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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 30, 1982)
opinion Battalion/Page 2 March 30, 1982 Panic at the pumps returns with surplus Watergate players not faring well by Dick West United Press International WASHINGTON — Petroleum ex perts are predicting that gasoline prices in much of the nation will hit thedollar-a- gallon mark this spring. These forecasts come as a shock to many motorists, particularly those old enough to remember paying around $1.50 for a gallon of auto fuel. Implicit in the outlook is the prospect of uneven distribution of gas station busi ness. Some sort of allocation system may be necessary. I don’t think there is much support for a rationing program under which each dealer would be entitled to pump a speci fied amount of gas each month. There are, however, a number of alternative plans under consideration. One proposal looked upon favorably in several states involves an odd-even arrangement. Under its provisions, . motorists with odd-numbered license , plates would buy gas at stations with an ' odd number of pumps, or that sell odd ' brands of gasoline. There also is talk of having cars that need gas display green flags while those with full tanks would display red flags. And it is likely that some form of max imum purchase plan will be adopted to encourage so-called “topping off.” Its aim would be to discourage motorists from driving around until their gas gauges registered empty. 11 should be pointed out that none of these contingency plans touches on the basic cause of the emergency. Put into simple terms, the root problem is that there just aren’t enough consumers to use up all the gasoline that is being pro duced. The only long-term solution, there fore, would be measures to increase the supply of consumers. Several suggestions along this line have been offered. One potential being eyed by oil com panies is the vast contingent of joggers visible in most urban areas. Millions of prospective consumers who are reluctant to jog under their own power probably could be persuaded to hit the road if a way were found to con vert joggers to run on gasoline. A great deal more research on gas- powered jogging is needed, however. Only experimental methods have been tested to date, and they have proved woe fully impractical. Another possibility is the use of gaso line to operate solar heating units. With gasoline prices about to reach a dollar a gallon, homes with gas-powered solar heating units could become extremely attractive investments. The situation also calls for some sort of consumer cartel, perhaps named OPUN, short for Organization of Petroleum- Using Nations. The group would meet occasionally to agree on how much gaso line member countries would burn. It is clear that without some kind of consumption-fixing arrangement, there could be near chaos at the retail level. And nobody w ants to see gasoline dealers having to wait in line for customers. By David S. Broder WASHINGTON — Eight years ago this spring, if one of them poked a head out of the door, a crowd of reporters and cameramen would gather. If he or she jumped on an elevator in the Capitol, so many people would follow' that the cable was in danger of snapping. They were the members of the House Judiciary Committee, engaged in the his toric task of preparing impeachment charges against President Richard M. Nixon. When they began their formal hearings, a rapt nation watched. So well did the committee members do their work that at the end, rather than face floor votes in the House and Senate on the charges they prepared, Nixon res igned. His disgrace was complete — if less permanent than many of them sup posed that August day. But it is one of the ironies of history that few of the 38 men and women who served as Nixon’s jurors have seen their own subsequent political careers flour ish. Eight of the 38 were defeated for re-election or in their bids for other offices w ithin months of Nixon’s own de parture. Six more have met with subse quent political defeats and eight have re tired — voluntarily or otherw ise. The latest two casualties came just last week, when Rep. Robert McClory (R-Ill.) yielded his district without a fight to a younger Republican redistricted into his territory, and Rep. Tom Railsback (R- 111.) lost renomination to a conservative challenger. By the end of the year, not more than 13 of the 38 will be left in-Congress. Sens. William S. Cohen (R-Maine) and Paul S. Sarbanes (D-Md.) are the only members of the impeachment crew who have been able to move to the other side of the Capi tol, and Sarbanes faces a fight for re- election in November. Eleven others are seeking re-election to the House, among them four of the five senior Democrats on the impeach ment panel: Rodino and Reps. Jack Brooks of Texas, Robert W. Kastenmeier of Wisconsin and Don Edwards of Cali fornia. Also still in the House are three junior Democrats, Reps. John Conyers, Jr., of Michigan, John F. Seiberling, Jr., of Ohio and Charles B. Rangel of New York. But by the end of this year not more than four of the 17 Judiciary Republicans will remain in the House: Reps. Hamil ton Fish, Jr., of New York. Trent Lott of Mississippi. Carlos J. Moorhead of Cali fornia and Delbert L. Latta of Ohio. Three of the alumni are on the bench. William L. Hungate, a Missouri Demo crat who retired in 1976, is a Federal district judge. Harold V. Froehlich. one of the Republicans defeated in 1974, is a Wisconsin circuit judge. Rep. George E. Danielson (D-Calif.) has just been picked for the California court of appeals. But the surprising thing is how- ephemeral the Watergate fame proved to be for most and how poor a springboard that committee was to higher political office. Four Democrats have failed in ilitir bids for the Senate: Walter Flowers in Alabama, Ray Thorton in Arkansas.Eli zabeth Holtzman in New York ;mi! Wayne Owens in Utah. Academia has claimed some of them Driitan teaches law at Georgetown. Thornton is president of Arkansas Suit University at Jonesboro, and Barbara 1 Jordan, the Texas Democrat, is on ik faculty of the University of Texas. Republican Edward Hutchinson ol Michigan and Deomocrat Harold II Donohue of Massachusetts are retired Flowers heads the Washington offucef an energy f irm. Law prat ices provide tin livelihoods for retired or defeated I)enn>- crats Owens and James R. Mann o! Somli Carolina and Republicans Charles f Wiggins of California, David \V. Denni' of Indiana, Wiley Mavne of Iowa, am! Charles W. Sandman, Jr. and Joseph Maraziti of New Jersey. M. Caldwell Bill- ler of Virginai will join them after hi> retirement at the end of this Congress. But that employment is not available!. Joshua Eilberg, the Pennsylvania Don.