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LeNie A. Adolphson lenieadolphson@hotmail.com
Well, here we are - the last column of the semester. There is so much to say and so little time. I feel like the late Jim Croche when he said I wish you could put time in a bottle. I would like to thank the entire staff at the Daily Egyptian, particularly Marleen (The Femme Factor), who thought the ramblings of a nontraditional, black, female student would be interesting.
Well, before I begin this last column until next semester I would like to thank everyone who read and supported my columns. I would like to thank all those who e-mailed me and stated their opinions about my articles, both positive and negative. I would like to congratulate all the graduates and offer some advice from an older woman (Me) as you leave SIU. While pursuing money and prestige, do not forget to pursue kindness, humility and compassion.
I would like to thank my professors, especially Dr. Pamela Smoot who is so dedicated to the scholarship of her students and demands the very best each and every day from all of us. I thought about the columns I wanted to write and I decided to give all the readers a peek into my thoughts about the columns that, as they say, that got away. I wanted to write about my experience living with diabetes and the devastating effects it has on millions of people.
I wanted to write about the fact that despite continual and persistent racism we as a people have come a mighty long way. I wanted to write about personal responsibility in this age of everyone blaming everyone (I do it too). I wanted to write a column saying to everyone, particularly African-Americans, we have to take some responsibility for some of the choices we make and realize that all of our problems are not because of external forces but bad decisions.
I wanted to say to everyone, especially whites, stop saying racist things to your white friends when we are not around. Guess what, many of them tell us what you guys have said, reinforcing our perception that most of you are bigots. I wanted to write an article saying to people angry at Tommy Curry, Mars and Terry Dean these are black men expressing their views on an issue that plagues their life daily.
If you haven't experienced it don't vilify them for discussing it. When you think about it the options they currently employ to vent their rage are a lot healthier than other alternatives. I wanted to write a column discussing the closing of Vienna Prison and the overwhelming effect it will have on the community. But on a larger scale, I wanted to discuss the entire prison industrial complex that depends on minority and poor whites and the measures used to staff these facilities through mandatory sentencing guidelines. I wanted to say that despite my sympathy with those in Vienna and other prison communities who may find themselves unemployed.
It is regrettable that a community has to depend on an economy based on the incarceration of other human beings. I wanted to discuss the insane "War on Drugs" which is really a war on minorities, poor whites and recreational marijuana users. If the United States were serious about eliminating drugs instead of locking up low-level users, they would go straight to the source of the problem. Obviously, the whole war on drugs is a joke. More people are using drugs now than ever before. Additionally, the government is not interested in truly helping drug addicts quit using.
It's all about punishment, retribution and denial of education, housing and seizing personal property. Last but not least, I wanted to write about the tuition increase. I was going to plead with the administration to solve the budget shortfall through other methods rather than on the backs of students. Measures that I considered were cuts in pay for high paid faculty and administrators. If many students can live on meager wages while in school surely high paid administrators can tighten their belts a little for the cause. Additionally, spending money on advisors and consultants is ridiculous and insulting to our intelligence. One day you have to raise tuition and the next day we here about high paid consultants being paid to come in and give ideas about how to retain and attract people to SIU. Well, here is some free consultation. What attracted me and thousands of other students to SIUC is the reputation that you could get a quality education for a reasonable price, the scenic environment and friendly citizens.
As my dad used to say "if it ain't broke don't fix it." Have a great summer guys and please stay safe.
Raising Eyebrows appears on Monday. LeNie is a sophomore in social work. Her views do not necessarily reflect those of the Daily Egyptian.
Published on 11/17/05; 12:24:44 PM
