Issue 9: The Midterm Elections
The Economy, The Issues, or The Tea Party: Who's Really Driving Voters?
Inside the Magazine
Discrediting Derogatory Language
Retarded (adj): delayed or held back in terms of progress, develop- ment, or accomplishment; SYNONYMS: slowed down, post-poned, hindered, detained gay (adj): 1. homosexual; 2. happily excited, merry, lighthearted faggot (n): sticks of wood, tied together, which are used as fuel for a fire So that’s what those words ACTUALLY mean. In case you had forgotten. I’m not a fan of the over-done politically correct movement. Words like mailman and history are fine by me; I’m not offended by the fact that “man” and “his” are a part of them. I’d argue it’s easier and more accurate to say “blind” rather than “visually challenged,” because, after all, everyone who wears glasses or contacts is visually challenged. What I DO take issue with is when people use the words retarded, faggot, and gay to mean something they don’t.... Read more...
Retarded (adj): delayed or held back in terms of progress, develop- ment, or accomplishment; SYNONYMS: slowed down, post-poned, hindered, detained gay (adj): 1. homosexual; 2. happily excited, merry, lighthearted faggot (n): sticks of wood, tied together, which are used as fuel for a fire So that’s what those words ACTUALLY mean. In case you had forgotten. I’m not a fan of the over-done politically correct movement. Words like mailman and history are fine by me; I’m not offended by the fact that “man” and “his” are a part of them. I’d argue it’s easier and more accurate to say “blind” rather than “visually challenged,” because, after all, everyone who wears glasses or contacts is visually challenged. What I DO take issue with is when people use the words retarded, faggot, and gay to mean something they don’t.... Read more...
Clarifying the Questions: Where was the Media? Being abroad last semester, I found it difficult to keep tabs on everything happening back at Tufts. Yet from what I’ve gathered from friends and a few clicks on the Daily and Roundtable web pages, it seems that pretty much everyone was confused by what exactly went on with Referenda 3 and 4. As last semester’s Public Editor, Shabazz Stuart, pointed out in his April 9th column, the media is the key link between the political class and the people whom they serve. He offered a wake-up call to campus media to use their weight to inform policy. Just as Tufts publications ought to reflect public opinion to policy makers, they ought also to disseminate, clarify, and investigate policy proposals. In order for democracy to work, people need to make informed decisions. At Tufts, people become informed by reading any one of our daily,... Read more...
Abstain Means Abstain
When you abstain from eating meat, you don't eat meat. When you abstain from working, you don't work. And when you abstain from voting, you don't vote. But in my time observing student government at Tufts, I have encountered an alternate definition, where abstaining from voting is called a vote. And I don't understand it. The trouble stems from referenda, which either can force the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate to take action or can change student government's constitution. Either way, it is important, which is why it is up the student body to decide whether a referendum should pass. A majority vote in favor passes a resolution. By itself, this could lead to votes held in secret, where only supporters know when to vote. To deter this, the TCU Constitution contains the minimum-vote clause, mandating that at least a quarter of the... Read more...
When you abstain from eating meat, you don't eat meat. When you abstain from working, you don't work. And when you abstain from voting, you don't vote. But in my time observing student government at Tufts, I have encountered an alternate definition, where abstaining from voting is called a vote. And I don't understand it. The trouble stems from referenda, which either can force the Tufts Community Union (TCU) Senate to take action or can change student government's constitution. Either way, it is important, which is why it is up the student body to decide whether a referendum should pass. A majority vote in favor passes a resolution. By itself, this could lead to votes held in secret, where only supporters know when to vote. To deter this, the TCU Constitution contains the minimum-vote clause, mandating that at least a quarter of the... Read more...
Hazards in the Community
Boston likes to think of itself as a progressive, tolerant city that values education, excellent health care and social justice. To a certain extent, this is true. Bostonians may hold seemingly compatible beliefs, yet when these values collide, as they have over Boston Universityís construction of a BioSafety Level 4 laboratory, it becomes evident that Boston is not quite the city on the hill many believe it to be. B.U.ís new BioLab in Roxbury is the latest instance of a morality clash between higher education and the desire for social justice of a community consistently trampled upon by the powers that be. In September 2003, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease selected Boston as the site of a new research complex containing Biosafety Level 2, 3 and 4 laboratories. The lab is designed to hold dangerous pathogens... Read more...
Boston likes to think of itself as a progressive, tolerant city that values education, excellent health care and social justice. To a certain extent, this is true. Bostonians may hold seemingly compatible beliefs, yet when these values collide, as they have over Boston Universityís construction of a BioSafety Level 4 laboratory, it becomes evident that Boston is not quite the city on the hill many believe it to be. B.U.ís new BioLab in Roxbury is the latest instance of a morality clash between higher education and the desire for social justice of a community consistently trampled upon by the powers that be. In September 2003, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease selected Boston as the site of a new research complex containing Biosafety Level 2, 3 and 4 laboratories. The lab is designed to hold dangerous pathogens... Read more...
