Opinion United States First Amendment Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. THURSDAY,OCTOBER1,2009 Brown: Kickoff chant reflects badly on University and fans WWW.KANSAN.COM COMING FRIDAY PAGE 7A FREE FOR ALL To contribute to Free for All, visit Kansan.com or call (785) 864-0500. --window. I'm a girl and I still have a hard time not staring at cleavage. One time, I peed in a sink and my ex-girlfriend accidentally walked in on me. Awkward. --window. Thanks for confirming what I expected. You're swerving. You're going about 10 miles under the speed limit. And you just threw a joint out your window. --compiled by 33 states. For the first time ever, I saw * somebody with the same * great idea as me — someone * was walking into class with a cup of milk and cereal. --compiled by 33 states. I just had to teach a girl in the computer lab which button to push to turn the computer on. --compiled by 33 states. --compiled by 33 states. Why can't my roommate's obsession with video games stop and let me sleep! --compiled by 33 states. Hey FFA: Broncos are 3-0 and the Chiefs are 0-3. Suck it, Chief fans. --compiled by 33 states. Would it be wrong to drive to Columbia this weekend to see a girl I like? --compiled by 33 states. Is it just me, or are there more mustaches on campus this year? --compiled by 33 states. --compiled by 33 states. Wu Tang is for the children. You know what word I never hear anymore? Peeved. Say it with me now: peeved, peeved, peeved. --compiled by 33 states. They should have Plan B available at the front desk so I don't have to walk all the way to Watkins. --compiled by 33 states. I am so pumped about the zombie walk. --compiled by 33 states. "I passed gas" in my best friend's car. He said, "Girls don't fart or poop." --compiled by 33 states. Oh FFA, I'm getting married this weekend and would love to be in FFA as a wedding gift! (Editor's note: Congratulations!) --compiled by 33 states. Damn it "Earthquakes and Natural Disasters." Give me a six pack and some Taco Bell, and I'll show you a natural disaster. Blood donation guideline is outdated and discriminatory EDITORIAL BOARD Last week, more than 1,000 University students stepped up to save a life. For all of them, it was as easy as donating a single pint of blood to save nearly three lives. Though students should be lauded for their efforts, one outdated donation rule needs to be re-examined. TANNER GRURRS/KANSAN It is a single rule in a long list of Red Cross guidelines, but its wording influences numerous people: If you are "a male who has had sexual contact with another male, even once, since 1977," you are not allowed to donate blood. Established in 1992, this rule is extreme and outdated. Having been first associated with gay males in 1981, HIV quickly became a disease known worldwide. It created a scare for all instances Today, we know that unprotected sexual contact is not the only way that HIV is spread. Sharing needles, mother-to- of unprotected sexual contact. child transmission in the womb and even breastfeeding can further the spread of the virus. Sexually active gay males should not be one of the few high-risk groups banned from donating, especially when all of the blood is tested for infection before being given to a patient in need. In 2004, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention conducted a study that analyzed HIV reports Among 13- to 24-year-olds, African Americans accounted for 55 percent of all HIV infections. Men who have had sex with other men (of all ethnicities) accounted for 42 percent of the positive diagnoses. In addition, young women (of KANSAN'S OPINION all ethnicities) account for 40 percent of HIV infections. are not restricted, even though statistics show they are just as likely to be infected by HIV as gay men. This rule needs to be re-examined, as it is outdated and also discriminatory against gay men who want nothing more than to help save human lives. Despite this rule, last week's blood drive was successful. Donor Recruitment Representative Jim The guidelines for African Americans and young women Sajevic said the blood drive had set a goal of 1,000 units of blood for the week. They surpassed that goal, collecting 1,004. Sajevic was very happy with the end-result. "People need to understand that donating blood saves lives, and that 1,004 units of blood has the potential to save over 2,000 lives," Sajevic said. "To save 2,000 lives in a week's time — how do you put a value on that?" Every student who gave up their time and their blood should be proud that they participated. Unfortunately, gay men cannot be grouped among the donors, simply because of a rule established nearly 20 years ago that is both biased and old-fashioned. Rewarding the rule to just target participants of unsafe sex would be a safe solution that is not homophobic or prejudiced against one group. Brett Salsbury for The Kansan Editorial Board POLITICS Old faces could fill new spots in Kansas politics There will be plenty of new faces in Kansas politics in a few years. Actually, there will probably be some old faces, but in new spots. So if you only pay attention to Governor and U.S. Senators, they will be new and exciting. Everyone else will just be watching a couple of people get promotions. But enough of that, let's