The Rice Thresher, Vol. 88, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, September 29, 2000 Page: 2 of 28
twenty eight pages : ill. ; page 19 x 15 in.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
THE RICE THRESHER OPINION FRIDAY. SEPTEMBER 29, 2000
the Rice Thresher
Rarionai»&-.
Brian Stoler
Editor in Chief
Jose Luis Cubria,
Mariel Tarn
Managing Editors
Mike Nalepa
Opinion Editor
A late-night meal
College students have peculiar schedules. Some students man-
age to squeeze all their classes onto Tuesday and Thursday. Some
avoid Friday classes like the plague. And some students "don't do
mornings" and decline any class offered before noon. Well, most
aren't that extreme, but few students lead an 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
existence. Ask students when they go to bed: 1 a.m., 2 a.m., 4 a.m.
— some people even pull all-nighters regularly. Our schedules don't
run the normal 8 to 5 day.
Not very many students eat breakfast. We think many students
eat their first meal at 11:30 a.m., have their second at 6 p.m., and are
hungry again by 10 or 11 at night.
Last year, evening hunger wasn't a big deal. Students could go to
lunch and dinner and then spend some meal plan dollars on a Rice
Cake at the Coffeehouse or mozzerella sticks at Sammy's. However,
last year's meal plan dollars are not the same as this year's Tetra
points. Students now measure their lives in meals, not dollars.
We'd like for there to be a late night meal for students with meal
plans. This fourth meal would almost certainly have to happen in the
Student Center, because we don't think demand will be quite enough
to keep the colleges open later — and college events such as theater
productions make this option difficult to schedule.
And we like the suggestion that the money to fund a fourth meal
at Sammy's from the elimination of hot breakfast from four of the
colleges per day.
Few students sit down and eat eggs and potatoes before morning
classes. And of the students who have time for more than a bagel and
coffee, how many of their lives would substantially change by
walking to a nearby college to eat? Going to a college not your own
for breakfast isn't any more damaging to the college system than
alternating brunch on the weekends.
There are still some implementation details to be worked out. For
example, would it be better to alternate which college was open for
full breakfast per day, per week or per semester? Also, it would be
important to preserve a la carte pricing at Sammy's Late Night for
those without meal plans.
But overall, students with meal plans would be better served by
College Food Service offering a late meal at Sammy's than by its
continuing the wasteful opening of all eight college kitchens for full
breakfast every weekday.
Honoring a dedicated
college staffer
When Babs Willis retired last year, after spending 33 years as the
coordinator for Will Rice College, she wasn't simply a staff member.
She was a legend. And to students, she wasn't simply a legend — she
was a friend. Her place in the hearts of Will Rice students and alumni
was dear, and the college wanted to do something to commemorate
her years of service. When the students agreed their private dining
room should be renamed after her, the college was truly giving a part
of itself to the woman who had given Will Rice so much.
However, a college cannot simply decide to rename part of itself
in honor of even the most extrordinary of its friends. Such official
titles must be approved by the Board of Trustees.
Rice, like many other universities, generally reserves the honor
of building and room names for significant donors.
And so we applaud the board's decision that Babs' gift to Rice —
touching the lives of countless students and 33 years of service —
was quite a worthy donation.
Watching your stuff
It's simple, but in the wake of a rash of thefts, it bears mentioning:
Keep an eye on your stuff.
Rice seems to be a safe, friendly campus, but it's in the middle of
a large city. Some people who live in this city may be interested in
acquiring your PalmPilot, textbooks or wallet.
You may have no qualms about stashing your backpack in the
heap of backpacks in your college commons while you go to lunch.
Worrying about theft in such a homey space may even make you feel
as though you're being overly paranoid or displaying distrust in your
fellow college members.
But when a number of people are sloppy about security, it makes
Rice an easier target for thieves. And if you're lax about keeping
track of your personal items, you bear part of the blame if your stuff
disappears.
So I'm supposed
to wear this?
Now put it on
izjo*>*AMaTe ** -z&o\rt i^vc, Rttptcr IDWC
occasional- 6Tir>KY FISH.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
'Thresher' should not
belittle SA resolutions
To the editor:
Most Rice students would expect
the Thresher to be a champion of
student-related issues. The editorial,
"A resolution without conflict," in
the Sept. 22 edition contradicts such
ac\a\m.The Thresher ed\tor\a\ board
has come out against a Student As-
sociation resolution that supports
turning current Wiess College
grounds into a park or athletic fields
and emphasizes the importance and
upkeep of the green space we now
have. Why is this?
Granted, a few members of the
administration are in favor of preserv-
ing green space and 1M fields on cam-
pus. However, please don't mistake
"membersof the administration" with
"the administrative process at Rice."
While Vice President for Finance and
Administration Dean Currie and Vice
President for Student Affairs Zenaido
Camacho support green space issues,
they are not the final decision makers
on building and grounds issues.
