1983_10 Insight October 1983

              -2-
"Editorials.
October 5,1983      Insight
Ramon razing
20 years too late
Students and faculty will be happy
to hear that the San Ramon
classrooms are scheduled to be
demolished. But don't hold your
breath because it won't happen until
1989.
Tim Johnson, CSUF director of
space and facility planning, said that
after the construction of the new
80,000 square foot business building,
San Ramon I will be dismantled, The
new business building will house 198
faculty offices, lecture rooms and
laboratories. In fact, all the San
Ramon buildings except San Ramon V
will be phased out.
The" San Ramon classrooms were
built in 1968 specifically to be used as
temporary classrooms. It will be
more than 20 years before these temporary classrooms are finally torn
down.
Johnson has stated that the San
Ramon buildings are energy inefficient, take too much maintenance,
and therefore are costly to the state.
Faculty have complained that sound
travels from one classroom to
another. Professors have insisted that
the learning environment is second
rate.
The classrooms are a major student concern. Students said the
classrooms are too hot because the air
conditioning units are inadequate.
Leaking roofs are not uncommon and
once pieces of the* ceiling began
cascading down on the students. The
building is also infested with termites.
The San Ramon classrooms, uncomfortable as they are, were a quick
solution to a critical classroom problem. They have exceeded their life
expectancy now and more permanent
structures are needed as soon as
possible.
It is hard enough for students to
concentrate in class without worrying
about termites cutting their desks
down to size or the ceiling collapsing
on top of their heads. These
classrooms should have been replaced
years ago.
Insight feels that CSUF students
should be tortured no longer. Our only
regret is that this action should have
come sooner. Perhaps the largest tailgate party of all-time will take place
at the demolition site of the San
Ramon classrooms. Unfortunately,
that party will have to be delayed until
Saudv visit more than a vacation
Disagreeing OK,
terrorizing not
There is no greater responsibility
given to a free press than to provide a
public forum for individual opinion.
Discussion, even when disapproved
of, js a treasury of ideas and experiences a society can learn from,
and hopefully use to improve itself.
One such discussion has recently
been published in the Fresno Bee's
"Letters to the Editor" section over
the past three weeks, but unfortunately has spilled over into the sickness of—^
vandalism.
An author of one of the letters to
the Bee has been subjected to verbal
harassment over the phone, and both
his car and home have been terrorized.
These terrorists have managed to
convince the author, via fear, to
withold further opinion. Hitler would
be proud, as would be the Soviets and
all other authoritarian states.
The key difference is this is the
. United States: the land of the free,
and home of the First Amendment.
Total agreement has never been a
stipulation for expressing opinions,
contrary to what President Reagan
told the presidential-scholars. Indeed,
disagreement should be welcomed by
a tree society as a sign of its strength.
No matter how discriminating an
opinion may be, it is worst to silence
it. To revert to terrorism is an even
greater crime, and should be openly
recorded as the coward's signature.
Opposing views are welcomed.
In the very spirit of rebuttle, I
take this opportunity to fully disagree
with my colleague Dave Wilcoxon (Insight Sept. 28). His comments on the
registration of the draft presumes two
parties are involved: the government
and the draftees, sorry, the
registerees.
I think that is a common mistake
made by all of us in this nation where
the government is supposed to be the
people. Unfortunately, this common
slip of the tongue is so often true.
We all know Article I, Section 8 of
the Constitution gives Congress the
right "to raise and support armies ...
provide for calling forth the militia to
execute the laws of the union ... etc.,
etc."
However, Congress is a body of
representatives and the laws it makes
should reflect the attitudes of those
being represented.     '   .' T"
The recent protests against U.S.
involvement around the world,
especially Central America, should
tell Congress Americans in general do
Todd
Hansen
not want the youth of this nation in a
position where they play hero to the
"free world."
The attitude of "no registration,
no financial aid" is simply another example of military priority over the
value of education.
Another point is the fraud found in
campaign promises over this issue.
Reagan, among many, received the
vote of the youth because of promises
to eliminate the registration for the
draft. '""*
Administrative tyranny has no
place in the United States, and
punishing those willing to stand up for
what they believe is indeed tyranny.
"When in Rome, do as the
Romans do."
There is nothing new or profound
in that statement. It's the generally
accepted rule of travel.
"When in America, do as the
Americans do."
