Friday, February 20, 2004
Battalion
Texas A&M Iradition Since 1893
Aggielife:
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Page 3
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First comes love, then comes marriage” rally
Ruben DeLuna • THE BATTALION
Photo by Randal Ford • THE BATTALION
Source : KATY STEWART
Locals challenge marriage laws
By Sonia Moghe
THE BATTALION
Local supporters of the legalization of same-
sex marriages will gather outside of the Brazos
County Courthouse to rally Friday at noon.
The “First comes love, then comes mar
riage” rally was inspired by two homosexual
couples who applied for marriage licenses last
week and were rejected.
“We went to apply, but (the courthouse
worker) said she couldn't give us a license
because of the Texas state law," said Sabrina
Jennings, who along with her partner Lauren
Carpenter, was one of the couples that attempt
ed to apply for a marriage license.
The rally will feature speakers including
Randall Ellis, executive director for a lesbian
and gay rights lobby in Austin, Texas; Texas
A&M sociology professor Sarah Gatson; and
Nick Stransky, a doctoral student, said Melanie
Edwards, a coordinator of the rally.
“We’re trying to bring together folks who
support equal and civil rights in the area,”
Edwards said.
Edwards, who is a member of Gay and
Gender Representation in Politics, said there
will be a petition at the rally that can be signed
in support of same-sex marriages. The petition
will be sent to state representatives. Eleven
state representatives have joined 112 represen
tatives in signing a bill that will make same-sex
marriages illegal and Edwards hopes to change
their minds.
“It’s empowering to think that (about) 10
percent of the people that are putting this on
the agenda are from Texas ” Edwards said.
“We want to know why they’re supporting
See Marriage on page 2
Cadets visiting A&M
from around the U.S.
By Carrie Pierce
THE BATTALION
Seventy-five cadets from all over the
(oitry are visiting Texas A&M Thursday
tagh Sunday to participate in the Armed
forces Leadership
Conference.
“This is a military leader-
skip symposium for cadets all
over the U.S. to hear speakers
oncunent issues as far as mili-
laty matters are concerned.”
saidLt.Col. Michael Caudle.
This event is an annual tra
dition sponsored by the Office
of the Commandant and the
Corps of Cadets. Caudle said.
Cadets from 17 schools are
attending, including Texas
Christian University, the
I Citadel, Mexican Naval
tademy, U.S. Air Force Academy, U.S.
iitaryAcademy, U.S. Naval Academy and
Virginia Military Institute, Caudle said.
Theeventis also open to A&M cadets.
Corps public relations officer Justin
Woods, a senior, said the visiting cadets will
tour the campus and attend a military review at
Simpson Drill Field put on by the Corps
Saturday afternoon and a formal military ball
in Sbisa Dining Hall Saturday night.
The visiting cadets will also participate in
the Navy ROTC obstacle and
stamina courses, said Eric
Brown, chair of the conference
and a senior German major.
The cadets will also attend
round tables with guest speakers
including Gen. T. Michael
Moseley, vice chief of staff for
the U.S. Air Force and Class of
1971; University President
Robert Gates, former CIA
director; and Gen. Montgomery
Meigs of the U.S. Army.
Multiple topics will be dis
cussed including the conflict in
Iraq, Brown said.
“We pick a topic that is pertinent to us as
future leaders in the military,” Brown said.
On Thursday afternoon, Moseley gave the
See Cadets on page 2
We pick a topic
that is pertinent to
us as future leaders
in the military.
— Eric Brown
conference chair
Mt. Everest
Art Wright • THE BATTALION
Junior bioenvironmental science major Kart Ireland-Stoddard climbs the rock wall in the Student Recreation Center
Thursday afternoon. The Rec Center is hosting "Aggie Pump Fest," a national climbing competition, on Saturday, March 6.
the first to
disease in
: Powell, a
College of
Cain hall will go from residence hall to office building
By Aerin Toussaint
THE BATTALION
New athletic recruits at Texas A&M can no
longer count on living in Wofford Cain Hall
next fall because it will no longer be operating
as a residence hall, said Bill Perry, chair of the
A&M Built Environment Council.
The building will instead house the Student
Life office, which currently operates out of the
east wing of Sbisa Dining Hall. Other offices
that currently operate from portable buildings
and temporary space may also relocate to Cain
Hall in the future. Perry said.
Perry said opening Cain as an office build
ing will create space for about 450 new fac
ulty coming to A&M in the next five years.
This plan to hire new faculty members will
help to secure a better faculty-to-student ratio
and improve educational quality as part of
Vision 2020.
“There is not enough space to do everything
we have to do to serve the students academi
cally and in student affairs, so we’re revising
and realigning our resources,” Perry said.
Cain Hall was built in 1972 and is owned
and operated by the Athletic Department, not
by the Department of Residence Life, which
operates all other on-campus residence halls.
