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E-mail: editor@dailyemerald.com
Online: www.dailyemerald.com
Tuesday, September 30,2003
Oregon Daily Emerald
COMMENTARY
Editor in Chief:
Brad Schmidt
Managing Editor.
Jan Tobias Montry
Editorial Editor
Travis Willse
EDITORIAL.
Conscientious
consumerism
couldn't hurt
After Oregon's Legislature mucked around for months
with "shortfalls" in what was surely one of the sorriest ex
amples of fiscal prudence in the state's history, and as most
of the student population rolls back into town — the
Board sees this week as an apt time for a discussion about
economics and conservation.
According to a Cato Institute brief published this year,
the Legislature hiked per capita spending by 45 percent
between 1990 and 2001 — the fourth largest such in
crease in the nation.
But now, thanks largely to economic problems, the
state's revenue has shrunk, and citizens — the University
community certainly included — are feeling the pinch: The
long-overdue budget allocated 10.8 percent less money for
higher education than the last biennium, and recent legis
lation geared to relaxing the financial crunch by restructur
ing the Public Employee Retirement System prompted at
least a few University professors to retire early.
But what do the state's fiscal (mis)adventures have to
do with buying laundry hampers and microchenille
throws for the just-occupied dorm room or apartment
or upgrading your utilitarian Nokia 3390 cell phone to
the high-end Samsung SGH-V205? Well, there are at
least a couple of lessons here.
The new school year offers a wealth of new opportuni
ties — especially for freshmen — from the academic to the
social to the financial. But, as students run out to Fred Mey
er or Target to pick up floor mats and filing cabinets, they
should practice some fiscal prudence of their own, and for
good reason, too.
For the first time, typical resident University students are
paying more than $5,000 in tuition and fees. That figure
means those students are paying an unprecedented 62 per
cent of their tuition, according to the Oregon Students As
sociation. And tuition costs are set to increase significantly
during die next few years.
But ballooning tuition is by no means the only monetary
bear that students wrestle with: By 2002, the average student
owes $ 16,928 of college loan debt after graduation — double
the figure from eight years earlier — according to a
CNN/Money report And by 2000, nearly one in ten students
had racked up more than $7,000 in credit card debt accord
ing to the National Foundation for Credit Counseling.
Of course, all of this doesn't mean that students
shouldn't spend anything on improving their living
spaces' ergonomics: Some consumerism is healthy, even
necessary; wild excess is not. The Organize-lt Wire Stor
age 6-Cube Unit ($19.99) will help an incoming fresh
man make the most of a shared (and therefore cramped)
9-foot-10-by-15-foot-4.5 Walton Complex residence hall
room. But if you're looking for playing with lighting, a
brushed chrome lava lamp ($64.95) is probably neither
the most functional nor the most economical choice.
And the Legislature left Oregonians with a painful re
minder about the results of a lack of foresight.
Another more subde — but probably more important
— piece of the puzzle connects microeconomic concerns
with resource management: conservation. Too often, the
appeal of the newer, the faster and the shinier persuades
consumers to discard a perfectly sufficient cell phone or
backpack or sunglasses. If an incoming freshman only uses
their computer for word processing, Internet access and
music, there's probably little reason for them to shove their
old computer in the closet and have the 'rents buy them a
3-gigahertz Pentium 4 system.
The point of all this, of course, is that the freedom of col
lege brings all kinds of budgetary opportunities — and re
sponsibilities. And the Legislature's poor planning this year
can teach the state's collegiate a valuable lesson: Spend wisely.
Who says Oregon's politicians didn't do anything for
college students this year?
EDITORIAL POLICY
This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald
editorial board. Responses can be sent to letters
@dailyemerald.com. Letters to the editor and guest
commentaries are encouraged. Letters are limited
to 250 words and guest commentaries to 550 words.
Five years and counting
Hi. I'm Peter. And I'm a fifth-year senior.
I know! I know I shouldn't admit it. It's
like admitting you have herpes on the first
date, or that you secretly like the banana
and-cheese crepes at Cafe Siena. But it's
true. I love those crepes.
And I wear that scarlet number — a big
*5* — around my neck.
But it's not so bad being a fifth-year.
There are more of us than you think.
When the revolution begins, we will be
right at the front of the pack, throwing bot
tles and rocks. Ha ha. Just kidding.
There aren't any statistics yet for my en
tering class, but in the entering class of
1996, more than 600 students continued
into a fifth year (and that means fall of the
fifth year, not summer). That's 24.9 per
cent of the class.
Of that 600, 175 students entered Van
Wilder-land and continued into a sixth
year. Eesh.
So, we have strength in numbers. Plus
we're, like, really, umm, experienced in the
ways of the world and stuff. And we're wise
beyond your years. And we don't need di
rections to Deady Hall any more.
We'd prefer if you didn't call us "super"
seniors, because it reminds us too much of
Comedy Central's "Special" Ed.
I wanna stay in school into my 30s.
Yaaaaaay!
But we don't mind if you call us "scintil
lating" seniors. Or
"spectacular" sen
iors. Or "all-power
ful, all-knowing, all
sexy" seniors. Any of
those would work.
