A
Page 2AThe Battalion/Wednesday, April 9, 1986,
Opinion
‘Liability crisis’ out of control
Most often it is ———————
called the liability cri- John
sis, but it also has Cunniff
been described as a AP News Analysis
moral, business, legal
and financial dilemma that, if not re
solved, can only become more bizarre
and costly.
Stripped to its essentials, the problem
is this: Too many Americans look for
opportunities to sue. Too many lawyers
encourage them to do so. Too many
judges and juries make it profitable for
both of them.
As a consequence, surveys show that
almost one in five businesses cannot ob
tain liability insurance, and that many of
those with coverage are paying premi
ums up to five times more expensive
than a few years ago.
Testifying before a Senate commit
tee, Richard Berman, a U.S. Chamber
of Commerce official, referred to “a ju
dicial system gone berserk.” He termed
litigation “America’s equivalent of a na
tional lottery.”
Berman, who is also senior vice presi
dent for S&A Restaurant Corp. in Dal
las said that unless judicial reform is en
acted, workers will lose jobs,
obstetricians will discontinue services,
manufacturers will limit their sales to
foreign markets, and vaccines and
drugs will become “endangered prod
ucts.
Before the same Senate Commerce
Committee, Robert Moore, president of
the National Association of Insurance
Brokers, testified that only when Ameri
cans recognize the extent of the eco
nomic fallout will reform be possible.
That fallout is' pervasive. Jeffrey Jo
seph, a chamber vice president, ob
serves that, directors are finding it too
risky to serve not just on corporate
boards but on the boards of operas,
symphonies and other cultural institu
tions.
It will hit home to mothers and fa
thers, he predicted, when the liability
threat forces discontinuance of school
activities and perhaps even school bus
service.
The chamber has formed a Liability
Crisis Project that is serving as a clear
inghouse of information and advice for
businesses and is publishing a Liability
Crisis Newsletter containing informa
tion on national and state actions and
legislative reform.
“There are no disincentives to sue,”
said Joseph. But, he added, with
600,000 or 700,000 lawyers, and with
law schools “flushing out” thousands
more each year, there is positive pres
sure toward litigation.
John Cunniff is a business analyst for
The Associated Press.
A lit
lexas
Commonly asked questions about homosexuality
Last week,
according to Gay
Student Services,
was Gay Week at
Texas A&M. As a
tribute to this new
tradition, I de
cided to conduct a
little research and
do my part to help
answer some basic
questions concern
ing homosexuality.
What is homosexuality? In psychiatric
terms, homosexuality is defined as a
strong erotic attraction to members of
the same sex. Such homosexual tenden
cies generally lead to homosexual activ
ity, but not in all cases. A fair number of
homosexuals fail to act upon these ten
dencies because of social fears or prohi
bitions.
As social tolerance increases, many
homosexuals become less inhibited, act
upon their impulses and more readily
discuss their sexual orientation. Thus,
though it may seem that the number of
persons predisposed toward homosex
uality is increasing, it has remained rela
tively constant.
What is the incidence of homosexual
ity? Sex researcher Alfred Kinsey and
his associates theorized in their publica
tion Sexual Behavior in the Human
Male (1948) that sexuality exists on a
continuum ranging from “0” to “6.” A
“0” represents exclusive heterosexual
ity, a “6” represents exclusive homosex
uality and a “3” represents balanced bi
sexuality.
Kinsey estimates that 10 percent of
males are exclusively homosexual, but
accurate statistics are hard to measure
because of prevailing hostility toward
homosexuality in western culture.
Homosexual behavior has been docu
mented in many species, including all
animal species, though exclusive homo
sexuality as well as exclusive heterosex
uality is unique to the human species.
Homosexual activity was common in an
cient Greek and other earlier cultures
and has probably existed to some de
gree in a//human cultures, regardless of
cultural toleration or condemnation.
What are the causes of homosexual
ity? The specific causes of homosexual
ity remains undetermined, though va
rious predisposing factors have been
examined. No convincing evidence ex
ists to indicate that homosexuality is a
genetic trait, though inclination toward
homosexuality could be genetically
oriented. Homosexual activity can occur
when little or no heterosexual outlets
are available. This accounts for the high
incidence of homosexuality in prisons.
Many homosexual men claim to come
from a family background with a domi
nant or possessive mother and a weak or
distant father and vice versa for homo
sexual women, though many heterosex
uals come from similar backgrounds
and many homosexuals come from dif
ferent backgrounds. Thus, though fam
Glenn
Murtha
ily background may pay a role in the de
velopment of homosexuality, it is not
the sole factor. Most likely, a variety of
factors as yet undetermined coincide
early in an individual’s life to determine
sexual orientation.
