I The Behrend Beacon
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or
the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. - The First Ammendment to the U.S. Constitution
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Unsatisfied students can go somewhere else
By Jenn Haight
news editor
oh 1005 psu.edu
I hate Behrend. There's nothing to do here
It's so boring and Erie sucks. - These are words
commonly spoken by the Behrend student. To
that student I say. "GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!
There is plenty to do in Erie: you just have to
devote the time to look for these things to do.
We have a mall, not the size of some of the
malls in Buffalo, Cleveland or Pittsburgh, but
for the size that Erie is, the mall is a decent one.
We have a huge movie theater, and I think the
price is justified when you consider how much
we spend on beer and alcohol each weekend.
There are restaurants and bars for those of us
who are over 21. We have the peninsula.
Nothing pisses me off more than when people
complain about Presque Isle. How many places
in the continental U.S. can say they have a
peninsula such as ours? Exactly, none.
We also need to stop being so dependent on
exterior sources of entertainment. If you really
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Beacon Thumbs Up Beacon Thumbs Down :
41 / 4
- Bruno's opening at 2 P.M. on
Saturdays.
- Knowing what your gifts are
before you recieve them.
- Potential Spring 05
Mythbusters visit to Behrend.
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Timley Holiday Quotes
"Christmas is not a time nor a season, but a state of mind. To cherish peace and
goodwill, to be plenteous in mercy, is to have the real spirit of Christmas."
Calvin Coolidge
"Christmas is an awfulness that compares favorably with the great London plague
and fire of 1665-66. No one escapes the feelings of mortal dejection, inadequacy,
frustration, loneliness, guilt and pity. No one escapes feeling used by society, by
religion, by friends and relatives, by the utterly artifical responsiblities of extend
ing false greetings, sending banal cards, reciprocating unsolicated gifts, going to
dull parties, putting up with acquaintances and family one avoids all the rest of the
year...in short, of being brutalized by a 'holiday' that has lost virtually all of its orig
inal meanings and has become a merchandising ploy for color tv set manufactur
ers and ravagers of the woodlands."
Shopping J Packing
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OPINION
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want to have fun. you can have it anywhere.
Whether it is at the movies, howling or in your
friend's basement. fun can he had anywhere.
For those who complain about the Behrend
campus, there are so many clubs that anyone
can join free of charge. There are fraternities
and sororities and entertainment hoards and
school papers and an alternative energy club.
There literally is a club for everyone. It should
not he up to the school to cater to each individ
ual personally. The school facilitates hundreds
of different groups to suit anyone's needs. And
if there is no club that strikes your fancy, you
have the ability to start one. Believe it or not.
Penn State is not working against you.
The point is. no one is forcing you to be here.
If you don't like it, leave. There are thousands
of other colleges in America. If the amount of
money you're spending to go here is what is
getting you down, consider this: a degree from
The Pennsylvania State University, no matter
what campus you go to, is worth more than
many other degrees. People are hired strictly
because they are Penn State grads. I would
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- Frivolous New Years
resolutions.
"Black Ice" on Behrend
walkways.
- Shortcomings of the PennDOT
roadcrew.
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- Harlan Ellison
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ZACK MENT
rather pay an astronomical amount of money for
a degree that I know will get me a job than go
to a cheap college and not be sure of my future.
Behrend is a great campus. The colors of the
trees in the fall when they change is so amazing
and beautiful, you can't find that everywhere.
To be able to wake up to it everyday makes us
very lucky.
Consider this: if you go to a campus with
40,000 other students you are constatnly corn
peteing with those 40,000 other people for the
attention of professors. Whereas here at
Behrend you can walk past your advisor and he
will know who you are. Behrend is nice because
you're able to have a personal relathionship
with faculty.
The next time you go to open your mouth and
complain about this or that, think about all of
the things you are going to get from Penn State,
most importantly an extremely valuable degree
that will get you very far in life. Let's also keep
in mind that one in about 20 college graduates
led from Penn State, so obviously,
s doing something right.
has gradua
the school
Does your opinion count?
Fall 'O5 has come, Fall 'O5 has gone. What does the Opinion page have to show
for itself? We've approached a lot of diverse topics, from social and political
issues to cheesesteaks and emo. We have given an awful lot of thumbs up and
thumbs down. Many great and powerful persons have been quoted in our stylish
quote section. I think you'll enjoy the dichotomy of our "Holiday Quotes" this
week.
What haven't we done? We haven't received a great deal of feedback. Less than
half a dozen letters and submissions have made it to the Opinion page from per
sons outside the Beacon. This from a college community of 3,700 people, accord
ing to Behrend's website. I've harped on this before, to little avail, and the lack of
response doesn't bother me.
The la, - 1 of response to my frequent solicitations for participation from the
Behrend community does; however, affairm many observations I can right make
about Behrend, America and the US of A in general. People don't care. That's a
fact. Most people are simply absorbed in their day to day life and only get
involved in something beyond themselves if it will yield a direct benefit to them,
be it monetary, pyschological, material, etc.
If you think otherwise, you're likely to be disappointed. Oh, of course some
people legitimately care. But they're by far in the minority. If you're lucky, you'll
be fortunate enough to enouncter enough people who care to be capable of setting
and accomplishing goals that require more than the dedication of one person. In
my life, I have been this fortunate. I'd say this gives me the creedence to evaluate
situations that lack people who care.
So what of the Beacon Opinion page and America? They both lack legitimate
participation. Fortunately for you, it matters little whether the Beacon Opinion
page is participated in. America is a different story. Unless people who legitimate
ly care about engendering a tolerant nation that looks out for the best interest of
all its citizens, we'll be perpetually worse off than we are now.
Submission Guidelines
The Beacon welcomes readers to share their views on this page.
Letters and commentary pieces can be submitted by email to
opinion@psu.edu or directly to the Beacon office, located in the Reed
Building.
Letters should be limited to 350 words and commentaries should be
limited to 700 words. The more concise the submission, the less we will
be forced to edit it for space concerns and the more likely we are to run
the submission.
All submissions must include the writer's year in school, major and
name as The Beacon does not publish anonymous letters. Deadline for
any submission is 5 p.m. Tuesday afternoon for inclusion in the Friday
issue. All submissions are considered, but because of space limitations,
some may not be published.
All submissions must include consent to be edited before they can be
edited for publication.
The Behrend Beacon
„,,„ ,„„ki, th Rick. I Penn St
THE BEHREND
Beacon Opinion Editor
Chris Hviidak
Penn State Erie,
The Behrend College
First Floor, The J. Elmer Reed
Union Building
Station Road, Erie, PA 16563
Friday, December 9, 2005
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Chris LaFuria
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By Chris Hvizdak
opinion editor
opinion psu.edu
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