Letters to the Editor

Female voices To the editor: The mission of PennForum is to encourage discussion and debate on Penn's campus. In a recent letter ("Letters: Excluding women," The Daily Pennsylvanian, 2/12/03), Penn for Peace accused PennForum of being sexist in its selection of panelists for events because of an apparent disproportionate number of men serving as panelists. We seek the most committed, passionate panelists possible, regardless of their race, gender or religion. Penn for Peace apparently had no issues with the arguments that were made at any of the debates, simply the fact that the people making them were of one gender. We frequently turn to student groups for panelists because their members are usually educated and passionate about their causes. The chair or president of a group is typically looked to as the spokesperson for that organization. And men lead the Penn political groups that were concerned with the issues we were discussing, including the ever-noble Penn for Peace. Additionally, Penn for Peace twisted PennForum's invitation to further its own arguments. As is customary, our organization initially invited more panelists than we would need in order to obtain diverse panelists and to compensate for panelists who may decline the invitation. We chose to pursue both Penn for Peace and Penn Students Against the War for Iraq, knowing that we would ultimately only choose one. Penn for Peace did not offer to send any female panelists. We chose the latter simply because that group is specifically involved with the Iraq issue, whereas Penn for Peace has broader interests. Finally, there are some facts about PennForum that Penn for Peace should have learned before making false and egregious accusations. Over half our executive board is female. Seventy-five percent of the active planning board is female. And every "sexist" event listed was chaired by females. So, according to Penn for Peace, we females do not believe our own "voices are of value in the public sphere." We suggest that the members of Penn for Peace learn to look beyond the surface before making false judgments. For that is true discrimination, and it is indeed a tragedy. Carrie GreeneCollege '05 The author is the recruitment coordinator and chairwoman of divestment discussion for PennForum. A right to be concerned To the editor: Over the past couple of days, I have been a little more unnerved by the news than my friends. Last week, Tom Ridge announced that the country was on "code orange" terror alert, the second-highest level of alert, and the highest we have been since Sept. 11. London and Washington D.C. are on extremely high alert, with armed forces mobilized in each city in an attempt to thwart any impending attack. Anti-ballistic missiles are already set up in Washington to protect the city, and federal officials have recommended that citizens prepare for a biological or chemical attack by stocking up on food and sealing their houses with duct tape and plastic sheeting. On the bright side, most Penn students will tell you to not be concerned. "It's probably all a government plot to rally support against Iraq," a friend told me yesterday. For many, Sept. 11 was just a bad dream that will never occur again. Some people joke about the color-coded threat system as it simply being Tom Ridge picking M&M;'s out of a bag and making a national announcement. It is this calm that makes me nervous. I lived all of last year under the real, daily threat of terrorism in Israel. There were threats everyday -- specific threats and tip-offs, citing where and when an attack would occur. Granted, I am not one to cower in fear, huddled in the corner of my room in lieu of intimidation; I did go to Israel in the first place, and as Israelis have shown, one cannot stop living his life out of fear. But some caution and concern is necessary for survival, and sure enough, many of those warnings in Israel unfortunately came true. Just take a peek outside our little bubble snuggled in West Philadelphia. Tensions in the world are coming to a boil, and it is high time for us to realize it. Jack CohenCollege '06

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