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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (April 25, 1997)
he Battalion lume 103 • Issue 137 • 10 Pages The Batt Online: http:// bat-web.tamu.edu Friday, April 25, 1997 eniors dance away st days at Aggieland By Rebecca Torrellas The Battalion ing Dance will be held Saturday night, ging to close this year’s Senior Week activ- is. The tradition began in 1947 as a chance eniors to gather one last time in a formal Jug before graduation, he theme of this year’s Ring Dance is “Step &In to The Spotlight,” a movie-type theme car ed into each of eight rooms. he dance will be held in the Memorial Stu- em Center and Rudder, with entertainment |h as a piano bar, a country room, Big Band id 1 eggae music. Javid Wellman, a Ring Dance committee lenber and a senior business management major, said there is more to Ring Dance than just taking pictures. “You’re getting so much more than a high school dance,” Wellman said. The country room is titled “Tombstone” while the Big Band room is called “We’ve Never Been Licked.” Kevin La Vergne, a senior theater arts ma jor, said he is looking forward to his first Ring Dance. “I like the idea of having different rooms,” La Vergne said. “I’m looking forward to the Big Band room.” The Big Band room has 20’s and 30’s music supplied by the Brazos Valley Orchestra. See Ring Dance, Page 10 It .ORRELLA! entury Singers, Revellers to hold spring concerts sophomore marketing ma- planned for the show, jor, said Friday’s show will be “We have a Lionel Ricf full of variety. medley and a Broadway “We’re doing pieces from medley,” Crittenden said, a mm ip tn Broadwav show “F.arh sinupr has a snln ” The Battalion Music from Bach, Beethoven and Broadway will be performed on campus this weekend as the Century Singers and die Revellers hold their spring concerts. The Century Singers will present "The Bountiful Beauty of B-ing” tonight at 8 in Rudder Theatre. W'OU B'Ct C, 1 v/ ’V'f/V' 1 ,/ ^ V‘ '-'V V' 1 1 l . IJ ,r I , jutci, o ( / Century Singers and assistant coordinator of music, said he chose the theme on a whim. “It is [just] a musicological journey with the letter ‘B,’” Wade said. The 80-member group will perform pieces by such composers as Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, Berlin, Bernstein and Bruckner. Wade said past themes have been included religion and the Century Singers’ trip baroque to Broadway show “Each singer has a solo, tunes,” he said. Crittenden said the group Grisom said the choir will performs in several events be performing Latin, French, throughout the year, such as Slovak and English tunes. baseball and softball games, The Reveliers will hold induction ceremonies for their Spring Concert Sunday honor societies and the at 3 p.m. in Rudder Forum. Christmas concert in the fall. Amy Crittenden, a mem ber of the Reveliers and a se nior education major, said The singers will be per forming pieces by com- to Spain and France, posers whose last names be- Nathan Grisom, public the Reveliers, although con- gin with the letter “B.” relations manager for the sidered a jazz group, have a Jess Wade, director of the Century Singers and a lot ofdifferent types of songs :; The Reveliers is composed of eigh t vocalists and three in strumentalists, a drummer, a bass guitarist and a pianist. Tickets for both concerts are $5 at the MSC Box Office. : Vorld Wi '^b izjjmmm 111 Wi, >1 A Family Thing Amy Dunlap, The Battalion Bill Ambrose, an employee with Computing and Information Services, gives his daughters, Lauren and Erin, a tour of his office during Take Your Daughter To Work Day. Earth Day to focus on community Festival'celebrates, promotes environmental awareness By Jackie Vratil The Battalion To celebrate Earth Day, Friends Just Peace Institute in cooperation with Texas Environmental Action Coalition organized Brazos Valley Earth Day ’97 to raise community environmental awareness. The festival will be held Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the archery fields. The festival will have over 70 booths with exhibits on ways to preserve the en vironment such as hands-on arts and crafts, Earth-friendly product displays, children’s games and a lady-bug release. Allison Moran, president ofTEAC and a senior geography major, said she hopes to educate people on ways to con serve natural resources. “I want to show people how to be stewards of the environment,” she said. “There are simple things they can do to incorporate it into their lives. We’re try ing to give a holistic approach to looking at the earth.” Susan