Daily Helmsman The
Friday, April 15, 2011
Tyreke Talks Tiger Sports Kings guard, former Tiger and NBA Rookie of the Year chats with The Helmsman
Vol. 78 No. 110
see page 7
Independent Student Newspaper of The University of Memphis
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Student loan debt approaches $1 trillion BY Erica Horton News Reporter After exceeding credit card debt for the first time in U.S. history last year, student loan debt is now approaching $1 trillion. According to Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of Finaid.org, student loan debt will likely reach the trillions by or before the beginning of next year. Kantrowitz’s student loan debt clock on the site currently boasts a total of more than $903 billion and increases at more than $2,853 per second. “The volume of new student
loans that come out each year is about $100 billion,” Kantrowitz said. “The amount of debt keeps growing each year with some (people) repaying loans. It’s like two steps forward and one step back.” Kantrowitz said it can take 10 to 20 years to pay off a student loan. “People are still going to be paying back on student loans when their own children are in college,” he said. Karen Smith, associate director of student financial aid at The University of Memphis, said there simply isn’t enough federal financial aid to offset the cost of an education. She said the average
amount of debt for U of M alumni with an undergraduate degree is $22,027, with a graduate degree is $45,937 and with a law degree is $67,074. She added that the average debt for a U of M student varies by classification and transfer student debt is not included in calculations. In the past, if a student said they were interested in federal loans on the FAFSA, they were automatically given to them, according to Smith. For the 2011-‘12 school year, Smith said students will be offered the amount for which they are eligible and have the option to accept or decline federal loans.
Smith said there are potential problems with the new system. “For example, if you’re a continuing student, you’re counting on a loan every year. During the summer you think everything is fine, but you need to go out and accept your loan,” she said. “Come August, you may not have accepted your loan yet, but you’re expecting that to cover whatever you have.” She said email alerts and automated phone calls will go out in May to students as reminders. Kristen Alexander, junior nursing major, said thanks to generous scholarships and help from her
parents, she has not had to take out any student loans. She said though the potential trillion dollar debt is scary, it shows that people are going to school. “As long as people are taking it out just for school, then it’s good,” she said. Micheal Hicks, junior sport management major said he agrees and is currently $90,000 in debt. A transfer student from Ohio, Hicks said the college experience he’s had in Memphis is worth the debt. “It doesn’t scare me because I knew what I was getting into when I took them out,” he said.
Fresh jam U of M students hold concert to benefit local Farmers Market
by Casey Hilder
BY Kyle LaCroix News Reporter
Andrew McCalla, manager of Shangri-La Records in Midtown Memphis, organizes LPs from the store’s renowned rare record collection for this weekend’s upcoming sale. Shangri-La is among several local music vendors participating in National Record Store Day this Saturday.
Viva la vinyl Vinyl junkies in Memphis can get their fix Saturday as local record shop Spin Street Music, Shangri-La Records and Goner Records celebrate the third annual Record Store Day by throwing parties, staging shows and selling limited edition records. What started out in 2007 as an idea to unify independent record stores has turned into a national event, with more than 700 record stores nationwide participating. Goner records employee Madison Farmer insisted Record Day is much more than just a sales pitch. “People find joy in buying records for all sorts of reasons, but Record Store Day has definitely helped make buying
a record a much more engaging experience,” Farmer said. Things like free beer, loud music and hefty discounts also help make the experience more engaging, all of which can be found at both Goner and Shangri-La this Saturday. Junior history major JB Horrell, who will be performing at Goner Saturday afternoon with local blues act The Manatees, said that events like Record Store Day show how there is more to independent record stores than just the vinyl they sell. “I think anyone who comes and checks it out will see that the people involved do more than just buy and sell records,” Horrell said. “There has always been a unique culture that surrounds buying records and I think more people would like to become a part of
see
Market Jam, page 5
that.” Because Record Store Day was started with independent record stores in mind, there are requirements for eligibility. According to the Record Store Day website, a participating store is defined as “a retailer whose main primary business focuses on a physical store location, whose product line consists of at least 50 percent music retail, whose company is not publicly traded and whose ownership is at least 70 percent located in the state of operation.” The website sums that up by saying: “In other words, we’re dealing with real, live, physical indie record stores — not online retailers or corporate behemoths.”
