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Dear Editor,
The relationship between the city of Ruston and Louisiana Tech is, in my opinion, the most perplexing combination of any city and Division I university in the country.
Granted, I do not know the intricate details of all 118 Division I schools, but I can point to two current topics of heated debate involving Ruston and Tech that I believe defy conventional wisdom: the Restaurant Referendum and the removal of the organizational letters from behind Joe Aillet's South end zone.
The Restaurant Referendum, regarding the potential legalization of liquor sales in Ruston restaurants, bars and stores, will be a giant step forward for both the community and Tech.
However, many Ruston residents and Tech students disagree with the referendum.
I do not understand how people can economically or socially rationalize keeping liquor out of Ruston.
This is the only Division I campus in the state, and probably the nation, that cannot have hard alcohol sold in its city's stores, much less its restaurants.
Ms. Roberson's September 19 column stated that alcohol in restaurants "would not boost the economy" and "would pick the pockets of Ruston families."
If an Applebee's or a Chili's type restaurant would not benefit Ruston's economy, I do not know what would.
More jobs and more dollars being pumped into Ruston does not sound like picking anyone's pocket to me.
Remember, existing restaurants will have the same chance to sell hard alcohol if the referendum passes.
And we're not talking about a handful of restaurants either.
I attended Mississippi State University this past fall, and Starkville, Mississippi, is very similar to Ruston in size.
Starkville dons only two chain restaurants (Ruby Tuesday and Applebee's) with a campus of about 18,000 and community of 35-40k.
If Mississippi State can only support two chains, I doubt Ruston will change drastically.
From an economic standpoint, it is stupid for Ruston not to pass this referendum.
Hard alcohol in Ruston would equal more jobs and would keep many more tax dollars per year in Ruston.
I respect the fact that many people in Ruston do not drink alcohol because of religious or personal beliefs.
However, I do not see how these people expect college students at a quickly growing Division I university to accept hard alcohol is all that keeps me from being able to eat at an Outback or Bennigan's here as opposed to West Monroe or Bossier.
The argument expressed by some locals is that the presence of liquor will tarnish Ruston's family image.
I grew up in a town smaller than Ruston that sold hard alcohol, and I do not feel that the presence of hard alcohol scarred my upbringing.
If someone is worried that the presence of alcohol will taint his/her family and children, either discuss the topic with your kids or move to a city that's still stuck in the 1920s.
Another issue that just blows my mind is the replacement of student organizational letters from behind the South end zone of Joe Aillet Stadium.
I was not overly upset by this action but by the way it was carried out and the new look of the hill.
As an undergraduate, I was involved in my fraternity, Student Government Association, and other campus organizations that displayed letters at the field.
It was fun going to the games with my friends and seeing all of the organizations showing their pride and support for Tech athletics.
This fall, however, campus organizations learned second-hand that the tradition of displaying their letters at the field would be done away with.
The initial news did not come from a phone call, meeting, or letter from the sports information office but from a post on the "Bulldog Barks and Bytes" Web site.
I guess everyone at sports information thought these students would not care.
Think again!
Supposedly, the Greek and organizational letters made Tech look too "small time" and like a Division I-AA school.
Since Tech has two games in Ruston televised this season, we wanted our stadium to look more like other Division I juggernauts, right?
So what happened? The organizational letters were replaced by plywood footballs on posts on the hill that look more like tombstones than trophies.
Wait, I remember those footballs.
They are like the ones that cheerleaders made for my brother in high school and stuck in our front yard with "Clay #68" on it.
Two of these footballs boast of our 1997 and 1999 defeats of Alabama.
Now how big time does that look?
Imagine if Florida or Tennessee had one of those for every time it beat a fellow SEC opponent.
Do not get me wrong, I am a die-hard Tech supporter and applaud our team's weekly efforts to give Tech national prominence.
It is just plain dumb to ostracize involved students who put 1,500+ people in the seats on game day by putting up plywood signs that look even more "small time."
These two situations truly reveal the paradox that exists from Louisiana Tech being in Ruston. Tech is growing by leaps and bounds but must not get ahead of itself and leave its core contingency of students and community behind.
On the other hand, much of the Ruston community seems to be opposed to the progress it must make if Tech is to harness its maximum potential.
Hopefully, Tech and Ruston can come together and take the necessary steps to enhance both the campus and the community.
Sincerely,
John Ziegler, graduate student of business administration
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Originally Posted by EJ
