ISU Mini Baja team:
Thrown in the mix:
Transmission design new for this year’s car
ISU transfers succeed in their first meet
see AUTOS on PAGE 10
TUESDAY
see SPORTS on PAGE 8
January 26, 2010, Volume 204 >> Number 86 >> 40 cents >> iowastatedaily.com >> An independent newspaper serving Iowa State since 1890
Student Government
Politics
City Council
Varsity Theater final discussion on Wednesday
Second meeting to decide on use of action plan
By Paige Godden Daily Staff Writer
By Allison Suesse Daily Staff Writer
The third and final presentation about the Government of the Student Body’s plans for the Varsity Theater will take place at Wednesday night’s meeting. Danielson The meeting will be at 7 p.m. in the Gallery in the Memorial Union The presentation will cover why the theater could potentially be a positive asset to the Campustown area and will cover results of a survey created by the Varsity Task Force. During the first two presentations, the Task Force — comprised mainly of various members of the GSB — gave the Senate a general idea of its plans and prices for renovating and leasing the now-vacant theater at 2412 Lincoln Way. The theater is to have two separate screening rooms. One room will have 200 seats and the other 400. There will be two movies playing 28 weeks out of the year, and there will be a $1 admission charge for students. The Task Force is also hoping to lease out the rooms to groups when the theater is not in use. Another source of revenue for the theater will be allowing groups to advertise before movies begin. If the theater maintains 33 percent capacity throughout the 28 weeks, is rented out six times over the year for special events and gains concessions and miscellaneous support, the theater is expected to generate around $127,600 per year. The Task Force is asking for $177,100 in startup expenses and projects about $187,802 in annual expenses. This puts the theater at -$60,202 at the end of the year, according to the Task Force’s calculations. The theater would be treated as its own group and would go through the regular allocations process to keep itself out of debt. The bill, which will be going through the Senate, will be securing money for the theater for the next two years. GSB would sign a lease for the property for five years, after which the Champlain Family has expressed interest in selling the theater to GSB if all were to go well, said Tom Danielson, GSB finance director. The proposal for the creation of the Cyclone Cinema, written by the Varsity Task Force, highlights the current situation of GSB. “The Government of the Student Body at Iowa State University devotes the ma-
The Ames City Council will meet for the second time of the new year Tuesday. The council plans to tackle an agenda that includes a decision of whether or not to pursue the 2010–2011 Annual Action Plan Project in connection with the city’s Community Development Block Grant Program Agreement. The action plan includes proposed activities such as the Renter Affordability Plan that will aid low– to moderate-income level citizens with child care, deposit, utility bill and transportation assistance. Additionally, the proposed action plan includes an activity with a goal to “increase the availability of housing to low-income families” along with maintaining safe and clean housing in established neighborhoods, according to the council’s action form. This neighborhood sustainability program will also benefit low- and moderate-income families. The Ames City Council will also be voting to amend the legislation established previously regarding the Convenience Commercial Node zoning regulations. The Convenience Commercial Node zones include businesses like gas stations, car washes, grocery stores and medical centers. According to the staff report, there have been citizen complaints — residents residing in Somerset Village — that a CVCN located on Stange Road and Bloomington Road that includes a car wash was disruptive to residents who lived near the business. The proposed changes to the regulation include increasing standard number of gas pumps at stations from eight to 12 units and allowing more building signage. The council will meet at 7 p.m. in Ames City Hall.
see GSB on PAGE 14
Steffen Schmidt, ISU professor of political science, points out the anti-tax Tea Party movements may become more of an issue rather than a symbol of discontent and might even form a third party. He also remarks on the importance of the election of Senator Scott Brown. Screen shot: Alexander Hutchins/Iowa State Daily
State of the Union ISU professors shed light on important issues Obama faces after his first year as president By Alexander Hutchins Daily Staff Writer With President Barack Obama’s State of the Union Tuesday evening, his performance over the course of the first year is under scrutiny. James McCormick, chair of the political science department at Iowa State, said the health care debate has cost Obama a good deal of his public support. McCormick said Obama has lost a some of his public accountability due to a lack of focus on public itself. “This is partly due to the hubris of the Obama administration,” McCormick said. Obama has erred in the multiple programs he attempted to tackle at the outset of his term, at the cost of focusing more strictly on the critical issues of economic recovery and job creation, McCormick said. Despite the involvement of the anti-tax Tea Party movement in the recent Massachusetts Senate election of Scott Brown, McCormick said populist disappointment with Obama’s handling of central issues was to blame for his declining popularity. The president’s support among independent voters is slipping, according to a CNN news poll. Fiftythree percent of independents questioned in the poll disapproved of Obama’s performance, with 43 percent in approval.
