Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 1998)
Battalion inion Page 11 • Wednesday, October 21, 1998 k Oth©;. it could fredei •tube oiid Guadilu^ 'erewipaj^ lard offits | irs; bung people benefit from environmental education Pinochet’s British arrest ’wasisi areas, total dami -t.saidli inaua«. 'cityol i been »• iiew host pan , city o boil tap :es befe f restaur, tain be,? ELIZABETH STRAIT decision; tornev i Plociti him to s; to twi iociotti , Merit indicati payfe lion. s the environment diminishes, steps anust be take to pre- ve the ecosystem. The best place to start is i young people. Envi- Imental education [uld be a required part curriculum at public lools. Young children ]l, in turn, bring that in flation home to their parents, and that help begin a cycle of environmental reness and concern, ost people like the idea of helping the planet, and young children are es- ally open to new concepts and ideas, lents and teachers need to reinforce in dren the idea they are the guardians of planet and the future of the earth is in r hands. dany children have been taught the im- ance of recycling and the preservation ature, but not in a way that offers them real meaning or value, hildren should be given the opportuni- o participate in activities with a visible .come. It would be a lot more meaning- ■for a group of students to go out and icipate in cleaning up a park or a play- iund than it would to sit in a classroom |1 listen to a teacher lecture about how environment needs to be preserved, ot only would they learn an important on in preserving the environment, but Idents would also have the opportunity xperience what something as simple as [King a tree can do to improve the quali- flife in an area. ’oday, many young people lack a sense irection, and they are willing to take gerous measures to feel they belong to Inething. When young people are in- ipjved in positive activities like sports and school clubs, they experience a feeling of unity and have improved self esteem. By getting young people involved in pre serving the environment, not only are they participating in a very important cause, but they are also getting the opportunity to be a part of something positive. One example of a great program involv ing public school students and real envi ronmental issues is at Canby High School in Oregon. Canby High School is located in a farm ing community 20 miles southeast of the Portland metropolitan area. The school will now be the air quality monitoring station for a regional air quality project directed by Portland State University and underwritten by the National Science Foundation. The school is an ideal monitoring sta tion because it is believed the worst effects of the region’s air quality problem can be experienced by rural communities down wind from metropolitan areas. Grants are available to public schools that offer funding for comprehensive en vironmental education. Such programs will give children the opportunity to par ticipate in activities like monitoring Port land’s air quality. If the current attitude of disrespect for the environment continues, there will not be an earth left for generations to come. Many people, young and old, believe one little gum wrapper thrown on the ground is not going to hurt anything. They are wrong. This is why people need to build experi ences that will allow them to see the fruits of their pro-environment labors. Once people see the results of their ef forts toward improving the environment, they will be more motivated to lend a help ing hand. Most people are not going to par ticipate in something they consider a lost cause and that is exactly how many people view the state of our environment. Right now there are not environmental education programs in all schools, but par ents and teachers can take steps that will make preserving our earth second nature to young people. Through simple programs like recycling efforts at school or home or activities like BRAD GRAEBER/Thk Battalion planting trees and gardens, young people can constantly be reminded of their role in saving the planet. As fellow inhabitants of this planet, people must constantly remind each other nothing is permanent, especially not the environment. Elizabeth Strait is a junior journalism major. ractices, tolerances xpose society’s nature MAIL CALL The world is full of tra- ditions^ t>skv#« good and (ie bad. n each cul- je and each Jion, tradi- s can be nd that im- ve the quality MANISHA PAREKH jffice. V ti* 5 He. However, there are also se traditions that take away person’s quality of life. [Slavery, for example, is a tradi- still spreading its shadow on dern civilization. [The images and stories of hor- still pervade the collective sciousness of mankind. What |rted as a way of subjugating quered nations became the uliar institution that devastat- families and cultures, leading (centuries of grief. The tradition of slavery — of black man’s “inferiority” — is |e of the greatest blights of hu- nity’s soul. jin India, there is a peculiar tra- ion that literally kills — sati. It he practice in which a widow breed to burn herself alive on a eral pyre after the death of her sband. This grim tradition led the death of thousands of )men in villages across India. In Africa, there is another tra- ion that targets women