Slouch
By Jim Earle
Opinion
U.S. warnings aren’t threats
It s good to see President Carter finally getting tough with
the Iranians.
After nearly six months of having to put up with
Khomeini’s angry rhetoric about the oppression of the Isla
mic people and the tyranny of the United States, it’s good to
see a little fist pounding by Carter.
Booting Iranian diplomats out of the country was the
smartest move Carter has made since the hostages were
taken.
Carter’s position in the opinion polls was sagging badly
and his mishandling of the Iranian issue was not helping his
chances for re-election.
Recently, though, he has decided to toughen his 5 stand.
He has threatened to mine Iranian ports and interrupt the T
flow of oil to the reluctant Western European nations ifthey
don’t go along with the United States’ sanctions against the
loonies in Tehran. As a result, the Common Market yester
day announced it has decided to press the Iranians for a date
for the release of the hostages.
Meanwhile, the Iranians have threatened to kill the hos
tages if any military action is taken against Iran.
We have some news for the kidnapers and their govern
ment — if the hostages are harmed in any way, Iran will be
but a memory.
the small society
by Brickman
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The Battalion
usps
LETTERS POLICY
Li/Urrs to thr editor should not exceed 300 words and are
subject to In-inn cut to that length or less if longer The
editorial staff resents the ritiht to edit such lettirs anil does
not guarantee to imhlish any letter Each letter must he
sinned, show the address of the uTiter and list a telephtinc
number for verification
Address correspondence to Letters -to the Editor The
Battalion Room 216. Reed McDonald Buildinn Colltrc
Station. Texas 77H43.
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hrongh Thursday
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on request Address The Battalion. Boom 216 Reed
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045 360
MEMBER
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Congress
Editor Roy Bragg
Associate Editor Keith Taylor
News Editor Rusty Cawley
Asst. News Editor Karen Cornelison
Copy Editor Dillard Stone
Sports Editor Mike Burrichter
Focus Editor Rhonda Watters
City Editor Louie Arthur
Campus Editor Diane Blake
Staff Writers Nancy Andersen,
Tricia Brunhart,Angelique Copeland,
Laura Cortez, Meril Edwards,
Carol Hancock, Kathleen McElroy,
Debbie Nelson, Richard Oliver,
Tim Sager, Steve Sisney,
Becky Swanson, Andy Williams
Chief Photographer Lynn Blanco
Photographers Lee Roy Leschper,
Steve Clark, Ed Cunnius,
Opinion-i 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 Friday
Texas A&M University April 11, 1980
i
fact
Some experts waking up to
that Reagan might win in 1980
By DAVID S. BRODER
As if decree, the word has gone out these
past few days that Ronald Reagan might
actually be elected President this year.
The evidence for the proposition of
Reagan s electability is abundant. The
latest Gallup Poll trial heat shows that Pres
ident Carter is leading him by only 48 to 43
percent — hardly a comfortable position for
an incumbent with the economic and inter
national problems Carter faces. In a theore
tical three-way race, with John B. Ander
son as an Independent, the percentages are
Carter, 39; Reagan, 34; Anderson, 21. That
could easily spell victory for Reagan in elec
toral college terms.
As another significant bit of evidence, it
can be noted that in last week’s Wisconsin
primary, where any voter could choose any
candidate in either party, Reagan outdrew
Carter by 12,000 votes in a state Carter
carried by an narrow margin in 1976.
It is perfectly plauisble to assert, on the
basis of the Wisconsin results, the Gallup
Poll, and Reagan’s own electoral record
going back to 1966, that the Californian
can be elected President in 1980.
But that is slightly different from saying
that he will be elected, so a note of caution
is in order.
First, it is not yet a 100 percent certainty
that Reagan will be the Republican
nominee. He has a bit less than half the
delegates needed for a first-ballot nomina
tion. But in Pennsylvania on April 22, he
faces his first one-on-one test with challen
ger George Bush, in a state where the
Republican constituency is varied enough
to make the outcome something other
than a foreordained result. Should Bush
beat Reagan in Pennsylvania, he might
well be able to carry the challenge all the
way to the Detroit convention hall.
Second, even as the probable Republi
can nominee, Reagan has not yet crossed
the “Credibility barrier’’ that stands in the
way of any challenger’s access to the pres
idency. It is the test of plausibility that
makes people feel comfortable with the
phrase “President Reagan.” And judging
from the experience of such past challen
gers as John F. Kennedy and Jimmy Car
ter, Reagan will probably not be able to
clear that hurdle until the American electo
rate sees how he handles the choice of a
running-mate, the conduct of his party con
vention and, most important, the television
debates with the incumbent in the general
election.
Between now and then, Reagan and his
principle associates will be subject to in
creasing amounts of the kind of skeptical
scrutiny which NBC and CBS News gave
them on the night following the Wisconsin
primary.
The final note of caution concerns the
breadth of the Reagan constituency. Again,
much has been said — and accurately —
about his ability to attract blue-collar, un
ion, Independent and even crossover
Democratic votes in some of the winter and
spring primaries.
