The Behrend Beacon
A View From The Lighthouse
Smackin’ the gavel on
stipends
Well, fur the first time in years,
an exciting SCiA election year has
passed. As usual, people are com
plaining of the results already. "Not
qualified.. .shouldn't he there.. .how
in the would did that person get
elected'.’" are the words muttered by
some Behrend students. However,
some of the debate about the recent
Student Government elections might
be justified. Before Jen Miles and
Clint Ski lien were elected to office
two weeks ago. questions arose from
opponent Demian Blair (you know,
the candidate that slipped messages
under your door and computer tricks
to vour PC) whether or not Skillen
should be eligible to receive his sti
pend of 1/3 in-state tuition costs for
taking on the responsibilities ot Stu
dent Government \ ice-president.
Last year, the Student Govern-
ment was in the position for the first
time in a long time of having a bud
get surplus. SC.A deciiled that one
of the things thev would like to do
with the extra dollars is to otter sti
pends. that is payment, for the jobs
of president. \ ice-piesident, and sec
retarv. Thev would receive 1/2. 1/
3, and 1/4 otf of m-state tuition
costs, respectively. 1 low ever, a short
time later, the Senate passed some
rules and regulations regarding the
stipend. One ot' the stipulations was
that anyone who was receiving pay
ment for a job on SGA would have
to carry a minimum GPA of 2.5.
Another suited that the presidential
candidate may not be the presiding
officer of another student organi/a-
Due vo confusion in SGA, which
I vou can f iikl in detail on the lmnt
I page, the requirements were lost and
never officially recorded as part o!
the by-laws. What does that mean?
It essentially says that despite
SGA's effort to hav e more qualified
executive members, thev dropped
the ball in following through. The
w hole stipend idea was based on the
fact that the SGA executive board
would be more educated and dedi
cated to the students of Behrend. By
allowing tins past election to take *
place with no considerations,
besides having one sear ex
perience on S(iA. our stu
exact beliefs thev passed
just this past fall. More ™ “
qualified.’ More deili
cated? More respect-
The Behrend Beacon
published weekly by the students of Penn State Erie, The Behrend College
Editor-in-Chief
- Jason Snyder
'X/' ~Y Managing Editor
j 1 Michael Frawley
I \ News Editors
g |M 1 Karl Benacci
J Editorial Page Editor
Features Editors
Katie Przepyszny
Doug Smith
Advertising Manager Sports Editor
4 Kim Zu, k Matt Wiertel
Business Manager Calendar Page Editor
Kristin, Harakai Nicole Greene
Office Manager Photo Editors
Brail Wiertel Jeff Miller
Kevin Bruner (assistant)
Distribution Manager .
Jeff Miller Associate Editors
, Lihbie Johnson
Advisors Becky Weindorf
Robert Speel R o p VVVrmf
Jim O'l.ouyhhn
Pnstnl Information: The Beacon is Letter Policy: The Beacon
published weekly by the students of encourages letters to the editor.
Penn State Erie The Behrend Letters should include the address,
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9288. lssue -
We re not here to say that Ski lien
won’t be qualified, dedicated or re
spectable. We’re just saying that no
qualifications were needed to become
your representative in SGA.
If it is found that Skillen is not eli
gible based on the new requirements
that SGA is in the process of passing
now, we believe that he must step
down. It has nothing to do with what
was understood going into elections.
It has nothing to do with how much
work goes into the position. It has to
do with the qualifications that a stu
dent holds to represent us. We want
someone that we can look up to and
respect. If both meet the require
ments. we certainly respect that.
If the absolute smartest person on
this campus ran for president, but was
already the president of another or
ganization, we would say the same
thing. Maybe we can respect them
and praise their intelligence, but we
can't rely on their dedication to the
students at large.
SGA has proved this year that they
can make a difference in the way
things are run at Behrend. The orga
nization is becoming more open to
students and ideas. In order to con
tinue that, we need the qualified
people representing us. If that’s what
we have lor next year, we applaud
SGA. If we don’t, SGA has a job to
do.
Smack the gavel on stipends and
qualifications. The students count on
4t
\
Editorial
Deti
Slow
Wow, is it really almost the end of
another school year? I feel like it flew
by in one big blur. It is astonishing to
look back and see all the changes that
my life went through this year. But
I’m not the only one; everyone on this
campus has experienced changes too.
Look back upon all that has happened,
and I am willing to bet that you have
changed in some way, shape or form.
Whether you have changed
physically, emotionally or spiritually,
it has happened, and it is whether you
recognize that change or not that
makes all the difference.
