The Battalion: July 20, 2009 by The Battalion

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july 20, 2009

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Where were you when Apollo 11 landed? Not born yet.

It’s been 40 years since man stepped on the moon

One small step for man Apollo 11 (Columbia and Eagle) July 1624, 1969 Launch vehicle: Saturn V Crew: Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins, Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. Duration: 8 days, 3 hours, 18 minutes. In lunar orbit 59.5 hours, with 30 orbits. Landing site: Sea of Tranquility (0.71 degrees North, 23.63 degrees East). Milestones: First manned lunar landing mission and lunar surface EVA. “HOUSTON, TRANQUILITY BASE HERE. THE EAGLE HAS LANDED.” One EVA of 2 hours, 31 minutes. Flag and instruments deployed; Unveiled plaque on the LM descent stage with inscription: “Here Men From Planet Earth First Set Foot Upon the Moon. July 1969 A.D. We Came In Peace For All Mankind.” Lunar surface stay time 21.6 hours.

NASA

In this July 21, 1969, file photo, mission control personnel watch the moon walk by Apollo 11 astronauts, in Houston.

Aggie had hands on mission control Julie Rambin

NASA

Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr., lunar module pilot, is walking near the lunar module during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity.

Still giant leap for mankind Seth Borenstein Associated Press Science Writer WASHINGTON — The measure of what humanity can accomplish is a size 9 1/2 bootprint. It belongs to Neil Armstrong, the first man on the moon. It will stay on the moon for millions of years with nothing to wipe it away, serving as an almost eternal testament to a can-do mankind.

Apollo 11 is the glimmering success that failures of society are contrasted against: “If we can send a man to the moon, why can’t we ...” What put man on the moon 40 years ago was an audacious and public effort that the world hasn’t seen before or since. It required rocketry that hadn’t been built, or even designed, when President John F. Kennedy See Moon on page 6

The Battalion Forty years ago today, Apollo 11 landed on the moon. The space race against the U.S.S.R. had ended, and President John F. Kennedy’s 1960 declaration that the United States would land a man on the moon had proved true. “He put the challenge in front of us and set us to do it,” said Gerald Griffin, Apollo 11 flight director and 1956 Texas A&M University graduGrifﬁn ate. “It was a great day.” Apollo 11 was not an isolated event, but the final step in a series of missions leading up to the moon landing. “Apollo 11 did not just happen,” said Aaron Cohen, Apollo 11 systems engineer and 1952 Texas A&M graduate. “What I was doing then was not as impor-

tant as what led up to Apollo 11.” What led up to Apollo 11 was a carefully structured series of programs and missions, each Garriott designed to build upon the previous one, Griffin said. “Apollo 11 was the culmination of two other programs and Apollo. It was Mercury, Gemini and Apollo,” Griffin said. “Mercury was a one-man capsule, Gemini was two people, but those two programs really allowed us to do Apollo.” Previous Apollo missions had shown that NASA’s Command/ Service Module and Lunar Module could enter lunar orbit, but they had not yet landed on the lunar surface. “Apollo 8 was one of the most fantastic missions we ever flew

WASHINGTON — Most Americans have never known a world where man hasn’t been to the moon. It used to be a given that people knew where they were when man ﬁrst walked on the moon on July 20, 1969, watching the black-andwhite images on television. But now most Americans don’t know where they were because the majority of Americans hadn’t been born yet. The median age of Americans, as of last year, was 36.8, meaning more than half of U.S. residents are younger than 40, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. No ﬁgures have been calculated for this year yet. Five years ago, when NASA celebrated the 35th anniversary of the moon landing, the median age of Americans was 36.1, so most residents were at least alive when Armstrong made his giant leap for mankind. That changed sometime between July 2005 and July 2006, according to the Census Bureau. Six current astronauts were not alive when Armstrong walked on the moon. Associated Press

See Apollo on page 4

thebattalionasks in 1969

Regents form search committee ■ Fifteenmember team looks for next Texas A&M president

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Meagan O’Toole-Pitts The Battalion The search committee to select the next Texas A&M University president, to replace Elsa Murano who resigned June 15, has been formed. The committee is slated to recommend a finalist to the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents in February 2010. The search committee, chosen

by the Board of Regents, consists of 15 members: three regents, five faculty members, two student members and five other members representing various stakeholders from Texas A&M, the University system and the area. “I truly believe the committee will be successful in bringing forth great candidates because there is See Search on page 4

Bryan police chief search narrows to two

BUSKE

Buske and Whitmire are the remaining candidates. No photo available of Whitmire.

The City of Bryan has narrowed its search for a new police chief down to two candidates: Omaha, Neb. police chief Eric Buske and Bryan interim police chief Bobby Whitmire. The third candidate, Mount Pleasant, Texas police chief Jay Burch, withdrew last week. Bryan city manager David Watkins has been holding the interviews. “I want someone with chief experience. I want someone who has been proven and has experience elsewhere,” Watkins said. Buske was

a finalist in the search for the Bryan police chief in 2007. Whitmire has served as Waxahachie, Texas police chief, Midlothian, Texas police chief, Bryan interim police chief and College Station interim police chief. Whitmire and Buske were interviewed by the community panel on Tuesday. Watkins plans to visit Buske in Omaha today. “Two questions we ask ourselves are: do they fit in the department and do they fit in the community,” Watkins said. Alex Worsham, staff writer

