COLLEGIATETIMES
thursday september 6, 2007 blacksburg, va.
www.collegiatetimes.com
bulletin board CLAHS TO HOST PRESENTATIONS AT HOLTZMAN The College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences will host a twoday conference titled “Foundations of Democracy” at the Holzman Alumni Center starting today. Sessions begin at 9:30 a.m. and run until 4:30 p.m. and will feature presentations from professors from the Harvard Law School, Stanford University and Duke University, among others.
CONCERT FOR VIRGINIA TECH TONIGHT The concert featuring Dave Matthews Band, John Mayer, Nas and Phil Vasser will be tonight in Lane Stadium. Gates will open at 4 p.m.; patrons will not be allowed to line up before 3 p.m.
Parents of victims look to university for apologies, resignations PETER HURLEY
ct staff writer After the release of the Virginia Tech Review Panel’s report Thursday, the families of the April 16 shooting victims made their opinions known concerning the decision making from Tech president Charles Steger and the university leading up to and immediately following the tragedy. “I thought they might downplay things you know, it being a state school, and a state appointed panel,” said Andrew Goddard, parent of injured student Colin Goddard. “In general I was very pleased.” Goddard is one of many parents not calling for resignations and sacking, but for apologies and progress. “I don’t want to see people strung up for this,” Goddard said. “That would just be adding to the list of victims and that list is already long enough.” Apologies, he said, are essential yet unlikely while the university continues its policy of deflecting blame. “They seem as if they are guided by lawyers
news
Fred Thompson announced last night that he will run for president last night on NBC’s Late Night with Jay Leno. Thompson represented Tennessee for two terms in the United States Senate from 1994-2003, and most recently played a district attorney on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.
CHANCELLOR EXPECTED TO BE READY THIS WEEKEND Although rover Kam Chancellor injured his knee late in Saturday’s game against East Carolina, he is expected to be ready for this Saturday’s contest against Louisiana State. The sophomore from Norfolk suffered a slight sprain of his left MCL, and is being monitored by staff all week.
corrections The headline of Wednesday’s story about the hip-hop forum misidentified the sponsoring group. The event was organized by the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.
weather SUNNY high 90, low 61
coming up TOMORROW’S CT Missing the concert? We’ve got the full coverage of today’s Concert for Virginia Tech in tomorrow’s paper.
ON THE WEB We’ve taken “What’s Tech Saying” to the web. See what students think about today’s concert.
index News.....................4 Features................2 0pinions................3
Classifieds..............5 Sports....................6 Sudoku..................5
An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903 104th year • issue 131
“They seem as if they are guided by lawyers and not by a certain sense of humanity.” -ANDREW GODDARD PARENT morning,” Goddard said. The response across the student body has been equally diverse; some say hindsight is 20/20, while others question the decisions made by the administration. “I just think people are trying to point fingers, which is what happens in every situation like this,” said Ashley Loessberg, a sophomore ocean engineering major. As for Goddard, when asked where he thought the ultimate blame should land his answer was simple. “Seung-Hui Cho,” he said. “Even though he was aided and abetted by the situation, the only person who is responsible is Cho.”
