n "
ar mentali reflects general immature attitude
College is the best time of rant usually takes the form of massive inebriation (or inhala-
your life. Nowadays, however, it "We have nowhere to drink? Well tion, or some such activity). The
seems there are a few prerequi- what are we going to do now?" as occasional altered state is not
sites to qualify for said "best if all functions of the world had uncommon among them, but
time." altogether ceased and imbibing most of our parents and teachers
One: you have to assume that spirits at a certain person's home have found other things to do.
altering your normal, rational was the only meaningful activity Upon hearing this statement, I
state of mind is a bang-up way to mankind had left to pursue. believe many of my compatriots
spend an evening. Two: on many Where does this attitude orig- would guffaw in hilarity.
outing, you have to be totally inate? It seems as if the self-con- Perhaps college isn't the time
illing to forego most of your cerned mindset among students for students to discover the world
concerns in pursuit of the self- behaves like a string of firecrack- yet. It couldn't possibly be, or
aggrandizing goal of gorging ers, with each consecutive unit maybe we don't want it to be,
yourself with what whatever unable to resist joining the gener- with such an immature attitude
activities the crowd deems worthy al cause of the group. As one indi- prevalent in many of today's
enough to partake in. vidual sets his or her mind on youths. Granted, discovery of
Is it possible for college stu- mind-alteration, others in the one's limits is certainly an impor-
dents, or students of this general vicinity find it hard to resist the tant lesson, but the degree to
age, to consider anything but temptation to drop most concerns which students constantly engage
themselves when engaging in and join the cause of the evening. in this process of discovery is
evenings that include imbibing As I criticize this behavior, I somewhat alarming.
[assive amounts of alcohol, am led to a crucial string of Solace, then, can be found in
-ugs or fetid quantities of both? questioning: well, why not? the fact that, although the afore-
It seems that all matters are What is depleted from the over- mentioned trends may tell other-
cast aside in lieu of self-con- all functioning of the world if wise, firecrackers eventually do
cernedness. On any particular college students are lying about go out. After a violent series of
night, many in our generation in a haze of self-engrossedness? bursts, the boisterous address
bewitch themselves with one Furthermore, why should they ceases. That is, unless, the fire-
goal: the ever-elusive "party." contribute to the world in the cracker is a dud, and never lights
On countless outings whose first place? in the first place.
prospective results foretell of Our elders seem to have down - This viewpoint was written
failed efforts to change ones a system of occupying them- by University staffmsestber
Stind-state, an all-too familiar selses with something other than Jeff VentDus.
S- TO TH ® '

Monday, JLy 26, 1999 - The Michigan Daily - 5
Stepping back in life is necessary to move ahead
E AST BRUNSWICK, N.J. - I can't walk enemies and loves, but it really didn't matter,
through my house in the dark anymore. These are the friends with whom I blasted
Before I went to college, I knew my way "Pour Some Sugar on Me" in fifth grade until
around every inch of this house. But now, as our mothers unplugged the stereo.
I'm "home" for the weekend, it seems like Throughout junior high school, we
the walls have moved, the light switches are bragged about and pathetically exaggerated
not where I remember them and the number our romantic exploits.
of steps leading to my bedroom has So regardless of our respective
changed. levels of higher education, we were
My room is just how I left it - still able to get drunk and laugh for
complete with MAD magazines, hours about dancing hamsters on the
dusty old photos and a 1965 set of computer screen.
World Book Encyclopedias. Although I've been brainwashed
But I feel like a visitor. I never by the monster of political correct-
come back to New Jersey more than ness that is Ann Arbor, I kicked back
three or four times a year. Ann and laughed at my friend John's
Arbor, of which I was terrified jokes, which would be grounds for
three years ago, is my real home, expulsion at the University of
When I say that I'm going home, I EFFREY Michigan.
now mean Ann Arbor, not New KOSSEFF Yes, we've changed, but the histo-
Jersey. .s ,\ ry is always there. That is stronger
Most of my good friends are S Yl E than anything.
now in Ann Arbor. They are the I know that in five years, I proba-
ones who know my daily challenges and con- bly won't be in regular contact with most of
quests. I've lost touch with most of my high my college friends. But I know that - as in
school friends. Like most high school friend- high school - I have formed bonds with
ships, many of my relationships were superfi- many people in college that will never be
cial and not well-directed. broken.
But during my two days in New Jersey, With budding careers and the beginnings
I've found time to see my two best friends of real lives, it is easy for college students to
from high school. keep moving forward without ever looking
We hadn't seen each other for more than a back.
year, and we are quite different from who we I've fallen into that fast-paced trap. But
were a few years ago. every once in a while, I need to slap myself
When I saw them, it felt likeathe old in the face and remind myself where I came
times, I knew it wasts't, but it was fun to pee- frots.
tend. Moving forward is inevitable, fun and
We went to the same 24-hour greasy diner necessary, but looking back is an opportunity
that we frequented so many times before to for me to see where I'm going.
talk about school, people we hated and girls. -- Jeffrey Kosseff can be reached over e-
Of course, we each have different schools, mail atjkosseff@umich.edu.
Sidewalk sales to take over Art Fair in 2000
[ lse past three months have taught me that My blood pressure started to rise and my palms
when you spend the summer in Ann Arbor, started to sweat. The intense crowds were robbing
life is good. The campus is beautiful, the weather me of my lazy, stress-free summer. But just as I
is warm and you can actually find parking spots on was getting the urge to scream out loud and punch
campus, because most of the rich New Yorkers old ladies in the face, something caught my atten-
have driven their sport utility vehicles home for the tion.
season. Beyond the thousand dollar earrings and mil-


