THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Thursday March 10, 1988
Vol. 98, No.114 (USPS 650-640)
Published since 1889 by the students of the University of Kansai
Bid to revive admissions bill fails in House
Kansan staff writer
By Elaine Woodford
Although there was hope yesterday that the defeated qualified admissions bill would be revived in the state House of Representatives, the bill was stricken from the calendar, effectively killing it for the rest of the session.
Branson said that this week was a turning point in the legislative session, because all bills originating in the House must be passed on to the Senate and all Senate bills must be passed on to the House. Bills that are in the House Appropriations, Taxation or Federal and State Affairs committees are immune to that regulation.
"This makes me believe even more than before that the bill will not be introduced again this session," said State Rep. Jessie Branson, D-Lawrence.
But, Branson said, "It's never over until it's over."
somehow reappear in one of the three immune committees.
State Rep John Solbach, D-Lawrence, agreed that the bill would not be an issue during the 1988 session.
seemed. Soibach said that the issue had more far-reaching implications for legislators this session because it was an election year.
"It will take time before the issue of qualified admissions becomes politically acceptable," he said.
Solbach said that the idea of qualified admissions had not been debated in the Kansas Legislature since 1915.
Branson said that the topic was a sensitive one because Kansans felt strongly about Kansas traditions such as oen admissions.
Stanley Kopilik, executive director of the Board of Regents, said he wouldn't pursue the qualified admissions issue this session but would push for another bill next year.
"I haven't really put much thought into the actual bill, but we intend to visit more people and step up our educational program during the next session," he said.
Lake Tahoe casino beckons to students Harrah's looks to KU for summer help
Harrah's looks to KU for summer help
By Jeff Suggs Kansan staff writer
Students often dream of walking away from a casino with lots of money in their pockets.
Yesterday, a Lake Tahoe, Nev., casino offered students the chance to do just that.
But there's a catch: They have to earn it.
Harrah's Hotel and Casino was on campus interviewing students for summer jobs.
Merle Lyons, personnel representative for Harrah's, said he and other company representatives were visiting colleges to fill about 400 summer positions. Available jobs range from cocktail waitresses and maids to cashiers and slot change persons. Wages range from $3.50 to $5.50 an hour.
Lyons, a 1980 journalism graduate from the University of Kansas, said this was Harrah's first visit to campus. The company had recruited by mail in the past and had been successful in finding KU students to work in the casino.
Lyons said the busiest time of the year for the casino was in the summer months, just when college students are looking for jobs.
"It's like a marriage. We're made for each other." Lyons said.
Many of the applicants were interested in living in the busy nightlife
and beautiful scenery of Lake Tahoe.
"It's kind of a big-time spring break where they can earn money," he said.
Marti Slusher, Overland Park junior, who spent last summer working as a cashier and hostess, agreed that working at Harrah's was a fun experience.
"It was a lot of fun," she said. "I encourage anyone to do it and go out there."
Yesterday's visit by Harrah's attracted about 40 people for interviews.
"It's nice." Davis said. "I'm afraid that the cost of living is out of sight, but it's a nice area."
John Delgado, Kansas City, Kan., junior, said he wouldn't mind leaving the Midwest to work elsewhere.
"It's just the location," he said, adding that he wanted "to get away for different scenery."
Alan Ptacek, Lawrence resident and a 1984 geology graduate of KU, hoped to become a pit boss in the casino.
casino.
"I've worked three years off shore as an engineer," Ptacek said. "I'm ready to have a little fun and relax."
Waste clean-up nears completion
By Ric Brack
The cleanup of a chemical spill that occurred when a tractor-trailer truck overturned near Lawrence on the Kansas Turnpike last week should be completed today.
Kansan staff writer
Marvin Glotzbach, an environmental geologist with the Kansas Department of Health and Environment said yesterday that about 6,000 gallons of contaminated water had been pumped out of a creek near the accident site.
creek bear the Kansas City, Mo., company contracted to clean up the spill. Environmental Specialists, Inc., would probably finish removing dirt from the contaminated creek bed today.
