opinions
editorial opinion
Searching for justice
"If I have to appoint another one Supreme
Court justice, I'll try to find one that they'll
object to just as much as they did this one."
President Reagan, on selecting a new
nominee for Supreme Court
As expected, Reagan's defiant posture on
the next search for Judge Solomon to fill a
vacancy on the Supreme Court has met with
the expected counter-defiance by a leader
of the opposition. The Senate majority lead
er, Robert Byrd, said that if Reagan per
sists in engaging in "innuendo and
bitterness," the president's next nominee
would be an endangered species.
Based on what has happened to Judge
Robert Bork, Sen. Byrd's threat has a great
deal to recommend that it be taken serious
ly. Then, too, Sens. Biden and Kennedy, two
of Byrd's colleagues on the Judiciary Com
mittee, have expressed their own views on
how and when to deal with the next
Reagan nominee.
If the next name put forward by the White
House to fill the court vacancy encounters
only half the battle Judge Bork did, it is
unlikely that the court will reach full com
plement before next year.
For the last couple of months, the focus
has been on the Senate Judiciary Commit
tee and the Judge Bork hearings. However,
across the way from Capitol Hill stands the
Supreme Court. It is here that the real focus
of the judicial process can be seen.
Consider the consequences of a vacant
seat on the court. In the term before Justice
Lewis Powell retired, nearly one-third of
daily Collegian
Wednesday, Oct. 28, 1987
1987 Collegian Inc.
Editor
Chris Raymond
Business Manager
Glenn B. Rougier
The art of leisure
Euroloafing
More and more I am convinced that this
word should be placed in the dictionary.
Euroloafing is a trend which has already,
and will continue to, work its way casually
into the lives of Americans particularly
the schedules of those generations known as
yuppies and pre-yuppies, or college stu
dents. I apologize here for the sweeping
generalizations that will follow not because
I place any faith in their worth, but because
they are necessary to illustrate a point.
Although "euroloafing" is not yet in the
dictionary, the idea has been passed around
in this country by word of mouth, if not by
demonstration, for awhile now. I first heard
about it last year, although some will say
they've not only heard about it but have
been doing it all their lives. Still, if the
concept wasn't at least somewhat new and
foreign. it wouldn't be catching on and
experiencing the vogue it is today.
I suspect that if you haven't been a part of
euroloafing yourself, you have at least seen
people going about it either singly or in
groups. Outdoor cafes are ideal for this, and
in colder weather apartment happy hours
as a backdrop are fine. Ultimately the
location isn't important, so long as relaxing
and taking in the view or atmosphere are
possible. And of course the company.
Friends to share in the fun of euroloafing
are very important. And often euroloafers
who aren't interacting socially with others
the court's 145 signed opinions were decided
by a 5-4 vote.
In (most) of these split decisions, Asso
ciate Justice Powell voted with the majori
ty. Mostly, the former justice took the
conservative line on criminal issues and the
liberal position on social issues.
Given the political bent of the remaining
eight justices ( and the recent 4-4 deadlock
votes, which Justice Powell frequently
broke), it will not be long before the even
split votes will stalemate some court deci
sions. Such equal judicial balance, without
the presence of an X factor, to tip that
balance, will render the court impotent.
The practical consequence of the absence
of a ninth justice is that in 4-4 decisions the
Supreme Court's deliberations will be just
so much judicial wheel-spinning. Lower
court rulings will stand, no precedent will
be created, and litigants will be worse off in
time and money than they were before the
nation's court of last resort heard their
cases.
It's time for the president and the sen
ators to get on with the people's business.
Fill the court vacancy, and do it before the
winter snows melt.
That timetable may seem overly pessi
mistic. But given the timetable we have
seen so far, that appraisal may be overly
optimistic. It's time for cooler heads at both
ends of Pennsylvania Avenue to prevail,
lest the voters decree a plague on both their
houses the White one and the Upper
Chamber.
