Opinions: Letters to the editor

 published on Monday, April 7, 2008

"Overpopulation" is overused

(In response to Friday's column by Lindsay Wood titled "Undereducated equals overpopulated")

While Lindsay Wood is championing for a noble cause, the education of women in around the world, she asks us to join her because it will reduce "overpopulation."

Now, I'd like to ask Lindsay how she defines the term "overpopulation." Because all of the research I have done upon the word has turned up nothing. Currently, the term is just a buzzword that means nothing. The Population Reference Bureau has a whole page devoted to this fact. It seems that they have been flooded over the years with requests for "overpopulation" statistics, and they just don't exist.

Anyone interested overpopulation should look this up. There have been definitions proposed, and the site lists them, but each falls short of being an acceptable term. The term "overpopulation" is an indefinable term, and its use in either an argument or as the justification for action results in a logical fallacy of ambiguity.

So until a definition is given, any arguments about the subject are futile and pointless.

Remington Miller
Undergraduate

Don't be so quick to object abjunct

(In response to Friday's article by Daniel Newhauser titled "Drop-out, part-time teacher numbers linked")

The headline of your piece should be "ASU administrators refuse to support temporary faculty, and student retention rates suffer."

Dr. Jaeger found a pattern in data. Period. She then went on to make an irresponsible supposition unsupported by her research or anyone else's. She "guessed" that the retention rate differences were a result of part-time faculty not having time to talk with their students. Maybe the type of student who frequents a large lecture course impacts the retention rate; maybe it's impacted by the discipline in which the course is offered. No one knows yet. Dr. Jaeger's data does not include analyses of anything except the type of course and the type of faculty member who taught it.

Further, it's not because part-time faculty teach the courses that student retention is adversely impacted; it's because college and university officials choose time and again to use slipshod hiring methods, to evaluate part-time faculty using only student evaluations and to compensate them inadequately so that many are simply unable to concentrate their efforts on a cohort of students at a single university.

P.D. Lesko
Executive editor, Adjunct Advocate magazine

Stepping it up

(In response to Thursday's guest column by Janell Pratt titled "Proceed with caution")

Thank you so much to Janell for bringing experience and perspective on this issue. I don't speak for all men, but I argue that few of us have a true perception of what women have to deal with in our culture. As men, we typically don't have to worry about walking late at night to our car or apartment, taking random shortcuts, checking over our shoulder, etc. As you pointed out, one in six women will be sexually assaulted. The honest truth is that one in 1000 is still far too high of a statistic.

Women do need to be aware and get educated. However, I think there is a definite need for men to step up to the plate here. We as men need to look out for women, walking them to their cars, dorms, apartments, etc. This is not from some chauvinistic attitude either, but one of care and compassion.

Not only that, but we as men need to call each other out too. It is in no way honorable to keep a secret or not confront a fellow man on something as dishonorable as sexual assault, or to even joke about such matters.

Women, I'm sorry you have to even think about dealing with such issues in your lives. Men, step up and do something honorable for a change rather than being complacent on a major societal issue.

Dahvede Wood
Undergraduate