The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 80, No. 17, Ed. 1 Friday, January 29, 1993 Page: 4 of 20
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4 FRIDAY, JANUARY 29, 1993 THE RICE THRESHER
OPINION
Confessions of a would-be writer: why some job prospects aren't so rosy
by Shaila K. Dewan
Whenever I hear someone say,
"Well, I'm a writer," I cringe, wishing
that writing were like electrical engi-
neering, and you had to study for four
years and turn in lots of homework,
and then you had to get a good GPA
NOTES
from near the
END
and then you could go up to Career
Services and look at the bulletin board
under "Careers in Writing" and find
lots of nice manila envelopes where
you could put your applications and
wait for someone to call you for an
interview. "Careers in Writing" would
be right next to "Careers in Consult-
ing."
Td be set
But instead, everyone who decides
they don't like their chosen career
field hangs a shingle outside then-
door which says "writer." Then they
call me up and say, "Well, 1 want to get
into writing. I wrote for The Tuskegee
High School Titmouse, so I have some
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experience." And then I give them
advice. I say, well, to be a writer you
have to work for years in the outer
circles of hell as an unpaid intern.
Then you have to work as a paid in-
tern. Then you might get a job for
$15,000.
I try to discourage them Obvi-
ously.
You see, I openly hate it that every-
one thinks writing is so easy. I secretly
hate it that it really
is.
After eighth
grade I "audi-
tioned" for the
High Schoolfor the
Performing and
Visual Arts, where
I fretted and wor-
ried about being
accepted to the
Media (writing,
photography and
film) Department.
Later on, I found
out that the Media Department was
the department you applied to when
you didnt have any real talents, like
singing or acting. Everybody knew
this, which is why they didn't name
the high school "The High School for
the Performing, Visual and Media
Arts."
I've only been one place in my life
where the writers were given their
due. At summer arts camp, the writers
were more than hip. We were beat
(Yes, it was 1984). That's where I
learned to drink my coffee black and
wear turtlenecks in the stifling Okla-
homa heat
To be a journalist, you have to be a
dilettante. You don't even have to go
to journalism school. You dont even
have to read Strunk and White's. (I
personally have never read Strunk and
White's. Perhaps I should. Let me
know.) You just have to able to talk to
anyone about anything and ask ques-
tions about it. Then you have to "get
the story" which is J-code for "make it
interesting."
Linda Ellerbee makes five
jillion times the amount I will.
Headwaiters make more than
I will. Nobody reads. I bet
you're not even reading this
right now.
That's all easy, compared to the
other thing which (print) journalists
have to do. We have to realize that
nobody reads. Journalists are leaving
the newspaper industry in droves.
Only eight cities boast two daily pa-
pers (ours is one, and competition
hasn't helped us any). Linda Ellerbee
makes five jillion times the amount I
will Headwaiters make more than I
wilL Nobody reads. I bet you're not
even reading this right now.
Okay, so about finding a job. I went
to see Bob. He said, "Shaila, how are
you planning on going about your job
search?" I looked at him Wasnt he
supposed to be telling me how to go
about my job search? In case you
didn't realize this, Bob is a self-pro-
claimed expert on writing careers. "It's
not really scientific," was what he had
to say about how one should look for
a writing job. Thanks, Bob.
Did anyone read the Sallyport story
last summer, "Beyond the Sallyport"
It was all about how hard it was going
to be for us to get jobs. Of course, all
the cute (white) students interviewed
forthe story had had areally hard time
and had gotten lots of rejection letters.
But when they put in that last burst of
effort, they landed a salary. Happy
happy. Joy joy. This is what they send
home for our parents to read. That
way, when we dontget jobs (Hi, mom!
What's for dinner?), they can blame
us for not being diligent
I personally am working my butt
off I recently had to fill out a job
application which requested the name
and address of my elementary school
and my GPA while I was there. Even
remembering the name of my elemen-
tary school was arduous, if not trau-
matic Thank God my mom kept my
report cards. At least I had an "A"
average at one time in my life.
