In response to Daniel Bednar's letter to the editor, "Weapon bans run dangerous risks" (SN 11/21), it seems that he misses the point of why there are such things as firearms bans.
In my 15 years of working with The State News, providing information on behalf of political leaders and clients, I have never experienced frustration as I have in the last week.
On Monday, The State News published "ACLU official protests closed meeting" about how the university trustees closed a budget meeting to the public.
On Wednesday, student leaders began what could be the start of the push that is needed for MSU to join four other Big Ten schools by honoring same-sex partner benefits for students, and it's about time. The decision made by the Residence Halls Association, with 29-0 vote and eight abstentions, put the student government on board with the notion that MSU will finally give the same rights to student domestic partners that married students enjoy. RHA is the first MSU student government to openly support equal rights for the university's committed couples from the lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender community.
The letter to the editor that Kyle Munro submitted suggesting the decorations placed on university dormitories suffers from a rather naive understanding of Christmas ("Hall decorations promote Christmas" SN 11/21). I do agree that Christmas certainly originated as a religious holiday, and that many people still hold it to be a religious holiday, but it is certainly false that the modern celebration of the holiday necessitates a religious practice. In modern American culture, Christmas has become so secularized that one need not be Christian to celebrate it.
MSU's already severely troubled financial times are likely to get worse thanks to one of its most distinguished alumni.
"When angry, count to 10," Mark Twain wrote. "When very angry, swear." I thought it best to do both; as anyone who's been around me can confirm, I've done quite a lot of swearing in the past couple of weeks.
East Lansing residents might no longer have to worry about guns and knives at their city buildings; parks and recreational facilities, but the city council ban on weapons Tuesday will not necessarily create a perpetually "safe place." While the ban will protect some areas from concealed weapons, it is important to note that guns and knives are not always the tools of violence. In many cases where people have been hurt at recreational and sporting events, few of the injuries have been linked to gunshot wounds or stabbings.
I do not mind much that guns were banned in East Lansing-owned buildings Tuesday. Those are places frequented by police officers and not usually criminal targets. But for people who wanted to ban guns all over East Lansing, let me tell you a little story. The East Lansing City Council banned its residents and visitors from having legal firearms all over the city.
On Nov. 20, some people now take time to reflect on National Transgender Remembrance Day. I expect the majority of people reading this have no idea that such a day existed, or what exactly there is to remember. Let me give you a peek into my head and show you what I remember. I go back a month or so to Oct.
Gnome for hire. As a student who helps fund MSU's undergraduate student government, I'm shocked (although not surprised) at the lack of responsibility inside ASMSU. Rather than spend the time to search for the licenses that the organization already presumably owns, the representatives and leaders voted to purchase them again. I would like to volunteer my services to ASMSU to search through its records of past purchases for these lost licenses. I do not require payment for the searching, but should I find the lost licenses, I'd appreciate a finder's fee of $200 to donate to one of the campus groups that are otherwise losing out on this money. The students of MSU need to realize their elected student leaders are not doing their jobs and demand an explanation as to why the students need to pay for an administrative error that could be solved with a determined effort. Fred Sharp mechanical engineering senior
In response to Kevin Hardy's column "Pay attention to sporting events, don't be that guy" (SN 11/18), I have three words for him: Get a life. I was part of the group of fans the headline and commentary was directed toward, and I have to say Hardy's opinion was perhaps the most pathetic thing I've heard out of an MSU fan in ages. We were being ironic, get it?
The spirit of the late 1960s and early 1970s is in full swing at MSU these days. Student groups across campus are evoking the essence of that era by organizing anti-war protests and teach-ins to promote peace and voice opposition to a possible war in Iraq. Leaders of the MSU group Students for Peace and Justice held a teach-in Wednesday in Giltner Hall to allow students to discuss why they oppose a war in Iraq. Speakers from several other MSU student groups, including Direct Action, Students for Economic Justice and Students for Palestinian Rights also discussed issues surrounding a pre-emptive strike on Iraq, economic sanctions on the country, U.N.
I have been walking around campus lately, only to notice the recent additions to the residence halls.
In response to the editorial "'No new taxes'" (SN 11/18) against Eco's initiative to ask for a $5 tax on tuition to make this campus and world a better place, Eco already has looked into other avenues to get funding. The truth is, if we let a board decide when, and if, it will have enough money, my grandchildren will be going to this school. Students spend $5 a day just on coffee and pop.
After reading the editorial "No new taxes" (SN 11/18), it became clear to me that The State News doesn't view social responsibility as much of a priority as say football or parking issues seem to be.
Wanted: One village of gnomes to search for the lost software licenses the undergraduate student government couldn't keep track of.
I'm irritated. For the past few weeks, some minority student groups on campus have been targeting The State News for a lack of coverage of their events and issues. On Nov.
With some concern, I read the recent articles about Trustee Randall Pittman. I have been acquainted with Pittman for a long time, extending well beyond his service on MSU's Board of Trustees.
In the light of all the violence in our society, especially after our sporting events, I fail to see why The State News would run reviews explaining and depicting the graphic nature of Xbox video games, such as "Deathrow" ("'Deathrow' offers combination of distractions with fighting, sports" SN 11/19). This game speaks of breaking bones, beating people to a pulp, threats and profanity, ramming knees into faces - all of this at slow motion for special effects.