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Show -- 10- WEDNESDAY, JANUARY DIXIE SUN 12, Submit your own rants & raves online ai dixiesunlink. com s Word off Green: discoisrage ridkinle BY MARK GREEN Editor-in-Chi- ef are filled with shows where smart people are portrayed as goofy, who are the butt of every joke, the laughable comparison to their stupid but good looking counterparts, and die one who rarely, if ever, gets die girl or guy. Is it in any way surprising education excellence is falling in this country? Do we fix this by dirowing more money into the Department of Educations budget? Should we tiy to raise the bar for teacher qualifications? Would paying a private tutor to help each and every student get results? Maybe, but I doubt it. There is a popular saying that goes: You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink. We can do everything in our power to improve the quality of education our citizens receive, but it will not mean a thing unless our students want to succeed academically. socially-awkward-mis-f- its Are You Smaller Than a 5th Grader is a "S popular television show, and 37 percent of Americans could not identify America on a map showing nothing other than America; obviously our citizens could be smarter. Ive written about our education system several times before, but recently Ive concluded a major part of the problem is not the system but society itself. Nerd, geek, dweeb and other slurs are popular derogatory tenns for anyone who exhibits intelligence or the desire to succeed in school. On our playgrounds children are bullied for being smart. Our television screens Children are impressionable, and our cultural tendency to demean intelligence while making Jersey Shore a nationwide phenomenon creates a terrible cast with which to mold America's future. And it's not just the brilliant minds at MTV who create shows glorifying idiocy while laughing at intelligence. Shows on the Disney Channel and otiier networks embrace the comedic blasting of smart kids. Even the Harry Potter novels took the occasional opportunity to give eveiyone a laugh at the expense of the brainy Hermione Granger's tendency to care about learning things. As a child I rationed myself to answering only one or two questions per class period, even when there were those long awkward silences following a question the teacher knew we should be able to answer, because I hated the looks child-orient- ed people gave me. I didn't like and being called a know-it-al- l, the even seemingly good teasing about being too smart made me uneasy among my peers. child wants What to subject themselves to ridicule and isolation? How na-tur- ed marry potential Einsteins, Newtons or Hawkings have shorted themselves on their potential by doing poorly in school simply because fitting in was the path of least resistance? When excellence is what this country needs, why do we punish those who strive to raise themselves above tire pack? Tire existence of terms like nerd and geek are symptoms of a disease. We need to all make a conscious effort to eliminate these stereotypical insults fr om our speech and, by extension, society at large. Some might blame the media for creating these images, but who's the media's boss? We are. And our willingness to watch shows that glorify stupidity only lead to more shows that glorify even stupider people. First there was Big Brother, then Real World ve and now Jersey Shore. shudder when I try to inragit what the next digital winnei, ieci once ify podium for morons will loo; aure like. igge So I urge each and every diet of you to think before youc, on. the smart kid a nerd or snick nice at someone who engages in jfflb the learning process by act- tak o ually answering questions in lally class. Or you can just read if Let' and ridicule the rantings ofa I :ars geek liken, Just know the second option ade a step toward a future full of ln intellects on par with the IQ, art ait.. Snooki. glasses-wearin- g 1 1 STAYm Y yM I semces 1 TSA violates liberty BY ALAINA ALLRED Staff Writer being screened by the AIT machines, they must undergo an n enhanced process. The pat-dois performed by a TSA employee, and the passengers body is searched with pat-dow- j i Christmas break is a time when many people hop on a plane to their f -- w tion of reconnecting with family and friends. If this was the case for you this holiday sea- son, I hope your mothers glazed ham was worth baring your birthday suit for big brother. Last year the Transportation Security Administration implemented new security regulations that include y s. scanners and enhanced full-bod- With an influx of travelers during the holiday season, the new security procedures received extensive media coverage, causing Americans to reconsider if flight travel was truly necessary. According to Is TSA SecuSexual Molestarity tion?", by Scott Mayerowitz published Nov. 15, 2010 for n abcnews.com, tire new a emTSA requires ployee to touch almost all parts of the human body during a The employee must run their hands among the entirety of women's breasts, and along tire timer thigh and over the genitals of both sexes. According to a blog written by Blogger Bob for tire TSA, published on blog.tsa.gov on Jan. 5, not eveiy person has to be screened. First off, why does it matter that not every person is screened? Saying that only a few are screened by tire Advanced ImPat-Do- pat-dow- pat-dow- n. aging Technology, or AIT machines, leads me to believe tire people who are screened are chosen to be. If these people do, in fact, have to be chosen to be screened, is this not a perfect case of stereotyping by TSA employees? If a passenger opts out of tire palm of tire employees hand. The search does not ignore a persons genitals or other sensitive areas. Before I go on any further, Id like to pose a question to you. Is our security really worth losing our privacy? The new regulations remind me of the Bush-er- a wiretapping debacle when the National Security Administration gave federal agents authorization to monitor and phone calls made by Americans for the sake of national security. Is it just me, or does tire gov- ernment, especially those organizations in charge of national security, keep stepping on our toes? Our rights and privileges seem to vanish when a suspected terrorist threat or potential bombing incident is reported. Im in no way stating these arent serious cases in which Americans should be protected, but isnt there another way things