0901issue

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DAILY LOBO new mexico

Cosmic voyage

tuesday

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The Independent Voice of UNM since 1895

September 1, 2009

University Porterie will lead Lobo charge suspends its personal mail policy by Isaac Avilucea Daily Lobo

by Pat Lohmann Daily Lobo

UNM Mailing Systems has suspended the policy that prevented Ph.D. candidate Nina Lanza from getting her tango shoes delivered at work. Debra Fondino, associate director of University Services, said the entire Mailing Systems policy manual — including Section 6340, which prohibits personal mail from being delivered through the University — is under revision and has been for the past six months. She said the policy was written in 1991 and is outdated. “We’ve submitted, as one of our goals this year, to revamp (the policies) and bring them to current day,” she said. “There was definite need. This (controversy) just prompted us to try and get it done more quickly.” Fondino said the whole policy manual will be revised as soon as possible. “We have agreed that we’d try to

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As surely as Monday would follow Sunday, Donovan Porterie was going to be the UNM football team’s starting quarterback this season. If anyone doubted it, Porterie proved it throughout fall camp, the coaching staff said on Monday. Still, Monday’s official announcement was nothing more than a formality, which put to rest speculation about when Mike Locksley would make an announcement — not about whom he would name. After an extended period of posturing, Locksley declassified the starting quarterback documents, which he had guarded like the Holy Grail. No matter how many times he was interrogated by reporters, Locksley declined to divulge his “secret” — a secret that was about as common knowledge as water’s compound name. Several media outlets, including the Daily Lobo, projected Porterie would be the starter, but never received confirmation from the first-year head coach. In fact, Locksley was so tightlipped about it, he didn’t even tell Porterie that he was the starting quarterback before making the announcement. “I really wasn’t told until this afternoon,” Porterie said, adding that he found out from students on campus. “I was still kind of

skeptical then. (Locksley) still hasn’t told me.” Nonetheless, lighthearted Locksley put on a good show at the practice facility on Monday, saying he withheld the starting quarterback information because he was being meticulous. “As you get to know me, I’m going to take my time and make the right decision on every aspect of the program,” he said. “Sometimes you’re afforded the luxury of a little more time, like we’ve had.” In the end, that gave Porterie more time to recuperate from last year’s season-ending knee injury. Porterie is two seasons removed from a 3,000-yard season in which he tossed 15 touchdowns with nine interceptions and under former head coach Rocky Long guided the Lobos to their first bowl win in over 40 years, over Nevada. But last year, Porterie was lost early on, which led to a gloom-and-doom 4-8 year for the Lobos. Mechanically, Porterie has taken strides, improving his footwork and being more decisive with the ball when there has been pressure in camp. He said he has paid close attention to “setting up the team in the fourth quarter,” meaning being “efficient” and eliminating sacks, interceptions and mental lapses. Locksley said Porterie exemplified what the coaching staff was looking for in a quarterback. “He’s graded out the best,” he said. “He’s the guy that’s taken care of the football. He’s the guy that

has made the players around him better.” Whether Porterie was in a close race for starting quarterback or cruised in like Usain Bolt in the Olympics is still under wraps. “Whether it was close or (not), that doesn’t matter,” Locksley said. “A decision was made. There was a process in place to make the decision. Donovan came out as the guy that was most consistent.” So, perhaps that’s a question only time will answer – say, if Porterie doesn’t perform on the field. For now, Locksley said Porterie has plenty of leeway. “Donovan has our full support as our starting quarterback, as long as he goes out and does the things we know he’s capable of,” he said. “Then we don’t even have to talk about a leash.” And that’s the last thing Porterie wants to discuss. He’s content knowing he’s the Lobos’ guy, and he’s ready to put last year’s

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Spiritual leader decries Holocaust lessons in Gaza

Dance to the music

by Diaa Hadid

The Associated Press

Joey Trisolini / Daily Lobo Victor Kim of the Quest Crew dances during the Takeover Tour at the Journal Pavilion on Sunday. The tour featured Busta Rhymes, Pitbull, Flo Rida and Rick Ross.

Inside the

Daily Lobo volume 114

issue 8

Vanessa Sanchez / Daily Lobo

A gallon a day

When magic fizzles

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — A Hamas spiritual leader on Monday called teaching Palestinian children about the Nazi murder of 6 million Jews a “war crime,” rejecting a suggestion that the U.N. might include the Holocaust in Gaza’s school curriculum. A senior Israeli official said such statements should make the West think twice about ending its boycott of Hamas, in place since the group seized Gaza by force in 2007. Israeli officials called the comments “obscene” and said they place Hamas in a pariah club of Holocaust deniers that includes Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Hamas spiritual leader Younis alAstal lashed out after hearing that the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, the main U.N. body aiding Palestinian refugees, planned to introduce lessons about the Holocaust to Gaza students. Adding the Holocaust to the curriculum would amount to

“marketing a lie and spreading it,” al-Astal wrote in a statement. “I do not exaggerate when I say this issue is a war crime, because of how it serves the Zionist colonizers and deals with their hypocrisy and lies,” he wrote. A U.N. official said no decision has been made about introducing Holocaust education in Gaza. Many Palestinians are reluctant to acknowledge Jewish suffering, fearing it might diminish their own. Attitudes toward the Holocaust range from outright denial to challenging its scope. Hamas has been making overtures to the West, hoping to end a stifling blockade of Gaza. And the statements about the Holocaust by senior Hamas officials could undermine the group’s attempt to present itself as pragmatic. The U.S. and Europe list Hamas as a terror group, but there have been growing calls, particularly in Europe, to talk to the militants. Hamas control of Gaza is seen as a key

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