Student criticizing protest must remember free speech

I am writing regarding the horrifying statement made by a student in response to the "die-in" at the Student Union Memorial Center on Wednesday. This person said, "This is ridiculous. How would they feel if their family was killed in an attack by a terrorist? You've got to support the president of your country no matter what."

Aside from the questionable statement suggesting that Iraq has or will commit terrorist acts, there is the frightening proposition that we support our president "no matter what." What happened to freedom of speech, one of the very freedoms that our troops are fighting for? What of the Iraqis? Surely he does not expect them to support their president no matter what! We should support our troops, but dissenting opinions are a vital part of our country and the freedoms we purport to protect.

Please, pray for the troops, but never let your patriotic instincts overcome the very ideals we Americans are proud of!

Matthew Chuvarsky
anthropology and Russian senior

Peace Refuge went too far with Student Union die-in

While I do believe in freedom of speech and expression, I do not believe the UA Peace Refuge needed to go as far as they did. Staging a die-in in the middle of the Student Union Memorial Center while people were eating was not the way to go about getting your point across. It is one thing to stand on the Mall and protest, but it is another to throw your beliefs into other's faces. These people rationalize their actions by claiming First Amendment rights, and then have the audacity to yell and point at those who defend that right. It is because of these men and women, and those who came before, that you are allowed to express your beliefs. The soldiers overseas are not the government; they are doing something that they believe is right. I understand the protest of war, it's fine to protest that until you are blue in the face; but how dare you protest the people who are overseas fighting and dying for you.

Cara Haley
journalism senior

Courageous students treated unfairly by Union diners

After reading the goings-on that took place at the Student Union Memorial Center the other day, I realized the joy of working on a university campus. It remains a hotbed of controversial thinking and activism. The absolute balls it took to protest in the middle of lunch-hour traffic is something that I am sure a majority of people simply cannot understand. To broadcast your views into a public forum knowing that you will receive ridicule, and in the case of the participant who had a soda dumped on him, physical confrontation, exemplifies the grand spirit of this country. That served as a blatant reminder of the freedoms we take for granted in this country every single day, and just how naive and complacent we can become when fed our daily doses of biased views founded on greed and injustice.

We should never try to trample on beliefs of individuals in this country, especially during times of war and destruction. If we are to expel any chance of making the same gruesome mistakes over and over in our history, we must rebel and look honestly at both sides of life, good and bad.

I hope the person who decided to dump his soda on the protesters simply because they hindered his journey to feed his face realizes, at some point, that life is more than fast food and inconvenience. Maybe he should take a trip to a part of the world that suffers from the grip of war everyday, and see how lucky he is just to have the luxury of eating lunch everyday under a blanket of security without the worry of sniper rifles while crossing the street or having your life turned upside-down for a nation bent on over-consumption of natural resources. He should ask himself, "at what cost · "

Malik Hawkins
sociology senior
chemistry staff

Africana Studies professor practices racial exploitation

Leave it to racial exploiter Julian Kunnie to discard facts and distort the truth when they don't match his ideology. First of all, Dr. Kunnie charges that the war in Iraq is racist without giving any evidence whatsoever. All he can do is conjecture that our military's motives have something to do with skin color, stating that we are a "predominantly white superpower · using disproportionately poor black and brown people" to fight against "other people of color." Never mind the fact that, while the Army is 26 percent black, only 11 percent of front line infantry are black.

Never mind that only 9 percent of enlisted soldiers in the Army are Latino. Of course it is important to note that, unlike Iraq, the United States has a completely voluntary military.

Dr. Kunnie charges that this war is genocidal, completely ignoring the fact that coalition forces are distributing massive amounts of food, water and medical care to Iraqi civilians (and POWs). This is quite an inefficient way to commit genocide, isn't it? Similarly, claiming that civilians killed in Iraq are intentional targets, Dr. Kunnie provides nothing to support this other than his own feelings.

Charging that this war is illegal disregards a number of facts. First, as per the War Powers Act of 1973, both houses of the U.S. Congress have approved the use of military force against Iraq. Second, Iraq has clearly not abided by the terms of numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions, particularly the cease-fire agreement (S.C. Resolution 687) that ended the Gulf War. The Security Council has declared a number of times that Iraq has never fully complied, which if true means that the council still authorizes use of force.

Lastly, let me explain why I call Dr. Kunnie a racial exploiter. I use this term as an accurate description of what Dr. Kunnie does time and again in his guest columns and in his activism. He frames all of society's problems as being due to either racism or classism, and this allows him to do two things. First, he can continually complain about how evil white people are and how Marxism would solve our problems. Second, he can continue to justify his perceived victim status, despite the fact that he is a high-profile faculty member at a major university. I can only hope that the impressionable young minds that are being molded by Dr. Kunnie's rhetoric will seriously question it.

