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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 9, 1999)
he Battalion O PINION Page 11 • Tuesday, February 9, 1999 Bringing new meaning to ‘race for the gold’ 0 fP a y°ff s t0 the International Olympic Committee brings shame upon the Games k David LEE fter years of / YORK (AP)~U careful planning Charles Bart . X and persistent while Atlaii:bby/ng, the city of nd KendallGi alias is confident in •Jets were finecfs bid for the 2008 ■ the NBA onV iwier Olympic ley was lined: arurs, the highest scene langu:; mo that can be be- luring the R owed upon a modern ty. on Friday nigh: _ With the most comprehensive bid of all h and Gill wen The prospective cities, Dallas is the clear near the lodrorii runner. Hawks' 111-106 However, the night before the Interna- tng Netsonir^nal Olympic Committee (IOC) convenes 1 vote on the site for the Games of the iults for NBA T/il Olympiad, a dark horse candidate I'Malley, T\irr ; ahes a last minute coup, meeting with a •sident of pro; r gf number of committee members be- i's hard to pie : nd dosed doors. , but this is4 The next morning, the victor is an al for us." imced to the world, “And the winner of '.e 2d08 Summer Olympic Games is ... bu Dhabi!” Dc n’t laugh just yet. With the recent ^^^---.imlssions of bribery made by officials in f|f(jm|alt Lake City, Utah, and Sydney, Aus- alia. the IOC has made it painfully obvi- as it can be bought off for the right rice All a city needs is deep pockets and heavy dose of hypocrisy. Fueled by the personal greed of the ty, when hecai )C|many well-regarded cities have been a from a stay a irced into violating the ideals of fair play lies'fantasy car id unity that the Olympic Movement id him was ah ubodies. Ironically, these are the same dcFarlane Pn leals that the IOC is entrusted with pro- ii 103 times, jcting and upholding. )alls were di; As reported by the Sydney Morning him in ninei eraLl( l last month, the president of the imns — whilt ustralian Olympic Committee (AOC) ad- 0 black foni Ffd he dad offered $35,000 in bribes to te national Olympic committees of both >s them from: ST and y J « and f ,he ™8ht before the then in blue*: X as 5 X? ^ 5* 31,6 for the , , 100 Summer Olympic Games. ! , U , ln ^ 0 In exchange for these “donations,” the 1 , ' 'i' ' gandan and Kenyan committee members '" nt ’ u 'i t ited for Sydney. These two votes proved K ' 'iin h'iH Jtii 1 d be crucial as Sydney defeated it’s com- Aiilabletocmi ;t j tor geijing, China, by only two votes, md would let sadly, this last minute payoff by the igue teams disp pc was the winning bid in a payoff war lane, who o »tween Sydney and Beijing as Chinese •om Babe Rut: ficials were charged with making simi- lid purchasing their offers to the Ugandan and Kenyan than buying a ifimmittees. ?d the proposed: 1 The Toronto Organizing Committee, if the Washingtons vay I look at it, l it nicks,” he said. vners LL ttudents upset by overage of Vail’s death At a time when family and friends ourn the loss of a loved one, we are ipalled that The Battalion found it nec- ssary to print such a tasteless article in ^lesday’s [Feb. 2] paper, k I “^ ^ We do not think it is asking much to VI I >10W a fellow “Ag” the respect and pri- \| I V'cy that he and his family are entitled. >r a campus publication that has no )ligations to sell issues, is it necessary print articles about the personal lives students and faculty? These articles 2rve no function but to entertain their aders at the expense of another’s mis- rtune. In regards to the statement given by r. Dennis Reardon that “It (alcohol) de- O l\/l ;roys ones sense of judgment, inhibi- 1 IVr 311 ancl balance -” We can n °t believe f ■ ■ I f ' iat!you, sir, found it imperative to mock ill’s death by the inclusion of a pun in lunstatement. Ol IR In our opinion, you owe a formal apol- U FI jy t 0 the family and loved ones of Vail, E s well as to the student body of Texas University. The next time you think lat it is pertinent to give a witty state- ■ A I/ C [\| _ lent: Remember— “you say it best /-MN-*- 1 '’ hen you say nothing at all!” G C* C Mlf 0ur sincerest regards go out to the 011 *' l imily, friends and loved ones of Mr. Bar- Joseph Vail II. OK. enter \CADEW, tings J.S. Hancock Class of ‘OO K.D. Holsinger Class of ‘OO LOO 8183 1 im very disappointed about the arti- le concerning the recent death of Barry iseph Vail II. I do not believe that dis- ussing his blood alcohol level at the me of his death was necessary. The only thing about the article that eople remember was how high his BAG as and not the kind of person that he as, which is what should have been the . id[rimary focus of the reporter. /\l ^ I ■•believe that Aggies are supposed to e people of integrity, a characteristic bla- antly missing from the article. That