Wildcat online redesign great way to connect
Congratulations on redesigning the Arizona Daily Wildcat online. I am finishing my last semester from my home country, India. The online version still makes me feel like I am on campus and it is the great way to be connected across thousands of miles. Thanks.
Prashant Raj
engineering management senior
Freedom means enemies get to live as they see fit
I was surprised to read that Sean O’Neill was a junior in political “”science”” when I got to the end of his Wednesday letter, “”Communist group shouldn’t be allowed on campus.”” His letter can be boiled down to the statement that it would be ironic for the university to sponsor the “”Young Communist”” club, given the “”fact”” that its creed does not allow for opposition once they take power. Historically, this is true, so let’s take that as a given. He goes on to assert that any organization that does not allow for political freedom should not be free to operate on campus. While O’Neill is an astute student when it comes to pointing out the irony of others, he seems to miss the mark when his own irony comes to the fore.
It is a simple fact that life is ironic. If it is true that we cannot escape irony, it would be in the interests of Americans to run our country in a manner that minimizes the irony that can compromise our core principals. Compromising freedom in the name of preserving freedom is an irony more offensive to freedom than the 450-odd motorized rifle divisions of communists poised to invade Western Europe or the Soviet Strategic Rocket Forces ever were. When was the last time a Soviet soldier told your parents or grandparents they could not board a flight, ransacked their luggage, fondled and groped their persons or demanded they show their papers in exchange for the privilege to go from one place to another? Think of that your next trip to the air-/bus/train port, when the Department of Homeland Security demands the same. Ironic, no?
Should communists be allowed on campus? Of course they should. Should a hypothetical “”Jihadi Jr.”” organization be allowed on campus? Yes. Freedom in the American sense means that so long as they follow Constitutional laws, your enemies are free to live their life and pursue their happiness as they see fit. I should hope that as O’Neill learns more about the American creed in his senior year, he can learn to live with that.
Andrew Tubbiolo
Steward Observatory
Hamas the better of two bad choices
This is in response to Ryan Berlin’s remarks about the recent Palestinian election in which Hamas members were elected into office. You see, sometimes when people have to choose between two bad options in a political election, many will opt for the candidate who demonstrates the most strength as a leader. An example of that was 2004’s presidential elections right here in the U.S. I most certainly wouldn’t vote for Hamas, but that goes to show you what kind of options Palestinians had.
Aside from that, Ariel Sharon ordered the abandonment of a fraction of settlements, which were established illegally, against United Nations resolutions, and you say credit is due? It is called politics, my friend. Do you honestly think that without pressure from the United States and the rest of the world that Ariel Sharon would willingly withdraw from these illegal settlements? That isn’t even considered progress when taken into account the establishment of additional Israeli settlements taking place on other Palestinian territories right now.
It is impossible for one to point a finger at a single person, or even one group of people, in this “”conflict;”” however, that doesn’t enable one to sugarcoat history. Looking only at Sharon’s role as prime minister since 2001, tens of thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed, more have lost homes, and even more are unemployed. Don’t forget about the giant wall being built around them. These tactics don’t facilitate peace; they encourage hate. Giving back a few settlements doesn’t mean anything. It’s called political appeasement.
Civilians on both sides are dying while the politicians are talking. If your children’s history book labels this particular leader a man of peace, remember that winners write history. In the meantime, tell someone informed on this topic that and see if they don’t laugh in your face.
Kareem Hassounah
communication junior
