Opinion

Editorial

Woods pays the price of fame

February 21

This past Friday, Tiger Woods joined the ranks of the many politicians and celebrities who have had to face the media with an official recognition of and apology for their personal transgressions. In his long−awaited press conference, Woods addressed his automobile accident on Thanksgiving night of 2009 and the reports of his infidelity that later emerged. While he expressed his deep apologies to his family, fans and those involved in his foundation, he also admonished the media for its intrusion into his private life and the lives of his family members.

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Editorial

Stimulus spending on the right track

February 17

Wednesday marked the one-year anniversary of President Barack Obama's economic stimulus plan. The President yesterday stated that the program so far has run smoothly and successfully. Obama acknowledged some of the shortcomings of the program, such as the current high rate of unemployment, stating that the stimulus plan has achieved much in a temporary sense and is an ongoing project.

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Opinion

Elisha Sum | Our Genderation

February 17

Tori Amos once sang, "and the man with the golden gun thinks he knows so much."

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Opinion

Women and EPIIC

February 16

In the early 1990s, the United Nations and the World Bank began to argue that the empowerment of women "may well be the highest−return investment available in the developing world." Because developing states are prone to rigid social hierarchies, women must contend with positions of inferiority and ineffectual powerlessness. With this in mind, it is supposed that nations with history of women in political power correlate with higher levels of gender equality, but this is an obvious generalization. In the context of South Asia, women have held the premier office of prime minister in four countries: Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, India and Pakistan. However, all of these countries still lag far behind in the World Economic Forum Annual Index Report on Gender Inequality. This raises the point that change in society requires bottom−up strategies of development.

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Opinion

In support of the Schumer-Van Hollen Bill

February 16

The Supreme Court's recent 5-4 decision in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, which holds that corporate funding of independent political broadcasts during elections cannot be limited, has generated a significant amount of controversy in political and media circles. Supporters consider the decision a victory for free speech, and the opposition, largely consisting of Democrats, considers it a misapplication of the First Amendment that will have disastrous consequences.

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Opinion

Letter to the Editor

February 16

Dear Editor,

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Opinion

Teddy Minch | Off Mic

February 16

In his State of the Union Address, U.S. President Barack Obama declared that "jobs must be our number one focus in 2010" and called for the creation of a new jobs bill. Obama also called for a renewed sense of bipartisanship on the Hill. Both calls to action seemed to be, if not promising, then at least moving in a quasi−positive direction as of the middle of last week.

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Opinion

An argument for a traditional Winter Bash

February 10

This past Friday many of us experienced Break the Ice — the first Winter Bash to be held off campus. For all of you who weren't there, I'll try to convey the feel of the evening in one word: chaotic.

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Opinion

Elisha Sum | Our Genderation

February 10

Tori Amos once sang, "If the sharpest thing where you come is a blade of grass, take me with you."

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Editorial

A challenge to the tenure system

February 10

In a Feb. 4 interview with the Associated Press, Ohio State University President E. Gordon Gee revived a contentious debate in academia by calling for a reassessment of the tenure process at research universities. The country's highest-paid public university president and the head of the largest university in the nation, Gee acknowledged that while individual professors "should gain recognition at the university for writing the great American novel or for discovering the cure for cancer," the tenure review system as a whole is outdated. In putting forth his support for reform of the tenure system, Gee should be commended simply for his boldness in speaking out against a system in which he himself is deeply invested.

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Opinion

A policy with troubling implications

February 9

For those who have been following the U.S. government's War on Terror, or "Overseas Contingency Operation" as it is now called, it should be apparent that President Barack Obama has not thus far initiated the drastic changes that many of his supporters believed he would, based on promises he made during his campaign. For example, in his first year in office, Obama ordered more drone missile attacks in the Afghanistan/Pakistan border region than former President George W. Bush ordered in his last three, and he added 30,000 more troops to the area. In addition, America has continued to abduct foreign suspects and transfer them to prisons in countries that allow torture without charging those suspects of any crime. The Daily understands that it is difficult to implement drastic changes rapidly, yet there are some instances in which it is unacceptable to leave former policies in place that completely contradict the declarations that Obama made during his campaign.

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Opinion

Letter to the Editor

February 9

Dear Editor:

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Opinion

Picking your battles

February 9

I am registered as a Democrat in Texas. I will admit that I am not always as die-hard liberal as some of my fellow Tufts students. Some of my political beliefs are inherently conservative or libertarian, but I still consider myself liberal overall.

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Editorial

Private lenders should not leech off students

February 8

The House of Representatives in September passed a student loan reform bill that addresses President Barack Obama's plans to overhaul the nation's student loan system by slowly removing banks from the process and upping federal funding to the Pell Grant. The bill is currently in the U.S. Senate but is being threatened by strong lobbying from private lending companies. Sallie Mae, the largest student lending company in the country, has doubled its lobbying spending in an effort to prevent the passage of this bill, which would end the government subsidies that private lending companies currently enjoy.

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Opinion

It's that time of year again ... RecycleMania!

