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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 8, 1974)
^ Today in the Bait a Daylight time p. 3 j Revenge at T€U p. 4 Che Battalion Weather Continued fair and cool today and tomorrow. Friday hi 48°. Tonight’s low 30°. Saturday hi 56°. Vol. 67 No. 345 College Station, Texas Friday, February 8, 1974 Education committee backs A&M-UT fund ilive PHRIS SWANSEN performs on the Moog synthesizer in the University Center Auditorium Phursday night. It took three men to operate the device; the sound was like that of many instruments together. (Photo by Kathy Curtis) AUSTIN (AP)—The continued exclusive use by the University of Texas and TAMU of revenue from the $680 million Permanent Uni versity Fund has been approved by the Constitutional Convention’s Education Committee. The committee voted 14-4 Thursday against an amendment that would have given the legis lature control of the fund. It voted 12-8 against an amend ment that would have given Prai rie View A&M a separate board of Complicated machine recreates real sound By BRAD ELLIS Staff Writer The people were impressed with the Moog trio concert/demonstration Thursday night in the University Center Auditorium as Chris Swansen appeared with two other performers to play selections from the works of J. S. Bach, Lennon and McCartney, and other musicians. Not everyone was pleased, but the sound was impressive. In the compositions all the sounds and figures necessary to the piece were present in startling clarity and precision of reproduction, even though all that was present was a collection of confusing looking electronic machinery, some very big speaker cabinets with some very big speakers in them, and three very intent looking men. It sounded like some very soulful musicians were creating the music right there on stage but it did not look that way. It sounded that way, but it did not entirely look that way. § r en- Pro- r COl- Navy ,rma- / En- Gene feb.- Student lawyer okayed By VICKIE ASHWILL Staff Writer TAMU President Jack K. Wil liams gave final approval yester day on the hiring of a student lawyer. The student attorney concept was adopted by the Student Gov ernment Legal Rights Commis sion over two years ago, approved by the Student Senate Nov. 30, 1972 and is finally in its last stage. Vice President for Student Services Dr. John J. Koldus will begin the paper work and proc esses involved in the hiring of a lawyer beginning Monday. “We will have the use of a stu dent attorney as soon as possible this semester,” said Randy Ross, SG president. According to the final proposal the student’s legal advisor will be able to counsel and litigate for students and recognized student organizations who request his aid. The lawyer will be limited in litigation only to include student consumer problems, as long as the problem does not relate to another student or the University. The attorney will not be able to take any action against the Uni- I versity. The proposal states that the at torney will have to establish a legal referral system in conjunc tion with the Brazos County Bar Association. He will also func tion to make students aware of their legal rights and responsi bilities through various means. The proposal states that the legal advisor shall be an attorney admitted to the bar of the Su preme Court of Texas. Koldus said $15,000 had been allocated from Student Services Pees for the service this year and will receive $23,000 for the pro gram next year. It did not look like they were doing a lot at all, but it seemed from the expression on their faces that they were doing a lot, and were conscious and appreciative of the fact that a lot was going on around them. Swansen himself commented during the per formance he too thought he and his partners were learning an incredible amount from playing the Moog synthesizer in that particular audi torium. The audience seemed so impressed with the reality of the sound that no one applauded until the last sound of each piece had completely died away. Musically there was a lot more to be heard. There always is with music. But for realism and clarity, and all the other things that make one’s perception of the concert real, it could not be beaten by anything. It sounded like there was a machine on the stage thinking about sound and about music. regents and a one-sixth share of the fund. It voted 13-9 against an amend ment that would have allowed money from the fund to be used to recruit and give scholarships to students from families with gross incomes under $5,000 a year. “So much for the poor students of Texas,” said Rep. Jim Mattox, D-Dallas, after the last vote. The committee voted 18-5 to keep the fund as it is. The revenue from the fund is approximately $35 million a year. This is the Available University Fund. Texas gets two-thirds of it and TAMU one-third. The fund was established in 1876 and consists mainly of reve nue from 2.1 million acres of land, most of it in West Texas. The dis covery of oil under the land in the 1920s made Texas the wealthiest university in the world a few de cades later, and it still is one of the wealthiest. A constitutional amendment in 1934 gave a third of the fund’s revenue to A&M. The 1876 constitution called for creation of “a university of the first class.” Advocates of reten tion of the fund in its present status argue that spreading the revenue among all 37 public sen ior institutions of higher learn ing in the state would not raise any of them to that level but would insure the decline in the quality of education at Texas. Rep. Bill Goody D-Weatherford, said the amendment to give the legislature control of the fund was one “appealing to greed and lar ceny.” “I believe the legislature should control the bureaucracy,” replied Rep. Joe Pentony, D. Houston, who sponsored the amendment. “The board of regents are at least as much a political body as we are.” But the regents are not ans werable to the voters, he said. Mattox said the legislature should be given the flexibility to divert money from the available fund when it greatly exceeds what is needed to pay the building bonds of the two universities. This year, that amounted to $12 million, Mattox said. Next year, because of soaring oil and gas prices, it might be $30 million or $50 million, yet all of it would have to be spent at those schools and nowhere else, he said. Rep. Senfronia Thompson, D- Houston, co-sponsor of the Prairie View A&M amendment, said of that school’s satellite status with Texas A&M, “It has not profited that school to remain in the A&M system. It has not been fairly treated.” She said Prairie View has re ceived only $6.4 million from Texas A&M’s