Tangents and Tirades

by The Cowl Editor on April 11, 2019


Opinion


Graphic of sun.
Photo courtesy of Pixabay.

Friar Fun in the Sun

I am sure many have noticed that spring has come a little earlier than normal this year. The grass is getting greener with each passing day, and flower buds are peeping through the ground, ready to bloom. With all these positive changes in the weather, it is safe to say that the weather has had the same effect on our spirits.

Just a couple of weekends ago, there was a Saturday that was sunny and 63 degrees. It was nearly impossible to find anyone in their dorms. All the quads and lawn space throughout campus were filled. Some could be found with a blanket and a book, others with a baseball and a glove.

Regardless of how you decided to spend the time outside, the feeling of community had never been stronger. People played music loud enough so that everyone could enjoy it. If your friend tossed the football a little too far and you had to run after it, chances are a kind stranger picked it up to give back to you before you had the chance to get there.

It is little things like this, days like this, where Friartown friendliness really shines through and makes you proud to be a Friar.

Of course, that is not to say that rainy days will be the same. People tend to let the weather reflect their mood for the day. But maybe that is just another incentive to hold out hope for the sunshine.

—Katherine Belbusti ’22

 

EDM is Not Music to My Ears

Year after year, the Board of Programmers (BOP) announces another EDM (electronic dance music) artist for the Spring Concert. Year after year many rock, pop, country, and rap fans acquiesce to social pressure and buy another Spring Concert ticket.

While EDM is indubitably a genre of music that requires tremendous talent and creativity, the genre appeals to a niche fan base on campus, thus the Spring Concert selections fail to appeal to the majorities of the student body.

Moreover, despite the artistic value of EDM music, EDM artists frankly make for poor concert experiences as they lack the energy of true live music, considering the fact there are no instruments or live singers performing in the show.

Ultimately, EDM shows serve as  glorified DJs rather than live musical artists.

To that end, it would serve as a better use of funds for BOP to save the money they would spend on an EDM artist and either hire a DJ instead and invest the excess funds into other events or hire multiple indie artists of numerous genres for the cost of the single EDM artist and establish a small Providence College music festival as a means of music discovery for the student body and give them a true live music experience.

The Spring Concert experience should be richer than merely listening to an electronically generated potpourri of pop song remixes, as this wave of EDM concerts is depriving the PC students of the true beauty of live music.

—Alyssa Cohen ’21

 

Us. We. Together. Cleaning. Campus.

After a few windy days, the Providence College campus is showing signs of wear and tear. Posters litter the sidewalks, poking up through the foliage, with other trash scattered about.

To make matters worse, hundreds of students walk by litter every hour, doing nothing about it.

Sure, one does not necessarily want to get their hands dirty, but with the multitude of bathrooms on campus, soap and water are not exactly hard to come by.

It is not like students need to spend hours searching for trash. Simply taking the time to stop and dispose of litter in the appropriate receptacle goes a long way.

The aesthetic of our campus very much reflects the whole student body, not just those hired to help sculpt and take care of the landscape.

Do we want to be seen by visitors as students who do not care about our campus, or are we going to be known for looking after even the smallest of details so that all can enjoy this campus?

As we move into the warmer months, with the flowers and trees returning to their blossomed states, it is important to remember that keeping the campus clean is a shared responsibility that does not ask much of us, just that we are conscious and actively work to remove the litter that can be found here at PC.

—Joshua Chlebowski ’21