10 COLLEGIAN EDITORIAL/OPINIONS SEPTEMBER 29, 2010
EDITORIAL
att’s You can get used to anything
MMusings The concept of “normal” is
perhaps one of the strangest and
most difficult concepts to actually
If you’ve ever walked a long,
gradual hill and turned around
to notice just how much eleva-
pursue your passions, it’s more
than okay to stay there.
Our comfort is a relatively
describe. Our standards and typi- tion you’ve actually climbed, then neutral consideration. We can
Addicted
cal expectations are often heavily you have the idea that the slow become habituated toward almost
dependent upon our own per- progression can mask a great dis- any condition, positive or nega-
sonal context and situation. In tance. Most people do not become tive, and we must be mindful of
other words, where and who we monsters or saints overnight. The that fact in order to more fully ex-
to stress
are has a direct impact on what ability to progressively get used to amine our life in context of our
we expect to be normal. Thus, if our situation and outlook on life time and energies at Willamette,
parts of our expectations are so can be something infinitely posi- in context of the passions and
driven by environment, it’s a nat- tive or ultimately destructive. pursuits that extend throughout
ural outcome that we can come Thus, in the examination of our entire life.
to expect almost everything. We life, it is important to be especial- The journey of our lives is much
M A T T can get used to anything. ly careful with the consideration like walking on a flight of stairs.
PITCHFORD
Situations that people are of how comfortable or “expected” You can cover astounding distanc-
able to live through that are ut- our life is. If we can become in- es, up or down, through the steady
OPINIONS EDITOR terly unimaginable for most of ured to anything, it is important and small application of quite liter-
us – atrocities in war, tales of to become habitually and consis- ally “one step at a time.”
survival or day-to-day disabilities tently familiar with things that are Especially as we consider the rel-
There are many peculiarities that seem to con- – are much more understandable quintessentially good, construc- evancy of studying social and eth-
sistently make up the typical Willamette student. when we realize that we can be- tive, just and true. nic movements, it is helpful to re-
One of them is simply the fact that most of us are come accustomed to almost any So, although the idea of com- member that progress is a process.
chronically overcommitted. There are so many context, however strange it may fort and expectation is certainly Banning the consideration of such
clubs to be a part of, extracurricular opportunities be at its onset. something to be taken into con- topics is akin to banning stairs, and
to explore, passions to pursue and jobs to work If you’ve ever put on a pair of sideration, it is not the only is not something we should get
at … not including the academic workload that is glasses, then you have some idea standard for establishing how we used to.
rarely negligible. of what this is like. Putting on ought to go about living life. Get-
I think that some degree of this strange and de-
manding behavior comes down to the simple fact
glasses can either dramatically
better or dramatically worsen
ting too comfortable can create
the potential danger of accidently
COLLEGIAN
that most of us are addicted to stress. It feels good
EDITORIAL POLICY
your vision. But positive or nega- overlooking something that ought
to get everything done in a high-performance envi- The Editorial represents the composite opinion
tive, we notice the striking shift to be changed. of the Collegian Editorial Board.
ronment like our university. As easy as it may be to most of all. Such a jump can be But just because we are com-
forget, we have chosen our involvement and com- difficult to deal with … but imag- fortable in a “good” or challeng- MEMBERS
mitments. We have chosen to be this stressed. ine a slow and steady progres- ing place does not necessarily Lauren Gold • EDITOR IN CHIEF
I’d be the first to say that it’s hard to just put sion instead. A shock is difficult mean that we have to push past Matt Pitchford • OPINIONS EDITOR
down commitments. Sometimes it is hard to just to deal with. A steady change is our relative ease. If you are work- Michelle Bellusci • MANAGING EDITOR
say “no” to additional responsibilities. But it’s also much more palatable. ing in a space that allows you to
important to find a pace for your life that is sus-
tainable for an entire semester.
