>. 1994
Hayman on Limbaugh:
"Does a 'ditto' chant each night before bed fulfill our duty
as citizens of a democracy? Probably not." Rage 5
THE
Weather
Mostly cloudy with scattered
thunderstorms today; for the weekend,
isolated showers with lows in the 70s,
highs in the 90s
— National Weather Service
&
Aggielife
Clinton's proposed cigarette tax has
students and local politicians smokin'
Page 3
THURSDAY
June 16, 1994
Vol. 93, No. 158 (6 pages)
“Serving Texas AdrMsince 1893”
NEWS
tate begins audit
f A&M system
The State Auditor’s Office began
i audit of the Texas A&M University
ystem this week. Included in the
jdit are the System Administrative
id General Offices and Texas A&M
niversity.
The audit will concentrate on
arious aspects of operations
eluding finance management and
ogram performance.
Construction blocks
igronomy Road
Construction on the West Campus
ogeneration Project will enter a new
lase Sunday. Agronomy Road will
closed for two weeks as work to
tend the pipeline network across it
3gins.
Parking Area 36, which is on the
lad, will remain accessible via
aymond Stotzer Parkway.
Buildings on Agronomy Road can
>e accessed from F&B Road.
Intra-campus shuttle bus service
pm the “Howdy” route will be modified
to discontinue stops on the road.
Civil Engineering
|o host conference
The Civil Engineering Department
$ hosting the Settlement ‘94
’conference this weekend for the
otechnical division of the American
[ociety of Civil Engineers.
The 250 researchers from the
nited States, France, Taiwan, Italy
Jnd other nations will discuss the
settling of large structures like bridges
and dams.
I One of the issues to be discussed
is the Leaning Tower of Pisa, which is
^becoming dangerous as it begins to
lean more and more. Conference
||arfjcipahts will discuss ways of
iciher ^ reventin 9 from leaning further.
~S CGH'
eets to [Researchers falsify
Thenr 1 " 638 * cancer data
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WASHINGTON (AP) — At least 11
institutions falsified data, failed to
enroll patients properly or misplaced
jjkey data in a national breast cancer
research project, officials told -
Congress Wednesday.
A re-examination of clinical trial
Jecords at 120 of the 500 institutions
participating in the National Surgical
Adjuvent Breast and Bowel Project
lave found what one official called
Iserious problems” at two sites in
Pittsburgh, two in California, two in
bntreal, two in New Orleans, one in
hicago and one in New York. The
ame of one institution was not
isclosed.
Audit records of the other
istitutions are still being examined,
officials said.
Testimony about the troubled, $9
tillion research project came at a
learing before a House
ubcommittee on oversight and
ivestigations and included the first
ublic testimony by Dr. Bernard
isher, who until March directed the
reject. He took responsibility for
vhat he called administrative errors.
South Korea tense
Jnder threat of war
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — For
he past year, South Koreans have
hrugged off concern that the dispute
>ver North Korea’s nuclear program
; ould set off conflict on the divided
>eninsula.
No more.
South Koreans are buying up food,
mptying shelves of gas masks and
withdrawing cash from savings
'ccounts. The stock market has
umbled for two straight days.
“The people should not believe
terth Korea’s threat that sanctions
nean war,” presidential spokesman
-hoo Don-shik said after a meeting of
senior officials Wednesday.
That was in reference to the
North’s repeated warning that
nternational sanctions against it
would provoke war. The United
States, South Korea and Japan are
lushing for punitive steps to try to
orce North Korea to accept nuclear
4
| nspections.
1 Today's Baii
Aggielife
3
1 Campus
2
I Classifieds
4
| Comics
6
1 Opinion
5
' Police Beat
6
Athlete graduation rate onthe rise
A&M, national averages still below non-athletes' percentage
By Amanda Fowle
The Battalion
Since the NCAA’s introduction of acad
emic requirements for incoming athletes,
graduation rates have risen but are still
below the national average.
Proposition 48, introduced in 1986, set
academic requirements for incoming
freshmen athletes. Athletes must have
graduated from high school and main
tained a 2.0 grade point average for 11 of
the high school core courses and made a
700 on the SAT.
The NCAA began monitoring the
graduation rates of universities after the
proposition was passed.
Wally Groff, Texas A&M athletic direc
tor, said graduation rates for Aggie ath
letes are inching closer to those for the re
mainder of the student body, but there is
still need for improvement.
