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 grievances.
EDITORIAL: The small fee KU students pay each year for Safe Ride is a small price to pay to avoid a DUI and receive a safe ride home.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 30, 2007
WWW.KANSAN.COM
See Kansan.com for more opinions and Free for All comments
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
OPINION
PAGE 5A
》 OUR VIEW
Safe Ride donations cheaper than DUI
College and alcohol go together like Bacardi and Cola. Inevitably in a city such as Lawrence there are going to be a multitude of drunken college kids each weekend. This will never change. The problem is that each of those drunken students needs to get home from their choice watering hole at the end of the night. Getting behind the wheel of a car after a few drinks is not acceptable, but it happens.
Lawrence city officials and the Lawrence Police Department are taking the necessary steps to curb drunk driving. As many students know, Safe Ride is a popular alternative to waking up a sober roommate to get home. Safe Ride (785-864-7233) offers students, with student identification, a free ride home from the bars.
However, with such high demand and even fewer Safe Ride drivers, many students give up and find an alternative way home. Busy phone lines and long waits have been known to deter students from utilizing this helpful service. Safe Ride is working to the best of its ability
to provide an invaluable service to a large intoxicated population. The University just has a very large population.
A helpful solution to an even more helpful Safe Ride is to require a small fee per ride. Safe riders can now tip, but most riders are college students living on a tight budget. Spending that last three dollars on a beer means no tip money. By creating a small fee per ride, that is much cheaper than a taxi, Safe Ride can afford to hire more drivers. More drivers mean more Safe Ride phone calls answered and more intoxicated students get home safely. Students should program the Safe Ride number into their cell phones. This service is one that shouldn't ever be passed up when needed. However, a minor restructuring of the service could result in fewer DUIs and a safer Lawrence. A few dollars riding费 is much cheaper than a DUI and the legal fees incurred throughout that horrific process.
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.
— Tasha Riggins for the editorial board.
Somebody, again, is at the Reserve vacuuming. Please stop.
图
scary
I just saw the fattest freakin' possum walk across campus like it was no one's business. It was
MY TA is so boring he just fell asleep while he was lecturing to
耐
dog
Damn, it feels good to be a frat
I'm a funky monkey from Chunkytown.
Brian, I love you. Please tip your servers.
图
A pregnant goldfish is called "twit"
图
I'm touching my straight roommate's girlfriend's boob, and he is giving me a dirty eye.
Grant Snider/KANSAN
Free-for-All, what is it with people when you cut them off, they start tailgating you? I don't know.
Julian Wright, gravity, Gravity,
Julian Wright. I just thought you
guys should meet
They will fear us now.
A pregnant goldfish is called a "twit."
Y
Hey, to the birthday girl at Quentin's: Thank you for the
lapdart
To the girl who just gave me a striptease at Quentin's: That was awesome, but kind of uninvited. You should ask if somebody has a
boyfriend
Why go to my psychiatrist when I can just go to the Free-for-All?
Actually, I meant "girlfriend" not "boyfriend." Sorry.
图
Be a smart drinker and party on
COMMENTARY
Your friend dies tomorrow. In a car accident. This car accident was 50 percent preventable.
This is hypothetical, yet realistic. The leading cause of death in those aged 16-24 is car accidents. A drunk driver is involved in 56 percent of all accidents according to the "Journal of American College Health."
Drunk driving 'has become such a taboo topic today. We have been weighing our comfort, convenience and entertainment over the safety of others for too long.
Go ahead and drink your glory days away. Just do it in a way that ensures there will be a next time, for everyone.
BY ABBY HUGHES
Every excuse for "having to drive home" after drinking, has an easy, if not obvious, solution.
The solution costs less than one drink call a taxi. Last month I split a cab ride home from the Yacht
"There isn't good enough public transport."
KANSAN COLUMNIST
OPINION@KANSAN.COM
"No one wants to come pick me up."
If you decide to stay in for a night. Set your Facebook status as "Staying in, Please, call if you need a sober ride." You will help others be responsible without having to feel like they are putting you out. Also, next time they stay in, they may offer you a ride too.
Club with three girl friends. It cost us each $4. I would hope that your safety, and that of others, is worth at least that much. If you are on a budget, have one less drink. Then you will get home safely and you will have less of a hangover.
"Safe Ride's phone lines are always busy."
Let's put that four dollars towards our Safe Ride semesterly fee. We currently pay $6 a semester, and they are already trying to secure call waiting for their phones and increase their number of cars, according to Jessica Mortinger, transportation coordinator for KU on Wheels.
"I am only endangering myself."
That is just not true. Start a FADD. Literally. Friends Against Drunk Driving: you and each of your friends pick a different night of the month. You sober drive for them on your night, and every other night of the month you can have a sale, warm car pick you up when you've
hit vour limit
Campus BLAST, a student organization, has partnered with local bars (the Jazzahaus, Red Lyon and the Ranch are included) to give free soda to sober drivers. You can hang out with your friends, drink free soda and not miss out on any of the stories. Better yet, you'll be the one who remembers every detail.
"My car is already parked here."
My car is already parked here.
Drive your friend to the bar. Have that friend take you to your car the next morning. If you are worried about it getting broken into, leave it at a well-lit spot near or right off Massachusetts Street.
"I'm trying to hook-up with someone tonight."
No problem. Have a safe ride with your friend prepared as soon as it is time to head "some place a little quieter." How considerate of you to have a warm car ready and waiting for your new interest!
Going out and having a good time shouldn't come to a matter of life and death.It's time to start taking responsibility. Choose the easiest, most convenient solution to drinking and driving for you, and implement it in your group of friends.
