The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, January 24, 2000, Page A6, Image 6
Quote, Unquote
‘Universities are teaching the worst imaginable
lesson: that one’s freedom should depend upon one’s
local power.’ Prof. Alan Kors, Univeristy of Pennsylvania
' ' A f||f Monday, January 24,2000
Whc (5amccock .
Serving the Carolina Community since 1Q08
Editorial Board
Kenley Young • Editor in Chief
Brad Walters • Managing Editor
Brock Vergakis • Viewpoints Editor
Peter Johnson • Assistant Viewpoints Editor
Sara Ladenheim • Editorial Contributor
Emily Streyer • Editorial Contributor
Calendars degrade
female sports figures
here was a time when women in sports weren’t taken seri
ously. After making leaps and bounds toward equality in the
past decade, women’s sports might have just taken a few
steps back.
The 2000 Australian Olympic women’s soccer team could have
single-handedly set back women’s sports with the controversial re
lease of a calendar featuring full-frontal nudity.
The calendar has sold hundreds of thousands of copies, raising
money for the team just in time for the Olympics this summer.
Now, American high-jumper Amy Acuff has complied a calen
dar featuring risque pictures of America’s top female track and
field stars, clad in body paint and not much eise. Acuff calls it a
new way of appreciating women’s athletics.
It seems to be the same way chauvinistic males have always ap
preciated women, a way many women have fought hard to over
come for many years.
These calendars might raise valuable funds toward the advance
ment of these teams, but at what cost to women’s sports as a
whole? These athletes are exploiting themselves at the expense of
every woman who has competed at any level of professional
sports.
It began when Brandi Chastain of the American women’s soc
cer team tore off her shirt, exposing her sports bra during the
World Cup this past summer. It was an amazing moment, but it
might have caused more harm for women’s sports in the long run.
Female athletes have come a long way toward being treated as
equals. A calendar featuring full-frontal nudity or even body-paint
ed athletes, no matter how much money it might raise, is a setback
for all women who seek equality in sports.
Greek housing delays
hurt USC's credibility
Construction on the Greek village still hasn’t broken ground,
and at the rate the administration is working on it, it never
will.
A Greek village has been promised to USC’s fraternities and
sororities for years. However, despite all the promises and con
struction start dates that have been made, little progress has actu
ally occurred.
USC’s Greek organizations have been raising money for years
to fund their housing projects. Part of this fund-raising activity in
volves telling alumni and other donors that a groundbreaking date
is in sight so donors can see tangible evidence of how their money
is being used. Having a starting date on construction in the near
future also helps Greek organizations’ recruitment.
For those students who constantly work on fund raising or re
cruting new members, every time a construction start date passes
as one did in October, it hurts their credibility. It discourages stu
dents from pledging and alumni from making further donations.
It’s time for USC’s administration to keep its word and begin
construction on the Greek village that has been promised to Car
olina’s Greek community for years. Whatever complications that
are being encountered need to be addressed, and addressed quick
ly. The credibility of USC and the Greek community is at stake.
About Us
The Gamecock is the student newspaper of The University of South Carolina and is published Monday, Wednesday and
Friday during the fall and spring semesters and nine times during the summer with the exception of university holidays and exam
periods. Opinions expressed in The Gamecock are those of the editors or author and not those of The University of South Carolina.
The Board of Student Publications and Communications is the publisher of The Gamecock. The Department of Student Media is
the newspaper's parent organization. The Gamecock is supported in part by student activities fees.
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The Washington Post
"SIR—THIS (’HECK TO TIME'WARNER
FOR #165 fflLUOrt - ITS pATBP 1999"
Campus Issues ‘
Intergenerational dating a bad idea
When I
found
that my gor
geous, charming,
and Shake
speare-literate
uncle by mar
riage was going
to be teaching
theater at a uni
versity, I laughed
with my equal
ly adorable aunt
about my chief
concern in the
matter. My wor
ry was that of
those teacher
crushing, needy,
r*nllaoro_aoro fp
males who would be soaking up his office
hours, pleading for “extra help” and flash
ing their gazing eyes at him, a tall, dark and
handsome prototype of a man.
For when those first few under
whelming hours of a new collegiate exis
tence begin to surface, immersion in
Milton and Whitman become far more fas
cinating than the mundane permeation of
beer in Thursday night’s outfit, especially
when the most handsome, most intelligent
and certainly most sensitive guy “at this
school - ever!” is at the helm.
We saw it in “Mr. Holland’s Opus,”
when the middle-aged Richard Dreyfuss
character shows a blatant disregard for the
family he’s built in exchange for a fleet
ing, unconsummated, but still ever-visible
attraction to his high school champion vo
calist. On the same level, in this year’s
black comedy “Election,” another over
achiever gets allured into the omniscient
presence of her teacher. These are vivid
examples of teachers and students togeth
er, not simply in the learning sense, but al
so in the biblical sense.
I have to hand it to one of my bolder
professors I’ve had here. The first day of
class, his speech elicited some giggles, a
few perplexed facial expressions and an
overall wonder of where his content could
have ever been derived from.