Steffen Schmidt, professor of political science, said that the Tea Parties may become a more central issue than just a visible symbol of discontent. The Tea Parties may burn out or morph into a new third party, Schmidt said. Schmidt Schmidt pointed out examples of Tea Parties turning against the Republican party, such as in the New York state special election where the Tea Party movement’s ire cost Dede Scozzafava, the Republican candidate was viewed by Tea Party attendees as not conservative enough. Tea Parties may also draw more money to the campaigns of conservative candidates or scare away moderate voters from staunch conservatives, Schmidt said. McCormick said the general trend of independents to move away from Obama can best be reversed by a focus on economic issues for the administration. “The irony is that Obama must now change,” McCormick said. The reality of the political environment must now override the ideology and overenthusiastic policy agenda that Obama has pursued prior to now. Schmidt said the election of Scott Brown is regrettably forcing Obama to change course. “One Senate race in a highly Democratic state is throwing the whole Democratic party into turmoil.” Throwing health care reform into an already packed executive agenda that attempted to cure ev-
see OBAMA on PAGE 14
Student Life
Commission considers Everclear ban By Ayesha Massaquoi Daily Staff Writer Ryan Parks poured equal amounts of a golden-orange liquid into three shot glasses. “Have you ever tried an apple pie shot?” he asked. As a bartender at Es Tas Authentic Mexican Restaurant, a popular bar and grill near campus, Parks knows what students like to drink, and the apple pie shot is one of the more popular requests. However, past events relating to the key ingredient in an apple pie shot, Everclear, have recently caused
state regulators to consider placing statewide restrictions on the selling and consumption of the beverage, or a complete ban altogether. With a 75.5 percent alcohol concentration, or 151 proof, the variety of Everclear currently available in Iowa is known for having one of the highest alcoholic contents available at some of the lowest prices. Along with being used to spike drinks at an average college party, it’s also strong enough to be used as an antiseptic, a medicine and a fuel. But following the near-death of an underage Drake University student who reportedly took five shots
of Everclear during a Phi Delta Theta hazing session, the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Commission is debating whether or not Everclear should be available at all. “One person did something they shouldn’t have and now no one can do it,” Parks said. “Most likely it’ll just have the opposite effect. You tell kids they’re not allowed to drink Everclear and that’ll probably be the first thing they’ll want to do.” Parks said it would only make sense to ban Everclear if the Commission proceeded to ban other beverages with high alcoholic contents as well. Es Tas does not currently have
many varieties of liquor with proofs equal to or higher than Everclear’s, but according to Parks, the few that they do have, including Bacardi 151, would still be available even if Everclear wasn’t. “I think it’s ridiculous,” said Raymond Lovell, a former business major at Iowa State and patron at Es Tas. “The proof of the alcohol doesn’t really matter — it’s the amount that a person does. By making this one beverage illegal, they’re just trying to make the proof illegal across the board.” Michelle Hendricks, director of
see EVERCLEAR on PAGE 14
Faces in the crowd : How do you feel about the ban on Everclear? Adam Miller
Laura McClurg
Sarah Johnson
Stephanie Rupp
“I’m underage, so personally it doesn’t effect me.”
“It would be good, I guess.”
“It would effect me none. I think drinking is stupid.”
“If they ban it, I don’t see the usefulness of it. People will go buy something else.”
freshman
freshman
freshman
junior
Blizzard Warning
Winter storm brings snow, wind to Ames By Sarah Gonzalez Daily Staff Writer Blustery AUTOS: winds and a For advice high-pressure on driving system above during Central Iowa winter weather and are bringing poor conditions, see new snow to TIPS on PAGE 10 add to the layer of ice. The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning and a wind advisory for Central Iowa on Monday night. “A blizzard warning means severe winter weather conditions are expected or occurring. Falling and blowing snow with strong winds and poor visibilities are likely. This will lead to whiteout conditions ... making travel extremely dangerous,” according to the National Weather Service Web site. Much of this storm’s snow movement will consist of already fallen snow blowing and drifting through the air due to high wind speeds. “A blizzard requires a certain amount of snow moving through the air and significant wind,” said Elywnn Taylor, professor in agronomy. Northwest wind gusts up to 45 mph may damage trees or other structures that have been weakened from last week’s ice storm, according to the National Weather Service. Taylor cautions travelers to beware of visibility hazards due to the high winds and blowing snow. “The very strong wind has its origin up near Hudson Bay,” Taylor said. He expects this storm to be significant, but not as large as the storm that struck in mid-December, which closed Iowa State for a day.
see WEATHER on PAGE 14