Forgiveness can be easy and it can be hard. We tend to be more likely to forgive a close friend than we are a stranger. Thinking from a new perspective, I realized that that is just foolish. We shouldn’t be slow to forgive anyone. Sure there’s still a need for justice, but whose to say someone can’t be forgiven and still brought to justice. If Christmas is supposed to be a remembrance of Christ dying for the forgiveness of our sins, why can’t we be just as gracious?

One reason a person may find it hard to forgive someone may be that person’s lack of sorrow. It’s very hard to forgive someone if they don’t even think they did something wrong. Though I say we should, no matter how hard it is.

As Christ was hanging from the cross he said to the thieves hanging next to him, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:34)

He said this as they were both rebuking him, accusing him of being impotent for not saving himself. They didn’t know that by this act, He was accepting the price of all of mankind’s sin, so they might be forgiven.

Stephen, a disciple of the early church, displayed a heart of forgiveness to a similar degree. Stephen stood up for his beliefs, making a claim against the Sanhedrin (a sect of religious leaders). Stephen proclaimed the miracles of Christ, and for it he was stoned to death.

But as he was dying, he knew the people committing the act were lost in their sin. When Stephen was an inch away from losing his life, all he could think or say was, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” (Acts 7:60)

Around Christmas time we seem to get lost in the commercialism. We lose focus of why Christmas is celebrated. Paul Boese said that, “forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” If we hold any grudges during this time of love and togetherness, we will only be watering down what could be something so much more.

There is no shortage of people in my life who I need to forgive, some of them over and over again. Sometimes it is hard, sometimes it is easy. Other times it is just frustrating, because I don’t know how to change their attitudes, though it is not within our ability to change someone. We can influence someone to change, but the actual changing comes from within. By being loving and forgiving though, that will be a good influence, and it’s more then just forgiving someone in my heart. I should be confronting these people, letting them know that despite their trespasses, I love them.

I’m sure all of us have someone who needs to be forgiven this Christmas. Maybe it’s a parent or a sibling. Maybe it’s an old friend who has fallen away, or a significant other who messed up. It may be something as simple as forgiving a little unintentional neglect, or as big as forgiving a lack of intimacy with a parent because of alcoholism.

I’ve had a hard time forgiving my parents for the childhood they put me through. But I’ve come to realize that if they could have done it differently, they would have. They didn’t mean for me to see any of the things they did. Their imperfections got the best of them. It happens to all of us. Once I recognized that I was no better of a person then they were, it changed my perspective. That’s not to say that there isn’t work to be done to repair my relationships. I hope someday, that the sins of the past can be forgotten completely.

Life is hard, full of mistakes waiting to be made. We can’t expect anyone to be perfect in an imperfect world. When so many of us have done so many things that we would want to be forgiven from, why is it then, that it is so hard to forgive others?

George Herbert said, “He who cannot forgive breaks the bridge over which he himself must pass.”

If we don’t cross that bridge, relationships will be lost. Hearts will be hardened. Lives will be incomplete, burdened with that feeling of guilt. Make this Christmas the best Christmas ever, show your love to everyone around you!

Winter is now officially here. My doorknob at the Torch tells me every day with an 'electric' notification. The dryness has begun to set in as all the moisture normally in the air has become locked up in the snow and rain. Static shocks are common this time of year (and a fun way to sneak up on people).

Saturday at 3 a.m., I woke up with what I thought was a runny nose. I was about to rub it when a volcano of blood spewed out all over the bedspread and myself. I had a severe case of the 'nosebleeds.'

My girlfriend was kind enough to go get some paper towels (and not get angry about the blood stains). I was back to full health in a short 15 minutes.

Like stated before, the winter months are known for being the 'dry season.' I discussed with Shirley Howie, my grandmother (and one of the best sources of information I know of) how to prevent and deal with a nosebleed.

'You should run a humidifier, or leave water on the stove on very low heat - and remember to shut it off if you leave the house" she said. Howie went on to say how she puts Vix VapoRub in her nose at night, although some people put it under the nose.

She also mentioned that she likes to leave the window open at night - even when its 20 degrees below zero. The cool night air is good for the body. Her old house was right on Lake Superior so I imagine she picked up moisture off the lake.