If someone at the beginning of last
fall semester had tried to tell me that
I would have to deal with the biggest
changes in my life ever during this
school year, I would have laughed in
their face. Amazingly though, my life
is almost 100% different than it was
this time last year. At first, I wasn’t
really partial to these changes, but
eventually I accepted them and I have
in Mi
My reality.
As the semester winds down, and
the Beacon's columnists spout out
their views for the last time in their
three-week cycle of editorials, I feel
obligated to end my rants and raves
by asking you to "Join Me in Reality"
just one last time. I realize my reality
isn't the reality of other people, so
next semester, I will write under a
different title. But first, I welcome
you to my reality, my world and my
pet peeves that keep this world from
being “fair..."
Life isn’t fair. The most qualified
people don’t always gel the job; the
best looking ones do. The hardest
working people don’t always get
rewarded; the loudest ones do.
Modesty is a short road to failure.
Cockiness is a ladder for success. But
don’t worry. The qualified but less
attractive, hard working but quiet
individuals will be recognized
someday. And it will be for something
more than just wealth. It will be lor
happiness.
Blacks and whites still aren’t equal.
Society won't allow it. Men and
women are equal. Society just
The Wa
The right perspective
What is wrong with the American
people these days? Time after time,
issue after issue, the American public
and media continually make irrational
judgments on crucial maters. More
alarming is that American youth are
now getting in on the act and not
surprisingly, they are repeatedly
misled and misinformed.
If you read the Beacon on a regular
basis you will notice that the staff
editorials now take on more relevant
issues than in previous semesters.
Besides the one editorial that
instigated a heated debate on a local
radio talk show, most of the staff
editorials have represented the
opinion of the majority of the staff.
1, being the only strong
conservative on the staff, usually have
a vastly different vantage point than
the rest of the staff members. The
differing opinions isn’t what bothers
me, rather it’s the haste at which they
make up their minds on issues of
relevance.
Take the editorial where the staff
supported the removal of the
Confederate flag in South Carolina.
Unlike others who rely on the media
as their only source of information, I
look to other outlets to find the actual
truth minus the liberal media bias.
The Confederate flag issue is a
Have something to say, then send us a letter
April 21, 2000
down and savor the flavor
learned from them. 1 hope the same
is true for everyone else. Some people
may fear change, and I was one of
those people, but change is meant to
teach us something, whether we want
to learn or not.
So how is this relevant to anything?
Look at it this way, everyday I am sure
that you hear someone you know
talking about how busy they are, or
how stressed they are. I complain
about the same things. However, how
often do you hear them talking about
In R
. .for the last time
constantly complains about it. Men
are stronger...women are nicer.
Women are grumpy once a
month...men are grumpy all month.
Women will happily have your baby,
but won't let you forget it for the rest
of your life. Men will give women
the necessities to have a baby...but
won’t ever forget that the woman had
the baby, for the rest of their life.
It Ou
Baseball was America's pastime.
Football is its future. Sports are the
most important entertainment in the
world. Political debates are the most
boring entertainment in the
world.. .unless Ross Perot is involved.
Michael Jordan is the greatest
perfect example to illustrate my point.
Contrary to popular belief. South
Carolina isn’t the only state in the
Union that has a controversial symbol
or holiday. The Clinton
administration and his media cronies
want the public to believe that the
people of South Carolina are bigoted
insensitive thugs. But the mass media
agents don’t point out all the facts,
and as a “truth detector” it is my
obligation to inform you of this
hypocrisy.
Take the Democrats. They paint the
Republicans as pro-intolerance bigots
and claim that the flag is a sign of
hatred and intolerance. Now wait a
second, who actually saw to it that
the flag was raised? Unless you listen
to Rush Limbaugh or watch the Fox
News Channel, you would have no
idea that a Democrat actually had the
behrcoll2.@aol.com
lIP I
what they are doing to change the
situation? Probably almost never, and
that’s the part that they should be
focusing on.
Remember how I said that this
school year is one big blur to me? The
fact of the matter is that during the
school year, 1 was too busy, or too
stressed, or too whatever to even slow
down to look at what was right in
front of me. And by rushing through
life, 1 missed so much that I didn’t
even notice that things were different
or things were gone until my life had
changed.
So maybe it is time to decide what
is important to you and to take some
time and slow down. Sure, it is the
end of the semester and everyone has
a terrific amount of work to do. In
the end though, isn’t everything just
small potatoes? Take a step back for
a moment and take a detour.
Ok, yes, you caught me; I worked
the title of my column into this
entertainer of all time. Ricky Martin
is the strangest entertainer of all time.
