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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1977)
I The Battalion Texas A&M University Friday October 28 f 1977 Ever hear of somebody too helpful? It was so obvious. Why didn’t we think of it before? For as many years as the grass has been greener on the north side of the Rio Grande than the south side, the United States has been wondering how to keep Mexican illegal aliens from crossing the border into Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. But now a segment of the Ku Klux Klan has offered to solve the problem, free of charge. As a Klan spokesman said, they want to prevent the “rising flow of color washing over our lx)rder, washing away our culture, our racial fabric and changing America.” The Klan has announced that hundreds of Klansmen will begin patrolling the Mexican border today. What could be simpler? Let the Klan keep out the aliens. At least some of the Klansmen reportedly will be armed and ready to collar any illegal aliens they spot. To keep things interesting, a South Texas mexican-american group has pledged to also take to the field to make sure no mexican-americans are harrassed. Both sides say they plan to “protect them selves”. That’s like saying you to protect yourself from a man after you spit in his eye. This all sounds ridiculous enough to be a B-grade television drama, but it will become deadly serious if either group carries through with their crazy promises. It seems some folks just can’t leave bad enough alone. L.R.L. Cosell succumbs to bad influence TV violence strikes even sportscasters By DICK WEST United Press International WASHINGTON — The sporting world has been atwitter recently over an inter media event, of sorts, that took place dur ing the World Series. According to published reports, a sportcaster named Howard Cosell cuffed a newspaper sports columnist about the head after unpleasant words had passed between them. One can only surmise this was another example of what can come of excessive vio lence on television. Constant exposure to all that athletic ferocity and viciousness on the tube could well cause a mild-mannered sportseaster to develop tigerish impulses. Some such explanation is particularly needed for someone like Cosell, whose le gions of admirers call him the ‘sweet old broadcaster.” Sometimes, as Bob Bench ley used to say, they just use the initials. Unfortunately, I couldn’t locate a live Cosell admirer for an interview. So I had to run to immortal one, the late William Shakespeare: Q. Mr. Shakespeare, you and Howard Cosell both have a way with words. Would you sum up your impression of him? A. “This is the noblest Roman of them all.” Q. I’m not sure you have the ethic back ground right, sir. What is it about Cosell you admire the most? A. “He hath a heart as sound as a bell, and his tongue is the clapper; for what his heart thinks his tongue speaks.” Q. That’s called "telling it like it is,” I believe. But aren’t some folks hurt by his, ah, directness? A. “Words are words; I never yet did hear that the bruis’d heart was pierced through the ear.” Q. H ow does Cosell react to complaints about his comments? A. The poor soul sat sighing by a syca more tree.” Q. I can see it now. Do you personally find Cosell’s style agreeable? A. It came o’er my ear like the sweet sound that breathes upon a bank of violets.” Q. Maybe we aren’t talking about the same fellow. Does the Cosell you know wear a toupee? A. There be not too much hair there.” Q. That’s the one. How do other sportscasters stack up with Cosell? A. "As tedious as a twice-told talk, vex ing the dull ear of a drowsy man. They’ have been at a feast of great languages and stoled the scraps.” Q. What makes Cosell different? A. Talks as familiarly of roaring lions as maids of thirteen do of puppy-dogs. Zounds! I was never so bethump’d with words since I first call’d my brother’s father dad.” Q. How can football fans show their ap preciation of Cosell at the Monday night games he helps televise? A. Hand out our banners on the out ward wall.” Q. Thank you, Mr. Shakespeare. Tetters to the editor Aggie students free girl from attacker Editor: I just wanted to say a word of thanks to all the Aggies who came to my aid Sunday night when I was “attacked in the parking lot. I’ve never seen more people so willing to get involved and help someone in trou ble. I owe a great deal to everyone who was there and I know the police do, tg^ Tf (t... xtasn t for all you loyal Ags, there s mf tel- li ng vyl lat would’vp liappened tg mg. Even though this is only my first year at A&M, I've always been keenly aware of the great spirit of comradeship between Aggies. Now I’m even more convinced of it. All of you will never know just how much your willingness to get involved meant to me, and I could never thank you enough. God bless you Ags! —Pat James ‘SI score just