Medi-smart.com has interesting things to point out about nosebleeds (or 'epistaxis') such as the fact that pressing on the bony part of the nose does not help stop the bleeding, but placing cotton inside the upper lip will. Also, picking the nose can rupture the ends of the small blood vessels in the nose (I hope I wasn't dreaming about picking my nose).

Answers.com says that higher blood pressure might not be a reason for frequent bleeds, but it will make them harder to stop. If the body has problems with low platelets or you are taking an anticoagulant, it could also cause issues with bleeding that won't stop.

If you have a bleed that doesn't stop within 15 minutes, or if you are feeling faint, then its time seek immediate medical attention.

If you already knew all of this, good for you. If you didn't I hope I could enlighten you - and bleach will remove the bloodstains.

Every semester is a new experience, one of both monotony and variation in different forms. While the routine gets old after awhile, there is hardly ever two weeks where everything was the same.

Now that we’re in our last week of school, and this is the last issue of the Torch for the semester, I would like to take this time to look at all the things I learned, and thank you all for reading my opinions.

If there’s one thing that adds to the monotony of my life, it’s the fact that every semester I come to the conclusion that I should stop procrastinating. I seem to do fine for the first three weeks of school, then I just fall into a slump of constant catching up and back sliding. Its ridiculous, and I hope next semester will be better.

I learned that living with two guys is perhaps the easiest thing in the world. Sure, there’s going to be differences, like when you win a cat at a white elephant gift exchange and your roommate hates cats. But other then that, my room-mates and I get a long just fine. Yeah, we let the apartment lay to waste sometimes, but eventually it gets cleaned. If we ever have any problems with each other, we’re not afraid to confront one another. Best of all though, if any of us are in need of help, we know that we can call each other and receive the help we need.

There’s been more then one time when my roommates, Ben and Thaddaeus, sacrificed their time to help me get into the apartment after I lost my keys. And Ben didn’t hesitate to offer help when I was feeling a little financially burdened. My room-mates are an answered prayer that I will always cherish.

By the third year of school, classes tend to get boring. In most of my classes, I kind of reached a point where I’m learning little in the ways of new material, but more so just practicing things I already know over and over again. Not that there’s any harm in that, I would just love to be doing it in a more practical arena, like this newspaper. I learned that it’s important to not see college as just a time to go to class. Extracurricular learning makes up nearly 60 percent of my time at this university, and I would have it no other way.

Through working at the Torch, I definitely have learned that it’s the best job on campus. My coworkers are wonderful people, who keep things in the office entertaining. We all get along, helping each other get a quality paper out every week.

Having a job like this while still in school is so valuable, because I may be in a similar setting once I leave here. I am thankful for all the things I have learned through working at the Torch including teamwork, assertion, creativity, working under deadlines, forcing myself to write, and knowing that inspiration comes when it is most needed. I’ve learned to be unbiased with a fairly conservative mind set. Most importantly, I’ve learned that while my thoughts and feelings are always authentic, publishing them in a newspaper is always the greatest idea.

The greatest learning experience I’ve had outside of the classroom as come from my family at His House Christian Fellowship. I’ve learned how to be a mentor to the underclassmen, and a leader in the ministry. I’ve learned how important it is to constantly be in spiritual training. I’m slowly learning to love reading my bible, feeling lost when I don’t. I constantly learn about the wonder and necessity of prayer. I learned how compassion and love wins over spite and judgment. I would trade no amount of A’s in my classes for the experiences I have received by being a part of this fellowship.

Sexism in politics has been the focus of much discussion lately because of Hillary Clinton, the first woman who appears to have a shot at the presidency, along with what is perceived to be male-focus in political media.

Sexism in politics exists, but many people concerned about it place blame on existing media structures, where it doesn’t belong. Actual sexism in politics appears to be elusive and organic.

Pam Pohly accused Youtube and CNN of bias in a July 29 article on everydaycitizen. com. She complained that, for a presidential debate hosted by CNN and Youtube, people submitted questions for politicians on the internet, “Only 9.5 out of 39 questions picked to be televised in the debate were questions from females.”

She insisted that this was a problem because, “Women make up 51 percent of the population and 55 percent of all registered voters,” a statement that is as true as it is irrelevant.

