The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 74, No. 25, Ed. 1, Friday, November 14, 1986 Page: 2 of 10
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Opinion
?"
ft. friday nov. 14 1986 page 2
temm
opinionated: - yfl
BiOf Up
o par
According to a national educa-
tion report headed by former
Education Secretary Terrel H.
Bell nothing short of a multi-
billion dollar state-by-state
reform can ensure the preserva-
tion of democracy for the 21st
century.
The 22-member National
Commission on the Role and
Future of State Colleges and
Universities called for a massive
effort to double the percentage of
college-educated adults by the
turn of the century as the only
means to avoid "national
suicide."
We agree that our educational
system public and private on
the elementary secondary and
college level needs to stretch
toward higher goals. But the
methods by which the report
wants to reach those goals are
difficult to swallow.
The report maps out one of
those goals: Thirty-five percent
of all adults should be college
graduates by the year 2001. With
a drop-out rate of between 25
and 50 percent among high
school students and 10 percent
of the population functionally il-
literate such a percentage among
all adults will be difficult to
reach.
But the report says you have
to begin somewhere. The some-
where is not cutting-federal stu-
dent aid programs which has
fallen 25 percent since President
Reaganjtoo&office KffiBTsaid
the rp2!he nSeci?urges
states to'keep tuition costs as low
-$$ possible in a step toward
t popping the "growth of the
American underclass." i
'ThijutiuMjays 8eRagan
Admiiiijuaiiii is 'uiiihiiikingly
abetting an act of national
suicide" by trying to cut aid for
college students.
Other than stopping -potential
cuts in funding forjgdjsrgradu-
ate universities therjpgrtdoes
not oiler answers to solving the
national problem tharjhe United
States obviously has.
William J. Bennett Bell's suc-
cessor as Secretary of Education
told the Associated Press spen-
ding on education has doubled in
the last 20 years and enrollment
has soared but "it's not clear
that quality has kept up with
quantity."
That's the answer the National
Commission needs to pursue
improving the quality of the
JjHucation system that is already
' ui place.
Texas writers few
Serious writers in Texas are rare
and precious.
- Good writers rarely stay; bad
pnes rarely last. For proof look at
North Texas State University's re-
cent Conference on the Literary
Arts. Several notable Texas writers
attended including Pulitzer
Prize-winning novelist Larry
McMurtry. But they arrived from
out of state. Among Texas' best-
known literary exiles is Larry L.
King a good ol' Callahan County
boy who left the Dust Bowl and
the oil patch for a posh cottage
within rock-throwing distance of
the Nation's Capitol. Although he
hasn't had a job in 24 years King
can .randtdoes swap lies with
such Eastern glitterati as Norman
Mailer William Styron and John
Kenneth .Galbraith. He has
publishedji lbooksaj:mnk-full of
magazinerand newTpaper articles
and at least three stage plays. In
short 4io a natural wonder: a
scriouswJuer. T
ForentRainment'"amuscment
and even enlightenment Larry
King is the best show since Mark
Twain's one-man gigs.
Listening to writer-raconteur
King is part rodeo-revival-vaudeville
and mostly roller-
coaster. His delivery is so fast and
he corners so quickly that you'd
better grip your seat and your
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Journapies take D.C.
Another breakthrough in jour-
nalism happened last Friday in
Washington D.C. Two Optimist
staff members were labeled
Yuppies at a Capitol Hill restau-
rant. Thomas Graham editor in
chief of the Optimist and
myself were the journalist invol-
"cd in the misunderstanding.
We 'were taking a break from
the rigorous schedule of
'meetings'at the Associated Col-
legiate Press convention. In a
small shotgun-style restuarant
two blocks from our hotel histo-
rjwas made.
The Frontier Restaurant was
very traditional; probably owned
by a family of Irish immigrants.
The head waitress a heavy-set
woman in her mid-50s wore
-olid -white and her hair was
pulled up in a bun fashion with
a net covering the bun.
