Hop on the Bandwagon

The New York Giants, House Music, #Kony2012, Jeremy Lin, – go ahead, hop on the bandwagon.

What exactly is a “bandwagon?” It’s a term that’s used rather frequently, that’s for sure. For our generation, “hopping on the bandwagon” can best be described as publicly supporting a conduct, or belief, for mainly one reason only, because everyone else is partial to it.

As more people begin to believe in something, others come to believe it as well, and for decades, this has been a trend. From the poodle girls and leather jackets of the 50’s, to the legwarmers and fingerless gloves of the 80’s, we as humans like to follow trends; apparently it’s in our nature.

There’s nothing wrong with preferring one thing over another, even when that preference is of the masses, however, “hopping on the bandwagon” has become a term seen in negative light, and apparently those on the “bandwagon” are not respected.

This past football season, both the New York Giants and the New York Jets had a plethora of support from their fans. Each week closer to the playoffs, the Giants and Jets rivalry grew as each side hoped their team would secure a spot in Super Bowl XLVI. On Christmas Eve, the New York Jets ruined their chances, losing to a top rival, the New England Patriots, a hard feat to swallow for any fan. Despite any Jet fans hopes and wishes, the Giants made it to the Super Bowl, and so the “bandwagon” began.

“All of a sudden everyone’s a Giants fan,” said Michael Ciprello, a senior at the University. “Your team [the Jets] looses, so you throw on a Giant jersey as if they’re your second choice. If your team loses, deal with it and wait until next season, don’t all of a sudden become a fan of the winning team just because they’re winning. That’s a bandwagon fan, and I don’t like them!”

Read more ...

Letter to the Editor 3/21/12

Letter to the Editor

This letter is in response to your March 7, 2012, editorial entitled Making a Case Against Affirmative Action. I must first start out by stating that although I am appreciative of the Outlook’s coverage of the Leap Into Diversity event and the attention The Outlook staff places in covering and publicizing MU sponsored diversity events, I strongly disagree with much of the 3/7/12 editorial.

The editorial states “there is a better way to create more diversity without affirmative action.” The problem here is that there is no mention of this “better way.” Colleges and universities must always operate within the law to achieve a diverse student body. Regardless of how the Supreme Court decides the Fisher case, higher education institutions must continue to use creative and legal means to achieve racial diversity on their campuses. Diversity unfortunately does not just happen on its own. Diversity happens through hard work, institutional commitment, and specific targeted programs.

The editorial also states that Affirmative Action “was necessary during the civil rights movement, but not so much now.” This is incorrect. The United States in many ways remains a segregated nation. One look at many of our cities, schools, and neighborhoods reveals this. While it is true that progress toward racial equality has definitely been made, there is still a ways to go. The reason Affirmative Action was ever necessary is due to institutionalized racism and the vast chasm of imbalance in terms K-12 education.   Most African-Americans, Latinos, and in some cases lower income white children have no choice but to attend failing schools in sometimes dangerous neighborhoods. How can any child be properly educated under these conditions? Affirmative Action is an imperfect solution to a much larger problem.

Read more ...

Effective Attendance Policy is Absent

The attendance policy at the University is a complete waste. There are tons of reasons why the policy should not exist. Take other schools as the first example, top schools in New Jersey like Rutgers. It does not actually have a set attendance policy; they “expect” attendance.

This may seem a little extreme but I feel as though Rutgers and other schools prosper not because of the overwhelming amount of people that attend their universities, but rather because they weed out the weak.

The students who are meant to go to school get a proper education because they are willing to go to class and prosper, while the students who want to party and not go to class fail.

If students want to work, they will work and if they do not, there is nothing anyone can do about it. No attendance policy is going to change how a student thinks. So why is it that if I got sick two days out of the semester and I overslept once, my Effective Attendance Policy is Absent grade is going to go down? Sounds a little obnoxious right? Yeah, I think so too.

