The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 14, 1967, Image 12
Editorials Commentary
Frday, April 14, 1967 ColumbIa, South Carolin
Freedom
The Michigan State legislature is treading the sacred
ground of education again, comments the Wayne State Uni
versity Daily Collegian -
"A year ago, when the legislature tried to interfere with
the academic process by passing a resolution barring com
munists from speaking on the campuses of Michigan's state
supported schools, University President William R. Keast
answered with these words:
"'A University has no higher duty than to encour
age and protect the free and open discussion of ideas,
however controversial they may be.
"'The principles of freedom are especially precious
when they are needed most. They are needed most
when the temptation to abandon them is strongest in
those who would substitute passion for reason and
conformity for controversy.
"'This appears to be such a time.'
"The latest example of possible interference is the pro
posal to investigate alleged 'antics' on the campuses of
Michigan's three large institutions - Wayne, Michigan
State and Michigan. Presumably, this action was spurred
by the alleged preponderence of narcotics and so-called ob
scene movies on the University of Michigan campus and the
narcotics raid in the area surrounding Wayne.
The legislature is treading on dangerous ground. The
recent firing of the University of California's President
Clark Kerr shows what results when politics and education
are mixed. Any right of investigating that the legislature
might have should be tempered by the fact that institutions
of higher learning should be free from political involvement.
And just as institutions should be free from political
interference in their operation, so should the individual be
free from the institution in regard to his personal or moral
activities, and the school should not be accountable for
those activities.
"If the legislature decides to go ahead with its investiga
tion, we hope President Keast again takes the stand that
the university is an autonomous institution and as such
should be free from political pressures."
A Vote For Long Hair
Dear Mr. Elliott: and appearance smacks of
I would remind the individual Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany
who so appropriately hides behind and is the reason the Amei
the cloak of anonymity in the can Civil Liberties Union is
recent letter ostracizing boys' hard at work today.
long hair that it is an individual's I the land of the free and the
inherent right as a "free" Ameri- home of the brave I would offer
can to dress and groom his or her
self as one sees fit.
The cry that all must con- adage: Live and let live.
form to a set code of dress MARSHAL S. SWANSON
Founded January 30A 1908 with Robert Elioft ozales as the first editor,
Gansecuck is published by and for the students of the University of South Carolina
we.ekly during the college year except during hoidays and examinations.
Offices of lne Gamecock are in Roo(n 308 o the Rlusd house on the University
7 us. Phones are 765-4249 (rdltor), 7ti5-4220 (Hlushneos and Adv ertslng) and
76.18(Newss'ooms).
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ......... DICK ELLIOTI'
R1Ug1NESS MNANAGE...........ATR CREWEs
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STODENT
ELECTtONS
BALLOT
BOX
"How are a few more here and there going to hurt
:nyone?"
A Downward Trend?
Pear Ar. Elliott: tion in college and university
Current thought suggests that teaching are: (1) overemphasis
he general level of college and upon research, (2) graduate-stu
mniversity teaching is extremely (lent teachers, (3) lack of teacher
>oor. It is apparent to many, training and/or teaching experi
wen to some on the USC cam- ence, (4) lack of concern for the
pus, that teaching at the uni- individual student, and (5) large
versity level is not what it classes.
;hould or ought to be.
In this regard, Cecil Alex However, as one begins to
Mace, E m e r it u a Professor evaluate the teacher it be
of Psychology of the Uni- comes apparent that one must
versity of London, appropri- aloelutths woar
ately notes that "In passing bit agt was h
from high school to college poeso erigi o
the student must prepare him
self for the fact that he may molgu btrahrad
be going to a pla5ce in which lgebtve h ec' n
he will receive the best educa- tesuet hsdaou s
tion in the world by the* smsta hetahrfel
world's worst teachers."enesit th prcsad
A mong the reasons often sug
gested to exp)lain this dleteriora- pte.
