Editorial opinion
Penn state's grades are in, and
it looks like the University passed
most of its tests.
But some enlightening points
were brought out in an ac
creditation evaluation of the
University by a team of, professors
and administrators from the Com
mission of Higher Education of the
Middle Atlantic States.
According to the the preliminary
report which began in April, the
branch campuses, from which
thousands of current students
have transferred, lack long-range
plans for new, innovative courses
to suit the particular needs of
students.
. The Commonwealth Campus
faculty look toward their coun
terparts here for direction when
lue Bland vs. Stanford band—viva la difference
It happens every time Stanford's Cardinals come to roost for
a few days In idyllic Happy Valley. Along with the football team
comes a mishmosh of apparently demented individuals' who
call themselves the Leland Stanford Junior University March
ing Band. Invariably, they present delightful, appealing,
irreverant, flipped-out pregame and halftime shows that are
something of a mixture of theatre of the absurd, the Not-
Ready-For-Prime-Time-Players and John Philip Sousa's opium
dreams.
Although the alumni-parent-sportsfan-over 30 segment of
the game's spectators appear to have mixed reactions to the
band, reactions ranging from wild approval through drowsing
indifference to tooth 7 gnashing, white-knuckled frenzy at the
anti-traditional outrage of it all, the great majority of students
in the crowd really enjoy the performances.
And they should. The band has a tremendous flair for
showmanship and an equally tremendous grasp of what they
can pull off and what they can't. Their routines are consistently
funny, if sometimes obscure (to say the least) arid they have
the keen touch to be able to "put one over on the old folks," or
at least baffle and befuddle the older' segment of the audience
to the point that the band can get away with just about
anything they want.
Last Saturday's show featUred 'a number of puns and double
entendres Including several items that may mean one thing to
the over 30's (or 40's, or 50's, or wherever that line is drawn
nowadays) and may have a completely different connotation to
college students.
Spelling out "REDS" on the field may conjure up images of
After the
the band
Like a California breeze they blew into
the party, 15 or so members of the
Stanford band.
A strange mixture there. The younger
members of the local press, alumni,
freaks, jock-types, groupies and a burnt
out band.
Stanford had lost to Penn State earlier
in the day but the band really didn't give
a damn. They were out for a good time.
Most still, had remnants of -their
uniforms on red blazer, black pants,
white shoes, shirt and tie.
One wore a t-shirt with the picture or a
pot plant on it, Around the aromatic
weed were emblazened the words "drugs
sex violence." Another wore a Henn
State t-shirt. "I'm a member of the Blue
Band."
"Liar," came a voice out of the crowd,
"she's an infiltrator."
Steve Beck, a trombone player, said
he was the group's leader. He was leader
simply because he was the only one who
could find the house where the party
was, somewhere on the fringes of State
College. -
Steve explained what the band did that
day:
"We all wore black armbands (he still
wearing his) in mourning for Chairman
Mao."
WMT WEEKENIDI s A-7
WISHING MY' guDDY AL.
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tiating new courses, but the five or 10 years from now. More capacity to enrich an entire 9 . 0m- 11
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'aluating team says that data must be analyzed to make ac- munity. jk ) •
, metimes the University Park curate five- and 10-year projec- The quality of program selection
14
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;ulty do no more than request tions of commonwealth campus cannot fall short at the branch A - ,*- 4 4
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at the branches follow the same needs. campuses. Every term more of .
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lurse procedure that is 'found Each branch campus is a these students join us as fellow ' : % s
ire. This stunts the creativity of satellite of the overall University in classmates at University Park. o ly li Ar .- • •
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a branch campus faculty, who its own community. Not only do Whatever they encounter during
D highly qualified and want to they need more programs for the their first two years of school will . , 2 , :
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ip shape and improve the quality students, but for the rest of their ' affect their performance here, as ,•-
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the branch campus system. communities. More campuses are well as the academic standards,- ' - • . 0
Because branch campuses trying to Create programs for high and class pace at this campus. , 4.i i V/ \'\
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aerate on a smaller scale than we school students who may jointly Yet we're not concerned about ' ito '. -. •, —•
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they may have more flexibility be enrolled in a branch campus. the future of the branch campuses • 41 b-L- - i& e! I .' - ,
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more personal attention in the Continuing Education staffs work merely because university, Park --cr
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issroom. They can put this to off-campus with community may indirectly be affected, but ,
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Jir advantage. groups and county agents to . because Penn State students all ---*---------- ..-„, ~,_ i , , .„,:...‘ -
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The team also felt that not discover what educational serv- over the state have the same ..._...._—.-,...........—•=---
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)ugh attention has been given ices are needed for older adults rights to a quality education that --"-------..-- ..--:- -- ..- 3- '' . -,," `'•
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changing courses or programs and the elderly, too. Each branch will teach them, train them, and- ..- .
