2002 03 08

C A L I F O R N I A

S T A T E

U N I V E R S I T Y ,

F U L L E R T O N Women’s basketball makes a valiant effort at the Big West Tournament, but comes up short

INSIDE Opinion: Chancellor Reed answers to 4 ncharges made in a Daily Titan column

—see Sports page 6

news: The real world behind reality 8 nTV is questioned. How long it will ‘survive’?

weekend

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M a r c h 8, 2002

African female image

nLECTURE: Professor Helen Mugambi explores how art portrays women in cultural gender roles

By Michael Matter

Daily Titan Staff Writer

Ryan Hoppe/Daily Titan

Helen Mugambi spoke about African art and images Wednesday.

To Cal State Fullerton English and comparative literature Professor Helen Mugambi, image is everything.

“The idea of images fascinates me,” Mugambi said. “Images of ourselves help us to define our place in the world.”

Yesterday, Mugambi gave a Women’s History Month lecture, “Women and Feminist Expressions in Africa,” dressed in traditional-style African clothing colored in brilliant black and gold.

But the audience laughed when she revealed that she had purchased the outfit at a Riverside swap meet.

Sometimes images can be deceiving.

“We must look at the hidden meanings behind images, not just at the surfaces,” Mugambi said.

Make no mistake about it, Mugambi is as African as the art that she surrounds herself with.

“All art that I collect is narrative, it tells a story,” she said.

The standard image of rural African women is that of Mother Africa carrying children, pots, jugs and firewood in the domestic service

of men. This reinforces rigid cultural gender roles regarding the division of labor that are still followed today.

“Most literature portrays rural African women as silent, without a voice,” Mugambi said. “I am interested in finding women’s voices. We go to the wrong places to hear their voices. If we would go to the right places, we might be able to hear ... certain feminist expressions cannot be seen if you don’t go to where the women gather in rural Africa, down by the river.”

They go to the water to socialize and share experiences amongst themselves. They entertain themselves by

laughing at their men.

“When the men hear this call of laughter they say that they are really scared because they know that they are being ridiculed,” Mugambi said.

Mugambi said that this image has propagated itself through time and space and is now the dominant image of African women in Europe.

She is surprised at the amount of art she sees in the United States of African women carrying water and wood.

Contrary to this image, times are changing in rural Africa.

IMAGE/ 5

Linking Greeks together

nCONSTRUCTION: Retrofitting is pushed back to evening, so that classes are not disrupted by the noise

By AnnaLiza Ganchingco Daily Titan Staff Writer

Over the next few months, construction will take place to the College Park Building to make it earthquake safe.

However, due to noise interrupting classroom instruction, construction sites on the College Park premises will remain vacant until after 7 p.m.

“One time my professor even told them [the workers] to stop and I think they did for a little while,” said Debbie Nagasawa, a graduate student majoring in communicative disorders.

When construction started on the building, work was completed during the day when most classes were held.

But a major concern of the retrofitting project was the amount of noise that would take place.

“The work being done will strengthen the overall structure of the building and create an atmosphere where students can sit and relax while waiting,” said Fred Zandpour, the associate dean for the College of Communications.

A few of the classes have been relocated to other buildings on the main campus.

However, due to lack of space, Zandpour said lab classes were hard to relocate, and many of the students have to withstand the noise.

“I think they could have done it during winter session or on the weekends,” said Marisa Thomas, a public relations major.

To help alleviate the problem, construction workers have agreed to start work later.

In doing so they will avoid disturbing classes.

The majority of the work will be in the core of College Park, the area where the elevators are located as well as the outside walls.

The outside structure of the building is in the process of being stripped of the old material so that a stronger resin type of material may be put on.

Also, the large arches located at the entrances to the building will be removed and the columns will be widened.

This will create a strong base for the building.

Other renovations will include trophy and display cases placed on the first and basement levels. A large flat screen television will also be placed in the lobby area of the building.

The flat screen will loop student news broadcasts and important bulletins regarding the Communications Department.

More benches will be placed inside on the first floor as well as the outside

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Chris Dunn/Daily Titan

Black fraternity Kappa Alpha Psi and sorority Sigma Gamma Rho hold a hot-link fund-raiser for their combined philanthropies. Kappa Alpha Psi was founded on the campus of Indiana University Jan. 5, 1911. Seven women came together Nov. 12, 1922 with a desire to enlighten the nation and formed Gamma Sigma Rho. .

Economists study effects of air quality Titan nENVIRONMENT: A reduction in smog and other toxins keeps children healthier and parents at work

By Jenn Stewart

Daily Titan Staff Writer Two environmental economists from Cal State Fullerton have been researching the adverse effects of smog on school-aged children for the past seven months.

Late last year, Jane Hall and Victor Brajer received a $22,000 grant from the California Air Resources Board to study the economic gains for government when the health of children ages 8-18 is improved as a result of cleaner air.

“All of our work to date has shown significant benefits from more healthful air,” Hall said. “And [it also shows] that we have achieved substantial gains in air quality.”

Brajer and Hall’s study is analyzing the number of school absences and hospitalizations and their relation to ozone concentration and exposure.

“While it has been known for decades that elevated levels of [pollution] contribute to adverse health effects in children and that reducing concentrations

results in health benefits, only recently Since then, no clean air act has been has a significant attention been paid to passed in California until Proposition 40 the economic value of last Tuesday. those health benefits,” While cleaner air may Hall said. be improving the health “All of our The study, which of California’s children, began last August, is there also have been based on data collected work to date advances in medical techfrom school districts and nology that could account hospitals in Los Angeles for the fewer illnesses and has shown and Orange counties hospitalizations. between 1990 and 1999 Ray Gera, research significant and is very close to being analyst for the City of complete.

Huntington Beach, said “We think that there while cleaner air is a pribenefits... ” might be substantial ority, there are many reaeconomic benefits from sons why children may cleaner air as a result of be going to school when Jane Hall fewer school absences they’re sick or not getting Enviromental and hospitalizations than sick in the first place.

Economist would have occurred had “I can see how their the air not gotten cleanresearch could be misleader,” Hall said. ing,” Gera said. “There When the Federal Clean Air Act are too many other variables: children’s passed in 1990, it required that states diets, exercise habits and overall better implement their own strict laws regard- health resulting from improved healthing air pollutants. care technology.” http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu

The real question Hall and Brajer are trying to answer is whether or not the regulations on air quality are economically beneficial to California, Hall said.

By calculating the amount of money saved by parents not having to stay home with sick children, or spending unnecessary money on doctors and prescriptions, this study will have an effect on future studies.

“I have three children and I usually end up spending about 10 to 15 days a year staying home with them when they are sick,” said Natalie Markham, an advertising executive. “I’ve never thought of their illnesses as being related to air quality, but I know how far behind I get at work when I have to stay home for even two days.”

Like many parents, Markham does not have the luxury of a nanny, so when her children fall ill, she must put her life on hold to care for them.

“If this study shows that air quality has a direct effect on my kid’s health and my wallet, then I’m all for stricter regulations,” Markham said.

extras online n

Check out the Daily Titan online this year at http:// dailytitan.fullerton.edu.

Video news clips will be on the Internet this semester!

u p co m i n g n

Look out for the second story in the series about the statistics of young alcohol drinkers on CSU campuses

2 Friday, March 8, 2002

news

two

A guide to what’s happening

BRIEFS YWCA Reinstates Women of Achievement Award The YWCA of North Orange County, after 11 years of discontinuing its Women of Achievement Awards program, reinstated its annual awards.

Nominations are now being accepted from residents, businesses and community organizations to nominate women and corporations for their outstanding contributions to their organization and community.

Awards will be given in the categories of inspiration and influence, social justice, health and wellness, youth leadership, business owner/entrepreneur and business achievement.

Based on the awards presented from 1978 – 1990, five Silver Medallions will be awarded to Orange County women.

One Orange County business will also be awarded for its role of leadership in providing professional opportunities for women and being a familyfriendly workplace.

Recipients of the Medallion awards will be recognized at the Women of Achievement luncheon taking place at Disney’s Grand Californian in Anaheim on June 4.

For more information or to obtain nomination forms, contact the YWCA at (714) 8714488.

