EDITORIAL

No time for the past; too worried about the future

Has our generation learned from the past? Or, are we a mindless and apathetic group of individuals who are too worried about the future to step back and take a look at what previous generations should have taught us?

4 individuals were killed and 9 were injured as part of a stand against something they believed in. The students at Kent State University were appalled by Nixon's orders to send in more young soldiers to Vietnam. The students banned together to fight a cause that they were very adamant about. When the guards were called in, the students lost their first amendment rights, a privilege that should be respected by all.

The guards suppressed the students to the point of not being able to assemble, a right guaranteed by the constitution.

We live in a society that is ambiguous to events that changed the face of this country many times over. We feel that we are oppressed if the network server is not operating or if the college does not offer call waiting, but the students from Kent State knew what oppression was. Armed guardsmen convening on the college campus to prevent any form of assembly or gathering is inconceivable to us. While we selfishly fret with parking tickets and late dorm constructions, we lose sight of more important issues for ones that concern us directly and only for the time being.

The old adage, we should learn from the past, seems impossible when half of us are oblivious to the fact that such events could have ever occurred.

Most of us are fearful of speaking our minds when it comes to superficial issues, while the Kent State students were willing and did protest the government's actions.

Ignorance should not be as respected as it has come to be. Intelligence and a grasp of what is going on around us will help us to grow into a society that has structure and integrity.

SO's: Not for the innocent

this section has been successful. That is not to say that every column will be deep and provocative. There will be columns that are light-hearted and funny. but it would get boring if every column was like that. The introduction portion of this column is now over. Now let's get to the juicy stuff.

Welcome to the first official column of the Mike "80's" Butler reign as Perspectives Editor. More than likely you have seen me walking around campus and have commented to one of your friends "Who's that scary guy with the hockey hair?" Now you know who I am. Nice to meet you.

Now that we're acquainted, I would like to warn you about this column and probably every other column I write during my reign as Perspectives Editor.

I am not out to win any popularity contests. In fact, I love going against the status quo (the hockey hair and the long back coat should have tipped you off to that) This means that I don't mind being controversial. I actually excel and thrive at pissing people off. I have a natural flair for it. So if you read a column from me and it angers you, then I have done my job. If you read my column and you like it, then I have also done my job.

And whatjob is that, I hear you ask?My job is to stimulate the flow of ideas. I want to make people think. That is what this section is all about. The smallest amount of thought created by reading this section means that

I am not going talk much about the whole Elian Gonzales debacle. The law is the law. He is an illegal alien. He might be six-years old and he might be a cute little boy, but he is still an illegal alien. I have figured out one major message from all the hoopla about letting Elian stay in this country: "We'11only let in the cute illegal aliens." Trust me here, folks. If Elian was thirty-five and butt ugly, people would not think twice about slapping a pair of water wings on his arms, pointing toward Cuba and saying "Happy swimming." Vaya con dios, Elian. Maybe after Castro kicks the bucket you can get into this country legally. Until then, say hi to Uncle Fidel for me.

This past week also saw the anniversary of the shootings at Columbine high school in Littleton, Colorado. It brought back memories of people trying to blame video games and movies and the media for making the two gunmen shoot up their school. No one really blames the teenagers who picked on the gunmen without mercy. Of course, why would we blame them? I'm sure that the two gunmen would have shot twelve random people even if they were the most popular people in school. Can you taste the sarcasm in that last sentence? Let's think for a second here. Would teenagers who were popular and well adjusted go on a shooting spree? Only the maligned and ostracized students are the ones who go on shooting sprees. And who makes these students maligned and ostracized? If you answered "their fellow students," treat yourself to a cookie because you are correct.

All the coverage about the anniversary of the Columbine shootings has revealed one major fault of our society: Poor people can get shot all day long and no one will care, but when rich white kids get shot the whole nation must mourn. A street corner shooting in the South Bronx does not get its own hour special on The Learning Channel. but the Columbine shooting did. I am not saying that the Columbine killings was not a tragedy, but people are senselessly shot everyday and they do not have large remembrance ceremonies that garner full network coverage. But since the networks are run by rich people, I guess it would make sense for them to give as much exposure to an event concerning other rich people.

So what have we learned this week? Don't let the media tell you what to care about. Find things on your own to care about and care about them for your own reasons, not the media's.