The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, April 05, 2002, Image 13

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    THE BATTALION
5B
Friday, April 5, 2002
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EDITORIAL
Bush School
Growth Positive
No longer do Texas A&M students have to leave campus for
ationally recognized graduate programs. The George Bush
chool of Government and Public Service has been raising the
ar. Such programs are necessary to fulfill Vision 2020 and con-
inue to lift Texas A&M's academic reputation. These are wel-
pme initiatives that are being made to improve the quality of
Iducation and enhance the experiences and opportunities
bailable to all students.
The Bush School has come a long way since it opened in 1995
on the eighth floor of the Harrington Education Center. The
Tchool has been positive for A&M and the Brazos Valley corn-
unity, and it deserves the consideration of students who want
continue their education but are not ready to leave Aggieland.
It also provides an example of what other academic disciplines
Ion campus should strive for.
As greater emphasis is placed on graduate programs, the Bush
ichool is a model of success. Community-based activities and
I planes tolar, peaking engagements are an integral part of its expansion in
:sort, shoot o he last seven years. Former President Bush, members of his
s don t respoK Cabinet and major media figures are regular faces on campus
he five planer li nce the library and graduate school opened. No other aca-
e protected sp Hemic discipline has brought the quality of speakers and con-
f f ^ ave ^ fences to the students and surrounding community. As the
ifticials said. Bush School continues to expand, Aggies should give applying
some thought. It provides unique educational opportunities,
ight in Texas A&M's backyard.
THE BATTALION
Managing Editor
Opinion Editor
News Editor
News Editor
Brian Ruff
Cayla Carr
Sommer Bunge
Brandie Liffick
IN BRIEF
; kidnap
n, nine
i Nigeria
igeria (AP)
ned a boat serv
l rig off Nigeria:
t, taking hostage
ernational am
workers aboard.
Thursday,
orkers - one
- Ghanaians, one
jur Nigerians -
Tueste} 'ui AQ
m the vrWage cf
a stateJ-'
spokes®
said in LondoJ.
akers demand
t, oil contracts
from Shell 1 '
workers salt ;0iiservative
' whose idi* olnmnist blasted
disclosed, an response to Matthew
\Z a & d0 *' sA p" l4c ° ,umn --
eleP repre e sentf[ addox managed to charac-
T ze homosexuality as unac-
Ptable, intolerable and a
jjice. He also likened the
EDITORIAL BOARD
Editor in Chief | Mariano Castillo
Member
Member
Member
Member
Melissa Bedsole
Jonathan Jones
Jennifer Lozano
Kelln Zimmer
fhe Battalion encourages letters to the editor. Letters must be 200 words
orlessand include the author’s name, class and phone number. The opinion
etfto reserves the right to edit letters for length, style and accuracy. Letters
maihe submitted in person at 014 Reed McDonald with a valid student ID.
ketesalso may be mailed to: 014 Reed McDonald, MS 1111, Texas A&M
^versify, College Station, TX 77843-1111. Fax: (979) 845-2647
fmaii: mailcall@thebatt.com
MAIL CALL
ne
la were
ethnic
angered I? an gers" of homosexuality to
of seven 1 Ming, drinking and racism,
armed stae^ sthe Texas A&M community
iry between ly become this hopelessly
y forces aj lolerant and ignorant? His
^tions against alternative
-Styles are an attack against
er yone who has worked
r d to prevent violence and
io had i
»r Shell
3fs reports
an official#
jbsidiary. jotry towards these groups.
n0t nul eideas in “intolerance is a
\Zlre Jr brin § separation and
~ e to Texas A&M. Maybe
Nox and others like him
Is were
ment.
a y evenW
ais last heJiff ed t0 ste P out of the young
tfpMervati
iptives
all in
j not
ent office
, Wednesd*
th the
limed at#
A fol
the h(
ficials
/eek.
ives meeting for just
I moment and evaluate the
t8nia ge their hateful views
Ve had on Texas A&M.
Brian Prehn
Class of 2003
t n his article, Maddox says,
1 e truth is that education,
ii l^Ptance, is the answer."
