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.
MONDAY, AUGUST 31, 2009
Ho: Why staying informed is important for students
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--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I think I have the swine hangover.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I stayed home last night and wrote a paper. I stand by my
Dude, I have to go to Dillons. I need candy corn.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
And he was trollin! He be trollin!
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I want Hermione Granger and a rocket ship!
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
We got a transfer to do the naked lap when he didn't hit a cup. It was pretty funny.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I'm Batman.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I've just realized my little guy can't handle it more than three times a week. What a
Holy frack! The 'Power Rangers' movie is on Hulu!
My Apple Jacks are snap, crackle, popping. I think my cereal has an identity crisis.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
That's unfair. Trust me it would be wise choice to catch me, not because of how I look, but because of what I have accomplished
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I'd catch you.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I just want to fall for someone who I know will catch me
I can't decide if it's actually kind of romantic to meet on FFA or if it's just really weird.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I want to see a giant squirrel attacking people on campus!
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
Go hang a salami, I'm a lasagna hog. That's a palindrome for va.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
Coffee is the only reason I get out of bed in the morning.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
I'm hungry. Cereal is just a callin' my name.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
Someone just asked if I was a good painter, and I said I could paint with all the colors of the wind.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
John and Julie had a pretty shallow relationship.
--son for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
Ugg boots and jorts? Thank you freshman girls for making my eyes bleed.
EDITORIAL BOARD
Policy infringes on student privacy
After two alcohol-related deaths at the University last year, the administration began a comprehensive response to this serious problem and, for that, it should be commended. However, a proposed policy intended to prevent on-campus drinking seriously threatens the privacy rights of all students living on campus. Students should vehemently oppose this new policy.
PROPOSED CHANGES
Although a specified policy has not been formulated yet, students and administrators are discussing the possibility of allowing KU Department of Student Housing officials to enter any dorm room they have probable cause to believe is in violation of housing policy. This would include all infractions, but it appears that the main reason for this proposed change is to allow housing officials to freely enter dorm rooms in which they suspect students are drinking alcohol.
Under the current search policy, housing officials must either obtain the student's permission to enter his or her room or give the student 24-hour notice before entering. Housing officials can enter a room if they think imminent danger threatens a resident's safety or they can request the KU Public Safety Office (KUPSO) to obtain a search warrant that is reviewed by the district attorney and an on-call judge. This is the same process that must be used if police want to search an off-campus residence.
STUDENT RIGHTS
Services for Students, has conducted preliminary research on this issue. Larzalere said that without seeing the specifics of the policy, there was no way to know for sure if it would violate students' legal rights. However, he also states that a dorm room, because it is the principals residence for a student, is entitled to extremely high privacy protections that would usually necessitate either a warrant or exigent circumstances before any search could be conducted.
Article 19 of the Student Code of Rights and Responsibilities, which governs the rights of all students, states that students do not give up any rights by becoming members of the University community and privacy rights extend to on-campus housing. This declaration should not lose value or truth after the alcohol-related tragedies of last year. The majority of students who choose to live on campus are legally adults and should be treated as such. This includes recognizing their rights to privacy are as inviolable as those of any student who lives off-campus.
Marlesa Roney, vice provost of student success, is a proponent of changing the current search policy, but said such a change would definitely conflict with the current Student Code. She said loosening restrictions on searches conducted on campus was a matter that greatly affected a student's environment and a new search policy was necessary to ensure a safe and
KANSAN'S
OPINION
Any policy that would allow officials to search on-campus housing without a warrant could be open to legal challenges. Bill Larzalere, an attorney at Legal
Hey, just your friendly neighborhood Resident Assistant here. Sounds like you guys are enjoying yourselves here in student housing Well, just checkin' up on you. Wouldn't want you to get into any trouble now. Hey, I was just talking with your parents over the phone. Your mother. Early to bed, early to rise, I am
healthy atmosphere at the University.
"Dozens and dozens of other universities have a similar policy in place already and,
frankly, many of my colleagues are surprised that we don't," Roney said.
Larzaure said his initial research indicated that most schools, including schools in the Big 12, had search policies similar to the University's and required either permission, adequate notice, or a search warrant before a resident's room could be searched.
Because the Student Code will need to be amended before any changes to the search policy are enacted, students will be given the opportunity to voice their opinion about any new policy. Felix Zacharias, Wichita senior and non-traditional student senator, said although he does not like the proposed policy on its face, he was willing to keep an open mind about it until the new policy was formally presented.
TAKE ACTION
"One thing about it, though, is that this is a huge invasion of student rights and it would not have prevented any of the deaths we had on campus last year," Zacharias said.
Students must let their student senators know that they do not want their rights eroded, especially when there is little to suggest that such a move would significantly help to prevent future tragedies on campus. The Student Rights Committee, which must initially
approve any changes to the Student Code, will have its first meeting of the year at 7:00 p.m. on Sept. 2 in the Parlor Room of the Kansas Union. It is expected changes to the current search policy will be discussed. All students, whether they live on or off campus, should attend this meeting to tell their senators that they value their privacy. They should remind the administration there is no reason students who choose to live on campus should be forced to accept fewer legal rights than their off-campus friends.
