Vol.92 No. 159 (6 pages)
The Battalion
1893 — A Century of Service to Texas A&M - 1993
Thursday, June 17,1993
Pentagon hints at increased involvement in Somalia
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
President affirms commitment to relief efforts, may send Marines
WASHINGTON — President Clinton
declared his commitment to Somali relief
Wednesday despite renewed violence.
Pentagon officials said a four-ship Ma
rine contingent could be off to Somalia
by Saturday.
"The fundamental mission of the Unit
ed Nations in Somalia has not changed
and I still believe it's a very important
one," Clinton said.
He added that it was not for him "to
exonerate or to condemn" Pakistani
members of a U.N. peacekeeping force
who shot and killed Somali civilians on
Sunday, one week after Pakistanis were
killed in an ambush.
White House Press Secretary Dee Dee
Myers declined to comment on whether
the United States was about to escalate its
military involvement.
Asked if more U.S.-led air strikes were
planned against a warlord accused of set
ting the recent round of violence in mo
tion, Myers said, "I think we certainly re
serve the right to do that."
At the Pentagon, officials said troops
on ships had been ordered south from the
Persian Gulf area but had not been told to
go to Somalia.
Their movement was a precautionary
measure, giving Clinton the choice of
sending them on to Somalia or pulling
them back, said the officials, commenting
only on condition of anonymity.
The group, known as an amphibious
ready group, is led by the USS Wasp and
has 4,200 sailors and Marines aboard. The
2,200 Marines contained in that number
went ashore in Somalia in March.
The unit was participating in a military
exercise in Kuwait, which was cut short
several days ago when the sailors and
Marines were recalled to their ships.
There was quick, negative reaction
from House Republican Whip Newt Gin
grich of Georgia, who said the president
was "drifting in a way which increases
the risk to Americans."
"It's going to get us involved to a point
where you can already see it coming," he
said. "I just think it's very dangerous."
President Bush first dispatched U.S.
troops to civil war-torn Somalia in De
cember to help restore order and allow
the delivery of food and other aid to the
starving and helpless.
The U.S. military presence peaked at
25,000 in January but has dropped to
4,000 since the United Nations assumed
control of the relief effort.
The humanitarian image of the U.N.
mission in Somalia has been tarnished by
a recent wave of unrest that drew peace
keeping troops into the violence and
forced the closure of food distribution
sites for 10 straight days.
Fourteen Somali demonstrators were
killed Sunday when Pakistani peacekeep
ers opened fire in Mogadishu. The Pak
istanis contended they had come under
fire from nearby rooftops and saw armed
men hiding behind women and children
who led the marches.
A week earlier, 23 Pakistani peace
keepers were killed in an ambush blamed
on a Somali warlord. U.S. planes and heli
copters have been pounding the positions
of Mohamed Farrah Aidid in retaliation.
IH UK
Closed dining halls irk students
By LAURA HALEY
The Battalion
The decision by the Texas
/\&M Food Services Department
:o save money by closing dining
acilities on the north side of cam
pus for the summer has many
iormitory residents complaining
ibout the inconvenience.
Mary Laura Scruggs, a junior
;ducation major and Northside
esident, said not having eating
acilities on Northside is inconve
nient for students who live there.
"They ignore the needs of
Northside students," she said.
However, Lloyd Smith, direc-
or of food services, said Sbisa
Dining Hall and other Northside
markets had to be closed because
nf the high cost of keeping them
npen during the summer.
Last year, all summer residents
were forced to live on Southside,
which was much easier for food
services, he said.
But Chareny Putney, student
development specialist for Stu
dent Affairs, said this year resi
dents were allowed to choose
north or south side residence halls
because of summer renovations
and student feedback.
In a survey conducted by the
Housing Office last summer, 61
percent of 276 students ques
tioned said they preferred living
on Northside.
"My impression when reading
the survey was that students
thought Sbisa and other facilities
would be open," Putney said.
