The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, October 12, 1992, Image 9
Opinion !am Monday, October 12,1992 The Battalion Page 9 still befe. -vill silence« absut; ^cum rep]_ o these (oj they I 3 t° replj Is o( theopj f guys wits ne nt with probably ^ them at h Taking sides: Is it appropriate to celebrate Columbus Day as a holiday? ve can n I'm sure ' other ti V aware d formed billing, fion't need some toy do everytfe r to intprei 'Orformaitf llessly m ►nfidence,® ry elemeer: er to fuE eg Mama ood passii; ANTHONY C. LOBAIDO Columnist The 500th An niversary of Columbus' New World discovery reflects the logical continuation of the celebration of his initiative, opti mism and courage — traits synony mous with the American charac ter. Such celebra tion is nothing new. The Colum- bus Tricentennial -j teamtejf 1792 saw the renaming of the District )f Columbia, Columbia University and he Columbia River. In fact, the fervor ciassiS eac h e d such a pitch that a movement icgan in order to change the name of merica to "Columbia." The 1892 ^uadcentennial Celebration was ush- red in on the heels of the Wounded Knee victory of December 1890 and all „ 1 Ibut sealed America's vision of "Mani- hr] fe st Destiny." esintheffi Fora young America dealing with f lasts®]conquest of indigenous peoples, umatali ] c 0 \ um \xi S was often seen as a symbol dforhitC of political legitimacy. The 1890s saw earn that Francis /. Bellamy write the Pledge of Allegiance and saw-schools begin en- dmeinjt ; 0 uraging children to celebrate Colum- iave to p!‘ jus and learn of his achievements. Na- jur ganw ional zeal reached its apex when Presi- theopeiida ient Benjamin Harrison declared Octo- be 5-0 and' her 12, 1892 a national holiday and or- nation," ! ; lered the Treasury to issue a commem- way andd p ra tive coin sporting a hypothetical ie said, f likeness of Columbus, jf points,;' America's deep historical roots of vegetaP blebrating Columous aside, the charac- er of the man and the purpose of his e wayb® rayage provide the holiday with legiti- iy more^ bacy. edy." As for the notion of ushering in a ■ faith# tew World Holocaust, Columbus' di- certainj* 0 iry records the Hispanola natives — much? I" 1 rao were under siege from slave-seek- ns of dol^ IngCarib Indians — "became so much is ter suff pur friends that it was a marvel." Crit- akes of ' fl ' f |cs should look to the human sacrifice of ig victory 1 ' jhe Mayans and Aztecs for the ultimate ough. in New World horror, thisinst# Others see Columbus as nothing that he® nore than a gold-seeking mercenary, nciescf^ nhis diary, Columbus wrote: "I ougnt eir tearnc 11 » be judged as as a captain sent to sub- :cesses, iue a numerous and nostile people. I nt more,' 11 jave brought these under subjection by want to" 1 vhich Spain, heretofore poor, has be- i wedo"|’ ;ome rich." By risking life and limb, mttom Columbus brought untold wealth into European coffers, yet he was a man who died in abject poverty. | Still the Columbus holiday debate re ams — was the man from Genoa, taly a slave-trading, bloodthirsty colo- ' tual pirate or the personification of capi- e barely a bsm and entrepreneurship? Colum- mtsallV ’usonce defended his character in a let- ess feeling kto Queen Isabella's court: "The slan- ;abouttfl krs of worthless men have done me none injury than all my services have to be a sen 11 Profited me." , S; they'K Whether sailing an open launch on to mal# h e high seas or standing humbled be- towin. ^ ore Royal Court in chains, we ; moretto* bow Columbus lived as the world's , ss ive# ’remier explorer. He was a navigator dee Owl* vho challenged the meridional degree v. A I# *fthe Ptolemy atlas and an adventurer and APs 1 bo inspired men to travel to glory in a lohavetl* ®alm empirically unknown, bought In 2092, Americans living on the •loon and traveling to Mars will still be w j nor a lonoring his unbreakable spirit and naverick achievements. We can do so oday. school is — ire thjfl It is# LoBaido is a doctoral student in r t a sevfi 1 ' educational technology iwoi)#'* SHAWN RALSTON Columnist hat rgies usterS 0 * 1 firou0 didfc' it s a •thing titmet 1 *; ,etic al When Cristobal Colon stumbled upon the Americ as the indigenous population of His- g anola, now the ominican Repub lic and Haiti, was estimated at just under 8 million g eople. By 1496, a panish census registered only 28,000 native in habitants. In a sin gle generation more than 99 per cent of the popula tion of this Caribbean island were mur dered, worked to death, or killed by Eu ropean diseases. The situation was not much different for other indigenous populations. In the words of Bartolome de las Casas, a Spanish priest and early traveler to the Americas, "the greatest outrages and slaughterings of people were perpetrated, whole villages bemg depopulated." It would be ridiculously unfair and misleading to lay every one of those deaths at the door of Columbus. How ever, the phenomenal loss of life which occurred serves to illustrate that Columbus, with or without his consent, turned out to be more the agent of a war of conquest than of a discovery. While not marking the exact date of landfall for the