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Iran Air incideni Vincennes captain will carry the weight of responsibility always The downing of an Iran Air jetliner by the U. S. S. Vincennes has left in its wake much questioning and criticism by leaders all over the world. Perhaps the most poignant questions are being asked by the commander of the Vincennes, Capt. William Rogers III. One man, acting out of responsibility for the lives of his crew and the safety of international waters, ordered the launching of two missiles that caused the destruction of an airbus carrying 290 people. Rogers will live with those deaths on his conscience no matter what the outcome of official investigations may be. The information that Rogers had available was far from complete. But he was acting on behalf of his ship and his country and probably remembering the attack on the U. S. S. Stark last summer. Did the information he had available justify his actions? First of all, the Vincennes was engaged with three Iranian gunboats immediately prior to the jetliner's approach. Two boats were sunk and the third was damaged. It was easily conceivable that the aDDroachine airnlane was attemntino a retaliatory strike. The jetliner was flying four or five miles outside of the commercial air corridor, on a course that would have taken it directly over the Vincennes. These facts further support a supposition that the airbus was on a military mission. The Vincennes broadcast seven stand-clear warnings - three on commericial frequencies and four on military - that neither the airbus nor Iran air traffic controllers responded to. Any sensible civilian captain should respond to a military broadcast. Supposedly, the jetliner was not sending a transponder signal that would have identified it as a commercial flight. A Pentagon spokesman said Tuesday that it appeared that the transponder was sending a military identification code. Rogers acted on the information available - information that indicated that a military jet was on an intercept course with his ship. He had to make a decision based on many "ifs," and unfortunately he made the wrong one. But if the situation were reversed - an Iranian F-14 attacked a U. S. ship and caused American deaths - Rogers would probably face the same fate the captain of the Stark did this past year. No one may ever know what Rogers felt before and after the incident. Can anyone justify that an action resulting in an undesirable outcome is worse than a lack of action resulting in the same outcome? Let those without sin cast the first answer. "JUST SAY YES * np| I I he Gamecock Editor in Chief TOROD NEPTUNE y^" News Editor PAMELA HEAD \ Assistant News Editors PRABHAKAR KHOLE f ^ GINGER GADSDEN 1 Viewpoint Editor 11\ ? ^~ \ I TODD CHRISTENSEN I \ ?\ Features Editor I I j \ I CASSIE YANG Iw N| Sports Editor \ , ? BOBBY JONES V^T Photography Editor JODY HAGINS /J Comics Editor TOROD NEPTUNE ^ Graphics Editor RANDY HALL Advertising Account Executives Acting director of Student BARBARA BROWN Media/Advertising Manager MEGAN O'KEEFE MARGARET MICHELS ELIZABETH WOMACK Production Manager Adviser LAURA S. DAY BILL ROGERS Production Staff ROBB LANE Letters Policy: The Gamecock will try lo prinl letters received. Letters should be, at a maximum, 250 to 300 words long. Guest editorials should not exceed 500 words. We reserve the right to edit letters for style or possible libel. The Gamecock will not withhold names under any circumstance. Disposable s When you are finished perusing this newspapi you will probably throw it away (unless you need save 50 copies for your portfolio like I do). A hopefully, you will follow the advice of Woody t Owl and countless theater leader screens and "P litter in its place." However, litter isn't quite the only thing th needs to be put it its place these days. T American system of values is in bad need of i evaluation and repair. Today, we live in a society that prides itself < disposability and temporary gratification. It seei that people cannot commit to any given product situation, seeking a short-term use rather than long-term benefit. This problem came to my attention through t T 1 auvgiiisciiiciiL ui 111c liuucsi Japanese piuuu since the Ginsu knife and the bambc steamer - the disposable camera. For $10 you c; buy a camera that you use once (one roll of film guess it's 24 exposures) and then throw it awa You give the developer the entire camera and th keep the body and give you the photos (wl knows - maybe they send the camera body back the manufacturer, who reloads the camera and se it again!) Why would people want a disposable earner; For less than the price of two throwaway model smart shoppers could buy a camera they could u twice and then throw it away. But Americans lil the term "disposable;" it gives them the option < "getting out." Another product praised for its disposability the razor. What would John McEnroe do witho Many freedt We've come a long way since our ancestc boarded a British supply ship under the shield