Posted on 04/13/2002 8:57:25 AM PDT by sixmil
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Only Palestinian tanks have legs coming out the bottom.
Most Americans believe the U.S. should halt or reduce economic and military aid to Israel if Prime Minister Ariel Sharon does not immediately withdraw troops from Palestinian areas, according to a Time Magazine/CNN poll released April 12, 2002.
Tuesday, February 12, 2002 LAST MAN STANDING Reactivating Political Activism in Campus Culture
By: Shadi Hamid
Sometimes, I walk around on our beautiful campus and I try to observe all the things that are going on around me. I especially like to see what is going on in Red Square. Unfortunately, there is little to see. There are usually just a few stands with some clubs selling tickets or playing loud music. One time, I actually had the luxury of enjoying free coffee. But, that’s pretty much it.
When I first came here a few months ago as a naive, innocent, wide-eyed freshman, I thought that I’d see a constant presence of on-campus activism. Images of 1960s-style political defiance filled my head. After the “war on terrorism” began, I thought that there would be some kind of anti-war movement on campus. Being 10 minutes away from the White House, I thought I’d always find myself running past student protests, anti-government rallies and controversial speeches in Red Square.
In high school, people always said that prestigious colleges tended to be hubs of liberal activism. I had heard stories of passionate students taking over the Harvard administration. I had heard of even conventionally conservative Penn State students taking over buildings in protest against racism. I had heard tales of Berkeley students chaining themselves to walls and inviting arrest. I thought I would see more of the same at Georgetown. I never considered myself a liberal during high school but just the thought of all this political excitement made my mouth water. Don’t get me wrong, I love Georgetown, but the lack of on-campus activism has been nothing short of disappointing.
Slowly, I am beginning to understand a few things about the campus culture. Students are interested in getting good grades, finding the best internships, building their resume and “playing hard” on the weekends. I like getting good grades too, but that’s no reason for cause-based politics to take a backseat. The Georgetown administration is partly to blame for this. The powers-that-be have quietly endorsed a politically correct atmosphere — one that is stifling to intellectual development. The administration would like to see Georgetown students become nice, privileged, centrist, diplomatic fellows who discuss politics while drinking wine. In many ways, what is happening across America is happening here at Georgetown — dissent is being discouraged. This trend worries me. I worry that Georgetown is producing students who aren’t willing to stand strong for what they believe in. I worry that Georgetown is producing students who are schooled in the practice of equivocal, Clinton-esque, politico-diplomatic jargon. It is the same problem with many of the corrupt politicians we have on Capitol Hill today. Few of them seem willing to stand up for truth or justice. They are rarely willing to take on controversial issues. They seem content to cuddle up to special interests and big corporations at the expense of this country’s citizens.
It is sad that the professors here who do have strong, controversial beliefs are dubbed as undiplomatic extremists. Rather, they should be applauded for making us think a little harder about what we’re doing here. It is sad that, last semester, when the Young Arab Leadership Alliance decided to stage a controversial event in Red Square regarding the Israeli occupation, some dubbed them radical and extremist. Whether you agree with YALA or not, they should be commended for doing something unusually daring. They should be commended for staying true to their beliefs. That was one of the more exciting days in recent Red Square history. That demonstration made people think and showed them a different side of the story that we rarely see. Some people accused YALA of polarizing the student body; if anything, they ended up triggering much-needed dialogue on a touchy topic. That’s a good thing. Yet thankfully for Georgetown, there are flashes of hope on the horizon. YALA, the Muslim Students Association and the Georgetown Solidarity Committee staged a “die-in” in Red Square last Wednesday to protest the injustices of U.S. sanctions against Iraq. The positive effect of this demonstration was striking. Students, after seeing a stream of bodies lying down lifelessly in the middle of Red Square, wanted to learn more about America’s policy toward Iraq. Once again, these creative protests have proven to promote dialogue, debate and understanding. Hopefully, we will see more of this in the future.
In the end, it is clear that what we need here is not career-driven, money-hungry, opinionless politicians in the making. I want Americans to attack American attitudes. I want to see Jewish students criticize Israel. I want to see blacks criticize President Bush for blowing up the defense budget, while the poor of the inner city are forgotten. I want to see Arabs who criticize Arab countries and I want to see econ majors spout communist ideology. We need students with strong integrity and dynamic beliefs. We need people who are willing to fight for what they believe in and defy convention. We need some passionate students who are going to shake things up a bit. Ultimately, Georgetown needs to nurture a more charged, invigorating, politically conscious atmosphere. That would be healthy for us. Right now, though, I watch CNN and see the same cookie-cutter, self-proclaimed “experts” saying the same things. No one seems to be interested in the truth. Let’s hope we will not fall prey to the same disease.
Last Man Standing appears every other Tuesday in The Hoya. The author can be reached at lastmanstanding@thehoya.com
What a lieberal puke!
Even with his little tank, there still isn't much to see.
And you know what? I frankly couldn't give a damn what the polls say about this issue anyway--the people elected this administration in part because they believed he would follow the right course. And he is, albeit in a side-stepping way.
I'm with JohnHuang2 on the Middle East; I think Bush has not waivered in his determination to rid the world of terrorists with global reach. And that likely includes the extremists in Palestine.
Shadi Hamid, 18, a freshman at Georgetown University,
proves that he did not go to an American public school
because he spells too well. (AP Photo/Kenneth Lambert)
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