Tuesday, January 6, 2026

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Editorials

COMMENTARY

Foot baths not mix of church, state

The construction came after Muslim students and visitors resorted to using sinks in public restrooms to wash their feet. Those using the sinks were at risk of slipping on wet bathroom floors and hurting themselves, students and faculty complained about sanitation issues and the bathroom facilities themselves endured more wear and tear, in part from years of washings.

COMMENTARY

Obama has valid point on terrorism

The Illinois Democrat said in an address Wednesday the U.S. should focus its military toward Islamic extremism, wherever that may be, and pledged to send U.S. forces to eradicate terrorist camps in Pakistan if Gen. Pervez Musharraf, the Pakistani president, didn’t take action.

COMMENTARY

Perks for coaches a standard practice

Many students are up in arms about the extravagant benefits provided for coaches of revenue sports at MSU. It's understandable - men's basketball head coach Tom Izzo makes $2.06 million per year, not including the Lexus, Chevrolet Tahoe and country club membership MSU grants him. Along with Izzo, new head football coach Mark Dantonio, men's ice hockey head coach Rick Comley, new women's basketball head coach Suzy Merchant and athletics director Ron Mason all receive memberships to a local country club and the Michigan Athletic Club. These coaches work for "revenue sports," MSU spokesman Terry Denbow said, and their club memberships come with an obligation to schmooze with affluent community members. And while many people receive rights to one company car through their job, high-level coaches at MSU receive two - one foreign vehicle and one domestic.

COMMENTARY

Murky future for Wall Street Journal

Rupert Murdoch's recent acquisition of Dow Jones & Co. marks a scary time for the nation and for the distribution of information as a whole. The Wall Street Journal, published by Dow Jones & Co., which is owned by the Bancroft family, is one of three remaining national, well-known, family-owned U.S.

COMMENTARY

Breaking alcohol myths a good plan

An MSU group recently received a $175,000 grant to publicize its findings regarding alcohol consumption by college students. The idea behind the group's research is that students enter college with misconceptions about their peers' drinking habits.

COMMENTARY

Change in gasoline tax unnecessary

In a state as dependent on automobiles as Michigan, the price of gas will always be an issue of large public concern. Two Michigan representatives are attempting to change the way the state taxes citizens at the pumps.

COMMENTARY

Cost of school should be same for all

Many students will soon pay more for choosing a certain major at public universities across the country. High professorial salaries in certain fields, expensive specialized equipment and waning state funding for public universities are driving some state schools to charge higher tuition to students in fields like business, engineering and journalism. Such majors focus on learning a task, and students paying more for a certain major may focus on taking classes only within that major to get their money's worth.

COMMENTARY

Focus on tests hurting U.S. students

Because of No Child Left Behind laws, schools are spending less time teaching history, science and art to focus on reading and arithmetic for annual tests. Since the 2001-02 school year, when NCLB was enacted, 44 percent of U.S.

COMMENTARY

Embezzlers deserve harsher penalty

In the third incident of its sort since 2005, MSU is investigating another embezzlement - this time, in the College of Education. MSU police are investigating an employee in the college who may have embezzled about $19,000 by making unauthorized personal charges with a department credit card.

COMMENTARY

Abstinence-only education must end

It should be common knowledge that performing the same task time after time will not garner new results. Many schools are teaching abstinence-only education in hopes of preventing teenagers from having sex. The New York Times reported last week that, despite the prominence of abstinence education, there has been no sign that teenagers are waiting to have sex.

COMMENTARY

Recalls shouldn't be used as threats

Some voters in Michigan are unhappy with the potential for tax increases they are faced with as a result of the state's struggling economy. Under current policy, voters can recall elected officials if they are unhappy with their policies, replacing them before the end of the term if enough signatures are collected. Although the move takes 25 percent of the voters from the previous election to overturn a legislator, it hasn't happened in Michigan since 1983, when two senators were recalled.

COMMENTARY

Sentencing reforms good for state

Some state offenders will spend less time behind bars if Gov. Jennifer Granholm's sentencing reforms are passed. Granholm's administration introduced a proposal to alter Michigan's sentencing laws, which would house 3,300 fewer inmates in state prisons and county jails over three years, according to the Lansing State Journal.