The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, April 12, 2006, Page 14, Image 14
VIEWPOINTS
C AMEGOGK
EDITORIAL BOARD
Editor
STEVEN VAN HAREN
News Editor
JACKIE ALEXANDER
Assistant News Editor
JOSHUA RABON
The Mix Editor
ALEXIS ARNONE
Design Director
chas McCarthy
Sports Editor
STEPHEN FASTENAU
Viewpoints Editor
BRINDY MCNAIR
Assistant Viewpoints Editor
AARON BRAZIER
IN OUR OPINION
Year-round donation
key to ending shortages
For some in the grips of disease or on the brink of
death, sijnply living life is a challenge. But for most
of us, giving life can be the easiest part of our hectic
schedules.
It’s Donate Life Week at USC, and with a program
aimed at getting your blood and bones and organs,
the chance to save lives has never been more readily
at your fingertips.
But while this week makes donating life more
accessible, inconvenience should not be a consideration
in the business of helping people survive when it’s
so easy to donate year
You don’t need a
sign-up fair to help
battle shortages
of organs, tissues,
blood and marrow.
round.
Monday’s organ
donation sign-up session
on Greene Street showed
how easy it is to get
involved, while also
dispelling some common
myths about becoming
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family, print the card online and put it in your wallet.
But you don’t need a sign-up fair to help battle
shortages of organs, tissues, blood and bone marrow.
The Red Cross Bloodmobile is almost always idling
in front of the Russell House, giving students plenty
of chances to save up to three people’s lives with one
unit of blood. Otherwise, the Red Cross’ Midlands
headquarters is right down Bull Street and is open
daily.
The Sweet Caroline Bone Marrow Drive for two
years has provided an easy, fairly quick way to sign up
with the National Marrow Donor Program, but with
only about 8 percent of registered donors going on to
donate, joining the registry ups the odds of patients
finding marrow matches. Visit www.marrow.org and
get started any time.
Students shouldn’t wait to donate life only once a
year in the fall when the Carolina-Clemson blood
drive gives them bragging rights. The competition to
survive is a constant race, ana people need help every
second of every day to keep running.
IT'S YOUR RIGHT
Voice your opinion on message
boards at umnv.dailygamecock.com
or send letters to the editor at
gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu
CORRECTIONS
In Tuesday’s News, “Without coach, USC debate team
suspended for year” should have been attributed to Jess
Davis.
The Gamecock regrets the error.
If you see an error in today’s paper, we want to know
about it. E-mail us at gamecockopinions@gwm.sc.edu
ABOUT THE GAMECOCK
Editor
STEVEN VAN HAREN
Design Director
chas McCarthy
Copy Desk Chief
AARON KIDD
News Editor
JACKIE ALEXANDER
Assistant News Editor
JOSHUA RABON
Viewpoints Editor
BRINDY McNAIR
Assistant Viewpoints Editor
AARON BRAZIER
The Mix Editor
ALEXIS ARNONE
Assistant Mix Editor
KRISTEN TRUESDALE
Sports Editor
STEPHEN FASTENAU
Assistant Sports Editor
ALEX RILEY
Photo Editor
NICK ESARES
A ___ CJ:._
KATY BLALOCK
Public Relations Director
ROSE GREENE
Page Designers
MIKE CONWAY, KATE
FENWICK, MEGAN SINCLAIR
StaJfWriters
AJ. BEMBRY, TOM
BENNING, JESS DAVIS,
TIM McMANUS, MARJORIE
RIDDLE, GINA VASSELLI
Copy Editors
CAROLINE DESANCTIS,
BETHANY NICHOLS,
ELIZABETH PARHAM,
JAMISON TINSLEY, KRYSTAL
WEBBER, LIZ WHITE
CONTACT INFORMATION
Offices located on the thirdfloor of the Russell House
Editor's office hours are from 2-3 pm. on Tuesdays and Thursdays
Editor. gamecockeditorQgurm.sc.edu
News: gamecocknewsQgwm.sc.edu
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Sports: gamecocksportsQgwm.sc.edu
Public Affairs: gamecockPRQyahoo.com
Online: www.dailygamecock.com
Newsroom: 777-7726 ; Sports: 777-7182
Editor’s Office: 777-3914
Fa*- 777-04X7
STUDENT MEDIA
Director
SCOn LINDENBERG
Faculty Adviser
ERIK COLLINS
Business Manager
CAROLYN GRIFFIN
Advertising Manager
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Classifieds Manager
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Production Manager
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Advertising
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EVANS, MARY RACHEL
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Creative Services
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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 o/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
purchasedfor $1 each from the
Department of Student Media.
