Dear Editors of The Compass,

We are writing concerning the recent insert “Stop the Madness” in last weeks publication. We feel that including this insert shows a blatant disregard for the principle of an independent, unbiased press, and by extension, university. Not only is the insert unapologetically one-sided, it is also full of claims that could be called misleading at best, and lies at worst.

For example, on page one, this insert claims that “Abortion is legal through all nine months in the United States.” They cite what some may believe to be a relatively obscure Supreme Court case, titled Doe v. Bolton. A more educated student will realize this cases real name, as Roe v. Wade, a case universally considered to be a victory for pro-choice organizations. In the majority opinion in Roe, Justice Blackmun leaves the issue of abortion legislation to be decided largely by the individual states. In fact, South Dakota recently passed a legislation prohibiting abortion entirely, even when the mother’s health is involved, or when the pregnancy is a result of rape. Blackmun basically only limits states from outlawing abortion in the first trimester, writing: “For the stage prior to approximately the end of the first trimester, the abortion decision and its effectuation must be left to the medical judgment of the pregnant woman’s attending physician.” As you can see, this leaves the legislation to the states, prohibiting them only from outlawing abortion in the first trimester.

Also on the first page of the article, the authors encourage us to make an “educated decision about where you stand on the issue of abortion”. However, this whole pamphlet only gives one side of the issue. It does not present the reader with enough facts to make an educated or informed decision. It simply presents the pro-life opinion. There is no way to tell if the points made are valid or not because there is no contrary evidence to compare them to.

With this pamphlet being a nationally syndicated publication, it should have experts writing the articles. The article “Substituting Sex for Love” written by Tom Chambers, is a very interesting article. However, Tom is a former student writer for The Telescope published by Palomar College in California. A student from a two year community college is hardly a credible source. If this pamphlet is intended to allow readers to make an educated decision, it should use information from reliable sources.

In maybe the most outrageous article, “The Overpopulation Myth,” the writer claims there is not an overpopulation crisis but an under population crisis. They use statistics from 64 of the 193 countries in the world to make a statement. The fertility rate must be at 2.1 children or above to maintain a population level and this article shows that Europe is a dismal 1.4. This is true, but misleading because if only 64 countries in the world are below the maintaining fertility rate then 129 countries are at the maintaining level or above. From The World Economy: Resources, Location, Trade and Development, written by Frederick Stutz and Barney Warf, we found the following facts. In 1995 Rwanda had a fertility rate of 8.5 and Malawi, Ivory Coast, and Uganda had a fertility rate of 7.3 or above. The world average fertility rate is 3.3. This provides more than enough to keep the population growing at an alarming rate. An overpopulation crisis is debatable but to claim there is an under population crisis is ludicrous.

Let us finish by saying that we are by no means for an entirely pro-choice view. What we are for is balance in the press. What we are against is the dissemination of biased, misleading information that is framed to seem factual. What we are against is the lack of equal opportunity in the marketplace of ideas, especially on college campuses. We invite you to re-distribute these inserts, but this time with an equal voice for a pro choice activist group. If you grant equal opportunity to both sides of the issue, and attempt to stimulate intelligent debate, no one will be happier than us. But if you continue to spread biased, one-sided information and use emotional appeals to scare students into a certain view on an issue, expect more piles of papers on your doorstep in the future. Thank you.

Comments (1)

	1. 24-07-2007 13:30
	Still getting these kinds of letters? As a former Compass Business/Advertising Manager, I came across this same argument before. By including the insert, it shows that the Compass is unbiased. Any group that has opposing ideas to those included in the "Stop the Madness" insert could do so just by paying the same fee as any other advertiser and have their own insert placed in The Compass. If you know of any group that has an opposing view to the one printed in the above insert, feel free to give them the contact information for the Compas and I'm sure they would be willing to give that advertiser space. Registered

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