The Oklahoma Daily by OU Daily

THURSDAY APRIL 16, 2009

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news About 2,000 men will be diagnosed with this deadly disease in the next year. Almost a quarter of them will die from it. PAGE 3

The women’s gymnastics team begins its quest for a national finals appearance today. PAGE 9

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Looking for something to do this weekend? Check out the ‘Weekend Update’ for what’s happening in Norman. PAGE 13

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OUDAILY.COM » GO ONLINE TO SEE A ONE-ON-ONE INTERVIEW WITH CHUCK KLOSTERMAN, AS WELL AS PHOTOS FROM WEDNESDAY’S PROTEST AT THE STATE CAPITOL.

ANGER BOILS OVER AT CAPITOL Protestors gather in Oklahoma City, across U.S. to denounce taxes, stimulus package and rapid federal spending WILL HOLLAND The Oklahoma Daily

Thousands gathered near the front steps of the Oklahoma State Capitol building Wednesday to protest “out of control” taxes, the federal stimulus package and “irresponsible” spending by state and federal lawmakers. The goal of the Oklahoma City Tea Party was to have lawmakers hear the voices of the people, said Emmalee Mattern, Oklahoma Christian University student and Tea Party volunteer. “We are sick of fiscal irresponsibility,” she said. “We want to protect the Constitution and we want our government back.” Tea parties like Wednesday’s have been taking place around the country but the event at the Capitol was the largest in the state, Mattern said. Norman also saw a tea party Wednesday at the Santa Fe Train Depot and OU College Republicans hosted a tea party Monday in the Oklahoma Memorial Union courtyard. PROTESTORS CONTINUES ON PAGE 2

AMY FROST/THE DAILY

Protesters raise signs in front of the Capitol to express their dissatisfaction with government taxes and spending during the “Tea Party” on Wednesday afternoon in Oklahoma City.

‘I can’t go out tonight, I have to study rap’ Class teaches hip-hop rap as literature, poetic expression

New policy substitutes for suspension, expulsion

SANDRA KUNZWEILER The Oklahoma Daily

Kanye West and Ice Cube aren’t traditionally looked at as literary figures, but one OU class has dedicated itself to analyzing hip-hop as a literary genre. Students in Hip Hop as Poetry, Literature and Culture Expression study hip-hop’s and urban life’s histories, analyze albums from artists like Tupac and Arrested Development and participate in their own freestyle battles. Saul Martinez, professional writing senior, said students should learn about their own generation as much as they would ones before it and the class is a good way of doing that. “It’s really important because it’s [hiphop] been more exposed to our generation than the previous ones,” he said. “It has influenced our culture like rock and roll did in the ’70s.” But the class, which addresses issues like sexism and racism, sometimes brings more about arguments than most classes. “We talk about controversial things so it’s not surprising people get upset about it,” said Cole Ford, political science and English sophomore. “I’ve seen heated discussions, especially when it comes to racism.” But Martinez said controversies aren’t explored enough in college and this class has brought to light issues students wouldn’t normally think about or discuss with other students. “Racism is such a taboo subject that I feel we don’t discuss it a lot, but we are

TIGHT END GRESHAM ARRESTED Junior tight end Jermaine Gresham was arrested Monday after failing to pay a Feb. 2 seat belt citation, according to Norman Police reports. Gresham failed to pay the ticket or set a JERMAINE court date, so a war- GRESHAM rant for his arrest was issued on Feb. 17. According to the Tulsa World, Gresham was arrested and taken to Norman Municipal Court, and posted bond to settle the outstanding citation and the warrant. FREE — ADDITIONAL COPIES 25¢

UOSA proposes threestrike drug policy CADIE THOMPSON The Oklahoma Daily

JAMES CORNWELL/ THE DAILY

Catherine John, associate professor of English, contemplates a student’s freestyle rap presentation during her Hip Hop Phenomenon class Tuesday in Gittinger Hall. Her class explores hip hop’s lyrics, rhythm and history. in a college environment so we need to discuss it more,” he said. “It gets you out of what you’re familiar with and makes you think about what other people and other cultures go through.” Catherine John, English professor, said she teaches the class because hiphop is a unique way of delving into broad social issues. “The controversy in hip-hop is useful because it allows us to examine social and political issues in a really serious way if we choose to,” she said. John said she introduced the class to the English department because hiphop is something that has affected her own life. “I think of myself as a product of the early hip-hop generation,” she said. “A part of me feels connected to the kind of

