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OPINION
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
6
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN—WEEKLY SUMMER EDITION
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STINSON'S VIEW
Zach Stinson/Kansan
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111 Stauffer-Flint
Spirit of cartoon on target despite technicality
My editorial cartoon last week portrayed Chancellor Robert Hemenway saying, "We'll sue you when you graduate!" in a mock letter to prospective students. This was inspired by a front-page story in the Lawrence Journal-World on June 29 that was headlined "University sues students for $283K."
The story was about how the University had filed to seek from former residents of the Watkins and Miller women's scholarship halls the attorney fees that Bank of America had spent defending a lawsuit from the residents. The residents had sued the bank in 2001 and then the University, alleging mismanagement of the trust fund.
But the Journal-World's headline was a bit off. The University wasn't suing the students anew for the legal fees. It was only petitioning the court to force the students to pay the bank's legal costs.
perspective
Zach Stinson
opinion@kansan.com
FOR MORE... To see last week's editorial cartoon, head to kansan.com.
Otherwise, the University argued, the trust fund for the halls would be depleted by more than 10 percent by the bank to pay its attorneys.
Now, Kevin Boatright, interim executive vice chancellor for University Relations, has asked that my cartoon be
The University wasn't suing the students anew for the legal fees. It was only petitioning the court to force the students to pay the bank's legal costs. Otherwise, the University argued, the trust fund for the halls would be depleted by more than 10 percent by the bank to pay its attorneys.
corrected for inaccuracy, just as the Journal-World corrected itself after the story ran.
But the spirit of the satire in my cartoon is on target. The University and the
Aside from the punitive nature of seeking the reimbursement of the legal fees, there's also a warning in the University's petition to have the bank's legal fees paid by the plaintiffs.
bank are on the same side in the lawsuit, and the school is arguing that the students pay the bank's legal costs. Furthermore, the residents will have to defend themselves against the University's filing just as they would in a separate lawsuit.
The message to students is: Sue us at your own risk. We'll come after you.
While I will acknowledge that Boatright is technically right and the University isn't suing, the upshot is the same. Instead of saying, "We'll sue you when you graduate!" the cartoon should have said, "Sue us, and we'll get you."
Stinson is an Oak Hill, Virginia, senior in art history