Opinion
Page 2/The Battalion/Monday, September 3, 1984
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Cadets alone
not to blame
The three juniors in outfit F-l who took Cadet Bruce
Goodrich on his last early morning run are not solely to
blame for his death. The offical cause of his death is un
known and exactly what happened that morning may never
be determined. The Corps of Cadets, and their long-held
traditions whether they are thought of as good or bad, are
not to blame either. Neither are any Texas A&M University
Officials.
Not even the Texas A&M Board of Regents should ac
cept the blame for this death.
Everyone — not just University officials or Cadets —
should snare the blame equally. Everyone who has ever bro
ken a rule. Everyone who has stood by as someone else
broke a rule — no matter how inconsequential that rule
seemed at the time.
People that park in front of the ‘No Parking Anytime’
signs when they go to Church on Sunday morning, speed
through school zones, don’t follow traffic rules while riding
bikes or drive home when they know they’ve had too many
drinks are just as guilty.
The attitudes that ‘the rules don’t apply to me,’ or ‘if the
rules are bent they aren’t broken’ are what led to Goodrich’s
death.
Hazing, or ‘crapping out’ or what ever you choose to call
it, goes on.
How many times have students heard of similiar events
on the Quad or dorm pranks or fraternity initiations and
passed them off as ‘good stories?’
Administrators should not think that just because a rule
is passed, that it will be followed. Many administrators offer
the fact that rules exist to deny the existence of activities
such as ‘crap outs’ rather than enforcing these guidelines on
a day by day basis.
It is only when a tragedy occurs that people open their
eyes and look at the rules and how they are constantly —
sometimes uniformly — broken.
It takes a tragedy for the national media to look at a situ
ation. News organizations across the nation have reported
that hazing is a longtime tradition at Texas A&M. If it is in
deed a tradition, then why wait for tragedy to report on the
facts? And in the process distort reality.
When rules are broken and something goes extremely
wrong, the finger is pointed at the few who get caught. An
example is made out of a minority.
Tne rules were broken. That should not be overlooked.
But, the juniors who broke the rules in this incident should
be reprimanded or punished for breaking the rules not for
the accident that occurred. Whatever they were doing, they
weren’t trying to kill a fellow Aggie. From now on the rules
must be enforced.
The tragedy in this situation is that someone died, and it
took something like that for the world to stop and look. Per
haps the memory of Bruce Goodrich will bring about a
change in the way rules are looked at.
Rules are made for a reason; rules are meant to be fol
lowed. If we don’t like the rules, we should work to get them
changed, not disregard them.
The Battalion Editorial Board
Souvenir sales up for CIA
By ART BUCHWALD
Columnist for The Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Many stories have come out about
the CIA, but this is one that is still bur
ied secretly in the archives. It has to do
with an agent named Greensleeves.
He was young, energetic, and imagi
native. The CIA decided to set him up
in a souvenir shop across the street
from the palace of a Central American
dictator, where he could keep tabs on
the comings and goings of govern
ment officials.
They gave him enough money to
buy the shop and the souvenirs so the
operation would be legitimate. This
exchange of cables, after they were de
coded, tells the story.
“CIA Headquarters, Langley: Busi
ness excellent. Have sold $16,000
worth of souvenirs thanks to Dictator
Tacos’ three-day anniversary cele
bration in front of palace. Please tell
our people in Taiwan I need more Ta
cos ashtrays, paperweights and letter
openers. If all right with you, am plan
ning a sale on Tacos music boxes that
play ‘South of the Border.’ — Greens
leeves.”
“Greensleeves: Glad to hear you are
doing well businesswise, but what the
hell is going on at the palace? We hear
Tacos may be overthrown by right-
wing colonels. Please advise at once. —
Frogmaster.”
“CIA Headquarters, Langley: Sorry
I have been too busy taking inventory
to pay much attention to palace, but
have good news. Discovered a factory
outside Siesta that makes cuckoo
clocks and hand-painted scarves. Have
bought three gross at half-price. Ex
pect sales figures in June up 20 per
cent over May. Had to pay off customs
to get cigarette lighters into country,
but will add bribe to price of item. —
Greensleeves.”
