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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 10, 1984)
Opinion Page 2/The Battalion/Wednesday, October 10, 1984 Volleyball team deserves support in football land Walking, riding and driving co 10 Since this is football season in the middle of foot ball country, why should you spend your Wednesday night at G. Rollie White Coliseum? • Well, you won’t be rained on. • If you’re not a student, you won’t have to pay $15 for a ticket. • If you’re a student and you have an all-sports pass you can get in free. • Even if the Aggies don’t win, the winning team won’t be coached by a former Texas A&M coach. • The Texas A&M womens volleyball team’s re cord is 18-2. (That’s 18 wins not 3.) • Last year, over 2,500 fans came when the Ag gies played the University of Texas. • Women athletes live in real student dorms — not Cain Hall — and the women’s team is not going into seclusion in Navasota before its next home game. 9:45 A.M. Monday morning. If I don’t hurry, I’ll be late to my o’clock class. No time to lace up the 10 rings on my high-top Nikes; slap on my Pony velcro tennis shoes, pull on my light blue knit shirt — an ocean pacific shirt but not the kind with waves and stuff, I don’t want to look like a surf-bum if I have to meet with anyone important to day. Grabbing my four-year-old Texs- port backpack. I’m out the door. It’s a nice day; I’ll walk. Chicken, shattered beer bottles spread among deserted >pr< tic cups. Crap, I just fixed that flat tire, 1 hope 1 missed! ByC Donn Friedman So, Wednesday night go to the volleyball extrav- anganza — G. Rollie White Coliseum: 7:30 p.m. Let’s help Texas A&M beat Texas — at least on the volleyball court Aggies have a chance to win the Southwest Conference. The Battalion Editorial Board Into the street, along the center stripe and across. Past the 7-11. Along the boardwalk where Boogies used to be, or was it the Alamo or was it an old boarding house? Over some re mains of Sunday night good times at the Dixie Chicken, shat tered beer bottles spread among deserted plastic cups. And finally to the University street crossing. The sign proclaims, “Don’t Walk.” So I press the button and stand. Car after truck after van zip past much faster than the law should allow. The light turns to green; the sign turns to Walk, and I step off the curb. A fog-horning honk sends me springboarding out of the way. A truck-driver makes a quick right-turn on red giving me a stay-on-the-curb-pedestrians-don’t-belong-in-the- streets scowl. I step to the right trying to avoid a bicyclist com ing full pedal towards me. At the last minute he swerves-out of my path. “No brakes,” he says half-smiling, half-annoyed by my cursing his soul, his family and his mode of transportation. Strutting along at my 6-foot 2-inch pace I arrive at the door of my classroom. Eight minutes past ten. Should I go in or should 1 go on? 9:45 A.M. Monday morning. I fl don’t hurry, I’ll be late to my 10 o’clock class. It’s a nice day; I’ll walk. I’ll never find a place to park. It’ll take too long to walk. I’d better pedal to class. Past the 7-11. Along the boardwalk where Boogies used to be, or was it the Alamo or was it an old boarding house? Over some remains of Sunday night good times at the Dixie 1 thrives! glass. Finally to the University street crossing. The signal claims, “Don’t Walk.” So I don’t. I stand next to my bike. Car after truck after van zip past much faster thasn law should allow. The light turns to green; the sign turns Walk, and I drag my bike off the curb and climb back into saddle. A fog-horning honk sends me hot-wheeling across street. A truck-driver makes a quick right-turn on redji' me a stay-on-the-curb-bikes-don’t-belong-in-the-stn scowl. I move towards the left trying to avoid a pedest coming full stride towards me. At the fast minute I swerve. “No brakes,” I say half-smiling, half-annoyed by hiscnrJ ing my soul, my f amily and my mode of transportation Cruising on my Gitane ten-speed, camouflagued sick coat of black paint to reduce its desirability to 1 arrive at the door of my classroom.. Eight minutes Should I go in or should I go on? 9:45 A.M. Monday morning. If I don’t hurry, I’ll be late to my 10 o’clock class. Td better drive. Grab my keys. I hope I can findaparl» space close in. Back out into the street, stupid pedesiriai! walking down the center stripe. Get out of the streetscum, Past the 7-11. Along University to the stop-light. The light shines red. I stop. Right turn on red. Aggie ter Aggie piles off the curb creating an endless, unpassaiJt river of humanity. Honking my horn, I zip past theAggiesm foot and bike scowling a stay-on-the-curb-pedestrians-ani bikes-don’t-belong-in-tne-streets scowl. After finding a not-too-illegal parking spot, I arrive atilt door of my classroom. Eight minutes past ten. Shoul 11 or should I go home? 9:45 A.M. Monday morning. If I don’t hurry I’ll be late for my 10 o’clock class. Pulling off my matching maroon socks, my washed blue jeans, I slip back under the covers. Ijustcani face that Monday morning traffic. The Or nited V :hich w< jiowed th unity’s aigns we Diversity “This i: ear at th way ; ared to U ;eep