Viewpoint
The Battalion
Texas A&M University
Friday
March 24, 1978
The ongoing futility of aggression
Once again last week, the guns of the guerrillas and the terrorists domi
nated the news and stirred the emotions.
The attacks were by the Palestine Liberation Organization outside Tel
Aviv, by South Moluccan gunmen who seized 72 hostages in the Nether
lands and by Red Brigades extremists who kidnapped Aldo Moro, one of
Italy’s more important political leaders and murdered his live bodyguards.
The terrorists have different reasons for their actions, but commonality
exists in the irrationality. The Palestinian attack will not bring realization of a
homeland closer. The Moluccans will not persuade the Dutch government to
help win independence from Indonesia for their island homeland. And the
Red Brigades terrorists will not force a total collapse of Italian society, which
has survived greater strains.
To the civilized, logic has never been a force among such determined
men. They kill in hopes of success, the world shudders and governments try
and very often fail to prevent new assaults and to punish the guilty. It’s all
another illustration of the destructive powers of relatively small bands of
terrorists.
What are the nations to do?
In some cases, the best answer to terrorism may be to provide a stable and
just society. But it is not that simple. The Dutch pride themselves on stabil
ity, yet are targets. As for justice, some societies with the most injustice,
such as those in Eastern Europe, are the freest of terrorism.
Sadly, there are no clear answers. There is nothing the Dutch can do, for
example, to twist Indonesian arms for the creation of an independent
Moluccan state. The Palestinians’ attack only stiffens Israeli resistance to an
independent Palestinian state on the West Bank. And the crisis in Italy may
turn out to be more beneficial than harmful to society if the present mood of
solidarity' among all political parties continues there.
Futility' appears to breed futility. That attackers fail in achieving their
goals; the attacked fail in their search for calm. And, most important, the
innocent continue to suffer.
Los Angeles Times
Domestic politics, foreign policy
WASHINGTON — President Carter is
in the middle of several crucial foreign pol
icy moves, the outcome of which are far
from certain. Furthermore, it appears that
domestic politics is weighing heavily on all
the president’s major decisions these days.
Facing strong opposition from conserva
tive forces, he won by one vote the ratifi
cation of the Panama Canal neutrality
treaty. But the fight is far from over. The
big test comes in early April when the Se
nate votes on the turning over of control of
the waterway to Panama.
The president also has taken a tougher
approach to the Soviets with his Wake
Forest University speech in which he
vowed to maintain the U.S. military
strength to guarantee its security.
“Adequate and capable military forces
are still an essential element of our na
tional security,” Carter said. “We, like our
ancestors, have the obligation to maintain
strength equal to the challenges of the
world in which we live and we Americans
yill continue to do so.
The speech, which included a warning
against growing Soviet military power, was
quickly denounced by the Soviets as hav
ing abandoned the policy of detente and
created new tensions.
The Russian-Cuban adventures in the
"eernEg-fliKe iteas/ with that one, «&£&...
Horn of Africa and the stalemated strategic
arms limitation talks motivated the aggres
sive address by Carter.
Aides concede that the hew toughness
against the Russians is partly designed to
answer criticism from the right that the
president may be giving away too much in
the SALT negotiations.
As for the Middle East, Carter issued a
strong condemnation of the terrorist attack
in Israel, but in contrast had no personal
statement tp make, on the massive Israeli
.invasion .of Lebanon where hundreds have
jpeen kilied and some 200,000 Palestinians
and Lebanese made homeless.
Early in the week, aides also indicated
that Carter would not hold a news confer
ence this week — although he is due for
one —- apparently so that be would not be
hit with a barrage of questions on the
Middle East situation. Carter was certain
to be asked about the use of American
supplied arms in the invasion of another
country.
Carter’s chief domestic political adviser,
Hamilton Jordan, has sat in till the foreign
policy deliberations. His presence is the
principal clue that the president is keenly
aware of the political impact of all his deci
sions on the international front.
His own political future as president is
tied up in all the moves he makes now.
The State Department held off on any
statement regarding the raids into Leba
non until after the Panama Canal vote, out
of fear of alienating some of the supporters
of Israel in the Senate.
Carter’s moves in the international field
also affect the value of the dollar and the
global image of the United States. Like
other presidents, he finds that most of his
working hours are devoted to world affairs
where he alone makes many of the final
decisions.
So, if there is a linkage in Carter’s
foreign policy, domestic politics is not the
least of his concerns. In fact, lately it ap
pears to be one of the most important of
his preoccupations as he strives for the an
swers that will win him the support of the
people.
Leaving no clone unturned
By DICK WEST
WASHINGTON — Never exactly a
household word heretofore, cloning — an
asexual reproductive process — has sud
denly become a hot topic. Two events
have helped make it so.
The first was Woody Allen s movie
“Sleeper.” It had a scene in which cloning
was used to reconstruct a political dictator
from the nose down.
