Fighting the good OSPIRG fight
With limited resources, OSPIRG has worked to protect 60 million acres of forest, save students’ money and prevent the dumping of four billion gallons of toxic, high-temperature waste water into the Willamette River. Working on issues students care about is OSPIRG’s No. 1 priority. Our (the students’) organization was founded in 1971 on principles of open, honest disclosure.
OSPIRG makes budget information available to involve students in the decision-making process, and students approve the budget every term. For this term our goals were: To involve students in the process of democracy by asking them to choose how a portion of the incidental fee is spent, reduce the amount of toxins in the Willamette River, inform on the dangers of drilling in the Arctic and inform the public and mobilize them to help those who are most needy, the hungry and homeless.
OSPIRG is a student-run, student-funded group. OSPIRG members are always open to new ideas and need open dialogue, student participation and all activists to join our fight for hunger and homeless issues, water quality standards, more Pell Grants and lower interest rates on student loans, and keeping the Arctic wild and free.
Thank you for supporting OSPIRG on this campus for the past 30 years. As we did 30 years ago and continue to do today, we fight the good fight.
Sara Bartley
senior
communications
Bailey and Oliver
for following the rules
I’m writing in response to Brian Carlson’s letter criticizing Eric Bailey and Jeff Oliver’s campaign. He believes they used dirty politics in the ASUO election to disqualify Bret Jacobson and Matt Cook and gain votes. This is far from the truth.
Eric Bailey was not soliciting sympathy votes by trying to require the meningococcal vaccination for entering students. I witnessed Eric being attacked on this issue at the debates and am further appalled at this being used to attack him. Eric was a friend of hers and was very hurt by her death. He wants to prevent this tragedy from happening again. The East Coast colleges already require the vaccination; we should too. Those repeatedly attacking Eric on this issue are the “shameless” ones.
Eric and Jeff were also accused of filing a “trumped-up grievance.” There is nothing trumped-up about it. Jacobson and Cook broke ASUO election rules by putting fliers in residence halls. Jeff Oliver may have filed the grievance against them, but he did so because it is his job in housing to enforce the rules and report any that affect the residence halls.
Student president is a serious job. Those who follow the rules should be on the ballot for students to vote on. Those breaking the rules shouldn’t slide by because they didn’t know. They have to know for the position they are running for. They won’t automatically know the rules if they are elected so they should have learned them before running.
Krista Lund
sophomore
political science
Equal treatment for equal teams
I have a simple question for Bill Moos and Jody Runge, and it has nothing to do with the current controversy surrounding the women’s basketball team.
I have attended both men’s and women’s basketball games at Mac Court, and have noticed there is a small but striking difference between the way the two teams are presented to their fans. When I look in the program guide for the women’s team, I notice that players are each listed with the following personal statistics: age, year in school, academic major, and height.
When I look in the men’s team program guide, however, I find a personal statistic that is not included in the women’s team program guide: each player’s weight.
Why is it that both height and weight are listed for players on the men’s team, while for players on the women’s team only height is listed? If there is a good reason for this, I’d like to know what it is.
As a follower of Ducks basketball, I think it would be more fair if the University Athletic Department publicized the same personal statistics for the women’s team as it does for the men’s.
Vincent Mulier
graduate student
philosophy
