Cartoon by Ellen Weiss

Scratchy throats, stuffy noses, the chills – it’s that time of year. Sickness abounds, and students are strongly encouraged to go get flu shots.

But it seems like college students, yet again, feel generally apathetic about the issue.

True, there are some students who strongly believe in vaccination, and even some who detest it, but the overwhelming majority seem to either forget or not believe in the efficacy of this preventative measure. And let us not forget the few who think it’s too expensive.

But are they so wrong to care so little?

In a surprising twist, The Bulletin believes this indifference is sort of okay.

As far as we know, the flu isn’t a huge problem unless the victim is either old or very young. We are neither. Rather, we are young, virile, healthy and our disgusting lifestyles have no doubt built up our immune systems.

If we forget to get vaccinated, it won’t be the end of the world. We will simply have to deal with the consequences – a week or two of aches, sniffles and other un-pleasantries.

We might have to miss a day or two of classes, but even that isn’t so bad. Usually we have to fake an illness to get out of work. At least this way we won’t have to suffer through the emotional guilt of lying.

If some students choose not to get a vaccine for ethical reasons, who cares? If anything, we should be thanking them for not contributing to the continued mutation of the flu virus to vaccine-resistant strains.

Let’s not forget, competent adults have the right to decide what to do with their own bodies. There are too many who believe they know what is best for others, and attempt to forcibly extend their personal truths into others’ lives.

To those who don’t know when not to care, we suggest they take a page out of the college student’s book.

It is legal to smoke, drink and to partake in many other vices that are terribly unhealthy. But the beauty of America is that adult people are free to partake in all sorts of unproductive recreational activities. That is between them, their healthcare providers and their doctors.

The Bulletin is in no way endorsing apathetic attitudes. In fact, indifference, apathy and negligence are plagues that have infected far too many ESU students. Enthusiasm and passion are key ingredients to success.

That being said, choose your battles wisely. We have chosen not to pick up our swords. Flu shot or no flu shot – live and let live.

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Ellen Weiss

Everybody has their own way of dealing with stress. Some people get blackout drunk. Some people smoke weed. Some people gorge themselves on junk food.

There seems to be a common thread here – all of these methods are really unhealthy.

It’s like it has become expected of our university culture to engage in detrimental, even reckless behaviors that have been made out to be fun, cool things to do. We do them with the excuse that we are in college, and these are the last few years of our lives where we can have adult privileges and use them to act like children.

It’s like there is this general attitude that makes us feel like we are invincible to any sort of harm. The thought is, “we get stressed, so let’s have crazy fun!”

This is not to say that people don’t deserve to reward themselves every once in a while. But too many times have I seen the most stressed out people I know partying the hardest.

Sometimes we develop unhealthy emotional habits instead of doing things that are directly bad for our bodies. For example, some people simply decide that when stress knocks on their door, they should instantly give up. People want to quit school. People want to skip class because they didn’t study. People don’t do their homework because they don’t know how to do it anyway. They’ve trained their brains to simply shut down the minute they see a challenge on the horizon. This in no way is this an effective reaction, and yet it is a mentality that I have encountered many times.

These are behaviors that we are going to carry into “the real world.” If people develop bad habits and apathetic attitudes, I highly doubt that they will instantly become productive, mature adults the second they leave college.

There are ways to deal with stress that relieve just as much tension without destroying your liver or sacrificing those few brain cells you have left – but I’m not going to pretend like we’re all trying to constantly self-improve. We’re busy, we’re exhausted and we don’t have the time or willpower to make big lifestyle changes. That, however, doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try.

By this point in our lives, we’ve all heard the touts of moderation – and it’s about time we listened! Moderate the amount of stress you let into your life. Don’t take more credit hours than you can handle. Then, once the pressure is on, moderate your coping habits. If you binge on snacks, limit the amount of junk food in the house.

Don’t let this culture of hedonism, laziness and weakness continue! Let’s start a new culture of maturity, self-confidence and moderation.

