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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (April 30, 2003)
4 D ^^ÍÍÍÍÍ$%SÍ>%ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ$ÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ The Clackamas Print WK WK Editor-in-Chief/ Copy Editor Shodra Beesley News Editor/ Assistant Copy Editor Tina Tate Opinion Editor Cyndee Mady Feature Editor Elisabeth Meyer A&E Editor Pete Ford Sports Editor Elena Boryska Co-Photo Editor Robb Egan Co-Photo Editor Cory Price . Webmaster Joel Gaynor Advertising Manager Mark Falling ext. 2578 Staff Writers: Marvin Baker * Isaiah Creel Nic Delzell * Jared Eschweiler Bekah Finch * Karen Hill Noah Holland * Frank Jordan Sadie McCarthy Production Assistants: Matt Baker * Heather Dolson Katie Funk * David Kolibaba Andy Price Adviser: Linda Vogt Secretary: JoAnne Gale The Clackamas Print is distributed every Wednesday except during finals week. The Clackamas Print * Copyright 2003. 19600 S. Molalla Ave. Oregon City, Oregon 97045 (503) 657-6958 X2309 cccprint@clackamas.edu http ://www2 .clackamas. edu/thepri nt April 30, 200 Stop sniveling, start saluting I tnink I’m just tain that no weapons of mass destruction are left. about sick of all On one hand, I can see why France would be a lit the pseudo-intel- tle skittish In their foreign policy; to the best of • lectual America my knowledge they are the only country that has bashing of late. come close to losing a war with Greenpeace. I I’ve heard guess it’s important for a nation to take a firm everything from stance against any potential aggressor after having students here your ass handed to you by Keiko’s fan club. talking revolu On the other end of this vacillating duo, we tion while—wait have Vladimir Putin and co., the same men who ing in line to pick brought you the Kursk disaster. This is the up their financial Leadership that lost a five hundred foot subma aid checks, to “peace” protesters advocating vio rine in two hundred feet of water because he did lence on the five o’clock news in order to force a n’t wish to appear weak in front of his country halt to the war in Iraq. men by asking the West for help. In the end, a I remember watching war protestors on televi Norwegian salvage crew accomplished in 12 sion, and I was amazed at how Portland police hours what his own Navy couldn’t in several coddled their little traffic-blocking behinds. It’s days. Don’t get me wrong, our very own “W.” like they were running a catch and release pro has some shortcomings, but the most that stands gram that week. You know what halted the war? out in my mind is when the guy tried waving at 300,000 buzz cut, Oakley sunglass wearing, Iowa Stevie Wonder. com-fed California vegetarian east coast gang- Following suit in the slamming of America, ster-rappin’ attitude infected stereo bumpin’ hogs and more painfully so, would be our lovely neigh rolling into Baghdad astride seventy ton tanks bors to the north, Canada, booing and jeering our with nicknames like Anger Management. hockey players and national anthem. Is that any Now, France and Russia want to keep the UN way to treat your landlord? sanctions against Iraq in place until they are cer- To quote a famous comedian, “Canada is like One million dollars wasted on babysitting Enough Portland citi zens threat ened to hold anti-war ral lies if our country invaded Iraq that city offi Cyndee Mady cials set Opinion Editor aside a budg et of a half a million dollars in anticipation of the tribulations that assuredly lay ahead. Little did they know, that figure would double. On an April 15 broadcast of KATU news, Mayor Vera Katz announced that the recent anti war protests inundating Portland’s downtown streets cost the city about a million in police over time dollars. This dollar amount, according to Katz, was for the duration of March 19 to April 9 t a mere 22 days! Katu interviewed several Portland residents who all seemed to be of the opinion that if speak ing out for what they believe, and standing up for their right to freedom of speech means that the city’s budget takes a loss, then it was money well spent. These people represent a small percentage of Oregon’s population. Since the opposing view point was overlooked, allow me to take a stance in honor of my fellow citizens who might also think that the one million dollars wasted babysitting overgrown children throwing tantrums because they didn’t get their way is not a productive use of our tax dollars. Private club scores complaints “I’m proud to be in a country where I’m free to express myself, but freedom is a two-way street. If I’m free to express myself, then the scouts Robb Egan have to be free to Staff Writer express them selves, too. No matter how wrong we think they might be, it isn’t right for us to force them to think our way. It’s up to us to persuade and help them to see the light, not extort them to.” — Big Gay Al, South Park. Recently Augusta National, a private golf club that runs the Masters tournament as part of the PGA Tour, has come under heavy fire from members of the LPGA and the National Council of Women’s Organizations, who feel its admission standard is sexist because it only allows male members. This is, of course, ridiculous and irrelevant. They have brought legal and polit ical pressure up on the club and its sponsors to the extent that Augusta has dropped all sponsors for the Masters rather than face corporate pressure. Women argue for sexual equal ity, spouting the same feminist doctrine they’ve been using since the suffrage movement, and yet MICHAEL WEIR 2003 seldom (if ever) do you see them protesting or suing an all-female organization. There are many schools, univer