o b l i v i o n 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 9 0 0 1 0 1 1 1 8 8 5 8 5 1 0 I s s u e 8 S u m m e r 1 9 9 9 * angry youth extraordinaire * ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Contents - - ---- -- - ------- - -- ---- - Oblivion Speaks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jestapher The news in brief . . . . . . . . . . . . Sillyrabbit The dangers of the school uniform movement . . Gary Peter Klahr School, distribution and the word "fuck" . . . . . Jestapher Female genital mutilation . . . . . . . . . Maria Gonzalez Behavior modification schools . . . . . . . . Alexia Parks Q & A with The Suicide Machines . . . . . . . . . . . Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The age discrimination of the legal system . . . John Willemin Zine reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Xaxu Oblivion attempts to fight the system from within . . . namgorf Youth suffrage and YouthSpeak . . . . . . . . . Avi Hein - -- ---- - Jestapher edited this. Although it goes unseen in the text-only version, Maria Gonzalez drew the marvelous cover art. J. Leavitt drew the comic "Nonchalant," which is also unseen herein. Jestapher drew the comic "The simplicity of curfew laws," which, again, is unseen. Nemomancer handled submissions. Jestapher layed it all out. Eggnog helped with some scanning. Proofreaders included namgorf, Maria Gonzalez, Sillyrabbit and Tyler. Emily is our new web geek. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Oblivion Speaks Jestapher - - ---- -- - ------- "You've gone corporate!" they shouted. So we beat them up. Oblivion is a corporation now -- nonprofit to be exact. In the near future, we should be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit. Then we'll get those phat nonprofit bulk mail rates! Oblivion is governed by a Board of Directors. The 1999 Board consists of Ben Livingston (me), President and Treasurer; Maria Gonzalez, Vice-President; Tyler Creviston, Secretary; Sven Berger; Jason Kende; Kristen Mason; Lawrence Rozanski, III; and Didrik Wold. Besides being full of angst, these eight people decide everything Oblivion. For more information on Board matters, visit oblivion.net/board/. Here's a brief overview of the tax exemption process: Me: We want nonprofit bulk mail rates. Post Office: Fill out this big long form. Form I: You need to be a 501(c)(3) first. Talk to the IRS. IRS: Fill out this horrendously long Form. In addition, you should read this even horrendously longer Publication first. Form II: You need an Employer Identification Number first. Fill out this comparatively tiny Form. Fill out Form III. Send it in. Wait. Receive Employer Identification Number. Form II: Now that you've spent six hours with me, you're finally ready to fill out this other Form. Form IV: Are you a rich nonprofit or a poor nonprofit? Me: Poor. Form IV: Okay. Your filing fee shall be $150. Me: Fuck. Form I and II: Heh heh heh. I love this game. As you can see, it's an excruciatingly fun process. This issue of Oblivion is bigger than any Oblivion to date. We've switched to legal-size paper. Last issue had 1,309 square inches of printing space. This issue has 1,666. We've added 357 square inches and we've got the mark of the beast! Can you believe it? Much has been happening in our little world. From server moves to button making to personal stuff like getting hit by cars or getting new significant others. That's why this issue is late. I just thought I'd throw in the obligatory "why this issue is late" statement. Wouldn't want to be different from any other zines. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- The news in brief Sillyrabbit - - ---- -- - ------- July 2, 1999 London, England The British government has banned the sale of cigarette lighter refills to anyone under the age of 18 in an attempt to reduce the number of deaths among teenagers who try to get high by inhaling butane. - -- ---- - June 30, 1999 Washington, D.C. On a 270-159 vote, the House approved legislation to prohibit taking a minor to another state for an abortion in order to circumvent parental consent or notification laws. A presidential veto, however, is expected. - -- ---- - June 28, 1999 Washington, D.C. As part of the Juvenile Justice Bill that passed this week, 25,000 public schools and libraries that are funded by federal subsidies will be required to install Internet filtering software to block "inappropriate" websites. - -- ---- - June 22, 1999 Aledo, Texas Columbia University's popular "Go Ask Alice!" has been removed from the library shelves at Aledo Middle School. Parental consent is required to check the book out from Aledo High School. The local school board voted 3-1 to restrict the book -- which answers common questions young people have about sexual health, drugs, and other topics -- after a parent complained about its content. - -- ---- - June 18, 1999 Washington, D.C. A federal appeals court upheld Washington D.C.'s youth curfew law, which had been declared unconstitutional by two lower courts. Youth are "less able to make mature decisions in the face of peer pressure and are more in need of parental supervision during curfew hours," wrote Judge Lawrence H. Silberman. - -- ---- - June 17, 1999 Washington, D.C. The House of Representatives moved to vote on a Juvenile Justice bill that included a plethora of amendments meant to curb youth violence. One of many of the amendments would prohibit the sale of violent material to any person under the age of 18. This would include prohibiting the sale of video games, videos, and music labeled as "violent" or that would appeal "to the prurient, shameful or morbid interest," including all merchandise with parental advisory warnings and all R-rated movies. - -- ---- - June 11, 1999 Arenac County, Michigan A 25-year-old was convicted of swearing in front of children by an Arenac County Court. He was originally charged with swearing in front of women and children, but District Judge Allen Yenior ruled the "women" part of the statute to be unconstitutional. - -- ---- - June 9, 1999 Your local movie theater Pushed by President Clinton -- and trying to prevent legislation that would mandate the same thing -- representatives of movie theater owners across the country announced that they would begin requiring teenagers to present photo identification when they showed up to see an R-rated film without an adult. - -- ---- - May 28, 1999 Silver Spring, Maryland Northern High School student Nick Becker walked out of his graduation in protest of school prayer. With the help of the ACLU, Nick and the school came to an agreement to observe 30 seconds of silence instead of the formal prayer they were accustomed to. Apparently, the school didn't fully uphold it's end of the bargain. - -- ---- - May 28, 1999 Ashland, Oregon District Attorney Mark Huddleston denied a parent's request to examine Ashland High School expulsion records, even if the student names are blacked out. Paul Copeland said he wanted to see the records so he could judge whether the district is handling expulsions fairly since it enacted a zero-tolerance policy on drugs. - -- ---- - May 28, 1999 Lansing, Michigan The Michigan Senate approved a bill that will require parental advisory labels on tickets and advertisements for all concerts by performers whose albums have parental advisory warnings. This bill is similar to many others being considered in state legislatures throughout the country that would place ratings or warnings on tickets. - -- ---- - May 20, 1999 Conyers, Georgia Six students were injured when a classmate with a handgun and a sawed-off rifle opened fire at school. It was the one month anniversary of the Littleton, Colorado massacre. - -- ---- - May 