Scott, Earth Day coordinator for the institute, said the purpose of the day is for adults to learn how to become more environmentally responsible. “They can learn how to use fewer pes- ► March to the Brazos 7.1: ticides,” she said. “We can also teach them about recycling and reusing things so fewer items are going to the landfills. “As for the kids, we just want them to be more aware of the wildlife, the predator-ptey rela tionship and how to make new things out of old things. We are bring ing in wildlife that is specific to this area and we will have lots of hands-on things for the kids to do in order to teach them.” Jennifer Nations, Earth Day coordinator for the Sierra Club, said the Sierra Club’s purpose is to protect wild places. Nations said she in tends to raise awareness that the Sierra Club is just one of many environmental organizations. “We (the Sierra Club) will be selling t- shirts, giving out information about Sier ra Club, and informing people about a conservation project that we are work ing on,” she said. “We want to become an active, vocal member of the community. I want people to feel comfortable com ing to our meetings I want people to realize we are not a tree-hugger sort of society. We just want to be a re source for environmentally conscious people.” This year the festival will incorporate more activities. There will be a demonstra tion on how to turn junk mail into sta tionary, and the Zoological Society will bring species of some uncommon native Texas animals. Moran said the Green Busi ness Awards will be given out during the day as well. Last year Junction 505, a recycling center, and Cafe Eccell took home the award. “The Green business Award is an award given to businesses that are trying to be more environmentally conscious,” Moran said. “We think Earth Day is a celebration of the earth and what we have and how we can make sure we have it 100 years from now.” Cadets to train leaders, raise money By Erica Roy The Battalion The Texas A&M^ Corps of Cadets will march 14 miles to the Brazos River and back Sat urday to raise money for the March of Dimes and to pass down leadership positions to the junior, sophomore and freshman cadets. The event will begin at 8 a.m. on the Quadrangle. Cadets will march west on Highway 60 to the Brazos River. At the Brazos River, lunch will be served and individual outfits will compete in such events as tugs-of-war and foot races. Since last December, the cadets have collected over $51,000 from the local com munity and their hometowns. The Corps has held March to the Brazos for 20 years and has raised over $700,000. Mark Maltsberger, March to the Brazos committee chair and a senior speech communica tions major, said the purpose of the Corps is to train leaders, and contributing to the community is an aspect of leadership. “We take a lot from the community,” Maltsberger said, “and this is an opportuni ty for us to give back.” Maltsberger said the fund raiser also serves as a rite of passage for cadets. Cindi Ericson, deputy Corps commander and a se nior international studies and political science major, said se niors hand down leadership positions to underclassmen during the march. “It’s a good opportunity for us to make an informal change of command before final re view,” Ericson said. The senior cadets ride bus es back to campus, and juniors lead the Corps on the march back to A&M. Sharon Spies, the Bryan- College Station division direc tor of the March of Dimes, said the money raised by the Corps comprises the majority of the March of Dimes funds for the surrounding ten counties. See Cadets, Page 10 enate approves measure to rack down on kids who smoke AUSTIN (AP) — Minors would face up a $500 fine and could lose their driver’s nse for smoking or possessing tobac- roducts under a bill approved by the as Senate Thursday. jThe measure, if passed by the Juse, would give Texas one of the Highest anti-smoking laws for minors ithe country. Currently, the state pro- ibits minors from smoking but has no Itninal penalties. ISen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, the ponsor of the bill, said she used to be gainst penalties for minors who inoke. But she said her mind changed The Battalion INSIDETODAY Fun with Nunn: Country performer Gary P Nunn is in town tonight to deliver toe-tappin’ music. Aggielife, Page 3 Toons Page 4 Sports Page 5 Opinion Page 9 after interviewing 14- and 15-year-olds about the subject. “One in particular told me, ‘Nothing happens if you get caught,”’ Ms. Zaffirini said. “That showed me kids had no respect for the