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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 5, 1988)
I THeBattalion Vol. 88 No. 28 GSPS 045360 10 Pages College Station, Texas Wednesday, uctoDer d, Tex, oun jlaM itativei. 1 it vio free s to bar prevent orbi s Sta 1 id tbr iciatioti. on pan edtob fees. :ted s a pte- Teadr d Indf- ne i tnv Vatican ebruaf’ rmat® 1 ield he p*' ergetio ieinfe seast lear i fla® 1 andf iort s of tK he »» jfl'VJitc ; illt® 1 tresp !i ' the cfc ionsi r f ■ling 1 ' idsdx ( inti! 8 ■ee, i 11 ' 1 , oP nici 510 fe n |f!l ; iion ,Ii ini) ^ rv f |L: loli" [P 'esf |e.l 'sC Easy does it!! Senior electrical engineering major Michael Ken ney, left, and researcher Craig Blanton test the re- Photo by Phelan M. Ebenhack sistance vs. temperature characteristics of a high temperature superconductive ceramic. Clements: Best place for collider is in Texas WASHINGTON (AP) — The En ergy Department will be fair and im partial when it chooses the state for the lucrative super collider, Gov. Bill Clements said Tuesday after Texas made its final pitch for the project. Although Clements and other high-ranking state leaders claim Texas has an unmatched commit ment to the super collider and the best geological formations for dril ling the 53-mile underground tun nel, they said the Lone Star State still considers its competitors, all six other states, in the running. Energy Secretary John Herring ton expects to announce the site se lection for the $4.4 billion atom smasher in Noyember, after the presidential elections. Herrington is hearing final pre sentations this week from all seven states. Earlier Tuesday, he met with the Arizona delegation. At that meeting, Herrington said politics would play no role in choos ing the site, Sen. Dennis DeConcini, D-Ariz., told a separate news confer ence. The question came up because of Texas’ prominent role in this year’s presidential elections — with the Republican nominee George Bush an adopted Texan and the Democratic vice presidential nomi nee, Sen. Lloyd Bentsen, a native Texan. The super collider, which will al low scientists to test exotic theories of matter and energy, is expected to create an estimated 3,000 scientific jobs, thousands of construction jobs, and provide an economic boon to its host state. In addition to Texas and Arizona, other finalists are North Carolina, Michigan, Illinois, Colorado, and Tennessee. “Over the past 20 months, the De partment of Energy has conducted an exhaustive and detailed technical analysis of each of the sites that are now under review,” Clements said after the state’s presentation before Herrington and other Energy De partment officials. “Throughout, the department has been fair and impartial, and we know the final seven states will re ceive the same consideration,” Clem ents said. Clements said he believes, how ever, that Texas’ proposed site near Waxahachie in Ellis County is supe rior in all respects for the scientific endeavor of this century. The state has an unmatched sense of cohesion among its congressional delegation in Washington and back home in Texas, Clements said, hint ing 'mong some of the other six states. But Clements refused to identify any state with a split in its ranks, tell ing a news conference: “That’s your job.” Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas, House Speaker Jim Wright, a Fort Worth Democrat, and Rep. Joe Bar ton, an Ennis Republican whose dis trict would include the project also attended the presentation and gave Herrington a letter signed by all 29 members of the state’s congressional delegation. “The resolve of Texans to host such a vital facility is great and is well-expressed,” Clements said. Quayle, Bentsen ready for debates Released hostage cherishes freedom, mourns those left behind in captivity DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) — In dian professor Mithileshwar Singh said Tuesday his kidnappers treated him well during his 20 months as a hostage in Lebanon, but there is no substitute for freedom and he grieves for those still held. Three American colleagues were kidnapped with the Indian educa tor, a 60-year-old resident alien of the United States. Singh flew from Damascus to Frankfurt, West Germany, where he arrived at 2:20 a.m. Wednesday (9:20 p.m. EDT Tuesday) aboard a U.S. Air Force transport plane, a military spokesman said. Singh did not speak to reporters at the Air Force’s Rhein-Main Base. Craig Springer, spokesman for the U.S. Consulate in Frankfurt, told Machine enables boy to survive at home AUSTIN (AP) — Julian Alcala’s trip home this week will cap months of effort by hospital and social work ers to find money for the machine the 11-month-old boy needs to sur vive outside the hospital. The machine will help Julian fight a rare bone disease that weakened his ribs and affected his breathing. It won’t cure the disease, but it will al low him to leave Brackenridge Hos pital in time to celebrate his first birthday Oct. 18 with his mother and grandparents in San Marcos. “Right now I’m starting to get ner vous,” said his mother, Cynthia Al cala, 20. Julian has hypophosphatasia, a