Tolerance, University Style
Via today’s opinions page, yet another display of the “united” atmosphere urged by the Wildcat:
Want a vivid, revealing glimpse into the mentality that’s driving the Arizona Legislature’s determined efforts to crush higher education? You can do no better than to read and absorb the words of UA College Republican President Ry Ellison, as quoted in Friday’s Daily Wildcat.
“I support the governor and the budget cuts,” Ellison said. “Cuts have to be made in all aspects including education. These hard decisions have to be made.” For Ellison, evidently, supporting the so-called “party of fiscal restraint and responsibility” supersedes supporting the university that gives him a forum for his views in the first place.
That’s right, Ellison — say what you what, except when it comes to university budgeting; in which case, never go against the family. I should hope that any student would be able to support any policy in an academic setting.
For reminding us of the deadly power of ideas to trample reality (at least when they’re in the hands of reality-immune ideologues), Ellison gets a nay.
‘Reality’? Is the board referring to this reality, where Arizona faces a $3.0 billion deficit next year — which is to say, that these battles haven’t even begun to get serious? It’s one thing to disagree with a figure’s opinion; it’s quite another to launch a “you’re with us or you’re against us” jeremiad, without any consideration of an alternative view besides “40%=DETH.”
Advocate for more spending in a time of epic deficits? Sane, rational, and heroic defense. Propose cuts to costly programs in times of recession? Hackery!
Mark up this author in the “ideologue” column.
The Arizona Desert Lamp 
I’m disappointed that the Opinions Board would single him out like that. It’s inappropriate and borderline malicious, and Ry shouldn’t be treated like an enemy for political dissent.
I’m not sure what the problem is here? It’s an editorial? Didn’t we all single out people in the pass/fail suff during our terms at the Wildcat. It’d be different if this was in a non-editorial article.
Nobody is not ideological. More spending to me = good. The author and I are Keynesians; you’re not. You and he are both committing the same fallacy.
The writer left out important parts of Ry’s quote. Ry told the Wildcat that the budget cuts are a necessary evil, and this wasn’t mentioned in today’s op-ed. Obviously, I do not support the budget cuts at all, but I thought the editorial was misleading and poorly researched.
I concur- We -did- single people out in the pass/fail section, such as Tommy Bruce and other ASUA members.
This, however, isn’t being cast as a debate over macroeconomics — instead, it’s insinuating that Mr. Ellison is being disloyal to his university by advocating for a policy that goes against theirs. There is not one iota of economic consideration in the piece — just a “shame on you” for supporting his own ideas over that of Shelton’s.
Going back to the Bush quote I linked to, you could say exactly the same thing about his approach: he was an interventionist regarding Iraq, and you and I (I presume) were not. Yet Bush’s formulation did not attempt to spell out an honest difference; instead, it cast opponents of the war as traitors.
You’re right. I had agreed with you until the last 2 sentences, which looking back, I sort of misread. So I agree with you in toto.
Ellison calls the cuts a “necessary evil” in his statement. OK, so they were necessary in these troubled times, but I bet that a restoration of funding once the ship rights itself will be fiercely opposed by whoever succeeds Ellison. And you gotta admit, Ellison’s probably giddy as a schoolgirl on the inside that his party has succeeded in performing an end-run around us liberal edjoomacashun types. After all, it’s not like he’s coming back next year.
I highly doubt he’s “giddy” about the budget cuts. None of us are, and he is coming back next year.
[…] echoes the Wildcat’s call for ‘unity’ back in February; and just as it was then, this boils down to, “You’re with us, or […]