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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 21, 1980)
john healy Sports is not important? Maybe every athletic depart ment in the country ought to have a copy of our state political editor, William Kogut, airmailed to them. You see, Bill is not what one would call a “sports freak." Give Bill a newspaper and he would rather turn to the latest primary results than check whether or not Darryl Dawkins is currently in his Chocolate Thunder or Slumber stage. Bill’s the type who saves his ‘‘l-can't-hold-it-any-longer" break until the sports report when he watches the evening news. vln Bill’s defense, he does know does know that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar isn’t the name of a Middle Eastern revolutionary leader, and if given the oppor tunity, he can probably tell you how the Knicks are doing. Bill is part of that "minority” of Americans who don’t turn to the sports page as soon as they open their newspaper. While most of male — and a large part of female — America hangs on tt\e outcome of this year’s Superbowl or National Basket ball Association finals, Bill goes on with daily life. Or as he says, “Sports is not important.” Take that statement at its face value, and you’re left wondering how anyone could spout such a blasphemous line. Gosh, sports isn’t important? How can an yone be so narrow-minded? I don’t agree with that sta tement, but contained within it is an idea that needs to be brought to the attention of everyone — fans, coaches and athletes. The idea that the world can go on functioning without a single athletic contest being contested anywhere in the world. Think about that for a minute. Roll that idea around in your mind, along with the winner of this year’s NBA finals and the series MVP. Admit it — the world wouldn’t stop if every professional fran chise folded, if every college and high school dropped its athletic program. Yes, there would be a lot of boring wee kends and a few thousand ath letes in the unemployment line. Yes, perhaps the “school spirit" at a lot of high schools and col leges would take a rapid turn for the worse. But there wouldn’t be mass starvation, nor would anyone have problems going to work after their morning cup of cof fee. War wouldn’t break out, the divorce rate wouldn't go up (it might actually go down) and the networks wouldn’t go broke. 0®@S@0Q0Q0t! Which brings me to the cur rent financial problems of the University’s athletic program. Most everyone knows about the current financial problems fac ing the University’s Athletic Department and the recent vote on the propsed $20 per term athletic fee. Now the Athletic Department has deemed it necessary to cut the women’s field hockey pro gram following the end of next year. Of course, the players feel short-changed and their coach, Nancy Plantz, "feels a bit be trayed. Which they have a right to feel, since it’s not a great deal of fun to have the proverbial run pulled out form under you. They, along with just about every other athlete on campus, backed the recent ASUO vote on the proposed athletic fee. After all, none of the athletes wanted to see their respective sports sliced from the Universi ty s ruii-can. I sympathize with their feelings, being a former high school athlete, but I think they are missing the boat by voting to institute a mandatory athletic fee. What they are saying, in effect, is that their sport is more important than the personal preferences — the freedom of choice — of students who do not want to support the University’s athletic program. The notion that one group of students is more important than another doesn’t sit well with me. Neither does the idea that our University's athletic program is the “lifeblood” of this Universi ty If you're not interested in football, you generally don't go to Oregon’s home games at Autzen Stadium and you don’t join the Oregon boosters club. If you do like the Ducks, then you set aside every other Saturday during the fall to watch Reggie Ogburn and Co. in action. But you decide — not someone else. And you recognize that not everyone thinks like your do. Not everyone believes that sports is the most important single thing in the entire un iverse. Your sun may rise and CASH For Textbooks Mon.-Fri. Smith Family Bookstore 768 E. 13th 1 Bl. From Campus Ph 345-1651 ©0© ®00£0©0©( set with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but not everyone else follows the Dodgers — or even cares about baseball or sports. It’s a hard pill to swallow — the taste was incredibly bitter for me — but its medicine that any sports enthusiast must take. With that in mind, I think it follows logically that if the University’s athletic program can’t support itself, then either people who support the pro gram had better start making larger donations and attending more games or the program has to be cut somewhere. If the Athletic Departement has a $400,000 deficit, then its quite obvious that the people of Eugene and the students at the University are unable or un willing to provide monetary support worth $400,000. To try to artificially generate that support — through any means — leaves a foul taste in my mouth. And if the spectator and booster support isn’t there, then across-the-board cuts are in order, in my estimation. Let’s face it, something must be done to shave the University Athletic Departments’ $400,000 deficit. I think the best solution would call for the reduction of women’s field hockey and soft ball down to the club sport level (still being funded by the Athle tic Department, but on a limited basis); moving the men’s ba seball team to Division II status or limiting it to a regional level; dropping the men’s wrestling and gymnastics programs to Division II status; and reducing the funds available to the the women’s cross country team. If you don’t like those options, then you can always try the other method — attend Oregon’s home games and contribute to the Ducks’ booster fund But please, don’t shove your likes down someone else’s throat. Because your likes may be their dislikes. Eugene | Travel I ★ Computerized | tkKnowledgable staff j | ★ Friendly service j j ★O/z Campus j ! 687-2825 j ——————.j a® © EQ0Q0O0Q0Q0Q0CM: © Qenafas ifum menkman barbecue “A Touch of Elegance in Chinese Dining’ Enjoy our flaming Mongolian Grill complimented by a selection of exotic desserts. 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