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Priorities Congress should cut deficit, not give officials pay increases It's a new year, but the federal government has wasted little time getting its priorities mixed up ? one of the top items for consideration by the new Congress is a massive pay increase for high-level federal employees. The suggested raises range between 50 and 75 percent. Under the proposal, the salaries of members of Congress would increase 51 percent to $135,000 a year. Cabinet members would get a 56 percent increase, and Supreme Court justices would receive a raise of 50 percent. The president, vice president and U.S. district court judges would also get sizable raises. President Ronald Reagan and other advocates of the pay in uvasw ciaim unai uic iai?cs aic ncccssiuy iu Keep quilillieu individuals to stay in government. Otherwise, they say, these government officials will leave public life for more lucrative jobs in the private sector. An examination of the facts reveals this argument is tenuous at best. Federal employees are not stampeding to leave the government in the pursuit of money. No mass exodus by federal judges threatens our justice system. In Congress, incumbents continue to run and continue to win, making a career out of being representatives and senators. George Bush's transition team has been flooded with resumes from people looking for jobs with the new administration. It is difficult to believe that people seek public office for the money. They get involved with government because they want to serve, not because they want to make a lot of money. Furthermore, the federal government faces a growing budget deficit that will continue to plague policy makers into the next century if action is taken. These proposed raises, although a miniscule expenditure in the context of the mammoth budget, would only add to that deficit. In short, Congress would only be adding to the problem that it is supposed to be solving. Members of Congress need to show that they are more concerned about the government's spending policies than about their salaries and vote against the proposed increases. T&AM^rri/'wi i rsni^Qi i ^ A . _ <r~fr The Gamecock Best Non-daily Collegiate Newspaper, Southeastern Region Society of Professional Journalists, 1987-88 Editor in Chief Datebook Editor ANDY BECHTEL JAN PHILLIPS Managing Editor Graphics Editor JEFF SHREWSBURY MICHAEL SHARP Copy Desk Chief Comjcs Edjtor KATH\ BLACKWELL TRACY MIXSON Assistant Copy Desk Chief Graduate Assistant CARYN CRABB ROBERT STEVENSON News Editor Adviser MARY PEARSON PAT MCNEELY Assistant News Editors Director of Student Medja KELLY C. THOMAS ED BONZA SUSAN NESBITT Advertising Manager Features Editor MARGARET MICHELS TODD HINES Production Manager Assistant Features Editor L DAY ' TOM JOYNFR . . . - ? x Assistant production Manager Sports Editor RAY BURGOS KEVIN ADAMS Assistant Advertising Manager Assistant Sports Editor BARBARA BROWN CHRIS SILVESTRI Photography Editor TEDDY LEPP Letters Policy: The Gamecock will try to print all 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. " Grandmothe I sat at my kitchen table the morning of Jan. 2 "Championship Monday" ? pouring over rr copies of The Sporting News and that day's spor section. I read every word written about each c that day's seven college football bowl gam< because I wanted to know each and every nuane of each and every game. I was a man with a pu pose. I wanted to be the most informed member t my family about what the possible outcomes c each bowl could be. 1 got up early that morning to secure at least tw hours of research by the kickoff of the first game, wanted to be prepared. In my family, you have to be prepared at bov time because every year we have a football pool o all the big bowls. I had won two of the past thre years, and I was going to win again. It was moi than just money to my kin. It was a matter of prid ? a matter of honor. It was a battle for braggin rights at dinner, and, boy, it hurts to lose to thes people. So I spent the long hours reading, watchin ESPN and NBC and calculating the point spread; I consulted the Ouija board, tossed the tea leave and rubbed my dog for luck. Then I made m picks. I felt confident that day because the rest of m family (except for my grandmother) had mad their picks with little research and with virtually n< knowledge of the games. I could feel the sweet taste of victory. With three minutes until kickoff, which is th deadline for picks, my grandmother showed up We urged her to make her picks because we wantei her to share in this family bonding and feel th Videos leave During the holidays, I once again became trap ped in front of my television with the remote cor trol in my hand. For days I sat there, endlessly gc ing through the 30 channels like a rat on treadmill. Of course, I watched December's mos "tragically fascinating" television events, A Ver Brady Christmas and the Liberty Bowl. I also saw lot of music videos sandwiched between ads fo Ambervision sunglasses and Freedom Rock. Th typical MTV experience went like this: The video extravaganza begins with Van Halen' infectious "Finish What Ya Started," a love son] for the ages. In this clip, Sammy Hagar displays hi uncanny fashion sense, and Eddie Van Halei wears a cowboy hat during his guitar solo. Poo Michael AnthonV doesn't oet mnrh air timo perhaps that's because he's not as slim and trim a: the rest. Still, for Van Hagar, it's not tha unbearable, despite the obligatory flashes o female flesh. Next is "Smooth Criminal" by Michae Jackson. This video reveals Jackson's secret machc fantasies, and he wastes no time in beating up ? gang of thugs. He gets downright violent in his white suit. I suppose he really thinks he's bad, bui instead this clip just drags on and on and on. . . Letters to the Jewish holiday holiday ct a j if you f nui recognized celebrate. To the editor: I want to comment on the recent lighting of the Christmas tree on The Horseshoe. I felt it was a big success, but I have two concerns. (111^, First,why was there a second tree in JT 111 front of the President's House? Was 1 it there because of a mistake? 