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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 20, 1987)
Page 2/ r The Battalion/Monday, April 20, 1987 The Battalion (USPS 045 360) Member of Texas Press Association Southwest journalism Conference The Battalion Editorial Board Loren Steffy, Editor Marybeth Rohsner, Managing Editor Mike Sullivan, Opinion Page Editor Jens Koepke, City Editor Jeanne Isenberg, Sue Krenek, News Editors Homer Jacobs, Sports Editor Tom Ownbey, Photo Editor Editorial Policy The Battalion is a non-profit, self-supporting newspaper oper ated as a community service to Texas A&M and Bryan-College Sta tion. Opinions expressed in The Battalion are those of the editorial board or the author, and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Texas A&M administrators, faculty or the Board of Regents. The Battalion also serves as a laboratory newspaper for students in reporting, editing and photography classes within the Depart ment of Journalism. The Battalion is published Monday through Friday during Texas A&M regular semesters, except for holiday and examination periods. Mail subscriptions are $17.44 per semester, $34.62 per school year and $36.44 per full year. Advertising rates furnished on re quest. Our address: The Battalion, Department of Journalism, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-4 111. Second class postage paid at College Station, TX 77843. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Battalion, De partment of Journalism, Texas A&M University, College Station TX 77843-4111. Learning the lesson This semester, Texas A&M has been battered by a barrage of open-records requests. So it’s good to see at least one such inquiry recognized without the petitioners being subjected to the Universi ty’s usual litigious attitude. A little more than a week after releasing the results of its in- house investigation into alleged NCAA rules violations by the Ath letic Department, A&M is again involved in Freedom of Information Act requests — but this time the process is not inhibited by the Uni versity’s typically uncooperative demeanor. The A&M chapter of the Young Conservatives of Texas has re quested financial records of the Legislative Study Group, a lobbying organization affiliated with Student Government, to see if the LSG has used student service fee money. The records are public under the Texas Open Records Act, and representatives of LSG have said they don’t plan on fighting the re quest. Their main concern is that YCT doesn’t understand the na ture of LSG. The Athletic Department should take note of the cooperation displayed by both groups. Over the last few years, the University has faced several lawsuits and many FOI requests because it refuses to di vulge information that is clearly public record. LSG’s records are open to anyone who wants to see them, and that includes YCT. After the recent onslaught of open records re quests, the University is finally coming to its senses. How ironic that it took two student organizations to show A&M how to obey the law. Help wanted Spring has sprung, the grass is green and The Battalion staff is kinda lean. You gripe and moan and scream and cry, and all the time you’re asking, “Why?” Why run this? Why run that? You Battalion staffers are really lax. Your minds are soft, your brains don’t work, and Karl Pallmeyer is such a jerk. To this we say, as we always have, “What the hell, you gotta laugh.” But if that reply does not suffice, here’s a little good advice. In stead of whining and asking “Why?,” show some guts and just apply. Applications are due April 24 in 216 Reed McDonald. Mail Call Regrettable oversight EDITOR: I was looking through the directory of classes for the summer and fall of 1987, and I was very upset to discover that some of the final examinations for the 10-week summer session were scheduled for Friday evening and for the fall semester were scheduled on both Friday evening and Saturday morning. I took note of the fact that no exams were scheduled on Sunday, the Christian sabbath day. Perhaps the fact that Friday evenings and Saturdays are the Jewish sabbath days was forgotten when this new Final-exam schedule was decided. I am writing this letter as a reminder to you. This new schedule is a violation of the rights of any Jewish student who is required to take an exam on the Sabbath. Orthodox students and faculty are not even permitted to write on Friday evening and Saturday as a part of the Sabbath tradition. Please keep in mind the fact that this new schedule is a violation of the rights of any Jewish faculty member who would be required to administer an exam on the Sabbath. I feel certain that as soon as the administration is made aware of this oversight that this violation will be rectified. Terry S. and Lori Hill Grow up. Mom EDITOR: To those Aggie mothers who “claimed responsibility” for the toilet papering of the Texas A&M president’s home on April 10, these thoughts occurred to me as I helped my staff members clean up your mess that Saturday morning. 