Introducing My Culture Student volunteers are being sought for “Introducing My Culture,” a program sponsored by the International Education & Exchange Office and the Volunteer and Service Center, to help share their culture and ethnicity with local elementary

students.

For one hour a month, students will be part of an interactive presentation in the community to help children experience the world through their experiences and knowledge of their cultures.

The Introducing My Culture program will visit local elementary schools Monday through Friday, 2:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., and training for the visits will take place on March 11 and 26, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., in University Hall, Room 242.

For more information contact the Volunteer and Service Center at (714) 278-7623 or email at volunteer@fullerton.edu.

Making the Connection Student volunteers and Cal State Fullerton faculty are being sought to become part of CommUNITY Connection, a program to offer the opportunity to make a connection to local youth.

Sponsored by the Volunteer and Service Center, CSUF volunteers are invited to participate in various activities focused on brightening the lives of children that have been removed from their homes and are currently being housed at the Orangewood Children’s Center.

Students or faculty involved in aspects of the campus community are valued as a rich commodity.

The CommUNITY Connection meets on the first and third Tuesday of every month from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. beginning this month.

For more information or to volunteer, contact the Volunteer and Service Center at (714) 278-7623 or e-mail at volunteer@fullerton.edu.

CALENDAR EVENTS C ALEN D AR OF OF E VEN TS Community The Fairplex in Pomona will host a “Super Chevy Show” March 15 to 17 on the Pomona Raceway. For more information, call (909) 623-3111.

The Pomona Arts Colony presents “Unwearables,” a ceramics exhibit by Nina Jun, March 9 through April 6, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the SCA Galleries in Pomona. For more information, log on to www. geocities.com/scagallery.

The Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana will host the exhibit “Gentlemen’s Club”

by Jean Low through April 28.

For more information, call (714) 567-7233.

First Friends Church in Whittier invites everyone to attend a free luncheon to hear “Brain Cross-of Central Committee for Conscientious Objectors” in regards to the War on Terrorism. The event will be held in Fellowship Hall in Whittier, March 17, at 12:30 p.m. For more information, call (562) 698-9805.

The Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton is offering a series of classes for children and adults. Learn how to design wineglass charms, March 9, from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. For more information and prices, call (714) 738-6595.

The Garden Grove Playhouse presents the comedy “The Nerd,” March 8-30, with performances on Friday

and Saturday at 8 p.m. and a Sunday matinee March 20 at 2 p.m. Ticket prices are $12 for general admission and $11 for students and seniors. For more information, call (714) 8975122.

The Anaheim Convention Center will host the Big West Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament March 6-9. For more information, call (714) 765-8900.

In honor of Black History Month, the Watts Village Theater Company presents “Weights,” a one-man play, at the Los Angeles Theater Center through March 17. Ticket prices are $20 for general admission and $15 for students and seniors. For more information, call (213) 485-1681.

The Curtis Theatre’s Premiere Series presents “Godspell” at the Brea Civic & Cultural Center through March 10. “Godspell” is a theatrical event based on the Gospel according to St. Matthew. Ticket prices are $17 for adults, $15 for seniors and $10 for children.

Tickets may be purchased at www.curtistheatre.org or by calling (714) 990-7722. Parking is free.

Sunday through March 31. This is its second post-fair exhibit and it will include a sculpture of Carl Milles. For more information, call (909) 865-4262.

at 3 p.m. in the Recital Hall at the Performing Arts Center.

Admission is free. For more information, call (714) 2783371.

The Grand Central Art Center in Santa Ana will host an exhibition of paintings, automobiles and mixed media images

by Kenny Scharf through April 28. For more information, call (714) 567-7233 or log on to www.arts.fullerton.edu/events.

The Department of Music will have scholarship auditions March 9 and 10 for students interested in entering Fall 2002.

For more information, log on to www.music.fullerton.edu.

The 31st Annual Festival of Whales in Dana Point will feature activities, events and music during the weekends of March 9 and 16. The musical series is free. For more information, call (949) 496-1094.

Campus A lecture on “The Current State of Jewish-Catholic Relations” will be held March 11 at 4 p.m. in the Titan Student Union, Alvarado Room B. For more information, call (714) 278-3452.

A discussion about “The Role of Women in Building a Culture of Peace,” will take place March 12, at 12 p.m. in UH-205. For more information, call (714) 278-3889.

Editor in Chief Managing Editor News Sports Main Photo

278-5815 278-5693 278-5813 278-3149 278-2128 278-2991

Editor in Chief Managing Editor Business Manager Advertising Sales Manager Advertising Production Manager News Editor Asst. News Editor Asst. News Editor Sports Editor Asst. Sports Editor Detour Editor Opinion Editor Perspectives Editor Photo Editor Asst. Photo Editor Copy Editor Copy Editor Copy Editor Production Manager Faculty Adviser Asst. Faculty Adviser Advertising 278-3373 Editorial Fax 278-2702 Advertising Fax 278-2702 Internet 278-5440 Web site: http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu E-mail: dailytitan@yahoo.com

The Daily Titan is a student publication, printed every Tuesday through Friday. The Daily Titan operates independently of Associated Students, College of Communications, CSUF administration and the CSU system. The Daily Titan and its predecessor, the Titan Times, have functioned as a public forum since inception. Unless implied by the advertising party or otherwise stated, advertising in the Daily Titan is inserted by commercial activities or ventures identified in the advertisements themselves and not by the university. Such printing is not to be construed as written or implied sponsorship, endorsement or investigation of such commercial enterprises. The mail subscription price is $45 per semester, $65 per year, payable to the Daily Titan, College Park 670, CSUF, Fullerton, CA 92834.

Copyright ©2002 Daily Titan

The Arboretum will have a gardening class for children ages 3-5, March 9, from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Children can learn how to plant and harvest vegetables and other plants. The fee is $3 per child. For more information, call (714) 278-3579.

The Arboretum will have a two-session workshop on botanical color for both beginning and advanced students, March 9, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and March 23 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. For more information, call (714) 278-3579.

The Bowers Museum in Santa Ana is hosting “The World of the Etruscans” through April. For more information, call (714) 567-3600.

The Muslim Student Association invites to the “Eidul-Adha Banquet,” a celebration of two important Islamic holidays, March 12, at 6 p.m. in TSU Pavilion A&B.

The Department of Dance presents the Tony Awardwinning play “Dancing at Lughnasa,” March 8-17, in CSUF’s Little Theatre. Tickets are available at the Performing Arts Center box office or by calling (714) 278-3371.

The Fairplex in Pomona presents a show by the Millard Sheets Gallery Tuesday through

The Performing Arts Center presents Music Associates Competition Finals, March 8,

The Pollak Library hosts an exhibit of David Scharf’s most recent images through March

The Daily Titan staff was awarded First Place

Newspaper of the Year — General Reporting

First Place

Special Coverage of Sept. 11 by the Associated Collegiate Press March 3, 2002 • Los Angeles Convention CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, FULLERTON

Amy Rottier Kathleen Gutierrez Robert Sage Collin Miller Gus Garcia Rita Freeman Trinity Powells Yvonne Klopping Melanie Bysouth Brian Thatcher Tiffany Powell Kimberly Pierceall Heather Baer Jaime Nolte Katie Cumper Adriana Escobedo Brian Miller Abigaile C. Siena Gus Garcia Jeffrey Brody Lori Anderson

In honor of Women’s History Month the university will sponsor a lecture on “The Role of Women in Building a Culture of Peace,” March 12 at 12 p.m. in UH-205.

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news

Friday, March 8, 2002

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Fuzzy math may skew numnREPORT: A recent study from Columbia University shows a rise in drinking, but does not include a key group First in a series

Martinez

By Erick Fierro

Daily Titan Staff Writer Underage drinking is an epidemic problem in the United States, a recent study showed.

The Feb. 26 report called “Teen Tipplers,” by Columbia University’s National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), stated that more than five million high school students binge drink at least once a month and it now estimates that underage drinkers consume 25 percent of the alcohol sold in the U.S. However, a recent article released by the New York Times caught a mistake in the study. The New York Times stated the 25 percent figure was faulty.

“I think that everyone pretty much knows that there is a problem,” said 19 year-old Cal State Fullerton English

major Briana Hollier in response to the figures.

“The numbers really will not have an impact on how others perceive us,” she said of her generation.

