Irish hunger strikes end
Top official pledges prison reforms
BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) Britain's top
official in Northern Ireland pledged yesterday to
implement prison reforms for all inmates now that jailed
Irish nationalists have ended their hunger strike.
"There are certain reforms which can be introduced. We
will now try to see what we can do about them," Northern
Ireland Secretary James Prior told reporters before
departing for Belfast from Norwich in eastern England.
The violence-torn province was reported quiet. Police
reinforcements were called up in Londonderry, Ulster's
second largest city, where about 1,500 mostly Roman
Catholic supporters of the hunger strike and 200 followers
of the hard-line Protestant leader, the Rev. lan Paisley,
staged demonstrations in separate parts of the city. No
incidents were reported.
At Belfast's City Hall, about 300 Protestants and
Catholics gathered for the annual co-denominational
"Witness for Peace" service, carrying small white crosses
in memory of the more than 2,000 victims of Northern
Ireland's 12 years of sectarian violence.
Prior, after arriving in Belfast, conferred with top prison
Poll: U.S. divided over AWACS sale
By TIMOTHY HARPER
Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK (AP) Americans are
sharply divided over the Reagan
administration's proposed sale of AWACS
planes to Saudi Arabia, according to the latest
Associated Press-NBC News poll.
The telephone poll of 1,601 adults contacted
in a scientific random sampling Sept. 28-29
also said Americans are split over whether
the AWACS sale would increase the chances
of war in the Middle East or mean the United
States would have to increase its military aid
to Israel.
The Reagan administration's proposed $8.5
billion sale includes five Boeing 707 jets
equipped with special early warning radar
systems which could allow the Saudis to spot
approaching aircraft from as far as 350 miles
away.
The prpsident has said the sale would help
ensure peace and defend the valuable Saudi
oil fields, but senators who oppose the sale say
they have more than enough votes to block it.
Forty percent of the respondents in the
latest poll said they oppose the sale, with 25
*Contemplating victory
Nittany Lion► coach Joe Paterno watches his team warm up at Beaver State went on to win its third game of the season, 30-0. Please see stories and
Stadium before the start of the Penn State-Temple game on Saturday. Penn photos, Page 10.
inside
• Enter a different world relax
in it, meet new people and get in
shape with the Cycling Club
• A new TV station was estab
lished in State College in the spring,
but you won't be able to tune in
until February Page 7
• Penn State fullback Joel Coles
is out for the season with a broken
right foot Page 10
weather
We'll be in a warming trend for
the first part of this week. Intervals
of clouds and sunshine today with
high temperatures near 69. Thicken
ing cloudiness and cool tonight
with low temperatures around 52.
Variable cloudiness and warm to
morrow with a few showers. Highs
will be in the low 70s.
Health Expo pools resources, Wirag
Editor's Note: Dr. J. Robert Wirag, director of
the Office of Health Promotion and Education in
the University's Department of Health Services,
is also the director of Health Expo 'Bl. Daily
Page 4
Collegian Staff Writer Brian Bowers interviewed
Wirag yesterday, and the following has been
edited for length and clarity. (Please see related
stories, Page G.)
COLLEGIAN: Was there anything that really
sparked the idea of having a Health Expo?
WIRAG: A couple of us recognized the
tremendous wealth of resources we have in this
community, not only in the University but also in
the adjacent communities.
We took a look at a time of the year when it
would be good to pool all those resources
together and say to the Penn State Students,
"This is what is available to you whether you are
a graduate or undergraduate student." And
some of the faculty and staff need to be informed
periodically of what the resources are, where
they are and how to use them.
It certainly seemed logical to do this sort of a
the
daily
officials at the British administrative headquarters at
Stormont Castle. Government sources said the officials
were studying undisclosed recommendations for changes
in prison regulations proposed by an International Red
Cross delegation that attempted to mediate an end to the
hunger strike in July.
Ten Irish nationalists, most of them members of the
outlawed Irish Republican Army, starved themselves to
death at Belfast's Maze prison during the seven-month
protest that ended Saturday when the six remaining
strikers ended their fasts.
The Rev. Denis Faul, a Catholic priest who played a
significant role in ending the fasts, visited five of the six
former hunger strikers at the Maze and said he found them
"relaxed."
