Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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OTHE GAMECOCK ♦ Monday, March 24, 2003 5 r?TI7T)ATATm O online poll I—4 I /1 / I—J I III ^k I I Which No. 1 seed will advance 1 i I / I / I I III ^k| I 1 the farthest in the men’s A W V I \ W I I II I k I NCAA Tournament? B ™ w ■ B —S B ^ 1 B —/ www.dailygamecock.com. Results published on Fridays. IN OUR OPINION Endorsing to inform USC Every year, The Gamecock endorses the candidates we think are most qualified to lead USC’s Student Government. The purpose of staff editorials is to offer informed commentary on what’s going on in the news, and SG elections are important enough news that, as the university’s student-run newspaper, we have an obligation to offer our opinions. And our responsibility is even greater because we have a level of access to the candidates that most students don’t. The Gamecock has Of course, The Gamecock’s a responsibility to editorial board doesn’t just provide students as evaluate the candidates’ much information campaign posters and T as possible during Shirts — we also research SG elections, their voting records, SG auiiv 1UW vwtui UU1111V/WHV/ilO. TT V liltV/X » IV/ »V V/UUJ.1 candidate about their plans, backgrounds and stances on USC issues. The editorial board, which represents different areas of The Gamecock’s staff, is politically diverse, and every member has an equal vote. On Wednesday, The Gamecock will present our endorsements for SG president, vice president and treasurer. But students shouldn’t vote based on just one opinion. Visit the candidates’ Web site at www.sg.sc.edu/candidateview.htm. Go to the debate on Greene Street at 12:30 Tuesday afternoon. And on March 31 and April 1, log onto VIP and vote. We encourage students to vote for the candidates they think are best. Our endorsements are made to help students be as informed as possible when they choose who will lead the student body. College Quote Board DAILY TARGUM JEN KOSAKOWSKJ, RUTGERS UNIVERSITY “It has become increasingly obvious to me in recent weeks that there has been a surge in writings that vilify and invali date the anti-war activist. There has never been much tol erance for dissent in this na tion, but the proliferation and escalation of such rhetoric and its attempts to disengage anti war activists should be ques tioned.” DAILY MISSISSIPPIAN ALBERT SCOVELL, UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI “Saddam Hussein failed mis erably at diplomacy. We are go ing without the consent of the Security Council because, as Winston Churchill III put it, the French position is to pro tect Saddam Hussein from the United States and the United Kingdom because they are more concerned with their “oil for arms” contracts than they are with the moral obligation of those who can defend the de fenseless to do so.” GAMECOCK CORRECTIO.NS A headline about severe acute respiratory syndrome in Friday’s newspaper should have stated that the illness started in Hong Kong, not Japan. 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 The Gamecock is the editorially independent Faculty Adviser student newspaper of Erik Collins the University of South Carolina. It is Director of Student published Monday. Media Wednesday and Friday Ellen Parsons during the fall and spring semesters and Creative Director nine times during the Susan King summer, with the exception of university Business Manager holidays and exam Carolyn Griffin periods. Opinions expressed in The Advertising Manager Gamecock are those of Sarah Scarborough the editors or author and not those of the Classified Manager University of South Sherry F. Holmes Carolina. The Board of Student Publications Production Manager and Communications a ric Bergen is the publisher of The 0_.. _ Gamecock. The Derek Good" C®S Department: of Student Earl Jones. Media is the Sean O'Meara. newspaper s parent Anastasia Oppert organization. The p Gamecock is Advertising Staff In part by . . m . student-activity fees. John Blackshire, One free copy per Adam Bourgom, reader. Additional Bianca Knowles, copies may be Denise Levereaux, purchased for $1 each Jacqueline Rice. from the Department Stacey Todd of student Media. TO PLACE AN AD The Gamecock Advertising: 777-3888 1400 Greene St. Classified: 777-1184 Columbia, S.C. 29208 Fax: 777-6482 like (S&ict, ' VWy> »♦ »'« CARTOON BY HANNAH ANGSTADT/THE GAMECOCK News can be badfor your health SHAWN ROURK GAMECOCKVIEWPOINJS@HOTMAIL.COM Another new disease has been discovered. Like many Americans, for the past few days I have been glued to the TV watching brave (stupid) reporters run around the desert with the U.S. military.' In this day of modern jour nalism, we Americans are ex posed to a constant stream of in formation coming out of the re gion. It can be a lot for one per son to take in. Thankfully, I, as a good American, have taken the load off the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for a new virus that has swept through America. Many