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Serving the University community
Vol 78 No. 64 USPS 0463110 14 pages
College Station, Texas
Thursday, December 1.1983
Donn Friedman, Battalion photo
Hold your tongue
A.ggie basketball player Michell Tatum shows regret after
being called for an offensive foul Wednesday night. The
™ n ‘ wer ‘m'exas A&M women’s basketball team defeated Lamar
4 vers ^ 90-70 behind Lisa Langston’s 31 points. Tatum
1 stron 6 M mnd Mary Ann Swearingin chipped in 18 points each. For
retweentlK com P^ ete game story see Sports page 14.
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United Press International
WASHINGTON — President
eagan, citing his commitment
indersoniW) fighting discrimination while
gaising legal questions, signed
1 failingto! Ipnipromise legislation Wednes-
owl, theC | a y t hat reconstitutes the 26-
eltotheffl | ear . 0 id U.S. Commission on
Id reapreC- Rights.
Houston a«
54 Texanst 1 | Reagan ended months of tur-
hnson.aiis 'hioil by signing a bill that en-
exas. “Sodflarges the commission from six
embers to eight and divides the
|uthority to appoint them be-
een the president and Con-
ess. The legislation also bans
e firing of members for politic-
reasons, allowing dismissals
only for abuse or neglect of
office.
Reagan promptly reap
pointed Clarence Pendleton as
hairman and Linda Chavez as
taff director, but left open the
jhree other vacancies he is empo-
ered to fill.
The anti-discrimination agen-
y became mired in controversy
after Reagan moved to replace
five of its six members and
actually fired three commis-
sioners.
In a brief written statement,
eagan, who has had a constant
ug-of-war with the commission
nd its supporters in Congress,
aid his action “is cause for confi-
lence that the commission’s best
ears are yet to come.”
The commission technically
went out of business at midnight
Tuesday and the controversy
)ver its membership and mission
asta cloud over its future until a
:ompromise was struck between
he White House and Congress.
Reagan said he was “pleased
hat the commission has been re-
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I United Press International
WASHINGTON — Rep. Clement
^itwoyww^Zablocki, D-Wis., chairman of the
§ CP House Foreign Affairs Committee,
•JAfcWl: ere d a heart attack in his Capitol
HAM® Hill office Wednesday and was hos-
nlversityDf pitalized unconscious and in critical
> A Texas condition.
iStatlonBry 1 Doctors at Capitol Hill Hospital,
fromei cnico where Zablocki was rushed by ambu-
s KKiiioormtWWice, said he was not breathing on his
jngttov.H , ; 0Wn.
Zablocki, 71, suffered two subse-
Kient “episodes where the rhythm of
created,” but added the signing
does not alleviate concerns with
in the administration that the
new structure violates the consti
tutional principle of separation
of powers.
The Justice Department, in a
separate statement, said by divid
ing the power to appoint its eight
members between the president
and Congress, “the commission
itself is not placed clearly within
any of the three branches of gov
ernment.”
“Agencies which are inconsis
tent with the tripartite system of
government established by the
framers of our Constitution
should not be created,” the de
partment said. “Equally un
acceptable are proposals which
impermissably dilute the powers
of the president to appoint and
remove officers of the United
States.”
However, the department ack
nowledged the commission “is
unique in form and function”
and indicated the political man
euvering that went into its res
tructuring should not become a
precedent.
Sen. Robert Dole, R-Kan., a
key figure in negotiations on the
bill, had warned a veto “would be
a big setback” for the cause of
civil rights and could damage re
lations between the White House
and Capitol Hill.
One aspect of the controversy
fizzled out Wednesday when a
federal appeals court sidestep
ped a legal dispute over Reagan’s
power to fire three holdover
Democrats on the commission —
Mary Francis Berry of Washing
ton, Blandina Ramirez of San
Antonio, and Rabbi Murray Salt-
zman of Baltimore.
Party chairmen speak
on schools, Grenada
by Brenda Bivona
Battalion Reporter
The Texas state party chairmen
agree on two things: there is a prob
lem in the Texas public education sys
tem and that the United States was
correct in sending troops to Grenada.
Democratic Chairman Bob Slagle
and Republican Chairman George
Strake spoke to a group of about 200
at the MSC Political Forum meeting
Wednesday night in Rudder Tower.
“The Democratic solution to com
bat the lack of competent teachers in
Texas is to realize we are going to
have to pay more for quality
teachers,” said Slagle.
Strake said the first step in impro
ving the Texas public education sys
tem is to restructure the system by
getting quality teachers through com
petency tests and then making more
money available.
