Inside
he Battalion
USPS 045360
Pages College Station, Texas Thursday, December
1988
A&M In 10 years
Soviet Union opens
East-bloc airwaves
Hurricane Bowl to mark
resence of spirit signs
By Rip Woodard
Reporter
Ever since Texas A&M has had
football, students have put up spirit
signs on dorms in an attempt to mo
tivate the team. But, the signs have
pever been displayed in Kyle Field
until the Hurricane Bowl game.
Beth Ammons, external affairs
bmmittee member, said spirit signs
Ivill be placed around the north side
pf the Kyle Field fence so everyone
ban see student spirit.
"Traditionally students have not
flowed anything to be put up in or
around Kyle Field, but we wanted to
[ry something different because this
Is a special game,” Ammons said.
Ammons said Michael Kelley, a
beniqr political science major, came
up with the idea to help make the
lurricane Bowl dif ferent.
She said Bryan-College Station
and the student government are the
primary sponsors of the Hurricane
Bowl and the spirit sign event.
Attempting to increase commu
nity and student involvement in the
game is the main focus of the pro
ject, Ammons said.
The spirit sign contest is open to
all recognized student organizations
willing to make a sign, she said.
A judging committee has been
formed with students from different
organizations, she said.
“We have a real diverse group
judging,” she said. “We tried to get
students from all walks of life.”
The committee consists of two stu
dents from the Residence Hall Asso
ciation, two Corps of Cadets mem
bers, three senators from different
colleges and one person from the in
terfraternity council.
Ammons said the signs will be
judged on creativity, artistic ability
and the Hurricane Bowl theme.
Judging will be before the game at
4 p.m. and 5 p.m. today.
First, second and third place will
be awarded ribbons based on the cri
teria, Ammons said.
She said the signs from winning
organizations will receive local cov
erage by Channel 3, and could possi
bly receive national coverage by
ESPN during the game.
The Chamber of Commerce will
be providing a complimentary park
site for an organizational function to
the winner,. Ammons said.
“We are dissappointed that we
have received so few (entries) for the
competition so far,” she said. “We
only have 15 signs and we were hop
ing for about 30.”
WASHINGTON (AP) — The
Kremlin has shut down thousands of
broadcast jamming devices, allowing
Radio Liberty and Radio Free Eu
rope to be heard “loud and clear”
across the Soviet Union and most of
Eastern Europe for the first time in
38 years, government officials said
Wednesday.
The Soviet action came so quickly
that radio engineers were only be
coming aware of it as Secretary of
State George Shultz said in a broad
cast to Europe Wednesday morning
that radio jamming was one area
where progress was still needed with
the Soviets.
Soviet jamming of Germany’s
Deutsche Wella and KOL Israel also
stopped Tuesday, officials said.
“It’s another marker in the Soviet
march toward trying to be an accep
table citizen of the world community
as against the pariah that they have
been,” Charles Z. Wick, U.S. Infor
mation Agency director, said.
Wick said he and other U.S. offi
cials have raised the issue of jam
ming, which is illegal under interna
tional agreements, several times with
the Soviets — most recently in a Sep
tember visit by U.S. broadcasting of
ficials to Moscow.
He said the move was timed to co
incide with the meeting of Soviet
leader Mikhail Gorbachev with Pres
ident Reagan and President-elect
George Bush next week in New
York.
The jamming shutoff means that
millions of Eastern European and
Soviet citizens will hear American
and other Western news and analysis
in their own languages of events in
the Soviet bloc. Voice of America,
which has not been jammed any
where except in Afghanistan since
May 1987, focuses more broadly on
U.S. and world affairs. VOA oper
ates independently of Radio Liberty
and Radio Free Europe.
“The cessation of jamming rep
resents a significant step on the part
of the Soviet government toward the
free flow of information,” said Gene
Pell, president of Radio Liberty,
{Dallas gay leader criticizes
unishment of ‘gay bashers’
DALLAS (AP) — A local gay leader has crit-
jidzed the punishment of 30 years in prison giver
I to a Dallas area teen-ager convicted in the killing
[of two men in a park area frequented by homo-
Isexuals.
District Judge Jack Hampton Tuesday sen-
Jtenced Richard Bednarski, 18, of Mesquite, to
serve concurrent 30-year prison terms for the
]May shooting deaths in the park abut a mile
[north of downtown Dallas.
William Waybourn, president of the Dallas
[ Gay Alliance, said crimes against gay people are a
nationwide epidemic and that Hampton’s deci
sion will not improve the situation.
“It certainly doesn’t speak well for the lives of
I gay men,” Waybourn said. “I think it just encour-
| ages that sort of thing.”
Hampton said he reached his decision on the
I sentence by weighing the facts of the case against
I the fact that Bednarski had no criminal record.
