University of South Carolina Libraries
Columnists Rob Gioelli and Emily Streyer will be back with their second installments of columns, giving their opinions and insights. VLHIVLJ Sen ing the Carolina C EDITOR1A Jennifer Stanley Sara Ladenheim, Kurt Johnson, l Rob Gioelli, Assista Kathleen McCormi Business nose intc Collins Enter- ^< tainment Corpo- HIHHAaUi ration wants you Collins Ente, to "Ban Beasleyanti-Beasley no TrAii V*otta r\t?nU CIO jruu nave puuably gathered from their bill- I boards and radio advertisements. There shot What you may separation G not have gathered and po< is the reasoning behind these statements. The billboards emphasize South Carolina's poor education records and suggest that those records are somehow Beasley's fault. Our test scores have been low for generations, and one gubernatorial administration cannot be expected to change that. Collins doesn't care about the specifics, though. Their stake in this issue is predictable and entirely financial: they are South Carolina's largest distributor of video poker machines, which Beasley and his Republican Par ty would like to ban. To save their profitable business, they are pretending to be concerned about our state. Whether you support video poker, you should feel insulted that Collins is trying to manipulate you with their intellectually dishonest ads. Unfortunately, ads such as these are not the only ways that business interferes with politics. Other video poker groups are bankrolling Democratic Party camImage is e Image. It seems to be important to a HHHUm large number of peo- Leaders a pie. It gives a revitalizec passerby a generally specific idea about ____________ what you may be like or what kind of person you may $"01 be. centerpOi mv i ininiung 01 ^u- supi lumbia can easily conjure images of concrete and train tracks. But the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau seem to think this image can be expanded. A $15 million marketing plan to help promote the area is currently underway, according to an article in the Aug. 19 issue of The State. But right now, Columbia's image, no matter which way you think about it, is USC. This university is the pulse of this town. Its 26,000 students inundate the economy with steady cash floods, create the "scene" at Hp* mm ~ ''^T Serving the Carolina Com The Gamecock is the student newspaper of The Universit Friday during the fall and spnng semesters and five times during periods. Opinions expressed in The Gamecock are those of the e< The Board of Student Publications and Communications is the, is the newspaper's parent organization. The Gamecock Jennifer Stanley Editor in Chief Rob Undsey Sere Ledenhelm Managing Editor Jessica Barf1 Kurt Johnson Viewpoints Editor Jackie Posto Josh Lonon Slews Editors Todd Money Erin Reed Rosalind Har Kristin Frees tate Features Editor Bryan Johnston Editorial Assistant Rob Gloelll Nathan Brown Sports Editor Brad Walton Nlkkl Thorpe Photo Editors Kenley Yount Sean Rayford Ruth Nettles Brian Rlsh Online Editor Denlsha Gral Student Media Ellen Parsons Director of Erik Collins Student Media Jeff Stenslan Lee Phlppe Advertising Manager Sherry F. Holmes Classified Ad Manager Carolyn Griffin Business Manager Ji n Green Creative Director 1 amccocl! '(immunity since 1908 X BOARD f, Editor in Chief Managing Editor Viewpoints Editor nt Viewpoints Editor ick, Editorial Writer pokes ) politics paigns, including that of Beasley's rtainment, challenger Jim billboards. Hodges. Not surprisingly, the Democratic Party, which in other situations attempts to uia be a protect citizens from f business their own mistakes, litics. is supportive of video poker. We feel that it is a shame that business interests can affect the positions of politicians, who are entrusted with making decisions for the common good. Perhaps we are hopelessly idealistic, but we long for a system in which each lawmaker votes on each issue according to the dictates of conscience rather than those of his or her campaign coffers. Many Americans are concerned-almost obsessed-with the separation of church and state. They feel that the First Amendment not only protects our right to worship as we choose, but it also protects the state from the interference of matters of faith. We should also concern ourselves with protecting the state from hiisin ess and other snerial v^uituiai cvcnvo aic tuui icoj of the university as well. And the university seems to provide endless community service with groups like Carolina For Kids. And a final tidbit that proves USC is Columbia's image is the fact that USC owns 40 percent of the land in Columbia, according to the city manager. USC is Columbia's image. USC is Columbia. IMCOClt ?ill y of South Carolina and is published Monday. Wednesday and the summer with the excepbon of university holidays and exam Utors or author and not those of The University of South Carolina, publisher of The Gamecock. The Department of Student Media All area codes are 803 Copy Editors fd(t0, 777-3914 eld n Viewpoints 777-7726 vey Public Relations News 777-7726 Director Asst.Viewpoints Editor ?'c- 777-3913 i Asst. News Editors t Sports 777-7182 Encore Editor ? ,,, . . . Online 