HIGHACRES COLLEGIAN, APR. 26,1971 -
Editorial cornments
Remember him? This editorial cartoon appeared in the
February t edition of. the COLLEGIAN. In a special election
election held the previous week, only 29% of the elegible student
voters turned in a ballot.
With this in mind, the COLLEGIAN has attempted in this
issue to make students aware of a very important election an
election in which the SGA executive offices and most of the seats
are to be filled. Next year the Hazleton Campus will become a
24-hour campus. This means that the responsibilities of the
Student Government will be increased proportionately.
This election will be held on May 6 and 7 so if you forget
your marticulation card on Thursday, you can still vote on
Friday. _ _ _
Keep in mind the importance of this election AND VOTE!
Price of progress
America pays a high price for progress.
Wherever a shopping center goes up, stately edifices of
another era come down. The more product consumption, the
more littering. The faster the cars, the more exhaust spewed into
the air. The more cars, the more highways, the more billboards.
The more boob-tubes, a still higher cost of living, and so on.
These are only a few examples. You can probably think of a
dozen or so more
Within the last month, Highacres has indirectly paid a price
through no fault of her own. Route 93, adjacent to the entrance
of our campus, has been a nicely wooded . area dotted with a few
reSidences. Soon it will also be dotted with two gas stations. Lots
have - been cleared of all foliage for the construction of not one,
mind you, but two gas stations directly facing each other across
the highway.
Where once stood towering pines and a peaceful, natural
environment, we will soon be treated to the sight of gas pumps,
bright lights, and plastic commercialism.
We realize that gas stations are a necessity, especially in such
close proximity to Interstate Route 81. However, it is ironic that a
service station already exists several hundred feet from the site of
the new ones.
That one could suffice for any emergencies. Also, along the
two mile stretch of Route 93 from Highacres to West Hazleton
there are ten station in business. The two new ones will make it
twelve. That's a gas station every one sixth of a mile.
Are two more really needed? We don't think so.
Otp Eigilarrtei Tolipgiatt
The Collegian office is located in the Memorial Building
Office hours are Monday thru Friday, 1-4 p.m.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
John Roslevich, Jr
Paul Pianovich
Kris Karchner
E. J. Pietroski
T. W. Heppe
Richard Campbell
Assistant to the Editor: Gloria Smitrovich. NEWS: Alice
Bright, Amine Cumsky, Margie Grega, Susan Kisthart, Anne
McKinstry, Celine Student, Jean Yeselski. SPORTS: Tom
Caccese, editor; Mark Braskie, Jack McCutcheon. CREDIT:
Susan Kisthart. CIRCULATION: Gloria Smitrovich.
TYPING: Susan Kisthart, Kathy Motyl, Mary Polasick.
ADVERTISING: Ed Pietroski, manager; Bob Allison, Barb
Fahringer. COMPOSITION: Joan Mente, Alice Bright.
EDITORIAL WRITERS: John Hancock, Mel Mundie,
Richard Rockman. PHOTOGRAPHY and ART: Paul
Pianovich. MEMBER: The Press Association of
Commonwealth Campuses, Association Press Services
Newspaper Council of the Press Association, Intercollegiate
Press.
Letter Policy
Opinions expressed in The HIGHACRES COLLEGIAN are
those of individual contributors and do not necessarily reflect the
official views of The COLLEGIAN.
Unsigned editorials represent the official opinions of The
COLLEGIAN.
Responsible comment to material published in The
COLLEGIAN is invited. All letters must be type-written and signed.
Faculty members are students are invited to submit articles to
be published in a special section of The COLLEGIAN entitled
'lmpact.' Articles and other material (poems included) should be no
longer than 400 words and must be typed.
- PAGE TWO
rty odskirtl+
vote ?
...Editor-in-chief
Executive Editor
.Managing Editor
Business Manager
Production Manager
Faculty Advisor
STAFF
What does 'The Amazing Spiderman' have in common with
`All in the Family' ? And why are the May, June, and July (1971)
issues of the Spiderman comic book (issues 96-98) different from
almost every other comic magazine at your neighborhood drug
store?
For the answers to these and other exciting questions, we
must first look at the top right-hand corner of the cover of each
of the aforementioned issues of Spidey to see what is missing. Yes,
that's right, we must not look for what is there, but for what is
missing!
