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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 1984)
Opinion Former editor remembers lessons learned, appreciated To attempt to condense a whole se mester into 16 inches on page two is not an easy task. Particularly the semester I’ve had — so many things have hap pened, and I’ve grown much more than I ever anticipated when I drove my car to College Station for my last semester. Beginning the semester with a friend and coworker dying in a tragic accident was indicative of what was to come —a semester of learning beyond the usual “college experience.” In his death and absence, Bill Rob inson probably taught me more about life than anyone I have known. He taught me that life is precious, even at a young age, and that it should be taken seriously, yet enjoyed to its fullest. It is important to let people know you care. Texas A&M University and its student body taught me the next biggest lesson — a lesson I learned in a different form weekly. And it was not a pretty lesson. It is that my gen eration is myopic. We suffer from a serious nearsightedness that makes us inflate our importance and ignore others near us, and the rest of the world. The first incident that introduced me to the problem is the blind adherence to tradition at Texas A&M, and the un willingness of students and the administration to question tra ditions that are dated and have resulted in discrimination and even death. It is the same illness that makes students not look beyond the city limits to know that millions of people are dying daily in Ethiopia and if they know, they don’t really care. It’s the same illness that makes people want to take away other’s civil rights because they do not fit into some moral code deemed ethical and proper for redemption. It all sounds quite harsh and unfair, and I know that gen eralization is wrong. I admit that I have met some students who do not fit this mold, but they are rare. On the other hand, I have met several students who were constantly angry when The Battalion spoke out against the status quo, and felt offended when someone thought differently from them. From this sprang another lesson: how to take criticism. From the First days in the editor’s chair, I learned quickly how to take the angry phone calls and defend myself and my staff. Trying to show others the value and purpose of differing opinions was a time-consuming task and not always success ful. In some cases, I didn’t handle the situation properly, for that I am sorry. Taking phone calls Filled with compliments was easier, but those came rarely. For both sets of phone calls and letter writers, I thank you. We all, 1 hope, learned something, and that is what edu cation is all about — the meeting of the minds. Too often people forget the goals of education and turn their eyes in stead to their resumes and dollar Figures for post graduation jobs. At several points in the semester I let it all get to me. I even told one of my professors that I was embarrassed to be a member of my generation. But then again there were the people who rescued me from my grossness. And they deserve a thanks. They are the modern-day heros in my life. Thank you, the staff of The Battalion. You are the paper, not me. Whenever I received compliments, my First reaction was that it was never me doing the work —but you. That is true. Each one of you is special in your own way, and have each added to my life. Thank you Donn Friedman. You’ve never received an award, but if I had one to give, I’d give it to you. Thank you, my professsors who really taught me more than the textbooks ever could. Mr. Bob Rogers listened to my joys and sorrows while offering me more cups of coffee than one could imagine. Dr. Terry Anderson challenged me to learn and look beyond my prejudices — he helped cure me of my nearsightedness. Thanks to my roommates and friends. They never knew what they got into when they met me and took me on. Count less hours were spent listening to let off steam, and be sad. Cathy, Cathy, Greg, Leon, Al, and the rest of you — you’re wonderful. Thanks to the students who made me proud to be a part of Texas A&M. There are the ones who stood up and said many things. People such as Brian Hay, Pat Wood, Ivo Lo pez, Dave Ellis, and Rebecca Davis come to mind as heros of mine. Thanks to my family and friends far away who never quite knew what I was doing, but supported me anyway. Thanks to the person wno put tne note on my door saying “beware commie editor” — you made me laugh. Thanks, last but not least, Bill, who should be writing this instead of me. I’ll never forget you as long as I live. Even though we were different in many ways, you have left a part of you in me that will never diminish. Stephanie Ross was the editor of The Battalion for the Fall ’84 semester. Stephanie Ross Tired of people trying to push values and morality on others Everydme I turn around, someone’s Loren trying to protect me from something. otetty The Citizens for De- cency, the Moral Majority, the Moonies, everyone seems to know what’s best for me without even asking. A new trend in this country, upheld by groups like CFD and the Moral Ma jority, is reaching fanatical proportions. Basically, these groups advocate a re turn to good of Protestant morality as a means of saving this country from de struction. Now a group of politicians in Ala bama are trying once again to preserve the country through school prayer. In stead of directly seeking school sanc tioned prayer, the group is asking the Supreme Court to allow students to have a “moment of silence” at the start of each