The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 79, No. 8, Ed. 1 Friday, October 11, 1991 Page: 2 of 16
sixteen 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:
2 FRIDAY, OCTOBER 11, 1991 THE RICE THRESHER
Tuition needs attention
For the last three years, Rice University has announced an under-
graduate tuition increase of $800 during the winter for the next school
year. And every year, the students gripe about tuition until gradua-
tion.
But hold a student meeting on tuition, hosted by the SA Tuition
Committee (which will make a recommendation to the administra-
tion), and how many students show up?
The three members hosting the event... and one Thresher reporter.
It's good to know y'all trust us so much.
It's very easy for us to sit back and complain, but...
Ok. Ok. We run a tuition editorial every year, but there's a differ-
ence this time. We can still act on all of this. Students can find out why
their tuition may go up again this year, and what they can do to help
lower any increase there may be, be it through cutting costs (energy
conservation, for example), petitions or even straight protests.
One attractive factor of Rice is the lower tuition rate. If the current
tuition trend continues, what will distinguish us from the Ivy Leagues?
Our lack of foliage on old buildings? Naturally, the differences are not
that superficial, but the lower cost truly is an added asset.
However, if we as a student body do not actively campaign to
prevent a tuition increase, it will occur and we will have no idea how—
or why. We have no right to complain about any increase if we
passively let the committee meet and come to any conclusions
without student opinions or support. Rice is the Best Buy in the
country, but if the price tag changes, the students ought to take
advantage of their chance to have a say in it.
The committee can make recommendations about monetary ap-
propriations and the university will listen. Student opinions have
influenced university policies for food, alcohol, cuirriculum and
lighting. Maybe parking can be next. When the student body speaks
up, the administration listens.
But if the students don't say anything about issues like tuition, the
university can only assume that we don't care. Even if we do.
Thank you, F&E
It's nice to know that somebody listens.
Two weeks ago, I wrote a column in this space complaining about
nighttime safety. I specifically referred to two lights around the Fairy
Fountain and a wall of plants in front of the fountain that someone
could hide behind, especially because the fountain was empty. All of
these problems, I argued, could be resolved with minimal changes.
Within a week, the fountain was filled, the plants cropped and
thinned out, the Jones' commons light fixed, and the Jones South roof
light redirected to help illuminate the paths around the fountain. The
area is much improved, and I am impressed.
1 want to thank the people at Facilities and Engineering for respond-
ingto my column so quickly. The Fairy Fountain was but an example
of a widespread problem on campus, but the speed in which they
resolved the lighting and safety concerns at the Fairy Fountain is
indicative of their cooperative attitude.
The situation around campus is not fixed yet, but in a short amount
of time, this is an excellent start. If students have recommendations
for other spots across campus, I would encourage them to send ideas
to Facilities and Engineering. It does make a difference.
—Harlan Howe
Harlan Howe, Ann Zitterkopf
Editors-in<hief
Chad Carson
Managing Editor
NEWS
Amy Keener Editor
Jill Salomon Assistant Editor
Jonathan Briggs SA Correspondent
Sam Cole, Kraettli Epperson, Henry
Mahncke, Amit Mehta, Mark
Schoenhals
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Leezie Kim Editor
Shala Phillips Assistant Editor
Ross Grady Columnist
Brian Beeghly, Stan Hsue, Patricia
Ijn, Kate O'Connell, Peter Sharoff
PHOTOGRAPHY
Chris Sonneborn Editor
Eric Hahn Assistant Editor
Barbara Solon
BACKPAGE
Heidi Huettner Editor
M. Wasz Cartoonist
FEATURES
Shaila Dewan Editor
Phone: 527-4801
David Mansfield
Business Manager
OPINION
Darrell Speck Editor
Mark Bennett Columnist
Shaila K. Dewan, David Hale, Amit
Mehta, Mark Schoenhals
SPORTS
Peter Howley Editor
Randy Block, Terzah Ewing,
Lynanne Foster, Tom Harris, Tim
Lam, Wilbur Lam, Theo Mallinson,
Joey Olivier, Riva Rahl, James
Young
PRODUCTION
Josh Denk Production Manager
Tom Anderson, Joel Galang, Jeremy
Hart, Kevin Mistry, Eric Ruhlin,
Jennifer Tackman
BUSINESS
Shane Speciale Ads Manager
Chris Cowles Assist. Bus. Manager
George Nickas Ads Production
Hector Avila, John Schwartz
Circulation
© COPYRIGHT 1991
The Rice Thresher, the official student newspaper at Rice University since 1916, Is
published each Rrlday during the school year, except during examination periods and
holidays, by the students of Rice University. Editorial and business offices are located on
the second floor of the Ley Student Center, P.O. Box 1892, Houston, Texas, 77251.
Advertising Information available on request. Mall subscription rate per semester:
$15.00 domestic, $30.00 International via first class mall. Nonsubscrlptlon rate: first
copy free, second copy $1.00. Letters to the editor must be received by 5 p.m. on the
Monday prior to publication. Unsigned editorials represent the majority opinion of the
Thresher Editorial Staff All other pieces represent the opinion of the author Obviously.
mm mm mm
W FNUN6T0BW fc&BUlCN
■♦CKm OF BOMBERS-
"imrowwct:
OUTOOfcSOXPUWE, ELK, WD.