The nose, the only part of his body to
survive an assassination attempt, had been
kept alive by his followers to provide the
nucleus of their leader’s restoration.
More recently, a controversial new book
claims that a child has been cloned from a
single cell taken from a rich bachelor who
wanted an heir but objected to conven
tional progenitive methods.
Although the film was figmettt and the
reported human cloning has yet to be con
firmed, the book has nevertheless pro
duced a great deal of discussion and de
bate.
The Lighter Side
When it set out to create the measure,
the Senate had little more to work with
than a dictator’s nose. Specifically, what it
had at hand was a minor House-approved
bill dealing with California raisins.
But just as Athena, the Greek goddess
of agriculture, sprang full grown from the
forehead of Zeus, major farm legislation
was sprung full blown by the head of the
Agriculture Department.
I understand a Broadway composer has
even written a song called “Bring in the
Clones. ”
For a veteran Capitol Hill observer like
myself, however, this is old stuff. Con
gress has been cloning around for years.
Just this week I had the opportunity to
observe the Senate cloning a new farm
program.
Eschewing conventional propagation,
th rough which it would have germinated
its own bill, the committee took the
single T celled House organism and cloned
it into the Emergency Agricultural Act of
1978.
Before our very eyes a bill that in nu
clear form would merely have provided for
the cooperative promotion of raisins be
came a far-reaching land diversion plan
that would pay farmers for not producing
wheat, grain, cotton and soybeans.
Then the measure was taken to the Se
nate floor for additional cloning that trans
formed it into a complex medium for rais
ing crop support loan rates.
This was, I might add, by no means the
first or the most spectacular feat of legisla
tive cloning that Congress has accom
plished. All sorts of strange statutes have
been produced in this wise.
I once asked a senator what advantage
cloning had over a legislative body’s
natural creative procedure. He explained
that it reduced the normal gestation
period for acts of Congress.
Another boon, I suspect, is suggested
by the title to Woody Allen’s movie. This
is a way of putting life into sleepers.
Letters to the editor
Getting the message to ‘the big kid’
Editor:
Listen up, Ags! Now, Ags, y all kpow
y’all ain’t much more’n a bunch of big kids,
Ags, and, Ags, y’all go around proving it all
of the time.
Take the other day, Ags, after the sec
ond match against USC in baseball. Y’all
lost, Ags.
Now, Ags, listen up there! There’s a
bigger kid’n most out there somewheres,
Ags. And this big kid, Ags, is dangerous.
This big kid, Ags, has a knife.
What does this big kid do with this
knife, Ags? What does he do when the
Fightin’ Texas Aggies lose, Ags? He
slashes the inner tube on another Ag s
bicycle, Ags.
So the bicycle was yellow, Ags. Same
color as USC, Ags. Lucky there weren’t no
USC fans, Ags, might’ve had us a murder.
Hey, Ags, do you know that big kid,
Ags? Do me a favor, Ags. Beat the hell
outta that big kid, Ags.
— Colin Crombie, ’80
Skateboarding crime Slouch
by Jim Earle
Editor:
I would like to inform Frank Vasovski
that his letter op skateboarding did not
interest me, nor probably any other
reader. On my behalf though, I would like
to say I’m not the illiterate criminal he
portrays me as. Anyone who has walked on
the ramp could not possibly miss the warn
ing signs. It may interest Frank Vasovski
to know that I was only helping a jour
nalism major with a project.
Because of College Station’s lack of
skateboard park for one of the fastest grow
ing sports, we chose the catwalk. I only
hope that Frank Vasovski is as concerned
With the increasing rate of serious crimes
as he is with this minor issue.
— John McCarthy, ’79
Thanks for flowers
Election litter
Editor:
We the undersigned have had enough
bullshit. We are damned tired of having
student government “elect me” flyers
shoved under our doors, only to have to
pick them up and throw them into the
trash.
Aspirant politicos, you know who you
are. Cease and Desist. We get enough of
your garbage on the bulletin boards with
out you littering up our rooms as well.
— John L. Graves ’79
(Editor’s note: This letter was signed by
34 other residents of Hotard Hall.)
Editor:
To those who caused and those who
planted and cared for the narcissi, daf
fodils, and pansies on the campus, I would
like to express my appreciation, for they
are lovely to see.
— Barbara McNeill, ’81
Correction
The information concerning the
scheduling of the “Falling Star” concert to
be aired on channel 15 (channel 12 on the
cables) was incorrect in the Tuesday,
March 21 issue. The program will be
shown at 7:30 p.m. March 30 and will be
repeated at 10 p.m. April 3 as part of
KAMU-TV’s regular Montage series. The
Battalion regrets the error.
“YOUR RIDE LEFT EARLY AND CAME BACK LATE, AND NOW I
HEAR YOU SPENT THE HOLIDAYS IN BRYAN!”