When you are stressed, it’s helpful to remem- OPINION
‘Glee’ brings campus together
ber that everything is not an emergency. Things
here are important … but ultimately not worth the
cost of your sanity and health. This isn’t to say you
shouldn’t try to get your work done; there is a dif-
ference between ignoring your responsibilities and MILES SARI
balancing them. GUEST WRITER
With all our responsibilities, it is dangerous
when we get into the place of doing things sim- Tuesday night, the students of Wil- The show’s diversity brings Willamette Another thing that makes “Glee”
ply for the sake of doing them. We won’t be able lamette flocked to Montag and the students together. appealing is its strategic use of ele-
to do what we love all the time. The distinction is common areas of the dorms to watch Of all the people who gathered ments of pop culture. Next week’s epi-
that the responsibility should be one that we love, the highly anticipated second season to enjoy the show, there was not one sode is the long anticipated tribute to
even if the nitty-gritty details don’t always pan out premiere of “Glee.” The episode, titled single clique or gender that seemed pop music’s princess, Britney Spears.
to pure enjoyment. What we are doing should be “Audition,” drew in an impressive 12.3 to be the major fan base of the show. Spears, whose iconic and tumultu-
an outgrowth of who we are, not just what other million viewers and featured covers of “Glee” appeals to a unique audience ous career has spanned more than a
people expect us to accomplish. popular songs such as Lady GaGa’s that includes a plethora of members decade, was a performer with whom
The point of “too much” is obviously different “Telephone” and Jay-Z and Alicia from the varying cliques at Willamette. most of us grew up.
for each person, but a good standard to apply to Keys’ “Empire State of Mind.” The show brings these people from di- Doing a tribute episode to Spears
your life is the test of whether you can be fully and Though the show has 19 Emmy verse groups together to enjoy the dry is a very strategic move on the show’s
completely involved in one place at a time. If you nominations under its belt, one can- humor and catchy renditions the cast part. She has captivated America ever
are incapable of being fully committed to the mo- not help but ask why “Glee” and other belts out. since “Baby, One More Time” and
ment – the time spent working at your job, chilling shows like it are so appealing, especial- The season premiere was honestly there is no doubt that the upcoming
with friends or enjoying an adventure – because ly to the collegiate demographic. not that strong of an episode for a episode featuring Spears herself will
you are so busy thinking ahead about what needs One answer to that appeal could show that should have an earth-quak- break records and make “Glee” the
to happen next, then you are dangerously close to be that the show presents a unifying ing return. The story line was nothing show it once was. It is a unifying return
the line of too much. theme among students. Tuesday night, special and there was nothing excep- to our collective childhood to have
We shouldn’t have to sacrifice what we are do- one couldn’t find a free TV on cam- tionally comedic about it. Die-hard such a star show up on the screen.
ing now on the altar of what needs to be accom- pus. All of them had been reserved so “Glee” fan Happi Yi said, “I think Though the season premiere was
plished later. To divide yourself between too many that eager fans could take in the excite- we can all agree what really made the lackluster, the show still managed to
projects and locations, temporally or otherwise, is ment and enjoy the return of their fa- episode come out of a nose dive was captivate its loyal audience and will
to diffuse yourself over the course of your life in vorite show. newcomer, Charice, who performed a continue to do so for the duration of
such a way that you become a Jack-of-all-trades and In this television phenomenon, stunning version of ‘Listen’ from [the the season. Expect more “Glee” parties
a master of none. the Glee Club is comprised of mem- film adaptation of] “Dream Girls.” Al- in the coming weeks, especially for this
I’d rather have depth of experience than mere bers from the various (and sometimes though the episode had its moments, next episode when the Pop Princess
breadth. So, as I go through this strange and stress- clashing) cliques in the school. There the only thing spectacular about its makes her “Glee” debut.
ful life, it’s always helpful for me to take a step back are the cheerleaders, the jocks, the return was the singing rather than
and remember that only a few things are really im- misfits, etc. ... and all of these groups the show itself. The strength of such a
portant … and those are the ones I want to pursue are represented in the club, which pro- unifying show is not even conditional
most tenaciously and consistently. vides something for everyone to enjoy. upon an incredibly engaging episode. Contact: msari@willamette.edu
Contact: mpitchfo@willamette.edu
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SEPTEMBER 29, 2010 OPINIONS COLLEGIAN 11
OPINION
The high cost of education Bearcat
THOMAS ELIOT
GUEST WRITER
At Georgia Tech, you can take as to some readers, there are people learning the material, right?
