'’he Battalion
O PINION
Page 13 • Wednesday, September 1, 1999
ma
p Q{ c mngrich gushes
Plllfty^P^ccording to the Cox New
ViEW POiNTS
News
Service, C-SPAN will
broadcast a recent inter-
"k walls hast
nee recently ^
w ,amanb vl€w with Newt Gingfich, former
Je'theKrc s P eaker the House of Repre-
ree ^ UJr .j > , sentatives, beginning tonight,
t attack in r-t -' Durin S the three-part pro
gram, Gingrich decries what
aanwasde have come t0 be known as the
r onto Red$o. l olit;ics of P er sonal destruc-
sethimsel surely influenced by his
i him tell ovvn encounters with scandal-
blems.He- niongers inside the Beltway,
and hewasJJ' ln the first P ,ace - nobody is
gencyroor a saint," he tells interviewer
Brian Lamb. “[People should
understand] that you’re not go
ing, to elect saints, you’re going
to elect a sinner, and hopefully,
■ d tly° u elect a sinner who prays, a
d-ll s ' nner who is self-aware, a sin
ner who is responsible.”
■ However, shortly after drop
ping this somewhat humble re-
C| /^Pirricirk, Gingrich goes on to rank
dWv h ' rnse| f on par with Henry Clay,
who is widely acclaimed as the
most skillful legislator the
^^^^^Bjntry has ever known.
* “I was not a presider, I was
pie leader. And I think Henry
Clay’s probably the only other
speaker to have been a nation-
..al leader and speaker of the
Vhe - - House simultaneously,” he
sa d.
■ Newt also compares himself
in his early career as a Con-
gmssman to the Rev. Martin
extK , Luther King Jr.
lUttaOTwJP By the time he finishes build-
iUtm ing himself pedestals like
AP)
he pill
ective
been ,
?where
IPs gover
these, one almost expects Gin-
H . , r !i , grich to suggest he pose for a
un ma j 0I spot on Mount Rushmore.
to block it; v Apparently, Gingrich is trying
.imons b to f ois f himself into the pan
theon of great American lead-
tun tsor: . ers ' hut one wonders whether
ier ^ anyone but himself is con-
ihing: vi need.
19 whoNewt’s career more readily
u .’ n s g. . - .summons comparisons of him
bena Rush Limbaugh than to Mar-
e contri tin Luther King Jr.
gains in’.t*- And however historians ulti-
ocioty, fnately portray Gingrich’s tenure
'e —esped;. as speaker, neither they or any-
| 1( y _ are' one else will smile on his at- %
in, a culture tempts to exalt himself,
n to be pas; If it is true the American peo-
ole should elect sinners who
jdewaseviAgre "self-aware” and cognizant
; nine-year ^Df their faults, it is becoming
osition in ( dear they made a mistake by
j among ccr^n^e electing Gingrich,
ought it woulb Igy making supercilious re-
ptll finally"
me. I
marks about his own great
ness, he does nothing but a
disservice to his already lack
luster legacy.
— Caleb McDaniel
Dads deter drugs
T his Monday, results were
released from a study con
ducted by the National
Center on Addiction and Sub
stance Abuse at Columbia Uni
versity.
The study found children
whose fathers took active roles
in their lives were less likely to
smoke, drink or use drugs.
Dads who do such simple
things as eating dinner with
their families or taking their
kids to religious services can
greatly increase their ability to
keep their progenies on the
straight and narrow.
But those fathers who re
main unapproachable and unin
volved in the daily raising of
their families make it more
probable drugs will find a way
into their homes.
This research should be a
clarion call to the nation’s fa
thers to take their important
roles in the home seriously.
Policymakers and govern
mental institutions can be help
ful in resolving many social
problems, but ultimately, fami
lies have the niost direct role in
the prevention of social decay.
Fathers must especially re
vive their responsibilities to
their wives and children.
Modern society has done
much to debunk the notion that
fathers must be the only bread
winners in a household.
But as a society, we must be
wary. The changing financial
role of fathers should not be in
terpreted as releasing them
from other obligations that are
uniquely their own.
