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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 9, 1999)
e Battalion O PINION for the firstJ $8 reserved sJ general admissiol t general admissf ason-ticket holdersj today to reseive son seats. Texasj isses are not valini she volleyball laylor Universitj| lally scheduled I dnesday has 6 p.m. to accol T’S MY PARTY III conform if I want to side from the oc- sional hoop” that wanting to attentBmnds like it and soccer mate® me from a teen-age girl, ■ost people .would find , Woo similarities between a Miung female demographic and the student population of \'Y7 r £*ITl P!T exas A&M. But do not be mis- ▼ W lllvij ec | — ^0 likenesses are more bout breaking 70. » an i ust s ^' n d 06 ?- just a matter of till According to Rolling Stone 1 to be patient ancft a S azine ’ there is a “secret” life i g ime so that i ol teen - a 8 e g irls - 0ne reporter id 1 could start v for the magazine, Jancee Dunn its. When it came; was s H ent ° ut to t in ^ ^orre- .oulcl Stan winmf w ', lh 12 , g,rls ln , . . ' a small suburban town to un- lal round of tl: e( lhthesesecrets .xpu ss ^ ainpraB Upon reading the article, one emembered for | s COI ^ fronted w f th the usual tl'le bogey on I en _ a g e stereotypes — boy- 111 s | K1ts ^- Jaziness, an eagerness to t ike Jean Yarn:- pease, a sometimes-desperate ; b\’ one stroke, i n( f or attention. However, h the green and: tn an y 0 f the girls’ behavioral i \\ oods was sor characteristics went far beyond o walk off thegra stereotypes, if only because they i more fortunatei w ere so unwaveringly adult in Jimenez fell to nature. In fact, their behavior he 18th hole. was so adult in some aspects it Sunday's finii was overly reminiscent of the a may have ovt behavior of college students. •eal reason whyM How can it be that 14- and test streak in 46 w 15-year-old girls can act like stu- dents not only in college but specifically the students of A&M? I A reader might venture to an swer that it is the girls’ reputa tions as over-achievers that lends them to the comparison. Or that the similarities are simply a mu tual youth and exuberance. I To an extent, the reader would be right. Many teen age girls and A&M students exhibit an affinity for achieve- ment. And it is also true that wiih tetTemendov6s f cof/ege students have the ds has a\x\dese\eeOT7T 0 °d fortune to be young, ! good sercevtato-- promise vill le to R WOODS 0 GOLFER with the chance to decide what they want out of life. But these only superficially answers the question and sounds strangely like a bad Ag gie joke — what’s the differ ence between a teen-age girl and an A&M student? The answer: maybe fewer than one would think. Initially, one notices the talk of conformity that permeates both the worlds — teen-age girls and A&M students. Both groups speak of individualism in the face of conformity but al most unanimously conform to fit the standard. Sometimes both teens and students are in nocently unaware of their even tual conformity. Teenage girls value individual uniqueness but cling to trends. “Most of [the girls] weren’t fully aware of how pervasive [the need to conform] was as they blithely chatted about cele brating individuality, while wearing the same flared jeans and Adidas shell-toed sneak ers,” Dunn said. It is fairly the same with A&M students. There is a look about campus — a style, or theme to the clothing, and a uniformity of colors and brands that is rarely found outside of cliques, whether teen-age or not. No one says, “you must dress like this to be no ticed, accepted or loved,” but one almost senses it. Style and trends are always arbi trary. The enactment of those trends are not, however, which is what pushes people to ward conformity. Though many students think differently and imagine they are original in their out look, that rarely goes beyond the mind. People may think differently at A&M — to a point — but they do not usu ally look different. Another significant similar ity between teen-age girls and students at the University is the prevalence of a cautious optimism. Most students here are excited, but a little scared about the future that looms after graduation. It is the same for young girls. They know so much of the world but have yet to ex perience it — all they are sure of is that one cannot be sure of anything. If that does not describe the typical college student’s fears about life after ERIC ANDRAOS/The Battalion college, what would? And both young girls and many of A&M’s female college stu dents, specifically, feel that the days of serious protest are over, as far as feminism goes. Both seem to think femi nism is a remnant of a pitiable history that they will never have to face. Because their mothers fought all the hard battles, the teen-age girls and college students already have a sense of female empowerment. Feminism, for them, seems overbearing now. Perhaps teen-age girls and college stu dents are not exactly alike, but they are all heading down the same path, and deal ing with the same insecurities. All worry about sex, dis ease, pollution, the economy and future jobs. But noticing the similarities between the two groups might just help all to understand each other just a little bit more. Our problems are their prob lems — solving them together might just be easier than trying to work through them apart. Beverly Mireles is a junior microbiology major. Popular Harry Potter novels wrongly attacked CHRIS HUFFINES leans he will be a 13% it every tournament 5 . J there has been pro! ast six months. 