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Commentary Oregon Daily Emerald Monday, May 2, 2005 NEWS STAFF (541)346-5511 JEN SUDICK EDITOR IN CHIEF STEVEN R. NEUMAN MANAGING EDITOR JARED PABEN AYISHA YAHYA NEWS EDITORS MEGHANN CUNIFF PARKER HOWELL SENIOR NEWS REPORTERS MORIAH RALINGIT ADAM CHERRY EMILY SMJTH EVASYLWESTER SHELDON TRAVER NEWS REPORTERS CIAYTON JONES SPORTS EDITOR JON RO EI MAN SENIOR SPORTS REPORTER STEPHEN MILLER BRIAN SMITH SPORTS REPORTERS RYAN NYBURG PULSE EDITOR AMY EIGHTY SENIOR PULSE REPORTER JOSHUA L1NTEREUR PULSE REPORTER CAT BALDWIN JOHN PALMER PULSE CARTOONIST AILEE SLATER COMMENTARY EDITOR GABE BRADLEY ANNEMARIE KNEPPER CHUCK SIXJTHOWER JENNIFER MCBRIDE COLUMNISTS ASHLEY GRIFFIN SUPPLEMENT FREELANCE EDITOR DANIELLE HICKEY PHOTO EDITOR LAUREN WIMER SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER NICOLE BARKER TIM BOBOSKY PHOTOGRAPHER KATE HORTON ZANE RUT PART-TIME PHOTOGRAPHERS BRET FURTWANGLER GRAPHIC ARTIST DUSTIN REESE SENIOR DESIGNER ELLIOTT ASBURY WENDY KIEFFER AMANDA LEE IONAH SCHROGIN DESIGNERS SHADRA BEESLEY IEANNIE EVERS COPY CHIEFS KIMBERLY BLACKFIELD /OSH NORRIS SPORTS COPY EDITORS GREG BILSLAND AMBER LINDROS NEWS COPY EDITORS JENNY GERWICK PULSE COPY EDITOR ADRIENNE NELSON ONLINE EDITOR WEBMASTER (541)346-5511 JUDY RlEDl. GENERAL MANAGER KATIIY CARBONE BUSINESS MANAGER IAUNA DE GIUST1 RECEPTIONIST JERED NAGEL PATRICK SCHMERBER HOLLY STEIN JANA SWANSON ROB WEGNER CAROLYN ZIMMERMAN DISTRIBUTION ADVERTISING (541)346-3712 MELISSA GUST ADVERTISING DIRECTOR TYLER MACK SALES MANAGER MATT BETZ HERON CALISCH-DOLEN MEGAN HAMLIN KATE HIRONAKA MAEGAN KASER-LEF. KELIEF. KAUFTHEIL MIA LEIDELMEYER SHANNON ROGERS SALES REPRESENTATIVES CLASSIFIED (541)3464343 TRINASHANAMAN CLASSIFIED MANAGER KORALYNN BASHAM ANDO KAIY GAGNON KERI SPANGLER KATIE STRINGER CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING ASSOCIATES PRODUCTION (541) 3464381 MICHELE ROSS PRODUCTION MANAGER TARA ^1 OAN PRODUCTION COORDINATOR |EN CRAMLET KRISTEN D1CHARRY CAMERON GAUT SABRINA GOWETTE IONAH SCHROGIN DESIGNERS The Oregon Daily Emerald is pu6 lished daily Monday through Fn day during the school year by the Oregon Daily Emerald Publishing Co Inc., at the University of Ore gon, Eugene, Ore. The Emerald operates independently of the University with offices in Suite 300 of the Erb Memorial Union. The Emerald is private property. Unlawful removal or use of papers is prosecutable by law. F0‘/m^AW6Ll:R Bret Furtwangler | Graphic artist ■ In my opinion Hope. humor It’s no secret that I’m a 20-some thing, female, University of Oregon student involved in the media; so it’s probably also no secret that I’m a staunch Liberal. Like many Liberals involved in today’s political climate, I tend to shed a lot of tears. Buckets were filled both election night 2000 and 2004. Nowadays, new holes are bashed into the wall with each anti feminist move of the Bush adminis tration, and neighbors cower in fear at the sound of my broken, angry cries over prison abuse, ultra-conser vative judicial nominees and a No Child Left Behind Act that leaves the state of public education (behind) in a cloud of underpaid teachers and facilities. It was therefore a surprise, most of all to me, to glance at a piece of news involving President Bush and laugh. And for the first time, I was n’t laughing at the idiocy of his logic (yeah, maybe taking away birth con trol and sexual education WILL pre vent teen pregnancy). No, my laugh ter was not cynical; it was joyful. And the heartiness of joy in conjunc tion with U.S. Republican politicians is sure to keep my morale up for weeks to come. At the annual White House Corre spondents’ Association dinner last week, President Bush and first lady Laura Bush put on what was appar ently quite the comedic act. The af ter-dinner speech consisted of Laura Bush’s playful criticisms of her hus band’s early bedtimes and ranching skills. She joked: “He's learned a lot about ranching since that first year, when he tried to milk ... a male horse. ” Laura Bush even went as far as to poke fun at Barbara Bush’s dis position, claiming that the woman is more like a member of the Mafia than the grandmotherly type. You mean the Bush clan is capa ble of humor outside of pronouncing words incorrectly and not knowing national factoids? Who knew? AILEE SLATER FURTHER FROM PERFECTION Certainly not me. In that moment of laughter at the idea of Barbara Bush wielding a hand gun and a heavy Italian accent, George W. Bush and the rest of his administra tion suddenly became more human. Rather than cold politicians working day and night to make my life as a liberal woman hell, they were peo ple who ate and drank and laughed at each other’s expense; just like the rest of us. President Bush might spend the day confronting foreign politicians in a way that I deem irrepressibly stu pid, but at night, he probably snug gles up with his wife to watch the newest episode of “Desperate Housewives.” Humor in its very nature is de signed to bring us all down to a more human level. Just think about how fun it is to watch famous peo ple trip over street curbs: We laugh with joy that they are just as human as the rest of us. Imagine if there were some way to systematically in troduce laughter into