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6 TUESDAY, OCTOBER 28, 2008 Smlg ®ar MM Established. 1893, 115 years ofeditorialfreedom B AEXANDER TROWBRIDGE WHAT'S HOME Senior journalism major from Guilford, Conn. E-MAIL: TROWBRID6@EMAIL.UNC.EDU Slice of life at a small, Northern college I drew the line horizontally across the map, starting some where mid-New Jersey.. “I’m not applying above this line,” I told my mom. It was my junior year of high school and, tired of the Connecticut winters, I made a stand that would eventu- ally lead me to sunny Carolina for the next four years. AT-LARGE COLUMNIST But while visiting a friend at a small liberal arts school in Vermont this past Fall Break, I couldn’t help but wonder, “What if?” What if I’d toughened up and headed north to Middlebury College, with its student body of only 2,350? There’s a different feeling that comes with fewer students. You know a greater percentage of your immediate community. More faces are familiar. Even with its charm, UNC can be a lonely onslaught of 26,000 strangers. But the smallness produces a different beast up there. As one student put it, nothing’s under the eampuscfining halls. Students are walking background checks on their peers convenient when you want to know who a potential hook-up has been with before, sti fling when you’re trying to redefine yourself post-high school. I heard the campus legends, the tales unique to every school, often embellished through the years. Like the phenomenon Jangling. Surrounded by the feeling of small-town safety, many students at Middlebury don’t lock their doors. In recent years that, com bined with heavy drinking, has led to what urbandictionary.com defines as “the act of sneaking into someone’s room while they are sleeping, and touching, poking or passing out on them.” If there was a breakout of Jangling at UNC, I imagine fear and panic would seize campus. At Middlebury, incidents often lead to laughter. Students chuckle about the girl with the white ribbon in her hair, the star of a Department of Public Safety e-mail warning of a guy who’d woken up one night to a girl on top of him, kissing him. “He was able to jump out of bed and move away from the female,” the oft-forwarded e-mail states. “He yelled at her, and she left the room.” And there are the events I could never see at UNC. Yes, sometimes, the on-campus communities like Olde Campus Upper Quad thrown cookouts and get-togethers for stu dents. At Middlebury, they have com mons, and in 2005, one common treated its residents to a $6,000 pool party. They heated the water to 87 degrees, filled the pool with inflatable rafts and screened the movie “Jaws” on the wall. The student paper runs col umns under taglines like “The Devil Wears Patagonia”( Fashion on campus is dominated by cold-weather brands) and “MiddSexGuy,” a weekly sex col umn (“This week, I’m talking about oral sex.”) It was a weekend in a different world I partied on a campus that ban ished frats in the early 90’s. In the mornings I ate delicious food at a free dining hall. (Well, free for me, included in tuition for students. Still, though, no swipes.) And I watched a Division 111 football game, where the fireworks, cheerleaders, bombers and instant replays were replaced by a back drop of mountains multicolored with fall. In the midst of it all, I missed Carolina. Perhaps, in part, because I was cold ALLISON NICHOLS EDITOR. 962-4086 NAUBON@EMAILUNC.EDU OFFICE HOURS: MON., WED. 2-3 P.M. ERIC JOHNSON PUBLIC EDITOR ERIOOHNSONOUNC.EDU EDITORIAL CARTOON By Alex Lee, lobin@email.unc.edu Hagan for Senate Dole has been ineffective for the past six years; Hagan has the experience and ideas to take her place In a surprisingly close race for North Carolina’s seat in the U.S. Senate, State Sen. Kay Hagan is the clear choice. Her opponent, the incum bent, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-N.C., has represented the state poorly in the last six years, and her lack of visibil ity and accessibility has been unacceptable. It’s time for fresh leadership, and Hagan has the experience and the savvy to provide that. Hagan’s positions on the economy, education and immi gration are exactly what the state needs after six years of ineffective representation. Hagan worked to balance mzimemig iupMineiv ing as the co-chair of the Appropriations/Rase Budget Committee. She is in favor of pay-as-you go tax regulation, which would force Congress to match any spending increases with an equivalent spending cut. Dole has voted against these rules and has been part of a Congress that has seen runaway and reckless spending under the Bush administration. Hagan also voted to increase North Carolina’s minimum wage, while Dole has a decid edly mixed record on mini mum wage increases. Obama worker makes pitch As a volunteer with the Obama campaign, it’s almost impossible to imagine the arrival of Election Day. For months now, it has been the horizon, perpetually the target, but never arriving. That ends one week from today. For me, it all started in 2004. I vividly remember standing in my family room as a sophomore in high school, arms crossed, eyes fixed on my television, watching a relatively unknown Illinois state senator named Barack Obama deliver an earth shattering keynote address at the Democratic Convention in Boston. It was the speech that gave birth to my passion for politics and my belief that we could make government work for the people. And though at the time I thought it might take many years, I dreamed that someday my country would share the vision Obama laid out in that speech. Back in the fall of 2007, on