Both chairmen said the troops sent
to Grenada should be complimented
for their efforts. Strake added that
the move might affect the freedom of
this country and the Western Hemis
phere for a long time to come.
The chairmen also answered ques
tions geared to their own parties. Dur-
Dave Scott, Battalion staff
Republican George Strake (left), Democrat Bob Slagle (right)
discuss education at Wednesday’s debate.
ing this time no rebuttals were
allowed.
Slagle said he rejects the idea that
the Democratic party relies on special
interest groups.
“Today there are many so-called
special interest groups — even far
mers and teachers,” he said. “Ideas
are generated by special interest
groups. I am a father, attorney, and a
church member. These are all special
interest groups.”
Strake, in response to the question
directed at the Republican party, said
the needs of minorities and women
are much better served by two parties.
“There is a benefit in having com
petition,” he said. “It is now to the
black communities advantage to look
at both parties.”
Slagle, when asked about Phil
Gramm’s split from the democratic
party, said that in no way indicates a
possible split among the party itself.
“To be quite frank, I’m delighted
Gramm let his feet follow where his
head has been,” he said.
Asked about the effect of Bill Cle
ments loss in the governor’s race,
Strake said the Republican party still
has a future in Texas.
“The Republican party represents
a system where the individual is called
on to do more for himself,” he said.
“Republicans stand for more respon
sibility and reliance of individuals. We
have a unique system in which there
are vast differences in the two par
ties.”
Strake became the chairman of the
Republican party of Texas in April,
1983 and Slagle has been ihe Texas
Democratic party chairman since
1980.
Looking forward to teaching
Dean of Liberal Arts resigns
by Steve Thomas
Battalion Staff
In his ninth and last year as a Texas A&M admi
nistrator, Dr. Keith L. Bryant Jr. is looking forward
to getting back into teaching and research.
“That’s what I want to do,” says Bryant, the dean
of the College of Liberal Arts. “Get back into
teaching full time and doing research.
His resignation, effective Aug. 31, 1984, was
accepted by President Frank E. Vandiver Nov. 22.
“I feel very good about those nine years, but I
didn’t get into academe to be an administrator,” he
said.
Bryant taught college history in Missouri and
Wisconsin for 14 years before accepting the posi
tion of professor and head of the department of
history here in 1976. Since then he has continued to
teach and publish, but not as much as he would like.
“I have missed the opportunity to do both to the
extent which I did as a faculty member without
administrative obligations,” he wrote in a Nov. 23
memorandum to the faculty of the College of Liber
al Arts.
Bryant said he likes to work with people, and he
uses individuals in his lectures to demonstrate
points. He has continued teaching history 106 in
addition to his duties as dean.
“Those are the three best hours of my week,” he
said, and it is the students that make his work enjoy
able as much as his love of the subject.
“Aggies are fun to teach,” he said. They have
more of a sense of commitment to learning than
students at other universities. Bryant said Texas
A&M teachers should feel privileged that they have
the opportunity to teach Aggies.
Bryant intends to take a four-month leave of
absence next fall to finish his most recent book, a
biography on the American artist William Merritt
Chase. The people of history are most important,
Bryant said — and that’s the reason for his interest
in biographical work.
“Keith is always relating history to what he’s
doing,” President Vandiver said, “and I think that’s
wonderful. He’s a splendid man to work with, and
I’m sorry for the University that he’s resigning.”
Vandiver said Bryant has done “a fine job” as
dean, including his efforts to get the issue of a
University core curriculum before the faculty sen
ate, in which he recently has succeeded. Vandiver
said a core curriculum is necessary to the advance
ment of the University.
Bryant wholeheartedly agrees.
“We’re one of the few universities in the country
of this size that doesn’t have a general education
requirement — a core curriculum,” he said. “We’ve
got to make sure students get a university educa
tion, not just technical training.”
Bryant talked of the exceptional progress the
College of Liberal Arts has made in the past 20
years/ He said some of the departments have
already met national standards. The Department of
Economics, he said, is among the top 25 in the
country.
GM’s scholarship package
by Holly Powell
Battalion Staff
General Motors’ recent endowment
$250,000 to fund scholarships for
minorities and women is the result of
an agreement between the U.S. Equal
Employment Opportunity Commis
sion and CM. The endowment is part
of a $15 million package for endow
ments and scholarships provided by
General Motors.
According to a CM press release,
the program should resolve a charge
of discrimination by a former chair
man of the EEOC against General
Motors. The settlement will avoid the
possibility of a long litigation over the
charge.
