Opinion

Thoughts from the Georgetown community.

Editorials

Uribe’s tenure offers lesson for University

As Álvaro Uribe approaches the end of his yearlong appointment as a Distinguished Scholar in the School of Foreign Service, his tenure offers some clear lessons for the administration on how to handle high-profile and controversial guest scholars. When Uribe arrived, there were reasonable concerns about his record on human rights, but the University promised that the ex-Colombian president would provide students with a “unique perspective” and be a catalyst for fruitful debate. Instead, the administration has sheltered Uribe, preventing the type of open and honest interaction with students that could have justified his appointment.

By the March 31, 2011

Editorials

At 35, Metro should continue focus on growth

Thirty-five years ago this week, the Washington Metro opened for business. The original system was a mere 4.6 miles and consisted of five stations from Rhode Island Avenue to Farragut North. Today, Metrorail is a 103-mile system with 86 stations and an annual ridership in the millions. Its growth is impressive, but it is threatened by the organization’s growing budget shortfall, which is estimated at above $40 million dollars. If the Metro wants to continue serving the city, it should embrace opportunities to expand its reach, while making selective cuts to close the budget gap.

By the March 31, 2011

Letters to the Editor

Letter to the Editor: Support the Healy Pub

The vision of a University Center in Healy basement belongs to Sue Palmer Johnson, the Director of Student Activities in the early 1970s. I was fortunate to work with her, other administrators, and many fellow students in opening the Café in 1973 and the Pub in 1974. Since those beginnings, numerous friendships were made and fond memories are now shared by the many employees and patrons of the Café and Pub during its 14 year existence. However, the issue today is not about the past, but the future. There is an apparent need for student study and social space.

By March 28, 2011

Voices

Finding faith in the last place you would think to look

Though I had already convinced my parents to let me take Elmo as my confirmation name, I ultimately chose Anthony. My last minute decision was in part because I wasn’t actually ballsy enough to pull off the irony of entering Catholic adulthood with a name that conjures up nothing but images of childhood. But mostly it was because St. Anthony, the patron saint of lost items, was the only saint I had ever actually prayed to. I’m sure St. Elmo, the patron saint of sailors, would not have appreciated my summers spent at camp purposely capsizing boats, either.

By the March 24, 2011

Voices

Liberating Libya

Almost eight years to the day after the War in Iraq commenced, our new conflict in Libya began. Allied planes now fly over Libya; enforcing a no-fly zone and targeting forces loyal to Gaddafi. And while I don’t mean to conflate Iraq and Libya, growing up with the failure of Iraq makes me leery of our third military engagement in a Muslim country. In the post-Vietnam era, applications of U.S. force have consistently led to consequences we had no way of predicting ahead of time, a danger that often seems lost to policymakers and pundits. When the use of force is not used as a last resort, we frequently risk the danger of creating more problems than we solve.

By March 24, 2011

Voices

Summer internship forces student out of Wonderland

My family is about as Disney as you can get, without actually being part of the Disney family. My mother, father, and grandfather have worked at Disney for a combined total of almost 111 years—longer than the Walt Disney Company has been in existence. All of them have worked for the small and mysterious division of the Walt Disney Company known as Imagineering. The so-called Imagineers design Disney’s parks and resorts and, as they like to say, “make the magic.”

By March 24, 2011

Voices

Multiple online personalities change the rules of dating

As I was searching for “friends” on my new Twitter account, I came across some of my old high school flames relaying the sultry details of their latest exploits. These tweets more or less consisted of dirty spin offs of a Tri Delta catch phrase or how “swoll” they are in preparation for some spring break debauchery.

By March 24, 2011

Editorials

SNAP suffers from arbitrary enforcement

Although the stated goal of the Student Neighborhood Assistance Program is to protect students’ safety, for most students, the sight of SNAP’s flashing yellow lights is a distressing one. On Thursday and weekend nights around Georgetown, SNAP is more often seen as a dour party police. By minimizing the interactions between Georgetown students and the Metropolitan Police Department, SNAP serves a legitimate purpose within the West Georgetown and Burleith neighborhoods. But the program has some unfortunate policies too, such as breaking up parties when there has been no complaint from neighbors, which must end.

By the March 24, 2011

Editorials

Taxing universities won’t solve D.C. budget woes

With the District of Columbia facing a steadily rising $300 million budget shortfall, it is understandable that D.C. officials are looking for novel ways to raise revenue. However, D.C. Councilmember Mary Cheh’s (D-Ward 3) recent proposal to strip Georgetown and other universities in the District of their tax-exempt status is not the answer. Georgetown is, after the federal government, the largest employer of D.C. residents, and taxing the financially constrained institution will only hamper its growth and ability to employ new workers.

By the March 24, 2011

Editorials

Bringing newspapers to campus worth the cost

When the Collegiate Readership Program was abruptly canceled this past September, Georgetown lost a valuable program. It was heartening to see the newspapers return a few weeks ago. The readership program also returned with some much-needed reforms that will help lower the program’s cost and ensure that more undergraduates have access to the papers. At an initial cost of $6,500 per semester, the price tag for the initiative is large, but it is easily one of the wisest purchases the Georgetown University Student Association has made.

