The Soapbox Volume IV Issue 2 March 2008 To protect and protest Diary of an activist disillusioned 11 Heeding the call to service 13 Also in this issue: In praise of Joe Biden 3 The trouble with Hillary 5 Cultural shifts in Spain 17 http://dolphin.upenn.edu/~soapbox The Soapbox Penn’s onlyPenn’s sociopolitical only sociopolitical commentary commentary magazine magazine Letter From the Editor Executive Board Jay Zolle....................................Editor-in-Chief got in a fight with my urban studies professor last week. Alicia Puglionesi.................Productions Manager Or, more accurately, I avoided a fight by being the more Sunita Desai.........................Financial Manager I mature person after she got personally offended because I asked Josh Stanfield.............................Managing Editor if she knew term “conflict theorist” before I used it in a sentence. The “argument” was part of a larger discussion about the qual- Kevin Rodden...............................Senior Writer ity of the assigned reading for the class. Because I’ve been a vocal Brandon Paroly........................Publicity Manager opponent of many of the ideas brought up in the class’s ideologically Lydia Abdo........................Internal Programming homogeneous texts, she was concerned that I was being “dismis- sive” of the authors without actually reading the articles carefully to understand the “nuances” of their arguments. I explained that, even Editorial Board Corrina Provey.....................................................’09 though I think most of them are tired old academics re-publishing dated, regressive ideas, I actually enjoy reading articles with which Nathan Green......................................................’10 I disagree. Rather than simply cruising through the pages at break- Bill Shotzbarger...................................................’10 neck speed so I can watch more episodes of The Office, reading ridic- Greg Rollman ..................................................’11 ulous arguments that are convoluted at best and pedantic at worst Nantina Vgontzas...............................................’11 forces me to step back and think critically about what I am reading. Alvin Yap............................................................’11 And for us College kids who believe in the value of a liberal arts edu- cation, critical engagement is basically what we’re paying for. If you’re reading this letter, you are hopefully gearing up to read Staff Writers the rest of this stellar sociopolitical publication. And since The Soap- Al Moran..........................................................’09 box is an open forum representing a diverse group of student writ- Joshua Roberts..................................................’09 ers, you are bound to come across ideas with which you respectfully Bob Ma............................................................’10 (or not so respectfully) disagree. On behalf of liberal arts education Emerson Brooking............................................’11 advocates everywhere, I challenge you to engage with our authors Noah Rosenstein...............................................’11 and express your criticism or support. Our writers shouldn’t have Gideon Spitzer..................................................’11 the final say; you have the right to challenge them and keep the dia- Rachel omas.................................................’11 logue going. The Soapbox is designed to stimulate conversation and Dave Frankenfield............................................’11 thought, and you can keep these discussions active by contacting Josh Rittenberg................................................’11 our authors with your thoughts and counter-opinions. I welcome you to engage with The Soapbox by emailing us at Guest Writers [email protected] - just note the article that your letter Joe Giese..........................................................’09 addresses. Our authors aren’t writing just to hear their own voices; they want to spark a broader conversation on campus. Big things are Art provided by Alicia Puglionesi happening in this country and in the world, so if you have an opinion, Photographs by Joe Giese and Will Nunnally now’s the time to speak up. Copyright 2008 e Soapbox. It is forbidden to make any Respectfully, reproductions, in whole or in part, without the express Jay Zolle consent of e Soapbox. Executive Editor The Soapbox is an independent student publication of the University of Pennsyl- vania. We strive to provide a balanced and non-partisan publication that critically examines relevant social, economic, and political issues. All articles are chosen by a Board of Editors based on argumentative merit and relevance. All