Honesty is not best policy when dealing with UAPD

We are writing to warn the campus community that if you find lost money, do not turn it into the University of Arizona Police Department. A good samartitan brought a substantial amount of money into the department of history's main office. The money was found on campus with no ID or wallet associated with it. The student was asked to put the money in an envelope along with the student's name and phone number. This incident was reported to UAPD. I was told by the two responding officers that, had they been in the same situation as the student, they would have just pocketed the money. I was also told that if the money is not claimed, UAPD will be keeping the cash in their "evidence" room. The student who found the money will not get it back.

What kind of example are we showing students when our own police department condones being dishonest? In most police departments, when a large sum of money is not claimed, after usually 30 days or so, the person who finds it may claim it.

We in the history department are very disappointed in UAPD. The lesson the student learned is "honesty is not the best policy." Take the money and run.

Donna Watson
administrative assistant,
history department

Richard Cosgrove
professor, head, history department

Good reasons exist for left losses in this year's election

I have to say that I understand Kendrick Wilson's frustration with the election (Tuesday, "Keep fighting the good fight"). Just 10 years ago, Republicans lost the White House and we were left to rebuild our party. Liberals around college campuses were shocked last week, and who can blame them? Radical professors and protesters who share their beliefs surround them and make them feel that their politics are

mainstream. Wilson and Washington Democrats keep spouting that they lost because their message was not clear enough, but I don't think so. The left's message has been clear since the times of Roosevelt and LBJ. President Nixon described liberal Democrats as "the party of abortion, acid, and amnesty." President Reagan once stated that, "Every day is the fourth of July to Republicans, while every day for Democrats is April 15th." Thinking back on these themes, is it surprising that the left lost last Tuesday?

Wilson calls the Democratic Party progressive, but how can it be called this when it cannot move past the bygone days of free love and LSD of the late 1960s? All Wilson and liberals do is lie about everything from tax cuts to gun rights. He was shocked at how many people spoke out against those who believed more gun laws should be passed. Guess he hasn't seen all the evidence that the regions with more gun laws have higher crime rates. The point of all of this is voters did see the real differences between the two parties. Republicans led the way in forcing welfare reform and will continue to cut taxes for all Americans and support the military.

All the news outlets polled people following the election, and 60 percent of the country believes that government needs to be reduced. This is not good for Democrats. Republicans are the real progressives with new ideas; Democrats are still stuck in the 1960s, welfare state theories and all. Instead of moderate politics, the left has now called upon Nancy Pelosi, a San Francisco liberal, to become the new minority leader of the House. This is great news to all fellow conservatives. Democrats will keep spinning the top 1 percent crap and play the worn out race and social class cards. All of this ensures that 2004 will look a lot like 1984 (actually better). President Bush will be re-elected a second term, Republicans will gain more seats, and Democrats will be left scratching their heads once again.

Charles A. Peterson
history junior

On the Spot Îridiculous and pointless waste' of space

Let this letter serve as notice of our dissatisfaction with Rebekah Jampole. We at New Kevin, a long-form improv comedy group, believe that her daily column, On the Spot, is both ridiculous and a pointless waste of time.

For example, in Friday's On The Spot, she asks head football coach John Makovic, "... what is the best pizza place in Winston-Salem, North Carolina?" Only one of us has ever been to Winston-Salem, and the pizza was terrible. Thus, the question is completely irrelevant. Why not ask why the team is unable to win any games within its own conference? Or why not ask if he has any extra basketball tickets? New Kevin collectively believes that the space occupied by On the Spot would be better served by a blank page for doodling while waiting for class to start.

New Kevin

Joseph P. Marotta,
physics graduate student

Shaun Clayton,
theatre/media arts senior

Daryl Thomas
liberal arts senior

Timothy Budinger,
optical engineering freshman

ÎFlawed logic' to blame Bush for security lapses in airports

Mariam Durrani's comments made on Nov. 6 ("Issue of the Week: New political party mascots") is an unfortunate example of blind hatred for conservatives and Republicans with her uncanny idea to call Republicans a pile of manure. As a proud Asian Republican voter, I must take Ms. Durrani to task on her sole argument of labeling the party based on the FAA's decision to allow matches on airplanes, post Sept. 11. First and foremost, hardly anyone was thinking that a shoe bomber was going to blow up an airplane. I must ask Ms. Durrani: Before the terrorist Richard Reid tried to light his shoe and the plane, did you ever think that such a scenario was possible? I would seriously doubt that either you, or anyone aside from the terrorists and a simple few people thought that it would be possible.

Furthermore, to blame President Bush for this mishap in security, which has been lax for many years, shows extremely flawed logic on Ms. Durrani's part.

If we are to blame President Bush for this mishap, then why isn't former President Clinton held for the blame of not accepting Bin Laden three times from the Sudanese government when offered to take him?

Now allow me to remind you that the Republicans have just taken control of the Senate, with control of the House and the White House. Mind you that this was a national trend, which overcame all odds and was historic in and of itself. So why would Americans vote in favor of Republicans, which Ms. Durrani calls "poop?" Maybe it is because the Republicans have a desire to pass a national security bill, which has been stonewalled in the Senate by the Democrats. Or it could be that the Republicans would like to improve the economy, get a budget passed and get judges in federal seats which are nearly empty because of the stonewalling in the Senate by Democrats.

Ms. Durrani, allow me to return the label to you, as you are the one that is "poop" for using the word, and not arguing your point well enough to deserve being labeled the word which you use. Lastly, allow me to put a label to the Democrats for which Ms. Durrani hastily defends. That label is a wall, which is unable to do anything except block items from passing.

Stephen W. Bieda, III
atmospheric sciences senior