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Vol.89 No.108 USPS 045360 10 Pages
College Station, Texas
WEATHER
Warm and cloudy with a chance
of thunderstorms
HIGH: 78 LOW: 62
Wednesday, March 7,1990
Public voices opinions about bonfire at meeting
By JILL BUTLER
Of The Battalion Staff
Spring break is almost here and most stu
dents and faculty are more concerned with
vacation time than events taking place next
fall. However, some events, such as bonfire,
continue to be controversial, and more than
100 people showed up last night for an
open hearing about bonfire.
Students, faculty and community mem
bers had a chance last night to voice their
opinions, comments and complaints about
bonfire to the Faculty Senate Ad Hoc Com
mittee on Bonfire.
The committee, comprised of four fac
ulty members and four students, had a
ninety minute open hearing last night to
gather information and opinions about
bonfire.
This was the eighth meeting about bon
fire the committee has had, but it was the
first open hearing.
Dr. Bill Stout, deputy speaker of the Fac
ulty Senate, said the committee was asked
by the Student Government Association
and the Faculty Senate to examine alterna
tives to bonfire’s present form.
“Our basic purpose here today, is to find
out what you think,” Stout said. “We do not
want to leave any stone unturned as we ex
plore alternatives to the bonfire.”
The committee was formed to examine
alternatives to bonfire in terms of academic
concentration, safety, location, humanita
rian considerations and environmental con
cerns.
“This is not a public debate,” Stout said.
“This is an information gathering exercise.
“I would urge all of you in the audience
to be respectful if there is an opinion ex
pressed other than the ope you hold. We
want to hear as many opinions as possible.”
Russ Savage, an A&M student, said if Ag
gies did not build bonfire, the land would
be strip-mined anyway, and all the wood
would be wasted.
“The traditon is still a lot like it was when
the tradition began,” Savage said. “We take
things that are going to be thrown away and
make something great.”
Savage said bonfire helps people make
friends, promotes leadership skills and tea
ches people how to work with others.
“It would almost be a waste if we didn’t
build bonfire,” Savage said. “We’re not
going to get anything out of the wood if it’s
thrown away.”
Savage said he thinks opposers of bonfire
are making something out of nothing.
The opposers of bonfire did not argue
that the land would not be strip-mined, but
they said this is no reason for A&M to de
stroy trees. Opposers said A&M is sending
the world a message that it is OK to waste
natural resources.
James Brown, a graduate student in wild
life and fisheries, said if A&M wants to be
come a more widely respected university, it
must end bonfire.
“I,am philosophically opposed to bonfi
re,” Brown said. “As Texas A&M strives to
become a world-class university, should it
not assume greater responsibility for work
ing toward solutions for environmental de
gradation through research and public ed
ucation?”
Brown said bonfire trivializes world-wide
environmental problems.
“What message does Aggie bonfire give a
public told by educators, leaders, experts
and perhaps even its own conscious that
natural resources are limited and should be
put to wide use?” Brown asked.
Brown said bonfire is a “gross hypocrisy”
and a highly visible waste of natural re
sources.
Supporters of bonfire did not argue that
environmental problems do not exist. They
said, however, that many bonfire support
ers are involved with organizations to better
the community and the environment.
The supporters argued that if bonfire
was cancelled, the land would be strip-
mined anyway and if it wasn’t strip-mined,
the saved trees would never make it to the
truly needy people.
Committee member, Janis Stout, faculty
member of the College of Liberal Arts,
asked Brown if, as a solution, students
could plant three trees in the community
for each tree that is cut down for bonfire.
Brown did not think this would solve
anything.
“That is beside the point,” Brown said.
“This university is being hypocritical by bla
tantly publicizing the waste of natural re
sources.”
Supporters all agreed bonfire does not
have an adverse affect on grades, and cited
many examples of people who worked on
bonfire and maintained high grade-point
ratios.
Opposers did not argue academics as a
major issue.
The location of bonfire was a concern of
some opposers.
Gregory Bowling, a sophomore political
science major who spoke representing Can
terbury House, the Episcopal Student Cen
ter, said he and other volunteers from Can
terbury House guarded the student center’s
property bonfire night. The center shares a
common boundary with the bonfire site.
There were not enough policemen to ef
fectively keep bonfire participants from
urinating on the property, he said.
See Bonfire/Page 6
Gephardt
calls for aid
to Soviets
WASHINGTON (AP) — House
Democratic Leader Richard Ge
phardt said Tuesday the United
States should offer direct aid to the
Soviet Union to ensure that its re
forms succeed.
“We should be investing in our
own self-interest,” Gephardt said.
“And stability, democracy and a
market economy in the Soviet Union
are in America’s strong self-inter
est.”
The proposal brought immediate
criticism from some quarters, with a
presidential spokesman saying the
Soviets don’t want direct aid.
Sen. Bill Bradley, D-N.J., also said
that the Soviets haven’t requested
U.S. help and that, if they did, it
would be wasted without economic
reform. “Unless they reform the
economy, it’s going down a rathole,”
Bradley said.
