ONE-HUNDRED-TWENTY-THREE YEARS OF EDITORIAL FREEDOM Thursday, September 12, 2013
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After snub, author asked to speak at CEW event
‘U’ makes app that measures BAC Mobile calculator a part of Stay in the Blue campaign
‘Color Purple’ writer Alice Walker accepts new invitation
By JULIA LISS Daily Staff Reporter
Rather than denying or trying to prevent the reality of binge drinking on campus, the University has instead decided to take a more practical, proactive approach. The University’s long-running Stay in the Blue campaign has a new iPhone — and soon-to-be Android — application created by the University Health Service, gives students an opportunity to minimize the dangers associated with drinking. The app allows its user to actively monitor blood alcohol content in a given session of drinking by inputting gender, weight, or type of drink including local drinks like a fishbowl from Good Time Charley’s and tracks how frequently the user finishes a drink. The app’s interface centralizes around a meter that starts out in the “blue” safe zone and then transitions from maize to orange to red as the user’s BAC increases. UHS Health Educator Marsha Benz, one of the program’s creators, said while there will always be students who abuse the app, she hopes it will make a difference in some drinking habits. “Once students take the flag into See APP, Page 5A
By JEN CALFAS Daily Staff Reporter
Second time’s a charm. Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize winning author of “The Color Purple,” accepted an invitation to speak at the biennial Zora Neale Hurston Lecture for the Department Afroamerican and African Studies held in November. The University originally invited Walker to speak at the 50th anniversary event of the Center for Education of Women to be held in early 2014. CEW later rescinded the invitation after deciding Walker was not
the “optimum choice” speaker for the event, according to Gloria Thomas, director for CEW. Walker posted her acceptance on her blog, noting that the situation turned out to be “a lovely turn of events.” “I believe we have all learned something from our efforts to reach out to one another, and I believe also that — if solar flares or deeply unintelligent wars haven’t carried us off — it will be a good time,” Walker wrote. This event will be co-sponsored by the CEW and the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies. While the Center disinvited her to speak at one of the opening events for its 50th anniversary, she will close the celebration with this lecture, which will be the 16th in the Zora Neale Hurston lecture series. See AUTHOR, Page 5A
HEALTH
Punch card to reward healthy purchases Student gov’t, MHealthy partner to combat junk food By CHRISTY SONG Daily Staff Reporter
The Central Student Government and MHealthy — a program launched by University President Mary Sue Coleman in 2005 to encourage a culture of health around campus — are continuing efforts to promote a more healthful student body. Initiating another step forward, CSG and MHealthy partnered with Residential Dining and the University Unions to increase awareness of healthy eating habits through loyalty punch cards that can be used at various University restaurants and café See HEALTHY, Page 5A
ALLISON FARRAND/Daily
Vice President of Student Affairs E. Royster Harper speaks at the Munger Graduate Housing Town Hallana.
PAUL SHERMAN/Daily
In honor the victims 9/11, members of the ROTC hold a tri-service memorial on the Diag Tuesday.
Ceremonies honor victims of terror College Repubs, ROTC take to Diag to commemorate anniversary of 9/11 By JACOB AXELRAD Daily Staff Reporter
A sea of 2,977 American flags carpeted a patch of grass in the Diag Wednesday, each one planted in remembrance of a vic-
tim of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Beneath the flagpole on the Diag, cadets in the University’s ROTC program held their own tri-service memorial, separate from the College Republicans. In 30-minute shifts throughout the day, cadets stood at modified attention, known as parade rest, holding flags that represented the different branches of the military: Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. In addition to remembering lives lost on See HONOR, Page 5A
Grad students express concerns with design of Munger residence hall Harper: We must honor donor’s wishes for new building By WILL GREENBERG Daily Staff Reporter
After the excitement over University alum Stephen Ross’s recordbreaking donation to the Ross School of Business and the Athletic Department, Charles Munger’s April donation received more than a little scrutiny from graduate students
Wednesday. At a forum hosted by Rackham Student Government at graduate school’s flagship building, students heard from some of the University’s top administration about the upcoming construction of the Munger Residence Hall. The project will be funded by a $100-million donation from Charles Munger, a University alum and vice chairman of realestate giant Berkshire Hathaway. Munger also donated $10 million for graduate fellowships. RSG President Phillip Saccone facilitated the forum as. E. Royster See MUNGER, Page 5A
Declining Alley Once a place for expression and art, Bubblegum alley is far past its prime. » INSIDE
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News
2A — Thursday, September 12 2013
MONDAY: This Week in History
TUESDAY: Professor Profiles
WEDNESDAY: In Other Ivory Towers
THURSDAY: Alumni Profiles
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FROM HARRY POTTER TO BLAINE ANDERSON
‘Glee’ star Darren Criss Darren Criss, star of the Fox hit Glee , surprised the University community last week with an appearance at the Maize Out. Lights On. pep rally. Criss is one of the founding members and co-owners of StarKid Productions, a musical theatre company based in Chicago. How does it feel to be back? It’s good. I come back a lot; it’s just I’m never here with like a big red arrow over my head. It’s just weird to be walking around the same streets that I used to walk around having this other thing that has nothing to do with me everywhere. What are your favorite
memories of your time at the University? Same as everybody else: the friends you make, all the kind of typical, clichéd things that are timeless. For me, of all the things I’ve ever done thus far with the entertainment industry, I think my most favorite work I’ve ever done in my life has been here. Do people still ask you about “A Very Potter Musical?” Honestly, I think I get asked about that more than I do “Glee.” When there were no stakes, I guess, when no one is really paying attention that’s kind of when you create your best stuff. Not to
CRIME NOTES
Off my lawn! WHERE:Dennison Building WHEN: About 6:50 p.m. Tuesday evening WHAT: Subjects were found skateboarding near Dennison, University Police reported. They received a verbal warning by officials to not do so again.
WHERE: 1500 Block Washington Heights WHEN: About 9:50 p.m. Tuesday evening WHAT: A vehicle struck another vehicle that was parked on the street, University Police reported. The culprit is unknown.
say that “Glee” is any better or worse; it’s just different. How has being a University alum affected your career? The summer before my senior year I was taking meetings, and I met people because I went to Michigan … I almost feel bad when people ask me where I went because I almost feel like I’m bragging. It has been a profound effect on me; it’s a clichéd sentence, but there’s no other way to say it: I don’t know where I would be if I hadn’t gone to Michigan. — WILL GREENBERG >>READ THE REST OF OUR INTERVIEW WITH DARREN CRISS AT MICHIGANDAILY.COM.
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“Glee” star Darren Criss speaks at last week’s “Maize On. Lights Out.” pep rally.
Farmers’ market
Defending ‘big data’ lecture
WHAT: CSG and the University are bringing together local producers for a farmers’ market featuring chef demonstrations and healthy-eating tips — all around the theme of “buy local, cook global.” WHO: CSG WHEN: 11 a.m.- 3 p.m. WHERE: Michigan Union
WHAT: A Dept. of Homeland Security official will give a presentation about the challenges of protecting digitial infrastructure and sensitive data in the 21st century WHO: Ford School WHEN: 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. WHERE: Annenberg Auditorium, Ford School
WHAT: North Campus will be host to a student organization and department fair, outdoor games, a photo booth, segway tours, CAPS information, Lurie Bell Tower tours, and more. WHO: Campus Informtion Centers WHEN: 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. WHERE: North Campus Diag
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LIKE US ON Go North! Fest President’s FACEBOOK and dept. fair open house
WHERE: Michigan Union WHEN: About 5:55 p.m. Tuesday evening WHAT: A wallet, which was left unattended on the first or second floor of the Union, was stolen between 12 p.m. and 5 p.m., Univerfacebook.com/michigandaily sity Police reported.
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CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES
No harm, no foul
Finders, keepers
ANDREW WEINER
WHAT: University President Mary Sue Coleman will host students at the historic Presidents’ Residence during her annual fall open house. WHO: Office of the President WHEN: 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. WHERE: President’s House, 815 S. University Avenue
THREE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW TODAY
1
Whole Foods in California is now selling “chicken-less” eggs, reported Daily Mail. The main ingredients which replace the white and yolk, are ground up peas and sorghum, among many other ingredients.
2
This week, the B-Side looks at street art and its implications. Once a place where art thrived, Bubblegam alley has become a forgotten part of the city. >> FOR MORE, SEE THE B-SIDE.
3
AMC’s “The Killing” has been cancelled for good, reported the Los Angeles Times. The mystery show was allowed to make its thrid season after originally being cancelled, but will not be coming back to life for a second time.
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BUSINESS STAFF Amal Muzaffar Digital Accounts Manager Doug Soloman University Accounts Manager Leah Louis-Prescott Classified Manager Lexi Derasmo Local Accounts Manager Hillary Wang National Accounts Manager Ellen Wolbert and Sophie Greenbaum Production Managers The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $110. Winter term (January through April) is $115, yearlong (September through April) is $195. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press and The Associated Collegiate Press.
Syrian opposition forces frustrated with Obama’s diplomatic decisions Rebels upset by U.S. unfulfilled promises to help
Rebels who have been fighting for 2 ½ years to topple Assad say the U.S. has repeatedly reneged on promises to assist their rebellion, offering only rhetoric. In June, Obama announced he would provide lethal aid to the rebels, but so far none of that assistance has gotten to the opposition and the Syrian leader’s forces have gained the advantage. Violence continued Wednesday when government warplanes hit a field hospital in the town of al-Bab near Aleppo, killing 11 people and wounding dozens more, according to the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The group, which relies on reports from activists on the ground, said a Yemeni doctor was among those killed in the airstrike. After a feverish campaign to win over Congress and the American people to support military strikes against Syria, Obama said Tuesday he would give diplomacy more time to
rid the country of its chemical weapons arsenal that Washington says was used to gas and kill more than 1,400 people on Aug. 21 in rebel-held parts of the Ghouta area outside Damascus. BEIRUT (AP) — Syrian oppoThe death toll has not been consition forces feel let down and firmed, but even conservative more divided than ever because estimates from international of President Barack Obama’s organizations put it as at least decision to seek a diplomatic several hundred. path to disarming Damascus of The president did not say how its chemical weapons. long he would wait. Many rebels who had held out Although Obama had said the David Handschuh/AP hopes that U.S.-led strikes on attacks would be limited in time Geraldine Davie of Pelham, N.Y., cries after viewing name of her 23-year-old daughter, Amy O’Doherty, on the wall at President Bashar Assad’s governand scope with no intention of the Sept. 11 memorial during the 12th anniversary observance of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. ment would help tip the scales as dislodging Assad, rebel comO’Doherty was killed in the Sept. 11, 2001 attack. the two sides faced a deadly stalemanders had planned to try to mate said America has indirectly exploit them to shift the momengiven the embattled leader a sectum in their favor after months ond wind as a statesman negotiof being on the defensive in ating with world powers. what has become a war of attri“We’re on our own,” Mohamtion. Several rebels said they mad Joud, an opposition fighter in were opposed “in principle” to the war-shattered northern city of U.S. intervention but saw it as a Aleppo, said via Skype. “I always necessity to change the situation Sudoku Syndication http://sudokusyndication.com/sudoku/generator/print/ knew that, but thanks to Obama’s on the ground. the nearly 3,000 people who and others were in attendance. shameful conduct, others are wakHowever, Assad, who has died when hijacked jets crashed As with last year, no politicians ing up to this reality as well.” denied his forces were responinto the towers, the Pentagon spoke. Mayor Michael Bloomsible for the attack and instead and in a field near Shanksville, berg watched the ceremony for blamed rebels, fended off the Pa. They also recognized the his final time in office. threat of military action, at victims of the 1993 trade center Carol Eckna recalled the conleast for now, by agreeing to NEW YORK (AP) — Life in bombing. tagious laugh of her son, Paul relinquish his chemical weapon lower Manhattan resembled any Bells tolled to mark the planes Robert Eckna, who was killed in HARD stocks under a plan initiated by ordinary day on Wednesday as hitting the towers and the the north tower. Russia. workers rushed to their jobs in moments when the skyscrapers “Just yesterday, you were 28,” “Assad’s regime is going to be the muggy heat, but time stood fell. she said. “Today, you are 40. You stronger because while they’ve still at the World Trade Center In Washington, Presi- are forever young. Dad and I are agreed to give up their chemical site while families wept for loved dent Barack Obama, first lady proud to be your parents.” weapons, they get to keep everyones who perished in the terror Michelle Obama, Vice President The anniversary arrived amid thing else to fight the opposition attacks 12 years ago. Joe Biden and wife Jill Biden changes at the Flight 93 National that has lost territory in the past For the families, the memo- walked out to the White House’s Memorial in Shanksville, where year and has now suffered a big ries of that day are still vivid, South Lawn for a moment of construction started Tuesday on blow,” said Ayham Kamel, a Midthe pain still acute. Some who silence at 8:46 a.m. — the time a new visitor center. On Wednesdle East analyst at the Eurasia read the names of a beloved big the first plane struck the south day, the families of the passenGroup in London. “The opposibrother or a cherished daugh- tower in New York. Another jet- gers and crew aboard United tion will struggle with morale ter could hardly speak through liner struck the Pentagon at 9:37 Flight 93 recalled their loved and sense of purpose.” their tears. a.m. ones as heroes for their unselfish Moreover, the opposition “Has it really been 12 years? “Our hearts still ache for the and quick actions. The plane was has been hobbled by increasing Or 12 days? Sometimes it feels futures snatched away, the lives hijacked with the likely goal of infighting between al-Qaidathe same,” said Michael Fox, that might have been,” Obama crashing it into the White House affiliated militants and more speaking aloud to his brother, said. or Capitol, but passengers tried moderate rebels as well as Jeffrey, who perished in the A moment of silence was also to overwhelm the attackers and between militants and ethnic south tower. “Sometimes I reach held at the U.S. Capitol. the plane crashed into the field. Kurds in the country’s northeast. for the phone so I can call you, In New York, loved ones All aboard died. An influx of more sophisticated and we can talk about our kids milled around the memorial “In a period of 22 minutes, weapons from Saudi Arabia earlike we used to do every day.” site, making rubbings of names, our loved ones made history,” lier this year does not appear to On the memorial plaza over- putting flowers by the names of said Gordon Felt, president © sudokusolver.com. For personal use only. puzzle by sudokusyndication.com IT’S A TRICKY ONE. have made a significant mark on looking two reflecting pools in victims and weeping, arm-in- of the Families of Flight 93, the ground, where Assad’s forces the imprint of the twin towers, arm. Former Gov. George Pataki, whose brother, Edward, was a are on the offensive. relatives recited the names of New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie passenger.
