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February 18,1
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The Battalion
ON
Page 11
Tuesday • February 1 8, 1997
lad drivers
Jog campus
Columnist
University Cenj
on fined in the!
il.
^ elf-centered arrogance has replaced
) simple courtesy, and it is evident on
campus streets.
Our narrow roads must accommodate
er 43,000 pedestrians, bicyclists and dri-
rs. The resulting frustration creates rather
ifriendly driving conditions in what is sup
posed to be the
friendliest place on
Earth. Exacerbating
the problem is a le
gion of drivers pos
sessing both a “look
out for No.l” philoso
phy and a room-tem
perature IQ.
At any given mo
ment, on any given
day, a sizable majority
of drivers on our
roads just cannot
seem to grasp the
Jm
onny Ferguson
Sophomore
Political science major
Report
dng the MSQai
ned of smokeoi simple concept of the turn signal. Others
in the MSCfJkve yet to learn that red lights mean stop,
ource of the sn Some interpret the phrase “speed limit” as a
id the College Sti “speed suggestion.”
;nt was summoT, Many drivers who crowd the local asphalt
ginated fromae are compelled to play "chicken” when chang-
a stove. Ig lanes or turning a the road, while waiting
tl see how close they can get to fellow drivers
Of 3 Vchiclffbre zipping in front of them,
ed chrome Zil Rat ^ er than obey traffic laws and customs,
ten throughlhel e > ,esc !; e c w f™ndliness and exercise arro-
f . . j , . iMnce, all for the sake of self-convenience.
\° a ‘lot even Dionne Warwick can predict just
how bad this problem will become as the stu-
dt at population grows.
PI 6 PI t I We have all seen people who are com-
eived severalttofjjelled to make a right turn on a red light,
ie messagesiiiftj people who stop in the middle of an intersec-
town subject. 1 tion, and those people who decide to pass
into an unoccupied lane.
5 Prohibit Last y ear ’ the University Police Depart-
abserved inavt] ment handed out 8,306 tickets for traffic vio-
’arkine Area 6.1 ' alions > an average of one ticket for every six
e vehicle wasct undergraduates. Of those, 1,882 were doled
lined of the no out in February of 1996 alone, and they repre-
i sent only a fraction of the irresponsible dri
vers out there.
. , j | Clearly, a significant portion of the student
population is still in the dark ages when it
j Comes to proper behavior behind the wheel.
B Some people seem to lose 30 IQ points as
' soon as they turn an ignition key. Bad judg
ment and poor manners have played a small
Om Page 1 part in breeding a legion of drivers who take
Ip the streets and play bumper cars.
Pilots AssociatjB Th e swerving, speeding and careening dri
lls turboprop piers who infest our roadways are more of a
agle, who ave [ | symptom of our sick society than an individ-
a year, is tryinslual disease. Ill-behaved conduct and a lack of
tral. Becorum are typical of those who have some-
ociation repress how been granted the authority to drive. Po-
.t American Eliteness and consideration of others have
; from several oflbeen tossed into the dustbin of history. Quite
> membershipislmply, bad drivers are an eclectic mix of the
diedisputeover'Tself-centered and the stupid,
lall commuterjsl pt. Burt Kretzshamare of the UPD asks
an wants itspiloltudents to obey traffic laws and simply use
tjefwhileAimH common sense and courtious driving.
AMRCorp^wartCommon sense and courtesy — that’s all it
n Eaglesubsidiai'ftakes, instead of rudely gesturing “We’re
kpits. lal” the next time someone decides to see
Pugh, chairo( [ how closely they can follow without scrap-
union’s Execui ing off any bumper chrome, kindly signal,
recognizes the pull over, and let them pass. Friendliness is
aursue a fairtfijontagious, and the congeniality chal-
concerned ah lenged may someday return the favor,
yleadsomepeop | Texas A&M’s bad drivers are the product of
le pilots’ quail both ignorance and an egocentric culture.
I Bad drivers flaunt their distaste for com-
dcialssaydiegroi mon decency and etiquette by tailgating,
an a regularbasiBpeeding, weaving in and out of traffic and
for a Presidenilunning red lights. Our only hope is that
'd is the first fflij fhose who still value good manners will de-
n administratl|Diand the cerebrally challenged to show the
ige the balancf
abor negotial
ilots have had
ensive training;'
Administration^
e it difficult toit 1
e them,
and the den#
'ety are why I
s, pilots say.
n only kill onep
j nobody quid
s,” said onept
; name not bensf
arriers’ pilots ha'
ring their supp°
ats. Relations h
ad manager!
idustry have!
ess booms,
gave concessl
years of the el
trying to make 11 !
ence.
:d Airlines,!!
Continental M
Airlines, andd-
ntly involved’
some form.Th f
ombat their i
match costs#
in today’s del
mt.
o are watching
tions assoc#
res, Continent
rnd United all o'
.ft.
ommon sense and courtesy expected of civ-
iized human beings.