the campus of N.C. Central University, I stood until my legs were sore to hear Obama’s words in person words I had believed for so long, but never heard articulated so well until now-U.S. Sen. Obama started campaigning for president. More recently, in early 2008, I remember huddling with other Obama volunteers watching the television behind the bar at a Ruby Ihesday along the highway on the way back from Dillon, S.C., and reading the closed captioning of his primary victory speech. Opinion HARRISON JOBE OPINION CO-EDITOR HiOBE@EMAILUNC.EDU GREG MARGOUS OPINION CO-EDITOR MARGOUS.GREGO6MAILCOM Hagan has been a strong proponent of increasing educa tional access, which is essential to the state’s economy and the ever-expanding college system. Hagan’s plans include increasing funding for No Child Left Behind, expanding early childhood education and making college affordable by boosting tax credits. Hagan’s immigration policy is also preferable to Dole’s. We don’t like the 287(g) program, which has been championed by Dole. Hagan’s position on this issue is more pragmatic. This program supports local law enforcement in carrying out federal immigration func tions, but leads to an eriviron ment of fear in local commu nities and is not a productive immigration solution. Hagan believes that the pro gram should continue, but that it needs comprehensive reform, and that immigration enforce ment is the role of the federal government. Besides Dole’s troubling policy positions, the minimal amount of time she’s spent in the state is simply unacceptable. A Winston-Salem Journal review of Senate records and press releases determined that Dole spent only 13 days in BEN BUCK EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBER Sophomore political science major from Carmel, Ind. E-MAIL: BEBUCK@EMAIL.UNC.EDU Only then did I start to believe it possible that my dream can didate actually had a chance to win the nomination of the Democratic Party. Recently, I spent a Sunday at the Obama campaign office on Rosemary Street, training volun teers ranging in age from grade school to retirees. I realized as I saw the looks of passion in their eyes that they had seen, as I had, how his campaign had grown from a long shot to the brink of victory. This movement has tran scended politics; it has become a social movement crossing demo graphics, inspiring millions and engaging hundreds of thousands of people directly in democracy for the first time. Its aim is an American gov ernment that is trusted by and cares for its citizens. Its success would restore the respect of allies and observers around the world. The heart of this movement, and the root of its success, how ever, has not been the advertise ments, the debates or the hours of poll analysis on cable news. It was not fate or fundijais- EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS LISAANDRUKONIS YANIV BARZILAI BEN BUCK JAMES DING MICHAEL LEWIS ANDREW STILES SARAH WHITWORTH 'fll ' jßflk'.v* ; 8. J|§PPjft'* vj North Carolina in 2006. This lack of visibility raises serious questions about her devotion to constituents. Dole has been ranked as the 93rd most effective Senator. Hagan, however, has consis tently ben rated one of the most effective senators in the N.C. Senate. Although it once seemed that Dole would have an easy re-election, the race is increas ingly leaning Democratic. Hagan has demonstrated great enthusiasm in her bid for the U.S. Senate, during which she has attracted a strong fol lowing in the state. Serving for years in N.C., Hagan has a pulse on the state and will bring fresh energy and anew perspective to the U.S. Senate. ing or the media that has taken Obama this far; it was the result of the hard work of literally hundreds of thousands of volunteers and millions of Americans. Yes, I’m a student intern for the Obama campaign. But I am no more a part of this movement than anyone who still believes in a government capable of truly serving its people or the possibil ity that politics can rise above division and deception. You don’t need a clipboard and a T-shirt to be a part of this movement. All you need is a ballot, friends to bring to the polls or even just a voice and someone to listen. And with exactly one week to go, we must remember not only that work remains to be done, but that the work remaining is the most critical. Eight years ago, on Nov. 2, just five days before Election Day 2000, an MSNBC/Reuters poll predicted a 12-point victory for Al Gore in Florida. Evidently, a lot can change in five days. This nation cannot afford complacency, fear or hesitation. We wake from the Bush night mare to find ourselves mired in two wars, an economic crisis and a crippled reputation around the world. A change this powerful requires more than celebrities on campus, free food, signs, bike taxis, megaphones, events, vol unteers and clipboards. It requires a movement. And for one more week, we can make it happen. QUOTE OF THE DAY: “After I saw them in Durham ... / was just like , these kids are coolA KRISTIN HILL, ON HIP-HOP GROUP THE COOL KIDS FEATURED ONLINE READER COMMENT: “/ drove two and half hours from Charlotte and stayed for the whole game. I only wish I was within walking distance and got free tickets.” ON "TRUE BLUE STUDENT QUESTIONS FANHOOD" LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Carolina Students for Life display followed the rules TO THE EDITOR: I would like to respond to The Daily Tar Heel’s article about the Justice for All display (“Exhibit Draws Heated Response,” Oct. 23). Carolina Students for Life wholly fulfilled its funding pro posal with regards to strategi