Others on Capitol Hill said that
while they thought Gephardt’s pro
posal would spark a useful debate,
the idea would fall on disapproving
public ears.
“If you’re going to start giving
foreign aid to the hated commies of
70 years’ worth, you’ve got a real
sales job to do in the United States,”
said Sen. Alan Simpson, R-Wyo.
Gephardt noted an appeal by Cze
choslovak President Vaclav Havel, in
a Feb. 21 speech to Congress, to help
his country by helping the Soviet
Union continue on its reformist
road.
If Havel, who was imprisoned by
the communists, can call for aid to
the Soviets, “the least we can do is lis
ten,” Gephardt said in a speech that
also contained his harshest criticism
to date of Bush’s policy toward East
ern Europe.
He accused Bush of “a lack of
leadership in this most crucial mo
ment,” throwing billions of dollars
into the military budget to defend
against “communists who don’t want
to be communists any more” while
ignoring their economic needs.
“It’s as though George Bush’s
Pentagon budget were written by
someone who hadn’t read a newspa
per in a year,” Gephardt said, draw
ing applause. Indeed, most of the
administration’s budget was drafted
last year, after the opening of the
Berlin Wall but before many other
developments in Eastern Europe.
At the White House, spokesmap
Marlin Fitzwater called the charges
“general old political stuff” and
added, “The Soviet Union doesn’t
want direct aid.”
Johnny Hester, team captain of the nine member Ranger Chal
lenge Team, crosses a rope bridge with the help of his team
mates as the group prepares to take part in a national competi-
Photo by Eric M. Roalson
tion. Ten other colleges will compete against the A&M team April
6-8 at Ft. Riley, Ark. The timed crossing of the rope bridge is one
of the five drills in the competition.
Director, students discuss food services
By PAM MOOMAN
Of The Battalion Staff
Questions about Texas A&M
Food Services were raised at Tues
day’s Student Senate meeting, and
Dr. Don Powell, director of business
services at A&M, was there to answer
them.
Business services is responsible
for business-like activities around
campus such as the golf course, the
copy centers and food services, Pow
ell said.
“We think we’re an integral part
that makes this University work,” he
said. “We try to operate on a real-
world basis as closely as we can.” -
Business services tries to hold
prices down as much as possible,
Powell said.
Most of the questions Powell an
swered dealt with University board
plans and the University’s confisca
tion of Aggie Bucks at the end of
each semester.
Twice there has been $30,000 left
in Aggie Bucks at the semester’s end
that has been returned to the Uni
versity, Powell said.
In order to alleviate this problem,
he said, food services is accepting re
quests from students to refund the
amount of their Aggie Bucks or ex
tend their Aggie Bucks to the next
semester.
Starting next fall, Powell said, Ag
gie Bucks automatically will be ex
tended to the next semester. Depos
its made in the summer will be good
for both the following fall and
spring semesters, he added.
Food services also will create a
new plan called Aggie Bucks 100, he
said. A minimum deposit of $100 is
required, but students will buy this
plan in multiple numbers, he said.
They can add increments of $50 to
their initial $100 deposit, he said.
“We’re here to provide for your
needs and wants,” Powell said. “If we
don’t please you, we won’t get your
business.”
Later, Speaker of the Senate Ty
Clevenger announced that Aggie li
cense plates can be ordered for $30 a
year. Four-fifths of this amount will
go directly to scholarships, Cle
venger said, and should bring in
about $200,000 annually in schol
arships. Also, if the plates are or
dered now, the price of the old
plates will be rebated, he said.
Clevenger also presented his re
port on Academic Resources at
A&M. He found that while mil
lion has been appropriated for ex
pansion of A&M library facilities, no
money has been designated for the
purchase of books.
Additional research by Clevenger
dealt with campus computer facili
ties. He proposed solutions to the
current situation where computer
facilities are scattered around cam
pus. While A&M has the money to
buy additional computers to meet
student needs, they lack facilities, he
said, so he proposed construction of
a large computing facility that goes
along with the library expansion.
In other business, the Student
Senate approved the Spring 1990
Student Body Election polling sites,
which are Kleberg Building, the
MSC, Blocker Building and Aca
demic Plaza.
Jackson earns local, state Miss Black and Gold titles
By CHRIS VAUGHN
Of The Battalion Staff
Pageant winners spend years perfecting
what it takes to win pageants, right? Not this
time.
Karen Jackson, a novice at the pageant
scene, earned the Texas Miss Black and Gold
title two weeks ago in Houston after being
named the Texas A&M Miss Black and Gold
in January.
Jackson, a junior English education major,
had never entered a pageant before. In less
than two months, she has won two.
“I’m still floating,” Jackson said. “When I
entered the pageant here and when I went to
the state level, I never, never, never expected
to win. It is such an honor and privilege.”
