Opinion
WM.
The Battalion Editorial Board
JULI PHILLIPS, Editor in chief
' MICHAEL PLUMEK, Managing editor KYLE BURNETT, Aggielife editor
BELINDA BLANCARTE, Night news editor DENA DIZDAR, Aggielife editor
HEATHER WINCH, Night News editor SEAN FRERKING, Sports editor
; TONI GARRARD CLAY, Opinion editor WILLIAM HARRISON, Photo editor
JENNIFER SMITH, City editor
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EDITORIAL
Under fire
Tenure process needs overhaul
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The tenure-granting process
used by Texas A&M University
is once again under fire. Al
though University officials
claim they deal more effective
ly with tenure than other
schools of comparable size,
many problems seem to contin
ue. The incentive of the tenure
process is not the issue. It is
how the requirements are
weighted that should be recon
sidered.
Tenure, according to the
University manual on policy
and procedures, allows faculty
members to remain on staff
permanently unless dismissed
for a good cause. Applicants
are reviewed based on their re
search, teaching and service to
the University. Critics of the
process claim teaching isn't
weighted as heavily as other
requirements, and that it is
easier to measure the success
of empirical research than to
gauge the success of educat
ing.
Throughout all of this con
troversy, the biggest losers are
the students. Professors who
do not receive tenure tend to
look for a university that will
offer them better opportunities.
On the other hand, some
tenure recipients become so
consumed with research, it's
hard for the student to compete
for attention. Either way, the
students do not get the full
benefit of the teacher's time
and expertise. How much na
tional recognition for research
does a university really need to
justify losing good teachers to
the current tenure process?
The tenure committees
should weigh the requirements
equally, in practice as well as
speech. The students of this
university should be their top
priority. The best way for
Texas A&M to get national ex
posure is through the successes
of its graduates, not the profes
sors that may or may not re
ceive tenure.
A middle ground must be
established. Possibly a dual
form of tenuring track could
serve to consider both research
specialists and education spe
cialists without bias. Then
teaching professors could focus
their energies back on their
classes. This system would
give the students the chance to
compete with other students —
not with someone's research.
I he Battalion Page '
From spies to Sarajevo - what you know
Survey indicates selective knowledge of current events
LYNN
BOOMER
Columnist
A fter pondering
what most col
lege students
know about current
events, I decided to dis
tribute a small survey.
The results are pretty
interesting.
Question one asked:
"What happens on
Tuesday?" Of those
who responded, only a
very few knew that this
Tuesday was election
day. Original answers
included, "The
coupons come out in
The Battalion," and
"Cold front comes in."
The next question seemed easier. Almost
everyone had heard about the CIA spy who
sold secrets to the Russians. However, when
asked who Aldrich Hazen Ames was, very few
connected his name to the spy in question. One
person came close and said that he was "some
European spy," but other answers ranged from
"developed the Ames test for cancer testing" to
"founder of Ames, Iowa."
When asked what should happen to Ames,
a freshman electrical engineering major re
sponded, "I think he should be imprisoned for
life with no food or water, hands strapped
down, with Chinese water torture."
A senior English major took a different
stance. "I think we'd better not overreact," she
wrote. "I hear that one of the things Ames did
was to reveal one of our spies over there. So
what are we getting so self-righteous about?
It's rather funny, really." Interesting view
points.
The next question was one a few more peo
ple could relate to: "Who did you root for,
Tonya or Nancy and why?" The majority chose
Nancy. Support for her ranged from: "She has
a better butt" to "She seemed nicer. Tonya just
really seemed snobby and rude about the
whole thing, whether she was guilty or not."
Support for Tonya included, "Nancy is a
bi-" and that Tonya "had a much better body."
A sophomore psychology major wrote, "I al
most root for Tonya because she is a victim of
vicious exploitation by the media .... She hasn't
even been tried {in a court of law) and people
are ready to condemn her. Nancy got hit on the
knee, healed, got to skate and was made
'America's Sweetheart.' Tonya, on the other
hand, has had to fight the whole way." One
person rooted for Oksana Baiul.
Another question stated, "Did you know
that ABC newsman Sam Donaldson said, 'You
gotta love any movie where the heroine is
named Pussy Galore,' in reference to his fa
vorite movie, 'Goldfinger'? What do you think
of that?" A few people expressed support in
phrases like, "Sam's the man!" and "Whoop!"
