Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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The Ga This opinion page is being devoted entirely to letters from our readers. We believe it is important for the views of all students to be represented in this newspaper and since this is the last issue of The Gamecock for this semester we want to allow as. much space for letters as possible. It has been a pleasure to serve the USC community this semester and it is our sincere hope that everyone has benefitted in some way from the job we have done. Attacks on students totally unjustified TO THE EDITOR: Your latest attack on student "apathy" certainly was not in teresting, but what made it memoroble was that it appeared in the same issue with a story con cerning a fraternity and sorority fund-raising drive on April 17 which raised over $4,500 for Brothers and' Sisters, a local organization for underprivileged children. Please don't think that last Thursday was an isolated example of student involvement. Each of our sororities has its own philanthrophy; each fraternity has its own service project; many, like Chi Psi Fraternity, which regularly sends five brothers every week, week after week, month after month to the Bethlehem Community Center, are of a continuing and on-going nature. Students from USC Greek-letter organizations are serving on the boards of directors of two local civic organizations, Brothers and Sisters and the Bethlehem Center, in recognition of their tremendous efforts on behalf of those local groups. If USC students have lost interest in anything, my guess is that they have lost interest in The Gamecock, on whose pages they are insulted and berated. Your staff members might better utilize their time researching the many positive stories available to them rather than hunting for every little scrap with which to reinforce their preconceived, negative images about USC and Its students. Should your interest ever turn to positive news, I'll be happy to provide you with 29 feature stories, one for each of the fraternities and sorolties with which it is my pleasure to work. MICH AE L N. COMPTON ADVISOR TO FR ATERNITIES AND SORORITIES A damned fat wimp challenges an opinion TO THlE EDITOR: I am writing to comment on Chuck Cromer's opinion on the worth of last Monday's press council in the Russell House.I would like to say that our illustrious entertainment erditor mecock seems to be pompous indeed. Let it be known that Chuck Cromer's nearsighted opinion of the state of apathy here at USC is universal truth and knowledge. His judgement has been passed upon my poor, damned soul and I am banished to be a fat wimp forever. Yes, I will admit to not having attended the council, but there are a few students that do go to class from 9 to 3:30 everyday and thence to the library for some study or maybe the tennis courts. I am in my own world since it is demanded on students for output--a high GPR, research papers, graduate school or medical school. I would like to sit down and iaik to the editors and have personal interaction. Unfortunately, I'm here to go to school, not to critique The Gamecock. I feel that I cando that, but I also feel I don't know enough about journalism to have much helpful advice. Only this, get a new en tertainment editor that is not on a personal trip to get a larger hat size. If I be damned by Mr. Cromer for being apathetic, so be it. JEFFREY GREEN Wheeler Hill program needs Booker T. space TO THE EDITOR: I am writing in reference to the Wheeler Hill Activities Project (WHAP), which is an organization of concerned students working in poverty-stricken areas surroun ding the University. We are working with kids from these areas who are economically and culturally deprived. For the past two years the WHAP program has been providing educational and recreational activities for these kids, as well as providing the opportunity for USC volunteers to get real first-hand experience in the several ca-eer areas. The program has benefited not only these kids and USC students, but has done much to improve community relations for the University as a whole. For the past two years we have been using Benson Elementary School as well as Booker T Washington High School for educational and recreational purposes. All of a suddern the rug has been pulled out from under us. The netw USC Medical School has made plans to use Booker T. Washingtop this summer as a laboratory building. This leaves us wifl nowhere to go. We have planned an extensive summer program for over 200 kids, but without the use of Booker ,T. Washington many of our scheduled classes and programs will have to be cancelled. We feel a great disservice will be done to the kids, the USC volunteers who work with them, but most of all the Univer sity, if plans to use Booker T. for the new USC Med School are carried out. We therefore urge USC students and faculty to retain the high school for the use of the WHAP. sMail The services and experiences supplied by this type of program are immeasurable and every effort must be made to insure that the program will be allowed to con tinue in its full capacity. We haved worked very hard to obtain a grant of $300,000 from the S.C. Dept. of Youth Services and with this sum a very com prehensive program could be carried out, and a boon to the image of the University supplied by the students. Without the use of facilities at Booker T. Washington this goal cannot be realized. Please show that you care and join us in our effort to save Booker T. Washington. PATTY BAGWELL Professors have right to prosecute students TO THE EDITOR: I would like to make a few comments in response to Steve Dillingham's letter of April 24. I doubt seriously that he represents the opinions of most USC students concerning the recent pie-throwing incident. I, for one, do not share Mr. Dillingham's views. First, to say that the pie throwers were motivated by a desire to stimulate excitement