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Friday, October 19, 2007 | The Red & Black
Juanita Cousins | Editor in Chibf
editor@randb.com
Matthew Grayson | Managing Editor
me@randb.com
JoAnn Anderson | Opinions Editor
opinions@randb.com
Opinion Meter
A wrap-up of the week’s ups and downs
Stand by your No. 1 football man
Mark Richt, we love your class,
integrity and sportsmanship. People
may hate on your game strategy J\
and bash you in the news, but we —f fy
stand behind you win or lose. In fact, jfc’
we have a little You Tube clip that
proves you are a man who holds
moral obligation above anything else.
Check out http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=GYistNC7BuU.
Gym Dogs coach plans to retire
The University community is shed
ding a tear for Suzanne Yoculan. As rf fr\
of spring 2009, she no longer will be ! \p>
leading the Gym Dogs to glory. Her \ r
leadership of the talented tumblers
has “vaulted” Georgia into the nation
al spotlight with eight national cham
pionships and 11 SEC championships.
Ms. Yoculan, you couldn’t have done
more to make Georgia Gym Dogs fans
proud.
A candidate with ‘truthiness’
Stephen Colbert, comedian and host
of Comedy Central’s “The Colbert
Report,” announced Tuesday his
intention to run as a presidential can- Jj
didate in the 2008 election. Although
this could be a clever ruse to get
Colbert fans excited and to mock the
campaign system, we still can’t wait
to see how this will unfold. What’s
next? Jon Stewart for VP and Carlos
Mencia for Secretary of State? Now
we might actually tune into C-SPAN.
Passions for fashion
Three University students have taken A
the initiative to start up their own sJL
fashion magazine. We think everyone r~J jfe)
should follow their example and write
seriously about subjects that interest
them. Here’s a couple to help get you
started: “Philosophical Epiphanies I
had Over Spring Break” and “Favorite
Beatle: Paul or John? Why?”
Field of pedestrian dreams
Enough with the Frogger. Baldwin
Street is a pedestrian nightmare and
an unnecessary one at that. University
administration and Athens-Clarke P*
County government should work \
together to turn Baldwin into the L__J
master plan’s latest success story.
Our architects worked wonders on
Herty Field and D.W. Brooks Mall.
Let’s give them anew green space to
work with.
Dog gone shame
In the past year, Michael Vick’s career
and reputation have gone down faster
than you can say “Ron Mexico.” This
summer the former-Atlanta Falcons ( "3
quarterback pled guilty to dog fight
ing charges. This month, he is being \)
sued by Royal Bank of Canada,
Wachovia and even a prison inmate.
It’s a dog gone shame. His career and
reputation are nearing six-feet under,
and we wonder if he’ll ever come back.
Quote of the week: “I am not ready to
announce yet even though it’s clear that the
voters are desperate for a white, male, middle
aged, Jesus-trumpeting alternative.”
Comedian Stephen Colbert, in his Oct.
14 guest column for The New York Times, on
whether or not he would run for president. He
later announced on Tuesday his intent to run
in the 2008 presidential election on his Comedy
Central show, “The Colbert Report.”
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Opinions
Use cunning, conserve water
In response to Chris
Chiego’s Oct. 16 col
umn, “Students too
apathetic for local prob
lems,” I, too, am outraged
at the way the students
at this school are not
responding to the water
shortage. Typical.
Although, it seems like
the conservation of water
is more of an inaction than
an action —as in, don’t
take a shower, don’t flush
the toilet so I’m not
sure how we could actual
ly see whether this is tak
ing place. But never mind
that.
I have accepted your
challenge, Mr. Chiego, and
thought up some really
great ways to use our aca
demic acumen to actively
fight the water shortage.
Attention all you lazy
chemistry majors: I was
told by a professor that
water is made up of two
very common elements
hydrogen and oxygen.
So how about figuring
out a way to fuse these
two elements together
and create some water? I
understand hydrogen and
oxygen are common ele
ments found in the very
air we breathe. Get off
your couches and fire up
the Bunson burner. If we
can’t save our water, we’ll
just make some— easy.