14, 1999 Boston, Massachusetts "Whoever sells exotic hair coloring, so-called, to any person under the age of eighteen shall be punished by a fine of not less than one hundred dollars for the first offense, not less than two hundred dollars for a second offense and not less than three hundred dollars for any third or subsequent offense." Those are the exact words of a bill before the Massachusetts State Legislature. No kidding. - -- ---- - May 10, 1999 Brimfield, Ohio With aid from the ACLU, eleven students who were expelled from school after a teacher found their comments on a gothic website which school officials didn't like were readmitted. - -- ---- - April 28, 1999 Washington, D.C. Instant drug detectors, hair-sample testing kits, and electronic scanners identifying students by handprint could be put in more of the nation's schools under a $10 million Senate proposal. - -- ---- - March 23, 1999 Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court limited the drug testing of students by refusing to allow a school district to test all students who violate its disciplinary rules. - -- ---- - March 21, 1999 Portland, Oregon Youth rights activist Tifnee Smith and over 50 protesters marched through downtown Portland to protest the City's teen curfew law. At midnight, the teens violated said curfew -- again, in protest. Police stood at a distance and let the First Amendment take precedence over the Portland ordinance. - -- ---- - March 8, 1999 Detroit, Michigan A 17-year-old high school senior sued her school in suburban Detroit over a policy barring Wiccans from meeting on campus and banning the wearing of pentagrams. The policy at Lincoln Park High School was intended to suppress gangs and cults. - -- ---- - March 3, 1999 Richmond, Virginia The Richmond City Council voted to forbid "pornographic" concerts at which minors might be present. The legislation would prevent minors from attending "pornographic" concerts if the City knows about such concerts in advance. It would also penalize performers if something happened spontaneously. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- The dangers of the school uniform movement Gary Peter Klahr - - ---- -- - ------- Almost by stealth, the movement to put school kids in uniform is sweeping the country as we roll though 1999, the 4th year since President Clinton proposed uniforms in his 1996 State of the Union address. The most ominous recent developments are the trend to include *high schools* in uniform programs and to make them mandatory, even over objection of parents. Uniforms have achieved their greatest penetration in inner-city areas of large metro counties and in minority areas, especially among immigrant Hispanics who are accustomed to uniforms in Latin countries. A recent issue of Harper's Index says that 3/4 of Chicago kids have to wear a school uniform! *But* uniforms are also being considered in suburban and middle-class areas across the country -- in Kansas, Florida, South Carolina, Oregon, Massachusetts and almost everywhere else. The closest analogy to the current movement is the imposition of bans on long-haired boys by many schools in the '60s and '70s. That lead to widespread protests and litigation that resulted in something like 35 reported federal and state court cases and an expenditure by the schools of over $10 million in legal costs to expel long-haired boys -- many with straight A averages! The courts split down the middle on the issue and the Supreme Court never took a long-hair case. Except in Texas, the issue soon mooted as schools accepted long-hairs voluntarily even where their state allowed their expulsion, and as kids started wearing more conservative hair styles on their own. Many of the arguments for forcing short hair are similar to the arguments for uniforms today -- claims that short hair/uniforms improve discipline, hygiene, learning environment, academic progress, and curb drugs. Three new arguments are being used now for uniforms however -- that they socialize clothing so as to prevent envy of rich kids by the poor; that uniforms prevent intruders on campus; and that uniforms are necessary to stop gangs. All are fallacious when examined as this article will do. The most disturbing thing so far is the lack of protest and litigation by affected kids and dissenting parents. "If you push hard enough, it will fall over" is one activist slogan that is being widely ignored. Mandatory high school uniforms without parent or child opt-out have been implemented in Mobile, Alabama, Wichita, Kansas, and other places. Neither open protests nor litigation has yet resulted. Although national polls done by two different groups -- and reported by America Online -- show 80 percent of teens oppose uniforms, those affected don't think it is worth the fight. Students in Mobile and Wichita sounded identical themes in news stories -- "We don't like it but we can't do anything about it and it is not worth getting suspended over." Some pointed out that cutting hair affects you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, while uniforms are only for 30 hours a week. Why should you be upset over uniforms and put it No. 1 on your action list if it is being threatened in your community? The simple answer is that uniforms are designed to instill conformity and communitarian group-think -- akin to Fascism. This is openly admitted by many proponents. They falsely feel kids already have too *much* freedom of expression and they want a placid, conformist student body -- allegedly to stop gangs and guns. Uniforms are an attack on two privileges permitted by most present dress codes -- *informality* and *diversity*. Although kids often complain about dress codes, most current codes are only a 3 on a scale of 1-10 as to clothes regulation. Most uniforms score a perfect 10! Uniforms curb informality by usually banning T-shirts, jeans and sometimes shorts for both sexes. The minimum acceptable is usually a collared polo shirt. Even more seriously, uniforms ban diversity. Although *some* permit a choice of colors or styles, *most* require you to wear exactly the same clothes all 180 days of school (with exception for occasional dress-down days). So you not only wear the same clothes as everyone else, you can't vary your wardrobe daily as most of us do. The usual rule is a white polo or button-up collared shirt and non-jean blue dress pants -- all bought from the same store. From a constitutional viewpoint, the biggest objection is that uniforms almost always ban all logos, pictures and writing of all kinds. Indeed, our best shot legally is those schools that *do* permit *some* logos (usually the school symbol) and ban others. Even those pro-uniform attorneys who believe schools can ban *all* logos (in defiance of Tinker vs. Des Moines and many other pre-uniform court cases) admit that schools *cannot* legally permit some logos and ban others. The logo bans do not just cover questionable slogans or pictures. Sports logo attire, concert shirts, political shirts and even *right-wing* slogans (DARE, SADD, pro-life) are banned. Clearly banned would be a shirt saying "Legalize Freedom -- Join ISAA"! The whole idea is that everyone must look alike every day. To me this is *absurd* on its face, but both liberal and conservative adults -- and even many kids -- have been enticed to support uniforms. In order to fight uniforms, you must understand the arguments for them -- and our rebuttal. Let us conclude by listing some of the arguments for uniforms and my answer: 1. They improve academic performance No study shows this, although there are anecdotal reports of the same. At Phoenix Prep, the Jr. High that permanently expelled two students for wearing logo clothes instead of uniforms, after 2-1/2 years of uniforms, academic scores are still in the 30th percentile. In any event, if academics is the test, honor roll students should be exempt. Most kids who opt out are among the "best and brightest." In one district near Sacramento, California, the GPA of opt-outs was an amazing 3.6 on a 4.0 scale! 