The Daily Collegian's editorial opinion is determined by
its Board of Opinion, with the editor holding final
responsibility. Opinions expressed on the editorial
pages are not necessarily those of The Daily Collegian,
Collegian Inc. or The Pennsylvania State University.
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is simple to learn and easy to practice, but more difficult to understan.
can be found amusing themselves by just
watching other people, coffee or a drink in
hand. If you are not of that discerning age of
21, I suppose you could sip an iced tea and
try to appear slightly tipsy.
Certainly that is ridiculous: the point is
that euroloafing is not achieved by posing.
but by slightly altering the attitude to see
life differently, if only for a short while.
As I said, the concept is relatively new to
me, and so defining it further becomes
difficult. I feel more confident in the at
tempt however after talking with European
and American friends about the art of
euroloafing. One teacher I had in high
school, a French woman whom I respect
very much, spoke with me briefly the other
day about the differences between Euro
pean and American lifestyles, differences
which I believe to be the foundation for the
establishment of euroloafing first in Eu
rope.
The Allentown Morning Call
~~„xetC
Americans, she explained, tend always to
be in a hurry, to live for the future. Euro
peans on the other hand see themselves as a
link between the past and the future, and so
live more for the present. Neither of these
lifestyles, it could be argued, is the better,
but the purpose is not to determine their
"rightness," it is simply to consider the
cultural differences between Americans
and Europeans, and how they might affect
their respective outlooks on leisure.
One magazine article I read went into
detail so far as to suggest that there are
variances in the way different countries in
Europe euroloaf cultural development of
the art! But I suspect that's getting carried
away, and to examine the idea in that much
detail defeats the purpose of euroloafing
itself, which is to relax.
The mechanics of euroloafing, a process
whereby one takes time out to enjoy life, are
strangely enough the same as those which
govern the scientific world. And you don't
have to take science classes to be aware of
the principle first hand. You can look in
stead at your apartment or room for exam
ple. It's a mess. You can expend energy to
keep it neat, but it's much easier to let it
reach chaos before acknowledging that
you're going to have to spend a day "red
ding up" the place. This is entropy
elements naturally falling to the level where
the least energy is expended.
The concept of euroloafing is not entirely
r/A
reader opinion
One who knows
Like several other Collegian reporters, I was in the
Carrier Dome during the Penn State-Syracuse game for
what I like to call "The Disaster in the Dome." Being
from Syracuse, it was truly embarrassing to lose to the
Orangemen my senior year.
While Mark Ashenfelter's column about the game did
bring up some important observations about the enthu
siasm at Syracuse two weekends ago, there are a few
things Nittany Lion fans should know. I used to be one of
those long-suffering Orange football fans before coming
to University Park.
When I grew up, the SU football program never re
ceived the hype that I witnessed at this game. Even after
the Carrier Dome was built, the football team had
problems outdrawing the basketball team! And let's face
it. almost every team in the East considers Penn State
their biggest game of the year; to Syracuse, this was
literally their biggest game in 27 years!
Another reason for the pre-game hype was the recent
appearance of the basketball team in the Final Four.
Talking to friends while I was in Syracuse, I found out the
enthusiasm before the game was similar to the Final
Four Week. In reality, then, the seeds for Syracuse
football support were planted almost seven months ago.
(Too bad Penn State support isn't passed on to basket
ball. )
I have no argument with Mark's claim that the fans
here at PSU are getting complacent and, at times, just
plain bored with Penn State football. After winning the
National Championship and losing more than half its
starters, some people were due for a rude awakening. It's
time we get up and start cheering for this team; losing
two games doesn't make them any less deserving of our
support. I will be at Beaver Stadium, along with 83,000
other people, for the West Virginia game and hope to hear
plenty of noise.
To Stacey Jacobson, who commented on the painting of
the Nittany Lion shrine, revenge is sweet; let's go to
Syracuse before the game next year and "peel" the
Orange!