)nathe othehehefbyl,aitemas
hesougeyasitmatlothaththerstaden
eton int thlee andocuniversta
ta hae: in(1)c ovrmpaiy
adn teheri i s, wel aso thecher
trinin andor ilteiathingt exper
Staene,s (4) rtc of ther o e
ifedfordthe student and that hare
must e assum e oibility fo
tealu e.etahri e
- i~ 'comese% apresinct thte u s
as o evae heacutabe whe must
peress ofsilearnd 5i inenotso
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hime t attn itelchera freer
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fet tahing prns siuato
the jo r hapnsiit li st
alh e sumed that the tenter
an h blityE as welJstheIi n
tan eispartmn of eaograph
Andforunathe Diealioto
-life for t e rntu entht ei
Osm.e~ het by stlw munar assue ofesponsiiifor
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English St
EDITOR'S NOTE: The
following is a reply to a
GAMECOCK inquiry on the
opinions 1 a s t semester's
exchange students f r o m
the University of War
wick, England, formed of
the USC campus d u r i n g
their stay here.
Dear Mr. Elliott:
I received your letter request
ing our views on USC and Amer
ica on the day that the last term
ended, so I was unable to show
it to the other students who were
at USC in the winter.
My criticisms of USC (I
haven't the space to comment on
the States) revolve around the
principles for which a University
exists.
In the first place, a British
university attempts to incul
cate in the student the idea of
self - discipline. Therefore we
have a great deal of time and
freedom to do our work, some
times, admittedly, too much
time. However, you feel the
need to be continually kept up
to the mark with quizzes and
tests.
In addition your system as
sumes a "well-rounded" man to
be more beneficial to society than
one who, ns in nritain, has spent
three years at college specializing
in his chosen field. Your system,
I believe, fails to produce the
scholar, the genuine article as it
were.
Student attitudes at USC, I
thought, were passive to all but
local and immediate topics; I
rarely heard or participated in
discussions on national events.
This I put down to the conser
vatism and provincialism of South
Carolina.
I disliked the fraternity sys
tem because I felt it throws
too many people of the same
background and interests to
gether when the principle of a
university is to encourage the
mixing of many people from
all walks of life and back
grounds.
But if the fraternity - system,
like football, satisfies your char
acteristic craving for "together
ness" then good luck to it!
On the social side, I felt
there were too many unneces
sarily strict rules. Surely
learning how to use freedom
must be a principle of a uni
versity, for, theoretically, re
sponsibility follows from the
use of freedom.
This is true anyway for the
Verbiage, Pomp
Dear Mr,. Elliott :
Surely I am not alone in
finding the verbiage and pomnp
surrounding the recent presen
tation of the U'niversity mace
both embarrassing and discon
certing. In fact, the students
and professors with~ whom I
dliscussed the matter have with
unanimity exp)ressed their in
credulity at the scope of non
sense involved with this ex
penisive toy.
liecause our poverty here in
South C'arolina is so obvious,
why can not concerned donors
to the l'niversity set up, say,
scholarships for ni e e d y stu-t
dents rather than indulge in
our present larmecide feast
of revolving skyscraper re's
taur-ants and golden nmaces.
Sincerely,
Heat Evokes (
Dear Mr. Elliott :
We are two girls on the thind
floor oif Wadle Ilampton dlormti
tory who are trying to studly in
the stifling heat of our room.
We realize that many others
must endure the same circum
stances because they (do not have
the luxury of airi-conditioning,
but we consider it grossly unfair
to the 18t0 residents (of this
dlormitory not to be able to enjoy
a luxury that is readily avail abde
by suc-h a simple pirocess as ad
justing a few dials.
We have been t6ld that the
air-conlditioning in (our build
ing has not been t urnedl on be
cause it is "too much trouble"
and because, despite tempera
.etter To The Edito,
ident Evalu
majority of students in England,
but the petty restrictions on the
USC campus destroyed the idea
of freedom.
In sum then, the people of
South Carolina are among the
friendliest I have met, but
USC unfortunately doesn't in
still in the student the kind of
qualities that a British univer
sity does-ones that I person
ally feel are of more use in
later life.
It has many admirable at
tributes, and perhaps my criti.
Our Mai
Whom should I bump in
Richard Nixon. Which isn't o
whole wide world these days
major problems facing mankii
nomination next year.
Touring the world, of co
image as the only Republican
perience in foreign affairs. I
town papers would kindly r
world. And that's a problem.
* *
At least, it certainly was
arrived and held an airport
he said he was glad to be
newsmen envisioned banner
GLAI) TO BE IN RUSSIA.'
grazing conditions in Afgha
Mr. Nixon requested a
face-to-face confrontation
with Mr. Kosygin. Mr.
