Viewpoint The Battalion Wednesday Texas A&M University March 29, 1978 Paving the way The first and tactically more important of the new Panama Canal treaties has made its way through the locks of Senate approval — barely. Supporters of the treaty, including President Carter, have a right to be peeved at the handful of senators who made the passage slower and more turbulent than it should have been by attaching unnecessary amendments and reservations. But that brinkmanship and the crowd-pleasing politics that prompted it will soon be forgotten. In fact, the inevitable sense of climax that has set in after Thursday’s dramatic Senate vote should help passage of the second canal treaty to be considered, that granting sovereignity over the waterway to Panama after the year 2000. The historical justice and strategic logic of an orderly transfer of control over the canal have been obvious from the day the documents were initialed. Subsequent senatorial agonizing about peripheral issues and seman tic subtleties was inevitable. When the important issues in the treaty debate were focused upon, a two-thirds majority' for ratification was produced. It s a good bet the same majority — or an even more comfortable one — will approve the second Panama treaty. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette: Emotional appeal lost by mayor Who said that one has to spend money to win an election? Certainly not Larry Bravenec, the incumbant mayor of College Station. When he filed his second campaign fi nance report on Monday, Bravenec dis closed that he has received no outside con tributions and expended no funds for cam paign purposes. In other words, he really hasn’t campaigned in the traditional sense of the word. But then again, the mayor of College Station doesn’t have to campaign. College Station has prospered during the two years of his reign as mayor. His opponent, Karl Crawley, is a dark horse candidate with little chance of winning the election. Craw ley, a Texas A&M sophomore, doesn’t have the support of the local political powers. Bravenec does have their tacit support and endorsement. What has Bravenec done during the past month? His campaigning has been restricted to pushing for the passage of the Capital Im provements bond issue election on Satur day. The bond issue will total $9,165,000 to be used on improvements to the water and sewerage systems, streets, city parks and police and stations. Politics While Bravenec hasn’t been running on money, his campaign just has to rest on his record as a city councilman and mayor. During his four years in College Station government the incumbant has made all his actions without flair and with deliberate direction. His style of work is that of an accountant, which he is. A Texas A&M accounting pro fessor, and an attorney, Bravenec will study an issue and make a decision that usually can’t be attacked except on emo tional grounds. This could be his weak point. Emotions are sometimes important in an election campaign. They denote to the voter that a candidate is human, with human emotions. A candidate must express his emotions in a political manner. He has to show the voters that he publicly cares about their prob lems. Even if he can’t solve the problems. Often the voters are more interested in what happens to a neighbor’s dog than a local bond election. And the voters demand a response to these emotional problems. Bravenec has found it difficult to react to citizens’ complaints about higher utility costs, housing construction problems and other problems because they are not dis tinctly part of the city government’s do main. While the city may not be able to solve these problems, the council and mayor can exert pressure on the parties involved. An example is the case of the Barcelona Apartments in 1976. The apartment com plex decided to increase their rates by as much as $180 per month. When Council man Lane Stephenson brought this up in a council meeting the council realized they had no grounds for action. Later the apart ment owner declared that an error had been made and the increase was limited to $100 per month. This is what politics is all about. Getting support by supporting the voters. While a politician may not be able to use a law or his power as a delegate of the people to right a wrong, he can and should use his clout as an elected official to solve problems over which he may not have direct control. Bravenec is not the kind of politician that mixes emotions with politics. By definition he could be placed in another category out side that of a politician. He likes everything to be orderly and business-like. Bravenec likes to do his homework and work through the council. This may restrict him from handling the problems brought before the council that may not directly involve the city. Double trouble for Democrats United Press International WASHINGTON — Republicans won a victory with the defeat of tlie campaign funding bill in the House of Representa tives, But the damage that Democrats did to each other was greater than the humilia tion inflicted on them by the Republicans. The bill would have reduced limits on the amount political parties could contrib ute to candidates. It also would have re duced the amount that could be pumped into campaigns by special interest groups operating as political action committees. Then, an amendment was offered to add public financing of congressional elections. But none of it ever came to a vote. Nearly one-fourth of the Democrats in the House joined with all the Republicans to kill the rule that would have cleared the bill for floor action. “This is not over. The fight is still there,” said Rep. John Brademas, D-Ind., the Democratic whip and a central figure in the party infighting that led to the decision to send it to the floor in the face of his own count that showed insufficient Democratic support. Washington Window Rep. Frank Thompson, D-N.J., chair man of the House Administration Commit tee that wrote the bill, said he expected the committee would come back with a new measure pegged only to the way political parties raise and handle campaign funds. The issue of