page 4 ■ The Behrend College Beacon. Thursday, April 29, 1999
The Behrend College Beacon
published weekly by the students of Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
News Editor
Shannon Weber
Features Editor
Jon Stubbs
Business Manager
Jtiime Do vis
Photography Editors
Jason Blake
Andrea Zafftno
Layout Editor
Mike Perkins
Wire Services Editor
Kane Gulley
Assistant Editors
Mike Frawley
Elt:abeth Guelcher
Postal Information: The Beacon is
published weekly by the students of
Penn State Erie, The Behrend
College; First Floor, The J. Elmer
Reed Union Building, Station Road,
Erie, PA 16563. The Beacon can be
reached by calling (814) 898-6488
or (814) 898-6019 (FAX). ISSN
1071-9288.
A view from the lighthouse
Media
recognize
We, at the Beacon, would like to
express our views on the shooting
that occurred in Littleton, Colorado,
two Tuesdays ago. We all feel that
this was a great tragedy and proper
steps should be taken to ensure a
similiar event front occurring in the
future. Our hearts go out to the vic
tims and their families during this
hard time.
We also feel that the manner in
which the media exploited the situa
tion was immoral and inappropriate.
It was not necessary to print detailed
photographs of the injured students,
and it was definitely not necessary
to air the funeral of one of the vic
tims on television. The funeral
should be a personal event - it should
only be attended by the victims’
friends and family, not by a rude and
ignorant media. Also, we feel that by
exploiting this tragedy to such as an
extent as the media has will impact
upon other youths attending high
school in the nation. This will cause
students to think that if they commit
a similar act they will then be the
Letter to the
Student fed
Food and Housing
Dear Editor:
I am writing in response to An
gela Donahue’s and Tom Henry’s
letter to the editor. In this letter, the
two complained about Natalie
Gagliano’s column entitled "Waz up
now, Housing?”.
The two hrown-nosing employ
ees’ first defense of Housing was that
Bruno’s and Dobbins are mass pro
ducing food services. Consequently,
they say the food served at Bruno's
and Dobbins loses some of its
“home-cooked quality”. True, but
this doesn’t explain why the food
tastes like a@#!
Next, the two pointed out that it
becomes monotonous eating the
same thing all the time and that Dob
bins avoids this monotony by rotat
ing its menu on a four week cycle.
Yeah, that’s all nice and great, but
hello - serving the same menu for
four weeks straight is monotonous,
especially when this menu includes
half-cooked omelettes, nauseating
pork fried rice, burgers and chicken
that are as edible as rubber, and bread
that’s harder than cement. No won
der some of the students on this cam
pus have such crooked teeth! Ya’ll
are feeding them rocks!
I’m sure hardly anybody contin
ued reading their lame letter beyond
that point, so I’ll fill you in on the
rest of the argument. Tom and An
gela said that since Dobbin’s also has
a taco bar, potato bar, soup and salad,
and sometimes even cheese sticks,
there is no reason whatsoever why
every student shouldn’t be able to
find something they like to eat.
Here’s a reason for ya...a1l of these
taste like s@#s!
The letter then went on to com-
Editor in Chief
Will Jordon
Managing Editor
Avodele Jones
Editorial Page Editor
Natalie Galliano
Advertising Managers
Erin Edinyer
Carey Smith
Associate Editors
Angela Kush
Jessica Tucci
Distribution Manager
Mark Greenbank
Letter Policy: The Beacon
encourages letters to the editor.
Letters should include the address,
phone number, semester standing
and major of the writer. Writers can
mail letters to behrcoll2@aol.com.
Letters must be received no later
than spm Tuesday for inclusion in
that week’s issue.
needs to
center of attention. This concept has
been demonstrated through the vari
ous “copy cat crimes" committed
after the Colorado shootings.
What’s really contradictory is
the fact that the media tries to print
and talk about the personal aspects
of the victims, such as "John Doe
was just beginning to play the gui
tar”. when they have really been de
humanizing the victims since the
beginning.
The media needs a wake-up call.
