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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (March 7, 1996)
larch 6,1996 COOKIN' THE FINAL REIGN ng 11 addi- ght fixtures. ; victim was ound of his ned. As the he window, d holding a midentified 6 oz. of liq- the odor of i. The victim ' blinds and ects running vn argument uals resulted itruck by the :e hall room close it. The i door back e exited the ; acquainted d desires no at this time. The Lady Aggies rout Rice, 91- 63, in the SWC Classic. Sports, Page 7 SLIP SLIDIN'AWAY Halbrook: The conservative Supreme Court is slowly taking away basic rights. Opinion, Page 11 Bethany Burnam's reign marks the end of TAMU pageant tradition. Aggielife, Page 3 The Battalion 102, No. 108 (12 pages) Serving Texas A&M University Since 1893 Thursday • March 7, 1996 Bowen decides against j State Rep. Ogden aid he is glad Dr. 8owen has realized latforgoing public brings would violate a state law. ly Danielle Pontiff Ihe Battalion Dr. Ray Bowen, Texas A&M president, has changed his mind about his proposal to au tomatically increase the Gener al Use Fee by $2 each time tu ition is increased by $2. Bowen, at recent public hear ings about his proposed in crease of $8 per semester credit hour in the General Use Fee, said linking the General Use Fee with tuition would elimi nate the need for holding public hearings each time it increases. However, an amendment to Texas Legislature House Bill 815 requires universities to hold pub lic hearings on all fee increases. See related EDITORIAL, Page 11 Bowen said he realized this after consulting with lawyers. “We asked for a legal opin ion,” Bowen said, “and they ad vised us not to stop having pub lic hearings.” State Rep. Steve Ogden, the District 13 Republican who au thored the amendment, said Bowen’s proposal would have violated Texas regulations. “I’m glad to hear that Dr. Bowen changed his mind about the automatic fee increases,” Ogden said. “The statute re quires public hearings.” Ogden said the amendment was written to protect universi ty students from excessive fee increases. “The amendment requires two important things,” Ogden said. “One is the need for public hearings on fee increases. The other is that money collected from these fees must stay at the specific university where students are paying them.” automatic fee increase Public hearings provide an opportunity for students to ex press their opinions to universi ty admin istrators, he said. “When I wrote the amend- ment, I wanted to make sure that the public could have some in put on fee increases,” Ogden said. “The people that are col lecting those fees have a duty to be accountable to those pay ing the fees.” State Rep. Kevin Brady, a District 15 Republican, agreed that students should be able to voice their concerns about fee increases. “Fhiblic hearings are desirable because students need a way to be involved with fee increases,” Brady said. “The more student involvement, the better.” Ogden said the amendment has been successful because students have taken advantage of hearings as a way to become informed and have their ques tions answered. “The reports I’ve gotten back from staff members attending these public hearings show that people are using the opportuni ty to express themselves,” Og den said. “Anyone who wants to just listen or make a comment can do so. “I think this is something that we should go through all the time, whether the issue is an increase in student fees or tax increases.” "The people that are collect ing those fees have a duty to be accountable to those paying the fees." — Rep. Steve Ogden State representative for District 13 Senate rejects GUF increase Jlhe Student Senate will ask the student body to vote for changes in yell leader election policies during this month's campus elections. By Heather Pace The Battalion In the final meeting of the Student Senate’s 48th Session, the Senate unanimously disap proved of A&M President Dr. Ray Bowen’s proposed increase of S8 per semester credit hour in the General Use Fee. Tracey McAllister, an off- campus senator and junior marketing major, said the Sen ate had to take a stand against the fee increase. “We need to stop compromising with the administration,” McAllis ter said. “It is time we stand our pound and find out if money is being managed correctly.” Melissa Moloney, an off-cam- pus senator and junior political sdence major, said the decision represents what the student body wants. “I think we listened to what the students wanted because al most everyone I talked to was against the fee,, increase,” Moloney said. In an attempt to change the way yell leaders are elected, the Senate decided to place a refer endum on the Spring 1996 elec tion ballot. Jason Herrick, an off-campus senator and an industrial engi neering major, said the referen dum asks students to decide if they want run-off elections for yell leaders. Run-off elections between the top four junior candidates and the top five senior candi dates as identified by the pri mary vote would be held to en sure that the two juniors and three seniors chosen are sup ported by a greater majority of students. Jason Waligura, an engineer ing senator and a junior petrole um engineering major, said the weight of Corps of Cadets mem bers’ votes would be decreased by the run-off elections. “We say this is to improve See Senate, Page 6 Gwendolyn Struve, The Battalion GOING FOR A SPIN Andrea Stingley, a senior political science major, gets into a Pontiac Firebird 3.8 V6 on display at the Texas A&M Sports Car Club show at Rudder Plaza Wednesday. Drainage problems addressed J College Station and 3&M will likely enter into negotiations to determine whether the University will contribute financially to the city's proposed drainage plan or develop its own. By Kendra S. Rasmussen