10-29-09

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Cal Poly faces off against North Dakota this weekend.

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Volume LXXIV, Number 34

IN SPORTS, 12

Thursday, October 29, 2009

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Women engineers make their presence known Despite a national stereotype towards male domination the industry, the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), a national educational and service organization with college chapters nationwide, empowers women to achieve their full potential as engineers and as leaders.

Lesley Telford, the president of the Cal Poly chapter, said that the student club creates an outlet for women to explore their interest in the engineering industry and become part of a community with similar motivations.

“Having a lot of us goes against the stereotype,” Telford said. “I feel that SWE on a national level has done a good job in showing that women can be engineers and can be successful.”

In providing career and scho-

lastic resources built around promoting a voice for women in the industry, SWE is on the right track with changing roles of contemporary women, according to a report

by California First Lady Maria Shriver and the Center for American Progress.

In a nationwide study released two weeks ago, titled “The Shriver Report: A Woman’s Nation Changes Everything,” it was determined that for the first time in history, half of all U.S. workers, including all professions, are women.

Karen Bangs, the faculty advisor for the Cal Poly chapter, feels that the club supports the new statistics by encouraging women to not be deterred by technical careers.

“Every once in a while there will be some opposition, but in

general it is a very supportive industry and college,” Bangs said.

The Cal Poly chapter of SWE does a lot to support women engineers and has the awards to prove it.

Twenty members from the Cal Poly division attended The Society of Women Engineers’ National Conference, the largest annual woman engineers’ conference in the U.S., from Oct. 15-17 in Long Beach, claiming first place for the seventh time since 2002 for the Large Outstanding Collegiate Section on the Gold Level.

Other awards presented to Cal Poly included tying for first place for both Cal Poly Team Tech groups (a technical engineering competition) and first place for Outstanding Outreach Event for “Building an Engineer Day.”

courtesy photo

Cal Poly’s Society Women of Engineers received several first place awards at the largest women’s engineering conference in the U.S. Kendra Rowley, vice president of outreach for the club, said that “Building an Engineer Day” has

had the most impact on younger students by helping them to realsee Engineers, page 2

Poly Canyon goes green UPD steps up Students compete to see who can reduce the most energy consumption Leticia Rodriguez mustang daily

Taking long hot showers, doing small loads of laundry, and leaving a computer on all night are just some of the habits the Green

A dripping hot water faucet can waste 212 gallons of water a month.

High-efficiency washers use less water and can save up to 7,000 gallons a year.

Compact flourescent light bulbs use 75 percent less energy and last ten times longer than standard light bulbs.

LEDs reduce energy consumption by as much as 90 percent compared to traditional light bulbs.

LEDs can produce enough light for 20 holiday seasons.

If every house in the US used CFLs, it would be equivilant to preventing greenhouse gas emissions from ten million cars

Campus Program is encouraging students to eliminate in its first Poly Canyon Village Energy Competition.

The competition is aimed at not only saving Cal Poly money on their utility bills pitting the residents of the nine Poly Canyon housing units against each other to see which one can reduce its energy consumption the most in the next four weeks. Students in the winning residence hall each will get aluminum or steel water bottles and the resident advisers will get new sweatshirts. Green Campus secretary Ravi Sahai wants students to gain a valuable learning experience from the competition.

“I hope that students gain a greater awareness on the importance of sustainability because it’s something important especially for the future and why it’s important to do those things,” he said.

Green Campus is overseen by the Alliance to Save Energy, a national nonprofit, and was started in fall 2007 by four students who initially wrote the 50 page proposal to bring the program to Cal Poly. Once the proposal was accepted, the program was formed and funding became available

through grants, and tax payer money from PG&E, and Southern California Edison. Across the state, currently Stanford University, and twelve California State University (CSU) and University of California (UC) campuses have this program.

The idea behind the competition is to measure the amount of energy used by each building in terms of dollars. In order to get an accurate reading and make the competition as fair as possible between the buildings, program student interns (along with Green Campus staff advisor and Cal Poly Sustainability Manager Dennis Elliot), installed a separate meter to measure strictly the water, heat, and electricity used by businesses located below housing facilities. That number is then subtracted from the overall building total. At the end of the four week period, the housing facility with the lowest dollar amount per student is the winner. In order to conserve energy, Sahai said the group is mainly encouraging students to change their everyday behaviors by taking five minute showers, washing larger loads of laundry, and by turning off applisee Energy, page 3

bike enforcement Alexandria Scott special to the mustang daily

In the busy morning commute, a cyclist rushes on Truckee Road and Village Drive, near Diablo Hall, runs a stop sign, almost hits three or four pedestrians and cuts off a car before running another stop sign.

If he had been ticketed it could have cost more than $500.

The University Police Department has started to crack down and enforce bicycle regulation on campus.

“It’s not that we are going to be handing out tickets to everyone, it’s a judgment thing, and it’s not always black and white,” Sgt. Robert Eckrote said. “We will be giving tickets and less warnings.”

Enforcement has been increased because there are hundreds more cyclists on campus this year than in previous years and too many complaints and accidents have been made, Officer Frank Herrera said.

Officers have been looking at bike traffic at busy intersections like California Boulevard and Campus Way, North Perimeter Road and Via Carta and Grand Avenue and Slack Street, to get an idea of how many people are violating the law.

Officer Chad Reiley found lots of violations during his survey.

“Between 15 to 20 minutes I saw 80 to 100 violations,” he said.

Checking traffic lets officers know which parts of campus are more dangerous than others. Eckrote said the UPD found several common violations.

“The most common violations are failing to stop at a stop sign and no headlights (used) half-hour before sunrise and half-hour after sunset,” he said.

UPD designed and put up A-frame signs reminding cyclists to stop at stop signs and officers have been handing out informational flyers about bicycle

Stop sign-$146.00 Failure to obey traffic direction-$146.00 Evading of Police-$2000.00 Riding on sidewalk-$32.00 Headphones-$126.00 No headlights-$108.00 Impound-$10.00 Seize-$20.00

see, Bike page 3

News editor: Tim Miller mustangdailynews@gmail.com

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Engineers continued from page 1

ize that women can pursue stereotypical male-dominated careers.

For this event, middle school students come to the campus and participate in four engineering labs led by professors and students.

There are statistics that say fourth and fifth graders are when students are the most discouraged by math and science.

—Kendra Rowley

VP of outreach club

Last year, the Cal Poly division of SWE led more than 400 middle school students through the event, the largest amount of students than ever before.

“We want to expose younger students to engineering,” Rowley said. “There are statistics that say something like fourth and fifth grades are when students are the most discouraged by math and science. We want to get them to try it out and even if they decide they don’t like it, at least they were exposed.”

In addition to organizing community outreach events, the club holds events to help college students to meet others with their interests, develop leadership skills and prepare themselves for careers.

Such events include three industry tours per quarter, in which Cal

Poly students take tours of engineering companies including Ernie Ball, NetApp and Lockheed Martin. Another event is the Team Tech competition, in which they are given a technical assignment with a company, which is Mazzetti this year.

As for opportunities for networking, internships and jobs, the biggest networking event of the year is “Evening with the Industry,” which includes a social hour and dinner with about 35 engineering companies.

Companies such as Lockheed Martin, Hewlett-Packard, Chevron, Amazon, Accenture and Northrop Grumman buy tables and students are able to choose which table they sit at. It provides a chance for students to network with companies that they are interested in and to get internships or jobs.

The passion and dedication of the 46 student officers is what makes these events possible, Bangs said.

“It’s such an honor to work with men and women that have a passion for supporting women’s growth in this industry. I see them grow, mature, and become more confident in their leadership skills.

I always tell them it’s not all about winning the awards, but about what you learn during the process,” Bangs said.

Many of the officers said that the biggest thing they’ve learned is that they play an influential role in the changing roles of women in society by getting more women to realize that they can be successful in technical careers.

“When I was in charge of outreach two years ago, I got a couple of e-mails saying, ‘My child now wants to be an engineer.’ Even if they were not interested in math or science, the program made them want to be an engineer,” Bangs said. “Just the idea that I was able to make a difference in people’s lives was really great.”

News

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Mosque leader saw duty to fight Ben Schmitt, Niraj Warikoo and Robin Erb detroit free press

DETROIT — Luqman Ameen Abdullah believed he and his followers were soldiers at war against the government and non-Muslims.

“Abdullah told his followers it is their duty to oppose the FBI and the government and it does not matter if they die,” FBI agent Gary Leone said in an affidavit unsealed Wednesday. “He also told the group that they need to plan to do something.”

