Cable Co-op board member says thanks
Keep Co-op review too harsh and unfair
Viewbook ignores LGBTU
Kaplan's condemnation unnecessary
To the Editors:
My re-election campaign for the Oberlin Cable Co-op board was successful, and I am grateful.
Unlike people who win national and state elections and bug off to Washington or Columbus, people who win local elections stay right here. If there's a cable problem you can't resolve, on campus or off, call me at 774-1611 and I'll try to help. Again, thank you very much!
To the Editors:
I am writing in response to the recent review of Keep co-op's meals. I understand that Mr. Kowit based his article on one visit, but the scornful tone of his work prompts me to think he should research more carefully before opening his mouth - to eat or speak.
Perhaps more insulting than the unfavorable review of just ONE meal was the insinuation that Keep fare may be less appetizing than the institutional alternative. Those of us in OSCA choose to eat in co-ops because CDS is not an option, in either the nutritional, moral, financial or gustative sense. We do not want to deal with "flex dollars" and limited access to food. We want to choose what foods we have in our co-op, when we eat it and how we use it.
Co-ops give students the autonomy to plan and cook our own menus, usually with favorable results. We learn to not only to cook elaborate meals that send our fellow diners away happy, full and wishing for more, but we also teach ourselves to "make do" with leftovers and the remainders of staple foods. With some imagination and inter-co-op borrowing, we can transform the bleakest situation into a repast for about seventy Keepers plus guests.
I perceive the damage from this article as especially detrimental my co-op's head cooks. This article insinuates that Keep has mediocre food all the time, since it was based on a one-time visit to our dining room. As a head cook myself, I fear that non-OSCA members will avoid our food, believing we are a co-op full of "inconsistent quality." Keep loves guests; I hope this article does not deter anyone from visiting our co-op at any time. We especially welcome guests who offer constructive criticism and do not expose our rare bad side to the entire community. Keep frequently has so many guests that we recently had to implement a policy to disarm the Friday night pizza riot, which includes limiting guests and using manners. Keep, land of undesirable, "delinquent" food, had to resort to crowd control. Our own members scarcely ate due to the overwhelming number of guests, if that indicates the popularity of Keep's food.
I think "reasonably palatable food" is a gross understatement. So far this week, we have eaten squash soup, more varieties of pizza than you will find at any restaurant, fresh croissants, a Mexican fiesta feast, and a light, fruity brunch. And you think Stevenson may be a better choice?
Yes, we are a family here. We are usually not a dysfunctional one, but we instead support each other and don't pass judgements on people based on the occasional mishap. We at Keep like to think we are understanding enough to accept others, despite mistakes, and not subject them to public humiliation, like writing a shitty report for this paper.
So yes, we ARE a viable, preferable and rewarding alternative to regular campus dining. We are not, however, dumping ground or a punching bag. Is this publication so short of fertile issues that insulting Keep is a viable topic for publication? I offer a challenge to the entire Oberlin community to refute Mr. Kowit's allegations of less- than- delicious food at Keep. Stop in for some vegan shepherd's pie or chocolate granola sometime. Join in the new protocol of decorum on pizza night. And ensure you get invited to a special meal - they are amazing.
-Yvonne Piper
College sophomore
To the Editors,
Hi, I just wanted to thank you for being so nice and giving me the quote of the week and all. I need to clarify something though. I did think that the new view book was very lovely and I could see how much hard work was put into it. Babbling brooks in North Quad aside, what I actually said in reference to the logo "Think one person can change the world? So do we." was that I thought it needed to be modified a little. We don't need to do away with it entirely. What I suggested for our new motto was, "Think one person can change your sexuality? So do we!" I saw this on someone's t-shirt one day and I thought it was the greatest thing ever. All joking aside, I think it is interesting if not slightly misrepresentational to have the Oberlin Viewbook make little (if any) reference to Gay and Lesbian life, concerns or events. It doesn't highlight the presence of the LGBTU community of Oberlin which to me, seems to be a very important part of what Oberlin is. The Viewbook doesn't even talk about Drag Ball! I understand that a college viewbook is designed to attract prospective students and that only the bright sunny aspects will be shown. But is it really fair to portray a reality that doesn't exist? I must admit that I love the images that the new and old viewbooks portray of Oberlin, that's why I came here. However, I think that perhaps the picture of what Oberlin is, and what it means to be a student here, is left slightly incomplete in the end. Perhaps we could be better served by a more thorough portrayal of life at Oberlin. It might help to say that Oberlin not just a "Liberal" school, but to clarify that a little and say that honestly, Oberlin is a liberal school with respect to sexual orientation. Wouldn't this kind of honesty be the most fair representation of the school that we can give to both the current and future students of Oberlin?
To the Editors:
(This is an open letter in response to Glenn Kaplan's sports editorial condemning Cleveland Indians fans.)
Your cynicism has gone too far this time. It has to be kept in check. After all, what is WRONG with a city rallying around a successful team a little more vigorously than most? I can't think of any direct social ills that are caused by the Cleveland area loving its Indians, except for the mass marketing of a racist symbol. I agree that that is a problem, but you don't address that in your jealous, disgruntled commentary. Instead, you say at one point that "Despite its drawbacks, such fanaticism is not necessarily evil" and go on to say that it draws attention from the President's libido.
Well, I'm curious to find out what these drawbacks are. I can't think of anything that is necessarily evil about really, really following one's local team. When I see it in other cities, I smile because it's great to see so many people joined together for a common love. Tell me why it's evil, Mr. Kaplan.
Copyright © 1998, The Oberlin Review.
Volume 127, Number 6, October 9, 1998
Contact us with your comments and suggestions.