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A sign that we are all getting a little older…Chuck Jones, the influential animator who had a hand in the creation of Bugs Bunny, Road Runner, Daffy Duck and an endless list of other cartoon staples , died as a result of heart failure. He was 89. Jones’ talent and vision encompassed over 300 animated films and won him an Oscar for in 1995 for lifetime achievement.

Queen of the Damned seduced moviegoers this weekend, taking in a deadly $15.2 million and topping last weekend’s John Q. which fell to number two with $12.5 million and a promising total of almost $40 million so far. Kevin Costner’s new film Dragonfly performed moderately well, opening in third place with $10.4 million, but only time will tell if the film will be another costly flop for Costner or a tier towards regaining profitable credibility.

Macaulay Culkin has signed on to star in Party Monster, an extremely bizarre and indulgent tale about the life of Michael Alig, a visionary party promoter in New York City during the early 1990s who helped catalyze rave culture and was later convicted of murder. The film will be based on the book Disco Blood Bath and will be the 21-year old Culkin’s first movie role since 1994’s Richie Rich.

With the success of Tomb Raider, and the lucrative video game business booming more than usual, film- makers have optioned the movie rights for two more games. The hit franchise “Tekken” has been acquired by Crystal Sky Entertainment with rumored plans for a $60 million adaptation, while “State of Emergency,” an upcoming riot game from the creators of “Grand Theft Auto,” has been picked up by the producer of the American Pie films.

Dance DJs Sasha and John Digweed will unleash an ambitiously thorough sound and lighting set up on their Delta Heavy Spring tour which kicks off on March 23 in Miami. The tour is being organized by Kevin Lyman, a previous organizer for Lollapalooza and the Warped Tour, and will feature lighting designs from the people behind the opening credits in the film Seven.

‘The House of Yes’ delivers macabre comedy

The time is Thanksgiving. The place, McLean, a posh Virginia suburb near Washington, D.C. Twenty years after JFK’s assassination, one member of the Pascal clan has a fixation in her life: re-enacting the Kennedy assassination, handling her namesake’s role with zeal for incongruity.

The Jerry Herman Ring Theater becomes the setting for a family dinner where a lot of things are wrong and you start to worry because you hope they go even worse. Wendy MacLeod’s The House of Yes, subtitled a Suburban Jacobean Play, puts into practice the proverb that history repeats itself as farce.

Christina Valo’s disturbingly hilarious performance as Jackie O sets the pace for this eerily comedic play. Jacqueline got her nickname from a party she attended by dressing exactly as Jackie Kennedy, in a pink Chanel suit, adding a few realistic details such as blood and gray-dyed macaroni to look like brain tissue. As the family waits for Marty, the eldest son, a hurricane rages outside, but is no cause for concern.

Marty is Jackie-O’s identical twin, her partner in the re-enactment of the assassination and also partner in bed. He is the only man that can turn on Jackie-O. She is therefore jealous of Marty’s naive smalltown girlfriend, Lesly, whom he brings over for the dinner as a display of freedom from the smothering, tyrannical Mrs. Pascal.

Younger brother Arthur lacks social grace but tries his best to attract Lesly.

MacLeod’s realistic script challenges director Vincent Cardinal to let his actors relax and deliver their lines with precision. Valo’s Jackie-O is relentless in her seduction and sarcasm. She purrs, she mimics, she taunts, and she walks the fine line of sanity with so much allure that the play roars along with dark humor coatings shading the very macabre situation.

The House of Yes will be playing until March 2 at the Ring Theater.

‘Queen’ falls off the throne

The eternal battle between good and evil and the endless conflict over a book and its movie counterpart take center stage in the film adaptation of Anne Rice’s novel Queen of the Damned. The battle, it turns out, is visually appealing but lacking in substance.

The film amalgamates plotlines from the second and third installment of Rice’s wildly popular The Vampire Chronicles. In less than two hours, the film follows the rise of the vampire Lestat (Stuart Townsend) from his century long slumber to his controversial tryst with the queen of the vampires, Akasha (Aaliyah).

The first half of the film is shot haphazardly and leaves you with a sense of shock – a shock of how corny the movie is going to be. The clich

Cars with personality

Batman roars down the streets of Gotham City in his dark, sleek Batmobile. Austin Powers cruises down the streets of London in his loud, flashy Shaguar. Fred Flintstone shuffles through the streets of Bedrock in his primitive foot-powered vehicle.

