Nederhood lacks logic

In your January 18 issue, you featured a piece by Rob Nederhood entitled ```Advise and Consent' or delay and obfuscate?'' While I commend you for publishing a wide variety of viewpoints that exist among Calvin students, Nederhood's piece certainly lacks a convincing logic.

Nederhood starts his piece by mentioning the numerous number of vacancies that exists in the federal judicial system. Since Nederhood fails to mention it, during the eight years of the Clinton Presidency, the Senate Republicans refused to consider numerous appointments that the President submitted. The number of high vacancies that exist today certainly may find blame in the lack of Senate Republican concern over the state of the federal judicial system.

The main gripe that the author has with the actions of Senate Majority Leader Daschle and his fellow Democrats is their refusal simply due to ``partisan spite.'' While partisanship is certainly present among Republicans and Democrats alike on Capital Hill, Nederhood has forgotten what the function of the legislative branch is. The members of the Senate and House are not selected to rubber stamp President Bush's agenda and allow for ideological soul mates of the White House to assume judicial positions without consideration. They are elected by the voters -- me, you, and Nederhood -- to represent us in our stead in Washington D.C. This check on the executive branch in the form of judicial confirmation by the legislative branch is enshrined in our constitution, despite the hopes of a few misguided souls.

If Nederhood is so eager for judges to be confirmed, saying it to be in the nation's best interest, why not restore the advisory function that the American Bar Association performed until Mr. Bush took power? This non-partisan organization has advised the Senate on potential confirmations for the past fifty years, and was removed by Mr. Bush for partisan purposes to please the Republican Right. Restoring the ABA to its rightful place in advising Senate on judicial appointments would certainly be a good faith move on the part of the President, and go a long way to restoring trust between the Republicans and Democrats in the legislative branch. Clearly, this would be in the best interest of Democrats, Republicans and the American people they represent.

Peter Bratt `02

Remember those gone

Re: Nathan Bierma's article in the Jan. 11 Chimes: I think Bierma looks at aspects of 9/11 that too many are now discussing. As a nation all are taken in by political happenings, the war on terrorism, a religious and spiritual outpouring of the nation. All of these editorials and questions, breaking news stories, and political talk shows have seemed to forget what really happened on that day. On Sept. 11, 2001 thousands of people lost their lives. Fathers, mothers, aunts, and uncles, all went to work that Tuesday like any other day. Almost 350 New York City firemen came to their respective stations for another tour of duty, anxious to get back to their families 24 hours later. Ninety police officers donned their uniforms that morning, kissed their children good bye.

If people want to continue to remember 9/11, remember the aspects that are important. Remember all those who lost their lives, remember all the firemen, police officers, medics, and EMTs that gave their lives in a hope to save another. Remember the over 1000 firemen, 600 EMT's, 300 Police Officers from north New Jersey and Long Island who responded to the call for help, disregarding their jobs and families to aid their brothers.

Ben Veenema

Fans need manners

I enjoy Calvin basketball as much as the next person. But from time to time I wonder if the excitement of the sport can sometimes cause us to lose perspective.

First, we should remember it's just a game. It's fun and it's important but sports are fairly insignificant compared to some of the world's serious problems or even compared to some of the struggles we face daily on our own campus. The other thing is that Calvin sports are part of an overall educational experience. There's a different athletic philosophy at work at Calvin than what you might see on ESPN's games featuring high-profile D1 schools.

Why state what for some might be obvious? Because of one unfortunate component of Calvin student behavior at the Holland Civic Center. I refer to the taunting of Hope center Don Overbeek as ``ogre.'' This may have seemed amusing to some.

But frankly it isn't amusing, nor is it particularly clever. In fact, it's wrong. Don Overbeek has friends, brothers and sisters and parents. How do they feel about our chant? They were hurt. How do we justify hurting them? We can't. So scream your lungs out in support of Calvin, but leave the cheers against the other team's individual playerss behind. It's only a game. Don't sacrifice your own dignity for it. And please don't cause others pain for the sake of it.

Phil de Haan

Media Relations

Calvin should review clubs

I think it is time that Calvin reviews the clubs that it sponsors. It is discouraging to hear accounts of some of the things that happen at these club meetings. The Anime club held a 24-hour marathon a few weeks ago, in which there was a depiction of a brutal rape as well as plenty of other excess nudity and violence. Furthermore, this morning in Student News, the Anime club announced its choice for this coming semester: Cowboy Bebop. I decided to do some research, and I found a page with some video clips. Amidst the violence in the clip, there was a scene where a man held a woman at knife point, and in the next scene, he was forcing her onto a table where he kissed her and then licked her blood off of his hand. Is this what our Christian college should be funding? Hardly. If people are interested in watching pornographic violence, that is their own choice, but please for the sake of us all, do not spend our tuition dollars to do it.

Secondly there is Dialogue. The club that gets the third most funding of all other clubs on campus. Yet again, this issue was just a bunch of bizarre things in a quasi-magazine. Artistic expression is legitimate, but some of the stuff in there is just absurd and off-the-wall. Calvin is paying this club to produce a collection of inside jokes and seemingly drug-influenced art and poetry. As with Anime, if this is your sort of thing, great, but should Calvin be so highly funding a club that is so bizarre and distasteful?

Name Withheld