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TOMORROW
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104 th YEAR • ISSUE 60 • 10 PAGES
COLLEGE STATION • TX
See extended forecast, Page 2.
FRIDAY • NOVEMBER 21 • 1997
legents sign new
;hancellor contract
Texas A&M Board of Regents
f ioted to execute a new employment
a cement with Dr. Barry Thomp-
age i ■on, the chancellor of the Texas
■^Hburs eni{ l&M University System.
H'fo.V Thr»mncr»n’c r^ricfinal
u l ; isities P
L ° ctoi %
L ls lln cleai
h. <)n ^do
L'^ycM
"'host
[^."DavidG
| ^ssistanif /System, said the Board wanted to
hr> 0 ixtend his contract and increase^
j^ucation,
I'" 1 invests
Thompson’s original contract
mds Aug. 31, 1998. The new
igreement will end Aug. 31,
.999. His salary also will in-
rease with the agreement.
Terri Parker, director of communi-
ations for the Texas A&M Universi-
"lf he's out there sell
ing hate, we should
be able to have our
own opinions."
BRIAN HAMMER
senior finance major
iH iigli
Students react to
preacher's message
"He [Short] sparks
a lot of controversy,
but it is a positive
message."
MIKE BERRY
junior business analysis major
Short’s presence prompts
gathering of friends, foes
iis salary because the regents
ilestudei]!' ,ere P |easecl wi f h his performance.
j*£3$ donations pour in
or parents of 7
CARLISLE (AP) — They rolled out
pal years
‘k'ials.afi?
pan a doc
phoolw&s I 16 new van Thursday with seven new
Ts thatind ,ames brightly stenciled on the side,
aduatel* Seven car seats will follow. And
ipple juice for 16 years. By then,
candid# 11 almost be time for those seven
| :ollege scholarships,
found soi 0 h - and don 't forget the seven
stateschn ' ears °f f ree cable. It will be
looked up, of course, in a new
irs before] touse - designed to accommodate
14 little feet.
Bobbi and Kenny McCaughey
ook their place in medical history
Wednesday when they became par
ents of septuplets, four boys and
three girls. By Thursday, it seemed
as if they had won the lottery, seven
times over.
Corporations across America
of ModeJ stum bled over each other to be the
ges at leas f |rstt0 show their generosity, pledg-
hmyclasse ^everything from free groceries
I to newni
| s Mb|l' Ht
Jturc, inii'
[the requia
[rate to i
' the acoa
|n’t surpri:
chthereai year, a lifetime supply of dia-
class stjpers (that’s about 31,500), toys, a
rasher and dryer, lumber, steel,
asrecendphti windows and other materials
needed to give the McCaugheys a
new roof over their heads.
MA tests free man
eld rape charge
wascaJ AUSTIN (AP) — For the second
of Mick fe this year, Gov. George W. Bush
tas pardoned a man convicted of
orethijrape after DNA evidence proved he
"as innocent.
ImanyB Bush announced a formal par-
late veil ton for Austin resident Ben Salazar
^ramtlif Thursday after a Travis County judge
of thoipiewed DNA evidence and ruled
Salazar innocent.
[he rivai The governor was criticized earli-
ly’shonii er this year after delaying a formal
By Robert Smith
Senior staff writer
Some Texas A&M students
protested Tom Short, a college
campus preacher, Thursday in
front of the Academic Building.
Short, who is employed by the
Greater Commission Ministry,
voiced his take on the Bible this
week on campus. Also, Short has
been passing out an essay titled,
“What the Bible says about God.”
Brian Hammer, a senior fi
nance major, led a protest
against Short.
"If he’s out here selling hate,
we should be able to have our
own opinion,” he said.
Short, who tours college cam
puses in the United States, said he
does not deliver hate messages.
“My message is that God loves
us, and Jesus Christ is the savior
of the world,” he said. Hammer
and two other protesters put up
a poster that read “Sell Your Soul
to Satan” about 20 yards from
where Short spoke yesterday.
Hammer said the poster was not
intended to be serious, and that he
was exercising his freedom of speech.
“I don’t care so much that he
believes something,” he said. “I
just don’t like the way he shoves
it down your throat.”
Short spoke in front of the
Academic Building for four to five
hours each day this week to
crowds ranging in size from 20 to
250 people.
Short said he did not shout
“queer” while speaking Monday,
as a student said in a mail call in
Tuesday’s Battalion.
“That was just the worst twist
ing of words,” he said “You won’t
find me calling people queer —
you’ll find me giving homosexu
als hope.”
Short has preached on more
than 70 college campuses in 22
states and in Canada.
Mike Berry, a junior business
analysis major, said Short’s
speaking style and ideas fuel
student reaction.
