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Show www.dailyutahchronicle.com OPINION Gun history shouldn't overshadow MLK Day ast week, the Legislature yet again showed nearly as much sensitivity as a hungover Rush Limbaugh. Surprise! Sen. Mark Madsen, R-Eagle Mountain, decided to throw a hefty portion of his legislative weight into sponsoring Senior, Mass Communication Senate Bill 247, which would install a John Moses Browning revered figure in our nation's Day—yes, the same John Moses history. It is disrespectful to even Browning of Browning Firepropose to share a holiday with arms—on Martin Luther King Jr. the incomparable King. Day. But yet again, an elected No, don't read that again, official from our great state Browning and a Nobel Peace has decided to overlook some Prize winner passing the same ridiculous national holidays that sentence association and movwe could share, and their excuse ing into a full-blown holiday relies on saving the money it marriage. I have rarely heard of would cost to create a holiday holidays sharing time—divorced out of thin air. Leave it to the parents, sure, family friends with Legislature to trivialize the Civil a place in Mexico, share away. Rights Movement, while leavBut holidays are for specific ing out Columbus Day, a holiday reverence. Now King's day might dedicated to a man who accidenhave the shadow of a giant firetally found an island off the coast arm conglomerate hanging over of our country then systematiit. And guess what? Our Senate cally eradicated an indigenous is behind it, at least in theory, for population. If anything, we now should let Browning and ColumLegislators have pulled back bus party it up under the same on the certainty of the date, but October umbrella. the fact that the thought was Proposing a holiday for a gun there is beyond disconcerting. company is taking the whole I am not saying John Moses corporate sponsorship meets the Browning was not an influential Second Amendment thing too person—his automatic weaponry far, especially for a state constantly fighting for normalcy on a changed modern warfare forever, and we all know Utahns love national level, and maybe rightly their own. But it isn't OK for our so. Utah is constantly ridiculed state to even consider sharing for its near-radical legislative a holiday dedicated to such a tendencies and lack of separation between church and state. After all, we are the state with a law on the books outlawing the hunting of whales. We've also tried to ban the whales' slightly more prevalent land counterpart— wolves. We are in the process of removing 12th grade and even once had a standing army to oppose our country—the only state to hold that honorable distinction. But I digress. Back to the holiday dispute, I sincerely hope that our Senate chooses to change the date, as it is obvious that the support is there for the holiday in general, but that they had the gall to consider Martin Luther King Jr. Day as a legitimate option is enough to make even Don Imus cringe. letters@chronicle.utah.edu 5.6. 247 John M. Browning State Holiday Chief Sponsor: Sen. Mark Madsen, R Eagle Mountain - General description: It would establish a state holiday honoring gun manufacturer John M. Browning on the same day as Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Bill text is unavailable. Source: Utah Legislature, le.utah.gov LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Bikes, pedestrians can coexist in HPER Mall Editor: Chad Mullins' guest column ("HPER Mall construction needs to facilitate bikes," Feb. 18), regarding the HPER Mall is an unfortunate and uninformed portrayal of the intentions and the planning being done for the new mall. This is puzzling considering the fact that he was in a planning meeting two weeks ago and expressed support for the solutions presented which addressed the Bicycle Advisory Subcommittee's concerns. Regardless, under the noble banner of sustainability, he advocates a continuation of the present conflict between unrestrained downhill bicycle traffic along the HPER Mall, and the heavy pedestrian traffic across the mall. His "get the heck out of my way" attitude is no doubt familiar to many pedestrians who would just as soon see bicycles eliminated from campus altogether. We believe bicycles should be accommodated and encouraged on campus, but not at the expense of quality pedestrian spaces. We believe they can coexist. The objective of the new HPER Mall design, in clear and happy contrast to Mullins' whims, is to resolve the conflict between downhill east-west bicycle traffic, and the heavy north-south pedestrian traffic that walks across the mall every day. An even greater objective, and one that is apparently also resented by Mullins, is to make HPER Mall a true pedestrian environment, with a vibrant sense of place and engagement. 