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The Battalion
10
Thursday
Page 15
November 14, 1996
esponsibility supercedes civil liberty
I he problem with today’s
youth is that young people
don’t take advantage of
|eir rights.
For ex
ample, a
14-year-old
punk from
Azle, a town
northwest
of Fort
Worth, re
cently
called a girl
a “fat cow”
without ful
ly under
standing
Michael Landauer
anior journalism major
nes is inadequate, jlat he had a right to do so. Chris
• a belief that nooMurdon foolishly got himself in
i using this sortofrtrouble again when he cussed at a
es only the imagecmudent during gym class. If he
t doesn’t shovvmehkd been aware of his right to free
Bhardwaj told Thtsjeech, he could have successful-
’ress. "The contro M argued his way out of both situ-
ped by missing one a jions. But unfortunately, it took
of data.” ipme American Civil Liberties
llers see planes pdli ion to breeze into Azle and
:r at different altinfight for the young ruffian’s rights,
dar blips convert ; On the surface, it may seem silly
ging. Bat a youth is punished for calling
a cirl names. But when the insult is
agn
part
_ IP 01 ' 1 of a pattern of harassment,
w Atnaybe the school should do some-
■ I \JAkClthing. And it seems a lot sillier to
glow lawyers to argue that this
n. It is expected t( youth has a right to insult and cuss
lie next few years; at his classmates,
rations in early 199f Under a new “zero tolerance”
its assembly-test pi rule in the Azle school system, mis-
eady begun, joinini behaving youths are put in alter-
ilaysia, Israel and In nate classes to separate them from
• domestic sites ir, youths that actually behave. (In
exico and Arizona tinu-, they may have to call the class
>any has been ex| with behaving youths the “alterna-
1 needed to move five” or “special” class.) The school
listrict can do this because of Sen-
junced stronger-ilite Bill 1, part of an education re-
r earnings last mobrm package passed by the Legisla-
1 same period last \ure last year. It acts as a sort of
that surpassed55pitch to Texas school officials who
iced a way to enforce discipline,
maker of the Pen But what brings them to such
s been able to pt lire straits that they need to
it position in (hi. rample on the right of school
>es not make rhildren to insult one another?
ry chip that has*
My senior year in high school,
some freshmen were involved in
“jumping” another student.
They kicked him hard enough to
destroy his jaw and almost
caused brain damage. It was the
first violent attack in my high
school’s history, and it all started
because a group of boys
misidentified the victim as
someone who shot them a dirty
look in the parking lot.
The school acted swiftly, in
stalling video cameras in the
halls for surveillance. As editor
of the paper, I jumped on the
story and prepared our angle —
an invasion of privacy.
Oops! I forgot we were in a
public place. But my principal
was nice enough to remind me
of this, and our story took a new
twist. The cameras were neces
sary because of the trend already
spotted in the junior high
schools. Every successive class
was getting more and more vio
lent. I don’t think this trend is
unique to Katy. Or Azle. Or Dal
las or Houston or Texas ...
Stories from around the country
have resulted in a sort of backlash
against strict discipline. An Ohio
teen was removed from regular
classes for giving Midol to another
student. A South Carolina sixth-
grader was removed from classes
for bringing a steak knife to school
to cut her chicken at lunch.
Schools do need to show a
little restraint by not involving
the law (as they did with Gor
don). Our courts have enough
trouble without dealing with
school discipline.
But we should look at such ex
treme cases of discipline and be
happy to have a system that is not
letting exceptions fall through the
cracks. It is certainly better than
the alternative. We could have
schools without such rules.
Students might learn more
about how to peddle over-the-
counter drugs than about reading
and writing. Maybe a youth in a
gang could bring a knife to school
for lunch and then attack someone
with it after school. If such prob
lems occurred, the first question
asked would be: Why don’t they
have rules to prevent these things?
Well, they do, and the youth of
America better start understand
ing that rules are meant to be fol
lowed. It’s a simple lesson, but it’s
not being taught when the ACLU
swarms to the defense of misbe
having youths.
So maybe before we teach fu
ture generations about their
rights, we ought to hold them ac
countable — in every situation,
no matter how seemingly inno
cent — to their responsibilities.
The Battalion
Established in 1893
Editorials appearing in The Battalion reflect the
views of the editorials board members. They do
not necessarily reflect the opinions of other Bat
talion staff members, the Texas A&M student
body, regents, administration, faculty or staff.
Columns, guest columns, cartoons and letters
express the opinions of the authors.
Contact the opinion editor for information on
submitting guest columns.
Editorials Board
Michael Landauer
Editor in Chief
Amy Collier
Executive Editor
Gretchen Perrenot
Executive Editor
Heather Pace
Opinion Editor
Thinking Smart
Students should approach the
opinion page with an open mind
Warning: The opinion page is
nothing more than opinion, and
as such, should be read with an
open mind.
Battalion columnist Aja Hen
derson has led the way in provid
ing opportunities for some Aggies
to overreact. Yesterday Hender
son wrote a column pointing out
that A&M idol Lawrence Sullivan
Ross, a confederate veteran and
slave owner, was not a man who
deserved respect. That is not to
say that Henderson has done
anything wrong.