The Battalion College Station’s drainage problem has prompted city of ficials to propose a drainage plan that would lessen flood ing in the area. i Mark Smith, director of Public works, said several areas of the city are prone to flooding during severe weather. Bee Creek Park near A&M C onsolidated High 'School and Brison Park near the south side of the Texas A&M campus are ar eas that have always been flood-prone, Smith said, but their problems are worsen- I'ng because of unusual | Weather patterns and in creased city development. See Drainage, Page 12 1 - Bar, club shuttle proposed Gov. George Bush endorses Sen. Dole □ The buses would run from Wednesday to Saturday from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. By Gretchen Perrenot The Battalion Fewer drunken drivers on the streets of Bryan-College Station is the goal of an alter native form of transportation currently in works. David Redfield, a Blinn Col lege sophomore business major, and Matthew Kenyon, a Texas A&M senior biomedical science major, have brainstormed a shuttle bus service to transport Bryan-College Station residents to and from bars and clubs. Preliminary plans for the non profit service include running sev en to 12 buses Wednesday through Saturday from 8 p.m. to 3 a.m. Buses would stop at bars and at the major apartment com plex areas, similar to University Bus Operations routes. Kenyon said the feedback he has received as a defensive dri ving instructor sparked his inter est in creating the shuttle system. “I’m a defensive driving in structor, and being out there, I hear a lot of stories and I hear a lot of reasons about why peo ple drive after they drink,” Kenyon said. “There’s no alter native transportation in Bryan- College Station.” The biggest obstacle Kenyon and Redfield face, they said, is finding help to organize the plans. “We need help with legal ser vices, people to sponsor us, to help us get started and to set up major fund raisers,” Redfield said. “People out there in the community who do this kind of thing for a living can really help us out by volunteering.” Although the plans are in the preliminary stages, their goal is to begin the service Fall 1996. Redfield and Kenyon are seeking support from city offi cials, police departments and University organizations and will submit a proposal to them later this semester. “We’ve contacted the leaders in the community to get their feedback,” Redfield said, “and we haven’t had one response yet that has been negative.” Responses from bar owners, bar managers and city officials have been positive so far, they said. □ The announcement was made close to the same hour both Lugar and Alexander withdrew from the race. AUSTIN (AP) — At the same time two other candidates were quitting the GOP presidential race Wednesday, Gov. George W. Bush threw his backing to Kansas Sen. Bob Dole. Bush said Dole understands Texans and Texas issues, particu larly the importance of free trade and good relations with Mexico. He also praised the senator’s record of service to the country. “I’ve been fortu nate to see the presidency from a unique per spective,” the son of former Pres ident George Bush said. “Being a good president requires strong character, integrity and will. “Sen. Dole’s character has been forged by fire — by a child hood which instilled the impor tance of family and work and community — by a war that al most cost him his life, and by the will that refused to allow it do so. Sen. Dole is a leader.” Bush’s endorsement came at almost the same hour both Lamar Alexander and Sen. Dick Lugar dropped out of the presi dential race, and while Pat Buchanan was acknowledging that it “appears inevitable” Dole would be the GOP nominee. Standing with Bush outside the Governor’s Mansion, Dole said the governor’s endorsement was “the icing on the cake” after his sweep of all eight GOP pri maries on Tuesday. “This endorsement means a great deal to me,” Dole said. “The governor’s done an outstanding job. He’s probably the most popu lar governor we’ve had in Texas in anyone’s memory.” Dole, who said his military ser vice began in Abilene, said Texas and its delegates are “very impor tant” to his nomination strategy. Bush’s endorsement was the second piece of good news for Dole in the state with the largest GOP primary yet. A new Harte-Hanks Texas Poll showed Dole leading his closest GOP rivals by a 2-to-l margin in Texas and said he would easily defeat President Clinton in the state if the elec tion were held today. Among likely Republican primary voters, Dole led the oth ers with 45 percent. Pat See Dole, Page 12 See Shuttle, Page 12 Where Good Bull Ends and Hazing Begins Speaker focuses on judgment □ A&M's hazing policies are Texas state law. By Marissa Alanis The Battalion In light of recent hazing incidents at Texas A&M, a panel of students and Eugene L. Zdziars- ki, assistant director of student life, addressed as sociations and intentions surrounding hazing con troversies March 5 at the MSC. During “Where Good Bull Ends and Hazing Be gins,” Zdziarski said there has been much discus sion about A&M’s hazing policy being broad and needing to be changed, but people should realize it is Texas state law. “Our policy as an institution is to set stan dards,” he said, “and the lowest we can set stan dards is the law.” Zdziarski said that because hazing laws can be interpreted so broadly, there will inevitably be problems with them. “You can never craft a law or policy that will be perfect,” Zdziarski said. “It comes down to the peo ple in the situations using their judgment.” The Texas hazing law went into effect August 1987 and was revised May 1995. The only way this law can be changed is if the Texas Legislature See Hazing, Page 12 "This endorsement means a great deal to me." — Sen. Bob Dole presidential candidate