Wake Up Call
by Kenny Bush 

Darwin believed that natural selection was based on a species ability to survive and reproduce. I have a simpler theory:
 Luck.
 A few weeks ago, I was standing at the intersection of Patterson and Georgia Avenue waiting for the pedestrian crossing signal to appear so I could safely complete my escape from campus. On the other side of Patterson was a fellow Blazer who, in a testament to his graduating class, attempted to cross Patterson despite the absence of the signal and heavy traffic. Trapped in the middle of the street by passing vehicles, the student then proceeded to walk down Patterson while trying to find a break in traffic for him to slip through. He even tried to stop a few cars, completely oblivious to the fact that a car suddenly hitting the brakes on Patterson would lead to a possible wreck that he would be right in front of. By the time the student made it across the street, the pedestrian crossing signal activated, allowing everyone else with some sense to cross Patterson safely.
 After 15 seconds of risking his life, he saved himself a five second walk across the street. Well done you hapless moron.
 This isn’t an isolated case of inattentiveness, Blazers. Every
day, we watch someone perform a simple task, like crossing the

street, and turning it into a chaotic mess. Take entering a building for example. There is a cultural understanding that you enter and exit through the door on the right so people can avoid running into one another. However, for whatever reason, students still try to squeeze through the oncoming traffic of the left door purely because the right door was a step further away. Students attempting to rush into elevators before allowing others to exit or blacking-out the football stadium when it’s over 90 degrees in Valdosta.
 Then there are some students that ride spastically on their bikes or in their cars because they’re too busy on their cell phones. Which, by the way, if you can barely manage to walk across a room without stumbling over yourself while on a cell phone, what makes you think you can drive a car or balance yourself on a bike? It’s like someone who can’t swim in a pool deciding to jump into the middle of a lake. There is no reason to believe the outcome will be any different with a change in scenery. This is especially the case for drivers who are running stop signs just to send an “lol” or three.
 There is no justification for this kind of thinking other than “Because I can,” a thought process formed by a generation spoiled by modern day conveniences. In a world where there is something to make every easy task easier and Google holding all the answers, people have switched on their autopilot when it comes to motor skills and common sense. If people just paid more attention to the world around them, we wouldn’t have students dodging traffic and nearly as many car wrecks as there are now. Remember, just because you can do something one way, doesn’t mean you should.
 For instance, I could carry water balloons filled with paint and use them to mark everyone that fails to meet the standard for common sense. However, I realize the school has expelled students for less.
 Thus, you remain dry all thanks to common sense.