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I left a comment on Chris gets blog about Black Friday and the man who was trampled at Wallmart.

How Important is Football?

As a Freshman, coming to a university with a great reputation for academics and networking, I wondered what could ever be an issue with the school. Then football season started. 

Coming from a family with season tickets to USC football games, I had high expectations. USC exudes tradition and confidence within both the team and the students. At any point during the game, one could look to the student section to see everyone simultaneously chanting the same cheers that have been proclaimed for decades. That kind of unity brings a school together and provides school spirit. However, at SMU it is rare to see anyone starting a cheer other then “Ole ole ole ole.” Students leave the game at halftime, if they come to the game at all. To be honest, it’s kind of pathetic. Where’s the school spirit?

After leaving the homecoming game, my friend and I were approached to fill out a survey for the school about football games. It asked us to rate on a scale of 1 to 5 how much the options would make us attend games and stay (1 being not at all and 5 being definitely). Some of the options included raffles, better food, better music, shirt cannons, etc. It almost seemed like the school was trying to bribe us to come to football games. However, I think one thing would work above all others. Winning some games! I know that it isn’t as easy as it sounds. But once that happens I feel like students will have pride in our school and our team, rather than having to make fun of ourselves. 

Another factor I feel like doesn’t help our football spirit is “boulevarding.” Every school I have been to that has a decent team, has tailgating. Not just getting drunk tailgating, but legitimate tailgates. Ones in a parking lot, with a truck, where you can have your own space to hang out with friends. Boulevarding is too uptight. Fraternities and sororities stand at their booths while alumni have their “reserved” spaces. What is there to do for the rest of the student body? They are forced to wander around with nothing to do. Maybe if SMU had a parking lot it would be a little bit more fun.  

What do you think would help out our school spirit?

Are the Obama’s the next Kennedy’s?

Now that Barack Obama has been elected the new President of the United States of America, it is interesting to think how our country will be affected. There seems to be a very real sense of excitement and intrigue into how Obama is going to carry our country through such rough times. With this is mind, it hit me that this same sense of wonder happened before in our nation’s history. John F. Kennedy held that same charisma and charm that won over this same nation is the 1960 presidential election. 

Both Obama and Kennedy were considered to be long-shots as presidential candidates. Kennedy was considered too young for the job at age 43. As a Catholic, he was also considered to be an unlikely candidate because of his religious views. Similar to JFK, Obama was also considered to be too young and inexperienced for the job at the age of 47. His African-American heritage also made him a controversial candidate for presidency, considering that the United States has never had a black president before him. Both of these men overcame their adversities and are a symbol of unity within the country. 

The Kennedy and Obama family are also similar in their structure. Both families are young, beautiful and stylish which have captured the attention of the American people. Michelle Obama and Jackie Onassis are considered style icons by the American people. They are featured in magazines wearing the “latest and greatest” in fashion. Both families also have two young children living in the White House, representing a new generation. I believe that the American people look at these two families as a symbol for change. It was a change with the civil rights movement in the 60’s and its a change for a new economy and peace in 2008. 

Both of these families represent hope for the American people. However after the assassination of JFK in 1963, the nation was in disarray and was divided once again. I believe that Obama represents that same hope and unity for America, and a very similar situation could occur if he too was assassinated. It is incredible to think how far our nation has come since the Civil Rights Movement in the 1950’s. However, racist and hateful people still exist in this country that could threaten our nation’s progress. There is so much excitement about our country’s potential with Obama as our president. I just hope that people can look back at our nation’s past and learn from our mistakes so that our nation is not divided once again.

The next four years will be paramount for our nation, and as an American, I am excited to experience it first hand. America is about to experience a great change that could be quite similar to that of the 1960’s. I just hope that our country can stay united in this case. 

Blue Highways Discussion

What does Alice mean when she says, “I’m not even sure we’re an island anymore, unless you spell it capital I-hyphen-l-a-n-d?”

 When Alice refers to the island as an I-land, I think she is talking about the broken connection between the residents and the land. Before this statement she is discussing how the Belle boat has changed the island. It allowed the outside world into the island with medicine, news and ideas. People at one time were appreciative of the land they lived on and respected it. When the outside world entered the island and islanders could exit, there was not that relationship any longer. I believe that people became more interested in themselves than the well-being of the island. Hence the name I-land. Alice mentioned earlier in the passage how people once relied on the island and appreciated its beauty. Now people are so introverted that they are being destructive with their “junk” and excessive demands from the landscape. People have forgotten the value of appreciation.

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I recently left a post on chris getz's blog about gun control. I took a contrary stance from his. 

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I recently left a post on Value from Capitalization of Innovation's blog about spoiled children. It goes into detail about why today's children are being spoiled by their parents. 

Letters of WRECKommendation

As a self-proclaimed procrastinator I find myself in an unfavorable situation. I have yet to find anyone to write me a letter of recommendation for sorority rush. But see my real issue is not that I haven’t gotten any letters yet, it’s that I’m not “required” to have any letters. Confusing right? Well as someone who comes from a non-greek family, I knew little about rush before coming to SMU. My intelligence of the rush process is miniscule compared to that of a “legacy.” I was unaware that I am “strongly encouraged” to seek out people that I barely know, or may not know at all, to squeeze out a positive letter of recommendation. I have been told that it doesn’t look good to come into rush without such letters. So I cannot help but feel penalized for not knowing enough people in the greek system. 

