Bits & Bytes

• A mind is a terrible thing to waste-- AM1370's "Afternoon Edition" host Mark Shaw commented on the incident where a 14-year-old athiest shot five classmates and killed three while they and a group of students were praying. Shaw suggested this brings up the whole issue of prayer in school and asked whether the praying students brought this on themselves.
• Sympathy for the Devil?--In his December 2 IDS opinion column, Urvakash Karkaria asserts that U.S.-backed United Nations sanctions are to blame for poor and starving Iraqis, not Saddam Hussein's evil exploitation of his own people.
• Long-jumping to conclusions--In a letter to the IDS, an IU graduate student all but accused the University of being run by Nazis after spotting a "swastika" in the School of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation. The symbol (actually the mirror-image of a swastika) is an ancient Native American icon of peace, prosperity, love, and life.
• Ever been to a City Council meeting, Mark?-- In a guest column in the Herald-Times, failed County Commissioner candidate Mark Stoops suggests the Monroe County Republican Party only denounce the indescretions of Sherriff Williamson because he wasn't in 100% agreement with their agenda, and used terms like "right-wing" and "extremist" throughout the column. Switch to decaf, Mark!