University of South Carolina Libraries
Viewpoint > 4 <* Wednesday, September 24, 1986 hhmhhmhhhhhhhhmhmhhhhhhhhhhhbhhhhhhhmhhhhhhhhhbmhmhbbmTHE H WCOCK ;? i MiiniTTTrimmmHitMiiiiw*wiwHiiiiwwiwii?iiBiii<wiiiiiii?iiwwPwri<iiiTgwiirini?TO?infiiirmiTi Don't read this "To prohibit the reading o declare the inhabitants to John Milton said of destroying books: 4'As good almost kill a man as kill a good book; who kills a man kills a reasonable creature, God's image; but he who destroys a good book kills reason itself." H f* vvnnlrl turn nvr?r in liic ornvn if hp knew about the extremes book banning has come to in today's society. American associations of booksellers, libraries, journalists, authors, publishers and college stores have banded together to support Banned Book Week Sept. 20 to 27. Celebrating the Freedom to Read, is the theme, and that's what is at stake, if we continue to listen to censors. The groups started the program to let the public become more aware of the dangers of book banning to our society. It's a danger to any society, really. What authors express in their books, and who chooses to read them is not someting to be decided by someone else. Authors write to appeal to certain audiences, and through this they plan to offer their message to a public who can listen, yet is not required to agree. Books are an indispensible source of knowledge, and we cannot form our own opinions and agree or disagree if we are not exposed to different viewpoints. That is what makes us individuals, and without knowing what the other side may think through reading their opinion, how can we properly judge them? Tn Qlpon HLjfjl to dream -By Ed ( I hud a dream the other night. I hud just eaten a big SA GA burger, a large order of fries and a milkshake. Mind you, after eating these, dreams can be pretty weird, especially mine. Andy Bclvasnaps walked into the Gamecock Grill to get some lunch. He had just finished sleeping through another calculus class and had worked un an appetite. He got in one of the incredibly long lines that always seemed to materialize whenever he showed up. "Hey, Andy! How was ealc?" a voice said from behind him. "Hey Ron, it was terrible. I slept through it again." u Vp;i H I /VI n CPP " Pan \*%A brushing Andy's mussed hair and pointing at his cheek, which was wet with saliva. "Damn! I thought 1 got it all off! It's all over my calculus book too." Submitted for your approval, the case of one Andy Bclvasnaps: freshman, hungry, ignorant. lor you sec, Andy is about to ask the magic question . . . that acts as a key ... to the SAGA /one. "Say, what arc you going to get?" "I don't know. Let rnc look on the menu. The picture of the Turkey Melt sure looks good, but you know nothing ever looks like it docs in the picture. Ihe Ham and Swiss looks good too. Hey, what's that third sandwich? The one that looks like the name's been scratched out. I can barely read it. They don't serve that here?" "What?" asked Ron, who hadn't been paying much attention to anything except an extremely short pair of white shorts in the next line. "That, up there. What ever happened to the Saucy Beef?" RtTTTTTI 771 I ~ write us a leu* Tell us what's on your mind, l.ctters must I he typed, double-spaced and only 250 words. t Include name, address and telephone number lor verification. Names will be o withheld upon request. Ciuest editorials are ti limited to 500 words. Indicate whether you are a student, a USC staff member or a com- ( munity member in letters and editorials. ( i m J f certain books is to be either fools or slaves." ? Claude Adrien Helvetius De I'Homme, Vol. 1, sec. 4. We rely on our public libraries, a place where we can encounter the workings of diversified authors and their opinions freely and openly if we choose to. We are first taught in elementary school that we can thumb through the card catalog and locate what we want to know more about. In that aspect, we are being denied a privilege of judging for ourselves. As Dwight D. Eisenhower said so powerfully in a letter to the American Library Association's Annual Conference in Los Angeles in 1953: "The libraries of America are and must ever remain the home of free, inquiring minds. To them, our citizens ? of all ages and races, of all creeds and political persuasions ? must ever be able to turn with clear confidence that there they can freely seek the whole truth, unwarned by fashion