TEXAS TWISTERS
Local group spin onto the stage
at 3rd Floor Cantina tonight.
Aggielife, Page 3
SPECTOR FOR PRESIDENT?
Guest columnist delves into legislative history of
newest presidential candidate.
Opinion, Page 7
BEAT THE HELL
The men's tennis team hosts a SWC
showdown with UT.
Sports, Page 5
tVbl. 101, No. 122 (8 pages)
■M—
“Serving Texas Ae^rMsince 1893
Illlllllliilllll
Friday • March 31, 1995
Runoff election to be held April 6
□ Almost 2,000 more students
voted in the election than last
year, an increase to 24 percent.
.<TfAfJON
Toby Boenig is lifted up by his supporters Thursday night when he
was announced as a runoff candidate for student body president.
By Kasie Byers and Tracy Smith
The Battalion
The election that brought the most stu
dents out to vote in A&M history will con
tinue Thursday in a runoff for student
body president and a few RHA and class
officer positions.
The election committee counted 8,034
votes this year — 24 percent of the student
body. This was almost 2,000 more votes
than last year.
The election for student body president
ended in a runoff between Toby Boenig and
Carl Baggett.
After the results were announced, Toby
Boenig said he couldn’t stop shaking.
“My heart is pounding,” he said. “I am a
total basket case.”
Boenig said he doesn’t plan to change his
campaign strategy over the next week, but
will just continue to focus on his platform
and inform the student body of his ideas.
“I’m feeling really confident about my
position right now, but what happens will
happen,” he said. “Whatever God plans to
happen will happen.”
Carl Baggett will be the other candidate
in next Thursday’s runoff for student body
president.
“Overwhelmed and excited are two
words describing my feelings about
tonight’s results,” he said. “Five great
guys were running for student body presi
dent — it was a tough decision.”
Henry Hewes, David Kemp and Michael
Thornberry were elected senior yell leaders.
Chris Torn and David Thornberry were
elected junior yell leaders.
Michael Thornberry said the anticipa
tion he felt for his brother was greater
than that for himself.
“It is the greatest feeling in the world to
have your brother as a yell leader with you,”
Michael Thornberry said. “Since we were kids
we talked about this, but we never knew until
now that it could be a reality.”
David Thornberry said that at this point
he is simply trying to take it all in.
“I see an enjoyable year ahead of us,” he
said. “I’m looking forward to representing
A&M.”
Kemp said he is glad things worked out
the way they did.
“We should have a good group repre
senting A&M next year,” he said. “I can’t
believe the election is finally over.”
The Class of ’95 agents will be Jeb
Jones, Jennifer Watkins and Trent Ashby.
The Health Care referendum also
passed, with 83 percent of the vote.
The referendum will raise the ceiling on
the health care fee from $25 to $75. How
ever, the increase, will be no more than 10
percent each year. The increase will re
quire student approval each year.
By combining the health care fees into
one fee, the referendum strives to make
understanding the fee statements easier.
Right now, students pay $25 under the
health care fee and $15 under the student
service fee for health services.