We Could Have Had Compromise
The death of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) immediately turned the nation’s collective thought to the idea of the “Kennedy legacy.” The concept of such a legacy is, at the very least, a misnomer. First of all, there are still Kennedys involved in public life. More to the point, though, when the “Kennedy legacy” is discussed, it is, more than anything, a masked call for national introspection to raise awareness of the challenges that we face, and an examination of the sort of leadership and solutions we will need to meet them. When that conversation arises, we often do as one of the Kennedy titans would have. Sen. Kennedy’s death called us once more to look to that legacy for inspiration, but Massachusetts political leadership took the easy way out. In 2004, the General Court amended the standing Senate vacancy law to remove the... Read more...
The death of Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) immediately turned the nation’s collective thought to the idea of the “Kennedy legacy.” The concept of such a legacy is, at the very least, a misnomer. First of all, there are still Kennedys involved in public life. More to the point, though, when the “Kennedy legacy” is discussed, it is, more than anything, a masked call for national introspection to raise awareness of the challenges that we face, and an examination of the sort of leadership and solutions we will need to meet them. When that conversation arises, we often do as one of the Kennedy titans would have. Sen. Kennedy’s death called us once more to look to that legacy for inspiration, but Massachusetts political leadership took the easy way out. In 2004, the General Court amended the standing Senate vacancy law to remove the... Read more...
Living the Dream: faith in America
Multiple studies and surveys confirm what many may not realize: the United States is the most religiously observant country in the developed world. American history is certainly full of examples of religious influence and motivation, from the Pilgrims of the 17th century to the religious refugees of today. Important domestic policies, for better or worse, are often driven by religious organizations acting as special interest groups or by individuals who are influenced to act in the public sphere by their religious beliefs. There is no question that religious radicalism of all kinds thrives in America. To ask whether or not religious life has been good for America is a question loaded with theological, ideological, and historical implications. If one asks, however, whether America has been good to those who live religiously, the answer is... Read more...
Multiple studies and surveys confirm what many may not realize: the United States is the most religiously observant country in the developed world. American history is certainly full of examples of religious influence and motivation, from the Pilgrims of the 17th century to the religious refugees of today. Important domestic policies, for better or worse, are often driven by religious organizations acting as special interest groups or by individuals who are influenced to act in the public sphere by their religious beliefs. There is no question that religious radicalism of all kinds thrives in America. To ask whether or not religious life has been good for America is a question loaded with theological, ideological, and historical implications. If one asks, however, whether America has been good to those who live religiously, the answer is... Read more...
Redefining America's Religious Tradition
America—a nation once considered primarily Christian, or at least Judeo-Christian—is getting a taste of secular values. A fundamental challenge for Americans today is confronting our country’s modern religiosity. The National Day of Prayer, a day of turning to God for reflection and meditation, was instituted by Congress in 1952 and has since been challenged by a federal judge. LGBT teen suicides have many reconsidering their stance on homosexuality, and Muslims are struggling to erect Islamic centers near Ground Zero as well as in other locations. These examples illustrate a departure from the fundamentalist stances of religious America and a push towards pluralism, or the idea that a peaceful society depends on allowing all lifestyles to thrive. While fundamentalism threatens to divide members of various communities, pluralists... Read more...
America—a nation once considered primarily Christian, or at least Judeo-Christian—is getting a taste of secular values. A fundamental challenge for Americans today is confronting our country’s modern religiosity. The National Day of Prayer, a day of turning to God for reflection and meditation, was instituted by Congress in 1952 and has since been challenged by a federal judge. LGBT teen suicides have many reconsidering their stance on homosexuality, and Muslims are struggling to erect Islamic centers near Ground Zero as well as in other locations. These examples illustrate a departure from the fundamentalist stances of religious America and a push towards pluralism, or the idea that a peaceful society depends on allowing all lifestyles to thrive. While fundamentalism threatens to divide members of various communities, pluralists... Read more...
New START and the Specter of Partisanship
The balance of national politics has grown only more uncertain since the Republicans retook the House of Representatives last November, and it has become evident that every item on President Barack Obama’s agenda will prove to be a strenuous battle of its own. However, this is rarely expected in foreign policy, where politics is said to end at the water’s edge. For that reason, the White House did not anticipate the difficult Senate fight over the ratification of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), a longtime high-priority goal for the Administration. After the president and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the treaty in Prague last April, Obama had hoped that this START treaty, like those that came before it, could be readily accepted by both parties; even bitter enemies could come together on this. And yet,... Read more...
