Opinion | Letters To The Editor - The Independent Florida Alligator

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

China has history of crushing dissent

By Ian Schleifer | Apr. 2, 2008

I can't help but wonder if recent letters defending China's "liberation" (invasion) of Tibet were penned by Chinese Communist Party members doing student work at UF. This is the official party line in a country without a free press, where opposition to one-party, communist rule is dealt with harshly and quickly. Americans remember the events of Tiananmen Square some years ago, when hundreds of student protesters were shot and killed while peacefully assembling. But the younger generation of Chinese don't; they receive information only after it has been carefully scrutinized and edited by the country's 30,000 government-employed Internet censors, among others.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Party takes back seat in SG committees

By Kellie Dale | Apr. 2, 2008

I began my term as Student Senate president excited about leading a two-party Senate that would exercise dynamic debate to create fresh ideas and new perspectives for the student body. In order to accomplish that, however, I believe its necessary that we consider senators not based on their party affiliation but rather on the ideas and goals they have to improve the University of Florida.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Partisan politics distract from duty

By Thomas Cockriel | Apr. 2, 2008

Student Senate reporting needs to be more representative of Senate's business. Wednesday's article referencing the call for Senate President Kellie Dale's resignation was an example of irresponsible journalism; a higher degree of integrity needs to be used when reporting on senate meetings.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Accurate facts are available

By Gregory Jones | Mar. 31, 2008

I am writing in response to Friday's letter submitted by Mr. Jianlin Li regarding the Chinese occupation of Tibet. It is a shame to see individuals, such as Mr. Li, not taking advantage of the opportunity to access and review uncensored news and historical publications.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Each candidate had equal opportunity

By Joseph Regalado | Mar. 30, 2008

As a member at large on the Replacement and Agenda Committee, I want to take this opportunity to clear an unjust blemish on the respected reputation of the committee.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Column's premise was not accurate

By Matt Martz | Mar. 30, 2008

The premise that Mr. Young based his entire guest column on - that the Bush administration "targeted Iraq because it was the candidate for immediate democratization" - is completely wrong. The Bush administration invaded Iraq on false claims of WMDs , and once proved wrong they turned to democratizing Iraq as their rationale for war.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Offenses were fabricated, invalid

By Shire Patel | Mar. 30, 2008

The Orange and Blue Party's mistaken accusations that Florida Sunshine Laws were violated during Replacement and Agenda interviews this weekend are not only completely invalid, but also aimed at their own party leader.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Empty seats needed to be filled

By Naadira Renfroe | Mar. 30, 2008

On March 21 and March 23, the Student Senate Replacement and Agenda Committee held interviews in order to fill Senate and committee vacancies. Applicants and committee members were informed well ahead of time when the interviews would be held. When asked if any accommodations were needed, not a single person approached Senate President Pro-Tempore MaryGrace Bell with concerns.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Reparation money needed elsewhere

By CYNTHIA DESPRES | Mar. 27, 2008

While I agree with the state's apology for slavery, I question Gov. Charlie Crist's decision to not rule out reparations for the descendents of slaves. It would take years for the Legislature to consider such a proposal, but the principle is wrong.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Chinese improved conditions in Tibet

By Jianlin Li | Mar. 27, 2008

In Monday's guest column, the author asserted that Tibet and China are separate nations. That's not true. There is not a single country or government in the world that disagrees that Tibet is part of China. From the second half of the 13th century, Tibet has experienced the merging of religious and temporal power in a peculiar type of theocracy.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Affordable Pill not a priority

By Michael O'Malley | Mar. 26, 2008

I wish to contend several points that Laura Moore raised Monday in her letter about affordable birth control. First, I understand that a student may have to live from paycheck to paycheck. However, if at the end of her budget calculation (and an actual budget was certainly implied in the letter) she finds that such dire straits have arisen that a choice must be made between dispensing money to either health care or utilities, I would suggest she revises her budget to exclude several trips for sushi. I don't mean to stereotype, but the validity of such an ultimatum is difficult to believe and there are many ways to free up money in the budget: Ride a bike, don't eat out, grow your own vegetables, get your movies from the library, etc.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Obama likable but not a leader

By Lawrence Mackey | Mar. 26, 2008

People like Barack Obama. He connects with the people, seems honest, gives moving speeches and he represents the United States favorably on the world stage. All these factors make Obama a great politician, but those won't make him a great U.S. president. I have seen nothing from Obama that leads me to believe he could make tough decisions. I haven't seen enough from Obama that shows he could lead America in such a turbulent time (a tough time thanks to some other great politician who wasn't capable of being president). He needs to be more assertive and needs to push his ideas more. For example, Obama consistently says that he is anti-gun and shares his beliefs openly. However, when faced with a bill that mandated punishment for firing a gun near or on school grounds, he wouldn't vote yes or no - he voted "present."

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

U.S. cannot impose will on Iraqi people

By Daniel Watstein | Mar. 25, 2008

Tuesday's guest column on the Iraq war argues with a distinctly twisted premise. The author assumes that we have some right or duty to spread democracy to other countries and that Iraq was a good target. That's ludicrous. Other countries have the right to choose different forms of government.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Gator Party shuts out CLAS representation

By Mark McShera | Mar. 25, 2008

On Sunday night, the Student Senate Replacement and Agenda Committee voted on its recommendations for committee appointments. It rejected all four members of the Orange and Blue Party who applied. As Orange and Blue swept the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences last month, this leaves the 12,000 students of CLAS without representation on any of the Senate's five committees.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Tibet column was misinformed, biased

By Jie Wang | Mar. 25, 2008

Obviously the author of Monday's guest column knew little about the history and current status of Tibet, and it also seems she did not do any research about the subject.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Petition asks for affordable birth control

By Laura Moore | Mar. 23, 2008

These past few months, I have noticed many of my friends recalculating their monthly budgets because of the new costs incurred by their birth control.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Cattle-roping contest was public cruelty

By Jamie Klapholz | Mar. 23, 2008

After hearing about Saturday's cattle-roping contest, which was sponsored by a UF class, I was overcome with shame because as a UF student I am part of an organization that condones animal cruelty.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Concealed carry debate exploits tragedy

By Nathan Juster | Mar. 19, 2008

While I am not one to disagree with anyone's right to conceal or carry a weapon in public, I think that this issue has been blown out of proportion by the recent in-school violence.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Delegates should not be rationed

By Eric Conrad | Mar. 19, 2008

When Democrats voted Jan. 29 in Florida's primary, they did so with hopes that while their candidate might not get their delegates in the end, it would be a public show of support and expression of their political opinion.

OPINION | LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Obama's speech ignored Muslims

By David Reznik | Mar. 19, 2008

I, like many across the country, was deeply moved by Sen. Barack Obama's speech yesterday. However, despite all of the media hoopla, I am distressed that there has not been any public debate about problems with the speech.