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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 25, 2001)
Page 6 NATION — Wednesday.' THE BATTALION Upgrading Capitol security Prompted by the Capitol shooting three years ago that killed two policemen, the bombing in Oklahoma City and threat of terrorism, the Capitol is undergoing a $126 million effort to make it more secure. Inside, the congressional police force has better guns and protective equipment and the newest models of X-ray machines and metal detectors. Here's a look at improvements to the outside. Vehicle barriers at the four corners juuimwiuun^^ Capitol Reflecting Pool Capitol Visitor Center is planned to be completed in 2005. As an underground structure, it will be able to hold 5,000 people and provide better . Control for large crowds. Government building getting security upgra Bollards, 42 inches tall, along the north and south drives will complete a perimeter. Vehicle barriers at the exits and two entrances rise and lower to block or allow cars to pass. Traffic islands at the north and south entrances will slow entering and exiting traffic and block unauthorized vehicles. SOURCE: Capitol police Emily Brannan/AP WASHINGTON (AP) — The government has spent $126 million on security improvements at the Capitol since a gunman burst through the doors three years ago and killed two police officers. Finding the changes is not so easy. The most visible are cast-iron posts now being installed to stop any truck laden with explosives before it can get close to the Capitol. But even these bollards, more than a yard tall, look in nocuous. They are emblazoned with eagles and freshly painted forest green. Other improvements to make the Capitol less penetrable to would-be attackers are less visible. The 1,200-member congressional police force has more powerful guns strapped into holsters, higher quality bullet-stopping vests, guard posts with bulletproof glass, night-vision equip ment and devices to detect and com bat a chemical or biological attack. New X-ray machines provide the clearest possible pictures of items in handbags or briefcases, and top-of- the-line metal detectors tell officers — through a display of lights — what location on a person’s body set off an alarm. Still, those charged with keeping the landmark complex safe say the n^ed to keep the Capitol open and ac cessible to Americans comes with some security trade-offs. Just a few feet from lawmakers, millions ot tourists a year squeeze through lines and stand in corners to get a glimpse of democracy in action. “There’s an inherent vulnerability in the Capitol complex because of the openness we have to maintain,” said po lice Lt. Dan Nichols. “Our job is to do the best we can to manage this threat.” At 3:40 p.m., the time of the July 24, 1998, Capitol shootings, members of Congress, the families of the slain men and current officers gathered at the scene and bowed their heads to honor victims Jacob John M. Gibson. The a er, Russell Eugene Weston) held in a federal mental fad to face trial. Tourists say they feel safe “You walk through a lot detectors, so I felt fine,” sail Johnson, of Maple Grove, who visited recently. “It’s kb curity nightmare with people around in all different directi those tours. But I think th pretty good job.” The Capitol is just one foe; of a broad and expensive effor government to better pro: buildings and workers from like those that struck Oklaho: in 1995, a military barracksii Arabia in 1996 and U.S.erak Africa three years ago. The State Department k $3 billion to better secure bassies overseas. ■spect ch H-hour st; Study shows parents rely on ratings, not V-chi ALLAS (AP) ested after h limself inside vith a hostage Wednesday wii >lano toy store. wVillet Thorna was charged wi- cibery for the h. R' Us in Plano la.^ ■was in the Co in l eu of $100,0* ■Police arreste ter an 11 -hour hotel suite wf had barricadeq refused to leavd ■ Police were iij with the suspec ■e night, wh| Iclrtrie out of his: tel suite. The thi ml)tel had been ■ LOS ANGELES (AP) — Parents rely more on television ratings and less on the high-tech V-chip to choose the shows their children watch, according to a survey released Tuesday. While 40 percent of American families own a television set widi a V-chip installed to block desig nated programs with sex or vio lence, only 17 percent of those parents use the device, the Kaiser Family Foundation found. That means just 7 percent of all parents have relied on the V- chip, according to the survey. In comparison, more than half of all parents have used TV ratings. “A year and a half after its in troduction, the V-chip is being used by a small minority of par ents,” said foundation President Drew Altman. “TV ratings are more of a mainstream resource for concerned moms and dads.” Most parents, more than four out of five, were concerned that their children are being exposed to too much sex and violence on TV and believed that children’s behavior is affected by it, the survey found. More than half of parents (53 percent) who bought television sets after V-chips became stan dard equipment in January 2000 do not know that their set in cludes one. Among parents aware of the option, about one in three (36 percent) has programmed it to prevent their children from watching certain shows, accord ing to the survey from die inde pendent foundation, which ana lyzes health issues. Increasing criticism of TV fare in the 1990s led to imple mentation of the V-chip and the ratings system. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 required all new TV sets to contain a V-chip. To use the chip, parents must activate and program it. The 56 percent of parents who say they have used the TV ratings system for their children is simi lar to the proportion who say they use parental advisories on music (50 percent) and video and com puter games (59 percent). Movie ratings, the Kaiser Foundation noted, are used by 84 percent of parents. Most parents (92 percent) who have consulted TV ratings find them useful, similar to sim ilar to satisfaction levels with other kinds of ratings. But 40 percent of the parents surveyed said shows are not be ing rated in a way that accu rately reflects their content. Rating designations include TV-Y7 for children 7 and older, TV-14 for children 14 and old er, FV for fantasy violence, V for violence and D for suggestive dialogue. Nearly half of parents, 48 percent, say they believe that exposure to sexual content on television contributes “a lot” to children’s early sexual involve ment, while 47 percent of par ents surveyed think children’s exposure to violence on televi sion contributes “a lot” to vio lent behavior. Parents are divided about whether government :§§ Two other w regulate T V content. A the suite with th of all parents (48 percent Mere released, C and about half (47 perct: p^Q j 5 im pose new government kH, . tions t(> limit \i()lenced®9ISG tGcJCil TV shows during t!it« ^ ^ , I EL PASO, Te evening hours. n , , ' , ^Aso Independe American parents^. Bj c t: teachers wii ly worried aboutwhaiwjp ercent pay rai ; .!rcnarc"-atchinBl*«, 0 3 mj||ion kits them hut d° nt ffjackaqe apprt how to restrict unwanted e r h no i hnpu-H gramming,” s.nd \icwfckj T he packad out, vice president andL Tuesday, also wl ■'i 1 In. hHiMil.itionUVfTBor first-year i the Study ofEntertainme $30,000 from $: dia and Health. . J JimDamm, aj t,ertothe El Paso d COLLEGE SlATICNs #1 LANCE CELL SC’S REVR© M'% WEDNESD/ArS SI BAB BEINGS *“ TIL LCNGNECrS CLOSE CCLLE«3E NITE TEIERSE4^S cM) cent EEINES cent LCNeNECES 8-11 E.A4. j $100 HOT LEGGS CONTEST fRIDAr & SATURDAY S1.CC DAE EEINES & LCNGNECKS TILL 11 I.M. 18 + A COLTER CHAROE WITH COLLEGE I.O. Texas Avenue @ Southwest Pkwy. (Next to 4.0 & Go) 694*0818 Approval rating high fot Laura Bush, poll shows WASHINGTON (AP) — First lady Laura Bush has made a positive impression on the public during her six months in the White House. Sixty-four percent have a fa vorable view, a poll says, and she is not running into the re sentment faced by Llillary Rod ham Clinton in the 1990s. “I like what I’ve seen so far of Mrs. Bush,” said Marisa Mayerle, of Bowie, Md., whose husband serves in the Air Force. “There isn’t anything negative. She’s very quiet.” So far, there is not the parti san and gender resentment stirred by Mrs. Clinton, says the poll by the Pew Research Cen ter for the People & the Press. Half of Republicans viewed Mrs. Clinton unfavorably early in her husband’s term and more than a third of men viewed her unfavorably. Merf were just as likely as women to have a posi tive view of Mrs. Bush. One- fourth of Democrats saw her un favorably in the poll. The poll of 1,003 adults was taken July 2-12 and had an er ror margin of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. Mrs. Clinton, now a New York senator, had plenty of sup porters as well, with six in 10 viewing her favorably at the start of her stay in the White House, and almost that many viewing her favorably now. “Mrs. Bush is not as dynamic as Hillary Clinton was,” said package could c(j leed for a distric The El Paso d^ $1.56 per $U Valuation. The t tied to adopt a t September. — Nat The first lady’s Man sente approval rating infant's o' Laura Bush has a higherapp^! PHILADEl Pf rating than Hillary RodhamClWer Ivy Leagur had after six months at the# dent who fed c House. ■Mi Laura Bush Hillary Rodham Clinton Total Shawn Johnstone of Reston, Va. “This first lady seems a lot more low key.” When people were asked what word best describes 1 Mrs. Bush, they offered such re sponses as “nice,” “lady,” “classy,” “intelligent,” “quiet” and “good.” The same question about Mrs. Clinton drew such answers as “intelligent,” “smart,” “bossy,” “good,” “ag gressive” and “domineering.” People seem to view Mrs. Bush as personally consistent — from her low-key campaign personality to the private role she now plays in the White House. ■ 64% 60 Men 162% Women 166% 69 Republicans month-old boy quiet has been five to 10 years i child's death. H Donald P. f convicted of thii der and reckli ment in the 195 mund Porter | sentenced Tue: ffivo years in p distribution ch; 0 Ford and the Andrea Blue, : two-day drug I apartment wl died. The cocaii a baby bottle. I Ford gradual ■niversity and psychiatry resic versity of Penns The poll of 1,003 adults wastaken4|School. Blue, i 12 and has an error of marginolpl- Supervisor, W3 minus 3.5 percentage points. charges that HI 41 Democrats 154% ?L Whites I70 1 . 57 Blacks I 37% SOURCE: Pew Research Center ei dangermert Pjenced to 11 1| 1/2 months ini News in Brief Women pleads no contest to adopted child's abuse, death BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — A woman accused of murder in the torture death of her adopted son pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 55 years in prison Tuesday in a case that brought changes in Florida's child protection system. Heather Ciambrone, 32, was charged in the death of 7-year-old Lucas, who weighed 27 pounds when he died. Investigators found he had been kept locked in a bathroom and had bruises, scratches and bro ken ribs. Ciambrone's husband, Joseph Ciambrone, was convicted of murder in 1997 and sentenced to life. He has blamed Lucas' death on his wife. The Ciambrones were allowed to adopt Lucas even though a caseworker, a doctor and others had expressed concerns. The Department of Children and Families has since created an early-warning system to handle abuse reports more efficiently. Tennis Continued from Pol Cass described Hunter 1 metts, a top-100 player natiof at the junior levels, as “a f sleeper. “I look for him to come in add great depth,” Cass said. “He comes from an Aggie*, ily, so that can’t he bad.” Cass described Lester Coe consensus top-10 player d brother played for Cass at. Mexico as “a great all aroundf er, very solid. “I’m looking for him tocofl* and help us and win right aw/ Croatian national Ante Mi 1 vie, another top TO player, “k excellent pedigree,” says Cass “He’s played in Wimbledon French Open, so he has a lotoi perience and he should mn impact right away.”