might have been different. If Rice’s football team is trying to be so funny, what may I ask is ours trying to do. I mean here is a football team with proba bly the best overall talent in the Southwest Conference, and maybe even the nation, but which only once this year played up to par. oall, tor it these young' men and coaches, to do in “style” this year, then come Jan. 2nd there just might be only one team laugh ing, t.u. —D.S. R.VV. D.V. S.B. M.R. E.B. Mr. Boggan and Mr. Arnett. I have read many articles from these two writers and am also a friend of Mr. Boggan, and I know both these writers have true Aggie spirit as far as the A&M football team is concerned. Just for the record, Mr. Holcomb, Mr. Arnett is a senior and Mr. Boggan is a junior! Next time you feel compelled to write your opinions, Mr. Holcomb, please make it just your opinions on writing and not on..eUc|ijicter profiles. .VU ; • —Paul Bull rest of our viewing audience, since any programming we rent or produce is of lit tle value if no one sees it. —John Hancock Video Tape Committee chairman What’s test mean A little too rough How long a wait? Editor’s note: Students Brett Medford and Randy Hnrbaugh and a group of about 20 unidentified Corps members came to Ms. James aid when she was at tacked in Mosher dorm parking lot. Med ford and Harbaugli chased the assailant from the parking lot across the band drill field, where the Corps members sur rounded him and held him for police. Had these students not driven off the assailant, Ms. James might not have been able to write this or any other letter. Gentlemen, we can not thank you enough. Editor: I write in response to a comment I heard today directed toward a student from another student. One said “I’m gonna vote for ” and the other replied, “Man, you better not. I’ll call the Klan on you! Ha, ha!” Even though this comment indicated jest, it was indicative of the apparent un derlying feelings. This sort of ordeal is, for me, of constant frustration. Newest Aggie joke Editor: This letter is in regard to a caption that appeared with a photo in Wednesday’s Battalion. The caption stated “Rice band members compete with their football team for laughs” unquote. That statement in our opinion ranks with poor taste. Maybe it is not the caption itself that is uncouth but the timing. We find it ironic that those infinite words of wisdom comes from the paper of the school with a top ranked football team. A football team who was favored by more than thirty points but in reality was lucky to get out of Houston with a victory. If Rice still had Kramer or had had an experienced quarterback that night, the With tears in my eyes, I ask how long will it take to exterminate such feelings? When will people stop saying "That’s a Black” or “That’s a Puerto Rican” and say merely “That is a man”? Why do people persist in holding on to this useless form of thought? How long will it take people? Will you never give into the love of brotherhood? This is not A&M. This is not America. —Paul Graff Sportswriters OK Editor: After reading the letter ("A Win is a Win”) in the Battalion of the 27th, I felt compelled to write in rebuke to Mr. Hol comb. While writing his “opinions” on the two stories covering the Rice-A&M game might be justified, I don’t feel he was jus tified in his “character assassinations” of Editor: I am no “two-percenter” but I have a message I wish to relate to the students, particularly those in the Northgate dorms. Everyone enrolled at Texas A&M is here to get an education, right? Well, why don’t some of you become educated? Part of maturing and learning includes develop ing an ability to display and use some common sense. Of all the stupid, unthink ing, uncivilized, and uneducated things to do, some “people” have accomplished one of the worst. I’m talking specifically about the actions of some persons at the water fight on Wednesday night. Certain members of a particular dorm saw fit to dig up the quad for mud and rocks to enhance the quality of their water. That, in itself was bad enough, but to throw anything, let alone rocks, at non-participating bystanders is the pits of ill-bred, barbaric, stupidity. Think people — this is an extremely dangerous practice, and if you have any doubts you can come by my room and ex amine the shattered lens of my eyeglasses. Yes, the very ones I was wearing as I stood outside the door of my dorm in a group of fully dressed, obviously non-participating students, at least 100 feet from the scene of the "battle, when a rock came from the direction of the Davis-Gary contingent. Oh, don’t worry. No glass went into my eye, just the skin around it. Editor: • I wonder how many Aggies feel their midterm grades are a true reflection of how they are doing in their classes this term? I have learned from several others that many Ags are in the same boat I am in. I have had no more than