Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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viewpoints Norris'senc By WAYNE BROOKS ODinion Pace Editor Now that a new student senate has been elected, of which only 12 of the 59 senators have served previously, we can all sit back and wonder if this senate will be a better one than in previous years. Despite the fact that some members of the previous senate were productive and conscientious, there definitely are areas in which the senate needs vast improvement. The previous senate, over which Vice President Joe Drawdy presided, was plagued with many problems. Clashes between members of various senate factions often occurred. Personality clashes occurred frequently. To a certain extent, one should expect similar problems, but these problems too J- - il A - uiicn uuggcu uuwii uie senate 10 a great aegree. The widely-held view that senate meetings are conducted in such a way that merits the label "circus" is even shared by most of the senators themselves. But even the senate's "clowns and ringleaders" call it a circus, although they do not realize they are partly responsible. BUT IF LAST week's senate meeting, the first meeting of the new senate over which Vice President Garry Norris presided, is an indication of the manner in which future senate meetings will be held, the circus-like atmosphere may subside. Senate President Norris has made it clear to all concerned that there will be no monkey business in this year's senate. Norris has assured the senate parliamentary procedure will be strictly adhered to, and that conatnrc urill o/?t J..? 1 A - UVWUVU10 mu UVl V.UIU ICUUS1) CI11U glVti UUC IKjpCCl lO other members of the body. Although emotions cannot be removed from the conducting of senate business, they can be controlled. Emotional outbursts, often involving the stronger, outspoken personalities, slowed down Accident victim cit To the Editor: report, he stated I curred as I was I had originally written a Sumter Street, letter to The Gamecock to Secondly, the fri express my appreciation to was walking with di those students who showed before me; instead concern and offered help when both stepped off th< I was struck by a car on friend saw the car Tuesday, March 21. While I jump back. Unforl still wish to sincerely thank did not. Mr. Sinkl< these people, I now feel that my vision of compelled to correct seme traffic was blocked 1 inaccuracies which I feel are who was across embarrassing both to me and serves to make r to Bernard Sinkler. who wrote snmpwhnt than the report in the March 30 issue of the newspaper. As for the allege< To begin with, the accident the Columbia Poli happened at the corner of ment official that nc Sumter and Devine streets as I fault ( he was not a was attempting to cross at the time of the a< Sumter Street. In Mr. Sinkler's mention was made ( Phil Ochs Memorial Special April 6-8 p.m. on WUSC-FM91.9 L hc. i i<J *-.11 LU; senate business on many occasions. Norris promises to curb these obstacles that have held up the progress of the senate by applying strict discipline to senators. Norris also announced last week that a strict attendance policy will be enforced. More than two unexcused absences and you're out. Senators will neither be allowed consistent absences nor occasional absences. If they want to be student senators, they must uphold their commitments to serve. ATTENDING WEEKLY meetings, however, is only part of a senator's responsibilities. The actual work of the senate is not done in weekly meetings; it is done in the committees. One of the maior Drohlems that plagued the previous senate was the fact that many senators neglected to attend their respective committee meetings. Often, committees were unable to act on legislation sent to them because there was no quorum present. Many important bills remained in committee for weeks. Thus, nothing was achieved on such matters. A senator's commitment to serve still goes further than just attending meetings. He will be expected to have the initiative to do more than just what is required of him. If his intentions of serving are sincere, he should be willing to give unrivaled time and effort to the work of the senate. Too often, the work of the senate is done by only a small group of students from different factions. Many senators in the past have done no more than ? J " * - - - anctiu Hirelings ana voie on legislation that they often do not even understand. They arrived at a voting decisionsi that were not based on a detailed study of the issue. Instead, they often voted according4 to what they thought was the most popular position