University of Virginia Library

Letters To The Editor:

Torch Escapade Draws Mixed Comment

I cannot express strongly
enough my contempt for the
actions recently perpetrated by
the editorial board and lackeys of
Rapiet magazine. Whether they
actually "stole" the Olympic flame
is far from clear: but that they
claimed to have done so, in a very
demeaning search for publicity, is
itself outrageous from many points
of view. Specifically, however, I am
anxious to express my chagrin for
the outraged sensibilities of the
foreign students at this university.

Having participated in activities
of the International Student Club
at this university, and having lived
and worked closely with European
students in Scandinavia, Western
and Eastern Europe, I have some
idea of how European students
view their confreres in the United
States and of how they arrive at
their opinions. Many of their
conceptions are, to be sure, rigidly
and unjustly stereotypical, but not,
I fear, without some truth.

To be less than precise,
European students are impressed
with the way many American
students seem to allow their lives to
be externalized and trivialized in
the thoughtless pursuit of
glamorous affluence, superficiality,
and security, a pursuit which is
informed (deformed?) by a lack of
awareness and concern for the
existence and conditions of other
peoples in the world.
Representative of the comments I
have heard is that of a young Swede
who remarked: "Many of you
Americans seem to lack breadth, or
'internationality,' of perspective;
and in your personal lives, you
content yourselves with
bonhomie, rather than depth of
personal relationships:" or, again,
that of a Parisian law student, who
said: "What impresses me about
American women, this is that
they do not seem to want to grow
up, but prefer to remain
adolescents."

In reply to these and other
criticisms, which are largely and
egregiously untrue, I could point
out that a similar alienation
between generations obtains in the
States as in Sweden, and for
precisely the same objections which
were voiced by the Swede. And in
answer to the Frenchman, I could
allude to the political sophistication
and fervor of American students,
many of whom, men and women
alike, are also engaged in the search
for more effective participation in
the higher educational process.
(Naturally, the revolutionary
predispositions of the Frenchman
were inflamed by the word
"participation.")

But how does one answer, or
apologize to, the foreign students
on this campus when confronted
with a paradigmatic instance of the
thoughtless pursuit of glamor, the
lack of any breadth of perspective
whatever, and brutal, philistinian
insensitivity to the feelings of other
peoples?

I beseech the editorial board of
Repier to submit an apology, in the
contemporary sense of that word,
to the International Students Club.
And I submit to the university
community that the lackeys of
Rapier have violated sacred honor
in a much profounder sense that we
customarily, blithely, and
superficially use that much abused
word.

Humor Delight

I was delighted to hear of the
"Rapiers" one-hundred mile run to
the steps of the Mexican Embassy
in Washington, D.C. (I say, did they
make it safely once past their front
doors?) The story appeared on the
10:30 news here in Honolulu - a
witty comment, whether you know
it or not, on the report which
immediately preceded it, telling of
further clashes with the Police in
various University Campuses across
the world, particularly at the University
of California, Berkeley (with
scenes of Berkeley students
gathered around a bonfire performing
war dances, beating sticks
together, and other such impressive
stuff.)

I am glad to hear, as are many,
I'm sure, that the grand old tradition
of college humor is still very
much alive in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Practical Joke

A pathetic psychological
phenomenon was displayed by a
group of individuals at the
University last week in the disguise
of a practical joke. It is important
to note the fact that it was the
behavior of a group. Individuals are
rarely willing to perform or to take
responsibility for such behavior.

By stealing the Olympic torch
(or purporting to steak, it makes no
difference), a certain group has
gained temporary prominence in
the eyes of others. They have also
been permitted to regard
themselves as comic heroes. The
heroes' goal is momentary
recognition for an act which
consisted of stealing a symbol of
man's spirit and then pretending to
have a spirit of their own. There is
no virtue which is unearned and
there certainly is no human value
which can be gained by stealing
from those who have earned it.
Self-esteem and virtue are, by their
nature, personal and not
collectively transferable.

Why did they do it?

Their purpose was to aquila cute; re a
sense of self-worth from others. It
was an attempt to achieve pride
without reference to the source of
its achievement. The source is
neither the destruction and ridicule
of values nor the gaining of
attention. It is the independent
mind creating positive values.

Circle K Concert

Recently I have received letters
from several students inquiring as
to what has been done to prevent a
disaster at the forthcoming Circle K
concert such as happened with the
Temptations. Since these letters
seem to reflect the attitude of the
students as a whole, I feel I should
inform them as to what has been
done to assure the success of this
concert. First, we have rented $100
worth of sound equipment. This is
in addition to the equipment normally
used. Also, we have engaged a
man from Richmond who is an
expert in sound systems to set up
the equipment. Everything will be
completely tested before the concert
to make sure it is working
properly. In short, we have done
everything possible to assure that it
will be an excellent concert.

Nixed Debate

I simply could not let your
October 25 editorial "Nixed Debate"
pass without comment.
Frankly, it disturbs me that a newspaper
at this university, dedicated
to reason and truth, would express
its opinions so totally without reason
or logic.

When you write that it is wrong
that Mr. Nixon refuses to debate
with Mr. Humphrey you make an
invalid assumption. That is, you
assume that a debate would be a
good basis on which to judge the
relative merits of the candidates.
Here, you are grossly wrong. In a
debate with Mr. Nixon, I have little
doubt that Mr. Humphrey would
come out on top. This victory
would not be due to the superiority
of Humphrey's views, but
to his superior debating skill.
Humphrey's enormous vocabulary
and his ability to turn a phrase to
his advantage would undoubtedly
influence a number of voters. Perhaps
the only way that Humphrey
could lose a debate would be to
talk himself and his audience to
death (not at all an unlikely prospect).

But, even conceding the debate
to Humphrey, what would it mean?
The President of the United States,
unlike senators and representatives,
is never called upon to debate.
Flashy words and euphonious
phrases, the tools of the debater,
will be of almost no use to a
president. The only key quality the
next president must have, on the
other hand, is judgement.

The American people have had
ample time to sample and compare
the views of all the candidates. Why
should the candidates now be subjected
to a verbal contest which
would be, in the final analysis,
about as poor a test of presidential
abilities as a footrace down
Pennsylvania Avenue?

W. Fred Thompson
College 1

If you reread the editorial in
question you will discover that the
subject with which it was mainly
concerned was not whether or not
"it is wrong that Mr. Nixon refuses
to debate with Mr. Humphrey."

The editorial's complaint was
with Mr. Nixon's refusal to debate
when the terms on which he had
previously specified he would be
willing to debate were met. He had
made quite clear how such a debate
would have to be run if he were to
participate: when such a debate was
arranged he reneged.

There is no question in our
minds that Presidents never have to
engage in footraces, but when you
say Presidents never have to engage
in debates, you are wrong. Obviously
they never have to participate
in formal debates, but, on an
informal basis, they have to debate
nearly everyone on nearly every
issue daily. The skills required to do
so - the skills required to achieve
what one wants, or to discourage
what one does not want, whether it
be by convincing Congress or another
head of state - are inseparable
from those required to
debate formally. - ed.