Opinion

Opinion

Staff editorial: Freedom to Marry Event Should be Applauded

April 2

Queers and Allies celebrated Freedom to Marry Day Thursday, which allowed two people of either gender to participate in a mock marriage ceremony. Later in the day, Bon Appetit provided food and cake for a mock wedding reception. The event provided a way for students to bring attention to the issue, which usually only receives press during presidential election years.

---

Opinion

Staff editorial: 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Creates Grisly Catch-22

April 2

Last Sunday, the Undergraduate Senate voted to reject AU's policy of allowing military recruiters on campus because of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. The university is unlikely to adopt the Senate's recommendation because due to the Solomon Amendment, the university would lose all federal funding if it denied recruiters access to campus.

---

Opinion

The Iraq War and Foreign Aid: One and the Same

By Jared Kotler | April 2

Many people in this country and around the world believe the Iraq war was an unnecessary war led by a government that thought it was its duty to export democracy around the world. Unfortunately, these same people don't see how the exportation of democracy abroad isn't any different than foreign aid.

---

Opinion

Letters to the editor

April 2

Sexual Assault Reporting Dear Editor in Chief: We are writing to provide clarification for some of the statements made by JoAnna Smith, president of the Women's Initiative, in an article published on March 29 ("Sex assault reporting may violate law").

---

Opinion

Our Financial Cancer

By Tom Noble | April 2

We've all heard the phrases tossed around about how "lazy" and "apathetic" our generation is. We only want to play video games, take drugs and go out clubbing. God knows I have heard old people say these things. The fact is our generation faces many difficult choices involving entitlements, job security, climate change and America's place in the world.

---

Opinion

Staff editorial: AU, other D.C. schools should note GW scholarship

March 29

A GW scholarship aims to help D.C. highschoolers attend college. The Trachtenberg scholarship awards nine recipients $200,000 for tuition, books, fees and room and board. There are currently no such specific scholarships at AU, but the school says it is implementing improved college recruitment methods in the District.

---

Opinion

A Balanced End to Poverty

By Jong Eun Lee | March 29

How can we end poverty? Stereotypical conservatives would say, "He who doesn't work should not eat." Stereotypical liberals would say, "Rob the rich to feed the poor." Like most Americans, I have come to question both extreme measures and believe solving poverty require lot more comprehensive solutions.

---

Opinion

Staff editorial: Successful Wellness Center program is a good start

March 29

"Get Fit Be Well," a health and wellness program for AU students, recently finished its six-week run. More than 100 students participated in the program, far more than the 50 expected by the Wellness Center. The program incorporated a holistic approach including physical, social, spiritual, emotional and environmental health.

---

Opinion

The Politics of Water Scarcity

By Erin Wildermuth | March 29

Last Thursday was the United Nation's World Water Day. The day is meant to promote awareness about water resources, scarcity and development. This year's theme was "coping with water scarcity." On Thursday, I decided to follow the U.N.'s advice and promote awareness about water scarcity.

---

Opinion

Staff editorial: 24-Hour Library Access: Music to Overworked Ears

March 26

Beginning this fall, the library will be open 24 hours a day from 9 a.m. Sunday to 10 p.m. Friday. To compensate for the extended library hours, the Anderson Computing Complex will be closed at certain hours overnight that are yet to be determined. Student demand, as well as advocacy from SG President Ashley Mushnick, who campaigned on the issue last spring, helped bring about the change.

---

Opinion

Letters to the editor

March 26

Volunteering Helps Students Get in Touch with Community Dear Editor in Chief, As students at American University, it's easy to temporarily lose yourself in the stress of writing papers, studying for exams and carrying internships. Sometimes in the midst of all the madness, we lose sight of what it is to be human, to have a heart.

---

Opinion

Staff editorial: Illiteracy Report Shows a D.C. Tourists Don't See

March 26

A recent report by the State Education Agency found that 36 percent of D.C. residents age 16 and over function at the lowest level of literacy. This amounts to over 170,000 people considered "functionally illiterate." According to an article in The Washington Post, "adults who have trouble doing such things as comprehending bus schedules, reading maps and filling out job applications are considered functionally illiterate.

---

Opinion

Don't Mess with Texas (Hold 'Em)

By Caleb Enerson | March 26

With March Madness hysteria conducting its annual sweep throughout the United States, it seems a suitable time to discuss gambling. Americans love to gamble. We spend hundreds of billions of dollars on gambling annually, from the lottery to horse racing to poker.

---

Opinion

GOP Meets Reality's Revenge

By Jacob Shelly | March 26

Those of us enchanted by politics are largely dreamers. Like Robert F. Kennedy, we dream of things that never were and ask why not. We ache for some magic wand to realize those dreams. In a society where it too often seems greed is glorified and corruption is congratulated, how dearly we imagine a utopia where the good prosper and the evil perish.

---

Opinion

It's Official: Hip-Hop is Dead.

By Paul Perry | March 22

I am falling out of love with hip-hop. The music that colored my childhood, informed an element of my surroundings and socialized me to a great deal has now come to represent a force too destructive for my collaboration. I can no longer co-sign on its bottom line.

---

Opinion

Correction from March 8

March 22

Graphics that accompanied a March 8 story titled, "Poll shows frustration with AU Abroad," incorrectly labeled the percentages of those surveyed who were displeased with AU Abroad's availability and credit-transfer policies. The Eagle sincerely apologizes for these errors.

---

Opinion

Letter to the editor

March 22

To the Editor: I would like to respond to both the article and editorial concerning AU Abroad that appeared in the March 8 edition of The Eagle. These articles discussed the results of an informal poll of AU Abroad participants conducted by one of your reporters.

---