Opinion
ZM/vNebraskan
Since 1901
Editor: Sarah Baker
Opinion Page Editor: Samuel McKewon
Managing Editor: Bradley Davis
Seeing red
We'll forgive the Athletic
Department...this time
Every athletic department goes a little
astray once in awhile.
And so it should be no surprise that the
Nebraska Athletic Department, by all accounts
a formidable college sports machine, overex
tended itself in the midst of program expan
sion that included several construction proj
ects, going into the red by $250,000. These
things happen.
There's no need to overly chastise a depart
ment that likely feels worse than the Husker
fan base does, or even we do, about the issue. A
tightening of the belt is about to occur. It was
bound to happen. As one coach said, certain
people within the department spend money
on whatever they want to.
The simple answer would be more revenue.
Certainly, with an extra home football game
next year, the revenue will be there. But rev
It was
bound to
happen. As
one coach
said,
certain
people
within the
department
spend
money on
whatever
they want
to.
enue doesnt always come
through - that’s how NU got
into a tough spot in the first
place.
What happens if NU starts
losing football games? Of
course, this is rarely considered.
The way fans see it, Nebraska
will never lose more than four,
just as sure as the sun will rise in
the eastern sky.
College football is changing
enough to where that might
become a possibility. And what
if Nebraska loses so many
games one year that it doesn’t
make the bonus money from a
bowl game? What then?
Looking at the baseball team
is another flashpoint. A new sta
dium was built for the team that
flashed brilliant potential in 1999. All points to
Nebraska’s staying strong. But if it doesn’t hap
pen - and it very well could turn out that way -
how much money does Nebraska lose off its
estimated ticket sales and merchandise prof
its? Winning is the key. Winning does not last
forever.
Spending less is the answer. And that’s a
hard reality to face.
The department immediately cut a life
insurance plan and looked into getting cheap
er cellular-phone packages. Maybe reworking
the phone will provide the umbrella the
department needs.
But, some tougher choices might have to be
made with some of the sports, which all want
to be among the best nationally.
Some sports, probably the smaller ones,
may have to cut their travel budgets or take
cheaper forms of transportation to*events.
This issue is further complicated when one
tries to determine which sports, exactly,
should get the cash.
Many of them are strong. There are a few
just holding on, trying to stay in the top 25 of
their respective sports.
There needs to be a definitive improvement
in the department of basketball, specifically
men’s hoops, where the estimates were the
lowest of all.
Athletic Director Bill Byrne seems to think
the problem will be reversed next year.
We have no reason to believe otherwise;
Byrne has been, if anything, shrewd with dol
lars and cents. But if we return to this point
next year, there will be a different conversation
involved.
Editorial Board
Sarah Baker, Bradley Davis, Josh Funk, Matthew Hansen,
Samuel McKewon, Dane Stickney, Kimberly Sweet
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WHAT HAPPENS WHeM UPC ACCWEltTAU-Y ScH&UEES
MULTIPLE &UBST speakers on THE 5Afn& pfi/.
Neal Obermeyer/DN
Shawn Ballarin/DN
'Open' minds not so open
The word homophobia
has been tossed around for a
few years and applied to so
many people of so many dif
ferent views on homosexual
ity that I don’t think anyone
could give me an accurate
description of just what that
word entails.
Homo means the same,
and in this case, the same
Simon
Ringsmuth
sex, as in homosexual.
Phobia is a fear of something. In this, we’re talking
about fear of homosexuality. There. Is everyone
ready to proceed?
I noticed this word’ being applied to people like
myself as I entered high school in the fall of 1993. At
the time, “coming out of the closet” was what you
did when someone yelled “Ollie Ollie Oxen Free”
during a game of hide and seek, and homo was an
insult we all used but knew naught of its meaning.
People began using homophobia to describe
the mass societal paradigm of the time:
Homosexuals were curious and different, and
therefore a little scary, and nobody really knew
what to make of them yet.
