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WEDNESDAY
February 14, 2001
Volume 107 ~ Issue 94
12 pages •
ittalion News Radio: 1:57 p.m. KAMI! 90.9
Hi mi * i I Ok I Pi 4 :Wl*7
www.thebatt.com
Bryan passes smoking ordinance
Ban will not be effective until city council votes again at Feb. 27 meeting
No smoking
restaurant#
between
6 a.m.
moking to be
prohibited within
20 feet of an
Ifitrance to a
oublic building
RUBEN DELUNA/Tm Battalion
ByJon Niven
The Battalion
The Bryan City Council passed
an ordinance restricting smoking in
restaurants in Bryan by a vote of 5
to 2 during its meeting Tuesday
night. There was standing-room-
only in Bryan City Hall because
citizens from as far away as Austin
voiced their opinions on the pro
posed smoking ordinance.
At the Bryan and College Station
city councils’joint meeting Jan. 30,
the College Station city council
passed the ordinance. The College
Station council must wait for Bryan
to approve the proposal again before
the ordinance is enacted.
The Bryan council’s next meet
ing is Feb. 27, and the proposal
will be revoted upon then.
During the open forum part of the
meeting, 15 people spoke in support
of the ordinance and 16 people
spoke against it.
The ordinance bans smoking in
restaurants between the hours of 6
a.m. and 10 p.m. as well as in restau
rant bars. The ban also prohibits
smoking within 20 feet of an en
trance.
Some residents were upset be
cause the proposed regulations will
apply to bowling alleys and bingo
halls.
Many doctors, including Dr. Dan
Murray, showed up to support the
ordinance.
“There are freedoms ‘to’ and
Government
should stay away
from businesses; the
customers will dnve
it. Bryan will be
devastated by [the
ordinance].”
— Greg Gunter
district manager of Taco Bell
freedoms ‘from’, and nonsmokers
deserve their freedom from second
hand smoke,” Murray said. “Rights
come before pleasures.”
Greg Gunter, the district manag
er of Taco Bell and owner of the
Taco Bell restaurants in Bryan and
College Station, said he does not be
lieve this is a health issue.
“If this were a health issue,
they’d ban it universally,” Gunter
said. “Government should stay
away from businesses; the cus
tomers will drive it. Bryan will be
devastated by [the ordinance].”
Bryan Mayor Lonnie Stabler and
Councilman Mitch Morehead voted
against the ordinance.
Stabler said he was surprised that
more people did not show up to
speak. He said he supports the coun
cil’s decision, but thinks some
restaurant owners will have prob
lems staying open.
“There will be some local, small
restaurants that will have problems,”
Stabler said. “I felt there were some
alternatives. It is possible to have a
clean-air system of exhaust that will
get rid of all impurities, not just sec
ond-hand smoke.”
Councilman Mike Beal said the
outcome represented the best inter
ests of the community.
“It is always good to listen to the
citizens and what they have to say,”
Beal said.
UF loses $750
™Smillion in stock
Budget not drastically affected
il meetingsai
vos, to epii
ing they op'l
) showed u:| 1
:ly stymiedf|
resence
meeting. OjIMaff & Wire
effectively* A three-month period of plunging
barriers, s^ck markets resulted in almost $750
other frontiei million in investment-fund losses for
these typeso the University of Texas and Texas A&M
Scant bray, ax f niversity systems, officials from both
idsfoneA’ ffttv/ft/rfons said.
linst
it how fat
They obtained
- including flit
politicians frt
I, and put®
Despite the shortfalls over the peri-
jd ending Nov. 30, investment strate-
jsls say they propose no significant
lianges.
I The investment results
llby Dan Burck, GT Syste
Ir, and Cathy Iberg, managi
national sec: 0 ' investment operations f<
' ‘ hevond# crsit y of Texas Investmer
” shd Kentlent Corporation (UTIM r ’ J
lent ofcotnM ResuJts show the Perm;
adon-basedfA 1 v Fund’s (PDF) value dropped to ap
joximately $7.7 billion. This inclu
jorforponi^ million, distributed between t
is been Wta# 0 university systems.
tacking,
The system’s total budget would not
cs
lacktivists
• id the'w a P ectec * by one bad quarter, A&M
,IK System Vice Chancellor for Finance
Rm Kale said, because earnings distri-
■itions to UT and A&M are based on a
■ree-year average of the fund’s value.
