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OTHE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, January 30, 2002 5 T?WT1A VTmCI ONLINE POLL 1-^ ■ l\ I I-* ■ ■ ^ I Have you ever cheated 1 i ■ / •/ I ■ ■ I l USC Parking Services? A W W I W 1 v I LI www.dailygamecock.com. • » —■— ®— ' '—' ^ Results published on Fridays. IN OUR OPINION The splitting of a minority One of USC’s most prominent minority groups has factioned apart. A group of nonwhite students has broken from the Bisexual, Gay and Lesbian Alliance to form their own group, the League for Alternative Minorities. If these students are doing this to promote the needs unique outlet for the Carolina community, then more powet to it. But if these students are splitting from BGLA because of personal conflicts or petty reasons, then we caution them to avoid problems that often plague all minority organizations. If a small group is already separated from the larger group, then then collective voice as a minority loses impact. When personal conflicts and power struggles divide a group that needs to be more unified than most, promoting an agreed-upon agenda becomes difficult and, at times, impossible. It’s no secret that South Carolina doesn’t accept alternative lifestyles easily. Minority groups that promote acceptance of alternative lifestyles need to be as unified as possible to achieve their goals — without trampling on their members’ rights. We hope the BGLA split will only promote acceptance of alternative lifestyles. Winners and Sinners FATHER TIM USC’s Catholic chaplain miraculously saves woman from CVS shooting. Eidson’s shooting still helpless. CAPT. DANIEL McCOLLUM Irmo soldier buried, ‘ remembered for service to country. DREW BLEDSOE $100 million backup fills in handily. Now the Pats have a choice to make: kidnap Faulk or Warner? THOMAS JUNTA Hockey dad sentenced for murder. Five for fighting, six for killing? J. CLIFFORD BAXTER Enron suicide was ; apparently well-liked. Something to hide? Bush remains Teflon. YASSER ARAFAT Are we waiting for a photo of him and Osama in bed? GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS An article Monday about Carolina Productions’ upcoming events should have said Dr. Nicholas Vazsonyi will deliver a lecture on Wednesday, Feb. 6 at 7 p.m. The event, part of the Last Lecture Series, will be held in the Gressette Room on the third floor of Harper College. A column by Katie McClendon in Monday’s paper should have referred to the “n-word.” In Monday’s paper, two photographs should have been credited to C. Michael Bergen. The photographs were taken in Cambodia after professor Timothy Bergen was awarded a Fulbright Scholar Award. The Gamecock regrets the errors. If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. E-mail us at gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. ABOUT THE GAMECOCK Mary Hartney Editor in Chief Ginny Thornton News Editor Kevin Fellner Asst. News Editor Mackenzie Clements Viewpoints Editor Carrie Phillips The Mix Editor Justin Bajan Asst. The Mix Editor Chris Foy Sports Editor Keith Allen Asst. Sports Editor Brandon Larrabee Special Projects Martha Wright Design Editor Kyle Almond Copy Desk Chief Mark Hartney Online Editor Page Designers Crystal Dukes, Sarah McLaulin, Katie Smith, David Stagg Copy Editors Crystal Boyles, Andrew Festa, Jason Harmon, Jill Martin, Paul Rhine Photo Technicians > Robert Gruen. Aaron Hark, Candi Hauglum CONTACT INFORMATION Offices on tljird 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 The Mix: gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Sports: gamecocksports@hotmail.com Online: www.dailygamecock.com Newsroom: 777-7726 STUDENT MEDIA Erik Collins Faculty Adviser Ellen Parsons Director of Student Media Susan King Creative Director Carolyn Griffin Business Manager Sarah Scarborough Advertising Manager Sherry F. Holmes Classified Manager Creative Services Todd Hooks, Earl Jones, Jennie Moore, Beju Shah Advertising Staff Betsy Baugh, Denise Levereaux. Laura Miller, Jackie Rice, Stacey Todd TO PLACE AN AD The Gamecock 1400 Greene Street Columbia, S.C. 29208 Advertising: 777-3888 Classified: 777-1184 Fax: 777-6482 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. Students clump, don’t evolve MARKHARTNEY MARKISTHEOVENON@HOTMAIL.COM Welcome back to the high school cafeteria. USC Housing calls it “clumping.” I’ve heard University 101 refer to it as self segregation. It’s a phenomenon we have and will encounter our entire lives — the instinct to socialize, group and live with people who closely resemble us. Those who believe a university is a place where people of all creeds and cultures mix and open themselves to new ideas and points of view are mistaken. If you think we’ve evolved in three months or three years since high school, look no further than the Grand Marketplace. Close to the ATMs are the Greek tables. People probably won’t feel welcome there unless they’re members of a white fraternity or sorority. On the opposite side, near Starbucks, are the Christian tables. Granted, some Greeks who are in FC A do sit there from time to time. But self-segregation isn’t only at the GMP. Football dominates a lunch line