Photos were fabulous

Wednesday's photo supplement, "A Day in the Life," is absolutely wonderful! Thank you for reminding me of all the life on campus beyond my own small circle. The Daily has some very creative and talented photographers.

Merrie Harrison
University staff

The full report
It is so ironic to see the editorialist on the pages of this paper admonish the readers to "take time to investigate thoroughly" before acting on such complex problems as global warming ["Saving the planet through destruction," April 25]. Specifically, the reference is made to a recent report published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which examines the effect of trees in different parts of the world on the world climate.

However, it is clear that this thoughtful editorialist didn't take the time to look at the original report, or even at multiple digests available at the click of a button on the Internet. He or she makes an incredible conclusion that "our fight against rising temperatures would be best served by demolishing all of the world's forests." 

In fact, the report highlights that the location of forests is key to their effects - trees in the tropics reduce global warming by absorbing carbon dioxide and water, while trees in the boreal forests might increase global warming by absorbing light that the snow cover would otherwise reflect. Unfortunately it is quite possible that "deep" thinkers ranging from "journalists" found on the pages of this Daily to those with much greater powers might in the end prevail and destroy our planet.

Alexander Khoruts, M.D.
assistant professor of medicine

Activism at the U
Last week, a great week of events, Campus to the Capitol Week, passed readers of the Daily. The coverage of this week of events by the Daily and the lack of support by MSA shows the atmosphere for activism at the University. Social justice activists fight an uphill battle year-round, whether there is an election, battling against lack of resources and general apathy. Our student government, MSA, contributes to this problem, as they denied funding through the SEF grant for Campus to the Capitol Week because of personal bias and bureaucratic hoops. And, as you couldn't have noticed, the Daily did not cover any of these events that were well-publicized and meant to reach out to the campus community.

But we trucked on, as progressive activists have to, putting on an Activities Carnival in which we engaged our MSA presidential hopefuls in real debate (while having some fun with whipped cream pies), organizing great events around a variety of important issues, and capping it off with a concert in the Superblock. Stars from our thriving local music scene, like Kanser, The Hot Box, and Rise or Rust, supported our cause as we rocked the residents of the Superblock.

Regardless of the lack of campus support, we had a great week of events. Despite surface appearance, there is a thriving activist scene at the University, and Campus to the Capitol Week is meant to bring groups together and show that; so get involved! We are working to right the wrongs of the world, not to improve our resumes. Thanks to everyone that participated and supported us, especially CLA grant, Comstock and Centennial Hall Councils. Thanks to these groups: College Greens, UPCC, Amnesty International, MPIRG, CASH, and Democracy Matters. We are fighting the good fight.

Jim Forrey
Campus to the Capitol Week coalition co-organizer

A noble step
University of Minnesota's dining operations should be applauded for moving away from using eggs from hens confined in cruel and inhumane battery cages ["U switches to cage-free," April 26].

Hens crammed into tiny, barren cages are perhaps the most abused animals in the world of factory farming. They're unable to engage in many of their most important natural behaviors, such as dust bathing, perching, scratching, and even walking. Each hen is given less space than a single sheet of paper to live in her entire life.

University Dining Services, operated by Aramark, has taken a noble step to demonstrate to the campus community that animal welfare is a vital part of social responsibility. Hopefully other schools and businesses in Minnesota will follow the University's positive example and begin to remove their support for battery-cage animal abuse.

Josh Balk
Factory Farming Campaign
outreach director