Kosygin said he never
spoke to tourists. Mr.
Nixon held "an informal
m eetin g" with us ace
American n e w s m e n in
which he said very inter
esting things off the rec
ord. He also said things on
the record. And so it went.
Ah, for the days of
Khrushchev! Ah, Ah, for
that glorious Kitchen De
bate of 1959 which so en
hanced Mr. Nixon's fame
as an able champion of the
American Way of Life.
Ah, if he could only pick
a fight.
So for f i v e days
Mr. Nixon went all
o v e r Russia, button
holing Soviet citizens
with a friendly grin, a wari
the impression, a large chit
shoulder. "Hi, there, you w
kitchen and go a couple of r
you?"
Well, you know how unco<
be. "Peace and friendship," tU
Nixon ?"
The days passed. Mr. Nix<
you could see him arriving ba
wouldI say, "IIello, there, D)icl
You been away ?"
And then, on the very I
Moscow, when all hope seen
the American Exhibition of
a few hundred feet from the
his famed Kitchen D)ebate w
would you believe it, a ga
Soviet citizen named Mr. VTh
on.
Mr. Panov was dlelightful.
ABC, NBC, UPI and AP~ wer
What nostalgia! What a stor.v
fewv paragraphs in the dailies 1
* *
Indeedl, the event could mar
can friendship. For instead o
and embittered, Mr. Nixon wei
And there's no doubt thi
he will always have a warn1
Russian people. Or at least
the man who did so much t(
riticism Of D
ture readlings, according to the
calendar it is "not summer
yet."
We concedle that this may
seem minor and und(eser~ving oif
formal complaint, but it is our
opinion that unnhecessary pihysi
(al dliscomlfort inflicted by a
housemother should be remedied.
Since requests to our house
mother have had no effect, we
are rel yin g on the publ icat ion
of our grievance to brin~g about
the desired reaction.
We realize that our specific
prob,le,m affects onfly 180 people
on this large' campus, but we
also realize that eve.ry coed l iv
ing in a dormitory and every
man who communicme with..
ates USC
cisms are unfair. I should like
very much to hear any replies to,
or defence of, these criticisms,
and for this reason I would ask
you to publish this letter in part
or in toto, and invite replies.
I should add that America
intrigues me, and that I look
forward very much to my re
turn.
Many thanks for the oppor
tunity of unburdening myself.
I hope you will find time and
space for publication.
PETER SHELLARD
Hoppe
By Arthur Hoppe
to here in Moscow but Mr.
dd. Mr. Nixon is touring the
in order to help solve the
id. Like how to win the GOP
irse, reinforces Mr. Nixon's
candidate with a whit of ex
t does, that is, if the honme
eport that he's touring the
*
here in Russia. Mr. Nixon
press conference in which
here. The local American
headlines saying, "NIXON
And they filed stories on
nistan instead.
HOPPE
n handshake and, you got
i hopefully perched on his
ouldn't care to step in the
Dunds for television, would
perative these Russians can
ey'd say. Or, worse, "Who's
in kept smiling gamely. But
ek in New York and friends
. Ilaven't seen you aroundl.
ast day of his Mission to
ed lost, Mr. Nixon visited
Indust rial D)esign -only
very spot where he'd had
ith Mr. Khrushchev. And,
nerous, kind, cooperative
dimir Panov, 59, took him
Mr. Nixon was magnificent.
te present. What a setting!
I can only hope it rated a
ack home.
k a new era in Soviet-Ameri
leaving Moscow frustrated
t away happy as a clam.
A if he's elected President
spot in his heart for the
for Mr. Vladimir Panov,
make it all possible.
orm Mothers
co,ed( living in a dormitory is s.ubI
ject to the occasional tyranny of
a housemother.
We say "tyranny" because
we consider it lamentable that
women who are considetred(
mature enough to attend an
institution of higher learning
should be subjected to ridicil
lous rules, unfair restrictio,t5
and the whims of impersonlh
and insensitive housemot hers.
Since our particular problemh
is a result of this outdatedl
system, we feel that it merits
consideration as one mpre rea
son to alter a system so ung
mistakably prejudiced againist
the women of Carolina.
NAMES5 WITHHIEI,D HY
noII QI T