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‘Most trusted man in America’ dies Frazier Moore Associated Press NEW YORK — The death of Walter Cronkite elicited tributes from colleagues, presidents past and present, world-famous astronauts and those who had hoped in vain to fill his empty anchor chair, all honoring the avuncular face of TV journalism who became the “most trusted man in America.” Cronkite died with his family by his side Friday CRONKITE night at his Manhattan home after a long illness, CBS vice president Linda Mason said. Marlene Adler, Cronkite’s chief of staff, said Cronkite died of cerebrovascular disease. He was 92. “It’s hard to imagine a man for whom I had more admiration,” Mike Wallace of “60 Minutes” said on CNN. “He was a superb reporter and honorable man.” Cronkite was the face of the “CBS Evening News” from 1962 to 1981, when stories ranged from the assassinations of President John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to racial and anti-war riots, Watergate and the Iranian hostage crisis. It was Cronkite who read the bulletins coming from Dallas when Kennedy was shot Nov. 22, 1963, interrupting a live CBS-TV broadcast of a soap opera. “Walter was who I wanted to be when I grew up,” said CBS’s “Face the Nation” host Bob Schieffer, 72, who began working at CBS News in 1969. President Barack Obama issued a statement saying that Cronkite set the standard by which all other news anchors have been judged, echoing sentiments from former Presi-

dents George W. Bush and Jimmy Carter. “He invited us to believe in him, and he never let us down,” Obama said. “This country has lost an icon and a dear friend, and he will be truly missed.” Cronkite was the broadcaster to whom the title “anchorman” was first applied. “He was a great broadcaster and a gentleman whose experience, honesty, professionalism and style defined the role of anchor and commentator,” CBS Corp. chief executive Leslie Moonves said in a statement. Off camera, his stamina and admittedly demanding ways brought him the nickname “Old Ironpants.” But to viewers, he was “Uncle Walter,” with his jowls and grainy baritone, his warm, direct expression and his trim mustache. When he summed up the news each evening by stating, “And THAT’s the way it is,” millions agreed. Walter Leland Cronkite Jr. was born Nov. 4, 1916, in St. Joseph, Mo. In 1940, Cronkite married Mary Elizabeth “Betsy” Maxwell, whom he met when they both worked at KCMO. They had three children, Nancy, Mary Kathleen and Walter Leland III. Betsy Cronkite died in 2005. Walter Cronkite’s final resting place will be next to his late wife in Missouri, where the two first met, his chief of staff said Saturday. A memorial is to be held within the next month in Avery Fisher Hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Adler said. “It will be a fitting tribute to Mr. Cronkite and the life he lived, the people he knew, the people who loved him and the people he admired,” said Adler, who headed Cronkite’s staff for the past 20 years.

Stephen Fogg — THE BATTALION

Graduate student Gwyn Rosaire signs a petition against the City of College Station’s red light cameras Thursday near city hall. The petition, which garnered more than 1,200 signatures from Bryan and College Station residents, was turned in to city officials Thursday.

Russia still blue over moon landing, 40 years later MOSCOW — When Neil Armstrong stepped onto the surface of the moon, it was a first for the Soviet Union — the first time the U.S. had beaten the U.S.S.R in the space race. Forty years later, the memory of that loss of primacy still seems to sting the Russian soul. When state TV channel Rossiya reported last week on the restoration of video footage of the Apollo 11 moon landing, the account gave a lot of attention to dubious conspiracy theories that the landing was faked. “In the United States, more than anywhere else, they are sure of the believability of the steps on the moon,” the report said, adding that Armstrong keeps a very low profile. “This also seems strange to many people.” For a dozen years before the July 20, 1969, moon landing, Moscow racked up an extraordinary array of superlatives. It was the first to send a craft into orbit, with the Sputnik satellite in 1957. The first human to go into outer space was Russian Yuri Gagarin in 1961. “Beginning with the first flight with a primitive capsule, and then getting to the moon, it was a great achievement for humanity,” Russian astronaut Sergei Krikalev said. “Of course, we would have liked to see the first man on the moon be Soviet, Russian, but that’s life ... Our own achievements were very many,” he told Associated Press Television News. Associated Press

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Armstrong second in Tour de France Lance Armstrong moved from fourth to second yesterday, one minute and 37 seconds behind ﬁrst place Astana teammate Alberto Contador as the race entered the Alps. “As far as I’m concerned, I’m happy to be a domestique,” Armstrong said, using French cycling jargon for a backup rider. “I’m proud of him.” Associated Press

sports thebattalion 7.20.2009 page3

Report blames design ■ Texas A&M investigation says construction is why ship sank

■ A&M students speak on MLB’s All-Star weekend

Paul J. Weber Associated Press The fatal capsizing of a Texas A&M University racing boat last summer was due to severe design flaws and not lacking maintenance as suggested by a Coast Guard investigation, school investigators concluded in a report released Friday. School investigators blamed the incident squarely on the boat’s construction and said previous repairs done by students and crew members did not cause the accident. The repairs had “absolutely, positively, no contribution whatsoever,” said Jerry Brown, assistant general counsel for the Texas A&M University System and one of the investigators. Their findings differ sharply from those of the Coast Guard, which concluded in a report issued in December that the June 2008 sinking of the Cynthia Woods in the Gulf of Mexico was largely due to improper repairs that had been made to the 38-foot boat and several incidents in which it was grounded. Lionel Bryant, chief warrant officer with the Coast Guard in Houston, said his office had not reviewed the school’s report but that the Coast Guard stands by its findings. “Texas A&M has the right and obligation to conduct an internal review of what happened,” Bryant said. “Two experts can come to different opinions. We stand behind the

Aggie All-Star review David Harris

Courtesy Photo

The Cynthia Woods is pictured before the Harvest Moon Regatta in 2007. The Cynthia Woods sank in June 2008 while competing in a regatta bound for Vera Cruz, Mexico. thorough investigation that we conducted.” The boat sank during a regatta to Vera Cruz, Mexico, after its 5,000-pound keel snapped off and turned the vessel upside down within a minute. Safety officer Roger Stone died after pushing two students to safety, and five crew members drifted in the Gulf for 26 hours. According to the A&M report, the thickness of the hull was only a third of the mini-

mum standards under universally followed guidelines used in racing competitions. The keel tore off the hull’s thin fiberglass laminate like it was being cut with a can opener, investigators said. The trade-off for a thinner hull is greater speed, but investigators said A&M had not been aware that the design of the Cynthia Woods fell below guidelines. Investigators also concluded the vessel failed five design requirements set forth by an

American Bureau of Shipping guide for building and classing offshore racing yachts. The report could affect a lawsuit filed by Stone’s widow against the boat’s manufacturer, Cape Fear Yacht Works. Linda Stone is suing the company for unspecified damages. Cape Fear said it stands behind the previous findings of the Coast Guard. “We are disappointed to hear Texas A&M University refuses to accept any responsi-

bility for the events related to the June 2008 capsizing of the Cynthia Woods,” the company said in a statement. Andrew Strong, the general counsel for the A&M system, said the university does not plan to sue. Morris Foster, chairman of the A&M System Board of Regents, called it “critical” that A&M system investigators meet with the Coast Guard to try and reconcile the conflicting conclusions.