darkness and dumped tea into Boston Harbor. The United States has proven it can function i dependently of its former British parent. * Reflecting upon the recent celebration of our i dependence and freedoms, I wonder if o ancestors would approve of our behavior. We have the freedom of press, speech, religii and to peacefully assemble as stated in the Co stitution of the Unites States. - the Bill of Rights be exact.But, how often do we take advantage them? Does freedom of the press mean the right humiliate and degrade the image of men ai women by printing pornography? The Pc nography Commission created by U.S. Attorn General Edwin Meese and laws recently passed 1 the state legislature are slowly eliminating this for of "adult entertainment," saying that this action in an eriort to protect tne youtn or society, wi not protect all of humanity by outlawing the pr duction and distribution of such printed materia Freedom of religion is not being practiced wi the intent introducted to the colonists. Th wanted to break from the Church of England in i effort to practice their beliefs. However, look at; the beliefs, sects and religions we have in this n tion. Each calling the other wrong. Within sou denominations there are three or four, somethim five branches. One major denomination, althouj currently united, is on the verge of splitting, at Drugs would The most apparent effects of drug use c nonusers, such as the breaking in and entering i their households or being struck on the back < their heads on dimly lit streets , are w< documented. What is finally being discovered aft 70 years of drug prohibition has another, far mo subtle effect. Drugs tend to cloud the thinking of nonusers i such an extent that they fail to understand why drug user would want to steal from them. When a drug addict violates the person c residence of a nonuser, the addict is not expectin to find drugs. He expects to find money - lots c money - because the drugs he craves are expensiv< It is the expense of drugs, not the drugs themselves that leads the addict to victimize the innocent. But then, as a result of this obvious phenomenj nonusers suffering from drug-induced econom amnesia call for stronger drug laws which ultimate ly raise the price of drugs. A vicious circle created. The expense of maintaining a habit is ii creased; more crimes must then be committed. High on drug hysteria, the well-meaning nonus< fails to see that drugs obey the same economic lav as any other commodity on the market. When suj ply contracts (through government) and deman W8&~\ "jM lociety isn't a p sr, 1 to ' e Christensen i a 1 1 he his disposable Bic? It must be terrible to carry { ict around a bag full of plastic razors rather than one 1 >o razor and a small package of replaceable blades, j an Maybe tennis calluses wear down the razor handle i , I too quickly. y. And what about paper plates and Dixie cups? 1 ey They make a lot of sense when you're camping and i io you want to pack light, but it's wasteful to use i to them at home. You can reuse even plastic utensils i lis with only a few seconds washing (if you are into the i sanitary thing). i a? Unfortunately, disposable dishware, razors and is, cameras are far from all of the standard household 1 se garbage output in our non-committal society. Too ( ke often are households broken up as spouses are } of discarded like disposable razors - one little nick 1 and "bye-bye." { is What is the divorce rate today, 3 million or 1 ut something like that? It's probably ten or twenty t )ms are taken 1 >rs ] of to _______________________________________ id s >r- two other denominations have merged some of t ey their factions within the last two years. The \ oy ^amouc cnurcn nas even suiierea a spilt over tne 1 m church's doctrine. i is Why can we not all worship under the same roof i hy however we feel comfortable and accept the worhip 1 o- style of others? The God I believe in considers us ? 1? all brothers and sisters no matter what race, creed, 1 th color or national origin. Why can we not consider ey ourselves the same? ( in Nothing brings my blood to a boil faster than i all when protesters abuse the right to assemble i a- peacefully. My case in point involves the persons 1 ae opposed to the White Train. es The train travels safely and quietly from coast to t ih coast across the heartland of America carrying 1 id parts for nuclear weapons to the various assembly t I be lesser prob m remains constant, prices rise. They learned this in a af ECON 101, but drugs do make one forgetful. ri af Drug prices rise when competition is eliminating ;11 (by arrest) or inhibited (by driving the market ii er underground where consumers are not privy to ac- lc re curate price price information or advertising). s< Thus, drugs, which were less expensive than to alcohol prior to their prohibition in 1914, are now p a more expensive. And now addicts often feel forced to resort to theft or even murder to cover that ex- a >r pense. One rarely hears of alcohol addicts driven to