opinions expressed herein are solely those of the author(s) and do not in anyway reflect the opinions or the endorsement of the Editors. The Soapbox Your Take Soapbox editor Nantina Vgontzas asked how you Contents would vote in a hypothetical White House race between Stephen Colbert, Oprah Winfrey, and What could have been Larry King. 3 Biden’s failed presidential bid is the voters’ loss. “I’d choose Colbert. He seems Emerson Brooking very intelligent and knowledgeable about current events, and although The Ron Paul factor he may not have much experience, 4 How a hopeless candidate won the hearts I think he’d be able to learn quickly and fill the position well.” and minds of a cynical generation. -Chelsea Germak, College ‘09 Dave Frankenfield The trouble with Hillary “Larry King: He prob- 5 ably has the most experience America’s first viable woman candidate comes in dealing with diverse people. with too much baggage for the job. Oprah and Colbert are entertain- By Al Moran ers, and I don’t think the purpose of the president is to entertain the American people. They have to be a real person, not just someone who puts on a persona, which is probably reflective of most candi- The Attorney General and the dates in the real presidential elec- 7 tion; you can’t tell if who they present themselves waterboard now is who they will be in office.” Bush’s appointee refuses to condemn torture. -Morgan Hennessy, College ‘09 By Rachel Thomas “Colbert: I like his show, and I 8 The challenge of guerilla warfare don’t like the other people. He’s Has the U.S. military forgotten the lessons of Vietnam? highly critical of the way things are now; he sees the absurdity of the By Noah Rosenstein ways people do things.” Latin America veers left -Kieran Boyle, Wharton ‘11 10 Chavez and company are sounding a hollow socialist mantra. Soapbox editor Nathan Green asked how you feel about a mandatory military service requirement for By Josh Rittenberg young adults. 11 Diary of an activist disillusioned “I don’t think that we should Achieving global change is no easy matter be forced to go into the mil- when you’re too young to buy a beer. itary, but if people want to join, they can.” By Bob Ma - Abhi Hendi, Engineering, 2010 Heeding the call 13 The benefits of mandatory military service. By Gideon Spitzer “I guess I would push it towards compulsory service of Many faces, one America some sort, maybe not as much 15 Are we a melting pot, a patchwork quilt, or a tossed salad? military service...there’s a lot of positive change that young It’s time to get over our identity issues. people can make.” By Kevin Rodden -Matt Doumar, Wharton, 2009 16 I learned journalism from “I don’t think it’s a good idea Stephen T. Colbert because there are certain people And so can you! who are selfish and you’ve got to By Myrna Minkoff let them be selfish. If they don’t want to fight overseas, they’re The sacred and the profane not going to do a good job there 17 Spain struggles to preserve traditions as glo- anyway.” balization looms. -Akhil Kamani, Engineering/ By Joe Giese Wharton, 2010 The Soapbox, March 2008 2 Election 2008 Underdogs What could have been Biden’s failed bid is the voter’s loss age of 29, he initiatives, most recently the Biden- was confronted Brownback resolution supporting the almost immedi- federalization of the Iraqi government. ately with the Unlike the other Democratic candidates, deaths of his Biden refused to hasten the end of wife and infant the Iraq war by withholding funds. He daughter and fought hard for legislation to increase serious injuries to funding for IED-resistant vehicles, to the his two sons when vocal disapproval of the Democratic Par- By Emerson Brooking a drunk driver struck ty’s anti-war left. Said Biden, “[I]f you their car. Urged by friends not to resign tell me I’ve got to take away this pro- hile Obama, Clinton, and his post, Biden persevered and has gone tection for these kids in order to win WEdwards were fighting a on to lead the sixth longest career among the election, some things aren’t worth it. vicious, highly publicized currently elected Senators. Committed Some things are worth losing over.” battle in the months leading up to the Regrettably, these credentials Democratic presidential primaries, the “The issue here is not why amounted to little in a race crowded with candidate most qualified for the job – Joe Biden should have received possible “firsts.” Barak Obama, poten- Biden – found himself quietly shunted the Democratic nomination, tially America’s first African-American into a corner. but why his campaign should president, ran a campaign that portrayed Despite campaign season accom- him as an agent for change looking to plishments like a bipartisan resolution have garnered far more cleanse the wicked