2. They improve discipline This is *probably* true to some extent -- but at what cost in suppression of individual expression? The main point to make however is that there are *many* assertive discipline programs and other ways to solve discipline problems without requiring uniforms. 3. They are cheaper This may or may not be true -- it depends on the cost of uniforms and what the family would otherwise spend on school clothes. It does require *two* sets of outfits, however, because almost no one would wear the uniform after school and on weekends. Many families do *not* spend big bucks buying name-brand clothes for their kids; this argument assumes that most do. 4. They fight gangs and prevent intruders on campus This is one of the most popular arguments with the public, but clearly misleading. Very few campus disruptions are due to "gang clothing/colors" -- whatever that is. But to the extent that certain clothing does perpetuate gang activity, it can be handled by *dress code*; a uniform is not required. Even in uniform, gang members can communicate by tattoos, slang and hand signals. (They may soon suggest cutting off hands!) As to intruders, it may actually be harder to spot them because any intelligent intruder would certainly garb himself in the simple uniform so as not to stick out like they might now. 5. Dressing for school in the morning is easier This is probably true, and so anyone who *wants* to wear the same clothes daily can do so. But it is hardly an argument to *force* everyone to dress alike. Most kids prefer to dress for the day's mood and activity on a variable basis -- as they will as adults. 6. They prevent poor kids from being harassed for not having fancy clothes This is actually an argument for "socialized clothing." It is very attractive to liberals -- but dead wrong. First, *many* kids wear simple striped T-shirts and jeans, not Nike and Guess. Second, any kid who harasses another because of clothing can and should be punished for intimidation -- a more serious offense than dress code violations. But the *best* defense is that it *doesn't work*. Because bikes, backpacks, jewelry and other accessories are not covered, in a uniform school it is *still* obvious who is rich and who isn't. In summary, as the title of this paper indicates, *you* will be in uniform soon if kids in this country don't wake up and fight the coming of uniforms, especially on a mandatory basis. There are few if any valid arguments for uniforms. Diverse, colorful clothing is a tradition on American campuses; nothing in the '90s makes that tradition obsolete. As John F. Kennedy said: "We must make the world safe for diversity." - -- ---- - Gary Peter Klahr is a Phoenix attorney and former High School Governing Board Member. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- School, distribution and the word "fuck" Jestapher - - ---- -- - ------- When the first issue of Oblivion was released back in '95, we took a lot of heat from the administration at Olympia High School, the school most of our "staff" attended at the time. They took issue with much of our content, including a letter stating that our "security guy" should be fired and an article charging the school with giving preferential treatment to football when it came to funding extracurricular activities. They tried to suspend us for "distributing an unauthorized publication." Apparently, non-school sponsored publications, often referred to as "underground newspapers," had to be approved by the administration in order to be distributed on campus. At the time, they had us believing we could actually be suspended for such a crime. Only later did we learn that they're full of shit. Non-school sponsored publications don't have to go through any approval process. This is upheld by Burch v. Baker, a 1988 case in which 5 Renton, Washington students were suspended for not submitting their "underground newspaper" for approval before distributing it. The court ruled that such an approval process violated both the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States. While you can't be punished for distributing your zine on campus, you are responsible for its contents. If you say, "Mr. so and so molests children" and it's not true, you can get in trouble -- libel in this case. They can also get you for "obscene" or "sexually suggestive" material. We've discussed briefly the idea of whiting out all the profanity in Oblivion to make it "campus distributable." We've come to this conclusion: fuck that! Our profanity fits, we don't just indiscriminately fling the shit around, metaphorically speaking. Besides, schools make us read the occasional profanity in English class. Most people freak out when some fascist bastards try to ban some book from a school, why is it okay to do it with a student-produced zine? Another thing about profanity and speech in general: it looks a lot worse if they try to censor political statements. An administration would catch more flack for censoring the phrase "curfews are fucking unconstitutional" than they would for censoring the phrase "you can't say pig fucker in front of Jesus." With all that said, we'd like to encourage you to not only publish, but to distribute as well. Do you see all sorts of fucked up stuff going on at your school and elsewhere? Write it down. Make a flyer. Make a zine. Make a book if you like. Then hand it out to the masses. If, or more correctly, when the administration tries to persecute you, know your rights. It may not be a good idea to sit in the principal's office and say "fuck off, you fascist whore," but you can rest assured that you've got the Constitution behind you and you're fighting the good fight. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Female genital muilation Maria Gonzalez - - ---- -- - ------- Imagine how it feels to be sexually pleasured -- your extremely sensitive genitals being stimulated to the extreme, throbbing and then relaxing: an orgasm. And it not only satisfies you physically, but emotionally and mentally. Now, imagine how you would feel if, when you were about ten years old, your parents forced you to undergo an operation that would cause you to never feel any sexual pleasure or gratification for the rest of your life. This was done in an effort to keep you a virgin until marriage to preserve the family honor and for religious reasons. You would never be able to feel an orgasm, you would simply be used to make babies. Sadly, this is not some sadistic working of the imagination. For many young girls in Moslem families and in parts of Africa, this is the grim reality. Their sexuality is robbed from them, a part of them is taken away forever, an important part for their emotional well-being. This practice is called female circumcision, but is more widely known as female genital mutilation. Female genital mutilation can include: Circumcision: Clipping off the hood of the clitoris, which is considered to be the mildest form, but is still awful since the clitoris is a major pleasure point. Excision: Cutting off the entire clitoris and all or part of the labia minora. Infibulation: The most severe form which is excision plus cutting much of the labia majora and then stitching together the sides, leaving a small hole the size of a pencil eraser for the discharge of menstrual blood and urine. Fifteen percent of girls that undergo these operations die as a result. Those who survive experience not