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STAFF EDITORIAL
ELENA HERNANDEZ I ILLUSTRATOR
Rest and relaxation shouldn’t be exclusive to breaks
HOW WE SEE IT
Elon students should allow themselves to find time for rest
during the school year, not just on breaks from classes.
Its no secret Elon University has
a culture of overcommitment and
overachievement. It’s too common for
students to boast their involvements
through laptop stickers and backpack
buttons, coming to class bragging of
their lack of sleep. It often seems that
if yotl are not stressed, then you are
not doing enough.
While this culture may seem like
one that will push Elon students to
achieve greater success and go on to
■ do great things, in reality it is a toxic
one that holds students back.
Elons campus is constantly
bustling with students chugging
coffee on their way to class, spending
hours in Belk Library or running
from classes to work to meetings to
classes without breaking for lunch or
dinner. Elon students may be largely
successful and talented, but more
noticeably, they are exhausted.
Students are putting so much
energy and time into their
organizations and classes that they
are neglecting their own mental and
physical health — the foundational
aspect of their ability to grow and
succeed in school. Elon students
joke about getting the “ElOn plague”
around midterms or falling asleep in
classes, but they likely wouldn’t have
these issues if they simply rested.
With Fall Break coming up in a
few days, many students are gearing
up for extra time to sleep. They can
be heard across campus saying, “I
can’t wait for Fall Break,” or “I need
Fall Break,” because at this point
in the semester students have been
going for so long that without a
break they may breakdown.
Fall Break comes at the midpoint
of the semester because many
students do need a break at this
point, but they shouldn’t be working
and wearing themselves thin to
the point that they are so anxious
for time off from classes because
they need to rest. Breaks should
be about spending time with the
family members you haven’t seen
in months or going on adventures
with friends. Yes, breaks are also a
time for relaxing and catching up on
television shows, but we shouldn’t
only allow ourselves time to rest
during these breaks.
Throughout the school year,
students should not only try to
include more time for rest and
relaxation in their schedules, but
also critically reflect on why they are
involved in all the organizations or
other commitments they have. The
Elon culture of over-involvement is
difficult to separate from, but it may
be necessary in order to live a full
and healthy life on campus.
Involvements in different
organizations are an important part
of your professional development
and resume building, but
overworking yourself to the point
that you’re unfocused or unable
to study for classes will have the
opposite effect.
Taking time to yourself to rest and
relax is vital to being fully-functioning.
Mental, physical and emotional health
should always take priority over trying
to fit in with a culture that can be toxic
to some students.
David CamGron s spcGch asks, do wg havG a right to valuGS?
Stephanie Ntim
Columnist
So far in college. I’ve
learned it is impossible to
view U.S. politics from only
one perspective. Like the
range of students at a liberal
arts college, the combinations
of viewpoints are endless.
Notions of representation and
freedoms become jumbled in
rhetoric about identity politics
in this era of globalization.
We grapple daily with our
differing interests, occupa
tions and political affilia
tions. These three, together,
are derived from our self-im-
p posed rules and values.
When former prime min-
. ister of the United Kingdom,
David Cameron, spoke elo
quently at Fall Convocation
in a speech titled “Where
Do We Go from Here?” he
underlined the need to re
make arguments over values.
As an optimist, the British
statesman upholds traditions
of decency and respect. Flis
speech was a reminder of the
lack of unequivocal govern
ment response in tackling
recent atrocities such as the
protests in Charlottesville,
Virginia. Politics aside,
Cameron conveyed that we
cannot equate evil with good
and that extremists have no
place in a meritocracy.
The United States and
Great Britain share a unique
history. Like siblings, they
fought as children, and
needed each other as adults.
Even though the two are
stilTtncredibly powerful, I
urge that we recognize the
diversity of democracies that
make up our world.
We may fight over
religious differences and
economic interests, but we
can still coexist peacefully.
Xameron called for “mod
erate rational reasonable
discourse” in tackling global
issues such as infectious
diseases and climate change.
My personal opinions align
closely with his, but I wish
he defined what he meant by
“our values.”
The notion of value is
enshrined in British and
U.S. history, though value
has not been accessible to
everyone. Historically, our
country’s values have been
based on equality.
The Declaration of
Independence begins with
u
DESPITE THAT OUR
NATION HAS MADE
VALUES EOR THE
COMMON GOOD
OFALLJHEREARE
STILL INACTIONS
THAT IMPEDE
THE PROGRESS
OE MINORITY
POPULATIONS.
“We hold these truths to be
self-evident: that all men are
created equal.” This state-
ment set a precedent for
governing our country, but it
has not always been pre
served in the eyes of the law:
The Three-fifths Compro
mise to the U.S. constitution
in 1787, for example, allowed
states to count every five
slaves as three free persons
for both representation and
taxation. This undermined
the premise of the values of
the declaration.
Though it served as an in
spiration for The Declaration
of Independence, The Magna
Carta maintains the line, “To
no one will we sell, to no
one deny or delay right or
justice, which undermined
the role of the British in
restricting freedoms through
colonization. Both countries
have made strident efforts
to reverse earlier models of
freedom to all people, but
there are stiff residual effects
up to today,:as we continue
to fight for civil liberties
extended to all segments of
the U.S. population.
In this century, I argue
we should condemn crimes
against humanity, and avoid
generating crimes for hu
manity. Despite that our na
tion has made values for the
common good of all, there
are still inactions that impede
the progress of minority
populations. To reiterate
points made in Cameron’s
speech, we need governing
institutions that will openly
condemn extremist attacks
against diversity, global
exchange of ideas and aid to
our neighboring countries.
We should be allowed to have
and act upon our own values
that align with the rules of
our democracy.
As a community that
praises global and civic
engagement, we should
promote open forums for
discussion about our values.
If we are to work together,
we need to define common
alities of values to strengthen
our commitment to making
this world a better place to
live in. In spite of our dif
ferent opinions and beliefs,
there is hope that our de
mocracies — extending froi^
10 Downing Street to the
White House — can promote
standards of responsibility
and care for all people.