What do they have in common? They all spend a considerable amount of time and effort on their cars, and in turn, their cars all say something about their driver.

Fast forward to Miami, 2002. With a school made up of 40 percent commuters who get to school two hours before class starts to be able to get a good parking space and stay here all day, maybe go to work, and then spend up to an hour in their cars trying to get home in rush hour traffic, it is no surprise that their cars would take on a personality of their own.

But what gives a car personality? Well, like the Batmobile, a good car has to have a good name.

“My car’s name is Sebastian,” said freshman Tarah Rogowski, who drives a silver Volkswagen Jetta. “I wanted to name him something refined, but still edgy, so I named it after the Ryan Phillipe character in Cruel Intentions.”

Much like Sebastian, many cars have names that say a lot about them and their owners.

Here’s a fun fact: most guys name their cars girl names, and most girls name their cars guy names. I named my black Mustang Gaston after the villain in Beauty and the Beast because of his strong muscles. Freshman Mario Velez named his blue Volkswagen Passat after Alice from Alice in Wonderland.

Characteristic of Rogowski’s car are also the religious symbols strategically hidden throughout the car.

“When my family bought my car as a graduation gift, my grandmother, who is really religious, hid about 20 little medals and cards of different saints all over my car,” Rogowski said. “I find a new one every day.”

A lot of commuters carry some type of religious symbol or good luck charm in their cars. Beside the rosary hanging in his car, junior David Cruz has a tray overflowing with pennies. Every day, he adds any penny he finds or receives in change, and he has accumulated what he says are 50,000 pennies.

“I don’t intend on cashing them in,” Cruz said. “I just put another one in every day. It brings good luck, I guess.”

Though good luck charms and names give a car character, it is what is inside that really counts. What a person carries in his or her car really says a lot about who that person is and really shows how much time commuters spend on the road.

If someone took a tour of Cruz’s compact Honda Civic, one would find a sporting goods store on wheels. Since he bike rides, he carries his helmet, gloves, riding jersey, and a jacket for when it gets cold on the trails. Cruz also carries a tent in his back seat for whenever he decides to go camping.

“My trunk pretty much tells like my life story,” says freshman Ana Dolina, who did not clean out her trunk after she graduated from high school.

Since Dolina was the editor of her high school newspaper, she still carries stacks of every issue published last year. On top of the heaps of newspaper are books from all four years of high school. And to top it all off, she still carries her school uniform shoes.

Rushing down the newly constructed Grand-Prix-like lanes on San Amaro Drive, commuters have full faith that their Batmobile or Shaguar will snag that last double lined space in the Memorial lot.

Danny Matienzo eager to improve

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After two seasons as one of the Miami Hurricanes top hitters, designated hitter/first baseman Danny Matienzo decided he needed a new challenge. So, with the graduation of catcher Greg Lovelady, Matienzo decided he wanted to be the man behind the plate for the Hurricanes.

Matienzo, who saw spot duty at the catcher position during his high school career at Christopher Columbus High School in Miami, started opening day 2002 as Hurricane pitcher Troy Roberson’s battery mate. And although Matienzo’s slow start at the plate prompted head coach Jim Morris to move him back to DH, the 5-11 junior is still hoping to be able to move back behind the plate before the end of the season.

“One of my goals this season now is to be able to catch and hit,” Matienzo said. “I think I could do both, and all summer I was able to do both.”

“But when your catching, you’re like the quarterback out there and I have a lot of responsibilities out there besides worrying about hitting.”

As a designated hitter and first baseman, Matienzo became one of the Hurricanes’s most deadliest hitters during the 2000 and 2001 seasons. As a freshman, Matienzo hit .348 while his 58 RBI’s were second on the team. Last season, Matienzo lead the squad with 64 RBI’s and 127 total bases, while his 13 home runs placed second on the ‘Canes. However, Matienzo made his mark in the 2001 College World Series, leading the team with a .588 average, while hitting three longballs and driving in nine runs overall. Matienzo was not surprised with the huge postseason output.

“I’ve done awesome both years in postseason,” Matienzo said. “I think it’s the andrelin and excitement of it being postseason pumps me up.”

