The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 01, 2002, Page 4, Image 4
4 ' _ THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, February 1,2002 ONLINE POLL
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send letters to the editor to B ^ I y _ ^ B yV y NEVER, MY CAR WAS STOLEN FROM
gamecockviewpointS@hotmail.com ~ ’ SENATE GARAGE 35%
IN OUR OPINION
Protecting the
already-born
What’s the difference between a fetus and a
person? Suddenly, we have an answer: The fetus can
easily get health insurance.
The Bush administration, pushing prenatal care
for low-income women, said Thursday it will let
states cover “unborn children” under the Children’s
Health Insurance Program. It takes little work to
discover another motive.
By calling zygotes, embryos and fetuses “children”
— and by making'it easier for them to get insurance
than for poor women—is an erosion of abortion
rights. Granting health
insurance, a symbol of
personhood, to a cluster of
cells is a step toward making
abortion a crime.
It’s insidious, under a cloak
of kindness, to offer prenatal
and delivery care to fetuses
while taking steps to strip
women of their right to choose
whether to be pregnant.
There’s a better way. Legislation lingering in the
U.S. Senate would extend the same health care to
pregnant women without taking up the thorny issue
of when life begins. We urge its passage. It’s
ridiculous for our government to protect the
“unborn” and neglect the born.
Bush’s latest
measure is a
backdoor way
toward eroding
abortion rights.
Our government
shouldn’t sacrifice
the rights of the
born to protect
the unborn.
Gamecock Quotables
“Had I not been sick, I might
have been shot.”
REV. TIM UJEWSKI
use PRIEST WHO HELPED A WOMAN ESCAPE
THE SCENE OF AN ARMED ROBBERY
“You’re already having to
deal with our race — a
minority within a minority.”
ROD SCOTT-PADILLA
A LEADER IN THE LEAGUE FOR ALTERNATIVE
MINORITIES, ON THE SPLIT WITH BGLA
“Can you get it back if you
don’t win?”
ED BIANCHI
GRADUATE ASSISTANT, ON THE $25 SG
FILING FEE
“There’s just other stuff going
on. Plain and simple.”
COREY FORD
SG PRESIDENT. AFTER MONDAY'S SG NEWS
CONFERENCE WAS CANCELED
“We got spanked pretty
good.”
DAVE ODOM
MEN'S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH, AFTER
USC'S LOSS TO OLE MISS SATURDAY
“There is a lot of use and
misuse of the garage.”
DERRICK HUGGINS
PARKING SERVICES DIRECTOR, ABOUT THE
BULL STREET GARAGE
GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS
An article and graphic in Wednesday’s paper about candidates
who had filed for SG elections should have said Amy Buchanan
Feinberg has filed for a College of Science and Mathematics senate
seat.
The entertainment and events calendar in Wednesday’s paper
should have said the Sinators will be playing at New Brookland
Tavern on Thursday at 9 p.m.
The Gamecock regrets the errors.
If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. Write 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,
Jason Harmon, Jill
Martin, Paul Rhine,
Andrew Festa
Photo Technicians
Robert Gruen, Aaron
Hark, Candi Hauglum
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
CONTACT INFORMATION
Offices on third floor of the Russell House.
Editor in Chief: gamecockeditor@hotmail.com
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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
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
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fees. One free copy
per reader.
Additional copies
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* the Department of
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Economy will bounce back
CLAYTON KALE
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM
Based on American
philosophy, any idiot
can make a buck.
“You’re an idiot,” Matt said
as I assumed the position at an
empty bar stool next to him.
“For what?” I asked. “Going
out drinking on a Thursday
night?”
“You’re an idiot. I’m an idiot.
That guy right there desperately
clinging to the bar—he’s an
idiot.”
I cringed, hoping the drunk
guy twice my size hadn’t heard
my friend. He looked at us and
burped.
“We’re all idiots,” Matt said.
“Why? Or do I want to
know?” I asked, noting with
relief that the drunk man was
more focused on keeping the bar
from spinning away than being
called an idiot by a stranger.
