2008 Woodie Awards
Viewpoint
Issue date: 9/11/07 Section: Editorials
Atheists deserve fair, respectful treatment
Atheist. For many, the very word carries a sinister connotation. An atheist is someone who is selfish and immoral or someone who doesn't care about anyone or believe in anything.
That seems to be the social stigma in this country, anyway. An April 2006 study published by the American Sociological Association found that America's most distrusted minority is not Muslims, recent immigrants or homosexuals-it's atheists. A 1999 Gallup poll found that a mere 51 percent of Americans would vote for "a generally well qualified" atheist candidate nominated by their party for president. Meanwhile, over 90 percent would vote for a black, Jew, woman, Catholic or Baptist but only 59 percent would vote for a homosexual. And what group are Americans least willing to let their children marry? That's right-atheists.
People hate what they fear, and fear what they don't understand. But why do atheists seem to be so misunderstood? After all, they're everywhere. About 17 percent of Americans are atheist or agnostic. But then, most probably keep their non-belief to themselves.
I can't exactly blame them-considering my own experience. When I tell people I'm an atheist (formerly Christian), some find it offensive and some feel sorry for me. Some seem surprised that I have any compassion for others or even the will to live. Many are simply curious but virtually none have any idea what I believe or value.
So I tell them. I say that I think people should be kind, forgiving, and tolerant towards one another. I assert my belief in human rights and democratic government. I explain how I am humbled and awed by the universe as science can reveal it to us-a universe far stranger and bigger, in my opinion, than any god that anyone has ever imagined.
And you know what? It works. People lose their instinctive hostility toward atheism. That's why I wish more atheists in this country and on this campus would be open about their worldviews. We can't expect others to understand us if we keep hiding.
Eric Frey
freyew@muohio.edu
Student loan bill aids college bound students
Congress passed legislation approving an extensive overhaul of federal student loan programs Friday. The bill will dramatically reduce subsidies to lenders and put more money into grants for needy students.
Finally, some good news from Congress. It's about time we stopped over-subsidizing banks. Money should be given straight to the students where it is needed the most.
Among other things, this bill will increase the maximum Pell Grant. By reducing subsidies to lenders by about $20 billion, Congress will be able to raise the annual Pell Grant from $4,310 to $5,400 per year over the next five years.
Furthermore, the bill will offer pardons on student loans to college graduates who work for 10 years or more in public service professions like teaching. This is a great idea. Students who work in such professions usually end up paying back their college loans for the rest of their lives, but this will ease the financial burden immensely.
Now, students will probably have a greater incentive to go into those public service professions.
But, like every piece of legislation, this bill was met with some opposition. Lenders claim that the reductions would push some of them out of business and decrease competition, ultimately reducing lending services to students. However, we can't help but think that lenders are just worried about their own welfare. Investigations have shown that lenders have, in the past, gone so far as to give free travel, gifts and monetary incentives to colleges so that colleges would be inclined to guide students in their direction.
A few Republicans have also opposed the bill. According to The New York Times, Rep. John A. Boehner of Ohio, former chairman of the Education Committee, said that the subsidy cuts "will cripple the private sector loan program." Other House Republicans criticized parts of the bill for being similar to socialism. However, it's important to keep in mind that, according to The New York Times, many of these Republicans had received large campaign contributions from lenders in the past. And people wonder why so many college students are Democrats.
Economically, the Republicans claim, the bill would prove irresponsible in the future. But we disagree. It is, in fact, the old system that has already proven itself unreliable for students and was in need of major changes.
As some Republicans complain about the bill, Democrats in Congress are quick to take full credit for it. When Democratic Rep. George Miller of California told The New York Times that while Republicans took billions of dollars away from federal student aid programs last year, "we took $11.39 billion and put it back into Pell Grants. That's the difference that an election makes."
Maybe so, but we're not ready to bow down at their feet just yet. True, they've managed to do something positive, but it's one of the few positive things they've done since they took control of Congress. We hoped for a lot more.
At the same time, however, their efforts should not go completely unappreciated. This bill was largely a Democratic accomplishment, and they deserve credit for uniting to finally change student aid programs for the better.
