The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, February 05, 2003, Page 6, Image 6
6 THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, February 5, 2003
SOUND OFF ONLINE POLL
Create message boards at Should LeBron James have
www.dailygamecock.com or lost his amateur status?
send letters to the editor to www.dailygamecock.com.
gamecockviewpoints@hotmail.com Results published on Fridays.
IN OUR OPINION
I
Cutting costs
and corners
The financial crisis reached a new height this
week as university administrators revealed that it
would take a 17.4 percent tuition increase to cover a
10 percent state budget cut. That would mean an
$684.74 increase for in-state students and a $1,853.68
increase for out-of-state students.
We recognize that the university is experiencing
hard times. To date, $33 million have been cut from its
budget. The university has tried to keep tuition
Tuition increases
are sometimes
necessary, but
they shouldn’t be
a knee-jerk
reaction to
budget cuts.
increases minimal oy cupping
into reserve funding and asking
deans to cut back certain
percentages of their budget.
But this kind of trimming
has left the university hurting.
A hiring freeze has left more
than 800 vacancies, resulting in
fewer classes and more adjunct professors. Building
maintenance continues to go on the deferred list.
USC Provost Jerry Odom said, “We can’t continue
to cut the budget like this without hurting the people
we are trying to serve, and that is the students.”
When faced with tremendous budget cuts,
sometimes tuition increases can’t be avoided. But a 17
percent increase is different from a 5 percent increase.
Tuition increases are sometimes necessary, but they
shouldn’t be a knee-jerk reaction to budget cuts. Other
ways of generating revenue should be explored in an
attempt to minimize any increase in tuition.
Winners and Sinners
ROSA PARKS Former seamstress turned civil
rights figure from Montgomery, Ala.,
celebrated her 89th birthday yesterday.
- ALTERNATIVE BREAK CORPS Students spend
their spring break doing volunteer work
instead of drunk on a beach somewhere.
■P MIKE MCGEE Apologized to the University of
Kentucky for the behavior of some Carolina
fans. But Clemson won’t get any apologies.
JONES PSC Will hold class on Saturdays to
recover time lost because of a leak. Maybe
everyone can compromise: Meet in Five Points,
i ABORTION PROTESTERS Illegally gathered on
10 Greene Street. Stop harassing students before you
end up living in a van down by the reflection pool.
LEBRON JAMES The high school basketball
prodigy who wows fans with his slam dunks,
and awes with his lack of common sense.
GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS
In the Sports section Monday, the softball score against UNC
should have been USC 3, UNC 0.
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 Water
Online Editor
Bessam Khadraoui
Community Affairs
Kiran Shah
CONTACT INFORMATION
Offices on third floor 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
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,
5 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 in 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 PUCE AN AD
1400 Greene St.
Columbia, S.C. 29208
nuvci Lioiiig. r i i juuu
Classified: 777-1184
Fax: 777-6482
Feeling
zn+ified +o
Special
benefits:
( POINTLESS
I —r--U
CARTOON COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS
Bush shouldn’t pursue war
, mam wr
VIVIAN BARAJAS
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM
Hippies aren’t the only
proponents of peace.
We are on the brink of war
and, with the events that hap
pened on Sept. 11, it is easy for
many people to mistake the ac
tions of our “great” president.
Though his fight for retaliation
might seem heroic and necessary
to some, I beg to differ.
I have found — especially on
campus — that most people who
are ready to jump on the war
bandwagon without thinking are
those who will never see the war
front. Many may be quick to call
me a “hippie” who believes in all
of the “make love not war” rub
bish; however, I am far from it or
anything of that nature.
I simply find it hard to believe
that the public is equipped to
make correct decisions when the
media are far from revealing
what is really going on in Iraq.
Try remembering the last time
you turned on the tube and saw
images of Iraqi women and chil
dren or the conditions of their
country. Could it be a mere coin
cidence that media have left all
of this out? Or is there much
more to it?
After all, let’s remember that
in the 1960’s, it was the gory im
ages of what was really happen
ing in Vietnam that turned the
American people away from sup
porting the war. Do you think the
government would make the
same mistake?
And let’s not close our eyes to
the fact that Iraq is only the sec
ond-largest oil reserve, and if we
go to war, then we will most like
ly inherit some of this oil.
