Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1971)
Page 2 THE BATTALION College Station, Texas Thursday, October 28, 1971 CADET SLOUCH by Jim Earle “The last guy writing a letter to the editor is inviting the first guy to write a letter out in th’ alley!” Working with fees Mandatory fees are one of the biggest topics of discussion on this campus. Nobody likes them, most don’t want them, but few are trying to do anything about them. One of the few groups that is trying to come up with an alternative to the unfair situation we have now is the Student Senate. In their meeting next Thursday the senate will consider a proposal that provides for an optional Student Services fee. The option idea, which is detailed below, may be voted on, so find your student senator and tell him what you think of it. Be sure that before he casts his vote he knows what the students want. Basically, the proposal calls for two separate fees, one the Services Fee, one an Athletics Fee. The Services Fee, which is mandatory, would be $27, or $3 less than it is now. The Athletics Fee, which would provide for home football games only, would be an optional $15. On the surface, there are two things wrong with this proposal. The first is that the $27 fee is by no means limited to $27, state law requires a maximum fee of $30 so the $27 fee could be raised $3 more at any time the Board of Directors wishes to. If they did this, the students at A&M would be left with the same fee they had at the start, plus the optional $15 athletics fee. Scarcely a happy situation. Secondly, the $15 fee may be for football only. This means that sports such as basketball and baseball may require an additional spring semester fee. Below the surface, however, even more discrepancies exist in the idea. Of primary importance is the $15 optional fee. If we take the average number of students attending a home football game, 9,000, and multiply it by $15, we come out with the nice round figure of $135,000. This sounds great, and for the athletic department it is. Currently, for the whole year, the athletic department receives $89,000. If the $15 optional fee goes through they will be receiving $135,000—$46,000 more than they are getting now. The figure $135,000 does not even include the possible amounts to be taken in from date tickets. Going by approximate figures released by the Athletic Business Office, we know that slightly less than 25 per cent of 9,000 attending students will have dates. If we multiply the 25 per cent figure—2,250 dates—by $6, the cost of a date ticket, we arrive at $13,000. This means that students will be paying a total of $148,000 into athletics. Now, we don’t mind athletics getting more money than they have been and we doubt that athletics would mind either. But we do mind the students having to pay more for something than is needed, expecially for just one semester. If this proposal does go through, students will be paying $46,000 more than they have to. Even if they pay in enough to make up for the estimated cash deficit this year, over $22,000, they will still be paying somewhere around $24,000 more than they have to, something no student in his right mind is going to do happily. It is obvious that this proposal is not the best for the students. It is also obvious that something needs to be done. Since the Athletic Business Office will probably do exactly what the Student Senate asks them. Concerned student should provide input into the senate by talking with their representatives and showing up at Student Senate meetings. Do it, it’s for your own good. Listen up Letters Editor: The new proposed University policy regarding the regulation of bicycles is totally unrealistic. Who determines whether or not one person riding by himself is engaged in an “exhibition?” Per haps some of the girls riding around very slowly meet this cri terion. After the University puts in all of the signs telling bicycle riders when and where not to ride, and what and what not to do, will there be room to ride between the signs ? In regards to the wording of the proposed rules on how a bi cycle may turn, the bicycle seems to have been put into the same class as motorized vehicles, in cluding the largest trucks. Of course, the persons defending the proposed rules must have in mind many similarities between bikes and trucks. If one of these similarities is that they both have wheels (and are used for transportation), I suggest they hurry up and write some rules for those who use roller skates. (My God, roller skates don’t even have brakes!) Where does one put his regis tration tag when he has a saddle bag attached beneath his seat? Will the space that is not taken up by the signs regulating bikes be filled in by all of the racks that will be needed when bikes are required to park in them ? We would like to say we are behind Andre Piazzo and his views as expressed in The Bat talion. We hope that a realistic policy will come out of the talks Wednesday. We have a solution, but that is another letter. Randy Allen ’74 Jeffrey Simmers ’74 Bradley Ellis ’74 ★ ★ ★ Editor: The article in Tuesday’s Bat talion concerning bicycle regula tions was funnier than the Pea nuts strip. This proposed Uni versity bike policy is about as screwed up as the current auto mobile policy. People began riding bikes be cause of the hassle of car regis tration, and because they were compelled to pay for a parking place which did not exist. Now in order to ride a bike, they want us to go through the same thing.