I WANTED more hate mail. As a lowly first-year Opinion columnist, I never felt I got my fair share of e-mails that ended with an expletive or an insult toward my mother. I wrote for the single sanction and against the single sanction (I flip-flopped); I wrote two columns in favor of affirmative action; I wrote for gays in the military and about comprehensive sexual health education.Nothing. My e-mail always seemed so painfully bare. Hate mail was a badge of honor in the Opinion department, and my criticism sash was empty. I even started to think people liked me.
Then I became editor-in-chief.
I no longer had to worry about a shortage of criticism; it became one of the critical parts of my job. I naturally got a fair share of extreme barbs -- I got compared to a Nazi once. But I also got plenty of e-mail from concerned students, wishing to express their opinion because they disagreed with one of the hundreds of choices the CD staff made on any given day. It sometimes wore on me to receive so much criticism (the e-mail that read, "I really enjoyed _____" rarely made it into my inbox, except when we introduced Sudoku -- I was beloved if only for a day), yet this was my favorite part of the job. A newspaper is in many ways as good as its readership, so I must first thank our readers, especially the ones that spent the time to say, "you could have done that better." I hope as the year progressed, you saw the improvements that I did.
While The Cavalier Daily deserves to be scrutinized just as much, if not more, than any other major institution at the University, its staff rarely receives the praise it deserves. Any byline or staff box does not do justice to the amount of work each member of the CD does for any given edition. One of my greatest joys was finding out about the men and women behind the byline, learning about their idiosyncrasies and personalities. It's been a pleasure to serve as an editor for such a dedicated and talented staff, and I would like to specifically acknowledge some members of the CD that made those long hours in the windowless basement so rewarding.
Few people can understand what it's like to be on the Managing Board of The Cavalier Daily. It's more like a family than anything else -- you spend so much time together, you fight a lot and you can't imagine life without them. Elliot's passion, Tim's sarcasm, Monika's playfulness and Dan's dedication made each meeting provocative, productive and occasionally fun. It's been an honor to be on the MB with four incredibly talented individuals.
I would be lost this past year if it wasn't for the guidance of my predecessors, Chris and Justin. Their advice and encouragement through the inevitable trials and tribulations of the job got me through the most difficult times.
To my successor, Mike: I know you will exceed my unbelievably high expectations for you. I've known you were something amazing ever since I first picked you as an Opinion columnist your first year. I created you
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