features

gino paolo diño

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lbug_compilation.rtf
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outline:
I. underground as they may be, we sought them out, we researched about
them, and brought them to you as close as we got to the real deal.
II. we thought it was impossible…
- org finals
- abortion
- valium addiction
- tuition kickback-ers
- orgies
III. but then we brought the impossible to your student paper.
suggested titles:
 more than just underground
 lb underground: no nonsense served
 no nonsense
sometimes you see better underground

what do you do with your issue of the perspective when you’ve finished
reading it? perhaps you share it with others who didn’t get copies or you just leave
it around, maybe you just throw it away. why should you keep it anyway?
there are several reasons for keeping your own copy of the student
publication. you can keep track of the progress of certain events, or a history of
news that have been relevant in the campus. you could look back on the profiles of
certain people, places, or events featured once upon a time. or you could just
collect them, consider them as memorabilia, souvenirs. and then there’s the lb
underground column.

last academic school year’s perspective presented five articles from the lb
underground column. some of which discussed topics of extremely controversial
matters—from uplb’s student organization’s recruitment processes to addiction to
unprescribed drugs to overnight orgies—that’s sufficient reason to secure and
preserve your own copy and read them over once in a while, just for the heck of it.

the fifth issue of the perspective featured an underground column that

concerned some student organizations in the university—in more ways than one.
the article looked into, as the subtitle says, “how some uplb organizations treat their
future members.” featuring some extreme initiation and final acts neophytes have
had to undergo, it stirred up some heat because some were alarmed that new
freshmen, after reading the article, would be too frightened to join organizations in
the campus. but then again, it would not be worth the effort if it didn’t stir
something up, not even the interest of readers. and the effort for the article was
rewarded, so to speak.
in the next serving of the column in the sixth issue, it delved into matters of
life and death, literally. “death before birth” was an article about abortion, those
who have had an abortion, those who practice it, and even methods of how it is
done. this grave topic has been a target of the column ever since its conception, but
only then did opportunity, hard work, and a relative amount of unease (on the
writer’s part) convene to give you a chance to view the details of such a shadowy
subject. and all the sweat, blood, and tears were worth it.
valium addiction was the topic of the lb underground in the seventh issue of
the publication. usually prescribed “for patients with anxiety disorders,” this
“elating” drug relieves stress and relaxes the body and mind alike. illegal users of
the drug, how and why they got hooked, and the consequences of their behavior
were highlighted in the article. who would not want just even a piece of escape from
their personal hell?
the first release in the second semester featured an underground article
divulging techniques for getting much more from your parents than your form 5
says so. from simple lying to forging the forms, “kickbackers: ang mga maestro ng
form 5” showcased how some students get a few bucks more from their parents,
and how some get a few thousand. you might not want your parents to read the
article—guilty or not.
the next and last lb underground of the volume had the readers wait until the
eleventh issue, but then gave them something to remember. the article focused on
the usual topic of many jokes exchanged almost everywhere—orgies. that issue of
the perspective sure turned heads, before we knew it there was none left to store in
our archives. topics around sex and sexuality really get noticed, one could say. the
piece was not only a peek into stories of group sex, but a deeper approach to it.

more than a human-interest feature article, the lb underground column

catapults its reader through that sometimes blurred border that distinguishes
everyday normalcy from not so common activity. and then it takes him beyond
discrimination and clouded judgment and into better understanding, into a clearer
assessment of the matter and a new perspective on the issue. so you know that
something furtive and out of the ordinary occurs around you, but you are virtually
ignorant of what that something is. you at least have to know when ignorance is not
bliss.

so the next time you grab a copy of the student publication, here’s another
reason for keeping it: as soon as you get bored some time, turn to the lb
underground column and have a good read again.