see
Vinyl, page 3
MCT
BY Chris Shaw News Reporter
Local bands will rock out on The University of Memphis campus tonight, all in the name of fresh vegetables. The event, organized by students in an honors section of Intro to Urban Planning, will benefit the MidSouth Farmers Market, located in South Memphis, and will take place in the Michael D. Rose Theatre from 5 to 8 p.m. The public concert is free and donations for the farmers market and GroMemphis, a non-profit organization that partners with churches and other locations to make small food gardens, will be collected throughout the night. ”We’re in charge of marketing for the farmers market,” said Holly Cosby, junior environmental studies and nutrition major. “We needed to do some fundraisers, so we decided to do this concert to spread the word about the farmers market.” The students initially considered charging admission for the concert, but decided not to “because we didn’t want to restrict anyone from coming,” Cosby
2 • Friday, April 15, 2011
The
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TIGER BABBLE
Daily
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thoughts that give you paws
Volume 78 Number 110
Editor-in-Chief
Scott Carroll
“The new grill by Tiger Den doesn’t take cash? That just hurt my stack of Washingtons tightly fisted for food adventures. ” — @fourteenhearts
Managing Editor Mike Mueller Copy and Design Chief Amy Barnette News Editors Cole Epley Amy Barnette
“So I get my debit card to go BACK to the grill ... gone for 10 minutes ... they are CLOSED? Yep, you’ve officially lost a customer. ” — @fourteenhearts
Sports Editor John Martin Copy Editors Amy Barnette Christina Hessling General Manager Candy Justice Advertising Manager Bob Willis Admin. Sales Sharon Whitaker
YoU rEallY liKE US!
“I like how the front page marijuana story is followed up by NORML’s benefit concert ad. #equality” — @memphismyluv
1. Shooting south of UM campus kills 3
“Shoutout to The Daily Helmsman for doing a story on us, which helped us get more publicity for the show. Raised over $1,600 (for Ronald McDonald House)!” — @_raebaby
Yesterday’s Top-Read Stories on the Web
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by Chelsea Boozer
2. Simpson commits to play for Tigers
by John Martin
3. Acting up: Death of a Salesman
by Chris Daniels
4. Student hits officer with car 5. Warrior on reserve
by Erica Horton by Michelle Corbet
“Students are to coffee as frat guys are to Cole Haans.” — @jacobmerryman “I wonder if Busta Rhymes uses any spaces when he texts.” — @CrCox10 “It’s Terrific Tuesday — you make it look like a terrible one. Screw you, Helmsman! Shootings and an incomplete story on a great guy. ... A little positivity would up your ratings ... and morale on campus. #JustSaying” — @kg_is_me “@kg_is_me A little positivity would ‘up’ our ‘ratings?’ Are we a television show now?” — @DailyHelmsman
DOMINO’S PIZZA Across 1 Fantasy author and forensic pathologist? 9 Jah worshipers 15 Reason for a pass 16 Strike caller 17 German shepherd 18 Some special forces headgear 19 It merged with Kmart in 2005 20 Hairy 21 High sch. VIPs 22 Behaviorist and teen confidant? 27 At first blush 30 Teen follower? 31 Infer 32 Indeed 33 Huckster and school supporter? 38 Toon dynamo, familiarly 41 Inspiration for the Frisbee 45 Lieu 48 Time, for one 49 British novelist and medic? 51 CD-__ 52 Droid in every “Star Wars” film 53 Sweet cake that’s an Easter tradition in Eastern Europe 55 Spots 57 University of Cincinnati team 60 Gangster’s gun, in old-timey slang 61 Permits 62 Most people 63 Children’s author and roadside helper? Down 1 Thing that endures 2 Port of SW Italy 3 “That’s just wrong” 4 “That way madness lies” speaker 5 Tolkien’s Skinbark and Leaflock, e.g. 6 China’s Northern __ Dynasty, 386534 AD 7 First of the Maj. Prophets 8 Three-part fig. 9 Creator of a popular six-color
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Tell us what you think we’re doing wrong (or right). We promise we’ll try not to schedule any more homicides too close before a Tuesday for a while. Send us your thoughts on Twitter @dailyhelmsman or #tigerbabble. Or post on our Facebook wall at facebook.com/dailyhelmsman.