the n The r< lorning r at $38 ,20,278 ol The c< akes up :ampaign are B) ion. His column appears on Wednesdays. I eal student leaders don’t wear tweed I had the opportunity last Thursday of observ ing something I rarely have a chance to see in my wanderings around the A&M campus — a real live student leader. Oh, of course T he Battalion Editor Stepha nie Ross is a student leader, but she doesn’t seem to fit in with the category of student leader (read — politician-in-training). David Adlers roamed into The Battalion office to submit a letter to the editor. I’m the Ed Cassavoy sports editor and member of the Battalion Editorial Board so I got to read it. It was quite an illuminating experience. Never in the course of one letter has one man reached so many times for a dictionary, with so much confusion, for so small a result. After passing the crumpled piece of paper around to eight jour nalism majors, two English majors and a business major, the wall of perplexed and confused faces multiplied with exponential regular- it >'- Basically, Alder’s letter said, “Why don’t the students stop com plaining about things to The Battalion, and talk to me about them instead?” Though I realize Alders is probably sincere in his plea, I submit to you that there is little reason to talk to A&M’s student govern ment. T hey are too busy doing more important things. Of course the student government’s idea of important is open to debate. Where any other competent or even semi-comatose university student government would be raising serious questions about the hazing tragedy, A&M’s elected representatives are silent. We’re not talking about complaining about more student parking. We’re talk ing about a very important university issue. Instead I think student leaders here at A&M have their priorities as nicely tailored to their needs as their three piece suits. Why do I get the suspicious feeling that refining the next re sume, or buying the next addition to their political wardrobe is more important — or maybe easier to handle — than trying to grapple with student concerns? Harsh criticism? I don’t think so. We elected these'people to po sitions of prominence not to fatten their personal clip file, but to have someone that students can say, “Hey you’re the guy (or girl) that has to speak up for me.” Again silence is the only answer we get from our elected rep resentatives. Usually, student government is an accurate gauge of the atti tudes and views of the entire university. A&M follows that rule ni cely. The apathetic and lethargic mentality of most Aggie students to wards anything to do with current issues is mirrored, appropriately enough, by their elected representatives. T exas A&M students get what we deserve. Of course let’s not just single out just the student body president. Only a fourth of the Off-Campus Senators showed upforik last Off Campus Aggies meeting. I thought the one prerequisites being elected to an office is that you actually communicate with yom own constituency. It’s sort of like Ronald Reagan getting reelected and immediateli flying to T ahiti for a four year vacation. I also just find it hard to swallow that student government W ers failed to address any new issues for the University agenda. A&M students that wish to voice their campus concerns are let with no representation to speak of. The majority of the A&Nfsiie dent body chooses to be little more than sheep plodding theirwai through the corridors of a vast technical school. For them, aslongas they get their football tickets on the 50 yard line, Texas A&Mii functioning smoothly. What are the student government leaders doing with theirtime: I do know where they work. Up in the second floor of thePavii ion. Judging from the plush surroundings, all their efforts have not been wasted. I thought I was walking into the offices of some giam corporation. Maybe 1 wasn’t wrong. Just got the wrong company, Maybe student government can succeed in getting listed onilii New York Stock exchange. For those people who have a legitimate beef, complaint or prok lem that they wish to address — there’s the comforting faetthattho can always write a letter to the editor. Ed Cassavoy is the Sports Editor for The Battalion. LETTERS: I The fa gration 1; Itinguishal [foreign st [tain their for futui States she what is ne Samuel specializii spoke 1 u tied Tm standing Future.” by the 1 Students cussed so people h tion laws. “For e: proved vi to the Sta apply for Anothe marriage Q 1 2 Delighted by Faculty Senate’s anti-hazing resolution EDITOR: We were delighted to read that the Faculty Senate adopted a resolution condemning hazing. We are sure that the junior, or unte nured, faculty (“Fish”) must be relieved to know that they will not be awakened at 2:00 a.m. by the senior faculty, led by full professors and department heads, to be beaten with axe handles or to have water poured from upper floor win dows onto sensitive parts of their ana tomy. Doug Spence Hubert P. van Tuyll Aggie Football: a disaster area EDITOR: Well Aggie fans, sit back and prepare yourself for another typical Texas A&M football season. A season of renewed hope, high expectations, and talk of challenging SMU and Texas for