people today are suffering from Iraqius Informationus — the overload of war information. This list of symptoms will help you identi fy whether you suffer from this mind-altering disorder. You know you suffer from Iraqius Informationus when: ♦ Constant night-vision shots on television makes you flash back to old Atari games. ♦ You think Gen. Tommy Franks is Ian McKellen from a different angle. ♦ You realize the surrender leaflets the U.S. is dropping are actually the first pages of any French war strategy book. ♦ You don’t have to be drunk for the blur in the middle of the TV to look interesting. ♦ You’ve painted your dorm room desert camouflage. ♦ When you’ve included your suitemates in the “Axis of Evil.” ♦ When FOX News calls YOU for war analysis. ♦ You’ve actually reached the end of the Internet. ♦ You’ve helped your mom de sign pretty little T-shirts for her school, with pretty pink bunnies and Easter eggs for her first grade class. ♦ You’ve spent $250 on duct tape and Easy Mac, just in case. ♦ You’ve hacked your way into the Hubble Space Telescope’s computer system and are using it to see the exact mo ment any Iraqi soldier pees him self when he sees coalition forces coming. ♦ You start searching for Bahgdad on Mapquest.com and, after two hours of searching, re alize that it’s spelled wrong. ♦ You actually contemplate watching the Oscars, just to get a break from the action. ♦ FOX starts airing commer cials for its newest reality-TV series, “Joe President,” in which Americans phone in each week and pick the new leader of Iraq. ♦ You’ve turned on the TV in the past week. ♦ You think it is a good idea to rename Iraq “Freedom Land” and put an amusement park in the desert. You later realize that’s not a good idea. ♦ You’ve figured out the offi cial Iraqi speed limit is 45 mph, the speed of the average tank. ♦ You’ve figured out if the new Saddam videos Iraq is re leasing are authentic, then Saddam must have hired the same plastic surgeon as Michael Jackson. In response to that comment, Jacko said, “That’s just mean.” ♦ You begin to wonder whether Ari Fleischer owns a bowling-ball cleaner to get his head so shiny and smooth. If you suffer from any of these illnesses, turn off your TV now. Go outside and do something. Your mind will'thank you. Rourk is afirst-year print journalism student. IN YOUR OPINION ugarette tax coma be put to good use The governor just an nounced support for raising the tobacco tax to 53 cents to pay our Medicaid bills. Raising the tax to 63 cents and devoting the extra dime to statewide nicotine dependen cy cessation and prevention is equitable, prudent, neighbor ly and loving. Seventy percent of S.C. nico tine smokers want to quit but can’t, and each year it costs 6,000 people their lives, each an average of 15.3 years early. We annually spend millions to treat those whose brain reward pathways are chemically mar ried to illegal drugs, but not one dime when the marriage is to nicotine. An over-the-counter nico tine replacement therapy meta-analysis published in the March edition of “Tobacco Control” found that 93 percent of nicotine-patch and gum study participants relapsed to smoking within six months. Do we want chemically cap tive taxpayers, or should we allow them to fund their own escape via effective local nico tine-recovery clinic programs that, at a minimum, increase their odds by 428 percent over OTC NRT? Are they worth saving, or should we simply tax them to death? JOHN R. POLITO SUMMERVILLE New dining options offer great cuisine College is p time when young people have new experiences to expand their minds and broad en their horizons. This is true of many aspects of college life and is not limited to academia. That is why I’m so glad that USC is expanding its dining ser vices to offer students a wide va riety of eating options. Gone are the days when USC students were forced to survive on patty melts, tacos and pizza. With all the new eating op tions on campus, students can expose their palettes to a num ber of different cuisines. The recent additions to the Russell House are obvious examples. Moving the Sub Connection upstairs makes it much more accessible, and with the open ing of Cinnabon and Zia Juice, students have easy access to tasty pastries and healthy juices and smoothies. And now that USC has opened Pandini’s, students can even get great Italian food; the cal zones are excellent. And it’s all in the center of campus. The Grand Marketplace started the trend when it intro duced the “Wok Your Way” stir-fry line a few semesters ago, and continued by opening the pasta line as well. The other day, I noticed the GMP offering a delicious chocolaty spread called Nutella. I wish they would bring that stuff back. With the planned opening of new dining facilities on the second floor next fall, the Russell House will become a virtual mecca of eating op tions. As if the beautiful cam pus, warm climate, excellent business school and metro lo cation weren’t inviting enough, adding these