Whatever Happened to the Original American Ideals? by Isaac Ardoin



The article hits the nail square on the freaking head. I can exactly identify with the author's sentiments, especially about the fact that the two candidates in our last election were so similar and that the government is in the wrong mindset. Great Article.

--Jesse



I am going to paraphrase this article to save you some time. Oh, and I didn't vote for Bush. "I am a left wing elitist who wants to complain because no one is liberal like me in Oklahoma. I am going to waste your time and not bother to read up on anything I am saying, and just state my option that was based on things I read on the internet. I am right because everything on the internet is true."

--Tyler



Wonderfully said.

--Troxel



It doesnt sound much like you love America, but more what you think America should be. Politicians lie to you because you will listen and vote for them. You voted for Kerry so dont act like you are above it, you are just as much a part of the problem as they are. When you stop supporting liars, maybe liars will stop running for office. Furthermore, if you want to get teenagers drunk, smoke pot, and marry a dude, then maybe you should go ahead and find a new country. Mexico's pretty close and I think you probably find plenty of hash and gay love there, communist.

--Rick



Why go there when theres California?



your article sucked ballz, you are a naive young person with a skewed view of reality.

--Nick



And using the word ballz clearly makes you the expert on the subject.



Words fail one. The mind, as the late Bertie Wooster used to say, boggles. To this rant of an argument - I do hope you felt better after spewing your silly notions onto the SIN website - one feels compelled to respond: the reason more young voters do not vote, going from this submission, is not because they are disgusted to see that America has fallen from its high ideals; rather, they do not vote because they never paid attention in history class, and consequently lack the slightest comprehension of what those original ideals actually were.

--Joel



Brilliant! Awesome! Rock the [bleep] on! I have debated for years, but even before that, I was fascinated by politics when most little girlies were fascinated with lip gloss and N'Sync. I was a Libertarian before I even knew the name of the party. And then I stopped studying political theory, and started studying the government we actually have. It was incredibly disillusioning. Thank you for writing a superb article talking about this process, among other things. Great job.

--Elizabeth



Wow, it's about time! I have been doing research on marijuana statistics for many years and, as I'm sure you know, it's ridiculous how the government tries to put a lock on a more useful plant than most of their "bathtub" prescription drugs that are used today! I could go on for a long time about this, but just check out this website, drugwarfacts.org and visit the marijuana section and read up on the most outlandish facts provided by government research, that the don't want you to see.

--Jake



In response to Mr. Ardoin's numbered points:

1. Why is marijuana illegal?

- Good question. Alcohol does more harm to the body than marijuana does. Allowing one and not the other is a double standard. Either allow them both or allow neither.

2. Why can't you consume alcohol legally until you're 21?

- I'm not sure of the details, but it's a medical reason. Some part of the brain or something does not quit growing until you are 21 years old, and alcohol permanently disrupts said part of the body from developing.

3. Why is gay marriage a "right" being withheld?

- Gay marriage isn't a right. Marriage period isn't a right. The only part of the Constitution where this can even be remotely argued is in Section 1 of Amendment XIV, and then it would be labeled as one of the "privileges" of citizens that no state can make laws impeding. However, there are two items in that statement that no state cannot abridge: privileges and immunities. Gay marriage, in our society, disrupts the desired immunities of a majority of the population (however slim a majority anyone claims, it's still a substantial majority), and so Congress (nor judges) should be allowed to say one way or the other.

4. Why don't we fix the budget?

- Sounds like a novel idea. If you want to try to get rid of most of the programs the US is involved in both domestically and abroad in order to do so, good luck. If you're going for option two and raising taxes, again I say, good luck. And God help our economy if taxes go too much higher.

5. Why do politicians lie?

- Their desire to keep their status outweighs their integrity. I'm not going to say everyone doesn't lie, but quite a few are honest people. Some of your "lies" you have listed have no evidence to back them up, and come across as conspiracy theory bs, especially about terror. Not everything the government does or a politician does is for political gain, and if you believe that, I'm genuinely sorry you have such a dismal outlook on people. I though you liberals were supposed to believe in the inherent goodness of humans, unlike us conservatives who think that we're all sinful by nature. Way to back up your beliefs. Oh, and privacy was seen nowhere in our founding father's ideals. Neither was the idea that "victimless crimes are not crimes".

