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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 30, 1981)
Battalion Serving the Texas A&M University community Vo |. 74 No. 87 10 Pages Friday, January 30, 1981 College Station, Texas USPS 045 360 Phone 845-2611 The Weather Yesterday Today High 75 High 60 Low 55 Low 44 Rain Chance of rain . . . ...20% Reagan rules out revenge on Iran United Press International WASHINGTON — President Reagan is “not thinking of re venge” against Iran, but he is not sure if reconciliation with the government — “or absence of a government” — that kept 52 Americans captive for MV2 months is possible. In a wide-ranging 30 minutes of questions Thursday at his first presidential news conference, Reagan also renewed his pledge for a 30 percent tax cut over three years and promised budget cuts “everywhere,” adding, “they’ll probably be bigger than anyone has ever attempted. ” “This administration did not come here to be a caretaker government,” said Reagan. “We think the time has come where there has to be a change of direction ” The president, still pushing his economic program, scheduled a number of meetings with members of Congress today. Reagan, looking earnest, if nervous, repeatedly was asked by reporters about Iran and future U.S. policy toward acts of ter rorism. He said he still is studying the settlement negotiated by his predecessor for the release of the hostages, but added, “I think the United States will honor the obligations.” Said Reagan: “I’m certainly not thinking of revenge. ” And later: “What good would just revenge do? I don’t think revenge is worthy of us.” However, he did say, “I don’t know whether reconciliation would be possible with the present government, or absence of a government, in Iran.” His recent talk of swift retribution against terrorism is directed at those who think the United States will do nothing if provoked, Reagan said. Now, “anyone who does these things, violates our rights in the future, is not going to be able to go to bed with that confidence,” he asserted. Some of Reagan’s harshest language was reserved for the Soviet Union. Asked what he saw as the Kremlin’s long-range intentions, Reagan said Soviet leaders reserve themselves the right to com mit any crime, to lie, to cheat, in order to attain their goal of a “one-world socialist or communist state. ” When negotiating with them, Reagan said, “you keep that in mind.” Still, he said he is willing to start talking about a resump tion of strategic arms reduction negotiations. In a prepared statement before the questioning, Reagan said he has asked Congress to expand the national debt ceiling another $50 billion to permit the government to conduct its business through the fiscal year. Reagan also said he is moving to save taxpayers $1.5 million a year by eliminating the program of the Council on Wage and Price Stability. And he said he has ordered “key federal agencies” to freeze pending regulations for 60 days while they are reviewed. On other issues Reagan said: —While no timetable has been worked out for a tax-cut prog ram, “a 10 percent cut for three years we’re going to strive for that.” — There will be no retreat” on civil rights. “This administra tion is going to be dedicated to equality.” —The grain embargo imposed on the Soviet Union in the aftermath of its invasion of Afghanistan is up for Cabinet review, j and no decision has been made on whether to keep it in place, j —He has not changed his mind about wanting to abolish the Energy and Education departments. There also was a new look to this news conference. Instead of the jack-in-the-box scenes of reporters jumping to their feet to ask questions, the correspondents, by prior agree ment, raised their hands to gain Reagan’s attention. Aides were pleased by the change and indicated it would be come a standard feature of the Reagan presidency. Raintree petition presented Building blocks Staff photo by Greg Gammon Texas A&M’s new modular dormitories, whose construc tion resmbles the stacking of building blocks, continue their rapid progress toward completion. The new dorms, both slated for women, are scheduled for occu pancy in the fall semester. This dorm is west of the Keathley-Fowler-Hughes complex; the other is south of Aston Hall. By BELINDA McCOY Battalion Staff Raintree subdivision residents upset by a recent zoning change of 55 acres near their subdivision have presented a petition to City Secretary Glenn Schroedor calling for a referen dum election. The zone change to a planned-industrial district allows an industry to build near the subdivision. The petition goal is a referendum election to change the zoning of the land back to the original residential and agricultur al-open zoned district. City officials say that a referendum on the zoning change is illegal. \ Westinghouse Electric Corp. has