Page 4 - LIONS EYE - = - May, 1999 Thanks for reading ... The staff of the Lion’s Eye wishes all of our readers a great summer; and we look forward to seeing you next year. Pictured from left are Sarah Stover, Aimee Stone, Rob Coyle, Jenna Montgomery, Ed Blackburn, Regis Fields and Doris Ruiz. Cyber Surfin’ and Lovin’ By Ed Blackburn Assistant Editor Last month in the Lion's Eye, I wrote about Internet addiction. Now let me address a different as- pect of cyberspace: love. It’s easy to dispel the idea of falling head over heels for someone you’ve never met face to face. Sure, " I’ve heard the common criticisms: Hey Ed, I bet that Canadian girl you talk to over the computer is really a 500 pound guy in a Georgian prison; or maybe she’s really some serial rap- ist in West Virginia. Hah. While sometimes this is true (and you do hear about these kinds of stories, which only bolster the paranoia), and many people do lie about one thing or another while de- scribing themselves (like they don't in real life!), my experiences are proof that sometimes love is possible on the Net. I have met a girl from Canada online, a very attractive, very normal one; and during her summer vaca- tion in the USA we met, and we had a great time. I’ve talked on the phone for hours to a girl in Germany, and have done some insane things just to be able to talk to a girl in Switzer- land. I could go on and on about my personal experiences. Before you call me a cyber- ‘nerd with no life (better not, or I'll hack into your records and delete your very existence), let me tell you that I’m not alone. Now I’m not the kind of guy who goes online, enters chat rooms and immediately posts the question: “Any hot chicks want some cyber?” Personally I avoid these people; you know they’re the ones with the real, uh, issues. I also tend to avoid those people who have problems typing in practical sentences, like, “how. r u. where u live. age/sex/location.” I know this isn’t saying too much - about a person, the way they type; but unless I know ‘em, they strike me as a bit shady. Where I’ve found actual “re lationships” are from places you share common online experiences, like playing MUDs, which are internet text role-playing games. You get to know the person without ex- pecting a romantic relationship (you become friends, or foes, first.) Again, you won’t find me in chat rooms called “Hot 21 female wants u”, (inhabited by 15 females who somehow always turn out to be 21 year old blonde cheerleaders with a fetish) unless I’m in there talking some smack and causing trouble. Maybe you can find true love in places like that; but if you’re an in- sane freak and you go online, that’s where you go. Let me add my little insight on the physics of meeting people online. It gives you a chance to get to know someone without their physical appearance giving you false preconceptions — you’re forced to - know their mind before you know their appearance — and that can be a - good thing. Editorial on Kosovo : (Continued from page 2) their loss? The respect and adortation of a government led by a sex-crazed President and his band of crooked congressman (minus a few diamonds in the rough?) Do not take what I am saying as a slap in the face to our military, and do not perceive that I am under- mining the plight that the ethnic Al- banians are facing. I believe inter- vention was a must. Genocide can- not be tolerated. The heavy use of the NATO air force is, and will con- tinue to wear on Milosevic and his loyal followers until the Albanians are relocated or Milosevic is forced to surrender. But to even consider a land assult... Although I am unquialified to say anything but my own personal beliefs on the matter, here is where I make my verbal stand: Bring back those three soldiers currently held captive, Mr. President. We have the covert capabilities, use them. Bring them back with not one more mark on their already-scarred faces. And then get the soldiers the f*ck out of - Kosovo. The End. Relationships ae Proceed with Caution By David Robbins Lion's Eye Staff Writer Has anyone ever told you not - to go party or not to hang out with someone? Many boyfriends/girl- friends feel that it is their right to control you because they are your “significant other.” In reality, they should be supportive and trust enough to let you make your own decisions. If you can’t be trusted to ~ go out without him or her, then the relationship won’t work anyway. Too many people reform their ideas and beliefs for people who aren’t right for them and it makes me sick. Personally, I have now had too many friends whose boyfriends tell them what to do and control them. The question arises, why do you put up with this? Their answers are usually, “because I love him”; but how can you love someone who doesn’t trust you and doesn’t treat you like a whole human being? Many of these friends are also girls who define their self-worth by the guys they are with. Most can’t or haven’t gone a single month with- out having a boyfriend. If someone can’t be by themself for an entire month, then how can they know themselves well enough to make an educated decision on who they should be with. Personally, I’m look- ing for a girl who has a sense of iden- tity and her own views, regardless of whether they coincide with mine. After seeing relationships of control and distrust, I now under- stand why women get abused. If people are this naive to think that they are truly in love with others who don’t really respect them, then I can understand how they also can stay around even through abusive situa- tions. love into a distorted feeling of the real thing. I have a friend at Clemson, and although she isn’t beaten, she stays in an emotionally abusive rela- tionship. She started dating her boy- friend during the first week of last year, her first semester in college. This guy controls her everyday life and cuts her off from her family, whom she was very close with be- They project their need for fore. She even dumped him at one point, but they are now back together. I have to see her voluntarily place herself back in this relationship, but she has been with him for so long that she doesn’t know how to be alone. Having a boyfriend or girlfriend is great, but people need to know who they are and what they believe in first. Another friend of mine went out with a controlling guy for four years. After he finally ended the re- lationship, she didn’t know what to do. She tried moving from guy to guy for a couple weeks before find- ing another friend of mine. She has now been‘in a relationship with him for four months. “Although they are not a bad match, I'think she clings to him for the sole purpose of having a man. [ would have liked to see her become a little more stable before getting into another relationship. What is the point of all this? People need to wake up. Society puts too much pressure, especially on women, to have someone to call “boyfriend or girlfriend.” People at our age, in college, rarely know what it truly means to be in love (even though most think they do) and need to spend sometime growing and ex- periencing life before they think they’re in love. This doesn’t mean people shouldn’t have boyfriends or girlfriends. On the contrary, being a “player” gets old quickly. People should be smart about who they pick and not go out searching for “the one.” If he or she comes, then so be it. But until then, just have some fun, experiment, and live life. And if you’re in a controlling or abusive re- lationship, get out and find someone who will respect you. Summer of Fun (Continued from page 1) re-hydrate yourself and put the forty ounce down. And on the serious tip, women are all Queens, last summer at the Greek we all got a little out of hand...a party can’t get so out of hand that you forget that that girl you’re hassling is somebody’s mom, sister, daughter, or whatever, just don’t go there this summer fella’s. Peace to all, bankhead bounce this summer for me! THE LION’S EYE Vol. XXX, No. 10 May, 1999 The Pennsylvania State University Commonwealth College Delaware County Campus EDITOR-IN-CHIEF % : Rob Coyle Aimee Stone rhcl14@psu.edu carmilla3@hotmail.com ASSISTANT EDITORS Regis Fields Jenna Montgomery : ST. RS - Ed Blackburn Sarah Stover Doris Ruiz STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER Phillip Yi ADVISORS Lauren Yanks Ron Hill John Terrell The LION’s EYE is published monthly during the academic year by the students of the Delaware County Campus. Submissions are welcome from all students, faculty and staff. Material must be typed, double spaced, and submitted in the LION’S EYE mailbox located in the Lion’s Den.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers