The Michigan Daily - Monday, July 19, 2004 - 5 LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Closing ranks SAM SINGER TAKE TWc SAPAC editorial inappropriate TO THE DAILY: Your editorial (Who you gonna call?, 7/12/04) was thoughtless and ill-titled. First, the Daily has too eas- ily accepted the pseudo-compromise that the University Administration offered, basically just of keeping the *old 936-3333 phone number, while excluding the student crisis line vol- unteers from serving further on the line (Is there some huge body of information that they were really ter- rible in their joho? Or were some of them deemed "troublesome" for signing a 2003 petition to rid Bernard Robinson Jr. from the bas- ketball team?) and still making sur- vivors go to CAPS. Second, as a sexual assault sur- vivor and SAPAC client I know informed me, you trivialized the matter of rape by evoking the 1984 soundtrack from the film "Ghost- busters" with your absurd "Who you gonna call?" title. While your editorial may have been well-intentioned, it was neither mature nor truly thoughtful. The Daily should consider publishing an apology to survivors for the "Ghost- *busters" nonsense and should be more alert about the need for pre- serving the former, and admirably functional, form of SAPAC without needless changes which upset so many assault survivors and other cit- izens of the University community. DAvIO BoYLE Alumnus Mediation can solve Israel-Palestine conflict TO THE DAILY: Last week, the International Court of Justice at the Hague ruled that the wall Israel is build- ing in the West Bank is a violation of international law due to its con- struction on internationally recog- Wized Palestinian territory. Many in the international community were thrilled to see the world's premiere court stand up to another in a series, along with the illegal settlements, of Israeli land grabs of Palestinian terrain. This bubble was soon popped when Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon declared that his government would continue building the unlawful wall and American offi- cials announced that the United States would veto proposed Unit- ed Nations Security Council reso- lutions condemning Israel's erection of the wall in the West Bank. Due to these reasons and the continuing misery that Pales- tinians are forced to endure due to the 37 years of Israeli military occupation, it comes down to the international community to become more involved in settling the decades-old conflict. The first step that can be taken by the international community would be to send U.N. observers into the West Bank and Gaza, in order to have an objective delega- tion examine and file reports on what is actually going on in the occupied territories. This is not a new idea; it has been suggested on a number of occasions. The only thing that has spared Israel from international observers is the U.S. veto in the Security Council. Regardless, as a result of the Israeli government's total disregard for Palestinian lives and the Bush administration's complacency toward Israeli human rights abuses, it is time for Israel to be placed under the same legitimate standards that every other nation in the world is placed under. Sending International observers to areas of conflict is a moderate and standard process that has been used in many different parts of the globe. Since Israel has repeatedly denied claims of human rights vio- lations made against her, it is aston- ishing that Israel has not relished this opportunity to clear her name. That is unless Israel has something to hide. MOHAMMED ELGHOUL LSA senior Vice-chair; Students Allied for Freedom and Equality t was the perfect storm. Already trailing, the Democratic Party would have to safe- guard 19 Senate seats (four more than their Republican counter- parts), six of which reside below the Mason Dixon Line, and five of the six which were to be fought without the weapon of incumbency. No more than six months ago, November's Senate elections were a foregone conclusion - an early Christmas celebration for the GOP. For the Democrats' part, the 'duck and cover' strategy seemed most sensible. If they picked their battles carefully, the ana- lysts held, the Dems could count their loss- es and limp away only slightly wounded. But to the disbelief of forecasters, the Democrats have launched an electoral blitzkrieg over the last half-year, saturating presumed Republican districts with a flood of candid and hard-hitting competitors. With the help of some record-shattering fundraising, gigantic pre-primary consoli- dation efforts, and an extremely feeble President, the Democratic Senatorial cam- paign has evolved into a well-oiled politi- cal machine. The notion of a power shift in the Senate, once out of reach and impracti- cal, has now found a grounding in reality. Not counting in their rank-and-file Jim Jeffords, the left-leaning independent Sen- ator from Vermont, the Democrats face a thin 51-48 GOP majority. And assuming nature doesn't deviate from its constant state of equilibrium and no incumbents are upset in the 21 or so "safe races," the Democrats have approximately 13 com- petitive contests to mount their coup d'6tat. Most of the heavy combat will occur in the south, where the simultaneous retirement of five prominent Southern Democrats has left the party dangerously susceptible to Republican encroachment. In South Carolina for example, the depar- ture of seven-term legend Ernest Hollings was generally accepted as the end of the Democratic dynasty in the Palmetto State. Recognizing this, party leadership pre- emptively vacated the primary - mobiliz- ing early behind state Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum. With a head start, the self-acclaimed social con- servative had time to strap on her body armor while U.S. Rep. Jim Demint, the Republican contestant, was still sparring for the nomination. Given her constituen- cy, Tenenbaum's polling numbers have been tremendous, and the formerly locked up district is now too close to call. Just due north, Democrats have unearthed a treasure trove to fill the void left by the exiting John Edwards. Former White House Deputy Chief of Staff Erk- sine Bowles, an admired