Well, don't you see anything missing? That's right, Bunky,
the seal of the Comics Code Authority is missing-that symbol
which you've grown to know and love over the years; that symbol
which has been virtually an institution in the lives of comic
magazine aficionados; that famous symbol which has been gracing
the covers of your 'Betty and Veronica's Summer Funs,'
`Supermans,' and 'Captain Americas' lo these many years. Yes,
Armageddon has come at last, the turning point is past: in other
words, the latest issues of The Amazing Spiderman HAVE NOT
BEEN APPROVED BY THE COMICS CODE AUTHORITY!
That's right, kiddies. Just think about it.
You might be saying to yourself, "But, what does it all
mean?" Restassured, I shall explain for the uninitiated that black
and white stamp of the Comics Code of whose mysterious
meaning you stopped wondering about years ago and haven't
given a thought to since has been around for almost seventeen
years. It means simply that the comic book upon which it is
placed does not violate any of the rules and regulations which the
Comics Code has established. And just what does the Comics
Code prohibit stamp-displaying comic magazines from
portraying? Among other things: narcotics. And that is exactly
what the Marvel Comics Group is portraying in Spider-man.
How did all of this come to pass? Well, the Comics Code was
created when comic books were being blamed for everything
from juvenile delinquency to illiteracy. Up until a few years ago
this false notion was still in acceptance by the vast majority of
the unenlightened population. Some people wouldn't be caught
dead reading a comic book. Even today, the connotation of
`comic book' is one of degradation to some.
For the most part, however, today comic books are held in
high regard by educators and artists alike. This is mainly due to
the precedent setting trend put in motion by the Marvel Comics
Group. Leading the long list of Marvel madmen/geniuses is Stan
Lee, editor and writer. A few years ago Mr. Lee felt that the
comic buying public was not getting the most our of their dime
(now 15 cents). He felt that the people of the world were ready
for more than 'Will Lois Lane find out that Superman's secret
identity is Clark Kent this issue' and the never-ending sickening
cycle of `Goodguy ' meets badguy, goodguy fights badguy,
goodguy defeats badguy' in a world where noone has any
problems and noone dies. He felt that the world was ready for a
comic book which dealt with reality in a fantasy situation. And
so, he created comic book characters who got hurt, felt pain
(mental as well as physical), and got into situations that people
get into in real life. He created comic characters who didn't
always defeat the badguy. In fact, many times you couldn't tell
the goodguys FROM the badguys (as it is in real life).
In addition to these improvements in story lines, Marvel also
raised the quality of artwork by using extremely talented
this is not really a filler, just consider it a mini-editorial - vote!
Truth for the masses
It has been shown that certain truths are self evident.
However, many must be pointed out to those of us not capable of
grasping them for ourselves. Thus it came to pass, that the
following were revealed to me in a most poignant manner:
- Paul Cerula is actually a very nice man, only doing his job.
- Library rent on books kept for an extended period is quite
necessary for my own well-being.
- The most appropriate name for a new classroom building is,
of course, 'Classroom Building.' Another structure erected for the
same purpose could be labeled, 'Other Classroom Building,' ad
nausea infinitum.
- It is much more prudent to buy and mount a chime system
which enables one to know when and what the exact hour is, at
the hour. Also, it indicates the half hour, but not exactly what
half hour is being chimed. Silly frivolity would prefer having
timepieces installed in every room, which would indicate the
exact time to a large number of people, whenever they cared to
know. Of course, pigeons would have a difficut time roosting in
clocks, and every successful campus should give pigeons the
opportunity to alight. In addition, what loyal patriotic heart will
not be warmed by the resemblance of our bell, to the Liberty
Bell?
- Shuffleboard and ping-pong are actually noble games.
Chinese-American relationships were renewed through the latter,
and American supremacy over Poland may soon be illustrated by
the former
- That all who lecture within the confines of the Memorial
Building are not living dead zombies, but, after all, are paid to
union scale.
- That we should fall on our knees and thank God for the
new athletic field, which is located next to the one being!
utilized.(Geology and Phys. Ed. may soon be scheduled at the
same site)
- That shower facilities are not inadequate, though one of the
two does not function.
- That the author is nasty because he does not picture the
truth as it ought to be portrayed.
Big Brother's
by John Hancock
bubble bursts
artists(such as Jack Kirby, Steve Ditko, Jim Steranko, etc.) who
helped put the illustrated comic magazine on the level it is today:
a recognized form of art.