Bullet
many classes as you think you can who want to take extra classes, but This reveals something ugly about
handle. At Penn State, you are en- can’t afford the extra fee. And what Willamette and society post-gradu-
couraged to take as many classes as a fee it is: $1,022 per quarter cred- ation: you can learn the material for
Three parts of
possible. At Willamette, you’re penal- it. That’s right, if you want to take 1/20 the price of actually taking the
ized if you want to take more than 4.5 only a single extra class it’s another class and getting a piece of paper de-
credits – and penalized severely. $4,088. We’re discouraging our best claring that you have done so. The
I studied abroad this last year and, and brightest from learning and ac- knowledge isn’t what’s valuable; rath-
collegiate life:
as a result, I have some MOI catch- complishing all they can – or to look er, it’s the declaration that you have
ing up to do. There are several classes at it another way, we’re encouraging the knowledge that you really need.
in my major that are only being of- and rewarding doing the minimum Willamette is already doing some-
fered this semester, and other classes required to get by and graduate. thing right if we’re one of the 100 best
Doing it all
that just look like fun. There are sev- Before deciding to write this edi- value schools in the nation. However,
eral special quarter credit classes that torial, I talked with students across we clearly have room to improve, and
would be useful for my grad school disciplines as diverse as music, visual it would be a simple measure to change.
opportunities. To make a long story art, physics and mathematics, and The surcharge is already waived for P.E.
short, I wanted to take around six in every major I found people who classes as well as music. Imagine the up-
credits this semester, but I just can’t wanted to take more classes but who roar if all of a sudden music majors had KEVIN
afford to. also couldn’t afford to. to pay a proportional amount for their
BELL
Willamette is one of the Princ- Most students were unaware of number of classes! In order to truly al-
eton Review’s “Top 100 Best Value Willamette’s auditing policy, which is low students to gain the value of a Wil- COLUMNIST
Schools” – the only one in Oregon. unsurprising – the Web site makes no lamette education, we need to eliminate
But what that ranking doesn’t take mention of it that I could find. It costs such costs that can limit them.
into account is the potential of dedi- merely $50 to audit a class, but you At Willamette, as at many schools of its caliber,
cated students wanting to do more don’t get credit for it, don’t get graded it seems that it’s only possible to balance two of
than the basic workload. and it doesn’t count toward any gradu- the three parts of collegiate life. You get to have
As much as it may sound foreign ation requirements. But at least you’re Contact: teliot@willamette.edu a social life, an academic career or do something
extracurricular. As I’m writing this, I’m away at a
debate tournament where I have missed exactly
three ragers, two papers, one lab assignment and
POLITICAL PARTY ANIMALS
have already called my editor once to lie to him
about having completed my column for this week.
On the bright side, I’m currently getting ready to
go into Quarterfinals, so at least I have some mod-
‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’
icum of respect among a tiny, incredibly nerdy seg-
ment of the population. This illustrates the dif-
ficulty of balance phenomenally, though.
The problem is easy to illustrate. For me, who
Liberal Voice Conservative Voice tries desperately to do all three, this is my sched-
ule. During the week (at least after freshman year)
MAXWELL N I C K there’s not an incredible amount of time avail-
MENSINGER TAYLOR able to crunk it up with my wolf pack between
practice for debate, or rugby, or music, or what-
ever extra special resume-padding thing you do
COLUMNIST
COLUMNIST along with your education. You’d think that on
the weekends there would be more time for party-
A Gallup poll taken in May 2009 shows that about 70 per- The recent vote on “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” ing, but alas, starting with this weekend, I have
cent of American adults favor repealing “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” (DADT) reveals more about the attitude of the a trip to some exotic locale such as Tacoma or
(DADT). This poll, contrasted with the poll from November Democratic Party than it does about the opin- Walla Walla every Saturday.
