Little 500 balloon release questioned\nAs some may remember, last spring the Student Environmental Action Coalition expressed their concern about the Little 500 balloon release. Other concerned students and citizens also voiced their opinions about the negative effects of balloon releases.\nAlthough concerns were expressed too late for the Little 500 planning committee to change, we began early this year. The committee even claimed they would consider eliminating the release for this year's race. Now it is less than two weeks before the race and the plans remain the same. The committee repeatedly ignored our requests for information and discussion.\nThis lack of response to the concerns of many IU students is not only environmentally unresponsible, but also socially unacceptable. SEAC has been asked to discontinue questioning about the Little 500 balloon release. They have been told that it is a done deal.\nWell, when the balloons drift across land hundreds of miles from Bloomington it will not be a done deal. Someone or something will still pick up the remains. It is not just for good measure that such releases have been banned in all national parks. This activity harms our wildlife, rivers and oceans.\nJean Hanink\nGraduate Student
Brand hypocritical in support of athletics \nI am writing a letter in regard to the opinion column IU president Myles Brand wrote "Thanks for the ride, Hoosiers, April 5". For Brand to write a letter praising collegiate athletics is a completely hypocritical action when compared to the comments he has made and the legislation he has tried to push over the last two years. For him to want to make collegiate athletics less emphasized and then be at all four of IU's last four games while staying in expensive hotels on the University's budget should be an outrage. I understand that a university president should be supportive of anything concerning the university, but for someone to single out the basketball team for total praise after wanting to limit its presence is totally two-faced. Myles, you should stand by your stance on issues instead of skirting toward public popularity over an issue. Also, to go on the University budget to the games while we are in a budget crisis goes completely against issues you have been pleading for.\nDavid Stiasny\nSenior
Hoosiers should utilize strength by working together\nMaybe you are the one who needs to get his priorities and personal views straightened out before you criticize students for doing the same.\nAfter taking part in the gargantuan rally in support of our team, I witnessed how strong we are in numbers. Just imagine the feats we could achieve if we united more often.\nWhat if our school spirit extended to world spirit? We gather in pride as we watch our champion team stride, but why is our attention suddenly broken when there is a world crisis? For example, why can't the dropping of bombs on citizens capture as much attention as bouncing balls? I know that heavier topics are not prone to the common college chat, but just imagine if atrocities in other countries caught the eye as easily as a slam dunk. Yes. Let's unite to cheer! The energy of a collective crowd can be overwhelmingly beautiful. Can that same intense attention be diverted to the millions of people in poor countries that starve simply because their problems are overlooked? What is the antidote for the U.S.' severe case of A.D.D.? Rarely will one find a large mass of people all attentive to the same event, enjoined in a shared consciousness. The power of our united attention does not have to disband after the game is over. Let's remember our united feeling for our team and use this collective euphoric energy to change our world!\nMariel Berger\nSenior
Forward progress, not reparations \nGeorge Lyle's case for slavery reparations "Racial education needed about reparations, April 4" claims that there is "no form of payment that could ever make amends for 300 years of physical, psychological torture, but reparations would be a good start." \nReparations, as in money. Slavery in the U.S. was a holocaust. But did the U.S. and its white citizens pay their debt when approximately 360,000 Union soldiers lost their lives in the Civil War? More than 275,000 Union soldiers were injured as well. There are arguments that contend that the Union was not really fighting for the Emancipation Proclamation; economics were supposedly a more crucial factor. That is up to interpretation by historians, but facts are facts, and slavery was ended by the Union victory in the Civil War. Using Lyle's logic, should families of Union casualties in turn have the privilege of suing specific states that joined the Confederacy?\nI have ancestors who were members of the Confederate Army and the Union…should I sue myself? Where does this chain of blame end, and more importantly, who decides? The casualties of innocent African Americans due to slavery is doubtlessly much higher than the deaths of white Union soldiers. My point, however, is that an entire nation of people was affected by the terror of slavery, and as difficult as it may be, we must try to at least put forward progress between the races as high as the sins of the past. \nDrew Buser\nBloomington
