Letters to the editor

Objectivity To the Editor: I am writing out of concern for the objectivity that you display your news. Your recent article on a British author ("Author says Britain has become a jihadist hotbed," DP, 11/15/06) had a front-page teaser that read, "A cultural assault." But an earlier headline of a speaker giving a talk at the Muslim Students Association read, "Israel media bias?" The question mark says it all. The reader is lead to accept the validity of an extremist position while questioning one that has more merit, and one which you have ironically aided in its support. Secondly, I am appalled that a speaker such as this could be brought to speak on campus and be met with agreement. Asserting "Western civilization" should suppress Muslim immigration is disturbingly white supremacist, and is akin to reasoning that we in the United States should ship all black people back to Africa because they don't assimilate into mainstream society and are a "hotbed" of criminal activity. How dare anyone insinuate that the presence of an entire group of people poses danger to a society when in fact we all know that every West Philadelphian we meet is not a murderer, nor are such miscreants only blacks.

Blake Willmarth Wharton researcher

Flippant letter To the Editor: I found the last two lines of Laura Gutman's letter to the editor ("Very disappointed," DP, 11/7/06) regarding President Amy Gutmann's actions on Halloween to be flippant and insulting. The Penn community, like this country, is composed of a wide variety of individuals with diverse viewpoints, behaviors and ideals. As a student of the university, I find the suggestion that the action of the president reduces the University to something less than "fine" to be inflammatory and of little use in initiating a productive dialogue about the incident and its impact. One cannot assume that President Gutmann speaks for the entire University on this issue or any other, particularly as a non-elected individual. Duke University, where Laura Gutman is professor emeritus, underwent its own difficult time last spring and I would not suggest that the entire community there is represented by a handful of students or administrators. On a day when Americans, including members of the Penn community, will express their varying opinions at the voting booth, please do not assume that this university is now bereft of fine individuals or thoughts.

Julia Kerns Nursing sophomore

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