Viewpoint
The Battalion
Texas A&M University ,
Friday
April 13, 1979
Foreign student bill
may hurt U.S. trade
By R. MUCHONTHAM
There is always a possibility for us to
legislate ourselves back into the Dark
Ages. That is, when legislators are ill-
advised. Sen. Oscar Mauzy’s impending
bill to reduce the number of foreign stu
dents (or, equivalently, to increase their
tuition fee by 300-500 percent) in universi
ties in Texas is a good example.
We have long evolved from the Dark
Ages. Since then, through the colonial era
and the era of industrialization of the
West, western explorers and traders have
sacrificed their lives in order to introduce
the West to many backward places of the
world. They wanted the rest of the world
to be familiar with the West and, most im
portant of all, its manufactured com
modities; so that they may trade with
these people who lived in the far comers
of Earth.
thousands and all are diligently using our
computers, machinery and all sorts of
other equipments.
This is the most pleasant sight to any
intelligent executive who manufactures
these products, precisely because these
students and trainees are people who will,
in years to come, generate potential cus
tomers for him. This is' a situation which
probably have saved us the equivalent of
hundreds of trade missions we would
otherwise have to send abroad and mil
lions of dollars saved in public relations by
our corporate subsidiaries overseas.
Sen. Mauzy can probably ask any U.S.
executive who has been stationed over
seas, on how elated he might have been on
occasions when he comes across engineers
or researchers who can deftly handle
U.S.-made equipment instead of equip
ment made in Germany, Japan or Russia.
International trade and, additionally,
the transfer and exchange of knowledge
and technology have since become an im-
Because the usage of English language is
much more prevalent in most parts of the
world, in comparison to the German,
Japanese or the Russian language, coupled
with farsighted U. S. foreign policy, the
U.S. has long been the most popular place
for foreigners to come pick up needed ad
vance technology.
“Isn’t it exciting to have this new facility where our students can pursue
academic excellence, broaden their horizons, develop scholastically,
achieve their aspirations, and be stimulated to the highest level of per
formance?”
Reader’s Forum
portant part of our well-being, it will in
creasingly be more vital to our future soci
ety.
However, in recent years, countries like
Germany, Japan, Russia and even China,
for instances, have been trying hard to
change the situation. Nowadays, one can
find trade missions from these countries in
even the most remote corners on earth.
They will gladly offer scholarships to stu
dents who will merely study their lan
guages.
Carter fights move for
constitutional convention
More specifically, in view of the need to
increase exports of this country in order to
offset our huge deficits. Sen. Mauzy (D-
Dallas) might want to know that his pro
posed bill will certainly harm this coun
try’s trading position in the world market
in the future ahead.
Or, if one purchases their machinery,
for instance, they will gladly send him or
her off to one of their prestigious language
institutes, set up exclusively for foreig
ners, and afterwards, have their scientists
instruct the client of the product.
Consider this: Foreign firms who have
substantial numbers of their engineers,
and researchers trained in the U.S. will
most likely purchase U.S.-made machin
ery equipment, since these are the prod
ucts which their employees, having been
trained in the U.S., are most familiar with.
It is a fact that the majority of foreign stu
dents in this country are in science and
technology. They number in hundreds of
We are living in a competitive world
market. We are holding an edge against
other competitors as long as we are a popu
lar place where people, who might gener
ate potential clients in distant markets,
want to come and learn technology from
us. Sen. Mauzy’s proposed bill will defi
nitely diminish this competitive edge we
possess, if not immediately, in years to
come.
R. Muchontham is a graduate student in
economics at Texas A<LrM.
By HELEN THOMAS
UPI White House Reporter
WASHINGTON — One morning re
cently, the White House woke up and
found that 28 states have called for a con
vention aimed at approving a balanced
budget amendment to the Constitution.
The scare was enough to start the ball
rolling, and a special White House panel
was created to rally Americans against
such a convention, which President Carter
sees as “dangerous for the country.”
In a letter to Speaker Vern Riffe of the
Ohio House of Representatives, Carter
said he is committed to a balanced budget
and intends to eliminate the deficit
through “prudent, responsible and equi
table” spending cuts.
“I am deeply concerned that the radical
and unprecedented action of convening a
constitutional convention .might do seri
ous, irrevocable damage to the Constitu
tion,” Carter wrote. He expressed fears a
convention would not be limited to one
amendment and might subject the entire
Energy mysticism alive in U.S.
There is nothing that happens any
where in the world that does not require a
boost in gasoline prices.” — Old Exxonian
proverb.
By DICK WEST
WASHINGTON — OK, everybody.
let’s review the situation.
America’s two biggest problems, as
identified by President Carter, are infla
tion and energy.
public opinion polls, is that the majority of
the people don’t believe in the energy
crisis.
They are convinced, surveys show, that
fuel shortages are artificially contrived to
provide a rationale for price increases and
other dirty work at the crossroads.
being pumped. One keeps a running tab of
the dollar amount. The third records the
price changes that occur while the pump is
operating.
