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Closing our eyes doesn't solve problems
Scott Mclntyre
Capital Times Columnist
Several weeks back I read about a
proposed ban in Texas on over
three hundred items from health
books in Texas schools. Items
ranging from AIDS hot—lines to
Dr. Jack Keorkian are being swept
under the bed like monsters in the
night.
Nationally, over three hundred and
ninety five attempts to ban
education from schools took place
last year. Books such as Of Mice
and Men and Anti—Drug programs
such as Quest were the biggest
targets.
Almost half of the attempts male
each year arc successful.
Interestingly enough,
Pennsylvania is second only to
California in attempts to pretend
that if we do not talk about
controversial issues, they will go
away.
Rapes forgotten, problems remain
Paul Dan Taccetta
Capital Times Columnist
We've had a Peeping Tom, then
vandalism and theft. This year we
have rape and vehicle stereo thefts.
What's next, murder?
While on leave of absence for
Fall, 1993, I was relaxing at home
in York one night and turned on
the television news to hear that
there was a rape and an attempted
rape at PSI-I. A sarcastic, 'told you
so' emanated from within. Not
because I thought it was fumiy, but
because I knew that the
administration was probably very
embarrassed.
Lest there be no doubt, I believe
that rape is morally and criminally
wrong. The news reports on all
local stations did not paint a
flattering picture of our precious
protected environment. For two
years, as a Resident Assistant
(R.A.) at Wrisberg Hall, I praiched
security to residents and officials.
I wasn't the only one concerned.l
remember seeing two Residence
Life surveys in which Wrisberg
women were concerned at the lack
of lighting outside the dorm. I had
stated the same fact before, as well
as the fact that bushes were
extremely tall. I recalled that
university officials at my previous
Penn State campus ordered
Columnist
Jeff Feehrer
Capital Times Columnist
"...the prayer—ah of—ah faith—ah
shall save—ah the sick—ah!"
What the...?
I snapped awake, bent upright
and dizzy amid cavorting gray
shadows. Rhonda Shearer and "Up
All Night" on the USA Network
had metamorphosed to a
televangelist.
What time was it? Was I late for
work or for class? What a
scheduled, skittering little soul I
am, paranoid with hours, must be
late for something.
I had rolled over on the remote
unit, touched a button, found
Cinemax Adult Theater. That
meant it was Friday night
The world was normal again.
I was me, in my living room,
still with my relishments—acts
of God, yellow journalism,
teething infants, term papers, ZZ
Top's "Legs" (should be fifty
minutes longer)—and my
repugnances: optimism, the
Nietzsche seasons of fall, winter
and spring, and Middletown, a nit
terrier burg of blue-collar, redneck
I truly believe that education is
the key to survival and a person
will not develop into a productive,
rational, caring human being
without all the facts. Furthermore,
it is not enough to wish book
banning away. Not anymore than
AIDS, incest, teen pregnancy, or
prejudice will go away if we just
don't talk about it with our
children.
During my life I have had the
pleasure of meeting and the pain of
losing some very wonderful
people
Last year I was the best man at a
friends wedding, or perhaps the
second best. The month prior his
brother had died of AIDS and I was
asked to take his place.
If it matters, yes he was
homosexual.
I know it is taboo to talk about
people that are different, his family
now wishes someone would have
maintenance to trim and remove
bushes around the dorm for safety.
But other negligence I have noted
over three years surprises me that
serious crimes such as rape ankl
burglary haven't occurred sooner.
Fire exit doors at the dorms were
being propped open 24 hours a day.
Residents refused to adhere to the
rules and officials refused to enforce
them. It had been suggested to
Housing many times in years past
that keys for or alarms on the fire
exit doors would absolutely
improve security. I recall a couple
of incidents as an R.A. that
resulted from people trespassing in
the dorms
It wasn't until this recent incident
that the process was accelerated to a
solution. Now the dorms are locked
tight all day, most of the time.
New fire exit doors keyed for
resident use have been installed
after a two year delay. However, I
still observe some doors
occasionally propped or rigged
open all day or night long.
New courtesy telephones have
been installed at the dorms for
visitors. No telephone numbers are
displayed at the phones though.
The old phones constantly did not
work, and Housing was reluctant to
fix them since they were damaged
repeatedly. The new phones are
vandalism—resistant. It's amazing
the solutions that we can come up
with when forced to!
dogmas in the fourteen—year
gnomon of gradual nuclear
extinction; whose motor vehicle
operators squat glaze—eyed and
dysfunctional at green lights ever
since the mill shut down.
What—no more bowling, beer,
brawls and obesity on the
weekends? M—town, gangrenous
grotto of contagious, conundrum
4—way stop signs whose culture
center is the underpass at Fox's
(Blue Room bar, inclimate
weather) and night life is
championing which conuuon—law
wife sustains the loudest and
most imaginative expletive
through the rear cab window of
the grungiest Ford pickup (blinded
by NRA decals, of course).
