I The Behrend Beacon
The Behrend Beacon
Published Weekly by the students )1 Penn State Erie
1111 BI NI)
Beacon
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
The road to
A long way
by Kristen Comstock
editorial columnist
Equality. Why are we still working
towards equality in the United States of
America! How, after so many cen
turies of struggling, are people in this
country still not equal?
It is time for everyone to become a
feminist. One who works and toils to
create a society and culture where we
arc all equal and since March is
Women's History Month, let us focus
on the inequalities that still exist
amongst genders
The Declaration of Independence
states, "We hold these Truths to he self
evident, that all Men arc created
equal..." The main doctrine our coun
try was founded on, in the very sen
tence that calls for equality, still man
ages to he sexist and almost purposeful
ly excludes women. Maybe that was
not our founding fathers intention, hut
it certainly appears that way.
The activists at the first Women's
Movement Convention felt and thought
the same. In Seneca Falls, New York
on July 20, 1848, the women and men
convention attendants all signed the
"Declaration of Sentiments," which
called for women to have equal rights
in education, property, voting and other
matters.
The organizer of the convention,
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, housed the
convention in her home and wore a
controversial bloomer outfit during one
of her speeches.
It is amazing to think of all the hard
work the abolitionists and suffragists
went through to get the present-day cit
izens their taken-for-granted rights and
freedoms.
Most of today's women do not even
think that only 85 years ago they were
not allowed to vote in this country. And
men do not think that, if it were not for
the suffragists of the 19th century,
today's women may still have been
wearing girdles and dresses down to
their ankles, not push-up bras and
miniskirts.
We owe a lot to the women heroines
of the turn of the century. If it were not
for women's freedoms, they would not
be able to flash their boobs at Mardi
Gras or wear the bikinis on Spring
Break. We have come a long way since
M 155( 1. -E (,AuNk.rieess NsrAt-i-ev tr.) 0.0 5v8v(2.0
‘ .. ;::4 - -t__ •-1
1 o
, '','
V "it( e"
ti.
i ' l C 4...9 -''':!'
..; ...aks•-.._,,
CI 'CM
13'3 \ -
.---.
5.„ , - 0 -..-----". ---.............
' ''S t c ~:,,.., l% ''''... - ,1 -----
~..-,...... • ~.-...-----‘'- ----
, , A
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 Cihula
Sara Karcher
Opinion Editor
Andy McNeil
Photography Editor
Danielle Faulkner
the controversial bloomers of 1848, but
we still have a long way to go.
Susan B. Anthony would have been
ecstatic to know that 56 percent of the
nation's college students are women
and that women's enrollment in univer
sities has been in the majority since
1979. It is promising, but still we have
a long way to go.
For instance, in the political scene,
women make up only II percent of the
U.S. Senate and 14 percent of the U.S.
House of Representatives. Hattie
Wyatt Caraway (the first woman elect
ed to the U.S. Senate in 1932) would
not he pleased to hear that.
In the business world, the news is
also grim. Since Hewlett-Packard's fir
ing of Carly Fiorina, in February, only
seven female CEOs remain among
Fortune 500 companies.
Women still make 76 cents to every
man's dollar. And this means that
women make 24 percent less than men
(I just thought I would do the math to
prove that as a female, I have that abil
ity).
In January, the president of Harvard
University made some controversial
comments (and has since apologized)
that women may not have the same nat
ural ability in math and sciences as
An argument against his claim is that
psycho-social factors may have some
impact as to how many women become
involved in math or sciences. Another
argument is that the education practices
now in place are gauged more towards
the way males learn verses the way
females learn.
There is no doubt that women and
men are different. And thank goodness
for that! But socially and culturally we
do need to strive for equity and equali
ty.
In order for women and girls to
aspire to be President of the United
States, CEO of Microsoft or the scien
tist to cure AIDS, they need to have role
models. And even though, like the
women suffragists and activists, we are
still working towards equality, our
goals are much different. Girls need to
see women in power and leadership.
