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THURSDAY
June 27, 1996
The Battalion
GGIE
Page 3
CREDIT BALL AND CHAIN
C redit
cards are
your best
friend or
your worst
whether you
dinner, forget
order concert
enemy,
charge
cash or
tickets
over the phone.
Credit cards offer easy access to
many products, but are dangerous for
those who neglect to pay them off.
Credit cards are also easy for many
Texas A&M students to obtain.
Booths in the Memorial Student Cen
ter offer free T-shirts when students
fill out a card application. In addi
tion phone solicitors and mailouts of
fer pre-approved credit.
Gracie Garza, vice president of Ag-
gieland Credit Union, said taking these
pre-approved offerings is easy, but stu
dents should exercise caution.
“Occasionally we find that some peo
ple with these pre-approved cards have
gotten into trouble,” Garza said. “People
start using them as an extension of in
come and find it difficult then to bring
themselves out of debt.”
Jennifer Hale, a senior English ma
jor, said pre-approved cards for stu
dents provide a good opportunity to es
tablish credit.
“It is a good way for people to built
good credit,” Hale said. “Although some
might abuse the card, it is up to the in
dividual to establish their own credit.”
easy to let your payments get away
from you.”
The uses of credit card use range
from gasoline to clothing to vacations.
Hale said she tries to only use her cred
it card for gas and occasional groceries.
Proctor uses his card for these ba
sics and miscellaneous, on-the-side
television. But I have not used them as
much recently.
“I try to pay [my bills] off every month
with my paychecks I get from work.”
Jasso said one of the positive aspects
about credit cards is their convenience.
“Easy money. Fast money,” she
said. “If you are going on a trip, they
Steve Proctor, a senior business man
agement major, said first-time cards
help students learn responsibility, but
the possibility of incurring into debt
might be easier than expected.
“I would think that there would be a
tendency to just pay the minimum pay
ment and let the rest slip by until next
month,” Proctor said. “It could be really
purchases. His Mastercard doubles as
a phone card.
Monica Jasso, a senior business
analysis and marketing major, said
she does not use her cards as
often as other people.
“I use them for big- ticket items like
my king-size bed,” Jasso said. “I also
upgraded my computer and got a new
are good to have for emergencies.
They do not bounce like checks, and
they give you good credit if you pay
them off on time.”
Credit bureaus keep track of these
credit reports, which determine good or
bad credit.
A representative of the Consumer
Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) in
Bryan said credit repair clinics are
available to help those with poor credit,
but no one can change information in a
credit report.
CCCS said time is the only thing
that heals bad credit.
Card owners may obtain a copy of their
credit report from these credit bureaus.
Distribution of credit information
may also be a concern since credit card
corporations, like many other business
es, are entering the information super
highway. Many web sites selling prod
ucts allow the user to e-mail his or her
card number, and the product will be
instantly mailed.
Hale said she has never charged
products to her card over the Internet
and feels unsafe giving the number over
the phone.
“Web technology is always growing,”
Hale said. “I think they will find a way
to make it? (sending a card number)
more secure, but then this same growth
in technology may also make it easier
for someone else to intercept it.”
Jasso said she would not send a card
number over the Internet.
“It seems too easy to access when it
goes over the Internet,” she said. “I al
ways try to pay with check or money or- i
der if I’m ordering something by mail,
because giving out my credit card num- ;
ber just scares me.”
Garza said credit cards establish
good credit rating, but students should
not be blind.
“It is really easy to take offers that i
come in the mail or at booths on campus i
because they are pre-approved, but we j
recommend that people exercise cau- j
tion,” Garza said. “We usually [suggest]
a smaller credit line so students can get
used to using the card.”
By Jeffrey Cranor
B-CS offers plenty of ways to fulfill cultural yearnings
L ooking for a little excite
ment? No, I’m not going to
ask you to snap into a Slim
Jim or anything like that.
What I want you to do is close
your eyes and imagine all the
fun things, all the entertaining
things you have done with your
self and friends in the past
month or so.
Ready? Okay, you may begin
to think creatively now.
If you can’t think of any
thing on the spur of the mo
ment, maybe it’s because there is nothing to
think about.
Seriously, the theater and the art programs
are dead in College Station. In an area popu
lated mostly by University students, the only
outlet for artistic entertainment exists in the
club scene.
But even those dimly lit, bass- pumping, beer-
sticky 1 floor joints. You know, the ones you pay a
$5 cover charge to get into only to have your
friends decide they want to go somewhere else 15
minutes later do not seem to satisfy the thirst for
classical knowledge.
There are many open doors providing diverse
backdrops and settings to local arenas for viewing
and listening pleasure.
Of course, what better place to start than right
here at Texas A&M.
You don’t have to venture from campus to
know organizations such as MSC OPAS, the MSC
Film Society and the J. Wayne Stark University
Galleries hold a variety of eye-catching events
year- round.
For instance, at the Stark Galleries, one may
partake in a tour of John Howard’s African-Amer
ican art collection, Louise Dahl-Wolfe’s Harper’s
Bazaar portraits or some of the gallery’s perma
nent collections.
Art gallery tours are generally quiet, relaxing
and- best of all- free.
If you prefer to sit back and enjoy a presen
tation, then maybe the Film Society will suit
your taste.
Not only does the Film Society present free
sneak previews for upcoming movies (especial
ly the ones we all care to see once the words
Oscar-caliber are mentioned), but they handle
events such as the Texas Independent Film
maker’s Convention.
Here you can get a glimpse at what people are
creating from the home state of Texas, and listen
to guest speakers such as John Landis of “Animal
House” fame and see Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”
mini-movie.
If you wish to see the silver screen produc
tion adapted to the stage, MSC OPAS will pro
vide the dramatics.
One of life’s small treasures, a good laugh, can
usually be found circulating among audiences at
various Freudian Slip programs.
Who knows, maybe you will get picked from
your seat to participate in a skit.
Then again, you can always return to commu
nity culture if you don’t want to remain in your
seats — that is, standing in a local venue jam
ming with some of the area bands.
Yes, music is an art form, and because differ
ent bands have different styles, there is a bounty
of art out there to be heard.
So, when that trigger-foot starts tapping on the
floor and a good tune is embedded in your mind,
go out and catch a set with Lewis (one of the
prime band choices).
Don’t worry, if you happen to have a beer or
two while the music goes on, it does not make you
any less cultured than the next person.
Soon, you’ll be on your way to a life filled with
opportunities of entertainment you never thought
of, even though they were always there.
This is not to downplay a night out, club-hop
ping with good friends.
The point is this— Just when you thought
you had to stick with an old routine, new hori
zons branch forward waiting to be explored.
I guess the old saying, really can be trusted.
Beauty really is in the eye of the beholder.
Oh, by the way, you can open your eyes now.
JAMES
FRANCIS
Columnist
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