Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

4 THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, January 31, 2003 SOUND OFF ONLINE POLL Create message boards at The favorite Super Bowl XXXVII ads. www.dailygamecock.com or REEBOK, OFFICE LINEBACKER 29/» send letters to the editor to BUDWEISER, “ZEBRA REFEREE” 24% gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com FEDEX, CASTAWAY SPIN-OFF 18/o t __ •'_ _ IN OUR OPINION The state of the governor There is an increasing possibility that Gov. Mark Sanford could be called up as a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserve to participate in a war effort. The timing of this — at the beginning of Sanford’s term as governor of South Carolina — is perilous for the state’s near future. Although Sanford’s decision is admirable in that he is keeping his word, he gave South Carolina his promise that he would lead the state, not a reserve With the State unit. With the state government Still in government still in transition, transition, losing losin§ Sanford for any Sa nf ord f or a ny extended amount of time extended amount could be a blow to his Of time COUld be a administration’s goals. Being blow to his a governor and a reservist is a administration’s dual obligation that might goals, prove risky. Ideally, the state should never have had to face this precarious situation; Sanford should have made his choice before he ever decided to become South Carolina’s leader. But now, with Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer in position to potentially act as governor in Sanford’s place, it is imperative that Sanford discuss any and all important issues that South Carolina could face when and if he is called to duty. Bauer’s level of preparation in such an event could make the difference in how easy Sanford’s absence is to bear. Gamecock Quotables “This is probably the best thing to happen to Tampa. Maybe now this will put us on , the map as a real city.” TANIA STABLEIN BUCCANEERS FAN ON THE TEAM’S WINNING SUPER BOWL XXXVII “This country has many challenges. We will not deny, we will not ignore, we will not pass along our problems to other Congresses, other presidents and other generations.” GEORGE W. BUSH PRESIDENT ON THE SITUATION IN IRAQ IN HIS STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS “Saddam has not been compliant with weapons inspections. Now, we’ve found chemical weapons in clear breach of the U.N., and that justifies war.” CHRIS DICKSON FIRST-YEAR POLITICAL-SCIENCE AND ECONOMICS STUDENT ON THE POSSIBLE WAR WITH IRAQ “It was too much drama, and it ended up making us look like a joke.” TYLER ODOM CRIMINAL-JUSTICE SENATOR ON ALLEGATIONS AGAINST STUDENT GOVERNMENT PRESIDENT ANKIT PATEL GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS The caption for the lead photo in The Mix on Wednesday should have stated that “Where do Flies Go in Winter?” is a Actional spy novel that draws from the author’s mAitary experiences. The Gamecock regrets the error. If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. E-mail us at gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. ABOUT THE GAMECOCK Editor In Chief Jill Martin Managing Editor Charles Tomlinson News Editor Adam Beam Asst. News Editor Wendy Jeffcoat Viewpoints Editor Erin O’Neal The Mix Editor Corey Garriott Asst. The Mix Editor Meg Moore Sports Editor Matt Rothenberg Asst. Sports Editor Brad Senkiw Photo Editor Johnny Haynes Asst. Photo Editor Morgan Ford Head Page Designers Sarah McLaulin, Katie Smith. David Stagg Page Designers Justin Bajan. Samantha Hall, Staci Jordan, Julia Knetzer, Shawn Rourk Slot Copy Editors Crystal Boyles, Tricia Ridgway, Emma Ritch Copy Editors Alyson Goff, Mary Waters Online Editor Bessam Khadraoui Community Affairs Kiran Shah CONTACT INFORMATION Offices on third fJoor of the Russell House. Editor in Chief: gamecockeditor@hotmail.com News: gamecockudesk@hotmail.com Viewpoints: gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com The Mix: gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com Sports: gamecocksports@hotmail.com Public Affairs: gckpublicaffairs@hotmail.com Online: www.dailygamecock.com Newsroom: 777-7726 Editor's Office: 777-3914 STUDENT MEDIA Faculty Adviser Erik Collins Director of Student Media Ellen Parsons Creative Director Susan King Business Manager Carolyn Griffin Advertising Manager Sarah Scarborough Classified Manager Sherry F. Holmes Asst. Production Manager Patrick Bergen Creative Services Derek Goode. Earl Jones. Sean O'Meara, Anastasia Oppert Advertising Staff John Blackshire, Adam Bourgoin, Bianca Knowles, Denise Levereaux, Jacqueline Rice, Stacey Todd The Gamecock is the editorially independent student newspaper of the University of South Carolina. It 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 rn part by student-activity fees. One free copy per reader. Additional copies may be purchased for $1 each from the Department of Student Media. TO rLAUt AN AO The Gamecock 1400 Greene St. Columbia, S.C. 29208 Advertising: 777-3888 Classified: 777-1184 Fax: 777-6482 CARTOON COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS ' l Not a child, not yet an adult ALLYSON BIRD GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM It’s hard to know how to behave when you’re 18. I was on the phone with my