Adults just as clueless in real-life Michigan Footloose
Times are a-changing. But some people do not want to accept certain changes. There has been a disconnect between parents and kids, and this disconnect recently took on the issue of “”appropriate dancing”” in high schools. Administrators at Brighton High School in Michigan decided to cancel a school dance solely because they did not feel comfortable with the students’ modern forms of dance. “”Freaking,”” as they called it, is apparently a too sexually suggestive way of dancing, and the administration would have none of it.
The school’s concerns are completely unwarranted, and while a college newspaper run by college kids will not cater to both sides of the matter, an older generation will never fully understand how or why certain cultures adapt … Despite outbursts, which older generations will always have coming for their kids, freaking, or whatever else young’uns can invent, will certainly remain inexplicable to the school administration. Perhaps as we grow up, we will frown upon our children’s dance styles, but we shall cross that bridge when we come to it. Until then, from the point of view of still young collegiate men and women, parents remain at a distance when it comes to youthful cultural changes. How can we blame them?
— “”Parents: back off ‘freaking’ kids,”” The Daily Targum (Rutgers) editorial board, Feb. 17
Unemployment isn’t all bad: Consider the Peace Corps
The Peace Corps is an excellent opportunity and has provided many people … with advancement opportunities. The fundamental goals of the organization are to meet and train teachers, bring aide to other nations and build goodwill toward the United States.
The Peace Corps is a great opportunity for graduating students because the program helps people transition from college into the workforce. It looks impressive on applications because it is an established organization, the responsibilities are real and the organization speaks to the highest ideals of everyone, including employers. For someone who does not want to immediately enter the workforce or go on to graduate school, the Peace Corps offers a meaningful way to gain a greater understanding of your place in the world. If students are looking and still can’t find a job, or want to defer graduate school for a while, the Peace Corps and other similar organizations can be fulfilling callings in the meanwhile.
— “”A chance to serve,”” The Daily Technician (North Carolina State University) editorial board, Feb. 19
Winter Olympics don’t even make it to the podium
During the opening ceremony of the Vancouver Winter Olympic Games, champion speed skater Catriona Le May Doan was left standing with nothing to light when a pillar failed to lift one of the Olympic flames.
Perhaps that scene is a fitting symbol of recent Olympics that increasingly neglect the most important flame behind it all — the people … Canada’s CBC lost its Olympics coverage contract, leaving most U.S. residents with one option for TV viewing: tape-delayed coverage from NBC, which is inconveniently suffering from frequent loss of audio. Late-night delayed coverage is inaccessible to many and, in this world of new media, is irrelevant when everything from Twitter to newspaper Web sites have comprehensive results before the event makes it on the air.
Top that all off with the Olympic flame initially burning behind an obtrusive chain-link fence, Olympics artists being prohibited from negative remarks about the games or sponsors, and standing-room-only tickets being sold on top of snow that doesn’t exist — among other serious flaws — and the games seem hardly a celebration of and for the people at all.
— “”Olympics no longer for the people,”” The Seattle University Spectator
editorial board, Feb. 17
— compiled and abridged by Anna Swenson
