Viewpoint
The Battalion
Texas A&M University
Thursday
September 21, 1978
Carter waging "battle of the bureaucrat’
By IRA R. ALLEN
United Press International
WASHINGTON — There is no ques
tion that federal civil service jobs are ea
gerly sought, especially in times of
economic uncertainty. Government jobs
at all levels have always provided respect
able work and good fringe benefits. If the
work was dull, at least it was hard to get
fired. And in recent years salaries have
shot up, making the government one of
the best employers around.
With all that going for civil servants, it is
little wonder they are sometimes hard to
move when it comes to putting into effect
The Lighter Side
a president s policies and sometimes a lit
tle less energetic than they might be if
paid by a profit-hungry boss.
So, in what could be the most far-
reaching of his domestic achievements,
President Carter has proposed a broad re
form of the federal civil service and is on
the verge of getting it passed by Congress
largely intact.
Strangley, however, while a balky
House finally got ready last week to pass
the measure giving Carter authority he
wanted to clear out the deadwood, it also
took two actions that would keep fresh ta
lent out of government.
First, it voted against Carter’s move to
WASHINGTON — The record flight of
two cosmonauts aboard Salyut 6 comes at a
time when American spacemen have been
grounded for three years and won’t return
to space for at least another year.
Two Soviet cosmonauts, Soyuz 29 cos
monauts Vladimir Kovalenok and Alexan
der Ivanchenkov, have orbited their way
into the record books, breaking the world
manned spaceflight endurance record of
96 days, 10 hours — more than a quarter
of a year.
The Soviet manned spaceflight activity
and the American hiatus are indications of
the different courses in space the super
powers have taken in the past decade.
Following the then-unprecedented
long-duration orbital flights of three
eliminate the hiring preference given to
veterans, which effectively blocks entry
and promotions for blacks, women and
Vietnam veterans.
Second, it voted overwhelmingly for a
ceiling on government employment at its
Jan. 1, 1977, level of 2.1 million, meaning
about 112,000 current jobs would be lost
through both attrition and layoffs. The
second vote was politically irresistible.
The bill’s floor manager, Rep. Morris
Udall, D-Ariz., soft-pedaled his opposition
and even Rep. Gladys Spellman, D-Md.,
Skylab space station crews in 1973 and
early 1974, the United States changed
gears and opted for “easy access” to orbit.
The Soviet Union decided to aim toward
long stays in space.
To do this, the Soviets have been using
Soyuz spacecraft based on 1960s technol-
Analysis
ogy as both manned and unmanned ferries
to Salyut space stations. Each Soyuz is
launched by conventional rockets and both
booster and spacecraft are used only once.
For the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration, “easy access’ means dis
carding the old expendable rocket and
spaceship idea and switching to the space
one of the most vigorous defenders of
put-upon bureaucrats, voted for it.
Rep. Patricia Schroeder, D-Colo., who
favored ending veterans preference and
putting a cap on employment, linked the
two issues. During debate on an ill-fated
amendment to limit the preference only to
Vietnam combat veterans, she said allow
ing the advantage for all vets sets up a pool
of 28 million persons competing for about
150,000 new jobs, instead of just the 8
million Vietnam veterans.
“If we could do this vote by secret bal-
shuttle, the reusable rocket plane that will
serve as an orbital transport shuttling to
and from orbit every two or three weeks.
The shuttle’s initial flight test into space
once was set for next March. It has been
delayed by engine troubles and NASA
sources report that the earliest the shuttle
now could fly is next September. The
agency has reported recent engine tests
have gone well.
The shuttle, able to carry up to seven
men and women, is designed to stay up to
two weeks in orbit. But once the the shut
tle begins operational flights carrying
people and machinery to and from orbit,
NASA is expected to start thinking seri
ously about extending its duration in
space.
“What I think will happen to us is that
we’re going to begin to want to run longer
lot, it would pass by a very heavy margin, ”
she said. “Why? Because everybody talks
about wanting to have the veterans all get
a crack at the jobs, but nobody is for in
creasing the federal service so they will all
have that crack.”
It is likely, however, that both House
actions, taken for purely political reasons,
will be reversed sooner or later.
The job ceiling and employment freeze
was not in the Senate version of the bill
and is subject to further action by the joint
conference committee meeting this week
to iron out that difference. Since the
amendment was defeated during original
committee consideration and since Civil
Service Commission officials say
thousands of workers would have to be
fired, the provision is likely to be one of
the things ironed out of the final bill.