The survey includes nearly 10,000 people from ages 12 to 20. However, this method produces an over sampling that ensures CASA will produce the numbers they want.

The numbers used suggest that young people make up 40 percent of the survey when in fact they only account for 20 percent of the population.

“In the eighth grade I really don’t think drinking was a problem, but as I got older I witnessed more underage drinking,” said Collier.

“At first I was just experimenting and I was curious — then it became enjoyable and now that I have matured it really doesn’t appeal to me.”

New York Times staff writer Tamar Lewin discovered the fuzzy math after several news organizations including CNN and the Associated Press already reported CASA’s findings and public dissent had begun.

CASA responded with a news release that insisted their questionable figures were a true reflection of what underage alcohol consumption is in the United States.

The study was derived from the 1998 National Household Drug Survey

conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration (SAMHSA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

CASA suggests that the mistake was an oversight but does not apologize for its figures.

In a news release made by SAMHSA the organization stands by its 1998 findings that underage drinkers accounted for approximately 11.4 percent of all the alcohol consumed in the United States.

This is regardless of any discrepancies between the findings of CASA or the analysis of the National Household Drug Survey.

A coalition of restaurant and tavern operators known as the Center for Consumer Freedom calls the 25 percent figure shocking in its inaccuracies.

“CASA is dead wrong to have published a figure that was so inconceivable,” said John Doyle, spokesman for Center for Consumer Freedom.

“It further represents the patterns practiced by CASA that calls into question their credibility, referring to two other incidents that occurred in 1994.”

In the first incident, CASA reported that one in four women who receive welfare were alcohol or drug abusers when in fact the actual percentage

according to the Department of Health and Human Services was actually 4.5 percent.

The second incident, CASA linked alcohol with sexually transmitted diseases and campus rape.

However, according to Forbes MediaCritic magazine’s winter 1995 issue, many of the statistics used were conjured by health educators at various universities and a misquote published in a student newspaper quickly became fact.

“Their research should be discarded because it is invalid,” said 23-year-old advertising major Meghama Kothari after reading what had occurred.

Kothari added that the center is basing their figures by singling out only those students who drink which according to her is a negative reflection on this age group.

Though these studies are controversial both CASA and SAMHSA agree that teen-age drinking remains a serious problem.

The Household survey found that while teen-agers drink less frequently than adults, they tend to drink larger, more dangerous amounts at one time, also known as binge drinking.

The study also found that at whatever age teen-agers begin to drink, they almost always continue to drink as they get older, regardless of gender.

Tension mounts in Mideast House passes vote 413-7 to extend unemployment benefits nGOVERNMENT: The Senate refused three earlier versions of the bill

By Jackie Koszczuk

Knight Ridder Newspapers The House of Representatives on Thursday voted overwhelmingly to extend unemployment benefits by 13 weeks, coming to the aid of some 3 million Americans who have exhausted the normal 26 weeks of government checks during the past year’s recession.

Some modest tax breaks for business also are included in the legislation, representing a greatly scaled-back version of President Bush’s economic stimulus proposal.

The 417-3 vote sent the bill to the Senate, which is expected to approve it within days. White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said that President Bush would sign the bill into law even though it is a shadow of his original economic-stimulus proposal.

“It’s a compromise,” Fleischer said.

“The president is saying today he will support a compromise.”

Bush left no doubt at a late afternoon press conference: “The Senate needs to act and move the bill to my desk. I look forward to signing it,” the president said.

The bill is free of many of the controversial items that delayed it for two months. House Republicans stripped

out several GOP-favored tax cuts this week to satisfy the Democratic-controlled Senate, which refused three earlier versions of the House bill. Last month the Senate passed a version of the bill that simply extended unemployment benefits by 13 weeks, without any other terms.

The standoff between Republicans insisting on a bill with tax cuts and Democrats insisting on one without them threatened to leave 3 million unemployed Americans without help.

Meanwhile lawmakers from both parties face a politically sensitive deadline on Monday, the six-month anniversary of September 11th’s terrorist attacks.

Workers who lost their jobs as a result of Sept. 11 are about to exhaust their regular benefits.

Since Sept. 11, 1.6 million people have exhausted their benefits. In January, there were about 7.9 million unemployed people in America.

Public sympathy for the jobless workers’ plight spurred rank and file members of Congress to pressure their leaders into setting aside ideological differences over the legislation and extend the jobless benefits.

“This is the least we can do,” said Rep. Kenny Hulshof, R-Mo. Budding signs of economic recovery also took some of the urgency

out of the stimulus debate. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan told the Senate Banking Committee on Thursday that the economy already is expanding faster than expected, and that to simply extend unemployment benefits is a “most reasonable approach” for government to take.

The legislation would extend regular 26-week jobless benefits by 13 weeks, but the extension would be available only through the end of this year. The measure also would provide a second 13-week extension in states where the unemployment rate exceeds 4 percent.

The legislation also would give businesses two tax breaks: A threeyear, 30 percent tax write-off for new investment in capital purchases and a more generous procedure for spreading losses over a longer period of time.

The bill also would create a special “Liberty Zone” of tax breaks in lower Manhattan, providing $5 billion in various tax incentives to help New York recover from the terrorist attacks.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., indicated that the Senate would pass the bill. “It’s overdue and awfully late, but I am encouraged that at least within the package

nWORLD: Professor Muzammil Siddiqi offers to the prime minister of India ideas for reaching peace

By Benjamin Becker Special to the Titan

As violence continues to escalate across the western state of Gujarat in India, Cal State Fullerton professor Muzammil Siddiqi sees no approaching solution.

Being a native of the country and a Muslim, Siddiqi said he understands Hindu-Muslim relations in India. He was the former president of the Islamic Society of North America and met with President George W. Bush only weeks after Sept. 11 to present the White House with a Koran.

On Feb. 27, a train carrying Hindu passengers shouting religious slogans and defamatory remarks was set on fire by angry Muslims, killing 58 Hindus, in the city of Ghodra, witnesses said.

Since the attack, more than 600 people have died as a result of retaliation and religious bloodshed.

However, tension among the groups has been growing since the World Hindu Council (a Hindu fundamentalist group) announced plans to build a temple on a holy Muslim site in the Indian city of Ayodhya. Although the Indian government has not granted permission for construction of the temple, many Hindu activists proclaim

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this will not deter from their plan and will begin building March 15.

“The government has to really take a strong action,” said Siddiqi who is also Imam of the Islamic Society of Orange County. “I hope that the government will bring peace and a situation of harmony.”

Hopes of harmony may be deteriorating rapidly as reports of government involvement in burning Muslims have surfaced.

According to The Associated Press, “Police reports obtained…on Tuesday named several important figures in two attacks in the city of Ahmadabad, part of riots that have killed 512 people.”

“It is important for Hindus to understand that they cannot kill off 150 million Muslims,” Siddiqi said. “And it’s also important for Muslims to understand that India is primarily Hindu so there’s a difference in interest for the greater public.”

Hindus make up approximately 80 percent of the population of one billion while Muslims only comprise 12 percent, according to the CIA Web site.

“It is a complex topic,” said CSUF senior Albert Varona, a comparative religion major and a practicing Hindu.

“No one single tradition has a special right to certain geographic sites. These locations may have had a significant spiritual relevance to numerous people of many different spiritual insights in the past.”

Muslims were outraged in 1992 when a mob of Hindu extremists razed a 16th-century mosque in the northern city of Ayodhya, claiming

the sacred site had belonged to them.

Immediately after the attack, India saw terrible riots claim the lives of more than 3,000 people. Many people see this new conflict as a resurgence of hatred and violence among the two groups.

“At this time whatever they do will cause conflict,” Siddiqi said. “If they build a mosque there will be conflict, if they build a temple there will be conflict.”

Siddiqi proposes the construction of a site dedicated to understanding among Muslims and Hindus along with minority religions as well.

“I wrote to the prime minister of India that the best thing would be to establish maybe a center for Muslim and Hindu understanding. This could be a place to promote tolerance by turning it into a college, library or museum to bring the people together,” he said.

Siddiqi also has requested of the prime minister a summit dedicated to calming negative sentiments among the two groups, stating “I suggested to him (Prime Minister Vajpayee) to call prominent Muslim and Hindu leaders to come to an agreement.”