This new study should con
vince dads that spending time
with their kids and talking to
them about drugs is one of
those fatherly obligations they
must not relinquish to society
at large.
And the most important
thing fathers can do is set a
good example. The study re
ports that teens whose fathers
have more than two drinks per
day are 71 percent more likely
to abuse a drug. — C.M.
Robert Hynecck/The Battalion
4
Rush forces conformity on Greeks
T he smell of
conformity
in the
morning is in
vigorating. The
sight of dozens
of young
women coming
out of restaurant
bathrooms
chewing breath mints.
The distant, hushed sound of
baby-faced young men cooing,
“Thank you, sir, may I have anoth
er?” And in What could be the
most telling sign of all — The Gap
is running dangerously low on
khaki shorts.
That’s right, kids. It is Rush time
again, and we can all look forward
to those timeless images that come
to the surface during this glorious
week.
Soon we will all get to feast our
eyes on droves of would-be frater
nity pledges with filthy white hats
and bloodshot eyes running
around the Texas A&M campus.
Before you know it, residence hall
crew chiefs, standing next to some
freshmen whose head just had a
letter shaved into it, will be talking
badly about the Greeks hazing
their pledges.
Ah, the sights of rush week, all
too predictable and all too self-de
stroying.
The problem with rush week is
that sororities and fraternities play
an important role at A&M, and like
it or not, they are here to stay.
However, all the good work done
by Aggie Greeks is overshadowed
by the blatant display of mindless
conformity that is rush week.
To do good works and services
for the University, the members of
A&M’s Greek system have to fight
the stigma of being spoiled, mind
less clones.
A&M’s Panhellenic Council
gives countless hours to the com
munity and the University year in
and year out.
Aggie Greeks are very involved
in helping A&M by participating in
traditional University service pro
jects like The Big Event, as well as
by hosting their own affairs such as
Derby Days and the upcoming
Campus Kickoff.
For Greek Week last year,
A&M’s sororities and fraternities
held a very successful food drive to
benefit families in the Bryan-Col-
lege Station area.
But the young men and women
of A&M’s Greek system shoot
themselves in their collective pedi
cured foot when rush week rolls
around.
When the members of A&M’s
fraternities and sororities take their
least desirable attribute — un
abashed conformity — and put it
proudly on display, it overshadows
the time and effort they put into
serving the University and the local
community the rest of the year.
There is a point to this well-
dressed group-think. Fraternities
and sororities want to appear as
collective, close-knit groups that
are more like families than paid or
ganizations.
However, during rush week, Ag
gie Greeks go too far to promote
that united image and end up
crossing the fine line between uni
ty and identity-crushing compli- ’
ance. One pamphlet given to soror
ity members on how to act in front
of rushing visitors explicitly told
them not to dress or act as individ
uals. Many new-comers receive *
similar packets outlining exactly 4
how they should dress each day. j
Something is terribly wrong. ^
It’s easy to respect a group that
gives tirelessly to the local commu
nity, but how can you respect a ■«
group that claims to be building in
terpersonal bonds by stripping ■»
each one of their hopeful rushees’
of their human individuality?
The point of dressing alike is t^
promote solidarity and a sense of*
being part of a family. In truth, all|
sorts of groups wear uniforms: *•
Sports teams. Burger King employ
ees, frat boys and Nazis.
But in the rush to promote solij
darity, A&M Greeks lump their <
prospective pledges together and^
grade them like term papers while
putting a huge pressure on them ;
not to step out of line or be origi-^
nal. All this is put on proud display
just for rush week.
Ah, the smell of conformity iri
the morning.
Eric Dickens is a junior
English major
ERIC
DICKENS
MAIL CALL
Breakaway not
Aggie tradition
In response to Aug. 30 religion
feature.
The assertion that Breakaway
Ministries is a new Aggie tradition
is yet another example of a group
of Aggies being insensitive to the
fact that not all Aggies believe as
they do. Aggie traditions are
meant for all Aggies.
