The J-TAC (Stephenville, Tex.), Vol. 155, No. 3, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 5, 1998 Page: 2 of 6
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Page 2
Texan Commentary
J-TAC
February 5,1998
Wade Miller
Commentary Editor
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One topic I seem to hear a lot of griping about is the number of parking tickets issued here at Tarleton, and
yes, I too have received a few tickets but not as many as some. I mean, I know a few people who have actually
had a boot (not a cowboy boot) put on their car— twice. Not that there's anything wrong with that, Telly Tmith
(that's not her real name). I should put her real name though, because a few officers owe her at least a "thank-
you" card for paying their salaries these past few years.
Now everyone wants to know where the money is going. Well, Melissa Marshall and I wrote a story about
tickets last spring. Here's a brief recap. Tarleton's police department gets all the money. Surprise! Surprise!
Surprise! Where's Gomer Pyle when you need him? The money is part of the budget, along with money from
the state. So, basically, your ticket money is used to help run the department.
■ But that's not the end of the story. I got a ticket last semester for not displaying my tag. I wanted to appeal it
on the grounds that I own a tag, but that it was just in another car. Besides, I was parked in the correct space. If
I get a ticket for not having my driver's license because I forgot my wallet at home, the judge will dismiss the
ticket. He knows I have a license. That goes for car insurance. If you can prove you had coverage at the time of
the ticket, the judge will let you off. Hey, he did for me, but... of course, that may be because I'm such a great
guy-
I had my whole defense planned, and you know what happened? I put off going down there. By the time I
finally went, the date to file an appeal had passed. I had to argue about something, so i argued about that. I
wanted to know why on the ticket it said I had seven days to pay it or appeal it, when actually I had only five
days because Saturday and Sunday are counted as days, and the office isn't open on those days. What reply did
I get?
"It's in the handbook."
It's in the handbook. How many of us have heard that before? A lot. But how many have even opened that
thing? None. I don't even know what the cover looks like. I bet there's one guy who has read it, and that's just
because he got stuck at the toilet with nothing to read. So I left the place feeling upset since I was out 15 bucks.
Then, this semester someone told me that he received a ticket on the second class day and that all the cars
around him had tickets. I thought that sounded unfair and decided to write a commentary about it. I wanted
answers, so I went to ask Chief Brody. No wait, That's the chief in "Jaws." Our chief is Hooper. Hooper was
also in "Jaws;" he was played by Richard Dreyfuss. I actually talked with Hooper (the police chief, not Hooper
the shark biologist), but let's pretend that it was Brody.
Me: Chief Brody, can I ask you a few questions about parking tickets?
Chief Brody: Make it quick kid; I got a beach to close.
Da dum. Daaaaa dummm. Daaaaaa dummmm.
Me: What's that music? Why are we getting on a boat?
CB: Get on with your questions. I've got people to save.
Me: Why does the ticket say seven days when I actually have only five?
CB: The handbook says five working days and the ticket says seven calendar days. Excuse me. What's that?
A boy has been eaten. My God!
Me: A boy eaten for parking tickets? When did you start writing tickets?
CB: We started on the third class day except for reserved and visitor parking, which we enforce all the time.
Damn, look at the size of that thing! We need a bigger boat.
Me: Why don't you issue an annual tag, so that way there won't be any confusion?
CB: That's a good'idea. I'll look into that if I survive. Oh man, the shark just ate Quint.
Me: Thanks for your time. Could you take me back to land now? I've got a deadline to meet.
Now that I think about Chief Brody's problem, my parking problems could seem rather trivial.
BUT THEY'RE NOT!
I had a different ending to this commentary that read like this: "The only reason we get tickets is because
we're parking in the wrong places, and there's no one to blame except yourself. Now if you had a killer shark
trying to eat. you, that's a different story." I talked about a couple of good experiences I had with the police, but
on Jan^ 28, someone at the J-TAC got a ticket at 9:11 p.m,
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Why would the police be writing tickets at night? The ticket was for not displaying a hang tag. At 9:11 at
night, why do you need a tag? I know it's the rule, but it's not like there was a competition for parking spaces
or that anyone got hurt. She called the police station and asked if an officer wrote the ticket; she was informed
by an officer that a ticket writer wrote it. At 9:11 at night! What's up with that?
This all goes back to the money. That late at night, they aren't enforcing any laws, they're out looking for
money. They need our money to run the department. Their budget is set before the school year starts. They
know how many tickets they need to write to make that budget. This isn't about enforcing the parking regula-
tions. This is about money. They don't care about us or the parking situation. They want money. I like the ser-
vice I get from the police, but I don't like the fact that they are only out looking for money.
