Recent Opinions

It’s time to call all of these hate acts against people of color what they are: acts of terrorism.  We must stop tiptoeing around this word, terrorism, which makes us uncomfortable, because the use of the word “terrorism” to describe the actions of part of the American population will make its perpetrators aware of our hypocrisy. 

Growing up, I longed for people to view me as intelligent.  I loved being associated with the adjective smart, and I, in turn, also complimented others’ intelligences freely.  It wasn’t until later that I realized how damaging and invalidating that simple praise could be. 

OPINIONS

In response to “Keep it casual”

Thank you for all of your emails about my recent article “Keep it casual” (Oct. 30).  I didn’t expect the content to resonate with so many people, and when it did it made me stop and think about what Stanford would look like without the pressure to keep everything casual, and what we could do to make it more like that.  The truth is, I don’t know, but here is my best shot.  I hope you can take what is useful to you and leave the rest. 

1.  Stop comparing yourself to others.  The root of the casual epidemic is feeling average in a pool of exceptional individuals.  It is useless to feel down because you think you don’t have as many friends as so and so, or because you don’t feel as attractive as what’s her face.  Learn to measure your self-worth based on intrinsic qualities.  Feel confident in your school work because you are curious and you apply yourself, not because your TA likes your essays.  Know that you are sexy because you rock that dress, not because Douchey McDouchebag wants to take it off. 

2.  Invest yourself in people.  This takes time.  It’s easy to fall into the trap of overzealously investing yourself in the first people you meet in your freshman dorm, only to realize that you don’t have much in common after all.  On the other hand, it’s also easy to spend loads of time with the same people without investing yourself substantively.  Proximity only engenders intimacy when paired with curiosity and effort.  Get curious about your friends, even the ones you know the best, and try to know someone, truly. 

3.  Open up.  When you tell people exactly how you are feeling, up or down, you give them a gift.  You show them that you won’t judge them if they exhibit some human tendencies and have good days and bad days like everyone else.  Don’t confuse optimism and denial.  Please, do try to see silver linings, but don’t force them onto emotional laundry loads that need to be washed.  Sometimes you need to process even the overwhelming things that you would rather not.  Don’t feel like you’re burdening someone by opening up to them.  Even Jay-Z has 99 problems. 

4.  Honor the world your friend lives in.  Your own priorities may be very different from your best friend’s, but that doesn’t make his any less valid.  Even if it is a mystery to you why he spends three days on a problem set, honor his choice to do so.  It is dangerous to walk through the world insisting that everyone’s priorities align with your own, and it can be useful to understand what matters to other people. 

5.  Listen.  Listen honestly, wholeheartedly, and patiently, to as many people as you can.  When you bump into an acquaintance and back out of the conversation with “we should get coffee sometime,” consider actually getting coffee sometime. 

6.  Be clear with your peers.  Take the time to figure out what you want, and make sure you convey that to other people.  Don’t mess with peoples’ emotions, whether you know them platonically, romantically or professionally.  Be gentle breaking the news to someone if it turns out you want different things, but do break the news before they feel humiliated. 

7.  Take responsibility for your choices.  Some choices may have less favorable consequences than others – say cheating on your boyfriend versus deciding to eat spaghetti.  Own them equally, and don’t try to lay responsibility on the social climate at school, or your peers’ decisions or your mood.  If you take responsibility for every choice you make, it’s harder to casually wreak havoc on others without suffering the corresponding consequences. 

Above all, be respectful and follow that cheesy rule to treat people the way you want to be treated.  I’m still puzzled on this one, so I welcome your advice on the casual conundrum.  In the meantime, keep it real. 

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About Renee Donovan

Renee was born and raised in San Francisco and has a serious love affair with the city.  Last year she took a leave of absence to pursue a career in ballet and modern dance at Tisch School of the Arts in New York.  She is glad to be back at Stanford, and especially glad to be back in California.  She is an avid backpacker, Faulkner enthusiast, fair-to-middling guitarist, and wholehearted aviation nerd.  She hopes to bring an amusing and provocative voice to the Daily in her opinion column, and urges the Stanford community to offer her their suggestions, questions, and criticism to keep the dialogue going on campus. 

Submissions

Letters to the editor: E-mail Editor in Chief Joseph Beyda at eic@stanforddaily.com.  Signed letters only.  Students and alums, please include class year for publication.  Non-students, please include city or University affiliation for publication.  All: please include evening telephone number (not for publication).  Word limit for letters: 500. 

Op-eds: E-mail Managing Editor of Opinions Aimee Trujillo at opinions@stanforddaily.com.  Students and alums, please include class year for publication.  Non-students, please include city or University affiliation for publication.  All: please include evening telephone number (not for publication).  Word limit for op-eds: 700. 

Opinions Columnists

Nick Ahamed The Muckraker

Mark Bessen The Fault in Our Systems

Winston ShiA More Perfect Union

Mysia AndersonEvolving

Johnathan Bowes Super Tuesday

Aimee TrujilloSuper Tuesday

Veronica Anorve Super Tuesday

Neil ChaudharyDouble Take

Mina ShahWednesdays in the World

Raven JiangQuoth the Raven

That’s what we said

Until we build a culture where mental health is urgently and openly discussed — and we are well on our way — the demand for CAPS will only grow.  Students, accustomed to some of the best student services in the world, expect better from what is supposed to be the University’s last line of defense. — Vol.  247 Editorial Board