Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 20, 1998)
YING ES Merits realize bingo not just for kids. 5GIELIFE, PAGE 4 B I M _ O 4 9 5 2/ 4 76^7? 2 15 2 3/5^14112 1 2118 9 5 ^719 5 2642 MISSING THE POINT • Lolita’s critics ignore the moral dilemmas of characters. OPINION, PAGE 9 CHECK OUT THE BATTALION ONLINE http://battalion.tamu.edu TUESDAY October 20 y 1998 Volume 105 • Issue 38 • 10 Pages Mngonlyji 'se to shii lameintoi! ring in is ss fromKjj iteofthefc anieWfe the pass, ihefiftliiii as tapped is f kirkino!’! got StUC^ 105 YEARS AT TEXAS A&M UNIVERSITY sappoia: I 'twooisl tch in I o students arrested on marijuana charges Hardeman may receive additional eligibility Irowing system, Implants fed by narcotics fkforce. BY AMANDA SMITH The Battalion lo Texas A&M students and a I resident were arrested and Jed with possession of mari- lia Friday after investigators th the Brazos Valley Narcotics Task Force seized a total of 46 live marijuana plants estimated at a value of more than $74,000. Conrad Clark Gibbons and Micah Don Wheeler, both 22-year-old stu dents at Texas A&M University, were arrested with James Michael God frey, a 22-year-old resident of Bryan. Investigators from the Brazos Val ley Narcotics Task Force also seized three ounces of dried marijuana, val ued at $260, an air-conditioning unit, nitrogen and carbon dioxide cylinders, grow lights and a water purification/circulation system for growing the marijuana plants at 2302 Franklin Street in Bryan. According to a press release. Gibbons and Godfrey both lived at the Bryan residence. The Brazos Valley Narcotics Force seized weighing, packaging and smoking paraphernalia items from the residence. Commander Don Jones of the Brazos Valley Narcotics Task Force was not available for comment Monday on the investigation. In the initial investigation at the Bryan residence, the Bryan Police Department had discovered some live marijuana plants while looking for weapons that had been used in a recent assault. The Bryan detectives found a pel let gun believed to have been used in an aggravated assault in July, Bryan Police Detective Daniel Rutledge said. Rutledge said a neighbor across the street from Gibbons and Godfrey was shot with a pellet gun by a man sus pected to be living in the residence. The Brazos Valley Narcotics Task Force obtained a second search war rant for the Bryan residence to search for marijuana and drug para phernalia. In conducting the search with the assistance of the Bryan Po lice Criminal Investigations Divi sion, investigators discovered a hid den room containing the operation. istorical library tfor rededication 1-6 on the; l-lonthes it the A#! iversitycij he whole ssioriteami vith this fid Ithateffed IY N0NI SRIDHARA The Battalion rededication of the ing Memorial Library leheld today at 2:30 p.m. |e original dedication 1930 when the library Ipened its doors. The li- [started as a collection of leering texts bequeathed las A&M by Col. Edward [min Cushing, Class of I Col. Cushing had a de- p leave a legacy at Texas [and the texts came into pssession of the Univer- [ollowing his death in In 1927, the Board of [tors named the newly [ructed building in hon- Cushing because they Idered him to be one of chool’s most important (actors. pshing was the first ling on campus con- jted for the sole purpose pusing a library. After Ing C. Evans Library was Dieted, Cushing served a variety of purposes, includ ing housing offices of the dean of education, before it was converted into a library facility again. Over the years Cushing has endured a leaky roof, cracking walls and an unre liable air-conditioning sys tem. The air conditioning is necessary to preserve rare materials. During the past four years, Cushing has undergone a $7 million renovation project. Steve Smith, an associate professor in library science, said the renovations were necessary to help preserve materials in the library. “The Cushing Memorial Library is one of the most his torical buildings on campus, so the purpose of these reno vations was to restore the building as well as giving a home for historical archives and some of the more rare collections,” Smith said. see Cushing on Page 2. Hans Thomas, an archi tecture graduate student, research es in the Cushing Library reading room. PH BRANDON BOLLOM/The Battalion Promoting unity ERIC NEWNAM/The Battalion Elizabeth McCormick, a junior psychology major, hands out invitations to a discussion regarding racial unity scheduled for Tuesday at 7 p.m. in 212 MSC. BY AMANDA SMITH The Battalion D’Andre Hardeman may be granted an extra season of eligibili ty for competition at the request of Texas A&M University, according to an NCAA bylaw which stipulates an athlete may be granted an addi tional season of eligible competition “as a result of good faith, erroneous formal declaration of eligibility by the institution’s appropriate certify ing authority. ” Tedi Ellison, director of Athletic Compliance, said the discovery of a clerical error in the posting of grades at the registrar’s office made Hardeman ineligible for the 1998 football season, but the error was not intentional. Ellison said the Hardeman inci dent did not involve wrongdoing by any faculty members. “There have been no problems with faculty or staff,” Ellison said. Jim Ashlock, executive director of University Relations, said the in cident was the result of an admin istrative error and not the fault of any teaching faculty. “It was an honest mistake,” Ashlock said. “A lot of the faculty are very sensitive to favoritism is sues. They don’t want to see any- Bowens host BBQ • One hundred students receive the opportunity to dine, win prizes. BY MEGAN WRIGHT The Battalion Approximately 150 people at tended a barbecue hosted by Texas A&M University President Dr. Ray M. Bowen and his wife, Sally, last night in the MSC. The barbecue, originally sched uled to be held at the president’s home was moved indoors due to rain. It was held in appreciation of students and offered them a chance to meet campus adminis trators. A similar