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The Battalion
Page 5B • Wednesday, September 25, 2002
ating disorders need more publicity
egitimate information must combat misinformation from pro-anorexia Web sites
i '
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AllUlC.ioni.l I a
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LAUREL FRANCK
Inorexia
lunme#^--
two of the
_Bmmon
chological
)rd|rs among American college students,
]H'e some of the highest fatality rates
3TYmln ^ng all mental illnesses. According to the
Eating Disorders Association
iDA), both conditions are life-threatening,
y T ^ impact men and women of virtually all
V C O l H »sifieations.
In order to combat the positive publicity
iANDHIV se ^' seases are obtaining in the form of
>, ^tt K ,, ‘ an( rexia Web sites, a campaign must be
thnniL’h US* 11 to,ttl to hattle t,ie misinformation that
i Hindu ram P ant throughout the Internet and
mg at Jca,. I lege campuses.
, n ., f c>irx , The New York Times reports that “because
tern India »hr- y ^ not threatening to the passer-by, as
is clashes 'chQtic disorders are, or likely to render
Hindus kiis ^l 6 ‘'’employable or criminal, as alco-
ler this \ear ' sm ant l a clfl'ction are. and perhaps also
lours after • ;auSt they are disorders that primarily
men remains! Hctfcirls and women, they are not a propor-
of the Sc •- natel y imperative social priority.”
complex — - An&rexia and bulimia need to be brought to
utni>>Nt attention ot colleges and universi-
> anti to the forefront of societal issues so
tims will have a wider variety of programs
J treatments that will help them overcome
dr disorder, not maintain it.
pers were ®
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irst Yell disappointed some
The National Association of Anorexia
Nervosa statistics show the onset of illness
occurs between the ages of 16 to 20 for 43
percent of all eating disorders. Anorexia and
bulimia are not short-term problems. Seventy-
seven percent of victims report suffering from
their eating disorder for a duration of one to
15 years, and often endure repeated hospital
izations and treatments.
Despite eating disorders running rampant
in American society, “few states in the nation
have adequate programs or services to combat
anorexia nervosa and bulimia. Only a small
number of schools and colleges have pro
grams to educate our youth about the dangers
of eating disorders,” according to NAAN.
Student Counseling Services at Texas
A&M offers a support group for those strug
gling with eating clisorders, which is a step in
the right direction. All college students
should be made aware of the symptoms and
seriousness of these disorders so these eating
disorders can be recognized sooner.
Pro-anorexia, or “pro-ana” Web sites are
becoming popular places for those suffering
from eating disorders to turn to. Pro-ana sites
offer warped visions of the disorders and
obsess about achieving the goal of being thin.
Ellen Davis, clinical director at the Renfrew
Center of Philadelphia, a treatment facility,
told The Times, “Primarily, the sites reinforce
the secretiveness and the ‘specialness’ of the
disorder.” On one site investigated by The
Times, the “Thin Commandments” state,
thou aren’t thin, thou aren’t attractive.
Being thin is more important than being
healthy. Thou shall not eat without feeling
guilty. Thou shall not eat fattening food
without punishing thyself afterward. Being
thin and not eating are signs of true
willpower and success.”
The distorted, sometimes militant ideol
ogy of these sites is an extreme hindrance,
rather than help, to sufferers of eating dis
orders. If there were more constructive
programs to assist those with eating disor
ders in beginning a healthy way of eating
and developing a normal body image,
these sites wouldn’t be so popular. It is
estimated that the visitors to these pro-ana
sites number in the thousands, according
to The Times.
Anorexia and bulimia are two extremely
dangerous and deadly psychological disor
ders, and it is important that leaders in both
education and society realize this and take
action to create safe pro-active havens for
victims before more lives are claimed by
these controlling illnesses. The voices of
those who support anorexia despite its terri
ble effects must be drowned out with a
campaign to educate the public about
anorexia and bulimia’s very real dangers.
Laurel Franck is a junior
English major.
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aren'tjjjjjartive. i
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ealthy.
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yself
N m
SARAH FOWLER • THE BATTALION
Athletic boosters must be kept away from athletes
fChris Webber case shows boosters harm athletic programs and the athletes
MARK WOOD
C hris Webber, the $123
million man of the
Sacramento Kings,
allegedly took large sums of
Bioney from a University of
Michigan basketball booster
when he played at the university.
