Students for Staff must present concrete argument
No one will contest that poverty exists in Butler County. Many Miami University students come from households with six-figure annual incomes; they may be surprised to see how little some of our valued classified staff takes home in the same period. Unfortunately, the organization devoted to shedding light on this issue of utmost importance, Students for Staff, has made quick work this semester of abandoning its credibility with the student body and the administration in appearances at Colin Powell's recent lecture and the State of the Student Body Address. Neither of these were appropriate venues to debate the university's human resources policies. Noble as their goals may be, Students for Staff cannot change Miami's wage practices on its own, but the group seems unwilling to make the arguments and alliances necessary to do so.
In a letter to The Miami Student last week, Benjamin Kuebrich alleged that staff members critical of the administration were barred from the Classified Personnel Advisory Committee; accused President David Hodge and Associated Student Government of ignoring the issue of classified staff wages; and implied that Miami was guilty of union-busting and anti-labor practices. I am in no place to refute Kuebrich's claims, but he gives me little reason to take them seriously. The courtroom is the place for such allegations, but Students for Staff's empty rhetoric would amount to what legal professionals call hearsay, which is inadmissible both to the courts and to the logical listener. You don't have to be an attorney to know how to use reliable, public information to back up an argument; Miami students do it every day when we cite sources in our papers. We learn in class to question everything; Students for Staff's arguments are not an exception.
The time for "don't tase me" theatrics and populist slogans has come and gone for Students for Staff. Today, their self-righteous tactics indicate contempt for their audience. I beg of you, Students for Staff, show us the smoking gun. Show us the documents outlining the earnings. Show us the classified staff members and let us hear their stories in their own words. Yelling about the issue is no longer enough; it's time to lead us in lasting action. If you reach out to us students, instead of reaching over us whenever a microphone is present, you can build the alliances that will help you win. Otherwise, you run the risk of making your current position in students' eyes-an annoyance-into a permanent one. Your cause is too important to let that happen.
Taylor Wesselswesseltd@muohio.edu
Closing of newspaper loss to local media coverage
Your account of the closing of the Cincinnati and Kentucky Post newspapers ("Post closes, Web site remains," Jan. 25 by Sarah Foster) underscored a loss that I think many in greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky felt with the demise of the Post. Our region, like many other metropolitan areas nationwide that I have seen afternoon newspaper close, lost a valuable asset-a competing editorial voice. I believe we're all diminished by that. I also wanted to express my appreciation for your mention of kypost.com, the online successor of the Kentucky Post. Kypost.com is seeking to pick up where the post left off by continuing as a news and information source solely dedicated to northern Kentucky. Thanks for your fine report.
Kerry DukeManaging Editor Kypost.comKerry.duke@kypost.com
Problems in Kenya require consensus, new elections
The international media houses have concentrated on the Kenyan crisis for a long time now, the latest news being the fact that the former United Nations chief is spearheading peace talks. It is sad that our country, which has been an icon of peace in the horn of Africa, now faces the same problems that it was helping countries like Somalia solve. It is good that there are peace negotiations going on and that a potential solution is possible. On the other hand, the opposition leader, Raila Odinga allegedly told his supporters that the talks were not helping. He is a very influential leaders and anything that he says, especially to his Lou tribe, passes as the ultimate truth. I believe that the fighting in the Kenyan towns has changed the societal coercion that existed between tribes, a situation that has brought about tension and uncertainty. I believe that this will remain to be the situation for a long time in the towns that are predominantly inhabited by the major nilotic and Bantu tribes. In my own understanding, all the other 41 tribes of Kenya are fed up with the capitalistic nature of the Kikuyu tribe, which led to the rigging of the elections. This tribe controls the economy of the country because they live in the fertile highlands that produce coffee and tea, two of our major foreign exchange earners. Why should Miami University care anyway? Since I joined Miami in August 2006, more than four educational trips have been taken to Kenya and one is actually underway, led by Dragon Fly. Kenya has been a good base for conducting field research involving water, animals, anthropology and geology among others. With the war, however, travel advisories are issued, scaring researchers and tourists away. As it is currently, I think that the best alternative would be a re-run of the elections, and then the Kenyans would decide in a clearer way who their leader should be. I do not disregard the effectiveness of a coalition government. My only concern is whether they will be able to make any policies in one consensus, judging from how different their views are today.
Ruoro MuruthiInternational Student from Kenyamuruthjr@muohio.edu
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