Venezuelan President is Suspicious USA Poisoned Him

Carolyn Conte ‘14 | Opinion Editor

The cat’s out of the bag. Hugo Chavez knows that the United States gave him cancer. Or, at least that’s what he thinks.

This has to be a joke. The Venezuelan president seriously wondered aloud in a televised speech to his soldiers, “It would not be strange if they [United States] had developed the technology to induce cancer and nobody knew about it until now,” and continues to warn the Bolivian president Evo Morales, “Evo, take care of yourself,” according to The Guardian.

    Hugo should spend less time worrying about Evo Morales and more trying to fix his own evil morals. I dare an American to disagree with me that the United States really cares about attempting to poison Hugo Chavez, when we have a financial crisis on our hands as well as a billion other more important issues like the election.

Daniel Wallis of Reuters reports that Chavez told his listeners how Cuban politician Fidel Castro had advised, “Take care what you eat, what they give you to eat … a little needle and they inject you with I don’t know what,” he said. Yeah, because we definitely sent our troops to Venezuela to pretend to be his chefs and poison his food. (Warning: Sarcasm active). I suppose for now, I’ll keep secret my dreams of being a Venezuelan chef.

Carolyn Conte ‘14 | Staff Writer

I used to think Stephen Hawking was a pretty cool genius. Now I know he is an extremely self-absorbed, grumpy, unhappy man who is talented in science, but can’t see past the tip of his own nose.

His atheistic views came out a bit harsh in his metaphor, “I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail,” he explained to ABC News’ Diane Sawyer. “There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.”

But “the afterlife” has never been about the brain continuing to function. I thought heaven was based on the belief in souls, or in a spirit. If heaven is real, then based on what I’ve been taught, it is supposed to be where our souls go. Souls are not a physical thing. Our brains are a part of our body, which everyone knows dies. Religions are not denying that we die. It’s about something more that no science can prove. He is totally not thinking about religion in a, well, religious view.

Celebrities, politicians and famous people who have religions- well most, hopefully- don’t go around telling people how stupid atheists are. It’s one thing to say this to a friend, but to the public when you are a huge role model and figure, it’s just mean.

And another thing! Just because he is a genius at science doesn’t mean he knows everything else there is to know. Even if he somehow saw the end of the world and everything and did know whether God existed or not, who is he to stomp on everyone’s faith? There have to be scientists who look up to him, but are also of a religious denomination. He can keep his beliefs to himself with out making fun of something that he in no way can prove wrong. Condescending the religious is not a way to prove a theory.

Stores ask for donations while you have your cash in-hand

Carolyn Conte ‘14 | Staff Writer

I think that when at a check out, anything more blunt than a visible container labelled for donations to [name here] foundation or a subtle hint to this container, is hypocrisy. Depending on the situation, it may depend- anywhere else seems perfectly acceptable, but while someone has the cash in-hand… it just seems a tad sly to me.

For example, I was at the Walmart and my dad was buying a gift for my grandmother on mother’s day. The cashier seemed to have had a long day, judging by her slouching stance, dulled eyes and impatient eyebrows. She asked in a monotone voice as if she’d been repeating it for hours, “Would you like to donate to ___”? My dad simply replied, “Not today, sorry.”

In the last steps of filling out a check, he asked the cashier to repeat the price, and she changed it to be rounded up a few dollars. Obviously confused, he asked if she was sure. The bored worker told him the true price and added, “but you can just round it up and we’ll give the rest to the foundation.” Starting to get annoyed, he said no. Now, in fair honesty, if I were him I would have just let her have the few extra bucks, seeing as it is for a good cause, but yes — she was using guilt and being rude while attempting to collect donations.

If someone is not going to give their extra cash while waiting in line, then there is no need to pester them while they have their cash already in their hand. It does make a person feel bad, like “Oh, I already have it out, and I’m saying no…” and even if it did result in a contribution, it’s for the wrong reasons.

I wonder how the recipients of a donation would feel if they found out they had this money because a cashier had guilt-pressed their customer.

Besides, the staff can’t possibly assume that just because you are paying x amount of green for a product, means that they can spare more. Especially in this economy, financial situations are more likely to rely on every dollar. Many families have all their income planned out, so the twenty dollars they’re handing over may be the last they have until pay day. Also, the way they dress also doesn’t necessarily reflect their budget. There is no way to tell if a customer is being cheap or not, so please don’t pressure them. What if it really was their last pay check they were spending up, and they had to say ‘no’ to a cancer charity?

Ignoring the possibilities of the victim’s budget state, or how the charity profit-ees may react, is it not a bit ironic that they are asking these questions when it’s most convenient, knowing how it must feel to deny charity, all for a purpose that centers around kindness?

I am not trying to discourage efforts to persuade others to offer their own money for the sake of others, but I wish they would let it be more of a personal choice. There are plenty of other ways to entice donations: posters, staff asking while they don’t already have their wallet out, maybe an announcement on the intercom, etc.

If a person sees, hears and notices all these things like the bell-ringers on the streets, and refuses to get their bucks out at that time, then there’s no need to rub it in their face how they are saying “no” to an innocent, (Hopefully) good-intentioned charity.

Carolyn Conte ‘14 | Staff Writer

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of a season of fasting, but in today’s world it seems more like a period of dieting leading up to yet another holiday to splurge. Society seems to have forgotten that they aren’t giving up something — they’re putting aside distractions from God. In my opinion, many religious things have been simplified like this today.

I have often wondered how Christ’s resurrection devolved into a giant bunny rabbit that leaves chocolate eggs for children to find. Bunnies don”t even lay eggs. I can understand how it started as a celebration, especially as little kids can’t fully understand the true meaning. Or even maybe as a metaphor for new life — a stretch, though. But because of this, I would venture to guess that there is a large, increasing number of young kids, especially non-Christians, who don’t know what Easter really is.

When you’re living in a place where a commercial comes on saying “It seems like people save everything for Sunday: barbecues, game-day…” and leaves out the most vital, obvious event that happens every Sunday (I mean mass), what else can you expect? Did we forget though, that our pledge says “One nation, under God”? Just because we have freedom of religion doesn’t mean we have to act like there isn’t a God. Freedom of religion means freedom to choose, not freedom from religion.

It seems that our society is paranoid about insulting people. I’m pretty sure you can’t insult people by recognizing God. Almost all religions believe in God, and with regard to atheists who don’t believe in God, how can they be insulted by what they would just brush away as ignorance?

Besides the whole “true meaning of Christmas,” there are other holidays whose religious background we ignore. Why do we call St. Valentine’s day just ‘Valentine’s day’? And when is the last time people picked clover-leafs on St. Patrick’s day remembering how St. Patrick used it as a metaphor for the trinity, and not just to mean “good luck”? How did leprechauns even get involved in a saint’s day? Or how about Halloween: All Hallow’s Day, aka All Saint’s Day, is now about dressing up and collecting candy. Or, back to lent — Mardi Gras is supposed to be the day where one ‘pigs out’ before the season of fasting, but of course it has been reduced to beads and pancakes. Yet the pigging out part stays!

Thankfully, we have our own school to remind us to keep Lent holy. Many students are giving up junk foods, video games or bad habits. “It can be very beneficial for somebody [sacrificing something for Lent] on their spiritual journey through Lent. It doesn’t always work out this way, but a person may fill their need for God with other things, so taking those other things away helps them to remember God,” said Ms. Rebecca Rooney of the Religion Department.