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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 13, 1990)
ember 12, T exas A&M isterful tennis of mil he lost ir an(1 more accurJ semifinals. )ved up fro m ^tk| - y s rankings and. minue his comeb; d Slam event wi e he started the * d out after a cur )wing tantrum. Battalion Vol. 90 No. 9 USPS 045360 14 Pages Fall into fitness Intramurals offer exercise options. See Page 4 College Station, Texas Thursday, September 13,1990 Nazi documents contain oil secrets ‘im No. 1 for the, - c ker second, L« fourth and Got, npras is comb mroe is threaten^ “ iaii, ranked IStb' ur, also may be tea )ve in 1991 as she ommating andevt; 1 S‘ n g> said oneti' Connors. “It’s s , f - lor the playerst By ELIZABETH TISCH Of The Battalion Staff irsity of Chicago intosh iiifident. you ) Nobody Jyou way a two it a lils about ng the er 15th. :en 5:00 & 6:00 and love Macintosh! ®? 1 storing more than 170 tons of Nazi Germany documents containing in formation that could help decrease the United States’ dependency on foreign oil. Dr. Arnold Krammer, a Texas A&M history professor, brought copies of original Nazi Germany documents to A&M in 1975 after learning the documents revealed a liquid fuel alternative to the expen sive, imported petroleum oil. The public reacted enthusiasti cally because of the negative ripple effects from OPEC’s decision to raise oil prices in the mid-1970s. Krammer says the information from these records could allow the United States to produce its own fu els from coal instead of importing oil from the Middle East. But as soon as gasoline prices dropped in the early 1980s, the United States’ interest in synthetic fuel alternatives diminished. Only 10 percent of the documents were translated into English before they were placed in Evans Library where they remained for 15 years, Krammer says. The present crisis in the Middle East, however, has aroused Kram- mer’s interest again in the German documents which could lessen the United States’ vulnerability to fluc tuating oil prices. But, Krammer adds, as soon as the Persian Gulf crisis ends and gas prices stabilize, the nation’s interest in synthetically produced fuels will cease again. If gas prices drop below a dollar, everybody will be happy and won’t worry about conservation,” he says. “But what they don’t realize is this is going to happen again and again.” Scientists in Nazi Germany real ized this possibility after witnessing the economically damaging effects of World War I. So German scientists worked to make Germany self-sufficient to pre vent further economic damage if an embargo occurred. Friedrich Bergius, a German sci entist, created a method where ordi nary brown lignite coal converts into gasoline through a process called hy- Irogenation. Candidate opposes methods of arsenic removal in Bryan By CHRIS VAUGHN Of The Battalion Staff State representative hopeful Jim James said Wednesday that Brazos County citizens should stand up to a chemical company that wants to pump almost 62 million gallons of arsenic-contaminated water into Bryan’s Municipal Lake. James, a Democrat opposing Re publican Steve Ogden, spoke out against local chemical company Ato- chem North America, formerly Pen- nwalt. The chemical company wants to empty No Name and Pinfeather lakes, which are arsenic-contami nated, and transport the water to the Municipal Lake. Municipal Lake is near the Bryan Municipal Golf Course. “It’s time for all of us to take a firm stand and say, ‘No,’ ’’James said as he stood on the banks of Munici pal Lake. “We as citizens are entitled to clean air and water.” Atochem North America, which manufactures arsenic for insecti cides and herbicides, petitioned the Texas Water Commission in Decem ber to dump the water in Municipal Lake because of possible leakage of contaminated water into the city’s drainage system from the two other lakes. The Texas Water Commission al ready has recommended denying the request, but it will have a public hearing Sept. 19 in Austin. James, a Bryan attorney, said the arsenic-contaminated water will pose serious health problems unless it is treated to nullify the effects of the arsenic before it is dumped. “We certainly don’t need a Love Canal in Brazos County,” he said. He was referring to a piece of land in upstate New York where sev eral companies dumped toxic waste after World War II, deeded the land to the U.S. government and told it not to build anything there. The government built homes on the land anyway and allowed people live there until the 1970s when it be came known the homes were built on a toxic waste dump. The land now is known as Love Canal. James said business and the envi ronment should not oppose one an other. “We must continue to seek new businesses,” he said. “Will new busi nesses want to locate in Brazos County — home of Texas A&M and Arsenic Lake? Or in Brazos County — home of Texas A&M and a healthy environment?” James also outlined plans to help the environment he intends to carry through if elected to the House in November. Among them is support of man datory deposits for bottles and cans to aid the recycling