1 Student Body President
Runoff
RHA Treasurer
Becky Si 1 loway
| Runoff
Matt Chilek
Class of '98 Historian
Bryan Hunt
|Carl Baggett
Shannon Habgood
Runoff
Science Senators
[Toby Boenig
Betsy Cates
Agriculture Senators
Wendy Hawks
Class of '97 Vice President
Mike Pontiff
Mike Tippit
Pam Clark
% Senior Yell Leader
Runoff
Neely Young
Christian A. Tuma
Henry Hewes
Erik Figueriedo
OCA President
Jimbo Cross
| David Kemp
Courtney Lyons
Adrian Sanderlin
Northside Senators
Michael Thornberry
Architecture Senators
Hilary Ekblad
Class of '97 Secretary
OCA Vice President
Mike Reining
Kyle Mezger
L lunior Yell Leader
Jenny Martin
Tara Buban
g > S *
Jesse Czelusta
I Chris Torn
Business Administration Senators
| David Thornberry
Class of '97 Treasurer
OCA Secretary
Ron Mo
Southside Senator
Wes Barnes
Stacey Shackelford
Mark Harmon
Dan Chapot
ICIass of '96 President
Richard Holt
Robert Payne
■Gerry Brown
Class of '97 Social Secretary
OCA Treasurer
Jeff Prince
Rusty Adams
Tracy Mapes
Terra Phil by
David Armstrong
Class of '96 Vice President
Education Senators
Barry Johnson
Class of '97 Historian
RHA President
Kathryn Burgess
Off-Campus Senators
Michael Stewart
Runoff
Stefani Stone
Class of '96 Secretary
Trevor Dunham
Engineerine Senators
Elizabeth Neugart
Tommy Hollahan
Class of '98 President
Suzanne Lyons
Ben Samuel
Amy Bigbee
Blake McKinney
Jason Waligura
Lesfie Johnson
Class of '96 Treasurer
RHA Vice President for Student
Bradley Eilers
Rob Lewicki
Runoff
Class of '98 Vice President
Development
Nicholas Dickson
Brian Myers
Todd Logan Erskine
Nolan Barkhouse
Amy Wakefield
Stuart W. Glenn
Michael Glynn
Kristen Smith
Ryan Shopp
Jill Jackson
Class of '98 Secretary
RHA Vice President for Operations
Melissa Moloney
Class of '96 Social Secretary
Dan Cochran
Runoff
General Studies Senators
Bo Armstrong
Kelly Quy
Jay Greenberg
Will Jenkins
Matt Mayfield
Class of '98 Treasurer
Jesse J. Sanchez
Annie Blanco
Class of '96 Historian
Will Jenkins
Liberal Arts Senators
Tracey McAllister
Amy Hohlt
RHA Secretary
Bradley Morefield
Patrick Cone Conway
Class of '98 Social Secretary
Laura Derby
Jason Ross
James Atkinson
Class of '97 President
Laura Beth Vogt
Erin Fitzgerald
Chris Reed
Tim Moog/ The Battalion
Carl Baggett is congratulated by friends as he is an
nounced as a runoff candidate for student body presi
dent Thursday night in front of the Sul Ross statue.
IRHA opposes funding Corps with dorm fees
□ The RHA passes a bill
that objects funding for
two Corps of Cadets
programs.
By Wes Swift
he Battalion
The Residence Hall Association
condemned the use of residence
hall rent money to support two
Corps of Cadets programs Thurs
day night.
The bill said the two programs,
the Corps Leadership Training
and Adviser Program and the
Corps Room Scholarship Pro
gram, cost on-campus residents
$337,972 every year, at an aver
age cost of $30 per resident.
Mark Grabble, RHA vice presi
dent for student development,
said the RHA recently discovered
the programs when the residence
hall finances were shifted to the
Division of Student Affairs.
“Previously, the finances
were all under the Division of
Finance and Administration,”
Gribble said. “When they were
put in the Department of Resi
dence Life and Housing, the
program was found during the
breakdown of the finances.”
Owen Ross, RHA president,
said he supported the bill because
he could find no benefits for non-
Corps residents.
“If these programs benefited
the entire campus or the resi
dents, I wouldn’t mind funding
these programs,” Ross said.
“But I don’t see how someone
living in a non-reg hall could
benefit from them.”
Jennifer Enos, Northside sena
tor and member of the Student
Housing input Committee, said
that a decision made by the com
mittee on the issue was overruled.
“When this was brought before
us, we decided that we didn’t
think it was right,” Enos said.
“But then it was turned over
down the road.”
Ross said that although he did
not approve of funding the pro
grams through rent, he had no ill
feelings toward them.
“These are two excellent pro
grams,” Ross said. “We’re just
paying for them out of the
wrong pocket.”
Although there was little op
position, Ross said he had con
tacted the Corps Housing Office,
Corps Commandant Sgt. Maj.
Thomas Darling and Corps Com
mander Matt Segrest to offer
support for the programs. None
attended the meeting.
Although the bill passed quick
ly through emergency legislation,
some people opposed the way it
was passed.