conqueror-explorer, Columbus Day is in essence a celebra tion of a European conquest begun 500 years ago. Perfectly legitimate holiday, right? Perhaps for Europe, but not for America. Though this land was stolen from a conquered people, it is a historical fact about which Americans are, under standably, not particularly proud. Peo ple of European, African and Caribbean descent, as well as many others, now share citizenship in this country. No one race may claim to be any more American than another. Or, if we must distinguish a particular group, it would surely be difficult to rule out the indige nous populations who lived here in the first place. We are now all citizens of one coun try. Columbus Day is an inappropriate federal holiday precisely because we are one diverse people. Columbus Day commemorates the European conquest of the Americas and the deaths of mil lions of indigenous people. It celebrates the idea that Europeans are superior to other peoples. However, by opposing Columbus Day I don't propose to rewrite history. As a matter of fact. I'd like to see us pay more attention to history. Instead of learning about the mythicized discov ery of America, we should learn more about the reality of a war of conquest. As for Columbus himself, we should give him his due. He was a brave and visionary man who definitely lived a tragic life. Choosing not to celebrate Columbus Day is not vilifying Columbus. Rather, we must know history from both sides and when we choose an American holi day it should celebrate how far we have come from the bloody conflicts of colo nial days. We will never be able to re dress historical wrongs. However, we can quit clinging to the myth of "discovery" and face the com plicated truth. We can devise a more appropriate, more American holiday that celebrates our diversity while still being aware of our violent history. Ralston is a graduate student in English E&onats appearing in The Battalion reflect the views of the opinion page staff and editor in chief only, and do not represent, in any wary, ijnions of reporters, staff, or editors of other sections of the newspaper. Columns, guest columns, and Mail CaB items express the opinions of die authors only. Hie Battahon encourages letters to the editor and wiB print as many as space allows in the MaB CaB section. Letters must be 300 words and indude the author's name. [t$- We t reserve the right to edit tetters for length, style, and accuracy. Utters should be addressed to: The Battalion - MaB Call 013 Reed McDonald /Campus mail stop 1111 Texas A&M University Coflege Station. TX 77843 Fraternity parodies hunting of slaves , On Friday night, Oct. 3, the band of which I am a member played at a par ty for the Sigma Alpha Epsilon frater nity at Texas A&M. We were treated well by the social chairman and every one at the house was helpful and friendly. After setting up and being paid, we were horrified to find that the theme of the party was extremely racist. Pledges dressed in black face and grass skirts, and carrying spears, were chased around by actives in hunting fatigues. The decor of the party sug gested the African jungle. The party was a celebration of one of the most terrible crimes against hu manity ever witnessed. No one who attended the party seemed to think anything was wrong. To have racism handled so casually was no less than frightening. As long as this attitude is supported by the Greek system, we cannot hope for an end to our racial tensions in this country. I urge the Interfratemity Council of Texas A&M to acknowledge and de nounce these practices. Individuals in side the system must stand up for what they believe. Tolerance is equiv alent to endorsement. Joe Salem Love Squad hand member Perot commercial showed U.S. decline In Ross Perot's commercial, he tried to show the people of the United States just what is happening to our great na tion. More regulation of industry, in creased safety regulations, and the constant bickering and lawsuits that erupt as a result of equal opportunity measures cut like a double edged sword into our children's future. These measures unnecessarily bur den pur already-hurting industries with more worries and a higher tax rate to pay for the government watch dogs that have to be hired to enforce them. Others would have us believe that our government should control the health industry. They claim this would make the government pay for our health problems. Unfortunately the government does not make any money so guess who would really pay for that "free" health care, in addition to new government bureaucracy that would have to be created to run it all. Incredible as all of these options sound, there is one more that makes me shudder at night. I recently met two foreign exchange students who believe that America is not for Ameri cans, but is instead a world institution brought about to take care of the world. You always wondered what the rest of the world thinks about us, and there it is — you are simply, in their minds, the world's public ser vant. I am afraid most of our career politicians would agree. So next time you have a chance to see old Ross on the television don't change the channel. Your children