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DISCOURSE
Pell Grants better than Web sites
Editorial
Education Secretary Margaret Spellings made some bold statements last week about changes she wants to initiate to make selecting a college easier on students and families.
She envisioned a vast Web site, full of facts and figures, from tuition cost and available programs of study to the typical salaries of graduates. Choosing a college would become as easy as buying a car, as she put it.
Sounds nice, right? Putting everything in one location. It would be like Progressive Auto Insurance, you could compare prices of all the leading colleges and universities. Sometimes X is the best price, sometimes it's not.
But something in this rosy picture must be amok if the one voice speaking out against it is the same one that will be lecturing at a student's college of choice. The American Association of University Professors oppose Spellings' plan on the grounds that it perpetuates this notion of the university as a job-skills machine.
By focusing on the bottom line, the university loses its distinction as an institution of higher learning and becomes a glorified trade school. People shouldn't choose a university simply because its graduates statistically make a lot of money, they should choose it because it offers resources and opportunities that will help them grow on multidimensional levels.
But turning college selection into car buying, which, by the way, isn't all that easy, isn't the only flaw in Spellings' brilliant plan. She pledged to make the financial aid application process easier and more efficient, which is a much-needed improvement. Her specific plan for achieving this seems foggy.
On the other hand, her commission's recommendation to raise Pell Grants to cover 70 percent of in-state tuition from the less-than-half it covers now is a clear and immediate objective that could put a real damper on the soaring price of a college education. She so far has refused to pursue its advice. Apparently using her energy to garner support for a Web site that doesn't even have legislation to cover its costs seems more feasible than simply putting to immediate use money already offered for the purpose of higher education.
Yes, prospective students need an easier way to find the college of their choice. Yes, financial aid application and allotment is a flawed system that needs serious re-vamping. Yes, the fact that the rising cost of tuition has made it impossible for many people to even get through college is a massive speed bump on the highway to a generation living up to its full potential. But these issues cannot be amended with flowery rhetoric and expensive databases.
Disperse more funding in the form of Pell Grants, write more legislation that offers grants and scholarships to students, create more work-study programs at universities and add more skills-based learning to high school education so students can have a better idea of what they want to study in college. These are measures that will strengthen higher education.
The younger generation is overshadowed enough by the needs of its elders, which means the people in charge of its welfare have to be even more assertive for real changes to be made.
Spellings has made the first step by admitting and pointing out that there are problems, now she must step out of her own ego and get to work on serving her constituents. The first order of business may be heeding the recommendations of her commission.
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AOL building beneficial for expansion
Editorial
Most people who drive to the University of North Florida agree there is a problem finding parking on campus. Without cutting down trees and building over existing parking lots, there is little room to expand and construct additional buildings.
The steps the university is taking in purchasing the AOL building on Kernan Boulevard may be just what the campus needs to respond to the growing population. By purchasing existing buildings, officials will cut down spending and erase the time spent waiting for buildings to be completed.
Expanding the university off campus not only frees up space for parking and helps preserve the nature reserve as it was originally intended to be, it also helps UNF expand and grow throughout the surrounding area. Student population is already well over 15,000 and freshman registration this year hit a record high. In order for the university to reach a higher potential, it must begin to expand beyond the existing compact loop.
The tentative plans to place administration, including the offices of Information Technology, Purchasing, the Controller's Office and Human Resources to the new building will make the university more student-based.
Being more than a mile away from the main campus, some faculty may feel alienated from students and other faculty and staff members. If the shuttle service the university is considering becomes more than just a thought, faculty will be able to freely access both properties.
But the shuttle plan, which the university was looking into long before the construction of the St. Johns Town Center, has not proven to be something on the university's short-term list, since the shopping center opened in March 2005.
These same issues could arise if officials decide to put certain majors or classes in the new building. Classrooms and professors' offices, as well as services used most often by students, such as advising and One Stop Shop, should remain centralized in the same general area sot they can still be used conveniently.
The price to buy the 125,000 square-foot building will be high, but not nearly as high as the cost of clearing land and designing and constructing an entirely new building. Plus, if the governor approves the purchase, the state will cover the cost.
Not only will the new building help the university grow to meet its population size and free up additional parking spaces, but it will also help preserve the natural beauty of the campus. Not many other university students in Florida can say they've seen a bear or alligator on their campus.
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Christian activists should spread love, not hate
Student Opinion
Andrew Fuller
FRESHMAN, ENGLISH
Jesus saves.
