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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 1977)
Page 2 I Viewpoint The Battalion Texas A&M University Thursday December 1, 1977 Those who talk and those who act Hope for a real peace settlement in the Middle East now seems the highest ever since the formation of Israel. But whether or not Egyptian President Anwar Sadat’s peace conference in Cairo is a success, it will separate the countries really seeking peace from those only paying lip service to it. Sadat and Israeli Prime Minister Menahem Begin are gambling with their own futures. They both stand to win big or lose big, depending on the conference’s outcome. Sadat, by calling the conference, and Begin, by im mediately agreeing to attend, are playing for keeps and neither man’s country will accept any slip-ups. The United States has agreed to attend, but as Will Rogers once said, the United States will attend any get-together anywhere in the world, anytime, and have more delegates than anybody else. But the no-show list may be longer than attendance sheet. Syria, the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Soviet Union have already re jected invitations from Sadat. Syria has been highly, violently critical of Sadat’s overtures to Israel from the time he first mentioned going to visit Israel. The P.L.O. has refused to have anything to do with Israelis except shoot them. But a conference such as Sadat has proposed might be the only peaceful opportunity to get Palestinian and Israeli representatives in the same room. The Soviets are undoubtedly still miffed with Sadat for being ejected from Egypt in 1972. Although not directly involved, Russia has tremendous influence with the Arab nations receiving military aid from the Soviets. All three of the no-shows have made at least mumbling calls for peace in the Middle East. It’s a shame they didn’t mean what they said. L.R.L. Looking for law and order south of Cain Hall It appears from all the mail we’ve been receiving that last week’s football game gave more people more things to react to than all other issues com bined since the beginning of the semester. We’ve been advised that orange chickens aren’t toys to toss and bounce around the field, and that armadillos aren't really the latest in Brunswick Bowling Balls. We’ve also heard the arguments for and against the more volatile incidents that happened, the near skirmishes and actual tights on Kyle Field, But in pointing out these non-sanctioned pre game activities, a major question comes to mind. Who’s suppose to be keeping the peace at Kyle Field? It is clear to those keeping the play-by-play on the Cadet-Longhorn Flag Furler contest that there was definitely a foul-up in the signal-calling. The 30-some cadets who blocked the fanatic furlers are an honorary parade whose only job is to salute the flags during the anthems. The freshmen on the sidelines are suppose to wildcat, and the yell leaders are to fire up the crowd. There are no sheriffs and no posses in that group. Yes, the police finally cleared the fray. The fact is, no one really knew who was to take charge of the situation. It is unfair to expect the yell leaders to keep the peace since it would be pitting our representatives of Aggie spirit against visiting students in a potentially bitter encounter. For the same reason, there should be no call for the Corps of Cadets to dig in on the 30-yard line. This delicate impasse has not gone unnoticed. Representatives of the administration, athletic department and campus police are now working to clearly define the role of peace-keeper at athletic events. We hope the solution does take the unspoken responsibility from the students, yell leaders and Corps and places it firmly in the hands of those hired for the job — the peace officers. It would also behoove the powers-that-be to draw up regu lations for visiting schools regarding the use of our stadium. Then perhaps all the students will find it advisa ble to stick to the sidelines and off Kyle Field. J.A. David Broder The reality of presidential power We have had “gaps” aplenty in our con temporary history. Missile gaps, genera tion gaps, credibility gaps. There have been gaping gaps, creeping gaps, and even an advertising campaign to make us worry about “gaposis. At the risk of adding to wfiat you might call the “gap glut,” it seems timely to note the significance of the difference (all right, the gap) between the presumed power of the American President and his real ability to direct the course of events. Expectation exceeds reality by a factor of three or four to one, creating unearned benefits for the holder of that office — and undeserved problems, as well. What brought this to mind was a set of developments on three different fronts with