terminal genetic illness that prevents his bones from absorbing the cal cium they need to grow and develop. His ribs have become too weak to support his lungs, and he needs the ventilator to breathe. Julian’s illness has no known treat ment, beyond providing ventilator support and trying to control the harmful effects of the unabsorbed calcium in his blood, said Dr. George Edwards, director of pediatric edu cation at the hospital. Alcala said her son loves attention, loves people talking at him. Getting him out of the hospital and into her home is important to her. She has an extended family willing to help, she said. Julian is tentatively scheduled to go home Wednesday. The problem of paying for and coordinating the infant’s move from the hospital has been extraordinary, said social workers who have worked with the Alcala family. Alcala is single, without income or health insurance and ineligible for the local health district’s Medical As sistance Program because she is not a Travis County resident. Under state rules governing Med icaid payments, pediatric hospital care is covered for a maximum of 30 days. Julian, born in San Marcos, spent more than 30 days in other hospitals last year, and a brief period at home beginning in late Novem ber. After suffering seizures on New Year’s Eve, he was admitted to Brackenridge, where the illness was diagnosed. Brackenridge has been paying for Julian’s hospital stay because “there’s no one else who can do it,” said Sha ron Larson, assistant administrator at Brackenridge. “It has been expen sive care. It’s well into six figures.” Later, Homespun, a state-funded program that helps Hays County families with disabled children at home, helped locate funding for the Alcala family through a new pro gram in the Texas Mental Health and Mental Retardation Depart ment. In addition, Brackenridge offi cials agreed to supply the $7,616 home ventilator if Hays County would pay for medical supplies, an expense estimated at $1,000 a month. Julian was ineligible for indigent health care because he had access to Medicaid funds, even though his Medicaid funds were exhausted, said Eva Cruz, the county’s indigent health care coordinator. But the Hays County Commis sioners Court committed the county to pay for half of the monthly ex penses for Julian’s care at home. The MHMR program wall provide the other half. Alcala said she w’ants to get a high school General Equivalency Diploma and study nursing at Austin Com munity College. “I’m going to need all the luck I can get,” she said. reporters at the base that Singh would undergo a medical checkup and then a State Department de briefing team was scheduled to in terview him later Wednesday. “This is a two-fold operation,” Springer said. “No. 1 is to insure the physical and mental health of Mr. Singh, but at the same time to find out about other contacts he may have had.” They are anxious to talk to him and see if he has any information relevant to the remaining hostages and their conditions. Singh was taken to a military hos pital in Wiesbaden, 24 miles west of Frankfurt, Air Force Lt. William Dil lingham said. His release leaves nine Americans and seven other foreigners still miss ing in Lebanon and believed held by extremist Moslem kidnappers. Held longest is Terry A. Ander son, chief Middle East correspon dent of the Associated Press, who was abducted March 16, 1985. Lalmani Singh was reunited Tues day with her husband at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus. Mrs. Singh did not go with him to West Germany, but said she expects to join her husband very soon. Singh was freed Monday night in Beirut and driven to Damascus by Syrian army officers, then turned over to U.S. Ambassador Edward Djerejian. Djerejian, Indian Charge d’Af- faires B. Balakrishnan and Syrian officials saw Singh off at the airport. Djerejian said Singh asked to be allowed to rest, and “given the cir cumstances, he is feeling relatively well.” A Syrian doctor pronounced Singh fit for travel. Although Singh is an Indian citi zen, he was considered one of nine American hostages held in Lebanon because he taught at the American University and lived in America prior to his teaching position there. Vice presidential nominees Dan Quayle and Lloyd Bentsen polished their debate lines Tuesday in prepa ration for their 90 minutes in the campaign spotlight. At the top of the tickets, George Bush said he wanted to inspire affluent youths “to help our poor,” while Michael Dukakis said the GOP offers only “slogans and symbols.” Republican Quayle and Democrat Bentsen were flying to Omaha, Neb., the site of Wednesday night’s debate. “We’re ready,” Quayle said dur ing a tour of the Bush-Quayle cam paign headquarters. A new poll released Tuesday sug gested that the debate would give Quayle a chance to overcome some of the negative images about him that are driving undecided voters away from Bush. The CBS News-New York Times poll of 1,034 probable voters found 48 percent support for the Bush- Quayle ticket and 46 percent for the Dukakis-Bentsen ticket. But when voters were asked about their presi dential preference only, the