Serving to only further frustrate Pakistan-India, Muslim-Hindu matters, the violence leaves many saddened and hopeless.

“I pray for resolution,” Siddiqi said.

“But I am very fearful at this moment it will not be soon.”

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Single-symptom medication may not help fight nHEALTH: The right remedy may depend on how much time and money one wants to spend at the pharmacy

By James G. Hill

Knight Ridder Newspapers

Lydell Blackburn has a cold.

And like so many other Americans, the Detroit man finds himself in a quandary as he paces up and down the coldand-flu medicine aisle at a local CVS Pharmacy.

“Here’s one just for coughs. Here’s one that looks like it’s for allergies.

Here’s one for coughing, congestion and fever,” Blackburn says, peering down at a Robitussin DM box through bifocals. “I don’t think I want this one because I’m not really congested. I just have a sort of dry cough.”

After about 15 minutes, Blackburn settles on a bottle of Tylenol Cold and Cough medicine.

“Hopefully this will do the trick,” he says in the checkout line.

Cough. Cough. Cough.

“Guess I better get some cough drops, too,” he said, reaching for a bag of Halls hanging near the cash register. Cherry flavor.

“Man, I hope I’m not coming down with the flu. There’s just as many flu medicines as there are cold medicines.

By the time you pick something to take, you’d be feeling better,” he said.

Laugh. Cough. Cough.

Which is it?

As cold and flu season slushes on, many people will find themselves trooping into the pharmacy and searching for a magic pill or potion. Then the real dizzying part begins. Is it a cold or the flu?

What medication is necessary to take?

Do I have a dry cough or a moist one?

Pills or liquid? Zinc or echinacea?

Picking the right cold or flu medicine can be difficult. The most important thing to remember, most doctors say, is that anyone with an illness that lasts more than three days or who has a high fever - one that reaches more than 101 degrees - that doesn’t respond to acetaminophen or ibuprofen should seek medical attention.

But if the symptoms of illness aren’t severe and are just starting to appear, many medical experts say to determine whether it is a cold or influenza.

Scope out the shelves. Once a complete basic self-diagnosis is made, it’s time to head to the pharmacy. Large chain pharmacies have wide selections of cold and flu products, and any number of them can help relieve certain symptoms.

Though the names and boxes may be numerous, there are five types of medications commonly sold for relieving symptoms associated with colds and flu: decongestants, antihistamines, cough suppressants, expectorants and pain relievers for fever and muscle aches.

Try to select simple medicines that target specific symptoms.

“All of the products out there will contain one or more of these types of products, with only minor variations, and in a variety of forms - pills, liquids, packets of powders that you dissolve in water, etc.,” said Larry Sasich, a licensed pharmacist and researcher for Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy group in Washington, D.C. “If you are going to treat a symptom, get a single product that addresses a single symptom rather than one of those `shotgun’ medications that says it treats a half-dozen different symptoms,” Sasich said. “There is always a risk with those multi-symptom, shotgun medications that when you start mixing them together with other over-the-counter medications, you might overdose on one of the products.”

It is also important to remember that while acetaminophen and ibuprofen are excellent fever reducers, ibuprofen can irritate the stomach lining, said Dr. Robert Brateman of Novi, Mich. Some people are more sensitive than others.

Likewise, the decongestant pseudoephedrine, if taken in large doses, can make the heart race, potentially causing more problems for patients with heart problems.

“That’s why we recommend that consumers read the label thoroughly when they are selecting a medication, and each and every time they use the medication,” said Corinne Russell, spokeswoman for the Consumer Healthcare Products Association in Washington, D.C., a trade group representing manufacturers of over-the-counter medications.

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“And not only is reading important, consumers need to follow the directions, and that means making sure they understand what the active ingredient is, what the uses are suppose to be, and what the correct dosage is,” Russell said.

Most over-the-counter medications and remedies are now marked with a new “Drug Facts” label, which makes reading them easier and warnings more prominent, Russell said. The active ingredients are listed on the labels.

People should also be aware of cold and flu medications that contain phenylpropanolamine, or PPA. PPA can make the heart race and lead to a stroke, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The agency ordered PPA pulled off shelves last year. All products containing it should be off the market.

Products containing acetaminophen or ibuprofen or regular aspirin usually are safe for most people to take for fever and muscle aches, according to Brateman, a family practice physician who has been treating patients for more than 20 years.

However, too much aspirin can irritate the stomach lining and cause bleeding.

In addition, doctors and government health agencies recommend that parents avoid giving aspirin or combination products containing aspirin to anyone under age 19 for fevers or fever-related illnesses like colds, flu or chicken pox because aspirin is linked to Reye’s syndrome, which can be deadly.

For those who have a dry cough, look for a product that contains the ingredients guaifenesin, an expectorant, and dextromethorphan, a suppressant.

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of the building so that students have a place to sit while they wait for their class.

The basement is currently being remodeled to add more classrooms and office space.

Later on, as more work is being done, offices may be added to the sixth floor.

“Everything appears to be going according to plan,” Zandpour said.

“There have been a few setbacks such as the wind.”

He also said that the rented storage spaces cannot be touched until the end of the lease agreements.

If all goes to plan the retrofitting project will be completed by the end of the semester.

“This is a global world today,” Mugambi said. “Even women in rural Africa listen to the radio. In places without electricity, you can watch CNN using solar power…there is no such thing as isolation anymore because ideas float.”

Mugambi earned her bachelor’s degree in literature from Makerere University, Uganda and her master’s and doctorate degrees from Indiana University, Bloomington.

Most of her research delves into the construction of gender in African oral and written literatures, focusing on rural women’s songs and performances as well as popular radio songs in Uganda.

Outside of teaching at CSUF, she is

Although it may seem that they would cancel each other out, they actually work together. The expectorant breaks up phlegm so that it can be expelled and the suppressant helps keep coughing under control, Brateman said.

One of the more popular products that contains these ingredients is Robitussin DM (DM being the abbreviation for dextromethorphan), Brateman said.

Sasich said there is a debate among pharmacists about the effectiveness of guaifenesin. He said his nonprofit group advises that staying hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids can do as good a job or better than medicines with guaifenesin.

If a person has what is known as a productive cough — one that produces phlegm — look for a cough syrup that contains pseudoephedrine, a decongestant, Sasich said. It is recommended for postnasal drip, cough and runny nose.

It stops nasal mucus from draining into your lungs so you don’t get a tickle in your throat that makes you cough.

However, “if you have glaucoma, high blood pressure, or an enlarged prostate, or a thyroid problem ... most over-thecounter pseudoephedrine decongestants can aggravate all of these conditions and should be avoided,” Brateman said.

“Barring any of those conditions, many of the over-the-counter cough syrups or pseudoephedrine products like Sudafed, Triaminic or Tylenol Sinus or Advil Sinus are generally safe for most patients.”

Breaking up congestion. When it comes to nasal congestion, sufferers often look for antihistamines like Contact. These dry up mucus memalso a visiting professor at both UCLA and UCI. She has lectured at Stanford University and The National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Attendance at Wednesday’s lecture was standing room only.

“I thought it was wonderful,” said Patricia Maine, a liberal arts major with a minor in women’s studies. “It encapsulated the social and artistic structure of feminism and the anthropological background of Africa.” she said.

Although the typical Titan may not visit Africa, a bit of the culture came to them.

“Most Southern Californians know very little about African society and culture,” said Sandra Sutphen, coordinator of Women’s Studies Programs.

“I felt that this was an insightful and informative discussion of both emerging and traditional feminist patterns.”

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branes. However, most symptoms associated with a cold or flu are not helped much by antihistamines, Brateman and Sasich said. Particularly in older users, these products can cause blurred vision and urinary retention (a problem for men with a prostate condition), and most cause drowsiness. (Many of the liquid forms contain alcohol.)

Rather than taking a drug that can raise the heart rate or blood pressure, Sasich recommends using saline nose drops.

These drops contain the same amount of salt that is in your blood, so they don’t sting, Sasich said. Most saline nose drops are labeled as such.

In extreme cases of nasal congestion, people can use nasal decongestant sprays, Sasich said. But that should be a last resort, and they should not be used for more than three days.

“If you use them for too long and you try to stop using them, your nose will actually get stuffier than it was before, and it becomes a vicious cycle because your nose almost gets dependent on them,” Sasich warned.