only extreme complications during sexual intercourse, pregnancy and childbirth, but also hemorrhaging, chronic pain and infections of the urinary tract, bladder and kidneys. This is an outrage! Every human being has a fundamental right to the fate of their own body. If the young girls subjected to this treatment wanted to never feel sexual pleasure, it would be different. However, they are usually ignorant to what is about to happen to them or dragged kicking and screaming to the mutilator. There is no reason that this has to happen. Even leaders of the Moslem religion say that there is nothing in the Koran about this practice being necessary. Fortunately, this practice is illegal in the United States, but this is not where the heart of the problem lies. These operations usually occur in Moslem middle-eastern nations and in Africa. There are numerous organizations that actively fight to eradicate this practice, such as The Foundation for Women's Health and the Si-Kata Project. The majority, however, is still uninformed of this blatant disregard for human rights. Hopefully, more people will become enlightened and take a stand against this despicable practice. If you are interested in helping stop female genital mutilation or if you're interested in more information, contact one of these organizations: The Foundation for Women's Health 2040 Forest Ave., Suite 2 San Jose, CA 95128 (408) 298-3798 The Si-Kata Project P.O. Box 204 Venice, CA 90294 (310) 314-4833 ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Behavior modification schools Alexia Parks - - ---- -- - ------- If you're a creative nonconforming teen ... If you're a teen who has ever been called impossible, defiant, rebellious, uncontrollable or out-of-control by *your parents* or school administration ... If you're a teen who is considered a high risk for drugs, alcohol, teen pregnancy or AIDS, or if you suffer from "gender-identification-disorder" (meaning gay or lesbian), your parents may be the target of a sophisticated sales campaign from one of a network of behavior modification schools that offer a "fix-it" solution for "problem children." The brochures and videos for behavior modification schools are given to your parents by educational consultants, counselors, churches, ToughLove, Teen Help's Lifespring seminar leaders or parents of teens who may get money or tuition waivers for referrals. While they may say the program works wonders on "troubled teens," the reality is it is all about money. People make vast amounts of money in the teen "fix-it" industry. These modification schools are run by adults who perform ritual abuse on children. They believe they have a calling to change the behavior of "troubled teens." They can take a high-risk teen and send back a no-risk teen, satisfaction guaranteed. Behind closed doors, they can become the parent you and I never had. They can impose their authority with an iron will and back it up with support staff. Their behavior changing methods include the use of: padded, locked "get right" rooms; straight jackets; wrap mats; body bags; electric shock; behavior modification drugs; brainwashing; hypnosis; sensory deprivation; panic locks; flashing lights and alarms; enforced silence; and teen "buddy" guards. The odd thing is, they can administer pain in a "loving" way. "You will thank me some day," they say. "This is *good* for you," they say. The smile never fades. These aren't thought-control camps in China. They're in America, with a uniquely American twist: they're money-makers. Parent-funded lock-up schools have been called the second fastest growth industry next to the building of prisons. What makes them different from taxpayer supported prisons is that parents call them "boarding schools" and for the most part, they are filled with rich white kids. Lock-up boarding schools are becoming trendy for desperate parents who can afford to pay for the private incarceration of their child. For the most part, parents place their child in a blind way. They don't know what these schools are. They rely on referral from so-called "friends" or "experts." The schools are part of a secret world, a Dark Ages underworld, that I stumbled into quite by accident when I went searching for a "disappeared child" whom I love: my niece. If your parents are religious extremists, authoritarian, or join support groups that bond them together and alienate them from you, or if they hang out with friends who are this way, then you're at a high risk of being sent away to a behavior modification school. These schools are located throughout the United States, in Baja, Mexico, and offshore in places like Western Samoa, Jamaica, and even the Czech Republic. The warning signs that you may be sent to a behavior modification school: worried parents who suddenly act nonchalant, as if nothing is wrong. The result: you may become the target of an escort service -- known by abductees as "bounty hunters" -- and transferred to a school of your parents choice. Or, to save the $10,000 transfer fee, your parents may take you there themselves by telling you that your going to a summer camp or a holiday abroad. Warning: If you think you are at risk, do not sign papers for a passport or any papers at all. Instead, write a statement that if you are "disappeared," you have been taken against your will and will resist if necessary. In reality, you shouldn't resist. Unless they are totally stupid or careless, you will be unable to escape. If you find yourself being abducted, do not resist. They are stronger than you. There are more of them than you. They can call in others to help them restrain you, if necessary. Resistance is futile. Your resistance may be met with knockout drugs, handcuffs, shackles, mace or pepper spray. Duct-tape can be used to wrap you in a blanket like a mummy. Want to scream for help? Go ahead. Your head and mouth may be duct-taped closed. Of course, they'll leave an opening for you to breathe through your nose. Or you may be sent into isolation for a day to two weeks. The closet-like isolation room may be called "a prayer room," an observation room, an ice room (chill out) or a Skinner Box. Your parents want you back alive, of course, so the school will most likely use brainwashing and psychological torture techniques perfected in prisoner of war camps as opposed to physical torture. Need to go to the bathroom? Too bad. You no longer get to choose when to eat, sleep or go to the bathroom. Someone else is in charge of these decisions and they make them for you. As I said, resistance is futile. The smart kids learn this quickly and do whatever is asked. They hide their true self and protect it. Those who don't will break in time. The staff at behavior modification schools have all the time in the world. And they are happy to tell your parents that you're not ready to talk to them yet, or your not ready to write to them or see them. Some teens wait as long as a year before they finally let go and give in. In some schools, the average stay is 2-1/2 years, because the teens who have been broken believe they are "insane," "damaged goods," "the worst of the worst" or they have come to believe that the world is an evil place and they are safe at the school. In the end, it's all the same. As long as you're parents can be convinced to pay your monthly tuition or convince others and thereby gain free tuition for you, you'll be held at the "boarding school" until the school guarantees that you're "fixed." If you're lucky enough to successfully run away from a behavior modification school, you need to avoid anyone in the vicinity of the school. This includes neighbors, shopkeepers, police, and child services agents. In rural areas, behavior modification schools are often