Since Spring 1994, Henderson
has contributed her unique per
spective to the pages of The Bat
talion. Henderson should be
credited for sharing those views
with such an unfriendly audience
with a history of not respecting
other viewpoints. Students do not
need to agree with her, but they
should respect her opinion.
When readers respond scorn
fully with accusations of ignorance
and sensationalism, they are ig
noring the spirit of the opinion
page. Instead of dealing with the
fact that someone may have a dif
ferent view, some readers have
opted for the time-tested defense
not uncommon among grade
schoolers: “You’re don’t know what
you’re talking about, and you’re
just trying to make me mad.”
A&M has a history rich with
tradition, but it also has a stu
dent population of more than
43,000 reasonable, intelligent
people who should be able to
address issues rather than just
hide insecurities.
If students at A&M think of
Ross differently than some Aggies
did in the past, the University will
not crumble, and spirit will not
die. Rather, A&M can become
stronger by accepting and re
specting other viewpoints. How
interesting would the opinion
page be if everyone who wrote on
it had the same perspective? How
much would students learn at
A&M if they did not interact with
students of diverse backgrounds
and beliefs?
The students who answer that
things would be better under
such circumstances are responsi
ble for the poor reputation A&M
has in some people’s minds of be
ing a homogeneous collection of
good ol’ boys.
Many columnists over the
years have elicited negative reac
tions from the student body, and
that is to be expected. There will
never be a day when no one dis
agrees with at least one view ex
pressed. But that is an ongoing
celebration of the First Amend
ment — one that deserves to be
dealt with by readers’ reason
rather than their insecurity.
Walk This Way Mpf
Pedestrians should quit abusing priviliege of having right-of-way
s not maintaiirf!
nd the warning,
ated that the dial
; nature of the
Dace, not the validitjl
S ome rules just aren’t
meant to last: Absolute
monarchies came and
irked in an accessavent; women were granted
r ed for van access.” luffrage; and prohibition
; not aware oftheYas repealed.
Dwever, since theci: But some rules persist, no
Miller will not ha\ natter senseless they are. For
iXample, A&M pedestrians,
i him,” he said. J y unspoken rule and tradi-
i concerns is malMn, always have the right-
be removed from way on campus streets,
le to do that, hesm This may have once been a
has been referred to hpning example of Aggie
>el for further litigatfourtesy, but the practice has devolved
dans of givingup, nto one of the most abused and unap-
: adamant about itbfeciated of A&M’s traditions,
said. i Pedestrians too often walk out in front
>f cars and bicyclists without thinking
[bout what they are doing. Blindly cross
streets is inconsiderate, dangerous
d stupid, and students should rethink
ir unspoken “right” every time they
Staff writer
John LeBas
Junior journalism major
out!
ce (CCCS), a
t out of debt.
:onfidential.
s in Bryan. To
ounselor, call:
1221
approach a street.
Most people who abide by
this “rule” probably assume
motorists are trying to be nice
when they stop. But drivers
simply have no choice —
pedestrians at A&M cross
streets whenever they want,
wherever they want.
On today’s congested cam
pus, cars, bicyclists and
pedestrians must share the
same roads. Pedestrians have
become too comfortable with
street traffic, thinking they always have
the right-of-way, and don’t respect the
needs of drivers and bicyclists.
Pedestrian apathy is at its worst be
tween classes, when hordes of students
and professors flood sidewalks and
streets. Drivers at intersections can only
watch and wait as law-abiding pedestri
ans pour into crosswalks. Backlogged
cars, trucks and buses choke the
streets. Jaywalkers worsen the conges
tion, causing roadway confusion.
Jaywalkers at A&M are lucky — most
don’t get ticketed.
University Police Department Crime
Prevention Unit supervisor Bert Kret-
zschmar explained that too many peo
ple at A&M jaywalk to give tickets. But
common sense would seem to deter
jaywalking — if a person is hit by a car,
and is not in a crosswalk, he or she is
not necessarily protected by law.
And Kretzschmar said two pedestri
ans were hit by motor vehicles on cam
pus during the 1995-96 school year.
That is, two such accidents were report
ed. The number of collisions is higher,
counting bicycle-pedestrian and unre
ported accidents.
Who the hell wants to get run over? No
one, I would think.
Then pedestrians shouldn’t forget
what Mom and Dad taught them: Look
both ways before crossing the street and
never jaywalk.
Of course, everyone is guilty of jay
walking and carelessness. I’ve almost
run over spaced-out pedestrians, and
I’ve nearly been hit after mindlessly
walking out into the street.
Common sense, apparently, is no
longer very common.
Courtesy has been forgotten, as well.
Surely pedestrians could sometimes
consider the drivers’ position. They
don’t like to be stuck at stop signs any
more than pedestrians do.
Pedestrians should repay the drivers’
age-old favor, and occasionally let the
car pass first — especially if the driver
has been waiting a while.
Aggies’ attitudes toward campus
construction is equally amazing.
