The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, April 03, 2000, Image 8

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    THE
NATION
Page 8
THE BATTALION
Monday,!
y 9 Tune ups y’BrakeJobs
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j Judge postpones verdict ii
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Apr 2
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Apr 4
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Apr 5
THUR
Apr 6
4-6
PM
• :.
CHEM 102
CH.18
CHEM 102
CH.19
CHEM 102
CH.20
CHEM 102
Prac Test
6-8
PM
CHEM 102
CH.18
CHEM 102
CH.19
CHEM 102
CH.20
CHEM 102
Prac Test
8-10
PM
CHEM 107
CAPA
Phys 218
Ch 7
Phys 218
Ch.8
Phys 218
Ch 9
Phys 218
Prac. T**t
10PM
MID
•
Phys 208
Ch 29
Phys 208
Ch.30
Phys 208
Ch 31
Phys 208
Pi«c Te*t
2-4
PM
CHEM 228
Ch 2A
6-8
PM
CHEM 102
CH.19
CHEM 101
Ch.8 .
CHEM 101
Ch.10
8-10
PM
CHEM 228
Ch 22
CHEM 228
Ch 23
CHEM 228
Test #1
Penninciton
CHEM 102
CM.21A
CHEM 102
CH.21B
10PM
MID
-y.y>.v.
J
Phys 201
Ch 11
Phys 201
Ch 11.13,14
Phys 201
Ch.14
8-10
PM
CHEM 227
Test #A
CHEM 227
Test MB
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Test ttC
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Test ttO
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8-10
PM
CHEM 237
LAB
GENE 301
GENE 301
GENE 301
GENE 301
TUES
WED
THUR
SUN
FINC 341
4-Apr
5-Apr
6-Apr
9-Apr
7-9
PM
.
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Part 1
Part II
Part III
7-1OPM
Part
9-11
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Part 1
Part II
Part III
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CHICAGO (AP) — Talks between the federal gov
ernment and Microsoft broke down Saturday as a
judge here trying to mediate a settlement in the an
titrust lawsuit against the software giant said he was
ending his effort.
Last week, the judge hearing the case in Wash
ington postponed his ruling to give the two sides more
time to talk.
Federal appeals court Judge Richard Posner said
that since accepting the task, he had tried to find a
common ground that might enable the two sides to set
tle their ditferences.
“After more than four months, it is apparent that
the disagreements among the parties concerning the
likely course, outcome, and consequences of contin
ued litigation, as well as the implications and ramifi
cations of alternative terms of settlement, are too deep-
seated to be bridged,” Posner said in a statement.
Posner said he won’t make any comment on the
merits of the litigation, or on the negotiating positions
of the parties involved.
“It’s unfortunate that a settlement wasn’t possible,"
Microsoft Chairperson Bill Gates said in a conference
call. “Microsoft certainly went the extra mile.”
Gates said the Microsoft mediation team had de
voted more than 3,000 hours to the settlement effort
over the four months of talks and that the company had
offered “significant concessions.”
But Gates reiterated that he believes the company
has a strong legal case and dismissed suggestions that
the breakdown of talks represented a “corporate death
penalty” for Microsoft.
“We are long-term players in the judicial process,”
said Bill Neukom, Microsoft executive vice president
and general counsel.
In Washington, Joel I. Klein, the assistant attorney
general in charge of the Justice Department antitrust di
vision, said in a statement: ‘‘We would have preferred
an effective settlement to continued litigation. But set
tlement for settlement’s sake would be pointless.”
Klein said if the ruling goes against Microsoft, the
"It's unfortunate
that a settlement
wasn't possible.
Microsoft cer
tainly went the
extra mile."
case to give both sides more time to hammer
of a possible out-of-court settlement.
Jackson has encouraged the parties tom
attorneys have said.
Both sides have reason to reach a settle®
Microsoft, a harsh ruling could be used against!
pany in dozens of class-action lawsuits its
both rivals and clients.
The government, meanwhile, wouldht
wait before the company is forced to change
ior. Once Jackson issues a verdict, he won!:
hold additional hearings to determine what kinii
lions to impose. Microsoft would likelyappe
cision, possibly tying up the case for several
court that could ultimately overturn parts,if::
the initial judgment.
Jackson had warned lawyers that he«
nounce his final ruling as early as luesdr
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failed to make significant progress towards ji victory of th
settlement.
Justice Department “will seek a remedy that prevents
Microsoft from using its monopoly in the future to sti
fle competition.”
At issue is a lawsuit filed by the federal government
and 19 states alleging that Microsoft repeatedly en
gaged in illegal anti-competitive behavior by using mo
nopoly power.
U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson in
Washington, D.C., agreed with nearly all the allegations
in an initial findings in November. He said the compa
ny’s aggressive use of its monopoly status stifled inno
vation and hurt consumers by limiting choices.
On Tuesday, Jackson postponed his verdict in the
hior Kathryn!
A recording at the federal courthouse Sate igainst Nadin
finned the verdict would not be issuedTuesdi
fered no additional information.
Microsoft officials — including Gates-a
ed with government attorneys just days
lice Department filed its original complaint
An agreement appeared likely until go
lawyers complained that Gates reconsidered::
an offer he made. The deal fell through, and:; Dorthee Kurz
emment filed suit.
Once Jackson issues a verdict, he would
hold additional hearings to determine whan reshman 01 i\
sanctions to impose.
FBI arrests parents
in Texas kidnapping
N.H. Justices
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NEW YORK (AP) — It was the summer
of 1997. Gangandeep Bakshi was a Queens
teen-ager whose strict Sikh family was ap
parently unaware she was falling in love over
the Internet with a man outside her religion.
