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Obama visits china Cal Poly football sufto talk trade, human fered its first home loss rights and freedom to South Dakota on of expression. Saturday.
50’s scent expands his “street cred” with his new cologne. IN ARTS, 8 Volume LXXIV, Number 42
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Monday, November 16, 2009
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Body found in marina Bill would give CSU $600 million chancellor and President Baker do not have a position on a bill could be missing baby CSU that would give a total of $1 billion to Californian higher education. Sean Maher oaKland tribune
BERKELEY, Calif. — A child’s body found near the Berkeley Marina Sunday morning may be Jashon Williams, the missing 17month-old son of a woman found beaten and shot to death Friday. Police declined to publicly speculate on the body’s identity until a coroner’s investigation is finished, but several members of Jashon’s family rushed to the scene when they heard of the discovery and said they were sure it was him. “We put two and two together,” said Karim Toney, whose sister, 23-year-old Zoelina Williams, was Jashon’s mother. “We just wanted the baby back.” Police launched a search for the boy after his mother’s body was found in a parking lot near Berkeley’s Aquatic Park around 4 a.m. Friday. About a mile away Sunday morning, two kayakers near the marina spotted a child’s body floating near the shore and called 911. The marina had not been included in the police search, but waterways and large pipes do connect the two areas, Berkeley Police Lt. Andrew Greenwood said. Police scoured the area after the body was found but turned up no new evidence, he added. Representing the family to a group of news reporters, Toney said police had not confirmed much about the body, “but we all know it’s Jashon.” As Toney spoke, several women from the family gathered near the shoreline, watching police work around the scene of the body’s dis-
covery. Those women broke into screams and sobs when an officer lifted a small bundle from a docked boat, carrying it into a nearby coroner’s van. “It was so small. It looked like a bag of trash,” said Veronica Ellis, Williams’ cousin. “That’s not one murder, but two. That’s a person with no heart. I just don’t understand it: an innocent little baby that didn’t do anything.” On Friday afternoon, police arrested 38-year-old Curtis Martin for Williams’ killing. Police and family members later said they discovered Martin had been in a relationship with Williams. Malcolm Lewis, Williams’ uncle, said a sister of Martin’s had been watching the toddler since the night of Oct. 31. Oakland police believe Jashon was with his mother when she was killed, Officer Jeff Thomason said. Martin has a criminal record dating back to the early 1990s. In 1994, he was arrested in the beating death of 3-year-old Devin Brewer of Oakland, the son of his girlfriend at the time. He served six years in prison for the crime. In 2008, he was arrested for violating a court order to prevent domestic violence. He was never prosecuted. “What is he doing on the street?” said Afrah Toney, a relative in Williams’ family. “He shouldn’t have been free. Who was watching him? Where was parole? He’s just roaming the neighborhood, chilling.” Martin is scheduled to be arraigned in Alameda County Superior Court Tuesday morning, Greenwood said.
mcclatchy-tribune Police officers prepare to transport the body of a child that was discovered earlier today at the Berkeley Marina on Sunday.
Will Taylor mustang daily
Furloughs, funding shortages and bigger class sizes have impacted students, faculty and staff throughout the California higher education system this year. With a $564 million shortfall for the year, legislators, faculty and students are all scrambling for ideas on how to keep the quality of education in California’s school system at its current level while battling the deficit. One of those ideas is Assembly Bill 656, introduced by state Assemblyman Alberto Torrico (DNewark). The bill is a 9.9 percent severance tax on oil and natural gas, which could result in a projected $1 billion revenue to California’s higher education system, said Richard Saenz, the president of Cal Poly’s branch of the California Faculty Association (CFA). Sixty percent of the money would go to the CSU system, 30 percent to the UC system and 10 percent to California’s community colleges. For the CSU system, that equals roughly $600 million; Cal Poly would receive between $25 and 30 million. Saenz said an alternative to income funding will be crucial for maintaining Cal Poly’s academic
standards. “To keep access available to students and to keep student fees reasonable, we need a fund other than the state fund,” he said. “No one votes to raise taxes on themselves.” The bill hasn’t gained support from the CSU Chancellor’s Office. Chancellor Charles Reed argues that the money wouldn’t cover the entire deficit. Erik Fallis, media relations specialist for the CSU, said that the system doesn’t generally weigh in on legislation. “The legislation is well intentioned but does not solve higher education’s funding needs,” Fallis said in an e-mail. “With oil production in steady decline within California’s borders, it is not a stable funding source going into the future.” A severance tax would tax natural gas and oil 9.9 percent at the wellhead. Opponents of the bill said this would put California far ahead of other states in terms of gas and oil taxation. Still, Saenz said he doesn’t understand why none of these offices will take a stance on something that could help alleviate Cal Poly’s budget woes, even if it’s not a complete fix. “The CSU is neutral; to me, it doesn’t make sense,” Saenz said. “If
A 9.9% severance tax on natural gas and oil would give $1 billion to California higher education $600 million to CSU $300 million to UC $100 million to CC
you can solve half the problems, people would take that.” Cal Poly President Warren Baker and Provost Robert Koob are neutral on the subject as well. Saenz said he was unsure of their motives. “This is one where we’re fighting for this and they aren’t,” Saenz said. “Whether it’s a statement on prinsee AB 656, page 2
Poly gives back H1N1 vaccines Megan Hassler mustang daily
The H1N1 vaccine arrived at Cal Poly at the end of October. After the two-week vaccine drive at the Health Center, about 4,000 of the 7,000 vaccines will be given back to the county for redistribution. “We are discontinuing it because the demand for it has fallen,” Dr. Martin Bragg, the director of Health and Counseling Services said. The Health Center received another 3,500 vaccines on Nov. 10, the second of two expected from the county. The County Health Department allotted 7,000 vaccines for Cal Poly. “We originally ordered 19,000. We thought we might have to give everyone two shots,” Bragg said. After receiving the vaccine, Health Center officials organized a vaccine drive, which began Nov. 3.