Ellen Weiss

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Matt Cook

There’s a man that walks the streets of Emporia. He’s hard to overlook. He dresses in camouflage, wears a safari hat and sports a rough and peppered beard. He reminds me of a tall, lanky Fidel Castro. I don’t know his name. To assume his class status is presumptuous. But, no matter the weather –100 degrees or 20 – he shares with us only his face and hands.

The socio-economic division in Emporia becomes more apparent as you travel north to south. The university acts as a buffer of history and stagnant development.

Go north and you’ll begin to see a collection of houses and businesses horizontal in their structure, reminiscent of the Brady Bunch. Travel even farther north and you encounter the quintessential suburban design that any Johnson County native is all too familiar with.

But take the southern fork in the road and the picture changes dramatically. Smaller homes, with little or no maintenance, front porches instead of back porches and sidewalks broken by time and geological forces.

The man who walks the streets is a character of south Emporia.

In the north you’ll find the elderly tending to their gardens and meticulously trimming the grass, historically and presently a status symbol. The children play inside or, perhaps, in the backyard, away from the world. The streets are silent and well lit. The cars are perched cleanly in the driveway or tucked into the garage.

As students, we live in the buffer zone where rent, rather than ownership, reigns as the traditional mode of dwelling. But we are inundated with remnants of either faction of Emporia in our everyday life.

Do we wait to reflect on this aspect of Emporia until we are finished with it? Rather, we should understand that we are not separate from, but a part of a greater cultural locale.

We encounter townies as we ask Emporia to provide for us. At restaurants and movies, bars and Walmart, the people of this town convene to share their skills in the common interest of making their lives easier.

It strikes me as odd, though, that much of our interaction with other cultures even within our city’s borders are only a byproduct of commercial needs.

The safety within our own class strata is a comfort we should consider dispensing. It hinders a genuine understanding of other cultures.

Consider celebrating Cinco De Mayo with your fellow Latino Emporians – not because you hold the same principles as them, but because you occupy the same space. Perhaps even attend an event that is open to any person of any age, simply to enjoy the magnificent variety of Emporia’s peoples.

Emporia’s small size provides an excellent opportunity for cultural mixing and the honing of tolerance. We should take advantage of our position at the geographic intersection of these varying environments to reflect on how we interact with each other, and the rest of the world.

Matt Cook

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Cartoon by Ellen Weiss

The numbers are in and enrollment at Emporia State is down. There’s been a lot of hype lately about just how great an institution ESU is. We have a fancy new marketing campaign, but still, the numbers don’t lie.

So the question is – what’s wrong with ESU? Nothing. We are a great institution and our students do great things and become great people.

But still, we are a social pariah in the eyes of many students across the state. Why? If we have such a stellar set of academic programs, among other appealing amenities, why did we loose nearly 300 students this semester?

The administration chooses to pin the blame on a poor marketing strategy over the last decade, America’s ailing economy and dwindling rural populations. While these all seem like legitimate explanations, we seem to have overlooked an important factor – the atmosphere of our town.

The Bulletin firmly believes that while our university, like every other university in the nation, could use some tweaking in some aspects, ESU is a top-notch campus and our students are more than exceptional. We want to be here because we can get the quality education that we deserve at a price that we can, for the most part, afford. Students know ESU has more to offer than an outrageous tuition price that only buys prestige, not an education.

But while our students receive a fiscally responsible education, we still sacrifice an important factor in every college student’s experience.

Let’s face it. We know why KU’s enrollment is enrollment is considerably higher than ESU’s. Lawrence is an exciting place to be. It offers nightclubs and other exciting party scenes. The social culture in Lawrence is thriving – it makes you feel alive. The same is true for Manhattan.

But yes. ESU is unique because we are a tight-knit community of intellectuals. We like that we don’t have to share our campus with 30,000 other students, but we are also craving something more than movie nights at the Granada or the occasional “rap” concert on campus. Even our bars have little or no appeal to college age students.

