COMMENTARY

Fessing up

There is something the phrases "flawed intelligence" and "the Bush administration" have in common.

COMMENTARY

Don't bet on it

Senators, representatives and the general public were right to be shocked and outraged upon learning of the Pentagon's plan to arrange a futures market dealing in terrorism. The brainchild of John Poindexter and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency would have allowed investors to basically place bets on acts of terrorism, including bombings, assassinations and coups in the Middle East.

COMMENTARY

'U' athletics over academics wrong

This letter is in response to James Bounds' letter "Athletics not cause for funds decrease" (SN 7/21), which was a reply to my original letter "Academics should get priority at 'U'" (SN 7/17). Apparently Bounds missed my point.

COMMENTARY

Student, teacher relationship beneficial, influential to both

Education is an extremely powerful experience, not just for the ones learning but also for the ones that are seemingly doing all the teaching.

COMMENTARY

Ill-spirited policy

It has been nearly 20 years since religious study majors received state-funded scholarships, but that practice might soon be ending. State lawmakers are finally working toward allowing religious study majors to secure their deserved amount of money, and it's about time. It is discriminatory to deny someone funding because of his or her collegiate choice of study.

COMMENTARY

Drug issue begins with Washington

In reply to your editorial on the prescription drug bill, "Balancing act" (SN 7/28), it is to easy to say import prescription drugs from other countries so Americans pay less. There are many factors that apathetic U.S.

COMMENTARY

Dems should end WMD accusations

George W. Bush lied to the American people about the war by claiming there was intelligence that really didn't exist.

COMMENTARY

Cleaning house

The Theta Delta Chi fraternity house is being fixed up by current members and alumni after it was found in disrepair in early July by East Lansing housing inspectors. It's good to see those associated with the fraternity start to clean up their act, but the repairs should have been done when things started to fall apart and before the inspectors showed up on their doorstep. Unfortunately, being in college, we no longer have our parents to clean up after us.

COMMENTARY

Disconnected

Telemarketers should find doing their jobs to be a hang up, as the federal government should be allowed to help protect the privacy of those who don't want their telephones ringing off the hook. Telemarketing companies are challenging the government's do-not-call list by suing it over the blockage, arguing it will lead the loss of 2 million jobs - a devastation to the industry. The Federal Trade Commission operates the service.

COMMENTARY

Bike impoundment service necessary

Well, it is that time of year again. The time of year when individuals cannot follow rules and instead point fingers at those who are doing their job.

COMMENTARY

Celebrity doesn't excuse husbands' adulterous ways

Last week, I found myself awake at 3 a.m. flipping through the channels to see if anything remotely interesting was on, besides from infomercials, when I came across the ESPN show "Outside the Lines." The topic of the show was the alleged Kobe Bryant sexual assault incident.

COMMENTARY

Rape victims often treated unfairly

As a former rape counselor, I have a few comments I wanted to add to the story "Student not sexually assaulted, filed false police report" (SN 7/28). One source in the story (Olin Health educator Dennis Martell) said people might falsely report a rape because they regret having sex, or "for attention." Given the kind of attention rape survivors receive, I suspect that's rare. Rape survivors are often blamed for being raped in the first place, as people demand to know, "What were you drinking?" or "Why were you walking alone?" Many times, they aren't believed at all, even by friends and family. Another reason I've heard for falsely reporting a sexual assault is to get back at a boy.

COMMENTARY

Columnist pulls wool over readers eyes

In his column "Time to expose president's lies about war in Iraq is now" (SN 7/24), Farhan Bhatti is merely attempting to do to the readers of this newspaper what he so vigorously chastises the Bush administration for doing - pulling the wool over our eyes.

COMMENTARY

Balancing act

Michigan lawmakers are teaming up in an effort to make prescription drugs more affordable - a hard subject to tackle with no clear-cut solution.But as a step in the right direction the U.S.

COMMENTARY

False Insecurities

Many people in the East Lansing community were outraged last week to hear a 19-year-old female MSU student reported she was sexually assaulted while walking to her car.This week people might be just as outraged to find out she lied about the whole incident.The woman has now admitted that she was never assaulted.

COMMENTARY

Adulthood is responsibility

During a conversation with a colleague the other day, the issue of adulthood was raised. When does the moment of adulthood arrive? Is it a magic moment that bursts upon its recipient with fanfare and wonder?

COMMENTARY

Real world riches don't start on top, work hard from bottom

Americans, probably more so than any other culture, appreciate the pricier things in life. Robin Leech became a pop culture icon as host of the 1980s show "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." Today, MTV impresses our youth with "Cribs." In the land of champagne wishes and caviar dreams, everyone wants to be the next rags-to-riches story.

COMMENTARY

Time to expose president's lies about war in Iraq is now

It seems as if another president is guilty of lying to the American people - except this time, American lives were involved. In the months leading up to the war with Iraq, President Bush sold the American people on the idea that Iraq posed "an imminent threat to the security of our country" and that Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction and was ready to use them.

COMMENTARY

Silly sentence

The nuns who broke into a Colorado missile silo and poured their blood onto the silo, covering a 300-kiloton high-alert nuclear missile, could face six to nine years in prison.

COMMENTARY

Smith is deserving of Breslin statue

After reading the article about Steve Smith ("Former 'U' star chairs project," SN 7/21) and his contributions to our university, it made me think about a previous article I have read this year in The State News.