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ONLINE POLL Should USC discontinue its relationship with food supplier Paffe 4 Sodexho? Go to __® , _ . . . www.dailygamecock.com to Monday, October 4, 2004 vote. Results posted on Friday. AMECOCK EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR Adam Beam DESIGN DIRECTOR David Stagg NEWS EDITOR Michael LaForgia THE MIX EDITOR Meg Moore COPY OESK CHIEF Gabrielle Sinclair VIEWPOINTS EDITOR Wes Wolfe SENIOR WRITER Kevin Fellner ASST. NEWS EDITOR Jon Turner IN OUR OPINION Real sparks to fly at VP showdown While Thursday night’s presidential debate allowed candi dates to take shots at each other directly for the first time this campaign season, look for the real sparks to fly during Tuesday night’s vice presidential debate. C.S. Lewis couldn’t dream up two characters that are as different as Sen. John Edwards and Vice President Dick Cheney. Edwards is young, charismatic (good-looking) and, especially for a southern senator, liberal. Meanwhile, Cheney is experienced (old), conserva tive — but not as conservative as President George W. Bush — and blunt. And viewers can expect a more aggressive debate, as the vice presidential candidates -* - —-— sibility to pander to voters as the candidates do. Just think of the Republicans in New York sending Zell Miller to the stage to say Kerry would defend America with “spit balls.” It’s that kind of philosophy of slash-and-burn attacks against the opposition that has been employed in past vice presidential debates and should be applied once again to the Cheney-Edwards clash in Cleveland. Because the vice presidential candidates don’t have as much pressure, they can take bigger risks. One of the exceptions to this rule, though, was in the 2000 vice presidential debate in which Cheney and Sen. Joe Lieberman participated in what was termed a very civil and friendly debate. Aside from entertainment, the debates also showcase two men who, if their ticket is elected, would have the tie-break ing vote in the U.S. Senate. Just a few years ago, this tie breaking vote gave the Republicans the majority in the Senate. When you have characters that are as different as Cheney and Edwards, that vote makes all the difference. Tuesday’s vice presidential debate should be a showcase for barbed attacks and rhetorical fireworks. IT’S YOUR RIGHT Exercise your right to voice your opinion Create message boards at www.dailygamecock.com or send letters to the editor to gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu GAMECOCK CORRECTIONS Qn Friday’s front page, the picture of the Young Democrats should have been credited to Nick Esares. The Gamecock regrets the error. If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. E-mail us at gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu. ABOUT THE GAMECOCK EDITOR Adam Beam DESIGN DIRECTOR David Stagg COPY DESK CHIEF Gabrielle Sinclair NEWS EDITOR Michael LaForgia ASST. NEWS EDITOR Jon Turner VIEWPOINTS EDITOR Wes Wolfe THE MIX EDITOR Meg Moore SPORTS EDITOR Jonathan Hillyard ASST. SPORTS EDITOR Daniel Kerr SENIOR WRITER Kevin Fellner PHOTO EDITOR Jason Steelman SPORTS PHOTO EDITOR Katie Kirkland PAGE DESIGNERS Erin Cline, Jennifer Logan, Chas McCarthy, Jessie Ann Nielsen, Staci Jordan COPY EDITORS Jennifer Freeman, Anna Huntley, Daniel Regensheit, Jason Reynolds, Jennifer Sitkowski, Shana Till, Steven Van Haren, Joey Wallace ONLINE EDITOR Brian Cope PUBLIC AFFAIRS Jane Fielden, Katie Miles CONTACT INFORMATION Offices on third floor of the Russell House. The Editor’s office hours are Monday and Wednesday from 3-5 p.m. Editor: gamecockeditor@gwm.sc.edu News: gamecocknews@gwm.sc.edu Viewpoints: gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu The Mix: gamecockfeatures@gwm.sc.edu Sports: gamecocksports@gwm.sc.edu Public Affairs: gamecockPR@yahoo.com Online.- www.dailygamecock.com Newsroom: 777-7726; Sports: 777-7182 Editor's Office: 777-3914 STUDENT MEDIA DIRECTOR Scott Lindenberg FACULTY ADVISER Erik Collins CREATIVE DIRECTOR Susan King BUSINESS MANAGER Carolyn Griffin ADVERTISING MANAGER Sarah Scarborough CLASSIFIED MANAGER Sherry F. Holmes PRODUCTION MANAGER Garen Cansler CREATIVE SERVICES Burke Lauderdale, Chelsea Felder, Laura Gough, Joseph Dannelly, Kristen Williams ADVERTISING STAFF Robert Carli, Breanna Evans, Ryan Gorman, Caroline Love, Jesfca Johnson, Katie Stephens 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 4 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 grom the Department 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 '•'Jk i/IH6MZs\ J' a,835 / J HtA^P Vr f /w>wn r 5T. w> 177 , /mount st. HeceNS U / renesAHetrt .{;" FffVr® ( ^ygurwiTJ- A-l KeRRV^Aypo/,5, iJl’tM V ToPA^Z/LlV TH£ 5A^-AC-—-,—p .ixnrcV '/t-^rrrrf f CARTOON COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS ■ • ' ■ > \ 4- * • ' ; Candidate attire crucial in debates ■ When TV is involved, how you look can determine how you do In the days since Thursday’s debate, it is likely you’ve heard more political analysis than you care to hear. I know that this student hasn’t felt lesser for having avoided the news circuits over the weekend. And so, I have decided to discuss my passion of politics without the customary dose of policy psychoanalysis by looking instead at the physical appearances of the candidates, something to which every reader can relate. Before you think me arrogant enough to assume that I’m an officer in the fashion police, let me know that beyond business formal, I am a wreck on my own. Fortunately, I can at least provide some insight into the debate dress of our candidates for tthe American presidency. I shall examine the candidates through contrasts so that you may judge for yourself. Cufflinks