one exam in my classes with one exception. The first exam in any class is usually one of the most dif- in any class is usually oiie of the most difficult. Often the student has no idea enough for the exam. It sometimes means “bombing” the first test in order to figure out how to study for the following tests. I admit doing poorly on the first exam may increase the student’s desire to do well in the class. The big drawback however, is that one exam determines the midterm grade if there have been no other quizzes. Slouch by Jim Earle Nevertheless, that rock had to be delib erately and forcefully thrown in our direc tion to hit with such velocity and done as much damage as it did. Those few who cannot reason any higher than on this primitive level are endanger ing an activity that is necessary for life on campus. It provides an outlet for the strains and tensions built up by studies, close living conditions, and dorm rivalries. I realize midterms do not go down on our records and are not always indicative of our final semester grades. However simple as that idea seems, I have not found a way to assure my parents that midterm grades are merely a “progress report.” My parents have a big interest in my educa tion as they are my financial backers. I have a big interest in keeping the folks happy so that this backing will not be cut short. Shouldn’t even a progress report be based on more than one exam grade? Sure, some students will gripe at the suggestion of more tests, but careful con sideration will reveal that the more exams given, the less material each exam would cover. Also, students would have more test material to review for final exams. I have the utmost respect and admira tion for the TAMU faculty, so I squirm at my next sugqestion: Are the profs reduc ing the number of tests per semester out of laziness or because of a simple lack of con sideration for the student? Perhaps good learning theory indicates the student learns best when he has fre quent small opportunities of “feedback” lesson material. — Sallyanne Cornelius ’79 I don’t blame Davis-Gary for being mad about the sign, but it was “good bull.” But the more I think about how close someone came to seriously injuring my eye, the madder I get. Grow up, someday you could do somebody real physical harm by not stopping and thinking. —Jim Higgins, ’SO Video aims to please FfiULt o^TZC-Tl “LAST WEEK BEFORE TH’ RICE GAME, WE ATE RICE! THIS WEEK, WITH A GAME WITH SMU, COULD IT BE THAT WE RE EATING ” Editor: Some clarification is in order concerning the operation of MSG Video’s closed cir cuit TV system. Programs are selected and scheduled by MSG Video. They are then shown in cooperation with other facets of the MSG, with whom we are currently working to remedy the problems of the nature Mr. Hughes described. When a scheduled program is shown late or not at all , we would like to know. Our cubicle is in the Student Programs Office, Room 216 of the MSG. MSG Video values Mr. Hughes and the Writing the editor The Battalion welcomes letters to the editor on any subject. However, to be acceptable for publication these letters must meet certain criteria. Thev should: Not exceed 300 words or 1800 characters in length. V Be neatly typed whenever possible. Hand-written letters are acceptable. V Include the author’s name, ad dress and telephone number for verification. Names will be with held on request. Letters to the editor are printed as a service to our readers. Publication of a letter is never guaranteed. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit letters to remove grammatical er rors and to avoid litigation. Address letters to the editor to: Letters to the Editor The Battalion Room 216 Reed McDonald Building College Station, Texas 77843 Top of the News Campus Three student Senate seats open Applications are being accepted through Oct. 31, for three vacant student Senate seats: graduate, off campus; graduate, engineering; and university apartments council. Students should apply in the Stu dent Government office in room 216C of the MSG. Third installment payment due The third installment board payment for the 1977 fall semester is due on or before Nov. 1. The amount is $143.05 for the seven-day board plan and $128.00 for the five-day plan. Payment can be made either at the Fiscal Office, in the Richard Coke Building or the cashier’s office in the main lobby of the Rudder Center, to avoid a late penalty. State Free food stamps for needy The Texas Board of Human Resources, Thursday voted to not re quire food stamp recipients to pay for the coupons in an effort to provide needy families with extra cash for the coming winter months. “Under the new law the individual would pay nothing,” said Texas Department of Human Resources Commissioner Jerome Chapman. “He would receive an amount of food stamps equal to the difference between the purchase price and the