The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 70, No. 8, Ed. 1 Friday, October 1, 1982 Page: 2 of 16
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Going to jail: the Rice
way and the real way
Rice students do not realize how protected they are from the
real world. Outside of our magnificent hedges exists a terrible
world full of abuses about which most students are not aware.
Every Rice student should have to deal with the Harris County
Sherriffs department and the Houston Police department to
discover what they are missing behind this wall of greenery.
Recently a friend of mine was arrested for public
intoxication and possession of a small amount of marijuana.
The ordeal that I and others suffered in gaining his freedom led
us to question the value and fairness of Houston's policing and
judicial system. The fact that our friend is black and speaks no
English caused him to be treated unduly harshly by these
authorities who are supposedly devoted to protecting
Houston's citizens.
While Rice students are subjected to the same laws as
everyone else, and in fact, we have additional rules imposed
upon us that are more stringent than those of American society
as a whole, we do enjoy a privileged status here. Rice students
are not harrassed by the campus police for openly smoking
marijuana, and it is rare that the Houston Police venture onto
the Rice campus to punish drug abusers.
In addition, if a Rice student is arrested, he has a number of
options available to him that the ordinary citizen does not
enjoy. The Student Association maintains a bail bond fund to
free Rice students when arrested. Although this student bail
fund is actually a loan program designed to provide arrested
students with emergency money, it keeps Rice students from
resorting to bail bondsmen and the exorbitent fees that they
charge. The Student Association will also reimburse any
Master who posts bail for an imprisoned student (All Rice
students should become familiar with these advantages. A copy
of the SA constitution and by-laws is available to you through
the SA office in the Rice Memorial Center.)
As policemen are wont to say, "you can beat the rap, but you
can't beat the ride." Most policemen would not be willing to
leave a Rice student in Buffalo Bayou "while trying to resist
arrest", because they realize that the political and legal
reactions would cause them harm in the end. But our brothers
across town in the fourth and fifth wards may find themselves
stopped anytime for any reason, and they can't call Daddy in
Dallas to send a Vincent & Elkins lawyer to the rescue.
So where does our responsibility lie? As a liberal, I can only
feel so guilty that then I must react. After waiting
unsuccussfully for six hours at the Harris County jail to secure
the release of my friend, I became bitter toward the American
judicial system that is supposed to be the paragon of justice.
After being foiled by bureaucracy, a friend who was with me
suggested that I might reconsider my decision to apply to law
school. I responded that one could do a great deal to change the
inequities of the present system by working from the inside. He
disagreed and suggested that dynamite would be a whole lot
quicker and more efficient.
I am not advocating a mass uprising against the Harris
County Sherriffs department; that might result in an even
worse dispensation of justice. What I am asking is for the Rice
community to open itself to the outside world and pay
attention to the great oppression suffered by our less fortunate
neighbors.
In our role here as students and teachers, we must expose
ourselves to the questions of justice and equity being wrought
daily in the lives of the people beyond our shrubbery. Goto the
county jail sometime during visiting hours. It will prove to be
an important part of your education that you will miss if you
only do the assigned reading and attend lectures.
Tom Morgan
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NUKING THE HEDGES/by Dovid Curcio
Hi. I'm David Curcio and I'm
not running for anything. I'd
rather do something constructive
to change the'world.
Wait! A political science major
who doesn't like politics? Why,
that's like a general who doesn't
enjoy killing people.
Well, I do recognize that the
political arena holds the greates
potential to bring about much
needed change in this country. The
citizenry is beginning to agree.
Eventually the realization that
society is undergoing severe strains
and collapsing will sink into even
the thickest of skulls. That's when
people will turn to the politicians
and government to save the good
life.
The only trouble is that the
American political system, though
easily one of the too five in the
world, leaves something to be
desired. It's gotten us this far, but
not without some serious problems
and tradeoffs. Occasionally, it has
failed.
Take Ronald Reagan. The
growing perception of the
necessity of change certainly
played a part in getting Reagan
elected, though it was certainly not
the most significant factor. After
all, only 25 percent of the
electorate wanted him.
That, of course, did not stop our
movieland president from trying to
initiate change by turning the clock
back to those simpler times when
milk came in bottles, wars were
just, monkeys named Bonzo spoke
and people were prosperous and
happy. He's pushed the system as
hard as he can; hard enough to
prove that his "supply-side"
economic theory is a farce, but n6t
far enough to create any
meaningful change.
In this case, we are fortunate
that our system is slow to reform.
Regrettably, it works just as well
against productive change as it
does against right-wing tinkering.
