OPINION
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAS
7A
MONDAY FEBRUARY 18 2008
» LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Editorial contains questionable information
I appreciate The Kansan's candor for looking at new resources to help students on campus, but I am highly disappointed in this editorial reviewing WiKUpedia. The editorial was quick to indict the project for being a part of a Student Senate campaign, and it completely failed to see the value of this project to the community.
What the editorial failed to mention was that this resource wasn't written by merely the six administrators but rather the 94-plus registered users and hundreds of anonymous contributors. In three weeks, our resource has exploded from 83 articles to just fewer than 1,000. This is truly KU's project.
I am asking students one thing. If you are passionate about something at KU — whether it's a student organization, a living community or a basketball player — write about it. Share what you have learned with future generations of lajhwakes.
Don't take my word for it. Log on to www.connectku.com/wiki and read articles on White Owl, basketball camping and the Black Student Union. Students should judge for themselves to see if this resource is valuable to them, rather than worrying about the origins of the project.
KU is complicated enough to warrant an encyclopedia, and WiKupedia serves this need.
Sincerely,
Sincerely,
Jarrod Morgenstern
Connect campaign adviser
and a creator of WiKUpedia
Senior in journalism
Bottled water safe despite article's claims
Nestle Waters takes very seriously the safety and environmental impact of our product. We believe more needs to be done to limit plastic waste. However, a story in Thursday's Kansan makes misleading statements about its safety.
Bottled water is safe and regulated as a food product by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). PET水 bottles are deemed safe to use by the FDA and are not a health concern. They do not contain orthophthalates.
But reducing plastic in our bottles is only a start. The reality is that used water bottles make up less than one-third of 1 percent of the municipal solid waste in this country. And with less than half of all U.S. households with access to curbside recycling, we are advocating for comprehensive solutions that keep all plastic household containers regardless of what they hold out of landfills.
That being said, we recognize that bottled water has an environmental impact, and we're working hard to reduce ours. During the past 15 years, we've reduced our plastic usage by 40 percent. Our new Ozarka Eco-Shape bottle has up to 30 percent less plastic than the average half-liter beverage container and is 100 percent recyclable.
SLAUGHTERING ALL LIVESTOCK
Sincerely,
Jane Lazgin
Director of Corporate
Communications
Nestle Waters North America
Blue containers best way to go green
COMMENTARY
You've seen them: the blue containers in campus buildings that could be the saviors of our lifetime. You can stuff them full of almost everything in students' backpacks, with stuff like newspapers, plastic bottles and magazines.
Is it time for students to start noticing these blue recycle inducers, or is time up?
TYLER DOEHRING
Methane emissions from cattle are a major cause of global warming,but for a less-extreme solution to combat climate change,students could use the blue recycling containers.
Going green at the University of Kansas is as trendy as Ugg Boots on a warm day. But unlike those furry wannabe hiking boots, the environment is not going out of style.
Everyone is conscious of the environment in some way. I don't think there are people out there who are dumping trash out the window for fun.
The only real redeming aspect of trying to go green that all students can participate in is recycling in those blue containers.
I don't want to confuse being environmentally conscience with tree hugging, though.
Do I need to chain myself to a Redwood or attempt to free Willy?
Or do I only need to use one sheet of toilet paper when I use the restroom to prove to myself I am trying to go green?
When people carelessly leave a light on, I make the effort to shut it off.
I consciously turn off the water when I am brushing my teeth and washing my face.
I reuse water bottles to the point of good taste.
These attempts at being Captain Planet are good enough for me to feel like I am making a difference. But going green is not going to take over my life.
I try to save gas. It is impossible, though, to coordinate with my friends who all have differing student, work and social schedules.
For now, I'll stick to the closest thing in my life to carpooling: Park & Ride.
Time is money, and the time it would take to constantly coordinate with my friends' schedules would be money down the drain.
I may not be saving the ozone around Lawrence,but when I am on campus, I do what I can.
I would also love to be able to afford a hybrid car, but rent is due in two weeks, and I'm already scrambling.
I try to eat well. I cannot afford, though, to shop at The Merc and pay 50 cents for an egg. I'm sure that the chickens that produced those eggs were pampered ever beyond my wildest dreams, but an egg's an egg
in my fridge.
The blue containers are clearly labeled with what goes where and are located in almost every building on campus.
The University employs 10 students for the recycling initiative that involves the blue containers, and a $4 student fee is applied to campus fees each semester for them. Students are paying for it, so they might as well use it.
Going completely green is a luxury at this point in my life.
It takes time and money, which are aspects of my life that are seldom and too far between.
I'll stick with flipping light switches, turning off faucets and reusing bottles until that steady paycheck comes in.
But, of course, I'll use those blue containers.
Hirschfeld is an Augusta junior in journalism.
COMMENTARY
Sick day policy keeps ill students on campus
Cough, cough. Sniffle, sniffle.
Then one wipe of the hand on the desk, and the next person is sick.
Then the next one, and so on, until the entire University of Kansas is sick.
Professors should be more lenient in their policies and allow more sick days. This way when students get sick, they can take one or two days off to get better and then go back to class. They wouldn't keep going to school for fear of missing points or getting a bad grade, and in return spread their sickness to everyone else.
If the University had a better policy for sick days for students, the University officials never would've had to send out a memo to students begging them to stay home.
In bold and underlined, the memo said, "Those who have been diagnosed with influenza should avoid close contact with others and remain in their residence hall, apartment or home until free of fever for 24
hours."
The flu and a strong viral infection have been spreading throughout campus in the past few weeks. I am one of the students who suffered from both, I got the viral infection about a week ago. My doctor said drinking water and resting were the only ways I would get better.
One of my professors, Doug Ward, said his policy regarding sick days is for the student to just e-mail him and let him know they won't be in class. He said he prefers to have a smaller class, which allows him to be more lenient in his policy making because he knows each student. He said his
policy is based more on trust, but he understands how larger classes run into problems.
Ward is one of my more understanding professors.
Talking to my professors, I found that professors teach larger classes are stricter because some students abuse the system. In a large class, anonymity is a problem because professors can't get to know every student and don't know when a student skips, let alone the reason why. There is no trust between student and professor.
But I've been unfortunate enough to get two not-so-understanding professors this semester. Both stated on the first day of class that if you get sick, don't bother e-mailing them. This may have everything to do with the size of the classes, which have 150 to 300 students.
But two days isn't enough for most students. I get sick at least three or four times each semester, especially in the winter months. I have been told by my doctor that I have a lower immune system, and I can't fight off infections that most people can fight off. This means I'm usually sick for weeks at a time because I never get better, just progressively worse until I finally go to the doctor to discover my viral infection has turned into strep or the flu. Every time there is an illness spreading throughout campus, I catch it.
One of my professors gives us two free sick days, which means the points we miss on those days won't count against us. But if we miss anymore than two days, we begin to lose points.
Students who are sick to their stomach, throwing up and running a fever are braving the cold weather in order to get to class and not miss those points. At this rate, with 55 school days left and zero sick days left, it will be a miracle if I make it.
Earles is an Olathe senior in journalism.
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