* We are to park our bikes in one of the bicycle racks “at various strategic locations on the cam pus” (I have yet to find my dorm’s strategic bike rack.) On top of all this, we are to pay one dollar per year for each of the many bikes on the University grounds. Add this to the money from tickets given to those ap prehended because of “speed com petition” and the like, and you have a lot of money. Where will this money go ? Perhaps it will buy bigger and faster police cars that can catch illegal cyclists try ing to make a break for it, who will serve their “thirty days” and pay their $100 (minimum), so that even bigger and faster po lice cars may be purchased . . . This University is progressing at a tremendous rate in its trans portation department. The real University policy is to make it economically and feasibly impos sible to own any form of trans portation. I think I’ll run mail this letter before the “Univer sity Pedestrian Policy” comes out. Donald Knabeschuh ’75 ★ ★ ★ Editor: This is in response to the letter by Mrs. Bill Chambers of October 26, 1971. My Dearest Mrs. Chambers: In reading your recent letter to Bu lletin Board Tonight Bonfire Organizational Meeting will be in the Physics building, room 146, at 7:30. All organiza tions are encouraged to send rep resentatives. Friday Chess Committee will meet at 7:30 in room 3B of the Memorial Student Center. €bt Battalion Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those Of The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M, is the student writers only. The Battalion is a non tax- pufblished in Collegre Station, Texas daily except Saturday, ....... . , .. , . . Sunday, Monday, and holiday periods, September through supported, non-profit, self-supporting educational enter- May, and once a week during summer school. prise edited and operated by students as a university and ■— community newspaper. . MEMBER The Associated Press, Texas Press Association LETTERS POLICY The Associated Collegiate Press Letters to the editor must be typed, double-spaced, TUH Z I ~ T ; mn-rr, tUnn inn j • 7 ^ ,i. -r, ' > Mail subscriptions are $3.50 per semester; $6 per school and no more than 300 words in length. They must be year; $6.50 per full year. All subscriptions subject to 5% Signed, although the writer’s name will be withheld by sales tax. Advertising rate furnished on request. Address: arrangement with the editor. Address correspondence to Texas^TS^ 0 "’ RO ° m 217 ’ Services Buildin K> College Station, Listen Up, The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, : — College station, Texas 77843. The Associated Press is entitled exclusively to the use for reproduction of all news dispatchs credited to it or not — otherwise credited in the paper and local news of spontaneous Members of the Student Publications Board are- Jim P ub,i . shed herein. Rights of republication of all other Lindsey, chairman ; H. F. Filers, College of Libera!' Arts T he ^ are al \° reserve f F. S. White, College of Engineering; Dr. Asa B. Childere ji- ' Second-Class postage paid at College Station. Texas. CoUege of Veterinary Medicine; Dr. W. E. Tedrick, College VmTVVP ~ XT A vntT'XT 'iiruTm ammm of Agriculture; and Layne Kruse, student. JtiUlltJrC HAYDEN WUITSETT — Managing Editor s Doug Dilley Represented nationally by National Educational Advertising News Editor 1 Sue Davis Services, Inc., New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Sports Editor John Curylo Francisco. Assistant Sports Editor Bill Henry bike policy, other letter The Battalion I was deeply moved by such a display of ignorance. To actually think that anyone who has recently visited the campus and seen the student body could make such a grossly inaccurate analysis of the civilian students is deeply disturbing. Realizing, however, your evident low level of competency I will attempt to bring myself down to your level to explain a few facts. First of all, in response to your questions posed concerning who besides the Corps of Cadets at tends yell practice, is faithful in spirit to A&M, demands neat ap pearance, etc. I shall answer with the words CIVILIAN STUDENTS DO!! Because, Mrs. Chambers, the civilian students at this uni versity are the finest, most well mannered, and respectful students on any campus. Please note that I am not criticizing the Corps of Cadets, I am simply pointing out to you that the ENTIRE student body of Texas A&M is above all other student