10 MONDAY. FEBRUARY 23. SOON JL J. PATTISHALL MOI POUOI J. Patishall is a freshman English and philosophy double major from Durham E-MAIL: PATTISHASJEMAII UNC EDU Winds of change and riots of spring IS4K was a bloody year in Europe, full of revolt against tyntnny and poverty. Disenfranchised, dispossessed and all-around pissed-off souls poured into the streets, threw up barricades and fought for their lives against their eonimon social and class enemies. IX-spite the eventual victory of reactionaries. 1848 changed the face of mass polities. Historians refer to this watershed year as the "Springtime of the Peoples." In many ways. 1968 was 1848 redux. In Czechoslovakia, when students and workers were denied democracy, they hum-rushed Soviet tanks and milled totalitar- ian feathers in a dramatic politi cal awakening GUEST COLUMNIST known as the “Prague Spring." In the famous Mai 'tis. Parisian stu dents went out on strike, joined by millions of workers, and caused so much downright trouble for the autocratic, conservative French President Charles de (iaullc that he temporarily tied to Germany in fear. UNC had its own reputation as one of the most radical schools in the South during the political spring of'6B. Students here agi tated for progressive change on a range of issues, from black power to women's lib to the Vietnam War and often times broke laws to do it. Even Dean Smith, patron saint of all things Tar Heel, felt motivated to enter the fray, attending mul tiple anti-war rallies at the court house on Franklin Street that year. And here we are. perched at the top of 2008. sinking into the muck of party |xilitics and campaign malaise. Most Americans think our presidency is heading down the wrong path, and there’s a lot of talk flying around out there about “change." lint what is this change? And w ho is going to deliver it? Many of us find it intoxicating to believe that Barack Obama will lx- out savior. Even Ted Kennedy says he will pass the torch to the new generation. His smile, his youth and his energy all speak to that JFK instinct in us: hope, vote and relax, cause it's in good hands. And try to forget that John F. Kennedy never got much done. Even if Obama gets the nomina tion and untold numbers of pro gressives turn out to vote for him. it's unlikely that the 2008 election will redefine peoples conceptions of American democracy. A gross number of us still won’t vote. And why bother when there's always something more titillating on tele vision? Many other Americans are too depressed to vote. They’ve seen too many JFKs. LBJs and Willy Clintons to actually believe any thing is going to change. 1848 and IH6B were rough years. Sometimes things got ugly. Sometimes people got hurt. But one thing that people knew back then was that sometimes you can’t fit all of your democracy into a bal lot box. Sometimes, it has to pour out into the street. The vote is certainly a great thing, a hallmark of freedom. But it is not. and can never be. a comprehensive political expres sion. When taken alone, it dis sipates popular energy. Notice how quickly Kennedy's torch for the new generation went out? The people who actually change the world, who give us new freedoms and new thoughts, aren’t those who give a cheap vote once every four years, much less those receiv ing the cheap votes. It is the people who move and never stop moving who change the world, whether it’s 1848, li)(>8 or 2008. Icnin once said revolutions arc “festivals of the oppressed." What we need is a festival of the depressed. We are emerging from a (xvlitical winter and need something creative and invigorat ing. which will blossom and bear fruit rather than wither and die on the vine. Somewhere between a general strike and a national street party lies this new American spring. With enough momentum and raucoas energy, good change will tome with the season. EDITORIAL CARTOON By Mason Phillips, mphil@email.unc.edu Misdirected Duke lacrosse players’ suit targets the wrong party Almost two years after the 2006 Duke lacrosse team held a party that became the subject of a heat ed and eventually discredited rape controversy, the rest of the members of that team are suing Duke University and the city of Durham for damages. The lawsuit is not only misdi rected. but it will only serve to rekindle an overdrawn struggle that needs to lx- put to rest. At a press conference in Washington. DC., on Thursday, lawyers for .'lB former and cur rent players announced they would be suing Duke and the city of Durham for the emotional distress they suffered. Leading attorney Chuck Cooper said plaintiffs had suf fered a “horrifying personal nightmare" and “unspeakable suffering." The emotional distress resulted from Duke’s response to the case, including firing the Intelligent investment Clean, efficient nuclear energy makes sense for N.C. North Carolina-based Progress Energy- Hied for federal per mit Tuesday to add a second nuclear reactor to the* Shearon Harris plant in