June 14, 2006
Hello Erin,
Just stopping by from south
Texas to say “Hi.” Jeff contacted me already. That was very generous of him and
I was very excited to receive via e-mail. I wish you guys the best on this site
cause it ROCKS!
Yours Truly--ab mejia
June 9, 2006
Letter from a Fan
Hello,
I'm so excited to have found this site because I have been searching for Jeff
McGowan for a while ...ok maybe 2 weeks. I hope that is this the right site to
reach him at since his blogs are here. I just have so much to say to him about
his book Major Conflict which by the way I LOVED and how inspirational it was .
I learned we have so much in common like SNOW HALL for one. If this is Jeff
McGowan please contact me to thank you personally for being brave enough to get
this out there. With Much Admiration , Ab Mejia from TEXAS
June 8, 2006
Dear Editor
I am a displaced Newpaltzian. I long for the mountain, the
streets I know so well, the restaurants and cafes, the college kids and most of
all, the friends and family I have left behind. But alas, my life is here, with
my own family. My two lovely children and husband live a life we could never
afford in good old New Paltz which finds itself priced way out of our 42 acre
-pond and view owning selves here in the Finger Lakes of Western New York. Yes,
that's right. I live in Liberal Hell. Everyone around me is a Gun Carrying,
Bush loving, Gay Marriage Hating Republican. Okay, almost everyone. In
Dansville, my closest "city" I am trying to carve out a niche for myself. Trying
to find like-minded individuals to share my views. Just when I think I have
come close, someone mentions the great buys they got at Wal-Mart, and all of a
sudden my past rants on the evil conglomorate seem so hollow. I feel as though
I have been plunked on an Island. So, I am either resigned !
to the fact that I just have to accept my new neighbors for who they are and get
my Liberal fix when I go "home" to New Paltz to visit, or I have to try to do
something about it. I have learned that there are plans being discussed to
build a Wal-Mart in our fair "city", next to the Home fucking Depot they are
working on. Needlesstosay, I am disgusted. Having my head in the sand having
two kids for the past 3 years or so doesn't help my feelings of guilt. Why
wasn't I leading the charge against this affront to the small town life I am
trying to enjoy here? Why haven't I been to the town board meetings? And how
can I change the minds of folks who look at the jobs brought by Wal-Mart as a
boon to the community not the death of Main Street all together? So, I ask my
fellow New Paltzians, where do I start? How did NP keep Wal-Mart away all these
years?
Until I attend my first board meeting, I will be seething and stewing and
waiting to hold my tongue when someone else in my new circle of mommies praises
the great bargains gained at the WMC (Walmart of Mass Consumption).
Sincerely, a displaced New Paltzian,
Samantha PJ Gibson
An open letter to Steve Poskanzer, President of the SUNY New Paltz
Administration Mr. Poskanzer, I am writing to inform you that this has been my
last semester at SUNY New Paltz, and the reasons are largely that I am
dissatisfied with the way the administration is acting in regards to the
autonomy of the student body. I was privileged enough attend a public school
not out of financial constraint but out of choice. Others are not so lucky, they
do not have the option of attending a private school, and this is why it is so
important that public schools are indeed public, belonging to the students and
community. The school should be a student's community; it should be designed and
sustained by the students who attend the school. The students should have
control over the way they live their lives, and this should happen with the
support, not contempt, of the administration. Recently your administration has
essentially orchestrated a coup against the elected student government. Despite
my skepticism I have no doubt that there is an organized effort to remove Vice
President-elect R.J. Partington III and President-elect Justin Holmes from their
duties as elected officials.
Since Mr. Holmes was elected he has faced judicial hearings three times. The
first incident was for intimidating Resident Life director Corrina Caracci. A
video was released of the incident in question and it is clear that this charge
is bogus. (The video is available from Wikipaltz.com). It is apparent that this
charge was simply to make it legally impossible for these students to attend
several meetings. If this is the case, Ms. Caracci should resign. Recently, Mr.
Partington issued a press release that after being accepted to graduate school
he was sent a letter saying he was no longer accepted. If Mr. Partington is not
a student he will not be able to serve his position as Executive Vice President.
If this is indeed a result of Mr. Partington's politics then it is an absolutely
abhorrent move. The first day I stepped foot on campus was last year's accepted
student's day. I met R.J. at the Students Coalition for Animal Rights table. I
talked about some of my ambitions and he was nothing but supportive and
positive, an attitude he delivers to everyone he encounters in seemingly every
situation. R.J. has contributed so much to New Paltz with no ambition other than
doing what he can to further the community, and now for whatever reason he is
seen as a threat, and his future is put into jeopardy because of it. Justin is
cut from the same cloth as R.J., incredibly passionate, articulate, and
relentless in the cause of student's rights. I have nothing but respect for
Justin and R.J., and even when I disagree with them I know that they are a
political anomaly of complete honesty and earnestness that should be treasured.
I'm not sure why there's an effort to remove Justin and R.J. Perhaps it is
because of their proposed policy of audio taping all administration meetings in
an effort for greater transparency. Maybe it's their support of the student's
rights to form a club seeking a militia, and that's putting out a "negative
image" of the school. This is no excuse; the students are the ones who should
decide the image of the school, not the administrators. You do not get to design
our culture, it belongs to us alone. When I came to New Paltz, I was not aware
I would be attending a school that strives for a conformed and innocuous student
body. I was mistaken, and that's why I'm dropping out.
Sincerely,
Andy Folk
Dear Editor:
One of my earliest memories has me seated at the dinner table, desperate to
know what my parents were discussing in a secret code which seemed impossible to
decipher. As I grew older, and my spelling skills improved, I began to
understand their stilted banter, and eventually, the innocence afforded by their
seemingly innovative dialogue was relinquished to a dinner table free of
disjointed letters. Topics deemed undesirable faded from conversation
altogether, and were relegated to hurried whispers behind closed doors.
These conversations were often centered on family gossip, "adult"
topics, and the avoidance of buzzwords that could lead to tantrums
– all relatively meaningless subjects.
However, I never expected that information would be withheld that could
jeopardize my safety and health. Unfortunately, this is often the case when
dealing with sex education.
Many families feel that sex education should be the responsibility of the
school, as schools will have access to the most current information and relevant
technologies. Children and parents alike generally feel that discussing a
cumbersome topic elsewhere makes the home environment easier to endure. Yet many
children are not receiving this education either at home or at school, putting
them at risk for unintended pregnancy or sexually transmitted infection.
The Healthy Teens Act is slowly working its way through the New York State
Senate with only a few weeks of session remaining. If passed, this legislation
will provide funding for schools and organizations to develop and implement age
appropriate, medically accurate sex education. I believe very strongly that our
schools, communities, families and government ought to refrain from dealing with
these issues in muted tones, and instead afford them the voice they deserve.
The safety and lives of young people must not be jeopardized, especially when
certain levels of autonomy begin to be realized. It is imperative that we take
proactive steps towards combating potentially life-threatening behavior, and
provide young people with the information and resources needed to protect
themselves. This is one issue that cannot afford to be sequestered only to
whispers.
Sincerely,
Brittany Turner
I have to make an objection to the "Thank God for 911" graphic in your
banner. I personally know that the Fred Phelps crowd was protesting
*against* Christ the King church, but that picture in your banner makes it
seem like it was people from that church who were preaching that kind of hate...
which is untrue.
I ask that you either crop that picture or provide some sort of context for
it, because as it is, it is very misleading.
BTW, I have no affiliation with Christ the King church.
Adrianne Mora
New Paltz '02
