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Listen to KAMI) 90.9 FM at 1:57 p.m.
for details on a stabbing in Bryan.
• Check out The Battalion online at
k battalion.tamu.edu.
Student Recreation
Center encourages
women to utilize
free weights
Page 3
Weather:
Partly cloudy with a
hiqh of 97 and a low
of 74.
TUESDAY
July 11,2000
Volume 106-Issue 165
6 pages
*■1:101 AI 6 ft’j ^1 Pi ^ CW t IV
entral Baptist leaves Southern Baptist Convention
Chris Cunico
The Battalion
For the past several years, disagreements
^fundamental issues have been dividing the
buthern Baptist community in Texas. Cen-
jil Baptist Church, a congregation which has
jrved Bryan-College Station residents for
tars, has recently chosen to break with the
ptist General Convention of Texas (BGCT),
estate's subset of the Southern Baptist Con-
ntion (SBC).
Conservative and liberal sects continually
shover scripture interpretations and views
controversial topics.
Reverepd Chris Osborne, senior pastor for
entral Baptist, said there are several reasons
for his congregation's decision to disassociate
with the BGCT, ranging from stances on abor
tion to the delegation of church money.
Osborne said the BGCT board's hypocriti
cal pro-choice stance, which it discusses on its
Website, contradicts the pro-life views it has ex
pressed to its members in the past and those
shared by conservative congregations like Cen
tral Baptist.
In the past, every Southern Baptist congre
gation would donate money to the state con
vention, which would then keep a percentage
before sending the remainder of the money to
the national organization, the SBC. Osborne
said that instead of allocating all funding to or
ganizations associated with the Southern Bap
tist Convention, the BGCT has begun to allow
church money to be given to non-affiliated
causes and congregations, such as the Cooper
ative Baptist Fellowship.
"The elected leadership of the BGCT has
“They're not interest
ed in a convention
change, but a change
in denomination”
— Chris Osborne
senior pastor for Central Baptist
been the reason for these new liberal stances,"
Osborne said. "Charles Wade, executive direc
tor, and Clyde Glazener, president of the exec
utive board, are responsible for altering the di
rection of the BGCT."
Osborne said that by removing Baylor Uni
versity from its domain and establishing its
own seminaries, tire BGCT has further offend
ed more-conservative members of the SBC. He
said the changes in the traditional operations
are the beginnings of movement, orchestrated
by the BGCT's board of directors, to separate
BGCT from the SBC completely and create a
new denomination. Those congregations that
choose to remain loyal to the Southern Baptist
Church have the option of joining the Southern
Baptists of Texas to in place of their former
BGCT membership.
"This November in Corpus Christi, the
leaders of the BGCT are expected to vote to
leave the SBC," Osborne said. "They have al
ready filed a name change. They're not inter
ested in a convention change, but a change in
denomination."
Martha Barton, administrative assistant of
the Creath Brazos Baptist Association, said that
in the past several years, an increasing number
of churches in Brazos County dissatisfied with
recent movements of the BGCT has chosen to
break from this statewide convention.
See Church on Page 6.
Then Aftemiat
which brokers existing;
main names in the Units
States, sued ICANNot|
permission to register if
ones. In a settlement®
nounced Friday, ICAS
agreed to the request, r
conditions.
Larger issues are f
tentious as well.
ICANN proposed alii
to appoint its board,®!
groups complained !5
process was undeimrs
lCANNcavedin|
Internet users dirafete
five of 19 board merit®
Other critics, citinglr
lays getting new
names, complain Ity
ICANN favors business'
over individuals.Largec
porations with valusi
trademarks have resists
new names becauseob
be rsqu a tters—indivi^
who grab domain nS
for up to $35 apiece# )
sale at thousands,eves 1
lions of dollars.
Circus, circus!
led attack by a few
crime,” said De
•n for Guatemala’s r
lent attracted so manype'
•e members of a family®
rried people and su
:hez said,
ten, including a 60-yeart
26, 23,18 and 17.
Student board pushes
for tax-free textbooks
(left) Ringmaster Michael James McGowan steps in to the cen
ter ring to introduce The Greatest SHow on Earth, (top right)
Animal trainer Mark Oliver Gebel presents a leopard during the
opening parade, (center right) Anton Beliakov performs his
strap act for the audience before the show, (bottom right) Kids
watch in amazement as the trapeze artists fly through the air.
Stuart Hutson
The Battalion
Junior speech communications major
Katherine Volanska, fed up with paying
prices at local bookstores, now purchas
es her books online. Her reason is sim
ple: lower prices due partly to the ab
sence of the bookstore sales tax.
"The prices we have to pay for'text-
books are crazy," Volanska said. "We're
college students, we have very little
money, and no one should be trying to
make a profit off our education — not
the government, not anyone."
Echoing Volanska's opinion, the Chan
cellor's Student Advisory Board (CSAB),
a student group from all the Texas A&M
System schools that advises the chancellor
about the wishes of the cumulative stu
dent body, has embarked on a campaign
to convince the Texas Legislature to pass a
bill ending sales tax on college textbooks.
"If the state cannot tax tuition, why
should they be able to tax textbooks,
which are also a necessary cost of educa
tion?" said Rob Ferguson, who was elect
ed chairperson of the CSAB in June and
is a senior political science major at A&M.
Ferguson said the force behind the
campaign was West Texas A&M Univer
sity Bookstore manager William Hocken-
smith, who realized that textbook prices
were increasing faster than the standard
economic inflation rate.
"Students now are paying much more
than they were paying 20 years ago, and
that is taking inflation into account,"
Hockensmith ,said. "The prices of text
books are not just too high, they are irra
tional — and while textbooks are just a
part of the cost of education, they can
male a big difference when just as many
students drop out of college because of
their checkbook as because of their GPAs."
