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Reform Electoral system, especially V.P. selection must change Americans should have an option, something on their ballot in November that would let them say "yes" to their candidate i they are for a candidate, but "no" to the candidate's pick fo vice president. There are may voters across the country right now who ma; not vote for either of the major two tickets, not because the; don't like the candidates, but because thev don't like who thei candidates chose to run with them. Millions of voters across the country voted for Vice Presiden George Bush in the Republican primaries. Millions more votet for Massachusestts Gov. Michael Dukakis in the Democrats Primaries. But who voted for Indiana Sen. Dan Quayle? Who voted fo Texas Sen. Lloyd Bentsen? Nobody but Bush and Dukakis and maybe some of their cam paign staffers. That's not a democratic process. The people are presentee with candidates by the nominees and are told, "You have tc vote for him as well as me." As sharp a choice as Bentsen was for the Dukakis ticket, he i: in no way comparable to the Rev. Jesse Jackson. Jackson ha< received a substantial number of votes across the campaign trail adding more than 7 million voters to the Democratic Party What does Bentsen bring to the ticket? He is a respected but little known senator. And the one issue that got the most mileage out of Sen. Bentsen's name was his legal but inappropriate, $10,000 a plate breakfast club for Washington lobbyists. And almost everyone is in agreement that the choice of Sen, Quayle slightly hurt the Bush ticket originally and has shown little promise for the candidate. Quayle's qualities are an attractive face, authorship of the Job Training Partnership Act and his age, 41, which may or may not bring in the yuppie vote for the t?f?niihlir,anc But wouldn't the Republicans second-best primary contestant, Sen. Bob Dole, have strengthened the Bush ticket much more than the choice of Quayle? Dole is a proven, well-known leader who is outspoken and almost too honest ? he's known for saying exactly what he thinks. The American electoral process is in trouble right now. Now that we are approaching the end of the Reagan years, it seems, from the alarming statistics about the number of people who aren't registering to vote, that the turnout in this election will reach record lows. And if that is true, it means that the American people have no confidence in the candidates or their picks for the V.P. slot. This is the first election that many of us can remember where there was no clear frontrunner before the election. It used to be that people at least thought there was one or two persons in line for the presidency. But the people thought of in line for the presidency ? New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, New Jersey Sen. Bill Bradley and Georgia Sen. Sam Nunn for the Democrats and Tennessee Sen. Howard Baker for the Republicans ? men so presidential they were guaranteed nominations, chose not to run. We need election reform in America. Qualified people should not be dropping out or not running. And the choice of the second in line for the presidency should not be left to one man. Maybe having the second place person might be an idea. But the way it is now is unfair to the American people. It's too important a decision to be left up to one of the seven dwarfs, Republican or Democrat. r "V * | SEN/OCt!,WiS NO >=-? ? \ m. mm. j & finis R a ? ? The Gamecock Best Non-daily Collegiate Newspaper, Southeastern Region Society of Professional Journalists, 1987-88 Editor in Chief Datebook Editor STEPHEN GU1LFOYLE JENNY SHARPE Graphics Editor Copy Desk Chief MICHAEL SHARP WAYNE YANG Comics Editor ' Assistant Copy Desk Chief TRACY MIXSON KATHY BLACKWELL Adviser News Editor PAT MCNEELY HAL MILLARD Graduate Assistant Assistant News Editors PHILLIP MCKENZIE STEVE PRADARELLI Director of Student Media MARY PEARSON ED BONZA Features Editor Advertising Manager SUSAN NESBITT MARGARET MICHELS Assistant Features Editor Production Manager TOJO LAURA DAY Sports Editor Assistant Production Manager KEVIN ADAMS RAY BURGOS Assistant Sports Editor Assistant Advertising Manager CHRIS S1LVESTRI BARBARA BROWN Photography Editors BRIAN SAULS TEDDY LEPP Letters Policy: The Gamecock will In to prim letters received. Letters should be. at a maximum. 250 to 500 words long. Guest editorials should not exceed 500 words. We reserxe the right to edit letters for sole or possible libel. The Gamecock will not withhold names under anx circumstance. : |a I USC not comi: . So, we've lost, and we're completely out of the picture for the season's ultimate laurels, the national championship. Right? I'm not so sure. First, we have to look at what happens to USC when they release the AP Top 20 poll tonight around 10:30. If we drop out, it will probably be all over. But if we just drop down and not out, maybe L back to around No. 16, we still have a chance to acrnmnlish enmp oonrl thinoc r ? """0? Of the Top 10, No. 6 Florida State has suffered a loss. No. 1 Miami lost this weekend to No. 4 Notre Dame, which will probably be one of two undefeated teams at the end of the year. No. 2 UCLA and No. 