Perspectives
6 The Loquitur
Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010
A sign of hope for most, inappropriate to others Breast cancer By Rachael Renz awareness month is Copy Editor during October. Oddly enough, breast cancer paraphernalia was banned from a high school in Othello, Wash. during this month. Brothers Alex Castro, 16, and Buck Castro, 14, sported the common “I Love Boobies!” bracelet on a daily basis until their school banned them. The principal of the brothers’ high school told the boys that the bracelets were “too provocative” and “offensive” to students and teachers. Therefore, they were banned. Miles away at Baltic High School in Sioux Falls, S.D. the “I Love Boobies!” bracelets were banned as well, for “poor taste.” A young girl who goes to Baltic High felt this was unfair since her grandmother and five of her grandmother’s sisters battled breast cancer. These “controversial” bracelets are a product of the “I Love Boobies Campaign” organized by the “Keep A Breast Foundation.” All of the proceeds are donated to the fight against breast cancer. The organization’s mission is to “help eradicate breast cancer by exposing young people to methods of prevention, early detection and support.” The purpose of the bracelets is to spread awareness of breast cancer among young boys and girls. The choice of wording was chosen because it is something that the younger population can relate to. “That's the whole idea, it's getting people to talk about breast cancer, it's getting people to share their feelings about how this disease has impacted their life,” founder Shaney Jo Darden said. “The bracelet is doing what it's meant to do — it's making people talk.” Unfortunately, South Dakota and Washington aren’t the only states forbidding them. Schools in California, Colorado, Idaho, Florida and Wisconsin are
also prohibiting them from being worn. Although some schools don’t ban them completely, they do allow the bracelets to be worn inside out. The fact that this is even an issue is absolutely absurd. My aunt was diagnosed with breast cancer when I was 10 years old. I know that if these bracelets were around when my aunt discovered her illness, that bracelet would have been glued to my wrist. What ever happened to freedom of speech? Although these bracelets have become a fad and are trendy, they are also sending a loud message to the world: awareness. Being aware in itself can help save lives. My little cousin owns a $4 “I Love Boobies!” bracelet and I’ll be honest, the first time I saw them I was taken aback. I thought to myself, “okay, that’s a little unnecessary.” But, then I realized that this speaks to the younger population. It’s something they can relate to rather than a pink breast cancer ribbon, because it comes in cute colors, has a heart graphic and also says the word “boobies.” Despite the fact that some may feel that the word “boobies” is offensive, it’s a slang for breasts, which is exactly the point. Teens use slang all the time through Facebook, instant messenger and text messaging. Hell, I use slang sometimes too, so of course it relates to the target market. Girls as young as 10 years old have been diagnosed with breast cancer and the young boys and girls who are wearing these bracelets are their friends. The grandmother of the Castro brothers friend lost a battle to breast cancer and he wears his bracelet because of her death. He feels that it represents the strength that his friend has. Although I am not a young teen, I still stand behind the right to wearing this bracelet. I have personally been through a war against breast cancer more than once and I think I reserve the right to rock a piece of jewelry. For me, wearing the bracelet stands for hope that one day breast cancer will end and that no one else will have to expe-
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Combining style and charity, the bracelets proceeds go to cancer research and they come in a variety of colors to attract young consumers. rience what I have. I have lost my aunt, my grandmother has breast cancer and my aunt was recently diagnosed this past summer. I agree that shirts that say “Spear Britney” and “FCUK Me” shouldn’t be allowed in school, along with clothing that has alcoholic beverage logos. But, for something that is profound, brings comfort and is worn proudly, why take that away? Maybe some wear them because they want to fit in among their peers but I’d say nine times out of 10 whoever purchases this bracelet wears it for personal reasons. Whether or not breast cancer takes lives it still affects the person it’s attacking. I know from first-hand experience that when my aunt was fighting her nineyear battle with breast cancer, not only was her health affected but so were her husband and children; they had to fight the battle with her. So, if you or someone you know has or is fighting breast cancer, keep your head up and your faith strong. Raise your wrist high and proud, rockin’ that “I Love Boobies!” bracelet because even if they take away your right to wear them, they can’t take away your hope. rr724@cabrini.edu