the largest industry in town. They are money-makers and they buy food and services from local folks. The police, who might think that having troubled teens locked up and off the streets makes their job easier, may also be told to "look the other way," or be paid for each runaway they return to the facility. Why would parents consider the private incarceration of their children in unregulated facilities? In some states with "three strikes and your out" laws, parents may worry that small infractions could lead to time in jail. They consider jail a worse alternative to behavior modification schools. Parents may also be fearful that they will be held responsible for the misdeeds of their teen. The zero tolerance that the Courts, law enforcement and adult population have toward teens is frightening. They forget that they too were once teens. They forget that most teens are simply "mirrors" of their environment and that their actions may trigger trapped fears in their parents. Experts advise that divorce and the turmoil leading to divorce is a major factor behind misbehavior in teens. Girls, as a rule of thumb, get weepy and withdrawn. Boys get angry and aggressive. Their world, after all, is falling apart. This process is not easy for adults and it certainly is devastating on teens. Most adults ignore the fact that teens are almost powerless to change things and make their family whole again. Teens, in fact, have little to no power. They are considered the property of their parents. Parents -- who got to be parents simply by having sex -- are given almost absolute authority over their children. Parents, in fact, represent the last slaveholders in America. Since parents can not, or will not protect their teens, since the courts and laws do not protect teens, teens need to protect themselves. A Teen Bill of Rights is a possible step in the right direction. Legislation criminalizing the act of "escort," corporal punishment, and other despicable tactics used by these schools could provide "legal muscle" to teens and those seeking to protect them from. This Fall, TeenAid, the organization I founded to help monitor the behavior modification industry and provide advice to teens, plans to take a program called Teens As Leaders into schools across the country. We will encourage parents to act as mentors to their own teens, and surround their children with resources to help them follow their own unique life-path. The last section of my book, An American Gulag, contains a description of this mentoring process. TeenAid will also create a Teen Emancipation Kit to help teens become emancipated, if necessary. I predict that the final year of this century will be the most difficult year of all for teens as zero tolerance laws get even tighter, as extremist religious groups try and convert as many souls as possible, and as some public schools pick up on the ideas now being used in behavior modification schools. For this reason, I think that 1999 will create the critical mass of concern necessary to create a Teen Bill of Rights. As we enter the 21st Century, parents will begin to realize that wired teens will indeed lead the way. It's time to begin to take that leadership role now. - -- ---- - Alexia Parks is author of An American Gulag: Boarding Schools from Hell. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Q & A with The Suicide Machines - - ---- -- - ------- The Suicide Machines are a punk quartet with a dash of ska mixed in. Hailing from Michigan, their tunage is oft-filled with politics, especially dealing with issues of class, violence and just being young, dammit. Here's some thoughts from lead singer Jason Navarro. - -- ---- - Q. What do you think about curfew laws? Are they unconstitutional? Are they just plain stupid? A. Depending on the situations. They could never enforce these laws in Detroit. The kids will always go out whenever they want and, in Detroit at least, the police don't care. This is a broad question ... are you talking about show curfews? That could have to do with many things: decibel levels at certain times, etc ... I'm 25, I haven't ever had to deal with that sort of law. I think that law is usually ignored and it should be. - -- ---- - Q. What do you think about high school? Is it worth attending? Would most people be better served by educating themselves? A. This is a question my wife and I have been discussing. We are going to have a child in January. I think in certain areas, the both of us could educate them, but not enough. There are goods and bads with everything. Everything! You have to figure out what's better for you or your children. - -- ---- - Q. What do you think about trying to change things by working within the system? Can we get anything done by trying to get into some White House summit on school violence? Is our time better spent trying to subvert the system? A. The term "use the system against the system" can be a great one. As usual, there's always going to be good and bad points. But if you're not active in some sort of way, how's anything going to change? A perfect example: last election, 20% of the Michigan population voted. Most of those votes were middle to upper class white males, people with money. Nobody voted -- poor, kids, women and people of ethnic background -- and people wonder why nothing changes. Another part of the problem is realizing what and where the problems is, and how to tackle it. - -- ---- - Q. Anything else you'd like our readers to hear? A. When you think you have the answer, pick that answer apart. Don't stop questioning it. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Letters - - ---- -- - ------- A better place to live I just visited your site ... Scary. I'm from Scotland and I was amazed at the things young people can do here that you cant in America! It says in the education bit of what your setting out to stop that you don't have the primary decision in what your educational destiny is. That's scary considering here at age 12 you are given the choice of what subjects you take and again at 13 on the condition you take math, English and PE. It says in the courts bit that you can't have a separate attorney without parental consent ... well you can here! It says you can't drink till 21! It's 18 here! Under health and sexuality here, we have all the same medical rights as over-18s except we don't have to pay for it! And all ages can get free birth control. We don't have curfews! We can get credit cards, open accounts and get student loans! I think what your doing is great! Keep it up. Robyn - -- ---- - A worse place to live Hi, I got some incidents from my school. Smoking and the bad stuff about it. A 15-year-old teen, was found smoking at the back of the cabins, and he was severely punished for smoking. His punishment is 5 canes on the backside and a suspension. Scyoon [Editor's note: this is from Malaysia.] - -- ---- - Buy my porn Dear Oblivion Jestapher, Here is a pretty intresting [sic] press release we think pertains to your ezine. For more information please contact Mike Kelum [number omitted] or email: [email omitted]. You can also preview the site at [site omitted] -- Actual outcall girls and guys are available for interviews or appearances. President John Zito is also available for comment. Mike Kelum -- - Fuck you, cracksmoker. Jestapher - -- ---- - Puberty Strike loves us Jestapher, The new Oblivion was great. It's one of my top ten favorite zines. Here is your tee-shirt. I hope you like it. I'm also sending you some flyers for my new label ... I hope you don't mind passing them out in your mail or something. Seth -- - Seth, we love Puberty Strike *and* you. I wear my "tee-shirt" all the time and those flyers are used for short letters. Jestapher - -- ---- - Orders