An oriental waiter provided
the courtesy for our table. We
j-knew we were in the right place.
uur journalistic oacKgrouna
had taught us that an American
resutaurant true to democracy
and fine dining had to include a
bar with a fat man telling war
stories ar waitress dressed in
white saying "You gentlemen
aw'right today?" and an oriental
waiter or cook with the ability to
interpret your order.
A small group of people who
looked like hippie rejects oc-
cupied the table next to us.
Dressed for success Thomas and
Isatat a table for two anxious
to enjoy a cup of hot chocolate
on the cold wet Washington
sides. A gifted story-teller he's
also a monument to the triumph of
will over misfortune and blind ig-
norance. King earned the title of
serious writer by slaving for puny
newspaper wages driving himself
into poverty and despair to perfect
his craft and finding his true
self. Getting it right is his obses-
sion which might account for all
the twisting trails he's ridden and
all the dead-ends he's confronted.
King isn't praiseworthy for his in-
tellect (though his mind is as nim-
ble as a toreador); rather it's
because he persevered in quietly
heroic ways. His writing endures
and inspires. That's art.
Twenty years ago Harper's
magazine published King's first
big piece. "My hero LBJ" cap-
tivated readers with; its utterly
candid'-examination of the tower-
ing' tormented president. It didn't
flatter- but its coarseness was
beautiful powerful and honest.
King saw beyond Johnson's ar-
tificer No political analyst not
Doris Kearns David Halberstam
Billy Lee Brammer or Robert Caro
has peered more deeply into
Johnson's soul. During the next 10
years King's article followed me
to Europe the Pentagon and back
home to Texas.
Later he captured Clyde King
.his noble father in a loving por
I . : 1 CWWEH0OK.- )J jFH.
afternoon.
Under their breath but loud
enough to hear the Arfo
Gutherie types said "The Yup-
pies are here." The group
members immediatly turned
their heads to review our blue
bylines
byron harrell
blazers beige slacks brown pen-
nie loafers and perfect hair.
To intensify the agony they
began to laugh and drop names
like Ronald Reagan and Pierre
Cardin; cars -like BMW and
Mercedes. Words like suburbs
cocktails and computers crept in-
to their conversation.
Our first reaction was shock.
"Don't they know we represent
A 'everything" that's not Yuppish?"
TsaiduioThomas. "We've work-
ed so hard to make ourselves
non-biased and unrecognizable
how i did we slip and make
ourselves look like someone
else." ""
Immediately we began to feel
an identity crisis. Who were we?
Were we really representing a
populari trendy culture? Did we
no longer fit with the working
class man?
Had we moved from the radi-
cal.almost 'liberal thought of our
r earlierjournalistic days to a con-
formist never wear plaid and
stripes together attitude?
arid far
trait that he called simply "The
Old Man." Adversity humbled
Clyde but Larry roared across
West Texas like an angry cyclone.
The elder King must have
guest column
perry flippin
despaired atithcVPUflg1 hellion he
sired. In some waysLarry and his
father were strangers. Larry
couldn't tell "The OldjMan" how
much he loyed'fiimjjjtJflt he wrote
it m eloquentlyi'thaT even sod-
busting serfs on the Russian step-
pes (thanks to Radio Free Europe
broadcasts) couldVknow Clyde
King as a.neighborTand friend. In
the winter of 1980J Larry's play
"TJie Best XittMLWhorehoifse in
Texas" wasTHE hit!
Three years later I met Larry at
an editors' convention and in-
quired about hi -talented son. He
looked at the stranger with pro-
found sorrow in his big shaggy
face "Bradley has lost his way"
Larry muttered.. He. cursed at
youthful aimlessness and wasted
opportunities. Maybe he cursed
himself too. For an awkward mo
But we knew our reason for
choosing fashion expressionism.
We wanted to impress people
and have someone take us to
lunch.
