The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 84, No. 5, Ed. 1 Friday, September 27, 1996 Page: 4 of 20
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4 FRIDAY. SEPTEMBER 27. 1996
THE RICE THRESHER
Opinion
;
Student deletes needfuppDit
To improve Rice, students need to turn out in better numbers
C harm s Klein &
mic hol mt milijan
STUDENT ASSOCIATION
&CHEERLEADERS
A MOB of Rice students jumped Department workers. Rather, all of
to their feet and cheered their peers this was organized by student ath
on to victory. l earn pride abounded letes — after their classes and long
throughout the crowd. On the field, practice hours were over.
In addition to fos
tering relationships
between students
and student athletes,
the second purpose
of the carnival was
lo thank you. the stu-
dents, for,your sup-
port of Rice athlet
ics. But we would
like h> question how
strong that support
really is.
At last weekend's
volleyball match ver
su^* sixth ranked University of
Florida, around 10 stud*'tits showed
tip to cheer On the Lady Owls. Over
the past two years, student atten-
dance at men's basketball games
has dropped from an average of 800
students per game to just 300. And
how many of you even know where
(he kice Pool is?
Ill our opinion, student support
of Rice athletics has been at best
lackadaisical For the sake of the
Athletic Department and the uni-
versity, this must be changed
Whethei you realize it or not,
your attendance affects recruiting,
home game-schedules, television
exposure and, most importantly, the
athletes' performance. When the
game is close, having a crowd
present to intimidate the other team
and to motivate our players can
make the difference between a win
and a loss.
And let's not forget the best rea-
son to attend Rice athletic events —
they can be really fun' You wouldn't
want to miss the chance to taunt the
opposing team's bench with the
the teams gave their
all to make their sup-
porters proud.
Was this last
weekend's Kice foot-
ball game versus Kan-
sas State? The Volley-
ball match versus the
I 'Diversity of Florida?
No, this scene took
place at the Third An
nual Sports ( arnival.
I he Student Athlete
t oinmiltee organized
the event as a way for
students and student athletes to in
Or at i while enjoying a myriad of
games and contests. Bui in order for
the cat nival to take place, a lot ol
work had to be done.
Over Kf.OOO in prizes were col-
lected from restaurants and: Inisi
nesses. I shirts had to be designed
and printed Money had lo be raised
from the Rice community
Your attendance
affects ... the
athletes'
performance.
at a nationally-televised ESPN game
or to jingle your keys at another bad
call by a brainless officiating crew.
But even more fun is seeing your
friend Shaun Igo perform a monster
slam dunk, your buddy Ndukwe
Kalu tear through the offensive line
to take down the quarterback and
your peer Rebecca Case slam a kill
down the line.
And let's not forget
(- the best reason to
attend Rice athletic
events — they can be
really fun!
Tents, fables and chairs had to
be ordered from the university. A
i aten-r had to be found, as well as a
I 'A system, a dunking booth and a
cotton candy machine. And last but
not least, the tricycles had to be
assembled.
Who do you think did all this
work-' It wasn't auarniv of At Idem
tic Rally Club, to sav "Hi!" lo vonr mom
In the week ahead, you will have
plenty of opportunities to prove your
support for the athletes On Wednes-
day night at 7:30, the volleyball team
will take on the University of Tulsa
at Autry Cotfrt. l he following week
end, the women's tennis team will
host the Rice Tennis Classic, That
Saturday will also be a full day, be-
ginning with the Blue Gray Swim-
ming Meet and ending with a foot-
ball game against the 1 (Diversity of
New Mexico
So the next lime you are trying lo
decide between watching "9021.0"
and going to a Rice sporting event,
remember the work the athletes put
into war Sports Carnival and show
your appreciation by turning out to
cheer them on to victory.
Charles Klein is the vice president for
external affairs of the Student
Association and a Sid Richardson
College senior. Michol McMUltan is
a cheerleader and a Ixwett College
senior
We've Got It!
h \v Yours at
(Wage
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Only Ten Minutes
From ( innpus!
FO EVERYTHING!
than 4 minutes to dining A nightlife
T M r N T I*
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• All Utilities Paid
Over 50 ( ;ibk' TV'Channels
• I 7 Swimming Pools
• I 7 Jacuzzi's
•Total Fitness I ut ility
• Washers/Dryers
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•On Site Dry Cleaners
• ("overeil Parking
• Aerobic ( "lasses
• (iame Room
• I'RIit; Video Library
* Recreation Club Room
• Tanning Beds
I; SS than 3 minutes to Galleria
F- 8S than 5 minutes to Sharpstown Mall
T SS than 7 minutes to 3 major food retailers
❖ LESS than 3 minutes to Hwy 59 A Loop 6t0
❖ Metro at corner of property
1 .easing Office
an tern Village
SK15 ( in If ton
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713/660-3000 Presented In Monte* Property Management
Directions Take the I'tmrmtce nut nil <i|
West 610 .mil |!o approximately I mile to
Aktet-Ttiro left and jo 1/2 J^oejk.
on the rich!
SA wants to serve
tp* needAyour he^p
Why wouud a freshman
write the column for the Student
Association this week? Maybe it
it because I went to a meeting
and actually enjoyed it.
Maybe it is because
I went to the SA Retreat
and met two university
vice presidents* the pro-
vost, deans and faculty
members. Or maybe it
is because I have al-
ready learned ways that
1 can get involved and
become an active mem-
ber of this community.
