University of South Carolina Libraries
tt(5 Serring VSC Chris Dixon, I Stephanie Sonnenfe Edltorla p Achim Hunt, Bryan Johnston, Karen Layne, Jennifer Stanley , Grad studer better housi After four years of undergraduate studies, a diploma under your belt and perhaps some time spent in the workforce, how would living at in Bates sound to you? That is precisely the situation graduate students face at Carolina. Some graduate students are financially secure enough to continue living in their own homes. Those with little to no income cannot live off-campus. On-campus housing is the only option. On-campus housing is e particularly crucial to foreign i- students. But Bates, a freshman dorm, hardly seems the appropriate place for actual graduates. They've done the freshman dorm thing at 18, when it was crazy and fun and awesome. At twenty-something, or even thirty-something, hall baths just don't swing it anymore. Walking through the Horseshoe to your home sweet home in Bates must not be overly-inspiring, either. USC's graduate program is not given much attention, save by our own administration. Porn mags 1 despite the; Pornographic magazines have always been controversial, there's no doubt about that. Recently they've been in the limelight for a variety of reasons, thanks to the recent movie The People vs. Larry Flynt." In 1996, something called the Military Honor and Decency Act of 1996 came about. It was a part of the defense budget bill. Basically, the act forbid the sale or rental of sexual material at any military facility. The act passed without any debate in the capitol and Clinton signed it into law in September. It was supposed to be enacted in December of 1996. But Bob Guccione, the publisher of Penthouse magazine, said the act violated the right to free sneech and free expression. He's right. So maybe magazines like Hustler, Playboy, Playgirl and Penthouse (among other choice Stadrat Media Raseell Hob Chris Dixoa News: 77 Editor in chi?/ Advertising: Stephaaie FAX: 771 SoueafeM Viewpoints Editor AcUa Hilt Re Karea Layae , Bryaa Jenifer Staalrr Johastoa J, News Editors Sports Editors Joha Lyoas Nikki Thorpe Jr Kelly Photo Editor MoDLaaaAa BcH lfol?ll*n?B U. Features Editors Cnflua Mtor NiddL. Xt RoefK Assl Viewpoints * The Came cock is the student newspaper of the University of S - and Friday during the Ft'l and Soring semesters, *.4h lh* exe< * Opinions expressed in Hie Gamecock are those of the editors Carolina. * Hie Board of Studebt Publications and Communications is the Media is its parent organization. Tlie Gamecock will try to print all letters received. Lei full name, professional title or year and major if a si the author to The Gamecock newsroom in Russell Hoi to edit all letter for style, possible libel or space limit cu instance. amecock . Since 1908 Editor in Chief Id, Viewpoints Editor il Board John Lyons, Kelly McPherson, Ben Muldroi r, Nikki Thorpe. its deserve ng options It is in the interest of this university to build the reputation of its graduate program. One small way to enhance the program would be to offer decent housing. We're not advocating a completely new building. We're aware of the monetary situation at this university. However, would it not be possible to house the graduates in another building? Or possibly renovate their wing of Bates so that it is apartment-style, or at the very least, suite-style. Granted, housing is not the top priority of students when they consider universities. But it is a definite icing on the cake. And if other universities are offering up devil's 1 i i i A i iooa cane, wno wants angel rood, though it may be more healthy? The more students we attract, the more selective we can be in quality. Higher quality students call for a more challenging program, more prominent professors, and all that means more tuition. So maybe it won't work out quite that simply, but, hey, better housing is a good start. iave rights arguments publications) are not the purveyors of good taste. We do not condone the pictorials in these magazines, for they are degrading to both sexes involved in the pictures. However, these magazines are entitled to be sold and produced in the United States of America, and that includes everything from military bases to the local Circle K. iwidently, b ederal Judge Shira A. Scheindlin agreed with Guccione's argument. Scheindlin ruled Wednesday the Military Honor and Decency Act is unconstitutional, according to the Associated Press. "Society is better served by protecting our cherished right to free speech, even at the cost of tolerating speech that is outrageous, offensive and demeaning," Scheindlin wrote. Phis, Playboy really does have good articles. Believe it or not. we USC Columbia, SC 7-7726 Daniel Brown 7774249 Jason Jeflers I-6482 Ctrtoonist Melissa Sellers ginna Green Online Editor Asst. News Lanra Day esslea Nmh Creative Director Asst.Feetum Marilyn IT Nicholson Edwards Taylor Ajjf. Photo ^ Adwrtising Manager irk Hopkins Erik Collins Copj Desk Chief FaeuJty Advisor JamSynder Office Manager outh Carolina and is published on Mondav, Wednesday. rption ot university holidays and exam periods or the author ana not those of the University ol South Publisher of The Cemecock. The Department of Student iters should be 200-2S0 words and must include tudent. Letters must be personally