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The Battalion
Serving the Gniversity community
bl. 80 No. 144 (JSPS 045360 16 pages
College Station, Texas
Wednesday, May 1, 1985
Reagan
imposes
embargo
BONN, West Germany (AP) —
lesident Reagan ordered a total
‘mbargoon trade with lef tist Nicara-
|Ua today and moved to deny U.S.
pcess to Nicaraguan commercial air-
nersand flag vessels.
1 0 counter Nicaragua’s aggressive
)ns in Central America, Reagan
is abrogating a 27-year-old U.S.-
iraguan friendship treaty.
The activities of Nicaragua, sup-
ed by the Soviet Union and its
s, are incompatable with normal
mercial relations,” presidential
xsman Larry Speakes said.
The president authorized these
s in response to the emergency
ition created by the Nicaraguan
mment’s aggressive action in
tral America,” Speakes said in an
nouncement to reporters shortly
er Reagan arrived in the West
rman capital for a seven-nation
anomic summit.
Speakes said the president was
ning orders for the embargo to-
|y and sending a message on the
Ition to Congress.
J0 pi Yea rs Lot©r photo hy ANTHONYs - casper
The Vietnamese Student Association at protest marked the 10th anniversary of the
Texas A&M held a silent protest Tuesday fall of Saigon and the beginning of Commu-
afternoon near the Academic Building and a nist rule in South Vietnam. See related sto-
torchlight remembrance Tuesday night. The ries and photos page 15.
\&M awaiting decision
Officials secure Italian artifacts
By TRENT LEOPOLD
Senior Stuff Writer
University officials have taken
even artifacts from the Pavilion
vhere they were on display and
ocked them away inside a vault.
' The officials are waiting to find
Hit if the artifacts were legally
brought into this country. The arti
facts are under the supervision of J.
Wayne Stark, special assistant for
Cultural development to Texas A&M
President Frank Vandiver.
Dr. Gordon P. Eaton, vice presi
dent for academic af fairs, said T ues-
iay the artifacts will be kept in the
vault until Italian government offi
cials determine if the artifacts, do
nated to A&M by Dr. Michele Ca-
pnto, are here legally.
Caputo, a geophysics professor,
was quoted in The Battalion on April
12 as saying he smuggled one of the
anil acts, a vase, from Italy into the
United States. He said he bought the
vase, dating from the Spina civiliza
tion of fourth century B.C., from a
fisherman and then bought a fish to
hide the vase in.
In a letter to The Battalion pub
lished Monday, Vaughn M. Bryant,
professor and head of the anthro
pology department, stated that Ca-
puto’s smuggling activities set a poor
example for others and placed A&M
in jeopardy.
But Tuesday, Caputo said he was
the legal owner of the artifacts, al
though he could not remember
when he got them.
“I cannot say when I got them or
how much I paid for them,” Caputo
said. “I do not remember.”
Eaton said all but one of the arti
facts were purchased, at what is the
equivalent of an antique store, in
Italy. And Italian law allows them to
be taken out of Italy.
Caputo said he didn’t think any
Italian museum would be interested
in his pieces because they “have hun
dreds of beautiful pieces.”
“They (the artifacts) are not valu
able in Italy because museums have
thousands of them,” Caputo said.
“They have them on their ceilings
and everywhere. They don’t even
have enough room to house them
all.”
Caputo said he was ready to coop
erate “with anything, which mignt
satisfy the University and everybo
dy.”
“My gesture (of donating the arti
facts) was to show devotion to
A&M,” Caputo said.
Eaton said no action would be
taken against Caputo until the Uni
versity nears from the Italian gov
ernment, and he believes this will
take several weeks.
Senate accepts
$52 billion cut
in 1986 budget
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Republi
can-controlled Senate, on a 50-49
vote that closely followed party lines,
gave symbolic, first-step approval
Tuesday night to $52 billion in
spending cuts for 1986, including
curtailment of Social Security cost of
living increases.
But in a sign of struggles still to
come, several Republicans who
voted for the plan were expected to
join Democrats in later efforts to re
store the Social Security increases,
reverse deep cuts in domestic pro
grams and freeze Pentagon spend
ing authority at this year’s level.
The vote was a victory for Presi
dent Reagan just before his sched
uled departure for an economic
summit meeting in Europe, and Sen
ate Majority Leader Robert Dole of
Kansas said it demonstrated that
“for one brief moment, at least, we
agreed we wanted to cut the deficit
by $300 billion” over three years.
Reagan, in a statement issued by
the White House, said the vote
“demonstrated foresight and re
sponsible leadership” but warned
that supporter s of the package “will
have to stand fast against a long list
of amendments.”