among the senators. Although this silent group of senators cannot be chided for being disruptive or for ill-conduct, they Har> es errors expi that it oc- at which Mr. Cresswell was To the E< ? crossing driving. Although I did not see the car before it hit me, my On beta j i * ? * eiiu mai i iriena ana several witnesses mittee, w d not cross told me that Cresswell must recent "C 1, after we have been going "at least 40." is the grai 3 curb, my all import in time to It certainly seems to me that interest a tunately, I 40 miles per hour is a bit fast er's report for a car to pass through a Ricky Bo oncoming school zone intersection during Political i by a person class hours. And although I the street was dazed at the time, I do not ( ne appear recall telling anyone I was . intelligent, "fine." I rather told concerned m " * bystanders that I was "all 1 opinion of right," by which I meant I was ce Depart- able to wa>k to the infirmary. ) one was at j.n( it the scene I apologize to Mr. Sinkler if Ne" icident), no my account was not clear ! >f the speed enough to understand. ^ t / ? i ??i * nuwcver, i ieei mai irom now Asst.N< on, I will have to take anything ^ I read in The Gamecock with a copy c grain of salt. At any rate, I Arl#IM hope this will serve to make Ptiofogn more people aware of the traffic-pedestrian problem at use. THE GAME ^ sub|ect and Pseudonym Johnny Edwards Broadcasting Sophomore cum standi to moot our ; use, Colun ?I %ZL > this year cannot be applauded for their service, because they have not really served. Senators must take their commitments seriously and adopt an active role in the senate. NORRIS DECLARED his distaste for the past bickering and in-fighting between factions in the senate and stressed the importance of working together as a body. Nevertheless, previous experience has certainly shown Norris there will always be a certain degree of in-fighting between the factions. The line must be drawn when such infighting gets to the point that it hampers the senate in its conducting of business. So how was the senate divided in the past? Most observers say the recognizable factions of the previous senate were most notably a Greek bloc that often adhered to IFC interests, and n hw nf 1 ? ? iwrAWW VI 1IU1I" Greeks who resented Greek dominance. (Some observers, however, say the senate was divided into two main groups, with, most senators on the periphery: those who believed that a certain administrator was God, and those who knew he wasn't. The observers were members of the latter group.) THE EXISTENCE of a Greek bloc in this year's senate is evident. However, things are a little different this year. The Greeks were in control of all four executive offices last year, which was to their advantage, for they often dominated the senate, especially during the first senate meetings of the year. This year, however, they do not have control of the executive branch: Both President Seamus O'Boyle and Vice President Norris are independent of the Inter-Fraternity Council. Tf mov Ko tnA 4 li-A I ^ iw cany iu preatci now productive the new senate can be. However, Vice President Norris's leadership ability and strong commitment to running a responsible senate is encouraging. Under such leadership, the new senate may be one of the most productive in years. ey committee resses appreciation litor: llf of tbp TTSP Rronflrt" TJ?- * ~ ^imuic^ ndi vey ior governor (Jome would like to thank all persons who attended our ampus Meeting" in Capstone on Tuesday, March 21. It ssroots participation that makes political campaigns ant. Again, we thank you and encourage your further nd participation. nnoitt- William Bilton Science Junior Political Science Junior rAM ECOCK John R. Weit i Stiealy Editor Wayne Brooks f a Editor Opinion Page Editor 1 Barbara Mathews | Graduate Assistant Man ward Sports Editor Fotoes Barry Glerm jws Editor Entertainment Editor Mike Hunt Patma Mark Mueller Chris Myers >esk Chief Asst. Entertainment Editor Asst. Sports Editors i Morgan Karan Wooten Bill Fitxpatrick ?phy Editor Production AAanager Ad Manager .COCK welcomes letters from its readers. Letters should ba limited to a sing la a maximum of 300 words. They must ba signed with the writer's true name, s or other aliasas will not be used, but the writer's name will ba wlthhatd if ces warrant. To assist us in verifying the identity of writers, please include 9 address and a telephone number where you can be reached. Please include ng and ma|or, also. We reserve the right to edit all letters, not for content, but 1 space limitations. Address: Campus Opinion, The Gamecock, Drawer A, nbia, S. C. 29206