4 AI Behrend Beacon
I U october 16 ’ 2009
i www.thebehrendbeacon.com
OUR VOICE
Free EMTA passes not necessary
The Beacon has received sev
eral calls over the last few
weeks from interest groups in
favor of public transportation.
These groups seek to increase
use of public transport, and re
cently, their focus has been
upon Penn State Behrend.
Penn State Behrend is the
only school out of Edinboro,
Mercyhurst, Gannon, and itself
that does not give students
“free” passes on the Erie Metro
Transit Authority (EMTA) pub
lic busing system.
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IVIY VOICE
Exhaustion, the pounding of
my shoes hitting the pavement,
the music of my green iPod
screaming into my ears. Sweat
dripping down my face. Just me
and the road. All reasons why I
love to run.
Generally, running is an ac
tivity that either you love or
hate. Some people don’t under
stand the point of it and cannot
imagine that going for a run is
actually a voluntary decision.
The thought of exerting energy
to run three miles would never
be a possibility for some. On
the other hand, I don’t know
what I would do if 1 didn’t run.
Now, I’m no cross-country
runner, but 1 make sure that I
run when I can, depending on
the specific day and my
agenda, and I increase my dis
tance over time.
Key reasons why I love to run
and believe it is important in
clude:
MY VOICE
Sleep:
I have never really been en
ticed by the vices that hook
most of humanity. I don’t like
to drink; I’ve never done drugs;
I don’t focus too much on get
ting laid. These things are fine
for different people, but it is
simply not my thing.
However, I do have one
weakness that will always get
the best of me. Simply put, I
love to sleep. It is the highlight
of my day. Never have I been
involved with an activity that I
wanted to do for more then
twelve straight hours.
Though it may be obvious
that sleeping is an awesome
thing, I feel that college stu-
,70 ' “XT,O“ p# ' 6563 The Behrend Beacon
Executive Board
Editor-In-Chief: Business Manager:
Connor Sattely Bethany Long
editor@psu.edu bjlso37@psu.edu
Managing Editor: Faculty Advisor:
Christine Newby Kim Young
censos6@psu.edu kjylo@psu.edu
Web Editor:
Marcus Yeagley
mjysol2@psu.edu
Majority opinion of the Behrend Beacon editorial board
Through our research, it has
become very clear exactly what
“free" means in this case.
“Free” means that while stu
dents don’t pay the bus driver,
or EMTA, they end up paying a
large sum on their tuition that
pays for the tickets [See EMTA,
front page].
We applaud Penn State
Behrend for making the choice
not to move to accept this deal.
Sacrificing a huge fee of our
Student Activity Fee, into which
we all pay, to provide free
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Why I love to run
• Running allows me to get
in better shape. Since I have
played sports throughout my
entire life, it is a necessity for
me to run. After playing basket
ball and softball
for four years in
high school and
soccer for two
years, I can’t just
suddenly stop ex
ercising.
• Running re-
duces stress. This
is a vital reason
why college stu
dents should run
because they can
easily be in stress-
ful situations,
• Running is an activity that
gets me away from every day
activities and responsibilities. It
allows me to escape from
classes, studying, homework
assignments, and work for just
a staple of college sanity
dents are sadly being forced to
forgo this great gift. Each
night, I trudge home from the
library or Reed and
see other sleep de
prived students just
like me. We wan
der like zombies,
our sanity and
drive ripped from
our bodies by the
unholy stress of
college. It breaks
my heart to see my
friends drag them
selves into class,
looking like they
just finished shooting the
Thriller music video.
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passes for the minimal amount
of students who would use this
system is a horrible decision
and one that needed to be
passed up.
While free public transporta
tion is an absolutely great idea,
and would benefit certain stu
dents in large ways, the price is
not worth the reward in this
case, if the money were to
come from the Student Activity
Fee. If the price were more rep
resentative of the amount of
students who regularly would
*JS~- - _
the right amount of time.
A 25 minute run does not
consume too much of my valu
able time, yet it lets my mind go
somewhere free from academ
ics and what I need to accom
plish.
