Opinions: Letter's to the Editor

 published on Monday, March 3, 2008

Walk this way

(In response to Friday's column by Jacqueline Capo titled "Walking 101: How to manage campus chaos")

I agree wholeheartedly with the Walking 101 article. I think this every day. I am not only a pedestrian on campus, but I also bike and drive the golf carts, and every situation I'm in, I get very frustrated. I try to be as considerate as I can, but I feel like once people step out of class and onto the mall, their brains turn off. Walking 101 for real!

Kate Lathrop
Undergraduate

No smart cookie

(In response to Friday's "Boos & Bravos")

I find it interesting to observe the incongruence of advocating party alcohol drinking with no regard to the damage and waste it causes and the battle or war brought on by the temptation of Girl Scout cookies.

Sharon Hamilton
Staff

Railing on Metro

(In response to Thursday's column by Monique DeVoe titled "Finally seeing the light")

Unfortunately, Ms. DeVoe is woefully unaware that implementing light rail transit in the Valley will actually increase air pollution and traffic congestion (time spent commuting), as acknowledged by Valley Metro themselves in mandatory environmental impact statements submitted to the federal government. It is built at grade level and will take away lanes of road that are used by more commuters than will ever make use of rail transit. Light rail will have the right of way and will back up traffic, increasing pollution (carbon monoxide) as the cars idle.

Of course DeVoe will be happy to ride the rail free, but every time she boards the light rail it will cost the taxpayer $13. That's $26 a day a hard-working person will have to spend on her if she makes a round trip.

The question is: Is making DeVoe happy worth spending billions to buy ourselves more air pollution and traffic congestion?

Becky Fenger
Local Citizen

Excuse me, student section

On Thursday, I walked out of Wells Fargo Arena feeling dejected, and it wasn't because our men's basketball team lost the game. It was because six of the seven sections of students in attendance didn't do their job of creating a winning environment on our home court (some call this "home-court advantage"). Sure, in the first half, it was a close, defensive game, and the crowd was into it, but once UCLA started widening the gap at the start of the second half, our student section threw in the towel when our team refused to. If you are going to leave after halftime when things start to look ugly, do me a favor and wear a green shirt, sit in the upper deck, and leave after the woman on the unicycle who catches bowls on her head finishes her act. How dare you come early, wear gold, become a fair-weather fan and call yourself a Sun Devil. I mentioned that there was one section of students that did their job Thursday, and that was section M—the ASU Pep Band, and I know that the members of the ASU Pep Band will continue to be the torch-bearers of creating a home-court advantage at Wells Fargo Arena.

All I am asking for is a little consistency and unswerving support of our school's athletes. The student section is supposed to be supportive of our teams through thick and thin, through injuries and in health, for better or for Wildcats till graduation do us part.

Randy G. Coté
Undergraduate