What this gentleman, who spoke to
our class in the most blunt and actually
quite stylish fashion, was telling us was not
to flirt with him. He did use the words
“flirt” and “me,” with no qualms, no gray
areas, just plain substance. That was a first
for me, and many might have seen that ges
ture as unneeded because of its inherent
implication of authority and subordinate.
I, however, have never been so
proud to know where I stand; I admire that
he recognized that some ulterior motives
of certain students range far beyond the in
nocent ‘Take Your Teacher to Lunch Day.”
Sharing a meal is one thing, but sharing in
timate glances is quite another. Grade im
provement, potential for a rich future, and
sheer, well-deserved adoration for a mas
ter of a captivating field are all possible
reasons for such an escape. Many of us
can see the understated plight of lonely
students, the element that might drive one
into a controversial endeavor like mak
ing passes at a teacher.
Movies today bring up the taboo top
ic of inteigenerational dating. The twist
ed psyche of this year’s “American
Beauty” didn’t leave too much in the air
for us to grasp at our own pace, in our own
time, like other such explicit dramas have
done in the past to spare the moviegoer
traumatic aftershocks. This movie instead
showed us a harsh reality of our millenial
culture, the idea that an imminent lust can
exist for someone either far up or down
the age spectrum, respectively. Kevin
Spacey and his much younger cohort, Mana
Suvari. gave us a concrete depiction of both
the degradation of sexual desire and bound
aries overlooked because of lack of con
trol.
I urge the law-abiding, stellar profes
sors at this university to recognize that we
are in an enclosed environment with con
fused 18-year-olds, whose pasts might be
elusive or possibly very scarred.
Even students from single-parent homes
might have an unfulfilled space in their
heart or souls, which they subconsciously
see the need to fill in such an enriching en
vironment. Many of us have parts of with
in that are indeed lacking. That doesn’t
mean we will call on “Mrs. Robinson” to
fill the void, but one can never be too sure.
These movies, while not the sole facilita
tors of unfit behavior, send across a con
sistent message - that young people can
use their youthful looks and extended at
tributes for their own advancement, either
intentionally or unintentionally, much to
the corruption and disillusionment of their
prey.
Thankfully, USC has held up high stan
dards that honor our valued Carolinian
Creed. I hope that we won’t be reading
anything in the news about unacceptable
teacher-student relations, and although we
are an equal-opportunity employer, USC
might want to consider looks in the com
ing years to avoid such controversies.
Thank you, Carolina, for recruiting
some of the finest rookies in the busi
ness. 1 have heard nothing but cheers from
freshmen through seniors on the simple,
unadulterated, aesthetic pleasure of some
of our longest-working and equally new
teachers.
I guess I’ll simply advise my uncle to
grow some facial hair, avoid Shakespeare’s
love sonnets, and begin his first lecture
with, “Please don’t even try to flirt with
_»»
me.
Meredith Davis
is a junior
Journalism major
and can be
reached at
gamecockview
points@hotmail.c
om
Letters
Husser doesn’t
speak for all
“I think USC needs to be one of the
leaden in calling for the [Confederate] flag
to come down.”
Spoken by Malik Husser, the student
body president, those words jumped at me
from the front page. Not only do those
words misrepresent me and the students
1 have talked to, but they also once again
show that The Gamecock has not changed
with the millennium.
I have never met Mr. Husser person
ally, and I’m certain he is a fine man. How
ever, he does not speak for me, nor does
he speak for the majority of students I have
talked to about this issue. Now, granted,
the people I talked to are overwhelming
ly Southern, but this is a Southern, name
ly South Carolina issue.
Which is why taking down the flag is
something we should fight, literally, to the
last man, woman and child. Don’t get me
wrong. I am 100 percent for the removal
of the Confederate BATTLE flag from our
state Capitol. And as a tax-paying citizen
of this state, I think I can decide on which
side of the debate over the Confederate
BATTLE flag I want to lead. We look at
the Confederate BATTLE flag every day
on CNN. The flag represents the Army of
the Confederate States of America, NOT
the Confederate States of America.
Which is why it should be removed.
It represents an entity, not part of any con
stituted part of the U.S. government. How
ever, to remove this flag would mean to
abolish the flag of the U.S. Army, Marine
Corps and Navy, since all these services
have at one point or another oppressed
somebody [Native Americans, Japanese
internment, Philippine incursion, the Ba
nana Wars, etc.]
And that will not happen. So why
should the flag not come down? The state
of South Carolina is an original member
of the United States of America. We are a
sovereign state, ruled by those elected to
do so, NOT by a racist organization out to
make a new name for itself, starved for at
tention and causes. And I’m black, so I can
say that. The National Association for
the Advancement of Colored People is a
racist organization, and it has no business
interfering. If South Carolina wants the
flag down, we will take it down. If we
don’t, we will not.
As long as the NAACP tries to force
us into submission, I will march with who
ever I have to, to keep it up.
