Blues and bliss top 21st birthday list
Michael Stone
Capital Times Staff
My mother always told me never run
with scissors. I was a child, and she was
trying to protect me.
Well, in a mere few days I will turn 21
years of age. Exciting, huh? I never
thought this day would come.
The day marks a turning point. I am
officially, by all people's chronological
standards, an ADULT.
Can I really be 21 already? It seems
like my seventeenth birthday was last
week. I grew up in New Jersey (insert
your own toxic dump, beach waste,
driving standard, or "which exit?" remark
here).
Seventeen meant getting the ol' driver's
license. In the last four years, I've only
had one accident (not my fault) and one
speeding ticket (yep--definitely my fault
on that one). Not bad for a "Jersey
Driver."
Eighteen came shortly thereafter (yeah,
Mike... 365 days later). I could vote and die
for my country. I never bothered to vote;
and with last year's war, I'm relieved I
didn't take that recruiter's advice in high
school. I chose this holy land of a
university instead.
SGA gamers negative commentary
Terry Wolf
Capital Times Staff
Well, we really did it this time. SGA
had an open forum the other day, and we
didn't show up. We had all these bitches
and gripes, but we couldn't pull ourselves
away and go to the open forum.
There are many possible reasons for
this. I don't want to be redundant, but the
biggest reason is that many of us just
don't give a damn. There, I said it. That
will be the last time I say it this month
since that was last month's subject.
It follows then, that if we really
don't..., then do we really need the SGA? I
think that at most colleges and
universities, the answer would be a quick
"yes." Things are different here. Why, you
ask?
I think a good place to start might be
understanding why only three people
showed up at the SGA open forum.
First of all, many of us are "older"
students; we have jobs and families. We
don’t have time for high school stuff like
SGA. Therefore, we don't have time to go
to, or even worry about an open forum,
whether there's free pizza there or not.
Secondly, many of us are busy with
other extracurricular activities that we feel
closer to. I'll give you three guesses which
one mattered the most to me. My club
affiliation has a lot to do with my major.
Enough said.
Let's not forget that there are many of
us who actually belong to two or three
clubs. I don't think these people need to
make any excuses for not showing up at
the SGA open forum, their dedication
speaks for itself.
Almost all of us who did not show up
at the open forum have one thing in
common. We are all full time students. So
are the people on the SGA. They should
At nineteen, nothing special happened.
I still couldn't go into bars (either to drink
or to see some good bands), or visit some
of the finer porno theaters.
Twenty's the same as 19... except you
Etched In Stone
lose that annoying "teenager"
nomenclature. Yes, another decade pissed
away.
But why is 21 so mystical, anyway?
Okay, the booze freaks are chanting
"alcohol," but I’m serious.
Twenty-one is the door to freedom. No
more restrictions. Loss of that foolish
childhood thing.
Should I admit that I'm scared to grow
up?
There are those fond memories of high
school...homeroom, gym class, calculus,
college pressure, and that vicious stress to
"fit in." Okay, maybe that was a bad
example.
I remember the two-foot snows we
used to get every winter when I was
around ten. It always managed to snow the
week of my birthday. The greenhouse
effect has decreased the amounts, but I still
understand what that means without my
going into it in any detail.
So, we didn't go. We don't give a...,
and the SGA open forum was a flop. I
imagine sitting in the auditorium that day
Wolf's Den
must have felt like being a pimple on the
world's ass. You really try to make an
impression, but you know you're going to
get popped.
What actually got popped in this case
was the collective ego of the SGA. I can
understand their frustration. They really try
to do something around here. But, as I've
said before, we don't give a..., you know,
and no amount of work on their part is
going to change that, ever.
So what's my point? I'm getting to
that right now. Do we need the SGA at
Penn State Harrisburg? I'm not so sure we
do.
The clubs might think they need the
SGA. The SGA is like a bank to them.
Every semester they apply for a loan and
wait with nervous anticipation until a
decision is reached.
Why do I use the word loan? The SGA
gives them money and in return the SGA
expects payment in the form of
participation and volunteer help in SGA
sponsored activities. Members of SGA
were upset that no members of any clubs
were at their open forum. The clubs never
get the amount they ask for, but they
sometimes ask for too much, or do they?
Nowhere else is there a situation where
those who control the members' funds for
a given situation are allowed to do so
without having any knowledge of that
situation. I remember submitting a budget
for WPSH that included $24.00 for two
Stanton D6807A phono styli.
love the snow like I did when I was ten.
