The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, November 20, 2000, Page 4, Image 4
Quote, Unquote
‘We aren’t reinventing the wheel, just showing our
version of the wheel.’
Will Hoge, singer/guitarist from Will Hoge Band
fflie (Bmecock
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 Wright • Editorial Contributor
To University Athletics:
Cocky is for the birds
The regular football season is over, and despite the three con
secutive losses to end the season, this year’s season was
much improved over last year’s.
Lou Holtz and his coaching staff deserve a lot of credit for re
vamping our fumbling football program and finishing a tremendous
turnaround with a 7-4 record.
We aren’t sure if Holtz and his staff are where they wanted to be
as far as the program is concerned, but while the Department of Ath
letics is in the mood for change, one thing it should consider Is recre
ating our mascot, Cocky. When attempting to improve the program
for our upcoming bowl game and next year’s season, this should be
at the top of the list.
As a mascot, the gamecock is something to be proud of. From its
emergence at a Carolina-Clemson game in 1902, it has had a sense
of strength and nobility synonymous with the tradition of this uni
versity. However, when it comes to the physical embodiment of our
mascot, Cocky is a joke. He doesn’t strike fear into the hearts of any
one, and isn’t that part of a mascot’s purpose?
Cocky is supposedly the son of Big Spur, our former mascot
who was revised for being too out-of-date. If this is the case, Cocky
is a prime example of an apple falling far from the tree. How are oth
er schools supposed to take USC and its athletics programs serious
ly when our mascot is in no way intimidating?
Cocky should be more muscular and menacing. He might be a
bird, but schools like Viginia Tech and Delaware have decent bird
mascots. If anything, they don’t have hoop skirts and spandex leg
gings. Our mascot is better equipped for Disney World, not an ath
letic event.
How is it that a mascot that looks majestic and threatening on USC
apparel and paraphernalia look so goofy in person? If anything, un
cross his eyes. He should at least be able to see straight.
Too many 'weeks' could
desensitize USC students
Have you ever noticed there seem to be a plethora of
“weeks” nowadays? Look in your Mortar Board, and you will
see that the majority of the weeks in each semester are set
aside for an organization, ideal, concept or person.
Whether it’s USC Wellness Week, Homecoming Week, Creed
Week, Body Image Awareness Week, Safe Spring Break Week or Spir
it Week, it seems like the university always has a week for some
thing. It can get to be quite monotonous, and we think it can lead
to an overall insensitivity toward this “week” concept as a whole.
We don’t question the good intentions behind each of these self
proclaimed “weeks,” but almost every day of the school year is
part of some “week.” The more weeks that exist, the less value each
one has and the fewer the people who notice them.
Some would argue such “weeks” are important to educate peo
ple and increase their awareness of certain things, but often these
“weeks” have no other real point or significance.
For something to be declared a “week,” it should hold some
profound importance beyond educating the public. We encourage
those organizations that hold public-education “weeks” to instead
concentrate on informing people not one week a year, but 52.
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.
miuncoo
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CUM.* m mu * i i i na *• v
for W/MoEVeR Gets it....
Thanksgiving
A reflection on Thanksgiving
Whom
should I
terrorize
this week? I think
that maybe it’s time
for a little change
of pace to talk
about something
less controversial.
Let’s just let the
wankers recover
from their wounds
— a week off, if
you will.
I want to talk
about Thanksgiv
. • rr-*| I • •
uig. intuirogi>nig 13 lavuiitc uunuajr
of them all because it is the time when we
reflect on how lucky we are to be Amer
icans and, more importantly, a time when
family and friends come together and cel
ebrate each other’s company.
Actually, the thing I like most about
Thanksgiving is that it hasn’t been over
commercialized like Christmas because
there really isn’t much you can do to hype
up Thanksgiving. It’s not like little kids
and wankers can wish for scooters or lug
gage thingies on Thanksgiving. All you do
is give thanks to God and goige yourself
on a cornucopia of food (how could I
not talk about Thanksgiving without in
corporating the word “cornucopia”?).
I absolutely love Thanksgiving. My
family heads up to Washington every year
to meet up with the branch of the family
that lives there. There is usually around
50 people, lots of turkey and lots of al
cohol. Family, food and booze; is there a
better combination? Only if you throw in
an old-fashioned scooter burning (which
we occasionally do).
Not only do I love Thanksgiving be
cause of the family and food aspects, like
I said, I guess I like it in spite of Christ
mas. Not Christmas itself, but what Christ
mas has become. Most people probably
don’t know that the real Christmas season
is the time between Christmas Day and
Epiphany (hence the “Twelve Days of
Christmas”). The Christmas season in
America is November and December. Why
not make it the whole 12 months?
