4, Slouch by Jim Earle FOR SALE IO MILtLa pen MtAt- Chappaquiddick is a legitimate issue Why don’t politicians quit beating around the bush about Chappaquiddick as an issue in a presidential campaign in volving Senator Kennedy? It’s simply hypocritical for a politician to say that Chap paquiddick is not an issue when by its very mention it is being made an issue. It’s hypocritical, too, for a politician or a president to brag about not panicking in a crisis in response to a ques tion about Kennedy and then deny that there was any in tent to imply that Senator Kennedy did panic at Chap paquiddick. Chappaquiddick is an issue. It is a legitimate issue. It’s part of Senator Kennedy’s record. He drove the car off the bridge at Chappaquiddick and, for whatever rea sons, he left it and the body of Mary Jo Kopechne there unreported for 10 hours. To some, his behavior at Chappaquiddick indicates a flaw in his character. To others, it may not. In either case, it’s a legitimate issue to raise in a presidential campaign. It’s as appropriate to discuss Chappaquiddick in connec tion with Kennedy as it it to discuss John Connally’s in dictment in the milk case in his campaign. Both go to the matter of trust. We do not mean to say or even imply that Kennedy cannot be trusted to lead the country. But if he becomes a candidate, voters will have to decide that question. And the voters have as much right to hear and weigh his reactions and comments on Chappaquiddick as they have to hear and weigh his comments on inflation, taxes, foreign policy and other affairs of state. To pretend it is not an issue to is to ignore reality. Scripps-Howard Newspapers the small society by Briclcman X THINK HIT A N^W Fif2^T IN FiNPirk^ ■ - The Battalion USPS 045 360 LETTERS POLICY MEMBER Letters to the editor should not exceed 300 words and are Texas Press Association subject to being cut to that length or less if longer. The Southwest Journalism Congress editorial staff reserves the right to edit such letters and does not guarantee to publish any letter. Each letter must be Editor Liz Newlin signed, show the address of the writer and list a telephone w . tp i.. i , \X7:11 • ' „ number for verification. Managing Editor Andy Williams Address correspondence to Letters to the Editor. The Asst. Managing Editor Dillard Stone Battalion, Room 216, Reed McDonald Building, College News Editors Karen Cornelison Station. Texas 77843. and Michelle Burrowes Represented nationally by National Educational Adver tising Services, Inc., New York City, Chicago and Los Sports Editor Sean Petty Ang ^ 1 --: City Editor Roy Bragg Campus Editor Keith Taylor The Battalion is published Monday through Friday from FOCUS Editors Beth Calhoun and >eptember through May except during exam and holiday . periods and the summer, when it is published on Tuesday LJOUg Cyranam hrough Thursday Staff Writers Meril Edwards. Nancy Andersen, Louie Arthur, Richard Oliver, Mail subscriptions are $16.75 per semester; $33.25 per Mark Patterson, Carolyn BloSSer, Kurt school year; $35.00 per full year. Advertising rates furnished IMdcnn on request. Address; The Battalion, Room 216, Reed Allen, UcDDlG INClSOn McDonald Building, College Station, Texas 77843. Photo Editor Lee Roy Leschper Jr. United Press International is entitled exclusively to the photographers Lynn BlanCO, Sam use for reproduction of all news dispatches credited to it. c J ^ V u 7 Rights of reproduction of all other matter herein reserved. StTOCier, Ken Herrera Second-Class postage paid at College Station, TX 77843. 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 26, 1979 Dick West The National raised $26 Christmas catalogs loaded wi for ‘the jock who has everythini leaves the of their $4 nee this Studen went to v; By DICK WEST United Press Internationa] WASHINGTON — Brace yourselves, folks! It looks like we re in for a cardiac conscious, anti-cholesterol Christmas this year. Come December 25, the nation’s health nuts should find their stockings bulging with more than calf muscles and varicose veins. The trendy gift catalogs now arriving in the mail simply are loaded with largess for the jock who has everything. Has a long distance runner on your shopping list quit entering marathon races