CAROLINA JOURNAL April 5, 1967 Page 7
m
Point Blank By Larry Keith
dn
Garner Versus Gaither, A Cheice, Not An Echo
Garner versus Gaither presents
a choice, not an echo. The two
candidates for student government
president aren’t much alike.
Their background, their ideas,
even their methods of campaigning
are vastly dissimilar. For this
reason, I sat them down before
me last week, Larry Garner on
Thursday and John Gaither on
aJ Friday. Both talked like they
1 ii were after votes, which is good.
First, Mr. Garner.
Larry Garner is the candidate
ne of the people, he says, without
‘ party affiliation. He has rede-
, corated the campus with a dis-
rrj play of campaign material. It
,ffi| is, one is expected to assume,
on.j a symbol of deep rooted support.
Chj Then, Mr. Gaither.'
eol John Gaither is the candidate
of the University Party, which
I has replaced the Student Party
tail as the primary political body on
dill campus.. He does not believe in
dir
“one upmanship” campaigning --
the can-you-top-the-size-of-this-
poster method. It is, one is
expected to assume, a symbol
of tact and maturity.
Has Experience
Garner is in his third year
as a dtudent government official.
Last spring he was elected presi
dent of the junior class with an
impressive 78% of the vote. This
year, he served as chairman of
the Freshman Advisory Council
. and, as a member of the legis-
lature, was chairman of the finance
committee.
“Experience is very important,”
he says, “and for this reason I
j think I am well qualified. This
I working knowledge I have means
;a lot. And too, as an independent
A! candidate, my only obligation is
^|to the student body. I’m not
saying that John would put his
party first it he were elected
but it is obvious that he would
.ave certain obligationstofulfill.”
Garner is quick to point out
his opponent’s lack of experience.
He says, “Because John does
not have very much experience
in an elective office he hasn’t
been in a position where he could
make people unhappy. A lot of
people see John as a nice guy,
which he is. But after that,
not too much is really known
IS far as his ability as president
is concerned.”
ler
Wants To Serve
Despite his lack of party back
ing, Garner is confident, very
confident. “I have had so many
promises of support that I can’t
help but feel this way,” he says.
“1 think a strong indication of
my support is the large number
|0f banners and signs you see
^jiJaround. Now realize that they
, „|are all hand made and it takes
mours to construct them, too.”
Garner feels also that he would
io"|be more dedicated to the job.
“I guess the main reason I’m
jranning is my desire to serve
'al.this school. It’s my second home
'inland, very seriously, I love it.
II know that by being elected pres-
lilident I could do a great deal to
"Slhelp make this a great univer-
oosity. ”
I Such as?
„ji Garner supports a mid daybreak
tjjbn Tuesday and Thursday instead
the traditional one on Wed
nesday, a continuation of legis-
mittees and a faculty or admin
istrative member on all student
committees. Many of the trou
bles which often arise could be
solved through more efficient
means of communication.”
Not A Charmer
jl|ative control on the student acti-
Garner does not look much like
a presidential candidate. He has
neither the charm of Gus Pso-
madakis (65-66) nor the business
like quality of a Tim Britton
(66-67). He does have a back
ground of experience and success.
Freshman orientation and student
registration were never smoother
than when under his direction.
As chairman of the finance com
mittee he did much to straighten
out a messy situation which had
seen almost every campus organ
ization with an overexpenditure
when the year began.
It is ironic that Gaither is
opposing Garner, his good friend
and the person who has much to
do with his involvement with cam
pus politics.
“Larry is one of the first friends
I made out here,” says Gaither,
at 25 a year older than Garner.
‘Tt was he who asked me to
serve as vice president of the
junior class to fill the vacancy
when it occurred and it was he
also who asked me to serve on
his finance commute. Now I’m
running against him for president.
It’s rather ironic.”
This is Gaither’s first try for
elective office, although his cam
pus background also includes two
years as a member of the student
court (by presidential appoint
ment), where he is in his second
year as chief justice.
It is an interesting turn of
events that prompted Gaither’s
decision to run for president.
Petition Helped
“Last fall,” he explains, “sev
eral students asked me if I would
consider running in opposition to
Larry since it was generally ac
cepted that he would make himself
a candidate. Then I began some
soul searching as : to whether I
was capable and qualified. When
it became apparent that Larry
would indeed be the only candi
date, I thought about it even more
seriously. The clincher came
when 25 students in various lea
dership positions on campus signed
a petition asking me to run. I
agreed.”
So Gaither, too, has a “man
date from the people” of sorts,
one which represents an impres
sive list, of backers. In fact.
Garner was rather disturbed with
some of those who spoke out in
favor of Gaither. He had been
counting on them, himself.
“I know that I don’t have as
much experience as Larry,” Gai
ther freely admits. ‘T recognize
also that as FAC chairman he
was very close to the largest
group of students on campus --
the freshmen. Still, I feel confi
dent that with effective campaign
ing and wise deliberation on the
part of the students, I can win.”
Has ‘^More Tacf
ji'ity fees and more communication
^between the student body and the
, ifeculty and administration.
g[if Of the latter he says, “I
, jfould like to see a student on
jjjH faculty and administrative com
lej
Gaither feels that he learned
a lot in his one year on the
legislature, enough to merit his
election. Also he holds that “I
see myself as having more tact
than my opponent, who tends to
be too argumentative. In a po
sition such as student government
president where image is so im
portant, I feel that I could best
represent the students.”
Gaither, recognizing that he is
not as well known as his oppo
nent, has relied on pictorial pos
ters, an idea used to success
last spring by student government
vice president Bud Stokely,
a strong supporter.
