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TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 2, 2014
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opinion
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Text your FFA submissions to (785) 289-8351 or at kansan.com
Today in my MGMT class: "Is there a way I can manage my girlfriend's father?"
TEXT
FREE FOR ALL
Excuse me while I wear my class of 2014 shirt. #victorylap
Just like the Iron Bank of Braavos, KU Parking will have its due
Trekking through this heat to classes makes me wonder if there's no point to shower before-hand.
People debating chivalry over the FFA? Is it that time of the semester already?
I took Ecology thinking it'd be an interesting class, I regret everything.
I bought an apple remote to mess with people's computers in class.
Am I bad person?
There is only one truly genuine mullet on campus. You will know it when you see it
Thanks for handing me your church flyer while I was emptying my lunch tray into the bin. You made my day just that little bit easier.
With our first football game quickly approaching I would like to remind everyone that the band does not do a "Woo" during the Rock Chalk Chant.
Literally KU can have my first born child all I want is the damn wifi to work.
I just saw Ben McLemore try to drive up Jayhawk Boulevard and get rejected. I feel you buddy.
Almost got hit by a bus, I think my transition to KU is finally complete
My professor is giving plot summaries of our readings during lecture instead of discussing a deeper analysis. If I wanted plot summaries I would've gone to sparknotes.
If it's a couch I will sleep on it. I don't care where on campus it is, I'm a super senior and have earned it
Successfully avoided ex for the first week of school. Semester is looking good.
Not sure if Netflix is the best or the worst thing to ever happen to me...
If someone is marrying Cheez-Its,
then can I mary Chex-Mix?
Trying to keep my core tightened while I wake up hills but the struggle is real when you gotta
pee..
I wear sunglasses when I drive for the sole purpose of being able to lower them as an attractive girlies by
KU's alma mater lacks originality
In the past few days, I have linked arms with strangers and sung the alma mater at least three times. Similar to last year, the backs of this year's class shirts are the lyrics printed above the Coca-Cola logo. They are posted on the Jumbotron at Memorial Stadium and in Allen Fieldhouse during games. When we join together and sing the alma mater it feels special and exclusive to the University, as though becoming part of the tradition makes us closer to our fellow Jayhawks. However, many students don't know that our alma mater tune is the same as many of our rival institutions, and even some high schools.
The tune of the song
originated from Hunter S. Thompson's song "Annie Lisle," as found in an archived online article from 2005 in the Cornelliana. The Cornell alumni magazine compares "Annie Lisle" as the Johnny Appleseed of school songs. Originally, Cornell roommates Archibald Crosswell Weeks and Wimot Moses Smith created the lyrics and set it to the tune of "Annie Lisle." It was titled, "Far Above Cayuga's Waters," referencing Cayuga Lake. Later, many other universities took the song and tweaked the lyrics to fit their needs. KU is only special because it was the first to poach the tune.
KU Professor George Penny led the brigade by making Cornell's song fit the University. The tale says
he was leading the Glee and Mandolin Club to a trip in Denver in 1891, when there was no school song in existence. He remembered Cornell's song and changed the lyrics in order to apply to KU. Soon after, many other schools followed suit including peer institutions: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Missouri, Indiana University and the University of Georgia. The list continues to extend to Syracuse,
Vanderbilt, William and Mary, and many more.
At the end of our alma mater we say, "Hail to old KU!" while other schools sing "For the glory of old IU." "Shouting NCU," or "Hail, all hail, Cornell!" When we feel unique for singing our alma mater, we should note that only the lyrics and singers are different. Despite the mass appeal to "Annie Lisle," each school made it special to its own institution by making changes, but in the end it is still the same.
If you search a few YouTube videos, you can see, and hear, other school's bands perform the tune, hearing their variation of the lyrics. Unfortunately, our alma mater is not unique. It's special to us because we're Jayhawks, but imagine if
our song were completely original. We could highlight our alma mater and set us apart from other universities.
Should students feel differently about our alma mater now? I admit that I did. Though unpopular to express, my pride in our song has diminished. Maybe your view will change too, knowing it's not exclusive, but the very opposite. Understanding the history can change how we look at it. Despite our views on the song, we will still sing proudly.
Anrenee Reasor is a senior from Thayer studying Economics and East Asian Language
American court system discriminates against poor
America's court system is increasingly burdening poor citizens. New court costs (often questionable, constitutionally) have been implemented by many states. These fees disproportionately affect the economically disadvantaged as the fees are fixed and do not take into account the defendants' economic standing. The morality of counties obtaining revenue through court fees, particularly when the practice targets the poor, is unfair and the legality of these practices needs to be examined and challenged.
LETTER GUIDELINES
The majority of states, according to the New York Times and National Public Radio, now allow
district courts to charge for room and board, a jury and probation supervision. Many courts are taking advantage of this freedom, asking defendants to pay hundreds to thousands of dollars for these services. The state of Washington goes so far as to charge $250 for a 12-person jury. Most Americans assume that these services are free, as the Sixth Amendment guarantees the right to representation by an attorney and trial by jury. Additionally, in the early 1980s, the Supreme Court ruled that an individual cannot be jailed simply because they do not have the economic means to pay their court fees. Today, many states and courts
The effect of increasing court fees is most evident in low-income populations. Middle or upper class offenders who have money to pay court fees may not notice the extra charges. However, poorer individuals who are unable to pay the fees face time in jail, often for minor
are operating in blatant disregard of the Sixth Amendment and previous suits.
offenses like traffic violations. Additionally, many courts are able to collect interest on the debt that prisoners owe, further deepening the problem. Most court systems have ways for inmates to work off their debt, such as community service. However, NPR reports that some court systems charge a fee for the community service that is intended to lessen inmates' debt.
Jailing individuals who cannot pay their court fees traps people in a cycle of poverty, essentially reintroducing the concept of debtors' prisons to the United States. Charging fees for services that are constitutionally guaranteed is an unacceptable way to
generate county revenue. This problem cannot be solved with implementing repayment plans or waiving the fees for some individuals. Instead, the issue needs to be challenged legally, as it has been in some places. America's court system needs to ensure that no discrimination is taking place based on the class of the individual being tried.
Ike Uri is a sophomore from Concordia studying sociology
Border Crisis
Aug/22nd/2014
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