The Battalion
ION
Page 11
Wednesday • April 1 6, 1997
eaching the world to sing
earching for a savior in the cola war leaves students without focus
Columnist
1
Mason Jackson
Senior marketing
major
kepsi good, Coke
'bad. My soul is
parched with a
Ist that cannot be
pched here. At
btnot at mycur-
|t station in life,
liege Station. My
Ist is for Mountain
[w, a product of
tsiCo, not of Coca
|a, the company
iwhich the Uni-
[sityhasan exclu-
; contract.
frit why Coke? I have seen the demo-
hislphics, and I know 1 belong to the
Jpsi generation.”
■Sure, Coca Cola taught the world to sing,
Ithe music really sucks.
It can’t be denied. This represents a major
ill blem on this campus.
|1 Is it possible the University would accom-
J date my request for a change of vendor, or
. lore desirable agreement in which the two
r >- npanies could live in carbonated, caffinat-
tarmony that would serve as a model for
ice in Bosnia-Herzgovenia, where people
gunned down on the street every day?
edc No, but it would be happy to give me a
king ticket while I look for the appropriate
! to stand in to make my futile request. I
iw my hopes lie instead in my own licens-
ea n|agreement. It happens in the sports
Foe dd all the time.
For example, the Houston Rockets just
lave; ned Pepsi as their official carbonated
tk, even though they can’t buy any in their
ollec na because the Summit has its own exclu-
icora a deal with Coke.
;e te Speaking of sports, 1 wonder what they
bi'ltve at Augusta, where Tiger Woods just won
is tSt Masters, and where blacks weren’t al-
1 [f |ed to play golf until 1975.
efcfflflutlhave a plan to solve my problem.
;K SMyrnarketing plan would be simple. Pep
siCo would furnish me with a “Dew caddy,”
>mosejob it would be to follow me around
campus with a wheelbarrow full of addiction.
In exchange, I would agree to wear free Pepsi
T-shirts and appear in television
commercials with Cindy Craw
ford and Shaq, class schedule
permitting. Unfortunately, /
every time I call Pepsi and
explain my plan, I some
how get disconnected,
probably because of the
stress fall class registration
puts on the phone system.
You know, 1 hear people in
Third-World countries
don’t even have auto
rudely. Suckers — it
comes free with my caller
ID package.
Since I won’t be able
to get my marketing
deal until everyone has
registered, I’ve started
trying other options. Car
rying cans in my backpack
worked until I set off the metal
detectors at Evans Library,
which is surprising since
they are known for their in
credible accuracy.
Needless to say, what
ensued wasn’t pretty,
especially when they
brought in the snack-
food Gestapo and 1 had to
make a run for the door.
Besides, that method
didn’t keep the drinks
cold and refreshing,
though that would
have been fine if I were
living in crime- and in
flation-plagued Eastern Eu
rope, where they prefer
warm Coke.
So I tried stashing a
cooler in the bushes
near the Wehner Build
ing, but one of the Aggies
"WB.
J
v
v'
Graduation requirements exclude marriage
pring fever is in
fall effect and
the engage-
at ring epidemic
ut of hand,
iduation is near,
diamonds and
Id abound. All
t campus, one
see women
med with big
ksand men
irting huge debts.
Anyjunior or se-
ir at Texas A&M
Itellyou that, at some point,
ybegin to feel old. They be-
ito take classes they might
Ueach the legal drinking
2 and realize graduation is
(faraway.
The thought of being a non-
irried old geezer or an old
lid begins to shake their
tves. Thoughts like “Holy
ipolla, I better find a relation-
” or “Hmm, do I really
nt to marry this person?” be-
Uo permeate their stressed-
t brains.
However, contrary to popular
Columnist
David Boldt
Senior marketing/
management major
belief, engagement
is not a requirement
for graduation.
There’s nothing in
the University regula
tions, nor in any
record of Aggie tradi
tions, that says a stu
dent must marry soon
after graduation. The
Aggie cultural norm
say possessing a diplo
ma without a wedding
ring is pitiful, a fallacy.
It sends many single
seniors into a useless panic and
pressures couples into making
premature decisions.
Students buying into this silly
idea can be heard making state
ments like, “I feel so sorry for him.
He’s graduating and he doesn’t
have anyone,” and “They’re grad
uating? When’s the wedding?”
Some students, however, are
breaking the mold and keeping
open minds.
For example, Amy Whitley, a
Class of ’97 speech communica
tions major from Richardson,
has been dating her boyfriend
Dean for a year and a half. She
plans to graduate in Decem
ber and says there’s no need to
be married or engaged right
out of college.
“I’d like to start a career first,”
she said, “Get my feet planted on
the ground, have something to
call my own.”
Whitley is on her way down
the path other Aggies should
follow. Those close to gradua
tion who do have someone spe
cial should be focusing on be
ginning a new era of their lives
— on becoming financially sta
ble and independent.
If that includes someone they
love, great. Being in love is a
wonderful experience that com
pares to no other. But just be
cause a couple decides they
want to spend the rest of their
lives together doesn’t mean they
have to get engaged or rush out
and tie the knot.
If they truly are meant to be
together, waiting should be an
easy decision. Besides, why
spend two-month’s salary before
you have earned it.