puzzle 10 First name in aviation 11 Paid (for) 12 Maura of “ER” 13 Lost __ 14 Paris possessive 20 Adler’s subj. 22 Theda of silents 23 Bungle 24 Run-down theater 25 Before, in verse 26 Where Mandela was pres. 28 Dosage abbr. 29 Babbling Addams character 34 Coleridge work 35 __-do-well 36 Network that merged with The WB 37 David Beckham’s org.
38 Half a fly 39 Withdrawal aid, briefly 40 Fraternity founded at New York University in 1847 42 Hoops embarrassment 43 Caught one’s breath 44 As one 46 Lesotho’s home 47 Spoil rotten 48 Brit. military award 50 Lover’s gift 53 Boater’s edge 54 When Tony sings “Maria” 55 Time often named 56 Under-the-sink brand 57 Arthur of “All in the Family” 58 Spain’s Queen Victoria Eugenia, familiarly 59 __ snail’s pace
S u d o k u
complete the grid so that each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit 1 to 9.
Solutions on page 8
The University of Memphis
Friday, April 15, 2011 • 3
Campus Activism
has to pay $46.50 a week to fill up her Honda, she would not give up driving to ride the bus. “I would either still drive or just not go at all,” Jones said. She added said that she might consider carpooling to campus, but has reservations. “I would have to do research on a person and know more than their name before I get in the car.” Krystal McGowen, junior education major, said carpooling is “a safety risk” and would probably be “awkward.” McGowen also said that she will not even consider riding the bus. “I rode (the bus) in high school and it was just too much going
Vinyl
from page 1 Shangri-La Manager Andrew McCalla said that because corporate stores aren’t on Record Store Day, all sorts of music lovers will come into his store. “People we’ve never seen will come in and (say) they’ve got to
Je
Day edition records they will get. “This is an event that’s getting bigger every year,” McCalla said. “We tell the distributors what we want in the store, but it’s all on a first come, first-served basis. People get mad when we don’t have what they want, especially when they’ve camped outside the store for it, but that’s all part of collecting records.”
Meet at the Student Plaza Fountain by the Administration Bldg. Questions? Contact Doug Campbell at: dacampbe@memphis.edu
TONIGHT
Friday Film Series
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Don’t forget your helmet!
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Group Bike Ride Wednesday, April 20 3 p.m.
UC Theatre
have this U2 record or something,” McCalla Said. “The distributors only send this stuff to indie record stores, so people that like commercial stuff have to come here to get it. They’ve never set foot in here, but they have to get their U2 on somehow.” McCalla said because the event has gotten so big, stores no longer have a say in what Record Store
Ra
U of M Cycling Club
7 p.m.
rather save my money to maintain my car and keep it running.”
N O R M AL Ben t r e efit Conc
Come Ride The Greenline With Us!
