THE BATTALION
Page 2 College Station, Texas Thursday, August 4, 1966
BATTALION EDITORIALS
Aggie Freshmen:
The Decision Is Yours
You are the class of ’70 at Texas A&M.
In a few weeks you will be leaving a way of life which
you have grown accustomed to through years of familiarity.
As you step out from the old way of life you will be gaining
a new one.
The new existence you shall soon be leading will not
be an easy one. Especially at first. In many ways it will
be like Plato’s story of the man in a cave. The man was
satisfied with the darkness of the cave because he had
never been outside. And when he left the confines of the
cave the sunlight struck him with blinding sharpness be
cause he wasn’t used to it.
You will soon be faced with the same decision he had
to make. You can either retreat to the security of the
world you know, or you can face the light until your eyes
become used to it. And once you become accustomed to a
lighted world with all its rewards, you can never be satisfied
with the darkness again.
If you have the sincere desire and determination to
succeed in college, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t.
There is only one magic formula — hard work. It won’t
be easy, and at times the benefits will seem far away.
But those who stick it out will be rewarded with a higher
education and the experience of going to school at one
of the world’s most unique universities.
At A&M your mind, your body, your spirit, and your
character will all have the opportunity to be developed.
Those who enter here as boys will graduate as men.
It’s an arduous but not an impossible road. Yet chances
are good that at least one out of every three of you will
fall by the wayside before the journey is over. This is not
just at A&M but at many universities throughout the
nation. The crucial period is the freshman year. For it
is at this time that the usual academic burdens are com
bined with problems of adjustment. The sooner you can
make the transition to college routine the better your
chances are of doing well at A&M.
You will not be alone. You will have over 2,000 other
freshmen in the same situation, with the same problems
and the same doubts. Most are able to overcome the early
obstacles and go on to successful college careers.
And successful college careers usually provide the foun
dation for successful lives. For college is not an end in
itself. Its primary purpose is the development of the in
dividual, and in helping him take his place in the real world
beyond the ivy-covered walls of the college campus.
This may seem distant to you now but four years can
go much sooner than you might think. And what these
next four years will hold rests squarely up to you and no
one else. There will likely be people helping you financially,
there will be counselors to give you advice, and there will be
teachers and fellow students to lend their aid. But in the
final analysis, these next four years are your years, they
can be whatever you choose to make them.
There will be two paths you can take. You can either
return to the easy, more secure existence with its lesser
rewards or you can meet A&M’s challenge and emerge with
an open mind — a thing so precious that men have died in
the past and will continue dying to defend it.
It’s your decision. And it’s your life.
Why It Never
Rains At A&M
CADET SLOUCH by Jim Earle
“Don’t say a thing to me or ask me a question or anything!
I’m primed for a quiz and you might disarrange my brain
cells!”
Traditions Create
A New Way Of Life
By HERKY KILLINGSWORTH
When it was discovered that I
had attended Texas A&M under
three different football coaches,
it was immediately decided that
I should extend a special message
to the Class of ’70. All I have to
.say is . . . Congratulations.
You've picked a wonderful
school and now that I have ful
filled my duty in glorifying our
campus let rne tell you why our
campus has won the heart of
America, or at least the heart of
our relatives. Well, would you
believe that some people like this
place very much.
The reason A&M is so great is
that glorious invention TRADI
TION. Ever since the tradition
of throwing Christians to the
lions was established back in the
ancient times, tradition has been
a basis for every society, every
country, and even every school.
Every college has its traditions:
Tech likes to party, Rice loves to
study, and Texas tries hard to
win football games. But needless
to say, every tradition must
eventually fall. For example, have
(See Traditions, page 3)
DANCE
Lakeview Club
Friday, Aug. 5
8:30 till 12 Midnight
Dance to the music of
LAKEVIEW PLAYBOYS
DANCE
Lakeview Club
Saturday, Aug. 6 ,
9 p. m till 1 a. m.
BILLY DEATON
and
His Band
Recording Artists
From San Antonio
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Sound Off
Editor
The Battalion,
In a special report on the
shootings Monday at TU, Walter
Cronkite interviewed a Mr. Bakal,
author of a book titled “To Keep
And Bear Arms.” I have not
read Mr. Bakal’s book, but from
the interview, I gather that he
is an advocate of legislation to
restrict sale, ownership and use
of firearms by private citizens.
He specifically mentioned such
things as requiring prospective
gun purchasers to furnish affi
davits pertaining to mental
health, police records, citizenship
and other information. Further,
he would have gun owners regis
ter with local authorities (police),
and even give such authorities
the power to determine who may
or may not own firearms by ar
bitrarily deciding whether or not
to issue permits. By enacting
laws to restrict sale and use of
firearms by private citizens, Mr.
