Tuesday, April 14, 2026

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Opinion | 1000

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COMMENTARY

ASMSU wants state to honor its deal

Last week, ASMSU's Academic Assembly unanimously passed a resolution to urge the governor and the Legislature to keep the promise they made not only to MSU but other universities around the state for zero decreases in appropriations in exchange for increases in tuition no higher than 8.5 percent. To better prepare for the budget cycle, ASMSU has convened a board of students to familiarize themselves with the budget process of the university, the appropriations process at the Capitol and the impact of executive orders on students at MSU. The administration has not only been open, but helpful to the board of students, as they learn the complexities involved in creating a budget for a university the size of MSU.

COMMENTARY

Gun control needed, not unconstitutional

This is in response to the letter to the editor "Weapon bans run dangerous risks" (SN 11/21). The author clearly does not understand the role of firearms in our society and our need for less violence in our lives.

COMMENTARY

Censorship doesn't promote tolerance

I am writing in response to the recent letters to the editor about campus holiday decorations. I've never understood how religious tolerance can be interpreted to mean keeping religion hidden from public sight and censoring religious expressions.

COMMENTARY

Beneficial rights

On Wednesday, student leaders began what could be the start of the push that is needed for MSU to join four other Big Ten schools by honoring same-sex partner benefits for students, and it's about time. The decision made by the Residence Halls Association, with 29-0 vote and eight abstentions, put the student government on board with the notion that MSU will finally give the same rights to student domestic partners that married students enjoy. RHA is the first MSU student government to openly support equal rights for the university's committed couples from the lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender community.

COMMENTARY

Christmas is more culture than religion

The letter to the editor that Kyle Munro submitted suggesting the decorations placed on university dormitories suffers from a rather naive understanding of Christmas ("Hall decorations promote Christmas" SN 11/21). I do agree that Christmas certainly originated as a religious holiday, and that many people still hold it to be a religious holiday, but it is certainly false that the modern celebration of the holiday necessitates a religious practice. In modern American culture, Christmas has become so secularized that one need not be Christian to celebrate it.

COMMENTARY

Bank buster

MSU's already severely troubled financial times are likely to get worse thanks to one of its most distinguished alumni.

COMMENTARY

Safety zone

East Lansing residents might no longer have to worry about guns and knives at their city buildings; parks and recreational facilities, but the city council ban on weapons Tuesday will not necessarily create a perpetually "safe place." While the ban will protect some areas from concealed weapons, it is important to note that guns and knives are not always the tools of violence. In many cases where people have been hurt at recreational and sporting events, few of the injuries have been linked to gunshot wounds or stabbings.

COMMENTARY

Weapon bans run dangerous risks

I do not mind much that guns were banned in East Lansing-owned buildings Tuesday. Those are places frequented by police officers and not usually criminal targets. But for people who wanted to ban guns all over East Lansing, let me tell you a little story. The East Lansing City Council banned its residents and visitors from having legal firearms all over the city.

COMMENTARY

Day offers time for remembrance, reflection on life's struggles

On Nov. 20, some people now take time to reflect on National Transgender Remembrance Day. I expect the majority of people reading this have no idea that such a day existed, or what exactly there is to remember. Let me give you a peek into my head and show you what I remember. I go back a month or so to Oct.

COMMENTARY

Taxpayer willing to be ASMSU's 'gnome'

Gnome for hire. As a student who helps fund MSU's undergraduate student government, I'm shocked (although not surprised) at the lack of responsibility inside ASMSU. Rather than spend the time to search for the licenses that the organization already presumably owns, the representatives and leaders voted to purchase them again. I would like to volunteer my services to ASMSU to search through its records of past purchases for these lost licenses. I do not require payment for the searching, but should I find the lost licenses, I'd appreciate a finder's fee of $200 to donate to one of the campus groups that are otherwise losing out on this money. The students of MSU need to realize their elected student leaders are not doing their jobs and demand an explanation as to why the students need to pay for an administrative error that could be solved with a determined effort. Fred Sharp mechanical engineering senior

COMMENTARY

'That guy' has some words for columnist

In response to Kevin Hardy's column "Pay attention to sporting events, don't be that guy" (SN 11/18), I have three words for him: Get a life. I was part of the group of fans the headline and commentary was directed toward, and I have to say Hardy's opinion was perhaps the most pathetic thing I've heard out of an MSU fan in ages. We were being ironic, get it?

COMMENTARY

Student leaders

The spirit of the late 1960s and early 1970s is in full swing at MSU these days. Student groups across campus are evoking the essence of that era by organizing anti-war protests and teach-ins to promote peace and voice opposition to a possible war in Iraq. Leaders of the MSU group Students for Peace and Justice held a teach-in Wednesday in Giltner Hall to allow students to discuss why they oppose a war in Iraq. Speakers from several other MSU student groups, including Direct Action, Students for Economic Justice and Students for Palestinian Rights also discussed issues surrounding a pre-emptive strike on Iraq, economic sanctions on the country, U.N.

COMMENTARY

Students, not board, should take up tax

In response to the editorial "'No new taxes'" (SN 11/18) against Eco's initiative to ask for a $5 tax on tuition to make this campus and world a better place, Eco already has looked into other avenues to get funding. The truth is, if we let a board decide when, and if, it will have enough money, my grandchildren will be going to this school. Students spend $5 a day just on coffee and pop.

COMMENTARY

Paper staff shows little care for Earth

After reading the editorial "No new taxes" (SN 11/18), it became clear to me that The State News doesn't view social responsibility as much of a priority as say football or parking issues seem to be.