Newspapers / The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.) / Feb. 10, 1995, edition 1 / Page 3
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Jfcbniarp 10, 1905 LETTERS Continued from page 2 ments necessary to become an Editorial Page Editor. What if the other candidate for the position had also taken English 110 and passed? Until we feel the overwhelm ing student voice calling us to that super competitive pinnacle of Editorialship, we will resign ourselves to expressing our ob viously elitist opinions on this humble little bulletin board while we dream about being able to apply the strict standards of the selection of the Guilfordian Editorial Editor to the selection of Senators. We could cut away the shiftless, unrespon sive, ignorant, and generally out of touch students who are our leaders, elected into their honorless positions by the uncaring masses, because a returnee from abroad who almost made it to a Senate meeting has shown us the light! Or we could keep accomplishing things and continuing the educated discussions in the Senate meet ings and beyond with the same group of people. Hmm, tough choice! T In the January 20, 1995 Guilfordicin Daphne Lewis, your [former] Co-Editor in-Chief, complained that workshops and other programs commemorating Dr. Mar- A Classic mistake Phoebe Jewett Guest Writer Many people don't care, many people don't even know, but it is an indisputable fact that here at Guilford there is no Clas sics department. (I'm sorry, but two intro ductory classes do not constitute a depart ment). Despite the apathy of some students, I feel that simply as a matter of principle, if for no other reason, Guilford should main tain a Classics department. Consider for a moment Guilford's self-definition. The Guilford College Statement of pur pose reads: "Guilford is an educational community which strives to integrate per sonal, physical and spiritual growth through participation in rich traditions. These traditions include a liberal arts edu cation..." To begin with, liberal arts is a translation of "artes liberales," which is Latin. Moreover, the definition of liberal arts is: the study of the subjects in the TRIVIUM and the QUADRIVIUM. The TRIVIUM, which includes grammar, logic and rhetoric, is habitually taught in Latin and with Latin materials. Therefore by definition, due to its lack of a Classics de partment, Guilford is not providing the lib eral arts education that it claims to. Many students greet this lapse in the Guilford curriculum with apathy, but there are also those who care. Here is a sam pling of student quotes: "Classics are a vital part of the educa tional experience. In order to have a more well-rounded academic community, Guil ford urgently needs to expand..." "How does Guilford plan to stress the tin Luther King's birthday were spread out over two weeks rather than being held on the "holiday." During last year's de bate over whether Guilford should ob serve the holiday, she noted, "The side in favor argued that if students were to have the day off, then more people would be able to attend workshops." She and oth ers who may be concerned should bear in mind that "the side" favoring the holi day consisted of persons with varying viewpoints. Some argued as Ms. Lewis so stated, but some others want the free dom to participate in off-campus activi ties or do whatever one does on other such occasions. The King Center in Atlanta encourages people to do volunteer work in their com munities to celebrate King's birthday. Whatever we do at Guilford, planning is open to everyone and was coordinated this year by the Dean of Students' office. Those concerned should come to the plan ning meetings, voice their views, and help organize the activities. As one of your headlines read in that same issue, "You are responsible for your own happiness." Sincerely, Adrienne Israel Associate Professor of History and Intercultural Studies fundamentals of learning when there is no Classics department?" "I agree that we should have a Classics department added...l had been thinking about taking a semester or two at St. John's in Santa Fe to experience Classics...if there were such a department here I wouldn't have to leave." Should anyone even be considering leaving Guilford because they have a de sire to learn? It seems not, especially if the desire in question is for Latin. Latin allows for learning in a way that no other course can because it provides the funda mental base for more thorough compre hension in other courses. There is the inevitable question of the budget There is no sense in having a Clas sics department if there are not adequate professors running it And they require salaries and that requires money and that is something Guilford does not have much of. But, Guilford does have many curious students who do not deserve to be robbed of the opportunities only Classics can pro vide The money question is one of priorities, not actual amounts. For