.1 be| ieve that truth
» --.cut; mat truth is indi-
4 Ua anc l personal, not sim-
iy universal, as his article
Uplies.
I? 16 truth is that people do
c hpose to be lesbian,
^LArts^tran^ 3 ' beter °sexual, gay, or
ll^dered. The National
■nSwiyi, Clati P n tor Research and
dtp°* homosexuality may
licmn Umerous stuclies about
S’ & eXUali, V. but their
to j- Sa V s ' do not wish
KoZ n]s !? the ri 8 hts of
'Sr r THE«'» (l in society .' 7 onented P eo P le
,ENTEV ' 1 It C0 ; chairs of ALLIES, an
RITYB0Y, ca m f endent onganization on
intoiM" j)| a Pu ^.^at supports gay, les-
EiPri ,Sexua lr and transgen-
[ d students, staff, and fac-
we
to
*nco u !l this ca mpus,
ra ge individuals
attend an Advance. An
Advance is a three hour work
shop designed to educate
individuals about the issues
faced by GLBT persons on this
campus and in the community.
By attending an Advance, peo
ple can educate themselves
and make an individual choice
about truth and acceptance.
The next Advances are April
9 and April 28. For more
information, see our Website
at allies.tamu.edu.
Kate McCarth
Class of 2002
Lara Zuehlk
Class of 1997
Sul Ross was not
a traitor
In his mail call, Ali Enrique
Razavi asserts that "like [John
Walker] Lindh, [Lawrence
Sullivan] Ross also betrayed his
country by taking up arms
against it."
There is an important differ
entiation to be made between
Lindh and Ross. Lindh con
spired with an outside party,
the Taliban, to subvert the
United States. However, Ross
was forced to take up arms in
the defense of his rights
against a government drunk
with power.
Lindh sought to undermine
the United States government
with an aggressive action, but
Ross, along with millions of
other Southerners, sought to
obtain independence from the
United States government in a
peaceful manner.
When Abraham Lincoln
refused to recognize the right
of states to withdraw from the
Union, Southerners like Ross
were forced to fight for their
due independence.
Razavi should use the term
"betrayal" more carefully. Lindh
is a traitor. Ross was not.
Miles O. Foltermann
Class of 2002
Mess at Umass
Resident advisers’ new union divides campus
T he atmosphere at the
University of
Massachusetts
(Umass) in Amherst has
changed in the past month
from one of light-heartedness
to one of tension.
This month, more than 360 resident
advisers formed the first undergraduate
student union in United States history.
According to Time magazine, the forma
tion occurred after the university lost a
ruling before the Massachusetts Labor
Commission and has created tension
between the university and the resident
advisers. The reasoning behind the union
— mainly better pay — is understandable,
but the formation of a union is not the
best means of achieving the demands.
The advisers at Umass have been heard,
but they are about to find out they are
playing with fire. And a university that
preaches community and education is not
a place to start a fight.
The purpose of this union, as stated in
The Campus Chronicle, the Umass news
paper, was for resident advisers to gain
recognition and equal power with their
supervisors. Recognition has been
gained, but equal power is impossible.
The whole concept behind a
supervisor/employee relationship is one
having power over the other. Employees
will never be able to have more power
than their supervisors, unless they move
up in status.
The resident advisers at Umass are
college students without degrees or expe
rience. Their supervisors,
being older, are more
knowledgeable about the
consequences a union can
present. The advisers have
made headlines, but they are
about to find out that a uni
versity that has existed for many years
has far more power than they could ever
aspire to. The resident advisers have
taken a step that will leave them burned.
Part of being a student is working less
glamorous jobs to earn money and make
ends meet. If you want a job with better
benefits, better pay or a better contract, a
student worker job, such as a resident
adviser position, is not ideal. These jobs
have great benefits: living on campus,
being near classes, flexible hours, work
ing with people your age and not too
many demanding tasks. Umass resident
advisers are seeking higher wages, a
clearer contract, better benefits and more
job security, according to the Boston
Globe. The demands are understandable,
but lofty hopes and their means for
achieving these goals are ridiculous.