Senior Rob Ferguson, chair of the CSAB,
supports the bill that calls for an end to
sales tax on all college textbooks.
A bill which would do away with state
sales tax on textbooks was considered by
the Texas State Legislature during its last
legislative meeting. It was never brought
out of committee for discussion by the
general assembly, despite active lobbying
See Books on Page 6.
News in Brief
istor against
irtrait removal
AIMCE AMI
AND DOG!
iccinations
nd Neuters
eatments
In order to inform the pub-
&bout the removal of the
hrist portrait, Dan Bates,
pastor and editor of the
|h/ng but the Truth, So Help
God newspaper, will hold
press conference 9 a.m.
ly in the parking lot of the
bb Gilchrist Building,
want to tell the world
, jjow liberals, like liberals at
nCl Ireatmeifcas A&M, can do mind
optrol and censorship,
ley can have pictures tak-
nldown off the wall,”
lafes said.
||ast month, Gilchrist’s
- jprtrait, which portrayed
ini sitting in front of a like-
|ss of Robert E. Lee, was
Teaching Hospital ‘||oved from the entryway
ant. Discount appli#e Gibb Gilchrist Texas
Base identify your5 £ |i s P ortat ' on Institute
it in order to rec eC in g° n West Cam P us -
tt in oraer to rete Ber n ieFetti,aspokesper-
nd appointments "bn for the Texas Trans-
■ation Institute (TTI), said
iportrait was removed be-
use it may offend visitors
1 students of Texas A&M.
tti said the decision to
ve the 47-year-old por-
§ which had hung in the
ay since last Novem
ber, came after a student
approached the director of
TTI, Dr. Herbert Richardson,
with concerns that the por
trait may connotate racism
because of Lee’s associa
tion with the Corifederacy.
Bates said A&M offi
cials withheld information
from media sources about
the real reason for the por
traits removal.
“A male political science
professor conducted a sur
vey of political science stu
dents as to whether the
Gilchrist portrait offended
them or not,” Bates said.
“The professor found that
more students were offend
ed than not, so he sent a fe
male student to talk to the
director of the building, Herb
Richardson. This is censor
ship, and the U.S. Constitu
tion prohibits censorship.”
Bates said Dr. Jerry Gas
ton, vice president for ad
ministration, told him that
because TTI is not directly
connected to Texas A&M,
the political science profes
sor could not do anything
about the portrait, nor did
he have the authority to
send a student to request
the portrait be removed.
Richardson could not be
reached for comment.
Blood mobiles offer donation sites on A&M campus
Joseph Pleasant
The Battalion
When Dana Shuler, a junior psycholo
gy major gives blood, she does so out of a
sense of responsibility.
"I give every time," Shuler said. "I am
[blood type] O positive, and it is a uni
versal donor so it can be donated to any
blood type."
Paula Newell, operations manager for
Carter Blood Care in Dallas, said giving
blood is everyone's responsibility.
"[Givingblood] is a wonderful commu
nity service. Everyone should take owner
ship of the blood supply," Newell said.
Newell said there is a nationwide blood
shortage in the summer because people
are traveling and students are out of
school. Newell said high school students
and college students are a major source of
donated blood.
Newell also said more blood is needed
in the summer months.
"The need rises because people choose
to have more elective surgery and there is
an increase in accidents on vacation, high
ways, and at home which require blood
transfusions," Newell said.
Newell said men are encouraged to do
nate blood for the sake of their own health.
"Men build up iron in their blood. If it
is not released, that buildup can cause
heart problems later in life. Donating
blood is a way of releasing iron in the
blood," Newell said.
Teresa Evangelista, territory manager
for the Red Cross, said donors with O-pos-
itive or O-negative blood types are need
ed most often because they are universal
donors. Evangelista said these blood types
are used most often in emergency rooms
because their blood
can be given to any
person regardless of
his or her blood type.
Evangelista said
there is a common
myth that donors
with body piercings
cannot donate blood.
"Donors do 'not
have to wait a year af
ter they receive a
body piercing to give
blood, which is a
common misunder
standing," Evange
lista said.
But, Newell said,
certain groups are ex
cluded from donat
ing, such as pregnant
women, people who
have suffered a heart
attack or stroke, and
people who are HIV
positive.
Evangelista said the flexibility of stu
dents' schedules has contributed to the
success of past blood drives.
"Students usually have a flexible
schedule, and we set up locations
around campus for their convenience,"
Evangelista said.
While on campus this week. Carter
Blood Care will offer donors the op
portunity to donate using the 2 units of
Red Blood Cells (2RBC) automated do
nation machine. The 2RBC machine
takes only red blood cells from the
donor's blood and then returns the
blood to the body.
Newell said the donor feels fine after
the procedure, and the blood bank gets
two units of red blood cells.
People who donate blood are ex
cluded from donating for 56 days.
Those who donate using the 2RBC ma
chine are excluded for 112 days because
they are donating two units of blood in
stead of one.
Blood mobiles from the Red Cross and
Carter Blood Care will be located at vari
ous places on Texas A&M's campus July
10-14 for their blood drives. Blood mobiles
will be parked on campus from 9 a.m-6
p.m. Donors receive a free T-shirt along
with juice and cookies after donating.
I Rudder Fountain July 10-14 Rudder Fountain July 10 14
10a.m.-6p.m. 9a.m.-5p.m.
Spence Street July 1012 Fisk Pond July 10-14
10a.m. 6p.m. 9a.m. 4p.m.
Wehner Building July 13-14 Bio/Bio (West Campos) July 10-14
10a.m.-6p.m. 9a.m. 4p.m.
Student Rec Center July 10-14 i
3p.m.-9p.m.