A&M non-athletes had a 66 percent
graduation rate for the latest six-year peri
od, while the athletes’ rate was 53 percent.
“We are proud of what we’re doing, but
that 53 percent is still low,” Groff said.
“We’d like to catch up with the student
body’s graduation rate.”
Some athletes leave the University for a
few years to play professional sports and
later return to complete their degrees.
“There aren’t many students who take
a few years off to play pro ball,” Groff said.
“In a way, our athletes who leave to play
professional ball are being penalized.”
Dr. Karl Mooney, associate athletic di
rector for academic affairs, said athletes
who graduate after the six-year period
are not considered in these statistics.
“When you take into consideration the
athletes who complete their degrees in
more than six years, 70 percent of A&M
Please see Athletes/Page 6
Jose Luis de Juan/THE Baitauon
Darrin HHI/The Battalion
The Aggie Wranglers-do the “hip dip,” a part of the this Friday during halftime of the first World Cup
country and western dance routine they will perform match in Dallas.
A&M dancers step out for World Cup
By Sara Israwi
The Battalion
X he world will get its first glimpse of the Ag
gie Wranglers Friday night when they per
form at the opening game of The World Cup
in Dallas.
Texas A&M’s country and western dance team was
invited in April to entertain at the international soc
cer championships after Barbara Rice of World Cup
USA saw them perform on The Nashville Network.
The Wranglers started practice for Friday’s three-
song performance over a month ago.
They will perform at halftime with Tanya Tucker
and the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders. They will be
the feature attraction during “God Bless Texas,” the
second song that will be played.
Jack Gibbs, a member of Aggie Wranglers, said
this opportunity will help improve A&M’s image.
“The goal of our group is to spread Aggie spirit
through country and western dance,” he said. “We
feel honored to be invited.”
Dallas is the headquarters for World Cup ‘94,
which will span a full month and nine U.S. cities.
The Aggie Wranglers practiced Sunday at the Cot
ton Bowl for seven hours with other performers in
cluding the Kilgore Rangerettes and the Lake High
lands Wildcat Wranglers.
Russell Graham, president of Aggie Wranglers,
said the Wranglers showed their spirit during prac
tice in Dallas.
“It shows how proud we are of our school,” he said.
“We probably spread through all the practices how
excited we are.”
Graham thinks this will be a great way to kick off
the Wranglers’ 10th anniversary.
The Wranglers have been on campus since Spring
1984 and Graham said they are looking forward to
celebrating their 10th anniversary.
The Aggie Wranglers recently returned from their
year-end performance in Costa Rica.
They have performed in Disneyland, Opryland,
Sea World and the Fur and Muskrat Festival in Cre
ole, Louisiana.
The non-profit organization has taught Mikhail
Baryshnikov how to two-step, danced for Clint Black
and Lisa Hartman in Operation Heartland and raised
money for the Jason Hensen foundation.
Friday’s game in Dallas, between Spain and South
Korea, starts at 6:30 p.m. and can be seen on EBU
satellite world-wide.
ESPN will split coverage between the Chicago
Open and the Dallas World Cup.
Blood matches condo samples, paper says
Rockets fall
in Game 4
Knicks' victory ties series 2-2
NEW YORK (AP) — With a big start, a huge finish
and a gigantic fourth quarter from Charles Oakley
and John Starks, the New York Knicks tied the NBA
Finals 2-2 Wednesday night.
Their 91-82 victory over the Houston Rockets
means the best-of-7 series, which resumes here Fri
day night, must return to Houston for Game 6 Sun
day night.
After Houston went ahead 70-69, New York, which
started the game with a 17-2 run, held off numerous
comebacks. In the final quarter, Oakley had seven
points and nine rebounds; while Starks scored 11
points.
The Knicks overcame a brilliant performance by
Hakeem Olajuwon, who finished with 32 points. He
had 14 of those in the final quarter after making just
two of 11 field goals in the fourth period of the three
previous games.
Derek Harper led the Knicks with 21 points,
Starks had 20 and Oakley had 16 points and 20 re
bounds Patrick Ewing had 16 points and 15 rebounds
before fouling with 1:13 to play.
Starks scored the Knicks’ last seven points after a
three-point play by Carl Herrera had cut the lead to
82-78 with 2:50 remaining.