The balance of national politics has grown only more uncertain since the Republicans retook the House of Representatives last November, and it has become evident that every item on President Barack Obama’s agenda will prove to be a strenuous battle of its own. However, this is rarely expected in foreign policy, where politics is said to end at the water’s edge. For that reason, the White House did not anticipate the difficult Senate fight over the ratification of the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START), a longtime high-priority goal for the Administration. After the president and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the treaty in Prague last April, Obama had hoped that this START treaty, like those that came before it, could be readily accepted by both parties; even bitter enemies could come together on this. And yet,... Read more...
The Politics of Delegitimization
On April 29, 1861, James Madison Cutts traveled to Washington, D.C. to join the Union Army and help participate in the defense of the capital. He carried with him a letter for Abraham Lincoln that was from his brother-in-law, Stephen Douglas, the Democratic party nominee who had lost the 1860 presidential election to Lincoln. The letter introduced Cutts to Lincoln, vouched for his trustworthiness, and declared that Cutts could provide Lincoln with valuable information on the state of affairs in Illinois. But the surprising part of the letter, at least to modern readers, is the signature: “I am very respectfully your obedient servant, S.A. Douglas.” In today’s climate of intense partisan warfare, such a closing statement in a letter to a presidential opponent seems almost im- possible. Sure, there is the traditional phone call from... Read more...
On April 29, 1861, James Madison Cutts traveled to Washington, D.C. to join the Union Army and help participate in the defense of the capital. He carried with him a letter for Abraham Lincoln that was from his brother-in-law, Stephen Douglas, the Democratic party nominee who had lost the 1860 presidential election to Lincoln. The letter introduced Cutts to Lincoln, vouched for his trustworthiness, and declared that Cutts could provide Lincoln with valuable information on the state of affairs in Illinois. But the surprising part of the letter, at least to modern readers, is the signature: “I am very respectfully your obedient servant, S.A. Douglas.” In today’s climate of intense partisan warfare, such a closing statement in a letter to a presidential opponent seems almost im- possible. Sure, there is the traditional phone call from... Read more...
Prisoners of the War in Drugs
The continued economic crisis has shaken the foundations and assumptions upon which we have based our entire American system. The United States does not have the luxury of being wasteful and inefficient any longer. If we are to begin cutting back, there is no better place to start tha n the futile War on Drugs. Of the more than two million people currently imprisoned in the United States, approximately one quarter have been convicted of a drug offense. An often-used counterpoint claims that most of these drug offenders deserve to be behind bars because they are traffickers; “No one gets arrested for possession,” they say. But the facts seem to indicate otherwise. According to FBI data, 83 percent of drug arrests are for possession alone. Tellingly, the growing number of drug arrests does not correspond to an increased rate of drug... Read more...
The continued economic crisis has shaken the foundations and assumptions upon which we have based our entire American system. The United States does not have the luxury of being wasteful and inefficient any longer. If we are to begin cutting back, there is no better place to start tha n the futile War on Drugs. Of the more than two million people currently imprisoned in the United States, approximately one quarter have been convicted of a drug offense. An often-used counterpoint claims that most of these drug offenders deserve to be behind bars because they are traffickers; “No one gets arrested for possession,” they say. But the facts seem to indicate otherwise. According to FBI data, 83 percent of drug arrests are for possession alone. Tellingly, the growing number of drug arrests does not correspond to an increased rate of drug... Read more...
Why can't we be friends?
It is important not to beat around the bush: Iran will obtain nuclear power and more, nuclear weaponry. It won’t be tomorrow, it won’t be next month, but next year? The one after? As time passes, this possibility becomes a certainty. I wish this weren’t the case and I do believe that non-proliferation efforts have a positive effect on the world in which we live. However, there is little that we, as individuals, can do to divert Iran’s current course. In fact, there is little that the American government or international organizations can do to alter this future. The problem that lies before us is not one of prevention, but one of management. How can the US and the international community manage a belligerent, alienated Iran possessing nuclear weapons? Before I can address this question, it is necessary to establish fully the... Read more...
It is important not to beat around the bush: Iran will obtain nuclear power and more, nuclear weaponry. It won’t be tomorrow, it won’t be next month, but next year? The one after? As time passes, this possibility becomes a certainty. I wish this weren’t the case and I do believe that non-proliferation efforts have a positive effect on the world in which we live. However, there is little that we, as individuals, can do to divert Iran’s current course. In fact, there is little that the American government or international organizations can do to alter this future. The problem that lies before us is not one of prevention, but one of management. How can the US and the international community manage a belligerent, alienated Iran possessing nuclear weapons? Before I can address this question, it is necessary to establish fully the... Read more...
What makes a Hindu?
