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* Viewpoint Wednesday, March 18, 1987 ^ 9 Sign it 'Crusade* to sign editorials just amounts to sour grapes ?| It seems like some politicians have nothing better to do these days but harangue the press. They don't realize that it's our job to harangue them. We're the ones who are supposed to be dishing it out. But one politician has gone over the edge in his little crusade to change the press. Spartanburg Ren. CI. Ralnh navmnnn i? ackmt* journalists who write editorials to sign their name to it. No way, Ralph. An editorial is not a mysterious musing on the state of the world. It is an opinion held by the editorial staff of a newspaper. Davenport has said he doesn't see anything wrong with p it. It is seriously doubtful that editorial writers across the state think the same thing. Davenport wants to be able to hold someone accountable. But what if an editorial writer is told by his bosses to write an editorial he doesn't really feel strongly about, and it, unfortunately, offends some political crybaby? Obviously, one would suffer on behalf of many. So far, Davenport's recommendation has been rather docile in tone. The punishment, however, for failing to sign your name to an editorial would be a $200 fine. The 1_ Ml ? 1 - in nas oeen sent to the House Judiciary Committee for consideration and Davenport has attracted three other coll sponsors, including Rep. Philip T. Bradley of Greenville, the legislator who accused several unnamed persons last year of using drugs on the House floor. The bill, like its sponsors, is silly. But considering how we, the press, just seem to be causing trouble all the time, as in blowing the Iran-Contra affair out of proportion, it would be no shock at all if the bill became law. Hopefully, the legislators will realize the unsigned editorial is a journalistic tradition, not unlike those of political corruption, graft, kick-backs, and scandal. When they feel they can part with their time-honored traditions then maybe we'll part with ours. ^ Until then, find something constructive to do, Ralph. Ruthless We should consider carefully Helms' possible candidacy There have been ugly rumors circulating this week that N.C. Sen. Jesse Helms might run as a Republican can_ didate for president in 1988. After his ruthless and utterly disgusting 1984 senatorial campaign against former N.C. governor Jim Hunt, the last thing the country needs is an ultra-conservative who wants to win, no matter what. But, signals have been coming out of his political camp and his political organization, The National Congressional Club indicating his race for the presidency could well become reality. Carter Wrenn, head of Helms' political organization, said, "1 feel like Jesse Helms is the candidate that could light a fire under a lot of conservatives that are just sort of ) sitting it out right now." In other words, Helms just might be the glue that adds cohesion to the Republican party's ultra-conservative and potentially repressive right-wing. Helms may be good for the state of North Carolina, but his political ideology would be crippling for America. His style reeks of colonialism, racism, and old-fashioned plantation-master justice. Also, his double chin goes together well with his two faces. One expounds the virtues of freedom and democracy, while the other, venal one gives support to repressive regimes in Chile and South Africa. Helms is a close associate of Ronald Reagan, but ^ Reagan's brand of conservatism pales beside Helms'. Helms' conservatism can only be called one thing scary and should be fully brought to the attention of the voting public if he decides to run for president. tk\rvCl Altvl Alr\/? ll rr,,? I \ pgy o CPS Tell us what's on your mind. Letters must There is a limit of I be typed, double-spaced and no more than the same writer. 250 words. Include name, address and We reserve the righ telephone number for verification. Names on outdated topics I will not be withheld. Guest editorials are topics. limited to 500 words. Indicate whether you Write to: Vie\ are a student, USC staff member, or com- Gamecock, Drawer / munity member in letters and editorials. Columbia, S.C. 292C ? v Happy post-St Caed mile faltc. Sincc it was St. Patrick's Day yesterday, I figured I might clarify what Irish people think about this current image of Ireland 1. Don't believe what you see in Irish Spring soan rninmprriak T monw A m..ji iw muiij niuci ivaiid) Irish people do not take showers outside the house in the bushes, while whistling how fresh and clean they arc. 2. As for those "If you ain't Irish, fake it" buttons, it's a good idea, but that doesn't mean get stinking drunk. It means be happy about being alive. 3. As for the "luck of the Irish be with you," it's probably a curse. We've had civil wars for hundreds of years, famines that killed millions, economic depression, and only partial freedom for the country. I wish I didn't have the luck of the Irish. Probably wouldn't have failed that course last semester. 4. Blarney is not a bad thing. When you kiss the Blarney stone, you are gifted with charismatic speaking, the gift of gab. It is not necessarily B.S., though it could be. 5. While we Irish do drink ale and beer and Other thinizs. WC don't know where ttik nhcec. sion with 'green' beer comes from. 6. St. Patrick never had a McDonald's green milkshake before going out to convert Druids. 7. There arc no beer wolves in Ireland, no matter what Coors l ight thinks. College is now This semester has been "The Great Computer Battle." It began when I signed up for English 460, a class requiring a five-page nonfiction essay to be written each week. Since English teachers tend to prefer typed papers, I was expecting to stay up late once a week typing a paper on my horrendous electric typewriter. But the first day of class, my professor said wc could use the computers in Gambrcll Hall's Social and Behavioral Sciences lab. She asked how many of us had used word processors before. I raised my hand. I didn't own one, but I knew how to use them. "Well, a computer is a writer's best f ri^nH '' m w nrnfm-c/xr ii iviiv*, Hi; .iaiu, ailU 31IC ai ldll^CU for our class to learn Wordstar word processing on the SBS lab's IBM personal computers. 