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com Thursday, August 26, 2010

Perspectives

Stone-age Sex Education

By: Jamie Santoro
Perspectives Editor room is going to seem awesome. While you might not be
I went to an all-boys high school
so I never had the joy of really awk-
ward co-ed sexual education classes
that some of my current classmates
did, but I’m going to assume that “Mean Girls” has a com-
pletely accurate portrayal of sex education in America. I’m
kidding. A little bit, at least.
Schools in this country take one of three approaches
when it comes to sex ed. One, abstinence, is mostly chosen
by Catholic institutions but encourages the idea of no sex
as the best sex. Second, the most utilized version, boils
down to putting all the scary facts on the chalk board and
then handing out condoms (à la “Mean Girls”.) Finally, the
third type of education is no education at all.
Now we are in a state of panic as new reports show that
handing out free condoms increases STDs amongst teens.
You know what else probably increases STDs amongst
teens? Abstinence-based sex ed. Abstinence is like doing a
Powerpoint on fasting and including a picture of a chees-
esteak on every slide.
Now it’s time for the grim facts. Speaking as a former
teenage boy, there is no way to keep teens from having
sex. They might not, but I don’t think it’s ever because of
anything a teacher or parent said. Left to their own devices
teenagers are terrible people and I’m speaking from expe-
rience there.
mct
Too much information or need to know information?
The best-case scenario is a teenager with all the facts.
Teens need to know all the gruesome facts about STDs and
more importantly, the lack of sex you will have after being
diagnosed with one. Teens need to know that condoms and
other forms of protection aren’t always completely effec-
tive. Any time you have sex there is a risk for STDs, HIV
and pregnancy. These facts are the only weapons we have.
Condom distribution is one aspect of sex education that
has raised a lot of eyebrows, especially now that STDs are
still on the rise. I think that without these condoms, STDs
would be tripled. Handing a kid a condom is not a guar-
antee that he or she will use it, but isn’t it better to know
they have it?
Parents don’t like to hear there is nothing they can do;
I know that if I have a daughter, that soundproof locked
able to keep your kids from having sex, you can keep them
from having sex without the knowledge. Teens know ev-
eryday in high school is a battle for a million different rea-
sons. Before you leave for the day, you put on your armor
and get your weapons ready. Proper sex education should
be one of those weapons. Now I sound like a pamphlet
your doctor hands you when your voice changes.
American schools need to overhaul their sexual edu-
cation programs just slightly. The bigger change needs
to come from American parents. I don’t think it is the
school’s responsibility to teach our kids about sex. Ev-
eryone, take a minute and imagine your ninth grade gym
teacher talking about genital warts and gonorrhea. That is
not a thought you keep prevalent when things are getting
intimate. Granted, neither is the thought of one’s parents,
but I don’t think Eva Mendes is planning on teaching sex
ed anytime soon.
Back to the point. A teenager is more likely to take the
advice of a parent than anyone else. Maybe they say they
won’t or blast whiny rock bands with really long album
titles in your face, but it does get through.
ajs343@cabrini.edu

