Letters to the Editor

USG does address alcohol issues

In the Collegian Board of Opinion editorial “USG missed the mark by promoting drunk driving awareness,” the board attacked the lack of involvement in alcohol-related issues by the Undergraduate Student Government. The board accused USG of ignoring the “real” alcohol problems on campus such as binge drinking, alcohol-related violence and sexual assaults. At the same time, the board described Alcohol Awareness Day as “one haphazard display and party.” After reading these comments, it led us to one conclusion — the Collegian has not paid attention to what USG has done during the past year.

In response to the increase in binge drinking and the negative publicity generated by the July 12 riot, USG has recently established the Student Forum on Alcohol Issues to provide a student perspective on underage and binge drinking and to report its findings to several borough and university committees. USG also co-sponsored Mike Green, a nationally respected motivational speaker, who lectured on the dangers of binge drinking on college campuses.

Immediately after the school year began, USG formed a Riot Relief Fund that was established to raise money to help pay for public damage in the borough as a result of the summer riot. USG members sold Centre Daily Times football programs before home football games. USG and Womyn’s Concerns held a well-attended Students Promoting Education and Awareness about Rape rally to make Penn State students more aware of the dangers of acquaintance rape and alcohol.

USG realizes the Alcohol Awareness Day did not solve the campus’ alcohol-related problems. But we never thought that it would. Alcohol Awareness Day was just one of the many things that USG has done during the past year to raise awareness and responsibility. Anybody who had done their research would have realized this.

James M. Hornick
USG fraternity senator
Brian Olivo
USG vice president

This letter is in response to the article “Pa. Urges Graduate Retention.” As I looked at my options two years ago today, I made plans to visit several companies during spring break. Spending countless hours on the World Wide Web and many more interviewing with companies that recruited on campus, I decided to focus my search on the Washington D.C. metro area. One of the e-mails I sent out was returned by a Penn State alumni from 1977, and I had myself an interview!

Well, here I am, still with the same company, making at least 50 percent more than I would have if I would have accepted a position with one of the companies that I interviewed with on campus. My point is there just aren’t that many opportunities out there for graduating students to stay in Pennsylvania. My home is only 45 minutes from State College, but I was unable to find any suitable employment that would provide me with the opportunity I was looking for.

The Washington, D.C. metro area is known as “Silicon Valley 2,” with hundreds, if not thousands, of high-tech companies headquartered here. At this point, there are 25,000 technology jobs that are unfilled in the D.C. metro area.

Not making a major commitment on the students’ part to get the knowledge and skills outside of Penn State will keep them spinning their heels when it comes to making themselves attractive to today’s prospective employers.

Mark Hansel
Class of 1997

This letter is in support of Kizzy Frey’s letter to the editor, because she has raised a good point about scholarships. Being a white man, I can see the problems with affirmative action, but that doesn’t mean that there should be none.

Steve Brown wrote in his letter to the editor “two wrongs don’t make a right,” thus seeming to imply that receiving scholarships based on being the descendent of an alumnus is as wrong as receiving money because one is a member of a minority group. Let me ask opponents of affirmative action, do you argue as forcefully against scholarships that help white people in a matter not based on merit as you do against those that help minorities? Do you only complain when it helps minorities? If so, why?

It is a lie that any of us got by solely on merit. Success is based on a number of factors, which include merit, brains, physical prowess and opportunity. We are not completely capable of controlling any of these factors. To those of you who puff out your chests, pat yourselves on the back because you think that you succeeded only because of yourself, you ignore what helped get you where you are. You might attribute some of your success to your parents who were there for you. But if your parents died when you were young, or you were raised by one parent, would you be where you are? As you continue to pat yourself on the back, what if you were born under impoverished conditions? Or were routinely beaten as a child?

A big disadvantage that minorities suffer from is being a minority. Because white people are the majority, we own the majority of the wealth. Human nature (irrespective of race) is such that we really don’t want the majority of the wealth to be taken from us. But would it not be a better society if we all learned to give as well as take? If economically impoverished people were economically better off than they are now then wouldn’t the country, as a whole be a better place to live?

Stephen J. Halperin
graduate-plant physiology

I am writing regarding the article “Unreal Expectations Fuel Low Self-Esteem.” I agree that poor body image can be a terrible problem for women (and men) as they try to fit into societal ideals, but in the “Tips on how to improve body image” section of the article, I was surprised that perhaps the best way of all to improving body image was overlooked — exercise.

Diets rarely work to improve self-esteem and body image on a long-term basis. When a person is “genetically inclined” to be obese, this is especially the case. Regular exercise provides a long-term solution to weight control and in the process raises your self-esteem, keep you feeling healthy, more attractive and less stressed. It is true that exercise facilities on this campus are limited, but many people overlook the opportunity they have to get some exercise everyday just by walking more. The key to a successful exercise program is to build yourself up to it gradually, and walking at a brisk pace is a great way to start.

A healthy lifestyle through regular exercise makes you feel better about yourself, and that, combined with a continual desire to improve yourself, will make you much more attractive than any crash-course diet or pocketbook full of make-up ever could.

Sean Sweeney
graduate-materials science and engineering