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Show 20 - The Friday, 5. June 1998 Daily Utah Chronicle Okay, we love you, bull bye! Birkenstock Experts German Engineering for your feet. The Gizeh SPECIALTY STORE Ot., Letters to the Editor Students Graduating From the U Closed-Minde- d Dear Editor, First, a general complaint. Comparing some group or person to Hitler and the Nazis is a trite and overused rhetorical device that must be outlawed because it allows simple people the chance to feel like they have said something important and meaningful when all they have really done is repeated a cliche like some damned fuzzy bird. In response to the original "No President Hinckley" letter, I say: "Get A Clue." No one ever said the keynote speaker is the representative of the class, nor is that intended. The valedictorian is the representative. Do you have any idea of who other schools 3 Lynnettes n rt i i UJ Ml o) UJ choose? There are no qualifications or grand tradition in the way of keynote speakers; it is as trivial as picking or paying for the most famous person the school can arrange. If that person has intellectual letters, good; if not, it never seemed to bother SIC anyone. UTAH'S ONLY BIRKENSTOCK SPECIALTY STORE 270 South Main Next to the Off Broadway Theater Salt Lake Open 1 0am to around 7pm 364-FEE- T (3338) UTAH'S LARGEST INVENTORY AND SELECTION LARGE SIZES - TO MEN'S 1 7 (BIRKENSTOCK 50) REPAIRS v Enid Greene Waldholtz came and spoke a year or two ago at graduation, didn't she? Did anyone pitch a fit over that? I don't think she represents the student body any more accurately than Hinckley does. At any rate, I think you should count your blessings. Some New York univer- sity or college had Kermit the Frog speak at its graduation a few years ago (I hereby any lame comebacks of "I would rather have Kermit speak" by say pre-em- SPECIAL ORDERS PROVIDE FITTINGS BY APPOINTMENT ing that Hinckley graduated from the U and, therefore, is a more legitimate and lettered choice) . The logic is not there to support rejecting Hinckley's legitimacy as the proper choice to speak. No person on earth could represent the diversity in thought and background of this student body. Many people, to whom I'm sure you would not object to coming to speak, would have to be rejected if the standard were "all members of the student body must agree with the speaker's sociopolitic- al-religious-whatever views." I don't like Bob Dole or President Clinton or their views, but I would come to hear them speak. As a matter of fact, presidents often do speak at graduations and take the opportunity to spew out their propaganda and policy decisions. I don't have to believe what some speaker has to say; I just hope the speaker says something that will cause me to think instead of fall asleep. So relax, no one is denying you your right's by having some vaguely famous religious person come and speak at your graduation. Come and listen; the worst that could happen is that you get bored. Besides, whatever happened to all of that that we college kids are so famous for? "open-mind-ednes- Mitch Richardson Senior Marketing uarters vs Semesters The University of Utah will undergo the most significant change in daily operation in its history this fall with the conversion fromquarters to semesters. The University is puffing a positive spin on the change, which is appropriate since the change is coming. Nonetheless, you will want to keep in mind the following, some of which you may not know: The state Board of Regents imposed the change two and a half years ago despite known fact that two thirds of faculty and the overwhelming majority of students prefer retention of the quarter system. The Board had the legal authority but not the moral right to make the change without approval of those most affected. Proponents justify the change with the claim of academic superiority, a claim that cannot be substantiated. Stanford University today operates on a quarter system virtually identical to ours. The entire University of California system (except the Berkeley campus) is on the quarter sys.tem. UCLA converted from semesters to quarters 20 years ago to join the rest of the California system. Would some have us believe that the first or second most prestigious institution of higher learning in the country, and the most prestigious state system in the country, operate on an inferior academic calendar? Other schools, including the University of Washington, have recently opted for retention of the quarter system. The issue of quarters or semesters then is not one of academic superiority but of personal preference. In Utah, members of the Board of Regents have successfully imposed personal long-hel- d preferences upon the many on the state's college campuses. This ad is prepared by a group of University students representing the majority on campus who have been ignored in this process. As the University has attempted to indoctrinate the campus community to believe this is a positive change, many have felt alone, in their preference for quarters and anger about the conversion. You are not alone. With you we quarter system. Three short quarters are much better than two longer semesters. We greatly prefer the student-friendl- y have therefore dedicated ourselves to a return of the quarter system for our children. As we establish our careers, particularly in law and politics, a main goal thereof will be a return of student preferred quarters. Make no mistake this process will take perhaps a generation. But we hope within ten years you will begin to hear agitation and discussion about a return to quarters. We invite you to join us then and thereafter with your support for those who follow. |