If this plan doesn’t
work, however, I have
some great conservation
tips that are a bit less
“cheeky” than those of The
Red & Black. Let’s isolate
the major users of water in
our town and determine
on what grounds they
deserve to indulge.
First, shower takers: If
you really feel the need to
More security vital for Sanford
The bittersweet
smell of bour
bon mixed with
Coke surrounds you.
Profanities tangle with
cigarette smoke in the
air. And the occasional
fight breaks out, leav
ing brawlers bruised and
ashamed.
A crowded bar down
town? Or a packed stu
dent section in Sanford
Stadium?
It could be either,
and the similarities lead
to the conclusion that
things are getting out
of hand between the
hedges. Rotten behavior
by students at football
games is a problem for
the University, despite
attempts to deal with
misconduct.
Asa fifth-year senior
and Bulldog football
fanatic, I have seen some
of my peers at their worst
inside Sanford Stadium.
At the Western
Carolina game, I spotted
a student who smuggled
two large, glass bottles of
liquor into the stadium.
Tiny alcohol bottles lit
ter the student sections
particularly the top
row of the south end zone
section following each
home game.
During the Georgia
Tech game last season,
I witnessed a fistfight
that ended with one
starry-eyed student being
pinned and punched in
the head. Fellow students
had to restrain the win
ner. And I still have not
made it through a game
free from the odor of ciga
rette smoke or the chant
ing of the un-abbreviated
version of “BS" in reaction
mm
Michael Jones
▲
“ Get off your couches
and fire up the
Bunson burner. If we
can’t save our water,
we’ll just make
some - easy. ”
be clean you can buy some
hand sanitizer and kill 99.9
percent of the germs on
your entire body in five
seconds. Next.
Toilets and sinks:
Have some fun and pre
tend you’re camping out.
An orange shovel can be
purchased at Charbon’s
Outfitters. Go “number
one” in the Middle Oconee
River (every drop counts,
right?).
And sinks? Go brush
your teeth outside, or just
chew Orbit gum.
Plants: Did you know
that millions of gallons of
water are used by trees
and grass? If we chopped
down most of the trees
on North Campus, the lit
tle rain we get wouldn’t
be wasted on inanimate
objects.
Pets: Your dog is just
barely above a tree on the
water priority list. Make
him drink milk or orange
juice.
People who order water
Patrick Yawn
▲
to an unfavorable call by
referees.
, I sometimes let the
profanities fly when our
team is not playing well,
but must we reveal our
immaturity to national
television audiences by
chanting “BS” in unison?
The University Athletic
Association has specific
policies governing fan
behavior alcohol is pro
hibited, and so is smok
ing in all seating areas.
Event personnel are even
authorized to search fans
entering the stadium for
banned materials.
But we all know these
rules are not being strictly
enforced. Even mandatory
bag checks designed to
prevent the entry of alco
hol and weapons into the
stadium are performed
half-heartedly at best.
Yes, college students
are technically adults and
should be mature enough
to follow the rules, but the
truth is that some do not.
Absent our ability to act
with civility toward each
other, we need additional
security in the student
sections.
I never have seen more
than two stadium workers
Red&Black
An independent student newspaper the Cnwertity of Georgia community
ESTABLISHED 18S. INDEPENDENT Itll
at restaurants: These arro
gant gluttons should be
publicly ridiculed. Steal it
off their table and flush
the toilet with it. Accuse
them of treason.
Here are some active
ways to refill the reser
voirs:
1) Take jugs, jars, bot
tles, pots, pans, any
thing you have drive to
Florida and steal water
out of its sinks, lakes and
streams. Bring it back and
dump it into the river.
Simple.
2) Run your air con
ditioners, especially the
ones in Russell Hall, on
full-blast. Collect the con
densation in a dish under
the unit. You literally are
drawing water out of thin
air.
You may dismiss this
as a short-term solution.
Well then, the University
should cancel construc
tion of Tate II until further
notice and focus all con
struction on building solar
toilets. These are water
free and use the power of
the sun to dry out your ...
well, you get the idea.
So, there. One alumnus
has accepted the chal
lenge and single-handedly
thwarted the water “cri
sis.”