Predictably, Democratic critics
took a dim view of the package, de
tailing what they said would be a di
sastrous result for farmers, Social
Security recipients and others. The
three-year curtailment of Social Se
curity benefits will “drive another
half a million people into poverty”
by 1988, said Sen. Donald Riegle, D-
Mich.
All 47 Democrats voted against
the blueprint, joined by Republicans
Robert Kasten of Wisconsin and
Charles Mathias of Maryland. The
50 “yes” votes were all provided by
Republicans. The only senator not
voting, Republican John East of
North Carolina, is hospitalized.
Dole said he was uncertain about
the outcome until the votes were
cast. He arranged to have Vice Presi
dent George Bush presiding in case
his vote were needed to break a tie.
The only practical effect of the
roll call was to place the controver
sial budget before the Senate as a
package — open for Republican and
Democratic attempts to dismantle it.
Several Republicans played down
the importance of their vote, de
scribing it as purely procedural. Sen.
Mark Andrews of North Dakota de
nounced the budget as a “turkey”
and pledged to seek restoration of
funds for agriculture, housing,
health and other programs.
Republicans Alphonse D’Amato
of New York and Paula Hawkins of
Florida said they voted for the plan
after being assured their amend
ment to restore Social Security in
creases would be voted on first to
day. “I think we can pass that
amendment,” said D’Amato.
But Sen. Pete V. Domenici, R-
N.M , chairman of the Senate Bud
get Committee, said the vote “shows
there is a willingness to put together
a package of deficit reduction that’s
the size needed to keep the economy
going and get interest rates down.”
Further votes were put off until
today, but Senate GOP Whip Alan
Simpson of Wyoming and other
party leaders conceded in advance
the package might begin to unravel
swiftly from amendments such as
D’Amato’s and Hawkins’.
In that case, Simpson and others
suggested, the GOP fallback position
would be to seek Democratic sup
port for a revised package of spend
ing cuts, without giving in to de
mands to consider tax increases.
Tutor expresses opinion of Chemistry program
Editor’s note: This is the second arti-
kin a two-part series on the fresh-
mn chemistry program at Texas
\&M.
By ANN CERVENKA
Staff Writer
Michael Goad, known by many
Texas A&M students for his “Chem
Buster” shirt, is now tutoring 518
students to help them enjoy Chemis
try 102, Fundamentals of Chemistry
II, while they learn it.
g Although some A&M chemistry
professors have said their program
is effective, Goad disagrees.
Goad said students complain that
their homework is not corrected and
returned but shows up on tests, that
exam questions are too challenging,
that the book is too difficult to un
derstand and that the grading policy
does not reflect what students know.
Last semester, a Chemistry 101,
Fundamentals of Chemistry I, stu
dent with a 78 percent average got
the same grade as a person with a 56
percent average: C.
“It’s not fair,” Goad said. “It
doesn’t show what they know at the
end of the course.”
Goad said low grades discourage
many students from taking more
chemistry classes.
He compared the A&M depart
ment with that of the University of
Texas. Both departments use the
same text.
After averaging the grades from
three exams of about 2,000 A&M
students, the results tire as follows: 6
percent A’s, 15.5 percent B’s, 20.5
percent C’s, 26.5 percent D’s and
31.5 percent F’s.
Of 2,171 chemistry students at
LIT, the grades are as follows: 26.8
percent A’s, 25.2 percent B’s, 21.7
percent C’s, 11.4 percent D’s and 15
percent F’s.
The University has 58 percent D’s
and F’s while UT has 26 percent.
And the chemistry department at
A&M provides additional help, in
cluding tutoring, for students free of
charge.
“If the department has so much
tutoring, why do I have 518 stu
dents,”^ Goad asked. “Something
needs to be done.”
Goad said his students, with an
overall grade point ratio of 2.72,
cotne to him because they cannot un
derstand chemistry. Although his
students are not “brains,” they make
grades above the average in Chemis
try 102.
On the first exam, the department
average was 64 percent. Goad’s stu
dents averaged 69 percent. The de
partment average for the second
exam was 69 percent; his students
averaged 81 percent.
Goad said 90 percent of his stu
dents found the book “wordy, con
fusing and illogical.” Although the
book is used in several colleges and
universities around the country,
most only cover about half the
material.
“A&M covers 29 out of the 30
chapters,” Goad said. “UT uses 19
out of 30 in the same amount of
time.”
“UT also has a pre-required
chemistry course before the students
even begin,” he said.
Goad said before the last exam,
every available space in his apart
ment was used by 62 students who
needed extra help. Students also
come by his apartment at other times
each week.
