4A - Monday, September 23, 2013
The Michigan Daily -- michigandaily.com
4A - Monday, September 23, 2013 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom
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Edited and managed by students at
the University of Michigan since 1890.
MEGGIE RAMM
E-MAIL MEGGIE AT ROSERAMM@UMICH.EDU.
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Ann Arbor, MI 48109
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
MELANIE KRUVELIS
and ADRIENNE ROBERTS MATT SLOVIN
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS MANAGING EDITOR
ANDREW WEINER
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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.
Fr OM THE DAILY
Another change, no input
Consulting students on policy changes shouldn't be an afterthought
A fter a rocky introduction to new football seating policies, Michi-
gan's student fans have another change coming. On Tuesday,
Hunter Lochmann, the University Athletic Department's chief
marketing officer, announced a major change to the men's basketball
season ticket policy in which students now have to claim tickets to indi-
vidual games. This change is effective immediately, yet it comes months
after students purchased season ticket packages. Nearly 4,500 students
purchased ticket packages, but 3,000 seats are available to students each
game. While this policy does makes sense, and may be the best option
given the situation, it comes at an odd time since students already pur-
chased tickets.
I
I
Lochmann argues that the main problem
at basketball games is student attendance,
saying that an average of 46.1 percent of
student tickets were used per game in 2012-
2013. In comments to The Michigan Daily
Tuesday, Lochmann said, "We don't want
to play a guessing game of who's coming."
While student turnout is obviously impor-
tant, the problem lies in the fact that poten-
tially 1,500 students will not have seats at
basketball games for tickets they thought
were guaranteed as part of their ticket pack-
age. The Athletic Department should admit
fault here; they oversold tickets and there-
fore it's not possible for every student who
bought a ticket to attend every game. If stu-
dent morale was the real issue, then they,
should have considered a policy change after
this season ended.
Most importantly, students should have
been more involved in the decision-making
process. The president and vice president of
the Central Student Government, Michael
Proppe and Bobby Dishell respectively, were
informed prior to the decision's announce-
ment, and the president of Maize Rage, Sasha
Shaffer, met with Lochmann and two other
department officials during the decision-
making process. Though Shaffer and CSG
leaders do represent the student body, there
were other outlets available for the Athletic
Department to gauge reaction better through
forums or surveys.
The change to basketball season tickets is
not inherently problematic. A similar ticket
scheme has been implemented at schools
like Indiana University, and given the short
amount of time before the season begins, it
may be the most effective. What is a problem,
however, is that it's part of a trend by the
Athletic Department to make policy changes
that affect a substantial percentage of the
student body without consulting more than
a handful of students.
Beyond the minimum wage
estled between a tattoo arguments on why it isn't pos- to set up a schedule that allows her
parlor and a transmission sible to pay fast food workers their to work four full days and then take
repair shop in Dearborn unusually high rate. Moo Cluck a three-day weekend to spend more
Heights, Mich., Moo's prices are competitive, with time with her one-and-a-half-year-
is Moo Cluck a Moo Burger costing $3, and Park- old daughter. If she hadn't found this
Moo, a small er said he didn't feel any pressure to job, she said she would probably be
fast-food joint. raise prices based on the wage deci- working two jobs.
As I settle sions. Some involved in the debate "I would never see my baby,"
in with my sea over wages also argue that higher McCray said.
salt fries and wages cost jobs, but Parker said McCray and the other employee,
black cherry Moo Cluck Moo probably wouldn't Dan Chavez, both spoke about the
milkshake, the LISSA have hired more people than they restaurant as more than just a work-
line ebbs and KRYSKA did, even if the wages were lower. place - something closer to a family,
flows, and the When I asked why they didn't pay or at least a tight-knit community.
guy working the their employees less and pocket the This seemed to extend to the cus-
counter alter- extra profits themselves, Parker tomer base as well, many of whom
nately takes phone and in-store laughed and said he would rather were greeted by name when they
orders. He's one of nine employees get recognition for doing the right walked in.
who work under head chef and co- thing than for driving down the Involvement in the local commu-
founder Allen Fisher. street in a six-figure sports car. nity is important for the company.