Those who had either come out as gay or
defended those who did said the rest of us were
homophobic.
Consider also I was in ninth grade, and my eyes
were not yet opened to the world as it really was. So
if I were way behind the times in my observations,
I don’t care, because that’s just what they were: my
own observations.
Maybe the world was already way more accept
ing of gays than I realized, but I didn’t know it if that
was the case, so let’s just move on. I’m trying to
cover all my bases so I don’t leave gaping holes in
what this whole column is leading up to.
Homophobia was used when describing those
who “disagreed” with being gay. We were homo
phobic, existing in the state of homophobia.
I can never remember being scared of a gay
person. I have always been straight, and being gay
isn’t a disease that can be passed through toilet
seats or shaking hands, so I never had much to fear.
I was curious about gays because I didn’t know
much about them (what made them a “them” in
the first place? No physical attributes, no distin
guishing personality traits, just some label that
seemed to have nothing to do with who they were),
but I was apprehensive about gay people in the
same way I am apprehensive about appearing in
front of people.
The first time I sat down and talked with an
openly gay person was at my workplace, and we
had a totally normal conversation about a totally
normal subject. Work, perhaps, or politics. It was
benign, and it’s beside the point, which is, that I
was not afraid. I knew he wasn’t going to infect me
with anything, so why should I any reason to be
scared?
I found out, through the course of time, that the
word homophobia had become, as it is currently,
just a buzzword. A convenience for the unimagina
tive. I “disagree” with “being gay” for personal and
moral reasons, but I am by no means and in no way
scared of gay people.
/ 'disagree’ with ‘being gay’ for
personal and moral reasons, but I
am by no means and in no way
scared of gay people. I happen to
hold certain views that have no
bearing on how I handle myself
during interactions with gays, yet I
am labeled homophobic.
I happen to hold certain views that have no
bearing on how I handle myself during interac
tions with gays, yet I am labeled homophobic.
My cousin prefers Chevrolets to Fords, but I
don’t call him Fordophobic. Yes, I realize that’s an
oversimplification, but it expresses my frustration
with the situation so I will use that comparison and
stand by it.
Society as a whole preaches tolerance. A good
person must be open-minded, and if you have
your own moral views you are labeled by society as
unaccepting of others and subsequently not
accepted by the mainstream, a condition in which
I exist and find myself frustrated by often.
I dare you to go to the nearest coffee shop
where open-minded types often hang out (I used
to go to those places all the time,) and announce
that you think it’s wrong to be gay. You’ll be
shunned by the open-minded people for not being
open-minded.
As a Lnnstian, it is not my place to juage any
one, and that’s why I do not stand in front of the
Nebraska Union and damn the campus to Hell.
Vengeance is reserved for the Lord, and in the
meantime, it’s my calling as a Christian to love my
fellow humans as Christ loved us.
I cannot point a finger at anyone, whether gay,
straight or bestial, because in God's eyes we are all
equally in need of His saving love. Besides, what if
I’m wrong about homosexuality?
But I digress. I lapse into theological arguments
because, like I mentioned earlier, I want to cover
my bases and explain why I am (apparently)
homophobic.
The point is, shouldn’t I be allowed my own set
of beliefs and convictions? I, like a gay person, am
not hurting anyone; gays are championed for their
bravery in “coming out,” yet I am ostracized for not
being “open-minded.”
Screw open-mindedness -1 am proud to be
opinionated.
Open-mindedness is a convenient excuse for
ignorance and complacency. If you are going to be
truly open-minded, then will you please let me
wallow in my own homophobia?
If that’s the way society wants things, then I’m
never going to win, so why not go all the way?
Yeah, I’m downright terrified of friggin’ gays
and their gay ways of doing things. There, I guess I
just “came out.” Does that please any of the open
minded people? Probably not.
And please excuse me while I wipe off the toilet
seat before I sit down. I don’t want to catch no gay
germs from some gay pervert.