Pretty soon you will become a true be
liever. And President Carter will find it
easier to restore public trust in the in
evitability of havoc.
The way to stop inflation is to import
less petroleum. The way to cut imports is
to reduce consumption. And the way to
promote, conservation is to raise prices.
Higher fuel prices jack up the inflation
rate, which forces poorer people to use
less gasoline, which makes the country
less dependent on foreign oil, which
brings down the inflation rate. Got it?
Economics seems so simple once you
catch on.
There are, however, two powerful
forces working against the program that
Carter has proposed.
First of all, it infringes on the ancient,
emotional issue of squanderers’ rights.
Although these rights have never been
codified, which is to say specifically spel
led out by law, they are nevertheless
deeply ingrained in our national life.
The other major obstacle, as reflected in
It is recognized that a certain amount of
skepticism is inevitable in an open society.
But when more than 50 percent of the
population questions the validity of im
pending calamity, the country has a real
problem on its hands.
I would be the first to acknowledge that
belief in the energy crisis requires an act of
faith. One way to experience it is through
our sixth sense panic.
First, get comfortable. Loosen tie and
belt and slip off your shoes. Elevate feet if
desired. Now tilt the head forward and
downward so that the blood rushes to the
chin.
With eyes closed, begin to chant softly
the energy crisis mantra: “Saudi, Saudi,
hope to the laudy, Saudi, Saudi, don’t get
naughty.” Repeat as often as necessary to
achieve a state of inner turmoil.
Then try to visualize yourself at a gas
station. As the hose drains off the precious
fuel, three dials on the pump’s instrument
panel begin to spin.
One dial registers the amount of gas
Constitution to “substantial revision.”
In the president’s view, it would open a
Pandora’s box for tampering with a docu
ment which has stood the test of time in a
changing society.
“That is not a risk that I believe is worth
taking, particularly when the expressed
purpose of the convention would be to
consider an amendment as flawed and
harmful as one mandating a balanced fed
eral budget,” he wrote Riffe.
Deficit spending marches to the fore
front in times of national emergencies, de
pressions and wars. At those times, a pres
ident needs flexibility, says Carter.
But with a balanced budget mandate on
the books, he says he would be barred
from moving freely to restore the economy
or to put unemployed back on the job.
“If the federal government had been re
quired to balance the budget during the
1974-75 recession, the economic conse
quences would have been even more se
vere — around 12 percent. Our economy’s
output would have been more severe and
long lasting,” he replied after Riffe sought
out the president’s views.
Meanwhile, the question of a constitu
tional convention has been injected into
presidential politics by California Gov.
Edmund G. Brown Jr., a likely Carter op
ponent for the 1980 Democratic nomina
tion.
Since the passage of Proposition 13 in
Calfornia, Brown has been moving in a
more conservative fiscal direction. Brown
knows that tight-fisted money policies are
appealing to the electorate at the moment
and, in fact, is finding a number of admir
ers in the Republican party.
Deficit spending has become a way of
life in the federal government in recent
years and even a president who favors
balancing the budget would feel tied by a
mandate to do so.
Carter concedes the possibility of ratifi
cation of an amendment which could be
tailored to take care of national emergen
cies. But he warns it would become “a
sham — one which would exist in name
only but be repeatedly ignored, much like
the prohibition amendment. ”
“In short,” he said, “any amendment
would either be so filled with loopholes as
to be meaningless, or so rigid as to tie the
nation’s hands in time of war or depres
sion.”
Carter has set a goal of a balanced
budget by 1981. Whether he meets it or
not remains to be seen.
But his frugality has been severely
criticized by liberal Democrats, blacks and
the poor who believe that Carter swung
the ax too hard on programs that are aimed
at improving the welfare of the disadvan
taged while keeping the Pentagon happy
with infusions into the nation’s arsenal.
Despite such criticism. Carter says the
budget can be balanced without a constitu
tional amendment.
“That is our goal. There is simply no
need to amend the Constitution to achieve
that purpose,” he told Riffe.
“We should not let the latest in political
gimmickry interfere with or impede our
efforts. A balanced budget amendment
would do precisely that.”
Fetters to the Editor
Missing ballot serious
Editor:
We would like to congratulate the elec
tion committee on a near perfect election.
However, we take issue with the ques
tionable handling of the stolen ballot. We
do not know if this person’s intent was to
stuff the ballot box or not. But the issue
remains, “Is his conduct becoming to an
Aggie leader?”
It would seem that a violation of the
Texas Open Records Act would be dealt
with more sternly than the mere ban on
campaigning, however, if this
judgment was deemed to be appropriate
punishment by the election commissioner.
then why was the candidate allowed to
continue campaigning in the afternoon
(before the J-Board meeting) without dis
qualification for direct disobedience of the
commissioner’s order?
It appears inconsistent that a person
guilty of violating both Texas statute and
election commission decisions would still
be able to hold the highest elected office at
Texas A&M.
Therefore, we urge the election officials
to be more resolute in dealing with infrac
tions of this magnitude.
