The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 84, No. 20, Ed. 1 Friday, February 28, 1997 Page: 2 of 20
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The SA Senate could do more to
reach out to students.
As far as most Rice students are concerned, the Student Association
office might as well be on the moon. That, in a nutshell, is the Student
Association's biggest problem. No matter how open the SA Senate is to
student input, the student body as a whole tends to perceive it as distant and,
even worse, irrelevant to life at the colleges and in the classrooms.
That's nothing new, Hut many in the Senate tend to blame the problem
mi the "apathetic" student body. That's not only counterproductive, it's
wrong. The SA is here for the students — not just those who aire willing to
trek to the Student ( enter (in Monday nights but all of us.
The Senate realizes it needs to do more to reach out to students but is
not sure exactly the best solution is. Perhaps the SA officers (especially the
president) could eal lunch or dinner at each of the colleges on a regular
basis. They could set up a table in front of Fondren Library. Suggestion
boxes across campus might work, Perhaps the SA can print up 'Tin on the
SA Senate ... talk to me'" shirts. Another idea (which came up in the
presidential debate is to rotate SA meetings among the colleges. These
suggestions all boil down to the same tiling: taking flieSA to the students.
By keeping its activities within the Student Center, the SA does not just
seem to be distant from the student body; it is distant from the student body,
iti the past, it has frequently seemed that the SA president is on better terms
with the administration than with the student body. Perhaps reaching out
to campus could give t he SA Senate a new perspective on the students it was
i. rented lii serve.
Around Town
Houston has much to offer to those
who elect to stay here over break.
Starting this afternoon, some Rice.students, after loading their bags with
sunscreen ami beer and their car's with peopk\ will head away from Rice for,
midterm recess. Yes. midterm break is finally here, and i( i&uhout time, too*
Matty students, however, will be staying in Houston instead of taking a
trip Students who feel marooned like so many Aggies should not despair:
There are actually many interesting things to do and see in this part of
lexas
Now that you've got a little free
time on your hands, whV'not use it to
piniono- explore the Houston area while the
^ r-f" weather is bearable? Houston mav
not be one of the nation's top tourist..
attractions, but it does have a lot to
offer, lake advantage of the many
cultural opportunities here while you
actually have tunc. I)uring midterm break, you do riot have homework to
keep you from doing so.
Such exploration, after all is something that won't lake up as much time
as a road trip, as well as something that you probably don't normally have
the chance to do. Here are some jumping-o/f points:
• ()ri campus: The Energy and Environmental Systems" Institute confer-
ence Yasir Arafat's speech. Baseball games.
• in town: the Houston Museum of Fine Arts. Consider dropping by the
Houston Museum of Natural Science, the Menil Collection and the Rothko
t Impel as well. Houston always has live entertainment, ranging from the
Houston l ivestock Show and Rodeo to concerts and plays galore.
No more than an hour's drive away are still-more options:
• NASA and Space (.'enter Houston are just down 1-45 South. Curious
about Texas histary?The Sanjacinto Monument is in this neighborhood .as-
well. Galveston has a beach, plus landmarks such as the Moody Gardens,
the Moody Mansion and the historic Strand.
(Iptimixe the time we have off Go ahead and catch upon your sleep and
your homework but catch up on your culture, too.
Letter Policy
TO SUBMIT — Letters may be sent in by ...
e mail: weUer^rice. edu
campus mail: Letter to the Editor," c/o The Rice Thresher
U.S. Mail: letter to the Editor, The Rice Thresher,
6100 Main St., MS-524, Houston, TX 770054892
in person: Thresher Office, Second Floor, Student Center
DEADLINE — Deadline for all letters is 5 p.m. on Monday. Letters
received after the deadline are generally not considered for
publication until the following week.
o
RULES -
1. All letters must include your name, college, year of
graduation «ndphone number.
2. We reserve the right to edit for
style
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Letters to the Editor
To the editor:
As the person responsible for the
upkeep and repairs of the nearly 10
miles of campus sidewalks, I can
appreciate the concerns raised in
the Jan. 14 staff editorial, "Soaked."
Last year's drought was espe-
cially hard on the paths, and we
have repaired, replaced and raised
several hundred feet of it in the last
six months.