It’s pop, not soda. This is Erie, not
Pittsburgh. Wearenotjust 138 miles
north of Pittburgh. We are less than
one inch south-east of Lake Erie. A
first grader learns about the five great
lakes before they hear of the home ot
the Steelers. Stop using Pittsburgh
as a reference point to explain where
Erie is. It’s by the lake, not by the
three rivers. Living in Butler,
Bridgeville, or upper/lower/eastern/
western Burrell does not make you a
resident of Pittsburgh. It makes you
a resident of a city that is near
Pittsburgh.
If you have a car, you need a good
job. If you have a baby, you need at
least two good jobs. The welfare
system isn’t fair. But then again, life
isn’t fair (see above).
WWF wrestlers have more pull in
this world than U.S. politicians. U.S.
politicians have more scandals in the
world than WWF wrestlers. Vince
McMahon vs. Bill Clinton.
McMahon’s lame appears every
Monday, Thursday and Sunday on
hi To Be
flag raised over the capitol. That
Democrat would be the former
governor of South Carolina, Ernest
Hollings, who since has become a
United States Senator.
But the hypocrisy doesn’t end
there. What about the Arkansas
holiday to be celebrated on Saturday
that is dedicated to honoring the
Confederate flag? Why isn’t
President Clinton rebuking the
members of his home state on this
one? Hypocrisy at its height folks,
but it continues.
In Tennessee, home of the inventor
of the Internet, Alpha A 1 Gore, they
celebrate a holiday that is seldom
heard of, one that arguably could be
more offensive than confederate flag
day in Arkansas. See, in Tennessee
they celebrate Nathan Bedford Forest
Day in memory of a former leading
member of the Ku Klux Klan.
Never heard of it, well that’s just
the way the media wants it to be. The
media and other groups believe that
the American people shouldn’t have
the ability to decide who is telling the
truth and who is pandering to the
public for votes. Instead of being
objective and candid with the public,
the media feels that it is their
responsibility to filter out the truth
before delivering it to the masses.
editorial. Unlike some of my fellow
columnists, 1 decided to utilize my last
editorial of the semester to explain my
title. It may sound like a complicated
title, but it's really not. It’s all about
procrastination and taking chances.
Things in life may seem like a big deal
now, but five years from now how
important is it going to be that you
received a ’B’ on your BiSci test'.’ It s
all small potatoes.
Also, take that detour down the side
road that you have never been down
before. And I don’t mean a literal road,
more like that proverbial “thing you
have always wanted to do." As Nike
says, just do it, why wait any longer'.'
Take a chance to do something that
you have never done before, learn
from all the changes in your life and
most importantly, slow down, it’s all
about Detours and Small Potatoes
anyway. Have a rockin' summer!
national television. Clinton's tame
happens with interns under the desk
in the Oval Office while on the
telephone.
There will never be a semi-vertical
parking lot between Perry and
Dobbins. Unless, of course, you enjoy
watching cars roll over and crash into
buildings. Behrend will never fill up
the Wintergreen Gorge with millions
of tons of dirt to make land Hat enough
for more parking. And even if they
did, students would still have to make
that long, hard, tiring 20-loot walk to
Hammermill for class.
The Beacon will always contain
some controversial material. But
news is news, opinion is opinion. We
will never get more than three letters
to the editor in a week w ithout a
Bitchin’ by Mike the week previously.
Mike Frawley is not the anti-christ. at
least I don't think he is.
Lastly, the Beacon is not out to get
you. It’s here to keep you honest, keep
you informed, and keep you reading.
That's my reality, and I’m slickin' to
it.
I say let the flag tly. The flag, just
like the American flag, is a symbol ol
our past and heritage. Should we take
down the American flag because
some people are offended by it? How
about the flags of other states that
display confederate symbols?
Apparently we are to forget our
history in order to please some crazed
idealists. I am sick and tired of people
wanting to rewrite history in order to
make it politically correct. We can’t
do that, but we can learn from our
history and the only way to do that is
to view it unedited and objectively,
minus the media bias.
Talking about objective—that is
something I have not been all
semester. I felt that the readers of this
publication already were familiar with
the liberal perspective, therefore 1 was
compelled to reveal the other side of
the story; as Rush Limbaugh wrote —
reveal “the way it ought to be.”
Due to time constraints and other
conflicts, I will not be returning next
semester to set things straight every
three weeks. I have thoroughly
enjoyed my tenure as a columnist and
I hope that the readers of this paper
enjoyed reading my column as much
as I enjoyed writing them.
So from the right, this is Matt
Wiertel saying so long and farewell.
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