Sharing good times in cycling, commuting, mountain biking, road biking and cyclocross
on. The men made me feel very uncomfortable, so I would much
y
In order to combat rising gas prices, The University of Memphis Adult and Commuter Student Services wants to assist students in cutting their fuel costs. ACSS has implemented a carpool channel on MyMemphis, which allows students to match schedules with other students who live near them and split gas costs. “If you drive, you have to get gas and I know the students are feeling the pinch,” said Heather Hampton, office coordinator for ACSS. Hampton also said that the
MATA bus system, Memphis’ public transportation system, may help students. ACSS offers bus schedules on campus and also has a link to the MATA website on the ACSS website. Hampton also said she suggests students do as she does and track their gas mileage. “If you are spending fifty dollars a week in gas getting to school, riding the bus, even though rates have been raised, can still save you some money,” Hampton said. Many students, however, are apprehensive about carpooling or riding the bus, no matter the cost of gas. Kiara Jones, junior marketing major, said that even though she
ss
BY tiMBErlY MoorE News Reporter
MCT
UM carpool plan can help students save
Coming Up
Monday, 4/18 Magic Milk Sand Art 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. UC Alumni Mall
4 • Friday, April 15, 2011
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Finance
BY grEg gorDon McClatchy Newspapers Traders for Morgan Stanley gnashed their teeth for weeks in early 2008, watching helplessly as their $1.2 billion investment in an exotic offshore deal, which was marketed by Wall Street rival Goldman Sachs, began to shrivel. With the housing market deteriorating rapidly, Morgan Stanley traders wanted to sell off hundreds of millions of dollars in securities positions that had been downgraded by credit ratings agencies and recover what money they could. But as the deal’s liquidation manager, Goldman Sachs held sole control over the disposal of any of the securities contracts, and Goldman Sachs was resisting. On Feb. 6, 2008, Morgan Stanley trader John Pearce wrote a colleague that he got so exasperated with a Goldman representative that “I broke my phone.” A day later, he wrote to a Goldman Sachs counterpart: “One day I hope I get the real reason why you are doing this to me.” It turns out, Senate investigators revealed this week, that Goldman Sachs had plenty of reasons to delay a selloff. The investment banking giant had secretly wagered on the default of the securities around which the $2 billion deal was structured. The farther their value dropped, the bigger Goldman Sachs’ profits. Ultimately, a Morgan Stanley lawyer lodged a formal protest, charging that Goldman Sachs had breached its contractual duty to sell off downgraded securities, and that the delays had already cost Morgan Stanley $150 million. Known as HudsonMezzanine-2006-1, the deal totally collapsed in November 2008, barely more than two years after its creation. Goldman Sachs reaped $1.35 billion. Morgan Stanley lost $930 million. The story of the deal, which drew outrage from Democratic Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan at a news conference Wednesday, is unveiled among hundreds of newly disclosed documents released by his Senate Permanent Investigations Committee, culminating a twoyear inquiry into the financial crisis. It provides another closeup glimpse of how Goldman Sachs deftly scaled back its risks as the housing market crested in late 2006 and then, at the expense of its investor clients, earned billions of dollars from a full-scale blitz of secret bets that the value of home mortgage securities would crash. Goldman Sachs was the only major Wall Street firm to escape relatively unscathed from the nation’s economic meltdown.
The subcommittee reported that Goldman Sachs packaged at least four offshore deals with total value of $4.5 billion that were rife with conflicts of interest, including one for which the firm paid $550 million in fines to Securities and Exchange Commission last summer to settle a civil fraud suit. Levin charged that Goldman Sachs deceived investors on the Hudson deal by failing to disclose that it was betting the other way. And, he alleged, the company misled the subcommittee during a marathon hearing last year in which he repeatedly pressed Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein and a half-dozen other current and former Goldman Sachs execs to acknowledge the firm bet massively on a housing downturn in 2006 and 2007. A spokesman for Goldman Sachs, which says its executives testified truthfully, declined to comment on the Hudson deal. Internal Goldman Sachs documents show that the firm’s mortgage department came up with the idea for the Hudson deal to offset $1.2 billion in positive bets on dicey mortgage securities on a Londonbased exchange, known as the ABX Index. By late 2006, it grew hard to find buyers willing to pay good prices to bet that baskets of subprime loans to marginal homebuyers would perform well. To “transfer the risks” of its ABX holdings to investors, Goldman Sachs traders and structured products specialists came up with the idea on Sept. 19, 2006, of creating a series of new bets, known as creditdefault swaps, on 80 of the mortgage securities listed on the ABX, most barely invest-
ment grade or below. They even offered investors a discount to cover the $1.2 billion in risks. The firm also added $800 million in bets on other subprime securities. Top-level executives, including Blankfein and Chief Operating Officer Gary Cohn, were apprised on Oct. 26, 2006, that the deal would reduce the mortgage department’s housing risks, an internal document said. The pressure was intense enough that marketing of another deal was bumped in favor of Hudson, and Goldman Sachs traders sent congratulatory messages when they’d peddled most of the deal to investors over the next month. In their marketing booklet, the Goldman Sachs traders stated that the securities selected for the deal were “sourced from the street” and that Hudson “is not a balance sheet” deal. In Wall Street parlance, that meant that the securities were purchased from Wall Street dealers and that Goldman Sachs wasn’t taking the “short” position, or wagering that the securities would default. Neither was true, the investigators said, and Goldman Sachs was making “a proprietary investment ... in a direct, adverse position to the investors” — a position it declined to divulge even when a representative of another investor, National Australia Bank, directly asked. Goldman Sachs also stressed to investors that it was investing in an equity piece, or one of the riskiest slices of the deal. The committee found that Goldman Sachs invested $6 million in the equity slice. Meanwhile, Levin said, it bet “more than 300 times more” —
MCT
while goldman Sachs raked in profits, clients squirmed
$2 billion — against the deal. Sylvain Raynes, an expert in structured products, said the Hudson deal was “full of conflicts of interest,” including Goldman’s dual role as liquidation agent. “This deal should never have gone to market, due to the lack of transparency and the fact that Goldman was holding both ends of the deal,” he said. However, Goldman Sachs could mitigate liability due to standard language in the contract documents informing investors that it may initially take the short position and that it may have conflicts of
interest. For its agent, the Goldman additional
role as liquidation subcommittee said, Sachs collected an $3.1 million in fees.
