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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 18, 1977)
Page 2 Viewpoint The Battalion Friday Texas A&M University November 18, 1977 Wouldn’t it be fun... There’s one in every crowd. That chap thinks, “Wouldn’t it be funny to...” Fill that in with something destructive. For instance: The other day some enterprising fellow decided to set fire to a bunch of printed notices hanging in the stairwell of the new Science Laboratory Building. Damage? Oh, a little smoke smell, some blistered paint that’ll have to be replaced, a little extra mess for the maids to clean up. No three-alarm fires or dozen charred bodies. So, if nothing major was destroyed and nobody was killed, or even w^ll maimed, why even mention it? Because it’s just that kind of asinine stunt that does kill a dozen people or destroy a building. Apparently setting fire to bulletin boards and trash cans and rooms filled with newspaper comes under the category of “good bull’ to some people. But it also comes under the heading of arson. That’s ARSON, as in criminal. This university had several fires on campus this last summer, the most serious doing several thousand dollars damage to the basement of the Memorial Student Center. None of those fires caused any really serious damage or injured anyone. But then who wants that first time to happen? University officials began long overdue renovations in fire safety procedures and equipment after those fires. But those precautions are not nearly as effective as that ounce of prevention. So the next time you catch yourself saying “Wouldn t it be funny..., stop and think how really unfunny it might be. L.R.L Down the tubes A proposed cutback in Amtrak service doesn’t make sense in light of Amtrak’s initial goal: to provide continuing passenger rail service to the public. The federal Amtrak agency was created five years ago in an effort to save the dying rail passenger service. Hefty government subsidies were the only answer. Now Congress has turned its back on its commitment. It has re stored only $8 million of more than $57 million lopped off earlier from Amtrak’s $545 million subsidy request. Without adequate subsidies Amtrak cannot survive. The hand that was intended to keep Amtrak alive is now slowly squeezing it to death. Chicago Daily News Closing up the open administration By DAVID S. BRODER WASHINGTON—The Lance affair is yesterday’s headline, and as everyone knows, nothing is more outdated than that. But before you flip complacently to the next topic, note these two sentences from a just-issued study by Common Cause, the public-interest organization: “If it had not been Bert Lance and the Committee on Governmental Affairs, it would have been another nominee and another committee. The Senate confirma tion process was a national disaster waiting to happen.” Strong words, but the harsh judgement would not be denied by many senators, especially those involved in the Lance af fair. The Common Cause study provides a powerful prod for the passage of the kind of remedial legislation proposed by Sens. Ab raham A. Ribicoff (D-Conn.) and Charles H. Percy (R-Ill.) to spare themselves, the Senate and the country the embarrassment of another Lance affair. Lance was an embarrassment to the Se nate, as well as the administratiqn, because the financial practices that eventually caused him to resign went undetected in the charade that passed for a confirmation hearing last January. Yet the Common Cause study shows that the Lance hearing was a model of pro cedural purity and care compared to those in which most of President Carter’s senior appointees were confirmed. Lance’s con firmation met six of the 11 criteria suggested for a full, fair test of an appoin- Washington window tee’s suitability. Only two of the 11 cabinet members had even as rigorous an examina tion as did Lance. And in some cases, the procedure can hardly be dignified with the name of a confirmation process. If you want an example of that process, take the care of Bob Bergland, the practic ing farmer and member of the House of Representatives who was named as Secre tary of Agriculture. So far as is known, Bergland has no Lance-type problems. Common Cause is careful to say it is not passing judgement on his qualifications to run the farm programs. But the Senate Agriculture Committee,, which confirmed him after a one-day hear ing, did not put him under oath did not make public his financial disclosure state ment did not require any public resolution of his potential conflict of interest as a farm owner did not require him to discuss in public his past or future political activities. The committee posed no written policy questions to him in advance. It