Newspapers / Grimsley High School Student … / Feb. 28, 1964, edition 1 / Page 2
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i Page Two High Life February 28, 1964 Letters To The Editor Grimsley Senior High School Greensboro, North Carolina February 20, 1964 Editor, HIGH LIFE Grimsley Senior High School Greensboro, North Carolina Your recent editorial “On the GAA” so astonished me that I can not refrain from comment. The original feature article “Nui sances Arise in GAA as Basketball Starts,” although pooFly written and in bad taste, can be defended on the grounds that student jour nalists are in the process of learn ing and therefore cannot avoid and rarely achieve professional calibre. In charity, one can assume, then, that the article was included through ignorance of what it im plied, through failure to read it with xmderstanding, or through simple oversight. The editorial, however, chose to defend rather than retract. Failure to offer a staightforward, unquali fied apology for having published false or misleading information is incompatible with honest journa lism. HIGH LIFE has placed itself in the position of defending the indefensible; and as the editorial illustrates, such defense can only take refuge in fallacious argument and unseemly ridicule of one’s critics. Let us examine these fallacies and this ridicule: 1. The editorial refers to the “un witting inaccuracy of the quotes which appeared in the story.” Now unless the staff falsely as sumed or wrongly believed that the quotes were true, verbatim accoimts of actual statements, the inaccuracy was deliberate and purposeful, as fictionalized quotes necessarily are. Council Corner SUGGESTION 1; “The traffic squad needs to be abolished or straightened out to help move the traffic. Generally they spend their time smoking under the walkways which is against the rules anyway. They are not setting an example and are not representing our school in an honorable fashion.” “I have yet to see a rainy day when the so-called traffic squad and socialites did not congregate around the South entrance of the main building. If they want to puff they should move where they don’t form a bottleneck.” “Keep the smokers out of the entrance to the main building on rainy days.” ANSWER: These problems were brought up and discussed by the Student Council. Jerry Jemigan is going to talk to the members of the traffic squad and ask them not to smoke while directing traffic, and to keep people moving, especi ally on rainy days.” SUGGESTION 2: “At this school you have “Go Whirlies” and decals for cars. I think it would be a good idea if someone checked into the small replication of the Victory Flag to be flown on the radio an tennas of cars. I think there would be a great demand for these flags.” ANSWER: This suggestion was proposed to the Projects Committee of the Student Council. However, another project has already been chosen. 'This is a good suggestion for a Service Club project for next year. SUGGESTION 3: This suggestion was quite long so it wiU not be quoted, but it was concerned with the idea that our library was too small. The Student Council realized this was a very good point. How ever, at this time there is not much the Council can do about it. It is up to the administration. 2. The editorial states that HIGH LIFE cannot “be held account able for an unintended slander,” but under the law, one who slanders unintentionally may in deed be held accountable. Lack of malice may reduce the penal ty one pays, but it does not erase the guilt. 3. The editorial claims that the article was intended to “expound on the foibles of girls in general” through reference to a “typical if fictitious girl’s basketball team,” yet the next paragraph implies that the GAA is a minor ity group, “sensitive to public ity.” Is this not contradictory? How can a minority group typ ify anything? 4. 'The editorial emphasized that fictitious names were used in the article, conveniently ignoring the fact that Mrs. Lambert was mentioned by name, although the comments attributed to her were made up out of whole cloth. The GAA is one of the most ac tive organizations at GHS, and its members frequently represent us in other towns. Why should its members not protest an article which implies that its players are foolish incompetents and that its adviser is having difficulty coping with “nuisances”? High Life is the voice of GHS, and I assume it is sent to many other schools through newspaper exchange. Can we be proud to send this article and this editorial into the commimity and across the state? Do we really view every organization in the school as “a minority group,” fair game when satire season opens? Mrs. Carolyn L. Lithgo Former Editor of High Life EDITORIAL NOTE— 1. We were advised that the story was a tme one and that students involved were aware of its being: written. We made the mistake of not checking the story out further. 3. HIGH LIFE does not feel morally ac countable because the staff thought the sketch was true and had no in tention of degrading an organization with such a proven record. The idea that such an article could damage the GAA seems somewhat farfetched. 