The Battali on
Vol. 73 No. 87
10 Pages
Friday, January 25, 1980
College Station, Texas
USPS 045 360
Phone 845-2611
ranians vote for first president today
By United Press International
t the behest of the bedridden but re-
prtedly recovering Ayatollah Khomeini,
rfinians cast ballots today for their first
Iresident while roving government teams
■vised illiterate voters to “find someone
you can trust” the fill in the blanks.
(The country’s 22 million eligible voters
nit half of them illiterate were urged to
te for the largely figurehead post by
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini who reas-
|ured them in a recorded message the day
not
before the election his health was
bad.”
The 79-year-old leader of the Islamic re
public was reported in good condition to
day in the Tehran hospital for heart dis
eases where he' was rushed Wednesday
from his headquarters in Qom with a heart
ailment said the duty officer at the Foreign
Ministry in Tehran reached by telephone
from New York.
“We had a new bulletin today. He had a
good sleep last night” said the officer who
identified himself only as Moini. “He said
his morning prayers when he got up.”
Tehran Radio monitored by the BBC in
London carried a similar report.
In another broadcast tbe radio said
Khomeini “went to a polling booth at the
hospital this morning and cast his vote” for
president. The Islamic leader has not en
dorsed a candidate.
The duty officer said the Interior Minis
try was conducting the election “with some
of the voting places moving as government
teams went into the villages to collect the
votes.”
The front-runners in the election were
Abolhassan Bani-Sadr minister of econo
mic and financial affairs who was consi
dered a moderate and Culture Minister
Hassan Habibi the favorite among Iran’s
powerful clergymen.
But whoever wins it was clear the first
president of the new Islamic Republic
almost a year after the revolution will have
little power under the Iranian constitution
which gives most of the power to Khomeini
including the power to discuss the presi
dent.
The other main contenders included
Foreign Minister Sadeqh Ghotbzadeh
whose job has thrust him stage center in
the drama of the hostages held at the U.S.
Embassy; Adm. Ahmad Madani, former
governor of the oil-rich Khuzestan pro
vince; Crisis Minister Dariush Foruhar;
Sadeq Trabatabai, head of the prime minis
ter’s office; and Mohammed Mokri, former
ambassador to Moscow.
Because 76 official candidates were in
cluded in the running it was possible no
one would receive a majority vote necessi
tating another election Feb. 8 between the
two front-runners.
When asked who illiterate voters would
cast their ballots for the officer at the Minis
try said “They will be asked to have their
friend or somebody they can trust” mark
the ballots for them.
en. Bill Moore backs
residential decision
to renew registration
By RICHARD OLIVER
Staff Writer
■ President Carter’s sharp attack on the
pi l ies of Russia, and his call for a resump-
■m of draft registration are both solid
Bows of strength and are a good sign for
Americans, two political science experts
laid Thursday.
■ In a speech Wednesday, Carter called
for a draft registration that would required
all young men, and perhaps women, from
foe ages of 18 to 26 to tell the Selective
Service system their names and addresses,
md their parents names and addresses.
■ Carter also called for a review of the
jltrength of the nation’s intelligence agen-
fes.
■ State Sen. Bill Moore said he believes
the president is doing the right thing.
I’m not going to second-guess the presi-
nt, ”he said. “I don’t think the volunteer
y would work in the case of an armed
inflict. The draft is a harsh thing, and I
n’t want to see anyone go to war. I felt
ie same way in 1941 when the draft was
Instituted then. But it is simply necessary,
fc William Snyder, an associate professor of
political science at Texas A&M University
and an expert in military science, said the
draft registration is a good idea.
Snyder, on a one-year leave from Texas
teaching in Carlisle, Pa., said the president
has a problem, and is trying his best to
iolve it.
"He does definitely have a bad situation
on his hands,” he said. “It’s going to be
iiard to get people into the armed forces,
and he’s simply trying to kick off a debate
I on the subject. I think maybe this is the
first introduction of the idea so it can be
discussed and weighed. It will take some
time, probably.”
country into the Persian Gulf would be met
and “repelled by any means necessary, in
cluding military force.”
