The Rice Thresher, Vol. 88, No. 24, Ed. 1 Friday, March 16, 2001 Page: 2 of 28
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Brian Staler
Editor in Chief
ce Thresher
Jose Luis Cubria, Michael Nalepa
Mariel Tam Opinion Editor
Managing Editors
Bringing quality
movies to campus
When Kristian Salinas began as Rice Cinema coordinator last
march, he made it his mission to reconnect with Rice Cinema's
traditional community audience and to provide more appealing
fare for students.
We can't speak for the non-Rice community, but he's cer-
tainly piqued our interest. Earlier this month, Rice Cinema co-
hosted the first Houston run of Yi Yi, a film that had already
received a great deal of positive buzz. March also marked the
beginning of the "Oscar Skips" series, which includes such
critically acclaimed but little-nominated indie films as Dancer in
the Dark and Requiem for a Dream.
Independent cinema is not for everyone, but films like these
represent the best the genre has to offer. In fact, sometimes
they represent the best the media has to offer as a whole. For the
Rice Cinema to bring these films to our doorstep is an accom-
plishment, and we'd like to say thanks.
Watching RBT mature
On-campus cable may have a zillion channels, but often it
seems like there's nothing on. That's precisely the problem that
the new blanket-tax organization, Rice Broadcast Television, is
charged with fixing.
As members of a blanket-tax organization that's been around
for a while, we at the Thresher want to offer some friendly advice.
Rice students have come to expect a lot from the previously
existing blanket-tax organizations. At a school where dozens of
student clubs are formed and dissolved every year, these
organizations have stood the test of time and become long-
standing institutions. Now that RBT has joined the ranks,
students will expect the same.
RBT needs to be a dependable presence on campus from
year to year. This means it needs to recruit enough people to
keep the organization vibrant and growing, as opposed to
dissolving when current members graduate. The bigger and
more dedicated the staff is, the greater the options for produc-
ing content.
And right now, content is what RBT needs most. The student
body's expectations have increased — an hour of programming
here and there doesn't cut it anymore. The Campanile is
expected to come out once a year, the Thresher once a week.
Now that you have the money to increase your capabilities, it's
time for RBT to start coming up with programming on a regular,
timely basis. A brand-new installment of "Owl's Eye News" once
a week is great; it's up to you to produce and advertise it. But that
hour each week isn't enough.
Once there is increased programming, RBT needs to work
on actively informing students about what is being broadcast.
The RBT Web page (http://www.rufrice.edu/~rbt) shows prom-
ise, but it's not updated frequently enough. We can't know to
tune into "Owl's Eye News" on Thursdays if we don't know that
it's going to be on. The various other segments and programs
RBT runs are often interesting and deserve an audience, but
they get even less publicity than the news show. Students need
easy access to a well-publicized schedule; then again, if the
shows pop up in weekly time slots long enough, hopefully we'll
know their times by heart.
By watching RBT's news broadcasts, we can tell that RBT
folk enjoy doing what they do, and that's essential to keep it
from becoming a chore.
But perhaps it's time to better separate the news and humor
aspects of "Owl's Eye News." It would add credibility to keep the
news show straightforward and, well, true. There are countless
other hours in the week for comedy and all sorts of other
interesting things.
Erratum
The March 2 editorial "Construction's other costs" incor-
rectly stated the number of sand volleyball courts remaining on
campus. There are three such courts, not one. Brown, Sid
Richardson and Lovett Colleges each have one.
The Thresher regrets the error.
THE RICE THRESHER OPINION FRIDAY. MARCH 16.2001
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Language requirement
necessary at Rice
To the editor:
I read an article on the language
requirement that appeared in the
Thresher ("Faculty Votes to Abolish
Language Requirement," March 2)
and was appalled.
I feel that the language require-
ment has not had a chance to prove
itself, yet the faculty, after little more
than one semester, is ready to do
away with it completely.
I strongly support the language
requirement. We can no longer ex-
pect eveiyone to accommodate our
needs and learn English.
To allow students to graduate
without some knowledge of a for-
eign language perpetuates the ste-
reotype of the ignorant, stubborn
American.
Proficiency in another language
not only implies a sound understand-
ing of grammar as well as the ability
to write, speak, read and listen effec-
tively in another language, but it is
also the first and most necessary
step to understanding another cul-
ture.
The way in which people com-
municate is just as telling of their
perspective of the world as the words
that they say.
I am strongly convinced that pro-
ficiency in a foreign language, in
addition to offering insight into the
lives of other people, gives one a
competitive advantage in the busi-
ness world. In my recent search for
a summer internship, nearly every
firm listed knowledge of a foreign
language as a plus, if not a neces-
sity.
In response to the comments
made by Associate English Profes-
sor Scott Derrick to the effect that
coercive learning is ineffective, I
would like to point out that every
single Rice student endures some
form of coercive learning during his
or her time here.
Have we gotten all too used to
getting out of distribution require-
ments through classes like "Rocks
for Jocks," "Stat Too-Easy" and
"Clapping for Credit"? I do not doubt
the value of a well-rounded educa-
tion, but I think maybe one side of
that education is getting a little more
rounded than the other.
1 do feel like our high schools
have let us down as far as language
instruction goes, or at least mine
did.
I do not, however, think that that
should be any reason for Rice to
drop its language requirement; if
anything, it should be grounds for
strengthening it. A "watered-down"
language requirement is unaccept-
able, but eliminating the require-
ment does not solve the problem. If
anything it only exacerbates the
existing one.
I have also heard the argument
that the language requirement pulls
students out of other classes that
they would have otherwise taken,
and may hinder them in their stud-
ies in one of the more demanding
majors, such as chemical engineer-
ing.
The language requirement
should not, at least in theory, pull
anyone away from any other class at
Rice.
As I understand it, the first year
of language study does not count
toward distribution of any kind, leav-
ing the student with another four
Group I classes to take before de-
gree requirements have been ful-
filled.
It may be a little extra work
each semester during the fresh-
man and sophomore years, but this
is Rice after all; we should have to
work a little bit harder here, we
should have to do a little bit more.
Otherwise, that reputation for ex-
cellence that seems so important
to so many people here is abso-
lutely worthless.
Matt Williams
Sid sophomore
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THRESHER
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Stoler, Brian. The Rice Thresher, Vol. 88, No. 24, Ed. 1 Friday, March 16, 2001, newspaper, March 16, 2001; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth443082/m1/2/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.