the SWC crown. This year’s version of Aggie football will be lucky to beat out Rice for eighth place in the conference. The Ag gies were fortunate enough to escape non-conference play without a loss. Thanks to the foresight of our head coach, the “class of WAG,” Brigham Young was removed from our presea son schedule and replaced by the “laugh of WAG,” UTEP. The result, an undeserved victory. Two more dismal performances fol lowed and were explained by both play ers and coaches alike that “it’s hard to get up for teams like UTEP and Arkan x sas State.” After the Arkansas State game a Houston sportswriter remarked that “the Aggies are undefeated, uninspired and unimpressive.” This could be the poorest team that Goach Sherrill has yet to put on Kyle Field. Our offense is offensive, our de fense defenseless, and our vastly over rated coaching staff is absolutely incapa ble of motivating or preparing a football team for action. In Goach Sherrill’s three year tenure, the Aggies have suffered humiliating losses at the hands of Boston Gollege, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech, Galifor- nia, SMU, Texas and Arkansas. During this same time period the Ag gies have defeated one team that fin ished the season with a winning record (Arkansas 6-5). Perhaps we should apply to the Gov ernor’s Office for state relief, as the Ag gie football program sould have no trouble qualifying as a “disaster area.” Pete Greaves Class of’80 Sex clubs should not be recognized EDITOR: Regarding the Gay Student Services bid for a campus club: I have been extemely bothered by the widening acceptance of homosexuality as a societal norm. We all think of ho mosexuals as folks who like “different scenery.” But wait a minute. What is a homosexual? It is not someone who merely has a passion for members of his/her sex ... it is someone who HAS sex with members of the same sex. Now, to spell it out, this means mutual mas turbation, oral copulation and anal in tercourse. Now tell me, why does a homosexual have to constantly advertise this? I know of no one who openly comes out and ex presses their sexual activities excepting homosexuals and perverts, both by branding themselves (when you say you’re “gay,” I know your sex lif e). Now back to the club. First, what is the reason for such a club? It can’t be to enlighten us on homosexuality, we all know what that is. It must then be for the following purposes: (1) to promote homosexuality, and (2) to provide activ ities where homosexuals can meet other homosexuals. If the second reason ap plies, why should the university supply a dating service when (undoubtedly) there are places for homosexuals to meet where they can enjoy more privacy and a better ambience? The point is that the issue is sex. I’m as against recognizing a club for homo sexuals as I would be in sanctioning clubs for those who prefer having sex with children or animals, or a club for The Proliferation of Heterosexual Acts. (Shute, why not a club for adulterers and one for maso-sadists?) Finally, there have been many homo sexuals who have gained my respect be cause they DIDN’T advertise their sex ual tendencies, but kept private those things which should always be kept pri vate. So, GSS . . . just be people, not “gays,” etc. If you didn’t insist upon ad vertising your sex lives, no one would “know” (or care), and you’d be treated as you wished. Bruce Kiene Graduate Student EDITOR’S NOTE: Mutual masturba tion, oral copulation, and anal inter course are heterosexual acts also. Bar owners not responsible for drunks EDITOR: In regard to the Batt’s Editorial on bar owners being responsible for the ac cidents involving drunk drivers. I dis agree. Whatever happened to self-re sponsibility? Gonsider, for a moment, the person who produces guns. Is he also responsible for the persons who buys that gun and uses it to kill? Definitely not! That person chose to kill. Just as the drunk chooses to drive. The clubs and bars don’t put drunks on the road. Drunks put themselves on the road. When are we going to stop blam ing others and making excuses for our own negligence and irresponsibility? Kim L. Manganaro College Station Alders: bigger words than ideas EDITOR: Golly, Mr. Alders — you sure are smart. I wish I could use really big words and be a BMOC. Golly. And, oh boy, you sure do stick up for the administration. (Is that the right word, Mr. Alders?) I bet when you are a lawyer you can defend big, bad corpora tions real good, too. Know what? I looked up a word in my dictionary: condescending. Gee whiz, it kinda fits the tone of your letter. If I was as smart as you I’d probably resent your arrogance (th at means not very nice, Mr. Alders). But since I’m full of “irre pressible . . . youth” - I suppose I’ll for get about it. . . till the next time you run for ANYTHING. Catherine L. Bennett Class of’85 Alders: business for Webster’s EDITOR: RE: David Alders’letter: Never has someone said so much that means so little to so many so late. it The Battalion editorials may malt students think, but David Alders malts them use dictionaries. Peter Rocha Class of 84 P.S. Much-flagellated? Is that like ao; paramecium? Sur Moi Tue Wei Thi Fri. Sat I I I