Hail to the thieves
I must commend Acoubacar N'Diaye in his Oct. 24 column "Get off my (current) property." What a wonderful and insightful theory concerning the nature of property. I entreat every individual henceforth to happily and righteously hand over their earnings and personals to any mugger, bandit or thief who overcomes one's defensibility.
The man in the streets may now beam with pride as he snatches sweet candy from a crying baby. If this infant has not the might to hold on to his precious candy, by what right should he enjoy it? We shall not hear any more of those who clamor on about abusive governments and businesses. If they can seize it, we should but smile as we happily surrender what is rightly theirs. Our hold on Iraq - completely legitimate so long as our might is imperial enough to strangle it.
Woe to you who still clamors on about plundered earnings, looted homes, pillaged lands or stolen sustenance - for if you cannot defend it successfully you cannot claim right to it. Arguably, the oxygen that fills your lungs is not actually yours if one aggressively takes it from you. But fear not my fellow brethren: you still have your life and your liberty - unless the space you occupy and objects you act on are rendered defenseless by the empowered brute.
Christopher S. Gordon Philosophy sophomore
Raising awareness is real, for real
As refreshing as it is to watch yet another cynic vomit excuses for apathy mixed with just enough disdainful academic rhetoric to almost make inaction seem justifiable, I really wish they could start coming up with more original reasons for being self-centered and lazy than those that Colin Kalmbacher so thoughtfully enlightened us with in his column "Globalizing Sympathy (and little else)," Oct. 24.
While there are many controversial U.S. perpetuated issues worth supporting, those are not the only issues we should be focusing on. Simply because an issue is so heinous that it is rendered non-controversial doesn't mean it no longer deserves attention. The U.S. did not cause AIDS in Africa, but we do have the resources to help alleviate the suffering and raise awareness (oh God, the dreaded activist jargon) about preventative measures that can be taken. Of course, most people would be horrified to find out that 33 percent of the adult population of Swaziland has AIDS so efforts to provide support really wouldn't be that controversial... and you know, America didn't cause them to get AIDS, so why bother? Besides they're just a group of "soulless Africans" anyway and I'm just in it for the parties. Now, that's some pretty convincing logic right there.
Kalmbacher's column is an ignorant tirade written in a pathetic attempt to trivialize the meaningful work campus activists do in order to make the apathetic feel more comfortable in their apathy. In other words, so they can feel so good about feeling so condescending. Activists lobby the government, they collect donations, they build shelters, they provide medicine, they tutor kids, they help survivors of domestic violence, they promote fair trading practices, and yes, they raise awareness. But maybe activists shouldn't be focusing their efforts on "soulless Africans," maybe they should instead be turning their attention to why America has let a tradition of self-centered indulgence spawn soulless college students proud of their complete lack of social consciousness.
Jamie Doak Plan II and women and gender studies sophomore
White Roses work
If you have ever been to the West Mall on a Thursday you would know about how the White Rose Society is working to stop the genocide in Darfur. You would have noticed that we already successfully lobbied the State of Texas to divest over half a billion dollars from companies in Sudan with the Stop Darfur Genocide Act. You might know that the UT Investment Company is right now analyzing the exposure of its investments to companies that support the Government of Sudan which directly supports the militias committing genocide with funding, weapons, bombing and helicopter attacks. You did not know that Sen. Ellis, Rep. Van Arsdale and Rep. Burnham wrote to Jeff Huffines of UTIMCO to urge him to develop a targeted divestment policy. You should know that we have sent $6,000 to AJWS to feed refugees in Chad, and helped raise $400,000 nationally to provide funding for civilian protection by African Union peace keepers.
Those that don't care about any of this simply are not aware. I invite anyone to meet me for coffee at the San Antonio Street Cafe at Texas Hillel to see the drawings made by refugee children from Darfur in Chad and discuss the Darfur movement and the call to action. I'm not a "peacenik" and I don't sing or dance for Darfur. I am an American taxpayer, and my vote counts. I called 1-800-GENOCIDE to tell my Senator to support the Sudan Accountability and Divestment Act, and I emailed him as well. You can, too.
Colin Lowenberg Electrical engineering senior
Oh, not again
I found the title of Thursday's piece on YCT's infamous "watch list" ("YCT list singles out professors," Oct 25) amusing because I cant help but laugh at how many times YCT has singled themselves out as a group of ass clowns. For the love of God, please don't tell me this group thinks that anyone actually takes them seriously anymore, or ever did for that matter. While Dana Cloud will call your list "McCarthyism," I will just call it horsecrap. After an affirmative action bake sale, an illegal immigrant hunt on campus and year after year of this obnoxious watch list, I am downright scared of what crap you will come up with next. It will most likely be some of the same childlike behavior that everyone on campus has come to expect.
If you want to be taken seriously, then act serious. As a conservative Democrat, I had disagreements in class with many of my professors who were from both the right and the left. Yet, these were some of the best classes I took while at UT, because I took advantage of these situations to challenge my own beliefs and to academically spar with some of the most respected professors in their field. Why don't you do the same instead if whining about how everyone doesn't think in the same form that you do? Encourage all your members to take the same class and challenge these people and make it better for everyone. There is nothing better in class than heated academic debate. Thus, you should grow up and get with the program.
John Grube UT alum
Clouded judgment
Professor Dana Cloud does more to prove the effectiveness of YCT's Watch List than any of the list's proponents ("YCT list singles out professors," Oct. 25). This list is about empowering the students, it's a belief that they can make decisions when given two viewpoints. Cloud presupposes that students will not take classes from professors on the Watch List. The list is simply another reference tool or "opinion" that students can use when making decisions. It's my guess that if Cloud believed in the ability of people to make good decisions on their own, she would not be on the list because she would not be afraid to present opposing ideas. In reference to the Orwellian comment - what is more totalitarian than taking everything a leader (in this case, a professor) says to be true? By questioning authority, a person is rejecting totalitarianism and empowering democracy. Furthermore, there's nothing shady about the investigative techniques used. Students in the class report that their views are being stifled, then the claim is checked by another source. Finally, I love Cloud's assertion that the list prevents students from taking "some of the best professors in the University." Professor Cloud, you may be the best teacher at the University, and you may be right about everything, but let me make that decision for myself.
Clint Chegin Economics junior
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