infor- lation should be reserved for the vic- m’s family, not used to drag his name irough the mud and tarnish whatever aputation he may have had. Imagine how you would feel knowing which lost the 1996 Summer Olympic Games to Atlanta, recalled many occa sions when IOC members approached their bid committee for bribes and payoffs in exchange for votes. Hard set against violating regulations, the Toronto Organizing Committee plead ed with the IOC to investigate these cor rupt members for fear that these corrupt votes could very well sway who the win ner was going to be. However, these pleas hit a wall of si lence as the IOC claimed that there was “not enough evidence” in charging these members. Both of these situations reflect the ram pant corruption that has festered itself within the IOC, an organization that is en trusted with overseeing the only event that brings together the entire world in peace and celebration. It is saddening to see a few individuals within the IOC let their personal greed di rect how and where this revered event will take place. The legacy of these wrongdoings is far- reaching. The 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney and the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City will have a cloud of shame and doubt hanging overhead. As fraudulent as their bids may be, it is too late to start the process over again and reselect cities for the Games. The only option remaining is to have the IOC do a serious self-examination of its mem bers in order to prevent such outrage in the future. While the vast majority of committee members are fair and impartial in their evaluation of prospective cities, even the most minuscule bit of corruption can de cide where the next Games will be held as Sydney’s last minute payoff illustrates. Hopefully, the pending investigations initiated by the IOC and the U.S. Justice Department looking into the Salt Lake City incident will succeed in breaking the wall of silence that has hidden this cor ruption from the public for years. Until then, the IOC might as well by pass the formality of voting on future sites for the Olympics and simply award it to the city with the most bribe money. An auction at Sotheby’s would suffice quite nicely. David Lee is a sophomore general studies major. 901 ni ft MARK MCPHERSON/The Battalion MAIL CALL that your son or sibling’s death was made into a tabloid story. I am very angered by the way this tragedy was handled and hope that in the future more passion and understand ing will be shown. Mike Gerecke Class of ‘02 Death penalty wrong, socially irresponsible In response to Brandon Mullen’s Feb. 4 opinion column. I have often wondered about which side of the issue is right concerning the death penalty, but after reading Mullen’s column I feel my mind is made up. After thinking about his main points, that the death penalty is cost effective and that it would discourage criminals, I real ize that there was little to counter these, and I would like to take them one step fur ther. First, to maximize this cost effective ness, I think that far more criminals should be put to death. Just think about such societies as 1700’s London, 1500’s Spain, medieval Europe and an cient civilizations when the majority of crimes were punished by death. Crime became all but non-existent in those places! I think that a sad trend in the history of the world has been that as civiliza tions become more civilized and more enlightened, the death penalty seems to be used less and less. I think the perpetrators of this trend are those disillusioned thinkers who mindlessly chant “Stop the problems that cause the crime,” and that to truly reach an Utopian society, we must return the death penalty to its earlier promi nence. Secondly, I think that to discourage criminals there should be far more use of the so-called “cruel and unusual pun ishment.” This may at first seem a bit strange, but since we already have the death penalty, and nothing is more cruel or un usual than forcefully removing a per son’s soul from their body, we may as well go ahead and implement some of those other torture methods of olden days to really give criminals something to talk about. I hope that you will take these ideas to heart, ignore what the “visionaries” and “Christians” may say, and together we can truly build a Utopia right here in America. Michael Mattair Class of ‘02 This letter is directed toward my fellow Christians. Any other readers could justify they do not follow the teachings or hold belief in the saving power of our Lord Je sus and therefore refute my argument to wards pro-life. 2000 years ago when our savior walked the earth, he preached profound messages, partly through parables, to guide human life to following the will of God throughout future generations. Jesus taught us, in