a common message for president- watchers about the inherent limitations of that office. From Capitol Hill to Cairo to Salisbury, the tom-toms are telling us to think again about the mass media magnifi cation of the powers of the presidency. One cannot say that Jimmy Carter has been a bystander in the 1977 battle over energy policy, or the search for peace in the Middle East, or the struggle for nonviolent transition to majority rule in Rhodesia. Letters to the editor Those issues have engaged as much of the President’s energy and intellect as any on his agenda. But, the past two weeks have shown that when critical action-points were reached in all three of those areas, Jimmy Carter was not much more than a spectator. His con tribution to the decision-making was con fined to expressions of good will and good luck. “If that’s what you fellows want to do, ” he found himself saying to Anwar Sadat, to Ian Smith and to assorted energy-conferees, “then more power to you. Sitting up in the fog at Camp David, he had about as much control over those games as any of us did over the holiday football games we were watching on our television screens. The notion of the president as spectator, not prime mover, is so foreign to our think ing that the inclination is to reject it as outlandish. Despite Vietnam, despite Watergate, despite warnings about the “imperial presidency, somthing deep in the American soul finds reassurance in thinking that the man in the White House need only choose wise policies and able associates, to make things come out right. It is the durable character of that myth that causes such problems for the all-too- mortal men who inhabit the White House. Sometimes they swallow the intoxicating myth straight, as Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon did, throw out their chests and intone, “I am the President of the United States, I am the Commander in Chief, I am the leader of the free world. ” When opponents and critics fail to fall pros trate at their feet, they react in strange — or dangerous — ways. Other times, as with Jerry Ford and Jimmy Carter, they make a point of downplaying the majesty of their office and find themselves criticized for allegedly fail ing to meet their leadership respon sibilities. What is lacking in both the self- aggrandizing and the self-consciously modest approaches to the presidency is a public understanding that it is, in fact, but one of many power centers. And, at least in this period of history, the presidency is not the greatest of these. In Washington, the president is chal lenged and sometimes overshadowed by an aggressive, assertive Congress — few of whose members feel they owe him any political favors and all of whom have their own constituencies, commitments and careers uppermost in their minds. Carter had enough leverage to put the energy bill on Congress’ agenda and keep it there; but he does not have the power to dictate its substance. Having invested so much of his own pres tige in the passage of an energy bill this year, he now finds himself in a situation where he must sign just about any energy bill Congress sends him. In the Middle East and Rhodesia, Carter has gone further than any previous presi dent in publicly suggesting the terms of an overall settlement. But local leaders have slipped but of his enveloping embrace and taken the initiative away from Washington. The Carter administration can well claim that its efforts helped produce the climate in which Smith and Sadat are doing their work. That is the case. But it’s also the case that the leaders of two of the world’s shakier regimes — Egypt and Rhodesia — had no difficulty wresting that initiative from the hands of the Ameri can president. That’s a measure of the reality of presi dential power today. (c) 1977, The Washington Post Company Can Aggies dish it out but not take it? Editor: In response to L.R. L. (Battalion Nov. 28) about the almost riot that you said the C.T.s and Yell Leaders stopped before the t.u. game last Saturday. Giving credit to the Corps for stopping the fight is like making a thief a hero because he turns himself in after robbing a bank. It was the fish C.T.s that came off the track to complicate the matter. Two people have a fight, when you send in the army you get a riot. A few years ago, the Rice M. O. B. scoffed at many of A&M’s traditions during a half time show and we had a near riot at that time. Yet the C.T.s can throw orange and white chickens and armadillos on the field and let the head Yell Leader keep control of the situation by putting the armadillo at the t.u. band’s feet and throwing the chicken into the seating area. And that’s “good bull? Is it that we can dish it out and not take it? After the game a C.T. tried to steal a t.u. band members hat, in running