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.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2010
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--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Dear summer, I miss you.
Please come back soon.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Oh Anshutz, you are so aesthetically pleasing...
Teachers, wake up. Laptops in class = facebook.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
We've gone out five times can we PLEASE make out!
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
To the boy in the white hat in my anthropology discussion who was insistent that "women should not be treated as sex objects": You are adorable. Please marry me right now.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Why does emotional angst make me so hungry?!
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
I hope you know, I think you're the best potato in the whole
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
My life is like WOAAAH
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Where I come from FFA means Future Farmers of America and they host "Drive Your Tractor to School" day. Really,
Sometimes I think about how much easier life would be if I wasn't in engineering...
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
I'm only going to break your heart ...
The football game sunburn peel has begun.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
This storm is making me uber horny.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Who loves orange soda?
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Dear Roomie: Please quit smoking pot in our apartment. You're making it smell like a dirty hobo in here.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Dear Roomie: Please continue smoking pot in our house. The smell is extremely therapeutic.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
I don't care what teachers say about reserving the right to change a syllabus. You can't just switch up the whole schedule of assignments once we've started them. I reserve the right to not pay you then.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
I am just tired of being alone
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
I wear my Rock Chalk Jay Crocs in rain and shine, don't hate.
--who live with the day-to-day reality of not just their illness but the increased burden of living with a stigma against it. If we refuse to talk about depression, mania, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse, and others, we stand no chance of helping those who are fighting it. If we refuse to talk about suicide, which is sometimes the extremely tragic consequence of these illnesses, we stand no chance of helping to prevent it. It is my firm belief that we owe it to our community to break this stigma.
Mental illness should be discussed openly
Who in your life has a painful secret?
Millions of
Americans suffer from mental illness. Chances are, if you haven't personally experienced the debilitating psychological and physical pain of severe depression, the most common of these illnesses, affecting one in four adults sometime in their life, one of your best friends has. Or one of your neighbors. Or one of your family members.
Despite the prevalence of major depressive disorder, there remains a societal stigma against talking openly about this and other forms of mental illness, which in the media and everyday life of this country is rarely equated to purely physical illness.
This is a deadly shame. By pushing depression and other mental illnesses further out of the collective conversation on this campus, we are further isolating the men and women — our friends, classmates, teachers, loved ones
That is why,when members of our newsroom received
Editor's Notes
BY ALEX GARRISON
agarrison@kansan.com
information that a member of our campus community had likely tragically died by suicide, I led the decision to include that information in our obituary.
This possible victim of suicide was not just a statistic to us or anyone who knew her. She was Janet Hamburg, an internationally recognized professor of dance and a "loving, generous, accomplished, and remarkable spirit," according to a friend.
As journalists, the editors and reporters — myself included — weighed the decision to include unconfirmed information from a New York City detective that the cause of death was suicide very carefully. We also debated as to whether to include medical information about Hamburg's partner, director of University Communications Lynn Bretz
In the end, we decided it was more valuable to our readers to include it and I encouraged my team to write the obituary with the most important information first — the information about Ms. Hamburg's accomplished life, not her death.
I am proud of the work they did and, while I do hope as a person that the article or any like it we may have published did not cause any more pain for any grieving loved ones, as a
journalist I feel strongly that we did the right thing.
This is largely because I did not make this decision simply as a journalist. I made it as a survivor.
I have struggled with depression for most of my life. A few years ago, I, too, nearly lost that struggle. Thankfully, I was able to find help and greatly improved with time. I have not experienced nearly the amount of pain as some who have lost, but still, my heart goes out to family and friends of suicide victims in a very personal way.
As a journalist and as a family member of a suicide victim, I believe, as do many therapists, activists and loved ones of suicide victims I've spoken with, that we cannot help the problem without taking down the stigma. To discuss these issues openly is to provide information and empowerment against them; only light can drive out darkness.
And neither should the men and women living with mental illness in our community be defined solely by their personal, often secret struggles. They — we — should be treated with the respect we owe them as our friends and neighbors.
I invite you to join the conversation. Please send me any thoughts you may have on the Kansan's coverage or on how we can perhaps become a model for a change in our community, a fight against darkness.
Garrison is the editor-in-chief of The Kansan and a senior from Kansas City, Kan., in journalism and Arabic and Islamic studies.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR Story reported insensitively
I read in the UDK today the story regarding the death of Janet Hamburg. I am writing to you because of the insensitive nature of your reporting. The reporter included information about Professor Hamburg's death that was obtained from a New York City detective. The detective said that Professor Hamburg jumped from a building. And then the reporter chose to disclose that Professor Hamburg's partner, Lynn Bretz, was on medical leave for cancer. I believe that the manner in which this article was written was extremely insensitive and intrusive.
I have experience with this type of reporting; in 2004, my husband died by suicide after jumping from a downtown parking garage. Our very private, horrible loss became a story in the UDK and a front page story in the Lawrence Journal-World. In fact, his suicide was reported in the online edition, before I had a chance to tell our two school-aged children. His cause of death was also included in his obituary.
Needless to say, the way that the Lawrence Journal- World treated his death as a 'breaking news' story felt sensational and insensitive. I can only imagine how Professor Hamburg's family and colleagues feel right now. Including information about her partner, Lynn
Bretz, and her health issues implies that somehow the health issue contributed to Professor Hamburg's decision to end her life, if indeed she did end her life.
