The University Daily Kansan emphasizes the 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 gievances.
COHEN: You hear it everywhere: people saying I know more than you! I'm right!" It's the Age of O'Reilly, and civil discourse is dead. See kansan.com for more opinions and Free for All comments
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 1, 2006 WWW.KANSAN.COM
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
PAGE 5A
OPINION
》 OUR VIEW
No reason to tear down goal posts this season
With the start of the football season this Saturday, it's time to remind students that if the goalposts come down once — just once — for any reason, the University of Kansas is going to be laughed at.
The program completed its legitimacy checklist last year when the Jayhawks defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers for the first time in 36 tries. Winning a game during this era of Jayhawk football shouldn't come as a surprise anymore.
Last season, the student body broke the record for most goalposts torn down in a season, making three trips to Potter Lake. There is no need to make a splash in Potter Lake this season, or for any other season for that matter.
Students should follow the ritual of other major college football programs after a win. They stand up and cheer, waive their school colors and are thankful to win another game. There's no
Football coach Mark Mangino has reiterated that he wanted the University to be considered a football and basketball school. He has done his part by taking the program to two bowl games and beating the likes of Kansas State, Missouri and Nebraska during his time.
charging the field and tearing down the goal posts — that's for teams with low expectations.
Now it's time students do their part. Act as if we're supposed to win. You don't see students charging the court after a big-time win at Allen Fieldhouse.
The time has finally come where we expect both the men's basketball team and football team to win. As the season continues for the Jayhawks, remember: We're no longer the cellar dwellers of the Big 12 Conference. We're now contenders.
Louis Mora for the editorial board
》 LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Mangino: 'Cheer with class'
Dear Students,
Tomorrow evening we will kick off the 2006 football season at Memorial Stadium. Through your loyalty and enthusiasm, Memorial Stadium has become one of the most exciting venues for football in the Big 12 Conference.
I also want to remind you to
cheer with class. Always remember, you represent KU.
On behalf of our players and coaches, I want to thank you for being the loudest and most energized student section in the count try!
Finally, enjoy the game and cheer loud, but don't come on the playing field at any time. Stay in the stands and celebrate. Our players always expect to win, and you should as well!
Let's make winning a habit
— and cheering responsibly too!
See you at the stadium!
FREE FOR ALL
Your coach,
Mark Mangino
present their cases in a rational, eloquent manner, or at least that's the ideal.
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
The University Daily Kansan is having a new grandmother series. It is called "Sex Over the Hill."
You know, I thought there was no new way to screw up the cryptoquip after the day when you gave us the wrong clue. Today I beat it with missing letters. I am a freakin' genius.
Nobody really cares about Tennessee and Kentucky streets. What a frivolous thing to talk about. What we really care about is getting the trash in the trash cans.
Hi, today is my birthday and I'm drunk. My boyfriend didn't call me.
To the hot muscle guy running by the Lied Center. Thank you for taking off your shirt slowly while running next to me while I drove. Thank you. Thank you so much.
present their cases in a rational, eloquent manner, or at least that's the ideal.
Free for All, last Thursday I met Jonathan Davis of Korn and he called me "darling."
Free for All, do you think you can inform Lawrence on how to use a roundabout?
I guess I'm just curious what my student fees are for considering when I got to the rec center, now I have to pay for my classes. I don't want to walk on a treadmill. I want to take a yoga class and not pay
$50 to do so
present their cases in a rational, eloquent manner, or at least that's the ideal.
Do you think if I called Chipote and told them I was PMSing they would bring a burrato to me?
Just because I live with four white dudes don't make me an Uncle Tom. I'm black, I'm a brother, Iaint no Uncle Tom.
present their cases in a rational, eloquent manner, or at least that's the ideal.
The next time I end up walking behind someone who is smoking, I am going to walk around them
Hey, Kansas cop who wasn't wearing a seat belt: I saw you.
My boyfriend and I were wondering, if a vegetarian eats a Venus fly trap are they still a vegetarian?
Hey bicyclist: That red octagon sign says stop.
Another day, another medical emergency in the science building.
and fart
FRESHMAN
Grant Snider/KANSAN
Beware, the Age of O'Reilly has dawned
Sing something for me. The melody should be familiar. It goes like this: "This is the dawning of the Age of O'Reilly / the Age of O'Reilly / ORIHIYE-LLLYY"
Okay, that's enough. People are starting to stare. What exactly is the "Age of O'Reilly", since it is clearly not the climax of a counter-culture rock musical? It is simply a name for the state of the general political landscape, where angry, partisan politics have escaped the chambers of the Senate and flooded not only the news media, but everyday life.
Whether you are a Democrat or a Republican defines you as much as what you wear nowadays. This aspect of the always vague "Culture Wars" that have supposedly raged through time immemorial can find its roots in the media, Bill O'Reilly is the namesake, really because of his popularity.
In print, people can read at their leisure and writers have time to
BY BEN COHEN
KANSAN COLUMNIST
OPINION@KANSAN.COM
A proud tradition of the newspaper is the op-ed section, where a few angry scribes like yours truly can give their own opinions on the news of the world. Writers get to speak their minds about popular subjects and readers get a say in it as well.
Now, look at television and radio. Keeping an audience for a radio or TV talk show is a more complicated matter than a weekly column in a newspaper. If someone doesn't like what they hear, they change the channel or station, ratings go down, advertisers run away and talk show hosts lose their jobs.
The last time Phil Donahue had a talk show, he suffered that fate for being too dull, a heinous crime in the entertainment industry. And so what you get on shows like "Hardball" and "Hannity and Colmes" is entertainment.