What is the SA? The
Student Association is
the umbrella organization that ad-
dresses the needs and concerns
of the undergraduates.
It provides channels of com-
munication between the under-
graduates, colleges, campus or-
ganizations, the administration
and other members of Rice. The
SA is here to serve you.
So come to a
meeting and form
your own opinion
about what the SA
does.
Do you realize that you are a
member of the SA? Contrary to
popular opinion,'the SA is not a
few, select students from each
college and some politicos who
make decisions for everyone else.
'Die actual voting body, the
Senate, consists of the executive
council plus the president and
elected representatives from each
college. However, like other cam-
pus organizations, you do not
need a title or a position to get
involved and make a difference.
Is there a reason not to be
Anne
countiss
STUDENT
ASSOCIATION
involved? No. At Rice, it's easy,
and you, your peers and future
students will benefit
If there is something at Rice
you don't like (for ex-
ample, uninformed vot-
ers or the lack of desks
for lefties), change it!
The SAcan give you
advice on people to con-
tact and recommend a
course of action. But
you must take the ini-
tiative and get .involved.
So come to a meet-
ing and form your own
opinion about what the
SA does. Hie SA needs
your suggestions and input to
serve and improve the Rice com-
munity.
You do not have to spend all of
your time with the SA to be active.
Just find an issue or project that
interests you; then find the orga- .
nization that supports it. If an or-
ganization doesn't exist, form one.
For further information con-
tact the SA
• In cyberspace: the SA
homepage is located at http://
riceinfo. rice. edu:80/projects.
• SA ListServ: the Student
Association's newsgroup is at
sa@rice.edu.
• Maryanaiskander's (SA Presi-
dent) e-mail address is whales®
owlnet.rice.edu.
• By phone: the SA Office is on
the second floor of the Ley Stu-
dent Center and can be reached
at 527-4079.
• In person: meetings are every
Monday night at 10 p.m. in Kelley
Lounge in the Student Center
(free food!).
The SAisn't the solution but a
mediator between you and the
Rice community. It is one way to
get things done.
Anne Countiss is
College freshman.
a Hanszen
Environment
FROM PAGE 3
and
cial disaster for both private
public sectors?.
Note that the Gulf War was re-
sponsible for the mild yet noticeable
increase in gasoline prices, and thai
O EEC's intervention during the
1970s brought the U.S. into the worst
energy crisis seen to date.
Now, as consumption surpasses
pre-1970 levels, the nation faces the
prospect of increased foreign oil
dependency and expenditure, fur
ther imperiling U.S. business should
disaster strike the Middle East.
Secondly, this economic depen-
dence on foreign oil puts the U.S. in
an increasingly difficult polit ical situ-,
atioh in the Middle East. Stability
and U.S. influence in that region has
been a dominant part of U.S. foreign
policy since World War II, especially
through close relations with Israel.
America has always seen Israel as
the one friendly body in such an
important region and has armed it
wejl to detec renegade Arab states
from affecting oil supplies.
The CIA has been used to great
lengths to manipulate Middle East-
ern politics since they backed the
1956 Iranian revolution.
These efforts cost money, and
U .S. expenditures in the Gulf region
have been extraordinary. Military
aid to Israel alone totals over $1.8
billion per annum, and civil aid cost s
Washington more than $1.2 billion
per year.
Such meddling, however, has not
been well received, and backlash is
increasing.
The 1979 revolution in Iran was
staged almost entirely with anti-
American forces frustrated with U.S.
support of a dictator there.
Currently, anti-American senti-
ment runs so deep in Syria. Iraq and
Iran that it is unsafe for Americans
to travel in these countries.
Many Arab states see the U.S.
and its arms as the only reason that
Israel continues to play power poli-
tics with Syria and Iran, and also
view the U.S.'s current dealings with
Iracj as imperialistic policies used to
protect oil in the region.
These argu ment s, u n to rt u nately,
are mostly true. Oil interest pulled
the U.S. into the Gulf War, and is
responsible for such strong-arm tac-
tics with the Iraqis today.
As a result of these past 50 years,
militant Islamic groups such as
Hamas and Hizhollah are openly anti-
American and attack Americans in
the region; they are responsible for
the massacre of U.S. Marines in
Beirut in 1982 as well as the recent
bombing in Saudi Arabia.
Our ever-rising dependence on
petroleum not only increases gov-
ernment expenditures and threat-
ens U.S. business, but also imperils
U.S. citizens and soldiers abroad.
Ironically, the reduced govern
ment at home has meant more gov-
ernment action and spending in in-
ternational areas. .
In short, energy conservation af-
fects not only environmental condi-
tions at home, but also influences
political and economic situations
abroad.
Those who are busy attacking
conservation legislationiis intrusive
.fail to see that the absence of such
policy has resulted in increased gov
eminent activity and interventionist
policy in other arenas, especially on
the international level.
As a nation, we need to under-
stand that when we act to protect the
environipent we can alleviate other
problems as well. We need to look
beyond the obvious and examine
how wastefulness and consumption
jeopardize us on political and eco
nomic levels as'well.
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Beard, Marty & Rao, Vivek. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 84, No. 5, Ed. 1 Friday, September 27, 1996, newspaper, September 27, 1996; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth246547/m1/4/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.