If you were a superhero, how would you exact vengeance on Wall Street execs? @DailyHelmsman #tigerbabble
Phi Alpha Theta, the History Honor Society presents
“I am a Problem: Albert Memmi and the World of a French Tunisian Jew” A lecture by
Michael Lejman
Doctoral Candidate - History
TODAY @ 12:45 p.m. Mitchell Hall, Room 200
Pizza and Drinks
provided with generous support from Student Event Allocation
The University of Memphis
Friday, April 15, 2011 • 5
Politics
House approves full budget compromise, but some grumble BY DaViD ligHtMan, MargarEt talEV anD williaM DoUglaS McClatchy Newspapers The House of Representatives on Thursday voted 260 to 167 to keep the federal government running through the end of September — but not before a struggle that saw conservatives and liberals oppose the painstakingly crafted compromise spending plan. Since the agreement was negotiated by the White House and House Republican leaders, it drew little resistance from most lawmakers. The Senate voted later Thursday to pass the $38.5 billion spending reduction package. Among the biggest cuts are $5.5 billion from labor, education, and health and human services budgets, $3 billion from agriculture programs, $1.7 billion from energy and water programs, $784 million from homeland security and $2.62 billion from interior and environmental programs. Congress itself will take a 5 percent hit, and will have to reduce office expenses. But the Pentagon will get a $5 billion boost over last year’s funding. The bill also bars Guantanamo Bay detainees from being transferred to this country for any purpose and prevents the construction or modification of detention facilities in the U.S. for their housing. The bill also requires the defense secretary to certify to Congress that a transfer of a detainee to a foreign nation or entity “will not jeopardize the safety of the U.S. and its citizens.” These measures are nearly identical to current law. The bigger impact of the plan
Market JaM from page 1
said. “We just wanted people to come and learn about (the farmers market).” Paige Lewis, sophomore human services major, came up with the idea to put on a ben-
approved Thursday is its meaning for the budget battles ahead. “To say it showed where harder positions are would be accurate,” said Rep. Jack Kingston, R-Ga., a leading conservative. “We wanted more cuts.” But liberals such as Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas, warned there were already too many cuts. She voted “a big fat no,” and explained, “I don’t believe this does anything but soothe minute favorite interests.” The House on Friday is expected to consider a series of budget plans for fiscal 2012, the 12-month period that begins Oct. 1. Most likely to pass in the House, where Republicans have a 241 to 192 majority, is a package authored by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., that could cut $4.4 trillion from projected federal deficits over the next 10 years. Ryan would revamp the Medicare and Medicaid programs, and reduce the top corporate and individual tax rates, now 35 percent, to 25 percent. President Barack Obama on Wednesday offered his own broad outline for deficit reduction. He’d cut $4 trillion from deficits over the next 12 years, mixing $3 in spending cuts for every dollar in tax increases. He would end the Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, and make no major changes in Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid. Negotiators from both parties are expected to try to craft a compromise, starting next month. But the Thursday vote sent signals from the conservatives who dominate the Republican Party
