Viewpoint
The Battalion
Texas A&M University
Wednesday
December 7, 1977
Rusty Cawley
Looking for the roots of an evil tree
First, society must seek to prevent crime
before it happens - war on poverty, in
adequate housing, unemployment is war
in the local neighborhood and on the
city street.”
—Richard Nixon during his
1968 presidential campaign
on crime.
-President Lyndon Johnson on signing
an omnibus anti-crime bill, 1968.
-introduction from 1967 report.
Presidents Commission on Crime
New York: It
would have been
her wedding day.
Instead, it was a
day of mourning
for the family,
friends and fiance of Sue Lan Leung. She
was working as a cashier at the China Cafe
three days before when a trio of robbers
held her at gunpoint. One ordered her to
open the cash register. She hesitated. He
shot her to death.
Houston: The family and friends of a
local engineering consultant are trying to
figure out who would plant a bomb in his
car. So are Harris County sheriffs dep
uties. James Earthman, 61, survived the
explosion that destroyed his car. He re
ceived minor cuts and bruises, but was
admitted to a hospital for observation.
“He’s the last guy in the world you’d ex
pect this would happen to,” said the pastor
of his church. Still, deputies are investigat
ing his business activities for a lead.
Dallas: The man accused of being the
“friendly rapist,” believed responsible for
as many as 75 rapes in North Dallas
apartment complexes, entered a surprise
plea-bargaining agreement. He pleaded
guilty to seven counts of burglary. He was
sentenced to seven 60-year sentences to
run concurrently. He will be eligible for
parole in 11 years.
accused murderers are members of a gang.
The oldest is 18, the youngest is 14. All
come from middle-class families. They did
it, they told police, to prove their courage
to fellow gang members.
There are many other areas of domestic
policy, housing, health, crime, education,
agriculture and others - that will concern
me as president, but which I do not have
time to discuss tonight.
I would like to point out that in 1975,
compared to 1974, the crime rate went
from a 17 percent increase to a 9 percent
increase. So we have made progress.”
President Jimmy Carter,
outlining administration
policies during his first
Fireside Chat, 1977
“1 sign this bill because it responds to
one of the most urgent problems in America
today — the problem of fighting crime
I say that doubling the conviction rate in
this country would do far more to cure
crime in America than quadrupling the
funds for the war on poverty.”
President Gerald Ford
during 1976 campaign
The quotations span a decade. The
crimes have occurred in the past week.
Miami: A postal worker was strangled
and beaten to death, his body dumped in a
canal and his car stolen for a joyride. His
City Editor Rusty Cawley writes a weekly
column on local affairs, government and
politics.
Carter may ‘shape justice for generation’
By IRA A. ALLEN
United Press International
WASHINGTON — President Carter
will have a chance to “shape the face of
justice for a generation when Congress
delivers him next year one of the fruits of
his election victory — a political plum
dangling almost 150 new federal judge-
ships.
But within that gift lies a potential con
flict between the prerogative of senators to
control the nomination of federal judges
Washington window
and prosecutors in their states and Carter’s
1976 campaign promise that “all federal
judges and prosecutors should be ap
pointed strictly on the basis of merit with
out any consideration of political aspect or
influence.
There is little question about the need
to expand the courts or the need to have
qualified judges fill the new positions. The
question is how many judges are needed
and how they will be appointed.
Senate Republican Leader Howard
Baker wryly notes the tendency “to spawn
new judges in Democratic adminis
trations, although the last time the
judiciary was expanded was in 1970, under
Richard Nixon.
Ironically, it was the Watergate affair
and the impeachment hearings that kept
Congress from getting around to the court
expansion bill in 1973, 1974 and 1975 and,
“Once into the election year (1976) then
politics may have been a factor,” explains a
knowledgeable Senate source.
What he meant was the Democratic
majority was in no mood to let a Republi
can president fill all those judgeships —
more than have ever been available be
fore. It waited until this year, with a Dem
ocrat in the White House, to start moving.
The Senate bill adds 35 new circuit
court judges and 113 district judges. The
House Judiciary Committee has approved
110 district judges, and the House will act
on the bill early next year.
The House version came, out of sub
committee with 81 district judges, but
members of the full committee kept add
ing positions, singing “Hearts and Flow
ers” renditions of enormous court backlogs
in their states and the “hard working” na
ture of the judges.
