Over the past weeks, we have watched as the Sendai earthquake and tsunami have thrown Japan's nuclear power plants into a deepening state of emergency. Even as the repairs are made and the reactors cool, neighboring towns will likely suffer the effects of radiation for decades to come.
While many of you were enjoying your spring breaks in Cancun or Puerto Rico, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 was passed on March 17, issuing a no−fly zone over Libya. Within days of the resolution's passing, Libya was struck from the air by foreign powers.
On Tuesday, March 8, The Tufts Daily published an article, "Senate backs more lenient marijuana policy," in which sophomore Alex Baskin, president of Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), adamantly fights for ... well, what exactly was it again? The right to smoke weed? You have a better chance of being disciplined for talking after quiet hours than you do for smoking marijuana outside. In the article, Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman was quoted as saying that he did not believe anybody had been disciplined for marijuana this year. Yet SSDP garnered the support of 500 students who would like to challenge the policy and "reduce" it to a fine. Choosing an enforceable fine over an unenforced policy is hardly sensible.
University President Lawrence Bacow's decision to end Naked Quad Run (NQR) is symptomatic of Tufts' widespread failure to address the flourishing drinking problem on campus. The administration's past behavior suggests that Tufts is clueless about how to stifle rampant alcohol abuse and relies on increasing security or canceling events to give the appearance of meaningful action. But buffed−up security and event cancellations don't improve Tufts' drinking culture; it only decreases the opportunities it has to be visible. Perhaps as a PR ploy, Bacow's decision was successful, but otherwise it displays an alarming lack of judgment.
The Group of Eight (G-8) nations were not able to agree yesterday, after negotiations in Paris, on the issue of a no-fly zone over Libya. Intended to shield civilians and opposition forces from Col. Muammar Qaddafi, the measure was strongly supported by France and the United Kingdom, while Germany and Russia led the opposition. The United States has, thus far, been hesitant to support intervention. The Daily believes that the Obama administration should not support a no-fly zone.
Whenever starry−eyed investors knock on his door at the Vietnamese embassy in Washington, D.C., Tung Nguyen, the boyish, bespectacled deputy chief of mission, is sure to inject a dose of reality into their sunny optimism.
Much news these past days has rightly focused on the terrible disaster happening in Japan. Most of the coverage has been on the ongoing problem of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station. The situation there is critical, and it seems now highly likely that there could be a significant release of radioactive matter. As frightening as this is, the continuing news coverage has helped me realize the thing I fear the most in the world.
"This is a republic of peace. We seek peace, cooperation and friendship … peace with our neighbours … and friendship with the great nations of the world." South African Prime Minister Verwoerd made these remarks in celebration of the nation's fifth anniversary.
There's a joke that goes something like this: "A CEO, a Tea Partier and a union member are sitting in a room. Someone brings in a plate full of cookies. The CEO grabs all but one of them, looks at the Tea Partier and says: ‘You better watch out, he's trying to take your cookie.'" As much one may want to chuckle, the kernel of truth hidden in this jest has now become too outrageous to bear.
President Barack Obama yesterday gave a speech outlining his desire for education reform at Kenmore Middle School in Arlington, Va. He announced his plans to significantly alter the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 by changing the criteria for judging schools' success as well as doing away with the 2014 deadline for academic proficiency.
Researchers in Toronto, Canada, published a study in 2005, reporting that bisexual males have homosexual tendencies and concludes that, "indeed, with respect to sexual arousal and attraction, it remains to be shown that male bisexuality exists." In pop culture, the gay character Blaine from "Glee" confirmed this finding in the "Blame It on the Alcohol" episode when he took a dip in the mythic pool of bisexuality and came out as gay again. Additionally, another gay character, Kurt, angrily reacting to Blaine's exploration of his sexuality, denies the very existence of bisexuality in the same episode.
In 2002, I had my first encounter with the Naked Quad Run (NQR). That year, two students nearly died the night of the run due to alcohol poisoning. In addition, we had many reports of broken bones and sprained ankles and wrists; we also heard accounts of students being tripped and groped by spectators. At the time, the event was completely unmanaged. When I saw the carnage, I sent a message to the community expressing my own strong opinion that it should end. I was persuaded otherwise by students and alumni who argued that the run was a cherished tradition at Tufts and that it could be managed to make it safe. I was also persuaded by those who argued that if we tried to eliminate the run, it would only reappear in other forms that might pose even greater risk to our students.
University President Lawrence Bacow has decided that the university will no longer allow the Naked Quad Run (NQR) to continue. The ritual of streaking around the Res Quad is a decades−long Tufts fixture, and its loss is regrettable, but we at the Daily support Bacow's decision to put an end to it.
Have you been paying attention to U.S. politics lately? The U.S. Senate thankfully just voted down a bill to defund any family planning clinic that offers abortion, including Planned Parenthood. Abortion already cannot be federally funded. Instead, the Title X funds in question serve to create affordable pelvic and breast exams, HIV and STI testing, cancer screenings, birth control and related doctor's visits. Eliminating funding for Title X would make the continued existence of Planned Parenthood nearly impossible. The disappearance of Planned Parenthood would keep millions of Americans from access to basic healthcare. As Planned Parenthood functions on a sliding scale of payment based on income, this disappearance would have the harshest effect on low−income families without health insurance, who see the greatest benefit from Title X funding.
Thus far, 2011 has not been a good year to be the leader of a North African nation. January saw Zine El−Abidine Ben Ali, President of Tunisia for over 23 years, flee to Saudi Arabia after a 28−day popular uprising against him. In February it was Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak who was forced to step down after 30 years of autocratic rule.
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