However, one of Matienzo’s lifelong goals was to become an everyday catcher and the right-hander saw a golden opportunity with two true freshman coming in to vie for the spot. Lovelady, who is now the Hurricanes catching coach, worked hard with Matienzo before the season to try and get the basics down.

“We really needed to work with Danny on everything,” Lovelady said. “I think that his biggest problem early on was throwing, and once he got that down, all that raw talent started to show.”

Lovelady also saw Matienzo’s determination to learn the position, something that has been one of the junior’s top qualities.

“He’s a really tough, hard nosed kid,” Lovelady said. “He really wants to excel and it bothers him when he doesn’t excel.”

Matienzo started four of Miami’s first six games behind the plate. However, nine innings of catching took a toll on Matienzo’s numbers behind the plate, as he hit just 3-23 during that span. So, before last weekend’s series with Minnesota, Matienzo decided to work on his swing.

“One of the problems was that I wasn’t getting my foot down and I was opening up and trying to pull everything,” Matienzo said. “I came in with a plan to try and hit the ball into left field and it worked.”

Morris also decided to put freshman Eric San Pedro behind the plate and move Matienzo back to the designated hitter spot. The move payed off for both players as Matienzo hit .556 with five home runs and eight RBI’s in the three game sweep, while San Pedro hit .500, driving in three runs. Morris wasn’t surprised with Matienzo’s outburst.

“I think he needed to relax and get his confidence back,” Morris said. “Last weekend, he stepped back, hit a home run and then all of a sudden hit four more.”

Hitting coach Gino DiMare saw this past weekend as one of Matienzo’s typical streaks.

“Danny is more of a streak hitter,” DiMare said. “He’s one of those guys that puts up huge numbers in his streaks, rather than just out together a few 1 for 3 games.”

“That doesn’t mean that he can’t hit on a regular basis, because he’s one of our top hitters, if not our best hitter.”

Although Morris is planning on going with San Pedro at the catcher’s spot for the time being, that doesn’t mean that Matienzo won’t get his chance.

‘Canes head to Homestead

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It’s one thing to face an opponent’s ace once during a three-game series. It’s another thing to face a different opponent’s ace each contest of a three-game tournament.

This weekend, the Miami Hurricanes earn the privilege of experiencing the latter when they participate in the Homestead Challenge. Tonight, the Hurricanes face Florida International and pitcher Josh Banks for the second time this season. Miami then faces Kansas State and Lipscomb University on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

UM coach Jim Morris is looking forward to the tournament, despite the fact that he knows it will not be easy.

“Going to Homestead will be a good challenge for the players,” Morris said. “It will be a good experience for them to face different players in different environments.”

On Feb. 6, the Hurricanes traveled to FIU and were soundly defeated 7-1. Banks threw five innings of three hit ball, while not giving up an earned run. Banks has continued that streak, as he has pitched 11 innings without giving up an earned run, while getting run support from players like Michael New, who comes into tonight’s game with an astronomical .700 average. However, players like designated hitter/catcher Danny Matienzo are looking for redemption.

“Last time, FIU got the best of us,” Matienzo said. “Now, our hitting has come around and our defense is doing well, and Troy has been pitching great so we feel like we have a better shot.”

In addition to Florida International, Miami faces a tough Kansas State team that has put 43 runs on the board through its first three games. The Wildcats will likely send Ross Hawley and his 2.16 ERA on the mound to face the ‘Canes. The third Miami opponent, Lipscomb University, has struggled so far in 2002, losing all six of its contests so far. However, Morris knows that all three games will provide a formidable challenge for his squad.

“It’s going to be hard since everyone is going to throw their ace against us,” Morris said. “In addition to FIU, Kansas State has a good program and David Lipscomb has an outstanding history, so all three games are going to be a challenge for our ballclub.”

The Hurricanes come into this game with a 5-4 mark, and are fresh off a three-game sweep of Minnesota last weekend. Miami scored 38 runs against the Gophers but have still gotten solid pitching out of only one starter, junior Troy Roberson, who will be on the mound tonight against the Golden Panthers. In addition, many of the Hurricane relievers have struggled, something Morris would like to see changed.

“I’m a big believer in the bullpen so we’re going to go to them a lot,” Morris said. “We’ve had some guys that have pitched well, but we need everyone to really step up and pitch well because we’re going to go to them early and often, not just this weekend, but for the rest of the season.”