The Pitt News
University of Pittsburgh
Atheist. For many, the very word carries a sinister connotation. An atheist is someone who is selfish and immoral or someone who doesn't care about anyone or believe in anything.
That seems to be the social stigma in this country, anyway. An April 2006 study published by the American Sociological Association found that America's most distrusted minority is not Muslims, recent immigrants or homosexuals-it's atheists. A 1999 Gallup poll found that a mere 51 percent of Americans would vote for "a generally well qualified" atheist candidate nominated by their party for president. Meanwhile, over 90 percent would vote for a black, Jew, woman, Catholic or Baptist but only 59 percent would vote for a homosexual. And what group are Americans least willing to let their children marry? That's right-atheists.
People hate what they fear, and fear what they don't understand. But why do atheists seem to be so misunderstood? After all, they're everywhere. About 17 percent of Americans are atheist or agnostic. But then, most probably keep their non-belief to themselves.
I can't exactly blame them-considering my own experience. When I tell people I'm an atheist (formerly Christian), some find it offensive and some feel sorry for me. Some seem surprised that I have any compassion for others or even the will to live. Many are simply curious but virtually none have any idea what I believe or value.
So I tell them. I say that I think people should be kind, forgiving, and tolerant towards one another. I assert my belief in human rights and democratic government. I explain how I am humbled and awed by the universe as science can reveal it to us-a universe far stranger and bigger, in my opinion, than any god that anyone has ever imagined.
And you know what? It works. People lose their instinctive hostility toward atheism. That's why I wish more atheists in this country and on this campus would be open about their worldviews. We can't expect others to understand us if we keep hiding.
Eric Frey
freyew@muohio.edu
Student loan bill aids college bound students
Congress passed legislation approving an extensive overhaul of federal student loan programs Friday. The bill will dramatically reduce subsidies to lenders and put more money into grants for needy students.
Finally, some good news from Congress. It's about time we stopped over-subsidizing banks. Money should be given straight to the students where it is needed the most.
Among other things, this bill will increase the maximum Pell Grant. By reducing subsidies to lenders by about $20 billion, Congress will be able to raise the annual Pell Grant from $4,310 to $5,400 per year over the next five years.
Furthermore, the bill will offer pardons on student loans to college graduates who work for 10 years or more in public service professions like teaching. This is a great idea. Students who work in such professions usually end up paying back their college loans for the rest of their lives, but this will ease the financial burden immensely.
Now, students will probably have a greater incentive to go into those public service professions.
But, like every piece of legislation, this bill was met with some opposition. Lenders claim that the reductions would push some of them out of business and decrease competition, ultimately reducing lending services to students. However, we can't help but think that lenders are just worried about their own welfare. Investigations have shown that lenders have, in the past, gone so far as to give free travel, gifts and monetary incentives to colleges so that colleges would be inclined to guide students in their direction.
A few Republicans have also opposed the bill. According to The New York Times, Rep. John A. Boehner of Ohio, former chairman of the Education Committee, said that the subsidy cuts "will cripple the private sector loan program." Other House Republicans criticized parts of the bill for being similar to socialism. However, it's important to keep in mind that, according to The New York Times, many of these Republicans had received large campaign contributions from lenders in the past. And people wonder why so many college students are Democrats.
Economically, the Republicans claim, the bill would prove irresponsible in the future. But we disagree. It is, in fact, the old system that has already proven itself unreliable for students and was in need of major changes.
As some Republicans complain about the bill, Democrats in Congress are quick to take full credit for it. When Democratic Rep. George Miller of California told The New York Times that while Republicans took billions of dollars away from federal student aid programs last year, "we took $11.39 billion and put it back into Pell Grants. That's the difference that an election makes."
Maybe so, but we're not ready to bow down at their feet just yet. True, they've managed to do something positive, but it's one of the few positive things they've done since they took control of Congress. We hoped for a lot more.
At the same time, however, their efforts should not go completely unappreciated. This bill was largely a Democratic accomplishment, and they deserve credit for uniting to finally change student aid programs for the better.
The Pitt News
University of Pittsburgh
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