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Dear Readers,
Uncle Ezra is on vacation for the Summer. The questions below
were received earlier in the year. See "About Uncle Ezra" on the
main Uncle Ezra menu for details.
Dear Unc
I have a question: with so many writing to you with hurts and
problems, I can't remember you ever mentioning the power of Jesus as a
cure. Instead, I see referals to clinics, self help books, etc etc
etc. Why? Is it that you yourself are a non-believer? Or is it the
fact that you are on Cornell's payroll that prohibits you from such
advice? Or is it the general air of liberalism that seems to prevail
at universities all over? Or is it quieted under the guise of
"respect for others' beliefs?" Why? I only came to know the Lord a few years ago, and my life has gone
from night to day. Oh sure I still have problems and pains and fears,
but I now also have the love and power to overcome them through
Christ. As I read letter after letter in your column, I want to cry
out to each and every one, and share with him or her the wonder that
took place in my life a few years back. We live in a world that has
put God in the back seat. We also live in a world of greater and
greater pain, strife, and chaos. Although books and scholars advice
can often help, I know from personal experience that none of it can
compare to the inner peace that comes from trusting, loving, and
believing in the Lord.
>>A Concerned Christian Uncle Ezra - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Question 2 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
dear uncle ezra,
hi, it is me again. no personal problems today, just a gripe. i
just got my opy of the WorkPlace, and on the front page there was an
article on SAME SEX PARTNERS BENEFITS. i think that is a lot of
bull. i have been living with a man for two year and have no
intentions of marrying him in the near future, or ever if that is how
we want to do things. and they want to tell me that i cannot get
benefits for him, but if i were a lesbian then i could get them for my
partner? that really is pushing it a little too far don't you think?
what if i had already been married, divorced, found a man i wanted to
spend the rest of my life with, but saw no reason to marry so late in
life, but still cannot get any benefits for him? i really think we
are getting a raw deal here. We keep high-stepping around these
people to make them more a part of the "norm" not that they aren't
normal, don't get me wrong, but i am really getting sick and tired of
having to put up with "GAYPRIL" and all of that crap. i know it goes
on, i have now deep feelings about it, but quit pushing it in my face
alrdy. ya know? i mean you don't see "STRAIGHTEMBER" do you? come
on! do what you want to do, but don't pussy foot around them just to
make them feel as if they are getting a far deal like heterosexuals.
it that is the case get married like the rest of us, and if that
doesn't count, then bitch at the government. that is all i had to say,
i am not yelling at you of course, but maybe the person who counts
will and get a grip on themselves! thanks!
Peeved
Dear Upset, As you know, state law doesn't allow same-sex partners to get
married. Prior to Cornell's new policy, therefore, same-sex couples
were shut out of any option to acquire a category of University
benefits. At the same time, opposite-sex couples did have such an
option, even if some chose not to exercise it.
As your letter points out, these distinctions based on what's
legal can be annoying when you have firm reasons for not wanting to
marry and you want benefits for a long-term partner. To voice your
desire to have benefits further extended to ALL unmarried couples
engaged in a long-term relationship with an exclusive commitment -- or
to ask further questions about the policy -- you can call Donna
Bugliari, Human Resources Consultant regarding health, at 255-6886. To
get impartial feedback about your concerns from an office independent
of the university administration, you can call or stop by the
University Ombudsman's Office, 118 Stimson Hall; 255-4321.
Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton adopted as the motto
of their newspaper, THE REVOLUTION: "Men their rights and nothing
more; women their rights and nothing less". A similar thought lies
behind what appears to be "excess" to counterbalance longstanding
sexual orientation inequalities. As things stand, every day is
"Straightember", because straight people have the privilege of holding
hands, hugging, kissing in public, and generally being accepted and
assumed straight. When gay people come out and celebrate who they
are, however, people think they're flaunting their sexuality. And, at
least here, gay people don't have the choice of marriage even if
that's what they want. Gaypril reminds us that we have a long way to
go before we cease to need special efforts underscoring each person's
right to equally participate in society. Uncle Ezra - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Question 3 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Dear Uncle Ezra
What is going on with the outside of Olin Library. Will they be
removing those stones? I hope so, for such a beauitful campus it
would be a disgrace to leave such an eyesore. Couldn't they put in a
flower or rock garden instead?
Just Wondering
Dear Just Wondering, I forwarded your letter to Jim Gibbs, Manager of Maintenance
Management (Jim_Gibbs@qmrelay.mail.Cornell.edu; 255-6630), who says:
"I assume that you're concerned with the pavers (square blocks of
masonry material) on the lower roof of Olin Library. The roof was
replaced last fall, an opportunity for making the area a show place.