A lot on Youtube revealed that nearly one sixth of the questions submitted were from men. The fact that only a quarter of the questions used were from women means, if anything, that there was a bias against men. (Though I doubt it means that.)

Also, “women’s issues” may not have been ignored. I didn’t catch the particular debate she was referring to, so I don’t know which questions were asked, but it is possible that “women’s issues” were not ignored. Just because men were asking the questions didn’t mean that they didn’t pertain to women. (In fact, all “women’s issues” affect men.)

Also, I can’t say for sure that issues that are considered “women‘s issues,” really matter in debates, because it’s possible that most candidates agree with the other candidates in their parties about them. Candidates can’t really debate issues on which they all agree.

According to a study published in the July, 2006 journal of Evolution and Human Behavior, men unconsciously lower their voices when addressing other men that they believe themselves to be dominant over, and they view men with lower voices as being more physically dominant.

Most people prefer a president who is a strong leader, so it is difficult for females, who tend to have higher voices, to compete in such an arena. Hillary Clinton, along with most women in politics and televised news tend to have lower-pitched voices than average. But their voices can’t compete with the even-lower voices of men.

Sexism in politics appears to be organic. A February Gallup/ USA Today poll found that 11 percent of people said that they wouldn’t vote for a woman president. (Though these polls don’t necessarily mean anything, the same poll found that 40 percent of self-identified conservatives said they wouldn’t vote for someone who had been married three times. At the time, Rudy Giuliani, who has been married three times, was polling around 50 percent among the same demographic. It seems unlikely that there was no overlap.)

Women who are interested in politics shouldn’t allow sexism to prevent them from getting involved. Women who choose to get involved get more attention than men. According to a study published on pewresearch. org, female candidates, especially Democrats, are likely to win against males.

A male blogger used to pose as a woman on his blog at libertariangirl.typepad.com. He used a picture that he had taken from a mail-order bride site. Later, he wrote, “One thing I learned from this blog is how easy attractive woman have it. When I had a blog as my real self, no one linked to me, no one left any comments; it was as if the blog existed in a vacuum. But things were different for Libertarian Girl. Every day I’d check Technorati and discover new unsolicited links.”

A related problem that women face is the fact that men are often more interested in what they look like than what they have to say, even when they do give them political advantages. But it’s only when we recognize these real problems that we can work toward solutions.

When we throw blame around for the sexism that exists in politics, we are making the problem worse, and we are distancing ourselves from the true causes of the problems. Instead of accusing those who host political discussion of sexism against women, we should consider the questions asked by Blogger Matt Stoller, “Why is it that in a gender neutral architecture, men still predominate? And what can be done about this?”

And what can be done about an even larger problem? When I have to choose between a man and a woman to determine who gets to use violent threats to coerce me in to paying for murder through my taxes, gender seems unimportant.

“America’s Mayor” Rudy Giuliani scares me. I think he is the worst thing that could possibly happen to his country. And it was worrying me when he ran for president.

After 9/11, with our country in shambles, we turned to Giuliani for support. And everybody loved him. I had heard about his previous indiscretions but I didn’t care. He was there for us in a time of need.

And when I heard he was running for President, I was happy. My initial perceptions of him were that he was a guy who the American people could rally around. Aside from that, his somewhat liberal views on abortion and gay marriage were endearing as well. Perhaps he could be the compassionate conservative that Bush promised to be.

But as I learned more, I found out that his supposed 9/11 heroism was little more than him capitalizing on a tragedy to promote himself. As I grew older, I was able to read about his tenure as New York mayor. I heard of massive police corruption and realized that Giuliani was a guy who could not handle power. I became scared that this guy could become president and be the end of us all.

Most people aren’t as interested as I am in politics. And if I hadn’t read up on Giuliani, I’d never have realized that everything I thought I knew about him was a lie. I told all my friends everything I could about Giuliani. But other than that, all I could do was hope for something that would bring an end to the madness of a possible Giuliani presidency.

At these Republican debates, front-running candidates Mitt Romney and Giuliani get into long arguments over who is more fiscally responsible. They point out each others flawed records while making excuses for their own flawed records.

At the most recent debate this past week on CNN, Giuliani was asked about a new scandal.