monthly food stamp allotment.” Nation Adair snuffs flaming oil well Daredevil firefighter Red Adair conquered a raging blaze at the Navy s California desert oil reserve Thursday, snuffing out a flaming oil well with two carefully placed plastic explosives. Adair set off a blast above the well which exhausted the oxygen in the air. The 30-fbot tower of flame quickly diminished and went out. The fire had been burning since late Thursday when an underground explosion killed three men on the well’s 150-foot tower. Adair was called in Wednesday when officials of the government oil field decided the blaze was too much for the local firefighting team. Ray on trial for prison escape A jury was seated Thursday to try James Earl Ray, convicted assas sin of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., on a charge of escaping from a Tennessee prison last June. A defense attorney said he hoped the trial would lead to a full hearing into the 1968 King assassination, estab lishing an “atmosphere for getting the whole story out.” If convicted, a five-year sentence could be added to Ray’s 99-year term he received after pleading guilty to the assassination. World Mexico claims big oil reserves Mexico’s state oil company claims possible oil reserves of 120 bil lion barrels which, if correct, would place it second only to Saudi Arabia as a source of petroleum. Jorge Diaze Serrano, director of Petroleos Mexicanos, said Mexico has proven reserves of 14.6 billion barrels, probable reserves of another 29.2 billion and 87 billion in possible reserves. The United States has reserves of 34 billion bar rels, including the North Slope finds. Mexico nationalized its oil industry in 1938. High-rise office in Feru flames A spectacular blaze raced through a high-rise office building in downtown Lima, Peru, Wednesday, trapping dozens of workers in upper stories and forcing several to leap to their deaths. Seven bodies were found after the fire, but officials said at least 20 persons were missing, including two or three who sought refuge in a rooftop water tank and were believed boiled to death. Officials said initial efforts to battle what was believed to be the worst fire in downtown Lima in recent history were hampered because the firemen lacked sufficient water pressure and their ladders were inadequate. Weather Mostly to partly cloudy today and tomorrow with southerly winds 5-8 mph. High both days mid-80’s. Low tonight mid- 60’s. No rain. The Battalion Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or of the writer of the article and are not necessaiihj thow of the University administration or the Board of Re gents. The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting enterprise operated by students as a university and eom- miinity newspaper. Editorial policy is determined by the editor. Voting t< day arou F. Mitsc and Jim cast thei Fx- Unilei FORT W nayor R. M. laimed hi‘ ated arr notivated, rhursdav. Tarrant 'erez, who Irial, heard which set deputy tovall’s ar ilitically m LETTERS POLICY letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and are subject to being cut to that length or less if longer. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit such letters and does mtt guarantee to publish any letter. Each letter must lx signed, show the address of the writer and list a telephom number for verifica tion. Address correspondence to Letters to the Editin’, The Battalion, Room 216. Reed McDonald Building. College Station. Texas 77843. Represented nationally by National tMlueational Adver tising Services. Inc.. New York City. Chicago and la>s Angeles. nished on request. Address: The Battalion. Room Reed McDonald Building. College Station, Tcxn United Press International is entitled exclusively to**j use for reproduc tion of all news dispatches credited Ufl Bights ol reproduction of all other matter herein reM’HT Second-Class postage paid at College Station. TX “8+ MEMBER Texas Press Association Editor Jamie Managing Editor Mary Alice Wo “ Editorial Director Lee Roy Leschptfl Sports Editor Paul A News Editors Marie Ho in ever. Carol Mol City Editor Rusty CidJ Campus Editor Kim Ty$f Copy Editor Beth Cal Reporters Glcnna WMl David M Mark Pattri^ Photographer Ken Hen Cartoonist DougGnifo Hie Battalion is published Monday through Friday from September through May except during exam and holiday periods and the summer, when it is published on Mondays. Wodnesdavs and Fridavs. Mail subscriptions an- $10.75 per semester; $33.25 per ehool year; $35.00 per full year. Advertising rates fur- Student Publications Board. Bob C. Risers. Chain Joe Anetlondtt; Dr. Gary Halter. Dr. John \Y. Hurt Robert llaircy: Dr. Charles Mi’Candlcss: Dr. Cfinfwj Phillips; Rehel Rice. Director of Student Fuhliailif Donald Johnson. Production Coordinator: W. ^ Sherman SE ci Spe Boc Ur < * 115 C. s No pec Mai and Am gim ity | ate To the por tod;