and uncompromised by expediency. "For in such whole and healthy knowledge alone are to be found and understood those majestic truths of man's nature and destiny that prove, to each succeeding generation, the validity of freedom." These organizations and others are being stifled. Thank goodness thev're do ing something about it with Banned Book Week. Let's hope this week is the start of the realization of what we may lose, besides just bound paper and ink. , ah, perchance i, burp, of SAGA Dhambliss ' All of a sudden, it got very quiet; everyone, including Ron, stepped back away from Andy. "What's the deal?" asked Andy, still unaware of the major faux pas he had just committed. "Unclean!" a cashier screamed as she threw a zillion ketchup packets at Andy, who was now filled with terror. Soon everyone else followed, throwing their extra ketchup (usually about 42 packets per order) at Andy, marking him as the offender. Four men wearing "Get Wiid Tonight" armbands over their grey flannel suits came rushing out from behind the counter and pushed Andy up against the wall. "Spread 'em!!!" they yelled. I'hc following search yielded nothing other than a Wild Pizza pocket menu. "Traitor!" one of the SAGAites cursed as he kneed Andy in the groin. "What did 1 do?" Andy yelled (in a voice that rivaled in frequency the Bee Gees with Visegrips on their collective falsetto groins) as he was dragged out of the Russell House, bound in handcuffs and ankle chains. A building maintenance man mopped the floor, the Mountain Climbers started cooking again, and things settled back into their normal, slovs pace and no one, but no one, asked, "What ever happened to the Saucy Beef?" Somewhere, propped up on a bunch of uncooked chicken patties, Andy sang a little song while tapping the straps of his straight jacket on the lioor Where, oh, where are you to-night? Why did you leave me here all atone? I searched the world over and thought / Jound roast beef. Hut you met another and, thptphhhh, you were gone. tr Ipf Kdilor here is a limit of two letters per month by Linda he same writet. Marian We reserve the rig'.it to stop printing letters John m outdated topics to make room ten new S/!y>/i! UPics- Assist Write to: Viewpoint hditor, The Desk ( iunwcock, Drawer A, Russell House, 1 'S<Wend olumbia, SC. 29208. Nens I lindd I.C?ll ?Tvs\>\AHll I tr 1/ ?fl\ *tsv\o Letters to USC democrats c To the editor: I would like to begin by commending IJ S C ' s Y o u n g Democrats for petitioning against the new drinking age. Perhaps if the legislatures are shown that students can be responsible with alcohol, wc can get our rights back. Even if you are 21, you should still be concerned about the drinking age now that you cannot go to bars with underage friends. Legally, you cannot drink with anyone under 21 (unless you are thrir narent pimrdian nr snniis^V And you can be in an awkward situation if a minor asks you to buy alcohol. One place where you definitely have a voice is here 011 campus. BACCHUS (Boost Alcohol Consciousness Concerning the Health of University Students) is a student organization that promotes responsible drinking through educational programs, offering Law student disa To the editor: 1 thought I had heard all of the arguments for or against pornography but a fresh argument has surfaced. According to uumecocK pnoiograpny euitor, Jennifer Stcib, pornography is bad "because it is a terrible use of photography" and "making pornographic photos is the worst thing one could do to a piece of film." (Photography and pornography: An obscene and disgraceful mixture; Sept. 12, 1986.) While Ms. Steib's approach is novel, it is also shallow. Most Slovenly dorm-m 1 o the editor: 1 have been a student at USC for almost two years and I am constantly appalled at the lack of care on the part of sonic other students who live in the Towers complex, or call themselves living there. I hese students call themselves adults, yet time and time again they prove to IJSC's administraton and hapless visitors that they are nothing more than spoiled little kids who need their mothers to pamper them. 1 am speaking of such matters as damaging the elevators on the week-ends and if, for some reason, they cannot stop the / yi uv*\ Sa ( W u*>v.