February 8

It's that time of the year again: RecycleMania is upon us and cannot be cheated. Much like Santa Claus' elves, Tufts Recycles! interns have been working hard behind the scenes and know when you've been naughtily forgoing the rules of recycling or nicely separating your paper, plastic, glass and trash. By looking through your trash, we've put together preliminary grades for each dorm and small house, a space holder to gauge how you're doing pre-competition. But for the next eight weeks, it's on, for real. It's RecycleMania 2010.

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Editorial

Bacow more than an administrator

February 7

Since his inauguration in 2001, University President Lawrence Bacow has proved himself to be far more than simply a figurehead of the Tufts community. It is easy to recount Bacow's many measurable achievements and contributions to the university as a whole, but the impression that he has left on the Tufts undergraduate campus, though more difficult to quantify, is equally important.

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Opinion

How to beat 'depression'

February 7

    I am a Tufts alumnus who was back on campus last week while headlining Theta Chi's Comedy Night for Haiti. I picked up a copy of the Tufts Daily in the Mayer Campus Center and found the Jan. 25 Features article by Carter Rogers, "High expectations take their toll like never before."  

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Opinion

New Moon' marks 'Twilight' of feminism

February 7

My concerns about the new "Twilight" movie began when my girlfriend, after watching the "New Moon" trailer with me, whispered into my ear: "We have to see this!" I inquired with my female friends, who had seen the movie already, whether it was worth 10 bucks and a 45-minute-long T-ride to Boston Commons. I received enthusiastic responses ranging from a rather harmless, "Oh, my God, yes … you need to see it! It's so cute!" to a more R-rated, "Oh, my God, yes ... yes … yes … YES ... YEEESSSSS!!!" Since I am interested in keeping my girlfriend happy, I grudgingly bought two tickets and apprehensively submersed myself in the most anticipated vampire saga of the millennium.   

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Opinion

In schools we trust?

February 4

Below the radar, using funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, President Barack Obama and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan are making radical changes to public education. They have established a grant called the "Race to the Top Fund" that offers competitive grants to "encourage and reward states that are creating the conditions for education innovation and reform." The Fund is a $4.35 billion investment incentive for significant reforms in education policy. Among the improvements sought after, Obama and Duncan are planning on removing the state charter school caps and mandating the inclusion of students' test scores in teacher evaluations.

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Editorial

It doesn't pay to Break the Ice

February 1

Programming Board has taken various steps in an attempt to make this year's Winter Bash a safer, less alcohol'minus;sodden student event. However, several of the changes for Winter Bash 2010 - now known as Break the Ice - compromise the event's role as a safe, fun night for all Tufts students.Break the Ice marks the first time that one of Tufts' major student events has charged for tickets, and last semester's Fall Ball was the first time tickets were required at all. Winter Bash last year required only that students show up at the door on the night of the event with their student IDs. Requiring that students get a ticket beforehand is a measure that reasonably seeks to regulate attendance and make the event more organized, and while the long lines of last semester served as deterrents for some students, the event was still widely accessible. Charging for tickets, however, unfairly targets those students who are on a tight budget.Break the Ice cannot fairly be called an event for all Tufts students. Charging $10 for a night out dancing is enough to be prohibitively expensive for some students, given the free alternatives available for partying on campus. Programming Board is estimating that attendance will be more than 1,000 people fewer than at last year's Winter Bash. Break the Ice does not feel like the all'minus;inclusive gathering that it was when tickets were free.An even more potentially troubling change for Break the Ice has been to move the event off'minus;campus. Students will take shuttle buses from campus to the Sheraton Boston Hotel for the event. Former Tufts Community Union Senate President Duncan Pickard has called the move off campus 'prudent' with regards to 'security concerns.' But it is hard to see how transporting thousands of Tufts students off campus to a location in the heart of downtown Boston is a safer choice than keeping students on campus where the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) can keep a close watch on the event.Last year's Winter Bash was marred by drinking'minus;related problems like public urination and harassment of volunteers. Spring Fling was declared a 'mass'minus;casualty incident,' as over 30 students called Tufts Emergency Medical Services (TEMS), and more than 10 were transported to local hospitals.Given this precedent, it is reasonable to believe that drunkenness will cause at least some problems at Break the Ice, but simply moving students to a different location is not going to solve this problem. As the event will take place off campus, students may be even more likely to drink heavily beforehand, since they will be anticipating a 20'minus;minute bus ride to and from the event. Once there, TEMS will not be a phone call away to deal with potential alcohol poisoning, and students are potentially less likely to call for help if they have to call 911. Any problems with public drunkenness will have to be dealt with not by TUPD, but by the Boston Police Department.It is laudable that Tufts and the Programming Board are trying to strike a balance between offering fun events for the whole campus and keeping students safe. However, the measures taken for Break the Ice come at the cost of student welfare. Charging for tickets in an effort to reduce attendance unfairly targets students without a disposable income, and shoving the potentially messy problems associated with the event off campus will not necessarily solve the issue of excessive alcohol consumption. Hopefully Break the Ice will be a fun, safe event for those who attend, but Programming Board and the administration should reconsider the steps they have taken in light of fairness and student safety.

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