ABOUT OPINION Shonna Johnstone, editor opinion-editor.shorthorn@uta.edu Wednesday, November 28, 2012
OPINION
REMEMBER The Shorthorn invites students, university employees and alumni to submit guest columns to the Opinion page. Page 7A
THE SHORTHORN
YOUR VIEW
Know your status: protect yourself, others
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World AIDS Day provides education, awareness and remembrance
hen I was about 13, my uncle died of cancer. At least, that’s what my mother told my brother, sister and me, because she didn’t know how we would react to finding out our uncle was gay and actually died of AIDS. Over time, I learned his death meant more to me than that. When my mother finally realized that my liking men wasn’t just a phase, she started pressing on the need for me to be safe, often citing HIV/AIDS statistics and encouraging me to use condoms. I, like many people in different scenarios, thought I would never get HIV/AIDS, and thankfully, I haven’t. But I also know my status. In addition to engaging in safe sex, knowing your status can help prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS through sexual acts and blood. It is detrimental for everyone, not just the lesbi-
JOSE D. ENRIQUEZ III Enriquez is a journalism senior and print managing editor for The Shorthorn. Join the discussion by commenting at theshorthorn.com. an, gay, transgender and bisexual community, to protect themselves — and to protect those they engage. In 1988, the world held its first World AIDS Day, which is on the first of December of each year. The day gives us an opportunity to unite against HIV, show support for people
living with it and remember those who have died. Today, there is an estimated 33.3 million who live with HIV globally, according to worldaidsday.org, and more than 25 million people have died between 1981 and 2007, making it “one of the most destructive pandemics in history.” Health Services will have HIV/AIDS education information available from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday in the University Center Palo Duro Lounge, but questions can be answered at any time with an appointment from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday by phone at 817-272-2771 or through the Health Services website. Knowing your status and those you have sex with protects lives. I know my status. Do you know yours? Get tested.
EDITORIAL/OUR VIEW
Cheers, not jeers Keep it positive at games by not yelling insults UTA’s men’s and women’s basketball teams won’t have another home game until the women host UT-Pan American on Tuesday. That’s a lot of time to learn from the record-breaking Homecoming game, which boasted UTA’s largest basketball crowd at 6,421. It was an intense back-and-forth game that came down to the wire, but there’s a role the fans play in the scheme of things. The atmosphere was live and the arena was loud. In a wash of blue and orange there were specks of Oklahoma Sooner crimson, but Maverick pride was definitely in the air. There were signs with phrases like “Sink the Sooners,” “Sooner or Later” and even big cutout heads of UTA players. It was a good time to be a Maverick, but there were some moments where the College Park Center showed a little less-thanusual southern hospitality. There were several people shouting, “F*** OU,” and UTA’s cute attempt, led by the Wranglers, saying “push it” in response to a call against UTA’s favor. The “push it” is suppose to sound like a crude phrase that starts with “bull.” Crowd spirit is important. In a previous article, Sabrina DeNure, women’s basketball team senior point guard, said the crowd’s chants of “de-fense” and “UTA” motivate her to play harder. But when chants turn into jeers, who benefits? Shouts like “push it” don’t fuel Maverick athletes, they show disrespect to the officials. “F*** OU” doesn’t encourage more high-flying dunks and fast breaks from UTA, it makes the game personal. In the 1994 NBA Playoffs, the New York Knicks were leading former star Reggie Miller and the Indiana Pacers. Notable Knicks fan and director Spike Lee taunted Reggie throughout, and in the fourth quarter, Miller made it personal. In the final quarter, Miller made 25 baskets and would look at Spike after every shot. The Pacers came back and won, and the city of New York blamed Spike Lee for the loss, saying that he fueled Miller to perform so well. Cheer for your team, celebrate each amazing play, but don’t be disrespectful. — The Shorthorn Editorial Board
IDEOLOGY by Venecia Jones
Since 1919
WORLD AIDS DAY When: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday Where: University Center Palo Duro Lounge Cost: Free What: Health Services will provide educational information about HIV/AIDS Not able to attend? Set up an appointment with Health Services for information.
