google's choice for a pilot city.
Google has said that it will announce which
cities it has selected to test the new fiber-
optic Internet service by the end of 2010.
As a research university, the University
of Michigan would benefit greatly from an
opportunity like this one. Faster Internet
would mean easier access to data and infor-
mation, something that would benefit almost
every program at the University. Google
would also benefit by testing the network in
a city full of innovative and knowledgeable
researchers, students and businesses.
The University would certainly benefit
from Google Fiber - researchers and stu-
dents would have access to more informa-
tion at a faster rate. Google Fiber would
be a particularly valuable asset to Univer-
sity Health Service by providing faster and
easier access to health records. With such
a large student body and community rely-
ing on UHS, faster access to records would
make this important resource function
even more efficiently.
And Google already has roots in Ann
Arbor. Its AdWords is headquartered
downtown and one of its co-founders is
a University graduate. Piloting Google
Fiber in a city that the company is already
tied to would ensure easy functioning and
easy access to data for Google - benefits
that other cities can't offer. This win-win
situation would facilitate a more accurate
and simple testing process. And with high
levels of community support, Google can
be sure that residents would be ready and
willing to help the company with its efforts
to study and improve Google Fiber.
Ann Arbor has more to offer in terms
of community support and testability
qualities than other nominees, making it
uniquely qualified to serve as a pilot city
for Google Fiber. The University and its
surrounding community remain depen-
dent on high-quality Internet access for
student work, research and health servic-
es. With advantages like these, there's no
need for Ann Arbor to change its name to
prove that it's top in the running to become
Google Fiber's test city.
Blue - yes, it's a color. But it's
also a very important color.
Especially today - except I'm
not goingto tell you why just yet.
Do you remem-
ber that Facebook
meme from a few
months ago, in
which women all
across America
began posting s
their bra color as
their status to sup-
port breast can- -
cer awareness? I ERIC
believe the mes-
sage they were SZKARLAT
spreading around
read something
along the lines of, "Postyour bra color
in your status and leave the boys to
wonder what it means!"
So it was essentially a secret girls'
club. What's unfortunately left out of
these messages is that men can also
contract breast cancer. It's a statis-
tical rarity, but there are usually a
couple thousand per year in the Unit-
ed States. And because of failure in
detection, death rates are much high-
er among male breast cancer patients.
That said, the
biggest risk fac-
tor for breast
cancer is wheth-
er you are male
or female. Obvi- i
ously, women
contract it at
a much higher-
rate. But I won-
der why we left
boys and men
to wonder what
the colors mean
since they can
still contract
breast cancer?
In her arti-
cle on Politic-
sDaily.com,
writer Donna - 50
Trussell wrote, b *
"My Bra? Color
Me Furious."
Throughout her
article, Trussell writes about how
many breast cancer survivors are
no longer wearing bras of any color,
so the entire Facebook status move-
ment was insensitive. She raises
good questions about ovarian cancer
and pancreatic cancer, such as why
they aren't touted so loudly as breast
cancer when their death rates well
exceed those of breast cancer.
But while I enjoyed much of her
article, Trussell's last line strikes
me as insensitive. Referencing such
campaigns and slogans as "Save the
Ta-tas," she says: "Never mind the
breasts. Save the women."
Does this somehow imply that sav-
ing women is somehow more impor-
tant than saving men? I'm all for
saving women's lives by eradicating
cancer, but that's a consequence of
something else: I'm all for saving peo-
ple. I'm all for finding cures for breast
cancer and ovarian cancer, for the
reason that I am all for finding cures
for all types of cancer. Some degree of
specificity toward a particular cause
is perfectly fine, but a disproportion-
ate amount of support for one cause
frustrates me. It especially frustrates
me when the reason given seems to be
what I would call gender protective
preference, that is, a stronger impulse
to save one gender rather than anoth-
er. It is a manifestation of sexism.
Here are some numbers for you:
The American Cancer Society esti-
mates that 217,730 new cases of pros-
tate cancer will emerge in 2010. They
estimate that 207,090 new cases of
0044 is7 fi,-
cro . Bra
(brashC rte ClnLc G
Illustration by Ma
breast cancer will emerge in the same
year. Prostate and breast cancers are
the second leading causes of cancer-
related death in men and women
respectively, after lung cancer, which
is first for both sexes.
The Susan G. Komen for the Cure
foundation lists over 100 races to
fundraise for breast cancer research.
ZERO, The Project to End Prostate
Cancer, lists only14 races forprostate
cancer fundraising and awareness.
Had you even heard of The ZERO
Project before now? I hadn't until I
started researching to write this col-
umn. Not even 2,000 people "like"
it on Facebook. Barely 2,000 people
have liked "Prostate Cancer Aware-
ness." As for "Breast Cancer Aware-
ness"? Almost 1.5 million "likes."