share in 14 years. A motion to table Mattox’ amendment to recruit disadvan taged students failed on the 11-11 vote, but the amendment also failed on a later vote. Students may pay more income taxes An old law and a new interpre tation may force graduate stu dents to cough up more for taxes, warned the Graduate Student Council in its meeting Thursday. According to council member Terry Yorks, the Internal Reve nue Service in Austin has a new director who is reputed to be tougher than the previous one. Consequently, if circulating ru mors materialize, Texas may be held as a test case for the Su preme Court’s “No strings at tached” interpretation of Section 117 of the IRS code. The new di rector, Richard Stakem, could en force stricter rulings on this Williams approves Senate allocations The Student Services Fees Allocations rcommended by the Student Senate Wednesday night were approved by TAMU President Jack Williams Thursday. The recommendations now go for final approval to the Board of Directors, who are scheduled to meet here Monday at 1:30 p.m. and Tuesday at 9 a.m. in the Direc tors’ House, north of Sbisa. The meetings are open. Student Government President Randy Ross said, “This is the first time I know of when the president made no changes in the Student Senate's recommendations.” The allocations stand as follows: Perrin firing discussed Dept, requesting Received Requested Recommended funds this year last year this year this year Athletic Dept. 170,000 220,000 195,000 Intramural 50,000 99,569 70,000 MSC Great Issues 13,500 14,150 14,150 MSC Political Forum 9,000 9,500 9,500 MSC Student Program 198,331 255,629 250,000 MSC Town HaU 32,500 37,500 34,608 Shuttle Bus 42,000 60,000 52,000 Student Government 9,000 18,060 17,600 Student Handbook 4,500 4,737 4,500 Student Lawyer 15,500 23,304 23,000 Student Publications 45,000 81,900 65,000 $589,331 $824,349 $735,358 Amount Available $735,358 By MARY RUSSO and GREG MOSES LaTonya Perrin’s hasty dismissal from her post as Arts Committee chairman was the sub ject of the Memorial Student Center Directorate’s meeting Thursday night. Don Webb, MSC president, and Mike Perrin, LaTonya’s husband and MSC public relations chairman, faced off to battle what some consid ered a “put-up” job. “She didn’t keep in touch with the vice presi dent who serves as an adviser and representative. She wouldn’t get information; in for the news letter, passing up free publicity. LaTonya didn’t comply with MSC rulings about making contracts through Mr. Hal Gaines, MSC adviser,” Webb said. LaTohya did not attend and her husband spoke in her defense. “LaTonya had been sent a number of memo randums by the vice president, and she never answered them in any way. LaTonya didn’t feel the newsletter was effective and didn’t see using it as a means of publicity,” said Perrin. “Mr. Wayne Stark, MSC director, signed the contracts for Brooks, the Moog synthesizer, plus arranging for the art exhibit, all of which are LaTonya’s committee’s functions,” Perrin added. “As you can see, there was plenty of com munication where needed,” Perrin said. “LaTonya’s committee was delinquent in pay ing bills. There are some due from October. Also, there is the $3,000 in art films, ordered by one of the subcommittees. These films were ordered without any staff knowledge,” Webb added. “The bills had been removed from their keep ing place, when the treasurer left office,” said Perrin. “So LaTonya didn’t play by the rules. What’s important is the students are getting the programming. On the large scale, the students are benefitting,” said Perrin. The final clash between LaTonya and Webb came over publicity for the Gwendolyn Brooks poetry reading. Webb said LaTonya was a habitual liar and the publicity wasn’t adequate. LaTonya said she was doing the best she could under the circumstances. Because of this credibility gap, Webb felt he could not afford to take the chance of letting LaTonya run the programs for the following week (Brooks, the Moog Trio and the film series). He told her an hour before the MSC council meeting that he would call for her resig nation at that meeting. LaTonya refused to resign and the council, in a 12-0 vote with Webb abstaining, dismissed her. clause. “No strings attached” in the past has been generally under stood to mean that money a stu dent receives from an institution as a gift without obligation would be tax exempt income. Should work or any other obligation be required in return, the money would not qualify for the exemp tion. “Inequities in judgments are in evitable,” said Yorks. “There will be six people in Austin checking returns for the IRS and each will have his own opinion on what will or will not be exempt.” A stricter interpretation of the clause could threaten previously exempt student income sources. University officials have been barred by the IRS from advising graduate students on the validity of their exemptions, no reason given. The council agreed that stu dents should read Section 117, and do the best they can on their own. The IRS may be contacted for tax information from 7:45 a. m. to 4:30 p. m. weekdays on the toll free number 800-252-1000. In other business, the GSC ap proved guidelines for the distin guished Graduate Teaching As sistant Award Plan which will soon be submitted to the Associa tion of Former Students. Three awards of $200 each were recommended by the council. “Graduate assistants are a vital and important part of the teaching staff at Texas A&M. These rec ommended awards would be a way for the University and the Association of Former Students to recognize this important con tribution,” concluded Committee Chairman Bennie Leeth in the (See STUDENTS Page 2) University National Bank "On the side of Texas A&M.” Adv. The inquiring Battman Do you think President Nixon should be impeached? Interviews by T. C. Gallucci Photos by Kathy Curtis JOHN HUBBARD No. I think that he’s a pretty good President. He’s made a few mistakes, but he’s been pretty good considering what he’s had to put up with. MIKE RYAN Wow! I don’t know if he should be impeached, but he sure is do ing a lousy job. CEDRIC JOSEPH Yes, I think so. Not because of what he’s done but because he let himself get caught. ALLEN McCORD No, he’s doing a good enough job as it is. The Congress should see that there are three branches of the government and they are not dictators. in. DONNA JEANS No, because all the facts aren’t STEVE EBERLE Never! I’ve stood along with him from the beginning. I would have voted for him if I had been able to. LARRY WINGS Of course not, because a) he is one of the least immoral Presi dents of our time and b) the pow er of the presidency would be se verely curtailed.