spirit and vibe of the culture.” John said she had wanted to teach a hip-hop analysis class for a while before she introduced it and said it has only become more of an influential art form. “Over the last 20 years, hip-hop has exploded. It has not just become a marginal form of rap music that a few people listen to,” she said. “There are people all over the world who are now fusing hiphop with the cultural expression of their own countries,” she said. John’s class also requires students to memorize pieces from the course and write their own poetry. The class will be offered during summer intersession this June for the first time and counts as a general artistic forms class or major credit for English majors.

The new drug policy approved in a UOSA ballot referendum has been proposed to make drug-related violations part of OU’s “three strikes” policy. Spencer Pittman, political science junior and Student Congress representative, authored the referendum on the DOCUMENT A PDF of the original, and amended policy Spring General Election can be viewed at Ballot that asked stuOUDaily.com dents if they favored OUDAILY.COM changes in the student code regarding the drug policy. Students voted to create a separate policy supplemental to the Student Alcohol Policy entitled the Student Drug Policy. Pittman’s new drug policy emphasizes that abuse of prescription pills is the main target of the policy and will result in a strike, whether the abuser has a prescription or not. Currently, the student code states “Unlawful possession, use, sale, or distribution of narcotics, marijuana, or any other controlled substances including any residue of narcotics, marijuana or any other controlled substances, or any paraphernalia associated with the possession, use, sale or distribution of narcotics, marijuana or any other controlled substance,” is prohibited and may be punishable by suspension or expulsion. Under the proposed legislation, the three-strike policy will take effect and become the primary punishment, instead of suspension or expulsion. The changes to the code await review by the Student Code Revision Committee. A PDF of the original, and amended, policy can be viewed at OUDaily.com

Senior helps team qualify for second-straight, tri-state competition OU teams take top three places in state entrepreneurial competition RICKY MARANON The Oklahoma Daily

An OU business student has led his team in taking the grand prize at a state entrepreneurial competition for the second time in two years. Ben Ikard, finance, accounting and entrepreneurship senior, was part of the winning team that took home thousands of dollars in cash prizes from the 2009 Donald W. Reynolds

Governor’s Cup in Oklahoma City Tuesday night. The team presented a business plan that provided drug therapies for patients with kidney disease and other inflammatory diseases. Team members include John Woodson, Juan Diego Alonso, Sam Galoob and Ikard. “I think it’s great that I can be a part of something so rare,” Ikard said. “My parents are really proud of me.” The team had been working on their business plan long before the school year and the competition even started. The team won $20,000 cash, and their business plan is being studied and tested at the OU Health Sciences Center and at the University of Kansas.

Other OU teams, Dust Down and Fifth Slope, also competed and took second and third place honors. Dust Down presented a business plan for an oil palmer that reduces dust and erosion. Fifth Slope introduced a business plan for a form-fitting inflatable ski boot liner that increases a skier’s comfort and safety. Ikard’s team will now move on to the tri-state competition in Las Vegas between Oklahoma, Arkansas and Nevada. “It was a great win, and I can’t wait to go to Vegas,” Ikard said. For the rest of the team, this will be their first time at the tri-state competition, but for Ikard it is a second chance for another rare victory.

VOL. 94, NO. 134

Thursday, April 16, 2009

BRAVE REAL WORLD Career Services hosts seminar to help students find jobs, internships in the bleak economy JAMIE BIRDWELL The Oklahoma Daily

Graduating seniors might think their options are bleak in this economy, but there are still jobs and internships for the taking. Becca Terndrup and Tara Little, Career Services assistant directors, gave students internship and job searching tips Wednesday at Career Services’ “How to Find a Job/ Internship in a Tough Economy” workshop and said there’s still hope for their post-graduation plans. Jobs are harder to find now, but there’s good news, Terndrup said. Baby boomers are starting to retire, making positions open to a new generation of college students and many government jobs are now hiring. To get these positions, Terndrup and Little gave the following tips to students.

