Page 2/The Battalion/Wednesday, September 12, 1984
Opinion
Required physicals
too late for Goodrich
Texas A&M University announced that physical ex
aminations will be required for all students before enter
ing the Corps of Cadets.
It’s a travesty that it took a death to cause the Univer
sity to rethink this policy considering the amount of physi
cal and mental conditioning Cadets undertake as part of
their daily regimen — even without the type of tradition
inspired ‘crap out’ that lead to Cadet Bruce Goodrich’s
death. It’s even more of a travesty to hear Colonel Burton,
the administrative leader of the Cadets, tell the Faculty
Senate that he was surprised to learn that incoming Ca
dets were not required to take a physical examination be
fore they entered the Corps. If Burton doesn’t know the
procedures followed by the Corps, who does?
But what’s next; the procedures of the past aren’t as
important as what will occur. Before undergoing any
strenuous exercise, people should be aware of their physi
cal limitations. A physical examination does just that.
But the examinations to be required of the incoming
Cadets must not be allowed to fall into a check-your-
blood-pressure, listen-to-your-heart, turn-your-head-and-
cough joke. No, the physicals should include advanced
medical techniques including heart and respiratory stress
testing.
Anything less would be a blot on the memory of Cadet
Bruce Goodrich.
The Battalion Editorial Board
The Battalion
USPS 045 360
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
In mernoriam
Bill Robinson, 1962-1984, Editor
The Battalion Editorial Board
Stephanie Ross, Acting Editor
Patrice Koranek, Managing Editor
Shelley Hoekstra, City Editor
Brigid Brockman, News Editor
Bonn Friedman, Editorial Page Editor
Kelley Smith, News Editor
Ed Cassavoy, Sports Editor
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ETTERS
Crossing) Texas highways
Dead skunks on the road
TEXAS SPUR 359 — It was mid
evening. The sun’s rays glared
through the passenger’s window and
into my eyes. A chicken pecked non
chalantly alongside the road.
Just to be safe — though I’m not
one of those people who have an “I
break for animals” sticker on the
bumper of my pickup — I took my
foot off the accelerator.
Before the truck had a chance to
slow, the chicken made his move.
With a clink he hit the truck’s front
grill, and with a thud the fowl hit the
ground. In a moment my rear view mirror showed the ani
mal on the side of the road, a heap of white fluffy feathers.
I tried to deny the reality of this execution by auto.
Soon though, to maintain my mental health, I knew I
would have to acknowledge my deed.
I had killed; I felt remorse.
I felt pity for the poor creature whose life ended that
day on Texas 359.
What? An avowed fowl eater feeling remorseful for the
accidental vehicular homicide of two wings, two legs, a
breast and a bunch of chicken innards?
For almost a minute I became a dedicated vegetarian.
Uh huh, no more meat for this guy. No way, I won’t be a
vile flesh-eater anymore.
Then the rationalization began.
God put chicken on earth to feed man. If we felt guilty
for killing living things to eat, people would have nothing
to eat. What if carrots cried whenever you pulled them
from Mother Earth?
It was just an accident officer. Really, he just ran out in
front of me; I tried to slow down. It just happened so fast.
“Innocent,” my conscience ruled.
As I drove Texas’ highways I always wondered what
vile creatures hit the poor beings that littered the shoul
ders.
Oh lord, whose puppy is that splattered on the side of
the road?
The little black fur-covered body, rolled up with rigor
mortis, dried out at 105 degrees. Oh my, it’s really notrot-
ting flesh; it’s just a Goodyear.
Driving on just about any two-lane highway in this state
you see them — dead tires and dead animals.
Goodyears, shredded past the point of retread by the
friction between their skin and the road, slither along the
shoulder. Armadillos, their steel shells cracked, look like
plugged watermelons left out in the field to rot. Racoons,
unmasked by the steel steam-rollers, become indistingui
shable from skunks after the 112th pick-up passes over
their carcass — except for the smell.
You can tell when the rumpled, rotting flesh on the
road is from a playful Pepe Le Pew. You can smell it when
you pass over it; you can smell it ten miles down the road
when the odor of the natural refinery lingers in the air con
ditioner’s vents.
The good old dead skunk. He’s a fixture on Texas
highways more historic than the concrete and the asphalt.
There are more than skunks, and raccoons and dead
armadillos out there. How about deer, or opossum or even
havelina; their numbers certainly rank high on the list of
victims.
Remember for every victim there’s a guilty party.
It really doesn’t make me proud that I’ve joined the
group of people who turn those once fluffy animals into
the decaying flesh we see on the road.
The saddest thing though, about that chicken I hit: he
was just trying to get to the other side.
Donn Friedman is a weekly columnist for The Battal
ion. His column will appear on Wednesdays.
4
Donn
Friedman
Exceptional only need apply
Corps: an archaic
institution at A&M
EDITOR:
Monday’s commentary on the Daily
Texan’s editorial has prompted us to
write to you. The Editorial Board’s anal
ysis of the Daily Texan’s article is symp
tomatic of The Battlion’s major weak
ness: its inability to take a truly critical
look at issues concerning the Corps of
Cadets. This Editorial Board and its re
porters should be provoking thought
and analysis and not echoing the “offi
cial version” from University authori
ties. The official version of a story may
not always be the most reliable, espe
cially when its source has something to
protect, in this case, a time-honored in
stitution’s reputation.
The Daily Texan has suggested abo
lishment if reform is not possible. Your
commentary implies they suggest abo
lishing the Corps as the initial solution.