Bonfire, Muster, E-Walk and Sil
ver Taps are inclusive of all reli
gious beliefs. Some folks might
not like them or may choose not
to participate, but they are not ex
clusive in nature.
Aggie traditions celebrate
Texas A&M’s spirit and cama
raderie. Prayer sessions do not.
Just because many Aggies do
something year after year does
not mean it should be called an
Aggie tradition.
How many Aggies get drunk on
the weekends? Does that make it
an Aggie tradition?
As an Aggie and a Jew, I ask
the members of all campus reli
gious groups to remember that a
non-Christian may be singing “we
are the Aggies” right next to you.
To insinuate that there are truly
Aggie traditions that are exclusive
to them is insulting. *
To discover an administrator at
A&M is callous enough to make*
the assertion that popularity of a
religious activity makes it an Ag-j
gie tradition calls into question t
A&M’s ability to serve students of
all beliefs equally.
K. Rachelle Goldman
Graduate Student
DNZI
EDITORIAL
THE BATTALION
JDY
CeNTf P itoria ^ s a PP ear i n B in The Battalion reflect the
13 hews of the editorials board members. They do not
ecessarily reflect the opinions of other Battalion
Jtff members, the Texas A&M student body, regents,
idministration, faculty or staff. Columns, guest
:ol umns, cartoons and letters express the opinions
iffthe authors.
For
79
Editorials Board
SALLIE TURNER
Editor in Chief
MARIUM MOHIUDDIN
Managing Editor
CALEB MCDANIEL
Opinion Editor
EMILY R. SNOOKS
Campus Editor
CARRIE BENNETT
Community Editor
vey
Bd.# 1
Sober Statute
6-1213 Jew legal limit for intoxication will prevent drunken driving
The newly effective state
licy to lower the legal blood-
cohol concentration (BAG)
ni 0.10 to 0.08 is reasonable
id needed in the war against
sunken driving,
many have fought long and
fird to crack down on those
ho dabble with death by bri
ng while intoxicated.
But as the number of alco-
il-related traffic fatalities has
it been significantly decreas-
g, it is clear something more
needed to deter inebriates
*200.”
AYL_
Lowering the level of legal
Intoxication is precisely what
needed to dissuade careless
J|iens from endangering
CH STB* emselves and others by
inking and driving.
Thus far, advertising cam-
igns have not been enough
abcomplish this goal. While
ITintentioned commercials
upsel friends to “get the
keys” from tipsy peers, a mar
keting blitz will only convince
a handful to take designated
driving seriously.
However, the new BAG will
aim the force of the law direct
ly St the self-interest of the
drinker.
If people know they will go
above the legal limit after few
er drinks, making it more like
ly to be arrested on the road,
they will have an added incen
tive to find a sober chauffeur.
Those who think the BAG
change unfairly restricts their
Beastie Boy-given right to par
ty should think again.
The drop from 0.10 to 0.08
is not drastic. It will mean the
difference of only one or two
drinks, and if someone plans to
do any drinking at all, they
should be designating a driver
anyway, regardless of the BAG.
Besides, the right to a cou
ple of drinks does not entail
the right to take the lives of in
nocent drivers into one’s
hands. There is no right to
drink unless it is the right to
drink responsibly.
Admittedly, more policies
will be needed for the BAG
change to have its full effect.
Policymakers should con
sider creative measures to en
force the new law, such as
standardizing automobiles to
build breathalizers into car ig
nitions, or treating intoxicated
minors who are caught driving
with zero tolerance, even if
they are below the limit legal
for adults.
Once the BAG change is
supplemented with strong en
forcement, it will be a power
ful new incentive to drink con
scientiously and drive clean.
And if the law prevents even
one more life from being taken
by a drunken driver, it will be
worth it.
Aggies must avoid substance abuse
A freshman
passes out
in the
parking lot in
front of Lechner
Hall around 3
a.m. As other
students return
to their dorms,
they don’t even
stop to see if she
is alive. They just step around her.
When she wakes up and stumbles
back to her dorm, she is not aware of
what happened. A few months later,
she finds herself on scholastic proba
tion. Her future is in jeopardy. Where
did everything go wrong?