—Mark Abbe, ’79
Todd Vanderpool, ’79
Top of the News
CAMPUS
Math contest to be held at Ai?M
A math contest for freshmen and sophomores will be held next
Tuesday from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. in 201 Milner for freshmen and 206
Milner for sophomores. A freshman is eligible to participate if he was
not classified above freshman last Sept. 1. Sophomores are eligible if
they were classified as sophomores last Sept. 1. The two-hour exam
ination may include questions on math as high as the Math 221 and
304 level for sophomores and questions on algebra, trigonometry,
analytic geometry and calculus as high as the Math 121 level for
freshmen. Prizes will be $50 for first place, $30 for second place and
$20 for third place.
STATE
Nolen, NTSU president, resigns
North Texas State University President C.C. Nolen resigned
Thursday in the wake of allegations of financial mismanagement at the
university. The Board of Regents, meeting in special session at the
Capitol, accepted Nolen’s resignation and appointed John Carter as
acting president until the board meets in two weeks. Nolen was
subpoenaed two days ago by the House Investigations Committee
after Rep. Frank Gaston, R-Dallas, reported mismanagement of
funds at NTSU and requested the committee investigate.
Bill passes, causes argument
The Texas House passed a resolution Thursday asking Congress to
pass a law calling for election — instead of appointment — of federal
judges, but not before the author and another member engaged in a
shouting match. Rep. Emmett Whitehead, D-Rusk, said a poll in his
district revealed that voters want to select federal judges. But Rep.
Luther Jones, D-El Paso, said he was tired of seeing Whitehead
waste the Legislature’s time and money by passing worthless reso
lutions. “How much will it cost to send that worthless piece of paper
to Washington?” Jones asked.“As much as that paper you keep pass
ing around, ” Whitehead replied. Jones then asked for Whitehead to
pay for the printing and mailing of the resolution, prompting Rep. Al
Brown, D-San Antonio, to walk up to the podium and flip Whitehead
a $10 bill.
White negotiating federal lawsuit
Texas Attorney General Mark White has begun negotiations in
Austin with the Justice Department to settle a 6-year-old federal
lawsuit charging overcrowding and other abuses against inmates in
the nation’s largest state prison system, it was disclosed Thursday. A
Justice Department spokesman said that Drew Days, assistant attor
ney general in charge of the civil rights division, and Texas Attorney
General Mark White recently have had discussions about an out-of-
court settlement. The lawsuit was filed by inmates demanding an end
to overcrowding, use of inmate enforcers to maintain order, in
adequate health care, physical abuse of inmates including beatings
and toleration of homosexuality and inadequate food services. The
suit also alleges inmates were deprived of other constitutional rights
by being denied access to the court.
NATION
U.S. judge stops sale of gasoline
WORLD
Soviet spaceship linkup fails
Pope leads Holy Thursday mass
WEATHER
<
L.
I
U.S. District Judge Kevin T. Duffy has prohibited the Department
of Energy from enforcing its order that Mobil Oil Corp. sell 2.3
million gallons of gasoline below the market price to three Midwest
agricultural cooperatives. The ruling temporarily bars the DOE from
requiring Mobil to supply the fuel to Midland Cooperatives, Farm
land Industries and Land-O-Lakes, Inc. All three cooperative associa
tions, in their applications to the DOE for a mandatory allocation
order because of “supply imbalances, attributed their problems to
crude oil shortages. But, said Judge Duffy, “The facts, as they have
developed, support the inescapable conclusion that the applications
were made and the orders issued to enable the three cooperatives to
purchase gasoline at a price well below the spot market.”
A Soviet space capsule carrying a Soviet commander and a Bulga
rian engineer returned to Earth Thursday after an aborted linkup
with the Salyut 6 space lab, Tass, the official Soviet news agency,
reported. The Soyuz capsule, carrying veteran Soviet commander
Nikolai Rukavishnikov and Bulgarian Air Force Maj. Georgi Ivanov,
made an emergency soft-landing in Soviet Kazakhstan at 11:35 a.m.
EST, the Soviet agency said. Rukavishnikov, 46, and Ivanov, 38,
roared into space aboard Soyuz 33 Tuesday from the Baikonur space
center despite strong winds. The flight of Soyuz 33 was the first of
what could be a series of short hops to Salyut 6 to take supplies.
Pope John Paul II led more than 2,500 cardinals, bishops and
priests Thursday in the largest mass ever held in St. Peter’s Basilica
and asked priests to pray to God for “faithfulness and perseverance.
Twenty-two cardinals, 40 archbishops and bishops and one half of
Rome’s 5,000 priests joined the pope in celebrating the Holy
Thursday “Mass of the Chrism” in which priests renew their vows
before their bishops. It was the first time in recent history that a pope
has personally officiated in St. Peter’s at this mass, which is usually
held by his cardinal vicar in Rome’s cathedral of St. John Lateran.
Fair skies, clear and cooler this afternoon with a high of 70 and
a low in the lower 60’s. Winds will be westerly at 5-10 mph,
The Battalion
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