push, and giving preference in state purchasing to companies who sell recycled material. “We cannot be a society that uses something once and then discards it,” he said. Six nations sign treaty; allow Germanys to unify by Oct. 3 Bergius was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1931 for this process which involves placing coal into a high- pressure, high-temperature reactor that introduces hydrogen as a cat alyst and creates gasoline. The second method is called the Fischer-Tropsch Process, which is successful in producing oil. "If gas prices drop below a dollar, everybody will be happy and won’t worry about conservation, but what they don’t realize is this is going to happen again and again.” — Arnold Krammer, history professor By World War II, the Germans had created 22 synthetic fuel facili ties, which provided fuel for more the de- than 90 percent of Germany’s planes. By the end of World War II synthetic fuel facilities were stroyed, and the documents were seized by Americans and later stored in the National Archives in Washing ton, D.C. Discoveries of large oil supplies in the Middle East shortly after the war lessened America’s interest and con cern about finding alternatives for oil. The discovery of these vast oil re serves also increased the United States dependency on Middle East ern liquid fuels by 50 percent. Krammer says he does not think coal conversion, however, is the an swer to the depleting sources of pe troleum. But he adds that convert ing coal into liquid fuels will buy the United States another 100 years of ample amounts of fuel. In the meantime, scientists and See Nazi/Page 14 MOSCOW (AP) — The victors of World War II on Wednesday signed one of the most important docu ments of the postwar era, giving in ternational sanction to both German unity and a major reshaping of the East-West balance of power. Secretary of State James A. Baker III proclaimed the signing a “ren dezvous with history.” “This represents the end of a 45- year journey,” Baker said after he and the foreign ministers of the So viet Union, Britain, France and the two Germanys signed a treaty set tling the global aspects of German unification. At the signing ceremony inside Moscow’s posh October Hotel, So viet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev watched West German Foreign Min ister Hans-Dietrich Genscher affix the first signature, followed by East German Prime Minister Lothar de Maiziere, who is also foreign min ister. The Allies were next: French For eign Minister Roland Dumas, Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard A. She vardnadze, Baker and British For eign Secretary Douglas Hurd. The seven men shook hands and drank a champagne toast immedi ately after the signing. The sweeping document, called the Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany, climaxes seven months of tough bargaining between the six nations. In it, the same four powers that defeated Germany in 1945 give their seal of approval to German unity. It will lead to scrapping their special rights in Germany — such as their control of air corridors into Berlin. The treaty was the last major doc ument needed to clear the way for merging the two Germanys on Oct. 3. Under the document, the Soviet Union loses East Germany as its most valued military ally. The six na tions agreed all of Germany can be long to NATO. The Soviets will be allowed to keep their estimated 370,000 troops in East Germany for a maximum of four years. C.S. man suffers broken leg in motorcycle accident By SEAN FRERKING Of The Battalion Staff A College Station man suffered a broken leg after his black 1983 Honda motorcycle and a tan 1990 Plymouth Lazer collided last night at the 100 block of University Drive near the intersection of Jane Street, police said. George Anthony Vordenbaum, 430 Southwest Parkway, College Sta tion, was thrown from the motorcy cle after hitting the passenger-side door of the car, two blocks east of the intersection of University Drive and Texas Avenue, at 8:30 p.m., said Sgt. B.W. Sims of the College Station police. Sims said the driver of the car, Sheri Lynn Alexander, an A&M freshman general studies major, 410 S. Texas Avenue, and two female passengers were not injured, al though the Plymouth’s passenger- side door was severely dented. Paramedics placed a neck brace on Vordenbaum and transported him to Humana hospital by ambu lance to treat his broken left leg and other injuries, Sims said. Vorden baum was in stable condition at Hu mana as of early Thursday morning, a nursing supervisor said. College Station firefighters sprayed foam on the damaged mo torcycle, which had leaked gasoline onto the pavement. Observers of the accident, Shari Garrett,and Bryan and Vickie Tun- nell,of Snook, said they did not see George Anthony Vordenbaum was taken to Hu mana Hospital for injuries he suffered in a motor- Photo by Fredrick D. Joe cycle accident Wednesday evening. He was thrown from his motorcycle after hitting a car. the accident but heard it while they were eating at Sonic Drive In at 104 E. University Drive. “We were eating and talking to each other when we heard the