The Battalion
Viewpoint
September 8,1981
Slouch
By Jim Earle
‘7 think our collections for this year’s United Way Drive are
going to pick up. Brutus has offered his help as a collector. ”
’84 presidential hopeful
earns early recognition
By DAVID S. BRODER
WASHINGTON — Resolutions are
made to be broken, and I am about to break
my resolution not to write a line about the
1984 presidential race until that calamity is
upon me.
The reason is Reubin O’D. Askew, the
former two-term governor of Florida and
Special Trade Representative in the last 15
months of the Carter administration.
Askew is interested in the 1984 Democratic
presidential nomination. In the last few
weeks, he has done some things that sug
gest he is going to approach this challenge
in a way that may be characteristic for him
but is unusual enough among most politi
cians to warrant comment.
The man is apparently going to say what
he thinks and not be coy about what he is
doing.
The first indication of this came in a letter
Askew’s attorney wrote to the Federal
Election Commission in July, asking for an
advisory opinion on how Askew could best
handle the finances of his exploratory effort.
In recent years, the custom has grown up
that when the presidential bug bites, a per
sonal political-action committee is created,
which lets the hopeful finance his travels
and operations on the guise that he is going
around the country helping candidates of
his party.
Askew apparently disdains such legal
subterfuge. In the letter, his lawyer spells
out with unusual candor what the ex
governor thinks he needs to do for his own
benefit: to travel and speak and meet “opin
ion makers ’ to hire polling and public rela
tions consultants; to get briefings on the
issues; to expand his correspondence; and
to raise funds for these purposes and to
reimburse his law firm for the secretarial
and support services that have nothing to
do with the practice of law.
Although there is no legal requirement
that he do so, the letter says Askew “intends
to file reports of all contributions and ex
penditures voluntarily with the commission
... and therefore wishes to insure that the
specific activities which he intends to
ters.
But that is not out of character. In 1972,
while George Wallace was running his win
ning campaign in the Florida promary.
Askew decided to campaign vigorously
against an initiative that had been placed on
the Florida ballot calling for a federal anti
busing amendment. It was a cause he knew
was foredoomed to failure and the stand he
took in the middle of this first term in office
was offensive to many of his own consti
tuents.
Neither then nor now has Reubin Askew
been much given to fuzzing his stands to
suit the “climate of the times. ” That is why I
decided to break my resolution to say no
thing this early about the 1984 hopefuls. I
will try to keep my mouth shut from now
on, unless, of course, somebody else de
cides to do something as astonishingly
straightforward.
The Battalion
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Luck relied upon too heavily
In the past week, there have been two
dormitory fires on the Texas A&M campus.
The University was lucky — there were no
injuries and damage was limited. This, un
fortunately, is the heart of our fire safety
problem — luck, rather than careful plan
ning, is relied on too heavily.
The first fire occurred in a community
bathroom in Aston Hall. The room was fil
led with smoke but the alarms didn’t sound
because the bathrooms are not connected
to the return-air system housing the smoke
detectors.
A fire in Keathley Hall occurred Sunday.
Hibachi coals were dropped down a trash
chute and ignited the trash. Once again, the
alarm didn’t sound because the trash chute
rooms are not connected to the duct alarm
Denise
Richter
system.
As a resident of Keathley, I have a parti
cular interest in Sunday’s fire and feel a few
questions need to be raised. For example, if
the smoke from the trash chute rooms is
carried out of the dorm through the roof
vent, why was there a strong smell of smoke
in my third-floor room?
If the smoke did come through the ducts,
why wasn’t a fire alarm triggered? How
much smoke is needed before the alarm will
sound? Do the alarms really work — after
living in Keathley for two years and never
having a dorm fire drill or fire that would
cause the alarm to sound. I’m starting to
have my doubts.
Obviously, I’m not the only person who
is having doubts. Talking to University staff
and administrators about fire safety is con
fusing at best — it’s hard to find a general
consensus of opinion.
The Aston Hall head resident said he
doesn’t think the alarm systems in his dorm
have been checked. Tom Murray, the cen
tral area coordinator, said the alarm-
sounding system in Keathley works, but he
isn’t too sure about the smoke-sensor
heads. The word from the University Office
of Safety and Health is that alarm systems in
all campus dormitories were checked dur
ing the summer and all are in working
order.
Who are we to believe?