HEALTH SERVICES When: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday Where: 605 S. West St., behind the College of Business Building Cost: Varies by service To make an appointment, contact 817-272-2771 or visit www.uta.edu/healthservices
YOUR VIEW
Israeli-Palestinian crisis hits home Violent situation affects the United States more than Americans think
The Shorthorn: Venecia Jones
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ecently, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict appeared in the news because of new escalations. It’s easy to have a large disconnect from the situation when you watch burning buildings and suffering people from the other side of the world on the evening news. Just because these people are not geographically near us in the U.S., the Israel-Palestine conflict is very much our problem. Israel is the U.S.’ only strong ally in the Middle East. There seems to be a fear that if the U.S. did not support Israel, then we would face a security threat. All the evidence says otherwise. In his last recording before his death, Osama bin Laden warned that there would be no security in the U.S. until there was security in Palestine. Has the U.S. invited insecurity by ignoring the security of Palestinians? Of course the U.S. cannot negotiate with terrorists, but we learned from 9/11 that we also cannot ignore them. Israel has violated 79 U.N. Security Council resolutions and the U.S. is the only country to use veto power to prevent Israel’s consequences. It’s also apparent that despite the many appearances of Israeli officials on news outlets claiming self-defense, Israel’s goal is to “use terror, assassination, intimidation, land confiscation, and the cutting of all social services to rid the Galilee of its Arab population.” When Palestinian rockets have managed to kill three Israelis and Israeli missiles, accurate as they may seem, have killed more than 130 Palestinians, who is defending what? Not only is the U.S.’ support of Israel’s use of brute force compromising our national security and inviting terrorists to see us as sympathizing with the aggressor, but the U.S. government is depleting our resources to support killing innocents. In the last ten years, the U.S. has given Israel $3 billion, more than $8.5 million a
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Dustin L. Dangli EMAIL editor.shorthorn@uta.edu
RACHEL ELMALAWANY Elmalawany is an English language senior and columnist for The Shorthorn. Join the discussion by commenting at theshorthorn.com. day, in military aid to defend itself in a land that was forcibly taken. Palestine received no military aid. In addition, the U.S. has already spent $900 million investing in Israel’s Iron Dome and in May of this year, passed the Fiscal Year 2013 National Defense Authorization Act, H.R. 4310, with $680 million for Iron Dome in Section 227. Our only cost isn’t just military aid, but the vast amount of humanitarian aid required by Palestine for its suffering citizens. Food, medical supplies, clothing and water are all needed by citizens of Gaza and the West Bank who suffer from an average of 33.5 percent unemployment. Israel controls and administers resources such as electricity and clean water and has often withheld these in order to pressure Palestinians to leave. What would we be able to do domestically with all the money spent on Israel, which ultimately compromises our own security? Perhaps we’d be able to better fund our state universities, find better alternative energy sources or bail out more banks. Since Israel’s establishment in 1948, Jewish-
The Shorthorn is the official student newspaper of the University of Texas at Arlington and is published weekly during fall and spring and summer semesters. Unsigned editorials are the opinion of THE SHORTHORN EDITORIAL BOARD and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of individual student writers or editors, Shorthorn advisers or university administration.
only settlements have pushed farther and farther into Palestinian territory, causing a mass Palestinian Diaspora, ironically the same type of Diaspora the Jews encountered for thousands of years. Creating Jewish-only neighborhoods, roads and schools is also the same type of ethnic cleansing experienced by the Jews. Former Israel Defense Force officers confirm Israel’s hand in the situation. “We treat [the Palestinians] as animals and this is the result,” said Yonatan Schapira, former IDF captain, to BBC news on Jan. 6, 2009. “As Jewish people, we know that you cannot kill the desire of people to be free.” A group of orthodox rabbis formed an organization, Neturei Karta, to demonstrate religious opposition to the establishment of a Jewish state, saying “the Torah forbids us to end the exile and establish a state and army until the Holy One, blessed He, in His Glory and Essence will redeem us. This is forbidden even if the state is conducted according to the law of the Torah because arising from the exile itself is forbidden, and we are required to remain under the rule of the nations of the world, as is explained in the book vayoel moshe.” Many cite the re-establishment of a Jewish state to be the sign of Biblical end-times and therefore welcome and support Israel. However, according to the orthodox rabbis of Neturei Karta, when God decides to bring the Jews home, they will not have to do it by military force, displacing and killing thousands of people. This is in addition to the thousands of Israeli citizens protesting their government’s use of force to subjugate the Palestinians. The Israel-Palestine problem is not just Israel’s and Palestine’s problem. It is America’s fiscal and moral problem. Flood the White House mailbox with letters saying that you don’t want to be part of this problem anymore or jam the voice mail by calling the president at 202-456-1111.
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