What truly is a major disappointment is the fact that no matter what is going on in my life, I can only miss two lectures for a specific class. Luckily for me I am prone to sickness.

My body knows when it’s overworked, so what essentially happens is every other week I have a cough and congestion. All I truly need on those days where I feel terrible is a day off, a couple hours to relax.

Everyone knows how their own body is feeling, and when it is overworked, it reacts to that Why is it that when I do need a couple of hours to myself, I have to worry about my grade being lowered? Half the time when I do go to class in that state of mind, the professor sounds like they’re speaking in another language and are saying 200 words per second.

Read more ...

A Lottery That Doe$n’t Pay

This coming week is spring break and there are several great things to expect. Warmer weather, great trips and some time to recuperate from midterms. However there is one ominous aspect that waits for us when we return: the housing lottery.

It is quite ludicrous how people get during housing, but it is understandable. Everyone that day is on edge waiting for that e-mail each year to see if you should be jumping for joy or crying in the corner worrying if you are going to have a place to live next year.

Last year I told everyone not to talk to me about housing until I had gotten my number. Even if you do not get a good number or get waitlisted, do not fret.

Residential Life is very helpful; however, here are a few things that are very important to consider. If you are a freshman or participating in the lottery for the first time, pay close attention.

One of the first things you need to worry about is not where you are living but whom you are living with. This has been repeated millions of times but it is the honest truth. Do NOT room with someone just because they may have a lower number.

This could lead to disagreements and drama in the next school year that are unnecessary and could put a strain on friendships. Remember you are going to be with this person for a good portion of the time.

Along with discussing whom to room with, make sure you are going to be with people that are not going to flake out. I have seen this happen to several people who were supposed to room with certain friends, but because someone was not sure it turned into a huge fight.

Read more ...

Asbury Park: The Hidden Gem of the Jersey Shore

After living in Long Branch for about four years, I have watched Asbury Park morph from a worndown unsafe location into a flourishing treasure chest of prime day and night-time entertainment. The improvements that have been made to Asbury Park has made it an ‘it’ spot for young adults.

Whether it is live music, dining, or a fabulous bar scene, Asbury Park has it all. There are endless options for a night on the town, making it one of the most valuable outlets of entertainment available to students who live close to the University.

Asbury Park may be most wellknown for The Stone Pony located on Ocean Avenue. It is a smaller bar that has decent size stages with platforms slightly off the dance floor. Signed Fenders, Gibsons, and other guitars line the walls.

The Stone Pony has held many performances by all kinds of different musicians, including the great Bruce Springsteen. It has been a spot for rising musicians for years.

Ever since my freshman year of college, a night at The Stone Pony was something looked forward to. A concert at The Stone Pony is like watching a band play at a party, except it could possibly be one of your favorite bands playing.

Read more ...

Hollywood Needs to Step it Up

The Oscars took place this weekend and after looking over all the movies, I could see that it was not a good year for Hollywood. There were some great movies like The Help, 50/50, and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

However, it seemed like it was the year of the sequel: The Hangover Part II, Cars 2, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides and the list goes on. With the exception of Harry Potter, the rest of these sequels are mediocre at the best.

Honestly, why do we need them? It just builds our hopes that it will be as good as the original, even though that is usually never the case.

There is also no point to making another sequel decades later. They are making a third Ghostbusters movie. The last movie was made in the 80s and no one has made another sequel since then because there was no need for it.

If people want their kids to be interested in older movies, tell them to check out Netflix. That’s what it’s for.

Read more ...

Let’s Party? Let’s Not.

Over the past couple of weeks, I have noticed signs that students have posted in their windows. Some are big, some are small, some are countdowns for different holidays, but the ones that always strike my curiosity are the signs in regards to partying. Most of these partying signs reference the constant college student’s struggle between going out on a week night or studying for that huge test you have the next morning. Many students choose to go out instead of studying, but is that what we are really here for?

