I The Behrend Beacon
The Behrend Beacon
Published Weekly h\ the students of Penn State Erie
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Penn State Erie,
The Behrend College
First Floor, The J. Elmer Reed Union Building
Station Road, Erie, PA 16563
Contact the Beacon at:
Telephone: (814) 898-6488
Fax: (814) 898-6019
Letter to the editor
Presidential candidate
speaks out
Few Penn State students would deny
that they are receiving a great educa
tion. To deny that we are receiving a
great education would make no sense.
Why would anyone pay thousands of
dollars for nothing?
However, our legislators in
Harrisburg do not seem to agree that
Penn State is such a good investment.
Our legislators apparently seem to
think that a Penn State degree is a waste
of money. After all, it is our legislators
that have cut funding to the University
every year for the last 10 years. The
direct result of these budget cuts is an
increase in tuition.
Consequently, one is led to believe,
that our legislators think a Penn State
education is worth less and less every
year, while they are asking us, the stu
dents, to pay more and more every year.
Why should we, the students, pay
more for something that apparently is
depreciating in value? The problem
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Daniel J• Stasiewski, Editor in Chief
Amy Frizzell, Managing Editor
Courtney Kaplin, Advertising Manager
Alyssa Peconi, Public Relations Manager
Dr. Cathy Roan, Adviser
News Editor
Brad Stewart
Assistant News Editor
Dan Snedden
Sports Editors
Sam ()hula
Sara Kamber
Opinion Editor
Andy McNeil
Photography Editor
Danielle Faulkner
President Bush opens with a joke..
i.'k. S9wi~:
Student Life Editor
Lori DeFabio
Calendar Page Editor
Rob Frank
Copy Editors
Lacy Buzard
Jenn Haight
Sarah Weber
Beacon Assistant
Carolyn M. Tellers
on tuition
with our legislators' logic is that a Penn
State education is not depreciating in
According to the Penn State
Grassroots Network, every dollar the
State contributes to Penn State's annual
budget returns more then $l9 in direct
economic benefits to Pennsylvania.
Therefore, one is left with the ques
tion of what to do. How do we con
vince our legislators that Penn State is
not a waste of money? My suggestion:
let your voice be heard, and go to the
Rally at the Rotunda on March 15.
While individually our representatives
might be able to ignore us, collectively
we will not be silenced.
Sincerely
Alexander Henderson
Chair Pro-tempore,
Student Government Association
Bush delivers state of confusion
Wednesday night was George W.
Bush's State of the Union Address.
During the course of the hour long
speech (interrupted about 61 times by
bouts of applause from republicans,
sometimes democrats and sometimes
both), he outlined future plans for
reform in social security, community
health centers, defense in capital pun
ishment cases and a variety of other
equally tantalizing topics. The major
ity of American college student's
thoughts on the address;
1." Is Taw and Order' going to be
on afterwards?"
2." Those poor old rich people—they
have to keep standing and sitting."
3." Why are their fingers purple?"
The State of the Union Address
repeatedly proves to be a huge hug
fest, an orgy of senators and congress
man who wouldn't normally show up
to listen to W. but recognize the need
to make a cameo on national television
so voters can see their representatives
interacting with the president.
The president opened with his suc
cesses from the past four years. He
spouted off a slew of numbers and
generalizations that most listeners
would never be able to distinguish
between fact and fiction—" 2.3 million
new jobs," "cut the deficit in half by
2009," "eliminates more than 150 gov
ernment programs that are not getting
results," "200,000 workers to get
training for a better career." It all
sounds so positive—doesn't it?
Bush never shares any essential
Devil with a blue smock on
By Chris Hvizdak
editorial columnist
If you value America, do not shop at Wal-Mart We are
promised that Wal-Mart's prices will "always" be low, which
they may be. However that perceived savings is deducted not
from your debit card, but rather from the whole of human
civilization. The U. S. of A. is rocketing toward being prima
rily composed of a new retail slave class and Wal-Mart lead
ing the transformation.
First and foremost, Wal-Mart exploits Chinese people and
women. It's difficult to surmise exactly to what extent
Chinese nationals are abused as Wal-Mart refuses to inform
human rights organizations of the locations of their overseas
factories. In 1999 Wal-Mart was accomplice to the well
known "Kathie Lee Handbag Scandal" where it was found
that employees earned 10 cents an hour where the minimum
wage was 36 cents. In 1987 only 3 percent of all store
mangers were female. Women working at Wal-Mart have
recently won pay increases although male managers still
grossly outnumber female managers.
Wal-Mart's bag of tricks contains a veritable cornucopia of
evil. The big show starts with the purchasing of goods from
Chinese sweatshops and disgracing workers with "sub-liv
ing-wage" wages and abysmal health.
Not only is there zero tolerance of unionization, Wal-Mart
strong-arms municipal tax breaks. These tactics fuel this
modern abomination of capitalism to spread like a cancer
across the retail landscape of America and the world. On this
foundation of bad faith, Wal-Mart is executing its intent to
eliminate as many competing department, grocery, wholesale
and specialty stores as it can take down. And they succeed.
All this is just peachy for Wal-Mart shareholders and exec
utives, however those people are in the minority.
Hardworking, honest Americans the majority are raped
It's time to pass
Any other organization would force a
sick 84-year-old CEO to retire, but not
the Catholic Church. Unfortunately,
Pope John Paul II is stuck in such a
position that he probably should not be
filling due to his poor health.
The pope suffers from Parkinson's
disease, an illness affecting neurons in
the brain whose awareness was raised
in the United States after Michael J.
Fox was diagnosed.
