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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 23, 1971)
CADET SLOUCH by Jim Earle Listen Up SCOPE raps the Bonfire “We just got a call from Navasota asking that we turn down the volume.” Editor: What if they gave a bonfire and no one came ? This is the only solution left open to those of us who are opposed to the bon fire and wish to display that op position at this late date. We of SCOPE (Student Council on Pol lution & Environment) realize that we can not attack this 30 minutes of pre-town hall activity on its environmental impact be cause the trees have already been cut and are lying dead at the fu ture sites of cooling lakes for power plants. But SCOPE wishes to interject our stand on resource use. We believe that the resource should be put to the use which produces the greatest benefits. SCOPE feels that the dead logs could be cut into cords and dis tributed throughout north Bryan. There are families living in Bryan whose main source of fuel for heating and cooking is wood. Dis tributing cords of firewood to these people would be a construc tive action rather than the de structive waste of logs on Nov. 24, and all the manpower could be put to a better end. This con structive activity could promote as much, if not more, unity as the building of the bonfire. What’s more, the burning firewood in the homes in north Bryan could dem onstrate A&M’s continuous desire to beat TU. SCOPE would like to ask the student body, as Dr. Davenport asked them in a letter last year, Where are you putting your em phasis? We are given a day off to build a manstrosity which will go up in a cloud of wasted smoke. Couldn’t our efforts be better spent? If you think so, then don’t support this wasteful act with your presence either at the cut ting area or at the building area. Steve Hayes The international ecology When I was employed in Gene va, Switzerland, I was fortunate enough to be a member of the United National Planning Com mittee for the first World Youth Assembly, which was eventually held in the United Nations in New York during the month of July, 1970. Five young persons from each country in the world were invited to attend, and participate in the Assembly. The Assembly was divided into four commis sions, one of which was the En vironment Commission, and to my knowledge, this was the first time a world body had even discussed the environment of the world in any depth. In a way, it was un fortunate that is was the young persons of the world who finally brought the matter to the atten tion of the General Assembly, for our degradation of the environ ment needed discussing long ago on the world level, and especially by the generation most responsi ble for the despolication. As a participant in the Assem bly, I was equally fortunate to serve as chairman of the Sub commission on Conservation of Natural Resources, and, perhaps, receive, for myself, a better un derstanding of world youth senti ment in regard to environment issues. I would like to use the rest of this column to share with you some of the happenings and impressions of the Assembly, es pecially the Commission on En vironment. There were two primary themes in the area of the environment: one was environment in a tech nological society, and the second, environment and the developing countries. The latter was par ticularly concerned with the ex ploitation of their natural re sources by more technologically advanced countries. It was, as a delegate of Nigeria noted, “diffi cult to consider the problems of any use of natural resources, let alone conservation, when our re sources are not being as misused by our own country, as they are being removed by foreign coun tries.” His statement is borne out by the fact that the United States alone uses from 30 to 50 per cent of the world’s natural resources, yet numbers less than six per cent of the world’s people. Much of Europe and the Soviet Union adds further credence to his statement. A young Philip- pino woman noted also that a vast majority of all businesses in her country were American owned, and that 90 per cent of her coun try’s wealth was controlled by less than five per cent of the country’s population. Thus, it was often difficult for developing na tions to appreciate, in the same manner, the concern for the en vironment of those from more developed nations. Nevertheless, the Commission was able to gen erate some very positive proposals which were eventually sent to the General Assembly of the United Nations. The Commission on Environ ment called for the nations of the world to “pursue the trans fer of resources spent on arma ments to the needs of development and international assistance.’ It also noted that “ . . . since the continuation of the testing of nu clear weapons, and the stockpiling of chemical and biological weap ons constitute an immediate and serious threat both to the environ ment and to the whole mankind,” an attempt be made to “attain im mediate cessation of all forms of nuclear weapon tests.” The Commission, and ultimately the World Youth Assembly called “a review of harmful chemical substances, radio-active materials, other noxious agents and waste which may dangerously affect man’s health and his economic and cultural activities in the ma rine environment and coastal areas.” The idealism and altruistic be havior of the world’s future lead ers are desperately needed to add a freshness to the pragmatism of today’s organizational man. Beat tu This year Batt editorials have been distinguished by the fact that you don’t have to look far to find someone who disagrees with one. Realizing this, the Batt editor has taken it upon himself to write an editorial that almost everyone will agree with. We hope that the Fightin’ Texas Aggie football team beats the everlivin’, everlovin’, compound, complex, Class of’73 (the editor is a junior) hell outta tu Thanksgiving Day. Che Battalion Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the student writers only. The Battalion is a non-tax- supported, non-profit, self-supporting educational enter prise edited and operated by students as a university and community newspaper. LETTERS POLICY Letters to the editor must be typed, double-spaced, and no more than 300 words in length. They must be signed, although the writer’s name will be withheld by arrangement with the editor. Address correspondence to Listen Up, The Battalion, Room 217, Services Building, .College Station, Texas 77813. MEMBER The Associated Press, Texas Press Association The Associated Collegiate Press Mail subscriptions are $3.50 per semester; $6 per school full year. All subscriptions subject to 6% Using: rate furnished year; $6.50 p« sales tax. Adver The Battalion, Texas 77843. on request. Address: Room 217, Services Building, College Station, Members of the Student Publications Board are: Jim Lindsey, chairman ; H. F. Eilers, College of Liberal Arts ; F. S. White, College of Engineering; Dr. Asa B. Childers, Jr., College of Veterinary Medicine; Dr. W. E. Tedrick, College of Agriculture; and Layne Kruse, student. 