Pag* 4 - Th* Highacr** Collegian, Feb. 6, 1975 OPINION PAGE OPEN LETTER Why are you never aaazed at anything? In it ao reasonable to you that the earth circles the sun? Is it enough to know that it does and is there no Dear Folks, point in asking why? Is it You are a lovely group of apparent why you are two or people and getting to know you thx « e years too young to drink? is a real source of pleasure Is 811 th « opinion on this issue for ae. I'* very impressed clear? Does it natter at all? with your honesty and friend- So *® of Y ou be ia liness, among other things. proving your health and abil- But I tMwV Most of you sxo do- w coucontxat© by yogs <wg the whole university bit training. Some of you aight wrong. You act as if this were be Ending deepened understand lighacres High School. You *** of yourself in reading wait to be tSught. You are Anai. Nin or Robert Lowell, underusing several important Soa * could be finding resources here. One of these * whol ® new f ource of is the faculty—diverse human «“ d appreciation of your na beings who get their kicks from tural environment by canoeing, turning students on to learning Some of you could find messag and who are never more pleased ®« i* o ® own nightmares in than when they see interest, Kafka. Soae of you might growth, and enthusiastic re- build a sense of purpose and sponse. You also have a good worth in political action or little library. And most ia- community work. One in ten of portent, you have each other— Y ou could be gaining new self a group of peers all supposedly esteem and pride from gay stu aotivated by desire for soae di «®« s °“® of cou^ d be kind of higher learning. And deriving religious insight all you seem to want to do with fro ® quantum mechanics. All these resources is collect GBE— you could be broadening DITS. As if a credit were some- Y our knowledge of foreign cul thing real. A credit is a bogus tux ® B if for n 0 other reason reward. A credit is, a bookeep- than to better understand why ing convenience. Yet you put youx gasoline is costing you yourself through all-nighters, 80 ® a °h» And you could be exaas, readings, hundreds of doing these things together, hours of listening and note- n 0» Y ou are collecting taking, for credits. In so credits, doing you are allowing your ® ow *°lks, this is not THOUGHTS, your very own pri- •» *PP«aI for caa P us activi vate thoughts, to be molded ties and "school spirit" as in and channelled for very dubi- "Our campus has seventy-three ous rewards—written perais- clubs, four honorary societies, sion to obtain a job of uncer- six bands, a flag, a pledge of tain satisfaction to you, sta- allegiance and a begonia gar tus to impress your friends, den, not to mention the great or mere time-killing beoause est elevation above sea level you have nothing better to do. of any school worth q£ Biloxi." For credits. Even the word School spirit is mindless sounds cheap, like the deval- trash. lam appealing for ued currency of soae 25th oen- positive thinking and positive tury planett "I'll fix your doing. You are old enough to hyperaeson activator, earth- be actively shaping your lives, ling, but it'll cost you thir- You have the mental and physi ty thousand credits." cal resources, and the tiae. You're demeaning your- Only you're not doing it. You selves, people. You should are passing courses, gaining be more careful about forming credits, accepting. You are your thoughts. Why do you so not questioning, not explor passiveiy allow people like in &, n °t challenging. You are ae to aess with your minds? passive learners. You take better care of your this, of course, you carburetors! Why don't you are not alone. Apathy and look for new and interesting oynicisa seem to have crept ideas that sit well in your *“ to «v®ry human activity late brains? Why don't you ask a dy * We "*tched the ?® ok y i ~ few fundamental questions? dealisn •“* mive enthusiasm By Carl Frank*l of several years ago spavin new political movements, new forms of mind altering and conscious ness raising. Then we saw the collapse into violence and discord. And today we are cynical and apathetic. Noth ing can he done, says the voice of experience. Nothing, at least, hy me, says the voice of your own doubts and self denial* BUt dear people, the point is simply that something must he done. Something WILL he done, hy somebody. Our social institutions are failing us. The contradictions between our ethics and our daily lives are becoming very glaring. We talk peace, understanidng, ecology, hut we live expedi ency and exploitation of the earth and each other. If there ever were a time in which the best course was to stay quiet and.get trained to take your place in society, this is not that time. This society is not working all that well. It is trying to transform itself in to something better and it does not know how. If the col lege educated youth of this so ciety are not going to bother looking for new answers to our problems, who is? We can wait for the second coming. We can wait for the Staxman to land. We can wait for one strong nan to herd xus into action (it's happened before). We can be come bitter and curse our lot and blame others. But if we wish rather to build new in stitutions that revere and pre fect our planet, that value all human life, that protect the weak and poor; if we want to redirect technology to the attainment of important social goals; if we wish to expal a lot of negative and destruc tive crap from our minds and become the sensitive, oaring, creative people we should be, it will take work. It will take thought. And more than that, it should be FUN: fun to try on new ideas, fun to un derstand and express ourselves creatively, to challenge our selves, to help and learn from each other, to seek our values and prove their worth by living them. Continued Page 5
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