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Illustration by Cody Angell
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By Wildcat Perspectives Desk
Arizona Daily Wildcat
Wednesday May 1, 2002
As students begin packing away books and lecture notes and head full force into summer, we can only ponder what the issues of the summer and fall will be.
From today until the end of 2002, what will the big news story be? Globally, this year has brought us continuous fallout from Sept. 11, and the ways the United States and the rest of the world, chose to react to the situation. At a national level, we have seen the push for drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge denied on the Senate floor, and a demand for reforms within the Roman Catholic Church. Within Arizona, the unending wrath of state budget cuts seems eminent for the next fiscal year.
And the University of Arizona? The construction movement is not slowing.
Cuts in faculty paired with low pay raises have fed the brain drain monster.
The cactus garden was saved, and the Itegrated Learning Center is finally open and busier than ever.
Whatâs next? As we plunge into summer, may we not turn our backs on news on any level ÷ because you never know when youâll open the page or turn on the TV and see the issue of the future ·
Itâs all about the budget
While I certainly hope this isnât the case, I think the stateâs budget will be the big issue of the near future. A new governor wonât take office until 2003, and we can only hope that the new governor is better than our current one. Unfortunately, while the budget is a dry and often-confusing issue, the results of the issue are not in the least bit dull and are easy to understand.
Arizonaâs children will be the big losers. Without new faces in the Legislature, the Republican majority will undoubtedly avoid considering any type of tax raise and K-12 education will see no funding increases. University funding will continue to be cut, and we have already been informed that tuition will be raised. Fewer students will be able to afford college, and those who are on scholarships will be making more trips to the doctor to have ulcers treated, given the increasing pressure they must face to keep high grades.
Call me cynical, but Arizonaâs business community simply wonât allow any of Phoenixâs freeways to deteriorate. And the chances of construction of Phoenixâs new football stadium being stopped due to budget cuts are about as good as Vice President Cheneyâs joining the Sierra Club. The kids will be the losers.
Kendrick Wilson is a political science freshman. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
ÎThe economy, stupidâ
The most pressing issue of the coming year will be the budget crisis. Itâs already been discussed to death, but mostly in the papers. The students here at Bear Down University will really feel the budget cuts when they return in the fall. The consequences are already falling into place, and returning to school in August will be disappointing. Favorite professors, deciding that job instability and their doctorates donât match, will have packed up and left; labs will be shut down; welcoming activities will be scaled back and opportunities for research and extra-curricular activities will not be so readily available.
Itâs already started. Your professors are interviewing for better jobs on the weekends, the computer lab in Arizona-Sonora Residence Hall will close tomorrow and there will be no speaker at this yearâs commencement. The river has run dry and weâre all going to have a long time to get used to it. One can only hope that the issue of the fall wonât be the woes over the budget cuts but rather debates over the offered solutions. And with certainty, those solutions wonât be coming from Gov. Hullâs desk.
Laura Winsky is a senior majoring in Spanish and political science. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
The war on terror: Get used to it
The bleeding hearts and academics will continue to have reason to picket and complain, as the war on terror continues to spread across the Middle East through 2002.
I donât get these people and I probably never will. On one hand, they want these totalitarian nations to become free and democratic. On the other, they disapprove of any military action on Americaâs behalf, which is the only way these people stand a chance of being liberated.
Am I wrong? All right, how about we send Ralph Nader and Phil Donahue over there as diplomats along with some big, tough security guards and have them tell those governments to pull their act together or they may have to ărough them up.ä
And if by some fluke that doesnât do the trick, weâll just go ahead with the military thing. Deal?
These nations slaughter their citizens daily for any act that can be interpreted as treason, and continue to fund and condone suicide bombings through their government-controlled media. Those who arenât persecuted are constantly dying of famine and disease. I wish the dissenters would put aside their disgust with America for one minute and realize that the war on terror will help put an end to hell on Earth for millions of Middle Easterners.
Besides, they might as well support it, because itâs gonna happen whether they do or not.
Shane Dale is a political science junior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
Variations on an old theme
My vote for the biggest future story is something that might never materialize ÷ an invasion of Iraq.
I certainly didnât think it could happen until this weekend. After all, President Bushâs oh-so-careful attempt by appear neutral in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has all but failed, and he wouldnât risk waging what could be construed as an ethnic or religious war to the Muslim world, right? Right?
Unfortunately, as is often the case with the Bush administration, hotter heads seem to have prevailed. On Sunday, the New York Times broke the story that Bush and Co. are hatching a plan to commit up to 250,000 troops to ăliberateä Iraq. Iâm sure the Iraqis will be every bit as grateful as the Afghans whose homes were destroyed and children killed by cluster bombs and rival warlords.
Meanwhile, Bush will probably come away with the two things he wants most: his daddyâs good name and security for his croniesâ oil investments. Donât think a war in Iraq will be about economics, pure and simple? Then please explain to me why we arenât invading Saudi Arabia. What criterion for oppression or terrorism does it not meet?
Who knows; maybe Iâm just being pessimistic. Maybe Iâm just too damn liberal. But maybe ÷ just maybe ÷ thereâs a reason to think that the future will look an awful lot like the past.
Caitlin Hall is a freshman majoring in biochemistry and philosophy. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
Help prevent bad news
This summer, more stupid Arizonans will let their children drown in pools. Each one will be a tragedy that should have been prevented.
A shocking number of Arizona children die every year with lungs full of chlorinated water. They become two-minute segments on the evening news, and numbers in the state record book of negligence. The deaths will not be the biggest news stories of the summer, but they will be, as always, sad, frustrating and enraging.
I hope this summer will be different. I hope parents will keep their eyes glued to their children while theyâre around the pool. Allowing children to drown in our luxuries is an outrage. When it happens, it symbolizes how misdirected our priorities are as a society.
Every one of us must do what we can to prevent drownings. We must all make it a priority. If you know someone with children and an unfenced pool, slap some sense into them ÷ p literally. And if youâre around a pool with kids, assume that no one is watching them except for you. Take responsibility. Do what you can to end this shameful and heartbreaking trend.
Daniel Cucher is a creative writing senior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
We interrupt this program to bring you ...
Breaking News · Good Afternoon. This is Mariam Durrani and we are sorry to interrupt your regular programming. We have some breaking news. It seems the Palestine-Israel issue is resolved after weeks of talks between all parties involved. Today, Sharon and Arafat, apparently despite their senility, were seen playing a game of badminton in downtown Bethlehem after which they planned to visit the Church of Nativity.
Palestinian and Israeli negotiators amicably drafted an agreement where it has been decided that the southern part of Israel will be the new Palestine and the north will remain Israel. Both sides are working together to solve the issue of those Palestinians on the Israeli side and those Israelis on the Palestinian side. Perhaps there is another migration in store for us.
The group leaders of Hamas have disappeared since the current situation doesnât require their services anymore. The many refugees in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan from the 1948 expulsion are readying themselves for a journey to Palestine, and the Israelis have promised them a safe journey.
Both countries are also preparing themselves for a new development of democratic government, and elections are to be in January.
Once again, this is Mariam Durrani with breaking news.
Enjoy the rest of the regularly scheduled program.
Mariam Durrani is a systems engineering junior. She can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