Hughes is a St. Louis senior in journalism.
We're all in this together, working to close the educational achievement gap
>> LETTER TO THE EDITOR
A year ago my application for a marketing internship in Dallas, Texas was rejected, sending me home for the summer with no internship, no job and no plans on how I would spend my time. Arriving home with an empty plate. I was expected to assist my mother in her elementary special education classroom as a way to "earn my keep." I had no intention of ever becoming a teacher, but, this is when my life began to change.
"to ensure that one day, all children in this nation will have the opportunity to attain an excellent education." I learned about the reality of the problem. Like the fact that by the time a low-income student is in fourth grade, he or she is already three-grade levels behind students in higher-performing schools. If you were unaware of the achievement gap in our country, hopefully you are catching a glimpse of it now.
all majors, but all understand the urgency of addressing the achievement gap. A 2005 Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll reveals that the general public believes the achievement gap is related to lack of parental involvement, student interest, and upbringing. Teach For America has discovered that high expectations, school leadership, and teacher effectiveness have a great influence on impoverished students. They recognize that every corps member has the opportunity to institute change on his or her own, and each has the determination to do so.
I returned to the University in the fall with a new appreciation of education. I attended a Teach For America information session out of curiosity after reading its mission statement
now is the time to do it. We have the power — and the responsibility — to address this issue in our classrooms and in our careers beyond the classroom. I will serve as a 2007 corps member and teach elementary education in inner city Chicago. I do not know what the next couple years hold for me. But, I know that I must embrace the unexpected and take this life-changing opportunity head-on in hopes of making an impact on America's youth and narrowing the achievement gap.
Since Teach For America was founded seventen years ago, over 17,000 college graduates have made a difference in low-income schools. Corps members come from any and
Krista Holzgraefe Quincy, Ill., senior
>> TALK TO US
It is possible to solve this problem, and
Gabriella Souza. editor
864-4854 or gsouza@kansan.com
Natalie Johnson, associate opinion editor
864-4924 or njohnson@kansan.com
Nicole Kelley, managing editor
864-4854 or kelley@kansan.com
Patrick Ross, managing editor 864-4854 or pross@kansan.com
Courtney Hagen, opinion editor
864-4924 or chagen@kansan.com
Katalie Jonsson, associate editor owner
8492 4924 or riphnomkansan.com
Lindsey Shirch, business manager
8401 4144 or riphnomkansan.com
Malcolm Gibson, general manager, news adviser
864-2667 or malscoon@kansan.com
Jackie Schaffer, sales manager
864-4462 orjschaffer@kansan.com
Jennifer Weaver, sales and marketing adviser
864-7666 or jweaver@ikansan.com
SUBMISSIONS
The Kansan welcomes letters to the editor and guest columns submitted by students, faculty and alumni.
The Kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length, or reject all submissions.
For any questions, call Courtney Hagen or Natalie
Johnson at 84-481-40 or e-mail opinionkansan.com.
General questions should be directed to the editor at
editor.kansan.com.
LETTER GUIDELINES
Maximum Length: 200 words
**Include:** Author's name and telephone number;
class, hometown (student); position (faculty member/staff); phone number (will not be published)
SUBMIT LETTERS TO
111 Staffer - First Hall
1435 Jabary Bldd.
Lawrence KS 60645
(785) 864-4010, oplanskam.com
**Maximum Length:** 500 words
**Include:** Author's name, class, hometown (student); position (faculty member/staff); phone number (will not be published)
**Also:** The Kansan will not print quest question that attack a reporter or another columnist.
GUEST COLUMN GUIDELINES
》 COMMENTARY
Remember walking through the halls of elementary school beneath signs that read, "Believe in yourself," and "You're awesome!"? We all approve of helping kids to feel good about themselves, but in the scramble for good feelings, we may have created a society of people afraid to fail.
BY SAM SCHNEIDER
Finding success after failure
I saw an example of this on ESPN as the Texas Tech mob rushed the court in the layhawks' January 20 loss. The camera panned to the Kansas team exiting the court with towels draped on their shoulders. As if sickened, the camera then panned to more exciting shots of Bobby Knight.
KANSAN COLUMNIST
OPINION@KANSAN.COM
That's about the extent of what today's television producers will show us. We see a few courtesy shots of the losing team and possibly one interview with the losing coach. That's it.
If we began to appreciate opportunities offered by failure, a change would come. First, wed see more people pursuing careers that scared them instead of ones that felt safe.
In their book "The Leadership Challenge," authors James Kouzes and Barry Posner said, "Failure plays an important role in success. Recall the times when you tried to learn a new game. . . Did you get it perfect the very first day? Not likely."
We never question this, but imagine if, as the last shot of a basketball game rimmed out, the losing team was immediately beset by interviewers asking, "How can you do better next time?" and, "What did you learn about yourself from this game?"
Simple things would happen; people would buck up and apologize to each other instead of holding grudges. In short, wed see a lot more people with smiles on their faces because their old, mundane lives faded away and each day became a new adventure once again.
From kindergarten on, we reward children for what they get right. How many of us got back our seventh grade spelling tests and studied the words we missed? I'm sure some did, but I didn't.
Even now we slave all night on a paper in order to hand it to our professor who scrawls comments all over it. Then when we get it back we flap through the pages to find the letter grade written at the end, as if all the work meant nothing.
Schneider is a Topeka junior in English.
Instead, we focus on winners and minimize what ought to be a key learning experience: failure.
EDITORIAL BOARD
Gabriella Soura, Nicole Kelley, Patrick Ross, Courtney Hagen Natalie Johnson, Alison Kielec, Tasha Riggins and McKay Stangler
y