Opinion

JENNIFER CALFAS

EDITOR IN CHIEF

AARICA MARSH 

and DEREK WOLFE 

EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS

LEV FACHER

MANAGING EDITOR

420 Maynard St. 

Ann Arbor, MI 48109

 tothedaily@michigandaily.com

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the University of Michigan since 1890.

Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s editorial board. 

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The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
4A — Friday, October 16, 2015

O

ur GSI gave us two articles to read 
before a class discussion on the 
Democratic presidential debate. One, 

written by the New York 
Times 
Editorial 
Board, 

titled 
“The 
Grown-Ups 

Take the Stage at the 
Democratic 
Debate,” 

contrasted the debate with 
the 
Republican 
Party’s 

latest nonsense in Congress 
and on the campaign trail.

During 
previous 

election seasons, I might 
have complained that the 
obviously partisan piece 
was just an example of 
liberal bias in the media. 
But when the Republican Party seems so 
intent on self-inflicted embarrassment, it’s 
hard to point fingers at anything but the 
party itself.

Republicans are known for professing 

their concern that the United States is headed 
down the wrong path. If the country’s heading 
down the wrong path, the Republican Party 
is leading our country down that path.

Most of the Republican Party prioritizes 

the best interests of the United States. Many 
Republicans formulate and support great 
solutions to some of the country’s toughest 
problems. But the John Kasich- and Bob 
Corker-type candidates are almost always 
overshadowed by the Donald Trumps and Ted 
Cruzes; in other words, the far right. 

Very few Republican leaders are from the far-

right wing of the party. The far-right leaders aren’t 
the chairs of powerful Congressional committees 
or the authors of any serious legislation. But they 
are the people who’ve learned to dominate the 
airwaves and use the media industry’s thirst for 
popping headlines to their advantage. They’re the 
Kim Kardashians of the policy world.

The 
far-right 
Republican 
candidates’ 

statements and policies are probably less 
realistic than reality TV; the pictures they 

paint of the world more dramatic. Their 
stories cast medical researchers as baby 
killers and refugees as potential terrorists. 
They oppose support for the “lazy” and 
unemployed, but also for “corrupt” trade 
agreements that are expected to create jobs. 
Some days, we’re teetering on the edge of a 
fiscal cliff; on others, the country’s moral 
depravity will end us all.

These far-right leaders are bombastic and 

inane, but they have an enormous impact 
on and pose a real threat to the GOP. Just 
as the commercial success of “Keeping Up 
With the Kardashians” has fueled both 
the proliferation of reality TV and tabloid 
coverage of its characters, the far right’s 
antics have both inspired political converts 
and earned them the center stage of 
“Republican” news.

They 
proclaim 
their 
extreme 
views 

so loudly that many confuse them for 
the party’s platform. They have adopted 
grandstanding and filibustering as primary 
methods of advancing their viewpoints, and 
Fox News happily broadcasts their usually 
conspiratorial and increasingly racist, sexist 
and homophobic views to the party’s base.

If this continues, the GOP can kiss 

goodbye not only the next election, but also 
any credibility it retains. At the moment, 
Republican politics are entertaining. The 
debates are fun to watch, and record numbers 
are tuning in to watch the circus unfold. But 
few want clowns running the country.

Most Republicans aren’t clowns. But 

unless they take control of policy debates, the 
public won’t know that.

It’s possible that the GOP is scared of 

further infighting splitting the far right from 
the establishment. But retaking control of 
the party’s platform and policies isn’t about 
winning elections or pleasing voters in the 
short term — though those things could 
conceivably happen as a happy side effect.

Rather, it’s about limiting gridlock by 

electing candidates who know how to 

VICTORIA 
NOBLE

FROM THE DAILY

I just had the craziest week-

end, and if I were your typi-
cal college student, you’d know 
exactly what that means. But I’m 
 

proudly atypical.

What follows is the furthest thing 

from a weekend “drunkalogue,” i.e. 
a monologue full of regular shenani-
gans that occur when one devotes 
Friday through Sunday to intoxicat-
ed activities.