Congress, with its maze of
committees and subcommittees is
not designed for rapid progressive
shifts. Throughout every step of
the legislative process are
opportunities for a handful of
legislators to weaken or blqsk a
bill. It takes years of debate and
compromise to get any meaningful
reaction to a pressing national •
issue. It is designed that way, of
course, to prevent the majority
from oppressing the minority. It
just makes it tough to get anything
accomplished.
Other political entities which
inhibit the reformation of society
are the special interest groups. On
most issues members of Congress
are besieged by lobbyists on all
sides while the party (not to
mention the long-run national
interest) takes a back seat. Special
interest groups are by definition
narrow in focus and cannot be
expected to bring about the
sweeping changes needed for the
future.
The media, especially television,
help prevent social change by not
presenting a holistic view of
society's problems. Issues are
presented story after unrelated
story with sensationalism as the
key factor. For politicians, looks
and stagemanship become more
important than ideology and
competence. Politics and reform
are presented as entertainment to
cater to the tastes of middle
America.
American society is relatively
conservative and any suggestion of
reform is invariable viewed as
subversive. Those advocating
major alterations in the social
fabric run the risk of being beaten
down by the threatened and
subsequently defensive society.
Most institutions are pretty well
settled in their position and are
slow to relinquish power.
So, what's a radical right-
to-leftist to do if she or he wants to
feed the starving, enrich the pbor,
stop the arms race, save the
environment, etc., etc?
Don't despair. Change is
inevitable. Get out there and raise
hell long enough and people will
listen. Get involved. Join the
activist group* or party of-your
choice — right or left, left or
wrong. This system thrives on
competition. It's just that time for
a peaceful solution is running
short; if we come to the point
where revolution is the only
answer, it may be too late to ask
the question.
nimr Tom Morgan
TVESkER Sandra Wasson
Business Manager
Jeanne Cooper News Editor
David Koralek Advertising Manager
Dave Potash Managing Editor
Conrad Reining Photography Editor
Mark Mitchell Sports Editor
Deborah Knaff Fine Arts Editor •
Steve Bailey Back Page Editor
Jay Grob Senior Editor
Matt Petersen Copy Editor
Ruth Hillhouse Typesetter
News Sttff
Assistant Editors Patty Cleary (News),
Gwen Richard (Fine Arts), Alan Mathiowetz (Sports)
Ray Isle (Photography), Lorraine Farrell (Production)
Associate Editors Chris Ekren (News)
Harry Wade (Finq Arts), Matt Petersen (Sports)
Contributing Editors ' Michele Gillespie,
John Lemr, Lynn Lytton, David Curcio
Debbie Toletovich
News Staff Sumit Nanda, Ian Davidson, Martin Waldron
Brad Scvetson, Larry Lesser, Chris Dieckmann
Anne Bauaer, Paul Havlak, Bob Terry
Fine Arts Staff Chris Boyer, Barry Watkins, Harry Wade
Rick Hunt, Steve Bailey, Lisa Huettner
John Svatek, Andrew Tullis, Geoffrey Westergaard
Alison Kennamer, Heather Gillespie, Geoff Spradley
Carole Blume
Sports Staff Alan Mathiowetz, Barry Leonowirz
Carolyn Burr, Heather Gillespie
Ed Brittingham, Ed Swartz, Genie Lutz
Joe Halcyon
Production StatT Ann Bauser, Helen Clark
Sarah Jordan, James Kearley, John Krueger
Jacquie Lent/, Bill McManus, Julie Wilkinson
Michelle Grant, Skelvino Thompson, Spike Dishart
Photography staff Tom Cassidy, Mike Gladu
" John Gibson
Buslnea Staff
Assistant Business Manager Susan Brown
Assistant Advertising Manager Todd Cornett
Circulation Matt Petersen
Subscriptions David Steffens
Staff Michelle Grant, Becky Kearly, Kay Gratke
The Rice Thresher, the official student newspaper#t Rice University since 1916,-35 published
each Friday during the school year, except during examination periods and holidays, by the
students of Rice University. Editorial and business offices are located on the second floor of the
Rice Memorial Center, P.O. Box 1892, Houston. Texas 77251. Telephone (713) 527-4801 or
527-4802. Advertising information available upon request. Mail subscription rate: $20 00
domestic, $40.00 international, (via first class mail). The opinions expressed herqjn are not
necessarily those of anyone except the writer. Obviously.
®I982. The Rice Thresher. All rights reserved.
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Morgan, Tom. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 70, No. 8, Ed. 1 Friday, October 1, 1982, newspaper, October 1, 1982; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245510/m1/2/: accessed June 20, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.