Page 6 The Lions Eye Opinion September 26, 2004 Letter to the editors Less For Your Money Money is not going as far as it used to. I am sure we all felt this at the gas pumps. I can remember a time when I bought gas for $1.38, when I first started driving, and watched it rise to $3.25, right after Katrina hit. There was a time when $10 filled my tank instead of the present day amount of $30. My friends and I used to be able to go for joy rides and to the mall without having to give gas donations. Gas has not been the only item that has gone up in price. At the grocery store I have noticed the price of cereal go from $2.50 a box up to over $4 and a gallon of milk is nearly equal to that. This translates that my breakfast now costs $8 for four days. Have I men- tioned that there seems to be less cereal in these boxes? Bread, another essential item, used to be purchased for less that $1 but now, for name brand quality, a loaf of bread equals a twenty ounce bottle of soda. Other essential items such as soap and clothes have gone up. Notebooks for school now equal one hour's work. And that is if you're making over minimum wage. . As prices of items graciously rise, income, at least my income, has stayed at a steady growth of zero. That means I am making the same as I did nearly a year ago and prices of my essentials have risen, which has cut off my entertainment needs. I no longer make the road trips back home because I cannot afford to buy outside food and gas for long periods of time. I find myself staying at home sitting around with friends just asking each other what we should do. So what should we do? Should we all gather in a big mob and riot these prices? Should we boycott stores? No, these answers would not be solutions. But infla- tion is bringing down the dollar and eco- nomically speaking the way to fight is to spend more. But what is it about higher prices that make me angry? It is not the fact that my money is going away at a faster rate for less substance. The thing that makes me the angri- est is that the quality of the project remains the same. I am a firm believer, that on most occasions, the higher priced item is usually of better quality. Gas 1s exactly the same quality as it was in 2001 and technology is only making oil less pricey to find. And until someone figures out a way to calculate how much oil is available on the Earth, gas prices should not be able to be so volatile according to supply. Gas prices especially should not be raised for fears of a supply shortage or nat- ural disaster. It is based on possibilities. These reasons, are in actuality lame excuses, that they feed to the public, is the ultimate goal of cheating the consumer. Amar Gants ~ every night I go to bed restless. Now I | would have the | would want to be | would have mag- netic powers to ability to read peo- Godzilla. attract all students to ple’s minds. get involved on cam- pus. Crystal Bowhall Karen Craig Andrew Walter Business English HDFS Administration Eling ond Shooting Never to sleep, sol To sleep a lot can never miss anything. lightning bolts Deb Erie Director of Student and Enrollment Services Chris Coiaa Assistant Director, Chuck Sander English and Leadership Development Student Activities’ Get ANGEL Off My Shoulders The first thing I do when I sit down in front my computer is log on to ANGEL, not my email or Myspace. ANGEL is my life, it's all I do. Not only do I have two web courses this semes- ter, but my IST course threw a book and paper syllabus out the window. So now I just show up for class to hear the teacher recap the online course readings I do on my own time. I thought having a few web courses would | give me more time and enable me to work on my time management skills. Well sort of. Now I just sit in front of a computer screen all day. Is this really learning? I'd like to know what happened to phys- ical activity. I'm a hyper girl and use up my energy quickly, but it seems like may be a cynic, but it doesn't seem very healthy to me. I can only imagine study- ing for midterms and finals. I'll be eat- ing all my meals aside the keyboard. Are there water proof laptops available to accompany me during bath time? I realize that moving in the direction of more web based learning is the way of the future. There is no escaping it and web based learning is a rapid revolution. Don't mind me, I am a tradi- tionalist. I still prefer to write out my thoughts with a pen and paper, than a word processor. I could be old fashioned considering I started my college career four years ago when homework didn't have to be handed in through email. ENNSTATE Delaware @ County The Lion's Epe Lions Eve Editorial Board 05’-06 Mans ing Editor: Gerry Dungan oto Editor: Matt Kelly ng Editor: Dan Delaney Copy Editor: Andrew Walter Business Manager: Shana Goldson Sports Editor: Katie News ron Achilles Back then I went to class and received a hand- out on the assignment, now teachers expect me to find handouts in that labyrinth called ANGEL. Honestly, I do enjoy listening to the instructor explain the ins and outs, because then I know what the expectations are. Still, somehow I feel | like Im missing something. Maybe I'm slow or stubborn, but I can't seem to become comfortable. reading words off a computer screen. My horo- scopes are really all I can take. Somehow though it's easy to take part in instant messenger and read my friends' blogs , but reading about prior restraint and law cases is almost as bad as yanking my teeth out. I'm not even going to mention how awful it is to read class notes on Qualitative and Quantitative methods to I like people, I really do. I like talking to them. I'm drawn to observe them. I fear with web classes and ANGEL that interpersonal communica- tion is on its way to extinction. Already in our society adults are crammed into cubicles. I don't want to be trapped in a dark box for the rest of my life. I've had enough time in my base- ment, feeling my way across the web. You know what; ‘it's almost as if my last four years of col- lege taught me nothing. I did learn that 50 per- cent of what we say comes from non-verbal com- munication. If only I could gain some points for participa- tion. Corrections: The Lions Eye wishes to apol- ogize for the mispelling of Sarah Whildin’s name. Contributing Staff: David Hardison, Amar Ganti, Sean Collins, Justin Couch Michelle Rouche, John Miller, Sharon Achilles, M. Bruder, and Frank Friday STAFF ADVISOR: Professor Lynn Keyser Contact the Lion’s Eye: e-mail: gmd138@psu.edu, telephone: 610-892-1258, office: 202 Commons { 3 { { i
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers