4A - Monday, March 5, 2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom [ e Iic[ igan+ ai[y FROM THE PUBLIC EDITOR I Breaking the news Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com ASHLEY GRIESSHAMMER and ANDREW WEINER JOSH HEALY EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR JOSEPH LICHTERMAN 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. Imran Syed isthe public editor. He can be reached at publiceditor@michigandaily.com. Let MERC deid The state Legislature overreached with SB 971 Throughout much of last year, the nation watched a labor bat- tle unfold in Wisconsin. In February 2011, Republican Gov. Scott Walker introduced legislation to narrowly limit public employees' collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin. The changes - in effect as of March 2011 - sparked some of the most dramatic political activism in years. Thousands occupied the state's capitol, Democratic lawmakers left the state to avoid a vote and eventually the state's Supreme Court ruled in favor of Walker's proposals. In Michi- gan and at the University, the debate over graduate student research assistants' classification - a collective bargaining issue on a smaller scale - has come to a halt. The Michigan Legislature has passed a bill classifying GRSAs as students, not employees, thereby sidestepping ongoing official proceedings. The state has set a dangerous precedent by circumventing existing legal processes and proactively inhibiting collective bargaining. On Thursday, Senate Bill 971 passed the able outcome from appropriate institutions state House of Representatives in a party-line is not reason to introduce legislation. No vote. It will now head to Gov. Rick Snyder, lawmaker, Democrat or Republican, should who's expected to sign it into law as early as politicize issues by overreaching ongoing this week. The bill says a GSRA "does not have bureaucratic or judicial processes. sufficient indicia of an employer-employee The legislature stripped GSRAs' chance for relationship" and "is not a public employee unionization with alarming expediency. The entitled to representation or collective bar- bill went through both houses and commit- gaining rights." tees in about two weeks. Though normally a For years, groups have debated GSRA bill would take effect in 90 days, the House classification - University administra- is expected to vote the bill into immediate tors, the University's Board of Regents, the effect. The unionization saga has proven Graduate Employees' Organization, Students lengthy, but this matter - which affects thou- Against GSRA Unionization and others have sands - deserves careful consideration, not a all weighed in. The battled landed at the fast vote along party lines. Republicans gen- Michigan Employment Relations Commis- erally champion small, efficient government. sion. Throughout February, an administra- Efficient institutions are a benefit to everyone, tive judge held hearings on whether GSRAs but not when they're moving so quickly that should be allowed to vote for unionization. they hinder democratic processes such as the She was expected to make her recommenda- MERC's upcoming decision. A small govern- tion to MERC by March 13. ment does not mean one that can quickly and The Republican majority's easy passage unilaterally enacts laws to get what it wants. in advance of MERC's decision sets a dan- The bill sets a standard by which to judge gerous precedent. The long process was the state government's attitude toward collec- nearing resolve, so the bill was surprising. tive bargaining. The eventual MERC decision MERC decisions on the matter are precedent could have allowed GSRAs to vote on union- - in 1981 the commission ruled that GSRAs ization - a reasonable, yet far-off solution. couldn't unionize. Sen. Randy Richardville Still, the legislature felt reason to act swiftly. (R-Monroe), the Senate Majority leader who Michigan cannot be lured into a Wisconsin- introduced the bill, should not have initiated like scenario, and shouldn't further attack col- such a hurried resolution. Fear of an unfavor- lective bargaining rights. SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@MICHIGANDAILY.COM When a scandal of epic proportions erupted at Penn State University early last November, Penn State's student newspaper was quick to pounce. In an editorial printed the Monday after the story broke, The Daily Collegian opined:"The moral failure of every single person involved is appalling ... The univer- sity has brought shame upon itself." It was a bold stance only com- paratively - criticizing those who cover up a sex scandal is usually very easy. But in the campus envi- ronment that enveloped Penn State in the immediate aftermath of that scandal - where students seemed more concerned with defending head football coach Joe Paterno than condemning former assis- tant football coach and accused child abuser Jerry Sandusky - the Collegian showed great courage in mincing no words and direct- ing blame squarely on Penn State University officials for the scope of the problem and cover-up. The Collegian's subsequent coverage of the scandal, all the way up to this weekend, has also been thorough, inquisitive and excellent. Nevertheless, a question remains: Where was the Collegian for all those years while Sandusky was committing crimes, and Penn State was covering them up? Of course, I'm not suggesting that Penn State's student news- paper is at fault, legally or other- wise, for anything that occurred. I'm merely stating that, if such a scandal played out on campus for more than a decade, and no report- er from the Collegian ever found enough to break the story, the newspaper failed the Penn State community on some level. And there are important lessons there for The Michigan Daily. That investigative reporting is dead is a common complaint - one that finds its way into my public editor inbox from time to time. However, there are special chal- lenges that college newspapers face on this front. Among them, college reporters are hamstrung by their brief tenures: They don't get to build the kind of contacts and connections that can yield leads for