Thomas A. Eybl
Criminal Justice Freshman
Cockpit antics
embarrassing
As a member of the Student Game
cock Club, I can honestly say that I was
happy to see the Atheltics Department dis
band the Cockpit. For several years I have
been embarrassed by the antics of my
fellow SGC members during basketball
season. Their behavior was obnoxious,
crude and generally inane.
Comments of “al-co-hol-ic” towareds
[Kentucky assistant coach] Geoige Felton
were unnecessary and offensive not only
to coach Felton, but also to fans like my
self. Alcoholism is a disease that affects the
lives of many people and is not something
that should be joked about or taunted. This
incident is only one of many in which
the Cockpit has acted in a manner unbe
coming of a Gamecock fan.
There are many students who whole
heartedly support the Gamecocks, and the
actions of the Cockpit diminish the fans’
efforts. Unfortunately, the recent actions
might have given coach Fogler and the ath
letics department reason to deny the re
quests for a unified student section in the
Frank McGuire Arena. The role of a stu
dent section should be, first and foremost,
to cheer for its home team. Good-natured
ribbing of opposing players and coaches is
expected to create a home team advan
tage. However, it should not be personal
ly offensive. 1 hope that with some reor
ganization and positive leadership, the
Cockpit will return with a new role at
Gamecock basketball games.
Edward H. Bender
Political Science Junior
Social Issues
Life's
debates
need drama
I was lost on this whole Confederate flag
issue. South Carolina’s education sys
tem keeps
rouing, teenage
pregnancy rates
continue to rise
and poverty racks
this state - situa
tion normal. Ar
guing about the
flag doesn’t
change any of
this. But then
again, what do I
know? I’m just
a carpetbagger.
I have, how
ever, figured it
out. It isn’t about j
the utility of the
issue; it’s the
Mike DiPresso
is a senior English
major and can be
reached at game
cockviewpoints@ho
tmail.com
show. This issue has clearly defined
sides, and there are actual winneis and losers
(most political situations are a matter of
being less of a loser than the guy next to
you is). You don’t need any special knowl
edge to argue about the Confederate flag,
so any idiot (like me) can make a logical
sounding point. It’s an issue everybody
likes to argue. I wouldn’t be surprised if
they left the flae uo iust so Deoole could
aigue about it until the end of time.
People like drama. There should be
more showmanship and flashiness in every
thing.
Let’s take football. They don’t allow
players to cto victory dances anymore. They
neutered the game, you know. I say that
we should not only negate that ruling, but
that we should also encourage post-touch
down celebration. Let’s put a huge bin full
of props at the end zone. The players could
improvise a new victory display with every
touchdown. Just imagine if this had been
done in 1986, when “Refrigerator” Perry
scored a touchdown in the Superbowl. I
could see the Fridge now, holding a plastic
sword and wailing, “To dream/ The im
possible dream!”
It would have made the touchdown all
the more memorable.
How about medicine? Sure, our cur
rent medical science and technology is
great, but we should still add aesthetics in
to it. How about we mix our remedies with
Chinese concoctions? Instead of taking Vi
agra with a glass of water, crumble the pill
into a bowl of rabbit-penis soup (the Chi
nese used tiger genitalia in their soup, but
I think rabbit members would be more ap
propriate). It’s a wonderfully symbolic act
and might even put a dent in Australia’s
rabbit problem.
Some might think that those in authonty
would not like this concept of adding a
flourish to everything. They are wrong.
You know why? What’s better than firing
someone you don’t like? Adding a flour
ish ! Light a dismissed employee’s desk on
fire, or leave a dead cow in their parking
space. Even better than those would be to
hire somebody new without telling the fired
employee. Have that new person take the
fired’s spot and then have all of the other
employees pretend the fired died. That’s
a message that should bum in deep.
Sure, that’s mean... but it would make
for some interesting shoo... I mean situa
tions.
People might think these ideas odd, but
the oldest Western institution is based on
ridiculous customs. A Catholic mass is
crazy. Stand, sit, hold hands, shake hands,
kneel, stand, sit, stand, get in line, eat the
body, drink the blood, sit, give money, stand,
sing, kneel, stand, sit, stand, now get out.
That’s a Catholic mass. If you think what
I said we should do was odd or over the
top, just look at that.
Fifty thousand people converged out
side the statehouse and that tacky 19th
century rag is still there. How many more
back flips, debates, rantings and mass
convergences must there be before the flag
comes down? The fact that it hasn’t come
down already suggests that this state is still
run by a mob of old, racist white guys with
a twang in their voices. But then again, what
do I know? I’m just a carpetbagger.
In short, keep beauty in your life. If
the only way you can do it is by ranting
about a high-strung rudiment with
50,000 other ranters, by all means.
As for me, I’ll keep playing rugby, writ
ing, imagining, provoking and doing what
ever else is necessary to keep life’s piea*j|
sures from fading. But if you want to purst^V
crusades of little practical utility in order
to keep the colors bright, go to the state
hall, carry signs, carry that tacky rag on
your pickup, do whatever you need to
do.