Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 1, 1985)
Page 2/The Battalion/Friday, February 1, 1985 OPINION - Student senators cool under fire SEE YOUR INNOCENT TAX DOLLARS... ~\ v . I’ve been doing more than my share of mingling this week and it has proven to be quite a valuable experience. The proverbial rub bing of shoulders with other A&M students. One experience covered, but only the really angryi my des crazy ones ever show up at my dest “ ?dbi ’ * ’ Ed Cassavoy Feedback, good or bad, is the named the game. So I had to smile as I watched fouroi five senators deal professionally and re spectfully with some rather thorny at guments. There was a definite desire to hea: the voice of the students on the partd the senators present. Unfortunateli most A&M students seem to have gone # NfOTE: THIS product IS Not guaranteed r . OR WARRANTED IN ANY WAY. ". WTO A COSTLY GALACTIC WEAPONS SYSTEM! BUT, WATCH -OUT FORTHF omciT^oysTfR; Social security cuts can't kill IT. AND IGNORING IT ONL Y AAAKES IT GRow - and grow, and grow.. A Etf-I MUTANT BRADLEY Toy What did Frank Sinatra really mean? Inaugural words pondered By ART BUCHWALD Columnist for The Los Angeles Times Syndicate Now that the inauguration is over, historians can ponder some of the great words spoken during the weekend by statesmen who participated in the events. Probably the most memorable were not uttered by President Reagan in his inaugural address but by Frank Sinatra, who told “Entertainment Tonight’s” Barbara Howar, “You’re all dead, every one of you. You’re all dead.” At the time it was believed Mr. Sina tra was reacting to a piece about him in the Washington Post concerning his as sociation with Hollywood’s so-called “Rat Pack,” and he was addressing the media in general when he made the re mark. “Because he just assumed that anyone with intelligence knew where he was coming from.” A columnist from the Washington Post disagreed. “I ran the tape of his re marks over and over again and he was talking about the media. The only thing I still haven’t decided is whether he meant it figuratively or literally.” “I’m sure he didn’t mean it literally,” a lady from Women’s Wear Daily said. “Even Frank Sinatra couldn’t put out a contract on every person covering the inauguration. My interpretation of his remarks is that we were all dead as far as talking to him was concerned.” “But we’ve all been dead for years in Frank’s mind,” a CBS reporter pro tested. “That’s not news.” feelings,” I told her. “Every time a spar row falls he cries.” The Washington Post reporter re fused to be persuaded. “I still believe he wanted us all dead. Maybe not dead dead, but enough so we would never write about him again.” A photographer from People Mag azine said, “Is it possible Frank was say ing we’d all be dead if we bet on the Mi ami Dolphins in the Super Bowl?” “Could be,” I agreed. “Now that you mention it, Frank was always a big ’49ers fan.’ But after giving it a lot of thought, Washington historians are now divided on the meaning of the singer’s outburst. Last Friday night the issue was dis cussed at the “I Did It My Way Bar and Grill.” A reporter from the National Review said, “I can’t believe Frank was talking about the press. No one let him finish his sentence. What he was trying to tell us was that we were all dead if we didn’t support President Reagan’s ‘Star Wars’ program.” “Then why didn’t he say that?” the New York Times man asked. “It was only news,” I said, ‘because Frank was in charge of the inaugural gala. I’m inclined to go along with my colleague from the National Review that Sinatra’s words were misinterpreted. I have it from a high source in the Sur geon General’s office that what Frank was really trying to say is that we’d all be dead if we had to cover the inaugural parade in minus-20-degree weather. His main concern was that we would bundle up and keep warm.” Miss Howar, the only one who had been there, said, “He didn’t sound as if he was worried about me getting pneu monia.” The Wall Street Journal man said, “The big question is, if Sinatra was ref erring only to the media, was he speak ing for the administration or just him self?” that proved especially pleasant was the Student Senate Grievance Committee hearing I sat in on Tuesday. Democracy in action. The wheels of g overnment turning. America at its est. That’s always the way it’s pictured in the history books. Well, sitting in a half empty room, with a dozen or so other students, I experienced what it must be like in the trenches. I quickly discovered a distinct cross- section of the student population rep resented at the meeting. Usually most public meetings draw the usual quota of malcontents, people with an axe to grind, with a vested interest in the topics or the just plain curious. The Student Senate meeting was no different. There were a half dozen stu dents at the meeting who seemed to know each other quite well. I felt like I was crashing the party. Keeping the campus “moral” croppea up in one gentleman’s argu ments time and time again. Another girl argued