— Josh Goetting for the Kansan Editorial Board
JAMES FARMER
CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR PRIVACY RIGHTS?
**WHO:** Students
**WHAT:** Student Rights Committee Meeting
**WHEN:** September 2nd at 7:00 pm
**WHERE:** Parlor Room of the Kansas Union
**WHY:** Protect your rights as a student!
FASHION
The art of fashion: what the 90s meant for clothes today
Some say the 90s killed fashion, and understandably so. To think that the must-have item of the decade — replacing the spandex and fringe of the 80s — was the Gap T-shirt is almost beyond comprehension. When looking at the transition of styles at each turn of the century, the change in fashion doesn't get any more drastic than this. However, instead of seeing the 90s as the apocalypse of creative design, I see it as more of a rebirth
By 1990 it was back to basics jeans, T-shirts and solids everyone the same. But instead of fashion ending, it turned into a blank canvas again. This was a chance for the world to take a break from the whirl wind of fashion's evolution — from hoop skirts to shoulder pads and come up with something amazing.
People began to choose clothes based on style rather than function in the early 1900s, and 90 years later designers had dreamed up every wearable silhouette possible. Avant-garde fashion will forever invent silhouettes, but I'm talking about things you can actually walk around in.
Now, designers can adapt the silhouettes and styles from the last hundred years into something that's wearable today, enabling us to pick the ones we ourselves like. A basic collection of clothes was developed in the 1990s, giving us the opportunity to create the most inspired pieces possible.
ALEXANDRA ESPOSITO
This is why vintage is so popular. The world of fashion is no longer trend driven. Fashion has become an art.
The fashion advertising world is starting to pick up on this as well. Instead of turning to renowned fashion photographers, clothing companies are starting to use fashion illustrators to draw or paint their ads. Why? A picture shows what the garment is, how it looks on the body and often incorporates an interesting set and a gorgeous model, but an illustration shows what a garment could become.
A fashion illustration expresses
the creative process that went into designing the clothes we wear. It also allows wearers to consider the garment as a piece of art, not just a T-shirt in a Gap catalogue. Today's fashion is all about being inspired and we needed the blank canvas that was the 90s to lead us here.
Remnants still remain of the trend-driven fashion industry of the 90s. It's easy to just put on a v-neck T-shirt and Nike running shorts. It's comfortable, and you know you'll look cool because everyone else wears the same. I'll admit, this is definitely my safe outfit, but to wear this look every day is ridiculous. Art-inspired fashion gives us the opportunity to dress as creatively and beautifully as we choose. To be a slave to one look is a waste.
So when you get dressed this year, think art. Don't look at fashion as what everyone else is wearing, but how your look can inspire others. Designers have the ability to draw inspiration from the unthinkable, and now we can do the same.
Esposito is an Overland Park sophomore in journalism and film.
POLITICS
Public option makes a leap toward socialism
President Obama and congressional liberals tried to pass their health
pass their health care bill before the August recess, but a strong response from conservatives across the country have them on their heels. It's now September and the only thing this health care bill has achieved is taking the bloom off Obama's rose.
It is when the debate turns to the idea of a government run "public option" that the discourse really heats up. Under this "public option," every American would be required by law to have health insurance. The government would set up an insurance program to cover anybody who wanted to receive their insurance through it.
This, in writing, coupled with the fact that liberals are promising that you can keep your health care plan if you like it, may sound innocent. In practice, though, it will inexorably lead to government crushing the private sector health care industry, which is one-sixth of the American economy. You'll be left with no choice but to buy insurance from the government.
Here is a metaphor to help explain how this will happen.
Imagine you are sitting in Allen Fieldhouse. You and 16,000 of your closest friends are ready for tip-off against Missouri. The players take the court but no referees are present. Luckily, Missouri brought a couple of big donors to town for the game and they agree to be the officials. The resulting game is unlikely to be fair and the Jayhawks will have a tough time competing.
The importance of a third party monitoring a sporting event is obvious and it is no different for market economies. In this plan the private industry will be forced to play by the government's rules while com-
CHET COMPTON
petting against the government's plan. This is not the fair and level playing field the government is supposed to ensure in a free-market system. The private industry will not be able to compete.
The government program does not have to turn a profit like the private sector does. I'd hate to play a game of Monopoly against someone who didn't have to worry about losing money.
The complete ownership and control the federal government would have on such a large segment of the economy is nothing short of socialism.
Norman Thomas, a six-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America, once said that the American people would never knowingly vote for socialism. But, he said, under the name of liberalism, they would adopt every fragment of the socialist program until, one day, America would be a socialist nation without knowing how it happened.
America, you have been warned. This bill has awakened the giant that is our center-right nation and the fight between free-market capitalism and socialism is on.
The government needs to limit its role to passing and enforcing laws that will encourage choice and competition by ensuring a level playing field for doctors, insurers and consumers. That's the right idea.
Compton is a Wichita senior in political science.
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