Israel study abroad needs to stay, \nstudents can choose\nDue to recent events in Israel, the IU Overseas Study Program has cancelled its summer program in Israel. The Overseas Study Program is now discussing whether to cancel its year and semester-long programs with Hebrew University in Jerusalem.\nLast year I attended Young Judaea Year Course, a year-long program in Israel. The program is based on the campus of Hebrew University and is across the street from the dorms where the international students live. Young Judaea is one of the few programs that are not cancelling any of its trips. If Young Judaea can keep two hundred 18-year-olds safe, there is no reason that juniors in college would be any less safe living across the street.\nAs long as students are willing to go to Israel, the University has a responsibility to support those students and maintain its relationship with Hebrew University and Israel. It should be the students' decision if Israel is safe enough to attend.\nIf Israel is safe enough for my family, which lives there, then it is safe enough for me to learn there for a semester.\nMoshe Siegel\nSophomore
Stereotyping illogical for random drug tests in high schools\nSarah Payton's column concerning random drug testing in high school is perhaps the most ignorant thing I have ever read in the IDS. "Random drug testing gone awry, April 2" To say that the people who participated in school-sponsored activities are not the ones who use drugs is ridiculous. It makes me wonder if she ever even went to high school! To say that schools should "go after the ones that are more likely to be getting high during fourth period" is absurd. This suggests labeling each student as a "jock," "druggie" or "nerd" is accurate and acceptable. I came from a small high school that had its fair share of drug problems; we also had random drug testing. Anyone who participated in clubs or sports, or even those who chose to drive their car to school were subject to the testing. In many cases, the people whom no one suspected of using drugs were exactly the ones who tested positive and the people most expected to be positive for drugs were clean. While I am against the random drug testing of students in high school, Sarah Payton's solution of only testing the "potheads" and ignoring the National Honor Society members suggests that stereotypes are an acceptable means of dealing with others.\nTiffany Otto\nSophomore
Read fire alarms excessive, dangerous\nI'm sure I speak for most of the people who live in Read when I say that it totally blows. Saturday night we just had two more fire alarms, making the total number this year around 20 or 25. We have to go out and stand around in the cold about twice every weekend (the first alarm is always followed by a second one a few hours later). You would think there was some sort of malfunction; however, some idiot is apparently pulling it -- every time. It doesn't make any sense to me that someone could be so unrelenting as to pull the alarm on such a frequent and consistent basis. This whole situation started to get annoying a while ago. Now it's just ridiculous. I mean, I already put up with my suitemate talking to himself and singing at the top of his lungs in our shared half-bath; now I have to deal with this. \nIt's getting to everyone else as well. Every time we go outside for an alarm, I hear a lot of people saying how they "hate Read." But there is a bigger issue involved here: These unnecessary alarms are wasting the time of Bloomington's firefighters and thereby potentially endangering the lives of others. Prevention is needed for this reason alone and I believe this is the responsibility of Read's managers and RPS. I would be complaining and telling them to fix the malfunction, but apparently they need to catch the person pulling the fire alarms. Security cameras or alarms that will spray dye onto the puller's hand are two suggestions. Do something -- you owe it to both the residents and the firefighters. \nTim Andrews\nSenior
Graphic photographs should be shown as reality of abortion\nBecause people need to see what a child looks like after he or she has been in the hands of an abortionist at a Planned Parenthood clinic. Without the pictures, the words that describe what they do to the preborn lack punch and are easily forgotten. After 29 years of State-legal baby-murder, it is time for the American people to see who is dying. The media has censored the preborn child from the "abortion debate," and we are simply attempting to bypass that media blackout by going to the streets and showing the American people for themselves exactly what a preborn child murdered by abortion looks like. \nWe show these photos to inform our nation that it has violated God's law and to call its people to repentance. Our photos stand as a haunting indictment upon our nation. Some say our photos are disgusting and hurt our Christian witness. Our response: Have you ever seen a pretty picture of a murder? Murder is disgusting; abortion is murder; therefore, our pictures are disgusting. \nAlso, what hurts our Christian witness more -- being silent while our neighbor is unjustly killed or exposing the evil works of darkness (Ephesians 5:11) by showing the atrocities being committed against our neighbor? We think the former. What a pathetic people we are if we want to tolerate the oppression of an entire people group, but then become outraged when someone displays the suffering of that people group. May people be moved with compassion for the helpless preborn when they see these photographs and act to see this bloodshed outlawed. Otherwise, God will use His sword of justice and bring retribution upon a nation of people whose hands are covered with blood.\nPastor Matt Trewhella\nFounder Missionaries to the preborn\nMilwalkee, Wisc
