Opinion
Page 2/The Battalion/Tuesday, April 17, 1984
For
Texas still catching
up on evolution
Texas is trying to catch up with the
rest of the country. Trying, but not
quite succeeding.
Saturday, the Texas State Board of
Education repealed a rule restricting
the way evolution can be discussed in
textbooks. The 10-year-old rule re
quired books to identify evolution “as
one of only several explanations of the
origins of humankind.”
The decision came a month after
state Attorney General Jim Mattox is
sued an opinion that the 1974 rule was
unconstitutional. People for the Amer
ican Way, a national anti-censorship
group, had threatened a lawsuit if the
board did not repeal the rule. The
board wisely followed Mattox’s opin-
million a year on textbooks is no small
order. It appears that other states’ text
book selections will no longer hinge on
an archaic Texas rule.
But that may not be the case.
The board managed to water down
the repeal by amending its guidelines
on general textbook content. The
guideline states that all theories in text
books “be clearly distinguished from
fact and presented in an objective edu
cational manner.”
The repeal may have far-reaching
consequences. Because the state’s text
book market is so large, Texas has
been affecting the publication of text
books throughout the nation. Pub
lishers tailor books for Texas — S80
The ambiguous wording of this
guideline is still potentially dangerous
to public education in Texas and other
states. The loose wording may be ap
plied to theories in any discipline, from
psychology, sociology and economics,
as well as science. Textbooks for these
subjects ultimately may be affected by
the guideline.
The board tried but fell short of
catching up.
—The Battalion Editorial Board
Letters
Argument based
on prejudice
Editor:
In his recent letter to the Battalion,
Wahid Ibrahim tried to substantiate his
anti-Israeli prejudice with flowing emo
tions and distorted facts.
He rejected his option to carry an Is
raeli passport because it bears “the
name of a Jewish prophet and the royal
symbol of a Jewish king.” However, had
he studied the facts he would have dis
covered that the Israeli passport bears
neither a prophet’s name nor any royal
Jewish symbol. Why does Ibrahim re
fuse that document so vehemently?
Ibrahim claimed that Arabs in Israel
are second class citizens, deliberately ig
noring the fact that hundreds of thou
sands of Arabs enjoy in Israel political
liberties unheard of in the Arab world.
Their parliamentary representatives
of nationalistic political opinion object
to the government policies openly and
legally, trying to affect majority deci
sions in democratic ways. Second class
citizens, Mr. Ibrahim, are the Jews in
Syria, who have no civil rights, whose
property is confiscated and whose immi
gration is forbidden.
Israel’s existence was acknowledged
by the civilized world, including Egypt.
Ibrahim’s refusal to recognize reality
will lead only to increasing frustration
and subsequently to Utopic political ex
tremism.
Yossi Mart
Department of Oceanography
Aggies condone
Palestinian acts
Editor:
It seems that Palestinian Arab feath
ers must not be ruffled at Texas A&M,
and that any outrageous act of theirs
must be condoned. Apparently there is
no reason to become upset when some
one else’s ox is being gored.
Examples: On the very day that fifty
civilians were wounded by Palestinian
Arab terrorists in a wild rampage down
a Jerusalem avenue, viewers at the “In
ternational Fest ’84” were treated to the
following: the Israelis, like almost all
others, restricted their booth to culture,
and eschewed politics, as stipulated by
festival rules.
The Palestinian Arabs displayed vit
riol, calumny and hatred.
Upon my making remonstrations, the
chief student organizer of the festival
promised the matter would be looked
into. The next day some of the offend
ing material was still there.
On the day after four Palestinian
thugs hijacked a civilian Israeli bus with
35 people aboard, and the day the
Bryan-College Station Eagle printed a
front-page article on terrorism, The
Battalion saw fit to print a letter by Wa
hid Ibrahim.
This Palestinian Arab who purports
to being a fervent advocate of democ
racy (in the well-known style of the 22
Arab countries, no doubt), in true thou-
sand-and-one-night fantasy form equa
ted Israel with the Ku Klux Klan.
If it is controversy that you are
looking for, I’d be glad to use the stu
dent’s paper to teach Mr. Ibrahim a few
things he might not know (or doesn’t
wish to admit) about Israel and the Pal
estinian Arabs.
I’ll start with only one rebuttal: He
complains “Why should I, a non-Jew, be
forced to carry a passport with the name
of a Jewish prophet and the royal sym
bol of a Jewish king on it?”
On Israel passports, there is no
prophet’s name (unless he was referring
to the issuing authority) and no royal
symbol of a Jewish king. Arabic script,
however, appears along with Hebrew on
Israeli stamps and money.
Robert G. Kenneth
Visiting Professor
Slouch
by Jim Earle
“Don’t worry about that! If you put this
bumper sticker on your car, they’ll know
you ’re an Aggie. ”
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Free speech is
the real issue
Editor:
Although my first reaction to Wahid
Ibrahim’s comments in the April 13 Bat
talion was indifference, upon reflection
his use of my editorial as a springboard
for a diatribe against the state of Israel
bothered me.
Quite obviously we differ on our in
terpretations of the state of democracy
in Israel.
However, I do not expect to resolve
these differences in The Battalion, nor
will I try. What is of more concern was
your total lack of sensitivity to the prob
lem I addressed.
Not only has the Israel Club had
problems with approved and properly
posted banners being torn down, but
the Bahai and Amnesty International
groups have suffered somewhat the
same fate.
Regardless of our respective opinions
about the state of Israel, these actions
have no place on the campus of Texas
A&M.
If Ibrahim chooses to become part of
the Texas A&M community as we have,
and give more than lip service to the
ideals of democracy he is experiencing
here, I invite him to join with the Israel
Club and introduce a resolution at the
next meeting of the International Stu
dents Association stressing opposition to
the limitations of free speech at Texas
A&M.
