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10 Tuesday, September 4, 2001 Opinion ah' tktihi (Bar Mtrt Established 1893 • 108 Yetm of Editorial Freedom wwwdMlytarhwJ.com Katie Hunter Editor Office Hours Friday 2 p.m. -3 p.ra. Kim Minugh MANAGING EDITOR Sefton Ipock VISUAL COORDINATOR Jermaine Caldwell . SPECIAL PROJECTS COORDINATOR Kate Hartig EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR Lizzie Breyer UNIVERSITY EDITOR Kellie Dixon CITY EDITOR Mex Kaplun STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR Rachel Carter SPORTS EDITOR James Giza SPORTS SATURDAY EDITOR Faith Ray FEATURES EDITOR Russ Lane ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Terri Rupar COPY DESK EDITOR Kara Arndt PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Beth Buchholz DESIGN EDITOR Cobi Edelson GRAPHICS EDITOR Catherine Liao ONLINE EDITOR Josh Myerov OMBUDSMAN Concerns or comments about our coverage? Contact the ombudsman at jmyeroWYemail.unc.edu. Readers' Forum God Wants Disciples Who Will Give Hearts, Souls, Minds to Him TO THE EDITOR: I am writing in response to the Aug. 30 column entitled “Playing Follow the Leader in Religious Terms.” I am not say ing that I know all the “mysteries of the universe” as the article described it, but I do know something. Society has made all of us accept others no matter what their beliefs are. The article in The Daily Tar Heel suggested that if you associate your self with Christianity then you are admit ting that people with different beliefs than yours are wrong. The truth is that neither I nor anyone else in the world is saying that homosexu ality, drunkards, idolaters or people with different beliefs than yours are wrong. The truth is that neither I nor anyone else in the world is saying that says that these are wrong, not me. Yes, I follow these teach ings and believe with my whole heart that these beliefs are wrong. But I did not come up with the teachings, God did. The column also states that if there is a Christian God then he will let “people of all faiths and lifestyles into heaven.” If this were true, then why does the Bible, God’s Board Editorials Ranking Report Moeser needs to clarify his position on rankings not just to the nation but also to the University community Last week an editorial ran in The New York Times claiming that the U.S. News and World Report’s annual rankings of col leges and universities was flawed. The report has spurred universities to make specific changes, not necessarily in the best interest of students, to place higher in the rankings. The editorial named two schools - UNC-Chapel Hill and Ohio State - that “designed institution-wide strategies to boost their rankings.” Chancellor James Moeser defended the University in a letter to the Times stating, “One of the strongest messages I have shared since becoming chancellor last year is the importance of not becoming preoc cupied with comparisons to other univer sities and specifically journalistic rankings.” Moeser pledged to make UNC the top public university in the. country in his University Day address last year. But while he maintains that he doesn’t care about Passing Time and Money Next time, the General Assembly must pass a budget promptly to avoid extra costs and promote efficiency The N.C. General Assembly didn’t exactly get a summer vacation this year. It only has itself to blame, however, because it is still trying to pass a state budget that is two months overdue. The House and Senate have been argu ing over tax increases and cuts to mend a multi-million dollar budget shortfall. Last Wednesday night, by passing a con tinuing budget resolution, they inched clos er to getting the budget passed. However, it is not done, and the longer the state takes to pass this budget, the more it costs. This is not the first time that the budget has not been passed on time. This signals a need for change. At the beginning of July, a resolution was passed that kept the government operating into this fiscal year without the passage of the budget. But at the same time, it put an end-of-August deadline on the General Assembly to pass a budget. Incidentally, it holy word, state that you should not wor ship other gods but him, and why does he state that certain “lifestyles” can indeed keep you out of heaven? God doesn’t call on the casual believer to follow him. He wants a disciple