and de- ?ases their quality of life. It is male circumcision. The inhu- ane — and often fatal — proce- re involves cutting off the cli- ris and sewing up the vaginal lening. For those girls who sur- ve the cruel practice, years of lin await them. Here at Texas A&M, Aggies ive their own distinctive tradi- 5ns, some good and some bad. Along with the 12th Man and IverTaps, Aggies also have irmful traditions, the ones whis- red about in the dining halls id at late night meetings. One tradition involves taking lung men out into the middle of e woods and beating them with ;e handles. Should the young an cry out in pain, the small gn of human suffering is re- arded with yet another blow. A variation on this particular [j! adition involves taking a young lan into the woods and aban- oning him there. Another tradition involves the irnishing of alcohol to minors nd forcing them to drink ob- cene amounts in very little time, ot only is this tradition illegal, ut potentially fatal. Other traditions include pub ic humiliation, degradation of emales and the gratuitous use if obscenities. Societies are often judged upon the types of activities they permit and encourage. People to day look back on those who en gaged in slavery and view them as cruel, ignorant people whose society was based on inequality and injustice. Foreigners look on the prac tice of sati as an extreme form of barbarism, a relic of the primi tive social structure in which women held little value outside of a marriage. Human rights groups around the world have spoken out in protest of this tra ditional practice. Female circumcision has be come the newest topic of contro versy for human rights activists. Groups decry the practice as a symptom of a primitive, paternal istic society that deprives women of their rights. Texas A&M is viewed, thanks to its more notorious traditions, as a backward university that serves as a breeding ground for the masochistic and uneducated. It is a place where hazing is not just a word — it is a way of life. However, since it is easier to judge a group less harshly for their mistakes if measures are tak en to correct them, some of the previous views must be revised. The view of societies that once allowed slavery is softened by the heroic efforts of many people who worked to put an end to slavery or to free individuals from their bondage. The view of Indian society is softened by the steps the Indian people and government have tak en to try and educate and abolish the practice of sati. The view of nations where fe male circumcision is practiced is softened by number of native cru saders who are working towards abolishing the practice. But what can be said about A&M’s more infamous traditions? To the student body’s credit, many traditions have fallen by the wayside and others are no longer ignored. Students have expressed their outrage at actions that were merely accepted for years. Unfortunately, there are oth er practices that continue to evade a critical eye. Rather, they continue year after year, under the noses of campus leaders and administrators. Sometimes, it is even the campus leaders who are involved in carrying out the tradition. If the world judges societies and groups by their actions and inactions, how does Jhe world judge Texas A&M? Manisha Parekh is a junior psychology and journalism major. Success requires more than skills In response to Caleb McDaniel’s Oct. 20 column: I find McDaniel’s column about technology’s influence misleading. While I agree the im poverished would benefit from computer training, he fails to consider some factors. I doubt many people, given the choice of financial assistance or computer training, would choose the training. Training does not assure suc cess. As McDaniel points out, ex tensive knowledge is required to enter technology fields, and little short of a college degree will pro vide access to those fields. Additionally, motivation is as important as opportunity in realiz ing one’s potential. For example, we as Aggies have free access to extensive technological resources, yet often we fail to utilize them. Opportunity can not only be de nied to individuals, it can also be squandered. Perhaps training to motivate individuals would help alleviate some oppression. Court Sansom Class of ’99 Core curriculum develops students In response to Andrew Baley’s Oct. 19 column: Many students see the core curriculum as an obstacle to grad uating. However, there are also many who think the core curricu lum is a useful requirement. VoUlL BE wm . TO KNOW i Dotfr CW3KE NV( Coach AHNNyaRE- V_ We cannot hold the University responsible for requiring a core curriculum. Baley quotes the undergraduate catalog, which says the core cur riculum serves to “enrich and broaden the University’s tradition of providing thorough preparation in each student’s academic major.” If we took these words at face value, then the core curriculum would seem extraneous. I find the University’s explana tion of its purpose accurate. A major is just your primary focus in your studies, not the only reason why you are here. It is the depth of knowledge we receive from our other academic pursuits that gives us the edge over those who attended a two- year program. We will eventually leave A&M and pursue jobs. A prospective employer does not want