I offer you my “soberlogue” from 

the first weekend of October, and I 
can promise you this: It’s way cooler 
than anything I ever did under the 
influence, and I remember all of it in 
vivid detail. What a bonus.

Friday, Oct. 2 
It’s 6 p.m., and I’m leaving the 

WDIV Local 4 news station in 
Detroit, where I intern three days a 
week in their programming depart-
ment. I’m heading to a conference 
in Troy, but not for more work in 
the stereotypical sense — for the 
daily work I do on myself as a per-
son in long-term recovery from sub-
stance use disorder.

I enter the hotel with my guitar in 

hand. I’m welcomed by hundreds of 
others who are, too, in the business of 
staying sober on top of whatever they 
do from 9 to 5 to put food on the table. 
I enter the ballroom. They’re setting 
up the soundboard, the lights and the 
microphone for me and several per-
formers who’ll take the stage after 
the keynote speaker.

I’m on. I step up and strum a 

G-chord, because this night isn’t 
meant to be played in a minor key. I 
say my name is Carly and I’m almost 
five years sober. I’m met with thun-
derous applause. I don’t need this 
approval; I just sometimes need 
reminders that I’m never alone. I play 
four songs in front of a sober crowd. 
They will remember this night, and 
you can bet that I will, too.

Saturday, Oct. 3 
It’s 11:30 a.m. I return to the con-

ference to speak on a panel titled 
“The Sky is the Limit,” where I 
share pieces of my story. I offer 
my experience, strength and hope 
as someone who understands that 
when I’m sober, I’m free to be 
whomever I choose, accomplish 
whatever I wish and go wherever I 
please … like to Washington D.C. for 
a rally called Unite to Face Addic-
tion two hours later.

I leave the hotel and head to 

Detroit Metro Airport. I can barely 
contain my emotions because where 
I’m headed won’t be teeming with 
hundreds of sober people from the 
tri-country area: It will be flooded 
with thousands of recovery advo-

cates from across the country.

What do I wear for such an his-

toric day? I pack far more than I 
need. I stuff a shirt that says, “The 
Only Coke I Do is Diet” into my suit-
case, and I smile. Another G-chord 
moment for me.

It’s 7 p.m. when I land in Baltimore. 

I take a cab to D.C., dump my belong-
ings at my Airbnb and hail an Uber to 
Warner Theater where there’s a pre-
rally, all-star comedy benefit called 
“A Tribute to Lost Laughs” in honor 
of the brilliant comedic minds who 
addiction has stolen from us too soon. 
I’m reunited with sober friends from 
all over Michigan, Southern Califor-
nia, nationwide. We laugh. We cry. 
We feel. Together. In a major way. 

Sunday, Oct. 4 
I’m up at 8 a.m. because I couldn’t 

possibly sleep. Today is Christmas 
morning magnified by a million. 
Today is the day I have been waiting 
for as someone who thought getting 
sober at age 22 meant a life in the 
shadows. This is the day for which 
every recovering individual who’s 
ever been silenced against his or her 
will has been praying.

On this day, we unite to face 

addiction.

I arrive at the location of the rally, 

the Washington Monument, with my 
camera around my neck. I see a giant 
stage. There are already hundreds of 
people here. It’s freezing, thanks to 
Hurricane Joaquin, but I don’t care. 
A little over five years ago, I’d walk 
two miles in the pouring rain for a 
bottle of Jack Daniels on the regular. 
I can weather a little weather in the 
name of recovery.

I find the booth for Transforming 

Youth Recovery, a nonprofit organi-
zation that grants financial support 
to academic institutions across the 
country so they may provide resourc-
es to students who need recovery 
aid on campus. I set up my tripod. 
I’m here to celebrate my own recov-
ery and to be their videographer — 
to document proof that collegiate 
recovery programs, like the one we 
have at the University, are integral 
and save lives.