who will give their heart, soul and mind to him. Douglas Williams Freshman, Undecided State Should Encourage Out-of-State Students, Not Drive Them Away TO THE EDITOR: It seems as though the legislators have missed something. They have desperately decided who will pay tuition increases instead of how they could come up with money without burdening anyone. A reminder: Out-of-state students currently pay almost five times more than do N.C. students. Why has the legislature decided to push away this demographic instead of tap ping into them as a resource? Out-of-state students do not just add to the diversity of the UNC system but raise academic standards because it is harder for them to be accepted. If legislators want to hem out high qualifications and variety on comparing UNC to other universities, the projects and goals he has pursued seek to correct programs that have brought the University’s ranking down. For example, 7 percent of the ranking hinges on average faculty salary. This was a weak point for UNC in last year’s rankings compared to the University of Virginia and the University of California at Berkeley, two public institutions edging us out in the survey. Almost predictably, the bulk of last year’s tuition increase went to padding the paychecks of the University faculty. An editorial in the Washington Monthly criticizing the methods used by the U.S. News and World Report to rank universi ties stated that average faculty salary had a negative correlation with student satisfac tion and learning. “It’s largely a proxy for the emphasis the institution puts on research,” the editorial stated. And, unfor tunately, research and teaching appear to be fairly exclusive, according to Alexander still hasn’t passed a final budget. Each day that the General Assembly stays in session, it costs taxpayers - all of the representatives, senators and their staffs are on salary, but extra costs, like hotel and travel add up. You’d think that because the state budget was already in such critical condition, the General Assembly would try to keep extra costs from accruing. However, that is not the case. The House and the Senate continued to disagree over tax plans, cuts and tuition increases for UNC-system schools. Tuition increases of 9 percent across the board were also a part of the resolution, but that was the culmination of several proposals over the past several months. It was impossible to predict what the state was going to do next, much less pre pare for the consequences of the budget. Taxpayers and students now have no time this and other campuses, then by all means hike up out-of-state tuition and scare away perspective students. However, it might be smarter to realize the wealth of intelligence, diversity and financial support knocking at Business and Advertising: Janet Gallagher- Cassel, director/general manager; Chrissy Beck, director of marketing; Melida Heien, classified/customer service manager; Lisa Reichle, business manager; Nicki Davidson, Assistant Editors: Michael Abernethy and Sarah Kucharski, arts & entertainment, Ben Gullett and Kathleen Wirth, city; Nathan Denny and Amanda Walther, copy; Whitney Freeman, Lauren Sumner and Karen Williams, design; Mark Slagle, editorial page; Sarah Sanders, features, Mary Stowell. graphics; Jonathan Miller and Adam Shupe, online. Kim Craven, photography; Brad Broders, lan Gordon and Kelly Lusk, sports; Jamie Agin and Owen Hassell, sportsaturday. Lucas Fenske, Jennifer Hagin and Jennifer Samuels, state & national; Stephanie Horvath, Daniel Thigpen and KareyWutkowski, university. Tiie editorials are approved by the majority of the editorial board, which is composed of the editor, editorial page editor, assistant editorial page editor and eight editorial writers. fIV ISN *10709436 The Daily Tar Heel is published by the DTH Publishing Corp, a non-profit North Carolina corporation, Monday- VdHV Friday, according to the University calendar. Callers with questions about billing or display advertising should call 962-1163 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. Classified ads can be reached at 962-0252. Editorial questions should be directed to 962-0245. j MaH*Additsr PO. Box 3257 Chape! Hill NC 27515-3257 Astin, director of UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute. Representatives of Ohio State University, the other institution singled out by