d at >ns ■ p )^Po. n elderly ce cele. ( l by Brit. Ni gerian 8 l( la and sons, wit. 'res con- man was 1 when a ged. re officer ed to jet the cele. ; rican na- of inde- tin were a Jawara included ls Queen 1 Jr. and Pparently oting. ie ay AP)-A port plant o land at airport, )oard, the y. lex Shapi It Buffalo i routine northern when it kage over aort. ified only :1, 11 civil- and two tculate on saying an be con- routinely ambia. lanes ition a (AP) - Sunday s-320s op ed Indian /estigation that killed said, the onk fully com- 1 capabili-: mtil alias- tion are :1 News of ntified of- ,aid pilots 'the plane tuse its so- required 1 mainte- vailable in month-old Monday, February 19,1990 The Battalion Page 13 Soviets tour space center Atlantis groomed for launch with secret satellite CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Russian defense committee law makers toured the Kennedy Space Center Sunday as NASA groomed the shuttle Atlantis for a Thursday launch with a secret satellite that re portedly will spy on the Soviet Union. The committee . phairman and head of the delegation, Vlaidimir Lapygin, said he was impressed by the shuttle launch facilities, and when asked by a reporter what he thought of Atlantis’ spy satellite, he replied with a smile: “We have no special secrets. ... I think you are wasting your money.” The unprecedented Five-hour So viet visit here and stops at other U.S. military installations are a result of the new openness in the Soviet Union and follow a similar trip to that country last August by members of the U.S. House Armed Services Committee. The group of 23 included 10 members of the Defense Committee of the Soviet National Legislature and advisors on space, science, disar mament and foreign affairs. They toured facilities where space shuttles and their payloads are worked on, a launch control center We have no special secrets.... I think you are wasting your money.” — Vlaidimir Lapygin, chairman, Soviet defense committee and shuttle Launch Pad 39B, from where they could view Atlantis on Pad 39A, two miles away. At Pad A, workers were buttoning up the shuttle’s engine compartment and making other preparations for a darkness launch early Thursday. The countdown was to start Sun day night. Because Atlantis’ payload is classi fied, the Pentagon and NASA will not announce the precise launch time until nine minutes before blast off to make it harder for Soviet satel lites and a reconnaissance ship sit ting offshore to track the spaceship. Officials have announced only that launch will occur between mid night and 4 a.m. However, sources close to the project said Atlantis and its crew of five military officers are to take off at 1 a.m. The sources, who spoke on condi tion of anonymity, said the shuttle’s payload is a 37,300-pound satellite with a dual role to snap high-resolu- tion > reconnaissance photos and eavesdrop ort military and diplo matic communications. THE ANDSTONE CENTER fAfCJCf =Afj r*m=MWI (409) 690-3030 OR 1-800-421-6322 Eating Disorders? Depression? Stress? Anxiety? Relationship Problems? Drug or Alcohol Problem? Free Confidential Consultation 24 Hours Every Day 4201 Texas Avenue South, College Station, Texas 77845 IbUBBTIL. IlMIMMj) of America, Inc, 1121 Briarcrest Drive #302 (409) 776-1555 3995 • rVtmrtl Complete ANY PLASTIC FRAME AND SINGLE VISION LENSES Specialty Lenses and Metal Frames Slightly Higher $69.$!,,, ANY PLASTIC FRAME AND BIFOCAL LENSES Ask About our... EYEGLASSES ONE LOW PRICE 1990-91 UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATE FELLOWS PROGRAM CALL FOR STUDENT RESEARCH PROPOSALS ELIGIBILITY: Outstanding Juniors who have completed nine hours of Honors coursework before the fall semester begins and who have at least a 3.25 overall gpa are currently being invited to apply tor participation during their senior year in the UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATE FELLOWS PROGRAM. This program is the most prestigious research opportunity available for undergraduates at Texas A&M, featuring a close, mas ter-apprentice relationship between student researcher and faculty advisor. This provides an oportunity usually available only to graduate students. TIME TABLE: An informal meeting concerning the 1990-91 Fellows Program, open to faculty as well as stu dents, has been scheduled for 5:15 P.M. ON FEBRUARY 26,1990 IN ROOM 301 OF RUDDER TOWER. Re search proposals will be due March 26. Students admitted will be notified during the fall semester pre-registra tion period in April. For more information contact the University Honors Program, 103 Academic Building, 845-1957 D MSC Political Forum GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES’ FORUM An open forum with the candidates for Mexican president raises furor Governor of Texas. file it was Bangalore e 146 peo- 'diiesday's itery. The 1 the pilot nergency, ibels ion, :ity ie area, 11 ie mife 11 ers of thf mentor w ndo Mar" ront w er( immense „ur Lord'* n all hon- nee brinf that onl' ■•rid.” with move to name papal envoy MEXICO CITY (AP) — President Carlos Salinas de Gortari’s decision to name a personal envoy as liaison with John Pope Paul II has raised outcries from opposi tion groups who accuse him of violating the Mexican constitution. The appointment Wednesday of Agustin Tellez Cruces, an experienced politician, less than three months before Pope John Paul IPs second visit to Mex ico, raised widespread speculation Salinas is preparing to establish formal diplomatic relations with the Vati can. Interior Secretary Fernando Gutierrez Barrios, the Cabinet’s chief political officer, stressed publicly twice this week that Tellez’s appointment in no way implied diplomatic ties or legal recognition of the Roman Cath olic Church. Gutierrez described Tellez’s job as an “unofficial” link between Salinas and John Paul and no reform of the 1917 constitution was required, although he did not entirely rule out eventual diplomatic ties when he said in his Wednesday statement “it is very early” to speak of such a step. The announcement raised hackles even among some within Salinas’ own Institutional Revolutionary Party, which has been ruling Mexico for the past 60 years, and opposition groups who claimed it violated constitu tional provisions on the separation of church and state. Even though Mexicans are overwhelmingly Roman Catholic, their constitution prohibits the Roman Catho lic or any other church from being recognized as legal entities. The church was restricted because it was histor ically allied with landowners and other conservative el ements that resisted social change. It prohibits the clergy from teaching in schools and universities and even bans priests from appearing in clerical garb in public, voting or taking part in politics. However, observance of the bans has weakened in re cent years. The Mexican government has maintained no formal relations with the Vatican since 1926, when President Plutarco Elias Calles expelled the papal representative during a crackdown on Catholic dissidents. Vote (Continued from page 1) who have a lot bigger access problem than the people who live within the campus area.” The Republican Party petitioned the county commissioners court for two more absentee polling sites in 1987, when changes in the state law relaxed requirements that must be met by absentee voters, Lewis said. In December 1989, by a 4-1 vote, the court approved changes to cre ate two new polling sites and relocate a third site, he said. The court then applied to have the changes approved by the U.S. Justice Department. The Justice De partment did not approve the changes until two days after the county was supposed to post the ab sentee polling locations. Then the county had to apply to the state for approval to post the four polling locations late, Lewis said. The state has granted permis sion for the voting sites to be posted late. Lewis said changes in absentee polling sites in Brazos County were proposed to help voter turnout by making it easier for people to vote. “If you’re going to have more ab sentee voting, it seems sensible to have more absentee polling places where people can vote conveniently to where they live or work,” Lewis said. Gay, however, said partisan poli tics played a big role in the county commissioners’ decision regarding the creation and location of the two new polling sites. “They (the county commissioners) are now almost all Republican and they think the students are going to vote Republican so they wanted to optimize their advantage,” Gay said. “They weren’t really doing this for the primaries. They want to set the precedent so they can justify campus polling places in the November gen eral election. “I think they’re taking a tremen dous gamble. We don’t know who the candidates are yet, and we don’t know what the issues are going to be.” Lewis said he would like to see ab sentee ballot boxes on campus in the November elections. “I’m hoping we’ll continue to have the absentee polls in the general elections in November for the same reason I want them in the primaries, and that is to encourage more peo ple to participate,” Lewis said. This summer the commissioners court will decide whether there will be an absentee voting box on cam pus for the November general elec tion, Lewis said. “If you voted in ’88, give it a try,” Lewis sai