--Jeff



How do you think George Bush will personally make money from the war? How do you think Kerry won't? Do you base this on opinion or fact? -

"The idea of accepting your fellow man whether or not he is different than you? " Are you serious, blatantly obvious would be an issue of race, and after that would be class. If you were not white and did not come from a good family, you were not legit. Have you ever heard of Primogeniture? George Washington himself believed in special privilege, and belonged to the Society of the Cincinnati. I agree with your expressions of young voters though. as well as points 1, 2, & 3. 4th is key but do you have to pay all your debt off at once, ever. No, you make payments on it. The national debt is not great enough to worry about in respect with a percentage of our GDP. You have a problem if you want to be a respected professional "I know that more Americans voted for Bush and thats why he won, and I know Republicans have their own reasons for supporting Bush; frankly I dont care." that I don't care part might cause you trouble, you would be a better writer if you cared.

--Jordan



The question Im asking is this: What ever happened to the ideas that this country was founded on and thrived with? The idea of religious freedom? The idea of accepting your fellow man whether or not he is different than you? The idea that victimless crimes arent crimes at all? The idea that Americans can run their own lives? The idea that America should stay out of other countries affairs? The idea that Americans should have privacy? The idea that the government should only be as big as it needs to be? These ideals are nonexistent in todays government. The "Ideas this country was founded on." What a load of horse dung. Accepting a fellow man whether or not he is different from you, yeah.. I don't believe how this countries foundation was set. The "People who founded this country" more or less did it through a genocide of a whole civilization. The key word is idea.. Thats what they always have been. I mean only about 40 years ago we had a civil rights movement.. That isn't very long. Money is an answer to a lot of your questions, like why America doesn't stay out of other countries. I agree in principle to a lot of the ideas, but thats all they are. My advice, take government/macroeconomics/ and some non-western western history classes for pete sake.. a lot of what you learned in "high school" is only one side of the story.

--Neil



This was an excellent piece. Very well worded and full of content. Finally, a liberal writer on SIN that can actually say something, and make sense; other than Costello, that is.

--C



As soon as you refuse to vote, you refuse whatever control you may have.

--Frank



Its funny how we think that living up to our "original American ideals" is only a modern problem. If we look back into the history of our country we can see we've been having this problem ever since the Pilgrims arrived. The author asks, "What ever happened to the ideas that this country was founded on and thrived with? The idea of religious freedom? "The answer: our country has been struggling with that one for quite sometime. Yeah, the pilgrims came to America to practice their faith freely and without government intervention, but as soon as they got here they made sure everyone practiced their faith the Puritan way or else it was shishkababo for you buddy. Jews in America haven't faired to well either. They have been persecuted quite a bit throughout history. Lets not forget the Mormons! They were driven out of three states by ruthless mobs just for practicing their faith. I think its interesting to note that there was an exterminating order of all Mormons placed in Missouri in the 1840s that wasn't lifted until the 1970s. So for over 130 years it was legal to kill as many Mormons as you wanted. It's safe to say the problem of religious freedom is not a new one.

Mr. Ardion continues his questions, "The idea of accepting your fellow man whether or not he is different than you? All right... short history lesson. Back when the framers of our country started putting the whole Constitution thing together a "fellow man" was 1)male 2)white 3)owned property. If you weren't none of the above you were probably property. People getting treated unequally isn't a new problem. Our country started out with the problem when slaves were brought slaves here. It took qutie awhile before we got rid of that horrible idea, but it was only replaced with laws to stifle any progress by African Americans. Discrimination against women has existed..well since Cro magnum days. "The idea that Americans can run their own lives?" Well, I believe I have shown that this isn't a new problem by stating slavery as an example.

Hey, I agree that our country isn't perfect, but I don't agree that our country is that morally corrupt either. In fact, we've made a lot of moral progress since the founding of our country. Trying to live by the "Original American Ideals" isn't a new problem in our country. Each generation of Americans has had to struggle to live up to it. So, please, dude... stop whining , buy yourself some La Luna Chicken Enchiladas, and enjoy nice game Halo 2. There's nothing more American than that.

--Brett



Except for fireworks.



I couldn't disagree with this young student more. Let's just say there is not a God, then him and many others are just fine. But what if there is? And God actually does talk against homosexuality and abortion as a sin. This life is so short compared to eternity. What if us crazy loony Christians are right? What's going to happen to all of these people who do reject God? I shutter at the thought. I am a proud Bush-supporting Christian and I don't want anyone to lose their souls because of misguided beliefs. I can only hope that this young student will change his mind before he dies. That day is coming; we will all face it whether you believe in God or not; everyone will face God!

