Arbor Update

Ann Arbor Area Community News

Fresard flagrantly fouls females

Posted by David Boyle on 9. March 2006

Interesting that “Daily Donn” Fresard chose International Women’s Day to run What are we missing? Why you should want to be offended. , lamenting the

”...deeply illiberal thinking….that led Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences to depose Lawrence Summers after he hypothesized – at an academic conference, of all places – that genetic differences could account for gender inequality in certain fields. ...”

Summers wasn’t “deposed”, he resigned. And this is the same “Leisure Suit Class Larry” who insulted African Americans, insulted Native Americans, insulted women, and called divestment-from-Israel activists “de facto anti-Semites”. Boston Magazine’s Lawrence of Absurdia by Richard Bradley notes,

”...So great was the bewilderment over Summers’s lack of social skills that some in the Harvard community wondered if there might be a clinical reason for his behavior: a neurobiological disorder called Asperger’s syndrome. ...the condition is sometimes known as the “geek” or “little professor” syndrome. ...
...With Summers’s remarks…about women in the sciences, the questions have become even more pressing. Those comments have provoked a massive outpouring of anger from female students, faculty, and alumni, and from women all over the world. Harvard’s president, they say, was legitimizing discrimination. Pointing out that the number of women receiving tenure each year at Harvard had dropped precipitously since Summers became president—down to 4 of the past 32 offers—the National Organization for Women has called for Summers’s resignation. ...”


At least Fresard didn’t print the Muhammad cartoons (printing 12 blank spaces instead), but maybe his essay itself fires a blank, so to say.

Comment [27]

Discussions on Campus Crime and Safety

Posted by Juliew on 9. March 2006

The University Dean of Students Office, Campus Neighbors, AAPD Chief Greg O’Dell, and DPS Director Bill Bess will be participating in a series of discussions regarding crime and safety on and around campus. The discussions are open to anyone interested in campus or near-campus crime and safety issues.

Thursday, March 9
Location: MSA Chambers
Time: 4:30-6:00 PM
Topic: Crime on and near campus

Tuesday, March 14
Location: MSA Chambers
Time: 4:30-6:00 PM
Topic: Women’s Safety

Tuesday, March 28
Location: William Monroe Trotter Multicultural Center
Time: 4:30-6:00 PM
Topic: Interactions Between Students of Color and Police

Gordon Parks 1912-2006, R.I.P.

Posted by David Boyle on 9. March 2006

Since AU contributor Dumi posted about Gordon Parks’ death on his own blog , may as well link to it here too.
Gordon Parks was the director of “Shaft” (1971), and “The Learning Tree” (1969), among other great films. He was a photographer/composer/artist/man par excellence.
Interestingly enough, he is also a former in-law of mine; that is, Gordon Parks was married to a relative of mine for a while. (If you’re looking for an Ann Arbor connection to Gordon Parks, there we go…)

R.I.P. G.P.

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Tonight: Patrick Elkins CD-Release Party

Posted by Brandon on 9. March 2006

Local anti-quirk-post-folk-weirdcore wonder-man Patrick Elkins celebrates the release of his new much-buzzed Fred Thomas-produced album Fruits of the Spirit tonight with an amazing supporting cast:

Wednesday, March 8
Patrick Elkins & the Fruity Spirits
Jib Kidder
Fred Thomas
Kelly Jean Caldwell
BORO
Emily Bate
7:30 p.m.
Black Elk Co-Op
902 Baldwin
Ann Arbor
FREE

Also, there are two great on-campus shows at The Halfass and Leonardo’s this weekend.

Cloverleaf now open all the time

Posted by MarkDilley on 8. March 2006

At the corner of Division and Liberty is a little diner called Cloverleaf. I used to frequent them as a kid growing up in Plymouth-Canton, then they moved to Ann Arbor. I rarely would make it during their breakfast and lunch hours.

Now it is a nice place to go anytime you want because they are open 24 hours.

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City of Ann Arbor Democratic Party Meeting (March 11)

Posted by Juliew on 8. March 2006

Saturday March 11, 2006, 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Michigan League (Vandenberg Room), 911 North University Ave.