Starks began with a 3-pointer, but Olajuwon’s four
free throws made it 85-82. Starks hit two free throws
with 52 seconds left and two more with 31 seconds to
go to make it 89-82.
Sam Cassell, whose 3-pointer had put Houston
ahead for good with 32 seconds left in Game 3, then
missed a 3 and New York finished the scoring with
two free throws by Harper with 23 seconds left.
In a series of shifting fortunes, Houston won the
opener then lost Game 2, both at home. In New York,
the Rockets regained the momentum Sunday night.
Knicks coach Pat Riley talked of how his team had to
crank up its intensity.
His players listened.
Please see Rockets/Page 6
Regents’ secretaries
face pretrial hearing
Two secretaries for the Texas A&M System
Board of Regents will have their first day in court
tomorrow during a pretrial hearing in the 85th Dis
trict Court.
Vickie Running, Board of Regents secretary, and
Sasha Walters, Board of Regents administrative
aide, were indicted in February on felony charges of
record tampering.
Running was indicted on eight counts of falsify
ing government documents by misrepresenting alco
hol purchased on state vouchers as purchases of
food and soft drinks. Walters was charged with the
same conduct in a seven-count indictment.
Bill Turner, Brazos County district attorney, said
Friday’s hearing will be routine procedure.
“Motions will be presented by both sides,” Turner
said. “We will present a motion to consolidate the
two cases into one trial.”
Simpson hires new attorney amid rumors of imminent arrest
LOS ANGELES (AP) — O.J.
Simpson’s blood type matches that of
blood found outside his ex-wife’s con
dominium, where she and a friend
were stabbed to death, the Los Ange
les Times reported today.
A more exact DNA test to deter
mine whether the blood is in fact
Simpson’s has not been concluded,
the newspaper said, citing unidenti
fied sources. Such tests can take two
months or more. Blood types are
shared by many people.
A lawyer for the 46-year-old for
mer football star said Simpson was
at home waiting for a limousine to
the airport when Nicole Brown Simp
son and Ronald Goldman were killed
Sunday night.
But a police source, speaking on
condition of anonymity, told The As
sociated Press on Monday that Simp
son would be arrested in the slay
ings, perhaps within days.
Mrs. Simpson’s throat was
slashed, and Goldman’s wounds in
dicate he put up a fierce struggle
before he died, investigators said.
The Times previously reported that
Simpson had scratches on his body
when police questioned him Mon
day.
Police were also reported to have
found bloodstains in his driveway
and his vehicle, and a bloody glove at
his mansion and another at the
crime scene. But tests on the blood
on the gloves have not been complet
ed, the newspaper said.
Simpson’s attorney, Robert L.
Shapiro, did not immediately return
a call for comment early today.
On Wednesday, Simpson slipped
past reporters ringing his house to
attend a private visitation service at
a funeral home Wednesday for Mrs.
Simpson. Her family was said to
have treated him cordially.
“It was all friendly,” Denise
Brown, Mrs. Simpson’s sister, told
the Daily News of Los Angeles.
Earlier in the day, Shapiro told re
porters that the former NFL star
was at home in the city’s Brentwood
section at the time of the slaying two
miles away.
“O.J. was at home waiting to get
into a limousine to take him to the
airport on a trip that had been
planned well in advance for a promo
tional event in Chicago,” Shapiro
said.
Detectives questioned the limou
sine driver and searched the car,
KABC-TV reported. In Chicago, TV
stations reported that Los Angeles
police were in Chicago and planned
to meet with investigators there to
day.
Funerals were planned today for
Mrs. Simpson, 35, and Goldman, 25,
a waiter and friend.
Suffocated baby case
to go before grand jury
The Brazos County District Attorney’s office will
go to the grand jury Monday in the case of a 21-
year-old Texas A&M student whose newborn baby
was discovered in a garbage chute in Mosher Hall
March 25.
Results of an autopsy by the Bexar County
Forensic Science Center in San Antonio showed the
infant died of suffocation.
Bob Wiatt, director of the University Police De
partment, said the woman had said she was not the
mother, and had never been pregnant.
Doctors who treated the woman at St. Joseph
Hospital in Bryan determined otherwise.
Bill Turner, Brazos County district attorney, said
in a previous interview with The Battalion that a va
riety of charges will be presented to the grand jury.
“We will go through the whole range of charges,
from homicide to injury to a child to even murder or
capital murder,” he said.