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News
Zimmerman probe on hold until clear evidence found
NEWS BRIEFS EAST LANSING, Mich.
Michigan State uses drones to help farmers A drone has joined the vehicle fleet at Michigan State University, which is using the pilotless airplane to find ways to help farmers increase their yields through better use of fertilizer and water. The National Science Foundation is financing the research. The East Lansing school says the information that the drone gathers also will help reduce the environmental effect of nitrate leaching and nitrous oxide emissions. The university says the drone “measures how crops react to stress, such as drought, nutrients deficiency or pests.” It says the plane can document a field’s status “down to centimeters.”
MULBERRY, Fla.
Florida pastor arrested before burning Qurans A Florida pastor has been arrested before he could set fire to almost 3,000 Qurans. Polk County sheriff’s officials say the Rev. Terry Jones and his associate pastor were arrested on unspecified felony charges in the small central Florida town of Mulberry on Wednesday. A news conference is scheduled for later Wednesday to announce specific charges. Media reports show he was stopped in a pickup truck that was towing a metal trailer filled with Qurans soaked in kerosene. He had said he planned to burn 2,998 Qurans — one for every victim who died in the 9/11 attacks 12 years ago. Jones is the pastor of a small evangelical Christian church. His congregation burned a Quran in March 2011 and last year he promoted an anti-Muslim film. His actions have sparked violence in the Middle East and Afghanistan.
BERLIN
Court orders Muslim girl to join co-ed swim class A court in Germany has ruled that a Muslim girl cannot be excused from mixed-sex swimming lessons on the grounds of religious belief. The 13-year-old girl from Frankfurt had argued that the sight of bare-chested male pupils breached her religious modesty. She also claimed that accepting the school’s offer that she herself could wear a full-body “burkini” swimsuit in the pool would expose her to discrimination among her peers. But Germany’s Federal Administrative Court ruled Wednesday that it was reasonable to compromise between the girl’s religious freedom and the state’s duty to educate its citizens.
BAGHDAD
Blasts at Shiite mosque kill 35, Iraq officials say A suicide attacker staged a double bombing near a Shiite mosque in northern Baghdad as worshippers were leaving after evening prayers on Wednesday, killing at least 35 in the latest deadly episode of violence to rock the country, according to Iraqi authorities. The blasts follow months of heightened sectarian violence in Iraq, intensifying fears the country is slipping back toward the widespread bloodshed in the years that followed the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. The past several months have been the deadliest since 2008, when Iraq was pulling back from the brink of sectarian civil war. Wednesday’s explosions went off as the heat of the day was easing after sunset and worshippers and shoppers filled the streets. The area targeted is known as Kasra, a predominantly Shiite enclave in a part of the city that is otherwise largely Sunni. —Compiled from Daily wire reports
Thursday, September 12, 2013 — 3A
Alleged dispute occured after wife filed for divorce
Mohammed el-Shaiky/AP People gather to look at the site of a car bombing in Benghazi, Libya, Wednesday. A powerful car bomb exploded near Libya’s Foreign Ministry building in the heart of the eastern coastal city of Benghazi, security officials said, one year to the date after an attack there killed the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans.
Libya’s ministry hit with bomb on 9/11 anniversary Prime Minister speaks out against militia involved TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) — A car bomb tore through a Libyan Foreign Ministry building in the eastern city of Benghazi on Wednesday, a powerful reminder of lawlessness in the North African nation on the anniversary of a deadly attack on the U.S. consulate there as well as the 2001 terror attacks in the United States. Prime Minister Ali Zidan issued a stern warning to militias blamed for much of the violence that has plagued Libya since the overthrow of dictator Moammar Gadhafi two years ago, proclaiming that “we will not bow to anyone.” But the challenges are mounting. The prime minister said that armed men had just stormed a post office in the capital, Tripoli, taking employees hostage. A witness at the scene, speaking on condition of anonymity because
of security concerns, told The Associated Press that the attackers were seeking to cut off mail to the southern city of Sabha in retaliation for a rival tribe from Sabha cutting off the water supply to Tripoli for a week, forcing hospitals and homes to rely on wells and large tanks. Other groups have shut down oil fields to protest corruption or demand regional autonomy, causing the country to lose out on millions of dollars a day in potential revenue. The Benghazi blast caused no deaths or serious injuries, but destroyed the Foreign Ministry branch building in an attack rich in symbolism. The building once housed the U.S. Consulate under the rule of King Idris, who was overthrown in 1969 in a bloodless coup led by Gadhafi. The bombing took place about 6 a.m., well before anybody was due to arrive at the Foreign Ministry for work and at a time when the nearby streets were nearly empty. The explosion blew out a side wall of the building, leaving
desks, filing cabinets and computers strewn across the concrete rubble. It also damaged the Benghazi branch of the Libyan Central Bank. Pictures circulated on Facebook showed men carrying dead doves, with one person commenting that “the dog who did this will be punished for the guilt of killing doves.” Another photo shows black smoke smoldering out of the charred Foreign Ministry building, along with wrecked cars and burned palm trees. A green tarp was later placed over part of the building. The blast also rocked Benghazi’s main boulevard, Gamal Abdel-Nasser, which runs through the city from north to south. Several pedestrians were slightly wounded. Mohammed el-Ubaidi, head of the Foreign Ministry branch in Benghazi, told Libyan television that the car carried 60 kilograms (132 pounds) of explosives and was blown up by remote control. No group immediately
Pakistani Taliban, army exchange prisoners with peace talks hopes Exchange included six militants, two soldiers DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (AP) — The Pakistani Taliban and the army exchanged prisoners Wednesday as a confidence building measure ahead of possible peace talks, intelligence officials and militant commanders said. The exchange included six militants and two paramilitary Frontier Corps soldiers, the officials and commanders said. It occurred in the Shawal area of the South Waziristan tribal region. The militants were subsequently taken to neighboring North Waziristan, the country’s main Taliban sanctuary. Militants fired in the air with joy when their colleagues were freed, the intelligence officials said. The two officials and two Taliban commanders spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to journalists. Pakistan’s military public affairs office denied the exchange occurred. But the intelligence officials and Taliban commanders provided the names of the militants who were freed and said the two paramilitary soldiers released were kidnapped by the Taliban in southwest Baluchistan province in March 2012. The release occurred only days after Pakistan’s main political parties endorsed peace negotiations with the Taliban and their allies Monday as the best way to end a decade-long insurgency that has killed thousands of people. The exchange was meant to build confidence between the government and the militants before formal peace talks, one of the Taliban commanders said. Senior Taliban leaders are currently discussing whether to take the government up on its offer to hold negotiations,
said the commander and one of his colleagues. The Taliban said they were open to talks at the end of last year but withdrew that offer in May after the group’s deputy leader was killed in a U.S. drone strike. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif campaigned on a platform of holding peace talks and has maintained that line since he took office in June. He scored a victory when his stance was endorsed by other parties on Monday — a decision that was generally welcomed by the Taliban. But there are plenty of skeptics who doubt negotiations actually will bring lasting peace. The government has struck various peace deals with the Taliban in the past, but all have fallen apart. Critics say the agreements simply gave the militants time to regroup and continue their fight against the state. “Not only is the path well worn, it is also a path that has on every previous occasion been attempted and led to failure, mutual recrimination and renewed bloodshed,” an editorial published Wednesday in The Express Tribune newspaper said. The editorial also pointed out that it’s unclear with whom exactly the government would negotiate. Analysts say there are more than 100 militant groups operating in Pakistan’s tribal region along the Afghan border with varying levels of allegiance. “Then there is the question of just what is on the table, what is up for negotiation,” the editorial said. “No iteration of the Taliban either historically or in recent years has wanted anything other than the dismantling of the democratic process, the dissolution of legislatures at the federal and provincial levels, and the imposition of their own narrow interpretation of religion.” It’s also unclear what kind of negotiated peace Pakistan’s
army, considered the country’s most powerful institution, would accept after losing hundreds of its soldiers in combat with the Taliban. A peace deal could worry the United States if it gives more breathing room to Afghan militants in Pakistan who carry out cross-border attacks against American troops in Afghanistan. The Afghan and Pakistani Taliban are allies but have aimed their guns at different targets. The Afghan Taliban have fought coalition forces in Afghanistan, while the Pakistani Taliban have taken on the government at home.
LAKE MARY, Fla. (AP) — The investigation of a domestic dispute between George Zimmerman and his estranged wife is on hold because there is no clear evidence to charge anyone and neither side wants to press the case, a police spokesman said Wednesday. That could change if new evidence surfaces or technicians are able to extract video that recorded the dispute from Shellie Zimmerman’s smashed iPad, said Officer Zach Hudson. Law enforcement analysts are having difficulty obtaining the video because the iPad is in bad shape, he said. “We have concluded the investigation with what we have to work with right now,” Hudson said. The dispute took place Monday, just days after Shellie Zimmerman filed divorce papers. In the papers, Zimmerman, 26, said she had separated from her husband a month after he was acquitted in the 2012 fatal shooting death of unarmed black teen Trayvon Martin. A police report on the dispute released Wednesday shed some light on how it started. Shellie Zimmerman, accompanied by her father and a friend, was removing some belongings from the couple’s house when George Zimmerman, who still lives there, arrived and began taking photos of her, the report said. The house is owned by Shellie Zimmerman’s parents. George Zimmerman recorded the items she removed from the house and also the belongings she had placed in her father’s truck, the report said. Zimmerman said his wife was “taking property that was not agreed upon and he began taking pictures and recording the items,” the report said. Shellie Zimmerman then took her iPad and started recording her husband taking photos of her, authorities said. George Zimmerman went in the house and locked the front door. What happened next is in dispute. Shellie Zimmerman told investigators she heard her father screaming from the garage. Her father, David Dean, told her that Zimmerman had hit him in the face, the report said. She said her husband then smashed her iPad. During a 911 call, she also told police that George Zimmerman was threatening her and her father with a gun.
Later, however, she said she had not seen a gun. Police said they found no gun, but that Shellie Zimmerman’s father “did have a swollen red mark on the bridge of his nose.” At a news conference late Wednesday, Shellie Zimmerman was with her attorney, Kelly Sims, but didn’t answer any questions about what happened. Sims cited the on-going divorce proceedings and probation as the reason. Sims defended his client’s initial assertions that her husband was armed. Sims said Shellie Zimmerman found packaging for a new holster in the trash that day and has always known him to carry a gun. “Bottom line, Shellie had every reason to believe there was a gun,” Sims said. Sims said his client is hoping to move on as soon as possible. “The only thing Shellie wants out of the end of this relationship is for it to end with a whimper and not a bang,” Sims said. In the report George Zimmerman told investigators that his wife had told him she was done picking up her belongings. He said he locked the front door and went to the garage to close it when Shellie Zimmerman’s father confronted him, according to the report. Shellie Zimmerman’s father threw down his glasses and charged his son-in-law, according to George Zimmerman’s account. Shellie Zimmerman at some point hit her husband with her iPad, George Zimmerman told investigators. Police officers asked George Zimmerman to remove his shirt so they could see if there were marks on his back. “There were no signs of trauma, redness or marks of any kind in the area where he said he was struck,” the report said. As many as seven people were at the house — friends of the Zimmermans — and they all have been questioned by investigators, Hudson said. The friends said they didn’t see what happened and footage from the house’s surveillance cameras was inconclusive, Hudson added. Both sides are refusing to press charges, but Florida law allows police officers to arrest someone for domestic violence without the consent of the victim. Investigators are hoping video from the iPad will allow them to determine if charges should be filed. Hudson told a news conference Wednesday that law enforcement analysts are having difficulty extracting the video because the iPad is in bad shape.
Opinion
4A — Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
I feel like... Edited and managed by students at the University of Michigan since 1890. 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109 tothedaily@michigandaily.com MELANIE KRUVELIS ANDREW WEINER EDITOR IN CHIEF
and ADRIENNE ROBERTS
EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS
MATT SLOVIN MANAGING EDITOR
Unsigned editorials reflect the official position of the Daily’s editorial board. All other signed articles and illustrations represent solely the views of their authors.
FROM THE DAILY
Dismiss stop-and-frisk Racially divisive policy has no place in Detroit
A
controversial police tactic may be making its way to Detroit — and Michigan’s civil rights advocates are pushing back. Earlier this summer, the Detroit Police Department brought in the Manhattan Institute and Bratton Group to help with new training methods. Based out of New York, the Manhattan Institute developed New York City’s controversial stop-and-frisk program, a law enforcement protocol which allows officers to stop and question citizens without a warrant, and search them for contraband. The consulting group is now pushing for a similar program in Detroit, calling on the city’s police officers to become more aggressive with patrolling. Under the contract with the Manhattan Institute, DPD Traffic Unit will “evolve its mission from principally the issuance of tickets toward the prevention of crime.” While crime prevention is clearly needed in Detroit — in 2012, Detroit had the highest rate of violent crime of any city with a population over 200,000 — stop-and-frisk is the wrong answer for Detroit. A police tactic riddled with racial profiling allegations has no place in a city with an extensive history of racial tension. Ignoring the impact of crime in Detroit is next to impossible. In a 2012 survey from The Detroit News, 49 percent of the city’s residents reported feeling unsafe in their neighborhoods. While the Detroit Police Department reported a 6.09-percent drop in the city’s homicide rate for 2013, 197 homicides still have been reported since Aug. 5 of this year. That being said, aggressive harassing of Detroit’s pedestrians won’t solve the crime problem — especially in city where racial issues have drawn significant divides. In New York City, where stop-and-frisk has been in practice in some form for two decades, claims of racial profiling at the hands of police officers has run rampant. Between 2002 and 2012, nearly 90 percent of those stopped by the NYPD for a stop-and-frisk were black or Latino. Compare that number to this statistic from New York’s ACLU: “About 88 percent of stops — more than 3.8 million — were of innocent New Yorkers.” Such practices haven’t built up citizens’ trust in law enforcement; in fact, some suggest it’s done the very opposite. “As a victim of racial profiling, I understand the anger (stop and frisk) breeds,” said Paul Butler, a Georgetown University law
professor, in The New York Times. “Stop and frisk breeds disrespect for the law.” That disrespect for the program is noteworthy in the black community: According to a 2012 poll from Quinnipiac University in Connecticut, 25 percent of black voters supported stopand-frisk, while 69 percent opposed it. Given Detroit’s predominately black population — 82.7 percent of the city’s residents are black — a racially charged policy is likely to be at least controversial, if not outright opposed in the city. Besides its questionable effectiveness, stopand-frisk may be unconstitutional, making an implementation of the policy an illogical move. In August, U.S. District Court Judge Shira Scheindlin struck down the tactic in New York, saying that it lends itself to racial profiling. “Both statistical and anecdotal evidence showed that minorities are indeed treated differently than whites,” she explained. Because of this recent ruling and long-documented history of racial tension within the city, bringing the program to Detroit would likely create a complicated judicial process before results could even be seen on the streets, ultimately doing more harm than good.
