Editor in chief: Laura Cadiz
Editorial Editors: Bret Jacobson, Laura Lucas
Newsroom: (541)346-5511
Room 300, Erb Memorial Union
P.O. Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403
E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu
Bryan Dixon Emerald
Letters to the editor
WTO coverage great
Thank you for your editorial oi
the World Trade Organizatioi
protesters (ODE, Dec. 3). I live ii
Seattle and am hoping to atten<
the University next year. I want t
commend you for the article be
cause you’re the first medium t
get it right! There was a differenc
between the peaceful and violen
protesters. Everyone needs to real
ize that. Again, great article!
Mindi Ric
senior, Roosevelt High in Seattl
University needs
active students
As a freshman here at the Uni
verity I have been impressed b;
the outstanding variety of clubs
and opportunities available to me.
I have taken an enthusiastic ap
proach in finding as much infor
i mation about the organizations
j that interested me and have taken
! an active stance in joining these
1 clubs. Walking down 13th Av
3 enue every day, I see the open
minded diversity that embodies
3 our campus that makes me proud
3 to be a Duck.
t However, as great as it is to see
this eclectic gathering in our gor
geous campus community, I was
e disheartened to learn that voter
» turnout in our very own school
elections was a pitifully low 14
percent last year. I pay out-of-state
tuition and have a little more in
vested than most students. My
view is that if I am spending mon
; ey tb be,here, then 1 want things.fo*
Well, the new millennium has
come to pass, and so far the
world as we know it hasn’t
ended, the Christians haven’t
ascended and our computers are still
working. But despite all the hype,
the first of January really was more
than a new century and a new mil
lennium. It was the beginning of a
leap year, anticipating presidential
elections. And with the new year
comes ... New Year’s resolutions.
Not everyone bothers with resolu
tions, and generally those who do
forget them by the first bowl game of
the year. Since childhood, I’ve fit
right into the standard scenario, my
occasional forays into the world of
New Year’s resolutions rarely lasting
much past the time it took to write
them down.
My wife is the rare exception. She
starts by considering the predictable
events of the coming year. She eval
uates her long-term goals and re
members the frustrations she’s
experienced during the past
year, then she makes a single
resolution, something that will
either enrich her life, further
her goals or both. She makes
sure that it is something she has
control over and can achieve,
even if it’s difficult. She
writes it down. Even though
limiting her resolutions to one
makes it easy to remember, she
refers to it periodically over the
course of the year. The last part is to
evaluate how well the resolution
was kept during the course of the
year before beginning a new one.
She repeatedly accomplishes her
goals, and she uses her New Year’s
resolutions as tools to help her
achieve those goals.
After watching her make and keep
her resolutions for five years in a
row, I was inspired last year to do
the same. I refused to believe that I
couldn’t succeed at something she
did so well. A man has to have some
pride, after all. I studied the way she
did it carefully, then skated back
onto the thin ice of resolve. This
time, using the system I learned
from Kristin, I would not fail. I have
a long history of procrastination and
inefficiency, so I resolved to use my
time more effectively. Maybe next
year I’ll get around to it.
Actually, I did pretty well. Sort of.
I only wasted 1,825 hours on com
puter games, down from 2,412 the
year before. I got half of the living
room done, though now it’s in a state
of permanent construction. I got the
taxes done on time — barely. My
wife was kind and didn’t say any
be as favorable toward me, the stu
dent, as possible. I feel that we
should all feel this way regardless
of how large our tuition bill is
every month.
I sincerely hope that we as a stu
dent body can become less apa
thetic and more active toward the
quality of our student life. I know
that all of us cannot be 100 percent
satisfied with our school, which is
why I am challenging and inviting
my 17,000 fellow Ducks to do
something rather than complain
and be elsewhere than a poll
booth on election day. Together
we can make the University a
school we can all look forward to
attending in 2000 and in the com
ing years.
Mi
*1,
Bepnett Lacy
Keep intolerance
out of seminars
Last month I attended a Diverse
Families seminar. Something oc
curred that made me feel as
though my learning environment
was compromised, and I think
that students should be aware.
Views of intolerance and hate
were expressed by a few people,
some from diverse backgrounds
wrho have likely encountered dis
crimination and intolerance them
selves. Intolerant views were ex
pressed regarding same-sex
partner marriages and other issues
families face. Perhaps I was naive
to expect that a seminar address
ing diversity and related issues
would actually foster the desire
for tolerance in all who attended.
t 'Perhaps I Wa^'naiyd-tb 'ekpedt
Thursday
January 6,2000
Volume 101, Issue 70
Kmerakl
thing while she kept her own resolu
tion.
Don’t you hate it when someone
sets an ideal example for you to fol
low?
Hey, at least I improved. So I con
sider it a qualified success, and I’m
ready to tackle
the new mil
lennium’s
New Year’s
resolution
with renewed
vigor and de
termination.
First, antici
pate the pre
d i c t a b 1 e
events of 2000:
FredM. 0ne bis
event is gradu
ation. My life
will change in
June when I’m thrust from the Ivory
Tower and forced to make my own
way in the world for the sixth time.
That’s right, it’s been awhile since I
left home. But this time I’ll be leav
ing with sheepskin in hand, so
things will be different. At least I
hope they will.
But the degree pales in compari
son with the biggest change in my
life to date. I’m going to become a
dad in July.
In short, I’m going to start a new
career without time, money or sleep.
I won’t be able to depend on my
wife’s paycheck anymore, and I will
have a defenseless baby depending
on me completely. Given all that,
my old resolution for time manage
ment had better start to pay off.
But what new resolution can help
to mitigate the effects of the changes
that will happen this year? What can
help me achieve my goals of being a
good father, of providing for my fam
ily and success in a new career?
The answer falls like a plum in
my lap. This year, I resolve to avoid
campaign ads like I would a trip to a
YlK compliant dentist. No TV be
fore Nov. 8. No news magazines.
Limit the newspapers to the comics,
crossword puzzles and sports. Sure,
it’s bound to be a challenge. But
think of the savings in time and re
duction in aggravation. Surely it’ll
make me a better man and give me
the patience to put up with midnight
crying and dirty diapers.
And what better way to usher in a
new millennium?
Fred M. Collier is a columnist for the Oregon
Daily Emerald. His views do not necessarily
represent those of the Emerald. He can be
reached via e-mail at fmcollier@aol.com.
pie to express their differences in
ways that are not demeaning or of
fensive. It’s one thing to disagree if
opinions are expressed in a re
spectful manner that promotes
meaningful discussion. But it’s an
entirely different thing to make
value-based judgments in an of
fensive manner that makes some
feel unsafe and promotes intoler
ance in others. A University semi
nar is no place to express views of
intolerance. It’s a place where ed
ucated people from diverse cultur
al backgrounds and experiences
converge to learn in a (hopefully)
hate free environment. If we can’t
express our values and disagree
ments cordially, let’s keep them
out of the classroom.
Mandi Cox Eblen
y* V\V.\V»Vv\v>Vt** * education
■>.vvvV V iv. V V %.v MM V v V*Tv11 ?