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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 4, 1982)
-opinion Battalion/Page 2 November 4, If Slouch By Jim Earle use PREPARATION “Until this cold snap is over, would you supervise your armadillo more closely?’* Liability insurance required in Texas by Daniel K. Usiak, Jr. Liability insurance is nowjust about as much a requirement for driving in T exas as a valid driver’s license. A recent statute mandated that, beginning Jan 1, 1982, every owner or driver of a vehicle which is operated primarily in Texas must have proof of “financial responsibility 41 . The most common form of financial responsibility is automobile liability in surance with minimum coverage of $ 10,000 for death or bodily injury to one person, $20,000 for death or bodily in jury to two or more persons, and $5,000 for property damage. Any time you are driving, you may be called upon to present your proof of financial responsibility to a police officer. Where there is an automobile accident each driver must, when asked, show the other driver or drivers his proof of finan cial responsibility. An insurance identifi cation card or the policy issued by your insurance company which show at least the minimum required liability limits of coverage must be used to show proof of coverage. T he penalty for a conviction of failure to provide enough evidence of financial responsibility begins with a fine of $75 to $200 for the first offense. Subsequent convictions are class B misdemeanors and carry a fine of at least $200 and possi ble jail term of up to 180 days. In addition to the fine, proof of finan cial responsibility for five years from the date of the conviction must be provided to the Department of Public Safety. This is done by an insurance company filing what the DPS calls an SR-22 form. There are some automobile insurance com panies that won’t file these. You may have to pay more for your insurance if an SR-22 form has to be filed. Failure to file an SR-22 will result in the suspension of your driver’s license and motor vehicle registration. A driver who is covered, but does not have proof of coverage with him, may receive a ticket even though the car he is driving is insured. He must present his proof of insurance to the judge to get his ticket dismissed. A bond might have to be paid in order to set up a court appear ance. The bond will be refunded after the ticket is dismissed. Both the owner and driver of the vehi cle are responsible if the vehicle is not insured. That means that if you borrow your friend’s car, truck, or motorcycle and it is not insured, you could receive a ticket, even though you didn’t know it was not insured. Your friend could re ceive a ticket, too. If an accident is involved and the unin sured motorist is at fault, his problems have just begun. In addition to the fine for not having insurance, the require ment to prove financial responsibility for the next five years, and maybe a ticket for causing the accident, he will be required to pay for the bodily injury and property damage that he caused. Failure to do so will result in suspension of his driver’s license and motor vehicle registration. In light of the law in Texas, it is best to get at least the minimum amounts of lia bility insurance. If you have any ques tions about the Texas liability insurance requirement, call your insurance agent or the Students’ Legal Department. Editor’s note: Daniel K. Usiak Jr. is a student legal adviser for Texas A&M University. The Battalion USPS 045 360 Member of Texas Press Association Southwest Journalism Conference Editor Diana Sultenfuss Managing Editor Phyllis Henderson Associate Editor Denise Richter City Editor Gary Barker Assistant City Editor HopeE. Paasch Sports Editor Frank L. Christlieb Entertainment Editor Nancy Floeck Assistant Entertainment Editor Colette Hutchings News Editors Rachel Bostwick, Cathy Capps, Johna Jo Maurer, Daniel Puckett, Jan Werner, Todd Woodard Staff Writers Jennifer Carr, Susan Dittman, Beverly Hamilton, David Johnson, John Lopez, Robert McGlohon, Carol Smith, Dana Smelser, Joe Tindel, John W'agner, Rebeca Zimmermann Copyeditor Elaine Engstrom, Cartoonist Scott McCullar Graphic Artist Pam Starasinic Photographers David Fisher, Jorge Casari, Ronald W. Emerson, Octavio Garcia, Michael D. Johnson, Irene Mees, John Ryan, Robert Snider Editorial Policy The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting news paper operated as a community service to Texas A8cM 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 Texas A&M University administrators or faculty mem bers, or of the Board of Regents. The Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspaper for students in reporting, editing and photography clas ses within the Department of Communications. Questions or comments concerning any editorial matter should be directed to the editor. Letters Policy Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300 words in length, and are subject to being cut if they are longer. The editorial staff reserves the right to edit letters for style and length, but will make every effort to maintain the author’s intent. Each letter must also be signed and show the address and phone number of the writer. Columns and guest editorials are also welcome, and are not subject to the same length constraints as letters. Address all inquiries and correspondence to: Editor, The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald, Texas A&M Uni versity, College Station, TX 77843, or phone (713) 845- 2611. The Battalion is published daily during Texas A&M’s fall and spring semesters, except for holiday and exami nation periods. Mail subscriptions are $16.75 per semes ter, $33.25 per school year and $35 per full year. Adver- dsing rates furnished on request. Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843. United Press International is entitled exclusively to the use for reproduction of all news dispatches credited to it. Rights of reproduction of all other matter herein reserved. Second class postage paid at College Station, TX 77843. Discussions pointless, funny The networks put on some hilarious shows Tuesday night. The funniest part about them was that none of the participants seemed to real ize how funny they were. On election night, each network had a panel of politicians, ex-politicians, polls ters and journalists discussing the elec tion results and divining what they meant for 1984. Depending on the network, the analysts decided that the results of this year’s election were anything from “a Democratic landslide” to a rejection of Reaganomics — whatever that means — to a defeat for big money. Analysts pronounced Ronald Reagan a lame duck. They speculated that Walter Mondale — or John Glenn or Mario Cuomo — will be elected president in 1984. They proclaimed a new liberal coalition that will rule the House of Rep resentatives. And by and large, they acted as though similar prophecies hadn’t been wrong nearly every time they were offered. came president and the GOP took cos trol of the Senate. Mid-term elections really are no ger a good indicator for future electioi if they ever were. Too much can happe; in two years — the Iranians can embassy, the economy can collapse, assassin’s bullet can eliminate a popi candidate or make a posthumous herod an unpopular one. seizes The whole idea of extrapolating fu ture elections from the results of this one is absurd. No matter what the results of the 1982 election — and they were more encouraging for the Republicans than many admit — we can be sure only that we have no idea whatever of what 1984 will bring. In 1974, under the weight of Water gate and a weak economy, the Republi cans lost 48 of their 192 seats in the House and and five of their 42 seats in the Senate. At that time, many of the election-night oracles predicted the with ering away of the Republican Party: an end to the two-party system. Just six years later, Reagan became president and the GOP took control of the Senate. In 1978, the Republicans picked up 15 seats in the House and three in the Sen ate. Their mediocre showing convinced many of the same analysts we saw Tues day night that Jimmy Carter was assured of re-election in 1980. And just two years later, Reagan be- Wlio can honestly say what will happe between now and 1984? Will unemplot ment be at an all-time low, or anall-tii high? Will the president decide to retiit or be forced to? Will we be at war in to years? No one can say; that’s why thesentei tious analysts on network televisional! proven wrong so often. They may fun talking about Reagan’s chancesi? 1984; it may be a lark to speculate Kennedy’s future. But it is no more dial a high-profile parlor game, just bareh step above Jeanne Dixon’s predictions. Unfortunately, the somber faces oi television didn’t betray any enjoyment- they seemed to take themselves quitese riously. And that seriousness is the funnies thing about it. Too bad so few of panelists seem to realize how pointiest their discussions are. StU lea i \ by Beve Balt Six memt ACM Stud leave today Ipromotional jy theConh Governmen C0SGA ch day told me dent Senate Fred 1 chairman, s encour: ates at other yersities to A&M’s am held in Febi The ser 2,400 miles a Louisiana, G Mississippi a Also dm the Student revision of t and approve the Senate Group to r oriented issi Senators del to support crease in the Senators t sion of tin which inch Senate reap A resean approved w bers of the 5 Study Grouj by Ali Battalli Tentative pi treet dance, lance and the The street entatively res< !0, Members tig into the pc he dance in e it K-tnarl par The Christ oall students, jto. to mr lec. 2 at the R ts will be sold )CA officers. An open In ’ apartmen lorj and proj f held Nov 1 I Letters: All decisions not easy Editor: Stephen Weiss must be a nom de plume for Chauncey Gardner, the char acter played by Peter Sellers in “Being There.” Decisiveness is indeed a necessity. Mr. Weiss seems to think (he never gives us any hard facts to go by) that decision making is an easy process among 220 mil lion people represented by 535 politi cians whose interests are often divergent from those of the nation as a whole. Furthermore, stability may be coun terproductive. A growing, healthy eco nomy is inherently unstable since growth is a form of change, and change is anti thetical to stability. To hold onto what now is extant for stability’s sake is a form of cowardice which automatically obvi ates positive change and development in the process of negating whatever dan gers may possibly arise in the ongoing evolution of this country. Any good farmer knows that certain fertilizers are used to produce certain de sired results. The farmer knows what the goal is and applies the appropriate means to produce that goal. I, for one, would like to know just ex actly what goals lay behind the rhetoric that passes for political debate. I, for one, would like to know who possesses the knowledge of the collective goals of Americans. I, for one, would like to know who possesses the knowledge of “fertiliz ers” that will produce these goals. Every one knows what good fertilizer is, but I, for one, would like to see it eliminated from American political discourse. money was gone. I had just been to the bank so I lost nearly $50. It was not only the monetary loss that upset me, but the fact that it was probably someone from student programs as well as a fellow Aggie. Haven’t you heard student loans are available? But then again, you’d probably never pay it back. Save a napkin? Editor: Never have I witnessed an irony ol such magnitude as manifested byanin- stitution which piously urges cafeteiii patrons to “Save a tree, take only napkin”, but annually builds a bonfa unequalled worldwide. Cathy Riely 430 S.W. Parkway Michael Donate Graduate Sti Lain Ellis 1016 Milner Purse stolen Editor: What ever happened to the Aggie code of honor? I am writing this letter in the hopes that some Ag will see himself/herself and feel like dirt! I was in the Student Programs Office in the MSG and I left my purse under a desk for about 20 minutes while I went to another office. When I came back, all my ©1982 by NEA, Inc “I hope my screaming during take-off didn’t upset you!" 4 Inis two pi Pajamas.” ( teedo front, c r length l LANZ prin lANZ on i a