example, are the beautification projects on campus (such as the brick walkways) more important than the education being offered to the stu dents? Maybe; only the administration really has the power to decide. In closing, I would like to ask if it is any wonder that some students appear to mill aimlessly about campus? After all our motto, "Molior sapientam atque virtutem," has been given to us in Latin, with no means by which to translate it. (OPINION# "GIVE ME THE LIBERTY TO KNOW, TO UTTER, AND TO ARGUE FREELY ACCORDING TO MY CON SCIENCE, ABOVE ALL LIBERTIES" — JOHN MILTON Why Gingrich was right S. Scott Spagnola Staff Writer The history of the balanced budget amendment debate is often muddled, with blame shooting across both sides of the aisle for the result of runaway spending. When Ronald Reagan came to office in 1981, he was serious about balancing the budget. Unlike Bill Clinton, he was vocal in his support for such an amendment. Un fortunately, the power was not in the president's hand. The conservatives, includ ing Reagan, believed that the way to a bal anced budget was by cutting entitlements and social spending. The liberals across the aisle offered little support for such an amendment but believed that the deficit should be reduced by cutting military spend ing. There is obviously a clash of interest here, but it goes one step further. The con servatives wanted to increase military spending, and the liberals wanted to increase social spending and entitlements. In the end, the congress cut very little but authorized spending to please both sides. Defense spending increased marginally, while en titlements soared. The red ink began to mount. Newt Gingrich is smart enough to realize that the debate focused too much on parti san issues. By not revealing what the Re publicans intend to cut in order to achieve a balanced budget, he removed the partisan debate as an obstacle. He realized that the fiscal-disaster-in-the-making cannot even begin to be tackled if conflicting interest WHAT THEY ARE SAYING "Although we know that God is merciful, please God, do not have mercy for those people who created this place." Elie Wiesel at the Auschwitz death camp which was liberated fifty years ago by the Soviets. Mr. Wiesel is a Nobel laureate who was a teenager when he was brought to the Nazi compound where over one million were killed "There were two radical movements in the 60s. One of them nobody ever writes about, and that's the one Gingrich came out of." Conservative David Horowitz on the Speaker of the House "If women can some day take the pills at home, abortion will become a truly private act." One of many doctors participating in the trial use of Ru-486 the so-called "morning after" pill which could, if approved by the FDA, replace surgical abor tion in the United States "The narrative of the trial communicates nothing admirable about our cul ture." North Carolina State University professor Robert Schrag about the O.J. Simpson trial " At a certain point you have to wonder what it means to be alive in a city like this...can death be worse than Grozny?" Anya Pletnova, a resident of the war-torn Chechen capital after an intensi fied campaign of attacks by the Russians GCt )t &u(l(orbum precluded a balanced budget amendment. Passing the BB A first made far more sense. Once the BB A becomes law, then the parti san debates about what to cut can take place, but the end result will be forced, real action on reducing the deficit and eventually the debt. How much of a problem is the deficit? Consider this. The Republicans claim they can balance the budget by the year 2002. Eliminating the deficit is the easiest part. After the deficit is tackled, the nation is must then begin paying off the debt accumulated over the years, plus interest. The debt is in the trillions of dollars. The interest on this enormous sum grows exponentially. Once the deficit is eliminated, the nation will have to set aside part of the budget to pay this debt plus interest. This will, in effect, be mandatory spending, year after year, prob ably for decades, until the accumulated debt is erased. This will limit where money can be spent, resulting in even more partisan debates; but unfortunately, this is die stark reality of the situation that at sometime must be addressed. The BBA is the first step towards that larger goal of eliminating the debt. With out the elimination of deficit spending, the debt will soon become insolvent. Gingrich understood this, and he was right to prevent partisan budget battles from destroying this rare opportunity. After the amendment passes the Senate and is ratified, then we can have the partisan debate over how that goal should be achieved. The fiscal conse quences of trivializing and ignoring this is sue would have been grave indeed. 3
The Guilfordian (Greensboro, N.C.)
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Feb. 10, 1995, edition 1
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