For example, a sidewalk by the power
plant on Northside has been closed for
weeks because of construction. Well,
they tried to close it. But most pedestri
ans refuse to move to the other side of
the street, and even try to dodge mov
ing equipment.
Aggies are also notorious for trying
to scoot around trucks that are trying to
back into loading docks.
How ridiculous.
If these people don’t care about their
own safety, they should at least consid
er the overall traffic problem, because
trucks and construction equipment
that have to wait for people to move
usually block traffic. The inconsiderate
need to wake up and get out of the way.
The rules have changed, and Aggies
must realize that pedestrians can’t al
ways have the right-of-way. With a little
more respect, courtesy and common
sense, pedestrians could help the cam
pus become safer and friendlier for all
those who share the roads.
www.cccsintl.org
cheduling requires know-how
I
Columnist
' t’s time to schedule classes
for the spring semester.
. But before that can be
done, everyone is faced with a
series of questions, which
have all been compiled into
this easy-to-read column.
The first question a student
must ask himself is, “Am I
coming back next semester?”
Mason Jackson
Senior marketing major
know where it will lead, though hopefully not to
another sentence this corny.
But how do students register for classes at
Texas A&M? By using our World-Class Phone
Registration System, of course. It is important to
make sure you have a touch-tone phone, be
cause if you don’t, not only can you not register,
but you’re also a hillbilly.
The next question is, “Have I made up my
schedules?” There is the primary schedule, the al
ternate schedule and the "I’d sooner drop out of
school, live in the steam tunnels and eat at Sbisa
than use this” schedule.
Eventually the day will come when your classifi
cation gets to register. For example, next Tuesday
will be for all juniors from A through L who work
walk with a limp.
Mail
uate, others will co-op. The
GPR-challenged among us
may be taking sco-pro-in-
Uced vacations, while others may take a sabbati-
to backpack across beautiful Guatemala.
If students aren’t doing one of those things then in the fast-food h
y must be coming back to school. Or doing After spending about an hour on the phone try-
hiething else. ing to get through, students are faced with yet an-
For returning students, what courses will they take? other question. “Did I dial the wrong number?” If
p they stay on track to graduate in four (ha ha) years, so, this may be why they aren’t getting through. Af-
)r perhaps slowdown to a medium pace? ter all,* the redial button l|as been in full effect
And what about those electives? Should they be since the initial try
sted on a worthless class from the College of Will they finally get through only to hear “Welcome
siness (yes, I’m bitter) or put to a more worth- to the Richard Gere Fan Clyb Registration System,
ile use, whether experimenting in an unex- - your call will be processed quicker than you can say
|ored field or pursuing a dream that has been put ‘gerbfi’”? Just to make sure, they should manually dial
the number every 10 tries. Once into the registration
696-068-
BM student dist#
iti the back burner?
For instance, maybe someone is an ag major
Specializing in cows) who has always had a place
his heart for quantum mechanics.
Or perhaps one is a philosophy major (special-
ng in trying to legitimize a useless major) who
s always been drawn to economics.
If you’ve got a dream, chase it — you never
system, students are guided by the stern yet reassur
ing voice ofWalter Cronkite.
From here on out, things are easy. The voice will
even tell students how to spell their last names. If
all goes well, the appropriate classes will still be
available and only one question remains.
“Did you forget to press the pound key?”
Capitalism beats
out Christmas spirit
Regarding Erin Fitzgerald's
Nov. 11 column, “Thanksgiving
lost in Christmas hubbub":
Is it Christmas time already? It
must be because the present I
bought my fiance for her Oct. 20
birthday was a fake Christmas tree.
It was what she wanted and she’s
insanely waiting to put it up.
Like most disillusioned Ameri
cans, she’s a Christmas freak.
On Halloween, I went shopping
for a cheap costume at the mall
and they already had Santa’s chair
and castle set up for Christmas pic
tures. What’s next?
Today’s society is ridiculous in
capitalizing off Christmas to the
extent they do. Money and mater
ial things are not the basis of
Christmas.
Love and recognition of your
acquaintances are the themes be
hind the idea of Christmas. The
money-dependent society that
we live in should start Christmas
activity when it is supposed to be
started — after Thanksgiving.
Brian Beam
Class of'99
Henderson should
deal with prejudice
Regarding Aja Henderson’s Nov.
13 column, “Sullivan Ross rededi
cation sullies A&M":
For weeks now I have read
Henderson’s complaints about
this or that (A&M Honor Code,
12th Man and now Sully).
As far as racism goes, I, as a
minority, know it is a touchy sub
ject. Racism is a part of life, and I
say this meaning that everyone is
prejudiced against something.
For Henderson, it is A&M. For
other people it is a type of music,
a type of girl or guy or even a race.
Being a minority, I feel it is my job
to break the stereotypes and to be
successful in all aspects of my life.
To go off half-cocked, as Hen
derson does, is just wrong. If she
wants to make a change she
should be doing and saying posi
tive things, providing the African-
American community with a pos
itive female role model.
Miranda M. Olivarez
Class of'99
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The opinion editor reserves the right to
edit letters for length, style, and accuracy.
Letters may be submitted in person at 013
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ters may also be mailed to:
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