The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 72, No. 17, Ed. 1 Friday, January 18, 1985 Page: 2 of 20
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Better Threshers mean more work. Help!
For the first time since 1977 the Thresher will begin publishing a second
weekly issue this Tuesday, January 22. The reasons for this are two-fold.
First of all, it is extremely hard to provide timely coverage of events on
campus with one weekly issue. Secondly, production of a single large
newspaper can, with only a few mishaps, become completely
unmanageable. Bv distributing the workload more evenly throughout the
week, we hope to avoid the burnout that accompanies weekly all-
nighters.
So this is the scoop: the Thresher will come out every Tuesday and
Friday, except when break interferes. This means not only that there will
be no newspaper during break, but that there in all probability will not be
one two days after a break has ended, either.
The fine arts section will initially dominate the Tuesday issue, with an
emphasis on the events of the coming week. In particular, this will make it
easier to print previews of campus plays in time for a first showing on
Thursday. Sometimes there will be no sports or editorials on Tuesday,
and sometimes there may be no fine arts on Friday, but each issue will
contain the most recent news, misclass, and Doonesbury possible. The
deadline for ads, misclass, and notes in the Tuesday issue is each
Thursday at 5 p.m.
Of course, without an adequate staff, the attempt to avoid a weekly all-
nighter could lead to twice-a-week all-nighters. The Thresher needs
photographers, darkroom workers, writers of every ilk, production
workers, and typesetters. What do you get out of it? You see your name in
print. Believe it or not, you may even see your name on a paycheck, while
learning skills that might earn you a nice summer job (one typesetter says
she was offered $9 per hour).
— Paul Havlak
All
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Tomorrow's vote vital for gays, straights NUK|NG THE HEDGES/by David Richardson
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Tomorrow there will be an important election in Houston. Although
the referendum seems to concern individual rights in municipal hiring,
the real issue is a larger one.
The essential problem, as 1 see it, is that there is a widespread disease in
our society. Some people exhibit obvious symptoms, but others manage
to conceal or repress the telltale signs of sickness. There are even some
who are contagious; they pass this disease on to others more
impressionable than they.
The disease 1 am referring to is, of course, homophobia — the
inordinate fear of homosexuality and homosexuals. It twists and distorts
some of man's noblest emotions into nearly unrecognizable forms. Love
of god and love of children, to cite two examples, are both beastialized
into contempt for innocent human beings.
Jesus preached tolerance and compassion, but so-called Christians in
the grips of this disease turn a deaf ear when their fellow man is victimized
for his private sexual practices. In a misguided effort to protect their
children from "recruitment" by homosexuals, parents hound sons and
daughters of other parents into losing their jobs, even leaving their
homes.
But homophobia also harms heterosexuals, especially men. Out of fear
or recognition of others' prejudices, men often strive to avoid all
appearances of homosexuality. The result is a lack of emotional intimacy
in relationships between men for which their seems to be no cure.
Studies have shown that most well-adjusted individuals have both
homosexual and heterosexual tendencies. Recognize your own (this
doesn't mean you must act on them) and mentally put yourself in the
place of a persecuted homosexual. Maybe then you will be able to
understand why so many Houstonians will vote "yes" in tomorrow's
referendum.
— Paul Havlak
BPE finds excessive Josh hype tiresome
1 hereby register my disgust at seeing a videotape player spewing
noxious propaganda about "Josh" in the Baker outer Commons Monday
night before dinner. Such fanaticism truly shakes my faith (perhaps
unjustified) that Rice is a community of reasonable people. Rice is full of
the best and brightest people of a certain age group, at least that's what
the Admissions Office tells us. We really can make our own decisions. We
don't need some breathless, starry-eyed young man (whose opinions and
beliefs we have no reason to respect) telling us that everything will be all
right if we do things his way. That's okay for him, but 1 don't buy it.
Having him on a video monitor in the commons of my college at dinner is
a particularly distasteful thing for me. I've been away from home for three
years now and I consider Baker my house and the people there (in varying
degrees) my family. My own family wouldn't do such a tasteless thing,
and I'm disappointed that it was allowed to occur.
Let's speculate for a moment. Suppose the Rice Gay/ Lesbian Support
Group, another special-interest group like Campus Crusade for Christ,
sponsored some appearances by one of the gay world's heroes, an author
or a politician, for instance. Let's say the gays set up videotape players in
the Colleges' commons, showing this person speaking, complete with
shots of rapturous, admiring looks from the members of his audience,
people of the same sex in that audience holding hands, obviously
unashamed, like the joyous young couples in the Josh video. I doubt it
would be permitted to happen in the first place, and if it did, there would
be a hell of an outcry. Of course, such a scenario is hypothetical in the
extreme, because the gays would be sensible enough not to try such a
thing. Unlike their counterparts in Campus Crusade for Christ, gays have
a long tradition of believing in the principle of live and let live. Though
they are often accused of it, they do not recruit others to their persuasion.
For whatever reason, people like Josh and his followers believe it is
tantamount to their faith that others be drawn in.
It's too much to ask these people to calm their fanaticism. I simply
point out that their beliefs strike me as highly fake and cheap, because
their Josh and his posters and his slogans and his well-calculated image
seem to be precisely the antithesis of sincerity.
— Brandon Rigney
The Rice Thresher, January 18, 1985, page 2
January 20 is an important date
in the life of the American nation.
Every four years on this day. the
world witnesses the orderly
transfer of power which marks the
U.S. as the bastion of democracy.
It is a day of pomp and ceremony,
of resolve and rededication to the
principals of freedom and liberty
on which our nation was founded.
It is a day which has seen great
speeches by great leaders, when
Americans have felt their destiny
and risen to it.
