The Rattler (San Antonio, Tex.), Vol. 94, No. 11, Ed. 1 Wednesday, April 18, 2007 Page: 13 of 16
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_Commentary_
April 18, 2007 The Rattler ^ www.stmarytx.edu/rattler 13
Bush on right track, global
warming myth disproved
Raul
Tijerina
Many liberals seem to always
concern themselves with trivial
matters such as war and poverty.
This is silly
because we are
winning the war
on terror, and the
poor are just lazy.
Liberals have
also made it a
point to dog our
president over the
environment as if he were not an
avid outdoorsman.
How many presidents do you
know who cut wood on their
ranches? He is clearly a man of
nature as well as a man of God.
To gain credibility as a nature
lover and a man of God, President
Bush brought us an unseasonable
cold snap to disprove the global
warming myth. Some of you may
think it was just a coincidence, but
we on the right know better.
It is only by serving our cause,
which is pro-life (except for
criminals), that anyone can hope
to have any pull with God.
In the beginning of this term,
he said he had political capital and
planned to use it—if only he had
some power over gas prices. That
could only happen if he came from
some sort of wealthy family that is
connected with oil interests, which
isn't our down-to-earth cowboy.
For those of us who have earned
it, crank up those Hummers. With
George on the watch, the United
States has no warming concerns
for the future. Eat that, Gore.
God bless America.
Adolescents’ disrespect increasingly apparent
I walked into Starbucks one day,
not expected anything interesting
to occur, but it
just so happened
that my eyes
were opened to a
growing problem
that we have.
Nancy 1 was waiting
Perez on the other side
of the counter for
my order along with a young girl
and her grandmother, who had
bought her a drink. The girl took a
sip, made a face and immediately
started yelling at her grandmother
in dissatisfaction and disgust.
I remember hearing her say
something like, "What is this? This
isn't what I ordered, Grandma!"
She was clearly upset.
Her grandmother responded
that she thought it had been the
drink her granddaughter had
wanted, and she didn't want to
waste it.
The child replied, "Well, I'm
not going to drink it. You drink it,
and buy me another one." I don't
remember much else but other
rude comments from her.
I knew that if the young girl had
been me, my parents would have
slapped me and then punished me
for such disrespect.
I've noticed that children are
starting to lose respect for their
parents, who have no idea where
to draw the line between abuse
and discipline.
They are also learning how to
disrespect friends, other family
members and themselves. If you
can't even get children to respect
their elders, how can we expect
them to have respect for others?
I think we live in a society
where we want our problems
to be solved as soon as possible.
Instead of struggling to discipline
children, we give in to them, often
by buying them things they don't
need or don't deserve.
If we let this continue, we will
end up in a society with little
morals and hardly any respect. It
seems to me that more children
every year are diagnosed with
a behavioral disorder caused by
their parents' negligence.
Children aren't meant to bring
up themselves, and we seem to
make the mistake of forgetting
that. We try to treat them as if they
are young adults ith the capability
of making mature deciscions.
When they reach adolescence,
their respect has already flown out
the window, and we can't obtain
something we didn't implement
from the beginning.
Late writer provided honest, sardonic oudook
"A tired man has finally left the world. It's about
time. Kurt Vonnegut is dead, so it goes."
I am sure that is how Kurt Vonnegut would have
written his own announcement,
wrought with cynicism and straight
to the point.
However, Americans should
mourn, not only for the loss of a
voice of reason, but also for the state
of North American literature.
Kurt Vonnegut was an intelligent
and talented man. He addressed
important global issues while
reflecting upon how they affected the individual at
the same time.
I can honestly say that Cat's Cradle, Time Quake
and Slaughter House Five changed the way I look at
the world. Kurt Vonnegut's sardonic honesty, critical
dark humor and potent cynicism are some of the
qualities that I aspire towards as a writer.
Literature and readership in the United States are
sadly declining. The majority of books on the lists
of top sellers are ridiculously simple in thought and
execution. Though "best sellers," they are generally
inconsequential and largely sensationalized.
American writers lack the blunt honesty that is
necessary to comment on and evaluate American
society. Instead, they focus on controversy in order to
capture the vapid American audience's attention.
By controversy, I mean that Americans became
obsessed with the claim that Christ had a wife and
family, not that books were banned because the
government feared radical or revolutionary content.
Vonnegut recently published a short collection of
essays, A Man Without a Country, regarding current
events, despite his previous declaration that he
would never write again. World events, the war and
politics disgusted him so much that he could not
remain quiet any longer.
A Man Without a Countnj contained Vonnegut's
final words for the world: "My last words? 'Life is no
way to treat an animal, not even a mouse.'"
Dominique
Vargas
Time to decide fate of shock jock’s career
Whenever a celebrity utters a
racial epithet, there is an inevitable
cycle that follows.