The Health Center closed normal operations and was only open to give the vaccine. The vaccine was also offered Nov. 4, 5, 10 and 12. “We could see that the demand for the shot was tapering off dramatically,” Bragg said. The first day it was offered, about 750 vaccines were given. There was a line out the Health Center door down to Perimeter Road of students waiting to receive it. The second day, about 500 were given, and the third day, over 200. “Those who didn’t get it (the vaccine) have in a sense decided that the risk isn’t worth the shot,” Bragg said. “I am a little disappointed that we didn’t give more vaccines.” The next big vaccination push will be in kindergarten through 12th grade schools. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that the initial target groups for the vaccine include people from six months to
Those who didn’t get (the vaccine) have in a sense decided that the risk isn’t worth the shot. —dr. Martin Bragg Director of Health and Counseling Services
24 years. The San Luis Obispo Public Health Department and County Office of Education sent packets home with children starting Nov. see H1N1, page 2
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H1N1
AB 656
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2 with information and consent forms. In a release from the San Luis Obispo County Health Agency and Office of Education, health officer Dr. Penny Borenstein said, “Vaccination is the best way to prevent the spread of influenza in schools throughout the community.” The release asked parents who wished for their children to be vaccinated to return the required permission slip as soon as possible. The dates for the vaccinations are uncertain, but they do not expect the Public Health school vaccinations to start until Nov. 10. The program will begin in elementary schools and then include middle and high schools as more vaccines become available. The vaccine is becoming more available and more widely spread. According to the CDC, “The federal government has purchased a total of 250 million doses of 2009 H1N1 vaccine. The 2009 H1N1 vaccine first became available in early October, and more doses are becoming available every week.” The H1N1 vaccine is still available at the Health Center and will be offered during regular business hours. “As more vaccine becomes available, we hope to ensure that every person who wants a vaccine can receive one,” Borenstein said in the release. For county updates, visit slocounty.ca.gov/health/publichealth/ swineflu.htm or call the 24-hour Public Health information line at 805-788-2903. More information can be found at afd.calpoly.edu/ehs/h1n1 or on the Health Center’s H1N1 hotline at 805-756-6099.
ciples or political tactics, I don’t know.” Koob said that there are just too many unknowns. “I’ve heard speculations, but I don’t have a firm understanding of what it would bring to Cal Poly,” he said. “The only (bills) that matter are the ones that the governor’s signed.” AB 656 is a two-year bill and will require many conditions to be met, according to the Chancellor’s Office. This is one of the factors that stopped them from speculating on the potential for the bill. Taylor Lobdell, a social sciences junior, said he was disappointed with Cal Poly and CSU leadership. “I think it’s kind of a lame move by not totally supporting,” he said. “They make enough money to pay the extra cents at the gas pump. I think we should get money any way we can.” In a speech, Reed said that there just “isn’t any money in Sacramento.” Alice Sunshine, media relations for the CFA, said that this excuse is just not acceptable for the people responsible for maintaining California’s quality of education. “(Reed’s) been saying that there’s no money,” Sunshine said. “This is an economic crisis, but there is money out there. It’s just not acceptable from a leader, that’s why he gets the big bucks.” Opponents of the bill, such as the California Independent Petroleum Association and the California Taxpayers Association (CalTax), say that proponents are not seeing the whole picture. Looking in new places for funding may seem like a good idea, but an oil and gas tax is not the right solu-
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tion, said David Kline, communications director of Cal-Tax. “It’s very misleading when we say there’s no severance tax,” Kline said. “We have taxes on oil; there’s just no severance tax.” Kline said that California is “neck and neck” with other states in terms of oil and gas taxes, even if the tax is not termed a severance tax. Property taxes, sales tax on equipment and regulatory fees on each barrel of oil are already in place, he said. Previous bills similar to the severance tax have been proposed in the past, and according to Kline, the existing taxes are the reason they didn’t pass. Cal-Tax’s main argument against AB 656 is that it would hurt an already damaged economy. According to a study done by Law and Economics Consulting Group (LECG), if California did impose an oil severance tax at 9.9 percent, an estimated 9,850 jobs in California would be lost because it would cost oil companies too much money to produce at current levels. Also, some of the tax price would be transferred to the consumers at the pump, Kline said. The higher the operating taxes, the more the oil companies would charge. Kline also said that the flux of income taxes is already a major factor in the state’s economic problems and that the tax on oil and gas would be no different. “Oil severance tax is very volatile.The cost of a barrel of oil goes through huge swings,” he said. “The tax would go up and down like a roller coaster. If you budget off this, it creates some uncertainty.” The state legislature votes on AB 656 in spring. Until then, students, faculty and staff in California’s higher education system will have to survive the current deficient climate.
Monday, November 16, 2009
Illinois prison being considered as new home for some Gitmo detainees
mcclatchy-tribune Federal officials are still looking for an acceptable location for prisoners that are currently being held in Guantanamo Bay. Kristen Schorsch and Andrew L. Wang chicago tribune
CHICAGO — A delegation from U.S. Bureau of Prisons is scheduled to tour and inspect Illinois’Thomson Correctional Center Monday as part of a White House proposal to move some terror suspects now detained at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, officials said Sunday. Speaking today at news conferences in Moline, Ill., and Chicago, Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn called the Obama Administration’s interest in the prison near the Mississippi River a “great, great opportunity for our state.” Housing the detainees here would be “good for our state, good for our economy and good for our public safety,” the governor said. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, who also spoke, estimated using Thomson to hold terror suspects would generate more than 2,000 local jobs directly related to the facility and an additional 1,000 in the surrounding community. “People are struggling to keep their homes. ... They’re getting desperate. With the recession and the loss of jobs, they’re not sure which way to turn,” Durbin said. “Now they’ve got a chance, a fighting chance.” Republicans on Saturday warned of the security risks posed by housing terror suspects in Illinois. “As home to America’s tallest building, we should not invite alQaida to make Illinois its number one target,” said Senate candidate and current U.S. Rep. Mark Kirk in a letter circulated Saturday. Republican U.S. Rep. Donald Manzullo, whose district includes Thomson, was among several members of Illinois’ congressional delegation to sign the letter. Durbin said Sunday he was confident the detainees would not be threat. “There are currently 35 people serving in the prisons of Illinois convicted of terrorism. ... They’re all in our prisons, and they’re all held safely,” he said. “There hasn’t been a single escape from a maximum-security prison in the United States of America. This prison will
have even more investment made to make certain these prisoners are held safely and securely.” If the federal government does use Thomson to house Guantanamo’s terror detainees, it would build a more secure perimeter around the site, Durbin said. The Obama administration Friday revealed the largely vacant prison is a leading candidate to house a “limited number” of terrorism suspects. On Saturday, Durbin said that number would be “fewer than 100.” The administration has faced a knot of problems as it works to close the detention center on the naval base in Cuba. Thomson, a maximum-security prison roughly 150 miles west of Chicago, could be turned into a super-maximum facility with a unit for some of the Guantanamo detainees. It remains unclear how the detainees would be brought to Illinois and whether Thomson would be the sole domestic prison for that purpose. Several other sites have been under review by the U.S. Departments of Justice and Defense, and local officials around the country have volunteered their communities as host towns. Federal officials also are reviewing prisons in Florence, Colo., and a site in Montana, Quinn said today. On Sunday, Durbin said the idea to look into Thomson as an alternative for the Guantanamo detainees was sparked in part by a letter to his office by Thomson Village President Jerry “Duke” Hebeler that noted with the prison largely empty as it is now, the town was “in limbo.” “We not only read (the letter),” Durbin said, “we took it to heart.”
