The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, September 19, 2005, Page 4, Image 4
VIEWPOINTS_w._
AMECOCK
EDITORIAL BOARD
Editor Sports Editor
MICHAEL LaFORGIA * JONATHAN HILLYARD
News Editor Viewpoints Editor
' STEPHEN FASTENAU BRINDY McNAIR
Asst. News Editor Copy Desk Chief
1 JUSTIN CHAPURA STEVEN VAN HAREN
The Mix Editor Design Director
ALEXIS ARNONE CHAS MCCARTHY
*
IN OUR OPINION
Despite longer lines,
seating policy for best
Students should be patient while stadium employees check
tickets on game days this season.
When the athletics department last weekend implemented
the new system, which requires students to sit in the sections
assigned to the tickets they hold, it had the students’ best inter
ests at heart.
In the past, ticket employees didn’t scrutinize seat numbers;
they only required that students had tickets in hand.
As a result, students and non-students alike would pour into
the student sections, making for an exciting atmosphere — but
not much elbow room.
More serious were the restrictions this overcrowding posed to
those who might find themselves in need of medical attention
during games, as emergency workers would be hard pressed to
Afiy USC grdd will trac^ d°wn an ailing individual
tell you that in the rowdy throng
a Certain energy And let’s face it: Who hasn’t
emanates from the been splashed by some anony
student section. mous liquid or shoved by an
unruly fan while rooting for the
Gamecocks on a Saturday?
Fewer fans packed into one place would certainly make
watching the game more comfortable.
Only one lamentable point accompanies a more orderly situa
tion in the student section.
The added comfort comes at the cost of some of the
dynamism, the raw energy that comes from pitching together all
. the most die-hard Gamecock fans, 18- and 48-year-olds alike, to
beat the bleachers and scream their lungs out as one.
Any USC grad will tell you that a certain energy emanates
from the student section that fans can’t find anywhere else in
the stadium.
While the new ticket-checking system ultimately benefits stu
dents, we hope that, when our time is done at USC, we’ll be
able to score some student tickets from our undergrad buddies,
slip past the security guards with our old IDs and take a seat.
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Catchy war slogan just doesnt cut mustard
‘Support our troops’
ambiguous, offers little
comfort during Iraq war
Last week in The Gamecock,
I read a column that
mentioned the term “support
our troops.” This column came
to the conclusion that it is
impossible to “support our
troops” and not agree with one
particular war they’re fighting.
I thought the issue was settled
once and for all, but shortly
after finishing the article I
heard the phrase “support our
troops, bring them home.”
I spat out my coffee, fell out
my chair and nearly went into a
state of shock. It was all very
unsettling.
So I decided to put on my
monocle and get to the bottom
of this mystery.
Then I thought about the
verb “support.” One form of
support is providing money —
financial support. I myself pay
a small part of their 'salaries
with every taxed-hour I work at
a local bakery. “Support our
troops, pay taxes.” That’s not a
bad slogan.
Now, I don’t want to sound
like a hippie or anything, but
perhaps with the phrase
“support our troops, bring
them home,” they’re on to
something. If troops were
home rather than fighting
overseas, they’d
be a lot less
likely to get be
killed or injured.
Life support, so
to speak.
71 Country
fncmillllis legend Toby Keith
is unquestionably
Fifth-year .
print a stron8 advocate
journalism of the support
student our troops”
movement.
Hardly a day goes by that he
doesn’t sing about how sticking
a boot in somebody’s ass is the
American way or how an
American soldier will always do
what’s right when liberty’s in
jeopardy.
These, or at least the latter,
are very nice thoughts. And
making it known in an
extremely loud way that you
agree with what the troops are
doing is a form of support, so
“support our troops, be their
cheerleaders.”
Two, four, six, eight, who do
we incinerate? Insurgents!
Watch out Toby.
Another way to support our
troops is to enlist in the Army
and go over to Iraq and fight
alongside them. Why, come to
think of it, one could even say
that if you think a cause is
worth our troops risking their
lives, you could almost be
expected to do the same, as
long as you’re in the right
physical and mental condition
to do so, of course. “Support
our troops. Support what
they’re doing. Go enlist.”
But then again, everyone like
cookies — including our troops,
I’m sure. Suppose I cooked up a
big batch of cookies and
brought it to our boys in Iraq.
Now suppose, hypothetically,
that I did not support them
killing and dying in Iraq. I guess
I’d still be supporting them in
the most delicious way possible.
“Support our troops, bake them
cookies.”
But clearly the term “support
our troops” must be more
substantial — something more
definite. How could something
so shallow be so popular?
Perhaps its lack of substance
is what makes it so popular.
Perhaps because “support”
could mean about a gazillion
things, people are more willing
to say “Support our troops”
than a phrase of substance. It’s
easier and less controversial.
Furthermore, when a person
says “support our troops” to his
adversary — someone who
disagrees with him on an issue
regarding troops — it implies
that his adversary doesn’t
support our troops. And
imagine what would we think
of someone who actually said,
“I don’t support our troops.”
Technology Services — the bug in my system
As price of tuition rises,
students deserve more
than sub-par support
Recently there has been a lot
of complaining about parking
on campus. There has also been
lots of complaining about how
complaining about parking is
dumb, and that is true. There
are so many other facets of
USC that need our criticism.
