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4 Tuesday, October 26, aoio | The Red * Black OmM Barnett | Editor in Chief editor@randb.com Carey CNefl | Managing Editor me@randb.com Coartney Helbrooli | Opinions Editor opinlons@randb.com Our Take Majority opinions of The Red & Black's editorial board Free speech no\y The editorial board disagrees with NPR analyst , but defends his right to speak Juan Williams doesn’t mind flying over the cuckoo’s nest, just so long as no one is wearing a turban. Appearing on Fox News’ “The O’Reilly Factor,” Williams expressed unease about flying in planes with people dressed in “Muslim garb.” Whether or not his words were bigoted, NPR found reason enough to terminate Williams from his long-time hosting position. Although the editorial board does not agree with his views, we think Williams has every right to say what he wants. At the same time, he should be aware of the risks involved in expressing himself because NPR has every right to fire him. Individual members of this editorial board can, and occasionally do, exercise our first amendment rights. But, when representing The Red & Black, we are accountable for what we say and must be careful of how it is perceived. Nevertheless, the First Amendment takes precedence over political correctness. As jour nalists, our duty is to uphold freedom of speech regardless of personal opinion or background. People may not be happy with what Williams said, but his words brought an opinion to light and sparked a debate the original purpose of the First Amendment. Don’t feel too bad for Williams following the pink slip he was given a contract with Fox, where he will be encouraged to express his opinion. The more controversial, the better. Robert Carnes for the editorial board Lazy students can devalue education Our purpose as stu dents is to engage in our education. I was in one of my major-level economics courses, which runs from 11:15 a.m. to 12:05 p.m. At 11:56 a.m„ the pro fessor said we only had five minutes left, so he would let us out early. I looked at both my watch and the clock in the class room, then raised my hand to inform him that we indeed had nine min utes left. A girl sitting in front of me turned around and said, “Are you kidding me?” Apparently she wanted to leave early. Now, don’t get me wrong here: I understand that sometimes people need extra time between classes, and thus want or need to leave early. I also understand that when a professor is at a stopping point, and the next part of their lecture needs a 20 to 30 minute explanation, trying to cram it into the last five minutes is both unproduc tive and a waste of time. None of this is lost on me. I already have a bach elor’s degree in political science from the University, which was paid for by the HOPE scholar ship. I am now finishing my msjor in economics for a second bachelor’s degree. Thus, I have no HOPE funds left. I’m paying out of my pocket to be here. And I paid nearly $3,000. I want to get my mon ey’s worth. So, no, I am not kidding you. Wasting class time would be like buying a car for $3,000, driving it until you’re five minutes from home, then abandoning it on the side of the road and walking the rest of the way. Why would you do that? Why would you short change your education? Attending the o*o* •**■* In The fed t BOT an l apNom of la afen ind not *oMMrty tan oTn fed feck PHadUnpCanM* tic. AH|Mi**niad fepdfetypd*feluCltaddM* NEWS: 706-433-3002 Kjgkw UU f —■-- •Wwi hnm mn> cnpvy Aaaodata Naan Edtor RacM Bum Iporta Editor Zadi (Mm) UuUiu r .Ml _ U* • •TWy CmW XJ?J fftnljriS niinifi riimi --■ - - rrm n ■ i f’Tnyuj conor Mcywi rnlWI OMlgn EJIm UM*n Biitniy. Hi* Tamp* ww* cant kmco oeTTi rr modbus Otrtnabao W 1 Brown 0* Copy EdNora Iran Cronoii, Tytx Mom EdHorW CartMflMa PWp Htnty. Sarati Quinn, Barium Christopher Liakos University is not a right. It is a privilege and an opportunity. That’s why there is an admissions process. Make the most of it while you’re here. Imagine people in third-world countries without clean drinking water or food to eat, sometimes for days or weeks on end. Understand that the education you are receiving here is beyond what they can even dream of. Then look in the mirror While you’re sitting in an air-conditioned class, well dressed and well-fed, and here to supposedly better yourself don’t complain about sitting through the full class time. Seriously, it’s the same people who complain about not getting oufc early that also ask the pro fessor what material is going to be on the test. Professors cannot tell you that information, which is Why it’s called a test. Want to know what material is going to be on the test? Read your syllabus. Oo to class. Period. Instead of trying to get by with doing the mini mum amount of work, engage in the process. You are lucky to be here. There should be no