“He sparks a lot of controver
sy, but it is a positive message,”
Berry said. “He may rub some
people the wrong way.”
Bob Carr, a senior history ma
jor, attended Short’s sermons
Tuesday and Wednesday.
RONY ANGKRIWAN/The Battalion
Brian Hammer, a senior finance major (in green dress), and Jessie Mehtberg, of College Station, encourage
students to ‘sell’ their souls to Satan as a protest against Tom Short’s preaching. They claim to have the same
right as Tom Short to preach freely at the university.
“Tom Short’s god looks a lot
like Tom Short,” Carr said. “He is
good about answering questions,
and it is interesting to hear what
he says because you never know
what he is going to say.”
Short’s appearance at A&M
wrapped up a five-week universi
ty tour that included stops at
North Carolina State University,
the University of Maryland and
the University of Florida.
Bowen, leaders stage forum via live television
ion or)
Ini/sur-
Pardon for Houstonite Kevin Byrd.
Bush said as DNA evidence be-
By Jenara Kocks
Staff writer
Texas A&M President Dr. Ray M. Bowen
and several members of the administration
answered questions from A&M students, fac
ulty, staff and Bryan-College Station residents
last night.
The question-and-answer show was tele
vised by KAMU-TV and people could ask
questions by telephone.
Anthony Edwards, a sophomore biomed
ical science major, said he has seen Confed
erate flags around the A&M campus that have
made him uncomfortable, and he asked the
panelists what they were doing to ensure mi
nority students have a comfortable environ
ment at the University.
Bowen said University officials can ask stu
dents who are a part of a University organiza
tion not to display the symbol, but said they do
not have control over individual students.
“I think a lot of people should know we do
not endorse that symbol that someone else
wants to display,” Bowen said.
Dr. J. Malon Southerland, vice president
for student affairs, said the University has ad
dressed University organizations who have
displayed offensive material.
He said this semester some Bonfire work
ers were asked to remove profane words from
their “pots,” and Bonfire leaders will not let
students work who wear pots with profanity
on them.
One female student asked if the Dial-a-
Ride bus service was operating, and she
voiced concern about walking to her car
alone at night.
Mary Miller, associate vice president for
administration, said Dial-a-Ride was discon
tinued because Bus Operations was looking
for alternatives that would better meet the
needs of students.
Bowen said students should use the Corps
of Cadets escort service when walking alone
at night.
Miller, who also is chair of the child care
center, said the University recently accepted
a construction bid for the center, which
should open Fall 1998.
“We will have a mini-ground breaking be
hind the University apartments on Hensel
Drive Dec. 1,” she said.
Miller said the center can be used by Texas
A&M students, faculty and staff and will be
supported by student tuition.
comes more widely used, a proce-
luiresi tore for evaluating its credibility
must be established.
[stood! “I feel strongly that the courts
5:32pi dust review legal issues, including
[ichigii chain of custody and the validity of
[ith3,Sl ev ldence, before I act,” the gover-
rjyalfor said.
Salazar, 31, was sentenced to
30 years in prison in 1991. He
served five years of that sen
tence before DNA evidence estab
lished he could not have commit-
I the crime.
lifestyles
Student Senate rejects bill
to end run-off elections
SGA sponsors program to ‘brighten’
winter holidays at campus entrances
teop
M
p
Ithoi
; an!
onai
‘Yo Vanilla
Rap star Vanilla
Ice talks about
last night’s
performance at
Aggie Retro Night.
See Page 4
sports
Texas A&M Men’s Basketball
earn set to open season
against Stephen F. Austin.
See Page 7
opinion
Winter Spirit of Aggieland’
Project inspires debate over
true meaning of season.
See Page 9
online
IT
|ttp: //batta lion, tamu. edu
ifHook up with state and
National news through The
Fire, AP’s 24-hour online
Nws service.
By Brandye Brown
Staffwriter
The Texas A&M Student Senate
Wednesday night rejected the Can
didate Ranking System Bill that
would have eliminated run-off elec
tions in student-body elections.
With the ranking system, stu
dents would choose a first-choice
candidate in the general election,
then rank the remaining candi
dates by preference.
In the system used now for
elections, the two candidates with
the most votes proceed to a run
off election.
Abby Mudroch, an off-campus
senator and a senior history ma
jor, said she voted against the
ranking system because alterna
tive voting systems had not been
thoroughly explored.
“I would hate to think that [the
ranking system] might deter people
from voting,” she said. “Especially
considering the time it takes to vote,
if it takes 20 minutes to explain the
new system to the guy in front of you
and 10 minutes to fill out the form—
who has the time to vote? Presently,
not even one-fourth of the students
vote, and it saddens me to think that
even less might turn out because of
a different system.”