ALEXA CINQUE | VIEWPOINT
General frustration On Sept. 7, I may have had one of the best — and worst — experiences at Michigan Stadium. I don’t know if I’ve ever felt the energy in Ann Arbor as much as I did on Saturday leading up to the night game against the University of Notre Dame. I expected the school spirit, excitement and pride from students and fans that contributed to the amazing atmosphere that permeated the entire game. I definitely did not expect the complete apathy, rudeness and general poor customer service that I experienced from the event staff. Because of the new general-admission policy, my friends and I decided it’d be a good idea to get to the game early, as the policy is intended to promote. Arriving around 5:30 p.m., there were still some wristbands left that allow admission to the lower sections, but not many. Before going into the “O” queue, one of the workers told my group to split up to go into two different gates so we could all sit in the lower bowl. But for whatever reason, the wristbands were miscounted. My friend and I were then separated from our group. At first we were told to sit behind them in the same section. While this wasn’t ideal, we were willing to do it. But as we were walking toward the section, we realized that they were in section 31 and we were in 29. Feeling very frustrated, I headed back to the ticket area and talked to an event staff member and explained my plight, saying that I understand that this mix up was nobody’s fault, but that I was hoping to be able to exchange my section for 31. I was met with a rude, uncaring attitude and was told that this new policy is just something “I need to adjust to.” After exchanging my own story with other friends, I found out that I wasn’t the only student to have a subpar experience. One of my best friends camped out the night before and was first in line. Yet, waiting 22 hours only led to him being in the third row, as he was essentially trampled as everyone ran to the front.
Another friend witnessed the row in front of her be overbooked — only to be met with the event staff having no idea how to fix the issue and doing nothing about it. If this general-admission policy is going to hold up, employees of Michigan Stadium need to be trained in how to deal with potential ticketing and seating issues. They should also be more empathetic to the students. Just because we’re students doesn’t mean that we don’t a right to fair treatment at these events. We’re paying customers who, incidentally, have the highest ticket cost of all of the Big 10 universities. We should receive the excellent customer service I know the University strives to provide, even if we are “just” students. Instead of being treated with dignity, we were herded like cattle into the stadium — packing us in so tightly to make the student section look great on television. The game itself was amazing. It was probably the best crowd I’ve ever been a part of, and I’ll never forget the chills I had as we sang “The Victors” after the win. However, I’ll also never forget the terrible treatment I experienced prior to the game. I understand that there are more than 100,000 fans in the stadium at a time and that some of these problems are no one’s fault and will have to be worked out with time. There were many event staff employees that were very understanding and kind, and I appreciate their attitudes. But as Head football coach Brady Hoke said, “This is Michigan for God’s sakes.” Is it possible that other Big 10 schools, including Ohio State University, have much more functional and logical general-admissions policies? For now, I, along with many other Wolverines, am not impressed with general admission thus far. Hopefully, the Athletic Department will learn from its mistakes and restructure the policy for upcoming games and seasons. Alexa Cinque is an LSA sophomore.
I
’ve had one professor here at the University that absolutely intimidated me. She was a journalist and author who had interviewed President Barack Obama, lived in Afghanistan for some time and ADRIENNE quoted Freud on ROBERTS a regular basis. When I went to raise my hand — which I only did because I had to let her know that I did, in fact, come to class — my face would turn red and my hands would tremble beneath my desk. I started my sentences with shaky phrases that barely made it seem like I had an opinion, “Umm, well I think that ... ” or “To go off what she said … ” or “I feel that … ” I’m not even sure if those words were intelligible, honestly. Those phrases, called hedges, were my way of softening my assertions and basically letting my professor know, “I’m the idiot here. I get it. Please don’t hate me.” I recently came across a Jezebel article in which the author, Katie Baker, said, “Most young women I know are self-conscious about how often they qualify their emotions with ‘I feel like.’ ” She goes on to say that it sounds indulgent, Carrie Bradshaw-esque and sheepish. They’re all fair criticisms, but why does the author of this article, a writer at Jezebel of all places, take it upon herself to criticize the way women — specifically women, mind you — speak? From one standpoint, I can see Baker’s point. Hedging — adding words or phrases that mitigate or weaken the certainty of a statement — can easily soften assertions and help women avoid the inevitable “bitch” label. According to English
Prof. Anne Curzan, “Women are in a potentially very complicated situation. When women make bold assertions, it is often seen as not feminine. With men, this can be seen as strong and powerful. For women, it can be seen as overly aggressive.” I highly doubt many women, including myself, want to be seen as an overly aggressive, masculine bitch. But I think there’s more to it than that. As I sat in class this past week and listened to my peers, both men and women hedged their sentences. Now, take this with a grain of salt because my communications studies classes aren’t exactly overflowing with testosterone, but my feeling is that students, in general, do this. Curzan also points out that, “When we’re talking, we’re negotiating relationships. We’re trying to figure out in what situation is it acceptable to assert something and what situation requires more careful speech to let people know that this statement is open for discussion.” That point is key to understanding why we hedge statements. In a classroom, students have little authority, have the very real potential to hear those dreaded words, “you’re wrong,” and are sitting among their quite judgmental peers. It’s not just that I found my professor crazily intimidating — it’s that I was also afraid of coming off as ignorant to 30 other students. While Baker claims that she notices women use “I feel like” in spaces beyond the classroom, isn’t most of life just like a classroom? People will always judge, there’s often someone present with more authority and no one wants to
come off as uninformed. I think the point we should be celebrating here, as women, is that we may be pioneering language change — again, I should add. Curzan says, “A lot of studies show that women are innovators in language. It’s an area where women often come up for criticism, and I think there are social and cultural reasons for that. People are looking at how women present themselves, linguistically and otherwise.” At this point, women are being criticized for using “I feel like.” But, most likely, this phrase will eventually become quite normal. The same goes for other vocal trends, such as “like” and vocal frying — otherwise known as “creaking.” A study published in 2010 in the journal American Speech found that creaky voice was perceived as being educated, urban-oriented and upwardly mobile among the Millennial generation. Not exactly the same feeling the dads of the world have about it. Eventually, vocal frying could very well be seen as an authoritative form of speaking. It’s okay to express doubt, and it’s also okay to be assertive. What’s not okay — and what we should be talking about — is why women, like Baker, feel the need to discuss the reasoning behind what they say. Despite the fact that she agrees that women should say whatever they feel like, it’s odd to me that it took a whole article to figure that out. I feel like, we’re innovating here, give us some space.
Women are pioneering new language.
— Adrienne Roberts can be reached at adrirobe@umich.edu.
EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS Kaan Avdan, Sharik Bashir, Barry Belmont, Eli Cahan, Eric Ferguson, Jesse Klein, Melanie Kruvelis, Maura Levine, Patrick Maillet, Aarica Marsh, Megan McDonald, Jasmine McNenny, Harsha Nahata, Adrienne Roberts, Paul Sherman, Sarah Skaluba, Daniel Wang, Derek Wolfe
W
Serving up skills
hile all of us get back into the routine of classes, lectures and homework, a significant number of our college peers nationwide are settling into their school-year jobs. As reported by the U.S. Census in January, approximately TIMOTHY 71 percent of BURROUGHS full-time college students worked at least parttime year-round in 2011. Though students may decide to seek out college employment for a variety of reasons, finding a well-paying, flexible job can be challenging. While many students hope to work in a research lab or as a personal assistant to a professor, the scarcity and competitive nature of those positions force many students to find employment elsewhere. Some of the largest University employers include the libraries, recreational sports, the Michigan League, the Michigan Union and University Housing, which employs more than 2,000 temporary student workers a year. After my own unsuccessful search for one of those “impressive” college jobs, I resigned myself to accept employment at a University dining hall. Work was rarely fun and extremely tedious, but the steady income and flexible shifts convinced me to stay on. Now after four semesters of working in dining halls doing anything but glamorous work, I have discovered there’s valuable experience and skills to be gained working in that environment.
I only began to realize this as I started hunting for internships during my junior year. During an interview with a potential employer, I was asked to talk about a specific incident or problem that I had experienced at a previous job and how I reacted to it. It was a fairly standard interview question, but I struggled to remember any grand problem solving skills I had used while alphabetizing legal documents the summer before. Instead, I found myself talking about an incident while working in the dish room at South Quad Residence Hall’s dining hall. We were significantly understaffed, but through some teamwork and effective communication, we managed to still close on time — much to the surprise of our superiors. After describing a scene similar to the dwarves from “The Hobbit” washing dishes, I not only had my interviewer laughing her head off, but also ended up getting the job. This summer, the dining hall provided me with an opportunity to take on a new leadership role. After an application and a longdistance Skype interview, I became a Coordinator II — responsible for the other student employees and running a smooth meal service. Having responsibility over subordinates is a critical trait that potential new employers look for in a perspective employee’s resume as it shows leadership skills and accountability. Like many of my fellow students, all the internships I’ve had were bottom-rung positions, giving
me hands-on experience, but rarely in an authoritative roll. Having the opportunity to demonstrate these skills in a workplace setting is a rare opportunity among student jobs. Beyond these unsuspected skills and opportunities gained from working at the dining halls, they also introduce students to the working world. While the permanent staff is very aware and accommodating of the many challenges of student life, they still demand a high level of professionalism from their student employees. Students must learn how to communicate with superiors and responsibly handle workplace issues, while still maintaining a comfortable work environment. This acts as important training for when students start their postgraduation careers and find themselves in tense meetings or even simple interactions with superiors. While there’s very little allure to many student jobs, they’re filled with opportunities to build on workplace skills that can’t be learned in a classroom. When looking to earn a little money inbetween classes, students must realize the job is what they make of it. Though putting research assistant may sound better than dishwasher on your résumé, there are still valuable experiences and career benefits in both jobs — even if they aren’t initially obvious.
Less glamorous jobs are as valuable as any.
— Timothy Burroughs can be reached at timburr@umich.edu.
CONTRIBUTE TO THE CONVERSATION Readers are encouraged to submit letters to the editor and viewpoints. Letters should be fewer than 300 words while viewpoints should be 550-850 words. Send the writer’s full name and University affiliation to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
AUTHOR From Page 1A In 2003, Walker gave a speech at the Barnard Center for Research on Women that depicted her connection with Zora Neale Hurston, the namesake for the lecture series and famous Harlem Renaissance anthropologist and author. While many of Hurston’s works were undiscovered or forgotten, Walker brought them to light in the 1970s. “It has been my experience
HONOR From Page 1A 9/11, the ROTC members honored those who have served in wars fought in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan. “It’s a remembrance of the fact that our nation is the greatest nation in the world,” said LSA senior Hari Vutukuru, a member of Army ROTC. “Normal student life is still thriving, and that’s possible because of our service members.” For the 12th anniversary of the attacks, the University’s chapter of the College Republicans organized the third 9/11: Never Forget Project, a non-partisan memorial in collaboration with Young America’s Foundation, a national conservative-youth political organization that has held similar events at college campuses across the country since 2003. At the memorial, donations
APP From Page 1A their hands and make it their own, that’s when you get success,” Benz said. Stay in the Blue not only includes a list of all local cab companies — which can be called directly from the app — but it also figures out the user’s exact location. There is also an option to set a buzzing reminder to ensure that intoxicated users don’t forget to record drinks. The app also contains links to local and University-specific drinking laws and policies, which may be used to benefit friends in need. The idea for the app came from a UHS focus group in 2005, which was held to learn about students’ drinking habits, recognizing a need for a program in which responsible students could share their mechanisms for staying safe, or “in the blue.”
HEALTHY From Page 1A locations. LSA junior Parisa Soraya, chair of CSG’s Health Issues Commission, said the program was started to entice students to pick an apple over the bag of chips while killing time between classes or studying late at the UGLi. “We saw that a lot of students turn away from healthy foods because of the expensive prices associated with them,” Soraya said. “So we wanted to give back a healthy reward to promote healthy eating.” Each semester, there will be a list of featured food items that will earn students points on their
News
in this life that whenever, on my path of love and devotion to life, I have had cause to falter, an Ancestor has appeared, ready and willing to steady my step,” Walker wrote on her blog in reference to Hurston. “Those of you who know the history that connects me with Zora Neale Hurston will understand why I stand now in my kitchen enjoying her warm chuckle of support for all of us.” After Walker was disinvited to speak at CEW’s 50th anniversary event, she posted a letter on her blog — that she claimed was from
her agent — that said donors sponsoring the 50th anniversary event threatened to withdraw their funding due to Walker’s stance on the Arab-Israeli conflict. Walker is represented by The Wendy Weil Agency, but it is not clear who from the agency wrote the letter. Walker’s latest book “The Cushion in the Road,” published in 2013, included criticism of Israel that the Anti-Defamation League called “80 pages to a screed” on the conflict and “explicit comparisons between Israel and Nazi Germany.”
