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Show editorial Editorials editor: Patrick Parkinson Phone: 626-6358 Tram or no tram, listen to the people With the approaching millennium, dollar signs in de Deafr of fie presidents' dignity About threescore years after he cut down the cherry tree, the venerated and revered Father of our nation died after a long life of public service of syphillis, if I remember correctly. And Thomas Jefferson, whose words helped to forge the Constitution, this county's cornerstone document, and declare our land free of foreign sovereign rule, was a slaveowner who had out-of-wedlock sexual affairs with said slaves. I don't know how George contracted his bug, nor do I care. Neither ;can I fathom the revolting concept of gowning another human being like either him or T.J. which they both, as slaveowners, did. Let's just say I don't even put a collar on my cat. FDR was a brilliant man and an inspiration to millions during a very hard time in our country, as he gave his Fireside Chats from the wheelchair he was forced to use due to childhood polio. He also was married to his cousin and was a womanizing adulterer just like the beloved JFK. FDR was just more discreet. JFK strutted his hormones like a $2,000 dollar pair of pants, which he also wore, I'm sure. But he could easily afford it, as his family had and has riches earned from bootlegging alcohol during the Prohibition era in our country. Time has draped these former presidents in a canonizing shroud. Hell, Bush already is having streets and boulevards named after him; Nixon has colleges bearing his name, and even Reagan is hailed by many to have been an honest leader despite Nicaraguan Contra revolutionary arms evidence dealing with Iran, with whom the United States refused to have political tics. Truman gave the order to condemn tens of thousands to death to save many times that number, history argues. Grant was a drunk and Taft had to redesign the White House to encompass his cellulite-riddcn bulk. And every Commander in Chief who has served this country has been involved in some kind of illicit affair. Go check it out, and you will find it's true. Does this mean the only people who are fit to be president are tall (almost every one has been oversix-foot-two), white(every one), men (ev- K,,....vJBB' Aaron Barnard "Notes In passing" ery one) who can't keep their adolescent cravings under control? I doubt it. Some argue that power corrupts, and I agree to the extent that others only have the power over us which we allow them to have. But I think it's mainly because the American voting public is a sucker for a good shine job, and politicians have become windvancs to the political breeze (witness Governor Leavitt's impressive backpedaling whenever someone says 'polygamy'). Presidents are still humans and prone to each and every deficit of the species: ignorance, arrogance, lasciviousness, gluttony, sloth, depression, anger, greed, etc. But it's the electorate who actually elects them, and allows their own agendas to be undermined by what platforms the bipartisan majority says are important. Maybe we just expect too much from the presidency; how can one person be responsible for every good or ill in a land as large and diverse as America? On that note, it seems like people are more often willing to take credit for things that go well and eager to foist off responsibility for things that don't. So, collectively, the presidency symbolizes ourwell-being; if the nation is doing well, it's because of the president; and if everything is falling apart it must be time to elect the next president from the opposite party. Conservatives and moralizers in Congress scream at the top of their lungs for a public presidential rebuke, even as their own pristine numbers are thinned by the new policy of total disclosure regarding past indiscretions. Clinton compounded his infidelity by misrepresenting his actions to the American people, which was the largest wrong I feel he committed, in addition to using his elevated position for sexual gratification while he and his paramour were on taxpayer time. Ms.Lewinsky should be considered an adult due to her former position and age despite the juvenile manipulative games she has concocted; she knew she was getting involved with a married man who also happened to be the leader of the free world. Did she think Clinton would leave his family for her? Did she want him to? What's her motivation? Shouldn't this be allowed to die so we can get back to living, and let Bill worry about how to deal with his family? Who cares about all the gory specifics?Mostly, the kind of folks who go on and on about the moral dangers of immorality and tiow horrible events like this are, yada-yada-yada, are the ones who lend Starr the authority he needs to extract every last iota of personal information and make public the gruesome details so