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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 11, 1997)
9% Texas A & M University ' A. • ■,... ■ X TODAY 'YEAR* ISSUE 52* 10 PAGES COLLEGE STATION • TX TOMORROW See extended forecast. Page 2. TUESDAY • NOVEMBER 11 • 1997 linton seeks input on crime legislation esident’s message on hate crimes, violence reached Texas A&M campus via satellite tati I. By Sarah Goldston Staff writer .jident Bill Clinton said yesterday the State's needs to strictly enforce laws I, hate crimes, and he asked U.S. citi- ihelp C enact legislation i, m-.u, ^w,.gres! ^hate crimes. »n said to Texas A&M via satellite ieorgeWashington University that hate | I)U t too often in America, and legis- I^jeeds to be passed to stop the crimes. . U S. Department of Justice defines nU line as the violence of intolerance and bigotry, intended to hurt and intimi date someone because of their race, eth nicity, national origin, religion, sexual ori entation or disability. Clinton said yesterday’s conference was intended to obtain suggestions from U.S. citizens on hate-crime legislation. “Our families and our country can only thrive if they are free from fear and violence, and we have to do everything we can to give them that security,” he said. “That’s the main reason we’ve decided to hold this White House conference on hate crimes.” Clinton signed the Hate Crime Sentenc ing Enhancement Act this year to get tougher penalties for those who commit hate crimes. The Clinton administration will give in formation to public schools in the United States about how to educate children on re spect for diversity. Vice President A1 Gore said the prob lem of hate crimes would explode if not handled soon. “We have seen in our own century many awful examples of hatred — hatred born of prejudice, ignorance and arrogance, de stroying lives and fracturing nations,” Gore said. “We are here today, under the Presi dent’s leadership, to open and advance a discussion of this perilous threat as it affects our nation today through the appalling confusion and persistence of hate crimes.” Gore said hate crimes are executed through arson, assault and murder, and ex empt no race, region or religion. Gore also said hate crimes can target peo ple’s homes, churches or cemeteries. According to a report on FBI statistics found at http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/hate- crm.htm., three out of five hate crimes are motivated by race. Out of all hate crimes, racially- motivated hate crimes are the No. 1 type; 62 percent of racial crimes are tar geted towards African-Americans. Religious bias is the second most fre quent motivation for crime, with Jewish people being the most frequent target at 83 percent. Several temples in the United States have been vandalized with the swastika symbol, and several black church es in the South have been burned. Sexual orientation, followed by ethnici ty and national origin, was the next cause of hate crimes. Please see Clinton on Page 6. d in Hi DEREK DEMERE/The Battalion s «rforward Shanne Jones passes the ball to sophomore guard Brian Barone at the Texas A&M Men’s Basketball Team’s practice Monday. Reason kicks off at 7 p.m. Thursday at G. Rollie White Coliseum with an exhibition game versus North Melbourne of Australia. •eterans recall days in ‘Forgotten War’ By Amanda Smith Staff writer the United States Marine Corps celebrat- '22nd birthday yesterday, nine Marines iTexas A&M history class about their ex- itces in the Korean War. tttman Beal, a combat veteran of the 1st 'bn Marine Corps, said that during the MtheChosin Reservoir, one of the most ‘patties of the Korean War, U.S. troops had to fight cold temperatures as well as for eign troops. “The temperature dropped to around 13 de grees below zero at night,” Beal said. “A film of ice covered the Reservoir in a few days. We had 120,000 Chinese surrounding us. They were told to wipe out the first U.S. Marine Corps: Not only were we fighting an enemy but we were fighting the cold. Some people froze to death.” Beal outlined the impact the Korean War had on the United States military, beginning in Bush Library to charge admission for A&M students Revenue will fund educational programs By Joey Jeanette Schlueter Staff writer The George Bush Presidential Li brary and Museum is charging visi- summer 1950. “The Marine Corps was so broke [for money] that we returned to the States,” he said. “This was peace time and a time when they were trying to do away with the Marine Corps. Three months later, the North Korean's People Army began moving quickly, in the summer of 1950. The U.S. started pulling Marines from all over the world to form the First Marine Brigade.” Please see Forgotten on Page 6. George Bush Comply See related column, Page 9. tors, including Texas A&M students, for admission to tour the facility. A&M students, A&M/Blinn faculty and staff and seniors 62 and older are required to pay $2.50 to tour the li brary. Adults must pay $3. Children (16 and under) and school groups are free. The Lyndon B. Johnson Library and Museum on the University of Texas at Austin campus does not charge a fee to tour the library. Nancy Newman from the Bush Li brary Foundation said money col lected from tours goes into the Na tional Archives Trust Fund to help aid education programs and other relat ed expenses. She said students were considered in the admission fee requirements. “We offer