But many found his statement "tacky" and
"crude." One person got down to the point of
Donaldson's professional appearance by writ
ing, "Should I care? He reports the news just
fine."
Most people had heard about the Hebron
mosque massacre. They estimated the number
killed to be anywhere between 20 and 300. Ac
tual numbers were around 30. A poignant
statement from a junior wildlife and fisheries
science major was, "I can't believe the inhu
manity, the violence, the senseless bloodshed
continues."
Almost everyone also knew about the fight
ing in Sarajevo. A couple of people mentioned
that it was the site of the 1984 Winter
Olympics. One person only identified it as the
site where "Archduke Franz Ferdinand was as
sassinated, which began World War I."
Respondents were about evenly divided on
the question of whether they liked NAFTA or
not. Opponents said such things as, "It stinks
because the U. S. was already the richest nation
in the world and couldn't benefit from it," and
even, "Can you say 'giant sucking sound'?"
Supporters tended to make their answers more
eloquent. One person wrote, "In the long run, I
think free trade will benefit U. S. companies
and bring the Mexican market up."
Very few people remembered the media
uproar last semester over Antioch College's
rules about sexual conduct and date rape. The
policy there basically states that before engag
ing in any sexual activity, the partners each
must receive the other's verbal permission,
whether they are hand-holding or anything
more involved. One of the three people who
had heard of the policy wrote that Texas A&M
should not adopt similar rules because "sex is
not something to be governed like jaywalking
or speeding."
What does this survey show? Perhaps that
people tend to concentrate on news that is sen
sationalized, like the Tonya-n-Nancy show. Or
maybe it shows that the people who report the
news don't spend enough time talking about
really important things, like loss of human
rights or life. You decide.
Lynn Booher is a sophomore English and
psychology major
I—ir?'/ —I
Editorials appearing in The
Battalion reflect the views of the
editorial board. They do not
necessarily reflect the opinions of
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Address letters to:
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UUf
&M
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ie)
Out in Luckenbach, Texas, there ain't nobody feelin' no pain
A bout 10 o'
clock Friday
night I was
in the newsroom of
the San Angelo
Standard-Times
wearing a white
shirt and tie, proof
reading the obituar
ies when I realized
I'd been in San An
gelo for more than
a month without
even leaving the
city limits. Nearly
24 hours later I was
in Luckenbach,
Texas, wearing my
father's ragged old bam jacket and a flan
nel shirt, singing Robert Earl Keen songs
with some Harley-Davidson biker who
had a guitar.
The two places are worlds apart ... and
it did me a world of good.
I graduated from Texas A.&M Universi
ty in December, and after a final look at the
familiar surroundings of College Station, I
hauled my stuff to San Angelo and
plunged into the "real world" of journal
ism. I was strong; I was free; I was on my
own.
A month later, I was lonely. And 1 have
to admit this because my phone bill would
betray me anyway. So Saturday morning I
packed a bag and left.
I spent the day hiking around Enchant
ed Rock State Park, and around evening
time I drove to Luckenbach.
There's not much in Luckenbach - basi
cally just a dance hall and a general store
with a bar in it. Right after I got there, a
group of Harley-Davidson bikers roared
up in a cloud of dust. They were fresh from
Cut-and-Shoot, Texas, and they were
thirsty. I eased up to the bar with them and
the night was under way.
They say, "Everybody's Somebody in
Luckenbach." And everybody seemed to
be there. Old ladies, young ladies, children,
a mother and her son (who was drinking
Dr. Pepper while his mom drank at least a
six-pack of Shiner), bikers, ranchers, hip
pies, rednecks, tourists, locals and me. I
never thought I'd see such a group in one
place, but we were all there, and we were ■
all having fun. I'm no stranger to bars; I've
A long-haired biker rau
cously sang Robert Earl
Keen's "The Armadillo
Jackal." But don't laugh
— I have special feelings
for that song.
been to several, but I've never been to one
that was more down-to-earth or more
friendly. Luckenbach is in a class by itself.
Later in the evening I was sitting on a
tree stump, tapping my boots to the
rhythm of three old men playing guitars
and singing Willie Nelson songs. As I sat
there beneath the stars, I thought back on
the good times in my life and for a fleeting
moment, the world was perfect. The tran
quility wouldn't last.