You’ve got
heartbreak
By: Elizabeth abouts. Don't doubt
Krupka it, I love Mondays to
A&E Editor check out all the pic-
tures of people's crazy
“It’s not you, it’s weekends.
me;” “I think that we However, there is
would be better off a downside to all of
as friends;” “ I just need some time to be that. Not only when
my own person.” All of these tell you one you break-up with
thing; it’s over. After moping up the croco- someone do you have
dile tears that just poured out of your tear to sever him or her
ducts, you quickly log onto Facebook in from your life, but you
order to do the dreaded deed: change your have a daily reminder
relationship status. of 140 characters (or
We live in an age where young adults less) of what they are
spend about 20 percent of their time on so- up to.
cial media sites. True, you could de-
jamie Ssantoro / perspectives Eeditor
Translation: The 500+ people who fol- friend, de-follow,
low you now know that you are crying and ex-communi- Breaking up is hard to do. And even harder is having your entire friends list notified.
your eyes out over a bowl of ice cream in cate them. But you’re adult it is a no-brainer that you need one. date while keeping the personal informa-
footie pajamas tonight. still connected to their friends and it also Plus, no one wants to be that black sheep tion for your journal.
Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Four- seems very immature to not be able to han- that says, "I don't have a Facebook," and Being a young adult and trying to find
square and Linkedin are just some of the dle the break-up online. people seem stunned. your way is hard enough without the pres-
social media sites that keep couples com- So instead, you find yourself weeding But as websites become more advanced sure of wondering what your followers
pletely connected and in sync; what hap- through photos trying to remember if you and more information is at the users finger- think of you after a break-up.
pens when the happy couple decides to call met that girl who he is gawking at and try- tips, the fine line between privacy and stay- Hopefully the next big social media site
it quits? Social media keeps you ultimately ing to contain your anger when some gor- ing connected is vanishing. Our generation won’t involve personal pictures or depress-
tied to your ex-partners life. geous piece of man tweets about how he doesn't seem to leave anything up to the ing statuses from sappy song lyrics or else,
Most social media sites began as a way had an awesome time out with your ex. imagination. We write statuses about how we are all stuck in break-up hell known as
to chat, message, and talk to people who Social media is looking better and better we feel, post depressing song lyrics, and Facebook.
you haven’t seen in years. Now, sites like now isn’t it? upload emo twit-pics.
Facebook have the application to post pic- There are so many positives to network- The only solution to the problem is for efk722@cabrini.edu
tures documenting your weekly where- ing with social media sites, that as a young you to try as hard as you can to stay up-to-

Welcome to all students from

Cooperative Education, We have moved!
Career Services, and Our new offices are in Grace Hall, room 131
P.L.A.C.E.! (formerly Academic Affairs). We are next to the
We hope you have a Registrar’s Office and across from Graduate and
productive and successful year
Professional Studies (GPS). Hope to see you soon!
Thursday, August 26, 2010 www.theloquitur.com page 7
Perspectives

The Twilight Saga: Obsession

How far is too far?

By: Holly Prendergast By: Nick Guldin

Sports Editor Sports Editor

SEX
Yes, it is true; Bella does try to have sex with Edward in the third installment of
the Twilight Saga, “Eclipse.” However, it simply ends up being an innocent attempt
between two people in love. Yes, they are young, and yes, some of the audience
may be a younger crowd but honestly, what romance movie nowadays doesn’t have
a sex scene in it? Look at “The Notebook,” “Dear John” and “The Time Traveler’s
Wife.” All of these movies have had sex scenes in them, and in my opinion, they
have been far more detailed and I am sure that the some of the same “Twi-hards”
have seen these movies. Some people may think that the sexual content shown in
“Eclipse” may be inappropriate, but honestly, it is something that is going to hap-
pen between teenages whether “Eclipse” depicts sexual content or not.
SEX
Bella tries to get Edward to have sex with her? Say what? It is true. In the third book
and movie “Eclipse,” Bella wants to have sex for the first time before she is transformed
into a vampire, so she can get the full human experience (add wink face here). Accord-
ing to Arts and Entertainment web site, “Twilight’s” target audience is “female tweens
(10-12-year-olds), teenagers and early twenty-somethings.”
Premarital sex is not the message “Twilight” should be sending to this young and im-
pressionable audience. Thankfully, Edward denied Bella while she was on this hormonal
rampage or else our younger viewers may have been without tickets to the possible rated-
R film.

ROMANCE
As a former teenager and a current twenty-something, I can honestly say that I
have been completely and utterly wrapped up in romance books, movies and TV
shows one too many times. But what I can tell you is that I have never tried or
strived to be like these characters in any way. I would never think that just because
Edward and Bella become engaged at such a young age means that I have to or that
I would even want to. I think that movies are movies and people realize that they
are not real life. Romance is in everyday life, and sometimes it does happen that
people fall in love at a young age but I do not think that watching these movies ef-
fects the way that people look at life.
ROMANCE
I can’t say I know how it feels to be a young teenage woman but I’ve seen time and
time again, through friends and family, how wrapped up young people can get from mov-
ies and books. Young people strive to be like the characters they see and admire.
In this case Bella (18-years-old) and Edward (human years, 17-years-old and vampire
years, 107-years-old) plan their marriage at an extremely young age, which I’m sure does
not bode well with the parents of tweens and teens who want their kids to refrain from
making such a major decision so young.

