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Op-Ed

 

http://otherpress.douglas.bc.ca

“Lunn’s Longshots” Response

When I read “Lunn’s Longshots” in the March 19th issue of
the paper. I was in tears and complete disbelief. The question
still remains, “What was the point of that article?” I have
come to the conclusion that the sole purpose was for no bet-
ter reason than to produce a few laughs, but at the expense of
the feelings of the women’s basketball team. The comments
made were unprofessional, undeveloped, unnecessary, and
most of all, upsetting.

You made a number of loose comments, which are in my
opinion, highly debatable, and I feel that is due to the fact
that you were merely on the outside looking in. Sure, you
“spoke to a few of the players after the season” but you also
failed to mention that “a few” was, in fact, only one who did
not realize you were writing an article for the paper and spoke
to you in confidence and as a friend. However, you took her
thoughts and used them to help construct your article with-
out her consent, which is to me, highly unethical. You may
have witnessed the losing season of the women’s basketball
team, but that does not qualify you to cut down, denounce,
and pass judgment on their efforts.

In terms of winning, no, the team was not successful; how-
ever a group of girls like this one is rare and hard to come by.
When many would have given up and thrown in the towel,
this tight-knit group stayed with it until the very end and
kept their heads high. Unfortunately, it is the people with the
same mindset as you who feel it okay to crush the spirits and

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take cheap shots at the team for lack of better words; it makes
us feel we should walk around with our heads hanging down.
In reality this team should not feel ashamed at all because for
six months we have committed ourselves to working hard
every day. At this point, the only person who should feel
ashamed is you, for attaching your name to that ruthless
piece you submitted last issue.

I have to admit, if I had a penny for every time I have heard
someone take a shot at the women’s basketball team, I would
be an incredibly wealthy girl, but to read “Lunn’s Longshots”
was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The school news-
paper should not be used as a piece of propaganda to slander
their own sports teams. I am not asking you to write an arti-
cle praising the efforts of the women’s basketball team, I am
not even asking for your support—lI just think it is a sad day
when an article such as “Lunn’s Longshots” is published when
its contents contain information which is truly hurtful and
demoralizing to a group of undeserving individuals.

There are two major differences between us that I think are
important to recognize: The season has been over for a month
now and the girls have moved on and are focusing on other
things. You, on the other hand, are still dwelling on the out-
come of “dismal” and “forgettable,” we chose to focus on pos-
itive aspects such as continuous improvement and life-lasting
friendships.

—Steph Hibbert —Women’s Basketball Team

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