At least, their specific depiction and interpretation of Jesus does.
I am of course talking about the "Christian crazies" that come a few times a year and hassle everyone on campus about burning in their eternal hell. There is nothing better to start your day than to walk by the green and be "enlightened" about your impending damnation.
Was I alone in finding these people - or, more accurately, their message - disturbing? Several professors suggest that some of their students express outrage over these belligerent Bible thumpers, but not for the reasons one might think. Students aren't angry over the fact that they are twisting the message of Jesus and the Bible - or that they preach of hate and intolerance, which stands in direct opposition to Jesus' teachings. No, they are angry over the fact that people are "actually saying those things out loud."
Give your brain a second to rest before moving on, because I know that one hurts. Yes, you read that right; they are angry that people are willing to publicly display the same hate and intolerance that they themselves secretly ascribe to.
Now I am not a Christian - nor of any religion as a matter of fact - but I have to speculate that if there is a God, this incarnation of him is not only wrong, but also insulting. Can all of this anger and vehemence of faith be for the love of God? Any outside observer, who hasn't drank from the Cup, would probably assume not. Even if they think they are spreading the word of God, the message has been lost in the inner turmoil of the individuals who let their inadequacies and self-consciousness turn God into a shield for their frail egos.
I know not all Christians believe these things. I am acquainted with people from all backgrounds of faith, and this group is definitely in the minority, but I am concerned that it is growing.
I am not hoping to offend, but to stimulate. Hate grows in the dark parts of ourselves and withers in the light of tolerance.
So the next time that these zealots preach their hate and intolerance on campus, either ignore them - or tell them
that you love them; the kind of love that is evoked from great pity and sadness for someone else's life.
Freedom of speech grants them the right to say what they please, but you have the right to reject a doctrine of hatred and bigotry.
Contact Andrew Fuller at uspinnak@unf.edu
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Open letter: "Where have all the good girls gone?"
Student Opinion
Jeff Montello
SOPHOMORE, ADVERTISING
Ladies,
I am heartbroken, distraught, confused and disgusted. I fear that I am drowning in a sea of antipathy. The question I stand before you and ask today is: Where have all the good girls gone?
Entering into the collegiate environment, I acquired the mindset of: party, party, drink, girls, sex and fun. I had no clue what I was getting myself into. Bitter disgust hits me whenever I walk around campus and I attend Greek parties.
Why am I disgusted? Because the display of flesh and the complete abandonment of any moral fiber put forth by today's college women. If I could find the slightest inkling of wholesome, ethical behavior, I would rejoice!
Walk into any club on "college night" and you can see young women barely clothed, rubbing every sweaty part of their bodies on any guy who walks up behind them. Her body language screams: "Buy her a drink and take her home!" I'm sure her daddy would be real proud.
Women's conception of how to attract men is so misconstrued to me that it is almost funny. Does a girl wearing a shirt so low cut that I can see 80% of her breasts really think I'm going to want to take her home to meet my parents? Does she think that hooking up with two of my friends the night before will make me want to take her to dinner? I am sorry you think this, ladies, because whoever taught you to abandon all self-respect should be reprimanded.
Attention girls, this may be shocking to you, but not every guy wants to date a member of the opposite sex who has been with everyone who lives in his building.
Guys want the chase. They want to be able to talk to our friends about you and not get the reply, "Yeah dude, she's definitely a good lay."
The grotesque display of what modern-day women define as sexy is really just sad. I am in a Greek organization and I see first-hand what goes on at our parties. I don't want to get into too much detail, but some girls will sink so low as to show their breasts just for a shot of Jagermeister. The promotion of promiscuity has to concede to something greater in our society.
Pop culture has made promiscuity so mainstream that now it's expected. Being slutty and scandalous is the game that has replaced the youthful innocence of Candyland or Connect Four. Women keep score of things like: How many are on my list? Or how many free drinks can I get tonight?
There are more than 25 Girls Gone Wild titles published right now. These movies glorify getting girls wasted and making them get naked on camera.
But women are not just influenced by pop culture and the media; but they are also pressured by the men they associate with. Girls don't just naturally get the impulse to take their clothes off at social gatherings, but when a group of 15 to 20 guys starts yelling, "show us your boobs!" they may feel some kind of social responsibility to deliver the goods. Women want to make men happy and this kind of display does have a positive effect on certain types of men, but making men happy shouldn't be an excuse to act immorally. Trust me, some of the guys in the group are looking on with pity and disgust.