Snyder, however, said the country is not
prepared to face a large conflict with the
forces available at this time.
“All the president has to work with is the
present-duty armed forces, plus a few re
serve units. There are many problems with
these. They are under-strength, there are
personnel problems, and the reservists
aren’t particularly well-trained. If we ran
into any sizeable conflict, we’d run out of
people real fast,” he said.
Snyder added it was because of this that
the president was instituting the draft re
gistration now.
“It would take about six or seven months
to get the draft registration up,” he said.
“What do you do after the first shot is fired?
Hold off until the draft is worked out? Until
the time the draft is instituted, the forces
we have would have to hold out.”
Snyder said the issue of drafting women
into armed service would be up to the
young men.
“In my view, I think women should be
drafted,” he said. “Parents have different
attitudes about having their sons serving
than having their daughters serving.
“I think the question is whether the
young men who will be drafted will think
about it. If you go up and ask some guy if he
wants his girlfriend to be drafted, too, he
might say yes, but it would be a mixed
situation.”
have everyone better informed,” he said.
“Just to set up the machinery for all this is
groing to take a lot of time. Who knows? It
may be just a show of strength. You just
never know.
Aggies agree
draft is needed
Snyder said the armed forces currently
employ approximately 100,000 women,
and the long-term plan of the services is to
increase that number to 200,000 by the
mid-1980s.
Snyder said the public’s feelings toward
defense of the country has definitely
changed in the past few years.
“There’s been a dramatic attitude
change in public mood toward defense
spending, for instance,” he said. “In many
polls I have read over the past few years,
there’s been a slow and steady rise in public
attitudes for defense. Attitudes on the
draft, though, haven’t changed much.
Snyder added he felt the nation’s intelli
gence services should be allowed to oper
ate freely.
“Most polls will show that there are half
for the draft, and half against. There is a
very decided generation break in the atti
tudes. Youths aged 18-24 are against it,
while men over 50 years old are for it. Both
of these generations are becoming more
positive toward it (the draft), though.”
Carter said the intervention by any
“I really don’t know the specifics about
it,” he said. “There have been very serious
limitations placed on the intelligence ser
vices both here and abroad. Perhaps they
should be lifted or modified, so we could
have a better scope of what people think
and how they feel. Until we get some peo
ple back in the services we have freedom to
maneuver, we won’t accomplish that.
“The situation in Iran may never have
happened had the American government
been aware of the problems. This is why
the CIA and other agencies need less re
strictions and more support.”
Moore agreed.
“I don’t think it would be a bad idea to
Almanac
By United Press International
Today is Friday, Jan. 25, the 25th day
of 1980 with 341 to follow.
The moon is in its first quarter.
The morning stars are Mars, Jupiter
and Saturn.
The evening stars are Mercury and
Venus.
Those born on this date are under the
sign of Aquarius.
Scottish poet Robert Burns was born
Jan. 25, 1759.
On this day in history:
In 1980, young New Yorker Nellie
Ely completed a trip around the world
in the astounding time of 72 days, six
hours and 11 minutes.
In 1915, transcontinental telephone
service was inaugurated in a hookup be
tween New York and San Francisco.
In 1971, Charles Manson and three
women were found guilty in the mur
ders of actress Sharon Tate and six other
people.
In 1972, President Nixon said North
Vietnam had ignored a peace bid which
included withdrawal of all U.S. forces
from Vietnam in six months.
A thought for the day: Poet Robert
Bums said, “Man’s inhumanity to man
makes countless thousands mourn.”
The most massive single issue of a
newspaper was the Sunday, Oct. 17,
1965 edition of the New York
Times, which consisted of 946 pages
and weighed 7.5 pounds.
The world record for handshaking
was set by President Theodore
Roosevelt, who shook hands with
8,513 people at a New Year’s Day
White House reception on Jan. 1,
1907.
The shortest war on record was
between the United Kingdom and
Zanzibar, from 9:02 a.m. to 9:40
a.m. on Aug. 27, 1896.