rather than desire to make a fast buck.is a joke in itself. At $20 or more a shot, their motives are obvious. Secondly, to say that the recipients of the pie-in-the-eye should somehow feel honored is equally ridiculous. I feel that most people value their dignity and respect somewhat higher than the price of a pie. If making a professor appear ridiculous is the only way a student can retaliate for his own ignorance, he is more ignorant than he thinks. At what point does a practical joke become a malicious act? Different people have different viewpoints on this, but the law is stable. The pie-throwers knew what the law was and yet chose to ignore it. The professors should not be criticized for exercising their rights. Mr. Dillingham should not be so quick to criticize the professors' actions until he himself has been subjected to the same treatment. If Mr. Dillingham would like to be so "honored," I would be glad to accomodate him for somewhat less than $20. ED OVERCASH Pickenas Street bridge built for tanak assault? TO THlE EDITOR: I was not one of the people at The Gamecock's press council but I want to raise some questions which will be revealing and may help to identify some of the well springs of apathy at USC. During the late 60's and early 70's over 100,000 students were blacklisted by collaee aned Apathy, Whe universities at the request of the United States Department of Justice. At USC, who were those students, what happened to them, who is responsible and who committed the crime? The University has a very large department of International Studies composed of many former state d'epartment employes, in cluding Dr. Paul Blackstock, formerly of the Central In telligence Agency. What is the former affiliation of the other staff members? The University grounds are landscaped and fenced in such a way that there are few places in which a large number of students could congregate. The Pickens Street overpass is of an inordinate width and of structural support sufficient to accomodate a tank. Why? What is the background and training of the Campus Security Force? South Carolina is to be the atomic dumping ground and there is no technologically adequate or safe method of nuclear waste disposal or storage. The probable location of a transport accident increased with convergence. The accident will be here, not elsewhere. No one at the University especially the Department of Physics has spoken out against the Barnwell atomic waste storage facility. Why? Last summer it was reported in The Gamecock in an interview with Dr. Nicholas P. Mitchell that the University was selling student profiles taken from student records. At the beginning of this semester there was an article telling how well protected the student records are. To whom? There are other questions that are more complex, such as why can't women have equal human rights and is that related to the authoritarian establishment en couragement of athletics and the commercial exploitation of human sexuality such as bras, make up, shorts, and dresses, and is nostalgia for the 50's a political shunt from the liberation struggles during the mid and late 60's and into the 70's? Does the closure of the University prevent student unity and is that a political manuever? How many narcs (narcotics agents) are in the dorms? Is that political? Is the University system THEGAM Edito JIM H EI Managing Editor STEVE PARKER. News Editor Photography E BILL PR ATT MARl MASE Entertainment E ditor Productioni M4 CHUCKCROMER TERRYCC The Gamecock welcomes letters from read4 subject and a maximum of 300 words. They mi Pseudonyms or other aliases will not be usedi, circumstances warrant. To assist us in verify your mailing address and a telephone number right to edit all letters, not for content, but t Campus Opniin. rawer A USC Columbi eler Hill, etc. double jeopardy similar to military justice? These are some of the questions that need to be answered and what I would like to see in The Gamecock rather than sporting events and advertising. This is what students need to know. NAME WITHHELD Atheist defends his appearance on show TO THE EDITOR: Since it was my warped mind that Louis Laurich was referring to in his letter of April 17, 1 feel I should make some reply. First, the announcer on "Student Forum" said several times during the April 14 interview with me that the following week's broadcast would present someone representing the opposing (theistic) view to my own (atheistic). I might add that it seems a bit funny to me that anyone would worry about Christianity getting equal time. After all, the entire world has been hearing the Christian side of the existence of God debate for the past two thousand years, and beyond that, turn your radio on any local station on any Sunday morning and you will get all the "opposing views" you can stand. Second, atheism is not a philosophy, satanic or otherwise. This was a point I stressed over and over on the WUSC interview, but apparently Mr. Laurich's "normal" mind did not understand it. If a person says that he or she is an atheist, all that indicates about that person is his or her stand on a particular philosophical issue, i.e. whether or not they have any theistic belief. Third, as to my mind being "warped," let me say that when the time comes that my mind has become "normal " to the point where I will believe in such things as ghost (Holy or otherwise), demons, mud men, rib women, walking talking snakes, burning bushes that speak and women turning into pillars of salt, then I will have to change my definition of the word "normal." CH AR LES H. ROBERTS ECOCK r tSH Advertising Manager AR T FRANK ditor Sports Editor NG PETE FEHELEY mieger copy Desk che ON FRANK DELOACHE rs. Letters should be limited to a single DSt be signed witth the writer's true name. but the writer's name will be withheld if Ing the identity of writers, please include where you can be reached. We reserve the a meet Our snace limiatios.. Aga.