and earrings Dear Oblivion, I am writing for issue #7 of your zine (oblivion). I have included $1.00 for it. The review MRR gave your zine interested me. I have been having problems at my school for a while. For instance, girls can wear hoop earrings, but boys can not. Adam - -- ---- - A Georgian newshawk Oblivion ... Hey! I subscribe to your obv-talk mailing list and I've read the diversity of your articles. I didn't know if you wanted an article from rural Georgia or not, so I'm sending it to you anyway. I don't have any "inside information" because it's not my school, but I think I'll contact a friend to see what all of this is about and see if I can help. I just think the educational system (especially in small towns) is so ridiculous -- they put all of their energy in the wrong places. (And don't mind the "Carrollton parents 'go back to school'" article ... It really doesn't work out like they say it does and only one high school actually takes part in it.) Let me know when the next issue of Oblivion comes out! Leslie -- - Thanks for the news about Alex McClendon, the 15-year-old who was told not to return to his private school unless he stopped dressing as a female. It's good to know that most of the community stepped up to support him. We'd definitely like to hear more -- especially since "a decision was not reached by press time." For future reference, it's much easier to send news articles to news@oblivion.net rather than physically mailing them to us. If possible, find the article online and snag the text. If the newspaper doesn't have a website or doesn't have the specific article, start down that path to carpal tunnel syndrome and type it in! Thanks Leslie, you rock! Jestapher - -- ---- - If I were a rich man Dear Oblivion, Hi from Utah! Please send a copy of oblivion #7 as soon as possible. I wish I was born rich. All day long I would smoke the finest of buds in a six-foot bong and play guitar and bongos. I would put out a fanzine called "da snob." Yep, if I was a rich man. Well, I can always have my thoughts at least. Keep putting out your fanzine. The scene needs more of us high school kids putting out stuff. I still need to finish my own fanzine. Bye for now. David -- - If I was a rich man, I wouldn't smoke the finest buds, but I'd probably print Oblivion completely on hemp paper. You're right, "the scene" does need more kids putting out stuff (and I'm not talking about putting out your joint). Jestapher ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- The age discrimination of the legal system John Willemin - - ---- -- - ------- Not 18? Can't smoke, can't vote, can't legally run away from home, can't get an abortion without telling your parents, can't stay in certain places past certain times -- among other things. These are all what are called "status offenses" -- things that are legal for adults to do, but for those of us not yet 18 or 21, things that are illegal. Why is this? Because the adults in power who run government have decided that until you reach the magical age of 18, you are not competent enough to decide whether or not to do such things. It is easy to see the ridiculousness of such a system. Drawing an arbitrary line at age 18 is silly. Does anything truly magical happen to you on your 18th birthday? No. Are you any smarter on your 18th birthday than when you are 17-years- and 364-days-old? No. Are 18-year-old people always more competent than people under the age of 18? Of course not. This discrimination doesn't accomplish anything except to deny youth rights. Perhaps a better alternative is competency tests. Rather than assuming that everyone over 18 is competent, they should prove it. Anyone below 18 who is competent would pass such a test. This would apply to voting rights, driving, etcetera. For the other status offenses such as smoking, drinking and running away, why not ban such laws? The laws which apply to adults should apply to youth as well. For instance, drunk driving should still be illegal, just as it would be for an adult, but the government should not deny you the choice to drink or smoke. Personally, I think both of these things are bad for you and I, for one, do not participate in them. But should you feel the desire, I can't think of a reason why the government should take away your choice to do such things. If nothing else, let your parents decide. Besides status offenses, the entire juvenile justice system (JJS) is based on the same assumptions of youth inferiority. The JJS was originally founded because of fears that the criminal justice system (the one the adults use) was too harsh. They decided that youth needed a separate system, where judges could "rehabilitate" and "nurture." At least that was the idea. According to Barry Feld, a professor of law at the University of Minnesota, children neither receive sufficient legal protection nor any rehabilitation. "[A] substantial gulf remains between theory and practice, between law on the books and law in action. In theory, [youth in the juvenile justice system are guaranteed the] right to formal hearings and the assistance of counsel. In practice, however, many juveniles do not receive even the limited procedural justice that Gault envisioned. Nearly three decades ago, the Supreme Court observed that 'juvenile justice' is an oxymoron: 'the child receives the worst of both worlds: he gets neither the protections accorded to adults nor the solicitous care and regenerative treatment postulated for children.' Although juvenile courts increasingly converge with criminal courts, most states do not provide youths with either procedural safeguards equivalent to those of adult criminal defendants, or with special procedures that more adequately protect them from their own immaturity." Youth were denied certain due process rights, like the ability to get counsel, on the grounds that it wasn't needed because of the rehabilitative effects of the system. That hasn't worked, according to Feld. The juvenile justice system is nothing but a way to put more kids behind bars without even giving them the rights that adults in the same position are guaranteed. Just be aware: the system is out to get you. If you commit a crime or a status offense while under the age of 18 and you don't get the "privilege" of being tried as an adult, make sure you have a good lawyer. Maybe the time will come when they'll combine the two systems and stop making arbitrary age judgements. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Zine reviews Xaxu - - ---- -- - ------- Puberty Strike Issue 3, February '98 $2 c/o Heroes for today PO Box 12125 Berkeley, CA 94712 A day in the life of a boy in Tucson, Arizona. Seth will tell you about the hottest hangouts in town (and exactly what kind of hanky-panky goes on there!). You'll also get the skinny on local street gangs, fun comics, bizarre quizzes, and a whole lotta humor. I highly recommend this zine. Buy it, read it, love it. - -- ---- - Here Title Place Volume 3, Issue 5 Free A glimpse back to the fun-filled days of high school. Interesting interviews from what's for lunch to the social and psychological aspects of being "tall." (Height and popularity for those of you who didn't get that.) "People on the Bus" was a particularly favorite article of mine because it was so easy to relate to being an avid rider myself. Here Title Place has been running since 1995 and continues in the fight for free-speech. For more information write them at htp@oblivion.net or check out their web site at oblivion.net/htp/. - -- ---- - Mr. Doyle's Zine Project A few bucks The Wingspan Norristown Area High School 1900 Eagle Dr. Norristown, PA 19403 Somewhere hidden in the usual uproar of Norristown, Pennsylvania, there lies a high