OPINION
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
5A
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2008
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
What if 50 million rationales can be wrong?
- Nick Samboluk is a doctoral student from Lawrence.
Why was there an attack near a 'safe' campus?
Last Saturday evening, our son and his cousin, both KU students, were attacked and viciously beaten by four thugs in the 900 block of Ohio Street around 10 p.m.
This was a heinous, savage, brutal attack, which should actually be categorized as attempted murder, as our son was knocked unconscious, and then kicked repeatedly in the head and face while lying limp and unconscious. How is it that even the most hateful savage attacker does not stop stomping on the head of his limp and possibly lifeless victim's head in this situation? Fortunately, a good Samaritan happened onto the brutal scene and had the fortitude to scream at the four attackers, who then ceased their bludgeoning bloodfest while he still had a pulse. She may have saved his life, and we would love for her to come forward so that we might express our deep gratitude for her compassion and bravery.
She and his cousin were able to hoist him into her car and transport him to the emergency room at Lawrence Memorial Hospital, where the fine and capable E.R. team treated him for
a bilaterally fractured jaw, which was displaced, and multiple facial lacerations and contusions. We brought him home to New Mexico as soon as he was stable, and he has had two titanium plates surgically placed on the jaw fractures. His upper and lower teeth are wired together for the next eight weeks. He lies here at home, suffering silently and sedated, staring at the ceiling above his bed, while his attackers roam free and likely proud of their latest "feat." This all because of an unprovoked, apparent hate crime, a mere four blocks from campus. We say "hate crime" because there was no altercation or intent to rob — only to brutalize.
Obviously, this sort of thing should not happen anywhere, but it should most certainly not be happening four blocks away from the "safe" and beloved KU campus, to innocent kids who have come there to enjoy four quality years of their lives, as they attain their degrees.
The good citizens of Lawrence and parents of innocent students deserve to know what goes on, and they deserve more and better protection for their children.
Steve and Lynn Gibbs are parents of a KU student and live in Santa Fe, N.M.
KANSAN FILE PHOTO
Every person has the right to be pro-abortion, I mean prochoice, if they wish to do so.
Where does Jesus say it's OK to murder a child?
The Sixth Commandment states, "You shall not murder." In my years of religious education, I do not recall Jesus ever saying it is OK to murder an unborn child. And it is a child. For those who argue that an embryo is not a living child, then you must not really be pregnant. According to JFAweb.org an unborn child's heart begins beating at three weeks
Personally (nonreligiousbiased), abortion is wrong.
I come from a family that has a history of divorce and substance abuse, among other types of abuse. In living through these struggles, I have come to realize that having a child will be the best thing that will ever happen to me. It will be my chance to show someone unconditional love and compassion. I could not even imagine killing my child because he is an "inconvenience" to my life plans.
I was deeply offended after reading the statement that Jesus is pro-choice in the letter to the editor "How Can Jesus Belong to the Republican Party" (Oct. 13). After 13 years of Catholic education, I want to give you a little Jesus 101.
You were once an unborn child with loving parents who wanted to bring you into this world. To those of you who remain unconvinced, I hope if in the future you are in a situation in which you are considering abortion, that you will remember that, like you, your unborn baby has a want to live and a right to life.
- Mark Wolf is a freshman from Kansas City, Mo.
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It's crystal clear why I switched deodorants
"Did you know your cooking causes cancer?" "I would, but I read somewhere that getting you your purse has been linked to cancer." "I can't, I think I'm coming down with armpit cancer."
This is what I heard all weekend long.
Doing too much homework, listening to hip-hop music, discussing politics — all cancer-causing, according to my friends. The claims, though varying in degree of creativity, were in protest to a verbal blunder that I fear will forever discredit me.
Tragically, considering I want to be a journalist, all too often when I source information, all my memory serves up is, "I read somewhere once."
That's exactly how I know ("know") that deodorant's dangerous ingredients are a big deal. At least that's what I digested from an article I read last year about aluminum salts in antiperspirants.
I am certain that my new deodorant is about the most exciting thing that's happened to me all week. Although most deodorants contain a fine-print list of chemicals so long it hardly fits on the stick, my "Body Crystal" is made entirely of mineral salts.
"What's wrong with my multi-
ingredient deodorant?" one friend
asked, while the others awaited my
answer with equally dispassionate
expressions.
"It's one ingredient," I exultantly reported to my friends.
And then I did something no self-respecting environmentalist, journalist or cool person should ever take. Quickly and without censoring my strong-willed yet unjustified defiance, I said something I thought I left behind in elementary school.
I succumbed to the temptation of hyperbole. And lying, for all I knew. I was filled with instant regret, knowing that with that
"It's going to give you cancer."
unedited slip of the brain, the greatest deodorant that ever was took a backseat to my foolishness.
I was surprised, and guilt-stricken, to find that indeed aluminum salts in antiperspirants could be a major player in breast cancer in women. Like other personal care products, the debate isn't whether the chemicals are dangerous but rather how much is safe to put in your body over time.
threats of aluminum compounds in antiperspirants. In fact, the Environmental Working Group rated this deodorant No. 1 in a safety assessment test.
