Last week, Pope Benedict XVI began his first visit to the United States. The significance of the occasion also was apparent in the group assembled on the tarmac to greet the Holy Father - President George W. Bush himself.

The top news item in Sunday’s New York Times could prove to be the defining story of our time. According to a lengthy investigative report by David Barstow, military analysts at every major television news network have been providing glowing reports of the Iraq war - with less than honest intentions.

Earthquakes happen - we don’t need to look into it any further. And we definitely don’t need to go around trying to determine if anyone was to blame (especially since, even if anyone was to blame, it was almost certainly an accident).

The IU logo appeared in photos of Bill Clinton because he was at IU. It was visible when Sen. Barack Obama visited campus during the women’s Little 500. And it was on stage with Dave Matthews as he performed in support of Obama. No one is going to confuse these as political endorsements.

While I always enjoy Cheba Hut’s parties, 4/20 is hard to celebrate while hundreds of thousands of innocent people are locked in jails across America for mere marijuana possession.

McCain chose Carnegie Mellon as the venue for the unveiling of his economic plan. On the surface, that’s great for us - students of all parties had a chance to ooh and ah before a man that may lead the country. Still, we have to wonder what McCain’s speech even had to do with Carnegie Mellon.