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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 28, 1997)
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Steven Asbury MANAGING EDITOR: Thom Schoenbom NIGHT EDITOR: Jennifer Schmitt EDITORIAL EDITORS: Ashley Bach & Brian Diamond ; editorials, letters, commentary and perspective NEWSROOM: (541)346-5511 DISPLAY ADVERTISING: (541) 346-3712 GUSINESS OFFICE: (541) 346-5512 CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING: (541)346-4343 Enemies of etiquette: Part 2 ■ OUR OPINION: The usual suspects behind bad classroom behavior are back, and they’re as annoying as ever We didn’t want to do it again. We really did n’t. But the present academic environ- X-: ment was just asking for action on our part. And we had to oblige. \ It’s sad really. Nothing has changed. Classes are still boring. Peo ple are still annoying. And we still have a lot to complain about. We wonder why people make the learning process so difficult. We won der why nobody seems to understand just how annoying they are. But we’re secure in the fact that if we keep com plaining, somebody will hear our cries. And then maybe things will get better. And if not, well, at least we had a lot of fun along the X way. Here's the new offend ers.... Early birds: This may be one of the biggest problems on campus today. Forget panhan dling or bike theft. This happens in our classes every day. As the 50-minute mark approaches each hour, a strange phe nomenon oc curs. It’s called the “10 minute rustle. 1 he exact starting time varies depending on the tediousness of the class, but at some point, students begin to move, and talk, and pack their things away — all before class is even close to over. Perhaps it’s a comment on the pro fessor or the material he or she is teaching, but no matter what, it’s an noying, and it needs to stop. Hint to the birds: Class is in session until that final bell, whether you like it or not. If you don’t like it, don’t come. Noisemakers: Sometimes we won der if we’re in class with that guy from “Police Academy,” judging from all the strange sounds we hear. Fingers tapping, freestyle rapping, hand drumming, even farting noises. What is this, fifth grade? Cool cats: We all feel like we have some better place to be than in class, but these people take the cake. They’re so cool, so uninterested, they CHRIS HUTCHINSON/Emerald want to let everyone around them know. One tactic is headphones; the music is usually so loud the professor has to stop class to deal with it. And those wearing the phones often speak much louder than anyone else, usual ly about how boring the class is. That can be embarrassing. Another method is, flatteringly enough, copies of the Emerald. Of fenders hold unfolded ODEs out in front of them and read away, much to the professor’s dismay. We don’t nec essarily oppose this practice, as long as one is actually reading, preferably the opinion page. Skimpy stylists; If the temperature "climbs” even close to 70 degrees, both men and women feel the need to ditch about 90 percent of their wardrobe. In other words, the only pieces of clothing used in any kind of sunshine are 1) underwear, in all its incarnations and 2) any additional clothing needed to conveniently “fill in the blanks” and quell any charges of indecent exposure. This practice is not only humorous, it’s also very distracting for both sex es. Talk about inhibiting the mission of the University. Near-nakedness will do it every time. Hint to the students: Please, at least put some clothes on in the classroom, or we’ll never get anything done. Painful profs: We could write a few full editorials on peevish professor behavior, but we’ll spare our readers the expense. Only one horrible habit will be focused on here. In this technological age, professors seem inclined to take a few too many trips down the Information Super highway. Many love to say they’re teaching “on the Web,” just for the sake of it. It must have incredible bragging rights at departmental mix ers; that’s all we can figure. Unfortunately, using the World Wide Web and e-mail is only benefi cial if it actually helps communicate. Oftentimes, professors spend more time calling for technical advice than actually teaching. So there they are, the latest group of offenders of classroom etiquette. The scary thing is the list will never stop. The cool thing is we can all work to gether to make this whole learning thing easier... we hope. This editorial represents the opinion of the Emerald editorial board. The headline “UO student shot dur ing robbery" in the May 27 issue was incorrect. The per son who was shot was not a Univer sity student. The Emerald regrets the error. LETTERS True paternalism On Monday, the editorial on Gardenburgers mangled the facts. Contrary to the second paragraph, no one is complain ing about any labor practices at Wholesome and Healthy Foods. The University is being pres sured to drop Gardenburgers in the hope that this will put pres sure on Wholesome and Hearty Foods in the hope that they will put pressure on the company that distributes their products in the hope that they will put pressure on their associated food processing company in the hope that they will put pres sure on their farmers to give their field workers a better deal. You quote President Frohn mayer as saying that students should choose individually whether to support the boycott. You say that his point is valid in general, but not in this case, because the University, not the students, decides what will be served in the dorms. The fact is that students are being offered an alternative to Gardenburgers. Individual stu dents are deciding what to eat, and their decisions determine what is purchased by the Uni versity. Frohnmayer’s point is quite valid in this case, and the course that you advocate is not “responsibility” or “leader ship” but a paternalism that is attractive only because you fa vor die political decision that it would impose. Charles Munger Computer Science Humorous language I read through the new Sexu al Misconduct code, and I was struck by how ridiculous the wording is on it. The code says that these are acts of sexual vio lence: 1) Married couples having sex in family housing (because this is on University-owned or controlled property). 2) If kissing your girl/boyfriend causes them to not concentrate well on their exam and it affects their scores (because this interferes with another person's academic per formance). Is this insane or what? I sup port some of the principles of the new code, but when I actu ally read it, I laughed at how poorly written it is. Jade Forrest Rubick Japanese wipe BOB HOPE At 94, Bob Hope will receive the Freedom Award of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation for his “efforts on the front lines of liberty.” STEVEN SPIELBERG The director's new film, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, pulled in an es timated $92.7 mil lion over the holiday weekend. UNIVERSITY GRADUATES A University survey reported that 80 per cent of graduates had a job 6 months after graduation at an average salary of $21,000 to $28,000. OREGON SCHOOLS The House passed a budget last week that would give schools $4.35 bil lion, almost $128 million more that the Senate’s proposed lilllllillli HJiP @ E1 i 9 THE CIA Recently declassi fied documents re vealed the CIA plot ted to assassinate suspected Commu nist leaders in Guatemala during the 1950s. WELFARE RECIPIENTS An Associated Press Survey of the na tion’s 100 biggest corporations found that 75 percent have no programs to hire people from the wel fare roles, despite President Clinton’s call for businesses to help employ the poor. THE AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY A recent study re ported 26.7 percent of teens aged 14 to 19 had tried a cigar in the past year in spite of efforts by the American Can cer Society to dis courage the grow ing trend. THE REPUBLIC OFTEXAS A would-be ambas sador of the Repub lic of Texas sepa ratist group was rejected by the British government while trying to arrange a meeting with Queen Eliza beth II and Prime Minister Tony Blair.
