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t
What has the Student
Senate done . . . that has
had any meaningful
effects on our lives?
— Stacy Feducia
Page 11
A&M sophomore
utilizes swimming , <—>>
experience to coach
Bryan youths
Page 7
Memories of ‘89
Texas returns to Olsen
field and a legendary
series
Page 3
The Battalion
Vol. 91 No. 127
College Station, Texas
‘Serving Texas A&M since 1893’
12 Pages
Thursday, April 9, 1992
!rime rates increase in spring, summer months, expert says
By Alysia Woods
The Battalion
A Texas A&M sociology professor said
there is a definite relationship between
crime rates and different times of year,
/ith an increase in sexual assault during
he spring and summer.
Dr. Ben Crouch, who teaches criminol-
bgy and delinquency corrections courses,
laid the number of sexual assaults nation-
dde peak in the warmer times of the year
for a variety of reasons.
"The reasons are fairly straightfor
ward," Crouch said. "More folks are out
and about when the weather begins to
warm up."
Another reason for the increase is be
cause people — especially women —
wear less clothing in the spring and sum
mer, Crouch said.
"A young man's fantasy will turn into
'fill-in-the-blank' during springtime," he
said.
Linda Castoria, executive director for
the Brazos County Rape Crisis Center,
said her staff of volunteers does not stress
the springtime theories and statistics in
their work.
" The FBI did say that all crimes are ac
celerated in the spring months," Castoria
said, "because windows are left open and
a lot of people are outside."
Castoria said, however, that more re
cent statistics show that rapes occur year-
round, and volunteers for the center try
not to focus on a particular time period.
"The scary thing is that too many peo
ple will adhere to statistics when they
need to be careful all the time," she said.
Increases in all crimes are occurring,
which Castoria said is unfortunate. These
increases are shown in national statistics.
Crouch said rapes begin to increase in
May and August, the months with the
highest number of sexual assaults.
Robberies are the lowest in the spring
and highest in the late fall around Christ
mas.
Murders, however, are evenly dis
tributed throughout the year. Crouch
said.
"Aggravated sexual assaults and sexu
al assaults are the two violent crimes that
follow what we (sociologists) call the ther
mal law of crime," he said.
Crouch said, however, that sociologists
are concerned with collective national
patterns and reported assaults which, for
a number of reasons, do increase around
the spring season.
"There is some basis for those pat
terns," he said. "You don't have to have a
Ph.D. to know this."
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reat Arthur Ashe announced re
luctantly and emotionally
Vednesday that he has AIDS but
ieclared, "I am not sick. I can
jnction very well.''
Ashe, the first black man to win
ithe Wimbledon tournament, said
de contracted the virus during a
1983 heart operation and learned
lof that fact in 1988. He said he was
forced to go public now because a
Inewspaper had inquired about his
Ihealtn.
□ related column/ Page 3
"I have AIDS," he said. "I am
sorry that I have been forced to
make this revelation now, at this
time."
"Sadly, there is really no good
reason for this to happen now. But
it has happened, and I will adjust
and go forward," he said.
Ashe, 48, said he has toxoplas
mosis, a parasitic infection of the
brain that is considered a marker
for AIDS. Toxoplasmosis is one of
many diseases that attack people
whose immune systems are weak
ened by AIDS.
In November, former Los An
geles Lakers basketball star Earvin
K Magic" Johnson announced he
was carrying the AIDS virus. John
son has not developed the disease
Itself.
Johnson's agent, Lon Rosen,
said in Los Angeles that Johnson is
arranging to speak with Ashe.
"Earvin wants very much to
peak to Arthur," Rosen said.
In a statement, Johnson extend-
id his support and prayers to
Ashe and his family.
"It takes great courage and
strength to make such an an
nouncement," Johnson said. "I'm
See Tennis /Page 6
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Taking a stand
Sara Wikse of the Texas A&M chapter of
Amnesty International speaks to a small crowd
Wednesday in front of Rudder Fountain on the
human rights violations the organization claims
are occurring in Haiti.
Students gathered to protest the U.S.
government’s treatment of Haitian refugees
who currently are being sent back to the
DARRIN HILL/The Battalion
embattled island nation.
“Not surprisingly, in the climate of fear and.
real danger that exists there, many people have
attempted to leave Haiti,” Wikse said. “Article
33 of the United Nations Convention on the
Status of Refugees says, ‘No one should be
forced to return to a country where they list
serious human rights violations.’”
Pushing for Perot
Petitioners attempt
to force candidate
on November ballot
By Melody Dunne
The Battalion
If you did not vote in the Democratic or
Republican primaries. Aggies For Perot want
your signature on their petitions.
Texas billionare H. Ross Perot must have
55,000 signatures on petitions by the first
week of May in order to be on the state ballot
for the November presidential election, said
Lou Zaeske, a region coordinator for Texas
Perot efforts.
Every state has different requirements to
place a candidate on their ballot, he said. In
some states ( it is a monetary fee.
Perot supporters gathered around a
camper and tables in front of the vacant Rock-
yano's Pizza at 1037 Texas Ave. on Wednes
day.