vs. Buttons. When it comes to the debate stage, candidates always wear the customary white dress shin. But the question arises, Should my cuffs be attached with a button or with a set of cufflinks? Senator Kerry likes the post-industrial look, wearing the button-included shirts. President Bush, however, prefers the formal look of the cufflink, which if left out would leave his French cuffs far too informal. Red vs. Blue. Red is always the power color. During Thursday’s debate, Kerry wore the red while Bush sported cornflower blue I or the color that has come to been called “Bush Blue." (Yes, it is such a color — I have a tie that was sold as “Bush Blue"). Why the Bush people didn’t choose to wear the red tie I don’t know. Perhaps the candidates came to some agreement that they would alternate. But when I look at ties, red awakens me and grabs my attention while blue prompts me to be more serious. But maybe I’m just weird. Tan vs. No Tan. This has been one of the most interesting campaign comparisons in terms of appearance. Kerry’s taken a lot of heat for his “tan”. I say “tan” because frankly, I didn’t even notice it. And my question is, Where is he getting it? Does he lay out in Boston at this time of the year? Or is it coming from campaign stops in California? Who knows? As for President Bush, he spent the day of the debate doing labor with Florida hurricane victims. So where’s his tan? Confusing stuff if you ask me. Tall vs. Short. It has been said voters prefer candidates with shorter RYAN HOLT SECOND-YEAR POLITICAL SCIENCE STUDENT names and candidates with light hair over candidates with dark hair. Both Kerry and Bush share these qualities. Where they differ, however, is with height: voters usually prefer tall candidates. Senator Kerry is a towering 6-feet-4-inches and President Bush is 5-feet-11-inches. But keep in mind, A1 Gore was 6-feet-1.5-inches when he lost to the current president. Thick vs. Thin. No, I’m not referring to the customary “thick skinned” reference commonly brought up during blistering campaign seasons — both these guys have it. I’m referring to hair. Of the candidates, John Kerry’s hair is the thicker of the two. There have been stories about his paying $2,000 for a hair appointment. Frankly, I don’t know how the guy keeps it so solid all the time. The President’s hair doesn’t have near the substance, although he’s not doing too badly for someone of his age. How appropriate that someone named Bush doesn’t have to deal with baldness. So now that you've heard from your political fashion expert, you can rest easily knowing that you found some interesting analysis about the recent debate that had nothing to do with the Iraqi War, health care, abortion or the economy. Hopefully my analysis won’t determine . how you vote, but it is nevertheless a needed rest from the political punditry of recent days. So dwell on this, and as you watch the next debate Friday, realize the candidates themselves can be just as entertaining as their messages. IN YOUR OPINION Huffman unable to understand humor My lener is in response to Emily Huffman’s letter on the repression of conservatives (“Conservative voice repressed by liberals,” Friday). My car is the one with the bumper sticker that says “Lick Bush and his Dick in 2004." Political humor is probably way beyond her comprehension. It’s very fitting that she is studying early childhood education, seeing how that is the level of intelligence of President Bush and about 90 percent of his party. I agree with Emily that Republicans do care about others — other millionaires. We might as well keep this holy war going to bring about the end of days, when (not if) North Korea (a country that hates our guts and is financially unstable) sells nuclear weapons to terrorists to use directly on us. My bet is on the Golden Gate Bridge, getting two birds with one stone (San Francisco and Oakland). I’ll break it down more clearly for you Republicans — no more Raiders or 49ers. Some of us find it appalling to see our country going down the toilet. Just visit Europe, Great Britain included, and ask them what their image of our country is. They’d say that we’re stupid, wasteful, lazy and arrogant. Examples: Styrofoam as far as the eye can see, foreign students doing better in classes with English as a second language and the notion we are the greatest nation in the world. With Hitler in charge of Germany, people didn’t think, “Oh, those poor Germans." They assumed the entire country was a bunch of racists. Much like Bush in charge, people don’t say those poor Americans. They assume we are just as stupid, if not stupider, than our leader. And honesdy, they aren’t that far off. JEFF BOYCE Fourth-year chemical engineering student Democrats the real culprit of attacks I do not have any problem with Kim Patrick’s opinion (“Voters have duty to elect good leaders,” Wednesday) that there have been accusations and maybe even character assassinations here and there during this election year. Her proposition that it was “chiefly and shamefully from the Republican side” was, however, on^J that I did not agree with. I am assuming that she is referring to the 527 groups as these assassins. So I did about five minutes of research on the Web. I found a story in the Detroit Free Press that listed the amount spent by the 527 groups as $165 million. Of that amount, the Democratic 527s spent $148 million, the Republican 527 groups spent the rest. The next problem I have with her column is the opinion that democracy demands we remove a politician that “has made serious errors of judgment.” What is she talking about? Following that logic, former President Clinton would not have made it out of his first year, much