school day. A Baton Rouge law yer named John Baker, Jr. claims that with a moment of silence “no one knows whether fellow students are praying, meditating, or vegetating.” In theory, this argument sounds good, but in reality it holds about as much water as a torn window screen. These self-styled saviors of democracy realize, just like door-to-door salesmen, that once they have their foot in the door, it only takes a small push to get what they want. A Mobile, Ala. school principal said on the news Tuesday night that even tually the prayer advocates would like to see school prayer become a law, but the moment of silence was a good First step. If the Supreme Court grants the state of Alabama this inch, it will take a mile, and it’s a mile the general public can’t afford to lose. Sen. Jeremiah Denton, R-Ala., said Tuesday school prayer would restore “morality and ethics as a centerpiece of American democracy.” So Denton is already talking about school prayer becoming a possibility, even before the moment of silence has been approved, which makes his inten tions obvious. Denton doesn’t seem to have consid ered whose morality and whose ethics school prayer would be restoring. Prot estant morality and Protestant ethics aren’t right for everybody, especially non-Christians. The Alabama defendants of school prayer should be commended for their concern for the public welfare, but their narrow-minded approach should be condemmed. You may want your child, grandchild, or little brother or sister to pray in school, which is fine. But if you make every other child in school pray because you want your child to, you’re breaching democratic ideals. We must learn to accept people’s dif ferences, not make them more difFicult to live with. If a teacher asks for a mo ment of silence, then bows her head and clasps her hands (as in the Tennessee school shown on the local news Tuesday night) she is implying prayer. Teachers play a vital role in child development. If the teacher appears to pray, the child feels compelled to do the same. Democracy means “liberty and justice for all.” Except for the court systems, what more important place to uphold democracy than the schools, where stu dents learn about their rights and free doms as Americans. If students don’t see democracy at work in their immediate environment, how can they have any faith in it work ing in the country? Loren Steffy is a weekly columnist for The Battalion. LETTERS: Coach Sherrill says thanks to 12th Man EDITOR: To the students at Texas A&M: On Saturday following the football game with the University of Texas, I spoke with the media about people “jumping 1 ship” this season. I spoke about how some of the media and some of the former students had given up on what they considered a sinking ship. You, the student body of Texas A&M, did not. As much as the victories over TCU and Texas will be a source of pride to our football team, so will the steadfast support of the students. Over the last two weeks of the season, we talked to the team about dedication and determination. It was a lesson that you the students have already learned well and you have shown your dedica tion not only on the Saturdays of cele bration but the disappointing ones and the weeks in between. You have demonstrated your deter mination in many ways. You were there at Kyle Field for the home games; you were there in the freezing rain at Fayet teville; you were there at bonfire last Thursday and one the Capitol steps Fri day. You truly honored the 12th Man tradition on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium anti you joined together back on campus later that night for a “How dy” that only Ags can sdiout; you wore “Horn-buster” snirts and sang the “Spi rit” loud. Aggies truly know the meaning of be ing loyal to each other in all that we do. Your loyalty to our program is a per sonal source of strength to me, my fam ily and the entire athletic program. The 1984 Texas Aggie football team is proud of the way it reacted to adver sity this season. It is also proud of its partner in battle, the student body ... “We are the Aggies, the Aggies are We.” Gig ’em. Jackie Sherrill Head Football Coach and Athletic Director Law-breaking bikes carted off by cops EDITOR: Today we noticed the most flagrant example of the KK (Kampus Kops) wasting time in recent memory. They weren’t writing tickets for illegally parked autos or towing away cars parked in handicapped zones. They were carting away, yes, carting aw r ay bi cycles not locked to permanent bicycle racks. This was done between Haas and McFadden halls because the bikes were on the grass obstructing justice. Shouldn’t the KK be out using their time more efficiently instead of carting away bicycles that are doing no harm? Juan Correa, ’86 Mike Kenney, ’88 University police not making friends EDITOR: Our illustrious Texas A&M Univer sity police force! On Friday night, Nov. 30, we were pushing Rob Jones’ car (which had run out of gas, but that’s a different story) along Ross street. In the process we were passed, or more accu rately — ignored by two University Po lice patrol cars, one of which flipped on its flashing lights just so it could legally ignore a stop sign. These are the same aedicated professionals who will bend over backward to give tickets to bicyclers who ride through stop signs on campus. Is it any wonder that many A&M stu dents hold the campus police in less- than-high esteem? Otto Corday, III, ’86 accompanied by 5 signatures P.S. If anyone cares, we did manage to push the car off of the street and into a parking lot. Student fed up with registration problems