No glory in getting killed
To the editor,
I can't begin to say how misguided and ignorant your editorial on students studying abroad was. Though I believe that studying abroad can be a great experience, and that many students here at the UA can benefit from it, I do not believe you should be portraying studying abroad in a war-torn country as such a glorious thing. I have had the unfortunate opportunity to live in an area of America were many of the friends I grew up with are dead.
They did not have the opportunity to live in a place where getting shot or beaten to death was not a part of their daily reality. These students are not needed in Israel, they are not doctors, or nurses, engineers or soldiers. The only benefit that their presence may serve is for their deaths to be blasted over international news when they find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. They are not heroes; heroism is the exhibition of a higher purpose to obtain a noble end. What they are doing is best described as stupid recklessness. I can not believe that any one would want to glorify this display of wanton ignorance and haphazard concern for life. Studying abroad is a magnificent concept which allows you to get a personal, in depth and invaluable view of a different culture, which could be turned into a precious resource for life. But I think many would agree that getting an in depth personal view of war is not an experience that is needed in creating a well-rounded life.
Dawud Austin,
Physics junior
Guns reduce crime
To the editor,
Oh, pul-eeze, Nick! I could have been one of those anti- guns extremists such as Sarah Brady, using a "tragedy" to further dishonest political goals (my husband was murdered with a handgun in 1986, leaving me with three small children), but I did a bit of research. I suggest you do the same. Lott's "More Guns, Less Crime" is a good starting point, especially for the ignorant. You are allegedly a "political science and Near-Eastern studies junior," which tells me that you are very young and very ill- informed. Thank God that my children have more common sense, and know how to defend themselves, each other, and me, and own the means to so do (as well as having far better credentials than yours). They know that if their father had had a loaded gun, he would most likely would still be with us. Please learn the truth before you attempt to so arrogantly pontificate. Do you even know what that means? Do you realize that your "gun control" agenda is creating widows such as myself and half- orphans such as my children? Shame on you!
Olga Jones
Sherwood, Oregon
Floridians not stupid
To the editor,
Excuse me, but where do you get off calling an entire population of a state stupid? You are contributing to the stereotyping that people in this country are fighting against everyday. If there was an article titled "Stupid, Stupid English Majors" your office would no doubt be bombarded with letters of complaints from English majors here at the UA. Maybe you thought it was safe to give this article such an offensive name since UA is so far from Florida, but I am still here! And I am growing sick of the snide comments made about my home state. Maybe if you think all Floridians are so stupid you should rethink attending a university that would admit one.
Although I am not proud of my state for giving the majority of their votes to Bush rather than Gore, I am proud of it for being the paradise where I grew up; a cultural paradise admired by the rest of the country. So please give it a rest. No one likes to hear the ones they love degraded, and I love Florida.
Tisza Holt
Microbiology senior
To the editor,
Friday was a horrible day for Wildcat fans. We lost a true coach and a true man. I know there has been a lot of speculation as to what Dick Tomey would do when the year ended, but is this what we wanted? Did it have to end this way. Of course it did not. From my time and experience at the UA, I have realized that unless your name is Lute Olson, you won't get respect as a coach. Mike Candrea, Frank Busch, Joan Bonvicini, Dave Murray, Cathy Klein and Dick Tomey. None of these coaches receive the respect they deserve. Tucsonans have always given Dick Tomey no respect. So now after he has done the respectful thing and stepped down as coach, I hope that UA fans realize they will now have to endure a new coach who take some getting used to. So, when that first loss comes next year, let's not treat the coach like Tomey and ask for his head. However, if the past teaches us anything, then you will all want that coach fired.
Dick Tomey was the best coach that the UA has ever seen. Good luck Tucson!
Nicholas Duddleston
Media arts sophomore