less his first term. Also, democracy demands nothing. It allows me to participate in choosing my leaders. It also allows me to stay home and let people like Ms. Patrick pick the leaders of the country. Then, after giving the litany of the anti-war movement, she ends by advancing the other side of the election, suggesting the choice is between the President’s evident carnage and re evaluation, flexibility and patience. Is it not possible that some might view this as a choice between the President’s strong, steady leadership? I am not sure I want a president who kneels to the United Nations and grovels for acceptance from old Europe. She writes that she is frustrated. Do not be frustrated, as the great diplomat and British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain once said, “There will be peace in our time.” STEVE ABBOTT Second-year criminal justice 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 gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu. Letters will be edited. Anonymous letters will not be published. Call the newsroom at 777 7726 for more information. America's politicians fail to show leadership m Voters ought to demand more of their elected officials I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: America is suffering from a lack of leadership by those in so-called leadership positions. We send men in dark suits and red ties to Washington with the hope they’ll make better decisions, even though we have the sinking suspicion they’ll disappoint, us at nearly every turn. After all, we want decision-makers that have insight that we lack, even though no such person exists in I — —fc PATRICK AUGUSTINE FOURTH-YEAR POLITICAL SCIENCE STUDENT this world. Sure, they have access to better research and might have more policy experience, but they still lack the ability to transcend the crippling bounds of human uncertainty. Where have all the Kennedys gone? Nowhere was this crisis in leadership more clear than in Thursday’s debate between Sen. John Kerry and President George W. Bush. Both candidates spent the 90-minute debate attacking the other’s record and arguing past decisions instead of articulating a future vision for America. Because we are a democracy guided in part by the people’s will, we want an executive with the ability to inspire the nation to become a better version of itself over four years. The apathy that is increasing in the electorate is a direct result of a lack of passionate visionaries at the reigns of government. America has for too long contented itself with taking baby steps toward its goals, and the internal conflict between where we want to be and where we find ourselves is manifested in our increasing individualism. While the Founding Fathers understood our country to be a community of dissidents committed to a better life free from intrusion but not responsibility, we have evolved into a loosely connected group of people more interested in their own desires instead of collective ability. So we end up with leaders who are arrogant enough to believe that we can change the global community without its help or assent, leaders who think that the United States is safest when we kill civilians instead of addressing the root causes of crime and terror. John Kerry has been to busy explaining why the Iraq war was a bad idea, something most of us already know, instead of telling us what he would do to help people inside our own borders who can’t pay their medical uuu. Our current president uses the attacks on New York as justification for all sons of ludicrous interventions around the world and on our civil rights. We’re choosing between two backward-looking men who will double-talk us into voting what they’ve either already done or failed to do. I think we are disillusioned with what our nation has become, and this sentiment is manifested in many aspects of our generation’s culture. It's why we listen to music that’s too loud and noisy, and why we love movies that depict human isolation like “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.” The world is a confusing place, and if Mr. Bush can’t tell us what’s going on in the world and make it orderly again, then why should we be able to? More tax cuts for the middle class and cheaper oil aren’t a vision for the future that’s any different from the one that’s gotten us in this mess. There’s a big difference between the ideologies of Sen. Kerry and Mr. Bush, so it’s still a wise thing to go out and vote on Nov. 2 — are you registered? However, we need to hold our officials to a higher standard if we are to get anything other than more of the same in future campaigns. COLLEGE QUOTE BOARD THE CHRONICLE k dumb University Thursday night President George W. Bush and Sen. John Kerry met in the :rstof three presidential debates. The topics, foreign policy and homeland securi ty, wefe especially pertinent — earlier in the day the United States and Iraqi forces launched a frfajor offensive at the insurgent stronghold of Samarra. Iraq and the war on terror dominated the 90-minute debate, in which Kerry firmly established his po sition on and presented consistent arguments for his presidential bi^ DAILY LOBO UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO Internet rumors have been flying furiously about how the Bush administration is planning to reinstate a military draft. An e-mail going around the University of Arizona states President Bush is trying to pass legislation to have a draft in June. It sounds scary, especially with all of the bad news coming out of Iraq. What all of x these rumors don't say is that the so-called “pending legislation" is over a year-and a-half old — and was introduced by Democrats. * • v STAFF REPORTS