because he or she doesn’t have a thing to wear? Quel tragique! Grab a Bloomingdale’s catalog this very instant and order the poor baby a mink jogging suit. Better yet, order two. That way, the jogger can wear one while the other is air ing out. You know how soggy mink be comes when saturated with sweat. Bloomingdale’s, of New York and other points, offers jogging suits of “rich, rich mink in navy with racy, red stripes” for only $10,000 each. For another grand or two, maybe you can pick up a matching mink headband. Should you have more than one exercise freak to buy for, I recommend acquiring a Christmas catalog from Sakowitz, the well-known Houston retailer and wordsmith. Noting that someone once “verbalized a great truism” to the effect that health was “the ultimate gift,” Sakowitz devotes its two most prominent catalog pages to fit ness items. summer si conferenc For $127,147.32, you can give a truism verbalizer on your list a genuine “Texas shaped swimming pool filled with Per rier,” the imported sparkling water. The 32 cents presumably covers the cost of packing and handling. For $20,000, Sakowitz will see that an apple is “hand delivered” to the health faddist of your choice “each and every day of the year. ” If $20,000 seems a lot of money to keep the doctor away, bear in mind, as the catalog points out, that “1980 is a Leap Year. ” The extra day in February reduces the unit price of the apples from $54.79 to $54.64 each. So you can see it is quite a bargain. Nevertheless, I personally was more impressed by a “miniature, lightweight heart rate monitor ... designed to be worn while exercising. Tyrant, t Although $345 certainly is life ^University to pay for an ultimate Christina: I sought do: ticularly one that might keepsoax,. Over 21 fanatic from overtaxing his tii^thc counti biggest selling point is not sot, Mexico, v price as the size. conferem Judging from the catalog iDb ^ the heart rate monitor woukj , , m , ^ under a mink jogging suit. U'' Incidentally, the 1979 editioBi:j| Current mous Neiman-Marcus Christai^dle of a tv seems less strenuous than soa jBryan-Col competitors. It is featuring‘'hiiijgoing to a dirigibles” at $100,000 the pair, we hope t The health benefits flowing h [year in thi type of gift appear minimal atbet year we n wouldn’t be caught dead (lyings:||a After out a blue mink blimp pilot’s J SCONA Kennedy major cor] try asking going to s magazine United St I Kennec and boar gates; ho’ own trai 13b tell ya the truth. J never ivfe it much thowkl Mr. Curran- ikvmany peanuts are there myer average money is various in I “We w $10,000 c f “We vvil penny we cm By Thursi council stoppabl an imme The ai Highway a stretch the Pon east of C ? Conn cerned < Texas A' 2818 am left as a Analysis Bill 1 Israel’s new ‘Renaissance Party threat to Begin’s power seen as neer, tc feasible highway time. Coun greed \ United Press International TEL AVIV, Israel — It is said in Israel that for every two Jews in a room there are three opinions. So it came as no surprise when a new political party formed last month. has weakened considerably since he came to power 28 months ago. Begin’s popularity is at an all-time low despite the major foreign policy accom plishment of his administration — the peace treaty with Egypt. It is to the political right of Prime Minis ter Menachem Begin, appealing to a vo cally demonstrative segment of the popu lation that opposes returning the occupied Arab territories and favors widespread Jewish settlement of those areas. On domestic issues, Begin is in trouble. The cost of living has soared beyond 100 percent since Begin took office and is the cause of much unhappiness with his gov ernment, expressed largely through labor unrest. Democratic Movement, an election in the near future could well mean the return to power of the opposition Labor Party. One of the founders of the Renaissance Party is Yuval Neeman, a 55-year-old nu clear physicist. He said he tried to work within the existing political framework but that Begin had changed once he became prime minister. Called Techiya, which translates as Re naissance, the party is viewed as a definite threat to Begin’s ruling Likud bloc and its major coalition partner, the National Reli gious party, in an