EDITOR: Last Friday I went to check on my fees, and found that my registration was messed up. I now have no classes set aside, and can’t register until January 7. What’s worse is that two of my classes are Filled to capacity. I have been prom ised that I’ll maybe, possibly, probably be able to get into the classes. I just have to wait a month before knowing if I’m in or not. So much for the modern regis tration process. What bothers me the most is that since Fall 1980, every one of my regis trations has been messed up in one way or another. I received a scholarship that allows me to pay in-state tuition, but no matter which list I sign, how many let ters I submit, the Fiscal department al ways has to redo my fees. Of course, it doesn’t matter that I lose 1-2 days of drop/add in the process. And they al ways promise me that they will fix it “next time”. Well, next time has never It’s come around, and I’m getting fee, with the inept job that all of ttet; volved are doing. Let me repeat J INEPT! I don’t know why they can’t rt me right now. Is mere some prt just walking to Heaton or thePav|; somewhere and just registerin; hand? They admit to their mistake,!, why can’t they Fix it now? Whyshoii have to wait so long? I’m only one I dent. (By the wav, at least twoothetl dents also have tne same problem.) \i Before this University can ad« any kind of status, it had betterbeil to learn from its mistakes and conea errors, not ignore them. Benito Flores-Meath Class of’83 President Reagan defending freedom you ve hours, around •.you're • last roi The lig lurroui struggl doesn’t Hew hot I S tu( * think i Ihours brary, Presidt Studen thing a Ope Evans i a.m. S Monib ? a.m. t» 9 p.m. people frustra the lib fcpen; You n late at EDITOR: Why do people criticize Press Reagan for strengthening our natij defense system? This letter is ini spouse to Loren Steffy’s articletbi peared in your paper on page2onS: 1 28. The article about Reagan’s props | for a space-based defense networkf ; to eliminate ICBM’s in mid-flkk. stated he w as worried that it willta 1 as an offensive weapon, but if wedft take the initiative and build it firM 4 I one else will. Much like the quest* whether or not to drop the atom on Japan. If we had not, the war have lasted much longer, and we all be speaking Japanese today. If not build our defe ready ( Urb comnu hours tempo terms i I The J tense system andp it to the limit by going into outers someone else wall beat us to it an’ power us. Right now it looks liketliti viet Union is the only other countnj cause a serious threat to our fretifi and existence, by building a defenset tern that would be impregnable. ItV Soviets build a space-based defenst!: work before we do, would theyskt with us? No, they wouldn’t, and I tell you what they will do. Theirgo« ment is based on converting the to a communist society, so they give us two alternatives. The first native would be surrender and com to communism, and the second simple, DIE. I don’t know about but I feel many if not all Americans our freedom, and would rather without it. T he President has streti) ened our defense greatly, and is tni to prevent something like that i ever happening. He is securine freedom that our forefathers foi and died for. So let’s give him more: port and less criticism. Brian Duffy Class of’88 The Battalion USPS 045 360 Member of Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Conference tn memoriam Bill Robinson, 1962-1984, Editor The Battalion Editorial Board Brigid Brockman, Editor Shelley Hoekstra, Managing Editor Ed Cassavoy, City Editor Kellie Dworaczyk, News Editor MichelUr Powe, Eclitorial Page Editor T ravis TinglerSports Editor The Battalion Staff Assistant City Editors I Kari Fluegel, Rhonda Snide ! Assistant News Editors I Tammy Bell, Cami Brown,JohnHalCj Assistant Sports Editor Charean Wife' Entertainment Editors - Shawn Behlen, Leiffh-EllenClart Staff Writers Catnie Andersos Brandon Berry, Dainah BulW Tony Cornett, Michael Crawfoul Kirsten Dietz, Patti Flint Patrice Koranek, Trent Leopold Karla Martin, Sarah Oats Tricia Parker, Lynn RaePort Columnists Kevin Inda, LorenSlttf) Editorial Cartoonist MikeLai' Sports Cartoonist DaleSmid Copy Writer CathyBennS Photo Editor KatherineHif Photographers Frankln® John Makely, Dean Sait Editorial Policy The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting mwpj operated as a community service to Texas Ml 111 B ryan-Cotlege S tat ion. Opinions expressed in The Battalion are thostr 1 ^ Editorial Board or the author, and do not necessal^l r, ? resent the opinions of Texas A&M administrators,tx* or the Board of Regents. 'The Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspai*!^ students in reporting, editing and photograph) within the Department of Communications. Letters Policy Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300 length. The editorial staff reserves the right weditC for style and length but will make every elfott wnuy the author’s intent. Each letter must be signcthmc’ include the address and telephone number of the T he Battalion is published Monday through during Texas A&M regular semesters, except forhw and examination periods. Mail subscriptions lit l‘ l " per semester, $'13.25 per school year and (33 l x '" year. Advertising races furnished on request. Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed Wcft'y Building, T exas A&M University, College Satm , 77843. Editorial staff phone number: (409)8IS-M ■ vertising: (409) 845-2611. Second class postage paid at Co//egeSlation.nC' POSTMASTER: Send address changes to TbiW ion, Texas A&M University, College Station, ' (U 77843 r