Rep. Jack Brooks, D-Tex., the second-
ranking Democrat on the committee,
called it “one of the best classic examples
of log-rolling.
The House committee bill, unlike the
Senate’s calls on Carter to fill the slots it
creates strictly on merit. It sets up
mechanics for independent selection
panels like those already in use by senators
from 13 states. The House committee re
fused to go along with the Senate provision
to carve a new circuit court from the
sprawling 5th Circuit that covers Dixie.
Sponsors of the nonbinding merit
amendment say it is designed to help Car
ter fulfill his pledge.
“His selections will shape the face of jus
tice for a generation, said Reps. Romano
Mazzoli, D-Ky., John Seiberling, D-Ohio,
and Robert McClory, R-Ill. “Merit selec
tion of federal judges is especially impor
tant because federal judges are appointed
for life.”
Opponents of the move contend the
current system of patronage — theoreti
cally checked by the Senate confirmation
process — has worked well; most sitting
judges, including Supreme Court justices,
came from political ranks and are also
highly qualified.
Naming judges “is a political problem
and one for which the president should be
held politically accountable,” says Rep.
Charles Wiggins, R-Calif.
Carter has already set up independent
panels to give him a pool of five qualified
people for each circuit court vacancy. But
he kept the district courts in the political
realm.
So far. Carter has named 10 circuit
judges and 21 district judges — all of them
Deomocrats, some of them cronies of
Democratic members of Congress. He has
fired two crusading Republican U.S. at
torneys, and all of the 56 prosecutors he
has named, all but one have been Demo
crats.
Chances of the Senate adopting the
merit provision next year are dim, con
gressional sources say, although the trend
by senators on their own is toward biparti
san nominating panels.
In a way, the Senate’s political instincts
might lead it toward the merit language
without much pushing because, as the
conventional wisdom goes, every time a
senator makes a patronage appointment he
creates 99 enemies and one ingrate.
Every man’s idea of panic
Bv BILL WILSON
It has started.
Every semester, as the term papers and
“major projects” start flowing in, with
mine among the last of them, I get a funny
feeling inside.
The feeling is a cross between fear and
shock. It’s a bit like knowing my job is to
Reader s forum
tackle George Woodard. But that’s not it
exactly. Maybe it’s like knowing Big
George is going to tackle me.
I become amazed at how fast the semes
ter has gone by. I am especially amazed at
how fast the semester went by me.
Usually it’s about this time that I start
making unreasonable promises. “God, I
promise if you help me through this
semester I’ll study 40 hours a week next
time.
“Listen Judy, lend me your notes and I
promise I’ll take you out in my dad’s
Porsche. No? O. K. I’ll give it to you, just
teach me calculus.”
It is also about this time that teacher’s
start to change their syllabi. A case in
point: One teacher changed the last as
signment from “name and describe three
causes of Infinity” to “list the sum total
knowledge of the Universe.” That really
hacked me off because I already had one of
the causes of Infinity done.
The thing that gets me the most is “Fi
nals.” What an appropriate name. But I
don’t like the word “Exam” much. It
sounds like the prof is going to perform a
lobotomy. “Finalis comprehensivus
majoris examinus fatum” is a Latin term to
describe the corpse of a student who died
during finals.
There is also a corollary to one of Mur
phy’s Laws that says something like
“mechanical devices will save all of their
problems until the weekend before dead
week.”
For those of you who do not have the
“funny feeling” yet, just wait. As some
body destine to remain obscure once said,
“It’s not too late to panic.”
Wilson is a sophomore journalism major.
Letters to the editor
They shoot students—don’t they?
Editor:
In response to the editor’s note to the
effect that the campus police have never
drawn/fired their weapons (Battalion,
Dec. 2), it can be said that this is categori
cally not the case.
Last fall (Sept. 19), while pursuing the
undersigned a campus police officet did
draw and fire his weapon. This is not to
suggest that he fired directly at us; but, he
did draw and fire - this to negate your ear
lier statement. Perhaps a talk with Chief
Luther about the actions of two of his
former charges will substantiate this.
— Mike Zilich, Brian Perry, Tom Henry
Editor’s note: Well, gentlemen, we did
check with University Police Chief Luther
and he does not remember things as you
do. As you said, an officer no longer with
the University police was accused of firing
his weapon - but that charge was denied
by the officer and never verified.