warrior of the Clinton Administration and one of the masterminds behind the balanced budget of the mid-'90s, now holds a 10-point margin over U.S. Rep. Richard Burr. In Georgia, House freshman Denise Majette's lofty bid to replace Zell Miller has become a political Cinderella story, and the spiritually inspired millionaire's effort has made a big splash. And though the Bayou state is tilting right, a fierce Republican primary in Louisiana has GOP leadership anticipating a Democratic move to unite behind U.S. Rep. Chris Johns. Bob Graham's seat is still up for grabs in Flori- da, but expect to see former University of Southern Florida President Betty Castor on the Democratic ticket. To the west, the campaign takes on a more offensive tinge as the Dems advance to fill GOP vacancies across the country. In Oklahoma, another crowded Republi- can primary has put retiring Republican Don Nickles' seat in jeopardy, and after a Republican implosion in the Land of Lin- coln, Illinois State Senator Barack Obama has all but sealed the deal. The Colorado race is my favorite. In the GOP corner is beer magnate Pete Coors, a fringe-libertarian whose platform includes a lower drinking age. His oppo- nent (and you have to admire the Democ- rats' boldness): the Colorado Attorney General Ken Salazar. Unless University of Colorado, Boulder students are alone at the polls this November, Salazar will prob- ably ride this one out. Then there's Alaska, where GOP incumbent Lisa Murkowski, having been appointed by her father in 2002 when he abdicated his seat for a gubernatorial bid, is scrambling to deflect allegations of nepotism. A dark-horse story from the begin- ning, the Democrats are closing ranks, and as the GOP continues to lose traction, anticipate an exciting November. Singer can be reached at singers@umich.edu. Tne realm of it all BONNIE KELLMAN A BFUN' EUGE SAM BUTLER Ti E SOAPBOX O&C - ELM N have recently began studying in Salamanca, Spain, with one of the Uni- versity's study abroad programs. I've gone abroad several times before, and each time, it becomes more and more interesting to observe the first-time travelers in the group. It's not hardto find them. They give themselves away by the way they bring too many suitcases, forget to wear money- belts and insist on showing off designer clothes. The most obvious giveaway, how- ever, are their misconceptions about travel, which is quite possibly one of the most idealized activities the world has to offer. They think that traveling can be likened to a continuous state of bliss, and that some- how, they can erase a lifetime of living in the United States to easily fit into whichever country they happen to be in. After a few days, however, reality begins to set in. "This definitely isn't how I thought it'd be," one of these travelers, tired from a hectic first week in Madrid, told me over lunch. "Sometimes, I feel like I would be having just as much fun at home." She swirled her lemonade. "But my parents probably think I'm so happy, I'm dancing on the tabletops right now. So of course I can't tell them that." It's true. Even if your trip doesn't go exactly as planned, what are you supposed to tell your friends and family back home, who are eager for cool and exciting stories about your time abroad? As a returning traveler, you have a responsibility to enter- tain. I never felt this more than when I returned from visiting my sister in Japan earlier this summer. As soon as I stepped off the plane, my family wanted stories, more stories than Ilhad to tell. I told as many as I could. And I do have a few good ones, a few postcard-per- fect moments that shine against the rest. I told them about the iris garden at the Meiji-jingu Shrine, the Imperial Palace and kabuki theater. I concluded with refer- ences to "personal growth" and lessons in "self-reliance." I even threw in "cultural understanding" for good measure. Of course, when I'm telling all this, there are so many things I'm not saying. I'm failing to mention that I thought more about practical matters, like food and hos- tel reservations, than about any of the sights. I won't say how my sister and I seemed to spend half our time on trains and buses. And I definitely won't admit that one time, due to a lack of money and linguistic skills, we resorted to eating ajar of peanut butter for dinner on the overnight train from Sapporo to Toyama. Contrary to popular belief, real life is real life no matter where you go. But most of all, I won't even attempt to explain what a lonely experience losing your language and your culture is. Call it "culture shock" if you will. All I know is that you'll become acutely aware of how different you are from everyone else, how you'll suddenly understand the importance of language once no one can understand what you're saying, how in only a matter of days, your situation will become your world and your identity. You'll know that there's a place out there called the United States, a place where people speak English and are loud and obnoxious and not afraid to start arguments. You'll know this, but you won't feel this. It's easy to begin to think that you'll never fit in anywhere, ever again. I won't tell you any of this because chances are, you won't want to hear. You want to listen to profound and exotic remi- niscences, so I'll humor you with my sto- ries, and the misconceptions about traveling will continue on, safe and sound. Sometimes, I wonder why I bother to travel at all. Every time I go abroad, I decide that I'd never want to live anywhere but the United States, that my home is the most beautiful place on Earth. I wonder why I bother to spend so much time and money trotting around the globe, jumping from country to country in my efforts to see the world. Really, the answer is simple: because the Universe is larger than we'll ever be able to fathom. Because there's millions upon millions of galaxies out there, and if you manage to spend your entire life in the same small town, the same state, even the same country, you might as well be living with your head in the ground for all your seeing of the world. This is our home. We have a responsibility to explore it. Kellman can be reached at bonkell@umich.edu.