1 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. United States First Amendment FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 4,2009 Buser: Facebook isn't to blame for narcissism WWW.KANSAN.COM COMING MONDAY PAGE 5A FREE FOR ALL To contribute to Free for All, visit Kansan.com or call (785) 864-0500. I'm very proud of my ability to resist the urge to drink coffee 24/7 so far this semester. To the man who dresses as if he just came from a marathon of wild trout fishing: Thank you for making my 8 a.m. English class bearable. FFA, I just found out that we get the UDK here at the Med Center. My day is made. When are you finally going to get your stuff together so I can marry you? --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the Ladies at KU, my friend thinks you're beautiful. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the Man, why does it smell like skunk outside? --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the Hey FFA, thanks for the advice about boys. Sorry for bothering you on a Saturday night. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the I think my entire Anthropology class has the swine flu, professor included. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the There's nothing better than having your FFA first on the list of FFAs on your birthday. Thanks for making my day! --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the My friend told me she had a crush on Gold Shore. I thought that was a place. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the Is there any such feeling as waking up, walking over to your trash can and seeing a bunch of used condoms? To the guy who yelled down from the parking garage, "Do you like pie?"：The answer is no, but thanks for asking. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the My dog loves pooping on campus. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the The squirrels on campus are getting too bold. Who wants to help me solve the problem? --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the I'm going to punch the next guy using an umbrella. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the Puppy chow makes everything better. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the I think I have a problem FFA, I need your help. --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the One good thing about having swine flu: All this coughing is giving me a great abt workout! --tickets or by granting them points at a discounted rate, makes sense for both students and Kansas Athletics. Students have the Jr. Williams Fund benefits undergraduate students EDITORIAL BOARD Weston White/KANSAN FILE PHOTO The new Jr. Williams Fund is a practical, inexpensive way for interested students to earn rewards in the future for their current loyalty. Starting this year, students taking at least six credit hours can enroll in the Jr. Williams Fund for $25. Enrollment in this fund grants them 10 preferred seating points per year, for up to 40 points over four years. In addition, Jr. Williams Fund members can receive 20 points by donating at least $100 within a year of graduation and 20 points for buying season tickets all four years of their enrollment. This is a smart investment for students who know they'll want to attend games as alumni. Rewarding students for their current involvement, either by offering them points for season chance to gain a considerable head start in getting seats at Memorial Stadium or Allen Fieldhouse. It is possible to earn 80 points for about $800 dollars. Athletics has an opportunity to bring more alumni into their successful Williams Fund program. According to Associate Athletics Director Jim Marchiony, students will have the opportunity to learn about the fund during special Jr. Williams Fund only events, such According to documentation on the Jr. Williams Fund Web site, 10 points is equivalent to a $1,000 donation, meaning students are receiving a very sizable discount. Even more, they are receiving points for things numerous students have paid for already, such as season tickets. KANSAN'S OPINION At the same time, Kansas "We wanted to do something that would give them [students] a head start," Marchionny said. as tailgates. And having that head start, more alumni, who earned a sizable number of points as students, might be more willing to donate to the Williams Fund. And having that Kansas Athletics should be recognized for their continued fundraising prowess. They are offering students a valuable commodity and shrewdly building their donor base. At the same time, money can often be an invasive species in the ecosystem of college athletics. Though the Jr. Williams Fund does not exclude students who choose not to be involved from the game day experience, Kansas Athletics should make an effort to ensure this stays the same. The Jr. Williams Fund is a deserved reward for the diehard fan, however Kansas Athletics could also take this opportunity to bring more casual fans into the great world of Kansas football, basketball and athletics in general. The involvement of an entire student body is what makes for victories as thrilling as we've seen in past years and hopefully will witness soon again. — Alex Doherty for The Kansan Editorial Board DO YOU WANT TO JOIN THE JR. WILLIAMS FUND? VISIT KUATHLETICS.COM. EDITORIAL CARTOON JOB GROWTH IS A LAGGING ECONOMIC INDICATOR. ... SO ... WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? WELL, WE THINK THE ECONOMY IS RECOVERING NOW. BUT WE CAN'T HIRE YOU TILL LATER. NICHOLAS SAMBALUK No room for bikes on busy streets HUMOR Let me paint a little picture for you. It's a beautiful Saturday morning. The birds are chirping, the sun is shining, the coffee is brewing and everything is as it should be. You fill a cup of coffee, grab your keys and head to your car. You jump in and start to head down Iowa Street toward our beloved Massachusetts Street when you hit your first roadblock of the day. A bicyclist is riding in front of you, and you cannot figure out for the life of you why. As you sit in your car, you keep asking yourself why the bicyclist is in the middle of the street instead of the sidewalk where bicyclists should be — when all of a sudden you spill your coffee. To make matters worse, it looks as if the incredible mass of the Lance Armstrong allegiance has turned in front of you while you're stuck at a stoplight. Traffic is Now it looks as if you pissed yourself. grounded to a haul for the next 25 minutes. You grow frantic and start to throw things while yelling at the radio. Your once-perfect morning has now turned into what a severely obese yellow cat likes to call "the Mondays." Now, I know what you're thinking: This is a severe exaggeration and a waste of space to tell a long tall tale and get nothing done. In