OPINIOn

Our View
Logical look at merger
spectator@muw.edu

With an economic crisis that has the state in turmoil, state officials are having to consider every cost-cutting possibility. One of the areas being discussed is that of higher education, and state newspapers have reported talks of possible mergers among Mississippi’s eight universities, most recently The Clarion Ledgers’ Front page story yesterday.

There are many emotional arguments that can be made for why MUW should not be merged with any other Mississippi institution.  However, when money matters are being considered, emotional reasoning should take a back burner to logic.

Logically, merging universities is not the place to start. Universities are complicated institutions that have numerous legal and emotional ties which a merger will further convolute.

Instead, the state should first look at the 152 school systems, which serve 82 counties. Many of these schools are nowhere near filled to capacity, and merging them would provide many benefits. With more students, more activities and classes could be offered. More money could be spent on areas that need help instead of thinly spreading resources to just get by. On a county school system, students are automatically assigned to a school, which doesn’t matter much since all K-12 schools teach the same curriculum. However, students pick universities for specific programs, atmosphere and costs. 

When considering the merger of MUW with another institution, one has to consider what would disappear if the W was no more. Disregarding the traditions and the unique history, for which Mississippi should be proud, the mission of the W should still be considered.

While the W is a co-ed institution it has never dropped its unique mission of providing a quality education for women. No other institution in Mississippi is focused on women and, when considering the current demographics of our nation, it is a valuable mission to uphold.

More women go to college than men and recently Times Magazine reported that women have exceeded men in the workforce.  This means that, when looking to increase their numbers, colleges should focus on their target demographic: women.

However, even with their great strides, women are still bottom of the barrel in several areas. They make less money in the workforce, are kept at lower level jobs and experience sexist discrimination. Men outnumber women in politics, corporate positions and most the world’s wealth.

Given these facts, MUW is a valuable commodity to have for this state. Besides the mission MUW has the Women’s Center for Entrepreneurship and the MUW Center for Women’s Research and Public Policy, formerly known as the Southern Women’s Institute. The W makes good on its mission and offers a focus that, if taken away, the state will suffer for.

In the coming months, as state government considers its options, these facts should be taken into consideration. The money that could be saved by merging MUW with another institution is a small thing compared to all that they would be losing.

Halloween comes late
Juna’uh Allgood

I remember my first time trick-or-treating as if it was it were only days ago. That’s not surprising, considering that it was.

I never celebrated Halloween as a child. My family did not celebrate it, as many of the historical reasoning for the holiday stems from pagan beliefs that made my father, the former army chaplain, decide that our family was going to abstain from the yearly festivities.

As a child, I dreaded Halloween. I knew that it would come, and I would be the only one in the class not dressed up - and the only one not able to trade candy at school in the following weeks. As I got older, I came to understand my family’s reasoning more and agreed that the reasoning behind the holiday was wrong.

However, I couldn’t help but wish that I had at least been allowed to dress up, to go trick-or-treating just once, and to have a chance to laugh as I traded candy with my friends.

This past month, when I revealed to my Spectator staff that I had never been trick-or-treating, they told me I should experience it at least once. I figured “Why not?” After all, I know the reasoning behind the holiday and, while I agree its origins are wrong to Christian beliefs, it has become an innocent day and is a far cry from the pagan holiday it once was.

Some of my staffers took me out this past Saturday. I was a wood nymph, and had my makeup done by my managing editor, Lizzie Locker. My copy editor, Rachel Mordecki and online editor, Jessica Benigno, played the parents and led Lizzie, Rachel’s boyfriend and I traipsing around the downtown area. As my candy bucket filled, my giddiness rose.

We spent about an hour going door to door, and while some of the “adults” laughed at us college students, they could tell that for us, this holiday was special. We knocked on several professors doors, and they handed out candy with a smile. For me, the magic of Halloween was found that that night, as we shared the streets with children and adults, all taking part in a holiday full of fun.

Afterwards, we ate at McDonalds, and then returned to campus. For the first time, I was able to take part in the post Halloween candy trade and as my sugar level rose, so did my sense of fulfillment. 

I gained a piece of my childhood last Saturday. I don’t think I’ll ever go trick-or-treating again, but when I have children I’ll dress them up with a smile and take them door to door, as I remember my one perfect Halloween.

When I first received “What Matters Most” by Vince Melamed, I expected to suffer through several agonizing sessions to get through the CD.

Sparknotes didn’t have a review for me to steal, so I sat down and listened to Melamed’s CD. I made it through the album in one sitting and had the realization that I was guilty of judging a CD by its cover. Melamed looks like Bill Engvall, only balder and older. Engvall with a microphone and a band left me imagining a mix of cats in heat with a banjo. Thankfully, Adroit Records didn’t do that to me.

Melamed is a songwriter from Los Angeles, one that has toured with the likes of Bob Dylan, David Bowie and The Eagles. His songwriting career found a place in Nashville, Tenn. Melamed has written several number one hits and the Nashville Music Awards nominated him for “Songwriter of the Year.” With such success in Nashville, it is no surprise he settled down there and it is also where Adroit Records would sign him to lay down some of the songs he has written, along with several new tracks, as a performing artist.

Just because Melamed has anchored in Nashville doesn’t mean the rock ‘n roll spirit of his touring days has left him. This songwriter sounds like Don Henley, the lead-singer of The Eagles. Although the background track features a guitar with more country twang than The Eagles ever had. He does have a songwriter’s voice, which means his lyrics are more impressive than his vocals, but he has the advantage of being able to fine-tune the sound into his vocal range.

Jim Tract, Adroit Records president, also put together a solid band to stand behind Melamed that enhances the sound. This country-classic rock combo, or southern rock, that Melamed uses has been popular lately, with the likes of Kid Rock making a second career of it.

Most of the songs on the CD are tunes Melamed has written for other artists, such as “Walkaway Joe,” which Trisha Yearwood took to number two on the “billboard charts.” Many of the songs have been heard before but they are his songs, and he does a good job of reclaiming them. The best thing about the CD is that if you are into this sort of music, all of the songs are good. In an age where iTunes is popular because many albums only have one good song, it is refreshing to find a CD that you can listen to without having the urge to skip several tracks to get to the only radio-worthy hit.

I recommend “What Matters Most” to anyone who is into southern rock or country music. He won’t wow anyone vocally, but Melamed can weave a good tale of tragic love stories and carry a tune.

Cartoon by Natalie Thomas