at the Patio. Kids who used to skate but still wear T-shirts from their Little League teams sit together outside the Russell House (I’ve always wondered where they go when it rains). Vegetarians with meal plans are stuck at Veggie Street; otherwise, they’re at El Burrito. Some groups frequent restaurants, clubs and bars enough that they seem to believe they “own” them. Their members bounce, date the staff or serve drinks. I know I would be out of place at Pavlov’s on Thursday night. Only drink specials blur the lines between student factions after classes. There are even more obvious clumps: the Preston kids, The Gamecock staff, and all of Bates House, where it seems everyone is out-of-state. Does Housing intentionally pair roommates by whether they’re in-state or out-of-state? The evidence indicates they do. We group ourselves further by major, year and intelligence. It’s unavoidable. Whether our grouping occurs by accident or not, we’re all guilty of it, partly because we want to be a part of a group who shares our interests. And it’s partly because we make subtle, almost unconscious decisions about the way we walk to class, the people we give hello-nods to, and where we sit. We’re all a part of cliques, factions and social coteries. We’re all closer to two or three people in our clusters than we are the others. I’m not advocating a great big Carolina sing-along. I’m not saying, “Hey, Whitey, put down that barbecue and go to SALA.” I’m not innocent or ignorant of these missteps. I’m only saying that high school wasn’t so long ago. It’s natural to form friendships with people who share your love of Buffy, Thai Ladyboys or Hedwig. But when groups start to exclude and ostracize people by their appearance, it’s wrong. At least at Carolina we have one event that brings us together each week. People crowd each other and fill up the GMP at this time with almost no regard for social status. We all love lunch on Wednesday, aka Chicken Finger Day. After all, we’re sacrificing our mascot in an effort to cloud the distinctions between us. Maybe you disagree, but I’m not wrong. Hartney is a fourth-year chemistry student. IN YOUR OPINION Curse words belong in a college paper I would have to agree with Mr. Ray’s—The Gamecock’s columns have improved this year. But I think a college newspaper should consist of youthful views and conversational pieces. Think about how many times you swear in a day or hear someone else swear. Adds up, doesn’t it? The columns printed in this newspaper tell a story in a real-life way. If you have to say “ass” to get your point across, so be it. That’s life. I’m a junior majoring in electronic journalism. I’ll be damned if you’re telling me that journalism should be completely conservative; it couldn’t survive in this day and age without liberal views and freedom of speech. Take Barbara Walters’ “The View.” As executive producer, she acknowledges on a daily basis that sex and scandal sell. a story, whether it be in Playboy or Time magazine, is designed to elicit a reaction from its readers. I’ll bet you a million bucks that a Playboy journalist has also free-lanced for other noteworthy magazines. A seasoned journalist knows that strong words create strong reactions, good and bad. The Gamecock has featured many practicing journalists throughout the years. They must be doing something right if we read their columns from start to finish without blinking an eye. Pick up a college newspaper at NYU or UCLA and you’ll probably find enough curse words to make a sailor blush. So, unless you’re about to be canonized, stop criticizing the people who have a right to be heard. It’s their freedom of speech; it’s life. If you can’t handle it, join the priesthood. KRYSTA B. HEIDMAN THIRD-YEAR ELECTRONIC JOURNALISM STUDENT Experience differs with same professor This is in response to Andy Bacot’s letter in Monday’s newspaper. I am very sorry for Mr. Bacot’s family situation, and he’s absolutely right when he says school work isn’t more important than family. I know that because I was in exactly the same situation when my father passed away in November 2000.1 left school and didn’t return until the following semester. Also, Eric Johnson was one of my professors at that time. In contrast to Mr. Bacot’s experience, Dr. Johnson was extremely understanding, as were all the other Economics professors. He informed me about the progress of the class by e-mail, enabling me to go over the material by myself from home. When I came back to school in January, we - worked out a schedule so I could complete the class. I’m not saying Mr. Bacot’s story is untrue. But the fact that it so highly contradicts my experience with Dr. Johnson causes me to believe that either there has been some miscommunication between the two of them or there is more to the story than Mr. Bacot says. ANDREAS KUZNIK SECOND-YEAR ECONOMICS PH D. STUDENT Students shouldn’t abuse death excuse What’s the major cause of death among the elderly? Cancer? Heart attacks? Strokes? Actually, it's college exams. I have had as many as 5 percent to 10 percent of my undergraduate class miss exams because of a “death in the family.” Many people don’t appreciate