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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (July 6, 2004)
he Battalion olume 110 • Issue 164 • 8 pages A Texas A&M Tradition Since 1893 'pedto 'cent, their I the ms; 'tie spe, OPINION: Decline of values Page 7 www.thebatt.com PAGE DESIGN BY: RACHEL VALENCIA ormer student named Miss Rodeo 2004 By Natalie Younts THE BATTALION In 2000, Brooke Chaddick walked into the bath- im of her new roommate Tanya Harvey, whom had met just one week before, and was sur- sed to find a poster of all the former winners of Miss Rodeo America pageants on the wall. “I said ‘What’s this?’ and she said, ‘That’s Bless go ng to be me one day,”’ said Chaddick, who pmjJrned her speech communication degree from Texas A&M in May. Harvey, a senior agricultural journalism major, came one step closer to realizing her dream when she was named Miss Ro deo Texas 2004 on June 25 in San Antonio. Winning the 40th annual Miss Rodeo Texas state pageant al lows her to enter competition for the national Miss Rodeo America title which will be crowned Dec. 4 HARVEY in Las Vegas, Nev. Chaddick said that she, Harvey and Cori Wil lett, who graduated in December with a degree in political science, became roommates soon after meeting and are now best friends. Chaddick said she is confident that her friend will win the na tional title. “If anyone could ever win Miss Rodeo America it would be her,” Chaddick said. “She has such a passion for rodeos and horses and cowboys.” Willett, who was on the A&M equestrian team, said that her and Harvey’s passion for horses helped them bond and contributed to their friendship. “We both really love horses and love to ride,” Willett said. “That was something that she and I could kind of talk about all the time.” Miss Rodeo Texas Inc. is an annual pageant for 19 to 24 year olds who are judged on personality, appearance and horsemanship. See Rodeo on page 2 Tour de College Station Sobert Rose, Class of 1993, adjusts the spokes of a Torelli road bicy- de at his shop, Cycles Etc., which is located on University Drive. Rose Brian Wills • THE BATTALION is a former member of the Texas A&M Cycling Team and is currently standing in third place in the Brazos Valley Cyclist Time Trials Series. Duncan Coffee to begin offering Fair Trade variety By Lacy Ledford THE BATTALION Duncan Coffee executives may decide to offer Fair Trade coffee at Texas A&M, depending on the suc cess of online Fair Trade coffee sales this summer. Fair Trade Certified coffee is a partnership between consumers in North America and producers in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean that guarantees small coffee farmers a fair price for their Fair Trade Coffee Duncan Coffee. AScM's coffee provider, is offering varieties of Fair Trade Certified coffee. harvest, access to credit and direct access to American markets. Jay Arekere, secondary adviser for A&M’s Texas Environmental Action Coalition, said that former TEAC member and A&M graduate John Chisenhall began campaigning on behalf of Fair Trade Coffee about a year ago. Chisenhall’s goal was to see that Duncan Coffee Company began selling Fair Trade Coffee on the A&M campus. See Coffee on page 2 FAIR TRADE CERTIFIED Look far the label! Fair Trade is a partnership between consumers in North America and producers worldwide. Guarantees fair prices for small coffee producers in developing countries Agreement also guarantees access to credit and access to American markets A&M expressed support for Fair Trade coffee in a University resolution Andrew Burleson • THE BATTALION Source: |OY AREKENE, TEAC Rangel s dial- fc^THE PLANT FROM HEM. Soda Apple Wood, known as "Sodom's Apples" and "The Plant From Hell" (or Its devastating effects on farmland, has now spread to East Texas. Killer weed may be problem for ranchers • Tbo wood is pere»ni;.il and vary difficult to kill. • It overtakes grazing land, kilting grass. • An outbreak could increase beef prices due to «be cost of treating the weeds. • Originally from Brazil, the weed struck Florida in the 80s and made Its way through the South to Texas Andrew Burleson • THE BATTALION Source: MARY KETCHERSID, EXTENSION SPECIALIST By Chelsea Sledge THE BATTALION Even when Yoda was a freshman living in the dorm, he kept a little potted plant. Chris Mueller, a senior finance major, is affectionately called Yoda by his friends for his extensive knowledge about plants. “My parents own a whole lot of farm and ranch land in south Texas,” Mueller said. “I have al ways had plants wherever I live and probably al ways will.” For Texans such as Mueller, the recently discov ered tropical soda apple weed is of deep concern. The weed, also known as “the plant from hell” and “Sodom’s apples” was recently discovered to have infested Jasper County, located just north of Orange. “The county agent from Jasper County called me in late May,” said Mary Ketchersid, an Exten sion Specialist. “I identified it and said ‘You’re absolutely right! It’s soda apple.’” Soda apple is a weed with round leaves and thorns on the top and bottom. The stem is sprinkled with cat claw-shaped thorns, and