Show Debating over mountain u IT Jeren W. W Canning The Globe Recently it was announced that the University of Utah's trademark letter U on the mountain above the campus is crum crum- bli bling ng The U has been it in place place olace for over I I years years r waS waS' 1 SP ITI d e P Tm Js Today the U is falling abouT fr trees s and nd other th f plants have begun to grow through the cracks in the concrete The problem though is that the remodeling remodeling remodeling remodel remodel- ing of the U today will cost upwards of The reason for the large cost is due to the upgrade of the lighting system to fiber op optics cs Luckily a proud alumnus of the U along with his wife pledged to match any money raised for the U rebuild project Any surplus surplus surplus sur sur- plus over the required would be given to scholarship funds The U however er has to ask boosters alumni and current students for their donation to foot at least half the bill On Friday the Salt Lake Tribune printed I Ian an article stating the U should be done away with The Trib Tub feels that with the Salt Lake Valley growing so rapidly that the space where the U sits should be renovated in to a neighborhood The Trib calls the U as well as other school letters on hillsides across the Wasatch Front Institutional Graffiti I can can see the reason behind both of the Trib's points if they create a neighborhood where the U sits then that can creates a larger readership for the newspaper And their other point I do see as valid it does take away from the natural beauty of the mountainsides But where school irit The Th i University of oft Utah j-Utah- has pr pro pro- d ced thousands thousands of U many o or which are now employed by the Trib There is nothing better than driving past the University at night looking at the blinking blinking blinking blink blink- ing U on the mountain symbolizing that a aU aU aU U of U team won Or standing at the top of Rice-Eccles Rice Stadium m and d seeing U i in r f The U is and has been a frequent target for the the school school down south to commit acts of vandalism But just as frequently students students students stu stu- dents retaliate against that school down south all in the name of the U its it's not called the Holy War Wai for nothing Whether its it's a U painted blue or orY Y painted red its it's all for the love of the school The U is more than just a giant chunk of j concrete on e ti mountain side mountain ide it exemplifies I Ij tt h Ti that fot foI j Gits Git's Its It's q Jf i accomplishment of off strength and most importantly of pride Every college in the country has their trademark for the University of Utah it is the U on the mountain Taking the U away would be like taking the Olympics from Salt Lake without them Salt Lake would have no identity |