Agenda highlights (For full details, see Tim Colenback’s comment):

I. Discussion and voting on the following resolutions:

Increased citizen input and participation in community development and housing policy development.

Support the impeachment of President George W. Bush and Vice President Richard Cheney.

Support the Minimum Wage State of Michigan Ballot Proposal.

Urge the postponement of implementation of the Calthorpe Report recommendations and scheduling party meetings on these matters

Support a moratorium on development downtown until 12/1/06, urging a timely process of amendment for laws guiding development, and scheduling party meetings on these matters.

II. Formation of a committee to study civic involvement and citizen access in the City of Ann Arbor governmental policymaking process and recommend strategies to enhance such access and involvement.

III. Formation of committee to organize field trip to Columbus, IN to investigate award winning city development.

Comment [73]

Happy Women's History Month!

Posted by David Boyle on 7. March 2006

The National Women’s History Project website has some inspiring information on the history of women, especially useful and topical now since March is Women’s History Month.
One highlight on the website, so to say, is a link to George W. Bush’s presidential proclamation for the Month , including a part which intersects nicely with just-ended Black History Month and with a prominent Detroiter of historical fame and blessed memory:
”...In 1955, Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a city bus in Montgomery, Alabama, helping to inspire a nationwide movement for equal justice under the law. Recently, our Nation said goodbye to another remarkable American woman and courageous civil rights leader, Coretta Scott King, who helped call America to its founding ideals.
...This month, I encourage all Americans to join me in celebrating the extraordinary achievements and contributions of American women.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH,....call upon all Americans to observe this month with appropriate ceremonies and activities to honor the history, accomplishments, and contributions of all American women.”

(But has he considered how much affirmative action has helped American women? One wonders…)

—Hope everyone at UM, women and men both, enjoyed her/his spring break, by the way!

UPDATE: Looks like WLSA (Women Law Students Association at the Law School—I enjoyed being a paying member) will have its annual Pay Equity Bake Sale tomorrow and Wednesday, c. 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. or longer, outside room 100: i.e., you draw random slips of paper showing that if you are a woman or minority (for the day), you get paid less, so you get to pay less for your baked good!
This is kind of a progressive alternative to the “affirmative action bake sales” that “conservative” groups hold, where you pay less if you are a woman or minority (as opposed to drawing a random piece of paper); but only as an insult to women and minorities, not to show that women and minorities are still discriminated against.

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Turmoil at WUOM

Posted by Juliew on 5. March 2006

Donovan Reynolds resigns abruptly from Michigan Public Media, citing a need for “fresh leadership.”

Meanwhile, the University of Michigan and the UM Department of Public Safety begin investigations into Michigan Public Media.

Rumors abound.

Comment [8]

Why the Review Didn't Publish the Cartoons

Posted by Ari Paul on 26. February 2006

James David Dickson, the editor of the Michigan Review—a right-wing publication at the U-M—chimes in on the National Review’s website on why it decided not to publish the famous Danish cartoon.

He writes:

We based our decision on several factors. The most important is that we aren’t Danish.

Our choice, as American college students, was fundamentally different from the one faced by Flemming Rose, culture editor of the Jyllands-Posten, which commissioned and published the cartoons that set off riots around the world. As Rose recently explained in the Washington Post, the cartoons came in direct response to “several incidents of self-censorship in Europe caused by widening fears and feelings of intimidation in dealing with issues related to Islam.” European fear of offending resident Muslims led to the closing of an art exhibit and forced an illustrator of a children’s book on Mohammed into anonymity.

Comment [8]

Scholarship and Libraries in Transition: A Dialogue about the Impacts of Mass Digitization Projects

Posted by Juliew on 25. February 2006

The University of Michigan University Library and the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science are holding a symposium at the Rackham Auditorium March 10 and 11 on the impacts of mass digitization projects such as Google Book. How will initiatives such as the Google partnership impact libraries, universities, government, information policy, publishing, and education? What are the professional, social, and economic issues? How will we identify and respond to the challenges and opportunities to shape future directions? There are a lot of interesting speakers from campus and around the country participating.

The symposium is free and open to the public, but you do need to preregister. The registration closes next Tuesday, February 28 (sorry for the late notice).

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