Opinion | Editorial

Battle against alcohol abuse has just begun

Keep talented students in the United States

Those who follow politics may feel like they spend most of their time waiting for the nation's laws to catch up to the morals on which they were raised.

New university president has big shoes to fill

University President Lawrence Bacow will leave an impressive legacy when he steps down in 2011. Bacow has since joining Tufts in September 2001 dedicated himself to increasing aid to ensure that Tufts is financially accessible. He has also worked extensively to strengthen the alumni network and to raise the funds needed to ensure that Tufts continues to be an international leader in both education and research. Bacow's level-headed leadership helped Tufts navigate the recent global economic crisis without being drastically impacted by the difficult financial situation. On a more personal level, Bacow and his wife Adele Fleet Bacow's hospitality and openness to the Tufts community are worthy of thanks and celebration.

University's handling of water emergency laudable

This weekend's water main break in Weston couldn't have come at a worse time for many Tufts students. Not only did Saturday's Spring Fling leave worn−out Jumbos feeling thirsty after the concert, but the warm weather of the last few days has made it particularly difficult for students on and off campus to cope with the lack of clean water.

ECOM handled TCU election poorly

With the many criticisms and claims that Tufts Elections Commission (ECOM) has had against this spring's Tufts Community Union (TCU) presidential candidates' campaigns, ECOM has left a somewhat ugly trail of its own. While the Daily has supported some of the outcomes of controversial decisions made by ECOM this campaign season, we are unwilling to condone the processes by which these judgments came about.

Sam Wallis for TCU president

This year's campaign season for Tufts Community Union (TCU) president has seen a great deal of controversy surrounding the candidates' questionable campaign techniques and practices. Numerous students have criticized junior presidential candidate Sam Wallis' campaign for using spray chalk to advertise, as it resembles spray paint, and some believed that his campaign team had vandalized the campus. Meanwhile, members of junior candidate Lauren Levine's campaign have undergone criticism for using the TCU Treasury's signatory e-lists to promote her campaign, which would constitute a violation of Tufts Elections Commission's (ECOM) policies. Most recently, Wallis has also been engaged in an appeals process to contest ECOM's ruling that his decision to fly back from Israel — where he is studying abroad this semester — for the remainder of his campaign was a violation of spending limits.

Guest policy changes will still not see compliance

Last week, the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate proposed several important changes to the guest registration policy. These revisions, if approved by the Office of Residential Life and Learning (ResLife), will make the policy more practical and realistic. Even with the proposed changes, however, guest registration is likely to remain low. ResLife should therefore consider alternative means of achieving the goals for which the policy was created.

Syracuse should embrace Dimon speech

Syracuse University's (SU) recent decision to have Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Jamie Dimon (LA '78) as the keynote speaker at its Commencement ceremony has raised a significant amount of controversy within the university's community. Students, alumni and members of the SU community at large have formed a group - Take Back 2010 Syracuse University Commencement - to protest the choice. The group has collected over 900 signatures on an online petition protesting Dimon as this year's speaker.

Editorial |

Imagine a woman who weighs only 75 percent of the normal body weight for a woman her size. She is anorexic, and when she was hospitalized, she weighed only two?thirds of the normal body weight. However, because of her insurance company's narrow definition of anorexia, at 75 percent body weight she no longer qualifies for in?patient care and may have to be discharged long before her doctor's treatment plan would dictate. Because of health care guidelines for diagnosing mental disorders, this dangerous situation has occurred for millions of Americans with eating disorders.

Eating disorders need inclusive insurance coverage

Imagine a woman who weighs only 75 percent of the normal body weight for a woman her size. She is anorexic, and when she was hospitalized, she weighed only two-thirds of the normal body weight. However, because of her insurance company's narrow definition of anorexia, at 75 percent body weight she no longer qualifies for in-patient care and may have to be discharged long before her doctor's treatment plan would dictate. Because of health care guidelines for diagnosing mental disorders, this dangerous situation has occurred for millions of Americans with eating disorders.

Editorial |

Imagine a woman who weighs only 75 percent of the normal body weight for a woman her size. She is anorexic, and when she was hospitalized, she weighed only two?thirds of the normal body weight. However, because of her insurance company's narrow definition of anorexia, she no longer qualifies for in?patient care and may have to be discharged long before her doctor's treatment plan would dictate. Because of health care guidelines for diagnosing mental disorders, this dangerous situation occurs for millions of Americans with eating disorders.

Supreme Court nomination should not be politicized

Friday's announcement of Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens' retirement has raised somewhat of a dilemma for Republicans whose seats will be contested in the coming midterm elections. With the minority party gunning to regain Congressional seats and possibly the majority it lost in the 2006 elections in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, many current Republican members of Congress are torn between opposing President Barack Obama's forthcoming selection on principle, thereby appealing to their more conservative base, or avoiding the political fight that would ensue and confirming the nominee — who is predicted to be centrist — as long as he or she does not seem to hold views that veer toward the left.