DO YOUR HOMEWORK Employers like applicants who know thorough amounts of information about their company, Terndrup said. She suggested spending an hour researching every company you interview with to have a deeper knowledge of what they do, why you would fit in with the company and to better answer questions about why you’re interested in the position. “Companies don’t want to waste their time with those who aren’t interested,” Terndrup said.

GAIN EXPERIENCE AND BE GRATEFUL Internships or a co-op experience are great ways to get a foot in the door, Terndrup said. Employers like applicants with experience because they won’t need as much training, she said. If it’s too late to intern somewhere, shadowing someone whose field you’re interested in is a good option. Make it a point to write anyone who helps you a thank you note so they’ll know you took time to write, she said.

NETWORK, NETWORK, NETWORK START EARLY AND DIFFERENTIATE YOURSELF A job search in a good economy takes six to eight months to complete, but now it will take a lot more effort and perseverance, Little said. She suggested mentioning things like interests, trips taken or previous jobs to employers to stand out from other applicants.

Protestors

Continues from page 1 State Rep. Scott Martin, R-Norman, spoke at the OU Tea Party and said he supports the protesters because they embody fundamental American ideals. “I think it’s a great display of democracy in action,” he said. He said he planned to attend the tea party at the Capitol as a citizen, not as a state legislator. “I’m just going out there as a concerned citizen with my fellow Oklahomans,” he said. Martin said he’s concerned because he thinks the federal government is spending too much money, which could be detrimental to America’s economy in the future.

venues as possible, she said.

THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX Students in areas like arts and sciences have advantages and disadvantages when it comes to job hunting, Little said. Because they don’t have specific trades they’ve learned, job options might seem unclear, but their broad knowledge can lead to jobs they might not have thought of originally. Instead of focusing on the job or tasks, she said to think about all aspects of a job, like location and travel, to find a different job that’s still of interest.

Utilize family members, friends and professors who have connections or are in your interested field, Terndrup said. Join organizations and clubs in the field because they bring in guest speakers and ask former employers to give you referrals. The best way to get a job is by networking through as many

NOTICE THE DETAILS

“I have a 2 year old at home and I want his future to be as bright as the future I had when I was his age,” he said. Bob Cleveland, a Norman resident, attended the Oklahoma Capitol and OU tea parties and took his participation farther than most. He, like many attendees, carried signs, but unlike most, Cleveland dressed in colonial garb, like the original participants in the Boston Tea Party. He said he thinks America’s founding fathers also would be holding tea parties if they were alive today but would have taken it to a higher level. “The only difference is they would have their muskets, and I have a sign,” Cleveland said. But State Rep. Wallace Collins, D-Norman, said cutting taxes is one reason the state has a

large budget hole. “It’s easy to say, ‘I don’t want to pay any more taxes,’” he said. “None of us want to. But I would venture a guess that none of them want to cut any government services either.” Collins said Oklahoma has cut taxes by more than a billion dollars over the past four years, and the loss of revenue is a contributor to the estimated $900 million deficit in the state budget. He said less money available to fund state agencies, like education, leads to underfunding, which can hurt Oklahomans even more. OU and Oklahoma State University receive about 18 to 20 percent of their funding from the state, which forces school administrators to raise tuition, Collins said. Tea party attendees weren’t just protesting taxes, though. Exercising their rights as

Calling all OU students! Holden (’11) just won the Garnier Fructis Sing in the Shower Contest. Now he needs help from OU to win the competition. Show your OU pride by going to garnier.com/idol to vote for Holden’s performance. Voting is open from April 15-30.

PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY ZACH BUTLER/THE DAILY

Sending a “Thank you” letter after an interview may help your chances at getting an internship. Make sure to tweak your resume if you’re having trouble in a job search, Little said. Details like format and order can make a huge difference between a foot in the door or a resume in the trash, she said. To help with interviews, job seekers should be able to say the resume aloud with ease, she said.

AVOID LIMITATIONS AND DO EXTRA WORK The poor economy will require extra effort to get the job results you want, Little said. Applicants shouldn’t limit themselves to one line of thinking because options like working part time while working on a graduate degree are always available, she said. Americans was at their message’s core. Ending the tea party, Alan Webb, tea party organizer and Edmond resident, read a list of guaranteed rights protestors would exercise if officials didn’t act on the people’s wishes. The right to organize events like Wednesday’s was at the top. “We can take the initiative to come together as Americans to have our voices heard,” Webb said.