Moo Cluck Moo is different from It comes down to prioritizing Parker pointed out that they par-
competitors like McDonald's. The your spending, and for the own- ticipate in a lot of local events, and
restaurant currently has only one ers of Moo Cluck Moo, that's two Fisher framed the high wages as
location, which opened in April. things: the food and the people. being an investment not just in the
They only use natural, high-quality, While Parker employees, but
corn-syrup-free ingredients. The expressed hope also the com-
buns are baked fresh in the kitchen that at some Moo Cluck Moo munity.
each day, and those that they don't point all fast Moo Cluck
use are donated to a local shelter at food workers prioritizes their Moo is the type
the end of the night. will make higher spending on food of business that
Oh, and they pay their workers wages, he also should become
$15 per hour. acknowledged and employees. more prevalent
Speaking with Fisher and with that Moo Cluck in every indus-
Brian Parker, another co-founder, Moo doesn't try, but espe-
they gave a few different reasons have the corporate overhead costs of cially the fast-food industry. I love
for why they pay more than double larger companies, or face the same that they've taken corn syrup out
the federal minimum wage. Ulti- pressures executives at those com- of the equation. I love that there's a
mately, it's all about the people. panies do when making decisions portabella burger on the menu. But
"I want these people to look at that affect thousands of people. most importantly, I love that they
this place as a career," Parker said, That night, there were two see their employees as people rather
explaining that they pay employees employees working with Fisher, and than commodities, and making sure
more because they believe it's the I got a chance to speak with them. those people are able to support
right thing to do. The people they "I prayed for this," employee themselves is a priority. Because, as
hire are skilled and experienced with Cidney McCray said.As asingle moth- McCray pointed out when reflecting
food and, well, they work hard. er who has worked as a manager at on her past jobs, "It's impossible on
"It's not an easy job by any stretch both McDonald's and Wendy's, she $9 an hour."
of the imagination," said Fisher. was able to bringsome perspective on
I was curious to hear Fisher's how Moo Cluck Moo compares. - Lissa Kryska can be reached
and Parker's responses to some AtMoo CluckMoo, she'sbeen able at Ikkryska@umich.edu.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS
Kaan Avdan, Sharik Bashir, Barry Belmont, Eli Cahan, Eric Ferguson, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis, Maura Levine,
Patrick Maillet, Aarica Marsh, Megan McDonald, Harsha Nahata, Adrienne Roberts, Paul Sherman,
Sarah Skaluba, Daniel Wang, Derek Wolfe
Don't blame the Millenials 2.0
0
JANINI KUMAR I
Get unplugged
What's the first thing you do in the morn-
ing and the last thing you do before going
to bed? For most people, it's checking their
phone - e-mail, messages and other noti-
fications - to either get caught up right
before falling asleep or to see what they
missed overnight.
Whether you're waiting in line at the gro-
cery store, ridingthe bus, studying at the Shap-
iro Undergraduate Library or sittingin lecture,
take a look around you. A good number of peo-
ple are on their phone - updating a Facebook
status, tweeting, posting on Instagram.
I had no idea how much time we spend
on our phones until I was overseas over the
summer and didn't have a cell phone. I felt
like I had so much free time with a phone
not constantly buzzing every few minutes.
Sometimes on public transportation, I'd
look around and everyone around me would
have headphones on and be on their phone
or tablet in their own world. Never before
did I feel more alone in a room full of people.
But if I had my phone, I would've been doing
the same thing and would have been just as
guilty of not interacting with those around
me. As we grow closer to those farther away
from us, we are growing increasingly dis-
connected from those physically close to us.
Is it possible to be over-connected? Espe-
cially with the ever-increasing forms of
social media, there's a need to establish and
maintain a social presence. Let's be honest,
everyone loves a notification - it makes us
feel important. Heard. It lets us know that
someone cares about what we have to say
or what we are doing - something that we
innately crave as human beings.
Humans are social creatures, and, in a
globalized world, this is how we stay con-
nected. But when was the last time you
talked to the person sitting next to you in
a large lecture hall? We're so connected
with what we already know that we never
really have to step out of our comfort zone
and meet new people. In the era of Internet
and smartphones, we are truly hooked to
our gadgets.
Of course, one can argue that social media
and technology bring light to issues that you
might not know about otherwise, but what
do most people do with that information?
We either tweet about it, post a status or
share that article. That's where it ends for
most people. But what if we actually did
something about it?
Everything should be enjoyed in mod-
eration, and that includes smartphones and
social media. A few weeks ago I deleted a lot
of apps from my phone, and honestly, life
was perfectly fine. I had more time to spend
with my family, my friends and really do
something memorable with my time.