1. Surely, there was a more productive avenue for your protest against senior final exams. 2. Your attempt only spent money the A&M grounds department does not have. Granted, it only required three to four overtime hours to clean up. However, with the current funding level of 60 percent and anticipation of 50 percent in September, these few wasted hours are important. 3. It also took away some weekend hours for the cleanup crew. 4. After observing students and their increasing lack of concern for property, both state and personal, I now know the origin of these attitudes. Your junior-high type activities amply illustrate the source of these attitudes. 5. I hope your future efforts are directed in a more positive and adult fashion. Eugene H. Ray Director, Grounds Maintenance Department 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 classification, address and telephone number of the writer. Opinion Anyone findergart ■nentary J a the “pu] ■age 5- or ■ Each M ■day mo jouhomon go the Br; Burs wit ■hile the and say the how to teat (Her wo ss is par Cl 227 ihentary i lopeii to no ■ Bob Wri !. sa\s EDCI i shews edu Little things can to one gigantic add up hassle in a like early it BKaeh sin : eternal \- •.working wi ■ College ■•ight say; ■"Most of ■tensive e sa\ i. “The students ha tchiug solid i It happened Thursday. I was on my way to class and I stopped to get a Dr. Pepper. I deposited my two quarters and pressed the Dr. Pepper button. I waited. Nothing happened. I pressed the button again. Still noth ing. I pulled the change. I pulled change. Nobody was looking, so I gave the machine several good, hard kicks. I got nothing for my efforts but five sore toes and a bad mood. Losing 50 cents certainly didn’t put me in a financial bind, it just annoyed the heck out of me. I was thirsty. I really wanted that Dr. Pepper, and those two quarters were the only change I had. Little irritations like that can ruin a perfectly good mood. I went to class still stewing about my lost 50 cents and unquenchable thirst, and once there, thought of other mis haps that can put a damper on your dis position. By the end of class I had a list about 12 miles long. See if any of these things ring a bell: • Getting a zit before a big date, an important interview, or, worst of all, your school picture — where your zit is recorded on Film for posterity. It won’t be a regular zit, either. It will be the big gest, ugliest zit known to man and it will be smack dab in the middle of your forehead. You’ll overhear people talk ing about you. “Hey man, did you see that guy? He’s got three eyes!” • Falling down on campus. Does any body ever fall in a secluded place? No. I think everyone who’s ever fallen down has done so in the most crowded, most conspicuous spot on campus. Those un fortunate enough to end up sprawling on the cement in front of the entire stu dent body are always female, and usually wearing a dress or skirt. Don't tell anybody, but 1 fell down once in front of Blocker (luckily 1 was wearing jeans). • Being late to class. When I’m late there are never any seats left by the door. I always have to slink past the tea cher, head down, trying my best to look incognito. When I reach my seat some smart aleck says something like “Glad you could make it.” That makes me wish I’d just stayed home by the pool. • People talking about how drunk they were last night. Who cares? Is that really something you want advertised? It’s not exactly the most complimentary thing you could say about yourself. • Having only mustard, butter, soy sauce and a science project in the ref rig erator. It’s difficult to cook an appetiz ing meal when condiments and a half- disected frog are the only ingredients available. • Hair on the soap. Yuck. • Having mosquito bites. You tell yourself you’re not going to scratch them. But they itch, so you do. Then you can’t stop scratching until you draw blood. Scabs are inevitable where mos quito bites are concerned. • Bratty kids in department stores who run around, knock things off hang ers and take the mannequins apart limb by limb, while their mother looks through the polyester pantsuits, oblivi ous to it all. Paula Vogrin change return. No it again. Still no • Not getting any mail. Findingvotr maillmix empty for four constats davs can damage your sense of k worth. It’s times like that when come the )oe Barton political junk mil • Any form of chewing tobacco:' snuff. Whv is this disgustingpraakts appealing to some people? 