Retention of veterans preference, al
ready agreed to both houses, is in the bill
to stay. But a presidential aide, Richard
Pettigrew, was optimistic it can be elimi
nated by separate legislation next year. Al
though the key vote in favor of keeping it
was 222-149, he and some key con
gressmen said the difference was really
only about 15 votes, with the extra margin
provided by opponents who wanted pre
election credit from veterans groups.
"I think in some fashion it will come up
next year,” Pettigrew predicted. “It will
be do-able because it won’t be an election
year. ”
directions
and longer missions,” NASA administrator
Robert Frosch said. “There will come a
point at which it is clearly more conve
nient to stay there than to go up and down,
instead of commuting.
“The Soviets have decided they want to
try for very long stays,” Frosch said. “I’m
not quite sure why. There are rumors that
they’re backing it up by working on a shut
tle, but I don’t have any hard information
on that.”
Frosch said that with resupply flights
from the unmanned Progress spacecraft,
Soviet space officials have developed a
fairly flexible system to keep men in space
for many months.
He said the Soviets have said that per
manent occupation of space is inevitable
“and they seem to be following that
scenario. ”
Space shots aimed in different
By AL ROSSITER Jr.
UPI Science Editor
Letters to the editor
Seniority parking privilege thing of the past
Student’ cheers
Editor:
Traditionally, as one reaches the junior
and senior years in college, the privileges
increase. However, one particular
privilege has been reduced: namely, park
ing for the North Area Dorm male up
perclassmen.
Somehow, sophomores have now been
goven the right to park in areas which pre
viously had been reserved for juniors and
seniors. Although parking in these areas in
the past was tight, an even greater shor
tage of parking spaces in now evident.
After searching for, and finally securing a
legal parking space, a celebration is indeed
in order.
In addition to allowing sophomores to
park in these areas, some parking spaces
were also given to the female dorm stu
dents. This of course further decreased the
spaces available to the male dorm stu
dents. However, this is not the main part
of our complaint because we realize this
» was done for their safety. This fact just il-
r lustrates the increased shortage incurred
\ on the male parking availability.
J Maybe the “management” felt this
; would influence the male juniors and
- seniors to consider moving off-campus. It
! has been argued that “after the transition
I to college life has been make dorm living
' should be discarded and off campus living
- should be considered.”
• We feel that we made this transition
’ long ago, but prefer the conveniences of
' dorm living. We have served our time
; parking across the tracks and enjoyed the
| privilege of parking around the dorms until
i it became the hassle it is now.
We have talked to sophomores that park
i in these areas and they agree that the park-
; ing situation is now unbearable. They also
; realize, as we do, that the problem will not
get any better unless the “management”
l reconsiders what has been done.
' Many full-year parking permits have al
ready been issued, so we will have to live
with the problem until May. Hopefully,
those in charge will strongly consider this
problem and revert the situation back to
the way it was before; at least it was toler
able.
Todd Culbertson, ’79
Mike Sweeney, ’79
Willy Grimley, ’80
Tom Weirich, ’81
Dorm democracy
Editor:
We are writing to complain about the
communist infringement on the rights of
residents of Schuhmacher and Walton
Halls. As of this semester, the Fascist Staff
of the aforementioned halls decided (most
undemocratically) that water fights and
quads after hours and yell fights at any
time should be outlawed.
We of Schuhmacher believe this to be
unAmerican—much akin to the Democra
tic party. The R.A.’s seem to fell that hold
ing the totalitarian j-board review over our
heads is acceptable treatment; to us, how
ever, it is the modern day equivalent of
gestapo lightning tactics. We the residents
of Schuhmacher Hall, have taken just
about enough of the subversive efforts of
our resident staff to incorporate marshall
law in the live of fun-loving republican
good American Aggies. This is as much of a
threat to society as gay rights.
— David Nissman, ’81
Ray Smith, ’81
Rick Mclver, ’81
Harry Sparwasser, ’81
Drew Montz, ’82
Diplomacy fails
Editor:
No wonder the American foreign dip
lomacy fails almost everywhere. In the last
decade, the U.S. Foreign Diplomacy
TiiaKioo oo
faced defeats on more than one front, and
is unfortunate that the U.S. is defeated by
free nations who decided to be free from
the imperialist octopus.
