Opinion
The Battalion
Page 9 ♦ Tuesday, March 2, 2004
In trouble? Who cares?
Texas A&M’s athletes shouldn't he considered representatives of the University
ecently, several Texas A&M football play
ers have gotten into legal trouble, leaving
.A&M students worried not only about
whether the Aggies will be winners next season
but also whether any of the team will be free to
play. These troubles have ignited a whirl
wind of. criticism from newspapers
statewide, which say that this behavior is
unacceptable because these athletes tarnish
the reputation of the University.
While critics are partially correct —
type of behavior is generally unacceptable — they’re
missing the bigger picture. It should not matter. Athletes are
not student leaders. They represent the University as players
fa game, something that has little importance in an aca
demic setting.
Since November, five A&M football players have been
anested, according to The Houston Chronicle. The real ques-
)n is: Why should anybody care?
Football players are not recruited for their ability to stay
jt of trouble. And, although an academically strong recruit
never hurts, football players are not recruited for their aca
demic prowess. Players are recruited for their ability
play football. They do not represent the
University as a whole. In fact, they are a minor
itycompared to the student body.
A problem arises when students and
outsiders of a university begin placing
too much responsibility on athletes. As
soon as a few football players have
trouble abiding by the law. everyone
starts screaming that the University is
lull of criminals and the administra
tors who oversee these students are
inept leaders.
In a Dallas Morning News column,
tportswriter Gerry Fraley scrutinizes the
A&M athletic program, taking a cheap
shot at the University. He says colleges
should encourage academic development
and maturity.
“Too many Aggies, mostly from the foot-
ballteamare learning about the inner work
ings of the court system.” Fraley said.
Although Fraley jests about the A&M
leam’slegal woes, he unknowingly brings up
a good point. The purpose of a university is
toeducate and train for the real world.
Football isn’t the real world. As an example, there are about
2,277 players listed on the NFL’s Web site. That means one in every
102,000 Americans is an NFL player. In the 2001-2002 school year,
there were more than 2.98 million teachers in grades prekinder
garten through 12, according to the National Center for Education
Statistics, or one in every 95 Americans is a primary or secondary
educator. If teachers make up so much more of the population, why
is the emphasis on football players? This illustrates how meaning
less football should be in the college world.
If a few students who were education majors were arrested,
newspapers all over the state wouldn’t report that the
University’s reputation is tarnished and education adminis
trators must be slacking.
But they should.
When the University cuts programs that educate stu
dents and benefit society, newspapers and citizens all over
the country should raise their voices. When a state govern
ment cuts funding for schools year after year, people
should fight it.
These events put a halt on academics and less adequate
ly prepare students for the real world. They tarnish the name
of a university, but academics fall so far down on the list of
importance that it is often overlooked in lieu of 11 people
who run around a grass field.
Sure, athletic programs serve a useful purpose by encour
aging friendly competition, providing some entertain
ment and teaching discipline and respect. But when
a program that specifically trains students who
end up representing a minuscule fraction of the
country gets more publicity and recognition
thaixany other aspect of a school, it points
to a larger societal problem
Real student leaders are those who
add to the overall objective of the
University. Leaders of student political
groups, academic clubs and profession
al societies drive A&M toward educat
ing students in an academic and a real-
world sense. These are the people who
bear the reputation of the University on
their shoulders. So if the student body pres
ident gets arrested for public intoxication,
let the uproar commence. But until then, just
expect the football players to perform on the field.
Matt Rigney is a junior
journalism major.
Graphic by Ivan Flores
MAIL CALL
Christians vote conservative
because it's a 'lesser evil'
In response to John David Blakley’s Feb.
27 column:
Mr. Blakley’s conclusion that the
Republican Party’s agenda does not reflect
Christian doctrine is true in some respects;
however, I am a Christian and I have
always been conservative due to moral
issues that arise in most of the liberal can
didates.
Take the 2000 presidential election
between Bush and Gore. Bush had nearly a
spotless record when it came to character
issues. From the beginning, Gore fell under
question with his fund-raising practices.
Needless to say, Clinton committed adul
tery with multiple partners (all quite unattrac
tive, strangely enough), and even with a col
lege intern. It was a well-known fact that
even Franklin Roosevelt did not keep the
sanctity of his marriage.
How are Christians supposed to support a
president who has no integrity or character?
When it comes down to it, Christians don’t
vote conservative solely based on abortion
or the gay issue. They vote conservative
because it is the lesser of the two evils when
it comes to morality.
I've talked to many liberals about morality,
but what they don’t understand is their defi
nition of morals and values do not line up
with the Bible’s standards. Their perception
ofwhat is right can differ greatly from that of
the Bible.
Daniel Davis
Class of 2007
Aggies, not Hotard Hall,
define the Aggie Spirit
In response to a March 1 mail call:
The closing of Hotard Hall will not result in
alossof the Aggie Spirit. It will result in the
loss of a community, no doubt.
The tone of Ms. Montemayor’s letter
implies that the redass activities of Hotard
Hall will cease if it is reconfigured for faculty.
Buildings do not epitomize the Aggie Spirit.
Aggies do.
If the Aggie Spirit, to the residents of
Hotard, depends solely on their residence in
abuilding, then the Aggie Spirit is truly dead.
