Since April 20, 2004, an important part of TCU has been missing: The Sniff.The Sniff was an irreverent, satirical, newspaper-style publication that students enjoyed several times a semester from spring 2002 until spring 2004.

April 20, 2004, was the day the final issue appeared. Since then, TCU has not had any comparable publications.

Part of the appeal of The Sniff was its ability to poke fun at TCU. It had an intelligent sense of humor that somehow could not resist references to French philosophers. Far from being obscure, however, it wasn’t afraid to have such outlandish articles as “Asteroid Headed for Campus.”

How can one resist a publication that not only makes fun of campus and does it intelligently, but also offers T-shirts to go along with it?

What TCU needs is another Sniff. Not with the same name, of course. But with a similar attitude.

Sally Glass, a senior philosophy and psychology major, agrees: “I think we need The Sniff because people take things too seriously at TCU. Humor is a beneficial form of expression, especially if it is intelligently stated and satirical.”

Irreverence is fun. It stirs people up, it makes people re-examine things they take for granted, and it’s good for a laugh. Who can resist the advice column called “Ask THE BIBLE”?

This column, written with passages from the Bible, gives many good pieces of advice. For instance, when someone asks if it is okay to “take the next step” with the woman he is going to marry, the Bible pulls out “Corinthians 7:1” – yes, I know there are two Corinthians – “It is good for a man not to marry.”

The ability to point out inconsistencies is a gift many lack. And if someone can do it by publishing humorous prose, who doesn’t benefit? Well, maybe the people whose inconsistencies it notes.

But those people can just skip ahead and read about asteroids.

“Even if it only appeals to a select portion of the population, that portion immensely enjoys it,” Glass said. “And who are we to deny them a good laugh in these times of suicide bombers, hurricanes and earthquakes, not to mention the threat of avian flu?

“We could all be dead tomorrow. We might as well die laughing. And I think that The Sniff will ensure that for all of us – or at least for those of us that care enough for its reinstatement as a student publication.”

So someone, preferably with requisite intelligence and satirical humor, should get off his ass and start satirizing! Maybe even take anonymous submissions this time.

The Sniff can still be found online at www.thesniff.com.

Stephanie Weaver is a senior English, French and philosophy major from Westwood, Kan.