fruit that looks like a watermelon about the size of a quarter grows beneath the leaves. Often the weeds can be con fused with horse nettle, but the flowers on horse nettle are usually purple, Kerchersid said. This weed causes a problem because it is peren nial and extremely tough to kill. “It takes over and the grass doesn’t grow,” Ketch ersid said. “It’s covered with thorns and the animals eat the fruit which spreads the weed. In effect you lose your land. It’s an expensive situation.” To average consumers, this weed could have little effect on their lives. The cattle industry, the largest industry in Texas, will be hit the hardest. If the problem cannot be contained, the price of beef could increase due to the cost of treating the weeds, Ketchersid said. “In an extreme situation there could be a quaran tine on Texas beef,” Ketchersid said. “But we are nowhere near that.” Soda apple originates in South America, particu larly in Brazil. The seeds were deposited in Florida in the 1980s and infested the southern states. How ever, until May the weed was not in Texas. “It’s been coming toward us from Florida, and we’ve been watching it actually,” Ketchersid said. The weed is thought to have been carried to Texas during the drought in 1998 when some hay, which may have been contaminated with the weed, was purchased from Louisiana. “I heard some stuff about this weed at home. I See Weed on page 2 n'EA endorses U.S. families in Bahrain 6 (erry for president receive orders to leave at ates :y men racist i in assi lism By Ben Feller THE ASSOCIATED PRESS WASHINGTON — The National Education As- fciation, the nation’s largest union, endorsed Demo- at John Kerry for president Monday, the final touch you a its campaign to drive up school spending and re- oiild | la P e the biggest education law in decades, abral NEA, a 2.7-million member group composed , n .. mainly of teachers, is out to advance its agenda on Iverything from testing students to halting private- j hool vouchers. The union is mobilizing its money tod forces for Kerry — targeting political staff in 15 swing states, going into schools to rally its members, ,k jlid joining liberal groups to organize a massive night political house parties. Kerry, who is scheduled to speak to the 9,000 delegates the NEA convention on Tuesday, was endorsed by .5 percent of them. The Massachusetts senator offers lany teacher-friendly promises the union likes, but he |so advances ideas the NEA has long opposed, such as ying bonuses to teachers based on student test scores. | Although a quarter of NEA members identify them- Ives with the Republican Party, the union has never en- rsed a Republican for president and typically spends $9 it of every $ 10 it raises on Democrats. Its relationship ith the Bush administration has been particularly prickly ice his education secretary. Rod Paige, jokingly referred | the union as a “terrorist organization” and even an- byed members with how he apologized for the remark. By Adnan Malik THE ASSOCIATED PRESS MANAMA, Bahrain — U.S. military families will begin leaving Bahrain in the next few days in the wake of reports terrorists were planning attacks here, a spokesman for the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet said Monday. Cmdr. James Graybeal said the formal departure orders came late Sunday, two days after the Pentagon announced the first such mandatory evacuation from this longtime U.S. ally in the Gulf. Graybeal said the orders affected 35 families, or about 650 people. They were relatives of service members or Defense Department staff, he said. He said earlier reports that nonessential staff also were being evacuated were incorrect. “We are in the process of execut ing the departure, which will happen in the next few days,” Graybeal said. Citing security, he refused to say how the families would travel or exactly where in the United States they were headed. The U.S. 5th fleet is based in Bahrain, where the U.S. Navy has had a presence for more than 50 years. Thursday, the State Department cau tioned Americans against traveling to Bahrain and advised Americans who live there to leave because of informa tion that extremists were planning at tacks in Bahrain. The Pentagon said Friday it was withdrawing service members’ fami lies from Bahrain for at least 30 days. The State Department added Saturday it had authorized the voluntary depar ture of family members and non-emer gency employees of the U.S. Embassy in Bahrain. The State Department has provided no details on the information it has about possible terror attacks on Ameri cans in Bahrain. Bahrain is linked by a 15-mile cause way to Saudi Arabia, which has seen a series of attacks on Americans and other Westerners living there. Some here have expressed fears that Saudi militants, un der pressure from their security forces, might see Bahrain as an easier place to attack Westerners. Bright idea BTU employee Mike Ferro and Bryan Police officer Jeremy Elmore survey an accident scene near East 33 and Evan O'Connell • THE BATTALION Texas Avenue Monday. A northbound trailblazer struck a light pole after being cut off by a semi truck.