One of the inmates remained in a hospital, but all six
were reported in satisfactory condition by Britain's
Northern Ireland Office.
"A certain air of tension has disappeared," said Father
Faul, an assistant chaplain at the prison.
percent in favor and 35 percent not sure. That
indicates a slight shift of public opinion for the
sale since the May AP-NBC News poll showed
54 percent opposed, 19 percent in favor and 27
percent unsure about the sale.
Among those who had an opinion about the
sale, 46 percent said they think selling the
AWACS to Saudi Arabia will increase the
chances of war in the Middle East. Fifteen
percent said the sale would decrease the
chances of war in the Middle East, 35 percent
said the sale would make no difference and 4
percent were not sure.
By 47-42 percent, respondents said the
AWACS sale would mean the United States
will have to increase its military aid to Israel.
Among all respondents, 43 percent said the
United States should not sell arms or military
equipment to any foreign country.
On the question of the•AWACS sale, people
who opposed the sale said it would increase
the chances of war and require more military
aid to Israel, while respondents who favored
the sale said it would decrease the chances of
war and would not mean more American
arms aid to Israel.
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Men were about evenly divided on the
AWACS sale, but women were 3-1 against it
A majority of women said the sale would
increase the chances of war in the Middle
East and mean more U.S. military aid to
Israel, while a majority of men said the
AWACS sale would decrease the chances of
war and would not boost American arms aid
to Israel.
Among religious groups, Jews ,
overwhelmingly opposed the sale and said it •
would increase the chances of war and mean
more American military aid to Israel.
As with all sample surveys, the results of
AP-NBC News polls can vary from the
opinions of all Americans because of chance
variations in the sample.
For a poll based on about 1,600 interviews,
the results are subject to an error margin of 3
percentage points either way because of
chance variations. That is, if one could have
talked this palit week to all Americans with
telephones, there is only 1 chance in 20 that
the findings would vary by more than 3
percentage points.
Please see related stories, Page 8
program in the fall. Students, after the program
is put together, can learn from it and take
advantage of all the resources that are here the
rest of the year.
We used to do this sort of thing in the spring,
which is pretty much after the fact. It is really a
good time, being the first three days of
Homecoming Week. It kind of kicks off
Homecoming.
interview
COLLEGIAN: What exactly is your role in the
Health Expo?
WIRAG: I have been working as the director.
Fortunately, I have had some pretty outstanding
people to work with and I certainly want to
recognize the fine job done by Larry Atwell, who
is the Health Expo coordinator. Larry and I
worked together it was a real cooperative
Rhythm
The Atlanta Rhythm Section ( from left) Barry Bailey, Roy Yeager and Paul Goddard performed its distinctive brand
of music Saturday night at Rec Hall. Please see story, Page 16.
Task force to aid grads
with
By ELLYN HARLEY
Daily Collegian Staff Writer
Graduate students will soon have relief
from a taxing problem.
That relief will he provided by a newly
formed task force to study and propose
solutions to the tax problems of graduate
students
The task force will include a representative
of the Graduate Student Association, said
Suzanne Hausheer Babich, chairwoman of the
GSA tax committee.
Graduate School Dean James B. Bartoo,
who made the decision to create the official
task force, will probably be the chairman,
Babich said. Other members of the task force
have yet to be chosen.
"We finally have the (tax) issue to the
officials; it's no longer a group of graduate
students jumping up and down," Babich said.
"We really feel like there's quite a victory in
this development."
The task force will concentrate on problems
created by inconsistencies within indiVidual
departments of standards for required
teaching. Also, it will try to remedy problems
with form letters sent to the Internal Revenue
Service in which a professor attests that a
student is qualified to receive a tax refund,
Babich said.
"Departments have to stop writing letters
for students who are not qualified for tax
refunds and make sure they write letters for
students who are qualified ( for tax refunds),"
she said.
Babich said, however, that it is important to
realize most students are liable for federal,
state and local taxes. Many graduate students
mistakenly believe that the form letters are
documents entitling them to tax refunds, she
said.
"Students better shape up and stop thinking
the letters work —students who have been
audited are not winning," Babich said.