Wake County. Considering the* efficiency and cost of nuclear energy, were glad to see that North Carolina e-oulel become more reliant on the* energy source*. For some, the word nuclear bears a negative connotation, and image's of mushroom clouds and radiation-caused deformi ties immediately e-ome* to mind. There* have been a number of infamous accidents at nuclear power plants, including the 1.986 disaster at Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. But events like these* are* very rare. It’s kind of like* flying in an airplane yes. there are* crashes, but they’re* unlike*ly to happen. Nuck'ar reactors actually are extremely safe, with all new reactors having passive nuclear safety , which automatically shuts down the* reactor in the case* of an emergency. Nuclear energy is also che*aper and cle*aner than alternatives. Make sure its humane GA should pass statewide animal euthanasia standards Nobody likes to see an animal put down, but sometimes it’s a neces sary evil. With that in mind, it's good that the N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services has taken steps to standardize euthanasia proce dures across the state. Wc hojx.* the Rules C< immittee of the General Assembly passes them on March 20. The standardization seeks to ensure that this difiicuit pro cess is handled smoothly and humanely while also assuring the safety of the veterinarians performing the euthanasia. Most animal shelters usu ally use either lethal injections or carbon monoxide chambers for euthanasia. Opinion team's coach and staying silent about potentially exonerating evidence. Also among the plaintiffs’ chief complaints were Duke’s decision to cancel the lacrosse season after the rape allegation surfaced and the school’s silence during the investigation. We find no reason why the players can fault Duke for its actions. Under the circum stances. with evidence still being acquired, the school did the right thing by remaining silent. And with the majority of the team under suspicion of hav ing been party to the rape at the outset of the investigation. Duke acted wisely by suspend ing the season until the case was resolved. Furthermore the plaintiffs are not suing the source of the botched case. Duke and the city of Durham arc simply caught in the crossfire, while former Durham District Attorney Mike In a study by Swedish energy company Vattenfall, research ers found that nuclear power is the cleanest energy source, emitting less carbon dioxide than any other method. Progress Energy considers nuclear energy to be the best pos sible long-term energy source as far as environmental standards and cost are concerned. There were proposals for varying alternate energy sources, including animal waste and solar energy. But Progress Energy officials say that these renewable sources can cost up to 10 times more than traditional energy. However, nuclear energy isn't perfect. There is still no ideal way to dispose* of nuclear waste. The main byproduct of ura nium enrichment, U-238, has a half life of 4.468.000,000 years, but it’s also relatively harmless. However, the resulting ele ments from the decay of U-238 art* more radioactive and there fore more dangerous, which necessitates secure storage. For the time being, nuclear While the processes generally run smoothly, some animal shel ters resorted to sickeningly cruel nuxles of delivering the carbon monoxide. For example. a*ports indicat ed that some animals in Stokes County were placed in a box and asphyxiated with car exhaust. Whether you’re a passion ate member of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals or an indifferent nonanimal owner, it should be clear that this conduct is deplorable. Establishing statewide stan dards for animal euthanasia will ensure that the process is uniformly conducted as quickly and painlessly as possible. The proposed changes will regulate the use of carbon monoxide chambers such that Nifong is the party at fault. Granted. Nifong's request for bankruptcy protection pre cludes him from being a viable defendant though the suit accuses him of both hiding and fabricating evidence. Cooper said the suit doesn't name the escort service danc er who made the allegations because she is mentally disturbed and dependent on drugs. Hindsight is always 20/20, and looking back it is clear that the situation was worse than it could have been, but given the information that Duke had avail able. it made good decisions. The only thing the plaintiffs have to gain with this lawsuit is money not justice from the people who wronged them and not relief from media scrutiny and the court of public opinion. It’s time for the Duke lacrosse play ers to take the noble route and let the case reside where it belongs in the past. waste is buried, kept in dry cask storage facilities. While this isn't a sustainable long-term practice, by using and studying nuclear energy, it's pas sible to develop better methods of waste disposal or create ener gy that