However, hitting is what carried Miami last weekend, and second baseman/shortstop Javy Rodriguez is confident that the lineup will be able to produce more runs this weekend.

“We have a different gameplan now with the positions switched around,” Rodriguez said. “We have more power in the lineup now.”

Lady ‘Canes sneak by No. 24 Hokies

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When the Hurricanes women’s basketball team lost to Virginia Tech two weeks ago, they left Blacksburg, Va. knowing they let the game slip away.

So when the No. 24 Hokies came to Coral Gables for the rematch, Miami wasn’t going to make the same mistake. Not at home. Not against a conference opponent.

Trailing for the majority of the game, the Lady ‘Canes held on for a 55-53 win on Wednesday night at the Knight Sports Complex.

Hokies guard Chrystal Starling missed a jumper and Ieva Kublina couldn’t put in the rebound to seal the victory for Miami. Chanivia Broussard scored 17 of her 22 points in the second half, including six in the final three and a half minutes of the game to put Miami up for good.

“We definitely needed to show them that we were better than them,” Broussard said. “It was sort of like revenge. We were up by 12 at their place and we ended up losing by 12. So it was something we definitely needed to get off our chest.”

Broussard fouled out with 15 seconds remaining in the game and the Hurricanes (16-9, 9-5 in the Big East) leading 55-51.

The Hurricanes took sole possession of fifth place in the Big East, having been tied with the Hokies. It was Miami’s second win over a ranked opponent, the first coming on Dec. 9 against No. 17 Texas.

Miami took its first lead of the half on a Meghan Saake layup with 10:24. The half went back and forth before Broussard took over. The Hurricanes shot 50 percent from the field in the second half, after only converting 22 percent in the first half.

“We kept it close the whole game at Virginia Tech and we let it go at the end so we wanted to concentrate and play for 40 minutes,” said Sheila James, who added six points, five rebounds and two blocks. “We wanted to get our second win over a ranked opponent because we knew that was important when it came to tournament time.”

Virginia Tech lost its sixth in its last eight games, despite a dominant performance by Kublina. She recorded career-highs in both points (29) and rebounds (16) for her eighth double-double of the season. But she was the only Hokie who really took the offensive, as she was responsible for six of Virginia Tech’s eight made shots in the second half.

“Our coach chewed us out about post play, so we needed to step up and show our coach that we do listen at practice,” Broussard said. “We had to show her that we could handle our business.”

Said UM coach Ferne Labati: “We felt very strongly that we had to play good defense. In the second half at Virginia Tech we allowed 42 points and we couldn’t allow that to happen again. We told our kids that if we kept the score under 60 we could win the game.”

The Hurricanes held the Hokies to 36 percent shooting in the second half. The first half was mostly Virginia Tech, however, as Miami had no answer for Kublina, who dominated inside and outside. She made all four of her field goals and all six of her free throws in the first half.

The Hurricanes did close out the half on a 6-0 run to make it a 26-20 game going into halftime. The ‘Canes shot just 22 percent from the field, converting on 7-of-32 field goal attempts. Miami was equally bad from the free throw line, making just 5-of-13.

“It wasn’t pretty, we missed layups, we missed free throws,” Labati said. “We got by with defense. We never quit. We played well against FIU (last Saturday) but we just made too many mistakes. In this ballgame we didn’t want to be denied a win.”

Sports Briefs

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Men’s basketball

Dear University of Miami Students,

You have been with us from the start of this run for the NCAA Tourn-ament and for this, the team and I sincerely thank you. It’s been a very dynamic season but we have a challenging road ahead as we enter the home stretch.

The energy and excitement at the Miami Arena has been fantastic this season and with your help, we are 12-1 at home. We play rival Notre Dame this Saturday night and we look forward to the continued support of you and your fellow Hurricanes. Be there as we look to secure a bye in the Big East tournament and a shot at the Big Dance.

Go Canes.

Perry Clark
Head Coach
-Men’s Basketball

VOLLEYBALL

Head coach Nicole Lantagne announced the 2002 Miami volleyball schedule this week. The Hurricanes begin competition in the Big East Conference this fall after competing as an independent last season.
UM will compete in three tournaments to begin the season including marquee matchups against Georgia, Oregon and Florida State. The schedule includes two conference champions (Notre Dame – Big East and FIU-Sun Belt) and three teams that advanced to conference championship games (Stephen F. Austin -Southland, Florida State – ACC, FAU – Atlantic Sun). Coach Lantagne guided a young Miami team to a 17-7 overall record last year in its first season of volleyball since 1981. UM finished the season on an 11-match win streak and compiled a 13-1 home record at the Knight Complex in Coral Gables.