Not this year.
By the coincidence of being the
second Sunday after the first
Tuesday (or is that Easter?) of the
new year, January 20, 1985 is also
the day of America's greatest
religious festival - the Super
Bowl.
Sunday the American public
and viewers from over 37 countries
around the globe will gather about
their television sets to worship Dan
Marino and Joe Montana; the
genius of Shula, the receivers, the
speed of the backfield, the strength
of the line, each god in the
pantheon will be given his due
respect.
Not Reagan.
No Arachne he, to vie for
attention with the gods. The
strongest president of recent times
will move his inauguration so no
one must agonize over whether to
watch his speech or the football
game. Besides, Ronnie wants to see
the game too.
I think President Reagan
deserves respect for his maturation
in office, and especially for this
auspicious beginning to his new
term. In deferring to the Super
Bowl he recognizes his own
limitations as president, respects
the fine-honed judgment of the
average American, and shows
remarkable flexibility — all things
he has staunchly refused to do for
four years. He even exhibits a
grasp of the economics of the
situation: Sunday's beer sales
alone could form the basis of
sustained economioc growth.
Nonetheless, I am afraid that the
time has come to question the role
of sports in American life. While
we are granted specific
constitutional guarantees of the
right to worship, or not worship as
we want, no one is protected from
the insidious influence of
professional sports. Football is
taught in schools, not creationism,
but is there not a religion in one as
much as the other. We have sports
holidays (New Year's Day and
Super Sunday leap to mind). Pro
sports comes replete with temples
(that seat 70,000), shrines to saints
(there's one in Canton, Ohio) and
even a set of ethics (it's not whether
you win or. .. ) It gives its disciples
an entire plan of life (play hard, eat
your Wheaties and someday you
can renegotiate your contract,
too). There are evert guides to
values (Lite Beer tastes great and is
less filling.) If Moslems faced as
many dietary admonishments as
the average football fan. . .
All this is accepted without the
least bit of outrage. We even
identify with sports (everyone
knows that mom and baseball go
together). Religion has never had
that kind of support.
In fact, the more I think about it,
the more it sounds like a
government plot to indoctrinate
capitalist principals through a new
religion, a cold attempt to use
Skinner's principals to manipulate
and preserve the rule of
bourgeousie imperialist pigs.
Maybe not.
But I for one intend to consider
it this Sunday. . .
After the game.
is
TRESHER
Paul Havlak
Editor
Todd A. Cornett
Business Manager
David Friesenhahn News Editor
Ian Neath Fine Arts Editor
Scott Snyder Features Editor
Bev Blackwood Advertising Manager
Susan Buchanan, Pam Truzinski Photography Editors
Tony Soltero, Mark Matteson Sports Editors
Brandon Rigney Back Page Editor
Robyn Klahr Managing Editor
John Knapp Copy Editor
Mark M. Mitchell Senior Editor
Production Manager Valerie Rohv
Head Typesetter Lisa Gray
Assistant Editors Erin Blair (News)
Contributing Editors Steve McL aughlin. David Richardson
Associate Editors Scott Snyder, Steve Mollenkamp (Sports)
News Staff Kimberlee Barrett, Patty Baron, Paul Buenaflor. Ian Davidson.
Thomas Gonzales. Robert Hess. Spencer Greene. Carl Hoefer.
Scheleen Johnson, Anna Little, Tibor Roberts, Jana Sanchez,
David Schnur, Catherine Shin, Cheryl Smith, Valerie Rohy
Fine Arts Staff John Knapp, Sarah Jordan. Frances Egler.
Mike Voigt, Valerie Rohy, Karen Nickel, Carolyn Austin.
Marie Lawson. Wendy Sterba. Cheryl Smith, Carrie Blum,
Karin Murphy, Steve Spears, Erin Blair. Nancy Collier,
James Laura, Jay Galbraith, Paul Lee
Sports Staff Joey DiGregorio, Jay English, Kevin Gass,
Andy Kopplin, John Lippert, Stephen McVea, David Schafer,
Antonio Torres, Ted Anders, Don Tomasco, Jr.
Photography Staff Mike Gladu, Diane Gilabert, Mike Cherubino.
Art Rabeau, Kristi Isacksen, Tibor Roberts, David Tuttle,
Mike Voigt, Grungy Gladu, Eric Salituro, M. Ferguson,
Graphics Mike Harshman, Scot Brooks
Production Staff Rick Ary, Mary Ashkar, Bill Bellis, Jennifer Brown,
Kathy Byers, Jennifer Corkill, Andy Crocker, Peggy Harris,
Grayson Haun, Tracv Hodge, Mike Hogan, Saran Jordan,
Stephanie Kozinski, Anju Krukeja, Karin Murphy, Karen Nickel,
Margaret Pendergraf, Valerie Rohy, Geoff Stafford, Adam Sticpewich
Business Staff
Assistant Business Manager Susan C. Brown Snook
Assistant Advertising Manager Crystal Davis
Advertising Production Assistant Ashley Stainback
Subscription Manager Kathi Fletcher
Student Staff Assistant Carlos Soltero
Circulation Sean Daichman. Howard Goldman. Mark Mitchell
The Rice Thresher, the official student newspaper at Rice University since 1916. is published
each Friday during the school year, except during examination periods and holidays, by the
students of Ricc 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 per semester:
SI 5.00 domestic. S.TO.00 international, (via first class mail). The opinions expressed herein arc
not necessarily those of anyone except the writer. Obviously.
®I984, The Rice Thresher. All rights reserved.
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Havlak, Paul. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 72, No. 17, Ed. 1 Friday, January 18, 1985, newspaper, January 18, 1985; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245579/m1/2/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.