Page 2
THE BATTALION
WEDNESDAY, JULY 28 1976
Parking a problem
Have you got $25 to throw away?
Try parking on almost any off-
campus parking lot and then going to
class. When you get back, your car
will most likely have been towed
away and the charge will be at least
that much, if not more.
For months now, many of the
businesses near the University have
had a problem with people using
only their parking spaces and not
their stores. One of the largest shop
ping centers near the campus now
has a person, usually a College Sta
tion policeman, watching the park
ing lot. When he sees someone leave
his car and go to the campus, he calls
a towing service and the automobile
is removed.
One woman, who supports herself
and her four children while attend
ing college, had her car towed away
recently when she went to class.
When she returned to find her car
gone, she was unable to find anyone
who knew what happened to it.
In every store she went into, she
was told that that place had nothing
to do with towaways. No one was
willing to take the responsibility for
having her car removed.
She finally went to the police and
they told her what had happened.
She threatened to go the towing yard
and take her car and they told her
that if she did that, she would be
charged with felony theft.
The woman told the man at the
towing company that, with four kids
and college bills, she simply could
not afford to pay the full $25. He
laughed and took the money.
Another student whose car had
been towed off was told that the
charge was $30. He said that he did
not have the money then but that he
would return with it in a few days.
After informing the student that
the towing company charges three
dollars per day for “storage,” the
man had the gall to say, “Now look,
son, I am only trying to help you. ”
One student, upon returning to
the parking lot, found his car being
hoisted by the tow truck. The
operator refused to lower the car and
told the student that he would have
to go to the wrecking yard to recover
his automobile.
College Station does not require a
license to operate a towing company.
Any fly-by-night operator with a pic
kup and towbar can set up a service
and make a living off other people.
One of the busiest towing services
is located about one mile from the
parking lot from which it receives a
large portion of its business. It prob
ably takes no more than five minutes
to drive to the lot, another five min
utes to hook up the car and five more
for the return trip. At $25 per tow,
that is $100 per hour.
Obviously, a business cannot be
expected to furnish free parking for
students. When the problem has
reached the proportions that it has
here, the businesses must do some
thing about it.
However, towing away every car
they can is not the answer. In the
first place, the fault lies not entirely
with the student. Texas A&M, as a
matter of policy, issues more parking
permits than it has spaces.
The rationale for this policy is that
there will rarely be all the permit-
holders for any given parking lot on
campus at the same time. When
there is, however, the unfortunate
odd-man-out will very likely end up
paying as much for towing as he did
for his parking permit ($27 per
academic year).
Too many students have parked
illegally for too long and created an
intolerable situation for the busi
nesses. Many cars probably needed
to be removed.
However, in a situation where a
parking lot is only partially full any
time during the day, there is no real
reason for a tow truck to be called.
Sometimes there really isn’t any
other place close to park and a stu
dent, who is usually on a very strin
gent budget to begin with, should
not be forced to pay such ridiculous
fees.
—Richard Chamberlain
TTS STILL HUNGRY, NELYIN! QU1CR ,FEEP IT MPRE ROCKS —BEFORE IT READS EbRTHE HENHOUSE-!
Carter-Mondale ticket heavenly?
Readers’
Forum
Guest viewpoints, in addition
to Listen Up letters, are wel
come. All pieces submitted to
Aggie Forum should be:
• Typed triple space
• Limited to 60 characters
per line
• Limited to 100 lines
Submit articles to Reed
McDonald 217, College Sta
tion, Texas, 77843. Author’s
phone number must accom
pany all submissions.
WASHINGTON — To reread , in
the light of his altered circumstanc
es, Sen. Walter F. Mondale’s 1975
book on the presidency is an intrigu
ing experience. Titled “The Accoun
tability of Power: Toward a Respon
sible Presidency, it was written
after Watergate and after an aban
doned presidential bid of his own by
a senator who was preoccupied by
the need to prevent another power-
usurper from reaching the White
House.
In today’s perspective, parts of it
read like an advertisement for
Mondale’s running mate Jimmy Car
ter. And parts of it read like a mes
sage of caution to — and about —
Carter.
