LETTERS: Spotlighting a dangerous attitude at Penn

To the Editor: I, like many students, often feel threatened as I walk around the area surrounding the University, and I resent the fact that I essentially risk my life on the way to class or rehearsal or to meet a friend for dinner. And I am traumatized, just as many of my peers are traumatized, by the violence that has injured members of the Penn community -- just as I am traumatized by any report of violence. But I chose to come to Penn because I wanted the advantages of being in a city. I shuddered at the thought of being isolated in a college town -- isolated from the pulse of so many people living, working, learning and creating together. And you know what? People get shot in college towns and suburban parking lots, just like they get shot in West Philadelphia. When a suburban crime occurs, do we instantly judge all the members of that suburban community? No. We blame the criminal. In translating our fear of criminals into a fear of an entire community, we are letting our fear make us ignorant. Yes, more crimes occur around Penn's campus than many other college campuses. And quite frankly, I might not encourage people considering Penn to come here, precisely because of the degree of violence that occurs. But we chose to come here, and beyond that, someone chose to build a University here. We belong to this place, whether we like it or not. And as members of Penn's community, it is our responsibility to help strengthen greater West Philadelphia. If we try to isolate ourselves from it, or abandon it, then we are cowards. We are being socially irresponsible. We are being ignorant. Thank you to Baker and Smith for highlighting the danger of this ignorance so eloquently. If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. If you cannot accept the responsibility of being a member of the Penn community, then you should leave West Philadelphia, rather than asking West Philadelphia to leave Penn. Amanda Karsten College '98 u To the Editor: I absolutely loved the column by Kira Baker and Nathan Smith about the protection of students. It accurately depicted many of the outlandish comments that are common from seemingly educated people here at Penn. A most recent comment I was privy to by a Penn staff member was that "Buffy and her parents need protecting from the crowd of the Penn Relays!" Baker and Smith, however, left out one establishment that could be the site of yet another problem. I would suggest you ask students to stay away from the impending violence at the post office, too. You never know when mad West Philly postal employees will shoot a few rounds exercising their violent nature! Cecelia Price Education '98 More on religion To the Editor: I want to applaud The Daily Pennsylvanian for its series on God. In the first article, students and professors agreed about many things throughout the article, and I would like to expound further. For a moment,replace the word "religion" with the word "relationship." Imagine that not only is there a God, but He loves you as a father loves a child; and He, too, gets very sad when bad things happen to people. Then think about the fact that He loves you so much, you were born with a choice as to whether you want to believe, let alone how you believe. That choice is crucial, because you're not going to be the same as your parents, teachers and friends -- indeed, you're not going to be brainwashed or forced into anything. Now, the relationship begins, and then God reveals to you that He does have things to say. In fact, He wants you to know how your choices affect your life, so that you're aware of the consequences. Bad things happen because we can be inherently bad, right? So, God said, "Let Me make our relationship totally right. I will send my own Son to show you the way to Me. And I want to have a righteous relationship with you! All the things I have to offer are yours, because I want you to have what is purely good. And I want to see you in Heaven." We can try to fill the God-shaped hole in our hearts with many things. Then, we look inside and realize nothing fits, and our hole remains empty. Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart, and He wants it to be full. Are you ready to step outside "religion" and find God? Try the Bible; try praying; do go to a church. Seek and ye shall find. Marc Aneed College '99