--Becki



As long as the Apocalypse doesnt interfere with the release of Star Wars Episode 3.



Home Is Where the Heart Is by Beth Wickman



'applause applause' GREAT JOB! this article is basically my narrative of my first semester here at OU! this was freakin' awesome! i caught myself nodding to almost everything that Beth wrote about!

--Kyley



Wow, what an interesting article. I mean I never would have guessed in a thousand years that some people would get homesick when they first go to college. That is just a freaking shock to me. Now I may be alone on this one, but I think this article touched on a very important subject that few people are aware of and I think you should consider doing more. Maybe even working on a book. Im sure there are like a ton of people out there that would be really interested to know that a college kid might miss their friends when they leave home. I know I was. On a personal note, this article helped me win an argument with my friend. The other day I was helping my friends little brother with his biology homework and he asked me, "Which side of the body is the heart on?" Of course, I replied "I think the heart is actually at home." The next day my friends parents were called to the school because the school thought their child was retarded. My friend called me a stupid jerk for getting his kid brother in trouble but I was all like, "Dude, I think Im right" Thanks a lot for helping me stick it to my friend and the public school system.

--Rick



Hey, you owe it to the man.



I loved your article! I am also from Katy and went to Katy High School. I really felt like your article applied and i can truely relate.

--Lindsey



I really enjoyed reading this article. I myself am from a town that is 7-8 hrs away, Midland Tx. Beth's post is the same way I felt when I first came to OU and still to this day feel it, myself being a Junior. Please tell Beth I enjoyed her article and it feels good to not be the only person that feels that way.

--Jesse



A very nice article by Beth Wickman. It brought back many memories of my homesickness when I was in college. The constant is we all need our friends to make our life better. I would enjoy reading more articles by Beth Wickman. She is a very good writer who captures your feelings about reality.

--Sam



Hi! I don't know if this goes to Beth or whoever, I just wanted to say that I'm from Katy, Tx also!! I'm a freshman too, and I'd love to meet you or something. What high school did you go to? I liked the article- I think it's something we can all relate to.

--Carolyn



While hopefully not embarrassing my son, this article was an answer to his prayers, ones he thought might have gone unheard or overlooked. The content is right on target for him, mirroring many of his feelings about being away for school at OU. And he is from Georgia! Thank you, Beth, for expressing your feelings that I am sure many freshman can identify with. You write extremely well. Keep it up so we can all have the opportunity to read you again! Best of Luck!

--Ann



Consider him embarrassed.



So young and yet so wise. A very refreshing and fulfilling article.

--Tom



keep up the good work on the articles!!!!!! You truly have a nick for these type of things.

--Sweetmate



Letters to the Editor (12) by The Editor



You all are paying no heed to what almost half of the country thinks is the right decision concerning the running of our government. Im sick of this, i think i speak for a wide segment of the population when i refer you to the portion of the declaration of independence referring to revolution. Its time for a change in this country, and if things dont change, it may have to come when we pry it from the cold dead hands of the establishment.

--Andrew



Reading the comments to Aaron Israel's article, I find it amazing to see so many uninformed and stubbornly biased people. I thought people knew better than that.

--Aaron



Just wondering if the "SIN people" heard about the reception Tom Brokaw got at the game on Saturday? Well in case you didn't. . he got booed. big time. Just proving the point that the liberal crap ya'll spat out doesn't represent the majority so quit trying to push it. Oh yea and that "election 2004, where do we go from here" paper that's been circulating is damn funny, it shows how pathetic it's getting. Just to settle it once and for all John "Scarrey" lost, Bush won. .stop whining and suck it down. Booooooooooooooo!!

--Kenny



And we reinforce the national stereotype that all Oklahomans are uncivilized rednecks.