The charge consisted of failure to
hire and bias in training and promo
tion of blacks, Hispanics and other
minorities, and women.
Texas A&M will receive $50,000
annually for five years beginning with
the 1984-85 school year. The money
will go to minority and women scho
larship recipients with preference
given to CM employees and their
families.
The scholarships are intended to
offer educational opportunities for
students in need of financial assist
ance in order to reap benefits in the
future for General Motors and its em
ployees.
Sullivan executed despite
Pope’s pleas
the heart was unsatisfactory,” after he
came to the hosptial, said Dr. James
Trane, medical director of the hospit
al. A hospital spokeswoman said Zab
locki had suffered a “full cardiac
arrest” in the emergency room, but
heart rhythm was restored by doctors.
Trane said at a late afternoon
briefing that Zablocki was still not
breathing on his own and there was
“essentially no change” in his condi
tion, but heart rhythm, blood press
ure and pulse were normal.
United Press International
STARKE, Fla. — Despite an appeal
for mercy from Pope John Paul II,
convicted murderer Robert A. Sulli
van was put to death in Florida’s elec
tric chair Wednesday. He died with a
plea for an end to “this monster of
capital punishment.”
Sullivan, who had spent more time
on death row than any present in
mate, was killed by a two-minute
surge of 2,500 volts of electricity after
telling the 24 witnesses, “I hold malice
to none. May God bless us all.”
The burly 36-year-old college
dropout, convicted of the 1973 execu
tion-style murder of a motel clerk,
never waivered in maintaining his in
nocence and his attorneys fought to
the end to spare his life.
A final appeal to the 11th U.S.
Circuit Court of Appeals was turned
down at 10:02 a.m. EST, the same
moment Sullivan was strapped to the
59-year-old three-legged electric
chair at the Florida State Prison.
Wearing a white shirt, blue pants,
white socks and no shoes, Sullivan
then read a two-page statement from
a legal pad held by Prison Supt.
Richard Dugger.
“I plead and encourage a con
tinued effort to end this monster of
capital punishment,” he said.
The adopted son of a Harvard-
educated physician also quoted from
the 62nd Psalm and thanked the pope
for his intevention on his behalf. “I
send my love to my friends who are in
reality my family,” he said.
He urged capital punishment foes
to continue the fight “because the
cause is just.”
Corrections officers then placed a
steel mantle containing electrodes on
his shaved head and a strap across his
mouth.
Gov. Robert Graham in Tallahas
see, who had an open telephone line
with Dugger, was told at 10:02 a.m.
that the Atlanta appeals court had de
nied a stay. Eight minutes later, Gra
ham told Dugger, “There are no
stays. God save us all.”
Dugger signaled a hooded execu
tioner who turned a handle at 10:11
a.m. to send current surging through
the chair. A rubber flap had been lo
wered over Sullivan’s face but his
chest heaved and he twisted his
hands, resting on the sides of the
chair. One witness said he saw faint
smoke coming from his right leg and
head.
The current was turned off two
minutes later and Sullivan was offi
cially pronounced dead at 10:16 a.m.
by Dr. Cahn Nugyun, the prison
physician.
Prison officials said the execution
“went very smoothly.”
“I don’t know that there is any
humane way to kill a person,” said
spokesman Vernon Bradford. “I
think it is the law and it has to be
carried out and it went very
smoothly.” ;
The 280-pound Sullivan, a Catho
lic, asked that his body be cremated
and the ashes spread near his father’s
grave in Nashua, N.H.
No family members were present
at the prison. His 83-year-old mother,
Stella Sullivan, reached by telephone
alone at her Arlington, Mass., home,
said: “I am not talking to anyone at all.
There’s no one else here and I don’t
want to make any comments.”
Outside the prison under cool,
clear skies, about a dozen protesters
who had conducted an all-night vigil
sang folk songs and hymns and car
ried signs reading “Death Row Must
Go.” Another dozen, however, back
ed the execution with signs saying
“We Love the Victim.”
Services
held today
Memorial services for Jolie
Mailhos will be today at St.
Mary’s Catholic Church. Father
Leon Strider and Father A1
Palermo will officiate at the 4:30
p.m. service.
Mailhos, who was an active
member of Student Govern
ment, was killed along with her
father, grandfather and brother
in a plane accident Saturday.
Mailhos was traveling to
Louisiana after the Texas A&M-
University of Texas football
game.
inside
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forecast
Partly cloudy with mild tempera
tures. High in the mid-60s.