OUR COMMITMENT TO ACCURACY The Daily has a long-standing commitment to serve readers by providing accurate coverage and analysis. Errors are corrected as they are identified. Readers should bring errors to the attention of the editorial board for further investigation.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

BEING A MAN ABOUT CANCER

CAMPUS BRIEFS BROKEN WATER MAIN CLOSES CATE CENTER

CADIE THOMPSON

A water main servicing Cate Center, including Cate ala Carte restaurants, was shut off from 7 a.m. to noon Wednesday because of a broken pipe. Housing and Food Services staff notified OU Physical Plant as they came in for work and all water for Cate Center was off until the pipe was replaced. All Cate ala Carte restaurants were closed during the repairs, but once water was restored they opened for business.

The Oklahoma Daily

— Staff reports

Men are not immune to breast cancer. In fact, about 2,000 men will be diagnosed with it in the next year. Jack Willis, breast cancer survivor and former OU journalism instructor, spoke to a small group of students about his personal experience in battling cancer and the reality that men can also get breast cancer on Wednesday afternoon in the OU Traditions Room of the Oklahoma Memorial Union. Willis, a former Daily faculty adviser, said young people have a tendency to ignore the reality that they are susceptible to major illnesses like cancer. “I think they don’t realize they can get cancer, and they can get breast cancer,” Willis said. According to the National Cancer Institute, more than 180,000 women and almost 2,000 men were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2008. About 40,500 women and 450 men died from the cancer in the past year. Event organizer Heather Anderson, public relations senior, said Willis’ personal experience helped drive home the seriousness of breast cancer. “Not many people, especially young people, really want to talk much about cancer, and men especially don’t want to talk about breast cancer or the fact that they can get it,” she said. “I think Willis’ experience can help open their eyes to the possibility that they can get it.” Willis’ discussion with students was sponsored by the Women’s Outreach Center as part of men’s breast cancer awareness month in April. Willis, who was diagnosed in 2005, shared stories from his book “Saving Jack,” which he wrote during his battle with cancer. Willis said the book began as a journal he would write in daily as a way to cope with his illness. One of the most difficult trials of treating breast cancer is going though chemotherapy, he said. But it was not just the physical ailments that Willis

FREE TREES AT REAVES PARK SUNDAY

Retired OU instructor authored cancer memoir, ‘Saving Jack’

The Norman Forestry Division will distribute 500 free trees from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday at Reaves Park to help replace losses still felt from the December 2007 ice storm. According to a recent City of Norman press release, the city has received more than 2,500 trees, valued at $62,000, from the Apache Foundation since the ice storm. Norman forester Janay Jeanis said the foundation initially set a goal to give a million trees to cities hit hardest by the ice storm, but it has already exceeded that number as demands persist. Norman’s Tenth Annual Arbor Day Celebration and the Annual Kids for Kindness Festival are set to take place Sunday in Reaves Park, hosted by the City of Norman and Little River Zoo. —Natasha Goodell/contributing writer

STATE’S WIND ENERGY RANKING JUMPS Oklahoma now ranks 12th in the nation in capturing the winds that come sweeping down the plains, a new survey says. An industry report from the American Wind Energy Association shows Oklahoma generates 831 megawatts of electricity with wind harvested within state borders, accounting for nearly three percent of the state’s power needs. “The state is making progress in utilizing its natural resources but it could be doing a lot better,” freshman OUr Earth member Mike Lake said. “Oklahoma needs to take advantage of the potential wind power it can produce. It’s not very expensive to invest in [building wind turbines] and it is a renewable source of energy.” Texas ranks No. 1 in the survey with 7,118 megawatts of windgenerated power. The university signed an agreement in the fall of 2008 that will power the campus entirely by wind energy by the year 2013. — Zein Jivani/contributing writer MICHELLE GRAY/THE DAILY

Jack Willis, a former journalism instructor, explains what the lump in his breast felt like when he developed cancer. Willis spoke to students Wednesday in the Oklahoma Memorial Union about his battle with cancer. struggled with. “Chemotherapy puts you down in the dumps,” Willis said. “It’s not just a pain thing; it’s how it makes you feel.” Willis said even though he only missed three days of work during his chemotherapy treatment, he struggled emotionally every day. There is a real lack of support for men who suffer from breast cancer, he said. He said although men may attend

support groups set up for women suffering from breast cancer, there are no groups specifically for men who are diagnosed. Despite the sparse support for men, Willis said he found strength and encouragement from his family and students. They are the ones who made the treatment bearable, he said. “I was extremely fortunate,” Willis said. “And I thank God every day.”