The most social interaction you can get on a Friday night in Emporia consists of getting drunk at a house party and tipping cows, and for some students, they want nothing more. But what about those students who need something more than standing around playing beer pong?

The Emporia community is bland, and maybe that’s the way its residents want it to be. But our town also owes a lot our university. ESU is the lifeblood of Emporia, without it, Emporia would flounder. Emporia needs the university and the university needs the community.

If we want to boost enrollment, it’s going to take more than just a shiny marketing campaign. Billboards and television ads can only do so much. It’s up to the Emporia community to aid ESU in reversing this trend of a declining student population.

We aren’t asking Emporia to compromise its family-oriented values, we’re just asking you to help put the excitement back into our student’s lives. Give us something more than cowboy bars. Give us more shopping options. Give us more choices than Mexican and Chinese food restaurants or sandwich shops.

Let’s look at this drop in enrollment as a wake up call and take advantage of the opportunity to come together to make Emporia a progressive and exciting place to be – or forever be damned to obscurity.

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Matt Cook

Work sucks the life straight out of you.

Anyone who works in customer service knows this. Not every customer is completely satisfied with your service and their disapproval deposits itself in bags under your eyes, acne on your jaw and a weight in your chest that can only be likened to the mildest of heart attacks. What keeps me going at work is music.

Luckily, college radio in Kansas is not hard to find – unless you go to school at Emporia State.

KU has KJHK. K-state has the Wildcat 91.9. Pittsburg State has KRPS. Wichita State hosts and makes contributions to its local NPR station, KMUW. Even Fort Hays State has KFHS radio. Each station provides a unique voice to the world, something that the students can call their own. So why doesn’t ESU have a radio station?

The shallow selection of stations in Emporia includes “Top 40” garbage and the same 20 country songs looped all day long.

Emporia needs to put some rhythm in its step. ESU needs its own radio station, if only to make the mundane tasks of day-to-day existence bearable.

Some might say that broadcast radio in Emporia is sufficient and reflects a broader consensus on the taste of music.

Trust me – there is nothing I detest more than a music snob, someone whose sole existence it is to lambast someone else’s subjective opinion or to posit their own as the gospel truth. It is a fact that some music falls just short of sonic harassment, but it shouldn’t follow that you are wrong for liking it. No, a radio station is not about cashing in on a defunct counter culture of suburban bourgeoisie.

The need for our own radio station goes beyond simple pretentiousness. It provides a medium, through which the student body can stay informed of on-campus activities, and it provides a literal voice for the student body and it plays music – wonderful music – that students can personally request.

I’m not an expert in radio broadcast. I’m barely literate. But I can’t imagine it would require anything more than a microphone, some basic audio equipment and, most of all, gumption.

It could be run with minimal staff. The station doesn’t even need to be over the radio waves. The advent of podcasts and internet radio facilitate a cheap and easy way to reach the student body.

The next time you’re at work and you find yourself inadvertently singing along to Justin Bieber, remember – there is still hope.

Support a movement on campus to institute a long neglected aspect of college life in Emporia. Talk to your friends, get support. Move forward. Turn on, tune in and so forth.

Matt Cook

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Andrew Potter

Two weeks ago I was walking around town with a friend. After retrieving a delicious and perfectly-priced $5 slice of pizza from Little Caesar’s, we had the difficult decision of deciding what we should drink to bring out the true flavor of our delicious dinner.

It hit us 10 steps down the street – we needed red wine.

Our pilgrimage led us to a liquor store. With high expectations, and high “spirits,” we tried the door. Sadly, no bells went off, and no fluorescent lights shone down on rows of rainbow colored bottles. There was nothing. The door was locked.

The liquor store, like all of the others in Emporia, was closed.

Coming from a much larger town in Texas, where liquor stores were always open past 11 p.m., it was quite a shock to find that all Emporia liquor stores close after 9 p.m. When I looked into Kansas law, however, I found that the sale of alcohol and liquor are legal until 11 p.m.

