Campus Voice
Wednesday. April 20.1994
The Clackamas Print Pg. 4
Letters to the Editors * Letters toJhe Editors * Letters to the Editors
Welfare debate
raises questions
Students
Speak' Oüt|||||
To the Editor:
Contributing Staff Writer addresses
concerns over alienation, stereotypes
To the Editor:
. I have some concerns
about my last article on the adap­
tive skiing program. I understand
that you have the right to change
the titles of articles when it seems
necessary. This hasn’t bothered
me much in the past. However,
the title change of the last article
really disturbs me: “Group which
helps disabled individuals
closes.”
First of all, few people
would want to read an article if it
is specifically about “disabled in­
dividuals.” Headlines should in­
trigue people to read the article,
not try to label people and make
readers read the article because
they feel pity. There are those
who would read this headline
and say “This doesn’t affect me”
and pass right over it.
Second, the headline
gives the article a totally new
flavor. Before the title change,
the article was full of the wonder
and the excitement of the possibil­
ity of finding a new adventure in
life. This article wasn’t about be­
ing “helped” at all. The article
wasaboutpeoplecoming together
to ski, and it’s just a fact that half
of these skiers needed some assis­
tance while skiing. All skiers had
fun not just because they might
have helped someone to ski, but
because they loved being on the
mountain and the thrill of sharing
the experience of soaring down a
white slope.
Third, the thing that is
bothering me most is the fact that
my way of phrasing terms has not
been understood. I have been try­
ing to help people see people who
have disabilities in a different light
and to think of them as people
first and their disabilities last. I
wonder if I haven’t been doing as
well a job as I thought. In the past
couple of years, there has been a
growing shift in sensitivities in
Smokers need to
move their butts
To The Editti?
I am writiniy response
to the article w|Sgn by..RjA
Jones titled “Hey'"Bud3y7'Wt
That Cigarette 0iiL” I have
been an avid smoker for the past
five years, and I am just as ap­
palled by the endless am ountsof
snubbed-outcigarette butts sBiP
tered through the campus. It’s
not that these other smokers are
purposely trying to spread litter
for others to pick up, but uncon-
sciouslytheycreatequiteamess.
All smokers should take the time,
for everyone’s sake, to find an
ashtray.
Dave Templeton
CCC Student
.ToThe Editor:
' - I'm writing to applaud Russ
Jones' article^ “He Buddy, Put
That Cigarette Out,” in the opin-
iotrsection of The Clackamas
Print, March 9,1994 edition. I
too amitek of holding my breath
every time I go through a door­
way and wading through a pile of
filters to get to my car. Maybe
they just don’t care. Perhaps the
school could come up with a fine
that would be leveled against stu­
dents (or faculty) that are caught
in the act of defacing the school
by throwing their filters on the
ground. The reasoning behind
the fine would be to help defray
the cost of keeping the campus
clean.
the way people think of people
with (Usabilities. Today, it is
proper etiquette in writing to be
aware that people come before
their disabilities. For example,
Jan, who happens to have had
cerebral palsy since birth, lives
her life as fully as possible. Also,
it is improper to use the term
“handicap;” it has the connota­
tion of some crippled, poorly-
dressed people sitting on a street
comer with caps in their hands
begging for money.
I’m writing this letter
because whenever I see the need
to educate people on the myster­
ies behind disabilities, I want to
jump right in and explain things
when I can. In future articles
concerning people with disabili­
ties, please remember my com­
ments. '
Janice Staehely
CCC Student
New reader
gives thanks:
job well done
To the Editor:
I wanted to tell you that I
enjoyed reading The Clackamas
Print. This is only the second
time I have been able to read the
school paper. I felt that there was
a lot of good information and that
the articles were exceptional. I
hope to have time in the future to
read more of what you and your
staff has to write about.