Abdullah, 53, of Detroit stayed true to his word Wednesday as armed FBI agents raided a Dearborn, Mich., warehouse. Authorities said he refused to surrender, opened fire and then died in a shootout in which an FBI dog also was killed.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI in Detroit unsealed a 43page document describing a sinister, radical fundamentalist group headed

by Abdullah. The document notes conversations he had with undercover agents and federal informants that ranged from talking about attacking Super Bowl XL in Detroit to blowing himself up as a final act of courage.

“If they are coming to get to me, I’ll just strap a bomb on and blow up everybody,” he said in a March 21, 2008, conversation.

Federal officials said Abdullah was the leader of a group that calls itself “Ummah, a group of mostly African-American converts to Islam, which seeks to establish a separate Sharia-law governed state within the United States.”

“The Ummah is ruled by Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin, formerly known as H. Rap Brown, who is serving a state sentence ... for the murder of two police officers in Georgia.”

Brown came to prominence in the 1960s as a leader of the Black Panther Party.

“He regularly preaches anti government and anti law enforcement rhetoric,” Leone said of Abdullah

in the affidavit. “Abdullah and his followers have trained regularly in the use of firearms and continue to train in martial arts and sword fighting.”

Why Abdullah and his followers chose Detroit as their haven remains unknown, Detroit FBI spokeswoman Sandra Berchtold said Wednesday.

Authorities said none mcclatchy-tribune of the charges levied Members of the FBI Response Team collect Wednesday are terroristevidence underneath a tractor-trailer durrelated. Abdullah and 11 suspects were charged ing a raid in Dearborn, Michigan. with felonies including igan Council on American-Islamic illegal possession and sale of firearms, mail fraud to obtain the Relations, said Arena called him as proceeds of arson, theft from inter- well.

Walid said he knew Abdullah. state shipments and tampering with “I know him as respected imam motor vehicle identification numin the Muslim community,” Walid bers.

Seven of the suspects appeared said.

At some point after the raids and Wednesday in U.S. District Court, shootout, the FBI landed a helicopone was in custody and three were ter with the wounded dog at 12:25 still being sought.

Imad Hamad, senior national p.m. on normally busy John R, adviser and regional director of the just south of 12 Mile Road, “right Dearborn-based Arab-American in front of the hospital,” Madison Anti-Discrimination Committee, Heights police said.

FBI agents then carried the said he received a call from the head of the FBI’s Detroit office mid-day wounded dog into Veterinary Emergency Services at 28223 John to tell him about the raid.

Hamad said FBI Special Agent R. There were no injuries and no Andrew Arena told him the case traffic mishaps as a result of the unwas “solely criminal” and had to do usual landing, although the police with “smuggling and fraud.” He said department received so many calls Arena revealed few details of the in- about the landing that Police Chief vestigation, but said it had been on- Kevin Sagan issued a written news release Wednesday explaining what going for about two years.

Hamad said he didn’t know the happened.

Shadi Saad, the owner of Welldefendants. care Pharmacy in Dearborn, said he “Agents were trying to chase some people,” Hamad said Arena stepped outside before lunchtime told him about the raid. “They were to see several people in FBI jackets giving instructions to lay down. with guns going toward the wareHe resisted. He pulled a gun. They house across the street. He heard exchanged fire, he was shot down, noises like shots and a short time later a helicopter descended. killed. A dog ... was dead as well.”

“It was like a movie scene for The warehouse is near the heavily commercial intersection of Miller a minute,” he said. He opened his business just 10 days ago. “This isn’t and Michigan.

Dawud Walid, head of the Mich- the way I wanted it to start.”

Religious Directory

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Energy continued from page 1

ances when not in use. Energy use can be especially a problem in the residence and apartment halls because students often think of them as temporary lodging and don’t consider conservation.

“It’s students being aware and getting out of that whole ‘hotel mentality.’ Just because they don’t pay for energy, doesn’t meant it doesn’t matter,” he said.

Journalism senior Michael Handler lives in corralitos, and said the potential award has nothing to do with his energy saving efforts.

“Just developing habits like that you can save a lot of money so when we’re adults and we actually have to pay for our electricity, we will realize how much we can actually save for ourselves,” he said.

In previous years, the dorm competition has been held only between the red bricks, and has reduced their energy anywhere from 15-30 percent. The way the program measures energy usage is by splitting it up into three categories: electricity, heat, and water.

During the dorm competition in spring 2008 between all six red brick buildings, the students saved Cal Poly an estimated $10,000 in one month. Normally, University Housing spends approximately $41,000 a month on utilities. Elliot said the money saved goes to funding future energy saving projects.

This year, Sahai said Green Campus is hoping to at the very least, match that percentage number.

For the 2009-2010 budget, University Housing expects to spend approximately one million in housing utilities for Poly Canyon. If Green Campus accomplishes their goal, housing could save approximately $20,000-$25,000.

While the program is anticipating another red bick rivalry winter quarter, public relations intern Danielle Chandler said they wanted to expand it this year to Poly Canyon because they’d never done it before and were looking to get more students involved. But along with competition, comes intense rivalry and competitiveness. While only rumors of using another

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Thursday, October 29, 2009 building’s laundry facility in an effort to affect their energy bill have been whispered, last year students were known to run into other red brick buildings, flip on all their lights or use their showers. While the sabotaging of another building isn’t condoned by the program, both Elliot and Sahai said they take it with a grain of salt and if anything, it shows that students care. “(Last year) was an interesting experience,” Elliot said. “A very positive topic for us is students being interested (and) it did make it clear that people were aware and paying attention.”

Emily Sandoval, the learning community coordinator for the sophomore success program, said she hopes that at the end, students will realize how even small steps like turning off lights when leaving a room can affect their future.

“I think overall it’s a fun way to start bringing awareness to energy conservation and a fun way for students to realize that they have the power to impact things,” she said.

“I’m hoping they learn how everyone plays a part in energy conservation and how even just a little bit that one person can do can affect the bigger picture on a larger scale.

Saving energy isn’t that hard.”

In an effort to reduce her energy cosumption, child development sophmore Hayley Gilligan is also making a conscious attempt to change her habits. In addition to turning off lights when she leaves a room, Gilligan leaves the light off in the bathroom during the day and doesn’t turn the fan on in the bathroom after a shower in lieu of letting the room air out itself.

“I hope doing this will get me into the habit of turning off the lights and be good for the environment forever,” Gilligan said. “It’s good for the environment so it’s good for me.”

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News Bike continued from page 1

laws. Since Oct. 1, officers have been going to dorms to educate students about campus safety, including biking.

Sgt. Lori Hashim said that the UPD had officers actively involved and helping to educate campus.

“It’s all part of the campaign, get everyone educated,” she said. “Let’s give everyone a chance.”

The UPD will be on foot, bikes and in cars regulating bicycilists, Eckrote said.

“Officers will be standing at stop signs and if a biker doesn’t stop the officer will radio another bike officer who will continue to pull them over,” he said.

If a person is trying to run from an officer and gets caught officers will arrest them for evading of a police officer and take them to county jail.

Officers will decide what to do if a cyclist is trying to escape, Reiley said.

“With any violator trying to get away, we would have to look and see if it is dangerous to chase,” he said.“We can radio giving a description but there is not much an officer can do at that point. It’s a case by case scenario.”

With a first time offense, the violator depending on the citation,

has two options; pay the ticket or attend Bicycle and Skateboard Diversion class that is two hours long, Hashim said.

“If you attend the class then the ticket is dismissed.With a second offense you don’t get the class option,” she said.

The class goes over all laws pertaining to bicycles in detail and students watch safety movies, Reiley said.

A fine has to be paid in four to six weeks or it will turn into a warrant for arrest, Eckrote said. Getting multiple bike tickets will also raise car insurance rates.

Tickets also can be issued when a bike is locked to anything other than

a bike rack.

“We do a warning with a slip, after that the bike is impounded with a bike lock and the owner will have to pay a fine. If not picked up in 24 hours the bike is seized and prices go up,” he said.

All bikes on campus must be registered with the UPD, there is no penalty but registering a bike can help in getting it returned after it is lost or stolen. Registration can be done online or forms can be picked up at the UPD office.

All Unclaimed bikes go to the lost and found for six months and then are are placed into the semi-annual bike auction. The next auction is Nov. 4 and 5 at the UPD.

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

News

Clinton tries to resuscitate Obama signs U.S. policy amid bombings first major federSaeed Shah mcclatchy newspapers

ISLAMABAD — Amid devastating bombings directed at civilian targets in Pakistan and Afghanistan, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton began a drive Wednesday to advance Washington’s policies in the troubled region by seeking to “turn the page” and convince skeptical Pakistanis that the U.S. aim is security and stability.