“Greensleeves: Why no word from
you on Tacos assassination attempt
and his exile from country? Who is
now in charge of Paella? Urgently
need list of junta and whether it’s pro-
or anti-American. — Frogmaster.”
“CIA Headquarters, Langley:
Agency has nothing to fear from Ta
cos overthrow. I got wind of it two
weeks ago and had Tacos Birthday
Sale on Saturday, where I marked
down all Dictator Tacos items 50 per
cent. The bronze busts moved espe
cially well. We also unloaded 4,000
plates with portraits of Mrs. Tacos.
Only item that didn’t sell as wellae
pected was night-light of Tacos sua.
ing next to V’irgin Mary. Tell oi
Hong Kong people that I am sendi:
them photograph of Colonel Qc^
which I would like them to Iulx
framed with sea shells. Also nceP
3,000 beer mugs commemoratingt£c
junta’s revolution of July 5. —Crerej^
leeves.” * $
Peel
lane
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the
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1
tion
buil
pou
and
.intr
1
mill
“Greensleeves, Paella, Centra
America: What has happened to U.$ J
Ambassador? Is he being held hosiag
by revolutionary urban guerrillas i
reported by AP, UPI, Reuters, an
Agence France Presse?”
u
“CIA Headquarters, Langley: Hi
Ambassador was kidnapped thrc
days ago. One of my salespeople has;
brother who told her about kidnaf
ping plans last week. I immediate!'
took steps to check Ambassador:
charge account. He owed us $89
managed to get his check before l«
was grabbed. We haven’t lost a dim
on him. Any chance of shipping Fide
Castro baseball caps? They’re expert
ing 15,000 armed Cuban tourists, anc
it could be hottest item this summer’
S
Uva
of n
min
spol
this
H
Mrs
The Battalion
USPS 045 360
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
The Battalion Editorial Board
In memoriam
Bill Robinson, 1962-1984, Editor
Stephanie Ross, Acting Editor
Patrice Koranek, Managing Editor
Shelley Hoekstra, City Editor
Brigid Brockman, News Editor
Donn Friedman, Editorial Page Editor
Kelley Smith, News Editor
Ed Cassavoy, Sports Editor
The Battalion Staff
Assistant City Editors
Melissa Adair, Michelle Powe
Assistant News Editors
Bonnie Langford, Kellie Dworaczyk, Lauri
Reese
Assistant Sports Editor
Entertainment Editor
Assistant Entertainment Editor
Travis Tingle
Bill Hughes
Angel Stokes
Copy Editors Kathy Breard, Kaye Pahmeier
Photographers Peter Rocha,
John Ryan, Dean Saito
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LETTERS:
Blame for death
rests with Corps
EDITOR:
Who is to accept responsibility for the
tragic death of Corps of Cadets sopho
more Bruce Goodrich? After carefully
reflecting on my past Corps experience
and my present knowledge of the cir
cumstances surrounding this tragedy.
I’ve concluded that the blame rests in
herently within the widely abused Corps
sytem.
Although I refuse to exonerate the
other cadets involved, their lack of re
sponsibility and disregard for university
regulations are secondary to the failings
of the Corps system as a whole. The ca
det Corps is designed to be a self-gov
erning militacracy. The officers of the
Trigon act only as referees to the never-
ending ‘games’ conducted by the many
cadets in leadership positions, but on
Thursday August 30 at 2:30 a.m., the
referees defaulted and the autocrats
broke the rules. The end result was fa
tal.
My wording is harsh but necessary.
Lack of supervision and enforcement
killed Bruce, no matter what his physi
cal problems may have been.
I feel deeply for Bruce’s parents, but
I only hope they hold no bitterness in
their hearts towards the cadets involved.
Instead I hope they vent their rem-
korse, frustration and anger at the
foundation, the basic ideology, of the
Corps.