Thomas released a statement in August that apologized for how CEW dealt with Walker’s invitation, noting that “all donations, for this and for other events, are accepted with no provisos or prohibitions regarding free speech.” In an e-mail to faculty in August, University Provost Martha Pollack said the University is committed to free speech and diversity, and the decision to rescind the invitation “was based solely on the celebratory nature they hoped to achieve at their anniversary event.”
were collected for the Michigan Remembers 9-11 Fund. Pamphlets of President Ronald Reagan’s farewell address were handed out, in addition to copies of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitutions. LSA senior Russ Hayes, chair of the College Republicans, said while the date means something different to everyone, it resonates with all students. “We all grew up around it. It’s in the back of our heads,” Hayes said. “It’s just really important to remember the lives lost on that day.” Some students paused for moments of reflection as they snapped iPhone photos of the flags. Other students, perched idly on benches surrounding the memorial, chatted about the pain of a recent break-up or whether they should drop a class. A man held a piece of cardboard in the Diag with words that told of a 9/11 conspiracy theory. “Bush-
Cheney-Israel did 9/11,” he yelled at passersby. Throughout the day, people shared photos of the Diag memorial on social media sites with tags like “Watching ROTC stand guard around the flag. Never forget. 9/11. #USA #UMich.” Or “9/11. How time has passed. #umich #commemoration.” Kinesiology freshman Caroline Alford said she was pleased to see her friends at other universities post photos of similar memorials on their campuses. Though she was seven years old at the time of the attacks, she remembers them vividly. “I just think it’s a nice thing to do, even though we were so little,” Alford said. “A lot of times we forget about the big picture. But on days like today we remember the common bond — that we’re all Americans.” As news of U.S. involvement in Syria dominates national and global media coverage, history
Prof. Jonathan Marwil, who teaches a course on 9/11, said it adds to people’s perception of the date. Further U.S. involvement in the Middle East could be viewed as an extension of 9/11, even if there is no direct relation, he said. “They all have a kind of connection, in a fuzzy sort of way, in the American mind, with 9/11,” he said. “We connect what comes afterward with what came before, even though they may have no connection at all.” Although the attacks still hold deep significance for many Americans, it’s a significance that has faded over time, he said. “Memories don’t stay sharp unless they have a reason to stay sharp,” Marwil said. “The memory is full of things. And I don’t think 9/11, for the majority of Americans, has a lot of resonance. I wouldn’t say it has none at all. That would be absurd. But I don’t think it has very much.”
UHS created a “Stay in the Blue Video Contest,” which received an enthusiastic response from students. The campaign ironically took off after a touchdown. Heisman winner Desmond Howard, a former Michigan football player was featured in a video promoting the Stay in the Blue program. Since then, students themselves have expanded the marketing movement with the Stay in the Blue app, intended to keep students in “the blue” — the safe BAC range of .06 or below. Howard said in an interview with The Michigan Daily that people, especially on college campuses, need to protect themselves while drinking and stay cognizant of their surroundings. “I think that, for a lot of problems in society — not just on college campuses but especially on college campuses, drinking is at the root of a lot of problems,” Howard said. “I just want people to drink responsibly. I think
if they drink responsibly they eliminate a lot of the things that we see in our society.” While Laura Blake Jones, associate vice president for Student Affairs, didn’t have specific numbers on how many times the app has been downloaded, she hoped Desmond Howard’s tweet about the app last week to 200,000 followers and promotional incentives would encourage wide adoption by the student body. “With Greek Life we’ve been really promoting this,” Blake Jones said, “I’ve been getting positive feedback from them about its effectiveness and the most common thing I’m hearing from them is about how great it is that it’s customized to Ann Arbor.” She added that the University continues to evaluate the efficacy of the app and is considering further enhancements. “We get lots of calls from other campuses asking about Stay in the Blue and how we came up with that and how we’re branding
that,” Blake Jones said. “I would anticipate the Stay in the Blue app will receive a lot of attention from campuses around the country as well.” Recent University graduate Steve Coffey, one of the creators of the app, said in an e-mail interview that he is amazed at the trust the University puts into students to work on projects such as Stay in the Blue. “Frankly it’s astonishing that they even let us put a Block ‘M’ on the thing,” Coffey wrote. “It just goes to show how invested the ‘U’ is, really at every level, with … providing opportunities for students to contribute in every area.” Coffey said students are especially receptive to the app because its message isn’t condescending or “dorky.” “They’re not about to tell you that you’re going to hell if you drink.”
cards, including fresh fruit, edamame and Chobani yogurt. Students can pick up and redeem the punch cards at any of the three U-go’s convenience store locations, which include the Michigan Union, Michigan League and Pierpont Commons. Victors, located in the Hill Dining Center, and Blue Apple, located in Bursley Residence Hall on North Campus, will supply the cards as well. After receiving ten punches, students can redeem one MHealthy item free of charge. The pilot program will begin this month and end April 2014. Soraya said if the punch cards are a success, CSG plans to expand the program beyond the pilot locations. “We will be able to track how
many punch cards are distributed,” Soraya said. “We hope to expand to other campus locations such as the Markley Hideaway.” This isn’t the first time CSG and MHealthy have partnered to encourage good health on campus. Thursday marks the first day of the third annual MFarmer’s Market, which provides students with fresh, sustainable fruits and vegetables at a reasonable cost. Soraya also said she hopes to promote better work ethic by encouraging healthy eating habits. “I noticed that a lot of students stress during finals and grab candy because it’s quick and cheap,” she said. “It doesn’t promote good work ethic, but when eating healthier, students get bet-
ter grades and their overall performance is enhanced.” When asked if this program will be effective in getting students to eat healthier, LSA junior Maggie Heeren said while the punch cards will undoubtedly prove beneficial, they may make a minimal impact on the student body as a whole. “On the other hand, I don’t see a negative outcome, and it’s a good idea trying to get people to eat healthier,” Heeren said. A frequent user of restaurant punch cards, LSA senior Joseph Hong said he’s excited about the possibility of using them for University-run restaurants and cafés. “It personally encourages me to buy their products,” Hong said.
—Daily Staff Reporter Will Greenberg contributed reporting.
Suicide bombs hit Egypt military in Sinai, kills nine EL-ARISH, Egypt (AP) — In near-simultaneous attacks, a pair of suicide bombers rammed their explosives-laden cars into military targets in Egypt’s volatile Sinai Peninsula on Wednesday, killing at least nine soldiers and nudging the conflict there closer to a full-blown insurgency. The bombings in the town of Rafah on the border with the Gaza Strip appear to be a deadly response by insurgents to a military crackdown on their north Sinai hideouts that has reportedly left over three dozen dead. Suicide attacks are a new element in the wave of political violence triggered initially by the ouster of Egypt’s Islamist President Mohammed Morsi on July 3, and intensified by a violent crackdown on his supporters’ protest camps. They suggest that al-Qaida-inspired groups may be developing a new capability to strike at security and other tar-
gets, both in Sinai and elsewhere in Egypt. One of the two bombings in the town of Rafah brought down a two-story building housing the local branch of military intelligence. It collapsed the entire structure, two security officials said, speaking anonymously because they were not authorized to talk to the media. They said no bodies were found under the rubbles, but the attack left 10 soldiers and seven civilians, three of them women, wounded. The second attack targeted an armored personnel carrier at an army checkpoint not far from the intelligence headquarters, the officials added. The officials said the remains of the two suicide bombers have been recovered. The officials gave a death toll of nine for both attacks but did not say how many were killed in each. “The use of car bombs and suicide attacks in a new turn,”
military spokesman Col. Ahmed Mohammed Ali told The Associated Press. He said the bombings appear to be revenge for the Sinai offensive, which he said hurt the militants by destroying weapons and ammunition caches. “This will not stop us, but will increase our determination to confront terrorism,” he said. The attacks come less than a week after a suicide car bombing targeted the convoy of Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim, who is in charge of the police, shortly after he left his east Cairo home. Ibrahim escaped unharmed but a civilian was killed. One of the al-Qaida-inspired groups based in Sinai, Ansar Jerusalem, later claimed responsibility for that bombing. The claim was never verified. If true, it would be the first time a Sinai-based group carried a suicide attack in the heart of Cairo. These three bombings, plus
another one in Sinai last month, are the first in Egypt since the 2011 uprising that overthrew longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. The conflict in the Sinai adds to Egypt’s woes as it struggles to regain political stability and economic viability. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Wednesday’s attacks. Col. Ali said it was still early to determine which group or groups carried it out. However, Ansar Jerusalem issued a statement Wednesday claiming responsibility for three other recent attacks on the military. In a statement, the group blasted Egypt’s military for conducting “a dirty war, deputizing all anti-Islam forces in and outside Egypt, especially the Jews.” The group has ties to militants in the Gaza Strip, and has claimed in the past attacks on Israel.
Thursday, September 12, 2013 — 5A
MUNGER From Page 1A Harper, vice president for student affairs; Henry Baier, associate vice president for facilities and operations; Deanna Mabry, associate director for planning and design at the University; and Linda Newman, senior director for university housing, made their pitch for the new residence hall to the group of about 30 disenchanted graduate students. Baier described the plan’s emphasis on community spaces and cooperative living due to an increased need for group work spaces as graduate programs push for further collaboration among students. While the presenters didn’t bring a mock-up or blueprints of the plans, beforeand-after photos of the University Lawyers Club were used as an example of past graduate housing renovations. The Lawyers Club was also funded by a donation from Munger. The design for the graduate residence involves most rooms forming blocks of seven single bedrooms with personal bathrooms, with all seven tenants sharing a common kitchen, living area and dining area. Despite the enthusiastic pitch, students questioned the layout and probable cost of the rooms. Concerns focused on the seven-room design, with several students expressing concerns about the community-living style and audience members saying the graduate lifestyle is different than the undergraduate residence-hall experience. Several of the graduate students said the major selling point for the graduate residence hall should be price competitiveness. The rough estimate of $1,000 per month for the residence hall is significantly higher than many other housing options in Ann Arbor. “When you’re still working from, in a lot of cases, a research stipend or something like that, you have to be pretty frugal with what you’re spending on housing,” said Michael Hand, a Rackham student and RSG representative. Saccone said the cost and room-complex design were the primary concerns he received from an online forum and other graduate students he’d spoken with. He added that he was disappointed by the limited student involvement in the planning of the dormitory — which is unlikely to see major reshaping, according to Baier and Harper. Harper has hosted one preliminary planning session with a four-person student advisory board and assisted in a larger focus group of about forty students weighing in on the design. “We’re just really concerned that the project might not be going in the right direction and,
ultimately, we’re trying to help,” Saccone said. “We’re really here just because we feel that the people who have been involved in this project perhaps have had a little bit of a ‘group-think’ mentality and could use a little bit of outside sourcing.” Harper said the residence hall will not be for everyone, calling the design ‘experimental.’ Harper said Munger Residence Hall intends to cater to students in a variety of graduate programs. However, the residence hall will not be suitable for graduate students with families and children. Harper stressed repeatedly in response to suggestions for plan changes from the audience that she and the administration had to remain within the wishes of Munger’s vision for the residence hall, as he continues to be deeply involved with the planning process. “If this were ‘just us’ and the funding were ‘just us,’ we would have some different kinds of options,” Harper said in response to a student’s suggestion to lower costs by eliminating some of the costlier room features proposed. “But I think when you are in partnership … you make some agreements about what you’re going to offer, then we have to honor those agreements.” In an interview after the forum, Harper and Baier both said they expect the residence hall to be highly successful, despite mixed reactions from students. “It has this wonderful combination of your own privacy — your own room, your own bathroom, your own study space — and then you come out and you have this fabulous living space,” Harper said. “What it feels like is you get to be at home when you want, sort of in your space, and then you can be in a kind of ‘coffee shop’ if you will with people that you know and like.” Harper said there would likely be opportunity for students to choose roommates, though there is currently no plan for room assignment or other logistics, like parking. Many students voiced concerns to the administrators about unplanned details. Former RSG President Michael Benson said he wouldn’t live in the soon-to-be-built complex. While Saccone and other students expressed their misgivings with the proposal, most offered their gratitude for Munger’s gift and thanked Harper and the other administrators for tackling the problem of graduate housing space. Harper said she and everyone involved in planning was happy to have Munger’s input on the design and credited him for helping kick-start a previously stalled graduate housing effort. The project is scheduled to be completed in 2015.
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News
6A — Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Violent Iranian refuges expelled from Iraqi camp Transfer ends years-long effort by Iraqi officials to evict residents
Kurt Miller/AP Investigators examine a van that was driven by the former TSA worker, Nna Alpha Onuoha, 29, when he was arrested on suspicion of making threats related to the anniversary of the 9/11 terriorist attacks. Alpha Onuoha, 29, was arrested shortly before midnight Tuesday and he remained in custody on suspicion of making threats pending additional investigation.
Ex-TSA screener arrested after involvement in threats Former employee implicated in letters with anti-American sentiment LOS ANGELES (AP) — An airport security screener was charged Wednesday with making threats as authorities scrutinized a website linked to the suspect that contains rambling letters criticizing America as evil and promising something more devastating than the 9/11 attacks. The letters were posted on a website apparently operated by Nna Alpha Onuoha, 29, who was arrested late Tuesday, hours after he quit his Transportation Security Administration job at Los Angeles International Airport. Onouha was charged with one count each of making a false threat and making threats affecting interstate commerce. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison. The threats prompted a brief shutdown of parts of LAX on Tuesday, but nothing dangerous was found. Authorities were looking at the website, which includes Onouha’s name and a birth date that matches public records for him. The site contains letters
celebrating Jesus and Israel, condemning al-Qaida and lamenting that Satan has corrupted so many. There also are photos of Onuoha posing with crosses. In one posting attributed to Onuoha, he said a message would be released Sept. 11 and America “will be reduced to nothing.” “Do not expect another 9/11,” it said. “What will unfold on this day and on the days ahead will be greater than 9/11.” That passage is part of a lengthy letter apparently written to the father of a 15-year-old girl whose treatment by Onouha during screening at LAX in June led the TSA to suspend him. Onouha was upset by the girl’s attire and said, “You’re only 15, cover yourself.” The incident drew attention when the girl’s father, Mark Frauenfelder, wrote about it on boingboing, the blog he founded. He said his daughter was humiliated and shamed. He posted a photo of her in the outfit, modest by modern standards, and said he had complained to TSA. A federal official confirmed the incident was the reason Onuoha was suspended for a week in July. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to talk about the case publicly. The letter apparently meant for Frauenfelder was dated Aug.
