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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 30, 1995)
Thursday • March 30, 1993 Opinion The Battalion • Page 11 HHBHBBHHBBH Cast educated votes or do not vote at all I t’s election time again. Each year, we are inundated with messages and slo gans demanding that we exercise our right to vote. Editorials encourage us to participate in the political process. Candidates say their main goal — besides winning — is to get people out to vote. While we should cherish the right to vote as the most important right that we enjoy as citizens of a free soci ety, we should forego casting votes on issues about which we are apathetic or uninformed. Ideally, of course, we should show an interest in the issues that affect our lives and attempt to stay well informed about them. If the people are to remain sover eign, we must have a say over those ac tions of government which will influence our job security, financial well-being and political freedom. Our popularly-elected public represen tatives and the laws which they craft must ultimately be held accountable to the public. In order for us to do this, we have to know what they are up to. However, many of us do not take the time to keep up with the affairs of govern ment. They often seem irrelevant to our day to day lives. We can get though the day just fine without knowing what hap pened in Washington or Austin. From one perspective, this is good be cause it means that affairs of government do not unduly influence us. We are free to go about our own business without too much interference from the state. Even though we may perceive government as too big and an interference, which in fact it may be, proper perspective shows that we are a long way away from any sort of socialist or totalitarian regime. We retain the right to influence how government treats us. If it is getting too big, the voting public has the pow er to reduce it. In order to retain this influence over our government, we must have the right to decide matters of importance to us via the democratic process, i.e., the right to vote. However, the process does not need full participation to work. We as Americans, particularly Gen eration Xers, have been criticized as apathetic and lazy when it comes to political affairs. Voter turnout for presidential elections rarely exceeds 50 percent. Even fewer bother to cast a ballot for state and local elections. For student elections at Texas A&M, 19 percent is an all time turnout high. Our apathy stems from the fact that government does not seem to influence our day to day lives. No matter who holds office, we still get up in the morning, go to school or work, accomplish our tasks and goals, talk to our friends and sleep well, knowing that the government is not likely to barge into our homes and arrest us without just cause. We can pursue our own dreams and freely exercise whatever religious, po litical or moral beliefs that we hold, as long as they do not infringe on the rights of others. This apathy does not threaten the democratic process. As long as we re tain the option of expressing our opin ion at the voting booth, our rights and freedoms are safe. In addition, we should not feel com pelled to cast a vote on an issue about which we are uninformed. While we should make a reasonable effort to re main informed on issues of importance, it is better to cast no vote at all than an uninformed one. Uninformed ballots dilute the voting power of those who truly do care and have a stake in the outcome of a particular election. More importantly, however, vot ing with a limited understanding of the issues and basing decisions on sound bites or name recognition is more harmful to democracy than not voting at all. It allows unqualified candidates to get elected. It discourages critical analysis of the issues and satisfies our short atten tion spans. It breeds demagogues. The same principles apply to the student government elections on cam pus this week. We should make an effort to become familiar with the candidates and vote based on who will best serve the interests of Texas A&M. We should not base our votes solely on who has the biggest plac ard in front of Sbisa. If you are indifferent towards who wins the election, then don’t vote at all. We should not vote simply out of some sense of civic duty if our opinion is not in formed by any more than the candidate’s picture in the paper. If you truly support somebody, vote for them. If you want somebody to lose, vote against them. But if it doesn’t matter to you, it is best to avoid voting at all. Simply guessing at the ballot box is more damaging than silence. Jim Pawlikowski is a junior chemical engineering major \iWMi TMT 7 MO'.M! tM Smoking burns out young lives Elizabeth Preston Columnist T his year Beth has found the perfect time to smoke. She sits out side between her classes with the friends she walks with and has just enough time to smoke one, if not two, cigarettes. She always sits downwind of her friends, and they use the time to catch up with each other’s lives. Recently she defended her smoking habit by saying,“If I have to die two weeks early because of smoking, I don’t want to live those two weeks anyway.” Nancy Flowers was the leader of a youth group at my church while I was in high school. She taught journalism and English at a Houston high school and had two children she was raising as a single parent. She also smoked. She was kind, loving and willing to do anything for those she loved. Except quit smoking. After my third semester at Texas A&M, I went home to attend her funeral. The church was packed with current and former students, friends and colleagues, all mourning the loss of a beautiful and much-loved women. Lung cancer had won its short battle with her. Her son is now a freshman at the University of Texas, and her daughter attends a local high school. They live with their uncle. This is when people who smoke die. Sure, it can happen that a smoker lives until they are 107 years old, telling people that all they do everyday is smoke and drink alcohol. But this is incredibly rare. The majority of people who smoke die too young. While their children are in school. Before they have their wills made out. And before they live even half of their dreams.When the tragedy is extreme. 