COMMENTARY

No respect

This is the true story of MSU College Republicans and a group of pro-affirmative action activists, picked to share a room at the Union to find out what happens when people stop being polite and start getting rude. In a move that overstepped reasonable discourse and essentially spat on manners and maturity, about 25 pro-affirmative action protesters - from campus groups, other Michigan universities and the Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action and Integration and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary, or BAMN - disrupted a meeting of the College Republicans on Wednesday night. They jeered guest speaker Barbara Grutter and the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative to the extent that MSU police were dispatched to disperse the crowd. Grutter, a plaintiff in the Supreme Court case against the University of Michigan Law School's racial-preference practices, is a supporter of the Michigan Civil Rights Initiative, an organization seeking to ban racial preferences by means of a state constitutional amendment.

COMMENTARY

Uneasy comfort

Pap smear. Period. Stirrups. Speculum. Vagina. These words should be a part of society's everyday discussions on women's health, but sadly, most Americans - men, you're included - don't feel comfortable talking about what goes on down there. This week, The State News looked at some of the biggest health and sexuality issues concerning women, including diets, body image, emergency contraceptives, pleasure, sexuality and sexual health.

COMMENTARY

Slam dunk

For the record, The State News always has had a powerfully sound belief that Chris Hill actually could dunk.

COMMENTARY

Hate to do it

With rebel violence escalating in Haiti, U.S. officials are expecting refugees fleeing the war-torn country to try and make the United States their sanctuary.

COMMENTARY

Deserving citizens

Ask yourself a question: How will gay marriage affect peoples' lives? If two women and two men, who are truly committed to one another, marry will people's lives alter or are they against gay marriage because the issue just makes them uncomfortable? Today, the most commonly cited reason for outlawing same-sex marriage is the desire to protect the American family.

COMMENTARY

Reclaim faith

Across the globe today, Christians are observing Ash Wednesday, the first day of the Lenten season of abstinence from temptation.

COMMENTARY

Application action

The Ohio State University and the University of Michigan might be less diverse places to go to school when the fall semester rolls around.

COMMENTARY

Born leaders

In "Kindergarten Cop," California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger wanted to know, "Who is your daddy, and what does he do?" Arnie's children can say without a trace of satire that their Austrian-born, Predator-hunting father is, in fact, the governor of the Golden State.

COMMENTARY

Not again, Nader

Go home, Ralph Nader. This might sound blunt, it might be mean, but it's exactly what most Democrats were thinking Sunday morning when environmental activist and consumer advocate Nader announced he was running for president as an independent.

COMMENTARY

Stop it

Mahatma Gahndi once wrote, "An eye for an eye and soon the world will be blind." Vengeance is an inescapable aspect of the human psyche.

COMMENTARY

Slow down

Two weeks is the perfect amount of time to do a lot of things. Wimbledon, a long vacation, even a two-week seminar on something.

COMMENTARY

Why west?

If you're going to move one of MSU's strongest colleges out of Mid-Michigan to Grand Rapids, it has to be for a better reason than the one MSU spokesman Terry Denbow gave - "We can't define what the move is." And if one of the university's top officials doesn't even know the reason why, wouldn't it make more sense to wait and announce such a move once the position can be defended? Since the beginning of the semester, discussions have been held regarding a potential move of the College of Human Medicine to Grand Rapids.

COMMENTARY

Sensible move

What does the average MSU student miss most about dormitory life? The curtailed freedoms? The inebriated sign-ins, followed by next-day disbelief and remorse about who was "signed in"? Perhaps the waffle machine? In a roundabout way, the average off-campus dweller or squatter misses all of those.

COMMENTARY

Fire away

If you've ever wanted to ask President M. Peter McPherson a question, here's your chance. No topic is off-limits.

COMMENTARY

Endorse 'em

Here's a quick exercise to keep your mind sharp if you're reading this between classes. If you're reading this elsewhere, play along. Name the words that comprise the acronym "ASMSU." Congratulations if you even know what ASMSU is.

COMMENTARY

Modem love

Dating just isn't what it used to be. The art of meeting face to face has been replaced by the virtual world of the Internet.

COMMENTARY

Just a buck

You can't get much for $1 any more. Fast food seems to be getting more expensive by the minute.

COMMENTARY

Crass cash

Not everyone can laugh at the state of race relations in America. White, black, whatever. Some people have a problem with a serious topic like racism and stereotyping being mocked.

COMMENTARY

Subpoena this

When the words "partial," "birth" and "abortion" sequentially pop up in daily chatter, most of us reach for the special 10-foot pole we keep on reserve for just such a topic. Most of us realize that opinions and beliefs should, in some cases, be kept private, at least for the sake of personal safety and not being the target of an angry mob with pitchforks and torches.

COMMENTARY

Careless Costume

Shaking it like a Polaroid picture at the Grammy Awards has turned sour for OutKast and CBS. The final act of Sunday's Grammy telecast featured OutKast's Andre "3000" Benjamin singing "Hey Ya!" while he and other dancers moved around a green tepee while wearing war paint, feathers and fringe.