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Where
one empire ends, the next
begins — Wachovsky's farewell
Well
people, I never thought this day would
actually come, but alas, it has. You
are looking at the final Gerry Wachovsky
column in the Daily Forty-Niner, and
I can almost hear the sighs of relief
on one hand, and the exclamations of "Say
it ain't so!" on the other. After
two-and-a-half years of writing this
column, my empire, as I like to call
it, is coming to a close.
I
remember my first column for this newspaper
back in January of 2003, "Pacifists,
and why I hate them." This article
was met with the response that I had
hoped to achieve: letter after letter
from liberals, angry that someone had
finally called them out on their nonsense.
This article set the stage for what was
to come.
Each
week, I would write another opinion piece,
and most of the time my eloquent essays
were met with a steady stream of letters
to the editor, which continually proved
and reassured me that I was accomplishing
my goal — presenting a different,
provocative and usually controversial
viewpoint on issues ranging from politics
to pop culture.
From
the critics to the sycophants, one thing
was sure: each week people would pick
up the Daily Forty-Niner on Tuesday to
see my column. So many critics have told
me either personally, through e-mail
or in their letters to the editor, that
they would never waste time on me, that
they wouldn't bother responding to what
they considered to be the ravings of
a "neocon." Each week, however,
I had the last laugh, when these people
who claimed that they would never give
me the satisfaction of responding would
consistently write in, professing their
disgust for one of the only vocal conservative
writers on this campus. I truly love
the fact that people got so angry over
what I had to say that they would sit
down, put pen to paper (or, in most cases,
fingers to keyboard), and compose a letter
commenting on my articles. Can you smell
it? That's the smell of sweet victory.
Soon
there came to be a collection of the
usual suspects who disagreed with me,
the most notable among them being the
Campus Progressives and the Muslim Student
Association. Don't get me wrong, though.
I don't hate those groups, not by a long
shot. The truth of the matter is that
I am truly saddened by the way these
two particular groups (among others on
campus) do business. Their ill-thought
opinions and circular arguments are a
passing phase, a phase that many college
students go through in the search for
their inner-person, if you will. In time,
they will see the error of their ways
and they will realize, "You know
what, maybe that Gerry Wachovsky guy
was right!" Well, I was right all
along, and I will accept your future
apology now, because I'm that kind of
guy.
Looking
back, there is an innumerable amount
of people who have made a difference
in my life, and their advice and support
has not only been useful in the field
of journalism, but also to my personal
existence.
Professor
William A. Mulligan deserves special
recognition here, as he was the one who
pretty much got me interested in journalism
in the first place and encouraged me
to write for this great newspaper.
Also
instrumental in my rise to Cal State
Long Beach fame have been the various
staff members and editors of the Daily
Forty-Niner for the past two-and-a-half
years. Their names, if all were listed,
would take up the rest of this page,
but they know who they are.
I
also must acknowledge the general populace
of this campus, from the professors who
read my columns week after week to each
and every student here who picked up
a newspaper and read my writings. Kudos
to those who complimented or challenged
me in person as well; the feedback was
never unnoticed, trust me.
So,
what's next for me? Well, mark my words:
you definitely haven't seen or heard
the last of Gerry Wachovsky. One day,
be it through the beauty of the printed
word or through the auditory pleasures
of talk radio, I will return. To the
future opinion page writers of the Daily
Forty-Niner I offer this suggestion:
don't leave any stone unturned or any
topic untouched; write about what you
feel and don't let anyone else cloud
your point of view; and above all, don't
be afraid to challenge authority, even
teachers, and call them out when necessary.
I didn't win the "Best Columnist" award
at Journalism Day here at CSULB for the
past two years by being timid, remember
that.
In
the meantime, I advise everyone to relish
these rapidly approaching tranquil times
where your views will go unchallenged
and unchecked, and fear the day that
I will return to spark controversy upon
the world once more. This, my friends
(and enemies), concludes our broadcast
day.
Gerry
Wachovsky is a senior broadcast journalism
major at CSULB and the diversions editor
of the Daily Forty-Niner.
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