4 - Tuesday, October 9, 2012 The Michigan Daily -- michigandaily.com 4 - Tuesday, October 9, 2012 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom 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 of the Daily's editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors. A prisoner's dilemma Discrimination highlights problems in correctionsa T here's been a recent wave of court cases in Michigan in which inmates are suing prisons on the premise that their rights are being restricted. Specifically, in Jackson and Kent County, Mich., three prisoners have filed lawsuits against Michigan correc- tional facilities stating their basic rights to the freedom of religion and speech have been violated. These men (all part of minority groups in the United States) are blatantly being denied basic rights that other prisoners are allowed. Michigan prisons should look to implement cost-effective solutions into their systems to eliminate this Aiscrimi- nation that not only affects prisoners, but also minorities. I enjoyed it so much I might throw a keg party for the Ryan-Biden debate." - Kid Rock on Wednesday's presidential debate. The Michigan native introduced Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan at a rally on Monday in Rochester, Mich. For more on the rally, check out Gus Turner's viewpoint this afternoon at michigondoilycom/section/opinion. Two parties, no winners 0 0 Bahaa Iswed, an Arabic prisoner at a cor- rectional facility in Jackson, Mich. is suing the Michigan Department of Corrections for refus- ing to allow him to call his family and friends in Jordan and Romania. The MDOC's defense is that they limit foreign language calls for security purposes. Iswed complained about the lack of communication but was instructed by authorities to write to his family instead. Ulti- mately, prison officials rejected his family's let- ters because they were written in Arabic. Two inmates are separately suing the Kent County Correctional Facility for refusing to accommodate religious dietary requests. Saabir Abdullah unsuccessfully, sought an Islamic vegetarian diet, also called halal, with accommodations for fasting during Ramadan. Bradley Keith Sleighter wants to be served kosher meals, a Jewish tradition. Abdullah's jail refused to give him a "no-meat diet." However, they provided a Seventh-Day Adventist - a form of Protestant Christian - the same request. Many other states have also recently encountered issues with prisoner rights - especially concerning meal systems - and found economic solutions that don't burden taxpayers. In California and Massachusetts, packaged kosher and halal meals are provid- ed to inmates at a slightly higher price than regular prison meals. Other states, like Texas and Arizona, offer regular meat-free or pork- free meals to their inmates in order to accom- modate religious dietary restrictions. Michigan and other states with similar problems need to follow suit in order to cre- ate equality. In the case of the restriction of foreign phone calls and letters, many cost- efficient solutions exist: The facilities may hire multi-lingual translators or use other inexpensive technological translating pro- gramsalready available. All prisoners, regardless of their minority status or religious affiliation, deserve equal rights. Though some freedoms are limited upon entering prison or jail, the right to the First Amendment is retained. Freedom of reli- gion and speech shouldn't be undermined in these facilities. Prisoners shouldn't be discrim- inated against based on their status as mem- bers of minority cultures in the United States. They are citizens of this country and deserve to be treated as such. Correctional depart- ments throughout the country need to re-work their systems in order to promote equality and eliminate discrimination. This is one small step towards ending the extremely unjust con- ditions prisoners face on a daily basis. ike a lot of Americans this year, when I fill out my absentee ballot later this month, I'll be holding my nose as I do it. This really is the year , of disappointing presidential can- didates. On the side of conserva- tives, Republi- JAMES can presidential BRENNAN nominee Mitt Romney is a Massachusetts moderate who invented the very health care system he has prom- ised to repeal. On the left, we find another major shortcoming. Presi- dent Barack Obama passed a stimu lus package and a signature health care overhaul, but has continued to perpetuate much of the previous administratiop's failed policies. It's hard for me not to cast my bal- lot for Obama. He's the only of the pair capable of winning who is close to my views (much like Romney for conservatives) but he really won't do a lot of what I'd hope for in a Demo- cratic candidate. My main obligation in voting for Obama really seems to be preventing a Romney presidency. Similarly, the conservatives have such a disdain for the president, they'll elect someone they don't like if it means beating someone they absolutely despise. Here we find our- selves in a paradox: we can vote and support the election of someone who we believe will do wrong, or we can refuse to vote and indirectly help someone who will, in our opinion, do even more wrong. Damned if we do, slightly more damned if we don't. Why is this how we choose a president? So many people affiliated with both parties (not to mention the 40 percent or so of Americans in nei- ther) are choosing between the less- eroftwo evils,notthe candidatethey really want. Because our elections are what are known as "first past the post" we elect every office individu- ally, giving the seat to whomever garners the most votes. In this sys- tem, we getto vote for a specific per- son, but we also allow for the rise of a two-party monopoly that dominates virtually every vote. Not only is our presidential election between two people (and two parties), but so are all the others. In America, only two members of Congress don't identify as Democrat or Republican, despite almost half of the country