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SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (MCT) — County public health officials are offering free doses of the radiation-blocking drug potassium iodide to people who live and work downwind of Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant. The pills, also known by their chemical name KI, are available at six locations. They are only to be taken at the direction of public health officials in the event of a radiation leak at Diablo Canyon. The county has enough doses to cover hundreds of thousands of people, said Michelle Shoresman, spokeswoman for the county public health department. They will be available as long as supplies last, which should be a year or so.
SEATTLE (MCT) — The owner of a bakery in Seattle said Friday that a razor blade found in a muffin bought at a QFC store in Mountlake Terrace, Wash., got there by accident when one of her workers dropped the blade in a vat of batter. Molly Wilmot, owner of Mostly Muffins, said a longtime employee was using the blade last Sunday to open bags and boxes when it fell into a giant mixing bowl. He lost it in the batter and was afraid to tell his manager. The employee has been suspended until the company completes an internal investigation, and all Mostly Muffins products have been removed from QFC stores until the bakery completes an independent audit of its facilities.
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. (MCT) — The University of California system will ask the state for $913 million more in next year’s budget, the 10-campus system announced Sunday. UC President Mark Yudof said in a written statement he would ask the university’s Board of Regents this week to approve the request, which follows last week’s announcement the California State University system would seek nearly $900 million more in the 2010-11 state budget.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (MCT) — Space shuttle Atlantis and its crew of six astronauts are scheduled to blast off from Kennedy Space Center at 2:28 p.m. Monday on the fifth and last shuttle launch of the year — the most missions NASA has launched in a single year since 2002. The blastoff begins the final completion of the International Space Station. After today, only five more shuttle flights remain before construction of the $100 billion station is finished and it’s fully stocked with supplies and spare parts.
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TOKYO (MCT) — Babies have fewer serious accidents if their male parent is seriously committed to fatherhood, according to an analysis by a specialist of Japan’s National Institute of Public Health. About 42,000 people were surveyed by Takeo Fujiwara, chief of the institute’s behavioral science section, and the results were announced Friday in a British journal specializing in epidemiology. Based on data from a 2001 Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry survey of 50,000 6-month-old infants, Fujiwara analyzed the self-evaluated degree of the father’s involvement in six child-rearing activities, including baby-feeding and changing diapers.
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CHANDIGARH, India (MCT) — For the first time, human trials for the malaria vaccine and drug development program will be conducted in India. This was revealed by Dr.Virander Singh Chauhan, director of International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi, during the 21st National Congress of Parasitology at Panjab University Saturday. Talking to Hindustan Times, Chauhan said, “The vaccine has been prepared. The Indian Regulatory Authority has been reviewing it so that necessary precautions can be taken at the time of testing. After getting approval from the authority, testing will be started immediately.”
pression in China and the response to climate change. Analysts say both sides may use Obama’s visit to build consensus on a range of strategic issues, including regional security and nuclear nonproliferation, but don’t see a breakthrough in talks on any of the touchier issues. “Indeed, the Obama admin see Visit, page 5
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The U.S. and China both benefit when they compromise, but if the U.S. puts tariffs on trade, China will prevail, Wang Guanjun said. V. Phani Kumar HONG KONG — President Barack Obama will use his maiden visit to China this week to discuss a range of contentious issues, but may stop short of pushing the largest buyer of U.S. debt too hard. On the economic side, trade imbalances between the two economic heavyweights and protectionism should feature promi-
nently, with China responding to any pressure to let its currency appreciate or to open its markets to U.S. products by raising the issues of recent punitive tariffs imposed on Chinese exports of steel pipes and tires. A number of political issues also offer possible disagreement, and the world will closely watch how China responds to Obama’s overtures on topics such as Tibet, human rights and freedom of ex-
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U.S. to try Sept. International 11 suspects in New York criminal court
Obama unlikely to play hardball during China visit
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Wire Editor: Jennifer Titcomb
mustang daily
Monday, November 16, 2009
Josh Meyer and David Savage mcclatchy newspapers
WASHINGTON — Setting the stage for a historic criminal trial, Attorney General Eric Holder announced Friday that the government will try the self-proclaimed architect of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and four others not in a military tribunal but in a civilian courthouse just blocks from the scene of their alleged crimes. Americans, and especially the victims and family members of the suicide hijackings, “deserve the opportunity to see the alleged plotters of those attacks held accountable in court,” Holder said. “After eight years of delay, those allegedly responsible ... will finally face justice.” He said he expected prosecutors to seek the death penalty. Holder’s decision raised a raft
of legal, political and even ethical questions, including what kind of evidence will be used against men against whom the U.S. government has used brutal interrogation methods. In Khalid Sheikh Mohammed’s case, the CIA has acknowledged using waterboarding, a technique that simulates drowning, which many legal experts say amounted to torture. “There could be all kinds of problems with the evidence. Some of it might be linked to waterboarding. Other evidence may have come from intelligencegathering overseas,” said Matthew Waxman, a Columbia University law professor who served as a Pentagon lawyer in the Bush administration. “That said, the government would not be moving forward if see Suspects, page 4
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Monday, November 16, 2009
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Report says 75 percent of Americans unfit to serve in military
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The U.S. Army’s 4-23 Infantry Regiment of the 5th Styker Brigade uses the new version of the Land Warrior Strike System during a training session in Regensberg, a mock village at Fort Lewis, Wash. The Land Warrior System gives leaders a hands-free, up-to-the-minute map of the battle space showing the positions of friendly units and enemies. Rick Montgomery mcclatchy-newspapers