delivered by use room 333. The Gamecock reserves the right ations. Names will not be withheld for any cir VIEWF II V, I / / X ,7 / ; / / Sritota swTri j ? w ^ The flag issue d< Governc Modern c< 've heard a nasty little I rumor that parking is the worst it's ever been at USC this semester. As an off-campus student for the past four years, I'd like to tell you it isn't true. I'd like to say to all you young whippersnappers, "Back in my day there used to be more parking spaces than there were dusty old books untouched since 1892 in the Thomas Cooper Library. "Why we could pull right into that lot beside Russell House and park any time, day or night! And we didnt even have to leave our hazard lights Y> on. But it would be a he. Parking has been the same disgusting disaster since at least 1993. I have to admit that Fm impressed with the administration's new parking plan, however. The Plan: It will be so much more convenient for everyone if we just eliminate most of the parking. Now that's the kind of caring attitude to which I feel good donating my five dollars per parking ticket! Sneakincr nf mnvpnion/>o tVio-o'i ? I O w?v?*w, WilViV O more than enough of it going around Columbia this year. I recently went up to the BellSouth building on Huger Street to pay my telephone bill where I encountered a very polite sign: For your convenience, we have Avid Viewpoints readers will < _ __j JOINTS / .'/in tdi / / ^/rednecks ? oes not educate oi one r David Beasley, in the 1997 > mvenieno Lucy Arnold closed this BeDSouth payment center. Please use one of the other payment centers conveniently located at addresses other than this one. (Well, it went something like that.) I felt like kissing BellSouth (were it a person and not a corporation) for making my life so much easier! So I went to the next payment. center on the list, the very convenient parking ticket division of Columbia, a place where USC students rarely dare to trod. Conveniently, their computer system was down, leaving them unable to process my bill. (I IrriAiir T lm/\ur iPo T'*?? IUIVTTj X lUIVTf j XI/ O UIC 11JL Ol/ 1/U11C 1 *C encountered city personnel unwilling to take my money, too). Fortunately, there was another payment center conveniently located ten miles away. Actually Fm starting to think the rest of the world is using a dictionary I don't have and therefore has an updated definition for convenience that has emerged since I finished learning the South Carolina Word List. Take convenience stores. I find it so convenient to go to one of these stores to buy an item that's not exactly what I wanted, in a smaller quantity from what I had in mind and at a note Niltki La Rocque's colt .? i Wa\&I . : 0/ DYKE ^%/RULI mm. Bminy^n .ES8IAVJ5 often have +1 4 ne child, build one job South Carolina State of the State > es not so c< higher monetary value than I had planned. You can't really get more convenient than that. Even more convenient are the new machines at grocery stores that take ATM cards. No longer do I need to waste the minute I was taking to write my checks. Now I only spend five minutes answering questions (English, Spanish, German or Latin?), punching in secret codes (Was it 007 or 1982?) and waiting for the thing to process. That is so convenient! Probably one of the most convenient things of all for our current generation of lazy bums is the drivethru. (Note the spelling-we're dumbing down American fast food joints!). I find it quite convenient to shout my order continuously at a post (which incidentally has a greater IQ than many a brain between those Koai^nlionac^ until T finolln uvwvtj/iiviivw/ m?vii x niiaiijr ucai something that sounds hke "Please drive around" in garble-ese. It's also very convenient to get home and discover that while you ordered a cheeseburger and fries, what you got was a fishwich and boogers. I'm just joking, of course; it only appears to be boogers. It is really the stuff they scraped off the fry basket and dumped in a fry box after the grease had been licked off. What do you want, whiny-butt? imn is missing. Don't fret...S V . ? k* ? he SAME HAIRDO,' road or create j address onvenient you may be asking. Obviously, you say with great wisdom, these things won't change, that's just the way it is. And you're right. But I don't necessarily want the service to change. (Although it might be nice to get the meal i order every now and tnen. j All I want is a little honesty. I want USC to send a little flyer out with next registration packet that says, "Look, we're not trying to make things better for you students, we're trying to make this school look like a good place for foreign investors to toss their cash. Live with it." I want BellSouth to post a sign that reads: We have closed this site, not for your convenience, but because there's a bomb on the ninth floor! Get out now! I want convenience stores to rename themselves Not So Much Convenience Stores As Small Stores With Larger Candy Supplies Than Grocery Stores. I want ATM machines in grocery stores to say: This isn't more convenient than writing a check. But it saves trees or something. And I want drive-thru windows to eliminate the speaker and the nerd in headphones and replace them with a sign declaring: Drive around for a random food grab bag. Don't even think about asking for ketchup. he'll be back next Friday. > > * t