In another city in Texas, a good-
looking young man sits in a drug re
habilitation center.
He just lost his promising career,
his home and his wife. But he doesn’t
care. He only wants to know how
soon he can leave and buy more
drugs.
Both stories are real. One hap
pened to a freshman at Texas A&M
five years ago. The other happened to
a young man this year. With a new
semester starting, every Aggie has a
choice that could impact the remain
der of his or her life. Will they invest
their lives in what lasts, or in what
destroys lives?
The answer should be simple. It is
much better to invest in what lasts
than in what destroys. Unfortunately,
the choice isn’t so easy for some
students.
One woman in her mid-20s
watched her best friend’s life de
stroyed by drugs.
No one knows better than she that
destruction comes from choosing the
wrong path.
Her friend’s drug abuse started be
cause he was drinking.
When he drank, he took more
risks than normal. Eventually, those
risks led him to try a highly addictive
drug.
No matter how hard he tried, he
wasn’t able to free himself from the
addiction.
“A lot of people hear stories about
what happens when people become
addicted, but the college mind frame
is that ‘it won’t happen to me,’” she
said. “Nobody ever thinks it will hap
pen to them. But it does happen to
people. It’s obvious. Who are you to
say that you’re not that person? You
can be. Why risk it?”
Some people think they can han
dle drinking, or they can try a less ad
dictive drug and not be affected. But
in reality, it is impossible to know just
where the line between fun and ad
diction is drawn.
It is like walking down a steep
mountain. At some point the person
might take a wrong step and lose his
balance, slipping and sliding until he
hits rock bottom.
"It is much better to
invest in what lasts
than in what
destroys."
The problem is, he never quite
knows when he will reach that unsta
ble step. And he never knows just
how rocky the bottom of the moun
tain will be.
“Every rock bottom is different for
everybody,” she said. “Six years ago,
my friend almost died. Now he’s los
ing everything, and it doesn’t phase
him. Drugs knock your logic off. Out
siders can see he’s losing everything.
But once you’re under the influence,
you’re blinded to the reality of the de
struction.”
Dr. Dennis Reardon, the senior co
ordinator for the Department of Stu
dent Life’s alcohol and drug educa
tion programs, said drugs and alcohol
can appeal to students because they
provide temporary relief from stress.
“The issue is that alcohol and
drugs do work,” Reardon said.
‘That’s the danger. Because they
work so effectively, a person becom&s
dependent on them. Students need to
recognize that there are other ways ;
than alcohol and drugs to deal with
stress. ”
Dr. Brent Paterson, director of the
Department of Student Life, said the
administration at A&M is taking extra
steps to make drug and alcohol abuse
less appealing to students.
If students under 21 are found on!
campus with alcohol or illegal drugs;
they will be sent to a University hear
ing. If a violation is officially deter- ;
mined, their parents will be notified i
and the student will be referred to a :
drug or alcohol education program. If
students are caught with an illegal *
drug, they will be suspended from /'
A&M. Paterson said when students •
are caught abusing alcohol, the penal
ty can range from a reprimand to *
suspension.
Obviously, the consequences of ;
abusing alcohol and drugs can affect’
people for the rest of their lives. Un- •
fortunately, some students choose s ^
these momentary “fixes,” ignoring [-
the lasting, negative impact the abuse
can have on their lives.
One verse in the Bible, found in ►
Philippians 3:19, describes what hap’-
pens to those who choose what de- *
stroys instead of what lasts. The ver^
is not aimed specifically at alcohol »
and drug users, but it accurately de- J
scribes the consequences of their be-»
havior: “Their destiny is destruction^
their god is their stomach, and their .
glory is in their shame. ”
Drugs and alcohol become stu- !
dents’ gods when their entire lives J
eventually center around those weekr
end parties where they can get drunk
or high. The drugs and alcohol can l
become a person’s “glory” — every-J
thing they strive for and enjoy in life^
Unfortunately, this path can easily ^
lead to destruction.
%
Stephanie Dube is a journalism
graduate student.