“City cops chauffeured Rudy Giuliani’s then-mistress, Judith Nathan, to her parents’ Pennsylvania home 130 miles away on the taxpayers’ dime,” a New York Daily News article said.

Also according to the New York Daily News, “The records show that - in addition to using City Hall funds to take Giuliani and Nathan to 11 secret trysts in the Hamptons, as has been previously reported - taxpayers were paying to ferry Nathan on long-distance trips without Giuliani, now a Republican contender for President.”

According to WCBS-TV, “Nathan’s detail was approved by the NYPD after a stranger made an unspecified threat to her.” The commissioner at the time was Bernard Kerik, who was recently indicted on tax fraud charges in an unrelated matter.

At the debate, he said that all funds spent were legitimate. According to The Politico, “Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and his senior aides, Thursday, blamed anonymous bookkeepers for his administration’s practice of billing the travel expenses for his personal security detail to obscure city agencies.”

But as more instances of misappropriated funds come to light, it’s obvious that anything from the Rudy camp is just more spin.

I suspect that this will bury Giuliani. Republicans typically do not care about police abuses, but they sure do care about wasted money. And this shows that Giuliani is corrupt in every sense of the word.

I hope that as Giuliani supporters defect: they go to a candidate with actual moral integrity, a man who has a proven track record in handling the war on terror, a man who predicted the horror that the War in Iraq would bring. A man named Ron Paul.

Turning on the television set in early November, I had already noticed more toy commercials than on a regular day. Walking into Westview dinning services before the Thanksgiving holiday break, I noticed a lot of Christmas decorations.

Christmas is the Christian celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, who is considered the Son of God, and the savior of those who believe in Him.

With the birth of Christ, Christianity essentially begins; thus, Christmas also celebrates the beginning of Christianity (wisegeek.com).

Since about 400 AD, Christians have celebrated the birth of Jesus. Christ means “Messiah” or “Anointed One” the title given to Jesus.

In the West today, the real meaning of Christmas is often forgotten. It has become a non-religious holiday!

More children believe in Santa Claus than in Jesus Christ. This is clearly because of the lack of education for the children due to the school systems and the parents. If the American Civil Liberties Union wants to keep Christmas references away from public schools, why aren’t the parents teaching the children?

There is not a lack of Christmas displays here at Ferris State University.

I’ll be spending Christmas morning with my family at home and in church, not in front of the county court house - at least I hope not. And yes, I love sleeping in, but no sleep in my nice, warm, comfortable bed could ever take away the day that commemorates the Birth of Jesus.

Conservatives are interested in preserving Christmas, but in commercial form. They also insist on non-Christians’ objections to having the holiday forced on them (dailytargum. com). Yet, people will celebrate Dec. 25 - both Christian or not - in their own way, as they always have.

Many young children believe they are going to be rewarded because of being a nice child year round.

Christmas Day is a time for eating and drinking too much and watching television. Though Christmas is normally celebrated on the 25th of December, strong evidence suggests that Jesus may have in fact been born in the spring.

The real Christmas story is found in the Bible. It is told in two different sections of the bible which are the book of Matthew and the book of Luke. Instead of watching the Christmas specials which say that Christmas is the time of giving, let’s do our research and learn the true meaning of Christmas.

Dear Torch Editor,

Recently there has been a renewed focus for society to become more politically correct. The powers that be are now trying to push all aspects of religion out of Christmas. Workers at department stores are instructed to say “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas”. The rationale behind this is that customers who do not celebrate Christmas would be offended. This must stop! Christmas is about Christ. A person should not be chastised for saying “Merry Christmas”. I do not celebrate Hanukah or Kwanzaa, but I respect it and everyone else’s right to celebrate it. I do not get offended if someone tells me “Happy Hanukah”. I take it as a gesture of good nature, thank them and move on. There is no getting around the fact that Christmas is essentially a Christian holiday.

As a devout Christian, I see images, language, and advertising that completely go against my beliefs and offend my religious views every day. However, I respect others beliefs and the Freedom of Speech guaranteed in the Constitution.

