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Show Views&Opinion Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009 Page 12 Utah State University • Logan, Utah • www.aggietownsquare.com OurView When the wolf comes A nyone who frequents the Taggart Student Center is no stranger to the fire alarm system – the loud wailing of the alarm, the flashing lights and people strolling outside at their leisure. In elementary school, fire drills are a bigger deal. Kids hear the bell and bolt. Teachers have to remind their students not to run for their own safety. Every elementary student knows exactly what to do during a fire drill. Teachers would have a designated spot for their students to meet and they take roll to make sure everyone made it outside. Things were chaotic yet organized. How did we regress from elementary school? Take a walk outside the TSC during a fire alarm. No one has any idea what is going on or where to stand. They look like sheep. Students express frustration at having to drop their activities and leave the building when the alarm goes off, but they need to remember the TSC has an alarm system and fire drills for a reason. The TSC alarm is not just used for fires. If some maniac rampages through the building shooting people, the alarm would sound in an effort to get everyone out of the building as fast as possible. If a harmful gas was leaked into the ventilation system and was being spread throughout the TSC, the alarm would also be set off. Cases such as these are when USU students’ lack of treating the alarm seriously becomes dangerous. If students took their sweet time getting out of the building or decided to ignore the alarm altogether and there was gas polluting the air, their lives could be at risk. The moral of the story is that while running wildly from the TSC after every fire alarm yelling,”Everyone get out,” isn’t probably the best reaction, remember to take the alarms seriously. Just because the dangers aren’t visible doesn’t mean they’re not there. ForumLetters Safety is a major part To the editor: Earlier this year, I joined other Logan Neighborhood Council members in recommending that Logan implement business licensing of rental properties for two reasons: 1) improve the safety of the renters and 2) improve the quality of the neighborhoods that have rental units. Mayor Watts and the Logan City Council have created a committee to explore this issue. The committee includes five members that represent the landlords and a USU student leader to represent the USU student body. I came away from the first committee meeting with a feeling that we would be able to accomplish both objectives in a way that would be good for all. On-campus housing provided by USU is routinely inspected for fire, safety and maintenance concerns. Once every semester, each apartment is inspected and smoke alarms are checked by the safety department. The fire department routinely inspects and tests smoke alarms, fire alarms, sprinkler systems and fire extinguishers. The maintenance department checks apartments before fall semester and after spring semester. Electronic locks, police escorts and a staffed call center are just a few of the additional safety measures in place for on-campus housing. However, off-campus apartments are not currently licensed by the city and therefore not subject to safety or health inspections. In fact, while the Logan Fire Department has recently started inspecting the larger apartment complexes, it does not currently inspect homes that have been converted into apartments or even fourplexes. For these reasons, I would like point out a few important fire, health and safety issues students should look for until off-campus apartments are licensed and inspected: Every bedroom should have a second exit, typically a window. Technically, these egress windows should have an open-able area of 28 square feet. The egress window needs to be this large to allow a firefighter, with all his The Fox News movement W hen the Obama administration attacked Fox News last week, it failed to take into account that Fox is more than just a news network: it’s part of a movement. Last Sunday, White House political chief David Axelrod spoke to ABC News about Fox, saying, “It’s not really news … other news organizations like yours ought not to treat them that way.” Axelrod is right. But he doesn’t take into account that most Fox News followers are already conservative. Fox has made a living on spouting out hours of opinionated news, mixed in with limited reporting. With the likes of Sean Hannity, Bill O’Reily and Glenn Beck leading the network, it is a wonder how Fox can claim to be objective. There is little doubt that Fox has a biased news coverage, and it seems to be coming out as strong as ever with the recent election of President Obama. The Tea Parties protesting the government that drew tens of thousands of protestors to the White House was all but planned by Fox. One of its anchors, Glenn Beck, was a headlining guest speaker at the protest in Texas. The coverage leading up to and during the protests was biased at best and unethical at worst. The Friday before the protest in September, Fox took out a full-page ad in The Washington Post accusing other major networks of missing the protests and ignoring the march in Washington. Later on at the protest, one of Fox’s producers, Heidi Noonan, was video taped riling up the crowd to make the protest look even larger than it actually was. The next weekend, there was a similar protest with about the same number of attendees marching for gay rights at Washington, D.C., and Fox didn’t even bother to send a camera crew to cover the event. However, Fox’s decisions are just Ask Miss Jones Dear Miss Jones, As you know the Halloween Howl is coming up this Saturday and I find myself in quite the pickle. I want to start by saying that I have a immunodeficiency disorder. It’s genetic and pretty much means that I get sick really easily. My mother used to make me wear those masks whenever I was in a public area and I never learned how to swim because she always said, “Pools? More like cesspools,” and told me to go study instead. Anyway, I’m a senior majoring in psychobiology, which is pretty much like majoring in both psychology and biology with a little bit of engineering in there. I’ve gone on one date since being in college and I’m lucky to talk to one female a week (other than one of my professors and my mother). I haven’t been to any Aggie sporting events and, most assuredly, haven’t been to The Howl. But I’m determined to end my college experience on a positive note and have already bought my basketball tickets as well as a ticket to The Howl ... and now that I’ve made the commitment I’m terrified. I was so irrational in this decision, I mean I don’t even have a costume. I was thinking about being Tron or even finally un-boxing my first-edition Storm Trooper suit. The real reason I’m scared is because of this nasty