Maybe the silent revolution
had ended. Now journalist could
come out of the wood work and
not be ashamed to say "I wear
styling mousse." The years of
' secrecy were over.
Beady-eyed news writers donn-
ing polyester were no longer
limited to driving rusted 1960s
model Plymouths.
People named Bufry and Skip-
py were "now allowed to experi-
ence the great 'sense of satifaction
as a journalist.
The two cultures could now
merge and call themselves
"Journapiesi" A new understan-
ding would-develop"'between two-sub-cultures
to bring about im-
proved relations between heads
of state and fashion designers.
Journalists would only be re-
quired to work five-day-weeks
and the 'Sunday news' would be
delivered through the Yuppies'
personal computers to their
homes. Paper boys would no
longer have to deliver newspa-
pers via bicycles. The Yuppies
would donate stationwagons to
the young upstarts to quicken
the throwing process.
We began to feel good about
our decision. Finally we had
made a contribution to society.
Generations of journalists and
Yuppies would feel the effects of
our cultural advancements and
remember the day two young
Texans discovered "Journapies."
between
ment the stranger regretted being
so blamed nosey; King probably
wished he'd said simply "Oh
Bradley's' jes' fine thanks." It
would have been a lie and King
doesn't lie except about trivialities.
In another time King might have
been the prophet Isaiah. He knows
first-hand about prodigals and the
futility of trying to spare a stub-
born son from life's follies. But
Clyde King must have taught
Larry something about redemption
and hope. And so unto all the
generations....
While writing for Harper's
Larry King found himself in one
of the literaryworld's most cele-
brated shoofoutsr As editor -Willie
Morris recruited writers of incom-
parable skill and range. His team
was the Dallas Cowboys of maga-
zine journalism. Circulation and
advertising revenue climbed as the
magazine's prestige soared. So did
operating costs. Even 'as Morris
and his scribes produced the na-
tion's most distinguished journal
the clash with the bookkeepers was
inevitable. .and bloody. The
writers clamored for quality. In the
end nobody won. The writers lost
a literary showcase; the money-
boys gave readers a. model of me-
diocrity. Now Harpers is the liter-
ary equivalent of the New Orleans
Saints.
Prairie Home to air twice
KACU-FM listener's who are busy Saturday afternoon and miss
the popular program "A Prairie Home Companion" can now listen
to the news from Lake Wobegon Sundayfrom 3j5jrwmi.
The-on-campus NationaKPub'ticN Ra&o''tationC Broadcasts "A
Prairie Home CompanIonrTIve.Samraay'Tfom.5?m. but will
begin re-broadcasting Saturday's program Sundayafternoon to ac-
comoaate listener swno miss mcoaiuraay airing. i jt
"Companion" features the news of asmalllficfionalized down-tM
eartn community in tne miawest; orougntjotije. usjeners oy mc
program's host Garrison Keor.w4SpSS
We encourage smdents;totunrlnTO.;8?M;Sajurday or Sun-
day afternoon sit back relax and enjoy KeiUorandms troup.
Reagan credibility on the! Jlrte
The credibility of President Reagan's foreign 'pdlicjy is in for
another drubbing if the administration .did indeed rtnake a deal to
ship military hardware to Irari as part of jtSJeflbHW.fie American
hostages being held in Lebanon. ' ' HT3SIiJZ
The reported deal with Iran is only the latest- crack in the
The United States has been severely critical of France for makinflp
ucau wiui terrorists. 11 is umonunate mar. wc now seem iu uc
stumbling down that same dangerous path.
