Collegiate Times

What a douche bag. If you can't find something to get involved in at VT you are not looking. Seriously this guy is the biggest loser I have ever heard of and should be expelled from VT. He doesn't deserve a school this awesome.

Yeah, I, uhhh, stopped whistling because I had this amazing discovery: women. Sorry, I didn't know that your happiness rested on my annoying habit.

No his happiness apparently rests on the university providing a club for you to whistle in. What an f'ing loser.

Learn and Live, just have fun, i'm sorry you feel this way. But, I think you need to get out more.

Reading what others have to say is great, but damn; as usual, here come the insults after an article is printed in the CT. Hokienomics- (who came back to comment on this page a second time)- only a "douche bag" like yourself would interpret the article the way you did and anonymously reply with such immature comments. Seriously, you were accepted into our great school, so I am assuming your thinking skills shouldn't be as simple as you projected them to be, and you should be able to think just a little bit more critically, at least. To the author: our school has plenty of organizations and resources that allow students to express themselves as they desire. Maybe the students should do their part by allowing themselves to become proactive members of the university, so that they can create the kind of experience that they wish to have. On the other hand, your points are interesting and if you have suggestions that will allow students to "own" their experience, then more power to you.

I personally find it ironic that the author makes a criticism of people whom he (she?) feels have not claimed a sort of 'self-ownership' of their own lives while in college. The point of self-ownership is rooted in a principle of self-determination - you get to choose the things which make your experience as special as you want it to be. To that end, people who opt to do nothing extracurricular while in college have taken no less authority over their decisions than people who are in every club. The point is, it's illogical to demand that people 'determine' necessarily that they want 'more' out of their college experience - people inherently 'own' their experiences, whether the author thinks they are doing all they can or not.

First, for the sake of promoting positive, constructive dialogue, I'm going to ignore the ignorant comments from hokienomics. But to address his confusion, I am very involved in multiple activities, and myself, don't find boredom an issue, unlike many VT students I have personally communicated with. Granted this is an opinions section, but these aren't just all MY opinions. I actually get out and talk to people, listen to their concerns, and have found a medium to discuss them intelligently. Secondly, I'm in no way unhappy. But I do see and know a slew of people who are. Again, interacting with people in the physical, and not just the virtual world, is something I take time and effort to do. I'm a fairly recognizable GUY (I don't understand your confusion Kyle...) on this campus, so when you see me, we can talk about this subject; I'm open-minded too, and tolerant of most ignorance. I see it as an opportunity to teach and/or learn.

Hey Whistling Guy! I didn't mean to make it sound as if my happiness depended on your self-proclaimed annoying habit, because it doesn't, but it was something memorable. I notice a lot of people attract attention to themsleves and some are aware of it, others aren't. I presumed that to just be a form of expression for you, same as my writing. Either way, it's cool that you commented. TrueHokie, I appreciate the comments and interpretation. As you pointed out, these are only suggestions from my observations. I am greatly aware of the opportunities and organizations available on this campus, but found out that MANY undergraduates aren't. A good portion also don't even pick up the CT on a daily basis or know it exists.

Lastly, to Kyle, who I notice is a regular blogger on the CT website and has strongly differing views, opinions, and interpretations from my own, I want to try to create some understanding. You make a good point linking self-ownership to self determination, but fail to realize that in every experience, we have the power to determine its relative outcome: meaning enjoyment, indifference, disdain, etc. It's all mindset. I was communicating to those who feel they do not have that power of determination AND do want more out of their experience (those are logical assumptions in the context of the column). Further, it's illogical to believe I can speak for every individual on this campus, each from a unique combination of environments and experiences. Try to take that into account when you make your judgments of my "demands", which any intuitive person understanding the context of the can see are simply suggestions for a target audience. If you don't fit in that crowd, what have you really to say? I'll offer an example from a student who personally contacted in response to this column...

Hi Bakar, My name is Jackie and I just want to say how much I really appreciate your editorial. I've been stuck in a hole lately and losing some motivation towards my future. Even if I'm very involved with campus activities like the water polo club and a sorority, I still feel out of place. Reading your editorial this morning inspires me to branch out and do something different. So this afternoon, I sat down at my computer and looked up all these great internships for this upcoming summer. I've already begun the application process and am very excited. I've also stepped out of my usual routine and changed my schedule to dedicate myself to my schoolwork even more because like you said in your article, this is our education. I've been renting, not owning it. Thank you for that inspiring article and you have changed my perspective - one that i've been looking for all this time! I'll be keeping your article posted on my wall above my desk so I can keep myself in check. Thank you once again! No words can ever express how much I really appreciate you putting that article into the CT today! I'm glad I picked up today's copy! With gratitude, Jackie ...I'll let the testimony speak for itself. Some people got it. And I guess some just won't...for now.

Also, I will admit my intent of this column was misrepresented in the voice of the column title. The original article was objectively "Cultivating a New Campus Climate" (what I submitted) vs. the highly opinionated sounding "Work on Cultivating Campus Climate". I guess we'll have to sort those issues out for the future columns.

Hi hokienomics, My name is Jenny and I just wanted to say how much I appreciate you bashing the unintelligible, narcissitic babbling posted on the CT website....You're welcome Jenny. I guess it just comes to show, we can all fabricate fan mail and defensively post it the comments section of a lame column.