So 1 guess there
are one or two draw
backs to being a sen
sational senior. I
only list these to
present both sides •
of the story, in the
name of journalistic ethics (note to jour
nalism professors: This should earn me
an automatic "A" in all journalism classes
this year!).
Certain situations make us fifth-years
Peter Hockaday
Today is Hockaday
feel older than Hugh Hefner. Only with
fewer hot women. Like when we're forced
to take entry-level astronomy classes for
the science credit we never got freshman
year. Or when we go to parties at the
Commons, and somebody screams "The
cops are coming!" and everybody clears
out except the fifth-years. And we sit
around, sipping
I beer and nodding at
each other.
Then there're the
questions.
"What are you
still doing here?"
"Haven't you
graduated yet?"
"Do you really
■■ have herpes?"
Just kidding
about the last one. But the questions
need to stop. I'm like Jim Carrey in
Dumb and Dumber. I don't caaaaare. I
should just wear a T-shirt that says "Fifth
year. Don't ask." I think they should sell
Eric Layton Illustrator
those at the bookstore.
Who wants to leave school anyway? The
world is a scary place. Just ask any gradu
ate trying to find work in this occupational
wasteland we call Oregon. George W. Bush
couldn't find work in this state.
So you've been president for what, four
years? Sorry, we're looking for somebody
with a little more experience. Jenny, show
Mr. Clinton in.
The real world includes mortgages and
marriage and tricycles. I'll just spend most
of this year in a tent outside Allen Hall, in
protest of the fact that I'll have to someday
leave the University.
So, everybody, welcome to another
school year. I promise you won't read a
column next year glorifying the plight of
sixth-year seniors.
And remember, we're not super.
We're scintillating.
Contact the columnist
at peterhockaday@dailyemerald.com.
His opinions do not necessarily represent
those of the Emerald.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Iraq war budget
doesn't add up
Our president has just asked for $87
billion for the next installment of his war,
$66 billion of which is "for the military
action in Iraq." That comes to exactly
$4.4 million of our tax dollars for EACH
of our 150,000 soldiers stationed there.
That will buy a lot of bullets; where does
the rest go? The funny math hasn't
stopped since Big Oil took the White
House. The thing is, it isn't funny.
David Singelyn
Warner Springs, Calif.
University, Halliburton
exhibit spooky parallels
What do the proposed new University
of Oregon basketball arena and the Iraq
war have in common? No-bid contracts:
Halliburton and Nike/University of Ore
gon (The Register-Guard, Aug. 1). Both
situations deserve immense scrutiny as a
shadowy parallel emerges between the
arms race in sports spending and the
arms race for endless war. Any hidden fi
nancial interests must be studied to see
that the University's ethical future isn't
ambiguous. It was only recently that we
had to rename a campus building be
cause the University's fundraising had
scooped up money drat had to be repos
sessed by the government. Students
should be allowed time to debate
whether the stadium is built at all due to
library cuts and tuition spiking. The
"New Partnership" (including the "smart
clothes" research and development "hot
team") will seek to expedite develop
ment of new shadow campuses for Uni
versity of Oregon-Nike, Providence
Peace Health and the military-industrial
complex. Watch for development,
"streamlining" of permit processes, dem
olition and evictions of 100 low-income
families in a potentially historic neigh
borhood near you.
Zachary Vishanoff
Eugene
Eugene is America's
friendliest city
Several weeks ago, while 1 was on vaca
tion with my partner, we made a stop in
Eugene on our way to Portland. We
grabbed a bite to eat and headed to a park
for a picnic lunch that we shared with our
cats. Despite being on a harness and leash,
one of our cats became frightened and es
caped from us. We searched the mountain
he ran to for hours to no avail. People that
we met at the park told us about the
Greenhill Humane Society, and we went
there to ask for suggestions. The staff
members there were helpful and sympa
thetic. After more than 30 hours of being
missing on the mountain, our cat, Rascal,
was recovered. We were pleasantly sur
prised at how friendly and helpful every
one we encountered was when we ex
plained our predicament. Many thanks to
the Greenhill Humane Society, Mark Hen
rikson, Jody and the many others who as
sisted us. We felt encouraged and support
ed by the community. As a result, we are
considering moving to Eugene! Eugene
has our vote for friendliest city in the U.S.
Thank you all again.
Kristen Roosa
San Diego
Oregon crowd respectful
during Michigan game
As a Michigan alumnus, I heard stories
about the Autzen Stadium crowd and Ore
gon fans. Let me be the next in line in say
ing that stadium is one of the loudest sus
tained roars I’ve ever heard.
In Ann Arbor, Mich., controversy recent
ly erupted about the treatment of Notre
Dame fans by the Wolverine faithful. Hav
ing packed nothing but Michigan gear, I
wondered how the Eugene and University
of Oregon community would reart.
About the worst I encountered was con
stant "Go Ducks" cheers. Your fans and
students are very respectful and gracious to
the opposition.
I enjoyed Eugene even though my team
didn't win. See you in a Rose Bowl rematch.
David Taub
Michigan alumnus, class of 2000
Pismo Beach, Calif.