That, too is a generally accepted
version of the previous statement. But
let's take it a step further, and consider the following:
"When in Saudi Arabia, do as the
Saudis do?" j^/
In the comfort of our homeland, I
don't think we realize how extremely
different some cultures are from our
own. We tend to lack sensitivity to
visitors' contrasting backgrounds and
wonder why they can't just blend in a
bit more.
This past summer, I learned a lot
about how it feels to be in a completely
unfamiliar society. I spent my summer vacation in Saudi Arabia.
' Saudi Arabia usually brings certain ideas to mind. We associate it
with camels, oil, money, the Middle
East and sand.
We don't tend to associate it with
a vacation-setting. Long, sandy
beaches are nice, but Saudi Arabia is
a bit too long of a beach to suit most of
our tastes.
If my dad, step-mom, and stepbrother hadn't moved there last year, -
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia would not have
been my first choice for a summer
- visit. But I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see my family and embark
on a new adventure in the same trip.
During the six weeks I was there,
I realized that the actual experience
of living in a culture so different from
my own taught me more than I could
ever learn from stacks of books or accounts from other people.
A book or a person could never
adequately explain how it feels to be
required to wear a long dress in
public—ifr^Saudi Arabia, women's
legs and elbows must be hidden from
view. And, until you experience it, you
can't feel the frustration that comes
from  not  being  allowed to  drive
Sere
Beste
m
because you happen to be a woman.
An appreciation grew within me
for the simple things from home that
were unavailable in Saudi. For instance, smelling bacon cooking on a
Sunday morning is impossible for
three reasons: Pork is forbidden, the
country is strictly Muslim-omitting
the freedom to attend church services—and, the Saudi weekend is
Thursday and Friday. That means
that you start to dread those blue Mondays on Saturdays and Thank God it's
Friday on Wednesday.
Another difference between
America and Saudi Arabia is that
Saudi men don't wear three-piece
suits, Izods or Bermudas. Instead,
they wear "thobes," which are long,
white shirt-dresses, and "gutras,"
which are head coverings that are
either white or red-and-white print;
resembling a tablecloth.
'ihe Saudi women are not allowed
to show their faces to any man other
than their husbands. They completely
cover themselves with black cloaks
and veils that permit them to see out, ,
but prevent anyone from seeing them.
Seemingly, this dress code would
present an obstacle to dating,
although it doesn't because dating is
not even permitted in the country.
Saudi marriages are usually arranged
by the couples* families.- Even
westerners are forbidden'to be seen in
public with members of the opposite
sex who are not related or married to
them.
In Saudi Arabia, men are commonly seen with a group of women *
walking behind them. The men are not
breaking the law, nor are they with
their sisters. They are simply taking
their wives shopping. Men are allowed
up to four wives, but they must treat
them all equally.
Most Americans are shocked by
some of the customs of Saudi Arabia,
and yet, Saudis must be shocked by
the American culture. For example,
the California dress code can hardly
be classified as modest. Alcohol is
banned in Saudi Arabia and here it is
readily available at almost every
store and restaurant. Pornography is
plastered before us, while in Saudi
Arabia, pictures of girls onsuntan lotion bottles are blotted out with black
felt markers.
I must admit, when in Saudi J
Arabia, I did not do everything as the '
Saudis do. But my lifestyle had to
change drastically, because I was living in a culture that does things a lot
differently than what I was accustomed to. I guess that's what being a
foreigner is all about.
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recognized leader of the organiza
the editor -from virtually anyone
tion.
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93748
^fosight
Insight is published on Wednesdays
during the academic year by the
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Editor-in-chief Steve D. Smith
Managing Editor Cyndi Guerra
Photo Editor Torn Spits
AdManagere SherrtSolgat
Elaine Gil
Assoc. Editor Phil Kakliglan
Helen Marie Janousek
Ron Arnold
Copy Editor David Wilcoxon
Sports Editor Dan Mooney
Reportera: Sere Beste, Nellie
Bonllla, Trudy Brown, Maureen
Cabral. Shirley Cavella. Renee Christian, Heidi Clinton, Brian Overt,
Christy Dennis. Kathy Fraley, Todd
Hansen. Rhonda Harrington, Jody
Head. Leo Holier, James Keaaey.
Cecelia Kern, Anthony Lacava, Victor
Leone, George Laewen, Dave Marsh,
Daa Mooney, Judy Pa redes. Carey
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Photographers: Red Daddy, Al
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