$38,000, but he predicted that it could double when the contaminated materials had been disposed. The owner of the truck, F & S Truck Lines of Kansas City, Kan., will be billed for the clean-up costs.
He said the cost of the cleanup was already about
Glotzbach said only dirt that was in contact with the chemical Sonolan, also known as Ethalfuralin, an agricultural herbicide, would be removed.
He said that the final step in the clean-up process was to find a landfill willing to store the waste material.
matter.
"That's been our biggest hangup." Glotzbach said. "Everybody's afraid of this material, even though it's past the point of being hazardous."
through it a pass the polymer Glotzbach said the chemical's toxicity level had decreased because it had been exposed to air and sunlight.
He said damaged plastic chemical bottles and other shipping materials that had been saturated with Sonolan had been stored in a truck in Kansas City, Kan., until a disposal site could be found.
Gotbach said that the Johnson County landfill had refused to accept the contaminated material, and that the Wyandotte County landfill had not decided whether to accept it.
About 125 gallons of Sonolan spilled onto the ground and into Pony Creek after the truck overturned on the night of March 2. Turnipke authorities said the driver of the truck, Michael W. Shannon, 32, of Olathe, apparently had fallen asleep.
Officials didn't realize until about 14 hours after the accident that Sonolan was leaking from the truck.
Are we alone?
Bruce Twarog, associate professor of physics and astronomy, discusses several theories about the existence of extra-terrestrial intelligence in our galaxy and beyond. During the weekly luncheon forum at Ecumenical Christian Ministries yesterday, Twarog said
that the Drake equation, which was proposed by Frank Drake to determine how many technologically advanced civilizations exist in the galaxy, was basically worthless. Twarog said he thought that the chances of finding other life forms were very slim.
Congressmen call on Meese to step down
The Associated Press
independent counsel James McKay since May 11. McKay has been examining Mees's involvement with scandal-plagied Wedtech Corp. and with a $1 billion Iraqi oil pipeline project.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Eleven Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee yesterday asked Attorney General Edwin Meese III to step down temporarily until independent counsel investigations into his conduct are completed.
officer," the Democrats said in the letter.
Mackay also has been examining the attorney general's involvement with the regional Bell telephone companies at a time when he owned $14,000 in phone stock.
Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts, one of the signers, denied that the signers had a political motive. "Ed Meese is the best thing to happen to the Democratic Party," he said.
In addition, Independent Counsel Lawrence E. Walsh, investigating the Iran-contra arms and money affair, has called Meese before a grand jury numerous times.
Meese spokesman Terry Eastland said the attorney general would not comply because "no one should be urged to step down from a government position simply because that person is under investigation."
Meese has been under criminal investigation by
"We strongly believe that your increasing inability to spend time on the day-to-day demands of your job, the deteriorating morale at the Department of Justice and the continuing cloud over your office are undermining your ability to act effectively as the nation's chief law enforcement
The letter said the pending investigations "detract from the time required to properly administer the Department of Justice."
Eastland responded, "This is an old idea, a politically partisan idea and a thoroughly bad idea."
He said Meese "has every intention of serving to the end of this term. He has spent some time with his lawyers on the investigation, but there has been no serious subtraction of his time or effort from leadership of the Department of Justice."1
The letter was signed by Reps. Dian Glickman, Kansas; Edward Feighan, Ohio; Berman; Frank; Morrison; Lawrence Smith, Florida; Harley Staggers Jr., West Virginia; John Conyers, Michigan; George Crockett Jr., Michigan; Mike Synar, Oklahoma; and Patricia Schroeder, Colorado.
Collision of two Army helicopters kills 17 near Fort Campbell, Ky.
Blackhawks involved were among newest of Army's fleet
The Associated Press
FORT CAMPBELL, Ky. — Army crews yesterday retrieved the last eight bodies of 17 soldiers killed when two helicopters on a night training mission collided, plunging 250 feet to the ground and catching fire.
The UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters from Fort Campbell sweep wreckage for hundreds of yards and charred the partially wooded, gently rolling site six miles from the choppers' air field Tuesday night.
"One aircraft is located in the trees; one aircraft is right on the edge of a clearing," said Maj. Randy Schcel, Fort Campbell spokesman.
The Blackhawk, one of the newer helicopters used by the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps, has been grounded four times in three years. Last summer, officials said about 40 people had been killed in crashes of the helicopter since 1978.
It was the worst Army aviation disaster since 248 soldiers based at Fort Campbell were killed in the 1985 crash of a chartered plane in Gander, Newfoundland, School said.
'One aircraft is located in the trees; one aircraft is right on the edge of a clearing.'
Maj. Randy Schoel spokesman, Fort Campbell
"I would say now there is no indication of any mechanical factor" in the crash, said Chief Warrant Officer Joe Adams of the investigation team from the Army Safety Center at Fort Rucker, Ala. "We are looking at human and environmental factors. The human factors might include some restriction of vision."
The helicopters were flying about 250 feet from the ground at 92 mph air speed when they collided, School said. One of three helicopters flying in formation was hit by a fourth, said William Harralson, deputy public affairs officer at the fort.
School said the crash occurred on the western Kentucky-Tennessee border during a routine night mission. No one survived.
The solo helicopter carried four servicemen; the 13 others were in the second aircraft.
Adams said the weather was good, which in military terms means visibility of more than a mile and a cloud ceiling of at least 500 feet.
The Blackhawk is designed primarily as a utility and assault aircraft and is used in air assault, air cavalry and medical evacuation, said Maj. Phil Soucy, an Army spokesman in Washington.
Tenants Association preparing directory to area's apartments
Rv Kim Lightle
Kansan staff writer
Kansas State Writer
Students who are hunting apartments may soon have some help if the Student Senate approves the Lawrence Tenants Association's request for funding.
Gregg Stauffer, Lawrence sophomore and association president, said he asked for $5,226 from Senate this year. The Senate finance committee will consider the allocation this week.
the allocation this week.
The association began in April by Stauffer and other people who were concerned that tenants' interests weren't being represented in the State Legislature.
weren't being represented. Stauffer said that the group's purpose was to be an advocate for tenants and not a mediator. Groups such as the Consumer Affairs Association, 819 Vermont St., and Legal Services on level one of the Burge Union perform as mediators.
One of the big projects the group has been working on is a listing of rental properties' histories, including any complaints filed with Consumer Affairs Association by tenants against management since 1890.
ing on the issuing company. He initially wanted to use tenant complaints to review Lawrence rental properties by using a ranking system on tenants issues.
But Fargo said it wasn't possible to rate the properties fairly by using the complaints because neither tenants nor landlords gave fair evaluations of problems.
Michael Fargo, Lawrence resident, has been working on the listing since April.
"By the time it gets to a written complaint, the situation is usually pretty volatile," he said.
Fargo decided that the only way to do the listing was just to list the complaint and the case's outcome and let the reader decide whether to rent property from an owner.
Camille Dalager, director of the Consumer Affairs Association, said she had looked over the listings and thought they were presented fairly.
Fargo plans to have the listing done by the end of the semester after he follows through on the complaints that have been taken to court.
He also had plans to include in the listing apartments that are accessible to people with disabilities.
Stauffer said he hoped to get money from the Senate so the list could be published and distributed to students.
The money also would go for printing advertisements and pamphlets to let students know about the organization and to educate them about their housing rights.
RIPPLES:
To see that said students also needed to know what they could and did not do. For instance, many students will not pay their rent in an effort to get their landlords to take care of problems.
"Most of them don't know that they can't do that," he said. "They can be evicted for that."
he said. They can
The 32-member association has been operating on
$300 the Senate allocated to it last year and $96 in
membership fees.
Students do not need to pay the $3 membership fee to get help from the association, Stauffer said.