New friend request, it’s your mom Attention: there is a new and entertaining way for parents to stalk your every move. That’s right, our beloved Facebook is being used in offices, homes and coffee shops all over the place by parents who now dedicate all of their time to making their children’s lives miserable. Let me clarify, more miserable than before. Now it is obvious that not all parents are guilty of tormenting their children. Some parents mind their own business and don’t even acknowledge they have children at all, let alone children with Facebook profiles. Imagine your excitement when you receive a new friend request. Now imagine opening your new friend request on Facebook and finding a lovely photograph of your mother, father or crazy Uncle Louie. I am here to tell you that it does happen and for me the very thought of it makes me cringe. Parents used to spend their time reading the newspaper, cooking dinner and grocery shopping, doing “normal” parent things. They have now allowed Facebook to consume their lives. I believe in equal rights for everyone just as much as the next person but sometimes there is a time to draw a line. In this case the line is humility; humility for everyone, for the parents who are posting ridiculous statuses and for their offspring who have
By Sarah Luckert Staff Writer
to witness them. The first thing that is important is whether you accept your parent in the first place. Thank goodness for my parents lack of time and knowledge of technology because I don’t think I would be able to accept the request. For those of you who are brave enough to venture to the other side and do it, you may want to be aware of the support that is out there for you. The awkwardness of receiving messages filled with slang words from your mom when she should be doing other things is difficult to deal with. So it’s a good thing Erika Brooks Adickman and Jeanne Leitenberg, creators of MyParentsJoinedFacebook.com, have created a safe haven for all of those suffering from the growing epidemic. On their website they offer an area to vent as well as examples of other sufferers who may just have it worse than you, even though that may be hard to believe. The idea of having parents’ who post everything about themselves on their Facebook so the 22 people they went to high school with, who also have profiles, can see what they are doing now-a-days is sad. But, don’t fear, you are not alone. There are hundreds of kids in the same boat. We can learn to think before we post. Together, survive this epidemic. skl37@cabrini.edu
Online presence can lead to jobs By Natalie Crawford Staff Writer Being a senior communication major, online presence is crucial. Social and media networking are extremely beneficial. You could potentially find your career this way. The only social networking program I have used has been Facebook. Facebook can be a great way to pass the time by checking people’s status and photo uploads. However, it can be much more beneficial than that. I use it especially when I need to get in contact with someone or to just keep in touch with old friends from the past. I know that if I ever need to get in touch with someone and I don’t have his or her telephone number, I can always rely on Facebook to keep me connected. If you are hosting an event, one of the best ways to get the word out is to make an event on Facebook. When there are dances and special events going on around Cabrini, I always find out through the event posted on Facebook. It’s a useful way to inform and network people. Besides creating events, you can also create groups. Most of the groups I am in on Facebook are school related. The people
I’ve heard stories of how students keep in touch with people in the field they hope to pursue a career in and landing a job from it. who create certain groups encourage people to join it or to “like” it. It gets the word out for whatever is happening and keeps everyone connected. Besides Facebook, the other online social networking website that students can use in their favor is Twitter. From what professors and friends have told me, Twitter is the most valuable form of online networking, especially if you’re a communication major. I’ve heard of stories of how students keep in touch with people in the field they hope to pursue a career in and landing a job from it. Just by getting to know someone on Twitter can lead to so many other contacts. I don’t have a Twitter account right now nor do I know how to use one, but if making one could potentially lead to me meeting someone and getting a job, then I am putting it on the top of my to-do list. Blogging can also be a useful way to express your writing to the public. What’s great about blogging is that you can write about all of your ideas and interests. While blogging about things you care about, you can simulatenously improve your writing skills, which can also help with getting a job if the right person reads it. Back tracking a little bit. Sure anyone can use these online networking websites, but it seems like the key necessity to achieve a professional appeal is to have effective writing skills. By having these online accounts you recognize the way people write, professional or not. I think that’s helped me to find my own affective writing style. Being a well-rounded communication major entails being able to speak, write and think. You don’t really realize it but so much of the media is convergence. You can find everything online. So to have those abilities to be able to communicate to the public are extremely important. ngc24@cabrini.edu
