Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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4 THE LEADER Invalidated commitments Did somebody whine and the university caved? Was it an attempt to drive up demand for regular tickets? What caused this? The university decided this past week that students wouldn’t be allowed to validate tickets for the Alabama game. Validation allows student tickets to be used for nonstudents, usually visiting family or friends. The decision was pointless and patently unfair. Those who oppose validating student tickets miss the point of allowing the procedure. They say students pay ior tneir ticKets in their student activity fees and should have the first chance at any tickets. But there are problems with that argument. First of all, students who validate tickets pay for each ticket they validate. And students who want a validated ticket must get someone eise 10 use meir 1 u to get me ocKei; in essence, the ticket is still a student ticket, and a validated ticket is technically paid for twice. Part of the current problem with validation is the growth of “fair-weather fans,” people who normally wouldn’t care to go to a USC football game, but suddenly get interested now that the Gamecocks are a Top 25 team. There were few conflicts over validated tickets when USC was in the middle of a 21 game losing streak. But part of the problem also goes back to the university’s adding the payment to student activity fees. In doing so, the university is charging every USC student for a ticket when the university knows ttiere won’t be that many tickets for students. The athletics department is making a promise it knows it can’t keep, The decision on getting tickets is therefore done on a first-come, first-served basis. Validation is just another ticket being taken before someone else gets it. Those who want to avoid missing out on a ticket because of validation need to come earlier; that way, they won’t have to worry about missing out. The solution is not to keep students from using other students’ tickets to get family and friends into a football game. The solution is for those who try to get a ticket to take their chance, like everybody else, and not to whine because they didn’t get what they wanted. GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. Write us at gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. The solution to a scarcity of student tickets? Honor the first come, first served system and stop whining about the results. ABOUT THE GAMECOCK Martha Wright Editor in Chief Mary Hartney University Editor Ginny Thornton Asst. Univ. Editor Victoria Bennett The Mix Editor Justin Bajan Asst. The Mix Editor Chris Foy Sports Editor Preston Baines Asst. Sports Editor Elizabeth Swartz Online Editor Aaron Hark Photo Editor Greg Hambrick City Editor Alicia Baientine Asst. City Editor Brandon Larrabee Viewpoints Editor Page Designers Mackenzie Clements, Crystal Dukes, Katie Smith, David Stagg Copy Editors Crystal Boyles. Jason Harmon, Jili Martin, Carolyn Rowe CONTACT INFORMATION Offices on third floor of the Russell House. Editor in Chief: gamecockeditor@hotmail.com University Desk: gamecockudesk@hotmail.com City Desk: gamecockcitydesk@hotmail.com Viewpoints: gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com Spotlight: gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Sports: gamecocksports@hotmail.com Online: www.dailygamecock.com Newsroom: 777-7726 TO PLACE AN AD The Gamecock 1400 Greene Street Columbia, SC 29208 Advertising: 777-3888 Classified: 777-1184 Fax: 777-6482 STUDENT MEDIA Erik Collins, Faculty Adviser Ellen Parsons, Director of Student Media Susan King, Creative Directoi Carolyn Griffin, Business Manager Sarah Sims, Advertising Manager Sherry F. Holmes, Classified Manager Creative Services Todd Hooks, Martin Salisbury, Beju Shah Advertising Staff Betsy Baugh, Caryn Barowsky, Denise Levereaux, Jackie Rice, Stacey Todd Gamecock Community Affairs Karen Yip Graphic Artist Candi Hauglum 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. One free copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased for one dollar each from the Department of Student Media. CHOOSE. i ' Sexual equality for men! DARRYL GREEN DRGREEN22@HOTMAIL.COM I have a dream that one day the women will ask the guys out on a date. It was a dark and dreary Saturday. The wind was howling, and the leaves were rustling. Lightning crashed at every turn. The conditions of the night suggested that something revolutionary was about to happen. And something did. I was on my way to see a movie with one of my best female friends. Our simple discussion about the differences between men and women erupted into an all-out brawl over which is superior and which is inferior. My dear friend argued, “Women are equal to men and should be treated as equals.” To that I replied, “Who's denying that? I firmly believe that women are just as capable as men and sometimes even more so. Women should be treated as equals to men in every phase of life and should be able to express themselves and live their lives in whatever manner they see fit.” My friend, of course, agreed. We arrived at the theater, got out of the car and approached the ticket lady. I reached down in my wallet and pulled out a $10 bill. “Two tickets to The Others, please,” I said. It was at that moment that I had a startling revelation, an epiphany of sorts. It hit me in the head like Newton’s apple falling from the tree. My revelation was simple. If we are so “equal,” then why am I paying her way to get into the theater? I mean, why can't we both pay an “equal” share of the ticket costs? If we are all equal, then I should be $5 richer today. Those questions prompted me to ask even more questions. If we’re so equal, then why is it that the guy always has to make the first move? Why is it that the man has to run the risk of embarrassment and utter rejection? And why can’t the woman take the guy out for a change? If we are to achieve total equality between the sexes, then why can't the woman come to the guy s nouse, Dring nun nice gifts and take him out to dinner? And why can’t the woman ask the man to “put out” more? They wouldn’t get much resistance, but at least we’d all be equal. And that's when I came to a shocking conclusion. We’re not equal. Somewhere along the way, we poor men got the short end of the deal. Women demand we treat them as equals. To that, I am happy to oblige. Women, most definitely, should be treated as equals. At the same time, we men are supposed to make the first move, make the first call, court the woman, pick the woman up at her house, pay for the date, pay the tip and go out of our way to show how much we care. All while the woman gets to kick back and enjoy our efforts. Where’s the equality in that? Even during the course of the relationship, the man still does