Cink outlasts Watson in playoff for British Open victory Doug Ferguson Associated Press TURNBERRY, Scotland — Tom Watson stood over an 8-foot par putt Sunday evening on the final hole of a mystical British Open, one stroke away from becoming the oldest major champion in history. For the first time all week, he showed his 59-year-old nerves. The putt never had a chance. Stewart Cink, who made a 12-foot birdie on the final hole of regulation, took advantage of Watson’s missed opportunity and overwhelmed him in the four-hole playoff to take the win by six shots. Cink, who never led all week until Watson missed the winning putt, was flawless in the playoff and finished with two birdies. “I don’t even know what to say,” Cink said. “My hat’s off to him. He turned back the clock. Just did a great job. I speak for all the rest of the people here, too.”

Cink’s birdie gave him 69, and at 2-under 278, it looked as though he would be the runner-up. “It was almost,” Watson said. “The dream almost came true.” Tied with three other players along the back nine, Watson two-putted for par on the tough 16th hole, where his challengers all made bogey to fall back. Then he made a birdie on the 17th, giving him a one-shot lead. From the middle of the 18th fairway, Watson hit 8-iron and followed its flight, right at the flag. It bounded through the green, and his putt up the slope ran eight feet past the hole. The drama ended as the ball wobbled off the blade, obvious that it wasn’t struck hard enough. “I made a lousy putt,” he said. “Then in the playoff, it was bad shot after another.” For the first time all week, Watson looked tired. His approach to the first playoff hole, No. 5, tumbled into a pot bunker and led to bogey to fall

one shot behind. After a par save on the sixth, Watson came undone. He hooked his tee shot on the 17th into grass so deep it took him two hacks to get back to the fairway. He three-putted for a double bogey, while Cink played safe and smart for a two-putt birdie and a four-shot lead. Cink, born two years before Watson won his first Claret Jug at Carnoustie in 1973, captured his first major and sixth career victory. “It’s been a surreal experience for me,” Cink said. “Not only playing one of my favorite courses and a wonderful tournament, but playing against Tom Watson. This stuff doesn’t happen. I grew up watching him on TV, hoping to follow in his footsteps, not playing against him.” “The same Tom Watson that won this tournament in ‘77, the same guy showed up here this week,” Cink said. “And he just about did it. He beat everybody but one guy. And it was really special.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS

59-year-old Tom Watson finished second in the British Open.

The Battalion The Major League Baseball All Star show took its festivities to St. Louis Monday and Tuesday. The Home Run Derby took place on Monday, a year after the Texas Rangers’ Josh Hamilton wooed fans at Yankee Stadium and around the globe as he pounded 28 home runs in the first round. The favorite going in this year was hometown hero Albert Pujols. Pujols’ run ended in the second round with 11 total home runs. The Rangers’ Nelson Cruz hit 11 home runs in the first round and followed it up with five in the second. Brewers’ Prince Fielder matched him in each round, and the two moved on to the championship round. Cruz then hit five homers, but Fielder took the crown with six. “The year’s derby didn’t hold a candle to last year’s,” said junior industrial distribution major Steve Brock. “Fielder, a vegetarian, was hitting some moon shots. But, none of them compared to Josh [Hamilton] parking balls into Yankee Stadium’s upper porch.” Tuesday night, the American League and National League battled for home field advantage in the World Series. The AL was going for its 13th win in 14 years, as the NL was hoping to earn its first victory since 1996. The AL started the scoring in the first inning when Pujols committed an error on Yankees Mark Teixera’s grounder. Hamilton followed suit with a sacrifice groundout to score Yankee Derek Jeter and make the score 2-0. The NL answered in the bottom of the second, as Cardinal Yadier Molina and Fielder drove in three runs to give the NL the lead. However, following the second inning, AL pitchers retired 18 consecutive NL batters. In the sixth, the Twins’ Joe Mauer drove in Jeter to tie the game up, and in the eighth, Oriole Adam Jones hit a sacrifice fly to put the AL up for good. The Ray’s Carl Crawford stole a potential home run from Rockies player Brad Hawpe in the seventh inning that could have changed things dramatically. “That catch by Crawford was incredible,” said junior industrial distribution major Zachary Papas. “MLB’s All-Star game takes the cake when it comes to other pro sport’s all star events. The lure surrounding it is unmatched.” Yankee Mariano Rivera came in the ninth and converted a save to keep the NL winless for the 14th straight year with a 4-3 win and giving the AL home field advantage come October.

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Tin Roof Tango The Big Acoustic World Show Monday, July 20, 7:30 p.m. Take five talented musicians, add over twenty five acoustic instruments and music from six continents, sprinkle on a bit of dance and a few corny jokes, and you have the recipe for Tin Roof Tango's Big Acoustic World Show. Featuring selections from South America, Africa, Australia, and the Orient, this ensemble entertains with music ranging from an Irish jig played on the banjo to a Bolivian melody that wafts from the kena. With a generous helping of American and Celtic music, Tin Roof Tango pours on Old Time fiddling, Cajun dance tunes, intense bluegrass, and Jazz ...all with that trademark Tin Roof Tango high energy, acoustic fusion sound. All performances will take place at the Presidential Conference Center, Texas A&M University. For more information, please visit academyarts.tamu.edu. Tickets may be purchased through the MSC Box Office at (979) 845-1234. This program is made possible in part through Hotel Tax Revenue funded from the City of College Station.

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7/19/09 8:06 PM

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CHILD CARE Child sitter needed for after school care, 2-3 times per week, must have own transportation. References requested, call 936-348-4426.

