The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 15, 2002, Page 5, Image 5
THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, February 15, 2002 5
SOUND OFF TTT^TTTTirY VTrTIO ONLINE POLL
Create message boards at I ■—4 1/1/ ■—J I I Is Valenttne’s Day worth anyone’s time?
www.dailygamecock.com or I I ' J «/ %/ I li \| Mi „ YES, IF YOU ARE IN A MOVIE 35%
send letters to the editor to I I J V V I \ / V I L I NO, I CANT AFFORD A MAN/WOMAN/OTHER 27%
gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com —®-■ w w —■— ^S — l. l —S | am ASEXUAL 38%
IN OUR OPINION
Forgotten
documents
Nathan White’s recent tribulations with Student
Government and Carolina Student Judicial Council
have illustrated a university-wide problem — the use
of different codes, constitutions and documents for
the advancement of personal agendas.
White’s case changed several times after different
sections of SG codes were brought out and interpreted.
So many of the documents organizations use lie
dusty and forgotten, filed away until they suddenly
serve someone s agenda. Many
Student ^ave never been interpreted and
^Stations are caught up 1,1 legalese and
should be “living “"^mgjargon.
documents ” The point °f constitutions,
bylaws, statements of
principles, contracts — official guiding documents —
is to guide students, officials and organizations in
their activities. If they aren’t “living documents,”
they do no good.
Registered student organizations are required to
have constitutions. Many leaders would be surprised
to discover what their constitutions actually require.
Constitutions should be revisited every year and
with changes of officers. And larger university
documents need student input to make them come
alive and reflect USC now.
Gamecock Quotables
“I feel that I’m more than
qualified, that I have unique
qualifications that are well
needed in Student Government.”
ANKIT PATEL
SG PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
“I think it’s dangerous when
a student government
becomes disenchanted with
the university.”
JIM MCFADDEN
SG PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
“No disrespect to SG, but I
just thought they need a new
face, a new perspective.”
KALETA BROWN
SG PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
“I’ll roll in there like this, just
say what I want to say,
because ... I’m not a
politician.”
BROOK BRISTOW
SG PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
“If it were up to me, I’d pour
the asphalt myself and cover
up every green space on
campus.”
DAVID BORNEMANN
SG PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
“This is a student affair. This
is a Student Government
election.”
NATHAN WHITE
FORMER VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE
GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS
An article in Wednesday’s paper about Darla Moore’s speech to
undergraduate business students should have reported that close
to 150 students attended the event on Tuesday. During her speech,
Moore said, “Aren’t there 2,600 undergraduate students who go to
this school?” She was referring to the business school, not the
university as a whole.
As a clarification of an article in Wednesday’s paper, SG
treasurer candidate Terrance Beeks asked legislators, as they
passed by on the State House grounds, to sign a contract about
lottery revenues. He did not deliver a speech to the legislature.
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
J. Keith Allen
Asst. Sports Editor
Brandon Larrabee
Special Projects
Martha Wright
Design Editor
Page Designers
Crystal Dukes, Sarah
McLaulin, Katie Smith,
David Stagg
Kyle Almond
Copy Desk Chief
Copy Editors
Crystal Boyles, Andrew
Festa, Jason Flarmon,
Jill Martin, Paul Rhine
Mark Hartney
Online Editor
Corey Davis
Photo Assignments
Photo Technicians
Robert Gruen, Candi
Hauglum
Kelly Petruska
Community Affairs
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'
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
Derek Goode, Todd
Hooks, Earl‘Jones,
Jennie Moore, Melanie
Roberts. Beju Shah
Advertising Staff
Betsy Baugh, Denise
Levereaux, Laura
Miller, Jackie Rice,
Stacey Todd
TO PUCE 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.
f^ALL-7 TA^aS
Secu&TY
se&iousLY- ^
CARTOON COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS
Meddling is the American way
CLAYTON KALE
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM
The terrorists win if we
prohibit press scrutiny.
Remember the morning
when hijacked airliners razed a
sizable section of Manhattan?
How could we forget, right? It
was broadcast live on nearly
every channel, and viewers
were immediately transformed
from passive television viewers
into primary sources of history.
Right on our TV screens, we
watched life as we knew it
tumble into a smoky pile of
debris. Soon, the stun of the
attacks wore off and folks began
racing to see how they could
help. People as far away as
Columbia waited in out-the-door
lines at blood banks to shed
some blood of their own, and the
Internet was clogged with
others, some looking for
. . answers and some looking for
charities to donate their money.
