Wednesday, January 7, 2026

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Editorials

COMMENTARY

Killer approval

The Food and Drug Administration has an enormous responsibility to protect consumers. It reviews new drugs and has the authority to pull drugs that could harm people from the market . But the FDA might not be living up to the standards necessary to protect consumers. According to a study by the Government Accountability Office, an investigative branch of Congress, the FDA is sometimes not quick enough in responding to safety issues in drugs on the market. The study also claims the FDA lacks an effective process for making decisions about and providing management oversight of safety issues for drugs on the market. The report was requested by Congress after the FDA was criticized for not acting more quickly on the drug Vioxx, which has been shown to increase the rate of strokes and heart attacks after long-term use. The report also states Congress needs to give the FDA the authority to make drug companies conduct studies of drugs on the market when additional data is needed. The relationship between people and the medications they take is such an important and intricate one that the FDA needs to be involved with. The FDA is under pressure from drug companies that want to release their drugs, which could benefit people and make a lot of money. The FDA is also under the public's pressure to get drugs that could help people out on the market. In that rush, drugs can make it into stores and people's medicine cabinets quickly. That's why it's important for the FDA to act as quickly as it can to investigate serious drug complications. It needs to carefully monitor the effects of drugs it's approving for the market. It should also have the authority to make drug companies conduct studies on drugs on the market if there have been reports of dangerous side effects. Drug companies have the responsibility to make sure the drugs they are making and selling are as safe as possible. It's the FDA's job to monitor these companies and make sure the drugs we're bringing home aren't lethal. As consumers, we should all be making careful decisions about what drugs we put in our bodies. But the FDA needs to make sure it's making sure these drugs are safe in the first place.

COMMENTARY

Please don't freak out

Breathe. It's almost over. A smooth transition into sweet summer days is just around the corner — that is, if you're prepared for finals week. Flowers are popping up all over campus.

COMMENTARY

Going global

The U.S. government has created a new and extensive plan to combat global terrorism. The plan, which has been approved by Defense Secretary Donald H.

COMMENTARY

The big picture of news

It can be easy to feel like the war America is currently involved in is far away. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to gain a better understanding of the conflict. For most of us, the war in Iraq doesn't drastically affect our daily lives.

COMMENTARY

Not so clear-cut

For transgender individuals, choosing which bathroom to go into can be a dilemma. Do they go in the bathroom they are biologically assigned to?

COMMENTARY

OK, they're gone

The neo-Nazis drew a lot of media coverage for their visit to the Capitol this weekend. And they drew a lot of protesters too. Everything the neo-Nazis represent is despicable and backward.

COMMENTARY

Lansing's house of cards

Balancing a city budget can be a tricky process. Lansing is learning that the hard way as Mayor Virg Bernero and City Council members struggle to eliminate an $11-million budget deficit.

COMMENTARY

Not 'us vs. them'

The feud of city residents versus MSU students is one East Lansing rivalry that has nothing to do with wolverines. Although a rocky relationship between college students and East Lansing homeowners might seem accurate — it's actually not as bad as it seems. Families or individuals who choose to live and buy houses in East Lansing are undoubtedly aware of MSU and the fact that a large portion of East Lansing's population is composed of students. But having a compromising attitude from both perspectives is essential in a cooperative relationship. Students have to understand a property owner's perspective, and vice versa.

COMMENTARY

Musical chairs

ASMSU has been given the power to choose student representatives for academic committees. Now MSU's undergraduate student government needs to make sure they're using that power to increase student involvement on those committees. The MSU Board of Trustees approved the measure on April 13 to let ASMSU choose representatives to the committees, which are part of the Academic Governance system, instead of faculty.

COMMENTARY

Planning ahead

When Gov. Jennifer Granholm gave her State of the State address in January, she emphasized the role of research universities in improving Michigan's economy.

COMMENTARY

Don't be afraid of God

College students are usually more closely associated with binge drinking and cramming for exams than religion and spirituality. But a recent Harvard University Institute of Politics poll released last week, shows a majority of U.S.

COMMENTARY

Speak your mind

East Lansing's City Council is looking for student input on some unlikely topics. It wants to know what you think about parties, noise and drinking. A public hearing will be held today at 7:30 p.m.

COMMENTARY

Current stalemate

Something fishy is going on around MSU lately, and it's not just the salmon the MSU Board of Trustees enjoyed Wednesday night. Last week the board shut out the public from its dinner inside Cowles House — again. This is happening despite the fact that some First Amendment lawyers have questioned the board's reasoning for closing its meetings. And the official incident report of a February assault in Hubbard Hall is apparently not a matter for the public either.

COMMENTARY

Save your energy

Even as everyday technologies get more complex and demand more power, boosting energy conservation can be easy. Ah, the olden days.

COMMENTARY

Shhh it's a secret

Secrecy in the United States government has always been a problem. From The Pentagon Papers — documents former President Richard Nixon tried to stop The New York Times from publishing — to domestic wiretapping under President George W.

COMMENTARY

Who's Facebooking you?

You know those slightly embarrassing photos of you on your 21st birthday on Facebook.com? Or the raunchy comments a friend posted on your wall? Whatever you have on your Facebook profile, remember that your friends aren't the only ones that could be looking at it. MSU administrators, professors and police can also access the Web site as long as they have an e-mail address that ends in ".edu." It's also possible students could get into legal trouble for stuff they put on Facebook. In 2004, some students in Case Hall were arrested for underage drinking.

COMMENTARY

Breaking silence

More than women are needed to spread sexual assault awareness. In part of celebrating Sexual Assault Awareness Month, on Tuesday the daylong ceremony Take Back the Night was held.

COMMENTARY

Light up for your right

Dorm dwellers and smokers beware — survey says you might have to light up on the street. After the Residence Halls Association's attempt at surveying students about smoking earlier this year, University Housing is stepping into the debate. But can a public university really ban smokers from smoking in their own homes? Earlier this year, the Residence Halls Association, or RHA, conducted a smoking survey which 1,120 students responded to.