Evidence in
case flawed
TO THE DAILY:
On Wednesday, July 28, there
will be an evidentiary hearing on
the cases of nine anti-racists who
otested the May 9, 1998 Ku
lux Klan rally. 19 people are
currently facing charges in what
is the largest political witch-hunt
that has ever occurred in Ann
Arbor. Nine anti-racists are
accused of having damaged a
chain-link rental fence erected
by the Ann Arbor city govern-
ment as part of its $137,000 pro-
et to protect and stage the
KK's rally.
No record of the alleged

damage was ever made by the
police or the fence company.
Police photographs of the fence,
still images secured from police
video, and testimony from neu-
tral observers including several
PeaceTeatm members, all indi-
cate there was no damage done
to the fence. The police allowed
the fence to be scrapped and
melted down following the KKK
rally, leaving only the bill from
the fence company as "evi-
dence" of damage.
At the first day of the eviden-
tiary hearing on July 16, the
fence company foreman testified
that the company's usual proce-
dure with a rental fence of this
type is to discard it - "dam-
aged" or not. This means that
the prosecution is charging peo-

ple with "maliciously destroy-
ing" "property" that normally
would have been scrapped after
the rally regardless of its condi-
tion.
On Thursday there will be a
hearing for the ten anti-racists
facing felony "riot" and "incite
to riot" charges. Please attend
the hearings this week at the
Washtenaw County Courthouse.
Student and Ann Arbor commu-
nity support and pressure will be
decisive in forcing the city gov-
ernment to drop these charges.
The hearings will take place all
day Wednesday, July 28 and
Thursday, July 29 beginning at
8:30 a.m.
JESSICA CURTIN
RACKHAM



*, xS~ I

*h tfttl' w4 ' 1
M1 er
414
Y


The omnipresent stress of the city
temporarily disappears as students <
replace demanding course loads with
brainless jobs and less difficult summer
classes.
The bluebirds are singing, the sun is
smiling, the flowers are swaying in the
warmbreeze...you get the point. z
And what a better way to comple-
ment the city's natural artistic beauty
than to showcase some of the nation's >
greatest artists at the annual Ann Arbor
Art Fairs? B
I wasn't particularly excited that for BA
four days the lonely summer streets of
my neighborhood were going to be
crawling with 500,000 visitors, but I thought it
would be an interesting scene nonetheless.
When I found out my family was coming up for
the event, I figured I might as well check it out. They
wanted to find some gifts and a nice piece of art to
put in the living room. I just wanted a free lunch.
But while I was there, I decided to look for
something decorative to put in my own living room
next to the priceless, flashing construction barrel
and the "ROAD CLOSED" sign.
I was even willing to spend all the money I had
- that's right, all 547.50 of it. Unfortunately, all
th,, would buy me was an elephant ear and a
lemonade, for which I had to wait 20 minutes in
line.
While I was in line, at least five people bumped
into me. It reminded me of the grueling walks to
class during the school year at ten in the morning.

3p

lion dollar paintings, I saw a sidewalk
sale. And as I looked further, I saw even
more of them. Finally, things I could
actually afford that weren't grossly over-
priced.
Record stores had huge sales, shoe
stores were practically giving away shoes
and jewelry stores had bracelets and
necklaces for five dollars - not five
thousand dollars.
Stairway to Heaven sold beautiful
AMY bongs at dirt cheap prices... you know,
ARBER for mature adults who like to smoke their
lBER'S favorite tobacco in style.
C> f As I returned home from the Art Fair,
happily carrying my bargain buys, I
developed a plan. I've decided that the Art Fair
needs some revision.
First of all, the name should be changed from
the "Art Fair" to the "Super Spectacular Sidewalk
Sale Fair." Vendors who sell classy, expensive art
will be replaced with vendors who sell cheap,
functional items, like clothes, bicycles and futons.
Sure it might not attract as many people, but it
would be a lot more fun. Visitors wouldn't be
crowded and shoppers wouldn't go home broke.
They would go home with fun t-shirts, tapestries
and inflatable furniture.
Once Mayor Sheldon gets a hold of this plan,
the Art Fair will be an embarrassing memory. So
you better start saving now. The big event premiers
in July of 2000.
-Amsi Barber canb e reached sia e-mttail at
abarber@ sssich.edu.


It I 3 # ..sue. _