Cure the disease, not the symptoms

By William Baude / February 6, 2004

The death penalty, we are frequently reminded, is “broken.” The Illinois Commission wanted to reform it with more safeguards while also making it more rare. Former Governor George Ryan granted amnesty wholesale to Illinois’s death row. Poor people with overtaxed lawyers go to the electric chair when rich defendants do not, black defendants are disproportionately...

Famous hot people at the U of C

By Leila Sales / February 6, 2004

OK, here’s the intellectual debate of the week: Could Ashton Kutcher and I get married? Or, like, not? Let’s give fair consideration to both sides of the issue. People who say “not” tend to be narrow-minded bourgeois brown-nosing whores with root canals and fungus. Their “reasoning” falls along the morally questionable lines of, “Ashton Kutcher...

Wisconsin: An important crossroads for Democrats seeking the nomination

By Andrew Hammond / February 6, 2004

As the remaining presidential hopefuls campaign across the country, both strategists and journalists alike are looking for the next state that will have the most impact in the Democratic nominating process. For this writer that state is Wisconsin. The past three primary dates (in Iowa, New Hampshire, and the seven states this week) have accomplished...

Democrats still shouldn’t vote Kerry

By Barney Keller / February 6, 2004

Josh Steinman refers to presidential candidate John Kerry as “what’s next” in his recent column. Kerry is running away in the polls, and this may be so. But will he be, according to his hokey campaign slogan, the “real deal” in a match-up with George W. Bush? Kerry’s record suggests otherwise. While Steinman does offer...

Council discusses College advising

By Andrew Elliot-Chandler / February 6, 2004

Editor’s note: This is the third article in a series of occasional updates from the chair of the Dean’s Advisory Council. The Dean’s Advisory Council’s (DAC) first meeting of this quarter focused on the College advising process, in particular the function and effectiveness of the mandatory meetings with an adviser. (These meetings are quarterly for...

U.S. government attacks academic freedom with Title VI requirements

By Tonya Maus / February 3, 2004

Juliana Wu’s November 14 article, “Bill May Affect Curriculum,” addresses worrisome aspects of the International Studies in Higher Education Act, recently approved by the U.S. House of Representatives (as H.R. 3077). Because it also reauthorizes funding for international studies programs under the provision known as Title VI, it’s important to separate the bill as a...

Timberlake makes a boob of himself during Super Bowl halftime show performance

By Matt Zakosek / February 3, 2004

“I am sorry that anyone was offended by the wardrobe malfunction during the halftime performance of the Super Bowl,” Justin Timberlake said regarding his controversial removal of part of Janet Jackson’s top during Monday evening’s Patriots-Panthers game. “It was not intentional and is regrettable.” Wardrobe malfunction? One wonders what Timberlake was trying to remove—her wig?...

CBS made the right-winged decision, not the right decision

By Joel Lanceta / February 3, 2004

It’s the day after the Super Bowl. The Patriots won with a 41-yard field goal with four seconds remaining. The only thing wrong with the game was that it should have been Peyton Manning and the Colts celebrating. There were a few really good commercials, and even more disappointing and utterly pointless ones. Thankfully, watching...

The case for same-sex marriage

By Nick Tarasen / February 3, 2004

To be honest, I’d prefer not to have to write this article. I wish that the president I helped elect didn’t feel that “activist judges” were creating a right in extending marriage to same-sex couples. I wish, more saliently, that my peers didn’t buy such arguments. But serious momentum exists to amend the Constitution to...

The great American security debate

By George Anesi / February 3, 2004

America is on the verge of a great security debate. The 9/11 commission’s preliminary findings and the recent David Kay report on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq have raised significant questions and doubts about America’s security apparatus. Of course we’ve had these doubts for some time—9/11 was a big wakeup call—but we also missed...

If not Dean for president, then who?

By Joshua Steinman / February 3, 2004

“If not Dean, then who?” were the parting words of my last column. The answer is John Kerry. And if you stick around for the next few minutes, I’ll tell you why. Two months ago, I received a phone call from the Kerry Campaign asking me to drop out of school and come up to...

Theater needs development soon

By Maroon Editorial Staff / February 3, 2004

The Meridian Theater has been an eyesore for the past two years. Since the business folded, the University has fostered the reception of community input about certain commercial possibilities for the space, even holding several open meetings to gauge public opinion. Though the University has claimed the best of intentions, the continued lack of apparent...