Newspapers / The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.) / Sept. 28, 2012, edition 1 / Page 10
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10 WWW.GUILFORDIAN.COM OPINION CMegehtoiincilturclsnotiiistlnnon amnmre In recent years, the stiff routine of a boy courting a girl has been replaced by quick and temporary physical satisfaction, known as the hookup culture. In this new culture, not just the males are skipping the formalities. Women have taken over the culture, diving into it as eagerly as frat boys who keep tallies of how many girls they can get. In some ways, this loss of tradition can seem somewhat tragic. "Maybe they're all the better BY ALLISON DEBUSK Staff Writer for it (the hookup culture)," said Caitlin Flanagan in an article for the Atlantic. "Or maybe an awful lot of these young women at our very best colleges are being traumatized by what takes place during so much of this mindless, drunken partying when they're steeped in alcohol, which brings out the least engaging aspects of their young selves." But would reverting to the old ways be better for women? Probably not. Although the hookup culture has seen the loss of the beauty of a simple date, it also reflects a rise in power for women. Most women who engage in this culture are focused on achieving success in a career before settling down and having a family, showing that women are looking toward a bright future, whether or not they have a man. "The hookup culture is too bound up with everything that's fabulous about being a young woman in 2012 — the freedom, the confidence, the knowledge that you can always depend on yourself," said Hanna Rosin in an article for the Atlantic. This strength is admirable and something that all women should be proud of, but is going all the way with every guy who comes along and then enforcing a double standard about sexual activity the way to show feminine power? I think not. When a male brags about all the girls he has slept with, it becomes obvious that he is only using them. So should it not be the same for females who have a list just as long? Look at recent Duke graduate Karen Owen, whose senior thesis was a PowerPoint presentation comparing 13 athletes with whom she had sexual encounters. Her display was explicit and crude in its in-depth detail about each "subject." She degrades the "subjects" and claims that they were only using her, but in reality, she was only using them as well. She condemns them for exercising sexual freedom, but glorifies herself for exercising that same freedom. Women should enjoy the freedom that we have and be proud of our accomplishments, revel in being young, and make decisions for ourselves. College is our time to do this and, in doing so, we remind ourselves of the progress of women as a whole — as we should. We have overcome a double standard that for so long claimed that only men could enjoy sexual freedom; however, now we must respect everyone's right to make their own decisions about hooking up and not pass judgment on those who choose to participate. Still, in this new age of female power, we run the risk of changing from the oppressed to the oppressors. We should exercise our rights, but all of the women who fought for those rights did not intend for us to abuse them. They would be ashamed if the modern woman became the exact evil that they fought against so vehemently. Taxpayers should not have to pay for convict's sex change BY CLARENCE Granting an inmate a sex change is like kicking a soccer ball full of cement — a reckless idea that no one should attempt. Although for some reason the consensus is seemingly different in Massachusetts. In recent news Michelle Kosilek, formerly known as Robert, is being granted sex reassignment surgery. Kosilek was sentenced to life without parole for murdering her wife in 1990. During the trial Kosilek was diagnosed TURPIN with gender identity Staff Writer disorder. The kicker is that the funding for the procedure is coming from the taxpaying citizens of Massachusetts. Of all situations that would deserve funding, is a sex change for a convicted murderer really a worthy cause? Sen. Scott Brown of Massachusetts called it "an outrageous abuse of taxpayers' dollars" in an interview with CNN. "I look forward to common sense prevailing and the ruling being overturned." It has to be remembered how unwilling state and federal governments are to help citizens of their states and the nation to pay for medical procedures. It is understandable that Kosilek needs help for the gender identity disorder that she suffers from, and after all, inmates that suffer from this disorder are 13 times more likely to be sexually assaulted; however, this does not necessarily mean sexual assault is an imminent danger. What makes Kosilek privileged enough to essentially choose her own fate after murdering her wife? Is that justice being served? "People sentenced to life in prison should receive very little, as far as privileges are concerned," said junior Jake