In Peshawar, in northwest Pakistan, Islamist insurgents detonated a car bomb in a narrow, bustling bazaar in the heart of the city hours after Clinton arrived, killing more than 100 people and wounding more than 200. The deadliest terrorist strike in Pakistan in two years transformed a market frequented by women seeking cosmetics into an apocalyptic scene of rubble, fire and blood. mcclatchy-newspapers Pakistan is reeling from a barrage of terrorist attacks that appear to be Map of Pakistan locating sites of attacks by militants in recent weeks. a response to the army’s offensive in South Waziristan, a region on the have even led many in the country they’re on the losing side of history, Afghan border that’s the base for — including parliamentarians and but they are determined to take as Pakistani extremist groups, Afghan members of the armed forces — to many lives with them (as possible), as insurgents and al-Qaida. Bombings think that the violence is being or- their movement is exposed for the and gun attacks have struck cities chestrated by other countries, in- nihilistic, empty effort that it is,” she across the country since early this cluding the United States, showing told a news conference Wednesday the gulf of distrust that the Obama in Islamabad. month, killing nearly 300 people.

“The United States seeks to turn In Kabul, the Afghan capital, gun- administration must bridge.

“The main architect of these ter- the page to a new partnership with men attacked an international guesthouse early Wednesday where many rorist activities is the CIA,” charged not only the government but the U.N. employees were staying, killing Riaz Pirzada, a member of parlia- people of Pakistan,” she said. “We at least five people, some of whom ment from the opposition Pakistan commit to stand shoulder to shoulwere in the country to monitor the Muslim League-Q, the third-largest der with the Pakistani people in your political party in the legislature. fight for peace and security.” runoff of a fraud-marred election.

The American image has taken a The Obama administration has “America has to leave this region and severe battering in recent weeks over said that stability in Afghanistan and let the people live their own lives.”

Some expert analysts have asked an aid bill that Congress approved in Pakistan is a key to U.S. homeland security, but rising casualties among why the United States is building up September, which imposed condiAmerican and NATO forces in its forces in Afghanistan when the tions on Pakistan that some PakistanAfghanistan and the uncertain out- threat to that country and abroad is claimed implied that their country come of national elections there have emanates from groups based in Paki- was a state sponsor of terrorism.This raised questions in Congress — and stan. Al-Qaida is considered to be has fed a wave of anti-Americanism throughout South Asia — about U.S. headquartered in Pakistan, with its sweeping the country. The powerful leaders, including Osama bin Laden, Pakistani army publicly voiced “seriplans for the region. ous concern” about the bill, which Far from considering the Unit- hiding in the country.

Clinton, opening a high-profile, strongly backed civilian control over ed States an ally against extremism, many Pakistanis blame the American three-day visit to Pakistan under the military.

Clinton said that the Pakistani presence in the region and Islam- intense security precautions, deabad’s alliance with Washington for nounced Wednesday’s bombings as debate over the bill had opened her the violence. The ready weapons, she appealed for understanding of eyes to the “misperceptions” beexplosives and financing of the ex- U.S. efforts to assist the region. tremists who are attacking Pakistan “They (the extremists) know see Bombing, page 5

al gay rights law Margaret Talev mcclatchy newspapers

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed the first major piece of federal gay rights legislation, a milestone that activists compared to the passage of 1960s civil rights legislation empowering blacks.

The new law adds acts of violence against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people to the list of federal hate crimes. Gay rights activists voiced hope that the Obama administration would advance more issues, including legislation to bar workplace discrimination, allow military service and recognize same-sex marriages.

Congress passed the hate crimes protections as an unlikely amendment to this year’s Defense Authorization Act. Obama, speaking at an

emotional evening reception with supporters of the legislation, said that more than 12,000 hate crimes had been reported the past decade based on sexual orientation.

He spoke of President Lyndon Johnson signing protections for blacks in the 1960s and said this was an extension of that work. “We must stand against crimes that are meant not only to break bones but to break spirits,” Obama said.

“No one in America should ever be afraid to walk down the street holding the hands of the person they love.”

Legislation barring firms from firing employees on the basis of their sexual orientation could win passage in the House of Representatives by year’s end, gay rights adsee Obama, page 5

mcclatchy-newspapers President Barack Obama congratulates Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen (left) after signing into law the National Defense Authorization Act for FY2010 at the White House, in the East Room, Oct. 28 in Washington, DC.

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

Word on the Street

continued from page 4

tween the countries.

She told Pakistani television anchors in an interview Wednesday that she’d come to “clear the air,” but in a show of frustration over the highly charged tone of the criticism of the $1.5 billion-a-year aid bill, she added: “You don’t have to take the money.”

“The Pakistani people have the impression that we are being held hostage for a very meager amount,” said Enver Baig, a former head of the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate, the upper house of Pakistan’s parliament. “The U.S. has to be very clear whether they are friends with open arms or not.”

In Peshawar, police said that more than 330 pounds of high explosives packed into a car had caused the powerful blast. Rows of shops were flattened and a fire engulfed the area.

“It was a deafening sound, and there were plumes of smoke and dust all around the narrow and already dark streets. I could not see anything for some time and there was a smell of explosives everywhere,” said Noor Khan, who’d been shopping in an adjacent market in Peshawar.

Some shop owners said that they’d previously received threats from Islamic extremists who objected to women out shopping — in a bazaar that catered primarily to them.

“The terrorists are trying to demoralize the people and the government,” said senior provincial Minister Bashir Bilour, who visited the scene.

“Even if we have to die, we’ll keep fighting these terrorists till our last breath.”

Obama continued from page 4

vocates said. More than half of U.S. states currently allow employers such freedom.

Obama has promised to push Congress to repeal the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that prohibits being openly gay while serving. A Senate panel is expected to hold a hearing on that issue next month, and legislation could be debated next year.

Gay rights activists also hope for repeal next year of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, which would give federal legitimacy to gay marriages recorded in states that allow them.

The amendment signed into law Wednesday was named partly for Matthew Shepard, a 21-year-old student at the University of Wyoming who died after a 1998 beating targeting him because he was gay, and whose parents were instrumental in leading the fight for such legislation. The law also was named for James Byrd Jr., a black Texas man dragged to his death in a racially motivated killing the same year.

The measure also extends protections to those attacked because of their gender or disability.

Federal hate crimes law already covers race, religion and national origin. The new law strengthened it substantially, however, by removing a requirement that a victim must have been participating at the time of the assault in some federally protected activity, such as voting, for it to apply.

Matthew Shepard’s parents see Obama, page 6

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News

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Bombing

Wire Editor: Jennifer Titcomb

“Are you dressing up for Halloween?”

“Yes, because it’s the one time of year when you can express yourself and be goofy and wacky. I’m thinking about being a bouncer and walking around.”

“Oh yeah, definitely. I’m going to be Bob the Builder.”

“No, I’m going home to help my mom pass out candy to the trick or treaters instead.”

“I haven’t decided yet. But if I do I want my boyfriend and I to be Lois and Peter Griffin (from Family Guy).”

-Nick Bleich, freshman

-Greg Inamori, kinesology junior

-Pam Learn, agricultural education freshman

-Lindsey Morley, animal science senior

mathematics

“No, there’s too much effort involved. I’ll be studying instead. ”

“Yes, I’m going to be spiderwoman; bit by a radioactive spider.”

-Jeremy Pagaran, agricultural business senior

-DayBernstein-Freeman, and design senior

art

compiled and photographed by jennifer titcomb

WHAT’S YOUR

RANT YOU WRITE IN

.

WE INVESTIGATE. mustangdailywire@gmail.com

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Obama continued from page 5

joined Obama for the ceremony, as did the family of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts, who until his death in August was deeply involved in pushing the legislation.

The Shepards’ fight took a decade. With recent elections adding more lawmakers who are supportive of gay rights, by 2007 the Congress had sufficient votes to pass the legislation, but then-President George W. Bush indicated that he’d veto it.

Obama, campaigning last year, promised to sign it.

Judy Shepard issued a statement saying that she and her husband, Dennis, “are incredibly grateful to Congress and the president for taking this step forward on behalf of hate crime victims and their families, especially given the continuing attacks on people simply for living their lives openly and honestly.”

She also called on Americans to look beyond legislation and work in their own lives to advance acceptance of gays.

Critics of the legislation, including several Republican congressional leaders, argued that an attack against another person is an attack, regardless of motivation, and that no special categories are appropriate.

Many also voiced concerns

News

about “thought police” and fears that the new legal protections could curb free speech if those who oppose gay rights fear they could somehow be prosecuted for publicly voicing their thoughts. But the law punishes acts — not thoughts.