By the March 24, 2011

Voices

The kids aren’t all right

I’ll come right out and say it: Children repulse me. They frighten me. They make me anxious. Babies all look the same, and they are all ugly. Toddlers are praised for doing ordinary things like speaking and waving. Children have a comment and a question about everything. And adolescents—if YouTube sensation Rebecca Black has taught us anything—are totally self-absorbed and completely lacking in any sense of shame. Each stage of development brings with it new things to annoy me.

By March 17, 2011

Voices

A Hoya’s future depends on Congress renewing Pell Grants

Everyone spends a lot of their life waiting, but most of the time we spend in limbo is pretty trivial. Sure, no one enjoys the hassle of being patient, but what we’re waiting for rarely determines our future. I face the exception now. I am waiting for a decision that may decide everything in my near future. On the brink of financial disaster, I’m enduring a wait that makes me unbearably anxious and often sick to my stomach. My future, my senior year at Georgetown, is on the line.

By March 17, 2011

Voices

Students must step in to reduce Georgetown’s footprint

Georgetown students are well-informed and resourceful, and often uphold the University’s values of service, community, and global engagement. Environmentalism, however, is not one of the more widely discussed global issues on campus. Perhaps out of convenience, most students don’t see sustainability as especially important. Yet as Georgetown students, who typically place a high premium on international issues we must make the effort to prioritize environmentalism.

By March 17, 2011

Voices

Rounding the bases in an Australian league of their own

As spring training comes to a close, I’m beginning to feel baseball in the air. I’m just counting down the hours until Opening Day. However, my wait hasn’t been as long as most Americans. While the last whiff of baseball most got was the World Series in October, I found myself wrapped up in the world of Australian baseball through December.

By March 17, 2011

Editorials

Georgetown science facilities need renovation

The global challenges of the coming decades, from climate change to the growing strain on water and food resources, will require innovative scientific research. The continuing global relevance of American colleges and universities rests heavily on their ability to break new ground in confronting these problems. The promise of adding 35 new science faculty and the construction of an entirely new science center show an encouraging commitment to the sciences, but Georgetown must do more to support a field that is increasingly crucial to the direction of the world’s economic, social, and political future.

By the March 17, 2011

Editorials

Support federal funds for National Public Radio

The past several weeks have been bad ones for National Public Radio, as congressional Republicans continued their relentless effort to cut the organization’s funding. Under the guise of fiscal prudence, Republicans have deemed federal money for NPR wasteful, but in reality that verdict is the result of shrewd political calculation. If Republicans manage to slash federal funds for the program they will damage news media standards and lower the level of public awareness in America, all to cut an almost negligible expense from the federal budget and strike against a media outlet they view, incorrectly, as an adversary.

By the March 17, 2011

Editorials

Broad focus key for Endowment Commission

This past Tuesday was the first meeting of the Commission on Student Activities Endowment Reform, which has been tasked with spending the $3.4 million left over after SAFE reform passed last fall. The group will meet once every week until Apr. 25, when they will submit their plan to Georgetown University Student Association’s Financial Appropriations committee. The committee should keep some key things in mind as they begin their work. Specifically, committee members should appreciate the importance of looking at the big picture, making a long-term impact, and listening to the students, who this money really belongs to.

By the March 17, 2011

Voices

Warm weather brings about Georgetown day dreaming

There are few people on campus awaiting spring break more eagerly than I am. Only halfway through my midterm minefield, I already have my blinders on, focusing all my extra energy on thinking about 10:05 a.m. on Friday when I’m finished with my last test. Making things worse, it’s getting nice out. While the temperature is still hovering only around 50 degrees in the past few days, it’s nice enough for me to look out the Lau windows and feel especially miserable.

By the March 3, 2011

Voices

The Future M.Vee.P.

Sometimes, sophomore Vee Sanford reminds us what makes him such a likeable basketball player. Against Syracuse in the Big East Tournament last year, he introduced the Hoya faithful to his beautiful teardrop floater, which he has since used to similar effect against Memphis in December and against Syracuse again on Saturday. Vee, however, does not see a lot of playing time. When point guard Chris Wright broke his hand against Cincinnati last week, most analysts believed that Sanford, along with fellow backup guard Markel Starks, would pick up the bulk of Wright’s minutes against the Orange. In the end however, Sanford played just five minutes, compared to Starks’ 24.

By March 3, 2011

Voices

Protests must defend Planned Parenthood and women’s rights

When Wisconsin approved an anti–union bill, protests flared up across the state. These protests soon spread to other states, as well as Washington, D.C., as other state legislatures attempted to pass similar bills. When violence and human rights abuses began in Egypt and Libya, protests erupted in front of the respective embassies. Yet legislation in at least five states and a national bill to limit women’s reproductive rights, have gone without widespread protests.

By March 3, 2011