No one hurt by public affection
BY BRANDON EYLES
Staff Writer

High school students always find a way to complain about anything. They complain about cafeteria food and also how early they have to get up in the morning for school. They also like to complain a lot about public displays of affection in the hallways.
Certainly, there are some students who take PDA too far. No one needs to see couples making out in the hallway. But those students are in the minority. Most couples only hold hands or kiss briefly on the way to class, so most of the criticism of PDAs is wrong.
Before they criticize teens for behavior at Baldwin, PDA opponents need to take a look at the world around them. Everywhere people go, there are couples holding hands and kissing.
First, couples are constantly making public displays of affection in the entertainment world. How often does it happen in romantic comedy movies, or television shows? It even happens in stories in English class. But no one complains about that.
There are even more examples from the real world. Just go to the mall on the weekend and count the number of couples who are holding hands as they walk through the mall. The same thing happens at Kennywood in the summer, where couples hold hands or quickly kiss while in line or walking around.
The Pirates and the Penguins even go so far as to have a “Kissing Cam,” encouraging couples to kiss for everyone to see on the Jumbotron.
Why should students be held to a different standard in the halls? When done within reason, public displays of affection should not bother anyone.

Lovebirds need to get a room
BY JULIA DEGREGORIO
Staff Writer

It happens all the time. Students who are just trying to get to the next class of the day instead walk into a modern-day Romeo and Juliet ostentatiously displaying their everlasting love for one another. There’s no way around it and it’s always awkward.
PDAs, or public displays of affection, have gotten out of control. Baldwin has enough students crowding the hallway. With the addition of canoodling teenagers, hallways are increasingly more difficult to navigate.
Students in relationships should exercise some self-control when it comes to showing their affection publicly. Why can’t it wait? Kissing and cuddling should be reserved for private time, not displayed publicly and especially not in school.
Some arguments for PDAs state that others should mind their own business. However, it’s hard for people to mind their own business when that same couple is always making out in the stairwell.
That’s not to say all loving gestures are uncouth. A simple peck on the cheek or innocent hand holding is perfectly acceptable for the school hallways. However, passionately making out, inappropriate touching, and sitting on one another’s lap are simply not suitable for the school day.
PDAs are not limited to the school hallways anymore. More and more, sappy couples have taken to social media, posting “kissing pictures.” Aside from these often nauseating pictures, sappy couples seem to feel the need to constantly tweet about their significant other.
Furthermore, constant signs of affection can make other students, particularly those not in a relationship, feel uncomfortable. This can therefore alienate single friends from their friends in relationships. PDAs, therefore, prompt couples to become all consumed in their relationships and neglect family and friends.