‘An editorial
Enjoy your season
without the stress
It's the most wonderful time of the year," or so
we're told. Maybe a more appropriate theme would
be, "It's the most psychotic time of the year."
Countless piles of holiday music albums, lights,
decorations, department-store sales, advertise-
ments, etc., these have all become annual events,
dare we say, traditions that seem to sneak in soon-
er and sooner every year. And whether we realize
it or not, the majority of things associated with
the holidays encourage us to do one thing, spend
money.
Any local business would be happy to report
the dramatic increase in sales during the holiday
season. According to Anne D'Innocenzio of The
Associated Press, sales for the two days following
Thanksgiving were up 5.4 percent from last year,
totaling $12.4 billion. That's a lot of shopping,
folks.
Buying gifts for loved ones is something that's
not suggested but rather expected in today's mate-
rial world. Yet adhering to that "rule" doesn't seem
to be the problem. In fact, people feel good about
using what they earn to consider others during
the holidays, as they should. It is the giving,
unselfish acts that make the season so cherished.
But this attitude known as the "holiday spirit,"
is, alas, dying. Time constraints on nationwide
sales such as "Black Friday" (the day after
Thanksgiving) drive your average shopper into a
hip-checking, elbow-throwing, money-saving carni-
vore. Black Friday has evolved from what used to
be a great way to save a buck to what is now a
feared day of inevitable chaos. What used to be a
social or fun event has turned to legitimate issues
such as road rage, increased stress, and domestic
violence. In recent years, including this one, inno-
cent shoppers have been trampled when store
employees opened their doors.
The sad part is, John Q. Businessman couldn’t
care less about the stressful, unnecessarily tragic
holidays as long as the cash flow hits goal. Instead
of solutions to the lucid downward spiral, the mar-
keting masterminds come up with mores ways to
attract shopping with fewer ways to do it afford-
ably.
With the modern, money-driven holiday season
comes only one solution to the problems it creates.
Deal with what's within control, and try to forget
about what's not. You can't control the fact that
radio stations play 24-hour holiday music begin-
ning the day after Halloween. You can't control the
outrageous prices of the must-have Christmas
tree. You can't control the cars that stop in the
middle of the road to stare at the thousands of dol-
lars worth of decorations plastered on your neigh-
bor's house. The singular toy coveted by every
child in the world, including yours, traffic jams,
mall madness ... all out of reach.
What you can do is try your best. Relieve your
stress by whatever means possible, shop online or
with a friend to make the experience fun. Get your
picture with Santa. Eat a candy cane. Remember
what you're celebrating this year and what you're
thankful for, because nothing is more important
than that.
The Lion’s Eye
Opinion
A candy dish with no
candy.
| got a rocking chair from
my grandmother once.
trees.
Danielle Milnes
Sophomore
Chris Kast
Freshman
My grandmother gave me
this headband with anten-
nas sticking up. They
were sparkly Christmas
Lauren Bolduc
December 15, 2003
| got a gigantic yellow
sweater-dress when | was
12. It had matching boots
to go with it.
| got one of those abnor-
mally over-sized pencils
from my brother.
Taryn Chance
Freshman
Jack Tsai
Junior Junior
The ‘talent’ of Paris Hilton ended
when she received her inheritance
ith the money that she inherited from her
\W great-grandfather, Paris Hilton is trying
everything to stay in the spotlight. She isn't
finding it hard, considering the sex tape that ended
up on the Internet, or her new reality TV show, “A
Simple Life.”
This show is how Hilton and her best friend,
Nicole Ritchie, daughter of pop icon Lionel Ritchie,
leave their homes in Los Angeles to live and work on
a farm in Altos, Ark.
Work? Do rich girls really know the meaning of
the word? Apparently not. The girls are only running
around in their expensive outfits trying to fit in. And
the chores that they are required to do don't require
much effort, but to Hilton and Ritchie, well, let’s just
say they take the expression of being blonde to a
whole new level.
Fox chose to have Hilton be the main
character only because, apparently, she's
everywhere, like all of Hollywood's biggest
events. Truth is, until her little video sex
scandal popped up, I had no idea who she
was.
She isn't a very good actress, and should-
n't be paid attention to. By her stuck-up,
snobby personality you would think she's a
queen. If she was even half-decent, ]
Hollywood would have spotted her long ago,
pended license, and allegedly had drugs in her posses-
sion when she was pulled over. And I don't need to
remind you of Hilton's amateur adventure video.
These girls manipulated the entertainment indus-
try and invited themselves into the regular American
home, all because they have money. Regardless of
their inability to sing, act or be athletic, they are
inviting themselves into American lives whether they
are interested in them or not. This they can do
because of all the cash they accumulated ... oops, I
mean inherited.
Since when did they have such control over the
media? And why are they competing for ratings with
people who work really hard for the money? Hilton
and Richie may be rich, but that doesn't mean they
get the opportunity to flout it like a peacock’s tail-
feathers.
The only thing these girls are doing is
providing comic relief through their attempt
to fit in and act like the normal American. I
will admit they are funny, because I have
never seen anyone act so stupid. The sad
thing is, they aren't acting, what you see is
what they are.
If you've seen any of the episodes, you
BW already know that the girls aren't learning
Ala anything about labor. They take naps, sun-
CAEP bathe and lounge around while everyone else
and everyone would have already known who works. And they sounded surprised when
this rich ditz is.
You're not necessarily famous because you're
wealthy. People work hard for their money, and, well,
Hilton and Ritchie are only guilty of inheriting
money. So, girls, that doesn't make you special; it only
makes you spoiled.
The show was produced only because the girls are
rich, and they think that everyone is interested in the
lives of the rich and famous. The reality is, both girls
came into the show with extra baggage, and that is
what Americans are interested in. People like hear-
ing the gossip of how rich people screw up. For exam-
ple, Ritchie was caught trying to drive with a sus-
their boss fired them. I guess they forgot they actually
had to do something other than get naked in front of
this TV crew.
What, this isn't the luxurious vacation they were
expecting? Did someone forget to remind them that
work isn't ringing a bell for the butler? Oh, I forgot to
mention, they could break a nail.
Hilton appears clueless that people are laughing at
her. She is acting like she made a huge accomplish-
ment by having a show all about herself, but truth is,
she isn't worth the 22 minutes of fame. Soon it will
“all disappear, and no one will think twice about this
apparent star.
Editor-in-chief:
PENNSTATE
Anteia Consorto
Delaware : :
: Associate Editor:
County Sarah Gallatig
Copy Editor:
THE LION’S EYE Meredith Becker
Jendrasiak, Renee Blisard.
Huber, Lauren Jendrasiak, Sean Orner, Steve Spence.
Contact the Lion’s Eye: At AAC136@psu.edu.
Editorial Board: Chrissy Greenan, John Hickey, Lauren
Contributing Staff: Renee Blisard, Jess Goldey, Chrissy
Greenan, Matt Haldeman, John Hickey, Kim Hickey, Jeff
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