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suit the changing student body could be using its facilities to help them branch out. ' ,^ 41 • ‘. ...A,
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At halftime the band spelled out
"REDS" as a salute to Red China. They
then formed the number "69."
"That's for six-point-nine on the
Richter scale, yin and yang and the
obvious."
In a protest against the dorm liquor
laws the band became a martini glass,
the members in the swizel stick wearing
letters on their backs which read "NO
BOOZE." For the alumni they played
"My Old School" and in the pregame
show they spelled "COKE" in honor of
the Penn State students.
,t
Phil
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Storey
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Nothing illicit circulating before the
band arrived at the party, just four kegs
of beer going down fast.
Around the side of the house a large
Baggie (quarter-pound size) of marijuana
appeared. Someone said it was Penn
sylvania homegrown. Not top quality but
it didn't matter. Whoever had it was
being generous with it. A pipe, not one
of those small pot pipes but 'a regular
tobacco pipe, kept getting filled. Dozens
of times.
r .„T. wfts APING
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sotlie STUFF
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AND BEtiow i te
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AN OUNCE OF,
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McCarthyism and the Cuban Missile Crisis for the West side of
Beaver Stadium, while for the East side the effect may be to
summon up visions of little plastic bottles of Seconal.
In the band's comment on PSU's ongoing feud over
possession and consumption of alcoholic beverages in dor
mitories, they spelled out the alternative to beer blasts:
"COKE." For a •youth culture that Is - Constantly bombarded by
references to the wide world of drugs and drug Jargon, the
Stanford band presents not one alternative but two In their
block letter formation.
The Chinese theme of the halftime show allowed the band to
form a giant "69" ostensibly in a reference to the Taoist '
symbols of Yin and Yang. But we know better, eh, Leland?
And It's good. It's funny. It's refreshing. The Band members
'themselves seem to run the gamut of piychoses. Scattered
among the traditional tubas, trumpets, trombones and tym
paniums are people "playing" instruments of rather
questionable musical authenticity. One individual plays a
ball was over
GREAT,
THINKING
45 Too GooD To
BE. TRUE. L MUST
George
_ Osgood
A few of the band members wanted to
play a drinking game called zoom
figliano." No one got motivated enough
to start the game. Later one of them got
up to go look for Mr. Schwartz.
The individually insane band members
talked about Pennsylyania, California
and all else absurd that Iles in-between.
Stanford has units instead of credits.
"And yes, yes, yes, we really do go
surfing after every class. God, California
Is beautiful. You'd love it."
"The drinking policy here is
ridiculous," Steve intoned. "We can
drink anywhere we•want to at Stanford.
"Look how ridiculous it is. You
students can't drink in your own dorm
rooms and we were at the HUB (where
the band stayed) every night drinking
and smoking openly. The campus police
didn't bother us."
As time slid on past midnight and Into
the morning, the kegs ran dry. The band
all gravitated slowly to the HUB's study
lounge. Many people were sacked out
wherever they could make. themselves
comfortable but some were still up,
drinking and smoking openly.
"This is the essence of the Stanford
band," Steve said, surveying the blurry
eyed survivors. "This is what we're all
about."
He turned away. "Does anyone still
have the motor coordination left
necessary to roll a joint?"