Jeffrey Ellis, a student organizer of Aggies
For Perot, said there will be ballots available
at the Rockyano's location until the beginning
of May for anyone who would like to sign
one.
KARL A. STOLLEIS/The Battalion
Rod Hawkins (far left) mans petition table across from eastgate.
"Many college students didn't vote in the
primaries because they were registered in
their hometown," Ellis said. "We expect
some of them to sign the petitions."
Dan Eason, a junior economics major from
Uvalde, said he supports Perot because he
motivates and appeals to both Republican
and Democratic voters.
Eason said Aggies Fof Perot is an extreme
ly new organization and the group is trying
to become unified and organized in order to
garner support for their
candidate.
Robert Ray, a senior
from Longview, said
many people will sup
port Perot because they
are dissatisfied with the
present choice of candi
dates.
Ray said that, in the
past, independent can
didates have not had
enough monetary sup
port to finish a cam
paign.
"Perot has the kind of
money to be competi
tive," he said.
Perot is a self-made
billionaire who founded
Electronic Data Systems
in Dallas. Perot has
pledged that he will spend up to $100 million
of his personal money if he is on the ballot in
all 50 states.
Zaeske said that the campaign for Perot is
not a third-party effort.
"It's a network of independent voters here
in Texas," he said.
He said he is confident there are plenty of
registered voters who will sign the petitions to
meet the necessary amount of 55,000.
Records show
warning hours
before explosion
Computers indicated problem at 4 a.m.
By Reagon Clamon
The Battalion
BRENHAM — Officials are in
vestigating a computer record in
dicating a possible valve malfunc
tion that occurred hours before an
explosion shook Southeast Texas
Tuesday morning.
George Mocharko, a spokes
man for the National Transporta
tion Safety Board, said Wednes
day night that workers knew of a
change in the valve's status three
hours before the blast.
The valve is operated by Coast
line Gas Pipeline Co. and connects
Coastline's pipeline to the Bren-
ham Storage Salt Dome facility
owned by Seminole Pipeline Co.
NTSB officials have been inves
tigating the accident since the
team took over the job from the
Texas Railroad Commission Tues-
. day afternoon.
Mocharko said Coastline opera
tion records tipped investigators
off to the possible cause of the ex
plosion.
At 4 a.m. Tuesday, a sensor sta
tion recorded a shift in the status
of the valve, which could have
been caused by the valve shifting
position or malfunctioning, he
said.
"They received a reading at
their station, according to the
records," Mocharko said. "At the
time, however, they had their line
closed and were not planning on
delivering any product."
Officials, however, strongly
cautioned that this possible expla
nation is far from being con-
See Officials/Page 6
State denies
disaster aid
to blast area
By Reagon Clamon
The Battalion
BRENHAM - The gover
nor's office Wednesday re
fused to declare the site of
Tuesday's gas explosion an
official disaster area.
Ed Laundy of the Texas
State Emergency Manage
ment Team said he denied aid
because of the localization of
the damage and the fact that
the majority of the residents
affected had their own insur
ance.
The explosion, which oc
curred near a petroleum stor
age facility seven miles south
of Brenham, devastated an
area three miles across and
damaged more than 40 homes
near the blast.
The Federal Emergency
Management Agency gives
aid to communities that have
been declared disaster areas,
but the aid must be recom
mended by the governor.
Dorothy Morgan, a Wash
ington County judge serving
as liaison to the governor's of-
See State/Page 6
Panel discusses social
intolerance on campus
By Matari Jones
The Battalion
Student organizations that re
late only to themselves develop an
intolerance to other groups on
campus, said students participat
ing in a panel discussion on social
intolerance Wednesday night.
"(Minority) groups feel like
they are not wanted by not being
invited (to other organization's
functions)," said Reggie Broaddus,
a student participant in the panel.
The discussion was sponsored
by the Texas A&M chapter of Sig
ma Gamma Rho Sorority. Repre
sentatives of the Pan-Hellenic
Council, Interfraternity Council,
Gay and Lesbian Student Services
and the Corps of Cadets expressed
their views on social bias.
Individuals need motivation to
learn about other people's experi
ences, said Glenda Clausell, vice
president of Sigma Gamma Rho.
Clausell said people lack
growth when they relate only to
their own kind, and as a result
they are not prepared to deal with
minorities in the real world.
One panelist said it's hard for
some people to come in and make
themselves a part of A&M, and
minorities have to make a person
al effort to relate.
"Lack of communication is the
biggest problem," said Corey Red
mond, a female member of the
Corps of Cadets.
"Ninety-nine percent of the
guys in the Corps don't know
what fraternities are about," he
said.
The panel of students listed in
teraction with other groups, sensi
tivity and an increase in communi
cation as solutions to the problem
of social intolerance. Clausell said
not everyone likes to go and drink
at the Dixie Chicken every Thurs
day night.
"Student orientation programs
are not geared toward minorities,"
Clausell said.
Another panelist said it is up to
individuals to begin making an ef
fort toward tolerance.
"Change starts with one per
son," said Wash Jones, panelist
moderator and area coordinator
for residence halls. "I am sure
someone can influence somebody
to reach out and make some
changes."