Here's a list of headlines; It's Time, Think, Common Sense, Hail Interrogation, Jackman's Integrity, Tools Cannot Spell Loyalty.

There seems to be a horrible deficiency of trust on this campus. Trust among members of the student body, trust between the student body and the administration respectively, and finally, a belief that a student's right to express their opinion is protected. Students cannot seem to trust each other enough to leave their doors unlocked anymore. They don't trust that the administration is looking out for their best interests, and the administration does not seem to trust the student body will always be truthful.

Unfortunately, students (assuming that more than one compose these "groups") have resorted to a kind of underground communication that not only falls short of accomplishing their goal, but undermines their efforts. These efforts include an underground newsletter directed at the student body, criticizing the administration.

Unsigned, unattributed underground newsletters serve no constructive purpose, and here's why: opinions expressed without a person to take ownership of them have no credibility. There is no reason for anyone to believe that the source of these unattributed newsletters is authoritative. How on earth is the student body or the administration supposed to trust that the entire effort is not simply a hoax?

These students may be correct. If one were to give them the benefit of the doubt, then it might be said that they have every reason to be suspicious of the administration. However, these letters make large leaps, using common Norwich slang, like "tools," and "Jackmanites." The author or authors misspell the campus security chief's name. The authors misuse the term "fascist," and liken the administration to "Gestapo," the KGB, and other dated organizations without citing evidence.

The authors also use the term "Jackman," to collectively identify the university administrators. Not only is this humorous because "Jackman" is a physical building, (unless they are referring to Alonzo Jackman, the now deceased graduate for whom the building is named) made of mortar and stone and cannot lie, or in fact be "fascist," but that they are also implying that any person whose office is housed in Jackman Hall is also guilty of being "fascist." Is this to say that everyone, from the administrative assistants to the ROTC office personnel, to the academic administrators is "in" on the alleged conspiracy? To what conspiracies are they referring? Already, their credibility, or as they would call it, integrity, has been compromised.

The authors of these underground "publications" would have much to learn from the practice of journalism. It is a journalist's duty to cite sources, and attribute any information to them; else they may be responsible for what is printed. Since very little, if any, of this underground material is directly quoted, we can only assume that the person or persons responsible for printing it are also responsible for the information. Therefore, one would also have to assume that the authors of these underground publications are being truthful. Those are an awful lot of assumptions to make, based on a faith that these authors are asking us to place in people we cannot see and do not know. Again, we are back to the issue of trust.

The authors of these publications seem to be asking for an administration that is more trustworthy, but who are they to ask? And in what ways would they have the administration change? We can't assume that the authors are trustworthy, because for all we know, they might not even be associated with the school.

What takes courage and integrity is for one to stand up for one's beliefs, and, if necessary, for the weak. That same person must also take the risk of signing his identity to his convictions. Unfortunately, the author or authors of these publications do not feel comfortable with attaching their identities to their opinion. In this situation, everyone loses. The university administrators lose the opportunity to correct any misinformation that is being spread, the students lose the opportunity to be heard, and the public, or student body, loses the tools to decide what is truthful and what is not.

The real facts are hidden from all of us, and they will not be revealed until those who are aware and willing to be honest, are willing to sign their name.

When they do, the university administrators should listen and be willing to respond without prejudice.

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