OPINION
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2004
www.kansan.com
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
GILMORE'S VIEW
I
Austin Gilmore/Kansan
Free for All
Call 864-0500
Free for All callers have 20 seconds to speak about any topic they wish. Kansan editors reserve the right to omit comments. Slanderous and obscene statements will not be printed. Phone numbers of all incoming calls are recorded.
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
Hey, Free for All! I like how I spend $85 on a bus pass and have to walk back from campus at 6:45 at night when it's five degrees out. Thanks a lot, KU buses.
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
Is it weird that I'm in love with my roommate because she totally just finished the whole crossword?
Yeah, so I'm from Texas and I definitely spent 45 minutes this morning trying to get the snow off my car. How lame is that?
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
I can't decide who's more stupid in my Earthquakes and Natural Disasters class: the girl trying to do the crossword, or the guy talking her out of the right answers.
Is it weird that there's a quote on my boxers that says, "If idiots could fly, this place would be a friggin' airport."
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
If you're scared, then buy a dog.
EITU
I was just driving down 15th Street and a deer crossed the road, and I'm scared shit less.
Well, I can understand Ben and Jennifer,
and Ethan and Uma, but Ludacris and
Chingy. What is the world coming to? I
thought they'd be together forever!
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
Yeah, to the person complaining about non-athletes having a problem with the Rock Chalk bracelets: Tell me how you enjoy it the next time someone writes your English paper for you.
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
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--we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
So, my friend's friend has one giant testicle and he refuses to show me! If I had a giant testicle, I'd show everyone in the world.
Now, could someone please explain to me why I've been waiting for the bus for, like, 30 minutes to go to Oliver, yet I've seen about 60,000 buses for McCollum and Park & Ride?
--we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
How come every time I call Free for All, I always get the answering machine?
Join Facebook or die!
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
I am a herione addict, which means I'm addicted to women who save people's lives.
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Kansas Union has Christmas lights up. That's not separation of church and state I'm suing the University.
we and five of my friends have 8 o'clock classes, but we're staying up to play Dance Dance Revolution. It rules.
To the guy who works at Old Chicago; just want to tell you you're a vision in khaki.
dents who are affected directly by a prejudicial stance such as one that prohibits valued and contributing members of the military from expressing themselves according to their own identity. Surely, if KU offered an elective program that was closed to any other minority, the outcry against that policy would be great. I can only imagine the righteous anger that I would feel if an elective that I wanted to enroll in came with the disclaimer "Course not open to Jews".
I just thought you'd like to know it's 4 a.m. and my roommate and I just invaded Channel 6's coverage of Mass Street. Jealous?
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
'Don'task, don'ttell'policy has no place at University
The United States Third Circuit Court of Appeals ruled this week that all educational institutions have the right to ban U.S. military recruiters from their campuses because of the military's policy of discriminating against homosexuals. The "Don't ask, don't tell" policy allows homosexuals to serve in the military only if their sexual orientation is never revealed.
Given this new freedom, the University of Kansas would serve its students well by utilizing this law and banning all forms of military recruitment and Army Reserve Training Corps (ROTC) programs and activities on campus. The basic ROTC courses at KU offer one-credit hour per semester, whereas the advanced course offers students three-credit hours. But this advantage is not available if you are openly homosexual, and therefore this is a discriminatory elective.
After all, KU has a large number of students who are affected directly by a prejudicial stance such as one that prohibits valued and contributing members of the military from expressing themselves according to their own identity. Surely, if KU offered an elective program that was closed to any other minority, the outcry against that policy would be great. I can only imagine the righteous anger that I would feel if an elective that I wanted to enroll in came with the disclaimer "Course not open to Jews".
The military's "Don't ask, don't tell" policy is nothing more than a veneer meant to disguise intolerance, and this homophobic rhetoric is carried into the ROTC. If the military cannot cease such divisive fraternization and uphold the principles of the Constitution — "all men are created equal," as well as stand by KU's nondiscrimination policy, then military organizations have no place on campus.
Lennea Carty
Andover freshman
'Teri' bracelets worthwhile
The bracelet-as-a-fundraising-tool trend has its share of fans and critics. But the idea, first popularized this summer by Lance Armstrong's yellow "Livestrong" benefiting cancer research bracelets has certainly caught on.
Recently, our own athletic department has used the trend to market its blue "Rock Chalk" fan bracelets, with only a questionable amount of the profits going to charity. This use of a primarily charity-related fundraiser has irked some students. But don't let this turn you off to another bracelet in which you should invest: the purple "Teri Tough" bracelet.
