4 - Friday, September 21, 2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com TIMOTHY RABB JOSEPH LICHTERMAN and ADRIENNE ROBERTS ANDREW WEINER EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR Unsigned.editorials reflect the official position oftthe Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. Checks and balances Michigan should adopt a uniform ballot T his week, a Michigan voting rights coalition filed a law- suit against Michigan Secretary of State, Ruth Johnson for her dictum regarding voting and registration. The new ballots require voters to check a box in order to affirm that they are U.S. citizens before they are granted voting registration. The redundancy of this question has caused significant problems, so much so that one Shelby Township man who didn't check the box was barred from voting in August. Several organizations, includ- ing the American Civil Liberties Union and Latin Americans for Social and Economic Development, have filed lawsuits against Johnson for violating the 14th Amendment. Michigan counties are decisively split, some refusing to use the new ballots while others have been implementing them. The state needs to create a uniform system that eradicates any misleading paths as citizens Don't get lost in the rush t's that special time of year again, when over 1,000 under- graduate girls put on their best game faces and embark on - a formal mis- sion known as fall recruitment for Greek life. Sorority hous- es have been preparing for months and now SARAH the long hours SKALUBA of screaming, singing, clap- ping, yelling and perfecting every single set have come down to this. Enforced prerequisites include an online registration process (photo mandatory, of course), awk- ward conversations with complete strangers and the unnecessarily stressful process of sprinting from one house to another in a short period of time without sweating through your dress or ruining your hair. So it's an eccentric process to say the least, one that manages to take up a ton of time during the recruitment period, which covers the first four weeks of class. But it's not for nothing. After sur- viving the first four weeks most girls end up with a bid to a specific house on campus. It's become a more com- petitive process over the last few years, not only at Michigan but at universities across the country. And now, the price girls are willing to pay to end up in their "dream" house has reached new heights. We've all heard of college coaches before, the paid mentors that help high school seniors manage their college applications, resumes and essay responses. But the concept of rush coaches may be a little foreign. Recently, professional image consul- tants, coupled with rush preparation services, have been charging up to $8,000 for coaching and guidance regarding sorority recruitment. This intensive prepping is not only taking place in the South, where recruitment is considered a more rigorous process, but in the Mid- west and on the East Coast as well. Women have been paying excessive amounts of money for the advice of professional image consultants, such as Samantha Von Sperling. She charges a whopping $300 per hour for her personal coaching, during which she advises young women on exactly whatto wear, what to say and how to act during the rush process. If a couple hours of private prepping don't meet your needs though, don't fret, because she also offers week- long boot camps for the seriously anxious rushees at the meager price of $8,000. I'm sorry, but this "rush coaching" concept seems absolutely absurd - and mind you, these words are com- ing from the mouth of a "sorority girl" herself. Recruitment as a whole is alreadya stressful enough process, one that feels a little bit like inter- viewing and a whole lot like speed dating. Girls are encouraged to try and be themselves so that they can find their best "fit" and end up in a house that feels both welcoming and inclusive. So, if rushees are feeling pressured to drop tons of money on expensive preparation courses and pre-rush boot camps, then some- thing isn't quite right. Many University students hold preconceived notions regardingrush. Whether they view recruitment as the willingness to "pay for one's friends" or a fierce process based on an individual's outward appearance and beauty, the negative stereotypes surrounding rush are numerous. But if girls are in fact willingto pay hun- dreds, even thousands, of dollars in order to get a bid into their top soror- ity then these stereotypes are in a sense being validated. Let me be blatantly honest: If a house doesn't like you because of how you dress, how you apply your makeup or the way you talk, then do you actually want to be a sister there? The fact that so many girls are willing to pay 'professionals' to tell them how they need to do their hair, what exactly they should be wear- ing to each set, what conversations they need to be having, and-how to come off as sociable and confident, is extremely alarming. Don't put on a false persona for recruitment. Going through rush should not be a long, drawn-out stage perfor- mance. In fact, no acting should be involved at all. Companies like Rushbiddies that pride themselves on fully preparing each "chick" for sorority recruitment should be ashamed. Rush already has the neg- ative stigma of being fake and catty, so there's really no need to add to the stereotype and further strengthen its validity. These rush-prep services are teaching young women that profes- sional training and primping is nec- essary in order to be successful and end up in a "top" house come bid day. This is detrimental to rushees who should be staying true to their self throughout the hectic process, rath- er than putting on a false persona to impress a certain sorority's sisters. I've been through rush once, and managed to slide by just fine on my own. Was I dropped from houses I originally liked? Yes. Was it a long, relatively painful experience that took up way too much time? Yes. But I would never in a million years pre- tend to be someone I'm not, or urge another rushee to do the same. So as I'm sure you've heard countless times, good luck with recruitment, and remember come Sunday, may the odds be ever in your favor. - Sarah Skaluba can be reached at sskaluba@umich.edu. Follow her on Twitter @SSkaluba. 