The Battalion
OPINION l
Tuesday, January 30,1990
Opinion Page Editor Ellen Hobbs 845-3314
Shelby’s reassignment
angers A&M alumni
The events of the past few days and
the consequential firing of Coach Shelby
Metcalf greatly angers me. I realize that
the firing may not be reversed at this
time; however, I would like to discuss
the events leading up to this and the
media coverage. It is also apparent
Athletic Director John D. Crow,
handled this event poorly.
I can only report on the events as I
have seen them from the public
perspective and the alumni perspective.
Undoubtably there are circumstances
and issues which I do not have privilege
to know.
I think it very unfair that a man who
was within one year of qualifying for
state teacher retirement and who
probably would have retired gracefully
after such time, was publicly humiliated
— “reassigned” or fired. Coach Metcalf
has been at Texas A&M for a long time.
He has won several conference titles
and even led his teams to several NCAA
Tournament appearances. He was
called the “Dean” of SWC coaches and
the “winningest” coach ever! A very
distinguished career that deserves
better than this.
Texas A&M deserves better than this.
Now alumni will be answering barrages
from those around them who expected
more out of Texas A&M also.
Since 1972, I have seen several
changes of the coaching personnel —
Emery Ballard, Tom Wilson, Jackie
Sherrill and now Shelby Metcalf — and
each change seems to have been
progressively more heated and
controversial. I have been disappointed
before and even irritated at such
changes due to alumni pressure.
Now I am just plain angry. I am
angry that our dirty laundry is being -
aired over every newspaper and TV
station all over the state.
The Times Herald reported that
Crow was telling “boosters” that Metcalf
was going to be dismissed. This type of
behavior is intolerable. Athletic
directors should learn to keep their
mouths shut!
Metcalf had every right to take this to
Christopher E.
Stueck
Reader’s Opinion
Mail Call
‘X’ rating doesn’t always mean pornography
EDITOR:
Like Ms. Wolling and Mr. Well, I was very surprised to read in last Mon
day’s Battalion that Aggie Cinema would be presenting an X-rated movie,
“The Last Woman,” in Rudder Theater. My reaction, however, was not of
horror and fear for the destruction of Aggie morals but of excitement that the
conservative stranglehold that often holds this campus in its grasp had been
loosened enough to allow such a film to be shown. No doubt President Bush
wouldn’t approve, but perhaps we’ll get the library anyway.
I saw the film and it was not pornography by any stretch of the imagina
tion. I didn’t think it was Academy Award material but it had some interesting
things to say. I’m glad Aggie Cinema had the courage to show a movie which
would undoubtably cause some controversy.
To Ms. Wolling and Mr. Well: Thank you for attempting to safeguard my
sensibilities, but I don’t need your help. Adults, i.e. the vast majority of Texas
A&M students, are capable of making choices that fit with their own morals
and do not need the morals of other imposed on them.
Laura E. Floyd ’91
Equal? Please...
EDITOR:
In recent weeks, people have been complaining about racism in The Bat
talion’s Mail Call. I am a white man who has just entered this University, and it
is a miracle that I am even here.
I graduated in the top 20 percent of my class of about 600 people. Due to
some hard times my parents have had, I am struggling financially. My sister, a
senior at A&M, graduated 18th in her class of 600 students. In her case and
mine, many scholarships were given to people far below us in ranking just be
cause they were members of minority groups.
I am not bitter about what happened in our family, and what happened in
the high schools my sister and I attended, but if scholarships were awarded to
the most deserving my life would be more worry free.
I am simply tired of individuals complaining about what someone owes
them. Thank you, James E. Sexton, for writing the letter on reverse racism.
David M. Babin ’93
The Battalion
(USPS 045 360)
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
The Battalion Editorial Board
Scot Walker, Editor
Monique Threadgill,
Managing Editor
Ellen Hobbs, Opinion Page Editor
Melissa Naumann, City Editor
Cindy McMillian, Lisa Robertson,
News Editors
Richard Tijerina, Sports Editor
Fredrick D. Joe, Art Director
Mary-Lynne Rice, Lifestyles Editor
Editorial Policy
The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting
newspaper operated as a community service to
Texas A&M and Bryan-College Station.
Opinions expressed in The Battalion are
those of the editorial board or the author, and
do not necessarily represent the opinions of
Texas A&M administrators, faculty or the
Board of Regents.
The Battalion is published Monday through
Friday during Texas A&M regular semesters,
except for holiday and examination periods.
Mail subscriptions are $17.44 per semester,
$34.62 per school year and $36.44 per full year.
Advertising rales furnished on request.
