Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Quote, Unquote This election is about college students and education.’ Danielle Clearmont Democratic Party press secretary . 0 am crock * ? Monday, November 6,2000 Zhc (Bamecock Editorial Board Brock VeVgakis • Editor in Chief Kevin Langston • Viewpoints Editor Nathan White • Asst. Viewpoints Editor Patrick Rathbun • Editorial Contributor Brad Walters • Editorial Contributor Martha Wright • Editorial Contributor Not voting Tuesday demonstrates laziness Cn Tuesday, we have the chance to exercise a right our predecessors fought hard for, a right more than half the world doesn’t get to enjoy - the right to vote for a chief executive. Sadly, most of us won’t do so. We have many different excuses, most of which boil down to laziness of some sort. Some of us will say we don’t know enough about the issues, but in this age of informa tion, that can change in a heartbeat. Just Jog onto the In ternet, turn on the TV news or read today’s newspapers. Keep in mind, however, that many sources tend to be bi ased to one side or another. The Gamecock, like most col lege newspapers, is relatively liberal, while The State and other local news sources tend to lean conservatively. . 1 ' f 1 il _* _i _ J___ Wllieia win say uicii vote uucsu t tuum, puiuvuuuij considering the fact that Republican candidate George W. Bush has a considerable lead in South Carolina. But voter turnout still makes a difference. In 1948, many of Thomas Dewey’s supporters stayed home, assured of his victory, and Harry Truman ended up winning. And some pretty big races over the years have been decided by less than a handful of votes. Of course, the lottery is another big issue on this year’s ballot. As students of the state’s largest university, this is sue stands to affect us directly. Not to vote on it is to say we don’t care about ourselves or the future of our univer sity. It’s a tremendous responsibility to make choices on pub lic policy, but the minor hassle of staying well-informed and going out to vote is a small price to pay for the privi lege of being able to make such a decision. Teacher evaluation Web site is beneficial Students often complain about their classes and the profes sors who teach them, wishing there was an opportunity to tell the entire university just what they think. Fortunate ly, this opportunity does exist. Students can praise or chastise their professors or classes on www.teacherreviews.com. With advisement taking place and students picking their courses for next semester, now is an excellent time to use this Web site to review a class or pro fessor. Students aren’t allowed to see the evaluations filled out at the end of the semester, which makes this Web site a stu dent’s best ally when deciding whether to take a course or pro fessor. Both positive and negative comments appearon this site, and anonymity is assured. What is seen are candid, uncen sored evaluations. All students should go to this site and fill out an evaluation for their courses and professors. Whether you love or hate a professor or course, this is your opportunity to let the entire university community know. If everyone participates, students will no longer have to blindly pick their courses based on the vague descriptions in the undergraduate course bulletin. 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 newsoaoer’s parent organization. The Gamecock is supported in part by student activities fees. Adoress 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 gamecockeditor0hotmail.com University Desk garnecockudesk0hotmail.com City/State Desk gamecockcitydesk0hotmail.com Viewpoints gamecockviewpoints0hotmail.com Spotlight gamecockspotlight0hotmail.com Sports gamecocksports0hotmail.com Online www.gamecock.sc.edu. Submission Poucy 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 tele phone number for confirmation and should be sent to gamecockviewpoints0hotmail 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 informatpn. The Gamecock Brock Vergakis MacKenzie Craven Editor in Chief Spotlight Editor Brandon Larrabee Amy Goulding University Editor Sean Rayford John Huiett Photo Edi,ors City/State Editor Charles Prashaw Kevin Langston Amanda Silva Viewpoints Editor Asst. University Editors Jared Kelowitz John Bailey Day Sports Editor Asst. City/State Editor Kyle Almond Nathan White Night Sports Editor Asst. Viewpoints Editor Mackenzie Clements Tasha Isaac Jason Harmon Aubrey Fitzloff Ashley Melton Miranda LaLonde Brad Walters Jennie Moore Martha Wright Katie Smith Copy Editors Page Designers SnJOtHT MEDIA Erik Collins' Carolyn Griffin Faculty Adviser Business Manager Ellen Parsons Jannell Deyo Director of Robyn Gombar Student Media Kera Khalil Susan King Denise Levereaux Creative Director Brantley Roper Sean De Luna Nicole Russell Todd