5 The mall will contain a series of pedestrian plazas where the heavy north-south pedestrian traffic crosses the mall. These plazas will have nice places to linger spinning off the main paths with seating and shade. They will be places that will invite pedestrians to mingle, enjoy the company of others, the good weather and beautiful environment, or just sit quietly and work on laptops. Mullins apparently believes that these places will be in the way of his bicycle, so the obvious solution is to eliminate them. We vigorously disagree, and believe that it is most appropriate that we reclaim the mall as a pedestrian place, past which bicycles may ride, but with respect to the pedestrians. We do not apologize at all for routing bicycles to a separated path that forces them to slow down when crossing heavy pedestrian traffic. The mall will include dedicated, separated bike paths that go past the plazas. What irks Mullins, apparently, is that when these dedicated bike lanes cross the pedestrian walkways with heavy pedestrian traffic, bicyclists will be required to have their hands on their breaks and slow down for the pedestrians. We have learned by sad experience that some gung-ho bicycle riders don't read signs. So we have utilized landscape features to inform bicyclists that they are approaching a heavy pedestrian area, and that forces them to slow down a bit. Yes, we admit it, we are forcing bicycle riders that want to fly down the mall to slow down a bit for pedestrian traffic when they are coming into areas of conflict. It is nothing as severe as Mullins suggests, but it does require bicyclists to be alert and pay attention when crossing pedestrian traffic. We believe that a bicyclist can slow down for pedestrians and still be sustainable. We have also provided dedicated bicycle lanes that are completely separated from the pedestrian mall for bicyclists like Mullins who simply want to get across campus. We actually included those in the design as a result of our discussions with the Bicycle Advisory Sub-Committee, discussions at which Mullins was present. That is what makes his uninformed opinion so puzzling. Regardless, we will continue to work with the Bicycle Advisory Subcommittee to implement its thoughtful recommendations whenever possible. The new HPER Mall will be a landmark in sustainable design, with an integrated bioswale, quality outdoor pedestrian spaces and accommodations for responsible bicycle traffic. Despite uninformed opinions to the contrary, we believe the new design will enhance the ability of both pedestrians and bicyclists to enjoy the mall without fear for their safety. We believe it will be a huge step forward in campus planning. Monday, February 22, 2010 Senate rush suspicious Equal treatment needs more discussion pparently, there's a problem with reverse discrimination in Utah. I was made aware of the magnitude of the dilemma last week when our Legislature attempted to ram the Joint Resolution on Equal Treatment by Government through the House in three business days. I'm all for government efficiency, but even I thought that was ridiculously quick. Rep. Curtis Oda, R-Clearfield, sponsor of House Joint Resolution 24, must have agreed, because he pulled the reins on the bill's fast track Tuesday and sent it into a hold status with his motion to circle. "Let's slow this down a little bit and get a few things worked out," Oda said. Whoa Nellie is right. First of all, why is the Legislature pushing it through so quickly? This fact alone is a huge warning sign with sirens and flashing red, white and blue lights. We're talking about amending our state constitution. Everyone should be crystal clear on what exactly H.J.R. 24 is changing and how those changes will affect our community. This knowledge is completely impossible to gain in three days. I would know—I've spent two eighthour days immersed in research and conducting multiple interviews, and I still don't have a clear understanding of the potential impact. The bill prohibits discrimination and preferential treatment by government entities to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin with respect to public employment, education or contracting. Essentially, it's squashing federally mandated affirmative action programs that provide equal opportunities for underrepresented minorities. Kay Harward, the U's senior associate vice president for enrollment management, said the bill is a non-issue and won't affect the U's admission. Simply, there's no minority quota or preferential treatment for minority applicants, which means there's no reverse discrimination of white, male applicants. But the U does rely heavily on its ability to recruit minority applicants to help achieve its goal of a diverse community. "All students of any ethnic race or background have to meet the same admission standard," Harward said. "We want to promote a diverse campus. By creating a diverse student body, we provide a better educational environment for everybody." The 2009 Fall Semester census is proof of this statement. Out of the 29,284 