COMMENTARY

Wrong values

Supremacy organizations are getting fresh blood in their ranks, researchers say. A study conducted by a faith-based organization in Chicago revealed that during the last year in the Midwestern states, 33 percent of the 338 white supremacist groups actively recruit young people, 10 percent higher than in 1999. There is nothing wrong with taking pride in one’s race or heritage, whether it be black, white, Asian, Indian or anything else.

COMMENTARY

Restore security

The task of freeing Kabul of Taliban rule may have come to a close, but a new, more urgent task must now begin - the establishment of a fair and stable government to represent the people of Afghanistan.As Taliban forces retreated early Tuesday morning, northern alliance troops made their way into the city without dispute.

COMMENTARY

24 lessons in 24 years, Rishi looks back

I promise this will be my last column about my recent birthday. Read this, and you will never have to read anything more about it.

COMMENTARY

Izzo earns salary through attention

In response to people’s accusations that men’s basketball head coach Tom Izzo’s pay raise is unnecessary (“Izzo paid too much during tough times,” SN 11/12), it is obvious this person and many others do not understand how important Tom Izzo is to this university. You don’t have to be a basketball fan to appreciate this or even reap his benefits.

COMMENTARY

Salary for coach not appropriate

The announcement by MSU that it will reward its basketball coach millions in compensation not only insults those of us who value merit over celebrity, but reveals how those who operate our universities have ignored their core educational missions. The idea of rewarding a coach for the marketing ability to recruit selfish and pampered athletes is truly insane.

COMMENTARY

No shows

ASMSU’s touted need for better student interaction with the MSU Board of Trustees has never been more clearly illustrated.The Board of Trustees was invited by the university’s undergraduate student government to a forum Wednesday night to discuss the potential of a voting student on the board.

COMMENTARY

Williams nice guy, but not good coach

Two years ago, I can distinctly remember watching the evening news and seeing most of the Spartan football squad at MSU President M.

COMMENTARY

Keeping international students from studying in U.S. wrong solution

The Gleaner from Henderson, Ky., on its editorial page proclaimed, “Clamp down on foreign visitors... Make sure that foreign visitors leave when they are supposed to leave... Make sure that they do what they say they are going to do, such as study in our universities.” From these comments, one could quickly move to a belief that we should no longer allow any international students to enter our beloved land.

COMMENTARY

Protect our kids

Another sorrowful school shooting this week in Michigan underscores the need for greater responsibility with guns, and in the way we care for our children.A 17-year-old student carrying a .22-caliber rifle and 20-gauge shotgun took a teacher and classmate hostage for hours Monday before releasing them and killing himself at The Caro Learning Center, about 75 miles north of Detroit.Authorities have not revealed how the student got the guns, but the issue of gun control and accessibility lies only on the fringe of this issue.It’s obvious we need better ways of limiting access to firearms and restricting the way a child can use them.

COMMENTARY

Economics lesson needed for SN

Missing from The State News editorial (“Balancing act,” SN 11/8) was an understanding of economics. I find it very hard to grasp how The State News could find it wrong for the largest cuts in the state’s budget to come from the Department of Corrections.

COMMENTARY

Race discrimination felt around world

I am writing in response to the letter about the Meridian Mall case (“Meridian Mall case gets too much play,” SN 11/7). Unfortunately, I disagree with the student’s views. I believe we are all aware of the attacks on the United States and that professional news organizations outside of MSU have done an exceptional job of keeping us abreast of the latest facts.

COMMENTARY

Bombs away

President Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin have put together a positive agreement to reduce the nuclear stockpiles of their two nations.During the next decade, the United States will reduce its arsenal of strategic nuclear warheads from an inventory of about 7,000 to between 1,700 and 2,000.

COMMENTARY

Tuition tax credit should be repealed

It’s tough enough paying for school as a student. Students rack up thousands in debt because most 18- to 22-year-olds just don’t have $40,000 set aside for their education. But Michigan’s tuition tax credit has caused unprecedented tuition increases and jeopardized the quality of education students like me struggle to afford. This year is the first year that MSU is unable to continue its tuition guarantee, which promised to keep tuition increases at or below the projected rate of inflation.

COMMENTARY

Parents give thanks for community help

On Nov. 5, fire destroyed the house where our daughter Jen Taylor, a theater graduate student, and three other theater students lived.

COMMENTARY

Fear of flying

When American Airlines Flight 587 crashed shortly after takeoff from John F. Kennedy International Airport into a neighboring Queens suburb Tuesday, Americans’ fear of flying undoubtedly grew.Many now expect the worst.

COMMENTARY

Dumbest proposal to raze old dorms

When is our school going to start appreciating its past? That the university would even mention demolition of any part of the West Circle dorms with a straight face, is deeply disturbing (“Trustees aim to form clearer vision of ‘U’ dorms’ future,” SN 11/9). The fact that the halls haven’t already been designated national or state historic landmarks and therefore, beyond the wrecking ball, is also troubling. These gracefully landscaped, ivy-covered gothic buildings are, as a group, the most aesthetic on the nation’s most scenic campus.

COMMENTARY

Racial profiling used by area police

In the four years we have attended MSU, it has become obvious the law enforcement at MSU and in East Lansing is racially biased.

COMMENTARY

By the numbers

After the election of 2000, Chad and his dimples were the most talked about subject for months - they did everything from tie up the Florida legal system to hold off the results of the presidential election. But because of Chad, the nation saw firsthand what kind of problems were inherent in our voting system. It was a hassle for everybody, since everyone wanted to know the identity of our president, whether it be then-Vice President Al Gore or then-Texas Gov.

COMMENTARY

Recycling holiday in U.S. means little

In only two days, we will all be subjected to America Recycles Day, a 1-year-old holiday that’s even more pitiful than Sweetest Day. People recycle.

COMMENTARY

Taping necessary with riot history

It is amazing how the way a phrase is turned can influence perception. In your editorial regarding police videotaping of student activities (“Candid cameras,” SN 11/9), you call what happened in the Cedar Village area after the National Championship win a “celebration.” What an interesting term for a riot.