February 4, 2000
Volume 106 ~ Issue 84
12 pages
All!
Bsti
:Kara kicked offthe weekend at 3:00
beth o r ah sell Fri<|ay afternoon with more than a few
leal science ma: g*as ^ of wine at a local bar.
nsity divingts f Later that night we decided to go to
anot 1 r bar.” she said. “We stopped at a
——gasptation luid met two guys, so we in
vited them to our house because we
wen. having a party.”
^Hkntund 2:00 am., Sara, who wish-
s to remain anonymous, went upstairs
to g( > to sleep.
rOne of the guys came into my
Af 000 and 1 was passed out,” she said. “I
1 H I |CJ w ok^ up once and didn't know what
was going on and passed back out.”
^Kura's friends helped her piece to
gether what happened after she passed
outlAfter completing the puzzle, she
went to the police and filed sexual as
sault charges against her attacker,
s Initially, Sara's attacker claimed in
nocence, but both parties agreed to a
plea bargain after a taped confession
was misplaced by police. As a part of
the plea bargain, the attacker had to
meet with Sara face to face.
$;ira said by the time she met with
her Sattacker, she no longer had anger
toward him.
“1 le apologized Uiree times for what
he had done, even though he pleaded in
nocent.” she said.
It took Sara a year to begin to heal
tfom the trauma. She attributes her abil
ity to cope with the assault with her
growing faith in God.
“1 put [the experience] on the back
shelf.” she said. “When I came to know'
Jesus, I realized I had to deal with it.”
Most victims of rape believe they
can handle the trauma by themselves
and fere reluctant to get help through
counseling, said Sherry Hostetler of the
Brazos County Rape Crisis Center.
‘[There is no shame in getting coun
seling when you are try ing to get
Trough a life
altering trauma,” she said.
ffiVhe Student Counseling Service
•' SCS) on campus is available to help
~~ my student facing psychological prob-
<pean youth. ems resulting from an attack, said Dr.
■ I a cement l \ ' ' \nd> Smith of SCS.
scl in place.attentkf : $CS also directs students to the
deni Klcslil, acV Tender Issues Education Services
nrecr diplomat. M GIES) for further assistance,
fty ceremonial, the The staff at GIES assists the students
m a new govern' >y referring them to appropriate agen-
iple. Klestil ivn. Tes for medical care, relocating them if
nd e\ cn call new t. heir attacker lives in their residence hall
h a move would , ^apartment complex and helping them
\ustria's post-\\ o submit a statement that defines the
ixpfcrience, said Shaun Travers, Coor-
r pane leader ha> hnator of GETS.
e new Cabinfl “We help students get absences ex-
Listna Press Aeeno. : tised, facilitate class changes if they
abinet would be lee d them, accompany them to meet-
e two parties, will " n g s t0 change their majors if they want
or and a I recdoirPc 0 '”|fravers said. “If a student chooses
chancellor 0 'fithdraw, we help them with that
terior Ministn wouli )roccss a,u * help them if they decided to
the People's Kuty ,' eturn ItotheUniversityata later date].”
To put the experience behind her, Sara
morN1ira S inis^' , ^ l :^ in 8 a “ l »f :l 1 0ri >" awe f kl y ta
rn policies ad ow«■ 1 “ llnse '" he| pf n'f e
, , ,, )lame where it belonged, she said,
hu h priorities tortlif «. ,, , , ,,,
. , I was putting the blame on myselt
h wants to restrict im- I ‘ , e , ,
. . or getting so drunk, but I started putting
'ugh law and order iii ?, ° „ c •, r
he blame on him, Sara said.
See Rape on Page 2
T
the
the
il sys-
\ble.”
?rg Haider
dom Party
BY CHRIS CARTER
The Battalion
T here they sit on opposite sides of a sleek
leather sofa looking you stpaighl in the eye
and asking your name. If'
One is a slender man completely, adorned in
black from his trademark hair toWjiis worn jeans,
with the exception of a tan pair of pointed cow
boy boots. He cocks an awkw ard yet familiar grin
in your direction as you greet him. 1
The other is sitting with his Ifegs casually
crossed, as if to expose the tops of his Red Wing,
boots from under his dark slacks. He also greets
your response with a congenial grin that produces
a squiiity stare.
These two products of Texas A&M, and trea
sines ol lexas. are two humble iiguies Miung 3
loci apart. And now, aftci iwo decades ol tom ing,
albums and awards, these enicrlaiiiers are back at
A<VM to support the school dial gave them so
much.
