Fee would enhance smaller campuses
Associated Students of Arizona State University Downtown senators will soon decide whether they support a proposed $75 per semester facilities fee. Last Friday, President Tania Mendes introduced the measure, saying it would pay for much-needed student space, including a recreational center and student union at the Downtown campus.
Both the West and Polytechnic campuses have approved similar resolutions. It is clear that they recognize the need to build lively, student-friendly environments. Our current system does not allow for improvement, and — without the charge — new construction is not possible. Universities throughout the country have implemented facility fees very similar to the one being proposed; at the University of Michigan, the annual amount exceeds $700.
This charge is an opportunity to meet the demands of our growing downtown community. I will vote in favor of this proposal because I want a vibrant space that students will be able to call their own. All stakeholders will be guaranteed a voice throughout this process; they will get their money’s worth by investing in this student-led initiative. I encourage my colleagues on the senate to look at the great benefits this proposal will bring to our campus.
Andres Cano
Freshman Senator, ASASUD
Advocating for greyhounds
(In response to Nathan Meacham’s Oct. 2 article, “After 50 years in the Valley, Greyhound Racing Park to close.”)
As an advocate for racing greyhounds, the closing of Phoenix Greyhound Park is welcome news.
Greyhound racing is cruel and inhumane. Racing greyhounds endure lives of nearly constant confinement, kept in cages barely large enough for them to stand up or turn around. While racing, many dogs suffer and die from injuries, including broken legs, paralysis and cardiac arrest.
Thousands of greyhounds are euthanized every year, as the number retired from racing exceeds the number of adoptive homes.
Over the past two decades, commercial dog racing has experienced catastrophic economic decline, and now represents less than 1 percent of all wagers made each year in the U.S.
Since 2004, 17 dog tracks have either closed or ended live racing.
Competition from other forms of gambling, coupled with increased awareness of the cruelty of dog racing, has had a significant negative impact on racetrack revenues.
It is time that the public’s subsidy of this cruel sport ends in Arizona and other racing states in the U.S.
Greyhound racing is a losing proposition, especially for the dogs.
Jennifer Krebs
Board of Directors, GREY2KUSA.org
Re-evaluating art
(In response to Catherine Smith’s Oct. 1 column, “Arts corrupted with our money.”)
After reading Ms. Smith’s article concerning the National Endowment for the Arts, I couldn’t help but wonder if she was truly concerned about the arts or more interested in attacking President Barack Obama.
I felt pretty confused when the author condemned the use of propaganda in art, but then idolized the artworks at the Louvre. I wonder if she knows how many of those beautiful and artistically critical artworks are simply propaganda commissioned by the Catholic church (which was pretty much the government back in the Baroque period).
It was almost laughable when Ms. Smith called American artists “servants of power.”
I couldn’t help but wonder if this person had taken a single art history class in her life. If she did, she clearly did not pay attention.
Artists have always had to serve the will of others in order to make money. Does she really think that Da Vinci or Caravaggio or Bernini were commissioned well to do anything other than serve the will of the church? If Ms. Smith wants to attack Obama, perhaps she should have chosen a different subject. And perhaps done some research.
Ann Townsend
Undergraduate
Sticking up for SAFRA
(In response to the Sept. 29 editorial, “Not so fast, SAFRA.”)
So as far as I can tell, the only issue surrounding the Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act is that the average student is unaware of its benefits. Well, we’re certainly lucky the Arizona Students’ Association has been working since the beginning of the semester to educate students statewide about SAFRA and how it is paid for by the dissolution of the obsolete Federal Family Education Loan Program.
In reference to the uncertainty about the statistical assertions, the Congressional Budget Office is a nonpartisan research organization that has been around since 1974 — it currently employs about 235 people. The agency is composed primarily of economists and public policy analysts.
About three-quarters of its professional staff hold advanced degrees, mostly in economics or public policy.
Considering I have seen signs posted everywhere, heard the ASA speak about SAFRA in multiple classes and seen them tabling outside the Memorial Union for weeks, I find it hard to believe that the average interested student doesn’t know what SAFRA entails. Personally, instead of abstaining from voting for a bill you don’t understand, I would suggest doing some research on it.
Mary Wack
Undergraduate