William Hockings
physics graduate student

University should evaluate Kunnie and his rhetoric

It is mind-blowing to see that professors, who are paid to teach logic and fact, make arguments that have neither and are based on emotions and conspiracy theories. Dr. Kunnie in his Thursday commentary makes all claims with no fact and proof to back them up, which is needed to actually have an argument or point of view.

He claims that this war is about oil, but provides no evidence that this is true. He doesn't even provide a quote or example from a credible source. He claims that the white race is fighting a colonial war to suppress Arabs, but with no facts to back his outrageous claim. He says that America is actually targeting civilians in order to terrorize them and gain their surrender. What a shock ÷ he doesn't provide proof or facts that they are not accidents.

Dr. Kunnie provides two facts on the supposed links to al-Qaeda, which shows a little research, yet doesn't help his argument against the war due to its irrelevance to his oil, racism, genocide, and terrorist claims. He claims that the reasons of Saddam Hussein in power, weapons of mass destruction, and democracy are all American government propaganda. Which is fine if that is what he believes, but he needs to have facts to prove it. The argument that Saddam is a good leader and the Iraqis are better off, that Saddam does not have chemical weapons, or that democracy is not good for Iraq needs to be given to prove that it is government propaganda.

As a student, I know if I wrote this persuasive essay to a professor, I would receive an "F" because of its incoherency of thought and lack of evidence to his argument. Yet this educated person is getting paid to teach me.

The university needs to evaluate its faculty criteria or lower its educational prestige to a high school level.

Ryan Thompson
marketing junior

Kunnie's charge of racism based on false premises

I was very disappointed to see that the Wildcat published a guest commentary by Julian Kunnie on Thursday. I believe that a guest commentary should reflect some knowledge and insight into the topic discussed. It baffles me that the Wildcat would print a column that was so poorly researched and misleading.

In his column, Dr. Kunnie asserts that we (yes, we are all Americans) are conducting "racist terrorism" by launching "an armed attack by a predominantly white superpower on a smaller and impoverished Arab nation." If Dr. Kunnie had any knowledge about the Middle East he would know that neither Iraqis, Muslims, nor Arabs constitute a racial classification. The term Arab actually describes a group of people that share a common language, Arabic. Arabs can be black, white and everything in between. Arabs can be Jews, Christians, Muslims, and any other religion. It would seem that these simple facts undermine Dr. Kunnie's entire premise in his guest commentary. I hope Dr. Kunnie realizes that more people might listen to his ramblings if his argument was based on legitimate claims.

Rachael Levy
Near Eastern studies sophomore

Bush war based on weapons of mass destruction invalid

Having attended the UA, lived in Tucson for a little more than four years, had two American-by-birth kids, and visited the area twice after graduation, I, a Saudi Arabian citizen, always felt Tucson to be my second home, the UA as my beloved school, and the Arizona Daily Wildcat as my dear friend. Accordingly, I conveyed my deepest condolences to my fellow UA faculty, Wildcat staff, and students on the tragic event of Sept. 11, (i.e. I shared my sincere feelings with those whom I respect and admire during the time when they needed me the most). Likewise, I would like to share my viewpoints transparently on what is taking place next to my door (Saudi Arabia is a neighbor to Iraq).

There is no doubt in my mind that Saddam is a tyrant who should have been ousted from office back in 1991 when it was justified and legitimate. In fact I felt mad when the liberation of Kuwait was not followed by the liberation of Iraq! Now, however, with all due respect to those who support the Anglo-American invasion of Iraq, it is in my opinion that it is neither right nor lawful to do so. That is not to say that Saddam has transformed into an angel and, accordingly, he does not deserve a capital punishment, but to say that the reasons to attack Iraq for possessing arms of mass destruction is no longer valid, and thousands of innocent civilians are going to vanish (tens of thousands of Iraqis were killed in 1991 during the people's revolt that followed the second Gulf War).

I believe that the main reason for waging this war by President George W. Bush without giving the weapons inspectors and the United Nations the chance to complete their job is that he was sure that the inspectors would not be able to verify his accusations, and therefore, there would be no strong reason to attack Iraq! Hence, the war was expedited despite the international body's refusal. For those who may argue that the inspectors were given ample time to do their work, but the process was slow, I would say that this argument is like that of a physician who amputates the legs of one of his/her patients because the healing process is slow and he/she just cannot wait any longer for the medicine to take its course!

Ibrahim Ismail

UA alumnus, 1985
Saudi Arabia

Letter has charges of fiscal irresponsibility backwards

This letter is in response to Ryan Wicks' Friday letter "Democrats cost U.S. more cash than Bush tax plan." Given that it is based in some alternate reality, it was hard for me to comprehend at first. For those of you who also had trouble, let me clarify things.

He thinks that the Republicans, with regard to the budget, "maintain fiscal responsibility." This coming from a person whose party has taken us back into deficit spending, before providing money for the war, and still pushes its ridiculous and untimely tax cut.