Please women, I beg you to find the sense of morality still left in you. Right from wrong is not hard to figure out. Be mysterious, be secretive, make us use our imaginations every once in a while. I promise you, you'll have us wrapped around your finger, just give it time. There are much better game plans than throwing yourself at the first guy you see holding a bottle of your favorite liquor. Remember there are people who care about you for being you.
Just let the male sex be able to point to you when you walk by and say, "Yeah guys, that's her," and actually be able to feel good about it because he is not making a comment about who railed you last night.
Be yourselves. Be wholesome. Be good girls.
Contact Jeff Montello at uspinnak@unf.edu
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Letters to the Editor
Recent student opinion not based on historical evidence
Throughout my stay at the University of North Florida the Spinnaker has always been a bastion of free thought, expression and reasonable discussion.
However, in the recent Student Opinion: "Another lie from President Clinton in recent interview" and the Editorial: "Chavez sets bad diplomatic example," I am beginning to doubt the intelligence of some contributors. Not because of their political affiliations, but by there severe lack of historical knowledge.
Implying that Chavez is a "dictator" can only be seen as an abomination of the truth. There can be no denial that he won the popular election. In fact, the CIA-backed military coup to oust Chavez failed because of popular protests. I do not excuse the lack of diplomacy in his speeches, but I do not think that we are in any position to discuss his political tact in light of our own actions towards Venezuela.
Ms. Manning's article on President Clinton's recent interview highlights a new level of sophomoric ineptitude in reporting. Maybe she should go back to the toys and make-up that filled her life in the nineties and leave the journalism to individuals with investigative or minimally cognitive ability.
As President Clinton pointed out, the CIA and FBI could not agree that bin Laden was the menace that we know now. In addition, there is no doubt that during his attempts to kill bin Laden, he was accused by a plethora of Republicans for wagging the dog. Sure, they may have supported an assault in Iraq, but an average survey of recent events clearly shows that this has NOT led to the capture of bin Laden and only fueled anti-US extremists.
If one wishes to look at actual dishonesty, it seems more relevant to discuss Condoleezza Rice's response. She states that Clinton did not leave her a "plan" of attack, but rather "a series of actionable items."
Joe Husky - Sophomore, Political Science
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Foley's shame, Congress' stumble
Editorial - Miami Herald, Tuesday October 3
The public disgrace of former U.S. Rep. Mark Foley is a personal tragedy with moral and political consequences that extend well beyond his home district in Palm Beach County, Fla.
Foley, a Republican, was a popular and well-regarded six-term lawmaker. As painful as he and his family may find the controversy that led to his abrupt resignation on Friday, there are larger issues that demand immediate attention. The public needs to be reassured that Congress is doing everything it can to protect the teenagers who work as pages on Capitol Hill.
On Monday, Foley's attorney said the lawmaker had checked himself into a rehabilitation facility "for immediate treatment for alcoholism and other behavioral problems." Foley has not denied that he sent sexually explicit e-mails and text messages to some of the pages on Capitol Hill.
The FBI and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement are examining whether these communications or any other conduct by Foley violated the law. If they did, Foley should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. He let down his constituents, and his actions betrayed a public trust. If Foley acted as friend and benefactor to the pages while harboring vile intentions, he has brought shame to Congress.
Congressional leaders shouldn't wait for the outcome of the criminal probe to find out exactly what went on here. Because of Foley's apparent proclivity for making advances on pages, the teenage staffers were warned about steering clear of the congressman. But Rep. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., the speaker of the House, has acknowledged only that his staff had been made aware of concerns about what they termed "over-friendly" e-mails that Foley had sent to a 16-year-old page, including one requesting a photo, and that his staff referred the matter to the House clerk.
Some newspapers knew of this message as well and did not find it news worthy because it seemed innocuous. Thus, Democratic charges of a "cover up" of Foley's activities by the Republican House leadership seem not only premature but crassly political. But the discovery of other, more explicit, messages and confusion over who knew what and when raised questions that require answers, preferably under oath.
Hastert has initiated a review of the procedures on protecting the pages on Capitol Hill. That's a start, but for their sake, he should heed the advice of Rep. Peter T. King, R-N.Y., and call for a full investigation of this entire, appalling incident.
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This Week
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Expressions
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Read about all facets of sexual activity college inside. It's only our second time, so be gentle.
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Going gold
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