Bakal and other misguided peo
ple think that this will disarm
criminal elements, and crimes in
volving firearms will all but
cease.
New York’s “Sullivan Law”,
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Why doesn’t it rain at A&M? Is it because someone
finally broke down and bought an umbrella? Is it be
cause some farmer’s crop is slowly burning up? Could
it even possibly be caused by atmospheric changes far
above the ground?
The lack of rain on this campus could be caused
by many reasons, but I honestly think that it is a result
of that great rain god, Zeus, (Izten if you’re Hungarian)
looking down upon our little campus and frowning upon
our rain flag. Yes, he’d rather see us burn in the summer
sun than to give reason to fly that old tattered, faded
and torn, red, white, and blue flag. It waves proudly in
the wind but as the days pass, its character seems to fade.
And I’m sure that Zeus is not alone. His chief ad
visors, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and Betsy
Ross, are also condemning the rain on this speck in the
universe. As Zeus roars and thunders in the sky, A&M
stands dry and baron seeing none of the great god’s wrath.
If the noble heritage of our country’s fathers is not
enough to discourage the mighty Zeus, then I’m sure that
that noble gentleman, Lawrence Sullivan Ross, will also
condemn the tattered flag waving and nod solemnly to
Zeus to prevent the approaching rain.
Students of A&M, citizens of College Station, are we
going to continue this practice of waving a flag of which
we are ashamed, a flag that is embarassing for us, the
students of the largest military school in the United
States. When and if ever it rains, lift your eyes to the
flagpole in front of the Academic Building and remember
those days in the past when Washington crossed the Dela
ware, Lincoln spoke at Gettysburg, MacArthur stepped into
the ocean, and Francis Scott Key wrote that patriotic song
which later was to become our national anthem, The Star
Spangled Banner. If the government of the state of Texas
refuses to buy our campus a decent flag, than I’m sure the
federal government will issue forth funds to save the honor
of our national symbol.
Only after this great change has taken place will
Zeus once again wave his arms proudly calling forth rain
and lightening while A&M’s great statesman smiles silently
from his heavenly post.
P.S. As I finish writing this editorial and look out
of the window at the falling rain, I can only say that
“old Zeus” came to the rescue ... he allowed it to rain at
night. When The Battalion runs an editorial, it always
gets results. HK
which “disarmed” New Yorkers
has many of the features which
are being- advocated for the entire
United States. History has
shown, both here, and in other
countries especially, that such
laws were indeed effective in dis
arming law abiding citizens, but
have had little effect on crimi
nals, who get hold of firearms,
regardless of the law.
It is the position of the Nation
al Rifle Association and my own,
(I am a Life Member) that the
answer to crimes involving fire
arms lies not in laws directed
at guns themselves, but at the
misuse of guns. Legislation
which provides heavy penalties
for misuse of firearms, effective
ly and vigorously enforced, would
be a far better deterrent, more in
line with the constitutional right
to keep and bear arms, and cer
tainly more acceptable to the
thousands of Americans who own
and enjoy the use of firearms.
Since the assassination of Presi
dent Kennedy by Lee Oswald
with a mail order rifle, more than
50 anti-gun bills have been in
troduced in Congress. Through
the efforts of the National Rifle
Association, which represents
more than 400,000 active sports
men interested in guns, they have
been thus far blocked. With
Mr. Bakal on national television
less than seven hours after the
incident at Austin, calling for
restrictions on gun ownership by
private citizens, those of us who
own and enjoy the use of fire
arms, whether it be hunting, tin
can plinking, target shooting,
collecting or whatever, must be
(See Sound-Off, page 3)
THE BATTALION
Opinions expressed in The Battalion
are those of the student writers only. The
Battalion is a non tax-supported non
profit, self-supporting educational enter
prise edited and operated by students as
a university and community newspaper.
Members of the Student Publications Board are: Joe Buses;
chairman ; Dr. David Bowers, College of Liberal Arts; Dr.
Robert A. Clark, College of Geosciences; Dr. Frank A. Mc
Donald, College of Science; Dr. J. G. McGuire, College of
Engineering; Dr. Robert S. Titus, College of Veterinary
Medicine; and Dr. A. B. Wooten, College of Agriculture.
The Battalion,
published in Colic
Sunday, and Monc
May, and once
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EDITOR GERALD GARCIA
Editorial Assistants Herky Killingsworth,
John Hotard,
Jim Butler,
Tim Lane
Photographer Herky Killingsworth
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