777-2833 )?m Asst. Features Editor Faculty Advisor Student Media id Graduate Assistant Advertising 777-3888 Classified 777-1184 Fax 777-6482 Office 777-3888 VWi fmmw wk|tt jr^cmos i feu ww interests. There should be real, radical campaign finance laws that address this concern. We need a separation of business and government. Maybe then, we could trust the motives of political advertising. verything places such as Five IwSHHfli Points and the re trying to Vista, and keep :ity s image. ^is place on its toes, catering to specific needs. And with sport... ing events, Coilct be the lumbia is the focal int of their point of a majori Oort. ty of the state by viewers and visitors Saturday afternoons during the fall with Gamecock home football games. The spring is not much different with the basketball team. PiiHiifol mronf O Ova Student be I want to take this chance to welcome ] you all back, and I hope that every- t one is excited about starting a new > year! The KIM PICKEWSON "S Government is a great place to begin your involvement. One of the easiest ways is to become a member of a University Committee. The committees are comprised of students, faculty and staff, and they deal with such issues as parking, safety and dining, If Internet acc Only connect," wrote E.M. Forster i in "Howard's End." ] We're connecting, all right, but like- < ly in a way < I of which < Forster would dis- \ approve. \ We're connecting via j communieating anonymous- { KIKI McCORMICK many of us columnist think we en joy it. ' I'm not sure why. I guess it's easier to connect with people we'll never ( meet. Their distance makes them safe. They can never hurt us, never chal- ' lenge us because we can always log off and never hear from them again. ^ (And we certainly don't have to worry < that they'll run off with our umbrellas, ! resulting in unpleasant face-to-face en- < counters.) At any rate, I've finally gotten some < data to back up my general displeasure ] with our latest collective fetish. The 1 New York Times reports that a study 1 at Carnegie Mellon University has 1 shown that Internet use makes peo- ] pie more depressed and lonely. 1 Yes, it's actually causal. Pre-exist- | ing depression did not increase the j amount ui tune spent un me internet. j Column not jour- ! nalistic, humorous To the editor: I am disappointed to see that Jane , Frederick has turned her campaign for Congress into what a good campaign should never be-a character assassi- j nation. At her recent press conference, j Frederick stated that Congressman Floyd Spence is out of touch with the ( needs of his constituents. She claims ] >OINT WWwVi pWiWTOS> 1 m- SfWJH. ? Iff? " / ,f I nrHctsxftl 7/^ffl >dy presic ^ou have ideas or concerns that relate ? any of these, this would be the nest vay to make your voice heard. In addition to our efforts on camius, Student Government is also tryng to create an avenue for student's voices to be heard outside of our University. We will be holding a voter regstration drive on Greene Street on Sepember 29 and 30. If you are a resident >f the state of South Carolina, please :ome by so that you will be able to vote n the state elections this year. As the uture leaders of this state, we need x) exercise our right to vote. Student Government is also workng on several other projects in September. One of these is serving as the lost for the SEC Student Government Conference. Student representatives rom each of the twelve schools, will convene on the USC campus in order jo discuss issues that face our institutions. We are honored to have been choess loses t< \ccording to the story, "(the subjects) reported a decline in interaction with amily members and a reduction in their circles of friends that directly corresponded to the amount of time they spent on-line." Maiy Pipher, author of "The ShelJS.V of Each Other Rebuilding Our Families," could have predicted the results )f the Carnegie Mellon study. She warns :hat we are living in an "electronic village." That is, many of us are living in a -vorld in which media, such as TV and die Internet, have severely reduced ties vith real people and thus, with the real world. This is particularly true of children who have been "babysat" by television. She quotes Bill Moyers: "Our children are being raised by appliances." There are at least two major problems with living in an electronic village: L) it does not help maintain real social ties, and is probably detrimental to that mdeavor, and 2) the actual village itself reprograms our thought processes in an unhelpful fashion. Pipher feels the first issue is one if reciprocity~or the lack thereof. She points out that, while we "know" celebrities better than we know our neighbors these days, "Tom Hanks won't scoop the snow off your driveway when you tiave the flu." Yet, we watch Hanks on 'Oprah" instead of inviting our neighi e? \vrn i;u? ??t uuiauvei iui tea. vvcicciimc we vcgui these connections with people whose faces we see plastered about, so we don't The (i.irrx w J I I 9 J > Hand phone ruimlxr hat the fact that he surrounds himself vith the likes of beauty queens, cheereaders and football heroes is proof. However, in her attempt to discredit Congressman Spence, she has discriminated against anyone who has ever vorn a crown, a cheerleading skirt or i football jersey. In my eyes, Congressman Spence is the epitome of a true southern gencleman. The presence of beauty queens, cheerleaders and football heroes at his campaign rallies, parades and other political functionsiend to this image. In "Li you Stior r0?