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Page 13 • Wednesday, September 22, 1999
ERE’S MORE THAN
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I he Miss
America
Pageant
►Spedafly-taJ ■ight finally al-
low “less-than-
aedbotet: perfect” Ameri-
ntubtee
pan women to
Rmpete next
^Kar.
I In order to
rnesea" comply with discrimination
laws, Robert L. Beck, president
id W iiul CEO of the Miss America
^^"^rganization, announced there
^ fliight be changes to Miss Ameri
ca contestant requirements.
I The new rules would allow
Women who have divorced or
had abortions to participate in
the pageant.
“jH Beck recently withdrew the
^Hroposed changes until they can
sje reviewed further by a com-
IBiittee, but he should not back
|flown from his decision.
I These possible new rules are
*■ victory for American women
who have been told by this orga
nization they are not good
■nough to represent their coun-
Igry because they have made mis-
1 lakes with marriages or unwant
ed pregnancies.
Virginal beauties who look
breathtaking in bathing suits
C ■ na y b e ^ ne ro ^ e models, but
T/lSheir status is sometimes unat-
lvll a ‘ na bl e by American women in
Seal life.
• I State pageant officials said
Jphey are unhappy with the rules,
SIllBclaiming the changes would un-
iW'lidermine the “high moral stan
dards” for which the contest
stands.
Future pageants should
include American women
who can serve
as realistic role models.
But when has getting a di
vorce after being stuck in a
dead-end marriage been consid
ered immoral?
Allowing women with past
mistakes, such as divorces or un
wanted pregnancies, to rise
above and win a contest based
on beauty and talent in the eyes
of seven judges should be more
of an inspiration.
In 1996, more than 1.2 mil
lion abortions were reported to
the Centers for Disease Control
(CDC). That means one of every
50 women 15 to 44 years old had
an abortion.
The women were more likely
to be younger than age 25, white
and unmarried — just like most
Miss America contestants.
According to the Family Re
search Council, in 1998, there
were more than 1.1 million di
vorces affecting 2.2 million peo
ple in the United States and
more than 2.2 million marriages.
With the population base at
approximately 270 million peo
ple, one of every 123 people was
involved in a divorce last year.
The rules concerning abortion
and divorce should be changed
so these women have a chance
to be represented.
The pageant still bars women
with children and married
women from compefing, the
next rules that need to be
changed.
The demands on the time of
Miss America are great, but they
can still be balanced with the
rigors of family life.
Imagine the example that
would be set for American
women if a divorced, working
mother were able to glide across
the pageant stage and receive
the crown as the most desirable
woman in the country.
During the talent competition,
the contestant could change a di
aper while taking business calls.
That projection of her
strength of character is more
SS AMERICA
worthy than anyone who can
win a talent competition by
dancing to a selection from Man
of LaMancha.
Incidentally, that dance is
what preliminary talent night
MARK MCPHERSON/Thk. Battalion
winner Julie Lawrence of Destra-
han, La., performed.
She also listed giving dancing
lessons to Britney Spears among
her accomplishments.
Now that should qualify as vi
olating these high moral stan
dards pageant organizers crow
about.
This year’s pageant was filled
with high-morale, wholesome
characters.
The show was hosted by Mor
mon talk show hosts Donnie and
Marie Osmond.
Judges included Judge Judy
Sheindlin, who dishes out her
swift justice on a daily television
show like Wapner in his glory
days, and USA Women’s World
Cup hero, goalkeeper Briana
Scurry.
Miss America 1999, Nicole
Johnson, from Virginia Beach,
Va., (about as virginal as the
pageant can get) handed over
her crown and title.
All of these people are fine
role models, but there are others
not on television who put bro
ken personal relationships be
hind them, balance their time
between two jobs and a couple
of kids and still manage to look
gorgeous in a one-piece from
Victoria’s Secret.
Perhaps next year, an Ameri
can woman who does not come
across as perfect as these others
will win.
Maybe a single, working
mother who balances out her
schedule between work and
family while still managing to
pay the bills will get her shot to
be crowned the most beautiful
woman in the world.
Jeff Webb is a senior
journalism major.
Joe, its over, while
WAITING R7R YOUR ARRIVAL,
T (Y\ET AL. WE DATED fOR
A WHILE, GOT MARRIED AND
NOW 1N\ EXPECTING...
