Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (June 29, 1998)
The Battalion flMPUS mm - * MATTHEW CRAWLEY/The Battalion Rescue workers drag Lake Bryan Sunday for the body of a Hispanic male. Art Molina, a Bryan Parks and Recreation Officer, said the victim became tired when he swam out too far. Several witnesses attempted to save him as he clung to a buoy but were unable to reach him, Molina said. LULAC delegates meet in Dallas this week DALLAS (AP) — Delegates from one of the nation's oldest dvil rights or ganizations will converge upon Dallas this week to talk about issues facing the national Hispanic community. Belen Robles, president of the League of United Latin American Citizens, said the group's purpose is to set an agenda for next year that focuses on bilingual ed ucation, immigration legislation and the Hispanic image in the media. "Unfortunately, due to the immi gration backlash and due to the fact that in the media we are not portrayed in a very good light, the perception is that a lot of us are on welfare, a lot of us don't want to work and a lot of us take ad vantage of the system," Robles said. The convention, which holds ses sion Monday through Saturday, in cludes discussion groups, legislative updates and guest speakers Gov. George W. Bush, House Speaker Newt Gingrich, House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Bill Richardson, tire United States' U.N. Ambassador. About 6,000 LULAC members and business leaders from all 50 states and Puerto Rico are expected to attend. The delegates' main challenge will be improving Hispanics' image on a na tional level, Robles said. When LULAC thinks about image, it is not thinking about Taco Bell com mercials. Robles said LULAC has more important issues to focus on. Bilingual education, access to high er education, affirmative action, the 2000 census and immigration legisla tion are much higher on the list. City overhaul San Antonio revitalizes historic ‘crown jewels’ SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Along the historic Mission Trail, the city is spending millions of dol lars to spruce up the area around the Spanish set tlements that date from the 1700s. Ground was broken over the weekend for part of the $17.7 million Mission Trail Project — a 12- mile trail linking one of the five missions to the San Antonio River area. Called the city's "crown jewels," the five mis sions are part of a chain established during Spanish colonial times to aid settlement on the Texas frontier. "Today we break new ground for the south side, one that is filled with promise," U.S. Rep. Giro Rodriguez, D-San Antonio, said Saturday. "The missions have been called the 'crown jewels' of San Antonio, and they really are." Developers said the project will provide a bet ter link between the downtown Alamo and Mis sions Concepcion, San Jose, San Juan Capistrano and Espada. The project is expected to allow some residents around Mission Espada, which was established in 1731, for the first time to replace septic tanks and dirt paths with sewer lines and sidewalks. "This means many things," Mayor Howard Peak said during the ceremony at Espada. "First of all, in the immediate area it means revitaliza tion and rejuvenation. For the whole city, it means connecting some assets that have not been fully realized by residents of San Antonio and our millions of visitors." The project, divided into five phases with the first to start this month, should be completed by mid-2001. Hike-and-bike trail improvements as well as water, sewer and gas line extensions are in the first phase. A network of walking and cycling paths, comprehensive signs and directions, a scenic "wet" route close to the San Antonio Riv er and an all-weather "dry" route allowing year- round access is part of the phase. The new trail could lead to an additional $76 million annually in tourism and related revenue, officials said. '"We're emphasizing cultural and historical tourism," Marco A. Barros, executive director of the San Antonio Area Tourism Council, said. The Greys Monday • June 21 By Gala W£i I SHUT TUAT LIGHT IT'S NOT IT'S COlAiNGr outside. T HATe. I(P / (it n t\ gcjiela "A very, very important issue is im migration," Robles said. "There is liti gation in California right now to re move immigrants. That divides families." LULAC's platform opposes legisla tion that toughens ritizenship require ments, sends U.S. troops to police the U.S.-Mexico border and limits immi grants' dvil rights. Robles said she hopes the con vention will unite the Hispanic com munity in both Dallas and the rest of the country. Robles also invited members from the Asian-Amen can, African-American and Jewish communities to partidpate. "The greatest challenge is to un derstand the different cultures in our country," she said. "We need a more cohesive community." 'WVlCi let 1 stail M mt I Industry has known about tk risks of vinyl chloride since 1! HOUSTON (AP) — Chemical in dustry documents dating back four decades noted the cancer danger to workers caused by an ingredient used to make one of the world's common plastics, according to the Houston Chronicle. However, the copyright report in Sunday's editions said little action was taken to address the perils of vinyl chlo ride for 15 years. The report, based on hundreds of in terviews and thousands of documents gathered by the newspaper and a Louisiana attorney litigating a case against the chemical industry, reveals that companies have known the risks of vinyl chloride since at least 1959. A chemical company memoran dum from that year showed that six months of exposure to the chemical compound caused physiological changes, leading to a conclusion that "Vinyl chloride monomer is more tox ic than has been