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Wednesday, May 8, 2002 - Page 4 COMMENTARY 'The fun police" at it again New name announcement Michael Cubbage expresses his to OUf campus and starting fights. Mayb planned in poor form distaste for bullying behavior of dealing with these situations is just a litt! campus safety officers. bit too much for "the fun police" to handle The date is looming near. Your heart and care about it the most-alumni, students, They even go as far as to search our bag, After a year spent at Western Maryland as we walk across campus. I myself, as wei pounds with anticipation, sweat beading on parents, faculty, administration, staff, and your forehead. Yes, that's right. It is time friend-should be first to hear the news." ollege, it has become obvious to me that as many of my friends have been the vic for the unveiling of the new college name. Funny, the whole proposition of the ampu~Safety is nothing more tban theste- tirns of such unnecessary searches. Some 0 Yourresponse? Took them long enough! . name change was broken to a random few eotypical school bully. I have yet to attend us have night classes and it is common prac Fabuloustiming, I must say,since the day over January term when more than half of campus party this year without "the fun tice to keep OUf books in our backpacks of the announcement is to take place on the the student body and many of the faculty lice," as they are so passionately called Those of us who are athletes also carry bag last day of classes before finals on a Friday were still on their winter break. I suppose y a majority of the student populous, show- from practice. Yet. for some reason th night. How convenient. they could be grouped into the category ng up to end our fun. squareness of our bags seems to resembl This tends to be the reply from student "those who know the college least and care They must fantasize about being real "12 packs of beer" or some other alcoholi about it the least." Otherwise, why not wait olice officers, or better yet, Sherlock container. Now I don't know about every until the beginning of the spring semester olmes. Maybe they plan to write a book one else, but I'm pretty sure that most book when they could spring the news on every- bout the adventures they've had breaking are in the shape of a rectangle. one at the same time? p college parties. It's simply ridiculous that student At this point, not only am Ibored to tears Anyway, it's absurd that college students should have to worry about being searched with this whole drawn-out ploy to put our hould be worried about receiving citations interrogated, and harassed as we cross cam college on the map, but I am almost to the rrisking arrest every timetbey go toa party pus. point that I no longer care. After entering n the weekend to blow off steam. Without When Itell my friends from other school Western Maryland College in the Fall of outlet to let loose, the pressures we stu- about our Campus Safety they have a har 2000, a college that prides itself upon its ents endure would cause us to break down. time believing that these things go on here "heritage, distinction, clarity, etc.," as the Partly due to this, students have resorted I have also visited many other campuses an letter states, I assumed that such heritage o going off campus to attend parties and so- never had a negative experience with thei would remain intact, at the very least ial gatherings. Yet,whom do we see show- Campus Safety, which in most cases are rea throughout thefour shortyearsI would spend ng up as if it were a campus event? You police officers that patrol the campus. I be here. uessed it. "The fun police" are even leav, lieve it is the general consensus of the stu Erin A. Romanski Now, I am disheartened to realize that I ng the campus and coming into off-campus dent body,at leastof all thosethat I've talke will no longer be able to refer to this college ouses and private residences. They feel it to, that Campus Safety is on a power trip. and faculty alike after receiving the an- as Western Maryland; instead, my fond re- s necessary to alert the Westminster Police 1understand that there are a few Campu nouncement by President Coley either flections will be substituted with "The Col- epartment to the "outrageous" behavior Safety officers that are Westminster Polic through e-mail, campus mail, or both, that lege Formerly Known as Western Mary- oing on in their town. officers as well. But it has always been m the Board of Trustees have come to a final land." Hmm ... kinda catchy. In fact this past Saturday night, Apr. 20, understanding that once someone puts th decision regarding the name change. Hav- I am not going to even begin to assume ey entered a private house party. The word WMC Campus Safety uniform on they wor ing had a solid three months to debate this that this new name is going to be so awe in- ouod campus isthat about45 citations were for Western Maryland College. And I be topic, many suspectthat the choice was made spiring that not only will a hush fall over the ssued. Is this truly necessary? It has always lieve it is the money we spend to come he much earlier than we have been told. crowd at 8:30 p.m. on Friday May 10, but n my understanding that the priority of that pays their salary. I think its about tim As usual, however, we as mere wander- that the mass media will be jumping on top e Campus Safety officers is to keep the Campus Safety realizes that they're here fa ing bodieson thiscampus are kept in the dark of each other to get the news out first. Me students safe. our protection rather than to harass us an until the last possible moment. Just when Let's face it people. Weare a private lib- While Campus Safery is out busting up make us feel as if we can't