one sense you are right; this is a severe exaggeration. But I tell you this exaggeration to convey a specific point. Nothing grinds my gears as much as the bikers in this town who ride in the middle of the street, especially when there is a sidewalk or bike lane nearby. I can tolerate those riding their bikes on Jayhawk Boulevard, those on Massachusetts Street and even the ones on the back roads. But it really gets at me when bikers are on Iowa Street, one of the busiest streets in Lawrence. This is an annoyance to me and many other drivers in the community, especially when it slows down traffic. Where there are designated bike lanes, bikers should stay out of car lanes. When I have to go to class, work or a movie, a slow biker can really put a rain cloud over my day. My message to the bikers is simply this: Stay in the bike lane or on the sidewalk and think of others. It really grinds everyone's gears to be late for prior engagements they cannot be late for. Phillippe is a Fort Worth sophomore in creative writing. SCIENCE How genetics can help explain homosexuality Human sexuality is a delicate subject. Certain elements of it are taboo in elements of it are taboo in our society, and yet it is an absolute necessity for the propagation of our civilization. Within the complexity of sexuality in general, the mystery of homosexuality remains controversial and misunderstood. The scientific research of homosexuality is scattered and difficult to interpret, but it weaves a picture that allows us to place homosexuality in a natural and biological context. Many more find the dichotomous distinction of heterosexuality and homosexuality arbitrary and oversimplifying, as most research demonstrates that sexual orientation itself exists as a spectrum. Homosexuality is an extraordinarily problematic phenomenon to research. It extends to many disciplines, including genetics, developmental biology, neurobiology and even evolutionary biology. Many scientists may have different definitions of homosexuality, making comparing research across fields very difficult. Many studies in fruit flies have clearly shown that sexual behavior is tightly connected to genetics, and it remains very likely that human sexuality is a function of the interactions of many genes. The genetic model as the basis for homosexuality is still in its infancy. There is almost certainly no single gene that creates the straight or gay sexual orientation; it is more likely a huge assortment of genes, potentially expressed at different times and levels, that creates the complex structure of homosexuality. The environment of the womb for the growing child may also play a role in shaping sexual behavior. Scientists have shown that with each male child a mother has, the newborn male has a greater chance of being gay. In simple terms, the mother develops an immunologic resistance to the male child, which may alter its neurological development and sexual orientation. In many ways, homosexuality may be ultimately determined before birth. But homosexuality in humans needs to be placed into the context of all life on the planet. In general, the brains of homosexual men tended to more closely fit the female anatomic model. Whether this is a result of genetic predisposition or plasticity over experience has yet to be determined. The brains of heterosexuals and homosexuals differ substantially. Certain clusters of specialized neurons show relatively consistent differences between those of straight men and those of gay men. A recent review of the scientific literature has shown that nearly every animal species on earth has been observed demonstrating homosexual behavior. Some albatrosses nest as two females because of shortages of males, and many social species, such as dolphins, demonstrate same-sex behavior as a form of bonding. Many scientists argue that the homosexuality displayed in these animals helps improve the survival of the species as a whole. Humans are not alone in displaying diverse sexual behaviors. The science of homosexuality is broad, complex and constantly evolving. But science cannot give an answer to the moral question of homosexuality. Science can inform these judgments, but these scientific findings cannot dictate moral decisions. By continuing to inquire into the nature of our homosexuality, we can learn to better understand the sexuality of ourselves and others. Folmsbee is a Topeka senior in neurobiology. New beer can design makes little difference LETTER TO THE EDITOR The University has asked Anheuser-Busch not to involve them with the project because it promotes underage drinking. This makes no sense. This isn't an attempt by the University to help with the underage drinking problem, but an attempt to show their rich, stuck-up alumni that they're trying to do something about it. Anheuser-Busch recently released a new style of Bud Light cans featuring the colors of 27 schools across the nation. The University of Kansas was chosen, and now thousands of cans are being lined with crimson and blue as part of this "Fan Cans" series. Underage drinkers at this University do not need some flashy and exciting Bud Light can as a reason to start drinking. If they want to drink, they'll drink. It's been mentioned that this situation has comparisons to Joe College on Massachusetts Street. It's exactly the same. The University doesn't actually care about the inappropriate, immature and often vulgar T-shirts sold by the store, but rather trying to show those same rich, stuck-up alumni that they are making at least an attempt to remain a decent and well-mannered University. I can guarantee you that many members of the administration will be buying those crimson and blue Bud Light cans this Saturday when they are tailgating before the football game. They could care less about the results of their requests to Joe College and Anheuser-Busch. They just care about looking good in the eyes of the alumni. Andrew Doughty is a junior from St. Paul, Minn. Editor's Note: The Athletics Department, not the University, has requested the promotion to be canceled. 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. Jessica Sain-Baird, managing editor 864-4810 or jsain-baird@kansan.com Brenna Hawley, editor 864-4810 or bhawley@kansan.com Jennifer Torline, managing editor 864-4810 or itorline@kansan.com CONTACT US Haley Jones, kansan.com managing editor 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 mkorte@kansan.com Malcolm Gibson, general manager and news adviser 367 or mgibson@kansan.com Jon Schlitt color and marketing expert Jon Schitt, sales and marketing adviser 864-7666 or jon.schitt@kansan.com THE EDITORIAL BOARD Members of the Kansan Editorial Board are Brenna Hawley, Jessica Sain-Bard, Jennifer Morse, Gillian Tattnall, Caitlin Holtz and Michael Holtz.