My rho gamma has assured me that there are other ways of acquiring letters for each of the houses. She said that there are ways of contacting alumni from my home town to write letters on my part. The SMU Greek life webpage states that, “It is the chapter's responsibility to secure a recommendation for each woman who decides to go through recruitment. If you would like to secure your own, please send all recommendations or letters directly to the chapter houses.” I couldn’t help but to be confused at this idea. Each chapter plans on calling my home town, where I have lived for the past five years, and speaking with someone who has no idea who I am. That person will then write a favorable letter for me based upon.... what exactly? 

Maybe I am being dramatic about the fact that I am less prepared than others. The process has been this way for a long time, so I’m sure there is some validity to it. But I cannot help but feel that the system is somewhat unfair. I feel that if they wanted a sincere letter of recommendation, I should find it from someone who really knows me well and isn’t necessarily from a particular chapter. 

Reach for the Stars

It was a typical night in the dorm room. A group of people in my hall gathered in my room to chat about whatever. Several people vented about the ridiculous demands of their teachers and questioned why they were taking the class. From more than one person I heard frustration about the fact that they didn’t even know what they wanted to major in. “Why am I killing myself over an economics class for a degree I don’t even want to take?” I heard repeatedly. One was taking courses simply because his parents told him to. His profession of interest was deemed unworthy because it would not yield a good enough salary. Parents expect results if they are going to pay tens of thousands of dollars each year. But what ever happened to an education for the sake of an education?

I have one friend who is particularly passionate about medieval history and music. She took prospective classes on both subjects and fell in love with them. She finally found something that she was enthusiastic about. However, her parents told her that they would not pay money for an impractical degree. She is now entering into the business school with no idea what she wants to do with her degree, and dislikes all of her classes. I can see where parents are coming from because they are paying a lot of money for their children to have a comfortable future. However, what ever happened to “you can be whatever you want to be” and “the sky is the limit?” Are those notions deleted when the salary drops below $40,000?

I still remember when my cousin dropped out of high school to get a job with a computer technology company. My family freaked out at the thought of him dropping out of school and nagged my aunt for letting him make that decision. She said that it was his decision to make, not hers. His passion in life is computers and what makes them work. Yet he was being scrutinized for doing what he loved. My family was afraid because society tells us that without a high school and college degree we will fail. While in some cases this is true, my cousin knew that this was the best choice for him. He now makes great money, without a high school degree. 

I believe that if people are driven enough, they will be able to succeed in whatever they do. If I want to major in Russian and Philosophy, I should be able to do it. If not for the money, then for the education. Society puts so much pressure on money and one’s exterior that people forget about the importance of beautifying their interior. If you are lucky enough to find your passion in life, should shoot for the stars. If you have the enthusiasm and drive to work with that passion, you should. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! 

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I recently left a comment on JSC’s blog about parking on SMU’s campus and how ridiculous the process is.

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How to Save a Life

As I opened my email this morning I came across a startling caption reading, “Urgent, Blood Supply Critically Low!” As a regular blood donor, I typically receive emails from the Red Cross asking for another donation. My mother refers to the Red Cross as the “Vampire Agency” due to their non-stop phone calls asking to suck your blood. But as I read this bolded email it occurred to me, why is it that the Red Cross has to nag us to help save a life? It isn’t a terribly painful process and it doesn’t cost any money to participate in. So why is it then that the Red Cross has less than a 24 hour supply of most major blood types? 

The thought crossed my mind that some people only think about donating blood in disastrous situations. The media covers natural disasters, car crashes, mass murders, and many other large scale death scenarios when they first occur. These reports typically state the death toll, the number of injuries, as well as the amount of survivors. But it is rare to see any reports as follow ups to those accidents seeing how those people were saved and what it took to save those lives. What most people don’t realize is that every 3 seconds someone needs a blood donation. And while only 37% of the US population is eligible to give blood, only 10% of those eligible donate annually. So while you are appalled by the number of deaths from accidents, you should also be in shock from the miniscule number of blood donors in the US. Especially considering that one pint of your donated blood can save up to 3 lives!

As a college student without a car, I can empathize with those who find it  inconvenient to seek out blood drives and/or hospitals to donate at.  It then struck me, how did it come to be that every University in the US is not hosting blood drives on a monthly basis?  Colleges hold the prime candidates for blood drives and yet they aren’t utilizing their capabilities. Students could then no longer claim that it is inconvenient to donate blood. 

If organizations such as the Red Cross are in such dyer need of blood that they are offering gift certificates and free gas, don’t you think that some reform need take place? I would even go as far as proposing that those eligible to donate should be required to give blood by their jobs and private schools. So long as the employers and schools would host blood drives, I believe that it should be a mandatory component of one’s job or enrollment. I don’t believe that this proposition would work for government agencies or public schools simply because their would be too much dispute over the government’s control of a person’s body. I honestly think that required donation would serve as a new hope for those counting on us few who donate to make the effort again. What have you done to help another person lately? 

For more information about giving blood visit givelife.org or call 800-GIVE-LIFE.