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plottim
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PINION
Page 13 • Thursday, October 28, 1999
)NA made me do it
s’ dealt
iodern-day genetics can erode moral responsibility
i her, an arms dealer,
an illegal arms
ie 1980’s. Yaakov
aced his son as
last week.
Ofer Nimrodi
ry from his villa intneii]
■I Aviv suburb of Savyot
ming for the firsttime
as being accused of |
urder. Maintaining hii
■nee, Nimrodi said Prii
tun a “terrible web of Sts'
as wrecking his life,
"I’m in a state of shock,’fe
The newsstand circular
heated up in
aariv switched toatabli
at to compete with
>94, police arrested f
lifers of both papers aria
med them about wireti[i
eir rivals' phones.
Nimrodi, PridanandYei
college student
goes home for
the weekend,
his mother wel-
ies him with a
baked pumpkin
;She slices a large
[efor her son, top-
the warm pie
a whopping dose
ild whipped cream.
[he son has a choice. He can dig
the pie or politely decline. If he
een living off Ramen noodles for
ast two months, he would be a
to refuse the offer. But what if his
or just told him a few days earlier
he needs to lose weight? If he ig-
the warning and eats the pie,
iis to blame?
group of researchers has said
sing to eat the pie is not a decision
don willpower but simply the re-
ofan interaction of brain chemicals,
retapping charges,
cleared by a higher couci
med to his post.
The latest allegationsgKiior actions.
r Moshe Vardi wereconvaj moral conditioning and heredity.
hfortunately, blaming personal
ces on genetics and biology closes
loor on taking personal responsibil-
the wiretapping case.
Joshua Stein, oneofNim
ar lawyers, insisted thatk
ade up the murder plots Hi
llions of dollars fromNim
g a fabric of lies”
oy the publisher’s!
James C. Rosen, a professor of
hology at the University of Ver-
said in a New York Times article
the freedom to choose is little more
a useful fiction.
■ P r ' ce ,or refraining from i [i iere j s no magical stuff inside of you
Chinese poi
ry to squal
hird day of
rotest
BEIJING (AP)-Chinese
tin hustled suspected me
he banned Falun Gongsp
ivement off TiananmenS
i into vans yesterday,
^eminent called for rest!
ding with practitioners
ince the group.
Police stepped up patrols)
veillance of the vastsiji
jing’s heart inaneffonto
1 to three days of
tests. For at least a seconii
ice in uniforms and
thes questioned people
ly at random and quiel
se they suspected of being
ig practitioners in vans.
M least a dozen people
niddle-aged and youngei
i women, were driven
inclothes officers
a reporters and t
/e the square.
Awhile the government is pit
to tiy the group’s leaders,
ed on yesterday for
ling with followers whoci
i the movement.
r he People’s Daily, the!
nmunist Party’s leadingi
er, said most Falun Gongi
; were renouncing the groi
government has ordered!
even those adherents
e finding it difficult to i
uld not be mistreated.
|d willpower that should somehow
ide nature,” he said.
[r the last few years, scientists have
tointed genes which may influence
in behaviors, including criminal
ity, infidelity, alcoholism and ho-
xuality.
[Rosen’s statement is true, it would
mfair to expect people to somehow
override their genetic makeup. If a per
son is genetically prone to being homo
sexual, he or she would have no choice
in the matter.
If a person has trouble resisting that
extra piece of pie, perhaps a biological
weakness is to blame.
On the surface, such arguments
might make sense.
It is true scientists are discovering
genetic basis for many personality
traits. And if people cannot control
whether they are born with green eyes
or brown, how can they be expected to
control other genetic traits?
Adam and Eve
blamed a serpent.
But the advance
of science allows
people to blame
their genes for
their behavior.
But such aguments are flawed in
two ways.
First, genesdo not equal decisions. If
some people ce born with a genetic
weakness for Icohol, they still have to
perform the acion of picking up a bev
erage and drilling it.
The gene is ot the one who picks
up the alcoholi beverage. At some
point a choice imade, even if genetics
serve as an infh?nce.
Since the beaming of time, people
have been seeking to shirk
responsibility. Accord
ing to the Judeo-Chris-
tian account of hu
mankind’s
beginnings in the
Garden of Eden,
Adam blamed
Eve for his dis
obedience, and
Eve blamed a
serpent. De
spite the nega
tive influences,
God still held
them responsible
for their ac
tions.