Perhaps together we can constructi
vely contribute to the continued devel
opment of our school and leave the rhe
toric to the politicians.
Larry Rose
Israel Fest Coordinator
Albritton's gift
appreciated
extre
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lounced Satur
its’ Day cerer
the Buck Weir
tinners and
.ithright Acac
Award winners
Reflect on losses
at Aggie Muster
Editor:
It’s time for Muster again, Aggies. Time
to gather together, remember our times
at Texas A&M, and honor the Aggies
we’ve lost in the past year.
Also this weekend, take a moment to
reflect on some losses that the Univer
sity is experiencing: a memorial to our
World War I dead, the view from the
west gate, and our Board of Regents’
loss of respect for time-honored tradi
tions.
Next fall, when I look from the west
gate towards the center of the campus,
my spirit won’t be “lifted and filled with
the Spirit of Aggieland.” I’ll be filled
with disgust at the enormous egos of
some of our “distinguished” f ormer stu
dents.
John C. Cain
Class of’82
Editor:
I, for one, appreciate the gift oi Winners off
D. Albritton. I think the carillon* re chosen on
a rather nice addition to this camp# tlvement in “i
As you stated in your editorial,! ,n ’ sa jd Ass
plaints will start. But most of tk; tl j t 7 lts
plaints I ve heard concern onlytliei turc | a y Th e
lion, not the gif t itself. n" includes ;
shments and
You also say that “strict guideto ns. The We
gifts should be considered.” Since* st gi ve ^ i n 1
did anyone let The BattalionEA
Board dictate what gifts this unit! J
will accept r :eive. Winnei
Maybe the money for the elf tchandafrai
flame at Kyle Field should have! The Gathri
spent on books. Perhaps all them me d >n hon
ever given to this University shoul ^
spent on books. But then, whok f’ • oinas
■ . . ’ e winners n
teac 1 ^ I rtificates for 1
K grade-point
Jllege classifies
I’m not discounting the imporliiWinners of t!
of books. They are a very valuablel pirit Award an
in the process of education. IjtlSiI Freshmen:
T he Battalion Editorial Board hasw lon ’ taroI y i
™'« „ fce JOSef
Albritton offered the bell tower.Ii Sophomor
the money. So quit bitching and en Ins, Sharon
Brian Birr >
Class ol I
Nixon doesn't understand his crime
By ARNOLD SAWISLAK
Columnist for United Press International
Richard Nixon still doesn’t seem to
understand.
He now is telling us (on CBS in three
installments for a reported $500,000)
that the Watergate break-in was wrong
and stupid and the effort to cover it up
was even worse. He says giving up the
presidency was the most profound way
he could have said he was sorry.
Not quite. After 11 years, Nixon ap
parently still doesn’t see what the worst
part of Watergate was.
It is not that he and his agents broke
the law and got caught because they
weren’t clever enough to get away with
it. That is like relegating what happened
in Watergate to the status of a technical
violation of the tax code or a speeding
violation. It trivializes the real crime of
Watergate.
What Nixon did and cannot admit is
that he hurt his country as surely and
perhaps more seriously than the spy
who sells military secrets to an enemy.
He and his people hurt the country
by contributing to the decline of the ide
alism that Americans still have about
their country and their system of gov
erning themselves. The pervasive cyn
icism that underlay the entire Watergate
episode was a sneering denial of some of
the basic values of American life.
It is easy to point out that the ideals of
fair play, equality before the law and the
trust conferred on those who are given
public office frequently are violated in
this country.
But most Americans believe these va
lues are worth striving for and are part
of what makes the United States tlje best
country in the world. To them, these
and other “naive” ideas are what sepa
rate this country from the corrosive cor
ruption that afflicts many older and
more “sophisticated” nations.
For the man entrusted with the high
est office the people can confer to wipe
his feet on these ideals in the name of
political expediency is a crime far worse
than burglary or conspiracy to conceal a
crime. It is the murder ofa dream that
sustains a national purpose.
Nixon twice took an oath to “pre
serve, protect and defend the Constitu
tion.” Then he and people acting his
name trampled on the Constitution and
the laws that are based on it. They made
a mockery of the proposition that all of
us, presidents and paupers, must live by
the same basic rules of conduct. They
put themselves above the law.
Fascist and communist dictatorif
that. Kings, claiming they have a
right to rule, do that. Americans® |
that their presidents won’t doth;
won’t allow the people who wo;
them to do that.
But in his most recent public
ances, this former president c
United States does not speak oN |
or ideals or trust. He tells us only
feet, “I broke the law. I got'cat$
paid the penalty. I owe no more.”
It is possible that Richard Nixoi
pay no more because he does noi
cannot understand what it is he
That irrdeed would be a tragedy.it
man terms perhaps the saddest p®
the whole sorry affair.
The Battalion
USPS 045 360
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
Editor Rebeca Zimmermann
Managing Editor John Wagner
City Editor Patrice Koranek
Assistant City Editors Kathleen Hart,
Stephanie Ross
News Editor Tracey Taylor
Assistant News Editors Susan Talbot,
Brigid Brockman, Michelle Powe, Kelley Smith
Editorial Page Editor Kathy Wiesepape
Sports Editor Bonn Friedman
Assistant Sports Editor Bill Robinson
Entertainment Editor Shelley Hoekstra
Assistant Entertainment Editor Angel Stokes
managing editor, city editor, news editor.
rial page editor and sports editor.
Letters Policy
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Reader’s Forum columns and guest edh^ L
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itorial Page Editor.
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Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those
of the Editorial Board or the author, and do not
necessarily represent the opinions of Texas
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gents. The Editorial Board consists of the editor.
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