Both Sasich and Brateman advise caution about using dietary supplements like echinacea or zinc, which are marketed as aids to ward off or shorten the duration of colds. The supplements are not federally regulated and there is little to no conclusive evidence that they work, they said.

In the end, a person who takes any of these types of medications in combination or alone would probably get better in about seven days, Sasich said.

“And if you don’t take any of these types of medications, you probably will

8 Friday, March 8, 2002

news

Networks snag viewers with edgy reality TV pronTREND: Casting calls determine the amount of “realism” involved in the fadbased series of madeBy Heather Hampton

Daily Titan Staff Writer Men survive leaping off high rises and women consume worms like candy.

However, these are not stunt devils or actors but ordinary people performing these acts in front of a camera.

Reality shows continue to cascade through television networks.

Viewers are awe-stricken by the unbelievable stunts performed by real people – or maybe they are not so real after all.

“The people are not actors,” said Edward Fink, a TV/film professor at Cal State Fullerton. “But of course they are chosen for certain attributes, such as looks, camera presence, emo-

tional draw and so on, so they aren’t quite real people.”

Fink said that entertainment reality shows have neither the appeal of fully scripted entertainment or real news. Fink added that the situations are real because they are not digitally matted into the shot but they are very staged.

“In the real world, real people don’t walk real tightropes between high rises, even if they are tethered for safety,” Fink said. “Nor do they dig with their mouths for raw chicken meat in buckets of worms or climb out of cars dangling from bridges.”

Fink said that the true average person would not be up for the physical and emotional demands of some of the stunts in reality shows.

Loni Boyd, a communicative disorders major at CSUF, said that shows like “Survivor” and “Real World” do portray the real person and she enjoys watching reality shows.

“It’s just funny to watch the people and how they react in certain situations,” Boyd said. “I like how they react and why they do what they do.”

Yet, the real success of networks is careful planning, balance and money.

“In the film ‘All the President’s Men,’ the character Deep Throat tells the investigative reporter to ‘follow the money,’” Fink said. “That’s the answer to any question about entertainment programming. As long as something makes a profit, it will air.”

Fink said if the networks are able to sell more dollars in advertising than they spend to buy reality programs, they will continue to broadcast the shows.

Scott Grogan, vice president of corporate communications for FOX Television said any network has to have a balance.

Grogan said that FOX will continue to run reality shows because that is what the station was founded upon.

“On networks such as FOX, there’s always going to be room for edgy programming,” Grogan said.

FOX has only been in the television world for 15 years whereas most of the other networks have been around for 50. “[We’re] kind of like a teen-ager,

constantly looking for edgy programming,” Grogan said.

FOX is still learning the tricks of the television world, but have learned that they are successful with reality shows.

The TV network recently broadcasted “The Glutton Bowl,” which aired straight through the Olympic figure skating championships. This was the world’s greatest eating event where contestants took their stomachs to the brink of regurgitation as they sucked, slobbered, gagged and swallowed food ranging from hot dogs to cow tongues.

FOX viewers ate it up themselves, as they watched the food athletes gain weight on live television.

Grogan said FOX did not have ratings yet but he said that “The Glutton Bowl” was a success.

“The e-mail response to the show was surprisingly high,” Grogan said.

There is some concern as to whether reality shows will continue to produce plots that the public will enjoy, especially after Sept. 11.

“I believe the ratings show a slight

decline in viewership when compared against pre-Sept. 11 ratings data,” Fink said. “But I suspect that is not so much due to Sept. 11 as it is due to the newness of the reality fad slipping away as reality programs become more common and less of a ‘flavor of the month.’”

There are those who have no understanding of the reality show limelight.

Although shows such as “Survivor” have caught the eyes of many, some people prefer to turn their attention to other forms of broadcasting.

“I am ashamed to say that all I know about ‘Survivor’ I learned on Kevin and Bean (radio show),” said CSUF psychology Professor Chris Cozby. “I’m a TV fan, but I tend to stick with series; this year it is ‘24,’ ‘Alias,’ ‘Angel’ and ‘West Wing.’”

Although many people prefer to watch other forms of television entertainment, they do not necessarily believe that networks should stop funding reality shows.

“Although I personally choose not to watch reality programs,” Fink said,

“networks should continue to fund these shows as long as they wish. I’m a believer in full First Amendment rights for broadcasters, with the qualification that they ‘serve the public interest,’ as defined in the Federal Communications Act.” Fink said that someone could argue that reality programming does not serve the public interest if they do not like reality programs.

“If someone does not like sitcoms, or dramas, news, talk shows, game shows, or infomercials, or any other type of programming, I suppose that someone could make the same argument,” Fink said.

Fink said that reality shows might fizz out but that they would probably come back.

“The networks will find some new fad to replace it – probably not really something new, but something revisited, such as westerns or variety shows.” Fink said. “Then another generation will pass (20 years or so) and guess what, reality programming will be hot again.”

SnoRhino extends snowboard comnSPORT: Engineering students from Rowan University developed an easier way to get ski equipment on lifts

College students have a patent pending on a lift extension to allow skiers and snowboarders to be more comfortable when riding uphill.

By Kaitlin Gurney

Knight Ridder Newspapers

Rowan University junior Jeff Gladnick, who skied before he could read, met his snowboarder friends in the Canadian Rockies for a spring-break getaway last April.

The guys had a blast coasting down the mountains.

Riding back up was another matter.

On the chairlift, they met the great divide between ski bums and their upstart snowboard counterparts: Skis face forward. Snowboards face sideways, like a surfboard with the rider attached. Skis end up getting scratched by the snowboards’ heavy metal, and snowboarders strain their knees and ankles trying

krt campus

to maneuver their equipment on lifts designed for skis.

Inspiration hit Gladnick, 20, as he rested after his trip.

He says he realized that snowboarders needed a simple chairlift extension - a device that would allow them to stack their gear peacefully on top of the skis.

They needed what he and fellow Rowan engineering students Matt Eberhardt, 20, and Peter Boyle, 21, now know as the SnoRhino.

“All my buddies kept complaining about their snowboards on the lifts, and my skis got scraped,” Gladnick said.

“This would give us a way to exist in perfect harmony - at least going up the mountain.”

The trio, incorporated as UpHill Enterprises, has a patent pending on the simple clamp with metal pegs that creates a snowboarders-only footrest without interfering with skis.

With luck, the students say, the SnoRhino will be on chairlifts by next winter. They say they plan to market their product - which will retail for less than $50 - to ski resorts eager to cash in on the

snowboarding craze.

“Whether the resorts like it or not, snowboarders are the wave of the future,” Gladnick said, reflecting on the sport’s popularity, which, if anything, has been boosted by the five medals Americans won in Salt Lake City. “They have to appeal to them. They need to get that business.”

More than 4 million Americans tried the sport at least once in 2000, according to the National Sporting Goods Association. Although not nearly as numerous as skiers, snowboarders are hardier customers who do not complain when the snow is not in perfect condition, said Boyle, an avid snowboarder for six years.

“The mountain (resorts) tell us that when the weather conditions aren’t very good, 95 percent of their customers are snowboarders,” Boyle said. “The skiers are the picky ones.”

Since September, the engineering students have worked on their project for about 15 hours a week, and they receive school credit for their work. The SnoRhino concept was so simple that

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faculty adviser Anthony Marchese said he almost did not let them proceed with the project.

“I said, `Wait a minute. I’m not letting you all work on a bar the whole semester,’’’ Marchese said. “It was so simple.

But the idea was so original.”

Marchese helped them secure financing: $2,500 from Rowan and $8,375 from the National Collegiate Inventors and Innovators Alliance. They bought a spare chair from a chairlift - $30, plus a $200 delivery fee - at a nearby ski resort, and began work, practicing with Gladnick’s skis and Boyle’s snowboard.

Eberhardt, who does not ski or snowboard, has concentrated on making the SnoRhino light, less than 2 or 3 pounds of a high-strength polymer.

Gladnick has concentrated on the business end of UpHill Enterprises. He surveyed snowboarders, all of whom said they would use the SnoRhino, and 86 percent of whom said they would pay extra to ride lifts equipped with the device. He also applied for a patent from the federal government and created a Web site: www.SnoRhino.com.