Almost 50,000 like "A World With-
out Breast Cancer," and more than 6
million have joined the cause "Turn
Facebook Pink for 1 Week for Breast
Cancer Awareness."
Six million strong against breast
cancer - it sounds amazing. But I
admit that I am jealous. Why the dis-
proportionate inequity? Why aren't
we more aware about the cancers that
are killing our fathers, grandfathers,
brothers and uncles? Are they simply
less marketable?
I've seen the effects of breast can-
cer. I've seen lives and families funda-
mentallyalteredbythe lossofaparent
to breast cancer. But I've also seen the
damage prostate cancer can do. I've
lost family members to prostate can-
cer because they weren't aware until
it was too late.
I am in favor of
putting an end
to both. I would
be joyous if one
were cured and
n , inconceivably
blissful if both
were cured.
If you didn't
know, Septem-
ber is Prostate
Cancer Aware-
ness Month.
And blue is the
hr. re.. 's 5 'e. color of prostate
'.0 m50 e'&e cancer aware-
* P -e.. cw0cer'ness. I know
it's almost over,
but maybe for
these last two
days you could
do something
dalyn Hochendoner as simple as
wearing a blue
ribbon, armband or - dare I say it -
some blue underpants to show your
support of prostate cancer awareness.
Then you can bust out the pink for
October - Breast Cancer Awareness
Month. But for now, Think Blue.
- Eric Szkarlat can be reached
at eszkarla@umich.edu.
W
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ERIKA MAYER |
Uniquely 'U'
Unlike many of my friends with University
of Michigan legacies, there are no alumni in my
family. My parents went to Central Michigan
University and my aunts and uncles went either
there or to Purdue. But other than the fact that
my Boilermaker relatives can be a little over-
whelming at times, there's no family loyalty to
a particular university. On top of that, I didn't
really grow up in Michigan, so when the time
came to think about colleges, the University of
Michigan was just another university. I cheered
for the football team, but in comparison to real
fans I was tragically lukewarm.
When I started touring schools, I realized
something was different here at the University.
At every school I visited, students wore sweat-
shirts with the school's logo - even the Yale
Bulldogs deigned to pull one over their button-
downs - but at the University of Michigan there
was something a little different in the wearer's
attitude. My friends and I joke now that you can
wear whatever you want as long as it has the
Block 'M' on it. Everyone is excited tobe a Michi-
gan student, even on a cold, rainy morning.
The Michigan attitude of loving the school,
the institution and the community struck
home for me. My parents, mentally calculat-
ing the difference between in-state tuition
with an Ivy League education, encouraged this
by watching Michigan football and taking me
to a game. I still think they bribed my friends
to buy me a Michigan teddy bear for my 18th
birthday. They may have had ulterior motives,
but their strategy was grounded in something
I had seen myself - at Michigan I would get
much more than an education.
Most students vaguely understand that
making connections and "opening doors"
(whatever that means) is important for the
future. Usually, it's a fancy name attached like
Harvard or Columbia. But while Harvard has
around 20,000 students each year, the Uni-
versity has more than twice that many. Which
means - and I'll leave the calculations up to
the math geniuses in East Hall - there are a
lot more Wolverines out there than, um, Crim-
sons. And we have a better football team.
All of the silly tangible benefits of a good edu-
cation and a job and a future aside, Michigan
stands out because it creates a community that
unites complete strangers - even in foreign
countries. In the same day, a few fellow Wolver-
ines and I cheered "Go Blue!" at a stranger on a
street in London who happened to be wearing a
Michigan Law t-shirt and reminisced over living
in Ann Arbor with a man wearing a University
rock-climbing shirt in Edinburgh.
It says something about the University that
two weeks ago I was sitting in a Buffalo Wild
Wings hours from Ann Arbor with the water ski
team, next to a wedding party that made a pit-
stop between the wedding and reception, watch-
ing the guy who sat next to me in class two days
earlier run over 300 yards with his shoes untied.
It's the same connection that made a friend of
mine creepily snap a picture of a man in a Michi-
gan hat on a ferryboat in Seattle.
Whether the connection is forged in the stu-
dent section at football games, over the long, cold
walk to classes in the winter or on the late-night
drunken bus ride back to North Campus, there's
something that bonds students and alumni of
the University in a way I haven't seen at other
colleges. It's more than just school spirit, more
than maize and blue face paint and nail polish,
more than accumulating a ridiculous amount
of yellow t-shirts, more than the knowledge
that we really are the Leaders and the Best. It's
somethingthatbecomes a part of the students, a
part that never changes, a part that has alumni
still standing for "The Victors" decades after
they've graduated. The Michigan Difference
isn't some fundraising scheme brainstormed by
the administration, it's what happens when you
become a part of the Michigan family.