issued no formal report explaining why it recom mended his confirmation. It did not even make the transcript hearing available in print to other senators or the public until six weeks after Bergland had been con firmed. There was no record vote in com mittee or on the Senate floor on his ap proval. Nor was this unusual. Of the first 50 major Carter appointees who came before the Senate, Common Cause says only 14 were required to make public financial dis closures. Only ten (including Lance) had more than one day of hearings. Only six had their hearing transcripts in print at the time the Senate confirmed them. That kind of record merits the Common Cause comment that, “The Senate confir mation process is a rubber stamp machine. The remedies, some of which are em bodied in the Ribicoff-Percy bill, are as obvious as they are overdue. The Senate needs to develop a uniform disclosure form on both finances and political activities of nominees. Only a few committees now have such forms. It needs to conduct its own careful inves tigation of the background and qualifica tions of presidential appointees. Ribicoff, Percy and Common Cause believe this task is beyond the capacity of existing commit tee staffs. They propose creation of a new Office of Nominations to do this work for all the Senate committees. Whether such an addition to the bur geoning Senate bureaucracy is really needed may be debatable. But there can be no argument about the need for an inde pendent appraisal of the nominee’s qualifications—not just a passing nod at the President’s recommendations. Finally, the process of confirmation needs to be made more deliberate so that questions can be asked, reports written transcripts read, and reactions weighed— before the Senate gives its assent to the President’s choice. Those changes will not draw the head lines the Lan6e affair received. But they could prevenr its recurrence, and that would be a good day’s work for the Senate and the country. (c) 1977, The Washington Post Company Iranian students oppose Shah’s U.S. visit Within the next few days the American people are going to witness the unfolding of a series of events which will further point to the existence and implimentation of an elaborate plan involving the Carter admin istration and the regime of the Shah of Iran, designed to hoodwink public opinion dur ing the dictator’s state visit here on Nov. 15, 1977. The dilemma facing President Carter and the Shah is that the American people have come to know about the Iranian re gime for what it really is: a brutal, repress ive dictatorship. And for Carter, who has attempted to portray himself as an alleged “crusader for human rights, it is going to be quite difficult to justify his strong support of the Shah to the American people. After all, it is not that easy to ignore the fact that the Shah holds more than 100,000 political prisoners; that more than 500 Iranian pat riots have been murdered by the Shah’s secret police (SAVAK) since March 1971; that the Iranian regime enjoys the grim distinction of being rated as one of the top five worst offenders of human rights through-out the world; etc.; etc. These are facts well established through years of effort by the Iranian student movement abroad, as well as scores of re ports released by such organizations as the Amnesty International, International Commission of Jurists, International League for Human Rights, and many others. Reader s Forum Yet despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, the Carter administration in collusion with the Iranian regime is pres ently engaged in a desperate attempt to portray the brutal and inhumane rule of torture and bayonets in Iran as a model of progress and prosperity! How? SAVAK agents in the U.S. surfaced since mid-October in various schools, universi ties, and Iranian communities in an at tempt to recruit a large “welcome crowd’’ for the Shah. SAVAK has been offering $300 to $600 cash, a round trip air fare to Washington, D.C., and free hotel accomo dation to anyone willing to cheer for the Shah! Also, several IRAN AIR 747’s filled with SAVAK agents are arriving here to insure that Shah receives a “proper wel come. This monetary inspired greeting is an attempt to create a false image in the minds of the general public witnessing an artificial welcome. On the other hand, all out efforts are being made to prevent student bodies and general opposition from congregating in front of the White House to voice their disapproval of the Shah and his regime. Not until late October was the news of the Shah’s exact date of arrival made public through the news media. Before then only the Iranian regime and the U.S. govern ment knew the exact date, i.e. Nov. 15. But “surprisingly, between Oct. 11-13, several “organizations” filed applications for per mission to hold demonstrations on Nov. 15 in front of the White House, specifically announcing their intention to support the Shah. Since they have claimed to bring a large number of demonstrators, authorities were using regulations such as space limita tion to “legally” refuse permission for dem onstrations against the Shah’s regime. A large number of the American public is already aware of this dictator’s tyrannical rule and any vain attempt to white-wash and cover up this fact, will only result in further exposing Mr. Carter’s real inten tions of the “campaign for human rights. IRANIAN STUDENT ASSOCIA TION AT TAMU This commentary was prepared by the Texas A<LrM Iranian Student Association and represents that group’s opinions. It does not reflect the opinions or policies of this newspaper. Fetters to the editor Bonfire needs help Editor: Will someone please tell me what has happened to the great Aggie spirit at this university. One of the greatest traditions A&M has is being constructed behind Duncan Dining Hall and nobody seems to care. Everyday there are just enough men out there for one crew and that is pretty bad turnout for our student body. The Red Pots can’t build it by them selves, they need our help. Did the Twelfth Man give up after Arkansas or will it stand firm for the U. of H. ?There isn’t much time left so unite in your dorms, apartments or just with a few friends for a few hours. Every man is needed. Now. Pam Bielefeld, ‘78 High-speed gravel Editor: On the freeway at high speeds, trucks carrying sand, gravel and rocks, tend to loose part of their load along the way. These fragments, which seem insignificant while stationary, do much damage to other vehi cles on the highways. I feel a law should be established making it mandatory for truck drivers to cover their loads before traveling on highways. On one occasion, I was driving back from Huntsville. A gravel truck passed me going the opposite direction from me. The wind created by his tremendous speed sent gravel pouring off the top. I heard the rocks hit and found they cracked my windshield in two places. That night I found that two of my four headlights had been broken also. His negligence cost me eight dollars plus a broken windshield. All of this could have been avoided if his load had been covered. I used to do a lot of motorcycle riding on the highway. The wind in my face is a won derful experiece. This experience can be saddened by a careless trucker. My helmet and bike have numerous scratches on them from flying rocks and gravel. As of now I have not been hit in the eyes, although I have had my eyes filled with sand from passing trucks. So in conclusion, I feel it would be help ful to travelers’ health and their pocket- books to make truck drivers cover their loads. Alan Jones, ‘81 Up the ramps again Editor: To Doug Luecke, ‘81, re: “bike ramps. There are no bike ramps on Texas A&M’s campus, they are wheelchair ramps for the handicapped. Mark up one for the unin formed, strike one for the handicapped. Stan Stanfield, ‘78 Slouch by Jim Earle “ONE-HUNDRED DOLLARS APIECE FOR FOUR TICKETS ON THE 50 YARD LINE FOR THE TEXAS GAME! TH’ONLY FIFTY-YARD LINE TICKETS I’VE EVER SEEN WERE IN A MUSEUM!’’ Top of the News State War of women in Houston The National Women’s Conference, in unprecedented meetings on American Women, opens a new battleground in the escalating war between feminists and the conservative opponents of equal rights. An estimated 20,000 women are expected in Houston to go witness the four-day conference opening Friday. The women will discuss views as diverse as lesbianism and the Ku Klux Klan. The National Women’s Conference, the first such meeting of its kind in American history, was funded by a $5 million congressional appropriation with a man date to answer the question: “What do women want?” A final docu ment reporting the decisions the women make regarding such issues as ERA, abortion and lesbian rights, will be submitted to Congress and the president. Nation 1902 irrigation law protested Politicians, local officials and farmers predict economic disaster if the federal government enforces a 1902 law sharply restricting the amount of acreage eligible for irrigation from Bureau of Reclamation reservoirs. About 100 people attended an Interior Department hear ing Wednesday to object to the law. Assistant U.S. Interior Secretary Robert Herbst conducted the hearing on the possibility of changing the 75-year-old law which restricts the size of farms receiving irriga tion water to 160 acres for each resident family member. Great American Smoke-Out An estimated 5 million Americans kicked the habit—for 24 hours