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ONLINE POLL Do you think Michael Jackson is _ Q guilty? Let us know at Page V www.dailygamecock.com. Wednesday, April 20, 2005 Results posted Friday. AMECOCK " EDITORIAL BOARD EDITOR ASST. VIEWPOINTS EDITOR Michael LaForgia Patrick Augustine NEWS EDITOR SPORTS EDITOR Jon Turner Jonathan Hillyard VIEWPOINTS EDITOR DESIGN DIRECTOR Wes Wolfe Chas McCarthy THE MIX EDITOR COPY DESK CHIEF Jennifer Freeman Steven Van Haren IN OUR OPINION Bush shows open mind on Social Security stop The apparent open-mindedness President Bush showed when he spoke to S.C. legislators Monday at the State House is a step toward finding a viable solution to the Social Security problem. This professed willingness to consider outside sugges tions in confronting the issue couldn’t have come at a bet ter time. Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has been one of the most outspoken conservative critics of Bush’s privatiza tion plan, which has met resistance from members of both parties. President Bush’s While Bush said Monday apparent open- that Graham’s suggestion to mindedness signals raise the limit on taxable a step in the right income would harm the direction. economy, he seemed open to ideas from U.S. Sen. Jim DeMint and Gov. Mark Sanford. While they have each weighed in on Social Security, the state’s key leaders should incorporate their suggestions into one coherent argument before presenting them again in Washington — where a conservative White House is not likely to ignore a unified voice from the state that virtually guaranteed Bush the Republican nominaticn in 2000. Although Bush’s stop her is an obvious attempt to drum up support for his privatization plan in a largely conserva tive state, S.C. Republicans and Democrats alike should appreciate the president’s apparent willingness to consider outside suggestions in confronting Social Security. And while the president has been campaigning rigorously for his privatization plan, he must be careful not to ignore other important foreign and domestic matters such as Iraq and the rising cost of healthcare in the U.S., issues that — like Social Security — the White House can’t afford to set aside for later. IT’S YOUR RIGHT f 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 In Friday s “In Your Opinion,” Stephen Vanterpool should have been identified as a fifth-year computer science student. In a story Monday in Sports, an article about recent football player arrests should have read that 11 players have been arrested since January. The Gamecock regrets the errors. If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know. E-mail us at gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu. ABOUT THE GAMECOCK 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 THE 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 Nick Esares SPORTS PHOTO EDITOR Katie Kirkland PAGE DESIGNERS Jillian Garis, Staci I 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 l 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 * I INDENT MEDIA DIRECTOR Scott Linden berg 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 The Gamecock is the editorially independent student newspaper of the University of South Carolina. 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TO PLACE AN AD The Gamecock Advertising: 777-3888 1400GreeteSt. Classified: 777-1184 Columbia, S.C. 29208 Fax: 777-6482 -1 BUSH TURttfi our U FIRST PITCH CARTOON COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS Ciao from your good friend Curtis ■ I regret that I have but 1 column left, and so much left unmocked In the human experience, there are few phenomena that are both as joyously anticipated and as feared as the inevitability of conclusion. For some, today will mark the culmination of a long-awaited desire, while for others (the cool kids) it will mark a dark day for Wednesday Viewpoints columns. The hour has finally arrived for me to bid you all a fond adieu. There have been so many things left unsaid — so many topics not yet derided and mocked; but worst of all, so many thanks left “un you’ed." I would like to end my college career on a positive note with you, the esteemed reader, by expressing my thanks that have been so long overdue. Thank you, toolish mainstream college culture, for being my default target when I was too lazy and uncreative to come up with a topic to rant about. I appreciate you being a good sport while I railed against your clothes, haircuts and mildly amusing proclivity to pursue meaningful relationships while half-naked and waving a beer. For what it’s; worth, you kids were always more fun to hang out with. Thank you, USC Parking Services, for making the rest of the world seem like a better place. Without you to use as a point of reference for evil, I would have long ago lost faith in humanity. Yet now, whenever I look around and see your CURTIS absence’1 am CHOW truly grateful GnUW that the rest of FOURTH-YEAR the world ECONOMICS l „ « _ . - STUDENT n a s n t deteriorated to such a depraved, soulless abyss of despair. Speaking of despair, thank you, crazy soapbox Bible-thumping preacher who yells at us from the sidewalk. You perform a service for the campus by reminding us Christians exactly why it is that our worldview and philosophy are so scorned by the world today. It is encouraging for me to know that when people reject Christianity, it is usually because jerks like you and me misrepresent the Christ we profess, not because the Gospel itself is untenable. Thank you, Beezer’s delivery dude, for commuting through rain and snow to deliver delicious sandwiches- to hungry college students at all hours of the night. If it weren’t for you, I would have had to do the unthinkable — put down my video game controller and go to IHOP. Thank you, USC administration, for inspiring me to enhance my education through the pursuit of graduate studies. You’ve tightened the noose around the neck of liberal arts programs already plagued by understaffing with more projected budget cuts. Sure, professors and quality programs are nice, but so are frivolous construction projects and looking cool by keeping up with the new “neuroscience fad." Who needs philosophers and the academic ilk anyway? The dark ages weren’t so bad. By undermining the quality and credibility of our liberal arts program, I’m afraid my undergraduate degree just won’t cut it in the future. Thanks for offering an incentive to further my education. In conclusion and in all seriousness, I would like to thank The Gamecock readership. To those of you who have stopped me to say hello and introduce yourselves, I thank you for the encouragement and for