2 EditorialsOctober 2013 Bryan High School

By: Kiley HeywoodOpinions Editor

Oompa loompa look desired by some, detested by most

Opinions

Comparing her legs with another student, a tanner sees the contrast between her and her friend’s skin tone. In addition to tanning, she worked as a lifeguard during the summer.

Bad attitudes, foul language and barely-there clothes, are there any ladies left?

Addiction is a powerful word. When mentioned, many peo-ples’ minds become filled with images of drug, alcohol or tobacco abuse. They see men-tal images of strung out friends or family mem-bers. They see them struggle with the urge to get their next fix. An addiction not often thought about by many is tanning. Obsessive tanning is a problem that is grow-ing. There are those who tan on occasion to keep up a natural, sun-kissed glow, which is fine. But, some take it too far. There are health reasons why people shouldn’t tan religious-ly, but there are also appearance issues for

those who tan too fre-quently. “ When you start looking like a different race, it’s just too much,” junior Nick Janulewicz said. People need to keep in mind that when they tan excessively, it causes them to look un-natural. And the Oompa Loompa, orange glow or leather look is defi-nitely not a cool trend. Celebrities such as Nicole (Snooki) Polizzi from MTV’s Jersey Shore is among those who have taken it too far. Polizzi and other Jersey Shore cast members participate in a daily ritual of “GTL” (gym, tan, laundry). Their skin is orange and unhealthy. I’d hate to see what their skin looks like in 10 years. Many teens look up to these celebrities and mimick their be-havior and have signed up for tanning member-ships of their own. Looking at teens today, it is obvious that tanning addictions are on the rise. I’ve seen several cases where two people who were once

the same coloring, now, after one of them picked up tanning, look like different races. Some people take tanning even fur-ther than just daily. For example, Patricia Krentcil, a 44-year-old from New Jersey was arrested for taking her five-year-old daugh-ter into a tanning room with her. Krentcil tanned multiple times a day, indoors and out. She was even diagnosed with tanorexia by a doc-tor. Tanorexia is a term that describes a condi-tion where someone tans as often as possible because they believe they are very pale even when they are not. As a result of her addiction, Krentcil now resembles a leather purse. Her skin is too dark, dried out and wrinkly. Tanning may not seem like it is all that dangerous, but it’s important to remember that excessive tanning increases the risk for a delusional body image, compulsive behavior, cancer and strange looks if taken to the extreme.

How girls dress, speak, and behave in the 21st century is much dif-ferent than ever before. It’s our natural instinct to judge people on their looks and be-havior, whether we want to or not. We all have an opinion about everyone we meet. Ladies seem to be on the endangered species list.

We only get one chance at first impres-sions to give people an idea of what we’re like. The way we use our words is key when it comes to how others view us. It seems more girls nowadays are be-ing downright disre-spectful to classmates, parents and teachers. Throwing cuss words into every sen-tence and being rude is a sure way to get peo-ple to think you aren’t classy. Yelling at your “homie” across the room during the Pledge of Allegiance will prob-ably make your class want to avoid you for the semester. How girls dress is also a huge factor in

being a lady. Principal Rob-ert Aranda said he has to tell 2-5 girls daily to change into something appropriate for school. Girls should know what is and what isn’t okay to wear to school. They are old enough to know what’s appropriate or not. Cleavage is something we see way too often. Honestly, people don’t want that in their faces while they’re taking notes. Dressing pro-vocatively does get girls attention, but it is not the type of attention they should seek. It’s the type of attention that objectifies them. Some girls at our school are trashy

in more ways than just their wardrobe choices. Sharing private stories is something we hear a lot. This is how rumors start and rumors can lead to fighting. It’s wrong and unattractive to see two girls getting in a brawl over who made out with whose boyfriend at the party last weekend. Most situations can be solved by talk-ing it out. When girls use violence as a tactic, it actually shows that they’re weak for not be-ing brave enough to deal with a problem like an adult by talking it out. Many high school girls are still pretty immature. Gos-siping, fighting and un-necessary arguing is very common in groups

of girls. This shows lack of trust, maturity and accountability. The lack of la-dies isn’t just a problem in high schools. With the music and mov-ies in the media, it’s hard to tell who girls should look up to now-a-days. Many of the women in today’s lime light are outright tacky in their appearances and behavior. Take a look

at Miley Cyrus, Lind-say Lohan and Amanda Bynes. They all started out as innocent as can be and have ended up as tragic examples of what not to be like. So, it’s up to our generation to change this. We deserve re-spect. But if we want respect, we have to earn it. To earn it, we need to watch how we pres-ent ourselves as young women.

By: Kiley HeywoodOpinions Editor

Photo by: Kiley Heywood