Cloning America
Mandatory uniforms stifle individuality, fail to solve problems
w
elcome to a new Texas
Feb. 17,1997, school officials
A&M University, where Asst. Opinion Editor commented on the use and effec-
James Francis
Sophomore
business major
everyone will be re
quired to wear identical clothing.
The campus shall be filled with
Corps of Cadets clones, fraterni
ty or sorority lookalikes and food
service student-worker replicas.
Of course none of this is true, but
it could occur with the growing
number of Texas schools imple
menting mandatory dress codes
and uniforms.
However, requiring students
to wear preordained uniforms or
adhere to strict clothing standards creates an
environment where individualism is lost and
students become a conglomeration of walk
ing mirrors with no sense of self.
In the university setting of A&M, one can
almost always pick out individuals who be
long to certain organizations. Fraternity
brothers wear jerseys with their chapter let
ters emblazoned on front, but this does not
mean they are overachievers who frequent
keg parties every weekend and still attempt to
preach brotherhood and unity during the
week. The clothes a student wears are made
of various fabrics, but the individual within is
never in direct correlation to the style worn.
Once seen as the trademark of private
and parochial schools, student uniforms are
making a widespread appearance in more
public schools every year. And while Hous
ton is only 90 miles away from College Sta
tion, 168 of the 257 schools in its indepen
dent school district have adopted uniformed
attire guidelines. The policies and proce
dures listed in the schools' programs range
from preselected modem clothing to old-
fashioned, required garments.
Schools are training students to become
numbers rather than individuals, but dress
codes and the establishment of school uni
forms do serve a purpose in certain arenas of
today’s society.
In an Associated Press report issued on
liveness of school uniforms and
dress codes.
Mary Ann Polhemus, principal
at Ashford Elementary in Hous
ton, said the school uniforms uti
lized at Ashford helped “neaten
up” the campus.
“The kids look wonderful; the
kids feel good about themselves,”
she said. “The fact that we are still
seeing such a high compliance
rate, I think speaks very well for
the fact that the kids like them
(the uniforms).”
But students in elementary school ulti
mately have no choice in what they wear,
whether in or out of school. At such a young
age, the final decision rests with the students’
parents. It is the parents’ choice to voice their
opinion about school uniforms, and their
children have to roll along with the punches.
This is where the problem begins. If stu
dents are exposed to an environment where
they are forced to imitate their peers, they
will grow to believe differences in the way
people look, think and act do not matter. Of
course, the world would be a better place if
more people saw past skin color, religious
beliefs and sexual orientations, but these
characteristics also make individuals unique
in a society designed to expand.
Gallegos Elementary, located in east
Houston, introduced uniforms—“red-and-
black plaid jumpers, black jeans and a red or
white shirt” — into its student conduct rules
in the spring of 1996. School officials noted
distinct changes in behavior when students
were allowed to celebrate Go Texan Day out
of uniform on Feb. 7,1996.
Principal Eva Loredo said the students
were more clamorous without their uniforms.
“The teachers even noticed it. They no
ticed that their (the students’) conduct was
so different in the classroom,” she said.
There is no doubt the students reacted in
such a way because they had been stagnated
in an educational atmosphere filled with
clothing constraints.
But the reasoning behind the usage of
dress codes and uniforms does not stop at
the elementary-education level. As students
grow and attain higher levels of formal edu
cation, rules and policies follow them into
their new schools.
Within the Pasadena
school district, 27 schools
have enforced dress codes,
and 10 others have instilled
mandatory uniform rules.
Rick Schneider, the dis
trict’s superintendent, was
quoted in an AP report as say
ing, “We wanted to minimize
or eliminate the gang influ
ences in our schools. One of the
things that was rapidly
brought to our attention is
that clothes apparently
possess a great deal of
symbolism with gangs.”
Although a noble ap
proach to rid the district’s
schools of a serious social
problem, Schneider over
looked the personal con
nection students form
with their clothes.
Assuredly, “the
clothes do not make
the student," but an
individuality exists
when one wears a fa
vorite pair of jeans or
newly-purchased
jacket. Whether the
student decides to
join a gang or behave
in a manner unbe
coming of an ideal
student, the final re
sponsibility of how
an individual con
ducts his or her decomm should not be a re
flection of the clothes worn.
The Texas legislature needs to rethink
any future bills or plans to implement
dress codes or mandatory uniform guide
lines. When students are forced to comply
with a rule over which they have no con
trol, the outcome is worse than the begin
ning situation.
Student Government fumbles yell leader referendum
T
I he yell leader
run-off referen
dum is finally
over, and now yell
leaders will have run
offs just like every
other elected posi
tion on campus. Re
gardless of individual
opinions on the is
sue, the culmination
of a powerful political
philosophy has oc
curred because of the
dedication of the
Texas A&M student body.
In The Social Contract,
Rousseau said, “The people is
never corrupted, but it is often
deceived.” His words are the
most concise explanation of
what happened with the Yell
Leader run-off referendum.
Election commissioner Ja
son Jaynes threw out 378
votes because several stu
dents, including senior yell
leader Gary Kipe, were en
couraging students to vote in
the referendum.
