Opinion
>;
les
Mex-
i trail
'inds,
s Yu-
were
lorth-
:onut
1 roof
ms or
mph,
ward
Coral
the
ulfof
outh-
nillo-
ich of
lood-
aliseo
cause
sports
ate in
it that
.ident
edge
isand
orga-
>r dri*
id by-
more
ico.
ening
lat in-
>f San
ell as
Ico on
leigh-
nding
?sday.
a few
Hows fi-
/ners to
aich are
ill be no
he envi-
s one of
growing
ides the
;an that
ken and
dss of a
e Sierra
urne en-
control-
1.
izens to
ion.
Z7
s
N
i:
5
>
S
S
N
s
>
>
S'
N
1 S
N
rzA
Thursday, July 8,1993
The Battalion
Page 7
[ (/ TA/ANK VOO fO*. ^
c,er back Xo sou a* zoo+f
th g-« Sou
. it MAiLABce,.. THAtfK \OU FO*...
I ) v/ V/
The Battalion Editorial Board
Jason Loughman, editor in chief
Mark Evans, managing editor
Stephanie Pattillo, city editor
Dave Thomas, night news editor
Mack Harrison, opinion editor
Kyle Burnett, sports editor
Susan Owen, sports editor
Anas Ben-Musa, Aggielife editor
Billy Moran, photo editor
The Battalion
100 years at
Texas A&M
Editorial
Siege mentality
A&M hides behind wall of secrecy
Filing open records requests is
jetting to be a pastime at The Bat
talion. The newspaper staff is find
ing that, more and more, such re
vests prove necessary to obtain
from Texas A&M even information
which is obviously in the public do
main.
Sometimes, The Battalion even
as to fight to get information from
the University that other newspa
pers have already obtained through
8pen records requests.
Add to this the A&M Physical
Plant policy of not talking to Battal
ion reporters about even the most
non-controversial subjects, and one
sees a University committed to
keeping its students in the dark.
Unless of course, it is required to
Jo otherwise.
The Battalion reported Wednes-
Jay that the Attorney General's of
fice had sided with the newspaper
in its request for records of a Corps
of Cadets investigation into allega
tions of rape and sexual harassment
t>y a senior cadet in December.
University officials maintain that
the Buckley Amendment, which
states that educational records are
private and belong to the student
and the university, prohibits the re
lease of any such information.
No names have been requested,
however, and the Attorney Gener
al's office specifically stated in its
letter that portions of the records
which would personally identify
any student must be withheld.
It seems awfully convenient,
then, for University counsel to state
that the entire report would com
promise the identities of accuser
and accused, since, they say, the
case is so widely known.
However, if the case is so widely
known, yet no names have yet been
disclosed, simply passing on the re
sults of the investigation is not gor
ing to provide any new knowledge
of the identities of those involved.
What it will do is shed a little
daylight on a disciplinary proceed
ing conducted in secrecy.
One is led to believe by the
stonewalling of A&M officials that
their actions will not look good in
such a light. Further delays in re
leasing investigation records will
serve only to reinforce this suspi
cion.
If, as we hope, Texas A&M Uni
versity has nothing to hide, then it
should disclose records and infor
mation that it knows to be a matter
of open record.
If administrators at Texas A&M
are above harboring petty grudges,
let the A&M Physical Plant end its
policy of refusal to speak to Battal
ion reporters.
If the leadership of this Universi
ty expects its students to believe in
an Honor Code for even one
minute, it's time for it to start set
ting a better example.
1993: A cyberspace odyssey today
Computer nets offer limitless worlds of knowledge
I 've just returned from visiting cy
berspace. For two hours I danced
across the Net, weaving in and
out of computer news groups and
bulletin board services. It felt like
only two minutes.
Time seemed to flash by as I ex
plored the realm of computer net
works, reading messages from users
as far away as Sweden and as close
as the next room. I had lived what
was considered science fiction only
20 years ago.
Computer networks such as Inter
net, Prodigy and Bitnet have grown
to encompass many smaller bulletin
boards and news groups, merging
into a giant interactive "cyberspace" — the Net.
I fell into this new world when I signed up for a basic
computer course this summer. One of our homework as
signments was to get a computer account and explore some
of the options available to us.
In addition to uses such as word processing, graphics
and computation, which most students are familiar with,
computer account holders have access to electronic mail,
on-line information services and news groups.
These services are available to any student with a com
puter account — that is, any student who has paid his or
her computer use fees.
Technology — especially computer technology — is in
creasing at a breakneck pace. What's new yesterday is rou
tine today and obsolete tomorrow. The least powerful lap
top of today is more powerful than the computer of yester
year that filled several rooms.
What does this mean to you and me?
It means that, in the very near future, the average citizen
will have more information at his or her fingertips than
was available to the entire U.S. government 50 years ago.
Human knowledge is growing exponentially, and com
puter databases make this information convenient and easy
to access. Right now the contents of a 30-volume encyclope
dia can fit onto a single regular-size compact disk. Shortly,
the computer industry will be able to put the same amount
of information on a disk the size of a pinhead.
This isn't just blind extrapolation. Experts are discussing
this and other nanotechnology applications on Internet's
sci.nanotech news group. (Nano means one-billionth, as
opposed to micAo, which means one-millionth.) Nanoscopic
computational and medical devices will have a staggering
effect on society in the future.
But Netriders don't just look inward. On Internet's
sci.space, for example, leading experts in the space industry
are explaining and arguing about what new vehicles will be
flying long after the Space Shuttle has been grounded.
The Net isn't, however, just for science fiction readers.
Current events and entertainment comprise a major part of
discussion. In addition to arguing about which heavy metal
band is the best, readers can contemplate movies, fashion,
philosophy or just about anything else.
