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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 20, 1982)
Texas mesquitechic will be next to strike by Dick West United Press International WASHINGTON — Mesquite smoke, according to Gourmet magazine, imparts epicurean flavor to grilled meat. Here, if further evidence be needed, is additional proof that my late father, who liked to brag that he was “the world’s most humble Texan,” was born ahead of his time. The poor man went to his grave never knowing he had a potential fortune be hind his house. My .father had enough mesquite trees in his backyard to provide enough coals to barbeque enough spareribs to satiate a city the size of Hackensack, N.J., with easily enough left over for shish kebab all around. And he wasn’t even trying to grow mesquites. In fact, my father sent a large part of his life trying not to grow mesquites. He regarded mesquites as a crying nui sance, as did everyone else in that part of Texas, particularly cattlemen who were trying to keep their pastures clear of the rank growth. Mesquites in the area where I grew up had three distinguishing characteristics: (1) Rapid growth that choked out other plant life; (2) thorns guaranteed to rip the fabric of any type of garment you might wear and (3) bean-like seeds that fell in blizzard-like flurries, requiring constant raking of the yard. Indeed, when the definitive history of the struggle to survive in West Texas is written, it largely will be couched in terms of the struggle against mesquite trees and bushes. Whether the mesquite is a tree or a bush depends, incidentally, on which re ference work you consult. Some author ities say mesquites come in two varieties — bushy and arboreal. Others say a young mesquite may end up as either a tree or a bush, depending on the amount of water it gets. Either way, it is futile to try to uproot one. Mesquites put down roots as far as 60 feet underground. This means there is more to them than meets the eye. Even the tallest mesquite rarely tops 50 feet above ground. Mesquite foliage has been described as “lacy and shadeless.” Amen. Particularly the latter. Anyone who has ever stag gered under a mesquite seeking refuge from the Texas sun will know what I mean. As for the rest of the treebush, mes quites have been classified as “commer cially valueless” with wood fit only for “unusual furniture and trinkets.” One redeeming feature is that they will grow in places “too hot and dry for other plants. The trouble is, they also grow in places that aren’t too hot and dry for other plants. They simply crowd out the other plants, meaning that if you turn your back for a moment, only mesquites will be growing on your land. And now Gourmet magazine tells us mesquite wood is being shipped by the truckload to New York City and other culturally deprived areas. Too bad that taste thrill was discovered so late. Otherwise, “the world’s most humble Texan” might have died a mil- lioniare mesquite magnate. Slouch By Jim Earle “This is my way of keeping the graduating seniors on their toes.’ 9 ...IMS H* „ CUTTING M SCHOOL U' Tuition tax credit proposal no help by Don Phillips United Press International WASHINGTON — President Reagan’s proposed tuition tax credit for private and parochial schools won’t pass Congress this year. In fact, his proposal was so poorly timed that he might have set back the whole issue, leaving tuition tax credits further from enactment than ever. would have to be funded from borrowed money, increasing the deficit further. The greatest problem, of course, is that there are two distinct sides to this issue and have been since it was first brought up many years ago. Both sides have legitimate concerns, and both have substantial arguments in their favor. even when the action is doomed! lure. But if he was acting on principi it is his own principle that is I suffer. The first problem with the proposal is that the 97th Congress is winding down. That may sound strange on the face of it, because so little legislation has been pas sed this year, and the budget and all the fiscal 1983 appropriations bills lie ahead. President Reagan must have known the bill would have no chance when he proposed it. Its friends on Capitol Hill certainly knew, because they had decided long ago that tuition tax credits were an idea that would have to wait for better times. For example, Reagan’s prop polarized the issue in a way thatitlj been polarized before. Although! tainly did not intend to do so,1 injected the race issue morestronfl the battle. But mid-April in the second year of a two-year Congress is a little late to begin any new legislation. The system simply does not work that fast on such controv ersial issues. Hearings must be held, drafting sessions must be scheduled, floor action must take place in both houses. They were obviously embarrassed by Reagan’s proposal, partly because it forced them to tell their constituents — as gently as possible — not to get their hopes up. The long-time friends of the tuition tax credit were made reluctant villains by a man they consider a “Ronniecome- lately” in the field. The question then becomes, why did Reagan do it? I n past years, race has beenmenij in debates over tuition tax cr< proponents always could point toil ternal Revenue Service and say, worry. The IRS won’t let anyt tionist schools benefit.” However, the wings of theml clipped on racial matters in the! University case when the taxtoS was told not to deny tax-exemptsl private schools unless there wasil order saying the school wasguiliil crimination. The session will be shortened because this is a congressional election year, and there will be little time for anything but budget-related matters. The second problem is that any tuition tax credit will cost a lot of money at a time when almost everyone in the country ex cept the military is being asked to be frug al and do with less. The deficit also is soaring, and any tax credit automatically The obvious answer is that it sounded good and it scored political points. Even better, Reagan would not have to deal with the increased deficit that his idea would bring because there was no way it would pass. Although this battle still is I ed out, the certainty of IRS protet no longer there. All this debate will take placed the chambers of the House andS because the issue won’t getthatf Sometimes, the obvious answer is not the right one, of course. Reagan has proved time and again that he will stub bornly take action based on principle, Perhaps Reagan has benefited! his proposal. The issue itselfhasn whole debate has become a song out of place, out of time. Letters: Too many low grades for ‘quality’ teaching Editor: Something is wrong with the system. According to a recent survey in the Hous ton Chronicle and reprinted in the Texas Aggie magazine, Texas A&M gets the highest average SAT scores out of the public universities in Texas, but is fourth lowest in average GPA in the freshman class. I believe this