One sign that sticks out in my memory glorified how in college you can retake a class, but you cannot retake a party. This blows my mind. I do not know about anyone else here, but to attend the University, I am looking at paying about $14,000 per semester in order to take the minimum four classes. This total is not even including living arrangements or meal plans. On average, students pay about $23,000 each semester when you add up lab’s, special class fees, housing, books, etc. Personally, I am not paying $23,000 to party every night of the week. Please tell me if there are any people who would.

As a junior here at the University, I have witnessed many of my peers pay tuition only to skip class habitually and party every night. Most of these students were either pulled out of school by their parents or worse, failed out before they could get back on the right track. Unfortunately, I have met countless people who could not handle the freedom and independence that college presents to them. Too many students view college as a place to party without having to come home to their families. It is true that your family will not be waiting at the door for you to come in after a long night of partying, but soon enough your long nights of irresponsibility will catch up to you.

Read more ...

Vegan is the Way to Go

Eating “healthy” seems to be the newest trend: If you’re not choosing an entrée from the “under 500 calories” list or slurping protein shakes as a snack, you may be considered the odd-ball out at the dinner table.

However, there are a large majority of us that assume that the “light” and “fat-free” versions of certain foods are what we should be eating. With these kinds of perceptions, we may be inclined to purchase and consume foods that are only low in fat and calories.

Without doubting that those products would most certainly be a smarter purchase than their fattier forms, some of those foods may be incorporating other ingredients that tend to increase the sodium, cholesterol, sugar and saturated fat levels. They may also not contain enough protein, carbohydrates, fiber, calcium and other vitamins that our bodies need.

There is a diet that, when balanced and followed correctly, is extremely beneficial in ensuring healthy nutrition, assisting with disease prevention and providing physical benefits.

Read more ...

President Looking to Increase Hawk Alert Frequency

Dear Outlook,

Last week you reported on a random criminal attack on a student very near our campus. You had information in your story that we did not have. You asked questions for which we had incomplete information at the time. Time and tide wait for no man [or woman]; neither does press time. Today, we all understand more about the isolated incident. Your article was important to me in that it inspires us to press our neighboring police departments harder for information when incidents are nearby, but out of our jurisdiction.

I am eager to alert students to potential or occurring dangers. You have seen that in our messages about norovirus, shootings on other campuses, etc. In this particular case we followed Federal Clery Act procedures, but did not issue a Hawk Alert late in the night, because it was apparent, at the time, that the threat was gone. I spoke with your Editor and Managing Editor about the story and about Hawk Alerts. It was a very good conversation; helped me understand the perceptions of some students. As a result, I have asked our VP (Administrative Services), General Counsel and Police Chief to rereview our procedures for Hawk Alerts as they pertain to offcampus crime , even if random. I am aware of the “cry wolf” syndrome, too many warnings at the wrong time turn people off. I am also concerned about safety and I will err on the side of too many warnings. So Outlook, thank you for the article and for the helpful conversation.

Read more ...

Obsessed With Technology Much?

It’s a bold statement, but I truly don’t think you could live without me. I may have been a recent addition to your life, but I know you consider me to be one of your closest and trusted confidants. Maybe it’s because I’m more reliable than anyone else you know. I strive to not to ever let you down.

I wake you up every morning and do my best in attempting to keep you from falling back to sleep. I remind you when you have things to do, places to go and people to see. You tell me everything and I never tell anyone else, unless you ask me to.

I’m really exceptional with researching whatever it is you need to know at incredibly rapid rate. I’m also a first-rate multi-tasker and make a fabulous personal assistant. I can, without hesitation, inform you of the game updates while instructing you on how to cook a full Thanksgiving meal for your overly critical family of 15.

I’m ideal when you need to capture the moment. I take top-notch pictures and videos, and have the ability to edit, and save them for you for whenever sometime down the line you may need them again.

With me, you’ll never be behind on the latest trends. I keep you up to date with the latest music releases, and even take the time to organize them in such a way that you’ll know what playlist to choose when you’re trying to party.

Read more ...