produces less waste. Nuclear energy is quite pop ular in France, which other wise has few natural resources for producing energy. While we’d normally advocate the opposite, in the case of nuclear energy, it’s not so bad to be like the French. Nuclear energy has made France energy-independent, which looks even better for the United States considering our dependence on oil from the per petually unstable Middle East. By adding another nuclear reactor in Wake County, North Carolina can continue develop ing long-term energy while also adding hundreds of jobs. We hope that residents’ initial reaction to nuclear power doesn’t scare the state away from this energy source. Economically and environmentally, nuclear makes sense for North Carolina. only commercially compressed bottled gas Is used in a commer cially manufactured chamber. Also, the technician directing the process must be certified, and that license can be revoked by the state if necessary. And w-hile carbon monoxide chambers sound bad, they are a safer alternative to lethal injec tion when a thrashing animal endangers the veterinarian. Sending a sick pet or a stray animal to be euthanized can be a traumatizing experience, and either process ensures the animals pass away quickly and painlessly. The most important thing is to make sure that the process is as humane as possible, and standardization is the best way to achieve that. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “Your neighbors will shame you if they see your green lawn. We don't want (them) looking cross-eyed at us. " 808 BUYSSE, CHAPEL HILL RESIDENT, ON WATER USE LETTERS TO THE EDITOR To read the full-length versions VISIT http://dailytarheetpublic.wordpress.com Post your own response to a letter, editorial or story online. VISIT www.daHytarheel.com/feedback Bushes surrounding Old Well support N.C. State TO THE EDITOR: Now that the red paint has been removed from the bloodied Old Well. (“Campus awakes to a red Old Well." Feb. 21) why could the Facilities Services’ grounds department not complete the job by also removing those blood red azaleas in the planting beds surrounding “UNC's most iconic landmark"? One of the oldest inside rivalry jokes repeats annually with the spring blooming of the azalea garden surrounding the Old Well resplendent in RED and WHITE. Yes, a lovely campus scene in springtime colors if not the most photographed spot on the UNC campus. But past gardeners and landscapers, many of whom were products of N.C. State hor ticulture school, who initially designed this area will smile as you enjoy their springtime handi work in total oblivion. These offending shrubs eould easily be- replaced with an entire pallet of blue and white blooming plants many better suited to the specific growing conditions there so that at anytime during the year there would be no mistake that the Old Well is at the center of Carolina F. Marion Redd Class of 1f)67 ChajKl Hill STI testing is an acceptable use of our student fees TO THE EDITOR: Abstinence will not cure or diagnose an STI. Therefore, screaming, “Don’t have sex!" is not a solution to this problem. Not having sex might prevent an STI from occurring, hut this particular admonition does noth ing for students who already have an STI and are spreading it. Trying to impose your moral standards upon a group of sexually activ e student population is pointless. It will not solve the problem and is incredibly judgmental. Just because a student is sexu ally activ e does not imply that they are not “morally self-controlled" as Kathy Arab (“UNC Is right not to include STD testing in student fees," Feb 21) so eloquently and nonjudgmentally stated. Aside from the fact that one's personal morality has no bearing on the morality of other people, I hope that (Arab) will realize that STI testing is for the benefit of the health of UNC’s population. Heck, 1 haven’t been to student health in two years, and 1 don’t mind paying for it because I like having healthy people on my cam pus. Making people pay money for STI testing will not “discipline" them into abstinence; it will make them forgo testing. Perhaps it would be more con structive to educate students about safe sex. rather than brow heating ‘self-discipline’ and ‘morality’ into them. We do not attempt to coerce people to higher moral standards by-forcing them to choose between money and their sexual health. I’m sure fear of an STI is a stronger reason to check one’s behavior, not avoiding paying for testing. Jennifer Beilis Junior Environ mental Studies SPEAK OUT . 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The board consists of eight board members, the associate opinion editor the opinion editor and the editor The 2007-08 editor decided not to vote on the board ahr Daily ilar Hrrl Thomas can lead UNC to a championship if we let him TO THE EDITOR: Someone's got to say it because no one seems to be thinking it, and you should at least lx* consid ering it.... Carolina's better with