And if it doesn’t work,
God forbid, all you out-of
state, opinionated non-lo
cals will have to stay away
from Athens next semes
ter.
Traffic will decrease,
bars will thin out and I
won’t feel guilty every time
I take a shower.
Michael Jones is an
alumnus from Athens with
a degree in English.
placed in any one section
of Sanford Stadium.
The University should
station a minimum of five
security personnel in each
section dedicated to stu
dent seating.
Students then might
be deterred from engaging
in crazy or lewd behavior.
Those not deterred would
stand a much greater
chance of being caught.
Workers would be more
equipped to deal with
emergencies including
alcohol-related illnesses
induced by too much tail
gating - in the student
sections.
I realize opponents of
increased security will
argue the poor behavior
of students is not detri
mental enough to merit
hiring additional staff.
However, continuous
alcohol consumption does
not mix well with the
tightly-packed setting of
a student section. If tem
pers flare, the result could
be disastrous without
enough security.
If the University wants
to deter students from
drinking, smoking and
fighting —and ensure the
eryoyment of others is not
interfered with— it will
seriously consider increas
ing security at football
games.
After all, who really
wants to sit next to that
chain-smoking, confronta
tional “drunk, obnoxious
Georgia fan” who should
have stopped drinking
three quarters —and a
flask of Jim Beam ago?
Patrick Yawn is a
senior from Savannah
majoring in newspapers.
Mailbox
E-mail and letters from
our readers
Dogs don’t need
‘V 1 punishment
In response to Jason
Butt’s Oct. 18 column,
“Victory stomp gets
Dogs reprimanded,” who
is to say the Bulldogs
purposely stomped on
the Vanderbilt “V” last
Saturday after the last
second field goal made
by Brandon Coutu?
It is natural for a
place kicker to radiate
away from the pile of
offensive and defensive
players after a kick.
After a 40-yard field goal,
the kicker was met by
the team at the 40-yard
line. The team coinci
dentally celebrated on
the Vanderbilt “V.” While
our team may have foot
ball issues, don’t ever
question a team that
has been built with such
great character.
DANIEL FECKOURY
Senior, Newnan
Biology
Don’t be a fool,
wrap your tool
In response to
Richard Hamm’s Oct.
17 column, “Pharmacies
make safer sex awk
ward,” I disagree that
pharmacy procedures
are to blame for people
not practicing safer
sex. For people who
are too timid to buy
their contraceptives
there are other ways,
such as stopping by the
University Health Center
and picking up free con
doms. And condoms can
be bought online and
delivered discreetly.
There are no excuses
for not protecting your
self. So what if some
granny gives you a side
glance because you pick
up a pack of Trojans?
It’s better than having
to wait for the results of
an HIV test or trying to
decide what do about an
unplanned pregnancy.
MELVINA KEMP
Alumna, Atlanta
Political Science
Minorities top
Univ. priorities
It seems every other
week there is an article
in the paper about
minority students. If
it isn’t about the need
for more recruitment
and awareness, then it’s
about trying to keep
them in school.
Don’t get me wrong,
a diverse campus is
great, but why does the
minority dictate what
the majority is to do?
When can the University
get past race and view
everyone equally? An
associate director was
hired to “aid minority
academic success rates.”
Is this because minor
ity students take harder
classes than everyone
else? Why not just hire
someone to help all
students instead of just
minorities? A solution
for failing students is
to tell them to study
more or fail out, but
expanding an already
pointless Department
of Intercultural Affairs
sounds like a great idea,
too. I hope this new
director gets to the bot
tom of this because I’m
getting really worried.
ERIC SHEPHERD
Senior, Griffin
Poultry Science
Condom tips for
annoyed buyers
In response to Mr.
Hamm’s Oct. 17 column,
“Pharmacies make safer
sex awkward” —a bi
weekly 12-pack, really?
Dude, just hit up that
economy pack of 36 and
you’ll be set for a month
or so. Plus, go to Wal-
Mart where those rub
bers aren’t locked away,
and you’ll save some
cash so you can take
her out to a nicer place
before you work your
magic.
WILL VERDECCHIA
Senior, Augusta
Physics