I speak to a man from Georgia 

who lost his 18-year-old daughter 
to heroin. He wonders if she might 
still be here if she’d had a recovery 
program at her high school. Stu-
dents from Michigan State Univer-
sity, the University of North Texas 
and the University of Vermont all 
tell me they would not be able to 
navigate a college atmosphere — let 
alone stay in school — if not for on-
campus recovery support. I hear 
them, and I am already overcome 

with gratitude by the time the offi-
cial program kicks off at 4 p.m.

Dr. Oz introduces musicians Paul 

Williams and Kasim Sulton, who 
sing an anthem they’ve written spe-
cifically for this event. Everybody 
joins in. Joe Walsh leads a non-stop 
barrage of world-class performers 
interspersed with notable enter-
tainment personalities, politicians 
and public figures such as the sur-
geon general of the United States, 
who firmly states, “I am on your 
side” in the fight to eradicate the 
treatment of addiction as a crimi-
nal justice dilemma rather than the 
public health crisis that it is.

I’m beside myself when one of 

my favorite actresses, Allison Jan-
ney, who plays a recovering alco-
holic on the CBS comedy series 
“Mom,” takes the stage. I under-
stand why she won four Emmys 
for her portrayal as a White House 
press secretary. She’s only trumped 
by the man whose lyrics I carry 
on my arms, John Rzeznik of the 
Goo Goo Dolls. His performance 
is followed by several others who 
I adore, including The Fray, Sheryl 
Crow and, finally, Steven Tyler. At 
the very end of the night, everyone 
joins the legendary Aerosmith front 
man onstage for a rendition of the 
Beatles’ tune “Come Together,” and 
I have never been more grateful for 
my sobriety than in this moment. 

I photograph blue and yellow 

cardboard signs that reflect the 
innermost beliefs of a sea of about 
25,000 people. They read, “Addic-
tion is not a crime,” and “I am a 
person in long-term recovery,” and 
I wish I could linger in this womb 
just a little bit longer.

Monday, Oct. 5
It’s 10 a.m., and I’m back in Ann 

Arbor. I step into my apartment, 
and I break down. I sob hopefully. 
I can’t believe that I get to be alive 
and sober during this groundbreak-
ing social and political movement 
that’s giving a voice to not only 
people living in long-term recov-
ery from substance use disorder 
but also anyone and everyone who’s 
ever been affected by addiction.

From rockstar recovery advo-

cates to atypical college students 
— whether we’re singing songs on 
stages or speaking out on campus 
— we’re just warming up our vocal 
chords and would love to add your 
voice to our choir.

Because harmony is always stron-

ger in numbers.

— Carly Keyes is an LSA senior.

Harmony is better in numbers

The Republican Party’s 

far-right problem

D

espite poor success within the past year, yet another bill has 
been proposed in the Michigan House of Representatives to 
ban the sale of “nonbiodegradable” microbeads in personal 

care products. As it stands, the legislation is problematic because it 
does not include a definition of “nonbiodegradable,” leaving room for 
personal care companies to exploit loopholes. If a definition is included, 
such as the one the European Union has, this legislation should be 
passed, but recognized as only a small effort in protecting the Great 
Lakes from further pollution.

Microbeads small part of big problem 

Michigan legislature needs to define “nonbiodegradable” 

Plastic microbeads are found in a variety 

of personal care products — toothpastes, 
face washes, body scrubs — as an exfoliant. 
Companies opt for the use of plastic microbeads 
in their products instead of organic equivalents 
because they are cheaper to manufacture 
and pose less of an allergenic risk to 
 

the consumers.

However, the effect these microbeads 

have on the environment — especially on the 
Great Lakes — overrides their cost efficiency. 
Due to the tininess of these microplastics 
(microbeads found in cosmetic products tend 
to be less than one millimeter in diameter), 
it’s incredibly difficult to clean up the 
particles. Plastic microbeads absorb toxins 
from the environment and fish in the lakes 
confuse the microbeads for food; if consumed 
in high enough concentrations, these toxins 
— some of which are believed to cause cancer 
and reproductive problems — can make their 
way up the food chain, adversely affecting 
the health of the Great Lakes ecosystem as 
well as our own.