public financing would not be allowed. A majority of the 288 Democrats in the House — 175 by count — favor public financing, according to Brademas. But that is short of the 218 majority needed to pass anything in the House, and there are not enough Republican votes to gain that majority. So Brademas and Thompson reason that public financing can t be voted through the House. And opposition to it frojn within their own ranks killed the rest of the bill, • which would have kept Republicans from spending the huge war chest they are amas sing for the November congressional elec tions. According to Thompson, that is wio a new’ bill will continue the limits on spend ing for candidates, but exclude the public financing issue. No Democrat will go on record as agree ing with the Common Cause lobby that Thompson and Brademas oppose public financing and used the campaign funding bill as a tool to kill it. But the insinuations are there. Sixty-nine Democrats joined .40 Repub licans in killing the rule. An analysis shows that 51 of those Democrats hold some posi tion of power in the House. Yet, they went against the plea of the Democratic leader ship to vote at least for the rule and let the issue of public financing come to a vote on its own merits^ . Democrats voting “no included the chairmen of five committ^les and 37* sub committees and nine members of the party whip organization. Speaker Thomas O’Neill, curiously, did not take full command of the effort to get the rule adopted. Asked for his post mortem on the vote, he said only, “It was a Republican victory and a defeat for the American people.” Was it a case of Democrats failing to have their own House in order before the vote? “I’m not going to talk about that,” O’Neill replied. It was a setback for the leadership. To make it worse, the insult came from fellow Democrats. And with the trouble Presi dent Carter is experiencing on occasion with his fellow Democrats in Congress, that spells double trouble for the party in power. Letters to the editor Stolen book market blamed on slack policies Editor: I was involved in an unfortunate incident last week that I think might serve as a warn ing to others who could end up in the same situation. I had left a $20 textbook on a table in Sbisa and returned after eating to find it gone — stolen, actually. I reported its loss to the campus police, the MSC bookstore and the Northgate bookstores the next day. I ended up finding it on the counter of one of the Northgate bookstores, and found out Slouch that it had been sold to the store and I in turn would have to buy back my own book for $8. I told the manager it was stolen merchandise and the price was lowered to $6. I had very little choice and did buy back my own textbook. The other stores said they had a policy of taking identifications when people bring in books to sell in order to trace them if they are stolen books. But the manager of this store said they didn’t do it because they felt it gave them a bad reputation to be so strict. by Jim Earle “NOW THERE’S A GUY WHO WANTS TO GET ELECTED!’’ So they end up being big with hot-book thieves. The campus police said they have had problems with this store in the past. All I know is that there were a lot of books piled up on the counter. Who knows how many were sold legitimately? Perhaps the manager of this particular store will take note. A bad reputation for slack business practices is what you’re get ting. A change in policy would help your reputation and save a lot of us some bucks. And a note in general: not all is sacred in Aggieland. — Jim McCarthy, ’81 Moody's thanks Editor: On behalf of the students at Moody Col lege who watched and enjoyed the show last Thursday of The Basement Cof feehouse Committee, I would like to thank the members for coming to Galveston to entertain us. Tony Dinuzzo, Donna Cardifs and Beau Sharbrough showed us that they were not only versatile playing numbers familiar to us, but also original, playing some of their own work, which I thought was rather good. I would also like to express my apprecia tion to the management, Mark Snider and Ron Woessner for helping bring these fine people down to Galveston. Special thanks go out to Linda Johnson and Bill Hearn for their help in making Thursday night a fine evening. — Andy Tirpak, ’80 Moody College Rider s thanks Editor: This letter is addressed to Jerry. I didn’t catch his last name, but this is to say thanks for giving me a lift. I was walking on the access road of hiway 6 towards Plantation Oaks last Thursday night. I was soaking wet as it had been raining for some time. Jerry stopped and asked if I wanted a ride. I told him I was soaking wet, but he said it didn’t matter. He drove me right to the apart ments, and when I asked him if I could pay him for his troubles, all he could say was “You don’t need to give me anything, I just hope you’re not sick.” That, my friends, is the true definition of a good Ag. I hope Jerry reads this. — Brett Smith, ’81 Correction A Management Society field trip to Houston was reported in Tuesday’s Battal ion as leaving Texas A&M at 7 p.m. Friday. That time should be 7 a.m. The group will be leaving from the MSC. The Battalion regrets the error. Readers’ Forum Guest viewpoints, in addi tion to Letters to the Editor, are welcome. All pieces sub mitted to Readers’ forum should be: • Typed triple space • Limited to 60 characters per line • Limited to 100 lines Top of the News Campus Psi Chi sponsors noon lecture “The Obstacles Which Confront Successful Women,” was to lie presented by Diane Strommer, assistant professor of English anil associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts, at noon today in room 401 of the Rudder building. Psi Chi, the psychology national honor society, sponsored the lecture. State exiis Prison land purchase delayed Gov. Dolph Briscoe delayed action Tuesday on purchase of a new prison site in South Texas until legal problems and questions about the value of the land can be cleared up. Briscoe, in Austin, saidan appraisal by officials of Texas A&M University indicated the landwas worth $6.88 million instead of the $8 million prison