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1 tie Dattalion
Vol. 90 No. 8 USPS 045360 12 Pages
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College Station, Texas
Wednesday, September 12,1990
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Bookstore prepares
to take Aggie Bucks
By KATHERINE COFFEY
Of The Battalion Staff
Texas A&M students who have
Aggie Bucks will be able to use
them in the MSC Bookstore
within a couple of weeks.
Aggie Bucks, a credit-like meal
plan, will not be validated for use
m the bookstore until a computer
program is tested to ensure
proper operation, Lloyd H.
Smith, director of food services,
says.
“The equipment we had was
ten years old and not capable of
being expanded,” he says. “The
system needs to be repro-
gramryed before it can be used in
the bookstore.”
Junior speech communications
major Cynthis Bernan says this
addition will be convenient when
she wants to buy scantrons, pen
cils and cards.
"This will help buying last min
ute things because I never carry
cash on campus,” Bernan says.
"This will be really nice to have.”
Smith says the bookstore will
check credit by telephone, similar
to (he system used oy stores when
checking credit cards.
A proposal to implement Ag
gie Bucks in the bookstore came
up in early August. Since then
work was done on the computers
and new software was added.
Smith says this will help pre
vent occasional system malfunc
tions, such as last week’s problem
when students could not use their
bucks at various locations.
"We had problems with the
readers in the different snack
bars on campus, and students
were not able to use their meal
plans, but the problem was
cleared up the first week of
school,” Smith says.
Col. James T. Moore, assistant
director of food services, says the
problem started Aug. 27 because
so many students started using
meal plans while the computers
were being repaired.
“The reason we’ve had prob
lems is because there was a com
puter malfunction, but terminals
were repaired and students
should not have any problems
now,” says Moore.
Another addition to the Aggie
Bucks system this fall is Aggie
Bucks 100.
This allows students to buy Ag
gie Bucks in increments. Students
nave an extended termination
date which is effective through
the following semester.
For example, if students add
$50 to their accounts during the
spring, credit is good during the
spring, summer and following
fall semester, Smith says.
Bush claims 4 Saddam Hussein
will fail’ in address to Congress
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush, re
porting to Congress and the nation on the Per
sian Gulf crisis, vowed Tuesday night that “Sad
dam Hussein will fail” in his conquest of Kuwait.
He said the Iraqi dictator could not persevere in
the face of “a new partnership of nations.”
Bush also acknowledged the U.S. military
could be deployed in the Saudi Arabian desert
indefinitely.
“I cannot predict just how long it will take to
convince Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait,” Bush
said in a nationally broadcast address before a
joint session of Congress.
He said U.N.-approved sanctions would take
time to squeeze Iraq and that the United States
would continue reviewing options with allies.
“But let it be clear: we will not let this aggression
stand,” Bush said.
Fresh from his summit with Soviet President
Mikhail S. Gorbachev, Bush said “a new part
nership of nations” stands aligned against Iraq’s
aggression and that the superpowers are working
together on this crisis.
“Clearly, no longer can a dictator count on
East-West confrontation to stymie concerted
U.N. action against aggression,” the president
said.
“The crisis in the Persian Gulf, as grave as it is,
also offers a rare opportunity to move toward an
historic period of cooperation,” Bush said.
Bush said “a new world order” may emerge
from the crisis in which the world is “freer from
the threat of terror, stronger in the pursuit of
justice and more secure in the quest for peace —
an era in which the nations of the world, East and
West, North and South, can prosper and live in
harmony.”
Bush offered no new initiatives to resolve the
gulf crisis, and repeated many of his past declara
tions condemning Saddam.
But the point of the speech was to bring Amer
icans up to date on the crisis, and to call for them
to stand united as the stalemate lingers on.
“If ever there was a time to put country before
self and patriotism before party, that time is
now,” Bush said.
The president devoted a considerable portion
of his speech to prodding Congress to finish
work on a budget agreement. At the same time,
the speech did not contain the sharp attack on
Democrats, as had previous pronouncements.
“Together we must act this very month — be
fore the next fiscal year begins Oct. 1 — to get
America’s fiscal house in order,” Bush said.
Budget negotiators from the White House and
Congress appeared to be making some progress
toward an agreement to pare next year’s federal
deficit by $50 billion, including higher premiums
for better-off Medicare recipients.
Participants in the talks said Tuesday that the
two sides had agreed to increase taxes and fees by
$25 billion next year and $130 billion over five
years.
“Most Americans are sick and tired of endless
battles in the Congress and between the branches
over budget matters,” Bush declared. “It is high
time we pulled together — and get the job done
right. It is up to us to straighten this out.”
Bush told Congress there were high related
costs of the showdown and declared, “conserva
tion efforts are essential to keep our energy
needs as low as possible.”