Michael Vick merchandise pulled from local shelves
LAW AND ORDER STAR TO RUN FOR PRESIDENT
sports
and not by a certain sense of humanity,” Goddard said. “They have to have some responsibility just because it happened on their watch.” At the same time, other parents, such as Celeste Peterson are taking a more aggressive stand against the university. In a recent interview with The Roanoke Times, Peterson, who lost her only child Erin Peterson in the shootings, described the current administration at Virginia Tech as “not competent.” She said that they should be held responsible for their decision-making leading up to and during the tragedy the same way parents hold their children responsible for their actions. Though Gov. Kaine has said in recent weeks that neither Steger nor police chief Wendell Flinchum should lose their jobs because of the panel’s findings, many are calling for the administration to step down, saying they need a “wake-up call.” Goddard has said that his son Colin has questioned the administrations decisions on the day of the tragedy. He described his son as feeling “hung out to dry” after being shot and taken to the hospital. “He’s upset that they didn’t do more that
THOUGH MANY LOCAL SPORTS APPAREL STORES HAVE NOT CARRIED VICK JERSEYS FOR SEVERAL YEARS, THOSE THAT DID ARE REMOVING THEM FROM SHELVES MICHELLE RIVERA
ct news reporter After recent dog fighting charges, the name Michael Vick went from famous to infamous. To sports retailers, Vick-associated merchandise is no longer cause for showing off, but rather, grounds for removal from shelves. Vick lead the Hokies to a BCS national championship appearance in 2000, was the overall No. 1 draft pick in 2001 by the Atlanta Falcons and became a Hokie legend and national sports celebrity. However, the scandal surrounding his name has recently caused customers of stores with Vick merchandise to complain. Jason Jones, the owner of Tanglewood Mall’s 4Sports Memorabilia store in Roanoke, began taking down Vick merchandise the Thursday before he pleaded guilty on Aug. 22. By that Saturday, Jones had all the store’s Vick memorabilia off the shelves. “The main reason I did that was because of the negative comments by my customers and especially by my regular customers,” said Jones. “I have a lot of older clientele and took the items down.” Jones said that at the time he would keep the items down until the verdict was released, and once Vick plead guilty, he felt he had done the right thing. He plans to keep the merchandise off
the shelves until the NFL reinstates Vick. “I feel like once they reinstate him, we can reinstate him to the store,” Jones said. He felt sure that the NFL would do so. “Everybody deserves a second chance.” Despite standing by his Vick convictions, Jones predicts that his store will suffer financially. “I will definitely lose money,” he said. “Last Christmas, Vick’s jersey was the No. 1 youth jersey sold in the store. I probably sold six to one Vick jerseys compared to every other jersey.” Also, autographed items purchased during that Christmas totaled approximately $2,500 to $3,000. Jones estimates that his store will suffer losses between $10,000 and $12,000. Local sports retailers such as High Peak Sportswear, however, do not carry individualized sports products such as Sports Illustrated Vick posters or autographed merchandise. Emily Alberman, sales manager at High Peak, stated the store only carries about three jerseys with the number seven on them. “It hasn’t been retired,” she said. “We don’t plan on taking them down.” Alberman said that sales for the No. 7 jerseys had not suffered since Vick’s charges, but she also mentioned that the jerseys hadn’t really been bought since last season, showing that High Peak’s Vick merchandise sales, at least, had not been affected. Steve Glosh, assistant director of the University Bookstore, also said that the store did not carry much Vick merchandise. The only Vick memorabilia in stock are remainders from when he played
Study cafe coming to Newman Library ROSANNA BROWN
ct news reporter Newman Library may be renovated to include a new study café within the next year. Eileen Hitchingham, dean of the libraries, said that the funding for these changes has been in the works for the past several years. The primary donors for the new study café are the Parents Fund and other individual supporters. The project began in 2000 when the university funded an outside architect to put together plans for the changes Hitchingham said. Hitchingham hopes to bring in more architects this year to finalize plans and to begin construction in the spring. “Bigger than a bread box, less than a Mack truck is where we are with it,” Hitchingham said. The plan includes re-opening the entry on the second floor of the Newman Library near Torgersen, and closing the main entrances students currently use. All the library services and a circulation desk will be relocated by the main entrance on the second
floor. The reference books currently located on the second floor will be placed in a storage section within the library. The books will still remain in the Addison catalogue, but, will be retrieved by an automated system from the storage area, said Hitchingham. The entrances that are currently in use will be removed and glass paneling will extend out, along the curve of the library’s current architecture. Behind this glass paneling will be the new study café for students Hitchingham said. The study café will have the seating capacity for 99 people and will have wireless access and plenty of electrical outlets for computers, Hitchingham said. The Special Collections Section of the library will remain in close proximity with the new study café. Hitchingham said that students will be able to see the “past preserved behind (them) while drinking coffee.” Hitchingham hopes to make the environment more aesthetically pleasing and comfortable for the nearly 1 million visitors the library receives
see CAFE, page four
at Tech. “We usually just carry merchandise related to current players,” said Glosh. “We don’t have anything to be concerned about regarding pulling Vick items.” Like other local sports retailers, the Tech Bookstore also carries few Michael Vick products. Jerry Diffell, manager of the Tech Bookstore, said that the store carried so few Vick items, not because of the recent charges, but because they don’t carry merchandise catered towards indi-
“The main reason I did that was because of the negative comments by my customers.” - JASON JONES OWNER 4-SPORTS MEMORIBILIA vidual players. Diffell recalled that there were still bobble heads that happen to have the number seven on them as well as a few Vick baseball cards remaining in the store, but as there were not many of these products, there was no need to hide them in the stockroom. Vick was popular in 2000 and in 2001, when he was drafted to the Atlantic Falcons, Diffell explained, so the bookstore had a lot of his memorabilia then; however, the Tech Bookstore has had fewer Vick items in recent years. “We carry some jerseys of current players, but don’t cater to individual players,” said Diffell. “We cater towards the university and Tech apparel overall.”