can be done? If MacGyver can thwart an evil plot with a Swiss Army Knife and some duct tape, shouldnt our government be able to keep us safe without ignoring our rights as citizens of this country? According to Janet Napoli-tanTSA Screening With y Scanners, Not likely To Change In Near Future," published by The Huffington Post and available at http:liuff.toflBewn, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano said the new protocols enforced by the TSA will not change in the near future. o: Full-Bod- Pat-Dow- According to the article, While saying that she is always looking to improve the security systems in place, Napolitano added that the new technology and the were objectively safer for our pat-dow- . traveling public. Napolitano wasnt joking when she said these procedures are not going to disappear. According to TSA scanners, particularly vexing for Muslims, other religious groups, written by Tara Balirampour for The Washington Post, available at http:wapo.stfFlhtG: About 440 advanced imaging technology machines are in use in the United States, and there are plans to increase that number to 1,000 - in roughly half the pat-dow- ns Wikileaks source of transparency BY TAYLOR GRIN Staff Writer nations security checkpoint lanes - by the end of 20 1 1 If theres anyone . As you can see, these new procedures are not going away. Frequent fliers should recognize the intrusion that is constantly staring them in the face when they enter tire airport. Obviously there is a major misunderstanding between tire government and its people (although, this is not the first time a misunderstanding has happened). It is a fact these new regulations will not be disappearing, so Americans need to voice their opinions. Invoke your Fourth Amendment right against unlawful searches and seizures. This may lead to you not boarding an airplane, but one voice of opposition is better than none at all. Americans should keep their civil liberties in higher consideration. hr order to do so we should be motivated to just avoid tire direct cause of concern. Tiy to keep air travel to an absolute minimum. Choose traveling by car, bus or train instead of having your genitals probed and your naked body projected on a screen. Not only should Americans avoid air travel when choosing their mode of transportation, but tire TSA should spend their time trying to find a better, and less evasive, form of protecting its travelers, one that doesnt infringe upon our civil liberties, instead of spending its time paying their employees to fondle and stereotype free Anreri- cans. : f x I L... , ; t . 1 tiring Julian Assange with his Wikileaks release of L...J diplomatic cables has reminded the world public of, its that the digital age is increasingly empower- ing the individual, whether insurgent, whistleblower or otherwise. Wikileaks first hit the media spotlight shortly after it was founded in 2007 when it released video footage showing American soldiers firing upon Reuters journalists, under the excuse the cameras tire journalists were carrying were identified (falsely) by tire soldiers as weapons. Since this and other releases of classified media have been released by tire website based in Sweden, Wikileaks has been lambasted by American media and government statements. Wikileaks is seen by tire government to be subversive, seditious and selective in its crusade to expose government practices. Tire claim has been levied by tire American government, through tire Adnr. Mike Mullen, chainnan of tire U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, that by proliferating tire diplomatic cables obtained from arr American intelligence officer Wikileaks might already have on their hands the blood of some young soldier or that of an Afghan family. http:bit.lyehpTHJ To further complicate tire issue, rape allegations have been made against Assange, which has launched his involvement in the site into celebrity and caused accusations of government cover-up- s or selective morals on both sides of tire issue. Tire mass media has been of little help, giving only recent infonnation and focusing on tire contents of tire leaks as opposed to the politics involved in Iris actions. Because of tire fractured nature of tire events as they unfold, and tire amount of information processing and packaging that has not been done by tire media, this situation has actually proven a point Assange asserts: A democracy functioning on a public must actually have a public. And this democracy lacks that information. The issue has been moving faster than most people can follow. One day a Wikileaks release has stymied a dictator, and tire next day it is enabling tire Taliban to hunt down government informants. To add confusion to tire issue there is a stark argument going on about tire ideological goals of tire site versus its real world results. If Wikileaks is attempting to increase tire transparency of government and empower citizens, is that worth tire risk citizens take by exposing confidential wartime dociurrents? To explain the idea of Tom Betar, News Editor ene Eric Reed, Opinion Editor :ati Richard Briggs, Sports Edita ngt Matt Jacobson, A&E Editor he a VfcKoye Mecham, Lifestyles Ei nsin Bryan Uhri, Online Editor at ir Shelby Misrasi, Asst. Online Eds lily. Tyler Mareing, Photo Editor The Eds Mickelle Yeates, Asst. Photo Alex Annstrong, Ad Manager icro is lat Alaina Allred Levi Arnone Chris Caldwell Michael Christensen Taylor Grin Amanda Jacobs Robert Lovell Ephraim Moore Mark Schurr Kimberly Stuart Rliett Sullivan day. ninic bos ed r ith s f bee mpl f the 'to a ied Ashley Putnam Urge: Rhiannon Bent, Adviser ars c m well-inform- 3ses DIXIE SUN well-inform- modem government further, lets use Locke's social see WIKILEAKS page 11 drh id w t HOW TO REACHES m ie ir Dixie State College s Jennings Bldg. 225 South 700 East St. George, UT 84770 Phone: (435) Fax: (435) 652-781- 656-401- 8 tcasi torvd one eedt n o 9 dixiesundixie.edu 'essa e0er Qtl vnvw.dixiesunlink.com Ologr The Dixie Sun is distributed each Wednesday during FaU and Spnnsp mesters as a publication of Dixie St S College, and Dixie State College dent Activities. The unsigned editor on the opinion page represents the p ttion of Dixie Sun as determined editonal board. Otherwise, the vie"' and opinions expressed in Dixie Set are those of the individual writers do not necessarily reflect the opify of Dixie Sun or any entity of the eel ege. feirrs Sc lcg( j lOutj cold side Oltls arin. be soi 'lice |