Why has Emporia decided to cut liquor store closing times shorter than the law deems it necessary? It is ridiculous that shops should close so early, especially since we live in a college town – the demand for alcoholic beverages is so high.

Think about it. Many students probably feel the need to purchase alcohol after 8:30 or 9:00 p.m., as most of the time prior to this is spent studying or working in order to earn a small amount of cash. The idea of buying alcohol is hardly ever a thought before 9 p.m.

We should not have to force our minds to change and start purchasing alcohol prior to our first cravings. We should not be forced to take our business to Olpe if we develop a late night desire for a glass of wine. This money should be kept in Emporia, helping local businesses as well as our economy.

As students, we have the power to change this. We need to explain our plight to the local government. Write legislators, send emails, and get disgruntled! We aren’t asking for a dramatic change, just enough to prevent the inconveniences of countless people.

We must show them that it would be worth their time, and that we are willing to part with our meager amount of spending money to acquire bottles of this sweet nocturnal ambrosia.

Compared to places where booze is sold seven days a week, and campuses that serve alcohol, it should not be an outrageous request to be able to acquire some spirits late in the evening. The local government should reconsider the laws, if not for the sake of the businesses, then for the sake of those students consuming $5, 9 p.m. pizzas.

Andrew Potter

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Cartoon by Ellen Weiss

In 1999 the Emporia Amtrak train station burned down. No efforts were made to rebuild.

But now the city is considering rebuilding the station and restoring Amtrak services. The Bulletin believes this is a step in the right direction – the benefits are numerous.

The first and probably most important benefit is the price. It currently costs about $80 for a one-way Amtrak ticket from Kansas City to Chicago. To fly it costs about $200.

Add in the cost of checking your luggage at the airport, and you could potentially be flying for close to $300. Want to know how much it costs to bring your luggage aboard an Amtrak train? Nothing – it’s free.

While gas may be about the same price as a train ticket, drive time compared to train travel time is close to 11 hours, whereas on Amtrak, you can get to Chicago within seven and a half hours. Not to mention, on a train you have more space to stretch and even lay down. You don’t have to stop every 100 miles or so to use the restroom or eat, and you can enjoy the scenery from the comfort of your train car.

Oh, and did we mention that students can get a discount on train tickets? All you have to do is sign up for a student discount card and pay a yearly fee of $20 to save 15 percent on tickets. That’s a deal worth cashing in on.

On planes, you can only use portable electronics like cells phones, laptops and iPods at designated times, but Amtrak trains not only allow electronics with no restrictions, they even provide electrical outlets.

On top of the luxury afforded to travelers, trains are also better for the environment. Trains emit less carbon dioxide than driving and much less than flying. An opportunity to reduce our carbon footprint is always a bonus.

Safety is another reason for train travel. It is about as safe to fly as it is to ride the train, which is much less dangerous than riding in an automobile.

Perhaps even ESU could benefit from this method of transportation. If the rail service ran to areas where groups on campus travel to conferences, a train ticket in place of a van or bus could be a cheaper alternative for RSOs.

If nothing else, Emporia would benefit from having an Amtrak station, as the train would generate more business for the city. People traveling would spend money in local stores and restaurants.

So what can students do? Simply speak up. Let city officials know that ESU is on board for Amtrak. Heck, write the governor and tell him that our town deserves to be back on the rails.

This project will no doubt take time and money from the people of Emporia, but in the long run it could provide great benefits for the town.

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Cartoon by Ellen Weiss

The position of university president is one that should only be filled after thorough consideration. Heading a university is not like wrangling elementary school brats or high school hoodlums. This is not a career one can simply wander into and be successful. And considering the lives – ours – that are affected by such an important figure, one would hope that the person chosen for the job has had previous experience in higher education.

That being said, it has come to The Bulletin’s attention that some people on campus are worried that applicants with no previous experience in higher education may possibly be considered for the presidency.

Many faculty members are not too thrilled with the idea, especially since faculty have been considerably vocal in their desire for the next president to have higher education experience.

