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THURSDAY, APRIL 24, 2014
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Elderly people should be more valued in university policy
Recently, the KU retirees were informed that the fee for a parking permit would be increased yet again (some of us remember when free on-campus parking was a "perk" for having given many years to the University)
and, as usual, a complaint in reasonable terms was drafted by the retirees club. Then, over the holiday weekend, I received my invitation to the annual retirement luncheon in the Kansas Union and was amused by the passage:
"Parking is available in the... parking garage...for $1.75 for the first hour, then $1.50 a (sic) hour..." I shall not be there even though I could park in the free parking lot for the disabled. This particular instance is perhaps
insignificant, but is another example of the devaluation of the elderly. It is especially disturbing because it is the action of representatives of higher education from an institution that owes its existence to the wisdom and
insight of old people.
David A. Dinneen,
professor emeritus, Lawrence.
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Fair warning... Never bring a banana as a snack between class. So many weird looks.
Quitting school to make more time for Tinder.
In honor of all of the people whining about eating in biol 412, I brought M&Ms to class today.
I hope K-State had to pay double to advertise in the UDK.
Got on the bus with headphones in. Bus driver said something to me I couldn't hear. Respond with "good! how are you?" Walk away. Fingers crossed.
Every time I have a funny thought I debate whether to tweet it or send it to the FFA.
The birds of prey circling my room must know how bad my grades are.
Is it considered hybernation if you sleep >12 hours in one day?
Can my horoscope just say "they no worries the stars had a meeting and they decided that they'll work together to help you pass your French class"? Because that would just make my week.
My roommate peeing in my bed was one thing, but eating my encore leftovers was NOT OKAY
I save all my funniest, most messed up thoughts to submit them the FFA every Wednesday so my FFA is in the newspaper all weekend.
When you see something you said word for word in the FBA, but you didn't send it: plagiarism at its finest!! #QuestionableFriends
Does anyone else have that one spot in the library where you like to study, and when it's taken you kind of just stand there dumbfounded?
WHY ARE THERE HORDES OF SMALL CHILDREN ALL OVER CAMPUS? It's like a bad infestation.
You know you are a poor college student when you have a nightmare about spending too much money at the grocery store.
Today is Thursday,
lets get HAMMERED!
The state tree of Kansas is the Cottonwood. Why don't we have any of those on campus either?
Just got into an argument about whether or not Washington is a state with a K-State fan. Guess I can't expect anything more.
Petition to rename Marvin Grove to "The Godswood."
MEDIA
Don't fall prey to biased news stories
W hy doesn't the American political system
political system work anymore? Why do the two political factions responsible for running our society simply refuse to seek common ground and instead entrench themselves in their own respective ideologies? Like with most things, the answer rests in a coming together of many influences. One undeniable contributing factor of the hyperpolarization of both American and Kansas politics, however, is the evolution of the 24-hour news network. Through a non-stop tirade of politically charged information pouring into households over the years, these networks have helped to warp national and state politics into the partisan meet that exists today
This problem has been developing for decades. With the coming of CNN in 1980, followed by MSNBC and Fox in 1996, the cable news industry began to become crowded with competing firms all offering similar products. As the field became more competitive, networks realized that they would have to find a way to establish a firm viewing base for themselves. In an effort to gain a monopoly over large segments of the public, 24-hour news networks resolved to carve out niche markets using political ideology. Fox News opted for a conservative slant, effectively taking over the untapped market of right-wing viewers that much
of the media had ignored. CNN assumed a centrist path laced with mostly liberal commentators, while MSNBC took on the role of an unabashedly liberal agency.
Over the years, these biases have continued to evolve, blurring the lines between opinion and news. Indeed, a 2013 Pew Research Survey found that "over all, commentary and opinion are far more prevalent on the air throughout the day (63 percent of the airtime) than straight news reporting (37 percent)." According to this study, CNN stands as the only channel that provides more reporting (54 percent) than commentary (46 percent). MSNBC, for comparison, consists of 85 percent commentary versus 15 percent reporting. And finally, Fox falls in between the two with a total of 55 percent opinion and 45 percent reporting. This surplus of commentary often blends seamlessly into the reporting of a story, becoming completely intertwined in the minds of viewers.
Each station's commentary has led to its political orientation becoming increasingly pronounced. Fox has tantalized its viewers with tales of tea parties,the revocation of constitutional
liberties, and "death panels." Meanwhile, MSNBC has railed on about Chris Christie's "bridgegate," and even changed the motto of the station to "The Power of Change" in the week leading up to the 2008 presidential election. Even so,62 percent of Americans continue to use 24-hour cable networks as a source of their news according to a 2014 poll from the American Press Institute.
This modern-day yellow journalism has proven to be a particularly pernicious threat to social and political cohesion within the state and within the country. Because each network feverishly advances its own agenda, loyal viewers of each station operate in two entirely different, incompatible realities. To many viewers of Fox, liberals are the enemies of freedom. To many viewers of MSNBC, conservatives are kooks enthralled by conspiracy theories.
Information is a powerful thing. Don't fall prey to a biased source. Be aware of where your information is coming from and don't automatically dismiss things because they were painted negatively by the commentary of a pundit. Through simply learning to keep an open mind despite the media's best efforts to close it, we find hope for the future of our state and of our nation.
Jesse Burbank is a freshman from Quinter studying history and political science.
RELIGION
Every time the whistle blows I feel like a herd of wild animals is going to come charging down campus.
FFA OF THE DAY
Faith not about proving salvation
W when one talks negatively about religion.
However, in my own experience, interacting with fellow Muslims and people of other religions, discussions on who has the monopoly over truth is rarely a principle concern. Not only that, but I think there is an undercurrent in interfaith dialogue, which sees the promotion of one religion over another as missing the point of religion altogether.
there always seems to be a statement about the ridiculousness of one faith claiming itself as the only path to salvation to the exclusion of others. How can one religion claim a privileged view on who can and who cannot be saved, especially when such claims are statements of essentially unprovable matters of faith and belief? I'll admit, this is a fair criticism of organized religion.
Practically, it makes sense. Claiming our superiority in possession of the truth (and heaven) usually doesn't go very far. Observe any preacher on campus trying to save souls on Wescoe beach. It just doesn't work. Their self-righteousness completely distances other people as human beings.
Spiritually, religious elitism is a difficult position to maintain. Many American communities are too diverse for divisive religious language. I was raised in St. Louis, Mo., in a neighborhood with a diversity of religious faiths.
And by diversity I'm not talking about having Catholic
These different beliefs and approaches we take on salvation and truth are matters of faith. One should not expect others to be convinced of something that is essentially unprovable. One's beliefs are not scientific facts that can be debated. Matters of faith are spiritual positions one takes in regards to their relationship to God.
and Protestant neighbors; I'm talking about the Jewish households with mezuzah hanging from their doorposts, the Sikh family down the culde-sac and the Hindu shrine in my friend's house. Already, the kinds of religious realities I encountered were more complex than inter-Christian arguments over which church would get you to heaven.
In addition, concerns about salvation do not translate easily across every religious tradition, even among Abrahamic faiths. For example, a Christian might talk about how Jesus Christ died for our sins, but the words are lost on Jewish and Muslim ears who simply don't see salvation in terms of God being incarnate in a human being.
Garrett Fugate is a graduate student from St. Louis studying architecture.
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