Jackson will represent Texas in the re
gional Miss Black and Gold pageant in Tulsa,
Okla., during Easter weekend. The winner of
that pageant competes in the national pag
eant later this year in Miami.
The Miss Black and Gold pageant is spon
sored by the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity,
whose colors are black and gold.
Jackson credits her outgoing personality
for her success in the pageants.'
“I am in the Voices of Praise and being out
there with them has forced me to relax in
public,” she said. “You can’t be nervous if
you’re in public a lot. I’ve always been a peo
ple person, though.”
Holding the local and state Miss Black and
Gold titles doesn’t begin to cover the activities
that keep Jackson busy.
She is the pianist for the gospel choir
Voices of Praise, resident adviser in Mosher
Hall, secretary of the Alpha Kappa Alpha so
rority, assistant director in the Southwestern
Black Student Leadership Conference, coun
selor with Minority Freshmen Orientation
and member of the Committee on Increasing
Multicultural Awareness.
All her extracurricular activities, however,
don’t keep her away from her academic pur
suits. Jackson plans to attend law school after
her graduation in August 1991 to work with
the Texas Legislature in the education field.
Jackson said her plans to enter the field of
education stem from her parents’ lifelong
committments to education.
“My mother is a teacher, and my father is
an administrator,” she said. “That’s what I’ve
been around and heard for 20 years. I’m sure
that’s why I want to do the same thing.”
For such an engaging and outgoing per
sonality, Jackson said fear is one reason she
came to A&M.
“I grew up in a small town where I knew
everyone,” she said. “The idea of going to
school in a big city frightened me. I visited
A&M, and it seemed like it was a small town
because everyone was friendly. That’s the
main reason I came here.”
Gilmer, Texas, a town of about 6,000 near
Tyler, isjackson’s home.
Jackson said she has been very happy at
A&M, but she would like to see more open-
mindedness among students.
“We all came here with our pre-conceived
notions about others, but since we’re all here
together, we might as well accept the differ
ences in each other,” Jackson said. “I’m very
receptive to other ideas and very open-
minded. It’s an asset I would like to see other
people at least try for.”
It’s just a month before the regional pag
eant, and Jackson said she is finally beginning
to feel the pressure associated with entering
pageants.
“It’s still fun, but I’m just going to have to
win!” she exclaimed. “I really do want to win.
It seems like the more deeply involved you
get, the more you want to win.”
Jimenez:
Blacks lost
in society
By ANDY KEHOE
Of The Battalion Staff
The status of a black man in the
Caribbean society is equal to that of a
“lost man,” Bias Jimenez said.
In “A Black Man’s Experiences in
the Caribbean” presented last night
by the MSC Jordan Institute for In
ternational Awareness, Jimenez,
Class of ’72, voiced his concern over
the Caribbean blacks’ poor standing
in society.
“Being black in the Caribbean Is
lands is not being recognized in so
ciety,” Jimenez said. “Being black is
not living as a whole human being.”
A black man in the Dominican Re
public, he said, can not hold public
office, nor can he even appear in a
television commercial. He can, how
ever, be confined to hard labor.
Another concern of Jimenez’s is
the absence of a Caribbean black his
tory. It all began, he said, with the
importation of blacks for sugar cane.
“The Caribbean is a very diverse
area with several different languages
spoken,” he said. “The African
slaves were forced into a foreign
land and foreign language.”
It was these new surroundings,
said Jimenez, that lost the black’s
original heritage.
“During the years of slavery, we
lost our culture, our religion,” he
said. “Every sense of our reality was
taken away from us.”
However diverse the population
was, he believes all islanders now
have two things in common.
“AH of us now live in underdevel
oped countries with very little indus
trial development,” he said. “Also,
all of us share the same past that
shaped us as black men in the Carib
bean.”
According to Jimenez, islanders
may be able to recreate a history by
learning about their past.
“We can discover great things
about our past by reading early
books and poetry.”
Jimenez is the regional marketing
manager for a large international
pharmaceutical corporation.
“Being black in the business
world, I was considered to have a
strike against me,” he said. “But I
was able to overcome it.”
However bleak the blacks’ status
is, Jimenez said it shouldn’t last long.
“Times are changing,” he said.
“With the recent liberation in South
Africa, I’m hopeful of some changes
in the Caribbean.”
Jackson
Photo by Scott D. Weaver
Polling sites
close Friday
Absentee voting will end Fri
day.
On-campus absentee voting in
the Democratic primary will be in
146 MSC. Republican primary
on-campus absentee voting will
be in 138 MSC.
The other three county absen
tee polling sites are the Brazos
County Courthouse on 26th
Street in Bryan, Ben Milam El
ementary School on Ridgedale
Street in Bryan and the College
Station School District adminis
tration office on Welsh Avenue in
College Station.
Any registered voter in Brazos
County can vote absentee at any
of the four polling sites, even if
they are registered to vote in an
other precinct.
AH four precincts will have a
complete list of registered voters,
so voters who have moved or lost
their voter registration cards and
don't know where they should
vote can vote absentee.