“We decided to stay away from
flamboyant campaigning tactics,”
says Gaither. “We aren’t going
to make any attempt to match
the size or number of our op
ponent’s banners. We are counting
on personal communication with
the voters.
apathy. Personally, I am a little
tired of students’ not getting in
volved with any of our activities.”
Unlike Garner, Gaither did not
have a platform at the time of
our discussion.
“Suggestions from the legis
lature and student body are more
important than anything I might
want,” says Gaither. “I feel
that the job of the president is
representing the ideas and wishes
of the students.”
Wants Interest
Lacks Platform
However, he too lends support
to the Tuesday-Thursday break
suggestion.
“Maybe I’m cutting my own
throat by seeking a very large
voter turnout but I see this as
one way of eliminating a problem
of major concern to me, student
One idea, which he does not
claim to be entirely his own.
would represent his platform if
he had one.
“I would like to see us take
greater interest in the community
outside of the university,” he says.
“We should cultivate the business
and cultural groups which would
be so invaluable to aiding our
growth. This could be done by
a select group of students repre
senting the university to these
people at their meeting a s speak
ers. ”
In a sense, Gaither is running
scared. He feels that he has
not quite captured the support
which Garner claims. Neither
have considered defeat however.
Both will remain somewhere in
student government should the e-
lection go the other way.
Although neither would accept
my thesis, I have an idea that
the winner will win by a surpris
ingly large margin. I also have
an idea of who the winner will be.
Letters To The Editor
Lack Of Knowledge And
Violations Are Problems
Mr. Editor:
Since my appointment as Pub
licity Chairman two weeks ago,
I have become aware of the pro
blems this position faces.
Of primary importance is the
lack of knowledge of publicity rules
and the consequent violations of
these rules. I realize that my ap
pointment came late in the semes
ter. However, I am endeavoring to
make these rules available to all
persons involved in publicity of
any kind. Because of an incomplete
listing of clubs and their Presi
dents, I have been unable to get
these rules to the proper author
ities. I should like to ask all
candidates for any Student Govern
ment office and all presidents and
chairmen of campus clubsandfun-
ctions to stop at the Union desk
and pick up a copy of these rules.
They may also pick up those pos
ters which have been taken down
because of a violation or because
they are outdated.
Posters which have been left at
the Union desk will remain there
for one week. If they are not claim
ed within that time, they will be
discarded.
It is my hope that this letter
will serve to clear up some of
the contusion about publicity. If
there are further questions as to
the interpretation of various pub
licity rules, I will be more than
happy to clarify them to the best
of my ability.
Nita Bi'own
Chairman, Publicity Committee
Students Si^n Endorsement
Letter For John Gaither
Mr. Editor:
We the following students endorse
John Gaither for President of the
Student Body:
Tim Britton, President, Student
Body.
Bud Stokely, Vice-President,
Student Body.
Frank Jones, Chairman, Union
Ann Mashburn; Student Court
Judge
Robbie Snipes, Co-Captain, Bas
ketball Team.
Frank Caton, Chairman, Student
Defense Agency.
Sam Scott, Student Court Judge.
Bill Shuford, Chairman, Student
Party.
Charleen Crumpley, Vice-Chair
man, Student Party
Larry McAfee, Chairman, Uni
versity Party.
Pat McNeely, President, Barn
stormers.
Hank Rivers, Junior Representa
tive.
John Lafferty, Sophomore Re
presentative , Vice-Chairman
Elect, Union
Earleen Mabry, Junior Represen
tative, Miss UNC-C.
Bill Billups, Vice-President,
Sophomore Class.
University Party
Support For Its
Solicits
Candidates
Mr. Editor:
Today, tomorrow, and Friday,
you will vote to choose the future
leaders of your student govern
ment. We of the University Party
have made a conscientious effort
to recruit the finest possible can
didates available ti fill these jxisi-
tions, for this, along with stimu
lating interest in student govern
ment, is the purpose of the Uni
versity Party. During the past
week, I am sure you have read and
heard slogans like “DON’t VOTE
THE PARTY — VOTE THE MAN.”
the fact that not once in the past
year did the members of the Uni
versity Party “block vote” in the
Student Legislature.
In behalf of John Gaither, Perry
Moser, and all the other U. P.
candidates we hope that you will
vote U. P. -- but regardless of
whom you vote for, DO VOTE.
Larry McAfee
Chairman of the University
Party
Dwayne Spitzer, Sophomore Re
presentative, Chairman Elect
Union.
Perry Moser, Student Court Judge
Cindy Trexler, Sophomore Re
presentative.
Paul Boswell, Legislative Re
presentative to Publications
Board.
Jean Hudspeth, Senior Repre
sentative.
Gerri Vest, Secretary, SNEA.
Bud Stokely
Vice - chairman of
University Party
the
George Elam, Past Vice-Pres
ident, Senior Class
Susan Osborne, Student Court
Judge
■ Kay Troutman
Lane Hurley
Corny Stillwell
Barbara Babits
Brenda Schaeffer, Senior Re
presentative.
Bob Giddings, Treasurer, U.P.
Marilou Ingram
Janice Hagood
We of the University Party agree!
All students who are interested
in student government agree! That
is the reason we are so proud of
our candidates, because we are
sure that after you, the voter, have
considered all the candidates indi
vidually, you will agree that your
U. P. candidates are worthy of your
support. And you may restassured
that they will represent you as
individuals. Indicative of this is
Wilson Can’t Run So UP
Backs Keith For Pub Board
-Mr. Editor:
It has come to my attention that
the University Party’s candidate
for Student Representative to the
Publications Board, Phil Wilson,
will be ineligible to hold this pos
ition. Mr. Wilson has decided to
accept the job of Business Man
ager for the annual and therefore
cannot sever in body capacities.
The U. P.’s candidate for this
position is Larry Keith.
Dwayne .Spitzer
Chairman, Elections Committee