4A - Thursday, September 27, 2012
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com.
4A-ThrdaSpbe 2721 Th MchganDil mchgadaly
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TIMOTHY RABB
JOSEPH LICHTERMAN and ADRIENNE ROBERTS ANDREW WEINER
EDITOR IN CHIEF EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR
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.
4
4
Jumping the gun
Colorado should repeal concealed weapon ruling
n March, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled that the Univer-
sity of Colorado must allow students to carry registered guns
on their college campuses. Advocates of the ruling claim cam-
puses will be safer if students can defend themselves. However, the
beliefs in fighting violence with violence and that students should
resort to guns are incredibly misguided. Colorado and other states
need to repeal laws permitting concealed weapons at colleges and
reject this example, while deeply discouraging weapons on campus.
Fun damentally different
Gun violence made headlines again this
summer during the theater shooting in Auro-
ra, Col., as did the Columbine school shooting
that occurred 13 years earlier. With students
now allowed to carry concealed weapons,
many Colorado officials hope this new law
will make everyday life safer. But permitting
students to have guns on college campuses
does not prevent attacks. This law potentially
lessens the obstacles preventing those wish-
ing to do harm from bringing guns to large
gatherings of people - classrooms, dining
halls and auditoriums.
College students are not police officers, nor
do they have extensive experience with fire-
arms. From 2007 to 2011, there were approxi-
mately 300 deaths caused by concealed gun
carriers. The average civilian does not know
how or when to properly use a gun, and when
the inexperienced are permitted to carry guns,
it increases the risk of harm for bystanders in
violent situations. Universities do not have the
resources to control the use of guns on cam-
pus. Although the University of Colorado has
restricted gun holders to off-campus housing,
if students wish to use a gun, the university
will have very little power to stop them given
the size of the student population.
At the University of Michigan, there is a
policy against carrying concealed weapons
on campus. The fear is that this law may be
repealed. Gov. Rick Snyder is not quiet in his
support of gun owners, saying in an interview,
"We have a long tradition in our state of sup-
porting gun rights...and I would continue to
support that tradition as Governor." However,
gun rights should not get in the way of creating
a safe learning environment for students.
The Second Amendment stands for the right
to bear arms, but when it comes to educational
institutions, there should be laws restricting
concealed weapons for the safety of the stu-
dents. School shootings are a deep concern
but there are many other methods to prevent
violence than promoting self-defense with
firearms. Police alone are trained to safely deal
with issues of violence. They should not allow
the students to shoulder that responsibility.
B OWLING GREEN, OHIO
- It's not hard to figure out
that we live in an increas-
ingly polarized
country. From
energy policy
to how we tax
citizens, Romney
and Obama can't
agree on much.
At his rally on
Sept. 26 in Tole-
do, the phrase ADRIENNE
"my opponent" ROBERTS
was used in
more than a
few instances. Obama singled out
Republican presidential candidate
Mitt Romney several times, explain-
ing how Romney believes this or
plans to do that. Obviously partisan
and obviously effective.
But there was one statement
Obama made that may have shed
more light than he realized on the
fundamental difference between
today's Democrats and Republicans.'
"Here in America, we believe
we're in this thing together."
At first glance, that might seem
like an idea both parties would agree
with. But inaNew York Times article
published in early August, Firmin
DeBrabander, an associate professor
of philosophy at the Maryland Insti-
tute College of Art, Baltimore, argues
that Republicans hold onto the idea
of self-determination. Depending
on the government is unfathomable,
and a spirit of individualism always
prevails. One line in particular
stuck with me. "We are not the sole
authors of our destiny, each of us; our
destinies are entangled - messily, -
unpredictably." I think a substantial
percentage of our country would dis-
agree with that statement.
Trust in the federal government
always hovers somewhere around
60 percent. Most peoples' feelings
about our government - myself
included - aren't particularly favor-
able. So there's a tendency for many
to dismiss the government's role in
our lives. We can't survive in this
world without at least some govern-
mental assistance, but the penchant
of some to believe they can pull
themselves up by their own boot-
straps is almost admirable in a way.
And that same way of thinking
applies to the most recent Romney-
Obama spat. A week ago, at a forum
hosted by Univision, Obama said,
"The most important lesson I've
learned is you can't change Wash-
ington from the inside. You can
only change it from the outside."
Romney then turned Obama's
statement'into his rallying cry, and
at an event later the same day, he
changed his speech to say, "I can
change Washington, I will change
Washington. We'll get the job done
from the inside. Republicans and
Democrats will come together. He
can't do it."