great new dining options is sure to make USC one of the top schools in the nation. DAN SOPER FOURTH-YEAR PUBLIC-RELATIONS STUDENT Festival relocation was unnecessary This year, Columbia had two St. Patrick’s Day festivals. The traditional festival was told it could no longer continue in its old location and still give the profits to charity. So the festival, and ev erything that made it so popular, relocated to the Capital City Stadium. There was another festival us ing the blueprint created by the traditional festival and located in the same old area. But its profits, if there were any after the profes sional staff took its salaries, will go to planting trees down the mid dle of Harden Street. If you chose to pay $7 to go to the same bar you go to every weekend for free and then see the same homeless guy bumming beers from you, I hope you got a chance to enjoy the Oprah storytelling for kids and the Marine Corps re cruiters yelling at you to do more chin-ups. oust a iew quiCK comparisons between the Charity Festival in Capital City Stadium and the other one: more than 2,000 free parking spaces or 200 spaces for $5 each; seating for six on bus-stop benches . or 6,000 stadium seats; supporting 16 charities or supporting 16 trees; Friday night before watching the Mascot hockey game or the Friday night before watching a masked man lift your buddy’s wallet. JOHN CLAYTON FOURTH-YEAR HISTORY 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. Submissions are limited to two per person per semester. Call the newsroom at 777-7726 for more information. Reform needed » • in state’s system BEN EDWARDS GAMECOCKVIEWPOINTS@HOTMAIL.COM * More power should be given to the governor. Determining whom to hold ac countable for South Carolina’s problems is difficult because of the essentially fragmented nature of South Carolina’s executive branch. In American government, three distinct branches serve to check and moderate each other. The ex ecutive, legislative and judicial branches of government function with enough interplay to prevent one branch from becoming over ly powerful and enough indepen dence to act and resolve concerns. Sadly, South Carolina’s execu tive branch struggles to function because of pressures from other government branches and a vast power diffusion within the exec utive branch that relegates the governor, at times, to no more than a figurehead in handling matters that would apparently be under his discretion. For example, the governor must share power with eight other officials elected in statewide races. The governor cannot remove or replace these officials when they fail to perform adequately. There is a danger that inde- ■ pendent officials within the exec utive branch might play politics io me detriment oi soum Carolinians. For example, Inez Tenenbaum, the superintendent of education, is a Democrat, and would likely benefit from mis takes made by Republican Gov. Mark Sanford. Not to argue that Tenenbaum would play politics with education in South Carolina; rather, the importance of having accountability and unity within the executive branch of govern ment must be stressed. Such situations would never arise if South Carolina’s govern ment were fundamentally differ ent. The checks between branches of government are sufficient to pre vent the governor’s office from hav ing too much power. Further ham stringing the executive branch by splitting it to the point where it cannot act effectively only serves to destroy accountability and ham per the ability of the governor’s of fice to make significant changes for the benefit of the populace. If that were not enough, the state’s chief executive cannot con trol the other members of the ex ecutive branch. South Carolina’s Legislature has abrogated some of the executive functions with inde pendent boards and commissions. As an example of this usurpa tion of executive authority, the State Budget and Control Board consists of five officials with equal voting power. The governor gets one vote on this board, while the Legislative branch has two votes. Giving the legislature more voting ___XT_il • . il. . 1 1/v^yv^i. uicui uic guvci uui ±11 uic au ministration of the budget raises serious questions about the extent of responsibility the governor can bear for administrative problems. Making the governor more ac countable and increasing the effi ciency of the executive branch will take two key steps. First, the leg islative branch must return the ad ministrative authority that belongs rightfully to the executive branch. Getting rid of the boards and com missions that often muddle the de cision-making process will stream line the administration of state gov ernment. Secondly, the governor, with the approval of the Senate, should appoint positions so that the executive branch could speak with one voice. Fragmented authority slows administration and need lessly complicates governing the state. Essentially, we have too many cooks in the kitchen. Edwards is a fourth-year philosophy student.