Opinions - The Eastern Echo

Wikileaks founder ousted

By Clement Daly · Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011

The High Court in London has dismissed the appeal of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, paving the way for his extradition to Sweden and eventually the United States. Assange has yet to be charged with any crime but is to be forcibly sent to Sweden to answer allegations of sexual assault and rape, despite his full cooperation with Swedish authorities and his offer to make himself available remotely for questioning in their investigation.

Commentary: Joe Paterno unfairly targeted

By Theodora Robinson-Jones · Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011

“Two wrongs don’t make a right.” It’s a lesson taught from the time we start grade school … at least most us.

Commentary: Cover-ups cause downfall of great men

By Neil Weinberg · Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011

You can’t put this back together. It’s on the ground in a million pieces. An icon, a legend and by all accounts a great man stood by and watched an assistant coach allegedly molest children.

Opponents of phone booth fail to grasp the big picture

By Sammy DeMarco · Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011

Recently we learned Physical Plant Chief of Operations John Donegan purchased an antique phone booth for $2,000.

Bill protects water from fracking

By Chris Hoitash · Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011

Is Michigan’s water supply worth protecting? An annarbor.com article reported “State Rep. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, joined other Democrats in Lansing Monday in urging House Republicans to take action to protect Michigan waters from fracking.

Personhood pushes agenda, not safety

By Patrick Seick · Sunday, Nov. 13, 2011

The Duggar Family is renown for one conspicuous feature: being the stars of the popular TV show “19 and Counting.” The show stars a mother, father and 19 children.

Meat regulations needed

By Silvana Taylor · Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011

One ongoing trend among health-conscious and animal-loving individuals is cutting out meats from their diets.

Corruption

By James Tatum · Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011

If you’ve followed the string of crises that have stricken America since the crash on Wall Street, you’ve heard we’ve suffered a housing crisis, credit crisis, job crisis, debt crisis and a financial crisis that really set off the previously mentioned crises. But what you haven’t heard of is any suffering from the oligarchy – or the 1 percent in this country – unless you read the Wall Street Journal where the super-rich go to whine.

Troop removal not an end

By Clement Daly · Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011

Three weeks ago, President Obama abruptly announced all U.S. troops would be withdrawn from Iraq by the end of the year after the breakdown of negotiations over extending the Status of Forces Agreement.

The Echo Water Cooler: Committee on Deficit Reduction

By Neil Weinberg and James Tatum · Wednesday, Nov. 9, 2011

_“With just five weeks until its deadline, a secretive Congressional committee seeking ways to cut the federal deficit is far from a consensus, and party leaders may need to step in if they want to ensure agreement, say people involved in the panel’s work,” reported the New York Times.

Occupy movement still effective without goals

By Patrick Seick · Sunday, Nov. 6, 2011

The Students for a Democratic Society was a group of mostly college and graduate students who caught national attention for seeking idealistic changes in the United States in early 1960s.

City council tries fixing budget mess

By Chris Hoitash · Sunday, Nov. 6, 2011

Ypsilanti’s City Council is trying to find ways to solve the city’s budget crisis, according to an annarbor.com article: “The Ypsilanti City Council instructed city staff to begin investigating a wide range of solutions to its projected $10.69 million budget shortfall.

Don't sweat the small things

By Neil Weinberg · Sunday, Nov. 6, 2011

It’s happening more and more. Something insignificant turns into a firestorm. You throw a stone into a river, and it floods the town.

Letter to the Editor: Gaddafi

By Erica Davis · Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011

I would like to commend The Eastern Echo on how they handled the sensitive subject of Gaddafi’s death.

Stop the religious double standards

By Silvana Taylor · Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011

Is practicing rituals that are associated with your religious beliefs offensive or insensitive? When an Islamic mosque was built near Ground Zero, several people seemed to think so. The terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center were very tragic, and I don’t think any American has forgotten the fear and sadness this event imparted. However, from a Constitutional standpoint, a document patriotic citizens often seem to reference, it’s simply not fair to halt the creation of a religious building.

Complacency

By Jesse Peck · Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011

I have discovered something that’s become a modern plague in today’s society. Something so profound and disturbing, it has become the standard for the average Joe: complacency.

Why exactly do we Occupy?

By James Tatum · Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2011

In a discussion I had with fellow columnist Neil Weinberg, I admitted I couldn’t tell him exactly what the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protesters were against, or what the desired outcome was for the demonstrations, but I did know they were protesting in the right place. I still can’t answer the first two questions; because of the decentralized nature of the movement there isn’t a list of demands.

Snyder tax cuts to drop gas prices

By Chris Hoitash · Sunday, Oct. 30, 2011

“Governor Rick Snyder plans to propose dropping the tax Michigan charges on each gallon of gasoline and diesel fuel in favor of a tax on the wholesale price of fuel, Snyder senior adviser Bill Rustem told the Associated Press on Tuesday. “The wholesale tax of 6 cents or 7 cents per gallon initially wouldn’t cost drivers any more than existing taxes, Rustem said.

Hug campaign to lead to happy world

By Patrick Seick · Sunday, Oct. 30, 2011

Juan Mann is not a familiar name. However, he is the genius – perhaps I use that word loosely — behind the adorable, “Free Hugs Campaign.” The Campaign, which began in 2004, began an international phenomenon of PDA.

Decline of Netflix

By Neil Weinberg · Sunday, Oct. 30, 2011

It’s been a bad year for Netflix. A 60-percent price hike came out of nowhere and turned the DVD portion of the company into Qwikster and then back to Netflix.