Hopkins. "Especially, when these privileges are using the money of state taxpayers." Imagine the family of Kosilek's wife having to pay for the sex reassignment surgery for the woman who murdered their relative. Does that sound like an ideal situation? No, it sounds like the American legal system trying to pass off an image of fairness, instead of promoting the fundamental value of justice. The niece of the victim, Susan Ohannessian, agrees. "I was very, very angry at the verdict," said Ohannessian in an interview with NECN. "I had absolutely no idea it was coming." Many people, who have followed the case, including myself, fail to realize what purpose there is to perform a costly operation on an inmate. Protection? Happiness? The idea that everyone is entitled to their individual rights is somewhat of a cornerstone of American law. However, I feel there is a difference between ensuring someone's rights and avoiding criticism of the legal system. Yes, Kosilek is entitled to her human rights, but to grant a sex change operation for someone who is already facing life in prison is absurd. The government might as well give her a condo in South Beach and a fully-expunged record. There are certain liberties that accompany being a law abiding-citizen, and there are certain privileges that are dismissed once we as citizens no longer abide by the law. Michelle Kosilek lost those privileges once she murdered her wife. That is a fact. This case is an embarrassment and should be reversed — unless we want to become a nation that pays for plastic surgery and sex-change operations for convicted murderers and felons. SAASA provides a safe space for students SEXUAL ASSAULT AWARENESS SUPPORT AND ADVOCACY OPEN TO ALL BY DANIEL GASKIN Staff Writer It was late and I had just left another boring Guilfordian meeting. My face was lined with misery because I was going back to Bryan to attack the mountain of homework that I was dreading, when I noticed a small commotion in the Hut. After snooping around a bit, I noticed that there was pizza in there and I wasn't about to go away without a slice. "I'll just grab a quick slice and sneak out," I thought. I slunk into the hut where these kind faced people were speaking softly to each other. "Perfect," I thought, "they won't know I was here." So I sat down, and grabbed a slice, waiting for the best time to slip out, but before that, I noticed droves of people crowding into the hut. "They must be here for the pizza too," I thought. But I was wrong. Most of them didn't even grab a slice. They just sat in the soft wooden chairs in the hut, waiting expectantly. Intrigued, I waited too, quietly munching on my free pizza. There must have been thirty people who showed up to this one place and it was all for a club called SAASA, which stands for Sexual Assault Awareness Support and Advocacy. We started in a friendly enough way with simple introductions. Then the leaders of the club started to talk about achievements accomplished last year. Among the accomplishments named were a successful forum on Jon Hatch and aid in the creation of a monthly meeting for victims of sexual abuse with an expert counselor. Then people began to speak their views orf' sexual abuse. Passion was burning throughout the room as person after person named plans for the club — ideas like forums on sexual abuse rates for college kids and radio shows dedicated to educating others on sexual abuse. Others discussed the tragedy of rape and how so many cases go unreported. They explained how rapists take the humanity of their victims and leave them with their lives shattered. There was anger in the room that night, as well as a sense that this was an important place to be on campus. The emotions at this meeting sparked something in me that wasn't really present before. I knew of cases of sexual abuse cases, but they took up little space in my brain. I was much more concerned with my own problems. As the meeting went on, my mind began to find sympathy as well as anger with and for the victims that my peers were talking about. I wanted to know a little more about the club so I talked to the co-president, junior Cappa Cheatham. "Our biggest goals are to spread awareness about a bill in North Carolina that protects the rapists if they say they did not rape someone," said Cheatham. "We want Guilford to officially condemn this bill and come out in favor of the victims." The interview went well and I left with the following thoughts circling my mind. You know, it is likely that I am a narcissist. I care little for outside things that don't directly affect my life. I never really had any idea that one meeting at a club could so profoundly affect me. But, this place, that night, was different. For one hour, I was just like all of those kind-faced kids in that room filled with passion about the plight of the victimized and ready to do something, anything to stop it. t warn
The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.)
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