“There’s money being made
in Greenville,” Matt said.
“There’s money being made
everywhere... except maybe by
Enron and Kmart stockholders.
What’s your point?”
“Drive-through
coffeehouse,” Matt said,
pausing between each syllable
for emphasis. “We’re idiots.
They drive up and hand you
money; you stand there and
hand them coffee. They’re
packed 20 deep, no matter what
time of day you go. Money is
being made in Greenville.”
I didn’t need to say it. I know
my friend had already said it
before, but the words just came
out. “Why didn’t I think of that?”
Reading the business page of
a newspaper doesn’t elicit the
same response it did a few years
ago. The capitalist in me almost
would rather see pictures of
collapsing oppressive
governments on the cover of
Newsweek than collapsing
businesses. The bright side is
that dismantled governments
can be rebuilt from the ground
up with a chance for success —
if we work at it. Even the most
radical regime can be
transformed into a peaceful
nation. But rebuilding a
multibillion dollar company is
much more difficult. Often, the
causes are worse; greed is uglier
than war. Enron’s top echelon
made its money in what appears
to be a scam. They have no more
use for their employees.
The Enron fiasco highlights
the ugly side of the American
economic system. The folks
responsible for sinking the
company came out rich while
the employees were milked for
man-hours and received
worthless stocks in return. And
while Enron’s files are
shredded in a Dumpster, Kmart
recently filed for bankruptcy.
We might want to wait a few
years before we say the one-two
punch that Enron and Kmart
put on the economy marks the
beginning of the end of the Era
of Big Business.
Like a dead tree falling and
making room for new life, a
business that fails (or is
dismantled) makes room on
Wall Street for new giants. Ma
Bell was whacked, yet
Microsoft hangs on to its
monopoly. It’s an endless cycle.
Matt’s story about the
convenience-enhanced coffee
shop reminded me what is
really necessary to get ahead in
this society: a little bit of cash
and a damn good idea. If the idea
is good enough, even a small
time operation like a drive
through coffeehouse could
mature into another American
cultural icon like McDonald’s or
Starbucks... or Kmart.
The American economy is
incredibly resilient, in part
because the opportunity to
make a buck exists in almost
every nook and cranny of our
society. From selling pirated
rock band T-shirts at a concert
to mass producing gourmet
coffee in a drive-through, there
are many ways for even an idiot
to make money.
Kale is a fourth-year print
journalism student.
Questioning the war on terrorism
JASON PHILLIPS
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM
Killing terrorists is only
a temporary solution
to eradicating hatred.
Last semester, I had the
pleasure of listening to the
visiting Tibetan monks speak
about compassion at the
Gambrell auditorium, after
which they accepted questions.
One audience member asked
what I thought was an
extremely shortsighted
question.
She compared Osama bin
Laden to a child in need of
reprimand and posed the
question as to how compassion
should be breached or altered in
accordance with punishing his
actions.
Though she brought up a
valid issue, her question made
the assumption that any
nonviolent means for dealing
with the situation will be
insufficient alone, and that
punishment is only an
unwarranted path because of
its philosophical implications.
Herein lies a fundamental
error in reason, which seems
to be prevalent of late: Many
view the current peace efforts
as merely an impractical and
morally driven agenda.
The error here, as in many
other issues today, is a matter
of oversimplification.
The concept currently
accepted by the media and our
president is one of destroying evil
and bringing justice to those
responsible for the attacks.
The word “evil” is used here
without proper consideration of
its complexities.
“Evil” isn’t some causally
immune entity that manifests
itself in random individuals;
terrorists are not a species
capable of being exterminated.
Rather, actions we
subjectively view to be evil,
such as terrorism, are
produced by specific causes.
For instance, here we are
dealing with anger directed
toward the United States; the
individuals responsible didn’t
wake up one day hating this
nation with no provocation
whatsoever.
There are causes, and
though the specifics are up for
debate, killing individual
manifestations of these causes
will accomplish nothing.
Killing all the terrorists
currently alive, but leaving the
causes that produced such hate
will only be a temporary
solution.