Hooks Advert,s,ng Staff Melanie Hutto Jonathan Dunagin Emilie Moca Interim Ad Manager Martin Salisbury Sherry F. Holmes Creative Services Classified Manager College Press Exchange •-\ tgjgroua wsipenK CAHwpwes' HSA&S --i Election 2000 Don't vote on Election Day We 11,1 m sure all of you “cit izens” out there know there’s going to be some sort of election tomorrow. You mean you haven’t? I don’t see how you could have missed it; did n’,t you get the memo? Anyway, 1 have been con stantly inundated with information boozing at the Constitutional Convention. Let me provide you with some rea sons why you should not vote tomorrow (or ever for that matter). First and fore most, anyone who can vote once they reach a certain age can run for public office. Any one older than 18 can participate in our government. That’s just plain nutty. Because everyone can participate, we get crazies like Ralph Nader running for president. Remember the whole mess we had with that little cuss Ross Perot? Second, voting is not cool. I just can’t imagine standing in a line with scooter rid ers or other persons of ill repute. I should n’t have to be subjected to equating my self with these people. The final reason you shouldn’t vote is because participatory democracy is just a big waste of time. Who wants to partici pate in government? Big boo to that. I say we just can the whole notion of govern ment while we are at it. If people stop voting, it will put us on the fast track to becoming a despotic monar chy. Now that’s real government. It’s time to return to the good old days and rejoin the Kingdom of Great Britain. Who wants to be a citizen when you can be a subject? Don’t vote. Let’s just let some pow erful family take control of America, and the rest of us will spend our lives increas ing their wealth and power. For the glory of a king not some piece of paper. Why have the rule of law when you can have the arbitrary rule of men? I can see it now, the Kingdom of America. Yes! Maybe rejoining Britain or becoming a kingdom is overdoing it, but we have to do something. At the very least we should set up a system which disenfran chises everyone but cool people like me. Can you imagine the endless possibilities if myself and a small group of cool people elites were running the show? You prob ably can’t, but I can. I got off on a little tangent there so I’ll get back on track. Like I said, don’t vote. Elections, voting and democracy are evil vices that have shamelessly corrupted the American people. Ask yourself, does my vote really count? Of course not. What does one vote mean in a country with 270 million people? Therefore, not only is vot ing demeaning to one’s self, it’s just mean ingless. This voting stuff has gotten out of hand and led to other social ills in our society. Analyzing voting patterns and behavior has led to a ridiculous amount of polls in America. This saturation is a denigration of American culture. How long will we idly stand by and watch as voting and polls destroy our social fabric? Enough is enough. It’s time to rage against the machine and not vote. If we stop voting then nobody will get elected. And if nobody gets elected, then no one will be in chaige to run the government. The government will fail and we won’t have to pay taxes anymore. What better time to start than now? and how important it is to vote. Suppos edly, if I don’t vote, it’s a bad thing. Well folks, here’s what I say...don’t vote. That’s right. Don’t vote. Who are these people that think they can go around telling people what to do? What kind of person has the audacity to tell me whether I should vote or not? Have you ever heard the one about how voting isn’t a right but a priv ilege and the solemn duty of every good American? I think it is my right and duty or what ever not to vote. And I don’t want to sound like I’m pushing my values on you or any thing, but I think you shouldn’t vote ei ther. I’ve never been quite comfortable with this whole democracy thing. What were our Founding Fathers thinking? Looks to me like those guys were doing a little Nathan White is a senior history and political sci ence major. He can be reached at gamecockview points@hotmail .com Letters Site educates voters on all candidates To the Editor Unless you have been in a cave for the last five or six months you know there is an important election coming up. Those of you who travel near the Russell House have probably seen the Nader/LaDuke stickers and of course the Democrats and Republicans giving out literature on Greene Street. Because of this, some of you prob ably think only three parties are running for the presidency. 