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14 Monday, February 14, 2000 Concerns or comments about out coverage? Contact the ombudsman at budmaniftjnc.edu or call 60S-2790. Scott Hicks EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR Katie Abel UNIVERSITY EDITOR Jacob McConnico CITY EDITOR Board Editorials Smiley for SBP... Student government has become tired and outdated. Erica Smiley will shake things up. If elected, Erica Smiley will breathe new life into the office of student body president and student government in general. Her basic ideology is different from that of the other candidates, who emphasized small B mm tasks in their platforms. Smiley would create campus-level watchdog groups to advocate for student interests on both the federal and state lev els. Those groups have the potential to last long after her administration. Indeed, she has the experience and skills to rally and mobilize effective student protests. Her focus on grassroots politics would allow her to mobilize students who wouldn’t normally have an interest in student govern ment. She plans to go further than past administrations by putting a student govern ment application in every student’s hands. What’s more, her focus on minority issues is something the University needs. She pledges to support women’s issues and an Asian Resource Center, and she vows to con tinue to support the establishment of the Sonja H. Stone Black Cultural Center. Smiley is willing to tackle large issues such as improving the availability of financial aid for students. But she must be wary of taking on issues such as the Iraqi sanctions - which led to her being brought up on ethics charges before Student Congress last year -and a ... Not These Guys This year's crop of student body president candidates was strong, The DTH explains why Smiley's opponents didn't make the cut. Each student body president candidate has good ideas and a solid platform. But the distinction they lacked was Erica Smiley’s dedication and organizational know-how. Brad Matthews has the Suite C experience and administrative networking to be an effec tive student body president. But he lacks Smiley’s innovative ideas and potential to change fundamentally the way student gov ernment works. Matthews’ being so entrenched in student government politics ensures the status quo. Smiley can learn the necessary skills quickly. What’s more, a smart move would be to borrow Matthews’ ideas to keep current Student Body President Nic Heinke on the Write In a Leader Kudos to Thad Woody for stepping up to run for GPSF president, But graduate students deserve a better leader. The next Graduate and Professional Student Federation president has some mighty big shoes to fill. And those shoes seem to have scared off most graduate stu dents. Matt Bouchard, the only official candidate for GPSF president, announced last week that he was dropping out of the race. Thad Woody then stepped up to campaign for the post as a write-in candidate. But despite his willingness to take the reigns of the GPSF, graduate students deserve a stronger leader. The responsibility lies on their shoulders. While Woody has shown enormous responsibility and commitment in coming forward and trying to prevent the GPSF from being unrepresented in 2000, he lacks the enthusiasm and drive for the over whelming task at hand. Woody’s platform shows that he is in touch with several pressing issues with grad uate students such as housing and teaching assistant pay. But he does not give concrete plans for solving these problems. The most important task for a GPSF pres ident is lobbying. Woody cites his tenure as senior class president in 1996 and two terms in Student Congress as opportunities to “net work with the University community and state legislators.” However, he doesn’t name any specific legislators. His lack of lobbying know-how would be a detriment to the graduate student body. Rob Nelson EDITOR Office Hours Frkiay 3 p.m. - 4 p.m. moratorium on the death penalty, both of which Student Congress passed resolutions in the past two sessions. Everyday, she should be careful not to abandon the detail work that keeps student government running. The only weakness on her platform is her idea to create a student government intern ship through which members of student gov ernment could earn academic credit for their participation. They already have something to put on their resumes and do not deserve academic credit as well. What makes her a refreshing candidate is also one of her biggest obstacles. She doesn’t have the executive branch experience that Brad Matthews has, but she will learn fast. It might help Smiley to have someone close to her who is more experienced than she is with the executive branch of student government. To that end, she needs to remember her promise to select a “diverse Cabinet,” where diverse means taking students from all walks of campus life, not just fellow activists. Finally, Smiley must be careful to cultivate productive relationships with administrators - after all, she’ll most likely be the first to work with anew chancellor. Still, she should n’t just succumb to the whims of administra tors - especially the new chancellor who will come in pushing his own agenda. Smiley has solid, fresh and far-reaching ideas and the skills with which to carry them out. Unlike her challengers, Smiley promises to give Suite C a much-needed jolt of change. Erica Smiley Chancellor Search Committee and expand ing UNC’s leadership training programs. Preston Smith shares