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Courtesy KRT Campus
K-I-S-S-I-N-G keeps inner-youth singing
Forget adult sex mess,
remember butterflies
of early romantic life
During a recent
gathering, a very
opinionated friend decided
to announce how much she
missed making out. This
roused up an intriguing
conversation among
couples and singles.
Remember those days,
probably back in high
school or at the beginning,
awkward stages of a
relationship, when kissing
was the only physical
contact you had?
We’re pretty quick at
recalling our first kiss
as it becomes a part of
our rite of passage into
the early stages of adult
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that years have passed and
experience has crossed our
horizons, we’ve forgotten
that earliest stage of
romance — the kiss.
Have you ever just kissed
someone for hours, maybe
until 5 a.m. when the sun is
coming up and it feels like
there is no one else in the
world? Remember when
kissing wasn’t just foreplay
to other activities?
We’ve
forgotten the
most basic
element
of passion.
Why would
[J2 we want
iiiuitp to kiss that
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year print
journalism get more
student comfortable
with our
sexuality and accept that
we now live in a sexual
environment, and for
some, a sexual relationship,
the small things drift
away, back into the middle
school days of holding
hands and sweaty palms
in the backseat of dad’s
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done that, and why would
we want to relive it? If
we’re old enough now to
be on our own, driving
to pick up our dates and
sharing much more that
an armrest, why would we
want to go back to that
elementary stage of k-i-s
s-i-n-g? After all it’s not
like I want to be 14 again.
But we can’t forget the
child within us. Sometimes
it feels nice to swing on
a swing set. Sometimes
it’s comforting to curl up
under a blanket and watch
“The Little Mermaid”
while eating cookie dough
with your best friends.
Just because we’re old
enough to stay up past
bedtime or break curfew
doesn’t mean we have to
forget how much fun it is
to be a kid.
Kissing can be better
than “all the way.” It can
be safer, more intimate
and ten times as fun. Just
because you have the adult
freedom to do something,
doesn’t mean you should.
Maybe the problem with
the ailing relationship is
the lack of fundamental
romantic stepping stones.
Sure. T’m annnved hv
teenagers today and would
give anything to never go
back to those awkward
years of super-emotional
trivialities, but I’m not
ready let go of youth.
Don’t you want to be
young and silly? Don’t
you want to forget birth
control and condoms?
Forget all that orgasm
talk, and let go of all the
sexual tension. Grab a
copy of “Beauty and the
Beast,” pucker up and
kiss growing up sayonara.
Mwah!
Baby America still building group identity
In immigration issues,
national personality
isn’t simple to define
Scotland was recently
dubbed the worst small
country to live in the
developed world.
The announcement
came as a shock to me.
The land of bar brawls,
impossible accents, bad
teeth and whisky breath
could not be the worst.
Sadly, according to the
BBC and other incredibly
honest sources, it is true,
based on health statistics.
The tiny island is going
down, half out of its
kilt with a broken set of
bagpipes in hand.
But the Scots refuse
to weep into their pint
glasses. They’ll tell you
that they invented the
modem world, their soccer
team will surely rise to
95th next year and cancer
is not that bad. They are
fierce nationalists. Self
loathing is pointless and
only leads to trouble.
What do we have in
common with the land
of liverspots and heather
moors? Nationalism.
Red, white and blue.
Apple pie
and teenage
pregnancy.