In the magazine produced by this innovative group of
creative people you were to first see any portrayal of the black
man and his problems, pollution, and other reallife situations and
problems in comic books. Since then, Marvel's competitors have
jumped on the bandwagon, at first with mediocre results (they
were not used to handling a world where things weren't always as
black and white as the Comics Code stamp), and finally have
actually become quite creative (mainly Marvel's competitor DC,
which used to be the leader). And all of this is well and good.
Now Marvel has led the way again by taking the next bold
step in the interest of giving the public an entertainment medium
which still incorporates real life situations. They have published a
series of magazines that have not been approved by the Comics
Code because they deal with drugs. They have done this
deliberately and with complete foreknowledge that they would
not be approved and would be open to criticism by their
competitors as well as some of the comic reading public.
The fact is that these issues of Spiderman portray drugs
negatively. For example, after rescuing a freaked out young man
who is jumping from a tall building exclaiming, 'I can FLOAT..fIy
like a BIRD..' Spidey is seen saying to himself, 'I sure hope that
poor guy'll be ALL RIGHT. But I wouldn't BET on it. Any drug
strong enough to give you THAT kind of trip..can DAMAGE
your brain..but BAD! But how do you WARN the kids? How do
you REACH them? My life as SPIDERMAN is probably as
DANGEROUS as any..but I'd rather face a HUNDRED
SUPER-VILLIANS than toss it. AWAY by getting hooked on hard
drugs!..`Cause that's ONE fight you CAN'T win!...maybe we've
got to do MORE. If only SPIDERMAN could...' The plot
thickens and comes closer to home for Spidey as his best friend
gives in to the urge to experiment with hard drugs in order to
escape his personal problems in the next issue. But this doesn't
matter to the Code. They don't care whether you put down drugs
or build them up, they just won't allow it.
And now, after all of this, you ask me, 'Alright, already,
what does any of this have to do with 'All in the Family'?' The
same thing. 'All in the Family' is a television comedy which deals
with reallife situations which are common to almost everyone's
experience but have not been portrayed on the three major
networks before. The acting is superb, the comedy is outrageous,
the dialogue is meaningful, and it is performed before a live
audience thereby destroying the need for an asinine laughtrack.
But because it uses language and experiences which do not fit the
`black is black and white is white' mold which is as common to
television as it is to comic magazines, it is different from any
other American television series up until now. It is to CBS's credit
that they saw fit to present such a program at this time. As we
have seen with other innovators, the competitors will wait to see
what the public's reaction is. if it is good, they will jump on the
bandwagon also, first with cheap copies, and then, hopefully,
they will finally come out with entertaining programs of meaning
and quality to fill the void of 'the vast wasteland.'
`All in the Family' is not the first refreshing television
program to hit the airwaves...such shows as '6O Minutes' and
`First Tuesday' have also helped matters, in addition to many
entertaining and informative programs which are broadcast by
National Educational Television and Public Braodcasting Service
such as 'The Advocates,' Fanfare,' Sesame Street,' and 'The
Great American Dream Machine.' But programs such as these
have been the exception rather than the rule.
What it all adds up to is that the media have finally caught up
with the desires of the public and have begun to stop insulting the
intelligence of their viewers. It also means that people are finally
becoming less fearful to put their God-given Freedom of Free
Communication to good use.
Shades of grey
Today! There has never been a more exciting time to be
Change, Awareness, Speed.
A nation still too busy growing to learn the fine art of
leisure. We've come so far in such a short time. So far, so fast,
that we can never turn back. There is no room for yesterday
today.
There has always been change, but the awareness of the last
century, a by-product of all those before, has created the speed,
the pace, of the "Now" generation. The train that labored
painfully up the grade for nineteen centuries has reached the
greast and begun the breathless, free-wheeling ride toward the
gravity of the future.
Too fast? The battle lines have been drawn. On one hand,
those who wish to apply the brakes, and on the other, those who
look forward to increased acceleration
If you believe in a black and white world, the choice is
simple. Choose one side and fall subject to polarization. I would
prefer , however, that you contribute, rather than damn. Look
for the blend, the shades of gray. If you can learn ro recognize
the shades of grey, you can understand that change is inevitable;
that the blend is the only method of keeping the change orderly.
