4A the university daily kansan opinion friday, january 23, 2004 EDITORIAL BOARD Missouri needs a lesson in pride; no problem here Last week, Missouri Chancellor Richard Wallace told a group of Big 12 professors that he wanted to tone down the Kansas-Missouri rivalry, and invited Chancellor Robert Hemenway to "smoke a peace pipe." Wallace's proposal came in the wake of a Jan. 10 incident in Columbia, Mo., where a scuffle followed the Kansas women's basketball team's 55-52 victory. The fracas resulted in one-game suspensions for three Kansas and two Missouri players. Kansas-Missouri is one of the longestrunning rivalries in all of college sports. The football series between the two schools has been played for more than a century. Wallace's words and proposal are futile attempts to control a rivalry that should instead be celebrated. More importantly, Kansas vs. Missouri is one of the few rivalries that has deeper roots than two schools disliking each other. As almost every Kansan knows, a band of Missourian guerillas burned down the city of Lawrence during the summer of 1863. Jennifer Wade for The University Daily Kansan town at five o'clock in the morning, and we had no notice of their coming until they'commenced shooting everyone they saw and setting fire to the buildings." This background gives both schools a proud rivalry with a unique sense of history. Former Kansas football coach Don Fambrough used to psyche his team up before the Missouri game by telling them the story of the game and closing with a claim that Quantrill was a Missouri graduate. Alumni remember their victories fondly, as will those who stormed the field in September. We do agree with Wallace that a heated rivalry is no excuse for the altercation in Columbia or that the yelling he had heard of obscenities he said he has seen in the Hearns Center stands. But those problems don't require a "peace pipe." Missouri's notorious fans taunt the opposition, bring off-color signs to games and publicize Kansas players' home phone numbers. Missouri should control its own fans before making any overtures to other schools. An old adage should be our University's simple response to Chancellor Wallace's pleas: those who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. 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. For more comments, go to www.kansan.com research University history. I am at the grocery store right now and Secret, the brand of deodorant, has a new kind of deodorant. It is pear. Yeah, like I want my arm pits smelling like a pear. There is large amount of pot holes in Lawrence. That is because there is a large amount of pot in Lawrence. --research University history. research University history. Missouri sucks. Hi, I go to Newman University and I just wanted to say that your Free For All is better than our Opinion Line, and I am glad that I get to read it every once in a while when you guys send it. research University history. I would just like to say that ResNet sucks. I have been trying to get on since seven o'clock. It is almost one now. Even though I did out and drink for a little bit it still sucks. I would like to thank the good-looking female joggers who wear bright colors around campus. It makes you that much easier to spot. TALK TO US The Kansan welcomes letters to the editors and guest columns submitted by students, faculty and alumni. GUEST COLUMN GUIDELINES Maximum Length: 650 word limit Include: Author's name Class, hometown (student) Position (faculty member) Note: The Kansan will not print guest columns that attack another columnist. Maximum Length: 200 word limit Include: Author's name and telephone number Class, hometown (student) Position (faculty member) LETTER GUIDELINES SUBMITTO E-mail: opinion@kansan.com Hard copy: Kansannewerroom 111 Staffer-Flint PERSPECTIVE 'Kansan' marks 100th anniversary, celebrates tradition of independence In what would become known as The University Daily Kansan, the top headline declared that students demanded an independent semi-weekly newspaper. That was Sept. 17, 1904—almost 100 years ago. What was then called the Semi-Weekly Kansan soon became simply the Kansan. One hundred years later, the student newspaper of the University of Kansas still proudly publishes under that moniker, and students at the University still read it for the campus news, sports and editorial insight. COMMENTARY Here at the Kansan, we'd like to mark this year as a celebration of 100 years of history and tradition. For nearly a century, the Kansan has not just reported on important events in the University's history. The Kansan is also a part of those events because of the way student journalists captured history and shared those stories with the University community. University Archives manages the Kansan archives, including the first issue. The premiere issue, now yellowed and fragile, was a four-page broadsheet that featured stories about the first interfraternity debates and an advertisement for Weaver's Department Store. Michelle Rombeck mburhenn@kansan.com Volumes of the Kansan, mostly archived on microfilm, chronicle our University's history. Famous front pages captured national championships, the impeachment of a student body president and firings and hirings of administrators. Every issue of the Kansan is an invaluable resource for the University, said Becky Schulte, university archivist. The Kansan is a popular primary source for those who want to research University history or student life, she said. Henry Fortunato, project director of the KU History Galleries at the Kansas Union and online at www.kuhistory.com, said the Kansan was an important source when he and others are working on the project Because of features such as the opinion page, the Kansan is more than a source of history; it also provides a glimpse of student opinion and perspective. "The Kansan not only reported events, but was a part of them." he said. Frank Strong, chancellor from 1902 to 1920, recognized the importance of a student publication when he backed the newspaper at its inception and in 1912, when it became The University Daily Kansan. The Kansan, Hemenway said, has a