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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 1997)
Octobers Texas A & M University amp in Nil n"04 TH YEAR • ISSUE 42 • 12 PAGES TODAY 53 TOMORROW COLLEGE STATION • TX See extended forecast. Page 2. TUESDAY • OCTOBER 28 • 1997 Staff and wire report ink it’s incunik'; 1 a statement ak. yers’ unionhas policy, ;houldn’tcomeiijj :rutiny becaiHj ons of a fewpi: ■ ilayers — ?r and Marcusti /ed in marijuai xho Dow Jones industrial average tum- the summer >dp50 points Monday, forcing the stock )okie Blaylock to shut down for the first time since anadalastseasrl ngsi assassination attempt on Presi- fficers caught nt Reagan. Some Bryan-College Station financial ana is nottestf alysts say the community will not be af- ae bigthingguv : tecl by the fall. ble withinthela The market’s best-known barometer fell tab Jazz starKail.26 points to 7,161.15, surpassing the nes. 8-point Black Monday crash of 1987 a its you’re saying gjgest point drop ever, playingincolt: Bui on a percentage basis, Monday’s’7.18 ae pot you wan:;; I': detected untii| : ‘ by the cops at:, wspapers." sts: B-CS unaffected by market crash percent drop by the Dow ranked as the 12th biggest ever and did not come close to the 22- percent loss on Oct. 19,1987. Although the Dow is still up 11 percent since the beginning of the year, the sell-off put the Dow’s losses at about 900 points over the past four sessions and 1,100 points since it set a record high at 8,259.31 on Aug. 6. “It’s a bloodbath,” Arnold Kaufman, a market analyst at Standard & Poor’s, said. “It scares you because when you get a de cline this fast, there’s a risk it will keep snowballing.” Dr. Morgan Reynolds, a professor of eco nomics at Texas A&M, said he is optimistic about corporate earnings and said nothing has happened to warrant nervousness. “The prospects of capitalism are very good and I’m not concerned,” Reynolds said. “Local investors may have mixed views because some people feel poorer when this happens. But, those who keep long-run in vestments in mind will benefit.” The Dow’s drop triggered two circuit breakers on the New York Stock Exchange that had never been set off since they were put in place following the 1987 sell-off. The first circuit breaker, at 350 points, closed the market for 30 minutes. The second, at 550, halted trading for the day. It remains to be seen how much of Monday’s selling was fueled by mutual fund investors. Publicly, however, many individual investors portrayed an unflap pable facade. “From an investor’s standpoint, this is an excellent opportunity to make money,” Chris Davenport, a senior finance major at A&M, said. “Inflation and interest rates are low and our economy is healthy. There is no reason it should drop much more.” For many analysts, the drop was notable because the Dow has fallen 13.3 percent from its Aug. 6 record high of 8,259.31, its first downturn of at least 10 percent in seven years, the longest such streak since the 1960s. Declining issues also outnumbered ad vancers by an astounding 16-to-l margin on the New York Stock Exchange, where vol ume came to 685.50 million shares, the busiest day ever in the exchange’s history. Stocks started the day lower as another sharp sell-off in Hong Kong triggered anoth er wave of selling in financial markets around the globe, but the selling did not pick up steam in the United States until Monday af ternoon. The Dow, for example, was down just 115 points at midday. Please see Market on Page 10. n Saturday, compete hawks at Center Natate |niversity will not intervene situation you cute By Robert Smith Senior staff writer Dr. J. Malon Southerland, vice president of student «|g Chrafair 5 ’ sa id Monday Texas A&M will take no action to See related editorial, Page 11. movest es on the A< n advanced to:; nal competit; °P Bonfire participants from wearing sexually sug- Southwest -stive phrases on their hard hats, or “pots.” lips at the Ms “I don’t think there’s anything to step into,” Souther- Jennis Cente: n d said. “It soundslike the students have responded tian University sisudent leadership.” d. Bonfire workers were photographed earlier this irlos Tori fell :ionth at stack site wearing pots with lewd phrases. Nick Crowelloi T At the Bonfire Advisory Council meeting in the or Brent HorarlSC Monday, student leaders discussed lewd phras- e semifinal rad worn on the pots at Bonfire, ee sets to Juai Kevin Jackson, Borifire adviser, said Bonfire workers tie Rock, 6-4, Jive taken steps this week to clean up their pots, as will concludet “I think it was the right decision,” Jackson said. “The :he America Wetiy is we’ve made good progress and we’re going to ekend at Ricel tmtinue to make good progress.” Southerland told Jackson and Head Stack John Galle- rore before yesterday’s Bonfire Advisory Council meet- tg.heis pleased with the progress and the University will otlake any further action. I Boothe leaders and advisers first discussed the issue at last week’s council meeting. Southerland said last week Bonfire workers had one .week to voluntarily remove sexually profane phrases from their pots without the University tak ing action. “We mutually agreed that one week was the appro priate time for students to assist in no longer putting profanities on the pots,” Southerland said. Students must wear pots for protection when they are working at Bonfire cut or stack site. Jackson said last week no written rules will be made about profanities, but Bonfire leaders will ad vise participants to remove profane statements from their pots. “What we’re trying to do is appeal to people’s com mon sense, that with the right of expression comes the right of decency and respect,” Jackson said. MSC Great Issues will host a panel Wednesday to discuss the issue of profane phrases on Bonfire pots. Student Body President Curtis Childers will moder ate the discussion, and Gallemore and Battalion