Our Dumb America: The Real Tragedy of Alcohol by Mark Potts



As a senior and a person who on a regular basis drinks, I believe that you are not looking at this issue from a 360-degree perspective. Drinking has become a large problem on college campuses around the nation and with young people in general. You dont seem to be down with parties and other social functions, so it seems you have a biased opinion. The drinking being done around campus for the most part is a way for students to relax and relieve some stress. Going to campus corner and going into the bars with friends and socializing is probably my favorite part of the week. There comes a time in your life where sitting down playing video games just doesn't cut it anymore, and its not that we have to go to the bars and drink, but it is where anyone and everyone is. After becoming older it becomes harder and harder to spend time with friends and associates due to the living situations and schoolwork. The weekend calls for a place and time to go meet up, kick back, share stories and meet new people. Drinking itself is not the problem, if that were the case than it would be outlawed by the states and country. Our responsibility levels are the main issues at hand. Its being able to know when some one has had to much to drink, although sad it has to be this way this is the only way things will change. There will always be those people who over do it and need a person to take care of them, and i can honestly say that i myself have been that guy more than my fair share. My point is being able to consume alcohol is a right of passage, and should not be looked down upon. You yourself seem like a great candidate to be the responsible one and watch out for your friends, less scrutiny and more responsibility. No matter what is said its going to be done, so its up to the friends watch each other and create and balancing act. I also know that when I have kids some day it would be sad if while sitting around with my buddies that the only stories we can talk about are how that one time I beat Halo in 20 minutes. People need to stop kissing up and saying how we should kick people out of school for drinking and how alcohol should be banned because those ideas are ridiculous, get out have some fun, see other people having fun. Life is about lessons and learning whether or not it being the hard way. You just have to know when to be the voice of reason.

--Dave



I just read your email. I'm not even going to try to comment on most of it because I would be typing forever. I have my agreements and disagreements. But you are right at the end, even though it is concluded with a question. When will people learn? I am a sigma chi, and I will always be saddened by what happened. But yet I go to random parties at different fraternity parties, and I visit dorm rooms, and I hear stories, and I see/hear the same shit that has always gone on since my three years here. It makes me sick. Personally, I went from drinking 5 nights a week to 1 or 2. Yah it hit me close to home, but from what I thought at the time it hit the whole campus, and other campuses close to home also. The abuse of alcohol is too prevalent in our society/community and new rules and laws won't change that, because rules and laws that make alcohol the "forbidden fruit" are the reason it is abused in the first place.

--Taft



I LOVE YOU MARK! Thanks for sharing the truth. It's nice to see a reporter who has the balls to say the truth about the ignorance of this society, especially college society.

--Brian



A very well written article. It has great points, but I did not like some of the suggestions to help handle the drinking problem. The kids just do not know how to drink, blame and simple. In my humble option, the legal age should be dropped to 18. Also, I think the parents should introduce alcohol in a responsible manner when the child is a young teenager. Notice I said responsible manner. They should explain what it is, what it does, and how it can hurt you. Kids today are pushed away from alcohol their entire lives, but when college rolls around, there is no one to really stop them. Everybody wants what they can't get, so they drink. And drink. People get hurt when that happens.

--Tyler



I rarely comment on articles of any sort, but i thought "The Real Tragedy of Alcohol" was nothing short of horrible. A broken record maybe? We've heard it all before, and have heard it in much better written articles. Overall, not a good article and not a good writer. Sorry.

--Allison



Shocking Developments by Kevin Costello



excellent article. I would have tased the kid, personally.

--Matt



All kids could use a good tasing now and then.



Okay, I don't get the potty training story at all. Did I miss something? Why were the police called when a six year-old got upset and punched a picture frame? And how did potty training get thrown into the mix? I am utterly confused. Please help.

--Lindyn



Once again, that was freakin sweet dude. I bet if Kevin had been there he would have potty trained that crap out of that kid, and he wouldn't even have needed a stun gun like some wussy cop jerk. In fact he probably could have potty trained the whole school and then that cop guy would have been all sad and then he would have tazered himself in the neck or something. That would have been pretty cool. And then the cop would be all hurt and then Van Halen guy would show up to paramedic him and Kevin would be all like "you suck at paramedicing, why dont you sing or something." And then he would sing cool songs for the school, with Kevin on lead guitar or something. Yeah, that would probably have been the coolest concert ever at that school. Kevin would get like that most hard core record contract ever and then he wouldn't have to write articles for OU anymore cause he would be rolling in bling and that would be kinda cool for him but it would suck so hard for everyone else that wants to read more sweet articles. So I guess what Im saying is potty train kids if you want to but dont sell out cause that wouldnt rock.

--Rick
hello there & you too