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Opinions

 

Bad is bad, but passive is worse

Why passivity is
unacceptable

By Natalie Serafini,
Opinions Editor

“First they came for the
Jews and I did not speak
out—because I was not a
Jew. Then they came for
the communists and I did
not speak out—because
I was not a communist.
Then they came for the
trade unionists and I did
not speak out—because |
was not a trade unionist.
Then they came for me—
and there was no one left
to speak out for me.”
-Martin Niemdller

If you and I disagree
about something, I truly
don’t mind. I mean, if
we have a difference in

beliefs, I don’t have a
problem with the fact
that we think differently.
I can’t guarantee that

I won't think you’re a
jerk-wad, but I appreciate
when people are
opinionated. Without
conflicting opinions,
society is in danger of
stagnation. Instead, what
I can’t stand in people is
passivity.

I understand that
most people don’t get as
angry about everything
as I do. I also get that
I, like many others, am
oblivious to many issues,
that I don’t always make
the right choices, and
that I can’t possibly take
on every global injustice.
But I can try: I can try to
be aware; I can try to care
if I don’t already; and I

Livin la vida LG

In the defence of Las

By Natalie Serafini,
Opinions Editor

Gs—or little girls,
L« those of you
behind on their

acronym trivia—get a
whole lot of undeserved
flack.

Even if LG status
isn’t desirable, the
immense disdain on
reserve for them is pretty
preposterous. As far as
I can tell, everyone’s
problem with LGs seems
to be that they’re young
and immature. Either
that, or people must care
an awful lot about LG
dedication to tanning and
duck-facing. Those are
non-issues as far as I’m
concerned, so I can only
assume the abhorrence
stems from the bigger

picture of juvenility.
Granted, being called
an LG isn’t something
that most aspire to, and
if they did, they might
be setting their sights a
touch too low. Still, LGs
are neither so different
from the rest of society
nor are they deserving of
derision.

The reason they’re
LGs is because they’re
young, usually peaking
in LG-dom at around 14-
16. While I don’t recall
duck-facing my way
through high school, I
wasnt a sophisticate
either. Even in college,
I’m not exactly refined, so
I can’t fault LGs for being
similarly gauche. Youth
is for making mistakes
and figuring out who
you are. However many
mistakes LGs make,
and however they find

can try to do something,
however insignificant.

This is why passivity
is so frustrating to me.

If people are aware

of and care about an
issue, ignoring the
problem demonstrates
a lack of integrity. If
they purposely avoid
educating themselves,
they are guilty of
ignorance.

The excuses given
are often that we “should
agree to disagree” and
“can’t constantly be
fighting every battle.”
It’s true that society will
most likely never come
to an agreement on every
subject, and that one
person taking on every
injustice isn’t realistic.
Nonetheless, there are
too many people doing

themselves, this is their
time to flounder about.
Though it may appear
that LGs aren’t figuring
themselves out upon
noting their tendency to
follow the crowd, this
doesn’t differentiate them
from the rest of society.
Many people depend on
a group for guidance and
comfort, or begin to form
opinions by pushing
outside of the crowd.
Perhaps LGs haven’t
pushed beyond their
group yet, but they’re
young and in the process
of developing into
persons with thought out
beliefs.

I suppose the
scorn extends to LG
superficiality. While
I’ll concede that there
are more important
matters than makeup
and tanning, awareness

too little.

We don’t have to
protest, and we don’t
have to fight every
battle. But many people
don’t fight any battles.
Never mind fighting a
battle—fighting suggests
getting off your ass and
actually protesting or
sacrificing something.
How about supporting
an issue? How about
saying to yourself, “Hey!
I don’t like sweatshops!
I should find companies
that don’t employ
sweatshops, and support
those companies.” It’s
easy to vote with your
dollar. People in the
States are doing it in
droves over Chick-fil-
A’s blatant support of
anti-gay agendas. To not
do anything because

is a process. Most people
in college now would
say they completely
changed over the course
of their first year, re-
evaluating beliefs and
forming new ones. Part
of developing opinions
is the exposure to new
situations and pushing
beyond what you're used
to. In the transition from
adolescent to adult, LGs
will find matters they
care about more than
appearance.

Before anyone starts
to think me too defensive
of LGs, I must confess to
being less patient with
old LGs. LGs don’t have
to completely understand
themselves or the world
because their “littleness”
is their free pass. If you
have an excuse to be
immature, superficial,
and perhaps a little

it’s more convenient is
inexcusable.

Agreeing to disagree
is no position at all; it’s
not even an attempt at
neutrality in instances
where people’s rights
are being infringed
upon. You cannot
justify standing by
when you could easily
do something, no
matter how seemingly
insignificant. To shrug
and say “We can’t fight
every battle” or “Let’s
agree to disagree” is to
abdicate responsibility.
If each of us only fights
the battles that affect us,
no one will ever have
the power to make a
difference.

mindless in your youth,
you lose that Get Out of
Jail Free card once you’ve
been around the board a
few times.

Overall, LGs aren’t
so bad and, if we’re
completely honest, a
lot of us continue to
be mindless. We act
a certain way, talk a
certain way, and dress
a certain way so we
blend more seamlessly
with the crowd. We
make mistakes, and
don’t always have our
priorities straight. Is
all of this so bad? Is it
really the hallmark of an
insufferable LG, or is it
maybe just the hallmark
of humanity? I’m
inclined to say that LGs
aren't as awful as they’re
cracked up to be, and we
aren't so bad for vaguely
resembling them.

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