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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 9, 1982)
opinion Battalion/Page 2 December 9,1982 Slouch By Jim Earle “I’m at the crossroads trying to decide whether it’s best to go into finals rested, with a clear mind or to study hard and risk damaging my rested clear mind!” Thoughts behind naming weapons by Art Buchwald l You may have noted that the new ijame for the MX missile is “The Peacekeeper.” As much thought went into what to call the missile as to where to put it. You can say what you want about ©ur military planners, but when it comes t<) naming mega-death weapons they know their business, i An entire military establishment is in volved in thinking up new names for weapons. It is one of the most important divisiohs jh. the Pentagcih, because when f)efense is acquiring new hardware it doesn’t want to tip off the taxpayer that it is buying a weapon that can obliterate bullions of people. J Digby Trident, who is in charge of biarket research at Defense, told me: ‘JWe spend a lot of time and money think ing up names for our new weapons. The more innocent the name, the better chance we have of the public accepting ML.” < “How do you work?” 1 “Let’s take the ‘Cruise Missile.’ The name was selected over others after a great deal of market research in on-the- 4treet interviews. The pollsters asked people first how they felt about a new, improved ‘Hiroshima Plus Missile’ and Received an overwhelmingly negative Reaction. Then they were questioned how they’d like one called ‘Sudden Death.’ The male respondents said the pame appealed to them because it re minded them of professional football, but most females said the first thing that came to their minds was a lot of families being wasted.” “Women always tend to be more squeamish when it comes to war,” I agreed. “Finally we asked what came to mind when they saw the words ‘Cruise Missile.’ The majority of those questioned said it made them think of a nice boat on a smooth sea. Eighty percent said they Would buy a ticket on a cruise missile, even if they didn’t know where it was going.” “We First thought of calling the MX the ‘Fratricide’ missile, but when we test mar keted that name we found people thought it meant killing your brother. Then the White House called back and said the President wanted to use the MX missiles as a chip in disarmament talks in Geneva, and he would like a name that would not only alleviate the fears of American Catholic Biships, but also give a message to the Soviets that we were serious about wanting to cut down on the arms race. So we came up with ‘Peacekeeper’ which is probably the greatest brand name for a nuclear weapon that we ever thought of.” “It tells the whole story, as far as we’re concerned. It’s got the carrot AND the stick.” “What’s the carrot?” “The name ‘Peacekeeper.’” “And what’s the stick?” “The missile itself. With 10 nuclear warheads on each, we’ve got the greatest saber-rattler in the business.” The Battalion USPS 045 360 Member ot Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism, Conference Texas A&M University administrators or faculty mem bers, or of the Board of Regents. The Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspaper for students in reporting, editing and photography clas ses within the Department of Communications. Questions or comments concerning any editorial matter should be directed to the editor. Editor Diana Sultenfuss Managing Editor C ar X Barker Associate Editor Denise Richter City Editor. , Hope E. Paasch Sports Editor J°h n Wagner Entertainment Editor Colette Hutchings Assistant Entertainment Editor Diane Yount News Editors. . . Jennif er Carr, Elaine Engstrom, Beverly Hamilton, Jan Werner, Rebeca Zimmer- mann Staff Writers Maureen Carmody, Frank Christlieb, Susan Dittman, Patrice Koranek, John Lopez, Robert MeGlohon, Ann Ramsboitom. Kim Schmidt, Patti Schwierzke, Angel Stokes, Tracey Taylor, Joe Tindel Copyeditors Jan Swaner, Chris Thayer Cartoonist Scott McCullar Graphic Artist. Pam Starasinic Photographers David Fisher, Jorge Casari, Ronald W. Emerson, Octavio Garcia, Rob Johnston, Irene Mees Letters Policy Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300 words in length, and are subject to being cut if they are longer. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit letters for style and length, but will make every effort to maintain the author’s intent. Each letter must also be signed and show the address and phone number of the writer. Columns and guest editorials are also welcome, and are not subject to the same length constraints as letters. Address all inquiries and correspondence to: Editor, The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald, Texas A&M Uni versity, College Station, TX 77843, or phone (713) 845- 2611. Editorial Policy The Battalion is published daily during Texas A&M’s fall and spring semesters, except for holiday and exami nation periods. Mail subscriptions arc $ 16.75 per semes ter, $33.25 per school year and $35 per full year. Adver tising rates furnished on request. Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843. 1 he Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting news paper operated as a community service to Texas A&M University and Bryan-College Station. Opinions ex pressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or the author, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of United Press International is entitled exclusively to the use for reproduction of all news dispatches credited to it. Rights of reproduction of all other matter herein reserved. Second class postage paid at College Station, TX 77843. Front runners and by Arnold Sawislak United Press International WASHINGTON — A lot can be said about the advantages of a fast start in politics, but with Sen. Edward Kennedy out of the 1984 presidential picture, the remaining hopefuls should consider the perils of front-running. When Kennedy declared himself out of the running, he left former Vice President Walter Mondale as the natural frontrunner for the Democratic nomination. As a number of poli ticians have learned in the recent past, that does not mean Mondale is home free. Satchell Paige’s dictum, “Don’t look back. Something may be gaining on you,” is good advice for athletes, but it is superfluous for presidential candidates. If they are running ahead, especially in the earliest stages of a campaign, they can be sure all kinds of some things and someones are trying to gain on them. Witness what happened to