ri g these depths, because alcohol is cheap and legal. tl >f So, are drug laws the real problem? Libertarians t< ;. have been saying so for decades and, in light of the 5, excesses and failures of the current war on drugs, R more and more people are beginning to suspect 0 a, they are right. ai ic The arguments for drug laws are usually emo- fi e- tional ones. Almost always the accusatory: Do you b is want your kids hooked on smack? But the most pi i- valid of the practical arguments against legaliza- la tion is the fact that more people will use drugs if ;r they become cheap and legally available. e( /s This is probably true of milder drugs, such as di j- marijuana, but it is far less certain the use of hard T d drugs would follow pot's lead. Most people do not of <i srffi/w ? //lli^ii retty picture :imes what it was 50 years ago. Nowadays, people ?an Q^tnollv pnfpr intA "trial" marriaaoe f*Ar tu;A Ar ^v*? UVIUU11J VUIV1 1111V U1U1 ItiaillUgVJ IV/i I" v/ v/l three years - retaining the option of annulling the marriage if it "doesn't work out." What kind of a foundation for a relationship is that? Although there isn't really a problem with "shotgun" weddings any more, couples in general have problems with commitment. A marriage means a commitment to each other and your future together. Divorce is too easy a cop-out for people vhose relationships need just a little work. Maybe people getting married too hastily is a problem. People can grow apart, certainly, but too many times are couples not actually "together" vhen they start. Dates and engagements exist not is a mere formality but as means of learning about 'uture spouses. Taking the time to learn about your partner's nuances may help keep you from entering nto a marriage doomed from the beginning. Disposable society - it doesn't even really have a ing to it, does it? It means wasting time, money ind resources. And although we all may lack a lithe "stick-to-it-ive-ness," many of us treat serious ssues such as marriage with the same lackadaisical ndifference as we do throwing out a razor or baling up a paper cup. When you do cross the threshold into your loneymoon suite, why don't you get a clean shave actually, this is optional) and unpack the Chinette ^ou picked up from registering your wedding at Wal-Mart. Then grab your 35-millimeter camera ind start to record the special moments of your ife. There are some things you just don't want to hrow away. ?ni* nranfoH V1 61W,UVW plants within the U.S. I don't mind when the "peaceniks" stand along the railroad tracks with :heir signs or chant peace slogans as the train rolls ilong. When they throw themselves down on the [racks and have to be physically removed by law mforcement officers, I want to not only jail them but show them the reality of what we face militarily from other nations. Maybe then, and only then, will they quit using themselves as human train wheel stops. One right we have is to vote. I exercise this right )ften. I can only complain about a lawmaker if I lelped put him in office. People abuse this priviledge. Even local races for iheriff and school board are important. Many imes, especially on this campus, we hear of "low /oter turnout." People have forgotten that voting s~a duty of the citizens of the United States of \merica. The founders of this great land of "reedom deemed it a "Government of the people, 'or the people and by the people." We can't have a government made up of our own people working "or us if we don't for it. Once the students of this university, South Carolinians and the people of this country wake lp, they will notice that their government is taking idvantage of them at the taxpayer's expense, /oting is a duty as well as a guaranteed privilege. As we recover from our Fourth of July celebra-. ions, let us try to remember those freedoms we: lave and use them in moderation so as not to lose; hem. lem if legal j void heroin because it's illegal, but because thev ecognize it as addictive and destructive. The abuse of drugs is certainly a problem for the * idividual user and will continue to be after ;galizaton. But drug use is mainly an issue of peranal, not public safety. In the American legal traditon, it is the issues of ublic safety which require government action. Guns and alcohol are both dangerous but are Iso legal as long as their use does not violate the ghts of others. Drugs should be no different. It is te drug laws that transform drugs from personal ) a public safety issue. Illinios Representative Philip Crane, the only epublican to vote against the budget-busting 1986 mnibus Drug Bill, was quoted in Notorial Review 5 saying that since drug use "cannot be eliminated om society," it is bad publicity to "spend $6 illion, cut corners on civil liberties and expand the owers of government in ways we might regret iter" in pursuit of an unattainable goal. He's right. We must all sober up from our ;onomic delusions. The .time has come to legalize rugs. he Independent Florida Alligator, The University ? Florida. " '