When people ask me why I chose Michigan, a
question I seem to hear a lot lately, I try to give
them a full answer. It's a great school and I get to
pay in-state tuition. And that's true, butI stayed
at Michiganbecause it's a way of life.
Erika Mayer is an LSA junior.
They, too, si ngAmerica
think it's rather fitting that the
fate of the DREAM Act, which
offers a path for the children of
illegal immigrants
to become citizens
if they graduate
from a U.S. high
school and then
complete two years
of a four-year uni-
versity or serve at
least two years in
the military, and
the repeal of the NOEL
"don't ask, don't GORDON
tell" policy, which
would allow mem-
bers of the LGBTQ
community to openly serve in the mil-
itary, were essentially woven together
in a recent defense appropriations bill
that failed in the U.S. Senate. But not
everyone agrees with me.
LGBTQ advocates were enraged by
Democratic Majority Leader Harry
Reid's decision to include both provi-
sions in the 2010 National Defense
Authorization Act because doing so
essentially guaranteed the bill's fail-
ure. Some Democrats felt that the two
policies should have been debated
independently of one another. Some
Republicans felt that the two policies
shouldn't have been debated at all.
But if you look closely enough,
you'll soon realize that each of these
opinions rests upon the same faulty
assumption - namely, that gay rights
and immigrant rights are mutually
exclusive.
Consider thatcfor boththese groups,
each day brings the possibility that it
could mark the beginning of the end.
A woman who accidentally reveals the
identity of her female partner could be
dishonorably discharged the same day
a high school senior is deported back
to his "home" country. Though seem-
ingly incongruent, these two scenari-
os are not all that different from one
another. Both tell the story of honest,,
hard-working individuals reduced to
nothing more than a single aspect of
their identities. But apparently noth-
ing else matters - not even twenty
years of decorated military service
or eighteen years of impressive work
ethic. Because in the eyes of the fed-
eral government, sexual orientation
has long been indicative of military
aptitude much in the way legal immi-
gration status has been indicative of a
person's right to learn.
Much like Coretta Scott King, I
believe that "we are all tied together
in a single garment of destiny... I can
never be what I ought tobe until you
are allowed to be what you ought to
be." It's important to realize that the
validation ofone minority group rests
heavily upon on the validation of
another. So while I would have loved
for the U.S. Senate to have instated
the DREAM Act and repealed "don't
ask, don't tell," I fail to see the point
in blaming another group of victims.
This does nothing to advance the fight
for social justice. Instead of point-
ing fingers at one another, advocates
from both sides should be working
together to end all forms of institu-
tional inequality. Because when it
comes down to it, these groups have
similar stories to tell.
If you don't believe me, read the
testimony of the following two people.
The first is from a Romanian student
currently living here in the United
States. He's been here his entire life
but is still facing deportation over a
problem he didn't even know exist-
ed. The other is from a queer young
woman currently training to serve in
the armed forces. Though she loves
her country, she's been forced to keep
her sexuality a secret.
My Romanian friend said to me
in an e-mail, "I came to the United
States of America when I was 5 years
old. I didn't come here illegally, nor
did I hop any borders. I wasn't smug-
gled in or paid an excess amount of
money to get in. I lived my life learn-
ing the American way. Aside from
being Romanian, I had become the
'All-American Boy.' But shortly after
graduating, I received a letter saying
that I would have to return to Roma-
nia because my visa had expired. The
DREAM Act is a way for me to stay in
the United States without havingto go
back to a country that I haven't been
to in 15 years. We are Americans too.
Grant us the same rights and we will
not falter. "
Minority groups
share common
interests in liberty.
Similarly, my female friend
explained, "I love my country. That's
why I decided to sign up for the mili-
tary. I believe in the American Dream
and I'm willing to put my life on the
line to protect it. SoI don't understand
why being gay should stop me from
doing that. I didn't ask to be gay, but I
definitely wouldn't change it. Repeal-
ing don't ask, don't tell is my only
chance at feeling like I truly belong
here. I'm just as much an American as
any straightguy or girl out there. That
doesn't change no matter what."
They, too, sing America.
- Noel Gordon can be reached
at noelaug@umich.edu.
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EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS:
Aida Ali, Jordan Birnholtz, Adrianna Bojrab, Will Butler, Eaghan Davis, Michelle DeWitt,
Ashley Griesshammer, Will Grundler, Jeremy Levy, Erika Mayer, Harsha Nahata, Emily Orley,
Harsha Panduranga, Tommaso Pavone, Leah Potkin, Asa Smith, Laura Veith
.