Friday, August 6, 2010

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

Fourteenth Points

U.S. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has called for hearings on whether to rescind all or part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution to prevent the children of undocumented workers from becoming automatic citizens. Dr. John Vile, dean of the University Honors College and a Constitutional law expert, says, “The Fourteenth Amendment overturned the notorious Dred Scott decision of 1857 and has long been regarded as the Constitutional provision that incorporated the affirmation of equality in the Declaration of Independence. An amendment would represent the first major change in either the Bill of Rights or the Fourteenth Amendment. Such an amendment would require a two-thirds vote by both houses of Congress and approval by three-fourths of the states.”

Contact Vile at 615-898-2596.
jvile@mtsu.edu

A place to pray

The Anti-Defamation League is one of the groups opposed to the construction of a mosque and Islamic center (Cordoba House) on a privately owned site two blocks from Ground Zero in New York City. Dr. Rami Shapiro, adjunct professor of religious studies and an ordained rabbi, says, “I know Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf, the leader of Cordoba House. I have taught with him, dined with him (and his wife), and argued with him about the Middle East. And I am proud to call him a friend. I believe we need more ventures like Cordoba House, not less. I believe it is long past time for progressive clergy to come together and support one another and condemn and actively oppose the work of those hate-mongers in all faiths. And I am saddened that the ADL lacked the guts to do so in this case.”

Read Shapiro’s blog at http://rabbirami.blogspot.com/.

Not-so-eminent domain

Drs. Amanda DiPaolo and Karen Petersen, political science, will spend the next year conducting statistical analysis of a concurring opinion in a U.S. Supreme Court case. They intend to explore Associate Justice Robert Jackson’s concurring opinion in Youngstown Sheet & Tube v. Sawyer. According to their abstract, “This paper seeks to test Jackson’s theory in Youngstown that suggests the federal courts look for approval of Executive decisions by the Congress when making … rights-based national security decisions. We will examine the Supreme Court cases where issues concerning military detentions are brought before the federal courts. We will also look at the issue of wireless wiretapping.” The majority opinion held that President Truman did not have the authority to seize private property absent Constitutional or statutory permission.

Contact DiPaolo at 615-898-2708.
dipaolo@mtsu.edu
Contact Petersen at 615-494-8662.
kpeterse@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

HEALTH CARE—GOOD FOR WHAT AILS THE ECONOMY--Dr. Murat Arik, assistant director of the MTSU Business and Economic Research Center, will explain his recent study assessing the impact of the health care industry in Nashville at 8 a.m. this Sunday, Aug. 8, on “MTSU on the Record” with host Gina Logue on WMOT-FM (89.5 and wmot.org). The study, which was unveiled at a July 7 news conference, shows one in eight Nashville workers to be employed by health care providers. Furthermore, more than 250 health care companies have operations in Nashville, which ranks it above 13 other similar cities, including Atlanta, Birmingham, Dallas, Denver, Indianapolis and Louisville. “The findings of this study underscore what we’ve always known to be true—that Nashville’s health care industry is unique to other markets, especially in the creation of jobs, both locally and globally,” says Arik. Contact Logue at 615-898-5081 or WMOT-FM at 615-898-2800.

GRITS ARE GOOD FOR YOU.--The GRITS Collaborative Project and MTSU invite you to participate in their 2010 forum from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 12, in the Tennessee Room of the James Union Building. The keynote speaker will be Lee Rennick, executive director of the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce’s Business Education Partnership. Her address is titled “Standing on the Shoulders of Giants.” Guest speaker Donna M. Inch, newly appointed Chairman and CEO of Ford Land, will discuss the importance of attracting and retaining women in the engineering and science pipeline. GRITS stands for Girls Raised in Tennessee Science. Its collaborative project brings together organizations and individuals committed to informing and motivating girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. The registration fee is $10. Students may attend for free. Contact Dr. Judith Iriarte-Gross at 615-904-8253 or jiriarte@mtsu.edu.

“A HEALTHY STATE ENCOURAGES MANY VOICES—AND LOTS OF LISTENING.”—HHS SECRETARY KATHLEEN SEBELIUS--Expressions of confidence, faith, defiance, togetherness, satire and sobriety characterize the second edition of Voices We Haven’t Heard, a publication of MTSU’s June Anderson Center for Women and Nontraditional Students. The latest Voices is larger than last year’s edition, and it includes feminist poetry and prose nestled between glossy, colorful covers. Center Director Terri Johnson says the magazine empowers students by providing them with a creative outlet for their observations on racism, sexism, classism, homophobia and other forms of oppression. Voices We Haven’t Heard is free and available from the June Anderson Center in its new home, Room 320 of the Keathley University Center. For more information, call 615-898-5989 or go to www.mtsu.edu/jac.

I’M PLAYING WITH MY BOOKS, MOMMY.--“Books and Children in the 19th Century: A Small Portrait” is the theme of an exhibit on display now and throughout this summer in the fourth floor Special Collections area of MTSU’s James E. Walker Library. The purpose is to show the variety of ways children and the adults around them engaged with books in the 1800s and early 1900s. The works available for viewing are indicative of the children’s book as an object of moral and educational value. The idea behind the books is to teach values and build character. Entertainment techniques are employed strictly to attract the children and hold their interest. Highlights include several movable books, which are books that contain text or illustrations that the child can manipulate. Pop-up books are one such type of movable book. Many items in the display have never been exhibited previously. Call the James E. Walker Library at 615-898-2772.