Now, I see how the right can worry about other things in the middle of a market crisis. They don't see the stock trend as a problem. If in fact they do, it must look like good business to them.

I hope you see the error of your ways, Mr. Wick. I'm sure the rest of the country has. Come time to vote, perhaps we'll return financial responsibility to power.

Reuben Goodman
interdisciplinary studies senior

America-Israel connection should be cause for concern

In response to Avi Margolin's letter titled "Israel constant target of criticism; deserves better," I would like to say that the limited criticism that Israel has received is well deserved. The United States treats Israel much differently than any other country. It is not a problem when Israel does not abide by international laws or ignores human rights. Fortunately, this hypocritical policy adopted by the United States of America is not supported by the rest of the world.

Despite what pamphlets distributed by the Arizona Israeli Alliance may suggest, Israel is a target of criticism because of its policy toward Palestinians, which can at best be described as careless, but more accurately described as ruthless.

Israel is not a target because the rest of the world hates Jews. The rest of the world is not looking for reasons to hate Israel. The rest of the world is not even looking for reasons to criticize Israel. Unfortunately, this idea that the rest of the world has blind and unfair hatred for Israel rooted in anti-Semitism is all too common among those, who like Mr. Margolin, try to ignore and justify Israeli crimes. This idea is a cheap and dishonest tactic that relieves Israel of its responsibility to respect basic human rights. Forget the right to free speech or anything of that magnitude! I'm talking about the right for a Palestinian child to go to the hospital when he or she is sick or the right of a Palestinian mother to go to the grocery store when her child has a sudden craving for chocolate. In fact, given Israel's policies, it would be immoral for the rest of the world not to criticize Israel.

I completely and whole-heartedly support Mr Margolin's call for people to think critically and read and learn about this issue. Consider looking at news outside of Fox News or CNN, and decide for yourself if the whole world is really against Israel or perhaps there are some pretty damn good reasons that Israel is being criticized.

Armand Navabi
computer science senior

Margolin letter Îenlightens' readers about Israel conflict

This is in response to Avi Margolin's letter, to which Mr. Margolin felt the need to "enlighten us." Thanks, I can tell your education has already paid off at this university. Who said that 10 minutes in front of CNN wouldn't pay off? We needed another self-purported Israeli expert here at the University of Arizona to tell us how it "really is" over there. Anyone who dares question the argument of a "political science freshman" is a fool indeed. Thanks for keeping it real and keeping us simple-minded folk informed.

After I read your letter I was in "awe" of your masterful debating skills. Not only is your bias so blatantly obvious, but you managed to avoid stupid things like "facts" or "logic" completely. I especially love the part where you rambled incoherently for three paragraphs and then dropped that fact on us, "Lastly, to those who read about this issue and wonder why Israel is always under fire both in the Wildcat and around the world: People will always find a reason to hate Israel, from those on the right who compare Israel and Iraq to those on the left who consider Israel to be an apartheid state." Holy crap, thanks for clearing that up for me. You're so right.

Ignoring United Nations resolutions, occupying land illegally and having apartheid ain't shit. In fact, after reading your letter, I think we should do all that stuff over here. The principles of justice, equality and law were overrated anyway, let's do it Israeli style.

So in conclusion, the billions and billions of dollars we send to the Middle East for our "friends" is well worth it. With almost every state facing a deficit, I am glad we are wasting, err, I mean "helping," our friends over there in the Middle East occupy land they shouldn't even be on. So the next time you are watching television and you see that another Israeli "raid" has occurred, you too can raise a fist in the air proudly, shed a tear and know that you are doing your part to fight the evil Palestinian cause.

Brian Wilson
economics senior

Students spending summer in Asia should be cautious

While the World Health Organization is trying to investigate the origin of the virus that caused serious problems in Asia, students planning to travel to Asia in the summer have to remain cautious all the time.

The unknown virus that causes severe acute respiratory problems has already killed more than 80 people worldwide and the virus seems to be totally out of human control and is spreading promptly. Hong Kong is one of the many countries that is being seriously affected by the unknown disease.

The fatal virus is believed to have surfaced in southern China last November, however, without any proper special care and control, the Chinese government underestimated the seriousness of the virus. Newspapers were being ordered to not report the cases, as it would create chaos in the country. Without proper health protection and adopting plans to control the virus, a lot of Chinese citizens, as well as the travelers who went to the infected area, were infected without knowledge. In consequence, the sudden outbreak of the disease shocked everyone in the world three months later.

As more and more cases are reported from well-developed countries like Hong Kong and Canada, numerous cases are still not being reported in the developing countries, like China and Vietnam. Because of the poor hygiene condition, it is expected that more and more people will be affected. Therefore, students and faculty members who are going to travel out of the United States, especially to Asian countries have to be extremely aware of being infected during the summer holiday, and please don't forget to carry a protective face mask.

Man-Fai Lee
chemistry senior