NORMAN CASHES IN ON THE STIMULUS Norman’s $3.2 million portion of the economic stimulus plan for public works projects has arrived. The city received less than 1 percent of the $464 million given to the state, allocated by population. Shawn O’Leary, director of public works, said all of the work is to be contracted through the Oklahoma Department of Transportation. “Transportation [funding] was first out of the shoot,” he said. “A lot were shovel ready projects.” The money will be used for the road resurfacing and traffic signal upgrades, and construction is set to begin in mid summer. — Barrett McGill/contributing writer

THIS WEEKEND AT YOUR UNIVERSITY Thursday, Apr. 16

Student Success Series: Research Writing I | 3 p.m. in Wagner Hall, Room 280. Presented by University College. The Darwinian Revolution: Presidential Dream Course Lecture Series | 6 p.m. in the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History. “Darwin and Marx: Science as History and History as Science. Dialectical materialism and the dynamics of historical change.” Lecture presented by Professor Garland E. Allen, Department of Biology, Washington University in St. Louis. Free Concert: Manchester Orchestra with special guest The City Lives | 8:30 p.m. in the Oklahoma Memorial Union Food Court (moved from the Union East Lawn due to inclement weather). Presented by the Campus Activities Council Concert Series and the Union Programming Board. Sutton Concert Series: OU Jazz Bands | 8 p.m. in the Paul F. Sharp Concert Hall, Catlett Music Center. Adult admission $8, student, faculty/staff and senior admission $5. Please call F.A.C.T.S. Fine Arts Tickets Service at (405) 325-4101 for more information. Intramural Update | Ultimate frisbee entries today at the Huston Huffman Center. For more information, call Jonathan at 325-3053. Gathering Fragments: Edward S. Curtis in Oklahoma | In summer 1926, toward the end of a long and distinguished career, photographer Edward S. Curtis and an assistant traveled to Oklahoma to conduct fieldwork for Curtis’ multivolume masterwork, The North American Indian. Curtis included more than 100 images of Oklahoma tribes in a subsequent volume and portfolio published in 1930. These fragmentary and often romantic images are the focus of this exhibition. Exhibit will be on display at the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of art through May 17, 2009. Touch the Sky: Prairie Photographs by Jim Brandenburg | Photography exhibit on display at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History through April 12, 2009. This exhibit features the breathtaking prairie photographs of National Geographic photographer Jim Brandenburg. The photos capture the beauty and drama of the prairie ecosystem - its landscape, plants, animals and weather.

Friday., Apr. 17 Free Film: “Revolutionary Road” | 4, 7 10 p.m. & 12:30 a.m. in Meacham Auditorium, Oklahoma Memorial Union. Presented by the Union Programming Board and the Campus Activities Council Film Series.

Union Programming Board Wants You | UPB Executive Committee Application due today by 5 p.m. in the Union Business Office or Student Life. Applications are also available in the Union Business Office and Student Life. Museum of Art Lecture: Native Authorship in the Photographs of Edward S. Curtis and Other Episodes in the History of Representation | 6 p.m. in the Mary Eddy and Fred Jones Auditorium, Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art. This illustrated lecture considers the collaborative nature of Curtis’s historic oeuvre and connects his work with other “pictures of Indians,” including recent photographs by Native American Artists. Lecture presented by W. Jackson Rushing III, Adkins Presidential Professor of Art History and Carver Chair in Native American Art. Late Night Snacks | 9:30 p.m. in Meacham Auditorium Lobby, Oklahoma Memorial Union. Get some FREE snacks courtesy of the Union Programming Board before the 10 p.m. showing of “Revolutionary Road.” Who Loves You, OU? Visit www.ou.edu/upb for more information and events. Intramural Update | Co-ed soccer tournament today at 3:30 p.m. through April 19 at the IM fields! For more information, call Jonathan at 325-3053.