Haven’t they realized how much of
an impact they have upon society?
editor:
up with
plain about how students are so in
credibly immature for throwing
food and making a mess. Now, of
course I agree that these students are
acting a little inappropriately. But
you said yourself that you live in
the apartments and make your
meals there. So you really have no
room to talk. If you had paid for a
meal plan and were forced to choose
between eating at Dobbins or starv
ing to death, and so then ate the crap
you guys serve up there, and got the
runs all night long because of it,
you’d be pissed too. Until you can
understand why those students are
fed up, and until your stomach hurts
so bad from the roast beef and
cheese sandwich you ate that you
think you’re having an appendici
tis attack, you really need to shut
up.
Finally, I think it’s kind of funny
how you never really addressed the
point that Natalie brought up in
“Waz up now, Housing?” about
finding bugs in the food at Dobbins.
I think it’s hilarious that right next
to their letter a cartoon was placed
which pictured a cook serving
roaches. How appropriate! But, I’m
sure you’ll bitch about that too. You
need to realize that Natalie’s article
and that cartoon are not far-fetched
at all.
I went to Dobbins with a friend
last semester and upon leaving, she
mentioned that she didn’t feel so
well. She then threw up all over the
recycling bins behind Niagara. Still
proud to work where you do?
Katy Poux
02 Premed
Sports Editor
Jason Snyder
Copy Editor
Rose Forrest
Advisors
Robert Speel
Jim O 'Laufthlin
Cri
late
The
Too
Once again, in the wake of another
violent disturbance with many left
dead, Americans are forced to try and
explain to themselves just exactly how
such a massacre could happen within
the borders of the world’s most
prosperpous nation. Gun control advo
cates point the blame toward the NRA;
the NRA and its right wing allies point
toward violence in popular culture, and
popular culture gives Right Wing
America the finger.
The truth must be that nobody re
ally knows why Eric Harris and Dylan
Klebold killed 13 of their classmates
and wounded 24 others last Tuesday
at Columbine High School in Littleton,
Colorado. The diary of one of the
shooters revealed that they had planned
this attack for a good bit of time be
fore it was acted out. According to
CNN, the diary also revealed that Har-
A Flower in
Crazy is just a state of mind
Well, the year has finally come to
an end. Finals are just around the cor
ner. I don’t know about you, but I feel
like this year went by very fast. Now
ime to say our good-byes and go
home.
I guess it’s my turn to explain the
title of my column. A Flower in the
Carden of Life. Metaphorically speak
ing, the flower is a person growing and
becoming in this huge garden called
“life”. In our lives we experience
hardships like pricker-bushes, that
cause us much physical pain. There is
the muddy muck that we sometimes
step in—it happens. We encounter
rotten vegetables that make the garden
dismal. Of course, there is always that
terrible gardener who seems to make
the garden worse.
In spite of the hardships we deal
with in life, we have rays of sunshine,
like our families and friends (maybe
even a professor), that inspire us flow
ers to grow. We also have the raindrops
that nurture us and keep us healthy. It
can come in the form of taking a break
to relax or shelter and food, even if it
Letter to the editor:
Reaction to cartoon
For the second week in a row, I am
writing to express my disgust with the
school newspaper, but since I now re
alize how ignorant the staff is, this will
be very short. Last week I wrote a let
ter to the editor defending Housing and
Food Services. Since the Beacon has
turned into a paper that is determined
to bash Housing and Food on a weekly
basis, I decided I would defend Hous
ing for a change. I was notified early
in the week that my article would ap
pear in Thursday’s edition. When I
read Thursday’s paper, I took note of
the letter I previously had written. But
to my surprise, the staff of the Beacon
had rudely and very inappropriately
placed a cartoon of a customer in a
food service line being asked if they
like their roaches fried or steamed. I,
Editorial
for blame
ris and Klebold hoped to kill at least
500 people during the attack, and
then hijack a plane and crash it into
New York City.
Some news agencies have re
ported that Klebold and Harris liked
to play violent video games like
Doom. A lot of people play Doom.
Not a lot of people want to kill their
peers. If popular culture such as vio
lent video games and violent movies
gave people the insatiable urge to kill,
we would all be dead. I’ve read The
Catcher in the Rye at least ten times
in the past three years. Holden
Caulfield never told me to kill any
one. In fact he probably never told
anyone to kill anyone.
So popular culture is not to blame.
