Sometimes you’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t!

Editor:

I read the entire Maroon last week-front to back-something I haven’t done since last year, and for the most part it was the same old thing. News about some Loyola scandal, more about free market economics, something or other about SGA doing a poor job allocating funds, a criticism of a university committee, a story about the captain of the girls basketball team breaking a record, and a story about some super cool new rock band, and none of it really surprised me. Actually I’ll bet you a beer that in twenty years if I pick up a copy of the Maroon not much about the content will have changed. Still there was something in this issue that I really got a kick out of-the letters to the editor about the Vagina Monologues.

Like a lot of alumnae I received Fr. Wildes’ email and was very impressed that he was thoughtful enough to not only inform the community of his decision but to also explain his process. Loyola has found a great treasure in Wildes who truly seems to understand the definition of the word university and how that can be merged with Loyola’s Jesuit Identity.

Catholic Humanism, Academic Excellence, and Jesuit Identity. The university’s actions always say more than it’s sweatshirts, I mean words, but this time we actually got actions congruent with those words (and sweatshirts). Regardless of whether or not you agree with the play I thought, “You have to respect how Wildes handled it.”

Then I read those two letters about the Vagina Monologues. Both alums had completely opposing views but their letters were laced with one overwhelming commonality-criticism of the administration. One alumna was obviously in support of the decision to let the show go on while one was not, but neither was in support of the decision-maker. I laughed out loud because all I kept thinking was “sometimes you’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t.”

So in twenty years when I pick up the Maroon the issues may be different and the characters may have changed but I only hope the President of the University is still sending the same message-“yeah, sometimes you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t,” but do anyhow.

Bea Forlano ’04