crash,” Garrett said. “When we turned to see what happened, we She said he quickly grabbed his knee saw a man flipping through the air.” and collapsed in the street. Garrett said the man landed near the curb on his back and the mo mentum of the fall made him sit up. Police blocked the westbound side of University Drive and divei ted tra ffic onto Jane Street. Sims speaks to BAC Photo byjayjanner 3tte Sims, host and producer of Houston talk show iroads”, talks with sophomore biology major em ® 3r of Dallas before giving a presentatinn on/^ 10 ^ e African-American family during the Black war ’s first meeting last night. Clevenger ties activities to Student Government By ELIZABETH TISCH Of The Battalion Staff When he enrolled in Texas A&M in 1987, Ty Clevenger had no idea he would be student body president. “I got involved with the Student Government Legislative Study Group as a freshman and continued my involvement as being speaker of the Senate in 1989,” he says. One reason for Clevenger’s con tinual involvement in Student Gov ernment was to finish programs he implemented as speaker. Clevenger worked with A&M’s food services to allow students to re ceive refunds for the amount of unused Aggie Bucks in their meal plans during a semester. Food services and Student Gov ernment still work together to serve students’ needs, he says. During his term as student body president, Clevenger wants to see several goals accomplished. To do this, he appointed several special assistants to monitor the needs of various areas. These areas range from food services and parking and transit to the international students office. A major concern of Clevenger’s is the lack of involvement from mi norities on campus. “One of the reasons why there is little involvement among these stu dents is because many student lead ers on campus show little interest to them,” he says. He urges A&M student leaders to be especially aware of this when re cruiting new members to join. Clevenger finds little fault with A&M’s student body but says the dwindling of the howdy tradition bothers him. Photo by Fredrick D. Joe Ty Clevenger “One of the reasons why there is little involvement among these students is because many student leaders on campus show little interest to them.” — Ty Clevenger, student body president “I try to promote A&M’s tradition whenever I speak or make guest ap pearances,” he says. The Student Government presi dent commends A&M for its strong sense of community and identity when compared to other universi ties. Relay Texas aids hearing impaired By JULIE MYERS Of The Battalion Staff Texas A&M students who are hearing impaired can participate in the telecommunications network since the installation of Relay Texas. Relay Texas is a new statewide service offering links between peo ple who are hearing or speech im paired and people who can hear. Jerome Duderstadt, a senior counselor with the Texas Rehabili- tion Commission, and Sue McBeth, director of the TRC student center field office, estimate their caseloads consist of about 30 A&M students who can use the network. The service was mandated by the 71st Texas Legislature in 1989 to provide equal access to the telephone network. “This service will open segments of our economy to individuals who have felt they have been isolated for so long,” Marta Greytok, public util ity commissioner, says. “We have taken a giant step in opening up the rapidly advancing world of telecom munications to all Texas citizens. “Most importantly, jobs should open up that have previously been closed to people who could not use the telephone. They will no longer be dependent on others to make calls for them.” The relay system is funded by the universal services fund to which long distance carriers and local telephone companies contribute, public utility commission spokesman Bill Dunn says. Although not supported by tax revenue, these costs will be passed on to consumers, Dunn says. A utilities commission committee estimated each taxpayer will pay 64 cents a year, so about 250,000 peo ple can access the network. “This will end up being a tremen dous economic benefit to the state because thousands more will be making long , distance phone calls and paying for them,” Dunn says. In March, the commission se lected Sprint Services as the relay carrier because its bid was the lowest offered. Sprint Services is a subsid iary of United Telecommunications, which also owns US Sprint. A 13-member advisory committee with members from various disabil ity groups assisted with implementa tion of the relay service. Following the committee’s advice, operators receive sensitivity training from agencies representing the hearing-impaired and learn about deaf culture.* They also are trained in American Sign Language structure and gram mar. Before relay services, hearing and speech impaired telephone custom ers could use computers or TDDs (telecommunications devices for the deaf) only to communicate with other individuals who had such equipment. With Relay Texas, these custom ers no longer will have restrictions placed on telephone use. Relay Texas is available 24 hours a See Phone/Page 14