opinion
Battalion/Papi
February 5,1
Said.
Safe from the parking lot demons
Every time I have to park illegally on
campus, an almost regular occurrence, I
say a prayer that my car’s guardian angel
will protect it from the ticket-writing de
mons who never seem to have the least
little bit of grace in their hearts.
I remember once when I was a fresh
man and suffering from an illness I
wouldn’t even wish on my worst enemy.
Because no parking spaces were available
in front of the health center and because
I felt the sudden urge to hang my head
over a paper bag, I pulled into the staff
parking lot behind the All Faith’s Chapel.
Like most freshmen, I was afraid of
doing anything on campus illegally for
fear I’d be banished from here forever,
so I scrawled a note begging the parking
lot demons to be kind to me just this once,
slipped it under the windshield wiper
and made my way to the doctor’s office.
After an hour or so, I returned to my
car with a bag full of medicine and no
worries about having a parking ticket.
But there it was — waving up at me
from underneath the windshield wiper
where I had left my plea for sympathy. I
was crushed. I wanted to hang my head
again — only this time 1 wanted to cry. I
wondered if everyone around here was
as heartless as that unseen demon who
gave me a parking ticket.
Four years later, I’m not so fearful of
being banished from campus for parking
in the wrong place.
What scares me most is having to parti
cipate in the winner-take-all parking
space search in Zachry parking lot. I’ve
started getting to campus 45 minutes ear
ly in an effort to avoid getting caught in
the “great parking space race.” But a few
times, I’ve had to grip the steering wheel,
maneuver my car like it was a tank on the
battle field and think of all other parking
space hunters as enemies.
In a way the search reminds me of the
time I clobbered my best friend because
we both spotted the same Easter egg in
the all-important third grade egg hunt. I
just knew I wanted that egg more than
she did — or at least I thought so.
I’m not so vicious anymore, but you
never know when I’ll get that greedy feel
ing about a parking space — now that
parking tickets don’t frighten me and
now that I know more than 7,650 cars
have parking permits for which no spaces
are available.
I just have to keep praying the parking
lot demons don’t find out about the phe
nomenal number of unpaid tickets I have
and tow my car away.
But if you park in Zachry parking lot,
you have to worry about the parking lot
demons and if I happen to spot a space
the same time you do, you have to worry
about me, too. Remember, I’m the one
who clobbered my best friend over a
green egg — and I don’t even like eggs.
Letter: Tradition not ‘trashy’ at all
Dear Editor:
Traditions are a big part of Texas
A&M. They are just little, yet sometimes
fairly big, displays of unity, spirit and
loyalty that someone thought up years
ago, people liked, and so have been
around ever since. Most traditions have
been taken to heart by the Aggies without
much commotion. However, there is a
fairly new tradition on campus that in
volves The Battalion and basketball
which has come under recent fire since
Monday’s A&M vs. UH game. It’s the
tradition of holding up newspapers (Bat
talions) while the opposing team’s lineup
is being announced. It seems that some
anonymous someone, a perturbed Batta
lion editor I fear, has decided for us that
this tradition is trashy and no good for
A&M’s image, that it is a pain for those
;•< who have to clean it up, that it causes a
shortage of Battalions, and that it is not
going unnoticed. First of all, who is he or
she (whoever you are) to decide what is
good and what is trashy for this Universi-
. ty’s image? (We must learn to leave our
image in the hands of Mr. Bright because
£> of the unbelievable job he is doing.)
Second, those people who have to clean
up after the games are getting paid for
v their services. If we leave the place spot
less, the won’t have anything to do, thus a
waste of money.
So in theory, we are actually saving
money by messing up the place. As for
the shortage of Battalions, that is a prob
lem. There should always be enough for
those who could not pick up a copy be
tween delivery and 7 p.m.! Finally, the
worries about the tradition being noticed
I believe is unjustified and a little odd tit
least. Isn’t that what most traditions are
supposed to be? It would certainly be
wonderful if all 60 thousand fans at Kyle
Field whispered the Aggie War Hymn at
football games or only mentally cheered
our Ags to victory Monday night in G.
Rollie without making a sound so no one
would notice. What would be the use? I
really don’t understand the logic of that
one. This so-called “trashy” tradition is a
good one. People like it (and besides, it
looks neat). Maybe someone can work
our a deal to collect old issues of the Bat
talion so they can be used instead of cur
rent issues.
Rob Wohrer
Editor’s note: Unsigned editorials
appearing on the Opinion page are writ
ten by The Battalion’s editorial board
consisting of all editors and represent
views of The Battalion.
Editor:
I am writing in response to the de
nouncement of the “trashy” tradition in
the Wednesday, February 3 edition of
The Battalion.
The only legitimate gripe this article
presents is the potential mess this ritual
creates. If it really is a problem, trash
receptacles could be passed around and
the yell leaders could organize a quick
clean-up effort before the game. Or the
fans could be discouraged from flinging
their newspapers around after hiding
their faces with them.
The author condemns the economics
of this tradition. Baloney! Any newspap
er’s goal is to ever pursue a larger circula
tion. I am willing to bet that nearly every
one of the “wasted” Battalions are actual
ly read (many from cover-to-cover in
cluding the want ads) just as a football
program would be read before the game.
There simply is not much else to do when
standing in front of G. Rollie White for
two hours waiting to get a seat in the
much sought-after student section. The
brain trust of the Battalion should realize
that home basketball games will be high
demand days, charge more money for
advertising, and print more papers those
days. If nothing else, people could be
encouraged to bring day-old papers and
hometown papers to the games to con
serve Battalions.