Luther said that in the incident stu
dents were firing firecrackers on campus
and it was theorized that a firecracker
was mistaken for a pistol shot. The officer
involved in the incident left the Univer
sity force for reasons not connected with
that incident. To repeat: No University
Police officer has ever drawn or fired his
weapon on duty. Chief Luther did sub
stantiate that statement.
newspaper’s job to guess what a person
really has in mind when they’re inter
viewed, only to report what was said.
£ 2Vo one to blame 7
Slouch
by Jim Earle In his own words
Editor:
I have been pretty happy with the Bat
talion this year; the improvement over last
year is phenomenal.*However, yesterday’s
headline for Saturday’s game was inexcus
able. MOSLEY’S A HERO...WALKER’S
HUMILIATED.
My, my, it seems like only yesterday
that the whole school was applauding as
one David Walker rescued the team last
year; how soon we forget, or perhaps I
should say the Battalion.
In the first place, your headline was mis
leading, as if Walker had botched things
up royally and in comes Mosley to save the
day. You did, of course, clear things up in
the article when you quoted David as say
ing he “felt humiliated. ” Well, what he felt
and what most of the fans thought are two
different things.
You took advantage of one of our own
when he was obviously down in the
dumps. Come on, Battalion, knock off the
cheap shots; this is Aggieland. Quit trying
to be like The Washington Post, because
in Monday’s issue you looked more like a
cheap movie magazine trying to sell off a
headline.
Stan Teague, ’79
“WHAT A RELIEF TO FINISH MY LAST REGULAR
GAME! I WAS SURE THEY’D FIND OUT RY NOW THAT
I CAN’T PLAY AN INSTRUMENT!”
Editor’s note: As you point out Mr.
Teague, Walker himself said he felt
humiliated. That statement was his, not
ours. The headline merely stated
Walker’s own remarks, which were un-
doubtably newsworthy. It is not the
Editor:
Re: “Walker’s Humiliated” (Battalion,
Dec. 5). First of all we would like to con
gratulate the Aggie football team and
coaching staff for a fine game Saturday af
ternoon. We don’t mean to say that we
didn’t support the A&M team before the
Saturday’s game with Houston. But we do
think it was the first time this season that
decisions made by Coach Bellard and the
team showed us just what the team can
really do.
By no means do we mean to cut down
the performance of David Walker. What
shocked us was Walker’s selfish attitude
toward the team. We thought team sports
were designed to allow competing against
an opponent and not against each other.
They should emphasize group effort.
David Walker played football all season.
He performed according to his ability. He
should have no reason to feel humiliated in
front of the fans or on national television,
unless he is perhaps dissatisfied with his
own performance. And for that no one is to
blame but himself. Comments like “I’m a
senior, one of last year’s co-captains, and
he’s got three more years and I don’t,”
sound extremely selfish and don’t have a
damn thing to do with playing football.
Our idea of playing football is putting
your best people on the field and showing
everyone what you can do.
And speaking of what you can do, pass
ing for six of six shows exactly what we’ve
known the Aggies could do all along. We
weren’t sure whether or not it was due to a
lack of skill of the team (not just Walker),or
if it was because the coaches thought we
were a better running team. But one thing
for sure - the Aggies showed us Saturday
that they can pass and we hope to see
more of it in the Bluebonnet Bowl.
— Dave Lee Williams, ’77
Jim McFarlen, ’78
Top of the
Campus
Campus directories available
Texas A&M University Campus Directories are now available in
Room 216 of the Reed McDonald Building. When picking up the
directories, students must present fee slips to show proof of purchase.
If fee slips have been lost, they can be replaced at the fiscal office in
the Coke Building. Aggieland distribution has also been moved to
Room 216, Reed McDonald. Students picking up yearbooks need
their Texas A&M identification card or their driver’s license.
Leadership seminars in spring
Students who plan to hold leadership positions in recognized stu
dent organizations next semester or next year are invited to apply to
attend a series of leadership seminars which will be offered in the
spring semester. The program is designed to give students insight
into the administrative management of Texas A&M University and to
meet various administrators. The seminars will meet all semester
regularly on Thursdays from 3:30-5 p.m. The seminars are non-credit
and require no outside assignments. Interested students may apply at
the Students Activities Office, 845-1134. The program will be limited
to 25 students.