An institution for top-quality education of adult individuals is no place for someone whose primary concern would most likely be the financial welfare of the school, also known as a nameless, faceless penny-pincher.

In addition, someone from outside the field of higher education would not be equipped with the skills or experience to properly understand their role as president. Unlike previous presidents who may have felt that the faculty were their “employees” instead of colleagues, we need a president who will understand that their loyalty and primary concerns, as well as those of the faculty, belong solely to the interests of the students. They work for us, not the other way around.

This is not to say that taking care of finances isn’t important, or that the skills used in traditional business couldn’t be applied to issues that would arise in the collegiate legislation. ESU is, after all, a business. We are in the business of educating people – could a businessperson see this, or would their eye be trained to only see dollar signs?

The Bulletin does not understand how these candidates could even be considered without experience that would help them better relate to the needs of the student body. We shouldn’t have to choose between someone who is financially responsible and knowledgeable of business affairs or someone who is sympathetic to the needs of the average college student, we deserve a president with the best of both worlds. In other words, we need a “Renaissance man.”

We need someone who will be able to protect us from the economic crisis and take on the enrollment problem like a challenge to be overcome. It will not be an easy feat, but this is not the time to lower our standards.

We ask for a president who is one of us. A president who understands that every action he or she takes must have our best interests as their primary objectives. Smart, decisive, fair and maybe even funny. And you know what? It can be done.

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Matt Cook

You’ll find them in the shadows, in small groups huddled together and shivering in the winter and desperate for shade during the hotter school days. You won’t find them near most entryways and you’re hard-pressed to see any near the Health, Physical Education and Recreation building. They are a dying breed in more than one way – smokers.

Emporia State has a clear policy against smoking on campus. There are a few spots annexed for those who still smoke. Public ashtrays are stationed strategically throughout the campus to ensure that no one should have to ditch their butts on the ground.

But areas of high traffic like Union Square or near the entrances to many buildings have bright red, unambiguous signs that strictly prohibit smoking in the vicinity.

I’m old enough to remember when there was a no smoking ban on campus. My freshman year was 2004, and there seemed to be a much larger smoking element at Emporia State. But perhaps they were just “living out loud.” Perhaps with the passage of the city smoking ban and then the subsequent state smoking ban, people have found due cause to quit their deleterious habit.

I did not. I even actively fought against what I considered fascist government intrusion into private business. It is the business owner’s right to decide whether or not to allow smoking in their facilities, isn’t it? Sure there are some ancillary side-effects to public smoking like harm to employees’ and non-smokers’ health, but those are a matter of choice. If they didn’t want a lung full of carcinogens, they should have stayed home. Game. Set. Match.

The fight for business’ rights obviously does not apply to a state-run institution like our university. Without the added element of private autonomy, anti-smoking ban activists have very little in terms of valid argument.

Ultimately, ESU is a better place without plumes of smoke that cover the campus between classes or during lunch. Very few people complain about the lack of places to smoke on campus, and smokers have largely come to terms with taking 30 more steps away from the building before lighting up.

We ought take the time to empathize with those who do not make the same life choices as us. Students understand other rules that ensure personal safety, like laws requiring motorists to wear seatbelts or to stop at red lights. A smoking ban is no different.

Do I regret protesting the citywide smoking ban? Not at all. I’m still a smoker. But in retrospect, it seems obvious that smoking is just not worth fighting for. Everything short of criminalizing tobacco seems to be a reasonable and worthwhile consideration.

When it comes to our school, where young adults have to wade through the milieu of choices and come to conclusions that will affect the rest of their lives, the right to smoke cigarettes wantonly shouldn’t even crack the top 10.

Matt Cook

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Cartoon by Ellen Weiss

This week is Women’s Week, a chance for women of all ages and races to band together and show mutual support. On campus, activities are offered to teach self-defense and self-confidence. It’s a fantastic way for women to educate each other and rejuvenate a sense of feminine unity.