We all know there is precedent
for major decisions to be made over
the summer while we're gone: for
example, controversial decisions
over construction of the serveries,
the Wiess-Hanszen House switch
and the relocation of the commuter
parking lot. This SA resolution gives
our potential allies in the adminis-
tration the ability to better repre-
sent student interests at meetings in
which we may not be present. It
gives them backing and credibility
when the long-term plans are dis-
cussed for the land that Wiess sits
on. Furthermore, the resolution calls
for correcting damage to our 1M
fields, which have been causing pre-
ventable injuries to students.
If the Thresher had listened at the
SA meetings or spoken to a person
involved with the resolution, the edi-
torial department would have learned
the purposes of this unopposed reso-
lution. As one who has fought a few
losing battles, I can tell you that hav-
ing allies rather than enemies in the
administration is an asset and "con-
flict" is not a measure of the worth of
a resolution. I can understand if the
Thresher disagrees with the intent or
execution of the green space resolu-
tion, but your stance on "a resolution
without conflict" is simply u n informed
about the process this resolution is
designed to establish.
Josh Katz
Wiess College president
Drug-use punishment
should fit the crime
To the editor:
What happened on Sept. 10?
Two similar incidents were spot-
lighted in the Thresher. First, an
overly intoxicated football player
caused a disturbance ("Drunk stu-
dent creates disturbance," Sept. 15).
He was loud and violent. It took four
officers to get him under control
and take him to the police station.
Meanwhile, four students were out
of sight and quietly smoking mari-
juana on a balcony ("Six students
face marijuana possession accusa-
tions," Sept. 15). When they were
discovered they complied with the
officers' requests.
Unfortunately, the fate of these
students was not the same. The foot-
ball player was released to the mas-
ters and head football coach Ken
Hatfield handled any necessary dis-
ciplinary action. All of the students
involved in the marijuana incident,
regardless of whether they were
smoking or were in possession of
marijuana, received a punishment.
The obvious reason for the differ-
ence in disciplinary action is that
marijuana is an illicit substance and
alcohol is not.
'Die Campus Police are getting
kudos from many students for han-
dling the marij u ana i n c id en t th e way
they did. I mean, hey, they could've
arrested and prosecuted them, right?
But it's a shame that they had to do
anything at all. It's a shame that two
roommates who were sleeping at
the time are now on probation be-
cause they admitted to smoking with
their roommates in the past. The
reason that it's a shame is because it
was a victimless crime. No overly
high student became loud. No one
was threatened. A smell was all that
was wrong. A smell that by law com-
pelled the Campus Police to act.
The actual dangers of marijuana
use have been exaggerated. No one
overdoses on marijuana. Psychologi-
cal addiction is rare and physical
addiction is almost unheard of.
Why, then, are marijuana laws so
harsh? Because many laws have
been written out of fear and in igno-
rance of the actual effects of the
drug. The fear that marijuana is a
"gateway" drug is unfounded. If
drugs such as alcohol, tobacco and
caffeine are legal to consume, mari-
juana should be as well.
Students are not going to stop
smoking marijuana. Every single day
someone lights up on Rice's cam-
pus.
It's not an issue of rebellion; stu-
dents smoke marijuana because it's
enjoyable. As a supportive commu-
nity we need to face these facts and
decide how to best deal with this
drug. If you know someone who
smokes marijuana, ask them why
they do it and what it's like. Sift
through the myths (e.g., marijuana
lowers sperm count) and find out
what the actual health risks are from
smoking.
Decide for yourself if the drug is
creating the problem or if the laws
are creating the problem. But most
importantly, if you encounter a Rice
student smoking and it bothers you,
ask them to stop or tell them to
leave. Treat them like you would
any one who's had a few beers. Call
a resident associate or college jus-
tice, but don't make the situation
bigger than it needs to be.
The punishment should fit the
crime. Support the equalization of
drug laws.
Jennifer Hitt
Hanszen senior
Halftime show did not
demean women
To the editor:
I>ast week, you printed a letter
from a Rice faculty member who
was upset at the Marching Owl Band
for telling "the most lame, sexist
joke" she has heard in a while ("MOB
attacks wrong target at Tu Isa game,"
Sept. 22). This accusation seems
unwarranted.
See MOB, Page 4
CONTACTING THE
THRESHER
Letters
m Letters to the editor
should be sent to the Thresher
by mail, fax, e-mail to
thresher@rice.edu or be deliv-
ered in person. Wepreferthat
letters be submitted on disk
or by e-mail, letters must be
received by 5 p.m. on the
Monday prior to a Friday pub-
lication date.
■ All letters must be signed
and include a phone number.
Rice students and alumni must
include their college and year.
We will withhold names upon
request.
■ Letters should be no
longer than 250 words in
length. The Thresher reserves
the right to edit letters for
both content and length.
News Tips
■ l ips for possible news sto-
ries should be phoned in to
the ThresheraX (71 .'i) 348-4801.
Subscribing
m Annual subscriptions are
available for $50 domestic and
$105 international via first
class mail.
Advertising
■ We accept both display
and classified advertisements.
Contact the 'Thresher for more
information.
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Stoler, Brian. The Rice Thresher, Vol. 88, No. 7, Ed. 1 Friday, September 29, 2000, newspaper, September 29, 2000; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth443052/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.