Far worse, PSH had instituted
its a $l2O annual parking fee. My
car—'Bs Escort, 116,000 miles,
rusting hatch, twelve coats of Nu
Finish—wasn't worth that much.
What would I be paying for?
Perchance this tariff will afford
better security.
I needed a respite. "Let's go to
Hawk Mountain," said Tonya, my
tarot temptress and New Age
mentor. "We were going to go
there last November when we
Campus Voices
talked about it. A latex condom
and some education may have
prevented his death. Condoms,
like seat belts are not 100 %
effective, but if enough people start
using them lives will start being
saved.
On the other hand, if we close our
eyes maybe AIDS will go away.
Most people never want to open
up about controversial issues. Not
so long ago I met a young lady
who for almost ten years had been
molested by a family friend.
Nationally there are 130,000
children who report being sexually
abused each year! Most incidents
however are kept silent like secrets
on a playground. Yet there are
people in this country who don't
want our children to know that no
one has a right to touch their
bodies. As a result many victims
live a silent shame for a lifetime,
at least AIDS takes your life
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New windows were installed
outside the dorms in Summer,
1992. There was little, if anything
wrong with the old windows. They
did not look modern and were not
efficient. But how efficient is a
propped fire exit door in
mid—winter? The old windows also
had frosted glass for the first—floors
for privacy and security. The new
windows do not offer privacy and
are equally as secure.
Meade Heights residents probably
wonder when the houses will get
new windows. Almost all of them
don't lock. Some do not have
screens, and they are large enough
for Roseanne and Toni Arnold to
climb in. Outside air blows
through like paper. Locks on the
doors are so old and outdated that
they offer no security. Duplicate
keys from past residents exist since
there is not the "Unlawful to
Duplicate" wording on them.
So why do the dorms get priority
for the windows when they were
not needed? Did someone get
kickbacks for the contract?
journeys to Hawk Mountain
e ertr'
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were engaged, remember? It'll
make you feel better."
"Can I speak frankly?" I said.
"They had to ditch Mitch...or
expand the strike zone to first and
third base."
"You can get directions from
your sister."
"Admit it. He's talent by
association. If the guy'd been on
any other team but a pennant
winner, they'd have junked him in
mid—season. He should've been
losing for the Mets or shucking
sunflower seeds in the Senators
bullpen and refusing Gregg Mace
interviews."
"We both could use this time
away," Tonya said, also enchanted
with Native American lore and
lode.
"Turn right at Drehersville," said
my sister
Beneath a glowering sky, we
wheeled over route 61 for the
migratory landing zone of raptors:
Sunday afternoon when you're in
love. A youthful voice
telephoning a radio talk show
quickly.
A chance does exist however that
if we close our eyes children will
no longer be fondled.
mother quit school and was thrown
out of her house. Leaving the
mind to wonder about the mother
and child's future.
The last time I saw the mother she
was lying face down, stoned on
Valium and unable to hear the
babies's screams.
Unconsentual sex isn't the only
way to ruin a child's life forever.
Many teenagers engage in sex
every day in this country. A
million or so teenage girls get
pregnant each year. That's two
million teenagers having sex that
we know about. For arguments
sake I'll bet an additional one or
two had sex and didn't get caught.
A former friend was one of the
unfortunate victims of early
motherhood. The baby's father
Additional lights were installed at
the dorms after the rape scare, in
the exact spot that the two
Wrisberg residents expressed
concern a year before. Hmmmmm.
I wonder whether the lights were
the result of the safety concerns or
the rape scare? It's amazing how
fast we can react when forced to!
Meade Heights did not get
additional lighting when the
Peeping Tom was on the prowl or
after the rape. It seems as if a
bandage is being placed on the
affected wound and preventative
measures ignored.
Campus Police. We have a police
force. Theoretically, they should be
more effective than the security
guards at other campuses. I just da
not see it. Although, I don't have
proof and did not record dates for
the following, I remember two
instances in which I needed to
contact police between 2 a.m. and
4 a.m. The officer on duty was
most assuredly sleeping in the back
office. I cannot say how I know
and I do not know who it was, but
it disgusted me. In several other
instances, they were not responsive
either. Others are critical of their
effectiveness too, as I read the
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proclaimed the rapture of
Neo-Nazi Christians and the
commentator assailed him with
Herodesque fervor. Religion, like
hypothermia, seemed to be in the
air.
The pensive psychotherapist
beside me listened. "Isn't that a
paradox?" she addressed the
dashboard dial, then made a
scoffing noise and changed
stations
Actually, I was contemplating
the third species of Noah's
descendants inhabiting my mobile
home. There had been the field
mice and their ensuing halocaust
by Velveeta and Victor traps. Last
winter the community's felines
had clawed entrances through
asbestos insulation to my heat
ducts, emanating scratchy,
slithery, invisible noises all night
eerie enough to blanch Sigourney
Weaver.
Plywood patches sent them
elsewhere, maybe to their owners.