Saturday, Apr. 18 OU Women’s Tennis vs. Baylor | Noon at the Headington Family Tennis Center, West of the Lloyd Noble Center. Visit http://soonersports.com for ticket information. OU Softball vs. Texas A&M | 2 p.m. at the Softball Complex on Jenkins Avenue. Visit http://soonersports.com for ticket information. Dinos and Desserts | 7-9 p.m. in the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History. Enjoy a unique grown-up evening out at the museum. Join us for delicious desserts and music, and a chance to visit museum galleries in a whole new atmosphere. Must be 21 to enter. Tickets are $13 per person in advance or $15 at the door. Members, $12 per person. To reserve tickets, call 325-3601.

Sunday, Apr. 19 OU Softball vs. Texas A&M | noon at the Softball Complex on Jenkins Avenue. Visit http://soonersports.com for ticket information. OU Women’s Tennis vs. Baylor | 1 p.m. at the Headington Family Tennis Center, West of the Lloyd Noble Center. Visit http://soonersports.com for ticket information.

This University in compliance with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability, political beliefs, or status as a veteran in any of its policies, practices or procedures. This includes but is not limited to admissions, employment, financial aid and educational services. For accommodations on the basis of disability, please contact the sponsoring department of any program or event.

COMMENTS OF THE DAY »

Thursday, April 16, 2009

In response to Wednesday’s Our View about the UOSA smoking ban referendum.

Ray Martin, opinion editor dailyopinion@ou.edu • phone: 325-7630 • fax: 325-6051

YOU CAN COMMENT AT OUDAILY.COM

“Smoking, contrary to popular belief, does affect other people on campus, not only the smoker. Many people walking to class, students and faculty, have probably walked through a smoke cloud made by a cigarette. What isn’t known, however, is how deadly the secondhand smoke really is.

Whether you are inside or outside, there is no safe level of expose to secondhand smoke.” - JOSHUATROPE

OUR VIEW

STAFF COLUMN

Tea parties, activism welcomed in place of political apathy

Faculty Senate proposals defy common sense

Freedom of speech is an essential building block of any good democracy. Which is why we think the recent “Tea Parties” to oppose tax hikes and excessive government spending are great manifestations of democracy at work. Agree or disagree with the low-tax, limited-government protests, we think citizen involvement in political affairs is always warranted, and is usually seriously lacking. The fact that thousands nationwide participated in protests over an economic debate – not a social issue like abortion or homosexuality – is refreshing. It shows that, despite terribly low voter turnouts in election after election, people really do care. And they should. Any organization that is funded by the people and led by officials who are elected by the people should be open to criticism. The people who do the funding and electing

should be more consistent in participating in and voicing opinions about public affairs. And the people who don’t do the electing need to get on board. The unfortunate reality is that it takes a drastic move like a nearly $800 billion stimulus package to get people motivated. Everyone who pays taxes should be this passionate at election time, before government organizations make moves that spend more money than we can comprehend, not long after the fact. Recent government spending has gotten a bit out of control. It remains to be seen whether or not the spend-our-way-out-ofdebt philosophy will work. It’s a shame that it took people this long to notice. But we’re glad they finally have, and that they have done so in a way that demonstrates the health of our democracy.

STAFF CARTOON Ian Jehn - civil engineering junior

STAFF COLUMN

Stop letting China push everyone around As some of you may know, in 2010 the next FIFA World Cup is planned to take place in South Africa. This is supposed to be a huge step for South Africans, who having come out of years of struggle, instability and apartheid, are now being given a chance to show the world not only their political success, but also their economic capacities as a nation capable of supporting one of the largest sporting events in the world. A few weeks ago, however, the Dalai Lama, who had been invited to attend a conference focusing on combating racism and xenophobia in preparation for the World Cup, TUCKER was denied a visa by the CROSS South African government. Among the South Africans who were anticipating his arrival were Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu and FW de Clerk, all South African Nobel laureates. So what was the South African government’s excuse for this? Thabo Masebe, the spokesman for the president, Kgalema Motlanthe, said, “We in the South African government have not invited the Dalai Lama to visit South Africa, because it would not be in the interests of South Africa.” He continued, “The attention of the world is on South Africa because of it being the host country for the 2010 World Cup, and we wouldn’t want anything to distract from that.” Really? Is that all the government had to say? How is having the Dalai Lama come to an international peace conference not in the interest of South Africa? And how on earth would that divert attention from the World Cup? If anything, you would think the bad attention would come from banning one of the most important fighters for peace of the 20th and 21st century. But I suppose millions of soccer fans across the globe are going to be outraged upon hearing that a 73-yearold Tibetan holy man is hanging out with Mandela. Oh, say it isn’t so! There are interests at stake, though, if you’re talking about business interests. The only country that’s really diametrically opposed to the Dalai Lama is, surprise,

