2008 Woodie Awards
What should I worry about?
Keeping college life in perspective
Nick Engelfried
Issue date: 4/25/08 Section: Opinion
Can there be a time in our lives when we have more different ideas, concepts and opportunities thrown at us, than in college? That's as it should be. This is a time to discover true passions, and everyone should be free to pick and choose between the plethora of opportunities. But especially at this time in history, I have to think that some of the ways we can "get involved" are more important than others. For instance, should I spend my time worrying about:
Our esteemed Boxer's location?
Joining a really good fraternity, and winning lots of trophies?
Partying? These are the college years, after all.
Becoming an RA? That would look really good on my resume.
Or I could worry about the fact that…
Our country is in a war that has lasted longer than World War II. The world's oceans are literally dying, with over 90 percent of large fish having disappeared due to over-fishing. De-forestation has spiked in recent months, because we're using more "biofuels," in an attempt to escape our oil addiction. We're in the middle of the largest planetary extinction since the Cretaceous wipe-out that exterminated the dinosaurs. Millions of people in Africa die of AIDS yearly. In the U.S. our civil liberties are being stripped away, as exercising one's civil liberties becomes re-classified as "terrorism."
Most important of all, the very climate of the Earth is destabilizing, and we're fast-approaching a point of no return, beyond which the world as we know it will be irretrievable.
School spirit is all very well, but when I read heated debates about the appropriate fate of Boxer, I can't help thinking: is this really the most important thing we could be worrying about? During the height of World War II, how many college students in the US were terribly concerned about school spirit?
There's nothing wrong with partying, or joining a sorority/fraternity, or even being concerned about Boxer-unless you let it distract from the things that are, maybe, just a little more consequential. One individual I know springs to mind who, given the right focus, could be a real activist. We both transferred to Pacific last fall-both of us were idealistic young college students. We both got involved in Students for Environmental Activism, took a class on the Civil Rights Movement that got us excited to make real change, and took time away from schoolwork to ensure that the school's biggest global warming event of the year was well-attended. Then one day I heard she was pledging for a sorority.
Our esteemed Boxer's location?
Joining a really good fraternity, and winning lots of trophies?
Partying? These are the college years, after all.
Becoming an RA? That would look really good on my resume.
Or I could worry about the fact that…
Our country is in a war that has lasted longer than World War II. The world's oceans are literally dying, with over 90 percent of large fish having disappeared due to over-fishing. De-forestation has spiked in recent months, because we're using more "biofuels," in an attempt to escape our oil addiction. We're in the middle of the largest planetary extinction since the Cretaceous wipe-out that exterminated the dinosaurs. Millions of people in Africa die of AIDS yearly. In the U.S. our civil liberties are being stripped away, as exercising one's civil liberties becomes re-classified as "terrorism."
Most important of all, the very climate of the Earth is destabilizing, and we're fast-approaching a point of no return, beyond which the world as we know it will be irretrievable.
School spirit is all very well, but when I read heated debates about the appropriate fate of Boxer, I can't help thinking: is this really the most important thing we could be worrying about? During the height of World War II, how many college students in the US were terribly concerned about school spirit?
There's nothing wrong with partying, or joining a sorority/fraternity, or even being concerned about Boxer-unless you let it distract from the things that are, maybe, just a little more consequential. One individual I know springs to mind who, given the right focus, could be a real activist. We both transferred to Pacific last fall-both of us were idealistic young college students. We both got involved in Students for Environmental Activism, took a class on the Civil Rights Movement that got us excited to make real change, and took time away from schoolwork to ensure that the school's biggest global warming event of the year was well-attended. Then one day I heard she was pledging for a sorority.
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