Slouch
by Jim Earle
oc-7 j 9 -79
‘Falconry does have its inconveniences.
Opinion
Education agency —
what will it learn?
Establishment of the new Department of Education by
Congress has been hailed as a victory for President Carter. It
won’t be a victory for the American people, however, unless
the new agency avoids the pitfalls of bureaucratic bloat,
special-interest pleading, and federal intrusion.
One method of preventing the downfall of the new
cabinet position is to appoint a secretary committed to civil
rights, efficiency, and separation of church and state in the
schools. Another is to ensure congressional watchdogging of
the new department.
And the new department is quickly becoming quite a
worry to some teachers and teachers’ groups. The fear of
undue influence for one professional organization, the Na
tional Education Association, has surfaced. The NEA is, of
course, to whom Carter promised and delivered the new
cabinet position.
The Department of Education does have possibilities, but
let’s hope it doesn’t turn out to be a $14 million mistake.
Action or consequences
The Northgate parking problem has been thrust in the College Station
city council’s face for quite a while now, and we have yet to see a solution
or anything close to one.
Friday night crowds and stopped cars in front of the Dixie Chicken
and other Northgate establishments have become a real danger to
everyone.
Granted, council members have had a rough fall — fighting annexa
tion and utility rights, Bryan and sometimes, themselves. But the fact
remains. A dangerous problem exists for everyone at Northgate, and it’s
time the city recognized a serious situation before it becomes a deadly
situation.
The choice is clear — act now on the issue or face the possible
consequences. In fact, is there any choice?
the small society
by Brickman
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The Battalion
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MEMBER
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Congress
Editor Liz Newlin
Managing Editor Andy Williams
Asst. Managing Editor Dillard Stone
News Editors Karen Cornelison
and Michelle Burrowes
Sports Editor Sean Petty
City Editor Roy Bragg
Campus Editor Keith Taylor
Focus Editors Beth Calhoun and
Doug Graham
StalF Writers Meril Edwards, Nancy
Andersen, Louie Arthur, Richard Oliver,
Mark Patterson, Carolyn Blosser, Kurt
Allen, Debbie Nelson
Photo Editor Lee Roy Leschper Jr.
Photographers Lynn Blanco, Sam
Stroder, Ken Herrera
Cartoonist Doug Graham
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, self-
supporting enterprise operated by students
as a university and community newspaper.
Editorial policy is determined by the editor.
Viewpoint
The Battalion
Texas A&M University
Friday
October 19, 1979
Window
Carter, Kennedy struggle under waij
but neither has announced candidad
United Press International
WASHINGTON — President Carter
does not think it is good for the presidential
election campaign to get such an early start.
Nevertheless, the struggle is well under
way with the Florida caucuses a clear dem
onstration that Carter and Sen. Edward
Kennedy are going to have to slug it out.
The question of whether a knock-down,
drag-out fight is divisive to the Democratic
Party is long past debate. Both sides have
chosen the battleground, and may or may
not unite afterwards.
When asked if he would support who
ever gets the Democratic nomination. Car
ter appeared to hesitate for a moment dur
ing his news conference Oct. 9. Then he
said, “I have always voted Democratic.”
Taking the view that the 1980 campaign
is getting a premature start, Carter will not
formally announce his intention to seek
re-election until Dec. 4. Kennedy is ex
pected to announce his bid for the nomina
tion a few days after Thanksgiving.
For several weeks now, perhaps months,
the White House has been working on its
strategy.
The administration has been doling out
federal funds in a big way to cities and
regions where the Carter candidacy is cru
cial. Political appointees on all levels have
been warned that any show of support for
Kennedy will cost them their jobs.
The White House has signed on some 40
new “advance” persons to prepare the way
for all-out campaigning.
White House staffers are under an edict
to do their regular 40 hours a week to col
lect their federal paycheck. Then, they are
free to plunge into politicking. And many
have. The president’s top aides swarmed all
over Florida.
The president’s strongest supporter is
his wife, who has been on the road almost
constantly since Labor Day. Rosalynn Car
ter is fierce in her determination for a sec
ond tenn for her husband, displaying a
fighting spirit like no other first lady before
her.
As the results of the Florida caucuses
were coming in, press secretary Jody Pow
ell said, “If you thought the Democratic
nomination was Teddy’s for the asking,
you’d better think again.”
One observer, noting the new
enthusiasm that has cropped up in what
had been a fairly subdued White House,
said, “The thing they like best ... is cam
paigning.”
But governing is what the president will
he judged on ultimately. He believes that if
he can get an energy program approved
and Senate ratification of the Strategic
Arms Limitation Treaty, his record will be
impressive for the 1980 contest.
The economy is a sore point. Rampant
T
inflation and the volatile stock mi e
causes for worry.
Carter’s strong support of tie
Reserve Board’s moves to ti
possibly leading to a deeperrec|l -
not calculated to win votes. Btitf Re
taking a rosy view that the mesa F
not lead to a big boost in the uni \
ment rolls.
As the campaign getsu:
already is displaying a thin skier H
Washington press. He told an iita |
last week the Washington md
“frivolous little superficial questii
come up in cocktail parties here ii
ington."
