Mark Twain usually gets credit for the quote "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics," even though it was probably Benjamin Disraeli who first said it. But I've said it a bunch of times after both of them, and I'd like some credit too.

Not only was it a cleverly respectable way to say "damn" in class in high school, but it's also a fairly profound observation. Statistics are some of the wiliest things going, and the UA is hoping that we'll base our behaviors on some that they've posted for us. [Read article]

I'm not exaggerating when I say that I learned everything I know from watching television.

I learned to accept my inner nerd ("Family Matters"), I learned not to cross a temperamental soup chef ("Seinfeld"), and I learned that I shouldn't try to block out the sun with a giant mechanical shade in order to increase the profits of my nuclear power plant ("The Simpsons­").

Most importantly though, I've learned from watching "The Cosby Show" and "Roseanne" that the policy of affirmative action based on race is wrong. [Read article]

"You didn't accept your Phi Beta Kappa invitation? Are you crazy?" my summer roommate, who went to an east coast private school, said to me.

It's the most famous college honorary in the country. It's the most famous fraternity. The first fraternity, for that matter. But Phi Beta Kappa has been having big problems getting UA students to accept its invitations.

For more than 200 years, the organization has been the most significant honorary in the country. Its list of famous alumni goes on for pages. When fraternities and sororities talk about all the famous people and politicians who have been greek, they're mostly talking about Phi Betas, as they're often called. [Read article]

"The tyranny of a prince in an oligarchy is not so dangerous to the public welfare as the apathy of a citizen in a democracy."

- Baron de Montesquieu

Every spring, Arizona Daily Wildcat e-mail accounts are inundated with student complaints about the rising cost of tuition. Students expound about an administration that is isolated from the student body, one that cares little for student input or engaging in dialogue. [Read article]

U.S. nuclear policies put global survival at risk

Matt Stone, in his column "Russian Roulette," is correct in demanding urgent action against the continuing nuclear threat that hangs over the world even in this post-Cold War era. Furthermore, he is right to emphasize the need to dismantle Russia's nuclear arsenal, with its deteriorating safety and security measures. However, while Stone mentioned the nuclear capabilities, or suspected capabilities, of Russian, Iran and North Korea, he failed to mention America's dangerous nuclear policies. [Read article]