I am certain that Professor Hamburg's family should have been notified and even asked if this information was to be shared with the KU campus. I also believe that Lynn Bretz should have been asked if her medical condition could be disclosed. I understand that Professor Hamburg worked with a number of students and colleagues. Her death is a huge loss to the KU and Lawrence community. However, the University Daily Kansan missed an opportunity to highlight her many contributions rather than a sensational story about her suicide.
What Lynn Bretz and Janet Hamburg's family and friends need right now is support, not speculation and intrigue about a very private experience. My hope is that the UDK will do something positive with this story, but only after getting the permission from Janet Hamburg's family and Lynn Bretz.
As a KU student, I was embarrassed to read this example of 'yellow journalism' in my student newspaper.
— Rose Eiesland Foster is a graduate student.
STUDENT LIFE
Animals teach students lessons
I chose to forgo a certain aspect of the college experience because I couldn't bring some of my belongings to the dorms.
Until recently, I was unaware that in fact about a dozen colleges in the country would have allowed those same aforementioned belongings.
I like to call my belongings Mia and Kitty. Kitty isn't the most innovative name I could have chosen but I was only 10 years old when I got her.
Recently, a university in Florida joined the dozen or so other universities that allow dogs, cats and small caged animals into the dormitories. Officials with those universities say that the purpose of allowing the animals in the dorms is to make the transition to living alone easier while still enabling a student to experience dorm life.
Not so Angelic
What is being left out of these discussions, though, are the other ways that pets can benefit the lives and experiences of the students if allowed in the dorms.
Not only do companions from home offer comfort and familiarity, they also teach responsibility, commitment and sacrifice.
Our university offers many services in terms of educating students about finances and personal responsibility. Owing animals provides experience in both of those categories.
Paying for two four-legged friends isn't cheap. Pet owners have to manage and budget their money according to the needs of the animals they care for. Owners must factor in the cost of vet bills, food and unexpected animal-at-large tickets when said friend possibly escapes from her confines.
The main reason I didn't live in the dorms is because I wouldn't have been able to bring them along and had no one to take care of them. Those animals have been my responsibility since I got them and it would have been unfair and inhumane to take them to a shelter because they didn't fit into my plans or the experiences I wanted
Commitment can also be garnered from the experience of owning an animal. I've had my cat since I was 10 years old and
BY ANGELIQUE MCNAUGHTON
and her husband
my dog Mia since I was 17.
But having to leave an animal behind while we embark on own is an even greater sacrifice. According to the Humane Society of the United States four millions dogs and cats are euthanized a year.
It can be a sacrifice having animals though.
I can only live in places that allow both dogs and cats and because of my dog's breed, I've also encountered many restrictions and landlords that bluntly state "No pit bulls here."
I would have chosen the dorms if Mia and Kitty could have been my roommates because over 10 years later, those two are the only roommates I've been able to get along with.
While it doesn't specify how many animals that are brought in by their owners are euthanized, if more dormitories allowed the furry companions as roommates, that numbered could be lowered.
Angelique McNaughton is a senior from Topeka in journalism and English.
CARTOON
AMERICAN POLITICS HAD BEEN ABOUT BLAMING THE OTHER PARTY.
CAME TO WASHINGTON DETERMINED TO END PARTISANSHIP.
NICK SAMBULAK
Chatterbox
Responses to the news of the week on Kansan.com
"I disagree. We have freedom of speech in this country-the very freedom that in men and women died to preserve (I hate when I have to start an argument like this). This means that people have
This means that people have
a right to say whatever they want whenever they want. We don't have to stop our lives and give our undying devotion for a nation. Perhaps, we should respect these peoples' right not to
be quiet during the national anthem. Isn't that what freedom is all about? The right to choose?"
— "ElegantEgotist" in response to "KU fans disrespect anthem" on Sept. 15.
HOW TO SUBMIT
A LETTER TO THE
EDITOR
LETTER GUIDELINES
Send letters to kansanopdesk@gmail.com. Write LETTER TO THE EDITOR in the e-mail subject line.
Length: 300 words
The submission should include the author's name, grade and hometown. Find our full letter to the editor policy online at kansan.com/letters.
Emily McCoy, Kanasan Tass assignment editor
864-8410 or encroach@kanasan.com
Jonathan Shorman, opinion editor
864-8410 or jshorman@kanasan.com
Shauna Blackmon, associate opinion editor
864-8410 or slblankmon@kanasan.com
Alex Garirson, editor
864-8410 or agarrisonkansan.com
Nick Gerik, managing editor
864-8410 or nigerikkansan.com
Erin Brown, managing editor
864-8410 or ebrownikansan.com
David Cawthon, kansan.com managing editor
864-8410 or dcawthonkansan.com
CONTACT US
684-4358 or jbusinessmanager
684-4358 or gjarevy@kanan.com
Amy O'Brien, sales manager
684-4477 or aobrien@kanan.com
Malcolm Gibson, general manager and news adviser
684-7667 or mglison@kanan.com
Jon Schitt, sales and marketing adviser
684-7666 or jscrittl@kanan.com
Joe Garvey, business manager 864-4358 or jgarvey@kansan.com
THE EDITORIAL BOARD Members of the Kansan Editorial Board are Alex Garrison, Nick Gerik, Erin Brown, David Cawton, Jonathan Shornham and Shauna Blackmon.