Political fights can prove dangerous\nColumnist Jim Harper's article "The Stench of Politics" should be read with a spray of Lysol as it too reeks of half-facts and misconceptions. Harper first makes the claim that President Bush's nominees to the Federal Judiciary have questionable civil rights records. "Yes, its true (or so say the Democrats)." \nWell, that settles it in my mind. If the Democrats say it is so, then it must be! Harper further goes on to explain that blocking nominations in the Senate Judiciary Committee is common practice in partisan politics. Since Harper has little regard for facts, allow me to help. No nominee for a Federal judgeship has been blocked in committee since 1991 when the Democrats controlled that house. The Republicans certainly defeated judges that President Clinton nominated, but the whole Senate voted on such matters. The whole Senate gave its "advise and consent" not 11 Democrats who happen personally not to like Judge Pickering. The fact is that the Democratic leadership in the Senate knew full well that if the whole Senate (as the Constitution prescribes) were allowed to vote on Judge Pickering, that one or two conservative Democrats (Zell Miller of Georgia or John Breaux of Louisiana) might vote in favor of the appointment. What makes Judge Pickering's failed nomination so bad is not that a good, upright man was denied a job that he was "well qualified" for (so says the American Bar Association), but that the methods of blocking his nomination were so overtly partisan that they circumvented the Constitution. Jim Harper may love politics and so do I. Partisan politics is fun to follow but when such fighting results in the Constitution being trampled by 11 members of a committee, serious damage can occur. \nTim Manning\nSenior
Mural serves as way to remember atrocity\nI heard a piece on NPR regarding the flap over the Thomas Hart Benson mural and was amazed that so much energy was being put into changing this mural after over 50 years. As I understand it the mural portrays Indiana history of which the Klan played a major role at one time. Why is it that we build museums regarding the Holocaust so we will never forget, but try to erase any evidence of slavery and racism so we won't have to remember. Why is that?\nMichael L. Dawson\nAlumnus
Dining Halls should have been open\nI am writing this letter in response to a letter written by one of my coworkers, Brian Flueckiger, concerning whether the dining halls should have been open during the basketball game last Monday ("Campus dining should be closed for game," April 2).\nFlueckiger asked if the student worker is considered a student before a worker. I have been working for Residential Programs & Services for the past two and a half years and I have always been told that if I need a day off or to leave early for any reason that I should ask any of my fellow co-workers to work for me as my substitute. If I could not find a substitute I had the choice of either not showing up to work or coming in and just dealing with it. Student workers are penalized for not coming to work by receiving a "cut." Five "cuts" and the student is fired. I also want to add that in my two years of working for RPS only once have I not been able to find someone to work for me. I have never received a "cut" because my supervisor is very supportive of my academic efforts and has allowed myself and some of my co-workers to not come in to work in the event of a big test or paper without having found a substitute if we tried.\nIf Flueckiger truly wanted Monday off to cheer on the basketball team he should have asked for someone to work for him. I am positive he could have found one. Me.\nSaturday when IU was playing Oklahoma, I found myself seated on one of the small couches in the Read Starbucks eating area with my eyes glued to one of those small televisions. I occasionally got up to help customers who came to get a drink or some small item. I don't feel I missed out on something because I was at work.\nDining services should remain open for those who were not interested in the game and for those workers who didn't mind making a little money while they watched the game, too.\nVictoria Harris\nRead Center Dining Student Supervisor
Legacy costs to blame for U.S. steel's problems\nPermit me to respond to Tom Vrahoretis' letter ("Tariffs on steel important to many American Families," March 26). Vrahoretis contends that it's not "gross inefficiency" that puts the U.S. steel industry at a disadvantage, but rather legacy costs and environmental issues. \nOK, U.S. steel companies may be at a disadvantage with respect to global competition because of legacy costs (retirement benefits, health care, pension funds, etc.), and because of environmental issues that foreign companies don't face. But all other US companies have to contend with these same issues. If we accept Vrahoretis' argument that U.S. steel industries need tariffs on foreign goods to offset these conditions, then we also have to agree that similar tariffs should be applied to virtually every other imported foreign product that competes with a similar one from the United States.\nWhere will that lead us?\nBenjamin Schultz\nLecturer, Kelley School of Business
Davis, others should be free to support own causes\nWhy is it on this campus, which bends over backwards ten times over to not offend any group, that it is perfectly fine to attack Christian morals? What prompted Emily Nagoski to attack coach Davis for his charitable contribution to his church, I'm still not sure. Apparently, anyone who might hold a religious belief different from those who work at the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender Student Support Services can be publicly criticized for not supporting a belief the gay community endorses. This is the height of absurdity! Believing, as many Christians, Jews, and Muslims do, that homosexuality is morally wrong does not make them homophobes or bigots. An organization such as the GLBT Services, which is supposed to foster diversity, should not be attacking coach Davis or his church because of their religious beliefs. Asking coach Davis to support a cause that he does not believe in is also wrong. Everyone should be free to support those causes which they find to be worthwhile and true. \nMatthew Stevenson\nFreshman