Thanksgiving will always be my fa
vorite holiday for its purity. It’s a unique
holiday because only America celebrates
Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday in
November (Canada celebrates Thanks
giving on the second Monday in October).
Maybe the fact that Thanksgiving is a sec
ular holiday already is the reason why it
hasn’t been “secularized” like Christmas,
Halloween, etc.
While you are celebrating Thanks
giving this weekend, I want you to really
think about what this holiday means. To
help you, I thought I’d give you a little
history behind the holiday to enlighten
you (considering that I am already en
lightened myself).
Thanksgiving has its origins in the har
vest festivals held throughout the world.
In 1621, Plymouth Governor William
Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiv
ing and prayer shared by colonists and
American Indians alike. In 1623, a day
of fasting and prayer during a drought was
changed to one of Thanksgiving because
the rain came during the prayers. The cus
tom gradually prevailed in New England
of annually celebrating Thanksgiving af
ter the harvest.
During the American Revolution, the
Continental Congress suggested a yearly
day of national thanksgiving. In 1817, New
York adopted Thanksgiving Day as annu
al custom, and by the middle of the 19th
century, many other states had done the
same. In 1863, President Abraham Lin
coln appointed a day of thanksgiving,
and since then each president has issued a
Thanksgiving Day proclamation, general
ly designating the fourth Thursday of No
vember as a holiday.
The Plymouth colonists, or pilgrims,
as they are better known, gave thanks for
the harvest that kept them alive. Today,
we take for granted the vast harvests and
the bounty of produce this country has.
Around the world people are starving,
naked and unprotected from the elements.
I am not trying to get melodramatic, but
I am encouraging you to just think about
what Thanksgiving really means.
For me, Thanksgiving is about family
and friends, and I like to thank God that
my family and friends are in America
and not somewhere else less fortunate.
This country and all of us are truly blessed
that we’re Americans. This Thanksgiving,
and all other Thanksgivings, for that
matter, I want you to sit back at some point
after you’ve finished eating or when you’re
watching the game or whenever and say
a prayer to God to truly give thanks on
Thanksgiving Day. And say a prayer for
everyone out there not as fortunate as you.
I promise I’ll make fun of someone or
something next week. Have a great Thanks
giving.
p
Nathan White
is a political sci
ence and history
senior. He can be
reached at game
cockviewpoints
©hotmail.com.
State Issues
Flag location still irks some
The people Greg H!ghtower
of South jsa ^jStory senj0r
Carolina He can (*, reached
should not be hap- at garnecockview.
py about the Con- points
federate Flag com- ehotmailxom,
promise. Why
should we, as South
Carolinians, be
happy with a compromise that really did
n’t solve the problem at hand? That prob
lem, the Confederate flag at Gervais and
Main streets, is in an area that is even more
visible for pedestrians than its previous po
sition above the State House. The Con
federate flag is also still on the state
house grounds and still associated with the
South Carolina government.
This is the reason why the NAACP
should continue to maintain their tourism
boycott. They and many other people feel
that the flag situation has not yet been
solved. Granted, our South Carolina po
litical leaders tried to solve the problem,
but they did not succeed. I must now ask
the people of South Carolina to question
this “compromise.”
This compromise did solve one prob
lem for our government. The solution was
to remove the flag from the State House
dome and inside its chambers, which in
turn would stop the NAACP boycott. It
would also help to slow down some of the
momentum that the boycott was generat
ing, and it would bring some closure to this
lengthy debate. The government solution
seems to be working because we have for
gotten about this issue. Getting the flag off
the dome and out of the inside chambers
is an important victory, but the battle should
continue. The most important thing now
is to come forth with some new ideas or
ways to deal with this ongoing debate.
There are many ideas that might solve
this debate about the Confederate flag.
First, a memorial site could be used to hon
or the Confederate flag and the Confed
erate soldiers, both black and white. Sec
ond, a site honoring all the flags that flew
during the Civil War could be construct
ed. Third, the Confederate flag could be
placed in the Confederate museum. The
money that these institutions would gen
erate could be used to benefit the state in
areas like education, crime, teen preg
nancy, beautification of the state, state wel
fare and many others.
Historically, the Confederate flag
has symbolized a society that practiced
white rule, a type of government where
the state government had all the power
and a society where slavery was an im
portant part of life. Therefore, as long as
the Confederate flag is still flying on the
State House grounds, the above images can
be associated with our political decisions,
laws and political leaders.