and the liberals who make up much of the Democratic caucuses that they aren’t about to move off their long-held positions. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., made it clear she’s unenthusiastic about the fiscal 2011 and ready to fight for future budgets more to her liking. “I feel no ownership of that or any responsibility to it,” she said of the 2011 agreement, “except that we don’t want to shut down the government. Conservatives weren’t crazy about the plan, either. Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., called the savings “a pittance.” The rhetoric was similar to views of the 2012 budget. Conservatives sent strong signals that they’re not about to agree to any tax hikes, period. “The best way to bring down the debt and to create the climate that will lead to good private-sector jobs and prosperity is not to repeat the policies of the past but to change them,” said Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, “and that means cutting Washington spending, not squeezing family budgets even more.” But liberals countered they’re eager to see fewer spending cuts for domestic programs, and more taxes on the wealthy. And they don’t want to include those cuts as part of an agreement on the nation’s debt limit, which is expected to be reached sometime next month. Republicans want cuts before they’ll agree to raise the limit, now $14.3 trillion. Liberals say forget it. “This is not a leverage point,” said Rep. Peter Welch, D-Vt., of
the debt limit extension. “This is a moral obligation.” Democratic leaders, liberals, as well as the Congressional Black Caucus, are each expected to offer separate budget plans Friday. The leaders’ budget would freeze non-security discretionary funding, usually programs such as housing, education and social services, for five years. The basic structure of Medicare, Social Security and Medicaid would remain unchanged. And it would impose pre-Bush era tax rates on incomes above $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for joint filers. The Congressional Black Caucus’ plan calls for the creation
of a public health care option which they say would save the federal government $88 billion over 10 years. The CBC proposes spending tens of billions of dollars more than Obama’s budget proposal and the House Republicans’ budget blueprint on job training programs, research, targeted health care services, infrastructure and highspeed rail. The budget raises revenues by treating capital gains and dividends as ordinary income, a surcharge on top income earners, eliminating mortgage deductions on vacation homes and yachts, and closing certain tax loopholes.
efit concert for the market after attending a planning meeting for it. “One of the things they were talking about was implementing crafts and activities for kids, which costs money,” said Lewis. “I wanted to help out and thought, ‘Let’s throw a concert. It would be fun and could raise money.’”
The MidSouth Farmers Market is located at the corner of Mississippi Boulevard and South Parkway and is the only place for many in the area to purchase fresh food. “There’s no full-service grocery store within miles of certain areas of South Memphis,” said Lewis. “But with this farmers market,
they have access to (fresh vegetables) from April to October.” Lewis booked the bands playing the concert, Orbital Resonance, Chinese Connection Dub Embassy, Second Chances and One Word, through a fellow volunteer at the campus garden who owns a production company. One Word and Chinese
Connection Dub Embassy have U of M student members. At the event, tables with information on the farmers market and GroMemphis will be set up. Between musical acts, speakers will talk about the benefits of the MidSouth Farmers Market and ways people can help. “This farmers market is a great example of how U of M students have been in the community, done research and seen it applied,” said Curtis Thomas, deputy executive director of Works Inc., one of the sponsors of the farmers market. The farmers market is part of the South Memphis Revitalization Action Plan, which was put together by nonprofits and U of M students from various departments such as anthropology, engineering and public health. “The first part of the project implemented was this farmers market,” said Thomas. “The area was a food desert, with no place to go for fresh produce. Students from The University helped run the market, recruit vendors and still continue to engage in the project. The students working on this concert are a new batch, though.” Lewis said the class will volunteer at the farmers market when it reopens next Thursday. “This is something we think is great. There are vegetables and crafts and good things brought to an area that is under the poverty line,” he said. “The more people who know about this issue, the better.”