Unfortunately, this is the
second time in a year that Stu
dent Government has casually
thrown the sacred voice of the
Columnist
Stephen Llano
Senior
history major
people to the wind.
But Student Gov
ernment is obvious
ly uneducated
about the power of
the voice of the peo
ple.
Rousseau said,
the “people” is a
word synonymous
with the “general
will.” The general
will is inclusive of
everyone under the
government. When
ever the general will is con
sulted on political matters, it
cannot be wrong. An example
of this is evident in our own
country where for over 200
years the general will has
elected the president —if the
theory was incorrect, the gen
eral will would have been
wrong and our government
would have collapsed.
Rousseau also states that
institutions and individuals
can be corrupted but the gen
eral will can never be corrupt
ed — unless it is deceived.
Student Government con
sulted the general will and
called the student body to vote
on this issue, then failed to im
plement the findings. This
time the decision of the stu
dent body will be implement
ed, but it does not excuse the
casual disregard for liberty
demonstrated by the actions
of Student Government. Un
fortunately, the old adage, "ab
solute power corrupts ab
solutely” is still alive and well
in the Koldus building.
The reason behind the dis
qualification of378 votes by the
election commission is that Kipe
and others were campaigning in
the MSG. There is no inherent
harm in campaigning.
The fact is that Kipe and the
others who were in the MSG
that day were only encourag
ing students to vote in an elec
tion that Student Government
failed to set until the last
minute. The material he dis
tributed traced the simple ori
gins of the referendum. At the
very worst, someone read it
and decided to vote. There is
no difference between this
kind of influence and one
friend telling another, “Hey,
did you remember to vote?”
Student Government basically
is admitting they do not want
students to vote by singling
Kipe out as the bad guy. In
stead of approaching the issue
holistically on a professional
level, they have resorted to us
ing their power unjustly, paint
ing an innocent using his un
alienable rights as an enemy of
the system.
Even if the Student Govern
ment constitution gives the
election commission the right
to eliminate votes, it is not
justifiable in any case.
Whether students’ votes were
thrown in the trash, every stu
dent who participated by vot
ing or signing a petition con
tributed to an undeniable
force — the will of the people
to alter government to do
what they know is right.
The view that representa
tives in government are an in
stitution separate from the
people is a modern-day fallacy
perpetuated by those in pow
er. Representative government
is always at the beck and call
of the people, regardless of
how they individually feel
about it. The day a representa
tive government decides not
to listen to the voice of the
people is the day it signs the
papers for its own dissolution.
Regardless of what those in
power believe, they are always
forced to do what the general
will requires.
Instead of blaming Kipe for
the loss of liberty, blame the in
stitution of Student Govern
ment. Kipe was exercising a ba
sic right — the right of free
expression to encourage some
thing. It should be done more on
campus as well as in this country
as a whole. The only places
where this is considered wrong
are in authoritarian, despotic
governments.
On a deeper level, the yell
leader referendum proves that
government is not separate from
the people — it is obedient to
the general will. Part of every
student’s responsibility as an Ag
gie is to attempt to improve
Texas A&M. If an individual feels
he is right, he has the right to
spread his views to change the
system. As far as Student Gov
ernment is concerned, we can
hope that they will listen more to
the general will instead of their
individual wants and desires.
Finish cleaning my R?iree,NEwr.
AUdfrlER REPUBLICAN WHD V0TCD
to KEEP W SPEKKER IS \YAfflN6
PEDICUfc YOU PROMISED
MteliLteVLh;
Mail
Morales abandons
minority students
The following is in response to
Dan Morales’ recently stated
opinion in which he declared
Affirmative action Illegal.
The low number of minori
ties attending Texas A&M is one
tradition which this institution
does not need.
However, when Texas Attor
ney General Dan Morales re
cently issued his opinion
against using ethnicity as a fac
tor in university admissions,
minorities lose support.
Morales’ written opinion is a
step in the wrong direction.
By using only “race-neutral”
policies, Morales will fail in
achieving his own goal of grad
uating a cross section of the
Texas population.
Hispanics and blacks com
prise over 35 percent of the
Texas population. Yet, accord
ing to 1996 fall student body
profile at Texas A&M, Hispanics
and Blacks make up less than 14
percent of the student body.
These disparities indicate that
minorities are not attending Texas
A&M in representative numbers.
Without using ethnicity as a
factor in admissions and unless
we begin correcting the inequal
ities faced by minorities in the
primary and secondary school
levels, we risk becoming an even
more unrepresentative student
body.
Only the state of Texas is be
ing affected by Morales’ opinion
on “race-neutral” admissions.
As the spotlight turns to Texas
for guidance and leadership, we
must urge the administration at
Texas A&M and the student body
to become active in supporting
the value of an ethnically repre
sentative university.
Maria Jimena Albaracin
Class of ’98
Accompanied by 14 signatures
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include the author’s name, class, and phone
number.
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letters for length, style, and accuracy. Letters
may be submitted in person at 013 Reed Mc
Donald with a valid student ID. Letters may also
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