25. In it, Onouha was unapologetic. “If you need an example on how to properly dress your fifteen year old daughter before you send her out on a world tour in this world ruled by satan, you should look up to Muslim women,” the letter said. An email message to Frauenfelder was not immediately returned but he told KCAL-TV that his daughter is a “little freaked out” by the postings. “It sounds like the work of a disturbed mind, definitely. I’m glad he’s in custody,” Frauenfelder said. TSA spokesman Ross Feinstein declined to comment, referring questions to law enforcement investigating the matter. Onuoha, originally from Nigeria, had worked for TSA since 2006, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said. He showed up at LAX on Tuesday afternoon, resigned from his job and returned several hours later to leave a package at TSA’s airport headquarters that was addressed to a manager. A bomb squad found no explosives or harmful contents in the package but discovered an eightpage letter in which Onuoha expressed disdain for the U.S. and referenced the event that led to his suspension, Eimiller said.
Classifieds RELEASE DATE– Thursday, September 12, 2013
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
KHALIS, Iraq (AP) — The remaining 42 residents of an Iranian dissident camp that was the scene of a disputed outbreak of violence last week left the compound Wednesday to join their comrades at another camp near Baghdad airport, according to Iraqi officials and representatives for the exiles. The transfer marks the end of a years-long effort by Iraqi authorities to evict members of the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq dissident group from Camp Ashraf, an isolated Saddam Hussein-era compound that the group was extremely reluctant to leave. The MEK is staunchly opposed to Iran’s clerical regime, and thousands of its members were granted sanctuary inside Iraq by Saddam. It carried out a series of bombings and assassinations inside Iran in the 1980s and fought alongside Iraqi forces in the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war. Its fortunes inside Iraq turned sharply with Saddam’s ouster following the 2003 U.S.led invasion. Iraq’s current Shiite-led government, which has been bolstering ties with neighboring Shiite powerhouse Iran, considers the group’s presence inside Iraq illegal and wants its
DOWN 1 Part of a pickup line 2 Troupe for troops: Abbr. 3 Bone in a cage 4 Auditorium latecomers’ seating 5 Yoga pose 6 Above Manhattan’s 59th Street, say 7 Ocasek of the Cars 8 Glaswegian’s “Gee!” 9 Tim or Tara of Hollywood 10 Fall flower 11 Divas have them 12 Goes after 13 It may be rapid 18 Illegal smoke, quaintly 22 Southwest sight 23 Rice rival, briefly 24 Axe 25 Collection of literary odds and ends 26 “The Sound of Music” setting 27 Interactive party song 31 Some lighters
34 “In Her Shoes” co-star 38 Page with views 39 Trace amounts 40 Really botched up 41 “Not on your life!” 42 Beach acquisitions 43 Hurdle for a jr. 46 Lawn sign 47 Roman numeral? 48 Le Tour de France time 49 Kit’s home
52 Make even, to a carpenter 55 Pass, but not with flying colors 57 Buddy 59 Chris of “The Good Wife” 63 Flint-to-Detroit dir. 64 Depot: Abbr. 65 SoCal destination 66 Marcus Welby’s gp. 67 Block
Envoy hopes new leadership in Iran will re-engage West
VIENNA (AP) — A senior U.S. diplomat urged Iran on Wednesday to follow up on good will generated by moderate statements from its new president with
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09/12/13
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buried at a cemetery inside the compound, al-Shimmari said. The residents initially refused to leave, but were eventually persuaded after representatives from the U.N. intervened, he added. Authorities have prevented journalists from getting near the camp since the shooting this month. A spokeswoman for the U.N. in Iraq, Eliana Nabaa, earlier in the day described the transfer process as “ongoing.” She could not be reached for further comment after Iraqi officials confirmed the transfer had begun. Representatives for the for MEK’s parent organization, the Paris-based National Council of Resistance of Iran, later confirmed the departure. Mohammed Mohaddessin, chairman of the NCRI’s foreign affairs committee, said in an interview that the council’s president-elect, Maryam Rajavi, urged the remaining residents to leave over the past few days. “The ultimate reason ... was the safety and security of the residents,” he said. Mohaddessin said an explosion went off near one of the buses as it passed near the town of Khalis, not far from the camp, but there were no injuries reported. He said residents were forced to leave behind much of their property, including cars and buildings they’ve constructed since moving in in 1986.
U.S., EU urge Iran to follow up on talks regarding nuclear arms
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
ACROSS 1 Meter site 5 After Chicago, the most populous Illinois city 11 Cave dweller 14 Atlas section 15 Adds excitement to, with “up” 16 Syr. neighbor 17 Scrooge’s underpaid clerk 19 Fed. property manager 20 Lotto-like game 21 Take down a few pegs 23 Frighten off 28 First host of “America’s Got Talent” 29 __ the cloth 30 Senseless 32 Piano concerto highlights 33 Not impressed 35 Lab subj. 36 Entry-level pos. 37 Reading in an unruly class? 40 Morse’s rank: Abbr. 44 30-day mo. 45 Combed (through) 50 Toi et moi 51 Time, in Germany 53 North of Mexico 54 Hit __: run into trouble 56 Forest shade 58 Shape of Michigan’s Lower Peninsula 60 Reversals, slangily 61 Memorable period 62 Light lunch (and a hint to this puzzle’s circled letters) 68 Hill VIP 69 For hire to sire 70 Tibetan priest 71 His, to Henri 72 Bottom-of-theline 73 Learning experience?
followers out of the country. Most of the residents of Camp Ashraf, where members of the group had lived for decades, reluctantly moved to a former U.S. military base near Baghdad airport last year. A core of about 100 MEK followers had stayed behind to protect and sell off the group’s remaining property. A shooting on Sept. 1 left 52 of those residents dead. Another seven people are missing, according to the MEK. The group blames Iraqi security forces loyal to Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki for the killings. Iraqi officials deny involvement and say an internal dispute is to blame. United Nations officials visited the camp shortly after the shooting and condemned the bloodshed, but they have not reported any findings as to who was responsible. Maj. Gen. Jamil al-Shimmari, the police chief of Diyala province, where the camp is located, and the mayor of the nearby town of Khalis, Oday al-Khadran, told The Associated Press that a convoy carrying the residents and their belongings left the camp Wednesday evening. “This took a lot of patience. We dealt with them according to the law,” al-Shimmari said. None of the Iraqi officials reported any incidents of violence during the transfer. The residents were searched by Iraqi forces before departing and were allowed to visit the graves of loved ones who are
actions that ease suspicions it is trying to make nuclear arms. The tone of outreach instead of censure reflected Washington’s hopes that Tehran will seize the moment created by change in its political leadership and act to ease international tensions over its nuclear ambitions. Still, U.S. envoy Joseph Macmanus warned of tough diplomatic action unless Tehran cooperates with U.N. experts trying to determine whether it ever worked on such weapons — a threat echoed by a statement from the European community. Iran insists it wants to harness the atom only to generate power or for scientific or medical purposes. But Western comments at a high-level session of the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency ref lected more than a decade of fears that Tehran also seeks the ability to be able to make nuclear arms. In comments to the IAEA’s 35-nation board, Macmanus noted the “unique moment” produced by the election triumph of President Hasan Rouhani over more hard-line rivals. At the same time, he suggested that the West will push at the IAEA’s November board meeting to punish Tehran by referring it to the U.N. Security Council unless it cooperates with IAEA experts trying to probe its alleged secret nuclear weapons work. Iran denies having trying to develop such arms. It and the IAEA blame each other for delays in reaching agreement on a probe. Ten rounds of negotiations over the past two years have
failed to end the deadlock. The two sides meet again Sept. 27, and Macmanus indicated that the West will consider those talks a yardstick of Rouhani’s professed interest in easing nuclear tensions. The West, he said, will work with other board members to hold Iran accountable should it fail to seize the moment and “continue its intransigence and obfuscation.” His comments appeared to be diplomatic code for an effort in November to again refer Iran to the U.N. Security Council if the Sept. 27 talks end inconclusively. Past referrals have led to U.N sanctions. While permanent council members Russia and China would likely veto additional sanctions, a new referral would still be a harsh international expression of displeasure with Iran. Also voicing the threat of referral, a statement from the European Union warned of possible “action” if Iran does not cooperate with probe attempts by November. The IAEA is particularly interested in visiting a site at Parchin, a sprawling military complex southeast of Tehran, where it suspects Iran worked on a conventional explosives trigger for a nuclear blast. Washington and its allies also worry about Iran’s expanding uranium enrichment program and construction of a plutonium-producing reactor. Iran says both programs are only for peaceful purposes but the West fears Tehran could reengineer them to produce the core of nuclear weapons.
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Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Thursday, September 12, 2013 — 7A
FOOTBALL
Miller and O-line still trying to jell The young interior line passed its first test against Nix By LIZ VUKELICH Daily Sports Editor
ADAM GLANZMAN/Daily
Sophomore slot receiver Dennis Norfleet was called “spicy” by fifth-year senior safety Thomas Gordon. He keeps teammates awake with pranks and disrupts defenses.
Norfleet says catch him if you can By ZACH HELFAND Daily Sports Editor
One hot afternoon in the last week of fall camp, Dennis Norfleet strolled into Al Glick Field House. A mop of dreadlocks splashed outward underneath the brim of his oversized bucket hat, bought from the MDen. He arrived alone, and for now, no one chased him. That would come soon enough. Norfleet, Michigan’s speedy sophomore slot receiver, specializes in making people miss, and that’s fortunate for him: people always seem to be running after him, on and off the field. He is Michigan’s kick and punt returner, after all. But even teammates have found reasons to give him chase. Thomas Gordon called him a “spicy, little guy.” Taylor Lewan would like to teach Norfleet a lesson, if only he could be corralled. Teammates describe Norfleet as the team’s jester, provoking bigger players in the locker room (and they’re all bigger; Norfleet is
the shortest player on the roster and misses being the lightest by just two pounds) and providing a needed diversion when the weekly routine becomes too boring. The week Norfleet showed up with his oversized hat, the grind of camp and two-a-day practices had some feeling sluggish, said Gordon, a fifth-year senior safety. Norfleet made sure they were awake. “My role is basically keeping everybody up,” Norfleet said. “I’m a guy that always has energy, a guy that don’t sleep.” Norfleet’s tactics vary. He can trash-talk about anything, said sophomore defensive end Mario Ojemudia. And he will goad players and coaches alike. Lewan, though, has become Norfleet’s favorite target. Norfleet and other younger players occasionally challenge the lockerroom hierarchy by trying to dash all the way through the “senior pit,” as redshirt freshman guard Kyle Kalis calls it. Most don’t make it through. Norfleet takes it a step further.
When Lewan isn’t looking, Norfleet will sneak up and jump on his back or hit him on the side. Then he’ll run away. Lewan is a 6-foot-8, 315-pound All-American left tackle. Norfleet weighs 169 pounds. He is just 5-foot-7. “He’s so small and Taylor’s so big, so people start laughing at that,” said fifth-year senior linebacker Cam Gordon. “Taylor hardly catches him, he can’t catch him.” On the field, Norfleet disrupts defenses with similar delight. He was recruited to Michigan as a running back. The recruiting website 24/7 Sports reported his 40-yard dash at 4.34 seconds. He returned kicks as a freshman but was stuck behind a stable of backs, so he transitioned to defensive back at the end of 2012. His athleticism was too much to keep off the field. Now in 2013, he’s back on offense, this time as a slot receiver who can also take a handoff. He has just four career rushes for a total of 52 yards and three recep-
tions for 17. Still, he commands the defense’s attention. Michigan likes to use jet motion to get the ball to Norfleet on a sweep. The defense has to honor it. “When you see Dennis in motion, he’s heading to get the ball so you gotta pay attention to him,” Ojemudia said. If not, he’ll find the open field, and there, his size is an advantage. Ojemudia said Norfleet is the only player who can avoid a tackle by ducking underneath it. Meeting Norfleet in the open field, Gordon said, “that’s like a nightmare.” “He’s like a freak of nature,” Ojemudia said. Norfleet’s 2012 season ranked second all-time on the Michigan returning yard list at 827 yards. He assumed punt return responsibilities this year, too, and though he’s struggled at times to catch the ball cleanly, Michigan coach Brady Hoke called him a playmaker. The trick for Michigan is to get him in the open field. Norfleet always seems to be running from someone, and no one has caught him yet.
What’s the biggest difference between the Jack Miller of 2012 and the Jack Miller that you’ve seen so far in the first two games of the Michigan football team’s 2013 campaign? Well, obviously the fact that the redshirt sophomore is now the starting center. But his transition from backup to the man in charge of the snaps — and the success he’s seen there so far — is the result of two things on Miller’s part. The first was all the preparation Miller put in during the offseason as part of the battle for the starting center position that took place all spring and through most of summer. “I’d say lifting is probably the biggest thing,” he said. “I don’t care how good you are, you’re an 18 year-old boy coming in to play with 23-year-old men. There’s just a physical difference, and you have to get to that point.” That sort of preparation wasn’t just limited to the weight room, though. Miller said he diligently studied the playbook all summer, as a way to stay “two steps ahead” of everything by the time fall camp rolled around. The second change in Miller isn’t as obvious, but it’s visible to Michigan coach Brady Hoke. “Jack, at least early in his career, I thought sometimes he was not confident in what he could do,” Hoke said. “I’ve seen that grow, and it’s part of maturity. I believe that he works awfully hard. He has really stepped up in his commu-
nication, which he has to at that position.” That couldn’t have been more evident than in last weekend’s game against Notre Dame. By now, enough has been said about the success of the Wolverines’ interior line against Louis Nix III. For Miller, what’s most important is how he and the rest of the offensive line move forward from there. Holding off Nix was arguably their biggest challenge of the season, so overcoming that obstacle this early in the season provided Miller with a good vantage point of where the line currently stands and where it has to go. One thing Miller doesn’t have to worry about, though, is chemistry with redshirt junior quarterback Devin Gardner. “It’s easy because Devin is a great leader, it’s been easy to get that going,” Miller said. “Everyone up front will feel that way. He’s doing a phenomenal job leading us right now and making that offense go. We’re really clicking with him. That’s the objective of any good team.” Now that the offensive line has already clicked with Gardner, the next item on the checklist is opening up the ground game for the running backs. In order to do that, Miller says, the interior line still needs to work on its chemistry. That connection is something that’s made significant progress over the past few weeks, but still isn’t anywhere near where Miller would like it to be. “Jelling more up front, (knowing) where each other is at, and what we’re thinking,” he said. “Just getting to the point, a good O-line is nothing but consistent play. You’ve just got to be consistent, focus every play and execute every single play. Once we get that going, I think it will really open up the run game.”