cally placing signs around the display. While disclaimer signs are not required, we made every attempt to give the student body ample warning. Five of the seven signs could be seen before the exhibit was in sight. University policies and the threat of vandal ism prevented us from placing them at a greater distance. Considering that hearings for the allotment of congres sional funds are televised and a DTH reporter was in the room at the time, there is absolutely no excuse for the publication of this error in fact. The DTH has a responsibility to accurately and fairly report on the events it covers. In this instance, whether purposely or unintentionally, it failed to do so. On behalf of CSFL and Justice For All, I would like to thank the University community for its thoughtful interaction with the display’s volunteers. Many insightful discussions took place and numerous minds were changed. CSFL’s goal in bringing the display to UNC was to provide women with enough information to make informed, responsible decisions. The graphic nature of the display was intended to depict the often abstract nature of abortion in order to spark meaningful discussions, which it undoubtedly accomplished. Students are bombarded with hundreds of messages each day. This display was a more effective way of getting people to take notice and think about the impact of abortion on women, the unborn and our society. Free speech is the cornerstone of a first-class education. As the nation’s first public university, we must embrace dialogue on a range of issues that impact our culture or we lose the distinc tion of being known as a great university. Katie Mock " Senior Public Relations Director, Carolina Students for Life Display was propaganda, not good use of funds TO THE EDITOR: In regards to the presentation by Justice for All, the letters to the editor in Monday’s paper have been the only support for the presentation I’ve seen or heard of from the campus. I correctly hoped that we as a student body were above propaganda-esque media pre sentation. Playing the devil’s advocate by saying the images provided thoughtful educational debate, however, Hosting* a group that pres ents sensationalist “shock effect” images demonstrates that our campus hasn’t employed our student funds intelligently. Since I doubt people’s opinions on the issue are being changed as a result of this presentation, why SPEAK OUT WRITING GUIDELINES: >- Please 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 EDITOR'S NOTE Columns, cartoons and letters do not necessarily represent the opinions of The Daily Tar Heel or its staff. Editorials reflect the opinions of The Daily Tar Heel edito rial board. The board consists of seven board members, the associate opinion editor the opinion editor and the editor. (Eljr Daily (Ear Mrrl not use the $5,000 to save and better lives around the world? And by the way, I’m pro-life. Benjamin Brumley Sophomore Psychology, Geography Kvetch on abortion was vulgar and disrespectful TO THE EDITOR: I found the fifth comment on last week’s kvetching board (“I’m pro-life, and a man to boot, but after seeing the travesty on the quad, I want to have an abortion just to spite Carolina Students for Life”) incredibly offensive. It was blatantly disrespectful and showed no understanding of women who find themselves in such a position where they might consider an abortion. He took a serious issue and inappropriately made light of it. It wasn’t funny. It wasn’t clev er. It shed no new light on the situation. His opinion provided no benefit to anyone. Whatever his purpose in writing it was, the only purposed he served was to offend every single one of his female readers (at least all the ones that I spoke to found this comment out of line, regardless of their opinion on abortion). DTH, you say you edit “foi* space, clarity, accuracy, and vul garity.” This man didn’t use any four letter words, but his comment was plenty vulgar. Editors, do better next time. Sarah Brock Sophomore English and History Penalty system needed for basketball ticketing TO THE EDITOR: I applaud the Carolina Athletic Association for attempt ing to make the student lottery ticket system better, but their quick fix to saving the number of unused tickets is still unfair. Now, instead of receiving two tickets when winning the lot tery, lottery winners will only receive one. What happens to those lottery winners who don’t have the same phase as one of their friends? Let’s be honest, we may all have more friends than we can count, but you get pretty particular on who you want to bring to a game with you to watch Roy’s Boys in Carolina basketball. Instead, the CAA should con sider implementing a system like N.C. State’s for their football games. In N.C. State’s system, stu dents must go online and claim their tickets after winning the lottery by a certain deadline. If they do not use their tickets or miss the deadline, they are penalized and will have less of a chance of winning tickets later. This way, those who are too lazy or don’t care about going, don’t receive tickets, and loyal fans actually have a better chance of receiving them. CAA, please consider this for next year. Hannah Autry Junior Journalism and Political Science department and phone number. ► Edit: The DTH edits for space, clarity, accuracy and vulgarity. Limit letters to 250 words. SUBMISSION: ► Drop-off: at our office at Suite 2409 in the Student Union. >■ E-mail: to editdesk@unc.edu ► Send: to P.O. Box 3257, Chapel Hill, N.C., 27515.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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