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COMMENTARY

Non-Muslims should be angry about letter

I am glad The State News reported on the prejudiced e-mail, "Prof's e-mail angers Muslims" (SN 4/25), against Muslims by MSU Professor Indrek Wichman to the Muslim Students' Association, or MSA. At the same time, I am a little disappointed by the heading given to the article, which indicates anger among Muslim students, although it should state anger among MSU students. Here are some reasons why we all should respond to it equally: If Nazis stage a congregation at the Capitol and 800 anti-Nazi demonstrators can gather, why can't several Muslims express their feelings about something they think is blasphemous by gathering at the rock and painting it? Apart from worrying about timing when registering for our classes, should we start looking at professors' "religious understanding" ratings as well? I have never felt any sort of discrimination by any faculty member at MSU, but should I start worrying about my grades in IAH class because I am affiliated with a certain religious group?

COMMENTARY

Press 'start,' learn

Remember those educational computer games you played in elementary school? Maybe you used "Mario Teaches Typing" to learn how to speed through school work and type faster. Even if you occasionally lost the game, chances are you enjoyed the process more than taking a regular class. With the theory that we can learn a lot through games, MSU and China Central Radio and Television University in Beijing is creating an online video game environment to teach students Chinese language and culture. It's all part of MSU's partnership with the Chinese government to create the MSU Confucius Institute, which will teach MSU students Mandarin Chinese online. Because of China's growing population and expanding global role, it's becoming important for students to learn Chinese. Students in China are undoubtedly learning English, and we need to keep up with languages that more people will be speaking. And for generations of students who have grown up with computers and are proficient with the Internet, integrating learning a language and playing computer games could help students struggling to grasp the language. The game allows students to navigate through Chinese culture, learning to interact with others who speak the language. If it allows students to learn at their own pace and level, it could help people who aren't grasping the material in traditional settings. It has to hold their attention and make trying to speak a different language seem fun. Although the game seems like it could be an interesting way to learn a new language, it shouldn't completely erase traditional forms of learning languages. Half the fun of learning a new language is getting to interact face-to-face with other people and speak to them, all while learning about the culture. A game shouldn't replace speaking with actual people, and to be effective, the game should be coupled with actual teaching. But for those who reveled in educational games like "Oregon Trail" as a child, this could be a big hit. Play on.

COMMENTARY

SN coverage overly sympathetic to Nazi cause; harms community

Lansing Coalition Against Nazis, or LCAN, was disgusted at The State News' front page profile of the National Socialist Movement entitled "The mind of the modern Nazi" (SN 4/20). The article and the accompanying photograph were completely sympathetic to the National Socialist Movements', or NSM, message of white supremacy, hate, intimidation and violence. We recognize The State News is interested in publishing thought-provoking, relevant, unbiased articles, but "The mind of a modern Nazi" was none of these.

COMMENTARY

Academic Governance faces new challenges next year

For MSU Academic Governance system, the 2005-2006 academic year was a good year. Day-to-day operations of university-level standing committees have continued to effectively deal with the issues mandated in bylaws for each standing committee — the governance Web site, www.msu.edu/unit/acadgov, enumerates these bylaws, and links to chronicles of standing committee actions, as well as listing other information about governance. In addition, in 2005-2006 governance has dealt with a number of global issues: the liberal learning core of undergraduate education, possible expansion of the MSU College of Human Medicine to Grand Rapids and reforms for the processes and structure of the Academic Governance system.

COMMENTARY

Gas crackdown

President Bush is finally getting the message that gas is too expensive and people are concerned about spending more per gallon. In an effort to show people he is concerned with something Americans have been worried about for months, Bush announced Tuesday a slew of new proposals to help lower the price of gas.

COMMENTARY

Poor choice, professor

Shame on you, Indrek Wichman. Come on, you didn't really send an offensive e-mail to a prominent student organization with the notion that it was going to be kept private — did you? Well, you're saying you did, but that was a pretty irresponsible move for an MSU professor. Seriously. The Muslim Students' Association received an e-mail Feb.

COMMENTARY

Pro-choice rhetoric ruins SN credibility

Mike Ramsey's cartoon (SN 4/18) is just a crass attack by a pro-choice advocate to make people think someone with a pro-life stance doesn't care about women's health. But what about the physical risks of abortion to a woman, let alone the emotional trauma? A Johns Hopkins University study showed that infections occurred in 5.2 percent of first trimester abortions and in 18.5 percent of mid-trimester abortions (and these numbers were taken at a prestigious medical center, not your run-of-the-mill abortion clinic which provides far inferior care). These infections, as well as hemorrhaging and uterine perforation (which the abortion procedure can cause), can be fatal to the woman. The emotional trauma of abortion occurs quite frequently as well. Post Abortion Syndrome, or PAS, considered a form of post-traumatic stress disorder, is widely prevalent but with varying symptoms in women who have had abortions.

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

Atheists, agnostics not treated fairly

Whenever I profess that I'm not religious to a new friend, I have a twinge of stress. The reaction I usually get is "how can you live like that?" but there are far more pretentious responses I have received, such as "have you ever heard of don't ask, don't tell?" Since when did not being religious become a huge stigmatization?

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

Change in E.L. parking policy might hurt students who don't know

Anyone who drives a car and lives in East Lansing knows how difficult it can be to find a place to park in this city. Especially in the neighborhoods. A colleague of mine recently reminded me of how hard parking can be and how the city often makes it a lot harder. He had a friend staying over at his house and wanted to call the East Lansing Police Department to have his friend's license plate number put on a list so he could park his car in the street and not get a ticket. It was something he had done before and was surprised to find out that he couldn't. I called East Lansing police Capt.

COMMENTARY

Skateboarding given inaccurate labels

In the past few weeks, my friends and I have been scolded, reprimanded and harassed for doing the one thing I love the most: skateboarding. In each case, both on and off campus, we are treated as children and criminals at the same time. Police officers rarely have the respect to get out of their vehicles when talking to us, and drunkards in downtown East Lansing continually shout, "Do a 900!" from a distance.

COMMENTARY

Attacks on Christians untrue, blasphemous

I can't say that I have ever had the displeasure of reading a column by John Bice, but I can say that I am thankful I will never have to again. I was perturbed, and downright outraged, at his column "Criticism warranted when any group forces its beliefs on others" (SN 4/17). If Bice had been raised Christian and was a true follower, he would understand that sharing one's faith is a basic tenant of Christianity. Christians do have the "intention of pushing their faith-based values on others." We are taught that not sharing your faith is like wasting a gift, one that everyone is entitled to and needs to know about.

COMMENTARY

Islam doctrine should be modernized with 'Enlightenment' ideas

In the fall of 2002, I wrote my first State News opinion column, "Religious majority doesn't understand atheist views" (SN 11/26/02). The lack of unapologetically secular and atheist perspectives in the mainstream press, especially at a time of increasing religious fundamentalism, motivated me to write. I'm appreciative to The State News for allowing me to articulate a minority and largely unwelcome viewpoint.