Today, blaming
genetics is be
coming the easy
way out. But putting
this blame elsewhere
does not make the per
sonal responsibility magi
cally go away.
Second, blaming genetics offers plen
ty of excuses but no options. If certain
genes ultimately influence criminal be
havior, for example, then criminal-reform
programs are useless. Shirking personal
responsibility helps a person in the short
term but leaves no hope for change.
If people actually have a genetic
weakness, they should avoid tempta
tions in that area.
Dr. Rena Wing, a professor of psy
chiatry at the University of Pittsburgh
and Brown Medical School, said in
stead of teaching dieters to learn to
live with an apple pie in the refrigera
tor and not eat it, she teaches them to
not put the apple pie in their homes
in the first place.
,>r 'v*'
A/
■ V
ERIC ANDRAOS/Thk Battalion
Such a decision admits a certain
weakness in willpower but is itself an
act of willpower.
In the face of weakness,
avoiding temptation and
seeking outside help
are better options
than avoiding re
sponsibility. Al
coholics, for ex
ample, may
admit their
need for coun
seling with Al
coholics
Anonymous.
People of
faith can turn
J to religious re
sources for
guidance. Chris
tians seek help
from the promise of
the apostle Paul that
no temptation will be
fall them “except what is
common to man” (1
Corinthians 10:13).
Genetics or not, every-
,gf one has a weakness. And
since the beginning of time
y-y people have sought ways to
P' avoid personal responsibility.
Blaming genetics is just another
version of the same old song. Avoid
ing responsibility offers nothing but a
permanent cycle of weakness.
Admitting responsibility, avoiding
temptation and seeking outside help
opens doors for change.
The choice is up to the individual.
Stephanie Dube is a journalism
graduate student.
WEARS to
Be a cpverup here
THAT l MUST SPEl^D
VEARS GETTING TD
THB BOTOCA OT...
Columbine lawsuits unwise
ELIZABETH
KOHL
EDITORIAL
T O
Editorials appearing in The Battalion reflect the views of the
torials board members. They do not necessarily reflect the
inions of other Battalion staff members, the Texas A&M stu
nt body, regents, administration, faculty or staff. Columns,
est columns, cartoons and letters express the opinions of
authors.
ow
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IGHT SCHOOL
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com
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MARIUM MOHIUDDIN
Managing Editor
CALEB MCDANIEL
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EMILY R. SNOOKS
Campus Editor
CARRIE BENNETT
Community Editor
Big Yellow Ta js
omplaints from taxi drivers about CARqOL unfounded
lome local taxi companies are is taking a slice of their market, thf ac t, their only options are to
tiplaining CARPOOL is unfairly
ting them of profits by offering
service for free. But it is clear
yhave no compelling argument.
CARPOOL offers free rides
®e on weekends to students
o are too intoxicated to drive
©selves or simply need a lift.
The group, made up entirely of
Easily
awarded
student M t!
(24 hr.
award no^pinteers, provides an organized
of designated drivers. Found-
in good faith and operated with
ccess, CARPOOL performs a
eded service to community and
tdent safety. Many have taken
vantage of its safe alternative to
inking and driving.
But some taxi drivers see things
iferently. They claim CARPOOL
made up in large part by weekend
patrons of Northgate.
CARPOOL undoubtedly does
take some business away from taxi
drivers, but this competition is not
inequitable.
CARPOOL is made up entirely of
volunteers performing a free service.
The law does not prevent benevo
lent, concerned citizens from vol
unteering their time and money.
If the altruism of others burdens
another business’ bottom line,
business simply has to adapt to a
changing market. Taxi companies
should not be surprised students
are more likely to ride home for
free rather than for $20.
And while drivers may not like
Phde some incentive for choos-
i n hem over a free ride or to cut
c0 and raise prices in an effort
to hpensate for lost business.
ire importantly, taxi drivers
shcj stop seeing dollar signs
l° n iriough to see the dangers of
dmin driving.
S'ly the greater good of re-
duci drinking and driving is
wortfhe cost of a small de-
creaSn profits. CARPOOL has
evenp resse d a willingness to
coop'te with taxis to pursue
comn community goals, with
out cL roat competition.
Thpre, taxi drivers should
stop ac ing this highly responsible
student^ irresponsibility.
T he gunshot
echoes
from the
Columbine High
School shoot
ings have yet to
subside. The lat
est reminder of
the incident
comes from par
ents who are now looking for an
outlet for their grief. But as posi
tive and inspirational as these in
dividuals have been, they are now
returning to normalcy and the
American habit of litigation.
