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Spirit of exclusion

By The Observer · Monday, March 21, 2011

For those of us who fight for GLBT rights at Notre Dame, a clear pattern quickly becomes evident. Year in and year out, the administration finds yet another excuse as to why we can't "push the envelope" at a Catholic institution like Notre Dame. In regards to gaining approval for a GLBT student group and adding sexual orientation to the nondiscrimination clause, many excuses have been made over the past decade: "We are the most prominent Catholic school in the country and have too many ties to The Vatican;" "We already do enough for our GLBT students;"  "There is not enough trust between the administration and our GLBT students;" "We don't have a club for our ‘straight' students, so we can not have one for our GLBT students." The list goes on and on.

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Tradition of East Lounge

By The Observer · Monday, March 21, 2011

I would like to open with the statement that I am a student in the Program of Liberal Studies. Students in our course of study inevitably pick up some respect for tradition. This is of course a fitting sentiment for a Notre Dame student.

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My first Appalachia trip

By The Observer · Monday, March 21, 2011

Every spring and fall break, the Center for Social Concerns sends students across the Appalachian region and various urban centers to understand and try to help with the poverty in the region. But as I'm sure everyone who's ever gone on one of the trips knows we come back with so much more than the feeling of service.

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Nuclear catastrophe, risk awareness

By The Observer · Monday, March 21, 2011

In the wake of the tragic earthquake and ensuing nuclear crisis in Japan, nuclear energy is returning to the forefront of the news as a hot topic for discussion. Many individuals and nations are re-thinking their stance on nuclear energy, taking the threat of nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant as a wake-up call to decrease future nuclear projects and increase security measures at existing nuclear facilities. For them, the nuclear accident has raised the question of whether or not nuclear reactors pose a significant threat to human health and safety.

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Dear Zahm,

By The Observer · Wednesday, March 9, 2011

If you ever want to see your precious moose again, you will wire 50,000 flex points to my account at the National Bank of the Maldives, Account Number: 43.665-110.718.

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The Homer Simpson effect

By The Observer · Wednesday, March 9, 2011

A few months ago, I found myself at a casino with some of my friends from high school, breathing in that unique casino smell of body odor, cigarettes and shattered dreams. Upon finding that the only open seats for blackjack were located next to a chain-smoking man with an exciting variety of prison tattoos and more poker chips than teeth, my friends and I decided to wait it out and watch some TV instead. Playing at that moment was a commercial in which men leapt through their TVs trying to grab three dimensional beer cans, causing a nearby man to casually remark, "That's just plain offensive."

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Deficit and debt

By The Observer · Wednesday, March 9, 2011

In the past few weeks, coverage of the ongoing labor dispute between Gov. Scott Walker of Wisconsin and the state's public sector employee unions has dominated the headlines and editorial sections of newspapers, talk shows and websites throughout the country. At issue in this contentious debate is the right of Wisconsin's state workers to collectively bargain for wages and benefits.

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What are you fighting for?

By The Observer · Wednesday, March 9, 2011

All right, we're guilty. Sometimes we whine about working at The Observer; it often goes hand-in-hand with our griping about the weather and the weird things that go along with Notre Dame. But sometimes we get the opportunity to be a part of something, even indirectly, that reminds us why we're so lucky to be a part of this University.

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The implications of Lenten conversion

By The Observer · Wednesday, March 9, 2011

The Christian gospel is perceived as paradoxical, almost unrealistic, because it proposes a way of life which is not governed by the virtues so highly prized by our technocratic society: success, efficiency, immediate gratification and control. The Christian gospel is not about success (gaze briefly at a crucifix for verification) it is highly inefficient, frequently delays gratification and encourages us to relinquish our obsession with control to One whom we cannot see.

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Necessary dialogue

By The Observer · Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Thank you, Shea Streeter, for starting the conversation on sexual assault at Notre Dame ("Necessary conversations," Mar. 7). As a man this issue affects me differently than it does women. Nevertheless, this is an issue with which I have a close personal relationship and have had many conversations about. I have two friends from home who have been victims of rape/sexual assault and, quite frankly, the conversations I've had with them are very different from the ones "College HAS Issues" tells us we ought to have.

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We must face reality

By The Observer · Tuesday, March 8, 2011

I am writing this piece on behalf of the taxpayers across this country that are caught in the middle of the debate over public sector union compensation. We are in very tough economic times, and workers, both in the private and public sectors, have had to make sacrifices in their personal and family budgets. It is evident that while taxpayers have had to make adjustments in their budgets, some public sector union bosses think they should be immune from necessary fiscal austerity measures. To be clear, I am directing my argument to the leaders of the public sector unions, not necessarily the rank and file.

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Defacing the University

By The Observer · Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Disclaimer: I want to make it clear that I am not addressing this letter to all of the residents of Zahm House. I have several friends in Zahm and am sure that most residents are generally good guys. This is to, as our rector Br. Jerome said, "a few rotten apples."

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New college degrees

By The Observer · Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Recently there's been a lot of furor over the MRS and MR degrees, owing to a shocking expose by a SMC chick who revealed that neither of them were actual degrees. I have taken upon myself to provide a short, non-exhaustive list of other degrees that don't exist but probably ought to.

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Squatters' displays diversity

By The Observer · Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Before I begin, here is a caveat. My idea for what would eventually become this column began about a month ago at Reckers at 2 a.m. on a Wednesday night. It was an essay on diversity for Contemporary Topics, and, never one to take a Contemporary Topics assignment lightly, I bet my friends that I could finish it in the fifteen minutes it took them to finish their food. The instance that I wrote about, however, I still find quite interesting and quite indicative of a certain part of the Notre Dame experience.

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Super athletes

By The Observer · Monday, March 7, 2011

Maybe the most important sporting event of our generation occurred Sunday, and just about no one noticed. Once in a lifetime the world is graced with the presence of an athlete that shifts the entire sporting landscape. Our world has been graced with two of these athletes. Rachel Alexandra and Curlin dominated the horse racing world like Alexander the Great dominated the known world. What do these two athletes with no equal do when they are retired from the days of competition? They make babies. That's right, soon our world will be blessed with the love-child of these two great race horses. No longer will Earth be called the Home of Humans, but rather Earth will be referred to as Home of Super Curlin Mega-Alexandra, and a couple people. This got us thinking, what if humans were to do this? Imagine the possibilities. Albert Pujols and Jennie Finch? Move over Cy Young and Barry Bonds, we got a new record holder. LeBron James and Lisa Leslie? I'm thinking we have a 40-time consecutive MVP coming. Roger Federer and Serena Williams? Grand Slams would not even begin to describe their dominance. Tiger Woods and Annika Sörenstam? Future average 55 under par on a 70 par course (Yeah, that's 15 strokes on 18 holes). The possibilities are endless. Just think if we can have real Coke taste with zero calories, then why isn't this possible. We're looking at you scientists. Until then I will refuse to watch these so-called greatest athletes in the world struggle with their weak genetic combinations. I want super athletes and I want them now.

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Collective bargaining benefits all workers

By The Observer · Monday, March 7, 2011

Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that "Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his [or her] interests." In the U.S., we seem to have forgotten that the ability to bargain collectively is an internationally recognized right of all people, rich or poor, in the public or private sector. While workers depend on employers for wages, employers depend on workers for the labor that produces the goods and services that create profit. The two parties are co-dependent. Therefore, the working class is an indispensible part of our economic system and should have the ability to voice its needs and concerns in the only legal form available: unionization. Collective bargaining allows both workers and employers to have a voice, pursue their interests, and come to a compromise. Sounds like democracy to me.

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