Reporting on behalf of ubuntu user mistr, based on comments on Launchpad bug:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/446632

[Summary]
Blender crashes in GPU_state_init() on startup on a computer with Radeon Mobility 7500. The same is reported on Radeon Mobility 9000 (M9) and Radeon 9200 by other users. The crash is on line 1298 in recent blender SVN, which contains the call: 
glMatrixMode(GL_TEXTURE);

[How to reproduce]
Start blender. Crash reported on official 32bit releases of 2.48a, 2.49, 2.49a, Ubuntu version (2.49a), 2.50 alpha0 and SVN 24195.

A[ffected mesa versions]
Crashes with mesa 7.6.0 which is currently in Ubuntu Karmic, and also with 7.7.0~git20091125+mesa-7-7-branch.7fac8ce7-0ubuntu0tormod from the ubuntu xorg-edgers repository. Downgrading to the git snapshot 7.6.0~git20090817.7c422387 that Ubuntu carried until 7.6.0 was released stops the crashes. mistr has said he is willing to git-bisect between 7.6.0~git20090817.7c422387 and 7.6.0, but he has not done it before and needs to figure out the details for how to do it in practice.

[Chipset]
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller [0300]: ATI Technologies Inc Radeon Mobility M7 LW [Radeon Mobility 7500] [1002:4c57]
	Subsystem: Compaq Computer Corporation Device [0e11:00b7]

[Other system information]
Architecture: i386
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 9.10
Lsusb:
 Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
 Bus 003 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0001 Linux Foundation 1.1 root hub
 Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0001 Linux Foundation 1.1 root hub
MachineType: Compaq Evo N610c (DD502A#AK8)
Package: mesa (not installed)
PccardctlIdent:
 Socket 0:
   no product info available
 Socket 1:
   no product info available
PccardctlStatus:
 Socket 0:
   3.3V 32-bit PC Card
 Socket 1:
   no card
ProcCmdLine: root=UUID=394fbc0f-c812-4c3b-b10a-445391ec9917 ro quiet splash
ProcEnviron:
 SHELL=/bin/bash
 LANG=de_DE.UTF-8
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.31-15.50-generic
RelatedPackageVersions:
 xserver-xorg 1:7.4+3ubuntu7
 libgl1-mesa-glx 7.7.0~git20091128+mesa-7-7-branch.e5159996-0ubuntu0tormod
 libdrm2 2.4.15+git20091125.6f66de98-0ubuntu0tormod~karmic
 xserver-xorg-video-intel 2:2.9.0+git20091125.917f9bb2-0ubuntu0tormod~karmic
 xserver-xorg-video-ati 1:6.12.99+git20091127.a8dbf7c2-0ubuntu0tormod~karmic
Uname: Linux 2.6.31-15-generic i686
UserGroups: adm admin cdrom dialout dip lpadmin plugdev sambashare
XsessionErrors:
 (gnome-settings-daemon:2250): GLib-CRITICAL **: g_propagate_error: assertion `src != NULL' failed
 (gnome-settings-daemon:2250): GLib-CRITICAL **: g_propagate_error: assertion `src != NULL' failed
 (nautilus:2283): Eel-CRITICAL **: eel_preferences_get_boolean: assertion `preferences_is_initialized ()' failed
 (polkit-gnome-authentication-agent-1:2314): GLib-CRITICAL **: g_once_init_leave: assertion `initialization_value != 0' failed
dmi.bios.date: 05/24/2003
dmi.bios.vendor: Compaq
dmi.bios.version: 68P4F v2.49 F.14
dmi.board.name: 07F4
dmi.board.vendor: Compaq
dmi.board.version: KBC Version .
dmi.chassis.asset.tag: CNU33406WF
dmi.chassis.type: 10
dmi.chassis.vendor: Compaq
dmi.modalias: dmi:bvnCompaq:bvr68P4Fv2.49F.14:bd05/24/2003:svnCompaq:pnEvoN610c(DD502A#AK8):pvr:rvnCompaq:rn07F4:rvrKBCVersion.:cvnCompaq:ct10:cvr:
dmi.product.name: Evo N610c (DD502A#AK8)
dmi.sys.vendor: Compaq
fglrx: Not loaded
system:
 distro: Ubuntu
 architecture: i686kernel: 2.6.31-15-generic