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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 23, 2003)
WORLI THE BATTALIOI e over rcent 3ge costs risi (rage cost of colleger.* rer the past ten years how it breaks downtj jn type: 94 m 2003-04 Accielife: No bad seeds • Page 3A Opinion: Dress code debacle • Page 5B THE BATTALION Volume 110 • Issue 40 • 18 pages A Texas A&M Tradition Since 1893 www.thebattaIion.net Thursday, October 23, Women’s business club boasts rapid growth and fees $1.509 lie . | $2,097 Percents* changi m 3,058 46 ic _ 14,454 ate 11,821 44 ■ 17.040 Iwges ^ Chang* ic 1C ite $1,509 | $2,097 7,538 19,929 17,119 ■ 23,443 m 32 37 jsted for inflation to 2003 dtfc unweighted averages he College Board critical that families 1 college education is jach because of finan- id,” said Gaston 1, the president of Ike Board. stumbles neral de Chastelaintk: sparent report of majoi said Trimble, who voters needed to knw we have not had that. wouldn’t allow hi® pe of weapons discard )sal — the same poly two previous weap - r 2001 and April 21. tacked away from fc Ulster Unmists mt- > with Sinn Fein based ich a declaration was to n a string of choreo- ■nts Tuesday. \dains called Trimble’s ting,” but defended the its handover of weapon- a face-saving measure, an be fixed in the short as been a senior IRA 970s, according to sev- n Ireland conflict, jssibility of a genuine Sinn Fein and the ggested instead that erve and that his part; ng the IRA does, een, under any circum- ng at all. Do youthinh er and the taoiseacl d have flown in here )een an agreement and is said. day’s unraveling wort oying,” and poked fi cerns. don’t want to be, and out the brand named ng,” he said. ce 1982 By Rhiannon Meyers THE BATTALION Kristen West said she couldn’t help but stop at the balloon-adorned booth of the American Business Women’s Association at the Memorial Student Center Open House this fall. The vivid dis play and the officers’ bright smiles motivated the freshman business major to sign up for ABWA on the spot, she said. “I saw it at Open House and thought it was real ly interesting,” West said. “The girls at the table were so enthusiastic.” That enthusiasm spread quickly. After only a month in existence as a Texas A&M organization, the ABWA A&M chapter now boasts 262 members, making it the largest chapter in the nation since the formation of the national ABWA in 1949. “It just took off,” said Cally Blakenship, presi dent of the ABWA A&M chapter and a senior finance major. “We were expecting 30 people maybe, but at our first meeting, we had a room reserved for 120 people and people kept piling in until it was completely crowded. It was incredible” Blakenship said she came up with the idea to cre ate an ABWA chapter at A&M, and along with four friends, founded the first women’s organization in the Mays Business School this fall. Susan Billingsley, vice president of operations and co-founder of ABWA, said she and fellow founders wanted to create a way for women to net work and encourage each other while learning more about the business world, specifically about how women are affected by it. “We bring an avenue for women to prepare themselves for the business world beyond even what the business school can offer,” Billingsley said. Billingsley said ABWA is open to all business majors and minors with membership opportunities each fall. ABWA is specifically centered around women and business and addresses issues, including effectively balancing a career and family, cross gen der communication in the corporate world and maintaining health and fitness. Billingsley said that with more than 55,000 members nationwide, ABWA also provides opportunities for members to network with other professionals in the business field. “I joined for the fellowship of other girls in the business arena,” said Natalie Claiborne, a junior marketing major. “I hope to gain insight from them and educate myself on the business world for women right now.” Claiborne said she is excited so many women decided to join the organization. “I think it is really amazing and it speaks a lot for See Business on page 7A Grant to aid research on diabetes, obesity By Bart Shirley THE BATTALION A team of researchers at the Center for the Study of Health Disparities has received a $1.1 million grant, issued by the National Institute of Health’s National Center on Minority and Health Disparities, which will be used to study diabetes education and management and childhood obesity. The team is head ed by B. Lee Green, associate professor of health and human safety in the College of Education. The grant was designed by the NIH to aid universities and centers of research as part of its Wealthy People 2010 program, which is designed to increase quality and years of healthy life and eliminate health dis parities, according to www.healthypeo- ple.gov. Green said the Healthy People 2010 program is the “blueprint for health in the United States.” The diabetes study will be conducted in conjunction with the Bryan-College Station Community Health Clinic. Statistics show Hispanics and blacks are particularly at risk for diabetes. The study will examine why there are such dis parities between minorities and the popu lation at large. “Diabetes is a major issue in minority populations, “ Green said. “These problems are absolutely on the rise.” Ranjia Misra, assistant professor of health and kinesiology, said her focus on the team is the study of diabetes. She will look at the psychosocial aspects of the disease. Misra said her goal is knowledge, accept ance and self-management of the disease among patients afflicted with it. “A lot of people don’t think that it (dia betes) is serious,” Misra said. It can take several years for complica tions to develop fully, which explains why the prevailing public opinion of diabetes is one of nonchalance, she said. N i 1 e s h Chatterjee, assis tant professor of health and kine siology, will be heavily involved in educating the public, because of his role as community sup port enhancer on the team. “My role will be to develop a relationship with (the) community and build capaci ty,” Chatterjee said. The team, which also includes Jeff Guidry, associate professor of health and kinesiology, and Mitchell Rice, director of the Race and Ethnic Studies Institute, wants to give peo ple tools to solve their own problems, Chatterjee said. In terms of the childhood obesity aspect of the study. Green said the team will coor dinate