H1N1 virus. I’ve done a lot of research on it and can easily see the TSC being packed with people as the perfect breeding spot for it. What should I do? Should I even go? E=MC^2 gear, to get in and get you out in the event you’ve been overcome by the smoke. Some variances to this rule may be allowed but only when approved by the fire marshal. There should be a smoke detector in every bedroom and one in the hallway to the bedrooms on every floor. All fuel-burning appliances require an adequate supply of fresh air to support the combustion. Don’t store solvents, sleeping bags or other combustibles in closets with water heaters or furnaces. There shouldn’t be any exposed electrical wiring, loose electrical connections, leaky plumbing or mold. There should be guardrails by drop-offs and handrails on stairs to prevent falls. You should test your smoke detectors monthly and know your escape routes and keep them clear. You can ask the city (716-9025) to inspect your apartment if you feel it is unsafe. I, for one, enjoy the youthful energy and vitality that students bring to our community. This wouldn’t be a college town without you. While off-campus housing may never match USU’s level of safety, we feel that Logan should improve its rental housing by implementing business licensing and safety inspections of off-campus rental units. Alan Hinckley Submit a letter, comment on a column or enjoy a break with USU-Tube at www.aggietownsquare.com as much profit driven, as they are ideology driven. There is a large market for Fox to cover news with a conservative spin, and it’s not much of a secret. People want to hear what they already believe and Fox capitalizes on the fear that is so popular. With Obama’s approval rating slipping and the uphill battle for his initiatives continuing, it is no wonder that Obama is frustrated with people who take Fox pundits seriously on all accounts. I can only imagine how frustrated President Obama must have been when Glenn Beck said he was a “racist” and “had a deep-seated hatred for white people or the white culture.” But the Obama administration has missed the mark. Instead of keeping lines of communication open or simply treating Fox like nosey pests, President Obama launched an attack. The White House has every right to give interviews to whomever it wishes, and if it doesn’t want to send representatives to speak with Fox, that’s its choice. But the White House has no business telling news networks Dear E=MC^2, I’m not quite sure where to begin. First off, normally my contributors make up a name that has to do with their dilemma, not just something they like – a proper name for you would be “Drowning in Germs,” or “Howl of a Problem.” Just out of curiosity, have you ever heard of Ed Gein? I wouldn’t be surprised if you never have. He was before your time, but I know you’ve heard of some of his legacies. See, Ed Gein was the the real-life person who inspired characters like Norman Bates from the movie “Psycho” and Leatherface from “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.” Gein’s mother, Augusta, moved her small family to the boondocks of a small Wisconsin town to stop people from influencing her sons. The children only left the farm to go to school and spent most of their time doing work around the property. Augusta, a very strict Lutheran, drilled the notion of an evil world into her kids’ heads – not allowing the boys to have friends and telling them that all women were evil whores (except herself of course). Anyway, after his brother died from mysterious circumstances (most likely killed by Ed – Cain and Abel style) followed by the passing of Augusta, Ed was left alone. He boarded up all the rooms that his mother used to occupy and lived in the maid’s quarters off the kitchen. As you may imagine he was pretty lonely, so he made himself some friends. How, you ask? Well, with body parts he stole from local cemeteries of course. When he was arrested the police found a bowl made from a human skull, nine masks (made from human faces), skulls resting on each of his bedposts and a “woman suit” in which he pretended to be female. This too was made out of human skin. I only bring this terribly disturb- Letters to the editor • A public forum how to behave. This attitude and behavior only angers the conservative pundits more and mobilizes the conservative base. Rather than displaying his support for freedom of the press, President Obama has come across as a tyrannical manipulator. And the Obama administration hasn’t just angered Fox, every major news outlet has stood behind Fox in saying that the Obama administration has no business meddling in their affairs. Isn’t it obvious that Fox is a conservative network? Did the White House justify what it said? What do you think? Seth Bracken is The Utah Statesman’s senior features writer. Comments to his column can be left on www.aggietownsquare.com or sent to seth. braken@aggiemail.usu.edu ing story up to explain that sometimes mother’s are too protective. It’s OK for boys to get scratched falling out of a tree and for girls to come home with a dirty dress. They probably won’t turn out to be grave robbing wierdos but not having a childhood can do a lot of harm, which leads me to my advice for you. Go. Go to the dance and breathe in the sweaty, recycled CO2. Dance your little, weakly immunized heart out and don’t be scared of the consequences. Your life is like that poor boxed up Storm Trooper costume: you need to escape the large, germ-proof bubble your mother put you in. This is what you need to do, unwrap that Trooper costume and wear it. Wear it to school, to the store and to the bank. Wear it everywhere you go (I wouldn’t suggest wearing the helmet to any of these places). You have a lot of catching up to do in your life and what better time to start than now? Go to The Howl as Tron. That way the ladies can see your face and you won’t be able to hide the germ mask under the Trooper helmet. Respect your mother but don’t worship her. It’s kind of scary. Good luck and remember: “With as many times as Miss Jones has been around the block, her directions must be good.” E-mail your questions to be answered by Miss Jones to statesman.miss.jones@ gmail.com AboutUs Editor in Chief Patrick Oden News Editor Rachel A. Christensen Assistant News Editor Catherine Meidell Features Editor Courtnie Packer Assistant Features Editor Greg Boyles Sports Editor Tim Olsen Assistant Sports Editor Graham Terry Copy Editor Mark Vuong Photo Editors Pete Smithsuth Tyler Larson Web Editor Karlie Brand About letters • Letters should be limited to 400 words. • All letters may be shortened, edited or rejected for reasons of good taste, redundancy or volume of similar letters. • Letters must be topic oriented. They may not be directed toward individuals. Any letter directed to a specific individual may be edited or not printed. • No anonymous letters will be published. 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