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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 30, 1982)
Battalion/Page 3 June 30, 1982 local / state :em wil jencies new ctiaHj ntSAgm inshine ol unwortii! cast, i somewtii and enti jnt, blusi yingforp| line the Wednesday ICOPAL STUDENT ASSOCIATION:The group will eet for Holy Eucharist and supper at 5:30 p.m. in the Canter- tl try House, 902 Jersey St. “JNGCLUBtA general meeting will be held at 7 p.jn,in401 udder. s that Cl| BA CLUB:Posstble dive trips will be discussed in a ict dedsitj 8 p.m. in 402 Rudder, i whatheS )ERWATER HOCKEY:Bring mask, fins, snorkel, suit an. te Univeij wel to the meeting (Scuba Club-sponsored). Friday 5COPAL STUDENT ASSOCIATION :The eet for Holy Eucharist and breakfast at 6:3 anterbury House, 902 Jersey St. Texas prison ruling applauded United Press International WASHINGTON — A top Justice Department official Tuesday applauded a federal appeals court ruling that threw out many court-ordered re forms for the Texas prison sys tem, but upheld requirements to reduce overcrowding by Nov. 1. Assistant Attorney General William Bradford Reynolds said the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of ieals ruling on overcrowding in the nation’s largest prison sys tem was “eminently satisfactory from the government’s point of view.” Last week, the appeals court found that prison conditions in the nation’s largest prison con stituted cruel and unusual pun ishment. But it struck down part of the lower court’s ruling, and told Texas it could house two men in one cell. “With respect to overcrowd ing, the court’s approach to fashioning relief by looking at the totality of prison conditions at the Texas correctional facili ties is precisely in line with our position,” said Reynolds, in charge of the Justice Depart ment’s civil rights division. The government had argued the degree of double-celling in the Texas prison system de pends on the extent that other problems are corrected. “The ruling of the court of appeals follows the same reason ing — ordering the state to im plement other reform measures in the next year and directing the parties to reassess at the end of that time whether there re mains a need for further relief in the area of overcrowding,” Reynolds said. The appeals court upheld the lower-court decision to reduce the inmate population by Nov. 1. However, it tossed out the re quirement to provide single cells for prisoners in the 33,000- inmate system. Reynolds said the appeals court ruling was a “common sense approach to a very trou blesome problem.” Cheap gas hurts Texans, expert says Higher oil prices may be good it’s loss may cost Rockwell millions of chansti ititativek but the: nd mu, ^ United Press International LLAS — A tentative settle- nsen hasta fnt in a sex bias lawsuit Filed ate oniljjflst Rockwell International ence, a, |rp could affect as many as t wantstotjiOOO women and cost the major lit, theBelfense contractor up to $2.2 i meshtMP 011 i an attorney reports, i can to:lp ttornev J am es C. Barber ate or M i Monda y ldat ^ District chanae-Ir barefoot Sanders ipproves the agreement, it Bid affect all women who are at ourit ||) a g ers or were rejected after instead Hying for management posi- to glory Sons at Rockwell’s facilities in ps and Collin counties dur- 'a five-year period. He said as many as 4,000 .en — including 400 to 500 ent employees — could be Icted. Barber said the proposed agreement would set aside $200,000 for non-managerial Rockwell employees who ap plied for management posts but were rejected between Sept. 1, 1976, and Sept. 30, 1981. He said each applicant would receive a maximum of $200 under the agreement. The firm also agreed to pay up to $800,000 to be distributed among female managers at Rockwell during the same period. Individual payments would be based on a manager’s rank and length of service. The proposed settlement also requires the firm to increase the salary of all women managers during the next Five years to at least the midpoint of the salary range for their grade level — expected to cost $1.2 million. iouston constable says no’ to cocaine offer United Press International IOUSTON — A county law leer said he was a little sur- d when a Venezuelan stu- it befriended him and |red him a “hit” of cocaine at rty. Harris County Constable acy Maxon said Monday he rested the student and arged him with possession of a ntrolled substance. IHvaro Labrador, 28, who is the United States on a student isa, was attending a party at axon’s parent’s home. He pparently did not know Maxon (/as a law enforcement officer. The constable said Labrador fered him the drug when his ite left the room. “He was saying he thinks I’m such a fine fellow and how nice I am. ‘Take a hit on this and you will really feel great and good,”’ Maxon said. Maxon said he was surprised, but went into another room, alerted several other lawmen, and then quietly arrested Lab rador. Maxon said he thought at first he was the target of an FBI sting operation. Labrador protested the arrest because he did not think he could be arrested in a private home. “I think he was just one of those guys that had one too many, either cocaine or a drink, and didn’t keep his business to himself,” Maxon said. United Press International DALLAS — With the oil glut drying up and the OPEC nations treating each other like friends for the moment, petroleum prices are beginning to rise again — and some economists say Americans should be thank ful they are. Despite the contempt Amer icans have for Arab oil produc ers and the anger that greets ev ery new round of price hikes, some economists say steady E ressure on the price of oil is the est thing that could happen to the American economy — even if it means supporting the OPEC cartel. “It is in the interest of West ern society and the United States in particular to maintain price stability,” said Dr. Martin David son, a North Texas State Uni versity economics professor. “We don’t want the price ying- yanging way up and way down because that’s the most certain way of destroying the domestic oil industry. “There are critical national defense concerns about our maintaining a strong domestic oil industry.” For