Smith said Food Services tried
to keep Bernie's open two years
ago for Northside residents but
there was not enough business,
and they ended up losing money.
"There is only enough business
to keep one [eating facility] open,"
he said.
Putney said another factor de
termining which facility to keep
open is the area where the majori
ty of students live. This summer,
the majority of students reside in
Southside halls.
Another reason Food Services
decided to keep the Commons
open instead of Sbisa this sum
mer was because Student Affairs
preferred to keep the Southside
facilities open for conferences,
said Smith.
Ron Sasse, director of Student
Affairs, said keeping facilities
open where the student confer
ences are held seems to work best.
"We try to make the best deci
sion we can,"he said. "We can't
please everyone."
But Smith said he realizes it is a
problem for Northside residents.
"I don't know what we can do
about it this summer, but we will
try to work on it in the future,"
he said.
Fish Camp changes mark 40th anniversary
By JANET HOLDER
The Battalion
Texas A&M Fish Camp celebrates its 40th an
niversary this summer by adding new options to the
program and becoming more aware of other cul
tures.
Fish Camp, according to the Fish Camp Constitu
tion, is a program to help incoming A&M freshmen
adjust to the academic, social and emotional changes
that may occur in their transition from high school to
college.
Thus year Fish Camp is giving freshmen the op
tion of using a game room instead of going to the
nightly mixers.
Kristy Tripode, director of Fish Camp, said, "We
started this new option because we noticed there
were tons of freshmen who were embarrassed to
dance. They would just stand by the side and
watch."
Fish Camp has also added optional sessions on
subjects such as spirituality, integrity and emotional
poise.
The camp brings in professionally trained people
to talk about these subjects.
Organizers have also tried to include multicultur-
alism into the programs Fish Camp offers. Anne
Pfrimmer, associate director of Fish Camp, said,
"This fall we have really worked with Multicultural
Services to help recruit more diverse counselors but
also to be able to relate to the different groups."
She said Fish Camp recruiters have also had to be
come more accepting of people.
See Fish Camp/Page 2
it*# Lpri
Hwy 6 frontage roads undergo construction
By MICHELE BRINKMANN
The Battalion
Every Aggie knows "Highway
6 runs both ways," and it still
will, but with a few major
changes coming this fall.
Former Texas A&M quarter
back Bucky Richardson is urging
Bryan-College Station motorists
to be cautious while the frontage
roads along Highway 6 are con
verted to one-way traffic begin
ning Sept. 1.
Public service announcements
recorded by Richardson began
running Tuesday on KBTX-TV
and local radio stations.
"It's a really positive sign for
the community because it means
we've experienced so much pros
perity and growth that we can't
operate like a rural community
anymore," said Pat Williams,
area engineer of the Texas De
partment of Transportation.
When the frontage roads were
constructed in 1972, "Temporary
Two-Way Traffic" signs were
placed along both frontage roads
in anticipation of the conversion.
Williams said the high
amount of traffic now in the
Bryan-College Station area war
rants a change.
Once the project is started in
September, it should be complet
ed in approximately two weeks.
The construction will be divided
into three phases.
Highway 6 frontage road construction
x \
SECTION 1
SOUTHWEST
’KW'
- FM 2818
(EMERA'. D PKWY5
ROCK
PRAIRiE
/section 3
From FM 60 to
Rock Prairie Road
Source: Texas Department of Transportation
X 6 '
ANGEL KAN/The Battalion
Researchers at the Texas
Transportation Institute expect a
20 percent reduction in the acci
dent rate and a cost benefit of
$558,000 because of the elimina
tion of property damage, lost
work time and medical costs.
Denise Fischer, local public
affairs officer for the DOT, said
her office expects the change to
one-way to cause only a two-
minute delay along the route,
even in peak traffic time.
The conversion coincides with
the opening of newly designed
exit and entrance ramps of the
East Bypass.