1 didn't mind learning a new computer program. One word processor is pretty much like another and any computer program is better than an electric typewriter, especially mine. But 1 heard there were Macintosh computers available and thought, since I already knew how to use that system, why bother to learn Wordstar? The next time I went to the SBS lab, I asked to use a Macintosh. "Do you know how to use one?" somebody asked with surprise. Letters to the Mockery hurts student politics C* Z III. To the editor: I think it is a shame that some I sinrprv students want to make a mockery will be t of the Student Government elec- something I The < ... , Editor In Chief wo letters per month by Roni Bea Kayne Managing Editor it to stop printing letters Amy to make room for new st^nG^yle AfAisiam i opy vpoint Editor, The oe?ktwtf V, Russell House, USC, Andy Bechte! N*w? hdllor Paula Wethington r Wi jOSU.I DON'T KHOVi p W HOW IT WORKS EMILY. f I 3U6T TALK A LITTLE 1 TELL K FEW OLD m> EVERVTW\NG J I /VVOXA ^ . Patrick's Dai %? -jflHIHKk. v ^ ! 8. Corn beef and cabbage is not a special meal in Ireland. Irish-Americans eat it. 9. As much as SAGA might like to deny it, there's no such thing as Irish fish, which was -i . . . . uncicu ntsi year on mc at. ratricK's uay menu. 10. St. Patrick was not a leprechaun. He was a saint. The stereotypes that are true 1. The Irish love racial jokes, which pick on the Irish. God invented whiskey to keep the Irish from conquering the world. Question: Is it (rue if you ask an Irishman a question, he'll answer you with another question? Answer: Who told you that? Q: Why do the Irish fight themselves? ' the battle of 1 "Wc don't have the software," another person said. "Yes, we have the software, but you can't use it until Friday," said a third. Not to pick on the SBS lab people, but it was frustrating to have to use a basic word processing program Wordstar when I'm used to fancier programs that let me see more than five lines of type on the screen. I'm also not very fond of Wordstar's cryptic commands, which have nothing to do with their results. My first English paper this semester was written on Wordstar after 1 spent five hours looking at strange keyboards and waiting to use the printer. I thought it was ridiculous and wrote my second paper on my electric editor ?s, speaking mainly of does not happen again, who ran for president candidates who ran in assumed name of SG race took it very sei ythington Farnsworth 1 feel that the stu< should take these eleci seriously rather than r ly hope that measures seem so trivial. The aken to assure that campus is bad enougl so senseless as this not need students to fe jamecock Aulitant Newg Kdltor* Sports Kdltor Todd f lines Jeff Shrewsbury Hrenda Blyth A*?lsiartt Sporti Kdltor Viewpoint Kdltor Wayne Washington Hal Millard Photography Kdltor Money Kdltor Thomas Humphrey Candy Harr Ault'anl Photography Kdltor Ktatures Kdltor Jennifer Sleib Tamara Willis (.raphlci Kdltor Aulitant Features Mltor Robb Lane Patrick Jean Y from a Mick A: So they're guaranteed of having a worthy opponent. 2. Irish people say things that seem to be completely contradictory, but make absolute sense. These are called "bulls" or "Irishisms." For example, you might get this answer if you wanted to know how long someone's been HmH Well, if he lived till next Thursday, he'd have been dead a month. or: Happy are the parents that have no children. If we all get on that bus, about half of us will be left behind. 3. But, speaking of racial jokes, we don't just make fun of ourselves. Why are Irish jokes so simple? So the English can understand them. The Irish are special. You've got New York accents, Southern accents, Boston accents, but there's only one brogue, and that's Irish. You might have guessed by now that I'm a happy little Irishboy. My mother was Irish and my father was Irish and his father was Irish and his father before him So yeah, kiss me, I'm Irish and proud of it. Oh, that phrase at the beginning is Gaelic (Irish) for one hundred thousand greetings. See, you learn something new ^yeryday. the computers typewriter but left big scrawls where I harf to edit after typing. "When can I use the Macintosh?" I kept asking. "You probably know more about it than we do," was the answer. Finally, Feb. 19 was the day I could use the Macintosh. I turned in my student I.D. for a 7 by 9 inch box containing one MacWrite word processor program and an instruction book. I put my $1.88 blank disk in the disk drive, stuffed the MacWrite disk in the computer and turned it on. Familiar patterns blinked on my screen. Then the computer said something like "This disk is not a Macintosh disk." And it wouldn't accept my $1.88 blank disk. I took the $1.88 disk back to the bookstore, exchanged it for a $2.48 disk, and tried again. It worked. My only problem so far has been the printer blinking off in the middle of printing my papers. But my teacher, I'm sure, is happy to get readable papers instead of my typewritten scribbles. I'm happy because I can use a computer I'm familiar with. And the SBS lab people are happy because I don't ask stupid questions about their new computers. The battle of the computers is over. 1 n All of the can make a public joke of USC i the recent politics whenever an election ociously and curs. We need to be involved in lent body the political process rather than tions more make a farce out of it. nake them apathy on Andy Williams ti. We do Senator-elect el like they College of Journalism v Datebook Kdltor Director of Student Media Katherine Gilbert Hill Clements Comlci (Editor Production Traccy Mixson Chuck Norris Wire K.dltor Son Ha i Gillian Smith Advertising Manager Adviser Margaret Michels Hill Rogers Anlitaat Advertising (Graduate Aulstant Manager Mary Anne Hanich Jan Hodges