2008 Woodie Awards
Tomorrow marks a very significant date in American history. April 4, 2008 is the fortieth anniversary of Dr. Martin King losing his life in Memphis. Since his passing, King has been canonized as a hero of epic proportions. He is no longer looked upon simply as a man devoted to righteous work.
Three months ago I bought Senator Obama's shtick. I thought he might actually bring about change in Washington D.C. when I saw him speak in a New Hampshire auditorium. As convincingly and beautifully John Edwards spoke the day before in a high school gym, Obama easily took the cake in pure ability to captivate and move an audience.
Facebook is a social staple. As much a force of habit as changing one's underwear, it has made "friend" a verb, and has given birth to a whole new realm of cyber celebrity. We live in a world of "me," where on a scale of social acceptance, narcissism may as well be equivalent to having cats.
You've all seen it. You go to a liquor store to buy some hard alcohol. Whiskey, tequila, vodka, whatever your personal choice of brain cell killer you like. As you inspect your potential buy, somewhere on the bottle you come by a few printed letters which read, "60 proof.
Dear editor: Re: "Brad DeFlumeri's Spring Fashion Guide," April Fool's Edition, Apr. 1, 2008 The decision to run Brad DeFlumeri's hate-filled interview has angered many UMass students, myself included. A) It is not funny to run over any human being, whether on Route 9 or not.
Dear Editor: Re: "Tibetan violence draws local reaction in North Hampton," Pamela Lawn, News, Mar. 31, 2008. I was and am very very upset to read the article about Tibetan situation in The Daily Collegian. As far as I know, the situation in Tibet was a riot rather than a so-called "parade.
Dear editor: Although I certainly cannot speak for all UMass students, I'm sure I can speak for the majority of the students who devote 15 minutes of their time each day trudging through the clues of the daily crosswords. As a UMass student from undergrad to present-day graduate school, I have been fortunate to have lived the UMass experience and seen the University change over the past seven years.
Dear editor: "Re: When belief becomes the scapegoat," Ted Rogers, Ed/Op, Mar. 31, 2008. I would like to take a moment to respond to the nonsense published in the article "When belief becomes the scapegoat." The issue here is the context in which these Christians' beliefs are being derailed.
Dear editor: I am a person who has very strong opinions about the world of politics. I am a registered independent and consider myself a person with moderate views, but almost any person I have ever talked to about politics considers me a conservative nut job.
Dear editor: Re: "Vatican makes sinning a whole lot easier," Josh Wilder, Ed/Op, Mar. 25, 2008 Wilder takes an interesting but misguided approach to the Vatican announcement of "new" sins that include accumulating wealth, failing to help the poor, and destroying the environment.
To the editor: Katherine Neubert's article on sustainability at UMass is just the kind of useful and hopeful information I want to see in The Daily Collegian. Nice job Melinda Nielsen Housing Services