investigative stories. Institutional knowledge and understanding is lost as quickly as it's built, as class after class of the best and most experienced reporters graduate. But these cannot be excuses. The Daily's bylaws stress the ideal of investigative journalism with implorations such as: "Be vigi- lant and courageous about holding those with power accountable." And indeed, on many occasions the Daily has proudly lived up to those ideals. Five years ago, when the Uni- versity was "repairing" Michigan Stadium - and bizarrely insisting that it had no obligation under the Americans with Disabilities Act to add accessible facilities and seating - the Daily was one among many strong critics of the administration's stance. Without taking too much credit, it's still fair to say that the Daily's determined effort over sev- eral months, spanning many incisive news stories and unrelenting edi- torials, played an important role in ensuring that the University eventu- ally did comply with the ADA. Sadly, there is no one on staff today who was at the Daily when that ADA debate played out. There is no one left who can apply those lessons and build on them for issues that emerge today. This is a problem, but one that the Daily must overcome. The broad entreaties I've made here have very practical conse- quences. For example, while the Daily reported on the allegations involving former University medi- cal resident Stephen Jenson after he was arrested and the story broke publicly, the newspaper failed this campus by not being able to break the story for the more than six months during which vari- ous officials within the University kept it silent. This is a tough, perhaps even unfair, criticism. Nevertheless, given the standard by which the Daily judges itself, it is a criticism that this paper must admit and work to overcome. There's cer- tainly no fault of any one person individually, or even any one class of editors. Rather, the Daily as an institution has lost something structural in its very purpose if a thing like the Jenson investigation (or lack thereof) can go undiscov- ered for more than six months. This paper must evaluate what it can do to ensure that it is able to discover such stories and break them. Reporting practices and inves- tigative techniques (things I won't pretend to be an expert on) will be an important part of this discus- sion. However, there is also a sim- pler question the editors should mull - one whose answer is broad, but may well be a remedy: What more can this paper do to assure that any member of the campus community who, upon finding no recourse for his grievances within official University channels, imme- diately picks up the phone and calls the Daily? -The public editor is sn independent critic of the Daily, and neither the editorial board nor the editor in chief exercise control over the contents of his columns. The opinions expressed do not necessarily constitute the opinion of the Daily. Imran Syed can be reached at publiceditor@michigandaily.com 6 EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Aida Ali, Laura Argintar, Kaan Avdan, Ashley Griesshammer, Nirbhay Jain, Jesse Klein, Patrick Maillet, Erika Mayer, Harsha Nahata, Harsha Panduranga, Timothy Rabb, Adrienne Roberts, Vanessa Rychlinski, Sarah Skaluba, Seth Soderborg, Caroline Syms, Andrew Weiner Playing by the rules ver break in Michigan, enjoying the warm weather was difficult because of the rain. Looking through Face- book albums titled "Drink- ing on the beach with attrac- tive people" and "drujnk ofn thee beech wat- tractgve ppll" became boring by Sunday. h. ANDREW WEINER Coleman should help affected Levaquin patients TO UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT MARY SUE COLEMAN: In addition to being the University presi- dent; you are also a board director at Johnson & Johnson. I have been disabled for over six years from Levaquin, an antibiotic marketed by your company. My family sent medical documentation on Levaquin to you. We asked that you initiate medical research in an effort to help those of us that are suffering. We never heard back from you. The beginning sentence of the famous J&J Credo states the following: "We believe our first responsibilityis to the doctors, nurses and patients, to mothers and fathers and all others who use our products and services." The credo also states the following: "We are responsible to the communities in which we live and work and to the world community as well." As aboard director at Johnson & Johnson, I feel that you have an ethical and moral respon- sibility to honor the credo. You have profited at the expense of many people that have suffered devastating long-term injuries from Levaquin. BeLive worked with StudentCity travelers TO THE DAILY: The article "Students frustrated by lack of accommodations during trip to Punta Cana" gives a version of these guys' vacation that, in our opinion, is far from objective. Therefore, I'd like to make the following points: 1. The tour operators didn't made reserva- tions for all students as a group, but from dif- ferent sources and as individuals, taken one by one. 2. Student City didn't specify the means of payment, so up to two days before the arrival of the students they hadn't made reservations. 3. That once students arrived in Punta Cana all possible solutions to house the group were Those severely affected by Levaquin have often lost not only their health but also their job and income. Many have been bankrupted with enormous medical bills. Indiyiduals and families have been devastated physically, emotionally and financially. Jenne Wilcox, a young school teacher lost her job and her home after taking Levaquin. Over three years later, she requires a wheelchair. Her story can be viewed on a national PBS news segment. A U.S. Food and Drug Administration Freedom of Information Report for Levaquin reveals that 20,243 Individual Safety Reports are list- ed for this drug from November 1, 1997 to May 31, 2011. I made a difficult trip to your company shareholder meeting. I gave a respectful speech to you and the other board directors. The phrase "Caring for the World, One Patient at a Time" was mentioned numerous times by your company. Mary Sue Coleman: You have an opportunity to show leadership by honor- ing the values of your corporate credo, into a commitment to help those that have suffered immensely from your prescription drug. John Fratti Anti-Levaquin activist examined. Returning home was not supported, so Student City was to host the party in the Presidential Suites complex. 