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Show Tuesday, Nov. I, 2012 Page II v ci0 =Free Speech Zone ini Opinions on this page (columns, letters unless otherwise identified are not from Utah Statesman staff, but from a wide variety of members of the campus community who have strong opinions, just like you do! This is an open forum. Want to write something? Contact: statesman@aggiemail.usu.edu Utah State University • Logan, Utah • www.utahstatesman.com Electoral College system outdated One of our editor's family resides in a swing state. Things are great for three years — everyone goes about their lives contentedly and with relative ease. And then come the elections. Attack ads litter the airwaves and the candidates visit every few weeks or so. The political atmosphere is heated and divisive. Everyone prays to their vat-ious gods for the An Editorial Opinion first Wednesday in November to come to pass and signal the end of all the negativism. The focus is always on the same group of states every election cycle: Ohio, Florida, Colorado, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Wisconsin, etc. The candidates for president swoop in and spend millions of dollars to make sure you know the other one wants to restrict your freedom and eat babies. Swing states would have to deal with this a lot less if we reformed or completely got rid of the electoral college. Utah, a state where the turnout for Republicans is generally double that of the Democrats, gets no attention in the months leading up to the election because it is a sure deal for the boys on the right. Just next door in Nevada, the candidates come by every two weeks to tell you that you're great and should vote for them. If we didn't have the electoral college, you can bet we'd have seen more of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney — most likely more of the latter — this election season. Candidates spend no time in non-swing states because they either have them wrapped up or they are a lost cause. Without the electoral college, they would be able to rally their base in every state, not just six or seven of them. The electoral college promotes low participation and voter turnout. When the majority opinion of the state differs from a persons, they don't feel the need to go to the polls because their vote in all honesty won't matter. The electoral college makes voting for a third party candidate a joke. If the two major parties saw a third party candidate getting a good percentage of votes in a popular election, they would change their tune and become more flexible. Democracy, a government ruled by the governed, demands that every vote in a country matter. With the electoral college, your vote still matters — in a handful of states. It's time to re-think the electoral college, switch to more of a winner-takeall system, or get rid of the college alltogether. Our View. CR.EAT*12% SYNDIcere O I z 0:2 2. A b ou tU S LOOK AT THE BRIGHT SIDE...IT'S TAKING VOTERS' MINDS OFF THE \ ECONOMY... Editor in Chief Steve Kent Copy Editor Eric Jungblut News Editor Allee Wilkinson News Senior Writer Tmera Bradley l Features Editor Natasha Bodily Features Senior Writer April Ashland Sports Editor Tavin Stucki ForumLetters Columnist has sinister slant To the editor: The central function of free speech in a campus newspaper is polite reverence. As the wonderful and dignified Reverend Cotton Mather once said, while performing exorcisms on demonic students he found in the backwoods of Massachusetts, "A Good School deserveth to be call'd, the very Salt of the Town." Christopher Atkinson and Callista Cox share that sentiment, as I do, because they bravely wrote against Liz Emery's offensive article about the lowering LDS missionary age. Atkinson points out its malicious intent and unprofessional attitude, how its nature dissolves the Statesman's standards of publication. Cox implies that many non-Mormon foreigners, like Italians and Irishmen, are drunks. Emery is also not a Mormon. It's much worse. Emery is not just "stirring the pot." What she stirs is, in fact, a crucible. Liz Emery, with her history of blasphemous articles and powers of evil, must be a witch. Her mind-warping rhetoric is clearly the influence of Satan, who seeks to undermine the Constitution, beginning with the USU Statesman. As Atkinson and Cox show us, though Emery argues using facts and statistics, she does not have any evidence. It's amazing that anyone can do that - almost eery. It must be some kind of sinister, silver-tongued spell. As anti-religious-freedom humanist Thomas Jefferson said, "The glow of one warm thought is to me worth more than money." He was wisely referring only to those thoughts he agreed with. As LDS American history tells us, Jefferson signed his name on the Constitution in small print, respectfully below Ezra Taft Benson, who had spent the morning creatively doodling Sports Senior Writer Curtis Lundstrom with several sparkly highlighters, and placing unicorn stickers. These unicorns, in fact, were driving patriotic, moon-bound spaceships and carrying sunflowers, something we can all agree with. The point is clear. Emery, on the other hand, practically defecates on Jefferson's ghost's vaporous forehead when she dares to assert her own theories, which were suspiciously put together in her own mind. She draws conclusions using facts and statistics - statistics that had likely used alcohol before being counted - which came, as Atkinson noted, from some silly and highly questionable website, operated by the church itself. Most dangerously, as Cox points out, her article dares question the eternal philosophical wisdom of 18-yearold Americans, who carry a single book with all