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About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (June 7, 2006)
Clackamas Print Commentary 3 Wednesday, June 7 2006 ace off: banning pets on campus ets are health and safety azar ds, should be banned lizabeth Hitz y Clackamas Print ÿhen was the last time you stepped in poop on the Clackamas campus? You ably cussed out the irresponsible owner ï your breath while searching for a stick ¿yourself of the unwanted treasure. Here is a simple solution to a large prob- :No pets on the college campus, or at very least no unattended pets. Manycol- s already have such a policy in place. For instance, Hamilton College in New thas a policy which reads, “No dogs are Ked to roam unleashed on the campus, dogs are allowed in any college-owned ding on the campus, whether on a leash mt No dogs may be leashed (tied) to s, posts, etc. and left unattended on the pus. Owners [must] be in possession of animal at all times.” People who disre- |the policy may be fined by the college, ¡ome Oregon colleges with similar poli- are Eastern Oregon University, Lane jmunity College and Lewis & Clark ege. Vid the reason so many campuses have idy instituted anti-dog, or anti-pet poli- ? Convenience and the sake of their ents. et excrement is disgusting; no one wants t it, no one wants to smell it and no one linly wants to touch it. ¡o why should everyone on the campus I because some pet owners are irre- isible enough to let their pets roam free, » lazy to bring a pooper scooper along on the walk? Then there’s the barkers. The dogs who bark at every squirrel, moving tree branch and empty soda cup that rolls their way. Sony folks, no one likes the dog that cries wolf. It is distracting, annoying and if people wanted to hear dogs howling, they would buy a sound machine. And last but not least, there are the friendly bounders. Everyone loves it when a strange large dog comes bounding up and gives a friendly bear-hug, muddy paws and all. Not only does this ruin clothing, it is extremely rude, and possibly frightening. Some people are scared of dogs; why should they have to undergo trauma because of some pet owners who are too lazy to leash their pets or take them to a dog park? The problem has a solution. We need action. We need a united campus will ing to crack down on pet owners and say, “Leash your pets. Be respon sible, or don’t bring them on cam pus.” Because in this case, one man’s unscooped pet poop is not another man’s treasure. III Forget banning pets; consider this alternative • • • Mattle Vogt The Clackamas Print Note to the reader: The following is an account of a recent conversation on campus. Due to the sensitive nature of the topic, names have been changed to protect the identity of the participants. We all knew it was inevitable. I called together a group of my friends. ‘We have to make a stand,” I said. “Those of us who’ve been around the college for awhile have seen what can happen, and it’s got ten out of hand.” “But is it fair to penalize them all just because a few of them are unruly?” Reggie asked. “Good point,” said Sam. “Why don’t we just ban the bad ones?” This group is intellectual and intuitive. They’re not easily con vinced. “Someone has to say it out loud,” I said. Silence throughout the group. ‘ We need a Human Policy.” Audible gasp. “Do you really think we need to be that extreme?” asked Toby. ‘T know it seems cruel,” I said, “but we have to keep them out of the buildings.” Another collective gasp. “Just look at the feds,” I continued. “Other colleges have done this with positive resulls.” fter three years, goodbye Clackamas tn Maras ir-in-Chief is 1 sit here a mere week before graduation with my three year at Clackamas and on the news- r staff coming to an end, I am inded of a dream that was once ritome: lie dreamer was a rock lying at bottom of the Marianas Trench those who were asleep during science sequence, the deepest of the Pacific Ocean). It was dark cold, as the bottom of an ocean Is to be. and things stayed like that i long, long time. Day after day ¡couple million years he sat in the and sanci. with nowhere to go. tnally. one day he experienced j sensation - he could see light e him. After a couple thousand ¡years he could see the feint oe of the sun hovering above the k of the water. He then real- l±at he was being slowly pushed I and closer to the surface. bousands of more years went uoxing an unnoticeable amount ids the surface. He sat waiting nd hanging on to the moment in :h he would be free, because face ¡didn’t have much else to do. lien one day, a couple hundred lies after he first noticed the • i’ could feel the waves breaking r him and he felt the warmth of the Then finally, after what seemed Clackamas Print ffOO S. Molalla Ave. freson City, OR 97045 73 657-6958 ex. 2309 ■-i Cuu n, Prmt - a weekly indent publication and is ' Wednesday exce&£< finals week. like (and probably was) eons, he lay on the beach basking in the warm sun and the soft sand, thankful to be free from the icy darkness he had known his whole life. But just then some little snot-nosed kid came running by and picked him up and skipped him back out into the ocean. This, ladies and gentlemen, is what I feel like right now. Even as one who loves the aca demic environment, I can definitely relate to the rock in this parable. After surviving high school, and complet ing an AAOT at Clackamas, I am being pitched out into the big ocean of a university, to immerse myself in the true “college experience,” the famed time of personal enlightenment in which we truly expand our minds and embrace everything we are capable of But I recently realized that I have been fooling myself. The “college experience” is not a goal but a journey, and that journey is now. There is no sitting around waiting for wisdom to come to you - academia is not a spectator sport The difference between Clackamas and a large universify is not the qual ify of