history of recording University events, but also has been known to help make changes at the University. Now, 100 years later, Chancellor Robert Hemenway reads the Kansan every weekday morning. "The Kansan has argued for various improvements over the years — most of which have probably been adopted," he said. "There's been a series of people who I think have covered the University and helped to make it better." "The Kansan gives us the account of what is going on at the institution, and I think it is a pretty successful tradition," he said. This year, as The University Daily Kansan recognizes 100 years of publication and tradition, we will be reprinting pieces of history from our archives daily on the second page of the newspaper. The Kansan has been a part of the University for almost a century. For generations, our student newspaper has been reporting important historic events. In 100 years, this issue, too, will be an artifact and testimony to the lives of students at the University of Kansas in the 21st century. Historians will read our stories about Janet Murgia leaving her post as executive vice chancellor for university relations. One hundred years from now, they'll read about the Kansas-Missouri rivalry that by that time will be two centuries old and probably will be just as fervent as ever. They'll realize how much the University has changed and how much it has stayed the same. Without the Kansan's publication, the University community would be without a record of history and a student voice. ■ Rombock is a Topek junior in journalism. She is Kansen editor. PERSPECTIVE Opinion page to take on new faces, voices; don't miss opportunity to include yours We're stirring things up. The opinion page will, as always, remain a place for discussion and debate among students, faculty and alumni of the University of Kansas. But to do this better, we're adding new elements. Each of these additions is meant to enhance the page for you, the reader. With a new layout,new editors and some wild new ideas,we hope to add some color to your semester. Regular columnists will be the first change you see. Each week you will be hearing from a few voices from across campus. These are students who have come to us with something to say. Some are familiar voices on politics, and a new voice will bring a little insight to Student Senate. Another is a graduate student who teaches a packed class in American Studies, and one is a Wescoe beach regular with some racial issues to discuss. COMMENTARY We want you to get to know these writers. They are addressing topics and problems that they see at the University and that they think you should notice. Johanna M. Maska & Meghan Brune oitionn@kansas.com also changed the opinion page. A 15-member class will now work with the columnists and the editorial board to broaden the the range of topics and enhance the writing. Before, the members of the editorial board would meet twice weekly to discuss and write the editorials. The board meetings continue, but the opinion class members will now be involved in the discussions. They will compile the opinions of the entire board on a topic, research it and write the editorial. The class members will also contribute columns. We hope by adding more columnists there will be a wider A change in the journalism school has range of interests covered. That being said, we will strive to cover politics on national and local levels. This election is unusual. With the number of democratic candidates and the political upsets, it is impossible to not to focus on the democratic primary. We will be researching and taking comments about the political candidates to run a profile of each candidate before the Kansas caucus. In this series, we will explain voting in the Kansas caucus. Start thinking now. If you have information to contribute about the candidates, please let us know. Here at the University, student senate elections are coming up. You can expect candidate information and endorsements. And if you don't care at all about these elections, we will try to give you a reason to care. All these changes are for you, the reader. We are devoted to continually improving the opinion page, but we can't do it without your input. This is one of the most important pages in the newspaper. It is the place where you can comment on the news and draw attention to what hasn't been said. You can give us your feedback in several ways. Call free for all, if you have little time. Write a column if you have enough time. Send us letters and e-mails. The public needs to hear from you. When you have had an opportunity to take in all the new changes, let us know what you think works and what doesn't. We can't represent everyone, but we will do our best. The Kansan is a perfect place to say something new. At worst, no one listens, but at best, you make a change. Our opinion is that this is the best time to take that risk. Aseditors of an opinion page, our goal is to provide a forum for you. On this page, you can be the reader, the reporter and the source of ideas. Take advantage of your opportunity. KANSAN Maska is a Galesburg, Ill., senior in journalism and history. Brune is a Omaha, Neb., senior in journalism and Italian. They are the opinion page editors. Michelle RomBeck editor 804-4854 or mburhenn@kansan.com Andrew Vaupel managing editor 864-4854 or vaupel@kansan.com Meghan Brune and Johanna M. Maska opinion editors 884-4924 or opinion@kansan.com Danielle Bose business manager 864-4358 or adddirector@kansan.com Stephanie Graham retail sales manager 864-4358 or adsales@kansan.com Malcolm Gibson general manager and news adviser 864-7667 or mgbson@kansan.com Matt Fisher sales and marketing adviser 884-7666 or mfkers@kanan.com Editorial Board Members Kandall Dix Amanda Flott Lynae Ford Laura Francoviglia Anne Gregory Amy Hammontree Kelly Hollowley Teresa Lo Stephanie Lovett ♥ Mindy Oakbreeze Patrick Ross ♥ Ryan Scarrow ♥ Sara Behunek Kevin Flaherty ♥ Brandon Gay ♥ Zack Hemenway Alex Hoffman ♥ Kevin Kumpiwith ♮ Amely Kelly Cameron Koelling ■ Courtney Kuhlen Brandi Mathelesen ■ Travis Metcalf ■ Mike Norris Johnathan Reeder ■ Erin Riffle ■ Ala Smith