Gay rights advocates said that the legislation will enable the Justice Department to step in when states can’t or won’t, and will make extra federal money and resources available to local law enforcement officials who need help preventing or prosecuting such attacks.

They also predicted that it would affect American society in a meaningful way.

“It sends a number of messages across America: that hate will not be tolerated, that this Congress and administration value all Americans,” said Joe Solmonese, the president of the Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay rights advocacy group.

Malcolm Lazin, the founder of another advocacy group, Equality Forum, said the legislative progress comes at a time when reported violence against gays is on the rise. Last year, he said, 29 gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender Americans were killed because of their sexual orientation, and that since Shepard’s death, more than 16,000 hate crimes have been reported.

“This is really the first federal gay rights bill,” Lazin said. “So it is a literally historic moment.

This is America acknowledging homophobia as a social problem.”

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Health coverage ‘plan’ was no insurance at all

mcclatchy-newspapers

Anthony Lloyd, right, and wife Mary pose for portrait at their East Bethel, Minnesota home, Oct. 21. After suffering a heart attack while vacationing in Sun City, Arizona, Anthony learned that the new health insurance policy that his wife had recently purchased was not insurance at all. The couple now owes $67,000 in medical bills that they can’t afford.

Maura Lerner mcclatchy newspapers

MINNEAPOLIS — Mary Lloyd’s husband was lying in the intensive care unit of an Arizona hospital when she got a good look at their new health insurance card for the first time.

Then she got the shock of her life. The card read: “This is NOT an insurance card.”

For the retired couple from East Bethel, Minn., it was the beginning of a financial nightmare that left them with at least $50,000 in unpaid medical bills. They discovered that the new “health plan,” they signed up for in January, for $499 a month, wouldn’t pay for any of his medical care.

“I was royally duped,” said Mary Lloyd, a painful admission from a woman who spent 27 years as a clinic and hospital manager. “I understand health care, and I understand health insurance,” she said.

“That’s why I was so mortified that this happened to us.”

No one knows how many customers have fallen into this trap. But dubious health plans are “spreading like poison oak all over the country,” says James Quiggle of the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, a nonprofit watchdog in Washington, D.C. Consumer advocates say companies are taking advantage of the recession and the growing number of uninsured people — one in five American adults under age 65 — to sell “health coverage” that evaporates when customers try to use it, or provides far less than promised.

Just last month, Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson sued two out-of-state companies for allegedly misleading customers with phony claims about their health plans; 10 more investigations are underway, she said.

“Here, they’re targeting people who are pretty sophisticated, and who really asked all the right questions,” Swanson said. People believe them, she said, because they’re “so desperate see Heathcare, page 7

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Heathcare continued from page 6

to find affordable coverage.”

Last December, Mary Lloyd spotted the commercial on late-night TV. A Florida company, Cinergy Health, advertised medical coverage for as little as $5 a day. She thought it was worth a call. Her 60-year-old husband was set to retire as a deputy sheriff in Isanti County, and it would cost $1,200 a month to continue his coverage — too pricey, she thought.

If she had done a Google search, she would have discovered that Cinergy had been cited in Florida for misleading advertising in 2006. (This past summer, it was forced to drop the TV ads after a similar investigation by New York insurance regulators.) But at the time, Mary Lloyd says, she wasn’t particularly suspicious.

A salesman from Louisiana called her back, and pointed her to a Web site: aimhealthplans.com. It offers “limited medical health plans” that promise “first dollar coverage” with no co-pays and an array of choices, including “unlimited surgical benefits.”

Mary, who took meticulous notes, initially chose a plan for $588 a month. The salesman, who identified himself as Darryl Williams of Mid South Benefits, promised it would cover all pre-existing conditions, Mary Lloyd recalled. After a few questions, “he said, ‘Wonderful, you qualify.’ “ A month later, they were still waiting for something in writing.

With their old insurance expiring in two days, Mary Lloyd called Williams in late January.That’s when the salesman offered to switch them to a better and cheaper plan. She admits, in retrospect, that she didn’t ask a lot of questions. Running out of time, she simply agreed.

Eight weeks later, while vacationing in Arizona, Anthony was hitting a bucket of golf balls at a driving range when pain shot across his shoulders. He tried to shrug it off.

Friends rushed him to Banner Bo-

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Thursday, October 29, 2009 swell Medical Center in Sun City, and he heard the words: “He’s having a heart attack.”

Mary Lloyd peeled out her insurance cards the next morning in the hospital’s business office. Doctors had discovered a 100 percent blockage in her husband’s artery. Fortunately, they had cleared it quickly enough to prevent heart damage. Now Anthony was resting in the ICU. The business agent took the cards, Mary Lloyd said, and threw them back on the counter.

“She said, ‘This is terrible insurance. This is not even insurance,’ “ Mary recalled.

Puzzled, she studied one of the cards: It read “Secure Care” by the United Service Association for Health Care (USA+), a nonprofit membership group in Texas. Their health plan turned out to be a “health care savings” program that offers discounts at participating providers. The customer, not the company, must pay the bills.

Mary Lloyd was sure there had been a mix-up. But the hospital business agent took a hard line, she recalled. “She said, ‘You need to pay and you need to pay today.’ By that time I was so mortified I could hardly stand up.”

She called salesman Williams for help, but no one ever called back, Mary Lloyd said. (His employer, Mid South Benefits, said last week that Williams had been “terminated,” but didn’t answer questions about the Lloyds’ case.)

When she tried to call Secure Care, she said, “the call would not go through. It was like calling the moon.”

The Lloyds learned that their “membership plan” included a limited insurance benefit: up to $8,000 for an operation, and $1,000 a day for hospital care. But the Lloyds never got any of it. In spite of the salesman’s promises, their entire claim was rejected because of a preexisting condition: Anthony’s high blood pressure.

By the time Anthony Lloyd was discharged two days later, his bills totaled $67,000.

News

Briefs State

National

International

SAN FRANCISCO (MCT) — Highway officials say they have determined wind and traffic vibrations caused a rod to crack on the Bay Bridge on Tuesday night, forcing an ongoing closure of the bridge.

The rod recently was added as part of a quick-fix Caltrans designed and commissioned during a Labor Day weekend bridge closure to complete other work. During that weekend, inspectors found a crack in the bridge’s east span and hurriedly designed and installed a series of rods and brackets, much like a splint, to ease stress on the cracked steel beam.

Officials said then that they believed the fix was solid and that the bridge was safe for reopening.

WASHINGTON (MCT) — The government is expected to report Thursday that the U.S. economy resumed growing in the third quarter, which would mark an end to the worst economic contraction since World War II. Even though some economists say the report should dispel any lingering doubts that the downturn is over, it may be cold comfort to workers and businesses.

Forecasters say third-quarter growth was likely 3 percent to 3.5 percent at an annual rate, driven largely by the federal stimulus package.

KABUL (MCT) — Taliban insurgents Wednesday attacked a guesthouse used by the United Nations, killing five U.N. employees — including an American — and raising new concerns about terrorism and sabotage ahead of the Nov. 7 runoff election.

At least three militants, dressed in old police uniforms and armed with machine guns, grenades and suicide vests, stormed the privately owned Bakhtar guesthouse and set the building on fire early Wednesday morning. Some U.N. employees were able to escape through a back door, but fire trapped others on an upper floor, according to Wias Sherzai, the manager of the guesthouse.

•••

YORBA LINDA, Calif.

(MCT) — A “typographical error” resulted in the recall of student T-shirts at Linda Vista Elementary School’s recent jog-a-thon, after a parent called the phone number printed on the back of the shirts and was connected to an adult chat line.

T-shirts were handed out to all students participating in the Oct. 16 jog-a-thon during recess and recalled before students left at the end of the day, Principal Jackie Howland said. The school believes that all of the T-shirts were retrieved, but parents were called just in case, Howland said.

•••

MIAMI (MCT) — Even as some Americans await the arrival of their swine flu vaccines, the Pentagon has decided to vaccinate both soldiers and terror suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

There was no word Wednesday on when the first vaccines would reach the remote U.S. navy base in southeast Cuba.

But American military members there were notified late last week that they would get their H1N1 virus vaccinations first. Private contractors and sailors’ wives and children could get theirs afterward “as the supply permits.”

And that means the 221 war-onterror captives would also be vaccinated first, said Navy Lt. Cmdr.

Brook DeWalt.

•••

BANGALORE, New Dehli (MCT) — The spirit of Bangkok continued to live in Bangalore. The Indian and Chinese foreign ministers met on Tuesday for what was termed a “frank” but “fruitful” exchange on all issues that have “bothered” the two sides.

