Mel makes magic
in College Station
See page 5
\JHOLB
WHEAT
.XX*
Organic food,
sweat and diets
See At Ease
ine Banal ion
Serving the University community
. 76 No. 48 USPS 045360 32 Pages In 2 Sections
College Station, Texas
Friday, November 5, 1982
all Street sets record
United Press International
NEW YORK — Wall Street,
isted by Wednesday’s record Dow
industrial average, had its
busiest day in history but prices
jlunged as many investors cashed in
huge profits made in the three-
onth rally.
With the Labor Department sche
duled to report on October’s unem
ployment rate— expected to be high-
■ than September’s 10.1 percent —
the Federal Reserve preparing
oney supply figures, trading was
, " 1 ’' to be restrained in today’s ses-
The Dow, which soared a record
b3.41 points Wednesday to an all-
time high of 1,065.49, skidded 15.27
to 1,050.22 T hursday in a late selloff.
Several analysts said profit taking
was not surprising since the closely
followed average, which Wednesday
eclipsed its old peak of 1,051.70 set
Jan. 11, 1973, had gained 73.77
points in the previous three sessions.
Thursday’s New York Stock Ex
change volume climbed to a record
149,350,000 shares from
137,010,000 traded Wednesday, top
ping the old mark of 147,081,070
traded Oct. 7.
“This was a normal retreat since
the Dow had gained 73.77 points in
the previous three sessions,” said
Newton Zinder. E.F. Hutton vice
president. “I think things will cool
down for the rest of the week.”
“This has been a market of sur
prises and this was one of them,” said
Trude Latimer, Evans & Co. analyst.
“The day was disappointing from the
start when institutions didn’t do the
buying everybody had expected.”
The market has rallied this week on
investor belief the Federal Reserve
would cut its discount rate since the
economy remains mired in recession.
Donald Maude, a policy committee
chairman at Merrill Lynch, predicted
interest rates would decline in the
near future and the Fed would ease
credit conditions to foster an econo
mic recovery.
Treasury Secretary Donald T. Re
gan said “American corporations are
still undervalued” by securities mar
kets despite the historic rally that be
gan in mid-August and drove the
Dow up 288.57 points.
Regan also suggested election re
sults — in which the Republicans held
control of the Senate but lost ground
in the House — might make the admi
nistration more willing to comprom
ise in the future.
Leland Prussia, BankAmerica
chairman, said the economy may have
made a bottom in the recession but it
will remain sluggish well into 1983.
tility protest planned
by Tom Dobrez
Battalion Reporter
Afew Bryan residents are planning
tn organizational meeting to be held
December to protest utility service,
it a Bryan Utilities official says all
ey have to do to solve their prob-
ns is talk to the utility company.
Pat Fetzee, an engineering tech
nology major at Texas A&M and a
resident of Country Place Apart
ments in Bryan, is organizing his
neighbors and other Bryan residents
inorder to get Bryan Utilitites to “cor
rect bad billing techniques and lower
the cost of electricity.”
Gaylord White, operations mana-
;er of utility service for the utilities
tompany, said: “Any problem with
gcan easily be worked out, but
there is very little one can do about
the cost.”
About 300 people probably will
attend the organizational meeting
will be held in early December,
Petzee said.
“Many residents have gone for two
months without recieving a bill and
then (they) get a bill on the third
month for all three months totaled
IDgether into one awfully high bill,”
Fetzee said.
White said that the utility company
admits the problems but he said a
solution is in sight.
“The main reason for the billing
problem has been the installation of a
aewcomputer billing system in May,”
White said. “It has been a frustrating
experience for all of us. But if a per
son falls victim to an error of this sort,
all they have to do is come down to the
utilities office and arrange to pay the
"11 on a deferred payment plan.”
If a person receives a bill that has
three months added together, then
he has three months to pay the bill,
e said.
But Fetzee said billing is not the
only problem. The group will go
door-to-door to get signatures for a
petition that calls for the lower elec
tricity prices for Bryan residents.
“I have lived in this same apart
ment for three years and I have
noticed my electric bill nearly triple in
that time,” Fetzee said.
White said he sympathizes with the
New TMPA plant
could lower costs
by Ann Ramsbottom
Battalion Reporter
The new Texas Municipal Power
Agency facility — soon to become
Bryan’s primary source of electricity
— may not mean immediate savings
to residents, but should mean more
stable prices, the director of Bryan
Utilities says.
It probably will be a year before
Bryan residents actually see any posi
tive effects from the new TMPA
plant, Gaylord White said.
“I’m not saying that electricity costs
will be any cheaper,” White said.
“However, we should see an end to
escalating prices.”
The jointly-owned TMPA facility,
Gibbons Creek Steam Electric Station
Unit 1, also will serve Denton, Garland
and Greenville. The plant, located
three miles northwest of Carlos, has
started generating some power, but
TMPA officials predict that won’t be
running on full power until March.
White said he is less optimistic ab
out the early prediction, but said
things are running smoothly.
Some Bryan residents are burning
natural gas in their homes now, he
said.
“Natural gas is a clean gas and the
facilities to it are relatively cheap to
build,” White said. “However, we
want to get away from natural gas. We
have no control over the gas prices
and they continue to escalate.”
Lignite, the fuel to be used in
TMPA’s new facility, is a low-grade
coal and power plants that burn lig
nite are expensive.
“Since lignite is not a very clean
coal, extra facilities are needed to
clean the fuel and change it into a
usuable form,” White said. “The ini
tial cost of building the facilities
makes it only economically feasible to
build a big plant that can serve a large
area.”
The real advantage of the lignite
plant is the long-term savings it yields,
White said.
