Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

□- — Quote, Unquote [ J * * 4 ‘We have all the right things to build the next Chapel Hill.’ \l I ■ ® \ \ / I II I || Charlie FitzSimons, Executive Director of S.C. Commision on Higher Education %U 0amtCOCk Monday, October 30, 2000 Whc (dmccock Serving the Carolina Community since 1Q08 Editorial Board Brock Vergakis • Editor in Chief Kevin Langston • Viewpoints Editor Nathan White • Asst. Viewpoints Editor Patrick Rathbun • Editorial Contributor Brad Walters • Editorial Contributor Martha V^right • Editorial Contributor Tech village could greatly benefit USC Myrtle Beach developer Burroughs & Chapin unveiled a vision for its proposed Green Diamond development on Oct. 19. That development includes a planned 700 acre technology village that could give Columbia a version of North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park. If this vision indeed comes to pass, it could be a great bene fit to USC. The park has the potential to provide another re search outlet for students and professors, which would bring in millions more in research dollars and aid in the university’s quest to catch up to some of the region’s research power house universities. Three such universities - the University of North Carolina, Duke University and North Carolina State University - are partners in the Research Triangle, which has been around for more than 40 years. However, before we become too optimistic about such a park coming to USC, we must remember that Burroughs & Chapin has hurdles left to cross before it can even break ground on this development. And for this proposed park to become a suc cess, it must see continued support from not only university leaders, but also local government leaders and area business leaders. • With time, if all these necessary ingredients come together, USC could see the same benefits on a smaller scale that the Re search Triangle’s universities are seeing from their technology park. Clean Carolina offers right opportunity This past Friday, Student Government sponsored a com munity service event-open to the entire university. Al though the turnout wasn’t overwhelming, Clean Caroli na provided everyone an opportunity to participate in some type of community service. Students often have other commitments that prevent them from performing service, and having something on-campus that anyone could easily do is a step in the right direction toward getting students involved. sometimes it s just a nassie ror students to rind a way to vol unteer, much less make the effort to go somewhere and work it into their schedules. Providing on-campus opportunities to do service is a great idea, and Clean Carolina exemplifies this. Students are much more likely to volunteer when they can di rectly see the results of their service like they do when they help beautify campus by picking up the loads of trash on cam pus. Students are also much more likely to volunteer when do ing so directly benefits them, such as having a clean campus. There should be more on-campus service opportunities like Clean Carolina in the future. It’s great to help the Columbia community, but sometimes it’s nice to remember to provide service at the university as well. Edralyne Faye Chavez |co 033 I03 - So^X GvUESS Yoo*\ Car REAulY was StolEM. . .., .. \ ____________<=^h^ 05C Security on the -Xog* Affirmative Action It's affirmative, it's time to go -Jtave a dream I that my four lit JLtle children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their Clayt0n Kale character—Martin 's a iur,i°r iournal Luther King, Jr. ism major. He can Defeating be reached at racism is a daunt- gamecockview ing task, but it’s points something that @hotmail.com must be done. Get ting started ain’t .no picnic either. But it has to start somewhere. There’s no better place than here; there’s no better time than now. Affirmative action --that s how white liberals make themselves feel better about race issues in this country that, and quite unfortunately, do exist. Affirmative action is a stained glass curtain we hide behind because we, as Americans, don’t want to face the toughest issue out there: tension between races. It’s the toughest issue because peo ple’s feelings are going to get hurt. But to use a cliche, you can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs. Early in the Kennedy administration, there was a mandate to “act affirmative ly” to end discrimination based on skin color-this was the beginning of affirma tive action as we know it. Although it didn’t give minorities any special rights, it contributed to the whirlwind of change that was the Civil Rights Movement. But, believe it or not, it was during the Nixon administration that affirmative ac tion reached puberty and began looking like it does today. The practice was used to actively in tegrate institutions that weren’t accepting or hiring blacks. During the Nixon ad ministration is when we also saw the first use of “numbers and timetables,” which is how you say “quotas” without offending those you are tiying to help. And at that point in history, blacks were the only minorities in America to benefit from affirmative action. It wasn’t until “Whitey”got upset dur ing the Reagan administration, calling the practice “unfair” and “reverse discrimi nation,” that other minorities -Latinos, Jews, Asians and women- started bene fitting, too. To keep affirmative action, its proponents had to make the issue affect several minorities (therefore creating ma jority support). Now, at the doorstep of the next mil lennium, it’s time to close the book on af firmative action. I love what it has done. It’s done what it was intended to do. Peo ple of our generation wouldn’t even blink an eye if they went to their bank and the bank president was a black man. Two gen erations ago, that scenario would have been next to impossible. And, affirmative action helped pave the way. Affirmative action is no long er supported based on the need to end dis