Letters to the editor

Russian government column presented unbalanced facts

I found Todd Brandon Morris’… Russian government column presented unbalanced facts

I found Todd Brandon Morris’ Oct. 31 column, “Russian government actions responsible, save lives,” unbalanced and ignorant. Morris’ column reeks of all that is deplorable in current mainstream American journalism: a self-righteous slant that insults the intelligence of readers by implying that balanced facts are not necessary. The situation in Chechnya that has lead to the latest terrorist situation in Russia was not even outlined in the column, yet Morris is saying that the Russian government behaved in a way that was “responsible.”

The paragraph of Morris’ that best exemplifies his shameful journalism goes, “What did the Chechens want? Who cares? It doesn’t matter. No government should meet the demands of terrorists, especially a group with the mindset the Chechens had.” Well, I for one am interested in what the Chechens want, because according to a report from Amnesty International, the Russian government has been violating human rights in Chechnya for many years now. To quote a report from www.amnesty.org/russia, “Russian security forces have been responsible for attacks on civilians, ‘disappearances,’ extra-judicial executions and torture, including rape.” If Morris believes that “no government should meet the demands of terrorists” then his statement would serve to support the actions the Chechens took in that Russian theatre, because what the Russians are doing to Chechnya could easily be seen as terrorism. And the Chechens aren’t meeting the terrorists’ demands. They are responding with their own.

Morris’ style of journalism is prevalent in mainstream media, and this is frightening.

Kate Curlis

Hispanic languages and literature department

Smokers are people too

It is needless to say that smokers are people too, just like everyone else here attending Pitt. In his Nov. 1 column, Mr. [Chad] Martin referred to people who smoke in the rain as “smelling like wet dogs.” I find this statement offending and utterly rude. As a smoker myself, I do not think that I should be called names because I am different from nonsmokers. Have you ever smelled someone after a heavy night of drinking? The mixture of beer, sweat and body odor is not a pleasant one. And I am sure that nonsmokers like Mr. Martin have all gone to class or the computer lab without showering after a heavy night of drinking smelling not so good. Do you refuse to go to the bar on the weekends because there are people smoking there? Of course not. You are more than willing to inhale some second-hand smoke when it involves you having fun. Yet, if it inconveniences your computer lab experience you will spit out every rude statement you can think of to make smokers feel unwanted and stupid. We are not breaking any rules. Last time I checked the covered entryways to the Cathedral of Learning before you enter the doors, are still considered outside. Maybe next time you want to be prejudiced against a particular group of people, you should get your facts straight and make some sense.

Katie Howanski

CAS sophomore

Vote with me

Election season can get rather annoying, don’t you think? All those commercials, all that slandering. And who cares, anyway? Have you seen one commercial promising to stop raising tuition every year? No. They’re all about Medicare and Social Security and property taxes. What do you or I care about property taxes? Do you know why that’s all they talk about? Because old people vote.

Students on campuses around the country have been the deciding factor in close elections when they voted as a bloc. That is key. Alone, as a handful of young people, our voices are not heard. It is only if we participate en masse on Nov. 5 that anyone is going to notice. And notice they will. If even half the Pitt undergrads show up at the polls, that’s roughly 8,500 people. The 2000 election hinged on smaller numbers. If that many apathetic, video gaming, stressed-out, online-junky, sleep-mongers stagger from their dorm rooms to participate in the electoral process. Whoa. Believe me, they would start listening.

There are probably dozens of student organizations that lobby our representatives for various causes every year. With the backing of thousands of student voters, those organizations could wield immense electoral power and force changes that directly affect our lives as students. Wouldn’t you like more funding for higher education, more Pell Grants and lower tuition? You’re not alone. But if these things don’t happen, we have only ourselves to blame.

Vote with me.

Sara Landis

CAS freshman

(undecided)