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The Battalion
Vol.89No.107USPS 045360 2 0 Pages
College Station, Texas
\\\\\/////.
WEATHER
in
TOMORROW’S FORECAST:
Mostly sunny and mild
VW 1
HIGH: 74 LOW: 56
Monday, March 5,1990
Millions of Soviets
turn out to cast votes
MOSCOW (AP) — Millions of Soviets
from the Polish border to the Bering Strait
voted Sunday in what President Mikhail S.
Gorbachev said was a struggle between re
form and bureaucracy for the country’s
Slavic heartland.
“I think it is a battle,” Gorbachev told re
porters after voting in the Lenin Hills area
of Moscow, “but I am convinced that peres
troika will win.”
Almost 150 million voters were regis
tered to choose among more than 11,000
candidates for 1,800 seats in the legislatures
of the Russian, Ukrainian and Byelorussian
republics. Thousands of seats in local gov
erning councils also were being contested.
No results were expected until Tuesday
in the three republics, which comprise the
vast majority of the country’s territory and
hold more than two-thirds of the Soviet
Union’s 290 million people.
In the Baltic republic of Lithuania,
meanwhile, pro-independence activists said
results in runoff elections Sunday assured
them of the quorum they need to convene
the republic’s parliament, where activists
are expected to push for creating a mech
anism to secede from the Soviet Union.
Officials reported a strong turnout in the
Far East region and the Ukraine, where
more than half of registered voters had
been to polling stations before noon. Polls
were open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
There was increased political tension
over Gorbachev’s reforms in the weeks
leading to the elections.
Gorbachev has pressed the Communist
Party to relinquish its monopoly on power
and pushed for a new, more powerful pre
sidency. Hundreds of thousands of Soviets
have turned out for pro-democracy rallies.
In the Slavic republics, reforms — where
they have managed to get started — have
proceeded more slowly and quietly than in
other areas. There have been neither the
concerted drives of the Baltic republics nor
the violence of the Caucasus and Central
Asia.
Gorbachev and Soviet citizens said the lo
cal party and government officials seeking
election were among national leaders most
opposed to reforms.
“Our elections involve a new type of peo
ple, people who have been given new impe
tus from perestroika,” a relaxed, confident
Gorbachev said. “The essence of it is that it
is a people’s referendum on perestroika.”
Truant children’s parents
get fines, jail sentences
HOUSTON (AP) — Jail sentences and
fines as high as $8,800 are being imposed
on Harris County parents whose children
consistently miss school.
Sixteen judges who handle hundreds of
truancy cases each week say many parents
don’t understand that Texas law makes
them responsible for their children’s educa
tion.
“The parent comes in thinking that the
court is going to hold the child responsible,
and take the child and put him in a home
for delinquent children,” Justice of the
Peace Betty Brock Bell said. “But that’s not
the case.
“And parents get an entirely different at
titude about getting their kids to school
when they find out that they’re the ones
who will be assessed the fine.”
Texas truancy law mandates that chil
dren must attend school from age 6 to 16,
and must complete the school year in which
they turn 17.
If they don’t, their parents pay — at a
rate of $100 and more per missed school
day. If parents can’t pay, they go to jail.
In one of the most extreme cases, Nelda
Payten, 41, was charged with 84 counts of
truancy and fined $8,800 for the school
days missed by her 15- and 11-year-old
sons. When she couldn’t pay the fines, she
was locked in the Harris County Jail. She
recently was released after promising to pay
$100 a month over the next 6.5 years.
Together, Payten’s sons missed more
than 100 days of the 175-day school year.
Justice of the Peace David Patronella,
who aowtcnced Payten, said she was given
several chances to get her children to school
but repeatedly failed to meet with school
and child welfare authorities.
Her 15-year-old remains out on the
street, and if he continues to be absent, she
could wind up paying more.
I got it!
Photo by Steven M. Noreyko
Millerball, sponsored by Phi Kappa Sigma to raise money for the Brazos Valley
Rehabilitation Center, was held Saturday on Keathley Beach.
