The Bucknellian

Dylan Yuska

Contributing Writer

I’d like to use this bit of space to send a big shout out to the local police for their diligent and productive policing. Some may despise them for being overzealous, but no one can deny their skills in pumping out underage citations, and that it is truly admirable. Their ability to track and breathalyze loud or stumbling students is unparalleled. Never mind the fact that the sidewalks have not been redone since ’Nam, all of that tax money should just keep flowing to the police department to fund its supercharged cars. It’s clear that it needs them since so many students need to be driven back to their dorms. A simple Crown Victoria just will not do!

We have been a disruption to this fine police force for too long. We the students need to start taking simple steps to make the local police department’s job easier. This crisis needs to stop, and it falls on us to sacrifice our personal liberties. This is what I propose. Since local police clearly care about our well-being so much, we should help them identify anyone who is at risk off-campus. Every major party night, student-run breathalyzer stations will be set up on all major corners along Sxith and Seventh Street. Everyone is subject to being stopped and breathalyzed. Students must carry proper identification at all times so underage students can’t hide. Windows must not be blocked so police can immediately break up any gathering before it turns into a party. These simple and reasonable steps will only help make the University the most sober campus in the country, since the local police think this is the right strategy! Once police put pesky college kids in their place, they can finally spend time doing more important things, like, I don’t know, maybe cracking down on the growing meth problem in central Pennsylvania, stopping lunatics from carrying guns on the streets, or maybe even setting up DUI checkpoints on Route 15. But hey, at least they’re hunting kids down who consume a few drinks, then safely walk home. That’s a very important job.

Now, more than ever, the University’s students have the opportunity to graduate with not just a great education, wonderful friends, and permanent memories, but also a criminal record. I’m sure we can all sympathize with the police since underage drinking is such an epidemic for the town. I can’t even imagine a grown person having a few beers and laughs, then walking back to their room. This tragedy must be stopped and there is no one better at it than our local police.

All jokes aside, I do make major concessions. We as University students need to take steps to be safer. I like going out as much as most of this campus does, but hospitalizations for excess drinking and vandalization of residential properties are serious problems. That being said, if local police are truly concerned for our well-being, then they must realize that busting every party and stopping every student on Friday nights is not the solution. Fixing this problem will require both sides to come together to make a reasonable agreement. In our modern day society, and especially on a college campus, citing every person who reeks of beer is ridiculous. Let us be hung over and let us make regrettable decisions, because the best way to learn is through experience. Having big brother demand us not to do something is not the solution. It only makes everyone’s lives tougher. Unfortunately, cops and students are in the same boat. A storm is brewing on the horizon and we must change course now.

Justin Marinelli

Writer

I must admit, the news that Summit House (also known as the LGBT affinity house) will now be able to throw registers came as a bit of a shock to me. I’m very interested in seeing how this turns out, as there is a lot of potential here. I’ve never had a problem with fraternities dominating the party scene, but my innate curiosity has me excited about this development.

If any non-Greek organization were in the position to host registers, it would be the Summit House community. They are comfortably ensconced in the old Theta Chi fraternity house, so the infrastructure for such a gathering is already in place. All that’s needed is to capitalize on that.

As anyone in a fraternity can tell you, hosting a register is trickier than it looks. The logistics have to be sound, everything must be set up properly, and hours of planning and work go into the event. A key focus point is having the financial power to be able to bring in all the alcohol that needs to be on hand. I doubt Summit House has the ability to match any fraternity in alcohol volume, but I think that could be a good thing.

It means that instead of focusing on maintaining an endless supply of booze, the denizens of Summit House are going to have to focus on everything else. The theme will have to be perfect, the decorations solid, and the organization and set-up flawless. Everything else is going to have to fall in line if they want to compete, and it seems to me that focusing on everything but the alcohol could be a viable strategy. It will force them to be more creative, more interesting, and more resourceful when it comes to their events, and I believe they will find a way to rise to the challenge.

Additionally, it could allow for the opening up of the party scene to those who want to go out and have a good time, but not necessarily drink. That’s a niche that could be much stronger on this campus. Even I cannot fathom the possibilities that might come from pandering to them.

Perhaps nothing will change. Perhaps Summit House will not succeed in shaking up the social scene whatsoever. But the new possibilities for Summit House, combined with the ability for student organizations to host registers with the aid of Uptown, at least offer the potential for non-Greek organizations to try to contribute to the party scene. And I, for one, am interested in seeing where that leads.