3 Southern Cal will be facing each other, so one of them is bound to lose, or i they might even tie, though it is unlikely. Notre Dame will also beat Southern Cal, which I will probably lose to UCLA as well. With two I losses, Southern Cal would drop out of the picture. I West Virginia, though undefeated, plays the weakest schedule in the country. It won't go much 1 higher unless it plays a masterful bowl game and ? wins against a big team. ! Oklahoma and Nebraska are now into the weak < part of their schedules, having been beaten by, respectively, USC and UCLA. They may be invited I to a national championship bowl, but maybe not. ( Letters to the < Homosexuals out. Oppressi j 1 -n education an< not abnormal wan student* in her editoi Out Day is To the editor: straights to 1 I must say that I am sickened by gay brothers the attitude toward homosexuality teachers. It is expressed by Eric Beckner (letter to wary of some The Gamecock, Oct. 12). Mr. do not under; "VlAMf riA nrn/4nn" * !*. . 1 ~ uvwivuvi 11V/IUJ IlU glUU^C agCHUM lUIHiy IU ICclI homosexuals for being what they are, fears and misi but please, don't "shove it in his and lesbians face," as he puts it. they are no d What is it that Mr. Beckner, and choice of a pe others who share his opinion, feel is Congratula being shoved in their faces? Expres- and lesbians \ sions of affection between two people who care about each other? Is it more sexual for two men or two psych women to hold hands, hug or kiss than it is for a man and a woman to 1-1 f)lT|( do the same? I have never seen (and doubt that Mr. Beckner has, either) 1 * gays or lesbians behaving in a more lOvCllx sexually explicit manner in public than most heterosexual couples. In To the editor: fact, most homosexual and lesbian Try as I mig couples 1 know must refrain from all is a school for but the most platonic expressions of dividuals, peo affection ? something that most continually pr< heterosexuals have the luxury of not First, Mr. having to think about. Mr. Beckner you have The cites his former roommate as an ex- article on ample of a "good" gay man ? that heterosexuals is, he suppressed what is natural to they choose it? him and then split at the end of the fixed? What k semester. you experience Mr. Beckner now tells us that he son? Do your cannot understand why all homosex- you get the po ll^le Hn nnt "osiin hie in th<=? Ac f/^r th<a same way as his former roommate. I Closet Club," offer this explanation to Mr. many more th Beckner: nobody, gay or straight, is campus. Housi under any obligation to earn your 2,500 homose* respect or approval. You are not the prised? Don't judge of what is normal, natural or friends are pre healthy for anyone but yourself. One like some whe doubts that Mr. Beckner tried to gain reveal their i his gay roommate's respect by hiding homophobic in his own heterosexual behavior; in- Additionally deed, Mr. Beckner probably has grudge against never thought about needing to gain your gay room ine respeci 01 a nomosexuai. it to leave.' wny mutual respect is a goal, that can be respect" by 1> attained by keeping an open mind "out of the spc and trying to get rid of notions that him the same ? people who do not share our sexual do as you plea preference (or race, or religion, or tivities were "n sex) are less than us. Many narro\ I do not wish to present this as a black people personal attack of Mr. Beckner but prefer that th< on the predominant attitude on this Dark Ages or s ??????? It? ?letely out of T Stephen . Guilfoyle ' ! "?txJ: j i We've got Florida State and Clemson coming / up. Clemson has been as on and off as we have. Florida State remains high in the polls despite its 3-31 thrashing by Miami because it was No. 1 for J the entire preseason. That spectre still looms over 1 the Seminoles. What was the problem this weekend, nobody t knows. But, as linebacker Matt McKernan said ? after the game, the team did not play its best ball t Saturday. But this is still the team that thrashed s 3eorgia. Its best ball is still pretty damn good. i If the Gamecocks can prepare the way they did :or that game, dissecting everything their future i opponents did before playing them, knowing their r editor , rd homosexuals coming Americans finally had takei on is not an answer ? could take and fought I a tolerance is. As les- rights. Homosexuals must Cris Hartley pointed out and fight for their rights as "ial, National Coming majority never freely gives r an opportunity for minority, earn more about their And to answer your quesl , sisters, friends and Beckner, 1 too am gay. Gay natural to be afraid or ud. And you'll notice I've si thing different that we name. So make that sixteen stand. Take the opporn and lessen your own Michelh conceptions abouj gays Engli: ? you will find that "loZo IT*in lhdr Greek clou tions to all of the gays _ J J vho have come out! 131*3.111 (1630 Robin E. O'Hearn ology graduate student To the editor: 1 am responding tc nnhfllllH Williams' letter fror L/pilU nj 1H Gamecock) Oct. 14. As a pr l (Goddamn independent), 31 found that a non-fraternity sorority member is presen many more opportunities fo ht to believe that USC ty of experience than are tho tolerant, educated in- dead