Obama's response at today's
speech: "We have to change Wash-
ington from the outside, with the
help of ordinary Americans making
their voices heard."
That statement may seem like a
simple sound bite from a pandering
politician, but I think it reflects a
fundamental difference in the way
most Republicans and Democrats
view themselves. Romney believes
it's the president's job, and the pres-
ident's job alone, to change Wash-
ington. Like many Republicans, he
hangs on to this outdated idea of
pure individualism and presidential
effectiveness.
Contrast this with Obama, who
openly admits he needs help. To
him, "ordinary Americans" include
everyone living in this country.
From young, debt-ridden college
students to wealthy Wall Street
bankers, changing Washington
is a process everyone needs to
work toward. Every person affects
another somehow. For example,
the Affordable Care Act may be
Obama's way of helping those who
have pre-existing conditions get
insurance, and they, in turn, can
Unbridled
individualism is
an aging ideal.
make their voices heard and par-
ticipate to make our government
change for the better.
4
Coping with competition
4
In his speech, Obama vowed to
never turn Medicare into a voucher
program, to create more manu-
facturing jobs in America and to
reduce the deficit by calling on
those making more than $250,000 a
year to pay a greater share of taxes.
These are basic principles of
today's Democratic party, but they
reflect completely different val-
ues as well. Obama fully acknowl-
edges that his role as president
doesn't necessarily mean he's solely
responsible for changing Washing-
ton into what we want it to be. This
sentiment was clearly reflected in
his speech today.
Romney and the Republican par-
ty's individualistic goals are admi-
rable. It's a way for me and other
people disillusioned with politics
to see the current Republican party
in a more favorable light. But this
"bootstrap" quality is simply unre-
alistic for today's world. We need
every citizen's political participa-
tion to influence the policies that
help us pay off our loans, buy houses
and receive medical treatment. We
shouldn't have to face this. world
alone, especially in today's econom-
ic state. President Obama gets this.
Romney, however, is still stuck in
a mindset that doesn't apply to the
problems we face today.
- Adrienne Roberts can be
reached at adrirobe@umich.edu.
Follow heron Twitter @AdrRoberts.
Graduating from a high school class of
only 40 students, I looked forward to
Michigan for more reasons than the
welcome change of a new
student body and a famous
football program - I was
excited to begin a new
phase of my life where
constant comparisons and
competitions for grades
would be absent.
With more than 26,000
undergraduate students SARAH
at the University, many ROHAN
unknown to one another,
I assumed that comparing
the decimal points of a grade after every test
would be a thing of the past. And, for the most
part, that assumption has proven true. How-
ever, I've noticed a different type of competi-
tive practice emerging in college - one that
feels more threatening than the battle for
grades I experienced at a competitive high
school. This competition is that of the pres-
tige of achievement.4
Let me provide an example which illus-
trates what I mean by prestige of achieve-
ment. Before starting college, I had little
interest in studying business. However, when
I noticed that many of my classmates were
applying to the Ross School of Business, I
briefly believed that I, too, should apply. After
all, it's a competitive program and it seemed
that admission would validate my intellect.
In other words, my brief desire to be in the
Business School was ignited by the prestige I
thought the program would afford me.
Of course, there's nothing wrong with
studying business or any other competitive
major. What's troubling is that the impetus to
do so is often the result of the race for recog-
nition.
The prestige of achievement isn't strictly
limited to areas of concentration. It also applies'
to internships, job opportunities, study abroad
programs and even extracurricular activities.
A pre-med student who spent her summer
shadowing a doctor feels threatened by the
classmate who spent his summer doingmedical
research at a university. An art major who stud-
ied abroad in Florence feels inadequate next to
her friend, a history major, who studied abroad
at Oxford. A writer for The Michigan Daily
feels like a joke compared to the kid in lecture
who's been published in a national paper. We've
all been there.
The idea of making choices based on prestige
is not a new one - many of us took into account
a school's reputation when applying to college.
However, its pervasiveness in the university
world is unique to our generation and due to a
few different factors.
One contributing factor to the stressful
trend is social media, a frequently cited and
often guilty culprit of our time. Never before
have we been so aware of our friends' profes-
sional achievements.
Networking tools like LinkedIn allow us
to see another's resume instantaneously.
Facebook allows us to see the enviable sum-
mer job or research opportunity that our best
friend's cousin just locked down. It's right
there on our homepage.
When comparing
GPAs gets old,
students find new
ways to compete.
Unfortunately, many of us forget that peo-
ple never publish a failure on their resumes
or Facebook profiles. All we see through oth-
ers' successes are the opportunities we never
had and the prestigious awards we never won.