If we are truly about diversity in our lives and in our society, then where is the Christian tolerance; where is the idea of others being accepting of what I believe? As a society, we cannot simply change a holiday because some do not believe in the reasons the holiday was originally celebrated. Whether you like it or not, Christ is part of Christmas, just like George Washington and Abraham Lincoln are part of President’s day. Some people do not like these historical figures, but should we take them out of Presidents day? I think NOT.

Christ is an integral part of Christmas. If you don’t like that, then don’t celebrate it. Let us observe our holiday the way it was intended; a day to remember the birth of Jesus and remember the sacrifices that He made for us.

Jeremy LaBeau

Mr. Editor,

This week on our campus, the College Republicans took it upon themselves to inform us there is a war against Christmas.

There are a lot of battles currently being fought by the United States and I can’t help but to worry that the majority are being fought based on bad intelligence. “Don’t take the Christ out of CHRISTmas” is no exception.

I urge the members of College Republicans to spend a few minutes online and look up the “true meaning” of Christmas. I think you’ll find it has a rich history, a triumph of diversity that spans the globe and predates much of Christ’s life.

This takes away nothing from the message of charity and giving to those less fortunate. On the contrary, the holiday season is a time where everyone can come together and unite to do good instead of being divisive and petty.

But the message that the College Republicans are advocating would have us believe every person who doesn’t use Christmas as a time to worship is inferior and wrong. And that is an arrogant and simpleminded view, not worth of Ferris students or our community.

For the record, I am not offended of the greeting “Happy Holidays.” With all the holidays that fall during this time, it is wrong believe the only one that matters is Christmas.

To celebrate Christmas the way it was originally intended is impossible. It has become a mix of so many different cultures and religions, with Christianity contributing only a small amount, that topic one for the entire world to celebrate would lead to nothing but more conflict.

So here is what I propose – celebrate Christmas however you want to celebrate it, for whatever reason that will make you happy. And I’ll do the same.

Happy holidays,
Kelly Cothery

Recently, my good friend was involved in the most ridiculous trial of the century, maybe of the millennium. Here is the case. The names have been withheld to protect the innocent.

My friend was at a local establishment with some of our friends and bought a round of drinks for everyone. One of our friends was in the bathroom and, before he could come back for his beer, a minor came up and stole it. Security witnessed the incident and called the police. After explaining what had happened and even after the minor admitted he stole the beer and my friend didn’t buy it for him, my friend was cited for serving a minor and the minor was given a minor is possession.

“Well at first I couldn’t believe it happened; I was more in shock and didn’t know what to say,” he told me in an interview. “But once the officer gave me the citation it hit me.”

There was no way that he could just sit back and plead guilty to the absurd offense. According to jointogether. org, the penalties, if convicted, include up to $1,000 in fines, up to 60 days in jail and community service.

“Any convictions on your record don’t look good when having a background check performed prior to being hired somewhere,” he said. “I could have been sent to the office of student conduct and they could have determined whether or not I could continue my education here.”

So he made the easy decision to go to trial.

The trial was delayed three months but only took a morning to complete. My friend was acquitted of the ludicrous charge and has since resumed normal life.

“The stress of having all this on my back for over three months was probably one of the worst feelings I’ve ever had,” he said. “I was ecstatic and relieved! All that stress went away.”

My question is, “What exactly did the prosecuting attorney think he/she had to go on?” I know that buying alcohol for minors is serious and I don’t approve. But the facts in the case showed that my friend did not do this. His property was taken from him by someone who almost ruined his life. And then admitted to doing it!

I can appreciate the fact that the local police are trying to put a lid on underage drinking, but there are plenty of more serious offenses that the police should be cracking down on like drugs, drunk driving and robbery. My friend’s case is the kind of case that bogs down the legal system and robs upstanding citizens of their pride, freedom and hard earned dollar.

Even though he won’t be facing any fines, jail time or community service, my friend does stand to receive a hefty lawyer’s bill in the near future.

“I had to pay a $900 retainer fee and it’s probably going to cost me anywhere from $2,000 to $3,000 for the rest of my fees,” he told me. “But it’s a lot better than losing my college education that I’ve worked so hard for and my potential career ahead of me.”

I’m glad my friend was found innocent. But maybe this city should reevaluate what’s really important in some of its fluffy cases, such as the facts.