Bearded or Bare?

Beards at BYU are taking on a new look.

Since the administration's statement that beards are permissible, if neatly kept, more and more whiskers have appeared on campus.

Random comments of students show either pleasure or indifference to the new craze, but of all students interviewed, none actually condemned beards as a whole.

LeeAnn Bingham, a freshman from Denver, Colo., was amazed at the appearance of so many beards.

"At first, I was critical," she says, "but if a beard is properly kept up, and if it doesn't change a man's goals, outlook and accomplishment of good, the appearance should not be condemned."

Moustaches are fine, according to Anne Halverson, from Ogden, Utah, but she feels that if anything would give a derogative impression, it would be beards as they are widely connected with hippies.

"My only real objection is a long or bushy beard," says Bryan Tobler, a senior from Orange, Calf., "They definitely went out with our grandparents."

Ladene Pitcher, a junior from Osoyoos, B.C., Canada, feels that some beards are repulsive. "I think that if good taste is used, however, it shows individuality."

Freshman Denice Carter, Ogden, says that it is an individual matter and if a person wants to grow a beard, he should be able to.

Summing up the general consensus of students is Charles Zobell, a freshman from Provo, who says, "Even Brigham Young had a beard. So, what's the big deal about them?"