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VIEW POiNTS
Jowjam
he struggle between
Parking, Traffic, and
Transportation Services
PITS) and students has
eached a new level.
Bicycles not parked in the
proper spaces will now be
icketed and towed.
Putting aside the fact that
towing” bikes is ludicrous,
his new policy raises a valid
iiiestion — why are people
eaving their bikes all over
he place?
The same reason that
ipeople park in Mud Lot.
here are not enough car
spaces on campus.
; Students are expected to
be in class on time, but it is
becoming increasingly diffi
cult to do so. As the size of
he University continues to
grow, there have been no at
tempts to deal with trans
portation difficulties. The
overwhelming majority of the
student population lives off
campus, and many ride their
bicycles because they can
not park their cars due to
lack of spaces.
This has led directly to an
increase in people who ride
bicycles, and now the same
problem exists for bikes as
for cars — where is there to
park?
One look at the outside of
the Blocker Building or the
MSC shows the problem is
not limited.
“Towing” bikes is hardly
the way to adapt to the situa
tion. Is the administration
willing to do something
about this blight on the cam
pus or would they eventually
have people walk to school?
— Mark Passwaters
Last cut
S omething about getting
into Kyle Field makes
Aggies forget a rule
learned in kindergarten:
Thou shalt not cut in line.
Breaches of line etiquette
are motivated by a worthy
enthusiasm to see the
game, but swarming crowds
of ticket holders have sunk
to a new nadir in the depart
ment of politeness.
Aggies should know bet
ter. Instead of pretending not
to see where the end of the
line is, they should follow
this simple rule of thumb:
When people are at a stand
still outside of a ramp at
Kyle Field, chances are it is
not by choice. So do not
speed by the patient few.
Get in the line. Please.
— Caleb McDaniel
?acks
School affiliation fears unfounded
W ith last Jan
uary’s an
nouncement
of an affiliation be
tween Texas A&M
and the Houston-
based South Texas
College of Law, aspir
ing Aggie lawyers
and University ad
ministrators alike
breathed a collective sigh of relief.
No longer would graduates be forced
to migrate to other law schools, such as
Texas Tech University or the University
of Texas, to pursue their law degrees.
A&M finally found its missing link — a
well-established, fully functional law
school with resources and a reputation
that would enhance the University. In
return, privately funded South Texas re
ceived a higher visibility for recruit
ment. Hands down, it was a win-win
situation for both institutions.
Nonetheless, some forces have con
spired against the affiliation. Their op
position to the merger should be
stopped.
The Texas Higher Education Coordi
nating Board felt slighted by South
Texas and A&M going ahead with the
affiliation agreement before obtaining
its approval. The combination of that in
sult with the prodding of South Texas’
main competitor, the University of
Houston, allowed the board to rule the
affiliation illegal. Early last week, the
Texas Supreme Court upheld the
board’s decision. South Texas appealed
the decision.
Both the board and UH believe the
blurring of the line between A&M and
South Texas was inherently dangerous
and that state funding from A&M would
somehow find its way to the affiliate
law school. In The Houston Press, UH
officials contend “further dilution of
scarce public resources would endanger
the quality of existing programs. ” UH
has made it perfectly clear that the affili
ation poses a serious threat to its share
of the market.
MAIL CALL
But rather than attempting to stifle
healthy competition, UH should spend
its energy enhancing its own law pro
gram in order to compete with the
South Texas-A&M affiliation. The Texas
Higher Education Coordinating Board
should spend less time splitting hairs
and preventing beneficial academic pro
grams. Instead, they are all using a thin
veil to cover up their fear of this strong,
mutually beneficial partnership that will
inevitably improve the standards of le
gal education in Texas.
The argument that South Texas will
become a public institution is specula
tive at best, relying on “what if” scenar
ios. One of South Texas’ conditions be
fore agreeing to the affiliation was the
right to keep its identity as a private law
school. To make South Texas a publicly
funded institution anytime soon under
mines the entire premise of the school’s
existence.
Attempts to block
the South Texas-
A&M affiliation
are unjust.
“Arguing what might happen some
day in the far-flung future is just very
weak,” South Texas Dean Frank Read
said. “You have to look at what the
agreement is now and argue what is on
the table.”
Other national universities have had
state and privately funded components
coexist without any fanfare. Penn State
University is one such institution.