The two met after the the 9th trilateral meeting between India, China and Russia. The SinoIndian exchange was noteworthy given it came the day after it was known New Delhi had cleared the Dalai Lama’s visit to Arunachal Pradesh.

thursday, october 29, 2009

arts & Entertainment editor: cassandra keyse

ASI haunted house production scares Cal Poly students Leticia Rodriguez and Nikol Schiller mustang daily

Menacing clowns, dead brides, Frankenstein and the Grim Reaper are just some of the highlights students enjoyed while walking through the dark maze of the haunted house in Chumash Auditorium Tuesday night. Some students went in expecting a fright-fest more suitable for an elementary school child, but came

out impressed and thrilled with the severed limbs and spider webs that covered the floor and walls. Recreation senior Titus Shelton said the house went above his expectations as far as the fear and scare factor.

“We thought it was cool. I loved the fact that they had real people in it, I mean, that made it great,” he said.

“They all did a great job.”

The haunted house was put on by Associated Students Inc. (ASI), as a way for students to get in the Hallow-

een spirit early. Courtney Serafin, ASI special events student supervisor, said she hoped that by having the haunted house one night only, students would be more likely to come.

“We want ours to be more accessible to all of the students on campus,” she said. “It gives you one more thing to do before Halloween weekend.”

At the beginning of the maze, students were greeted by a mysterious woman with long black hair who wished people luck going through the

house, warning them that they may not make it back alive. The twilightzone inspired music reverberated through the speakers of the auditorium, adding to the curdling screams heard from the Grim Reaper and the maniacal laughter from the clown in the mirror room. Bloody, mutilated body parts were thrown across the floor of the grim reaper’s room where he stood as still as a statue until coming alive to give chase.

Communications senior Gabrielle Rivera said she ran into a pole after the Grim Reaper started moving and sprinted away from the clown. But still, she couldn’t decide which of the two characters was scarier.

“I hate clowns, I have a phobia of clowns. I was literally sprinting out of there,” she said. “ I don’t know which one was better. (But the haunted house) was really cool, it was such a great idea.”

The dead bride in the graveyard urged people to stay with her but the mirror room with the clown got most people jumping as he chased unsuspecting visitors around the room until they finally fled. “How are you?

I’m really, really hungry. Just stay for a little while!” he urged as students sprinted out the entryway.

From there the path led visitors to the mask room where a girl in hiding

asked to “borrow your face” as she floated around, speaking in a high, whimsical voice. The dead waitress with a painted white face and black eyes offered disfigured limbs covered in blood.

ASI member and philosophy junior Katy Skeeters was excited about the turnout from students, which averaged about 150 students into the maze per hour. Handing out survey flyers to students exiting the haunted house, Skeeters said a majority of the responses were positive, an indication that ASI might continue the haunted house next year.

“I was starting to worry that people hadn’t heard about it,” she said.

(But) the line just never seems to end and everyone seems to really like the outcome.”

The group of volunteers and ASI members began decorating Monday afternoon when they transformed the cold, empty auditorium into a dark and sinister haunted house. In the four hours that the haunted house was open, more than 700 Cal Poly students and community members walked through the narrow, spiderwebbed hallways.

With a proposed financial plan of $4,000, Serafin coordinated the entire see Haunted, page 9

nikol schiller mustang daily

Business sophomore Michelle McManus applies green facial make-up to civil engineering senior John Schiesser to complete his Frankenstein costume for the night.

mustang daily

Thursday, October 29, 2009 www.mustangdaily.net

Haunted continued from page 8

haunted house project under budget.

Setup began by having a group set up poles and black sheets to create a maze-like structure with hallways leading to different rooms in the haunted house. As Monday evening approached and the structure of the haunted house was set up, a team of student audiovisual technicians began working on the lighting in Chumash to add special lighting effects to each of the six themed rooms. Chemistry senior and audiovisual manager Zack Suddjian gave a mischievous smile when asked how long he stayed to coordinate the lights that night.

“Let’s just say we were here until the wee hours of the morning,” he said.

A projected image of a full moon partly covered by ominous clouds shone onto the auditorium stage above a makeshift graveyard. The audiovisual technicians shone a green light on a table full of beakers and glass containers full of brains and dead rats. Pink spider web images were projected on the ground of the dark hallways.

Once the lights were set up, Serafin showed up with a box of plastic, bloody body parts to Chumash Tuesday afternoon to begin decorating the black maze. She and a couple other ASI members set up the rooms within two hours, placing tombstones in the haunted graveyard room, trick mirrors in the fun house room and red Jell-O mounds to act as a bloody treat in the restaurant room.

At around 6:30 p.m., a group of ASI employees gathered in the back of the Chumash staging area to get into character. Serafin went over rules

with ASI monitors and dressed-up volunteers: no touching anyone who walked through the maze, make sure no one “hangs out” in the haunted house and know the emergency exits.

ASI monitors were also instructed to stand alongside the black, curtained walls, making sure that people followed the path and didn’t go outside the guided maze.The actors had their predetermined rooms that they stayed in, scaring the groups of people by popping out of the darkness or saying creepy things as the groups walked by.

After the quick talk, she started pulling props out of a bag and handing out costumes to the haunted house performers to start the transformation.

Psychology sophomore Marijke Uleman held a tangly black wig and a tattered black shawl before covering her face in a charcoal gray paint.

As the greeter of the haunted house, Uleman would be the first character people saw. She wanted to leave a lasting impression on them. After seven years of theater training, she knew she wouldn’t break down laughing at the terrified groups entering Chumash.

While the energy in the staging area was high on the idea of scaring people, not everyone had complete confidence like Uleman. A couple of the actors were worried about how the groups would react to their performances.

As ASI member Dave Carlson put on his green, knee-high clown socks, he worried that students wouldn’t be enthusiastic going through the haunted house. Despite his nerves, Carlson was not only excited about hiding in his fun house-themed room and creeping out students by sneaking up behind them, but he also enjoyed wearing his striped, clown onesie.

by Ryan Sidarto

“Deathly Hallows”

Arts

Arts editor: Cassandra Keyse mustangdailyarts@gmail.com

“I’m a little nervous about people not being freaked out and just standing there being like, ‘uhhh …’” he said. “(But the costume is) kind of a fashion statement! I might take this out on the town when I go downtown.”

After going to the women’s restroom to change into her corpse bride costume, Serafin came back in her raggedy, white wedding gown. As one of the ASI monitors was painting Serafin’s face white and giving her green lips and gauntly green cheekbones, she jokingly said, “I’m hoping I don’t get scared inside!”

Missi Bullock, ASI programs coordinator, stopped in to see how the costume change was going and was impressed with the efforts of all of the ASI members.

Mechanical engineering senior Casey Lightner and civil engineering senior John Schiesser would be teaming up as a mad scientist and Frankenstein in the first room of the haunted house. Lightner put on his wild, gray mad scientist wig and his dirty lab

9

leticia rodriguez mustang daily

ASI members finalize costumes and make-up backstage in Chumash Auditorium before taking their places in the haunted maze. coat with the words “help you” written in red, faux blood across the back and quickly got into character.

Once he was done with his costume and makeup, he assumed the

classic mad scientist pose: head tossed back with a crazed look of success on his face and his hands maniacally see Haunted, page 11

www.mustangdaily.net

Arts

food column

Eating competitions should not be taken lightly

A five pound burrito, 50 or more hot dogs and hot wings so spicy you have to sign a waiver to eat them — sounds like enough food to feed an army . In the world of competitive eating, these are just a few examples of what could be devoured in a single competition.

One of the most famous competitions is Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest on Coney Island during the Fourth of July. There are many others out there, including local restaurants that enable people to test their eating abilities.

If someone says competitive eating is not a real sport, they may need to think again or call up the International Federation of Competitive Eating (IFOCE), which established eating as a sport in the 1990s. It hosts more than 100 major league eating events worldwide and will award nearly $400,000 in prize money this year.

The Association of Independent Competitive Eaters (AICE) holds contests as well. They are different from the IFOCE because they forbid the dunking of foods in water, a practice which allows the food to be more easily broken down.

Training for a competitive eating contest can be compared to training for a foot race. You have to practice daily, work your way up and push yourself to your utmost limits. Competitive eater Takiro Kobayashi was featured on a segment of MTV’s “True Life: I am a competitive eater,” where he was shown going through his various training methods.

He would eat large quantities of different amounts of foods, drink a lot of water over a short period of time to stretch his stomach and eat large quantities of low calorie foods (like vegetables and pasta) along with a lot of water.

