THE BATTali
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THE
109 Years Serving Texas A&M University
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Volume 109 • Issue 154 • 6 pages
A&M courts Hispanic students
Wednesday, June 18, 2003
By Natalie Younts
THE BATTALION
The percentage of Hispanic students
admitted in the fall increased by 11 per
cent, Texas A&M officials said, but of
those admitted, only 650 students have
confirmed they will be attending.
While this is an increase of 7 percent
from last year, administrators are still
concerned.
1 “It’s not so much a matter of the
number of kids who apply,” said A&M
President Robert M. Gates. “The disturb
ing thing is the number of students that
we admit who choose not to come here.
We want those kids who meet our stan
dards and who share our culture to want
to come to A&M.”
Dr. Frank Ashley, director of admis
sions, said 2,079 Hispanics completed
applications for fall admission, an
increase of 8 percent from last year, and
1,341 of those were admitted.
According to a report by the Office of
Institutional Studies and Planning, 34,038
undergraduate students enrolled at A&M
during spring 2003. Of those, 82.4 percent
were white, 9 percent were Hispanic, 3.2
percent were Asian, 2.4 percent were black
and 0.5 percent were American Indian.
The biggest asset for Hispanics is the
family atmosphere, said Higor Gil, a sen
ior computer science major and co-vice
president of the Society of Hispanic
Professional Engineers.
“We always go back to our family and
bring that sense of family to wherever
we go. I feel we try to bring that to
A&M,” he said.
In addition to a sense of family, Gil
said Hispanics bring liveliness, energy
and an understanding of a different
viewpoint to A&M.
Atanacio Hinojosa, a senior manage
ment major and student coordinator for
the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, said
Hispanics Offer something unique to the
University.
See Hispanics on page 2
Increased Hispanics at A&M
34,038 undergraduates enrolled in Spring 2003
82.4% White
9% Hispanic
3.2% Asian
2.4% Black
0.5% American
Indian
2.5% Other
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Asbestos found
in MSC Annex
By Megan Orton
THE BATTALION
Renovation projects on the regent wing of the
Memorial Student Center Annex, which began as
| a ceiling sprinkler system installation, have led to
an asbestos abatement, said University Center
Manager Dennis Bush.
The repairs began in response to a mandate by
the state fire marshall, who ordered that sprinkler
systems be installed in overnight residences
| according to state law. Bush said.
When the repairs began, a significant amount
of asbestos-containing material was found in the
ceiling being used as a fire retardant and sprayed
on the metal structuring of the rooms in the regent
wing. Small amounts were also found on light fix
tures and in other remote places.
Asbestos refers to several type of fibrous min
erals divided into two categories, amphibole and
serpentine. It is hazardous because once in the
toman body, it can remain there indefinitely in the
/ung tissue and eventually cause cancer.
“The amount of asbestos found was below the
amount that requires you to close down,” said
See Asbestos on page 2
SHARON AESCHBACH • THE BATTALION
Ladders lean against the Memorial Student Center as
crews replace asbestos-filled areas of the Texas A&M
University System Board of Regents wing.
Modeling the past
RUBEN DELUNA • THE BATTALION
SOURCE: OFFICE OF INSTITUTIONAL STUDIES & PLANNING
Crackdown
continues in
Iraqi capital
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BRIAN RUFF • THE BATTALION
Nautical archeology program research assistant
Glenn Grieco attaches a cannon to a replica of the
U.S. Brig Jefferson, a ship that patrolled the waters
of the Great Lakes during the War of 1812. The
model is precise down to the number of nails and
timbers used on the original ship. The model will
take almost 18 months to complete, and will be
housed in the Anthropology Building.
By Jim Krane &
Donna Abu-Nasr
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
BAGHDAD, Iraq — U.S.
authorities announced creation of a
new criminal court Tuesday and a
panel to purge judges loyal to
Saddam Hussein. The U.S. military
said a sweep of loyalist strongholds
resulted in 400 arrests, and an
American soldier was killed in
Baghdad.
The reforms announced by L.
Paul Bremer, the top U.S. official in
Iraq, are designed to upgrade a judi
cial system that catered to
Saddam’s desires rather than the
rule of law.
The two new authorities — the
Judicial Review Committee and the
Central Criminal Court — are
important steps in giving the Iraqi
people a justice system they can
trust and respect, Bremer said.
“The review committee’s task is
to clean up Iraq’s judiciary,” he
said. “If the committee finds any
judge or prosecutor who violates
these standards, the committee will
dismiss him or her from office.”