A&M group targets Columbus’ships
By TROY HALL
Of The Battalion Staff
1. 302
ly MIKE LUMAN
)(The Battalion Staff
HI
epublican official finds
onservatism on campus
The student chairman of the CoT
:ge Republican National Commit-
ee in Washington, D.C., said Texas
\&M students appeared over
whelmingly conservative during a
isit Tuesday.
Tony Zagotta, on a tour of col-
eges and universities that have stu-
lent chapters, estimated 80 percent
>f A&M students who vote are Re-
jublicans.
“Thats a number I don’t think we
an match anywhere in the country,”
ie said.
He said he reached his conclusion
tartly from walking around campus
ind seeing no visible support for the
Democrats.
He said the average campus
isually voted about 60 percent Re-
ber 13
845#
publican.
The goal of A&M’s College Re
publicans is to register as many vot
ers as possible, he said. The chapter
registered 18,000 voters in 1988.
“The organizational ability of the
College Republicans at A&:M is what
interests me about this campus,” he
said. “That’s a phenomenal number
for one campus.”
He said College Republicans also
campaigned for candidates.
The trend of Republicans in the
White House will probably continue,
Zagotta said.
“I think leadership values are seen
(by students) in presidents Reagan
and Bush,” he said. “Students can
strongly identify with the Republi
can party.”
The National Committee has
1,000 chapters with a total of
100,000 members.
A group from Texas A&M will
leave for Jamaica next month to be
gin an expedition to locate remains
of Spanish ships abandoned by
Christopher Columbus in the early
16th century.
The group of archaeologists, geo
archaeologists and geophysicists will
leave A&M in early October.
The two ships, known as caravels,
intentionally were beached side-to-
side by Columbus after worms ate
away wood on the caravels.
This caused water to inundate the
caravels and almost cover the decks,
says James Parrent, project director
for the Columbus Caravel Archaeo
logical Project.
“We do not know exactly how car
avels were constructed and have
little information to go on,” says Par-
rent, who also is an associate re
search scientist for the Institute of
Nautical Archaeology at A&M.
He said if the keel and a few
planks from the vessels are found,
they should be able to reconstruct
and determine the vessels’ sizes and
shapes.
“Individuals and organizations
have excavated several old shipw
recks in the New World, but they
have never been sure they were cara
vels,” Parrent says.
“From the information we get, we
may be able to start saying other sites
(contain) caravels because the pro
ject will give us a good data base.”
But learning about types of vessels
early explorers sailed in is only one
important part of the project.
While beached in St. Ann’s Bay,
Columbus and his crew of 115 men
and boys anchored the two caravels
together and built cabins on the
decks while waiting to be rescued.
Columbus and his crew lived on
the caravels for more than one year
before being rescued.
The Spaniards had to barter be
longings such as beads, knives and
combs to receive food from the Indi
ans.
“Since these ships were aban
doned in 1504, the local Indians fed
these men for a year and five days,
so the food and pottery remains
should reflect period subsistence of
the Indians,” Parrent says.
“This is an excavation of one small
time frame, unlike the excavating of
a nearby Arawak Indian site on land
that may represent a few hundred or
even a thousand years.”
The two caravels served as a
makeshift home for the sick, hungry
and worried men.
See Caravels/Page 7
01IC-
Graphic by Eric Wong
Attorney general candidate airs views
By JULIE MYERS
Of The Battalion Staff
Republican J.E. “Buster”
Brown said he will fight to end
early parole of Texas Depart
ment of Corrections inmates if he
is elected to the attorney general’s
office.
Brown, who faces Democrat
Dan Morales in the Nov. 6 elec
tion, spoke to the College Repub
licans Tuesday night.
Military-style boot camps are
the answer to the early release
problem and the vacancies
brought on by the decreasing de
fense budget, Brown said. .
Brown, a state senator from
Lake Jackson since 1980, said At
torney General Jim Mattox’s
handling of recent lawsuits
against the state are a good exam
ple of what not to do as attorney
general.
During the public school fi
nance lawsuit, Brown said Mattox
realized many of his supporters
were the ones suing and he
thought the other side should win
so he argued weakly for the state
and lost the case.
When the state system is chal
lenged in a court of law, the attor
ney general should do his job for
the state and not let politics inter
fere with conducting the business
of the state, Brown said.
Funding for Texas public edu-
:qi
needed to be modified within the
system. Brown said, either legis
latively or by threat of a court or
der, but federal judges should
not impose their will on the peo
ple of Texas by ordering action.
Brown has criticized Morales’
endorsement from the Gay and
Lesbian Political Caucus, but said
he only meant to inform voters of
the issues that are important to
the race. Because Morales was en
dorsed by the caucus, voters
should know that Morales is lib
eral, Brown said.
The Texas State Rifle Associa
tion, which is affiliated with the
National Rifle Association, has
endorsed Brown. The TSRA op
poses a ban on semi-automatic
weapons.
