Jooho Lee: Anger, misdirected and otherwise

I am not a crook.

I am a big fan of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and an avid supporter of community service.

Last week's column was a criticism of those who thought the NSCS and community service are jokes. Partly due to my failure to convey this clearly and partly due to the fact that most readers ignored the last paragraph or skimmed over it, the column was interpreted exactly the opposite way.

Unfortunately, I received only one e-mail criticizing my "negative" views on the NSCS and community service. Two people congratulated me on bashing the NSCS. So as far as I can tell, 66 percent of my readership actually liked the nasty angry guy taking shots at all that is good in this world.

This may reflect only the minority of the population that delights in criticizing anything and everything under the sun, but we hear a lot more from them than from those who back up their criticism with action.

These two groups illustrate the difference between misguided discontent and righteous anger. The latter is a response to an injustice or to a failure to address the many flaws and needs of the world around us. The former is picking up your toys and going home.

For example, Vice President Cheney paid a private visit to our campus on Friday. Huntsman Hall was closed to all students from Thursday night until Friday morning. Many of us were upset, as we should be. But why were you upset?

Those with righteous anger felt that the Cheney-Bush administration has been more secretive than any since the Reagan years, and that this was an illustration of its repeated refusal to allow the public access to government -- a serious threat to democracy.

Those with misguided discontent complained about Dick Cheney, the rich white guy who refused to face their criticism. They felt snubbed that he didn't want to see them and immediately suspected he was up to no good. Some of them made fun of the condition of his heart.

One of these groups is constructive for our democracy. The other is destructive and crippling. The difference between the two is that one has a purpose while the other is mindless.

Misguided discontent stems from contempt resulting from a false confidence in one's own intelligence. "Yeah, that's right. We're jaded because we think we're smarter than the rest of the world."

Unfortunately, these attitudes lead to a lack of trust within the community. We are so quick to point fingers at the University administration. But maybe some of them are honestly trying to do what is best for the students. Criticism without purpose only leads to a increasing lack of trust between the administration and students.

This gets us nowhere because lack of trust is devastating to any community. It tears the social fabric apart and replaces cooperation with hostility. It hits close to home with the erosion of civil liberties in America after Sept. 11, as our trust in our fellow citizens deteriorated.

Most importantly, lack of trust prevents meaningful action; it ends at the satisfaction of criticism and gestures of contempt. We must reverse this trend of misguided discontent that is so prevalent in our student body. Progress will only come when we work together to improve this place rather than point fingers and walk away from here with nothing to show for it.

This, of course, does not mean that we should not criticize. Criticism based on righteous anger is the catalyst for increased awareness of the problem -- the first step toward progress.

So upon observing my peers' attitudes toward the NSCS and community service two weeks ago, how could I not criticize with righteous anger those who criticize with misguided discontent last week?

How could you not do so when you thought you saw a columnist ramble on with misguided discontent?

The road toward progress is shaped by cooperation, but it is paved with criticism. Just make sure that you do it with righteous anger and not misguided discontent. Remember, my e-mail address is just below.

Jooho Lee is a junior History and Political Science major from Los Angeles, Calif.

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