The competition of prestige belittles our own
accomplishments (no matter how great), makes
us second-guess our choices and breeds fear for
our futures.
The feeble job market also accounts for
our widespread preoccupation with others'
achievements. When we hear of a friend getting
a new job, many of us feel a pang of jealousy or
alarm at our ownunstable futures - there goes
the job we could've had.
Needless to say, the air of prestige-based
competitiveness doesn't make for a bet-
ter academic environment. Not only does it
diminish one's self-esteem, it inhibits our
ability to be happy about our peers' achieve-
ments. We must resist the urge to use other
students as a yardstick for measuring our
own accomplishments.
I didn't consider the Business School just
because I viewed it as prestigious. I'm an
English major, for God's sake! I considered
it because everyone else held it in such high
regard. The student who shadowed a doctor
probably doesn't want to work in a lab, but she
still feels bad about it since others seem to value
lab research more highly.
In moments of doubt, we surrender to ideas
of prestige that we don't personally hold.
This game of comparison is bound to leave us
all dissatisfied - even when we're doing what
we want, it makes us feel like we should be
doing something else. It's important, there-
fore, to strive for achievements which make
us proud and avoid succumbing to the tempt-
ing comparisons our environment creates.
- Sarah Rohan can be
reached at shrohan@umich.edu.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Kaan Avdan, Sharik Bashir, Eli Cahan, Nirbhay Jain, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis,
Patrick Maillet, Harsha Nahata, Timothy Rabb, Adrienne Roberts,
Vanessa Rychlinski, Sarah Skaluba, Michael Spaeth, Gus Turner
DRAKE BAGLIETTO|
Political participation is our duty
4
4
Waking up one morning, you
begin the arduous process of mak-
ing that first cup of coffee, throw-
ing together some semblance of
an outfit and then you look at your
phone and see the headline "United
States Reinstates Draft." The real-
ization dawns upon you that, even
though you didn't vote, you have
the possibility of getting drafted.
This is an extreme example of the
inevitable if voter apathy amongthe
youth continues.
We've all heard the objections to
voting. One is that as a result of Con-
gress'extreme platforms, many peo-
ple feel alienated because they don't
support the views of either of the
parties. Unfortunately, what's mis-
understood by these individuals is
that if they do not demonstrate their
views through active suffrage, their
opinions will continue to be ignored.
It's understood that the main goal of
political parties is to win elections.
Accordingly, they have nothing to
gain by appealing to the views of
people who will not help them win
these elections. By excluding them-
selves from the voting process,
youth are confirming the long-held
belief of political organizations that
they aren't worth including in the
political process.
A second objection to voting is
that a portion of the population still
believes their vote doesn't really
mean anything. This justification of
voter apathy is nothing but circular
logic. By choosing not to vote, you're
wasting your ability to participate
in the political process and, conse-
quently, are making your opinion
meaningless. This, however, isn't
the full extent of the issue. Not only
are you making your own opinion
less valuable, you are decreasing the
chance that the opinions of others in
yourdemographicwillbe addressed.
Nowhere is this more clearly reflect-
ed than in the youth vote. .
The third major objection to vot-
ing is that the government is system-
ically inactive by nature, and that
there's nothing anyone can do about
it. However, through representation,
the U.S. government is designed to
reflect the will and positions of its
people. If the government is inac-
tive, it's simply a reflection of the
will of the people. If people wanted
the government to be industrious,
they themselves would be tirelessly
involved in the political process.
The best method for expressing this
involvement is through suffrage.
Far-reaching measures must be
enacted in light of these precari-
ous circumstances. Many people
advocate voting as a civic duty that
everyone ought to exercise. While
this is a step in the right direction,
it's akin to a pile of well-meaning
sand attempting to hold back the
ever-rising tide of voter apathy.
Therefore, in order to influence
politics and make the youth voice a
force to be contended with, we must
extend what we view as a civic duty.
It's not enough to simply go and
vote. In order to remake the politi-
cal environment we must go above
and beyond the status quo. There-
fore, it's not only your civic respon-
sibility to vote, but your duty to go
out and persuade others to exer-
cise the same privilege. As John D.
Rockefeller, Jr. put it, "every right
implies a responsibility."
So, if your responsibility is to influ-
ence the political process through
your suffrage and your influence is
being restricted by voter apathy, you
have an obligation to motivate others.
This election season, it's not only the
right thing to educate others, but a
moral necessity.
Drake Baglietto is an LSA freshman.