Bureaucracies move slowly. But the speed with which UB's functions rivals even the snail's pace at the Department of Motor Vehicles. The oft-delayed iPrint@UB project coupled with problems in bringing halal food to campus for its Muslim population are only the latest in the bureaucratic nonsense that slows down what should be quick-and-easy processes at UB.
The printing program, a plan initially expected to begin at the start of this fall semester, will begin a trial run next year before being instituted everywhere on campus. Since rising printing costs are the genesis of the program, its importance should have led to fast-track implementation. The program's initial delay caused by vendor issues was understandable, but what's the excuse for next year's preview? If printing costs are so unreasonable high, this program should have been on a fast track to completion.
Not providing a reasonable food option on campus for upwards of 1,500 UB Muslims is simply not acceptable. Finding a meal on campus shouldn't cause devout Muslim students problems, but it has. The delay in bringing about halal food to campus is even more outrageous when compared to the plentiful selection offered to UB's Jewish community. It's true Muslim students could eat kosher foods, as they are prepared in similar ways, but Muslim SA has done more than its part to see halal foods brought to Putnam's. Any smart business would do everything possible to deliver a product to a waiting market, but FSA still drags its feet.
Both delays arose due to third party issues that inevitably arise when doing business. But where there's a will, there's a way, and UB needs to move forward with solving these problems instead of making excuses. It's reminiscent of the yet-to-be-seen parking lot decks and unrealized NFTA bus pass plan for students. The bottom line is UB needs to get it done. No more excuses, please.
Do as we say, not as we do
U.S. chemical weapon use in Iraq won't win us any friends
In the run-up to the Iraq war, numerous justifications were presented for preemptive warfare. One was the Iraqi people needed liberation from Saddam Hussein's tyrannous regime, which had used chemical weapons to kill them along with their Iranian neighbors in the past.
Though there were no WMD, which was the main reason for invading, the Iraqi population being freed from Saddam's grip made the whole endeavor worthwhile, or so the war hawks told us. Never again would the Iraqi people face torture chambers or the WMD Saddam's henchmen used on them.
But since Baghdad fell, we have seen torture return to Iraq by U.S. forces. And now comes word that chemical weapons were used during the siege of Fallujah by our military in 2004. White phosphorus, or WP, was used "as an incendiary weapon against enemy combatants," military spokesman Lt. Col. Barry Venable confirmed.
WP is a spontaneously flammable chemical normally used for battlefield illumination. It's particles cause burning of the flesh, and if hit, one's skin will be burned until deprived of oxygen, right down to the bone. International treaties outlaw its use against humans, and Iraq has begun an investigation to determine if WP was used on Fallujah's citizens.
Tragically, the rest of the world, but not the U.S. corporate media, are following the chemical weapons story closely. And it's hypocritical actions like these that cause dissatisfaction towards the United States among the world. If we employ chemical weapons against Iraqis, we lose the moral high ground. It seems U.S. military actions against Iraqis are mirroring those used by Saddam against Iraqis. Democracy marches on.