the New York Times editorial, did not deny that the report had an influence over the ways they were working to improve their school. In Ohio State’s 2010 plan for improvement, four of the 40 criteria specif ically related to rankings. Moeser needs to show similar candor as representatives from Ohio State. He wrote to the New York Times to defend the University, but no such letter was sent to The Daily Tar Heel, where students would be guaranteed to read it. He also needs to remember that his main audience is not the nation -but the University community. Moeser needs to stop skirting the issue - he needs to speci fy what he believes makes the University “number one” and whether rankings play a part. to get their finances together in order to handle tax increases and cuts, as well as retroactive tuition increases. If the budget had been passed in July, when it was scheduled to be finished, tax payers and students could have been better prepared. The General Assembly needs to realize the consequences of its tardiness. Also, as time has passed in these past few months, the budget situation has become very complicated and inconsistent, making it very frustrating for constituents to under stand and follow. In two years, when the state is faced with passing another budget, it must do better - this is not to be tolerated. Nor can the state afford any more extra costs. The General Assembly is composed of elected officials who work for its con stituents in this state. Next time, they should try to work harder, and be on time so as to not let this happen again. the UNC system’s door. If the system would raise the number of out-of-state stu dents accepted to the university by even a little it could offset the budget woes. So let out-of-staters shoulder the load, ®hf la% ®ar Heel Professional and Business Staff retail sales manager; Nichole Campbell, busi ness assistant. Customer Service: Kristin Chamblee, Holly Herweyer, Susan Ricker and Amanda Taylor, rep resentatives. Editorial Staff Arts & Entertainment: Ashley Atkinson, Brian Bedsworth and Jeremy Hum, senior writers, Jason Arthurs, Diana Cunningham, Trafton Drew, Tiffany Fish, Harmony Johnson, Brian Millikan, Joanna Pearson and Allison Rost. Cartoon: Kristen Beckett, Scott Rooker and David M. Watson. City: Jonathan Chaney, columnist, Leah Cole, Carolyn Pearce, Matt Viser and Amanda Wilson. Copy: Lindsay Apple, Leslie Bumgarner, Lisa Giencke, Laura Just, Collin Lee, Laura Mayhew and Katie Young, Design: Tiffany Pease, Andy Pike and Jaime Schumaker. not by charging them more, but by allow ing more of them to help. Becky Acker Sophomore, Psychology Display Advertising: Erica Lundberg, senior account executive; Candace Doby, Heather English, Jay McDowell, Sarah Mobley, Andrea Sarubbi, Amy Scharf and Eryn Wade, account executives Courtnee Poole, display classifieds. Editorial: Niel Brooks, Amy Dobson, Cate Doty, Joe Formisano, Jon Harris, Jon Hoffman, Ashley Holmes and Matt Minchew, editorial board, Josh Baylin, Michael Carlton, Marian Crotty, Erin Fornoff and Rachel Hockfield; columnists. Features: Mandy Melton, Chris Owens and Sara Parsons. Graphics: Gary Barrier. Kristen Hardy and Evann Strathern. Online: Sarah Givan. Photography: Mike Messier, Ariel Shumaker, Christine Nguyen, Bess Loewenbaum and Brent Clark. Sports: Mike Ogie, senior writer, Ben DeSantis, How Suburban White America Killed Hip Hop Every black kid knows it, and every white kid can’t come to grips with it. Me and my evil army of privi leged suburban white kids ended hip hop as it should be and facilitated the ongoing dearth of poignant lyricism and depth that characterized hip hop as “real.” I don’t feel I should be held personally responsible for its demise. I’ve been trying to embrace what I thought were the roots of hip hop and hoped to “hear” the music and not just listen. But I know I can only go so far. Right off, I’d like to apologize. I am one of the millions of white, suburban kids who sucked the Ufe out of yet another cultural phenomenon. These are the same people who gave you the blues, jazz and rock ’n’ roll. I recall childhood memories.... My over-sized brick house sat about 15 minutes outside of a decendy sized northern city, and my navy Volvo station wagon (turbo) purred as I carted my little sister around town hitting the vast array of malls and mega-theaters. I attended one of those