4 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, July 18, 2005 ix E , kli igttn ttil 420 MAYNARD STREET ANN ARBOR, MI 48109 STEPHANIE WRIGHT DONN M. FRESARD tothedaily@michigandaily.com Editor in Chief Editorial Page Editor EDITED AND MANAGED BY STUDENTS AT THE Unless otherwise noted, unsigned editorals refect the opinion of UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN the majority of the Daily's editorial board. All other pieces do not SINCE 1890 necessarily reflect the opinion of The Michigan Daily. When Noah saw the world's first rainbow, according to the Genesis account, he took it as a sign from God that"the waters (would) nomore become a flood to destroy all flesh" and proceeded to repopulate the Earth. The sight of a rainbow decal on the window of the New York Pizza Depot last week prompted Andrew Shirvell to take a rather different interpretation and a different sort of action. The recent University alum and former Students for Life president e-mailed fellow parishioners of St. Mary's Student Parish, urging them to protest the decal because, as he put it, "Everyday people should be able to get a piece of pizza with- out being forced to acknowledge the radical homosexual agenda." That Shirvell and oth- ers may have to acknowledge a view different from their own on their way to lunch is no tragedy - there are always groups that will disagree with one's stance, but they all have a right to be heard. Shirvell interprets the flag, a symbol of acceptance and unity, as offensive, but that does not mean that oth- ers should not display it. Unfortunately, this incident is not isolated but part of a grow- ing nationwide trend by some conservative Christians who feel that any action that does not reflect their own beliefs is a violation of their rights. Delusions of persecution Rainbow decal at NYPD shouldn't make Christians feel unwelcome The sentiment behind Shirvell's crusade to have the decal removed is part of an unwar- ranted feeling of persecution that religious conservatives in this country have been com- plaining about for years. No less a figure than Pat Robertson, founder of the Christian Coali- tion, once said in an interview that anti-Chris- tian persecution in America is "more terrible than anything suffered by any minority in history," specifically citing liberal America's supposed bigotry as "just like what Nazi Ger- many did to the Jews." The debate has made its way even into Congress - when Demo- crats pushed to pass a resolution condemn- ing coercive proselytizing at the Air Force Academy, Rep. John Hostettler (R-Ind.) told his colleagues that there is a "war on Christi- anity" and accused Democrats of "denigrat- ingmand demonizing Christians." Although he struck his latter statement from the record, Hostettler is not alone in the impulse to accuse liberals of attacking Christianity when they resist efforts to impose its moral guidelines and rituals on non-Christians. Conservative Christians have not hesi- tated to play the religious discrimination card even in judicial nominations, claiming that the Democratic filibuster of extremist judicial nominees amounted to discrimina- tion against people of faith. Members of the Religious Right are unable to make the distinction that failure to impose Biblical morals on an entire population is not dis- crimination against Christians, but rather a protection of Americans' civil liberties. Other claims of this supposed oppression of Christians have been frequent in recent years with the debate over school prayer. Christian groups often complain that praying is "illegal" in schools, but in fact students are free to pray anywhere; only school-sponsored prayer, a clear government endorsement of religion and a violation of the rights of non- Christian students, is prohibited by the Con- stitution. Similarly, outrage over being "forced to acknowledge" people whose lifestyle one disagrees with is, at its root, motivated by an often dangerous human impulse - the desire not only to freely express one's own views, but to force those views on others. In his e-mail, Shirvell encouraged like- minded parishioners to explain to NYPD's owners that the rainbow flag - a symbol intended to make the LGBT community feel welcome - "makes other patrons who are against an active homosexual lifestyle feel unwelcome." Shirvell's logic is at best dif- ficult to follow, but evidently he believes that for a business to openly accept gay custom- ers is a veiled insult to Christian customers; to make up for the perceived attack, Shirvell wrote, NYPD should replace the rainbow with a Catholic symbol. To clear up any con- fusion, perhaps NYPD's owners should do away with decals and symbols altogether and instead display a written statement saying, in effect, "We accept and welcome people of all sexual orientations and lifestyles, as well as those who do not." If only that were enough for people like Shirvell. Un-paving paradise, Plan to develop surface lots would reduce sprawl Not just a good show Big-ticket performers should fuel campus dialogue Surface parking lots, long a hallmark of urban sprawl, may become a rare sight in downtown Ann Arbor if City Council approves a plan to allow devel- opment on the city's surface parking lots and replace the lost spaces with parking decks or underground parking. The plan would bring in new businesses, new hous- ing and more revenue for the city through taxes and parking revenues. Trading in these lots for a denser, more developed downtown area is a positive move that the council should support. While Ann Arbor has never been too concerned with the appearance of its sky- line, aesthetics do matter in maintaining a welcoming city that attracts visitors and makes its