Jim Teske
senior-meteorology
the same, but it isn't entirely different. The
world today is fast-paced (it will be faster
paced tomorrow, but in the spirit of euro
loafing we won't worry about that). In the
business world men and women work until
they reach the breaking point of stress and
find themselves unhappy with their lives.
On college campuses, even as early as
midsemester, there are already victims of
"burnout." These are people who fight
entropy, who put their energy into their
work until like a rubberband which is
stretched to the limit, they snap.
Euroloafing is the natural reaction to
these circumstances a level of less en
ergy expenditure where attitudes can be
readjusted to deal with life better. It's a
short social vacation .
A friend of mine who is French (although
I often tease him by telling him that he is
surely American) looked at me strangely
when I asked him why he would want to
euroloaf so often. The king of the euroloaf
ers appeared to instantly find the question
ludicrous. "Why wouldn't you want to re
lax" he asked. Any answer I could muster
only incriminated me as one of those people
with workaholic lifestyles.
The word euroloafing carries both posi
tive and negative connotations which I
believe are results of that "hustle and
bustle" lifestyle many people live today.
The first syllable, "euro," short for Euro
Wedesday, Oct. 28, 1987
WEI-1- t3oßies Po*
WHOS NEXT
No good
What good did it do the Penn State community for the
Collegian to publish the Nazi ads that were posted all over
campus this past weekend? If you were to say this was a
decision error on the editor's behalf, I would have to
agree with you whole-heartedly. The only thing that the
pictures did was to promote free advertising for this
perversed organization. (And to think of the prices USG
has to pay for advertising in the Collegian!)
I do deem the article necessary to make the public
aware of the ignorance that still exists today, even in our
own community. I believe Mr. Kroger did a fine job of
pointing this out in his article. The "chief" however
deemed it necessary that irrelevant illustrations be used.
There is a complete lack of respect for the intelligence of
the Collegian reader (as if we wouldn't have understood
the racial slurs without pictures). I don't ever recall that I
had to be made aware of an existing problem through
illustrated "trash." There probably are a lot of other
readers who would tend to agree with me.
The freedom of press I believe in very strongly, so there
is no excuse for ACLU members to be jumping down my
throat. Freedom of press is our "God given" right, and I
agree. However, when that right is abused and entices
violence or causes detrimental harm to the community,
then such writings should not be publicly displayed. It
should be made available upon request but it should not
be exposed in a newspaper where a portion of the public
may be offended by it.
The Collegian had no regard for the interest of the
community. To make people aware of problems is one
thing, but publicize free advertisements for a facist/rac
ist organization is complete disregard for the community,
and their actions to try to resolve these problems. It
would not surprise me if the Collegian's "picture" sets the
minority retention program back for years. I now not only
know of the problem, I also know the organization
responsible and the address where I can "subscribe"
thanks to the advertisement.
pean, generally conjures desirable images.
Americans have adopted European fashion,
cooking, vacations and other trends over
the years (although that's not to say that the
reverse isn't true as well).
On the other hand "loafing" suggests
laziness, and it's difficult to become suc
cessful today if one is lazy. However, to
attach the notion of laziness to euroloafing
is to miss the mark there is a fine line
between the two.
Perhaps then drawing that line is the
tricky part of euroloafing. Relaxation is
beneficial to the soul, over-indulgence past
a certain point is not. Traditionally howev
er, Americans have been quite well-suited
to adopt the middle ground and I believe
that with practice anyone can learn to allow
themself the respite they deserve without
crossing into the realm of decadence. And
it's good to know that practice of euroloaf
ing is painless it does not have attached to
it the same dread as practicing your high
school band instrument did.
The psychology behind euroloafing still
intrigues me. In today's fast-moving
stressful world, for every action (work
work-work) there is an equal and opposite
reaction (you-know-what).
Jeannette Gibson is a junior majoring in
English and is the assistant opinion editor of
The Daily Collegian.
The Daily Collegia
D.P. Conti
junior -economics/
business logistics
WlTif..