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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 23, 2003)
Thursday, October23, year; to World’s best domino players ‘crack bones’ in Jamaica ratio ’s last coordinates % e next year, David aitll er James flew to taxi, but were fe a s to the restricted area year later, JPAC, woiti the Vietnamese drained the pondatllis The impact of d a spring that filledi tion with fresh w for more than 20 ja combat the effectsofi Vietnamese soil, presa e first clue that confin \s remains: a piece tion with the aira number. the time JPAC refilled] and stocked it w ency had spent moreti illion working on Oai site, accordin'! Poole, dd examined portions ble page that surviveda e-to-air missiles at gutted the B-52.1 ng sentence fragmei he page into his electros dance, he yielded Ps lough I walk in the ni rble, you will reviven ill stretch out yourte the wrath of my ex ind your right le.” id said he believes tiet. the answer to a questiti is eluded him moreib rs. an look back now issile come up, passu? n the tail and the winslfi < dad asking, ‘God,(®( vn,”’ he says. “Andtf 1 out his right hand’s rse says, and my dfi 1 ords were 'That's cM i,’ and he was ‘He stepped off in tk f God and that’s sion ended. WORLD THE BATTALION 11A Thursday, October 23, 2003 By Stevenson Jacobs THE ASSOCIATED PRESS KINGSTON, Jamaica — Brian Baylie, a mild-mannered exterminator by day, becomes a cutthroat domino player by , clacking pieces together on bar room tables and intimi dating opponents. From the beaches of Barbados to the cafes of Cuba, dominoes long have been a favorite pastime in the Caribbean. Now, more than 500 of the world’s best players are converging on Jamaica for the Championship of Dominoes. “Jamaicans take dominoes very seriously,” said Baylie, 38, who challenges his computer when he cannot find opponents on the streets of Jamaica. “It’s is an accepted part of life here.” The three-day tournament beginning Thursday at the Ocho Rios resort will have players from a dozen Caribbean coun tries, the United States, Britain Mexico squaring off for more than $150,000 in cash and prizes. Dominoes was invented by the Chinese in 1120 A.D., using carved from ivory or bone inset ebony pips. It did not reach Europe until the early century, when it appeared in Italy, France and England before spreading from taverns and pubs to the far-flung British colonies in the Caribbean. According to the Internet site worlddomino.com the oldest domino set was found in the tomb of Tutankhamun, king of ancient Egypt about 1355 B,C. Modern leaders also have been aficionados, the site says, including President Lyndon B. Playing it ‘straight’ for $25,000 The world's best domino players gathered in Jamaica to compete in the 2003 World Championship of Dominoes. The two-person teams will play the game of straight dominoes against a field of more than 500 others for the chance to win $25,000. Straight ## y dominoes # • • Start the game < Each player starts \ with seven dominoes. A double six piece must be posted by one of the players to begin the game. Play then rotates counterclockwise. Playing straight The next player puts a matching piece to the longer side of the double six piece; other dominoes are played "in line" Doubles are placed at right - angles to the line of pieces. SOURCES: 2003 WoM Championship Domino tournament rules; Associated Press The winner The first team to play all of their dominoes wins. Or if there are no more legitimate plays available, the team with the fewest total number of dots on their remaining dominoes wins. i Breaking the code Tournament officials • will be watching • closely for players *' "coding” or using # prearranged a gestures to i communicate with each other. The game has been eulogized fflpoems and stories, including Puerto Rican poet Jack Agueros’ “Dominoes & Other Stories” and U.S.