Friday, March 8, 2002

The Daily Titan Our Voice Judge Kline still up for re-election Judge Kline continues to make headlines, but Orange County voters swiftly avoided becoming news items themeselves on election day.

Congratulations, O.C. did not reelect a suspected child molester to his superior court judgeship.

Since Kline didn’t receive at least half the vote, (only 33 percent cast their ballots for him) the seat will go to a run-off election.

The write-in-candidate with the most votes will face the judge in a bat-

tle that should bring a record-breaking (insert sarcasm here) 25 percent of all county registered voters to the polls.

Just because he wasn’t re-elected this time around doesn’t mean voters can commend themselves just yet.

Run-offs rarely attract voters (kind of like the Associated Student presidential election last year which attracted a little more than 300 voters out of 30,000 students on campus.)

Don’t let apathy rule the run-off.

Go out and vote once again.

A CSUF satellite campus set against a serene backdrop of higher learning and landscaping...with the roar of a planes overhead?

This is no longer a worry now that Orange County voters voted “yes” on Measure W giving way to a “great park” and finally ending the debate over the El Toro Airport.

But wait.

The debate still looms because only two days after the election, after a little more than 263,000 people voted to make the region a park, the Navy has decided to sell the property.

This never occured to them before?

Now that the land is on the auction block, the pending park will remain in

limbo unless someone foots the bill for it.

The Navy is selling the land to the highest bidder, meaning, if someone throws a $1-million-an-acre offer on the table in order to build an airport, an airport we might have.

Forget measures.

Forget “anti-airport” and “antipark” battling groups.

Forget voting in this case.

The defense department has spoken and this is its decision alone to make.

Will there be an El Toro Airport?

Will this thwart CSUF satellite campus plans? Or will the university have to play the bidding war?

Only time and the Navy will tell.

Canceled plans for El Toro land

The Daily Titan article poliLetters to the Editor should be brief and are subject to editing. They should also include a signature and telephone number.

Editorials are the opinion of the editorial board, comprised of the Executive Editor, Managing Editor, News Editor, Opinion Editor and section editors.

Columns are the personal opinion of the writer. They do not reflect those of the university, the faculty, The Daily Titan, or the student body.

“The press is not public opinion” -Prussian Prince Otto von Bismarck, 1862 Tell The Daily Titan what is on your mind, what drives our campus, and what influences our world.

Cal State Fullerton students, faculty, staff and friends - express your opinion and write a letter to the editor.

Bring letters to CP-670 addressed to “Opinion.”

Or send an e-mail by visiting the Opinion section at : http://dailytitan.fullerton.edu

Letter to the Editor Agreed, Reed needs to focus on education As I sat down at home after a hard day of classes, I decided to read The Daily Titan.

One story (Chancellor misreads CSU role for students) grabbed my attention because it deals with a problem all the students at Cal State Fullerton deal with each day – too many students!

What happend to education being first?

I agree with Micheael Del Muro when he said, “It is frustrating as a student when the main function of

the school is not education.”

I don’t believe that Milton Gordon should make that much money when he is not the person we deal with when we are having problems in class.

I also want to say that if Reed’s main priority is not education then he should not be in office.

We should not have someone in office that does not think education superceds everything else.

- Victor Galvan sophomore

All that is LEFT

He Knows He’s RIGHT

By Kimberly Pierceall

By John Phillips

GOP shoots itself in foot

Stupid people vote Kline

I finally think I understand why Grand Ol’ Party members tend to support the National Rifle Association – they get a kick out of loading the gun, pointing it at their shoe and blowing their foot away!

Republicans did just that when they elected Bill Simon to represent them in the governor’s race against Governor Gray Davis.

Thank you for making the vote that much easier come November.

Democrats might have had to hem and haw with their psyches whether or not to vote for Richard Riordan. Since the majority of liberal folks aren’t too fond of our rolling black-out governor, the most likely option would have been a quasi-liberal-conservative who served as the mayor of Los Angeles.

Alas, you’ve left us with Simon – a man who no one knew until he got a magical commercial endorsement from Sept 11 icon Rudy Giuliani.

Simon, a man on the far right of his party – “family values” and religion in California? C’mon man!

Simon even has his own terrorist plan for the Golden State which demands, simply stated, death to terrorists. Isn’t the federal government already taking care of the life and death decisions when it comes to terrorists?

If elected, he would create an Office of California Emergency Response at the cabinet level. Looks like someone was taking notes on the George W. Bush administration. Shouldn’t California’s present law enforcement be enough for the state’s “homeland defense.” If not, shouldn’t we improve the police forces we already have rather than making them lean, mean terrorist-stomping machines.

I’m sure there will be more plans to come since campaigning for the November race only just begun with Davis and Simon’s acceptance speeches on Tuesday.

Simon deserved a party after the election since the unassuming candidate vanquished the over-confident shoo-in. Plus, he won’t have a chance to party anytime soon.

Republicans have done this before.

They aimed the cross-hairs on Bill Clinton and ended up with a gaping head wound. The 1994 “contract with America” brought on a Congress vs.

White House stalemate eventually pitting the Republicans as the bad guys who let the government shut down in order to have their demands met. The Republican revolution turned into the party’s de-evolution by 1998. Where is Newt Gingrich now?

California is such a diverse piece of property that a conservative Republican doesn’t stand a chance being elected. So Bill, invest some of your money in an electrical utility and concede the race now.

Davis wasn’t celebrating his primary victory at his party on Tuesday, mainly because he knew long ago he had the March 5 election clinched; he was celebrating his re-election victory.

Davis – go ahead and appoint the former Edison CEO to the public utilities commission – you’ll still be around for four more years.

- Pierceall’s column appears every Friday.

If you’ve ever wondered how many stupid people live in Orange County – we now have a number! No, it’s not the number of people who attended the last monster truck race at Edison Field in Anaheim. I am talking about the 115,124 voters who decided to pull the lever for Superior Court Judge Ronald C. Kline on Tuesday.

Fortunately for us, they were heavily outnumbered by voters who want Kline to take a hike. In fact, 66 percent of you decided to write in the name of a candidate who is not under house arrest for charges of downloading kiddie porn off the Internet.

For that, you deserve a pat on the back.

For those of you who decided to vote for Kline — I have some wonderful beachfront property in Nevada that I would love to show you.

Bill Simon is California Dreamin’ Even though Gov. Gray Davis didn’t have the assistance of boxcutters or copies of the Koran, he was successfully able to hijack the Republican gubernatorial primary.

Recognizing that Mayor Richard Riordan posed the most serious threat to his majesty in November, Davis was able to trick Republican voters into nominating a man who is unelectable to a statewide, general electorate.

With Davis’ assistance, Simon was able to win the battle. But he will surely lose the war.

The ONLY way Simon has a chance at eeking out a victory, is if Davis selfimplodes.

Don’t count on that happening.

Even though Davis has been a terrible governor, he is a great candidate that knows how to win in the Golden State. He’s spent his entire adult life in California politics – going back to the 1970s when he was former-Governor Jerry Brown’s chief of staff.

Unfortunately, while Republican strategists have perfected the art of losing campaigns, Davis has become an expert at demagoguery and extortion.

My money is on the extortionist.

Rep. blow-dry is blown out of office Poor Gary Condit (pronounced ‘CONNED-it’). The seven-term Democrat was crushed this Tuesday, by his one-time political ally, Assemblyman Dennis Cardoza.

This is the first election that Condit has lost in 30 years.

Friends of the defeated congressman say they are worried about his financial future – pointing out that “serving the public” is Condit’s only trade. Besides that, they believe he is otherwise unemployable.

During the campaign, Condit quipped that if he lost the election he would return to his blue-collar roots and work as a welder.

Two years ago this man was on his way to being our next governor, now he will be in an occupation that requires safety goggles.

I guess Huey Long was right – popular incumbents are only dead meat if they’re caught in bed with a dead girl or a live boy.

- Phillips is a freelance columnist. majoring in political science at Cal State Fullerton. His column appears

Special to the titan

Daily Titan Opinion Editor

There was an election?

Matthew sedlar/Special to the Titan

LAPD turmoil

By Michael Matter

Daily Titan Staff Writer Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn stunned Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard Parks by not supporting the chief in his quest to be reappointed to a second five year term.