sities, clubs, etc. that allow only women into their ranks. Where is the equality there? What about the LPGA, which only allows women who were bom female to join, barring anyone who might have made the swap at a later time? So, while a man who makes the choice to become a woman will, in the eyes of the law and popular society, henceforth be considered female, she still can’t play golf with the other ladies. And yet many of the women protesting for admission into the Masters are members of this same organization, an organ ization with a sexist and discriminatory admission policy. Hypocrisy, anyone? And here I thought dou ble standards supposedly worked in a man’s favor, The freedom to express yourself without fear of persecution is the prevail ing principle that our country was found ed on, but what so few people realize, or will admit to, is that even those views which might not be fair, which might hearken back to an era of prej udice and oppression, are as protect ed as those that might be more popu lar or politically correct. We live in a great age, where intolerance and big otry is condemned by the masses, and where peoples of all backgrounds are theoretically equal in the eyes of the law. Tolerance and equality should be achieved through education and under standing, not through the liberal application of political and financial Champion pressure. Do you have something to shout about? Letters to the editor are always welcome. Drop letters by B-l 04 or send to cccprint@clackamas.edu ....... a loft apartment over a really great party. They’re always yelling at us, “keep it down, eh! and then dropping by out of the blue to borrow! few tons of fish. I understand world politics and the comin| aftermath of this war are far more complicate! than I could hope to detail in my own limited waj What I am hoping to point out is this: it is ver] easy to criticize when it’s not you on the line mak ing the calls for what is hoped to be the greate good. The men in power, of most any nation, di< not gerthere through stupidity. And, in this coun try, many people have issues with the man wh< was given greatness as a graduation gift For al Americans, the voice of protest and the spirit oi debate are cornerstones of this nation (excep maybe Ashcroft). So, while you’re hashing out the best way to infiltrate the capital with a couple of friends over your recreational drug of choice, keep in mind that in this country a man like myself can commit a felony, pay the price and reenter society as a col lege student - a privilege in many countries - and receive monetary aid from the very same govern ment that sanctioned me just four short years ago That’s a small piece of what I feel makes this country, and it’s leadership, worth supporting. 1 ■ —- » Ironically, this information was delivered on April 15 when everyone was scurrying to meet tax-day deadlines, emphasizing the impact of the exorbitant blow to our city’s budget, and how it might affect our future tax dollars. Mayor Katz assured viewers that “they will cut comers” in other areas to compensate for their budget shortfall, but failed to mention where these cutbacks might come from. Exercising your freedom of speech does not justify these expenditures, and it infuriates me that so many people can take such a nonchalant attitude when Oregon’s economy is still in jeop ardy. It is a sad day in our community when threats coming from our own citizens cause emotional and financial turmoil for the very people who are trying to protect them. Grow up and start whining Shadra Beesley Editor-in-Chief/ Copy Editor It is a little-known fact that if your car breaks down on a Saturday morning and you leave it on the side of the road after calling your room mate and dragging her out of bed to give you a ride to work, by the fol lowing Monday around 3 p.m when you drive the truck you borrowed from your cousin past the spot where you left your car, it will be gone. It is also a little-known fact that all you have to do to retrieve your vehicle is call your neighborhood police department, and they will tell you which money-grubbing towing company was kind enough to take possession of your vehicle for you. When I first discovered that the vehicle which had faithfully and reli ably left me stranded every few weeks (when I was on my way to something very important) had been taken into the custody of the great county of Clackamas, I was relieved. However, my celebration period was cut short after I spoke to the Owner of the towing company, which I will protect the name of by refer ring to it as “Seventh Circle of Hell Towing,” and he told me that if I wanted to give him my car I had to pay $50 for the privilege and sign the title of my car over; otherwise he’d send a collections agency after me. Oh, and could I please bring down the face plate to my stereo so he could take possession of that along with my mortal soul? “It’s part of the lien,” Mr. Hell said when I informed him that I would most definitely be taking my stereo with me in the event that I made it to the “Seventh Circle of Hell.” After doing some extensive “research” (a.k.a. crying to daddy), I was absolutely positive that I still knew nothing about the laws surrounding “hens.” But I also knew that it was my right as an American citizen to bitch and whine until I got what I wanted. The details of the negotiations that took place in the days that fol lowed are unimportant. Suffice it to say that our conversa tion ended with Mr. Hell telling me, “You must have misunderstood me,” and that he had said I could take my stereo in the first place, which proves two things: 1. The male ego never quits, and 2. Grown-ups can get what they want by whining, too.