apparent discrepancy in ability-performance is not only present in the freshman class, but also is present in the upper levels as well. The adminis tration seems to make too many attempts to equate low grades and quality. In the infamous words of my history professor: “It ain’t necessarily so.” A 50 percent to 60 percent “D” and “F” rate in classes such as ME 212 and 213, such has recent ly been brought to light, does not neces sarily make them quality classes. According to the article in Texas Aggie, Dr. Charles E. McCandless, Texas A&M’s interim vice preident for acade mic affairs, is not supnsed. Dr. McCand less says: “We make no apology for our requirement that our students perform to their ability in keeping with our high standards. We work with the faculty to maintain such standards and I suppose that is related to what some call tough grading.” Now, the vice president claims that low grades are a result of high re quirements, while at the conference with the engineering deans last week, the gen eral concensus seemed to be that low grades were a result of a high student- teacher ratio; (i.e. too many sudents, and not enough professors). For instance. Dr. G.R. Hopkins said: “The requirements of this course (M.E. 212) have not changed, but that it is harder to meet them now because of the increasingly competitive nature of the engineerig cur riculum.” At any rate, I believe that low average grades are not something to be proud of, but rather something to be worried about. I am not at all sure that the reputation that Texas A&M has can make up for a 0.3-0.4 deficit in average GPA over some other equally reputable institutions. Low grades are just low grades, nothing more. I look at Texas A&M and see an ever increasingly frustrated student body be cause of the situation that exists here in teaching and grading. I work hard and I believe that I deserve some peace of mind when it comes to grades. I’m not getting it here. MIT of the south? money to spend on booze. On the other hand, all people with short hair are frats and everybody knows frats have lots of money. Astoundingly simple, No? And some people say business tnen aren’t shrewd! raises? Does anyone really know what Coach Sherrill makes? Does Coach Sher rill know what he makes? Now I would like to mention some thing about the “cattle trails” around campus. The solution to this problem is to put a few land mines on these! After a few people get “blownup,] trails won’t be used much. David l 1 Plantation 1 ' Jeff Gabelmann Cycling Team says thanks Editor: John R. Turner ’82 Hart Hall No long hair allowed Editor: To everyone at Texas A&M Univer sity: The Texas A&M Cycling Team would like to thank all of the people who were so patient with their help in making the third stage of the Fifth Annual Aggie- land Bicycle Stage Race a big success this year. We would also like to thank the people who put up with the inconveni ence of our rerouting traffic around campus. John Cotton, Race Promoter Texas A&M Cycling Team You think you’ve heard it all, Right? Wrong. Get this: a rock bar that discri minates against long hair. No kidding! To get into the Rox-z in the Skaggs center your hair length may not exceed your collar. Why, you ask, do they have such a rule as this. Upon placing yourself in the club’s management shoes you may be able to answer the question. Follow this simple two step procedure: 1) Empty your head of all thought 2) Repeat step 1. In this sublime condition it should be ob vious that longhairs spend all their money on drugs therefore they have no Who really knows salary? Editor: I hope I am one of the first in a prob able flurry of responses to Mr. Thomas M. Rossi’s letter of April 14. Mr. Rossi, where did you get the values of “$3 mil lion” for a football coach’s salary? It seems like Coach Sherrill’s salary started at “$90,000” then went to “$1.2 million” then to “$2 million” and now it’s “$3 mil lion.” What causes this, cost of living The Battalion USPS 045 360 Member of Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Conference Texas A&M University administrators or l, bers, or of the Board of Regents. The Battalion also serves as a laboratory!! for students in reporting, editing and photogi ses within the Department of Comnnmicami Questions or comments concerning any t matter should be directed to the editor. Editor Angelique Copeland City Editor Denise Richter Assistant City Editor Diana Sultenfuss Sports Editor Frank L. Christlieb Focus Editor Cathy Saathoff Assistant Focus Editor ;... Nancy Floeck News Editors ; Gary Barker, Phyllis Henderson, Mary Jo Rummel, Nancy Weatherley Staff Writers Jennifer Carr, Cyndy Davis, Gaye 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 Artist Richard DeLeon Jr. Photographers Sumanesh Agrawal, David Fisher, Eileen Manton, Eric Mitchell, Peter Rocha, John Ryan, Colin Valentine Editorial Policy The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting news paper operated as a community service to Texas A&M University and Bryan-College Station. Opinions ex pressed in The Battalion are those of the editor or the author, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of 1 The Battalion is published daily during Texas fall and spring semesters, except for holidayand nation periods. Mail subscriptions are $16.75 per! ter, $33.25 per school year and $35 per full year, tising rates furnished on request. Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed Building, Texas A&M University, College Staiior 77843. The tricks light when Volunteer fre by Cynd Battalio Reading mir he future and v re not as mystic [professional in |ents Monday r Danny Korer Ion sponsored ssues, explaine are done by trick the psychic p eem to be. Korem, auth Irs,” began his demonstrating Jicks, sleight-of nind reacting rr Korem used af the audience orm number | ^nd disappearir He then conf performed any “Everything |vening from to . trick,” he said Predicting th< seemingly psyc Korem explaine He used the < |n example. T1 rtoved by specie nerve impulses Korem said. “The origin prophesies was Christians that t Control,” he saic Atheistic and today want to c< lives and this is \ “psychics” and ] stead of turning said. Although Ko dieve any one p psychic phenorr Sieve in superi Supernatural p not controlled father by God, He cited Th eing more hisl tic in its predi Other book. Letters Policy Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300* length, and are subject to being cut if they arel« The editorial staff reserves the right toeditleli style and length, but will make every effort tom the author's intent. Each letter must also be signed J the address and phone number of the writer. Columns and guest editorials are also welcome! are not subject to the same length constraints as IT Address all inquiries and correspondence to: E The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald, Texas/ versity, College Station, TX 77843, or phone(71Sli 2611. 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