announced that it will exer cise an option to buy the land, with plans to build a 150,000-square foot, 500-employee capacity building. Since the council’s Jan. 8 vote to rezone the land near Raintree, controversy has arisen. Residents have formed an organization, Citizens for Responsible Government, to protest the zone change. The group’s chairman, Dr. Robert C. Webb, said the petition contains approximately 500 signatures of College Station resi dents. The city charter requires that the city secretary first validate! the referendum petition by checking the signatures to make surej they are signatures of registered voters. After that, Schroeder said, he must present the petition to thelj city council at the next meeting, which wall be Feb. 12. “The council will have three options, ” said Schroeder. “First, it can take no action at all. Second, it could initiate a rezoning on its own — change the land back to the original zoning. And third, and! I’m not sure it has the legal power to do it, it could decide to put it on the ballot for the April 4 election.” However, City Attorney Lowell Denton said that any zoning ordinance enacted by an election would be considered void by law. “The (past) cases are very clear that referendum cannot alter or change a zoning ordinance. That’s all there is to it,” Denton said. The issue of the disagreement, Webb said, is not Westing- house, but rather the method by which the council used to rezone the land. Webb said the group hopes the impact of 500 signatures will force the city council to make a change in the rezoning decision, even if the law prohibits referendum elections for zoning. Local growth raises fear of a ‘burst at the seams’ By JOHN WEAVER n _ Battalion Reporter Brazos County’s population has exploded a staggering 61.2 I percent over the last 10 years. And this increase could strain the jijuality of support services local government can provide, county land city officials predict. I Preliminary 1980 census figures support those fears. Only 11 of exas 254 counties experienced a larger population growth than I *“ oun ^ during the last 10 years. I 1^70 census placed the population at 57,978, while the I preliminary 1980 count reports the population at 93,487. Ifi bounty, according to a national sales magazine, is the I 1“ fastest-growing metropolitan market in the nation and I second in Texas behind Houston. I 'if 1 ibe continued influx of industrial and Texas A&M Univer- I jj. -related growth, local officials are voicing concerns that the r>an-College Station area may “bust at the seams” before gov- lernment planners can prepare. “Nothing can stand still, but there will be phenomenal strains and pressures on the demanded services,” County Judge Dick Holmgreen said. “The strain will hit all the systems, provided not just by the county, but also by other governmental entities. “The pressures are going to hit, and already have in some cases: the police departments, the sanitation area, the different court procedures and highway maintenance,” he said. Dr. Robert L. Skrabanek, a professor of sociology at Texas A&M, says the growth Brazos County is experiencing is a “com mon phenomenom” in the United States. “As a state, Texas stands out, and this only helps in attracting more people from the so-called frost belt states,” he said. Skrabanek is also a demographer for the Texas Real Estate Research Center and the Texas Agriculture Experiment Center. The migration to Brazos County, and Texas as a whole, can be traced to the economic climate of the state, he said. “Many of the reasons people are moving to Texas can be traced to lower taxes, unemployment, and a lower cost of living. But another major reason is the fact that Texas is now a favored state,” Skrabanek said. “Fifteen years ago Texas had the image of being backwards to many people in the Northeast, but now the state is booming because that image has been reversed.” Skrabanek warns that the large influx of people in the Bryan- College Station area will have a “varied” impact. “The economy will increase, but so will the pressures for an increase in the size of government to handle the services re quired. With an increase in government, taxes usually increase and that is something the citizens should expect.” For James Callaway, a zoning official with the City of College Station, the population boom creates different problems. “We have to keep up with the changing zoning codes and the growing number of construction permits,” Callaway said. “The bigest problem is trying to decide when the growth will pick up again and how many new people will move here when.” Callaway said recent growth is different than growth in the early 70s. “The growth used to be related entirely to the University, but now it is more of a mixture, with industrial growth picking up,” Callaway said. And, with that industrial