George Romney in 1968 and to Edmund Muskie in 1972. Romney, then governor of Michigan and regarded as a hot prospect for the Republican presidential nomination, got out front early in 1967 and, while Richard Nixon lay back and waited, had the full time and attention of the political press. Thus, when Romney observed in an off hand way that he was “brain washed” by U.S. generals during a visit to Vietnam, the media jumped on the comment and Romney’s rivals jumped on him. His presidential candidacy never recovered. Nixon, a firm believer in timing as the key to political success, was ready to step into the lead — after he was assured that there was very little competition behind him. Muskie had the same kind of experience when he was the Democratic front-runner four years later. He did a marvelous job of signing up supporters among Democratic leaders even before he went to the rank and file voters. But in his first primary campaign, with re porters following his every move, Muskie let himself get embroiled in a dispute with a dis putatious newspaper editor, and — whether he really shed tears or not on that snowy day in Manchester, N.H.—came off as a man who by R me Wednesd T$on on a could not keep his cool when thesitm; hot. Another candidacy ruinedbyani that easily could have been totallyigno Muskie not been the frontrunner. The hazards of front-runningwetc mind of political strategist John Sfiri he counseled Ronald Reagan toavoi; ing the entire Republican field ill lit I The e> years ago. Tthe MS' Leaving Iowa to George Bush mil! the temporary frontrunner and Reif; able to deal a near-fatal blow to " paign by appearing to be the champion GOP underdogs at their famous this microphone” debate at The irony of it all was that Sears that same day. Mondale is aware of all thisrecem He certainly isn’t going to publiclycot about being regarded as the leadetfs 1984 Democratic nomination, bull* going to make a big deal about iteitte former vice president doesn’t havetob ots to beled w om a di Memoria The i arge oi made ht bee ie asso Jed pot Monday. I The k wisdom of old Satch to knowthattlm the end herd of Democrats behind him just for him to trip. near the y the “How did you come up with the name ‘Trident’ for the new nuclear sub marine?” “We had originally named it ‘Killer Shark.’ But it turned out that several dov ish senators on the Armed Services Com mittee had seen the Film ‘Jaws’ and de cided to withhold appropriations for it. Since we didn’t have another name ready for it and were Fighting a deadline, the Admirals said: ‘We don’t care what you call it, Trident. We’ve got to have it.’ “The Admiral who was scheduled to testify on the submarine in front of the committee is hard of hearing, and thought we had named it ‘Trident.’ So that’s what he called it when he made his case before the senators, and they loved it. There are a lot of people around here who thought I Fixed it so I could have a class of submarine named after me, but I’m completely innocent.” “Where did you find the name ‘Peacekeeper’ for an MX missile?” I Against i portrays Sard hat. with cop ion” —: Ion — ; what S.V ! Mond: femove I the displ without i I S.W.A edpot’ lasting ilaced h Jerature mas barl And : bit of no fjon — Christm ing its o ' ATe: ftted thi iJnivers: main fo 1 Jlistratio Letters: Bicycle safety problems Editor: mor, and to attempt to blindly guide the reader to whatever the writers attributed I would like to raise an issue that has needed to be brought to the public’s attention for quite some time. This issue involves the safety concerning two wheeled vehicles. One day, a student proceeded through an intersection, having the legal right of way. Not yielding to the Moped, a car pulled out in front of him causing him to swerve and slide under the car. Luckily enough he did not slide in front of one of the tires and get crushed. Exactly one week later, another stu dent was faced with the same situation riding her Moped through campus. Again, she too was not seriously hurt. These two accidents are not isolated incidents. Unfortunately, quite often the victims are not so lucky as to escape with only minor injuries. Caught up in a daily rush, we simply don’t realize how unprotected two wheeled vehicles are. No matter who is at fault, though, the two-wheeled riders have the most to loose. How can we not be more careful with other’s lives at stake? The best solution to this problem is for motorists to be aware of the vulnerability of bikes and Mopeds. So please, take a little more time, be a little more careful, and think twice before risking yours or another person’s safety. as correct reasoning. Their poor use of logical argumenta tion was littered with name calling (Argumentum ad Hominem), complex questioning, appealing to authority (Argumentum ad Verecudian), etc. The latter is the most interesting of the falla cies they expressed, even though the fal lacy first mentioned was the most preva lent. T hroughout the paper it seems as though Lyndon H. LaRouche Jr. is some sort of “man with all the answers.” I have not the slightest idea who he is, or his Univers The industr qualifications for his remarks, bi ajjpears to be the repudiated auil that is continuously looked toandiji in this newspaper. The NationalDc ^ ut ra F cratic Policy Committee (NDPQapp P* a< den to be his own little political “Mooniel ra cult. The New Solidarity newspaperf excellent example of political de« guery, and appears to be moreinteri in a communist and fascist witcli-l than it is interested in politicalawareii: The Virginia K&KEv Farms o 37 tree which r: The Orij ago in I Dave lie Hart IS Lucinda Weiss ’85 Editors Note: This letter was accompa nied by 52 other signatures. New Solidarity Editor: Concerning the newspaper New Soli darity, I was more than a little chagrined by the journalism and argumentation ex pressed by the newspaper. As far as the journalism is concerned, the subject matter for their articles were out of date for the most part, and the articles were also extremely biased with no objectivity whatsoever. Their use of rhetoric heavily out weighed their use of logic, and both were extreme and inadequate, respectively. The rhetoric was an extreme example of “shock action” propaganda. It was meant to cloud the issues with emotional cla- Berry s World ©1982 by ii-^ grower million said. Pop also ha Ition o TreeG has me Allt husine: careful ductioi the ne new p advant tnarke 1 Tex are gai "/ thought it was just the PLAYERS who were going to approach every game as if it were a playoff game!"