Can sexual orientation be changed?
Some success has been achieved in chan
ging the sexual preference of a minority
of homosexuals who were unhappy with
their sexual orientation and chose to
seek treatment. Masters and Johnson
reported in Homosexuality in Perspec
tive (1979) that for the 20 percent of ho
mosexuals who are unhappy with their
homosexual tendencies, psychotherapy
could be effective in “converting” them
to heterosexuality. The therapeutical
failure rate for these persons was deter
mined to be 28 percent after five years.
Yet this data tells nothing of the 80 per
cent who are satisfied with their homo
sexuality and do not seek to change.
How should society react to homosex
uality? No single stereotypical homosex
ual exists. Homosexuals are found in all
professions and at all socioeconomic lev
els. Though some homosexuals may fal
into the stereotypical categories of e(
feminacy and promiscuity, mostdonot
Homosexuals are as varied and diverse
as heterosexuals, though many remait
closeted and invisible leaving the more
stereotypical homosexuals to receive
most of the public exposure.
Tolerance toward homosexualin
continues to expand. It is no longer®
sidered an illness in western cultuream!
laws prohibiting homosexual activin
continue to fall. Illinois became thefini
state to legalize homosexual activity ir
1961. Many cities now have ordinance
prohibiting discrimination against he
mosexuals.
It is inevitable that tolerance of ho
mosexuals will continue to increase!!
ignorance decreases and more peoplt
learn to understand and accept other!
who are different from themselves.
Glenn Murtha is a senior political set
ence major and a columnist for Tit
Battalion.
ics art
istabli
ydvi i
Cur
A&M
Iryan
jam
3amn
;ould
raten
“An
nove
c<
Fr
recti;
Exch
rand
sells
regrt
Deaver's questionable ethics
will raise his salary
Years ago, a
Washington jour
nalist wrote an ex
pose of a southern
senator, saying he
was a racist (or,
worse, that he was
not), corrupt and
willing to sell his
vote wholesale as
well as retail. To
all this, the senator
in question smiled a
porter. He said he would use the story
when he ran for re-elefction to prove
that he had the right enemies.
In the same vein, we should not be
surprised if Mike Deaver, the former
presidential valet turned influence
peddler, carries with him a clipping of
the Washington Post story saying he
skirted the law by lobbying the director
of the Office of Management and Bud
get. The import of the story was to ques
tion Deaver’s ethics. The effect of the
story will be to raise his hourly rate.
The law — the silly little law — for
bids a senior official who leaves govern
ment from lobbying his former depart
ment or agency for a year. Deaver’s
former agency is the White House to
which, in everyone’s thinking, the Of
fice of Management and Budget is an
adjunct. Officially, though, Deaver was
just this side of the angels. OMB,
according to the White House, is not
part of the White House. It merely re
ports to it.
Deaver is nothing if not cute. White
House aides, apparently seeking to pro
tect the president from the worst inten
tions of his best friends, leaked the story
about Deaver. Their probable intention
is to ensure that Deaver stays away from
the White House where, from time to
time, he is invited as a guest of the Rea
gans. These aides may have sensed that
in Deaver they are dealing with some
thing more than just a presidential assis
tant turned lobbyist, but the very perso
nification of the ideological corruption
of the Reagan administration itself — its
loss of purpose.
It was Ronald Reagan, after all, who
came to Washington the way the Visi
goths came to Rome — to sack it. His in
tention was to leave it a smaller, weaker
city. His foes were the entrenched bu
reaucrats, his allies the gifted amateurs
from the private sector who would be
the gentleman farmers of government.
In fact, when Robert McFarlane either
was pushed or jumped from the posi
tion of National Security Advisor, the
president used the occasion to restate
his creed that government service, like a
hospital stay, should be as brief as possi
ble. Washington, to him, is just a place
to visit.
But the Visigoths have not only
stayed, they have become corrupted and
besotted by the wines of Georgetown.
Time magazine recently listed 15 for
mer Reagan administration aides, some
of them once quite high-up, who are
now Washington lobbyists. Deaver, the
First Friend of the First Family, is just
the best-connected of them. He is actu
ally the person the president cam
paigned against, the stereotype of the
Washington insider that Reagan hung,
like a horse collar, first around the neck
of Gerald Ford and then Jimmy Carter.
But the bogeyman from the old cam
paigns is through the gates. The rep
resentative of special interests now has
special access to the White House.