Meredith Simons Nijim Dabbour Jamie Hughes Mack Burke Ray Martin Zach Butler

China. That’s the only reason South Africa is withholding the visa. Even Dai Bing, the minister counselor of the Chinese embassy in Pretoria, was quoted telling the South African media that China had warned the country of consequences if the Tibetan spiritual leader were to be admitted. Which begs the question: Why does everyone let China push them around? Ok, so we owe them a few… hundred billion dollars, but that doesn’t justify the way they’re bullying countries. A sporting event is a big deal, people. To refresh your memories, 61 countries, including the U.S., boycotted the Moscow Olympics in 1980 as a response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. But do we ever hear any criticism of China? No. I’m talking about a country that still has no freedom of speech, freedom of assembly or freedom of religion. All we hear about China anymore is how much it’s “progressing” and what great “improvements” they’ve made. If your idea of progress is production capacity, then you just hit the nail on the head. However, for myself to be convinced, show me an open and peaceful political demonstration in China, and then you can talk about progress. Show me a place that doesn’t send ministers of house churches to the Laogai (the Chinese labor camps) on charges of “endangering state security,” where merely the charge of such a crime almost guarantees a guilty sentence. Why did we let them host the Olympics? Everyone is lauding over how great our relations are with China, but aren’t we just showing the world that we’re willing to overlook human rights abuse for the benefits of cheap merchandise? We need to stop giving China the thumbs up, and step up to the plate as the supposed “light bearers” of democracy. The U.S. should also, as a nation, be brave enough to criticize other countries when their economic interests take precedence over their moral obligations. We are not the only world power anymore, but just because China is emerging as one doesn’t mean we should simply smile and wave. A great number of countries in this world still look to us to make the first move in international relations.

A recent proposal in the Faculty Senate to allow for “alternate methods” of teaching in response to unforeseeable circumstances has drawn the ire of many students. The Daily reported that at a February 9 meeting, professor Cecelia Brown, chairwoman of the Faculty Senate, reported that they were looking for ideas that would address what they could do to make up missed class periods when the university decided to close for circumstances such as inclement weather. According to the minutes of the meeting, the closure of campus due to the January ice storms cancelled classes for a couple days, which resulted in “substantial” losses in time and content for some courses. To guard against such losses, a number of faculty members have proposed alternative methods of teaching their classes by utilizing modern technology to effectively have class even if the campus is closed. Proposals include rescheduling class periods, conducting class via JOE D2L, or lengthening the HUNT time that remaining classes must meet. Listening to other students’ opinions, I would venture that my own initial reactions of incredulity, skepticism and outright hostility might represent a general student consensus on the matter. I think this is a classic example of creating a mountain out of a molehill. Assuming her quote was not taken out of context, physics and astronomy professor Kim Milton thinks amending the policy constitutes common sense. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask those proponents of the change why they think these changes represent common sense. If anything, these ideas seem to defy common sense. Think about it. If campus were closed due to an unforeseen event like an ice storm, what are the chances that large swaths of Norman would lose power? Do the proponents consider those students who are only able to access the Internet on campus? What do those students do if campus is closed yet their professor insists on having an online discussion? Instead of resorting to legislation to “fix” the problem, it seems that the real common sense approach would be for the university to reform the manner in which it decides to cancel class and close campus. Saturday classes were cancelled on March 27, a day ahead of time, because weather forecasters told us that severe weather could strike the Norman area. No doubt proponents of this change

