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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 7, 1998)
D Battalion i at ttiei iis Cents ! men's pinion Fair or Foul? Page 9 • Wednesday, October 7, 1998 U.S. ignores 5™ ledia neglects Sosas achievement the mia ^ 50-2001 ter can v ipectata matcte a year of disappoint- lent, they brought joy id achievement, lughout a year of e, they gave the pub- Patiod mie pride. lowisi 1 ark McGwire and drive,': ny Sosa may not be ch Tm ng the hungry or natch % ing the homeless, but in introii have already given FI BEVERLY MIRELES of one r $25. American people some badly needed pbiding heroes, and moreover, they are ing the world what racial equality in ;s really is. why is no one paying attention? iring the race to reach Roger Maris’ -run record, McGwire and Sosa con- lly supported each other’s efforts, ver, the media continually portrayed ire as the true hero while Sosa was nother hapless foreigner daring to st him. is discrepancy was most evident Sosa began to close in on McG- s home-run status. While McGwire ved the attentions of the commis- rof baseball, the major networks. a Blue Angels, Sosa was sur- ictica,: nen’s c id. :o provts and it otures matt tiediil hall ma lebrask •om Sati| , Oct. 3 conflic! sas fo( to actio' play Ided by the corps of reporters as- dto the media B-list. In an issue of bIllustrated, Sosa was even referred "Sidebar Sammy” in comparison to erboy McGwire.” id when Sosa reached 62 home runs, McGwire, the crowds roared, but the all big wigs were not around. They too busy watching McGwire, w could so many have dropped all when it came to Sosa’s accom- ^iient; He had tied McGwire five before the race was finished. In !nd, McGwire had reached an as hing 70 home runs, and Sosa was if the first in line to congratulate Everyone came together to praise son of baseball that brought back |uch joy to a nation that really led to be diverted from its woes, id that is great. But during all of jelebrating, did anyone think lithe bias the media were creating ilattering McGwire’s visage all 'American magazines and leaving tothe Hispanic papers? klahonqi sider the situation had it been will be liseum zge7 ig boosi re has se large hat is i ago 1 e one J . prog! m’t ^ ns ne the ’’re what different. [pothesize back a few weeks, be- home-run record was set at 70. Jine McGwire is the underdog in the and Sosa is clearly ahead, both of I already national heroes. Then, a |release is issued stating Sosa regu- uses a performance-enhancing drug Idandrostenedione, while McGwire nothing but Flintstone vitamins. |ow, is it not possible the media reac- othe drug would have been harsher? Id not McGwire have been praised as erole model, better than the one used pills to help him hit all those ng home runs? e answer that no one wants to admit Yes, the reaction against Sosa would been much worse because he is not of us,” and McGwire is a perfectly ing American poster boy. That is why iommissioner of baseball was not u to see Sosa’s 62nd home run, the one ,ed McGwire. And that is why the fving Maris family did not bother to up at Sammy’s game. It is because as not born an American ... nothing .nothing less. Right? ssibly. It is certainly acceptable for ublic to cheer for their own. No one Is an American crowd at the pics to cheer for the Swiss, for ex ample. But had McGwire not been in the running, and Sosa was the only one in contention, so to speak, would the media have jumped all over him, making him the new cover for dozens of magazines, and claiming him to be a new American hero, regardless of the fact he came from the Dominican Republic? For the most part, it is quite evident that the media was the one with the bias, and not the public. Which makes it all the more difficult to understand why the me dia would have such difficulty in recogniz ing Sosa’s achievement alongside McG wire’s new record. In fact, it should have been easy, with the numbers so much in Sammy’s favor. For him to tie at 62, Sosa had to McGwire's work deserves limelight o n Sept. 25, 1998, I Chicago Cubs out fielder Sammy Sosa hit home run No. 66 to pull ahead of St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Mark McGwire in what will go down in history as “The Great Home Run Chase of 1998.” .