“I’m not the person who killed those two peo-
I pie,” Bednarski told the judge before he an
nounced the sentence. “I’m not a violent person.”
A jury earlier convicted Bednarski in the
[deaths of Tommy Lee Trimble, 34, and John
Lloyd Griffin, 27. The defendant had requested
that his punishment be set by the judge instead of
the jury.
“It certainly doesn’t speak well for
the lives of gay men. I think it just
encourages that sort of thing. ”
— William Waybourn
president Dallas Gay Alliance
Bednarski, who could have received a maxi
mum of life in prison and a $20,000 fine for each
of the killings, will be eligible for parole in about
eight years.
Defense lawyer Kevin Clancy said he will ap
peal and contend that one of the 12 jurors en
gaged in misconduct by visiting the scene of the
killing during the trial.
According to testimony, Bednarski was ar
rested two weeks after he and five North Mes
quite High School friends embarked on a night
time joy ride to harass gay men, a pastime the
teen-agers engaged in when bored.
The teen-age witnesses testified they had been
standing on a street corner, jeering at passers-by,
when Bednarski persuaded one of his friends,
Jeff Bridwell, to accompany him in robbing
Trimble and Griffin, who had invited the boys
into their car.
The four drove to Reverchon Park, where
they walked to a hilltop clearing.
Bednarski shot the men after they refused to
take off their clothes as he had ordered, Bridwell
testified.
Bednarski later bragged about the slayings,
according to testimony, saying he stuck the gun
in Trimble’s mouth and shot him.
When the shooting started, witnesses said,
Griffin fell to the ground and was trying to crawl
away when Bednarski shot him three times.
The friends testified that although they were
shocked by the slayings, they kept the deaths se
cret from their parents and police.
An anonymous tip led to Bednarski’s arrest
two weeks after the shootings.
[Special dogs provide guidance,
riendship to impaired owners
By Lesa Y. Smith
Reporter
According to the age-old saying,
j“A dog is man’s best friend.” But for
[some people, a dog is more than a
[best friend.
To a blind person, a guide dog is
[independence and freedom; a vision
|intd a whole new world.
About 500,000 people in the
[United States are legally blind. Each
[year, 47,000 people become blind,
[and 1 million suffer visual impair-
[ments after injuries.
A dog guide is a generic term
[used for any dog trained to assist a
[blind person. A Guide Dog refers to
[dogs trained by Guide Dogs for the
[Blind Inc. of San Rafael, California.
The specialized dog training and
[personal benefits offered by Guide
[Dogs for the Blind make it different
from the 10 other dog guide schools
in the United States.
In-residence training of the stu
dent and dog, food and housing,
transportation to and from the
school, the dog and dog handling
equipment and follow-up services
are free to a blind person at Guide
Dogs for the Blind.
About 24 students attend the
month-long training sessions, which
are held during every month but
January.
German shepherds, labrador re
trievers and golden retrievers are
used for Guide Dogs because of
their intelligence and mild tempers.
The dogs are bred at the school
and live there for three months.
During the next year, 4-H members
in various states care for the pup
pies, raising them in a family atmo
sphere and teaching them simple
obedience and social skills. When the
dogs are 16 months old, they are re
turned to the school.
The dogs spend the next six
months in extensive training, learn
ing commands, disciplines, safety
and working skills.
Not all dogs can withstand the vig
orous training that prospective
Guide Dogs go through. About half
of the dogs who begin training be
come Guide Dogs. Those that don’t
qualify are put up for adoption as
family pets.
Guide Dogs for the Blind is a non
profit organization funded primar
ily by donations.
The cost of training a Guide Dog
is about $10,000.
To qualify for a Guide Dog, a
blind person must be 16 years old.
He or she sends a letter to the school
requesting information, and the
which is a congressionally funded
operation based in Munich, West
Germany. Pell said that it was a
strong signal in support of Gorba
chev’s policy of glasnost, or open
ness.
Pell said, however, jamming was
still continuing against Radio Free
Europe broadcasts to Czechoslova
kia and Bulgaria. VOA broadcasts in
the Dari and Pashto languages into
Afghanistan also were still jammed,
but the broadcasts of Radio Afghani
stan, affiliated with Radio Free Eu
rope, into the war-torn country were
clear, he said.
Some officials suggested the lim
itedjamming might be the result of a
mix-up between the Soviets and al
lies who operate separate jamming
gear.
“Reports from the Soviet Union
and the Baltic republics confirm that
Radio Liberty and Radio Free Eu
rope broadcasts are being heard
loud and clear,” Pell said.
Snapped bolts,
glue may delay
shuttle launch
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.
(AP) — Technicians used glue for
a quick fix on Atlantis’ nose
Wednesday and prepared to load
the space shuttle with fuel for a
Thursday launch on a top-secret
military mission. An approaching
storm loomed as the only obstacle
to liftoff.
