The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, April 06, 1993, Image 1

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    The Battalion
1893 — A Century of Service to Texas A&M — 1993 Tuesday, April 6,1993
A Year Of War In Sarajevo
Today marks anniversary of Bosnia's drive for independence
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina —
Marking the first anniversary of the war
that has shattered their lives and their city,
residents of Sarajevo waver between resig
nation and disbelief.
Grim and exhausted, they live day to
day, struggling to survive amid the ruins
with U.N. handouts and a belief that the
Serb attackers will never take their city.
Today is regarded as the first anniver
sary of the war. Last April 6, the United Na
tions recognized the Republic of Bosnia-
Herzegovina, and Serbs who oppose the
state's independence drive opened fire on
peace demonstrators.
The Bosnian government estimates that
8,250 Sarajevans have died and 14,500 have
been wounded since then .
Across the republic, more than 200,000
people are dead or missing, the government
says.
No official observances were planned,
but on Monday President Alija Izetbegovic
issued yet another appeal to the interna
tional community to act.
The Serbs have
seized 70 percent
of Bosnia's terri
tory, and the east
ern enclave of
Srebrenica is on
the verge of
falling to the
Serbs.
"Please do
something to
save Srebrenica
and to stop this tragedy, the greatest since
World War II," Izetbegovic wrote to Presi
dent Clinton in a letter read on Bosnian TV.
Only the U.N. military command sched
uled something special on Tuesday — a
crucial negotiating session of the opposing
army chiefs on the neutral grounds of Sara
jevo's airport.
Sarajevo's ordeal can be partially under
stood in numbers: 2,500 children killed;
35,000 apartments damaged or destroyed;
75 percent of the
city's old archi
tecture in ruins;
54,000 tons of hu
manitarian aid
brought in to
keep the city
alive.
But row upon
row of wooden
grave markers
filling Lion
Cemetery and the field of the nearby soccer
stadium are much more poignant than
numbers.
"I didn't expect it to last this long, but I
don't see the end of it even now," said Jad-
ranka Stojkovic, a Hare Krishna member
who spends her days caring for refugees.
"It could easily last another year."
The ugliness of war is everywhere: bul
let-riddled cars, collapsed buildings, hill
sides and parks denuded of trees cut down
for fuel, uncollected garbage picked over by
skinny cats and dogs.
But a year of dodging sniper bullets,
burying loved ones and struggling for es
sentials — food, water and shelter — have
toughened the city and its spirit.
Most buses have been destroyed, and an
open truck carries people around town.
Neighbors share the last crumbs of their
bread, and the daily newspaper Libeiation
continues to publish, even though its offices
were shattered.
In one recent spontaneous demonstra
tion of dark humor, several people boarded
an idled streetcar while a crowd of pedestri
ans pushed it — "just so they could say
they were riding the tram," said journalist
Mirjana Pobric.
"I didn't expect it to last this long,
but I don't see the end of it even
now ... it could easily last anoth
er year."
-Jadranka Stojkovic,
Hare Krishna member
Campus runoff
elections today,
I.D. required
Students can vote in today's
campus runoff elections from 9
a.m. to 6 p.m. in the MSC, Ster
ling C. Evans Library, Blocker
Building, Kleburg Center and
Zachry Engineering Center.
Voting is open to all stu
dents including graduating se
niors. Students need to bring
their student I.D. with them to
vote.
The election results will be
announced around 12:30 a.m.
Wednesday outside the Stu
dent Government offices in the
Student Services Building.
Runoff elections are being
held for the following races:
student body president. Resi
dence Hall Association presi
dent, Class of '95 treasurer.
Class of '96 vice president and
Class of '96 secretary.
ap-
di-
Is
Training for Fight Night '93
to
SHERI COTTSCHALK/Special to The Battalion
Bill Yarnell, a senior political science major from Memorial Scholarship Fund. There will be
Texarkana, prepares for Fight Night. Sigma Phi approximately 70 fighters competing at Charlie's
Epsilon has held Fight Night every year for the past on South Texas. Fight Night will begin Thursday
17 years to raise money for the Marcus J. Tyler and continue througn Saturday. Admission is $5.
Through the looking glass . . .
Professor disputes replacing of Academic Building windows
JOHN BART RAM/Th c Battalion
By CHERYL HELLER
The Battalion
Planned improvements to the
Academic Building may take
away from its historical authentic
ity, architecture professor David
Woodcock said Monday.
The Texas A&M Physical Plant
plans to replace the existing
wooden windows on the Acade
mic Building with dark, anodized
aluminum windows.
Although the original wooden
windows are decayed and require
a lot of maintenance. Woodcock
said the aluminum windows will
detract from the historic preserva
tion of the building.
Plant Director foe Sugg said
the aluminum windows will
maintain consistency with other
buildings on campus, provide bet
ter insulation, and require less
maintenance than wooden win
dows.
"We've replaced windows in
Sbisa Dining Hall, the Systems
Building, and several other older
buildings on campus with alu
minum windows," he said. "Re
placing the Academic Building
windows will make the buildings
appear more attractive as a
group."
