Editor in chief: Laura Cadiz Editorial Editors: Bret Jacobson, Laura Lucas Newsroom: (541)346-5511 Room 300, Erb Memorial Union P.O. Box 3159, Eugene, OR 97403 E-mail: ode@oregon.uoregon.edu Tuesday January 18,2000 Volume 101, Issue 77 Emerald Stark raving MAD Tien I left for school in September, my friends and I had this great plan. There was a rave in Eugene on Oct. 2, and all of us were going to go to it—the old group back together again, all dancing and having fun. And thus, I lost my “raverginity” at the rave “Care A-Lot. ” I didn’t really know what to expect, but I was certainly impressed. As a matter of fact, I was having such a good time that I forgot to pay attention to what I was doing, and I sprained my ankle. But in spite of my gimpyness for the following few weeks, I was count ing the days until I could go again. More and more of my friends are going to raves. Some come for curiosity; others are brought by friends. However you get there, it seems to be hard to get away. You just have such a good time, you get hooked and want to share this joyous experience with everyone else. Let me try to define a rave. Basically, a rave is a dance party—some people will call it simply “a par ty” —with beat-thumping music and lots of visual stimuli. But it is more than that. There are different styles oi music, ainerem types of DJs, different themes and different clothes. You may have seen people with lots of colored bracelets and huge pants around campus. Though raves have no dress code, this is an image called “candy” that is associated with raves. Even I bought some big pants. Being at a rave is an experience. Ben Col gan, a freshman pre-business administra tion major, described the rave environment as, “lots of kids, pretty smoky, pretty dirty; it’s an overall good, happy atmosphere.” Steve Sawada, a University student and campus DJ, said that a rave, “transcends what a normal good time is consid ered.” Sawada will be performing at a rave on campus called “Lo The first thing you need to have to go to a rave is a love of dancing. At a rave, whether you go alone or with a big group you will find yourself dancing alone mass of people who are each lost in themselves and the music. But all the individuals create one huge, welcoming community. I think that ravers are the modern-daf hippies. Or perhaps that is just because I have only raved in Eu gene. There is no judgment at a rave, just acceptance. It is a step back from our daily lives, where we feel in hibited to express ourselves openly. “Around here people are great,” Colgan said. “If you make eye contact with someone, you know them.” To have this much fun, somebody has to be work ing overtime. I spoke with Crystal Walen, a member of Real Kidz Productions about her role as a producer. Walen puts on “Magical Thursday,” a rave once a month at the WOW Hall. To throw a rave, she has to book the venue and the DJs, print fliers and tickets, get the word out and all the other gritty details that we don’t know about. “Every weekend I’m at a differ ent party passing out fliers,” said Walen. To add to the difficulty, most venues aren’t keen on hosting a rave. The neighbors don’t want MaSOTl the noise and the promoters \*f a want venues that aren’t closed _ to minors. Still, that doesn’t ac count for many other places that refuse to host raves. Walen said, “Venues don’t want to be affiliated with kids because kids equal trouble. ” Which brings me to the issue I’ve been dancing around for the whole article: what about the drugs? Yes, people use drugs at raves. GASP! The most pop ular drug is called Ecstasy, and it leaves its user in a state of happiness and makes the body very sensitive to touch. At least, that’s what people tell me. Believe what you want, but I haven’t done it. And the smoke that Colgan referred to earlier is from cigarettes, al though I don’t understand how you can smoke after doing such rigorous cardiovascular work. There is ab solutely no pressure to do drugs at a rave, however. I just need a few Red Bulls to keep me moving until five in the morning. If you are looking to go to a rave, here are some up coming events: “Magical Thursday”—Jan. 20 from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the WOW Hall. $6 at the door. For more informa tion call 710-4668. “Local Elements”—Jan. 28 from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. in the EMU Ballroom. $4 for students, $5 general admis- ■" sion. Fliers can usually be found at Face the Music on 860 E. 13th Ave. So if you have some pants lying around that could contain the population of an Indonesian island and feel like having some fun, maybe you should give it \ a try. You could even give me a call and I’ll give you some pointers about how to walk away on your own two feet. Mason West is a columnist for the Oregon Daily Emerald. His views do not necessarily represent those of the Emerald. He can be reached via e-mail mwest1@gladstone.uoregon.edu World Wide What Have the dreams of MLK been realized today? .g-g ...tl.£_W ...B-iL mi! www.dailyemerald.com 44 Our soci ety has made certain ad vances in ideas he ex pressed but has a long way to go to recog nize every one is equal/' Angela Mart In some ways, people have been able to deal with each oth er. People havealot moretodoin terms of race and gender re lations. ” Ben Duncan environmental studies {{in a way, it's more equal, but still there are a lot of issues that need to be dealt with.” Chris Zeitner undeclared sophomore (i They've been real ized. Our past re minds us of the need we have to act." Blaire Ottoboni cfcemistry