of life's answers. This should not happen in a University setting. Alex Tarbet Welfare laws need fresh reform With the election only a matter of days away, people are becoming more and more divided on the issues, including social issues. One of the more prevalent issues is welfare reform and the welfare work requirement. Welfare was originally reformed in 1996 when President Clinton signed the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act. It gave money to states to help the poor, but they had to follow certain criteria so the people who were receiving the aid would be encouraged from welfare to work. When this reform was enacted into law, it greatly reduced the amount of people who ► See WELFARE, Page 12 Alumnus recounts mascot debate In 196566, I was privileged to serve Words from as editor-inthe Wise chief of Student Life, the predecessor to this newspaper. It was a wonderful experience and a great preparation for an exciting career. That was in the midst of the Vietnam War — a time of much national unrest, particularly among college students. Some campuses were under siege, with student demonstrations often turning violent and destructive. Somehow, that level of discontent wasn't significantly manifested at USU. The most emotional issue was whether the university should provide a facility for those who wanted to smoke on campus. After much deliberation, it was determined to dedicate a portion of the lower level of the Student Center as a smoking room. It proved to be a good decision. That became a popular place to hang out. We certainly didn't wish Vietnam protests upon our campus. But, having survived the furor of debate around a smoking room, we discussed the virtues of debate in the public square in an editorial board meeting. I advanced my long-held belief that, because Agriculture had become the smallest college in the university, we should consider a new name and mascot. The farmer in bibbed overalls carrying a pitchfork was a disservice Laird Walker to the broader university, and "Aggies" connoted we were predominantly farmers. Of course, our legacy as a land-grant college and our national recognition as a center of agricultural excellence was a righteous source of pride. But the university was growing and times were changing. The staff supported an editorial campaign to call for a consideration of a new name and mascot. I enthusiastically went to work to put the concept into words. We would proceed with a few editorials calling upon students, faculty and administration to consider alternatives in collegial fashion. This would be with a hope that there could be a substantive review of alternatives representing diverse views from the stakeholders. With no fear or trepidation and insufficient appreciation for deep-seated and emotional attachment to the traditions surrounding the farmer mascot and the title of Aggies, I wrote and released the first editorial. I had no idea. The reaction brought new appreciation to expressions mostly confined to barnyards or to sub rosa conversations. As we now say, "Awkward." My father, an Aggie of long-standing called and asked, "How could you desecrate a tradition like that?" A university vice president called me into his office and verbally "took me to the woodshed," lecturing me about disrespecting tradition. Letters to the editor flooded our offices, equally passionate on both sides. We heard plentifully from scores of alumni. Happily, our journalism faculty advisor, Marlin Nelson, was steadfastly supportive of this initiative and generously counseled on how to execute our editorial plan. We stood our ground and moved ahead, offering further rationale for the idea and enjoying the great debate that ensued. Major newspapers in the state commented. John Mooney, the prominent sports editor of the Salt Lake Tribune, took note. He ventured that it was a very timely debate and that USU "could do worse than to consider 'Big Blue, 'Scotsmen', 'Highlanders." The controversy raged, then eventually, simmered. Of course, such major changes take time. I believe a colleague quietly observed, "This ain't gonna happen in our lifetimes." Though clearly we can't claim credit, it is heartening to visit the campus in the Highlands — as I did this week — and to see that some of the best ideas generated in 1966 found a home. Go Aggies! Your raging bull is awesome. Your logos are classy. Your blues are big. USU is great. - Laird Walker graduated in the USU class of 1967 with a major in journalism. Walker spent 30 years as a public relations and public affairs official in the telecommunications industry. He retired in 1997 and has since established a political consulting group. Walker currently resides in northern Virginia, in a suburb of Washington, D.C. Photo Editor Delayne Locke Senior Photographer Curtis Ripplinger Web Editor Karlie Brand Editorial Staff: Steve Kent Allee Evensen Delayne Locke Tavin Stucki Eric Jungblut Natasha Bodily Karli 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. Writers must sign all letters and include a phone number or e-mail address as well as a student identification number (none of which is published). Letters will not be printed without this verification. • Letters representing groups — or more than one individual — must have a singular representative clearly stated, with all necessary identification information. • Writers must wait 21 days before submitting successive letters — no exceptions. • Letters can be hand delivered or mailed to The Statesman in the TSC, Room 105, or can be e-mailed to statesman@aggiemail. usu.edu, or click on www.utahstatesman. com for more info. Polls, submission box, calendars, news archives and more: www.utahstatesman .com |