FOR RENT $295, 1-room in shared, furnished apartment. All bills paid. Short term leases o.k. Call agent Ardi 979-422-5660. $375, AVAILABLE NOW and pre-lease. 1/1, 2/1. Free Wi-Fi, On Northgate, on Shuttle. Short term leases ok. Call agent, Ardi. 979-422-5660. $800, PRE-LEASE, 2, 3, and 4 bdrm. houses near TAMU, pets ok. Call Agent Ardi 979-422-5660. 1-3/bedroom apartments. Some with w/d, some near campus. $175-$600/mo. 979-696-2038. 1-Month free rent. 4bd/3ba house. Walking, biking to campus, on shuttle bus route. Available immediately. $1100/mo. Call 979-314-1333. 1-Roommate needed. 4bd/4bth $325/mo., washer/dryer. University Place on Southwest Parkway. 281-844-2090. 1bd/1ba garage apartment. No smoking/drugs. Near Blinn. All bills paid. $495/mo. (979)229-7465. 2,3&4 bedroom houses w/yards. Great locations for students. Pets welcome. 979-492-3990. 2/1 duplex in Bryan. Very nice, close to campus, ceramic tile and carpet, nice appliances. No-smoking. Available August, $675/mo. 979-220-7041. 2bd/1ba duplex in Wellborn area. Best suited for individual or couple. Rural setting, pets ok. 979-690-6161. 2/1 fourplex available now, w/d, bus route, 1537 Pineridge, $510/mo. plus $350 deposit, 979-450-0609. 2b/1b fourplex. 2000 Longmire in College Station. $475/month. Call 979-822-1616. 2bd/1ba duplex on Holik. Garage, fenced in backyard, W/D. $750/month. August- August lease preferred. Contact 903-388-3588 or 903-388-6098. 2bd/1bth apartment available now. On shuttle. $475/month. Call Edward 817-825-8928. 2bd/2ba 4-plex. Spacious floorplan, W/D connections, close to campus. $550/mo. www.aggielandleasing.com,979776-6079. 2bd/2ba condo, in DoubleTree, large walk-in closets, fireplace, water paid. 1901 W.Hollemon $700/mo. 979-693-1448. 2bd/2ba. Duplex- NICE! Cute Fireplace, appliances provided. ON TAMU BUS ROUTE! Fenced yard. $750/mo. 617 San Benito. Call 832-215-1801 or 832-338-5397. Cottage Holik C.S. 2bd/1ba W/D $600/month . 979-777-2472.

3/3 duplex. All appliances, fenced yard, large living ares, yard maintenance, available August. 979-204-2644 or echrentalinfo@gmail.com 3bd/2ba C.S. Huge duplex, fenced, shuttle route, w/d connection. Treehouse Trail, $995/mo. www.c4properties.net 979-268-1074. 3bd/2ba country home. 5-min. to TAMU. Available now. $1000/mo. +deposit. 690-7129, 690-8222. 3bd/2ba house on 3 acres, pets okay, 901 Krenek Tap Road, $1250/mo. 979-693-1448 3bd/2ba, 3703 Marielene, Rock Prairie, available August, $1200/mo., includes W/D, refrigerator and lawn service. 979-450-5666. 3bd/2ba. 2 BLOCKS FROM TEXAS AVE! Newly tiled bathrooms, wood floors, large fenced yard! $1350/mo. 1209 Milner, available August! Call 832-215-1801 or 832-338-5397. 3bdrm/3ba duplexes. Great floorplans, fenced yards, w/d, tile floors, alarm systems. icemakers, 979-776-6079, www.aggielandleasing.com 4/2/2 House, close to campus, newly remodeled, available July or August. $1650/mo . aggieLandRentals.com 979-776-8984. 4bd/2.5ba. Walk to Campus & Kyle Field! Huge, (1,770sq./ft/) newly remodeled house with 2 master bedrooms. Must See! New woodfloors, paint, bathrooms, ceilingfans, large fenced yard w/big deck. Available now! 1013 Welsh. $1500/mo. Call 972-313-5834 or 512-944-5264. 4bd/2ba house, 2,200sq./ft. All appliances included. Backs up to park w/b-ball court &track. On sorority row w/bus-route. 1-mile from campus. Two spots available. Call 713-443-2055. 4bd/2ba house, w/fenced backyard, pets okay, all new on inside. 3104 Longleaf. $1300/mo. 979-693-1448. 4bd/2ba. 6 MIN WALK TO TAMU, IN VIEW OF KYLE FIELD! Large fenced yard, new carpet. Appliances provided. $1200/mo. Available August, 804 Welsh. Call 832-215-1801 or 832-338-5397. 4bd/2ba., 307 Timber Street, 3-blocks from TAMU, located in historic district, available for August, 979-450-5666. 4bdrm/2ba house. Close to campus, wood floors, tile floors, ceiling fans, W/D, fenced yards. 979-776-6079, www.aggielandleasing.com 5-bedroom house for lease. For more information 979-966-3913 or www.tricaprealty.com Available 8/09. Bryan historic district, large 5-2 on large 1.3 acre lot, secluded, includes 2 bay metal garage with workshop, ideal for students with projects, pet friendly, handicap accessible, W/D connections, energy efficient. 806 E.29th $1700/mo. 979-255-5461. www.picketfenceproperties.net Beautiful house 3bd/2bth plus automatic car garage. Includes hardwood floors, AC plus many ceiling fans. Oriental rugs if wanted. Many windows. 1wk free, call for special. 832-646-2329. Many designer extras. Close to campus. Callaway Villas, furnished room, 1-month free, 4/2.5, $575/mo. 936-348-1561.

Lovely townhouse 2bd/1bth remodeled. New marble floors, many beautiful extras, fenced backyard, fenced frontyard. Quiet. 1wk free, call for special. 832-646-2329. Newly remodeled 4/2 house. Walking distance to campus, tile &wood floors, great location, nice big deck &yard. 979-776-6079, www.aggielandleasing.com Oak Creek Condos high-speed internet and basic cable. 2bdrm/1.5ba. $515/mo Water, sewer, trash paid. Fireplace, icemaker, pool, hot-tub. 822-1616. Pre-leasing for August. 3b/1.5b, carport, on shuttle, pets ok, fenced, $750/month. aggieLandRentals.com 979-776-8984. Quiet country atmosphere, fireplace, very large 1bdrm brick duplex. $415/mo. +bills. No pets. 979-693-8534. Room for lease under Helen Kline, Callaway House, available 6.23.09, call 979-260-7700 or 817-991-6803

FOR SALE $75,500. 3bd/2ba 4yr-old manufactured home at Lake Somerville bordering Birch Creek State Park, about-1/2acre. texpianokate@yahoo.com 2008 Palm Harbor double wide manufactured home still under warranty, in Sunset Ridge. 3bd/2ba with large front and back (covered) decks. Storage building also. Great student or family home. Need to sell. $64,500 Call 830-456-9484.