1 can also appreciate the sugges-
tions about elevating the sidewalks
and installing drain pipes under-
neath. This system is being used in
several places on campus, but the
success is limited because the pipes
tend to clog up with leaves, creating
a whole other set of problems.
We are doing our
best to keep the
campus as safe arid
as pleasant to walk
on as possible.
One problem we are facing is
that the heaving and sinking often
creates tripping hazards that poten-
tially can cause harm to pedestri-
ans. Obviously, this type of hazard is
more important to take care of than
sidewalks that flood when it rains,
so these repairs take a higher prior-
ity.
We are doing our besLto keep
the campus as safe and pleasant to
walk on as possible, and your input
and suggestions are appreciated.
We will take a good look at the
areas that were mentioned in the
article and make sure they are put
on the list of areas in need of repairs.
Hannes Hofer
Facilities and Engineering
Backpage needs lessons in ethics
To the editor:
For two weeks the Backpage of
the Thresher has taken some nasty
shots at Chandler Davidson, ft seems
that Davidson offended the Back-
page by publicly objecting to some
sexist jokes that he and many other
members, of the Rice community
found offensive. *
For the 7% resher, that was enough
to make Davidson an enemy of free
speech, a thought policeman deserv-
ing of its ridicule. Fortunately, the
notion that free speech means
speech free from criticism is unique
to the Backpage,
Davidson needs no defense from
us. As a member of the Rice commu-
nity for 30 years, he has rendered
exceptional service to the university
and been selfless in his dedication
to students.
Nor do we fear that the Thresher s
abuse will do Davidson any injury.
Pride banner
since he has fought real bullies on
matters of principle during his ca-
reer and survived quite well.
Is the Thresher a
newspaper whose
purpose is to
serve the Rice
community or is it
the plaything of those
.who are its editors?
We write instead to raise these
questions: Is the Thresher a newspa-
per whose purpose is to serve the
Rice community or is it the play-
thing of those who are its editors?
Should our community expect
the Thresher to observe the ordinary
ethics of journalism, or are its edi-
tors free to use the Backpage for
personal vendetta and to insult at
will individuals and groups who live
and work here?
Perhaps the time has come not
for censorship but for discussion of
the ethical standards that Rice stu
dents in particular expect of their
newspaper. And perhaps it's time
for the Thrtsher editors to recogniz#
that they do not own the paper.
They are its stewards on behalf
of a community that deserves better
than it has been getting.
Allen J. Matusow
Professor
Department of History
Richard J. Smith
Professor
Department of History
To the editor:
M embers of Pride were dismayed
to find that the large rainbow ban-
ner that the group had hung in front
of Fondren Library last Monday for
Unity Through Diversity Week was
no longer there on Wednesday
morning.
The banner was registered with
Student Activities and no one at
Fondren Library or Facilities and
Engineering removed it or re-
quested that it be removed. The
problem has been reported to the
Campus Police.
If anyone knows anything about
the disappearance of the banner,
please contact Pride at pride@
rtce.edu or Chris Washington at
(713) 630-9164. We hope that the
bannerVill be recovered.
Brian Welch
Brown '98
To (he editor:
A« a Christian minister and
the immediate past president of
an interfaith organization whose
predecessor and successor are
Jewish rabbis and personal
ttrn't A'W f q —" la i« tli m « a . > t fcjd.jt
tnefius i was doui uisappoiiueci
wW '• immt mi ■ A ftti rlfraKM" TWrlsl
cuiG SUljpnSCQ WJr URODI
is' tetter ("Christmas edito-
rial is not pniversal," Jan. 17)
CrtQCIZing ™ llfwllfrl CQRir
■ te any ackr
soft'
faith and Fro l._. _
that is editorial relating to a
Christian holiday would focus on
ChfisL .:
- -| have great respect for the
of
MPHPknow'VI
that he is rejecting
Itage^^^H
-a,
his
AsaHH|
by my JudeoC
and r
truths which it
God
us in a
ami?
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Beard, Marty & Rao, Vivek. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 84, No. 20, Ed. 1 Friday, February 28, 1997, newspaper, February 28, 1997; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth246562/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.