I “We haven’t rec*M|iuj£d anything
Be had planned,” Kale said. “We‘re cer-
iainly keeping an eye on it. but we’re
nut really concerned yet, and Fmconfi-
|ent the income will provide for our
Reds over the next couple years.”
the economic boom in recent years, and
despite the recent slowdown, the long
term prospects for the economy are good.
The UT System gets two-thirds of
the PUF earnings distributions, and the
A&M System gets one-third. Texas
A&M, Prairie View A&M, and Tarleton
State University are the only schools in
the A&M System that get PUF money.
Of the $105 million in PUF money
e A&M System last year,
nillion went to debt service
item office’s operation bud-
P million remaining, $68
earmarked for Texas
e Station, less than one-
niversity’s $730 million
Djections for the A&M
tern for fiscal year 2002 (which will
in Sept. 1,2001) will be calculated
at the end of the month, Kale said.
“Should the fund income be a little
less than we anticipated, that shouldn’t
be a problem, because we allow for some
wiggle room on the budget,” Kale said.
Burck said Monday that the drop in
the value of the PUF means that the sys
tem will likeh delay taking on new de&t
for large prefects.
“We shy ‘Let’s pause a moment and
analyze this and see where the market
is poing,’ ” Burck told the Austin Amer-
ican-Statesmcm, adding that the news
Free speech
BERNARDO GARZA/Thi: Battalion
Abortion debates are running high this week after an anti-abortion exhibit was unveiled by
Rudder Tower on Monday. A pro-choice message was chalked on a wall by Harrington Hall.
Display brings debate
on abortion to campus
Kale said that, since the drop lajlfli'ill have no effect on projects already
luarter, UTIMCO has reported that the under way.
>01
Bind’s value is holding steady. He also
said the firm is unlikely to alter its in-
lestment strategies because of a short
gun dip in the economy.
I “The strategies they employ are no
different from those of most large en
dowments—they’re designed for the
|ng term, and the swings in the econo-
ijiy usually even out,” Kale said.
I Although a long-term decline in the
Sock market could affect the fund. Kale
Slid, the PUF has reaped the benefits of
For the quarter ending Nov. 30, the
Dow Jones industrial average was off
7.33 percent and the Standard & Poors
500 index was down 13.53 percent, while
the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 38.65 percent.
The PUF’s endowment capital
comes mostly from oil revenues on the
state’s vast land holdings in West
Texas, Kale said.
Created by the Texas Legislature,
UTIMCO has directed the universities’
investments since 1996.
By Brady Creel
The Battalion
Although the pro-life display
at Rudder Fountain sparked de
bate-in the Texas A&M commu
nity this week, student leaders on
the pro-choice side of the abor
tion spectrum say it has benefit
ed the campus.
“I think it has been a positive
event, just from the fact that it
has people thinking about [abor
tion] and talking about it,” said
Lynsey Kelly, vice president of
the A&M chapter of the Nation
al Organization of Women
(NOW) and a senior psycholo
gy major.
Although she does not sup
port Aggies for Life’s decision to
bring the display to campus, Kel
ly said, she has recognized the
benefits of the controversy.
“Putting [the display] aside, I
was pleasantly surprised to see
people taking action,” Kelly said.
Jennifer Woodson, president
of the A&M NOW chapter and
a senior bioenvironmental sci
ence major, said although she
disagrees with Aggies for Life’s
message, she applauds the
group's exercise of free speech
on campus and recognizes both
groups’ opportunity to educate
the student body about pro-life
and pro-choice philosophies.
“[The display] makes a lot of
people think about [abortion],
■ and they are looking for infor
mation,” she said.
Woodson said pro-life and
pro-choice groups have a com
mon goal: eliminating the need
for abortion. Education is paving
the way to that goal, she said.
“We decided not to protest
(the display) because our main
goal is to inform people,” she
said. “I don’t think it would get
a very good point across be
cause we just want people to see
both sides.”
Woodson said looking at both
sides of the issue is important be
cause many people at A&M have
not taken a position on abortion.
“[Abortion] is something that
can be affecting any one of us be
cause of friends or family, or
even in our future,” she said.
“You never know when the sub
ject is going to come up.”
Woodson said people must be
armed with adequate informa
tion so they can take a position
when necessary.
Natalie R. Wilson, a member
of NOW and a junior zoology
major, said she has already seen
See Debate on Page 2.
er Potential freshmen facing competition
r ith applications due Thursday, officials expect more than 18,000 applicants
Status nf
ctors,
itdoor
;s for the
armpit
Emily Hendrickson
\he Battalion
The closing date for admission
|> Texas A&M is Thursday, and
many potential A&M freshmen
Be nervously awaiting letters of
acceptance. The Class of ’05
faces drastically increased com-
letition for admission because of
his year’s record-breaking num-
pr of applicants.