WOMEN’S SOCCER
Michigan playing for best start in program history By JAKE LOURIM Daily Sports Writer
Women’s soccer coach Greg Ryan has said this year’s team is the best he’s Detroit seen at Michi- at No. 11 gan. One more Michigan win will back Matchup: that up with the Detroit 2-3-1; best start in pro- Michigan 5-0 gram history. When: ThursThe 11th- day 7 p.m. ranked Wolver- Where: U-M ines (5-0) play Soccer Stadium Detroit at U-M Soccer Stadium on Thursday, where they look to build momen-
tum heading into Big Ten play. Michigan started 5-0 in 1998 and 2002 but could set a new mark by beating the Titans (2-3-1) in the last non-conference home game. “We came into Michigan, and no one really talked about us,” said senior midfielder Tori McCombs. “It’s really cool to see. But at the same time, we can’t really acknowledge that accomplishment until we get there.” For Thursday’s game, Detroit’s biggest weapon is senior forward Kaitlyn Quarrell, who Ryan said can cut inside from left midfield. The matchup with Detroit and Sunday’s tilt at Butler are the lone tune-ups before the Big Ten schedule begins. Michigan beat Detroit, 1-0,
last year and is 7-2 in the all-time series. The Titans have played all six of their games on the road this year, two of which were against ranked teams. Both teams have played Eastern Michigan: Detroit lost, 3-2, and Michigan won in overtime, 2-1. Michigan comes into the game off a 2-0 win over then-No. 22 Pepperdine. The Wolverines allowed Pepperdine only three shots on goal using a reshuffled back line. Without junior Olivia Brannon, who is still recovering from last season’s knee surgery and is being tested for a foot injury, Michigan moved senior Shelina Zadorsky to center back and added senior Kayla Mannino on the back line. “We just look like we’re a little
bit more solid defensively with Kayla at the back and (junior defender) Chloe (Sosenko) at the back,” Ryan said. “There will be times where I know we’re going to get Kayla further up the park, because she is very creative at the attack.” Mannino started 19 games last season and started the first four of this season at right midfield. She said the transition to the back line has been smooth. “I’ve told the coaches before, ‘I’ll play goalie if you want me there,’ ” Mannino said. “I’m open to anything.” Mannino, Ryan said, was an attacker when she started her career, but the team converted her to midfield, as it has with several
WOMEN’S SOCCER
For freshman Cole, a limitless potential By ERIN LENNON Daily Sports Writer
When freshman middle blocker Abby Cole reached her adult height of 6-foot-5, it was time to raise the net. As a freshman at Grand Haven High School, Cole — already the No. 3 singles player on her varsity tennis team — was forced to ditch the racket for her first love, volleyball, which fell in the fall season on the high school calendar. That same winter, Cole excelled on the basketball court, leading her team to a state title in her freshman season, the first of two in her high school career. Cole was named the Class A Player of the Year by the Associated Press, and was recruited heavily by DivisionI coaches around the country. Though it was a love of basketball that kept Cole from playing club volleyball, a passion for her fall sport brought her to Michigan. In her senior year, Cole was named the No. 3 senior among the
top-250 volleyball players in the nation, according to PrepVolleyball.com, and was named to the Under Armor All-American second team. In her home state, Cole was a runner-up for Michigan’s Miss Volleyball award in 2012 and was named to the All-Michigan first team. In her first year with the No. 7 Michigan volleyball team, Cole is the only freshman represented in the Wolverines’ starting lineup, replacing former starting middle blocker Claire McElheny. The Michigan native is currently the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week and sits among Michigan’s top three hitters with 43 kills and just six errors. “I’m excited,” Cole said. “I just think the transition has been so easy just because of my team-
mates and the coaches.” But without competitive, winter volleyball, Cole’s athletic talent remains just that: raw talent. And for Michigan coach Mark Rosen, that means potential, and lots of it. “(Cole) is a great learner,” Rosen said. “She’s very humble and she just keeps progressing. The best thing about Abby is that she’s nowhere close to as good as she’s going to be. As a coach, nothing is more exciting than that.” Across the court from senior co-captain Jennifer Cross and alongside sophomore blocker Krsytalyn Goode, Cole gives Michigan’s front line an entirely different look. She is able to run the slide around the back of sophomore setter Lexi Dannemiller
“She’s nowhere close to as good as she’s going to be.”
with ease — a hit that mimics the layup in basketball — much like McElheny in 2012. Cole boasts 13 blocks on the season and only one error, compared to Cross’ 20 and four. She has also recorded three more kills than her counterpart. But through the first five matches of the regular season, Cole has lived and died with the long shot. Having committed just six attack errors in 71 attempts, so far the long ball is working. But when other teams figure Cole out, fewer and fewer shots will hit the floor. The challenge then will be to put the ball in front of the attack line. If and when Cole learns to hit down rather than into the corners, she will be a force to rival middle blockers like Stanford senior Stephanie Browne and formidable Big Ten defensive specialists. It’s an easy fix, says Rosen. “It’s a matter of being taught,” Rosen said. “Lucky for us, she’s been successful at nearly everything she’s tried so far, so it’s just a matter of time.”
other players, such as Sosenko. “Defense, I just have to be more reserved,” Mannino said. “There are times where I’m really tempted to go forward because I want to score, which is the mentality for midfield, but I can’t have that for defense.” With senior defender Holly Hein in the middle, this is one of the most experienced defenses in Michigan history. Sosenko and Hein each ranked in the program’s top four in single-season minutes played last season. As the Wolverines keep winning, their expectations continue to mount. However, McCombs said their focus is still elsewhere. “A lot of people around us think that we have pressure on us,”
McCombs said. “(Ryan) keeps reminding us that nothing’s won yet. Rankings don’t matter. We come into practice, and we forget about the weekend and we focus on the game ahead of us. You can’t really look that much into the future.” Michigan is now the highestranked team in the Big Ten, higher than 15-time reigning Big Ten champion, No. 13 Penn State. But the Wolverines would rather play their best soccer near the end of the season. “That’s something we just addressed as a team because we’ve had such a great start, not to let go of that,” Mannino said. “Make sure we don’t get comfortable or complacent.”
Sports
8A — Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Jim Abbott still inspires, 20 years later By JEREMY SUMMITT Daily Sports Editor
A 16-year-old high school student walked up to Jim Abbott to ask him about the no-hitter he tossed for the New York Yankees. Looking up, their eyes met, smiles were exchanged and the connection was instantaneous. The kid reached for a handshake with his left hand. “When I finally met him, there was a bunch of other people in the room, but it seemed like it was only me and him,” said Joe Rogers. “He had an aura about him that was really inspiring.” It was just another passionate performance delivered by Abbott, who pitched for Michigan from 1985-88 before being drafted by the California Angels in the 1988 Major League Baseball draft. But this time, no sliders or slow curveballs were involved — just a smooth speech full of encouragement and inspiration. Rogers was directly in front of Abbott, pressed between his uncle and family friend, after one of Abbott’s speaking sessions in Detroit. Rogers found solace in someone who knew what he was going through, how he felt and what other athletes might have thought. Like Abbott, Rogers is missing his right hand, leaving the left-handed gesture inevitable. Both were born with the same birth defect. Rogers asked Abbott how he pulled off the no-hitter as he itched for one last ounce of motivation from a living, breathing example of how to defy the highest odds. Rogers grew up in Marysville, Mich., just 64 miles east of Abbott. He fell in love with hockey and was crazy enough to sign up for goaltender. He excelled at the position with one hand. Abbott has a similar story. He would pelt a bouncy ball off a wall with his left hand and field it, again and again with the same body part. When he got sick of that routine, he’d pick out a single brick on the wall and pitch a rubber baseball right at it. He’d aim for the brick in the bottom corner, and then the one in the top-left. He rarely missed. Abbott didn’t always dream of playing baseball professionally, even collegiately, but he always wanted to attend Michigan. What was taken away from him at birth was given back in more ways than he could have imagined. *** Bo Schembechler once told Abbott that he could play quarterback at Michigan. Instead, his retired baseball number, 31, is displayed on the outfield wall at Ray Fischer Stadium. Abbott’s wish became reality when he was offered a scholarship to play baseball for the Wolverines in 1985 by former Michigan coach Bud Middaugh. He helped lead Michigan to Big Ten Championships in 1986 and 1987, and was named Big Ten Athlete of the Year in his senior season. At Flint Central High School, Abbott took snaps under center at football practice and got a chance to play in several games his senior year as a backup to Randy Levels, who went on to play at Central Michigan. His performance at quarterback prompted a CBS sports crew to interview Abbott for a halftime broadcast during an NFL Thanksgiving Day game. He played basketball too, but baseball became his first love long before his high school days began. Abbott pitched lights out. His first start as a little-league pitcher resulted in a no-hitter, and he boasted a six-game stretch with exactly a 0.00 earned run average. But baseball was about much more than wins and strikeouts. “I started training for (baseball) and it was the one thing where I really felt like I could be who I was, and battle back and try to prove myself in a lot of ways that I looked for as a kid,” Abbott said. “It really was my outlet.” Chuck Johnson noticed. As a sports reporter from the Flint Journal, Johnson came to watch 12-year old Abbott in a little league game when word had spread about a young pitching phenom in the area. The encounter ended with a small, quarter-of-a-page article
in the Sunday sports section. But the lasting effects of being a semifamous pre-teen, just for a day, re-energized the dream to play baseball at the highest level. “It was the first time I really felt like I was doing something noteworthy or that people were noticing,” Abbott said. “It was a small human interest story but it really changed my perspective on how I looked at myself.” And at age 12, Abbott started to realize a lot more about himself than the average high school student. His gifted left arm and only hand was blossoming right in front of him, and everyone around him began to catch glimpses of what could be the beginning of an improbable journey. *** Rogers now plays hockey at Notre Dame as a backup goaltender. Another kid without a right hand, from north metro-Detroit, participating in Division-I athletics. The inspiration he received from Abbott never died. They still speak with each other every month just to check in on one another. What he took away from Abbott’s speeches the most, he said, was how to handle all sorts of situations. Life throws a lot at you, and Abbott tells people they have to know how to hit it. “You have to hit the curveballs,” Rogers said. Abbott’s disability gave back to him on Sunday, Sept. 4, 1993, when he was the one throwing all the curveballs. The New York Yankees defeated the Cleveland Indians, 4-0. Abbott captivated an entire nation, rather than a few hundred kids, when he pitched one of the most improbable no-hitters in major league history that day. In his previous start, Abbott was rocked for seven earned runs in 3.2 innings against the Indians. “The next few days, leading up to the (Saturday) start, there was a lot of anxiousness and trepidation,” Abbott said. “I was really excited to get back on the mound and try to redeem myself.” What a difference a day makes. Abbott loved day games. That overcast, rainy Saturday morning, he took a cab to the ballpark from Manhattan, got to the “nice and cozy” old Yankee clubhouse and began his pregame routine. The routine was nothing different from last time he battled through Cleveland’s lineup with the likes of rookie Manny
man Don Mattingly. Game over. Let the party in New York begin. Abbott described the feeling of watching the ball hit Mattingly’s glove as “elation.” “The excitement of the stands and the excitement of your teammates, the unbelievably, stunning suddenness that it’s over,” Abbott said. “That countdown is over and there it is and it looks like it might happen, you just can’t believe it. You just can’t believe it and you’re beside yourself.” Two decades later, it still gets to him. Mattingly took Abbott out to dinner that night at Cronie’s, a popular place for New York athletes. Abbott’s meal was paired with a bottle of champagne at Mattingly’s expense. “That’s what a no-hitter is all about,” Abbott said. “It’s a personal achievement, but it’s a shared moment with your team who had so much to do it with. Guys like Donnie made it all the more special.” *** Abbott’s dad was the one that inspired the phrase, “What is taken away once is given back twice.” His parents were just teenagers when Abbott was born, but that single sentence was repeated as far back as he can remember. “My parents were my heroes,” Abbott said. “They could have gone a lot of different directions. Yet, they didn’t keep me away from experience. They wanted me to get out there and get involved and not shy away from the real world, so to speak.” And that’s what Abbott inspired Rogers to do. Most conversations after his speeches are quite general, Abbott says. But the one with Rogers remains the most vivid, reminiscent of both men’s unforgettable accomplishments. Abbott’s father’s phrase rings true through the no-hitter. He laid an egg against the Indians one Sunday, and came back with an uppercut that following Saturday. It resonates with every child with or without a disability in the jam-packed auditoriums that he speaks in every week. The kids talk about what it’s like to have someone to look to and to talk to someone who understands their situation and scattered emotions. “I just try to share in the idea that so much more is possible than we sometimes think,” Abbott said. Abbott’s parents simply allowed him to be a kid. Being born differently, there is no denying that there were bumps in the road. By giving back what he received through his parents, Abbott strives to shatter the bumps that similar children face every day in sports and school. He paved the way for Rogers, multiple times. Rogers was so enthralled the first time he heard Abbott speak that he made plans to be at his next speaking session in Michigan. To this day, Rogers uses quotes from Abbott’s speeches as motivation before he takes the ice in South Bend. It was never easy, for Rogers, for Abbott or for anyone to fully move past a physical disability. “I think the most difficult part is maintaining belief in yourself,” Abbott said. “I think that when you’re different, you have a tendency to make concessions and try to fit in and sometimes you can lose your way a bit in terms of who you really are because you want people to like you.” Not too surprisingly, Abbott’s speaking career began rolling while he was still tossing pitches. He estimates that he spoke with at least one kid with a physical disability on every road trip of his MLB career. “When I meet kids today who have similar challenges, I just try to encourage them to find something that they love to do,” Abbott said. “Not something that somebody else thinks they can do or tells them that they should do. Find something they want to do, and stay true to where they want to go in life and what they want to do.” That was baseball for Abbott. His dad inspired him with a single sentence, and in return, Abbott has given back to many more people than the children he’s talked
“What is taken away once is given back twice.” - Mike Abbott Ramirez, Jim Thome, Kenny Lofton and Albert Belle staring back at him. He’d first go to the training room and get to a quiet place. There, he could browse the lineup and visualize how exactly the game might go, batter by batter. Surely, he thought, what happened last time on the hill would be avoided this time around. Uneasiness and nerves almost got the best of Abbott that Saturday, and he’d be the first to admit it. “I think I was effectively wild, to be honest with you,” Abbott said. “I didn’t have spot-on, pinpoint control that day.” Abbott, in fact, walked five batters and struck out just three that Saturday. What made the difference all afternoon was his aggression. “I think that was part of the key to having some success that day,” Abbott said. “I was aggressive, I was trying to really trust it and really try to let it go and let the stuff take over.” He tried something new, mixing in slow curveballs to keep the Indians’ honest. Abbott credits his catcher, Matt Nokes, with the idea in the scouting report. With hardly any strikeouts, infield ground balls came in flurries. None more important, of course, than the 27th out that rolled directly to shortstop Randy Velarde, thanks to a slider that tailed towards the outside part of the plate. Velarde whipped the ball over to the glove of Abbott’s best friend, first base-
COURTESY OF U-M PHOTO SERVICES
Former Michigan pitcher Jim Abbott was born without a right hand. His rise to the MLB continues to captivate audiences.
