fayi U 1 The Battalion lesday • May 5, 1998 ere i rtionr say," wast 'olgirlil i it wasf ! repel nd2M AMPUS CONNECTION naked truth about Vision 20/20 l&M’s world-class status depends on increasing prominence of nuditv -l exas a month, students run around states of undress, and their rank- J Mexas A&M L Univer- r recently blemented [Vision |20 pro- |m, to pro- A&M from current 117 rating p world- bs universi- 2S8& Chris Huffines columnist tatus. kile this program pointed this bipus to a brighter future, it over- ked one critical factor. Some- Itg is missing that will make pi ati even greater university. JM needs more public nudity. Il’m sure many students who oi nt themselves as decent people ^ right now embarrassed to be Jding this or to even know me )ei onally. However, every great ^titution of higher learning is eped in a fine tradition of public Ident nudity. It is time for Aggies ■rywhere to set aside their per- Tial moral fiber and join the lentieth century in the wanton ploitation of sexuality in order to lieve a good education, a good ) and thus more money. It is the Best ambition in the world. ■For example, Rice University has Baker 13’s, where once or twice a month, students run around campus covered only by semi- strategic blobs of shaving cream. As proof of their exploits, these students then leave body-prints in shaving cream on buildings around campus. Rice is consid ered to be the Ivy League of the South. However, student nudity and a fine education at one school could just be coincidence. But then, schools like the Uni versity of Michigan, with its annual tradition of the Naked Mile, where students walk their equivalent of Northgate either wholly or partial ly undressed, are ranked in the top ten of magazines like U.S. News and World Reports Best College Rankings. And Purdue, where stu dents vaseline themselves up and run around in the buff the first re ally cold night of winter, is a pre mier graduate school. I could mention others like Princeton or Berkeley, but I believe the point has been made. Most revealing (no pun intend ed) is the rankings of schools who do not have traditions of nudity. The University of Texas has no naked traditions. They are not in the top ten. Also, schools like Michigan State University and the University of Indiana, second fid dles to Michigan and Purdue, have no traditions involving various states of undress, and their rank ings and prestige suffer as a result. The numbers speak for them selves. In fact, according to re search, almost 70 percent of those universities ranked in the lower 50 percent of colleges in the nation have no or severely repressed tra ditions of student nudity. And at least 60 percent of the top-10 uni versities have traditions of student nudity. Numbers do not lie. Texas A&M has become com mitted to achieving world-class status. Nothing, not money, not pride, not basic human morality, need stand between this Universi ty and the grudging approval of other universities and the general public, who we know cannot un derstand our traditions and our University anyway. There are those who will say, “Being a world-class university isn’t so important that we should throw away our dignity.†These people should be branded as the two-per centers they are and universally scorned, reviled and heckled while the 12th Man goes out and stands up — naked — for Aggie pride. It is time to take off our clothes and gain the excellency and respect that Texas A&M so richly deserves. *\ 6f A, J s^r:' Chris Huffines is a sophomore speech communications major. GENDERSCOPE eminist reactions to Clinton accusations show political motives O kay, America, it’s kinda hard to ignore the hip po in the living room. Now, more than ever, it is painfully obvious that our President is a philandering womanizer. And, no one cares. Sad, but true, most Ameri cans have no objection to our President’s lewd behavior, aside from that poor, bedrag gled Kenneth Starr. Michelle Voss columnist Most alarming is that America’s largest sector of non-objectors happens to be an entire chorus of left-wing feminists. Heeellllo! Doesn’t anyone recall the Congres sional Hearings involving Clearance Thomas and Anita Hill? In the wake of the Senate’s exhaustive question ing of Thomas and Hill, leftist feminists nation wide began whining about the plague of sexual ha rassment in the workplace. But, where are they now? Now that Gennifer Flowers, Paula Jones, Monica Lewinsky and Kathleen Willey have publicly claimed that our President is mixing work and sex, many politically active feminists have retreated from the ritual whine of victimhood. Hmmm.... Could it be that Thomas was a con servative in the running for an anti-abortion spot on the Supreme Court while Clinton is Mr. Champi on of Abortion Rights? Perhaps, maybe. Indeed. It is no coincidence that leftists feminists have given all of Clinton’s women the cold-shoulder. Fact is, the champions of the liberal feminist agenda have a crush on Bill Clinton, too. Why? Because he’ll threaten to [or just plain will] veto any bill that restricts access to abortions and partial-birth abortions. And, it’s not just left-winger feminists that think Clinton is a big hunky man, apparently 6 percent more women than men give Clinton a “favorable†rating. When confronted with the question of why they still support Clinton in light of his sexual escapades, one women quoted in Time magazine just respond ed, “Well, he is only a MAN.