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construction worker's hardhat. Another plays what from the
stands appears to be a giant, misshapen, hockey stick but is
actually the tiller and rudder from a small sailboat. A couple of
people play nothing at all and seem' to be content to hop
around. in random patterns smoking cigars and tripping other
Band members. Its slapstick, but with a touch of genius. Both
Woody Allen and the Three Stooges would be proud. And the
people are talented musicians as well as performers. Even the
guy playing tiller=rudder makes a contribution to the overall
sound. _
Just as surely as the Stanford Band is going to perform an
insane routine, the Blue Band is going to come out and go
through their drill team formations and play traditional
football-Saturday tunes. And they are going to get bad
mouthed for it. There was more disdain in the stands at
halftime over the Blue Band's performance than there was over
Joe's sputtering offense or the no-ice condition of the cokes
cum-mixers.
The Stanford Band is a hard act to follow, especially when
the audience knows. that the next performers are not going to
give any surprises. A number of people feel that the PSU
musicians should change their name to the Blue Bland. But
that Isn't really fair, either to the musicians or to the traditional
halftime performance. What the Blue Band does, it does ex
ceedingly well. The musicians are more than competent, and
the formations are usually militarily perfect, if occasionally
unimaginative. The program as a whole is always well thought
out, well rehearsed and neatly performed.
The consensus In the East stands is that the Blue Band falls
Letters to the Editor.,
, • .1. ,
War stories
TO THE EDITOR: "Thirty thousand American soldiers died in
Vietnam for absolutely no reason." This was a remark once
made by a friend of mine, and I would like to analyze its
validity
First of all can any person make such a judgment about the
lives of thirty thousand people? War certainly is a horrible and
dreadful thing. The reasons for which it is fought are often
difficult to discern in the face of the tragedy they cause, but
does that mean that those who fight and die in war, do so for
no reason?
I know the parents of one such soldier who died in Vietnam.
Should they believe that their son died for no reason? No, and
they don't. They believe that the Americans who died in
Vietnam did so for a cause. The cause was to stop domination
of the world by communism. It is a cause which many people
still consider valid today. Even now, one third of the world's
population is ruled by communists
Whether or not fighting against communism in Vietnam was
justified is subject to great controversy. In any case we lost the
cause in Vietnam because the American people lacked the
resolve to continue the war. The American people and our
political leaders finally came to the realization that fighting a
perpetual defensive war was a mistake. We finally realized that
as long as we were not willing to make the initial commitment
to crush the North Vietnamese at the onset of the warf-we
could never win. Perhaps this will be a lesson to America not
to become involved in wars in which we are not prepared to
demonstrate the aggression and utilize the'force necessary to
win.
However, just because we lost in Vietnam doesn't mean that
the men who died there died for no reason. There may yet
come a time when Americans will die fighting against com
munism in a place not on the other side of the world.
In conclusion I plead'that if you are tempted to proclaim that
thirty thousand American soldiers died in .Vietnam for no
reason, please don't for their - sake and for the sake of those
who knew them and loved them. Not even God takes a single
life for no reason. -
Heart's content
TO THE EDITOR: As concerned students of The Pennsylvania
State University, we realize that state law prohibits drinking of
alcoholic beverages by those under 21 years of age. University
policy merely reflects that law as it deems necessary.
University policy also prohibits the drinking of .alcoholic
beverages in public areas, regardless of age. That policy is
being strictly enforced on all University grounds, except on
Saturdays, in those areas surrounding Beaver Stadium. Since
we are aware of the realities of the alcohol policy and its en
forcement, we suggest that all Penn State students face that
same reality. Therefore, rather than taking the risk 'of referral
by partying in the dorms, transfer your festivities to the Beaver
Stadium parking lots on Saturdays and party to your hearts'
content.
Limp wrists
TO THE EDITOR: I had the opportunity to spend my summer
in State College. A few days after Residential Life instituted Its
punitive alcohol policy, I expressed my opinion to a few people
that Lee Uperaft would continue these disagreeable policies
into the Fall Term. This is, or was, a surprising prediction
because such a policy would severely circumscribe the role of
Uperaft's RAs by robbing them of their confidence with the
students in their respective houses. I was correct and the
policy is in force this Fall Term.
Corbett S. Klein
10th;microblology
William A. Garlow
4th civil engineering
Bruce J. Markovitz
7th biology
i :.,1980 ON Y0L312 DiA.L.... *
dismally in its attempts to entertain and that a band like
Stanford's is infinitely more worthwhile. Now that the drum
major doesn't do flips, the high point of the performance Is
when he hurls his baton high into the air. The suspense is not
whether he'll catch it, but whether it will come down pointy`
first and run him through. Judging from the reactions in the
East stands, the fact that this hasn't yet occurred is a major
disappointment.
The Blue Band as it now exists, In a rather traditional mold,
Is exactly as it should be-College football Saturday afternoons
are innately traditional animals.
They are occasions that call alumni back to the campus and
that become memories for today's students. For the Blue Band '
to try any of the Stanford Band% gambits would be disastrous:
they are too disciplined to achieve the studied carelessness of
those performers. And I think'that after the tenth game, antics
of that type would begin to wear thin.
It's an all or nothing situation. The Blue Band could_ . not (and
should not) try to be like the Stanford band. It wouldn't work; if
they tried to go halfway they would neither maintain the ?'
tightness and precision of their current format nor approach
the zaniness and spontaneity of the other extreme.
The Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band is
funny, but I think It's possible that much of its humor derives
from Its aberrance, its fluting of the traditional college band
image, and the Blue Band does have a lot going for it, in the
long run. At the very least, it offends no one and provides
entertainment for many. And at least this week none of its tuba'
players fell down.
I have come to realize that Penn State University officials
feel they can do as they please with student interests In
complete safety. This is true because they understand that the
students of thid University are in general too-limp wristed tor,;
stand up and fight for their own collective' interests. The
student body is awed by authority and like robots is
programmed to obey the University's every whim.
It should be apparent that writing letters to Harrisburg is
worthless because student leaders have tried that approach for
several years and have accomplished little. We are a very
underwhelming political interest group because we don't have
the kind of political resources to persuade anybody in state
government office. The only thing we have is the numbers to
hold mass action protests, but the only people who advocate
that course of action are political midgets the Young
Socialist Alliance.
The actions proposed by Messers Zanes and Brust in the
Sept. 9 Collegian have proven, at best, Ineffective in the past. I
don't see how they can be expected to work now. As a practical
person, I don't see any justification in using policies that have
failed practically everytime in the past five years. I endorse the
actions proposed by W.T. Williams and feel that it is time we
showed certain University bureaucrats that we as a student
body cannot and will not allow our rights and privileges to
stripped from us without a struggle.
Sex education
TO THE EDITOR: Once more a member of the law enforcement
team has overstepped his bounds by opening his mouth and
dictating his prejudice. Mr. Stormer, please educate yourself.
On the controversy of homosexuality, your recent
statements (Collegian, September 10) are frankly sexist.
Firstly: You obviously exclude 51 per cent of the world's
population from your view, namely women. You couldn't have
made a larder oversight. Yes, Mr. Stormer, homosexuality is
not exclusive to men. ,
Secondly: (in light of the above) you narrowmindedly see
gay men as effeminate. Turnabout is fair play: "All police are
crooked, because we knbw of some who are." (They're In the
news all the time, aren't they?) Wise up!
Thirdly: you flaunt your prejudice under the guise of your
misappointed title as "social control agent." You say, "Cer
tainly the police should change with (society's ideas). "Would
today be too soon to start?
Sexuality is only a matter of sexual preferences. It is not a
determinant of roles, characteristics, or traits. (Does your
brother like pink? have a lisp? have hair on his palms?)'
Sexuality knows no social or economic barriers : It is not
contagious and it is very healthy. (Have you ever thought of it
without gender association?)
Your doctor, lawyer, spouse, sibling, or grandparent could
have a homosexual preference. Your best friend could be gay.
Mr. Stormer, I do not know if any of the individuals on your
force are of a homOsexual orientation. Frankly, I understand
why you "doubt such - a person would be Interested In working
for " you. It is oppressors such as you, sir, lhat have allowed
gays to be misunderstood, Judged, and mistreated. Until such
time as society can explain how sexual preferences are
determined, please be so intelligent as to hold your Judgement
:or at least keep it out of print). '
dtat;Collegian
SHEILA McCAULEY
Editor
Mark Ruckman
10th physics
Peter Sichel
7th arts and architecture
NADINE KINSEY
Business Manager