El McCabe

Writer

Our society seems to be obsessed with negativity. All news channels are packed with stories about violence, deaths, or even the latest celebrity scandal that portrays only the worst aspects of humankind. Due to the surplus of these types of stories, citizens become desensitized and unaware of the subconscious impact this mindset has on their daily lives.

Focusing so heavily on the negative paints a hopeless picture for the state of mankind. When all you hear about is Syria on the news and climate change melting the ice caps in Antarctica, you are much less likely to attempt to change something in society. It appears to be a daunting and insurmountable task to promote positive change in our world, and as a result of all the negative, many do not even attempt to try. Even those who do actually benefit society and raise awareness have their stories overshadowed by news stations, which are solely concerned with their ratings. It comes down to the fact that people crave to hear the “juicy” information, and that is what sells.

An important question to consider is who is more at fault, the media or the viewers and readers? If the media companies are simply giving consumers what they want, how can we blame them for society’s negative outlook? On the other hand, does the overflow of negative stories discussed by the media desensitize citizens to the harmful effects it has on their mental outlook? I do not have a concrete answer for this “chicken or the egg” dilemma. What is certain is that both the media and mankind feed off of each other, and the negativity will keep increasing until something breaks. This phenomenon is seen often in the celebrity world, where stars try to “out do” each other in terms of embarrassing themselves and gaining negative attention. For example, Miley Cyrus’ performance at the VMA’s did exactly what she wanted. It elicited reactions worldwide. It did not matter to her how others viewed her performance; the fact that the whole world saw it was all that mattered. This mentality is unfortunately shared by everyone, from celebrities to editors-in-chief to regular Joe’s, and you better bet there are consequences.

If this negative mentality continues to thrive, adults and children will never be fully satisfied with their lives. I expect more people to go to prison, steal, lie, cheat, and be unhappy with themselves as time goes on, because they have been bombarded with images and messages that the world is not a good place. A lifetime of these messages adds up, and I am sure that society’s negative mentality has already altered the lives of millions. Changes in this mentality shift will be slow and gradual, but will truly do wonders for the human quality of life.

Riley Schwengel

Writer

I think it’s fascinating how culture changes so dramatically over the decades and how the different mediums of art and entertainment follow different patterns between generations. One medium in particular, television, has undergone a radical transformation within the past couple decades. In the past, television was a safe form of entertainment; it was comforting to those who watched it and provided an escape from our hectic and unpredictable lives. Barring sports programs, the outcomes of shows in the past were predictable: good guys win, the boy and girl get together, the family overcomes challenges set before them, and the murderer always gets caught. But recently, we’ve seen movement away from these trends. Shows have become more unpredictable, more violent, and more sexualized. I believe that viewers have become so desensitized to the violence and sex they witness that the companies creating these shows have to keep increasing the shock value in order to gain audiences.

This desensitization has me worried, but my concerns are not the same as the ones that the talking heads on the news express. I don’t blame violent television for any sort of massacres or human tragedies, but I do wonder what sort of effect watching these shows may have on an individual. Consider the shows that we watched in the 90s and early 2000s, and then think of shows like “Breaking Bad,” “Game of Thrones,” “Boardwalk Empire,” and “The Wire.” These shows probably would have been too shocking or offensive just 20 years ago, and now we are watching them regularly. I am not speaking as an opponent of these shows. I have seen every episode of all of the previously mentioned series, and marveled at the wonderful and engrossing plot lines they wove. But when I see a brutal rape scene or a child murdered and find that I have little emotional response other than interest in the show, I fear my normal human responses to such scenes have been dulled.

I remember the first time I watched “Game of Thrones,” which is probably my favorite show on television. The violence in the first episode shocked me and haunted me for a little while. But soon I was watching the show every weekend, and the senseless tragedies that they portrayed for my entertainment did little more than give me my adrenaline rush for the evening. Again, I do not believe that portrayal of violence causes violence, yet such easy and regular access to brutal images must have some negative effects on our minds. I worry quite a bit when I turn on the television and see scenes that should shake any human being to his or her core, but instead they are our main sources of entertainment. I just hope that, unlike Walter White and Jon Snow on television, we do not become so enveloped with the violence that we dismiss it as another piece of everyday life.