The booster, Eddie Martin, is a retired Ford Motor Co.
employee who was part of a federal indictment in late March in
which he admitted to giving large loans to several promising
University of Michigan basketball players. According to
ESPN.com, Martin has admitted to giving more than $600,000
to former members of the Michigan basketball team, including
Robert Traylor of the New Orleans Hornets, Maurice Taylor of
the Houston Rockets and Louis Bullock, who is playing profes
sionally in Europe. Webber, along with his father and aunt, are
facihg charges of misrepresenting their dealings with Martin
and lying to a federal grand jury. Webber claims he did not
take the money he is accused of accepting, but has said he did
take small amounts of money from Martin.
Whether Webber took the large amount Martin is claiming
he gave him does not matter. Webber has agreed that he did
take money from this basketball booster. This is a national
issue with a basketball superstar. It can be hoped this incident
will shed light on and set precedence for the issue of boosters
corning in contact with and giving money and gifts to young
collegiate athletes.
All too often, highly-recruited star athletes come to big uni
versities sure to bring a national championship in their respec
tive sport. Suddenly, this immensely touted athlete is driving
around campus in a brand new SUV. These things happen
because some wealthy booster has no life and is trying to live
out the remainder of his life through young, promising and vul
nerable athletes. Martin is a rich booster who had more
money than he knew what to do with, so he offered promising
college athletes lucrative things such as cars and cash. This
behavior must be stopped.
Coaches, athletic directors and university officials need to
take more responsibility in dealing with boosters and monitor
ing the relationships the boosters have with the players, if not
eliminating these relationships all together. It is very tempting
to an 18-year-old freshman that just stepped onto a college
campus for the first time to accept thousands of dollars.
Although individuals are responsible for their own actions, it is
a coach’s responsibility to intervene and make sure students are
not put in the situation of deciding whether to take the money.
Allowing this to continue will only hurt the athletes in the
long run. They will get the wrong idea that everything will
come easily to them and should be given to them on a silver
platter. They could easily lose the excellent work ethic that got
them where they are, ruining their career. In addition, it could
get them in trouble with the law. Just ask Webber - he is fac
ing a maximum 10-year prison sentence and a $500,000 fine.
Athletic boosters should stick to giving their money to ath
letic programs and let the coaches and athletic directors allo-
Mark Wood is a junior
journalism major.
MAIL CALL
Ad van i ^
, h l( j ^ My wife and I attended First Yell at Reed Arena
1 ^ j x is evening in anticipation of a clean and enter-
K U said tl*' n ' n 8 program. Instead, we listened to two
, t0 ^ttionally-renowned "comedians" use continual
a ! r t ,^ 3Vl rOfanity and the last one, Martin Short, make a
k , K ' ;I j ry crude joke at the expense of A&M football
1 M sHni M |e ' ac ^ R ' C ' s l° cum - Whether or not you like
,N lls 1 ocum is immaterial. I happen to believe he is a
lm ia s olT icent r 1130 - 1 do not in any way blame the
u , liversity for these entertainers' display of con-
iat the 1 i^iual vulgarity. I heard my God’s name used in
1 2 i fa's' ' n re P ea tedly. I listened to the F word used like
hening in ^ dinary slang. The subject matter continually
it a big attat j V o^ed arounc j cruc j e situations, intercourse,
> n from tn iR kittling the black American culture and general-
jeliberate n. f|jppj n g 0 ff un iversity-written contract require-
did not i J en t s t | iat suc [ n su bj ec t matter and behavior be
th 3 * 1 y oided. I could go on and on about the bawdy
n, sponsor^ Savior of these two "entertainers."
in I' 11 ' 11 The sleazy comments about Slocum were the
3ad denies i s t s t raw \j\]q | e ft at that point and noticed that
le no gr° u P' , vera | ot ber people had also had enough, includ-
j responsi 1 â–  g 0ur fj ne s t u dent body president and his love-
and governing date
reful notto" 1 yv|at | ^uid to note on the positive side is
ears sprea a t jour s t u dent yell leaders, singers, dancers,
jarat staff j; ummers and comedians were worth the price
would N admission. The talent they showed was of the
ould set ot 1 ghest caliber. My hat is off to all of you for the
olence and ^ jvidus preparation it took to do what you did.
ead sectarian' )u mac j e us p roud tonight. I hope the audience
s is adding ker J/erjtually left Short a bit shorter by leaving him
fire. There w 'y himself. It reflects the kind of students we have
ie riot-pr° lH j! sre a t Texas A&M, especially when I consider the
esai, a colW^mber 0 f d j S gusted students we saw leaving
ibad, 3 b 0111 >ortly after the marquee act began.
