Letters to the editor

You don't get it, girl

I am conflicted and confused by Alex Gagne's guest column, "Get That Dough" in the Dec. 11 issue of The Diamondback.

Gagne implies that women in the fields of education, communication, family science and others dominated by women choose these majors because they feel comfortable in them. Gagne recommends that women pursue more challenging majors that will make them more money out of college (maybe like her majors of business marketing or public relations?) as a means of closing the income gap between men and women.

I would like to challenge the assumption that women choose these jobs because they seem comfortable and unchallenging. I believe every career can be challenging and demonstrate an individual's capabilities and potential. Perhaps women choose to study education, communication and family science because they are passionate about caring for and teaching people. After all, money isn't the only measure of success, and having a degree that doesn't yield a six-figure incomes doesn't equate to "mediocrity."

If income is something that women value and feel measures their success, shouldn't women fight to close the income gap that exists in the absolutely essential fields of education, family science and communication? The fact that women in these fields don't make reasonable wages is the real inequality and injustice - not the income gap that exists between high-ranking business women and men. No one - male or female - should have to forfeit studying something he or she is interested in and passionate about in order to make more money.

Additionally, I challenge everyone to rethink income as a measurement of success. Although it has traditionally been used to measure the success and happiness of Americans, I strongly believe that success can be defined by other things, like relationships and personal growth.

Lastly, I believe American culture's disregard for service jobs such as teaching and nursing, is a real downfall. What does it say about us that we value profit over humanitarian value?

Joanna Calabrese SGA Senior vice president

Don't deny our Christmas traditions

In their Dec. 10 letter to the editor, "A frosty reception to Christmas decorations," Sala Levin and Rachel Baltuch present the silly notion that being a public institution in this nation precludes a university from displaying physical manifestations of a religious holiday. This notion has become so permeated by modern capitalist culture that it has come to be a secular celebration.

Government agencies do not operate on Dec. 25, neither at the state nor the federal level. While "diversity and pluralism" certainly matter, the simple fact is that as secularized and liberal as our country has become, this nation is, and always has been, a Christian nation. I don't mean to suggest our founding fathers were die-hard Christians (or, in some cases, Christians at all); rather, I merely point out the irrefutable fact that Western civilization, including the United States, is wholly inseparable from Christianity. Unless, of course, we wish to drink the Kool-Aid of the modern, self-worshipping world. To deny its Christian heritage and identity is to deny the very idea of the United States.

So happy Hanukkah, ladies, and merry Christmas, too. I'm sure Frosty loves a good poinsettia, and maybe he even has a crèche!

Nathan P. Origer Graduate Student Community Planning