As for those of you who
haven’t found the love of your life
yet, panic is not necessary. Single
life after graduation should be
something to look forward to lat
er down the road. Single degree
holding Aggies will have more
time and freedom to develop
their careers and find their inde
pendence. One doesn’t have to
have a spouse to have happiness.
Besides, love cannot be
forced. Rushing out on a relation
ship hunt is a waste of time.
Love comes when it is least ex
pected, and if you look for it you
usually won’t find it. Whether
you’re 20,30 or 40 years old when
love comes it your way, it will be
just as wonderful. Relax, enjoy life
and be patient.
The bottom line is no one can
control completely what hap
pens in his or her fife, especially
when it comes to relationships.
The key is to keep an open mind.
Don’t do anything just because
society, or even your friends,
think you should.
Take the hand you’ve been
dealt, make your own fife and
have fun with it.
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who doesn’t fie, cheat or steal took it.
Discouragement set in. I had been
» defeated, at least temporarily.
But maybe University offi
cials knew what they were
\ doing. If people got a
broader selection of bev
erages on campus, they
might start expecting a
broader .selection of
course offerings, and
that would be just
| plain goofy Before
| you knew it, people
would be taking
classes that actually
interested them.
That’s almost as sil-
ly as Jews and Muslims
fighting for 1,400 years.
But, back to my
situation.
I should just take
what I can get and be
happy I can afford the
60 cents for a 12-ounce
Coke, though it is appar
ently cheaper in sub-Sa
haran Africa, where the
commercials claim you
can feed a family of 10 for
three weeks for the price
f of a cup of coffee.
But I guess while on
the A&M campus, it will
be “Always Coca Cola,”
at least until I get my
marketing deal, at which
point I hope they don’t
want me to do any public
service announcements or
anything, because that
would really cut into my
sleep schedule. This is
the end of this column,
please don’t tell me you
think it was about
soda-water.
Obsession with media
flaws neglects its true goal
A mericans love to hate
the media. Amid the
smut reported on
popular tabloid shows and
provocative headlines splat
tered across the front page
of the National Inquirer,
people are forgetting the
point of media.
Media conglomerates
capitalize on murder and
mayhem. Ironically, the
same consumers enticed by
this coverage are those
quickest to criticize it.
People need to remember the me
dia are a key force in making the world
go around.
Their purpose is to communicate
events which impact society.
Whether reporting on the New York
Stock Exchange or providing on-site
coverage of terrorist bombings, the
media educate society about what
goes on each day.
The importance of the media is im
measurable and its pervasiveness is
phenomenal. Americans learn almost
everything they need to know about
the world from the media.
Society remains informed about its
surroundings because of the media
and therefore is able to make informed
decisions about politics, health and
safety — to name a few.
Dr. Charles Self, a professor of jour
nalism and department head, said he
is concerned a lack of education about
the media will contribute to society’s
contempt for it.
What people don’t realize, Self said,
is the significance of the media.
“Our whole picture of the world is
profoundly shaped by the media,”
Self said. “The things we need to
know to make decisions in life come
from the media.
“It’s impossible, in a country this
size, to sustain a public consensus
without it,” he said.
The media work as a binding influ
ence on society. Americans share the
experience of a national disaster by
being informed. When tragedy oc
curs, society unites and offers support
to victims.
Herbert Cans, a sociologist who has
studied American news media for 20
years, found journalists indeed flock to
disaster. However, Cans noted jour
nalists do not actually glamorize the
disorder but rather report on how to
Columnist
Brandon Hausenfluck
Senior
journalism major
restore peace.
Media coverage of contro
versial events mobilizes soci
ety to react in a positive way.
When O.J. Simpson was
acquitted of murdering his
ex-wife and her friend, legal
institutions around the
country gained from the
verdict. In court, prosecu
tors are fighting harder than
ever before.
Defense attorneys argued
the Los Angeles Police De
partment crime lab, where
the murder evidence was evaluated,
was a “cesspool of contamination.”
Worldwide, people took the verdict
as a blow. But crime labs around the
country evaluated their facilities and
cleaned up their acts.
Information is the key to knowledge.
Richard Wurman reported in his
book Information Anxiety that on Nov.
13, 1987, the New York Times pub
lished the largest newspaper ever. The
12-million word issue was 1,612 pages
and weighed over 12 pounds. Today, a
large daily newspaper such as the
Times contains more information in
one issue than an average person in
the 17th century would have come
across in a lifetime, Wurman said.
The media serve as a watchdog to
politicians.When their government repre
sentatives slack off newspaper colum
nists and talk show hosts rouse citizens to
act. Without the media, the government
would be doing even less for the public.
The media, in a sense, are tattletales.
Society is quick to blame the media
when things go wrong in the world.
Journalists often are placed in the
same categories as criminals and
politicians. Society wrongfully sneers
at journalists.
The Battalion, for example, has re
peatedly been named one of the best
daily university newspapers in the
United States. But The Battalion is the
only student organization on campus
to never receive any praise from the
students it serves. Instead, staffers
have to wade through mounds of hate
mail to get into the newsroom.
Not all media institutions are re
spectable, but those which are deserve
the respect of their consumers.
Indeed, the media produce some
trash, but the benefits society gains
greatly outweigh the setbacks.