the opportunity to relate to you beyond a black-and-white portrait accompanied by an indiscriminate rant. To those of you from whom I’ve drawn scorn and censure, I thank you for the parity you bring to light, and moreover for the bittersweet taste of humility that brings to consciousness unperceived sensitivities. IN YOUR OPINION DJ embarrasses self, patrons at local bar This past Saturday night, I was out with friends. We had a guest in from Long Island, and we were showing him Columbia nightlife. We headed over to Good Times, a bar/club down in Five Points where there was a nice-sized crowd. Suddenly we hear the DJ say, “How many of you are on your way to Iraq or just coming back? I can’t wait for you to bomb the hell out of some 7-Eleven owners.” Wow. Have we sunk so low? I’m not from South Carolina, so I can attest to the fact that in other pans of the country the Southern states have a reputation for being racist. Until Saturday I had not experienced anything quite so blatant. The statement was wrong and insulting on a number of levels. The truly prejudicial assumption that all 7-Eleven owners are of Iraqi dissent doesn’t even deserve a response. That’s just a lack of an education talking. Another problem is lumping an entire group of people together and blaming them for the actions of a few. If history has taught us anything, we know this is always an uninformed opinion. Do all whites want to be blamed for the actions of the KKK? Not to mention the fact that if this DJ was looking for someone to blame for Sept. 11, he was focusing on the wrong group of people. My father has been an active duty officer in the U.S. Army for more than 28 years. His office was hit during the attacks of Sept. 11, and he lost good friends that day. Last year he said something to me that I will never forget: “In history, you are judged not only by why you fought the war, but the manner in which you fought it.” Our troops are deployed, risking life and limb for a group of people who have long been oppressed. They are trying to do good work and earn the trust of the Iraqi people. How is that to be accomplished when our own citizens make Americans look like ethnocentric warmongers? The Saturday night DJ at Good Times is the type of person who gives Americans a bad name around the worfd. People like him embarrass us and contradict the message our troops are trying to send to the Iraqi people. So, if you’re eager for a drink and good music, I’m sure there are a number of bars in Five Points that will at least allow you the opportunity to leave at the end of ' the night respecting yourself and your country. Thanks to the DJ at Five Points, you saved me a couple of bucks on alcohol because our Long Island buddy wanted to leave as soon as you made your comment. APRIL BROWN Graduate student in the College of Mass Communications and Information Studies 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. i-1 WWW. dailygamecock .com Passionate debate lacks substantive sound bites ■ Bush Social Security proposal shrouded by American ignorance President Bush delivered his canned Social Security speech to the General Assembly on Monday, one of the 60 or so he’ll be making on his cross country tour to promote the legislation that will most likely shape his second term. I couldn’t watch the speech because I ADAM had to run an BEAM errand during my lunch break, PRINT but 1 caught JOURNALISM most of it on STUDENT , it, the radio. He didn’t say anything groundbreaking. 1 was more amused with his South Carolina cultural references to shagging and barbecue than I was with his rational for social security reform. While driving past the State House I saw a small group of protestors brandishing yellow signs railing against privatizing social security. I’m still trying to make up my mind about this issue, so 1 looked up some local reports of the speech to see what the other side was saying — which turned out to be a whole lot of nothing. One protestor’s rant was that Bush was “throwing away our future." Another simply said, “I’m suspicious of anything President Bush does." The pro-Bush camp wasn’t much better. The usual Bush lovers took their place opposite the protestors and sang his praises. One supporter said, “It’s a very important issue, especially for younger people." Another said, “I think it’s better to do something about it now." What’s missing from this debate is substance. Would somebody please say something, anything, that makes sense? It seems the only people saying anything about social security are politicians and lobbyists. _i_i__ __ ___ however, and comments will range from fake knowledge about the subject to outright indifference. It could be that the journalists getting these quotes are asking closed-ended questions or are cutting out the good quotes because of space issues. But I suspect it’s a general lack of knowledge about the big issues. I do realize, however, that to point the finger of ignorance is to have three fingers pointing back at me, and I accept that as fair criticism. I don’t know as much as I should about the issues facing this country because, frankly, I’ve been too lazy to read up on the subjects to form an educated opinion. f tlrit' tkic ic <1 democracy, and in a democracy all opinions, educated or not, are welcome and should be respected. I’m just trying to elevate the level of discussion — not just about social security but about life in general. I would venture to say that more than half the students at this university don’t know and don’t care how the USC administration is structured or how the Board of Trustees operates. I would also guess most students don’t have a clue about value-centered management and the impact it has had on this campus. The point is that these issues are important even if you don’t care about them. Imagine if, instead of fumbling around the question of social security, we could answer with authority how we feel and why we feel it. I don’t think reporters would know what to do with themselves. j WINNERS AND SINNERS JOSEPH RATZINGER German cardinal becomes j the successor to Pope John Paul 11 on the fourth ballot. Ratzinger chose to be called Pope Benedict XVI. APOLLO 13 ENGINEERS The men who devised j a way to keep the air breathable and the command module on track were honored in Houston on the 35th anniversary of their achievement. BUSH BUDGET The president’s new budget cuts a block grant, eliminating funding for low- and moderate-income communities that would be used to buy firetrucks and finance home repairs and small business loans. WENDY’S A severed finger that was found in chili may have been bitten off by a woman’s pet leopard. Say it ain’t so. v