Ground Zero had all the
workers it needed, Sept. 11 funds
were swelling, and blood banks
can only drain so much blood
from a single donor. Yet the
American public still felt they
could do more. Perhaps President
Bush sensed the feelings of his
286 million constituents, or
maybe he just felt the need to say
something. In any case, Bush
urged the American people to go
about their daily lives as they
normally would. The
conventional wisdom of the day
was “the only way the terrorists
win is if we cease acting like
Americans”—meaning, of
course, they win if we don’t buy
that 10th pair of shoes.
But acting like Americans
goes far beyond buying video
games, watching wrestling and
eating pre-packaged processed
foods. America is where
citizens check up on the
government (not the other way
around) through open meetings
of elected officials and their
hired authorities. America is
where people like Bob
Woodward and Carl Bernstein
are viewed as the heroes and
where sometimes the
government itself is the villain.
Citing security risks after the
Sept. 11 attacks, several states
are trying to close the doors to
meetings of elected officials.
Public information about water
systems, criminal
investigations, evacuation
plans and bioterrorism
response plans are subject to
being made private in at least
nine states, according to the
Associated Press. One Missouri
state representative said, “Gee
whiz, do we need to be so open
with all this stuff?"
Yes, sir, we do. If Abraham
Lincoln were here today, I
believe I know what he would
say. Because he isn’t, I’ll tell you
something he said in response
to complaints of a meddlesome
press: “Let the people know the
facts, and the country will be safe.”
We’re an open society, after
all, and if we voters were left out
of the loop — specifically by
allowing meetings to proceed
behind closed doors—
government actions would
escape scrutiny by the press
and the private citizen, and
private citizens would stop
being the true leadership of the
country. The American way of
life is incumbent upon the
meddlesome activities of the
average citizen and the
independent press.
The conventional wisdom
remains some five months after
the attacks. If states begin to
close their doors during official
government business, then
Americans will lose sight of
what their representatives are
doing. But even worse than
that, somebody will have to
break the bad news to Bush.
“Mr. President, the terrorists
have won.”
Kale is a fourth-year print
journalism student.
IN YOUR OPINION
The signature test
for SG candidates
Every year for two weeks,
candidates, particularly those
seeking the office of student
body president, speak to
countless organizations
promising many changes.
Recycling programs, more
parking Spaces and drop/add
date extensions tend to be the
more popular ones. So how
can students decide which
candidate is best suited for
thejob?
For this I have come up
with what I call the "Signature
Test." Every time you hear a
candidate make a promise,
ask yourself, "Whose
signature do we need to make
that happen?" Do we need the
signature of the Board of
Trustees, the state legislature,
or do we need solely the
signature of the SG president?
Don’t get me wrong. I think
it’s important that we have an
SG president who can voice
the concerns of the students to
the appropriate university
officials. We need a president
with a strong voice who will
demand better parking, more
lighting on campus, an
expanded shuttle system and
many other issues of concern.
But beyond that, we need a
president who can accomplish
real and concrete goals with
his or her signature and his or
her signature alone. I have
tried to include that in my
platform.
I know that with my
signature, I can create
positions in SG dedicated to
minority affairs, Greek
affairs, women’s issues,
community service and
environmental affairs. I know
that with my signature, I can
give more money back to our
many student organizations
by reducing the amount of
money SG spends on itself.
So in this final week of
campaigning, when listening
to candidate’s speeches, just
ask yourself, "Can this goal be
accomplished with his or her
signature alone?" You’ll be
surprised with your answer.
SG is in need of new
leadership. Last semester, our
Student Senate only voted on
three bills out of 15 legislative
sessions! It appears that the
promises made during the
campaign season are quickly
forgotten. Yes, we do need a
leader with a strong voice who
can address the students’
concerns before the university
administration and the South
Carolina legislature. But we
also need a leader with real and
concrete goals who carries a
strong pen. Only then will SG
fulfill the goals it has been
promising us for years.
ANKIT PATEL
FOURTH-YEAR INTERNATIONAL
STUDIES STUDENT, CANDIDATE FOR
STUDENT BODY PRESIDENT
Debate coverage
not comprehensive
Having personally attended
the Student Government
candidates debate, I was
disappointed by Wednesday’s
coverage of the event. During
the debate, there was a tense
moment when Becky Floyd
accused Terrance Beeks of not
inviting her to the event he led
at the State House on
Wednesday, when student
leaders lobbied legislators to
not delay in appropriating
lottery funds for higher
education as promised. Beeks
responded that he had invited
her, and this single point of
contention seems to have been
the focus of coverage of the
treasurers’ debate.