Wisdom
hard to find
in graffiti
Thoughts of
my travels to
Rome, Brazil and
England pale in
comparison with
my choice
mecca. I want
you all to share in
the joy(because
you can) of my
favorite place in
Karen
_Brown
the entire universe.
It’s a place where you can be half
naked and free! A place with no pretens
es and usually no toilet paper.
This mecca is the last stall in the
women’s lounge restroom in the
Nebraska Union. My spirits rise when I
have to urinate - the joy of reading “bath
room-door poetry” tickles me to no end.
The women who choose to pick up a
pen and pee at the same time obviously
did not come from a dysfunctional gene
pool.
I’ve learned to sort of take the short
prose and work it into my daily life, often
chanting lines like mantras for character
boosting and to let the world know (in a
repetitive monologue) that someone
loves Ben Shellhaas.
Someone loves him enough to write
"I love Ben Shellhaas” on the door. The
responses to this heartfelt “crush” are
quite inspiring as well: “So?” “So, he’s
really cute!” “So are baby pigs.”
The one above, as well as “PM5K
rocks” and “no one sin is worse than
another” would fall into the “this is a
statement” category. These don’t need
an explanation or a contemplation or a
response - unless someone wants to,
and believe you me, someone always
wants to respond.
Some people (armed with a pen and
words) want to inspire those who have
merely come to use the urinal for "natu
ral means.” Now, whether that means
urinating or getting stoned is not my
right to discern.
This is a place where personal
philosophies can transpire from the
mind to paper - or, er... wood.
I mean, where else do I go to be inun
dated with my three favorite things: God,
the Devil and Sin.
Church? Nah, they always leave out
the Devil unless it’s in a tasteless refer
ence about a horned fellow that eats
children’s innocence. Whatever, dudes.
I’m proud as I read, “Anybody want a
lesbian relationship?” The response is “I
have one.” Another is “Ditto! I'm in love
beyond belief. Working on our third year
together.”
I cry and rejoice in the fact that there
are other dykes out there! And they’ve sat
their bums right where I have. How
come I keep missing them?
I contemplate this and decide that
only God can shower me with lesbians,
but then I see “SIN” next to this nice pro
gay milieu. I decide that the people out
side of our union right now holding up
banners that say “All that matters is that
you are going to Hell” must have written
that on this door.
They're really good at writing one
liners that make one feel, well, down
right crappy. (No poop pun intended.)
If you ask me, the one thing those
sign-holders have taught me is that the
Lord’s girth is larger than any of us can
fathom. Take that how you will -1 was
merely talking about the size of the signs’
poles.
Back to the bathroom ... one of the
most insightful statements is “Fags
suck.” God has taken over (or is it the
Devil?) and made me realize this state
ment is true. “Fags suck” is my mantra
today.
As my eyes scroll down, I see the
response is “No, we lick,” and I think
once more, well, what’s going on here?
Who should I trust? The next line is
“You’re still sick, bastard.”
Help me.
Fags suck, then they lick, and then
they’re sick.
I haven’t been this confused since the
“A Hindu Meets Jesus” conference of‘96.
I will take a deep breath and read on.
Besides, there are always more respons
es: “Be careful what you write, the next
‘fag’ might be your best friend.”
Ha! I’m my own best friend, and I’m a
fag. Therefore, I’m all right. My reasoning
skills are crystal-clear in the stall.
That’s why I’d like to leave a little of
my own advice on life for you heathens
out there.
Here goes: “If you follow your
dreams, you will always end up naked in
the middle of a shotgun range, listening
to New Age music and trying to figure
out your Palm Pilot.”
So, follow my advice and follow your
dreams and see where it gets you. You’ll
be surprised at the results because my
words of wisdom aren’t rehashed, half
assed and phony. They are God-sent,
Devil-approved and Sin-tastic.
Or, you could listen to the one sound
mind that has entered that last stall in
the women’s lounge in the Nebraska
Union.
The one woman with a clear head
through all of this wrote: “Don’t write on
the doors, you heathens.”