parents the other night, com plaining to them about one thing or another, when my dad said: “Allyson, don’t give me this teen angst crap. I’ve got one thing to say to you: 18. You are 18, and I am 52. That’s all I’m going to say.” And that was all he had to say. I always tell my parents that I hope my life is half as interest ing as theirs have been, travel ing the country like gypsies dur ing the ’70s. They have stories of New York City bars, voodoo in New Orleans and crazy people from town to town. But then I realize that, when they were 18, they were still stuck in a small coal mining town in Pennsylvania and had traveled less than I have. Life is only beginning. And while many of my peers are al ready thinking about settling down, I can only think that they’re settling for less. If you don’t see the rest, how can you know that you’ve found what will make you happiest? The therapy for my own teen angst is, logically, to pretend that I’m not a teenager, and to go to the circus. My four friends and I were definitely the oldest people there without children of our own, but since the circus gives a student discount, I fig ured everyone else had just for gotten to come. I know what you’re thinking: People in grades K-12 are stu dents, too. Don’t ruin my world, OK? Watching three rings of color ful costumes, exotic animals and superhuman dexterity, I was pleased to find I was still capti vated by something that had touched me as a child. Perhaps I even got more out of it this time. While the single-digit-age folk are still concerned most with the snow cones and glow sticks, those of us with a little more worldly knowledge can lend it to our appreciation. As an elementary-school stu dent, I never wondered about the performers’ salaries. I was never curious whether Democrats had ever raised a stink about the clearly partisan idolatry of the elephant. I never noticed the great bodies the male performers have under their glittery tights and vests. And I never wondered what it would be like to meet some one in a bar and say: “You’re a lawyer? How nice. Me, oh, I’m the girl in the hot-dog costume from the circus.... No, you can’t buy me a drink. I’m actually with the midget over there.” Not that I think about those things now, or anything. I am 18 years old: barely an adult, but just old enough to be treated like one. I am 18, barely started on the path of life, but far enough in to take a few wrong turns and young enough to fol low the bread crumbs back and start over. I am 18, and I am steeped in the possibilities of what I can do with my life. If this journalism thing doesn’t work out, I can study something new or search myself and the world until I find my real passion. Or I can even join the circus. Bird is a first-year print journalism student. IN YOUR OPINION Bush is a threat to reproductive rights Does it seem ironic to anyone else that a president who has no qualms about recklessly bomb ing Afghanistan and who is champing at the bit for an ex cuse to invade Iraq has declared a Sanctity of Human Life Day? Bush should say what he re ally means: “Paving the Road to Overturning the Roe v. Wade Decision.” The law that guaran tees women reproductive free dom has become increasingly endangered since Bush took of fice. And if re-elected, he’ll get to appoint as many as four new U.S. Supreme Court justices, all of whom will be anti-abortion, which translates to pro-fetus and anti-woman. Life is more than a physical existence, independent of an other human being. Certain things are necessary to make it worth living — such as the free dom to make choices that de termine the course of one’s life — e.g. whether to terminate a pregnancy. Morality debates aside, it is absolutely necessary that abor tion remain legal. Outlawing it would put scores of women at the mercy of amateurs with vacuum cleaners, coat hangers and rusty knives — it is ludi crous to assume that just be cause abortion is illegal, it won’t happen. A legal, professional first trimester abortion is located somewhere between having a mole removed and liposuction on the complexity scale, while a dangerous, illegal abortion can leave a woman sterile and per manently scarred. Until the point of viability, a developing fetus is an extension of its mother’s body. A woman’s * body is her own, period. The Supreme Court has no right to try to take control of it. Everyone, especially women, should fight to refuse to let it. KATHRYN MICHAELIS FIRST-YEAR ENGLISH STUDENT ‘Kindness’ won’t kill tyrants in Iraq I am writing to address the disturbing trend of student protests against possible mili tary action against Iraq. Joey Oppermann appears to be the oft-quoted poster child for this movement in The Gamecock. Those opposed to military action simply fling criticism at the administration’s policy while failing to provide any form of feasible alternative. Mr. Oppermann proposes that we “kill them with kindness,” through the implementation of some form of “a modern-day Marshall Plan to provide the Iraqis with supplies.” Fernaps Mr. uppermann nas yet to study the Marshall Plan and the events leading up to it. In 1945, the United States had just succeeded in leading a mul tilateral coalition force to re move from power a regime led by a ruthless dictator with no respect for human rights. Adolf Hitler