HELP WANTED Assistant teachers part-time. Working with children 18-mo. through 6-yrs, great learning opportunity for education majors or anyone wanting experience working with children. Please apply at swlccs@gmail.com or 979-693-6556. Athletic men for calendars, books, etc. $100-$200/hr, up to $1000/day. No experience. 512-684-8296, photoguy@io.com Callaway Villas, a private student housing residence hall, is accepting applications for a Community Assistant. Apply in person at: 305 Marion Pugh or online at http://www.studenthousing.com/ company/employment.asp. EOE. Career Apparel now hiring retail sales position P/T. Apply in person 4001 E. 29th #103. 979-260-2727. Cleaning commercial buildings at night, M-F. Call 979-823-5031 for appointment. Cook, cashier and runner, 7-day a week position. Background check Evening employment. 979-776-8135, call for an appointment. DONALD TRUMP LAUNCHES NEW BUSINESS! Ground floor opportunity, marketing positions only at this time. Denny’s tuesday July 21 6pm. RSVP 979-985-5590. Leasing agent needed, license required. Contact BrazosLand Properties 979-846-0606. Local business needs office assistant M-F. No weekends. Apply at 3320 S. College Avenue 979-779-7042.

College Station: 4003 So. Trace, 4/3 $1475. 4130 McFarland, 4/4, $1700. 2901 McLaren, 4/4.5, $1700. 1101 Haines, 3/2, $1100. Alpha-Omega/Broker, 979-774-7820, alphaomegaproperties.com

Office assistan/ secretary needed for small local business, part-time, flexible hours, for information call 979-492-6077.

Cozy 2bdrm/2bth condo 3-blocks from campus, yard, w/d connections, over 1000sqft., no HUD, updated, $585/mo., 506-C College Main 254-289-0585.

STUDENTPAYOUTS.COM Paid survey takers needed in College Station. 100% free to join. Click on surveys.

For lease: 3bdrm/3bath duplex. 3733 Oldenburg, $1000/mo. 979-324-9666.

PT/FT lawncare crewleader/driver. Valid Texas DL, good record. $8+/hr start. 979-324-0692.

LOST & FOUND Lost female, all white, Pekinese Maltese mix, noticeable under-bite, answers to “Ginger” call 817-689-8313.

MUSIC Party Block Mobile DJ- Peter Block, professional 22yrs experience. Specializing in Weddings, TAMU functions, lights/smoke. Mobile to anywhere. Book early!! 979-693-6294. http://www.partyblockdj.com

PETS Teacup puppies: Maltese, Shorkies, Maltipoos, Yorkies &Poodles. $500 &up. 979-324-2866, linda_d_54@yahoo.com

REAL ESTATE 1999 16x76, 3bd/2ba in Rolling Ridge Trailer Park. 1178sq.ft., corner lot with front and back fenced yards, decks, new wood flooring and carpet, island in kitchen, all appliances, W/D hookups, close to TAMU, $28,000. 972-679-6891.

ROOMMATES $1,000 incentive. Need female, 1bd/1ba, $4,584/semester. Serious inquiries. Callaway Villas or call Debra 325-277-9828 dgarcia@suddenlinkmail.com $475/mo. +bills, for 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom, pets okay on approval. Call 925-998-6108. 1 roommate needed. Spacious 2 story townhouse in Canyon Creek. Fully furnished. 4/2.5 $400/mo. +1/4 utilities. 713-823-9341. 1-female roommate needed for 2009-2010 school year. 3bd/2ba townhouse. $425/mo. +utilities. 979-574-4582. 1Female roommate 3/2 duplex, W/D and furnishings. $250 month, +1/3 bills, non-smoker, no pets prefered. Rock Hollow Loop & 2818. Call 979-229-0778. 3 roommates wanted. 4bd/2ba house, bike/walk to TAMU, $500/mo., utilities included, large yard, easy access to Blinn, 832-492-8447. Male roommates wanted in 4bd house. $300/mo. +1/4 bills. 979-777-4379. One roommate needed, 4/4/2, clean, good condition, on-shuttle. $375/mo. 512-248-9330. Roommate needed. 2bd/2ba on shuttle route, $500/mo., includes all bills. 936-591-1053. Roommate needed. 4/4 University Place condo, W/D, private bath, pool, volleyball court, on shuttle. Prelease for summer or fall. $300/mo., call 979-690-8213 or 979-422-9849. Roommate, house 1/2-mile from campus, furnished, $400/mo., +1/4 utilities. Steven 512-762-2151. Roommates needed. Two male roommates needed for 3/2 duplex off of University Drive in College Station. On TAMU and Blinn bus route. Great Location. Small deck and fenced yard. Small pets allowed w/deposit. Partially furnished, W/D included. Lease $350 per month and 1/3 of utilities. Call 361-230-9119 or 210-845-6474. Available 8-15-09. Sub-leasing one bedroom in 2bd/2.5ba Cottage at the Woodlands of College Station. $700/mo. For information call 817-271-2939 or e-mail thebangor@yahoo.com

TUTORS ESL tutoring and editing, masters level teacher, $15/hour. cmizc@aol.com

puzzle answers can be found online at www.thebatt.com

news

page 4 monday 7.20.2009

Search Continued from page 1

great representation across the board from University stakeholders,” said student regent Hunter Bollman. The search will begin with outreach initiatives: town hall sessions, visits to stakeholder groups and solicitation of comments through a presidential search Web site. “I think that the way the search, and the committee, is being run allows all stakeholders in the University to have a voice,” said student body president Eric Beckham. “I would love to see a committee with more people, i.e. more students, but in order to get the process the regents are trying to accomplish, this is the most effective team.” From the applicants, the search committee will select three to four semi-finalists, to be invited to College Station for on-campus interviews and feedback from members of stakeholder groups. “We believe this process will be one of the most interactive and progressive ever undertaken in selecting a president for Texas A&M University,” said system Chancellor Michael McKinney. “It is tremendously exciting to be able to use the search as a way not only to find

