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Show opinion/ MONDAY-JUNE 20*2005 PAGE A3 Deviation from the Norm An open response to UVSC Community Relations Committee member Norm Neilsen John Ditzler Executive Editor R ecently a member of UVSC's Community Relations Committee, Norm Nielsen, wrote a Guest Op-Ed for The Daily Herald in which he laments certain activities on campus over the last year and encourages "faculty and staff, parents, students, and the taxpayers and donors of Utah County" to combat "symptoms" of a "disturbing drift to the left." His article entitled "Find a Measured, Balanced Course at UVSC" (06/06/05), claims that "acts of sedition, open displays of debauchery, outright contempt for our nation's military and vicious attacks on Christianity," are all being conducted on campuses across the nation in the name of academic freedom. Nielsen calls upon "the members of this community who conceived the college, lobbied for it, nurtured it, and who now sustain if financially and emotionally" to prevent these types of monstrosities from occurring on our campus. "We have endured events at UVSC that have given us concern," Nielsen writes. "We need not embrace them in the future." Accusing some unspecified group of persons of "trying to justify the imposition of propaganda on a captive audience in our schools and colleges," Nielsen adds, "some fly the flag of academic freedom with ulterior...motives." Mr. Nielsen, I'm not clear on just what you think academic free- This cartoon better represent we accurately! I know how you liberal media types like to make us conservative folks look like jerks! I'm a nice guyL.Areyou listening to me? I'm nice, PARN IT! dom should be if it's not the right to express controversial ideas perhaps disagreeable with the majority opinion? It sounds like you support academic freedom only if it is applied so everybody who agrees with your opinion, or majority opinion, is always protected. The same protections under academic freedom that allow the "liberal" students of UVSC to perform the Vagina Monologues, protect LDS "conservative" students far away at places like UC Berkeley when they wish to join the Berkeley College Republicans or start an LDS Student Association like the one currently instituted on this campus. Don't you want LDS Americans who are a minority in the rest of this country to be protected when they wish to express themselves wherever they may be living at the time? I do. farcical but also statistically inaccurate. Hundreds, perhaps thousands of people on this campus hold political views you would find disagreeable. Professors are probably very few in that lot. Both productions of The Vagina Monologues were student produced, the recent anti-war rallies were made up mostly of students, Michael Moore was invited here by student body representatives, mock gambling was offered by student body representatives, the "infamous" Queer Theory English class was student requested, the UVSC Gay-Straight Alliance is student led, as is the College Democrats Club, Neo-Socialist Club, Gender Studies Club, and Pinko-Commie group. Why would you want to dismantle the protections we have in place for the minority point of view? And how do you defend that as remotely American? And please do not undermine the validity of "liberal" students' autonomously held beliefs, and their ability to form them and act on them as participating adult citizens in our Democratic-Republic. You deridingly claim this "disturbing drift to the left" at UVSC is "captained in part by a few liberal 'advocacy professors.'" To claim that "liberal" events at UVSC are clandestinely operated by liberal professors with dubious and sinister hidden agendas is not only Similarly, the College Republicans Club and LDS Student Association are both student operations. I don't know where you picked up the idea that these events/ organizations are professor initiated. If, by the way, a professor or two does contribute to leftist socio-political causes on campus that's all right too. They have a right in many circumstances to express their political beliefs and lend a hand in the great civic charge we all bear to be "anxiously engaged in a good cause." But by and large activities and events on campus like the ones mentioned above are student run. Vegor Pedersen/ NetXNews Don't use professors as scapegoats because it's easier to get people upset by painting a picture of leftist professors with an agenda inculcating us innocent children. I don't know if you know this or not but almost everybody on this campus is 18 or over. We're all adults here. Give us a little more credit. Many of us are married, have children of our own, work full time jobs, pay taxes, and vote, same as you. By the way, student paid tuition and fees now pay a majority of all costs incurred in the running of this college. I think that makes us primary stockholders. Mr. Nielsen, you can say whatever you want in this country. You can rail against those "liberal" students you don't agree with and who make you feel nervous and uncomfortable and threatened. But you can't try and stop others from expressing their point of view just as I can't try and stop you from expressing your "conservative" point of view. But shame on you for trying. A gentleman of your age and stature in the community shouldn't need to be lectured by someone half his age on the merits of academic freedom, free speech and the democratic ideals that all Americans value. v\ M Branbury Par Utah Valley State College University Mall Session vi June 22 - August 12 (7% weeks) & SCHOOL OF BUSINESS Spring-Summer 2005 Private Room $148 Shared Room $128 £ Boom '" ' •' #*f Fall 2005-2006 £ $ 10895 ISYS 1050 UB6 Basic Computer Apps 3 6:00 pm • 830 pm TR UM 11822 LEGL3130 UB1 Real Estate PrirVFm 3 10:45 am-1:15 pm TR 10979 LEGL3140 UB1 Utah Real Estate Law 3 130 pm-4:00 pm TR 11814 HGMT2010 UB1 Interpersonal Comm 3 12.00 pm-1:15 pm 102 DeDe Smith UM. 101 Robert Vateniine UM 105 Robert Valentine MTWR UM 104 Kira Stirling Private Room $275 # ' SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES, ARTS, AND SOCIAL SCIENCES Shared Room $228 10513 COMM 1100 UB1 Inlro to PuoGc Speaking 3 4:00 pm - 630pm TR UM 104 Richard Baker 11813 COMM 2010 UB1 Interpersonal Comm 3 1200 pm- 1:15 pm MTWR UM 104 Kjra Stirling 11818 ENGL1010 UB1 Intro to Writing I 3 8.00 am-9.40 am MWF UM 106 Daniel Roberts 10692 ENGL2010 UB6 Interned Writing II 3 6:00 pm-8.30 pm TR UM 105 Marj Hermansert 11820 HIST 1700 UB1 American (Miration 3 9:15 am-11:45 am TR UM 104 ChadOstfsr 10815 HIST 1700 UB6 American Civilization 3 6:45pm-9:15pm TR UM 104 Albert Winkter 11821 HUM 1010 UB1 Into to Humanities 3 8:t5am-iO:45am TR UM 105 Rob MiUett 11342 PSY1010 UB6 Genera) Psychology 3 6:15pm-8.45pm MW UM 106 floyd Armstrong .^S^M 11832 PHIL 1620 UB6 Inlro to Eastern ReCgwns 3 6.00 p m - 8 3 0 pm TR UM 101 Michael Robinson > Laundry ^;:^||^| > Jogging palh along the river', • Exercise room ; •. 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