the problems this creates. First, a new test must be made. Test questions aren’t just thrown together; they’re carefully crafted to exam the material covered. They must range in difficulty to segregate the class, and they must be worded so as to avoid confusion. It’s a lot of work to generate a make-up exam! Second, because the exams are different, how does one compare the scores on the two when final grades are being determined? Because it’s impossible to confirm a family death (am I actually going to demand an attested copy of the death certificate?), professors must resort to other measures to discourage exam absenteeism. I personally only give all-essay make-up exams on reading day; students missing exams must wait until the end of the semester and take a more difficult exam than the original. Although riot as drastic as refusing to give a make-up at all, I suspect Mr. Bacot would still consider me hard-hearted. However, if he wants someone to blame, he should direct his attention to his fellow classmates who abuse the system in an attempt to get extra time to study. DR. FRANKLYN F. BOLANDERJR. ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES Submission Policy Letters to the editor should be less than 300 words and include name, phone number, professional title or year and major, if a student. Bring letters to Russell House 333 or e-mail gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. The Gamecock reserves the right to eiiit for libel, style and space. Anonymouiivletters will not be published. Call the newsroom at 777-7726 for more information. My goals as CP's president PHIL WATSON 8AMEC0CKVIEWP0INTS@H0TMAIL.C0M Forget Jocelyn Elders and bring me homeless guys. First it wa$ the cancellation of ... “Dynasty,” and now another great tragedy is about to hit the Carolina community like the fists of a hockey dad in front of 20 traumatized children. Evidently, many think Carolina Productions isn’t living up to its full potential. The organization is even looking for a new president, with no success. The future isn’t looking good, but it’s not too late. For the most part, I like CP. They bring pretty good movies to campus and do other things too, I’ve heard. But it seems like the word just isn’t getting out. The lack of a strong leader in the presidential role is also holding the organization back from being all it can be. I started thinking about what CP would be like if I were its president. For starters, I’d wear a big cowboy hat; but that’s not all. Former Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders, who advocated . teaomng masturbation techniques to children in public schools, wouldn’t be coming on Feb. 27. She can go talk to Clemson or Georgia about choking the chicken all she wants, but I don’t think we need any lessons here. My list has only five speakers: 1. Conan O’Brien, a comedy genius and a personal hero; 2. Conan’s former sidekick, Andy Richter, another great comedy mind; 3. Former “Saturday Night Live” news anchorman Norm MacDonald, who’s quite possibly the funniest man alive; 4. Crazy ‘80s rock icon Ted Nugent, who I would ask to speak exclusively about his views on gender sensitivity and welfare; 5. And Rosie O’Donnell. Under everyone’s seat that night would be a small pile of rocks and instructions on how to throw them accurately. But distinguished speakers aren’t the only things I’d bring to campus. There would be great - musical acts, too. Wesley Willis, renowned singer, songwriter and keyboard player, would be invited to come. I’d hook up all my buddies in the Women’s Studies Department with a concert by Tori Amos. Then I’d hook up all my other buddies at Channel 93.5 with a concert by the “new” rock group Beastie Boys. Under my leadership, CP would also bring debates to campus. In an effort to debate the war on terrorism, I’d ask NRA President and all-around bad mofo Charlton Heston — who once went to the “Planet of the Apes” and delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt — to come to campus. Across the table from him would be actor, gerbil enthusiast and all-around jackass Richard Gere. Hopefully, their heated debate would turn into a fight and Heston would say, “Get your hands off me, you dirty liberal,” just before knocking out Gere with a mean right hook. That s the kind of quality entertainment I would bring as president of CP. Once most of the money in the budget was used up, as it soon would be, I’d start paying homeless guys in Five Points to come to the Russell House and debate each other about whether the government should implant microchips in their brains. If that subject got old, they could move on to debating the superiority of Mad Dog to Olde English. I hope CP considers some of the suggestions I’ve made. My ideas might not have any socially redeeming value, but they would be entertaining^ Watson is a third-year print journalism student. and interests of those claiming that nonwhites are already neglected in the BGLA, then they’re filling a need. Every student or group has a right to express and promote different agendas, and if LAM offers a ATTENTION^ 6IG K Shoppers “THISSHJPIS SINKING^/ CARTOON BY LATAStiA GIBBS/THE GAMECOCK