Open Process resolution defeated at Union meeting

A Student Union resolution for a more open process in the administrations decision making about controversial issues was defeated on Sunday night, causing some members of Students Opposing the Decision to Arm to express a lack of confidence in the Union.

The resolution, submitted by North Quad Senator Kaamila Mohamed 11, Class of 2008 Senator Darren Gallant, and Senator-at-Large Jessica Blumberg 09, said when controversial or highly contested issues are brought forth to the campus, a committee should be formed to actively engage the Student Body and gather opinions and concerns on those issues.

Union Senator works to bring Zipcars to campus

Class of 2008 Senator Asher Tanenbaum has begun efforts to bring Zipcar, the car sharing progam, to Brandeis. In order to gauge student interest, Tanenbaum will conduct a survey within the next few weeks.

We will go from there and if it is a very positive response it will go a long way towards implementing Zipcar at Brandeis, Tanenbaum wrote in an email.

Two candidates run for open Union Secretary spot

Candidates Nelson Rutrick 09 and Tia Chatterjee 09 began campaigns for the position of Student Union Secretary on Monday. The special elections, called in response to the former Union Secretarys resignation, will open for its primary round on Nov. 18. If necessary, a final round will open Tuesday Nov. 20.

Former secretary Michael Goldman 08 resigned Nov. 1 citing irreconcilable differences with the Executive Board over policies regarding arming campus police and the apparent illegality of the Racial Minority Senator position, as published in the Nov. 2 issue of The Hoot. Special elections for the position of secretary were announced in an email sent out Nov. 6 to the entire student body.

Holocaust survivor speaks at Kristallnacht ceremony

Sidney Finkel, a Holocaust survivor, recounted his experiences as a child in Nazi Europe Sunday at Hillels Holocaust Remembrance Committees Kristallnacht Commemoration ceremony. His address was the culmination of a weekends worth of events hosted by Hillel that memorialized the Holocaust.

Finkel, 75, spoke about the progression of anti-Semitism during his boyhood in Poland, which reached its pinnacle with the systematic mass extermination of Jews. According to Finkel, anti-Semitism had been manifested in more passive aggressive means [before Kristallnacht or the night of broken glass]…after Kristallnacht, Nazis began to bully [the Jews. This]eventually led to the Final Solution.

Prejudice Response Task Force:

The Community Prejudice Response Task Force is a group of staff, faculty, and students which was formed in the fall of 2006 to deal with issues of discrimination affecting the Brandeis community.

As its mission statement says, the CPR taskforce aims to promote the Universitys commitments to mutual respect and social justice, while taking necessary steps should those commitments be compromised. Our mission is to serve the Brandeis student body in addressing acts of bias, intentional or accidental, by offering resources for students seeking advice, while assuring their safety and well-being on campus.

Write On: Writers silently speak

Ok, admit it, youre as upset as most other people that Greys Anatomy just may not air for some time after January. So why is this? What would prevent this popular show and countless others from airing?

Well, unless youve been living under a rock or relying on your TiVo to show you everything lately, Im sure youve heard of the writers strike thats going on. The Writers Guild of America recently decided to strike after having just about enough with those oh-so-powerful Hollywood producers.

Why I refuse to drink

During my first semester at Brandeis, I took Introduction to Political Theory with Professor Abramson. Among other wonderful works the entire class was required to read the Platonic dialogue the Crito. In this work, Socrates is in jail and is sentenced to be executed. His friend Crito says that he has bribed the jailer, and Socrates can make his escape. Socrates then replies that he will stay for his execution. He explains that he does not have the right to go against the laws of the state, and he is ready to accept his punishment. This piece struck me in a profound way. What right do I have to determine which laws are good and which are unjust? How do I have the audacity to assume that I am brighter than our politicians and have the ability to break laws? From that point forward, I resolved never to break a law again. This has most notably manifested itself in my unwillingness to consume alcoholic beverages. Though we are at college, for the past two years, I have perhaps once broken this solemn vow. Id like to rationalize this position and perhaps change perceptions about a popularly accepted activity.

SODA’s stance on guns

Chrissy Callahan recently had an editorial in The Hoot about the public safety officers at Brandeis University (“Give the police a chance,” Nov. 9). This is the only way I can characterize the piece;

it did not seem to really address the issue of arming said officers. She proved her points very well, but they did not seem to respond to the criticisms of Students Opposing the Decision to Arm (SODA) and others. As a member of SODA, I would like to address Callahans article and the framing of the argument in general.

Book of Matthew: Special Edition: Guns

Welcome to a special edition of the Book of Matthew. As promised, I would like to take the time to reflect on letters and articles written on an issue that has divided our school. Im talking about guns.

We all know that this world is not perfect. Violence occurs everyday, and a large portion of it is gun violence. Unfortunately, this violence has caused our society to view all guns as evil implements of death. While it is true that gun crimes are terrible tragedies, murder in cold blood is not the sole purpose of guns. Guns can be used a powerful deterrent to stop tragic crimes, without even being fired. Yes, there are people who should never be allowed to hold guns, but there are also people who should never go to work without them.

Our friend the dictator

Pakistan has a brutal history of military dictatorships, but when General Pervez Musharraf instituted a state of emergency a little less than two weeks ago, Pakistanis got to experience something unprecedented in their political history. For the first time, heavily armed Pakistan police besieged the countrys courts. Musharrafs megalomaniacal move was designed to prevent the Supreme Court from ruling that his reelection last month was illegitimate.