The point is significant, hut it can he
exaggerated. According to NBC-
Associated Press polls of primary election
voters, Reagan has led the field among self-
designated Independents voting in the Re
publican primary in only four of the eight
states on which data is available. He re
ceived a plurality of that Independent Re
publican vote in New Hampshire, South
Carolina, Florida and Georgia, but tailed
Anderson (and in some cases Bush) in
Massachusetts, Illinois, Connecticut and
Wisconsin.
Similarly, Reagan had the edge among
Feder;
ledicar
jmbinei
amp p
roblem
popula
cal groi
Keith
ir the <
:ms Ag<
ie Bra
louncil
self-designated "moderates’ in the! ien i wil
lican primaries only in New HanipsL ra l pro|
the three states. His victories haves Under
tially been produced by rolling up. } try am
margins among the hard-core Rep. 0 sts of
voters and the self-identified coi jderly.
tives, who have long been known to> s flospit
electorial base.
These voters provide a securefbuMj$ 1( \ r ^’
for a campaign aimed at winningtltBf n
publican nomination, but they are-^
and never will be — numerous enmrfl
themselves to win a general ele® 11 c
against a credible opponenent. u Y’
So Reagan still faces the task, iflefi^ ’
up against Carter, of establishing
presidential credibility with TOtentt., 01 ,
have not been supporting him sot,,'/
and/or destroying the credibility;:., ,
President. ^ ch (V
n nursn
But before he gets to that point,hejiain in I
show that he can win more than ill by th
over 40 percent of the self-designate iter tall
crates and independents voting in ReJ|i
can primaries, a feat the NBC-APIiH
say he has yet to accomplish anywheii
side the South.
(c) 1980, The Washington PostCoa
niza
hei
nd fede
dts
. Texi
ibeen
ve edu<
y NAS
pace Ci
Cathy
omics n
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er work
ue mam
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McMa
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On thi
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eeling o
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The se
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Letters
*'ery diff
tation we
ton, D.(
McMe
Cartoon s subject matter offensive ^
Editor;
On Wednesday April 9, I “thot” I had
picked up a respectable student newspaper
entitled The Battalion; apparently this was
not the case. It was indeed the Batt, but it
was far from respectable.
The problem stems from a “comic strip”
penned by Doug Graham, entitled
“Thotz.” Mr. Graham would be better
suited to draw for Penthouse magazine
alongside “Chester the Molester.”
I was under he impression one of the
purposes of the Batt is to allow jounalism
students to gain experience in a daily news
paper, yet I know of no newspaper (exclud
ing “underground” newspapers and the
like) which allow cartoons with this subject
matter to be printed in their pages. Why
should we be subjected to such childish
displays?
Come on Mr. Graham and the Battalion
staff. Clean up your act.
Rober E. Sterrett ’80
(This letter was accompanied by eleven
other signatures)
Editor’s note — Just the same, I liked the
cartoon. And by the way, Chester the
Molester appeared in Hustler magazine.
Booze for blood?
Editor:
When ignorance gets started it knows no
bounds, people do really strange and puz
zling things.
One of these strange and puzzling things
is happening on our own campus. The
Aggie Blood Drive is giving one to three
kegs of beer to the organization that don
ates the most blood. What is strange about
this you ask? Here are some statistics from
the Reader’s Digest 1980 Almanac and
Yearbook;
— Alcoholism costs Americans $43 bil
lion dollars a year in lost work, medical
expenses, auto accidents and related prob
lems.
— As many as 205,000 deaths a year can
be blamed on drinking.
— Twenty-six percent of admissions to
state and mental institutions are persons
with alcohol related problems.
— Between 30-40 percent of delinquent
kids come from alcoholic homes.
— Drivers and peds who drink cause
more than 800,000 crashes and 25,000 (48
percent of all) traffic deaths in a year.
— Twenty-four percent of alcoholics die
in accidents.
■n Dece
Show us your gud
a\
— Thirty-three percent of suicides (58
percent higher than for rest of population)
are alcoholics.
Now, why on God’s good earth would an
institution dedicated to saving lives go
along with giving away alcohol and contri
buting to the No. 1 drug problem and the
cause of hundreds of thousands of deaths a
Editor:
In reference to the Opinion cc ;i
which appeared in the April 7 issued
Battalion, I would like to point (
unmentioned facts on the subjects
control. The writer failed to pointed
armed citizens prevent more roM
■ burglaries, and crime in general thw
police forces around the nation.
of the column must also be unaware^
right of all civilians to keep andbeai-1
guaranteed to everyone by our Fob:"
Fathers in the Constitution.
The latest Gallup poll on reasons
*'
yearr
rising crime rate clearly point to : |
laws and inadequate punishment i l w
>5
I am quite hesitant about giving blood for
fear that I would be contributing to some
one else’s death!
Keith Denton
Ronald Lahr
minals. Gun control is no solution s
problem. Don’t take firearms from ti l
abiding citizens, instead punish tki
insist on using them wonderfully! a
Scott Kirkpair®
C
1
Thotz
I
By Doug Grabj
II