The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 17, 1988, Page 3, Image 3
Viewpoint I
Wednesday, February 17, 1988 THE GAMECOCK 3
Robertson
Candidate's blatant fa
#> make legitimacy quest
Republican presidential candidate Pat Rob<
saying some disturbing things lately. We wonc
just grasping for news coverage and a boost tc 1
is he really this loose-lipped? Either way, h
himself look like a responsible man, let alone a >
This past weekend, Robertson claimed that
faced with a conflict between his religious
presidential duties, he would resign. It's not h<
agine a scenario in which Robertson's conserve
fundamentalist beliefs might be put to the tes
duty. Robertson said he'd walk away from the
his religion comes before his duty to his
preferences are so important he would prcfei
^ rather than violate them. Wouldn't that in
obligation to carry out the duties of the offi
We'd prefer to think the president should put a
and confront his job without a reason to copo
Also this past weekend, during the Republica
day, Robertson said Soviet nuclear missies were
_ _ 1 _a? r a1 i a/-^ i t n n ^ 4 .1
violation 01 me ivoz u.^.-^oviei agrccmcni ma
missiles could be placed in Cuba. This surp
Robertson in the hot seat. Eventually, he adn
"firsthand information" to substantiate his op
ed instead, as The State reported Tuesday, that
for certain that those missiles aren't there." Th<
Of course, the administration officials dei
claim and said they had "extensive intelligenc
agreement had been followed. Why would I
Reagan, who has so adamantly insisted on a s*
the Soviet Union maintain such strategic weanp
? Robertson know that he doesn't? Apparently
trapolated his information from a recent speed
R-N.C., which mentioned nothing about Cul
only accused the Soviets "of reneging on their
on-site inspections to verify their absence"Th
son's claim suspect and the man himself look
? p /mi t /> n r\ 1 ri ? Vx * ? r 1 11 i r% r? I f
una ihjw tic uauuica uy uii
Another Robertson statement this past week<
Robertson still claims that through prayer he
ministry, the Christian Broadcasting Network,
Gloria move from CBN headquarters in Virgir
to sea. The man is entitled to his beliefs. Bi
potential future president thinks he can help alt
Where does that logic end? We'd prefer to thir
in operating on the only powers of which he c
are his own skills and experience.
^ Robertson has no political experience. /
** doesn't think he can make up for that deficie
God's interference. Prayer is one thing. Sayii
hurricane's path through it is another. Again,
a copout, for he can always fall back on praj
and us ? out of disaster. Or so he says.
These statements and several others make
Robertson expects to run this country. The sat
his candidacy? On faulty deductions and m
i fanaticism? Robertson has made no secret of t
I a plan for the moral restructuring of this nati<
what the president is for. The president makes
world bv eettine thines done throueh nolitical
our families and our religious leaders to give u
And if that's what Robertson wants to do
i reassume his ministry. He's making it cleai
. v qualified for the job of reverend than he is for
1^
j CPS ^ ^ ^ ^
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The iiameci
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Letters Policy: Tht (*mtcoek ?*tll try lo print klleri rrctivtd. Ut?r? ?ho
wordi long. (iunt edltorlili thould not t\c?*4 500 wordt. Wr rr??r?e thf (Ifthl
llbe1. Tht (iamtcock will not withhold mmrt under any clrcum?t?nc?. I.*llen
Social Security numbtr.
__
t
WlM
ct errors
lonable \
srtson has been
ler whether he's f yflj
lis candidacy, or J
c's not making \
/iablc candidate.
as president, if
duties and his V
ird for us to imitive,
right-wing, \vlm rS
t by presidential \ (nW
test. This means
country. Those ^
r to leave office
tcrfere with his
_ r : j ao
ce 01 presiueni:
side his devotion
ut.
n debate on Suni
still in Cuba, in
it said no nuelear
rising claim put
flitted he had no
tinion. He claim4
4 nobody can say - - ' *
cnnnH lr\oir
&5SS Nothing w
5resident Ronald
ound defense, let , . . ? ,
n . , Jack Kemp, the football play
onry? What does Republican
congressman from New
y, Robertson ex- shown his true colors.
1 by Jesse Helms, In a debate Sunday, Kemp was lister
bail missiles, but President George Bush talk about the
nrnmicp tn allnw tion's policy concerning the Soviet Unii
promise 10 ano gradually withdraw troops from Afgh;
IS m^KeS KOoert- Bush said the administration was mc
irresponsible. Is because he wanted to "give peace a cli
without basis? And Kemp pounced.