3. The story did not expand on the foi bles of GAA, a minority: the editorial expounded on the foibles of girls in general, who are not a minority group but some of whom are members of GAA. 4. The fictitious names point to the fact that the article was, as explained in the editorial, of a general nature in its theme. The setting, using the GAA and the name of its advisor, served to orient the story to GHS. Again HIGH LIFE would like to apologize for misquoting Mrs. Lambert and for failing to fully check out the entire article. It goes without saying that had the article been investigated —and this is our mistake—the story would not have been printed. HIGH LIFE Published Semi-Monthly by the Students of Grimsley Senior High School Greensboro, N. C. Founded by the Clctss of 1921 Revived by the Spring Journalism Class of 1937 Second Class Postage Paid Greensboro, N. C. Editor-in-Chief Betty Pritchard Managing Editor Martin Hester Business Manager John Gaddy News Editor — Jane Turpin Feature Editor Mike Cowhig Sports Editor Charlie Perry Photographer - Ralph Beaver Associate Sports Editor Paula Main iSliiMBKil FORUM: YOUTH JURY In past weeks there has been much discussion on the value or lack of value in the organization of a Youth Jury in Greensboro. To help students understand the pro gram, its pros and cons, the Youth Jupf is discussed below by Betty Pritchard, editor; Charlie Perry, sports editor; Jane Turpin, news editor; and Martin Hester, manag ing editor. CHARLIE: Greensboro’s Youth Jury is patterned after the one in Jacksonville, Florida. One type of punishment given to a boy convicted of drunken driv ing was to sweep uptown side walks while wearing a sign say ing, “I am 16 and was drunk.” I think punishment like that is cruel and inhuman. The person wiU be more bitter against the punishment than he wiU be con cerned with the crime. MAR'TIN: I agree. I think that kind of punishment is too embarras sing. BETTY: No punishment is fun, and it shouldn’t be. If a person was drunk, I don’t think sweeping sidewalks would be too cruel for him. He should be embarrassed, not because of the punishment, but because of the crime. If this embarrassment helps correct the situation, it is good. JANE: If the punishment is too cruel, which is very unlikely, the Judge can modify it. The punish ment is based on the attitude and previous record of the guil ty. Anyway, I don’t think a per son should be any more ashamed of picking up trash than sitting in a jaU, as he might do other wise. MARTIN: 'The crime that was com mitted is between the defendant and the court offciials, and I don’t think it should concern the public. BETTY: I think the crime does in volve the public, because most misdemeanors, which are all the Youth Jury considers, are against the public, if only just one per son. JANE: Also, a person from 16 to 19 shouldn’t be protected but should know that other people don’t like what he has done. CHARLIE: A reduction in crime would not be from education or respect for the law but from a terror of punishment. I think they should stiffen up the drivers’ test instead. JANE: Having or not having a Youth Jury will probably not change the reasons for commit ting a crime. A person either has respect for the law or he doesn’t. BETTY: In Jacksonville punish ment would include writing themes. Sometimes a person would break down in the middle of writing one and would realize what is right. In this ways he would gain a respect for the law and for what is right. Besides, if there was no fear of punishment, the crime rate would be tremend ous. MARTIN: The judge is much more qualified than any teenager. Why would he want an opinion? What good could immature teenagers do? BETTY: The jurors would be as mature as the defendant and could see through a young person faster than a judge could. Teen agers could understand the de fendant and would be able to tell if he was really sorry. The Jacksonville judge said that he would never have thought of some of the punishments given by the jirry and that crimes had been reduced unbelievably. One of the major purposes of the Youth Jury is to help the judge, as weU as to help reduce crimes. MARTIN: If the main reason for the organization' of the Youth Jury is to educate teenagers in couit and penal procedure, why not have only classes in law and ji^ duty for teenagers, thus eliminating any possiblbe influ ence on an older and more ex perienced judge. CHARLIE: How can the jurors grasp the whole situation in one afternoon’s work. BETTY: First, classes wouldn’t be as interesting as actual experi ence. JANE: Also, adult jurors do not attend classes before serving on the jury. BETTY: On one Saturday at the end of each month, all jurors for the next month do attend a class to prepare for duty. Any one can observe any afternoon after school whenever he wants to. Teenagers will learn a lot more than adult jurors know and wll be better prepared. 'The judge would not send in a jury that was not ready. Besides, one jury, of six people, would serve three days during one week. I think the Youth Jury wili become a very effective and a very important organization in Greensboro, and all students who participate will greatly benefit from the program.
Grimsley High School Student Newspaper
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Feb. 28, 1964, edition 1
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