Regent: 5-year
program hurts
A&M’s grads
By TODD L. CONNELLEY
Of The Battalion Staff
A five-year undergraduate program
would restrict Texas A&M’s credibility in
the marketplace, warned Board of Regents
member Douglas DeCluitt after attending a
meeting on undergraduate education last
Wednesday.
The Advisory Panel on Undergraduate
Education heard compliments and com-
E laints from student leaders, faculty mem-
ers and former students.
The panel was formed to advise the aca
demic affairs committee of the Board of
Regents. Board members Billy Clayton,
Wayne Showers and DeCluitt were present
at the five-hour meeting.
Since many students are heavily involved
in extracurricular activities, graduating in
four years has become the exception rather
than the rule. The panel discussed the idea
of implementing a five-year program at.
A&M.
But DeCluitt said the prevalent opinion
expressed by the administration is that
A&M should continue to offer the four-
year plan.
“Ohio State University developed the
five-year plan a few years ago, ” DeCluitt
said. “They found that the marketplace re
jected their idea. Parents would compare
catalogs with different schools and see that
the investment would cost less and take less
time elsewhere. It was a great deal more at
tractive to them.”
A&M President William H. Mobley
agreed, saying that a five-year plan would
hurt A&M’s flexibility.
Ty Clevenger, speaker of the A&M Stu
dent Senate, told the panel of A&M’s $25
million dollar plan to expand Sterling C.
Evans Library. Clevenger asked why none
of the money was going towards purchasing
more books and journals.
DeCluitt said that there definitely will be
funding set aside for expanding the li
brary’s literary resources — he just didn’t
know when.
“This is not a new issue,” DeCluitt said.
“It’s one of the most widely shared and ap
preciated concerns of the regents.”
He said the library does need more study
space and books but money is the limiting
factor.
“All needs have to be given some priority
concerning money,” he said. “I mean, we
have to pay money to the faculty. This is not
an easy issue and will not be resolved over
night.”
The panel also heard stories of faculty
See Regents/Page 13
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UPD offers smart safety tips to spring break travelers
Students should remain alert
By STACY E. ALLEN
Of The Battalion Staff
Spring break is a time to let loose and forget about everyday
worries.
But Lt. Bert Kretzschmar, University Police Department
Crime Prevention Unit supervisor, said students can’t forget
about everything or they might have to pay for it.
Kretzschmar said the key to having a safe, fun spring break
is to stay alert and trust your instincts.
Keep your mind on your surroundings, know who is behind
and in front of you and don’t get distracted, he said.
Communicate the message that you’re calm, confident and
know what you are doing. If you feel uncomfortable in a situa
tion, trust your instincts and get out of the situation, he said.
Kretzschmar said students should never walk by themselves
at night. If it’s unavoidable, the student should let friends know
where he or she is going and the time he or she plans to return.
Kretzschmar said he has noticed the biggest problem stu
dents have over spring break is drinking too much, which
causes them not to think clearly.
Alcohol causes people to lower their guard, and con artists
can take advantage of that and steal all of the person’s belong
ings, he said.
Kretzschmar said it’s difficult to spot con artists, so students
must be carefuj of people who try to become instant friends.
He said often a student will invite the person over for the
night and in the morning the student finds everything in the
hotel room is gone.
Kretzschmar said con artists often work in pairs so one can
distract the person while the other steals a purse or something
else of value.
“It only takes a few seconds for someone to distract you long
enough for someone else to steal from you,” Kretzschmar said.
He said that to avoid the wrath of con artists, students should
not wear expensive jewelry, flash a lot of money or wear expen
sive clothes. That tells people you probably have nice things at
your hotel room, he said.
Students also should carry wallets in their front pockets.
Kretzschmar also had a few tips for those traveling a far dis
tance during spring break.
He said whenever possible, it’s important to travel with
someone you know.
Before departure, plan the route and check your tires, anti
freeze, water and oil, Kretzschmar said.
All doors should be locked and the windows at least partially
rolled up while driving. The student should carry enough
money for emergencies, but should never display large
amounts of cash, he said.
