OCR Text |
Show MONDAY • JUNE 12 • 2006 WWW.NE~ACNEWS.NET .'•. .#•% • " \ > • ' ' « • . ' » ^ ' - '''•"• • . • Idler/ lo the editor Let our children heal Shane was a beautiful baby with a ready smile and a head full of blond curls. He was adored by all who saw him. He was also a quiet baby, almost never cried, only complaining when he really needed something. Mostly, he just sat there. How lucky his mother felt to have such a good baby. Then the doctor's questions became more pointed: "Does he sit up by himself? Does he hold a rattle? Does he transfer the rattle from one hand to another?" Those were the kind of questions one really did not think much about in 1969. A quiet baby was a good baby. Period. Shane was retarded. Shane was upgraded to Learning Disabled when he was three and later, his little sister, Marcie was diagnosed the same when she was five. Two disabled children in the same family; not only disabled, but with the same syndrome. Classic textbook case, the doctors all said after months of testing. Where was Embryonic Stem Cell Research when I needed it? The first time I heard about Embryonic Stem Cell Research was when Christopher Reeve got involved with it and started talking about it. I thought, "Wow! What a concept! If it could only be true, that there could actually be a way to help paralyzed patients walk again!" Then I started hearing about all the other things it could cure: Parkinson's Disease, Diabetes, Cancer, MS, CF, Heart disease and the list goes on and on. Some of these have hit my own family pretty hard, including Learning Disabilities. Now, my question is, why is it taking so long to get the government off their collective behinds and give the "agencies that be" funding for this miracle that most of us have been waiting a lifetime for? Never mind that it could have helped Superman walk again or perhaps saved the life of the mother of his son. What about all the children, the babies who are born with diseases that make them have tofightfor every breath they take? They are our hope for the future, our future politicians and presidents, doctors and researchers. Why can't the "powers that be" in Washington get over their power trips long enough to realize that the children are more important, and healing them is more important than making a point or "sticking to their guns?" I'd like to know, to the penny, just how much we have spent sending our sons and our brothers and fathers to foreign lands to die in the last few years. It seems we have been funding death rather than life. I have to wonder, if Mr. Bush had a child with Cystic Fibrosis, or if Mrs. B ush had Multiple Sclerosis, or one of his grandchildren had Downs Syndrome, would he still threaten to veto the bill that seventy-five percent of Americans want passed? I really have a hard time believing he is that cold-blooded. At least, I hope not. Moving the puzzle pieces into positi T he nomination of General Hayden as the New CIA director finalizes the plan for war with Iran. Following a pattern he has adopted in his second term, President Bush nominated General Mike V. Hayden to be the new Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. He was recently confirmed by the Senate, adding another portion of Bush's vision for the future of U.S foreign policy, which I think, for the moment centers on dealing with Iran's supposedly clandestine nuclear program. All of his pieces are now in place to not only "sell" the war with Iran to the American people, but to carry it out. It seems to me that somewhere in the back of the President's mind is the thought that if the U.S. is going to do anything militarily against Iran, it must have solid intelligence to base its actions on. I surely do not want to hear another presentation on how Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iran is a "slam dunk." President Bush knows that this pseudodiplomacy taking place with Tehran is going nowhere. In light of this fact, I believe that the Ryan Meeks/NciXNews Administration has been, for some time Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad now, planning for a military invasion as an alternative option of ridding Iran of its nuclear facilities if diplomacy-which includes Secu- no surprise. He is equally known for his dislike of the UN. rity Council negotiations-fails. His history of nominations Common sense, suggests that the Administration should have nominated someone who had a great deal of confisince taking office a second time confirms this goal. If the Administration is going to build a case against dence in the procedures and policies of that body. Iran, several key players must be involved. However, despite how much better that would have been, Shortly after his second inauguration, President Bush that is not the case. President Bush is pursuing the national nominated National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice interests of America-in this case a non-nuclear Iran-rather to be the Secretary of State, the U.S.'s primary diplomat than what is approved by the UN. to the world. The fact that General Hayden is a military officer with It is blatantly clear to me that this choice was no act of close ties to the Pentagon indicates to me that he would convenience by the President, especially since Secretary be willing to support military solutions over diplomatic Rice is known for doubting the usefulness of the United ones. Nations. Rather, it appears to me to be a well thought out His career at the National Security Agency gives the step taken in preparation for a military confrontation with Administration just what they need: Someone who will Iran. make sure that any intelligence gathered on Iran's nuclear The recent nomination of John Bolten to be the Repre- weapons program will be solid enough to build an argusentative of the United States to the United Nations is also ment to use the military when diplomacy fails. What legal immigrants think Jeffrey Hilton Opinion Writer — Sherry Murdock LETTERS TO THE EDITOR * E-Mail letters to uvscopinions@hotmail.com * The NetXNews room is located on campus in SC220. * All letters become property of NetXNews and may be edited for content, specifically clarity, length or other concerns at the discretion of the Opinions Editor. * Letters between 50-250 words are encouraged and those letters marked by their succinctness are more likely to be published. * Letters must be accompanied by full name, address, and phone number for verification purposes (contact information will not be published). Courteiy Graphic/www.sxc.liu The Statue of Liberty COLLEGE TIMES "No stripes today, huh?' a man asked me at the restaurant where I work. Seeing my blank stare he clarified by saying, "All white people today?" I finally caught on when I remembered it was May l t the Day Without Immigrants. This experience made me wonder what it is like for legal immigrants who are living here. I interviewed Ivette and Miguel from Mexico tofindout. "After May 1st my friend was treated rudely at stores. The Immigration Department has been stopping cars on the freeway and other streets. If you look Latino or another citizenship they ask you for your papers and are rude to you even if you have them. I have only met kind people while here in the U.S. so I'm sad that these things have happened to other people," Ivette told me. "For all those who say and do bad things and are rude to immigrants, I want them to know we are not from a different world, we are from this world too, and we have been raised with good principles, education, and morals. We want to share our culture with you and learn from yours. We are individuals just like you. " Miguel said. I also asked them for a solution that would stop illegal immigrants. "At the border they should do their job without treating us rudely. Most of us are not looking for citizenship or residence. We just want a legal permit to work," Ivette suggested. "I think the solution to all of this is to give them permission to work, but also give them strict rules and guidelines. Then immigrants without papers won't need to hide. Because of immigrants who break the law, those who want to follow the law suffer. That's not fair because we are not like them [those who break the law], we are not the same, we don't think the same, we don't act the same," explained Miguel. Ivette concluded, "This is a land of freedom and opportunity. Those who know immigrants well, know that they want to work hard and provide for their families. Most of us want to accomplish a goal and then return to our countries." Miguel finished, "There are just a few opportunities you can take in this life and if you have them, you better take them." now on/t>ie.. cxcaHancaJaccuracyfin togrity |