Suspects continued from page 3
they were not confident they can prove their case” with untainted evidence, he said. The trial could also turn into a propaganda forum for the accused, legal experts said. “That’s almost a certainty,” Waxman said. “We hold our trials in the open, and that gives defendants an opportunity to spew propaganda. They will try to the put the U.S. government on trial.” Holder’s long-awaited decision drew immediate applause from some and harsh condemnation from others, including some key Republicans in Congress. “It is fitting that 9/11 suspects face justice near the World Trade Center site where so many New Yorkers were murdered,” New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. Some survivors and family members of the nearly 2,900 people who died on that September morning also welcomed the news. Several indicated that they want to bear witness to the public trials of Mohammed and four other suspected al-Qaida operatives, whom Holder said will soon be indicted over their alleged roles in the attacks. Others shared the concerns of some legal experts that such a public trial will give Mohammed and his associates a very public
soapbox to exhort sympathizers to join in their jihad, or holy war, against the United States. “We have a president who doesn’t know we’re at war,” said Debra Burlingame, an outspoken representative of many victims and survivors, whose brother Charles was the pilot of one of the hijacked planes. She said that a public trial also could allow the attacks themselves to be overshadowed by details of alleged CIA torture of the men after their capture, and by “the prospect of these barbarians being turned into victims by their attorneys.” Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, the top Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, said such trials in civilian court could result in acquittals, mistrials or shorter sentences, and vowed that Republicans will redouble their efforts to block them through a congressional vote. But Holder, who said it was the toughest decision he has had to make as attorney general, said he believed the men would be convicted based on evidence that would be allowed at trial, including “information that has not been publicly released,” and that prosecutors would to seek the death penalty. “I am confident,” he added, “in the ability of our courts to provide these defendants a fair trial, just as they have for over 200 years.”
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Chalk up another national-security threat — this one looming with each excess pound, failing grade and drug bust affecting young adults. An alarming 75 percent of Americans ages 17 to 24 would not qualify for military service today because they are physically unfit, failed to finish high school or have criminal records. So says a new report from an organization of education and military leaders calling for immediate acsee Americans, page 5
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U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announces that the self-described mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, Khalid Shaikh Mohammad, and four other Guantanamo detainees accused in the plot will be tried in federal court in New York during a news conference at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC.
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Visit continued from page 3
istration has yet to adopt a clear policy towards China. But it is also clear that the White House wants to maintain a constructive relationship with Beijing, focused primarily on gaining Chinese support for U.S. policy towards North Korea and Iran,” CLSA’s China strategist Andy Rothman wrote in a note to clients. Referring to the recent imposition of punitive tariffs on some Chinese exports, Rothman said during his visit to Beijing, Obama needs to reassure his Chinese counterpart President Hu Jintao “that the White House is not falling back on protectionist policies and that the trade cases can be resolved through non-political World Trade Organization processes.” Washington had recently imposed anti-dumping duties of as much as 99 percent on Chinesemade imports of steel pipe for use in the oil and gas industry, following allegations by U.S. Steel Corp. and other producers that the products are being dumped at unfair prices. The move came under harsh criticism from Beijing. Rothman said Beijing’s response so far to such moves shows China understands such cases “are the usual background noise to a large, complex bilateral trade relationship.” Furthermore, Hu “should understand that Obama is far more interested in Chinese cooperation on strategic issues than in using trade disputes as an excuse for economic problems back home,” he said. The growing trade imbalance between the two countries and the value of the Chinese yuan are expected to be another major bone of contention. China has increasingly come under criticism recently for keeping its currency almost unchanged against the U.S. dollar for more than a year. The move by China, likely aimed at protecting the nation’s exporters and the jobs they provide in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, has been criticized as giving the country an unfair competitive advantage against rival exporters, while making U.S. products more expensive for Chinese consumers. “We hardly expect this to be a watershed event in terms of U.S.China relations or for China’s currency policy specifically. China is so accustomed to being lectured on its currency, that one more bout of it from the U.S. president should hardly make a difference,” HSBC Global Research currency strategist Robert Lynch wrote in a note to clients. But with foreign exchange reserves at the end of September of $2.27 trillion — the world’s largest — China is also the largest foreign holder of U.S. Treasurys, which makes it more difficult the Washington to take a very hard stance on Chinese policies. “At the end of the day, China’s massive holdings of U.S. debt and the critical need to keep them as ready buyers of U.S. Treasurys suggest the Obama administration will not be overly antagonistic on virtually any issue of substance with the Chinese. And the outcome should be neutral for financial markets,” Lynch wrote.
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Monday, November 16, 2009
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Word on the Street
“Do you think San Luis Obispo should ban smoking in public places?”
“I don’t think so. It’s people’s prerogatives. They just have to be really respectful.”
“Tobacco is still legal. I don’t approve of it, but people have the right.”
“Yes, because it’s like a 20foot radius I have to smell. It’s not very considerate.”
“No, I don’t think they should. I think that’s too many rules.”
-Michael Horwitz, environmental management and protection senior
-Joseph SanDiego, computer engineering senior
-Kyle Horjus, business freshman
-Stephanie Henning, mechanical engineering senior
“No, I don’t think so, as long as people are respectful and not smoking right outside a door.”
“No, I think it’s a choice as long as they stay away from eating places then I don’t have a problem.”