to. He enthralled the entire baseball nation through his stints with the California Angels, Chicago White Sox, Milwaukee Brewers and the Yankees. Teams consistently bunted to him to test his one-handed fielding ability, but he’d drop the glove and record an out barehanded. Playing in the American League, he was never forced to bat with the
exception to interleague play. That didn’t matter, though. Current Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, recalls watching Abbott hit home runs in batting practice during Rivera’s rookie year of spring training, according to The New York Times. Abbott chuckles about the fact that Rivera somehow remembers the scene. He still says that wearing a
Michigan baseball jersey is one of his greatest achievements to date. That, right alongside his speaking career, are what he calls his most rewarding decisions. Abbott has given back what he’s received through baseball. But for his father, himself and his audiences, Abbott won’t stop speaking until he’s given back twice as much as he’s inherited.
the b-side B
The Michigan Daily | michigandaily.com |
Thursday, September 13, 2013
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Design by Melissa Freeland
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the b-side
Artists as activists
W
ashington D.C. has had a significant impact on our language over the past few years, from the reinvention of old words (such as “Citizens United” and the concept of a “person”) to the creation of new ones like “enemy combatants.” JOHN Its latest BOHN linguistic endeavor will be to reinvent the notion of a “trade agreement” this fall. Currently in D.C., the final drafts of what will become the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) are being written. The TPP is a massive new “free trade” agreement being negotiated by the United States and 11 other countries around the Pacific Rim, totaling at 40 percent of the global economy. President Barack Obama has given 600 corporations official “trade advisor” status, while Congress and the public have been left in the dark. What we, the public, do know comes from leaks. Congress fares not much better. Remember those protocols by which a member of Congress could learn about PRISM? Same deal. They have a few hours to look at select documents without any means of notetaking and then are not allowed to tell others what they have learned. More about corporate rights than about trade, the TPP, referred to as the son of SOPA, will reach into Internet policy and extend the criminalization of certain activities. It will affect food labeling, turning those such as “locally grown,” “renewable/ recyclable” or “sweat-free” into acts of discrimination and barriers to “free trade.” It will extend drug patents for the major pharmaceutical companies, which would delay the production of cheap,
generic medications. It will also raise transnational corporations to the status of sovereign nations in international tribunals, allowing them to sue governments whose policies (environmental, work-place safety) have affected their projected profits, an act already begun under past freetrade agreements. See: “Metalclad Corps. v. United Mexican States.” Already, countries and their taxpayers have paid $365 million to corporations in this way. The list goes on. I am writing today to the artists of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti because I believe this to be terrible poetry. And I think you might agree. I am writing today because we are on the eve of this bill’s passing, and while there is still time to act, we need to act fast. President Obama will look to Congress to grant him Fast Track sometime this fall, which would allow him sole authorship of the bill. To deny him this opportunity would allow our Congress members a say in that process. Let us, as good artists, teach our struggling writers over at the Washington School of Poetry about the healthy benefits of workshopping your writing. If you are starting an art studio, music composition class or creative writing workshop, I challenge you to use that time and space to explore and expose the implications of the TPP. Due to its scale, the TPP’s effects will stretch across a multitude of narratives. Where are the stories about threatened small farms? Where is the dance about genetically modified food? Where is the satirical play about the corporate lawyers who settle disputes between nations and corporations? Where are the paintings of the broken faces and broken homes of the dispossessed? Where are photos of abandoned factories? Where is the poetry that reclaims our exploited
language? Where are the songs commemorating the success of past struggles? Let this art culminate in a rotating gallery and performance space where voices are heard. Let our art fill online galleries and the mailrooms of our elected representatives. Let’s build a coalition of artists and activists. Do not let Washington monopolize the telling of this story. The voices of those most affected will not be lost, but neither will they be replaced. Our art, as best as it can, will serve as a humble proxy. The Ann Arbor/Ypsilanti area can only do so much in this endeavor, but let us start a wave of protest art that spreads across the country. The scale of Washington’s literature is immense. Ours must be equally immense. We are not alone in doing so. We take our inspiration from groups like the Beehive Collective and affirm our solidarity with an international struggle well underway by farmers in Japan, human-rights groups in Malaysia, protesters in Australia and here in the United States. For those looking to further inform their art, campaigns such as “Expose the TPP” and “Topple the TPP” run by United Students for Fair Trade (USFT) have begun the process of informing the public and can be found online. Sept. 23 will begin the national week of action, and the University’s chapter of USFT, with meetings Mondays at 8 p.m. in B810 East Quad, will have events to look out for. “Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world,” Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote nearly 200 years ago. I am not here today to agree. I ask that Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti artists demand their acknowledgment this fall. Bohn is demanding acknowledgement. To join, e-mail jobohn@umich.edu.
baked.buzzed.bored.
in this new series, three daily arts writers in varying states of mind visit the same place and write about their experiences. this week’s destination:
Under the Lights
high
COMMUNITY CULTURE COLUMN
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
sober runk
2B — Thursday, September 12, 2013
d
I’m going to be completely honest: I have no idea what’s happening. Normally, under slightly less high circumstances, I slowly but surely drift in and out of the game. Seeing it, but not really paying attention until the guy beside me with the maize mohawk starts yelling, “GO BLUE!” But now ... Look I don’t even really remember who’s who. So, the game. Look. We’re winning. It’s really light, which is disorienting because the sky is DARK. I also feel like now is as good a time as any to talk about how fast all the football players run. I mean, they are FAST. OK, look, we just scored 17 points and now it’s HALF TIME and BEYONCE JUST SAID SHE WISHES US LUCK what is this life tho. I mean, what’s the point, NOTHING CAN DEFEAT US. I feel slightly disoriented, but the marching band is killing it. I can tell because I’m singing along to “Countdown,” and they don’t miss a BEAT. Way to keep up with the drunk masses, guys! OK, we are back and the game starts off kind of tense. I’m lying because I feel goooood and I don’t really feel any tension except some sexual tension between maize mohawk and an innocent bag of popcorn. OH SHIT they just got like 10 points. They beat us in the last quarter but WE WON THE WAR. Victors valiant, holla back. — DAILY ARTS WRITER
The last thing I remember was, “Meet in Section 30! Section 30 — don’t forget.” Too bad it seems like every other friend group has done the same thing — the line doubles around so that it faces away from the stadium. Bleary-eyed, I curse the ticket policy. My heart is still pounding from before. Stepping beyond the ticket checkers, I thought I was safe — somehow convinced myself to sneak in a couple of shooters. But a policeman cordoned me off with an arm and looked at my pockets. “Whatcha got there?” he asked, pointing. I’d had a serious bout of paranoia, but was with it enough to pull out my water bottle and wallet. “They want you to buy water here,” he said, snatching it from my hand. “Oh, sorry, I understand, thanks so much!” I answered, moving along. Close shave. “Dude — let’s just walk across the horseshoe.” Before I know it, my two friends are cutting the gap, and it’s get left with the squares or hop on board. Wordlessly, I slip away from my remaining friends to follow. We all sort of clot around a spot near the front. “Oh, hey, is that Kyle over there?” We stand. I feel eyes on my back, but maybe that’s the buzz. “Nevermind, that’s not Kyle. But now that we’re here…” The game is a blur. We’re never losing, the touchdowns are raining, but all I can think is: Cottonmouth. Bathroom. Feet tired. Water … I could go for some water. Eventually I’m completely, and we’re shuffling back up the stairs, euphoric in our delirium. We won. Thank God. —DAILY ARTS WRITER
The stadium smelled terrible. Everyone smelled like beer. Everyone smelled like sweat. Random joints were smoked. Which made everyone smell like weed. But that’s OK; it was Notre Dame. Nothing else mattered that day. It didn’t matter that my legs were about to collapse. All that mattered was 41-30. It didn’t matter that Gardner threw an interception touchdown after a split second series of horrible calls. All that mattered was that he returned it with another touchdown. It didn’t matter that it was general admissions, and I was stuck in row 90. Or that I could never hear the band because everyone was screaming so loud. It didn’t matter that all my friends were slowly becoming miserable, hungover zombies as the game progressed, and refused to sing anymore of the Victors because their heads hurt. Some were drunk and some were high and some were both. Their crazy dance moves didn’t matter. Their embarrassing decrees of how drunk they “really” were didn’t matter. They were drunk and there was no looking back. And, in retrospect, it didn’t even matter that the person in front of me was basically eight-feet tall. All that mattered was that it was Notre Dame. I was there. It was Under The Lights Part II. And we beat them. — NICK CRUZ
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TRAILER REVIEW No living director today looks into the heart of greed and excess better than the fuzzy-browed master, Mr. A Martin Scorsese. I give you The Wolf of “The Wolf of Wall Street Wall Street.” Backed by Paramount the explosive Kanye West single, “Black Skinhead,” we flash through a jumble of images of power and parties while Leonardo DiCaprio introduces his character, Jordan Belfort, and his tale. What follows is a parade of debauchery, egos let wild, megalomania unchecked, morals none — all raging to the inevitable and horrible end. And still, it looks glorious. DiCaprio lets his body melt into a dance that can only be described as practice for his Oscar celebration. Margot
PARAMOUNT
Robbie swaggers through the scenes like a predator. All is propelled forward by Scorsese’s trademark “mean street” energy and DiCaprio’s narration. Despite terrific pacing, we’re allowed sardonic moments of observation: DiCaprio hurls a little person at
a target and Matthew McConaughey thumps through some very funny advice. You feel unclean to peek into this world few know and many revile. But deep down, there is envy, a certain kind of thrill and at the end of the day, pity. —SEAN CZARNECKI
the b-side
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Thursday, September 12, 2013 — 3B
CHALK MAGIC
The impermanence of street artwork Local street artist David Zinn talks beginnings By AKSHAY SETH Daily B-Side Editor
“It seemed weird to pay tuition to be taught something I was already good at.” Ann Arbor street artist David Zinn speaks in a low voice when asked if he studied design in college. He looks around the coffee shop furtively, as if a little cautious. Our meeting was meant to be outside, but due to a small misunderstanding, we’re now perched right in front of the main counter, surrounded by a typical Sunday afternoon crowd. Zinn settles in, clears his throat and elaborates. “Maybe it wasn’t the right decision, but it seemed logical at the time,” he said. Zinn ended up attending the University’s Residential College to study Creative Writing and English instead. He didn’t become a writer. In the context of getting paid to put words on a piece of paper, he described the degree as worthless, but was quick to defend his teenage self’s decisionmaking process. “I guess (writing) was something I wanted to be able to do,” he said. “But it was also something I didn’t already do compulsively. But, with that in mind, I’ve usually only used art to pay the bills.” Over the course of almost three decades in Ann Arbor, Zinn has created scores of drawings on any imaginable sidewalk in town. His tools have included everything from charcoal to paint, but he’s cultivated something of a reputation for his work with chalk. The creatures he brings to life peer out of the ground with childlike innocence. The most famous ones, Sluggo and The Flying Pig, are featured on the homepage of his website, both draped by a simple, Pixar-esque message: “Occupy your imagination. Or someone else will.” “One of the things that made sidewalk art so appealing, in addition to it being ludicrous – I mean, you’re playing with children’s toys so there’s no highfalutin baggage,” he said, “is that it’s not permanent.” Permanence, Zinn explains, can magnify the relevance an artist inherently implies while crafting more traditional work. “I tried to stay away from what a lot of people call ‘real art’ because whenever you put brush to canvas, there’s this pressure of wondering whether or not the time, effort and durability you put into defacing that blank space is going to be worth it in the end.” It’s a far-reaching, generalized philosophy — one that, as Zinn states, can be applicable to any mode of work or life. In essence, if you erase the staying power of what’s in front of you, you’re free to be true to the moment and, by
The hip hop of summer
N
ow that everyone has more or less survived the tornado that is welcome week, it’s time to get back to business. Summer 2013 proved to be one of the most memorable in hiphop history. Kanye West, Jay-Z, Big Sean, J. Cole and countJACKSON less more HOWARD released attentiongrabbing projects, while Kendrick Lamar set the hip-hop world on fire with his lyrical onslaught “Control” verse. Even as the summer officially winds down, though, hip hop continues to make news. I’ve included here a couple of the bigger topics over the last couple weeks to keep you updated. Recognize. Drake and the buildup to Nothing Was the Same
MARLENE LACASSE/Daily
Zinn draws his detailed chalk creations all over Ann Arbor public spaces.
