FLY LIKE A G6 HI
46° |
LO
TUESDAY
29°
november 2, 2010
T H E I N DE PE N DE N T S T U DE N T N E W SPA PE R OF S Y R ACUSE , N E W YOR K
INSIDESPORTS
INSIDENEWS
INSIDEOPINION
INSIDEPULP
Making change SA frees up money for other
Eye on elections The Daily Orange Editorial Board
Roasted Hospitality management students get
organizations by reworking UU’s budget process. Page 3
points out the importance of midterm elections. Page 5
burned due to careless cooking class accidents. Page 9
Stress test College coaches are attempting to even
out their hectic schedules in light of recent health episodes. Page 20
MID-TERM ELECTIONS 2010
Few youth interested in election By Michael Boren ASST. NEWS EDITOR
robert storm | staff photographer
Stone cold
After a day of spastic weather and Syracuse’s first daytime spattering of snow, the Hall of Languages—and the rest of campus—endure some of the coolest temperatures of the semester. Lows reached 30 degrees Farenheit late Monday night into Tuesday morning. The Weather Channel predicts the coolest night will be Tuesday, with a low of 29 degrees. Although average temperatures sit between 36 and 49 degrees for this time of year, they have been as high as the mid 70s in early November and as low as 17 degrees.
Tea Party platform draws support from conservative students at SU CONTRIBUTING WRITER
With a number of Tea Party candidates appearing on Tuesday’s midterm election ballot, conservatives at Syracuse University are supporting the movement that aims to restore traditional values and fiscally conservative policies in America. “The overall movement is gaining popularity,” said Patrick Mocete, a junior political science major and chairman of College Republicans at SU. “If more college students take a
look at the tea party, I think they’ll find that they agree with it.” As a reaction to the Democratic majority in Congress and administration in Washington, D.C., the Tea Party movement has gained national and local attention from Republicans. Some at SU said they plan to vote for candidates that have followed the tea party platform, including gubernatorial candidate Carl Paladino and congressional candidate Ann Marie Buerkle.
SEE TEA PARTY PAGE 6
SEE ELECTION PAGE 6
Atheist student groups on rise nationally By Susan Kim COPY EDITOR
By Brianna Quaglia
When Victoria Smurro voted for the first time in 2008, she knew the names and the platforms of the candidates on her Rhode Island absentee ballot. Smurro voted for the president and every political race in her home state. But she did not apply for a ballot on time to vote in this year’s midterm elections because she did not know much about the candidates and viewed the midterms as less important than the presidential election, she said. “No one’s really pushing us to vote, so why would we?” said Smurro, a senior public relations major. In a year without a presidential race on the ballot, student political groups are pushing for more students to vote in Tuesday’s midterm elections than they did in the September primaries, which saw a very low student turnout. Though political issues
James Johnson used to be a Jehovah’s Witness. He used to think atheists were sinners and had no morals. He used to judge atheists for not believing in God. But that was four years ago. Now he’s one of them. “I actually started to challenge my religion,” said Johnson, a graduate student studying plant science and biotechnology at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. “For once in my life, I questioned, ‘Is there
really a God?’” The number of secular student organizations on college campuses is on the rise, with a 42 percent increase from last year, according to the Secular Student Association. Syracuse University has been home to a secular student organization since 2009. “The outlook for secular groups is really promising,” said Jesse Graf, communications director of SSA. “We’re noticing a lot of growth, both on campus and in support of students.” The number of national SSA-
affiliated organizations grew to 225 this year, compared to the 159 last year, Graf said. There are usually 25 to 30 members in each organization, he said. As these groups gain more prominence, students are stepping up to support each other and their beliefs, he said. Reasons for the increase are uncertain, but secularism is gaining more attention nationwide with leaders like atheist Richard Dawkins, author of “The God Delusion,” paving the way, Graf said. College students particularly want to get SEE ATHEIST PAGE 10