4a Opinion Wednesday, January 31.2001 Perspective For comments, contact Chris Borniger or Nathan Willis at 864-4924 or opinion@kansan.com Politically charged ads OK Last week brought the 28th anniversary of Roe v. Wade. For the Kansan, it also brought a couple of columns on the abortion issue, an anti-abortion advertisement and at least a dozen letters to the editor about a woman's right to choose or a baby's right to live, depending on your point of view. The most graphic — and reaction-inspiring — aspect of last week's newspapers was an advertisement titled "Life is full of surprises" from the Human Life Alliance. I didn't like the ad, and I'm guessing it bothered other people who read it, regardless of their opinions on abortion. The full-color insert included descriptions of how abortions are performed, possible negative impacts of the procedure, pictures of smiling babies and a disturbing article about people who sell the body parts of aborted fetuses. the topic, especially if the literature is provided by a special interest group. But that doesn't mean the insert should have been kept out of the Kansan. To tell the truth, I really didn't care to know any of the information included in the insert and nothing in the ad changed my opinion on the abortion issue. Furthermore, I have no desire to read anything more on It was an advertisement, and newspapers survive by selling ads. To pick and choose which ads will run in our newspaper would impede the free exchange of ideas — it would be a form of censorship that is not our responsibility to perform. Leita Schultes readers' representative reader@usan.kunan.com The Kansan doesn't accept libelous or discriminatory ads, said Matt Fisher, Kansan sales and marketing director. It won't run an ad with false information or an ad that promotes illegal activities. But that's where the hard and fast rules end, which is something not all readers understand. "Doesn't accepting an ad that is this blatant, biased and one-sided violate some principle of media ethics?" one reader wrote in a letter. Nope. Sorry. For one thing, an ad is supposed to be blatant, biased and one-sided. That's the point. When Henry T's pays to advertise its 25-cent wings, it doesn't tout the atmosphere at Molly McGee's. The Human Life Alliance wasn't selling wings. But it was selling a concept — an opinion, if you will — and neither it nor the Kansan were under any obligation to promote the opposite viewpoint. Fisher said people often confused the advertising and editorial aspects of journalism. When an anti-abortion column runs on the opinion page, the editors should make sure an abortion-rights column runs right with it, he said. But when someone doesn't like an ad, it's their job to get the opposite viewpoint published. If that means running another ad, so be it. One reader said as much in a letter that accused two women of trampling freedom of speech by removing the inserts from Kansan newsstands. "If those two women didn't like what the pro-life inserts said, they should have written and had published their own inserts," she wrote. She was right. Fisher was right. And this time, the *Kansas* was right. Schufte is a Rolfe, Iowa, sophomore in journalism and religious studies. John Trever/TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES Free for All callers have 20 seconds to speak about any topic they wish. The Kansan reserves the right to edit submissions, and not all of them will be published. Slanderous statements will not be printed. For more comments, go to www.kansan.com. When do I get a professor in the journalism department that is not paid by the university just to do research or because they have work experience in the real world? stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read The KU women's basketball team played Saturday, too, and they played K-State, and they won, too. So . . . --stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read I think it's a mistake to label Garden City as culturally diverse. I think it's more of a truth to label it racially diverse. It's the sad truth, but alas, it is the truth. stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read Wouldn't it be funny if the Campanile started chiming along to Britney Spears' "Oops, I did it again"? --stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read I give the Nobel Prize to Dr. Randall Rock at Watkins for curing 40 infected Battenfeld residents of influenza in a day. You're my hero. stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read Yeah, hi. I was just wondering if Wescoe Terrace would give me a refund on the sandwich that I couldn't finish eating because a huge roach the size of my head was walking across the floor, and I lost my appetite. Not only does Missouri beat us in basketball, but they beat us with their student section. Can we please get some color coordination? stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read Rock chalk Jayhawk. We stink. Every single student, faculty and athlete at the University of Kansas should circle March 4. 1 p.m.on their calendars. stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read Why was Deb so surprised that she got kicked off Survivor? I wouldn't want to spend a week with her let alone 40 some-odd days. She was just too whiny and cranky. Thank you. What's worse: Unborn fetuses being aborted or men and women and children starving to death in third-world countries? 图 图 It's nice to know there's still some genuinely people out there. Thanks to whoever mailed our lost phone bill. --stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read In the end, what's more important? Intelligence or emotion? To whoever it was that poured bong water in front of our door in Hashinger. It's not funny, and we will find out who you are. Does anyone else find it disturbing that the motion-sensor lights in the Murphy Hall addition bathroom shut off while you're sitting on the toilet? stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read FY1: Calculus is a lot harder to understand when it is taught in Chinese. 