Kobayashi emphasized the importance of exercising and staying fit, which seems ironic for a competitive eater, but he maintains a six pack and is not overweight at all.

Moving on to the biggest worry with competitive eating — health and long term effects on the body. Of course, the obvious health problem would be excessive weight gain, which could lead to obesity.

Studies from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine tested a competitive eater immediately after eating excessive

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Thursday, October 29, 2009

amounts of food and found “the stomach failed to have normal muscle contractions called peristalsis, a function which transfers food from the stomach down the digestive tract.”

Other medical professionals said it can lead to ulcers and the large amounts of water consumed can lead to water intoxication. Another concern is the condition gastroparesis, which can occur when the stomach is stretched routinely beyond its capacity, causing indigestion, nausea and vomiting.

There are some local eating challenges in San Luis Obispo and cities close by. Franks, located on the corner of Monterey and California, has a challenge on Mondays to see if you can eat 10 of their mini hamburgers. Sylvester’s, on Santa Ynez Avenue off of 10th street from Los Osos Valley Road, challenges you to eat their gigantic, tray-sized hamburger, which you even have to order the day before.

All in all, competitive eating is a sport where the negatives can

sometimes outweigh the positives.

I’m a fan and give props to all those who go out and compete.

Since large competitive eating competitions do not occur often, I suggest you watch the show “Man v. Food” on the travel channel Wednesday nights at 10. Adam Richman, the show’s host, is not a competitive eater in the training sense, but he competes in eating challenges at various restaurants around the country. He is pretty inspiring and makes you want to try the restaurants out.

Competitive eating is a great example of how doing something too much can hurt you, but in moderate amounts you should be OK. So the next time you are hesitating to try that eating challenge, remember that doing it one time won’t kill you. So put on your game face, tell your stomach who’s boss and come out on top in the challenge of man against food.

Bethany Abelson is a food science senior and Mustang Daily food columnist.

Haunted continued from page 9

gripping the air in front of him as if to say, “It’s aliiiiiive!” Schiesser, after having his face painted completely green, put on his monster hat complete with a tuff of black hair and bolts on the sides of his neck to create his Frankenstein look.

While makeup was being passed around and slapped on, audiovisual technician and theater junior Tom Schneider came in to tell Serafin that there wasn’t nearly enough dry ice to cover the stage in an eerie fog. Serafin, slightly disappointed that her vision of having a misty, moonlit graveyard would be more moonlit than foggy, decided that the show must go on with or without the dry ice.

Using a fog machine was ruled out, Carlson said, because of last year’s May Mayhem fire department mishap.After using a fog machine for laser tag, the fire alarms went off, causing ASI to evacuate the entire University Union and causing more actual mayhem than intended. Carlson said it would be better to play it safe rather than risk the chance of having to stop the entire Halloween production.

As the actors finished putting on their makeup and getting dressed, they began talking scarestrategy. Carlson decided that taking the manic, over-jittery clown

approach would be the most effective scare tactic. City regional planning junior Brian Spaunhurst, who wore the shockingly 10-foot-tall grim reaper costume around campus to promote the haunted house earlier that day, couldn’t wait to put his costume back on.

“Just walking around in broad daylight people were scared. I think it’ll be pretty sweet just because it’s so big and scary. It kind of does all the work for me,” he said.

Once everyone was ready for a final, quick run-through of the production, the ghastly group of the undead walked into the auditorium, disappearing into the shadows of the haunted house maze where they both excited and unnerved students and community members alike.

Coming out of the maze clutching their chests, business junior Kaylee Boyle and her four friends were so frightened by the clown at one point that they stumbled into curtains and almost knocked over poles. But even so, the group unanimously agreed that the haunted house exceeded their expectations, adding that they thought the actors hid themselves well and were dressed in appropriate costume “That was a lot scarier than I thought. A clown chased us,” Boyle said. “We were looking at ourselves in the mirror and we turn around and there’s this clown guy and he’s like ‘hi!’ and then we tore down the maze. I was not expecting anything and then I was scared shit-less.”

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editors & staff editor in chief Emilie Egger managing editor Alex Kacik news editor Tim Miller wire editor Jennifer Titcomb arts editor Cassandra Keyse online editor Megan Hassler sports editor Brian De Los Santos design editor Kevin Black copy editors Scott Silvey, Katie McIntyre, Beth Shirley, photographers Ryan Sidarto, Nick Camacho, Patrick Fina, Elizabeth McAninch, Daniel Triassi advertising coordinator Stephanie Murawski production manager Andrew Santos-Johnson assistant production manager Jason Cope business managers Brittany Kelley, Joe Merkel marketing manager Kelsey Magnusen advertising manager Kristin Coplan ad designers Mai-Chi Vu, Sara Hamling, Justin Rodriguez, John Dixon advertising representatives Erika Powers, Giana Ronzani, April Manalotto, Brittni Kiick, Adam Plachta, Tarah Brinkerhoff, Lindsey Bly, Jenna Perkovich, Jenelle McDonnell, David McCutcheon, Amanda Dennin faculty adviser Brady Teufel general manager Paul Bittick

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opinion/editorial Thursday, October 29, 2009

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Thursday, October 29, 2009 Volume LXXIV, No. 34 ©2009 Mustang Daily “God smiles when I hook up with boys.”

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12

FOX News is lying to its viewers:

“FOX & Friends” segment is not as straight news oriented as it claims to be Last week, there was one legitimate criticism of my column. Just one. I should have included lies and conservative commentary made by FOX News’ straight news anchors as well as lies made by their pundits.

I thought I’d go ahead and correct that mistake this week, using facts I found on the Media Matters Web site.

We’ll start with the morning news program: “FOX & Friends.”

On Oct. 22, this straight news program used a Republican National Committee (RNC) press release about the job losses in September, with the large heading “$787B=2 mil less jobs.” Underneath that heading read “Stimulus generates unemployment.”

Gretchen Carlson, an anchor on this so-called straight news program spoke about the RNC document comparing the Obama administration’s numbers with the job losses as if it were fact.

“This is a startling table, to actually look at it in its entirety and realize that many states have not gained jobs,” she said. “The promise from the Obama administration from the first stimulus plan was that 3.5 million jobs would be created. And, in fact, the United States has lost 2.7 million since the stimulus plan.”

According to Media Matters, the RNC press release states “while President Obama claimed the result of his stimulus bill would be the creation of 3.5 million jobs, the Nation has already lost a total of 2.7 million — a difference of 6.2 million jobs.”

However, the January administration report referenced by the RNC press release states that “Because it takes time to carry out new

notices

The Mustang Daily is a “designated public forum.” Student editors have full authority to make all content decisions without censorship or advance approval.

The Mustang Daily is a free newspaper; however, the removal of more than one copy of the paper per day is subject to a cost of 50 cents per issue.

Editor in chief: Emilie Egger Managing Editor: Alex Kacik

I love Zipcar! Up until now, I’ve mainly used Zipcar when I travel. Now that they’ve come to Cal Poly, I think I’ll be using them a lot more. The whole process of reserving a Zipcar is really quite simple. One thing that wasn’t mentioned in the article is that gas is included, which I think makes the rates even more reasonable.

One suggestion I have for Zipcar is to put a Mini Cooper convertible on campus! This is the central coast, the weather is fantastic and a convertible would do well here.

— Evan Conklin Response to “Car-sharing Zipcar zips onto campus”

spending programs authorized by legislation, we expect the jobs created by spending on infrastructure, education, health, and energy to be concentrated in 2010 or 2011.”

So the RNC press release made a negative declaration about the stimulus package that simply can’t be substantiated by their source document. And FOX News’ straight news program, “FOX & Friends,” used the information without fact checking it.

As a straight news organization, there’s also a significant ethical violation in the fact that they’re using an RNC document — which is bound to be biased — as a source for facts, instead of questioning the RNC about the document as a straight news program normally would.

Another issue discussed by both Glenn Beck and Chris Wallace recently is president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Tom Donahue’s plans to release ads re-

minding the American public about how America was built through free-market capitalism.

According to Media Matters, Glenn Beck said that “Obama and his cronies don’t like the free-market system.” Beck also added that the Obama administration is attacking the Chamber of Commerce, which he repeatedly said “represents 3 million businesses.”

Straight news anchor Chris Wallace repeated Beck’s claim days later saying that the White House is attacking the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and also that the Chamber of Commerce represents 3 million businesses.

That statistic is false, according to Mother Jones’ Josh Hartkinson. He wrote in his article, “The Chamber’s Numbers Game,” that the Chamber has “probably closer to 200,000” dues-paying members. They are loosely affiliated with around 3 million businesses, but they do not rep-

resent 3 million businesses.

