The Battalion
Viewpoint
Loc
July 16,1981
U.!
Slouch By Jim Earle
“These Pass/Fail courses are good, but what we really need
are Pass/Pass courses!“
Economy dictates
killing not curing
By BRIAN SILOCK
LONDON — A recent outbreak of foot-
and-mouth disease among livestock here in
Britain has revived a perennial debate over
whether the sick animals ought to be cured
or killed.
Strange as it may seem, the odds favor
slaughter, for a couple of economic reasons.
It is cheaper than vaccination. And it keeps
open several.foreign export markets, not
able the United States, which bar the entry
of vaccinated cattle.
The outbreak this spring was minor,
affecting as it did only a single farm on the
Isle of Wight, off Britain’s south coast. But
it sufficed to raise the question again of
whether the British approach to the animal
illness is correct.
Farmers here still recall the foot-and-
mouth epidemic of 13 years ago, when half
million head of infected cattle had to be
slaughtered. The government, which pro
vided insurance for such calamities, then
paid out some $50 million in compensation.
But despite the compensation, farmers
suffered economic losses — not to mention
the huge inconveniences caused by an
epidemic that, through preventive means.
The Battalion
USPS 045 360
MEMBER
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Congress
Editor Angelique Copeland
City Editor Jane G. Brust
Photo Editor Greg Gammon
Sports Editor Ritchie Priddy
Focus Editor Cathy Saathoff
News Editors Marilyn Faulkenberry,
Greg Gammon, Venita McCellon
Staff Writers Bernie Fette, Kathy O’Connell,
Denise Richter,
Cartoonist Scott McCullar
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This capacity has reinforced the argu
ment of those who contend that it is less
expensive to fight the disease than to avert
it through vaccination. It is estimated, for
instance, that protecting livestock since the
1968 epidemic would have cost roughly
$800 million — or 16 times the expense of
slaughter compensation paid after that out
break.
On the other hand, partisans of vaccina
tion assert that the success of containing
the disease on the Isle of Wight this spring
was not a real test, since the outbreak was
so localized.
Epidemics of foot-and-mouth disease
were devasting in France a generation ago.
But they have virtually been eliminated
since vaccination was enforced. But the
French experience has not swayed author
ities here.
The British Ministry of Agriculture
maintains an emergency procedure that
sound like a leftover plan to sop a World
War II invasion by the Nazis.
At the first confirmation of trouble, the
government issues a standstill alert cover
ing a 15-mile radius of the outbreak. Within
this area, all markets are closed and no
livestock may move, except to slaughter
houses.
Warped
Comic strip: love it or don't read
Manufaeturii
fove product!
.ylcof manage
l, a inanagem
Since the en
Editor:
In reference to C. Gauldin’s letter in
Tuesday’s Battalion, all I can say to Mr.
Gauldin is “If you don’t like the comic stip,
don’t read it. ” I am tired of hearing people
putting down something which displeases
them when they have control over what
they wish to and do not wish to read.
I also did not appreciate in the least his
lumping together of Doug “what’s-his-
name” (his name was Graham, by the way)
and Scott McCullar, the present cartoonist.
Just how does he know that “most of us ...
were relieved when he graduated, thus end
ing. . . the continuing adventures of that
stupid dinosaur"? Does he know most of the
30,000 plus students here? Maybe he
means most of the humorless people he
associates with, but I seriously doubt that
he will find “most of us” really disliked
“Thotz” (that was the name of the dinosaur
strip). At least I never heard of or read any
criticism regarding that particualr strip.
While it may be true that Scott doesn’t
illustrate his characters with convincing
reality, Doug went beyond realism and
drew humanoid dinosaurs — college di
nosaurs, no less! I call that creativity.
I would suggest that Mr. Gauldin skim
the comic sections of the Post and Chroni
cle, etc. and see how many characters are
portrayed realistically. If people want
realistically drawn characters, they should
read the comic “soaps” in those papers. If
someone thinks they can do better than
either Doug or Scott, they should talk to
the editor about it and try to convince her
how much better he or she is. For now,
however, I repeat my opening statement,
could have been avoided.