away he ran over an elderly man whose head literally bounced off the pavement. More “good bull? A lot of C.T.s will be upset at this but these are the facts. A few (quite a few) of you acted like fools last weekend putting a smear on the name of A&M as far as Springfield, Ill. (via the wire services). You good C.T.s should take care of this in the future and the rest of you should think be fore you act once in a while. —J.B., ’79 B.R., ’79 A disappointment Editor: We would like to express our disap- pointment with not only the yell leaders but with the A&M student body as a whole. In a game such as the Texas A&M-Texas game, friendly rivalry is to be expected, but it got out of hand last Saturday. The members of Alpha Phi Omega, a National Service Fraternity, from U.T. had received permission from our athletic de partment to carry the Texas flag onto the field prior to the game. This has been a tradition at Texas for several years and they have taken the flag to all of their away games, including those in Kyle Field. How can we expect anyone to respect our tra ditions when we have no repect for theirs? The yell leaders and the Corps of Cadets had no right to attempt to stop them. As a result of the yell leaders’ and Corps’ actions several members of A.P.O. were knocked down and the Texas flag was torn in several places. This flag cost the U.T. Alumni Association and A.P.O. over $5000 to make and we should have been a lot more careful. The student body acted just as childishly by chanting “off our field. . . ” Well it is not our field, it belongs to the people of the state ofTexas and the flag that one yell leader referred to as “a piece of crap was the Texas state flag. This was the worst display of sportsmanship that we have seen since we have been at Texas A&M. The front page coverage in the Houston Chronicle and stories in other pa pers across the state did not help A&M’s image one bit. Immediately following the incident sev eral of us went down to the field to apologize for the actions of our school’s “representatives, but we feel that the yell leaders and the student body owe Alpha Phi Omega and the University ofTexas a big apology. —Richard Scruggs ’77 P. Elliot Lowe, Jr. ’78 Michelle Marti ’79 Steven Yeary ’77 Andy Udden ’80 Russell Kirk ’77 Mark A. Edmund ’77 Ray Miles ’80 Editor’s note: Associate Athletic Director Marvin Tate said he doesn’t know whether the athletic department did in fact grant the UT group permission to carry the flag onto Kyle Field. However, that group car 1 - ried the flag onto Kyle Field two years ago without any great uproar or violence. It seems certain the students who tried to stop them this time would have done so whether or not the group had official ap proval. Let’s be thankful Editor: Many members of our student body were so concerned about preserving our traditions at Saturday’s A&M-t.u. game they forgot the most important Aggie tradi tion of all...good sportsmanship. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw several cadets hassling members of the Texas band after the game. At least two women in the Texas band were knocked or pulled down by Aggies trying to swipe a hat. The “confrontation” before the game should have been avoided instead of egged on by our student body representatives. Bad show Ags. Let’s be thankful that na tional TV didn’t see us beat in more ways than one. Tommy Williams, ‘78 Top of the News State Rapist prosecuted for burglaries Business executive Guy Marble, Jr. has been ordered to prison for the next 60 years, but will never be tried for the crimes that made him the city’s notorious “friendly rapist. Tuesday Marble accepted an agreement by which he pleaded guilty to seven burglaries. In the exchange, the state agreed not to prosecute him for his admitted rape of six young, single womenT'He also was suspected of committing at least 30 more rapes in the North Dallas area in the past several years. District Attorney, Henry Wade said the bargain was struck because it was easier to prove the burglaries than the rapes. Another reason was because with the guilty burglary pleas the rape victims would not have to go through the anguish of an open trail. Marble, 30, a married public relations vice president with one child, was tackled by a policeman the night of Feb. 4, as he ran from a North Dallas apartment complex. The news media dubbed him the “friendly rapist” because his victims said he was polite throughout his attacks, smiled and never hurt them, MSC Arts ,.111., R mlcle Political Fi Chief Justice 201 M sC University "The Sociolo; 3p.ni., room Physics co internal wave 146 Physics 1 Resident (Juonset Hut Water Sk ,.m„ 301 Ri Political F 1:30 p.m., ® A&M Ba: Prairie View Coliseum, At 1:30p.m., C Cepheid 3 p.ro., 701 Ri Bail reset for San Antonio man