We’re
proud of
ourselves —
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Second-year
public °ur Place aS
relations leader in the
student free world,
America is
still a pup.
And like any puppy, we
don’t know our ass from a
hole in the ground.
The word on everyone’s
lips this week is
“immigration.” Nobody
seems to know what to do
with the millions of illegal
immigrant workers living
within our borders. We can
send them back, let them
stay or do a combination.
The politicians are raising
white flags.
What’s difficult about
this issue is that it does
not fall within party lines.
We can’t point the finger
at one party and look to
another for a solution.
We’ve got to clearly
understand our identity
before we boot anybody
from the exclusive
“American club.” We can’t
forget that our country
was built on the backs of
immigrants. For years,
pockets of our population
spoke their native tongue.
It wasn’t until recently that
we got pop music, wine
coolers, flavored air and
John Ashcroft. My parents
predate McDonald’s.
America is coming into
its own. We’re starting to
build a national identity.
This whole immigration
thing is like a big game of
Red Rover.
Just like the Scots aren’t
going drop their kilts and
run for the highlands upon
hearing the bad news, we
aren’t going to go around
and kick out every factory
worker and farm laborer
just because they don’t
have the right piece of
paper. We’re better than
that. The immigration
issue is tough. The
nationalistic feelings that
make us want to shut down
our borders should also
make us encourage the ebb
and flow of people moving
in and out of our country.
Immigrants back then
and immigrants now have
always played a critical
role in our economy, we
can’t forget that.
Winners & Sinners
The Department of ,
Children and Family I
'f Services visited Briney
* Spears’ home on
Saturday for a “routine”
investigation
Bauch and Lomb agreed
to stop shipment on its
ReNu Moisture Loc
solution after several
consumers developed a
severe eye infection.
When in need
of illegal aid\
foreigners can
look to Bush
Operative’s name leak,
illegal alien conflicts
based on similar lies
Like many Americans, I 0
get most of my news from
away messages on AOL
Instant Messenger. A friend
of mine’s away
message stated
how absurd it
is that illegal,
yes illegal,
aliens are
protesting for
TIIM rights.
IMIAI1US And ,at
Fifth-year flrst- Xt does
print seem pretty
journalism darn absurd
student that people
protest to be allowed to do f
something illegal, even if it
is supporting their family.
But in a country like
America, where people at
even the highest levels break
the law to get things done,
is it really that absurd?
For example, the
president and vice president
wanted to discredit a former
ambassador who criticized
the administration’s claim
that Iraq was seeking
nuclear material in
Africa. They did this by
declassifying the identity
of a covert CIA operative, *
so that Cheney’s chief of
staff, Scooter Libby, could
leak the name to journalists.
The operative happened to
be the ambassador’s wife.
Not only is this a crime,
but one that endangers a
federal agent’s life.
Further, lying to federal
agents is perjury, another
crime Libby has been
charged with.
And if our nation’s leader
is allowed to do illegal
things in his quest to make
his opponents look bad, .
shouldn’t immigrants be*
allowed to do the same in
their quest to feed their
family?
The answer is no.
There is a difference
between the illegal aliens’
crimes and the president’s
crimes. The illegal aliens
take jobs for lower wages
than Americans and thus,
steal jobs from Americans.
The Bush Administration’s
crimes, on the other hand,
are doing a very good job of
employing American federal
prosecutors for two years.
Bush further helped their
employment by encouraging
them to find the leakA
without telling them who
it was — obstructing the
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to justice, so to speak.
“If there is a leak out of
my administration, I want
to know who it is,” he said
after the operative’s name
was made public.
After the hearings revealed
the president knowingly
authorized the leak, he said,
“I wanted people to see the
truth and thought it made
sense for people to see the
truth.”
Mr. President, I see the^
truth and I salute you.
You do what you want to
do, and you do it while
encouraging, not hurting,
American employment.
So unless these illegal
aliens learn from the
president, get high
ranking jobs in the federal
government, become
involved in illegal activities
and obstruct the trial
process, they should leave
the U.S. and support their
families in whatever ways
are possible in the countrv_