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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 2003)
5A_ Thursday, October 16, 2003 STATE AGGIELIfi THE BATTALIO THE BATTALION The 2004 Japan Exchange and Teaching Program r » r More defendants added to Merrill Lynch-Enron case [J.com inditl camera imiiaiti to discern whatisral o blow up in yourfatt else look like an ftt ars ago, several prait arzenegger harassiij liese prank calls ha?; y sometimes believd as a closet jerk. Wet es, the site originator! e unsuspecting putt’ in assortment of otto . A1 Pacino and Ora available on ebai® ;tive pleasure are Ik calls using celebnti or so celebrities wit des videos, audio ami hat kills hours of time, are video aboutmcii- s were young. Also ane stunts that woi ious clips ofayouit ius Star Wars kid thl ection includes more 'he animation sectioi ernet. Id.com are hilarious ,hort of humorous.lt a majority of funaj and links, the siteis one laugh. — Robert Sauced? _ t 1 19 3r By Kristen Hays THE ASSOCIATED PRESS HOUSTON — A former Enron Corp. accountant and a former Merrill Lynch & Co. executive pleaded innocent Wednesday to conspiracy charges in connection with a sham deal to help the energy company inflate 1999 earnings with a loan disguised as a sale of Nigerian barges. Sheila K. Kahanek, the in- house accountant, and William R.Fuhs, a former vice president for the brokerage firm, were added as defendants to last month’s indictment of three for mer Merrill Lynch executives for allegedly participating in the barge scheme. Both were freed on $100,000 bond, according to court records. Also Dan Boyle, a former Enron finance executive indict ed in April on similar charges related to the barge deal, was added to the Merrill Lynch exec utives’ case. Originally he was added in April as a defendant to an indictment charging former Enron finance chief Andrew Fastow with nearly 100 counts including insider trading, fraud, money laundering and conspira cy for a wider scope of alleged schemes including the barge deal. Both he and Boyle have pleaded innocent as well. Attorneys for Kahanek and Fuhs didn’t immediately return calls for comment from The Associated Press. Prosecutors allege Enron, with Merrill’s knowledge, booked a short-term $7 million investment from the brokerage as a $12 million profit from sale of Nigerian barges in December 1999. Enron’s pre vious efforts to find a buyer had failed and the energy com pany needed the sale to appear to have met earnings targets. But prosecutors say it wasn't a genuine sale because Enron — namely, Fastow — promised Merrill would be bought out with in six months. In June 2000, LJM2, one of several partnerships Fastow ran to do deals with Enron, bought Merrill’s interest in the barges for $7.5 million. Last month former Merrill executives Daniel Bayly, Robert Burst and James A. Brown became the first Wall Street bankers to be hit with criminal charges in the aftermath of Enron’s scandalous collapse in 2001. All three plead ed innocent and were freed on $100,000 bond. Charges against those three remain unchanged in the expanded indictment unsealed Wednesday. Like them, Kahanek, Fuhs and Boyle are charged with conspiracy to falsi fy books and records. Perjury and obstruction of jus tice charges tiled against Brown last month for allegedly lying to investigators and a grand jury in Houston investigating Enron’s collapse also remain unchanged. The new indictment charges Fuhs with lying to the FBI and obstruc tion of the grand jury investigation as well. Prosecutors allege Brown and Fuhs lied to investigators when they said they knew noth ing of the secret buyback deal. The indictment alleged Furst “caused a document” that sum marized the barge deal, including Enron’s guarantee to buy back Merrill’s interest at a premium. Brown assigned Fuhs to get the deal done, and Bayly confirmed Fastow’s buyback promise when others at Merrill expressed doubts about the transaction. MADD unveils new video about dangers of alcohol DALLAS (AP) — Mothers Against Drunk Driving will roll out a new 35-minute video Thursday that uses rock music, movie clips and real-life testi monials to warn middle and high school students about the dangers of drinking and driving. The video, called “FACE,” is interspersed with testimonials from kids who’ve lived in crack houses, had friends killed in drunken driving accidents and served prison time after stealing money to buy