The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 26, 1991, Page 3, Image 3
Bad press
South Carolina needs help getting
a better national reputation
While most editorials are bv their nature critical, it is time for a
*
little praise. The state of South Carolina has gotten a reputation as
a cultural and intellectual backwater, and this is undeserved.
S.C. has a rich, controversial history of independence from federal
control. In the past, this has meant S.C.'s standing out for its
poor academic performance and poverty. This is no longer the
case. South Carolina does not hover near the bottom of national
educational achievement tests anymore, and has many excellent
institutes of higher learning such as USC, Furman and, yes,
Clemson. ^
Culturally, Columbia and Charleston regularly have theater and
dance productions in town. Charleston also receives worldwide attention
every year for Spoletto. True, Columbia pales in comparison
to other Southern metropolitan areas such as Charlotte and
Atlanta, but it is hardly in the boondocks, either. Columbia boasts
an excellent coliseum and cultural arts center, as well as a stadium
that could easily support a professional sports franchise.
Part of the blame for S.C.'s poor national image is the state's
leaders. It is unfortunate that so many archly conservative politicians
still infest the State House, constantly trying to drag S.C.
back into the Stone Age. On the federal level, foimer-Dixiecrat
Strom Thurmond is always ready, willing and able to bring national
embarrassment to the state. At the very least, Governor Carroll
Campbell is showing the rest of the country a younger, more
articulate S.C. leadership. Another reason for S.C.'s poor national
reputation is its bad press coverage. The national press only
focuses on S.C. when there is some controversy about a Ku Klux
Klan march or when a hurricane strikes. That is a narrow focus
with which to cover a state that has so much to offer.
"ITGlVES m GREAT PLEASURE TO PRESENT
B(tAMR(',()CR1
News: 111-7726 Advertising: 777-4249
Kathy Blackwell robyn Thompson
Editor in Chief Managing Editor
Chris Silvestri David Bowden
Copy Desk Chief Viewpoint Editor
Lucy Soto Kathy heberger
News Editor Carolina Life Editor
Steve Johnson Renee Meyer
Sports Editor Photography Editor
Aaron Sheinin Tige Watts
Assistant News Editor Assistant News Editor, ,
Oct a via Wright Patrick Villegas
Assistant Carolina Life Editor Assistant Sports Editor
jennifer jablonski julie bouchillon
Assistant Copy Desk Chief Assistant Photography Editor
Eric Glenn Wayne Williams
Darkroom Lab Technician Comics Editor
ED Bonza Erik Collins
Director of Student Media Faculty Adviser
Laura S. Day ray Burgos
Production Manager Assistant Production Manager
Renee Gibson Kyle Berry
Advertising Manager Assistant Advertising Manager
Carolyn Griffin t
Business Manager ^
Letters Policy: The Gamecock will try to print all letters received. Letters should rbe,
at maximum, 250 to 300 words long. The writer must include full name, professional
title if a USC employee or South Carolina resident, or year and major if
a student. An address and phone number are required with all letters sent. The ^
Gamecock reserves the right to edit letters for style, possible libel or in case of ^
space limitations. The newspaper will not withhold names under any f
circumstance. ^
1 I
Affirmati
A few days ago a friend of mi
something that really upset me. He
applied for a job that he was extre
fied for and found out through th
that he didn't get it because he's bl;
he didn't want to believe it, but he c
ize it was true.
Then, the very next day, anothe
mine was in a similar situation. He a
position that he was the most quali
ant for and was turned down bee
white and someone black was give
tion because of a quota that had to b<
All this black-white stuff is just
make me sick. What ever happened
losophy "may the best man win?"
Unfortunately, quotas are a catc
f l! | I
S.C. idealistic
place to live
To the editor:
When I came to South Carolina,
the only thing I knew about it was
that it was a Southern state. Most
of what I knew was based on my
readings in American literature,
particularly William Faulkner. It
was The Sound and the Fury that
had mostly formed my image of
the American South, namely the
decline of the old aristocracy and
the impact of slavery on society.
When I came to South Carolina,
I quickly found out that literary
ideas of the '50s and '60s were,
indeed, changing in value today. It
was no longer the slave-ridden
South that I saw. The African
Americans, as I saw them, were a
new, transformed race, cruising
their land on their Cadillacs which
JUUiiUMi U&& HIUUllt> U13UJUl&4UCd
along the serenity of tree-lined
avenues.