Lyle Lovett and Robert I ai l Keen have long
been Texas music mainstays and crowd fa
vorites at shows around the
nation, each building
their own distinct * ♦ x
fanbase. On Sunday, / * ‘
Keen and Lovett will*
headline a concert al
Reed Arena to bene
fit the Bonfire Relief**
Fund. Both Keen and /
Lovett are performing free ' I
of charge with all proceeds from
ticket sales directed towards those left in
need because of the Aggie Bonfire collapse.
Keen and Lovett each said the collapse affect
ed them in a personal way.
“It’s one of those things where you can’t believe
il has happened,” Keen said. “It's something so sol
id and traditional in your mind. I'm still not settled
with il it's a terrible thing that has happened;”
'We acknowledge this tragedy and
we are deeply saddened by it,” Keen
said. "We want to send our deepest
ondolcnces to the families who are
affected by this and we all (want to]
come together in the Aggie Spirit and
move on from there.”
Keen, a Class of '78 English major
(and '80 graduate), first met Lovett while
living in a house on ( hureh Street.
"We became acquainted through proximity, re
ally,” Lovett said. “I lived in an apartment on Col
lege Main, and there was a really convenient park
ing space right in front of Robert's house.”
Keen said he discovered his love for music
during his time at A&M.
"I found out at an early age that I could w rite
rhyming poetry,” Keen recalled. “It was once I
started playing guitar in college that I realized that
I could make these poems into songs.”
And so a true Texas troubadour was born.
In an industry that depends primarily on radio
exposure. Keen and Lovett have enjoyed consid
erable success despite their unconventional mix
of folk, country, rock and bluegrass that is not
commonK heard on radio,
“Jl I weie io stretch to the point where I'm
playing music for radio plav or record compam
executives where I hope thev 'll he happs ev en
II I were successful I wouldn’t be happy,” Keen
said. “I would only be working in a job that I had
no say so in it.
"Right now, I'm at the helm of my ship.”
I ovett has made headlines across the nation
for over a decide. Erom the lour t irnmrnv Awards
fie won between l l >8‘> and 19%, to numerous ap-
^ pearanees on talk shows and benefits. Lovett
has become a staple' of ^
American pop culture. W
Although he has enjoyed considerable success
and a great amount of recognition, I ovett says the
music itself is what makes his most memorable
moments. S
“The highest points m my career arts
w hen something happens for me musieal-
|y/* l,ovett said. "It is when everything
comes together, and there is just this moment
that is completely indescribable,”
1 .ovett said he began playing guitar in
Klein, Texas when he was in second grade.
During his time at Texas A&M, Lovett con
tinued playing music around town in Cof- A
fee slurps for his ow n enjoyment. iflj
After his graduation in I‘>80 (on
the same day as Keen), Lovett
moved to Nashville in I‘>84 to
continue Ins musical career.
After his arrival, he sang
backup vocals on Nanci
(irilfith’s third album,
Once in a VeryJ^*^
Moon. in .
Nashulle, irffett signed /
record contract w ith MC AJrutb
Records/ g
Since Ins self-titled dJut album in
1986,1 ovett has picked/p lour Grammy
Awards' including Bet/Male Vocalist for
1989’sfTyle Lovetli/d his Large Band
and Bekt Country for l‘>96\ The
Road to Ensenada,
Keen's musiqf 1'^° Lovett s, is a
whirlwind of Ti^pts eultiue with ,i the j
malic hunian nj/nt.
“Dtv.ullul /ifisb t time" an an
tohiograpHi^l st'ng whieh leetumts
KeenT con/g to grips w nh his own
ambition -\m\ dealing " ith pessimism JM
and apatlmr
I llroJfh a career that spans twen .s
t.' ydajK Keen has proven able
evolvdphpough his music and eyt-
ploriytany difterent sty les ol nut-
sic aid storytelling.
See CoNt eui
tieey.
Lyle Lovett (1) and Robert Earl Keen
(R) will perform at the Bonfire Benefit
Concert on Sunday. February 6.
.'OOO. Kit' concei t in Rood Arena us
sold out and all proceeds go directly
to the victims ol the 1999 Aggie Bon
fire collapse
Jt* BE.ATO I m- Hvum ion
t
p&oirt
trovelxom.
•ao*
U'
FLM —
n’t destroy evidence by
thing, douching, washing hands,
hing teeth, changing clothes or
a ns, eating or drinking,
otify someone immediately,
ek medical attention at an
rgenoy room.
ve the hospital perform a rape
1 800648'* even if you choose not to
press charges.