believed." However, the Chronicle reported that it wasn't until 1974 that the industry publicly tied vinyl chloride processing to a form of cancer. "There was a concerted effort to hide this material," Dr. David Rosner, a professor of public health and histo ry at Columbia University who has re viewed many of the documents as part of a research project, said. "It's clear there was chicanery." In a prepared statement, the Chem ical Manufacturers Association called such charges made by Rosner and oth ers "irresponsible." "We took the problem seriously," said Dr. Theodore Torkelson, a retired Dow Chemical toxicologist who chai red the CMA's vinyl chloride panel for 11 years in the 1970s and '80s. "We did what we thought was ethical, scientifi cally sound and morally responsible." However, the newspaper's docu ments show that chemical companies subjected at least two generations of workers to excessive levels of a potent carcinogen that attacks the liver, brain, lungs and blood-forming organs. The plastic is better known as PVC, a common material used in pipe. Dow researchers recommended sharply reduced employee exposures in a published 1961 report, but a Yale Univer sity study sponsored by Allied Chemical twoyearslater found no significant effects at much higher exposure levels. "The industry goofed up," said Torkelson, referring to reliance on the Yale research. "Probably if they had lis tened to our (recommendation), we wouldn't have had a problem." Three months before his death, Hen ry Tousaint told the Chronicle he was a victim of that "problem." The 20-year veteran of the PPG Industries Inc. plant in Lake Charles, La., died of cancer at age 54. Gallon jugs of cough syru p were kept on hand for workers who com pi ai ned of dizziness or respiratory problems. "We didn't know no better," Tou saint said. "But they did." Officials at Pittsburgh-based PPG declined comment. Attorney William Baggett Jr. has won large settlements on behalf of the |A| [urn- survivors of iousaints ningj w hose tamily sued forr. gami'l ( onovoend Vista. Neith lex,w| co nor \ ista admitted the deaths. Baeeett is trying tolv and acy case against 29 otheri anddl panics, the CMA andtheWicl Plastics Industry, allegirigll»al up the vinyl chloride threi^fcnl I ] ie chemical's dange* lei headlines on Jan.:'' K- lowed] ter the initial warningag 5ter s l B.F. Goodrich announced walkni three fatal eases of ^IWn among workers at a n jj8 a ' n . Louisville, Ky. Angiosare 2-0 w 1 cer associated with vinyldw® W 1 Goodrich's announce park, ed a w ave of governmentre fit, worker exposures and W>HGij chemical's use in propeto-Ras I sprays and other products. I Bii I )espite pleas from Vc ?houk regulations requiring WRm worker exposures to TyRishL would wipe out more tWMTexI jobs, the plants were able 11 Rs inr dor safer conditions. Howe® IL sands of workers had beenRee for decades by the mi Chronicle reported. RSnc The newspaper documes ■ms outbreaks among vvorker^:|rnia, across the country, espeo^thel Texas-Louisiana area, con®«e (11 heart of the industry. Ho^ow'l dustry has consistently fen »)th d ers' compensation claims J Af| related to alleged occupabo»*t s ii er Jo| Pick-Up Applications Now! Applications and information available in 211A YAACA or 222 Beutel. Deadline Friday, July 10 at 5 pm Peer" Opportunities for M.B.A.s are better than ever... ^ «rad., a ,ing^J'g M ^'ed by soo HSsPsss:" i 0pm ' n ' am/ I fs one of the best times since the mid-'80s to be getting a graduate degree in business. Sard Kathryn Vat. Ness, associate dean at the Anderson Scltooi; University I of California Los Angeles. 'It’s really a seller's market |now|.' * —Bloomberg News & Minneapolis Star Tribune, May 24, 1997 For more information call Becki Elkins at 845-1107. http://stulife.tamu.edu/adep/p1edu.htm expert teachers superior materials smart technology And Kaplan, the world leader in test prep can help you succeed. 1 -800-KAP-TEST www.kaplan.com •QMAT Is a reglslerad Irademaih ol la. Giaduata Manogamant Admission Council. The Battalion Mandy Cater, Managing Editor Quatro Oakley, Visual Arts Director Chris Martin, Aggielife Editor Rod Machen, City Editor Jeff Webb, Sports Editor April Towery, Opinion Editor James Francis, Editor in Chief J.P. Beato, Graphics Editor Ryan Rogers, Photo Editor Brandon Bollom, Photo E |C Laura Stuart, Radio Prodo cef Anita Tong, Web Editor Kasie Byers, Night News 1 : SelcT |me tl l r h| JveuJ striking Brts,' News: The Battalion news department is managed by students at Texas A&M tlniwi Division of Student Publications, a unit of the Department of Journalism. News offices Reed McDonald Building. Newsroom phone: 845-3313; Fax: 845-2640 batt@unix.tamu.edu; Website: http://battaiion.tamu.edu . Advertising: Publication of advertising does not imply sponsorship or en d° ,sel,1 l 6| attalion. For campus, local, and national display advertising, call 845-2696. For da _ tising, call 845-0569. Advertising offices are in 015 Reed McDonald, and office iiouis to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Fax: 845-2678. Tl ili Subscriptions: A part of the Student Services Fee entitles each Texas A&M student to pi^J| copy of The Battalion. First copy free, additional copies 25$. Mail subscriptions are $30 for the fall or spring semester and $17.50 for the summer. To charge by Visa, I or American Express, call 845-2611. | The Battalion (ISSN #1055-4726) is published daily, Monday through Friday during spnng s em es t ersan d Monday through Thursday during the summer session (except ^ n e ^ am P eri °ds) at Texas A&M University. Second class postage paid at 0 ( 77840, Postmaster: Send address changes to The Battalion, 015 Reed McDon lexasA&M University, College Station,TX 77843-1111. Wi\
