Newspapers / Elon University Student Newspaper / Feb. 29, 1996, edition 1 / Page 2
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U3- February 29,1996 Viewpoint Spring fever hits nearly every person in America at some point or another. It seems that for Elon students it has started earlier than usual. After the cold, snowy winter Elon has seen, everyone’s ready to enjoy the 75 degree weather that’s been around for the past few days. It seems like the entire campus came out of the woodwork. People were rollerblading, walking, playing ball and relaxing un derneath the rays of the sun. Most have felt cooped up and restricted in the harsh winter months. Now students, in shorts and T-shirts, can be seen making their way to class. Will this wonderful spring-like weather last? According to The Weather Channel, a polar mass (which means some very cold air and maybe some cold precipitation) will be sweeping across the country over the next couple of days. It’s a shame that they are predicting an end to the sunny, warm weather. Can people really handle such a drastic change in the weather? It not only crushes one’s spirit, it makes one physically ill. Fluctu ating temperatures.are disheartening. Everyone wants to enjoy the weather. It’s time to get some sun. Enough of the cold! This time of year students get stressed. There’s a lot of work that needs to be done, whether for class, for an organization or whatever. Spring brings hope, and with that, a new sense of purpose. It makes people want to accomplish things. Some would disagree, and say that people get distracted and don’t concentrate on anything. That is true to some degree. Once people get used to the nice weather, there’s no stopping them. It helps rejuvenate them. It’s a sudden burst of energy, like drinking coffee. With any luck, winter will finally leave Elon alone, and the spring will come and cheer us up. Off The Record ‘Wasting years at alarming rates, I can’t just leave my life to fate.” -Deep Blue Something "A Song To Make Love To" THE Pendulum Informing the Elon College Community Editor in Chief Stacey Ward Managing Editor Tracey Stark Asst. Manag. Editor Jeff Wirick A & E Editor Andrea Schmidt Sports Editor Colleen Herndon Photo Editor Andrew Brickey Letters Editor Michelle Cater Senior Reporter Tonya Hubart Advertising Michelle Riley Advisor Deborah Durkee News Reporters Tony Carrick Adam Kriss Patrick Singleton Sarah Smith Tricia Ziegler A&E Reporters Eric McCrickard Chris Adams Jon Campbell Jeff Haniewich Giselle Pole Warren Brannon Spoi‘ts Reporters Bob Grimmie Allison Rinck Steve Lucatuorto The Pendulum, founded in 1974, is published by Elon students. Single copies of The Pendulum are free. If extra copies are needed, they can be purchased at The Pendulum office in Moseley Center. Office: 2800 Campus Box, Elon College, N.C. 27244. 584-2331 Columnists Karyn Howard Joe Mattem Photographers Jenny Jamecke Terri Culbertson Taking 'PC' too far Recently, I was given an as signment to show the difference I between handicapped and the new politically correct ‘disabled’. In the I American Heritage Dictionary, handicapped is defined as being [ disabled. Aaagh...The joys of po litically correct language. The ideas of politically correct I language go back as far as the 1930s. However, during the era of McCarthyism is when it began to I take shape. One was considered politically correct if he/she was an opponent of McCarthy. Today, however, it’s defined as the sup pression of anything that gives of fense on the grounds of gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, age or handicap. If I’ve said this once. I’ve said it a thousand timesiGood theory. Unfortunately, itdoesn’twork! The issue of what to call a person of colorisagreatexample.I’mnotthe [ only one with this problem. In I Nadine Strossens’s “The Contro versy of Politically Correct Lan- I guage,” she sites that “four-fifths of blacks prefer to be referred to as such, while one-fifths prefer the term African-American.” Hey, great, but good luck figuring out who prefers what because the pre ferred term changes according to [ certain areas, occupations, and in comes. Language do-gooders are so Karyn Howard concerned about what’s correct that they’ve changed names and titles everywhere. The question is, are they really do-gooders? Ask the Chiefs of all Virginia’s resident Indian communities and they’ll tell you no (Leo 22). Students of Will iam and Mary started a movement to change the sports teams’ names from Tribe to something “less of fensive.” One glitch in the move ment: Chiefs told reporters that they liked the team. Do these language revision maniacs really care about people’s feelings? My guess is that a bunch of people like to sit around and think up new ways to stir up trouble and create ethical questions such as,“is the abolition of politically incorrect language a violation of the First Amendment?” The government is ruling at this point that those of us who think politically correct language is stu pid are still protected by the First Amendment. Here’s the fun part. Most colleges don’t abide by the First Amendment. A dean of Politi cal Correctness argues that non-P^ faculty shouldn’t be able to receiv' tenure (Baron, 105). A crowd students was reprimanded for taunl ing some Arab students during Gulf-War rally. All of them were except one, because he was blaci^ According to the official adminis tration handbook, only whites caij” be racist (Leo, 22). At the Univef sity of Washington, a student wa- threatened with expulsion becaus* he questioned a women’s studi^' professor who said lesbians better mothers (Dority 31). Nice Hey. I’m right there with thi next person when it comes to altef ing my speech to protect the feel' ings of others. That’s called coiH' mon courtesy, which is a dyii^^ idea. But isn’t this a bit extreme Some people were upset whe" Elon’s Residence Life decided go from dorms to resident’s hall^ Okay, a need for little concern- scares me, though, that at oth« colleges students are kicked out they don ’ t use the correct language It’s something to think about time you use this new language leave you with some of my favofi^^ terms changed, as John Leo se^* tit: Corpse: non-living person. Death: a negative patient caf^ outcome. Dallas Cowboys: Dallas vine Persons. This Week: SGA Elections Can your vote make a difference? Emily Halpern, Sophomore; “My vote is important because I care who’s going to be heading our student body, making decisions that concern and affect us.” • • • Terrance Copling, Sopho more; “Ifigurethatevery vote will make a small difference. It might be the tie-breaking vote. A vote is an expression of your opinion.” • • • John Greene, Junior: “No. I don’t think enough people partici- I pate. I don’t think enough people know about it or really care.” Sandy Mummy, Sophomore: “My vote can make a difference because all it takes is one vote. It’s like the snowflake theory. If there’s a lot of snow on a branch, it could take just one more snowflake to make it all fall.” • • • Garrett Koke, Junior: “Why does any vote make a difference? If you want something done or if you want to make your point, you’ve got to vote.” Bill Drew, Senior: “My isn’t important. I think that people who vote are into politic^ In high school it (student election^ was a popularity contest. Now,i^ just guys trying to get in on political scene. I’m not into S.G.A. thing, just as long as don’t interfere with my own agen^^ and what’s right in this world.” Compiled by Tonya Hubart hubat2d0@numen.elon.edu
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