refusing either party label. What our country needs is a new election system - one where people are properly represented and not forced into a dichotomy. A system called proportional representation may help guide us out of this mess. In proportional representation, people vote for parties rather than candidates. When the votes are tal- lied, the percentage of votes totaled for a certain party will be given roughly that percentage of seats in government. This gives a great deal of power to parties when choosing who will represent them. And if the party commits to a platform before the election and doesn't stand by it, there are other parties - more than just two - that the voter can choose. Proportional representation is certainly not perfect, as no system is. Althoughgettingrid of"firstpastthe post" for this new system takes away voting for an individual - something I'm sure many Americans relish - it would allow for a more diverse leg- islature that better represents our country's diverse political views. Imagine a legislature that doesn't only offer two solutions to every problem: one where people owe no -allegiance to massive organiza- tions, but only to a smaller, more focused party's platform. voting proportionaly couldn't work for the presidency, given that there's only one seat, but Congress break- inginto several parties could inspire us to look beyond Democrats and Republicans for president. How nice would it be to see a liberal, a conser- vative, a libertarian, a socialist and an independent all on stage, all with a legitimate shot at becoming our chief policymaker? I don't mean to paint proportional representation as our country's savior, because clearly any election reform we pass in this country will have its setbacks. S "First past the post" isn't * working as we'd like. But hey, it's a start, isn't it? The two-party system has failed Ameri- can voters, and it's time for people to realize it. Democrats and Repub- licans, liberals and conservatives, independents and party affiliates, we can all recognize that this isn't working. People talk about the two- party system constantly, saying they're sick of it. If so, perhaps it's time to look at other alternatives. - James Brennan can be reached at jmbthree@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 JACOB LIGHT Don't be (American) idle JEFFREY MCMAHON Commitment is fulfillment I'm excited to finally vote in my first presi- dential election. It's always been a dream of mine to'wake up on the morning of Election Day, go to the polls with alist of the candidates whom I feel best represent my values, and leave with the "I Voted" sticker prominently displayed on my shirt. Michigan's voter reg- istration period ends today and it's extremely important that every University of Michigan student registers to vote before the day's end. We've seen them all month: student orga- nization after student organization - the American Civil Liberties Union includ- ed - with clipboards in hand, encourag- ing every student to register to vote. So is the nature of our democratic system, built upon the philosophy that a government is only truly representative of its constituents when each eligible citizen votes. This phi- losophy has been recognized time and again when throughout history the right to vote has expanded so that our governments are truly representative of those who they serve. From the 15th and 19th Amendments, which granted suffrage rights to African Americans and women, respectively, to the 24th Amend- ment, which abolished the poll tax that'pre- vented otherwise eligible voters from voting, the United States has shown its commitment to its democratic institutions. As students, it's critical that we register to vote. Students are one of the most underrep- resented groups at the polls. When a group isn't represented at the polls, politicians do not hear its voice. How will politicians know what students want if we don't send a clear message on Election Day? Earlier this year, the Michigan legislature attempted to pass a series of bills that would have weakened the voices of targeted voters. Among those who would have been most directly affected were college students. Though the bill was not signed into law, such actions are frightening. As student voters, we must make sure that our voices are heard. Allow me to explain the registration pro- cess. If you want your voice to be heard in Michigan, you must register to vote today. University students come from all over the country, which means that they are eligible to vote all over the country. If you choose to register at your permanent home address, then you will need to apply for an absentee ballot through your local Secretary of State,. and other conditions may apply. For students from the state of Michigan, for example, you must either register in person or vote for the first time in person. You can't vote absentee if you have not previously voted. Fortunately, both in-state and out-of-state students are eligible to vote in Michigan. As long as you are a current resident of the state of Michigan, which includes anyone living in a dorm, house or apartment, you may register to vote here. In fact, the only guidelines for voter registration in Michigan are that you are at least 18 years old, a citizen of the United States, live in Michigan and - in order to vote at your local polling place - live in the city in which you are registered to vote. Using your dorm, apartment or house as your perma- nent residence, you can easily register to vote online at www.Michigan.gov/sos. If you have registered to vote in the past but have since moved, you must re-register. If you have any other questions on how to register, visit acu- mich.org/studentvoting, a site dedicated to making this confusing process easier. The time has finally come for me to real- ize my dream of voting in my first presidential election. It's a dream I've had since my mom took me.to watch her vote in the 2004 elec- tion. Now that I've become old enough to vote, however, I've