clones who make up pic axe trie oecKner greeKS. i Know trom hrstl 3ve me wrong. perience ? I used to be a p Beckner, what would Fraternities primarily cc Gamecock cover in an WASPs (or WASP wanna-fc heterosexuals? Are enjoy beer, petite-nosed born that way or do "cool" music and b< 1 Can heterosexuals be Sororities consist of shallov ind of prejudice have nosed blondes who enjoy si d as a "straight" per- smoking at parties and f parents know? 1 hope dudes (about whom they sinf int. , tie songs). A greek organi; "Come Out of the not a place that helps solve tl I assure you there are blems that our (Student) V an 15 gay persons on Williams) mentioned at the b ing estimates there are of his letter. It is merely '1121 s. nr\ rumniK <siir_ uhprp be. Many of your world, a world in which peo| )bably gay, but they, beliefs, skin, colors, ) placed ads, do not preferences, economic sit dentity for fear of etc. must be encountered, dividuals on campus. And speaking of skin colo , if you have no Mr. Williams complair homosexuals, why did "... races are separated ( mate have to consent hate," he fails to mention should he "earn your greek system is a major facto ;eeping his activities separation, with its all-white )tlight." Did you give black organizations. Can ; courtesy? Or did you agine a black girl trying to ised because your ac- Tri-Delt? Or good ole' And iormal"? to get into Alpha Phi Alp v-minded people find way, man. Although there a revolting and would isolated white fraternities al ;y went back to the East Coast that have adn egregation. But black black or two, the greek sj - h MarWE? , ? -TH? AflMnPi Ce*JSrnVflOrJ , op 20 picture affenses and defenses cold we can beat teams of Florida State's caliber. We can beat these teams. Because we are as good as they are. And the strange thing about this game is that Georgia Tech, which iook us 10 me wooasnea, 10 quote usl head coach Joe Morrision, who was quoting Georgia head coach Vince Dooley, is that Georgia rech is a good team as well. They probably did the evel of preparation for us that we did for Georgia. We know where that "woodshed" is at, and we've got guys big enough, fast enough and alented enough to forcefully send them there. We ust have to have the right attitude; we just can't jnderestimate anyone. Not N.C. State. Not Navy. \nd certainly not Florida State and Clemson. The season is far from over. There's still a lot of football left to be played, as VIcKernan said. These guys know how to do it, so et's not get down on them. They really tried. There were two bright notes from Saturday's ;ame. The defense did get into the game and only illowed one fieldgoal in the second half. And the unning game, which has been almost non-existent ,ince Harold Green got hurt, started to come out of ts slump. The Gamecocks ran for 90 yards on the ground, >5 of those coming from Green, who said he felt nuch better. So it's not all bleak. l all they shamefully, anachronistically For their segregated; therefore, it is racist. be seen Greeks, wake up! It is unhealthy well. The and impractical to hide in a houseful ignts to a ol people just like you. Think of all the different types of people you ion, Mr. could be learning about. Imagine and pro- yourself trying to make a business igned my deal with a person of Indian descent 20 years from now. Will you be afraid? Stand-offish? Just plain i Schohn rude? Will you lose that millionsh senior dollar client because you've spent your entire life drinking Budweiser and watching football with fellow lCi3 flaxen-haired fraternity friends? Think about it. Kate Moore SCC junior >Residents need 7dhave safe parking or nonted with To the editor: r diversi- This letter is in response to the ise brain- numerous articles and letters concerthe USC ning student parking, for 1 think they land ex- are missing the point of resident stuledge. dent complaints. Contrary to uisiM 01 popuiai oenei, some restuent te's) who students do not use their cars to drive blondes, to class. I live in Columbia Hall, and ilching. my car stays in the lot w hile 1 walk to v, petite- McMaster, the PE center and the hopping, Band Hall, to name a few places, raternity However, there are places off cami cute lit- pus that 1 need and want to go to, nation is and the only time that 1 and most lose pro- other busy students have to go off P (Andy campus is at night. Commuting eginning students have driveways at home or a place nearby lots to park their cars in, the real whereas resident students take a 3le of all chance on finding spaces near their sexual dorm. If anyone thinks I'm walking uations, from the coliseum or the top floor of Blossom Garage, as Mr. (Danny) rs, while Baker of Parking and Vehicle is that Registration suggests, to Columbia jften by Hall by myself at night, you are out that the of your mind. However, if a shuttle t in mat service ran irom tnese out ot tne way and all- lots to residence halls at night, 1 you im- would not object to using these lots, get into If the administration and the comly trying muting students want my space near ha? No Columbia Hall, they better find a re a few safe place for me to park elsewhere, ong the litted a Betty Carlsson 'Stem is music junior