Smiley’s ability to think outside the box -but even his outgo ing personality can’t make up for his lack of knowledge about pressing issues. Matt Martin and Michael Harris have the heart, but they just don’t have the guts to stand up for all students’ interests. Martin’s beliefs about reconsidering how student fees are distributed is troubling, and Harris seems iffy in his opposition to a tuition increase. Josh Ray failed to notify The Daily Tar Heel in time that he was sick and could not make it to his scheduled interview. Asa result, he was ineligible for endorsement. But the blame for this year’s drought of viable GPSF presidential candidates lies squarely at the feet of the graduate students themselves. It’s a shame to let the organiza tion go without a voice after the ground breaking work that current GPSF President Lee Conner has done in the N.C. General Assembly and at South Building here. If no one steps up to the plate, the whole team loses. And the losses - tuition remis sions, benefits and organizational vitality and legitimacy - are too great to ignore. The future of the GPSF lies in graduate students’ hands. If the problems that Woody addresses in his platform - such as lack of child care, lack of housing and unsuitable pay - ring a bell, it would be in the graduate student body’s best interests to turn the spot light to a capable candidate who can achieve these objectives. Graduate students often feel disconnected from the life and politics of UNC. In their eyes, the concerns that most affect them are glossed over for more important “campus” issues. But letting a major voice like GPSF fall to the wayside will not close this rift. The grad uate student body needs to write-in a suitable candidate for GPSF president Tuesday. But for that to happen, someone with lead ership skills and political experience needs to step forward and agree to fight for graduate students. Apathy never gets results. alu> tlmlij (Ear Mtd Established 1893 • 106 Years of Editorial Freedom www.unc.edu/dth Matthew B. Dees STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR T. Nolan Hayes SPORTS EDITOR Leigh Davis FEATURES EDITOR Opinions Robin Clemow ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Carolyn Havnes COPY DESK EDITOR Miller Pearsall PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR l V/ho V Jonf)£ z ' l -' Lonesome Tonight? Call Neal... Time is quickly running out for my roommate, Neal dejong, and myself to find dates for this evening's St. Valentine’s Day festivities. New Orleans natives, both of us enjoy reveling for any rea son that comes along. But tonight’s party requires two to tango, and we’re both single. This status never ceases to confound us, especially given the number of women on this campus who constantly complain that there are not enough guys to go around with the University’s disproportionately large female population. Mind you, that’s large in numbers, not size. You see, according to our objective estima tions, we both have much to offer members of the fairer sex. Neal, handsome in anyone’s book, boasts a grade point average higher than yours, is funny beyond belief and is very friendly. Myself, well I’m ... errr ... did I mention Neal’s GPA? So we’re both wondering why Neal doesn’t have a girlfriend, and we hold weekly strate gic planning sessions to see if that can’t be changed. This weekend’s meeting featured the delightful motion picture “Last of the Mohicans,” starring Daniel Day Lewis, who managed to attract the movie’s leading lady in a matter of minutes. “Why can’t we get girls like that, Brandon?” Neal asked. I suggested it was Lewis’s long hair, his heroic romps through the woods with musket in hand and the incessant theme music that followed him wherever he went. So today, when you see the guy in the long wig running across the Pit as if it were crawl ing with menacing Hurons - that’ll be Neal. I’ll be the guy next to him whistling the theme music. Of course this is just the latest of our bril liant ideas, which are prime examples of pre cisely why we are single after all. In our first effort, we spent the first weeks of the year reading each other all of the Trivial Pursuit questions in the Millennium Readers' Forum Running Photograph Of Club Insomnia Hurts Gays, Lesbians TO THE EDITOR: 1 submit to you, the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) community at UNC and in Chapel Hill, my sincerest apology for The Daily Tar Heel’s coverage of opening night of Insomnia. Although I remain grateful for the DTH’s interest in our community, and for the wonderful articles they have written about the grand pre miere of Insomnia, they did not real ize the devastating effects of includ ing a picture (in which you could clearly recognize the patrons’ faces) in their Feb. 7 publication. How “out” are those recognizable people in the background of the pic ture? Are they “out” to their depart ments? To their employers? To all of their friends? To their families? In many places around the coun try, to this day, malicious law enforcement officers deliberately publish the names of people they arrest in GLBT bars, thereby “out ing” them to the local communities. This is incredibly difficult for many of Vicky Eckenrode & Cate Doty MANAGING EDITORS Thomas Ausman DESIGN EDITOR Megan Sharkey GRAPHICS EDITOR William Hill ONLINE EDITOR BRANDON BRISCOE VOICE OF REASON edition. When a small crowd found them selves hanging out in our room one evening, w'e suggested a game of intellect, knowledge and cheating. “For a piece of the pie,” I