First, to clear up this point,
Terrance Beeks did e-mail an
invitation to Floyd and all the
other executive candidates. I’ve
shown the e-mail to The
Gamecock staff, and for anyone
who wants to inquire, they can
validate that for you. Possibly,
through some kind of glitch, she
didn’t receive it. I know Floyd,
and I don’t think she would
make that up. But the e-mail was
both sent and received by other
candidates.
Second, there were far more
pertinent issues discussed
during the debate than who did
or didn’t receive an e-mail. The
candidates discussed their
platforms, their views on past
handling of the budget, the
important funding question of
how and if SG should classify
organizations such as the
NAACP as “political,” as well as
the candidates’ experiences in
handling budgets and working
in leadership positions. There is
only one debate like this in the
campaign season, and for
students who couldn’t attend,
The Gamecock is their only
news resource in finding out
about it. If SG campaigns are to
be about substantive issues,
then it’s important that
coverage includes what
candidates say about the issues,
and not just “he-said, she-said”
confrontations.
JOEY OPPERMANN
SECOND-YEAR HISTORY STUDENT,
COLLEGE OF LIBERAL ARTS SENATOR,
CAMPAIGN MANAGER FOR TERRANCE
BEEKS
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 edit for
libel, style and space. Anonymous letters
will not be published. Outside
submissions supporting or opposing a
candidate or a party in any election will
not be run the day before or the day of an
election. Call the newsroom at 777-7~26
for more information.
Legend
of Mardi
Gras
ANN MARIE MIAN I
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM •
Maybe Mardi Gras has
its own legendary hero.
Viva la Mardi Gras!
The time has come again for
all us Catholics to give up our
favorite thing in the world for 40
days (or 40 nights for some
people) in honor of something
that has to do with the death of
Jesus Christ.
No one really knows why we
give up something we love for
six weeks. My guess is some
pope 800 years ago was pissed
and decided to make Catholics
around the world suffer.
Anyway, the point is it’s Lent
— probably the most dreaded
part of the Catholic calendar
year.
The one bright spot right
before that horrible, dreadful
six weeks is Mardi Gras.
I always wonder how things
like Mardi Gras originated.
How and when did this
weeklong drunkfest, where
there is more flashing than a
Kodak convention, come into
existence?
Here’s my guess on how
Mardi Gras came to be...
Once upon a time, about 300
years ago, Catholics around the
world were preparing for the
ritual of fasting and giving up
their favorite vice for the 40 .
days before Easter.
In a little village called New
Orleans, one Catholic (who just
happened to own the local
saloon) was in a deep despair.
He was going through last
year’s books and knew the time
of year had come when he would
be losing money. Every year,
when Lent was upon them, he
lost money because so many of
his patrons gave up drinking for
Lent.
He had to think of something
to help him earn a lot of money
right before Lent. If he didn’t,
the next six weeks would be
very hard on his wife and their
eight children. What could he
do?
Then it hit him — a weeklong
celebration where he would
offer food and drink specials. He
would have contests, like who
could drink the most beer in five
minutes, or which of his
saloon’s lovely wenches had the
biggest breasts.
As prizes, he could give away
all those beaded necklaces he
got from the Indian traders last
summer. And the guy who had
the most beads at the end of the
week would win a free night
with one of the saloon girls.
He would tell people this was
a “religious festival” designed
for them to have some fun
before Lent. The event would
culminate on the day before Ash
Wednesday, just hours before
they had go to church and have
ashes put on their foreheads.
The plan was brilliant. And if
the villagers thought it was a
religious festival, they would
feel obligated to come. He would
make buckets of money.
He placed an ad in the
newspaper, put up fliers and
told the town crier to tell
everyone to come to the bar
exactly one week before Ash
Wednesday.
His festival was a hit. All the
townspeople came to the
festival, and there were even
some out-of-towners who
stopped in for a few nights.
Leave it to a Catholic to find a
way to incorporate drinking
and religion. Now, people from
all over the world travel to New
Orleans exactly seven days
before Ash Wednesday. It’s all
thanks to one man — Mardi
Grason.
Hey, he might not be Paul
Bunyan, but it could be true.
Miani is a fourth-year print
journalism student.