Problems in education firsthand
Nick Bahl

Nick Bahl

If the left can’t win, they’ll do the next best thing: they’ll ensure that the debate goes on forever in the court systems, stealing millions of taxpayer dollars in the process.

The 2000 presidential election is the most obvious example of this, but the California recall election is taking on the same face. Locally, there are complaints about the Academic Bill of Rights. I’m willing to bet that this, too, goes to court when it’s passed – why isn’t this money going to the poor?

Metro does not have a diverse offering of philosophical ideas, nor does it encourage students who have opposing ideas to freely express themselves. It’s about time Metro was forced to support academic diversity. Why does diversity have to be forced onto the left? I don’t mind being one of the very few people around here to express ideas different from those that are spewed by students with a sheperd’s staff stuck around their necks, and I actually enjoy it for good reason.

During the final week of classes last fall, a professor, Heather Draper, asked me why I didn’t participate in class. I responded to Draper’s inquiry by making a note on the bottom of my quiz saying that I didn’t participate because her “liberal bias and political one-sidedness often gave me a headache.” Draper’s editing class often talked a one-sided view of politics. I showed up for my last day of class and was told that I could take the final, but that I couldn’t come back to class or take part in the review for the final. Aren’t these my rights?

I sent e-mails to the journalism department chair, the dean’s office, and one to Draper asking for a written explanation of the events. Draper’s e-mail said that my written comments were the “last straw.” Doesn’t a last straw imply previous straws? Wouldn’t previous straws include warnings, notes, or prior expulsion from class? None of these things had happened.

Before my “mandatory” meeting with journalism department chair Kenn Bisio and Student Judicial Officer Elyse Yamauchi, I was told by the dean’s office that I was at fault and nothing would be done. I also checked my grades and discovered that I received an “NC” for the class. Isn’t the final date for an “NC” months prior to finals? I also contacted the media during this time. How do you think the journalism department liked me using their own profession against them?

At the meeting, I was told that I had violated the “Student Code of Conduct.” Anyone who has been accused of this knows that it’s an extremely vague authoritarian tool that can be used to force students into compliance with the views of their professors. I was also told that I shouldn’t have contacted the media because the administration had every intention of fixing the problem. I responded by saying that I gave them a chance to fix the problem, and after being told that I was at fault I went elsewhere to defend my rights. I was promised all sorts of things, things that never materialized.

In the end — which was only the middle of August this year and took continued probing by the media and the threat of a lawsuit — I got much of what I asked for. Draper is no longer with us, the class was removed from my transcript, and Metro paid for me to retake the class. Do you think any of this would have happened without the probing which threatened to make Metro look biased in front of its funding? What is a possible solution and what has Metro done in regard to this since?

Right now, members of our faculty are passing a petition around to investigate “the scope and extent of the secret meeting” between politicians in Colorado and David Horowitz who is coming to campus at the end of this month. Don’t our professors have better things to do with their time?

A student in one of my political science classes said that the purpose of the petition is to get the Academic Bill of Rights on the ballot so it can be voted on. This student and the professor maintained that voters have the right to decide such things. Isn’t Colorado a Republican state? While they’re wasting their time on this petition, why don’t they send a petition around regarding funding, since I hear constant complaints about that too?
I suggest that we also vote on the dispersal of funds to higher education in the state. How does that sound? Don’t voters have the right to decide such things?

After the state legislature figures out how much money will be allocated to higher education, I say that we put all institutions of higher education in the state on the ballot. The top vote getter receives 50 percent of all funding; second and third place could split 25 percent, and the remaining 25 percent could go to the community college system. All other schools would be out of luck. This sounds good to me!

The political makeup of Colorado would ensure that schools which are highly conservative or have a much more diverse offering of ideas would receive large percentages of available funding and that the community college system would remain intact. My plan gives voters the right to decide, as requested by the left’s petition, and it also makes education at places such as the University of Denver much more affordable.

Put the Academic Bill of Rights on the ballot. I dare you. But know that I have a petition waiting too! How do you think the left’s tone would change if this were to happen? Do you still think that there isn’t a problem in higher education and that the left supports diversity?

Headlines

Textbook purchasing strategies for beginning students
by Jacob Ryan
The Metropolitan

The semester is well over a month old, and it can be assumed that every student has already purchased the books required for their classes. The majority of students probably did so at the Auraria Book Center.

If you did go to the Auraria Book Center, you have probably learned a very important lesson the hard way — what not to do when it comes time to buy college textbooks. And you probably learned this when your wallet weighed more when you went into the store, and a lot less when you left with your bag of books.

The fact is, the Auraria Book Center is notorious for over-pricing their textbooks when compared with other businesses.

In 1998, as a freshman, I was able to buy at least half of my books for less cost at the Colorado Textbook Outlet on Colfax across from the Auraria campus. But, sadly, that store went out of business.

After that, and up until last year, I was in the same boat as many students, buying my books on campus, and paying for it in more ways than one in the end. That was until a fellow student let me in on her answer to this dilemma, and I never looked back.