support for Dukakis slipped to 43 percent. The poll, conducted Saturday through Monday, had a margin of error of plus or minus three per centage points. “We are very, very proud of you,” Republican campaign chairman James A. Baker III told Quayle. “We are very, very proud of the job you’re doing for this campaign.” When asked what tactics he’d use against Bentsen, Quayle said, “My debate strategy? Tune in tomorrow night.” “Feeling good,” said Bentsen, while walking from a practice studio to his hotel in Austin. Spokesman Mike McCurry said Bentsen was working on “the best way of making a point memorable or punchy.” Dukakis campaign manager Su san Estrich, who was in Austin help ing Bentsen, said, “We’re not teach ing him new positions on issues. ... I think that’s what the Quayle people have to do.” Bush was in Sacramento, Calif., and he outlined his plan for a quasi public foundation called Youth in Service to America to encourage young people to volunteer in com munity activities. “I want our affluent to help our poor,” he said. “I want the young men and women of our tree-lined suburbs to get on a bus, or the sub way, or the metro, and go into the cities where the want is.” The Republican presidential nominee described his proposal as an alternative to massive federal spending. He said years of federal programs designed to help the poor had pro ven that “we can’t buy our way out.” A fact sheet distributed to report ers said Bush would ask for $100 million in federal funds to match private donations to the foundation. Dukakis spoke at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., and at tacked what he called Bush’s “record of failure.” County crisis center lends hands, ears to help victims of rape cope By Kelly S. BroWn Staff Writer Ninety-four cases of rape have been reported in Brazos County since January. And those 94 lives will never be the same. When people are raped it does change their lives, but they need help to cope with the change. Sometimes it’s just a listening ear or a hand to hold — but it’s something — and victims need that kind of support. The Brazos County Rape Crisis Center func tions as such a supportive structure. Support is given by the staff and volunteers who dedicate their time to helping victims re cover from the trauma of rape or child molesta tion. But the Crisis Center needs more volunteers. It has 46 volunteers now — half of whom are stu dents. Six are males. Linda Castoria, executive director of the Crisis Center, said volunteers must be able to genuinely understand the pain victims are undergoing. “They don’t necessarily have to have been vic tims themselves, but they must have an innate de sire to help others, and it takes a certain strength and courage to deal with the victims. The issues are very volatile — very sensitive,” Castoria said. And because of the nature of this sensitivity, training sessions are given to volunteers so they can learn how to deal with the situation and de velop a trust with a victim. Such a lesson takes time and experience. The time the Crisis Center asks a volunteer to give is usually two or three eight-hour shifts per month, Castoria said. There are three different programs a volunteer can assist with — hotline advocates, escort advocates or Friends of the Family advocates. The training is basically the same for each pro gram, but the volunteers do separate tasks. One hotline advocate is on duty each night, but the volunteer works at home - calls are for warded there. Castoria said working the hotline requires be ing calm in panic situations, as well as being a quick thinker. “Sometimes the victim has just been raped and she is bleeding. The volunteer must be able to cope with that, while calling the hospital and re sponding immediately to whatever comes up.” When someone is raped and it’s reported, an escort from the hotline is often called. Escorts carry pagers and if they’re needed they go wherever the victim is and provide comfortm. Es corts answer questions and tell the victim what exactly is going on. Sometimes it’s hard for the family to tell what is going on, and that’s why Friends of the Family advocates exist. They support the family and an swer any questions they may have. Castoria said some volunteers have been vic tims themselves, while many know someone whose been a victim. “But all have a sense that there is a definate need for such volunteers,” she said. Volunteers are in demand as sexual assaults are on the rise. Since the Crisis Center began five years ago, there have been 650 reported rapes. More and more rapes are being reported, Cas toria said. “But sometimes when college students are a victim of date rape, they don’t press charges with the police. What they should know is that they can report it to the Judicial Board of Student Government, and if they think there is enough evidence to justify rape, the suspect will be dis missed from school.” The 36-hour training class for new volunteers will be conducted the weeks of Oct. 10 — Oct. 20, meeting Monday — Thursday evenings from 6 — 9:30 p.m. and Saturday, Oct. 15 from 9 a.m. -5 p.m. To obtain an application call 776-7273.