'r-. K. Rowling is a uck a 9-iron all olT I fascinating au- he 17th. True,hekS/ thor. After writ- the wind and t)%g the first of her / wound up in the now-famous Harry Is took twoextra p 0 / fer Uooks while i off the ball an- living on welfare in i the green. Great Britain, Rowl- toi a tricked-upjlg has shot to star- woukl have been doil(1 j n wor id of a f v ' U)n !,on i children’s literature, uictly the macho dm Harry Potter’s adventures have hhkI 11S niu , e1 ' caused flurries of activity in bookstores shot into a sc\t as ^ u 00 k s have flown to the top the 14th that setUr three spots of The New Y ork Times i , Bestsellers’List. e ;..i. 0Wn 3 J But as happens all too often, reli- fect angle into th® us zea]o ^ has marred what would i m birdie otherwise be excellent writing, to went high and lrJ For J ) h ° s e readers who have not read am 196 yards ont!®^ Potter books > the y are about a an 8-foot birdie. /0lin § or P han na ™; d Harr y Fo 1 tter who good was woc: 18 ^ 8611110 llve Wltb bls resentful aunt Until he caught unc,e aber bis parents are killed reaks he was an evb sorcerer - One day he learns 64. That wouldh# le 13 t0 be sent t0 Hogwart’s School of an 11 strokes betti^ tcbcrab and ^i zardr y> anb the rest nf thp fipirl ^ the books follow Harry’s schooling I boggling," Jim Furtfjlogwart's. can’t believe howjjff Tb e magic involved is the root of Lee Westwood ad he problem for many protesting the Price, who playe(P ooks - Many religious groups have on Sunday, said j-ondemned Harry Potter books as dan- ma under those coi®ously close to witchcraft, ave been one of tin These groups feel the books may in- ds ever played. : he children to dabble in the occult ind eventually fall into evil. E nfortunately, these religious groups are making a critical error in their thinking. The fundamentalist Christians who make up these groups have made the all-too-com- mon mistake of thinking di- chotomously. Dichotomous thinkers see only two possibilities in a situation. The most insidious atti tude associat ed with di chotomous thinking is that if some one is not in fa vor of some thing, he or she must be against it. But that thinking is wrong. There is a fundamental, albeit technical, difference be tween not liking something and dis liking it. Not liking is an absence of positive feelings. Disliking is a presence of neg ative feelings. Those who dislike also do not have positive feelings and so do not like. However, those who neither like nor MARK McPHERSON/Tiii; Battalion dislike are stuck in no-man’s land, con stantly being mischaracterized by both extremes as a supporter of the other, when in reality they are neutral. Harry Potter falls squarely into this neutral area. While the idea of sorcery as a good thing is not supported by Christian doctrine, magic as it is used in the books is not anti- Christian either. However, some Christians are refusing to recognize the neutrality and are instead con demning Harry Pot ter’s non-Christ ian use of magic as anti-Christ ian, dangerous and satanic. While Christian doctrine makes a point of creat ing a Christian/non- Christian dichotomy. Biblical lessons like “hate the sin, love the sinner” reveal the Almighty’is well aware of the difference between not being for something and being ac tively against it. And while Christianity cannot sup port a non-Christian ideal, it seems it cannot condemn a neutral item with out hating the sinner. Instead of defending against anti- Christian behavior, these groups are at tacking non-Christian behavior. A parallel can be drawn between Harry Potter books and C. S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia. In both cases magic is not explained away but is simply a part of the world the novels are set in. Like the Narnia books, written by the famously Christ ian Lewis, Harry Potter books have earned a reputation because of their adult sub-themes. Narnia is an allegory for Christiani ty, with Aslan, the lion prince of the fantasy land, as the Christ figure. This mystical theme allows older readers to enjoy the stories on all of its levels, while children are drawn into the fan tasy of a realized, magical world. But by the definition of these reli gious groups, Lewis’ Narnia books may incite children to dabble in the oc cult and eventually fall into evil. There is a difference between what is right, what is wrong and what is on the sidelines of the rugby match that is religion in America. Leaving the field to tackle a spectator is not behavior to be encouraged. All religions should learn this les son, but Christians need to learn it be fore alienating their children from a se ries of books that can only enrich their kids’ imaginations. Chris Huffines is a senior speech communication major. /E SPECIALIZE L ! EXTRAORDINt DISCOVER Bryan . c,CCU/„ Drowsy driving ‘"lot enforceable n response to David Lee’s tov. 5 column. David Lee does not provide AMBER* INCENSE SOUS*® 1 : CLOTHING • MUSEUM REPROfr IPPETS • FOUNTAINS • Wl»' SACRED ART • TAPESTRIES . . .... .. iFULhandcraftedsilvertJ standard that could prove rPCTBWWmevond a reasonable doubt hat an accident occurred as a “direct result from someone be- RSITY F0h«Ved. ,ow open FOR business* Unfortunately a law such as neione you have proposed /v.varsityfordcstx ; OLild not be enforced under lejlegal burden of proof, “Be- out our specials on on L a Reasonable Doubt” , dangers and Mercuf-^i t t | ie p ro bable wned specials change a use? Droopy eyes? /VNLOAD COUPl ' s wb ^ our s y stem for service specials (questions?