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Viewpoint 6 Wednesday, April 2, 1986 fiAfl'irrnrii"???i??imbii? iiwpiiiiiiiiiniiniMiniiiii III niiuiiMiinwiin iimi?i mm Murder Who will bt of AMA's I According to a recent decision by the American Medical Association, murdering relatives by starvation and dehydration has become legal.. The only prerequisite needed is that the unfortunate victim be in a coma. The removal of life-support systems from terminally ill patients is different. The human body has the capacity to breathe on its own without help from outside sources. If a person cannot breathe on his own, it is questionable whether or not that person is alive. But it has been proven in everyday life by people all over the world that a body cannot feed itself without a certain amount of mobility. A person in a coma obviously does not have this ability. Infants cannot feed themselves, but usually they can breathe on their own without any help from parents. Patients with strong cases of the flu cannot feed themselves either. Quadriplegics do not have the ability to reach for food, but society has not cut them off from the basic staples of life. Thus, a distinction should be made between taking soEaster delica but, alas, no I went to Connecticut over the F.aster weekend to visit a friend of mine. His name is David and he goes to a totally apathetic little school named Weslyan. Everybody is so relaxed and casual it's disgusting. Now mind you, I'm not making fun of the school or the people who go there, it's just that Middletown, where it's located, is such a sudden change from the bustling metropolis of Columbia. I started off the trip on an Eastern DC-9 from gate 11 of Columbia's airport. 1 talked to a guy named Mike, an engineering student here at USC, on the way up to Charlotte. We talked about everything from the wacky NCAA's to Bates to how if you passed through the earth's magnetic field at a sizable percentage of the speed of light holding a iron rod in your hand, you would be electricuted. from Charlotte to I.a Guardia in New York 1 sat next to a guy from Long Island. He was also a ( 1 e m son graduate. I started off my weekend in Connecticut with a really good beginning. David and I were sitting around in his room talking and we woke up his roommate. He had to get up at 6 a.m. to get read> for crew. He wasn't exactly in the greatest of moods when he got back, either. His boat had "caught a crab" while rowing and had lost the race. Catching a crab is getting your oar caught underneath the boat, which means you can't row. Saturday night we watched "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." There's that one scene where King Arthur has an argument with a peasent over how a strange lady giving out swords is hardly the basis lor a well designed socio-economic government. It went over really well with the liberal element on campus. Mind yon, these are the same people who sing Simon and Garfunkel during the baseball game on Saturdays. The Gamecock needs youi press your likes and dislikes \ ter to the editor. Letters must be typed, dout a maximum length of 300 wo include the writer's name, ad< number and where the writer for verification. l etters should also inclut writer is a student, staff member. Guest editorials mu ? next victims legal' killings? meone off life-support systems and refusing them the breath of life through nourishment. The former can be excused as God's will. The latter can only be explained as society's morbid and barbaric tendencies. It cannot be proven beyond question that comatose patients do not feel any pain. Would you like to take the chance that a loved one may be dying a torturous death? The question would be dif ficult for anyone with a conseicnce to answer without lingering doubts. Yet, doctors in support of the recent AMA ruling obviously have no qualms about the situation. If killing by starvation and dehydration is allowed, one can only guess about the horrors in store for the future of euthanasia. The next victims , of life termination may be the ' senile. They may be the elderly. They may be young crippl ed people. A line has to be drawn somewhere. It is scary that the line may be drawn by doctors ? those who have taken an oath swearing dedication to a profession supposedly concerned with bettering the lives of others. ^ icies tasty, SAGA pizza Sunday morning, David dragged me out of bed at 6 to cycle 26 miles with him to l.ong Island Sound. The roads were full of potholes, and 1 got sunburned. We had some orange juice at McDonalds along the way and had an interesting experience. This man, all dressed up, was eating breakfast in his van before no wcni 10 r.aster services. Herolled up a straw wrapper and tossed it out onto the parking lot. David picked it up and handed it back to the man, stating, "Excuse me. Are you through with ihis? 11 so, I'll throw it away for you." The man then threatened to get out of this van and kick a certain part of my friend's anatomy. The reward, however, was well worth the effort. When we got to Brand ford, we ate a huge Easter brunch at the Pine Orchard C ountry Club, of which some friends of David's were members. Hoy, I'm talking non-SAGA delight here folks. Ires h croissants, crepes, strawberries, omelets, sausages, bacon, pasties, ham, potatos, fresh fish, cream cheese, bagels, etc. Hoy, was I full, but boy, is my butt sore. m r opinions. Hx- 500 words and >y writing a let- turc. Photos c? The Gumeco ile-spaced, with letters a montl irds. rhey must will only be w lress, telephone and pscudonyn can he reached The Gamecc letters and gues Je whether the returned. Sen or community Gamecock, Dr st be limited to umbia, S.C. 2<i [WLi BE? Press needs return to role as 'watchdog' To the editor: Three sharp raps on the head for you and your inane editorial of March 24, concerning the sex scandal at Brown University. Undoubtedly, the prostitution scheme uncovered at Brown will temporarily mar its reputation. But to suggest that the university is being victimized by the media shows a cataclysmic ignorance of the media's functions in our society. Back to Journalism 101! In Journalism 101, if you will remember, you learned of the functions of the press. One of these functions is to act as a watchdog over government and other concerns that would seek to conceal information from the public. What do you want? Should the media in Providence ignore the story because it will embarrass an Ivy League school with some very rich alumni? Would the story be any less important if it happened at a technical college? Certainly not. It is entirely appropriate that Brown be expected to defend its reputation in the wake of such an incident. And it is entirely appropriate that the press should call them to task. A /-lAncn't rftfntn t U m ?