Letter from the Editor: training grounds
Our 12th issue of the semester is being released into your hallways and kiosks as campus political life takes on another strange turn. ICC Vice Chair Courtney King has written a letter to the editor in which she chronicles her time on the A.S. board of directors and the apparent, sour end to her tenure there.
Until information is verified and others involved in the story come forward and give their side, King's letter for now raises once again serious questions as to the going ons in the Cayton Center during the tenure of this student government. Just as the board met for its final Monday meeting, it appears the simple utterance of a "bad word" that is no doubt common in most political offices is exposing the divisions and tensions between the Dean of Student of Life and certain members of the elected student body. The supposed offense by King was indeed so serious as to provoke her being banned from Thursday's ICC social, an event she herself planned and even molded once more into a tea party.
If the letter and its story prove anything, it is that college life is indeed a training ground for students to prepare themselves for the outside terrain where wolves prowl in every corner. Simply turn on the news and witness the circus surrounding the emerging candidates for the 2016 presidential elections. Neither Republican or Democrat are immune to the microscopic lens of the press and investigators. Names that at one point garner great respect and awe suddenly become minimized to human scale.
Student government is very much like the campus paper in the sense that students are thrown suddenly into real world situations and forced to make intense decisions. In the last year we have faced threats, attacks and harsh criticisms along with praise and support. Life within student government is no different.
We have therefore decided to publish King's letter not because what she has to say is attention-grabbing, but because it is a very honestly composed statement about juggling student life within a high pressure environment.
We have already begun reaching out to relevant parties to get their responses.
In this week's issue we also bring you stories from around campus as Global Motion again storms the Broad with its eclectic collection of world dances and music. In our Arts & Entertainment section we review the new "Mad Max" film. I myself went to see it over the weekend and agree with the reviewer that it was an adrenaline rush of a film, full of striking images and a ferocious energy to its creativity.
The only part of the review I respectfully disagree with is the notion that the film has no subtext or metaphor, like classic science fiction it imagines a future based on our own, current faults: War, conflicts over resources, tribalism and an addiction to settling scores with violence.
With two more issues to go after this one, we are pulling all the stops to bring you a diverse range of content and insights. There are always stories to be told, and we will continue telling them until the last page prints.