- crat, who was defeated in 1978 andioir victed of interest charges. 1 le w as dislw; red by the Pennsylvania supreme comm 1979. It is, on the whole, not an extraonlii ary history. But that is not disturbing Congress is a representative bodv. Ami these Representatives — no better nr worse than most, as their careers show - stepped up and met their historic re'»|x.! sibility admirably. Slouch By Jim Earle “It’s not that I don’t want to take notes, accident ...” Letters: Help set direction by voting in elections Editor: In recent weeks, I have been amazed at all the discouraging remarks I have heard about the Texas A&rM Student Government. People have said that the Student Government is inefficient, in effective and inactive. I would like to address this letter to those points. As a former member of Muster Com mittee. Who’s Who Selection Committee and other University committees, and as senator and Speaker Pro- Lem pore of the Student Senate, I have seen all realms of Student Government over the past two years. I have devoted many hours to Stu- dent Govenrment over this time period, and on hearing this recent criticism I asked myself of it had been all a waste of time. I then examine the role of Student Government over the past year. Academic excellence is one thing that the l niversit\ and its students strive for. I he Academic Affairs Committee has worked very hard over the past vear to promote this. A University-wide quiz file program was coordinated through this committee, and a tutoring program for use by all students was also initiated bv this committee of Student Government. Student services are also a concern to Ixnh the student body and Student Gov ernment. In the past year, the Student Services Committee started a Dorm Security Awareness Program in conjunc tion with Residence Hall Association. I he Student Ser\ ices Committee also in itiated action which resulted in the instal lation of additional equipment in the campus weight room. A et another area Student Government deals with is community affairs. In the past year, the External Affairs Commit tee, working with the local Chamber of Commerce and various businesses, has improved community relations. In con junction with the Chamber of Com merce, Student Government is also seek ing to place students on advisory boards at local banks. The committee is now working on a plan to reduce congestion at Northgate by having business entrances moved to the rear. The second annual Conference of Student Government Associations sponsored by Student Government was a great success. This regional conference explored student oriented service issues and how they may be improved at the various universities. Student Government has tried to keep the student body more informed this year through the “Aggie Connection,” a supplement published in The Battalion by Student Government about once a month. Student Government has addressed issues this past year which are important to students — issues pertaining to acade mics, campus services, and the commun ity relations — to name just a few areas. If one feels these issues are insignifi cant and that Student Government lacks direction and effectiveness in handling them, then criticism tow ard Student Gov- enment is just. But the issues mentioned, and many more the Student Government researches and supports are for the im provement of student life on campus and throughout the community. The direction that Student Govenr ment takes will be determined by the vote of you, the students. I encourage every- . one to vote todav and tomorrow. I also encourage everyone to support Student Government and its activities throughout the coming year. Mike Wolff Speaker Pro-Tempore Texas A&M Student Senate U.S. needs better navy • Editor: President Reagan is going to have to make some compromises if he wants to balance the budget. As it stands now it is perceived the nation will have a stagger ing deficit in excess of $91 billion. While it is obvious that major spend ing cuts in the military budget would not be in the nation's best interest, cuts where there is excess fat will do the job. This fat is the money spent on nuclear armament. The Pentagon would be wiser to spend their money on bettering the navy rather than trying to gain nuclear superioritv over the Soviets, which is simplv non sense. The sea is where the U.S. does a great deal of its trading and it needs a strong navy to protect its merchant ships. The Soviet Union does virtually no trading at all by sea. However, they have a powerful navy that consists of over 900 battleships, heavy cruisers, and sub marines. This would tend to signifv an offensive move on the part of the Soviets to deny the U.S. access to the sea. That would be a horror story that would not be very pleasant if brought to life. With this in mind, we cannot stand idly by any more. By diverting attention away from nuc lear buildup, the U.S. can have a ba lanced budget and a better navv. kill;:, two birds with one stone. Richard John Gosselin *85 College Statkw The Battalion USPS 045 360 Member of Texas Press Associaiion SoulhucM |i>urn.ilisni Conference Editor Angelique Copeland Managing Editor Janeti. Brust Cits Editor Denise Richter Assistant Citv Editor Diana Sultenfuss Sports Editor Frank L. Christlieb Focus Editor Cathy Saathoff Assistant Focus Editor Nancy Floeck News Editors Gan Barker. Phvllis Henderson. Mary Jo Rummel. Nancy Weatherley Staff Writers Jennifer (arr, Cyndy Davis. Gave Denley, Sandra Gary. Colette Hutchings. Johna Jo Maurer. Hope E. Paasch Daniel Puckett. Bill Robinson, Denise Sechelski. John Wagner, Laura Williams. Rebeca Zimmermann Cartoonist Scott McCullar Graphic Artbt Richard DeLeon Jr. Photographers Sumanesh Agrawal. David Fisher. Eileen Manton. Eric Mitchell. Peter Rocha, John Rvan, Colin Valentine Editorial Policy Ihe Biiulmn is a non-pmfn. self-supp»ning nen s- paper itperaied as a conimunit* serrke la Texas A AM L'niicrsit* and BnanA'adtege Staiinn. Opinions ex pressed in The Battalion arc those ol the editor or the author. and do not necessarily represent the opinions of I exits A AM L'nivrrsin administrators or laailt* nr» hers, or ol the Board ol Regents. The Battalion also seises as a laboralon nesyupt for students in reporting, editing and photographs dm ses uithin the Department of (.'ommimnationx J Questions or comments concerning am cdMU matter should he directed to the editor. 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