Military necessary to protect civil liberties
Sarah Turner's article on International Women's Day is wrong in its analysis (""International Women's Day a celebration of peace,"" March 13). She claims that President Bush is ""first among those who would suppress women's rights,"" because she says that women are forced to pick up second jobs. President Bush is for lowering taxes so it is less necessary for all people, including women, to work. It is precisely the predisposition that says that welfare systems are good that forces women to have to pick up second jobs.
It is noteworthy to point out that Ms. Turner rarely references her statistics. She claims that women do two thirds of the world's work, and most of their effort is unpaid. She says that 35,000 die every day because of malnutrition. Statistics ad infinitum. Where are the references? Where is the proof?
Ms. Turner says ""we are at a crossroads where the most powerful players ... are decided that military power is more important than peace."" She further claims that, ""democracy will not be delivered by missiles, but must be fostered by ensuring civil liberties and equal rights for all."" Perhaps someone should ask Ms. Turner if she could name an instance where civil liberties weren't guaranteed by military force. Civil liberties can only be maintained if there is a force willing to uphold them. That force is almost always a military force. Turner advocates guaranteeing rights and liberties. Fine. But she ought to give credit to the military for the guarantee.
Hansen underestimates 'other half's' persistence
When W. Lee Hansen warns black kids from Wisconsin to stay away from the Madison campus because it is too competitive for them, my guess is he has little understanding of how the other half lives.
I'm white, yet was raised in one of the poorest counties in the United States'a racially and ethnically diverse little place in rural Southern New Jersey where rates of poverty are high and rates of higher education are low. Where I was raised, illiteracy and teen pregnancy are common, transportation and other economic infrastructures are poor, political life is weak and the schools, needless to say, are stressed. It's the whole package. Yet I have never met people anywhere who are brighter, more clever and filled with the wonder of the world than the African American, Puerto Rican, Japanese, Chinese, Arab, Russian, Italian, Jewish and various other Euro-American people of my hometown.
In any case, a young, white friend of mine from there just flunked out of the flagship campus of his state university after two years. He had gotten in by the skin of his teeth'in August before his freshman year'from a waiting list. He went off, planning to major in chemistry, knowing he would have to compete with a student body predominantly from the rich suburban school districts outside of New York City. By his sophomore year, he couldn't make it through the math and science requirements and decided on another path.
On the basis of the courses he had passed and with the help of the well-established university placement service, this young man found a job as a technician in a pharmaceutical lab. It was a job he would not have qualified for right out of high school. He wears a white coat and makes $14.50 an hour. He already has been promoted once. His psyche is intact. More to the point, from the perspective of his community, this young man is doing right well for himself. While at the university he formed life-lasting friendships with people he never would have met otherwise. In a writing class, he discovered he liked to write and now works on a novel in his spare time. He is clearly better off for having been at the university for two years. The U.S. economy is clearly better off for it. His children, I'm sure, will be better off, too. In fact, I suspect he will eventually complete his degree. Just a few years ago, his mother received her degree at the age of 53 from the University of Pennsylvania after attending classes part-time for nine years. This is how it goes in the place that I come from. Life is hit and miss. Everybody knows it. What is necessary, though, is opportunity.
What I fear for is that rising competitiveness, rising tuition and sinking state support for higher education are shrinking opportunity for students from the communities in Wisconsin that I most identify with'places that are politically and economically neglected, places where human brilliance goes under-educated and under-rewarded. What I do not fear for, however, is the persistence and resilience of the students that W. Lee Hansen would send away.
CWC event intended to inform, raise awareness
Abortion is never an easy issue to discuss due to the sensitive nature of the subject. The Campus Women's Center took on this subject knowing that the Madison community would react in various ways. As the publicity coordinator of the CWC, I feel the need to respond to the article about our Abortion Speak Out (""Women's Center, choice advocates to lead UW debate on abortion issues,"" March 7).
On a personal note, I am extremely hurt by the following statement from Sheila Sunstrom in relation to the CWC's Abortion Speak Out: ""An event like this shows how little our campus is concerned with morals."" I refuse to be labeled as amoral because I believe in a woman's right to choice. It is apparent that Ms. Sunstrom has never met the members of the CWC because if she had, she would know that the coordinators of the CWC are some of the most dedicated, moral, ""outstanding citizens"" I have had the pleasure of working with. Once again, I refuse to have my morality judged by a person that has never met me.
The CWC hopes to serve as an organization that is supportive of all viewpoints and forms of choice whether it is the choice to go through with a pregnancy or the choice to have an abortion. I firmly believe that all people have the right to voice their opinions because this allows us to be passionate and have a greater understanding of the complexities of our world. Having said that, I wish I could understand the Anti-Choice's rationale for judging others. I believe that nobody has the right to intervene in a woman's reproductive decision and judge FOR her what is right and what is wrong, what is murder and what is not murder, what is responsible and what is irresponsible.
The CWC does not have the right to choose your stance on these issues, but it has the right and responsibility to educate and raise awareness surrounding reproductive choice. It would be a disservice to this campus to neglect these issues; silence about abortion and other reproductive choices is not an option. The same system that can prohibit reproductive choice can abuse its power to mandate abortion and sterilization. Without awareness of options, each and every other option is compromised; the choice to have a child demands the ability to choose not to have a child. This ability is dependent upon awareness and education of reproductive options.
The referred-to program was one event in a series meant to raise awareness about reproductive rights and choice. This program was meant to be an opportunity for women and men to share their experiences surrounding abortion in a supportive environment; it is unfortunate that the media chose to add controversy to an event that was solely meant to serve as a support mechanism for all. As a community, we need to discuss the issues surrounding reproduction with an open mind and support the choices that individuals have the right to make. After all, what is life without choice?
