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Letters to the Editor

Athletic rebuttal

Forgive me, please, while I attempt to collect my ever-so-simpleminded thoughts. Lest I appear as woozy and intellectually challenged as my fellow Princeton athletes, let me make my first point unmistakably clear: Mr. Kuhner ("The Crumbling Ivory Tower, March 3), get off the high horse which you and your Dante-dependent group of cronies attempted to ride. Now, take a breath – off the respirator on which I am sure you must rely (I can provide you with a few sprint workouts to get you up to speed) – and use your brain.

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Are you calling for the abolition of entrance measures which seek to diversify the student body, measures that do in fact accept the athletes (who are allegedly undeserving), the minorities (who are allegedly deserving), the financial aid recipients (who are constantly scorned) and, tragically, the academic egomaniacs who go around quoting Dante?

Or do you seek the opposite – the extension of those measures which diversify our classes? Because while you nobly speak for some of those beneficiaries, you decry the existence of others. Perhaps you only seek to fill the campus with winning students like yourself. (How many minority candidates have you turned away with your attitude?) Now that's a bright idea – let in the ones who pop out of the identical cerebellum-swelled mold . . . but make sure they come from traditionally underrepresented minority groups, and equally underrepresented financial brackets and, God forbid, give them a physical when they apply. If they can run a lap without getting sweaty, then perhaps they ought to be steered toward a local community college.

Mr. Kuhner, I hate to burst your bubble. These athletes, the ones who make you yawn in precept, are the same ones who actually make something of this "leaderless, purposeless place." Imagine, if you can (and I'm sure you can't), turning over thirty hours a week to an adult who gets paid for exhausting you. And then imagine coming to your precept and trying to drown out the sound of the self-professed geniuses like yourself who only like to hear themselves talk. It's a wearying task.

And believe you me, if you just stopped to look and listen, you'd discover (much to your chagrin) that these dolts are significantly more able-minded than yourself. And, if I may, much more humble. Melissa Cully '98

TWC events

I attended the party held this past Sunday at TWC and had a good time. As a matter of fact, I believe that most of the people in attendance did. It was a true college party with collegiates from all around coming to fellowship with Princeton students. Despite the ensuing melee (after the party was over) that left one of our fellow peers assaulted, I can still say that I had fun, for once, at Princeton.

As I sat there afterwards in the midst of crowds of people, flashing lights and a dampened mood, the one thing that I thought to myself was "watch this event make the front page of the 'Prince' on Monday." Sure enough, it was there in great big letters: "Altercation Ensues Outside TWC Party" (March 2).

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The problem that I have with this article stems from the fact that the 'Prince' was quick to write up details about a weekend brawl, but failed miserably to cover many events that occurred at TWC during Black History Month, including the dinner held just four hours before that party began.

As a minority affairs adviser, I realize how difficult it is to encourage Princeton students to take advantage of these programs that our peers work so diligently to coordinate. All month, I searched for articles and reports on these wonderful dinners and programs, and all that I could come up with was a generic overview of February's events published on Feb. 9, three days after the opening ceremonies had occurred.

As chair of the Tribute to Black Women planning committee, I was especially displeased with the fact that an article was not written about our event which attracted not one, but two speakers including a congresswoman and a major black female advertising executive. All that appeared was a picture of the congresswoman with a caption that was less entertaining than the ones usually given to pictures of campus squirrels.

I attended Africa Night as well, and there was no article written about that event. And let me not neglect to mention the worship service held when our former Assistant Dean of Religious Life William Gipson spoke. There was no article written on that event either.

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As a journal designed to record the lives and times of all Princetonians, I would like to encourage the 'Prince' to take a more active role in the coverage of events on campus, especially those that fall during different ethnic heritage months. I charge you as a "viable" campus newspaper to resist the temptation to report only the sensational stories and to make a more concerted effort to report the positive, insightful and meaningful events on campus, including those held at TWC. Jacklyn E. Bruce '99