May, 1999
Page 3
Earth Day
Calls for
Change
By Jenna Montgomery
Assistant Editor
Earth Day was established on
March 21, 1970, as an annual event
to deepen reverence and care for life
on our planet. In October 1969, John
McConnell of San Francisco pro-
posed a global holiday to celebrate
the natural wonders of our planet as
well as our global unity. McConnell
gained support of community lead-
ers who were similarly interested in
caring for and improving our natu-
ral environment. The Earth Day
movement quickly gained support;
catching on statewide, nationally,
and globally.
The observance of Earth Day
alerts concern and interest for our
planet. We each have a right to use
our global home, but with that comes
equal responsibility to preserve and
improve the Earth and the quality of
hfe.
As the official Earth Day
proclamation states, think of Earth
Day as a way to remember Earth’s
tender seedlings of life and people;
a day for planting trees and flower,
for cleaning streams and wooded
glens.
The amount of waste and
pollution we generate each day is
staggering. Our landfills are reach-
ing capacity and the ozone layer is
being depleted all due to our care-
lessness. Animals are being added
rather than removed from the endan-
gered species list. We face defores-
tation from the extensive logging
done to provide wood and cleared
land for developing houses. Our fos-
sil fuels are being depleted when we
should be exploring new methods of
energy.
This gives everyone good
reason to act on his impulse to re-
claim our planet. Just as the Fourth
of July reminds us to love and honor
our country, Earth Day reminds us
to love and honor the Earth and our
fellow creatures. =
Here are some tips for Earth
care and living gently on our planet:
-Recycle paper, metals, glass
and plastics.
-Repair and give away what
you do not need.
-Use your hands.
-Grow some of your own
food.
-Share cars, newspapers,
whatever you can.
-Set up a compost pile.
-Use your legs.
-Conserve
You are your most important
resource. Your concern about the
Earth, plants, animals and other hu-
mans is very powerful in making
changes. Your caring helps you find
ways around obstacles. Always re-
member that you can make a differ-
ence. Above all, bear in mind that
Earth Day is every day.
- LIONS EYE -
Chillin’ with my fianceé.” — Gouda
Photo by Phillip Yi
“Going to the shore, volleyball.”
Jamie Pranton :
Photo by Phillip Yi
People Poll:
What Are You
Doing This
Summer?
unfortunately working a lot, too.” —
Jennifer Scocca . :
Photo by Phillip Yi
“Sleep and work!!
“I'll be down the shore a lot and
— Olivia Karen
Myers
Photo by Phillip Yi
“Chillin’
with my girl.” — Terry
Photo by Phillip Yi
‘Earth Day: A Look at What Can
Be Done to Save Our Planet
By Aimee Stone
Assistant Editor
As the environment gains the
spotlight in the upcoming Earth Day,
people across the nation will ac-
knowledge the problems surround-
ing human impact on our planet.
Many major issues will be discussed,
contemplated, and then forgotten by
many on the following day. However,
eco groups across the nation and
planet will be hard at work making
sure there will be another Earth Day.
On March 24, RAN
(Rainforest Action Network) demon-
strated against The Home Depot. The
nonviolent protestors arranged them-
selves in store fronts, on store roofs
and in the parking lots. Banners were
dropped from all sides of the build-
ing. The Home Depot is a major
force in the destruction of the world’s
ancient forests. The lumber and
wood products found in the stores are
from areas such as North America
temperate rainforests, Southeast Asia
forests the Amazon rainforests.
In 1992, The Home Depot
stated, “We have aggressively pur-
Ignorance: Cancer of Culture
By Doris Ruiz
Lion's Eye Staff Writer
America. The melting pot.
The place where all cultures can live
together in perfect harmony, or can
they? We as American College stu-
dents feel we know everything
there is to know about other cultures.
But the fact of the fact is that we
don’t. Here at your very own cam-
pus, inconsiderate remarks are being
made towards people of other cul-
tures. No, we don’t mean it; we just
don’t realize it because we aren’t
cultural enough. For instance, I am
of South American background and
have innocently been asked many
times if I speak “Mexican or Puerto
Rican”. Most of the time it doesn’t
bother me, I just laugh it off. But
some remarks get a little carried
away. For example, a Jewish pro-
fessor was once asked where her
“tail” was, and a catholic student was
once asked, “Does the Pope condone
the massacre of Muslims?” Those
comments are enough to anger any-
one.
We all make mistakes, but
we should be intelligent enough not
to make-them again. We are lucky
in one way, though.. Penn State of-
fers a variety of diversity
programs and activities. The Black
Student League, for instance, does a
very good job at expressing their
heritage.- There are also other orga-
nizations that promote their cultural
and diverse programs, and they are
always looking for interested mem-
bers to join.
So the next time you have a
cultural question for anyone, first get
educated and get involved.
Asian American Student
Caucus - atn1 @psu.edu
Black Student League -
cxrl 6@psu.edu
Caribbean Club -
jpx301@psu.edu
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and
Friends Alliance - krgb@psu.edu
Multicultural Club -
cxk13@psu.edu
Nittany Christian Fellowship -
sxs25@psu.edu
sued and are continuing to pursue
alternatives to rainforest and other
endangered wood.” Seven years later
The Home Depot regurgitates that
sentence. :
Another company that has
been under protest for some time is
Mitsubishi. Mitsubishi is one of the
largest corporate destroyers of the
world’s forests. The Mitsubishi Cor-
poration consists of 160 interlinked
companies, (Nippon Kogaku of
Nikon cameras and Mitsubishi Mo- -
tors to name a couple), all except two
contribute to the destruction.
Mitsubishi logs and imports timber
from several countries, many of the
logging companies the company
owns.
Companies like The Home
Depot and Mitsubishi need to be
stopped before it is too late. On Earth
Day, people everywhere should fo-
cus on the life of our planet and the
devastation it is headed towards.
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