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The GW Hatchet

AN INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING THE GW COMMUNITY SINCE 1904

The GW Hatchet

Serving the GW Community since 1904

The GW Hatchet

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Officials name senior vice president, chief of staff
By Fiona Riley, Assistant News Editor • March 26, 2024

Letters to the Editor

Thank you for writing

A big thank you to all of you who submitted letters to the editor and online comments regarding Thursday’s article, “Univ. to phase out unofficial hippo mascot” (p. 1). In light of the University’s response, many of the concerns in these letters have been addressed, so we will not be printing them here.

Thanks again, and please continue to write in and express your opinions about the contents of The Hatchet or any campus, national or international issue.

Claire Autruong and Diana Kugel, Hatchet opinions editors

GOP success depends on return to ideals

In his recent piece (“Lose-lose situation for the GOP,” Sept. 18, p. 4), Robert Griffin argues that Republicans will have a hard time winning in the future because of a shrinking number of registered Republicans. This shift, however, is not due to a shift from conservatism, but because the Republican Party has lost its brand. Instead of standing firm on wasteful spending and a belief in small government, current Republicans have embraced the foolish big-government policies of the left. People are leaving the party, not because of a demographic shift, but because they have lost faith that the Republican Party still upholds the ideals of conservatism that won control of Congress in 1994.

There are still some stars in Congress today – Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., are a few – but by and large, Republicans are indiscernible from Democrats when it comes to fiscal discipline and government reform. It would be a disastrous move for Republicans to move toward the middle to win elections. Instead, Republican candidates must return to the ideals of conservatism that have been missing from the current Republican Party.

Jon Gottschalk, Senior, The GW Patriot

It’s the National Zoo, not GWU!

<pContrary to popular disbelief, the Hippo at The George Washington University will continue to be a staple of student life at GW in the future. We understand the GW's community's affinity toward the Hippo and we hold the Hippo as a proud tradition of GW culture. There has been no University discussion regarding changes to the presence and usage of the Hippo.

In 2001, the Hippo became a fixture on GW’s campus in the form of a bronze statue located in front of Lisner Auditorium. Since then it has evolved to be part of the spirit program and student life.

The Hippo will remain the University’s unofficial mascot as it always has been. GW fans will continue to see the Hippo at spirit program events and at its regularly scheduled appearances.

Hippo merchandise is still available at the bookstore and will continue to be available for purchase in the future. In discussions that had taken place last fall, there was a misinterpretation regarding the placement and utilization of Hippo designs on various types of merchandise. This lack of inventory should not have been perceived as a discontinuation of the Hippo but rather a delay in the restocking of Hippo merchandise until the matter was resolved. This provided us an opportunity to clarify how the Hippo design will be used moving forward. Now that this issue has been addressed, you should see a resurgence of Hippo novelty stock and general items in the bookstore. To punctuate the resolution of this issue, be on the lookout for a special commemorative t-shirt which will be available for purchase at the bookstore in the near future.

GW Colonials everywhere, past and present, can rest assured that even though the Hippo may be an endangered species, it will be safe at GW.

Helen Cannaday Saulny, GW Assistant Vice President, Student and Academic Support Services

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