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College Station, Texas
Volume 106 • Issue 36 • 12 Pages
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BY ROLANDO GARCIA
The Battalion
^ recent assault against a homosexual
lege Station resident during Coming
Week has renewed concerns about the
ceived hostility against homosexuals in
city and at Texas A&M.
Sandra Boyle, 21, a former A&M stu-
« who is currently enrolled in Blinn
lege, said she was riding in a car with
) friends in the early morning hours
ict. 12. when she was assaulted,
ihe said while they were stopped at
d light at the corner of George Bush
veand Wellborn Road a truck pulled
beside them, and the male driver be-
yelling at them.
Boyle said the driver got out of the
|ck, walked over to the passenger
e of Boyle’s vehicle and punched her
the face.
“It all happened really fast, but I was
eding all over the place,” she said.
Police were alerted, and the assailant
is apprehended. A police report was
;d; however, the name of the suspect
is not made available.
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Boyle received eight stitches on her
upper lip and also suffered two loos
ened teeth.
She said her sexual orientation was
probably the motive behind the attack.
“It's just one more
piece of evidence of how
hostile the climate here
is for gays and lesbians."
—Megan C. Wright
GLBTA vice president
“1 know he saw the gay rainbow
sticker [on the car window], and that’s
why he punched me,” she said.
Megan C. Wright, vice president of
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgen-
dered Aggies and a junior sociology
major, said the incident reflects poorly
on the environment toward homosexu
als in College Station.
“Its just one more piece of evidence
of how hostile the climate here is for
gays and lesbians,” she said.
Wright said University President Dr.
Ray M. Bowen’s recent rejection of ap
amendment to add sexual orientation to
the Student Rules Handbook’s non-dis
crimination clause in the has sent a neg
ative message to homosexual students.
“They can’t just say the University is
inclusive; they should take concrete
steps to make it inclusive,” she said.
The incident also prompted Sam
Rasch, a friend of Boyle’s and a senior
English major, to confront Bowen last
Wednesday at the Bowen Barbecue to
discuss his rejection of the amendment
and the University’s hostile environ
ment toward homosexuals.
“I wasn’t on the guest list, but I went
to the backyard [of Bowen’s residence]
and asked him,” Rasch said, “but he
said it was neither the time nor the
place to discuss it.”
Bowen’s spokesperson, Lane Stephen
son, declined to comment.
see Attack on Page 2.
Body slam
GUY ROGERSArun Battalion
Texas A&M sophomore defensive lineman Evan Perroni, No. 93, slams University of Kansas running back Mitch
Bowles to the ground in Saturday’s game at Kyle Field. The Aggies defeated the Jayhawks, 34-17.
Propositions 13,17
to go before voters
BY ERIKA DOERR
The Battalion
Nov. 2 will offer Texans a chance to vote
on two amendments to the Texas Constitu
tion to improve higher education.
Proposition 13 would authorize $400 mil
lion in general-obligation bonds to finance
student loans through the Hinson-Hazel-
wood Student Loan Program.
The program is completely self-support
ing and provides more than $900 million in
student loans to 260,000 low- and middle-
income students.
Proposition 17 would provide additional
funding for academic programs and facilities
at Permanent University Fund (PUF) institu
tions in The University of Texas and the Texas
A&M University systems without increasing
taxes. The constitution presently prohibits
spending any capital gains of the PUF.
Student Body President Will Hurd, a se
nior computer science major, discussed and
promoted the two amendments at a news
conference Oct. 15.
Hurd said those in attendance at the con
ference were State Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos
of District 14, Ft. Gov. Rick Perry, Texas state
senators, student body presidents from sev
eral universities, and with news and televi
sion spokespersons.
Hurd said the news conference promot
ed awareness for and the importance of the
two amendments.
He said the state-operated Hinson-Hazel-
wood Student Loan Program will provide
more than 16,000 Texas students with stu
dent loans to allow them the opportunity to
attend college.
Erin Blaney, director of public relations
for the Student Government Association and
a junior political science major, is helping
remind Texans to vote for both propositions
through the use of radio advertising.
“This radio campaign is intended to help
people understand that Proposition 13 and
17 will increase higher-education systems,”
she said.
The campaigning began Saturday, Oct.
16, and will end on Nov. 2. The ads will help
spread the word out to vote ‘yes’ for Propo
sition 13 and Proposition 17.
“People around the Bryan-College Station
area, parents of A&M and [University of
Texas-Austin] students, everyone who is reg
istered to vote, is encouraged to vote for
these two propositions.”
Blaney said she and several other mem
bers from student government will speak to
student organizations about the importance
of voting for the two propositions. Flyers and
stickers with information about Propositions
13 and 17 will be handed out to help inform
students about the two amendments.
Committee to kick off
alcohol education week
Group aims to prevent excessive drinking at Bonfire
BY STASIA RAINES
The Battalion
The Bonfire Alcohol Awareness Commit
tee kicks off National Alcohol Awareness
Week today by staffing an alcohol-education
information table near Rudder Fountain.
Patti Collins, coordinator for Campus
wide Alcohol Education Programs, said each
day of the week will feature a different
theme related to alcohol education.
