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People
|e’s the
mature
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I thirj
h thiste;
liadeht
Ivaysvr ihriT' students were blind-
fen ui ed last week as they at-
attent: tempted to walk by the
Ird lemic Building. I he stu-
slosi their vision when they
ill, bu: ed directly at the Lawrence
fve tel van Ross statue on a sunny
I’banv in response to the accident,
watc tsA&M University adminis-
hinkK jrs tu t' warning students not
I hard t are at the statue.
|hing rikay nobody was blinded
is on week, but it could have hap-
|i ih edlSully, after all, has been
lal wo: ty Ihiny lately. On a bright day, he leaves everyone
he, bis vicinity not wearing sunglasses squinting,
an iully has taken on that golden, reflective appear-
ha to e because somebody is polishing him. Polishing
In at.y with abrasives damages him. Students need to
I'lm ) polishing Sully and start taking care of him be-
they ruin the statue.
Ifor iully is not a magic lamp. If you polish him, a ge-
sonewill not appear to grant wishes. Nonetheless,
v. ild-be Aladdin’s seem intent on making Sully re-
| t l*e a mirror.
erve The fact Sully is not supposed to shine like a cop-
penny probably comes as a surprise to many stu-
its. After all, Aggies have been polishing Sully since
her, ’40s.
Sully, like all bronze sculptures, is not designed to
aolished. Compare Sully to the other sculptures on
npus. He is the odd man out. All of campus’ other
|aske Iptures — Gen. Rudder, the Cain Victory Eagle, the
In Jghneck, etc. have a rich brown finish. That is not a
lig i: itake, they are supposed to look that way.
Bod That finish is called a patina. It is a protective layer,
| ose color the sculpture’s artist chooses.
Catherine Hastedt, Curator of the J. Wayne Stark
is iversity Center Galleries, said polishing has
lit pped Sully of his patina. She said it is obvious
I, my of Sully’s features have eroded away since the
tue’s placement on campus in 1919.
liea “A lot of the detail in his coat is gone,” Hastedt said.
v The Battalion
wmmcim
AMPUS CONNECTION
awrence Sullivan Ross statue loses its features through polishing tradition
John
Lemons
columnist
“His hairline is receding.”
So, polishers are not only destroying Sully’s fea
tures, but they are also making him go prematurely
bald. No amount of Rogaine can restore Sully’s hair.
Perhaps, the Traditions Council can look into invest
ing in a hairpiece for the balding statue.
The problem is many students do not understand
the damaging effects of polishing Sully. When that ig
norance is combined with the tradition of polishing
the statue, it is easy to see why Sully is in peril.
Aaron Ffrench is chair of the Old Main Society, a
student organization that works to protect important
structures on campus. Ffrench said the Old Main So
ciety is working on creating a video to inform stu
dents on how to protect campus’ statues.
“I think the biggest problem is it has been in
grained into their heads that this [polishing Sully) is
something for freshman to do,” said Ffrench.
This problem with polishing Sully raises an im
portant question. Do traditions serve us, or do we
serve traditions?
Traditions are an important part of this university.
But, they are not so important Aggies have to adhere
to them at the expense of common sense. There are
times on this campus tradition goes so far it overrides
clear thinking.
For example, students have tried to use tradition to
justify hazing other students. This is foolish. When
traditions become dangerous or cause damage, they
must go.
Polishing Sully may be a tradition, destroying him
is not. Apparently, campus has forgotten the lesson it
learned after the Gen. Rudder statue was damaged by
students polishing him in 1994.
While the polishers may have good intentions,
their actions are ruining A&M’s most revered statue.
Nobody wants to see a big featureless lump of bronze
in front of the Academic Building.
So, look at Sully, but don’t touch. And whatever you
do, don’t polish his nose off.
John Lemons is an electrical engineering
graduate student.
TATE OF THE UNION
CAMPUS CONNECTION
Overturn of gay-rights law
narks step in right direction
I
n
TUes-
day,
3.10,
line voters
nt to the
11s and did
nething
4r spine-
lj2 s state leg-
itors would
Donny
Ferguson
columnist
t—the
Cr h t thing.
