Editor:
This is in response to Chad Curvin’s letter (“Mass transit is annoying,” Sept. 14).
First, it is abundantly clear that he is blind to the people who take advantage of UTA. I encourage him to spend a day watching the stadium TRAX station and count the droves of people using it. Students and faculty ride it for free. This is advantageous to those who actually pay their own way. I save a huge amount of money by not paying a car payment, insurance, gas and regular car maintenance.
He also speaks of the inconveniences that UTA brings him, such as difficult commutes he blames on buses. He talks briefly about the “slight delay” at TRAX intersections. I suggest that anyone who has difficulty maneuvering around buses should examine their driving habits. Also, anyone that finds themselves late due to a train crossing should wake up 30 seconds earlier. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Imagine how bad the commute would be if the thousands of people who use mass transit were, instead, on the road.
He then moves on to the reason for his lengthy diatribe: spam from the U. The U sends e-mails informing students of the benefits afforded them by UTA and keeps students abreast of changes. These annoy him so much he felt it necessary to expunge his angst in full view of the general public. However, most of his rants are followed by further slaps to UTA. He accuses UTA of racketeering. This has nothing to do with spam! He refers to UTA as an “unruly bunch of bandits.” This logical fallacy, name calling, is used in all public forums and is meant to spur emotion and suppress rational thought.
He also suggests that the U should build parking complexes. All environmental arguments aside, I would like to hear how he proposes to do this. The university has around 30,000 students. Most of the students who drive, drive themselves. His plan must provide 30,000 student parking spaces, plus faculty and still have room for essentials like classrooms.
Parking fees also seem to irk him. A quick Google makes clear that parking fees are common practice for a public university.
Finally, a quick bit of advice for anyone who may benefit: if spam e-mail truly annoys you to the point you spend twenty minutes to write about it, you should really get into meditation, counseling or seek medical help in the form of a chill pill.
David PageSenior, Biology Teaching