My blog can beat up your blog

It’s funny how one little thing can spark a big debate.

About two weeks ago, there was a column about the new Survivor series (you know, where they segregate the tribes by race), and the writer made a mention of the Confederate flag, inferring that only racists flew it.

Well, regardless of the Confederate flag, I was pleasantly surprised with the debate it sparked in our letters to the editor section. We’ve been handling two or three letters a day about the symbolism behind the Stars and Bars, and it’s great.

It’s nice to see students be passionate about something. Whether it’s abortion or the Confederate flag, or the pope’s most recent comments, Penn State students are getting up on their soapboxes —nice.

Hopefully you’ve all been keeping up with the news lately so that you can write in letters and express your minds.

Here are some of the more interesting news from the past week:

A drunken Chinese tourist bit a panda. Yeah, you read that right… I mean I guess it’s okay because the panda bit him first, but still, who goes to the zoo drunk?

A Nigerian girl is getting the opportunity to "experience" space. Stella Felix was chosen out of a pool of around 400 students to take a flight in a special Boeing aircraft that will simulate what it feels like to be in outer space. The program is hosted by the Houston-based Spaceweek International Association.

This is a great opportunity, and Felix deserves a ton of credit for her accomplishment, but when 70 percent of the Nigerian population lives on two dollars a day, couldn’t the money for this flight have been put to a better use? How about some new school books, or clothing?

The third premature infant died last week at Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis after being given an adult dosage of blood thinner. The accident was caused by a pharmacy technician who accidentally stored adult doses in the neonatal unit’s drug cabinet. This is horrible. Besides the fact that the pharmacy technician screwed up, don’t you think the person applying the medication should be well versed enough in dosages to realize something was wrong? What a tragic accident.

If you liked what you’ve read, then that’s awesome — you should write in and compliment us. If we offended you, even better! Write in and express your viewpoint. Don’t worry, we’re not too proud to publish a letter bashing us. Also, any suggestions? We’re new at this blogging thing, feel free to give us some pointers: collegianletters@psu.edu.