Apollo Continued from page 1

because that was the first time we left the gravity of earth. We did a circumlunar mission and returned to earth,” Cohen said. “That was the important stuff.” Apollo 11 became the first lunar landing. “In 1969 I was a flight director in mission control,” Griffin said. “I actually got to be in the control center for the launch phase and later for landing on the moon.” The landing was fraught with tension, Griffin said. “It was a very exciting landing, for one thing, because we almost ran out of fuel,” he said. “They were coming down into a boulder field. Neil Armstrong took over control from the computer, and he extended downrange. He went further along to get out of this boulder field and [Mission Control was] calling out how many seconds of fuel they had left. At about 30 seconds to go, Buzz Aldrin made the call, ‘We’re picking up some dust.’ They were getting really close – the lunar module was kicking up dust. He called 20 seconds to go and that’s when they had contact. Shortly after that Armstrong said, ‘Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.’ At that point there was great relief, great relief.” Nearly six hours later, Neil Armstrong took the first step onto the surface of the moon. “When they got out of the lunar module and stepped out on the lunar surface we all watched it. It was a crummy TV, but we all watched them,” Griffin said. “It was very exciting.” A successful lunar landing, however, was only one goal of the mission, Griffin said. “Everybody then turned their attention to two things: one was to get them back home, but we also had to make sure that the spacecraft was okay,” Griffin said. “There had even been some theories that the lunar surface was so soft that the lunar module would just sink in like quicksand. That was not the case at all.” As the public watched Armstrong and Aldrin walk on the

thebattalion a new president, but to also reach out to the greater Aggie community regarding their thoughts on how we can best advance Texas A&M.” A list of the top three unranked candidates is slated to go before the board in January 2010. “We are committed to finding the best president possible to guide our flagship university,” said Board of Regents chairman Morris Foster. “We want to be sure that the final choice reflects the maximum possible input from everyone who loves Texas A&M and wants it to continue along its historic path of excellence.”

Committee Chairman of the committee: Richard Box Members: Ida Clement Steen Lupe Fraga John Junkins Tim Hall Robert Bednarz Mark Hussey Antonio Cepeda-Benito Eric Beckham Meredith Maloney Shelley Potter Thomas Saylak Neal Adams Dave Parrott Frank Ashley moon, many at Mission Control worried about a safe return, Cohen said. “The landing was just the first step,” Cohen said. “The most difficult part was getting them back.” Successful return required a launch from the lunar surface and the docking of the lunar module with the command service module, before the descent to earth. “We’d never done a launch from the moon before, but of course that went just fine,” Griffin said. “It was a great experience.” The command module splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on July 24, 1969, after eight days in space. “The thrill of landing a man on the moon, it was one of much anxiety and relief,” Cohen said. “It was a great relief after we recovered the crew and put them back on the ship.” The Apollo 11 landing was inspirational, said Texas A&M aerospace engineering professor and AggieSAT lab principal investigator Helen Reed. “The moon landing was just the most exciting thing I’d ever seen,” Reed said. After the Apollo program ended, Griffin became the director of the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Several years later, Cohen became the director. Both Griffin and Cohen credited their Texas A&M education with preparing them for the job. “Our aerospace preparation is superb,” Griffin said. “For any Aggie that wants to get into the space business, there is no better school in the U.S. to get you ready.” Texas A&M has been, and remains, an important place to Griffin, he said. “I bleed maroon. I have been tied to A&M ever since I started at the place in 1952,” Griffin said. “It’s a fantastic place. It’s better now than when I was there.” The skills learned at Texas A&M carried over into Cohen’s professional life, he said. “Having a great work ethic and being a team player contributed to my success more than anything else,” Cohen said. “I think you get that kind of inherent education at Texas A&M.”

STUDIES IN PROGRESS RED DRY SCALY PATCHES OF SKIN ATOPIC DERMATITIS STUDY (ECZEMA)

Volunteers ages 18 and older needed to participate in a 6-week clinical research study with an investigational topical medication for atopic dermatitis (RED, DRY, SCALY PATCHES OF SKIN). Eligible volunteers will receive at no cost: • Study related ointment for 4 weeks • Physical Examination • Dermatological Assessments • Compensation up to $300 for time and effort For more information please contact:

J&S Studies, Inc. 979-774-5933 1710 Crescent Pointe Parkway, College Station, TX 77845

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7/19/09 9:09 PM

EDITOR’SNOTE The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the various authors and forum participants in this paper do not necessarily reﬂect those of Texas A&M University, The Battalion or its staff.

voices thebattalion 7.20.2009 page5

GUESTCOLUMN GUEST

That’s the way it was, and the way it will be

Jordan Bryan — THE BATTALION

Grin and bear it Republicans in Minnesota should learn to take defeat graciously

s Senator Alan Franken, D-Minn., finally takes his seat in the U.S. Senate, the eight-month legal victory has meant as much to the Democrats as to the people of Minnesota. The comedian-turned-politician has given the political left a filibuster-proof 60-40 majority in the Senate, adding to the left’s political power with complete control over two branches of government. Although Republicans may feel bitter about the hotly contested election, they need to accept the results for the sake of the country, just as the Democrats did in 2000. I can’t help but compare the story of Franken’s election to the presidential campaign and aftermath of 2000. While Franken seemed to have lost in November, the 215vote lead of incumbent Senator Norm Coleman, R-Minn., was well under the 0.5 percent needed to require a recount by Minnesota state law. By Jan. 5, the Minnesota State Canvassing Board had certified a 225-vote lead for Franken, and all of a sudden the Republicans’ traditional desire for a quick end to election results was changed. The regularly touted Republican

