Dear Editor (and Mr. Fox),
I am writing in response to the article “Cup of Destruction” in the September 22, 2014 issue. I found this article to be extremely insulting and degrading and I was surprised that it was even allowed to be published. The very first sentence, “Every moment in the life of the average-income, American, teen through mid-twenties white girl can easily be divided into two categories. They spend half their time texting and the other half either waiting in line for or consuming some over-priced, fat-filled, calorie-hogging monstrosity from Starbucks, and it is for this reason that they are the single biggest contributor to the degradation of the human race” is sexist and mean spirited. I am a woman in my 20’s and I volunteer, I study hard for all of my pre-medicine classes, and certainly do not spend half my time in line at Starbuck’s or texting. The majority of us women at Ferris have worked very hard to get where we are today and we plan on contributing to future society in our fields of study- quite the opposite of the “degradation of the human race.” I realize this is an opinion piece, but these comments should not be allowed to be printed in a newspaper. They should be kept in Mr. Rettinhouse’s personal blog. One of the Torch’s commenting policies is “to not submit inappropriate comments. Inappropriate comments include but are not limited to content that degrades others on the basis of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity or religion.” I suggest that the Torch follow its own commenting policy and, in the future, keep these types of articles and opinions out of the newspaper. Not only that, but I would like to point out from the August 22, 2014 issue of the Torch that Mr. Watt wrote, “We wish to be visible, approachable, and trustworthy. Fluff pieces and lazy reporting are not an option.” “Cup of Destruction” certainly does not fit these wishes. After reading this obscenely offensive article towards half of the Torch’s readers, my respect for the Torch (to use Mr. Rettinhouse’s words) went “down to, at best, a 3 out of 10.” Sexism does still exist today in 2014 and that will never change if opinions and articles like these are allowed, encouraged, and approved for printing. I ask that the Torch reconsiders the types of articles (opinions or not) that are approved for print and, if these changes are not implemented, in the words of Mr. Rettinhouse, “then congratulations. In 20 years you can sit down and tell your children about how you were part of the problem.”
Sincerely
Sarah Newlin
“I literally can’t even”
This article is so disrespectful. Being called “the biggest contributor to the degradation of the human race” because I drink frappuccinos is so shallow. I get coffee because I am a full-time student that works hard to make a living for myself, not because I am a white girl and “I literally can’t even.”
This is a disgrace of an opinion article. Write about topics that really matter in the world, not about what I drink and how it makes me a disgrace.
Former Torch Employee:
As a former Ferris student and Torch employee, I am appalled and ashamed that a column displaying obvious sexist and discriminatory remarks would be allowed in the student newspaper.
Clearly, there was no critical thinking or research conducted for this column. This is a very poor way to represent the Torch and the writer should learn to take more time to think critically and do some research before writing another opinion piece.
This was not a well-thought out column, this was a sexist, childish and narrow minded rant. Why would Ben care about who gets coffee from Starbucks, Biggby or wherever? Why single out white women in their 20s?
As a former Torchie, I’m very disappointed that this piece was even allowed to be published. If this were to come through when I was there, it would have been sent back immediately and not allowed to be published. My reasoning for that is it was not written well, it’s close minded and it’s lazy.
I highly recommend Mr. Rettinhouse do some more research about the benefits of drinking coffee in moderation and gaining some knowledge on this subject. I also recommended that he should not be discriminatory and single out a specific group of people in his future columns.
If the Torch ever wants to be a strong and well-respected newspaper, then editors and writers need to look at content much more closely before it is published, do actual research before writing columns and think critically. Oh, and keeping sexist thoughts and remarks to oneself is a good idea, too.