live our lives a. you thought you couldn't handle the sus- eral arts college squished in the boonies of artles, there are people breaking into college students. pense anymore, you realized the reason you Maryland and the rest of the nation is hardly iteford. WhileCampus Safety isout bust- -Mlchael Cubbage is a freshman were so bothered by this in the first place on the edge of their seats awaiting the name ng up parties, non-students are coming on psychology major. really had nothing t.o do with the name unveiling. More than likely,they are saying to them- Children are affected by change itself ataU. Rather, it has everything selves "wonder what those upper-middle to do with the manner in which the situation class undergrads are going to have to put up was handled and revealed to us in general. What irks me most is this: the letter their working mothers stated, "1join the Board of Trustees in be- with next. Boo hoc." -Erin Romanski is a sophomore lieving that those who know the college best English major. Lindsay Hicks reflects on her ference inchildren'sbehavior now compared ews is a childish circus reading of adolescent behavior in to when you were young; the decrease in The problem with these shows is that th Goldberg's bestseller. quality of life is clear. However, as we get Colby Goodrum proposes that people appearing on them are extreme! intocountlessconversations about how much In the #1 New York Times Bestseller, worse kids are today, do we ever really con- news shows present rudeness of rude. Bias, Bernard Goldberg reveals the inside sider the powerful influence we will have society. The guests banter back and forth at eac scoop on liberal bias in the media. While on them in the future? After the recent arrest of Robert Blake other, none of them being able (0 get our : the entire book is very entertaining and will We all pay this enormously expensive or the murder of his wife, CNN posed the complete thought without being interrupte forever change the way I watch the news, tuition at WMC to prepare for a career that ind-probing question to its viewers of by the opposition. no argument sparked my interest more than we hopefully will love; however, many of hether or not the trial was going to be the These types of shows do not inform th one about the negative affect working moth- .;us fail to consider what will happen to the edia circus that the OJ. Simpson trail was. public because you become so distracted b ers have on their children. quality of life in America when we all go to H appears to me that the fine question the guests' childish display that you turn 0 It was not the false images and left-wing work. ynthesizers at CNN achieved the answer the TV, feeling more annoyed than enlight tilt used by the media that brought me such Sure times are changing, but not all for hat they were looking for by merely asking ened. I believe the cause for this type or pro horror, but some of the statistics included in the better. As Goldberg discusses in this he question. Obviously if you make a big gram is the 24-hour news station. the chapter. The suicide rates for girls from chapter of his book, many Americans think eal of a particular murder case, it will be- There is simply not enough that happen ages ten to fourteen went up twenty-seven that having a two-income household will ome a media circus. in one day that can be determined news wor percent from 1979 to 1988 and for boys it lead to a better life for their children and The issue with Robert Blake is not the thy to fill up the allotted time, so the net went up a startling seventy-one percent. themselves. There is no doubt that having nly instance of cable news stations grasp- works have to pollute their stations with non These statistics are included in Goldberg's two incomes will make it easier when it ng for things to put on the air. There are a sense shows. discussion of what TV news has labeled, comes time to pay for college tuition and all est of other so-called "news shows" that I am sure that such shows will not ceas "home-alone America." Another study done other expenses, but how does one balance eserve to be placed more in the category of to be found on CNN and FOX, becaus on about 5,000 eighth grade students and the importance of being at home for our chil- erry Springerthan anythingremotelyresem- people do watch them. Whether it isbecaus their parents indicates that the children who dren with this desire to work full-time? lingsomething worthwhile and informative they think they are informative, or becaus were home alone for eleven or more hours a Many might say we are too young to be o the American public. the peopleanger them so muchtheyjust wan week were three times more likely than other giving thought to having a family, however I A few shows that come to mind are: to find out how stupid they really are, Idon' children to abuse alcohol, tobacco or mari- I know that next time I sit around and talk rossfire, The O'Reilly Factor, and Talk really know. juana. about how I hope my kids aren't like that I ack Live. The problem with these shows For everything that such shows can Basically, the book parallels the de- will understand that I have more influence s not that they have people on the shows classified as, from a waste of time to laugh crease in quality of life for growing children in the way they turn out than I ever realized. hat debate each others' positions, because able, one thing they cannot be classified a to the increase of working mothers in very news show does that to see both sides is news. America. -Lindsay Hicks is a freshman f the story (although American news does -Colby Goodrum is a junior Just go home and take a look at the dif- communications major. end to be incredibly biased). philosophy-English major.