Tuesday, September 24, 2024

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Commentary

COMMENTARY

Civil war in Iraq leaves U.S. helpless

In a turn that should surprise no one, violence erupted in Iraq during the weekend. Sunni gunmen killed 21 Shiite men in front of their families, while elsewhere in the war-torn country, car bombs erupted killing 200 and further wounding 250. As the situation in Iraq steadily crumbles, U.S.

COMMENTARY

Richards' rant shows racism still occurs

I would like to direct Jessica Byrom, "Affirmative action discriminates, not Proposal 2; move on already" (SN 11/21), toward the recent furor surrounding Michael Richards' (Cosmo Kramer from TV's "Seinfeld") tirade onstage at The Laugh Factory against a rowdy crowd member.

COMMENTARY

Anti-war groups don't warrant spying

Be careful what you say or do — the Pentagon just might be watching you, especially if you're a member of an anti-war group. There have been numerous cases of our government unwarrantedly spying on U.S.

COMMENTARY

Democrats, the party of disorder

It was during Franklin Roosevelt's first term that Will Rogers is said to have joked: "I am a member of no organized political party — I am Democrat." As the dust of this momentous midterm election settles, that joke has been resurrected — mostly by people much less funny than Rogers — to describe the dilemma of the incoming Democratic majorities in both congressional houses.

COMMENTARY

Byrom's argument naive; NAACP far from racist

The column by Jessica Byrom used the most idiotic and naive claims to support its arguments in, "Affirmative action discriminates, not Proposal 2; move on already" (SN 11/21). I would like to start by saying I have no stance on this issue, but the fact that this column was printed infuriated me.

COMMENTARY

Pedestrian laws must change for our safety

Let's see if I have this right. When a Jeep, making a turn, runs down a pedestrian crossing the street, as one of those new timed walk signs is ticking down, it is the pedestrian's fault ("Getting hit by car is not my fault," SN 11/20). I have been complaining about pedestrian safety and right of way in East Lansing for many years, and unfortunately, this is typical.

COMMENTARY

Byrom might not be racist but is certainly ignorant

I am writing this letter in response to Jessica Byrom's commentary in The State News on Tuesday "Affirmative action discriminates, not Proposal 2; move on already" (SN 11/21). While I will not call Byrom a racist, I do think her comments are a bit ignorant. Even though Proposal 2 did pass, you cannot tell me, an African American female, to just "get over it." I will learn to deal with it, but I will not get over it; that would be asking me to accept the fact that this state will lose what little diversity it has and that I will just have to accept the repercussions that will happen as a result of this. Because this proposal has passed, many people in this state will not have an opportunity to go to college, receive scholarships or even apply for a job just because it is now illegal to level the playing field for everyone.

COMMENTARY

Draft proposal pointed remark on Iraq

New York Democratic Rep. Charles Rangel proposed a somewhat radical method of ensuring that the United States does not sink itself into a poorly conceived quagmire: He wants to reinstate the draft. The logic behind his suggestion is understandable.

COMMENTARY

Blair right; war in Iraq needs plan

At a conference Sunday, British Prime Minister Tony Blair finally began to talk some sense. After years of being little more than President Bush's cheerleader on the Iraq war, the "war on terror" and all of the fallout associated with both of those failures, Blair has begun to change his tune and announced a wiser and more considerate plan for the Middle East.

COMMENTARY

Everyone must work to see past race, gender

There has been a lot of commentary recently about Proposal 2. Let me just say that while I support affirmative action as a means to provide needed opportunities and combat inequalities, I am not here to defend it.

COMMENTARY

Just vote, doesn't matter where you're registered

In response to the letter, "Student voting locations should be more flexible" (SN 11/13), I'd like to let Mike Dunker know that it shouldn't matter where you're registered to vote, as long as you vote. An absentee ballot is just as good as a regular ballot — in a lot of political races, the outcome usually comes down to the results of the absentee ballots. I'm proud to say I voted via an absentee ballot because I wasn't able to make it back to my home state on Election Day. It's also hard to use the Florida elections in 2000 as justification anymore.

COMMENTARY

Marriage for everyone, please

On Tuesday two votes in two different countries made mighty declarations for the gay community. One vote made a positive leap forward, while the other continues to support homophobia and discrimination. The same day the South African Parliament voted overwhelmingly to legalize same-sex marriage, the United States' Roman Catholic bishops passed support for initiatives to teach gay and lesbian Catholics to remain celibate by a vote of 194-37. As the first nation in Africa to remove legal barriers from same-sex marriage, the South African Parliament's decision is courageous and representative of progressive steps every country should be taking.

COMMENTARY

Getting hit by car is not my fault

I've never felt more like a number, a statistic, an object, than I do now. At random parties, I've felt the stares that conversely make me feel like an object, just another young piece of ass shaking her stuff for men. Every day of college, I feel like a number, most importantly represented by a randomly assigned personal identification code that makes me unique in the eyes of MSU. I get the picture; I'm a number. But on Nov.

COMMENTARY

ID requirement to vote only increases barriers

On Monday, the Michigan Supreme Court heard arguments about whether or not voters should be required to show photo ID before casting their ballot. After voting debacles in past elections, it's understandable why voting should be more closely monitored, but requiring voters to show identification is not a valid way to go about making the voting process more fluid. In Michigan, the law does not require voters to show photo IDs at the polls except in some specific circumstances, like voters who register by mail. This law discourages some people from voting rather than encouraging more citizen participation in elections.