illCi iWlU
nr i\lL« !£.« 1919
THE
HBiBPtTM
TWN
CCLLBOB
Soviets propose elections;
deemed ^^political experiment’’
Perfection
Dream or Reality?
The ideal of the perfect newspaper is the dream of all new
editors. I, like previous TWIG editors, envision my reigil as a year
in which the student newspaper will reach an excellence never
before attained in years past. Yet, these high h(^>es for perfection
have caused me to question the actual potential of The TWIG.
How good can we be, in view of our limitations?
Even the wildest ambitions of a new editor cannot make The
TWIG equal to the publications of major universities. We are a
small newspaper operating on a limited bu^et and with a limited
staff. Still, in view of these particular limitations The TWIG can
hold true to its original purpose - to be a newspaper “of the
Students of Meredith College,” despite financial or personnel
restrictions.
Essentially, The TWIG’s excellence lies not in its length or
publication staff. The highest standard of achievement which The
TWIG can possibly reach is its ultimate ability to fully serve the
Meredith student body. Through increased student contribution
and response. The TWIG increases in quality - a characteristic
which is a prime factor in any form of excellence. The quality I
speak of is a reality only if Meredith students are willing to utilize
tteir newspaper as a vital source of campus communication.
Perhaps the first editorial of all editors is essentially the
same, consisting of an evaluation of the present TWIG with
subsequent plans for improvement. And perhaps ‘this pattern’
exists because we all dream the dream of excellence. Yet, this
dream becomes reality only with active student involvement.
Turning the “Impossible Dream” to vivid reality is our task.
MKP
The Technician
In the last week. The Technician, N.C. State’s student
newspaper, has begun to circulate on Meredith’s campus, which
appears to be a new or temporary delivery point. While some
concerned TWIG staff members may wonder if competition for
readers will result, I think that there may be some distinct ad
vantages. First of all, the larger, better-equipped staff of The
Technician are able to produce larger, more frequently published
papers which cover N.C. State news and events as well as up
coming events in the area. This can be quite informative and
interesting. Also, reading The Technician points to a fact many
have known for a long time - the interrelationships oi Meredith
and State students. (To confirm this just check the front page of
the April 6 issue.)
and while The TWIG is the only student newspaper devoted to
covering exclusively Meredith news, events and people, any
economy-conscious student can certainly enjoy those Technician
cutout coupons for movies, pizza, steak and Roy’s.
Renee Keever Davis
THE
MEREDITH
Editor
Assistant Editor
Managing Editor
Reporters
TWtG
Ann
Jeanne
Columnists
Sports Editor
Photographer
Art
Business Manger
Advertising Manager
Circulation Manager
Faculty Advisors
COLLEGE
Mary Katherine Pittman
Unannounced
Kristy Beattie
Nancy Newton, Cathy White,
Carolyn Morton, Sarah Williams,
Earp, Dana Warren, Marlene Debo,
Vivona, Mary Pickett, Valerie Ray,
Suzanne Barr, B.D. Hall
Regine Nickel,
Ann Stringfield
Darla Stephenson
Rymer Shaw
Geri Deines
Leslie Landis
Lura Anthony
Carman Warren
Dr. Tom Parramore,
Mr. Bill Norton
by Regine Nickel
Election in the Soviet
Union? Certainly! After all,
the CCCP is a socialist
democracy!
According to the laws
regulating the Soviet electoral
process, ‘‘social
organizations,” such as
workers’ collectives, army
units, and the like, have the
ri^t to nominate candidates.
The little catch is, that the
local electoral offices,
responsible for the approval of
nominees, only admit one
candidate per office. So far
this has always been the
party’s champion...
The West German weekly
DER SPIEGEL (the mirror)
reported in a recent issue that
a group of Moscow dissidents
has announced the nomination
of their own candidates for the
1979 elections. Two out
standing dissidents have been
nominated by the group for
the race for two seats in the
Soviet parliament; the
historical Roy Medvedev and
the engineer Ludmila
Agapova.
Elections in the (XCP
could better be described as
the party’s bureaucratic
process of appointing out
standing citizens, naturally
party members, to political
positions. This is an honour
almost like the Lenin medal
Medvedev and Agapova
if they will be allowed to run,
will have for their opponents
Natalja Bussmertnov
ballarina of the Bolschoi
theater, and Lev Smirnov,
Head of the Soviet Supreme
Court, respectively.
State and party have
already induced sharp
measures against the group,
which - according to DER
SPIEGEL - calls itself
“Election 1979.” But the
dissidents have not flinched.
They quoted premier and
party leader Brezhmev who in
a recent speech called on all
Soviet citizens to actively
participate in the “socialist
democracy.” The dissidents
claim that it could only be
beneficial to “the further
perfection of socialist
democracy” to nominate two
candidates. They further keep
in touch with Western jour
nalists and write letters to
foreign politicians. DER
SPIEGEL also claims that the
group has founded an illegal
union and is spreading un
derground pamphlets.