The best, and cheapest, way to get all of your books for you classes is Amazon.com. I have never been assigned a book that wasn’t available on the website. And, even buying all new books, I still come away saving $100-$150 more than if I were to have shopped at the Auraria Book Center.

If you do decide to go this route, there is only one problem, the shipping time. It seems to take an average of one to one-and-a-half weeks to receive the books, which could put you behind in your assigned readings.

To avoid falling behind, I have learned to do my homework before the semester starts. And, this is the only time I set foot in the Auraria Book Center anymore. I take my schedule to the ABC and make a list of the books I will need by matching up the call letters of the class to the cards on the racks of books in the respective sections. From this I have my list, and I go online to buy.

In addition, if you spend more than $25 (don’t quote me), shipping is free.

For those who don’t have regular internet access and seek another way to avoid the travesty that is the ABC, a solution lies within walking distance of the Auraria campus. This is Big Dog Textbooks at 1331 15th St. I have not yet been there, but I would assume that it is very much like the defunct Colorado Textbook Outlet. And, of course, there is always the option of larger chains like Barnes & Noble.

When the semester is at an end, and it is time to sell your unwanted textbooks back, you might be in for another treat if you choose to sell to the ABC.

Time and time again, I stood in a seemingly never-ending line for nearly 2 hours (no exaggeration), only to be insulted by the pocket change I was offered for my books. It would not be uncommon to get $35 for the books that I purchased from the ABC for $250 less than a half-year earlier. That is, if they even decided to buy my books back.

And, I believe as of last year, the Auraria Book Center implemented an arbitrary rule that you must show a student ID or a drivers’ license and class schedule to even be allowed to sell your books back. I just see this as more of a hassle than it is worth.

So, once again, Amazon.com comes to the rescue, allowing you to sell your books to other students nationwide who will need them for their next semester. Also, Big Dog will buy your books from you, and not add the insult to injury that you otherwise would suffer.

The reason I wanted to express my views on this situation was that I felt it was my duty as an experienced student to let younger college-goers in on the alternative solutions to buying textbooks. I may have learned this lesson a little too late, but I wanted to try to let the less experienced students learn from my mistakes, and more recently, the answers I found to this problem.

Headlines

SPAM = Stop Posting Annoying Mail
by Tim Dunbar
The Metropolitan

Back in 1971, when Terry Jones & Michael Palin of Monty Python wrote “The Spam Song,” featuring the lyrics, Lovely Spaaam! Wonderful Spaaam! Lovely Spaaam! Wonderful Spam, they had no way of knowing that the word “spam” would take on a whole new meaning by the beginning of the 21st Century. Likewise, when the Hormel company of Austin, Minnesota introduced the food product in 1937 which was originally called “Spiced Ham” (a contestant won $100 later that year for combining the “sp” of spiced and the “am of ham to create the then snappy moniker) they had no way of knowing that something that had virtually nothing to do with their product of the same name would become the bane of anyone with an email account’s existence.

Each year, literally billions of pieces of spam are transmitted and received via email. Just this morning, after not checking my own email account for several days, I had 417 messages in my inbox. Of those 417, only three were non-SPAM. Three! For the most part, these bogus pieces of email could be placed in one of three categories: sex, finance, and drugs

The sex emails usually have to do with enlarging a particular piece of my anatomy, and I do not mean my prostate. The finance junk, more often than not, have messages in the subject line to the effect of: “You’re Approved,” or “Get Refinanced Now.” The drug SPAM is, without exception, for Viagra, something I neither use nor need.

Just how dumb do these spammers really think we are? Well, complete imbeciles, from the looks of it. Why else would they send emails from someone named, and I am not making this up, Jennifer Connelly — whom I adore but do not know personally — with a message in the subject line that says, “I miss you”? Believe me, if I really knew Jennifer Connelly and she missed me, I wouldn’t be wasting my time reading email (or writing this piece, for that matter). Others include in the subject line clever enticers like “Hey, Dude!, “Your (sic) the best, and “the government is watching.” Of course, these parasites have to come up with catchy ways to get your attention because if they didn’t you wouldn’t bother to open whatever it is they’re trying to sell you.

The thing about SPAM that really gets me is that there must be some moron out there who actually buys something from these lower-than-pond-scum spammers in order for them to keep wasting their time sending SPAM in the first place. The world is full of idiots, I know; but is anyone really that stupid that they believe whatever spammers are feeding them enough to actually whip out their credit card and buy something from them? Do you know anyone, anyone who has ever purchased something from an email ad? No, neither do I. But, as P.T. Barnum once said, “There’s a sucker born every minute,” and there must be enough of those suckers to keep SPAM alive.

If it were merely annoying, SPAM wouldn’t be such a big deal. Problem is, with SPAM comes attachments and with attachments comes, Worms and Viruses and Trojans (oh, my!), and therein lies another problem. These things spread, infecting other computers and before you know it, we’re back to using Underwood typewriters and, God forbid, balancing our own checkbooks. Hurts just to think about it, doesn’t it?