as to embarrass Clinton into resignation. Or at least stack the deck for the next election in the Republicans' favor. These same people are against pornography and lustfulness, but want to be able to retire to the commode for a leisurely perusal of Penthouse Letters... I mean the Starr Report and have it available to anyone who would witness the public shaming and degradation of another human. Once again, we are witness to a hypocritical attempt by the Moral Majority to pass off their puritanical doctrines as being in the actual majority. when in reality most people are content to let Hillary punish him. Folks from other countries are snickering behind their hands at the prudery of the American public over the infamous Clinton-Lewinsky debacle; aren't we a civilized industrial nation with better things to do with our individual and group time than pry into someone's bedroom and ferret out their dirty laundry? There is rampant crime and omnipresent pollution in every one of our urban centers, national morale flutters like a wounded butterfly on the wind of the economy, and many sit back and gripe about how Clinton has disgraced his office and actively seek his political crucifiction. Of course we will have an impo- See Dignity page 5 velopers' eyes are growing wider with the Wasatch Front's impending expansion. The Wasatch Front was steadily growing before Utah received the bid for the 2002 Olympic Games. With the plethora of justification receiving the bid has given developers, it is more important than ever for us as citizens to stay informed of developers' interests. Already, wc have allowed the United States Forest Service to trade about 1,300 acres of our land to Earl Holding, so he can further develop his ski resort for Olympic events. Recently, the most talked about Olympic-related issue in Ogden is a proposal for a tram which will start at Ogden 's east bench and end near the summit of Mt. Ogden. Friday, The Signpost asked students around Weber State University's campus how they felt about the tram idea. Some students' quotes were printed in Monday's paper. Disturbingly, however, several students asked were not aware of the tram's proposal. rain Powerful people are meeting right now to discuss the path Northern Utah should take for development in the 21st century. Sure, many students at WSU are from outside Ogden and the state of Utah. And some will be leaving the Land o' Zion upon graduation. Many, however, will stay. You will be the ones most affected by the decisions of these interest groups and local legislatures. The tram issue may seem unimportant, but numerous ramifications need to be considered. There are obvious financial and environmental concerns. And the argument for progress is ever viable. Are there more pressing issues, like education and increased juvenile crime, that Ogden officials should be dealing with? Will the area be able to support a tram, considering the potentially hefty price to ride (between $20 and $30)? These and other poignant questions are continuing to test the tram's advantages? Rather than support one side of the tram debate at this point, The Signpost would rather see everyone informed about an issue. The citizens, if necessary, must exercise their right to speak out. We believe it is still possible to force short-sided, egocentric politicians to yield to the demands of the people? By Patrick Parkinson editorials editor-The Signpost iii Recipient of the UFA General Excellence award Editor in chief Taylor S. Fielding 626-7121 Managing editor Tyler A. Holt 6267614 News editor Kari Lynn Harland 626-7655 Campus affairs editor Julianne Hancock 626-7659 Lifestyles editor Angela Wadman 626-7621 A&E editor Debra Jandreau 626-7624 Sports editor Joey Haws 626-7983 Copy editor Angie Welling 626-7507 Editorials editor Patrick Parkinson 626-6358 Graphics editor Anne Gukeisen 626-6358 Photo editor Graham Sykes 626-7661 Advertising mngr. Rcbekah Clements 626-6359 Secretary Georgia Edwards 626-7974 Adviser Dr. Shcree Josephson 626-6164 Publisher Dr. Kalhy Edwards 626-6559 Signpost fax 626-7401 The Signpost is published Monday. Wednesday and Friday during fall and spring semesters. Subscription is S9 a quarter. The Signpost is a student publication, written, edited and drafted by Weber St ate University students. Student fees fund (he printing of this publication. Opinions or positions voiced are not necessarily endorsed by the university. The Signpost welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must include name, address, telephone number, relationship to staff and the writer's signature. The Si i;npM reserves iherighl toed it for reasonsof space and libel and also reserves the right to refuse to print any letter. Letters should not exceed 350 words. Bring letters tothe editorial office inUB 267.ormailto: TheSignpml. WeberStale University.Ogden. Utah 8108-2 1 10. Attn. Taylor S. Fielding. |