The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, July 22, 1987, Page 2, Image 2
Viewpoint M<
2 ** Wednesday, July 22, 1987^ "
Bork
Nominee would bring poor
record into Supreme Court
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United States Supreme Court nominee, takes that step.
Since President Ronald Reagan entered office, he has
had the chance to nominate two justices and a chief
justice to the Supreme Court. In doing so, he has stacked
the court in his ideological favor, as any president
would. This is understandable. His nomination of Bork
is not.
The selection of Bork is all but terrifying.
The purpose of a Supreme Court justice is to judge according
to the U.S. Constitution. Thomas Jefferson
realized that times change, but Bork says he wants only
to iudce according to the "original intent" of the
Constitution.
If anyone cares to take a good look, the Constitution
was written when women were only wives and blacks
were only slaves. To say judging by these terms would
take the U.S. backwards is a definite understatement.
In 1973, under orders from then-President Richard
Nixon, Bork fired Watergate special prosecutor Archibald
Cox in the Saturday Night Massacre. Cox was
oniy aoing me jod ne was nirca to ao ? to investigate
the Watergate crisis. The Constitution's authors certainly
would not have agreed with Bork's lack of integrity.
As a judge, Bork upheld the "separate but equal"
racial doctrine during the 1960s. Yet the right to amend
was put in the Constitution for the purpose of changes
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Bork also vehemently opposes the Roe v. Wade decision,
which gives women the right to choose to have an
abortion. The possibility of repealing a basic option of
choice is frightening.
Reagan clearly has the right to nominate a conservative.
But Congress should not rubber-stamp a poor,
dangerous choice such as Bork.
Hero?
Romanticized view of North
destroys idea of patriotism
Americans seem to specialize in making heroes out of
infamous right-wingers. This "Rambo mentality" has
now stretched past the unrealistic violence of
Hollywood's movies to the political tension of Congress'
hearing room.
Some Americans find a man who lied, broke several
laws, shredded evidence and then blithely flaunted his
actions to be a hero. Amazing, isn't it?
Lt. Col. Oliver North is not a hero.
None of North's actions were redeeming. He was
helping efforts to illegally overthrow Nicaragua's Sandinista
government. He traded arms to Iran against
stated United States government policy. These actions
are far from heroic.
North testified that he was only following orders. So
were Nazi Germany's officers. But as our country
established during the Nuremberg trials for Nazi war
criminals: this is no excuse.
North has brought shame to this country. He has
made us look worse in the eyes of our allies and foes.
And for this, some people think we should support him
for president? Be serious.
Time and time again, North has shown his determination
to undermine the U.S. Constitution and overlook
the law. A real hero doesn't do that. If Americans are in
need of a hero, they should look to the average citizen
who follows the law to achieve change.
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write us a letter^
Let us know what's on your mind. Letters must Names will not be
be typed, double-spaced and no longer than 300 will not be accepted
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editorials. If you are a student, include your school Drawer A, Russell I
year and major. Carolina, Columbia, !
.
Holderman fa
1
Editor's note: This is the first installment in a
regular series of interviews to be conducted
with USC President James Holderman. The
following is excerpted from a July 1
interview.
Q: Will Richland County's decision not to
pay its $3.75 million commitment to the
Roger Arts Center by the USC payment S
schedule have any effect on the center? j
A: The only cffect it's going to have is that
we're going to have to borrow the money now (
against the pledges and commitments made to
us. It was something we had hoped to avoid
until the city (Columbia) and county had paid j
up to their full commitments, but we re not
going to let construction on the center be
impeded.
Q: Gov. Carroll Campbell's vetoes in the
South Carolina budget this past month included
a $516,000 cut for USC-Columbia.
What effect will that have on the upcoming
fiscal budget?
A: It's going to be tight, no doubt about
that. We're already short, but we'll make the
best of it. We think the governor's interests
arc very much in line with the university's,
and we understand what he was trying to I
avoid ? a mid-year budget cut, which would i
be murderous for all of us. We hope that's
been accomplished. i
We're going to have to ask all of the depart- <
mcnts to take about a 6 percent budget cut. i
They all expressed concern, but they all
recognized that the state was not generating
the kind of revenue we need for the kind of
growth we'd all like to have.
Q: Bui will tuition still not increase this fall?
[Letters to Ihe
i i i be so callou
Editorial lacks <-<* A?geic
...... the correct
historical view blem ?f th<
comparison
To the Editor: is renuonan
Your June 24 editorial shows anybody e
an all-too-typical lack of understandi
historical understanding and sen- read Elie W
sitivity. Your comparison of the is less than
efforts by Los Angeles police to the closest
place the homeless in camps run did not exj
by the Salvation Army to the of the N
Holocaust trivializes the greatest understandi
horror perpetrated by man on terror that I
man of all time. F
Frequently, our generation of
Americans will blithely compare
an unfavorable occurrence or T" pffp
1 event to the Holocaust. This is AjvIIv
absurd. Nothing our generation
has experienced even comes close 1111&&1
to the abomination of Nazi Germany's
genocide. To the Edit
By comparing the action of the Michel Fi
Salvation Army, of all groups, to editor in th
the organizers of the death has some f
camps, you have shown an ap- seems out c
palling lack of sensitivity. Your facts its 1
last sentence, presumed to be newspaper <
dramatic, is grotesque. Ap- While mi
parcntly, in this case, the Salva- have expe
tion Arrny is trying to feed and studies sho
aid the homeless in this camp ? often the vi
and you cavalierly toss off the ex- offenders,
pression "gas chambers." only to thei
J You obviously do not unders- Also ala
land what kind of horror you are claim that
talking about, or you could not blem has be
1 VTheTG
withheld, and pseudonyms
. A limit of two letters or I Editor in Chief
>y ihe same writer exists. Patrick Jean
I to edit letters and editorials
i, grammar, taste and clarity. niews iLUHOr
ight to stop printing letters Mary PCQfSOn
lated topics. Viewpoint Editoi
nt F-.ditor, 7he Gamecock,
House, University of Soutf Katherine Gilber
S.C. 29208.
ices student p
In the spotlight
James
Holderman fj !
