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THE BATTALIi
NEWS IN BRIEF
ioke, Walthall an;
Williams elected
003 class agents
The team of G
/althall, Kelly Coke i
lift Williams was elec
003 class agents dur
ie March 27-28 stuc;
ody elections. They \
ered 60 percent of' ‘
Dte against two ot
•ams. Also on the bi
ere the class gifts for
lasses of 2003 and 2(t
ie results will B ^l e ll no f ur y a driver scorned,
mounced by class coy l When Robert Slaughter finds himself behind
aders April 5 at R m slow driver, he said he tailgates to encourage
ance. Voting in nr Bhat driver to go faster,
ections will begin todi I “Road rage can affect me for a moment
a.m. and end at 5 f mvhen 1 am enjoying the radio or the weather,
lursday. Students canc^nd someone takes me out of that moment,”
eir ballots
)te.tamu.edu.
The Battalion
Page 3A • April 2, 2003
Deranged drivers
[Students struggle to keep their cool behind the steering wheel
By Jena Honeycutt
THE BATTALION
Correction
In the March
age article "Board
ftaid Slaughter, a senior journal
ism major, ‘if someone cuts off
lomeone else or me or if they
lev their engine at a stoplight, it
|s really annoying.”
Slaughter said when another
legents approve tuit:
ie gets right up on their bumper.
If the driver is in another lane,
pe said, he will get ahead of
■hem in their lane and then drive
leally slow.
Slaughter said he does not
■lip off other cars because he
^^^^^lonsiders this to be an extreme
pproved study abrt |l a y of expressing anger. He
rogram independent ■ a j t j j ie neV er knows if that driv-
exas A&M. w j|| notice his car when it is
in a parking lot and do some-
^Tiing to it to get him back.
acrease," Umvei;
’resident Robert M. Gs
aid the new £
idependent Study Abro
; assessed only for s
ents participating in
Road rage can
affect me for a mo
ment when I am en
joying the radio or
the weather and
someone takes me
out of that
. w
moment.
— Robert Slaughter
senior journalism major
TAP!
following
on was
>red on
day, April 1
n Keith Kno
igineering
nology majoii
I “1 can tell the difference between an honest
mistake and a jerk, but if they are in a show-
boat car, it doesn’t help them,” he said.
I Slaughter said he occasionally tries to give
Cither drivers the benefit of the doubt in their
actions.
I “All can be forgiven with a little wave (or)
any attempt to apologize ” he said. “That’s
What 1 do.”
I Senior Trooper Eddie Carmon, safety edu
cation officer at the Texas Department of
Public Safety, said there are cases of aggres
sive driving each day in College Station, but
the cases seldom become physical. When most
people think of road rage, Carmon said, they
are actually thinking of what he terms “aggres
sive driving.”
“Most road rage results in fistfights between
drivers,” he said. “One event in Fort Worth
resulted in one of the drivers pulling a pistol
and shooting the other driver.”
Carmon said he does not pull drivers over
for yelling and waving particular gestures. But,
he said, he does stop drivers for
actions that could result in injury.
If a driver does something that
could be perceived as an act that
is breaking the peace, such as
flipping off another driver,
Carmon said there is little he can
do about it.
At most, he said, he can
argue “lewd behavior” or “disor
derly conduct,” which is difficult
to enforce.
Carmon said he has not
noticed any particular pattern in
the age and sex of most aggres
sive drivers and road rage cases.
“We live in a rush-rush
world,” he said. “People just
fly off the handle because
they are mad at their boss, their boyfriend, $
their professors.” fj/j
Carmon said if anybody is involved
with an angry driver, it is best to get
away from them. If someone does
something that has upset another
driver, such as accidentally cutting ,
them off, he advises apologizing
by waving.
“They are only in your life for a
few seconds,” Carmon said. “It is not
worth getting involved with this person
over something so trivial as a car cutting you
off.”
However, the apologetic wave is not enough
fc
ntho
rexas, I
V-
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/.pphouston.ort
L, Bryan, TX 7 7801
1 off office visit
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MaximiHian Alexander
Newest Cast Member of
''All My Children”,
Playing the role of “Carlos”
Crystal Wiseman
Signed with
Superior Talent Agency, LA
Class of 2002
K
OPEN TALENT CALL
HERE ARE JUST A FEW
STUDENTS OF NIKKI
PEDERSON TALENT WHO
HAVE BEEN SIGNED WITH
TOP AGENTS AND
MANAGERS
The Nikki Pederson Model & Talent
Academy is pleased to announce it will
be hosting a scouting event in Bryan on
Saturday, April 5 at 4:00 pm, and
Sunday, April 6 at 2:00 pm for the
International Modeling &
Talent Association Convention,
“Hooray For Hollywood” 2004.
Actors, Actresses, Singers, Dancers and
Models are encouraged to audition. The
IMTA is a distinguished and legitimate
avenue to meet agents and begin learn
ing about a career outside the Brazos
Valley Market. If you are selected to
attend the LA Convention and
Competitions you will have the opportu
nity to audition for and interview with
scores of modeling and talent agents,
you might never have the chance to
meet otherwise. It is truly a once in a
lifetime event for the aspiring model and
talented individuals. Nikki Pederson
Talent had an Outstanding 95% Agency
callback rate at the last International
Model & Talent Convention &
Competitions.
Stars like Katie Holmes, Elijah Wood,
Jessica Biel & Cover Girl Model, jessica
White, along with many others were
discovered at an IMTA Convention.
822-5104
Auditions held at
1004 S. Coulter, BRYAN
www.nikkipedersontalent.com
• Open to ages 8 years and older
• No experience is necessary
• A personal photo/snapshot
is required!
Michael Vitulli
Signed with
Superior Talent Agency, LA
Tiffany Thornton
Signed with
Stein Entertainment, LA
Valarie Renter
Recording Demo with
Michael lay,
Jambo Productions, LA
Elliot Schrock
Signed with
Handprint Entertainment, LA
for the Roth sisters. Kathryn Roth, a freshman
business major, said shrugging your shoulders
and whispering apologies does not compensate
for moronic driving.
Clare Roth, a senior math major, said she
becomes so angry
that she will
scream and
shake when
angered by
another driv
er. Clare said
she does not
retaliate against the
offenders, but instead
releases her fury
through self-inflicted
(Sttll*/.® 11
minor injuries.
Clare said that while driving in typical
Aggie football game traffic this fall, she was
cut off numerous times. This, in combination
with “dealing with stupid drivers,” led Clare to
slam her fist into her car’s center console. She
said her hand was bruised and hurt for days
afterwards.
Kathryn said she rates her responses to those
of other drivers.
“You have the clenched fist, the hammer and
my personal favorite, the classic flip off,” she said.
Concerned with her angered response to other
drivers, Kathryn said she made a New Year’s res
olution to give up her aggressive driving.
“I just wanted to be a calmer driver, and
it’s working for me so far,” she said.