Letters

Fraternity not to blame for accident

When I read the story, "Student sues
Sigma Pi over accident“ (Daily Bruin, News, Nov. 2), I
was outraged that Robert Burgess had the nerve to sue a fraternity
for something that was entirely his fault.

Burgess argues that the fraternity “forced” him to
drink ““ but we all have our own free will. If Burgess
didn’t want to drink, he should have refused to do so. If the
fraternity had kicked him out for not drinking, then by all means,
he would be entitled to file a lawsuit for unfair dismissal. I am
not arguing that fraternities have any right to force people to
drink. Instead, I believe that people need to take responsibility
for their own actions, and if you feel that you cannot handle the
drinking, you have every right to say, “No.”

If the drinking binge was entirely forced upon Burgess against
his will, he should sue the fraternity for this offense, rather
than for his drunk driving accident. While they may have forced
Burgess to drink, Sigma Pi did not force him to unlock his car,
force him to put his key in the ignition, start his ’97 Camry
and drive away. These were all conscious actions made by Burgess,
regardless of poor memory. He definitely knew what he was dong at
the time to some degree. It is absurd that he blames his own
actions and the resulting consequences on the fraternity. Burgess
was of age when this event took place, and while the fraternity
could have refused to return his keys to him, it isn’t their
fault that he decided to drive with a .19 blood-alcohol content
level. Furthermore, Burgess is really stretching his case by
including Chi Omega in the suit, alleging that they deepened his
embarrassment by writing on him with a marker. I’m sure he
was more than happy to have girls paying attention to him at the
time, yet he is now using their actions as a way to win more
money.

I am upset that people are greedy enough that they feel
justified in blaming others for their own mistakes. Sigma Pi did
not make the decision to drink and drive”“ Burgess did. Sigma
Pi is not responsible for the accident. Robert Burgess should take
responsibility for his own actions and shouldn’t punish
others for something that is entirely his fault.

Matt Martin Second-year Business economics

Generalizations of whites unfounded

After reading Sophia Smith’s submission, I wasn’t
sure if I should be angry at her name-calling or laugh at her own
ignorance (“Students
should pay heed to proponents of affirmative action,”
Viewpoint, Daily Bruin, Nov. 1). Her argument for affirmative
action is flawed on so many levels, it’s difficult to decide
where to begin pointing out its weaknesses. She naively asserts
that being white means living in the suburbs with two parents
“making six-figure incomes.” I’m white, and I
distinctly remember my single mom having six kids, working 50 hour
weeks just to get by, and myself working odd jobs since seventh
grade to pay for everything except food and rent. Oh wait, but I
have “white blindness,”so I’m probably just
dreaming ““ maybe I actually lived in a mansion all those
years, and I just don’t remember taking SAT prep classes.
Maybe I’m not paying my own way through college. Silly
me.

Even more ironic is that while her entire argument is based upon
economic status, her solution is solely based on race. Thus, she
claims that if you’re a white person, regardless of your
financial situation, you don’t deserve affirmative action. Do
I smell hypocrisy? And just because I believe in reverse
discrimination doesn’t mean I’m a “lunatic
conservative.” I’m a liberal. I wholeheartedly support
equal (and increased) funding for all schools in every locale, a
diversity requirement at UCLA, and complete social, political and
economic equality for every person. While I am not naïve
enough to believe that access to higher education is perfectly
equal, I don’t understand how a race-based solution for
financial situations is going to help ““ something Smith
doesn’t seem to understand.

Corey Chapman Third-year English and
history