Woodcock reported the win
dow replacement to the Texas
Historical Commission in Austin,
but as an advisory board, the
commission can only offer sug
gestions to the University.
"The Academic Building is the
oldest original building and cen
tral focal point on campus," he
said. "It's home to many Texas
A&M traditions, and I'm disap
pointed that the University seems
to be moving closer to destroying
it."
See Academic Building/Page 4
Domestic dispute ends in violence
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
DALLAS — A fired employee walked into an
Avis car rental agency Monday, wounding an ex
girlfriend and the office manager before shooting
himself with a semiautomatic handgun, police said.
Tracy Gilbert, 25, of Dallas was under police
guard at Parkland Memorial Hospital, where he was
reported in critical condition with a self-inflicted
gunshot wound to the abdomen.
Also in critical condition was Cindy Sparatore, 31,
of Irving, a receptionist, who was shot three times in
the abdomen. Kerry Honeycutt, 47, was listed in fair
condition with gunshot wounds to the abdomen and
chest, said Esther Bauer, a hospital spokeswoman.
Avis officials said Gilbert was fired on Friday af
ter he and Sparatore got into an office quarrel that
ended with several angry shoves.
"My understanding is that it was a domestic dis
pute, the breaking up of their relationship," Dallas
police Sgt. Jim Chandler said.
Monday morning, Gilbert returned to the car
rental agency a few hundred yards south of Dallas
Love Field airport.
"From what I saw and heard, someone came in
and just started shooting," said Trisha Martin, an
employee of Thrifty Car Rental, located adjacent to
the Avis building near Dallas Love Field. "There
were three shots that I heard."
Chandler said Gilbert walked into the door of the
Avis office about 9:20 a.m. Monday, strode to the
front of the office where Sparatore sat at her desk,
and shot her several times.
Chandler said the suspect next shot Honeycutt,
who was standing nearby, then returned to the rear
of the office, looking for Sparatore, who had fled af
ter the initial flurry of shots.
A co-worker hid her inside a restroom and told
the assailant she didn't know her whereabouts.
Chandler said.
"As a result of her quick action, the victim's life
was probably saved," he said.
Chandler said the gunman then shot himself. A
.380-caliber semiautomatic handgun was found on
the floor.
More than six shots had been fired from the
weapon, he said.
"We are shocked and deeply saddened by this
tragic event," said Linda Childs, chief operating offi
cer of Hayes Leasing Corp., the Avis licensee for Dal
las, Fort Worth, San Antonio and Austin.
Inside
Lifestyles
•Journalism professor to adopt
Romanian child
Page 3
Sports
•33 - 3 Aggie baseball travels
to UTA Wednesday
•Plumer's baseball predictions
Page 7
Opinion
•Editorial: Doctor-assisted
suicide for the terminally ill
•Column: Polston learns lessons
from stress
Page 9
UT health center to open institute
for research of incurable diseases
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
HOUSTON — The University of Texas Health
Science Center at Houston on Monday unveiled
plans for a $40 million Institute of Molecular Medi
cine that physicians said would work to find root
causes of many diseases now considered incurable.
"The institute is going to be the centerpiece of a
very broad effort to look at the causes of many com
mon diseases, determine what those causes are and
hopefully and eventually prevent them," said Dr. C.
David Low, president of the school's Health Science
Center.
The institute, to be part of the famed Texas Med
ical Center, is to be made up of 10 research centers,
each focusing on disease areas like cardiovascular
medicine, infectious diseases, kidney problems, neu-
rosciences and pulmonary diseases.
One or two of the centers are to open each year
beginning next January, with the entire institute like
ly to be running in four or five years.
"Imagine a world without debilitating disease,
disease that claims lives prematurely and disease
that limits productivity of people far earlier than
should occur," said Dr. James Willerson, chairman of
the school's Department of Internal Medicine.
"This is a dream many of us have but it's a reach
able dream based on the developments in molecular
biology an immunology," he said.
Willerson, who will direct the institute's Scientific
Advisory Board, said he knew of no other similar
center dedicated so specifically to diseases and how
to prevent them.
"Its main purpose is to identify the basic cellular
and subcellular mechanisms responsible for human
disease with the expectation that will allow us to
predict disease well before they occur, cure them
and prevent their progression and ultimately pre
vent them/' he said.
"By developing gene therapies and giving needed
genes or gene products to patients, we will treat,
then cure," he said.
Silver Taps tonight
The following people will be
honored in tonight's Silver Taps
ceremony at 10:30 in front of the
Academic Building:
•Lauren Elizabeth Brandt, a
freshman psychology major from
Spring, Texas. Brandt, 19 years
old, died in a car accident during
spring break.
•Daniel Wayne Peters, a senior
forestry major from Chester,
Texas. Peters, 22 years old, was
killed in a car accident last month
in Waco.
•Jose J. Sanchez, 22 years old.
Sanchez, a senior psychology ma
jor from Laredo, was killed in a
car accident during spring break.
• Ashley Randolph Turner, a
sophomore chemical engineering
major from Kingwood. Turner, 19
years old, was killed March 13 in a
car accident.