Not just because they need to have high
ambitions, but also because women
should be leaders just like their male
counterparts.
Student Life Editor
Lori DeFabio
Calendar Page Editor
Rob Frank
Copy Editors
Lacy Buzard
Jcnn Haight
Sarah Weher
Beacon Assistant
Carolyn M. Tellers
equality:
to go
~: ~...~
rtovßY, viorer
you Nio - r
LfiiiNgovoe wrr4
L ive miSS(LL-5!?
Get that kid
In yesterday's New York Times,
Patrick O'Gilfoil Healy wrote an article
on how some school districts are imple
menting the use of breathalyzers into a
regular high school day—not just sav
ing the alcohol detectors for special
events such a proms and pep rallies. Of
course, opinions on the addition of the
breath-testing device were varied.
For those in favor of the breathalyz
ers, the reasoning behind the integra
tion of the tests is simple: provide a
safe and drug-free environment for stu
dents, which is what, the last time I
checked, school is all about. For those
against the tests, the integration of the
devices are an infringement on the pri-
vacy of students.
Alcohol has become an accepted and
necessary part of America's social
scene. The normal age of drinkers con
tinues to drop as younger and younger
people arc spending their weekends
with friends and booze. As students
prepare to spend their Spring Breaks in
exotic locations, one of the main goals
for many is to visit a place where alco
hol will he present in vast quantities.
Part of the allure of alcohol is the
illegality of underage drinking. Young
people rebel against the controlling
Fading ink toners create uproar
by Aimee Pogson
editorial columnist
It was a Monday afternoon when the
confrontation took place. The profes
sor stood at the front of the room, held
up a piece paper that had black ink
blotches along the bottom, and
announced that work brought to her in
this condition was unacceptable. She
went on to explain that assignments
printed out in very faint ink were also
unacceptable. She had spent part of her
weekend reading, squinting at the
words and as far as she was concerned,
she wasn't going to damage her eyes
for our homework.
She had a point, but the battle lines
were drawn. This professor's policy on
the appearance of printed assignments
had been a bone of contention for many
of my classmates throughout the course
of the semester. She took off points for
papers with faint printing; she lowered
grades, grades that. these students rea
soned, would be higher if they had a
decent printer and their work was
judged solely on content and not on
appearance. Besides, they pointed out,
it wasn't their fault. They used the
printers in the school's various comput
er labs and these could always be trust
ed to print faintly and illegibly.
Angered by the lecture, irritable
because of the sleep deprivation that is
common in the busyness of the week
before spring break, a couple of the stu
dents in this particular class refused to
let the subject drop. An injustice was
occurring, both on the side of the stu
dents who wanted to pass the class and
on the side of the professor who want
ed to preserve her eyesight. The issue
had to be probed.
"We can't help the way the papers
Letter to the editor
Dear editor,
In response to Chris Hvizdak's editorial "George Bush is
worse than Hitler", we feel that Hvizdak and the Beacon
have gone too far. The weekly articles found on the Editorial
Page attacking President Bush moves into a clear area of bad
taste with last week's article.
Obviously the ludicrous comparison made by the title
offends that conservative community on campus. These rad
ical comments of an extreme leftist represent the worst side
of politics. Comments this absurd have no place in any legit
imate discussion of politics.
Additionally, any rational person who realizes the ridicu
lousness of the claim is offended, particularly the Jewish
community. This rhetoric trivializes the evil atrocities of
Adolph Hitler and belittles the sacrifice made by many great
soldiers to stop him.
While we hold the right to freedom of the press dearly, we
urge the Beacon to use editorial discretion in the titles and
content of articles that are in poor taste. ,
Signed,
The Penn State Behrend College Republicans &
The Jewish Association of Behrend
Stewart
Bradle
news editor
agents in their lives by breaking the
law. In other countries where the drink
ing age is lower, often there are fewer
youth booze related problems.