law. They could break it and noth ing happens. “That changed my position. Today I stand here and support penalties for children. If they break the law, they must be held accountable and they must be punished.” Minors convicted of using or possess ing tobacco products would be required to attend a tobacco awareness program or face suspension of their driver’s license. After completing the awareness program, the minor could apply to the court to have the conviction cleared from their record. Currently, the only penalties are for re tailers who sell to minors. The bill was approved on a voice vote after adoption of an amendment that would create a new $160 fee retailers would have to pay for a two-year permit to sell tobacco. Currently, retailers pay nothing for tobacco permits. The fees would be used for pro grams to educate children on the ill ef fects of smoking. A number of steps are taken in the bill to limit minor access to tobacco, includ ing prohibiting outdoor advertising of to bacco products within 1,000 feet of a school or church. Prosecution calls McVeigh misguided 'patriot' DENVER (AP) — Seething with rage against his own government, Timothy McVeigh blew up the Oklahoma City feder al building in a twisted plot to spark a sec ond American revolution, a prosecutor said in opening statements Thursday. “McVeigh liked to consider himself a pa triot,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Hart- zler said. “Our forefathers did not fight in nocent women and children. ... They did n’t plant bombs and run away wearing earplugs.” Jurors listened grim-faced as Hartzler, who has multiple scle rosis, leaned forward in his wheelchair and spoke softly about the deadliest act of terror ism on U.S. soil. “It was an act of ter ror intended to serve selfish political purposes,” Hartzler said. “The truck was there to impose the will of Timothy McVeigh on the rest of America ... by murdering innocent men, women and children in hopes of seeing blood flowing in the streets of America.” But in equally forceful terms, McVeigh attorney Stephen Jones declared in his opening statement: “My client is innocent.” He accused the government of trying to elevate McVeigh’s political beliefs — which Jones said many share — into a motive for mass murder. Making no effort to soften the emotion al power of the bombing, he began by spending six minutes reading off the names of each of the 168 people killed when the truck bomb tore apart the nine-story build ing April 19,1995. As Jones solemnly read the names, bombing victim’s relatives quietly cried in their special section of the packed second- floor courtroom. McVeigh, wear ing a plaid shirt and khaki pants, showed Oklahoma rnbiiTg” little emotion in court. He leaned forward to listen, sometimes resting his head on his fold ed hands as the prosecutor por trayed the 29-year- old GulfWar veteran as a selfish, deluded coward. Hartzler said that on the day of the bombing McVeigh was wearing a T-shirt that bore the Thomas Jefferson quote: “The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants.” Hartzler contended that McVeigh’s ha tred of the federal government was fueled by what he saw as the government slaugh ter of innocents at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, two years to the day before the bombing. “He told people the government deliber ately murdered people,” the prosecutor said, adding that McVeigh de scribed Waco as the“gov ernment’s declaration of war against the people.” McVeigh was arrested on traffic charges 90 min utes after the explosion, and when federal agents McVeigh searched his car they found a slips of state ments quoting “The Turner Diaries,” a 1978 fictional account of an attack on a federal building that is eerily similar to the Okla homa City bombing. Hartzler said the book “served as a blueprint.” McVeigh planned the bombing for months, the prosecutor said, and hoped it would rival the first shots of the American Revolution, which also occurred on an April 19 —in 1775. “He envisioned he would bring liberty to this nation,” Hartzler said. “Well, this was not just talk for McVeigh. He was ready for action. He knew from lit erature how to make a bomb and how to get the ingredients.” In a new revelation, Hartzler said feder al agents later found a file in his sister’s computer that “McVeigh obviously wanted them to read.” It was marked “ATF READ.” “You’ll see the chilling words, ‘All you tyrannical m f will swing in the wind some day for your treasonous actions against the Constitution. ... Die, you spine less, cowardous bastards.”