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Show DAILY THE CHRONICLE UTAH AN6 THE CHRONICLE'S VIEW ASU U Revs Up the mm Tf-rtmy-E, 1 &P-Lr-sc.- e. Political Engine You higher-educatio- n Students of the University of Utah, after years of failing to recognize its own power, is starting to flex some political muscle. With a possible 25 percent tuition increase waking in the wings and Utah's system of higher education facing what can only be described as a funding, crisis, ASUU is attempting to mobilize a campus that is constantly being characterized as apathetic, ASUU has realized that it has the resources and the political pull to make it happen. After all, if an entity run by students with a budget exceeding $1 million can't mobilize the students of this campus, no group can. The rally held Wednesday was an impressive display of ASUU's capabilities. Jess Dalton, president of ASUU, made a brief speech outlining student concerns about the proposed tuition increase and the funding of higher education in general. The fact that Dalton is, essentially, the mouthpiece of the 26,000 students that occupy this campus should be enough to rnske local media and legislators sit up and take notice. More than that, however, Dalton, was speaking on behalf of the Utah Student Association, an ciation of which ever student in By the sheer force of this face, ASUU was able to entice every major local televisloa station to the rally. If' ASUU can continue to parlay its influence into publicity and press coverage, the organization can apply pressure to the appropriate places DaKon correctly identified the Utah State Legislature as the body directly responsible for the ibysrnal funding higher education currently receives. Again, ASUU is backing up its bark with bite. It seems you can't take five steps on this campus without tripping over an ASUU sign urging to register to vote. During ' the rally, pizza was evea handed out to people who registered on the spot. , ASUlTs push to get students' to vote is far from misguided. If U students become a voting force, than lawinskeis vill have toaddress funding issues. ', ASUU is currently conducting ' an online survey and poll regaining the proposed tu:&ni increase. The results of UxU survey will be used to fimhe-- 0 students cause. Log onto the ASUU Web site at wvfwjRsuvuitakedu and participate. stu-den- - n, " r Student leaders up; bow ifs'tiice toreRpocd, - - LETTER fs ' higher-educatio- happed fsr tlw switejte fvWvTtc "emce, 5S system is Utah's a member. may want to be sitting for this one. The NooLeA TO THE EDITOR Misconceptions Muddle the Water Editor I would like to respond to Jared Anderson's opinion that "Sexuality Discussions Do Not Need Buildings' printed in The Daily Utah Chronicle Oct 4. Anderson believes that a and transgendered (GLBT) resource gay, lesbian, center would decrease tolerance and understanding toward GLBT issues. Anderson believes that a center devoted to GLBT issues Would focus people's consciousness on the "trait or choice" (I'll address that choice issue in a moment), which is the "reason for conflict and misunderstanding.' However, this has not stopped the University of Utah from creating the Women's Resource Center, or the Center for Ethnic Student Affairs, or the International Center, each devoted to providing resources to and education about minorities and women. I would submit that bringing visibility and discussion about homosexuality to the U is not something to be avoided, but is actually one of the main reasons for having a GLBT center. It is actually our differences that make us unique and valuable, and that only "focusing on commonalities between individuals" is not the best method for strengthening our society. Homosexuals don't frivolously promote their sexuality because they want to; they do so in order to promote equality in society. Perhaps most importantly, though, homosexu-- . and transgendered people do not choose their al, sexual orientation. Ji The Free Will of the Mormon Political Mind . . V tempt because they don't think for themselves. Toeing the party line just doesn't cut KADE S. ROLFSON Chronicle Opinion Columnist an you be something other than Republican and still be a good Mormon? Many members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-da- y Saints ask themselves this question every election season, and the resounding, but unfortunate, answer for the majority of them is "no." The LDS Church does not officially support any political party and has only counseled church members to seek goo3, upstanding people. With no political stance, those watching the political activities of Mormons are presented with a conundrum: Why are Mormons overwhelmingly Republican? Many of my fellow Republicans in this state have no idea as to why they're Republican, other than it seems to be the thing to do. In fact, I've had friends approach me and ask me how they should view certain issues in order to still be in line with the party line! Even though I feel that the Republican Party is the way to go, I have much more respect for Democrats, Libertarians or even Socialists who can articulate their stances and it. In fact, for me, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Scott Howell is more representative of my views than Republican Senator Orrin Hatch is. Among many Mormon Republicans, such a statement would be considered blasphemy. Looking back into LDS history, such strong support for Republicanism has come and gone. When LDS Church Apostle Reed Smoot also served as a U.S. Senator and exercised close to a stranglehold on politics in this state, Utah was mainly Republican. During the Great Depression, Utah was overwhelmingly in support of the Democratic Party. This state even voted overwhelmingly for Franklin D. Roosevelt, even after church officials counseled members to vote for Republican candidate Alf Landon. Support for the Democratic Party lasted for quite some time with many Utahns looking back to the days of former Utah Governor Scott Matheson, a Democrat, with a sense of nostalgia. defend them under the light of scrutiny. I admire and respect those who are active in politics and who are trying to make a differ- Mormon faithful, however, drifted back to the Republican Party with the arrival of Ezra Taft Benson on the scene. Benson was a strong member of the Republican Party and the John Birch Society and inundated church members with his strong political views. Benson served as the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and gave members of the LDS Church pride in having a strong member of the church in such a high level of national ence. Even though there are some who would vote the way I would feel is right, I feel con politics. Since then, the majority of Mormons have cemented their allegiance to the Republican CHRONICLE OPINION EDITOR SCOTT LEWIS Party. Even though the Republican Party has been a good fit for many Mormons, no political party out there is a perfect synthesis of LDS beliefs, and members could find justification to belong to almost any political party based on church beliefs. In fact, many prominent church members do in fact belong or have belonged to the Democratic Party. For example, before being called into the church's leadership, Second Counselor in the First Presidency James Faust was a very active member in the Democratic Party. philosopher, researcher and Brigham Young University faculty member Mormon . Republican ideals strike a chord with a lot of Mormons, but I'd rather see members of political parties who actually know why they're members. Hugh Nibley is another prominent Mormon figure who claims a strong allegiance to the Democratic Party. Also, former Salt Lake City Mayer Ted Wilson, currently heading up the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics, is an LDS church member who has filled many leadership positions within the church continues to be actively involved in the Democra LETTERStsPCHRONICLE.UTAH.EDU see ACCEPTANCE, page 6 tic Party. Prominent businessman Kem Gardner, president of the Boyer Company, has served with Wilson in church leadership positions and is also an active Democrat. Even though the Democratic Party can boast the membership of such prominent Mormons, the Utah Democratic Party has. committed a major faux pas in not aggressively trying to show Mormons how the principles for which Democrats stand are in harmony with Mormon principles. Contrast that with the almost constant reaffirmation of moral stances by Republicans in this state that they know will strike a chord with Mormons. One tool Democrats could use is to focus on the LDS tenet of free agency. Mormons believe that God's greatest gift to man is the ability to choose right or wrong for himself. They believe that God won't force us to choose rightthat's Satan's plan but He'll try to persuade us to do things in harmony with His will. Democrats could score major points with Mormons if they could effectively demonstrate that their positions protect the freedom to choose, and that they're the party that is the strongest in favor of protecting God's greatest gift to man. That's a trump card that could used quite effectively. Mormons shouldn't feel trapped into one political party. Republican ideals strike a chord with a lot of Mormons, but I'd rather see members of political parties who actually know why they're members. Besides, a little more political discussion in this state would be healthy for us all. 581-704- 1 |