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 origin published herein. Rights of republication of all other matter herein are also reserved. Second-Class postage paid at College Station, Texas. Represented nationally by National Educational Advertising Services, Inc., New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. EDITOR ' HAYDEN WHITSETT Managing Editor Doug Dilley News Editor Sue Davis Sports Editor John Curylo Assistant Sports Editor Bill Henry A tradition can change for the better and only the student body can affect this change. You have the power, demonstrate it! The officers of SCOPE, Steve Esmond Melissa Seminara John Bane Fletcher Kelley Alana Foster Andy Beck ★ ★ ★ Editor: Isn’t anyone alarmed when a professor announces that he’s go ing to curve test grades ? And doubly alarmed by the cheer that goes up from the class? It seems to me that these are symptoms of a decline in our educational standards that we should seek to reverse. I’m an older dude, as under graduates go. Nearly 39, if you must know. Coming here was a dream come true for me: At last a full-time college student with my degree in sight. But a college degree has taken on a new mean ing for me. I hope to be able to have pride and respect for my own education, but I shall never again have automatic admiration and esteem for college grads. A major exam I recently took illustrates my point. I wasn’t well prepared for it and was frankly concerned about how well I would do. I pulled an 80, which was an accurate indication of how well I knew the material. Well darned if it wasn’t the highest mark in the class (of about 120 students) and the curve made a real hero out of me. At first blush I felt pretty smug. But it now occurs to me that this system cheats the stu dent, the university and the out side world, including employers, who look at transcripts with the impression that A = excellent, B = good and C = average. It isn’t awfully ridiculous to suggest that we present the uni versity with a lump-sum check for eight semesters of school ex penses and. receive our degrees then and there — thereby saving everyone four years of grief. Maybe that’s where academic evolution is taking us anyway. I’d like to see curves replaced by honest, reasonable and faiy evaluations of how hard a student tries and how much he has learn ed from a course. The measuring stick should be what the profes sor expects us to know, not how much we know in relationship to the rest of the class. My concern isn’t for the uni versity, or for other students, or for employers. I am afraid for myself, that I might be infected by this system which corrupts ambition and promotes medioc rity. I want my education to mean something, and it’s hard—damned hard—to shoot for a 100 when an 80 will get you an A. L. J. Lawrence ’73 4 C’ Thanksgiving schedule released Memorial Student Center serv ices will be provided Thursday for patrons of the A&M-Texas football game, then close the re mainder of the Thanksgiving holi day. However, most MSC services will continue through Thursday, according to Garmon F. Tax, fa cility schedules manager. Only the post office windows, barber shop and general offices will close Thanksgiving Day. Facilities remaining open until normal closing hours Thursday include the Association of Former Students office, cafeteria, foun tain room, gift shop, guest rooms, browsing library and director’s office. The entire center will close Fri day, Saturday and Sunday. Page 2 THE BATTALION College Station, Texas Tuesday, November 23J Read Battalion Classif BURGER HUT Remember Happy Hour! BEER ON TAP 15c Monday - Friday — 5 p. m. - 6 p. m. 317 University Dr. North Gate Word! I “outstal technol<| marks search | a Genefl Farm] green unlimited to spend to save to enjoy independence no routines freedom from the dull further 22% our top agents began on campus successful careers try yourself try insurance counselling check our campus program gincer wring (echnid I address! I and sdJ j "emissil lustratf "BE 1 iji PROVIDENT MUTUAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY OF PHILADELPHIA Gordon B. Richardson Campus Representative 707 University Drive, Suite 23 846-7027 Members of the Commission were very well prepared to dis cuss present agricultural prac tices, and called for an ecologist to be included in agricultural aid programs to avoid practices detri mental to the environment. I found it particularly comforting that although most of the dele gates came from, what are often called, developing countries, they nevertheless placed a high value on environment, and spoke with exceptional foresight into the value of such an environment. Too, the Assembly called for world family planning and re search to be undertaken immed iately, to determine the concept of ultimate population. The world body also called on the Pope to review his encyclical, and “thus permit the unfettered ex ercise of the consciences of in dividual Catholics with regard to use of contraceptives.” It was also recommended “that in plan ning development programs be sides concentrating on the politi cal expediency and economic necessity for development pro jects, adequate consideration be given to their social and ecological implications. rr ^fvLTHS Vtvxr. JJeiAkawuj Ik**#* West ^itnaeVS' ^ kONES VJO- 00 PEANUTS PEANUTS The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M, is published in College Station, Texas, daily except Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and holiday periods, September through May, and once a week during summer school. E H0U DO ^OU LIKE IT ? T /y HELLO, \ 'SGIROEDER? I J95T HEARP A SCN60NTHE RAPID, ANP IT REMINDEP ME, OF YOU.. 77# MAYBE 50MEPAY IF WE GET MARRIEP, I'LL CALL YOU LIKE THIS WHEN YOU'RE AT U)0RK,ANP I'LL TELL YOU HOD |'M THINKING ABOUT YOlL.WOULP YOU LIKE THAT 7 By Charles M. Scfo DELL, IF I WERE TRAPPEP BEHIND ENEMY LINES AND THE TEMPERATURE WAS THIRTY-BELOU-ZERO, j MIGHT SAY IT TASTEP PRETTY GOOD... /O'A i'm sorry, your call PIP NOT GO THROUGH ...PLEASE HANG UP, AND PO NOT DIAL AGAIN 1 I DON'T SUPPOSE THAT'S REALLY MUCH OF A COMPLIMENT •-I P