Bad Thoughts on the
Twenty-fifth Week
An Apathetic Commuter Student
Five weeks until the term ends; half of the people here will
graduate and scatter like locusts to points unknown. The other half
will go underground for three months until the September chill
brings them running back like lemmings to the warm confines of
Capitol Campus
That’s nicer and so is the natural flow of the seasons and all that.
But, in another way, a repetition of this year’s cycle is kind of a
discouraging forecast. Another thirty weeks of dread discontent and
bad rumblings should not be the stuff campus like is made of.
Let’s face it; the Capitol Campus of the Pennsylvania State
University is not a happy place, and I am sure no one on campus will
dispute that - with the possible exception of Mister Paul who is one
individual who seems to really enjoy his job. Anyway, all year the
Reader has used the literary talents of Charlie Holecry and Jim
Bollinger to document and bitch about the raw deals that go down
here. For that matter, any student or faculty member can give you a
personal list of grievanences - which might be why a slew of good
people are dissappearing after this term.
There could be, and get ready to disagree, another reason. The
solid, bedrock majority of the 1,200 students that attend this
campus are not exactly shakers and movers. True, groups like the
XGl’s and the B.S.U. are continually sponsoring events that add a
little flash to these bleak, cinder block walls, but they are the
exception. Overall, Capitol is a hotbed of apathy.
Why are we like we are? Hmmm, any member of the Student
Government Association will tell you it is the college administration
that has crushed the life from the student body by its practice of
killing any program that shows imagination. The administration will
blame its problems on University Park and no one knows what “The
Park” has to say about the matter, (myself, I think “The Park” is a
legend invented by some punch-drunk rocker from Meade Heights.)
This puts the load back on our shoulders - and considering the
student body’s track record for change, we shouldn’t expect too
much from ourselves. Maybe, with a few good leaders, we could get
organized and do all those protest tactics that were popular in the
Sixties; but no messiahs are on the horizon. I am not going to do it.
Hell, I‘m just an apathetic commuter student that got a typewriter
for Christmas. Right now Pm making plans to go Summer term so I
can get out of this place and get a job.
Get a job? Maybe that is the wisdom of all this. Shut up, study
and go for the big money when you get out. Is this a happy thought?
Are we turning into what Rolling Stone correspondent Hunter S.
Thompson calls “gutless, old hacks?” Are we only in it for the
money?
But this column is straying too far from its goal, whatever its goal
is. Maybe those Capitol Campus dropouts had the right idea when
they quit and got high-paying jobs unloading trucks in the exciting
world of inter-state commerce. Maybe that’s what the Placement
Office postage meter means when it says, “Capitol Campus - new
ideas in higher education.”
THE WATCHER IS REAL
The other day I received a notice from housing about turning in
deposits for reservation of Meade Heights housing. For me those
worries are over, I graduate. But what was interesting about the
notice was the drawing of Kilroy peering over a fence emblazoned
on the flyer. Underneath the drawing were the words, “The Watcher
is Everywhere. The Watcher is watching you.”
Well let me tell you, the watchers are alive and well and living in
the form of maintenance personnel in Meade Heights. What?
That’s right . . you know those nice guys who paint your rooms
and fix the doors? Well, they report you too. For everything from
the growing of canabis-sativia to black lights to strange clothes
(female’s in a male’s house or male’s in a female’s house.)
Can this be true? You bet. I took the liberty of asking a number
of Meade Heights students what their major complaints were.
Surprisingly enought about 60% of the complaints dealt with the
attitude and problems with maintenance and housing. Why?
Well, further investigation points out that maintenance is having a
race to see who can top who on reporting students on living
infractions. Incidents and reports have occure where articles of
clothing were seen in a male or female’s household, that belonged to
a member of the opposite sex. Gadzooks! Could it be our upright
vitruous students would be chance be living with each other? Nay,
not our students, but apparently maintenance thinks so and so does
housing
Students living together or not isn’t the question, it’s that
maintenance is watching. (Get those browny points). Housing has no
right to try to dictate morality. It’s bad enough maintenance can
come into your house at any time unannounced and without
knocking. But to have the audacity to survey your place for housing
infractions is absurd, childish and bordering close on legal
infringements of the rights of privacy. I can understand gross
infractions being reported, holes in the walls, broken furniture, etc. .
but underwear or someone’s hair? (mmmmmmmm, strange).
Oh yes, as long as we are on survailance, wnar, about those nice
names on the mailboxes in Meade Heights. Good Idea? At first we
thought it was. Seeing how students tend to move around a lot, it
seemed logical that this would serve to locate the wayward students.
Well it does, but that’s only the beginning. Suppose you get a letter
addressed to your friend in care of you. Well, odds are housing will
hold it and call you down to pick it up and then grill you on why
you are getting so and so’s mail. Neat trick huh?
To top it all off they have a deal with the mailman (I understand)
to deliver all mail to the housing office if a name doesn’t appear on
the mailbox. Something sounds amiss? Well, its elementary my dear
housing. Housing should understand that mail gets delivered to a
house number and not an individual and to withhold mail is a federal
violation
Just a warning, Scotland Yard is just around the corner. I hope
they change before the case closes on^them.
Page 2
by Doug Gibboney
** * *
by Bill Matthews
C.C.READER
Spring
Dinner
Dance
The Student Government As
sociation has announced the date
for the annual Spring Dinner
Dance.