Pg. 5-07.20.09.indd 1

Ian McPhail idea that America needs to immediately know the result of an exceptionally close and important election seems only applicable when their party wins. In January, after the Canvassing Board had reached its decision, the roles were suddenly reversed. With Franken the winner, Republicans no longer wanted everyone to bend over and accept the courts’ coming to a decision. (Or if that is too risqué, Republicans no longer wanted a speedy decision to be made.) The ruling was appealed by Coleman in a trial in front of a three-judge panel, whose decision again required an appeal by the senator, to Minnesota’s Supreme Court. The Republicans should not be blamed for dragging their case to the highest authority and losing. With such a close vote, they had every right to make sure their

opinions were heard by the state’s Supreme Court. The hypocrisy is found in Republicans who still remain bitter about the contested election, who less than a decade ago demanded the nation heal under President George W. Bush. The difference is that Republicans expected former vice president Al Gore to give up in January, Franken’s victory has been delayed eight months. Votes in an election as close as this one should be counted and recounted as many times by as many unbiased judges as necessary to ensure a fair result. While it is understandable for politicians to do whatever it takes to try to win, the Republicans need to realize that the reason for Democratic power is not the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now screwing them, but the state the country is in after eight years under the Bush administration. Just as they expected the Democrats to accept Bush as their president, the Republican Party needs to accept the control of the government as consequence of its action, and move on for the good of the country. Ian McPhail is a sophomore history major.

ight now I’m sitting in the apartment I have so graciously been lent this summer in New York, the cool air and sounds of wet traffic wafting up to our 12th-floor living room apartment. It is raining and every once in a while, a flash of lightning will illuminate the living Nicole Alvarado room and thunder will roll against the windowpanes for a few seconds. Walter Cronkite The room is dimly lit and we are all brought dignity and quietly working on our projects. You integrity to reporting, could hear a pin drop if not for the and Americans of all honks and water droplets obscuring the otherwise somber silence. stripes will miss him. The room wasn’t always this quiet unwrapping that Red Ryder BB — the kind of quiet that is oppressive Gun with euphoric purpose. The and stifling, thick enough to feel it solemnity and sense of reality he encircling your throat. Just about brought to America with his coverage an hour ago, I was bouncing off the of the Vietnam War — unmatched. walls, elated from the past 48 hours He was a character of surreal and all that had transpired. proportions, and I truly feel like the While the excitement I haven’t world is a significantly emptier place been able to keep from seeping without journalists — without people into my facial expressions hasn’t — like him. completely dissipated, it has been I admire the way Rather dropped overshadowed by a grief palpable to everything to talk about his longtime anyone who calls herself a journalist. friend and mentor on the air. I know Walter Cronkite died a few hours that his dinner plans with his ago, at the age of 92. Three wife were probably interrupted hours ago, I was sitting in Dan to do this. Rather’s office, having him You can bet that he’d sign a copy of one of his books. probably rather be anywhere You couldn’t detect a shift in but in that studio, forced to his mood that day from any relive all the reasons why his other day, yet surely he must friend was great, and really have already known, or had a CRONKITE driving home why we should foreboding sense of what was all be so sad to see him go. on the horizon. And yet, he’s there. Will anyone Now, I am watching him from hear him complain? Definitely not. my roommate’s TV-phone on He’s not a man of stone by any MSNBC, talking with Rachel proportions, but you couldn’t see the Maddow and Tom Brokaw about emotion wearing on him anywhere. the legacy Cronkite has left behind. Rather said in his book, “The Walter Cronkite was the perfect Camera Never Blinks,” that when mix of a professional journalist and he reported the death of Kennedy, a personable, down-home boy from he couldn’t allow himself to feel the Missouri with whom anyone could reality of it because if he let go for relate. even a second, he might not be able He didn’t just read the news; he to catch his footing again. related it specifically to every single I can see the sense in that, but viewer. There was a reason he was that’s one of those things that is so dubbed the “most trusted man in much easier said than done. It would America.” take me decades of practice to be able Cronkite was a bit before my to perfect the theory enough so that time. However, any self-respecting you couldn’t see my bleeding heart journalism student has at least the pulsing wildly on my sleeve at such most basic knowledge of his career. an event. In my mind’s eye, I can still clearly I had so many exciting and see him announcing, in grainy blackwonderful things to talk about and and-white film, the assassination of report on to the folks back home, President John F. Kennedy. The but somehow, the timing just doesn’t hitch in his breath, the stilted delivery seem right. and the slow, deliberate removal of I’ll write again tomorrow when his glasses from his face — it was so my spunk and energy have returned. moving in its simplicity that it could Until then, I think I will just stare have been rehearsed, but it wasn’t. out my window a while longer and There was a genuineness about watch the earth cry for Cronkite. Cronkite that I have never seen in And that, my friends, is the way any other reporter. I mean trust a it was. reporter? It’s practically blasphemy to even suggest such a thing today. Nicole Alvarado is a senior The excitement with which he communication major and former editor reported the lunar landing — like in chief of The Battalion. a small boy on Christmas morning,

TOSUBMIT Mail call must be fewer than 200 words and include the author’s name, classification, major and phone number. Guest columns must be fewer than 700 words. All submissions should focus on issues, become property of The Battalion and are subject to editing for style, clarity and space concerns.

7/19/09 5:26 PM

news

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thebattalion

Moon

On the Net

Continued from page 1

declared the challenge in 1961. It needed an advance in computerization that had not happened yet. NASA would have to learn how to dock separate spaceships, how to teach astronauts to walk in space, even how to keep them alive in space — all tasks so difficult experts weren’t sure they were possible. Forty years later, the moon landing is talked about as a generic human achievement, not an American one. But Apollo at the time was more about U.S. commitment and ingenuity. Historian Douglas Brinkley called the Apollo program “the exemplary moment of America’s we-can-do-anything attitude.” After the moon landing, America got soft, he said, looking for the quick payoff of a lottery ticket instead of the sweat-equity of buckling down and doing something hard. In years since, when America faces a challenge, leaders often look to the Apollo program for inspiration. In 1971, when President Richard Nixon declared a war on cancer, his staffers called it “a moon shot for cancer.” Last year, then-candidate Barack Obama and former Vice President Al Gore proposed a massive effort to fight global warming, comparing it to Apollo 11. An environmentalists’ project to tackle climate change and promote renewable energy took the name “Apollo Alliance.” Those still-unfinished efforts recall May 25, 1961, when President Kennedy, fresh from a disastrous Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba, announced that America would land a man on the moon and return him safely home by the end of the decade. “I thought he was crazy,” said Chris Kraft, when he heard Kennedy’s speech about landing on the moon. Kraft was head of Mission Control. He was the man responsible for guiding astronauts to orbit (which hadn’t been done yet) and eventually to the moon. Kraft first heard about a mission to the moon when Kennedy made the speech. “We saw that as Buck Rogers stuff, rather than reality that would be carried out in any time period that we were dealing with,” Kraft recently told The Associated Press in a telephone interview from Houston. Less than three months later, Kraft was in the White House explaining to the president just how landing on the moon would be done. Kraft still didn’t