The Cadets only followed traditon;
for this mistake I hope they are for
given. I only wish Bruce’s parents can
see through the haze and Find the root
of the ‘deadly tree’ — the status quo.
The self-governing society has failed.
Too long has the Corps been an ung
overned instituition, free to break rules,
sometimes even laws, without serious
reprimand if any from the leaders. Of
ten the ‘men in charge’ condone acts
which are specificially forbidden by
University Regulations or law. Punish
ments are received only when the Tri
gon notices these acts. One must con
front the truth. The Fighting Texas
Aggie Cadet Corps has become a secular
society, a large fraternity which contains
several separate but united fraternities
within itself. If Bruce had not died last
Thursday who would have discovered
or cared about what was happening?
I’m a believer in the Twelfth Man, the
Aggie Code of Honor and the Aggie
way. For that reason, I write plainly and
boldly. If I failed to sign this opinion, all
impetus it might have had would fade
into oblivion. Because of my convic
tions, I must sign.
Lawrence Van Fulton
Former Member A Company Band
Elimination
of hazing essential
EDITOR:
Today I was approached by a news-
team from Channel 13 — the ABC affil
iate in Houston — in which I was asked
to appear on camera and give my opin
ion of some of the circumstances at
Texas A&M that would allow hazing
such as that surrounding the death of
Cadet Bruce Goodrich. I refused, be
cause I felt I could not portray specific
instances of such hazing, but I did con
firm to the newsteam, off camera, that
unnecessary and sadistic amounts of
hazing do exist. It would be wrong to
blame the Juniors involved directly for
the death of Goodrich, but this in
stance does bring to light what is occur
ring in the Corps. From talking to mem
bers of the Corps during my four years
at A&M, I have been made aware of the
fact that unnusually cruel and humiliat
ing forms of hazing, such as involving
Goodrich, are not isolated. However,
this hazing should be isolated, and bet
ter yet, it should be eliminated alto
gether.
In talking to the cameraman of Chan
nel 13, he related to me what Dr. Koldus
had stated: that it is difficult to control
the Corps’ hazing activities. Does this
mean that the administratrion closes its
eyes to this harassment among Corps
members? Does it take the death of a ca
det to bring about change? I am awareof
the new rules regarding hazing that
were enacted last Spring, but they seem
ineffectual.
Good news travels fast, but bad news
travels faster. As I’m graduating in De-
cemeber, I wonder what kind of impact
this incident will have and the kind of
image A&M will reflect on me. Not to
sound self-centered — I also wonder
what kind of image it will reflect on stu
dents graduating from Texas A&M in
the future.
Perhaps Texas A&M is destined to re
main a ‘good’ university and not mature
into its potential of becoming a great
University. Perhaps I was wrong not to
appear on camera, to give the outside
world a look at the civilian side — the
majority of the student body — that
doesn’t condone this sort of hazing.
May we live and learn.
Mathew Cole
Class of ’84
Say 'Howdy'
students plead
EDITOR:
“Howdy, Damnit!!”
For such a ‘friendly’ campus, Agp
land sure is losing its small-town scho
charm. Regardless of size, A&M hasJ
ways seemed to capture the dosene
and unity of a small school. For the pi
three years, we’ve noticed a decrease!
enthusiasm for ‘age-old traditions,’e
pecially from upperclassmen.
‘Old Army has died, again.’
Tradition and spirit have taken
backseat to trivial problems and selfo
pride. A simple, sincere “howdy” and
smile are not too much to hope for fro!
every dedicated Aggie.
Traditions, like everything else, $
be forgotten if not put in practice. Win
is the next inevitable step in this deterif
ration of Aggie Spirit? Are we gong!
sit down at football games? Hell no!"
won’t sit!
Sherrie Couch!
Laurie Cannon’S
Amy Kardell’S
Harold Hinckle’S
Correction
The reader’s forum in Friday’s
Battalion, “College students face vital
national issues,” appeared without a
byline. The editorial was written by
Matt Holley, a senior business major
and chairman of Youth for Reagan
The Battalion regrets the omission of
this information.
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