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Letter to the Editor Your Oct. 20 “Meet” column did more than introduce Dr. Ajaib Paintlia to our community. It also touched on an unsettling trend of cultural insensitivity.   Despite his living in an environment of higher learning, Dr. Paintlia is still subject to people who mistake his ethnicity, values and beliefs for those other than his own. Dr. Paintlia’s pet peeve is, “people making bad comments about people they don’t know.” In today’s international climate, cultural insensitivity is on the rise, inflicting emotional pain and anxiety on campuses across our nation, including our own. It is a welcome wake-up call to have this issue brought to light by someone taking such a calm and principled stance. His quiet voice is heard loud and clear.   It is the job of the Office of Student Diversity and International Programs not only to facilitate the educational process, but also to promote respect for the growing number of diverse faculty, staff and students at MUSC. As the director of International Programs, I would like to encourage more discussion on this issue. By sharing our experiences as individuals, we grow as a community with similar interests and universal aspirations. Dr. Paintlia’s words exemplify the thoughtful proactivism of a new campus—a campus unified in the goal of education, not divided by the fear of the unfamiliar. Sincerely, Rebeca Mueller MUSC director of International Programs muellemr@musc.edu     Friday, Oct. 27, 2006 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.