1 don’t blame you, I was one of those who thought this until I just happened to see the Third Party De bates on C-SPAN. Seeing some parties and names I did n’t recognize, I decided to check them out. I ran into a Web site that detailed all of them (www.politicsl.com). I found de scriptions of 35 active parties (active mean ing they are trying to get someone elect ed to some position, somewhere, at sometime) and descriptions of 14 more parties that are brand new or advocate change through revolution or secession. Among this mess of parties, 12 are run ning campaigns for president. These parties have a wide range of views from the Grassroots party (legal ization of drugs), to the Natural Law par ty (new age science as applied to govern ment), to the other parties like the Green, Reform, Democrat and Republican parties you hear about in the news. However, not all of the parties on the Web page are run ning on the ballots of every state. I wrote this article to alert people to this resource, to help them find which party most fits their personal views and to inform them of the depth of their choices when they vote Tuesday. So, enjoy! James Miller Computer Science Sophomore jf\ College Press Exchange _ r i CAMPAIGN ! SPUTT SPU1TER SPUT SPUT nr Ptnf p*^* ^ "'» —r ■ Student Life Examining the saving graces of college life In the past, this editorial page has dedicated itself to examining very serious issues of our university life. And bravo to my col leagues. There is so much to talk about when one examines the negative side of our institution, and I use that word in its literal sense. There’s the precar ious term “educa tion” and our ques tions as to if we’re ( really receiving it. Jennie Lightwies is a senior Englisn major. She can be reached at gamecockview points@hotmail .com ___i liiv_.1t ait uigmouv pai vivj vmu iiiiuuj* attitudes that make me believe Bob Mar ley was right when he called America Babylon. And, in the colleges themselves, there’s the exploitative system of adjunct professorship, by which fully qualified academics are paid meager wages (usu ally less than $3,000 per three-hour course per semester) with no possibili ty of tenure. . Yet, as I wrap up my college ca reer, I love what I’ve had here. None of the above problems are going in my mem ory book, but there’s plenty I’ll miss. I just felt like, as a pessimist, I should get the negative out of the way before this column turned into a love parade. This list is in no way all-inclusive. There are bound to be things I’ll foiget. Nor is it in any particular order or importance (just in case anyone is reading and scanning for his or her name). 1) On-campus activism is a great part of college life, and probably one I would see more of had I chosen a different re gion of the United States in which to at tend university. I’m reminded of this par ticularly now, at election time, because of the groundswell of support by cam pus progressives and independents. Con gratulations to all of you, and keep up the good work. Remember, in your quest for diversity, that tolerance includes not only differences in ethnicity, race, gen der, sexuality, etc. but also variegated opinions. Tolerate even the most reac tionary attitudes. These people are as convinced of their moral righteousness as you are of your own. 2) Professors. If I had to choose a number one, these people would be it. I’ve never been the “fan club” type. Not for movie stars and rock singers, anyway. I’m in awe of the erudition and intel lectual ability of my teachers. If I was not so distrustful of authority, and if I was the worshipping sort, I would have to oiganize a fan club for some of the fine professors I’ve known here. Read ing this, you people probably know who they are, but please don’t embarrass me and mention it next time we meet. 3) Learning and community. High school was a complete drag. People who tell you high school is the “best time of r_1 llfrt” arn ,lniwl iifrAnfT QnH Cll ffflr j *-C’ from profound, repressed anger. Even if they’re right, witli the “best yean” the ory, they can have my best years. I did n’t want them— not at all. Education did not start for me until I came to col lege and found other people who actu ally wanted to learn and knew some valu able information before they got here. 4) Void number four. If you were ex pecting an ode to organized sporting events, you’re not going to get it. 5) Student media. I’m not buttering the bread of my editors. In the last few weeks, I’ve seen some rather agitated letters directed at the Viewpoints page, annoyed at the opinions, the method of expressing them and the intellectual abil ities of the writers here. On that subject, I can’t offer an objective opinion. I can celebrate the free marketplace of ideas that student media afford. I mean, I can say George W. Bush granted Henry Lee Lucas a stay of execution as a matter of professional courtesy from serial killer to serial killer. I wouldn’t only be right— I’d also be entitled. So, thanks Game cock, for these 632 words.