6 • Friday, April 15, 2011
www.dailyhelmsman.com
World
War compounds the plight of Libya’s mentally ill Fatma, a tall, brown-eyed mother of five, was cured of a bipolar disorder for eight years, long enough that doctors closed her medical file. The war in eastern Libya, however, has stirred up those old torments. In Ajdabiya, a flash-point town where forces loyal to dictator Moammar Gadhafi waged a terrifying assault against rebels, Fatma locked herself and her children in their home for five days. When rumors spread through town that Gadhafi had recruited foreign fighters, Fatma was gripped with such fear that she couldn’t stop shouting, “The mercenaries are coming!” She’s one of a growing number of Libyan civilians who bear invisible scars from a conflict that’s stretched for two months: the psychological trauma of a seemingly unending cycle of street battles, artillery barrages, coalition airstrikes, government propaganda, economic upheaval and extreme uncertainty. Doctors in Benghazi, Libya’s second largest city and the capital of the rebel east, say that visits to the psychiatric hospital there have increased 50 percent since the revolt against Gadhafi’s nearly 42 years of one-man rule began in midFebruary. The patients comprise relapsed victims of mental illness, such as Fatma, as well as people who are experiencing symptoms for the first time.
Compounding the pain is the difficulty of reaching Benghazi for treatment amid the constant fear of attacks, as well as a shortage of medication because the main supply line from the capital, Tripoli, now runs through a war zone. Patients also must confront the stigma that accompanies mental illness in traditional societies such as Libya’s, which is why their full names are being withheld in this story to protect their privacy. “We’ve seen a lot of people suffering from stress disorders,” said Dr. Ali El Roey, the urbane, British-educated head of the Benghazi Psychiatric Hospital, the only such facility in eastern Libya. There’s Majid, the 25-yearold who lost a leg in a factory accident but joined the rebel army anyway and now suffers night terrors after burying comrades who were killed in vicious battles in the oil towns of Brega and Ras Lanouf. There’s Thuraya, the pretty, long-lashed 24-year-old from the town of Bin Jawwad, the site of fierce clashes last month, whose mother brought her to the hospital after she began proclaiming that she was “a political figure.” “She became delusional,” said her mother, Raja, a squat woman whose face is lined with worry. “She couldn’t fathom what was happening around her. She was shouting, hitting the walls, crying, talking nonsense.”
Doctors also had to battle a propaganda war by the Gadhafi regime that took direct aim at the hospital. In the early days of the conflict, Libyan state news media based in the western capital, Tripoli, spread rumors that mental patients had escaped from the Benghazi hospital, to sow fears of chaos in the east. “They said patients went out and were wandering in the streets, killing people,” Roey said. “They said that female patients had been raped and
that the pharmacy was spreading drugs among the children.” Roey had to go on a local radio station to dispel the rumors. His clean, simple facility — a collection of low-slung concrete blocks in an industrial-looking section of Benghazi — is running low on medication. Even after drug donations from regional and international aid agencies, trucked in through the open border with Egypt, doctors are giving patients only two-week supplies rather than
the usual month’s worth. Some relapsed patients have had to go on new medication because the drugs that stabilized them aren’t available anymore, doctors said. Fatma, the mother of five, left Ajdabiya with her family and moved to four different towns before she ended up in Benghazi. She’s able to visit her doctors now, and with medication her appetite has returned and her nerves calmed. “I’m feeling OK now,” she said. “It feels safe here.”
MCT
BY Shashank Bengali McClatchy Newspapers
Patients receive drugs at the Benghazi Psychiatric Hospital, the only mental health facility in eastern Libya. The nation’s two-month-old civil and international conflict has produced a spike in cases of psychological trauma, doctors say.
Q&A The University of Memphis
by David C. Minkin
Tyreke Evans
Sacramento Kings guard Tyreke Evans returned to the FedExForum on April 8 to play the Memphis Grizzlies. The former Tiger had 16 points and six assists in 39 minutes.
BY JaSMinE Vann Sports Reporter
Side Pocket
Sacramento Kings and former University of Memphis guard Tyreke Evans has no idea where he’ll be next season, as the Maloof brothers, who own the Kings, are pushing for a move to Anaheim. But Evans had time to sit down with The Daily Helmsman to talk about all things Tigers after the Kings’ game against the Memphis Grizzlies on April 8. Q: Did the fans at FedExForum make you feel like you were back home again? A: I definitely feel a lot of respect when I come back to Memphis. It’s always good coming back here. This is where I started my college basketball career so it’s always good. Q: Do you still follow the Tigers? A: Definitely. I watched the games & followed the tournament. I thought they should’ve won. They played great, they’re a good team, they’re young and next year I think they will be pretty good. Q: Do you personally know any of the players? A: Yes. I know Wesley (Witherspoon) and Joe (Jackson). Those guys were around when I was here, and they were with me on the AAU circuit. Q: If you had anything to say to the Tigers this year and for the future, what would it be? A: Just keep working hard. You’ve got a bright future. All of those guys do. Just come back strong next year, and they’ll be on top.
