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Show 5 Friday, September 28,2007 OPINION www. dailyutahchronide. com "THE CHRONICLE'S VIEW A note for BYU o, you got us. We woke up Wednesday, morning and noticed absolutely nothing until The Chronicle staff photographer told us that we'd been had In fact, The Chronicle was the first to report it to campus police. We were embarrassed until we heard that to open the can of pranks leading to the Holy War, you toilet-papered us. Really? Toilet paper? Are you in junior high? And let's not forget . the fact that you toilet-papered a watershed area—you environ- S mentally insensitive baffoons! Well, BYU, it's on. Our students are smarter and sneakier, and we're going to prank the h-e-double-hockey-sticks out of • your campus. You think Saran Wrap during rivalry week is going to protect you? Think again, because you can't Saran Wrap that pretty little Y you have that's just begging to be painted and turned into a martini glass. You might have won this little battle, but we will win the war. BYU, game on. Unsigned editorials reflect the majority opinion of The Daily Utah Chronicle .Editorial Board. Signed editorials, editorial columns and letters to the editor are strictly the opinions of the author. The forum created oh the Opinion Page is one based on vigorous debate, while at the same time demanding tolerance and respect. Material defamatory to an individual or' group because of race, ethnic background, religion, creed, gender, appearance or sexual orientation will be edited or will not be published. All letters to the editor will now be published online at www.dailyutahchronicle. com. Letters that the editor deems best represent those received will be, printed in the newspaper. , ^ ; ;,; •': . .', , . ..*_•.; * " ;, 3 DREAM is actually a total nightmare A m I alone in wondering what the heck is happening to our government? Don't we have a say anymore? America is a republic. We democratically elect officials to represent us. Increasingly, though, they are blatantly disregarding our wishes and best interests for persons that are not even citizens of our country. \ Just three months ago, public opinion defeated the outrageous " blanket amnesty bill President Bush and the Senate tried to push through. The people had spoken, our officials listened and tliat was the end of it. At least, so I thought. Now Congress is at it again, and I was completely sideswiped when I found out who was leading the charge—Sen. Dick Durbin (D-I1L) with our very own Orrin Hatch (Senate) and Chris Cannon (House). The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors Act—or the DREAM Act—was Quietly tacked onto a defense authorization bill because it had no hope of passing on its own. This DREAM act is actually a nightmare, especially to us students. This is a sweeping, backdoor amnesty bill that paves the way to citizenship for millions of illegal aliens. The requirements are these: arrival of the illegal alien before the age of 16, proof of residence in the United States for at least five consecutive years and a GED or graduation from a U.S. high school. If an illegal meets these requirements, then he or she can apply for a six-year, "conditional" lawful permanent resident (green card), in which time he or she must either graduate from a twoyear community college, complete at least two years towards a four-year degree or serve two years in the U.S. military. TIARA C. FULLER After six years, he or she would be allowed to cpnyert to a f non-conditional green card. With \ a'nori-conditidnal green card/"' aliens can then sponsor their parents and other family members who are living here illegally. Congress is touting this as a bill to save the poor, innocent children who had no choice in being brought to the United States. Here's the kicker: there is no age limit to this bill. Any illegal alien can walk into a U.S. Customs and Immigration office and claim they were here before they turned 16. They don't even need to show proof—they just have to "demonstrate" that they are eligible. So, an illegal living here right now will be put on the fast track to U.S. citizenship in as few as five years, whereas legal resident aliens have to take a slower path. This nightmare will make it easier for almost any illegal to evade the law. Apparently, once one files any application—even if there is no way he or she would qualify for the amnesty—the government would be prohibited from deporting them. And, under the threat of a sio.ooofine,"federal officers are prohibited from either using information from the application to deport the alien or sharing that information with another federal agency." Why are we favoring illegal aliens who are in contempt of federal law over those who have come here legally? This act will only encourage more illegal immigration because, obviously, we don't care enough to enforce our own laws. Oh yeah...there's more. The nightmare act also provides for illegal aliens to receive in-state tuition at public universities. From 2002 to 2007, college costs rose 35 percent, and more than 60 percent of college students graduated with debt averaging $19,200. Granting in-state tuition to illegal aliens is the same as provid_ ing them a taxpayerJunded education. The nightmare act also makes the illegal aliens eligible for federal student loans and federal work-study programs—all at taxpayers' expense—a benefit that law-abiding foreign students cannot receive. I don't see why I should be responsible for paying for someone else's education when paying for my own is hard enough. With the resources for education already spread so thin that most of us don't qualify for grants and have to take out loans to pay for our education, our representatives are trying to take any help available and give it to people who are breaking the law. We as citizens should be first when it comes to getting a break on education costs, not illegals. Out-of-state students and legal aliens pay the full cost of tuition. Why are citizens of our country and law-abiding foreign students being discriminated against? Why are our representatives continually putting the interests of foreigners who are illegally in our country above those of American citizens? If you are as disgusted as I am with the current display of representation by our Utah officials, I urge you to contact them immediately and voice your displeasure. You can send a message to Orrin Hatch, Bob Bennett, Jim Matheson and Chris Cannon by going to www.congress.org, typing in your zip code and then clicking on their names. letters@chronicle.utah.edu Don't be distracted by the right wing's tactics Reactions to the 'GeneralBetray Us' ad are just another extreme political move T right fringe, and the blanket saturation is complete. The whole process is lightning fast. Echo. Amplify. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. In no time, the entire country is wasting time and energy discussing what is essentially a namecalling incident instead of whether or not we are getThe trigger this gAVID ting the whole truth time was when the SERVATIUS from our leaders stridently anti-war about matters of advocacy group .,H A war. It's admirable, MoveOn.org ran an "" really, if it weren't ad in The New York so insidious. Times during the congressional testimony of General Petraeus regarding We saw this same thing during the ' progress in Iraq. In the ad, they used 2004 election. In one of the debates, a clumsy play on words, rhyming the John Kerry made a passing reference general's name and the phrase "betray to Dick Cheney's daughter being gay us" to make the point that the testiwhile answering a question on the mony was not honest or accurate and, subject. Suddenly, the machine kicked in effect, betrayed both the troops in into gear and after only one or two the field and the United States. news cycles—lather, rinse, repeat—the entire country was busy discussing A lot of rigorous reporting has whether or not John Kerry was a "bad, shown that this is exactly the case— bad man" and not the fact that the that the general was doing nothing more than providing President George senator had just completely trounced George Bush on every level in the Bush with cover behind his. medals debate. and carrying his political water for him. It's really old. Let's not fall for it But now, predictably on cue and this time. Let's see it for the dishonalmost symphony-like, you can hear est tactic that it is. How can anyone screaming and howling and whining take the moral indignation of the right from coast to coast. "Oh my God, what wing seriously at this point anyway? about the children? The horror! They This group essentially forfeited the (shudder) rhymed a hero's name with moral high ground when they mocked 'betray us!'" the injuries of a decorated war hero at their party's last presidential nominatYawn. It's a tactic that has been ing convention. Remember how funny used over and over. What is troubling they all thought they were sporting is how highly efficient and ultimately their purple Band-Aids? effective it still is each time. Here is how it works. Someone on The outrage here is not MoveOn's the right catches an opponent of any ad in The New York Times. The right-wing policy in a benign error of outrage is what Sen. Chuck Hagel, a judgment. The Republican National very pro-military Republican, arCommittee spin doctors then get hold ticulated perfectly last week on "Real of that unfortunate moment, distort it, Time with Bill Maher" when he said, craft a set of talking points around it "It's not only a dirty trick (to send a and send it all into the right-wing echo military man to do a political sell-job), chamber where it spreads like wildfire. but it's dishonest, it's hypocritical, The Limbaughs, Hannitys, Coulters, it's dangerous and irresponsible. The Drudges and Freepers—and the netfact is this is not Petraeus' policy, it's work of clones they have spawned—1all Bush's policy. The military is subservistart drumming the "outrage" into a ent to the elected public officials of dumbed-down and distracted nation's this country...but to put our military conscience. in a position that this administration has put them in is just wrong, and it's Finally, the mainstream media feels dangerous." an "obligation" to report on what is being discussed so frenetically on the letters@chronicle.utah.edu here they go again. The rightwing, faux-outrage machine is in overdrive, and gasbags all over the right side of the political spectrum are in high dudgeon, huffing and puff-. ing on cable talk shows, hate-radio broadcasts and in the blogosphere. n.,r,« It's about time for Rather's $70 million apology O n March 9, 2005, Dan Rather signed off of his final broadcast as lead anchor and managing editor of the "CBS Evening News" with an appeal to courage—courage in the face of physical harm and courage to stand up for truth. He left, or more accurately, was forced out, amid a flurry of controversy after the broadcast of unsubstantiated documents calling into question the military duty (or lack thereof) of the President. . The Killian documents, named for the purported author, the late Lt. Col. Jerry B. Killian, stirred up what came to be known as Memogate and later, Rathergate. i;&$ The series of six meitios alleges that a strapping young airman by i the name of George was far from a model soldier during his time with Texas Air National Guard. With accusations of skipping drills in the name of campaigning and failing to submit to physical exams, CBS News producer Mary Mapes had quite a smoking gun on her hands, mere months before the 2004 presidential election. Without properly authenticating the documents, scripts were typed up and cameras began to roll, with Dan Rather facing the nation. The end of that broadcast began a year of angry debate on who to blame and who to sacrifice. Over •those months, Rather's formerly sterling reputation was dragged through the proverbial mud. He left LAUREN MUELLER nearly a year-and-a-half to the day after the original ill-fated broadcast. In a time when the political climate of this country could be described as poisonous at best, people's faith in American journalists has often wallowed at the dismal levels of the president and congressional bodies. Rather had more than 40 years of experience under his belt and was a trusted name in news. His network threw him to the dogs under pressure from an outraged right wing. The newsman had remained uncharacteristically quiet over the dismissal until Wednesday, when Rather officially served his former employers with a $70 million lawsuit more than two years after his departure. For my part, I'd say it's about time. While normally I'm not one to high-five personal injury lawsuits for outrageous capital gains, this is a fight that deserves to be fought. I agree that more consideration should have been put into the release of the Killian memos—calls made, facts checked. After all, when in doubt, take it out. As a journalism student, I hear these mantras daily. However, mistakes were made at all levels, from newsroom to boardroom and beyond. The decision-making that went into the firing of storied anchorman Dan Rather is entirely indicative of the network's grasp of the importance of American media. Katie Couric and her effervescence now occupy the seat once held by Rather, as the "CBS Evening News" settles comfortably into last place in the network news ratings. Welcome, Katie and Co. Get ready for a long ride. letters@ chronicle.utah,edu |