I challenge the residents of Hotard to
use this as an opportunity to come closer
together as a group and to spread the
“Howdys” and football attendance to the
rest of the campus.
In response to Cody Sain’s March 1
column:
Mr. Sain’s narrow-minded views seem to
be a pathetic misunderstanding of race-
based scholarships. Groups such as YCT
and RWU’s opinions have been completely
misconstrued.
They are not trying to impose racist or prej
udiced views but are merely striving for com
plete equality and no special treatment
among races.
The group’s presenting of the whites-only
scholarship is not to discriminate but to
rather pose a point. Financial aid should not
be based on race but on financial need and
academic achievement.
Mr. Sain’s comment about most minorities
needing special treatment scholarships
because they are poor is not only distasteful
and incorrect but racist in itself.
I am a white male and my opportunities for
financial aid are minimal. How many times
have you said to yourself: If I just checked
this Black, Hispanic, etc. box, my opportuni
ties might increase? So if equality is what
everyone wants and what everyone needs
then choosing any of these races should not
have any effect on how much money one
receives or whether or not he wins a schol
arship or even to the extent of being admit
ted into a university. Please quit playing the
race card.
Matthew Wyatt
Class of 2006
The Battalion encourages letters to the
editor. Letters must be 200 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 per
son at 014 Reed McDonald with a valid stu
dent ID. Letters also may be mailed to: 014
Reed McDonald, MS 1111, Texas A&M
University, College Station, TX 77843-1 111.
Fax: (979) 845-2647 Email: mailcall@the-
battalion.net. Attachments will not be
accepted.
Andy Luten
Class of 2005
Conservative views on race
merely strive for equality
Guantanamo detainees
are being treated justly
D uring the wars in Afghanistan and
Iraq, U.S. forces captured numerous
suspected terrorists and enemy
agents. The legal status of these enemy com
batants is being brought into question.
Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice
asked the Supreme Court to deny access to
lawyers as legal defense for the prisoners.
Many claim the detainees’ rights are being
violated and that they are being treated
unfairly. In reality, the United States is
being just in its actions with the detainees at
Guantanamo Bay.
The primary concern to critics is over the legal
status of the detainees. Terrorism is an act of war,
but the terrorists are not necessarily prisoners of
war. Soldiers fight on the battlefield against other
soldiers and, when captured, become prisoners of
war. Terrorists wage war
against nations by targeting
innocent civilians, and
according to the Bush admin
istration, this makes them ille
gal combatants. These
detainees have broken interna
tional laws regarding warfare
and are no longer considered
prisoners of war.
Normally, prisoners are
guaranteed the rights of the
nation where they are impris
oned. However, Guantanamo
Bay is located in Cuba, on
foreign soil. Thus, the prison
ers are not guaranteed the
rights of prisoners held in
domestic territory.
Also, the detainees are not U.S. citizens.
Human rights groups and lawyers lobbying on the
prisoners’ behalf claim they should be allowed
basic constitutional rights. They do not deserve the
protection of the U.S. Constitution any more than a
citizen of Canada or Mexico does. Perhaps they
deserve even less due to the nature of their crimes.
Simply put, they aren’t citizens of the United
States. Terrorists shouldn’t be afforded the legal
protection of a nation they are trying to destroy.
Legal precedence sides with the U.S. govern
ment. According to CNN, “The government cites a
53-year-old case for denying the habeas corpus
jurisdiction to hear appeals of non-citizens held
on foreign soil.’’ A writ of habeas corpus would
force the court to make a ruling on the legality of
the suspects’ imprisonment. This would hamper
efforts to fight the war on terror. The military
reports that interrogations of the suspects
have yielded valuable information. Legal
maneuverings and access to lawyers would
interfere with the military’s efforts to gain
important intelligence that could potential
ly save lives.
The prisoners at Guantanamo Bay are
being treated humanely. The United States
has made every effort to ensure basic human
rights to the detainees. The prisoners have
been allowed to practice their religion. Some
have learned to read or have had other forms of edu
cation. Visits from the Red Cross have proven that
the prisoners’ conditions are more than acceptable.
The United States is committed to protecting the
rights that the prisoners do have, but this does not
necessarily include legal rights.
Last week. Secretary of Defense Donald
Rumsfeld announced that pris
oners would have their status
reviewed once a year to deter
mine if it is necessary to keep
them detained. The prisoners
were also guaranteed some
form of representation.
British Broadcasting
Corporation News stated that
those who “pose no threat to
America would be released.”
It is for this reason that the
panels to review a prisoners
status were created. The
United States is committed to
seeking justice for those guilty
and setting free the innocent,
but not at the expense of
national security.
No legal system is perfect. However, this is not a
reason to reject the system entirely. A senior mili
tary official points out that many of the prisoners
remain committed to killing American civilians and
soldiers. It is clear that releasing these men would
be a mistake.
The detainees held at Guantanamo Bay are
being treated exactly as they should be: as suspect
ed terrorists who are neither prisoners of war nor
American citizens. The U.S. government has
upheld both the legal and human rights of the
detainees.
Daniel Rossell is a junior
nuclear engineering and political science major.
... the U.S. Department
of Justice asked the Supreme
Court to deny access to
lawyers as legal defense for
the prisoners.... the United
States is being just in its
actions with the detainees at
Guantanamo Bay.