editor in chief Helen Clancy will be on the panel. The discussion will focus on whether Bonfire needs to uphold certain standards, who would define the standards and what role the student body should play in these decisions. t he discussion will have an open microphone and will be in the MSC Flagroom. Ranges made to Commons lousing office hopes new additions will curb littering By Amanda Smith Staff writer The South Area Housing office as made changes to the front en- aru e of the Commons Lobby in isponse to student complaints bout overcrowding and litter from igarette smoke and trash. RickTurnbough, area coordina- Jr for the South Area office,, said omplaints from students Tompted the changes. I “We are hoping that the prob- 3ms of smoking and overcrowding an be taken care of,” he said. “In he past two weeks, we have seen toprovements. It’s a behavioral sit- lation. We are hoping that students Volunteerism: A&M students serve as tutors, mentors to local elementary school students See Page 3 M kicks off the 1997-98 isketball season with sketball Mania’ tonight. See Page 7 ffBpOH oster: Greek organizations ust show cultural diversity [their memberships. See Page 11 |http://bat -web.tamu.edu ccess past stories and itorials on the Bonfire rofanity issue through he Battalion archives. can curtail their behavior.” The Residence Hall Association (RHA) purchased two large trash containers with ashtrays to encour age disposal of trash and cigarettes. The housing office also moved benches away from the doors to reduce congestion at the entrance of the lobby. Craig Patterson, an RHA dele gate for Dunn Hall and a sopho more molecular and cell biology major, said the front entrance pro vides a hangout for students living in and near the Commons. “It (the Commons) is a central meeting place for people,” Patter son said. “I do not smoke, but the smoke has never affected me. As long as people are responsible, I think that the changes will be good. Although the benches are in the same local area, (the move ment) uncongests the door areas.” Sean Myers, a resident of the Commons and a sophomore archae ology major, said he likes to smoke and visit at the Commons entrance. “It’s convenient,” Myers said. “You can study and you can talk. It’s too quiet on the balconies (to smoke). The Commons is a good place to meet friends. I do not think that moving the benches has changed things a whole lot.” Please see Commons on Page 6. RONY ANGKRIWAN/The Battalion Johanna Becerra, 2, picks out her pumpkin for the Halloween season at the Farm Patch Monday afternoon. PROFILE: Carreathers Kevin Carreathers By Colleen Kavanagh Staff writer Kevin Carreathers, director of Multicultural Services, assists Texas A&M in diversifying the cam pus and helps minority students find success at the University. “I help keep ethnic minority students in school,” he said. “Students are the best part of A&M, and I enjoy helping students feel at home here.” Tamara Raven, an accounting graduate student, has known Carreathers since her freshman year, when she was in one of his classes. Raven said Carreathers stressed school and grades as the primary reasons for be ing at Texas A&M and encouraged her to become involved on campus to develop ad ditional skills. “He has helped me fine-tune my leadership skills in student organizations such as the Southwestern Black Student Leadership Conference (SBLC) while encourag ing me not to be afraid of a challenge,” she said. Raven said Carreathers’ leadership as the director of Multicultural Services has promoted diversity on campus. “Mr. Carreathers has stressed the need for us to be open-minded about different races and cultures,” she said. “Under his leadership, the Department of Multicultural Services has been filled with a staff and organizations that promote diversity for all.” Carreathers graduated from the University of North Texas with a psychology de gree and did his graduate work at Prairie View A&M. Carreathers said he came to Texas A&M because he wanted to work at a large, re search-oriented university and be closer to his family. He previously worked as an as sistant to the dean of students and hall adviser at DePauw University and hall direc tor at Texas A&M-Commerce. Please see Carreathers on Page 6. Williams Eric Williams By Amanda Smith Staff writer Eric Williams attributes his rise to Residence Hall Association (RHA) president in part to an ex perience in the fifth grade in which a teacher provided him with the courage to take on challenges. “The turning point for me was in the fifth grade,” he said. “I was in lower classes and my math teacher was getting promoted, and she placed us into tougher classes. I was placed into an advanced math class. She told me that I could overcome problems.” Williams, a senior biomedical science major, said he began to enjoy challenges af ter that experience. During his high-school years at Jersey Village High School outside of Houston, he began taking more challenging courses, Williams said. “If it hadn’t been for that class, then I wouldn’t be in position that I am today,” he said. “I thrive on challenges now.” The academic challenge and a strong science background prompted Williams to attend Texas A&M. He became the first Aggie in his family. Williams’ sister followed in his footsteps as a freshman this year. Dr. Beverly Clement, an associate professor ofVeterinary Anatomy and Public Health, said Williams has showed initiative in doing research outside of class and helping students. “Eric initially started out doing some research,” Clement said. “He has become in terested in helping the students. He brings in research on food toxicology to update our Web page. He wants things to work perfeedy, and he has been crucial to the be hind-the-scenes items that keep class running smoothly.” Although Williams has applied to medical school, he said he is considering his alternatives. Please see Williams on Page 10.