“Residence life will offer those that want
to stay on campus a place to live,” said Ron
Sasse, director of residence life. “We will do
our best to plug them in somewhere.”
Perry said this reshuffling of space was a
chance for the Athletic Department, all
branches of academics and the housing
department to work together to improve the
quality of the University.
“It’s a time-honored tradition, so it’s kind
of a shame to see it shut down,” said Frank
Messina, a freshman business major and res
ident of Cain Hall.
Messina said two of his uncles and sever
al of his cousins played football for A&M
and lived in Cain Hall.
“It’s not going to affect me because I was
already planning to move off campus,” said
Austin Pylant, a freshman cross country run
ner and agricultural economics major. “It
might affect incoming recruits because they
thought they would live in this dorm.”
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Ice breaking ceremony
held for skating rink
By Kristin Kemp
THE BATTALION
Ice skating enthusiasts and others
in the comm uni tty gathered at Wolf
Pen Creek for the Ice Breaking
Ceremony held at the site of the future
Ice Arena Thursday afternoon.
The arena will be profitable to the
community, said master of ceremonies
Steve Beachy, director of the College
Station Parks & Recreation
Department.
The $3.1 million facility will be
“10,000 square feet, contains a gallery
that seats 500 people and has rooms
available for parties and meetings, said
KimFoutz, College Station’s econom
ic development director.
Beachy said he is glad to see the
construction underway.
Other speakers included College
Station Mayor Ron Silvia; John
Crompton, a distinguished professor
from Texas A&M’s Recreation Park
and Tourism Sciences department; and
A&M Ice Hockey Team Captain Brian
Weylie, a senior biomedical sciences
major.
“I enjoyed the ceremony,- and I
thought it really focused on the impact
the rink will have on the community,”
Weylie said.
The hockey team’s current home
rink is the Willowbrook Aerodrome in
Houston. In September when the Ice
Arena is scheduled to open, the team
will no longer have to drive to Houston
to practice.
Laura Kemp, a junior philosophy
major, said she enjoyed ice skating in
her hometown in Tennessee before
coming to A&M.
“I am so excited about this ice rink,”
she said.
Karina Handoyo, a member of the
Aggie Figure Skating Club and sopho
more biomedical sciences major, said
her club is looking forward to enjoying
the facility.
“I plan to practice at the rink,”
Handoyo said. “Probably other mem
bers of the Aggie Figure Skating Club
will too.”
West Nile virus rearing its ugly head
By Michael Player
THE BATTALION
The West Nile virus has once again reared its head in
Texas. A dead bird found two weeks ago in Harris County
tested positive for the deadly virus carried by mosquitos.
Last year in Brazos County, there were five confirmed
human cases of West Nile and four cases reported in hors
es, according to Don Plitt, assistant director for Brazos
County Environmental Health Services.
“We want to stress the four Ds of personal protection
this year once again,” Plitt said.
The four actions, Plitt said, that will reduce human con
traction of the virus are using mosquito repellent that con
tains Deet, limiting outdoor activity to the'daylight hours,
draining standing water
on property and dressing
in long sleeves when
outdoors.
Plitt said the county
uses portable mosquito foggers and “dunks,” larvacidal
tablets placed in bodies of standing water.
“We received a lot of support from the public last year,
and the reporting of dead birds was very helpful to us,”
Plitt said. “In the areas of the confirmed cases we were able
to aggressively treat those areas, and we think that reduced
much of the risk.”
Plitt said students should report dead birds on campus to
help authorities chart high risk areas.
“Weather is a major reason why we have seen a continu
ation of the virus,” said Jim Olsen, professor of entomology
at Texas A&M. “Because the weather on the Texas coast is
more temperate, there has not been a mosquito die-off there
fore the virus is still able to use the mosquito as a vector.”
WEST NILE
m
VIRUS
precautionary
Ds
jUSK/DAWN
RESS
EET
RAIN
Stay inside at dusk and dawn
Dress in long sleeves and pants
Use a repellent with the chemical DEET
Drain standing water from property
Ruben DeLuna • THE BATTALION
Source : BRAZOS COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
Last year, Olsen said, he monitored 60 mosquito traps in
and around the Bryan-College Station area, and 13 traps
caught mosquitos that tested positive for West Nile.
He said he plans to start star testing immediately for the
virus this year.
“We will be employing the same tactics as we did last
year, find and attack,” Olsen said. “We (will) really con
centrate our efforts on places that positive mosquitos
were found.”
The Brazos County Health Department was inundated
with calls last summer during the height of the West Nile
scare, said Julie Anderson, director of Environmental
Health Servises Division of the Brazos County Health
Department.
“We had a high call volume,” Anderson said. “But that
is to be expected when you have a virus as dangerous as
this, and we are happy to be of help to the public.”
Anderson said the health department is planning how it
will fight the virus and are organizing public meetings.