Thursday, Oct. 21, 2010
Student athletics:
a way of life By Allie Rodolico Staff Writer Throughout my entire life, sports have always had a large impact on me. For the majority of it, swimming and basketball were my two main sports. They took up most of my time and I was joining every team to improve. When I got into eighth grade I took up field hockey just for fun. I played for the high school team and began to love the sport more and more. Eventually field hockey and basketball started to become my two main sports. During my senior year of high school, my team ended the season with the best record in school history. We made it to semifinals in the playoffs where the Cabrini field hockey coach, Jackie Neary, first saw me play. My mom told me she had talked to her and she was interested in having me coming to Cabrini. I had heard from people from my hometown that Cabrini was a suitcase school and everyone always went home on the weekends so I had never even considered applying. I decided to meet with the coach anyway and it turned out to be one of the best choices I’ve ever made. Between Jackie’s enthusiastic attitude, the communication department and the gorgeous scenery that I would be walking through every day, there wasn’t a doubt in my mind that Cabrini was the right choice for me. As the summer flew by and preseason got closer, I began to get even more anxious about going to the place I’d spend the next four years. I was already at an advantage from all the other freshmen that didn’t play a sport because I was there a week earlier and had already met a big group of people. The first three years flew by and the field hockey team grew to be not only a group of girls I played a sport with, but they became my second family. We are all friends on and off the field and have shared laughs and memories that will last a lifetime. Two of the girls on the team in particular turned into my best friends at Cabrini and roommates. Now during my senior year, I couldn’t imagine life without Cabrini field hockey. I hear from my friends that also play sports at their colleges complain how much of a hassle it is with the crazy practice schedules, it’s not fun for them anymore or they can’t stand their coach. I’ve never had a single complaint. All three of my coaches understand how important it is to be a studentathlete and give us the freedom to be able to be both. By making the decision to come to Cabrini and play field hockey, I have met some of the greatest people that I know will stay in my life forever. Although Cabrini is a small school and people do go home on the weekends a lot, I couldn’t imagine myself going anywhere else or playing for any one besides Jackie Neary. The happiness that field hockey has brought me, the memories I have made and the people I’ve shared them with wouldn’t have been the same at another school. Everyone in my family always thought I would go to college for basketball or swimming, especially my dad. However, now that they see how field hockey has shaped me into to the person I am today, they are all happy that I chose the path I did. I don’t know what I’ll do once the final buzzer sounds in my last game, but I know that no matter what, Cabrini field hockey will always be a part of me and stay in my heart forever. amr729@cabrini.edu
Perspectives
The Loquitur 7
Apple staying on top By Jimmy Crowell Staff Writer With their sleek iPhones, versatile iPads, popular Macintosh personal computers and everpresent iPods, Apple is always top news in technology blogs, featured in top newspaper publications and highlighted in cable television news programs. According to the Pew Research Center Project for Excellence in Journalism in their research published Sept. 27, Apple gets more coverage from the media than any other technology-based company. Apple has a carefully crafted and orchestrated public relations strategy. There is no question about that and their marketing strategy maintains itself as iconic and instantly recognized for its 35-year existence. On the Standard & Poor’s 500 market index, Apple is close to eclipsing the market value of No. 1 global company, Exxon. I currently own an iPhone, an iPad, a MacBook Pro and I at one time owned several iPods. I will say without any doubt in my mind that Apple is a company that has reached me and told me that buying their products is worth their high prices. I own many Apple products and am not surprised to read that a large chunk of media coverage goes towards covering the colossal technology corporation based in Cupertino, Calif. Steve Jobs has been the CEO of Apple Inc. since its inception and has been the driving force behind all of their huge product launches since the first iPod launch in 2001. Jobs is a powerhouse when it comes to painstakingly taking part in design and crafting the products that come out of Cupertino. Apple triumphs as a technology com-
