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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 1993)
f 15,159! 3 That lent in (other )n, as a Cot- lould n the ricter ig the lay of ming r-pro- untry ;xam- rer of n full ' half- - we npsif itime vorst o if a wing as on ut tota I caret: in thi i Marl .ark c: strike s' Gref e sanif i SWC te toa ip coacli We're aw the thing? Final tarried : Final Lady traighl d and streak 1 J Opinion Monday, April 5,1993 The Battalion Page 9 Campus Elections '93 Which candidate will make the best Student Body President? What can the of fice of Student Body President do for you? Better yet, what does Stu dent Government do for you now? Student Govern ment does a host of things you are very familiar with, such as Parents' Week end, Big Event, Traditions Council, Silver Taps and even Aggie Muster; however, there are many things you may not be familiar with.... Did you know that the Texas Legislature is trying to make you pay out-of-state tu ition after you reach a certain number of hours no matter where you are from? They are also trying to make it take longer for you to graduate while paying higher in-staVe tuition’. 1 ' During the last two legislative sessions I have spent many hours at the state capital speaking with legislators about issues directly con cerning the student body at Texas A&M. I have also traveled across the state speaking on the subject of higher educa tion. Throughout the last three years, I have been involved with many areas of Texas A&M — from the Memorial Student Cen ter (MSC) to Fish Camp to Student Gov ernment. This past year I served as Speaker of the Student Senate. Under my leadership, the Senate accomplished a great deal. We obtained an extra reading day, secured a fall break and won the re lease of teacher evaluation forms. There are several issues at Texas A&M that need to be addressed. One is the multicultural issue. I have a program that will be very effective in handling this problem. It is called "MAPs" for Multi cultural Awareness Programs. Another area that needs to be addressed is our Greek system. We are a world class uni versity with a world class Greek system. However, one person. Dr. Mike Leese, di rects and is responsible for the entire sys tem. He does an outstanding job, but desperately needs additional assistance. A problem of great concern to all Ag gies is the attempt to "share" the Aggie name with other universities in our sys tem. Students at Corpus Christi State University (i.e. Texas A&M University at Corpus Christi) are already requesting our Aggie ring! This is one of the many attacks A&M is facing in the near future. I am a founding member of an organiza tion called "12th MAN" (Maintaining the Aggie Name). We have already distrib uted informational packets to all Moth er's Clubs and A&M Clubs around the state. We have the support of many "old Ags" throughout the nation, and now I need your support in helping to Maintain the Aggie Name. Texas A&M needs a Student Body President with the experience and initia tive to produce changes that will better the quality of student life on our campus. Through effective communication and re sponsible action, I will see that student input is an integral part of decisions made at all levels which affect you, the student body of Texas A&M. The position of Student Body Pres ident requires two things: the ability to lead and the ability to represent Texas A&M Uni versity and its stu dent body. Both of these skills take ex perience and that is why I am run ning for Student Body President. Within the last four years, the leadership posi tions I have held have taught me the importance of the planning, organiz ing and delegating which is necessary to reach any goal. During this past year I have had many chances to represent Texas A&M across the nation and state. As a part of the Corps staff, the second in command of the Ross Volunteers and a member of the Traditions Council, I have been afforded the great chance to speak to Aggie Moms' Clubs, A&M student or ganizations and each of the Fish Camp and Freshman Orientations last summer. I am confident in my experience in both areas, which would help in my role as Student Body President. As Student Body President, my first job would be to tackle the issue of multi- culturalism. We need to create a Vice President of Multicultural Issues in Stu dent Government so that we will always have someone in charge of overseeing the multicultural issues that affect the stu dent body. This vice president will direct a committee in charge of recruiting mi nority student involvement in Student Government and will oversee another committee that will act as a liaison be tween minority student organizations and Student Government. We also need to set up a group to pre sent a program at every Freshman Orien tation to increase freshman