look at the exciting new and old faces that want you to think they are the next big thing. The area in the biggest state of flux at the moment is Governor. Kathleen Sebelius stepped down earlier this year to take a position in President Obama's cabinet, giving her lieutenant, Mark Parkinson, an early promotion. Now-Gov. Parkinson has done nothing but say that he won't run for a full term in 2010, which puts Kansas Democrats in a bind as to who they can put up against the Republicans' long-annoted candidate, a guy named Sam Brownback. The two who have at least speculated on their chances as the Democratic candidate for governor are current Democratic Party Chair Larry Gates and Because Brownback is running for Governor — presumably avenging his humiliating 2008 presidential bid — his Senate seat will be open, and U.S. Representatives Jerry Moran and Todd Tiarht have spent the last several months sniping at each other for it. Because the Republican primary race for Senate seems to have come down to them, it seems that the GOP will be running State Sen. Chris Steineger (6th District). If the primary comes down to these two, expect Gates to win easily over Steiner, who is not exactly popular with Democrats outside of Wyandotte County because of his unyielding support for the new coal plants in Holcomb, fiscal conservatism and the genuine contempt he has shown for "intolerant" young Democrats who do not buy into his vision for Kansas, whatever it may be. either a conservative western Kansas Representative with ties to C-Street, or ... the exact same thing. Meanwhile, the Democrats currently have to choose between former journalist Charles Schollenberger, or maybe Thomas Wiggans, a pharmaceutical executive from California. (How did he get in the picture?) A few bright spots do exist for 2010. State Rep. Raj Goyle, a Harvard educated Wichita native is running for the 4th District of the U.S. House of Representatives, the seat Tiarht is vacating to run for Senate. Scott Seel is looking at a bid for the state house in the 45th District. New people do in fact exist in Kansas politics, and so far have not done anything to arouse my cynical nature, (give it time.) With months before any primaries hit, few "new and exciting" types have come up. This in itself isn't to detract from anybody in any of the major races, but it makes me wonder whether we are actually going to see something new as they take their shots at each other for the next several months. LETTER TO THE EDITOR Chet Compton's recent column, "Climate change: A history of fear," argued that both global warming and man made global warming are not true. While I would love to argue his assertions, there is a more important issue here. Listen to experts on climate change Every unfamiliar person who argues against a scientific theory falls into the same predictable traps. More often than not, simple unfamiliarity with how the natural sciences work is the problem. The first is the "consensus trap." Consensus is not formed by sheer The second is the "changing science trap." Oddly enough, this can be found happening both ways. Either "science" changes too much, or it does not change enough. First and foremost, science changes, always. There is no well-known theory today that has not been numbers of scientists, but by experts in the very specific field agreeing to something that has been well proven with research published in peer-edited journals. The amount of effort required to convince your colleagues that your hypothesis is even worthy of attention is enormous. And remember, the number of scientists who have expertise in any particular field is limited. challenged, revised and modified. It's how science works. Finally, there is the "conspiracy trap." Most people will not call it that, but it's true. Whether it be "global warming is a hoax" or "evolution is a lie," if there is no evidence backing up the assertion, it's a waste of time. Circumstantial evidence is not enough. These pitfalls may seem like valid arguments, but they're not. Science must be left to the scientists. Only they have the considerable training needed to handle the complex investigations that make up science. Patrick Totaro is a senior from New York. RELIGION Let's talk about faith 1 Life in the residence halls holds a certain hazy charm come Friday nights. As students return from nights out at parties, downtown or wherever else, the lobbies and hallways fill up with people, white noise chatter and stories. When I lived in Hasinger, I would often run into kids in my hall and make small talk as the place winded down. We would talk about our nights, upcoming concerts we hoped to see or what we thought that stain on the bathroom tile was. It's not often that such issues are brought up between strangers — let alone in a dorm hallway at 2 a.m. — but I always found it significant when they were. Every once in a while, though, the conversation would swing toward something deeper. Maybe it was a philosophy lecture earlier that day or a novel read in some English class, but something would lead the discussion into some real questions of life, thoughts about faith, God and even doubt. Faith, doubt and spirituality are heavy topics that strike at the core of who we are and how we steer our lives. They're thoughts