Remember, Remember the 4th of July
July 3, 2008
By Nicholas Wallwork
Contributing Writer
The presidential election is well underway now. The economy is in the tank. There is greater talk of more endless war, this time with Iran. A woman died in one of our health care systems wonderful hospitals. To top this off, the same old ills of our country continue; poor foreign policy, continued class struggle, etc, etc. And all this comes as we gear up to celebrate this country’s birthday.
Two hundred and thirty-two years ago, the framers of our nation drafted and signed one of the greatest declarations in history. They wrote a call to arms. They shoved a proverbial middle finger in the face of one of the greatest empires in earth’s great history. This took, for lack of a better term, balls. It is this brandishing of testicular fortitude that we celebrate this Friday by ways of barbeques, parades and drunken bashes. So let us take a moment out of our beer runs and Chinese-made patriotic paraphernalia buying to reflect on the founding of the United States and the revolution we waged against our ruling government.
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
This is how we started a country, by declaring it necessary. It was necessary for a people to put aside political persuasions. It was necessary to summit to basic natural principles. It was necessary to create a “decent respect” of political discourse. It was necessary for a mass of people to rise up against a tyrannical government that cared little about the people it ruled over.
Fast forward 200+ years and these necessities still ring true. We must shed our partisan shells and engage in a deep political discourse. With the memory of Jefferson and Madison, we must weigh the direction of the country; and if public opinion polls are correct, seventy-three and half percent of your barbeques guests will agree that something is seriously wrong with this country. We must then remember what it is about the country that we do not agree with; is it the war in Iraq, the outsourcing of jobs, our failing healthcare system, or our general lack of regard for our fellow man. And do these issues require a mass uprising.
Let us remember these principles while we party up the birthday of this great nation. Let us swap suggestions for how to fix health care as often as we exchange grilling advice. Let us argue over our foreign policy as vehemently as we argue over whether or not to play “bounces” in beer pong. Let us consider the marching on the White House as we march down Main Street. Let us remember as we hoist up the Star - Spangled Banner, that that act was treasonous two hundred and thirty years ago, before calling the family leftist a traitor. For it is these principles, that so many have given their lives for and that the great experiment of democracy is founded on.
Lets be honest for a moment...
Dating
April 16, 2008
By LJVM
Editor-In-Chief
Aside from providing you with a valuable education that will define the rest of your life, college offers another useful tool; the dating pool.
We all have that one friend whose first instinct when applying to college was looking at the male to female ratio. You probably did too. For whatever reason (SEX, SEX, SEX) young people look at college as the ultimate matchmaking haven.
It is unavoidable; the majority of young adults date classmates during their college careers, some even end up marrying. But there seems to be a darker, much darker side to this picture.
While partying it up, we forget to form genuine relationships with prospective partners. Instead we go for the blink-and-you-might-miss-it hook-up or the infamous drunken one night stand.
I can’t begin to justify how some people can feel comfortable with ADD dating. This campus is not large perse, so you might run into that random hook-up every now and then, making for some real uncomfortable moments.
College= party to many, but I would like to think there can be more to this formula.
The problem lies within the conflict of what we want versus what we say we want. Let’s start with girls.
They say they want a guy that will respect them and consider their feelings but absolutely melt for the tattooed foul-mouthed a-hole they met in Western History. Meanwhile, the guy who constantly lets her know how special she is remains unnoticed, even reproached.
Guys fall for the girl who ALREADY has a boyfriend, wears close to nothing, and idolize Paris Hilton.
They later act shocked when it’s “discovered” she’s been sleeping around. Like the ever transparent nice-guy, the nice-girls are strictly “good friends” to the average guy.
I just think that at this point college dating is useless, although somewhat entertaining. I’m not holding my breath, as I’m sure true love cannot be found in an atmosphere where heavy drinking and unabashed promiscuity reign, generally.
To me, dating within the same school is asking for trouble. Having said that, I’m totally asking out the guy in my 2 o’clock.
He’s hot, sue me.