drugs. The DVD will be played on a 15-by-45-foot screen at some 2,000 schools across the coun try. Schools must pay $675 per show, or $1,350 for multiple presentations in one day. “We believe the combination of music videos, movie and TV clips, and real-life stories will be highly effective with students as they view FACE throughout the school year,” MADD national president Wendy J. Hamilton said. The video is narrated by pop singer Solange Knowles, sister of Beyonce Knowles, who at one point advises, “Grabbing the keys is easy. Being a good driver is the hard part.” After the video, there is a question and answer session with teachers and students. The video is an updated ver sion of one that debuted three years ago and has been seen by about 2 million students at about 3,000 schools, MADD spokes woman Misty Moyse said. The Irving, Texas-based group said it’s important that kids know about drinking and driving before they head off to college. MADD cited a study in the January issue Journal of Studies on Alcohol which found that the younger people are the first time they get drunk, the more likely they are to be alcohol dependent once they attend college. For example, children who first got drunk before age 12 were at least four times more likely to be alcohol dependent by college than someone who waited until they were 19 years old to drink, said Ralph Hingson, Associate Dean for Research at Boston University’s School of Public Health and the study’s author. H i n g s o n ’ s research was based on the 1999 Harvard College Alcohol Survey, which analyzed the drinking habits of 12,550 19- year-old students at 119 colleges. A report last month by the Institute of Medicine and the National Research Council called underage drinking a $53 billion problem and urged high er alcohol taxes and tougher sales laws to deal with the issue. We believe the combination of mu sic videos, movie and TV clips, and real-life stories will be highly effective. — Wendy J. Hamilton MADD national president redit. y class school ■ large selection of ith this ad. : all masks, wigs ifds. ;cond gift and get em. /” Sale. Take .dy reduced items ;at all jp of jewelry, ving. all sale items. <tion in the OFF. ireat—. PS® A Nashville Six-Pack NASHVILLE MANDOLIN ENSEMBLE Performance to be followed by Q&A with audience members Thursday, October I 6 7:30 PM Rudder Theatre TICKETS 845-1234 www.MSCOPAS.org Six of Nashville’s most accomplished musicians will assemble on the stage of Rudder Theatre for a concert: packed with perfect pickin’! Known as the Nashville Mandolin Ensemble, these s;ix guys will perform bluegrass, pop, country and more — all on mandolins. Start strummiing! buy tickets, be inspired Support Provided By: MSC OPAS virJ oarcJner's 7'bree Decades of Performing Arts- uliglhm j entertain r Tickets Ifiange From $IO-$20! Teach English in junior and senior high schools in Japan Learn about Japanese culture and people . Gain international experience A Requirements • Have an excellent command of the English language • Obtain a bachelor’s degree by July 1,2004 • Be a U.S. citizen • Be willing to relocate to Japan for one year s’ Applications are now available. The deadline for applying is December 5,2003. For more information and an application contact the Consulate General of Japan in Houston at Wells Fargo Plaza, Suite 2300, 1000 Louisiana St., Houston, TX 77002. Call (713) 652-2977 x120 or 1-800-INFD-JET or email: jetcoord@cgjhouston.org. The application can also be found at www.us.emb-japan.go.jp GOOD BULL. UNIVERSITY OR. & COLLEGE AVE. VWVPV. THX/1SII si LLOif/tlYtE. IWHT O 979-822-2222 ■Jl .rm ■ ■ M’to’tr ■■ ■ ■ UPB WrmmUUM 25 Years tah Radney Foster ♦ $1 u-call-its and $1.50 longnecks til 10 pm ♦ $2.50 pitchers and $1.50 chuggers all night! ♦ All tickets $8 at the door ♦ Live in concert & singing “Texas in 1880”, “Everyday Angel” & “Scary Old World” ♦ Tickets on sale now for onl y $8 AT CA VENDERS, BASKINS, AND THE Hall ($10 da y of show) ♦ With special guest: OWEN TEMPLE! ♦ $1 U-CALL-ITS AND $1.50 LONGNECKS TIL 10 P.M. ♦ $1.50 CHUGGERS AND $2.50 PITCHERS ALL NIGHT! ♦ Tickets on sale now for only $12 at Lavenders, Baskins, and the Hall ($15 day of show) ♦ Live in Concert and singing: “Holding Her and Loving You” & “Don’t Make it Easy for Me” Earl Thomas CONLEY The Texas Halt of Fame encourages you to drink responsibly and always designate a driver. Free soft drinks to designated drivers over 21,