}!bitri: Scoy) CaU police aa soon as possible,
Earn t(i •venlfyou choose not to press
B Charges.
Sdl C® ) (Bring a change of clothes with
_ - . you to the hospital or police.
Write down details about the
V*ipist and circumstances of rape.
) OalX Brazos County Rape Crisis
Center if you need someone to talk
to or answer questions.
RUBEN DELUNA/iin Hai iamon
Bonfire funds
raise thousands
BY ROLANDO GARCIA
The Battalion
The Bonfire Relief fund has raised over $230,000,
with the benefit concert this Sunday featuring Lyle
Lovett and Robert Earl Keen expected to add at least
$100,000 more, organizers say.
The relief fund, established immediately following
the 1999Aggie Bonfire collapse, directly helps the 27 in
jured and their families with accident related expenses.
“We are still getting a lot of support and donations
are coining in every day,” said Amy Glass, communi
cations director for the Association of Former Students.
Glass said money has already been distributed to help
pay for funeral costs, hospital bills and ongoing medical
rehabilitation expenses for some of the survivors.
“The University will identify a need, and we'll dis
burse the funds accordingly,” she said.
Donors have included corporations, former students
and even the student chapter of the University of Texas
Ex-Students’Association, whieh raised $4,000 from the
sale of the Nov. 22 Hex Rally t-shirts.
Glass said although no specific goal has been set, the
Association of Former Students will continue its active
fundraising efforts, adding that another fundraising
event may be in the works. Also, Texas Monthly mag
azine has donated a full page ad for the relief fund in its
next issue.
Tina Evans, the communications director for the
Texas A&M Foundation, said the Bonfire Memorial
Fund has also raised a considerable sum. While the
Foundation has not undertaken any active fundraising
$230,000 raised so far
H Benefit Concert expected
™ to raise $100,000
r / f> % o e t
fund
mjuiiv
Memorial Fund
$520,000
raised so far
BRANDON HENDERSON/I'm Battalion
efforts, it has collected $520,000 to date.
“We just established a fund because so much
money was coming in from all over the state and na
tion,” Evans said.
Texas A&M Vice President for Student Affairs Dr.
J. Malon Southerland will appoint a committee this
month to decide what form a permanent monument to
the Bonfire victims will take.
“We’re going to develop the criteria for the memo
rial and sift through the dozens of suggestions we’ve re
ceived,” Southerland said. “They’re all very interesting
and come from the heart, so it’ll be a wonderful project.”
Southerland said that aside from the two funds,
$650,000 will be raised to fund 13 endowed scholar
ships: 12 in memory of the students killed in the col
lapse, and one for those students who were injured.
Stephen Norman, Class of'82 and a donor to the
scholarship fund, said establishing memorial scholar
ships would ensure the students who died will not be
forgotten.
“If you read about them, those kids were top-notch
people, and I wanted to make sure they were remem
bered,” Norman said.
Students deal
with traumatic
stress disorder
BY STUART HUTSON
The Battalion
James Allen Brown was enjoying a morning off from
the emergency medical service (EMS) when he received
a call to report to the Bonfire site. What he saw that morn
ing still haunts his nightmares.
“I was working as an EMS technician at the bonfire
site right after it fell,” said Brown, a junior biomedical sci
ence major. “1 can’t really talk about what we did and what
we saw, but 1 really haven’t been the same since.”
Brown, like so many other members of the A&M com
munity who witnessed the 1999 Aggie Bonfire collapse,
has experienced post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
PTSD is a psychological disorder which causes peo
ple who have experienced an extremely traumatic event
to show signs of anxiety and depression.
“I’ve had horrible nightmares and flashbacks along
with a loss of appetite,” Brown said. “Day-to-day life is
sometimes really hard.”
$teven Straun, a staff psychiatrist with Student Coun
seling Service (SCS), said students who have PTSD may
have difficulty readjusting to college life.
“Something this traumatic can result in a person be
coming introverted, make them have nightmares and just
generally can result in anxieties that may keep them from
doing what they need to do to for school and, more im
portantly, for themselves,” Straun said.
See Stress on Page 2
INSIDE
•Conversatio
with the Bat
Jenny McCart
talks about I if
Scream 3
• Sports Extra
The 2000 Texas A&M
Baseball season begins.
V
• Sin &
, Redemption
s |im Bakker
, returns to
^ jr'"" evangelism.
^ Rage 11
• Listen to KAMU-FM 90.9
at 1:57 p.m. for details on
Groundhog Day events.
• Check out The Battalion
online at
battalion.tamu.edu