-Derek Hendry, mechanical engineering senior
-Becky Burnside, psychology senior
compiled and photographed by jennifer titcomb
Americans continued from page 4
tion on the early-education front. While some experts voiced doubt that obesity and other societal ills would keep three out of four young adults out of the ranks, the report titled “Ready,Willing and Unable to Serve” was endorsed by U.S. Education Secretary Arne Duncan, former NATO commander Gen. Wesley Clark and top retired admirals and generals. “The armed services are meeting recruitment targets in 2009, but those of us who have served in command roles are worried about the trends we see,” retired Rear Adm. James Barnett said.“Our national security in the year 2030 is absolutely dependent on what’s going on in kindergarten today.” Military recruiters in Kansas City report turning away prospective recruits “in every office, every hour, every day” for reasons including girths too large and credit ratings too low. Increasingly, applicants are disqualified for having asthma or for taking pills for depression or attention disorders. Nearly one-third of all young adults have health issues
other than weight that could keep them from serving, according to the report of the group Mission: Readiness. If you’re the single parent of a dependent child without a support network, you’re out. If you’re carrying too much debt, you’re out. The military doesn’t want recruits who will be hounded by creditors and lawsuits. Some applicants without a highschool diploma can get a waiver to serve if they earn a GED or score high on the military’s entrance exam. But such waivers are granted to fewer than 2 percent of applicants. “What we allow waivers for, and for whom, is like an opening and closing gate depending on our needs. We can adjust our policies if we have to,” said Douglas Smith of the U.S. Army Recruiting Command. As a slumping economy increases interest in military service, more people with obvious deficiencies are contacting recruiters. “We’re no longer so much saying, ‘Try back in 60, 90 days and see if you can qualify,’” Smith said. “It’s more like ‘We’re sorry ... and don’t come back.’” Even after signing up, 7 to 15 percent of enlistees return home
for not meeting all that basic training demands. Obesity alone disqualifies 27 percent of all young Americans from serving.About one in four in the 17to-24 age group lacks a high school diploma. Delaware, Florida, Georgia and Texas posted unusually high rates of obesity, juvenile crime and dropout rates. “To say 75 percent of an entire age group would be ineligible to serve, that sounds too high,” said John Pike of the defense think tank GlobalSecurity.org, echoing the ini-
tial reaction of other military watchers and some recruiters in Kansas City. “But it wouldn’t be off the mark in some communities,” including low-income areas historically attracted to career and education opportunities offered by joining the volunteer fighting forces. “When looking for officer candidates, they’re trying to recruit the high-school quarterback, not the slacker under the bleachers smoking a cigarette,” Pike said. “Someone who dropped out of school and got supersized? You have a hard time seeing a soldier there.”
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50 Cent continued from page 8
50 isn’t worried about the hiphop community questioning his “street cred.” He feels his past — he was arrested for drug dealing and was shot nine times in 2000 — speaks for itself. “I think they’ve adjusted to me being successful in business,” 50 said of the hip-hop community. “And when people talk about ‘street cred,’ I’m probably one of the people they point to as having the most street cred because I had the hardest time. But all those things are situations I felt unfortunate to have to go through.” On Monday, 50 will release his fourth studio album, “Before I Self Destruct.” Although his fashion sense has changed, his lyrics are just as raw as they were on past albums (the record includes a little ditty called “Death to My Enemies”). The album comes with a DVD,
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dress really theatrically and oversexed and scream really loudly and embrace the train wreck? Well, we could try to be sincere, hope for the best, keep putting ourselves out there despite heartbreak and hope that the world isn’t going to die. We could try to reduce our car-
which 50 wrote, directed and stars in. In one scene, 50 fans will see what was once unimaginable: 50 Cent crying. “You have to find the space emotionally to cry on cue,” 50 said. “Everybody has had something happen to them in the past that hurt. For me, I can utilize the loss of my mom. I went through a lot of confusion at that point. I was 8 years old, and there was nothing around me that would make me feel the comfort that she made me feel.” 50 played a loan shark in the recently released (in the U.K.) film “Dead Man Running,” and can be seen in “Twelve” with Kiefer Sutherland and “13” with Mickey Rourke (no connection to “Twelve”), both of which are due out in 2010. Will we ever see 50 in a romantic comedy? “When you’ve seen Ice Cube do ‘Are We There Yet?’” 50 said, “you can never say never.”
bon footprint, adopt a child in Africa and love the one we’re with. But what’s the point? We’re just going to lose it all anyway. And O sings, “Time, time is gone/It stops stops who it was/Well I was wrong it never lasts/There is no modern romance.” Jack LaPorte is an English graduate, KCPR DJ and “Hipster Bullshit” contributing columnist.
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50 Cent releases new cologne, “Power by 50” Luis Arroyave chicago tribune
CHICAGO — Curtis Jackson — better known as 50 Cent, the gangsta rapper who broke onto the scene wearing bulletproof vests and rapping about guns and drug deals — had one question for me Monday when we met at Macy’s. “Have you smelled this?” asked 50 as he held his new fragrance, “Power by 50 Cent.” “You have to smell it.” And with that, the New York native who has rapped about spraying bullets on rivals sprayed my left wrist with cologne. This, America, is the new 50 Cent.
He hangs out with Bette Midler, wrote a book with “The 48 Laws of Power” author Robert Greene called “The 50th Law,” and wears Giorgio Armani and Tom Ford suits. “After 2003, my music took off, and I achieved financial success that allowed me to enter different circles,” 50 said about his transformation. “I was exposed to new information and turned on to different things. “Suits are exciting to me. Tony Yayo (50’s friend and fellow rapper) thinks he shouldn’t have a suit on unless he’s going to a funeral. And we grew up three blocks from each other.” see 50 Cent, page 7
