;ncy
Battalion Exclusive
RANGE
lTION
MSC Newsroom a Busy Place
16-3708 I Editor’s note: Bob Peck, Bat-
^^Ijlion photographer-columnist, is
^working with the Associated
^^■•ess news team covering the
■polio 12 moon shot from the
Banned Spacecraft Center in
I iouston. During his week-long
■hployment. Bob hopes to write
■ article a day for The Battalion
| provide an inside glimpse into
ppenings at the MSC during a
flight.
^ Bob Peek
SPACE CENTER, Houston
Kr r f a sma ^ room in a modem
building across the street
B»m NASA’s Manned Spacecraft
inter, ten newsmen awaited the
inching of the Apollo 12 space-
aft.
Also waiting in the room were
\
eight typewriters, three tape re
corders, three TV sets, and four
Associated Press broadcast wire
machines.
AP coverage of the world’s
second attempt at putting men
on the moon was about to begin.
With 30 seconds to go, the
room was virtually silent, save
for the incessant clattering of the
incoming wire machines. All eyes
were glued to the three TV sets.
At the end of the countdown,
the 36-story missile sat on its
flame for nine seconds before
rising from the launching pad.
“Go!” shouted Ken Siner, Dal
las assistant bureau chief. The
stillness in the press room dis
appeared, replaced instantly by
the pounding of reporters’ fingers
on the wire machine keyboards,
the rustling of copy paper, and
the clacking of typewriters.
Over the din in the office, the
voices of the astronauts and Mis
sion Control personnel could be
heard on closed-circuit speakers.
In one corner of the L-shaped
room, Bill Stockton, a writer from
Albuquerque, N.M., sat beside the
three tape recorders. As the tapes
captured the words of the astro
nauts, Stockton typed their words
as quickly as possible. As soon
as he had typed about three quo
tations, it was my job to rip the
paper from the machine and dis
tribute carbon copies to all the
writers.
They could then use the quotes
in their stories. Speed was essen
tial.
Early speculation about the
Apollo power failure soon became
a matter of considerable concern.
Was the spacecraft struck by
lightning or not? The Apollo
crewmen thought it might have
been lightning. Mission Control
was convinced that the jolt was
caused by an immense charge of
static electricity which discharg
ed as the rocket sped through the
stormy skies.
Correspondents at Cape Ken
nedy called in, saying they had
seen lightning around the ship,
but could not be sure whether
any actually struck the space
craft. The AP science writers in
the Space Center decided to com
promise. The lead on follow-up
During Space Flights
stories mentioned Apollo 12’s
“scary brush with earth’s light
ning-spiked skies.”
Soon after the AP main desk
in New York called to say that
United Press International was
saying flatly that lightning ap
parently struck the rocket, and
several newspapers were using
UPI’s lead stories as a result.
This eventually backfired on
“Brand X,” as the UPI is snidely
and unfairly referred to by AP
staffers. NASA announced later
in the day that lightning defi
nitely did not strike Apollo 12.
After that, the newspapers
turned more often to the AP for
their stories and pictures. By
Monday night, the New York of
fice had called to tell us that our
stories were “killing the UPI’s
in the world press.” In the photo
department national and foreign
papers were going 13 to 1 for
the AP.
The day after the launch ac
tivity in the Space Center bureau
had calmed considerably. Car
toons lit the TV screens and the
staffers spent a lot of time watch
ing for the UPI’s copy girl. The
UPI office is right down the hall,
and my counterpart with “Brand
X” is a pretty college-age blonde.
“Wow! There she goes again,”
said Howard Benedict, one of the
AP’s best science writers, as he
looked out the window.
“You may be more efficient,
but you’ll never be better look
ing,” sideburned science writer
John Barbour confided to me.
Besides distributing transcripts
of the astronauts’ conversations,
it’s my job to watch four incom
ing wires and distribute copies of
certain stories to the appropriate
writers and editors.
I also run errands to the MSC
about a half mile away, and keep
the coffee pot filled. We all work
12-hour shifts.
The atmosphere in the Space
Center newsroom will remain
fairly calm until the lunar module
separates from the command mod
ule and head for the moon. From
that point, until the LM reunites
with the command module after
the moon walk, there will be little
rest for any of us, for we will
soon be working 20-hour shifts.
