Page 2
Viewpoint
The Battalion
Texas A&M University
Friday
September 9, 1977
Odds stacked against Lance
In the swirl of controversy sur
rounding the financial dealings of
Budget Director Bert Lance, de
mands of resignation are being issued
from across the country.
Some people, myself included,
have hesitated to join the “can Lance”
bandwagon until the illegalities are
shown. But amid the rising waters of
publicity, regardless of whether the
man is a crook or just a sloppy banker,
one has to wonder if he can and will be
able to continue the job efficiently.
One freshman representative from
Dallas on the subcommittee studying
Lance’s alleged overdrafts and loans
from his Georgia bank said this week
that although he does not condone the
director’s banking activities, he hopes
Lance is “not being drummed out on
the basis of the press not having any
thing else to write about.” The House
member said he fears the press, along
with Congress, is being fed bad in
formation in attempts to oust the
budget director for personal reasons.
It would be a shame to have a fully
qualified man driven from office on
the basis of lashing reports. But we
are in a stage in history, particularly
after the rocky political years not long
passed, where we demand a closet
with nary a bone in it.
There are probably few men in poli
tics today who, after so many years in
the business, haven’t accumulated a
little shade in their backgrounds.
Nevertheless, a paranoid public de
mands squeaky clean public servants,
and idealistic or not, it’s a justifiable
attitude.
Regardless of how Bert Lance’s rec
ords come out in the wash, he will
never shine under the scrutiny of a
suspicious nation. He could never be
as effective in the public’s eyes.
Of course, it’s the microcosm world
of Washington where Lance’s image
really counts, but as the freshman
representative said, there are doubt
less many politicians out to get him
and the rest of his administrative bud
dies.
Bert Lance has lost the Carter smi
lin’ shine. Even Jimmy, himself,
wonders now if his budget director
might be a smudge on his pearly
whites.
Bert Lance, there’s some chance
you might win the battle, but we, too,
have to agree that we wouldn’t bet on
you to win the war. J-A.
Slouch
The nation’s rabbits
Our national government needs all the good advice it can get, but things
have gotten out of hand when you can count 1,200 advisory committees
attached to the various federal departments and all of them busy meeting and
writing reports.
Somebody figured out that the average for members of such committees is
nineteen. That means nearly 24,000 kibitzers getting paid from a minimum of
$100 a day to up to $184 for their brainstorming sessions. When you start
multiplying these numbers by the printed pages that come out of the advisory
panels, you begin to realize the immensity of the paperwork and why nobody
could ever read it all.
President Carter has ordered a review of all advisory committees and the
preliminary judgment is that 40 percent of all those studied so far can be done
away with. Trouble is that 20 more were created while the first review process
was under way.
That’s worse than what goes on out in the rabbit warren.
The Miami Herald
SOLAR
CLOTHES
DRSER.
THANKS
JAC-K. oPHAM
IT’S CHEAP, EFFECTIVE, AND SIMPLE! I DON’T KNOW WHY
IT HASN’T BEEN THOUGHT OF BEFORE!”
Congress suffering "Park who?’ syndrome
By DICK WEST
United Press International
WASHINGTON — There's no telling at
this point whether Tongsun Park, the
South Korean wheeler-dealer, was guilty of
any of the charges lodged against him by a
U.S. grand jury.
But if he did try to win friends and influ
ence congressmen through campaign con
tributions and other favors, he appears to
have been singularly unsuccessful.
The hardest thing to find in this town
today is a lawgiver who ever even heard of
Park, much less cozied up to him.
“To the best of my knowledge, I never
met him. “I don’t know the gentleman. “I
have no knowledge of that. Those are typi
cal of the comments by congressmen iden
tified as having shared in Park’s largess.
Curious about his failure to make a
memorable impression on Capitol Hill, I
sought out one of the House members on
his contribution list.
“Congressman, what can you tell me
about Tongsun Park?
“Isn’t that the home of the Boston Red
Sox?”
“No, that’s Fenway Park."
“Then it must be a cemetery in Los
Angeles. ”
“You re thinking about Park Lawn. The
Park Lm seeking information about was a
businessman from a small Asian country.”
“Have you tried the Small Business
Committee?
“Lm sure you’re trying to be helpful, sir,
but this is something only you can answer.
Where do you personally fit into the Park
situation?”
“I’ll be glad to answer that. I have a
reserved space in the Rayburn garage."
“I wasn tasking where you park your car.
Did you not report a $500 campaign con
tribution from a T. S. Park?"
"I did.”
“And were you not aware that he was a
lobbyist for the South Korean government
with connections with the Korean CIA?
“I was not. I thought he was an English
poet. - v
“If you had T. S. Park confused with T. S.
Eliot, why would he seek yotir support?"
“It has always been my policy to support
parks.
A few more questions of this sort con
vinced me the congressman knew veiy lit
tle about this matter. Which means he will
make an ideal witness for the House ethics
committee investigation.