Coincidentally, Bush has had ex
perience in the oil business pri
or to his political career — I
guess once a businessman al
ways a businessman.
So let’s face it — the war with
Iraq has very little to do with
making the United States a safer
place for you and me, and has ev
erything to do with the treasure
hidden under its land.
Not to mention that a war
would definitely gain President
Bush credibility as a leader, at
least in the eyes of some people
— though it will take a lot more
to convince me that he is capable
of running a country. I find it
scary that our Commander in
Chief is the same guy that waves
to Stevie Wonder from across a
room.
This is not to say that I don’t
think Saddam Hussein is not hid
ing something; I most certainly
find him to be a suspicious and
dangerous character. However,
I do not feel that a country should
have to pay for the mistakes of
its leader.
It is important that we open
our eyes and not sit back as citi
zens of our country, unaware of
what our own “leaders” are do
ing.
So before you agree with
bombing Iraq and sending thou
sands of troops — one of which
may be my father — to fight a
war, think long and hard about
what kind of message we would
be sending to the rest of the
world: We are the United States
of America and for the love of oil
we are willing to sacrifice some
of our own.
But don’t take my word for it,
in months we, as a country, will
realize that just as the Vietnam
War was a mistake, this one will
be too.
Barajas is a second-year business
student.
IN YOUR OPINION
Sanford’s decision
to serve is noble
I was reading Friday's edito
rial (“The state of the governor”)
and have to take issue with this
line: “Although Sanford's deci
sion is admirable in that he is
keeping his word, he gave South
Carolina his promise that he
would lead the state, not a re
serve unit.”
Mark Sanford swore an oath
to serve long before — one year, •
I think — before he took anoth
er oath that made him our gov
ernor. Although I am not a huge
fan of Gov. Sanford, as a veter
an, I do applaud his decision to
honor the first commitment he
made, rather than take the easy
way out. Furthermore, I am not
a Strom Thurmond fan, either,
but regardless of this man's
checkered past, he did the right
thing during World War D; he
stepped down and stormed the
beaches on June 6,1944.
JIM GERRICK
FOURTH-YEAR HISTORY STUDENT
Propaganda veils
real war concerns
Lately, I've been clinging
steadfastly to an idealistic hope
that the United States and Iraq
will reach some type of amica
ble compromise and that this
impending war with Iraq will
become diminutive and that
U.S. agendas will redirect to
more pressing domestic mat
ters.
I don't want to mitigate the
horrendous acts of tyranny
that Saddam Hussein has com
mitted against his own coun
try. He is an evil dictator, but
does he- pose an imminent
harm to the livelihood of
Americans? Saddam has never
explicitly stated that he wants
to harm Americans. But Osama
Bin Laden has. By the way,
where is Osama?
Saddam retains control of a
demoralized, ill-led and feeble
military that will probably de
fect once this war commences,
which will result in an absolute
victory for the United States.
Thousands of innocent Iraqi
lives will perish like unrefriger
ated meat, but the United States
will sustain minimal casualties.
Also, the U.S. military promises
that this war will be “swift and
precise,” but what then? What
happens after we massacre Iraq?
From my understanding, the
U.N. and the United States will
establish an Afghanistan-type
government for 18 months that
will assist Iraq in forming a new
government. Eighteen months
and Iraq's problems are solved?
Excuse me while I remain a bit
skeptical about this solution.
Anri what about thp TTnitpri
States? From my understanding,
preliminary estimates for the
cost of war with Iraq is in the $60
billion price range, pretty high
considering that we are still in a
moderate recession, unemploy
ment rates are still climbing and
every state in the nation is fac
ing severe financial deficits.
And there's no guarantee
that this war will stimulate the
economy. Ten years ago diming
the Gulf War, the United States
relied heavily on industrial
businesses, but industry is not
as prominent as it was 10 years
ago; however, technology,
healthcare and domestic busi
nesses are booming.
How will a war with Iraq ben
efit non-industrial sectors? The
pending war with Iraq is not
about removing an evil dictator
and transforming a primitive
nation into a quasi-democracy,
it's about Bush's use of media pro
paganda to brainwash American
citizens into thinking Saddam is
dangerous, so that he can remain
popular with Americans, gamer
re-election in 2004 and promote
conservative legislation that will
decimate civil liberties and cater
to the rich and super-rich.