In almost all countries where an
American-supported government is in
command, corruption and unrest prevail,
and more human rights violations than any
other country, and thanks to the inten
tional bias of the news media, who refuse
to upset us by informing us of the real
practices of the American Government.
It is unfortunate that the U.S., with all
the ideals of the Great American Revolu
tion, spread suppression and corruption.
It is disgraceful that leaders of thikat na
tion talk of human rights and brag about it
and still support the Shah of Iran and
Somoza in Nicaragua, who were both
guilty of violating human rights and com
mitting mass murder.
Lately, Smarty Carter initiated the
Camp David negotiations. Although al
most all experts in the Middle East politics
predicted failure of the negotiations, based
on their past experience, Smarty Carter
kept pressing and dreamt to be the knight
who will brng peace to the Middle East.
What is more ridiculous, is that Mr.
Carter does not want to wake up and con
fess failure, though he knows it very well,
that without a comprehensive settlement
based on justice and recognition of dep
rived rights, peace cannot be achieved.
He knows it well that neither Sadat nor
Begn nor Carter can achieve peace, but
the will of the free nations can.
It is true that Sadat and Begin can en
force a settlement, but never achieve
peace, because only free nations who be
lieve in right and truth and human values
do win at the end, and what Mr. Carter is
calling a peace treaty is nothing but allow
ing a period of rest for another wave of
violence.
So wake up, free Americans, it is about
time the free World heard the voice of free
Americans; it is about time free Americans
take the lead.
—Oussama Qawasmi, ‘79
‘Student’ jeers
Editor:
What has happened to Today’s Student?
I used to rank right up there with True
Confessions and tbe National Enquirer.
For some unknown reason, the repor
ters for T.S. abandoned the main attribute
of their writing, which was faith and at
tempted to replace it with journalistic
technique. This occurred midway through
the last school year, when T.S. diversified
its reporting into the fields of science and
politics. Judging by their first issue this
fall, which contained a list of the top 20
college football teams in the nation with
out listing Texas A&M, it is obvious that
their reporters cannot handle secular to
pics.
Whatever the cause of their troubles,
Today’s Student is no longer entertaining
or amusing.
Editor:
Just a note to let you know how pleased
I was to find the weekly publication, To
day’s Student, on campus. Since I hadn’t
seen it this semester, I was afraid it might
not be coming out this year. I find its fresh
approach to various issues very interest
ing, informative, and often challenging.
Although I may not always agree with
everything it says, it certainly is thought-
provoking.
— Sue Walkup, ’80
Call us friendly
Editor:
I’ve been hearing about Texas A&M
since I was a child when my father (class of
’41) told my older brothers and I many
“Old Army” stories of the school. I’ve
been visiting here since 1967 when my
brothers started attending A&M, and I
started my college education here as a
freshman in 1975.
I’ve seen many changes at A&M — phys
ical changes, research expansion, changes
in academic programs, new sports prog
rams, and changes in student attitudes.
One thing that shouldn’t be changing
around here is friendliness.
I hold strong beliefs in many traditions
at A&M. . . that’s my own prerogative.
But to me, trying to instill these traditions
in another person, Aggie or not, who is not
as tradition oriented as I am, would only
be hyprcritical of the spirit of Aggie friend
liness. I am proud to be a student at Texas
A&M, and I’m equally proud of my fellow
Aggies who continue in that same Aggie
tradition of truly being friendly.
Sara L. Cooper, ’79
Spirit of Legett
Editor:
Curses on those that would have Legett
Hall anything less than a men’s dorm. May
the Spirit of Legett torment your every
waking hour and cause you to foul your
shorts whilst thou slumbers.
Ian Bradington, ’80
Clarification
In Wednesday’s Battalion, an ar
ticle about an injury to a cadet in
Duncan Dining Hall may have
given the impression that the
emergency team from Beutel
Health Center responded to the call
in 20 minutes. Log records show the
team arrived at Duncan about one
minute after receiving the call from
University Police.
Wes Pate, the student injured,
was listed in good condition early
this morning at St. Joseph Hospital
in Bryan.
Top of the News
Campus
Cadets to visit Air Force Base
A group of 60 ROTC cadets, mostly freshmen will get a chance to
sample military life this weekend when they visit Elgin Air Force
Base near Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Col. Kenneth W. DurKhm, pro
fessor of aerospace studies at Texas A&M University said the trip is
part of regular orientation activities supported by the U.S. Air Force.