extension, yourself. “If you stand there, worrying about what you should do with the tools in front of you, you’ll do nothing, and nothing will happen,” Zinn explained. “If you just remember that what you’re about to do is, in fact, pointless and impermanent and ethereal, it can be the catalyst that makes work possible. It pushes you to realize that you should just be enjoying the process of creating.” The process has let Zinn develop a style of sidewalk art that, when pressed, he could only describe as “kind of a Rorschach test” – a Rorschach test administered by the disjointed nature of Zinn’s medium: concrete sidewalks. “The sidewalk is actually not a blank canvas because it has all these wonderful specks and pebbles and holes and cracks, so what you’re really doing is you’re connecting the dots,” he said. “It’s a free association experiment where you stare at all those pebbles and bits and pieces of gum until you see something, and you just draw what you see.” That almost otherworldly concept of subject matter presenting itself in moments of visual inspiration is one that Zinn references when describing how he came across Sluggo, the green alien-like creature that inhabits many of his drawings. “The first time that I thought he appeared was as a drawing of a kid. But, no offense to this kid, his head was strangely eggplantshaped,” he recounted. “So, I set out to draw this happy, dancing child, and this happy, dancing child has an aborigine-shaped head that I then had to deal with. I tried to wing it.” It didn’t work. “Every time I tried to put eyes on this head, it looked terrifying. It was just an unhappy-looking
mutant child, and I kept having to erase and erase and erase,” Zinn said. “So, out of sheer annoyance, I drew eyes above his head. Fine. There. Done. And as soon as I did that, he was OK with what he was.” Since that fateful first encounter, Sluggo has become Zinn’s most recognizable character and also one to which (“at risk of sounding too arty”) he feels he’s developed an emotional attachment. But if there’s a place where the green mutant won’t be found, it’s a wall. Walls aren’t public property and, as a result, are out of bounds for Zinn’s artistic pursuits. Because Ann Arbor has such open policies about using sidewalks and other collective University spots for open art, Zinn never really felt the need to endeavor into graffiti territory. Ann Arbor law allows artists like Zinn to use chalk on public sidewalks and walkways as long as they aren’t a disturbance to anyone walking down the street or going to work. Graffiti, traditionally associated with images of hooded hooligans gleefully marauding around at night with cans of spray paint close at hand, is a different story. It’s usually on private property, a lot more permanent and therefore more likely to be fined. “The only issue I have with graffiti is that it puts people on edge when they look at me,” Zinn said. “I’ve had a few run-ins with police officers who had to make sure that it was indeed chalk I was using, which, interestingly, is how I found out chalk was legal.” Of course, Zinn adds, graffiti puts local business owners in a bad mood because they are required by the city to remove it from their property after-the-fact or face the risk of ever-heftier fines. As a result, usually the only backlash Zinn ever receives for his work
MERGE
bombastic synths, Win Butler and Régine Chassagne trading foreboding verses in French and English and a layered buildup giving way to an explosive chorus. The songwriting duo has turned their gaze on the inescapable grasp of technology, a rousing call to “break free”
has to do with drawing on walls classified as private property. “It’s nice to be working in a medium where I actually don’t have to hide in darkness and break the law,” he said. “Because, technically, it’s a performance art. I can even put out a hat for tips — something I don’t think you can do with spray paint.” And he’s done it in the past, the first time collecting a grand total of $3.35. “It was a bunch of teenagers who pointed out the lunacy of drawing outside with a hat on your head instead of on the ground,” he said. Zinn speaks at length about coming to terms with the perceived irrelevance of his medium and art. Unlike traditional forms of expression, he never gets to see the reactions of his intended audience. He draws on the sidewalk and walks away. To some degree, he describes, there’s a certain freedom that comes with not looking back. “It’s reassuring to think that because you don’t know how it’s going to be perceived, or who’s going to see it or what effect it’s going to have on them, the possibilities are endless,” he said. “Even though I don’t cure cancer, I can draw something on the path that someone takes to work on a job that affects someone who does. And even if they hated what I do, that might be the catalyst.” When the discussion shifted back to his time as a student in Ann Arbor, Zinn seems a little bit more at ease. He laughed briefly and further explained his decision to not study design. “That was my college self making a decision,” he said. “Thinking back, if I was absolutely being honest, I’d say that college self was using that decision to rationalize not wanting to take the bus to North Campus.”
Following in the footsteps of Jay-Z and Kanye, Drake has been ultra tight-lipped about his upcoming album, Nothing Was the Same, set to release Sept. 24. As the date approaches, however, details have started to appear. The excellent, ’80s-wedding-sounding second single “Hold On, We’re Going Home” finds Drake harkening back to his “Find Your Love” sound, while the street single, “All Me,” with 2 Chainz and Big Sean is boasting at its finest. Still, as a secretly diehard Drake fan (I love his music, but at points, he’s just too easy to hate), I’m worried that NWTS can’t live up to Drake’s last album, the momentous Take Care. On that record, Drake somehow managed to pour his heart out without being cheesy, effectively making up for his mediocre debut. Take Care was genuine, dark, cohesive and epic. Come on, the album cover is Drake sitting pensively alone at a table holding a goblet. So far, Nothing Was the Same has been true to its name: Almost nothing resembles Take Care. And this is great, but is it wrong to want “Headlines” instead of “Started From the Bottom,” or to feel somewhat skeptical when the album artwork is an oil painting of baby Drake facing old Drake against a light, blue sky? This is a classic case of judging a book by its cover, I know. Then again, artists will — and should — evolve. The tracklist for Nothing Was the Same shows features from only Detail and Jay-Z, a promising sign that Drake’s lyrical ability will shine more this time around. There’s a song called, “Wu-Tang Forever,” which makes me want to squeal, and the opening track, “Tuscan Leather,” supposedly flips the same Whitney Houston sample three different times, once for each verse. Challenged by up-and-comers and given the spotlight by veterans, Drake is in the prime of his career and on the top of his game. Let’s hope he pulls through. Who knows? In a few years, Nothing
Was the Same could be the start of an epic sentence ending with, “after Drake released his third album.” Lil Wayne releases Dedication 5 As someone who appreciates quality hip hop, I have a really hard time enjoying Lil Wayne’s recent string of abysmally bad music. This year’s I Am Not a Human Being II was a nail in the coffin of sorts for Wayne’s standing as a legitimate rapper. I actually had to take multiple breaks in between songs to process the vulgarity of Wayne’s lyrics. Where Wayne has always shined, however, is on mixtapes. From the legendary Da Drought series to the prequels of Dedication 5, Wayne has a knack for picking the best beats around and absolutely spazzing. On Dedication 5, Wayne manages to avoid regressing even further, which, at this point, should be deemed a victory. The tape is 29 songs, which is 15 songs too many, but it’s clear that Wayne is serious about rapping again. The Weeknd shows up for a classic feature on the opening track, while T.I. kills three separate songs. The best appearance, though, goes to Chance The Rapper, who, as of right now, has early-Drake-level hype surrounding him. His whimsical rhymes and nasally flow on “You Song” make the track a highlight and, surprisingly, Wayne keeps up. It’s easy to see Wayne’s influence on Chance’s style, and I can only imagine the excitement Chance felt when he got a phone call requesting him to be on the tape. A much bigger question remains: How is Lil Wayne going to continue to grow? So far, his attempts at changing have been painfully clear: releasing a rock album, signing everybody to his label and even becoming a skateboarder. Wayne’s one-time contemporaries, Kanye West, Jay-Z and, even to an extent, Rick Ross, have all noticeably evolved their art in attempts to be groundbreaking or, at least, relevant. Wayne has done no such thing; in fact, his two most famous protégés, Nicki Minaj and Drake, have already eclipsed him in growth. Lil Wayne isn’t going away, but sooner than later a time is going to come when people stop caring. Wake up, Weezy. The game isn’t yours anymore. Finally, my favorite songs of the summer: Big Sean, “Beware” feat. Lil Wayne & Jhene Aiko; Ciara, “Body Party”; Drake, “Hold On, We’re Going Home” feat. Majid Jordan; Drake, “The Motion” feat. Sampha; Earl Sweatshirt, “Sunday” feat. Frank Ocean; Fantasia, “Without Me” feat. Kelly Rowland & Missy Elliott; J. Cole, “Forbidden Fruit” feat. Kendrick Lamar; Kanye West, “Bound 2” feat. Charlie Wilson; Wale, “Bad” feat. Tiara Thomas Howard is blasting ‘Body Party.’ To dance with him, e-mail jackhow@umich.edu.
EPISODE REVIEW
SINGLE REVIEW Even by Arcade Fire’s standards, the objective was ambitious on “Reflektor.” The band wanted to release two Avideos for the single: one Reflektor directed by Arcade Fire Anton Corbijn, the other Merge an interactive multimedia experience unlike anything you’ve ever seen. It wanted James Murphy to produce the song and David Bowie to sing vocals. It wanted a sevenminute disco song that evoked bossa nova and Talking Heads while sounding decidedly like neither. And because Arcade Fire can do whatever it wants, the Grammy-winning quintet did just that, and it did it well. “Reflektor” still possesses trademark features of the Montreal-based band: multiinstrument rock paired with
HIP-HOP COLUMN
hidden beneath the dance-hall jitteriness of “Reflektor.” It’s a calculated contradiction from a band that has blurred expectations since its inception. By combining indie rock and space disco, Arcade Fire is crafting the pop music of the future. —JAKE OFFENHARTZ
Nucky’s back. Kind of. It’s that same gargantuan forehead, the same greased back hair and the same crooked Asmile, but if you take a New York step back and Sour look beyond Steve BusBoardwalk cemi’s creepy Empire eyes, you HBO begin to realize this isn’t the Nucky we’ve come to know and love. Because Nucky, like so many of the darker protagonists that have come to define this “golden age” of TV, is beginning to unwind. Gone is the Machiavellian king pin who expertly convinced Jimmy to walk smiling into the arms of his own demise. Gone is the political machine that controlled bootlegging in Atlantic City with the deft hands of a practiced puppeteer.
HBO
Nucky has always been a pragmatist, but there’s a theme of desperation in how he cowers in his hotel rooms while buying out Arnold and Joe. Some could say our beleaguered hero is just biding his time, waiting for the opportune moment to exact revenge, and even if that is the
case, “New York Sour” makes it clear that the world is moving forward without him. The saddest part, and where this episode distinguishes itself, is watching Nucky fumble around trying to convince himself that he’s part of that motion. —AKSHAY SETH
the b-side
4B — Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
THE D’ART BOARD Each week we take shots at the biggest developments in the entertainment world. Here’s what hit (and missed) this week.
He ain’t Van Gone yet Van Gogh’s sunset at montmajour (1888) accepted as an authentic after more than a century of doubt and two years of praise.
Super Bruno Bruno Mars booked as halftime performer for Super Bowl XLVIII.
So Very Sesual Tina Fey will host SNL’s 39th season premiere Sept. 28.
Still Britney, Bitch Britney’s new single, “Work Bitch,” leaked before the release of snippets of her new album, Work Bitch, out Sept. 16.
Better watch Saul AMC has a licensing agreement for “Breaking Bad” spinoff, with the working title “Better Call Saul.”
Miley’s Hammer The music video for “Wrecking Ball” was released Sept. 10, and shows Miley spinning on a...wrecking ball. Poetic.
Design by Nick Cruz
GRAFFITI From Page 1B “It’s not a shady area to me,” Boening said. “Not from what I’ve been around.” After Boening leaves to look for a different shooting location on State Street, a handful of University students meander through, Instagramming photos and sketching in their notebooks. As the sun shines and people pass happily on the street, it certainly doesn’t look like the sinister space some make it out to be. But the night tells a slightly different story. With Necto Nightclub and Scorekeepers Bar and Grill just across the street, a slew of interesting characters can be found smoking (possibly cigarettes) just outside the clubs. A man asks a group of bar-hoppers for money, while a girl crosses to the other side of the street to avoid the scene. There are groups of panhandlers crowded on various corners on both sides of East Liberty Street. At around 11 p.m., as the party at Necto starts to populate and people congregate around the alley, it’s easy to see why business owners would be worried about the effect the area would have on their business. But after the groups move into Necto, the street is relatively quiet. The alley is empty, and those who
are out only pass through on their way to or from Washington Street. For Naser Ras, a manager at Hommus Express, and Doreen Sun, a manager at TK WU, the alley poses no problems to their businesses, which operate primarily during the day. Sun, who has been a manager at TK WU for 10 years, said though she personally has never had bad experiences with panhandlers or rowdy teenagers, the owner of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, which closed at the end of March and was located right next to the alley, used to complain about the effects of the alley on her business. “We have a lot of homeless that come to our store to buy food, but I don’t think it’s a problem,” Sun said. “It doesn’t bother us.” The space previously occupied by Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is currently unoccupied, but will soon house Tamaki, a custom sushi restaurant. Ann Arbor City Councilmember Sabra Briere (D–Ward 1) wrote in an e-mail interview that the city has worked closely with human service organizations in the past couple years to combat homelessness in the area, as well as provide support to those facing addiction and mental health issues. In a 2011 interview with AnnArbor.com, Briere said “there’s a certain lawless nature to the area.” Now, however, things have
improved and Briere even receives proposals to hold art exhibits in the alley. “A couple of years ago, I was hearing that there were people in need of help — and in denial that they needed help — who demanded money from those just walking through,” Briere wrote. “Have the alleys changed? I think so.” A complex public space Briere and others have taken strides to ensure that all residents and visitors of Ann Arbor feel safe in the streets. But for some, the very fact that the alley makes people uncomfortable is reason to celebrate it. Over the years, Nick Tobier, an associate professor in the School of Art & Design, has watched the State Street area transform from a place that housed mostly local businesses, to one overrun with national chains and corporations. Tobier, whose work focuses on public art, said Graffiti Alley offers the city a refreshing break from the corporatized America that can be found in any town. “I think that Graffiti Alley helps contribute to the sense of an eccentric place,” Tobier said. “It’s really necessary in a complex city to have places that are, I don’t mean deviant in a bad (way), but I mean slightly apart from mainstream consumer culture.” Tobier said the abundance of
Tuesday,
NICHOLAS WILLIAMS/Daily
LSA juniors Han Yu and Jose Gomez admire the alley on a late night stroll.
NICHOLAS WILLIAMS/Daily
LSA junior Waseef Ahsan and LSA senior Saif Hassan take a rest from the heat.
panhandlers and teenagers who make some local business owners and residents uncomfortable are a direct result of the State Street changes. He said it’s inevitable that people will gravitate towards “unbranded corporate-logo spaces” like the alley. That’s not to say Tobier endorses crime. On the contrary, he and many other artists advocate for the space as a way to make sure everyone in the city has the chance to say something or to express themselves in an artistic
way. “I’m all for safe streets; I don’t want people to feel vulnerable,” he said. “But teenagers feel vulnerable. They need to feel like there’s a place where they can leave their mark or they can do their own thing without someone shouting at them.” With the rejection of the proposed art millage on last November’s ballot — which would have provided funds for public art installation projects such as murals or sculptures — followed
by the suspension of the Percent for Art program, the future of public art in the city remains unclear. In Tobier’s eyes, Graffiti Alley can help fill the void and provide Ann Arbor with a necessary place for expression in a public setting. He said Ann Arbor has a ways to go in improving its public art scene in all different scales. “The reflection of a complex society is a complex public space. You need all types of things to be able to exist,” he said.