2004, shows a drastic six percent increase in national approval ions of the Republicans. Personally, I’m not the I’m faced with the choices of not bothering to
for allowing openly gay or lesbian citizens to serve. biggest fan of DADT, which bans those who do my schoolwork so that I can hang out under
Not only have liberals and Democrats become more support- are openly gay from serving in the military – the star trees or play King’s Cup in classrooms,
ive of repealing DADT, but the poll also shows a 12 percent shift my main point of contention is the manner in sacrificing my reputation for epic kegstands and
from those who self-identify as conservative, and a six percent which the Democrats attempted to overturn this shotgunning ability, or giving up on debate …
shift from Republicans in the same direction. But I don’t want long standing policy. which is something that, at this point in my life, I
to mince words. To be as clear as possible, every age group, every Instead of treating it as its own issue and feel that I honestly cannot do.
gender, every major political party and every region of the U.S. holding a separate vote, Senate Majority Leader Debate, like any extracurricular activity that
has a majority of people who want to abolish DADT. Harry Reid had the audacity to attach an act to someone loves, is a harsh mistress. I curse its in-
The Senate decided that it doesn’t want to talk about that overturn “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” as an amend- credible stupidity one minute and then praise its
right now. Republicans filibustered and Democrats got stuck ment to the Defense Authorization Bill – assum- intellectual (specializing in botany) community
with 56 votes, just four votes short. ing that the Republicans would approve such an the next. As far as I can tell, this dichotomy can
As everyone knows, election season is on its way. Omens important defense bill without regard to what be found within all three fields of collegiate life.
of bad approval ratings loom ominously over the congress- was attached to it. But it didn’t stop there. Also Unless you’re WAY too involved in frat life or still
men’s and senators’ heads, promising what seems like a quick attached to the Defense Authorization Bill was a freshman, every so often you might have some
and merciless death to the Democratic majority in at least one the controversial DREAM act, which would reservations about the abandon with which some
House. That’s why Democrats tagged DADT and the DREAM grant amnesty to many illegal aliens, provided students apply themselves to the pursuit of inebri-
act, which are both controversial, to the National Defense Au- that they meet certain eligibility rules and fulfill ation. Also, hangovers – those kind of suck too.
thorization Act of 2011. other specific requirements. From an academic standpoint, clearly you care
However, not moving on the bill was a defensive Republican Based on this, I think it is fair to say that to a certain extent; otherwise you wouldn’t be
tactic. They don’t want to frustrate their base, especially with Tea DADT wasn’t kept intact because of its own mer- wasting so much of your parents’ money for a lib-
Party-ers posed to ditch them for approving anything with money its, it was overturned simply because of the way eral arts degree. The work involved for the pursuit
or government involvement. Reelection fever has left represen- it was presented to the Senate. The Republicans of this degree isn’t always what I’d call a barrel of
tatives mute on anything controversial, a real downer for those in the Senate are not stupid, and it was incred- fun, though. Finding a balance is rough, but ev-
citizens pulling for change. ibly bold and irresponsible of the Democrats to eryone has to make choices from day-to-day about
However, the confusion isn’t purely political. Some costly (as think that they could tack two large and conten- how to spend their evenings. Or afternoons. Or, I
in $485 million type costly) military appropriations involving sec- tious amendments onto the Defense Authoriza- guess, mornings, if you’re really dedicated.
ond engines for our F-35 joint strike fighters were also included tion Bill assuming that it would be passed. If My Irrational Irritation this week is directed
in the bill. This section, the whole idea of gay rights, as well as Reid and his comrades are truly serious about get- towards my professors who obviously don’t bother
immigrants’ rights at stake (the DREAM act) are indeed mutually ting something done, it would be in their best in- consulting each other before they assign 200 pag-
exclusive. But this bill didn’t seem to bother Republicans until terests to start leading and stop playing politics. es of reading every night. The liberal arts should
DADT and the DREAM act were tagged on. If anything, the bill not preclude basic math people, come on. If every
seems like a decent compromise between Republican and Demo- prof is as dedicated as you, then I’m reading ap-
cratic goals. The solidarity of the Republicans, however, doesn’t proximately 1.4 Hatfield Libraries every semester,
lie. Republicans were scared to do something revolutionary. Re- or 1.4 hella pages (10^27 pages). And that’s just
publicans, I beg you, don’t be gutless. Step up and do your coun- not okay.
try a favor. Cliché, I know.
Contact: mmensing@willamette.edu Contact: ntaylor@willamette.edu Contact: kbell@willamette.edu