500,000 people die each year in America from breathing their own smoke. This is approximately twelve Texas A&M campuses filled with students — each year. 83 percent of all lung cancer victims are a direct result of the effects of cigarette smoke. Lung cancer has just passed breast cancer as the num ber one killer of women — making it the most deadly can cer for men and women. More than 70 percent of all particulate matter remains in the lungs of cigarette smokers who inhale. . That is way too much crap to have floating around in your lungs. 30 percent of all cancer deaths are related to smoking. Not just lung, but throat, mouth and almost all heart dis eases are affected and encouraged by smoking. What is worse is the news for young users like Beth. The lung cancer mortality risk for people that start smok ing between the ages of 15 and 19 is twice that of those that start between 20 and 24, and five times that of the people who start smoking after they turn 25. Smoking was introduced to the Europeans by Christo pher Columbus who discovered it in the Americas. Though the reaction against it from the medical community began almost immediately, it still spread worldwide and peaked in popularity in the 1970’s, with almost half of all Ameri cans lighting up. There is something appealing about the idea of smoking. The pictures that come to mind are James Dean and his smoldering sexuality, or Kate Moss with her unaffected and anorexic beauty. The pictures that should come to mind are very differ ent portraits. The picture of Nancy Flowers emaciated in a hospital bed wracked with a painful cough. The picture of her children who have lost their mother when they are too young to have to be alone. The picture of the pain and agony that go hand-in- hand with painful, drawn out deaths. The reality is that smoking stinks and makes all of the people around the smoker stink. Not only that, but it is ex pensive — tobacco companies earn about 50 billion dollars annually in sales. And it makes it a pain in the rear end to eat out in restaurants or go to movies, since so many non-smoking policies are being implemented lately. Smoking is an incredible addiction. An article published in the February 1995 issue of JAMA (Journal of the Ameri can Medical Association) stated that fully 70 percent of all smokers would like to quit but are unable to. It must be incredibly painful to feel a uncontrollable need for something that is recognized as one of the greatest killers of modern society. It is even worse to feel the pain of the loss of a loved one, long before they should have died. If a smoker is lucky, they will only lose two weeks of their life and a whole heck of a lot of money. If not, they will die before they have had the chance to finish anything they started. Elizabeth Preston is a junior English major Mail Call A&M Rugby team deserves coverage Over the weekend of March 25 and 26, I came to Texas A&M to watch the Texas Collegiate Rugby Champi onships. Upon my arrival, I checked the previous week’s Battalion for the time and place of the games. To my amazement, the only thing I found on rugby was a picture with a caption under it. No article about Ag gie rugby, no comment on the Aggies undefeated tournament. Nothing. In 1975, I was a member of the Ag gie team that won the National Colle giate Rugby Championship. This being the 25th anniversary of that accomplishment, I thought you would have generated some enthusi asm through your paper. In 1975, we had the articles in the Batt every week, extolling our ex ploits on the field, helping us to get fired up for the next game and get ting out spectators. As it was, we barely had a handful of Aggie spectators, other than the team. Rice had a large contingent of parents and well-wishers to urge them on. The final outcome was a tough loss for the Ags. What did we learn from this? I hope The Battalion will get back to covering school events like the Texas Collegiate Rugby Cham pionship. This is a major event in the lives of those students who par ticipated. I hope they will go back to covering a winning tradition, like A&M Rugby. I know I spilled a lot of blood on my maroon and white jersey, and I was disappointed to see how you have forgotten about all the other Aggies like me who gave a large part of themselves to establish a winning tradition before the football team fi nally did. Robert Moorman Class of ’75 Affirmative action does not help country I am writing in response to Amy Uptmor’s column on March 27. I am really surprised to find that Uptmor does not feel the least bit in sulted by affirmative action. The pro gram projects the message that women are unable to compete with men with out being given an artificial advantage. How insulting. I really don’t see how she, as a woman, should support such a program which not only is an insult to her intelligence and ability, but denies her the right to compete with men on a truly equal basis. Affirmative action is part of the dis crimination problem, and not the cure. I venture to say that many men will continue to resent women in the work place as long as they believe that these women may have been placed there not because they were the most qualified, but because of some quota requirement. The way to stop these negative atti tudes toward women is to end affirma tive action, so that there may be no question as to a woman’s ability. Mick Nichols Class of’97 Complaints arise from irresponsible spending When a young child says some