LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Smooth Moves

To the Editor: But there was no mention of the fact that move-ins still arrived after hours when residential living was gone for the day. There were many nights when Senior Residents had to be awakened for students without paperwork and Residential Duty Officers had to be awakened for emergency assignments. Being an Allied Security Receptionist, we handled move-ins and move-outs at all hours of the early morning, and found move-in days to be less stressful also thanks to our supporting staff of Residential Duty Officers, Senior Residents, Resident Advisors and Supervisors. FLORENCE CHANDLER Graduate Tower A Desk Looking into a Crystal Ball To the Editor: Readers may be curious about the 34th Street cover photograph of a crystal ball which appears in the September 14th issue. That crystal ball, one of the largest in the world, is the centerpiece of the University of Pennsylvania Museum's magnificent Chinese Rotunda. Ten inches in diameter and about 55 pounds, completely free of impurities, the crystal sphere was one of the treasures of the Chinese Imperial Palace in the 19th century. Such a sphere would have taken years to create and polish. Readers are invited to visit the Museum (it's free to PennCard holders!) and see this extraordinary piece, which rests like a bubble on a wave-like silver stand. Pam Kosty Public Information Office University Museum A Parking Violation To the Editor: I am disappointed. For four years I have been taught that the University acts in the best interest of our community. Last Thursday I learned that not everybody's interests are the same. I parked my car by the High Rise East plaza on Thursday at 10:45 pm in order to unload a TV set and a chair I had to carry to my sister's apartment. I figured it wouldn't take more than five minutes to get the job done. It took seven. However, when I finally returned to my car carrying back another TV set, I realized that George Smith and his tow truck had arrived there first. After a ten minute argument with the driver, he absolutely refused to let my car off the hook. "Call the cops," I said. Enter Penn Police. To make a long story short, the officers told me there was nothing they could do and that I should pay the $90 fine (which was actually $110). Now, I understand the illegality of my action. Parking is not allowed there due to rush hour at 10:45 pm on a weekday. However, is it fair to tow a car that was parked for seven minutes while the owner was moving heavy furniture into the building? The wise police officer gave me an alternative: you should have put coins in the parking meter like I do when I want to park my car and then walked down to the building (with a TV set and a chair, sure). I should have been penalized, though, with a ticket or something proportional to the damage caused by my fault. I had obtained a parking permit in previous occasions, but it wouldn't have made a difference this time. My car would have been towed while I was requesting the permit and (Boy) George wouldn't have listened to any excuses anyway -- Once the car is hooked, you're fried, my friend. The bottom line is that nobody took responsibility for the action. 'There's nothing I can do' -- was the recurrent phrase. Moral: Sometimes we don't listen to and understand each other. We are used to following the drill in an automated and impersonal way. Should we call ourselves a community, then? EMILIANO CALEMZUK College '95 Unfounded Chauvinism To the Editor: After reading Marcus Lien's letter to the editor (DP 9/12/95) I was unpleasantly surprised. These negative remarks about a female medical student who also happens to be a Playboy star reek of anti-humanistic puritanism. Also, as can be expected, the tone of the letter was decidedly chauvinistic. To heterosexual men, women are attractive; clothed and unclothed. There's nothing particularly mystical about the human body; all men have mothers. I am quite sure that any male who has passed puberty has seen a nude woman. I write this only to point out how utterly brainless the notion that somehow nudity is necessarily private. The booming movie industry (including the very popular pornography subset of that industry) is a testament to just how much people like seeing other people naked. So if a woman who happens to be smart enough to get into Penn Med, also happens to be beautiful enough to be a Playboy star, what is wrong with that? Since there is no real moral dilemma, instead of sitting aside like an impotent geezer, Mr Lien should join the rest of us saying, "Go on girl!" Men have been capitalizing, and will continue to capitalize on their physiques. The Greeks idolized physical (and mental) perfection. Not only is it socially acceptable for a man to be in public, and be near-naked, it's encouraged. When brawn is coupled with brains, society considers it a big bonus. Why should any women be ridiculed for what men have been doing (with vigorous approval) for centuries? So to make it all simple, get real dude. Leave your imaginary moral dilemmas in the trash where they belong. ARNSHEA CLAYTON Engineering '96