Not this year, but I tell you ? and I hope
:his is not the headline ? I don't see how we
:an avoid a tuition increase in 1988 unless a
dramatic turnaround takes place.
Q: What are the primary arguments for the
Educational and Carolina Research and
Development foundations' not responding to
Freedom of Information requests by various
groups and media?
They are not public bodies. If you went
down to IBM or AT&T and filed an FOI request,
there would be no difference between
filino it thpro and filino it with rhf? fminHn
tions. They are all privately constituted bodies
under the laws of South Carolina.
The foundations have been the best thing
that ever happened to this university, and I
don't understand the suspicion and criticism
of them, when everything they do is geared to
USC's benefit. We wouldn't have our
scholarships, nor would we have completed
the Swearingen Engineering Center or begun
the Kocer Arts Center, without them
Q: What are the specific plans for Pope John
oHitrw
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s. I do not believe the decades." Only whe
s police have found "problem" is gen
solution to the pro- uselessness can or
; homeless, but your homeless situation ir
of it to the Holocaust States has not chang
t. I suggest you and years. Incredible c\
lse who lacks an income housing ai
ng of the Holocaust institutionalization o
iesel's book, Night. It tients have swelled t
110 pages long and is the homeless. Whil
that those of us who problem has its on
jerience the genocide mid-1950s, the form
azis can come to accelerated by the
ng the confusion and President Ronald R<
the Jews felt. 1980s.
tiehard Sehellhamrner What's most distu
History graduate Frendian's letter, th
unsympathetic posit
rwritpf t^ie ^ome'ess hun
TTlIlvI Where are the right
__ _ |? j who must endure i
fig IStClS searches of their
because of their
or: status? We all may I
-endian's letter to the live guilt about inj
ie July 15 Gamecock seem insurmountable
lood arguments, but a lifestyle we do not
if touch with the very A mature, cle;
writer accuses your public should reali
Df ignoring. homeless problem
my homeless persons away simply by mov
rience with crime, sight. There must
w they are far more humane solution, a
ctims of violence, not eradicating the ego
Most are dangerous positions like Frendi
roselves. begin to find it.
rming is Frendian's I congratulate Th
"the homeless pro- for its willingness to
en present in L.A. for stances on this and
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Features Editor Graphic
Andy Bechtel Robb L
Sports Editor Comics
Richard Breen Tracy A
r Photography Editor Adviser
t Nick Leoncavallo Bill Rot
l
iress' queries
Paul li s visit to The Horseshoe on Scpl. 11?
A: The pope will enter at the northern gate
in the 'Popemobilc' about 5 p.m., ride
around The Horseshoe, get out at the President's
House, enter and meet members of the
board of trustees and distinguished guests.
He'll then walk out on a platform at the west^ I
door, since crowd exposure is an optimum.
I'll introduce him, and he'll speak to the
crowd for about 10 to 15 minutes. Then he'll
rp.fntpr thp home and have a session with
about 26 other ecumenical leaders from
across the country. They'll leave, and he'll
follow them to Williams-Bricc Stadium for an
ecumenical prayer service.
We want strictly a university family here, so
The Horseshoe will be closed to everyone except
students, faculty and staff. The west end
of The Horseshoe will be closed; people will
enter the east end through magnetometers.
We'll have all nine campuses participating,
and we expect 25,000 to 30,000 people.
Q: There seem to be persistent rumors about
your resignation - the latest one being that A
? ? ? j - ?
yuu wuuiu step uuwii unci mc jjupv s visit. . .
A: They've been around for 10 years. I'm
either going to be ambassador here or president
there or cabinet officer anywhere. It's
just not true. I think the challenge here continues
to be very exciting. A lot of work remains
to be completed, and I plan to stay
around for it.
The only people who ever ask me whether
I m going to resign arc newspaper reporters.
They seem to keep it alive; it might be wishful
thinking on the part of some reporters, but
there's nothing to it.
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:n the word and hope its bolder editorial
eralized to policies will continue through the ^1
le say the fall.
1 the United David DcWitt
ed in recent Theatre graduate
jts in lowOmental
Pt Column writer
ehethe"LslteI- deserves pity
igins in the
ier has been To the Editor:
policies of While I do not consider the
:agan in the theories described in Ben Wat
iciiDcrg s i ne airin ueartn to he
irbing about of any major significance, 1 was
ough, is its nevertheless alarmed by
ion towards Katherine Gilbert's July 15 colnan
being. umn concerning the subject. Acs
of citizens cording to Gilbert's interpretaunwarranted
tion, the woman who is a "simple
possessions childbearer" is demoted to some
low-income sub-human level, "stripped of
feel a collec- humanity and dignity." It seems
justices that Gilbert's phraseology indicates
: or a fear of that she feels "simple" childbearunderstand.
ing is demeaning to women,
ar-thinking It fills me with a nameless sorze
that the row to even suspect that a woman
will not go considers her natural function
ing it out of and biological purpose in life to
be a more be dehumanizing. If this is how
nd only by you feel, Katherine, 1 sincerely
centrism of pity you. It is you who is stripped
ian's can we of humanity and dignity when
you insult the true essence and
e Gamecock meaning of your sexual identity.
* take strong Jeffrey Norwood
other issues Media arts junior
I
s Editor Director of Student Media
ane Bill Clements
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fixson Chuck Norris
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Margaret Michels