might thank you someday. John Groenewold Class of '92 Battalion missed the real Perot story I have to take issue with the manner that Gary Carroll covered Perot's first television ad. Carroll missed the point. Although I .applaud the work of the Perot volunteers, I don't feel that a lo cal Perot volunteer deserves as much space or more in the article as the in formation that Perot presented. The 20 words of the seventh para graph discussing the charts and graphs should have been expanded. In fact, the charts were the story. Perol effectively showed that the American economic engine is broken, rusting out in some junkyard while the Democrats and Republicans ignore the issues. Of our $4 trillion debt, $1 tril lion was accumulated under four years of a Democratic president, and $3 tril lion under 12 years of Republican pres idents. That fact says to me that both parties are equally inept at running our country. The above represent just a portion of the information presented by Perot. In my opinion, they are much more newsworthy than the 35 words of a Japanese businessman. Peter J. Ricca Graduate student Gov. Clinton wrong choice for president Though I believe in every Ameri can's right to run for public office, it nonetheless defies my imagination to think that anyone could actually con sider voting for someone with as ques tionable a background as yourself. Billy boy, you would be a better representative of this country if you were on our Olympic marathon team. After all, you are a very good long dis tance runner; you ran all the way to England to avoid the draft. Now it has been revealed that you ran off to Moscow in 1967. Billy boy, I would like for you to tell me why you were in Moscow at a time when the Soviets were supplying the North Viet namese with many of the weapons that were killing U.S. soldiers. Bill, don't you know that your actions border on treason? Billy boy, I understand your opposi tion to the war, but you didn't even have the guts to protest it here at home; you are a coward in the truest sense of the word. Gov. Clinton, you don't have enough integrity to shine my shoes, much less run my country. Karl Krueger Class of '93 Abortion usually result of carelessness In an ideal world, abortions would only be performed in extreme cases of fetal abnormalities or to save the men tal or physical health of the mother. Unfortunately, most people get abortions for their own convenience. without considering the child's rights or needs. In most cases, pro-choice means pro-carelessness. If you are old enough to choose to have sex, you are old enough to choose to accept respon sibility for your choice. The sad thing is, contraceptives, even the most expensive (the Pill), are cheaper than an abortion. If your con cern is cost you have no excuse. There are low-cost clinics and caring people who are ready, able, and will ing to help you make a responsible choice to be reproductive or non-re- productive. The question should not be pro-choice, but pro-responsibility. Annette Smith Veterinary student Accompanied by 3 signatures Different looks no excuse for abuse At the A&M vs. Texas Tech game, a very unfortunate event occurred. While I was cheering, someone came behind me and poured nacho cheese down the inner side of my green Doc Marten boots. I realize that being "different" would draw strange looks or even laughs, but when people physically cause damage to another's property, that is unacceptable. If it was your goal to hurt me and make me feel un comfortable, it did. I hurt that they were so disrespectful to me, my prop erty, and my rights as a "person." I am here for an education, not to be condemned for being "myself." I feel lied to. At my conference in June, I was told repeatedly how Aggies were so diverse and accepting no matter how different. Videotape after video tape, diversity was engraved into my brain and I was excited and anxious to be a part of it. I can't tell you how this event has affected. You don't have to accept me for who I am or what I represent, but there's no excuse for what has been done. I have not done anything bad to anyone. I walk through campus with a smile on my face and even say "howdy." To some, this is just nacho cheese poured on my boots, but to me, this is threatening my rights of expres sion and to be "included"as an Aggie... how sad. Tiffany McEachem Class of '96 Reader plans to vote strictly pro-life I would like to sincerely thank the Battalion for helping me out with my voting decisions on Nov. 3. Of course, I am talking about the article entitled "Abortion rights groups list candi dates" in the Oct. 6 paper. This was a very informative article that I have cut out and will take with me to the voting booth. This makes my voting easy be cause all I have to do is look at the can didates the abortion people want elect ed and then proceed to vote against them. I sincerely hope many other people will do the same. Each year in this country over 1.6 million babies are put to death. Abor tion is the only issue worth looking at when choosing the candidates for pub lic office because without human life, nothing else really matters. Damian J. Krahl Class of '93 £c&rJ(>nY •