CHRISTINE
NEWBY
managing editor
helps because of
daily regular routines. Feeling
the fresh air as I run automati
cally improves my mood
which is another benefit of
running. I love exercising out
side compared to on a tread
Putting off sleep is something
we all do at one time or an
other. We want to catch up on
work or have a lit
tle fun, but this has
a serious draw
back a few days
down the road.
After three days of
burning the candle
at both ends, you’ll
be at the same
mental level as a
bottle of maple
syrup. It may be
counter-intuitive,
NEIL JAMES
opinion editor
but not getting
enough sleep is one of the
worst things you can do to your
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Business Editors:
Harmilee Cousin
hxcso2o@psu.edu
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• Running is a way
to take a break. For
example, if I have
been studying for
hours and need a
break to clear my
head, there is a
good chance that I
will go for a run.
• Running pro
vides a change of
scenery, which
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use the EMTA, or if the money
were to come from a different
source, this deal would be an
easy “yes.”
The idea of a campus loop,
too, is one that should definitely
be explored. The administra
tion of this college just needs to
consistently take into account
that in this economy, every dol
lar of our tuition counts - don’t
waste it.
Connor Sattely for the Behrend
Beacon editorial staff.
c:hvacurrrxx.4s(col,
mill. In a gym, I feel cooped up
on the treadmill and find it bor
ing. Additionally, I think that I
get a better workout outside.
Behrend’s location provides
excellent places to run outside,
for example, the Behrend
Fields. However, due to the
majority of paths at the
Behrend Fields being very iso
lated and surrounded by
woods, I feel that additional
emergency call boxes need to
be added for the safety of stu
dents.
Currently, the furthest emer
gency call box is located near
the windmill which is across
from the soccer field. Once you
go across the bridge and head
past the Logan House, the call
boxes disappear.
While running I am always
aware of my surroundings, but
I would feel much more com
fortable and safer if additional
call boxes were added.
GPA and your ability to be pro
ductive in class.
To me, this is a terrible injus
tice. My fellow students are en
titled to this God given right
and deserve some freaking
sleep.
Our grades suffer and our
comprehension fades with each
passing, sleepless night. As im
portant as studying is and as
fun as certain activites may be,
sleep should always be high on
our list of priorities. So please
do yourself a favor and heed
these words: put down this
paper, go back to your room,
draw the blinds and go to bed.
Sweet dreams.
Editorial Policies
Single copies of the Beacon are free and available at newsstands around campus. Additional copies can be purchased
with permission of the editor in chief for $.50 each.
Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the students, faculty or University administration. Opinions ex
pressed in columns, cartoons, and letters are not necessarily those of The Behrend Beacon unless otherwise indicated,
hare- Any letters intended for publication must be addressed to the editor, be no more than 250 words, and include the
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iekso34@psu.edu I fished, they must include their name. The Behrend Beacon intends (Or Its Opinion page to be a forum for discussion.
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1 3 ; and letters to the editor. Complaints regarding Beacon coverage of school events should be directed to the editor at edi
: torfo psu.edu.
MY VOICE
I hate Facebook
JEN SLANE
staff writer
Facebook is getting out of
hand, and I’ll proudly say that
I’m getting a little tired of it.
Here are seven reasons why:
I. Procrastination Tool:
I realized throughout my
years of using the website that
even if nothing is occurring on
Facebook, you can still manage
to sit on it for three hours in
stead of doing your homework.
Facebook, I hate you because
you are addicting for absolutely
no reason, and it results in me
staying up later to finish my
work.
2. Annoying status
updates/the kid that likes
everything:
There is that one person on
Facebook that updates their
status a little too much. You
know more about their life than
you really wanted to. There is
also that guy that tends to com
ment on or “like” absolutely
everything you put up in a short
time after you post it.
Creepy much? I don’t care if
you say “it’s not stalking, it’s in
my news feed.” No, it’s creepy.
Stop it.
3. People You Might (Not)
Know:
Okay, I’m sick of the “People
You May Know” in the upper
right comer. lam in the Penn
State and Pittsburgh networks
which are both large. What are
the chances of me actually
knowing the person they are
displaying? And am I being dis
played to them? I feel like I’m
in a battle of not clicking “Add
as a Friend” first and seeing
who caves in, and I don’t like it.