example, if the price of oil began swinging up and down, it would put the domestic oil in dustry, which reacts rapidly to changing market conditions, into economic spasms. Hughes Tool Co. spokesman I.C. Kerridge describes the dril ler’s mentality this way: “Drilling for oil is a very risky business and people don’t like to have additional uncertainty. They want to know what taxes they’ll have to pay and what prices they’ll get for their pro ducts.” Figures compiled by the Texas Railroad Commission show that drilling in the state reached an all-time high last De cember with 1,458 rigs running. However, U.S. drilling fell to its lowest level in 21 months in May with 3,049 rigs operating, Kerridge said. Texas rigs accounted for 929 of that total — down more than 500 since INTRODUCING TWO NEW SPECIALTIES OF THE HOUSE ed a cod( ADELE. )n. :’s either; 1 room or 1 “That* iroblem ETE hi! g you to) I told his liter saii nd indes 1 st how »t > of ourfc ‘ years, s 1 onalque? i love A* a word d hittini I asked. It’s mud ickmt oo-fy HW z m >£W & pfldi MONTEREY $0 QK TACO SALAD O.iJO Spicy ground beef, pinto beans, chile con queso, tortilla chips, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes and jalapeno peppers. Served with guacamole salad. MONTEREY A K CHICKEN SALAD Boneless chicken, chile con queso, tortilla chips, lettuce, cheese, tomatoes and jalapeno peppers. Served with guacamole salad. DON'T MISS OUR WEDNESDAY SPECIALS. MONTEREY DINNER *3.85 Reg. $4.85 FIESTA $Q y| R DINNER ^O.rtO Reg. $4.45 ENCHILADA DINNER Reg. $3.65 V MEXICAN \<mc MEXICAN v **-^ r RESTAURANTS 1816 Texas Ave. • 823-8930 907 Highway 30 • 693-2484 December. Uncertainty over oil prices, along with seasonal variations and bad weather, accounted for the decline, Kerridge said. What if the price swung down to the point where imported oil was cheaper than domestically produced crude — a situation which occurred two decades ago? “We had a period in the 1950s when imported crude was cheaper than domestic crude and we protected the domestic industry by putting quotas on crude oil imports,” Davidson said. “I think we should have to do the same thing, should the price of foreign crude ever get that low again. It is in the Amer ican interest to see a stable price of oil and gas high enough to encourage domestic exploration and production.” Richard Berry, a financial analyst for Eppler, Guerin & Turner Inc. in Dallas, said a drastic drop in oil prices would have a devastating effect on the U.S. economy. “Both Russia and the U.S. have a strong vested interest in maintaining the high price of oil,” he said. “Russia needs to export oil to earn hard curren cies to buy grain and other goods from western countries. The U.S. needs it because a great deal of the nation’s tax re venues are predicated on high oil prices. “The U.S. budget deficit would grow dramatically if the price of oil fell to $20 a barrel. Vou would almost completely wipe out the benefits of the windfall profits tax which is based on the difference between the price you actually get and a base price of $17-$18 a barrel. “The price is now around $32 a barrel. If it went to $20, it would wipe out practically all of that tax.” State budgets in oil- producing areas like Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana would be particularly hurt by a drop in crude prices. Severance taxes for oil and gas production in Texas added nearly $2.2 billion to state’s cof fers and accounted for about 28 percent of the total tax revenues for the 1980-81 fiscal year. Income from oil and gas leases and production royalties on state land funneled another $784.1 million into the state treasury. Income generated from royalties and leases on Universi ty of Texas land helped swell the Permanent University Fund to $1.42 billion in 1981. With offi cials looking forward to a $3.25 billion PUFby 1990, a drop in oil prices could have a negative effect on higher education. “The Texas economy would be particularly hard hit because the state derives a significant percentage of its revenues from royalties on oil and gas produc tion,” Berry said. “If oil went to $20 a barrel, the energy industry in Texas would be in a virtual state of de pression. “The banking industry would be one of the primary areas affected, partially because there are so many loans outstanding to energy-related companies. But you have a wide varety of com panies that provide goods and services to the petroleum indus try that would be severely affected if the price dropped.” Hundreds of related indus tries would be affected by de clining oil prices and thousands of people — from the guy who installs storm windows to the teenager working her way through school at the local ham burger stand — would be affected. “You take an area like Mid land or Odessa (in the oil rich Permian Basin region of West Texas), if the price of oil fell to $20 a barrel, the retail trade in dustry in those areas would col lapse,” Berry said. “A lot of sav ings institutions with home mortgages would be in danger.” Berry said crude oil prices — which brought gasoline to the $l-a-gallon range earlier this year — are on their way back up. He attributes much of the rise to cooperation among the OPEC nations. “The OPEC countries have indeed, for the first time in their history, acted as a cartel,” he said. “They have established production ceilings for each of the countries and shared among themselves the production cuts to support the price that they desire.” However, the agreement seems headed for severe chal lenges. Already, some of the OPEC countries — notably Iran — are ignoring the curtailment. Still others questioned the pact at a meeting last month in Ecuador. FRANCISCO GOYA (1746-1828) "Que valor!” GOYA AND THE DISASTERS OF WAR Special exhibition lecture presentation by Mr. Terrell Hillebrand, Director The Sarah Campbell Blaffer Foundation 7:30 p.m., Thursday, July 1 — J. Earl Rudder Forum admission free Reception in Exhibit Hall for Mr. Hillebrand follows the presentation. GOYA: THE DISASTERS OF WAR from the collection of the Sarah Campbell Blaffer Foundation J. Earl Rudder Exhibit Hall June 28 - July 30, 1982 Exhibition sponsored by Texas A&M University Art Exhibits