bodies and that the ENTIRE student body has great respect for A&M. You also described the appear ance of our student body as being “barefooted, dirty, long-haired and foul-mouthed.” Well, Mrs. Chambers, to make you realize your gross misjudgement I will simply ask you to visit the cam pus some day and I will personally show you the finest dressed stu dent body in this country. Bill Darkoch ★ ★ ★ Editor: After reading Mrs. Bill Cham bers’ letter in yesterday’s Battal ion I found that two things were pretty obvious: (1) Mrs. Cham bers doesn’t go to A&M, and (2) She is a victim of the Highway Six Syndrome. It’s true that A&M achieved a lot because of the Corps, but that was twenty years ago. In the past decade, the school has been trying to progress in spite of the Corps, and with mod erate success. What failure we have met has been due to Corps oriented students and ex-students who relish in living in the past. Women’s housing should have cut and wear a khaki uniform, but there is a thing called free expression in this country. The civilians here do dress differently from the Corps, but I think most of them have enough pride in their appearance to dress so that they don’t offend anyone despite Mrs. Chambers’ insinuation that civilians are “barefoot, dirty, long-haired, and foul mouthed.” I disagree with Mrs. Chambers on her point that A&M “remains a school of integrity and hope be cause it is past oriented.” I wouldn’t call burning thousands of trees every year for a one sided rivalry “integrity.” Tradi tions have their merits but when they are traditions without pur pose, and when they’re rigidly enforced rather than faithfully followed, they became a burden to the students and they pollute the academic atmosphere of the school. Bob Dixon ’74 Bob Stodghill ’74 ★ ★ ★ Editor: For the first time in this na tion’s history, college students now have the right and the opportunity to exercise political influence effectively. Due to a series of laws, court cases and executive orders over the last few months, virtually all college students (at least 18 years old by Election Day) may register in their college community. If students are really concerned about improving their situation in this college community, they must not waste this opportunity by registering back home and losing the potential power their vote can have in Brazos County. We live here at least nine months out of the year, there are numer ous ways in which the city and county governments can improve student life, and those govern ments will listen to 10,000 to 15,000 potential votes. Do not get me wrong, I am not in favor of wiping out College Station City Council or the School Board and replacing it with inexperienced students. The fact remains, how ever, that College Station is Texas A&M, and the economy of the entire county is largely dependent upon the student. We deserve to have sympathetic representatives in every level of local govern ment. Also, student opinion can and should be recognized by the state legislators and U.S. Con gressman from this area; a ma jority of 15,000 votes for a man or an issue cannot be ignored. A campus-wide registra tion drive for 1972 sponsored by the Student Senate will begin Monday, November 1. I urge every student to give our ideas a voice and register in Brazos County. Fred Campbell ’73 ★ ★ ★ Editor: This problem is one experienced by many, daily on this campus. It is time to bring this debased animal in the open and stop it with rules we’ve always had. Last Thursday I eagerly enter ed my ‘bbbbbb’ class and sat down at my desk only to find my shoe heel turning over a Coke cup not empty. It wasn’t Coke inside. As this was my assigned seat I could n’t change. After break time, , . , -BEG which gives people ample ip-Tl to attend to their habits, i I ice W to await the outcome. SlowhEiil si by one, they returned, habljre on hand. One guy twenty.fiv e l r ish F away was smoking a teJ rhe cigarette that was burnbl V( from my eyes. Seconds)*" ’ more guys and 2 girls det., add to the debased cloud oj] lution that was floating in of the blackboard and thepj sor. My notes started | rough. Then Cowboy Bob[ to open up his tin of Copes) which had an opening smell] clogged my throat and nos bite into the ‘peaty’ subi and summarily spit gross* cencies into a clear Sbisa eiipl girls turned their heads atil stomach started forming nL gave up on notes. Fat Sai[l and t cided to counter-attack tk!P seeme ' smoke with a green cigar. Hf| quickly allied by an old i pipe. I could barely make oot| 3 inch emblem on my nottl now. The lulling sounds of cm ing crackers and slurping! had 4 CT’s in a deep sleep, Is hear their faint snores in tkti tance. I stumbled out thei and then home where I ki| took aspirin, used murine, i wondered if Newton went t this. The prof did nothing.Isi to my grave all this is tnie, Ronnie Quebe Beat the rap Defending tickets The Legal Rights Commission is a Student Senate Subcommittee designed to help students