4. The huge consumption of alcohol by stu- dents caused some ugly incidents to the hotel and its customers. For example: Constant fights amongstudents, "nudist shows" inthe facilities ofahotel which, as the article describes, is usu- ally frequented by families with children, and damage to several public areas - such as bro- ken windows, broken furniture, doors broken off their hinges and so on. Clearly, things weren't done right from the start. We try to mitigate the problem if pos- sible, and we suffered the consequences. I assure you that in this story we are victims, not perpetrators. Julio Fernindez BeLive Hotels Director of Communication Luckily for those following the competition for the Republican presidential nomina- tion, Tuesday's primaries provided surprising excitement. In Michigan, Mitt Romney defeated Rick Santo- rum by a slim four-percent margin. The media had already been buzzing about earlier remarks from the lead candidates in Michigan. Liberals attacked and Republicans hit their heads against walls when Santorum called the president a "snob" for wanting all Americans to go to college. Neither liberals nor conservatives knew what to say when Romney said he was glad to be back in his home state because "the trees are the right height." (By the way, The Huffington Post reports this wasn't a flub, he's been using the line for years. And he's right, we do have nice trees.) However, the wacky one-liners that have constituted much of the GOP nomination circus, took a back seat in coverage of Michigan's prima- ries. In a strange turn of events, com- menters weighed in on actual votes. With only 30 delegates, Michigan isn't a golden ticket to the nomina- tion. Instead, it served as an impor- tant testing ground for Romney's campaign. If I wasn't busy crying alone on Valentine's Day, I would have given someone a line from The Washington Post blogger Alexandra Petri, "I'm as set on you as the GOP isn't on Mitt." Republicans simply can't settle on Romney. He and his totally non-affiliated super PACs outspent Santorum by nearly $1.2 million in Michigan. This is Rom- ney's home state - his father was an auto executive and former gov- ernor - if he couldn't win here, it would be an embarrassing testa- ment to his unpopularity. The importance of the litmus test was not lost on reporters, pun- dits, Michigan voters or Santorum's campaign. Right before the primary, polls showed Santorum and Romney neck-and-neck. The opportunity was clear. It didn't take a political savant to see the benefits of a Santorum win in Michigan. In liberal mindsets, it would move toward the best-case scenario: pitting President Obama against Santorum in November. With much of Santorum's agen- da insulting to anyone who isn't a white, Christian male, Obama would face a much weaker oppo- nent than Romney. That probably won't happen. As has been expected from the begin- ning, Romney will most likely take the nomination. Even so, a Santorum win would have been an embarrass- ing blow to Romney's campaign. Losing to Santorum would be an affront to anyone's self-esteem - unless it was a "saying offensive things" contest. It would force Rom- ney to double down, spend more money and make him appear weaker in the general election. Either way you spin it, a Santo- rum win was a Democratic win. And thanks to Michigan's open primary system - no need to be a registered party member - Obama supporters could do more than hope: they could vote. The Santorum campaign was aware of the sentiment. Strange - I didn't think self-awareness was Rick's thing. In the days leading to the vote, the campaign paid for robocalls to thousands of Michigan Democrats, urging them to help defeat Romney. While the campaign defended the move as an appeal to Reagan Democrats, it was logical political strategy. It appeared to have some success. CNN exit polls showed 9 percent of voters in the Republican race were Democrats. Of them, 53 percent voted for Santorum. Usually liberal cities like the Detroit suburb of Fern- dale gave the former Senator clear wins over Romney. The Democratic intrusion was an interesting turn in primary coverage and spiced up the already close race. Twitter was atweet with "democrats take over #MIprimary" and televi- sion pundits speculated on its sig- nificance on the outcome. The Romney camp quickly con- demned Santorum calling the robo- calls a "dirty trick." It also gave them an excuse for the close race in his home state - where none of his current five homes are, by the way - Santorum and Democrats attempted to "kidnap our primary process." Aside from using "hijack" instead of "kidnap," George W. Bush used the same excuse in 2000 when Michigan Democrats helped Sen. John McCain defeat him by a large margin. Some, like Detroit Free Press cartoonist Mike Thompson, criticized Democrats who voted for Santorum for breaking the sanctity of elections. Voters can be as dirty as politicians. I find this logic difficult to follow. Kidnapping and hijacking are illegal activities. The robocalls were sad, desperate and in bad taste, but not illegal. Using your vote not for the candidate you support, but in a more calculated and political way isn't a new tactic. Not particularly elegant, but not cold-blooded or fraudulent. Take a quick look at the state of those who lead our country - dirty politics knows few boundaries. If so many of our elected officials are playing rough to get their way, why condemn voters for doing so? In a year when the GOP is using fear and nonsense to rally its base, it's encouraging that Democrats thought politically and kindled the fiery madness. Politicians started this game, and voters are simply playing by the rules. -Andrew Weiner can be reached at anweiner@uimch.edu. Follow him on Twitter at @AndrewWeiner. 0