not have equal rights. He is still required by law to buy the woman gifts, pay the bills and take care of the household. This as reverse discrimination, derived from the Latin root words “reversa descrima,” which in plain English means, “we poor men have been tricked.” We treat women as equals and, in turn, they work us like dogs. Why is that? Women need us as much as we need them. So how come we are the ones who have to do all the work? Somewhere in here, we poor men are going to have to catch a break. Fortunately, brothers, help is on the way. In the tradition of Moses, Ghandi and Martin Luther King, I am about to lead a revolution. We men have been suppressed, oppressed, depressed and sexually repressed tor tar too long. I have a dream that one day women everywhere will ask the guy out on a date and wait for the guy to decide whether she is his “type” or not. I have a dream that women everywhere will come pick up the guy for the date and have to wait two hours while he gets ready. I have a dream that women everywhere will he the ones who must apologize after an argument, even if it is the guy’s fault. Yes, brothers, I have a dream, that men will be the ones to decide when and where the woman can “get some.” And most of all, I have a dream that men everywhere should be the ones solicited for sex and taken into the woman’s bedroom to let freedom ring. Then and only then can we be equal and free at last. Join me, brothers! IN YOUR OPINION Don’t lose hope, Gamecock staff After reading the deluge of letters to the editor in the Sept. 28 edition of The Gamecock, I feel compelled to offer at least one endorsement of this paper, which I have enjoyed reading for the past eight years. First, I have seen several letters criticizing The Gamecock for “not being newsworthy” enough or not paying enough attention to national issues. I know this is crazy to say, but I do not look to the student newspaper as my sole source for the latest events of the world. Anyone with so much as a TV, access to a newspaper stand or the Internet can read more than enough information they need to know about major national events. I look to The Gamecock to see what’s going on with the students at this university. This is especially important to me, since I have limited contact with the main campus. I enjoy the features and articles concerning the various activities and clubs about campus. My apologies to The Gamecock, but if I want to find the latest about the war against terrorism, I'm looking to CNN. Another issue is the whole “scandal” concerning the fetish ball article. One look at that page and I could just see the religious right recoding in horror. While I can’t say I would have chosen to run (or read) such an article, I applaud the staffs courage to choose coverage of topics that may not be comfortable to all people. Most importantly, I appreciate that The Gamecock is clearly not under harsh faculty censorship, which suppresses the voice of so many student publications. So don’t lose hope, Gamecock staff, there are some of us that like free speech out there. If anything, it’s always fun to read the angry rants you'll get in return for “pushing the envelope.” ALEX MCDONALD FOURTH-YEAR STUDENT, SCHOOL OF MEDICINE Submission Policy Letters to the editor or guest columns are welcome from the Carolina community. Letters should be 250-300 words. Guest columns should be about 600 words. Both must include name, phone number, professional title or year and major, if a student. Deliver handwritten submissions to Russell House room 333, or send e-mail to gamecockview points@hotmail.com. The Gamecock reserves the right to edit for libel, style and space. Anonymous letters will not be published. Photos are required for guest columnists and can be provided by the submitter. Call 777-7726 for more information. VIEWPOINTS LET EVERYONE KNOW THE SCORE If it’s a war, why aren’t we fighting? CHARLES PRASHAW CEPRASHAW@YAHOO.COM I say, let the massive carpet bombing of civilians begin. If you ever noticed, there is always a moment right before a fistfight begins in which it’s time to stop talking shit and throw down. Ladies and gentlemen, that time is now. On Sept. 11, our country was cowardly attacked by Osama bin Laden. And yes, he did it; let’s not fool ourselves. So here we are, more than two weeks later, and I haven’t heard one bomb drop yet. What in the hell is this about? My roommate keeps asking me when are we going to war, and I haven’t the slightest clue what to tell him. I thought we would be at war by now. What’s the holdup? This can’t be right. You’re telling me the same country that produced George S. Patton, John Wayne and Mike Tyson is all of sudden a pussy. What happened to America? We use to go in and make heads roll. Go anywhere, do anything: what happened to that motto? We invaded North Korea, Cuba (during the Spanish American War), Mexico, Canada, occupied Europe, occupied Africa and countless little shitholes along the way. Why not Afghanistan? I know people are afraid of another Vietnam, but come on, the Viet Cong had the support from both the Chinese and Soviets. Who has Afghanistan’s back, Pakistan? Forget it, man, let’s go all out and declare war on Iraq, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan. And the next time I see some Palestinians on TV cheering the deaths of more than 5,000 Americans, we might have to let Israel loose on ’em. I used to think the Palestinians had a case for being mad that Israel was formed right in their front yard. But now I really don’t care about ’em. One of the coolest things I have hanging on my wall is a cover of Time magazine from World War II; it’s a big photo from inside a B-29 Superfortress that’s dropping massive amounts of gravity bombs on the island of Formosa. Now that’s arnei ica, nui an mis sitting around waiting for the Taliban to call us back on the phone. Two weeks is more than enough time for the Taliban government in Afghanistan to comb their country over and find this (not printed for fear of violating decency laws). I say, let the massive carpet bombings begin. If they were going to hand him over peacefully, they would have done it by now. I know what you’re thinking: the bombing of civilians is wrong. But, hell, they attacked our civilians first, and if we don’t do something now then they would just attack more innocent citizens. You just can’t let someone punch you in the face like this and not come out swinging. I know the problem here; there isn’t a country that attacked us like during Pearl Harbor. But come on, now, we have a general idea where bin Laden is hiding, and we’ve got plenty of bombs. Americans aren’t smart, were not crafty, we’re not diplomatic in the least bit, but we do have bombs, lots and lots of bombs. And, up ’til recently, we haven’t been afraid to use them. Iraq, for example; 200 ♦ BOMBING, SEE PAGE 5