obtain legal information for their legal problems. Initiated in 1969, most questions have been concerning traffic violations or lease problems. Equipped with a newly hired student lawyer, LRC is now ready to tackle any problem. To benefit a larger portion of the student body, this column hopes to initiate a “Dear Abby” type of answering legal questions, been initiated on this campus ten Write to Legal Rights Commission, Student Senate, Box 5718, College years ago, but these same stu- Station, Texas. For urgent problems, call a LRC member. They are: dents and ex-students seemed to Paul Turner, 845-4948; Shannon McKinney, 846-9753; Stan Basse, be afraid that^havmg women on 845-5667; Fred Campbell, 845-1048; Sam Drugan, 845-1878. campus wou < es loy e sc oo s question: I just received a traffic ticket, what are my best defenses? J.N.M. Corps image. They’re right, and it’s an image that should be de stroyed because it misrepresents the student body. The Corps is faithful to bitter end during football games, and they do attend all the yell prac tices, but only because there’s an upperclassman standing behind them ready to kick them in the rear if they don’t. How many of those gung-ho c.t.’s would be so gung-ho if it wasn’t forced? The most apathetic students on this campus are people who got out of the Corps. I’m sure that Mrs. Chambers ANSWER: Moneysworth, a consumer newsletter, cites Texas as one of five typically ticket-happy states. First, when stopped—1) Don’t be nasty. 2) Do start talking, try to persuade the cop not to give you the ticket. 3) Turn off the motor of your car. 4) In a rural area get your case set in the county seat; they’re fairer. 5) Make no admission of guilt. Second, in preparing for court 1) Make sure the violation exists. 2) Do your homework, are the speed signs posted? Is the traffic light or radar defective? Was the No-Parking sign obstructed by a truck? Thirdly, in court 1) Your objective is to persuade the judge that cop was mistaken, not that he is lying, 2) Dress well. Your best defenses are: 1) Had no choice, i.e. an emergency. 2) Sudden mechanical failure. 3) You were coerced. NEVER say 1) you didn’t know the law, 2) the law is unfair 3) everyone else was doing it. If you are local to the court, remember the judge depends on would love it if everyone at A&M your vote to get elected. Another thing in your favor is that you have were forced to get a redneck hair- all the details fresh on your mind while the cop probably doesn’t. autonomy the key clients your own to serve as you please decisions your own to make as you please unlimited income freedom to be 22% our top agents began on campus earning high you can insurance counselling check our campus program 1 ^ j 0 PROVIDENT MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF PHILADELPHIA Gordon B. Richardson Campus Representative 707 University Drive, Suite 23 846-7027 AGGIE PLAQUES Plaster Accessories Finished - Unfinished Working Area Free Instructions GIFT - A - RAMA Redmond Terrace College Station The most Meaningful Semesle you’ll ever spend could be the oneoi World Campus Afjjj Sailing Feb. 1972 to Africa and the Oriiit Through a transfer format, more than!! students from 450 campuses have paW for a semester in this unique program in® national education. WCA will broaden your horizons, lileraDfi figuratively . , . and give you a better ct« make it—meaningfully—in this changing* You'll study at sea with an experience mopolitan (acuity, and then during port sh you'll study the world itself. You'll disco*! ' no matter how foreign and far away, you lot in common with people of other lands. WCA isn’t as expensive as you might ^ we've done our best to bring it within reJtJ most college students. Write today Id details. TEACHERS: Summer travel with credit(•fW ers and administrators. **** *£££( Write Today to: Chapman College, Box CC26, Orange, California!!* ATTENTION All Seniors and Graduate Students MAKE SURE YOUR PICTURE WILL BE IN THE 1972 AGGIELAND YEARBOOK PICTURE SCHEDULE J - K - L Oct. 18 - 22 M - N - O Oct. 25 - 29 p - Q - R Nov. 1 - 5 S - T - U Nov. 8-12 v - w - x. y - z Nov is -19 Make-Up Week — Nov. 22 - Dec. 10 NOTE: Students needing pictures for job-applications or aI1 ! personal use may come ahead of schedule. CORPS SENIORS: Uniform: Class A Winter - Blous e or Midnight Shirt. CIVILIANS: Coat and Tie. PICTURES WILL BE TAKEN FROM 8: A.M. to 5: P NOTE: BRING FEE SLIPS to university studio 115 No. Main — North Gate Phone: 846-8019 One c Offici bt Stud 1 p.m. 1 filial l Name: Dissert: THE COM Time; Place; Resei ( I Stud' land it up in Service All sti degree of Edi as wel The h< Exchai sentati Rcgist Tueadt hoods since on the CandU wear dents Degree ituden dor’s unitor candic degree D.Ed. gown. Ph.D. of cs chang Noven Nover, and 1 basis. and g chang Prices Doc Doc Ma! Bac All p requii APP1 1 V! The will admii in th 1972. to th fore Appl test ratio cards Colle who shod ON THURSDAY, SECRETARIES AUdAYf? CALL IN SICK.. r—^