Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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] ONLINE POLL Do you believe that racism exists at Five Points bars and clubs? Let us know at www.dailygamecock.com. Results posted Friday. AMECOCK EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR Michael LaForgia NEWS EDITOR Jon Turner VIEWPOINTS EDITOR Wes Wolfe THE MIX EDITOR Jennifer Freeman ASST. VIEWPOINTS EDITOR Patrick Augustine SPORTS EDITOR Jonathan Hillyard DESIGN DIRECTOR Chas McCarthy COPY DESK CHIEF Steven Van Haren IN OUR OPINION Once again, we urge you to log on and vote The array of candidates in Monday and Tuesday’s online Student Government elections contributed to the highest-ever turnout in USC history and reinforces the need for students to vote again in the runoffs Thursday and Friday. Even if you did not vote in the initial election, you can still vote in the runoffs, held online at http://vip.sc.edu, for both president and treasurer. Elections officials report that 4,422 students turned out for the initial election. Despite the voter upsurge, this turnout represents only Students should cast their ballots in the runoff with a sense of the responsibility they carry. approximately one-fifth of stu dents on the Columbia campus who were able to vote. With a two-day period allot ted for the initial vote, and a clear winner only in the vice presidential race, this second chance to have an impact on who will lead the student body during the next year is a clari on call to action for students mired in apathy. Students whose first choices for SG president and treasurer have been elimi nated from the running should still make the effort to read up , on the issues and personalities behind the runoff and cast their vote accordingly between 9 a.m. Thursday and 5 p.m. Friday. Voting must not be motivated by the desire to see one’s friend ascend to power, but out of a sense of the responsibili ty students have to invest power in the most capable hands. Only one candidate The Gamecock endorsed is still in the running, but all of the remaining candidates are both pas sionate and committed to working hard for a better Carolina, which should assuage the fears of students who now do not know for whom they will cast a ballot at the end of the week. We commend the candidates for their civility to this point in the process, and urge students make voting a priority as classes end for the week. 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 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 Michael LaForgia DESIGN DIRECTOR Chas McCarthy COPY DESK CHIEF Steven Van Haren NEWS EDITOR Jon Turner ASST. NEWS EDITOR Kelly Cavanaugh VIEWPOINTS EDITOR Wes Wolfe TtfE MIX EDITOR Jennifer Freeman ASST. THE MIX EDITOR Carrie Givens SPORTS EDITOR Jonathan Hillyard ASST. SPORTS EDITOR Stephen Fastenau SENIOR WRITER Kevin Fellner • PHOTO EDITOR Jason Steelman SPORTS PHOTO EDITOR Katie Kirkland PAGE DESIGNERS Jillian Garis, Staci Jordan, Jessica Ann Nielsen, Megan Sinclair COPY EDITORS Jessica Foster, Brindy McNair, Daniel Regenscheit, Jason Reynolds, Katie Thompson, Shana Till ONLINE EDITOR Ryan Simmons PUBLIC AFFAIRS Jane Fielden, Katie Miles I CONTACT INFORMATION Offices on third floor of the Russell House. The Editor’s office hours are Monday and Wednesday from 1 to 3 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 ADVERTISING STAFF Robert Carli, Breanna Evans, Ryan Gorman,' Caroline Love, Katie Stephens, McKenzie Welsh -- I ne bamecocx is ine 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 TO PLACE AN AD The Gamecock Advertising: 777-3888 I 1400 Greene St. Classified: 777-1184 Columbia, S.C. 29208 Fax: 777-6482 BllfiUTf* $S£ CANSEQS STMHI5E AIIEOJWNS... DtEya**r’<m$ CARTOON COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS Evolution debate uses straw men ■ We have to discuss the issues with an open mind to both arguments If the “evolution vs. creationism” fight were to be manifested in a boxing ring, how do you think it would look? As the case presents itself in our culture, I’d imagine that in one corner, we’d have some iibermensch — young, bril liant, and fit for survival. In the other corner, we’d have a combination of the pope and Jim Bakker — a religious but deceitful man from days of yore. After an introduction of the fighters, Michael Buffer would shout his trademark “Let’s get ready to rumble,” and the fight would begin. Obermensch would make a precise calculation of his strikes, and in a series of deyastating blows, knock the ever loving crap out of Pope Bakker. The crowd goes wild, cheering for its cham pion. Thank you, Obermensch, for your victory over the wacko religious funda mentalists. So crushing is the defeat that only a few creationist fans in the audience no tice that with the finishing blow, Pope Bakker’s head was knocked off, revealing a straw man. Infuriated, they storm the ring and attack the iibermensch, pelt ing him with rocks and loaves of bread (it’s my imagination, and hence I re serve license to determine the projec tiles) only to discover that they have knocked the stuffing out of another straw man. Now both sides are in an uproar, because each of them was un fairly