Two new interchanges at
Emerald Parkway and Southwest
Parkway in College Station and
two new ramps at Woodville
Road and Martin Luther King St.
in Bryan will also be constructed
this summer to help facilitate the
conversion to one-way frontage
roads.
Another planned project will
improve the surface of the west
side of the frontage road on
Highway 6. The $2 million pro
ject will begin at the end of 1993.
"Right now some sections of
the frontage roads are carrying
almost 16,000 vehicles per day,
and research recommends
switching to one-way at five or
six thousand vehicles a day in ar
eas like ours," Williams said.
The entire 14-mile length of
each frontage road must have
new signs installed, and must
also be re-striped. All traffic sig
nals must also be changed.
Durable Specialities, Inc. of
Dallas was awarded the
$665,059 contract to complete
the conversion.
"The state saves money by
getting a private contractor to bid
tor the job," Fischer said. "We
designed the work and the Dallas
company will simply perform the
work."
Campus blood drive continues
Chris Moehring, a senior computer science major drive continues today from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The
from San Antonio, relaxes as he donates blood to blood collection vehicle will be parked at Rudder
the Wadley Blood Center Wednesday . The blood Fountain.
Former students relive college days
AggieHostel program brings Old Ags back to campus
By CARRIE MIURA
The Battalion
Former Texas A&M students
will have a chance to relive their
college days this summer and ex
perience a taste of what it is like to
be a college student at A&M in the
'90s.
AggieHostel '93 is a program
designed to provide Aggies over
the age of 65 and their spouses six
days of planned activities in Ag-
gieland.
AggieHostel participants will at
tend A&M classes such as South
western Literature and Global Eco
nomics, and will go to Ring Dance
and the Dixie Chicken.
This year the AggieHostlers
will stay in Appelt Hall on cam
pus and eat in the Commons Din
ing Hall.
The AggieHostel program fol
lows the structure of the Elder-
Hostel programs held nationwide
at different college campuses.
Clarine Tucker will be attend
ing AggieHostel for the first time
this year with her husband, for
mer A&M student Huel Tucker,
Class of '53.
"It will be nice going to the se
nior ring dance, because we are
ballroom dancers and enjoy danc
ing," Tucker said.
Over 13,000 former students
are over the age of 65, but the pro
gram only has room for the first
40 couples who register.
Johnny Yartz, Class of '43, and
his wife Louise have attended the
AggieHostel program four times
and are participating again this
year.
"We are treated so eloquently,
and it is a lot of fun," Yartz said.
"It is a well-organized program,
but what impresses us the most
are the hosts and hostesses."
Porter Garner III, associate ex
ecutive director for alumni pro
grams and former committee
chair for AggieHostel, said the
committee designed the program
with the intention of having for
mer students connect with the stu
dents who attend A&M now.
"The student hosts and host
esses benefit in this program by
learning from the old Ags," he
said.
Out of 45 applicants, only 20
current A&M students were se
lected through an interview and
application process to be Ag
gieHostel hosts and hostesses.
Wynn Rosser, director of cam
pus programs and the chair of the
planning committee for Ag
gieHostel, said the students are
the key to the program.
"People want to come back to
A&M and find out what it's like to
be a student again," he said.
Seniors Cheryl and Shirley
Watson are twin sisters who are
acting as hostesses in the Ag
gieHostel program for their sec
ond year.
"This is the best thing that I've
done," said Cheryl, an industrial
engineering major. "I get a
chance to meet with old Ags and
have a lot of fun hearing their sto
ries and hanging out with them."
Shirley, a journalism major,
said the program provides a link
between the past and the present.
"It forms a bond between the
old generation and young genera
tion of Aggies. A&M is some
thing that we all share and have in
common."
Sports
•Volleyball: Lady Aggies
welcome coaching duo
•Baseball: Cleveland Indian
scouts search Travis Park
Page 3
Aggie life
•Local children participate in
national youth sports program
•Reviews: Jurassic Park, Neil
Young's "Unplugged"
Page 4