University of South Carolina Libraries
I n n opinion "It is a newspaper's duty to print the news,and raise hell." --Wilbur F. Storey, Chicago Tribune Education Rip-Off The teachers of the Detroit school system are striking because they don't want to be rated by their school ad ministrators. An 18-year-old graduate of the San Fran cisco school system has filed suit against that system because he cannot read properly nor fill out job application forms after twelve years of schooling. These two incidents in two different parts of the country may not be an accurate or all-inclusive index to the state of the educational process in the United States, but they certainly don't lay down a spirit of optimism with which one can look to the future. In our own state, the Charleston County School Board recently launched a massive rehabilitation program called "operation bootstrap" after national testing showed that county's youngsters where consistantly and dangerously, below the national average in reading and mathematical skills. The real dilemma growing out of this possible decline in public schools is that the nation's universities become the recipients of the grossly undereducated. USC doesn't appear to be an exception. But before we resign ourselves to a state of mind in which we determine that the proconsul does indeed exist and is populating our freshman class in semi-moronic splendor, let us consider those whose task it is to ossify the student mind with knowledge. Last spring an anonymous professor published a book entitled "The Easy Life of a Professor," in which he asserts that "The Ph. D. has become a liscense to steal, inasmuch as the position of college instructor demands little work, less intelligence, and no courage .. We could not find a copy of the book published by Arlington House on Campus (and we are sure it will be banned if it ever arrives), but quoting from a review by S.K. Overbeck (associate editor of Newsweek) in the Washington Post we find the following summarization: "Professor X, more with wistful resignation than ire, refutes some of the most popular academic cliches, such as the old publish-or-perish line by which the scholars either excuse their lack of advancement or unwillingness to teach a full load of classes." Overbeck cities some telling quotes from the book about the entrenching quality of the Ph. D. regardless of its owner s competency. "Short of playing around with the co eds, a professor cannot be fired no -matter how wretched he is as a lecturer (know anyone like that?) how lazy he is or how little he publishes." Professor X cites an HEW stuldy which supposedly reveals that 75 per cent of Ph.D.'snever publish anything beyond the doctoral. dissertation. The general state of academics therefore seems to be predicated on two notions: that of the quality of the student produced by the public school system which feeds the universities, and that of the quality of the university faculty. USC has no comprehensive teacher evaluation in which ratings have had a direct bearing on the continuance or discontinuance of a faculty member. Secondly, this university does more to encourage the undereducated to enroll and once here, stay enrolled, than it does to discourage them. The primary reason USC recycles flunked-out freshman, and encourages those achieving low entrance scores to petition, or.try again, is that the USC budget granted yearly by the General Assembly is determined by a formula in which enrollment figure (sheer numbers) take precedence. Professor X concludes that higher education may be one of our nation's most over-priced and inefficient institutions. It has to be neither of those in a state where national rating extremities have been only reached in such categories as incidence of V.D. and per-captia income, we're wondering which way we're headed in higher education. PET,, Clarkson To the Editor: I think the students owe Robert Clarkson a great deal. Fpr the first time since I have been at the University of South Carolina(and i'm a senior) sorfeone in Student Government is actively trying to save the students' money instead of trying to spend it. He is doing an excellent job of showing the fraud and outright theft going on in the Student Allocations Commission. He is demonstrating that the mandatory student activity fees (SAFs) are being wasted and spent on ac. tivities which are blatantly political. But, I believe we should go one step further and look at the very nature of the 26.00 dollar SAF. It is time that the students be allowed, on their own, to decide how to spend their money. It is not fair that others decide what organizations each person on this campus gives to. The mandatory student activity fees account forS412,736 this year. It is tyranical for someone else to think they know better how to spend my money that I do. Besides the involuntary nature of this taxation, students are also subjected to abuse and misuse of their funds - as Mr. Clarkson is so aptly pointing out. Think about it - lust how much control do you have over where your student activity fee goes? You have none. .The vast majority of students at this university have no idea where their money goes or what is done with it. This is an in. tolerable situation and one that the members of the Student Allocations Committee are afraid we, the students, will rise up against. If organizations are going to spend our money, than they should be required to orint Craft Ebbing Hot P/ The first meeting of the Special Student Senate Commission for the Study of the Feasibility and Desirability of Individual Portable Cooking and Heating Units in Matriculating Student's Residence Abodes (some times referred to as the Hotplate Committee) was held yesterday afternoon at the third table to the left of the first pinball machine in the Campus Club South. Chairman of the S.S.S.C.S.F.D.I.P. C.H.U.M.S.R.A., Sen. Beauregard Ashley Peachtree said,"I deny fully and wholeheartedly the scurrilous and if I might be so bold as to say, villainous attacks that have been leveled upon me personally by some of my colleagues int the Student Senate. I say,and you can quote me on this, even though you do write for the Gamecock, that I have no intention of using my high office as presiding officer of this blue ribbon panel, which remindes me, Hank, another round! "Now where was I before I was so rudely interrupted? Oh yes, I have, and can state this without fear of con tradiction, that I have no intention, and I can't em phasize this too much, none, of using this high office as a stepping stone to the Governor's Mansion." "Oh for Chrissakes, Beau, dry up would .ya? " said Sen. Peter J. Mellowhead, "You see, Bob, I tried my damnest to get off of this turkey, but Leventis threatened to take away my football tickets and I'm making quite a considerable amount jack palming them off, after all we don't get stipends anymore."