The People News, a free newspaper serving Cleveland Tennessee (TN) and Bradley County Tennessee (Tn).





Of Bradley County Tn.


FEBRUARY  2006

                            The People News, a free newspaper serving Cleveland and Bradley County Tn.

Jennifer's Corner

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by Jennifer Bowman

I was not yet four when I was taken to an eye doctor and diagnosed with astigmatism.  I was given grandmother-esque, thick, pink-rimmed glasses and told to wear them as much as possible.  A little over a year later, I put my glasses away and never thought of them again.  I was too stubborn to wear glasses and certainly much too cool.

But recently, I went to go see an optometrist again.  Sometimes things were blurry when I stared at a text book or computer, and I just wanted to go check and make sure that everything was okay.

Lo and behold, I was diagnosed with.astigmatism.  But now, thanks to years of up-close reading, internet surfing, and television watching . I have developed hyperopia, or farsightedness.  It's funny how these things play out.

My choice of glasses was drastically different than last time.  I got thin, rectangular frames with a medium black rim.  Something that borders the line of emo and nerdy.  But the important thing is that I can see much, much better.  I honestly hadn't even realized that my eyesight was so poor, or rather, that it could be so much better.

It's not like I had extremely awful vision in the first place.  Actually, according to the doctor, I can still manage a 20/20.  However, being given this new and better sight has already made certain activities all the more enjoyable.

If only there was some sort of glasses for what the Hindus refer to as the "third eye."  In eastern cultures, the "third eye" is the name given to the state of enlightenment when you are in thought.  It's the ability to see things that others can.

Sometimes I feel like I have intuitive or at least very analytical capabilities.  Then I learn that I am completely wrong or that my reason has been completely clouded with emotion to hinder my judgment.  As a nervous teenage girl, it is really hard to control all this emotion in order to gain true perception on the constant philosophical questions going through my mind.  Can anyone truly be unbiased by their own emotion?

Well, obviously not.  But I do believe that someone can ignore their emotions enough to truly judge a situation in a way that would be beneficial to themselves and others around them.

Which brings me to my point: Samuel Alito for U.S. Supreme Court.  By the time of publication, it is predicted that Alito will have either been sworn in or been taken by the dreadful Democratic invention, the filibuster. 

I realize that my opinion has absolutely no bearing on the thoughts of uptight senators or bitter Supreme Court Justices, but perhaps I can relieve some of you of your worries.

Newsweek produced an article about Judge Alito a few weeks ago.  The information they found about him was indeed fair and balanced.  Democrats want a moderate to replace O'Connor - but Alito is more moderate than liberals give him credit for.

And you don't need glasses to see that.
.

Jennifer Bowman

-Jennifer Bowman is a seventeen-year-old in Tallahassee, Florida.  Her dad is fellow columnist JC Bowman.

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