growth, Bryan-College Station will get more family-related services, he said. The biggest challenge for the local governments will be “keep ing up with the services as the influx continues” in Brazos County, Callaway said. “The more growth, the more money you need to keep up with it and that is going to be an increasing challenge,” he said. Despite the problems the migration to the county causes, the local officials remain positive. “Sure the roads are crowded and the court dockets are full,” Judge Holmgreen said. “But I’d rather have to worry about those kind of problems than where are the young people going to get jobs and how are we going to attract people to come here.” Legislature, Clements agree on state pay raise AITCTtv Press International 'iVee-II The StatC S f 70 ’ 000 em - . rec eive an emergency pay the * < | tlVe L ! lut the increase will * Uj 1 '' ar ^ e 35 e 'tker the House or Sen- • Bad approved. Hoilf° n k r ^ nce rorondttee of Senate and members Thursday approved a 5.1 increase with a $50 limit — to rh u State '^® -7 ndffion — and the Uj |^ ain " ers quickly accepted it unani- ^ Elements said he would sign |£; rcergency pay increase at 11 a.m. I Uilrf rl enate first approved a bill by Sen. |pLvees D ‘ Austi n. that gave em- Ibmit tkof * Pf r «mt increase with a $50 ? have 0051 the state $110 - 3 1^*1 nw. ' n governor, who originally only a 3.4 percent in- KTthr, e , would veto any bill with I The u * , percent increase. °use then amended Doggett’s bill to 5.1 percent, but increased the minimum to $75. Sen. Chet Brooks, D-Pasadena, pushed for a conference committee, arguing that Clements would veto anything over 5.1 percent and a $50 minimum and the state employees would not get a pay raise Feb. 1. The governor had to sign the legislation before Saturday in order for the employees to get the pay increase effective Feb. 1. Doggett argued that Clements has re neged before on promises to veto legisla tion and he expected the governor would do the same if the Legislature actually sent him a bill appropriating more than a 5.1 percent salary increase. The conference committee amended the $75 limit to $50 on a 7-3 vote. Doggett, saying he understood the “will of the Senate,” voted reluctantly for the conference committee report, and said the governor was the reason the state em ployees would not get a better pay raise. Recent music case of 'emperor’s new clothes Paul Hume, Washingon Post music critic By NANCY FLOECK Battalion Reporter Modem classical music is turning away from broken, disjuncted melodies and returning to lyrical ones, music critic Paul Hume said Thursday afternoon. Speaking to a small but appreciative crowd of about 40 in Rudder Forum, Hume, music editor for the Washing ton Post, said composers are once again writing the type of music audiences like to hear. “Music decidedly goes in cycles and waves,” Hume said. “I’m relieved at the recent change.” Describing recent classical music as a “bad case of the emperor’s new clothes,” Hume said modem music is sterile, barren and absurd 90 percent of the time. Audiences have had to endure this, he said, because music students have been told it’s smart to write jagged, deliberately broken tunes. But now, Hume said composers are teaching and writing music based on the traditional musical system of scales, tones, melodies and patterns. These tunes are immediately appealing, he said. “We are now at the point where we don’t have to say: ‘Oh God, we have to get through this piece of music before we get to Beethoven,”’ he said. Hume also said great composers throughout the world are returning to this type of romantic music, much of it inspired by classics such as Lewis Carroll’s “Alice in Wonderland and John Milton s Paradise Lost.” Of course, he said, there are still some radicals who think their music must be different. Their music sounds like "blips and bleeps,” he said. Hume said the methods of getting acquainted with music have also changed. He said long-running records brought students in contact with music they could only read about before. And, he said, the impact of operas and music broad casted on television has been “more than staggering.” Hume said although he isn’t an expert on the subject, he believes punk rock will soon die out because its message is negative and has nothing to offer. In punk rock, there s a decided degradation,” he said. Punk rock has contributed, as far as I'm con cerned, nothing of a lasting effect compared to rock groups of the past.” In contrast. The Who's Tommy” illustrates various moods, Hume said, although it contains some negative action. And the Beatles were a phenomenal group, whose music and poetry are unmatched, he said. Hume said music is a product of its environment. “Music is always a reflection of the society it comes out of. he said. “This is true of Mozart and Bach.”