Common symptoms of Parkinson's
include shaking, stiffness and problems
with balance. Some people who live
with this disease also suffer from
depression. According to www.parkin
son.org, Parkinson's is the most com
mon neurodegenerative disease after
Alzheimer's.
The leader of one of the largest reli
gions in the world would probably not
be able to perform his duties to even his
own standards when faced with all of
these obstacles.
So why is this man kept on his papal
throne when he is in such a perilous
physical condition? Why can't he
retire to a nice little villa and live out
the rest of his days in peace?
Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the
Vatican's secretary of state, told the
Associated Press that the pope was
"recovering well" after having the flu
for about a week. The Associated Press
Brad Stewart
ws e 1 itor
information with the nation, nothing
worth watching for an hour, except for
his social security plan, but even this
plan was missing key components
like—how are we going to pay for the
switch from one plan to another?
No plan is perfect, but shouldn't the
president mention that the plan would
cost the government trillions of dollars
and would take more than 20 years
before it was self-sustainable?
Instead, Bush played the "children's
future" card and said, "But we have to
move ahead with courage and honesty,
because our children's retirement
security is more important than parti
san politics."
He's portraying any politician who
opposes his plan as a cowardly, dis
honest, child hating terrorist.
Also, it always gets me when the
the papal crown
Buzard
copy editor
also reported that the pope has been in
failing health for the past few years.
Think of your grandfather still hav
ing to work even though he hasn't been
100 percent for the past few years.
Would anyone in the United States, or
anywhere in the world for that matter,
stand for such treatment of the elderly?
There would be a lawsuit faster than
Lance Armstrong could ride from
Kochel to Reed.
Granted the pope has official aids
and all sorts of other people to assist
him, but why should he have to do any
thing at all? He's the head of the
Catholic Church, not the king of
England; there is no reason why he
Friday, February 4, 2005
by this parasite in both their income and quality of life. Wal-
Mart's low-low employee wages. along with those of
McDonald's and other such oppressors, maintain an artifi
cially low minimum wage that cannot adequately support a
working family. On average, Wal-Mart employees make
$8.23 an hour and work only 32 hours a week. Do the math
and try to support yourself. I dare 'ya.
Wal-Mart blesses less than half of its employees with
health insurance; and forks over whopping $3.500 per year
while the national average stands at $5,600. For most Wal-
Mart employees the waiting period for insurance eligibility is
2 full years. The national average in most American compa
nies for eligibility is a scant 1.3 months. Ouch figuratively
and literally.
Thinking about knocking on someone else's door? Good
luck. Working class journalist Lenny Crist cites studies that
indicate for every 100 jobs Wal-Mart creates, it destroys 150.
This is only the tip of the iceberg in terms of impact upon
communities. Wal-Mart forces towns that it penetrates to
provide it gross tax breaks that pay off big in the form of
huge municipal debt when Wal-Mart leaves town after said
breaks expire.
Wal-Mart's crimes are many and far beyond the scope of
any brief examination. When such a monster rises it must be
cut down by swift and brutal anti-trust legislation. Sadly,
such actions are unlikely in the age of Enron where all
reform is reactionary and none preventative. Add in the fact
that Wal-Mart owns most elected representatives and the
prospect of the government taking care of us is slim.
The savings of the present are the ruin of the future. Low
prices today equal enslavement tomorrow. Go to K-Mart,
Target go anywhere else. Organize. Kill the beast. Start at
www.anti-walmart.com . You may pay more in fact, you
will. But remember a dollar more today buys tomorrow.
What would happen, though, if he
was in such a meeting and the heat was
turned up in the conversation? The 84
year-old may not be able to take the
excitement. Attilio Maseri, an Italian
cardiologist, may say that the pope has
"exceptional cardiovascular function,"
but any heart at that age is at risk when
too much adrenaline starts pumping.
Maybe it's time for the Catholic
Church to move on. After all, a new
pope will have to be found eventually.
There were popes before John Paul and
there will be popes after. Why not start
the search now and give Pope John
Paul II the rest and relaxation he
deserves after 27 years of guiding the
religion?
When it comes right down to it, the
pope is just a man. He would probably
say so himself. At this stage in his life,
he should be treated as such and not
given more responsibility than he can
safely handle.
president claims that terrorists hate
democracy. That's just plain false.
Terrorists hate the United States. Not
democracy. Most of the time terrorists
commit their acts of violence because
they have very few rights and are lack
ing any political representation.
Violence, though not justified, in their
mind is the only feasible course of
action. Terrorists love democracy.
They have wet dreams about democra
cy. They wish they had democracy.
He also took the time to mention his
support for a constitutional amend
ment to block marriage between same
sex partners. He probably forgot
about that other part of the constitu
tion that claims separation from
church and state—oops. Cheney prob
ably wasn't clapping during this part
of the speech.
The most impressive moments in
the address were the recognition of
Sofia Taleb al-Suhail, an Iraqi woman
who voted in the Jan. 30 election and
lost a father to Hussein's intelligence
service and the honoring of Sgt. Byron
Norwood, a Marine killed in action.
These were moments of tangible
clarity imbedded within a potpourri of
confusing rapid-fire Bush statements.
And while the honoring of these indi
viduals might have been a selfless
exploitation of two amazing people, it
reminded the audience and viewer, if
just for a moment, underneath all the
political banter, that we'-re are all
Americans.
should have to rule until he takes his
last breath.
His work schedule isn't too hectic.
The Associated Press says that Pope
John Paul ll's normal work week
includes working on documents, meet
ing with world leaders and making pub
lic appearances a couple times each
week.