题 Yeah, man. I'd like to thank all those people that, uh, who helped me when my eye popped out on campus the other day. It really worked out good, but they stuck it in upside down and I was like, whoa, man, whoa! --stage in front of a roaring crowd leading chants of "We're fired up!" and "Keep hope alive." People in the crowd held signs that read More penguin, more penguin, more penguin! A few of us girls here in McCollum Nine East were just wondering: Are there any wild, nondomesticated cows in the United States? Perspective Election forces African-Americans to act As families across the nation gathered around their televisions to watch the swearing in of the 43rd president of the United States, I sat in my room bitter and remorseful. How many other Americans were feeling the same resentment I felt because of the outcome of our 2000 elections? A few weeks ago, I was ready to concede and give the new president my support — but then he nominated conservative former Missouri Sen. John Aschcroft to be attorney general. When it came time for the inauguration, I wanted to pout, complain or protest. Obviously, I was not the only one. I changed the channel from CNN just in time to catch the beginning of the Inauguration Protest Rally on C-SPAN. God bless them for being different. While much of the world watched Dubya make promises to unite the world and promote world peace, I protested along with thousands of supporters in Tallahassee, Fla., from my futon in Lawrence. Impassioned speakers took the "Equal protection for the law." "Fairness and Democracy" and "More voted for Gore/No mandate for Bush." Protesters from the AFL CIO, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, Black Leadership Forum and others were not present to condemn the new president. Instead, they let the world know the injustices of the Florida elections would fuel disfranchised voters to new levels of community and political action. Erica Hawthorne columnist opiniononkansan.com The Black Leadership Forum chairman, the Rev. Joseph Lowery, told the audience and media, "If you think we went out in 2000, wait until 2002." He reminded black and Haitian voters that their record-number turnout was a victory for the people despite controversy. Some would like to forget about Florida and move on, but voters who experienced violation of their basic voting rights in the November elections can't help comparing the incident to our history's ugliest times of prejudice and discrimination. I was getting in the spirit myself and shouted at the television in support, "We're just getting started!" Former Atlanta mayor Maynard Jackson began his speech with the demand, "I want to know why democracy means everybody but me." He went on to say that achieving freedom was only half the battle; the other half lies in remaining free through the ballot, the buck and the book. The remainder of the rally continued with references to Martin Luther King Jr.'s dream, poems such as "I Too Sing America" by Langston Hughes and passionate speeches from state and community leaders that resembled the likes of old-time Baptist sermons. I believe Florida was a wake-up call for all African Americans who have become settled in middle-class comforts, believing what our ancestors and elders fought for is guaranteed. The elections were a painful reminder that we must continue to fight for justice Protests against all injustices must continue on the Capitol steps, in the community and on college campuses. Democratic Sen. Kendrick Meek of Florida said we must struggle through commitment. The new president promised us a new world, but the possibility of such change depends on our commitment to fight for equality and fairness. So please excuse me and I get up from my futon and go going. Hawthorne is a Lenexa senior in business communications. Editorial Employees need equal pay raises Gov. Graves' budget proposal helps faculty but ignores support staff. In his State of the State address Jan. 8, Gov. Bill Graves introduced a proposal for pay increases for state employees. The budget pays for the elimination of the bottom three levels on the pay scale, meaning state employees such as university custodial workers and groundkeepers would start off with a higher wage, but it does not pay for wage increases for workers already in these positions. To maintain quality university employees in every position, the state cannot deny workers expected pay increases Graves suggested a budget that would allot a well-deserved 6.2 percent pay increase for all state university faculty. It would also make 2002 the first year in 14 years that the majority of state employees — such as maintenance and custodial employees — would not get their anticipated annual pay scale advancement. One of the biggest problems with not funding step wage increases in the 2002 budget is that it hurts employees' job satisfaction. And low job satisfaction, in turn, can cause poor on-the-job performance. Andy Sanchez, executive assistant to the president of the Kansas Association of Public Employees, said that not funding the step increase is terrible for morale. As a student, in order to gain an education, you need experienced, enthusiastic and adequately compensated teachers. However, the effects of a talented faculty would be muted if students were forced to sit in filthy classrooms or look for books in an unorganized, understaffed library. Sanchez said that some aspects of the governor's plan, such as a 3 percent cost-of-living adjustment, sounded good on the surface, but the employee association is urging its members to take a closer look. The adjustment is not a raise; it is a pay adjustment on par with inflation. Sanchez said that a 2.5 percent step increase, which is the average, would cost the state $14.9 million. This is less than 0.2 percent of the state's $2.2 billion dollar plan for the 2002 budget. Minimal budget restructuring or an incremental tax increase would allow state employees to get the pay raise they deserve. Such compensation is necessary in order to keep employees satisfied and state institutions, such as the University, functioning at every level. Kate Williams for the editorial board **Letters:** Should be double-spaced, typed and fewer than 200 words. Letters must include the author's signature, name, address and telephone number plus class and hometown if a University student. Faculty or staff must identify their positions. **Guest columns:** Should be double-spaced and typed with fewer than 700 words. The writer must be willing to be photographed for the column to run. How to submit letters and guest columns All letters and guest columns should be e-mailed to opinion@kansan.com or submitted to the Kansan newsroom, 111 Stauffer-Flint Halt. The Kansan reserves the right to edit, cut to length or reject all submissions. 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