crimination-sure discrimination exists, but we can’t eradicate racists at this point, because we can’t eradicate stupidity. Af firmative action is now used to implement “diversity” and “multiculturalism.” Affirmative action today is simply a middle-class entitlement program. In oth er words, minorities that live in the ghet to don’t get what blue-collar minorities get. And those that live in the ghettos are the ones that need help the most. Lumping everyone of the same skin tone together in one group makes the false assumption that they are all the same, which is preposterous. The time has come for affirmative ac tion to help individuals in need based on the need itself. It would work even better because it wouldn’t be a polarizing “minority issue.” It would work better for society as a whole, helping the poorest citizens of any color to win scholarships in a chance to better themselves. Picture a fairly wealthy college-bound student of Asian decent. She is going to a university, and she qualified for a schol arship because of her ancestry. Now, picture a very poor (but very smart) student in Appalachia who can’t af ford to go to college and doesn’t get the scholarship because he isn’t “of color.” The majority of those who would be helped by affirmative action based on so cioeconomic status would predominantly be minorities, because most of the wealth in this country still lies in the pocketbooks and bank accounts of Caucasians. Another potential benefit of reform ing affirmative action into an economic entitlement program would be the easing of the “us versus them” mentality. in workplaces ana colleges across me nation, people would stop looking at “oth ers” and thinking they were only hired or accepted because of the color of their skin, and they would start looking at their colleagues with respect for what they can do and for who they are. I’ve spent many a sleepless night think ing long and hard about race relations in this country. My line of thinking on af firmative action itself has gone from be ing heavily against it to strongly in favor of it. But I have discovered that basing en titlements on socio economic status would be best for the entire country, pulling peo ple out of poverty and encouraging respect among the races. I have come to the conclusion that racism won’t die, easily anyway. But it’s time to try. Affirmative action is certainly a good thing. It has opened the lines of com munication through barriers of color. And now that the communications barrier is gone, it’s time to move on to the next chal lenge of shattering the barrier of racism it self. Letters Professor questions methods, intentions of editorial To the Editor and Staff: Though I have responded to you in private concerning the recent editorial about the print program in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications, I feel obliged to offer a public response as well. Your chaiges were inaccurate, wrong headed and unjustified, and the stinging bitterness of the language directed at me and other members of the faculty who teach beginning print journalism courses fell short of generally accepted standards of constructive, public discourse. But beyond that, the editorial was a disservice not only to the College, which takes its mission quite seriously, but to this newspaper, which does many tilings quite well. To use a public forum to air private grievances was to abuse your priv ilege. Still, I want to be clear. You have a right as students in the print program, those of you who are, and as members of the general academic community to question methods of instruction and content. Yes, challenge us. Those exchanges are healthy and vital to the growth of the discipline. In fact, those kinds of challenges frequently lead to the identification of empirical ques tions that can be tested, a crucial dimen sion of this process we call higher educa tion. But, you don’t want to shame or shock your professors, or anyone, into submis sion or compliance. Use reason to per suade, not bullying. Unprovoked attacks rarely open lines of communication. And don’t foiget that behind every “public issue” are people. Those of you who have studied with me know that peo ple are at the heart of every story we jour nalists attempt to tell. When we lose sight of them, we lose sight of the story, its meaning and significance. Ironically, the core of your criticism appears to be true, for in the final analy sis, ^ased on the needless injury your ed itorial inflicted on some talented, dedi cated people in our College, it’s clear that we have some work to do. Ernest L. Wiggins Associate Professor College of Journalism and Mass Communications Professor praises columnist’s ‘brave’ opinion To the Editor: Thanks for your column Friday voic ing reservations over Israel’s behavior to ward the Palestinians. The Palestinians have legitimate griev ances, and no one has been saying so in the American press I’ve been reading. Ap parently, to say so is to commit anti-semi tism in the view of some. Better to tip-toe around questionable Israeli social, political, and military poli cy toward the displaced Palestinians than to put tough-love strings on all that for eign aid we give them-or so it would seem. But advocacy of fairness and justice to an oppressed people suffering categori cally and dying in significant numbers un der that apartheid system over there is not the same thing as anti-semitism. Thanks for what, in our local circum stances, I consider a brave piece of jour nalistic opinion. You did good. You may catch some flak. But it will come from people clueless about the situation on the ground in Israel and Palestine. Kevin Lewis Dept of Religious Studies t Lottery Issues Lottery pits t old South against new South This upcoming election will determine the next president and more importantly, determine whether South Carolina will have a lottery. The lottery is intended to help improve South Carolina’s educa tional system (or lack thereof). It also represents