■.s**™**^^ For less than an hour, Sosa was perched on the peak of the derby, looking down at the red-headed, Paul-Bun- yan-esque McGwire. Until “Big Mac” hit No. 66 about 45 minutes later. For less than an hour, Sosa deserved all of the press. It was the second time all JEFF WEBB McGwire pounded 38. That is definitely an impressive pace for home runs. And yet Sosa remains in McGwire’s shadow, as far as media coverage goes. It is a shame. At least the public has been sensible enough to ignore the bias placed on Sosa in the media, and because of that, they have been able to en joy a season of baseball almost totally un marred by anything negative. Finally. Beverly Mireles is a sophomore microbiology major. and he led McGwire for less than two hours all season, so why would McG wire not deserve most of the attention? In a race to a number, the magical 62nd homer that broke Roger Maris’ 37-year-old record for home runs in a season, numbers tell the whole story between the two larg er-than-life sluggers. Entering the 1998 season, McGwire was the odds-on favorite to come out on top. In 1997, Mac hit 58 homers. Sosa led the league in 1997 — that is, in strikeouts with 174. In 1995, McGwire hit 39 homers before getting injured, but he still hit one home run for every 8.1 at-bats, a rate higher than even Babe Ruth. The stage was set for McGwire to take his shot at history, and the media waited, their pens at the ready and camera shutters cocked for action. Who knew Sosa would make a game of it, a season to remember. Not only for his home runs, but for the wildcard play off run that sent Chicago into the post season for the first time since 1984. McGwire began his campaign by hitting a grand slam on opening day and followed up by homering in each of the first four games of the season. Willie Mays was the only other major leaguer to do that, way back in 1971. On May 19, McGwire hit three home runs against the Philadelphia Phillies. He reached the 20-home-run plateau faster than any baseball player in history. He also became the 12th player in history to hit a pair of three-homer games in one season. On June 15, Sosa nailed only the second three-homer game of his career. The baseball writers scrambled for more ink, and “Sportscenter” announcers had to invent new calls. McGwire was wearing them out too quickly. On June 5, Mac hit his 28th. It set the club record for homers in Busch Stadium with 18, in only the third month of the season. However, June was Sosa’s month as he set fire to pitchers around the league and rode a home-run binge that set the major-league record for homers in a month with 20. The media took notice. Fans began to see more jumps out of the batters box, more two-finger taps to the heart. But McGwire still dominated the headlines. Fast forward to September. McG wire and Sosa face off in the Cubs- Cardinals series. This was Sosa’s chance to prove the media wrong and steal the spotlight from Ameri ca’s favorite slugger. Big Mac left the yard again. On Sept. 7, McGwire connected for No. 61 agaiqst the Cubs, and on Sept. 8, McGwire wrote himself into the history books by sending a Steve Trachsel pitch screaming over the left- field wall. Race over. The Maris family had no more obliga tion to see McGwire or Sosa. Their father was overshadowed on that day. On Sept. 12, Sosa hit his 60th while McGwire was getting walked for a major- league record 152nd time. On Sept. 13, Sosa hit 61 and 62. Commissioner Bud Selig was not there. Neither were the Marises. And coincidentally, neither was history. For, now, the record already be longed to McGwire. Now it was just a question of who would come out on top. On Sept. 25, Sosa pulled ahead of McG wire for a short time, but McGwire stormed right back. On Sept. 27, McGwire hit what is now the major league record 70 off of Carl Pavano, a Montreal Expos pitcher. McGwire will go down in history as the greatest long-ball hitter to ever play the game. But do not be fooled — Sosa will be more than a mere footnote in the great chase of 1998. His flair and love of the game will garner him more than his share of attention next season. It just happened that Sosa, even with 66 home runs, fell just a few steps short of the spotlight. Jeff Webb is a senior journalism major. MAIL CALL ■ee Acli«I Sfflumn distorts lonesjjL, migious actions iponse to Chris Huffines’ Oct. lumn: 'hen Chris Huffines says 'dents here have a fairly 1 understanding of religion,” ems clear he is not referring imself. eligion is not a bad thing — to esuch a blanket statement is try. Though the actions of iysoldiers were brutal and un- ial,the Crusades were inher- rholy conquests. If you are go to mock Christianity, read the The God of the Old Testa- and