1 can!fii anything remotely pleasant in waicis someone cram a substance restmfe peat moss into their mouth, suckoti and spit brown juic^in acup. • Buying something at regularpiit and finding it on sale the very re I week. The feeling is worse if p worn it — you can’t return it andbJ at tire cheaper price. • Being interrupted. It’s very line I ing to 1 >e in the middle ofaconversaitl and have .some clown jump in toteM how drunk he or she was the night#I tore, or something else just as irrsI vant. • Paying to do my laundry. L about a waste of good money. Ij should I have to |)ay $5 or more loll something I absolutely detest? IdiI use to mind so much when 1 couldu| I mv quarters in the slots and do the w I free. But now those washing-mad*I companies have wised up, and I canii I that anymore. • Getting trapped behind an old Ml in a Dodge Dart when you’re in a toil I to get somewhere. Your situation cad worsened if the people intheodn lanes won’t let you pass. • I laving to come up with a new I umn idea every week. Paula Vogrin is a senior journals I ma jor and a columnist for The Bis I ion. Vanna White slimes former lovei Flash! I Finally have my first ce lebrity gossip col umn. That’s because a friend, a classic car dealer in Atlanta, contacted me and said he wanted to go public about his ex-girlfriend. “What ex-girl- friend?” I asked Gordy, who has been happily married to Britta for two and one-half years. “You didn’t know I used to date Vanna White?” said Gordy. “Sure you did,” I said. “I’m serious,” he went on. “I met her 11 years ago when she was 18 and working as a cocktail waitress in Atlanta. We were together Five years. I thought we were going to get mar ried.” Gordy even showed me pictures of him and Vanna together. I thought she was a little chubby in those days. A few weeks ago, Gordy read an in terview with Vanna, the “Wheel of For tune” press queen, concerning her forthcoming book, “Vanna Speaks.” The interview carried an excerpt from the book in which she says Gordy was her First love, but that he broke her Lewis Grizzard heart and was unfaithful to her. “All I’m getting from my friends and family,” Gordy said, “is, ‘Did you really treat Vanna that way?’ “I hear it everywhere I go and my wife is getting tired of it and I don’t blame her. I just want to set the record straight.” Here is Gordy’s side of the story. He wasn’t unfaithful to Vanna. Not only that — he also paid to get her teeth Fixed, bought her diamonds and furs, put her in a Porsche and con vinced her to do something about her Figure and start a modeling career. They planned to marry. Vanna asked Gordy, he told me, to sell his house and all his furnishings First, however. “She said there had been other women in the house before we had met, so I sold the house for 25 percent less than I paid for it and sold my furniture for 20 cents on the dollar. “I was a man in love,” Gordy ex plained. But Vanna broke off the engagement suddenly and left Atlanta and Gordy for the West Coast to seek her stardom. Gordy said he was the one who was heartbroken. He said he even considered suicide before a miracle (his term) occurred. He met Britta. “Vanna called me not long ago,’’ Gordy said, “and I asked her win would say such things about me in I ■ book. “She said her family knows 1 tr®* B her well, and that my familykno* 1 '■ and that’s all that matters.” I asked Gordy if he was bitter. “Surprised, but not bitter," h^B “She finally got what she wanted 'B dom, and 1 got what 1 wanted,BnW I “Vanna still calls and asks myB about things like cars. She thinks B was named after her.” I had just one more question. I * ^ “Did you and Vanna ever* B ‘Wheel of Fortune’?” “We would see who could sol ,f B puzzles first,” said Gordy. "I m won.” ■ -j Flash! Vanna White wasn’t pi^'B j the letter turner on “Wheel of f or11 B because of her brains. I dearly love a scoop. Copyright 1986, Cowles Syndicate