Last week marked the six-
month anniversary of the
Columbine shootings and the
state deadline for filing lawsuits
against the government in this
case. Even though several of the
victims’ parents waited until the
last minute to jump on the band
wagon, CNN reports that at least
18 lawsuits are in the works.
These lawsuits are not par
ents seeking monetary restitu
tion for the loss of their chil
dren, because state law already
limits the settlements in govern
ment cases to $600,000. Instead,
they are expensive, misguided
outlets for the anger stemming
from their great losses.
Several lawsuits point fingers at
the school district, claiming school
security was incapable of prevent
ing the shootings.
But there are very few, if any,
public or private schools in the na
tion with security systems ade
quate to stop violence of such
magnitude. Even if Columbine had
metal detectors at every door, any
one with enough gall to bring that
much gunpower anywhere would
not have given it up easily.
In addition, there is no guaran
tee the gunmen would not have
started shooting before passing
through the metal detectors.
Sanctions do not
help Iraqi civilians
In response to Mark Passwaters’
Oct. 27 column.
Passwaters says nine full years
of sanctions have caused the
standards of life for Saddam and
the rest of the Ba’arhis to rise
and then says the sanctions
should stay in place.
But the United States cannot
stay as the gendarme of the
world forever.
People who are not under sanc
tions and live an acceptable
Unfortunately for the safety of
everyone everywhere, school se
curity systems hardly have the ca
pabilities to handle situations like
the one in Littleton.
As technologically advanced as
the country is, there is no such
thing as a force field that can be
put around all teen-agers to pro
tect them from flying bullets.
Instead of seeking litigation
which would result in the futile
strengthening of school security
systems, efforts should be fo
cused on keeping guns from the
hands of angry minors, not just
stopping them from passing
through a set of doors.
The parents seeking closure
through these lawsuits need to re
alize there are more positive out
lets for the funds that will be
spent in the litigation process.
What will be spent on lawyers,
court fees and settlements should
instead be put into outreach pro
grams, public education and
memorial funds. This money
needs to be directed into pro
grams which will identify teens
with a high likelihood of becom
ing the next Eric Harris or Dylan
Klebold, the Columbine gunmen.
There is little comparison be
tween winning a court case and
educating a teacher who recog
nizes just one troubled pupil, pre
venting future loss of life.
Every high school in America
has cliques of teen-agers who con
gregate before classes start, gather
at lunch or hang out after school.
But suing school officials for
being unaware of clashes be
tween these groups is expecting
too much of administration.
For a high school to qualify for
5A status, the University Inter
scholastic League requires a
membership of 1,780 students.
In a school of that size, not
only is it an impossible task for
MAIL CALL
lifestyle can be more of a force in
fighting against a dictator than
people who have time only to
think about how they are going to
survive.
The Iraqi people themselves
are aware Saddam Hussein is a
brutal dictator, but sanctions have
left them with no energy to fight
against him.
The next time Passwaters de
cides to write a column about the
future of a nation on the other
side of the earth, he should see
things from this point of view.
administration to be aware of all
existing problems, but there are
bound to be more than a few in
dividuals who do not get along.
If parents really expect school
officials to serve in such a ca
pacity, an extensive agenda must
be collaboratively planned by
teachers and students to bridge
the gap between those running
the school and those making up
its population.
It is understandable that the
parents of the Columbine shoot
ing victims want some type of ac
tion to fix all the problems that
lead to the massacre.
And while for the moment it
may feel as though they are ac
complishing something, they are
really just spinning in place. If
the school systems need to be
blamed, then blame their under
standable naivete. Blame the
childlike innocence of adminis
trators, who had no idea an event
of such magnitude could ever
take place at their school.
Then ensure no other admin
istration ever makes the mistake
of being as unaware of prevail
ing events as those at
Columbine. The cost of shatter
ing such innocence is too high
for it to ever exist at all.
Those involved with the
Columbine shootings possess not
only national sympathy, but the
willingness of the public to sup
port the future prevention of ac
tions such as these.
Instead of living in the past,
these parents should focus on the
future, using their resources to
create programs to reach students
in need of help. The creation of
such programs would be a
greater tribute to those who died
than any lawsuit.
Elizabeth Kohl is a junior
accounting major.
Khodadad Rezakhani
Class of ’99
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