Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Feb. 14, 2008, edition 1 / Page 14
Part of Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
14 THURSDAY. FEBRUARY 14. 2008 A SARAH HODGES liT ME CALL YOU SWEETHEART Sarah Hodges is a senior psychology major from Durham. E-MAIL SEHOOGESOEMAIL.UNC.EDU Disconnect to find that special connection I'm sure many of you read ing this have big plans for tonight: a romantic dinner for two at some fanes restaurant, a private performance of the love song you wrote or maybe just renting a romantic comedy and curling up on the couch with your significant other. Don’t have someone to spend Valentine's Day with? Lots of people are logging online to find that special someone, but the Internet isn’t the ideal medium for falling in love. A 2006 Pew Internet survey found that 11 percent of .American Internet users have been to an online dating Web site, and 3 per- cent of Internet users cur renthnumied . ___ AT-LARGE COLUMNIST (.ULUMNIbT or in long-term relationships met online. That is no match for the number of couples meeting in biol ogy lab or at karaoke night, but its a significant amount nonetheless. The eHarmonv Web site advertises that 90 of its members get married to an online match every day. Online dating is a relatively new phenomenon, and the statistics on happiness and divorce are bound to be incom plete at this point. The algorithms that Web sites such as eHarmony and Match.com use are developed by social scientists from major universities. They match poten tial partners on a compatibility spectrum for traits such as socia bility and intellect. I’d like to think that there’s more subtleties in the delicate social dance of flirtation than a mathematical equation can account for. The pool of candidates is much larger than that of your classmates or bar frequenters. That doesn’t mean that you're more likely to find your true love among them; it's just more mis matches to wade through. These mismatches might be hard to spot at first, since people edit their profiles to sell them selves. You’ll learn all about his commitment to family, but what about the way that he regularly stiffs his waitress on a tip? She might tell you all about her love of traveling, but she won't mention the way she talks with a mouthful of chicken cacciatore. Profiles don’t give you much to dislike bey ond poor grammar and spelling. You’re bound to discover these bad habits eventually, but it's better to know what you're getting into from the start. That way you're fall ing for the whole person, not just those personality traits that they choose to share with you. Some Web sites boast a higher level of human interac tion through the use of avatars in a 3-D world. This real-time contact is a step up from the edited back-and-forth of more traditional dating sites, but it’s still missing the face-to-face contact. And some sites, like Red Light Center, are missing the point entirely when they allow people to use their avatars to simulate sex in private chat rooms. All right, so there's the benefit of not haring to fumble with condoms in the dark, but there's the whole physicality missing. So you avoid awkward situa tions like these for a while, but if you really want to get to know someone, you’re going to have to take the plunge. We are turning to chatting, texting and gaming to enhance our social networks rather than real human contact Eventually we need to open the blinds, adjust our eyes to the sunlight and head out into the real world. I’m not saying the Internet makes us socially maladjusted, I'm just saying that it's no replacement for human interaction, especially when it comes to finding some one you want to spend the rest of your life with. So the next time you consider signing up for one of those dat ing sites, forget it. Take that S6O monthly subscription fee and take your crash out for dinner and a movie instead. EDITORIAL CARTOON By Mason Phillips, mphilOemail .unc.edu fWE HAVETOWWE mt TO £ HAVE T<Tl- /wE HAVE toI The gift of giving Extra donations are extra incentive for seniors to donate Seniors who have been hesitant to donate to the senior class campaign or just haven’t thought about it yet now have an extra incentive to cough up some cash. UNC alumnus Rye Barcott, who founded the sponsored senior campaign. Carolina for Kibera, gave a lecture Friday on his experiences working with the organization. The lecture coincided with the announcement that if 30.5 percent of the senior class donates to the senior campaign, anonymous donors will give $25,000 to CFK. In addition, other donors will match seniors' contribu tions to CFK of any amount up to $25,000. We encourage seniors to donate