school. In this school there is a paper called "The Wingspan." In this paper lies the very thing the rest of us are fighting so hard to attain: free speech. "What?!" you ask. "How can this be?" In this paper you can read about issues such as random searches and unfair search and seizures. There's even a comic about a wacky dog that can rip off his appendages on command. Wait. Isn't this the very thing that Joe Blow was suspended for just last year? You'd be right in thinking so. But hold on, there's more. Mr. Chief Advisor to this paper had an idea the other day. Why not have his students write their very own zines instead of having that highly overrated multiple choice test each year? For five years now, John Doyle has been working on this so-called "Zine Project." Instead of a final, his students must publish and distribute a zine. They're encouraged to express themselves and write exactly what they feel. Some challenge the establishment while others write about life in the ghetto. A bright and shining star on a cloudy night, Norristown Area High School practices what the rest of the country's teens are preaching. Go them. Send Mr. Doyle a copy of your zine and he'll send you the motherload ... or rather ... a big ol' pile of his. Fun fun fun!!! - -- ---- - Drop Out Issue 6 $1 1114 21st Street Sacramento, CA 95814 Tired of the same old teachers day in and day out, force-feeding you a bunch of crap that'll do just about squat when it comes time to enter "the real world"? Drop Out is the best guide I've seen yet to getting ahead with alterative learning. - -- ---- - The Last Issue 9, May '98 Donation PO Box 21898 Milwaukee, WI 53221-0898 "In memory of the first." The Last doesn't really center on any particular theme. It's mostly dedicated to the practice of free speech in yet another oppressive high school. With a few articles, some poetry and a splash of artwork, I found it to be pretty entertaining. - -- ---- - Brat Issue 7 $7 for 4 issues PO Box 4964 Louisville, KY 40204-0964 Out of Louisville, Kentucky comes a familiar cry. Down with dress codes and screw the curfew! Much like Oblivion, Brat takes on oppressive issues and urges the public to take action. This beautifully organized (and polished) zine is well worth your time and damn inspiring to boot. Get your copy today! You can write them at postmaster@brat.org or visit their website at brat.org. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Oblivion attempts to fight the system from within namgorf - - ---- -- - ------- I had just started high school, Olympia High School to be exact. Through friends, I heard about a zine originally based at this school created by students, both former and current. The name: Oblivion. It sparked my interest. I mean, who, after 8 years of school, wouldn't be interested in trying to stop the fascism and dictatorship that school is? (Okay, maybe there are many, but I wasn't about to be one of them.) Through powerful sources and voodoo magic, I came to be acquainted with several people who had been involved with Oblivion since it's inception nearly 3 years ago. I learned as much as I could, read all the past issues, and became more and more interested. Somehow, I came up with this crazy idea of resurrecting Oblivion. Well, Oblivion never actually died, it just turned it's attention to "less regional" matters and gave up on Olympia High. I, however, felt it should be distributed in high schools. High school students are the ones that we're trying to educate. Adults seem to be to stuck in their mindset. We have to get the message to the youth so that when they grow older and become the politicians, lawyers and business people, they can change things. Over time, I bothered enough people, gathered enough info, and waited ... waited ... waited for the next issue to be printed. That day arrived on Friday April 17, 1998. The previous day, I had stopped Mr. Dick Allen, Olympia High School Principal, in the hall and told him that I wanted to meet with him to discuss getting a certain publication authorized for distribution at Olympia High. He told me to make an appointment, so make an appointment I did. I anxiously awaited our Tuesday meeting, hoping for the best. I was fairly certain we would be able to get Oblivion authorized. Just one thing loomed in front of me: profanity -- the school hates it, and Oblivion has it. On Saturday, Nemomancer dropped off 15 copies of the recently printed Oblivion and I was psyched. This is gonna work, I thought. Hopefully Principal Dick doesn't notice this letter talking about how principals suck. The next day, I showed the zine to a few friends -- they loved it. Later that night, my mom read through it and she thought it was really cool. On Monday, I left a copy of Oblivion with Dick's secretary and asked her to give it to him as soon as possible. Later that day, the secretary read Oblivion. She also thought it was really cool. She thought it was great that us kids were actually taking the time to do all this stuff and stand up for what we believed in. After that, I was even more pumped about the meeting the next day. Everybody who had read it so far loved it, why wouldn't the principal love it too? On Tuesday, Eggnog and I headed to Dick's office during second period. He wasn't around, so we talked to his secretary. She got on her walkie-talkie (of which I'm sure she's very proud) and started spouting weird codes and garble. "Five to one, this is base." Blah, blah, blah. "Didrik Wold is here to see you." Blah, blah, blah. Dick finally showed up and we took a seat in his office. "I didn't read through the whole thing, but in what I did read I found some 'shits' and 'bastards' and such. And we have a policy about profanity ..." We tried to explain that there are only a few profane words in Oblivion, to no avail. "A policy is a policy." But those articles are submitted by individuals, and to censor them would be wrong. Nope. "Any publication that we authorize here at OHS has to live up to the same standards as our school paper, and one of those is no profanity." "What if we put a warning on it, telling people that there is profanity in it?" "I told you: no profanity. We can not allow you to distribute things with profanity in it at school. Some kid takes a copy home and shows it to his parents and then I start getting phone calls asking why I'm allowing this. Other companies have also asked to be able to advertise at OHS." "But Oblivion is free; we're a nonprofit organization." "It doesn't matter, no profanity." "Well, what if we were to make a censored copy to distribute at school?" "Maybe, I'd have to take another look at it. Thanks for seeing things from my viewpoint." "No problem." Fucker, I thought. "If we do decide to make a censored copy, we'll come back and let you take a peek at it. Thanks for your time." So we were rejected because Oblivion has a few objectionable words in it ... figures. We weren't about to censor Oblivion, though we thought about it. So, I tried doing it the "right" way and that didn't work. In reality, it didn't stop us from giving issues to people who asked for them. Toward the end of the school year, Nemomancer and myself organized a distribution day. After school on the last day we were going to pass out as many copies of Oblivion as we could pay to print. When that day arrived, we only had 50 copies, but that didn't stop us. Eggnog, Pergatory and myself passed out Oblivions to people we knew and people we didn't. Some even got special greetings from Eggnog such as "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Chanukah." It wasn't the biggest, most splendid distribution of Oblivion, but at least we got some copies out there. Even though we didn't get Oblivion authorized and even though we weren't able to distribute that many copies, I still feel as if I've accomplished something. If nothing else, at least I got 200 points in my Health class for doing a "very original 'make something happen' project." ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Youth suffrage and YouthSpeak Avi Hein - - ---- -- - ------- All American citizens have the right to vote, correct? *Wrong!* Over 26% of American citizens are denied the right to vote ... solely on account of their age. This is not democracy. This is not equality. This is not right! When the Constitution of the United States was written, very few people had the right to vote. At the ratification in 1788, only 21-year-old property owning white males had the right to vote. Later, all 21-year-old white males were given the right to vote. The 14th Amendment redefined citizenship to include all persons either naturalized or born in the United States. With the passage of the 15th Amendment in 1870, all males given the right to vote, regardless of race. Fifty years later, the 19th Amendments gave women the right to vote. Until 1971, only people over the age of 21 could vote. During the Vietnam War, due to protests and citizen action, the 26th Amendment was ratified, lowering the voting age to 18. The argument at that time was that if 18-, 19-, and 20-year-olds were old enough to die for their country, shouldn't they at least have the right to vote for the politicians that are sending them to their deaths. Twenty-six percent of the American population is under the age of 18. Twenty-six percent of the American population is *denied* the fundamental right to determine the rules they must live under. That is wrong! That is undemocratic! That is un-American! Justice and democracy are at the forefront of American society -- at least in theory. For too long equality and justice have been at the backburner of society, ignored by politicians and people alike. It's time to return to the ideologies and principles that this nation has lived by. It's time to allow *all* American citizens the right to vote. YouthSpeak, founded in March 1997 by high school student Avi Hein, is America's first and only organization dedicated to extending the right to vote to people under 18. Since March 1998 and until Election Day of 1998, YouthSpeak will be involved in series of voting rights protests called Operation Register. Taxation without representation exists in America. It existed in 1776, when the colonists fought against the British control, and it exists today -- in the late 20th century. Young people are taxed, all through sales taxes, many through income taxes, property taxes for those who own property, and a myriad of other taxes. Most youths are law-abiding. Young people obey laws that they have no say in making. That is wrong! Rebecca Tilsen, 14, of Minneapolis testified in a Minnesota House subcommittee in 1991 that, "if 16-year-olds are old enough to drink the water polluted by the industries that you regulate, if 16-year-olds are old enough to breathe the air ruined by garbage burners that government built, if 16-year-olds are old enough to walk on the streets made unsafe by terrible drugs and crime policies, if 16-year-olds are old enough to live in poverty in the richest country in the world, if 16-year-olds are old enough to get sick in a country with the worst public health-care programs in the world, and if 16-year-olds are old enough to attend school districts that you underfund, than 16-year-olds are old enough to play a part in making them better." Some people believe that young people are too immature and incompetent to vote. Besides the fact that there is no competency test for voting and incompetents rarely vote, that same excuse was used to bar women and minorities from voting. Similarly, some people believe that kids will vote the same way as their parents. Besides being patronizing and demeaning, that claim is simply false. When women were fighting for the right to vote it was alleged that they would vote the same way as their husbands. When women were granted the right to vote that allegation was proven false, and similar allegations would be proven false if youth were granted the right to vote. Many historians have concluded that, as the Michigan City (IN) News-Dispatch (5/15/98) found, "the excuses for keeping the vote from young people are the same ones that kept women and minorities disenfranchised for more than a century." Join YouthSpeak and restore democracy to America. YouthSpeak is the only national organization working for youth suffrage. Working with YouthSpeak is the most effective way to get the vote. Remember: The voting age must be lowered if America is to be a free and democratic nation and youth need to be granted their human right to take part in the business of their own nation by being allowed to vote. - -- ---- - YouthSpeak can be reached through email at youthspeak@oblivion.net or on the web at oblivion.net/youthspeak/. ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - --- Oblivion information - - ---- -- - ------- - -- ---- - Copyrights - - ---- -- - ------- Please distribute Oblivion everywhere you can. Do not steal little bits and pieces without consent from the author of the bit, byte or nybble, for they retain full copyrights to their work. If you just ask, they will probably give permission. - -- ---- - Review quotes - - ---- -- - ------- "In terms of actually doing politics, these kids are way ahead of me: their [sic] right in there fighting for their rights like you're supposed to do, & my hat's off to 'em." -- Indy Unleashed #5 "These kids all get together and report the battles students and faculty everywhere, and damn, they do a great job of articulating themselves! Right on." -- Maximumrockandroll "Oblivion is a zine focusing on such 'youth rights movement' issues as curfews, Internet restrictions, and age of consent." -- MSRRT Newsletter "Most of this is well written and entertaining to read, even for someone that is no longer a youth like me, it seems like it would be invaluable information for high school kids." -- 10 Things Jesus Wants You To Know "This zine obviously intends to be a champion for youth rights and I think it is pretty successful in pulling that off." -- Zine World - -- ---- - Inspiration - - ---- -- - ------- Zines: Brat, Ker-bloom!, Puberty Strike, Typograpunx Music: Beastie Boys, Digable Planets, Less Than Jake, Suicide Machines - -- ---- - Useless information - - ---- -- - ------- Oblivion is generally published quarterly. We are now a nonprofit corporation. Nobody makes money from this. We're poor, but we've still got mad angst. Subscriptions to Oblivion are $5 for 4 issues. We accept, cash, checks, money orders and stamps. We also accept trades. We accept donations. We also sell buttons. Check out oblivion.net/store/. Everything you see in this zine can be found on our website along with much, much more. We enjoy all kinds of zines. We only review zines that focus on youth issues. We don't review music, but we like to listen to it. We also like artistic mail. We don't accept advertising. Despite what you may think, our readers don't care about your breakthrough acne cream. We give free accounts to our writers. We are also looking for php coders. - -- ---- - Contact - - ---- -- - ------- Postal: PO Box 95227 Seattle, WA 98145-2227 Web: oblivion.net FTP: ftp.oblivion.net /pub/ Email: oblivion@oblivion.net Submissions: nemo@oblivion.net - -- ---- - Extra special thanks - - ---- -- - ------- Olympia Networking Services (www.olywa.net) -- for all the free Internet services! ------- --- - - ------ - - ------ ---- --- - ------ --- ------- - - -- - - --- ------- ---- -- --- - --- ----- ---- - ---- ----- -- ---- --- - eof