I could feel a new idealism in
the air, or maybe this was reality
after all. There is something of the
literary idealism of 19th and
mid-20th century authors that can
still be felt in South Carolina. In
fact, was I anticipating to come
across a revived Miss Daisy driven
by her black chaffeur? Not indeed!
South Carolina had long done
away with black servanthood. Only
the memory remains, and I am
glad it's just a memory, not a
reality.
Speaking of more day-to-day
business matters, South Carolina
has developed extensive trade links
with the world. South Carolina has
already had contacts with Bulgaria,
the country of my origin.
One of the major events in that
country, the first free democratic
election in June 1991, was marked
by the presence of the first international
delegation of observers. Senator
Joe Wilson of South Carolina
was one of the people involved in
the campaign, and he shared his
memories of those times. The late
Chairman of the National Republican
Institute, Lee Atwater, was the
person who organized the American
Republican party observer
earn that went to Bulgaria in June
his past year.
The brightly colored spring
rfossoms and the smile on peo- >le's
faces seem to point out the
;eneral feeling of warmth, as if it
vere the weather that generates it
Vnd there is nothing more beautiul
as springtime in South Carolina
vith the birds chirping and squirels
bouncing across the campus.
r??
~ AMP THE GOOD NE\A
HOV CAM FORGET A&
ve action <
ne told me
said he had
mely quali- SHELLE
e grapevine
ack. At first
ame to realr
friend of were started with the
ppliedfora bigotry out of the w
fied applic- sometimes they defeai
:ause he is a less qualified indivii
n the posi- a quota, that is also an
i filled. Racism is an ugly t
enough to eiy solution, there is i
to the phi- nately in this wonder
seem to need someor
h-22. They the greatest things to
ffiliTHF PTMT
X XXXAn*/ Xi.i^X^-^X X
Maybe it is South Carolina tha
could give me this unforgettabh
experience to sense the wildlife a
almost tame, and to give me th<
feeling that I find myself more in
side a garden than a noisy urbai
metropolis. And the peculia
Southern drawl, as if attuned to th<
undisturbed pace of life in S.C., re
minds one of the soft serenity o
the region.
Katerina Kaloyanov;
USC graduate studen
USC athletes
studying hard
To the editor:
I would like to write in response
to Christy Whitlock's letter in the
April 22 edition of The Game cod
referring to the payment tc
scholar-athletes for their efforts. ]
am not, however, writing this lettei
to criticize Ms. Whitlock, but tc
resolve some misconceptions she
seems to have about college
athletics.
Ms. Whitlock, first responded tc
an op-ed statement in The Game
cock April 17 edition which read
"College athletes are supposed tc
practice, play to the best of thei]
ability and still keep up theii
grades?" Her response was "Whai
is so tough about keeping a simple
2.0 average? Anyone who attend*
class should be able to do that."
In point of fact, Coach Spark)
Woods does have a mandator)
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waao aiibiiuaiivv/ punvjr. n um.
many professors do not, and some
even suggest that class attendance
is not necessary, Coach Woods requires
ALL football players a
necessary breakfast check every
morning, Monday through Friday.
This is done not so much to make
sure breakfast is eaten, but to assure
the student-athletes are out ol
bed and started to class.
It may also be of interest to you,
Mc Whitlrvt of thp inrrpacp ol
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the grade point averages among
the student-athletes at the University
of South Carolina. For youi
information, during the spring and
fall 1990 semesters, over 161
student-athletes earned a GPA of
3.0 or higher, 16 of which had a
perfect 4.0.
These are some of the same students
who participated in the Lady
Gamecock basketball program and
reached the NCAA "Sweet Sixteen"
during their season in the
spring of 1990. Along with the
Lady Gamecocks, our men's soccer
team completed their season
this fall ranked fourth in the
nation.
Ms. Whitlock also posed the
quotas not
color is one
Every on
:Y MAGEE crime in d
black or wli
? '?A this. How ^
and like ha
1 same pers(
best of intentions, to keep were house
ork place. Unfortunately, If you h
t their own purpose. When were just a
dual gets a job because of criminated
i injustice. and think al
hing. It seems that for ev- I hope I
mother problem. Unfortu- color blind
ful world, people always things like <
le to hate. And they find I'll get c
1 base this hate on. Skin semester.
iRHSSiil
t Question in her letter- "What ic
5 wrong with a little part-time or
s full-time work in season?" And
5 she stated, "all these athletes that
don't think they get enough can
1 join the ranks of students who
work 20-30 hours per week or
5 more all year long."