“The theme for the first day is ‘Make
healthy choices,’ emphasizing the fact that
most students are not binge drinkers but
choose to make a decision to live a more
healthy life,” she said.
Collins said there will be speakers around
lunch time each day who will speak on such
topics as alcohol on campus, having fun
while sober, alcohol laws and not allowing
alcohol shatter the tradition of Bonfire.
Counselors from Student Counseling Ser
vices will speak in the 12th Man Interna
tional Food Court today at noon.
Collins said the goal of the program is to
educate students about the dangers of alco
hol abuse.
“This national program was started in the
’80s with a few schools and now is nation
wide, impacting hundreds of campuses all
over America with education on alcohol
awareness,” she said.
Collins said the program corresponds
well with Bonfire, the yell practice held be-
BONFIRE
R UD Dt RTO uNT AIN
MONDAY: MAKE HEALTHY CHOICES
BRANDON HENDERSON/Tiu: Battalion
fore A&M’s annual football game against the
University of Texas-Austin.
Rusty Thompson, Bonfire adviser, said
the program has had a big effect on Bonfire.
“Historically, Bonfire in the ’80s had be
come a concern for the Bryan-College Sta
tion community due to alcohol,” he said.
“The event wasn’t something A&M could
be proud of, and the future of Bonfire was
in jeopardy.”
The Bonfire Alcohol Awareness Commit
tee was established in 1989 to work with the
community to reform Bonfire.
“Since 1989, Bonfire has done so much
better,” Thompson said. “Now [members of
the committee] do outreach all over the state
of Texas in high schools and college campus
es on what is acceptable conduct at Bonfire.”
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Men’s and
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Page 9 ..
Aggielife
Sleeping like a baby
Students discuss the pros and
consofthe power nap.
Page 3
Sf Opinion
Controlling the image
4 Columnist
speaks on the
k changes Al
Gore has made
to. his image.
Page 11
Batt Radio
Listen to KAMU-FM 90.9 at
1:57 p.m. for details on an arrest
made in a Beanie Baby scam run
through an Internet site.
’99 yearbook
distribution
starts on time
BY DIANE XAVIER
The Battalion
After hours of writing, editing, cutting and past
ing, ’99 Aggieland yearbooks will be distributed on
time this year.
Students can pick up their copies in the base
ment hallway of the Reed McDonald Building Mon
day through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Stu
dents will need to show their student I.D.’s to get
their copies.
This year was one of the few in which the Ag
gieland was completed on time.
Alicen Swift, ’00 Aggieland editor, ’99 manag
ing editor and a senior journalism major, said the
production of the ’99 Aggieland was ahead of
schedule the entire year.
“We had an extremely dedicated staff,” she said.
“There was a lot of unity on our staff and no com
petition between the people.”
Swift said the early distribution of the books
may confuse students who expect them to be dis
tributed at a later date.
International association
to host Mini-Olympics
CODY WAGES/The Battalion
Students pick up their ’99 Aggieland yearbooks
in front of the Reed McDonald Building Friday.
“The ’98 Aggieland was passed out in March, but
this year’s book was finished on July 14,” she said.
“Our editor, TYisha Morelock, was a great leader. I
think it’s a great thing for this book and hope that
this will boost our sales for the 2000 book.”
Swift said the ’99 edition is one of the better Ag-
gieland’s to be produced.
“This yearbook is really beautiful, with qual
ity photographs and great content,” she said.
“We have more in-depth coverage of events,
and people will enjoy looking at this book for a
long time. It’s a miracle that we met deadline
for this book.”
Swift said yearbook staffs aim to finish the book
in July each year, but in previous years they often
fell behind.
“Our problems in the past were due to the or
ganization process,” she saad.
see Aggieland on Page 2.
BY BRADY CREEL
The Battalion
Texas A&M students from more
than 35 countries will participate in
the International Students Association
(ISA) Mini-Olympics this month.
The Mini-Olympics is a sequence of
games for students to compete. Teams
are organized by country of origin.
Gustavo De Sousa, ISA president
and a senior food sciences and tech
nology major, said the games give stu
dents a chance to come together in
fun, friendly competition.
“We want to bring students togeth
er to form friendships through sports,”
De Sousa said.
De Sousa said students from more
than 110 countries attend A&M, and
events such as the Mini-Olympics give
international students a chance to meet.
He said ISA has produced the Mini-
Olympics for more than 10 years.
Events began Friday with racquet-
ball and basketball tournaments.
De Sousa said there usually are open
ing ceremonies for the mini-olympics but
this year the ISA did not have enough
CODY WAGES/The Battalion
Eugenio Urquiza plays table tennis
during the Mini-Olympics, sponsored by
the International Students Association,
time to organize the ceremonies.
No events were held Saturday, and
softball and flag-football games were
postponed yesterday because of rain.
De Sousa said the new schedule
will be posted by Wednesday on the
Website. A complete schedule of
events also is available at the site.
Thirteen events, including soccer,
volleyball, badminton and track and
field will be held. Competition is slated
to continue the rest of the month. The
events will conclude Nov. 5 , at which
time the champions will be named.