, With
n nout 33 percent higher than
in, aected, Maine’s new gay-
I hts protection law was over-
mt 'ned by a 52 to 48 percent
v -trgin in a state with a long his-
lir:7 of supporting liberal causes,
oj The law added “sexual ori-
roi tation” to the list of those
12)isses protected by LD 1116,
onf2 Maine Human Rights Act,
igi.rring discrimination on the
arsis of sex, race, religion or
tlitier personal traits,
edt Signed into law by Gov. An-
s King last year, it would
layf ve been illegal to discrimi-
's te “in employment, housing,
i: ibjjc accomodation, credit”
d other instances based on
xual orientation.
Maine voters set a com
mendable precedent, and vot
es nationwide should follow
bfieir lead. While laws prevent-
e g harassment and violence
aihst homosexuals are need-
, forcing people to embrace
t id condone homosexuality is
s'tolerable.
There are two major problems
I 11 th gay-rights laws — they legit-
lize a destructive and immoral
2Style, and they infringe upon
e precious religious freedoms of
■ ose whose moral beliefs state
r imosexuality is wrong.
o1 ' Gay-rights protection laws
e simply public statements
1 ere is no right or wrong, and
lyone with traditional moral
lues should be prosecuted
id fined for their beliefs.
, In the case of Maine, the city
j Portland used gay-rights or-
nances to defund the Boy
“sfduts, a private organization
f.ihich does not allow homosex-
r ,tls to become Scoutmasters.
Portland’s Deering High
School took advantage of gay-
rights laws and held a “Diversi
ty Day,” which invited a les
bian couple to talk to children
about the “joys of a homosexu
al relationship” and urged chil
dren to explore homosexuality.
Coincidentally, Christians were
not invited to participate in
“Diversity Day.”
Not only are gay-rights laws
used to indoctrinate children
with a liberal, pro-homosexual
agenda, they also legitimize a
destructive “lifestyle.” A study by
doctors Paul Cameron, William
Playfair and Steven Wellum finds
the average lifespan of a homo
sexual male is only 41 years.
Although studies of human
sexuality show homosexual
men comprise less than two
percent of the population, the
Centers for Disease Control re
port they made up approxi
mately 55 percent of new AIDS
cases from 1995 to 1997. Taking
two percent of the population
who make up 55 percent of
those with an insidious disease
and calling it a positive lifestyle
choice is dangerous and mis
leading.
Heroin addiction, alcoholism
and other permissive, destruc
tive lifestyles do not deserve spe
cial protection under the law,
and neither should homosexual
ity. Although homosexuals cer
tainly are not roving, pedophiliac
bogeymen as some stereotypes
insist, their permissive and de
structive lifestyle should not be
condoned and certainly not pro
tected by the law.
Unlike race, age, sex, ethnicity
and skin color, for which dis
crimination is wrong and im
moral, sexual orientation is a
personal behavior and not nearly
on the same civil-rights plain as
physical and ethnic attributes.
On a more personal level,
gay-rights laws like the one shot
down in Maine seriously tram
ple on the religious freedoms of
those who know homosexuality
is wrong. Religious freedoms are
among our most precious.
America may be the only na
tion where people can worship
as they please and fulfill the
tenets of their faith without
heavy-handed government in
terference. That is, until gay-
rights laws are adopted.
Landlords are forced by the
state to rent to homosexuals, re
gardless of their personal values
and a family could not fire or
refuse to hire a nanny because
she promotes lesbianism to their
children.
Those who know homosexu
ality is wrong and will not rent to
or hire homosexuals because of
their lifestyle have their rights
shoved aside to accommodate a
destructive, out-of-touch politi
cal agenda. Animal-rights ac
tivists do not prevent those of
Jewish faith from eating kosher
foods and businessmen of Hin
du faith are not forced by the
government to sell beef.
Likewise, employers and
landlords who believe in morali
ty and clean living should not be
coerced by an oppressive and in
trusive state law into hiring or
renting to people who mock or
violate their beliefs.
Laws such as these do not
protect actual rights, they de
stroy the rights of families and
law-abiding citizens. In an era of
escalating drug use, out-of-wed
lock births, divorce and crime,
gay-rights laws are a step in the
wrong direction. Instead of as
saulting religion and morality,
government should promote the
traditional values which made
this nation strong.
Citizens of states which do
not have gay-rights protection
laws should fight moral rela
tivists to keep it that way; and
those in states with these laws
should repeal them.
Gay-rights laws are a symp
tom of the larger disease of
moral relativism destroying soci
ety. Legitimizing and forcing ac
ceptance of a deadly, destruc
tive, immoral lifestyle is wrong.