A war with Iraq will not solve
problems with terrorism.
Although, maybe in a distorted
viewpoint, American apprehen
sion and fear of terrorists will be
ameliorated when a scapegoat is
found and Americans can contin
ue to sit on the globally permeat
ing hegemony throne. A victory in
Iraq will boost Bush's rating even
higher, but how long will his pop
ularity last when Americans are
faced with a plethora of domestic
problems after the war? Consider
the disappointing turn of events
Dubya's father faced after the Gulf
War. Will history repeat?
I’ll continue to cling to ray ide
alism and hope that Americans
will rebel against propaganda,
and not willingly submit to every
figure of authority just because
he or she happens to be “like
able.” We live in a great nation
where, for idealists like myself,
truth, justice, individual autono
my and democratic values should
prevail. We should promote such
values and steer away from agen
das that promote selfish self
preservation.
KEVIN BRINGMAN
THIRD-YEAR ENGLISH AND
PSYCHOLOGY 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. 4
Letters will be edited. Anonymous betters
will not be published. Call the newsroom
at 777-7726 for more information.
Love—
neither
exciting
nor new
BROOK BRISTOW
GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM
Valentine’s Day and TV
distort honest emotion.
Maybe it’s just me, but while
the upcoming spring season, tra
ditionally described as the “sea- ,
son of love,” is fast on its way, it’s
still a cold, cold winter outside,
which must mean that
Valentine’s Day is upon us.
Now what is the point of
Valentines Day? Well, that de
pends on whom you ask.
Hallmark will tell you that love is
measured in-how deep your bank
account goes and how willingly
you fork over your green in ex
change for some of its “passion
ate” red. Nothing says, “I love
you” quite like nauseatingly ap
ple-red, knee-high socks with
hearts all over them alongside a
Harry Potter valentine remind
ing us to “Have a magical
Hallmark doesn’t understand
that green doesn’t always mean
go. Retailers have taken a big red
machine and turned it into a big
green machine, simply by mar
keting roses, chocolates and cards
as ways to the heart. I don’t know
about you, but if the way to a
girl’s heart were simply through
chocolates, greeting cards and the
appearance of having money,
then you can start calling me “Joe
Millionaire.” And by the way, we
don’t need any more reality dat
ing shows. Most of us live in this
far off, distant land called “reali
ty” and don’t need to relive it on
television. We’ve all been the
“The Fifth Wheel” and
“Dismissed,” so thank you
Hollywood for the friendly re
minder. Now seating bitter, table
for one.
In theory, Valentine’s Day is
a celebration of the concept of
true love. The holiday gets its
name from Saint Valentine, who
was beheaded for helping young
lovers marry against the wishes
of the mad emperor Claudius in
fifth-century Rome. Before exe
cution, Valentine himself had
fallen in love with his jailer’s
daughter. He signed his final
note to her, “From Your
Valentine,” and the phrase has
lasted through the centuries.
daa me.
While single people may flock
to HBO’s “Sex and the City,” it
isn’t exactly a true Rembrandt of
single life. Young, attractive peo
ple with money live in a plush
Manhattan apartment and go out
with anyone and everyone with
no problem and then go to their
local luxury watering hole to dis
cuss their “problems.” It’s differ
ent everywhere.
In Columbia, you leave from
your cinder block cells to go to
Monterrey’s. In Clemson, you go
from your cinder block cells to go
to the hay fields. It’s all relative
anyway.
Upon becoming single yet
again, your friends will tell you
“there are other fish in the sea.”
Well, that may be true, but on the
other hand, most of those other
“fish” have too many fishlike
characteristics to precipitate a
date in the first place. This
leaves most single people more
frustrated than Gary Busey after
last call.
Coming home after a date is al
ways fun, too. “I think it’s going
to work out,” someone will say.
And of course the cynical, pes
simistic friend will be there to re
mind you that: “No relationship
you’ve ever had has ever worked
out. That’s why you’re single. If it
works out, then it’s called mar
riage.” Ah, where would we be
without our friends?
But maybe it’s just me.
Bristow is a fourth-year
advertising student.