ordered the gassing and execution of an ethnic minori ty. Hitler was also pouring im mense amounts of money into the first nuclear-weapons-de velopment program. Only after removing Hitler from power was the United States capable of implementing the rebuilding that took place under the Marshall Plan. There are appalling paral lels between the regime of Saddam Hussein and that of Adolf Hitler. Hussein has re peatedly ordered the use of chemical weapons against both the Kurds in the north of Iraq and the Shi’a Muslims in the south. It is because of these past transgressions that the no-fly zones exist to prevent future oc currences. To this day, oddly similar to his denial of posses sion and pursuit of weapons of mass destruction, Saddam de nies any of these well-document ed attacks. It is obvious that Mr. Oppermann, along with the rest of the anti-war movement, has failed to examine the facts avail able in the public domain. It is difficult to comprehend how students such as Mr. Oppermann are able to claim to be in favor of what is best for the people of Iraq while simultane ously supporting the continued rule of a man who has spent $2 billion on private palaces while providing his people with mus tard gas rather than bread, medicine or water. • in auumon, i encourage ev eryone to educate themselves be fore assuming a position in this important public debate. The British government has produced a report detailing Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction programs that is easily accessible on the Internet at www.ukonline.gov. uk/featurenews/iraqdossier.pdf. JAMES WHITTINGHAM FOURTH-YEAR MATHEMATICS STUDENT 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. E-mail letters to gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com. Letters will be edited. Anonymous letters will not be published. Call the newsroom at 777-7726 for more information. P Bush’s speech proved nothing TYLERJONES GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM The State of the Union didn’t address much. Being addicted to big-time pol itics is not a pretty sight. At least your basic crackhead or heroin addled fool receives distant sym pathy. This is not the case for a political junkie. Being castigated from the depths of society for be ing more excited about the State of the Union than about the Super Bowl or “American Idol” is a lone ly and hideous ride to the bottom, but it is one I will gladly take for a fix of King Bush mispronouncing three-syllable words. jnoi surprisingly, me aiaie oi the Union rose to prominence like most grandiose political soirees. The television revolutionized this yearly public-relations event be tween the CEO of America and his 270 million constituents. In fact, the term “State of the Union” was not known until the wheelchaired wonder, Franklin D. Roosevelt, coined the phrase in his 1935 address to Congress. In 1947, Harry Truman took the show to the TV screen, where it has languished ever since. Big George Washington deliv ered the first State of the Union way back on Jan. 8,1790, in New York City, but it did not return as a public event until Woody Wilson revived it from a printed speech to a public rambling in 1913. Now, 90 years later, it is a huge extrav aganza for the multitude of net works and the 50 million or so Americans who decide to tune in. Tuesday s speech was widely anticipated to be the unveiling of proof against Saddam or the Bush monarchy’s reasons for war. Bush did everything short of naming ac tual proof and made some inter esting points that need analysis. First, Bush made several strange remarks about the envi ronment, even saying that the pos sibility of hydrogen-ftieled vehicles is going to be extensively re searched. Second, the president gave a stirring soliloquy about how America needs to provide medica tion for AIDS victims in Africa. Now, this is all well and good, but is there any validity to these uncharacteristic statements? Is the emperor trying to appeal to our sensitive war protesters out there with this eco-humanitarian approach? I, for one, am not buy ing this nonsense. But I am plac ing a bet that King George II is go ing to slash taxes for the numer ous millionaires out there. And why shouldn’t he? Last time I checked, the Bush family was in cluded among the more than 225,000 millionaires who would receive big-time checks in the mail courtesy of Uncle Sam. But let s not turn this into a class conflict or a partisan debate; let’s focus on the facts. First, America is going to war with Iraq. Second, no matter what the truth is, Bush has committed himself and America to war and must fol low through or risk losing face with not only the American pub lic, but with the international community as well. That, my friends, is George’s biggest mistake. Shockingly, I am not against ousting Saddam Hussein. I am, however, against the Bush administration’s han dling of this whole fiasco. By bul lying Iraq and using threats, Bush has not only put his name on the line, but he has actually come off as the villain to countries that should be our allies. By using brains instead of brawn, Bush could have unilateral support, but no one has ever suspected this ad ministration of having assiduous resolve. Jones is a graduate student in the College of Mass Communications and Information Studies.