CUA Orientation 2010 at a Glance

Doors Opening

Back to D.C. to orient the "1st year students" and move them into their "residence halls."

Finals, Resignations, and an Impending Hop Across the Pond

So truth be told I starting this blogging project as I knew I would be going overseas to study and participate in an internship in London. I will taking classes through the University of Leeds and working for MP Nigel Waterson (http://www.nigelwaterson.com) in the House of Commons. Waterson represents Eastbourne, Willingdon, and East Dean and also serves as Shadow Minister for Pensions and Older People. Right off the bat the term Shadow Minister is much cooler than Ranking Member, the typical designation for minority committee leads, and I think we in the former colonies should put some consideration into this. Also "Older People" instead of Senior Citizens is incredibly British and I like it nonetheless.

In preparation for this I have decided to step down from the positions I hold on campus because I would not be able to properly execute the duties of these offices from overseas. Resigning from College Republicans was bittersweet. Although I am incredibly excited to go abroad this is something I have put alot of time into and something that is near and dear to my heart. CR's was the first thing I got involved in upon arriving at CUA, and truth be told the first thing that made me realize I made the right choice of schools. I know they will continue to do a great job and I can't wait to get back and help them take back PA from Paul Kanjorski and Arlen Specter. We worked PA-11 two years ago for Mayor Lou Barletta of Hazelton, PA and came up just three points short. I'd like to graduate knowing we sent him to Congress.

Last night I stepped down as Student Life Chair for CUA's Student Government. I have held this post since the General Assembly was founded in the Spring of 2008. Although I wish I had more time this year to continue to work towards the betterment of the student experience I am pleased to know that they are in excellent hands and are all capable of doing great things. Tonight I will be stepping down from the General Assembly as a Delegate for the class of 2011. I have truly appreciated the confidence my class has placed in me and I promise to remain involved while away.

The backdrop for all this resignation drama is finals week at The Catholic University of America and me feverishly packing my stuff to fly home on the 19th (I should get on finding a flight about now).........Ok flight taken care of. I guess the reason I am blogging this out right now is that this is all happening very quickly. I am so excited to go to the United Kingdom but still I can't help but realize I am gonna miss this stuff that I have been doing for the last two and a half years. Some people may not get it but these campaign trips, late night meetings, running around frantically to set events up, dueling with the administrations, have been some of the highlights of my collegiate career.

Hypnosis: Fact or Fiction?

Tonight the Program Board from Catholic hosted a hypnotist for a program entitled "Hypnotic Intoxication." Aside from the irony within the title because Hypnotiq is in fact a variety of alcohol, the performance was incredible. People were completely under the sway of this hypnotists, they were convinced that the person next to them smelled, that they were certain teenage pop sensations, and one girl was extremely close to removing far more clothing than The Catholic University of America would appreciate.

Normally I am extremely skeptical about hypnosis and the programs colleges across the country bring every year. How is it possible. While I admit that I surely don't know everything about the dark recesses of the human mind but I am not inclined to believe that people can be so easily manipulated. I find it far more likely that the "randomly" chosen audience members are playing along, as is human nature.

The event tonight however has me questioning my position though. People who I know extremely well were doing ridiculous things onstage in front of a large audience. During one driving exercise the people looked as if they were about to be sick every time they hit a simulated bump in the road. Furthermore, people were throwing sweatshirts, Moulin Rouging on the audience members, and breaking out N'Sync style dance moves. More convincing however was there behavior when not the focus of the program. These individuals were truly dazed, and seemed to be wholly consumed with the presenter's voice.

Although this event has far from settled my opinion on this issue but it does deserve further inquiry.