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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 11, 2001)
V. Parrott, de. mi all recot janizations Ihere to the ict. A&M ui tiiat organic .riminate at lie basis of * rules and rtt tiiat addre- mination,” Pr es and Inner i students ort s such, are «.• u said he die of the frair. xual orienti: ishing becauK kvouid not at: By Kendra Kingsley THE BATTALION ieLife THE BATTALION Page 3A HOWDY! StudentSy survey cite decline in use of traditional Aggie greeting t this could, get into 1 said. H this wouldh it wouldn't' ventualh I c :o the other r TKE bat i, not bca. e a stalemer: id Cunmne pros e a pc emity. eve that as an agenda i that tic ms if Ik* couk e he told e in. a t Kt junior cotK tjor. said hr runninghair leave TKE annot he decisions r ncmbers.ht to disenmir. iffith said omethin: lam], then; ibout it ttif It’s hardfc ible for i CHAD MALLAM • THE BATTALION For freshman business major Ashley Bell, exchanging the time-hon ored greeting of “howdy” with other Aggies has shifted from A&M’s standard salutation to a campus-wide mating call. “The only people [who] have ever said ‘howdy’ to me were either in the Corps or using it as a bad pickup line,” Bell said. “It’s just an easy way to show your interest in another student.” Bell is not alone in noticing the i greeting’s amorous appeal. Hong Chu, a junior international studies major, said the traditional wel come has become so strongly employed as a flirtation device that a gender bias has resulted. “I have never had a girl say ‘howdy’ to me,” she said. “Even though it’s supposed to be a gener- -f al greeting, I think some people ' feel weird exchanging something that might [have a romantic con notation] with someone of their own gender.” In addition to the absence of same- sex howdy exchanges, many students have simply ceased the tradition alto gether. Chu said she noticed a definite decline in the customary greeting when she moved out of the dorms. “Whenever I lived on campus, 1 heard people calling out ‘howdy’ on a regular basis,” she said. “Now that I’m off campus this year, it’s a different story. I haven’t had one person say [‘howdy’] to me since school started. People are on cell phones way too much, and since it’s been raining a lot lately, everyone’s busy trying to stay dry and get to class.” Because a sense of urgency often accompanies the start of each semester, students are often too absorbed with their personal agendas to think about engaging in one of Aggieland’s oldest and easiest traditions. Dustin Timmermann, a sophomore environmental design major, said students are more oblivious to keeping the howdy legacy alive than ever before. “My dad took me to Aggie football games when I was younger, and it seemed like more people paid attention to the howdy tradition then than they do now,” Timmermann said. “Since I’ve been going to school here. I’ve noticed that other stu dents seem to be more focused only on where they’re going and what they’re doing. They don’t think twice about keep ing up the tradition.” The fading exchange of an Aggie cus tom is startling given the publicity the campus has received for its tradition- rich culture. Nathan Gatewood, a sophomore mechanical engineering major, said the exchange of “howdies” is rapidly decreas ing in spite of the constant emphasis placed on A&M’s time-honored practices. “Fish Camp is the perfect example the school tries to [promote] the Aggie spirit early on,” Gatewood said. “It teaches new freshmen to say ‘howdy’ and to keep the tradition alive, but after the beginning of the year the only people who say it are either in the Corps or people who are try ing to impress visitors.” While the howdy drought may stem from a gender gap or hectic schedules, Anthony Yasser, a senior electrical engi neering technology major, said 1999 Aggie Bonfire collapse is the underlying reason for the greeting’s decline. “Bonfire was the most unifying event for most students on campus,” Yasser said. “The Corps has managed to [maintain] its unity, but the rest of the student body seems more distant, which may explain why howdy has decreased.” Although different theories struggle to decipher the reason for the decrease in Aggieland’s mantra, a few indisputable facts remain. As part of a statistics project, Megha Patel, a sophomore genetics major, decided to determine the factors influ encing the “howdy” decline. Patel, along with four classmates discovered factors such as Corps membership, gender and location each had an impact on whether or not a student would exchange howdies with a tester. “While our group only recorded “howdy” responses [as opposed to “hello,” “hey” or “hi” responses], our analysis concluded that the Corps response rate outnumbered the non-Corps response rate [87.68% to 51.74%] and males responded significantly more than females,” Patel said. Their findings also ranked locations See Howdy on page 6A. Breakawo' way offers Bible study and music By Heather Campbell THE BATTALION What began as a group of four college guys meeting in their living room to study the Bible has grown into a group of 4,(XX) to 6,(XX) students now meeting every Tuesday in Reed Arena. Breakaway is a non- denominational weekly Bible study. Gregg Matte, director and weekly speaker helped start Breakaway in 1989. “Our main goal is to intro duce students to a relationship with Jesus Christ and help them grow,” Matte said. “We desire to present a real Jesus in a real world.” Matte said Breakaway is geared toward college stu dents. He said it is a very relaxed atmosphere where stu dents can get away from the pressures of college life. Gretchen Lochry, a junior kinesiology major, attends Breakaway on a regular basis. “I like it because when I’m there during worship 1 can sense God’s presence,” Lochry said. Everett and Benard met at Texas A&M and continue in music ministry together. “Ever since we started singing together, the Lord has been doing incredible things and blessing us with cool See Breakaway on page 4A. >t someth* all of oc'f aid. "iiM^ iat hapF >f them." ic cannot of the courseib would be m isly.” Judder 401 lion, coot;' ki at 696-08* Parte and Watte to Classttt V*x&ho&fr rhz&id&l COME BEFORE 4 P.M. FOR FASTER SERVICE! Institute < grs will batfii at 7 pun $200 a semester covered parking ! little CaesarsPizza CUSTOMER APPRECIATION DAY! COLLEGE STATION 2501 S. TEXAS AVENUE 696-0191 696-0191 day ION Convenient parking in Northgate, just minutes from campus at the College Main Parking Garage (309 College Main) Lease applications are available at: College Station City Hall Accounting Department 1101 Texas Avenue (next to Chili’s) College Station College Station Utility Customer Service Building 310 Krenek Tap Road College Station Call 764-3565 for more information! Hourly rates and 24/7 leases available. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! WITH CHEESE AND PEPPERONI No substitutions. Round pizzas only. Limit 5 pizzas. Valid at this Little Caesars location only. Carryout only. No Deliveries. Sorry, no rain checks.