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POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
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A&M University, College Station TX 77843-
4111.
Aggies say ‘get well’ to grad;
try to beat the hell outta t.u.
the media to air his opinion.
The Houston Chronicle reported
that Crow was upset at game attendance
and the poor performance of the
basketball team. These things may be
true, but by causing a chasm in the
program at mid-season, he may have
damaged it all the mot e.
Mickey Herskowitz of the Post
termed it a “cold impatient act” adding
that “a huge hunk of honor, loyalty and
Aggie pride went out the gymnasium
window.” Hershowitz is quite right. We
seem to find ways to sink even lower
each time a “coaching change” comes
up.
It is time to stop, step back and look at
what you’re doing to the people
involved, the players and especially the
alumni who ultimately are blamed for it
all.
Aggie pride and spirit are what set
A&M apart from the rest. Let’s not
damage this pride or spirit any more by
such irresponsible acts.
So what if the basketball program
doesn’t take first place this year — even
next year. The point is, some things are
more important. Allowing Metcalf to
retire at the end of his contract and a
gracious changing of the reigns would
have been more beneficial.
Many Aggies have looked forward to
the day when Metcalf would be
“immortalized” for his service and
dedication to our university. This is,
indeed, a very sad and tragic finale for
someone who has given Texas A&M 32
years of distinguished service.
Christopher E. Stueck is a graduate
of Texas A&M.
As with all columns, viewpoints
expressed in Reader’s Opinions are
not necessarily those of The Battalion.
Persons interested in submitting a
Readers Opinidn should contact the
Opinion Page editor at 845-3314.
Damon
Arhos
Assistant Opinion Page Editor
Once again, the A&M/t.u. rivalry is
escalating.
Roddy Stinson, columnist for the
San Antonio Express News, created
the contest after receiving the
following letter from a very
dedicated Aggie mom:
“Dear Roddy:
“Juan Basombrio, a 1989 honor
graduate and former commander of
the 6th Battalion at Texas A&M, is in
Wilford Hall Medical Center, having
just been diagnosed with leukemia.
“It would really mean a lot to this
extremely nice young man if fellow
Aggies would send him get-well cards
and notes of encouragement. He is
not a San Antonio native and has no
family living here.
“So, how about it Aggies? Let’s
show Juan what it means to be an
Aggie. Let him know that Aggies do,
indeed, stick together.
“Cards can be sent to him at this
address: Wilford Hall Medical
Center, Lackland Air Force Base, San
Antonio, Texas, 78236/5300;
Attention: Tuan Basombrio, Room
660.
“Thanks and ‘Gig ’em.’
“Alice S. Crawford, Aggie Mom,
(Classes of’90 and ’92)”
This letter was published in
Stinson’s column on January 3,
accompanied by the following
“contest” and its rules:
“The Contest: To see who can
send Juan Basombrio the most cards
and letters:
“1. The students, alumni and fans
of Texas A&M.
“2. The students, alumni and
supporters of the rival (and wooing)
school, the University of Texas.
“The Rules: 1. Each card/letter
must bear a drawing of either a
“Hook ’em” or “Gig ’em” sign. Non
artists may simply print the words
“Horns (Aggies) Wish You Well” or
some similar, fraternal message.
“2. Any get-well wisher who
couldn’t care less about either school
may substitute the name, address,
phone number and photograph of
his/her prettiest niece.
“3. Contestants who send A&M or
UT mementos, souvenirs,
paraphernalia, etc., will be counted
twice.
“4. Anyone who mentions directly,
indirectly or subliminally the UT-
A&M football scores of the past six
years will be automatically
disqualified.”
And the Prize?
“The Prize: A representative of
the winning group will be invited to
go to lunch with Basombrio, Alice
Crawford, me and South Texas’
prettiest niece, (as judged by Juan)
when he is released from Wilford
Hall.”
Let me give you one more quote
from Stinson’s column:
“I’m confident that UT will win,
but I will leave it to the mailman to
prove me right or wrong.”
As of January 21, we’re winning,
Ags. The score so far is A&M: 298,
t.u.: 95.
Basombrio has received quite a
collection, according to Stinson. The
12th Man (football squad) sent him a
towel signed by all of the members.
He has received bumper stickers,
posters, balloons, t-shirts, flowers,
plants, a painting, pictures of nieces
and yes, even the dreaded stuffed
Bevo. And the letters have been
coming too.
While a lot of the hoopla (or
should I say “whoopla”) has been
centered around the competition
between A&M and t.u., the fact is
that an Aggie needs our help. It’s
time for all of us in Aggieland to
show' Juan Basombrio that we’re
behind him 100 percent.