When I was a kid, I never worried
about anything. Now it's different.
Will I get that paper done? Will this
column make it for the deadline? Do I
look alright? How’s my hair—or lack
thereof? What will people think of me?
Will I have enough money? Will I ever
get a job?
They say Three Mile Island had no
damaging effects, but why when it rains,
„ are the worms on the Olmsted sidewalks
so damn huge?
I think I'm a lot smarter now (with the
tuition I'm paying, I should hope so) and I
have more common sense. I've been
through a few majors, and I worry to the
point where I'm a manic depressive.
Maybe with maturity, I'm sacrificing
sanity. Problems other than gelling hit in
the ear with an iccball during a snowball
fight exist with me now.
Up until now, I've had a lot of dreams.
Some have come true, others have
vanished. A few I still hope for.
I've had a lot of fears. Some I've
conquered (roller coasters, swimming,
ballroom dancing). Others, I haven't
(heights). A few, I live with (disco
MIGHT come back, Billy Joel WILL
retire someday).
I also remember someone in SGA
saying, ”1 don't even know what that is."
That's my point. The clubs should be
financed, or at least be under supervision
of the academic divisions they arc most
aligned with. The Capital Times, for
example, should be under the humanities
division.
But, you retort, the SGA docs other
things besides funds clubs. Let's examine
that. They form various committees to
address some of the issues on campus.
Members of the SGA also sit on various
faculty committees as student rep
resentatives. First of all, any student can
sit on the faculty committees; being in
SGA is not a prerequisite.
Second, the committees formed by
SGA itself seldom do more than serve
SGA's own interests. The exception is the
Awards Banquet Committee. I think the
Awards Banquet* is essential to those
students, faculty and staff who deserve
recognition, but where docs it say the
SGA has to control it?
Then there are the many activities
funded by SGA. I talked about Autumn
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Reader implores 'Buy American'
Editor,
I would like to address the issues raised
in your Jan. 20 editorial regarding the
purchase of Japanese products over
American-made products.
Funny, how something such as
choosing a product you like best could
affect our economy.
Americans tend to not think about
issues until they have to deal with an
CAPITAL TIMES ¥> 17 /Q
February 10, 1992 V/i m Hi IJI Zr
I've had a lot of friendships. Many have
dissolved, cither due to new interests, lack
of communication, or just distance.
I've been in love, and I've moped for
weeks when it was over. And I have
painfully learned that it is belter to love
and have to let go than to never try it at
all.
Physically, I fed about 45. My
hairline also makes me look like I'm 45.
Mentally, I'm cither 12 or 60,
depending which day of the week you
catch up with me.
They say that these arc the best years
of your life. I think that means the future
will suck.
I don't know...about turning 21. I'm
really anxious. But I'm also scared of what
experiences and responsibilities it might
bring. My mind is telling me to trudge on
into adulthood and act my age, but the kid
in me won't let go.
Yesterday, without the presence of my
mom, I took a pair of scissors out of my
desk and ran through my house, just to
have some juvenile fun.
I got half way down the hall and I
stopped.
For God's sake, I could've hurt myself!!
After all, it's only fun until someone loses
an eye.
Fcst last month, so I'll leave that alone.
There's no sense in beating a very dead
horse. The Spring Fling is coming up.
More of our tuition money is being blown
so a handful of people can have a good
time. I'll be there, of course. I want to get
my money's worth.
Then there is the Dance Marathon that
won't happen. Why? The SGA thinks it's
because most of the clubs didn't want to
help. There is, after all, a lot of work
involved and they needed help. The same
reasons apply to the Dance Marathon that
applied to poor attendance at the SGA
open forum.
No, we really don't need the SGA at
Penn State Harrisburg. We are Penn Slate,
but we are mostly older students, mostly
commuters, and mostly don't give a ....
I imagine I’ve rubbed quite a few
people the wrong way. I think I have a
few friends on SGA, and I hope those
people can understand there's nothing
personal in this column. Those who are
friends will, I hope, appreciate the honesty
and value of the friendship more than they
will be insulted by my humble opinion.
issue that directly affects thcm-it is
always somebody else's problem.
The economy and the unemployment
rate are now staring the American people
in the face. The unwillingness of the
American people to change from buying
foreign products has contributed to the
loss of American jobs.
I question the extent
See American, page 10
to which