I was enjoying a peaceful night, entirely
at ease with the whole world, when I heard
the sounds coming from the bar. The
sounds were unmistakable. Somebody was
singing a song that only an Aggie could
have written, and I jumped up to go inves
tigate, pausing only long enough to finish
my beer.
I opened the door to the bar and was
stunned to find a long-haired biker rau
cously singing Robert Earl Keen's "The Ar
madillo Jackal." Yes, the song is about a
man who dies while running over armadil
los, but don't laugh — I have special feel
ings for that song.
I stepped inside and bought that man a
beer. Impressed with my taste in music, the
man invited me to sing with him, and I
gladly accepted. Later, I would wonder
how the patrons of the bar demonstrated
such incredible tolerance for my terrible
singing.
Anyway, the rest of the evening degen
erated into stories best not told as he and I
sang songs I wouldn't even listen to when I
was sober.
I slept in my truck in the parking lot
that night. I woke up Sunday morning
(with no way to hold my head that did
n't hurt) and drove into Fredericksburg
to get some breakfast. I toured the Hill
Country the rest of the morning before
returning to Luckenbach that afternoon
to drink some Lone Star beer with a
cowboy named Ross.
Monday afternoon, I drove back to San
Angelo happy about everything in life ex
cept how much money I'd spent. And if I
hadn't run out of money, I might still be in
Luckenbach.
Don't get me wrong, San Angelo is a
good place to live, and I like working
there. But if you're feeling down-and-out,
I recommend you take a road trip to cure
your blues. After all, "Out in Lucken
bach, Texas, there ain't nobody feeling no
pain."
Dave Thomas is a journalism graduate of
Texas A&M and now works for the
San Angelo Standard-Times
DAVE
THOMAS
Guest columnist
4)
i
f
Asians should be
represented at retreat
This letter is in response to "Retreat
targets cultural awareness among lead
ers" in The Battalion (Feb. 25). The Uni
versity Awareness for Cultural Together
ness (U-ACT) organized a retreat among
University leaders to discuss multicul
tural issues. The general idea of identify
ing various groups among the Universi
ty and discussing opinions is great, but it
creates a problem when only certain or
ganizations, which U-ACT deems appro
priate, are invited. Some of the groups
listed in the article were the Interfraterni
ty Council, MSC Hospitality Council, Ex
cellence Uniting Culture, ExCel and Ag
gie Orientation Leader Program. While
talking to a friend who went on this re
treat, I asked her if representatives from
Asian organizations (India, China, Tai
wan, Pakistan, etc.) were present, and
she replied, "No."
Asians are one of the largest minority
populations at A&M and many other uni
versities around the nation. If this retreat
was to promote cultural awareness among
the University, then Asian student leaders
should have also been invited to express
their opinions on multicultural issues.
Ketan Sukkawala
Class of'94
Work, faith not same
Why are people being so petty about
the faculty ad placed in the paper? A fac
ulty member has a right to talk to a stu
dent, even if it doesn't pertain to acade
mics - whether it is in an office, over the
phone or at home. It has nothing to do
with the University.
A person and their job are not one in
the same. It is a prime example of how
people of different religions can't get
along. Multiculturalism does not work.
Shea Snyder
Class of '95
Limbaugh only tells
audience half truth
All this Rush Limbaugh propaganda
is making me quite sick. How anyone
intelligent enough to be attending col
lege (let alone one of the greatest col
leges in the world) can be suckered in is
a complete mystery. And now there is
support to bring him here.
Like all good flimflam guys. Rush
will only tell you what he wants you to
know. For example, on a show late last
year he showed some statistics on a
mayoral election.
A black candidate and a white candi
date had been in a run-off and Rush
had the racial breakdown of the voters.
Only five percent of the black voters
went with the white candidate while
thirty percent of the white voters
marked their ballots for the black can
didate.
Rush went on to use some of Presi
dent Clinton's words in a typical Rush
Limbaugh misquote to imply racial dis
crimination existed only in non-whites.
What Limbaugh did not show were sta
tistics on economic breakdown, party
affiliation, or bring any other signifi
cant criterion to let you form your own
opinion. I guess it's all black and white
to Rush. "I've got a monopoly on the
truth." I think that most of us know
what Rush's monopoly is on.
Next time you watch him (and I
strongly advise you don't) pay atten
tion to what the inventive little story
teller doesn't say — that is where you'll
find the truth Rush is always talking
about.
Jarrett Guidry
Class of '94
Anna Worthy
Class of '93