First, I think it is necessary for
^ people to understand the NCAA's
point of view on this matter. Ac1
cording to NCAA rules, it is illegal
* and a violation for a scholarship
athlete to hold any job during the
fall and spring semesters. In
theory, this was to prevent fiscal
abuses of overzealous alumni and
booster employers.
This leaves approximately three
months in the summer and the
5 short time around Christmas (when
5 school is not in session or the team
: is not preparing for a bowl game)
) for student-athletes to hold jobs.
1 Many of these students come from
r lower-middle to lower class fami>
lies and would not have had the
' opportunity to attend ANY institu'
tion of higher education without an
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> money earned during this time will
go towards laundry, school sup?
plies (i.e.: paper, pens and note*
books), gas, food, clothes and
r pocket money.
It is also important to look at the
t time and training requirements
' placed on the student-athletes at
! this level of competition. A typical
student-athlete carries a minimum
' of 12 credit hours, with an average
r of 15 to 16 each semester. This
' must be done to complete satisfac
tory progress set forth by the
: NCAA which enables the studentathletes
to become eligible for
1 competition.
r
All of his classes must be prior
to noon because of afternoon practice.
The student-athlete spends
: from 1:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. five
days a week at Williams Brice Stadium.
His time consists of three
? weight training workouts each
weeK, live weekly pre-practice
' meetings prior to the two and a
half practice sessions.
[ This time spent weekly can't exceed
20 hours of pre-game preparation
per week as set by the
NCAA. This does not include
game time, individual film study,
treatment and rehabilitation in the
case of an injury.
[ The spring, summer and winter
months (which are the "offseason")
for football consist of
four weight workouts per week,
three days of afternoon running in
the Carolina sun and two days of
morning running, the latter beginning
prior to 6:00 a.m.
By all of this hard work,
solution
' of the best examples of this,
e out there who doesn't see the big
iisliking someone because they're
lite or green for that matter,, consider
vould you feel if someone you know
ted you, even if you were exactly the
>n you are now, just because you
d in a different skin?
qup npupr pnncirlprpH thot if thinno
w v iiv t v* vv/iajiuvi vu uiui 11 uiliigo
little bit different, you could be disagainst
every day, you should stop
bout it a little more often,
live to see the day when people are
enough that there isn't a need for
quotas.
>ff my soap box now . . . until next
I ^
'
student-athletes such as football
and basketball players (as well as
others) hope to be successful, For
by this success, such as a bowl
game and national recognition for
the institution, money is generated
and recycled through the university's
financial office. Examples of
this are computers, desks and professor
endowments.
The Athletic Department directly
donated to the university's
Thomas Cooper Library $500,000
for the purchase of books, periodi
oaii team Dealing rionaa diate
University two out of three games.
We are used to some stereotypic
opinions because we may be bigger,
faster or stronger than others.
Through this letter, I hoped to
have swayed these opinions. We
are not "guys and girls" taking
from YOUR university, but
student-athletes giving blood,
sweat, tears and yes, even brain
cells to give something back to
OUR University of South Carolina.
Ben Hogan
Pre-med/history sophomore football
player
cal and other informative supplies
for use by the entire student population.
Our department has also endowed
a Carolina Scholars scholarship
here at USC.
Incidentally, USC has been chosen
the past two years to attend the
Independence Bowl, but declined
the offer because of final examinations.
It might also be of some interest
that the money for a scholarathlete's
scholarship is not given
by the university, its faculty, or the
students, but by the revenues
generated by the university's Athletic
Support Club known as the
Gamecock Club.
I would like to close this letter
by stating that none of the Carolina
student-athletes are demanding
payment, all of us are happy to
have the chance to extend our athletic
careers past the high school
level and possibly to continue to
play on the professional level, like
"Bo and Jordan," who both eventually
graduated college with degrees.
I simply wanted to write to
inform you of the demands placed
on us and the amount of hard work
and effort we contribute to the
use.
We do know "diddly," Ms.
Whitlock. We, the student-athletes
of Carolina, are pre-med, pre-law
and business students, as well as
athletes. We take pride in our business
school being voted the topranked
international business
school in the country; the same
pride professors take in our base1
11 A t a! l * J nA_