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THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 1974
Listen Up
‘The days of the Spanish Inquisition have passed’
Editor:
It became apparent last night
that A&M does not have a cen
sorship board; rather, it has a
programming committee under
the guise of the MSG Council,
which is determined to simply
“program” the films available to
be seen by the student body,
whether the student body likes it
Editor's Notes
Last Friday three students were nabbed by university
officials for illicit drug use and are facing misdemeanor
charges for possession of marijuana.
This incident kindled my interest into how elaborate
are the university’s drug abuse prevention efforts and what
happens to students caught with illegal drugs.
According to Dean of Men Charles Powell, the main
enforcers of drug laws in the dormitories are the resident
advisers. They are instructed to give warnings to students
the First time illicit drug use is suspected. If a student is
caught with drugs after an initial warning, an RA would
refer the case to Dean Powell. Powell says the usual
punishment is conduct probation, but if the offense is
repeated the student would be suspended from the univer
sity.
Not surprisingly, “pushing” illegal drugs calls for
immediate suspension, but Dean Powell says this has
happened only three or four times in the two years he has
been at A&M. “We try to make discipline a learning
experience,” Powell said, “but, on the other hand, we have
to provide a degree of security in the campus community.”
If a person is a compulsive thief or drug user, he added, and
the campus can’t live with him—“We’ll have to live without
him.”
Powell said drugs are not a major problem in the
dormitories. The quantities involved are not large, he said,
and almost invariably, the pushers work off campus. In
addition, dormitory drug abuse (ignoring alcohol use) seems
to be limited to smoking or otherwise possessing marijuana.
Powell said only one person has been caught with LSD on
campus while he has been here, and that person was not a
student. “I can’t say they’re not using it,” he said, “just
that we haven’t caught them with it.” He added that
occasionally a student will take an overdose of tran
quilizers, but that medical, not disciplinary, help is sought
for these people. In two years, he said, no one has been
caught with heroin.
Unlike the University of Texas, A&M does not have a
fulltime narcotics agent, as such. However, two of the
University Police’s 34 officers are investigators that concern
themselves solely with criminal matters. According to
University Police Chief O. L. Luther, “a considerable
amount of their time” is spent with drug cases. Department
of Public Safety officers can come on campus and act
independently from University Police. Normally, Chief
Luther will ask DPS officers that campus officers and
resident advisers accompany the DPS people when an actual
“bust” is taking place. Dean Powell said this policy helps
student victims feel more comfortable and can protect
them from overzealous state officials. Police, Powell
emphasized, are seldom used to catch students with drugs,
as most cases are handled between the students, resident
advisers and the dean.
or not.
The reference is to the rejec
tion of “Pink Flamingos” as a
film worthy of showing on this
campus, because some rather veh
ement complaints about other
films were received and because
Mr. Stark and, apparently, six
other council members do not con
sider the film “fine art” even
though they have never seen the
film themselves and have based
their opinions entirely on hear
say “evidence.”
A reasonable proposal suggest
ed was an “experimental” show
ing with questionnaires handed
out in order to determine if a
significant fraction of A&M stu
dents desired such “program
ming.” The Arts Committee urg
ed this be done. They selected the
film because it is, in their opin
ion, “significant,” e.g. it has made
enough impact to be reviewed in
the New York Times. Indeed, it
seems to us that one important
facet of the educational process
is to let students know what is
going on in this world, if they
want to know, whether it is pret
ty and “decent” or not.
Even though the Arts Film Se
ries has been drawing increasing
numbers of students, the council
says it has “responsibilities.” It
might be noted that similar “re
sponsibilities” almost kept a
speaker off of this campus that
quite a few students were inter
ested in hearing.
The open-mindedness of some
council members was obvious,
though one was too busy with
her needlepoint to say much.
In closing, it is suggested that
while the council considers its
“responsibilities,” it also ponders
the concept of the university as
an open forum for the free ex
change of ideas and realizes that
the days of the Spanish Inquisi
tion (hopefully) have passed.
Ralph McNutt
Thomas P. Donahue
does not deserve our respect. Too
long, the TSA and TSL have been
dominated by Sandy Kress and
Co. from TU and have degenerat
ed into a farce. A&M should only
be a member of these organiza
tions as long as it can exercise a
sobering, moderating and influen
tial role.
If the issues before the NSL,
like improved funding for higher
educations, lower air-rail fares
for senior citizens and students,
etc. are acted upon, certainly the
A&M students stand to benefit.
As a veteran, I have also noted
with great interest NSL’s role in
getting improved veteran’s bene
fits. In the interview I was trying
to point out that we should be
long to those organizations |
concern themselves withii
ual issues. Also, to bemotti.
resentative, NSL should trji
bring schools like TCU, Jsj',
and SMU into its realm. Tts,
not done by doing things Isj
dorsing the armadillo for ss
animal.
Wally Reinke
★ ★ ★
Wrong idea
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INC ASSOCIATION (Nevada, Mo.)
By TC GAL
Dr. Harri
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spoke to a
c
Bi
Editor:
Re: printed response to the
question in the March 26 Battal
ion on the NSL, TSL and TSA.
My answer in The Battalion to
the question on lobby groups may
have created on incorrect impres
sion in the minds of your readers.
I am completely in favor of mem
bership in an effective lobbying
organization. I do not consider
the TSL as an effective lobbying
organization at the present.
Recently, for example, the TSL
endorsed the armadillo as the
state animal of Texas! An organ
ization that concerns itself with
such frivolous and petty matters
OPAS Special Attraction
THE LYRIC ART QUARTET
Fredell Lack—violin
Albert Muenzer—violin
Wayne Crouse—viola
Shirley Trepel—cello
ALBERT HIRSH ~ piano
CADET SLOUCH
by Jim Earle
Dynamic expenses
A representative of Evelyn Wood’s Reading Dynamics
Institute is in town this week seeking students for a course
in speed reading. The institute guarantees it will improve
someone’s reading efficiency by at least three times and
boasts of having over 500,000 graduates including key
members of the Nixon and Kennedy administrations. The
catch is—the tuition for the seven-lesson course is $325.
Since, each lesson is three hours long, a student pays
$15.48 for each hour he learns to read faster.
The institutes’ rep, Barry Rountree, cited high
advertising costs as the reason for the high tuition fee.
March 28, 1974
8 p.m.
Rudder Center Theatre
Tickets at Rudder Center Box Office
(Everyone must buy a ticket.)
Office hours: 9 a.m. - 4 p.m., Monday through Friday
OPAS is a functioning committee of the Town Hall Committee of Texas A&M University
“We appreciate your offer to serve on our committee that
reviews material to determine if it is pornographic, but there
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Danny R. Hayes joins the team
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A Ts
Acts
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Cbe Battalion
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