FEATURES

Tanning now not worth damage later

Dennis Martell

March 24, 2008

Dr. D., I thought I would contact you about a problem I’ve noticed frequently on campus when these young coeds return from spring break. The problem I speak of is their glowing red faces — that for a large part is from their “indoor suntanning” — not the natural kind. The information about how ultraviolet lights may cause melanoma is out there, but I guess they just aren’t reading or are concerned about it. Could you say something? -AP

COMMENTARY

Guest speaker to talk about terrorist mind-set, U.S. dangers

Being conservative on campus, it’s difficult to find events, groups and people that are politically similar because those who are conservative usually don’t make their opinions known.

COMMENTARY

YAF speaker poor choice, brings hate speech at MSU

I read in the Lansing State Journal on Sunday morning that MSU’s Young Americans for Freedom are again trying to stir up controversy on campus. Instead of bashing immigrants or homosexual people, they are bashing Muslims this time.

COMMENTARY

Reaction to issues in China, Tibet affects world

There’s no disputing the fact that human rights are a cause worth the fight. The hubbub occurring between China and Tibet is no exception. But in a time when everyone is doing business with China in some way, the world’s reactions to its treatment of the Tibetan people must be carefully contemplated.

COMMENTARY

How politically savvy are you?

Tom Choske

March 24, 2008

GOTV. “Get Out the Vote.” This should be familiar to members of our generation. In 2004 and 2006, campaigns such as “Vote Or Die” sought to get us off of our Xboxes and Facebook.com and into our local polling precinct. Every election cycle, celebrities and political elites get together to encourage us Generation Yers to participate in our democracy.

COMMENTARY

Sexism big part of primary season

Ever heard the one about the Hillary Special from KFC? Two fat thighs with small breasts and a left wing. Yeah, it’s funny. And not in a politically incorrect har-har kind of way. Funny as in, wow, deranged sexist morons objectifying anyone with a vagina still roam among us?

COMMENTARY

Proposal 2 unfair yet deemed constitutional

Almost two years later, Michigan is still haunted by the supposed “nondiscriminatory” constitutional amendment that, in the eyes of many, doesn’t come close to making everyone equal.

COMMENTARY

Mich. facilities need revamping

Of the many metrics by which one can estimate the health of a society, one of the more interesting approaches is to compare the amount of public money spent on corrections versus how much is spent on higher education.

COMMENTARY

Basketball tournament tickets were up for grabs

This is in response to the article Tickets in Mile High City scarce for MSU students (SN 3/20). Not only were tickets for MSU’s tournament games in Colorado available to the official team traveling party, players and coaches’ families and donors, but also to alumni and MSU students.

COMMENTARY

Media coverage of war varied but incomplete

Here we are, five years later. It was on March 19, 2003, that President Bush ordered U.S. troops to invade Iraq under the pretense that former dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime possessed weapons of mass destruction. As the years went on, so did the reports of successes and failures, bombings and casualties.

COMMENTARY

Free speech smothered, not enough ideas exchanged

Remember when college was about the free exchange of ideas and challenging pre-existing worldviews? Me neither.

COMMENTARY

Student athletes must play academic game too

If the Final Four were determined academically, things might be dramatically different, according to a new study from the University of Florida’s Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport.

COMMENTARY

Confessions of a former war critic

As many of you can probably tell by the tone of most of my columns, I do have a political bias. Yes, I’m a Democrat. In fact, I ran for office as a Democrat almost two years ago.

COMMENTARY

2nd primary not worth state's money, time

Well, well, well. Now the Democrats might need Michigan’s help. Our state and Florida — the only states punished by the Democratic National Committee for holding primaries before Feb. 5 — could be the tiebreaker for the now closely matched Democratic contenders, Sens. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., and Barack Obama, D-Ill.

COMMENTARY

Swearing, guns get attention

Fun stuff is happening in the nation’s highest court. On Tuesday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard its first Second Amendment case in about 70 years. The nine justices will decide whether a Washington, D.C., handgun ban currently in effect is constitutional. Or, simply put, whether ordinary citizens have the right to keep a handgun in their home.

COMMENTARY

Sublime's music timeless, embraces college experience

This in response to the music review by Matt Flint titled From the vault: ‘Sublime’ shouldn’t stand test of time (SN 3/17).

COMMENTARY

Neitzel, Spartans stepped up, ready for NCAA tourney

I wanted to take a minute to say thanks to Drew Neitzel for proving me wrong and playing absolutely great in the Big Ten Tournament. His passes were sharp and his shot was true, but most importantly he played with a relaxed confidence not seen all year.

COMMENTARY

Politicos must be held to highest standards

Things are looking bleak once again for ASMSU, MSU’s undergraduate student government. Nigel Scarlett, ASMSU vice chairperson for external affairs, was arrested last week and charged with third-degree criminal sexual assault.

COMMENTARY

Many countries without reliable reporting system

Imagine this. Geneva, Switzerland: Sabina and Jessica are running to catch a train. Once the girls reach the station they are bombarded by a group of eight to 10 adolescents. The boys start to harass both girls. A boy dressed in a leather coat pushes himself on top of Sabina and kisses her, but all she could do was try and push his face away. In the same instant, another kid creeps in from the side and snatches her purse. The boys start to separate the girls, making a circle around each of them, pushing and slapping them.

COMMENTARY

Labels, ads not always honest about products

Alesa Mackool

March 17, 2008

There is no cure for the common cold. This is universal knowledge. Yet when a “miracle cold buster” hit the shelves in 1999, Americans snatched it up. Throw in a cute story about a second-grade teacher who invented the product and an endorsement from Oprah Winfrey and you’ve got Airborne, the “effervescent dietary supplement” that made $151 million in 2006.