SGA responds to critisism

Amid informal polls, vote accurately reflected constitutes Lara Ismert | SGA president Last week in the Collegio, Editor-in-Chief Jay Benedict published an opinion article concerning Student Government Association’s method of handling the resolution in opposition to concealed carry on campus. Benedict said that the survey was rushed, not publicized, and that the allegations against the validity of the results may have been influenced by the personal opinions of the members of SGA. He also inferred that Student Government would not represent a constituent’s opinion if it was in opposition to an opinion in SGA. It’s true that the survey was not implemented with the care and concern the issue deserved, and we are looking at…

A big hat to fill

Wise decision for a misguided church Marcus Clem | copy editor Pope Benedict XVI is right to recognize that infirm octogenarians cannot lead the single-largest unified religious institution on planet Earth. Would that this degree of wisdom and ability to recognize reality permeate throughout the Catholic Church from which he is retiring. Some will say that because I’m not Catholic, and, in fact, not much of a Christian at all, I have no right to pronounce judgment on the tenure of a prelate. Naturally, I disagree, but more important, this is a distraction. Other than being a religious institution, the Catholic Church is a political and a social one, and that means it affects people…

Survey Says: SGA ignored student opinions

Jay Benedict | editor in chief The Collegio offers students a voice. We ask and encourage students to contribute to the opinion section of this newspaper. We’re huge fans of the First Amendment and try to present both sides of issues while representing the views of students on this campus. PSU has had much to debate about lately. Most recently, it was the Heads vs. Feds marijuana legalization event and dialogue that ended in the Student Government Association’s vote to not support conceal and carry on campus.  SGA allowed students to weigh in through an online survey, but in the end, disregarded the results. During the three days the poll was open, 918 students voiced…

Boy Scout policies need to change for the future

Gretchen Burns | managing editor It has recently come to my attention that the Boy Scouts of America have thought about revoking its ban on openly gay people participating. I feel that not only does this ban go against the morals that scouting teaches, but it limits the help that this scouting organization could obtain. As a lifelong Girl Scout member, I feel that the similarities in scouting still stand. If a person were homosexual, that would not limit ability to lead a Scout troop. How would being gay stop a leader from being able to teach knots, or teach survival skills while camping, or leadership skills? If you know what you are doing, your…

Women of war (continued)

Kelley Macek | guest writer PSU vets weigh in on lifting ban on women in combat; To deny a unit the force multiplying effect of a soldier who may have a unique skill only because the soldier is female is an antiquated notion Fully integrating women into all military occupational specialties is absolutely the right thing to do. Women have been serving alongside their combat arms counterparts for quite some time. They bring additional talents and points of view that provide a full 360-degree range of skills and capabilities. This enables leaders the flexibility to leverage a diverse team in today’s contemporary operational environment. In other words, there are no front lines and if you…

Africa: The new terrorism breeding ground

Digamber Eslampure | guest writer The recent terrorist attacks in Mali and Algeria are not once-in-a-blue-moon events in Northern and sub-Saharan Africa. In fact, they are the tipping point of terrorism in Africa. Terrorism in the continent is growing rapidly. The international community is not giving proper heed to these incidents. The attacks on the gas plant in Algeria, the execution of some of the hostages, and the capture of the town Konna, indicate a growing menace of terrorism in Africa. Interestingly, the government of Mali failed to handle the situation. Then, they got support from the French government. The French military intervention, along with other African nations’ support, allowed the Malian government to recapture…

Immigration reforms

Digu Eslampure | guest columnist Political leaders across the spectrum are making their moves to reform the existing immigration laws, which will decide the fate of the 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. Democrats and Republicans are making their moves cautiously. They do not want to lose their prospective voters. However, this will be the best opportunity for undocumented immigrants to gain legal status in the United States. These reforms will add strength to the work force. It will give more freedom to these immigrants to do business more openly. They will get an opportunity to contribute their might to the mighty U.S. economy. It will prevent employers from exploiting these workers because…

Pitt’s money games

Athletics should not dominate the university Ross Schartel | guest columnist While athletics may be an attractive addition to any university’s activities and community outreach, one must remember why we are all at Pittsburg State University. Academics are what your money is paying for. Supposedly. It seems unfair for extracurricular activity to take precedence in student activity fees. That they do not have to even argue for their cut unlike every other department furthers this statement. When you chose Pittsburg State University, you might have taken into account our football team and its recent division championship. You might have noticed that both our women’s and men’s basketball teams are pretty good. But that can’t be…