Take the new bikes. Why are the police out looking for illegally parked cars? I mean it; in Melissa's story
about the bikers, I read that the police will now find more illegally parked cars with these bikes. Why don't
they look for crooks and stuff like that? I tell you, I know I feel so much safer knowing that Tarleton's finest are
out spending their time on parking violations. At least, the bike cops will bust the crooks when they park their
cars in the wrong spots while they're robbing us at gun point, sorta like busting A1 Capone for tax evasion. I
like it!
And water-proof uniforms? We don't live in the rain forest. It doesn't rain that often. Maybe, they're prepar-
ing to ride through the sprinklers or something. I will keep you posted on our shark situation, but until next
time, be on the look out for those money-eating sharks in the golf carts.
Justin Wayne Beam
Fditor-m-C'hiVf
I am proud of our campus.
Since last fall it has become more open and more accessible to all students than ever before. In nearly every
building on campus automatic doors have been installed, making it possible for disabled students to get to class
more easily without having to rely on the help of others.
I don't believe many people think about the troubles others in this world have. Usually everyone is too con-
cerned about their own problems to bother themselves with those of others. Or, just as bad, they see the diffi-
culties of others but are afraid to show that they notice, because they don't know how to react. I know that I
myself am sometimes guilty of this.
If it weren't for several things that happened to me last spring, I might be even more guilty of it today, and
instead of being proud of the improvements made to our campus, I might have failed to notice them or see
their importance.
I think it was three things that helped open my eyes to the need for automatic doors on campus - a story I
wrote about the "psycle,," a new roommate and a tutoring job in the Teaching and Learning Center.
The psycle is something unique to the world. It is a type of exercise bike that para- and quadriplegics can
use to help condition their legs. A workout on the psycle can get one's heart rate up and provide the aerobic
exercise necessary for good health. The potential in this program conducted in the Wisdom Gym is immense.
The pioneers involved in it today will certainly go down in the annals of medical history.
The second event was that I was assigned a new roommate to share my room in Coed Hall. He was a quad-
riplegic involved in the Psycle Program and the first person in a wheel chair I've known on a regular basis. At
first I was not sure what to say or how to react. I soon learned, though, that he was just like any regular guy.
He was friendly and joked and was basically like any other roommate I've had. We joked; we did things
together. He became like any other friend.
I learned a lot that semester about the difficulties of being in a wheelchair. When we went to the dining hall
or the food court we had to take ramps. I realized that doors can be awkward to open from a sitting position,
especially when one's arms are full. I also learned to look at elevators differently, to see how easy it is to reach
the buttons or turn around in them.
The third thing that helped open my eyes was a part-time job in the Teaching and Learning Center. Among
my duties at the TLC, I helped students take tests and do homework. During the course of this I got to know
these students better. I listened to their complaints about professors, classes and other problems on campus.
One chief thing was the inaccessibility of some of the buildings.
I will be the first to admit that I know very little about what it is like to be handicapped -- no more than I
Know what it is like to be a woman, a minority, a parent or any other situation I haven't experienced myself.
But I do now have some understanding about what it might be like. I do know more than I did a year ago.
With this knowledge I now possess I am able to see more people for who they are rather than for what they suf-
fer from, and I am able to see how something I personally don't need is still something I should be proud of,
because it is something that makes my school a better place.
•W i *\U rr£
m
Randy Jackson
" Writer
Television, the magic box, can be found in nearly every living room or bedroom across the country.
Television fills many roles in our world—teacher, entertainer and baby-sitter. The box gives us entertainment in
the forms of laughter at the comic exploits of "Frasier," sadness with the final episode of "M*A*S*H*," imagi-
nation in "Xena: Warrior Princess," adventure in "Babylon 5," discussion in shows like "Jerry Springer" or
something to make you think about the issues of'life like "Star Trek." The question I bring forth is: does televi-
sion reflect the views of society or does society reflect the views of television? It has become the 20th Century
paradox, like the chicken and the egg.