The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday reduced the bail, by $80,000, of a San Antonio man indicted for capital murder. The 227th District Court in Bexar County had set bail at $100,000 for Glibert Vasquez. Vasquez and Magdaloino Rodriquez were indicted this year in the shooting death of Maris Guejardo during the robbery of a grocery store. Vasquez testified he was indigent and unable to make the bond. The Criminal Appeals Court said Vasquez’ poverty should have been considered when bond was set. The court also said the “meager” evidence showed Vasquez did not have a criminal record or past history of failing to appear while on bond. “The primary objective of an appearance bond is to secure the presence of the defendant in court upon the trial of the accusation against him, the appeals court said. Uvalde youth curfew successful Officials are praising the results of a month-old curfew in Uvalde they say has kept youngsters in their homes late at night instead of hot-rodding up and down the streets or gathering in parking lots. City officials report fewer police problems because of the curfew. The ordinance requires children up to 12 years of age to be oil the street by 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and by 10:30 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Children ages 12 through 17 must be home by 10:30 p.m. nights prior to school days and 1 a.m. on the weekends. Nation Classes of Town Hal White Colist Prof- Davi History, 4 p. Class of 1 Corps of C der Theater Texas Ai> Kyle Field, I A&M Bas! Austin, 12:3 iseuin. A6tA T30p.m., C Aggie Cir be King, 8 4 Anymore, ditorinm, TravelCt Licked, 21 Aggie Cir ,m., 701 F Chess Co Search fo 8p.m., Rtu Med Tec een McBri School of I Jarrington America Christmas' nil Regional primary suggested A regional presidential primary involving Texas, Oklahoma and perhaps other Southwestern states could increase the region's political clout. An Oklahoma legislative committee contacted Rep. Herman Adams, D-Silsbee, about the prospect of a regional primary in 1980, and voted Tuesday to attempt to coordinate primary dates. Welfare plan to increase taxes A preliminary congressional budget analysis released Tuesday said President Carter’s welfare reform plan will cost taxpayers in J982 nearly $10 billion more than continuation ofexisting welfare programs. The figure is nearly three times higher than the administration esti mates. The plan would mean a $2.8 billion increase in welfare spend ing. The special House welfare reform subcommittee estimates that the new plan would cost $9.8 billion more than the current program. Congress is considering Carter’s plan to create a $31.1 billion package of jobs and supplemental income for poor persons to replace the present system of family welfare payments, food stamps and aid to the disabled. He is aiming for enactment by 1981. National economy rising steadily The government index intended to predict the direction of f/ie national economy rose 0.7 percent in October for its fourth consecutive monthly gain, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. It was a solid rise in the Index of Leading Economic Indicators, indicat ing current job and production conditions probably will improve in the months ahead. The department said the two chief factors for the October rise in the index were building permits and the money supply. The housing industry is building new homes and apartments at the fastest rate in four years. The Federal Reserve Board has also adopted a moderate policy on money. This has had the effect of holding down interest rates by allowing enough money for business, mortgage and consumer loans. The index has risen every month with the exception of minor declines in May and June. Carter s ability doubtful A majority of the Americans who responded to a new Harris survey are beginning to worry about President Carter’s lack of experience and wonder whether he has the competence to do the job, though they still believe he is a man of high integrity. The survey, released this week, showed that the majority of those who responded to the poll feel that “in some of the mistakes he has made, his lack of experience is clear, and that “although he is well-intentioned, at times you begin to won der if he has the basic competence to do the job. ” Many people also said they believe he is “a man of high integrity, who feels deeply about less privileged people and is genuinely trying to help them as presi dent.” Weather Fair and mild Thursday and Friday with a high in the upper 60s both days. Tonight in the upper 30s. Northwesterly winds 10-15 mph. becoming light and variable tonight. The Battalion 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. 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