We, the Gustavus Philosophers’ Guild, in response to the recent publicity and advocacy for the Gustavus Tobacco Free Initiative, put forth a statement humbly asking those who support the initiative to reconsider. Before any arguments are given against making GAC tobacco free, we would like to state that tobacco is a dangerous and potentially lethal substance, and raising awareness about its health effects is an … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (10/11/2013)

In Response to “Obama on Syria” Cory Witt correctly says that Assad’s regime has not directly harmed the US, but that’s hardly relevant. The regime has killed thousands of innocents and used weapons prohibited by the United Nations. The UN and US have the ability to stop Assad’s despotic rule and therefore have the responsibility to try and do so. The most persuasive argument against … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (10/4/2013)

I am writing this letter in response to a statement that was made last week in an opinion article. It is disturbing that such a distasteful comment could be made about a work of one of America’s greatest children authors – Dr. Seuss. To say that the writing in The Cat in the Hat ‘isn’t very good’ is an insult not only to Dr. Seuss … Continue reading Letters to the Editor (9/20/2013)

I am not trying to criticize anyone in the Gustavus community because we are all here to learn, and there are different understandings of what being an educated and well-rounded person means to different people. However, I think the Gustavus community is lacking something that is necessary for interacting with today’s more diverse world. People in your future workplace or neighborhood might be from different … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (9/13/2013)

I was surprised to read Ryan Liebl’s assertion that Western nations have devel- oped criminal justice systems through scientific reasoning, especially after the Building Bridges conference which dealt with this topic. The U.S. prison system, which overcrowds inmates, encourages rape, and disproportionately affects minorities is built around retributive justice and maximizing profit, not rehabilitation. The ineffectiveness of this system is evidenced by our very high … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (4/10/13)

There comes a time, as a newspaper, to decide whether it is our moral imperative to report what is the truth or what we want the truth to be. This week the The Gustavian Weekly was put in the moral dilemma of whether we should support the truth for a Gustavus voice, even if it is not what we believe or support. The Gustavian Weekly … Continue reading Editorial (5-03-13)

I am a parent of two Gustavus students, and sent the following letter to the Board of Trustees: I just read the April 19, 2013 edition of The Gustavian about the recent student forums with President Ohle. While I am sure these forums were intended to reassure all constituents, they had the opposite effect on me and I am more disturbed than ever about this … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (5-03-13)

I’m sure that almost everyone has seen the flyers around campus featuring students of the Gustavus Secular Student Alliance voicing their reasons for being atheists. Some of the quotes include “I am an atheist because religious dogma is poisoning public discourse” and “I am an atheist because I believe in living a life without fear.” The intention of the flyers as I understand it is … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (4/26/13)

I had the privilege of attending this year’s Relay for Life event on April 19th at Gustavus Adolphus College. My son Matt was honored to be your student speaker this year. Matt was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia during his senior year of high school in February, 2009, and just finished up his last chemotherapy in August, 2012. Currently he is in remission. This is … Continue reading Letter to the Editor (4/26/13)

A link on Facebook alerted me to the bombing at the Boston Marathon on Monday, exactly 57 minutes after the attack. It linked me to a CNN article online that had a live update on the number of people injured and killed at the event, as well as information released from the police. I was in awe of the instantaneous knowledge and thankful for the Facebook … Continue reading Editorial (4/19/13)