learned that the process begins long before I receive my ballot; it begins when I register to vote. The voter registration pro- cess is certainly the less glamorous side of vot- ing, but it's just as important. It's the first step in the path toward fulfilling your civic duty. As a registered voter, you will have the ability to exercise the right that was won for you by a group of Americans who recognized just how important it was that a government be repre- sentative of the people whom it serves. Thus, if you haven't registered yet, I implore you to take a few minutes out of your day to do so. In an election as historic as this November's, every vote will count. Jacob Light is an LSA sophomore. While reading Bethany Biron's latest article in The Statement, one issue seemed particularly absent. Where are the men in this story? Admittedly, I subscribed to this so-called "Hook-up Culture." As an underclassman, if you found me out on a Saturday night, I'd be the one holding a Gatorade bottle full of vodka coming home drunk and trying to remember the name of the girl that I just made out.with. I slept with four different women during my first three years on campus and rarely made the claim that any of them were my "girlfriend." I bought in to all of the hype, but did so with- out ever reading the fine print. I wasn't ever told that I would cause a young girl to cry her heart out in front of me while feeling complete- ly numb myself. The world kindly left out the deep emptiness I could always feel the morning after, the same feeling that I'd just pretend wasn't there. There was no mention of the walk up to a pharmacy coun- ter hoping for the best, but fearing my luck had come to an end. This is the reality that comes with the bright lights and shining glory of "hooking up." I've been there. I've experi- enced that life and I know how it feels. Having been through it all, it pains me to hear women on campus resigning to that lifestyle or even choosing it. But, at the same time, I can't blame them. Take a look around campus and it's hard to find any real men. Sure, they do exist, but they're all hidden behind the swath of boys equipped with a few pick-up lines and a fifth of -liquor. So, my beef is with the boys on campus. My issue is with the boy I once was, the one I constantly fight against becoming again. Where are the real men while this is happening to women? What are we up to while girls are pushed to look for fulfillment shot by shot, wearing barely more than a bath- ing suit? Sure, we can claim that parents to look up to. It's likely that it's not all our fault. Popular media some of them do have a father, but tells us that using women and put- one who might have been absent ting notches on our bedposts make or even abusive. In this case, we us real men. It's no longer honor- all have the opportunity to be real able for men to consider women men. The opportunity is there to precious and something to be hon- show her what it means to be a man ored and cherished rather than pos- of strength, integrity, compassion sessed and used. Commitment is for and conviction. fools and old-fashioned folks. Who Women in current culture are needs commitment when we can 'becoming more independent and have it little by little each weekend? empowered. As women continue to Are we so void of hope for a consis- work hard for degrees and careers, tent love that we'll settle for scraps it becomes increasingly difficult to from the table? consider the idea of marriage. This Men, the women on campus are difficulty is greater when finding all vulnerable. They're away from a good man means having to sift their homes and families and are through all of the boys who prowl now in our care. So far we've done around campus. Where will they nothing but put them in harm's way find security, support and comfort? and exploit them. It's time to take a Are there any men who will com- stand and become real men. What mit themselves to providing these will happen when this college life things for a woman? Without real is over? Will we continue chasing men to stand up and take on this women for sex? Excuses like, "I'll responsibility, our women are left stop once I settle down and have a to find their fulfillment here and family" are all too familiar. Do you there, but ultimately left objectified really think that all of a sudden we and used. can change our hearts? What's next Girls, each-of you is amazing and ... we're so attached that we look worthwhile. Each of you deserves at pornography with actors our to be treated with love and respect daughter's age, or we leave our fam- from the men around you. There are ilies and wives for younger models? true men in the world, even on cam- Carrying this mentality only results pus. College certainly doesn't have in broken families and more fathers to be a place to find a husband, but who aren't man enough to show you can still surround yourself with their daughters how treasured and friends who cherish your heart. If incredibly important they are. Let's you're looking for a relationship, become the men that we want to be find someone who will protect you. in the future. - If you're going out with the girls, Men, think 10 or 15 years ahead wear something that forces a man when a young girl will capture your to get to know your heart and not heart and look up to you as her just your body. You're treasured hero, the only man in her life who and there's a man who will call you will ever matter. This little girl will his princess, who will protect you look you in the eyes and call you and keep you safe. Don't settle for "Daddy." You will do everything anything less. Beauty will fade, but in your power to protect this little the desires of the heart last a life- precious heart from anything that time and can only be fulfilled by the may threaten it. Each woman on same kind of lifetime commitment. this campus is someone's princess. Sadly, not all of the young women m - Jeffrey McMahon is on campus grew up in a home with an Engineering senior. 0 A 0