an em ployee who is single-minded and can only handle a limited number of tasks. Justin Darling Class of 'CO Course variety benefits Aggies In response to Andrew Baley’s Oct. 19 column: The purpose of any university is to broaden a student’s prepa ration and create a well-rounded individual. Employers are looking for peo ple with broad perspectives and knowledge about a multitude of subjects. Competition in the job market is only getting stiffer; the more a person brings to the table, the better. Baley said history majors do not benefit from science courses. This implies chemistry majors do not benefit from history, and that each major is independent of the others. This is false. For those who believe they are wasting time by not taking only classes in their major, I recom mend they do some serious ana lytical thinking. It has been said a jack of all. trades is a master of none, but a master of one (trade) is-unmarketable. Derrick W. Wolter Wildlife and fisheries sciences graduate student Campus cyclists face obstacles Lt. Kretzschmar’s comments regarding the bicycle “crackdown” on campus brings up a problem. His contention that cyclists are responsible for remaining in designated bicycle lanes is laughable. Anyone who has tried to cycle through campus knows this is impossible. We have no bike lanes. What Kretzschmar is referring to as a “bike lane” is a shoulder — used more as a temporary park ing area for students, delivery trucks, campus buses, mainte nance vehicles and even cam pus police cruisers — probably on stake out, hoping to capture rogue bicyclists who stray from their designated bike lane. Douglas J. Claycomb Geography graduate student DAVE JOHNSTON sends signal T wenty-five years after his military coup and nine years after the re turn of free elec tions to his coun try, Chilean Senator Augusto Pinochet proba- _____________ bly thought he was safe traveling to Britain. Unfortunately for him, the Britons have long memories. Pinochet was arrested in Lon don last week while he was recov ering from back surgery. The British police have detained him is response to an extradition re quest by a national court in Spain. It seems a pair of Spanish judges are investigating allega tions of human rights violations during Pinochet’s rule, and they would like to question the for mer military commander. Too bad there is no statute of limitations on genocide. Actually, Pinochet will be lucky if he only faces charges from a Spanish court. Before the dust set tles, he may find himself standing before an international tribunal. The British arrest, while it may annoy a minority of Chileans, sends a strong message. The arrest of a foreign leader — who may or may not have the right to diplomatic immunity, de pending on which nation you be lieve — certainly has some seri ous implications. However, Spain’s investigation concerning Pinochet’s alleged involvement in the mistreatment of Spanish citi zens seems to give the country the right to question him — as long as Spain is willing to endure the ire of the Chilean government. In fact, Pinochet’s alleged crimes could easily qualify as se vere violations of human rights. Such cases can be heard by inter national courts held anywhere. Spain’s allegations regarding Spanish citizens may be the tip of the iceberg. The foreign arrest certainly rais es issues of national sovereignty, but it is the only way the allega tions will ever receive a hearing. Pinochet is protected from prosecution in Chile. As a sena tor in the Chilean government, he is protected from legal pro ceedings. However, Pinochet’s current position is the result of the same strong-arm tactics that put his army in control of the capital in 1973. When Chile returned to democracy, Pinochet’s regime drafted the new constitution. It included a provision making the former despot a senator for life upon his retirement from the military, an option he exercised in March. This title not only en sured Pinochet’s continued influ ence in politics, but guaranteed legal immunity. That immunity has already been heavily tested. Aside from the heavy casualties incurred when his military forces installed him as national leader, over 4,000 Chileans were killed or missing during the 16 years of military rule. The families of those Chileans have filed a stack of law suits, but no action is expected. Britain considers Chile an ally, but London officials consider this matter important enough to risk straining diplomatic ties. Even many Chileans applaud the Anglo-Spanish action. In fact, demonstrators in the capital of Santiago were literally dancing in the streets this week, celebrating the foreign detention of their po litical leader. Not all Chileans hold Pinochet in contempt, however. He ' brought broad economic reforms to the country, including a priva tized social security system. Yet, even free market reforms do not erase more than a decade of vio lent bloodshed. The message is clear. The world will not ignore policies of widespread murder and torture of innocent people. There are likely to be ramifica tions. Chile may take diplomatic re venge. Any British dictators should avoid travel to South America, and if Clinton sexually harassed any Chileans he might want to re-exam ine his travel plans. Dave Johnston is a senior mathematics major.
