Last week in the Columbia Spectator, Lauren Salz wrote an editorial entitled "Palin Haters Anonymous". It included the following: This past Sunday, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) came to speak at Columbia. One female student stood up and said, "As an educated woman, I know many of us were offended by the pick of Sarah Palin. So a two-part question—first part, what are your thoughts on Sarah Palin? Go wild. Second part, I'm really unsure why it became bad in politics to be smart and well-educated, especially at elite institutions such as Harvard or Yale or Columbia."

Well I am the questioner Lauren refers to. And Lauren, your rants against my elitism are not that far off base—I am an intellectual snob. So here we go…
1.    Sarah Palin did not know what the Bush Doctrine was—fine if you're an average citizen, not ok when you are a heartbeat away from the presidency
2.    Sarah Palin is unsure if global warming is man-made—expedient thoughts if you are a polluting industrialist, probably not the best belief set when your ignorance raises the rate of hurricanes, tsunamis, and more.
3.    Sarah Palin cannot name any Supreme Court case she disagrees with besides Roe v. Wade—disappointing if you are a voter, appalling if you will have a role in choosing future Supreme Court Justices.
4.    Sarah Palin seems to think all government spending is the core of economic problems—fine if you're the Libertarian candidate for President, not the best stance to take when Wall St. is imploding as I type this.
5.    Sarah Palin took five years and several universities to graduate with a degree in sports journalism—great if you want to be Bob Costas, not the best credentials if you're vying to be the leader of the free world.

Last Tuesday night, Justin Rockefeller, CC '02, spoke in Hamilton  about Generation Engage, the civic engagement initiative he co-founded. The four-year-old organization was created on the premise that voting rates correlate strongly with volunteerism rates, and it addresses the civic opportunity gap for young people who do not attend college because that demographic has tended not to vote in elections in large numbers. To find out how Generation Engage addresses this gap, click here.

Nicole Cata is an Events Coordinator for CPU who helped organize Mr. Rockefeller's appearance.

Most middle school textbooks "suck," asserted copyright reform activist Karl Fogel at the panel on illegal downloading CPU hosted Wednesday night. Fogel's statement was one of several that made the night exciting for attendees. Though not explicitly concerned with illegal downloading, Fogel's assertion about the quality of textbooks might be seen as emblematic of his larger argument that the current copyright system is not in line with social priorities. Fogel was joined by several distinguished advocates on the issue.