When students stop for the night, Kretzschmar said, the en
tire trunk should be unloaded. All automobile accessories such
as stereos should be engraved with the owner’s driver’s license
number. He said out-of-state license plates tell thieves you have
a full trunk.
When students approach their cars, Kretzschmar said, their
keys should be in hand. The key chain should never have a
name or address attached to it and car keys should be kept sep
arate from other keys. If it is necessary to leave keys with an at
tendant in a commercial parking garage, only leave the ignition
key. t
In addition to safety students can practice after they have de
parted for their spring break destination, Kretzschmar said,
there are precautions students should take before they leave
for the week to avoid having valuables stolen from apartments
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The number one thing students must do, Kretzschmar said,
is make a conscious effort to secure all windows and doors be
fore leaving for the week.
He said many burglaries occur in ground-level apartments
or dorms because students forget to lock all the windows before
they leave and burglars can easily crawl in.
Kretzschmar said another common mistake students make is
leaving messages on answering machines that say the student is
gone and when he or she will return. Dorm students also will
leave messages on doors dating their arrival back to school.
“This tells criminals the time period they have to operate,”
he said.
Kretzschmar said the best thing to do with valuable jewelry is
to take it home over spring break. If that is not possible, he
said, students should hide it and definitely not leave it in a jew
elry box.
Kretzschmar said Operation Identification can help
See Preventiori/Page 13
Absentee polling sites
draw low voter turnout
Parties debate necessity of boxes
By BILL HETHCOCK
Of The Battalion Staff
Low voter turn-out at two new absentee
polling sites in Brazos County, including
the site at the Memorial Student Center,
may force a re-evaluation of the need for
these boxes in future elections.
Local Republicans maintain that having
extra absentee polling places encourages
more people to vote, while local Democrats
contend that the additional sites are not
worth the extra cost to the county.
As of 5 p.m. Friday, 308 Democrats and
489 Republicans had voted absentee in Bra
zos County. Of these, 78 Democrats and
289 Republicans voted at the MSC. At the
Brazos County Courthouse 146 Democrats
and 150 Republicans cast absentee ballots.
Forty-two Democrats and 50 Republicans
voted at the College Station school adminis
tration building, while 42 Democrats and
no Republicans voted at Ben Milam el
ementary school.
Ron Gay, former Brazos County Demo
cratic chairman who resigned to run for
county judge, said he considers the number
of absentee voters low. He said voter turn
out so far does not justify having four ab
sentee boxes instead of two in the county.
This election Is the first time the county has
had four locations for absentee voting.
“I think the county commissioners owe it
to the people of Brazos County to look at
turn-out and determine whether the boxes
are cost-effective,” Gay said. “I don’t know 7
if we’re really gaining anything by having
them. The county needs to look at the cost
per vote and decide on that basis.”
Removal of the additional voting boxes is
one alternative county commissioners will
consider if the boxes do not prove cost-ef
fective, Gay said.
Though county Democrats have com
plained that the new boxes are not worth
the extra cost, county Republicans do not
agree.
Rob Giesecke, vice president of College
Republicans, said the number of people
taking advantage of the new polling sites is
not low, especially at the MSC. Giesecke
pointed out that more people have voted at
the MSC than at the county courthouse,
and accused the Democrats of putting too
much emphasis on the cost of the new ab-
• Statewide turnout/Page 3
sentee voting boxes.
“The issue isn’t cost,” Giesecke said. “The
issue is that the Democrats are scared the
students won’t vote the way they want them
to vote, so they’re trying to make this into
an issue of cost. The Democrats are pur
posely inflating the cost and making it look
like the boxes are not worth it.”
Giesecke said he expects a last minute
rush at the absentee polls, because some
people are still deciding who they will vote
for in the primaries.
Brazos County Clerk Frank Boriskie said
it is too early to speculate on the number
and location of future absentee voting sites.
“We need to wait until the final tabula
tions come in,” Boriskie said. “We just don’t
know enough right now. When you’ve got
more boxes of course you’ve got more ex
pense. The county will decide if it’s worth it
at a later date.”