the political sphere. Republicans and Democrats might squabble over judicial nomi nees during their sessions of Senate, but over dinner that evening they would drink wine and giggle to each other about the state of Senator So and-so’s toupee or laughingly ask if anyone else was hit by the highly projectiled spit during Mr. You know-who’s motion to vote. “I’ll show him a motion!” Bill Frist might playfully shout, slapping Minority Leader Harry Reid on the back. Reid would laugh, saying only, “So that’s why you don’t want a fili buster, you old bag; afraid of getting your Armani suit drenched in that guy’s spit!” Both men would then share a genuine, hearty laugh. Imagine a similar scenario with foreign leaders. Bush and Kim Jong II already don’t connect over nuclear policies; what’s to lose in seeing if these two can find common ground in humor? Perhaps the image of Pres ident Bush fumbling around a male horse with milk jugs in his hand is exactly what’s needed to convince Jong II that his country is not in dan ger of U.S. nuclear attack. Likewise, I can only imagine that if Jong II were to poke some good-natured fun at the United States’ plan to increase its nuclear arsenal while trying to de crease weapons worldwide, Bush might laugh. And, coming from a place of humor and happiness rather than anger and defensiveness, Bush might for the first time consider what Jong II has to say. It is a breath of fresh air to step back and realize that we are all hu man at heart. We laugh, we cry, we live, we die. Politics is of course a se rious business, but it is certainly worthwhile to consider the merits of inserting humor into political discus sion. If Republicans and Democrats can laugh together, then there is a glimmer of hope that they can also come to decisions together. Israelis and Palestinians may not agree on much, but can’t we all attest to the fact that a genetic hybrid of Ariel Sharon and former leader Yasser Arafat would be the pinnacle of hilarity? Maybe it’s too soon for jokes. On the other hand, maybe the time is just right for world leaders to take an outlandish tumble off their soap boxes. Instead of weapons of mass destruction, how about poking one another with a little good-natured humor instead? aileeslaler@ dailyemerald.com ■ Editorial Students: Ditch the pill; head to the library The abuse of the prescription drug Adder all isn’t getting enough attention. Normally prescribed to help people diagnosed with attention deficit disorders to concentrate, Adderall has become a commonly abused medication. Adderall can be an extremely positive influ ence. When used with the instruction and prescription of a medical professional, Adder all helps its users focus and remain undis tracted — important factors for students in large and often noisy lecture halls. Of course, drug abuse is hardly ever about the people who need the drug; it’s about the people who want the drug. Illegal Adderall users cite an increase in concentration and the ability to study, and therefore an ease in maintaining higher grades, as the reasons some students illegally take the drug. There aren’t always concrete ways to ex plain drug abuse, but in the case of Adderall, it seems academic stress is a factor in abuse on college campuses. It is unfortunate that some college students place academic success above their physical health and legal sensibil ities, and universities nationwide need to address that trend. The side effects of Adderall — potential ad diction, high blood pressure and loss of eye sight — are dangerous. The legal repercus sions for illegally using Adderall are no picnic either: Possessing Adderall without a prescrip tion carries the same legal repercussions as possession of a methamphetamine. Health facilities must hold workshops and design campaigns to inform students that Adderall is a dangerous substance when used improperly. Public information is necessary in creating an informed and safe campus that is less likely to abuse prescription drugs. Pa tients who legally receive prescription stimu lants should be given extensive information concerning side effects, as well as the harsh consequences that come with illegally distributing it. In addition, students must take a second look at the abuse of Adderall. It is time to swallow the bitter pill of reality and head to the library. Students without a medical need for Adderall must learn to rely on hard work and self-discipline, because success doesn’t come in the form of a pill. EDITORIAL BOARD Jennifer Sudick Steven R. Neuman Editor in Chief Managing Editor Ailee Slater Shadra Beesley Commentary Editor Copy Chief Adrienne Nelson Online Editor OREGON DAILY EMERALD LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor and guest commentaries are encouraged, and should be sent to letters@dailyemerald.com or submitted at the Oregon Daily Emerald office, EMU Suite 300. Electronic submissions are preferred. Let ters are limited to 250 words, and &iest commentaries to 550 words. Au thors are limited to one submission per calendar month. Submissions should include phone number and address for verification. The Emerald reserves the right to edit for space, grammar and style. Guest submissions are published at the discretion of the Emerald.