Also, alcohol helps teens relax and
release tension. High school and col
lege are hard—going to all those class
es and taking all those tests—who
wouldn't take a shot now or then? Or
is alcohol really just a cop-out for the
uncreative teen that can't deal with
daily pressures? No. Of course not.
look!" one girl protested. "That's the
way the printers in the computer lab
print them out."
"Well," replied the professor. "All
you have to do is go up to whoever is
working, show him or her the paper,
and ask the person to change the toner.
Say that your professor expects it to
look a certain way."
"I've already tried that," the girl
explained. "They won't change the
toner. They said that it is against the
rules. The school only gets so much
money per year for its printing supplies
and they have to use each toner com
pletely. If they don't, it could affect our
tuition."
The professor stared at her, per
plexed. From the other side of the
room, someone called out, "That's not
true. They can change the toner before
it's completely empty. That's simply
not true."
"Yes, it is," the girl argued.
"Wrong," the other person replied
Obviously they are using two differ
ent computer labs.
Still, the fighting didn't solve the
problem. Sighing, the professor said,
"I guess you can just do the best you
can."
Suddenly someone exclaimed,
"Maybe the Beacon could do an article
on it! Investigate the problem, draw
some attention to it."
I felt like I had a duty, like I had a
responsibility to investigate the prob
lem, to get the "scoop." I picked up the
phone and called the computer center.
"Is it true," I asked. "That you're not
allowed to change the ink toner until
the ink is completely gone, even if the
printing is hard to see?"
The person working in the computer
lab was very helpful. "We try to con
a beer
Drinking is cool.
Few take the time to question why a
drinking-age law is in place. It isn't
because the man is trying to smother
the youth of America. It isn't because
the government is composed of old
oppressive conservatives who seek to
control every aspect of a society's daily
routine. It's because those under 21
years of age are often too immature to
properly use and enjoy alcohol.
How many individuals know at least
one story of a friend or acquaintance
that was killed because of driving under
the influence'? How many people know
of someone that was harassed or raped
because of alcohol? Who knows of a
family torn apart by an alcoholic and
abusive parent? Why are young people
in such a hurry to consume a toxin that
depresses brain activity and could
potentially lead to death, liver disease
and a variety of other health problems?
Whether you're for or against teens
drinking, according to Princeton's Best
357 Colleges Rankings, Penn State
University Park ranks 18th for lots of
beer and 20th for parties—so, if you're
attending PSU for the social scene,
don't forget to put in your transfer to
University Park.
serve the ink," he explained thoughtful
ly. "We do shake the toners when they
are getting low to try to get the most out
of them. Generally, we try to use as
much of the ink as possible."
I considered this. "How expensive
are they?" I asked.
He paused, thinking. "Somewhere in
the hundreds of dollars," he said. "I'm
not exactly sure how much, but it's a
lot."
So there it is, the truth behind the
toners. I told him about the predica
ment with our professor and her eyes,
and he was sympathetic, agreeing that
it sounded like a bad situation, but on
the other hand, the toners were expen
sive. We didn't really come up with a
solution.
And yet, I don't believe that all hope
is lost. Where there is a will, or a
strong desire to pass a class, there is a
way. Once there was a world without
computers and we survived. Surely, we
can survive Behrend, the land of the
faint printers.
For instance, a class could pitch in
twenty dollars to buy a professor a new
ink cartridge for his or her personal
printer and then e-mail assignments.
Students could trace over their printed
assignments with a black pen to make
the letters bolder. Of course, this would
mean that the professor would automat
ically have to give them an A for all of
the extra effort and time this mundane
task would entail. Or, we could just
stop writing papers. That would save
on both ink and paper.
But then we would have to give oral
presentations to demonstrate knowl
edge.
voice?
tot
ed two c
y d
, ng a lt
Friday, March 4, 2005
And what if someone was losing his
Sometimes you just can't win