When the chief refused to give up his bid, the mayor surprised the chief again by making the statement in public.

He said he would not support the chief for reappointment, igniting an old-fashioned bare-knuckled political brawl that has politically polarized the city.

The odds appear to be stacked against Parks. He also must overcome the “no confidence” vote of the Los Angeles Police Protective League.

The LAPPL is the recognized employee association for more than 8,100 LAPD officers. They have mounted a public information campaign, called “Operation Inform,” to make sure that Parks is not reappointed.

A television commercial sponsored by the organization aired Feb. 5 and said, “Los Angeles taxpayers spend over $1 billion a year for police. You should be getting what your hard earned tax dollars pay for. You’re not.

Crime is up in L.A. Robbery up nearly 20 percent, auto theft up more than 20 percent, murder up more than 34 percent. Today L.A. is the bank robbery capital of America. We’re down more than 1,000 uniformed police officers. …reform stopped. L.A.’s police chief asked all of us to judge him by his performance. We think you should do just that.”

But that is not all. The LAPPL Board of Directors wrote a letter to its members.

“We have on your behalf, and on behalf of the residents of Los Angeles, actively sought to stop the reappointment of Chief Parks,” it wrote. “This is not a fight that we ever wanted, but it is a fight that we cannot and will not avoid.”

Why are such powerful political forces so dead set against Parks being reappointed?

Why did his former political ally Mayor Hahn turn on him, and in the process, willingly walk away from the continued political support of the black community?

Why does the LAPPL despise Parks, one of their own, a 37-year-veteran LAPD officer who rose from the bottom rank to the top rank of the department?

The LAPPL and Mayor Hahn protest too much.

Despite what the mayor and the LAPPL think, Parks must believe there is no one more capable of leading the department into the future than himself, the consummate company man who has spent a lifetime walking “the thin blue line.”

Under city charter, the reappointment decision is the responsibility of the police commission, not the mayor. The police commission has said that it will take about 45 days to decide and base its decision on eight criteria such as vision and leadership, control and prevention of crime, management, police reform, strategies for policing and programs, communications, administration and relations with the police commission Like many leaders with vision who are committed to positive change, Parks may have simply tried to do too much too soon, focusing only on the department as a whole and not the rank-and-file.

Let us hope that the police commission looks at the big picture also, awarding Parks his reappointment because Parks is not afraid to make the decisions that facilitate change.

Historically, those in power do not like change.

Letter to the Editor: Reed defends his management of Chancellor CSU System Strong exception needs to be made to the editorial in The Daily Titan (“CSU Chancellor misreads CSU role for students,” March 1) regarding the quality of education at CSU. Our quality is simply outstanding. We are experiencing record enrollments precisely because students want the kind of education we have to offer.

Quality in higher education is the result of the right combination of many different components that provide students with an enriching educational experience that prepares them to be responsible citizens and productive members of society.

Quality is about creating an environment in which students can dream, explore and master, with newfound confidence, concepts and fields of study they have never previously encountered.

At the CSU we are proud of our faculty and the excellence of our programs that create just such an environment. Excellence in education is a result of the total campus experience provided to our students. That experience is more than just the quality of faculty to whom students are exposed. It is also about maintaining a low student-faculty ratio; having up-to-date libraries, laboratories and classrooms; being able to enroll in the classes students need; and finding help with enrollment, financial aid, transportation, housing, counseling and health care.

To say in your editorial that enrolling more students or providing for student services, libraries or technology should be neglected to fund higher faculty salaries is grossly short-sighted.

Furthermore, saying that we view our faculty and part-time lecturers simply as trainers is a misunderstanding of their qualifications and the CSU mission. Fifty percent of the faculty are tenured or tenure-track professors. These world-class professors provide superb teaching, in-depth study of specialized subjects, research opportunities and constant academic support.

Part-time lecturers bring valuable real-world experience into the class-

‘

room that enhances the learning and complements the theory and knowl- their counterparts at the California Postsecondary Education Commission edge provided by tenured faculty. institutions.

Both are important in the education Would we like to pay them more? Yes. of well-rounded students, and both We have lobbied hard in Sacramento to obtain larger salary increases for will receive added compensation if our faculty. For example, in the year 2000-01 CSU requested a six percent the just-negotiated tentative agreeincrease. We were disappointed to see that the legislature provided just two ment with the California Faculty percent for compensation, but that’s all they did provide.

Association is approved.

Lastly, let me say that we are proud of our teacher education and teacher Full and part-time lecturers also recruitment programs, though we are not satisfied that they are as good as replace tenured faculty on sabbatithey could be. CSU prepares almost 60 percent of the credentialed teachers in cal, on leave or assigned to speCalifornia. We are committed to recruiting and preparing outstanding teachers cial research or academic projects. to solve the state’s shortage of teachers.

Without such part-time faculty backA recent landmark evaluation showed that 80 percent of elementary school filling these positions, tenured facteachers graduated from CSU received high marks from their supervisors ulty could not engage in the very for their level of preparation to teach reading and math skills. It is incorrect research that keeps them current in to interpret that data as if the other 20 percent have failed. What it means is their specialties. that 20 percent are still working hard to master the tremendous challenges of Part-time lecturers also help meet today’s public school classrooms and are striving to obtain the high marks enrollment needs while tenure-track their counterparts have received. No school principal or supervisor ever said faculty searches are conducted. that those teachers were failing.

CSU’s employment of part-time facCSU’s commitment to education doesn’t stop there. CSU also prepares ulty is identical to the percentage of principals to be better leaders and managers, is working to address the shortfaculty employed in part-time posiage of trained nurses in California and is at the leading edge of the agricultural, tions across the nation. high-tech and biotech industries. CSU is also a leader in student preparation in The CSU faculty receive fair the visual and performing arts and the mass media. compensation and carry reasonable The CSU is a dynamic university system of 23 campuses with a vast workloads compared to their peers mission: provide high-quality, affordable higher education to meet the everat other institutions. changing needs of the people of California. On behalf of our 40,000 employ- Charles B. Reed ees let me say we are fulfilling our mission well.

During the past three years faculty has received salary increases totaling 23 percent, compared to the national average of 15 percent for the same period.

Moreover, full-time CSU lecturers earn almost $10,000 per year more than

The

CSU

faculty

receive fair compensation and carry rea-

sonable workloads

compared to their

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By Charles B. Reed

peers at other institutions.

Friday, March 8, 2002

On the path to something speWith a life of success in softball, there is no telling where Jenny Topping may end up next

By Brian Thatcher

Daily Titan Asst. Sports Editor When Jenny Topping was 10 years old, her father entered her in a physical skills challenge at the local junior high. She was allowed to compete even though she didn’t go to the school. In a competition to see who could throw the ball the longest, she threw the second longest of the day. The only person who beat her was an eighth-grade boy.

“I knew then how strong her arm was and that she should play a position where she could use it,” father Rick Topping said.

Ten years later, that decision turned out to be CSUF’s gain when she strapped on the catcher’s gear for the softball team.

Topping, now 21, didn’t start her career in orange and blue, but since her transfer from the University of Washington in 2000, has made strides to be the one of the most dominant all-around players in Titan history.

In the 2001 season, her first at CSUF, Topping became the 23rd Titan to earn All-America honors. She was only the second player in Big West Conference history to win the Triple Crown by hitting .423 with 14 home runs and 59 RBIs en route to being named Big West Player of the Year. She set five single-season school records in average, runs, doubles, RBIs and walks.

After the season, Topping received another honor. She was named one of 32 players to represent her country as a member of the USA Blue National Team. One of her coaches, Michelle Gromacki, also happens to be her head coach at CSUF and she was very pleased with Topping’s decision to transfer.

“When I learned she was available, I was very excited,” Gromacki said. “She is a natural leader on the field. It was perfect because my catcher at the time became ineligible, so she fit right in.”

Topping found a love for softball years before by playing in the street with the boys, but didn’t join organized teams right away.

“I got a late jump,” the junior said. “I started when I was nine and I didn’t join a travel ball team until I was 12.”

Though she was an old-timer by youth softball standards, Topping still enjoyed great success throughout her career in travel ball. She was a member of three national championship teams, at age 14 she won with the Southern California Fire Crackers and at 16 and 18, she won with the Gordon Panthers.