anyway. The American Cancer Society promoted a tobacco break Thursday for smokers coast-to-coast. The events of the “Great Ameri can Smoke-Out ranged from the world’s largest ashtray for deposit ing whole cigarettes in San Francisco, to bonfires in Detroit. The purpose of the campaign, supported by federal health agencies, is to focus national attention on the health hazards of tobacco and to encourage at least some of the nation’s 54 million smokers to kick the habit. Choice for elderly; eat or heat A University of Michigan researcher predicts millions of the na tion’s elderly will shiver this winter, and some may face the grim choice of keeping warm or eating. Based on a study of Detroit s elderly poor last winter. Dr. Leon Pastalan said Wednesday about one-fifth of America’s senior citizens will have heating problems this winter. Pastalan, head of the university’s Institute of Gerontology, said a smaller number would have severe problems with money and heat. “About 1 or 2 percent will choose between eating and paying the utility bills, he said. Shah of Iran leaves for Paris The Shah of Iran has concluded a demonstration-scan ed trip to the United States, hopeful that a stalled U.S. weapons order would be approved by the nation that asked him to help hold down the interna tional price of oil. The monarch and his empress left for Paris Wed nesday night leaving behind several hundred supporters bused to Andrews Air Force base to cheer farewell. World Syria worried about Sadat's trip Egyptian President Anwar Sadat says he will accept an invitation to go to Israel, but he is running into disagreement with Syria over his unprecedented peace mission. Sadat came to Damascus Wednesday to persuade Syrian President Hafez Assad that his expected trip to Jerusalem did not mean Egypt was ready to break ranks with Syria, its principal Arab ally. Biko chained, naked before death Black activist Steve Biko was shackled and kept naked just before his death in a South African prison cell. Col. Piet Gossen, security chief in Port Elizabeth, said these measures were taken to prevent him from committing suicide or injuring himself. The official autopsy showed Biko died Sept. 12 of severe brain damage. Biko’s family has taken the matter to court. Weather Cloudy and mild today and tomorrow with east to southeas terly winds 5-10 mph. High both days upper 70s. Low tonight low 60s. 20-30 percent chance of rain. The Battalion Number Unit NUMBER c toMPLEXI fcOVERED : You’re hut havi There ar plexes ii fhat fit preams? Some lag one ppartme [ble. But a lime anc The f< pecializ nent S< Service, \]enser |c/i«rge m |rac/i c \the coi : and j The m Ices is tl pective Ilexes p The 1 general lomes ii bgents i Ipartme Ind ba panted, jhuttle |nd clos The s S'liich si la fecilities pund b Kent' t w 1 look Some fusines Ittract nent I natch-r flacem THE Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or of the writer of the article and are not necessarily those 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 com munity newspaper. Editorial policy is determined by the editor. LETTERS POLICY Fetters 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 not guarantee to publish any letter. Each letter must be signed, show the address of the writer and list a telephone number for verification. Address correspondence to Letters to the Editor, The Battalion, Room 216, Reed McDonald Building, College Station, Texas 77843. Represented nationally by National Educational Adver tising Services, Inc., New York City, Chicago and Los Angeles. The 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, Wednesdays and Fridays. Mail subscriptions are $16.75 per semester; $33.25 per school year; $35.00 per full year. Advertising rates fur nished on request. Address: The Battalion, Room ^ Reed McDonald Building, College Station,. Texas 778^ United Press International is entitled exclusively ^ use for reproduction of all news dispatchers credited* 0 Rights of reproduction of all other matter herein resen 60 Second-Class postage paid at College Station, TX 778$ MEMBER Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Congress Editor Jamie Ai*^ en Managing Editor Mary Alice Woodh&n 15 Editorial Director Lee Roy Lt‘sehp° r J r Sports Editor Paul News Editors Marie Homeyer, Carol Mc) er City Editor Rusty Ca^' Campus Editor . . . : Kim Ty* 00 Copy Editor . . Beth Calh 0,in Reporters Glenna Wind 0 -’ Liz Newlin, David Boggan, Mark Patters 011 Photographer Ken Cartoonist Doug Grak 4111 Student Publications Board: Bob G. Rogers, C/iair ,,l<in ' Joe Arredondo; Dr. Gary Halter, Dr. John W. Robert Harvey; Dr. Charles McCandless; Dr. Clint O' 1 ^ Phillips; Rebel Rice. Director of Student Public(ih° nS ' Donald C. Johnson.