San Antonio Express-News
Comrades against terrorism - -
Eight organizations controlled by Nicaragua's Sandinista regime
recently showed up at a Managua news conference' to denounce
"state terrorism." The host of the news conferencewas the "Peo-
ple's Bureau" embassy of the Arab world's leading practitioner of
state terrorism Libya. . i uw "j
The Sandinista groups expressed solidarity between Nicaragua
and Lihva and condemned what one called "U.S. government
preparations to continue its policy of state terrorism against thflflk m
Col. Moammar Gadhafi is indeed a suitable parfner jbr;;Com-
mandante Ortega's Nicaragua but not for the reasons either
would like the world to think. i n j
ValleMotningStar
New governor same problems
Gov. Mark White shouldered the responsibility for'tax increases
as the state's economy slipped and for education reforms that'irked
teacher groups. Bill Clements said he would scrub the budget to
prevent tax increase and Would"make'ddjustmehts"mthe education
hilk
While Texas will have a new
problems when the Legislature
nothing but tough choices.
-...After the cheers are gone the
' ' ! I!
Looking ahead in
The 1986 general election was
non-presidential bout. The change to aDemocratic U.S. Senate is
of major significance especially with" that party "holding" such a
commanding majority in th'e U.S. Hou's'e'of RepresematTves'.""'
President Reagan will be severely tested in pursuing his agenda as
the Democratic Party pursues its agenda aimed at regaining the
White House in 1988. ' b ' ' ' '
Having said that as nearly every post-election"analysls'has or
will it also is possible that in facing the problems of'this'coumry
which are major and many Congress and the administration will be
able to reach some mutual accommodation. The problems are not
those of political parties but of this country. Their resolution is the
challenge to both the administration and Coneress.. This . will 'hap
pen only if these two branches of
essanlv toeether. but at least in the
The El Paso Times
Mom's cooking more appealing
Scientists are constantly making us ask "What next?" -
In the laboratories where genes are being I spliced i "what next"
includes peaches that aren't grown on trees oysters that don't need
the ocean and chocolate cake with no calories.
Such foods would have all the taste texture and odor of the origi-
nals an expert told a recent conference in New York.
That may be what the future'holds. But the thought makes the
appeal of.home-grown tomatoes pears off the"backyandtreg and
chocolate cake Mom "made from scratch" all the more enticing. fl
Houston Chronicle
"W who are strong ought to bear
not to please ourselves. "Rom. 15:1.
thomas graham
' editor in cjief1
Uurunlthmiugtng editor Jt
candy holcombe editorial editor
bfflhobbs.Hdav edition editor "
hitteBopatrlck friday netn editor
kethleenwhltmlre friday copy editor
Optimist
byron harreutueulay edition editor aonnaaouiranana hot manger
cani league tuesdaynewi editor' )onmtth.adalef
IcariUaimith.tuiitday copy editor davecoie.adaalei -
kerry cole iportt editor acott jprut ad prod manager d
lonathan win auiitantiporta editor lamei bUUngiley ad prod manager
ina!kkegeMchtofphotoiWhes!(j4odd
The Optimist Is published lemUveekly' except durlngthei Dimmer vacations and
final examinations by the Journalism and Mass Communication Division of Abilene
Christian University Abilene Texas 79699 The Optimist is affiliated with the
Associated Collegiate Press the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association the Southwest
loumaUsm the Associated Press and the Rocky MftWW) OflegWf) 1W AasodaUon.
Editorial opinions appearing in the Optimist are views of the editorial .board and do
not necessarily reflect the official policy of the'ACU'odminfstietloa Signed Columns
represent the Individual views of the authors.. w
governor it will have the same t4p 4
meets in January. There will (M
realities settle-in -" w.. .j
- ..: niiuti ... Hou6c6nGhrbnicIe
Washington
more important than the usu;
government go forward not netf
same direction. " W
with the failing! of the weak and
i narles marler
' adviser
ndoniM tSk pbptogrephar
Icennrth pybm technical director
' daWii trfaar. tuaan ittfl" '
brettbcboiMurMtaS
iherrltitatler.advertUlng director
T
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The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 74, No. 25, Ed. 1, Friday, November 14, 1986, newspaper, November 14, 1986; Abilene, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101421/m1/2/?q=%22%22~1: accessed July 15, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.