by Casey Hilder
with
Friday, April 15, 2011 • 7
Freshman accounting major Christon Johnson lines up his shot in the University Center’s pool hall, looking to cut the 13-ball for a shot at the side pocket.
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Applications are available online at www.memphis.edu/leadership_programs/professional_mentor.php Submit completed application, along with a résumé and your contact information to the Office of Leadership & Involvement, UC Room 211, by Friday, April 22 @ 4:30 p.m. Selected participants will be notified of their acceptance into the program by Thursday, June 2.
8 • Friday, April 15, 2011
www.dailyhelmsman.com
Football
BY John Martin Sports Editor The University of Memphis will punctuate several weeks of spring practice with the annual Blue-Gray game tomorrow at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium at 1 p.m. The game, which is free and open to the public, will give fans their first real look at the Tigers since last season’s 1-11 outing. Here are some things to watch for in the culmination of spring practice: Quarterback play. There’s been a lot of movement at the QB position this offseason. Cannon Smith, who started one game for the Tigers last season, switched to safety. Ryan Williams, one of the few promising young talents for the Tigers, was granted a release from the program after U of M coach Larry Porter changed the offensive philosophy from pro-style to spread. That leaves Andy Summerlin and Will Gilchrist, both of whom have no playing experience at the FBS level. Summerlin, a junior college transfer, sat out last season after tearing his labrum, but is the
frontrunner for the starting job next season. Gilchrist also has experience in the spread offense, as he played in the spread scheme in high school. The Blue-Gray game could very well determine who’s more comfortable taking snaps and, ultimately, the starter come Sept. 1. Offensive line play. This stands to be the biggest issue for the Tigers this season. Porter lost seniors Brad Paul and Dominik Reilly to graduation and is returning only one starter in Ron Leary. Michael Antonescu, who played spot reps last season, will be forced to play a much bigger role on next season’s line. This spring, Porter signed Jordan Devey, a 6-foot-6, 320-pound left tackle who will presumably be a starter on an almost all-new offensive line. Defense. Last season, the Tigers’ secondary was one of the worst in the nation, and it may not get much better after Todd Washington left the program this offseason. The good news is that they return a strong front four, led by tackles Dontari Poe and Frank Trotter. Another bright spot is defensive
Home opener with Mississippi State pushed up BY John Martin Sports Editor The University of Memphis football team’s opener against Mississippi State at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium will be moved up to Thursday, Sept. 1, the athletic department announced Thursday. The game was originally scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 3, but Conference USA and Mississippi State officials agreed to push up the date in order to ensure a national viewing audience. The C-USA office did not immediately indicate which network the game would be carried on. “I am pleased that we have been able to finalize this game and have it moved to Thursday night for a nationally-televised broadcast,” U of M coach Larry Porter said in a statement. “We are looking forward to opening the season on national television.”
by David C. Minkin
Tigers return for Blue-Gray game, kicking off Saturday
The University of Memphis football team plays the annual Blue-Gray game tomorrow at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium to mark the end of spring practices. The game starts at 1 p.m. back Mohammed Seisay, who had 31 tackles and two interceptions as a freshman last season. Seisay will
have an opportunity to shine now that Marcus Ball has moved on. It’ll also be interesting to see how
Cannon Smith, who played QB last season, adjusts to playing on the other side of the ball.
Mock Trial Day 2011-2012 Tuesday, April 19 1:00-2:25 p.m. Clement Hall Room 409
• Live demonstration by the Mock Trial Team • Information on how to join next year’s team • Learn about possible academic credit
Light Refreshments Served For more information, contact Michelle Bliss at: mbliss@memphis.edu
Audition sign-ups and information packets will be available in Clement Hall, Room 437 after the meeting.
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