|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Rice Thresher
Phone:
|
Andrew Courtwright The worst thing about being a philosophy major is the question. No, not the one about the meaning of life, but "What are you going to do with a degree in philosophy - teach?" Although philosophy majors tend to outscore biology majors on the MCAT and many go on to successful law careers, people seem to suspect that we'll either end up in front of a classroom or as the butt of some joke about unemployment lines. Personally, I don't see either of those outcomes in my future. I'm studying philosophy because I'm interested in the real world. Some people might argue that the word philosophy doesn't belong in the same sentence as "real," so I should probably explain myself. One of the most important things I've learned at Rice is that values don't exist in a vacuum - we can only sharpen our beliefs by applying them outside the classroom. Campus life abounds with examples. The Rice Student Volunteer Program takes direct action by volunteering in the Rice and Houston communities. Our various religious and cultural groups are constantly expressing their takes on life in ways ranging from Bible study to ethnic festivals. With few exceptions, though, these groups have focused on our immediate surroundings. My interest in philosophy, however, has led me to consider a more general question - how can we apply abstract theories to policies that affect people outside of Rice and even beyond Texas? You may have noticed, in the week before the election, voter's guides taped to tables and bathroom stalls. These flyers represent the first effort at answering my question: they are the work of a newly formed group on campus, Rice Students for Global Justice. Each month, this organization chooses a topic on either an international or domestic level and asks how we, as students, can effect change in that area. During the next week, RSGJ will be focusing on the School of the Americas (SOA), a U.S. military institution in Georgia responsible for training Latin American soldiers in combat, counter-insurgency and counter-narcotics. Graduates of the SOA, however, have been responsible for some of the worst human rights abuses in Latin America and have included dictators like Manuel Noriega and Guillermo RodrĄguez. To raise awareness about this issue with an ultimate goal of affecting U.S. policy, RSGJ will be providing an information table and a video presentation in the Student Center from Wednesday through Friday, Nov. 17. They will also have speakers on Thursday evening, and on the morning of Nov. 17, they will be holding a sister protest - corresponding to a similar event in Georgia - at Willy's statue. So what can you, as a Rice student, do? First, educate yourself about the issue and make your own decision. If you think this is a topic you're interested in, stop by the protest between classes and sign a petition or write a letter. If you're knee-deep in problem sets and papers, you may not think you have time now, but remember that someday you'll have to start applying all that abstract knowledge to real situations, even if you are a philosophy major. Andrew Courtwright is a Wiess College sophomore.
- back - |
|
|
Search the Thresher pages:
This document may be distributed electronically, provided that it is distributed in its entirety and includes this notice. However, it cannot be reprinted without the express written permission of: The Rice Thresher, Rice University MS-524, PO Box 1892, Houston, TX 77251-1892, USA. The Thresher Online Project -- ethresh@listserv.rice.edu |