The cadets will leave today and return Saturday. The tour of the base
will include a structural dynamics lab, an armament museum and a
closeup look at F-15 and F-15 aircraft.
ab
A&M church group names head
)h
H. Dennis Tolley, a statistics teacher at Texas A&M University,
has been named bishop of the newly formed Texas A&M University
Student Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The
congregation will be made up of college-age singles and married
couples without children will meet at the Mormon Chapel on 2500
Barak Lane in Bryan. Sunday schools will begin at 9:30 a m. and
sacrament meetings will be at 3 p.m.
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Local
Survey response due Oct. 2
The Bryan-College Station Chamber of Commerce asks clubs and
organizations sponsoring events of public interest to respond by Oct.
2 to its recent special events survey. Information in the survey will aid
the chamber in planning for tourists and conventions.
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State
Legionnaire’s disease confirmed
State health officials are taking air and water samples from local
hotels in Dallas that housed 35,000 conventioneers last month to tiy
to determine the source of an outbreak of Legionnaire’s disease
Dallas County Health Director Lowell Berry Wednesday announced
health officials had confirmed two non-fatal cases of the bacterial
pneumonia among those attending the Veteran of Foreign Wars con
vention in late August. Berry refused to disclose the names of the two
who were confirmed to have had the disease but said both recovered
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Officials investigate fatal accident
Authorities in Houston are investigating an industrial accident ear
lier this week in which a dolly fell from the 11th floor of an unfinished
building and fatally injured a construction foreman standing on the
ground. Wiley Robinson, 42, was struck on the head and shouldershy
the plummeting, 100-pound dolly. He was taken by helicopter to
Hermann Hospital where he died. Robinson was working on the 24-
story Two Post Oak Central building being built by the Lott Con
struction Co. when the accident happened.
Nation
Police settle strike, receive ram
Progress was recorded Wednesday in strikes by police and firemfli
in Biloxi, Miss, and Wichita, Kan. The strike in Biloxi endedaiter
police and firemen unanimously accepted $100-a-month payit-
creases. Meanwhile, in Wichita, about half the striking police officers
met late Wednesday and voted 146-19 in favor of a new agreement.
Another meeting would have been held early today, but Wednes
day’s vote indicated the contract would be approved even if there was
a heavy negative vote at the second meeting. Wichita firemen de
layed until early today a vote on a contract proposal that makes sab
increases above the city’s current offer contingent upon passage da
half-cent sales tax.
f
World
Vorster announces resignation
South African Prime Minister John Vorster announced his resigna
tion Wednesday after 12 years in office. Vorster, 63, said he was
retiring from public life and would not run for election as Soutli
Africa’s president, a post left open by the death of the former presi
dent Nico Dederichs. He also said the republic would proceed un
ilaterally with elections in South West Africa or Namibia. A new
prime minister will be elected in eight days. Presently, there is a
four-man race to succeed Vorster.
Cosmonauts break space record
Two Soviet Cosmonauts, Vladimir Kovalenok and Alexander Ivan
chenkov, aboard Soyuz 29 orbited their way into the record books
Wednesday, breaking the world manned spaceflight endurance re
cord of 96 days, 10 hours. The old record was just short of 14 weeks.
In a recent interview, NASA administrator Robert Frosch said, "The
Soviets have decided they want to try for very long stays. I’m not sure
why. There are rumors that they’re backing it up by working on a
shuttle, but I don’t have any hard information on that.”
Weather
It will be partly cloudy for today with a 50% chance of rain
today, tonight and tomorrow. The high in the 80s and the low
in the high 60s. Southeast wind at 10-15 mph.
The Battalion
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MEMBER
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Congress
Editor KimT;* 1
Managing Editor LizNeifl
Assistant Managing Editor .. Karen ft#
Sports Editor David Bo^
City Editor Jamie Aik*
Campus Editor Andy WiP
News Editors Carolyn
Debbie Parsons
Editorial Director . .Lee Roy Leschperj
Staff Writers Mark Patterson, Amk*
Vails, Scott Pendleton,
Petty, Michelle Scudder,
Marilyn Faulkenberry
Cartoonist Doug Grab
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-profit, si
supporting enterprise operated by stuiltf
as a university and community newspffl
Editorial policy is determined by the editif
HUiV
—Raymond J. Grimaila, ‘81