B&TTf'S KMEICt
TOCK/
A1ALEA PUHTfifc,
TAREORO, GA
firPBOW
.v*
FLOtV'S STEALTH IVltft NNK.
QUfWW, OKU,.
BlLLBGNtt*.
KKC*BEZte,N>ir
Tequila Night incident misrepresented
To the editors,
We feel that the "Freshman Te-
quila Night" incident, although un-
fortunate, was entirely misrepre-
sented.
The administration, in trying to
assign blame, has trumped up every
ramification of the alcohol policy and
has glossed over the significance of
the poor judgement of the Campus
Police. The very fact that the fresh-
man could have died while the officer
was attempting to question and arrest
him instead of attending to his urgent
medical needs should he one of the
leading concerns for everyone at this
university. Although procedurally
correct, officers should always place
the health and welfare of a student
above any minor legality.
We would also like to point out
that the Thresher article contained
several misi ^presentations, not all of
which we feel comfortable mention-
ing in this letter. The statement by
the Director of Student Activities that
the co-host is "a trained university
bartender" is false. This seems to be
an attempt be Rice authorities to
further justify the assignment of all
responsibility to Hanszen leaders.
Such all-encompassing blame fully
neglects any of the student's own
accountability. The Thresher reported
that the Freshman did not feel "mis-
led or abused by the hosts of the
party." This implies that the student
understands the incident to be a
mistake on all sides. We hope that
the university as a whole also realizes
this fact Everyone must understand
the shared responsibility between
host(s) and party members on all
levels of drinking.
Furthermore, Hanszen has be-
come the scapegoat for a problem
that is university-wide. Alcohol mis-
THE EDITOR
Letters
use is prevalent across the campus.
Any student venturing out of his/her
dorm roem could attest to the fact
that this incident is not unique. We
are not trying to diminish the sig-
nificance of this problem; we simply
wish to underscore the point that
Hanszen is not the sole sponsor of
"pathetic" alcohol-related traditions.
Leslie Bush
Hanszen '92
Katrina Ramiller
Hanszen '92
Karin Vers poor
Hanszen '93
Carl Kirst
Hanszen '93
Jose Hernandez
Hanszen '94
et al.
Most of Hanszen has always cared
To the editors,
We, as members of Hanszen Col-
lege, are insulted by the attitude taken
toward the Tequila Night incident by
the hosts of the party and by the
organizers of the all-college meeting
("Hanszen to start caring," October
4). The purpose of the meeting was
noble: to discuss attitudes of college
members toward drinking. Many
valuable points were brought up, in-
cluding the peer pressure some
members have experienced to drink.
However, whenever the issue of
general responsibility of party hosts
arose, the organizers quickly retorted
that we were not "here to point fin-
gers."
Although we recognize that the
guests at a party share in the respon-
sibility and safety of other guests, the
party hosts bear a special responsi-
bility. At the all-college meeting,
however, the party hosts implied that
their responsibility in the incident
was no greater than that of any other
college member, even those who did
not attend Tequila Night, because
we all helped form the destructive
attitudes which resulted in the inci-
dent When hosts repetitively and
'* publicly promote their party, supply
and serve the alcohol, and create a
festive and competitive atmosphere
toward the consumption of alcohol,
the large responsibility (or lack
thereoD of the hosts is undeniable.
However, two weeks after the in-
cident, the members of Hanszen Col-
lege have yet to receive an apology
from the hosts for their irresponsible
actions and the repercussions. True
college leaders would say, "Yes, I
erred—I'm sorry," before saying,
"Let's move on." Had this been said,
this letter would not have been writ-
ten.
Instead, these "leaders" have de-
clared that Hanszen is to start caring.
We're sorry, butyouforgotone thing:
most of us have always cared.
Neal Zondlo
Hanszen '92
Susan Can-
Han szen '92
Daniel Bowers
Hanszen '92
etal.
Sounds and sights of night
Guest Column
by Josh Geigerman
In the middle of enzyme catalysis,
at precisely 4:35 Monday morning
October 7,1 heard a loud "clang." I
looked out my window from the
second floor of Jones south just in
time to see a full-sized, red pick-up
truck accelerate down President's
drive and turn off towards Main. I
phoned in the details to the Campus
Police and tried to return to biochem-
istry, but my mind wandered.
I remember one morning last fall
when a friend of mine walked to the
parking space where he had left his
truck only to find the remnants of a
"shatter-proof window. I remem-
bered the spring day my roommate
was much dismayed to find his back
windshield scattered about our col-
lege lot I started to recall that ter-
rible incident at the doorstep of
Brown when at 4:41 my thoughts
were arrested by'the brights of a
campus police car.
As the campo approached, I
wondered if it would take more than
six minutes to "hot wire" a car, but
then another night-sound came
through my window, tearing me from
my pleasant contemplations. It was
the H.P.D. whistling outside the
Hedges, reminding me of the statis-
tics on the front page of the Ch ron icle.
How comforting it is that those statis-
tics are delivered every morning by a
full-size, red pick-up truck.
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.
Zitterkopf, Ann & Howe, Harlan. The Rice Thresher (Houston, Tex.), Vol. 79, No. 8, Ed. 1 Friday, October 11, 1991, newspaper, October 11, 1991; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth245793/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.