election contest. The Renaissance Party was bom amid calls for new elections, coinciding with the feet that Begin’s hold over his government In new elections, the Renaissance Party undoubtedly would sap the electoral strength of the Likud, as the dovish Dem ocratic Movement for Change did to the Labor party in the 1977 election that brought Begin to power. Given the dwindling strength and loss of confidence in the dovish stance of the “We believe we have no alternative but to set up a new framework and appeal for popular support with a clear line on the major issues confronting Israel today,” Neeman said recently. Among the new party’s supporters are the radicals in Gush Emunim, most of whom voted for Begin or the NRP because of their campaign to expand Jewish set tlement in the occupied territories. “All these territories must be annexed to Israel — the Golan, Ji (the West Bank) — and Gazaaii must not be relinquished,’ As for the 1.1 million Paleste those areas, he said, “their hunaj problem will not be resoW hypothetical Palestinian statek they are not natives of those areas He said the Palestinians should: settled in the Arab oil countries,s^fv, afford them. “As for me,” Neeman said, “t straw was the signing of the Cam! accords. I was shocked that underi 1 1 leadership the majority of the Zi®' ^ ties in the Knesset (parliament 1 '• r abolish an entire settlementl!*® Yamit.” Yamit and the rest of northeaster; 1 are to be returned to Egypt uni terms of the peace treaty. stretch f beer nderstr cludei ‘We Texas P several asked v idea, b Xovv yo again.’’ . The i .project T tt~i r T ,r Tn~iT t T> O Factual articles about student rape J—l -T-j X JL J-J TV preferable to gossip, word-of-inoutl Editor: pressed with the pride the Aggies take in could be distributed in a less careless fash- ness shows apathy, but c This letter poses more of a question than the physical appearance of Aggieland. It ion. Maybe “Batt boxes” such as those tion like this is malicious. Editor: This letter poses more of a question than an opinion, yet I feel it is still relevant. Since I have attended Texas A&M Uni versity, I have learned by “word of mouth” and gossip about several rapes and attacks on female students at our school. I stress that I learned about them from gossip and “word of mouth," not from factual infor mation or published articles. Why are we being kept in the dark about such incidents? Why must we learn of such occurrences second-hand? I realize that Texas A&M is trying to maintain the image of a “safe” school, yet by withholding such information, they are making the matter worse! If students are informed when attacks or rapes occur, then they can take preventive measures against them. Keeping students ignorant of such incidents can only lead to more such occurrences! I love Texas A&M and I hate hearing about such tragic accidents happening at our school, but we must face reality. The only way to help solve this problem is to keep everyone informed. — Pam Franklin, ’83 pressed with the pride the Aggies take in the physical appearance of Aggieland. It does my heart good to see an Ag pick up misdirected trash and put it in its proper place. However, despite the good efforts by the student body in general, it seems that litter is slowly taking over Aggieland. Probably the worst offender is this very newspaper, which everyday is tossed in bundles all over campus. It would seem likely that a school-funded newspaper present in the MSG could be set up at suitable places around campus in order to curb this systematic pollution of Aggie land. The Batt is not the only offender. Today I saw signs taped to sidewalks, buildings or slapped loosely on cars proclaiming “A Davis-Gary Slave Sale” or “The Proverbial Fraternity Party.” Littering by careless ness shows apathy, but o tion like this is malicious. ItwoiiK the proper place for signs wouldk- numerous bulletin boards around — that’s what they are there for. — Kyle te Editor’s note: The Battalion i some funding from student senic< but is primarily self-supporting, Thotz by Doug Grab 1 Editor’s note: This letter was accom panied by 87 other signatures. Litter letter Editor: I have, for a long time, been very im- PIANT .mil S] bi nr al si P r« h c] h I O M.