?Ild causes worry. Kemp told Bush and the other cani
and his television l'iey s'lou'd t>e ashamed, as conservatr
mnHp Hurriranp phrase such as "givC pCaCe a chance'"
, maae nurrieane ,, js shamcfui for Republicans,
iia Rparh anH nut .1 1
M ~ ? - 5UI Villi IU rt^UliaiC IIICIIIMJIVC:* wil
it this means the used by the Speaker of the House, J
er natural events. D-Texas, Kemp said repeatedly.
ilr hp QhnnlH trncf So what choice do the voters have?
an be sure which T ' f* * Cha"CC' wt
' give a chance:
Now there's a platform for you ? '
V.Ild we hope he For President, Give War A Chan
ncy by relying on almost as good as Pat Robertson':
lg you changed a "Vote For Robertson, And He'll Kil
it gives Robertson yu{ w|iat Kemp and Robertson are 1
'er to pull him creating a situation the more mains
rr-onlars will have no ehoicc but to
; us wonder how ?^
ne way he has run I l| Q M
isguided religious
he fact that he has
on. But that's not As spring break begins to appear on
a difference in the a vuari=ly of strange tidings are in the
,,, , Perhaps the creepiest story of the pa
avenues. We have was t^e (jeath 0f child actress Heathe
IS moral guidance. the girl from Poltergeist who forbodii
, then he should "They're here." Doctors attributed
r that he's better death to an intestinal infection.
that of president. ? O'Rourke's Poltergeist co-star
Dunn, died a sudden death shortly aft
of the film in 1982. She was murd
- ' <\ I boyfriend.
?J. And an American Indian who play
ting role in Poltergeist II: The Other
\ -?few months after that movie's brief r
^ ' * Given the topic of the films, it seen
A strange that so many actors involved
A away. Superstitious minds might fin
tion, but I'm not saying anything.
But speaking of things bizarre, my
x | Chuck Dean left a note in my mailbox
\ 3 ?f The Gamecock. It went like this:
Hey, huttjace. I came by here ? bu
BStL-L-J That's a true friend.
iCAP uncuttnc .. . ?
uw\ ?wnw\i: Me lett a nitty critique ot one bund
^ | Cosby hel
? Of all the sitcoms that have appeare
television this decade, none of th<
Cditor meaningful and entertaining to Ami
than l he Cosby Show.
lography Editor Largely as a result of the show'
creator. Bill Cosby, has become tele
;r famous and lovable father and is ri
:>N sidered the icon of American televisi
lor Although much of his recent farm
?E has come from his Thursday night <
has topped the ratings, broken serie
lead to a spin-off, there is much
Cosby.
In addition to the advertisement;
Jell-O, Kodak and E. F. Mutton, Co
r to pack arenas with his stand-up con
J has become a successful author and c
istant record-breaking concert video casset
' The highest-paid entertainer in Ar
[>r of Student 15 a man Wlt'1 obvious integrily an
tislng Manager which seems flawless, both on and c
/1ICHELS refuses to endorse a comme
agency or individual which he does n<
feel good about, regardless of how n
" 1IN involved. And through The Cosby
appeals to Americans of all races, C<
ertising Manager ed network television in a much-n<
nIDHRSON direction, beyond stereotypical imaj
uid b*. (?2so i?.wo I he experts agree.
toediii?tiert(or*?> ? po?ibif "The Cosby Show is educational
t mini Include wrlltr's n?mr and ,, , ,
country. . ., says Harvard psych
Poussaint.
)\ \
\
. -b m m
rong with giving ]
er turned
ling to Vice
administraon's
plan to Stephen
inistan. Guilfoyle " \f^ ,7
>ving slowly 7 \ r
didates that W WF
Yes, to use a Mj$ '
for con- '
th a phrase Kemp and Robertson are what may be labele
im Wright, ultra-conservatives.
And it was the ultra-conservatives, the fur
If they can't damentalists, the far right, that felt its politic,
lat can they strength and put Ronald Reagan in the Whit
House by a landslide for his second term. And bot
"Jack Kemp the ex-football player and the ex-televisio
ce." That's evangelist arc trying to appeal to that constituency
s newest ? Both then are forgetting that the Presidei
II Moammar represents not just those who vote for him, but a
Americans. And there are many Americans besic
30th doing is Wright who want to give peace a chance. There ai
itream party many Americans who don't believe in Robertson
respond to. or any other god, many Americans who arc Chri
lenings plague in
the horizon,
* Side died a
un.
is just a little night at Rockalellas'. It's almost as great as his cc
have passed umn on vomit scenes in movies, which th
td a connec- newspaper censored this past summer, deprivir
readers of a fine piece of work.
good friend Luckily, Dean's latest opus will appear in full
; at the office the upcoming issue of Portfolio Magazine, and
will undoubtedly be exciting. Check it out.
