To Walk or Not to Walk?


Articles Dante Alighieri Arthur Dent Jesus Jones Thomas Paine Other Authors Contact Us! Letter to the Editor Dante Alighieri Arthur Dent Jesus Jones Thomas Paine	To Walk or Not to Walk? Dante Alighieri, Arthur Dent, Jesus Jones, Thomas Paine We sat down with somewhat discordant opinions regarding the recent walk-out. The following exchange ensued. AD: I like the idea in theory, but in practice, it's just going to cost the school a bunch of money in lost attendance, and most of the kids just went up to Frontierland Park to drink themselves silly, anyway. TP: True enough. My major problem is that many of these people aren't actually "down with the cause." They're just looking for a cheap excuse to get out of school. Hey. There's a protest this Saturday, too. You gonna be there, kids? DA: Yeah, I am gonna be there on Saturday. Yes, there were quite a few dorks who decided to go get drunk, but that's not the point. You can't just abandon a cause you support because there are people using it for their own ends. Yes, some people who walked weren't "down with the cause," but there were also many who truly believed in what they were doing and followed through. JJ: I agree. There's always going to be a few who are just looking for an excuse to get out of school, and nothing can be done about that. The point was to raise awareness about opposition to the war, and it worked. Kids saw other kids walking out, and there was discussion that went on amongst some of them. AD: "Raise awareness"? You mean people weren't aware that there's an impending war? You mean that people weren't aware that at least 50% of the entire population thinks the whole war is bullshit? The general consensus is that teens are bums who hate school, so how is walking out of a place we supposedly hate doing anything to raise awareness? Instead, the walk-out at least partially backfired, as a bunch of idiots were arrested for being drunk in the park. TP: I don't think "walk-out" is hyphenated. It just doesn't look right. Wanna know what else doesn't look right? A near-empty Precal class. A rush to leave school while important classes are in session. Actually, the whole picture just doesn't make sense. I am against this war. I simply don't see forsaking my education as a way to send any valid message. Do you? JJ: Pre-Cal is hyphenated, Mr. Proper Punctuation. And although I doubt there was anyone who wasn't aware we are going to war, there were many who didn't know anything else about it. The walk-out sparked discussion; this exchange proves it. DA: A rush to leave school while important classes are in session. As if there aren't people who skip school every day for completely arbitrary bullshit. Nooooo, let's all rag on the group that skips one day for something they care about rather than the dozens of students who are constantly gone to smoke a bowl. And as for raising awareness, the walk-out's main purpose wasn't to let everyone know that there's gonna be a war; it was to let everyone know that shit ain't cool. You say go protest on the weekends. I say protesting is for shit if you aren't willing to show that's how you feel all the time, not just when it's convenient. AD: Okay, fine. I'm all for protesting, but I think there was a better, more powerful way to make the same statement. Wednesday's walk-out at TN was poorly organized. Let's say there was a really organized protest, one with student organizers, with The Tribune notified, with students lined up to photograph it. Let's say that this protest consisted of an organized walk-out, but instead of going to Civic Center (or Frontierland Park), people gathered at the flag pole and stood together for 20 minutes and then went back to class. It seems that the same purpose would be served - in fact, served more effectively with greater numbers and a stronger, more powerful show of support…not to mention positive publicity. Now, instead of The Trib writing about TN students' political involvement, they'll be writing about drunken arrests. TP: First, Jesus, love those ad hominem attacks. I'm sure typos have a tremendous deal to do with the content of my argument. And the argument is simple: leaving school for an entire day to make a political statement gets you nowhere. Arthur's right. Spend half an hour out front speaking your peace. Get charged. Spark discussion. Then go to class. DA: Admittedly, Wednesday's walk-out could have been better. But I can't get behind the rest of your argument, Paine. Taking a faculty-endorsed protest-break for half an hour gets you nowhere. It's not the quiet, rule-following, law-abiding dissenters that get noticed. The sad reality of our society is that no one hears you until you're fucking things up. JJ: Exactly. And if the population of Terra Nova can't even get the administration to print a simple article on card-playing, I doubt they will sponsor a half-hour open-forum in which hot political issues are debated. The walk-out was poorly orchestrated, but that doesn't take away from the fact that there were people who went to the Civic Center and protested in a constructive manner. TP: Yeah, Dante. Law-abiding dissenters don't get noticed…like Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr… AD: So here's what I propose: March 26th, 3rd hour of the day (2nd period), right after SSR, those who have something to say about the impending war gather in front of the school for 20-30 minutes to show that we can assemble in a peaceful and organized (if civilly-disobedient) manner to make an important political statement. If you're with us, email us at TheSubterraneanTN@yahoo.com and mark your calendars. ALL: Resolved.	Archive Back Issues Why? Cartoons Poetry Random Rants Disclaimers Losers and Kudos of the Week Letters to the Editor Editor's Notes Picture of the Week
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Dante Alighieri, Arthur Dent, Jesus Jones, Thomas Paine

We sat down with somewhat discordant opinions regarding
the recent walk-out. The following exchange ensued.