mcclatchy-tribune
50 Cent’s new cologne, “Power by 50 Cent,” can be found at Macy’s stores nationwide.
music column
The Yeah Yeah Yeahs capture spirit of a decade In 2003, the world at large met the art punk rockers the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and their first full-length album, “Fever To Tell” on Interscope records. In general the album was well received across the board. Though it seems to be forgotten, “Fever to Tell” was an internationally gold-selling album gaining much positive press, including being named the New York Times’ album of the year. What made the album so accessible to so many was not a pleasant melody or optimistic lyrics, but rather a loud wall of sound from simple but forceful drum beats with stabbing guitar riffs by Brian Chase and Nick Zinner, respectively and a bestial and savage sexuality that is Karen O. Their music is unapologetically apocalyptic with no delusions about the future. The album perfectly captures the doomed sentimentality of the decade and the desire to go out with a bang. “Fever to Tell” was
released in April of 2003, just over a month after President Bush declared war on Iraq and just as I was moving to my third high school. The change from Los Angeles County to Ventura County was dis-
orienting, and I couldn’t get any grip on reality. I became friends with a couple of girls who helped me through some of my most emotionally retarded moments. I spent the majority of my time dressing in girl’s clothing, wearing eyeliner, mascara, blush and a crispy, over-gelled devil-lock, all while wrestling on my school’s varsity team. This odd behavior was just two years in a decade-long therapy session in which most of my generation tried to come to terms with a looming Armageddon. When you listen to the album, you will hear reoccurring themes of failed relationships, which feel as if they are blanketed in artificial red lighting, failed masculinity or femininity, sex and hell. But the album doesn’t treat these as bad things. To The Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the rest of us, these are the things that make us alive. As Karen O sings in “Man,” the decade is defined by a hopeless-but-what-are-yougonna-do-about-it mentality. We are surrounded by friends we hate, lovers who demand too much, God is dead, and there’s Darfur, the economy’s collapsing, and our president lied to us and we’re all gonna burn in hell. So what is there to do other see Decade, page 7
opinion/editorial Monday, November 16, 2009
Editor in chief: Emilie Egger Managing Editor: Alex Kacik
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GUEST COMMENTARY
Reform for Public Education needed more than ever On Nov. 4, President Obama publicized his plan to reshape education in America through $4.35 billion in federal grants. Aptly named ‘Race to the Top,’ the program guidelines have not been finalized, but will offer competitive grants to those states who create policies for education reform in four specific areas as put forth by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The Department of Education’s Race to the Top Fund has created general guidelines for receiving the funds that focus on the following ‘assurance’ areas: implementing standards and assessments, improving teacher effectiveness and achieving equity in teacher distribution, improving collection and use of data and supporting struggling schools. There is an added increase of individual attention on teachers. Attracting, improving and retaining high quality teachers through monetary incentive is an integral part of the plan. I have no qualm with giving teachers bonuses and pay raises, as a recent study by the National Association of Colleges and Employers estimates the average national starting salary for a teacher to only be around $30,377. Teaching is by no means an easy task. Especially in high-risk neighborhoods where supplies are low and structural problems are many, teachers
deserve to be well compensated for the point that they are excited about their time and effort. However, link- learning. This emphasis on standarding teacher pay to student test scores ized tests is strikingly familiar to No seems faulty. The package includes Child Left Behind’s one-size-fits all $250 million to help states track in- solution. formation through data systems and Strongly lacking in this plan is the multi-factor formulas to track stu- creation of a framework for an effecdent performance and rate teachers. tive curriculum. Since curriculum While basing pay on performance varies statewide, it becomes hard to may encourage teachers to drive for set a standard by which to receive the student achievement, it doesn’t seem grants. This begs the question, how that even the value-added formulas comparable will these standardized could fairly isolate the influence of tests even be, as a 98th percentile may teaching from other factors, such as a fall into the 70th depending on what child’s socio-economic background. test is taken? This is aside from the There is also a lack of firm evi- fact that stress on standardized tests dence supporting the idea that will undoubtedly take away from changing the pay structure actually emphasis on other activities. Reimproves the quality of search on how children learn shows teaching. Some teachthat many social and common sense ers have voiced conskills are acquired as the result of becerns that now teaching ing engaged in other ways. Facts and to the test will become concepts are effectively retained even more of a problem. when they are presented in a real Schools will be looking to gain world context or are of interest the long-term incentives to a student. Sitting offered by this package around and being by simply educating taught to fill in students on how bubbles is likely to take a specific to be more of standardized test. It a detriment, also leaves out the as students are creativity, imaginarobbed of the tion and enthusiasm opportunity to that are all integral in develop beyond A, captivating B, C and margaret scott newsart youth to D.
Congratulations to the Mustangs for a great season. I just managed to make it to my first few soccer games here at Poly this season and quickly became addicted. I’m curious why the field was freshly painted for Saturday’s upcoming football game right before a playoff soccer game. In the heat of the game, I don’t see how it couldn’t be at least mildly distracting to have extra lines painted everywhere. Why not wait until Thursday to prep the field for football? I hope in the future we can show more respect for a soccer team that has certainly made me proud to be a fan. Go Mustangs! —Jake In response to “Mustang season ends in double overtime” This is a great idea. I’m definitely going to stop by… I feel like it’s so hard to get accurate information on what is going on with the fees, furloughs, etc., especially with what is going to occur next year. I’m glad student government is doing this. —Kara C. “ASI to host four-day budget debate” When you state that you believe “life begins at conception,” I am
President Obama or Secretary of Education Arne Duncan don’t have it all wrong. This program also sets aside at least 50 percent of the award to provide sub-grants for public charter schools and other local educational agencies. Setting aside money for, lifting caps off the number permitted, and even changing laws to allow charter schools at all is a huge step in the right direction. I just think the weight should be put more on outside factors including reducing poverty, which is shown to impede a child’s ability to learn. It will be a long and expensive journey to fix the mess that the United States has let its public education system become. Obama’s race to the top is by far the largest sum of unrestricted funding for K-12 education reform in the history of the United States. Recognizing that students need better schooling to not only boost the economic recovery but to compete in the global economy is tremendous. Adopting standards to prepare all students for achievement is an honorable goal. We just need to make sure this ‘race’ is a meticulous process that allocates power and funding to assure that this time no child is left behind. Britney Huelbi is a Mustang Daily guest columnist and a social sciences major.