• attack site.
>ps are .[ Mike Caudle
e is telling fJB Class of 1969
in, go h 0I1 f p
ipen now. At First Yell 1 was ashamed of a large part of the
i reports or 1 jdience. When Martin Short began his act many
t. I Jdience members began leaving. This continued
ity w 35 er| d of the show, and was completely
and severa 0 mbarrassing |. 0 those of us who had the good
>e popul 3tl0f 'lanners to stay.
jnd Muslin 15 ’ Texas A&M is known for being a friendly and
offici*"
r calm.
hospitable place. However, leaving before a pro
gram is over is not showing hospitality. It only
shows ugliness, and there is no other word for it.
If students can stand through an entire football
game even when our team is losing, they can cer
tainly be polite and sit through a performer's act
even if they don't like it.
As Aggies we need to be aware that our actions,
whether we like it or not, reflect on Texas A&M. I
for one want to keep the tradition of being friend
ly and hospitable.
Libby Hat!a
Class of 2005
A&M offense must improve
If timing is everything, the A&M coaching staff is
master of it. There's nothing like boosting Reggie
McNeal's confidence by starting him out in the
Aggie end zone. I'm certain the Virginia Tech
defensive line planned to take it easy on Reggie in
his debut Saturday.
The future of Texas A&M football rests on the
blade of a double-edged sword. First, McNeil
must be mentored and molded as a passing and
option quarterback. Neither of these is going to
happen in College Station as long as Slocum is
at the helm.
Which brings us to the other side of the sword.
Slocum is a defensive specialist and that is the
only role he should be fulfilling. A true head foot
ball coach would recognize his weaknesses and
defer on them rather than leave the team to be
exploited by them. Slocum has run off more than
one offensive lieutenant and, if allowed to, will
run off the first true trump card A&M has had
since John David Crow. If McNeil scores at A&M it
will be in spite of the offensive play-calling, not
because of it.
Shanna Osburn
Class of 2005
I would like to congratulate the defense on its
spectacular play. It is truly a joy to watch them
play so hard with so much enthusiasm and heart.
I don't know what is more disheartening, the
way such a marvelous defense effort was squan
dered or the fact that a school like Texas A&M,
with all its resources, can continue to produce
such an offensive offense. If it were simply one
game, most fans would chalk it up to a few
dropped balls, or inexperienced QB play, or even
give Virginia Tech credit for a wonderful defense
(which was certainly part of it). However, it's not
just one game, it's both this and last season and
what feels like the last decade. I could go into all
the statistics, but we all know how bad they are.
What we all don't agree on is the problem and
more importantly, the solution. The vast majori
ty of us are not directly involved with the foot
ball program, so the best we can do is guess
what the problem is.
However, there are numerous players, coaches
and administrators who do know what the prob
lem is and I beg them to fix it. Do what ever has
to be done to right the ship before the 12th Man
and Kyle Field lose their aura.
It took years build the records and mystique of
Kyle Field. It will only take a season or two of this
offense to destroy it.
Brent Lium
Class of 1992
I don't know how everyone else feels, but
Aggieland is my home and I don't appreciate visi
tors coming into my home and destroying it.
After the prayer in the middle of the field, the
Virginia Tech players gathered at the south end
zone and proceeded to rip up chunks of Kyle
Field. All the fans in the bleachers, including
myself, were yelling and trying to get the attention
of the "guards" that "protect" Kyle Field. They
turned around saw what was happening and did
nothing.
Maybe someone has an idea of what can be
done to prevent someone else from doing the
same thing.
Kacy McCuistion
Class of 2005
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