Letters to the Editor

Miller ignored the dangers of smoking

To the Daily:

I am usually an ardent fan of James Miller's writing, but I just have to say that I don't understand why he chose to be so snotty toward anti-smokers in the Feb. 11 Daily ("Light it up, pass it on and shut up already"). As someone who works to educate others about the health hazards of smoking, all I have to say is excuse me for trying to save lives. When all there is are good intentions behind something, I don't understand the need for attack.

As a Medical student here at the University, I see and hear daily the horrible outcomes and maladies that befall those who smoke. I also take real plastinated lungs (some healthy, some brittle with emphysema, and some black and rock hard with lung cancer) to fourth-grade students at local elementar schools to educate them on smoking. When I tell them that people who smoke emit radioactivity like an X-ray machine because smoke contains radioactive particles, and that they contain tar like on the roads, and that they will make you their slave for the low price of $2.50 a pack for the rest of your life, they look at me with the widest of eyes and ask, "Why would anyone ever want to do that to themselves?" And I just shake my head back and say, "I don't know." It's too bad that those 9-year-olds seem to have more common sense than Miller does.

Also, I just want to say that it does become a moral issue when the big tobacco companies target low-income African American cities - I would be a little worried if that fit under his category of morality. So, to all his bitterness and spite directed at proponents of public heath, I say that what makes us smarter than you is that we know better than to be pawns in the game of the tobacco industry and all the while pay them big bucks to have them kill us. When I'm a physician in a few years and people like Miller who threw our education and help back in our faces come in with lung cancer and there is absolutely nothing I can do for them, maybe I'll feel a little less sorry for Miller. Will he still think he's smarter then? I doubt it.

Kristin Levy
Medical School

Marathon will become a tradition at the 'U'

To the Daily:

I want to thank all of the volunteers, "moralers," dancers, families and members of the Central Planning Team for supporting University of Michigan's first-ever Dance Marathon. Their enthusiasm and participation has truly made this event a tradition in only its first year. Words can express the passion that I have for the Dance Marathon, and I hope that they all were a part of it and felt the same way.

Events don't happen like this at the University. They just don't. But you know what? All of the participants have embraced the marathon as their own. That is truly remarkable. If you ask anyone what the marathon meant to them, they couldn't describe it in words. The best response from the participants is, "I want to get involved next year."

I personally want to thank all of the dancers that participated in the event. Without them, there would not be a dance marathon. We could have had 175 "moralers," 200 volunteers, amazing sponsors and a wonderful planning team, but without you, it could not have happened. It was brave of all of you to participate in a first-year event when you didn't know what to expect. Thank you.

Finally, to the University community, I thank you. Many people said this event could never succeed at the University. Well you know what, it has succeed. It has surpassed the dreams of anyone I know, including myself. The only suggestions I have for people that missed out on it this year is to get involved next year! Thank you and go Blue!

Bradley Holcman
Kineseology junior

'U' can afford to buy better toilet paper

To the Daily:

I recently read that the University will garner a lot of money because the football team won the Rose Bowl and national championship. This money, combined with the tuition revenue it receives each year, makes one believe that the University is in pretty good financial standing. Could it then be possible for the University to allocate a portion of its wealth to the purchase of quality toilet paper for University bathrooms?

As it stands, the current toilet paper is either way too thin (like fabric softener) or way too hard and crunchy (like tree bark). I don't mean to sound like your typical disgruntled Gen Xer who has nothing to do but complain. Sure, we have the No. 1 football team and the No. 1 Business School in the United States, but we're ranked 318 out of 318 in toilet paper quality. Don't get me wrong, I love this school and its atmosphere. Join me and demand quality toilet paper.

Sam Swartz
School of Business Administration

Ellerbe can motivate 'M' basketball team

To the Daily:

After watching the Michigan basketball team lose to Michigan State, I recognized one thing. That was the most hustle and effort I had seen from a Michigan basketball team in all the time I've been at the University. They gave it full effort in the second half with their backs against the wall. Without Maceo Baston and Robert Traylor for the last six minutes, they did not give up, and I believe put up a magnificent effort. If Coach Brian Ellerbee can a get the team to play as they did in the second half during every game, I would be sad if he wasn't back next year. This effort gave me confidence in him as a coach who can make the Michigan Wolverines play to the best of their ability. Good luck, team.

Jon Schwartz
LSA junior

Affirmative action relies on reverse discrimination

To the Daily:

I am not surprised that Isa Kasoga ("Letter Ignored Societal Problems," 2/19/98) was disappointed with my response. As someone who enjoys brandishing words like "elitist" and "racist" as a smoke screen to hide their viewpoint's inherent paradoxes, Kasoga must clearly be at a loss when someone presents a logical counterargument to affirmative action. My letter highlighted the fact that "corrective legislation" is, by definition, reverse discrimination. Kasoga seems to feel that this is "illogical, uninformed and elitist."

Let's think about this for a moment. Granting minorities special privileges over white people (e.g., quota-based promotions, admissions or what have you) is a form of discrimination. Granted, this is done to assist the minority applicants because they have been disadvantaged, presumably as a result of discrimination by white people. In essence, affirmative action is attempting to solve a problem created by discrimination with more discrimination. This is illogical! While it may be a rather jejune precept, "two wrongs do not make a right" is still valid. In addition, if one takes an objective look at the Fourteenth Amendment, they would find affirmative action explicitly unconstitutional in that it denies U.S. citizens (albeit whites) equal protection under the law.

Finally, Kasoga faults me for not proposing an end to racial strife. Well, I must apologize. Even though philosophers, politicians and nearly everyone else have been trying to solve race problems of for thousands of years, I am sorry I could not personally come up with a fix. All I know is that racial divisions are not remedied through reverse discrimination (read: affirmative action), they are only widened. It creates a problem as big as the one it solves. Apparently, the new problem works in Kasoga's favor.

Jim Knapp
LSA sophomore

02-24-98