Know what you’re saying

When I opened the Nov. 6 issue of The GW Hatchet and read the “Network Down” editorial (p.4), I was really surprised. The first line is a quote from GW Vice President and Treasurer Louis Katz describing why GW does not have sufficient funding to match its technological goals.

The quote reads, “We had to go by `rule of thumb.’ ” For the unaware, in English vernacular, “rule of thumb” refers to an obvious solution or doing things the way they have always been done. However, the phrase originated in English common law, where a man was permitted to beat his wife as long as the rod he used was no bigger than the width of his thumb.

Katz’s statement and all its mysoginistic connotations is disrespectful to women and men alike. I write this letter as a student at GW who is in disbelief that a man in the highest echelon of GW’s administration could actually use this phrase and not know what he’s saying.

I now realize that most people don’t know where this phrase originated or what it implies. I also assume Vice President Katz meant no disrespect at all. I doubt Vice President Katz even knew what he was saying, and this is what saddens me the most. We should all know what we’re saying and where the phrases we use come from. This a letter of constructive criticism and an effort to educate. Violence against women, and language that refers to it, should never be considered a commonality.

-Jess BrinnWIN member

Proposition 209

I applaud the thoughtful editorial on Proposition 209 (the California law barring affirmative action) that appeared in the Nov. 6 edition of The GW Hatchet (“Effects of Prop 209,” p.4).

It did, however, include an erroneous statement: The U.S. Supreme Court has not ruled that the law is constitutional. It simply declined to review the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The law may therefore take effect, but the Supreme Court can still decide to rule on the law’s constitutionality later, in a case involving a litigant who claims harm by virtue of the law’s operation.

-Cynthia Harrisonassociate professor of history and women’s studies

Breaking stereotypes

The brothers of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity would like to thank the entire GW and Foggy Bottom community for participating in the 1997 “Brothers Feeding Others” canned food drive Oct. 21-Nov.1.

With the help of GW students, Foggy Bottom residents and Safeway Supermarkets, the GW chapter collected more than 2,700 pounds of canned goods to support the Healthy Babies Project of Washington, D.C., which helps pregnant women and newborn infants find food, clothing and shelter.

This event, which is Lambda Chi Alpha’s annual international philanthropic endeavor, took place at more than 200 college campuses and raised more than 1,000,000 pounds of food to benefit various worthy charities.

Lambda Chi Alpha, along with the entire Greek-letter community at GW, is dedicated to community service and fundraising events in D.C. and around the world. In the future, I would hope that rather than focusing on selective scandalous activities of some Greek organizations, The GW Hatchet would present a more balanced view of the fraternities and sororities on campus by recognizing the positive impact of the Greek community.

-Eric Sokolovevice president, Lambda Chi Alpha, Delta Xi chapter