we often tuck close to our chest, sidestepping passers and watching for cracks in the ground, hoping we don't run into someone else's. But maybe running into each other is just what we need. We've grown up in a culture that increasingly eschews dialogue on faith. The questions are big and the answers difficult, and yet they're ones many of us struggle with at some point in our lives. Perhaps the problem isn't what we are talking about, but how we were talking about it. Maybe we need a fresh approach to the conversation on faith. Surprisingly, such an approach is coming from an entertaining voice. More often associated with beet farms than faith, actor Rainn "I am sick of spirituality being airy-fairy, hippie-dippy and precious." Wilson says on the Web site. "I want to de-lamify talking about God and religion." Wilson, who plays Dwight Schrute on NBC's "The Office," started a Web site called SoulPancake, an online community focused on creativity, spirituality and everything in between. On a regular basis, Wilson and other Pancake writers pose a question reflecting their thoughts. Web site members are invited to test, stretch and contribute to the conversation with their own ideas, and can even post questions of their own. An ancient Hebrew saying puts it this way, "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." But the real beauty of SoulPancake lies in its tone and approach. The site uses art and humor to disarm readers, making weighty conversations about faith, doubt and God accessible without taking itself too seriously. Though SoulPancake is certainly a fresh place for theological discussion, the underlying point it's conveying shouldn't be missed: When conversation about faith is presented honestly, openly and without pretension, people respond We converse. We debate. We wrestle. And in all of that, we come closer to the truth. So let's open up a new dialogue on faith. At the very least we'll find good conversation, and at the very most, a sharper way to see our world. Hafner is a Great Bend junior in journalism. Slim wardrobe to reduce footprint BLOG: GREEN MY GUY Staring at the mountain of rolled up socks, it finally dawned on me: my boyfriend is a shopaholic. Austin and his 119 T-shirts, 46 pairs of socks, 19 pairs of boxes, five dress shirts, nine sweaters and one tuxedo (it's official ... I actually counted) is the love child of our consumer-driven society and its passionate affair with excess. Though I find nothing wrong with buying nice things that you need or want; it is hard for me to believe that anyone should have enough shirts to last for three months without doing laundry. Yet when we live in a culture that emphasizes rapidly updated material goods, it is easy to see how the average Joe could end up with too much while forgetting the environmental impacts of their purchases. According to the EPA Office of Solid Waste, Americans throw away more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year, contributing to the problem of dwindling landfill space. But the environmental impacts don't stop there. For I'll admit, I have my fair share of T-shirts that I haven't worn since high school, but the important point is that we become conscious of our consumption habits and the impact that they make. Consignment and thrift shops have grown in popularity in recent years due to changing fashion trends as well as the recession. A local Lawrence favorite is Arizona Trading Company, where shoppers can find everything from formal wear to casual to Halloween costumes. Plato's Closet is also another option. each piece of clothing thrown away, it is likely that a new one is purchased, fueling the over-consumption of natural resources. You don't have to be No Impact Man to make an environmental difference. It can be as simple as changing where you get your things and where those things go after you're done using them. For this green girl, she's taking her all-American boy to Plato's Closet tomorrow to see if she can lower his T-shirt count into the double digits. — Janie Chen is a junior from Olathe. Her sustainability blog can be read at greenwm.eywordpress.com. HOW TO SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR LETTER GUIDELINES Send letters to opinionkansan.com Write LETTER TO THE EDITOR in the e-mail subject line. Length: 300 words The submission should include the author's name, grade and hometown. Find our full letter to the editor policy online at kansan.com/letters. Brenna Hawley, editor 864-4810 or bhawley@kansan.com Jessica Sain-Baird, managing editor 864-4810 or jsain-baird@kansan.com CONTACT US Jennifer Torline, managing editor *64-4810 or jtorline@kansan.com Haley Jones, kansan.com managing editor 844-260-6444 Michael Holtz, opinion editor 864-4924 or mholtz@kansan.com Caitlin Thornbrugh, editorial editor 864-4924 or thornbrugh@kansan.com Lauren Bloodgood, business manager 864-4358 or lbloodgood@kansan.com Maria Korte, sales manager 864-4477 or mkore@kansan.com Malcolm Gibson, general manager and news adviser 964.7166.2870 Jon Schitt, sales and marketing advise Jon Schitt, sales and marketing adviser 864-7666 or jschitt@kansan.com THE EDITORIAL BOARD Members of the Kansan Editorial Board are Brenna Hawley, Jessica Sain-Baird, Jennifer Smith, Caitlin Thornburr, and Michael Holtz.