awareness of and sensitivity to other cultures. Fresh man Orientation is an ideal place to pre sent a multicultural program because freshmen would be more receptive to ideas presented in this form rather than in a three-hour required class. Another important issue is lowering the cost of books which can be done by using an on-campus database where stu dents can sell their books to other stu dents through the use of computers. Oth er issues are providing better lighting for the west campus and working with dis abled students for better access into buildings on campus. I believe that it is important for the Student Body President to push the two resolutions passed by the Student Senate, the new fall break and the extra reading day, through the re quired channels to ensure their imple mentation by the A&M administration. Texas A&M's Student Body President must remember that no matter how much change is to occur, the things you don't change here are those that separate us from any other school. Those things are our traditions. The Texas A&M stu dent body must look for the individual who has the dedication and leadership experience to take Texas A&M and the student body to greater heights. BRIAN WALKER Student Body President Candidate RICK TAYLOR Student Body President Candidate Walker is a junior management major Taylor is a senior political science major Edtonak appearing n The Battalon refled the views of the editorial board only. They do not necessarily reflect die opinions of other Ballalon staff members, the Texas A&M student body, regents, odmnistration, faculty or staff Columns, guest columns, and Mail Call items express the opinions of the authors only. The Battalion encourages letters to the editor and wl print as many as space alows in the Mail Cal section. Letters must be 300 words or less and include the author's name, class, and phone number. Due to space restrictions, guest columns wi not be accepted unless the author contacts the opinion page for prior approval before submitting columns. We reserve the right to edB letters for length, style, and accuracy. Letters should be addressed to: The Battalion - Mai Cal 013 Heed McDonald /Mol stop 1 T T 1 Texas A&M Umversdy Calege Station, TX 77843 Continuing saga of Woody & Mia Life stranger than fiction for beleaguered filmmaker CHRIS WHITLEY Columnist Y ou can't be in love with me. You don't know what love means. I don't know what love means. Nobody out there knows what the hell is going on. — Woody Allen, 'Manhattan' It is ironic that a film about a middle-aged man falling in love with a girl less than half his age should so aptly describe the film maker himself. For Woody Allen, life is imitat ing art. Over the past 13 years, it seemed as if he had the perfect relation ship. He and actress Mia Farrow enjoyed a lasting love affair without being "shackled" by the bonds of wed lock. Now, the lives of these two icons have been shat tered by their breakup and their ensuing allegations of each other's improprieties. What became the idyllic single relationship has turned into just another messy divorce. Yet as the allegations and proceedings drag on end lessly in our television sets every evening, it seems that the most heinous crime that Woody committed was falling in love with the wrong person. He has admitted to his new affair with Mia's 21- year-old adopted daughter, Soon-Yi Previn, which has caused a public outcry. Although the relationship tech nically is not incestuous, it has been placed deep with in the fringes of morality by the public. Woody, him self, admitted in the middle of his custody trial last week that he probably "screwed up" by latching onto Soon-Yi. Yet his relationship with Soon-Yi was not the only mistake he made. Woody found out only after his breakup with Mia exactly how unstable she had be come. Woody told '60 Minutes' that Mia had sent him a beautifully ornate Valentine's Day card. Inside, how ever, skewers were poked through a picture of Mia and her children. Stabbed through Mia's heart was a steak knife, with a cutout picture of Soon-Yi attached to its handle. Woody also said that he received phone calls in the middle of the night from Mia, threatening his life. Then, Mia claimed that Woody had sexually molest ed their biological daughter, Dylan. Woody has insist ed that Mia concocted this story as a means of winning over the children. Since then, a team of doctors from Yale University have found no evidence of child abuse. To hear the story as Woody tells it, Mia has changed from one of America's sweethearts into a psychotic. Those who have seen Allen's movies know that the characters he plays hardly ever choose the "right girl," and it ends up working against him. In 'Manhattan/ he plays a character who marries a bisexual and ends up getting dumped for another woman. 