University of Georgia - Pandora Yearbook (Athens, GA)

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irB David Stetnbridge Students are more politically aware here than at northern uni- versities. — Adam Thornton, member of the College Republicans. : ' - ' r ' mm , i»i«ssi hmm: . V ! i

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• Kate Taylor • The Dan Quayle issue. The pledge of allegiance. Reagan ' s Yes-Man. Liberal- ism. The Iran-Contra affair. Membership in the ACLU. These are just a few of the so-called issues that faced American voters in the 1988 presidential election. Many voters became frustrated with the negative campaigns conducted by the two nomi- nees, George Bush and Mi- chael Dukakis. Neither cam- paign really focused on any of the important issues such as the changing U.S.-Soviet relations of the Gorbachev Years, environmental issues, the American educational system, and the federal defi- cit. Instead the campaign was reduced to a battle of personalities as both the nominees and the media grew more concerned with the political images and not the political issues. In October George McGov- ern spoke about the 1988 election here at the Universi- ty. Calling the campaign a travesty, McGovern re- flected on the lack of free de- bate between Bush and Du- kakis as everything was packaged and . . . planned for the television image and not for the real concerns of the American people. . .,v.-,v, ..-.- Presidential elections of- Vvi ? ?- - ' ' seem to stir people ' s pas- i - -i.- ' ,i:fr f- ' i sions and interests. And for this election year, some cam- pus organizations geared up in full speed to play as much a part in the political process r i«lj l as possible. According to ' v ; . ' » I Adam Thornton, a junior po- and the member- ship director of the College Republicans (CR), member- ship in CR almost doubled over last year ' s. Students tend to be less apathetic about politics and govern- ment during a big election year. Thornton, who once at- tended school in the north, said that he felt that stu- dents are more politically aware here than at northern universitities. In late October, Phi Alpha Delta, a pre-law fraternity, hosted a political debate be- tween the Young Democrats (YD) and College Republi- cans (CR) when the initial host, the Demosthenian Lit- erary Society, withdrew sponsorship because the de- bate grew too large. The de- bate heated up when one moderator threatened to end the debate prematurely after CR debator David Herndon discussed school prayer while answering a question concerning education. However, the majority of both the national population and the University popula- tion were apathetic towards this presidential election. According to The Red and Black, a total of 800 students registered to vote this fall and 500 of those registered at the Tate Student Center during the registration drive sponsored by the Student Activities department fall quarter. But many students already registered in their home town and voted through absentee ballots. On November 8, 1988, a week before the national election, the Demosthenian Literary Society sponsored a campus-wide mock election. A total of 1,778 students (out of about 27,000 students who could have voted) participat- ed in the mock election whic h resulted in George Bush receiving 59.5% of the votes and Michael Dukakis receiving 38.3%. Bush was also the winner in a poll tak- en by The Red and Black be- tween October 21 and No- vember 2. Of the 583 residents and students polled, 60% planned to vote for Bush while 40% planned to vote for Dukakis. Finally, after all, the cam- paigning, controversy, and name calling, election day came and went, and George Bush was voted the next president of the United States with 54% of the popu- lar vote and 426 electoral votes. Even though the ma- jority of the University pop- ulation was apathetic, there were some students who did play an active role in the po- litical process by debating, campaigning, registering, and voting. Hopefully such activities by the student body, and the nation, will continue and grow to make the 1992 election year more exciting and perhaps a little less negative. At the debate between CK and YD, llfiA students express their views on political issues. mmm •CO: pA - Hush wins the IH8H presidential election with 54% of the popular vote and tifi electoral votes. iiiiiiiii Ti

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lll l9tS)» A FRENZY TO STAY FIT • Lara Roberts • • Georgette Thompson • One of the biggest trends this year is the Exercise Craze. Almost everywhere you look on campus there is someone exercising in some sort of way by jogging, riding bicycles, swimming, and even just walking. The de- mand for aerobics has be- come so great that classes at Stegeman and Creswell resi- dence hall have had to turn people away. Both Living- Well and O ' Malley ' s Fitness Centers have become ex- tremely overcrowded. Fitness has become an es- sential part of life for many students for varied reasons. Some feel that exercising ev- eryday for at least an hour gives them that extra lift or momentum they need to sur- vive busy days. Nancy New- man, Junior Marketing ma- jor, says, Physical fitness is important to me because it serves as an outlet from school. It feels good to re- lieve stress from classes by exercising; it makes me feel like I am doing something really productive. She is a member at O ' Malley ' s Esprit Club and has noticed that it has recently become ex- tremely overcrowded. I take my exercising seriously, but I don ' t think everyone there does. Some of the people just go because they know Spring Break is right around the corner, she says. Well she ' s probably half right. Some students feel peer pressured into exercising. The ultimate goal of these students is to attain that perfect body. The girls strive to lose en- ought weight to fit into a size 6 miniskirt while guys try to build up their triceps and bi- ceps so they can feel confi- dent when they take off their shirts to play basketball. It seems that almost ev- eryone has good intentions X to start exercising but how many people really stick to them? Todd King, a sopho- more Finance major, says that people exercise for many different reasons; but whatever their reasons, the important fact is that they are getting the exercise that they need to keep up their good health. He lifts weights at Stegeman where he sees that there are always a good many people, both beginners and intermediates, working out there. It is quite obvious that the crowded conditions at all the local exercise establishments reflect the continuing popu- larity of exercise and fitness. — with Young-Sun Yun crowded Aerobics class proves ho erclse has become more and mor popular, especially right before Spriii | Break. I ' ! -V,. ' S- ' - p Mm ?% ;