So OK, Roddy, you’re on.
Aggies, forgive me for sounding
like a yell leader for a moment, but
here goes. Let’s all take a few minutes
out of our day to send a letter or a
bumper sticker or a picture of this
year’s bonfire to Juan. (His addressis
listed above.) Let’s show him (and
Roddy Stinson) that the 12th Manis
alive and well in Aggieland, and that
we’re never too busy to help out a
fellow Ag. And let’s show everyone
our burning desire to beat the EVER
LIVIN’ (whoop), EVER LOVIN’
(whoop), COMPOUND (whoop),
COMPLEX (whoop), FIGHTIN*
'T EXAS AGGIE BONFIRE (whoop),
etc. ... HELL OUTTA t.u.. like we
have the past SIX years. (This may
disqualify me, but I just had tosayit.)
And from Basombrio himself:
“Life is sort of like a walk througha
park. Sometimes a tree gets in the
way. But you can always chop down
trees.”
Juan, we’re behind you with over
40,000 axes.
Damon Arhos is a senior
journalism major.
Editor explains Page 2 idiosyncrasies
This is your friendly Opinion Page,,
editor; How can I help you?
I want to submit a letter to the editor.
What do I do?
First you write a letter. A letter to the
editor can be up to 300 words in length,
or about a page and a half, typewritten
and single spaced. If you want to wa ite
something longer than that, you may
submit a Reader’s Opinion column,
which I’ll explain in a minute.
You can either mail your letter to The
Batt, or you can bring it by. Make sure
to include your class year — the
numbers, not the words (instead of
junior, say ’91. Whoop!) — your student
I.D. and phone number.
If you bring your letter to The Batt,
make sure to bring your A&M I.D. or, if
that’s not possible, your driver’s license.
If you mail your letter, expect a call
from us to verify that you are who you
say you are.
Our policy says that all letters must be
signed by one or more individuals. No
group can take responsiblity for one
letter. If a long list of signatures is given,
we will print the first signature and
indicate how' many other signatures
were on the letter.
No anonymous letters wall be printed.
There must be a named printed with
each letter.
We edit for grammar, spelling, length
and style. We will not, however, change
the essence of your letter.
Please don’t expect your letter to be
printed the same day you turn it in. It
may take us a few days to get your letter
typed into our computer system and
verify it and find room for it on the
page.
Ellen
Hobbs
Opinion Page Editor
What about writing guest columns?
And what’s this Reader’s Opinion
thing?
We’re giving our guest columns a
little cosmetic surgery. They’ll no longer
be called guest columns. We found out
that some readers thought that only
certain people could write guest
columns, when in reality any reader can
submit one. So now they’re called
Reader’s Opinions.
Anything that is submitted that’s too
long for Mail Call can end up being a
Reader’s Opinion column.
Your Reader’s Opinion will be edited
just like a letter. T he shorter and more
concise your column, the smaller the
chance that your column will be cut.
If you submit a Reader’s Opinion,
include the same information you
would include with a letter to the editor,
plus your classification (that’s the word,
like “junior.”).
What’s the difference between
editorials and columns?
Editorials are the opinion of The
Battalion as a whole. They are written
and voted on by the members of The
Battalion Editorial Board, which is
made up of The Battalion editors that
are named in the staff box,at the bpttol
of this page.
Editorials are boxed and printed ini
the upper left-hand corner of Page2,
and have the words “The Battalion t
Editorial Board” printed-at the bottom I
Columns are the opinion of the
individual columnists, not the whole |
Battalion. The Battalion does not
regulate the topics or viewpoints ofou:l
columnists.
What the hell happened to “Calvin
and Hobbes”?
We had a poll last semester to see /
which syndicated comic strip Battalion I
readers would prefer to see on the
Opinion Page. “Calvin and Hobbes”
won by an overwhelming margin.
However, The Batt made no
promises. “Calvin and Hobbes” appeanj
in the Bryan-College Station Eagle,anil
the Eagle has exclusive rights to rundiel
comic in this area. And, though we
requested it, the Eagle will not give up ’
that right.
Instead, because there was no dear /
second choice and because The
Battalion prefers to run local artists who
draw strips with an A&M slant, we
moved “Adventures in Cartooning”to
Page 2.
“Adventures” is a funny local comic
with an editorial slant — a slant that
“Calvin” often lacks — and, I think,the
better choice for the Opinion Page.
Well, that’s it — Page 2 in a nutshell
Keep forming opinions, and happy
reading!
Ellen Hobbs is a junior journalism
major.
Adventures In Cartooning
by Don Atkinson Jr.