M O N D AY NOV. 8, 2004 Vol. 126, No. 29
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INSIDE
STUDENT LIFE T H E I N D E P E N D E N T N E W S PA P E R O F WA S H I N G T O N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. L O U I S S I N C E 1 8 7 8
Diwali a ‘thundering’ success By Rachel Streitfeld Contributing Editor
Feeling hungry? Scene has your complete guide to food, fitness and fun. Want to know how to eat healthy? How to exercise? Scene has it all . . .
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Colorful fi reworks exploded above Edison Theatre Saturday night as exhausted Diwali performers celebrated the culmination of the Indian “festival of lights.” Bleary-eyed students had rehearsed day and night to prepare for the show, a collection of traditional Indian dance numbers set to a story of two brothers who learn to appreciate their native Indian culture. “It was amazing. The show came together with over 200 participants, and everything went smoothly,” said Harsh Agarwal, president of Ashoka. “We were happy with it.” Performers said the audience’s applause nearly drowned out the music onstage. “Friday night the audience was very enthusiastic and there was lots of cheering,” said sophomore Harsh Sethi, co-chair of Diwali. “Saturday afternoon, the crowd wasn’t as excited, but Saturday night we could barely hear the songs due to the audience’s cheering.” After the show on Saturday night, the group arranged a fi reworks display that thundered over the campus and reverberated in University City. Ashoka hired an independent contract company to set up the fi reworks display, which had been in the works since last March. Agarwal said some Diwali alumni had flown into St. Louis to take in the show and catch up with current Ashoka members. “I haven’t heard a lot of negative criticism,” said Agarwal. “We had a lot of alums who flew in. A lot of them said they loved it. [They said] it’s the best show they’ve seen. We sold out every single show.” Ashoka will donate $1.50 from each ticket sold to SAATHII, an HIV and AIDS prevention group in India. The group has not yet totaled the ticket sales, but all three shows at Edison Theatre this weekend sold out. Students who attended the show were not fazed by the show’s approximately three-hour running time. “I liked this year’s skit better over last year’s,” said sophomore Kelly Kanayama, who attended the show. “It didn’t seem to take itself too seriously and
DAVID BRODY | STUDENT LIFE
Students rehearsed for hours on end in preparation for this year’s Diwali, which sold out Edison Theatre for all three of its performances. Despite a time conflict, Dance Marathon participants were able to go to the Friday night show. was fun to watch.” Agarwal said he did not know if Diwali lost any students to Dance Marathon, which was scheduled for the same weekend. The two groups joined together to offer a ticket discount to encourage attendance at both events. Students who purchased a ticket to Diwali received a $2 discount on a ticket to Dance Marathon. “One downside was that Dance Marathon execs couldn’t participate, but people who were involved
in Dance Marathon were able to come to the Friday night show,” said Sethi. Sethi, however, pulled a triple-shift—dancing in Diwali on Saturday morning, heading over to the Athletic Complex to participate in Dance Marathon in the afternoon, and then performing in Diwali again that evening.
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Patriot Act ruling may change library regulations
Tiffany’s Diner provides our restaurant reviewers with “Extreme Titillation.” Find out why in Scene.
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By Caroline Wekselbaum Contributing Reporter
What does Tuesday’s showing mean for the future of the Democratic Party? Writers give their two cents in Forum.
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DAVID HARTSTEIN | STUDENT LIFE
The dance floor wasn’t the only place to find action at this weekend’s Dance Marathon: students also roughhoused in Sumo-wrestler costumes (at left) and tested their hand-eye coordination playing Dance Dance Revolution (above). Each hour of the event, which benefited the Children’s Miracle Network, was host to a new music theme, including countrywestern, ‘80s and hip-hop.
Dance Marathon nets $45K
Should high student voter turnout have meant such long lines? The Editorial Board looks into the issue.
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INDEX News Forum Sports Classifieds Scene
DAVID HARTSTEIN | STUDENT LIFE
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By Kristin McGrath Scene Staff Writer
DANCE MARATHON STATS: • Time: 2:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m. • Date: Saturday, Nov. 6 • Place: Athletic Complex • Ticket cost: $5 • Discount with Diwali ticket: $2 off • Total money raised: $45,107.64 • Participants: approximately 350 • Full-sized teams: 32 • Average team size: 7-20 people
“The devil went down to Georgia” this weekend to dance the “Y-M-C-A” with “Jesse’s Girl,” when Washington University’s sixth annual Dance Marathon hit the Athletic Complex. A mega-mix of philanthropy, music and, of course, 12 hours of busting moves, Dance Marathon benefits the Children’s Miracle Network, two area children’s hospitals and anyone who just wants to cut footloose. There’s one catch: everyone who participates in Dance Marathon must remain standing (if not dancing) for the entire 12 hours. With each passing hour came a change of tune with different music themes like the ‘80s, country-western and hip-hop. Morale captains kept the participants on their feet by teaching segments to a dance routine that was completed at the end of the night. “[The night] just seems to go by,” said Dance Marathon president Illana Shor. “When you get tired, you just realize that you’ve got [to] stay on your feet, because you’re raising money for these kids. Once you realize what you’re here for, you’re able to keep going.” With ‘80s hour in full swing, junior Suzanne Reznikoff, representing Alpha Phi sorority, was still going strong. She had even found a dance partner, 4-year-old Abby, one of the children benefited by Children’s Miracle Network. “The kids are so energetic and excited to be here,” said
SOURCE: DANCE MARATHON ORGANIZERS
STUDENT LIFE
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A September federal court ruling struck down a section of the Patriot Act related to information gathering, but the effect of this ruling on Washington University library policies remains unclear. Although a warning in accordance with the newly condemned section of the Patriot Act was added to the University libraries Web page a few months ago, the library privacy statement has not been updated in light of this decision. “We haven’t made any changes yet,” said Judith Fox, associate dean of University libraries. “We’ll have to get an opinion from the General Council’s office before we make any changes.” Fox elaborated that she knew nothing of the new ruling, and if changes to the University libraries’ policy were to be made, she had no information about when it would happen. The new ruling opposed a section of the Patriot Act, still included in the libraries’ privacy statement, stating that information gathered through the library systems can be used without students’ knowledge. The new decision revokes the FBI’s authority to issue National Security Letters (NSLs), documents compelling recipients to provide information while forbidding them from alerting
See PATRIOT ACT, page 2
FACTS ABOUT RULING • The FBI no longer has the authority to issue National Security Letters (NSLs) • NSLs are documents compelling recipients (like libraries) to provide information while forbidding them from alerting others of the action • The section of the Patriot Act that gave the FBI this authority was found to be in violation of the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution • The Washington University libraries’ privacy statement does not yet reflect this change
See DANCE MARATHON, page 7 Newsroom: (314) 935-5995 Advertising: (314) 935-6713 Fax: (314) 935-5938
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