students enrolled at the U, 12,336 were white males. The other 16,948 students symbolize the U's highly organized efforts aimed at attracting minority students to apply. The group with the highest equality ratio was white females at 9,545. The numbers are drastically reduced when ethnicity is calculated, revealing that only 7,403 were non-white A While I agree on the issue of citizen involvement, I disagree that barring e-signatures represents a step back for citizens' involvement in democracy, as Brandon Beifuss claimed in his column ("Barring e-signatures unfairly blocks citizen ethics proposal," Feb. 17). After all, we still are required to "vote with our feet." Is it too much to ask that we sign with a pen? Computer systems are not infallible. I do not believe that the forging of signatures including the required "date of birth, full name, full address and e-mail" would be a widespread issue with petitions, but I also do not believe that it would never happen. My biggest issue is my belief that involvement in democracy should require a certain amount of effort. It should be something that we want to do. Involvement should be something that requires risk. Not risk in a life-threatening sense, but risk in that signing your name to a cause may require further effort or defense of the cause. Indeed, signing a petition does not always guarantee further involvement, but there is an implied accountability when the petition is signed in the presence of others. Within the safe anonymity of the Internet, there Top Stories students. Obviously, there's still a huge gap to fill for true equality to be represented in the U's student body. Affirmative action programs help to eliminate inequalities in higher education, but discrimination hasn't been eradicated yet. Octavio Villalpando, the U's associate vice president for equity and diversity, said the purpose of H.J.R. 24 is to create a gender-blind, race-blind practice. He said the legislation is not only about whom the U admits, but also about how the U will be able to allocate its resources to serve the different populations of students. "The reality is that no one is being disadvantaged," Villalpando said. "It isn't a zero-something game. This legislation is unnecessary." Elimination of preferential programs directed toward the recruitment of minority students will be harmful to the diverse cultural environment at the U, something everyone agrees is necessary to achieve a healthy, well-rounded education. Most Americans dream of a day when discrimination is nonexistent and the need for preferential treatment of underrepresented minority groups is unnecessary. Unfortunately, it's only a dream. Utah legislators must vote against H.J.R. 24 so they can take the time required to proficiently evaluate if the legislation is warranted and what its repercussions will be. letters@chronicle.utah.edu H.J.R. 24 Joint Resolution on Equal Treatment by Government Chief Sponsor: Rep. Curtis Oda, R Clearfield - General description: It would amend the state constitution to prohibit the state, public institutions of higher education and political subdivisions from discriminating against or granting preferential treatment to any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin with respect to public employment, public education or public contracting, including affirmative action policies. Source: Utah Legislature, le.utah.gov voiissiii sosolur lz zoos 2098 youth vote breaks records Tao Center rot Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement esernaMOMe 23iltaion mark would im Me new resat lorthavolne bracket. Arnermans age 18 to 29. cel ' _ ‘ ,48bibRockssbare ,ns, r , U honors veterans wit, U rename Charles GroodliffeNhN l Mon 92 year . Mr his military service in World Cbronicle: Veterans Day celee2fa iy -rerl r1/4 PO www.dailyutahchronicle.corn Eric Browning, MORE NEWS THAN CAN FIT IN PRINT. Planner, Facilities Planning Spencer Horton, and English News Director, Campus Design and Construction Senior, Political Science Senior, Mass Communication Home News Sports Outdoors Red Pulse Opinion Blogs Forums Classifieds Contacts Login Ad Rates John McNary, is no risk—and essentially no effort—in signing one's name to a cause. If someone felt truly passionate, or even moderately passionate, about ethics reform, they would not have to look hard to find a way to get involved or sign a petition. The opportunity could even come to them, like the woman who asked for my signature outside of a local library. In reality, it does not even require much effort sans the Internet to be involved. Allowing democracy to be conducted over the World Wide Web is not a good idea. WILLIAMS DAILY UTAH CHRONICLE Democracy requires effort, participation Editor: ALICIA Urkicated regularly with currentestbries & breakingto news. .... 8 0 vernite,aieolirIttitnu_irn s4potiti.,si ..,..._. list putt, theomp En eragny meat said. 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