But since when was building self-confidence and learning self-defense something that only women need? Isn’t it a tad sexist to assume that weak, emotional women are the only ones who need empowerment? And isn’t it even more sexist to just assume that college-aged men have all the emotional support they need, as well as the innate knowledge of how to defend themselves? The Bulletin believes that this may, in fact, be a sexist view.

Although women are now taught that they can do anything men can do, it is undeniable that men are still cut off to many of the activities that women are allowed to participate in. Sure, there are the superficial things – like wearing skirts, painting fingernails, etc. But there are also more important things – like admitting that they need emotional support, or acknowledging that they cannot always defend themselves in any given hostile situation.

Men get bullied. Men don’t always know how to protect themselves, and they don’t always know who to turn to for help. Telling them to “be a man about it” or “man up,” just isn’t an acceptable response anymore.

That is not to say that this event is not an opportune time for people to celebrate the spectacular gift of womanhood. People can take a moment to think of all the contributions women have made to science, the arts and politics. Maybe there’s a woman in your life who you fear may be in trouble – perhaps this is the time to reach out and ask her if she needs help. Even if you’re not a woman, call your mom, grandmother or aunt and tell her that you love and appreciate her.

We sincerely hope that all of the activities this week were just as informative and meaningful as they were intended to be, and that women all over campus felt at least a slight tinge of empowerment.

We simply believe that offering self-defense classes during a week dedicated to women is sending the wrong message. Instead, it should be made explicitly clear that both women AND men need to learn tools to defend their minds and bodies. Men should not have to attend women’s events to learn these skills.

Let us, as a society, call for a time when it is acceptable for men to be emotional. A time when it is assumed that women are empowered. And a time when people of both sexes, and genders, have true equality.

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Charlie Heptas

On March 19, 2003, the United States, United Kingdom and forces from Australia and Poland began Operation Iraqi Freedom. The goal was to topple Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq and disarm the country of any nuclear, chemical or biological weapons and to fight terrorism. The United Nations approved this mission.

Ten years after 9/11, the U.S. is still not out of Iraq or Afghanistan. In fact, since President Obama has taken office, the number of troops in Afghanistan has actually increased. Even with troop withdrawals and the promise of a full removal of troops, there is still no end in sight for the occupying forces involved in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and New Dawn.

We have to withdraw our troops from Iraq. Not just our “combat troops,” but all of them. While our country sits on the brink of economic break down, the cost of the war ratchets up continually from 1.25 trillion dollars (as of press time).

According to Costofwar.com, the war has cost Emporia and its citizens almost $58 million alone. That amount breaks down to 27,975 years of groceries for one individual. If the trade off for fighting a war is that every person in Emporia could get groceries for a year, that’s a leap I’m willing to take.

Outside of the fiscal woes of our country, the cost of life is simply too high for an engagement in which we have been fighting for 10 years. Approximately 6,111 U.S. troops have been killed-in-action since the beginning of Iraqi Freedom. This doesn’t include civilian loss of life as well as casualties suffered by the Iraqi and Afghani people. With this number sure to only rise as we continue our involvement in the area, how can we justify keeping our troops there?

I will say again, we must withdraw. The costs have outweighed the work the military has done overseas. The argument against a complete troop withdrawal and for a removal of only the “combat troops” is that Iraq is unstable and not ready to stand without the support of our military.

But the Iraqi people have to eventually stand on their own. Every country is susceptible to violence caused by sudden change, but the continued military presence in Iraq has not stopped violence from occurring. Fear cannot dictate our actions as a country or we will stagnate in these areas and our troops will never be withdrawn.

Obama made the issue of troop withdrawal a primary focus of his 2008 election campaign, but he did not follow through. The deadline continues to be pushed back for a full troop withdrawal, much like the deadline for our nation’s debt.

The only way to achieve a full troop withdrawal is to deadline and stick to it. Our leader needs to show a strong commitment to finishing what was started 10 years ago.

Charlie Heptas

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