of Revelation is not a God, but he is still God. uthern Baptists (as well as American Family Associa- Assembly of God, the Aolic League, Concerned Hen for America and others) justified in rejecting all Dis- products; you cannot sup- Uhegood without indirectly 'Porting the bad. When Mar- tuther King Jr. led a boycott 'egregated Montgomery city s, he did not refuse to ride all buses except those that ap peared “wholesome.” Huffines should not imply all Christians are Bible-beaters, all Muslims are bounty hunters and all Arabs are terrorists because of the actions of a few radical extremists. Next time Huffines considers writing an article belittling the be liefs of the majority of the stu dents on campus, he should ask himself the same question he so inappropriately devalues: What would Jesus do? Terrance Hines Class of ’02 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 Fax: (409) 845-2647 E-mail: batt@tamvml.tamu.edu persecution O n the whole. Ag gies do not like to think about martyr dom, religious persecution and murder. After all, the average Texan has little need for these thoughts — or time to con template such notions with an ar ray of dates, club meetings and classes to attend. Aggies have more important things on their minds. However, as the average Aggie goes to class pencil in hand, grip ing about the professor, elsewhere in the world, people are being punished for.who they are and what they believe. It could even be someplace as nearby as. Cuba, where Castro la beled Catholics as social scum and today promotes freedom of religion as long as it is the govern ment’s religion. Anyone who thinks differently gets placed into labor camps or has their church ruined in destruction reminiscent of Hitler’s attacks on the Jews. But destroying buildings is of ten only the beginning for reli gious devotees in these non-per- missive societies. In Sudan, Christians who try to practice their faith are sold as slaves or raped and mutilated. A common horrific practice is stuff ing insects into the slaves’ ears and sealing them with wax. Most merely went insane. But Christians are not the only sufferers. There are Muslims in Serbia who are being murdered by the hundreds. Their plight used to be described on the news and the world was outraged. Nothing was done, and now no one mentions them anymore. There are the Jewish people who cannot practice their reli gion in Thrkey. Divulging their religious convictions is like ask ing for a fight, exclusion from so ciety or perhaps, in some ex treme cases, death. One Turkish student on cam pus could not go by his real name in Turkey as it identified him too accurately as being Jewish. Their are Jews in Israel, who cannot shop at the mall without running the risk of being attacked because various Arab nations would like to see the Jews thrown into the sea. But perhaps most shocking is the fact so few people are aware of these atrocities. Christians tend to refer to these sufferers as martyrs, but that is not entirely accurate. Martyrs know why they die. They are usu ally making a conscious decision to die for what they believe. Jew ish history is filled with martyrs. These people are not martyrs, but they are merely the victims of a cruel punishment for a crime not committed. They do not choose to die by the hun dreds. They do not choose to be flickering flames whose lights were snuffed out. They make no choices when they ask simply to be left alone to practice their faith in peace. Aggies do not need to worry about these stories as they make their trips to beauty salons and the Student Recreation Center. They do not need to worry about the bishop who committed suicide because he saw his fel low Christians dying and felt too helpless to do anything. Few Ag gies can £ven imagine that depth of hopelessness. Often Americans feel they do not need to get involved. They worry that “our boys” will get killed, but it is time to put things into perspective. These people are civilians and they are dying. Novy is not the time to talk of the horror of blood shed. That time has passed. The consequences of not being in volved are more harmful to our souls then any loss of American blood could ever be. The murder of innocent people for what they believe and who they are is abhorrent. After the Holocaust, the world promised never to forget. Only 50 years later we see tragedies in Ser bia, Sudan, Ireland and China. Surely there must be someone who remembers? LISA FOOX Lisa Foox is a senior , journalism major.