directors voted to pay. A question was raised about the legality of buying Valley land since legislators directed the new facility to be in West Texas. Briscoe also expressed concern that Monte Cristo Farms until two months ago had belonged to Wallace Groves of England and the Bahamas,: longtime associate of crime syndicate leader Meyer Lanskey. Tie land deal would include 6,741 acres and property worth $500,000as well as an option to purchase another 7,760 acres next year for $5 million. ice * plia 1 nitor Jexas pillio dire jartm 1 Is ea 5 a m sis th Sout iollar lent ; |You c |ims w< lie cl on have ts,’ Runati jtli the JOne " fersonm inns i; |rd. T ts e; is, act led o: We’v b Ex-police draw year in prison A federal judge in Houston Tuesday sentenced three former policemen to one year in prison for violating the civil rights ofa drunken Mexican-American who was beaten and drowned in their custody last year. Terry Denson, 27, Stephen Orlando, 22, and Joseph Janish, 24, were convicted Feb. 8 of misdemeanor and felony viloations of the civil rights of Joe Campos Torres, 23. Torres was arrested May 5 on a barroom complaint and found floating in Buffalo Bayou downtown May 8. The one-year sentence was the maximum prison term the law allowed on the misdemeanor conviction. Hie judge also sentenced the three to 10 years in prison suspended in lieu of five years probation on the felony conspiracy charge. Torres mother and two-dozen demonstrators were angry' with the sentenc ing. Mrs. Torres said “life would have been a fairer sentence: “fliey are alive. My son is dead.” 965. rs to were Texas tourism hits record high A record 23.2 million persons visited Texas last year and spent$4.3 billion, said state tourism officials Tuesday. These figures are the highest ever recorded in the 30 years the department has been re porting on the tourism rate. Short-term auto visitors stayed an aver age of 6.8 days and constituted 94.6 percent of the 19 million auto visitors. :heir e mr vince er hi w qi herr initi arrivi 5. It rese ;rs. 1 ions man: Wei se S' red,’ e it i iions :ndar lome rd ir 1 line utes Nation Signals coming from air station Those mysterious radio signals that some Eugene, Ore., residents say turn their skin red and cause other health problems are coming from a Navy air station in Alameda, Calif, the FCC said Tuesday Theories on the source of the' signals, which have been investigated by engineers and Oregon health officials, ranged all the'way to outer space. The signals had been heard at widely scattered areas in Ore gon, but they were up to 100 times stronger in the Eugene area People have reported noises in the head and stuffiness and reddened skin at the same time the electromagnetic signal has been detected An FCC official said there was nothing unique about the effect of the signals on humans and there is no reason to believe they would cause any type of reaction. ap, re it Court denies release request Hilk al. T A 21-year-old Springfield, Mo., college student, sentenced to prison for seven years for making a one-third ounce marijuana sale, will have.to stay in prison at least a while longer. The Missouri Supreme Court was asked Monday by the attorney for Jerry Mitchell to allow him to return to college to finish the current semester while his case is being appealed. The court denied the request for a stayol execution or release on bond. It withheld action on a request to review the case and its earlier decision. Mitchell was sent to the penitentiary March 10 after the Supreme Court affirmed his 1975 Howell County Circuit Court conviction of selling less than one-third of an ounce of marijuana to an undercover highway patrol officer. Mitchell had been attending the university on a regular basis for the past two and a half years and had completed the course work for this semester up to the time of his arrest. World New device guards drilling pipes A unique plastic device resembling a giant clam shell that has allowed oil drilling off the coast of Latin America could reap energy’ benefits for the United States, say drilling officials. The device acts as an undersea air foil to prevent strong currents from destroying drill ing pipes. A Dallas drilling contractor, SEDCO, Inc., has used the system around exploratory wells in the Amazon delta off Brazil. Other possible areas for use of the devices are in the Celtic Sea and off Sumatra. The plastic devices have specific gravity very near to seawa ter so they do not float or sink. Weather Mostly cloudy and warm today, tonigh and Thursday considerable late night and early morning cloudiness. High today upper 70s, low tonight near 60. High tomorrow in upper 70’s. Winds from the south at 10-15 mph. he c We i anc mar t tin hat nitel The war mov nake ular rve he t e st •es t’ Dur ular son wl with e e ensi ch n lowi sum SUf nno' vice; tun: stoi et st he F 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 Regents. The Battalion is a non-projit, self-supporting enterprise oper ated hy students as a university and community newspaper. Editorial policy is determined hy the editor. LETTERS POUCY 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 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. McDonald Building, College Station, Texas ^ United Press International is entitled exclusi'^* use for reproduction of all news dispatches cr# Rights of reproduction of all other matter herein^ Second-Class postage paid at College Station, 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 furnished on request. Address: The Battalion, Room 216, Reed MEMBER Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Congress Editor J an ^j* Managing Editor Mary Alice"' 1 Sports Editor News Editors Marie Homeyer, a] Assistant Managing Editor Glenw"' City Editor Karw ■ Cam pus Editor K® Reporters Liz Newlin. David^ Mark Patterson, Lee Roy LwchpfK Welch, Jim Crawley. Andy"" Paige Beasley. Photographers Susan Webb. David! Cartoonist DoufC 11 « « Vou, the ?a Student Publications Board: BohG. Rofters.CM Joe Arredondo, Dr. Gary Halter, Dr. Charles Dr. Clinton A. Phillips, Rebel Rice. Directoro/^ Publications: Donald C. Johnson. n th of