0 0 4 make their way to the polls. The ACLU asserts that the erratic use of the checkboxes violates the 14th Amendment, which calls for uniformity in a state's voting process. Because some counties are refusing to implement the question on their ballots, the system doesn't reach all Michigan vot- ers. Glenn Rehahn, a plaintiff in the case, was refused the chance to vote because he did not check the citizenship box, though he claims a county clerk told him that answering was optional. Aside from legal repercussions, the U.S. citizenship checkbox has spurred debate as to whether or not it's even necessary. John- son stated that she wished to give non-citi- zens one final chance to refrain from voting and elude repercussions stemming from vot- ing illegally. It's common knowledge that in order to register to vote a person must pro- vide proof of their U.S. citizenship. So while the checkbox question is valid, including it on the ballot seems unnecessary, redundant and confusing. There's no reason to require a person who has already proved their citizen- ship in voter registration to affirm it again on the ballot. A recent study conducted by an investigative news team discovered that cases of voting fraud are miniscule. The orga- nization, News21, analyzed more than 2,000 cases of reported fraud since 2000, finding that a mere 10 were actual incidents of "voter impersonation." Nov.6 is fast approaching, yet the Michigan voting system is still divided. Due to this bal- lot mishap, some citizens may be deprived of their right to vote. The Michigan government needs to ensure that the difference in ballots doesn't reflect a variance in statewide vot- ing policy: Whether or not the citizen check- boxes are optional -and whether or not they remain on the ballot at all - should not be an issue this close to the election. It's unthink- able to deny even one registered U.S. citizen the right to vote, and inexcusable to do so on a technicality. Johnson's ballot has many faults - it's misleading, affects Michigan citizens' ability to vote and may be unconstitutional. Voting is a system created for citizens to voice their opinions and no one should have to fight to do so. WANT TO JOIN THE MICHIGAN DAILY? I There's only one mass meeting left: Sunday, Sept. 23 at 7:30 p.m. Learn more about how to apply for each section, and talk with managing editors about the process of becoming a Daily staff member. Happyo is Mit 4 EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS: Kaan Avdan, Eli Cahan, Nirbhay Jain, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis, Patrick Maillet, Harsha Nahata, Timothy Rabb, Adrienne Roberts, Vanessa Rychlinski, Sarah Skaluba, Michael Spaeth, Gus Turner SEND LETTERS TO: TOTHEDAILY@MICHIGANDAILY.COM College Republicans lack clearfiscal outlook TO THE DAILY: Thursday's article about young Republi- cans' thoughts as we approach the Novem- ber election illustrates just how poorly the Republican Party platform correlates with the issues that matter to many college stu- dents. While it is promising that Republicans at the University of Michigan support LGBT rights, we must not forget that the official GOP platform, endorsed by Mitt Romney, includes a constitutional amendment ban- ning same-sex marriage. The party platform also seeks to prohibit abortion in all cases, including when a woman's life is at risk. The Republican Party, the so-called champions of "small government," is by no means small when it decides to legislate a woman's right to her body. Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin's comments last month are a striking example of just how out of touch the Republi- can Party is on social issues. While College Republicans' realization that their party is out of touch on social issues may be promising, their misguided support of the GOP's economic plans is cause for concern. Regarding Thursday's article, the interviewees' lack of clear plans for economic recovery is just another case of the party's use of rhetoric instead of clear planning. His plans to revamp the tax code strongly favor the extremely wealthy, who will see great tax cuts while middle-class Americans watch their taxes increase. To compensate for the decrease in government revenue, Romney will likely decrease government spend- ing. Where will these 'spending cuts occur? As with most of his economic plans, it's not entirely clear. President Obama has proven himself capa- ble of creating jobs and growing the economy during his term in office. Over the past 27 months, private sector jobs have grown by 4.5 million, a greater growth than seen dur- ing the term of any other U.S. President. He spent much of his speech at the Democratic National Convention earlier this month dis- cussing his support for the middle class, con- crete plans for future job growth, and his optimism for the future. President Obama tried to get the American Jobs Act passed, a piece of legislation that would be a critical boon to our jobs sector. The Republican-con- trolled