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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 8, 1980)
Viewpoint The Battalion Texas A&M University Monday December 8, 1980 It is ci Texas A& dents spe the total c jpxtbooks Even dents wh< ed at the required dboun To cor gsituati ood, M jisposabl Instea Jjhese to "tabloid-ni Ray 1 By Jim Earle /4^LoT~ a >[/gy Its my collection of parking lot barricade bars. ‘Hysteria ’ warning can t be taken lightly By DAVID S. BRODER WASHINGTON — Vernon Jordan, the president of the Urban League, is one of the few people I have ever known — John B. Con- nally is another — who could go through an assasination attempt, be severely wounded and come away from the experience as clear in his judgment and unemotional in his tone as he was beforehand. So when Vernon Jordan says on a national television program, as he did the other day on CBS’ Face the Nation, that “there is an unusual amount of hysteria in the black community,” it needs to be taken seriously. There is no mystery about the source of that “hysteria.” It has been fed by economic forces, instances of violence and fears of political re prisal. While inflation has been a curse for ev ery American, the decline in real incomes has been felt with particular severity in communi ties where there are more poor and unem ployed than anywhere else. But black communities have also reacted with anger and fear to unsolved waves of mur ders in cities like Atlanta, and to the acquittal of whites involved in deaths of blacks in Greens boro, N.C., and Miami, among other places. Even the unsolved assault which hospitalized Jordan and nearly claimed his life earlier this year has added to the tension. Last month’s election was an added blow to confidence of black Americans about their pros pects in this society. It is easy — and, to some extent, accurate — to say this fear resulted from the exaggerated rhetoric President Carter used in his efforts to rally black support to his side. But there is also a reality which blacks under stand and which whites need to understand as well, in order to recognize the danger of social disintegration which men like Jordan foresee. The political reality is this: Blacks were trans formed by the 1980 election from being at the very center of a coalition which brought a Presi dent to power to being the most conspicuous outsiders at the new government’s victory celebration. It is only by understanding the extent of that power transformation that one can glimpse the reasons for the “hysteria” of which Jordan spoke. Jimmy Carter was more indebted to black voters and black leaders than any President in our history. It was the testimony of black lead ers from Atlanta that first persuaded skeptical white liberals to support the lame-duck gov ernor of Georgia against George Wallace in the Florida primary of 1976. Their testimony res cued him from serious trouble in the “ethnic purity” escapade in the spring of 1976. Their votes provided the margin of victory for him in the crucial Florda and Pennsylvania primaries and in the general election of 1976. Warped What is Dead Week? A faro Name comes from pushing students until we drop Dead Week — What is it? As a high school senior, I thought it meant no class the week before finals. As a college freshman, I soon learned that I still had to go to class. But I thought, “Well that’s okay; it’s probably better to go to classes and have a week of review sessions anyway. As a college sophomore, I’m beginning to catch on that dead week is just like any other week of school, maybe worse. It seems to me that it’s more like a week for professors to cram in all of the material that was supposed to be covered earlier. (You know the five remaining chapters in your psychology class that are sup posed to be read by Friday.) I have to admit, 1 was really feeling cheated. After all we re supposed to review and study that week, not learn new material. And after all my friends at Texas Tech and t. u. have the week off. Don’t they? I’m sorry to report that all of my precon ceived notions about dead week were wrong. Texas A&M University Buies and Regula tions say: “During the regular two semesters no examinations (except in courses carrying one credit hour of theory or practice, optional tests, for special credit, and make-up tests) shall be given during the week beginning five (5) class Staff notebook By Cindy Gee still holds classes during dead week- don’t have any examinations bona fide make-up exams. Dr. James Hurst, dean of University of Texas, said: “Wejiistj inioi mal undei st.mdmu that no exaroi ' a p e rBo< days prior to the first day of final examinations. Nowhere does it say anything about having to review, and all of those exceptions can keep a student very busy. There are lab finals, P.E. finals, night class finals, make-up tests, tests to help improve your grade, and even tests you can chose to take instead of the final. Another misconception I had about dead week was that student organizations aren’t sup posed to schedule meetings that week. Dr. Carolyn Adair, director of student activities, said there never has been anything that says activities should be slowed or speeded up that week. She said, “We’re not for or against it. And furthermore, where I got the idea that my teasip and Red Raider friends didn’t have class that week, I don’t know. I guess it’s really just like any other week for them too — to go to happy hour instead of class. Dr. Len Ainsworth, interim vice president for academic affairs at Texas Tech, said Tech assigned the week before finals. We a formal dead week, and we don’ttnti it.” He said they do have a “deadday For example, finals begin on Friday, doesn t have classes the Thursday bdi “There’s a lot more comniittraenli dication that week, he said Mol; use it to scramble for their lives. So why do they call it dead weekPCu that the name comes from a practice]* have to see just how far they can pi 1 without killing him? I don’t know Then again, 1 have to ask myseKfl have the right to feel cheated. After4, have been learning the materia semester, right professor? And tka would I really spend the whole weeksti Knowing me Id probably take oft to D Christmas shop or something. So what have I concluded? Dead Week is a farce! impany fier a su erage c “By pr 'loid form irinting t 1 price Molon; textbook one tabic Paperl When Carter acknowledged that debt by re- congnizing blacks with more appointments to positions of power in government than they had ever previously enjoyed, he was doing no more than politics and conscience dictated. Blacks — including Jordan — had their disagreements and disappointments with the economic poli cies of the Garter administration, and they voiced them vigorously. But