The youngest person ever kid
napped was Carolyn Wharton who
was abducted 29 minutes after she
born on March 19, 1955 by a woman
disguised as nurse.
The most people to participate in
a sporting event was 37,683, who
manned 8,304 rafts in the “Ramblin’
Raft Race” on the Chattahoochee
River in Atlanta, Ga., in May 1971.
President Carter’s call for resumption of
draft registration has drawn a mixed reac
tion from Texas A&M University students
and faculty.
In a survey, the reactions ranged from
“it’s great” to “it’s scary,” but all agreed the
registration was necessary.
Col. James Woodall, Corps Comman
dant, said the president’s decision was a
wise one.
“I think the decision of the registration is
timely,” he said. “I think the president’s
done a good job. He’s handled the situation
well.”
Woodall said the draft may help the
Corps, should it be reinstituted.
“I think it’ll make people more aware, as
they go through college, of the future, ” he
said. “They’ll have to decide if they want to
enter the service as a private or as an
officer.
“In the long run, it’ll help the Corps. The
members are going to be officers, so they
won’t be affected much, but people will be
more aware of the future and the Corps will
grow. ”
Deputy Corps Commander Dillard
Stone agrees.
“From the Corps viewpoint, simply
mentioning the idea of the draft won’t affect
us,” he said. “If people hear of the draft
being renewed, it’ll probably be good for
the Corps, as people realize they can either
go in as privates or officers.”
Stone doesn’t believe the registration for
the draft is pertinent at this time.
“The situation as a whole, that is Afgha
nistan and Iran, etc., is such that the regis
tration is not all that applicable,” he said.
“It’ll be at least a few months before the
plan is even put into effect. In terms of a
short-term answer.. . . it’s no good. As a
long-term solution, it looks pretty good.”
Sandra Francis, commander of the W-l
company, said the induction of women is a
good idea.
“I think it’s great,” she said. “It’s equal
opportunity. I think women have a place in
the Army. If women can be officers and
they can volunteer for service, they can be
drafted.
Francis said she thinks the president is
doing a good job.
“Just to be ready is the key to this whole
thing,” she said. “The U.S. traditionally
has never been ready for a war, but they’ve
always managed to pull it out. I think he’s
(the president) doing a good job.”
— Richard Oliver
At the occupied U.S. Embassy the 50
American s being held hostage went into
their 83rd day of captivity. Militants were
still demanding the return of the exiled
shah in exchange for their release.
Town sends
dead daisies
to Khomeini
United Press International
MORTON, Texas — A west Texas radio
station has asked listeners to send dead
daisies as a reverse get-well message to the
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini who is hos
pitalized in Tehran.
Radio Iran reported that Khomeini was
rushed from his Qom residence today 100
miles to Tehran where he was hospitalized
in good condition with a heart ailment.
Ed Couzens of station KRAN said he
sought volunteers Thursday to handle in
coming phone calls from listeners in West
Texas and eastern New Mexico who were
responding to his call for the flowers.
“West started out with the idea of send
ing dead dandelions” Couzens said but
added he realized a parcel of dead daisies
would be more appropriate.
“It’s kind of like ‘he loves me he loves me
not. I can’t make up my mind.’ He (the
ayatollah) can’t seem to make up his mind
about the hostages” Couzens said.
The station manager said 200 listeners
had phoned the 500-watt station in the first
two hours of the campaign and that area
high school students also planned to parti-
The daily vigil
The bronze statue most Texas A&M students know as “Sully” stands in front of
the Academic Building near the center of the campus. The statue is a figure of
Sul Ross, one the university’s first presidents, an important figure in the
school’s early history.
cipate.
He said the station would take orders
from its listeners until 4 p.m. today at
which time the dead flowers would be
ordered through a local florist. The station
and the florist shop are covering the ex
penses.
From start to finish, 1979 was
a nightmare of rising prices
United Press International
WASHINGTON — For inflation-
watchers 1979 was a horror story from start
to finish.
The Labor Department today was ex
pected to confirm that last year’s Consumer
Price Index rose at the fastest pace —
slightly more than 13 percent — since the
government removed World War II price
controls in 1946.