House never even voted on the Jobs Act, likely because they were too busy com- plaining about the Affordable Care Act. For the past four years, President Obama and the Democratic Party have been the leaders in economic reform and creating a favorable job climate for college students. As I read Thursday's article, I was intrigued by the College Republicans' inabil- ity to cite policies that would help our econ- omy recover. The College Republicans must be following in the example of the national party. On both social and economic issues, the Democratic Party has proven itself to be the superior party of progress. This elec- tion, we have a clear choice between two ideologies: one with backward social poli- cies and a lack of fiscal clarity, and one that promises to move our country forward. Jacob Light Representative of College Democrats There are moments every once in a while when it seems as if everything comes together perfectly - when personal, political and global issues of - our era all enter into a strange harmony. This week YONAH was one of those LIEBERMAN moments. This week I observed Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Politically, Mitt Romney's "47 per- cent" comments went viral this week. Globally, this week marked the one-year anniversary of the Occupy Wall Street movement. There are 10 days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Those days are meant to give each person time to reflect on sins of the past year and then repent. We blow the shofar, or ram's horn, multiple times through- out the services. It's an interesting sound, but has never meant much to me. But this year, I felt it penetrate my innermost thoughts. I could feel the sound reverberate in my head, shaking something loose. By now, I'm sure you all have heard of the deeply revealing com- ments Governor Romney made at a $50,000-a-plate fundraiser he held. in May. If not, I'll let the Governor speak for himself: "There are 47 percent [of Americans] who will [vote for Obama], who are depen- dent upon government, who believe that they are victims ... my job is not to worry about those people. I'll never convince them they should take personal responsibility and care for their lives." Seriously, I can't make this shit up. On Monday, thousands of people in New York City and around the world marched in the streets to honor Occupy's one-year anniver- sary. My Twitter feed started blow- ing up with live updates and ironic hashtags. I'll admit to being glued to my computer for most of last Octo- ber as marches, direct actions and violent police crackdowns were live= streamed directly to my computer. The Occupy movement may not have succeeded in forging a brand new society, but it did shift the national conversation dramatically. This shift is where these three separate events of the week come together. For once, people were talking about the massive income inequality in this country and demanding that the rich pay their fair share. On the eve of Rosh Hashanah (and the Occupy anniversary), more than 2,000 people gathered in Zuc- cotti Park in New York City in a service organized by a group call- ing itself Occupy Judaism. During the sermon, the rabbi highlighted the common theme that runs across the three events of this week: "The Torah reminds us again and again - you didn't earn what's yours by your hands alone. You earned it with the blessing of the creator, who also blessed you with the good fortune to be able to share with those in need." Mitt Romney was never going to be the poster child of the right wing. In his heart, he's simply a pol- itician who believes what he thinks people want him to believe. Just go online and check out some of his statements when he ran for the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts. Ironi- cally, he has become a poster child for all that the Occupy Movement stands against. He hides his money in offshore accounts to avoid pay- ing taxes. He refuses to release his tax returns because they embarrass him. He openly called corporations "people" and supports the Supreme Court decision on Citizens United. He labels those who were not given the same opportunities as he as "dependent on government" and self-appointed "victims." Rosh Hashanah, the 47 percent and OWS. During Rosh Hashanah, my grandfather told me that he had never known a time of greater parti- sanship and division in this country. There is an undeniable drama that exists in this moment that we live in. I think it's that drama that moved me during the shofar blasts this week. It forced me to wake up and smell the goddamn roses. Action needs tobe taken. This election is far too close for comfort. Romney's "47 percent" comments reveal the extent to which he will go to pander to his far-right-wing donor base. Once elected, he'll be forced to bend to their interests - at least until he wins a second term - I shudder just writing that. Students were instru- mental in the election of Barack Obama four years ago - let's do it again this time. Get registered and go vote. So let me take this opportunity to wish a happy, healthy new year to Barack Obama, to Occupy Wall Street and to all of you - even you, Mitt. May it be a year to take advan- tage of this exciting moment in his- tory we all live in. May it be a year when together, we secure a second term for President Obama. - Yonah Lieberman can be reached at yonahl@umich.edu. E I I I LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor. Letters should be fewer than 300 words and must include the writer's full name and. University affiliation. We do not print anonymous letters. Send letters to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.