Finally, the author questions the vir
tues of this tradition and condemns it as
“bad sportsmanship” and as being
“rude.” As far as I can tell, this reception
is one of the more mellow ways to greet
an opposing team. Most college home-
court fans boo or scream organized
obscenities at the opposing team’s start
ing lineup. Let’s face it, we are not attend
ing an elite English tennis tournament
where spectators politely applaud each
player and each point. Most of us Aggies
go to cheer as the Twelfth Man or, I guess
in this case, as the “sixth man.” How can
this tradition be isolated as “bad sport
smanship” after we scream “beat the hell
outta” the opponent? This new tradition
is only a show of visual indifference that
parallels the silence presented during
opponent’s introductions throughout
the years.
I do not think this new tradition tar
nishes Texas A&M’s image. Personally, I
am glad to say that our school has an
imaginative, non-obscene way of greet
ing opposing players. It is another way of
throwing the opponent off guard and
showing our team support.
Roy Corcoran ’84
Dunn
Correction
In Thursday’s Focus under the “Bad
Bull” awards Company C-l was listed as
participating in the Annual Flight of the
Great Pumpkin. It is Company C-2 that
holds this event annally. Focus and The
Battalion regret the error.
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by Dick West
United Press International
WASHINGTON — For as many years
as I can remember, I have felt a strange
sense of kinship with Brussels sprouts.
I don’t mean I looked upon Brussels
sprouts as long lost cousins or anything
like that. The consanguineous feeling
wasn’t that strong.
It was merely a vague sense of belong
ing, a nebulous impression that when I
was around Brussels sprouts I was among
my own kind. Had it not been for Ray
Valentine, a California agronomist, I
probably would have continued to shrug
off the apperception as just another un
explained psychic phenomenon.
The eye-opener was a news item about
microbiotic research involving nodules
found on soybean roots.
According to Valentine, discovery that
these nodules contain a fluid similar to
blood pigments indicates that human
beings and soybeans are distantly related.
I don’t know what emotions this news
might have aroused in you, but for me it
added literal meaning to “Roots,” Alex
Haley’s metaphorical book title.
Presumably, if we dig down deep
enough into our geneological back
ground, we may uncover family ties with
turnips, radishes and possibly even egg
plants.
In any event, it now appears likely that
at some point back around the dawning
of time, Brussels sprouts and I had a
common ancestry. That would explain
the vestigial sense of identification I get
when I pass through the vegetable sec
tion of a supermarket. ^
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It appears my subconscious has^tiCenter w
dredging up signals similar to ther»ransferii
tions we get at a family reunion. Hofticesat
No matter what microbiologia " Dl -
search shows, however, I amnotif | ot jj cac T;
could ever claim kin with soybeans 1 j ‘
Okra maybe. And certainly I Cent<
proud to share a genealogical liu ^dent cm
with blackeyed peas. But I wouldipjmerge w
luctant to believe that soybeansr'^selihg S
sprang from the same antecedenli space in
T he plants, we are told.ai 'C 2-tol counsclh
tall and are covered with short,j|g m i nate S(
brown or gray hairs. That doesn’tst |isted bet
much like a family trait, Aunt Luo'' Althi
contrary notwithstanding. function
. Even the fact that the soybean f 'Counsel]
produce pods seems inconcij ^ by ot
although Aunt Lucy had pods all 5 uctions
her body. ' mer |^ e
ference,
At some point, apparently, there* (of the C<
division of the species with maw the Of fi
going one way and cauliflower ana' (’other tv
Should that theory prove valid, itijP
lend a whole new dimension to tliti f -j--,
lively new science of genetic engines ' p Z A
I would be hard-pressed to ptf ^
where gene-splicing, with humanp -
spliced to asparagus, might lead, \
test-tube broccoli in our future!' J
1984 just around the corner, anyifc f,i
possible. 1
Ever since Darwin, evolutionists' ^
led us to believe that we descended '
an ape-like creature. ButifTamreS a
these latest findings correctly, the ! J
sing link” actually may have beeiF
like a zucchini.
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The Battalion
USES 045 360
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
Editor Angelique Copeland
Managing Editor JaneG. Brust
City Editor Denise Richter
Assistant City Editor Diana Sultenfuss
Sports Editor Frank L. Christlieb
Focus Editor Cathy Saathoff
Assistant Focus Editor Nancy Floeck
News Editors Gary Barker,
Phyllis Henderson, Mary Jo Rummel,
Nancy Weatherley
Staff Writers Jennifer Carr,
John Bramblett, Gaye Denley,
Sandra Gary, Colette Hutchings,
Johna Jo Maurer, Daniel Puckett,
Bill Robinson, Denise Sechelski,
l.aura Williams, Rebecca Zimmertnann
Cartoonist Scott McCullar
Graphic Artist Richard DeLeon Jr.
Photographers Sumanesh Agrawal,
David Fisher, Eileen Manton,
Eric Mitchell, Peter Rocha,
John Ryan, Colin Valentine
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pressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or the
author, and do not necessarily represent thcopf>
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Iters, or of the Board of Regents.
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Questions or comments concerning any d i: ‘
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The editorial rftaff reserves the right to edit ta lfF
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Columns and guest editorials are also welcoi*
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Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed Mcfc'
Building, Texas A&M University, College Statiot
77843.
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United Press International is entitled exclusi' (J
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