Top of the News
Campus
Bookstore profits requests due
Recognized student organizations have until 5 p.m. today tore-
quest funds from bookstore profits. Budget request forms can be
picked up in the Student Finance Center, MSC 217, and returned
there when completed.
State
De-annexation petition rejected
The Houston City Council has rejected a 53,000-signature petition
demanding that the city de-annex the Clear Lake City area absorbed
last year despite neighborhood protest. The council’s unanimous de
cision followed legal advice that the petitions had no force in law and
reports from social scientists that the mostly white opposition ap
peared racially motivated. Opponents of the annexation said they will
take the fight to court and several council members said that’s where
it belongs. City Attorney Robert Collie told council members Texas
law gives Houston the authority to annex any area within five miles of
its existing city limits without recourse to neighborhood opinion.
Nation
U.S. to buy Mexican naturalgi
Although the United States and Mexico have yet to agree on price,
the Mexican national oil company has pushed forward with a 600-mile
natural gas pipeline to the Rio Grande River, two officials report
“Production of crude oil has been obtained in Mexico with associated
gas volumes to such an extent that it is in surplus quantities to the
internal needs of Mexico, reported Clemente Beltran and Gregorio
Flores Montelongo. Beltran and Montelongo, officials of Petroleos
Mexicanos, made their joint report Wednesday to American oilmen
attending the 6th International Pipeline Technology Convention.
They said Mexican engineers visited and studied the Alaskan pipeline
“to gain additional experience. Two American companies, Tenneco
Inc. and Texas Eastern Transmission Corp., are providing technical
aid. The pipeline ultimately will carry 2.7 million cubic feet of gas per
day. Startup at a lower daily rate is scheduled for early 1979, assum
ing agreement on price.
FDA proposal criticized
Testimony presented Thursday on behalf of thousands of Midwest
livestock producers criticized the Food and Drug Administration's
proposal to restrict the use of antibiotics in animal feed. The Great
Plains Legal Foundation presented several witnesses at the hearing,
the first of three to be conducted by the FDA. The foundation, a
public interest law firm based in Kansas City, Mo., presented tes
timony on behalf of organizations that represent swine, poultry and
cattle producers. Christopher Bond, foundation president and former
Missouri governor, said low-level or subtherapeutic doses of authw-
tics has been used over the past 25 years with only positive results.
Recently the FDA proposed to ban, or severely restrict, the use of
penicillin and tetracyclines in animal feed for subtherapeutic use,
The FDA plan woidd allow use of the drugs only with the consent of a
licensed veterinarian. The FDA said continued use of antibiotics in
feed might reduce the therapeutic use of the similar antibiotics on
humans.
Chrysler execs received raises
Top executives of financially strapped Chrysler Corp., which
posted a $50 million fourth-quarter loss received pay raisesaveraging
30 percent last year, company records show. However, “incentive" |
bonuses paid to tbe officials fell drastically from 1976 levels, cutting
the executives’ overall earnings last year to less than half of their 1976
pay. Chrysler reported the figures in a proxy statement to stock
holders released in advance of the company’s annual meeting slated
May 2. The largest raise went to Chrysler Chairman John Riccardo,
the firm’s highest paid officer, who received an additonal $69,963 in
1977, boosting his salary to $314,852. President Eugene Cafierowas
next with a $65,963 raise, increasing his annual salary to $284,700.
World
Cosmonauts recycle wastewater
The Salyut cosmonauts who recently set a 96-day space endurance
record used water recycled from human waste, showers and perspira
tion, says a longtime unofficial observer of the Russian space pro
gram. “This is a great weight savings for them,” Air Force Capt
James Oberg reported at a recent symposium of the American Insti
tute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. “They are recycling 95 percent
of the water they are using. American astronauts do not recycle
wastewater for drinking. Oberg, who was not speaking as a represen
tative of NASA or the Air Force, predicted within two years cos
monauts will recycle air and grow food in space and new Soviet space
endurance records are likely during the next few months.
Oil leakage threatens marine life
Thousands of tons of oil still inside the wrecked supertanker Amoco
Cadiz probably will ooze into the ocean before the weather allows
crews to pump the hull dry, marine authorities say. Fishermen
watching the black tide of thick oil surging into the port of nearby
Portsall said Wednesday, “It’s too late. No hope now.” Navy au
thorities said some 50,000 tons of oil left in the supertanker were
leaking out of gashed tanks at the rate of 300 tons an hour. At least
170,000 tons have gushed out to blacken the once beautiful beaches
of Brittany and kill thousand of oysters, fish and birds
Weather
Decreasing cloudiness and mild this morning, fair and cool
this afternoon and tonight. Sunny and cool on Saturday. High
today mid-70s, low tonight mid-40s. High tomorrow mid-60s.
Winds from the north-northwest at 15-20 mph.
The Battalion
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Editorial policy is determined by the editor.
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