The beginning of a new school year sadly marks the end of another summer.

The smell of the barbeque on the grill slowly fades into the smoky scent of burning leaves.

Fall will soon be upon us.

No more suntan. No more pool. Just lots and lots of homework…but that doesn’t mean all is lost.

Fall also marks the beginning of the football season (insert your favorite cheer of joy here).

And we’re in the conference regarded as one of the best in the nation. The mighty Big 12 is ready to make its debut, oh and of course, so has the official “Women of the Big Twelve” issue of Playboy.

Pornography in its finest form…or so they say.

“Looky here, boys. Even college-educated women can be convinced that this is cool. They’ve got the brains and the bod.” That’s what the people at Playboy are trying to get you to believe.

You know what? I do believe that these women have brains. Hey, some of them attend Iowa State.

But I hope they’ve used those brains of theirs to think about the repercussions of their decision to appear in a nude magazine.

You never know. Any one of those women could become big-time models. Get national exposure and a pretty great career.

But their 15 minutes of fame could also blow up right in their faces. Signing autographs at the local Kwik Shop leaves a lot to be desired if you ask me.

Worst-case scenario: After Suzy posed for Playboy, she got her degree and then graduated from law school. Always a hard-worker, she landed a job with a major law firm in Chicago.

After a few years of working late nights and weekends, Susan finally got the case that could propel her career to the top. In the craze of the trial, the press got a hold of some naked photos taken when Suzy was in college. Suzy’s credibility just went down the drain.

Everything she worked for all those years was spoiled by one simple click of the shutter.

The same man or woman who probably regarded Susy as a competent, intelligent woman before, now probably thinks less of her.

The sad and blunt truth is that’s what would happen. In America, if there was a Suzy, she’d suffer a blow to her professional career and credibility despite everything she had worked for in the past.

Even today a woman is scrutinized for every move she makes and, unfortunately, it’s done mostly by other women. When Shannon Faulkner wanted to become one of the elite at the Citadel, I couldn’t believe some of the things women and men had to say about her.

Shannon went through hell in the courts and it carried over into her personal life as well.

She fought a battle for women, but lost because she wasn’t up to the physical standards required. Now that’s a battle four women are taking up and we, both men and women, should support them.

We should put a stop to the double standards and negativity women face everyday, especially the ones dealing with sex and women.

I’m for any woman doing and pursuing whatever she wants to do in life. Do it with pride and do it well and you have nothing to lose.

Actually a few of my friends are in the “Big Twelve Issue.” They are beautiful women and should be proud of themselves both inside and out.

I support Summer Ackerman in her decision to sit on a Harley semi-nude. I just hope that when she’s a nurse, her decision won’t come back to haunt her.

To tell you the truth I’ve always wanted to go up to the counter of my local convenience store and plop down the newest issue of Playboy. I’m probably on my way to the store as you’re reading this to purchase my shiny new copy.

And when the guy behind the counter looks at me as if I just asked him for a turd turnover to go and fast, I’ll say, “Oh yes. I AM buying this magazine and I’m proud of it.”

I just think little Chan should have put Summer on top of the campanile, not on some stupid motorcycle. It just makes sense.

The largest phallic symbol in the entire state of Iowa should rightly have a place on the pages of Playboy.

We can’t be known just by the Davis brothers alone. We need as many claims to fame as possible.

I think as part of AIDS Awareness Week, we should throw a giant condom over the campanile. We’d get national attention and hey, it’s for a good cause.

And I bet you just read the Daily for the articles, too.

April Samp is a junior in journalism mass communication from Eldora.