So here are a few simple tips to avoid the SPAM trap. Sing along if you know the words.
Don’t open or view any email you don’t recognize. If you really want to know who sent you something, right-click on the message, scroll down to “properties” and look that way. You won’t be opening anything, the spammer won’t know you exist and will eventually crawl back into whatever gutter they came from.

Never “unsubscribe” to a piece of SPAM. Why not? Because you have to actually open the email to do that, in which case the spammer will know you exist, will keep sending you emails and his demise will take that much longer, all because of you.

Never, no matter how great a deal it sounds, ever buy anything from someone who has spammed you. These people are usually not legitimate anyway and besides, do you really want to buy something from someone who purposely annoys you? If no one ever bought anything from a spammer (hey, I can dream, can’t I?) eventually they’d find their endeavors to be fruitless and they’d all go away.

Headlines

A lesson in History on individual freedoms
by Bryan Goodland

Bryan Goodland

Privacy and individual freedoms are an integral part of America’s promise to its citizens. When this promise becomes compromised, it is the duty and responsibility of every citizen not only to be outraged, but to do what they are capable of doing to right these wrongs.

This past week Jetblue Airways admitted publicly to providing a Pentagon contractor with information on one million of its passengers. The airline cooperated with the contractor, in violation of its very own privacy policy, as part of the government’s program to track terrorists and potentially high-risk passengers. According to the airlines the information that was provided to the contractor included social security numbers, financial history and passenger’s occupations.

When and where will the government draw the line when it comes to invading people’s privacy? It is understandable in our post 9/11 world to be wary and cautious when it comes to national security. However, does this require an intense scrutiny on our very own citizens? Would people’s social security numbers, addresses, and occupations have curtailed the tragedy that occurred on American soil? All of these questions are valid, and American citizens need to pay attention to how their government is answering them.

The contractor, Torch Concepts, which acquired the information from the airlines, works with the US Army and indicated that they destroyed the passenger records. The information was gathered in 2001/2002 and shared with the contractor. After 9/11 the Pentagon also began development of an electronics surveillance project known as the Terrorist Information Awareness.

All of this may seem fairly innocent, and some may even think necessary in order to curtail any further terrorist attacks, but when our rights and freedoms are infringed upon, then the government has gone too far. The Fourth Amendment was created to protect us from unlawful search and seizure. Even though the framers of the constitution never considered the age of covert surveillance techniques, the principle still applies. The Orwellian nightmare of big brother is something we grow closer to every day. The government isn’t going to all of a sudden take over and install cameras and listening devices in our homes, but their ever-watchful eyes are becoming increasingly intrusive.

The fact that an airline could be convinced to turn over passenger information to a government contractor is not too surprising. What is surprising is that this action was discovered at all. There are probably thousands of these information transfers occurring everyday in our electronic society and we remain none the wiser. Thankfully, in this, case the press was able to uncover the story and bring this sort of problem back into the public’s awareness.

Everyone would agree that keeping us safe from another terrorist attack should be one of the primary concerns of our chosen leaders. But how many of us would take comfort in the fact that this safety would cost us our right to privacy? The government has a duty to protect its citizens, but not to turn into an advanced spy network that peers through the windows of its citizen’s homes.

Joseph McCarthy had his time and destroyed enough lives with his intrusion and paranoia. Let us hope that this will remain only a memory of the past, and not something that we need to live through again. Let us hope that for once we will learn history’s lesson.

Headlines

Letter from SGA

(MetOnline Editor: The following is an unedited letter from Rachel Miller, a member of SGA. Any questions or comments can be directed to Rachel herself: millerra@mscd.edu)

Dear Metro Campus,

The intensive semester of getting into the grove of classes, working, changes, etc is upon us.  This will be an interesting semester for the Student Government Assembly (SGA).  We are trying to prepare and complete our duties as your advocates here on campus.  As our intern-president Ray Keift conveyed to the SGA, “It is important to have a student perspective”.  This SGA believes in this statement with all of our hearts. 

The Vice Presidents has been very active this past summer.  Candace Gill, VP for Student Fees proposed and the Board of Trustee’s passed her Fee recommendations for next year.  Krista Kaufman, VP for Academic Affairs is dealing with the grade appeals.  Linda Cordova, VP for Student Organizations is working on getting input from all student organizations on how to meet their needs. Sarah Prouty, VP for Student Services is working with the 18 different services.

This SGA is dedicated to helping the students.  We all feel very strongly about representing you the students to the best of our abilities.  There are three new ways to connect with your SGA.

The first is the new channel on the new MetroConnect system, and the new group function is available on this system.  The next form is the webpage www.mscd.edu/~sga. These new functions help us try to communicate with you.  However, we always enjoy having a visit from the students. 

Sincerely,

Rachel C. Miller
VP for Communications

Headlines

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