Not all dissidents agree on
this line of action. Famous
physicist Andrej Sacharov
called the action “utopical”
and refused to go along.
However, historian
Medvedev still believes that
the idea is at least “an in
teresting political ex
periment.” Accor(ling to the
West German magazine’s
source another such electroal
group has been founded in the
Lithuanian capital Vilnius.
So far all the groups’
candidates have either bron
refused nomination or their
applications have been slowed
down to a grinding halt in the
bureaucratic process, a
favorite communist way of
dealing with unpleasant ap
plications to - anything!
It can plainly be seen that
such elections mean nothing.
Any country can have them. It
is unfortunate for the
democratic idea to allow the
liberty of so many angles of
interpretation. This case in
Moscow shares a case of state
directed elections, one in
terpretation this democratic
process. The dissidents are to
commended for the courage of
so obviously choosing such a
radically different approach
from that of the party, in a
country ruled by the party.
JACK ANDERSON WITH JOE SPEAR
WEEKLY SPECIAL
Capital Comics: Wash
ington’s big-name politi
cians are now giving their
material a Hollywood
touch. Not only are they
sharpening their perfor
mances for the TV camer
as, but they are also using
Hollywood script writers to
help with their speeches.
Hollywood gag writers
are in heavy demand by
the top presidential con
tenders. President Carter
recently demonstrated
what can happen when a
politician tries to write his
own humor. His ill-fated
“Montezuma’s Revenge”
joke in Mexico caused
acute embarrassment
from Mexico City to Wash
ington. No one laughed.
It has now leaked out
that Carter wrote the line
himself. Hereafter, his hu
mor will be screened more
carefully; image-maker
Gerald Rafshoon will de
cide which jokes the presi
dent will tell.
Vice President Walter
Mondale sought the help of
Mort Lachman, the execu
tive director of the hit
comedy series, “All in the
Family.” Lachman
rounded up a few of Holly
wood’s best comedy writ
ers, who conferred pri
vately with Mondale about
supplying him with one-
liners.
Former President Ger
ald Ford hired humorist
Bob Orben as a speech
writer. Overnight, the
quick-witted Orben im
proved Ford’s image as a
speaker.
Of course, some politi
cians are comics without
intending to be. Others
have a sense of humor.
Senate Republican leader
Howard Baker of Tennes
see, for example, ad libs
most of his own jokes. And
Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-
Mass., is quick with off-
the-cuff remarks.
The sharpest wit on Cap
itol Hill is probably Sen.
Bob Dole, R-Kan. Yet even
he sometimes has help
from a gag writer. He uses
Richard Smith, an alum
nus of Harvard’s Hasty
Pudding Club.
Garbage' PoVer:’ 'As
much as one-fourth of the
steam power needed to
heat downtown Harris
burg, Pa., is provided by
the burning of the area’s
garbage. With the help of
some federal funds, a pipe
line was installed which
links the municipal incin
erator to the local power
plant. Steam is transferred
through the pipeline and
used to turn the plant’s
generators. The pipeline
has been operating suc
cessfully for two months.
and now other city govern
ments are considering har
nessing garbage power to
cut back on oil consump
tion.
Endangered Elephants:
Inconsistency on the pant
of the' feiie'ral government
may be contributing to the
extinction of the African
elephant. Last June, the
Interior Department
placed the elephant on; the
endangered species list.
But at the same time, the
government allows nations
who trade in endangered
species to export ivory and
other elephant products
into the United States.
Indeed, the United States
is currently one of the
largest importers of ivory
in the world.
Compus Popcfbock bestsellers
1. My Mother/Myself, by Nancy Friday. (Dell, $2.50.) The
daughter's search for identity.
2. The Women’s Room, by Marilyn French. (Jove/HBJ,
$2.50.) Perspective on women’s role in society: fiction.
3. The Silmarillion, by J.R.R. Tolkien. (Ballantine, $2.95.)
Earliest times of Middle-earth fantasy world: fiction.
4. Bloodline, by Sidney Sheldon. (Warner. $2.75.) Thriller
about heiress who inherits power and intrigue: fiction.
5. Final Payments, by Mary Gordon. (Ballantine, $2.50.)
New Yorker’s problems in rebuilding life after her father’s
death: fiction,
6. Coming into the Country, by John MePhee. (Bantam,
$2.75.) Voyage of spirit and mind into Alaskan wilderness.
7. The Insiders, by Rosemary Rogers. (Avon, $2.50.) Life
and loves of beautiful TV anchorwoman: fiction.
8. How to Flatten Your Stomach, by Jim Everroad
(Price/Stern/Sloan, $1.75.) Rationale and exercises.
9. Backstairs at the White House, by Gwen Bagni & Paul
Dubov. (Bantam, $2.50.) "Downstairs ” view of 8 adminis
trations: fiction.
10. Gnomes, by Wil Huygen. (Peacock, $10.95.) Fanciful
portrayal of gnomes, color illustrations: fiction.
This list was compiled by The Chronicle of Higher Education from
information supplied by college stores throughout the country
March 26, 1979.