“Seventy-five to 80 percent of the
costs involved in a lignite plant are the
facilities themselves,” White said. “It’s
a one-time cost. On the other hand,
when burning natural gas, 75 to 80
percent of the actual cost is the fuel.
It’s a continual cost that we have no
control over.”
But even after the plant is running
full power, Bryan and the other four
cities still will be using about 25 to 30
percent natural gas as they’re using
now.
The facility, which is hoped to be
paid for in 24 to 25 years, is being
funded through revenue bonds
which each city is selling. Utility sys
tem sales eventually will pay off the
estimated $660 million facility.
price Bryan residents are paying, but
he said neither the group nor Bryan
Utilities can do anything.
“I pay the same bills and complain
too, but there’s very little one can do,”
White said. “Three-fourths of the
price is based on the price of fuel, so
there is very little room for adjusting.
“The main reason for the rapid
increase in the past few years has been
that natural gas has been underpriced
for 25 to 30 years. It is now just rising
to its proper cost, he said.”
White also said that the rapid in
crease in price will soon start to slow.
“As soon as our new lignite plant
starts to produce electricity efficiently
— say within 6 months to a year —
then there will be a decrease in the
increase of price,” White said. “That
is to say prices will probably continue
to go up with inflation, but at a much
slower pace than now.”
Fetzee said another problem with
the utility company is that it rarely
reads his meter and guesses his elec
tricity consumption for month.
“I have only seen a meter reader
out here once this semester,” Fetzee
said.
The estimating of bills is done for
less than 10 percent of the utility com
panies’ accounts, White said.
“Sure there is going to be guessing
and estimating of consumption,”
White said. “It would be very hard to
read 32,000 meters a month. Also,
there is a problem of a meter reader
falling down on the job.
“But the estimating that is being
done accounts for less than 10 per
cent of all meters and is done ran
domly, meaning different people are
involved every time.”
White said individuals with prob
lems of any sort should visit Bryan
Utilities and they will attempt to fix
any problem.
Cheap thrills
staff photo by John Ryan
Rick Nielsen, lead guitarist for Cheap Trick, entertains a
full house at G. Rollie White Coliseum on Thursday
night with his zany antics. See review, page 3.
inside
Around town 4
Classified 8
National 9
Opinions 2
Sports 13
State 6
Whafsup 11
forecast
Today’s Forecast: High in the
tnid-60s. Low in the high 30s. Fair
skies continuing through the
"’eekend.
Program getting passing grade
Athlete attendance policy progressing
by Carol Smith
Battalion Staff
It may be too early to tell if the mandatory class attendance
policy for scholarship athletes is a success, but Dr. Don Hunt,
athletic academic counselor, says that he’s pleased with the prog
ress so far.
The policy, started by Athletic Director Jackie Sherrill at the
beginning of the fall semester, calls for mandatory attendance at
all classes by all scholarship athletes, both men and women.
The policy was enacted not only to increase class attendance
among students, but also to help the students adjust to a combina
tion of classes, studying and the time restraints of intercollegiate
athletics, Hunt said.
At the beginning of the fall semester, the athletes took letters
to their instructors explaining the policy and asking for their
cooperation in making the policy successful.
The response to the program has been good so far, Hunt said.
“About 89 percent of the professors who responded — and 96
percent responded — agreed to participate,” he said. “Professors
who responded negatively did so, not because they aren’t in favor
of the program, but because the size of their classes is not such
that attendance can be taken.”
At the end of each week, the athlete takes a card to the instruc
tor for him to sign if the athlete has been in class. If the student
has not been in class, the instructor can report his or her absence
to the athletic department.
“The attendance has been good but not satisfactory,” Hunt
said. “We’re not exactly where we want to be, but we’re making
progress.”
At midterm, the average cuts per athlete was 1.7, Hunt said.
The figure applies to all classes, not just per one class, he said.
Midterm grades averaged about 2.25 overall for all sports, he
said.
“I believe I read where the overall average of the student body
was a 2.39 and the Corps was at a 2.4, so we don’t feel out of kelter
with the rest of the students,” he said.
Hunt said he thinks the program is moving in the right direc
tion, though he did stress that it does have a way to go before the
objectives are reached. Some positive aspects have come out of
the program so far, he said.
“We’ve had satisfactory responses from the participating
athletes and the faculty seems appreciative in that the athletic
department is interested and concerned in the progress of the
athletes,” he said.
The policy also has been productive in regard to communica
tion, Hunt said.
“It has given the athlete the chance to visit with the instructor,
understand exactly what it is the instructor may be asking for,
and ask for assistance if complications arise,” he said.
The basketball season begins Nov. 20 and more travel is in
volved than was involved with the football team. The basketball
season will test the communication aspects of the policy, Hunt
said.
“We’re hoping that what we’ve started will provide us with an
avenue of communication to solicit a little understanding here
and there,” he said. “The kids will be responsible for whatever
work they miss and we’ll be in touch with the basketball players’
instructors to make sure they have their vork completed.”
“It’s basically a process of communication — not just ‘hey,
we’re going to be gone, but don’t worry about it.’”
The policy has not been changed from the one that originally
was outlined by Sherrill at the beginning of the semester, Hunt
said. All scholarship athletes are required to go to all classes and
attend study hall two days a week. The number of tutors has
remained the same, he said. The academic counseling office
spends three times as much on the tutorial program as in past
years, he said.
“We can’t make an overall evaluation yet, and we may not be
able to at the end of the semester,” Hunt said. “But at least we’ll
have some idea of the direction in which we’re going to try to
accomplish our goals.”
It’s taken everybody a little time to adjust to the program and
the policy may need some redirection in emphasis once it can be
evaluated effectively, Hunt said.
“I think as soon as we get into the routine and everybody
understands what we’re trying to do, and where we’re trying to
go, they’ll see that we’re headed in the right direction,” he said.