There are 13 million cows, 30 million
sheep and 8 million pigs in Britain, all of
them vulnerable to foot-and-mouth dis
ease, which affects animals with cloven
hoofs.
Scientists, who have studied the sickness
intensively since the last big outbreak, gen
erally agree that it spreads through the air,
with virus particles blown by winds across
the English Channel from continental
Europe.
The virus particles carry over surprising
ly long distances. It is virtually certain, for
example, that the few animals recently in
fected on the Isle of Wight owed their illnes
to pigs that exhaled the virus in the French
region of Brittany, 150 miles away.
Research has led to the development of a
computerized early-warning system, which
combines weather data with initial details
on the location of the disease to print out
the danger of infection on a contour map.
Thus control teams can rush to isolate the
relevant sites.
In the case of the small incident on the
Isle of Wight this spring, scientists armed
with information on winds, humidity and
other metereological factors were able to
forecast the exact time and place of the
problem.
ive been able
"If you don't like the comic st jeaper and, la
read it.” One reas
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Editor: jit,’ Hellriegc
Drtant lessons
A comment for C. Gauldin, Management pr
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such ciritcism of a good cartoonist Mp
your cartooning and humorist tij a q
better. In that case, why notfreel&J*
of your finer gems to The BattalilJL
One pertinent question, tlwt^|j|:
do you hold your pencil? Texas A&M
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Reagan on the spot at summ
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By HELEN THOMAS
United Press International
WASHINGTON — President Reagan faces
his first big test in international diplomacy
this weekend when he attends the Econo
mic Summit in Ottawa, and he may be put
on the defensive.
That is not an unusual stance for the
United States, whose allies look to it for
leadership and at the same time resent it.
But in this case, Reagan’s monetary poli
cies may come under attack from such
European leaders as French President
Francois Mitterand and West German
Chancellor Helmut Schmidt. Both men say
high interest rates in the United States are
putting the squeeze on their economies.
Mitterand and Schmidt say that Western
European investors’ money is gravitating to
the U.S. dollar because of the 20.5 percent
interest rates.
But Reagan, who is not the contentious
type, apparently will insist that his policies
are necessary to reduce inflation. He will
also note that in several of the past summits
the European leaders, not all the same cast
in the seven-nation conclave, have chided
the United States for not taking stronger
measures to dampen inflation. He will also
argue that all will benefit if his policies
work.
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Usually such summit meetings are well
prepared in advance, from the agenda to at
least a tentative written communique are
on the table when the conference begins.
This is also true of the summit to be held at
Chateau Montello, the world’s largest log
hotel resort, in the Laurentian Hills 40
miles from Ottawa.
Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott
Trudeau has met personally with nearly ev
ery one of the participants to achieve a har
monious and amicable gathering. And in
advance, the summit is being billed more as
a “get acquainted” conclave with four new
leaders on the scene for the first time,
rather than a meeting that will produce a
major agreement on the direction the in
dustrialized nations should take in the fu
ture.
Trudeau had hoped the summit would
focus on the aid rich nations should provide
the developing nations. But that subject
will be the main purpose of a later summit
of some 23 nations in Cancun, Mexico, in
mid-October.
Aides said that Reagan will tell the sum
mit that interest rates will go down when
the inflation rate is lowered and that some
American industries such as housing and
automobiles have also taken the brunt of
the burden.
And Reagan has spent several days cram
ming for the summit, which he says is his
style of studying, dating back to his school
days. Actually, he has been concentrating
on the economy during the six months he
has been in office, so he should be able to
hold his own in such discussions.
Since the first summit meeting at Ram-
bouillet in 1975, the same problems have
faced the participatnts: inflation, energy,
trade, unemployment and the
north-south dialogue on the q»e^ ilapui has
how much help the industrialized^ public, an
can provide the poor nations. Mxfiuction co
underdeveloped countries isnotalllenc ing facto
It would be aimed at buildingned
for the Western trading countries '
Reagan has had several meetifS
heads of state since he was inaugural!
he had not participated in an interlj
gathering where the United Statesp
on an equal footing with its allies, I
Major foreign policy trendsalsclt
pected to be discussed during thetlfe
meeting, with the U.S. hard line||
some concern with the European^
who still see merit in detente*!'