NASA’s Apollo anniversary site: http:// www.nasa.gov/mission(underscore) pages/apollo/40th/index.html NASA’s interactive site showing Apollo high points by state: http://www.nasa.gov/externalﬂash/ ApolloNearYou/index.html NASA video of Apollo 11 landing on the moon: http://history.nasa.gov/alsj/ a11/A11Landing.mov believe it would work. “Too many unknowns,” he said. It was the Cold War, and Russian Yuri Gagarin had just become the first man in space. Kennedy chose landing a man on the moon because experts told him it was the one space goal that was so distant and complicated at the time that the United States could catch up and pass the Soviet Union, Kennedy adviser Ted Sorensen said. The idea in a world where American capitalism was pitted against Soviet communism on a daily basis was “to prove to the world which system was best, which one was the future,” Sorensen said. “It’s not just the fact that the president wanted it done,” Sorensen recalled. “It was the fact that we had a specific goal and a specific timetable.” In another speech, Kennedy famously said America would go to the moon and try other tasks “not because they [are] easy, but because they were hard. Because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of our energies and skills.” They weren’t just skills with rockets and slide rules. Bringing together countless aerospace companies, engineers, scientists, technicians, politicians and several NASA centers around the nation was a management challenge even more impressive than building the right type of rockets, said Smithsonian Institution space scholar Roger Launius. And it cost money. The United States spent $25.4 billion on the Apollo program, which translates to nearly $150 billion in current dollars. Yet, in the view of those heavily involved in the challenge, what made Apollo work was two tragedies: the assassination of Kennedy in 1963 and the fatal Apollo 1 fire in 1967. The assassination of Kennedy made the Apollo program and its budget politically nearly untouchable. The moon-landing goal — which Kennedy

Walk on the moon Photos courtesy of NASA

later talked about modifying and even including the Soviets on — became a symbol of the martyred president. NASA’s launch center was renamed from Cape Canaveral to Kennedy. The Apollo fire, which occurred during ground testing, killed three astronauts, including Armstrong’s neighbor. The main problem was that there was 100 percent oxygen in the capsule, which made fire spread rapidly. Kraft, in a July interview, said he is convinced that NASA couldn’t have reached Kennedy’s target were it not for the Apollo 1 fire and the way it made the space agency rethink everything: “We were building inferior hardware at that point in time. “The whole program turned around, both from a hardware and management point of view,” Kraft said. “You really learn from failure.” NASA drilled astronauts and flight controllers ceaselessly with simulations. Failures kept being thrown at the astronauts and the controllers, some just plain unsolvable. One of the last failures simulated before Apollo 11’s launch was an alarm on the lunar lander that signaled the computer was overloaded. During the simulation, Mission Control in Houston aborted the landing. But controllers were later told it was just an “indication” signal and that if they had thought about it, the computer really was working fine. Controllers thought the test was unfair, according to an account in the new book, “Rocket Men: The Epic Story of the First Men on the Moon” by Craig Nelson. But during the real mission, as the Eagle lunar lander approached the moon, that test-run computer signal

appeared. This time controllers knew everything was OK. They didn’t abort the moon landing. Still, there were more hurdles to come. In another example, experience and nerves paid off. As Eagle neared the landing area in the spot called Sea of Tranquility, Armstrong saw too many boulders and craters to come down safely. So he kept flying horizontally, 100 feet off the ground, scouring the moonscape for a smooth place. Eagle’s fuel tank neared empty. Alarms went off. Mission controllers in Houston fretted. “We still needed to get down,” recalled Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin. “I’m not telling Neil, ‘Hey Neil, hurry up, get on the ground.’ I’m sort of conveying this with body English.” There were only 17 seconds worth of fuel left. Finally, the radio at Mission Control crackled with Armstrong’s voice: “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.” Two hours later, the world watched on television as the first two men walked on the moon. Decades later, Armstrong called his first words on the moon “a pretty simple statement, talking about stepping off something.” But Armstrong wasn’t merely talking about that small step of his. What came next was the big deal. It was, as he said on the moon 40 years ago, “a giant leap for mankind.” It still is. Multimedia journalist Kevin Vineys in Washington and television producer Sara Gillesby in New York contributed to this report.

A variety of museums, space centers and other institutions are marking the anniversary with events, exhibits, concerts and lectures. George Bush Presidential Library and Museum Through Aug. 16 The Bush library exhibit, Beyond the Moon: NASA’s Continuing Mission is open. The museum and the LBJ Presidential Library and Museum, in partnership with Space Center Houston, tell the story of America’s exploration into the final frontier. The LBJ library begins the voyage with the story of man’s fascination with space from Sputnik to the man’s first steps on the moon during Apollo 11. The Bush library continues this momentous expedition with Apollo 12 through the current shuttle missions. Beyond the Moon: NASA’s Continuing Mission focuses on Skylab, ApolloSoyuz, the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station. Johnson Space Center, Houston 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. today Discovery Green, the downtown Houston park, with NASA’s “Driven To Explore” mobile exhibit, which includes a moon rock you can touch. Free admission. 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday “Splashdown Celebration,” at Space Center Houston, which is the Johnson Space Center’s official visitors’ center; family event with Apollo-era speakers, MoonPies, hot dogs and music, $11.

NASA has a link to anniversary events from its Web site at http://www.nasa.gov/

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