TRACK AND FIELD

Freshman Lauren Williams won the 60- and 200-meter dash titles to earn Most Outstanding Performer honors as the Miami Hurricanes women’s track and field team produced a school-best 106 points for a third place finish at the Big East Conference Men’s Indoor Track & Field Championships at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, New York. Perhaps Kareen Clarke produced the top individual performance by a Hurricane athlete in the triple jump. The senior produced a winning leap of 43 feet, 3 inches (13.18 meters) to earn her third consecutive BIG EAST Indoor title in the event. Sprinters Andre Johnson and Gus Martin raced to individual titles Sunday afternoon to lead the Miami Hurricanes to a seventh-place team finish. Johnson’s 60-meter victory earned in a time of 6.83 seconds. Martin’s victory in the 60-meter high hurdles came in a time of 7.96 seconds.

Letter to the editor

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To the Editor:

Today was a sad day for both the University of Miami and the city of Miami as a whole. The Faculty Senate voted today to “disestablish the School of International Studies” and merge it into the College of Arts and Sciences. Although the administration and apparently the Faculty Senate believe this is a good step towards improving the study of international affairs, many students currently within the program are mourning the University’s apparent disregard for their opinion.

Today, a group of 50 – 75 students rallied and protested outside of the Faculty Senate meeting voicing their displeasure and distrust of an institution that would make a decision of such great magnitude without consulting the student body and most of the faculty affected. Our chants ranged from “Save SIS” to “Miami es ‘El Mundo'” and “Our Voice WILL be Heard!”

I personally feel that our trust has been violated on a number of ways. First off, President Shalala made a decision regarding our School without consulting any of the faculty or students involved. We were informed of the decision during a meeting in which she was not even present. Secondly, this decision de-legitimizes our program showing that the University is NOT really committed to international studies. Most of the students who decided to enroll in the University of Miami made their decision because of the School of International Studies. I, along with other students, only applied to institutions with Schools of International Studies, and I can guarantee you that the program will inevitably suffer in the future.

The loss of prestige and the eventual decline in the program’s effectiveness and renown is inescapable. I believe that less and less faculty and students will want to enroll in a university that only offers a department rather than a School of International Studies. By disestablishing the School, the University of Miami is symbolically showing it does not value international studies. The potential of the School of International Studies, because of its geographic location in an international hub such as Miami, is incredible. There is no reason that students should have to go to New York or Washington D.C. in order to attend a School of International Studies that specializes in Latin America, for example.

I am deeply saddened and concerned about the future of the program. I can only hope that President Shalala will realize that students both within the School of International Studies and the University as whole will not stand by and allow decisions to be made for them! We DO have a voice and will be heard. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Nuria L. Haltiwanger

Go vote next week

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Without much fanfare, and much to my surprise (and probably yours as well), the two student government vice presidential candidates exchanged a lukewarm discussion Tuesday night about major issues concerning the university, explaining why they would be the best for the job.

The turnout was negligible. By my observation, out of the twenty or so people who were in the Rathskellar, roughly fifteen were either in student government themselves or were friends of the candidates, one was me, and the other four seemed to be a little angry that the debate was interrupting their conversation. So if any of you actually go out to vote, and I urge you to, here is what you missed.

The debate saw Andy Cooper, upstart candidate who has held leadership positions in many organizations like SAFAC but has no experience in student government, face up against Gina Yacone, a member of student government, and member of Tri Delta among various other groups. Both candidates spoke eloquently, but I won’t tell you for whom to vote. Here is an adequate sampling of the questions and answers so that you can make the decision for yourself. (I have paraphrased the answers without altering their content).

Question 1: What are the most important issues at the University of Miami?

Cooper: Communication. We must unite students and leaders of the organizations so that students will know what is going on. The lack of communication is apparent in the dismal turnout at the debate.

Yacone: Student apathy. We must get people to care about the school, bring back spirit in the dorms, and open up lines of communication between the students and leaders.

Question 2: What things do you want to accomplish?

Yacone: Chairs of committees must get more information out to students. We must raise participation in all events, especially voting.