So spend a little less time on your phone
scrolling through your newsfeed for the
hundredth time. Talk to the people around
you, do something outdoors or spend your
Saturday afternoon volunteering. Or maybe
actually work on one of those DIY projects
you're always re-pinning. Take some time
away from a screen. You'll be surprised with
how much there is around you.
Janini Kumar is an LSA sophomore.
This commitment to teaching may
sound standard to the Dartmouth
community ...but at a major
research institution like Michigan,
it is an exceptional philosophy
and practice. And Phil
was our champion."
- University President Mary Sue Coleman said Friday about Phil Hanlon, the new
president of Dartmouth University and former University provost, at his inauguration.
have two brothers, one eight
and one 10 years older than
I am. Having all been born
between 1980
and 1995, by
definition we're
all millennials.
Yet undeniably,
we were raised
in very different
times. My broth-
ers grew up
watching movies SARA
from a VCR, lis- MOROSI
tening to music
from a Walkman
and using a landline, dial-up Inter-
net and AOL instant messenger. But
during my childhood, those were
replaced with DVDs, an iPod, cell
phones, Wi-Fi, texting, MySpace
and Facebook.
Advancements in technology
have created a void in digital com-
munication between the early and
late millennials - a distinction
that's unquestionably present but
ignored by commentators. Mybroth-
ers - Millennials 1.0 - have one
foot in both worlds, and are a bridge
between the millennial generation
and its precursor, Generation X.
The media routinely criticizes
millennials on our performance in
the workforce and our purchasing
behavior, not to mention our self-
centered nature and resistance to
authority. This is unjustified for two
reasons. First, there are two popula-
tionsofourgenerationand commen-
tators are slamming us for things we
haven't yet had a chance to respond
to. And second, they're criticizing
our generation's response to prob-
lems that their generation created.
A popular critique of millennials is
that they're noncommittal, particu-
larly in the workforce. According to
Forbes, millennials change jobs at an
average rate of once every 4.4 years.
Whilethis maybe true of the early
segment of the generation, the criti-
cism is misplaced givennthe economic
upheaval of the past few years. No
one knows how the latter half of the
generation is going to respond to the
job market, so to criticize the millen-
nials that are now graduating from
college is blatantly unfair.
Another critique is that in spite
of their engagement with consumer
culture, millennials are reluctant
to make conventional purchases -
namelyhousesand cars. Butthathes-
itance is understandable given the
economic experience of the last few
years. In fact, the reluctance on the
part of manyto buy a house, in retro-
spect, was extremely fortunate given
that many people who purchased
homes recently are now seriously
underwater in
to work out.
These sweeping generalizations
that originated from the early part
of the generation are being projected
onto a cohort that deserves distinc-
tion. While time may show that pre-
viously established notions hold true,
giving the latter portion of the gen-
eration time to forge its own identity
is the only way to know.
The same trend can be seen across
generations. Take the Baby Boomer
generation. The experiences of those
in the latter half of the generation
- greatly influenced by the hippie
culture - differ greatly fromthe con-
servative atmosphere of the 1950s
and early 60s.
The attempt to pigeonhole a gen-
eration is a flawed concept from the
start. Changes in society occur so
rapidly that unless you atomize a
generation to
their mortgages.
As witnesses
to the implosion
of the housing
market,thelatter
part of the gener-
ation - Millen-
nials 2.0 - will
likely hold off on
buying a house.
Our reluctance to f
character flaw, esp
in ourlives in whic
aren't even necessa
of sense. Still, part
fall of the real estate
industry falls into,
millennial generati
Millennials 2.0 a
force in the work
a force financially,
force socially. The
are now beginning
selves into the lar
nomically, socially
and it's too soon to
cover several
years, sweeping
The attempt to generalities are
either inaccu-
pigeonhole a generation rate or applied
is flawed from the start. too soon.
The jury is
still out on the
millennial gen-
eration. Par-
buy homes isn't a ticularly on the second half, which
ecially at a point at this point applies to those still in
h such purchases their early to mid-twenties To label
ry. It makes a lot all millennials as narcissistic trophy
ial blame for the kids who job-hop, don't contribute to
e market and auto the economy and arectoo plugged into
the hands of the technology to appreciate the finer
on as a whole. things in life is unjustified based on
ren't yet a major the lack of track record to base that
place. We're not assessment. I'm not happy about
and are barely a it. And yeah, I'm probably going to
older millennials tweet about it - but not before post-
to insert them- ing a selfie to my Instagram.
6
6
ger society eco-
and politically,
say how it's going
- Sara Morosi can be reached
at smorosi@umich.edu.