People who cant find jobs always
complain that they're willing and ea-
ger to work, butno one will hire them.
I'm not so sure I'm willing and eager.
After all, it's been three years since I
had to be somewhere at nine a.m.
Maybe I'm better off.
Shaila K. Dewan, a Baker senior, is
Arts and Entertainment Editor of the
Thresher.
Military
from page 3
The idea of being cruised by a
member of the same sex disturbs
many; however, sexual harassment is
an issue which the armed forces are
already beginning to tackle, and the
same guidelines for male-female ha-
rassment should apply to same-sex
cases.
Yes, this is a circumstance the mili-
tary will have to deal with, but it is not
insurmountable: contrary to myth,gay
and lesbian people are capable of ex-
ercising restraint and good judgment
The same codes of conduct can apply
to both hetero- and homosexual
servicepeople to insure that all are
treated fairly.
This argument also belies a great
amount of sexism in the Pentagon. It
took a scandal the size of Tailhook to
motivate the military to seriously re-
spond to sexual harassment against
women, yet the mere idea of men
being subject to unwelcome advances
has half the Joint Chiefs threatening
to resign. These grossly uneven re-
sponses seriously undermine the cred-
it) ility of their arguments.
Invariably, when interviewed, mili-
tary personnel question the ability and
competence of gay and lesbian sol-
diers. It is not however, because of
incompetence that the military dis-
charges them.
Colonel Margarethe Cammer-
meyer was discharged in June, 1992
for revealing her lesbianism after a 26-
year career in the Army National
Guard. A decorated Vietnam veteran
with a Ph.D. in nursing, Cammer-
meyer was cited by her commanding
officer for superior performance.
Indeed, it was during a security
clearance interview for the job of chief
nurse for the National Guard that she
felt it necessary to reveal her sexual
orientation. Clearly, the only consid-
eration barring her from service was
the Pentagon's arbitrary declaration
that "homosexuality is incompatible
with military service." Every other
aspect of her life was fully compatible
with the National Guard and excelled
at it
Even when confronted with the
fact that there are and always have
been homosexual people serving with
them, many of the soldiers and veter-
ans interviewed in recent months have
echoed the sentiment that "as long as
they hide it, it's all right"
Would they think the same thing
about someone's religious ideals or
their ethnic background? Would they
expect their friends and associates to
actively suppress any other facet of
their lives?
Honorable people who have dedi-
cated their lives to military service
should not have to live in fear and
secrecy. The ban on homosexuality
creates an atmosphere in which gay
and lesbian servicepeople must hide a
very real and large part of their lives
for fear of discovery. It has lead to
"witch hunts," ended careers, and fos-
tered the kind of gay-bashing which
lead to the killing of Seaman Allen
Schindler.
Stationed at Sasebo naval base in
Japan, Shindler's mutilated body was
found inapublicrestroomin October.
Although the matter is still under in-
vestigation, diary entries and prelimi-
nary inquires indicate that he was gay
and that the murder was probably a
hate crime perpetrated by a shipmate.
This kind of persecution mu st end,
and it is within the power of the Presi-
dent and of the military to do so.
If no other consideration is
pursuasive, perhaps the bottom line
will convince some. The General Ac-
counting Office has estimated that
pursuing and expelling gay and les-
bian people from the armed forces
costs about $27 million annually. This
may only be a drop in the bucket by
Pentagon budget standards, but,
coupled with the wasted training and
the squandering of talent this entails,
our military is throwing away far more.
In this day of deficit-busting fervor,
can we afford to maintain this need-
less expense?
• (Sources: Newsweek, The Advocate,
and Associated Press reports.)
John McCoy, a Brown junior, is Opin-
ion section Editor of the Thresher.
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Kim, Leezie & Carson, Chad. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 80, No. 17, Ed. 1 Friday, January 29, 1993, newspaper, January 29, 1993; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245830/m1/4/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.