assuming this means that your moral reason against abortion is that it is ending assumed life, and therefore life is inherently valuable. However, you make an exception for ending life due to specified circumstances. So are you saying that the life of the child or fetus at conception is not inherently valuable? Or can you explain your reasoning for it being okay to end God-given life because of circumstances around its conception (in the case of incest or rape)? —Anonymous In response to “Health care reform funds should not go toward abortion” A lot of complaints about universal health care are the comparisons to places like Canada. If Canada isn’t the ideal universal health care, then let’s not be Canada. Let’s be better than Canada. Let’s be the example to the world for how universal health care should happen. America is good at that. At least, that’s what the history books tell me. I hope we all agree that everyone should have health care. It’s a matter of record that not everyone can afford it. —David In response to “Freedom or security, you choose”
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bridge the gap. A Clancy layup sliced Oregon State’s lead to 62-59 with five-and-a-half minutes remaining, but Cal Poly — which reached the free throw line just once during the second half — was held to a single basket down the stretch. Santiago, an All-Big West Conference first team selection last season, paced Cal Poly with six rebounds. The Mustangs continue their fivegame homestand against Pepperdine on Saturday, Nov. 21 at 2 p.m.
mustang daily staff report
women’s basketball game 1 Cal Poly 61, Oregon state 71 game 2 Cal Poly 90, new mexico State 86 After falling in its season opener, Cal Poly was able to mount a fourpoint victory over New Mexico State Sunday afternoon. Senior forward Becky Tratter recorded a career-high 19 points to pace five Mustangs in doubledigit scoring figures as the Cal Poly women’s basketball team opened a 14-game home schedule with its first victory of the 2009-10 campaign. Cal Poly (1-1) recorded its highest scoring total since drubbing UC Irvine on Jan. 10, 2008, 92-55. Junior guard Desiray Johnston added a career-high 16 points and junior forward Kristina Santiago totaled 15. Senior guard Ashlee Stewart finished with 13 points and senior guard Brittany Lange totaled a collegiate-best 11 points for the Mustangs. Along with points scored, other milestones were set with the win. Junior guard Rachel Clancy finished with a career-high nine rebounds for Cal Poly while Johnston was credited with a collegiate-best six assists. A Santiago jumper provided the Mustangs a 23-15 advantage seven minutes prior to halftime, but the Mustangs were outscored to finish the opening period, 26-15. Capped with a three-pointer from Clancy, Cal Poly began the opening four minutes of the second half with a 12-4 run. However, the Mustangs – who forced New Mexico State (1-1) into 23 turnovers – steadily saw their lead whittled into a 66-60 deficit with nine-and-a-half minutes remaining. Johnston, however, stemmed a
11
mustang daily
Monday, November 16, 2009
women’s volleyball
nick camacho mustang daily file photo
Big West Conference Player of the Year candidate forward Kristina Santiago recorded 32 points over two games this weekend. Fifteen came against New Mexico State, and 17 came against Oregon State. 7-0 run by the Aggies with one of her three three-pointers and a Stewart layup with seven minutes to play delivered the Mustangs a concrete 70-68 lead. New Mexico State returned to deadlock the scoreline on three successive possessions, but three straight free throws from sophomore forward Aly Geppert and five consecutive points from Johnston furthered Cal Poly’s late lead to 82-74. On Friday, junior forward Kristina Santiago scored a team-high 17 points and senior forward Becky Tratter added 14, but the Cal Poly women’s basketball team dropped its fifth straight season-opening contest, falling for the second time in three years against Oregon State at Gill Coliseum, 71-61. Cal Poly was held to a 38.5 percent shooting mark from the floor during
the first half and trailed for the entirety of the evening. The Mustangs, who converted just four of 18 threepoint attempts, were outrebounded, 40-28, and allowed the Beavers to shoot 53 percent from the floor. Behind Santiago and Tratter, both Clancy and Lange added eight points apiece for Cal Poly. Five different Oregon State scorers helped the Beavers build an 11-3 lead after the opening five minutes and the hosts, who outscored Cal Poly in the paint, 48-36, led 35-29 at intermission. Oregon State furthered its advantage to 45-35 three minutes into the second half before ninestraight points by Santiago during the ensuing four minutes helped the Mustangs eventually cut their deficit to 48-46 with 13 minutes to play. The Mustangs, however, failed to
Men’s basketball falls to Stanford
nick camacho mustang daily file photo
The Mustangs record consecutive losses to open the season with a loss against Stanford Saturday night 70-53. Three Mustangs posted double figures against the Stanford defense. Mustang guard Lorenzo Keeler (12) led Cal Poly in scoring with 15 points. Behind Keeler, Justin Brown posted 11 points, and Will Donahue posted 10.
game 1 cal poly 28, UC DAVIS 26 game 2 UC DAvis 28, cal poly 26 game 3 uc davis 25, Cal poly 23 game 4 cal poly 25, uc davis 22 game 5 uc davis 15, Cal poly 6 DAVIS — Sophomore outside hitter Catie Smith matched a career high with 17 kills to lead four Mustangs in double-digit figures, but the Cal Poly volleyball team still dropped a 26-28, 28-26, 25-23, 22-25, 15-6 decision against UC Davis during its final road match of the 2009 campaign at The Pavilion. Junior middle blocker Dominique Olowolafe added 16 kills, freshman middle blocker Jennifer Keddy totaled her fourth-straight doubledigit outing with 14 and freshman outside hitter Molly Pon recorded 10 for Cal Poly (8-20, 4-11), which fell to 3-7 in five-set matches this season. The Mustangs, also 1-5 this year in five-set matches they’ve led at some point, outhit UC Davis (19-10, 10-5) .253 to .241 Saturday’s opening set featured 18 deadlocked scorelines, the last of which was broken at 26-26 as Cal Poly freshman setter Anuhea Keanini recorded both her lone kill and ace of the night on consecutive points to hand the Mustangs the match advantage. Cal Poly led game No. 2, 26-25, but a kill from Aggie sophomore middle blocker Katie Denny and back-to-back hitting miscues by Olowolafe yielded both the 10th lead change of the frame and the set to UC Davis. Cal Poly hit .303 during the third set and led as late as 20-17, but the Aggies finished the game with an
8-3 run. The Mustangs returned during set No. 4 to hit a match-best .351. Neither team led by more than two points during the fourth set until Cal Poly claimed four of the final six points to prevail, 25-22. The Mustangs, however, failed to lead at any point during the deciding set. Keanini finished with a careerhigh 63 assists for Cal Poly. Led by junior libero Alison Mort’s gamehigh 19, Cal Poly also featured four Mustangs with double-digit dig figures. Cal Poly completes its 2009 campaign Friday, Nov. 20 against Cal State Northridge at 7 p.m. inside Mott Gym. Prior to the match, Cal Poly will honor its lone graduating senior player, setter Hailey Fithian.