“The only difference is, we
ave more applicants, but we are
bcepting the same number of
jeople as last year, the result be-
hgmore competition,” said Mary
Baldwin, assistant director of ad-
fiiiissions at A&M.
I Applicants who have not been
Iccepted will enter the final re-
liew phase and receive the Uni
versity’s decision notices the first
week in April.
“We expect over 18,000 appli
cants this year,” Baldwin said.
More than 15,000 freshman
applications have been received,
and many have already been ad
mitted, Baldwin said.
Automatic admission to any
Texas public college is guaran
teed to students who graduate in
the top 10 percent of their high
school class. Applicants who
meet that criteria have already
been notified of their acceptance,
and criteria for admissions have
not changed this year, she said.
The University of Texas-Austin
has received approximately 19,300
applications, but UT plans to ac
cept only 10,500 students, said Au
gustine Garza, deputy director of
admissions at UT.
Small changes have been
made to the application process at
UT, which no longer allows stu
dents to enter the provisional pro
gram. The provisional program
allows students to be tentatively
accepted to the university if they
go to summer school, complete
30 hours and maintain a 3.0
grade-point ratio (GPR), Garza
said. Now, UT requires students
to complete their summer session
at one of five other UT compo
nent universities, such as UT-E1
Paso and UT-Arlington.
The Texas Common Applica
tion has been instated as one
method of applying to colleges and
universities in Texas. Applicants
can submit a paper application or
an Web-based application. The
new system is less time consum
ing because students can complete
a single application for any Texas
public institution.
“Seventy-two percent of
freshman applications have been
received online,” Baldwin said.
Having been in place for only
a few years, the common appli
cation system is relatively new.
Students find it convenient be
cause all personal information is
automatically stored in the sys
tem. When students receive their
acceptance letters, it is only a
matter of double-checking their
information, Baldwin said.
See Applicants on Page 2.
Texas A&M Unive
ons expected
5 closing date
i t ; r
L9300 applications received
' Only 10,500 to be accepted
Top 10% of high school
graduates admitted automatically
RUBEN DELUNA/The Battalion
Condom
day aims
to convey
safe sex
By Brandie Liffick
The Battalion
While Feb. 14 usually brings to
mind thoughts of Valentine’s Day, it
also marks another nationally recog
nized event—National Condom Day.
Aggie Representatives Educating
About College Health (REACH) and
the Health Education 1 Department of
the Student Health Center will have ta
bles set up in the Memorial Student
Center (MSC) and the Commons
Lobby from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. today.
They will be distributing free condoms
and information on sexually transmit
ted infections (STIs).
National Condom Day, originally
National Condom Week, was created
in 1978 by a group of students from the
University of Califomia-Berkeley. The
American Social Health Association
(ASHA) consolidated National Con
dom Week into one day and incorpo
rated it with Sexual Responsibility
Week.
According to ASHA, approximate
ly 15.3 million cases of STIs are re
ported every year in the United States.
“I think [National Condom Day]
makes students think,” said Kristi Han-
le, case worker for AIDS Services of
Brazos Valley (ASBV). “A lot of col
lege-age students think that bad things
can’t happen to them. Unless they are
a
I think [National
Condom Day] makes
students think.”
— Kristi Hanle
ASBV case worker
shown how STDs and other sexually
transmitted diseases really can affect
them, many don’t bother to take pre
cautions. Awareness is very important.”
ASBV offers “safer sex kits” that
include condoms, gloves and pam
phlets with instructions on proper con
dom use, Hanle said.
“While it seems like a fairly easy
thing to do, there is a correct way and
an incorrect way to use a condom,”
Hanle said. “If a condom is used in
correctly, it becomes useless.”
Students can anonymously obtain
condoms from the pharmacy of the
A.R Beutel Health Center.
“Workers in the pharmacy will ask
you to fill out a form and then to wait
while they fill the order. It is 10 con
doms for $2,” said Jennifer Bradley,
Aggie REACH spokeswoman and a
senior community health major. “The
condoms are handed to you in a brown
paper bag with no marks on it, and no
one even has to know who you are.”
For students trying to find an even
more anonymous way to obtain con
doms, Freecondoms.com, drdrew.com
and condoms41ree.com all offer free con
doms, whether through ordering from
these sites or by visiting other sites. At
freecondoms.com, users earn “condom
See Condoms on Page 2.