as part of the senior campaign to make sure that this organization receives the donor-pledged funds. Donations to any of a slew of The right fit Committee needs a chancellor who meshes with system While the sudden res ignation of the presi dent of the College of William & Mary, Gene Nichol, might not directly affect us here at UNC, it would behoove those involved with the search for the next chancellor to take away a lesson from the situation. Because of the conflicting vievv-s held by Nichol with those held by the public university ’s Board of Visitors and members of the Virginia legislature about the direction that William & Mary should take, the board chose not to renew Nichols con tract, a decision that prompted his immediate resignation. One of the departing pres ident’s most heavily criticized decisions w'as the removal of a cross from the nation’s oldest Try for a fair trial GA should have delayed Wright’s ethics investigation Call Tommy Lee Jones; things in Raleigh are about to get heated. On Monday the attorney of N.C. Rep. Thomas Wright, D- New Hanover, compared his client to the wrongly convicted main character from the classic '9os film “The Fugitive." Wright wanted the General Assembly to delay his ethics investigation until after his criminal trial was completed. The assembly, however, denied his request and deckled the ethics investigation would continue. Words of wisdom to the com mittee: It would have been in everyone’s favor to let the justice system run its course first. Wright pleaded not guilty Jan. ♦ to five charges of obtain ing property by false pretense and one charge of obstruction of justice. These are in relation to allega tions of mishandling campaign funds. Wright has failed to file correctly, or file at all, his cam paign finance records for the past 22 consecutive quarters. Wright’s attorney, in defense of the delay of the ethics inves Opinion organizations around campus qualify toward the 30.5 per cent mark, so donate to what you are passionate about. But for those w'ho don’t have any specific group in mind for your $20.08, CFK certainly is a w'orthv cause to consider. CFK seeks to eliminate abject poverty in Kibera, the largest slum in east Africa. To put the situation in more tangible terms, Kibera is no bigger than Central Park but has a population of about 800,000 people. Named a Time magazine and Gates Foundation “Hero of Global Health," Barcott and his organization have become a model for community-based development worldwide by aim ing to provide Kibera’s residents with the knowledge and tools to solve their own problems. CFK sponsors sports pro grams, a girls’ education center and medical clinics. The money seniors raise will college chapel to make people of all faiths feel more welcome. The early termination of Nichols presidency sends a mes sage that the UNC chancellor search committee and UNC-sys tem President Erskine Bowles, who gives a final recommenda tion to the Board of Governors, should pay close attention. The right candidate for the chancellor position will be someone whose ideology regarding the direction that the University should take is com patible with those of University leaders already in place, partic ularly Bowles. Since the next chancellor will be working closely'with Bowles, it is important that the two fit well with each other if the University is to continue improving. tigation, argued that the legis lature’s evaluation of the evi dence and subsequent decision cduld affect the impartiality of the criminal trial. As much as we hate to admit it, Wright’s got it right here. Our judicial system is founded on the basis of inno cent until proven guilty, and the 6th Amendment to the Constitution guarantees a fair trial and an unbiased jury’. Regardless of the result, if the ethics investigation, which surely will be high in the public eye, ends before the criminal trial it will affect the opinion of the jurors one way or another. In the spirit of justice, the commit tee needs to hold its horses. Plus, it’ll save the legislature time and money to put off the investigation. If the court finds him guilty, then it’s a rather simple matter of removing a criminal from the assembly. That saves legislators the time, effort and money of leading an investigation of their own. And saving money always makes constituents happy. And if Wright is found not be used to build an additional wing to a medical clinic. While recent violence in Kenya had suspended the activ ities of the volunteers operating in Kibera, the crisis should not discourage donations. The clin ics are now open again. Rather, the instability and devastation wrought to a long considered “stable" country in