the education, but how easily a quality education is accessible. Rather than paying several thousand dollars to be assigned the great works of aca demia, a couple dollars in interlibrary loans would suffice in bringing the wisdom right to you Similarly to exercising the body, exercising the mind only requires a will. Sure a several-hundred-dollar Chuck Norris™ Uber-Flex-Body- Sculpting-System makes getting into shape easier, but for a little bit more effort all one needs is a road and a pair of decent shoes to achieve the same results. We are even given the privilege here of having our own personal train ers, willing to provide us with any information they possess - if we only take advantage of them. The biggest mistake anyone can make here is selling the instructors - or themselves -short. I especially owe both Linda Vogt (adviser for Print) and Dean Darris (political science instructor) a huge debt of gratitude. Along with other Clackamas instructors they have taught me a great deal about myself, and made me realize that I ultimately want to teach and pass on to others what they have nurtured in me. This campus is filled with brilliant, first- rate people - don’t let the opportunity to leech from them pass you by. So my brethren, as I say my good byes to the place that has been my home for three years and the people who have surrounded me, I hope that everyone can seize the day, dare to get excited about something, make their own college experience. In closing, I can think of nothing better than to quote journalism great Edward R Murrow: Good night, and good luck. E ditor - in -C hief : Ben Maras C opy E ditors : Katie Weinberg, E. E. A d A ssistant : Helen Conley S taff W riters : Derek Erickson, West Justin Goe, Elizabeth Hitz, Frank Jordan, Mike Kimberling, Megan Koler, Adam J. Manley, Matthew Olson, Kyle Steele, David Stark, N. P. Delzell, Helen Conley N ews E ditor : Katie Wilson C ommentary E ditor : Laura Cameron F eature E ditor : C. J. Ciaramella S ports E ditor : Mike Guidice A&E E ditor : Tayo Stalnaker P hoto E ditor : Jeff Sorensen A d M anager : Sam Krause P roduction A ssistants : Adam J. Manley, Kim Maier, Elizabeth I ‘Like what?” asked Max. ‘Well, since they instituted a Human Policy at one college back East, no one throws papers or other garbage on the floor anymore or spills coffee on the new carpets.” “That’s not that big a deal,” said Chloe. “Sure, I suppose,” I said. “But there’s more.” All waited, anticipating. “Truth is, we need to keep them out of the buildings because so many of the grown-up ones just aren’t as kind as we are. In feet.. . sometimes they’re mean. They call each other names. They make fun of some of their own kind.” Everyone looked disappointed. “Poor humans,” said Buffy. “And some of them say things that aren’t trae,” Toby added. “They say bad words out loui They do things to make each other cry!’? “Aack!” said Buddy. “That’s just wrong.” ‘No kidding,” said Rudy. “We’ve tried to model unconditional love, positive spirit and unending devotion, but they aren’t quite as evolved as we are.” Many nodded agreement. “That’s why,” I continued, “we have to take this drastic measure.” “And what will they do, then?” asked Chip, meekly. “Wander around outside in the rain, I guess,” I replied. “Seems cruel, but it’s the only answer.” Everyone was quiet. We all felt so sorry for them. But I knew I had to puM>nrLMF “All in favor of the motion adopting the Human Policy raise a paw,” I said.. I Motion passed. Graduation ain’t mutilation I. E. West The Clackamas Print Editor’s note: The follow ing story contains graphic accounts of traditional rituals. Reader discretion is advised. Graduations are rarely fun affairs. Crowds of people, boring speeches and a laundry list of graduates are just a few of the mind-numbing elements that make graduations as fun as watching turtles mate. So I understand when grad uating students, most of them young adults, say they’d rather drink a bucket of broken glass than sit through a graduation ceremony. But consider this: at least our rites of passage are only traumatic in that sit- ting-through-your-aunt-and- uncle ’s-slideshow-of-their- trip-to-Branson-Missouri sort of way. Some cultures don’t let their young adults’ off so easy. Many traditional societ ies around the world perform body modification rituals as their young “graduate.” Scarification, tattooing and circumcision (both male and female) are fairly common. Certain aboriginal tribes in Hitz, Chris Anderson, David Stark P hotographers : Adam J. Manley, Lara Hedbor, Elizabeth Hitz, Matt Olson, N. P. Delzell D epartment A dvisor : Linda Vogt D epartment A ssistant . Chris Hermel Australia perform a rite known as a subincision, in which ado lescent boys are given a deep slit along the underside of their penises while bull-roar ers hum and the tribe’s women wail in the distance. And that’s one of the less disturbing rituals. The ancient Greeks encour aged pederasty between young boys and prominent men as part of the boys’ coming-up. The notorious Etoro tribe of Papua New Guinea believe that young men can only become sexually mature by perform ing fellatio on the grown men. Other rites of passage can involve everything from sus pending the bodies of adoles cents by hooks to ritual can nibalism. Growing up is never easy. It can often be a traumatic experience maturing from one role, one “life,” to another. Perhaps the reason coming-of- age ceremonies and other rites of passage are often painful is to reflect this universal experi ence of pain symbolically. So the next time that par ents or friends pressure you to don the cap and gown, keep heart; at least your genitals are still intact. G oals : The C lackamas Print aims to report the news in an honest, unbiased, professional manner. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the stu dent body college administration, its faculty or The Print. E-mail comments to chiefed@clackamas. edu.
