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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 16, 1994)
Campus detention rates high for A&M freshmen, low for minority groups. Page 2 THE Opinion Sports COLUMNIST DEBATE: Is access to abortion a human right? Page 6 Bryant kickin' up a storm on the A&M football field. Page 5 FRIDAY September 16, 1994 Vol. 101, No. 15 (8 pages) 'Serving Texas A&M since 1893" ■i Wl~ A&M faculty not surprised by invasion S., Korea continue eapons talks BERLIN (AP) — Amid reports of a dbdlock, U.S. and North Korean ip rnnats held a third day of technical ps on American initiatives to steer Koreans' nuclear program away weapons production. Neither side provided any details of talks. The negotiations Wednesday |gan at midmorning and were ected to last into the evening. The United States has offered to lace North Korea's reactors with t-water reactors that are safer and duce less weapons-grade itonium than the Russian-designed iphite reactors North Korea is now eloping. A South Korean newspaper on dnesday reported a deadlock in talks caused in part by North rea’s demand that the United ites pay $1.2 billion to compensate stopping construction of its phite nuclear reactors. eds catch on to itest welfare scam By Constance Parten The Battalion President Clinton’s decision to invade Haiti didn’t surprise some Texas A&M faculty. Pierre Catala, an engineering technol ogy senior lecturer and a resident of Haiti for six years, said he hoped the United States would invade Haiti. “The majority of Americans are op posed to the invasion because they don’t care about Haiti,” Catala said. “They didn’t, until recently, even know where the country was, and Haiti doesn’t have a tremendous economic im pact on the U.S. so they just don’t care.” Catala said the suffering is incredible in Haiti and he is concerned for many of his friends still in the country. He also said the U.S. embargo is par tially to blame for many of the deaths of Haiti’s citizens. “The people are dying because there is literally nothing to eat,” Catala said. WASHINGTON (AP) — In the test scheme to defraud the svernment's largest welfare ogram, bogus grocery stores are Kinging up around the country to under food stamps for restaurants, ■holesalers and street traffickers. I The lucrative scams are spreading ] a time when federal oversight of the Imd stamp program has been \ eakened by deep budget cuts, and I hile record numbers of Americans Ire collecting benefits. I The Agriculture Department I pends $24 billion a year providing bod stamps to more than 26 million Americans — one in 10. Yet USDA’s : ood and Nutrition Service has only a landful of regulators and investigators o police the program. According to agency officials and awmakers, the Food and Nutrition ervice has 46 food stamp Investigators, compared with nearly I0 in 1979. Its field office staff, which iversees food stamps as well as other lutrition programs, has shrunk from a lousand workers to about 150. lalloween doll tackles racial slurs |ioaay s J3yvi JT Campus 2 Classified 8 ppinion 6 Sports 5 What's Up 4 “The U.S. is already involved. They can’t back out now.” More than 3,000 Haitians have been killed since the regime took power, and more than 24,000 have fled Haiti, seeking refuge in the United States. There are now some 14,000 refugees housed at U.S. military instillations at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Clinton said he has already sent two aircraft carriers, the USS America and the USS Eisenhower, into the Caribbean to join the 15 ships already present. Joseph Dawson, director of the Mili tary Studies Institute, said Clinton’s heart is in the right place, although his actions in the past several months have hurt him politically. “Clinton has always seemed disdainful of foreign policy,” Dawson said. “He is fi nally coming to the understanding that the United States can’t avoid involvement See Haiti/Page 3 Haitian leaders should 'leave now or we will force you from power', White House says WASHINGTON (AP) — President Clinton built his case Thursday for an American invasion of Haiti to expel a mil itary regime that stole power and stands accused of 3,000 political murders. Every sign pointed to an imminent invasion. Seventeen American warships omi nously shadowed Haiti’s coast, and two troop-laden aircraft carriers were on the way. Clinton signed an executive order au thorizing the call up of 1,600 reservists to support the 20,000-person invasion force. The president was using a prime-time address from the Oval Office to explain why American lives should be risked to restore deposed President Jean-Bertrand Aristide after three years in exile. Americans overwhelmingly oppose an invasion, according to polls, and there’s