Today, the flag does symbolize differ
ent things to different people. Some peo
ple believe the flqg is a symbol of heritage,
but some of these people who consider
the flag a symbol of heritage are hiding be
hind that stance because they believe whites
are the superior race, and one way to show
this superiority is by continuing to domi
nate the political arena. By looking at
tire composition of the South Carolina gov
ernment, you will see what I am talking
about.
t The Confederate flag, to most people,
symbolizes something racist, but we must
remember the flag does represent a sym
bol of heritage to some people and that it’s
part of their history just like certain as
pects of African culture are still part of my
history. The people of South Carolina must
recognize when to move beyond the issue
of racism, and we nrust stop labeling cer
tain things racist, because if we really take
the time to look and investigate the issues,
we will find out that certain issues are not
issues of racism at all.
My advice for the people of South Car
olina is to get beyond this issue of racism
and come together to deal with the issue
at hand. White Americans, African-Amer
icans, Latinos, Native Americans and oth
er ethnic groups in South Carolina must
come together because it is up to us to
solve this problem. Our government has
not dealt with this issue in a correct way,
and their “solution” has me and others
wondering about government officials be
cause the current proposal is not really a
solution at all.
Election 2000
Is America
too afraid
of Nader's
candidacy?
It started before f
Halloween, with
my metaphorical
mailbox (the one
inside your e-mail ac
count) filling up with
decrees for the cru
cifixion and/or burn
ing at the stake of |
Ralph Nader, a man
who many consider
as important a private |
citizen in the 20th
Century as Benjamin
Franklin was in the
18th.
The death war- |
rants flowed in steadi
ly, some with the bla
tantly false rhetoric
“A vote for Nader is
a vote for Bush,” and others were subtler,
attempting to twist my ideology so I no longer
valued Mr. Nader’s courageous campaign.
“Is Ralph Nader an anti-Semite?” one
subject line asked me. I read on, listening to
the writer bait Mr. Nader’s Arab heritage,
using it against him for political currency.
I responded to that as a semantidan might
— it’s ludicrous to call an Arab person an
anti-Semite, as “Semite” is a word that names
the tribe of both Jewish and non-Jewisli Mid
dle Easterners. In case anyone’s wondering,
the Nader-hater went on to say that Nader
hates Jews because he called for a re-eval
uation of America’s special relationship with
Israel.
Semantics couldn’t save me in the case
of the arguments from prominent feminists,
some of whom I had always respected. Glo
ria Steinem signed an e-mail petition that re
ferred to Ralph Nader as an anti-abortion
misogynist who had publicly endorsed George
W. Bush for the presidency.
None of these allegations are true.
Ralph Nader has never made abortion
one of the staples of his activism, though he
is pro-choice. He has lobbied against issues
Ms. Steinem might find less important
than abortion — the redlining of loans that
discriminated against women and minorities,
the spraying of pesticides that poisoned
women’s breast milk and killed nursing in
fants, and many others.
Some of his other accomplishments in
clude lobbying for the Freedom of Infor
mation Act, the Environmental Protection
Agency, and many, many safety regulations
that make cars, airplanes, and public trans
port safer.
i. icacmcu uic uiat my lcillllllM. JJIUI
ciples were being used against me — I was
being told not to vote with my conscience,
and I was being told that abortion was the
most important issue feeing American women.
The latter is, in my opinion, a gross over
simplification of what women’s groups should
be fighting for. It was also a bald-faced lie.
Ralph Nader has spoken against both Gore
and Bush, calling Gore a quick-change artist,
and Bush a bumbling idiot with a horrify
ing record.
The attacks culminated after the elec
tion, when James Carville said Ralph Nad
er never had a right to run, that he would be
remembered by history as a spoiler (as if any
one could spoil this already rotten election),
and that his name would never be uttered in
polite Washington company again.
Then Vanity Fair reporter Christopher
Hitchens quoted Hillary Clinton as saying
that Ralph Nader should be publicly hanged.
A Salon magazine feature on celebrity po
litical endorsements quoted Ben Affleck as
saying that he hoped Ralph Nader never slept
well again — proof only that vapid
celebrities should speak about nothing be
sides their latest projects.
In the time that has elapsed since the last
attack of Nader, I’ve considered this wave
of unexamined partisanship carefully.
Why had I never heard a Republican say
that Pat Buchanan didn’t have the right to
run?
Maybe they are a Grand Old Party.
Why were people espousing the idea
of a spoiler, as if a candidate began with a fi
nite number of votes and had these votes si
phoned off by other candidates?
Why were the Democrats acting as
though Nader should come to them with his
hat in his hand and ask, “Is it okay to run
now, Master?”
Forget the rhetoric of thugs in the De
mocratic party, and if you want to undo Ralph
Nader’s work, take the seat belts and airbags
out of your car.
Jennie
Lightweis
is a senior
English major.
She writes every
Friday. She can
be reached at
gamecockview
points
©hotmail.com