residents proud. Even the most ghastly of 21st-century architecture would be an improvement on the black and yel- low asphalt fields dotted with towering light poles that are strewn across down- town Ann Arbor. Greenway proponents will likely take this argument further and demand that many of these lots instead be converted into parks, but in doing so they are overlooking the important benefits that development would bring to both the city and Ann Arbor residents. Ann Arbor's high property values and rental rates are tightly linked with the high demand for limited retail and residential space in its downtown area. Small busi- nesses struggle to afford prime locations downtown, and many have been pushed out of the city altogether. And just as students feel the housing crunch acutely when they sign leases for the following year, inflated property values affect other renters equally, if not more. Renter populations are largely composed of low-income households, and high rents only pull on already stretched budgets. The increased supply of retail and residential space brought about by develop- ing on these lots would be an important step toward bringing down rental rates and making Ann Arbor more affordable. Agreeing to develop on surface park- ing lots, however, is only the first step in ensuring the responsible development of these parts of Ann Arbor's downtown. As City Council considers the best use of this prime real estate, it should approve the con- struction of high-rise, multi-use buildings. Furthermore, it should ensure that these new buildings allocate space for low-cost housing with small unit sizes. Although similarly sized downtown areas around Detroit, such as Royal Oak, have given in to the temptation of concentrating new construction on obscenely priced condos and townhouses, Ann Arbor should instead aim to make the city affordable for people of all incomes, including those who cannot afford $500,000 lofts. The development of these surface lots represents a unique opportunity for Ann Arbor to undo some of the poor city plan- ning that led to the construction of the lots. City Council should not only quickly approve the conversion of these lots to residential and retail space, but should take care in overseeing the development of these areas. It may be a difficult fight, with pressure coming from all directions to build high-value housing, but the coun- cil should keep in mind the welfare of those who don't have the money to pay soaring rents or the political connections to do anything about it. Students tired of heading to Detroit or Auburn Hills for big-name con- certs will be pleased this fall when Michigan Student Assembly teams up with other student organizations to bring an A- list entertainer to campus. The two major candidates are hip-hop artist Kanye West and rapper Ludacris, and the final selec- tion will be made soon. A performance by either entertainer would be sure to please student fans, but Ludacris, with his recent involvement with the NAACP and role in the movie "Crash," may be better able to bring issues of racial and ethnic identities to the forefront. West, currently preferred by members of the University Activities Center who are working with MSA on the event, seems to have less to say out- side. As MSA considers whether to spend its student fees on West or Ludacris and plans future events for the,coming school year, it should base its decisions on what potential performers can bring in terms of the ideas they could bring up and discus- sion they could foster. ,Although thousands of students enjoyed rocking the suburbs with Ben Folds two winter semesters ago, the concert served primarily to entertain students. Given the money and effort needed to organize the event, it is unfortunate that the per- formance was unable to reach beyond the students in attendance. Michael Moore's appearance last fall, however, sparked con- troversy that fueled meaningful political discourse across campus both before and after his performance. Jon Stewart of The Daily Show has been discussed as a future MSA-sponsored performer, and he would be an ideal mix of substance and entertain- ment. Striking a balance between fun and intellect is critical to ensuring that each performance generates excitement among students and that its impact on campus out- lives the few hours of the show. Even those who lack popular appeal to the masses can still draw massive crowds on campus - over 600 students packed 4 the School of Education's Schorling Audi- torium and the adjacent hallway during Paul Krugman's 2003 visit. In addition to bringing well-known performers annu- ally, MSA should look into smaller-scale events that may require a less signifi- cant investment of time and money, but could be equally effective in encouraging an exchange of ideas on campus. Speak- ers from either end of the political spec- trum - like David Horowitz, Christopher Hitchens or Al Franken - might anger a good proportion of the student body, but their presence would encourage the verbal sparring that makes the college experience so very special. And political thinkers and writers, many of whom - like Moore, who approached student government offi- cials last year offering to-speak for only a few thousand dollars - would likely I be eager to come to campus at a fraction of the cost of a performer like Ludacris, allowing MSA to recoup its costs while charging only a few dollars for tickets. This year and in later events, the selec- tion of a performer should not be solely a popularity contest; as a representative of student interests, MSA should look beyond the publicity factor and consider the role an entertainer or speaker could play in facilitating meaningful dialogue among students.