The same causes of anger,
left unchanged, will later
produce more terrorism.
Here we reach another case
of oversimplification
regarding our own actions
abroad.
Our nation has consistently
funded groups we refer to with
euphemisms such as
“resistance fighters.” This
term attempts to hide th? fact
that they are identical to
terrorists; the only difference
is they work for our nation’s
interests.
Osama bin Laden himself has
been used by the CIA in such a
role. In fact, in the ’80s, our
nation not only encouraged
Islamic fundamentalists in
Afghanistan, but also provided
them with resources and even
thousands of Korans, according
to the Washington Post (July 19,
1992).
Why would the United
States encourage such groups?
At the time, it suited our
interests. Our nation was still
involved in the Cold War, and
we seized upon the fact that
these groups were fighting the
Soviet Union.
Sadly, our nation gives only
vague justifications for its
interventions abroad. Many of
our past involvements in the
Middle East have hinged
around oil and economics,
regardless of their other
supposed goals.
Now the possibility is very
real that our government is
using this “war on terrorism”
to single out nations in which
it already has alternate
agendas.
As citizens of this nation, we
must avoid taking the media’s
simple reductions of complex
situations, and we must realize
that questioning or even
openly disagreeing with the
actions of our government is
necessary for progress and
growth.
Phillips is a member of Students
United for Rights and Equality
(SURE) and is a second-year a/1
studio student.
Apian
for USC
parking
ANN MARIE MIANI
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM
Parking Services seems
to enjoy arbitrarily taking
away student parking.
This is an open letter to
everyone at Parking Services:
Will you ever get a clue as to how
bad the parking situation is on
campus? Probably not.
Will you stop taking away
parking spaces so that you can
replace them with a few maple
trees? Probably not.
Will you keep changing the
rules to keep students utterly
confused? Undeniably, yes.
This isn’t the first time I have
complained about parking on
this campus. And the fact that I
have had to broach the subject so
many times says something.
Maybe the “brilliant”
directors over there at Parking
Services should listen to the
students for a change and give us
what we really want—a place to
park the cars the university
allows us to bring here.
Since I’ve been at USC, I’ve
witnessed parking lots be tom
up to put in a chunk of grass that
no one uses. In fact, there’s even
a beaten path from the library to
the Russell House that
apparently was “supposed” to be
used for picnicking and Frisbee
throwing.
As a journalism major, I m
stuck in the Coliseum for classes.
I have seen my fellow dungeon
dwellers have their cars towed
because the only places they
could park were “illegal” areas.
And with the deletion of more
spaces to make room for a
walkway for the yet-to-be
finished Health and Wellness
Center, it’s even tighter.
I was there two summers
ago when the free parking hours
were changed at the Bull Street
Garage and Parking Services
felt inclined to tell no one, not
even the campus newspaper.
And you’ve done it again. If
you think students won’t wait
until 11 p.m. to get their cars out
of the pay lot for free, you’re
sadly mistaken.
I’ve already done it. It was
inconvenient, but I’ll be damned
if I pay this university one red
cent more than I already do. You
people get more than $10,000
from me in tuition; there’s no
need for you to take the last few
dollars I have.
I’ve offered you so many
solutions in the past, and you’ve
yet to take me up on one. But I
will try again with the hope that
maybe there’s one sane soul over
there who will at least listen to
me.
How about charging the
faculty and staff members the
insanely high garage rates and
letting the students have random
lots all over campus? There are
more students than professors,
aren’t there? We’re the ones who
are paying your salaries.
My plan is very logical once
you break it down:
1. Faculty and staff members
make more money than your
average college student;
2. Because they make more
money, you can charge them
even more than you charge us
and make even more of a profit;
3. Once that profit is made,
there will be no reason to charge
students for parking.
It’s a simple solution for a
complex problem. It would cost
nothing to implement, so you are
guaranteed nothing but profit.
Miani is a fourth-year print
journalism student.
We want your opinion!
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 ^3 or e-mail
gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com.