The Occidental Weekly

Oh, Gandhi. What a mensch. "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind." There is such truth, such beauty, such poetry in these words. At least, there was until a bastardized version appeared in your pages only two weeks ago. I am, of course, referring to a recent puzzle in the Calendar Arts section, edited by one J. Eugene Laufer. It appears that, after his last public spanking, Mr. Laufer has switched from crosswords to cryptoquotes in a quixotic effort to salvage his career as puzzlemeister of the Weekly. Well, Mr. Laufer, the change did not go unnoticed and, suffice it to say, I am far from impressed. I did, however, find your first choice of cryptoquote to be painfully apt: I yearn for blindness, as only it could provide the necessary respite from your insufferable contributions to my Wednesday mornings. I am particularly aghast, after your infamous Kofi Annan gaffe, that you would hijack the words of a revered historical figure in a vain attempt to prove your own intelligence. Have you no sense of decency, sir? At long last, have you left no sense of decency?

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I occasionally engage in tree-hugging, pot-smoking, Birkenstock-wearing (not as much, I already get confused for a lesbian), middle-class, atheist acts. That is to say in Dean DeChiaro's words (Occidental Weekly 10/22/08), I could be a liberal. But I also agree with the other vocal and pluralistically concerned campus conservatives and the newspaper staff.… Post the First Comment

I am writing in response to articles written by Elizabeth Cutler (Oxy Needs to Open its Mind Politically, 10/22/08) and Dean DeChiaro (Don't be Afraid to Talk to Republicans, 10/22/08). Both these articles, while well articulated, failed to understand the point they both desperately attempted to drive home: diversity in thought and ideology. I argue their failure because neither of the two even mentioned any other political parties besides the two that most Americans find their comfort in, which is, quite frankly, narrow-minded.

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I have noticed a rise in the number of skateboards on campus. Allegedly Oxy has a policy banning skateboards on campus. I propose that the school do away with the pretense of a policy and just let the skateboarders be. After all, boards are a "green" form of transportation.… Post the First Comment