Righteous indignation can be sold on TV because it makes the speaker appear to really care about the subject at hand more than anyone else. Let's go back to Bill O'Reilly, look at what he does on his show. If a guest disagrees, there's no
time for a thoughtful debate. The sponsors don't want it cutting into their time.
No, when that happens, O'Reilly goes caveman, shouting at and insulting the offending guest until the guest relents, and if that doesn't work, he cuts the guest's microphone so his loyal fans don't have to hear the lies.
Partially, this can be blamed on his not wanting people to get the full story — not if it contradicts him. But also, it ruins his image. If people don't get what they seek from this raging ideologue, they'll go to another because they are conditioned to want one thing: gratification.
None of this would matter if it were all limited to the TV, but it clearly isn't. Talk to a friend who holds differing political views than you and try and get into a debate about some hot, divisive issue. You will start out assuming that you're getting into an intellectual discussion, but you will inevitably start to hate each other, if only briefly.
Those popular Cro-Magnons on the television have become so popular that normal people are starting to talk like them. Actual liberals and conservatives, not just commentators, believe that they have to be mortal enemies.
When he appeared last year on CNN's long-running political argument show, "Crossfire", comedian Jon Stewart famously reamed host Tucker Carlson and the program in general for how it was degrading our culture. Many people eventually saw the clip online, and CNN had to go as far as canceling "Crossfire" to save face, but they replaced it with Glenn Beck, another O'Reilly-style rant lunatic.
Similarly, "60 Minutes" quickly canceled a heavily-hyped pointcounterpoint segment featuring Bill Clinton and Bob Dole a few years ago because they were not confrontational enough, replacing it with opinion-meister Andy Rooney.
opinion-matter. Are they healthy?
Civil discourse isn't dead, but
it's not exactly in good health. The
media feeds us petty bickering as if
it were all that we want, and sadly,
that may be true.
We reject educational value for entertainment, and so that all we get. It's the Age of O'Reilly, and it's not one to celebrate.
Cohen is a Topeka sophomore in journalism.
COMMENTARY
Your vote may decide more than you think
Why does the Kansas governor's race affect you? There is an easy answer.
The state of Kansas has a major impact on the amount of money we pay to our beloved public university. And if you ask any adult why KU students should care about who is in the executive office here in Kansas, that is exactly what they'll tell you. While funding for colleges is an extremely important topic, I'd like to remind those people who haven't been in college for a while that we have other things on our mind as well.
For example, stem cell research. The governor of Kansas could have a big influence on whether the state is allowed to pursue stem cell research or not. Our current governor, Kathleen Sebelius, has made
BY LIZ STUEWE
KANSAN COLUMNIST
OPINION@KANSAN.COM
it clear that she supports the use of stem cells for medical research.
Another important issue Sebellus has addressed is heath care. Last spring Sebellus singed a law that required all universities and colleges to vaccinate their incoming freshmen who live in student housing against meningitis, a deadly disease that has a greater potential to affect people living in large group situations.
Clearly, this is just one example of how the governor of Kansas directly affects students (in-state and out-of-state) at the University of Kansas.
We know that the upcoming governor's race is important. The next step is to register to vote. You can do this at the Douglas County Courthouse (right across from Brother's on Mass) or at one of the tables on Wescoe beach that will be set up throughout the semester. Monday, Oct. 23, is the deadline to register.
The Kansan reported on April 27 that the University has had a meningitis vaccination policy since Aug. 2005. The policy was influenced by KU alumnus Andy Marso, who contracted the disease in April 2004.
I highly recommend that even if
you are not from Kansas you register to vote here and participate in the politics that are affecting you right now. Step two, when to vote: Tuesday, Nov. 7 — mark it on your calendar now.
But I encourage you to vote no matter what. Even if Kansas is only your home for a few years, you have a responsibility to educate yourself and vote.
My vote will be going to Gov. Sebelius because of her support of education on all levels, her support of stem cell research and her genuine understanding of what is best for Kansas.
Stuewe is a Lawrence junior in political science and American studies
TALK TO US
Jonathan Keeling, editor
864-4564 or jkealing@kansan.com
Erick R. Schmidt, managing editor
864-4564 or eschmidt@kansan.com
Frank Tankard opinion editor
864-4824 or fankerd@kansan.com
Draugh, Mike. *editorial opinion editor*
864-4924 or droulghk ankan.com
Kyle Koeh, *business manager*
860-4014 or khoedhk ankan.com
General questions should be directed to the editor at editor@kansan.com
》SUBMISSIONS
Lindsey Shirack, sales manager
864-4482 or lshirack@kansan.com
Melosin Gibson, general manager, nave dhuser
846/7897 or mmpbr@kaneen.com
Jennifer Weaver, sales and marketing adviser
864-7866 or jwever@kansen.com
The Kansan welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns submitted by students, faculty and alumni.
The Kenanese reserves the right to edit, cut to length, or reject all submissions.
For any questions, call Frank Tankard or Dave Rulgh at 884-4810 or e-mail opinion@khaan.com.
LETTER GUIDELINES
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include: Author's name and telephone
number; class; hometown (student);
position (faculty member/staff); phone
number (will not be published)
GUEST COLUMN GUIDELINES
Maximum Length: 500 word limit!
Include: Auth or's name; class, hometown (student); position (faculty member)staff); phone number (will not be published)
Also: The Kansas will not print guest columns that attack a reporter or another columnist.
EDITORIAL BOARD
SUBMIT TO
Jonathan Kealing, Erick R. Schmidt, Gabriella Souza, Frank Tankard, Dave Rulgh, Steve Lynn and Louis Mora
6
SUBMIT TO
111 Stauffer-Flint Hall
1435 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 89045
(785) 864-4810, opinion@kansan.com
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