In the latter category, for exam
ple, Mondale wrote at one point, “I
am quite convinced that we must
look very closely into a candidate’s
sense of humor and sense of propor
tion. ”
That sounds like a man who, with
total purposefulness and little laugh
ter, spent four years running for
governor ofGeorgia and— two years
after he became governor —
launched with similar singlemin
dedness into a four-year campaign
for the presidency.
But the Democratic vice-
presidential candidate said some
other things that sould like he was
searching the horizon for Carter— a
man he barely knew at the time.
“The American people, Mondale
wrote, “have seen that the presi
dency is far too important an office to
be occupied by individuals who view
vengeance, rather than compassion,
and retribution, rather than restora
tion, as their paths to political glory.
We do not need messiahs pitting
North against South or black against
white, but rather leaders who will
bring forth the qualities of compas
sion and justice which the American
people have always possessed.”
Nothing to wear?
Better make
haste where great
fashions are
1/3 to 1/2 off.
CARNABY
SQUARE
LTD.
Culpepper Plaza
Cbe Battalion
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Editor Jerry Needham *
Managing Editor Richard Chamberlain
Sports Editor Paul McGrath!
Campus Editor Lisa Junod;
Photographers Steve Goble, Kevin Venneri
Production LeAnn Roby, Susan Brown
David S.
B voder
is the dominant theme of the Carter
basic speech.
Both Carter and Mon dale put
strong influence on open govern
ment as a safeguard against a abuse of
power. Both were heavily influ
enced, they say, by the view of
James David Barber on the kind of
balanced, optimistic and secure per
sonality that can survive the pres
sures of the presidency.
In fact, to read Mondale’s book in
close conjunction with Carter’s au
tobiography, “Why Not The Best?,’’
is to conclude that the partnership
was made not in Madison Square
Garden but in Heaven.
But only time will tell,as the TV
commentators say. Meantime, one
can only hope that soulmate
Mondale is persuasive with Carter
on one point to which he gives great
emphasis in his book: the need for
televised debates in a presidential
campaign.
“Congress,” Mondale wrote,
“should take the lead in reclaiming
television as a tool to be used by the
people to expand their ability to
judge the character, personality and
policies of the people they elect to
the presidency.
“Compassion” is one of Carter’s
favorite words; Mondale uses it
twice in that single paragraph. And
the idea of restoring national unity
by re-empasizing traditional values
“Legislation is needed to establish
each major party’s right to request
up to five one-hour, simultaneous
prime time broadcasts on the three
major television networks for the
purposes of debates among the can
didates,” he said. “The series of de-
Battalion
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Readers’ forum
CS officials
biased
bates could begin shortly after the
parties nominating convention and
could extend throughout the ten-
week campaign from late August to
early November.
“The value of televised debates,
Mondale wrote, “is to open to public
scrutiny candidates who can other
wise isolate themselves through the
controlled use of campaign televi
sion. ”
Mondale was right on that subject,
and the legistation he recommended
would still be useful. But even with
out new law, debates between the
presidential candidates can only be
held if the candidates accept any of
the several invitations that are pend
ing.
The obligation to do so is in
creased this year. Thanks to public
financing, Jimmy Carter will spend
about $10 million of our tax money to
buy ads to influence our votes — and
his Republican opponent will do the
same. It would be utterly uncons
cionable for those candidates who
take our money to buy TV spots, to
then deny their obligation to appear
on the public air in unrehearsed de
bates .
But only Ronald Reagan is so far
committed to such debates. Both
Carter and President Ford are hang
ing back from such a pledge.
Mondale has an opportunity to
demonstrate the independence of
judgment Carter says he wants in his
running mate by reiterating what he
publicly said 18 months ago: that de
bates provide a vital opportunity for
voters to “know more about the Pres
idents they choose — before it is too
late. ”
(c) 1976, The Washington Post Company
By ROBERT HARVEY
On April 3, 1976, the citizens of
College Station approved the im
plementation of a six ward system of
representation. Since that time
virtually nothing has been done to
implement such a system.
To understand what has happened
to the ward system, one has only to
go back to the charter revision com
mittee which had it placed on the
ballot. The committee considered
two alternatives to the at-large sys
tem of representation which the city
, operated under at that time. One
was a six ward system, with each
ward electing its own councilman,
and the other was a three ward sys
tem in which three councilmen
would be elected by wards and three
elected at-large.