represent ed by straw man arguments. The fight has never been about “evolution vs. creationism.” The heart of the argument re Qjjpyjg volves around CHOW <fuest*on our origins as FOURTH-YEAR encompassed by STUDENT^ atheistic and theistic world views. As the de bate has drawn out over time, we rarely see the argu ment for what it is; rather, we are often presented with flawed arguments on both sides of the dichotomy. Mainstream “creation science” often times fails to live up to acceptable sci entific standards and methods of rea soning. Atheistic evolution fails to acknowl edge the presence of presupposed philosophies by which they must nec essarily interpret evidence to draw their conclusions. The result is the pelting of straw men on the opposing side. Neither side is able to correcdy identify the other given the assumptions from which they de rive their conclusions. An atheist can look at another hu man being and marvel at how time, matter and chance worked in concert to produce such an entity. A Christian can look at the same individual and marvel that they are “fearfully and won derfully made.” An atheistic evolution ist can look at the fossil record and assert “punctuated equilibrium.” A creationist can look at the same fossil record and assert each creature was crafted “after its own kind.” The evolutionist can ob serve homologous structures and assert “common ancestry.” The creationist can view the same homologous structure and assert “common designer.” The evo lutionist explains the unexplainable with time and chance. The creationist does the same with God. Each one draws conclusions based on his presupposi tions, and neither argument is more structurally valid than the other given the respective premises. Both conclusions of evolution as a naturalistic process and creation are based on the respective assumptions of atheism or theism. In our society, how ever, the latter of these assumptions is perceived as a stigma to “good science.” This attitude is clearly evidenced by the recent ruling in Cobb County, Ga., against stickers on textbooks instruct ing students to study, critically consid er and keep an open mind regarding evolution as a theory. In our emphatic protection of the separation of church and state, we closed the door to discussion of equally valid theories in favor of espousing a theory that is based on atheistic as sumptions — not facts. Why one as sumption over the other? The issue is far from resolved, and we should sub sequently be open to discussion and in tellectual exchange. Bored? Nothing a few pills can V cure ■ Don’t let a doctor make a decision that you can easily make Imagine this scenario: You’re sitting at a boring board meeting, surrounded by mindless drones of the corporate sys tem, trying to listen to the head drone talk about percentage points and profit margins. You get bored, and start tap ping your feet. Your mind drifts away to what you have to do later that day. Suddenly, the head drone asks you a question about profit margins! You don’t have an answer — you were daydream ing. Is it because your entire life consists of being a cog in the mindless machine that is corporate capitalism? Of course not. It’s because you have adult ADD, clinically known as Being Bored, Restless and Distracted, Usually During Situations that Call for Boredom, Restlessness and DistractionTM. But now, thanks to all the corporate drones at Eli Lilly and Company, not to mention the most dangerous drones of all, the Marketing-Prescription-Drugs Directly-to-the-General-Populace-Even Though-a-Doctor- Must-Prescribe-the Drugs-and-Self-Diagnosis-is-Far Beyond-Most-Americans drones, there’s prescription Strattera, the first non-stim ulant medication approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat ADD. Especially adult ADD. Yes folks, the answer to your boring, distracted life isn’t finding a hobby, watching less MTV or escap ing the stultify ing grasp of cor porate capital ism. It’s Strattera! With Strattera, you’ll never be bored GRAHAM at yyofk again. CULBERTSON After gvery FOURTH-YEAR workday, in ENGLISH which your pro STUDENT wmcn your pro ductivity will have skyrocket ed because of the elimination of unproductive activities like thinking for yourself and having an individual personality, you’ll go home and read an entire volume of Britannica cover-to-cover — without once being bored. Not even by the life of Rutherford B. Hayes! ADD is, of course, a real condition. People really have it, and it can be a real detriment to their lives. But you’d never guess that from watching Strattera com mercials, which are patently designed to scare you into the belief that you have ADD. Even scarier is a six-question screener (yes, a major diagnosis can of course be done online by answering six questions) on www.strattera.com. I took the test, and guess what — I have symp toms that “may be consistent with adult ADD” because I answered that I often have trouble wrapping up final details of a project, delay starting tasks that re quire lots of thought or organization, and fidget when I have to sit still for long periods of time. I thought all of those things were symptoms of being a college student, but now, thanks to www.strat tera.com, I realize I have a clinical con dition. I need Strattera! Remember, if Strattera is not in fact for you, there are a wide number of oth er prescription drugs advertised on TV, and you should go to your doctor and ask for them. If you have chronic heart burn, erectile dysfunction, Crohn’s dis ease, chronic allergies or simply want V10XXX cheep medds good low$$$$!