The committee will consist of
three Iraqis and three members of
the occupying coalition and will
finish its initial work in three to
four months, Bremer said.
The criminal court will help the
judiciary crack down on criminals
undermining Iraq’s security and
reconstruction. They “will be
brought to justice without delay,”
Bremer said.
Some judges and lawyers
scoffed at what they called U.S.
interference in their courts.
“The Americans are an occupa
tion force and we are the source of
one of the oldest codes of law —
Hammurabi’s Code,” judge
Qassem Ayyash said. “It’s like
teaching a driver how to drive.”
Iraq’s judiciary has not recov
ered from the war. Most courts have
been looted or destroyed and
See Iraq on page 2
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Consumer prices hold steady
By Jeannine Aversa
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
WASHINGTON —
Consumer prices held steady
and big industry boosted pro
duction for the first time
since February, a double dose
of good news for the wobbly
economy.
The flat reading in the
Labor Department’s
Consumer Price Index for
May, which came after a 0.3
percent decline in April,
eased worries that the coun
try could be headed for defla
tion, an economically dan
gerous long-term slide in
prices, economists-said.
The CPI report “should
help alleviate some of the
nagging fears of deflation,”
said Mark Vitner, an econo
mist at Wachovia.
Production at the nation’s
factories, mines and utilities
nudged up by 0.1 percent
last month after dropping by
a sharp 0.6 percent in both
March and April, the Federal
Reserve said in a report that
economists viewed as a sign
the nation’s battered indus
trial sector could be turning
a corner.
Also, the Commerce
Department reported thaU
housing construction bounced
back in May despite rainy
weather in some parts of the
country, escalating 6.1 per
cent to an annual rate of 1.73
million. That performance
came after a 6.3 percent
decline in April.
The latest batch of eco
nomic reports Tuesday
raised hopes that the lum
bering economy would pick
up its pace in the second
half of this year.
At the White House, pres
idential spokesman Ari
Fleischer said the CPI report
suggested that deflation is
“not a serious worry” and
that President Bush “is hope
ful the signs of economic
growth will continue to gath
er steam.”
Still, many economists
believe the Federal Reserve
will cut short-term interest
rates, now at a 41 -year low of
1.25 percent, by at least a
quarter of a percentage point
at its meeting next Tuesday
and Wednesday. The thinking
is that the Fed wants to ener
gize the economy and help
ward off even the threat of
deflation.
Although Fed policy
makers say the chance of
deflation is remote, the cen
tral bank still must be alert
because of deflation’s poten
tial to wreck the economy,
economists said.
The United States’ last
Factory output
Here is a look at the industrial
production index.
Seasonally adjusted 1997 = 100
SOURCE: Federal Reserve Board AP
serious deflation occurred
during the Great Depression.
A bad case of deflation
can lead not only to wide
spread price declines —
from goods and services to
real-estate and stocks — but
also to job losses and pay
cuts. On Wall Street, stocks
posted small gains.
Abbas seeks end of militancy,
attacks continue despite plea
By Ibrahim Barzak
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip —
Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud
Abbas failed on Tuesday to persuade
militant groups to end attacks on
Israelis. Just after their meeting,
Palestinian gunmen opened fire on a
car and killed an Israeli child.
A 7-year-old girl was killed and a
5-year-old girl was seriously wound
ed in the shooting on a highway just
inside Israel, close to the West Bank
town of Qalqiliya. Army radio said
the gunfire came from the West
Bank. There was no immediate claim
of responsibility.
Israeli government official
Zalman Shoval said the shooting
showed that alongside peace efforts,
“our own battle with the terrorists
will have to continue.”
Violent Palestinian groups have
so far refused to halt attacks, despite
tremendous Palestinian, Egyptian,
and international pressure backed up
by the prospect of a serious Israeli
campaign to wipe the militants out.
A deal would apparently require
Israel to commit to ending killings of
militant leaders.
Such an agreement could reported
ly include the release of uprising
leader Marwan Barghouti — a Fatah
leader perhaps second only to Arafat
in popularity among the Palestinians.
But some Israeli officials dismissed
that as a possibility.
Abbas’ three-hour meeting with
leaders of militant groups produced no
truce accord, but there was agreement
to continue the talks. Ismail Abu
Shanab of Hamas said Hamas leaders
“are still discussing this subject within
the movement and have not yet made
See Mlideast on page 2