Cartoons and the
Freedom of Speech
By LISA MAUTI
Copy editor
LMM3SS@PSU.EDU
Cartoons and the freedom of
speech. How did they become so
deadly when intertwined. For those
who don’t pay attention to the
news... WAKE UP! And second,
let me catch you up to date.
A Denmark newspaper printed 12
cartoons that depicted the prophet
Muhammad back in late September.
The most offensive of them all was
one where a bomb replaced the
turban on Muhammad’s head.
I want to state that first and
foremost this cartoon is religiously
offensive. But I also want to
address why 1 think the actions
taken surrounded by this incident
are not only scary, but question our
rights as citizens of a democracy
that was created to escape not
being able to say what you want.
Denmark, as well as the US,
practices a freedom of speech
policy that enables people to say
what they think. Sure, people have
this right, but if they do use it, will
it piss people off? Yes it may piss
people off, but lets face it, what
doesn’t piss people off these days?
However, lately you can’t say
anything about anything because
there may be someone, somewhere
that has a problem with it. But if
the newspapers are supposed to
report the news, how can there be
someone that isn’t mad? It is their
job to say what is going on. Now
they are being persecuted if they
don’t sensor themselves? Is this
our beloved freedom of speech?
Because of this cartoon, the
Muslim people are demanding a
cartoon of the holocaust be drawn
up and published worldwide. Let’s
check our facts here.
There were two reasons for
these cartoons being created and
then hitting the press, one being
more prevalent than the other. The
cartoons were created in a contest
by a children’s author to find a
cartoonist for a book about Muslims,
The second was for a test
of the freedom of speech that
Denmark has. Over the past few
years, Denmark has had heavy
immigration of Muslims from
other European countries. So, the
paper tested out just how free their
freedom of speech actually was.
A little more than a year ago
filmmaker Theo Van Gogh
was murdered in the streets of
Amsterdam. He made a film
critical of the Islamic way of
life and was then murdered by a
Muslim extremist.
Now that you know why they
were created and then printed, I
ask why is the Muslim world now
demanding that everyone who
used their freedom to print the first
cartoons, now use their freedom
of speech to “sway” to include a
cartoon of the Holocaust.
The cartoons weren’t printed to
chastise a way of life. Everyone
has the right to believe in what they
want. They were printed to prove
a point.
In a class I am in, we had to
choose if, as a newspaper editor,
we would print the cartoons or not.
Then we had to stand in front of the
class and defend our decisions.
I learned that it was tough
making a choice, but it was even
harder trying to change people’s
perceptions of what freedom of
speech is, and how it mixes with
the news.
You ask would I have printed
the cartoons. My answer is yes.
It is affecting the safety of our
citizens that are overseas, and even
though the U.S. was not involved
in this cartoon, we became a target.
People deserve to know why. This
is one thing that the government
can’t hide, so why let them?
Muslims have been storming
Denmark, US and Austrian
embassies, along with many
others, and unnecessary deaths
are taking place. I suppose that
this is a recurring question that
has become a theme for the past
five years: Why are innocent
people, whether US citizens or
not, dying for reasons that are
beyond their control?
We all have the chance to vote in
our leaders. We live in a democracy
and that’s just how it works, but we
don’t havexontrol over what our
leaders say or do. So why do they
get all the protection and we are just
put out in front of the targets???
No, No I’m not a blatant idiot... I
do realize the actual answer to this
question, but do you get my drift?
Too many of us young people ignore
what is happening around us, but
what is happening now is what the
future will be when we actually have
to grow up and enter the real world.
So why is it that now, when all of
this crap is happening, we are just
letting it pass us by? We need to
learn as a society to question things,
and not just believe everything that is
thrown at us by the media.
Guess what, media is a business,
and that business has an owner, and
that owner belongs to a political
party. What side of the story do you
think he will tell you? Yup, one
that brings him more money, and
doesn’t piss people off.
So all I’m trying to say, is pay
attention to things happening
around you, don’t listen to
everything you are told and for
heaven sakes, question everything!
CULTURALLY INEPT
X 81-MONTHLY PONTIFICXTION
By OSCAR BEISERT
Columnist
QDBIO2@PSU.EDU
From the time of our youth —and
sometimes even birth —the idea of
higher education —post secondary —
is almost engrained in our basic
upbringing; it is, without a doubt, no
longer a special effort and has lost the
extra-terrestrial twig light that once
evaded going away to study.
In fact, not only has the spirit of
prestige left attending university,
we have almost lost the true idea
of scholarship; or have we? If you
haven’t ever, take some time to
count the number of people you
know, or have met, who are off
to pursue their studies, but —for
some reason —have no mind for the
premise of their endeavor.
As a master’s student enthralled
by some aspects of my selected
major and simply bored by others,
Surviving THON 2006
One dancer’s perspective on a timeless tradition
By ERIN MOSKALCZAK
Staff Reporter
EEMSOOI@PSU.EDU
In any other American university
4.0 is as good as you can get. At
Penn State 4.2 is just the beginning.
; For all of those who came to
| support the dancers at THON know
exactly what I am talking about.
1 This year, Penn State students
raised 4.2 million dollars to help
’ fight pediatric cancer. THON
I would not have happened if it
weren’t for all the supporters in
the stands cheering us on. I cannot
I thank all of the Harrisburg students
enough for coming out to help us
make it the full 48 hours. You have
no idea what it was like to look up
' in the stands and see our friends
holding signs and smiling as we
looked all disheveled.