4. Farmville and Mafia Wars:
I want nothing to do with
your elephants and I do not
want to join your Mafia War
gang. These applications
among others on Facebook are
ridiculous and waste of time. If
you want to participate, go for
it, but don’t send me and invita
tion every time you play. Also,
MY VOICE
Respect the prize
MARISSA LANICH
staff writer
I am not a political science
major, and I have never held
strong political opinions. I
won’t pretend to have any ex
tensive knowledge of President
Barack Obama’s work since his
election or his intentions for his
term in office. However, what I
do know is that in a time when
many have lost everything, in
cluding their optimism, Obama
has inspired millions to main
tain their hope for the future,
and I think that is pretty im
pressive.
Last week, The Norwegian
Nobel Committee also ex
pressed their endorsement of
our president’s efforts by
awarding him the 2009 Nobel
Peace Prize. He was chosen
from 205 nominees for “his ex
traordinary efforts to
strengthen international diplo
macy and cooperation between
peoples” and especially for his
“vision of, and work for, a
world without nuclear
weapons.”
While I looked at this news in
a positive light, I was disap
pointed to hear so many people
react very negatively. Many
have stated that Obama has
done nothing to deserve the
award, some going as far as to
say his receiving the award is a
joke.
The President and the Nobel
Committee have even been crit
icized publically by political fig
ures and mocked by the media.
Michael Steele, chairman of the
Republican National Commit
tee, spoke out regarding
Obama’s award, stating that his
inion
I’m sick of seeing that you are
a Level 62 or seeing your farm
pictures in my News Feed. If
you’re going to play, please, just
keep it to yourself.
5. Relationship Status and
Family Trees:
I think it’s pathetic that “it’s
not official until it’s on Face
book.” You see couples break
up and get back together all the
time via news feed. I do not
need to know your relationship
issues, and if you’re going to be
breaking up and getting back
together all the time, you prob
ably just shouldn’t have a rela
tionship. It’s not something
you should take too seriously. I
mean come on, I’m “engaged”
to my roommate and my family
tree consists of my friends.
6. Threads:
So, today I “liked” one of my
friend’s statuses. About 2 min
utes later I have 5 new notifica
tions because “so and so
commented on so and so’s sta
tus that you liked.” Really, Face
book? Really? You felt the need
to tell me this? I simply wanted
to express that I “liked” the sta
tus, that doesn’t mean I want to
know what everyone else said
about it.
Then, for the rest of the after
noon I kept getting notifica
tions about the status. I hate
threads because I can comment
on something once and pay the
consequences for weeks if peo
ple continue to comment.
7. Facebook Chat:
Okay, first, if they’re going to
make a chat, they should
should make sure it works.
Half the time when I communi
cate on Facebook chat it freezes
or doesn’t send my message.
Two, just because I am on Face
book doesn’t mean I want to
talk to you. Most of the time I
am just checking it between
classes and I don’t have time to
have a conversation.
Also, most of the people that
tend to Facebook chat you are
the people you don’t want to
talk to. Just send me a text mes
sage, thanks.
star power outshined other
nominees’ “real achievements.”
Erick Erickson, editor-in
chief of the conservative blog
RedState.com, suggested
Obama was chosen to meet an
affirmative action quota, rather
than actually earning the honor.
Even Saturday Night Live has
joined in on the fun, insinuating
he only won the prize for “not
being George Bush.”
It’s unfortunate that there
has been such a lack of support
for our president and such a
lack of enthusiasm for this
honor that’s been given to him,
especially among Americans.
Regardless of political prefer
ence or opinion, this should be
a positive piece of news.
Our president has been hon
ored with one of the world’s
most prestigious awards during
a time when our country is still
struggling to get back on its
feet and to regain the rest of the
world’s respect. He is reacting
humbly to the news, and in
tends to donate the $1.4 million
award to charity. Also, the
award will likely help Obama
achieve some of his admirable
goals, such as working towards
a more unified world.
So why are we looking at this
in such a negative light? Why
are we finding reasons to com
plain and ridicule those in
volved in this decision?
Setting politics aside, why
don’t we try to avoid the nega
tivity since there is already
enough that can bring us
down? Instead, let’s support
the committee’s decision to
honor a man who has inspired
in millions when we need it
most.