Editorials

Opinions from the Voice’s official editorial board.

Editorials

Men’s lacrosse be-devils Duke again

Georgetown Senior midfielder Walid Hajj is a 2004 pre-season All-American. With 3:14 remaining in Sunday’s game against no. 7 Duke, he showed why he deserved the honors.

Hajj scored his only goal of Sunday’s game on a rocket of a shot deep in the fourth quarter.

By the March 25, 2004

Editorials

Firing Esherick: the first step

Late Tuesday night, Georgetown issued a statement from University President John J. DeGioia firing men’s basketball head coach Craig Esherick. Esherick, who took over from Head Coach Emeritus John Thompson in 1999, had just finished leading the Hoyas to a 13-15 season, making the team ineligible for postseason play for the first time in 31 years.

By the March 18, 2004

Editorials

Interhall’s policy is smokin’

Last week Vice President of Facilities and Student Housing Karen Frank informed Georgetown students in a March 12 on-campus e-mail that she will implement Interhall Council’s proposal to adopt a smoke-free residence hall policy. According to Frank, smoking will be prohibited in all residence halls, apartments, and townhouses as well as near entrances and air ventilation intake systems, effective at the end of this semester.

By the March 18, 2004

Editorials

Display some lead-ership

Since the Environmental Protection Agency announced the presence of dangerous levels of lead in the District last month, Washington has been buzzing with anger and fear as people worry about the safety of their drinking water. Many criticize the EPA’s testing standards, while others have blamed city officials for failing to foresee the potential lead problem and deal with it accordingly.

By the March 18, 2004

Editorials

‘Eternal Sunshine’ lights theaters

Have relationship woes and gripes? Does your girlfiend spend more time decorating potatoes than hanging out with you? Don’t be too quick to complain about idiosyncrasies. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, written with the eerie intelligence of the famed Charlie Kaufman (Adaptation, Being John Malkovich) and directed by Michel Gondry (various Bjork videos), the film clearly executes its message-that perfect relationships are elusive.

By the March 18, 2004

Editorials

Racism: a tradition of toleration

EDITORIALS Four years ago, a rash of high-profile hate-based incidents occurred at Georgetown. In response, students and administrators cooperated to address serious omissions in the student code of conduct regarding bias-related offenses. Now, a new movement is preparing to tackle another form of racism, one that is more subtle and pervasive.

By the March 4, 2004

Editorials

Sen. hatches bad gun law

It’s safe to say that Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) doesn’t live in the District. It’s also safe to say that from his house in the posh Federal Heights neighborhood of homogenous Salt Lake City he has little grasp of what the introduction of handguns would do in America’s most murderous city.

By the March 4, 2004

Editorials

Learning from botched elections

When students return to campus after Spring Break, a month will have passed since the Georgetown University Student Association held elections for its presidential and vice-presidential positions. The student body, however, will still not know the outcome of that election.

By the March 4, 2004

Editorials

WGTB Recommends …

The WGTB staff listens to virtually every new release that comes out on CD and vinyl. They have donated their list of their best and most-played albums. 1. Xiu Xiu-Fabulous Muscles 2. The Walkmen-Bows and Arrows 3. Blonde Redhead-Misery is a Butterfly 4. Charizma and PB Wolf-Big Shots 5.

By the March 4, 2004

Editorials

Human rights for the District

Once again, the world must deal with a government that denies its citizens basic human rights. Again, the world must wrestle with how to ensure that democracy and freedom prevail. Economic sanctions? International observers? Regime change? Not this time. Now, the human rights violation is in the United States-specifically, right here in the District of Columbia.

By the February 26, 2004

Editorials

Think Nader, vote Democrat

Ralph Nader ended weeks of speculation on Sunday by announcing that he will run for president this November on an independent ticket. Nader’s intention to run has been met with hostility from Democratic Party leaders, many of whom blame Nader, the former Green Party nominee, for President Bush’s victory over Democratic hopeful Al Gore in 2000.

By the February 26, 2004

Editorials

Hoyas sold on auction

On Feb. 17, the FRIENDS Initiative’s Hilltop Auction raised over $3000 by auctioning off dinners with various faculty members to student bidders. Proceeds from the auction will go to student groups in the Office of Volunteer and Public Service. The University, FRIENDS, and participating faculty and students should be commended for initiating this new event.

By the February 26, 2004

Editorials

Give someone else a shot

EDITORIALS In the 1980s, the Georgetown Men’s Basketball team’s national dominance was unquestionable. The Hoyas played in three consecutive NCAA title games, winning the national championship in 1984. John Thompson, towel on his shoulder and all, was among the most renowned of college basketball coaches, and every year the Hoyas were mentioned among the country’s top contenders.

By the February 19, 2004

Editorials

Mocha Hut for Petworth?

Thanks to the able coordination of city planners and developers, the District now boasts a few more affordable housing options. City planners chose a Bethesda-area developer on Feb. 6 to develop a new residential and retail complex above the Petworth Metro station on a mostly empty block of Georgia Avenue, N.W. This $40 million mixed-use development-consisting of 148 apartments located above 17,000 feet of retail space-is part of the city’s $111 million initiative to revitalize the Petworth neighborhood.

By the February 19, 2004

Editorials

Stick to the basics: 911

Responding to the possibility for congestion of the emergency communications system in case of a catastrophe, as well as a general need for increased capacity, D.C. will begin testing a new private wireless network that can handle high-speed data transmissions, according to the Washington Post.

By the February 19, 2004

Editorials

Elections tainted again

In this Monday’s GUSA presidential election, Kelly Hampton (SFS ‘05) and Luis Torres (CAS ‘05) won 36.3 percent of the vote before being disqualified for campaign misconduct. Adam Giblin (SFS ‘06) and Eric Lashner (CAS ‘05) won the election with the second highest vote at 32.

By the February 12, 2004

Editorials

ANC opportunity beckons

EDITORIALS This week, Jason Hurdle District, a representative to the Advisory Neighborhood Commission, will resign from his position. A job relocation will force him to leave the metropolitan area for Memphis, Tenn. In response, the ANC will solicit applications for the empty seat and hold a special election if more than one candidate comes forth.

By the February 12, 2004

Editorials

Positive step for gay marriage

On Feb. 3, the highest court in Massachusetts ruled that same-sex couples must be entitled to nothing short of full civil marriage, strengthening and reaffirming the court’s Nov. 18 decision. The statement came in response to a Massachusetts Senate inquiry as to whether a proposed law permitting gay and lesbian couples to enter into civil unions but reserving marriage for opposite-sex couples would be considered constitutional under the court’s 2003 ruling.

By the February 12, 2004

Editorials

‘Waves,’ Ride, The First Time

Besides the Beatles, Ride was the band that Oasis always wishes they could have been. Ride was the most dynamic live act of musicians characterized by their tendency to perform with their backs to the audience and staring down at their feet while playing effects-laden electric guitars and dreamy, psychedelic melodies.

By the February 12, 2004

Editorials

Vote Hampton/Torres

It is not hard for a GUSA candidate to come up with a wish list of problem-solving proposals. A much greater test, however, is to break through the mesh of bureaucracy and funding difficulties to make those changes actually happen. For a GUSA administration to show results at the end of its term, history has shown that it must combine previous experience with a focused plan of action.

By the February 5, 2004