The Body Crystal looks just like a clear, solid deodorant. It's dry, and nothing in it keeps it moist, so you dip it in water before putting it on. I bought mine for about $6, which is twice as much as the Secret deodorant I've used since puberty. Your deodorant's secret may be its health risks, and playing it safe is worth a few cents a day.
Although deodorants use fragrances and chemicals to mask and to kill your funk, aluminum compounds in antiperspirants prevent sweat and toxins from leaving the body.
Mineral salts in the crystal form a layer so odor-causing bacteria can't form. The salts form a compound called "alum," which is the ingredient you'll read on the label, that contains a natural aluminum salt, but it doesn't pose the health
The Body Crystal is the most effective deodorant I've ever owned.
And that is the hyperbolic statement I plan to stick to when singing its praises.
English is an Overland Park junior in journalism and economics.
As U.S. activates its military, others do too
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Oct. 7 marked the seven-year anniversary of our invasion of Afghanistan and the beginning of the so-called War on Terror. Despite this and the fact that we live in the information age, the vast majority of Americans are still unaware of the many fronts of the conflict.
Dan Thompson took the words from my mouth when he wrote in his column for The University Daily Kansan on Oct. 6 that the war in Iraq was being fought by the military, not the nation. Waging war is too easy, he asserts, making it possible for Washington to wage "grand campaigns in distant corners of the world with only the slightest inconvenience to most of us."
have constantly paid the price of our activity in Afghanistan, and the Bush administration has constantly put pressure on its leadership to do something about the influence of al-Qaida and the 'Taliban in the mountainous northern regions.
Waziristan, a mountainous region in northwest Pakistan, has seen an escalation in fighting between the Pakistani Army, the Taliban and tribal paramilitary groups. The number of displaced people could be as high as 300,000, with some 20,000 refugees crossing into Afghanistan.
Distant corners, like Waziristan, are quite possibly the next Sudan, where the War on Terror has been raging for four years.
Pakistan is no stranger to the U.S.-led war on terror: Its borders
As early as 2004 the Pakistani military has in some form or another waged their part in the War on Terror.
Patience in Pakistan, however, is wearing thin. The emergence of a more proactive tribal paramilitary, which resists both the fascism of the Taliban and the recklessness of the Army, is a sign that the populace is more than fed up with the chaos.
It is, after all, their people — normal civilians — who bear the brunt of this war. The United States, for our part, disregards the sovereignty of Pakistan, sending helicopters and unmanned drones
into Waziristan. Pakistani troops fired on a couple of American helicopters, forcing them to turn back.
The government and military of the United States desperately needs to learn that it cannot trounce upon the sovereignty of any nation at its whim, and we cannot disregard the autonomy of the regions we meddle while we wage our war.
We didn't think the consequences of our actions spread from the Middle East to south Asia and beyond.
The American people need to take a proactive stance in learning where this war is being fought and by whom. In so many parts of the world, as in Waziristan, innocent civilians are paying the price of our actions.
Anderson is a Perry junior in creative writing.
FREE FOR ALL
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Dude, "Chinese" is not the preferred nomenclature. "Asian-American" please.
--online is sick. Call me if you want me to feel better. Here are a few comments I've vomited up from my online past.
This is the worst basketball preview ever because there's not even a roster in it.
--online is sick. Call me if you want me to feel better. Here are a few comments I've vomited up from my online past.
--online is sick. Call me if you want me to feel better. Here are a few comments I've vomited up from my online past.
I miss the vibrating condom commercial.
If Oprah were an economy,
it would have a greater GDP
than that of the Bahamas.
--online is sick. Call me if you want me to feel better. Here are a few comments I've vomited up from my online past.
To the people who were basically having sex in front of Blake at roughly 1 p.m. Stop.
FREE FOR ALL
After all Britney has been through, leave Britney alone!
--ass!
You (bleep)in'hot dog!
I learned something during Family Weekend about my roommate: (i.e. I'm skipping the whole nice apple/ apple tree comparison.) A piece of shit doesn't fall far from the
Sign of the Apocalypse: University scientists discussing how we are all gonna die!
I know he peed on someone, but I still love R. Kelly.
I use all my gas in the dorm parking lots trying to find a coat
Free For All: HELP! I attract crazy people! I must have some strange magnetic power that attracts nutters to me. I feel like Jennifer Love Hewitt on Ghost Whisperer, except weirdos find me instead of ghosts!
Any advice?
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Why doesn't Mrs. E's have more diet drinks?
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That's twice now that you haven't put my take in the paper! Free for All, why do you hate me when I all I do is love?
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Jason Bourne could kick Chuck Norris' butt.
I'm in love with a trooper. (Sung to the tune of "I'm in love with a stripper.")
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To the girl who didn't want to sit with me at Mrs. E's tonight. I still think you are smin'