Tehran suffering from sudden wealth
United Press International
TEHRAN, Iran — The oil boom and its
promise of riches has brought the city of
Teh ran a million squatters and almost as
many problems.
The squatters spilled into Tehran from
village farms at the rate of almost 200,000 a
year to seek work in construction and fac
tories. They filled the city’s available inex
pensive housing in no time.
Commentary
City planners fear that legalization will
encourage still more people to come to
Tehran.
“Before we know it, there will be two
million of them,” all headed for the new
townships, one architect said.
A concentration of expanding industry,
commerce and government already has
overtaxed Tehran’s fledgling civil services
system.
Unusually low snowfall in the mountains
north ofTehran during the last two winters
depleted the citv’s water reserves and at
the same time, consumption jumped.
The city scraped through this summer
but authorities warn that a water famine
next summer may be unavoidable — partly
because the legalization of the townships
puts an obligation on the government to
pipe them water, too.
They also will need electricity — another
commodity in short supply. A delay in
power generation plans caused a nation
wide electricity shortage this summer. The
Wages soared 400 per cent and the
squatters began to settle in. Thousands
threw up illegal townships of ramshackle
homes on the desert wasteland surround
ing the capital.
More jobs became available and the
squatters invited their relatives to join
them in the big city.
The city, furious at the illegal settle
ments, started bulldozing the shacks but
the squatters answered with violence.
They rioted, attacking municipal buildings
and burning vehicles to press their de
mands for legal status.
Authorities gave in and recently granted
legal status, but now city planners warn the
problems have only begun.
In five years, the rural influx has pushed
Tehran’s population from 3.5 million to 4.5
million — 13 per cent of Iran’s 34 million
people.
"Listen to this one,n\r smith — it'll make yovr mouth water
blackouts persist, even though consump
tion is down.
And the squatters will need electricity,
for few are without the television sets, re
frigerators and washing machines their $70
a day jobs afford them.
They also need hospitals, schools, buses,
taxis, telephones, post offices, mosques,
police posts and marriage registration cen
ters — all of which are government-
supplied.
Although city officials fret over the ugly,
crooked streets and shanty-like homes,
politicians seem resigned to it.
“I kn ew for years this would happen,”
said Faramarz Nasseri, 63. He is a retired
civil servant living in Tehran’s middle class
north central district.
“Tehran flaunted its wealth in front of
those provincials for years,” he said. “And
now it must pay for the blunder.
“Call it an evil, call it whatever you like, ”
another politician said. “It (the influx from
rural areas) always comes with the riches.
“It’s another matter, though. The people
remain when the riches are gone,” he said.
Indications are that Tehran will prove no
exception. The building boom that at
tracted the farmers to the unskilled labor
force is slowing down as the government
enacts harsh measures to curb land specu
lation.
And there’s no indication the farmers
will move back home.
“Why should I go back?” said Ahman
Koohnavard, a 23-year-old mason. “I like it
here and I’m going to stay here. ”
Letters to the editor
Bookstores taking unfair advantage of students?
Editor:
Last year I came to A&M veil prepared
to meet the challenges of apartment living,
and rigorous study schedules. I was not,
however, prepared to meet the challenges
of the bookstores.
My textbooks had l>een on reserve since
summer orientation. The employees at the
bookstore had let me select my own
“used” books at great bargain prices. Two
months later I was shoeLM i. i r ishier
rang up my book purci.... . . .. money 1
had saved to cover book expenses for the
semester would not begin to pay for them.
A glance inside the white paper bag told
why. Each used book that I had chosen
carefully earlier had been replaced with a
new one.
My freshman roommate, Christi, had a
similar experience this vear in a different
and returned to classes in August to find
she had been sold books that did not coin
cide with her course and section numbers.
This semester I spent almost $100 on
books, most of them paperbacks that the
bookstores will buy back for one dollar
each. My books then will be resold to
another student for six or seven dollars. As
I figure it, my used books will rake in a
five- to six-hundred per cent profit
everytime they are bought back and re
sold
The bookstores are not doing anything
illegal. They are accomplishing what they
set out to accomplish. They are making
money. But they are making it by taking
an unfair advantage of the students, who
must have text books to survive courses.
We Aggies can “beat the bookstores.
My idea is not new but it works. 1 am
keeping my books and will sell them next
semester for more than the bookstore
would have paid. I will not make a profit,
yet I will save money for my effort and
someone else will save, too. Furthermore,
I will attract some buyer from the
bookstores.
One person will not make much differ
ence, but a campus of 30,000 people will.
Bookstores might have to lower their
atrocious prices. That, in my opinion,
is worth fighting for.
—Debbi Pigg
Class of 1980
Story corrected
Editor:
I appreciate your article in the
edition of the Batt regarding foreign stu
dents. However, your article contained
one serious error that I would like to have
publicly corrected. Quote, "He said he al
lowed Texas A&M’s Iranian Student group
to “hassle” ex-CIA director, William
Colby, “a little” last spring, although he
does not agree with the position.”