BOOKS & FILM

Goodreads.com claims “Twilight” is one of the best reads of the decade and I
completely agree. Although I do love the movies, I do not think that they do the
books justice. Yes, this is a fictional series, but Stephanie Meyer is such a creative
individual and she truly does have a way with words. When it comes down to it,
there is nothing more I can say about the Twilight Saga books, other than I love
them. For those of you who decide to judge them before you have even read them,
you need to sit down and read them because I can assure you that your opinion will
quickly change once you read the magic that is “The Twilight Saga.”
BOOKS & FILM
Goodreads.com claims that “Twilight” is one of the best books of the decade. Some-
thing about this just feels wrong to me. The majority of the United States sits and reads
worthless literature about supernatural creatures falling in love with humans. No wonder
China is so much more technologically advanced than we are. Stephenie Meyer, author
of the “Twilight” series, should feel blessed that she caught the attention of the horny
females in this world because her poor writing would have gotten her no where otherwise.

hmp35@cabrini.edu
ngg27@cabrini.edu

jamie santoro / perspectives editor

Corporations should pay their fair share

By: Eric Gibble
News Editor
There is one five-letter-word that
has had a significant power for a num-
ber of years. From the transformation
of the political tea-party to the deter-
mination of past, present and future elections, it continues
to strike fear in the minds of millions of Americans.
That word is taxes.
Raising or lowering taxes has become a key issue in the
midterm election debates. With federal stimulus funding
set to end after this fiscal year, states will be forced to ad-
dress massive deficits.
Pennsylvania alone is expected to face a $5 billion defi-
cit in 2011. Balancing a budget appears to be black and
white; you can either cut spending or raise revenue.
Unfortunately over the past two years, legislators in
Harrisburg have made drastic cuts to essential commu-
nity services that benefit working families and our most
vulnerable citizens. These programs include mental health
services, child care assistance and autism prevention ser-
vices.
Simply cutting the budget by $5 billion is not the an-
swer. Layoffs to the public sector will only further weaken
the commonwealth. Pennsylvania is the sixth-most-popu-
lous state, but already has fewer state employees than most
states. have enacted combined reporting.
Many people complain about the quality of our roads, According to Michael Wood of the Pa. Budget and
the poor quality of our public education and the terrible Policy Center, the state loses between $400 million and $1
quality of our public transportation. Six thousand bridges billion by not closing this loophole.
in the state are considered structurally deficient and need These companies are using our roads, bridges and re-
immediate attention. ceive millions of our tax dollars in subsidiaries. It’s time
It’s like listening to a 5-year-old complain non-stop; no to close the loopholes so that corporations are held ac-
one seems willing to find the funding for these programs countable for the services they use and preserve our state
yet can find everything wrong with them. programs.
Legislators must look at revenue enhancements.
But taxes shouldn’t be raised on the middle class. In- erg722@cabrini.edu
stead we should look at updating our tax structure so that
big corporations like Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Exxon Mo-
bil pay their fair share as well. For more opinions and to see
Seventy percent of corporations in Pa. do not pay one yours check out
penny in income taxes simply by creating a subsidy in a
tax haven state like Del. and shifting their address there.
www.theloquitur.com
Twenty-three other states have closed this loophole by
enacting combined reporting which has corporations file
their taxes based on their income nationwide.
In Wilmington, Del. there is a non-descript one-story
building that holds the address of more than 2/3’s of For-
tune 500 companies. There isn’t one representative from
these companies; it’s simply a mailbox for them to use to
avoid paying taxes in the state.
Combined reporting hasn’t dampened the economic We want your feedback!
prosperity of these states either. Nintey-seven percent of loquitur@gmail.com
Pa.’s largest private employers operate in other states that