Television has a power over us, so much that most of us have become mindless slaves. We live with it,
despite how much we wish we could live without it. In'my opinion, the attitudes of society reflect what is on
television. We learn from it, we are entertained by it, and we live from it. You can take different TV shows and
you can feel the attitude of the people by what the show is about. Take "The Young And The Restless," a soap
opera which depicts the 'adventures' of a selected group of people in a make-believe town. Questions such as
who's sleeping with whom, who's the father or others keep us hooked to the show that is supposed to reflect
normal human society today. I'm sorry, but the world is riot a soap opera. Most of us are not young and others,
like me, aren't restless. Then there's "Sally Jesse Raphael," a talk show dealing with the topics that we are sup-
posed to be discussing in daily life. I'm sorry, but I don't go around talking about my family problems, relation-
ship problenis'or whether I'vvarit a makeover.' ' ! " >>'««! v < •
Look af fhe 'scie'n^Mfi^n phenomenon fiTfie X-Files." It has FBI agents Mulder and Scully fighting agMnst
a vast world conspiracy. How many of us began to believe in a conspiracy of some sort after this show became
popular? Sometimes I think I do, like the Oklahoma City bombing. I know truth from fabrication, but with the
television press, do I really? "Babylon 5" reflects the human capacity to grow and expand, but in the same ways
we always have, with a motive. It portrays humanity as a race with only one motive in exploring the universe,
power. Even in the year 2260, humanity can't stop war, disease, hunger, racism. No matter how hard we try to
hide it, our faults are always with us. That really doesn't give me hope for the future until I look at the meaning
behind the meaning. It's the idea that we still rage on, trying to better ourselves, with our stubborn curiosity for
the unknown and the fact that no matter what human faith and hope always manage. Humanity has always man-
aged, no matter what tribulation has come our way.
There are other shows which explore more radical beliefs in society. "Ellen" paints the life of a lesbian
woman in today's "homophobic" world. Personally, I find "Ellen" ethically, morally and Biblically wrong, but
the show is supposed to reflect our growing "tolerance" for all people. Those who don't tolerate are branded as
close-minded and uneducated. No one can tell me what to tolerate, not even TV, especially if it's something that
conflicts with the word of God. Then that leads into how television portrays Christians. Christians are always
viewed as Catholics or as a bunch of right-wing wackos. Not all Christians are Catholics( I am not) and not all
Christians go to a Catholic church. "Promise Keepers" are considered a threat to the nation by some in the
press. What harm is done by a group of men praying!?! These are men from all walks of life, from all parts of
America. But no, we are supposed to believe we are our own God, according to such shows like "Power
Rangers" or "Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman" or anything new by Disney. I can't believe that we are in control of
our lives. I can feel something greater, God, around me and with me. TV is just trying to tell us what to think,
what to believe, what to say and how to act.
A small group of Hollywood executives are trying to tell a whole world what to do and how to behave. They
try to rewrite history and pass off their sins as truth. I can't stand around and watch TV destroy the moral fiber
of this nation. Moral anarchy is what they are teaching us, not moral responsibility. If TV is supposed to teach
us something, let it teach something that's good for all, like loving the family, not loving sin. But many of us
are so glued to our set that we can't reach for the remote and hit the off button. No wonder so many people in
our country are overweight. We need to wake up and take the power back. So try turning off the TV and enjoy
the world for what God created it to be and not for what TV wants it to be.
CORRECTION
The following corrections
are for the story, "Alumni
fundraising," on page 5 in
the Jan. 29th edition of the
J-TAC.
Cynthia Carter's position
is Program Specialist for
Annual Giving.
The money raised is for
unrestricted funds.
The name of the fund is
the Greater Tarleton
Annual Fund.
Last semester's phone-
athon drew in more than
$9000.
Nine out of the 16
students are returning
from last semester.
J-TAC
B Tirlrtim rvxtii Weekly New
Editor-in-Chief
Justin Wayne Beam
Managing Editor
Kisty Hoffman
Sports Editor
Chris McBride
Production Managers
Charles Crittenden, Jr.
Melissa Marshall
Photographer
i Sonya Whisenant
Robert Vaughan
Shadoe McGhee
Angela Brewer
Amy McDonald
Commentary Editor
Wade Miller
Photography Editor
Joe Prado
Advertising Manager
Cathryne Zacharias
Web Editor
John Kerby
Staff Writers
Kathryn Forst
Valerie Harris
Brian Botch
Jeff Daskam
Adviser
Rachel Cru thirds
Jeff Doty
Randy Jackson
Delia Jeffus
Web Address
http://www.tarleton.edu/organizations/j-tac/
J-TAC is published on Thursdays during (he regular semester with the exception of university
holidays and examination periods.
The editorials express the opinions of the J-TAC staff. Other articles in the opinions section do not
necessarily express the views of this university or this newspaper.
Letters to the editor must contain a name, phone number and copy of student ID, However, the
name may be withheld by request if the previous information is given. Deadline for letters is 5 p.m.
Monday.
Non-profit organization, Bulk Rate USPS No. 133, Stephenville, TX 76401.
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The J-TAC (Stephenville, Tex.), Vol. 155, No. 3, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 5, 1998, newspaper, February 5, 1998; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth141918/m1/2/: accessed May 7, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Tarleton State University.