In our conversation I made no mention
of Mr. Colby’s encounter with the Iranian
students. What I said was that I took steps
to allow them to set up a booth on the first
floor of the MSC so that they could hand
out literature and make their position
known to the student body at Texas A&M.
I also indicated that while I do not neces
sarily agree or disagree with their posi
tion, that the basic purpose of our educa
tional system is to encourage a free ex
change of ideas and that no student should
be prohibited from doing this simply be
cause we do not agree with them politi
cally.
— Corkey Sandel
Texas A&M University
Top of the News
F
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Is*
Campus
Degree application ends today
Today is the deadline for degree applications for students expedit;
to graduate in December.
Application is the student’s responsibility and ensures that a
loma will be waiting for the student when he or she crosses theC,
Rollie White Coliseum stage for commencement, reminded Registra
Robert Lacey.
Graduating students may apply after paying an $8 fee at theFisai
Office in the Richard Coke* Building.
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Football highlights to be s/ioitiim
Orientation for new staff and faculty concludes Sept. 13<
special program on Aggie football in Cain Hall at 7:30 p.m. FiyBxhe
highlights of the 1976 season will be shown and the team’s prospcitilj g(
discussed for the upcoming season. Bng
Newcomers previously were given guided tours of the campiisai.B l() ]<.s
were guests of President and Mrs. Miller at a buffet dinner. |(1, g
State
White enrollment drops in HISD
White student enrollment is dropping in the Houston Indeped
dent School District, according to enrollment figures for the seveni[
day of school.
Superintendent Billy Reagan predicted Wednesday that HISDd|
lose more than 3,000 students, primarily whites, compared to k
year’s enrollment of 205,075.
Reagan estimated the enrollment drop will cost the districtahoiij
$1.5 million in state funds based on student attendance, butheai
he does not expect to lay 7 off any teachers.
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Lightning strikes Terrell senior
The lightning which struck and killed Terrell High Sclio
senior quarterback Bernard Derrick Wednesday was a frealii
thing and the accident could not have been avoided, prind
Robert McCord said.
The principal said the lightning which killed Derrick, 17, as.
fielded punts on the football practice field was the first signofai
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storm activity.
There was no rain. The storm was in the distance, he said,
was a freakish thing, an act of God.
Other players on the field were knocked to the ground by thejd
but no other injuries were reported.
McCord predicted that no disciplinary action against head
Mike Bailey 7 woidd be taken.
Derrick, a 5-9, 135-pounder, won the starting quarterback posit
on the team this year despite not play ing football last season.
mt
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Of
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Nation
Contruction ban lifted on gym
s si
ok i
Supreme Court Justice William Brennan yesterday lifted a temp
rary ban he imposed Sept. 6 on construction of a gymnasium on ill
site where four Kent State University students were fatally s
1970.
Brennan’s action means that construction may begin asf’arastli
Supreme Court is concerned.
Protesters led by' the May Four Coalition say they want to keep ill
bulldozers quiet until the Interim - Department can determin
whether the location of the proposed gym where the Ohio Nation!
Guard shootings took place is eligible as a National Historical site
University officials told Brennan that any further delay couldnieni
tin* end of the current contracts at a loss of from $2 million toSil
million.
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B-l bomber production halted
In a very close vote, the House agreed yesterday to support Presi
dent Carter’s order to halt production of the B-l bomber.
The 202-199 vote; came on a $110 billion defense bill passed;
sent to the Senate, which voted earlier to support Carter. The Hold
action puts the final lid on the controversial plane.
Hurricane Clara strengthens
Tropical storm Clara grew to hurricane strength yesterda
threatening shipping with its 75 mile per hour winds as it head
toward the open waters of the central North Atlantic Ocean.
At noon EDT, the National Hurricane Center reported the thi
hurricane of the season was centered about 260 miles northweslij
Bermuda and nearly 700 miles east of the North Carolina coast.
“Clara poses no immediate threat to any land areas, luniicaij
forecaster Paul Herbert said. “It is a threat only to shipping.
World
Idi Amin undergoes surgery
Ugandan President Idi Amin has undergone surgery for an midi
closed ailment, Kampala Radio said yesterday.
The broadcast said the operation was performed by a Soviets
geon. Dr. Feodor Senkhov, who is part of a Russian medical tean
Uganda. The broadcast gave no details about Amin s ailment,
he has undergone several operations in the past.
Kampala Radio also announced that Amin has refused to gnij
clemency to 12 men sentenced to death by firing squad for trim
and ordered that three other men should be shot at the same tin*
Two of the three were convicted of killing a doctor by burning li
alive and the third was found guilty of treason.
Weather
Partly cloudy this afternoon and evening with 30 per cent chancel]
showers; decreasing chances of showers tomorrow. Southeaster!!
winds 6-12 mph. High both days lower 90s; low tonight low 70s
The Battalion
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