The only year in the past three decades
in which there was a comparable increase
in the CPI was 1974 when the Arab oil
embargo contributed to a 12.2 percent
spurt.
The government began compiling con
sumer price statistics in 1913 and 1979 will
go down as the fifth highest rate since then.
It was topped only by 1946 and the three-
year period of 1917-19, Labor Department
analysts said.
The 1978 consumer inflation level was 9
percent. In 1976 the year before President
Carter took office it was 4.8 percent.
The biggest culprits in last year’s huge
price jump were energy and housing costs.
Food prices began last year with a rush
but settled down to more moderate levels
in the final six months.
But gasoline and home heating oil costs
have set records for annual increases.
During the 12-month period beginning
in November 1978 gasoline prices at the
pump skyrocketed by nearly 51 percent.
Home heating oil went up 56 percent dur
ing the same period.
The White House has blamed the con
tinued rise in inflation on oil price increases
by the OPEC members.
But housing costs also have played a ma
jor role in the increase. They rose at an
annual rate of nearly 17 percent in the Sep-
tember-November 1979 period.
RHA votes to request regents
to end all plans for new dorms
has
ne c
trai
e m
o d<
exa
nan
Last year’s inflationary surge caught
administration forecasters completely by
surprise.
One year ago this week the administra
tion predicted the rate of inflation in 1979
would be 7.4 percent. Last July officials
revised that estimate upward to 10.6 per
cent. But both projections were far off.
Carter is expected to tell Congress next
week that inflation should taper off some
what this year and grow in the 10 percent
range.
This forecast was supported Thursday by
Alfred Kahn, chairman of Carter’s Council
on Wage and Price Stability.
Kahn told reporters on Capital Hill he
didn’t “see any immediate relief from infla
tion in the months ahead.”
But he held out the hope that “we have a
real shot” at slower rises in energy costs
and a stabilization of mortgage interest
rates later in the year.
SHERRI DICKEY
Campus Reporter
In its first meeting of the semester
Thursday night, the Residence Halls Asso
ciation unanimously approved a motion re
questing that the board of Regents consider
ending all proposed construction of more
dormitories.
RHA President Barbara Thompson said
the cost of living in existing dorms would
soar, to offset high interest rates and con
struction costs of new structures.
Eric, Green, Walton Hall, representa
tive, added that the University does re
serve the right to require single students
attending Texas A&M to reside on campus
when there is available space. But if dorm
costs rise sharply because of the high cost of
creating more space, the student on a li
mited income would suffer, Green said.
“I was attracted to this university be
cause of the relatively low cost. It would be
a conflict to the University’s own interest to
increase the cost of attending A&M. Many
of us who live in Walton and Hotard Halls
live there for economic reasons,” said
Green.
Thompson encouraged representative to
take the issue to their respective hall coun
cils. She also asked for feedback and assist
ance in composing a conscientious letter
with good sound objectives, to be sent to
the regents.
The RHA also voted that the Board of
Regents be requested to implement a plan
early in the semester to name Modular C
and Modular D residence halls.
In other business, RHA presidents and
representatives voted to wear name tags on
campus identifying themselves as campus
leaders during Leadership Week, Feb. 4-
8.
John White, an RHA advisor, reviewed
the Quonset Hut Rental Policy. Many stu
dents have been misinformed that Quonset
Hut parties are to end at midnight, White
said. There is no set ending time for par
ties, White said, and the only requirement
is that the place be cleaned by noon the
following day. White emphasized that no
money can be collected at Q-hut functions
if liquor is present.
Paul Bettencourt, student senate vice
president for rules and regulations, discus
sed the parking problem, and told RHA
members that a 500-space lot at Kyle Field
is planned, and the old turfed area by the
tennis courts will be made into a parking
lot.
A news service to dorm residents, the
“Wall Paper,” was also approved by the
RHA. The 1330 Corporation, which also
sponsors the “Nutshell,” will install a case
in each dorm to display the paper which
includes articles and advertisements
geared toward college students and will be
changed periodically.