The glue was a last-minute sub
stitute for two bolts on an access
panel that could not be tightened.
Replacing them would have
meant a delay.
After deciding the glue would
hold, NASA rolled back the serv
ice tower which has surrounded
the shuttle, clearing the way for
filling the huge external fuel tank
with a half-million gallons of liq
uid oxygen and liquid hydrogen.
“The bond is OK and we are
proceeding on a decision for
tanking,” Barbara Selby, a NASA
headquarters spokesman said.
The bolts were two of 10 that
secure a 24-by-18 inch access
cover on the right side of the
shuttle’s nose. The access plate,
which is covered by 14 of the
shuttle’s heat protection tiles, is
normally removed before flight
to fuel a tank for the steering
rockets the shuttle uses while in
orbit.
The problem surfaced as work
men replaced the cover.
“We have to have to have as
surance that panel isn’t going to
come off in flight,” Lisa Malone, a
Kennedy Space Center spokes
man said. Meanwhile, the source,
who requested anonymity, re
ported the launch pad crew dis
covered that two bolts had been
stripped on an access panel lead
ing to a cluster of small engines
used to steer the shuttle in orbit.
RH A council votes
to accept proposal
for coed dorms
school returns information about
the dogs, schedules of monthly
training sessions and other general
information.
An interview is scheduled with a
school representative and the blind
person to see if he or she is physi
cally and emotionally ready to have a
Guide Dog.
A great deal of physical activity is
involved in training a blind person
with a Guide Dog. A blind person
must be able to maintain the activity
level that it takes to work with the
Guide Dog.
If a blind person meets all the re
quirements in the interview, the
school sends an acceptance letter
and makes arrangements for them
to attend the school.
See Dogs/Page 6
By Michelle M. Carney
Reporter
Some dorms on the Texas A&M
campus could become coed if a pro
posal approved by the RHA
Wednesday is upheld.
A unanimous 55-0 vote for co-ed
housing set the proposal in motion
at the Residence Hall Association
meeting. If the proposal is approved
through the various chains of com
mand, co-ed halls will become an al
ternative choice for on-campus liv
ing in Fall 1989.
According to the proposal, the co
ed concept will be on a trial basis for
one year, subject to continual review
by a special committee consisting of
residence hall presidents, delegates
and members of the Department of
Student Affairs.
Visitation hours will be different
from those in regular dorms. After
visitation hours conclude, only the
hall entrance leading into the 24
hour area can be used by the resi
dents not of the same sex as those on
the first floor.
Sign-ups for the coed halls will oc
cur at the same time as sign-ups for
the other halls. If the demand is
greater than the space available,
then a male and female lottery sys
tem will choose the hall’s residents
under the following guidelines: of
those selected, 40 percent will be
sophomores, 35 percent will be ju
niors and 25 percent will be seniors.
This will only be used the first year.
The increased demand for the
residence halls is one of the reason
for the proposal, David McDowell,
director of co-ed housing ad-hoc
committee, said. In a recent survey
of 1,000 on-campus students, 75
percent were in favor of co-ed hous
ing, he said.
“Quality of programming and or
ganization is better in co-ed hou
sing,” McDowell said. “Residents feel
more secure. The decrease in crime
rates support this.”
The five new dorms will house
1,200 students, McDowell said. As
signments of the sexes will be by
floor and residents must have at
least 30 credit hours, he said.
Because the demand for living in
halls has dropped in the past two
years, co-ed housing will increase
students’ motivation to remain on
campus, McDowell said.
“A couple years ago there were
900 overassignment spaces,” he said.
“Now 45 vacant rooms account for
about a $36,000 loss for the Univer
sity.”
Recent changes in housing poli
cies, construction and parking prob
lems all account for the decrease.
“Students are frustrated,” he said.
“Living on campus is an impor
tant educational experience that you
don’t get off campus,” McDowell
said. “There are a lot of activities
and unity. There is also the conve
nience.”
Shuttle buses
will operate
for game
Free shuttle service to campus
for the Alabama football game
will be offered beginning at 3
p.m. today and will continue until
one hour after the game ends.
Each regular shuttle route will
be serviced by one bus. Bus passes
will not be required to ride the
shuttles to and from campus be
fore and after the game.
After 6 p.m., all routes will stop
on campus only on Throckmor
ton Street near the president’s
house and on Jersey Street near
the Clayton W. Williams Alumni
Center.
Those whose homes are not on
or near regular shuttle routes
may board buses at K-Mart on the
corner of Longmire and F.M.
2818 or at J.C. Penney’s at Post
Oak Mall.
Shuttles will stop at both loca
tions between 3 p.m. and one
hour after the game ends.
There will be ample parking at
these locations.
For more information call Bus
Operations at 845-1971.