And the huge negative impact of FOX misconstruing facts can be seen clearly when you look at the opinions of their viewers. According to an August NBC poll, 75 percent of FOX News watchers believed that the public option would lead to the government dictating care for the elderly, even though it has been clearly stated that the public option will not lead to these so-called death panels. Only 45 percent of all people polled believed that public option will lead to death panels.

That 30 percent difference is why I believe that FOX should be discredited as a news organization.

Facts and truth are too important for our representative democracy for us to allow this issue to fizzle out of public consciousness.

We are getting federal funds now.

This means everybody in the other 49 states are being taxed without representation in California.

Interesting times we live in.

— Dan Response to “CSU gets money to increase course offerings”

18, you are an adult. Mailing letters home to parents is not treating them like adults, but more like minors. If they drink too much and wind up in the hospital, that’s their decision and they should be free to experience any of the consequences. The parents have failed their children if one of the first things the child does with his new-found independence is drink himself stupid or get arrested.

Also, shortening next year’s WoW is punishing next year’s incoming class for the actions of this year’s freshman class.

— Dan Response to: “Freshmen will get shorter WOW next year”

and I believe that with a passive voice nothing will be achieved.

Is it not to incite ideas into your readers with your articles?

It is easy, and not very beneficial, to criticize something without providing a solution in exchange, while it is much harder and likewise more beneficial to provide solutions and accept the criticism.

— ERH Response to: “U.S. debt continues to be problem”

Short of a complete military state, there will be college parties.

There will be alcohol and drugs.

Yes, Poly should educate freshman of the dangers and teach them how to be safe if they do choose to participate. If parents have an issue with this, then maybe they should send their kids to a school that doesn’t have traditional college parties like BYU. — James Response to “Freshmen will get shorter WOW next year” Supposedly, when you turn

Great informative article, yet I feel this information isn’t really all that exciting without a reason for presenting it. Your voice is passive

Stephanie England is an English senior and Mustang Daily political columnist.

NOTE: The Mustang Daily features select comments that are written in response to articles posted online.

Though not all the responses are printed, the Mustang Daily prints comments that are coherent and foster intelligent discussion on a given subject.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

13

mustang daily www.mustangdaily.net

letters

to the editor

To Cornell Morton, I really hope there were some typos in your “Halloween Message” to all students on Wednesday. In fact I hope it was the same typo in the e-mail you sent out earlier this year regarding WOW. You stated (in both e-mails) as a suggestion to ensure our safety that “If you’re of legal age, limit alcohol and make good decisions.” Well Cornell, what if a student is NOT of legal age, like half the students? Should those students make BAD decisions? I know you want all students to obey the law, but everyone knows it’s inevitable that underage students will drink.

Couldn’t you at least have the decency to tell ALL students to limit alcohol and make good decisions?

By phrasing your sentence in that manner (and with all the other legal warnings and threats), you show that you care more about being a politically correct administrator, rather than a thoughtful one.

Your e-mail is full of things we SHOULDN’T do, but I don’t see many things we CAN do. You encourage us “to take full advantage of on-campus programs and activities.” It would be nice if you listed some of those programs and activities for us; after all, you did list the components of the Social Host Ordinance - Municipal Code Section 9.05.010... no room for activities that don’t require alcohol? I checked the ASI website for events on Friday and Saturday. There is a volleyball tournament and a Rose Float Lab Day. I CHALLENGE you to inform the students of other activities they can participate in, or I would wonder why you wrote that.

I guess we’re going all out for the Rose Float this year.

Stephen Murphy mechanical engineering senior

op/ed

Internet neutrality aims to limit cable-owners’ stronghold on content Edward Wasserman mcclatchy newspapers

The idea that “content is king” is a favorite slogan among media people, since it’s comforting to think that the industry is ruled by its creative side.

Comforting, but fictional.

Who does rule the media kingdom? Not the content creators, but the people who control their physical access to the public, that’s who. Sooner or later, channels trump content.

That’s why people who care about freedom of expression have to start by caring about the freedom of the channels over which expression flows.

Hence the importance of the simmering controversy over socalled net neutrality — a policy that is intended to keep the companies that rent us access to the Internet from playing favorites among Web services, information exchanges, content providers of all kinds.

Why does that matter? Because the pace and direction of media development have been historically set by the people who controlled the contact points with the public.

The film industry was the creature not of moviemakers, but of early 20th-century theater-owners who wanted to fill their seats. They fled the East Coast for Southern California to escape the Edison Trust monopoly over supplies of film stock — a stranglehold broken up by the government in 1917.

Freeing up those channels made Hollywood possible.

The Hollywood studio system that arose rested first and foremost not on content deals with stars and directors, but on ownership of movie theaters, which froze out independent producers. In 1948 the government forced the studios to give up the cinemas — and a new Hollywood was born.

The story goes on. FM radio languished for decades, despite its inherent superiority over AM, until regulators forced radio owners to stop squatting on FM as a secondary outlet for their AM Top40 rubbish and populate it with content of its own. That wasn’t until the 1960s, and the result was a robust appetite for sounds to fill high-fidelity channels — the ideal midwife for the birth of alternative rock-n-roll.

Channels rule content. It’s the promise of assured access to the public that inspires and emboldens content creators. During a 20-year period starting in the 1970s, when the three major TV networks were barred from monopolizing the downstream syndication channels for programs they produced, independent TV programming flourished and in the aftermath three new TV networks emerged.

Demonopolizing channel c o n t ro l was pivotal.

And on to net neutrality. It’s

now the subject of a ruling by the Federal Communications Commission formalizing a policy outlined in 2005, and it’s being written into congressional legislation that seems to have strong support.

The basic question is whether the companies that control the channels through which you access the Internet — generally big telecoms such as Comcast and AT&T — should be allowed to favor some content providers over others.

Will they be free to decide which content will flow easily and which content will go slowly? Will they be allowed to charge more for Web services that compete with companies they own, or force such independents onto slower transmission speeds, or strong-arm startups into cutting them in as partners in exchange for favored online treatment, or make it harder or costlier for you to hook up devices made by companies they aren’t in cahoots with?

Comcast, the country’s biggest cable-owner, already ran afoul of neutrality guidelines and was slapped by

regulators in 2008 for furtively interfering with traffic on BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer file-swapping network. Comcast is moving heavily into the content business; it owns several sports channels and a big piece of E! Entertainment. It’s pioneering an offering of online programs — HBO’s Entourage and AMC’s Mad Men — exclusively for its Internet subscribers. And it’s maneuvering to buy NBC-Universal from GE, which would give it a major TV network and one of its top movie studios.

It’s inevitable that Comcast will be competing with some of the same online services that rely on its cable systems to reach the public.

Likewise with AT&T: Where’s the guarantee that it’ll give nondiscriminatory treatment to an online company like Skype, whose worldwide Internet phone service competes directly with AT&T’s core phone service?

Control over channels constitutes a perpetual, potential stranglehold over media development, even with a technology whose growth and flowering seem to be as unstoppable as the Internet’s.

Content may never be king. The throne may still be held by the channel-masters. But net neutrality, like an information age Magna Carta, is a way to ensure that their power is not absolute.

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mustang daily

Thursday, October 29, 2009 www.mustangdaily.net

men’s soccer | cal poly 3, UC riverside 0

sports Oregon continued from page 16

Mustangs defeat UC Riverside 3-0 at home nick camacho mustang daily

Cal Poly freshman midfielder Chris Gaschen scored his first two career goals in a 3-0 win over UC Riverside. Midfielder Junior Burgos returned to the Mustangs after suffering an ankle injury. The first goal scored was recorded by midfielder Tim White, his first since 2007. The Mustangs match up at home against UC Santa Barbara next Wednesday night.

winning streak that covered parts of five seasons. Oregon is 3-1 in its past four home games against Top 10 teams.

Credit Autzen Powers.

“No crowd usually gets to me,” Cal tailback Jahvid Best said. “Oregon’s the only one that stands out in my mind that got to me.”

Saturday will be the 66th consecutive sellout at Autzen. All four home games this season have drawn beyond capacity crowds, bringing Oregon’s average attendance so far in 2009 to 107.4 percent of Autzen’s 54,000 capacity. But it’s not so much the numbers as it is the noise. Disrupting and intimidating opposing teams has become a source of pride with the Autzen faithful.

“The biggest mistake people made going in there was trying to instigate the crowd and say bring it on, because they brought it on and usually it was followed by three illegal procedure penalties (for opponents) after that,” said Cal coach Jeff Tedford, a former Ducks assistant.

“The difference is Autzen’s (noise) is continuous,” Tedford said.