As she was winning these championships, Topping was also playing for La Habra High School which was a different sort of experience.

“Playing high school softball is much different than playing on travel ball teams or in college,” her high school coach Sue Briquelet said. “In high school, you play with whomever makes the team.

Our team had a decent pitcher and a bunch of girls who were role players. But the fact that we had Jenny on the team meant that we were ranked in the top 10 every year in Orange County.”

And the rankings were well substantiated.

When she was a Highlander, the team won four straight Freeway League titles. Topping was named to the All-League team each of those years. Two newspapers, the Whittier Daily News and the La Habra Star, named her female athlete of the year, in 1996 and 1997, respectively.

Everyone at La Habra knew that she was going to be a future Olympian, Briquelet recalls. Topping could very well walk around campus like she was something special, but it didn’t suit her.

“She was one of the most humble young ladies,” Briquelet adds.

“The teachers recognized that and admired her for it. It would be sad for the country if she didn’t make the Olympic team because she is the one of the best pure hitters I’ve ever seen.”

She got her first taste of playing for her country before she graduated from high school.

“She was on the national team when she was 17,” Rick Topping said. “She was one of only a few high school players to be selected to compete.”

Her efforts would be rewarded as she helped the 1998 USA Softball Level III squad to the gold medal.

From there, Topping would have her pick of the top college teams in the country.

“It was between UCLA, Arizona and Washington,” her father said.

She selected Washington from among the perennial national champion hopefuls and enjoyed immediate success. After red-shirting her first season due to a torn ACL, she rebounded the next season to earn First Team All-America honors, leading the nation in home runs, RBIs and slugging percentage. But, much to the benefit of CSUF, she decided to leave the school and pursue her career in a new uniform.

“Washington is a very strong program,” Topping said. “They have a good work ethic and teach good skills. But it wasn’t the right place for me. I wanted to move closer to home and return to nicer weather.”

The catcher, who had to make the adjustment of living with her parents again after two years, also had to adjust to new teammates without the benefit of the fall semester to get to know them.

“It all happened very fast,” Topping said. “We went to Big Bear for a weekend team building trip, and when we came back, we started practice.”

Her dad’s reason for the transfer was much simpler.

“We came to Fullerton because of Coach Gromacki,” he said.

After her phenomenal first season at CSUF, she hit a snag this past off-season.

She suffered a separated shoulder on her catching arm and missed most of February due to her recovery, but is starting to get back on track.

In 15 games this season, she is batting .417 with one home run and five RBIs. She was named Big West Player of the Week for the week of March 3, her first full week of action since the injury and the Titans have gone 11-4 since she has returned to the lineup.

So, as was the case with high school, Topping is a dominant force who hopes to propel her team to the top of the rankings, and she once again chooses to be a team player.

“Being a catcher, I am prone to lead,” she said.

“A team is not just one person and there are so many great leaders on this team. We know we should have been at the World Series last season, and we know that this will be our year.”

CSUF nabs an invite but goes home too

C

Daily Titan Staff Writer The Fantom of the Dome appeared at the Anaheim Convention Center wearing charcoal sunglasses, snow gloves, a cape and a faded yellow jersey with the number zero.

He aggravated opposing fans to the point of insanity as he danced and jived to the Village People’s, “YMCA.” Stepping off the court, he grabbed a sweat towel from his seat and wiped off his face.

One would almost think he was playing for the UC Santa Barbara basketball team who competed against Cal State Fullerton Wednesday.

But the Fantom was just another bystander cheering the UCSB Gauchos on to a 72-63 victory over the Titans at the Big West Conference quarterfinals.

UCSB were ready to take on the Titans with one lift of a finger.

Yet the Gauchos were in for the slimiest competition they had seen all season. The Titans were ready to give Santa Barbara a game they would never forget.

CSUF coach Barbara Ehardt knew her team was up to the challenge.

“We knew it would be a difficult task,” Ehardt said. “But we knew it would not be impossible.”

Ehardt said her goal was to put a kink in the top-seeded Gauchos and that she did.

The Titans and Gauchos fought neck and neck in the first 10 minutes of the game leaving UCSB dazed and

confused.

But that daze soon turned to craze as the Gauchos began to connect with the hoop.

Yet the Titans held on as senior guard Lindsay Sotero sunk a threepointer to bring the Titan’s within eight of the Gauchos.

“We got our senior guard to shoot the ball and shot the three and we needed her to do that,” Ehardt said.

“She thinks pass first all the time, but as you can see she went 6-for-12, 6-for-9 from the three-point line and that made all the difference.”

Sotero, the only four-year player for the Titans, said the Gauchos played zone the last time they played them and that her shot was off.

“I was hoping they would lay off of me again,” Sotero said. “It was time for my shot to come back.”

But Sotero’s points did not keep the Gauchos from lighting a bigger flame.

UCSB began to dominate the offense when sophomore Linsday Taylor, who scored a game-high 21 points, secured the lead with three baskets in less than a minute as the Titans trailed 40-28 going into the second half. Yet CSUF once again nailed their tusks into the boards as they continued to put up shot after shot from inside and outside the key, bringing the point deficit within six.

But the Gauchos regained their composure and put an end to the Titan defense sinking enough baskets to win the game.

USCB coach Mark French said that CSUF jolted his team and that

o m m e n t a r y

How does he come up with this stuff?

nBASKETBALL: Fullerton keeps the match-up tight but can’t contain the Gauchos, losing 72By Heather Hampton

Photo by Brian Miller

By Melanie Bysouth

Daily Titan Sports Editor

JANEL WRIGHT/Daily Titan

Cal Poly SLO’s Kari Dupperron outjumps CSUF’s Jenilee Greslie,

it was probably the closest Big West game they had seen all year.

Yet French added he never had any worries of CSUF beating his team.

“I was interested in how the team would respond,” he said. “I never thought we were going to lose.”

The Titans did not leave the court with their heads down. Instead they left with cheers of victory.

“I’m as proud of this team as I could possibly be,” Ehardt said. “We needed to have an ‘A’ game and we had a game plan, and I think we executed that game plan pretty well.

We played as close to 40 minutes of basketball as we’ve played the entire year.”

Augusta National certainly seems to have a problem with Tiger Woods.

The Georgia golf course has undergone its biggest overhaul in its 68year history, just to spite the defending-Masters champion.

They have altered nine holes and added nearly 300 yards all in the hopes of keeping the fancy, green jacket away from Woods.

And why?

Simply put, they’re racist.

Don’t think so? Perhaps you should have a chat with Charles Barkley.

The former NBA star is accusing the golf course of “blatant racism,” saying the reason behind the renovations was solely to keep Woods from winning the Masters again.

“Jack Nicklaus won the Masters six damn times and he was hitting it past everybody else, and they never made a change,” he said in this week’s issue of Sports Illustrated.

What exactly is wrong with Barkley?

Just how many times was this man hit in the head with a basketball and what makes him think that this is a logical argument?

Yes, there is racism in this world, and more specifically, in golf. But to credit these changes to prejudice is simply ridiculous.

Perhaps he has not considered the golf club technology that has propelled the sport to new levels.

Perhaps he is unaware of the speed and distance the new golf balls are capable of. Perhaps he has forgotten that golf-course refurbishment

is as old an idea as golf courses themselves.

And has anyone told him that even Woods doesn’t find the remodeling racist?

“I spoke to Hootie [Johnson, Augusta National chairman] about the changes, and the changes are not for me,” he said. “They’re for the kids who are coming up in the future. There are a lot of kids out there now in college golf and high school who hit the ball farther than I do. They’re getting bigger and stronger and the new technology is helping.”

Now this is a logical argument.

But what if Woods did agree with Barkley? That would possibly be more ridiculous than Barkley himself.

How arrogant would it be for Woods to assume that he is that good of golfer that he warrants millions of dollars in renovation to one of the oldest golf courses in the nation?

While I admire Barkley’s interest in racial issues, he is clearly wasting his time with this one. Nobody is attacking Woods and nobody is that concerned over the changes at Augusta National.

While I understand he must be bored since his departure from professional basketball, there are many other things he could be doing with his time, and I even have a suggestion.

Although this is the year 2002, there are still golf courses where Woods, and Barkley, cannot play simply because of their race.

How about talking to Sports Illustrated about that instead?