something much deeper than that; it represents the conflict between the old South and the new South. Lottery oppo nents seemingly are in the majority by the amount of time and Nathan White is a senior histo ry and political science major. He writes every Monday. He can be reached at gamecockview points@hotmail.c om money tney nave spent on Killing tne lot tery. I have seen pro-lottery ads and fliers, but not on the scale those of the anti-lottery groups. Much to my surprise, 55 percent of South Carolina voters support the lottery while 42 percent are against it. The reason for surprised is that I felt the old South still firmly held South Carolina in its hands (more like a death grip). If the lottery passes, it will be a very historical mo ment in the battle for control of South Carolina between the old and new Souths. The old South to me is the group of peo ple still fighting the Civil War; held back by Confederate baggage, who have romanti cized their idea of the antebellum South to the. point where the inhumanity of slavery is often forgotten. I am a member of the new South. I grew up in the South, yet I realize that what’s done is done and it’s time to move on. Still, I don’t particularly like northerners (not all though), I don’t want to live anywhere but the South and I’ll eat grits at any meal. I also support a lottery. I am a Christ ian and I don’t believe that a lottery conflicts with my morals. I also don’t like the no tion of an “education” lottery. Here’s what I think: I support a lottery because it’s a volun tary revenue alternative to involuntary taxation. Anti-lottery foes have said it’s a “tax on the poor.” A tax is involuntary; buy ing a lottery ticket is not. I will also never buy a lottery ticket be cause I think gambling is stupid. I’m not re ally talking about Vegas or cruise ship gam bling, but gambling like video poker or lotteries. Gambling is a big waste of money. If someone is dumb enough to buy a lottery ticket with the foolish notion that they will strike it rich, I say go for it. If these fools spend enough money to keep my taxes from going up (or maybe enough for a tax cut) I say go for it. I guess the lottery will tax the poor be cause there is a definite correlation between ignorance and poverty. I like the idea of tax ing ignorance. Why bother trying to save people from spending all their money on lot tery tickets? If these people are too dumb to realize they can’t “afford” to “play” the lottery, than why should we do anything about it? Let’s stop trying to save people from themselves. I’m not trying to be harsh or put anyone down; I just think the old South is against the lottery for the wrong reasons. It’s just an example of the fact that there is something inherently wrong with the old South and I’m not really sure what it is. I just want to level with you. Some peo ple are just dumb. Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do about it. The only person who can help a dumb person is the person i himself. And if they weren’t so dumb, they’d realize they’re dumb. Therefore, they are dumb. They’re called rednecks, and they’ll be forever red. Occasionally one or two may realize their plight and do something about it, but not because anyone told them; it’s be cause they told themselves. As for the “education” in “education” lottery, 1 really don’t care if the lottery goes towards education or any other part of the government. The lottery is a voluntary source of revenue; taxation is involuntary. So South Carolina, if you’re smart, when you vote Nov. 7, you will vote “yes” for a lottery. If you’re really smart, you will nev er buy a lottery ticket. Then we can sit back, relax and watch the rednecks pay for our state’s government. t y > 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. Address The Gamecock 1400 Greene Street Columbia, SC 29208 Offices on third floor of the Russell House. Student Media Area code 803 Advertising 777-3888 Classified 777-1184 Fax 777-6482 Office 777-3888 Gamecock Area code 803-777-7726 Editor in Chief gamecockeditorOhotmail.com University Desk gamecockudeskOhotmail.com City/State Desk gamecockcitydeskOhotmail.com Viewpoints gamecockviewpointsOhotmail.com Spotlight gamecockspotlightOhotmail.com Sports gamecocksportsOhotmail.com Online www.gamecock.sc.edu Submission Policy Letters to the editor or guest columns are welcome from all members of the Carolina community. Letters should be 250-300 words. Guest columns should be an opinion piece of about 600 words. Both must include name, phone number, profes sional title or year and major, if a student. Handwritten submissions must be personally delivered to Russell House room 333. E-mail submissions must include telephone number for confirmation and should be sent to gamecockviewpointsOhotmail.com. The Gamecock reserves the right to edit for libel, style and space. Anonymous letters will not be pub lished. Photos are required for guest columnists and can be provided by the submitter. I Call'777-7726 for more information. TWS UAMBCOCK Brock Vergakls Editor in Chief Brandon Larrabee University Editor John Hulett City/State Editor Kevin Langston Viewpoints Editor Jared Kelowitz Day Sports Editor Kyle Almond Night Sports Editor Mackenzie Clements Jason Harmon Ashley Melton Brad Walters Martha Wright Copy Editors MacKenzie Craven Spotlight Editor Amy Goulding Sean Rayford Photo Editors ‘ Charles Prashaw Amanda Silva Asst. University Editors John Bailey Asst. City/State Editor Nathan White Asst. Viewpoints Editor Aubrey Fitzloff Miranda LaLonde Ann Marie Miani Jennie Moore Katie Smith Page Designers StuowtMdw -VV..J1’ Erik Collins Faculty Adviser Ellen Parsons Director of Student Media Susan King Creative Director Sean De Luna Todd Hooks Melanie Hutto Emilie Moca Martin Salisbury Creative Services Carolyn Griffin Business Manager Jannell Deyo Robyn Gombar Kera Khalil Denise Levereaux Brantley Roper Nicole Russell Advertising Staff Jonathan Dunagin Interim Ad Manager Sherry F. Holmes Classified Manager