widespread opposition in Congress. Defense Secretary William Perry said Pentagon planning "assumed we would have to make a forced entry in Haiti." He said he hoped it would become clear to Haiti’s leaders that “their best alter native is to leave and not to try to resist this force." Perry said there was no indication that Lt. Gen. Raoul Cedras, leader of the See Clinton/Page 3 Hutchison visits A&M, speaks out against presidents policies By Tracy Smith The Battalion During a campaign stop at Texas A&M Thursday, U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison expressed strong opposition to the Clinton administration’s plan to invade Haiti. Sen. Hutchison, who was greeted by about 50 Texas A&M students and supporters at the Memorial Student Center, said she does not support the president’s plan to invade the Caribbean nation. Hutchison said she believes that Clinton should get Congress’ approval before moving forward with any action. “The administration has no reason to put American soldiers in harm’s way,” she said. “There is no strategic interest which justifies the shedding of one drop of American blood in an invasion of Haiti.” Hutchinson said an invasion could be avoided if the United States would work with the people of Haiti. “We haven’t exhausted our sources yet,” she said. “I think that by lifting the embargo with Haiti, and if the country had another election, it would be for the good of the Haitian people.” Hutchison, when asked about Clin ton’s health care reform plan, said the American people want a health care plan, but that decisions about such a plan are still being decided. Hutchison “I am also a strong advocate of insurance reform,” Hutchinson said. “I want to bring support to people who have lost their jobs.” Hutchison concluded by saying she will be in Washing ton D.C. until late October doing the job she was elected to do, but will visit Texas A&M when she returns. “I am always glad to visit Texas A&M and will come again soon,” she said. Bo Armstrong, vice president of public relations for the College Republicans, said Hutchison had several stops to make in Bryan-College Station, but that she wanted to take time to meet Texas A&M students Tuesday. “She has been very supportive of the College Republi cans through her efforts and speeches,” Armstrong said. See Hutchison/Page 3 HARRISBURG (AP) — The plastic lalloween witch doll was supposed to iffer a recipe for witch’s brew. But a ashier and a customer at a larrisburg-area store complained that he toy instead uttered a racial slur in fating the necessary ingredients. Hills Department Stores removed he dolls from 150 stores this week ifter the complaints from the uburban store. The plastic witch is supposed to espond to a clap by cackling, “Is mybody ready for a little witch’s brew?” Instead, the cashier and customer ay, they believe the $12 battery- lowered novelties used a slur for ilacks in saying what it needed for its witch’s brew.” "We’re not sure what it was saying, was so garbled,” said Glenn yerson, Hills’ director of marketing. It certainly could have been onstrued to be a slur. It certainly asn’t saying what it was supposed to e saying.” Ictor pleads no- contest to setting fire BURBANK, Calif. (AP) — Bobcat oldthwait’s no-contest plea for jetting fire to “The Tonight Show” set |S now official, and he has handed ver TV spots he was ordered to ake on behalf of a burn center. The comedian also must pay 3,888 in fines and restitution, eluding $698 to NBC for damage to e chair he set on fire with lighter f|uid May 6. Jay Leno and guest auren Hutton doused the fire with ups of water. Goldthwait, 32, was in Municipal kurt on Wednesday to make final the lea bargain, which also includes six lonths’ probation. “We don’t think there was naliciousness here,” Deputy City attorney Robert Walters. "It was ckless. It was a joke gone bad.” Former student remembers struggle as Vietnam POW By Lisa Messer The Battalion Although it was over 21 years ago, Col. James Ray clearly remembers the six years of torture he received as a pris oner of the North Vietnamese. “It was rope torture,” Ray said. “They tortured me the first time to try to get military information. The second time they wanted a war crimes confession and anti-war letters to turn America against the war.” During his 13th combat mission in Southeast Asia, Ray had ejected from his battle-damaged F-105 bomber over North Vietnam. From May 1966 until February 1973, he was a prisoner of the North Vietnamese. Ray, a former A&M student, said he wants people to remember, especially to day on POW/MIA Recognition Day, the sacrifices that people made, the years that were amputated from their lives and those men that are still missing. “National POW/MIA Day is an effort to keep the idea