thebattalion l wednesday,
september 25, 2013
l serving
texas a&m since 1893
l first paper free – additional copies $1 l © 2013 student media
RHA formulates dining proposal Jennifer Reilley The Battalion
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(Right) Senior agribusiness major and RHA president Kasey Kram holds an open forum for students to propose new ideas for future meal plans Tuesday evening at Hullabaloo Hall.
buzz filled the room as Kasey Kram, president of the Residence Hall Association, began the discussion on a new proposal for the University dining plan. At the RHA General Assembly meeting Tuesday night, members voted on a dining proposal that would be introduced to University dining for next semester. After explaining the different points of the proposed plan, Kram opened the floor for questions from members of the RHA in attendance at the meeting. Kram said some of the RHA executives have been in contact with dining services and with Chartwells, the company to which Texas A&M has outsourced dining services. Kram said he has been told Chartwells does not want to go back to an all-dining dollars system like the
We need to come up with a plan that is fair and that students want to use. One that is set in stone for years to come.” — Kasey Kram, senior agribusiness major and RHA president Tanner Garza — THE BATTALION
a&m-arkansas
plan the University had last year. “We need to look for another way to get the most bang for our buck,” Kram said. Kram said the idea behind this year’s meal plan was to drive students to eat at Sbisa and Duncan dining halls, but students do not want to be told where and when they should eat. “A&M outsourced to a third party company, whose objective is to maximize profits,” Kram said. “Chartwells has upgraded dining facilities, and to make up for cost of upgrading facilities, unfortunately the load is put on students. We need to come up with a plan that is fair and that students want to use. One that is set in stone for years to come.” Kram proposed multiple ideas that consisted of offering a differSee Dining on page 2
football
Razorbacks say no band, Reveille at football game Arkansas to capitalize on limited home field time Lauren Simcic
The Battalion n line with the usual 12th Man away-game festivities, patches of maroon in the stands will contrast the opposing team’s colors, white towels will whirl and yell leaders will proudly lead Aggie fans at Saturday’s game against the University of Arkansas. However, at this away game, Reveille will not preside over the match and the Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band will not take to the field during halftime. The absences can be boiled down to the University of Arkansas’ live mascot restrictions and its decision to utilize halftime during its limited home games for in-house recognitions. Kevin Trainor, associate athletic director for public relations at the University of Arkansas, explained the Razorbacks’ rationale. “With a limited number of home games on campus, we have limited opportunities to recognize those from the University and former student-athletes,
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See Reveille on page 3
The issues surrounding Reveille and the Aggie Band could be viewed as an expression of that [Arkansas-A&M] rivalry.” — Andrew Quesada, junior political science major
Texas A&M head football coach Kevin Sumlin performs his weekly radio show Tuesday night at Wings ‘N More.
Jenna Rabel — THE BATTALION
Sumlin, players talk initial away matchup James Sullivan
Tanner Garza — THE BATTALION
Reveille takes the field during the Alabama game.
The Battalion ohnny Manziel has developed a reputation for competing at his own pace, and compared to the vast majority of college football athletes, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner moves at light speed. Even among his own offensive teammates, Manziel is five steps ahead, always searching for faulty defensive formations or exploitable weaknesses within the coverage scheme up until the moment the ball reaches his fingertips. “As a receiver, we’re taught to al-
ways keep our eyes on Johnny, because he could change the play as the snap is coming out,” said junior wide receiver Malcome Kennedy. “It’s crazy, the snap will be in midair and he will change the play. You have to be able to have great peripheral vision. It’s a quarterback and receiver thing out there.” Over the course of the offseason, Manziel’s knowledge and understanding of Texas A&M’s complex offensive system expanded, granting head coach Kevin Sumlin and offensive coordinator See Presser on page 3
To war and back Aggie nears MLB no-hitter Former Texas A&M pitcher and St. Louis Cardinals rookie Michael Wacha fell one out short of a no-hitter during a 2-0 victory Tuesday night.
inside news | 4 Senator decries Obamacare Campus voices react to Ted Cruz’s hours-long speech regarding the defunding of Obamacare.
lifestyles | 5 ‘The Voice’ contestant to perform Savannah Berry, a singersongwriter from Houston and recent contestant on “The Voice,” will perform Thursday in the MSC Flag Room.
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Storyteller shares life stories, advice on writing Elizabeth Evans, lifestyles writer, sits down with creative writing professor Larry Heinemann. THE BATTALION: What was the most life-changing moment you’ve experienced? Heinemann: I would have to say the most life-changing [moment] happened while I was a soldier doing my combat tour in Vietnam. The night of Jan. 1, 1968, my battalion was attacked by the 272nd NVA Infantry Regiment. The battle began about 11 p.m. and lasted until first light. Later that day we were told the bodycount was in the neighborhood of 500 souls. It was the longest, ugliest night of my life. The next morning we buried the corpses, for sanitation’s sake, and it took all morning. We did it like you make lasagna. The bulldozer dug a ditch. We then laid out a layer of corpses, added a layer of quick lime, then another layer of corpses, and so on. That’s the night and the day that snapped my head back plenty. THE BATTALION: What has been your
Q&A: most embarrassing moment as a professor?
Heinemann: That is a secret I will take to my grave. THE BATTALION: What is the craziest story you’ve ever told? Heinemann: Probably the story, “The Thinning of the Squirrel Herd.” It’s a Chicago story. Some years ago, a plague of squirrels chewed their way into my neighbor’s attic and ate $10,000 worth of one-of-a-kind, hand-sewn vintage dresses — a sartorial outrage. She bought a Have-a-Heart trap and asked me to “thin” the herd. I caught the critters one at a time and summarily drowned them. It took forever. I dug holes around the rose bushes and buried them standing up. There were many, many. But the next spring the rose bushes were taller than you could reach, and there were plenty of beautiful roses.
Dee Huggan — THE BATTALION
Larry Heinemann is a creative writing professor at A&M and served in the Vietnam War before going See Heinemann on page 6 back to school and becoming a writer.
9/24/13 11:22 PM