event was held last spring. One hundred A&M students won tickets to the event by regis tering during the MSC Open House, at a box set up in Bizzell hall or via the Internet. Faculty members. Uni versity vice presidents and repre- xidents prompt UPD bicycle crackdown NOW addresses women, religion BY MEGAN WRIGHT The Battalion juring the ’97-’98 academic I there were six reported acci- ls involving bicyclists and ling vehicles. This September Je, there have been seven ac- Ints reported. [ccording to Lieutenant Bert zschmar of the University Po- ilepartment Crime Prevention ,the biggest problem with bi- fsts is failure to yield and ob- jestop signs. ■Running stop signs is our test concern right now,” Kret- [itnar said. “ When they don’t d, they wind up hurting them- [es and are sometimes hit by [Jing vehicles.” tetzschmar said bicyclists are accountable to the same Us automobiles according to (Texas traffic codes. Laws cy- iare held responsible for in- yielding to pedestrians at Jsswalks, remaining in desig- pd bicycle lanes and observing traffic signs. “On campus there are three groups of people: pedestrians, bi cyclists and those driving cars,” Kretzschmar said. “All three of these groups are vying for the same space and are all trying to get to class. These groups are everywhere. There are laws that govern all of these people, and they need to be aware of that, and even though there are these laws, it boils down to common courtesy, common sense and good judg ment. The bicyclists especially need to slow down and remember to keep off the sidewalks.” UPD utilizes a bike patrol unit consisting of officers that are lo cated on different parts of campus throughout the day. Tickets is sued by these officers are referred to Justice of the Peace Judge Boyett, and each ticket costs the offender $55. Safety also is a concern of UPD. “If a person operates a bicycle at night, it is a state law that it be equipped with a head lamp that emits a white light and can be seen from 500 feet away,” Kretzschmar said. “It is a ticketable offense.” Bicycle helmets are encouraged because of the number of acci dents that have occurred this year. “While helmets are a great idea, they aren’t enforced,” Kret zschmar said. “When Texas adopts a helmet law, A&M will en force one also, but now they aren’t required by the campus or any city ordinances.” “The reason we want to educate people of these laws is for their own safety,” Kretzschmar said. “We don’t want to upset bicyclists by singling them out, but we also don’t want any more people get ting hurt through carelessness.” BY AMY CURTIS The Battalion The Texas A&M chapter of the National Organization for Women hosted an open discus sion last night on “Christianity and Feminism.” Participants talked about so ciety’s role in creating myths and stereotypes. Sarah Suniga, president of NOW and a senior psychology and English major, said she wanted to discuss feminism and Christianity to see what people thought about the relationship between the two subjects. “We wanted to see what peo ple think about femininity,” Suniga said. The group discussed the meaning of feminism, the theory that men and women are physi cally, mentally, economically and socially equal. Suniga said it was difficult to equate some of the writings in the Bible to women and men today because some parts of the Bible were written for different times. “It is hard to compare women in the Bible with women now,” Suniga said. Suniga said it is important to discuss these issues, and people should talk to their friends and classmates about important reli gious and feminist issues. “If you discuss and question other people, at least you’re talk ing about it,” Suniga said. Kim Ngo, treasurer of NOW and a senior biomedical engineer ing major, said NOW is here to discuss women’s roles in society. “This is a women’s issues or ganization,” Ngo said. “We seek to heighten awareness about women’s issues on campus.” Ngo said people are raised dif ferently according to their reli gions, and that plays a major role in how they view things. thing that is unfair happen.” According to a report from the Texas A&M Sports Information De partment, the error “was made out side the athletic department” and no other “violations of NCAA and Big 12 rules was found.” "A lot of the faculty are very sensitive to favoritism issues. They don't want to see anything happen that is unfair." — Jim Ashlock Executive director, University Relations Ellison said she could not com ment on the status of Hardeman or the possibility of Hardeman gaining an additional season of eligibility. Ellison said the department posts reminders to faculty to contact the Athletic Compliance office when questions concerning student ath letes arise because the athletes are governed by NCAA eligibility rules. J.P. BEATO/The Battalion President Ray M. Bowen serves stu dents at a barbeque dinner at the MSC Monday evening. The 100 stu dents in attendance were chosen af ter entering a drawing. sentatives from the Athletic De partment were in attendance. Bobby Kleinecke, Texas A&M Women’s Tennis Team head coach, said he thinks the event was a good chance to unite the campus. see BBQ on Page 2. NEWS IN BRIEF Kale takes on role of vice chancellor Texas A&M University System Chancellor Barry B. Thompson yesterday issued the following statement: “Effective immediate ly, Mr. Tom D. Kale, Vice Chan cellor for Business Services, will assume the duties of Mr. Richard Lindsey, who has resigned. Mr. Kale has served in numerous fi nancial capacities in higher edu cation during his long and distin guished career. I expect total support of Mr. Kale as he assumes his new responsibilities.” Richard Lindsay, former vice chancellor, resigned from the po sition Thursday amid suspicions raised from a University phone audit. The Sept. 24 audit report said Lindsay and Melissa Ricard, counsel and administrative direc tor in Corpus Christi, amassed $7,182 in calls. A letter from Lindsay’s attorney, Gregg Rosenberg, asserts all calls related to System business.