EROCLO
;tion
!0 in
tend
Che Battalion
65 No. 38
College Station, Texas
African Students Add
Quality’ to SCON A
US
res
ation
n’s Own
;rvice
si ty
Bant
ATE
Flam
iscussion of “Black Africa —
Challenge of Development”
|Texas A&M University’s 15th
ident Conference on National
airs will have substance and
iity.
esides leading a group of fea-
ed speakers and roundtable
irmen whose livelihoods are
ctly connected with the topic,
IONA XV will have several
lean students at A&M for the
10-13 conference,
mong them are Richard A.
jowo, 27-year-old final-year
r student at the University of
gos, and Awori Kataka, 25,
glish literature major at Um-
•sity College in Nairobi, Ken-
announced SCON A chairman
|rry K. Lesser.
loth will be attending the in-
nationally-flavored conference
scholarships provided by In
national Telephone and Tele-
iph, which also is providing
eral of its top executives as
indtable chairmen and speak-
AR1
nes
Pexas
Kataka, whose father farms on
the northern slopes of Lake Vic
toria, headed the Nairobi col
lege’s Student Union last year, is
a veteran debater and takes a
keen interest in international af
fairs, including the role of the
U.S. in world affairs.
An outstanding student with
top marks in his secondary
school class, Kataka was secre
tary and chaired the debating
society of his high school. He
also was house prefect, deputy
head prefect and participated in
the Historical Society.
Jolowo is interested in SCON A
in terms of economic develop
ment and political stability. He
also hopes to strike up some ex
change on the role of the mili
tary.
The final-year honors student
chairs the Lagos University Stu
dents’ Union and is second vice
president of the National Union
of Nigerian Students. His fa
ther is a trader.
Among speakers for the an
nual conference which also will
have participants from Mexico
and Canada is Ambassador Ebe-
nezer M. Debrah of Ghana, At
lantic Coast neighbor of the West
African republic of Lagos.
Roundtable chairmen include
ITT officials of London and Afri
ca, the former minister of fin
ance in Zambia and representa
tives of the Nigerian and British
embassies in Washington, D. C.
For Problem-Solving
U.S. Democracy Is
Appropriate Way
hanksgiving Services Planned
or Students, Staff in All-F aiths
Thanksgiving services will be
iducted Nov. 27 in the All-
iths Chapel by the YMCA for
idents, campus visitors and the
blic, YMCA Cabinet President
I Donnell has announced.
He said services will be held
j’n 19, 10, and 11 a.m. for the con-
nience of people attending the
30 p.m. A&M-Texas football
me in Kyle Field.
Logan Weston, YMCA general
cretary and religious life co-
dinator, urged students and
faculty-staff to make plans to
attend one of the services and
bring their guests and visitors.
Speakers will include Donnell,
psychology major of Freeport;
Ronnie Owens, architectural con
struction major of Dallas, and
Ed Rogers, sociology major of
Fort Worth.
Owens will speak at 9 on “The
Meaning of Thanksgiving,” Rog
ers at 10 on “Friendship,” and
Donnell at 11 on “Thanksgiving:
A Trap.”
By Clifford Broyles
Battalion Staff Writer
Democracy is an appropriate
method for solving the problems
of government, according to an
associate professor of history at
the University of Texas at Aus
tin.
Mrs. Walt Rostow, wife of a
former Special assistant to for
mer President Lyndon B. John
son spoke to about 75 persons
on the topic “A Critique of Amer
ican Democracy” Monday night
at a Political Forum presenta
tion in the Memorial Student
Center Ballroom.
Mrs. Rostow said there are
three problems that face govern
ment no matter what type it is:
security, welfare and justice.
A democratic society is the
best for solving each of these
problems, she said.
Government was set up, not
because people like it, but be
cause they prefer it, because it
gives people responsibility, she
continued.
A good definition of security,
Mrs. Rostow said, is preserva
tion from intruders from the out
side and subversion on the in
side.
America in the nineteenth cen
tury placed importance on in
ternal conflicts and, as this trend
grew, America’s problems be
came so big inside that it did
very little in the world outside,
she said.
Changes began to take place
in this outlook in the twentieth
century, Mrs. Rostow said, es
pecially in 1947, which was the
turning point in U.S. diplomacy.
Three significant events occur
red that year which brought
about the outlook that is still
with the United States today,
she said.
The first of these took place
in January when the United
States proposed arms control,
she noted.
The Truman Doctrine in March
was the second major happening.