Participants in alt.conspiracy, for example, are dis
cussing the Branch Davidians and whether or not the gov
ernment killed them on purpose. Assassination theorists
shout out who killed the Kennedys on their own subgroup,
alt.conspiracy .jfk.
One of the more active news groups is alt.cyberpunk,
which takes its name from a type of science fiction which
emphasizes the blurring line between man and machine.
Currently, however, the main subject in alt.cyberpunk
seems to be whether or not rock star Billy Idol "sold out"
the cyberpunks when he released his album of the same
name.
These groups are just a small sample of what the Net has
to offer. From the latest UFO sightings to child care tips,
computer networks have something for everyone.
Just an aside: If you're sick of a certain saccharin purple
dinosaur, then check out alt.barney.die.die.die.die.
In today's future, knowledge is power. To keep yourself
charged, you'll find the most up-to-date information flash
ing on that monochrome monitor.
It's so simple, even computer illiterates (like I was) can
do it. To get started, just go to one of the computing centers
on campus, grab an instructional handout and type away.
Don't be afraid (like I was) to ask someone for help. Be
careful, though. Once you get going, you can quickly lose
track of time, ignoring the clock, the people around you
and even bodily functions.
(This is a great way for smokers who are trying to kick
the habit to stop thinking about cigarettes — but it's proba
bly more addictive.)
Have you ever wanted to visit the future?
I've been there. And the future is here at Texas A&M,
right now. There's an entire universe available to you, and
it's as close as the nearest computing center.
Harrison is a senior agricultural journalism major
MACK
HARRISON
Opinion Editor
Students don't know as much as they should about NAFTA
ow much
do you
know
jibout what's go
ing on in the
'vorld today?
Ihere are millions
of things happen
ing every second
of the day, and it
is virtually impos
sible to keep up
Vith even the
slightest portion
of them.
One thing tak-
oig place as we
speak (or read), is the North American
free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) be-
Ween the United States, Canada and
Mexico. The agreement will combine
J llthree countries into the world's
longest free-trade zone by eliminating
Otost tariffs and other trade barriers
over 15 years.
With only six months left until the
Proposed starting date of NAFTA (Jan-
Oary 1994), the United States and Mexi-
c ostill have not worked out all the
kinks in the agreement. But that is not
for us to worry about, it's our federal
officers' job. Here at A&M, we have a
problem of a different nature.
Do the students at Texas A&M Uni
versity allow themselves to receive in
formation about what's going on be
tween the United States and Mexico?
Are we taking it upon ourselves to
learn about what is going on in the
world today? The answer is NO.
The majority of students are not
keeping in touch with international re
lations. I am not saying we need to
learn about every aspect of it, but just
enough that it will help us when the
time is right. I am sure that it will affect
us all in one way or another, at some
point in time. Don't you think it would
be worth it to know a little bit about
what is going on in the world?
I took the opportunity to talk with
students here at A&M form two differ
ent backgrounds — Texas and Mexico
— about their knowledge of interna
tional relations. I was surprised to find
out that some of the people I spoke
with did know a thing or two about
what was happening between the U.S.
and Mexico. They expressed their opin
ions about NAFTA and some concerns
that might affect them once they leave
college and go off into the real world.
Some of the main points that came up
were the environment and jobs.
Environmental concerns focused on
air pollution, water quality and waste
management. The students felt that
since Mexico was a developing country,
how could it place the same emphasis
on costly environmental protection as a
wealthier country such as the United
States. They believed that once the free
trade agreement was under way, Mexi
co would be able to put more money
into the cleanup of the environment.
Once it accomplished that, everything
would start clearing up.
With cheap labor available in Mexi
co, many U.S. companies ( mainly man
ufacturers) may want to pick up and
move south of the border to set up
shop. The probability that many com
panies may want to take this route
would only mean less jobs available for
us when we get out of college. That
would be purely unfair, but at this
point, companies can do that if they
want. Where does that leave us? UN
EMPLOYED!
With job availability scarce as it is, it
will be even harder for us to find jobs if
companies move. We would probably
be luckier in winning the next lotto
drawing than finding a job.
The students only knew of the gener
al aspects of NAFTA that they learned
from watching T.V. and reading what
was printed in newspapers from Hous
ton, Dallas and San Antonio. But not
everybody read these newspapers.
How else is a person interested in in
ternational relations supposed to get
more information about it — Evans Li
brary?
The other portion of students that I
spoke with did not know very much —
if anything at all — about the United
States trading with Mexico and vice
versa. Th^y had seen Perot several
times on the T.V., but paid no attention
to him.
I was surprised to learn that they re
ally had no idea all three countries were
going into business together.
We should take a couple minutes of
our time to read, watch or listen to
what is going on.
I am sure that it would make for a
better interview with a prospective em
ployer to know a little about foreign af
fairs. Coming from a school partly
known for its agricultural programs, we
should keep in touch with this new
agreement.
John F. Vega is a senior agricultural jour
nalism major
Editorials oppearing in The Battalion reflect the views
of the editorial board. They do not necessarily reflect
the opinions of other Battalion staff members, the Texas
A&M student body, regents, administration, faculty or
staff.
Columns, guest columns, and Moil Call items express
the opinions of the authors.
The Battalion encourages letters to the editor and wiB
print as many as *pace allows in the Mail Call section.
Letters must be 300 words or less and include the
author's name, class, and phone number
Contact the editor or managing editor for information
on submittinq guest columns
We reserve me right to edit letters and guest columns
for length, style, and accuracy.
Letters should be addressed to:
The Battalion ■ Mail Call
01 3 Reed McDonald /Moil stop Till
Texas A&M University
College Station, TX 7/843
GUEST
COLUMN
JOHN F.
VEGA