confusion, to love and forgive unconditionally. Please don’t try to twist this clear and profound message into one that fits your own persuasions; in that end, you are molding our loving God’s ultimate will into your own personal will. How does this fit our modern lives? Respect life before birth, after birth, and yes even after sin. In more clear examples, shun abor tion, forgive those who have taken the life of their own unborn children, and respect fully reform your trespassers through life without parole, carefully avoiding the degradation and condemnation of life through a revengeful death penalty. How are we to evangelize and work to wards building God’s kingdom on earth through a loving and contrite heart with out daily considering the question: “What would Jesus do?” Carson Weber Class of ‘01 A&M students should not oppose tuition increase Christina BARROWS The Battalion encourages letters to the editor. Letters must be 300 words or less and include 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 McDonald 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 F or many college students across America, the worst time of year is when the tuition bill arrives. Here at Texas A&M, the worried whispers and angry curses of students can be heard around campus be- cause of the recent proposal for a tuition increase. But is the proposed $4 increase in Uni versity Authorized Tliition (UAT) really worth a protest? Aggies should look at the whole picture and consider what a sweet deal it is to attend this University. The additional funds will be used to increase the salaries of faculty and staff, improve the libraries and upgrade class room technology. Aggies take great pride in their University and should be very pleased officials are working towards im proving their quality of education. After all, students are here to learn. There is no doubt competitive Aggies want to be the smartest in the job market and to accomplish this, the most qualified professors and the most advanced equip ment is greatly desired. A&M continues to pay faculty mem bers considerably less than most Big 12 universities, including the University of Texas. According to the Office of Institu tional Studies and Planning, a Texas A&M professor earns an annual salary of $73,400 compared to $82,400 at U.T. Chances are, a professor would not have a hard time choosing between the two schools — and the salaries. It is absolutely imperative to show pro fessors they are valued at this university and evidence proves A&M’s professors are worth the possible three percent salary increase. More than 80 percent of A&M’s faculty members have doctoral degrees. Just a few of the honors they have received in clude six members of the National Acade my of Sciences and 15 members of the National Academy of Engineering. If A&M wants to continue having excellent pro fessors then it is necessary to have com petitive salaries. In the Feb. 3,1999 issue of the New York Times, the average cost for a year (30 hours) was given for ivy league, private and public universities based on tuition, required fees and room and board. If any one wishes to attend an Ivy League uni versity, the average cost would be $30,887. A private, four-year university costs the college student an average of $20,273. Finally, the average four year public school costs $7,773. How much does it cost the average Aggie for tuition, re quired fees and room and board? Only $7,403! The proposed $4 increase in UAT is ex pected to cost the average student $50 a semester. A&M would still be $250 cheaper than the national average for a four-year public school. Although countless other costs pile on top of Aggies such as books, park ing and entertainment, rest assured that an increase in tuition is little to be con cerned about. A&M’s campus has numerous comput er rooms, a new library annex and excel lent classroom technology. Texas A&M has an excellent reputation and ranks among the top three institu tions nationally in undergraduate enroll ment in agriculture, business administra tion and architecture. As one of the leaders in teaching, research and public service. Aggies are truly blessed to attend a school that is constantly striving for im provement at such a small cost to stu dents. A&M is an amazing place. Remember what an incredibly low tuition price is paid when passing a “Big 12 Champions” sign or playing frisbee in Research Park. Remember how fortunate Aggies are to read a book written by their professor or see a nationally acclaimed play in Rudder Auditorium. Maybe Aggies can pay the proposed tuition increase by eating a few more packages of ramen noodles per semester. It is a small sacrifice to pay in an effort to continue A&M’s history of excellence and future of improvement. Christina Barrows is a sophomore English major.