Amy McDonald
CCC Student
I just want to say I totally
I would like to commend
agree with the' article that An­ about your article by Andrea
drea Smith wrote titled, “Many Smith regarding welfare recipi­
Welfare recipients are now liv­ ents. In this ¡article she compares
ing champagne wishes and caviar social security and welfare as
dreams.” I recently wrote an being the same. I don’t quite see
essay for my sociology class the similarity. First of all the
taught by Joe Uris and had a hay large majority of welfare recipi­
day putting down the welfare ents have not spent their lives
recipients. It is true they do not contributing any tax dollars. They
deserve the non-labored money. keep receiving and not giving
The people who do work for a back. On the other -hand, those
living who are tax paying citi­ with $30,000 or more incomes
zens will agree with this cheat­ she mentions have contributed to
ing program. Instead of giving a specific fund set up by our gov­
them free money the government ernment out of each paycheck all
needs to seek to commit them­ their hard-working lives. This is
selves to the true economic needs not to say that the Social Security
of the people. Rather than give System doesn’t need closer scru­
the welfare recipients money, the tiny due to the rising problems
welfare recipients would invest and that people who have exces­
their own money into a training sive retirement plans shouldn’t
program. They would be trained take a closer look inside them­
to be productive members of the selves and realize that they prob­
workforce. These funds contrib­ ably could afford to pass up their
uted to their well being would benefits at least at this time.
come out of their own paychecks
But who would of foreseen
in payments back to the govern­ the large amount of people living
ment once trained for their per­ beyond 65 years of age? Maybe
sonal job.
it’s a case of not seeing the forest
Investments are re­ before the trees.
And before we start taking
turned money to the people and
an investmentprogram wouldn’t from the contributing members
come out of the workers' taxes. of this country lets look a little
This would produce new capital­ farther and see where there is
ism in America and new jobs for beaten tax dollar waste and cor­
the people in need of work and ruption.
the welfare system would be
Laura Fletcher Hoggatt
needed no longer.
CCC Student
Karen Rasmussen
CCC Student
Gun owner believes in
stronger gun control
I thought the person who
wrote “The Right to Bear Arms is
Infringing on Public Safety,” did
an outstanding job. This is the
first articleFye read inalong time
that actually gave both sides of the
gun control argument. I myself
am a gun owner and would never
give up my guns, but I agree with
the writer of the article, that there
Athankyouneedstogoto
Russ Jones from The Print Staff
for writing the article on smok­
ing. He presented a very accu­
rate picture of a daily occur­
rence. The dumping of used
cigarette butts, and the incon­
siderate smokers. I just hope
that a majority of those smokers
will read this article and realize
that there are many students
who feel exactly like Russ Jones.
Rosemary Dragojlovic
CCC Student
Mark Russell
CCC Student
'
Itt regard to Paul
Valencia’s article "Lomax the
'Hot crime' has gone big time
To the Editor:
I just wanted to say thank
you to J.D. Wiseman, the Public
Safety Supervisor,for writing the
article on “Carjacking has be­
come the ‘hot crime’ of the 90s.”
It seems as though this type of
crime has hit us a lot closer to
home recently, and it has made a
lot of people scared. Thanks
again for the great tips on com-
| should be better gun control laws
to
i bettef protect the public against
those
who break the law and have
I
i no regard for public safety.
Jerid Falconer
CCC Student
HatsofftoValencia
To the Editor.
To the Editor:
To the Editor:
mon-sense precautions. We all
could use a little reminder at
times, just to be on the safe side.
Anonymous
CCC Student
The Print, my hat is ofL The
article does more than report an
évent ôr carry a religious mes­
sage. It breaks down the debate
Over religion in public schools to
thc fundamental point: educa­
tional value. «
.
; ' Education ought to be
about open-mindedness and life
schools over whether to allow
prayerorevensaytheword“God”
during thepledgeofallegianceis
not the issue,
siderour country “under God”
Let the children explore the issue
rather than try to tell them what
is best Thanks foraddingibe
information about tois religious
event to your j^^. ljdehton-
strates both willingness to ^fi­
cuss these confcmnding issues
andprovidedmcwithsomevalu-
■■ able insight about an event which
hear that Ned carries the mes­ should be close to my heart'
sage to high schools and junior
Jon S. Thomason
highs aS wed as college cam­
puses. The debate in puhlic