Take University Technology
Services (and I use that term
loosely) for example.
After receiving my 50th pop
up promising a free PlayStation
or Hawaiian vacation if I send
in my credit card and Social
Security number, I figured it
was about time I got my
computer checked out. This
was also around the same time
I started to get about 100
spam e-mails on my school
account every day. And while it
might be good for my ego to
think that “MegluvXOXO”
and all her sorority sisters really
do want me to check out their
24-7 web-cam, sifting through
all those invites every day gets
kind of annoying.
So imagine my surprise
when I went to computer
services the first day of the
semester, only to find out they
were closed until after Labor
Day. “No, were really closed
until after Labor Day,” the
secretary repeated. She used her
polite-but-exasperated voice.
You know, the one that school
officials use when they think
www. daily &
they are dealing
with a dumb,
punk kid.
“So there’s
absolutely no
one at the
mrnn university who
noiiic can me
a computer
Third-year problem?” I
Pnnt asked. I used my
journalism ’
student polite-but
exasperated voice.
You know, the one that you use
when you’re asking the cop
what you did, when you really
want to be screaming “my taxes
pay your salary” and “whats
your badge number?”
Let’s see, 25,000 students,
including the largest freshman
class ever, will soon return to
school with classes revolving
around Blackboard, and the
official school entity that deals
with computers is closed the first
month of the semester. That
makes about as much sense as
say, oh, I don’t know, Budweiser
shutting down production
during football season.
Well, needless to say, I left
the office pretty salty, but with
numerous reassurances they
were only closed temporarily to
“re-tool and re- organize.” I
consoled myself by thinking
that, whatever they’re doing, it
can only mean better service
for me later on. But if that
turned out to be the case, you
wouldn’t be reading this
column, now would you?
It turns out the “new”
imecock.com
computer services are a little
more interactive. Now, instead
of dropping off your computer
to be fixed, you sign up for a
time when you and a
technician will sit down and
they will, and I quote, “help
you fix it.” I’m sorry, but if I
call a plumber to unclog my
drain, and upon showing up he
hands me the tools and says,
“let’s get to work,” we’re going
to have problems.
It’s funny — I don’t
remember signing up for any
computer classes this semester,
but I do remember a fairly
hefty technology fee always
showing up on my bill. Now,
I’m a print journalism major,
which means I’ve spent the
better part of three years
avoiding math of all kinds, but
even I can multiply. With
25,000 students paying their
technology fees, it sounds like
the university might have a
little bit of money to focus on
computer problems.
I’m sure there is some kind
of official university
explanation for this. And much
like their explanation of the
new “four-strikes” drug policy,
I’m sure it is completely
inadequate.
The point is, with higher
fees and increased tuition, we
should be getting more
services.
Heck, my computer is still
messed up. I will setde for the
same old services at this point.
Don’tforget
Lou Holtz’s
contributions
to Carolina
Despite NCAA trouble,
2 Outback Bowl wins
warrant USC’s respect
Now that football season
has once again hit this great
college town,
many are
starting to
reflect on past
seasons —
wins, losses
and yes, even
niCOLE c°aches' .
niinnc Remember
BUKIIb Lou Holtz?
Fourth-year Yeah, he was the
suy yho was
here last year.
But why has no one bothered
to mention him? Last I heard
he was taking the blame for
everything that went wrong
with the NCAA, and that was
It.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m
sure Lou, as well as many
others, knew what was going
on, but why are we going to
throw Lou to the wolves and
not think twice about it?
Everyone has already
forgotten what Lou did for
USC and is all Spurrier-fied
now. Lou took USC from
having one of the longest
losing streaks in college
football history to being an
actual competitor with other
SEC colleges.
Now, because of several
NCAA violations and several
players going astray, we forget
that, yes, Lou Holtz was one
of the better USC football
coaches.
With all the problems that
have arose because of these
violations, players losing
scholarships and others
gaining them, I really believe
we need to take a minute and
reflect on the greats of our
university and its football
roaches.
Don’t get me wrong — I’m
happy USC was able to get a
nationally ranked coach to
take the Gamecocks under his
wings, but don’t forget many
years ago we were all so
excited about what Lou could
do for us. I am more than
willing to give Spurrier a
chance just like everyone else,
but I just don’t understand
why we would shaft one great
coach without so much as a
goodbye.
In December, all I started
hearing was how much people
wanted Holtz gone, how bad
of a coach he was, blah, blah,
blah. Lest we forget the 2001
2002 season when we were 9
3, finishing 13th in the
national polls? I also thought
we won the Outback Bowl,
twice. It might not have been
for a national title, but hey,
that was much better than
what we had before.
Fans are quick to call
Spurrier the greatest
Gamecock coach of all time,
at least according to certain
newspaper polls. And that was
before the season got under
way. I am sure Steve Spurrier
will be a great USC coach.
Will he be the best? I’m not
going to say, because we’ve
only had two games so far, and
I really don’t want to jump the
gun. But what I do know is
that Holtz is one of the best,
and we as a university should
not be so quick to cut him out
of our memories just yet.
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