-e-mail use' as! civil law. A person can be sued for negligence and the burden of proof is much less. Before we consider knee-jerk reactions to tragic events, we must first at tempt to understand the limita tions of our legal system. We have enough laws that are not enforceable. How does someone know that they are too tired to drive? A good defense attorney would destroy that argument in a criminal trial. I am not trying to downplay the tragic events which have re cently occurred, but we must look for more effective solu tions, instead of having the government pass more and more laws. Are DWI laws effective? Tell MAIL CALL that to the thousands of fami lies that lose people every year in drunken driving accidents. Daniel Snow Class of ’89 Aggies still never quit playing hard In response toAl Lazarus’ Nov. 8 column. I would like to take my hat off to Al Lazarus, and then throw it back in his face just as he has thrown all of the football team’s pride back in its face. There is nothing worse than picking up The Bat talion every week and hearing someone trash talk our own football team. Obviously, Lazarus doesn’t know what the Twelfth Man or school spirit is all about. I came to this University all the way from Wyoming be cause of the tradition, and the fact that Aggies never quit. I watched every second of the 37-0 loss to Nebraska this weekend. I was disap pointed, yes, but I am not giv ing up on the team. The team didn’t give up ei ther. Nothing made me and my friends prouder to be Ag gies than when late in the fourth quarter I watched Ja’- Mar Toombs barrel down the field with no helmet on, fight ing for extra yards, even while knowing that the game was over. That is what it means to be an Aggie. David Voorhees Class of ’03 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: battletters@hotmail.com Page 9 • Tuesday, November 9, 1999 Markets should fix health care E ach November the city of Bryan has open enrollment for its employees’ health plan. This is the time when em ployees may make changes to their health insurance. It also is the time when the health-insurance company informs employees of cov erage changes. Many large employers use this practice — it is not unique to the city. Neither is employ ees’ expectations that the changes announced by the plan’s operator mean one thing — higher costs for fewer services. Years after Bill Clinton tried to reform the health-care system and discovered his feet were nailed to the floor, noise is again being made by Congress about reforming the health-care system. One wonders why legisla tors think 535 people could make a plan that most might agree with. Instead, it would seem that as the number of cooks rises, the chances of a palatable soup falls. Government failed to reform health care eight years ago, and it will fail again. As gov ernment continues to grow and attempts to be all things to all people, failures like previ ous efforts to reform health care will become more common. People should realize govern ment has limitations and take things like health-care reform into their own hands. Government failed to reform health care eight years ago, and it will fail again. The business of government is to make public policy and administer it. The business of government is not to micro-manage every sector of the U.S. economy. Every other busi ness is driven by supply and demand. Why should health care be different? When the price of name-brand cigarettes rose precipi tously, many smokers switched to generic brands. The resulting dip in profits led ciga rette manufacturers to introduce promotions and sales for their products. What would happen if people switched their patronage from health-care providers with few benefits to health-care providers whose financial arrangements were more reasonable? If the demand for high-dollar health plans plummets, those plans will have little choice but to give up some of their profits to retain, or regain, patients. Patients also should ques tion their doctors’ judgment about the kinds and number of tests, asking that they look for problems systematically instead of launching massive fishing expeditions costing thou sands of dollars. Doing so would help make health-care costs more manageable. One of the distinct disadvantages of the current health-care system is the lack of choice. Most people only can afford the health-care plan subsidized for them by their employer. Often these plans specify partici pants only may use “in-network” providers, who have agreed to a particular fee schedule. The family doctor who has cared for several generations of a family is an endangered species. As plans find new ways to cut costs, the single-practice physician finds the going gets rougher. Health-insurance companies are in busi ness to make money. Generally they try to charge the highest rates and exclude the largest number of illnesses possible. Compa nies also find ways to cut down on the amount they pay to providers. One common practice is to pay providers slowly throughout the year. At the end of the plan’s fiscal term, they offer providers a per centage of outstanding claims in return for immediate payment. The doctors are left with a choice between a smaller lump sum now or the prospect of spending months and work- hours tracking and collecting outstanding claims. Understandably, many opt for the dis counted payment. The whole system encourages antagonism between providers and their patients. Each sees the other as the problem. Doctors and patients should unite in an effort to force health-care providers to institute fair and hu mane practices. It is hard to understand why these two groups miss the fact they are not each other’s enemies and are both getting raw deals from insurance companies. When the Coca-Cola company changed the formula of its main product in the early ’80s, consumers gave them a clear message about who was boss. Doctors and patients have an ideal coalition. Insurance companies are supposed to serve both. When they wake up and find that their ex-clients have decided to leave them out of the loop, they will have to take notice. Does the health-care delivery system need first aid? Certainly. Can the government fix it? Probably not, nor should they try. It is not the government’s responsibility to right all the wrongs plaguing citizens. It is the responsibil ity of the citizens to refuse to be abused. Ann Hart is a senior English major.