Abstinence-only education harmful to students

President Barack Obama and Congress recently passed health care reform legislation that seeks to extend medical care to all Americans. While the passing of the legislation represents a victory for many Americans who require affordable health care, certain elements of the legislation are not in the best interest of Americans' public health. The legislation includes a renewal of $50 million of federal funding per year for abstinence-only sex education. It is inappropriate for policy intended to improve public health in the United States to fund programs that have been repeatedly proven to not prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and unwanted pregnancies among teenagers. As mentioned in a recent CNN.com article, the programs that can apply to receive this funding must "teach that abstinence from sexual activity is the only certain way to avoid out-of-wedlock pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, and other associated health problems," according to the Department of Health and Human Services. What's more, the programs must also teach that premarital sex is "likely to have harmful psychological and physical effects." Programs that comply with these standards withhold important health information and should not be sponsored by federal health care funds. In order to maximize their health and safety, young people should be provided with full disclosure about the different ways to protect their sexual health. While students should know that abstinence is the only 100-percent guaranteed way to avoid STDs and pregnancy, it is also necessary for them to know that condoms, birth control pills and other contraceptives, when used properly, are highly effective in preventing STDs and pregnancy. In funding abstinence-only education programs, the health care legislation is ignoring the empirical evidence on the efficacy of sex education programs. A 2007 study by the nonpartisan National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy found that "there does not exist any strong evidence that any abstinence program delays the initiation of sex, hastens the return to abstinence or reduces the number of sexual partners" among teens. This finding has been reiterated again and again in various studies. Since evidence shows that abstinence programs do not positively impact teens' sexual health choices, there is no place for the programs in federal health care reform. The idea of postponing sexual activity should be part of sex education, but it is unfair to young people to exclude information about practicing safe sex. Public opinion research has shown that a majority of Americans favor programs that include both abstinence and contraceptive education. The conclusions of both the American public and research studies support comprehensive sex education; why then is federal legislation providing $50 million of tax-payer money for abstinence-only programs? Legislation reforming health care in the United States should fund programs that are the most effective in promoting sexual health among young people. Abstinence-only programs exclude important health-related information about contraception and have been repeatedly proven ineffective in changing teen sexual behavior. Educators should receive funding for programs that provide students with as much information as possible so that students can make fully informed decisions that protect their health and safety.

Climate change legislation should be next on agenda

With the passage of the health care reform bill last week and today's signing of a student loan bill that will remove commercial banks from the student loan market, President Barack Obama has a lot to celebrate. With these recent successes, Obama is making some of his campaign promises real, and it is clear that his administration is able to pass sweeping reform bills through the current Congress.

Health care coverage changes need clarification

Despite health care reform's prominence in the federal government's agenda and the public arena, the outcomes on the Tufts community of the bill recently signed by President Barack Obama remain unclear. The legislation contains significant improvements for health care coverage for young adults, such as the ability for children to stay under their family's insurance plan until the age of 26.  Despite the positive changes for students that will come out of the legislation, the convoluted language of the lengthy bill has led to confusion about how it will affect Tufts' student health insurance. Tufts students need to be properly informed of how the health care system supported by the university will be affected by the legislation.

Proper implementation of education reform needed

President Barack Obama yesterday announced his plan to overhaul the No Child Left Behind Act of 2002. Rather than continuing the previous act's emphasis on students passing national standardized exams for reading and math comprehension, Obama's plan will focus on preparing students for college and careers. With this goal in mind, the president will encourage schools to broaden their curricula beyond just emphasizing reading and mathematics, the areas that No Child Left Behind tracked. Obama's proposed overhaul of education policy contains many much−needed improvements. However, the Obama administration's execution and timing of this plan may end up actually hurting its goals.

Alcohol program should take new approach

Tufts has decided to take another stab at changing the drinking culture on campus by incorporating an additional program into freshman orientation. Proposals for the new orientation program include both a student presentation of personal drinking stories and a presentation by Tufts Emergency Medical Services (TEMS). The event would be modeled after In the SACK (Safety, Awareness, Consent and Knowledge in relationships), the sexual awareness presentation held during orientation week.

FDA needs to better regulate calorie labeling

A recent study by Tufts University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy discovered a widespread trend in the food industry of significantly underreporting the amount of calories on nutrition labels. Specifically, the actual calorie count surpassed the stated count by an average of 18 percent, with some counts surpassing up to 200 percent on restaurant dishes and fast food.

Students should not ignore the census

Tufts counts. All students, both citizens and non-citizens, should fill out and return a 2010 Census questionnaire when it is delivered to their mailboxes this month for residential addresses or in April or May for on-campus housing.

Diversity representation on campus still needs work

As a university, Tufts prides itself on its acceptance and encouragement of diversity. With nearly a quarter of the class of 2013 identifying as "students of color" and a strong international representation, Tufts is widely recognized as a diverse school. Indeed, university President Lawrence Bacow's appointment to President Obama's Board of Advisors on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) seems not only to be an acknowledgment of his achievements in promoting diversity during his tenure as president of the university, but also the strengths of Tufts as a school in supporting and recognizing diversity. The university's two−day symposium entitled "Barack Obama and American Democracy" over this past weekend also afforded further opportunity for Tufts to highlight and promote dialogue around racial and ethnic diversity.