Congratulations, Maine, for
standing up to the vocal minori
ty who attempted to force citi
zens to accept their immoral
lifestyle. Hopefully voters na
tionwide will take the hint and
take back their nation.
Donny Ferguson is a junior
political science major.
Small businesses hurt by
off-campus Aggiebucks system
I t has always seemed that the
unwritten purpose of Texas
A&M’s administration is to find
new and creative ways to, in some
small way, add to the general
Dante-ish melting pot that is A&M.
However, students must some
times choose the lesser of two
evils. This is the case today with
Aggiebucks. Aggiebucks are being
expanded off-campus at the ex
pense of small businesses and stu
dents, a situation which should
Chris
Huffines
columnist
not continue.
Originally, Aggiebucks were a convenience for stu
dents while on-campus. Then, the off-campus book
stores, understandably upset that the MSC Bookstore
offered to take Aggiebucks and they could not, lob
bied the state legislature to the point a law was passed
requiring A&M to offer Aggiebucks off-campus.
That’s right, a handful of bookstores talked the state
congress into passing a law. Since then, only the book
stores, McDonalds, Disc-Go-Round, CD Warehouse,
and Inspirations have offered to take Aggiebucks.
Small businesses around campus do not have deep
enough pockets to cover the large investment it takes
to offer Aggiebucks. For just one reader (the thing the
card gets swiped through) and associated peripherals,
an initial investment of almost $2000 is required.
That’s not counting the monthly upkeep fee.
The administration, trying to keep this cost off stu
dents, forces the business to pay all of these expenses,
without using any money from student fees or making
a profit.
Kelly Tatum, store manager for the Northgate Free-
bird’s, says many local businesses cannot spare the cash
to make sucha large investment on Aggiebucks, even if
they would like to offer the service for their customers.
To add to this, stores such as CD Warehouse that
have invested in Aggiebucks do not show a dramatic
payback from using Aggiebucks. Their good fortune at
having corporate pockets to dig into for the cash is not
paying back as promised.
Another problem with Aggiebucks is they do not
seem like “real” money. Once the bill is paid, Ag
giebucks are just a number, not money going out. This
makes students less responsible with Aggiebucks than
they would be with real money.
Aggiebucks become easier to use, which benefits
stores with Aggiebucks, while hurting stores with
out the system. Students may be short five bucks,
and be able to make it up with Aggiebucks, a pur
chase they would not have been able to make with
out Aggiebucks.
Finally, and most importantly, the bookstore lobby
in this case means University policy is being defined
by local business, not by the administration. As was
mentioned earlier, it has always seemed the Universi
ty has its interests slightly awry: the University ahead
of the st udents.
But at least the administration has student inter
ests somewhere near the top. Local businesses only
care for the students as customers. This law sets a
dangerous precedent, taking the power to choose how
to help students from men and women chosen and
paid to help these students and giving it to men and
women who are paid only to make money for their
business. Students’ interests are at least present for
the University.
Aggiebucks are a good idea. Local business has
twisted that idea into a ridiculous parody of what it
once was, forcing the University to choose between
obeying the law and hurting the students it is here to
serve. Fortunately, the University is trying to correct
the problem by negotiating with a local bank to run
off-campus Aggiebucks and lower the prices. The fact
remains though, this situation would not have oc
curred were it not for the selfish lobbying of the off-
campus bookstores.
Chris Hujfines is a sophomore speech
communications major.
MAIL CALL
Focus on appearance
due to male attitudes
Michelle Voss made a good
point in her Feb. 27 column.
Women should work to “publicize
role models for young women who
have accomplished great tasks.”
Let’s be honest, though, and look at
the issue of feminine accomplish
ment versus appearance through
the eyes of Charles Darwin.
Based on his work in Origin of
Species, let’s use “survival of the
fittest” as our governing model.
Women who have the greatest
capability to appeal to men are
the women who will ultimately
fulfill their procreative desire to
bear children.
Since a woman’s physical appear
ance weighs heavily on most men’s
criteria for courtship, it is in fact men
who are responsible for the stringent
media portrayal of the feminine fig
ure, not women as Voss suggests.
How, therefore, do we change
men’s attitudes toward physical ap
pearance? Whoever has the answer
to that question undoubtedly will be
worth a lot of money, as she has the
capability to usurp the multibillion-
dollar global cosmetic industry.
David H. Recht
Class of'97
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