Letters to the Editor

Author: [no author name found]

To the Editor:
I must disagree with the decision to place "Reactions of the College Community to the War" on your front page, the news page, during the April 2 and April 9 editions of The Middlebury Campus. Certainly these opinions - these are merely opinions, and not news mind you - deserve a voice. However, that is the purpose of the editorial page. Over the past two editions of The Campus there have been seven such "reactions" from members of the community published, the majority of which are decidedly against the war.
There is nothing wrong with publishing opinions against the war, as you have done every week over the past several months. But I am afraid the editorial stance of the paper, which to this reader is an anti-war stance, is tainting the paper's news coverage. Remember that the function of the media is to report the news, not to create it.
I respect The Campus' decision to publish whatever it wants on its editorial page, even if they want to present only one opinion on any given issue - you have often presented both sides of the war issue, by the way, so I am not berating your editorial stance on the war. But presenting predominantly anti-war opinions as news suggests the paper has a blatant bias in relation to the war - especially since the majority of the country is not opposed to the conflict. Such a bias, if it exists, will destroy your ability to objectively report the news.
- Peter Steinberg '99

To the Editor:
Today I had the pleasure of reading Rick Reilly's article "Extra Credit" in the March 10 issue of Sports Illustrated. I nearly always enjoy The Life of Reilly stories, but this one will stay with me for a long, long time because of the spirit that is alive and well at your college.
I enjoy sports as much as the next person, and more than most. I have seen 310 NCAA men's basketball teams play in person along with hundreds of other sporting events with my brother and my best friend. My emotions have been stirred hundreds of times by situations during games.
The most memorable occasions, though, are the ones that happen not during the actual playing of the game, but something that stands out about the arena itself, the campus, the actions of people we've met at the events, the rich traditions that we were privileged to be a part of for a brief moment.
The story about the tradition of taking care of Butch Varno is one of the best examples I've ever seen of the goodwill that sports can bring out in people. In our ever so impatient, me-first society that breeds selfishness all too often, the tradition of caring shown by your athletes and your student body is a shining example of how we can, and should, care about one another every day.
You can rest assured that the next time my travels bring me anywhere close to Middlebury College, I will take the time to stop to experience the wonderful spirit of your school and your students. Thank you for being a positive example to the rest of the world - we need more students and colleges like yours!
- E. Thayne King

To the Editor:
Michael Crowley '05 submitted a provocative response regarding the situation in Korea ("North Korea Proves Threatening," The Middlebury Campus, April 9, 2003). According to Crowley, Kim Jong Il is one of history's worst leaders for confining his people to poverty, isolation and despair and North Korea is a bastion of destitution and evil intentions. I object to this simplistic conclusion. Although not intending to condone Kim Jong Il by any measure, I still contend that North Korea viewed the United States as a threat to its national sovereignty. Moreover, the United States possesses vast resources of soft power with its heralding of freedom. It is more than a valid argument that North Korea was threatened.
Crowley's article demonizes North Korea, describing it as a great enemy to be obliterated. Furthermore, his rendering of statistics apparently stemmed from a desire to depict this "evil" rather than from a genuine interest in the welfare of the North Koreans.
Finally, on the issue of which presidents actually merited Noble Peace Prizes: this campus ought to be aware of the irony of President Theodore Roosevelt's Peace Prize, which was awarded based on his decision to afford Japan free reign over Korea in exchange for America's uncontested control of the Philippines. Honoring a man for his belief in Japanese racial superiority over other Asian civilizations is questionable, far more so than paying money to pursue a virtuous national interest.
- Sara Yun '03