†So, what, like all men cheat; therefore, it's per fectly decent and acceptable for our President to be a jerk? Please, this defense that Clinton has an over-ac tive, uncontrollable sex drive simply because he’s a man is pathetic and lame. The man needs to sprout some dignity fast in stead of dropping his pants every time a cute intern sashays by his office. Otherwise, as long as women in the Whitehouse just remain on their knees, they’ll never assume the title of Leader of the Free World. So, this is not a question of the privacy of public figures, but rather a question of whether or not our President is a sexual predator, a title that should be unthinkable for the President. I mean, c’ mon, this is the President of the Unit ed States, and he can’t even keep his dinky in his pants! You’d think he might show a little self-control as long as his address is 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. But herein lies the paradox. If these allegations had been brought against the C.E.O. of a major company, the man wouldn’t have had the time to clean out his desk, let alone run our nation. After all, it would seem that plenty of moms and dads are getting tired of explaining “oral sex†to their kids after the media blared this phrase over our television sets for weeks on end. This tabloid Presidency is demeaning and disgust ing and should be offensive to women everywhere. Rather, liberal feminists have only poo-pooed Clinton’s accusers and given him their love because he’s a Pro-Choice Democrat. Get over it, girls, “that man†is a womanizer, and that means that he abuses the integrity of women for sex. And, this hippo can’t just be swept under the rug. If this happens, women will only continue to be demeaned and dismissed as sexual objects that men can manipulate for their pleasure. Michelle Voss is a junior English major. ONE OF THESE Df\IH mo 1YN „ "PERFORMANCE IS GOIN6 TV IfFPROVE DRAMA-ncALUV!.., J 'Hi A Piu win make tou tAkE our ike TRASH WORE?;,,. ■I e xaSA&MUfl iverMif w I I litElndpcl! MAIL CALL Columnist uses position to offend In response to Donny Ferguson’s May 5 column: Is it the point of Ferguson’s un informed “perspective†to irritate every reader (regardless of view point or ideology) with his juvenile drivel against every possible group that doesn’t fit into his narrow view of the world? Was this an at tempt to be funny or clever? If so, it missed the mark by miles. Instead, it was once again a successful attempt by Ferguson to demonstrate his ignorance to the entire campus. In particular, he showed every one that he knows nothing about the Pagan Students Association, or the Atheist and Agnostic Student Group. This is not the first time that Donny Ferguson has embarrassed himself with his poorly-developed, ad hominem rhetorical skills, but in the past it has not been worth responding to. This time, however, it was sim ply too much to bear. Please, in the future find a columnist who has something intelligent to say (be it liberal or conservative) rather than a Rush Limbaugh wanna-be who uses his position to spout off immature, insulting diatribes. Christopher Diaz Graduate Student Lack of coverage for RHA ignores impact I am curious to know exactly what impact the Residence Hall Association has on the Texas A&M campus. I don’t know anything about the organization and was wondering if someone would write an article about what the organiza tion has accomplished in the past year and what their immediate plans are concerning the next year. It seems to me that if so many are impacted by this organization, more people should know about how it affects their lives. Joshua Cohen Class of‘01 The Battalion encourages letters to the ed itor. Letters must be 300 words or less and in clude the author’s name, class, and phone number. The opinion editor reserves the right to edit 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 be mailed to: The Battalion - Mail Call 013 Reed McDonald Texas A&M University College Station, TX 77843-1111 Campus Mail: 1111 Rax: (409) 845-2647