the cadre

september 19, 2001

editor-in-chief Matthew DORRELL

copy editor Joel MEGGS

production manager Jeff COLL

news editor VACANT

entertainment editor Stephan MACLEOD

sports editor Adam GAUTHIER

photographer Jonah CAMPBELL

reporter Erin FAGAN

advertising manager VACANT

distribution manager VACANT

cover Bill MATTHEWS

contributors Bob GIBSON Lorna HUTCHISON Luke LUENES Mare MACDONALD Ray MALONE Sarah MURPHY

The Cadre is the official newspaper of the UPEI Student Union.

2,000 copies of The Cadre are printed 10 times per semester.

There are meetings open to anyone Mondays at 5:00 in Main 06.

The deadline for submissions is Friday at 5:00 PM.

The opinions expressed within The Cadre do not necessarily represent the views of UPEI or the UPEI Student Union Inc.

Letters to the editor: mdorrell@upei.ca

Editorial 2: Restraint

The American flags that are waved so frequently on television look different lately. The easy con- fidence with which they are usual- ly brandished has been replaced by obvious determination accompa- nied by fear and uncertainty, often with anger.

The concept of “horror,” long tossed about as if it were a two-cent word appropriate for tragedies as mundane as a rise in the price of gasoline, or as trivial as a Hollywood divorce, has been recreated as a tangible thing, deliv- ered as obviously and unequivo- cally as a punch in the stomach. I have seen nearly a hundred planes hit the World Trade Center in the last week, and the same feeling of horror is present every time. A feeling of nausea which is not eas- ily dispelled remains with me.

I first heard about the attacks from the mailman, who I wanted to believe was wrong, con- fused or exaggerating, but the reporter on the radio shared the same story. They shared the same incredulous tone of voice - that tone that countless people adopted for days, one that said “I can’t believe I’m telling you this, or that it is true. But I am. It is.”

As that incredulous tone quickly became _harder-edged, much of the media coverage has focussed on the apparent sophisti-

cation of the terrorist attacks. The image of an organized group of ter- rorists, capable of inflicting such catastrophic damage is indeed frightening, but I find the single- minded hatred they possess much more disturbing than the efficiency with which it was articulated.

The war that the US gov- — ernment assures the world is com- |

ing, and that many of the people who wave its flag angrily urge as the only answer, seems to be a response that it is doomed from the outset. Wars are conducted against large groups - a race, a religion, or a people - but it is a far smaller group of criminals responsible for the terrorist attacks. Certainly it will be a much larger group that will end up suffering, the vast majority of them no more guilty than those who died in the World Trade Center.

That the world is marching toward war, seems at times as inevitable as watching the World Trade Center crumble for the hun- dredth time. I do understand the United States’ need to act. I under- stand the incredible strength of will required to avoid a war. However, even if there are no cred- ible alternatives yet, war cannot be

chosen by default.

Matthew Dorrell, Editor-In-Chief

A CLARIFICATION

I just wanted to clarify something that was in last week’s Cadre. In the article regarding the progress of the new Student Centre, it sounded as if I had said that the university would be incurring all of the insurance costs

from the fire.

While the university’s insurance company is taking care of financial matters now to prevent any delays, we will be settling these issues with all other insurance companies that are involved at a later date. In other words, we won’t be absorbing all of the costs ourselves. Just to make sure nobody

got the wrong impression...

-Cynthia DENNIS, Student Union President

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the cadre