said. “How many years did Priscilla say she lived with Elvis before their relationship was consummated?” “Hmm, that’s a tough one,” Neal sighed. “But if I were Elvis, it would take me four years to sleep with her.” “Bingo.” That being Neal’s 18th consecutive correct answer, the other guys in the room gasped in awe. The girls, however, cried foul. Much of our work is simple damage con trol and preventive measures. This weekend I caught Neal before he left the room wearing his stylish Justin cowboy boots -and shorts. And earlier this semester, Neal suggested that I not write the sequel tojosh Fennell’s anti-fraternity column, which was to be titled, “Sorority Houses and Brothels: Different?” (Neal also suggests that I mention the previ ous was entirely a joke. I agree.) Our latest scheme involves our favorite New Orleans holiday - Mardi Gras. We decorated our palatial room in Old West Residence Hall with a host of seasonal items, including purple, green and gold lights in the window facing Cameron Avenue. Neal figures the lights will attract girls to the room like flies to a picnic. So far, no luck -but did I mention Neal’s GPA? Some plans just flop, of course. Case in these GLBTs, and my understanding is that the suicide rate among people under this experience is astronomi cal. There is not much difference between publishing names and pub lishing pictures in which the patrons are clearly identifiable. In recognition of this fact, I am taking the following actions: 1) I am formally apologizing to the community for this mistake. 2) Cameras will no longer be per mitted in Insomnia (on Friday nights). 3) I’m extending an invitation to the editors and staff of the DTH to take part in a sensitivity training on GLBT issues in the media. My primary concern is in devel oping a safe, fun space for gays, les bians, bisexuals and transgender peo ple at UNC and in Chapel Hill. Please trust that Insomnia is such a place. Beginning Friday, Insomnia will be held every Friday night. A portion of all proceeds will continue to be donated to local GLBT organiza tions. On opening night, we raised SI,OOO for the N.C. Pride Parade, which will occur June 10 in Durham. We will continue to support the Terry Wimmer OMBUDSMAN point: the idea to claim imaginary girlfriends. “It’ll make the real girls jealous!” we figured. Perhaps we should have chosen better . names than Ginger and Bambi. And for those who thought we were serious - the long-dfc tance thing just didn’t work out with those ga*s. Most of our inspiration comes from televi sion or movies. We watch “Jack & Jill” and “Felicity” regularly for social training and sen sitivity. And we never miss NBC’s “West Wing,” which portrays the zany excitement of life in the White House and prepares us for our future careers. I’ve promised Neal the sec retary of state job, but I’m still looking for a, first lady. But having the wisdom in this floundering operation, I have repeatedly reminded Neal that our strongest weapon is patience. We’ve relied quite heavily on it for rationalization, and it has served us well. That’s why we harbor no bitterness toward today’s celebration of those lucky enough to have found the love of their lives. Our time will surely come someday. And in the mean time we’ll save our large piles of cash and maintain our slim figures by avoiding silly greeting cards, flowers that die in a week and chocolate that looks like a heart and tastes like it, too. Instead, we salute those of you who’ll be out on the town tonight or who celebrated with your out-of-town sweethearts this past weekend with romantic dinners and strolls across campus. You see, we’re not interested in cheap flings. Instead, we applaud the very thing this holiday tries to celebrate - true love. That’s the sort of thing that ought to be celebrated every day of the year. We might have to pass this year, but that’ll make next year all the more sweeter. Brandon Briscoe is a junior journalism and mass communication major from New Orleans, La. Send him your valentines and tips at brandon_briscoe@unc.edu. GLBT community. If you have any recommendations on how we can improve, please e-mail me at camp@unc.edu. Thank you for your continuing support. Glenn Grossman Doctoral Program Department of Epidemiology Grossman is chairman of Carolina Alternative Meetings of Professional and Graduate Students. UNC-C Administrator Says School Officials Like Campus’ Name TO THE EDITOR: A story in the Jan. 21 issue of The Daily Tar Heel, headlined “Officials: UNC Schools Separate But Equal,” leaves the false impression that UNC- Charlotte officials seek to change the university’s name. A suggestion that UNC-C change its name has not been discussed by UNC-C officials and is not a goal of the university. lack Claiborne Associate Vice Chancellor UNC-Charlotte 3% Sally (Tar ' J? The Daily Tar Heel wel comes reader comments and criticism. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 300 words and must be typed, double-spaced, dated and signed by no more than two people. Students should include their year, major and phone number. Faculty and stqff should include their title, department and phone number. The DTH reserves the right to edit letters for space, clarity and vulgarity. Publication is not guaran teed. Bring letters to the DTH office at Suite 104,' Carolina Union, mail them to P.O. Box 3257, Chapel Hill, NC 27515 or e-mail forum to: editdesk@unc.edu.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Feb. 14, 2000, edition 1
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