#, remember not to tell your doctor your symptoms. Instead, enter his office hav ing already diagnosed yourself and cho sen the correct medication based on TV ads. It’s the best way. Side effects of reading this column include dry mouth, adult ADD and ex treme fidgeting. Use of this column not recommended during V-Day carnival or any other event centering on vagina col oring books, because exposure to ex treme stupidity often undermines use of reading skills. In fact, exposure to vagina coloring books, vagina balloons and the vagina game is not recommended for anyone. Side effects include loss of ap petite, retching and a dearth of respect for women’s studies students. Please do not consult your doctor before use of Vioxx, Strattera or vagina cookies. Please buy them online. Kill ugly Coliseum before it kills me m Monolith has no use except to discourage journalism students I went to Charleston the other day with a friend of mine from the Carolina Reporter, that other student newspaper no one knows about. nWe went to work on a story about the Cooper River Bridge Run, the third largest 10 kilometer race in the country. I wasn’t writing the story. I wasn’t ADAM reporting it, or BEAM taking pictures. 1 rode four hours PRINT listening to JOURNALISM Wilco and Norah STUDENT , «. . „ Jones to help take pictures of a bridge with the journalism school’s digital camera. I did it to get out of the Coliseum. It’s my prison. It’s a windowless, airless, creativity-less dungeon that sucks dry the minds of budding journalists. It’s no surprise that of the 20 or so people in this semester’s Carolina Reporter — which by the way is a semester-long class where print journalism seniors produce a weekly online newspaper — about three want to work as journalists when they graduate. It’s because sometime during their academic career of studying leads and sentence structures in the middle of a cinder-block cell fraught with power outages and dirty bathrooms, they J .L • l_ -L '_ Journalism demands inspiration. .* We’re trying to tell stories, good stories, about people and places and issues. We’re trying to learn about nut graphs and one-shots and news releases and shot-framing while we’re underground listening to the lights hum. I know most of you can come up with your own stories of classroom horror, such as the science students who had to evacuate their building one night last semester because of a strange odor that could maybe have been a lethal chemical spill. The Coliseum takes up prime real estate in the heart of Columbia that USC could use for the research campus. The journalism school is the Coliseum's life support. It’s time to unplug and let the Coliseum die. The university has been slowly killing it for years anyway. First, it took the Coliseum’s sign away and replaced it with an electronic billboard for the Colonial Center. The sign was on the corner of Blossom and Assembly streets, a good two blocks from the Colonial Center. USC officials had to remove the sign because it conflicted with city sign ordinances. What’s worse, the Coliseum isn’t allowed to compete with the Colonial Center for events. So the Colonial Center gets tlje circus while the Coliseum gets minor-league hockey. I know the Coliseum has a soft spot in the hearts of rich USC alumni, and it should. After all, most of them graduated from there and got drunk at Charlie Daniels concerts held ;here. 1 have my own special memories of the Coliseum, including its last official men’s basketball game. I sat on the front row of the student section with my dad and watched as the Gamecocks destroyed Ball State to go to the Final Four in New York. It was the NIT, but it was cool to me. I don’t love the Coliseum enough to make it some historical landmark so it can take up space in the middle of Columbia. The easy solution is to move the journalism school out of its misery. I know there’s the Inferno, but seeing how USC treated the Bombers, I’m not worried about a minor-league hockey team bullying Andrew Sorensen. It’s time for the journalism school to move to LeConte, or whatever building with windows is available, and to demolish the Coliseum. Maybe the explosion will take the Towers with it. I can only hope. NERS AND SINNERS RYAN HOLT The SG vice president-elect was the only executive office candidate to win 50 percent of the votes. KANGAROO POO An Australian company is turning the manure into paper. AARON RAWL USC pitcher named pitcher of the week by the SEC for his performance against tongwood. SYRIA U.S. recalls ambassador after Syria is implicated in the Lebanon bombing. CHRISTOPHER PITTMAN Chester County teen found guilty of murdering his grandparents. Pittman’s defense claimed he did it under the influence of Zoloft. CRYSTAL MAY CARVER Georgia woman, with one man’s he lp, kills her ex-husband, then decapitates,