Africa underscores the impor tance of peace and prosperity to a developing nation and just how much work that requires. Seniors should donate today and help the senior class poten tially raise $75,000 for CFK. We can’t think of a better way for them to leave their mark on the campus than by actively upholding one of the University's firmest and most time-tested ideals: altruism. For more information on how to give, visit giving.unc. edu/annualfund/seniorcam paign/2008.htm. If Bowies is pushing in one direction and the chancellor in another, it will be difficult to make any forward progress. Of course, any close profes sional relationship is bound to have a few disagreements here and there. The important thing is that they will be able to work through any disputes that might arise with respect for one another and their disparate views and still do what’s best for the University. We hope that the chancel lor search committee will go beyond evaluating the creden tials of candidates and will also give careful consideration to how well each candidate will mesh with the system as it con tinues its search for Chancellor James Moeser’s successor. guilty and the GA still feels the need to investigate, the Justice Department would already have done the bear share of the investigative work for them. With the investigative record from the trial at its disposal, it would make the process of doing its own inquiry that much quick er and, once again, cheaper. The principle of efficiency lends weight to the decision to delay action until after the trial. Unfortunately, the ethics committee already stated it won’t delay the investigation. However, as much as we’d like to imagine that this will be the last case of governmental corruption in North Carolina, this issue might very well arise again in the future. If or, more likely, when this happens, the committee should wait on its verdict until the court has issued its own. lb guarantee a fair trial and prevent that nasty habit of redundancy that government tends to fall into, the legislature should take the cheap and easy route and do what government does best nothing. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Even if they’re lying, people almost don’t care. They want to hear good things about themselves.” DONN BYRNE. UNIVERSITY AT ALBANY PROFESSOR LETTERS TO THE EDITOR To read die full-length versions VJSrr http://dailytarheelpublic.wordpress.com Post your own response to a letter, editorial or story online. VISIT www.daifytartieel.com/feedback Inequality bake sale was just supply and demand TO THE EDITOR: In response to the bake sale discrimination complaint (“Bake sale in the Pit was sexist and dis criminatory," Feb. 13), I think the writer misunderstood the reason women received a discount It’s not a matter of equality but plain and simple supply and demand economics. Since women are in the kitchen most of the day, they have access to cookies and therefore need incen tive to buy something they could otherwise make for themselves. Men, on the other hand, are not emotional enough to bake cookies; this sale was providing a service by selling cookies directly in exchange for cash rather than forcing him to endure many expensive dates and countless inane discussions devoid of content or resolution. So the $1 price tag for men was not a rip-off, rather a gener ous and merciful time and money saver which you should have taken them up on. If anyone should be upset by the sale, it should be women because it undercuts their access to jew elry, flowers and compliments to sustain their fragile egos. John Foushee Senior Computer Science Mormons deserve some religious tolerance, too TO THE EDITOR: (Sarit) Catchatoorian thanked the DTH for its coverage of Mormon missionaries being free of negative skepticism accompa nying discussions of the (Mormon) church (“Article on Mormons was refreshingly objective," Feb. 12). I wish I could say the same for the online discussion board; the article was quickly forgotten, developing in a heated debate about Mormon doctrine, fueled by misquotations, distorted interpre tations and antebellum myths. Discussion is positive, but the predictability of immedi ate, aggressive responses to any public mention of the (Mormon) church has become tiring. This debate is a sample of a dark thread of anti-Mormon sentiment running under the surface of toler ant, rational 21st century America. I hoped we’d moved past religious antagonism, but a Google search will quickly prove otherwise. How' can we still allow- religious intolerance to linger? How is it that as a nursing home volunteer, upon discovery- of my religion, I was escorted to the door? How can we explain