Soviets.
Much of the spotlight also wiiB
Reagan’s first meeting with Mittfl
socialist who is already moving!
nationalization of some indusm
France, which is the antithesis ofm
dent’s political and economic p!iilo|'
Texas leads boom in baton battles
r> a r r , r>T/^T a x w a o i i i ,1 tt • rw* . .1 .. 1 r>.‘ . 1 1 *
By PATRICIA McCORMACK
United Press International
Why is the local neighborhood baton twir-
ler practicing dawn to dusk these days? In
all kinds of sweltering weather?
The twirler might be one of more than a
million American youths competing with
batons these days — shaping up for 23rd
annual U.S. Open Baton Twirling cham
pionships at the Indiana Convention Cen
ter, Indianapolis, Aug. 3-9.
Practice likely will reach the most fe
vered pitch in Texas, Ohio, Indiana, Cali
fornia, New York and Tennessee — states
said to lead the boom in baton battles.
If not headed for Indianapolis, that
champ on the block may be getting ready
for a local or regional baton competition, a
large part of the twirling scene Jack Crum
claims reached boom status a few years
back.
“Twirling is full of fun and fitness, leads
to travel and can even mean a college scho
larship,” he said.
Crum, executive director of the U.S.
Twirling Association in Syracuse, Ind., said
there are many college “twirling” scholar
ships.
Schools such as the University of Michi
gan, for example, use scholarships to attract
baton artists extraordinaire to lead mar
ching bands and dazzle halftime audiences.
Good twirling teachers, as a result, com
mand champagne prices — $45 an hour for
private lessons. For twirlers within families
with bare pocketbooks, group lessons cost
$2.
year in the United States — local,!
national. Each, like Little Leagutl
with anxious parents cheering on tlf
champ or jeering judges and i
when Joey or Janie loses.
Crum said American twirling teachers,
considered best worldwide, also cater to
students from Europe and Japan. And
there’s some shuttling among coaches.
“Ohio coaches go to California to give
private and group lessons,” he said.
— The first World Baton
Championships took place lastAj
Seattle, Wash. Outstanding!
(that’s what they’re called) compelij
resented Germany, France,
Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, E|
Scotland, Japan and the United St#
1981 world baton event takes]
21-26 in Nice, France.
Batons used in competition cost around
$9 and are made of golf club metal and
rubber. Fancy ones — spewing flame at
both ends, illuminated or festooned with
streamers — are barred.
Crum, who taught twirling in Indiana
schools for 15 years, dropped that to make
his living as executive director of the asso
ciation when twirling exploded.
Consider:
— Some 500 competitions are held each
By Scott McCullar
— Twirling, like drum
draws all kinds of sponsors. In Jap;
it’s offered as a regular course, tk r
back the activity. Across America,!#
ses, Police Athletic Leagues andofp
tions catering to youths stand beh®
ing squads.
Tennis nuts get tennis elbov;
who scrub their floors too of*
housemaid’s knee, and baseball:'
sometimes get a torn rotator cuff j r
So what do twirlers get — t#
bump on the noggin if they miss* ,
baton ascends very rapidly from a '
high toss?
Good health, says Dr. Gabe
sports medicine expert and audio®
Sportsmedicine Book.”
“Baton twirling is an excelW
train your heart,” says Mirkin.“In
pump blood to the arms, the hi
work twice as hard. This guan
baton twirling, when done
pushes your heart to the requin
heart training: 120 beats a mil#
“Baton twirling requires the
of evey muscle in your body to#
of music — increasing your coori
Crum said advanced twirlers
from three to six hours a day. h
accomplished dancers and gymnas 1
twirling maneuvers use the same
ciplines.