-Dominican writer Elvys Ruiz’s collection of plays titled “Coffee and Dominoes.” “I like it because it’s a brain game, a mental challenge,” said Buxton Rankin, 56, one of about 50 players hunched over felt- lined tables at a Kingston nightspot, preparing for the championship. First place is worth $25,000, second $12,500 and third $7,500. In straight dominoes, the game most common in the Caribbean, a pair of two-player teams take turns trying to match the number of dots on their pieces with those on the table. The first team to get rid of all its pieces wins. Like any game, dominoes also has its share of cheaters. Championship judges and sur veillance cameras will watch players to guard against illegal “coding,” a prearranged system of gestures — like coughing or scratching one’s head — used by partners to communicate strategy or indicate which pieces they hold. Last year, officials banned two Jamaican players for life after they were caught using sandpaper to mark pieces to see which ones remained. SENIORS vant vour portrdit e Aggieland Yearbook. ation portraits for the ggieland Yearbook will In Monday, Oct. 13,throu Oct. 24, 2003, in Room the MSC. Hours are 9 5 p.m. There is no sittinj uired to be photograph yearbook. To insure Photographed you sb n appointment by cais on Studio at 1-800-883- seeing the photogra- eginning Monday, Oct. ;ieland 200/} Texas A&M University Yearbook Di’s brother discounts conspiracy theory By Sue Leeman THE ASSOCIATED PRESS LONDON — The year before Princess Diana died, she was alienated from her brother, Earl Spencer, and he wrote to her saying she had mental problems and was manipulative and deceitful, a newspaper reported Wednesday. Spencer, speaking on NBC’s “Today” show, said the letter, published in excerpts from a new book, was being seen out of context and that he “adored Diana.” Worldwide television audiences watched him in September 1997 give a funeral oration about his sis ter, in which he spoke of their closeness as children, honored her memory and appeared to make a veiled criticism of the royal family. He also said Wednesday that he did not believe her fatal 1997 car crash was planned, despite a letter, published in the same book, in which Diana said she feared someone would tamper with her car’s brakes. Both letters are from “A Royal Duty,” a forth coming book by Diana’s former butler Paul Burrell, which is being excerpted in the Daily Mirror news paper. Spencer told NBC he hadn’t seen the letters but had heard from handwriting experts that published sections appeared to have been written by Diana. The princess’s companion Dodi Fayed also was killed in the crash; his father, Mohammed al Fayed, has never accepted the French verdict that driver Henri Paul’s use of drugs and alcohol, and the car’s high speed, caused the accident. Paul also was killed. Al Fayed says the deaths were intentional. “My family and I are absolutely certain that we’ve never seen any evidence of that whatsoev er,” Spencer said, speaking to NBC from Toronto. As for Diana’s fears, he said, “I do think it’s just a horrible coincidence, rather than actually tied in with reality.” Asked if Diana’s fears were justified, Spencer said she had spoken to him about being eaves dropped on and having her private quarters bugged. “I think paranoid’s a very strong word but I think using it in the common way meaning very, very con cerned about yourself, yes, she was at times,” Spencer said. Some players liken the game to poker as they try to gauge oppo nents’ moves. “Dominoes in Jamaica is syn onymous to base ball in America,” said Chris Blake, general secretary of the National Association of Domino Bodies, which regulates the game on the island of 2.6 mil lion people. “It’s second nature to us.” On Jamaican streets, the style of AP play is loud. Players thump domino pieces, or “bones,” on wooden tables to intimidate opponents and erupt in joy after a winning hand. Insults — and the occasional fist — fly in heat ed games. Matches continue for hours at night, to the chagrin of spous es and family members. The game, while known for cutting across class and race, traditionally has been dominat ed by men. However, more women are joining clubs, enter ing tournaments — and even winning. “Once the guys realize you can play and aren’t a pushover, then they respect you,” said Ann-Marie Benjamin, 38, of Jamaica. It’s all part of efforts to bring uniformity and discipline to the game, said Ruddy Schaaffe, the Miami-based chairman of the World Championship of Dominoes. And the ultimate goal? “We’d like to see dominoes become an Olympic event,” Schaaffe said. “It has a long way to go, but the light in the tunnel is getting brighter and brighter.” ARE YOU A ^PARAMEDIC? SllliSl You Want Experience with a collegiate 911 EMS service? Professional leadership opportunities? 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