\ i>o i o TfiGfXr>TS< Sfoi he Gameco in ( hicf \ssislHnl News I dilors Afat Iavlor Amy Delf'o Spo in# kdimr Maria i rut us JeJ Royi'tie Viewpoint hditor Ass Desk C hie! Juliet I\a<it'i H'a vn ii?ii/?i7c Mont) r.uuor nu ml ( op> /'atrick lean Jen hiff Kt-alurt"? Fdilor As? y ! den /'auia H cthmaion Da hdiloi Assistant I-futures Kdilors Kic v Moore Kathryn Jeffries In EGE PRESS SERVICE ' s/r / . Q v , I \J? \ \ \ \ V I ^if^AYa!vo4 * ^ Mm&f wii NAI&... CAUGHT WWREb-H the editor ommended for thi party planning information, supporting Designated Driver plans, and providing (at cost) Mocktails (non-alcoholic beverages) at parties. While most of the previous work in alcohol problems for students have focused on "antidnnking," BACCHUS does not find it necessary to condemn v?hol or drinking in order to deal with the harmful misuse of alcohol. Instead it recognizes the important and positive role in social and religious activities alcohol has held, and promotes responsible decision-making concerning its use or non-use. As a person and as a student yuu nave a ngiu 10 voice your opinion. Our voices combined will have an impact. The members of BACCHUS need to know how you feel about the issues concerning alcohol. We're holding an Alcohol Issues Roundtable Discussion today at igrees with porno people who decry pornography arc not concerned that "it is a terliWo iKC r?f nluilnornnliv" hut rather that it is a terrible use of human beings. Even though pornography excites, thrills, and attracts our society, we should still be objective enough to realize that any medium which reduces a person's worth to his/her genitals, buttocks, and breasts is a pathetic use of people ? not good, not virtuous, not moral. This letter doesn't mention censorship simply because often the discussion of censorship allows us tn avoid a disturbing ates called 'spoile much-needed elevator from working, they will burn the different floor level knobs into a sticky, black residue on the floor. This, of course, is done before they break out the lights in the poor carrying cage. Next, usually comes the hallway work. Despite golf matches and some very bored bicyclist who apparently thinks he is in the condensed, rectangular Tour de France, the lights in the halls mainage to be knocked out by poory aimed footballs, frisbees and other flying objects of unknown identification. And if this is not enough to set the tired student In? -It ^ PM x 'Ife Rfc ck rv Pearson Special A**lnn rls Kdilor Kdilor / Shrewsbury Hal Millard isltsnl Sports Kdilor Advisor mie Washington Hill Rogers tlogruph) Kdilor (iruduule Assl mifer Steih Margaret Re dstunl PholourHohv Kdilor nir.<i<>- <>r m vuJ Dot son Hill Clement koff/t.iuphus hdilor icy Mixson weu!" sir responsibility n 7:30 pm in the Golden Spur. If you disagree with the campus alcohol policy or the drinking age, this is your opportunity to speak out. BACCHUS is rec gnized as an important student organization on this campus and to fully represent USC we need students from every aspect of Carolina life: service groups, honor and academic, fraternities/sororities minority groups, greeks, the arts, sports, offcampus, under-age and legal, graduate and undergraduate students. By supporting BACCHUS and responsible drinking, your voice can be heard. Tami Adams, Treasurer BACCHUS Sophomore, HRTA Julie Walton, President BACCHUS ? Snninr innrnnliam graphy column issue: that is, that pornography is exploitation of people, regardless of whether we enjoy it or not. I have news for Ms. Steib and others who "don't think pornography is bad because it ex- ? ploits women, sex and JI violence ..." The child or teenager who is exploited in photographs or film and the wife who feels like a pack-mule when compared to a nubile centerfold probably doesn't care that your film has been abused. Doug Churdar Law student id little kids' 'I (who is avidly trying to read that last bit of philosophy before retiring for the night) on fire, the bathroom capers come out of their holes to finish off the job. Quickly, the sink is clogged, the showers are left dripping, cut hair is left in the sink and defecation in the latrine, toilet paper is everywhere and all other manner of insanity floating in the atmosphere. . . . some kind of living, eh? I Darrin Johnson Sophomore, electrical engineering ? 1 \ So. Vkm Hotm \ do i owe, on wee. ewe.? ir? u?-*n^-i comet pwss ttuvici | imonftt PrnHiirlian H Mark Armstrong Lewis Covington Advertising Manager Margaret Michels Islanl Assistant Advertising Manager nkl Jan Hodges udent Media s -? 1