“At most stadiums, there’s ebb and flow of what goes on.When they’re excited, they’re excited, and then they lull for a little bit.

Autzen stays the same no matter what, always, no matter if you get ahead by 14 or 20 or whatever, they stay after it. ... It’s unlike any other stadium.”

Tedford, Bellotti and others maintain the pre-2002 renovation

configuration of the stadium actually generated more noise because of the so-called “Autzen bounce,” where the crowd’s roar would reach the top of the stadium and then bounce down.

Bellotti said plans for future renova-

Bellotti describes Oregon’s fans as “passionate.” Rival coaches would use other terms. “It’s like a Roman colosseum,” Moshier said.

“Oregon fans have a reputation as being fairly nasty,” Jones said.

I could feel (the stadium) shaking my apartment walls and rattling my dishes from a half a mile away.

—Tobiah Moshier

Oregon fan

tions would trap more crowd noise making the stadium even louder.

“Honestly, any other away game I don’t really even hear the crowd,” Cal’s Best said. “Oregon’s the only place where it just really got on my nerves.”

And it’s not just the noise that’s unnerving. “The fans are really close to the field there,” USC safety Taylor Mays said. “And you can really feel there intensity. Really feel it.”

The beer and the profanities promise to flow freely Saturday night, the howl of the ghosts and the unrelenting roar echoing through the night, bouncing across a stadium determined once again to flex Autzen Powers.

“Autzen is a nightmare for opposing teams because of the Oregon fans,” Moshier said,“and we’ll do our damnedest to live up to all the hype surrounding that fact.”

mustangdaily.net Thursday, October 29, 2009

SPORTS

sports editor: Brian De Los Santos

mustangdailysports@gmail.com

MUSTANG DAILY

USC, Mustangs gear up for Big West match up Oregon and the crowd football | # 16 cal poly vs. north dakota

Scott M. Reid the orange county register

nick camacho mustang daily

Cal Poly’s offense is averaging 319 yards of total offense this season. The Mustangs hold a rushing attack that ranks tenth in the FCS (206.86 y/gm). mustang daily staff report

In 1972 No. 3 Cal Poly locked horns with No. 6 North Dakota for the NCAA West College Football Championship in the 12th annual Camellia Bowl.

In front of the largest crowd of all regional bowls that year, Cal Poly became the victim of an underdog upset and was etched into North Dakota’s record books as their 10th win that season.

It was one of the few times in the school's history that Cal Poly made it to a championship game and the Mustangs ended the season with no reward.

This Saturday at the Alerus Center, No. 16 Cal Poly (4-3, 1-0 Great West) squares off against Great West foe North Dakota (3-4, 1-1) in the hunt for FCS supremacy.

With four games to go in the season, the Mustangs are set on making a run at the playoffs.

Since the FCS (formerly Division I-AA) championship was installed in 1978, no team with 4 losses has held the championship trophy; unless the Mustangs can change history, they will need to

run the table into the postseason.

Fullback Jake Romanelli said the team is treating every game as a playoff game.

“We can still win the Great West championship, and go all the way into the playoffs with a full head of steam,” he said.

Last year, Cal Poly held arguably one of the most prolific offenses in school history. Averaging nearly 45 points a game and 480 yards of total offense, Cal Poly was crowned Great West champion and placed in a matchup against Weber state in the first round of the postseason.

Turning the ball over only six times all year, they turned the ball over five times against Weber State and fell short 49-35 in first round.

Another season filled with expectation turned to one with no reward.

Cal Poly has yet to be named Football Championship Subdivision champion, but this year's team can remain in the hunt if head coach Tim Walsh and the Mustangs can overcome the injuries that have plagued them all season to fend past the Fighting Sioux this weekend.

With multiple players hurt on the offensive line, including several running backs, Cal Poly has fought through setbacks.

“We don’t have continuity in who plays and who practices,” Walsh said.

While the injuries have hurt the Mustangs, Cal Poly's depth has allowed them to remain competitive despite a schedule that included two games against Football Bowl Subdivision teams.

Behind the behemoths in the trenches, including true freshman tackle Giovanni Sani, the Mustangs continue to bounce around

the top of the nation in rushing statistical categories.

The Mustangs boast the 10th ranked rushing offense in the FCS (206.86 yards per game) and also rank 10th in the FCS in time of possession (32.50 minutes per game). Cal Poly’s offensive line has allowed .71 sacks per game and is tied for 4th in the FCS. Over the past two weeks, the Mustangs have proved that they hold a fourth option in their triple option rushing attack—sophomore fullback Jake Romanelli.

Romanelli moved into the starting lineup after starting fullback Jordan Yocum was injured. He tallied his first career 100 yard game and touchdown against Southern Utah and rumbled for 96 yards against Dixie State.

“When your name is called, you have to be ready to step up,” Romanelli said.

The sophomore is just one of six Mustangs who have accumulated over 100 yards on the ground this season.

“You have to be assignment sharp and you have to be fast with this type of (offense),” North Dakota head coach Chris Mussman said during an interview on fightingsioux.com.

His defensive scheme will be the same scheme that Cal Poly struggled against this past weekend — the 3-4.

In the Mustangs' first game against the 3-4 this season, they were only able to muster 178 yards rushing against Dixie State, their worst total all year.

“It’s good to have a week of practice and have some live situations (against Dixie State), but (this week) we need to improve

on some things,” quarterback Tony Smith said.

This season North Dakota has allowed 222 points on defense, exactly 70 points more than Cal Poly, through seven games (31 points per game average).

Junior strong safety Joel Schwenzfeier leads North Dakota in tackles, tackles for loss and interceptions. Cornerback Dominique Hawkins, who is also high up on the tackle list, tallied a career-high 12 tackles last week against Southern Utah.

Offensively, North Dakota is led by wide receiver Ismael Bamba.

The sophomore set a new career high against South Dakota with 141 yards receiving on six catches. That was the 41st-best receiving game ever by a North Dakota player. He also held a three-game streak of over 100 yards receiving this season. “(Bamba is) a wide-receiver that could probably play anywhere in the country,” Tim Walsh said.

Feeding him the ball is quarterback Jake Landry. He has thrown for 1281 yards and seven touchdowns this season.

Both will line up against a Mustang defense that salivates for turnovers.

The Mustang defense is ranked fifth in the FCS in turnover margin (+1.71 per game) and is tied for fourth in the FCS in turnovers gained and fifth in FCS in interceptions.

“With all our goals on the table going into the final stretch of the season (this is) a huge game this week against North Dakota,” quarterback Tony Smith said.

Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. on Saturday.

They still believe in the power of the people in Eugene, Ore. At the liberal college town’s weekly Saturday market, tie-dye is always in fashion and the 60s are alive, including the ever-present scent of non-medicinal marijuana still blowing in the wind. A little more than a mile back up the Willamette River, a standing-room-only crowd of nearly 60,000 will cram into the University of Oregon’s Autzen Stadium on Saturday night convinced of the masses’ collective ability to influence and shape events.

Or at least college football games.

Consider it Autzen Powers.

The Sporting News has called Autzen the sport’s “most intimidating stadium,” a claim supported by record-setting decibel readings at ear splitting levels.

“Per square yard, the loudest stadium in the history of the planet,” longtime ABC sportscaster Keith Jackson called Autzen.

But the true force of Autzen is perhaps best measured by the Richter scale. Oregon fan Tobiah Moshier became convinced of Autzen’s fans’ ability to move heaven and earth while watching Oregon’s controversial 2006 upset of Oklahoma on television in his Eugene apartment.

“I could feel (the stadium) shaking my apartment walls and rattling my dishes from a half a mile away,” Moshier said this week.

This Saturday, Autzen will once again be at college football’s epicenter, playing host to No. 4 USC (6-1, 3-1 Pac-10) and No. 10 Oregon (6-1, 4-0) and the ghosts of upsets past on Halloween night in a game that might not only decide the Rose Bowl race but could also have BCS national championship game ramifications.

“It will be crazy,” said Mike Bellotti, longtime Oregon coach and now the school’s athletic director.

For Ducks fans Saturday’s game has been nothing less than all consuming.

“The expectancy for the game right now in town is nuts,” said Jonathan Klein, an Oregon fan and Eugene native. “People can’t work.

Everyone is obsessed with Saturday’s game.”

In The Sporting News’ list of Top 10 most intimidating stadiums in college football, Autzen was ranked ahead of, among others, Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (No. 2), Florida’s notorious The Swamp, and Tiger Stadium (No. 4), LSU’s Death Valley.

Earlier this decade the Ducks boasted a nation-leading 23-game see Oregon, page 15