April 20, 2000 - LION’S EYE - Page 3 Be J Should Smoking At Delco Be Banned? By Greg Haas Lion’s Eye Staff Associate University Park recently cast its vote to ban smoking on campus grounds. The referendum was unsuccessful but the vote was close. Campus officials had reported that $140,000 annually was spent on cleaning up cigarettes. That, let alone the health hazards, should be reason enough to ban smoking on campus. As I walk through any one of the campus doors, past a cloud of carbon monoxide and rancid smelling black fogs, to reach a clean classroom environ- ment, I wonder if that same vote should be taken here at Delco. And, of course, as I look down and see the hundreds of butts strewn along the paths, in the dirt, and falling out of those tiny ash trays on the outside walls, I wonder if we're spending any money at all on cigarette cleanup. 5 It’s hard to imagine banning smoking outdoors, but with recent health findings by the AMA, it might be negligent not to, at least, think about it. : Smoke has been proven hazardous to health, so an issue of personal rights should be considered. In America, are we given the right to breathe clean, healthy air? Well, if we are, then the government is going to have to tear down thousands of smoke stacks (Please start with that burning flame next to the double-decker Platt bridge on 95 that smells curiously like a burning horse pasture). Realistically, smoking won’t ever be banned completely. Well, at least, not in our lifetime. So, as conscientious, health lovers all over ban smoking indoors, the hardcore, nail-in-the-coffm, cancer-stick loving people are pushed outdoors. And, especially in the college atmosphere, this causes a dirty problem around entrances and exits. So where should the smokers go? At University Park, smokers could walk across the street and butt-up, but here at Delco a smoker would have to get in his or her car and ride around to catch a nicotine fix, which is a highly implaus- ible scenario. Assuming that the campus won’t ban smoking, what are the alternatives? Maybe Delco could build gazebos for the smokers, where they can sit around in their own cloud of smoke. But, that costs a lot of money and will, almost certainly, become an eyesore. Maybe Delco should consider a well ventilated indoor smoking lounge, with safety fire doors and breakaway windows. But with strict State laws, that is an improbability. Whatever the measure, though, something should be done. It is embarrassing to have visitors trot over dirty cigarette butts that haven’t been cleaned-up in over two semesters. We spend a lot of money to go to school _here. One would hope that the University would spend a couple dimes to cleanup the campus. And, of course, I would hope that students could try and place their cigarettes in the ashtray, although, that may be asking too much. EDITORIAL Letter To The Editor To the Editor: On a clear Saturday morning in late March, Penn State Delco students took part in a community project to help the disadvantaged. In partnership with Wawa Inc, the students hit the house remodeling business with Habitat for Humanity Delaware County. (See accompanying photo.) This is an international organization that helps those who can’t help themselves. They bring together volunteers, sponsors, and contractors to remodel and rebuild low-cost homes. In conjunction with Claire Rogers, manager of. the Rose Tree Wawa, the Vol. XXXI, No. 8 Bob Dugan Greg Haas Barbara Daniel THE LION’S EYE Penn State University Delaware County EDITOR Sarah Stover ~ STAFF Sandy Sasse ADVISORS April 20, 2000 Owen Andrew Bergwall 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. (Continued from page 1) at the undergraduate level. “One of the most important lessons I have learned in my years of teaching is that students learn far more by doing rather than merely listening to me,” McMullen said. “Thus, in virtually every course I teach, I use active learning strategies...” Students & Faculty Honored Other campus awards recently given include the Woman of the Year Award won by, Dr. Arden Watson, associate professor of speech communication, and by junior L.J. Luccidonio, and the Distinguished Professor Award given by the Commonwealth College to Dr. Stephen Cimbala, associate professor of political science. Scholarships Awarded (Continued from page 1) James R. Smith Book Award: Julie Hill Smith-Howard American Legion Post 93 Award: Christopher George Graham Spanier Academic Award: Angela Gambardella Women’s Club of Swarthmore: Kathleen Mantell W. W. Smith Charitable Trust Scholars Awards (1999-2000): Alicia Baum, Stephanie Cole, Caroline Fellows, Gina Ferrante, Nicole Gibson, Amy Hurley, Shannon Kelley, David Kirk, Judith Linzey, Diana Malloy, Susan McLaughlin, Jillian McMullen, Jennifer Naseef, Amanda Ponzar, Chandel Reid, Brian Roussey, Amy Shepherd, Lawrence Smythe, Edward Staiger, Michelle Stanton, Alyece Wolff, Andrea Ziemba NCF Helps Habitat For Humanity Penn State Nittany Christian Fellow- ship spearheaded a project to provide donated food and drinks to the Habitat workers. : Our work that day consisted mainly of light remodeling and interior work. The group was excited about the endeavor and wants to do it again. We hope this will be catalyst for other groups on campous to get involved in what can be considered a worth while and rewarding project. All thanks be to God. Jeffrey Veacock President Nittany Christian Fellowship A Year After Columbine, Gun Debate Heats Up By Owen Andrew Bergwall Lion’s Eye Staff Associate Police storm through the doors and windows of Columbine High. They find students and teachers dead, and others either severely wounded or mentally gripped in panic. Violence involving guns in US schools now at an all time high, had struck again. From 1997 to 1999, there were 16 shootings in US schools: three in 1997, ten in 1998 and 3 more in 1999. Scary isn’t it? In almost every instance, one or two students had used their family’s guns to kill classmates and teachers. For in- stance, on December 6, 1999, a 13 year- old student in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma, allegedly arrived at school and opened fire with his father’s 9mm semiautomatic handgun. Five classmates were injured from gunfire and one from the bruises of chaos. How can we get guns out of the hands of children? A complete ban of guns is the answer, some say. First, we get the guns out of homes, and then, children cannot take them to school. In reality though, we cannot take guns from people who want them. They will always be available, legal or not. Does anyone remember a little thing called the EighteenthAmendment? I do; it started Prohibition in 1919. Just four- teen years after its ratification, prohi- bition was repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment. Why? It was a drastic move, and prohibition activists convinced the public that there wasn’t another answer. But the country learned that it wasn’t the best answer to alcohol-related problems. The Second Amendment guarantees the right to bear arms. A repeal of that right would cause a back- lash like the one with prohibition, and if we simply ban arms, we will have acted unconstitutionally. Others suggest controlling the use of legally-owned guns by installing locks on the triggers, which can only be opened by a code, key or thumbprint. How much would this cost? Who makes them? Except for Philadelphia Mayor John Street’s new plan to give away 6000 free gun locks to approved citizens, we currently lack any system that will work. “I think a lot of responsibility lies on the parents. They should realize the power of having a gun and teach their children responsibility,” said Karl Grieb, coordinator of Alumni and Public Rela- tions. Parenting is most important because children have to be instilled with a sense of right and wrong. If they can’t understand what is right and decide on it, they will have trouble in the real world. Is there any gun related violence at PSU Delco? And do students feel in any danger? Apparently no, according to the 10 students who were asked. Students don’t see any violent feelings expressed here, nor have they been scared of a certain group or one student. Everyone seems to be in the same mode, working and going to school for a degree. Other students may not feel so secure, especially at schools where the campus is located within a city. There, students must deal with the public. Students need to realize that there is potentially a real danger from guns. From grade school on up guns exist, and sometimes in the hands of angry, misguided people. We must work to teach everyone about the power of guns and how to use them safely and legally. ‘We must ‘teach’ children right from wrong.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers