Wildcat helped get funding for English program

On Jan. 20, the Arizona Daily Wildcat published a piece about how budget cuts had damaged the UA Writing Center. A follow-up story detailed the effects of those cuts. In response, Vice Provost for Instruction Jerry Hogle, working with Provost George Davis and College of Humanities Dean Charles Tatum, released $25,000 to allow the Writing Center to operate at full strength for the rest of this academic year. We are happy to report that the Writing Center is now on its way to restored operation for spring semester.

Thanks to the Wildcat for discovering and running this story. We also appreciate the cogent Feb. 15 editorial on how writing instruction is undermined by budget cuts to the English department, which annually teaches over 15,000 undergraduates across the university. Our university is a large and complex place, and administrators cannot always know everything that is going on. The Wildcat clearly has a significant role in drawing attention to matters of importance to students.

Thanks also to the administrators who, once they learned the facts about the Writing Center, found ways of responding to this need even in these difficult budgetary times.

As the Wildcat Opinions Board noted, the Writing Center provides a vital service to students throughout the university. So does the English Department’s Writing Program. Everyone who graduates from the university must take first-year writing courses, and the whole university can be proud of the excellent writing instruction at the UA. We hope that the administration will continue to support this excellence by averting budgetary threats to the Writing Program and the graduate assistant teachers who help sustain it.

Anne-Marie Hall
director, writing program, department of English

John Warnock
director, graduate program in rhetoric, composition, and the teaching of English

Rodgers’ return appropriate, fair

I am not sure how many other people read Pat Forde’s column “”Forde Minutes”” Thursday night on www.espn.com, but any Arizona fans who did surely took offense. In the section titled “”Coach who should take the bus to work,”” Forde indicts Lute Olson of “”situational discipline”” concerning Chris Rodgers. Forde probably missed the Stanford game the afternoon of Feb. 19 because kissing UConn’s ass most likely took up his early evening on the East Coast. If he had looked up and seen the game, he most likely would have seen a player playing not for himself but for his team and a coach who kept his word.

It is practically common knowledge on campus that Olson set a list of objectives to be met if Rodgers wanted to return; during the press conference Olson stated that he spoke with players about Rodgers’ return so calling this “”situational discipline”” is simply absurd – almost as absurd as Forde’s claim that Marcus Williams of UConn is the best point guard in the nation. Apparently Pat Forde only watches basketball east of the Appalachians because out West, Arizona’s Marcus Williams is tearing up opponents left and right, and this kid steals only his opponent’s passes.

McKale guards must show students respect

Here at the UA we are lucky to be part of such a proud tradition of excellence and winning. However, for such a highly rated and consistently amazing basketball team, it is mind-boggling that we have such a miniscule amount of communication between the student body of fans and the upper levels of authority at McKale Center. This year is the first year that we have had a true student section, and though it has its flaws, it can only improve and grow as time goes on. Yet in order for it to grow, fans need to feel a sense of mutual respect and understanding with the security guards and staff who keep us safe. The ASU game seemed to finally turn for the worst, as a higher level of security for such a big game led to the complete disrespect of a plethora of fans. The security guards took the most devoted fans out of the game by limiting our ability to jump after big plays, lead the student section in choreographed chants and exercises and most importantly create any sort of tradition of excellence among the student section. The most astonishing part of this, which is the reason I wrote this letter, is that when many of the students attempted to reasonably talk and discuss the situation with security, we were told we would be banned from all future games if we said even a word. It is plain and clear that disrespect of the student body seemed to be the main prerogative of the higher guard authority Saturday, but that does not mean I am in any way referring to the majority of guards who do their jobs well, correctly and with respect (which we show back to them). Basically, if we are never able to sit down to discuss the rules with security, we will never establish any sort of tradition in our section. We will never have anything comparable to what they have at so many schools across the country if things do not change. The students, the team and the coaching staff all would undoubtedly agree with our position, and it is sad that they might never even know of what is occurring with this veil of silence skewing our representation. All traditions were born in the face of adversity, and if a few students have to take the fall in order for everyone to see the fallacies and hypocrisies of the overly restrictive authority, then we will do that. Go Cats!

Rainbow Bridge would encourage fornication

I declare that I wholeheartedly agree with Yusra Tekbali that the construction of a Rainbow Bridge downtown “”will enliven Tucson.”” I’m sure she is fully aware that the Rainbow Bridge is the title of a Kama Sutra position that involves … well, I don’t think I can say what it involves in a family newspaper such as the Wildcat. But let’s just say that anyone who doesn’t own a moveable harness should not attempt it unless under strict Kama Sutra supervision. I commend Tekbali for turning us on (pun very intended) to the magnificent powers that the Rainbow Bridge will have over Tucson upon its construction. There is no doubt in my mind that, even if the bridge turns out to be yet another public arts eyesore, it will be a boon to the city of Tucson by encouraging love, compassion and fornication among its inhabitants.

Letter railing against liberals contradictory

I am in stunned disbelief of Donald Wilson’s Thursday letter, and I frankly don’t know where to begin correcting his ignorant, hateful ideas about the “”mental disorder”” of liberalism. His comments smack of rhetoric designed not to convince a liberal individual to change his or her ways but rather to play upon the irrational prejudices of a like-minded conservative. His exaggerated examples to demonstrate the mental disease of liberalism aren’t cited, aren’t grounded in fact and are anything but open-minded. His absurd claims that liberals are themselves closed-minded and homophobic are not only unsupported but are flatly contradicted by his own examples: How could the closed-minded, homophobic individual Wilson claims every liberal to be ever hope to “”get in touch with his feminine side”” or be “”open-minded toward having gay sex?”” Rather than make an effort to point out real problems that he believes exist within liberal thought, Wilson tries to make fun of anyone who doesn’t think as he does by equating all beliefs and practices of all left-thinking people with extreme cases like turkey-baster insemination. Most disturbing, however, is the possibility that anyone could agree with Wilson’s ideas or govern his or her behavior based upon them. Ultimately, whether intolerant conservatives like it or not, liberals are here to stay, and they would do well to learn to get along.

‘Hamsters’ comic the best in years

I’d like to take a minute to thank Natasha Allegri and Ron Chapman for their excellent comic “”Hamsters in the Microwave.”” No other Wildcat comic I’ve read during my four years here has made me laugh anywhere near this much (yes, “”Optimal Stubble”” was good, but it was usually a sarcastic funny rather than a laugh-out-loud funny). It’s even good enough to make me brave the pornographic ads in the back of the Wildcat to seek it out.

My deepest appreciation for your hard work, and I hope you’ll continue to grace the rest of us with your wit.