Bravo to Rep. Gabrielle Giffords’ recovery. After being shot in the head on Jan. 8, she is now able to stand and scroll through pictures on an iPad, according to The Washington Post. She is being transported to TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston on Friday. Our hopes and prayers go out to her family, friends and constituents. Her family and friends deserve to have the woman they love so much back while her constituents deserve to have her fighting for them in Congress once again. Our hearts also go out to the others who were wounded in the tragic events in Tucson. No family should ever have to go through what those families went through.
Boo to the nasty flu bug that has swept through the ASU men’s basketball team. At least three players were questionable for the weekend, including senior Rihards Kuksiks, just before the toughest road trip of the year. The virus hit a team whose roster has already been shortened due to injury. It’s unlikely that Washington and Washington State will go easy on the Sun Devils because of the flu, so let’s just hope it doesn’t get worse in the cold and rainy northwest.
Bravo to the scholarship funds established at ASU and University of California, Santa Cruz, in memory of Gabe Zimmerman, an ASU alumnus. Zimmerman graduated with a master’s in social work from ASU in 2006. The scholarship is for students at the School of Public Programs, the school that Zimmerman graduated from. Though he died much too soon, this scholarship is a perfect memorial for him because of his love for public service. Even though he is gone, his legacy is still serving the public by helping students afford an education that will better both their life and the lives around them. This is an excellent way to remember Gabe and we hope many students will apply.
Boo to Arizona getting F’s in myriad things. Arizona got an F on a food safety report from the Center for Science in Public Interest. The state also received an F for helping smokers quit in a report card from the American Lung Association. We already knew the state was among the worst in education funding, but now we can add food safety and helping smokers kick their habit to that list.
Bravo to the mobilization effort that has organized against the budgets cuts. As students, we have grown tired of reporting and running stories about money being taken from the University’s budget. It is great to see the students pushing back. This time around, our governor would like to axe $170 million from higher education in the state. ASU was amazingly successful at weathering the first few rounds of budget cuts, but we don’t know how much more the University can take. It is important for the student voice to be heard. Kudos to Undergraduate Student Government for organizing this campaign.