The answer to the question of
gun control is providing swift,
sure punishment for people who
use guns in connection with crim
inal acts, Brown said.
Poll shows student opinions
Responses to residence hall questions differ
By SEAN FRERKING
Of The Battalion Staff
On-campus students at Texas
A&M overwhelmingly favor 24-hour
room visitation rights in their resi
dence halls but are slightly opposed
to the conversion of McFadden Hall
into an honors dormitory next fall.
According to the Batt Poll con
ducted last night, 342 students said
they would be in favor of 24-hour
room visitation rights in their resi
dence hall while 49 dormitory resi
dents were opposed with 10 students
responding with no opinion.
In answer to the second question
of the poll, 88 people said they fa
vored the conversion of McFadden
Hall into an honors dormitory while
167 students opposed the change
with 146 of those responding having
no opinion.
Should the dorms have 24-hour Should McFadden be converted
visitation? into an honors dorm?
NO OPINION
36
Residents of Eppright Hall, a coed
hall, voted 220-1 in favor of the 24-
hour room visitation rule. The
change, which went into effect on
Sept 6. in the visitation policy, began
with the decision that residents of
the two south-side coed dormitories
were responsible adults who could
respect and manage extended visita-
See Poll/Page 7
/T
'resident Mobley’s trial recycling program calls for campus-wide effort
By MIKE LUMAN
(The Battalion Staff
Texas A&M must balance recycling,
aste reduction, landfill use and incinera-
)n to develop a campus-wide solid waste
anagement system, a waste management
specialist said Tuesday.
li Dr. Roy Hartman, an associate professor
in the Engineering Technology Depart
ment, spoke Tuesday to A&M’s Association
of Professional Support Staff.
I Hartman is among A&M faculty mem
bers working on a trial recycling program
Jivolving six campus buildings. The pro-
am was initiated by University President
pilliam Mobley.
| “Hopefully we will go to a full-scale, cam
pus-wide program,” Hartman said.
He said the program should be full scale
iyecause Environmental Protection Agency
regulations will make landfill space too ex
pensive to continue dumping recyclable
material. Ground water pollution also is a
concern.
Every person in the United States dis
cards one ton of trash a year, he said.
“We’re all part of the problem, and need
to be part of the solution,” Hartman said.
He said “myths” exist about solving the
situation.
“Getting everyone involved in a little bit
of recycling will fix it, or engineers will
come up with a silver bullet solution,” he
said. “It’s not going to happen.
“We need to look at a balanced system
that involves all of us.”
ippe
and ideal use of them involves careful selec
tion of what is buried and recycled.
“It’s absolutely dependent on markets,”
he said. “You can’t collect a bunch of paper
and cans and have no market.”
Waste for recycling must remain pure
for markets and mills — that means re-sort
ing if someone throws trash in the wrong
bin, he said.
Paper accounts for 42 percent of solid
waste nationwide.
Yard waste makes up about 23 percent of
U.S. garbage. People should compost leaves
and grass clippings instead of bagging
them, Hartman said.
Nationally, aluminum and glass account
for about 10 percent each. Incineration, an
other waste disposal technique, requires
both be absent before burning.
Hartman said incineration is an accepta
ble means of waste disposal when done
properly.
Concerns have been raised about poisons
being released by the process, but he said
incineration could be safe while producing
electricity as a by-product.
Hartman advised creating a larger mar
ket for recyclable material by buying goods
made from recycled waste.
Some examples of recycled goods are
notebooks, egg cartons, carpet and plastic
lumber. Most are marked as recycled.
Plastic lumber is a construction material
made from waste such as plastic bottlecaps.
Recycled carpet, which looks like any
other carpet, is made from two-liter soft
drink bottles.
A&M went from poor to better with recy
cling, but is far from the best it can be,
Hartman said. He credited the Texas Envi
ronmental Action Coalition with playing a
key role in recycling efforts.
The following is a partial list of recycling
centers in Bryan-College Station:
• Brazos Animal Shelter, 775-5755,
2207 Pinfeather Road — Bundled newspa
per or computer paper can be dropped off
24 hours. Newspaper and white paper
should be sorted separately.
• Brazos Beverages, 775-6322, 505
North FM 2818 — Aluminum cans bought
from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays.
• Bruegging Paper Stock, 822-2473,
1919 FM 2818 — Plastic, paper, glass bot-
des and aluminum. Call for information on
acceptable types.
• Bryan Iron and Metal, 775-7171, 2011
Highway 21 West — Glass sorted by color
and most metal, but not aluminum cans.
• Cafe Eccell, 846-7908, 101 Church
Ave. — 24-hour drop off for glass sorted by
color.
•The Deluxe, 846-7466, 203 University
Drive — 24-hour drop off for sorted glass,
aluminum cans and newspaper.
•La Taqueria, 846-0228, 102 Church
Ave. — 24-hour drop off for sorted glass,
aluminum cans and newspaper.