alive of the sacrifices that individuals have made,” he said. “They are patriots. They were loyal to their government, fighting an unpopu lar war.” Eric Hansen, commander of the Arnold Air Society, said people should understand that Recognition Day is not held as a memorial. “It’s a commemorative type of event,” he said. “It’s to let former POWs and MIAs know that their efforts aren’t for gotten and that they’re appreciated. It’s important for everyone to remember their sacrifices.” Maj. David Onaka, assistant profes sor of aerospace studies, said family members of POWs and MIAs have also sacrificed. “It’s not just the people who fought,” he said. “A lot of people have sacrificed because they had loved ones in the mili tary. It’s important to the family mem bers to remember.” Ray said many families suffer because they don’t know the conditions of their loved ones. “A number of MIAs were never ac counted for,” he said. “There are allega tions that some were never returned. “I personally believe there are not any men still being held alive,” Ray said. “I say that with a 90 to 95 percent confi dence rate. As much information as pos sible has been analyzed, and you can’t prove conclusively there are any left. “If people are not aware of the con flicting material, they jump on the band wagon,” he said. “I object to that be cause it puts a worse burden on the sur vivors of the missing. They’re on an emotional roller coaster. It promotes their hopes and then dashes them. That’s more cruel than a presumptive finding of death.” Ray said five percent of him still won ders if there are still more, however. “What if we find out tomorrow even one guy is alive?” he said. “Then who do we blame? “This day should send a signal to the politicians to still be vigilant for that five percent chance, or one percent chance, that there are still some left be hind,” he said. Robyn Calloway The Battalion Sophomore cadet Mark Andrews shows off a POW/MIA bracelet. The bracelets are on sale through today at the MSC. POW/MIA recognition activities end today. “The difficulty is not only during the war on the battlefield,” Ray said. “Some things are never resolved.” Yumi Yanagisawa, commander of An gel Flight (an air force student support group), said she urges everyone to partic ipate in Recognition Day. “We can’t forget,” she said. “It did happen. They still remember and so should we.” The final POW/MIA recognition activ ities will be held today at Simpson Drill Field at 11:30 a.m. The 147th Flight Group of the Texas Air National Guard will fly over the drill field at noon in the “missing man” formation. A&M students, administrators opt for E-mail communication Amy BrowningTHE Battalion Missy Ramirez, a sophomore computer science major from Wesla co, sends a letter to a friend at George Washington University. Editor’s Note: All interviews for this article were conduct ed through E-mail. By Amanda Fowle The Battalion Texas A&M students do not have to depend on the postal service or the phone company for their communication needs. A&M is offering students some new communica tion options through its computing services. Many people are finding electronic methods of communication, like E-mail, more convenient than traditional methods. Dr. Ray Bowen, A&M president, said E-mail is often more convenient than the phone for getting in touch with people. “It helps avoid playing phone tag with individu als who are busy,” he said. “It also allows for a di rect form of communication without going through other individuals.” Jay Parsons, a senior computer science major, agreed that E-mail is convenient for both parties. “People will get your message eventually,” he said, “and can reply at their leisure.” Parsons said many computer science profes sors tell students to communicate with them through E-mail. Some professors send students’ grades to them via E-mail. Some even have students turn in then- homework via E-mail. Bowen said he uses E-mail frequently for com munication pertaining to A&M, as well as other interests. “I receive approximately 40 E-mail messages a day,” he said. “These come from on campus and off campus. The contents vary from serious to not so serious. I find E-mail to be an effective way to ex change small quantities of information quickly.” E-mail is not just for classes and work though. Tito Vasqez-Ani, a senior psychology major, said many students use E-mail to communicate with friends at A&M and other places. “It is much cheaper than talking on the phone to my friends in Mexico,” she said. Students have access to E-mail and other com puting services at A&M through the computer ac cess fee. All students pay this fee with their tu ition, so they have already paid for E-mail, whether they use it or not. See E-mail/Page 2