COMMENTARY
"Teri Tough" bracelets are being sold to benefit the Teri Zenner Memorial Scholarship. The scholarship was established after the tragic Aug. 17 death of Zenner, a master's student in social welfare at the University. Zenner was killed while working as a case worker for Johnson County Mental Health Center. Her 17-year-old client is charged with the murder.
STEPHANIE LOVETT
opinion@kansan.com
"Teri Tough" bracelets are a noble cause worth any student's buck. They only cost $1 and can be ordered from www.terizenner.com. The site also offers $2 purple ribbon magnet, with proceeds also going to the scholarship fund. You can also mail your order request to P.O. Box 15762, Lenexa, Kan., 66285. The scholarship fund also accepts general donations.
to change this situation so that her death may not be in vain.
The scholarship will benefit a master's student in social welfare. The "Teri Tough" slogan comes from the phrase that Zenner's husband Matt and step-daughter Alayna coined just after her death to deal with their grief.
The University's School of Social Welfare is relatively small, with only 550 students, so many students did not know Zenner. Still, her death serves as a grim reminder of the violence in society that must be addressed.
And lack of protections in place for social workers is an unfortunate reality that Zenner's death highlighted. Thankfully, her family is working
Any time a student dies, the University community is reminded of the fragility of life. But in the case of Teri Zenner, we have the opportunity to show our shared grief directly.
By donating to the Teri Zenner Memorial Scholarship and wearing a "Teri Tough" bracelet, we can show our sympathy for Zenner's family and friends and our unity against violence.
Stephanie Lovett is a Kansas City, Mo. senior in journalism and political science. She is Kansan co-opinion editor.
Make next election good T.V.
According to www.census.gov, 43 percent of Americans did not vote in the 2000 election. Sixty-eight percent of 18 to 24 year olds did not vote in that election. That's pathetic. About 60 percent of Americans voted in this past election. That's a vast improvement, but millions of Americans still stayed at home and watched reruns of Friends instead of venturing to the polls.
The average American is disgusted by politicians and how they run their campaigns. Flip-flopping. Lies. Arrogance. Attack ads. Halliburton. Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Vietnam. Politicians are respected as much as used-car salesmen. Campaigns turn off voters like Rosanne in lingerie turns off horny teenagers.
So why don't Americans care about votin? It's simple.
Voters are made potential voters and then nonexistent voters because they feel removed from the process. It's not about issues, it's about how campaigns can manipulate issues. And America is becoming weary of the whole process.
So, what is the solution? How can candidates connect to voters once again?
You guessed it. Coming to the Fox network next campaign season, presidential reality TV. It just makes sense, doesn't it? Americans don't want to watch presidential debates that are
Voters are made potential voters and then nonexistent voters because they feel removed from the process.
Anyway, this could be huge. And more importantly, it might beat C.S.I. in ratings. You know Thomas Jefferson and the Founding Fathers envisioned it all like this.
scripted like a TV sitcom. They would rather watch the candidates compete in a beauty pageant.
If campaigns target the middle-class American, what's better than watching politicians interact day and night with the middle-class American? No matter what candidates are running, this formula works. And this would have worked beautifully in this past election.
Think about it: Bush and Kerry — and maybe Ralph Nader if he combs his hair — move into a house in the Bronx with a few former inmates and — Yeehaw! — the fun begins. The American people have a right to know what would happen if Bush and Kerry had to share a bathroom.
The candidates will be tested for strength, honor and courage, of course.
Couldn't you have seen Joe Rogan from NBC's Fear Factor, urging the candidates to eat a plate of chicken gizzards? "Get those down, Mr. President. Do it for America. This will prove to America how tough you are on the war against terror. This will make up for those nonexistent WMDs."
and we'll finally be able to answer all the important questions. Who can eat more cow intestines? Who would win in a mud-wrestling competition? Who do they think is hotter, Christina Aguilera or Jessica Simpson? Who sings "My Heart Will Go On" better?
Picture Kerry wearing his Armani suit, eating canned ham and reading Aristotle's Politics, while Bush is lying on the couch watching Sponge Bob and snickering like a 10-year-old girl.
Then, one of their roommates, Tito, who just served 18 years for murder, slaps Bush because the president ate his string cheese.
That's just good TV.
And as much of a joke as this is, America would watch it. After months of episodes, viewers could call in and cast their vote. If the election is too close to call, there might even be a dance-off that decides the victor. America would love it.
Robert Brock is a Dallas senior in journalism.
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