-1/ ? m "IUV.IVI v/fc? V4UVJII I ltlU.1V IW 1/rtI l\ Utvamc of the status of the intruder. The media shouldn't, either. I don't want any of your watchdogs guarding my house. Lynn Morris Journalism graduate Vandals' 'art work' defaces USC campus To the editor: It seems that certain individuals feel that they have no way of expressing their political opinions other than vandalizing state property with green paint. Not only does this detract from the beauty of our campus, but it costs the university a fair amount of money to repaint the walls, clean the windows, replace picture frames, and so forth. The vandals obviously don't care whether or not their tuition goes up, but why should the rest of us pay for their "art work?" These persons have access to a number of groups for expressing their ideas, ranging from the left-wing Alliance for Peace to the right-wing College Republicans. And in betthe writer may submit a picin not be returned. ^ ck will print no more than two J( \ by the same writer. Names <;, withheld by special exception 1 is are not allowed. * )ck reserves the right to edit N t editorials. Letters will not be Ji d letters to: Editor, The A awer A, Russell House, Col'208. ^ 5t foreign: horror flk ween is a group for every political taste (including none), The Gamecock editorial section, and the Athenian Debating Society. They have defaced Gambrcll, Hamilton, Minn, and the BA Building as well. Kike all of iiv thocp nmnlp in wtmf lln>v'ri> But it doesn't take much to see that if they spent their time keeping current and making reasonable proposals, lawmakers might even listen. Instead, they run around damaging property like everyday hoods. What a waste of intelligence and good intent. Ncalc Johnson History sophomore Confederate flag flies as symbol of history To the editor: As a graduate student in history 1 want to thank Mr. Hughes for saving me a great deal of time and effort with his letter to the editor on March 26. This aspiring journalist, astute historian, and master of the arts of reasonable discourse and good spirited debate has finally figured out the causc of the Civil War. Why didn't I think of it? It's easy. "An oppressive and ever expanding government bent on usurping the responsibilities of selfgovernment . . ." forced war upon freedomloving Southerners. The Confederate Army, fighting "for all its citizens," tried but failed f A f nrn Karl/ f fn/lnrol AnL-lounKt caur IV/ ivaiaa vuvn mv ivuctai V/li^lHU^IIl :>(?}"> Mr. Hughes, we should fly the Confederate flag in honor of these brave men. Now, thanks to Mr. Hughes, I can sell my history books and do what I want to do: go fishing. But before I pull out my tackle box and sharpen my hooks, I believe I'm entitled to a retirement speech. And since the Confederate flag is so dear to me, I might as well figure out a way to defend it. Mr. Hughes is right. Southerners did believe that the Federal government was oppressive. But he forgets to ask why. Southerners believed the federal government was oppressive because it threatened the in stitution of slavery. Mr. Hughes is correct again. Southerners did cherish the principles of self-government ? that is, as long as selfgovernment was meant for white men only. So, racism and slavery were at the heart of the Civil War. Mr. Hughes just didn't look deep enough. Vet this doesn't mean that slavery was the only cause. Why do men fight anyway? Who knows? My family comes from the mountains KI * U / ' i: nri it f ui i^uihi ^uiuima. i ncy were smau larmers. I don't believe any of them owned slaves. In litor in Chief Maria Fraius Jarisa J. Porto Viewpoint Kdlior imaging Kdlior Carl Dawson 'ri Rowe Spotlight Kdlior i?py l?e*k Chief lid Chambliss inda Taylor Ak<ti<tianl Spotlight F ??istant Copy Desk Chief Stephen Guilfoyle uddy Moore Patrick Jean ew* Kdlior Sport* Kdlior iliet Nader John Hoyette uislant News Kdlior* A*?l?l?nl Sport* Kdil 1al Millard Jeff Shrewsbury aula Wethmyjon Photography Kdilor mine** Kditor Ray Gronbern 3 Jj^ ZK. fact, they detested the planters of eastern North Carolina. But I know several of my ancestors fought for the Confederacy. Why? They could have fought out of a sense of pride, for their state or for their families. In fact, knowing those mountaineers as I do, many probably fought for the hell of it. History, like life, is complex; there are no easy answers. Yet I, too, believe that the Confederate flag should fjy over our State House ? but only if it helps us remember our historv. Taken in the right way, the Hag can give us a sense of historical continuity, for those people grappled with some of the same problems that we face today. We arc still trying to balance state and national power within a federal system. More important, racism is still a part of our lives. Blacks and other minorities are still trying to define their rightful place in American society. If the Confederate flag helps us remember that we arc not alone, let it fly. But \ if it serves merely as a symbol of regional chauvanism, let's rip it down and replace it with another symbol. We won't have to look far, because a more inclusive symbol now already hangs from that same flag pole ? the American flag. Now I can go fishing. Mitchell Case History graduate Oldest campus group uunnfc mora mamharc uia^u VI \p IIIUIIIUUI O To the editor: In February of 1806, an organization, known then and now as the Clariosophic Society, was founded at the University of South Carolina. The Society (which, incidentally, founded The Gamecock in 1908) would like to use this opportunity to address the University community. We wish to make clear that the Society is an active group, recognized by the university as a fully licensed organization. We are a student group dedicated to education through debate and discussion, and take great pride in maintaining the Society's traditions in this our 180th year. We cordially invite interested and capable students to participate in and benefit from membership in the Society, as have John C. Calhoun, General Wade Hampton III, Thomas Cooper, Bernard Baruch and many other distinguished individuals. Richard Davis, president Robin W. 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