Oct. 10, 1996-Vol28n07: Letters

Letters

Word substitution can help illuminate writer's, speaker's meaning
To The Editor, Reporter
GENTLEPERSON:
The economists tell us that one can recognize the value of a coinage by observing the substitutes therefore. Thus, a debasement in the coinage can be recognized when a given coin may be substituted for increasingly trivial goods or services. The same is true of language. Consider that "professional" used as an adjective quite often can be replaced with "good" and "professional" used as a noun can equally often be replaced with "good person."

Similarly, whenever an academic uses "excellence" as a noun at a public occasion or in a public document it is wise to check the meaning of that word by substituting another word, say "cabbage" (in honor of the long lost School of Agriculture at UB), for it. It is surprising how often the speaker's or writer's meaning shines through after this substitution is made.

Sincerely,
John Henry Schlegel,
Professor of Law

A signal day for UB: time to recognize (and enjoy) success
DEAR EDITOR:
Last Saturday was a perfect day! Who could have imagined more than a decade ago that on a beautiful October day in Western New York, the UB football team would be playing Cornell before nearly 10,000 enthusiastic fans? And with a starting quarterback who is actually a real student-in fact, in one of my engineering classes. And a coach who is an alumnus-and from the Engineering School, of all places! And a director of athletics who knows that there is a city and a university here beyond Alumni Arena. And we not only played Cornell. UB WON!

Football and athletics, of course, do not make a great university. But they certainly can make for one which is a lot more fun. And maybe I am the only one who thinks so (or maybe I just spent too much time away on sabbatical last year), but UB is a lot more fun now. Even the alumni seem to think there is now more to do here than come and watch the bulldozers. And miracle of miracles, there is hardly a Buffalonian left who doesn't know that UB and Buff State are not the same school: UB is the one with the great academics AND the Division I athletic program.

The answer to the question in the first line is: A lot of us did imagine it! There really was a vision shared by many that UB could have an athletic program which would contribute to the academics instead of competing with it. There really were people who thought you could find coaches who knew that there was more to going to school than football. There really were faculty who believed that there were athletes who could play at the top levels and still be dedicated students.

Often we allow our successes to pass unnoticed because we are so overwhelmed by the challenges of the future. Also, they usually occur so gradually that by the time they succeed we have forgotten the efforts and risk that went into them. But Saturday was a perfect day-because it captured in one single day the culmination of the efforts of all of us to have a quality athletic program here. So to Steve Sample and Bill Greiner who championed this cause, to the students of the 1980s and alumni who demanded it, to my colleagues who by their intense debate and scrutiny not only overwhelmingly approved it, but determined its character, let's enjoy this moment and draw strength from it.

To Nelson Townsend and his co-workers, to the coaches, and the athletes, thank you-not just for the way you do your athletic thing, but for being a real part of this university. Our lives have been enriched by your efforts.

William K. George
Professor
Mechanical and Space Engineering