reason the bachelor’s degree is the new high school diploma. Oh wait, there is: because lazy people who don’t want to work —- devalue education for the rest of us who want to be here. Just something to think about... Christopher Liakos is a senior from Lawrencevllle majoring in economics War Ed Mow* Edtatt AaaMant San* Jaan Oowr Bocmltmunt tdMor SoraCflMnwN Sorter Reporter (MwDuncon a - *u luu. fta—-... awn wrmn owow) am jmk*i nymi owe*. MUCH CTOmen, MACJiP IJ DCMteV rfnaßy DyrO. 4 Com*ugNon.AdOTC*rt*on. Jula CarpOTnr. Mataaa Cohan. Krty Cotta* DOT* Outran. QtMoph* OArtako. Jacob Comma, CMi DaSanta. Sarah Jaan Owar f T*r Elrod. Mfchaal FbpaMdk Brtane Oartamar. Sarah UmTmmw, enwy uram, iwm upwm, wt* hocks, i, Patrick Hoopar, Kathryn Inpd, Jan Inpta*. Sham Jarrattl, Ednart Wm, Haatiar Kkmy. AS* lAtf*\ Carey lam. Opinions \ m • jj|F t \ {^^bML .J$ ' j?f 'flL Good-girl mindset hinders success Men like women who smile. That was once said by someone who intended to convince me to change who I was. Unfortunately, it worked. Like many women, I was going through “the good little girl stage,” a time when we apologize for every thing, desperately seeking accep tance from authority figures, peers and of course the opposite sex. Such women carefully control their actions and words their goal is to please all, an impossible feat. And although the feat may be impossible, I am still controlled by this desire. I constantly subject myself to intense self-examination. I hesitate before speaking. I reflect on my thoughts and behavior of the day. And I do not know who I am anymore. When someone bumps into me, I say sorry. If someone is rude or ignores me, I say nothing. Overly polite, far too generous, annoyingly eager who have I become? Once I smiled infrequently. Now I find myself smiling at everyone all the time. I changed who I was because I was desperate for approval from Mailbox E-mail and letters from our readers Williams’ rights were barred by political correctness Kelby Lamar’s column (“NPR’s Williams spreads ignorance," Oct. 25) took offense to what Juan Williams said about Muslims last week on “The O’Reilly Factor." What I take offense to is the level of political correctness we’re held to nowadays. It does not solve problems. NPR slammed the door on Juan Williams alter he said he gets ner vous flying with Muslims. What NPR should have done, however, is start a dialogue about the issue that Williams brought to light. I know Juan and myself are not the only two Americans who have gotten a nervous feeling when that situation arises. It’s an unfortunate truth for some of us after the events that transpired on 9/11. It just appears to me that NPR and Kelby Lamar let a golden opportunity to make progress on this matter slip away. Like you said, Kelby, should we not be sensitive to another person’s views? CORY MCCOLLUM Senior, Myrtle Beech, S.C. Advertising In response to Kelby Lamar (“NPR’s Williams spreads igno rance,” Oct. 25): Mr. Williams’ statements are protected by the First Amendment —and so are the fears, however ill-founded they may be, of your hypothetical woman. But the constitutionality of Mr. Williams’ comments is not at issue here. We as a society have become so paralyzed by political correct ness that nationally-respected Intellectuals can no longer engage in potentially offensive dialogue Point Mgrtnovt, Jwvtit McDonough. Dsvtd MMctol. IN * * A4 4. 1- H ■*! - A- A uotiftfic Miicnw, oiflpnw mooo*** Looy rucnßisof) rVKtr, MCnMi rfOCMeWs ASpOH ofTKIi), s®nj oOtOfUOn. Nathan Sorenson, Tiff any Stevana Zsck Taytof, Amber Thome*, KaOa VHarttna, Paige Vamar. Eva Vaaquez. 4 4 ■- - OT-C 144-1-4- ■ -■ - - 4*4—l Mary Tfmmm, cfWin WatOO r narn® VYStiw Cttef Pwlpjngfw! Wm BWamhip PTKHograpnar* Vynanes nytn baroar, Mnam inomp, tan tnw nsfoi, Maagan Kaaay, wenomw Lucan, l-l 4 AN- - Ai * *-- 4 41 41- -4- -.4- -- nunaanaain®ynowß,uiwamia upcnu*u' l Wafer, On* Zotar Papa Daatgntra R*cM 0. Dowwv, Anundt Jonss, An* KSMnw*. CMMo**r Mtor, RoMm Ot**y CXartw Our Staff A Crystal Villarreal others. At a very young age I had to confront the expectations for women in our society and had to mold myself to fit with those expec tations. When I was younger I loved bas ketball. I would spend all day out side beating my older male cousins at the game. But it really was ballet rather than basketball that was meant for me. Good little girls express emotion through soft, bodily constraining movements not aggressive sports. But in this harsh world isn’t it aggression, competition and arro gance that get us what we want? We won’t land that partnership or executive position by baking cook ies and telling everyone in the office how nice they look today. We have to be dominant something we’ve been told a good girl should not be. Of course, not all women are so shy or uncertain about themselves. without fear of