against an experimental coed dorm. But the part about the whole process that came as the most pleasant surprise was the role that the Student Senators played. Dealing with “Joe Public” can be a dif ficult task at the best of times. And the Student Senators I watched in action were quite cool under fire. I have to admit feeling a sort of kinship or shared secret in watching the senators deal with the same sort of argu ments I have had. Everyone has an opinion I have dis- mute. High-profile items like the GSSOand allowing women in the band resolution! are the only type of activity that creates any sort of interest in the student y at large. Most of the important issues to sto dents are quietly resolved away Iron public scrutiny. More change machine! or better check cashing privileges art not the stuff of controversy. Despite the kinship I now feel the senators, I still have some reserve lions about the upcoming Student Serr ate elections. Gertain senators plan use the GSSO resolution as a future campaign issue. I nave heard of a few who did vote with their hearts, and in doing so ntai have risked their political future. Tat ing an unpopular stand on a subjecttha you truly believe in shows true charat ter. Still it seems somewhat a lost cause! | a certain extent. Most of the timet)* senators will work in quiet obscurityua til another GSSO resolution rears c ugly head. Then the fur flies. Just like working for The Battalion the only time you will ever hear froc someone is when you make a mistake. Don’t go into journalism for tht gJory And though the senators continued search and plea for more student feed back, they are still shackled by thefac they can only recommend items to tk University administration Let them eat checks. Ed Cassavoy is the city editor andi ne weekly columnist for The Battalion. “Ronald Reagan doesn’t want us all dead,” Sam Donaldson said. “I talk to him every day.” “What about the CIA?” The Ameriom Sound- Ilte American fjaid of/fwirtf: “No one knows who they want dead, and who they don’t,” a reporter from Jack Anderson’s office mused. ‘Frank never likes to show his true I insisted on having the last word. “I don’t believe we’re in a position to judge what Frank meant by his remarks. The important thing is they will be remem bered long after all the other 1985 inau gural utterances are forgotten, and will be an inspiration to generations of inau gural gala chairmen for years to come.” DEFICIT/ DEFENSE WASTE/ / F ( bui vis ha\ anc tioi 1(P thii the mo cro bui strt but on but ten ing sioi any cha for I der nee gra m gre on gre fro I Jur de^ eng in anc anc gin I age woi gol / Piu sen (rol der F ove cou A! F witl pn\ the agr or LETTERS: Corps helps cadets prepare for life EDITOR: In response to Stephen Berkowitz’s comments concerning the Corps of Ca dets, we’d like to reply with the accuracy of first-hand experience. The Corps may be difficult to endure mentally, and is physically trying at times, but there are reasons for these obstacles. The guidelines and conditions under which “fish” must live are character-building and prepare cadets for most obstacles that lie ahead in life. All cadets are sub ject to involvement that helps develop self-confidence, discipline, dicretion, alertness, physical and mental endur ance, tolerance and comradery. the Corps, and it is this attitude that will be instilled within us for the rest of our lives. For these reasons, we consider ourselves to be part of a unique group that ultimately serves for the betterment of individuals. but not better or worse. Instead of wel coming our foreign students, or at least tolerating them, too many Aggies laugh at them and call them eccentric. Person ally, I hate to think what kind of people they must think we are. ings, armed with only screw drivers, in the back? Although the Corps is not for every one, those who choose to stay of their own volition feel that the benefits far outweigh the sacrifices. Fightin’ Texas Aggie F-l Fish of’88 and Damn Proud of it! Most Aggies I know will swear endles sly that A&M is the best university — anywhere. But what is it that makes it so good? The people? I’d like to think so but I see too much prejudice and open belligerence here to truly believe that. Prejudice is too prevalent at A&M EDITOR: To you, Stephen, the experiences that we endure may be negative, but we struggle through them knowing that the outcome will be well worth the effort. And as upperclassmen, ideals that are instilled as freshmen are practiced through direct involvement in lead ership and command positions. An up perclassman’s objective is not to seek re venge for what he has been through as a freshman, but rather to enhance the character of incoming freshmen so that they too will develop inner strength. This afternoon I witnessed a scene that ruined my day. A foreign student walked into one of my classes, not be having in any peculiar manner, but im mediately became the object of ridicule of another student. The only apparent reason for the outburst was the fact that the foreign strident wasn’t “one of us.” Unfortunately, this isn’t first such inci dence that I’ve seen. Hopefully, it will be the last. It takes just as much effort to be unf riendly as it does to be friendly. Besides, is something significantly wrong if someone doesn’t speak with a Texas ac cent or possibly doesn’t go to every home football game? A&M is my school and I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else, but that doesn’t mean, for exam ple, that I’ve alienated all of my burnt orange friends. Kevin Henderson Class of’88 The two were obviously not a threat to Goetz anymore. Yet he chose to shoot them anyway. Maybe the thing that up sets me most about Goetz and people such as yourself is that you adopted the same value of human life that the so- called “knife-wielding hoodlums” have. Bill Brookman, ’85 P.S. Have you read the latest news out of Houston? It seems a vigilante shot and killed an innocent bystander. He probably had it coming, huh Kevin? Clearing things up for confused reporter EDITOR. Columnist missed the point about vigilante EDITOR: It gets very difficult at times, and as have most cadets, we have considered quitting. But if a cadet quits now, what stops him from quitting in the future? It’s this attitude that we develop in C’mon, folks, these aren’t the good ol’ high school days when every type of outlandish stereotype was used just for the sake of being “cool!” Every individ ual at A&M should have enough intelli gence to realize that cultural and social backgrounds make people different, Kevin, you must have missed a few of the details of the Goetz case. Goetz, who you claim was “justified” in shooting four black youths, in fact shot two of them in the back as they attempted to flee. How can you truly believe Goetz was justified in shooting two human be- Someone has not done their home work, specifically, Gigi Shamsy. By defi nition a hacker is not “a person who ille gally invades a computer system and alters data within the computer mem ory.” This misleading idea has been cre ated by the media, for lack of a better term. A hacker is, in fact, someone who is unusually proficient in programming and using computers. If they turn to breaking into systems the correct term is “criminal,” since this activity is illegal. Hope that straightens things out for you. Jeffrey C. Lockledge Grad Student, C.S. Aspiring Hacker The Battalion USPS 045 360 Member of Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Conference The Battalion Editorial Board Brigid Brockman, Editor Shelley Hoekstra, Managing Editor Ed Cassavoy, City Editor Kellie Dworaczyk, News Editor Michelle Powe, Editorial Page Editor Travis Tingle, Sports Editor The Battalion Staff Assistant City Editors Kari Fluegel, Rhonda Snider Assistant.News Editors Tammy Bell, Cami Brown, John Halleti Assistant Sports Elditor Charean Williams Entertainment Editors Shawn Behlen, Leigh-Ellen Clark Staff Writers Cathie Anderson, Brandon Berry, Dainah Bullard, Ann Cervenka, Tony Cornett, Michael Crawford, Kirsten Dietz, Patti Flint, Patrice Koranek, Trent Leopold, Sarah Oates, Jerry Oslin, Tricia Parker, Lynn Rae Povec Copy Editor Kay Mallett Maice-up Editors Karen Bloch, Karla Martin Columnists Kevin Inda, Loren Steffy Editorial Cartoonist Mike Lane Sports Cartoonist Dale Smith Copy Writer Cathy Bennett Photo Editor Katherine Hurt Photographers Anthony Casper, Wayne Grabein, Frank Irwin, John Makely, Peter Rocha, DeanSaito Editorial Policy The Battalion is a non-profit, self-sup/xirting newspaper operated as a community service to Texas A&M and Jiryan-College Station. Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the Editorial Board or the author, and do not net essarily rep resent the opinions of Texas A&M administrators, lacultr or the Board of Regents. The Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspaper for students in reporting, editing and photogfapny classes within the Department of Communications. Letters Policy Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300 words in length. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit letters for style and length hut will make every effort to mainuin the author's intent. Each letter must be signed and mini include the address and telephone number of the writer. The Battalion is published Monday through Friday during Texas A&M regular semesters, except tot holiday and examination periods. Mail subscriptions are f 16.75 per semester, $3.3.25 per school year and $35 per full year. Advertising rates furnished on request. Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University. College Station, TX 77843. Editorial staff phone number: (409) 845-7630. Ad vertising: (409) 845-2611. Second class postage paid at College Station, TX 77843. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Battal ion, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843 that pan thei virc imp for A NA corr oft) C Spa ject: Resi -T foil* i A Intt vote Boa on i can tivit T fina sche trav ing sets mor Si say stud time rule chai gam T tee does the tee’s hou one C vide one thro In a