It is probably for that reason that
Deaver’s brush with federal conflict-of-
interest regulations, alleged or other
wise, is being pushed by the Washington
Times, the movement conservative
newspaper. Ever alert of apostasy, it
sees Deaver as a lapsed Reaganite or,
worse yet, never a true one. He — along
with Treasury Secretary James Baker
and his aide Richard Darman — were
always under suspicion by the right-
wing thought police. They were deemed
to be infected with pragmatism — a
Washington disease that comes from
eating canapes.
Whatever the sins of Deaver, they are
characteristic of the end-stage of the
Reagan administration. The life has
Richard
Cohen
Case in point
EDITOR:
I parked my car on Sunday night at 7 p.m. in the
freshman parking lot. Like a typical “fish,” I am a bit
forgetful and I left my cassette tape case on top of
my black 1981 Ford Mustang. When I went back to
get my case — no more than five minutes later *— it
was gone. Now, I am sure that some good Samaritan
took the case to keep some thief from stealing it. I
thank you for your generosity, but I need my tapes
and the case back.
George Gaytan ’89
260-5275
Not a streetgang
EDITOR:
I would like to offer my congratulations to the
apparent literary major who wrote “D.G. Zips ’86” in
- Mail Call -
three-foot tall red letters on the side of our dorm, of
our home for that matter. None of us here
particularly liked the name Moses anyway, and we
would appreciate if the rest of the campus would call
us the “Men of D.G. Zips ’86” from now on.
Come on guys, this is a society, not a streetgang. It
seems to me that when a person has matured and is
ready to face the world, he should see the writing on
the wall.. . not put it there.
Jeffrey Martin
The purpose of Silver Tops
EDITOR:
I would just like to say that I thought the Ross
Volunteers did an excellent job at Silver Taps Apr. 1
regardless of what Logan F. Woodard may think. I
am proud to say that since I came to Texas A&M
three years ago I have never missed a Silver Taps or
an Aggie Muster, and the RV’s have always done an
excellent job.
When I go to Silver Taps, I do not push my way to
the front of the crowd so that I can closely inspect
and criticize the RVs as they conduct the ceremony.
I do not go to be entertained by precision marching.
I go to Silver Taps to honor my fellow students who
have met untimely deaths. I hope that the ceremony
in some way helps to comfort the grief-stricken
families of those being honored. For this reason, I
will continue to support one of the best traditions at
A&M.
Mike Thomas
Class of’87
Letters to the Editor should not exceed 300 words in length. 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 be signed and must include the address and telephone
number of the writer.
gone out of the beast; lobbyists circle
overhead. The president, oblivioustoi:
all, continues to attack Washington,n#
realizing, apparently, that he has been
captured from the rear. And sounspec
ial have special interests become dial
few notice that it took a former oil man
George Bush, to declare that wheni
comes to oil, the free market leave
something to be desired. Golly, some
one ought to raise the price!
In the end, all revolutions get be
trayed and the Reagan Revolution isn!
exception. One by one the former Visi
goths have become limousine conserve
lives. At least in Washington, it’s n«
longer morning again. The clock has
moved. It’s time for lunch. Let’s make!
deal.
Richard Cohen is a columnist for tht
Washington Post Writers Group.
The Battalion
(USPS 045 360)
Member of
Texas Press Association
Southwest Journalism Conference
The Battalion Editorial Board
Michelle Powe, Editor
Kay Mallett, Managing Editor
Loren Steffy, Opinion Page Editor
Jerry Oslin, City Editor
Cathie Anderson, News Editor
Travis Tingle, Sports Editor
Editorial Policy
The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting nessy
per operated as a community service to Texas A&Mw
Bryan-College Station. ,
Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of It*
Editorial Board or the author, and do not necessarily W
resent the opinions of Texas A&M administrators, be* 1 !
or the Board of Regents. .
The Battalion also sel ves as a laboratory newspaptrl 01
students in reporting, editing and photography dll 111
within the Department of Communications. .
United Press International is entitled exclusively I 0tr ’
use for reproduction of all news dispatches credited l°i
Rights of reproduction of all other matter herein w
served. ^
The Battalion is published Monday through fy®'
during Texas A&M regular semesters, except tor hu&L
and examination periods. Mail subscriptions are II : '.,
per semester, $33.25 per school year and $3o pet
year. Advertising rales furnished on request. u
Our address: The Battalion, 216 Reed Mcbnti
Building. Texas A&M University, College Station,
77843 - . ■ -vv mu
Second class postage paid at College Station, IA i ,
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to T/ie W "
ion, 216 Reed McDonald. Texas A&M University,
Station TX 77843.