Welcome back hokienomics! I normally don't entertain negative comments, but I'm really curious as to why you feel it necessary to promote your own "unintelligible, narcissistic babbling posted on the CT website". With RESPECT to your own reputation and integrity, fabricating a response from an imaginary person for the sake of proving a point or pushing an agenda is simply irresponsible, and would be journalistic suicide, especially considering that my full name and a picture of me was attached to the article yesterday. There's nothing imaginary about the correspondent, and I hold myself accountable to my word first before anyone. Like I said, I'm recognizable on campus, and don't mind dialoguing with new people. It seems you have some strong opinions too, so write a column to the editor, and ask them to run it, same as I did. I know they will be more than compliant. I've made myself more than available to be held accountable. It would be nice to see you do the same, sincerely. Best regards.

My final comment is that I apologize if any of my responses are interpreted to be offensive or sarcastic. This is absolutely not my intent, though it is difficult to differentiate the two at times on such an impersonal medium for communication. I am relatively new to the journalism arena, and wish to maintain a spirit of objectivity and positivity in all of my columns. Please feel free to contact me personally with your comments, questions, and concerns.

Bakar, thank you for recognizing the "stale" environment of Virginia Tech. I've been a student for five years and I also feel Blacksburg has a significant lack of cultural/artistic outreach! Perhaps this editorial will spark a light in not only students, but also in faculty and staff. I believe strongly that collegiate legacy not only from partying and sports, but also of works from students' creativity. I'm very glad to hear you wish this facet of the collegiate experience fostered on a grander scale!

Let me be more upfront about this - I graduated in May with a degree in Music Performance (and math too. . . ), and regardless of how hard I tried to lobby many of my acquaintances to come to events sponsored by the Department of Music turnout was generally pretty low. Now, I can't simply blame people for being 'uncultured,' and it would be illogical for me to assess that those people were somehow not making the most of the opportunities presented to them. Quite frankly, a lot of people simply aren't interested in the arts, or in a lot of other activities. But here's the thing - this column reads like so many valedictory addresses. It has a very cliched 'carpe diem' aura about it which just seems corny, more or less. At the end of the day, though, people find releases in different ways. I consider myself blessed to have found interests in both the technical and the artistic, but many people have explicit interests in one or the other. The campus climate is only as 'stale' as the individual wants it to be - Virginia Tech is a community of education, not a babysitter.

I'd like to throw a couple of thoughts into this. First, Tech's climate is somewhat representative of the stereotypical student at a university known for engineering and business. Tech has more of a trade school mentality than traditionally liberal arts universities. Second, if you expect the so-called real world to spoon feed you opportunities for self expression or fulfillment you're in for disappointment.

I agree Alum, Tech's "lack of culture" stems from a the majority of students being engineering/science/business majors. I know you break the mold, but as a Tech engineering alum, my friends and I spent our free time in clubs that catered specifically to our fields (design teams and the like). Haha, and I gotta say the most intersting part of the article is the comments section. Especially when Bakar twice stated that he's well known around the campus. Not to downplay any thoughts of grandeur, but at VT, all you need is a keg and a facebook page and you are "well known".

Hey I thought your article was awesome. I agree that VT needs to do a better job with sponsoring more activities. I really look forward to reading more!

Hello Hokie Nation...I don't go to your school but have been welcomed as only Hokies welcome people. I understand that your school is not a liberal arts school. I understand that football is great...you guys recruited me. But I don't understand how you say you aren't missing out. In this global world we live in, you never know who will be the person writing your check. However, I visited your school a few times and the only time someone treated me courteously was when I had a jersey on. Every other time I was on your wonderful campus people treated as if I was a marvel or freak...and I was smiling with a Hokie hat. I make money, share money, give money, and write paychecks...and I'm only 23. The closed minded mentality I met visiting Hokie Nation creates a barrier that closes off opportunities for people on both sides of that obstruction. Yes there are opportunities on campus and around the world. But who do you have to be to experience them? Are you Hokie or Human? I was Hokie, now I'm happy.

i dunno about this opinion piece. hundreds of organizations, VT-ENGAGE, one of the most well known "outdoor USA" towns in america. maybe you should be more entrepreneurial or go help cleanup downtown. Ut prosim is our job and our legacy. you don't need a sponsor to go serve the community

Bakar - there are plenty of unique Tech traditions that endure long after the students depart. Go ask a cadet if he thinks he's left a lasting impression, or a member of the German Club.

Bakar - VT is predominantly an engineering school, although the strengths of its business and arts and science programs are also on the rise. There is a certain "working-man" mentality that goes with that. If you wanted to let your freak-flag fly, maybe you should've gone to William and Mary.

Bakar, I wanted to say thanks. Thanks for writing this article and speaking on behalf of so many students. The question is not what we do, rather it is what do we accomplish. Every day, we wake up, eat breakfast/lunch, go to class, go to a club meeting/sorority/fraternity meeting, do schoolwork, and go to class. That is fine. But what do you accomplish? What has your impact been while you've been at Virginia Tech? Bakar is 100% correct saying that the University could do more to foster their students' accomplishments. I never saw a VT News article when his book of poetry was written....Now...we have goals, we need to do what Bakar said and OWN them.