AD: I like the idea in theory, but in practice, it's just going to cost the school a bunch of money in lost attendance, and most of the kids just went up to Frontierland Park to drink themselves silly, anyway.

TP: True enough. My major problem is that many of these people aren't actually "down with the cause." They're just looking for a cheap excuse to get out of school. Hey. There's a protest this Saturday, too. You gonna be there, kids?

DA: Yeah, I am gonna be there on Saturday. Yes, there were quite a few dorks who decided to go get drunk, but that's not the point. You can't just abandon a cause you support because there are people using it for their own ends. Yes, some people who walked weren't "down with the cause," but there were also many who truly believed in what they were doing and followed through.

JJ: I agree. There's always going to be a few who are just looking for an excuse to get out of school, and nothing can be done about that. The point was to raise awareness about opposition to the war, and it worked. Kids saw other kids walking out, and there was discussion that went on amongst some of them.

AD: "Raise awareness"? You mean people weren't aware that there's an impending war? You mean that people weren't aware that at least 50% of the entire population thinks the whole war is bullshit? The general consensus is that teens are bums who hate school, so how is walking out of a place we supposedly hate doing anything to raise awareness? Instead, the walk-out at least partially backfired, as a bunch of idiots were arrested for being drunk in the park.

TP: I don't think "walk-out" is hyphenated. It just doesn't look right. Wanna know what else doesn't look right? A near-empty Precal class. A rush to leave school while important classes are in session. Actually, the whole picture just doesn't make sense. I am against this war. I simply don't see forsaking my education as a way to send any valid message. Do you?

JJ: Pre-Cal is hyphenated, Mr. Proper Punctuation. And although I doubt there was anyone who wasn't aware we are going to war, there were many who didn't know anything else about it. The walk-out sparked discussion; this exchange proves it.

DA: A rush to leave school while important classes are in session. As if there aren't people who skip school every day for completely arbitrary bullshit. Nooooo, let's all rag on the group that skips one day for something they care about rather than the dozens of students who are constantly gone to smoke a bowl. And as for raising awareness, the walk-out's main purpose wasn't to let everyone know that there's gonna be a war; it was to let everyone know that shit ain't cool. You say go protest on the weekends. I say protesting is for shit if you aren't willing to show that's how you feel all the time, not just when it's convenient.

AD: Okay, fine. I'm all for protesting, but I think there was a better, more powerful way to make the same statement. Wednesday's walk-out at TN was poorly organized. Let's say there was a really organized protest, one with student organizers, with The Tribune notified, with students lined up to photograph it. Let's say that this protest consisted of an organized walk-out, but instead of going to Civic Center (or Frontierland Park), people gathered at the flag pole and stood together for 20 minutes and then went back to class. It seems that the same purpose would be served - in fact, served more effectively with greater numbers and a stronger, more powerful show of support…not to mention positive publicity. Now, instead of The Trib writing about TN students' political involvement, they'll be writing about drunken arrests.

TP: First, Jesus, love those ad hominem attacks. I'm sure typos have a tremendous deal to do with the content of my argument. And the argument is simple: leaving school for an entire day to make a political statement gets you nowhere. Arthur's right. Spend half an hour out front speaking your peace. Get charged. Spark discussion. Then go to class.

DA: Admittedly, Wednesday's walk-out could have been better. But I can't get behind the rest of your argument, Paine. Taking a faculty-endorsed protest-break for half an hour gets you nowhere. It's not the quiet, rule-following, law-abiding dissenters that get noticed. The sad reality of our society is that no one hears you until you're fucking things up.

JJ: Exactly. And if the population of Terra Nova can't even get the administration to print a simple article on card-playing, I doubt they will sponsor a half-hour open-forum in which hot political issues are debated. The walk-out was poorly orchestrated, but that doesn't take away from the fact that there were people who went to the Civic Center and protested in a constructive manner.

TP: Yeah, Dante. Law-abiding dissenters don't get noticed…like Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr…

AD: So here's what I propose: March 26th, 3rd hour of the day (2nd period), right after SSR, those who have something to say about the impending war gather in front of the school for 20-30 minutes to show that we can assemble in a peaceful and organized (if civilly-disobedient) manner to make an important political statement. If you're with us, email us at TheSubterraneanTN@yahoo.com and mark your calendars.

ALL: Resolved.