its efforts with Prairie View A&M and the city of Prairie View. Schools will be monitored, and the team will receive reports from teachers in area schools in an attempt to gauge the See Grant on page 7A National Institute of Health Grant Texas A&M's Center for the Study of Health Disparities will use the $1.1 million grant from the NIH to study diabetes and obesity. -t The team will study the misdiagnosis of obesity. Someone with a body mass index: —QAbove 25 is overweight —QAbove 30 is obese -#1 Because ethnic groups have ^different body structures, overweight percentages differ. Andrew Burleson • THE BATTALION Source : WWW.CDC.GOV Slam dunk Randal Ford • THE BATTALION Will Dillard, a junior industrial distribution major, attempts to noon. Maysfest is an on-campus festival put on by the put a ball through a basket while attached by a cord to the Business Student Council and is held between Wehnerand the middle of an inflatable game at Maysfest Wednesday after- West Campus Library. Al-Qaida in Iran At least five senior al-Qakta operatives are suspected of going to Iran after the Taliban fell in neighboring Afghanistan. f 1 Saif al-Adil, Egyptian Aliases: Muhamad Ibrahim MaKkawi, Ibrahim Al-Madani, Saif al-Adel Born: 1S60 or 1963 Role; Osama bin Laden’s security and intelligence chief. Considered No. 3 man In afOaida in 2003. Allegations: Tied to attacks on U.S. troops in Mogadishu (1993). East Africa Embassy bombings (1998), USS Cole bombing (2000); suspected of ties to Riyadh residential complex bombings (2003) Abu Mohamed al-Masri Egyptian Aliases: Abdullah Ahmed Abdullah, Abu Mariam. Saleh Bom: 1963 Role: Operational and training coordinator. Allegations: Ran the al- Farouq terrorist training camp near Kandahar, f Abu Hafs the Mauritanian Mauritanian f , before Sept, 11. Tied to attacks on U.S, troops in Mogadishu (1993), East Africa Embassy bombings (1998). Aliases: Mahfouz Quid al-Walid, Khalid al-Shanqitl Bom: Around 1970 Role: Operational lieutenant and ideological counselor for al-Qaida. Bom: 1980 Role: One of Osama bin Laden's elder sons, a rising e j l. figure in the organization Saad bin Laden Saudi but still mid-level in terms of actual authority. Allegations: Suspected of ties to the Tunisian synagogue bombing ■' (2002). f Abu Musab Zarqawi Jordanian Aliases: Ahmad Fadeel Nazzal Al- : Khalaylah, Hussein Mohammed Khalaylah Born: 1966 Role: Senior associate of Osama bin Laden, operates somewhat outside the al-Qaida chain of command. Allegations: Thought to command al- Qaida’s operations in postwar Iraq. Tied to foiled bombings of tourist sites in Jordan (2000), killing of U.S, diplomat in Jordan (2002), and ongoing attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq (2003), SOURCE: Associated Press AP Iran claims nuclear victory over U.S. By Brian Murphy THE ASSOCIATED PRESS TEHRAN, Iran — With the European Union now in his corner, Iran’s president on Wednesday described the showdowns over the country’s nuclear ambitions as a diplomatic “boxing match” with the United States. Iran is claiming victory in the lat est round. A promise to expand the bounds of nuclear inspections and suspend urani um enrichment — made Tuesday after talks with foreign ministers from Germany, France and Britain -4- is expected to secure Iran’s immediate goal: keeping allegations of a secret atomic weapons program from reaching the U.N. Security Council. But Iran also displayed its ability to work the diplomatic seams as part of a broader strategy to isolate Washington on the nuclear issues, experts said. Iran — facing an Oct. 31 deadline to prove its nuclear program is peaceful — reached out to EU heavyweights that favor dialogue with the Islamic rulers. The tougher line favored by Washington suddenly appeared stalled. “It’s been like a boxing match with a powerful, unjust rival trying to sway world opinion,” said Iran’s president, Mohammad Khatami. “Now it has turned into a marathon run. The world has learned that we have been sincere.” President Bush, in Indonesia, called See Iran on page 2A Senate pushes for SGA financial report By Sarah Walch THE BATTALION The Texas A&M Student Senate passed a bill Wednesday night affinning that the entire Student Government Association “supports all efforts to make all SGA committee line-item budgets derived from Student Service Fees avail able to any inquiring individual.” Student Service Fees account for 35 percent of funding for SGA committees. The bill will not go into effect until signed by Student Body President Matt Josefy, who has four days to choose whether to sign or veto the document. Speaker of the Senate Matthew Wilkins said the Student Senate strongly supports openness. “Student Senate supports release of these data, and Senate has never been the roadblock,” he said. “A representative organization that fights openness and democracy is destined to become little more than an irrelevant bureaucracy.” Josefy, a senior accounting major, said he had some concerns about open access to SGA budget information after bill authors and senators Jeff Graham and Keni Ward presented their arguments in favor of the bill. The opening of financial information to the public at large might bring a higher level of scrutiny to SGA committees and force them to answer questions about how their money is being spent, Josefy said. When non-SGA individuals look at the information, they may not fully under stand how and where money is being spent, he said. Also, there would be a loss of privacy and the autonomy and privacy of the committees would be threatened by the change. Whip Jibran Namji said the rules laid out by the Texas Legislature, a more knowledgable body than the Senate, must have implemented this process for a rea son. Namji proposed an Bush, GOP discourage support for Iraqi loans By Alan Fram THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — The White House and Republican congression al leaders are trying to snuff out sup port for Iraqi loans, even though the House voted symbolically to include the lOUs in the $87 billion package for Iraq and Afghanistan. The 277-139 House vote was ambiguous. Lawmakers approved a nonbinding resolution voicing sup port for Iraqi loans and better med ical benefits for U.S. veterans and military reservists, making it diffi cult to determine exactly what the roll call meant. The vote came the same day the White House threatened for the first time to veto the bill if the loan See Bush on page 2A See Senate on page 7A