And of course, puzzling events are taking pla
in the political arena as the primaries continue.
tyou weren't Former Sen. Barry Goldwater, R-Ariz., has e
dorsed Vice President George Bush in his crusa*
for the presidency. "Who the hell's more conse
vative than Georee Bush?" Goldwater asked Mo
day. He apparently never heard of Lyndt
LaRouche.
lay's acoustic The strange thing about this is that the arc
Iping television, i
:d on network 1
i he docs for |
>sby continues
nic shows. He Cosby, the first black actor to star in a dr?i
urrently has a series, / Spy, does not attend Emmy aw
te. ceremonies or accept Emmy awards for his perl
nerica, Cosby mances. And unlike many of today's so-ca
d a character "top entertainers," he seeks to provide
>ff screen. American public with quality entertainment, rai
rcial product, than an act that will simply pass and make a qi
)t believe in or profit.
luch money is It is obvious that Cosby's goal as an enter'ai
Show, which goes far beyond making big bucks and wini
asby has mov- awards. The amount of pride he takes in his w
:eded positive and his desire to be associated with only class
ges of blacks. arc more than one can say for many entertain
Ilia# c r\ t nr\ ?c tltn 1 wr? I r\ c i ?/"?r?oc c on/I 'i/lmiral
for the entire Cosby has garnered.
iologist Alvin A real-life family man, Cosby has recently sei
thoughts and experiences as a father on paper.
lWr j I
I
*VV,W" J m
? ~ 1
peace a cnance
tians, but think evangelists of Robertson's ilk are
; con artists at best.
And all the plans of a Kemp or a Robertson are
to turn America into the America of that ultra|
conservative mind set. It would be an America of
! exclusion ? kick out the Eastern liberal establishment,
Robertson says.
And it just doesn't work.
America Has to represent all those who live
j within her boundaries, or America is nothing.
And so it worries me when a candidate for the
j highest office in this nation starts saying that to
give peace a chance is to do something shameful.
' There's no shame in peace.
d It's been so long, why not give it it a try? This
country and this war throughout history have had
i- war after war after war after war, killing after killi\
ing after killing after killing. And you might think
;e that whatever good it could accomplish would have
h made it unnecessary by now.
m It doesn't have to replace the tough talk you're
y. probably so found of, Rep. Kemp.Just giveitatrya
tit few years down there in Nicaragua and over there
ill in Afghanistan. Just see how it works. "Try it on;
ie see how it fits; drive it around the block; kick the
re tires," as that guy says in the U.S. News & World
's Report commercial.
s- You might he surprised at how it works.
ovies, politics
! conservative Gold water criticized President Ronald
Reagan this past year lor the arms sales to Iran,
among other matters. But now Goldwater is
pushing ?he pu'-i-iw it's protege, a man who attempts
to portray himself as the embodiment of
| Reagan's policies.
And Pat Robertson, who insists he is not a
former telcvangelist despite the fact that he
I plagued cable television for years as host of the 700
Chih, has been acting pretty strangely as well. He
keeps messing up all his facts.
J Earlier (his year, Robertson called the first
Soviet leader "Nicolai Lenin," when in fact,
Lenin's first name was Vladimir llich. OK, we can
>1- forgive Robertson for not knowing his communist
lis trivia.
lg But his gaffe during a debate Sunday night was a
bit more serious ? he claimed the USSR has
in missiles in Cuba. Afterward, Reagan administrait
tion officials denied that Cuba had any missiles of
the kind that Robertson described.
ce Sorry, but a candidate who forgets about what
happened in Cuba in 1962 and has not followed the
n- issue since then has little business seeking the
Je presidency. Kooertson is starting to show just how
:r- inexperienced he is.
n- Then again, goofing up simple facts isn't so
)n strange in the realm of politics. What's really weird
about the presidential race is that Gary Hart is still
h- in it.
race relations
? r first book, fatherhood, remained a best seller for
more than a year and sold a record-breaking 2.6
million hard copies. Its sequel, Time Flies, also
broke publishing records with a first print of 1.75
I million copies.
| Having been away from motion-picture acting
i since the late '70s, he was recently featured in a
! lull-length movie, Leonard Part 6. Although the
movie lacked luster, Cosby had no misconceptions
and publicly announced he was displeased with the
film before it debuted.
He candidly told the American public not to rush
i out to see the film simply because he starred in it.
Although he played an active role in the creation of
Leonard Pari 6, ( osby says the producers did not
una allow him the freedom to work with the film in the
ard way he wanted and thought they would.
forlled
His feelings and public comments about the
the movie surely cost the producers what could have
her been easily made money and probably aroused
lick feelings of contempt toward Cosby, who doesn't
seem to be worried. Cosby's utmost concern seems
iner to be with the public, which he obvously doesn't
ling want to rob of time and money. And although the
ork movie is sure to bomb, he has added to his
acts credibility av an entertainer who is not motivated
ers. by greed.
lion How many ol today's actors do you think have
the gall and integrity to say that a movie they are
t his featured in is poorly made and does not have their
His seal of approval? Probably not many.
i