1"QPL Second, why are there no decorations for Chanukkah displayed on The Horseshoe? I know for a fact To the edi that not all of the students at In refei Carolina celebrate Christmas. If this tacky arti< were true, I could see how you could big bounc be justified to have only a tree, but issue of T it's not. I feel it would be a nice to inquire gesture to at least have a menorah for Chanukkah next year. This way you Do the ooMtmT^ Jl/STA LOUSY 135 GRAND. r's win shows s iy 1 Pi ts ?* mi 4P V Jeff ju ii r th :e warmth of the family project ? really we needed fii e two more bucks for the pot. sh e "I don't know that much about the teams, g though," she said innocently. * lik '<e "Oh, go ahead, GrairCtake a shot," I said smil- wi ing, slumping back into the big recliner in the g television room. I threw her the sports section, la) >. knowing she wouldn't read it. ;s She took the paper and glanced at the lineup of of y games. sh "Hurry up, Gram, there's only two minutes y left." Gi e She raised an eyebrow and put the paper down. no 0 "OK," she said to my stepfather. "Read the games off to me." be He began with the LSU-Syracuse game. dr e "What color is each team's uniform?" she ask- ye, ed, as if it were a legitimate question. wl 1 My stepfather told her that Syracuse was orange by e and purple, and LSU had yellow and purple. mind uncomfoi )- ' tal i- Hi sin s vid i ! ^?J bej r j ; Then R.E.M.'s "Stand" comes on the television cor s screen. It's a refreshingly unpretentious affair, da> t unlike previous efforts by Georgia's finest work rat f band. Scenes of rolling countryside are intertwined Soi with sequences of people dancing, except the wh I dancers look like regular people, not Hollywood 1 > starlets. It's nice to see everyday types in a video san i once in a while. sioi > In complete contrast, the next clip, a remake of "H t the '60s classic "Wild Thing," features some che bizarre individuals. The clip has that enormous ^ editor Vi , ude more of the students in newspaper also include an oppt ilebrations. ty for employees to inspect v )lan to "deck the halls" for issues of Playgirll lys, at least deck them for I will expect to see a feature ys, not just the ones you like Joyner's) penned by Nesbitt when the anniversary is Play girl is distributed. H.S. Volin Also expected is a crude ref Media arts freshman to the male genitalia. yboy' piece Graduale ;y, crude Dixon will 1 itor: renre tn Tommv Tovner's TTCr :le, "Playboy celebrates 35 >3 V> mXIIIvU. :y years," in the Nov. 30 he Gamecock, I would like To the editor: The news interview with Athletic Director King Dixoi perks of working for a refreshing and rewardin wv^ii^v^ijr v/, i vyuc/ ports savvy "Gee, I don't know," she said. "Let's see. I like lrple, but I hate orange. I'll pick LSU." I was stunned. As my stepfather went through ich game, each time giving her the colors of the ams and her picking the winner by which color e thought was best, I began to laugh. "Come on, Gram, there's more to picking than st that." "You have your system, and I have mine," she ot back. Kickoff came for the first game, and Syracuse tfeated LSU ? she had lost. I knew she was out to lose her money. Then the second game came, and she won. Then e third and another win. Then a fourth and a "th. She ended up six of seven for the day, and e won the pool. It's enough to make a seasoned veteran picker ;e myself wince. J ended up four out of seven nners. "What the hell kind of justice is that?" I asked :er that night, handing her my two dollars. She grinned as she slipped the bills in the pocket her robe and then drank her coffee. And then e laughed. "Well, you know first there was Jimmy 'The eek.' Then there was Johnny 'The Fish.' Well, iw there is me ? Clara 'The Swiss.'" I had to have another beer ? this was getting to too much. Every year when we play poker she aws to an inside straight and gets it. And every ar she picks the winner of the World Series by 10 has the best-looking pitcher. Now it's football colors. What's a sports guy to do? rtably numb ent, comedian Sam Kinison; it also has Jessica ihn and her two enormous talents. This epic, lich shows Hahn rolling around on the ground as rious heavy metal celebrities oggle her, is unubtedly a favorite at the Jim Bakker household, ro cap things off, Pink Floyd offers a live vern of "Comfortably Numb." It's a straightforrd performance clip, alternating between the lereal and the plodding, depending on who is ging. Guitarist David Gilmour does a decent job ging his verses, but the guy who takes the place Roger Waters is sorely lacking. Indeed, the tydrated Floyd's performance resembles the eo's cinematography ? shimmering yet vacant, lutiful yet dull. \fter watching these videos, I had become unnfortably numb, and I began to yearn for the /$ when videos were still a forum for creativity her than a marketplace for commerciality. -nehow they have homogenized to the point ere they are practically identical. The time I spent watching MTV left me with the ie question Johnny Rotten asked at the conclun of the final performance by the Sex Pistols: ave you ever had the feeling you've been ated?" fes, Johnny, I have. )rtuni- thousands of loyal supporters and arious those who have calmly tolerated the delay in the cleaning up of the image (much of the athletic department. Susan So many of us have "waited until .sue of next vear" to have our hearts broken by another news release of a erence degrading incident that lowers the dignity of USC. As a lifelong resident of Laurens jilbert County and someone who has known itistics Dixon all of his life, I am firmly convinced that he is the best man at the right moment to restore the depart?JV ment to the place it belongs and that I--Ithe people of South Carolina will support him in his efforts and cs determination. His record shows that he can reach a goal line. USC Robert C. Wasson 1 was USC student, 1932 8 t? Laurens