BROKEN NEWS: PART 4 The Collegian online’s series on UPD police reports continues
Preview movies coming out soon A&E Illinois’ defense similar to Boise SPORTS Too much emphasis placed on ‘rights’ OPINION
WEDNESday Issue DECEMBER 1, 2010 FRESNO STATE
COLLEGIAN.CSUFRESNO.EDU
SERVING CAMPUS SINCE 1922
By Ana Mendoza The Collegian With the addition of $199 milless professors and furlough days Even though money will be lion of ongoing funding and in previous semesters. The addiprovided for the CSU system, another $106 million in one-time tion of new faculty will help to student fee tuition increases still funding, the Califor nia State lessen the cut to services and persist. University is accepting spring classes. A five percent increase to students and as President John “[We also expect] to expand undergraduate and graduate Welty confirms, more courses library hours,” Covino said. tuition increase was recently and faculty are also on the way. The amount of extra hours the passed by the CSU Committee on Although the exact number of library will be open is still not Finance and Board of Trustees. new professors to facilitate the known. The fall 2011 fee increase of 10 extra courses could not be statSome students are skeptical of percent will be implemented if ed, Welty assured there legislation doesn’t buy out would be more. About 400 the increase. hope [Fresno State] really does [what courses are being added “I completely underto the CSU, he said. stand that students are they say].” Welty also added durupset about fee increases ing the early November and they have every right — Allison Clark, interview that the addito be,” Executive Vice Student, Fresno State President of Associated tional funding will not be used for any salary S t u d e n t s , I n c. S e l e n a increases or toward camFarnesi said. “Their edupus athletics. the number of classes and serviccation, which is supposed to be In a previous article from es that are being planned. of public access at a public uniThe Collegian, William Covino, “I hope [Fresno State] really versity, is getting more and more provost and vice President for does [what they say],” Allison expensive.” Academic affairs confirmed the Clark, business student at Fresno Farnesi said that ASI tried to expansion of courses provided State said. “I know a lot of my negate the tuition increase. for the spring semester. friends had trouble getting into “What we are doing now, now Fresno State is currently prothe classes they needed.” that it has been voted on, we are viding services to students with Clark said she will take advanattempting to lobby the state to about 10 percent less faculty than tage of additional services probuy out the remaining part of previous years. Budget cuts to vided by the university. “If they the budget so that we don’t see the CSU led to a series of class have more class time and offer another fee increase for the next shortages, tuition fee increases, more classes, that will help.” semester.”
“I
Illustration by Michael Uribes / The Collegian
Counterfeit cash threatens businesses By Michael Mygind The Collegian The economic climate in the Central Valley has brought about numerous obstacles including joblessness and b a n k r u p t cy a m o n g s m a l l businesses. Lately, reports of another serious problem have arisen, cash counterfeiting. Several local businesses mentioned instances in which they have come across fake currency. Javier Duran, cook and kitchen manager at Javier’s Mexican restaurant in Fresno, didn’t disclose any specific cases, but noted that he likes to make visual warnings when he encounters counterfeited bills. “Usually I’ll post [the counterfeit bills] up in the back behind the girls at the counter and I’ll post the date so that if the same person comes by trying to do it again, they’ll know not to [accept it],” Duran said. Karen Kilgore, co-owner of Performance Tire and Auto Center, heard of this new threat to both the local economy and businesses. “A customer just told us
Matt Weir / The Collegian
During the holiday season, customers using counterfeited currency is one thing businesses need to watch out for.
today that it’s becoming a big problem,” Kilgore said. She admitted that her business has to be careful with it. “We check all our bills and if they don’t pass, we don’t take them,” Kilgore said.
While many local businesses are struggling to survive the downturn, it could be reasonable to say that they don’t want to come off as vulnerable to threats, such as faulty bills, that can void their prof-
its. Whether recent accusations of rising fraud are true, spreading awareness is still important. The Better Business Bureau See CASH, Page 3
Central Calif. waste dump fined By Garance Burke Associated Press A vast toxic waste dump at the center of a birth d e f e c t s c o n t r ove r s y i n Central California has been fined more than $300,000 for allowing cancer-causing chemicals to leach into the soil, the U.S. Environmental Protection Ag ency said Tuesday. Re s i d e n t s n e a r t h e Kettleman Hills landfill previously expressed concerns that the largest hazardous waste dump in the West was linked to a high rate of birth defects among infants. State health officials said they have not identified a common cause of the birth abnormalities plaguing the community. E PA o f f i c i a l s s a i d Chemical Waste Mana g ement was being fined because the dump failed to clean up soil tainted with PCBs, putting workers at a higher risk of exposure. The facility is one of just 10 dumps nationwide that handles polychlorinated biphenyls, a now-banned transformer fluid. “Companies charged with safely disposing of society’s most toxic materials need to rigorously follow the protective laws established to secure both the public safety and public trust,” said Jared Blumenfeld, the EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. Jennifer Andrews, a spokeswoman for the dump’s parent company Waste Management, did not immediately retur n telephone and e-mail messages seeking comment. The landfill is adjacent to Kettleman City, an impoverished San Joaquin Valley farm town where 11 cases of cleft palates and other birth defects have been reported since 2007. EPA of ficials did not immediately say whether the disposal problems had any ties to health risks but noted the company is in the final stages of completing a study evaluating the potential human health or environmental risks of PCBs migrating off-site.