Last spring, the first long-needed fire
drills were held at Texas A&M in Davis-
Gary, Mosher and Spence halls. 1
ry. Commons area coordinator, tend
Mosher drill a "success.’’
But there were some problems. Fo|
ample, it was discovered during tlitl
drill that the alarm bells do not ringlc.|
enough to be heard throughout thed
University Safety and Health Officer!
Stiteler said several solutions have
proposed and his office is working o
problem.
The drill was in April — thesafetyo
is still working on the problem in S
tember.
Are on-campus students living ins
fire-proofed dorms or are we
tragedy waiting to happen?
This question may not be answered^
it’s too late.
One question that needs to be ans\tt|
right away is: “Who is heading thee
campus fire safety program?”
The lack of one specific person t
responsibility and answer all thee
that have arisen has caused a massoftJ
led communications and preventedj
effective action from being taken.
So far, there have been no seriousp
lems. The residents of the campus c
tories have been lucky. But, there 1
been two fires already this semes®
don’t think we should continue to re|
heavily on luck in the future.
: -m.n.uew& cwoue
undertake are permissible in an exploratory
effort. ”
Evidence that he intends to be as candid
about his policy views as he is about his
activities is found in a speech he gave last
month in Atlanta on the renewal of the Vot
ing Rights Act. Time after time in the
speech, Askew went out of his way to cite
conditions in Florida as proof that the act is
still needed.
“In my home state of Florida alone, ” he
said, “blacks, Hispanics and other minor
ities represent less than 2 percent of all
elected officials ... despite the fact that
minorities constitute a quarter of the state
population. There are no members of
minority groups amoung the statewide
elected officials in Florida. And, among the
160 members of the state legislature, there
are just five blacks and only one Hispanic. ”
What is remarkable is that all this is com
ing from a Florida politician whose hopes
for nomination clearly will rest, in the first
instance, on his ability to win his own state’s
presidential primary early in 1984. I have to
believe that Askew knew the words of the
speech that he gave in Atlanta will un
doubtedly be thrown back at him in 1984 in
an effort to embarrass him with Florida vo-
effec
fei
Clark s;
secom
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The re
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heti
ies ra
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fathe
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female
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Get more from A&M than a
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The ir
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npalize
Editor:
Tonight I received word that a friend and
squadron mate of mine was killed when his
jet exploded over the North Sea. It is a
terrible tragedy that one so young should
die with his life still so much in front of him.
But what a tragedy it would have been for
myself and others if we had not had the
chance to have known him. Dennis Mason
was liked by all who knew him. He was
never down, always ready with a joke and a
helping hand. He took friendship seriously
but not himself. He studied Civil Engineer
ing to be prepared for later life, but knew
school was also for learning about people.
Dennis was not alone in having some of
these traits, nor unique perhaps in the sum
of them, but he was as good an Aggie as I
know.
Dennis being the first to die of my fish
buddies in our squadron, has made me look
back on our years in Aggieland. I remember
the good and bad times, mostly the good. I
would like to remind each of you, especially
freshman, to make friends. Learn from
others about themselves and in doing so
learn about yourself. Don’t spend four or
more years for just a bachelors degree, but
take with you a masters in life and a docto
rate in being an Aggie.
Dennis would have told you these same
things and more while grinning if he had
met you, but don’t do it for him, do it for
yourself. We’ll miss you Mase.
spirit banner wishing our team victor)
Cal-Berkeley last Saturday night.
spiration is needed, in general, intheiW that
Uestions:
to be
’lark s
light!
Bill Sanders
Animal Eight ’75
Spirit misguided
Editor:
Campus area where spirit banners
either not present or burned wherei
hang by jealous and sometimes intone' v
neighbors.
But, hear, hear ... “Douch theBearj
am certain that I am not the only pd
offended by the sign’s inappropriatert|
ence to feminine hygiene. Besides,
really want to see a “grode war ’beblr
halls to see who can create the mostol
sive spirit banners?
Since the freshmen are responsible
making these signs and the early sent
excitement is no doubt responsible for®
directing their energies from time to®!
the upperclassmen in every dorms
responsible for seeing that propriety
ercised by their freshmen when
spirit banners.
I appreciated the enthusiasm expressed
by Mclnnis Hall through the display of a
Richard Hudson'
Warped
By Scott McCullaf
HE.LL0, GOOD MORNING,
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