\ 1 ^ 1 lent discus: "Along with all of the events we have piano for this year is to mal South Carolina a bett< sen to serve as the host, so that they too can get a taste of true Carolina pride. Another popular program that Student Government sponsors is blockseating for the USC football games. Any group of ten or more students is invited to blockseat for any home football game. Lastly, Freshman Council is now being selected through an application and represent the Class of 2002, and participate in the day to day activities in Student Government. Along with all of the programs and events we have planned, our main goal ouch with r< "That is, many of us ; in which media, such Internet, have severe real people and...witl invest in building relationships with our families and communities. The second problem is the reason Pipher calls our country the United States of Advertising. Advertising is necessary to finance the media we consume, so we get it aplenty. The point of any advertisement is to convince us of two things: first, that there is some hole in nnr livp<5 fhnt nppris fillincr anH ?pp ond, that a certain product will fit that hole nicely. We've bought that message, and it has (there's no better way to put this) screwed us up. It makes us think that we are the center of the universe, because it makes us think in terms of satisfying our most inconsequential wants. Only the strongest minds resist such messages when heard constantly, every day. It's conditioning, as in "Brave New World," but even more pervasive, and it has changed our priorities and values as a culture. Very few reject the message and find a definition for themselves outside of their own consumption habits. I know that scares me, and I hope it disturbs you as well. xxxk will try k> print all letters received letters shoukl lx- 2SO-.*m words and iters must lx- personally delivered l>y the author to llx- (iameaxk newsroom llx' ( iameux k reserves tlx* right to edit all letter lor style, possilrle libel or sp this day and age, we have seen beauty queens go on to become spokespersons for many important issues, such as the former Miss America who has spoken out about being a victim of incest. From my own experience, I have seen cheerleaders and football players who take active leadership roles both on and off the field. So I must ask Jane Frederick, "Why are you labeling these people as one dimensional characters?" It is time to ^et back to the real issues. A congressman, like all political ving off campus, this helps see what types of organizats are available to students." Leah Pennington, junior : 1 "I ~ \ | NWW ! m?. 5 z ses plans programs and ted, our main goal ke the University of sr place." for this year is to make the University of South Carolina a better place. In order to accomplish this, we must have input from everyone including faculty, staff, and students. We must not only voice our concerns, but we must take action if our ideas are to be put into motion. I would like to encourage everyone to use Student Government as a means of getting involved and making a difference on your campus. Please feel free to come by Student Government anytime, we are located on the first floor of the Russell House. sal world are living in a world l as TV and the ly reduced ties with 1 the real world." A slightly related idea of Pipher's could be applied to correct this problem. She emphasizes the importance of enemies; that is, when there is a known enemy threatening survival, people forget petty concerns and work together to fight that threat. Families only start getting angsty over shallower issues "in times of plen-' ty and relative security." Right now, we're feeling pretty secure, so we don't worry about what is happening to our society of electronic villagers. I think we should identify the effects of the above-mentioned (and other) media as the enemy and fight it with weapons that will help make our true connections stronger. These weapons include evenings spent playing board games with loved ones, reading to children, walks through parks and anything else that can encourage real conversation and bonding among real human beings. Use them, and we'll win a war for the ownership of our minds, our allegiances, and our time. must include lull name, professional title <>r war and major if a student in Kuvsell lkxi.se room 533 K-mail k-tters must include the author's tek*ace limitations Names will ma Ix- withheld for any circumstance figures, should serve people from all walks of life. This includes beauty queens, cheerleaders and football heroes as well. This campaign should not be centered on a character debate, rather, it should focus on which candidate is best suited to carry out the job of a true representative. Tiffany M. Burkett Wofford Student West Columbia resident 4