Kaine to act on panel’s review of gun laws SEAN MATTIO
ct staff writer Gun violence prevention groups at both the national and stae level have new reason to praise Governor Tim Kaine and the Virginia Tech Review Panel: both have been upfront in regards to addressing the role of federal and state gun laws in the university’s tragedy of April 16. Many of these groups have undertaken the task of working with state policy makers in order to aid the realization and implementation of the Review Panel’s recommendations. Not only has the Virginia Tech Review Panel pledged to “provide an independent, thorough and objective incident view of this tragic event,” it also vowed to “focus on what went right, what went wrong, what practices should be considered best practices, and what practices are in need of improvement,” in the release of their report last Thursday. The final report on the events of April 16 recommends an improvement in public safety in the state of Virginia. The report includes provisions meant to improve the background check system for gun purchases as well as restricting the carrying of concealed weapons on college campuses. The panel has also pointed out that the federal government should offer incentives to ensure every state passes on information regarding prohibited gun purchasers to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System. Without individual states’ cooperation in relaying information about prohibited purchasers and the reasons for their disqualification, the NICS database is rendered useless. “We commend Virginia Governor Tim Kaine for responding promptly to this tragedy by making sure that mental health records are adequately reported to the Virginia State Police and the NICS database,” said Abby Spangler, founder of ProtestEasyGuns.com, a Web site dedicated to protesting and reforming the ease with which Americans may purchase handguns. Spangler also showed her support for the Panel’s efforts to “break down the barriers between the state and local government” in the sharing of NICS information. The panel has also recommended closing one of the crucial loopholes in Virginia gun laws: individuals may purchase firearms in Virginia without a background check through private sale of the weapon. The Panel has hence recommended requiring background checks on all firearm sales in the state, even private sales. “We applaud Governor Kaine and Attorney General McDonnell for coming together to close one dangerous loophole in state law that allowed one clearly mentally troubled individual to purchase firearms,” said June Hazlehurst, a member of the Virginia Center for Public Safety. “This bipartisan endorsement of tougher background checks is a welcome relief from the often polarizing debate over firearm access.” The panel’s report mentioned the issue of guns on campus. The panel recommended that, unless mandated by law, guns be banned from campus grounds and university buildings. “Students on Virginia’s campuses should be assured that they are learning in safe, secure environments,” said Virginia Million Mom March state president Martina Leinz. The Million Mom March, the nation’s largest nonpartisan organization, is dedicated to creating an America free from gun violence. “The VACPS thanks the commission for the dedication to make our Commonwealth safer, and we urge them to ask the tough questions that too many for too long have deemed too politically delicate,” Hazlehurst said after addressing the Review Panel. As Governor Kaine has promised to act upon the panel’s recommendations, Virginia gun violence prevention groups are looking ahead to further bipartisan efforts to make the Commonwealth a safer place for everyone.
Swap shop
KYLE SWANSON/SPPS
James Park, a junior psychology major, pleads with Steven Seith, a sophomore computer engineering major, to take his field concert ticket for a east stands ticket at the ticket swap last night.