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HEALTH & FITNESS | PAGE 2

A & E | PA PAGE AG 4

P90X provides in-house workout for summer

VOLUME 96, ISSUE 92

Weather WEDNESDAY High 75, Low 56 THURSDAY High 79, Low 60

Second Th Thoughts delivers Theatre d

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SENATE

98th Student Senate inaugurated By MEREDITH SHAMBURGER

A SIDE OF NEWS

Syria protesters arrested The Syrian government arrested as many as 500 pro-democracy sympathizers on Monday. On the same day, tanks killed at least 23 people in the city of Daraa. At least two more people were also killed in the Damascus suburb of Douma. The White House has denounced the “brutal violence” and said it was considering sanctions.

Yemen comes to compromise

Online Editor mshamburge@smu.edu

Administrators, student senators and students gathered in the HughesTrigg Commons Tuesday evening to watch the inauguration of the 98th Student Senate. Student Body President Austin Prentice told the new Senate that it was time to “make SMU the best university in the country.” He also promised to work diligently with Senate to accomplish their goals. “In no way can I promise success in every endeavor, but you have my word the maximum amount of effort will be made on all issues,” he said. “I will not dismiss any concern or

idea without actively listening to everything you have to say.” The new Student Senate met for the first time after the inauguration and elected Senate officers. Senators elected Ted Belden to be the new Speaker, Alex Morgan to be the new Parliamentarian and Alex Mace to be Chief of Staff. President R. Gerald Turner congratulated the new senators and thanked them for their commitment to serve the student body as senators. “It’s an important function, it takes a good bit of time, and all of us appreciate you doing it,” he said. Turner said he was looking forward to working with Prentice and the rest of his administration. He also thanked former Student

Body President Jake Torres for his service. Senate Advisor Jennifer Jones offered advice to the new Student Senate. “Go forth and do what you have been called to do,” she said. “You’ve been called to service; take it seriously because you have been chosen to be the responsible spokesperson for the 300 students that you represent. So it’s not about you. It’s about us. So make us proud.” Torres also gave the new Student Senate advice, saying they should have virtue in everything they do, always remember the responsibilities they have been given and to have a

See SENATE on Page 3

CAMPUS EVENT

Professors given one minute to speak on happiness By STEPHANIE EMBREE Staff Writer sembree@smu.edu

The Hilltop scholars gave two professors 60 seconds to define happiness to students Tuesday. Professor in the history department and director of the Embrey Human Right Program Rick Halperin was the first lecturer. Professor Willard Spiegelman, an English professor, gave the second lecture. During his 60 seconds Halperin said, “I have frequently said that in my mind I am the luckiest and I think therefore among the happiest I know in that I get paid to be me.” While a world without human rights crimes and with good behavior is important to Halperin he brought it back to a level that involved SMU and its students. “I get to do what I’ve always dreamt of doing, which is working with young people in an environment of ideas and ideals about making this

Disaster leaves five dead Five people died in an Arkansas storm on Tuesday, two in a tornado, and three in the flooding. Relentless rainstorms in the central U.S. are also threatening to burst levees in southern Missouri. More than 1,000 homes have been evacuated along the Black River.

NFL lockout lifted Monday A federal judge in Minnesota lifted the NFL lockout Monday. However, the league is still a long way from playing football in 2012. NFL owners immediately appealed the decision, asking a higher court to examine whether the judge exceeded her jurisdiction and to put her ruling on hold until the appeals are sorted out.

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world better… to come to school every day and work with young people who have a passion.” Once Halperin stepped down it was Spiegelman’s turn to enlightened the crowd. Dr. Spiegelman teaches several English courses and has 10 published books. One of his books, Seven Pleasures: Essays on Ordinary Happiness, was raffled off at the lecture. Referencing his book Spiegelman said, “My seven pleasures are reading, walking, looking, dancing, listening, swimming and writing.” Spiegelman intends all these pleasures to be done in solitude and produce feelings of selfless pleasure. This is so, “you pay attention, not to yourself but to a picture on the wall, a piece of music you hear or a book you are reading. You lose yourself in order to become a higher, finer version of yourself.”