cross country
NCAA West Regional SPRINGFIELD, OR. — Senior Joe Gatel led Cal Poly to a fifth-place finish at the West Regional Saturday. The senior was 15th in a field of 182 runners, clocking a time of 31 minutes, 9.25 seconds over the 10,000meter course held at the Springfield Country Club. The Mustangs finished with Arizona State tied with 155 points. Stanford took first with 27 points and was trailed by Portland (84), Oregon (109), and Washington (120). Cal Poly finished ahead of UCLA (207) and Cal (217). Cal Poly will now wait for the at-large selection process to play out to see if the squad received a bid to the NCAA Championships on Nov. 23. Evan Anderson was the second Mustang across the line, checking in at 25th overall (31:22). Also scoring were Andrew Wright (35th, 31:37), Leif Anderson (39th, 31:48) and Carl Dargitz (46th, 31:58). Finishing sixth and seventh for Cal Poly were Luis Dorantes (56th, 32:11) and Michael Johnson (59th, 32:12). Brienna Morris led Cal Poly’s women’s squad on Saturday, finishing 53rd overall in 22:17 on the 6K course. The Mustangs as a team finished 12th with 328 points. Also in uniform for the Mustangs were Lauren Matthews (55th, 22:18), Rebecca Paddack (57th, 22:21),Vanessa Hancock (74th, 22:38), Courtney Kostrikin (107th, 23:03) and Bridie McCarey (148th, 23:55).
mustangdaily.net
Monday, November 16, 2009
SPORTS
sports editor: Brian De Los Santos
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MUSTANG DAILY
football | cal poly 48 south dakota 50
Cal Poly falls to South Dakota in fourth-quarter thriller Brian De Los Santos mustang daily
nick camacho mustang daily
Cal Poly receiver Dominique Johnson (9), hauled in a single-game record five touchdowns against South Dakota.
South Dakota (5-5, 2-2 GreatWest) held off a 13-point fourth-quarter rally by Cal Poly (4-6, 1-3) to defeat the Mustangs 50-48 on Saturday. After Cal Poly fell to as large as a 23-point deficit, twice, the Mustangs mounted a comeback that left them 3 points shy of a victory. With 20 seconds left in the game, trailing 42-50, Cal Poly quarterback Tony Smith lofted a 42-yard bomb to the left corner of the end zone. The pass was tipped by a South Dakota defender and then caught by Dominique Johnson to put the Mustangs within two points of tying the game. On the two-point conversion, Cal Poly put the game in Smith’s hands, resulting in a tipped incomplete pass. “A defensive player made a good play, you got to tip your hat off to them — they sniffed it out,” Smith said. The failed two-point conversion left Cal Poly with one more chance. After recovering the ensuing onside kick with 18 ticks left on the clock, the Mustangs couldn’t punch in the final blow, marking their first losing season since 2002. “(We) were just trying to pull (the game out) and send our seniors out of this stadium with a victory, but we came out with the short end,” Johnson said. Cal Poly’s defense struggled to stop the South Dakota offense for most of the game.The first punt by South Dakota didn’t surface until the opening minutes of the fourth quarter. South Dakota held eight consecutive scoring drives. The offensive showcase wasn’t one-sided. Cal Poly’s 533-yard outburst featured many notable connections between Smith and Johnson, reminiscent of last season’s offensive threats. Johnson finished the game with 13 catches for 273 yards and five touchdowns. He set a school record for most touchdown receptions, one more than the four-touchdown game Ramses Barden had against Weber State in 2007. Johnson had just one other touchdown reception all season. “I’ve been waiting for our opportunities all year, and they finally came,” Johnson said. Smith aired out 407 yards and six touchdowns, tying the school record set by Jonathan Daly against Weber State in 2007. Smith also tallied career highs in
passing yardage and pass attempts. Overall, the teams combined for 98 points, the highest point total since last year’s game against Southern Utah ,when both teams combined for 110 points. Cal Poly’s defense allowed its highest point total since 2002, when UC Davis posted 62 points. The teams combined for 1,086 yards of total offense. The bulk of both teams’ offense came in the third quarter; the two teams were able to mount 42 points total, with six touchdowns in 13 minutes. “We played probably our best game on offense (all season),” head coach Tim Walsh said. “That’s all I can ask our football team.” In his final game as a collegiate athlete, Coyote quarterback Noah Shepard put forth arguably his most memorable performance in his career at South Dakota against the Cal Poly’s secondary. “We did what we wanted to do, we got out to a fast start,” Shepard said. “I felt whatever they threw at us, we
You’re going to have to pick yourself up sometimes when you’re knocked down — and we’re knocked down. —Tim Walsh Cal Poly football head coach
(could) counteract it ... It’s definitely a good way to go out.” Shepard passed for 238 yards and two scores in the first half. The Mustangs added 12 penalties for 72 yards to combine with the already hefty offensive numbers South Dakota accumulated. With its first loss inside Alex G. Spanos stadium all year, Cal Poly will finish last in the Great West and will end its six consecutive winning season streak. “I’m not pleased with it and (we’re) going to have to deal with it, but that’s life,”Walsh said. “You’re going to have pick yourself up sometimes when you’re knocked down — and we’re knocked down.” Cal Poly players Jon Hall, Jono Grayson, Ryan Shotwell, Carlton Gillespie and Xavier Gardener were among the 10 seniors who will remember a loss during their last bout at Alex G. Spanos Stadium. Next week the Mustangs will square off against Weber State in the final game of the 2009 season. Weber State ended Cal Poly’s season in the first round of the playoffs last season. Kick-off is set for 11:05 a.m. Saturday.