Apple has been a growing company since its inception in 1976. In its over 30 years it has become one of the largest American companies. pany and in my view has some of the best cell phones and personal computers available on the market today. Yes, it is true that the cost of iPhones and iMacs is expensive and may not be within the grasp for many people. I will argue however that for the quality and the lifespan of their products, Apple’s technology cannot be outdone by Sony or Dell or Microsoft or any other company. I think that Apple has been and will continue to be a very successful company in terms of making excellent computers, phones and iPods, and in terms of being able to market why their products are better and worth more than Sony’s devices, Google’s phones or Dell’s desktop computers. The actual “unboxing” of any Apple device is an experience itself. I have
bought many Apple products and I will say that I seriously enjoy taking apart the packing contents of a new iPhone, or when I unboxed my MacBook Pro for the first time, I really liked how simple and uncomplicated the product was placed in the box. And now that I think of it, that explains why Apple is so popular and why the media covers the technology company so much; it is because simple and uncomplicated is one of Apple’s approaches to their products. The words ‘simple and uncomplicated’ explain all of the actual reasons why many people like to buy and own Apple products. I have my own belief; products made by Apple just work. jfc46@cabrini.edu
Student insurance: more hassle than help
Today we learn of health care issues that By Michelle Costa personally affect homes around the world Managing Editor every single day. In the classroom, topics often focus on developing countries and the hardships of sustaining just resources. I find that learning of these situations hits a nerve in my body that is hard to explain. I want to help understand and speak on behalf of these countries, but how can I possibly do so when my own family is being subjected to the lack of health insurance? I feel as though many students do not comprehend the complexity of what it means to be uninsured and essentially pay out of pocket. Coming from a hard-working, comfortable middle-class family, does not override the pressures and complications of being a child with self-employed parents. Being self-employed does not offer the benefits that larger and corporate companies would offer to families. The financial expectations to cover a family are simply unacceptable and reach over a couple thousand each month for the most minimal coverage. Cabrini College mandates each student to have health insurance in order to be considered a student. Cost wise my family and I felt as though purchasing my health insurance through the school would be more beneficial financially. Boy, we were so wrong. Now on the plan for my second year, with not much of an alternate outlet, we owe more money than ever imagined. It feels as though the little card that I hold in my wallet, entitled Devon Medical, covers no more than me simply opening the door of a doctors office. Especially being a resident of Mon-
jamie santoro / perspectives editor
This and other pamphlets, available at the heath services section of www.cabrini.edu, lays out what is and is not covered by Cabrini’s student insurance plan. mouth County, N.J., the insurance does not accept any of my primary physicians. I have a hard time understanding why a school would provide a service that is so inconvenient and stressful on families. Medical fees on top of the $1,000 for each semester, seems inconceivable and ultimately frustrating. Health care reform is the obvious answer. We need a more accessible way for students to get their hands on credible and effective coverage. I see the medical bills pile up with large past-due balances. I spend hours with the so-called customer service representatives who share more advice through whimsical hold music than information and guidelines. College insurance may as well not even exist. It is hard to believe that something so necessary to students’ lives has become a chaotic mess, not serving the proper medical needs. I wish there was another way for students like myself to hold respectable health insurance that would eliminate family stress and high outstanding past-due balances. Things need to be changed, that’s the bottom line. The health systems at colleges need to come to their senses and provide positive and functional plans. mmc78@cabrini.edu