I am not a subtle person.  I don't often hint at the message.  If anything, subtlety is discovered only after the initial shock of what I am trying to say.  Last week, one such message was cut out of the paper in concern for, well...basic decency, I suppose.  Originally, although somewhat surprised by the omission, I lent way to the precept which states that the Managing Editor is tantamount to gatekeeper for the Sun Star…that's it, conversation over. 

Now, I'm not so sure.

Being the Arts and Entertainment Editor, I recently attempted a series of cartoon strips entitled "Curses."  The basic premise involves a collective of foulmouthed movie monsters (i.e. Dracula, the Wolfman, Bride of Frankenstein etc.) who combine eight-year-old body types with twenty-something dispositions.  It's an experiment, it's hit and miss, but it's something that I take at least somewhat seriously; enough so that I decided to write a segment expressing why I care so vehemently about its removal.

Here's the point.  I have never agreed with the school's nor the Sun Star's view as to whom this paper is for.  Many people think that the Sun Star is a launching pad for the journalism department – it's not.  At least not as far as I'm concerned.  If someone pulls resume padding from their work on the paper, great.  In all reality, if the Sun Star were to be a journalistically controlled substance, one might experience an allergic reaction of, say, suicide, to such a product.  Boredom gets degrees, not attention.

Some think the Sun Star is for the alumni.  Not to me it isn't.  If alumni pick it up, fantastic.  But it's not directed towards them.  It's not written for them.  You want nostalgia, open a yearbook.

And then there are professors, faculty, and administration.  Nope, no, absolutely not.

No, to me, the Sun Star is something far less distilled.  Far less muddied.  It's for the students, pure and simple.  When I sit down to write an article or sketch a cartoon, I want to resonate with UAF's academic transients and no one else.  Call me narrow-minded, but it just seems like common sense.

Which brings us back to those indecent little squiggles.  Out of respect for those who made the decision, I will not mention the contents of the strip.  Needless to say, it was indeed somewhat crude.  Perhaps a little over-the-top.  Enough to upset someone, I'm sure. 

My boss, Mr. Robinson Duffy, felt that it was simply too much.  That it crossed a line.  Maybe he's right.  Honestly, I don't know.  To me, Duffy's strongest argument purports that I may have overestimated UAF's liberal nature.  That what I consider appropriate for a certain audience is, in fact, a wild misfire into the throes of outrage and misinterpretation.  Thus giving the Sun Star just the kind of attention it does not need.  Not now, at least.

While I wholly respect Duffy and his sentiments, I am unable to concede with his methods.  I suggest that, right or wrong, a work (abiding by at lease some predefined measure of quality) should be put before the masses – before the students, to let them decide.  To let them be outraged.  To let them hail or complain as they see fit.  To make them full participants in the paper…in their paper.  Because it is theirs.  And to me, that means more than tacit consent.

Maybe it is just a cartoon.  Perhaps I have made too much of a deal surrounding the matter.  But I have to say, I really think it's so much more.  To me, moments like these define what the Sun Star will become throughout the year. 

So, maybe I should ask you, the reader, the student, what is it that you want?  Do you want a paper that accurately represents you and your interests?  A paper that you participate in?  A paper that you can truly be proud of?  Or do you want a lullaby?  Your choice.

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