ostracism. Mr. Williams is not a bigot; he is an accomplished journalist and a hero of the civil rights movement. And while religious tolerance is cer tainly a bedrock principle of our repubUc, so is the frank and open discussion of national affairs in the public forum. Mr. Williams expressed an hon est fear which I suspect is shared by many Americans during this time of conflict. If we continue to silence those few citizens who are brave enough to risk offending the increasingly sensitlve segments of society, pub- Uc discourse in. this nation will wither and die, and our repubUc will die with it. JAMES A. PURCELL Grad student, Villa Rica Law Juan Williams was fired from NPR last Wednesday for comments he made on “The O’Reilly Factor." His crime? Not being politically correct. Let's be honest while Williams did essentially say he gets “ner vous” when people in “Muslim garb” board an airplane with him, he did go on to stress that he was only criticizing some, not all, Muslims. He then compared such criti cism to blaming all Christians for the crimes of the Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber. So why was he fired? He did the one thing you cannot do in today’s Überal media: say anything that may or may not be offensive to anyone at any time, even if it’s plausible that anyone EdteW bowtf mamteri iiidude DwM Bumee. Robert Cemee, Courtney HoftsooS, Cwey OTM, Itegtan PMpiot. Magan Thornton mt Jot WVotn RumU, Adam Wynn ADVERTISING: 706-433-3001 § ftl llHlnn fV,n rlnr - 1 >-44. ... - knrwCiOr. figUl'Kt Stutent Ad ICftnßQGf louren Jonn Territory MMsgwt: Sorth Cdlon, Anns Lowidhil lnui-fa> Man*nT Ualau Iftftllfm ' BBM MM RBBRpi nßvy VvWiVMf Account Eteouttm Ktiy Picrco, Andrew love, Serdh •Overeteet ‘ r < Sues Aeeoctatee ftyen Beneon, Cerofyn Evers, Rebecca Tonne Aovefsting Assistants lbutm MC4ino. cmey ionns Ofaeaiffeds Pepreeontetlve Jenne Vines Ctrcuiftton Meneger one MoNne Phone (706) 433-3002 | Fkx (706) 433-3033 opinioßß@randb.oom | www.redandblack.cont 540 Baxter Street, Athens, Ga. 30605 Not all women feel the need to act like dainty princesses. And I’m not saying that being nice will never get women anywhere. But I am saying we have to find a balance between the way we’ve always been told to act and what’s expected of us in the professional world. As women, we’re all told to behave a certain way. A lady does this, she does not do that. Well, I say that whether or not we follow this good-girl personality script is up to us. How much of ourselves must we sacrifice to fit in, to succeed, to achieve our career goals? How much must we be willing to lose to live up to this nearly impos sible societal standard? And as we make the transition from girlhood to womanhood and from college to the real world, I think we must be aware that the real world has no place for little girls who are desperate to please. Because once we travel beyond that Arch, it is the good girl who finishes last. Crystal Villarreal is a senior from LawrenceviUe majoring in magazines and women’s studies could feel the same way. Again, let’s be honest. The men behind 9/11 and several other ter rorist attacks have identified them selves as Muslim, and have been tied to Muslim extremist groups. While second guessing those who look and dress like them may be a tad stereotypical, I doubt it's really that uncommon. It certainty doesn’t equate to “persecution” or validate the claim that Williams was “spreading igno rance” as columnist Kelby Lamar (“NPR’s Williams spreads igno rance,” Oct. 25) would have you believe. Mr. Lamar doesn’t stop there either. He then compares Williams to “former white oppressors,” and somehow reasons that because Williams is a black man, his com ments are more “damaging” and he should probably have known bet ter. Furthermore, Mr. Lamar contra dicts himself by saying that he isn’t for censorship, yet claims that any one who “says offensive things” should be “reprimanded.” Essentially Mr. Lamar would have you believe that you’re enti tled to your opinion, as long as it hurts nobody’s feelings. Could things get anymore sub jective? How far will we go in the name of being politically correct? It has just cost a skilled and prominent analyst his job. How much longer until it starts costing us our rights? JOHN HARRY Computer scJonoo and English AmMOT Producflon M*n*g*r: Joahu* Tray BotM DiurtiinHnn I *■!■tanfn - m 4\4uj, 4 4 all rroaifCuOn ABtlCiamt mCOWOB Wmiv Mfwt UKI, N-I - -M4- U-4*. - rUW. 4/ -1.4 rIISOM MID 9, tlsnw rsOICn Production MBnogof Sun Ptetf #v..4-11-4--- 4 1-,--,, 41--.. .4 nMMM. nM?y mmwmo One* M*n*g*r Erin BiiMi) AmMM Offle* Mmp kkgan Yu* CtaOTng Ponor M*y Jon Tin M * Mk k pntMwt Wonky RM*y M mt aptng wnmrt *nd •* Thntoy mrm an*. np hofekyi md mot pModt, by The MI Sack PuHWkng Company He.. * mnm* amp* iwm*** im MUM Wi Pa LMwanky o< Oaotgla. Sutacnpaor ran SIOS * T**i