Opinion
Lori Patterson, former student and volunteer for the Women’s Resource Center, wants to change the world.
Through knitting.
Formerly “Stitch ‘n’ Bitch,” Crafternoons is a place where people can go to knit, crochet, sew and gripe about the world. The WRC hosts the event every Wednesday from noon to 1 p.m. in the WRC lounge.
Standing outside in the cold is how everyone wants to spend a weeknight, right? Okay, maybe not.
But that’s exactly what students living in the Broadway Housing Building dorms got to do on Oct. 18.
Due to a small, grease-related fire on the sixth floor, all students living in the Broadway housing building were evacuated around seven in the evening and were told to remain outside until fire crews had checked the entire building.
Sitting in the basement of Smith Memorial Student Union a few days ago, I came across an interesting sight. There, huddled around the wall-mounted television, were about 30 or 40 students. They were watching the Republican presidential candidate debate, of all things.
For what reason? To heckle it, obviously. Even as a registered Republican, I’ll agree that there was plenty there to heckle.
Saturday, the Student Health and Counseling Center, along with police stations, clinics, hospitals and social centers all over the United States, took back medications with no questions asked.
National Drug Take-Back Day is an event popular in many cities throughout the U.S. With a few exceptions, SHAC and other Oregon clinics and police stations take back any medication, prescription or non-prescription, with no required proof of prescription, no personal inquiries and no judgments. People brought in expired painkillers, unused antibiotics, the leftover pills from deceased relatives, etc.
Some students join clubs; others start clubs. Others take their clubs to a completely different level, even off campus.
Nicholas Horton, a graduate student studying game theory, turned the on-campus weightlifting club he started into his own business when he took it off campus three years ago. Horton now runs PDX Weightlifting, a club based on membership (and associated) fees located in SE Portland.
Sex in videos and movies is rampant. The television program Glee takes on scenes of teens losing their virginity. What Beyonce is asked to do in her music videos is so far outside of herself, she says, that she invents a character, “Sasha,” to do the super-racy videos for her. Bedroom scenes in soap operas abound. But these are not the only shockers we’re exposed to.
Violence takes no back seat to sex in this trend of shock value in our media. Studies estimate we will witness more than 2,000 “murders” on television by the age of 18.
The Portland State University chapter of the Association of American University Professors has been engaged in collective bargaining with the university since last April, in an effort to secure a contract agreement for the new biennium. With the current contract set to expire on Oct. 31, and university administrators and faculty union representatives at loggerheads, it appears that another deadline extension may be on the horizon.
While the situation may be complex, we’re tempted to reduce it to one fairly simple question: Is this sustainable?
The iconic figure of Apple legend Steve Jobs in his black turtleneck and jeans has been immortalized for the moment by magazine covers, temporary memorials, online posts and a new biography. How Jobs will continue to be remembered, though, is still in the works.
Steve Jobs’ authorized biography, Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson, was released Monday, almost a month before the original Nov. 21 date, after Jobs’ untimely death. Even with the book released, another tribute is possibly being developed by Sony, which bought the movie rights to the biography just days after Jobs passed away.
The cool fall weather calls out, inviting everyone to get on their feet and walk out of their doors. It is neither too hot nor too cold for outdoor sports and activities, and fresh air is a wonderful way to stave off the common cold. This is a clear indication of why fall is the perfect time of year to participate in Walktober.
Open to all members of the Portland State community, Walktober is an opportunity to get motivated and incorporate walking into one’s daily routine. Since Oct. 10, participants have been keeping track of their walking minutes online and engaging in friendly competition, either in teams or as individuals.
Although it’s sometimes hard to distinguish between the Republican debates going on right now and a sketch from Saturday Night Live, the debates serve as a reminder of what’s coming in the next year. With the 2012 election season rapidly approaching, students should be registering to vote, bulking up their repertoire of political knowledge and looking for a candidate with whom they can identify.
With the onset of the extensive media coverage of the upcoming election and the Republican debates, Portland State students should remember that voting is a privilege—and not one common to everybody.
After a year and a half of collaboration between the Institute for Sustainable Solutions and Facilities and Planning, the Smith Memorial Student Union has become the first building to be retrofitted to accommodate what is called a “green screen.” With sustainability in mind, the new green screen TV display outside the cafeteria tracks resource use throughout a building.