How about the NRA? Guns don’t kill
people, people kill people. But when
there’s more guns than people in the
he Garden o f Life
is chez Dobbins
You truly can be any “flower” you
want to be. I would much prefer to
be a daisy. In life you can choose to
be whatever you heart’s desire and
fulfill that dream. Of course when
you are fulfilling your lofty dreams
of being a "starving artist" don’t for
get your “roots”. Where you grew
up, your heritage, education, either
schooling or “hard-knocks" all play
an important role in your life. Those
experiences, rays of sunshine of the
good or the muddy muck of the bad,
have had a hand in making you the
person you are today.
I wanted my column to be about
life in general, from my family life
to how line-cullers are not my favor
ite people. Life is different for every
one, but from those experiences we
can learn about some else’s point of
view and maybe even learn from
their examples.
I don’t have to tell you that life is
not easy, but those llowers that have
a good balance in the garden bloom
just a bit fuller. I know that what has
and many other people, noticed the
placement of this cartoon, and ALL
have commented on how inconsid
erate it was. The last time I checked
I still had every right to voice my
opinion without facing ridicule from
the newspaper staff. This cartoon
could have been placed anywhere
inside the paper, but somehow
showed up right next to my article
defending Housing and Food. Where
is the professionalism at this paper??
With a staff that conducts itself in
such a manner, it is no wonder so
many students on this campus think
the Beacon is a joke.
Tom Henry
08 BIOBD
country, people kill people with guns.
It is true that the United Stales has
more deaths by gunfire than any
other country. In 1994, 14.24 per
100,000 people died from a gunshot
wound. So if the United States had
stricter gun control laws, like the
United Kingdom, for example, this
may have never happened. It's hard
to say.
What is interesting about the past
few school shootings that have
caught the attention of the media is
that at least two of them have been
the doing of more than one person.
Perhaps the killers were examples of
a psychological phenomenon called,
“groupthink”. Neither one of the kill
ers believed that they had anyone else
to trust except each other. They may
have started bouncing ideas back and
forth from one to the other and they
kept me "blooming” this year has
been the many "rays of sunshine” I
have received. Those rays from my
family and my friends have kept me
on the my goal-seeking path and of
course have kept me from kicking my
computer and throwing it out the
window.
I want to thank those bright rays
of sunshine, here at school, that have
touched my life at one point or an
other. Melissa, I’ll always remember
your quote “Opinions are worthless
because everyone has one”. Mandy,
you will always be my WalMart girl.
I have learned if you can find two
other good friends that are your
height, like Hazel and Michelle,
"three short people arc stronger than
one tall person". Beth, I am ready to
go white water rafting whenever you
are. Nancy, "let’s do the time warp
again!" Janelle and Mandy, one day
I will be able to run faster than you!
Beth and Charity, thank you so much
for the "applause". Karen, thank you
for being my mentor. Andrew, no
matter what you may think, I will
Have a scrumptious
summer!!!!!!
JON STUBBS
began sounding less and less crazy.
However one dissects it:
whether guns, popular culture or
psychology is to blame, nobody
will ever really know. We have
plenty of theories to make us all
feel better; it’s too bad that we can’t
find a clear-cut answer to this mys
tery. Maybe if someone had just
asked Harris and Klebold why they
were going to do this minutes be
fore they had slaughtered 13
people, we would have all slept
easier last Tuesday night. However,
be it as it is, we’ve waited way too
long to ask why.
Jon Stubbs is the Jeatutvs editor of the Bea
con. His coltwin appeared every three
SHANNON WEBER
miss you. It’s more fun to debate
with you. Gretchen, I am very
grateful that you wouldn’t let me
give up!
I can’t list everyone that has
touched my life at school this year,
but I wish I could. Especially all
of you at the Beacon. I have had so
much fun this year. The friendships
that I have made all mean very
much to me. Friends are those rays
of hope that inspire us tlowers to
grow and become. All of the
memories and everything I have
learned this year from my buds and
then some, I will take with me and
be a belter person because of them.
Before the semester comes to an
end, I urge you to let those friends
know much you appreciate them!
Life is not easy but with great
friends, it’s much more bearable!
Thank you, guys!!
Shannon Weber is the news editor of the
Beacon. Her column appeared every three