the hateful blogs, Web sites and pamphlets created spe cifically to tear down mv faith? America, we can do better. We guarantee freedom of religion, and we believe in freedom of speech, but we also believe in tolerance, decency and kindness. I defend your legal right to believe and say w-hat you want, but I hope you’d temper it with a little understand ing, tolerance and brotherly love. We may disagree doctrin ally; that’s OK. But I think that upon investigation, you’ll find that we’re pretty decent people, maybe even because of our faith, not just in spite of it. Bradley Layton President Latter-day Saint Student Association SPEAK OUT WRITING GUIDELINES: ► Mease type: Handwritten letters will not be accepted. ► Sign and date: No more than two people should sign letters. ► Students: Include your year, major and phone number. ► Faculty/staff: Include your department and phone number. ► Edit: The DTH edits for space, clarity, accuracy and vulgarity, limit letters to 250 worth. SUBMISSION: ► Drop-off: at our office at Suite 2409 in the Student Union. ► E-mail: to edttdeskOunc.edu ► Send: to W). Box 3257, Chape) HBL N.C., 27515 EOtrors NOTE Columns, cartoons and letters do not necessarily fetett the opinions of The Daily Tar Heel or its staff. Editorials am the opinions solely of The Daily Tar Heel edito rial board. The board consists of eight bond members, the associate opinion editor, the opinion edftor and the editor The 2007-08 editor decided no! to vote on the board £hr Daily Oar Hrrl Columnist's arguments were grossly inconsistent TO THE EDITOR: A couple of weeks ago, Nathan Nyanjoms column “America not ready for Ms. President" (Jan. 30) referenced the differing populari ties of “24“ and “Commander in Chief" as reasons why America is not ready for a female president He also mentioned GoDaddy. corns Superbowl advertisements and scantily clad cheerleaders to back up his assertion that in America, women are not viewed as capable of the presidency. While Nyanjoms column pro vided a valid underlying social commentary on the unfortunate ways women are portrayed in the media, his overall claim that a woman will not be elected presi dent w-as weakened by his lack of evidence from nontelevision sources, or “real" sources. That is why I was surprised while reading “Reality isn’t found by looking at a screen” (Feb. 13), wherein Nyanjom attempted to dissuade his readers from watch ing television and encouraged them to meet with friends face to-face and not online. If only Nyanjom had sat down face-to-face with his female peers before writing his other column, he would understand that not all women are scantily clad cheer leaders and he would see that the women in our nation are brilliant, capable and certainly viable as candidates for the presidency. Be consistent in your argu ments or you will lose credibility as a writer. Casey Spiro Junior Public Policy Students shouldn't have to sit at basketball games TO THE EDITOR: Last Sunday, at the Clemson vs. UNC basketball game, my seats were in the upper level stu dent section. As I grew up here, 1 love going to every game I can go to, and I frilly expect to stand and cheer for the entire game. However, throughout the first half, I was mocked and harassed by students behind me who were upset that I was standing. They could not view the game lazily, so instead of standing up with me, they started harassing me. Back in the ’9os, Sam Cassell of Florida State University made a comment about UNC’s “wine and cheese" crowd, referring to alumni. It is sad to think that this overall mentality may have spread to our students as well. Unfortunately, 1 believe that this is a by-product of the new, convenient ticket distribution policy. Getting tickets requires no effort, so casual fans sign up. However, while requiring students to get up at 7 a.m. on Saturdays was inconvenient, it guaranteed that the die-hard fens got the tickets. The old system with armbands was infinitely bet ter, and the people in charge need to address distribution from a per spective other than convenience. Devin Barrett Graduate Student Chemistry (Ihr Daily Sar Urri Established 1893, 114 years of editorialfreedom ERIN ZUREICK EDITOR, 962-4086 ZUREICKOEMAII.UNC.EDU OFFICE HOURS MON.. WED. FIU.I-2 P.M. ADAMSTORCK OPINION EDITOR. 962-0750 APSTORCKOUNC.EDU JONATHAN TUGMAN ASSOCIATE OPINION EDITOR. 962-0750 TUGMANOUNC.EDU EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS JESSICA SCISM SARAH WHITWORTH KATHRYN ARDIZ2ONE SARAH LETRENT DUNCAN CARLTON EIYSE MCCOY GRAHAM ROWE DAVID GIANCASPRO
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Feb. 14, 2008, edition 1
14
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75