private schools surrounding the beltway and owned more than 5 pairs of khaki pants ... what a life. I also listened to my fair share of hip hop. In doing so, I regretfully can say that its best days are behind us. Rap caught on because it offers a chance for artists to freely express themselves (see jazz and blues). One didn’t need lessons, just hard work to develop a unique style - A Tribe Called Quest’s Q-Tip said it best in “Excursions,” “My pops used to say (hip-hop) reminded him of bebop.” That’s all well and good - hip hop stayed in the black community. But as soon as Luther Campbell (2 Live Crew), Ice T and N.W.A. made it into our mini-vans - that was it. Ironically enough, it was three white, suburban, Jewish kids who did the most in bringing hip hop into your room and mine. The Beastie Boys - originally scorned by hip-hop enthu siasts as “cultural pirates” appeared to be no more than a freak show at first. But, by the release of their third album, Check Your Head, every white kid I knew claimed he was the next Mike D, Ad-Rock and/or MCA. When record companies realized they could sell “black stuff” to all these white kids, it was the day the music died. I’m sure you know where the story goes from here. MC Hammer’s 1990 album Please Hammer Don't Hurt ’Em sold 10 million copies to make it the most popular rap album of all time. Vanilla Ice went seven-times platinum the same year with To the Extreme. Most of you will fondly remember those as middle school years you’d like to forget. I don’t want to give off the impression that I was too good to be swept up in all this mess. I saw Vanilla Ice and Young MC back in the day and I loved every second of it. Now where has rap been since then? After these goof balls, I’d argue for the most part - nowhere. Sure, say what you will about Outkast, Puff Daddy (P. Diddy),Jay Z, 2 Pac, Biggie and even Wu-Tang, but most of it’s corporate rap - created for us, so we’ll buy it. Gone are the days of the mildly offensive, yet smooth “stylings” of De La Soul, Digable Planets and the Jungle Brothers - not to mention the real classics like Slick Rick, Public Enemy, Run DMC, Grandmaster Flash and Curtis Blow. Point being, we’re sorry - I’m sorry. I’d much rather roll a blunt (something else us rich sub urban white kids got the hang of pretty quickly as well) and pop in any of those aforementioned records than sit around and chill to anything on 102 Jams these days. I want to use this opportunity to further extend my thanks to the black community for continually coming up with new things for us, brainless, culturally devoid kids to adopt as our own. Our suburban centers leave no opportu nity for people to talk about what’s new and create our own culture. Whether it’s music, clothes, cars or euphemisms, I salute the black community, and frankly, I don’t know where I’d be without you. Josh Baylin is looking for the next big thing in hip hop and is willing to take his shirt off, twist it ’round his hand and spin it like a helicopter. Raise up and e-mail him at jbaylin@email.unc.edu. Advertising Production: Penny Persons, manager; Kathryn Klein and Karen Stone, assis tants. Classified Production: Sheila Lenahan. Adam Hill, Curt Kendall, Brad Lewis, Gavin Off and Randy Wellington. State & National: April Bethea, columnist, Monica Chen, Michael Davis, Michael McKnight and Metoka Welch. University: Geoff Wessel, columnist, Paige Ammons, Scott Brittain, Rachel Clarke, Brook Corwin, Kara Eide, Ann Hau, Noelle Hutchins, Rob Leichner, Jenny McLendon, Meredith Nicholson, Joe Sullivan and Lanita Withers. Editorial Production: Stacy Wynn, manager. Printing: Triangle Web. Distribution: Triangle Circulation Services. (Ebr iailij QJar Mppl JOSH BAYUN HELL UP IN HARLEM © 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, dou ble-spaced, dated and signed by no more than two people. Students should include their year, major and phone num ber. Faculty and staff should include their title, department and phone number. The DTH reserves the right to edit letters for space, clarity and vul garity. Publication is not guaranteed. Bring letters to the DTH office at Suite 104, Carolina Union, mail them to P.O. Box 3257, Chapel Hill, NC27SIS or e-mail forum to: editdesk@unc.edu.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Sept. 4, 2001, edition 1
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