Like A&M, Penn State was created by
the Morrill Act of 1862, which estab
lished the nation’s land-grant college
system. All of the institutions estab
lished under the Morrill Act were in
tended to be state-funded only.
In 1997, Penn State announced a
merger with the Dickinson School of
Law, a privately funded law school.
Dickinson has been able to retain its
status as a privately-funded law school
while existing as a part of state-funded
Penn State.
Entering its second year, the Penn
State-Dickinson affiliation so far has
been a rousing success with enrollment
numbers on the rise. The South Texas-
A&M affiliation would have followed in
the footsteps of Penn State-Dickinson.
“TYaditionally, a large percentage of
the [South Texas] student body consists
of Aggies,” Karen Severn, pre-law coor
dinator at the Office of Professional
School Advising (OPSA), said. “The af
filiation and litigation have made people
more aware of the school.”
Severn has monitored the South
Texas-A&M affiliation from the begin
ning and believes the potential for acad
emic benefit is immense. Some of this
potential is already materializing in ac
tual academic programs. Two weeks
ago, OPSA announced the formation of
a “3 + 3” program in which students
can study at A&M for three years, by
pass their final year of undergraduate
classes and move on to South Texas to
begin course work on their law degree.
“Early admission programs are quite
rare for law schools, and this program is
the only one in the state of Texas,” Sev
ern said.
“Students who elect to pursue the
early admissions program will save a
year of time, fees and living expenses. ”
Unfortunately, the pending lawsuit
has prevented the majority of other joint
academic programs from materializing.
The actions that the Texas Higher Edu
cation Coordinating Board have taken
are an injustice.
Its attempt to eliminate the South
Texas-A&M affiliation is fed by revenge
and complacency. It is obvious that in
stead of encouraging improvement in
existing programs in order to compete
with South Texas, they would rather
maintain the status quo and prevent
any innovations.
David Lee is a junior
economics major.
Church, state not
strictly separated
; In response to Jessica Crutcher’s
Sept 20 column.
The debate over religion’s —
especially Christianity’s — role in
public events and institutions suf
fers from high emotional content
and numerous complications.
Crutcher was exactly right in
describing various court rulings
concerning public prayer as
“demonstrating the indecisive
ness of our entire society.”
One editorial or one letter will
not settle this important issue,
but before we can accurately ana
lyze the conflict, we must fully un
derstand the facts.
There is a common and under
standable misconception concern
ing the origin of the theory of
“separation of church and state.”
You might hear or read refer
ences to this principle as “consti-
tutionally-justifiable" or “constitu
tionally required.”
But it is very important to real
ize that the words “separation,”
“church” and “state” appear
nowhere in the U.S. Constitution
or any of its amendments.
The First Amendment does for
bid the government from favoring
or persecuting any “establish
ment of religion.” Though this can
be interpreted many ways, it is not
specifically calling for a removal or
separation of everything religious
from everything public or govern
mental.
Tommy Medina
Class of ’01
All religions have
right to free speech
In response to Jessica Crutcher’s
Sept 20 column.
Crutcher’s argument is an ex
ample of how freedom of speech
is ignored in a mistaken view of
religious freedom.
I am a Christian. That is my
choice. Anyone is free to agree or
disagree. But no one has the right
to tell me I cannot say a prayer to
my God, publicly or privately.
I have the right to free speech,
which includes prayer. I apologize
if some are offended. But I find
flag burning and much of what is
on the Internet offensive, even
though it is not my place to stop
it. Freedom is not always agree
able to all. Freedom is not safe,
pretty or easy to maintain. But
without it, where would we all be?
And if we deny that to one
group, how long will it be before it
is denied to all?
Jerilyn Gragg
Class of ’01
Crutcher is right about one
thing. As a Christian, I would feel
uncomfortable hearing a prayer to
Allah before a game. But the plain
and simple fact is that I do not
have the right to feel comfortable
all the time.
If I want to be able to hear a
prayer to God before some
games, then I must recognize that
Muslims, atheists and others
have the right to speak before oth
er games.
If students get up to speak,
and they have prepared their own
prayer, poem, meditation or mo
ment of silence, then I will listen
to whatever they have to say sim
ply because they have the right to
say it.
Popular speech needs no de
fense — it is the unpopular
speech that the First Amendment
is meant to protect.
Mark Pickett
Class of ’00
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