It is no wonder, then, why so many states 

have started to ban products containing 
microbeads. Since mid-2014 alone, nine 
states have passed laws outlawing the sale of 
products with microbeads, including Great 
Lakes neighbors Illinois, Wisconsin and 
Indiana. These laws vary in strictness. For 
example, Maryland bans only products that 
contain “synthetic plastic microbeads” that 
are nonbiodegradable, whereas California 
law entirely bans companies from selling or 
offering products with microbeads of any 
sort, exempting only products that contain 
“less than 1 part per million (ppm) by weight 
of plastic microbeads.”

The problem with the proposition now 

facing Michigan’s legislature is there is no 
qualification set forth for how long a plastic 
can exist in a marine environment before 
being decomposed by microorganisms into 
carbon dioxide and water to be considered 
biodegradable. This can be fixed if the 
term “nonbiodegradable” is based off the 
European Union’s definition, which says a 
product is biodegradable if it decomposes 
within 
six 
months. 
Furthermore, 
the 

government should then be able to revise 
these standards periodically to account for 
advances in technology and research. These 
provisions would give companies reasonable 
flexibility to develop effective products while 
keeping potential environmental harm in 
their consciences.

Fortunately, 
personal 
care 
product 

powerhouses such as L’Oreal, Johnson 
& Johnson and Procter & Gamble are 
currently working on phasing out the use of 
nonbiodegradable plastics in their products. 
These 
companies’ 
influence 
combined 

with government regulation would likely 
be effective in pressuring the industry as a 
whole toward a more eco-friendly mindset. 

It is also important to remember that 

microbeads contribute to just a small part 
of the pollution problem. According to Allen 
Burton, a professor at the University’s School 
of Natural Resources and Environment, 
the media and politicians have exaggerated 
microbeads as the leading problem in 
polluted marine and lake environments, 
when this is not the case. In addition to this 
legislation, Michigan’s legislature should 
immediately work toward reforms to control 
invasive species, soil erosion, habitat damage 
and chemical input that pose an even greater 
risk to the Great Lakes. 

negotiate and compromise. It’s about 
restoring efficacy and integrity to 
government by filling positions with 
professionals who understand that 
they are public servants, paid by 
taxpayers to run the government. 
How often do you see a group of 
employees threaten to shut down 
their own company in order to get 
their way — and not get fired?

The far right grows increasingly 

powerful 
only 
because 
their 

absurdity draws so much attention. 
To stay credible, the Republican 
Party needs to prevent future 
embarrassments like its ongoing 
inability to select a Speaker of the 

House, 
threatened 
government 

shutdowns and 10-plus candidate 
presidential primaries replete with 
racial hatred and tax code burning.

To do this, the GOP needs to confront 

its most ridiculous members where 
they have the greatest advantage — in 
the media. The GOP needs to garner 
attention based on the positive actions 
of its members. The Republicans need 
to propose meaningful solutions and 
discredit the more extreme members 
of their own party, irrespective of the 
angry responses they’re likely to get in 
return.

The Republican Party has created 

an environment where its own 

name is associated with policies 
that most of its members don’t 
support. It’s allowed social issues to 
dominate at the expense of issues 
that the party is uniquely equipped 
to address: advancing U.S. foreign 
policy interests, restoring balance 
to the budget, making government 
operations more efficient and the tax 
code fairer and easier to understand.

The far right has received its 

fair share of criticism from the left, 
in pieces like the one in the New 
York Times featured in my class 
discussion. But the Republican 
Party has failed to address the 
issues within its own ranks.

Claire Bryan, Regan Detwiler, Ben Keller, 

Payton Luokkala, Aarica Marsh, Adam Morton, 

Victoria Noble, Anna Polumbo-Levy, Melissa Scholke, 

Michael Schramm, Stephanie Trierweiler, 

Mary Kate Winn, Derek Wolfe

EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

CARLY KEYES | VIEWPOINT

 
 

— President Barack Obama on Thursday regarding a recent policy reversal, 

which will postpone troop withdrawal in Afghanistan.

“

NOTABLE QUOTABLE

As commander in chief, I will not allow 
Afghanistan to be used as a safe haven for 

terrorists to attack our nation again.”