In a university setting, communication
is essential. At Texas A&M, there is a res
ident hall staff council that hears and
voices all concerns of its resident advisers
so that compromises can be made. The
relationship between the workers and the
University is respectful and efficient. At
Umass, it is apparent that the relationship
between the advisers and the university
is not one of mutual respect. It is the
duty of the advisers to voice their opin
ions responsibly. The formation of a
committee, such as the Residence Hall
Association at A&M, or a forum to voice
concerns would be a more respectable
means to achieving a compromise.
However, now that the resident advisers
at Umass have joined a union, the admin
istration feels under attack, and an unde
sirable response is eminent. A fear of job
cutbacks and increased dorm fees is cir
culating. A union cannot protect against
these kinds of responses. The university
can become less lenient on the details of
their contracts and not let simple mis
takes slide as easily. The more the advis
ers frustrate the university, the more the
university is going to fight back.
The resident advisers’ hope to make
history was achieved, but it will not be
long before they fade back into the back
ground, as Umass snuffs out their squeals
with an unyielding fist. It seems the real
problem is a lack of respect and commu
nication on their campus, not a job dis
pute. The University of Massachusetts
needs to focus on the real problem at
hand: the lack of respect through lack of
communication. Then, the resident advis
er situation will not be one of stress and
tension, but one of discussion and
respect.
Katherine Tucker is a sophomore
general studies major.
KATHERINE TUCKER
One strike policy swings and misses
I n an attempt to attack
what Congress calls a
“reign of terror,” the
Supreme Court approved
eviction from public housing
of all drug users on Tuesday.
According to Yahoo!
News, the “One strike” policy is where
an entire household can be evicted from
public housing if any member is caught
using drugs in the housing area. But one
strike is a meager attempt to solve the
drug problem that plagues government
housing, and Congress should not be
allowed to evict public housing tenants
because of drug use.
In California, four public housing res
idents face eviction for drug use.
According to Yahoo! News, none of the
four tenants were aware of drug use
going on in their apartments by family
members. The four cases evoked interest
in the Supreme Court, who ruled that
entire households could be evicted even
if some did not know about the drug use.
One strike is misleading in its promise
to eradicate drug use. The new policy is
just an old idea recycled in an attempt to
solve the drug problem. Shuffling around
drug users does not solve the
drug problem. Instead, it
relocates the problem. Drug
use may decrease in one
area, but it will certainly rise
in another. Public housing
residents are low-income
families and individuals who do not have
other choices for housing. Evicted resi
dents end up homeless living on the
streets or in shelters.
Most public housing residents are sen
ior citizens over the age of 61. According
to The Dallas Morning News, more than
1.7 million families in subsidized hous
ing are headed by a senior citizen. The
elderly are among the most likely to be
punished by the new eviction policy
because, according to USA Today, they
have little power over people in their
households.
In all four of the pending California
housing cases, the residents are senior
citizens. Many elderly residents in public
housing suffer from disabilities that limit
activity in their home. One of the four
residents fighting eviction charges is
Herman Walker, a disabled man whose
caregiver was caught with cocaine in his
apartment. Although Walker had no
involvement in drug activity, he risks
being evicted for behavior by those tak
ing care of him.
Public housing is a breeding ground
for crime, gangs and drugs. There should
be punishment for perpetrators, however
one strike is not an adequate way of con
trolling drug use. It affects innocent peo
ple and is merely a slap on the wrist for
perpetrators. Education and prevention-
based programs are a better way to treat
the source of the drug problem. The
removal of drug users, instead of the
entire household, is more effective by
punishing the perpetrators, who are the
real threat. The new drug policy makes
everyone the victim.
One strike only attacks what the public
sees, not the true issues behind drug use.
It is foolish to believe that giving
Congress the ability to force someone
out of their home will solve our nation’s
drug problems.
Audi Baca is a senior
journalism major.
ANDIBACA
DIANA SUAREZ* THE BATTALION