THON first began with the “Run
to Rec. Hall.” This is when all
the dancers make their journey to
i the dance floor. It was incredible.
There are no words to describe
OPINION
I have a notion of what it means to
experience academic endurance that
is countered and, sometimes, even
surmounted by the excitement of
more intriguing subjects.
In this I am describing the ability
to endure some classes because of
their prospective education worth
so that you can get to others that
are most enticing; this, I find, is an
attribute of true scholarship. Recently,
in my Theories and Methods class,
the subject of the “hard working
American” was entertained. This
premise provoked a diverse milieu of
opinions that seemed to include every
possible take on the subject.
One take, which I found to be most
intriguing, was the contention that
the majority of Americans don’t work
hard, which —to be expected —was
immediately countered as though it
were targeted as an insult.
I thought for a moment about my
great grandmother, who —bom in
an era wherein a domestic role was
a woman’s only domain —befell
all sorts of hardships in order to
become a school teacher which
included her work as a nanny for a
local publisher and even cooking in
the college’s cafeteria.
Does this remain the modem trend
or was it even the trend then? While 1
am aware of some students who work
through school, is the percentage
what it felt like to see the streets of
State College lined with supporters
cheering for all the dancers. I’m
not going to lie to you, THON
was tough but looking up and
seeing familiar faces helped make
it a little easier. The no sleeping
thing did not bother me as much
as 1 thought, but the no sitting
for 48 hours killed me. My feet
started to hurt early Saturday. And
by the finish of THON, my feet
were dead - not in extreme pain,
just dead. And on top of my feet
disowning me, my knees also liked
to lock up on me. After a few trips
to the EMS room to get iced and
wrapped, my feet and knees felt a
little better. Submerging my feet in
ice for about 15 minutes was the
most painful experiences of the
weekend. After my foot ice bath,
the medical team wrapped my feet,
which was done while 1 remained
standing. The only time we were
not completely standing was when
we were getting a foot massage,
and even then one foot had to be on
THE CAPITAL TIMES February 27, 2006
of those attending college w hile
working even close to the number of
individuals who don’t work, take 12
hours, and spend the better part of
their free time not studying? In this
modem era of student loans, will a
plethora of endless career paths and
choices be awaiting a generation
whose undergraduate degree is
equivalent to grandpa’s high school
diploma? And is it possible to
undergo this type of change with out
serious consideration and analysis.
Do students even think before
borrowing, majoring, or loafing?
On another scale, we must take
the time to look at the type of work
most Americans are capable of
doing. In the past, the majority of
Americans were farmers, factory
workers, and/or any other type of
“hands-on” production laborers. In
the same seminar, a contemporary
of mine alleged to the growing loss
of jobs for the type of American apt
to performing manual labor —the
former farmers, factory laborers, etc
He alluded to the idea of certain
aptitudes of work for certain
individuals. With the eastern
movement of the laborious processes
of capitalism benefiting America —
some of America, will these “apt
individuals” be left out in the cold or
will they —have they —adjust(ed) to
the growing changes in America? Is
the floor at all times.
I was somewhat delusional
Saturday night. At the time, 1
hated the feeling, but hearing other
dancer’s stories of seeing Aladdin
fly across Rec. Hall on his magic
carpet, makes me wish 1 had seen
something like that. I quickly
snapped out of my delusional state
when the Pep Rally began. Most
Penn State athletic teams came
and had a dance contest between
the teams. After the winner was
announced the teams just roamed
around the floor with the dancers.
It was awesome to see the football
team giving piggyback rides to
tired dancers.
All the dancers went through
different mood changes. Almost all
dancers went somewhat delusional.
I would sometimes just not want
to be bothered and just wanted to
be alone. At those times I would
just walk around the floor. 1 saw
one dancer beg her moraler (the
person who’s job it is to cheer
us up) to take her off the floor.
eveiyone apt to the information age?
And like those we taxpayers support
in Section 8 housing, will these
individuals fall into social welfare’s
lap of luxury?
Industrious Americans can only
hope that the individuals able to
fix a machine in a factory are the
same as those fixing hard drives.
While these questions, raised by my
classmates and 1, are endless and
thought provoking, we must see that
with the coming of constant change,
must also be an effort to fathom the
ramifications of such changes.
This brings me to the key question,
do we as Americans analyze our
issues with a fine tooth comb or do
we simply allow society to change
and problems to arise, paying little
heed to their origination and or their
prospective consequences? Many
issues that effect our daily lives as
Americans have been accepted with
very little thought or accession.
Do college students really consider
the ramifications of student loans; do
parents consider the reasoning behind
their marital choices —their divorces;
do employers consider the lifestyles
of their employees and the effects
these lifestyles have on production;
and is there a lucrative job for the
factory worker in today’s society? Is
there really a lack of cultural analysis,
or am I over analyzing?
Some dancers included myself
were cranky at times while others
seemed they were in another world,
Looking back at THON weekend,
1 don’t know where all the hours
went. The last four hours were
great. The energy in the stands
gave the dancers energy to make
it. Some Harrisburg students made
it to the pit section of the floor (a
section of the floor that was roped
of for fans to be closer to the
dancers). They stayed there for
the remainder of THON. I cannot
thank everyone enough for coming
out and supporting Steve and me
during THON. You always offered
to rub our feet or even just let us
lean on you for moment. You
are all the reason we survived the
weekend
I am still not fully recovered from
THON. I sleep about 12 hours
a night and after a week, I have
just started feel like myself again.
THON is an amazing experience
and 1 would encourage all of you to
get involved with it next year.