Students must receive a ruling from the IRS
to be exempt from paying taxes; however, it
is important to make sure graduate students
who receive tax-exempt scholarships,
fellowships and grants are not taxed, she said.
Another problem for some students is
misunderstanding the Social Security tax
system.
Students who receive refunds from the IRS
may assume they do not have to pay Federal
Insurance Contributions Act taxes. But, the
two taxes are completely separate,
University Controller Steve A. Garban said.
"We've said in the past that for a
scholarship or fellowship, neither social
security or income taxes apply," he said.
"Social Security is a separate item but it
often gets blended into the other problems of
effort. He did a lot of the leg work to get the
various parts of the program put together.
COLLEGIAN: Who originally came up with
the idea for having a Health Expo?
WIRAG: (Undergraduate Student
Government President) Bill Cluck and I, one
afternoon this summer, were doing some
brainstorming, just to see how USG and
University Health Services could get involved in
some cooperative program. The outcome of that
brainstorming was the idea of putting Health
Expo 'Bl together. From that point, we just made
a commitment to do it.
One thing led to another and soon after that
Bill Cluck put me in touch with Larry Atwell. I
recognized very early the competency of Larry
Atwell. With his tremendous amount of energy
and interest in representing USG, I thought we
had a pretty decent marriage of interest. Then
we just proceded one step at a time and we,
frankly, organized as we went along.
COLLEGIAN: Why was "wellness" chosen as
the theme for the Health Expo?
‘VIRAG: It has a positive air about it. There is
20°
Monday Oct. 5, 1981
Vol. 82, No. 52 18 pages University Park, Pa. 16802
Published by students of The Pennsylvania State University
income tax problems
graduate students getting income tax
refunds," he added. "The IRS and Social
Security are different.
"Rules for one do not apply to the other.
There is no refund of Social Security wages or
compensation."
David Herbert, the Executive Director of
Social Security.in Harrisburg, said students
receiving rulings from the IRS excluding
them from taxation are definitely not
required to pay the FICA tax.
However, he added, "Any graduate student
paid a stipend and providing service to the
University is subject to federal, state and
local taxes."
Garban said graduate students are required
to pay FICA in accordance with a 1956
agreeement between the state and the federal
government that public employees are
included in the social security system.
"We're part of the state system and the
state has agreed with the federal government
that students are covered (under FICA)," he
said. "There are universities where students
are not covered by social security and there
are other universities like us, involved in a
state program.
"We're looking into whether, one, if we
want to exclude students from coverage, and
two, if it's possible to remove students from
the agreement. We don't have the answers
yet," Garban said.
Graduate students at the University should
know the social security coverage entitles
them to benefits if they become disabled, he
said.
"Those benefits are not usually thought
about by younger people," he said.
Garban stressed that tax issues can be very
complicated and take time to unravel.
"Our investigation of this (the tax issue) is
not an overnight thing," Garban said. "Our
conclusions are based on research and legal
advice."
Although only about 20 students at the
University may be entitled to Social Security
exemptions, Babich said, their total
exemptions are a substantial sum. For
example, she said the 6.5 percent FICA
deduction from a $3,700 yearly salary would
amount to about $250.
"That's worth bothering about," she said.
"Even if it's only 20 students, that's $230 times
20, and that's a lot of money."
A new graduate student handbook
scheduled to be issued this month will include
an article about information graduate
students should he aware of in relation to all
tax liabilities, Babich said.
The controller's office is willing to help in
the publication of the handbook, Garban said
kind of wellness movement taking place
nationwide right now.
More people are looking to the positive aspects
of health and well-being. The term "wellness"
has been coined fairly recently. It has a positive
flair about it. Also, Dr. William liettler, who is
our keynote. speaker, has been one of the
forerunners in promoting the wellness concept.
COLLEGIAN: There seem to be many sex,
birth control and abortion related topics on the
schedule. What are the reasons for some of these
different topics being chosen?
WIRAG: We wanted to plan an event that
would be of interest to all people, not just the
people from University Park but people in the
surrounding communities.
So we picked and chose topics that would be of
interest to a wide range of people. Now, it just so
happens that those you just mentioned are of
great interest to college students.
Some of the topics have very little interest for
students, but they are very . appropriate for other
interests.
Please see HEALTH EXI'O, Page 5
says