“The press has been complete!
sed with Kennedy,” he said.
That may or may not lie so, bat!
ter camp also is obsessed with Kei
the first man to heat for a four-yen i 1
of its White House lease.
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United Press International
WASHtNGTON — They laughed last
spring when Sen. S.I. Hayakawa, R-Calif.,
fell asleep at a White House briefing on the
oil shortage.
But that was before the Food and Drug
Administration moved to ban a chemical
widely used in sleeping pills and liquid
sedatives.
After it was found that the ingredient
caused cancer in test animals, the sleep aid
industry began diligently seeking a safe
substitute.
I recently did some checking around to
see how the work was progressing. It is
going along swimmingly, I learned.
Some of the researchers, recalling how
the energy briefing had made Hayakawa
drowsy, seized upon that incident as a start
ing point. They had the text of the briefing
analyzed to see whether it contained any
identifiable sleep-inducing qualities.
“Our tests indicated it was a combination
of subject matter and phraseology that
made Hayakawa nod off,” one researcher
told me.
“Although we were never able to isolate
and identify the exact verbiage, the results
seemed promising enough to cause us to
look for a more abundant supply of the
stuff.
“Through trial and error, we finally hit
on the Congressional Record as the most
likely source.”
If all goes well, such popular sedatives as
Sominex and Compoz may be joined soon
by a new “natural” product marketed
under the brand name Congdoz.
Currently, the experiments involve ex
posing laboratory mice to various excerpts
from the Record.
“There definitely is a wide variation in
sedation potential,” the researcher said.
“Some speeches cause mice to drop right
off; others just make their eyes glaze over
and their jaws sag.
“We can’t be 100 percent sure the effect
on human beings will be the same. But
from what we know of sleeping habits of
mice and men, we can assume they have
much the same triggering mechanism.”
He went on to report that the laboratory
has now developed a quick screening pro
cess. It enables researchers to tell from just
the first few words whether a Congres
sional Record entry has a high soporific
factor.
Asked for some recent examj
cited several excerpts from Octol
tions. (Three dots mark the.spotswl
mice went to sleep.)
Rep. Glenn Anderson, D-Calil
Speaker, for many years I havebs
ousing the utility of the bicycleh
Rep. Don Bailey, D-Pa.:“Mr.S|
on October 13, 1979, the Firemen’s 1
Lowber, Pa., will hold a ...”
Rep. Robert Michel, R-IlL:
Speaker, let me propose a riddle
costs $11 billion, has 20,000 em!
enforces unneeded regulations,(
market allocation of gasoline, and.
The next step will he to liquilyf
derize soporific passages so they
bottled or encapsulated. After!
sweet dreams, everybody.
Letters
38-plus hours without phone service:
GTE, it’s time to let Ma Bell take oti
Editor:
At about 7 last night (Tuesday) the tele
phones in our house went dead. When I
contacted GTE I was told that the 693- and
696- exchanges were having problems but
Correction
An article in Wednesday’s Battalion in
correctly said department heads are re
sponsible for collecting contributions and
pledges in the United Way fund drive.
They are not; instead, area representa
tives and area coordinators have been ap
pointed to collect the funds.
The Battalion regrets the error and urges
students, faculty and staff to give their fair
share.
Readers'
Forum
Guest viewpoints, in addition to
Letters to the Editor, are welcome.
All pieces submitted to Readers’
forum should be:
• Typed triple space
• Limited to 60 characters per
line
• Limited to 100 lines
should be back in full operation later in the
night.
It is now 10 p. m. Wednesday night,
about 27 hours since the phones went dead.
Again I have talked with GTE personnel
and was given the same excuse and again
told the phones would be working later
tonight. Maybe they’ll have a better excuse
tomorrow.
I personally feel it is about time some
thing is done to ensure reliable phone serv
ice to the residents of this area. An explana
tion from GTE, as to why quality service is
not available now, and what they propose
to do in order to provide it, is due their
customers.
If they are not capable of, or concerned
about improving the service, then they
should let the experts from “Ma Bell” take
over. Certainly this would insure that fi
nally, conversations across town will no
longer sound as if they are originating from
deep Siberia.
P.S. 9 a.m. Thursday, 38 hours with no
phone.
— Joe Tomberlin
Editors note: At 10 p.m. Thursday, we
were unable to reach Mr. Tomberlin by
phone. An operator could not verify
whether the line was still out of order.
Meet the candidates
Editor:
This year the Student Government is
adding a new dimension to student elec
tions. Students have often complained
about not knowing what the can
think or not having the opportunitfj
them. Well, Monday, Oct. 22,tl
change.
At 7:00 in Rm. 201 of the MSCi
tion Commission of the StudentC
ment will sponsor a “Meet theCand
night. This will be a chance for the!
’83 to meet the students running!
officers and senators. Freshmen")
the chance to (question the candidi
find out how each feels about the is
concern.
So freshmen, this is your eh*
“Meet the Candidates” and clioos
class representatives. Take advantaj
— Ken McCd
Student Gover®
Election Coiw®
Thotz
by Doug Grok