When one thinks of Hinduism, one is automatically transported to a world nestled in the Himalayas where people with peaceful faces practice yoga and are non-violent, peace-loving, and of a fundamentally different religion. Naturally, some images of smoke and an illegal substance may also come to mind, but for the most part, Hindus are viewed in a positive, tranquil light. Any Hindu could tell you what they believe the core values of “Hinduism” are—karma, dharma (duty), rebirth, sanatana dharma (the ultimate truth), and many others. As a person born and brought up in a Hindu family in India, I was drawn into an intense discussion on what it really means to be Hindu with a friend who was taking “Intro to Hinduism” at Tufts. It really made me start to wonder about what characterizes all Hindus, what it means to be Hindu, and who... Read more...
When one thinks of Hinduism, one is automatically transported to a world nestled in the Himalayas where people with peaceful faces practice yoga and are non-violent, peace-loving, and of a fundamentally different religion. Naturally, some images of smoke and an illegal substance may also come to mind, but for the most part, Hindus are viewed in a positive, tranquil light. Any Hindu could tell you what they believe the core values of “Hinduism” are—karma, dharma (duty), rebirth, sanatana dharma (the ultimate truth), and many others. As a person born and brought up in a Hindu family in India, I was drawn into an intense discussion on what it really means to be Hindu with a friend who was taking “Intro to Hinduism” at Tufts. It really made me start to wonder about what characterizes all Hindus, what it means to be Hindu, and who... Read more...
Bhutan: A fresh democracy in South Asia
Resistance to change is a common theme around the world in times of political and social unrest. From the unwillingness of President Lyndon B. Johnson to put an end to the Vietnam War to Hosni Mubarak’s more recent attempted refusal to step down as president of Egypt, stubbornness has proved dangerous to global socio-political stability. Important to the progression of peace and justice is the ability to recognize global trends of change and adapt to them. One nation that is doing exactly that is the South Asian country of Bhutan. As the rest of the world seems to be doing all it can to hinder progress and maintain out- dated policies, Bhutan felt the winds of political change and decided to transition from an absolute monarchy to a multi-party democracy in early 2008. Bhutan is a small land- locked country bordered by China to the... Read more...
Resistance to change is a common theme around the world in times of political and social unrest. From the unwillingness of President Lyndon B. Johnson to put an end to the Vietnam War to Hosni Mubarak’s more recent attempted refusal to step down as president of Egypt, stubbornness has proved dangerous to global socio-political stability. Important to the progression of peace and justice is the ability to recognize global trends of change and adapt to them. One nation that is doing exactly that is the South Asian country of Bhutan. As the rest of the world seems to be doing all it can to hinder progress and maintain out- dated policies, Bhutan felt the winds of political change and decided to transition from an absolute monarchy to a multi-party democracy in early 2008. Bhutan is a small land- locked country bordered by China to the... Read more...
A Movement of Egyptians, by Egyptians, and for Egyptians
The Egyptian anti-Mubarak protests captivated the world’s attention earlier this year when, in only 18 days, the largest Arab state in the Middle East went through an unexpected political transformation. Inspired by the events in Tunisia, over one million Egyptians took to the streets and successfully pressured Hosni Mubarak, who had served as the President of Egypt for 30 years, to resign. What makes this burgeoning revolution so remarkable is that it reveals something rarely seen under the many dictatorial leaders in the Middle East: the powerful will of the people. Recognizing the undeniable forces behind the protest movement, leaders from around the world, either heads of state or of multi-national organizations, increasingly called on Mubarak to resign before the scheduled September elections. This international pressure was... Read more...
The Egyptian anti-Mubarak protests captivated the world’s attention earlier this year when, in only 18 days, the largest Arab state in the Middle East went through an unexpected political transformation. Inspired by the events in Tunisia, over one million Egyptians took to the streets and successfully pressured Hosni Mubarak, who had served as the President of Egypt for 30 years, to resign. What makes this burgeoning revolution so remarkable is that it reveals something rarely seen under the many dictatorial leaders in the Middle East: the powerful will of the people. Recognizing the undeniable forces behind the protest movement, leaders from around the world, either heads of state or of multi-national organizations, increasingly called on Mubarak to resign before the scheduled September elections. This international pressure was... Read more...
Insurgent vs. Predator: Drones and the Battle for Hearts and Minds Western troops found themselves in a quagmire. Despite their training and technology, they found themselves continually defeated by a nearly unseen enemy, a guerilla force with an intimate knowledge of the mountainous battlefield and a fierce devotion to their cause. The military leadership, seeking to minimize casualties, decided that the best option lay in tactical airstrikes. If key opposition figures could be eliminated without even having to put troops on the ground, the war could be won easily, or so they thought. The year was 1920, the battlefield was occupied Iraq, and the decision to use aircraft was made by the British military, which was soon driven out of the countryside and forced to make major concessions to the rebels. Nine decades later, the United States has been trying to defeat an insurgency in northwestern Pakistan... Read more...