Now I had the class Arachnida
told her it couldn't happen the first
time. Four parents and how many
teachers that could have told them
that yes indeed, once may just be
enough? After the baby arrived the
But if we close our eyes teenagers
will stop having sex.
In keeping with the obvious
tradition that is becoming the norm
in many communities, I will stop
talking about sex. That is because
I have a recent story I would like to
share.
A good friend called the other day
to discuss a recent job offer.
Somehow we got on the subject of
racism and he told me about a five
year old who said, and I quote "
shut up nigger" after Jay told some
children on a playground to stop
fighting.
That is something that I will
never have to experience in this
lifetime. Yet I feel that everyone
should be aware that it takes place
November 15, 1993 issue of The
Capital Times supplement on
Campus Safety.
In their defense, the
administration is not supportive of
their services which puts them in a
catch-22.
The escort service operated on a
24 hour basis there for awhile. I
see that its reverting back to a
limited schedule. Temporary
precautions are over. The hype has
faded I guess.
Communication to students
about the attacks was criticized.
The number of students who do not
think there is a lack of
communication in general at PSI-I
can fit into one bathroom.
Unfortunately, the administrators
probably don't believe this because
people do not express this and no
one asks.
We all go about our business and
wait for improvements that will
never come
Apparently, lessons were not
learned. I hadn't heard anything
from university officials about the
recent rash of car stereo thefts until
word—of—mouth accidentally
reachedmy ear. Then there was an
article in the last issue of The
Capital Times.
So, all—in—all, I return this
semester to some physical
loping down from my ceiling,
finding an ear, opening my
refrigerator, lounging in a
sneaker, doing those clandestine
things spiders and Bob Packwood
do while I sleep. In the shower Pd
reach for the soap and there'd be
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something huge and hairy lurking
behind the Jergens. I thought the
ex—wife had returned.
Signs, portends...apocalyptic.
Ascending Hawk
Mountain with us, on a path
stonier than my left ureter, were
leafless, lifeless black trees that
lanced frost—colored clouds. The
forest was deserted, dank,
depressing.
I felt better
"Indian country," said I to the
woman who really had endureda
sweat lodge. Tonya smiled
dreamily, a nimbus or lost
sunlight glowing her face. "I bet
Chief Manischewitz trod this very
trail," she said.
I, the skeptic, merely continued.
An aerial breeze shattered branches
and rained acorns. "Listen! Feel
that? The spirit of Mogadishu
accompanies us." She radiated,
pilgrim nearing her Mecca.
Capital Times April 17, 1994
differences in the environment. It
seems that everyone, except the
three people involved in the
assaults (two victims and a
perpetrator) has forgotten the
serious incident lately. Everything
goes back to normal until it
happens again. Administration
would like the public to forget
because it embarrasses the college.
Take a look at the crime statistics
in the previous issue of The
Capital Times or ask Police
Services for a copy and get
involved. Express your concerns to
different departments and keep alert.
Crime is on the rise in all forms
on campus. We are not immune.
On the subject of the last issue, I
want to correct an error that I
noticed I had made and add a
comment or two
Fourth St. is the dead-end street
to the dorms, not the street from
Rosedale Avenue to the Olmsted
building that has no sidewalk for
Meade Heights pedestrians. That is
Fifth St. Also,in a few recent
visits to Meade Heights, I notice
that snow remains covering the
sidewalks and fire hydrants. (Walk
in the street, and if you get hit, sue
the university and use this column
as reference.) I have also heard a
half-dozen or more people
complain that their driveways cb
not get cleared. I do not know the
policy for this. Call Housing at
948-6244.
North Point, overseeing a deep
and distant concavity spiked by
miniature maples, was a bouldery
perch reminiscent of that scene in
called out strike coordinates like
"Sharp—shinned, north ridge, two
glasses up!" and "Red—tailed,
south pinnacle horizon!" Huddled
families trained lenses heavenward
and shutters clicked sky specks.
As we trekked for colonization,
melancholia dimmed me like this
fading afternoon. Enjoyment has
an awful price, I realized: it
always ends; whereas realism,
anticipating and exhorting the
worst, the darkest, bleakest, the
pessimistic, is terminated by fun.
every day and banning Huckleberry
Finn from elementary schools will
not make it go away.
But if we close our eyes prejudice
might just disappear.
In the time that it took me to put
this article together one hundred
and twenty people were forcibly
raped, fifty new HIV cases were
reported, twelve hundred teenage
girls became pregnant, and
countless people will be beaten,
harassed, killed and forgotten
because they are different. Families
will lose children and children will
lose childhood because of a lack of
education. I firmly believe that the
only way to combat these
problems is through a ton of
education and some common sense.
Or if we close our eyes, America's
problems will dissipate once this
paper is placed in the trash.
"The Greatest Story Ever Told"
where Satan tempts Christ. But
we weren't alone. Two
sanctuary guides emblazoned with
Schwarzenegger binoculars and
commanding upper sleeve patches
"Did you like that?" Tonya asked
while we threatened our femurs
and exhaled on frostbitten fingers.
I had to smile.
Selah, believers.