The ultimate plan is to have lights under the glass blocks and make
the entire area garden-like. I guess we will have to wait and see how
it turns out."
Thanks, Jim! I hope your dreamed-of garden materializes, JW! Uncle Ezra - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Question 4 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Dear Uncle Ezra,
I am getting very frustrated by cit.
Their easy-to-use guide to setting up bear access is hundreds of
pages long, and I can't understand any of it. You have to know
information in order to get more information, I don't know where to
start. any ideas?
Going in Circles
Dear Frustrated by CIT's Documentation, I forwarded your letter to Nancy Flynn, Publications Manager at
CIT (NAF1@Cornell.edu; 215 CCC; 255-8842), who replies:
"Yes, indeed our Bear Access Guide can seem intimidating upon
first glance. We've received exactly that feedback over the past year
since we published it and, beginning this summer, will be taking steps
to make it more useful to folks like you.
"As you may have noticed when you tried to wade through the Guide
this year, it's divided into two main sections. Part I tells you 'how
to get started' with Bear Access -- installation, updates, processes
etc. -- while Part II offers a relatively short introduction in a
chapter-by-chapter format to the various network services offered
through Bear Access.
"This summer we'll be breaking those apart. Folks who are new
to Bear Access or acquiring the latest update will ONLY get a copy of
Part I and the electronic mail chapter. All the other chapters will
be available as stand-alone documents, and you can retrieve them
electronically or from the CIT HelpDesk when and only when you are
ready to use them.
"We're also developing some new general information materials
about Bear Access that should also help everyone at Cornell navigate
better through the choices and options for network access here at
Cornell. This series of publications will be available in the fall at
the various new student events as well as at our CIT training courses
for new undergrads and grads.
"And finally, we keep listening to feedback and we definitely
want more. Some of the changes we are making this summer are only a
first step. We want to hear from folks like yourself about what would
make our users' guides more useful and workable for you. The new
feedback button on the Bear Access menu is a great place to give us
specific information about what you do and do not like in our
publications. And finally,as Publications Manager, I'd love to speak
with you directly. We can chat via e-mail, over the phone, or in
person sometime...whatever works best for you.
"Many thanks for taking the time to write to Dear Uncle Ezra.
Your experience using our written materials is important to us. Feel
free to contact me if you'd like to give additional feedback on
improvements we can make."
Thanks, Nancy! Uncle Ezra - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Question 5 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Dear Uncle Ezer:
I'm a grad student currently taking a course, though it is
well-organized but tricky and nothing accdemically rigorous to me.
I'm really good at the topic. So, I knew that I might be acrimonious
on criticizing his bullshit in the class. But, this is not the point
in the letter which I'm going to make. What I cannot stand is the
following.
Since the semester is dwindling down, we had the course evaluation
done recently. What I could not believe was that the professor did
the course evaluation by himself, including to hand out and to collect
the course evaluation forms from us in person. And he enjoyed that.
Hanging around and interrupting when we were doing the evaluation.
This is what I've never seen before. Gee, what surprised me even more
was that yesterday he asked one student who missed the previous class
session to make up his evaluation and to hand it in after class. I
wondered what I should do if I were the guy. I could, without sweat,
easily see most students scored 4s or 5s which appeared to be in a
straight line, and was struggling if I should be an exception, since
the professor might see my evaluation form and I didn't want to
flatter him by giving him a evaluation better than what he deserved.
It seems funny to me that people did not take the course evaluation
seriously like me!
The confusion came to my mind is that: Do people in this
department always do the course evaluation like this or it is just an
accidental exception? Can they find some students' organization to
handle such kind of evaluation instead? I wish that I get no trouble.
Please feel free to rewrite my wordy description, and erase words
which may be used to identify the date, name of the course, college
and me. I'm not hurry for your response, but feel funny about the
evaluation and write this. Best wishes.
/Confused
Dear Confused, That IS disconcerting. Course evaluations are meant to allow you
to give honest feedback that you might not feel comfortable expressing
in person. That's impossible to do with the professor looking over
your shoulder or knowing exactly who handed in which evaluation.
I forwarded your letter to Dean of Faculty Peter Stein
(pcs1@Cornell.edu; 255-4843), who says he certainly agrees that the
course evaluations should be anonymous and that the professor should
conduct them in such a way that he or she cannot know the identity of
the students. He recommends that you write a note to the chair of
the department suggesting that s/he ask the professor in question to
carry out the evaluation in a way that preserves anonymity. Let's
hope that by following through on your concerns, you'll save future
students similar trouble. Uncle Ezra |