Two years later, at age 18, Bakshi ran off
to Houston to live with the man. What hap
pened next has become the focus of an un
usual federal kidnapping case.
The FBI anested Bakshi’s parents, Agya-
pal and Kamla Singh, and her two older sis
ters last week at their New York home after
they were indicted in
Texas. The 55-year-old
father was ordered
jailed until a scheduled
arraignment as a threat
to his daughter.
The indictment
charges the four family
members brutally ab
ducted Bakshi last Au
gust from her Hindu
lover’s Houston apart
ment — at one point
“beating her into sub
mission” — because
they objected to the ro
ers, none of us might be here right now,” one
attorney, Rafael Abramovitz, said during a
hearing in Brooklyn federal court last week at
tended by several of Singh's Sikh supporters.
But Assistant U.S. Attorney Christina Dug
ger argued that Singh was a threat.
“This isn't a case about some internet
Lothario who seduced a girl,” Dugger said.
“This is about a man who’s been indicted in
Texas for a violent crime.”
After the hearing, another defense attor
ney, William Watanabe, declined to offer
more information
urged to resign
gs tal
rom Jc
The Texas
(()NC'ORD, N.l 1. (AP) A crisis involving allegationsc:continued its
\ iolationsat New I lampshire’s Supreme Court kept la\vmakers;f^ ee kend as
during the weekend, researching impeachment proeediircsori;fi6 am es from
arrange a less drastic stilution. |Kansas Jayhc
\\ hile some worked to persuade ('liiefJiistiee DavidBnei-' A&M won f
sign and avoid a protracted and damaging legislative battli..«n |n d a 3-for-5
questioned u hethcr a clean sweep of the court wouldn't be: n ' or third bas
Legislative leaders wouldn’t comment on whether Bio:. st
three others should resign, but several taak-and-file legisJ'mf
"If it hadn't been
for the marvel of
computers, none of
us might be here
right now"
Rafael Abramovitz
defense attorney
mance. The victim also claims her father
drugged her and threatened to “cut her to
pieces.”
Even though Bakshi quickly fled her fam
ily again, married the man and moved out of
Houston, Bakshi has told investigators that
her father has been using connections in In
dian enclaves in Texas and elsewhere to lo
cate and harass her. The FBI says fear has dri
ven the couple into hiding.
Defense attorneys vigorously deny the al
legations, insisting Singh is a respected mem
ber of the Queens Sikh community. They ac
cuse prosecutors of turning a simple family
dispute into a full-blown federal case, and por
trayed Bakshi’s husband as someone who took
advantage of a naive teen-ager in cyberspace.
“If it hadn’t been for the marvel of comput-
about Singh.
Court papers do
not name Bakshi’s
husband. Authori
ties would only de
scribe him as a Hin
du man in his 20s.
According to
statements Bakshi
made to the FBI, the
trouble began when
she used an airline
ticket provided by
her then-boyfriend
to join him in Hous
ton. The pair had secretly seen each other for
the first time in New York City before that.
On Aug. 24, after learning Bakshi was
gone, Singh, his wife and two daughters, ages
24 and 29, set out from Queens in rented van
to find her. At about 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 24, the
victim was awakened by a knock at the door.
Authorities allege Singh lured his daugh
ter outside and dragged her into the van. A
neighbor leaving for work told the FBI he
heard screaming, then saw a turbaned man
“ball his fist, cock back and punch this girl in
the stomach,” FBI agent Eric Johnson testified.
Bakshi told the FBI that while en route
back to New York, her parents punched and
slapped her for an hour. She also claimed her
father forced her to drink a substance that
made her pass out.
that may be the only way to restore public confidence in tltP
“If nobody trusts that group of people —whether it’s 6
— that may be the only thing we can do, though I wouldn’t ffi
said state Rep. James Craig. “It may he the only way to save||
tegrity of the judicial branch.”
State Rep. Paul Mirski said Saturday he would file a bill
peach or otherwise remove Brock, and state House leaders rest
the mechanics of such a move.
“We're looking to see how it’s done in the event we need
forward,” I louse Speaker Donna Sytek said Sunday. “Wliat'saii
is the people’s confidence in the court.'
On Friday, Justice W. Stephen Thayer resigned after beinga:
of criminal ethics violations. In return. Attorney Generali
McLaughlin promised not to prosecute.
McLaughlin issued a 25-page report that not only detailedL
transgressions but also accused the entire court of ethics violafc
said it was an “institutional practice” for judges who had excused!
selves from cases to review and discuss draft decisions in those;
McLaughlin said the chief justice broke the law just by Ife 1
to Thayer. He said Thayer, 54, tried to influence the selection of
stitute judges when his own divorce case came before the high'
McLaughlin is expected to release investigators’reportstte 1 '
and sources say material in them could be more damagingfe
report released Friday.
In addition, the Judicial Conduct Committee will be conduct!;
ethics investigation of Brock, Justice Sherman Horton, Justic;
Broderick and retired Justice William Johnson.
Horton had stunned lawmakers Saturday by saying thesi®
was overblown, and on Sunday several lawmakers said his con®
revealed an arrogant and cavalier attitude on the court.
“1 read the comments by Horton and I wasn’t happy. ’ 1
might be more than one judge” whose job is at risk, saidstf
Mary Brown. “If this is true, this is institutional. If you haves
who says it’s not a big deal, that bothers me.”
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All student employees and employers are
invited to attend the
National Student Employment Week
Celebration
April 5, 2000
Rudder Exhibit Hall
2:00p.m. to 4:00p.m.
The Texas A&M University Student Employee of the Year
Award nominees will be honored at 2:30.
Refreshments will be served.
With the generous support of our sponsors, there will be
door prizes and freebies for Texas A&M student
employees.