Students give back
to B-CS community
Faster not always better, panelists say
□ Journalists discuss
the role of media in
foreign policy.
By Stephanie Dube
The Battaijon
Media officials stressed the in
fluence journalists have on for
eign policy and the responsibili
ties this influence creates Thurs
day during the final forum of the
Wiley Lecture Series,
Ralph Begleiter, an anchor for
CNN in Washington, said the
news media play an instrumental
role in foreign policy.
“The media are in the satellite
age of diplomacy,” Begleiter said.
“It is playing an integral role in
the conduct of foreign policy.”
The satellite age, Begleiter
said, includes everything from
faxes to television signals gener
ated at a moment’s notice.
Although this technology im
proves communication, he said, it
can also create prob
lems for foreign poli
cy makers.
Wayne Nelson,
senior producer
and bureau manag
er for CBS News in
Dallas, said this in
stant communica
tion can have nega
tive effects by ere-
ating instant deci
sions.
“News is transmitted almost
as it happens,” he said, “So de
cisions on foreign policy are
made in haste.
“Is it fair for media to have
minute-by-minute coverage of on
going foreign crises? This is not a
baseball game we’re covering.
We need to be careful of how we
"News is transmitted almost as
it happens, so decisions on for
eign policy are made in haste."
— Wayne Nelson,
CBS News in Dallas
represent foreign events.”
However, Begleiter said that
nothing should be done about the
problems developing from this
rapid communication.
“America’s press is an un
shackled force in American
democracy, a force that is widely
respected around the world,” he
said, “This does not mean it is
gbod, just that we should not do
anything about it.”
Brent Bozell, chairman of the
Media Research Center, said
that although the media should
not be regulated, they should be
aware of the influence they has
over foreign policy.
*T cannot say reporters have no
role to play in the conduct of for
eign policy,” Bozell said. “Re
porters play a role in every aspect
of foreign policy.
“We should not suggest
See Panelists, Page 8
□ Students will give
back to the community
Saturday through the
13th annual Big Event.
By Lynn Cook
The Battalion
More than 4,800 students
will help clean and repair areas
in Bryan-College Station Satur
day for Texas A&M’s 13th an
nual Big Event.
Laura Perkins, a member of
the student government’s Big
Event committee, said the num
ber of students volunteering and
the number of job sites has dou
bled since last year.
Ftesidence Halls, Corps outfits.
Fish Camps and Greek organiza
tions are among the groups who
will be fixing roofs, painting,
building wheelchair ramps and
beautifying the area.
Scott Satterwhite, director of
Big Event, said help is avail
able to anyone in the communi
ty who wants it.
“A lot of people are under the
impression that Big Event is only
for the needy, those who can’t af
ford to do the work themselves,”
Satterwhite said. “But it’s not.
“It’s a ‘thank you’ to the com
munity for putting up with more
than 40,000 students every year.
No one who asks for help is
turned down and we pay for all
the supplies.”
Most of the work sites are in
dividual homes, Satterwhite
said. However, he said, stu
dents will also help build two
wheelchair ramps and clean out
the old Walmart.
Big Event will start at 9 a.m.
with speeches from former regent
Bill Clayton and Clayton
Williams Jr.
From there, students will re
port to their assigned work
sites and work until their jobs
are done.
Satterwhite said Big Event is
operating under a $15,000 bud
get this year. The student gov
ernment gave the committee
$3,000 and the other $12,000
was raised primarily through
private donations.
Big Event began in 1982, Sat
terwhite said, as an idea of Joe
Nussbaum’s, an executive vice
president in student government.
“It all started out with close to
12 people,” Satterwhite said.
“They went and cleared out one of
the city’s cemeteries.”
In the past 13 years, this day of
community service has expanded
to involve thousands of students
and hundreds of job sites.
Stephanie Green, member of
the Big Event committee and ser
vice chair for Chi Omega, said her
sorority will be painting houses
Saturday.
“We’re going to be painting
two houses and we have be
tween 50 and 60 people going,”
Green said. “We participate be
cause it is such as wonderful
project for the community.”