in the election last month, as Jordan remarked, just about “the only group of voters who stayed on the sinking ship were black vo ters.” About 85 percent of the blacks supported Garter, a figure that was approached only by the Hispanics. Almost every white element of the old Democratic coalition saw serious defections to the Reagan-Republican column. And that was not the end of it. Despite pre election assurances from some prominent white liberals that the future of the courts would be “protected” from the consequences of a Reagan victory by the Democratic majority in the Sen ate, that safeguard too was swept away in the political revolution of Nov. 4. Now, blacks know that it will be Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.), who bolted the Democra tic party to protest its commitment to civil rights, and not Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (D- Mass.), who will be conducting the hearings on Reagan’s judicial nominees. Thurmond has called already for repeal or substantial revision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, perhaps the most effective step ever taken for the political empowerment of blacks. Other new Republican Senate committee chairmen are talking about curbing or outlaw ing affirmative action programs, curtailing food stamps and other programs whose benefits are of particular value to the victims of poverty and discrimination. Under the circumstances, it requires no great sensitivity on the part of whites to under stand the “hysteria” of blacks. Reagan himself, his transtition budget supervisor, Caspar L. Weinberger, and such prominent Reagan sup porters as Rep. Jack Kemp (R-N.Y.) have gone out of their way to assure blacks that they need have no fear of the consequences of the political shift. Jordan, for one, says that he is prepared to give Reagan “the benefit of the doubt” and to defer judgment until he sees the appointments, the budget and the program of the new Presi dent. That deference is appropriate. But in the meantime, all of us — in our own communities and groups, our own jobs and associations — ought to be mindful that this is a time when it is particularly important for com- muniction across the racial lines that tragically still divide American society. It’s your turn —■ Bonfire efforts could go elsewhere It’s 3 a. i your respi ssure g lids, lelax, y lease — eye movei I It is dur hallucinate l These ] were the tc University [Approxi resear dder Tc 'ohen e ecially Out of time, aj at worl ohen e ep a niy REM peri; ;d. Accordii aming. ring mi ing p. persoi M slee] its, inch In, and j n, he s Cohen i nd durii , “We pla the phrase riod is li then w other ar onectii is phi mind whei Cohen s »ood and “This is l Editor: I must agree with Sam MeClatchie’s letter of Dec. 4 about the wastefulness of Aggie bonfire. However, I believe it’s a fact that the trees are used usually from an area that will be cleared and burned anyway. Also, even though poor people in other parts of the world could greatly benefit from this firewood, the cost of getting it to them is prohibitive. I have no quarrels with the waste of wood or any possible contamina tion of the environment caused by this tradi tion. What I do lament is the waste of human and other non-wood resources, like cutting, hauling and stacking equipment. I have heard that if the equipment was all rented, necessary supplies, like gasoline, bought, and workers paid the minimum wage, the bonfire would cost over $1 million annually! That figure may be inflated, but, think what a million dollars in effort could do! A million dol lars could construct 20 decent houses, fix all the streets in the Bryan-College Station area, or even build Kyle Field that much bigger, if that’s what you wanted. Or think what a million dollar annual charity project could do for the well-being of this area and the reputation of this university. It would give us Aggies something to really be proud of! Guy Hallman Sect as di Cohen h fcam per ato a worl 4ps betw j> We ho] delusion MS( Apologies for chimes Editor: I would like to address this letter to Mr. Jay Stanish and to anyone else who attended Silver Taps on Dec. 2. The musii heard fromtii chimes during the ceremony was,[ft ;a about mistake. An error was made in progtf the new chimes and unfortunately tk set of songs was played. The Class oH ated these chimes to the University*! intention that they, among other things the Silver Taps ceremony. As president Class of’81, I accept the ultimate respe» ! for this most unfortunate error and apo!' assure you such a mistake will not ben 1 the future. jess' Class of ’81 Ff ( By Scott McCuilar The Battalion ISPS 015 :)60 MEMBER Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism ( ougre Questions or comments tvneerninf! Ml} (' should he directed to the editor. '(litorinl 1 Editor Dillard Stone Managing Editor Rhonda Watters Asst. Managing Editor Scott Haring City Editor Becky Swanson Asst. City Editor Angelique Copeland Sports Editor Richard Oliver Asst. Sports Editor . Ritchie Priddy Focus Editor Scot K. Meyer Asst. Focus Editor Cathy Saathoff News Editors Lynn Blanco, Todd Woodard Staff Writers Jennifer Afflerbach, Kurt Allen, Nancy Andersen, Marcy Boyce, Jane G. Brust Mike Burrichter, Pat Davidson, Cindy Gee Jon Heidtke, Uschi Michel-Howell, Debbie Nelson ‘ Liz Newlin, Rick Stolle Cartoonist Scott McCuilar Photo Editor Pat O’Malley Photographers George Dolan, Greg Gammon, Jeff Kerber EDITORIAL POLICY The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting newspaper op erated as a community service to Texas A&M University and Bryan-College Station. Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or the author, and do not necessarily repre sent the opinions of Texas A&M University administrators or faculty members, or of the Board of Regents, LETTERS POLIO Letters to the Editor should not exceed and are subject to being cut ii they arc longer. J reserves the right to edit letters for style ^ make every effort to maintain the author's int''" 1 'f. must also be signed, show the address andphom' n 11111 writer. ’ j if Columns and guest editorials are also mhitne. ® subject to the same length constraints as inquiries and correspondence In: Editor, Vie ,, Reed McDonald, Texas A&M University. Cim’- 77843. The Battalion is published daily during Tex* . spring semesters, except for holiday and Mail subscriptions are $16.75 per semester, year and $35 per full year. Advertising rates tun ( l uest - TX i'W 3 ’ Texas A&M University. College Station. United Press International is entitled exclnsi'*^^ for reproduction of all news reproduction of all other matter herein ^ ft 1 Second class postage paid at Ci>ll<K l ^ onal is < 1111111 i .JiiiiU dispatches.^ • herein 3 De Ticl Adr