The semi-formal affair will
be held Saturday, May 4,
1974. Cocktails will be served
from 6:30 to 7:00 p.m., fol
lowed by dinner from 7:00
to 9:00 p.m. Dancing will
follow from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00
a.m. The dinner and dancing
music will be provided by
“Rainbow”.
The Dinner Dance commit
tee, Peggy Vanderslice and
Mike Leasher, have selected
the pleasant atmosphere of
Allenberry on the Yellow
Breeches, Boiling Springs, Pa.
for this year’s event.
The buffet dinner menu
features steamshop round of
beef, roasted chicken, and
seafood newburg.
The annual Spring Dinner
Dance is open to all stu
dents, not only Seniors.
However, space and finances
have placed a limit of 100
couples on the event. The
price of the tickets is $6.00
per person and $12.00 per
couple. Tickets will go on
sale on Monday, April 15.
Location of sale will be an
nounced. The directions to
Allenberry will be provided.
WALK-A-THON
On May 5, 1974 a
Walk-A-Thon is being sponsored
by the March of Dimes.
Currently there are three
Walk-A-Thons planned for the
Harrisburg Area; one on the East
Shore; one on the West Shore
and one in Carlisle. , Starting
points have not yet been
determined.
Walkers are sponsored either
by themselves or by someone
else. The minimum sponsorship
is 10 cents a mile. As of this datt
we have three students who are
participating - Lisa Yaffee Pat
Nevin and Bill Matthews.
Obviously we need more people
to make this work. Please come
out and support this fine
organization. We need your help.
Interested students can contact
Bill Matthews in the S.G.A.
Office, W-104 or Call 787-1663.
Thank You.
Club
News
D.T.K.
BY Vic Pawluk
Delta Tau Kappa (D.T.K.),
the international social
science honor society, held a
recent meeting on April 9,
in the T.V. Lounge. The
meeting was highlighted by
the election of new D.T.K.
officers for the coming year.
The new officers elected are
as follows: Gretchen Sense
men, President; Ray Barbush,
Vice-President of Programs;
Nancy Wilt, Vice-President of
Membership; and Debbie Hall
Secretary-Treasurer.
These new D.T.K. officers
were installed into office on
April 16, 1974, at the annual
D.T.K. banquet. The D.T.K.
banquet was held at Schind
ler’s Restaurant this year
with a smorgasboard style
dinner. Dr. Ed Racey was
the guest speaker for the
event.
LISA YAFFE AND 808 HETZEL AT S.G.
ELECTIONS.
continued from page 1
So, as shown by this chart,
student participation, in terms
of total votes cast in elections,
has decreased since ’72, but isn’t
as bad as it could be. Of course,
this data may not be totally
reliable or conclusive (OK, Mrs.
Thorne), but it is illustrative,
and it does show which
categories need help. We can
only hope that the next
elections will see more
candidates (at least enough to
fill all the positions), better
campaign tactics (which may at
least include pictures, of the
candidates on their posters), and
students who are, if not caring,
at least amused enough by it all
to vote for their favorite
candidates (or at least for the
one whose name they like best).
Finally, I’d like to extend my
congratulations to the winners,
condolences to the losers, and
adamant wishes for a better
government and cooperation for
all. .
S.G.A. Spring Term
1974 Elections
President
Michael McAllister
David Nicholas
John Kozial
Dennis Heck
Vice President
Russel Hogg
David DeLong
John Klock
Peter Sarmanis
Barry Smitsch
Treasurer
Jonathan Wren
Brian Elglish
Thomas Sheets
Robert Dudash
Secretary
Joy Raytik
Max Pifer
G. Anthony
Ray Battistoni
Tom Studer
Jim Niznic
Peter Micewitz
Chris Morgan
Ed Conners
Skip Laratonda
Barry Schmidt
Mr. Paul
* Winners
The Capitol Campus Reader
The C.C. Reader is published by the students o:
the Pennsylvania State University at Capitol Campus
Middletown, Pa., and is printed by the West Short
Times daring the Fall, Winter and Spring Terms.
Opinions expressed by the editors and staff are no
necessarily those of the University Administration
Faculty or Students.
Editor -.
Jim Bollinger, Doug Gibbom
Fred Proust
John Langdon, Romeo Trajani
It is by the goodness of God that in our country we have t
three unspeakably precious things: Freedom of speech, freedoi
conscience, and the prudence never to practice either of them."
April 25,1974
S.G.A. S pring Term
74 Elections
SENATORS
OFFICIAL
Business
Bruce Karchner
Write-in
Max Pifer
Jim Kiehl
Ken Armstrong
Dave DeLong
James Convino
Mark Brennen
Bob Gallager
Joe Gardy
Gary Tobin
Elementary Ed.
Nancy Wilt
Write-in
Janice Stephey
Rose Lovelick
Barb Keler
Engineering
Eugene Laratonda
David Shrader
Write-in
Mike Borkholder
John Schrum
Frank Hemming
Humanities
Al Houser
Bill Grubb
Linda Bilger
Paul Smith
Twila Brown
Math/Science
Write-in
Mark Fey
Rob Minaya
Rose Reed
Social Science
Andrew Pevarnik
Gilson Lebo
Lisa Yaffe
"Category Winner
* Senator-at-Large
University Faculty
Eugene Laratonda
Kevin O'Neal
James Jordan Award
The list of nominees will nc
given to the student body. Tl
necessary to protecte the evalu
process of the Evaluation Board.
. Frank DeSantis
Write-in
- Mark Tt