“I teach chemistry in simple ev
eryday terms,” he said.
Goad uses acronyms, demonstra
tions and association games to teach
the theory so it can be easily under
stood by students.
Goad charges $25 per semester,
which averages to 48 cents an hour.
“I want to help people,” Goad
said. “I’m concerned that students
do learn. Learning should be an ex
citing adventure.”
The Battalion's errors
irk some Texas A&M
faculty and students
Rhonda Snider, the fall editor,
Teen-agers talk about laws for minors
Of course, no one wants a 13~ycar~ohi girl going out
and ha ving sex with a W-ycar-old guy, Alicia Parrish, a
junior at: A&M Consolidated High School, said. But
part of the responsibility for keeping this sort of thing
from happening must remain with minors' parents.
Editor’s note: This is the third
article in a three-part series on
The Battalion.
By CYNTHIA GAY
Reporter
Some Texas A&M students are
well aware of The Battalion’s er
rors.
“It bothers me every other day
to see a correction,” senior Carla
Proctor says.
When needed. The Battalion
correction box is shaded and
printed on Page 1.
Michelle Povve, the managing
editor for the Fall semester, says:
“That means we’re not afraid to
admit our mistakes. The New
York Times and The Eagle have
a correction box, but they don’t
put it on the front (page).”
says:
“We want people to realize that
we’re not afraid to admit our mis
takes.”
Like the college student who
finds himself finishing one exam
only to see another one looming
on the academic horizon, the re
porter lives from deadline to
deadline. The mixing of the dual
roles of student and reporter
within the confines of The Battal
ion newsroom often makes for an
atmosphere more explosive than
a chemistry lab in Heldenfels
Hall.
Dr. John Koldus, vice presi
dent for student services, says,
“There’s no group on campus
that has the same amount of pres
sure everyday as The Battalion.”
See NEWS, page 5
Editor's note: This is the third article
in a three-part series on the rights of
minors.
By CATHIE ANDERSON
Staff Writer
Teen-agers in College Station
hold various opinions about Texas
laws for minors and the effect that
those laws have upon them.
Probably the hottest topic of dis
cussion among this group was the
law, which prevents teen-agers un
der the age of 19 from drinking.
One 18-year-old, who had re
cently been charged for possession
of alcohol, said he could see the
principle of the law, but that it still
seemed unfair to teen-agers.
Alicia Parrish, a sophomore at
A&M Consolidated High School,
said if the law is going to be en
forced, it should be enforced the
same across the board. While some
people say they have only gotten
warnings for breaking this law, she
said, others have gotten charged im
mediately.
It’s not fair to all minors if it’s not
strictly enforced with everyone, Par
rish said.
But Parrish also said that being a
responsible drinker is part of what
adolescents must learn to become re
sponsible adults. She said that peo
ple have to realize that some things
simply can’t be legislated.
Jonathan Pledger, a senior at
A&M Consolidated, was of the same
opinion. He said that some subjects
are handled better within a parent-
child relationship rather than a
state-minor one.
Both Pledger and Parrish said the
age that minors can legally have sex
is one of those subjects. In Texas, cit
izens are legally prohibited from
engaging in sex until they reach the
age of 17.
Of course, no one wants a 13-
year-old girl going out and having
sex with a 19-year-old guy, Parrish
said. But she said partial responsibil
ity for keeping this from happening
must remain with parents.
Statutory rape can be a cop-out
for both parents and teen-agers,
Parrish said. Parents are angry be
cause they don’t know their children
are having sex, and children are
scared because their parents have
found out they’re having sex.
But the teen-agers weren’t totally
negative about — or in disagreement
with — Texas laws.
Gordon Bass, a senior at A&M
Consolidated, said that he agrees
with the law that prohibits minors
between the ages of 14 and 18 from
marrying without parental consent.
“I just can’t see anybody at 16
going out and getting married with
out parental consent, so I’d have to
agree with that (law),” he said.
Parrish said:
“I can’t imagine getting married now
(age 16). I think that parents would
deserve to know about a decision like
that.”
Bass also agreed with a law, which
says minors can get pregnancy-or
sex-related treatment without pa
rental notification.
“I think it’s fantastic if people
don’t have to tell their parents be
cause if they did, they’d never get
any help,” he said.
If a teen-ager gets pregnant and
needs help, Bass said, she should be
able to get treatment without paren
tal consent or notification.
Parrish and Bass also agreed with
the Supreme Court decision that al
lows minors to have an abortion
without parental consent. Bass said
minors need this privilege because
of possible health problems as well as
parental and peer pressure.
“If they had to tell their parents,”
Parrish said, “their lives could be ru-
See MINORS, page 8