This United States agreed to help
all countries who needed it due to
internal or external problems in
(See Democracy, page 3)
•'XVI
ft? *£** £/* ***
WAYS OF A CHAMPION
The Fish Drill Team, national champions for an unprece- may have taken over Houston that morning-, but the Owls
dented two years straight, does its thing Saturday during took the Cadets in the afternoon contest, 7-6. See related
the Corps of Cadets parade in downtown Houston prior to story, page 4. (Photo by Mike Wright)
the A&M-Rice football game in Rice Stadium. The Aggies
Tuesday, November 18, 1969
Telephone 845-2226
' mm#* ’ * o,. , ^> -x
Members of company D-l (Spider D) were hard at work Monday preparing the Bonfire
centerpole for erection. Rainy weather, seemingly typical of Bonfire time at A&M, pre
vented the pole from being raised yesterday as planned. Head yell leader Sam Torn has
said that he hopes to have a 105-foot bonfire this year, the largest ever. (Photo by Mike
Wright)
CS Planning Commission
Refuses Rezoning Request
By Jay F. Goode
Battalion Staff Writer
The College Station Planning
and Zoning Commission Monday
night turned down a request to
rezone a tract south of Holleman
Drive. and east of the proposed
extension of Welch Avenue.
Alphonse Holik, the property
owner, had asked that the land
be rezoned from single family
residences to duplexes.
Commissioner Jim Gardner was
the only member who voted
against the motion for rezoning.
Carter Talks
Tonight on
Early Man
The second presentation in
A&M’s 1969-70 University Lec
tures Series will be tonight at 8
in the Memorial Student Center
ballroom.
Dr. George F. Carter, named
this year’s “Faculty Lecturer of
Texas A&M University,” will dis
cuss “Problems in Pre-Colum
bian Cultural Exchanges Be
tween the New World and the
Old World.”
Carter has received national
attention for his theories nn an
tiquity of man in America. He
joined the A&M faculty in 1967
as distinguished professor in
geography.
The lecture will be presented
free of charge and is open to the
public, noted Dr. George M.
Krise, University Lectures Com
mittee chairman.
Bryan Building & Loan
Association. Your Sav
ing Center, since 1919.
BB&L —Adv.
His vote amounted to a veto
because commission rules require
unanimous approval when only
five of the seven commissioners
are present. Commissioners Doug
las Stone and Carl Tishler were
absent.
The commission has been too
generous with multiple family
zoning, Gardner said, claiming
that there is not enough single
family space near the University.
“I think the zoning change is
premature until we get a sub
division plan approved for the
area,” Gardner said. “I suggest
that the commission withhold ac
tion until Welch street is ex
tended.”
A member of the audience
asked if the duplexes would cause
a traffic problem on Welch
street.
This is one of the problems
that have not been solved yet,
City Planner Lee Roy George
said.
“lye may have to have an alley
to allow traffic in and out” to
eliminate the danger of traffic
pulling out on Welch street,”
George said.
The driveways in the duplex
property would have to be suf
ficient to allow cars to turn
around; chairman Codie Wells
said, because city ordinance for
bids lots that force cars to back
out onto major streets.
The commission approved a
zoning change on other property
owned by Holik. The tract which
was rezoned from single family
to commercial is east of the pro
posed extension of Welch Drive
and south of the existing com
mercial district on Holleman.
The change was made subject
to the acquisition of the right-of-
way for the extension of Welch.
The zoning changes must now
be passed by the City Council
before going into effect.
The commission passed a reso
lution recommending that the
city extend its limits 500 feet
south of the West By-Pass from
Highway 6 to Welborn Road.
“We cannot control zoning out
side of the city limits,” therefore
it is important that the city an
nex property on both sides of
the by-pass,” Wells said.
A member of the audience
asked if the city had any plans
to extend sewer and water serv
ices to the area.
If the city does not provide
services to this area in three
years after annexation, “they can
ask to be deannexed,” Wells said.
Ski Committee
Sets Nov. 26
As Deadline
The deadline for signing up for
the Ski the Alps 1970 program
has been extended to Nov. 26 ac
cording to Dave Mayfield, chair
man of the Memorial Student
Center committee in charge.
“We originally had room for
150 students,” Mayfield said, but
because the University of Hous
ton has not been able to sell their
portion of the seats, we can sell
75 more reservations.”
Mayfield said that any A&M
student wishing to make the trip
should file his $50 deposit with
the Student Finance Office at the
MSC by the deadline day.
Mayfield added that Wednes
day, Thursday, and Friday of
this week from 9 a.m.-l p.m. two
color films of the Courchevel ski
ing area in France will be shown
in the lobby of the MSC for in
terested students.
University National Bank
“On the side of Texas A&M.”
—Adv.