Randy Sparks has capsuled the logic in a recent recording
entitled "Hazy Sunshine." He suggests that if you can't see shades
of grey go away! He writes:
"Hey, old man, bend a little...or cling to
your throne as it falls. The old ways are gone and
the oak has gone brittle. Down will come cradle
and all."
Exciting!! Don't stand in the way of chan
run over you. Think aboutit
by Richard Rockman
by Mel Mundie
It's taken a long, long time, but finally the persons who have been
on the receiving end of J. Edgar Hoover's surveillance activities
are beginning to strike back. On April 6, Rep. Hale Boggs of
Louisiana spoke from the floor of the House of Representatives,
comparing Hoover to Hitler and Stalin and condemning the
practice of keeping members of Congress under surveillance. The
April 9 issue of LIFE magazine designated Hoover as the Emperor
of the FBI, carrying a cover photo which clearly placed him in
symbolic line with some of the more notorious emperors of the
Roman Empire and a few pages of copy which indicate the
problems of a man who has been too strong too long.
Senator Edmund Miskie picked up the chorus the next week
condemning the FBI surveillance of speakers at the April 22,
1970, Earth Day rally in Washington, of which Sen. Muskie was
one. Sen. Muskie called such activity "intolerable in a free
society" and "a dangerous threat to fundamental constitutional
rights," suggesting that if an antipollution rally js considered
suspect by the FBI then no political activity in America is safe.
The next day the New York Times told of an FBI informant
going into the office of Rep. John Dowdy of Texas last year with
a tape recorder strapped to his back, thus giving a new definition
to the concept of spinal support.
Of course, there has been warnings before. Most notable was the
information in Justice William 0. Douglas. book which spoke of
the FBI practice of wiring hotel rooms, equipping them with
two-way mirrors and other bugging devices. So the telling of what
the FBI has been up to for quite some time was nothing new. It's
just that in unprecedented proportions of late we're seeing some
prominent people who have been bugged by the FBI getting
"bugged" in return.
The impact of such unprecedented criticism can be measured in
President Nixon's compulsion to launch a defense of J. Edgar
Hoover as the President spoke before a banquet of the American
Society of Newspaper Editors. The President praised Hoover as
"nonpolitical and nonpartisan." thereby joining the ranks of
Presidents who have been afraid to blast the Hoover image. Tom
Wicker in LIFE magazine quotes former President Lyndon
Johnson as indicating the hope that Hoover would last in his job
longer than LBJ would last in his. Said LBJ: "I don't want to be
the one who has to pick his successor."
Therein lies the problem so many people are just beginning to
wake up to at this late date. The FBI has grown so powerful and
independent under the direction of J. Edgar Hoover that it can
tap the phones, bug the hotel rooms, and otherwise watch the
private actions of priests, nuns, ministers, lawyers, college
professors, civil rights workers, doctors, government officials, etc.
without any curb on its activities. When such a network, of
surveillance grows to the magnitude it now has, the time is very
close when no one in America is safe.
Which brings us to the real issue—that of defining the legitimate
role of the FBI. The FBI has become totally hung up on Director
Hoover's obsession with his personal view of "internal security"
at the expense of the real function of the Bureau. The FBI should
be the number one agency in the country which throws the fear
of justice into the real outlaws and criminals in our society. By
definition the FBI should be the investigating agency involved in
the apprehension of criminals rather than the self-appointed
guardian of internal security.
A quick look at the FBl's 16 Most Wanted List will indicate what
has happened to its own self-image. The list, by the way, has
grown from 10 to 16 precisely because the Bureau is so hung up.
on "internal security." Half of 'the current list is comprised of
persons wanted for so-called left wing radical political activity.
Without them, the FBI would only have an 8 Most Wanted list.
And isn't it odd that of the entire list of 16 there is not one dope
pusher, not one dope smuggler, not one person involved in the
illicit traffic of narcotics in any form? Any neutral outside
observor would have to look at the FBI Most Wanted list and say
that narcotics is not a problem in America.
Of course the observor would be partially right. It's not a
problem the FBI seems to want to be concerned with. The
Bureau is more concerned with the destruction of a university
Mathematics building than the life of a nine-year-old kid.
,e. Tomorrow will
the light side /the dark side
F. B. Eye
SURE
To
VOTE
Dick Gregory