State
State employees will not have to pay income taxes on meal and
lodging allowances, Texas Comptroller Bob Bullock said Monday in
Austin. Even though the U.S. Supreme Court required New Jersey
state troopers to pay income taxes on meal allowances, the situation
in Texas is different, Bullock said. In New Jersey the allowance is
considered a part of the employees’ salaries. Bullock explained that
the allowance in Texas is for expenses incurred and is not considered
a part of the salaries for any purposes.
No review of McCarthy decision
Former Sen. Eugene McCarthy challenged a Texas law last year
when he was denied a place on the 1976 presidential election ballot.
The law permitted only candidates of organized political parties to be
on the ballot and McCarthy campaigned as an independent. McCar
thy filed suit against Texas and a series of court decisions found the
law unconstitutional, yet no order was given to place McCarthy’s
name on the ballot. Monday the U.S. Supreme Court refused to
review the series of decisions made by the lower courts. Officials in
the secretary of state’s office in Austin said the law has been rewritten
so that the points challenged by McCarthy have been resolved.
Frozen eagle given as evidence
Assistant U.S. Attorney Ray Jahn introduced Tuesday in San An
tonio into evidence the frozen carcass of a federally protected golden
eagle allegedly shot from a helicopter in January 1976. The eagle was
among at least 70 of the birds the government alleges were killed
illegally in a two-year conspiracy in Real County.
Bell to appeal to higher court
State District Court Judge Peter Michael Curry in San Antono
rejected Southwestern Bell’s motion for a new trial in a libel-slander
suit. Bell attorneys said that the jury reached a verdict in violation of
the court’s instruction. The attorneys said they would continue to
appeal the decision to higher courts.
Nation
Violators can be asked out of car
The six-man majority of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington
decided Monday a policeman who stops a motorist for a traffic viola
tion may routinely order him out of the car. Three of the court
Justices critized the decision, saying the ruling eliminated “any re
quirement that an officer be able to explain the reasons for his actions
... and leaves police discretion utterly without limits.” The dissenters
feared that the ruling would leave the impression that the court is
more interested in upholding the power of the state than individual
rights.
Truman s sister suffers stroke
Mary Jane Truman, the only sister of the late President Harry S.
Truman, was in serious condition Tuesday at a hospital in Kansas
City, Mo., where she was admitted following a stroke. Truman, 88,
was initially listed in critical condition after she was admitted Monday
to Reseach Medical Center. She has been in and out of the hospital
since 1960 when she underwent a gall bladder operation.
World
Begin s meetings delayed
Prime Minister Menahem Begin of Israel was stricken with pains
and vomiting Tuesday in London and canceled all his appointments.
Begin has a history of heart attacks but a spokesman said there was no
reason to believe his ailment was anything more serious than an upset
stomach. About 100 members of Parliament belonging to the British
Parliamentarian Friends of Israel group were waiting in the lobby of
Begin s hotel for a meeting with him when his staff sent word he
would be unable to see them.
Weather
Partly cloudy and warmer today and tomorrow with light and
variable winds changing to southeasterly 10-15 mph. High
today mid-60s. Low tonight mid-40s. High tomorrow low 70s.
No rain.
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anuary
Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those t >f the
editor or of the writer <of the article and are not neces sarily
those of the University administration or the Board of Re
gents. The Battalion is a non-profit, self-sttppording
enterprise operated by students as a university and coum-
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editor.
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Address correspondence to Letters to the Editor, The
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MEMBER
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Congress
Editor Jamie Ait^i
Managing Editor Mary Alice Wood#
Editorial Director Lee Roy Leschper!’
Sports Editor PaulAn* 5
News Editors Marie Homeyer, Carol Mn*
City Editor Rusty Cidf)
Campus Editor . . .t KimT)* * 1
Copy Editor Beth Cilw*
Reporters Glenna Whitlf'
Liz Newlin, David Boggan, Mark Patted
Photographer Ken Hernf 1
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YO
Student Publications Board: Bob C. Rogers, Chainr'i-
Joe Arredondo; Dr. Gary Halter, Dr. John W. Hcr.t*
Robert Harvey; Dr. Charles McCandless; Dr. C/intonl
Phillips; Rebel Rice. Director of Student Publicity
Donald C. Johnson.
Ji