Letters to the Editor

No reason to be apathetic

To the Editor:

Jeff Millman's recent column (" Apathetic youth shun the polls," The Daily Pennsylvanian, 11/8/02) entirely misses the point. He blames politicians for ignoring our age cohort and failing to engage us, labeling this as the primary reason for our neglect to vote. This is simply another ready-made excuse for our continued apathy.

The real point is that we have no one to blame but ourselves. Of course the current domestic issues are centered around Social Security and prescription drugs -- senior citizens vote in the greatest numbers, therefore politicians have a reason to address their concerns.

Our age cohort, on the other hand, continually has an incredibly weak voter turnout. If we did vote in larger numbers, our issues of choice would be addressed. Instead, we choose to be apathetic and, frankly, lazy, and then we whine after the fact that politicians don't listen to us. Why should they?

I've heard a whole host of excuses on why people in our age range weren't voting: they had class, it was too cold, or they didn't know enough about the candidates.

The reality is that politicians are not going to listen to our age cohort until we give them a reason to do so. If we don't get involved in politics, then we really have no right to complain.

While it's easier to blame the politicians, people our age need to realize that we have only ourselves to blame, and if we want things to change, sitting on the couch won't make it happen -- voting will.

Miya Rahamim College '03

A bias in divestment

To the Editor:

I applaud Ted Rosenbaum's recent opinion piece (" The other side of human rights and divestment," DP, 11/12/02) pointing out the biased, one-sided approach of those urging divestment from Israel.

This bias is clear in the divestment petition itself, which cites only one half of UN Resolution 242. The petition calls for the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from the occupied territories, yet it completely ignores the verbiage in 242 that demands the "Termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgement of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force" and "the need to work for a just and lasting peace in which every State in the area can live in security."

It is this very lack of recognition of Israel's right to live in peace in secure borders -- epitomized by the current wave of terror attacks against Israeli civilian men, women and children -- that has been at the heart of the crisis in the Middle East. The unconscionable omission of the very language that calls for peace is a disgrace. Divestment only rewards those militant Palestinians who have chosen terrorism over negotiation and co-existence.

It will increase the pain of innocent Israelis suffering the physical, emotional and economic effects of terrorism. it will not increase the chances of a peaceful resolution. It is one-sided, biased and wrong.

Daniel Gruen College '83

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