First, there's the
lightning-speed
distribution of the
latest nugget of
water cooler talk
on the newswire,
detailing the
infamous
utterance of
intolerable dribble. Then, there
is the overwhelming exercise of
punditry by public figures, ranging
from the "Best Week Ever" panel
to presidential spokespeople.
This public condemnation is
invariably followed by a visit to
either Rev. Jesse Jackson's or Rev.
A1 Sharpton's radio show, as this
appearance is sure to redeem
them in the eyes of an entire race.
The cable television talking
heads take on the role of
soothsayer, predicting the fate of
the celebrity's career. Will anyone
ever consider casting them again,
especially in "Jew-dominated
Hollywood?" How will DVD
sales fare after this?
This cycle is now applicable to
Don Imus, the 103-year-old shock
jock, once rival to Howard Stern.
Much speculation has risen
about what this latest racial
slur, "nappy-headed hoes," will
do to the DJ, who has a widely
syndicated show on CBS Radio,
which was also aired on MSNBC
until the network yanked "Imus
in the Morning" from its lineup.
This corporate slap on the wrist
will hit Imus where it hurts, but
what does the outburst say about
race relations in America today?
Those who have chronicled
Imus' statements point out
his numerous slams against
minorities, women and
homosexuals throughout his
prosperous career.
Perhaps his listeners accepted
these remarks as part of the
so-called edgy reputation of
his show's content, including
statements calling Patrick Ewing
a "knuckle-dragging moron," and
calling the Jewish management at
CBS "money-grubbing bastards"
Will he be remembered for his
careers, or will he be remembered
as a racist like baseball legend
Ty Cobb, who even had racist
sentiments toward other whites
such as Babe Ruth?
Only time will tell. In the
meantime, the slap on the wrist
just might sting enough.
Elizabeth
Ruiz
Reality TV a guilty pleasure
Low-quality programs draw in followers.
Gwendolyn
Guerrero
I am obsessed with reality—no,
not the reality you and I live in. I'm
obsessed with the reality in which
there are little to
no consequences
for our actions,
and there are
endless zeroes in
my bank account.
I fixate on the
reality in which
_ L.C., Kristin and
seven people
picked to live in a house exist.
I watch them
on Mondays,
Tuesdays and
Saturdays when
there are all-day
marathons. I even
read recaps of my
beloved reality shows on Web sites
like televisionwithoutpity.com or
my new favorite, tvgasm.com.
The funny thing is that snarky
writers on these Web sites pull
shows like Laguna Beach or The
Hills and their subjects apart just
as I do in my mind when I am
watching them. Yet, they also write
about them with a certain amount
of adoration and appreciation.
Perhaps we appreciate the
endless amounts of entertainment
these shows provide, or maybe
people like me just like an escape
into someone else's reality.
Usually, the lives of the
"everyday" people whom we are
allowed to glimpse happen to be
upper class and coincidentally (but
not surprisingly) carefree. Well,
that's not completely fair; there
are the usual dramas of teen angst
and high school circumstances.
In shows like Laguna Beach or
Two-A-Days, we rarely see students
"...maybe people like me
just like an escape into
someone else's reality."
actually attending classes or doing
anything school-related, other
than the obligatory homecoming
or prom.
It's like spotting the Loch
Ness monster if you catch these
kids doing homework or group
projects, but viewers like me don't
tune in weekly to see our reality
stars doing normal teen activities.
No, we tune in to see their million-
dollar residences and oversized
and overpriced sunglasses.
I know what all of this says
about these
15-minute
celebrities. Marx
would call their
thousand-dollar
handbags and
high heels class
markers and prime examples of
conspicuous consumption.
Watch any installment of "My
Super Sweet Sixteen," and you
will see that these girls, although
they are of different nationalities
and skin colors, inevitably have
the same Tiffany heart necklaces
with matching bracelets as well as
the same "give it to me" attitude.
Their parents, who are all too
eager to show the world just how
far they've gone to make their little
girls' dreams come true, reinforce
these attitudes.
How sad is must be to sincerely
believe that only the best fathers
buy their little girls brand new
sports cars.
What does the popularity of
programs like these say about us,
the viewers?
Although I sit and watch in
disgust, I continually sit and watch
nonetheless.
Say What?
What is your favorite Fiesta
event and why?
COMPILED BY FRANCHESCA WEAVER
"NIOSA [because] I
like the environ ment
of the area with the
River Walk steps and
Market Square."
Dionicio Perez
Sophomore, English/communication arts
"The night parade
because afterward is
the carnival."
Eva Infante
Freshman, accounting
"NIOSA because of
all the great food and
various activities."
Colby Wilson
Freshman, business
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St. Mary's University (San Antonio, Tex.). The Rattler (San Antonio, Tex.), Vol. 94, No. 11, Ed. 1 Wednesday, April 18, 2007, newspaper, April 18, 2007; San Antonio, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1048487/m1/13/?q=%22~1%22~1: accessed August 15, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting St. Mary's University Louis J. Blume Library.