The incidents reported by the Daily
Texan would not have required an on
the scene reporter or spy. Many of our
fellow graduate students were saying
the same things the morning the inci
dent was first reported. The Battalion
might learn a lot from talking to stu
dents. They often know more about
what is going on than University offi
cials will ever admit to. In particular,
many graduate students come from out
side, free of Aggie sentiments and bi
ases, and are able to look at the Corps
very critically. We, and other graduate
students we know, see the Corps of Ca
dets as an archaic institution whose con
trol is long overdue. Unfortunately,
many University officials are former
Corps members so will honest reform
ever come and can their “official ver
sion” be considered reliable?
Christopher J. Bannochie
Javier Camba III
Editorial Board
writes irresponsibly
EDITOR:
The editorial put forth on Sept. 10th by
The Battalion Editorial Board concern
ing Cadet Goodrich’s death is, in my
opinion, one of the more irresponsible
articles ever printed in our school pa
per. According to the logic of the au
thor^), since hazing “also occurs in fra
ternities, sororities, and other fraternal
organizations,” the Corps is not to
blame for the loss of a human life. The
Battalion’s Board is justifying the death
by saying, in effect, “Everyone else is
doing it — why pick on me?” They point
out that since a death occured at a U.T.
fraternity (in an incident probably to
tally unrelated to hazing) it is all right if
a death occurs here at A&M.
The incrimination has to start some
where if the problem of hazing is to be
dealt with. If the Battalion Editorial
Board is so concerned with hazing, they
should lead the public outcry against
this tragedy instead of offering excuses.
Dean M. Jen
Junior, Petroleum Engineering
United Press International
DAVID BRODER
Columnist for The Washington Post
WASHINGTON — Democracy is a
most peculiar form of government. It
depends for its vitality on an election
process in which exceptional people vol
untarily subject themselves, their ca
reers and their reputations to the whim
of the voters, most of whom are their in
feriors in knowledge, energy, ambition
and eloquence. So it is this year.
Ronald Reagan, George Bush, Walter
Mondale and Geraldine Ferraro are, by
any reasonable reckoning, four of the
most successful'' people in America. In
every case, it is a success earned by ded
ication, drive and ability. Yet in two
months’ time, after being subjected to
competitive pressures and public and
press scrutiny most of us will never ex
perience and cannot really imagine, two
of these four talented and successful
people will be sent into retirement with
the label oflosers.
The system of democracy demands
that sort of ritual sacrifice. As voters in
this republic, we have come to accept
the competition of the talented as an en
titlement. Only when an occasional con
testant says, as Ferraro did last week,
that she or he is having second thoughts
about being served up as the entree at
this dinner of democracy, do we look at
the process from a different point of
view.
Before we all get caught up in the fin
ger-pointing and judgment-passing that
constitute a campaign, we might pause
for just a moment to note what extraor
dinary people these are.
Ronald Reagan was 53 years old — fi
nancially secure enough to retire from a
successful 30-year career in broadcast
ing, movies and television — when he
made the speech for Barry Goldwater
that launched him on this second pro
fession —politics.
Since then, he has run successfully in
three major elections, has served for
eight years as governor of Galifornia
and for almost four years as President
of the United States. In both Sacra
mento and Washington, he brought
about basic changes of policy direction
that altered the lives of millions. He has
survived a host of political challenges
and one assassination attempt. Now at
73, he is putting it all on the line in a bid
for re-election he could easily have side
stepped, had he wished.
George Bush was born to wealth and
family position, an American aristocrat.
He could easily have followed the path
from Yale to Wall Street, with a guar
antee of success, as success in America is
usually measured.
Instead, he chose a different trail,
from Navy aviator to oil wildcatter to
politician. By taking that route, he in
vited — and experienced — defeat, first
in a Senate race and then in the quest
for the presidential nomination. But he
also managed to serve his party and
country in a variety of positions as broad
and challenging as any man in public
life.
Walter Mondale has the reputation of
being a cautious, almost colorless poli
tician — a pale shadow of his mentor,
the late Hubert H. Humphrey. But that
image is contradicted by a career in
which Mondale has constantly chosen to
test himself in ever-tougher competition
and for ever-higher stakes. The law stu
dent became a party organizer. The
young attorney vied with others for ap
pointment as state attorney general.
Once elected to the post, the attorney
general set his sights on a U.S. Senate
seat and won it — by appointment. Re
elected to the Senate, he went after the
vice presidential nomination that older
and more experienced colleagues cov
eted. The defeated former Vice Presi
dent tackled seven rivals for the presi
dential nomination of his party.
Now, as the nominee, he is challeng
ing the popular and telegenic incum
bent President to a series of television
debates. All of these chapters in the
Mondale biography speak of talent and
determination on a large scale.
And what about Geraldine Ferraro?
This daughter of an immigrant store
keeper, left fatherless at eight, went
through college on a scholarship, taught
school and studied law at night, became
a wife and mother of three, returned to
work as a prosecutor, was elected to
Congress, and now is the first woman
vice presidential candidate of a major
political party.
Recognize them for what they are:
exceptional individuals. Recognize that
in two months, by the collective will of
millions of us who have not pushed our
selves so hard or challenged ourselves so
often, two of them will also be labeled as
losers.
Feel free to criticize them. They are
fair game. But remember, too, that de
mocracy and elections with real choices
depend on the willingness of the tal
ented, the tenacious, the energetic, the
ambitious men and women to become
candidates.
The stakes for them — and the pres
sures — over the next two months are
beyond our imagining. But not beyond
our saluting.