The three and three system was
considered as the more moderate of
the two and was supported by Jeff
Dunn, 75-76 Student Body Presi
dent. State requirements for charter
revisions, however, made it difficult
to offer both alternatives to the
people. This gave the anti-ward
members of the committee the op
portunity to strike what they consi
dered a death blow to the ward sys
tem. By combining with the six-ward
supporters, they were able to put the
alternative on the ballot they
thought less likely to win. There
fore, on April 3, the College Station
voters found themselves considering
the merits of two extremes, without
the opportunity to consider the sys
tem which was most likely to gain a
clear majority of their support. The
Student Senate passed a resolution
in support of the ward system, not so
much because the six ward system
was the best possible system, but
because the charter revision idea
would probably die if the present
system won the referendum.
The result of the referendum
came as a surprise to everyone — the
ward system won. What followed the
election came as a surprise to no one.
The supporters of the at-large sys
tem screamed that they had been
tricked. They began calling the
mayor and councilmen, telling them
how they had been confused by the
wording of the ballot. A number of
individuals appeared before the
council to remind it that in a college
community you have to assume that
the people can read. Despite that
(C
fact, the mayor concludedt
city needed a second vote*j, e jved
matter. This second voteirMj^j ii
form the council ofwhattli Ehelor
had meant to say in April ! fe r ee fi
the straw vote would be heli E
majority of the student vote [cherr
be gone for the summeri rov vth c
bother these staunch defei K r per:
the illiterate. BKve r
In the straw vote the al Ljd Met
tern received 67 per cent nl i( e | reca ll
This prompted the mayor«i u tion
out in support of a suit "Mce his
been filed by a group ol 5n rollm
citizens contesting the elec
city is now stalling in its
ment of the ward system
effect, contests its owneli
is putting the city into a
where it might not be able
ment the ward system pnaKjrs. \
April’s general election. Hnjd boar
Department is sure to waiilM n E. 1
the ward plan when it is dfuras nam<
in order to see that it doesByice,
criminate against any niin« n home
fact the city has alreadyreo Smith
quiries from them abotBke for
method the city' plans to use”
the boundaries. The city!
been able to reply that it
know yet.
The students at A&Ma
of the citizens of Colley
should keep a close eyeon
mittee which is being esi
draw up the ward boum
spite the efforts of Council
ter and Ringer, the eonim City Mi;
consist of local citizens. Tk student
he picked, however, lur^material
another week. Student
College Station resideirHnda B
also listen for the outcome ect
that was filed contesting(HThe A
tion. If the suit is successfi out can:
turning the April refere progran
would appear to he i'gather t
Bravenec’s interest, as w by the si
city’s, to have the threewafle recy
on the ballot instead oftb iernmen
system. It would hem Park. A
likely to gain a clear mpH
peoples support. I
In any event, the timelj
for the College Station Cilij
to begin to show lesspersoil
this issue and to begin toij
the will of the College Si
zens.
Editor’s note: Harvey is h
Student Government Cihji
chairman.
Stride
ograir
SA VE A PIECE OF HISTORY
^ i
TEXAS A&M OFFICIAL CENTENNIAL MEDALLION
A unique collectors item entirely hand cast in soliil
bronze by the master foundrymen of OmaMetal Castings.
20 separate hand operations go into the creation of each
bronze medallion. This remarkable hand crafting gives
each medallion a distinctive character of its own with no
two exactly alike. Each is a unique work of art.
LIMITED - NUMBERED EDITION
On December 31st the pattern will be destroyed andthel
official Texas A&M Centennial Medallion will neverbt\
offered again. To further insure the exclusiveness of this
edition each medallion has a serial number hand stamped I
in the background. This is a once in a lifetime gift, that
will last a life time.
A piece of history for as little as $9.95.
Texas A&M Centennial Medallions are available in a I
wide variety of mountings at Advanced Business
Equipment, Aggieland Flower and Gift Shop, News
Office Supply, TAMU Bookstore, in the Memorial
Student Center, University Bookstore, at Northgate,
OmaMetal Casting, West By-Pass at Carson.
July 29-30th
10 a.m.-5 p.m.
For further information come by
CRAFT SHOP