thing cute while attempting to tack le a deep subject, I smile and shake my head. I had this same response to Jenny Magee’s March 29 column on why we should shut up and just pay our in come taxes. Very few people would "refute the logic behind the federal government collecting taxes. I think that most of us are bright enough to know that our government needs a budget to operate. Where do we draw the fine through? What we are complaining about is the inflated amount we pay, and how it is just thrown around like it grows on trees. Magee manages to compare paying taxes to paying a member ship fee at a health club. If the government was a health club it would be out of business, the managers would be in prison, and we would all be obese. It would be hard to imagine that the majority, if not all, of the patrons would voice their disappointment. I don’t mind paying taxes, but un til there is a little accountability for how it is spent, I will complain. Phillip Slaughter Class of ’95 The Battalion encourages letters to the editor and will print as many as space allows. Letters must be 300 words or less and include the author's name, class and phone number. We reserve the right to edit letters for length, style, clarity and accuracy. Letters may be submitted in person at 01 3 Reed McDon ald. A valid student I.D. is required. Letters may also be mailed to: The Battalion - Mail Call Fax: (409) 845-2647 013 Reed McDonald E-mail: Texas A&M University Batt@tamvml.tamu.edu College Station, TX 77843-1111 True heroes come in all shapes, sizes David Taylor Columnist S ome words get overused. For exam ple, have you noticed how every thing these days is a “crisis?” We have the health care crisis, the crime crisis, the deficit crisis and, most importantly, my G.P.R. crisis. Another overused word is “hero.” Over the semester, I have learned about many people genuinely deserving of the word “hero.” I spend a lot of time bashing Congress. In fact, if it weren’t for Congress I would probably have to get a real job, because I would very quickly run out of hypocritical and dumb ideas to bring to your atten tion. Some members are different. Sam Johnson, who represents my home district, is different. Johnson spent 29 years in the U.S. Air Force. In 1966, Johnson was shot down over North Vietnam. He spent the next seven years as a P.O.W. — including three years in solitary confinement. This episode can aptly be described as a “char acter-building experience.” Johnson credits his faith with getting him through the ordeal. He tells a story about a turning point in his time as a P.O.W. During one three-month stretch, Johnson was placed in leg stocks while in solitary confinement. A typhoon hit Hanoi, and Johnson’s cell began to flood. He had nowhere to turn except to God ... and God was there. Needless to say, faith remains a priori ty in Sam Johnson’s life. Our families often provide the best examples of heroes. My grandfather certainly does. My great-grandfather immigrated to the United States from Russia before the Russian Revolution in 1912. My grandfa ther was born in 1920. Thinking back to that required history class, you may re call that things got pretty rough in this country about 10 years later. My great-grandfather worked as a cobbler in Detroit while his family lived in a cramped apartment above the shop. When my grandfather was 12 years old, he began working as a paperboy to help support his family. He has not stopped working since. My grandfather put himself through college — not a particularly easy task in the 1930’s. He earned a degree in Aero space Engineering from Wayne State University in Michigan. He was then hired by an aircraft manufacturer and transferred to Dallas. My grandfather began as an engineer and worked his way to president of the then 20,000-em ployee company. He retired in 1975 ... sort of. His “re tirement” consisted of consulting for vari ous aerospace-related companies all over the country. I spent a summer working at his for mer company a few years back. Every time I mentioned his name, there was al ways a story. Normally, it went along the lines of “there was a problem ...” and it ended with, "... and his suit was covered with grease and was ruined.” My grandfather has never walked away from work and has never done less than his best. If I come close to accom plishing what my grandfather has achieved, I will consider myself an un qualified success. Other heroes are among us, and they often go unrecognized. I used my first Q-drop last week — no, not very heroic. Before I did, I went to talk to my adviser about my options. With many advisers, it is a simple process: “Sign here,” followed by, “Have a nice day,” and, “by the way, you only have two Q-drops left.” Again, some are different. This person took some extra time to see what was going on in my life and if there was anything he could do to help. I was having a tough week, and his taking the time to talk to me helped a lot. It’s not necessary to fight a war to be a “hero.” You don’t even have to come as far as my grandfather did. All you have to do is be willing to make a difference. I remember reading, “To whom much is given, much is expected.” Just by virtue of our being here at Texas A&M, we have and we will have opportunities that many will never re ceive. With those opportunities, we will also have the chance to make a difference in many peoples’ lives. Let’s be realistic. Life is becoming more and more hectic, and time comes at a premium. Sometimes, however, a long term commitment isn’t necessary — as a male, I appreciate that. As a person, however, I appreciate the impact these acts — both large and small — have had on my life. “Duty” is a word that doesn’t get enough use. If we could only practice “duty” little more and “give me” a little less, this world’s hero population would increase. Something to think about. David Taylor is a senior management major