POLITICS

TV show based on Giffords

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SPENCER EGGERS/The Daily Campus

Incoming Student Body President Austin Prentice, left, swears in incoming Student Body Vice-President Alex Ehmke and incoming Student-Body Secretary Martha Poole Tuesady afternoon in the Hughes-Trigg Commons.

DIET

Yemen’s opposition has agreed to a plan that will see President Ali Abdullah Saleh step down in a month in exchange for immunity for himself and his family. Western allies and the Gulf States negotiated the plan. However, pro-democracy demonstrators who are not part of the talks called for new protests Tuesday.

Law and Order: Los Angeles started filming an episode Monday based on the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords. It features a female state senator gunned down in a public setting. However, a repesentative for the show has emphasized in reports that the show is completely fiction.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 27, 2011

SMUDAILYCAMPUS.COM

Photo courtesy of Heart Attack Grill

Heart Attack Grill opens in Dallas’ West End on May 13 with the goal of using reverse psychology to raise awareness of rising obesity in America.

Restaurant uses reverse psychology to address obesity in America By SARAH KRAMER News Editor skramer@smu.edu

Dressed in a white coat with a stethoscope around his neck, this 5’10,” 195-pound doctor checks on his patients everyday. This is no ordinary doctor. Actually, he is not a doctor at all. He is a chef. “Dr.” Jon Basso, owner of Heart Attack Grill, a restaurant opening in Dallas’ West End on May 13, created a themed restaurant where he uses reverse psychology to share his message about the rising obesity problem in America. The first, and until now only, Heart Attack Grill opened in Chandler, Ariz. in 2005.

At the restaurant, waitresses— dressed as nurses—serve “food for thought,” which includes highfat offerings such as milkshakes, burgers and lard-soaked fries to their customers who are commonly referred to as patients. If patients weigh in at more than 350 pounds, they receive a free meal. If they finish a Triple or Quadruple Bypass Burger—a stack of four halfpound patties with bacon and four layers of cheese—they are offered curbside service in a wheelchair. Dressed in his lab coat, the 46-year-old restaurant owner shares his message of obesity with all his “patients” eating at the Arizona restaurant. The guests dress in

surgical gowns that they receive at the door. Basso will continue this tradition when he moves to Dallas and opens his second location. “Sure, the basic idea is to make money,” Basso said. “But, I’m doing my part to create a diner theater environment which forces such philosophical introspection.” More than a third of U.S. adults are obese according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2010, 29 percent of adults in Texas were categorized as obese, placing Texas in the top 15 fattest states

See GRILL on Page 3

Conservatives across nation unite through grassroots website By SARAH KRAMER News Editor skramer@smu.edu

After the general elections in November, two Dallasites launched a website that connects grassroots citizens nation wide, as well as in their community. “We felt like conservatives needed to come together in a place where they could have access to activities in order to have maximum impact on the government,” Chad Biddinger, founder of LibertyLinked said. Biddinger and co-founder Corey Cheek organized LibertyLinked around three core principles: fiscal responsibility, limited government and the rule of law. LibertyLinked’s mission is similar to the Democrat group, Organizing for America. “We looked at our country and saw that the left had this amazing

machine and we had to respond,” Biddinger said. “And this is our response.” Before they created the site, conservatives followed the Republican activity through more than 100 websites. Now, they only have to access one—LibertyLinked—for a full activity calendar. When someone becomes a member of the site, he or she is automatically added to the district, both state and federal, in which they live. Through this website, conservatives across the nation can elect and hold their representatives accountable. Members can also blog and join activism groups. As they build their site, LibertyLinked is looking for student interns. Staring in May, interns will

See WEBSITE on Page 7


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