Leana Divine, a freshman sen
ator and an international studies
major, said when she cam
paigned this fall, the freshman re
sponse to the ranking system was
positive because it provided more
voting options.
“The freshmen are the only ones
who have experienced the ranking
system,” she said. "Overall, everyone
I’ve talked to among freshmen are for
this system.”
Mark Floyd, an off-campus sen
ator and a senior speech communi
cations major, said the ranking sys
tem was not the best way to shorten
the election process, and the sys
tem should be tested more before it
is implemented.
“We have not had the opportu-
By Leslie Stebbins
Staffwriter
The Student Government Asso
ciation will brighten the Texas A&M
campus this December with holi
day decorations as part of the first
Winter Spirit of Aggieland program.
After the Thanksgiving holidays,
wreaths will decorate three of the cam
pus entrances, and maroon and white
ribbons will be tied to light posts.
The large evergreen tree on the
lawn of the Systems Building will have
lights and maroon ribbons and will be
the site of the official lighting Dec. 1.
Suzanne Smith, chair of Winter
Spirit of Aggieland and a senior agri
cultural development major, said
die committee chose to use maroon
and white to promote Aggie spirit
rather than the traditional Christ
mas colors of red and green.
“It (decorations) gives the stu
dents something to look forward to
and will help keep their spirits up
during finals,” she said.
Most of the 72 trees along New
Main Drive were sold to Bryan-Col
lege Station businesses, A&M clubs,
sororities, fraternities or anyone
wanting to buy a tree. The base of the
trees will be decorated with lights,
and the people who bought the trees
will be able to decorate them.
Alan Martin, president of the
agriculture council and a senior
animal science major said the Win
ter Spirit of Aggieland committee
approached the council to buy a
tree, and the council thought it
would be a good way to show sup
port for the program.
Please see Holidays on Page 6.
Toy and book drive to benefit children’s shelter
nity to evaluate this system on its
own merits, because we never used
it during this session,” he said. “We
don’t have all the facts, and we
haven't seen that it will work.”
Drew Howard, an off-campus
senator and a senior math major,
said the ranking system would have
been a positive step for Texas A&M.
“One election, without run-offs, is
easier for the constituency, and it cre
ates a greater number of students that
have a say in the final round between
the last two candidates than run
offs,” he said. “A run-off system is not
entirely fair, because the top two vote
getters move on, but what about in
close elections where the third person
loses by a few votes?”
The bill cannot be reintro
duced to the 50th session of the
Student Senate.
Please see Senate on Page 6.
By Colleen Kavanagh
Staffwriter
A toy and book drive to benefit children at Phoebe’s
Home, a center for victims of domestic violence, will be
from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Target parking lot
on Texas Avenue.
The toys and books will be used by children ages five to 18.
Trisha Einkauf, program director of Phoebe’s Home,
said the number of battered women and children who
are helped this holiday season in the Bryan-College Sta
tion area depends on the the support the community
gives Phoebe’s Home.
“We start helping the women and children who
come to us in November and December, and work our
way back through the months of the year from the peo
ple who have come to us most recently,” she said.
Einkauf said 19 children are in the shelter, but more
than 200 children in the Brazos Valley need help from
Phoebe’s Home.
“Many of these children have stayed with their fam
ily but left everything else behind,” she said. “Others
will be spending Christmas with us. We want to give
them toys and books for Christmas.”
Einkauf said Phoebe’s Home also needs monetary do
nations to purchase coats and blankets for the children.
The toy and book drive started in a case-studies
public-relations class at Texas A&M.
Jessamyn Boultinghouse, a member of the project
gr oup and a senior journalism major, said the class had to
do a mock public-relations campaign for the course.
“We chose Phoebe’s Home because a girl in the group had
worked with them before,” she said. “We came up with a logo,
flyers, press releases and public service announcements, and
we wanted to help so it turned into a real project.”
J.W Washington, a member of the group and a se
nior agricultural development major, said after work
ing on the project, the group members realized they
could make the campaign a reality.
“Many have said that we should try to make this an
annual event,” he said. “That gives us hope that the
event will be a success because others think it’s a wor
thy cause.” Boultinghouse said other organizations are
helping with the project. Hastings Books Music & Video
is donating children’s books, and Bonfire crews are box
ing up toys and books Saturday.
“We don’t really know what the turnout will be on
Saturday,” she said. "All we know is that it has turned
out to be bigger than we ever expected.”
Washington said he thinks the turnout will be good.
“If we get 10 dollars or 10 books,” he said, “that is 10
more than we had when we started.”