What does everyone else get?

Student Government may have given shirts and towels to students when they got to the game, but what is it giving the students who had to watch from home because it can’t come up with a proper ticket lottery?

Jason Kubota

senior, history

McCauley wasn’t beating down patriotism

Barefoot and Warnock’s comments captured exactly the sentiment McCauley was trying to describe: “Your opinion only matters if it is palatable to me,” and “If we don’t agree, I clearly know better than you.”

While I don’t agree with extensive dwelling on politicians — every office finds itself foul in one issue or another — I think some of McCauley’s comments were taken improperly.

I don’t see the military bashing Barefoot describes. McCauley highlights our military’s prowess and capability, while noting that some of the more extraneous arms spending only adds tension to peaceful and peace-seeking relations. I also don’t see the blatant disregard for 9/11 that Warnock describes. McCauley only points out that the US response (War on Terror or War on Non-democratic government) has yet to deliver a positive resolution for any side, something that the Wars on Drugs and Poverty also failed to do.

I have no doubt that I will see a large number of patriotic displays Friday, but I wonder how many Hawaii saw two weeks ago. Hawaii “celebrated” its 50th anniversary of statehood last month, an event that continues to be divisive. Ask a native if he or she is proud to be an American and you just might be told to go back home — to the mainland.

I don’t think McCauley was beating down patriotism at all, but encouraging readers to reconsider what American patriotism really means and should mean. We cannot continue trumpeting pride without addressing some of the more shameful acts it is used to excuse. We’re not the center of the world, or the only ones in it.

Lossie Rooney

junior, engineering

His opinions are his

I tend not to pick up a newspaper anymore because I’m never on main campus, but today I decided to. I flip through the pages and turn to the campus forum and read that someone practically told someone else to keep their opinion to themselves and go back to their country because they don’t agree with certain things that went on in the country. What? Did someone rewind time?

Ms. Barefoot, just as you have your freedom to post your opinion on his opinion, he has his right to post his opinion and not be ridiculed because of it. The beauty of America is the beauty to share opinions and know that we won’t be shot, orally or physically, when we walk outside the next day because of it. If we went around not sharing our opinions on how things were being done because it might offend someone there would not have been 13 colonies and there would not be a United States of America. There would also be no right for you or I to vote.

This country was built on immigrants so to tell someone to go back to their country is just childish.

His opinions on the military are just that, his opinions. Nowhere did he shoot down the men and women who go to war. He stated we’re a bit wishy-washy when it comes to our techniques, which we are. It’s easy to say let’s go to war with Iraq because Saddam Hussein was an inhumane leader and we don’t like inhumane leaders (cough), China, North Korea. Oh, and we don’t depend on them; they’re weaker and have oil.

I am in no way saying that Hussein wasn’t an inhumane leader, but to go into Iraq because he’s an inhumane leader — who’s obviously magical because he can hide weapons of mass destruction (the original reason we were there) — is stupid and unjustified. I have no idea what rights they’re protecting of ours when the troops invaded Iraq. Hussien didn’t have ties to Osama bin Laden and had no WMDs. So who’s rights are they protecting?

We as Americans were lied to and for you to not be the least bit upset about that and not blame Bush is also saddening. Instead, you become upset at Mr. McCauley voicing his opinion. No direct good came from this continuing war and our economy and the way the world views us is in shambles because of this one man. Sure, the Iraqi people are free to vote for their own leader, but this war, if it was even necessary, could’ve been handled so much differently or at least planned better.

If it weren’t for this forced war caused by Bush do you believe that our economy would be as it is today?

Cristina Creary

junior, computer engineering