~ The Commission was formed last Wednesday after a long debate on the Senate floor failed to deid whe m.e urMa and distribute a financial statement each semester. Just what is Student Government doing with the $65,5000 it has, and how about the Gamecock, with its $35,755? It's time for a shakeup - it's time for honesty to enter politics right here at,USC. It's time for a change - don't hope for one - demand it! Michael Trinkley Clarkson Again To the Editor: The Gamecock has featured several articles concerning Senator Clarkson's charges against various campus organizations. Clarkson has stated that Associated Women Students (AWS) spent money promoting the Equal Rights Amend ment. This is not true. I could not recall any funds spent towards the passaage of the E.R.A. and to check I, too, went through Dean Robert Alexander's file on AWS. The files show no record of any such expenditure. I suppose that Sen. Clarkson must be con fused about the AWS-Student Government sponsored "Women and Men, Partners in Humanity" week. The week was planned in hopes of increasing awareness and un derstanding betweeen men and women, not in passing the Equal Rights Amendment. As a result of Ithe many discussion groups (on a varied range of topics that did not include the E.R.A.) some interest as well as opposition grew in the E.R.A. If If a program inspires a person to take a more active interest In the world in which he lives, then I do not see how it ate Comm BY BOB CRAFT Associate Editor the Student Senate could "in good conscience" support a resolution that would, in the words of the resolution, "place the full and not un weighty support of every student to Life, Liberty and the possession of one (1) and only one (1) hotplate when the student is residing in one (1) of the many clean, comfortable, spacious and modern residence halls on the University of South Carolina campus in Columbia, S. C." The first two portions of the resolution, that of Life and Liberty were passed, despite a filibuster by Sen. Robert Clarkson who said that he "wasn't giving nothing to nobody," by a majority of the Student Senate with several ab staining. It was on the third point that the resolution ran into trouble with the student ] lawmakers. The attacks on this point of the resolution came fast - and - heavy,"Listen you clown, tenl yore mama about those hotplates because I don't wanna hear about it," from some Senators, while the support also was lively and brisk, "Are you saying then, Senator, you would have students to go hungry? I am surprised and chagrined by your position. There are students on marginal budgets who can't afford to go out of their dorms to eat. It takes a l lot of money to gas up a Z 28!" t s And so as the hour was i getting late, already most of C the happy Hours in town were C over, the Student Sennae can be condemned. It cannot be called ''using f#4nds for political and semi-political ac tivities.'' Mary Vickers Nuclear Plants To the editor: All of us within 350 miles of any nuclear fission power plant are in direct danger of having toevacuate our homes, businesses and industries, possibly for years, because of an accidental release of redloactivity from the plant or from trucks carrying its wastes . These plants are producing deadly radioactive fission garbage which must be safeguarded for thousands of years at tax payers'expense. This hazardous perpetual care problem has not been solved. Some radioactive pollutants require thous3nds of years to decay and lose their insidious deadliness. Since we cannot clean up after atomic mistakes, we must prevent them. THE TASK FORCE AGAINST NUCLEAR POLLUTION is conducting a national petition or moratorium campaign which I endorse and support. The Task Force is collecting signatures on the following statement: "I, the un dersigned , petition my Representative in Congress to develop safe sources of clean energy - especially sun-power plants must be phased .out of operation as quickly as possible." Please send your signed stat.ement with addresses to the writer at 72 Juarez Court, Columbia, S.C. 29206 William R. Moore Ittee heard and almost passed a motion to table the resolution. At this point, Sen. Rodney Shealy (R- Lexingt, oops, wrong Shealy) stood up and proposed that a special committee be formed to study the matter. "That is frivolous and the chair will not allow it," said Leigh Leventis, president of the Student Senate. However, Leventis relented when 3healy said that he was perfectly serious. So, the Special Student Senate, etc. was formed nder the chairmanship of sen. Peachtree. "Despite the charges that we are a do-nothing Com mission formed to hush up Shealy, charges, I might add that come from some of those barefoot hippies who are in league with the Executive Branch, we feel that there is a real need for this Commission's work. Most students don't give a lbootenhell about bleeding -ieart causes such as the prevention of turning Green Street into a super highway r chopping down trees on the EIorseshoe. Here is something that really affects ;he,students, the right to own heir own hotplate without ear of seizure from God or Vian. This is the sort of thing hat strikes close to heart of hvery Carolina student. Or a ittle lower, eh? " Sen. eachtree smiled. I had to agree with the enator, it struck me a little awer. "You see, this is the sort of hing that will reinstate tudent confidence in the ;ood ole SGA. This is the sort f thing that Student lovernment should be doing. Lank! Another beer!"