'Crimes and Misdemeanors' showed Woody playing a man who leaves his failing marriage for a girl, played by Mia, who falls for Woody's arch enemy. His last film, 'Husbands and Wives/ was almost an autobiography. Woody plays a professor who has an affair with one of his teenage students while at the same time fighting off problems with his wife, also played by Mia. At the end of the movie, Woody's char acter describes how he has habitually picked the wrong woman. Presently, Woody is in the midst of a story that might top any he has ever written. Yet he cannot con trol the outcome of this screenplay. As he and Mia air out their dirty laundry in a court battle for custody of three of the children, only the judge can provide the ending to the story. Perhaps the best example of Woody's struggle of "life versus art" lies in the last scene of his Oscar-win ning movie, 'Annie Hall.' As the movie ends. Woody looks at the camera and says, "You're always trying to get things to come out perfect in art, because it's real difficult in life." Whitley is a junior journalism major. Gibe (jTbl Step r'sht up , Lajres and 6en1/e/ntn, JVe $ot Something for EvirybotJcj/1 doM't care if you nook* *300,000 or ^30, Ooo f To^ojy .cKnd TaJay only 3*+ Spend *t\^ FREE i oz. cut- wHR Ton 8.. / TA* IKES OUVlfy SLICK \JI L LIE'S TM HIKES <§ /<?93 spending curs 1 UfciL iM. Ignoring issue won't combat ignorance Here is a little quiz for you Ags, 1) If you are dyslexic how do you take exams? 2) You broke your leg and are meeting friends in the commons for diner, how do you get down there? 3) Under the provisions of the Ameri cans With Disabilities Act (ADA), how much do most accommodations for dis abled workers cost employers? The answers to these questions are simple enough: 1) through extended time testing services provided by Support Services for Students with Disabilities, 2) by obtaining a key to the elevator from the South Area Office, 3) 50 percent of all accommodations cost less than $50.00. However, disability issues are not an adventure in trivia, nor are they a debate on the most politically correct terms to use. They are relevant, pervasive issues with deep implications for everyone in some form or fashion. One in six Americans has a disability, and that figure is projected to increase to one in three by the year 2025. Are you listening yet? Those figures mean that you are likely to become disabled at some time in your life. Yes, you. The real barrier for people with a dis ability is not their own limitations, but those of the people around them. The only way to combat the ignorance, fear, and lack of awareness that pervade mainstream society is through education. As a news medium, one would think that the Battalion would live up to the com mitment of all media in general - to in form and educate its readers of relevant issues. The question now is, just what is news, what is "relevant" to the Battalion? Feb. 10 was the date of Access Chal lenge, an event co-sponsored by Net works and Support Services for Students with Disabilities. Networks is a student organization serving the handicapped through outreach, student speakers, and through programs. One such program. Access Challenge, consists of demonstra tions and simulations designed to convey some of what life as a student with a dis ability is like. The only possible way for this program to benefit anyone is to have people attend it. Logical though that sounds, the Battalion went above and be yond the call of a news medium to not cover the event. The "lead in" was run the day of Access Challenge, and then the event itself was not even covered. We also had the state head of the ADA, Rcjn Trull, speak at Dr. Koldus's Divisic£n meeting. This went equally unreported.; There are a lot of newsworthy events that go unreported due to lack of re sources, I am fully aware of that. Howev er, the information which was to be con veyed had little to with Networks, Sup port Services, or even Access Challenge. It had to do with fear, misconceptions, and misunderstandings about disabili ties. I(t had to do with knowledge about the programs and services offered by the university to those who have, or need to find out if they have, a disability. It had to do with how federal mandates, such as ADA, affect life now and their implica tions for the future. The Battalion did a serious injustice to the members of Networks, to Support Services, and a disservice to the student body as a whole by failing in its duty to inform its readers. Every other major news medium in Bryan-College Station Station thought this was news, maybe the Battalion knows better. I should extend my gratitude for ap pearing i the paper at all, and for appear ing in What's Up on the right day (our speaker's name was misspelled but I am sure he didn't mind). Who knows, next yekr we may even make Police Beat. Andrea Nixon President, Networks