Cooper: Longer library and dining hall hours. Better on campus security. Make a school calendar to combat apathy and work with Ch. 13 [UM TV] to advertise upcoming events.

Question 3: What is the future of the University of Miami?

Cooper: Success. We must make UM a premier school. No more “Sun tan U.” In order to do this, we need to get students involved and make them care about their school.

Yacone: Great things from Category 5 [the on campus spirit club]. Better homecoming celebrations, great football, and a spirited university.

Question 4: What is the future of Student Government?

Yacone: Communication will “soar.” It will continue to grow in experience because the people involved have been working together for a few years already and will know how to do their jobs better.

Cooper: New faces. We must revitalize student government by injecting it with new energy and a fresh perspective from outside student government.

I particularly liked Cooper’s comments about changing our reputation from “Suntan U” to that of a premiere school, and his ideas about a school calendar. However, Gina does have the experience. The choice is not easy. Both are worthy candidates. Whomever you choose, at least make sure you vote.

Travis Atria is a sophomore majoring in English literature.

Guard choices

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We hear it all the time. The United States, its critics fiercely denounce, is the epitome of consumerism. We go to the supermarket and are overwhelmed by three thousand different cereal boxes, crackers, breads, ice creams and soda flavors. Walk into a Best Buy and try to count the number of television features available before your brain starts aching. No sooner have we finished celebrating Christmas, than Cupid starts popping up everywhere. And no sooner is Cupid out of the picture, than the Easter Bunny springs out of nowhere. It’s maddening.

We are, I know, undoubtedly lucky. Few places in the world offer its citizens the plethora of products available to us. And that is undoubtedly good, not only because it fosters innovation, but because it forces us to be disciplined, to be responsible. This is a system that tests our will power, our drive to succeed. It is up to us to choose our lives. Should we fail, we cannot blame anyone but ourselves, as this is “the land of opportunity.” Paradoxically, however, we live in a land that breeds irresponsibility.

Most of the messages are blatant, such as the plethora of advertisements that urge us to buy now, sign our lives away, and pay later. The concept of saving money, it seems, has been all but forgotten. Along with the ubiquitous commercials that swear that spending money is the only way to fill the emptiness in our lives, we hear the chime of giddy bankruptcy lawyers and consolidating services that exempt us from responsibility. They promise to help us dig ourselves out of our self-made hole-and encourage us to dig a new one. And so, many do, guilt-ridden, unemployed, having to forgo a more important, unexpected expense to clean up their shambled credit history. It should be of no surprise that the savings level in this country is one of the lowest in the world.

The other messages are soft, extremely subtle. And very clever. Blue skies, bright mornings, happy, energetic parents, obedient children. Pharmaceutical companies must have marketing geniuses in their camps. Irresponsible, marketing geniuses. Let me explain. Depression and obsessive compulsive disorder, for example, are unquestionably serious conditions that need to be treated. Many, I know, are not equipped with the necessary tools to overcome these conditions and need medication, perhaps due to erratic biological systems, traumatic childhood experiences, or severe, temporary lows. While anti-depressants do help and should be taken if needed, one should do it carefully, responsibly. Drug manufacturers, however, fail to underscore that these medications are tools, not miracle drugs, and that they are used to treat serious conditions, not the run-of-the mill lows that we all experience. They do not bring us instant relief. These companies fail to emphasize the importance of human effort and therapy; that without the former, the drugs are ineffective. Yes, drug companies disclose the side effects, and yes they tell people to consult with physicians. But these disclaimers are in fine print.

Diet pills, acupuncture and the patch. Whatever happened to exercise and cutting the supply of nicotine-real or synthetic-all together? That these products and methods exist is not the issue. (Although, I must admit, I see no need for the patch.) They are not wonder drugs or therapies. They require human effort. But their manufacturers want us to believe we are helpless, that we have no control over our actions. And worse, our justice system rewards those who are irresponsible, as evidenced by the hefty sums awarded to smokers who sued Big Tobacco. The cigarette makers should have been fined because they lied, but the smokers rewarded?

It’s easy to go astray, humans want to exempt ourselves from responsibility of the actions we take. But we must be aware of those who try to persuade us to relinquish our freedom of choice and the rewards of discipline. Guard your freedom fiercely and use it wisely.

Margarita MartIn-Hidalgo is a senior majoring in print journalism and international studies.