students a reduced ad mission to the library,” she said. “They get a discount of fifty cents with a student ID.” The Texas A&M Board of Regents approved in January 1994 the appro priation of a 90-acre land tract for the library to be built on. The Bush Library Foundation re ported Texas A&M donated $43 mil lion to the foundation. The Universi ty’s contribution paid for the construction of the academic por tion of the complex, but federal law requires private donations fund the library and museum. The foundation raised $42 million in private gifts and donations for the construction of the library. Part of the University Authorized Tuition Fee goes to pay for mainte nance of campus grounds, including the Bush complex. Students are billed every semester for the “Uni versity Authorized Tuition Fee.” The fee is $34 per semester hour, the same as tuition. The fee is used to fi nance capital projects, operating costs and faculty and staff salaries. The A&M Spring class schedule book states the fee is required of all students “to cover bonded indebt- “We offer students a reduced admission to the library. They get a discount of fifty cents with a student ID.” NANCY NEWMAN BUSH LIBRARY FOUNDATION edness incurred for the expansion, air conditioning, rehabilitation of facilities and administration ex penses.” Greg Allenson, a freshman busi ness administration major, has class es at the Academic Building-West on the Bush complex. He said he was surprised that students must pay to enter the library. “I was hoping to tour the library part by part extensively,” he said. “But I cannot keep paying two and a half bucks every time.” Allenson said he understands maintenance for the complex is needed, but students should not have to pay almost the same amount as other visitors. Linking Trrditions By Karie Fehler Staff writer he Fightin’ Texas Aggie Bonfire Web site helps Aggies across the world stay informed about Bonfire and its Sties. he Web site was created 4 years ago students and faculty at University ?Uons were working with campus sites. poyDeHaven, the graphics coordinator l he Office of University Relations, said bonfire web site began when a few stu- Jts experimented with Web site ideas. We were working on various Web site e cts, and this Bonfire idea just hap- ie d," DeHaven said. evolved because we actually sat hand created it from scratch.” |he Fightin’ Texas Aggie Bonfire Web site hosts many interesting and interactive fea tures, including a slide show and scrapbook of Bonfire history, live video of Bonfire site, a video of Centerpole being raised and the first-known photos of Bonfire. Mary Jo Powell, associate director of Uni versity Relations, said she has volunteered her time to the Aggie Bonfire Web site for four years because the site gives Aggies a chance to see the event in progress. “The site came about when the Internet began to gain popularity because we want ed a way for Aggies across Texas and the globe to find out what is going on with Bon fire,” she said. “Anyone who has Internet access can watch stack go up, and last year you could even watch it burn on the site—we’re work ing on that for this year.” John Brown, aWeb site developer for Uni versity Relations and a senior business ad ministration major, said the site features a guest book that allows visitors to leave mes sages about Bonfire. Please see Bonfire on Page 6. Aggie War Hymn’ ranks #1 in USA Today college poll By Karie Fehler Staff writer T exas A&M’s ‘Aggie War Hymn” ranks first in a USA Today poll to find the best school fight song in college football. The poll, whiqh began last Wednesday, is part of an USA Today series to find the best and worst aspects of college football. John Nunnally, a sports content devel oper at USA Today, said the newspaper be gan the series to generate interest in the USATodayWeb site and its sports coverage. “We began this ‘best of’ series to get peo ple onto the USA Today sports [Web] site and to let them see just how great our cov erage is,” he said. “I believe that our sports coverage is the best on the Web, and this way, people can vote for their favorite ‘best’ or ‘worst’ and come back to the site later for hot sports news.” Nunnally said all of the ‘best’ and ‘worst’ contests have generated a tremendous re sponse from college campuses across the United States. “We’ve had categories like best coach, worst coach, best uniforms, worst uni forms, and it really gets people excited,” he said. “Students and fans are really passionate about these things, and this way they can express their opinions.” Mary Jo Powell, associate director for University Relations, said this contest is a way for Aggies to show support for Texas A&M and the Aggie Band. “We as Aggies have long believed that anything Aggie is far superior to anything that isn’t Aggie,” Powell said. “This fight-song contest is the perfect way for students and Of Ags to show their Aggie pride and support for the Uni versity.” Please see Hymn on Page 6. lifestyles "Jenny Says" New Orleans rock band Cowboy Mouth brings mouthy sound to B-CS with tonight’s performance. See Page 3 sports Cindy Lothspeich has found a way to balance volleyball and marriage for the Aggies. See Page 7 opinion Lemons: Campus support of George Bush earns little recognition with library fee. See Page 9 online http*.//imttaM0n.tamu,gdu Check out a special collec tion of George Bush Library coverage including a photo album and story archive.