Letters to the Editor

10/9/08 7:00pm

Palin piece resorts to personal attacks

To the editor:Brian Reinhart's opinion piece "Palin's religious fervor reveals cracks in political morality" (Sept. 26) reveals nothing but cracks in its author's logic as it blames abstinence-only sex education and Sarah Palin's religious beliefs for Bristol Palin's pregnancy.

Reinhart attempts to support his statements. For instance, he cites a study showing that the STD rate for teenage girls is the highest it has ever been. However, this is irrelevant to his point that abstinence-only sex ed is ineffective. The majority of American schools do not only teach abstinence. One could interpret the study differently and say that comprehensive sex ed is to blame.

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Bristol's pregnancy also reveals nothing. No matter what form of sex education they are taught, and no matter what their parents believe, many teenagers become pregnant each year. For each pregnant evangelical girl in our country, I'm sure there is at least one pregnant girl whose parents instructed her in birth control methods. It would be ludicrous to call the girl's mother a hypocrite, and no different from what Reinhart is doing.

The truly infuriating thing about this piece is that I fundamentally agree with it. I believe that abstinence-only sex ed is ineffective, and I believe that Palin is unfit to be vice president. But I don't believe there's any need to resort to personal attacks and faulty logic to express these opinions. There are plenty of legitimate reasons to oppose Palin; Reinhart's tactics only distract voters from them.

Arielle Layman

Hanszen junior

Egg donor ads not welcome, worrying

To the editor:

People naturally resist change. Being at Rice for six years now, I have experienced changes on campus that I didn't always embrace instantly. But something that unfortunately has stayed constant is the advertisement for egg donors in the Thresher Classifieds. I addressed this issue before in the Thresher and am disappointed that I again feel it necessary to call attention to this unwelcome weekly ad ("Eggs should not be sold by the dozen," Oct. 29, 2004).

Starting in the fall 2002, I saw the eggdonorcenter.com ads in every Thresher up to the end of Fall 2004. Their ad also had the privilege to grace the back page of four out of the six commencement issues I've seen, including this past year's covered by the current editors. It's unsettling that the Thresher endorses egg donation as a positive way for new Rice graduates to commence on their post-baccalaureate life.

If this seems like a personal issue, let me clarify that I am not the only student to have complained about these advertisements. On Feb. 17, 2006 a petition signed by 36 students urged the Thresher to remove these ads. It was appalling to see these ads again in the issues right after Hurricane Ike. In times of crisis and financial hardship, the Thresher continues to encourage female students to consider egg donation. I ask the editor and the classified ads manager, both of whom are women, to reconsider the need to print these egg donation ads.

Nastassja Lewinski

Bioengineering graduate student

Editor's note: The Thresher's advertisement policy states that printing an advertisement does not constitute an endorsement by the Thresher. This policy can be found on the last page of the newspaper.

Bike policy needs upgrade, annoys

To the editor:

Today, I was stopped for the first time for biking on the sidewalk, even though I was using the bell that the Rice University Police Department had handed out, in addition to yelling a courteous "Excuse me ... Thank you." As law-abiding citizen, I pushed my bike from the music school to Duncan Hall and thus had plenty of time to think. I came to the conclusion that the bike policy goes too far.

In 21 years as a cyclist, I have never made contact with a pedestrian or other cyclist, so I am convinced that a "yell or bell" policy is sufficient. If biking on sidewalks, at any speed, with all due caution, really is so dangerous that it needs to be banned entirely, then the administration should consider the following:

1) The Inner Loop is currently a one-way road. Depending on where bikers enter campus and where they need to go, this could double the distance that needs to be biked on the loop. A narrow "contra-flow" bike lane on the loop in the opposite direction would be tremendously beneficial.

2) Since many buildings are not adjacent to the Inner Loop, there need to be more bike stands along the loop. The number of bike stands near shuttle stops is not nearly sufficient.

3) To avoid the impression that Rice is using the imposed fines to (minimally) pad its bottom line, it should be clear what the revenue is used for and that students benefit from it.

I hope that the administration will reconsider the current outright ban of biking on sidewalks and find a middle ground that provides both safety and convenience.

Mathias Ricken

Computer science graduate student

Esperanza rescuer not given his due

To the editor:

I was very disappointed to find no mention of my suggestion to the Centennial Campaign Committee that the Rice Program Council hold Esperanza in "the big, expensive tent-thing," when the college presidents were asked to think of other events that could be held during the campaign's Kick Off Weekend.

I suggested it because I believe that Esperanza would be benefited by a change in venue that would hopefully lower ticket prices, free up money that could be spent on other areas of the party and increase attendance for an otherwise historically apathetically-attended event, and I am happy to see RPC is taking action in all of these areas. I look forward enthusiastically to the event, and specifically to cutting a rug on the hardwood dance floor.

If the Thresher would like them, I have a series of e-mail exchanges with Rice Annual Fund Director Ginger Nash that verify that the idea originated with the college presidents, and - more specifically - from my own beautifully-shaped noggin. As an apology, I would very much appreciate it if the Thresher would refer to me as "Chris Goldsberry, the handsome stranger who saved Esperanza," any time I am quoted in the newspaper for the rest of the year.

I think you, RPC and the much-benefitted student body will agree that this request is more than reasonable.

Chris Goldsberry

Baker president

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