received a huge bolster when campus received only a light dusting of snow the next morning. I think a common sense approach would be to wait until the wee hours of Saturday morning before cancelling classes. Oklahoma high schools do it, and the move seems logical. The OU Faculty Handbook is available online through the Provost’s office, and its 263 PDF pages will cure any bout of insomnia. In section 4.20 under the subheading of “Irregular Class Meetings,” the information contained within seems applicable to the situation: “The department that announces the hours at which a course will meet, the faculty member who agrees to teach it at those hours and the student who has agreed to take it at those hours have all assumed an unwritten contractual obligation from which no one of them should deviate without very substantial reasons for doing so.” The Handbook does not specify what accounts for a “very substantial reason,” but I doubt inclement weather is one of them. Instead of relying on the Faculty Senate to change the rules, why don’t professors adapt to the situation on a case-by-case basis? If classes are canceled due to weather, it seems logical that the professor should attempt to cover the missed material in subsequent lectures. If this is a non-option, e-mail the students the lecture notes or hand them out at the next class meeting. Make students responsible for the missed material. Professors who can’t handle these options should drop the material from the course and move on. I doubt students will complain, and their education likely won’t suffer if one chapter out of 20 isn’t covered. I’m tired of listening to students complain about problems and then watch them sit idly by and do nothing when an opportunity presents itself. If you support these proposals, please enlighten the rest of us who think they’re patently ridiculous. If you oppose them, talk to your professors and e-mail the Faculty Senate Executive Committee. The Faculty Senate is set to vote on the proposals at its May 11 meeting. The meetings begin at 3:30 p.m. in Jacobson Faculty Hall 102 and are open to the public – so show up to the meeting in May and voice your displeasure. A little civil disobedience never hurt anybody – or so my professors at OU enjoy telling me. Joe Hunt is a history and economics senior.

YOUR CUP OF TEA?

AMY FROST/THE DAILY

Thousands of Oklahomans showed up at the capitol Wednesday to “party like it’s 1773” for the “Tea Party” in which they were able to show their concerns and dissatisfaction with the government. Do you think the government is guilty of excessive spending? Share your thoughts about the Tea Parties online at the opinion blog.

Tucker Cross is a letters sophomore.

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Thursday, April 16, 2009

Blagoevich seeks reality TV show

Afghan women protest marriage law Many claim law reminds of Taliban-led government

Critics claim ousted governor is involved for money, screentime

KABUL â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The women shouted: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Equal rights and human rights!â&#x20AC;? A few feet away, men hollered back: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Death to you dogs!â&#x20AC;? and â&#x20AC;&#x153;Death to the slaves of the Christians!â&#x20AC;? Then some men picked up small stones and pelted the women. More than 100 protesters â&#x20AC;&#x201D; mostly young women â&#x20AC;&#x201D; demonstrated Wednesday against an Afghan law they say legalizes marital rape. But some 800 men and women staged a counter protest and shouted down the groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s megaphone-led chants with insults and accusations that they were puppets of the Christian West. Female police held hands to create a protective barrier between the groups. The law, quietly signed last month, says a husband can demand sex with his wife every four days unless she is ill or would be harmed by intercourse. It also regulates when and for what reasons a wife may leave her home alone. Though it would apply only to the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Shiites â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 10 percent to 20 percent of Afghanistanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 30 million people â&#x20AC;&#x201D; many fear it marks a return to Talibanstyle oppression of women. The Taliban, who ruled Afghanistan from 1996-2001, required women to wear all-covering burqas and banned them from leaving home without a male relative. Governments and rights groups around the world have condemned the

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Just when you thought the saga of former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich couldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t get any stranger, it has. Blagojevich wants to star on the NBC reality show â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here!â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a program similar to â&#x20AC;&#x153;Survivorâ&#x20AC;? in which contestants will be plopped down in the Costa Rican jungle to perform sweaty physical tasks, scheme to avoid elimination and throw tantrums for the camera. If a federal judge gives permission, the man who faces years in prison on corruption charges could be following in the steps of Flava Flav and Kathy Griffin â&#x20AC;&#x201D; D-list celebrities willing to play the clown on TV. Perhaps he will have to retrieve items from a crocodile-infested swamp, like one participant on an earlier version of â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a Celebrity ...â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m sure Illinois viewers would love to see Blagojevich have to do something like that â&#x20AC;&#x201D; especially if the crocodiles win,â&#x20AC;? said Jenn Brasler, associate editor of the Web site RealityNewsOnline. First, Blagojevich needs to get Judge James B. Zagel to let him leave the country with a pending criminal case. He was ordered to surrender his passport after his December arrest on charges that included trying to sell off President Barack Obamaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vacant Senate seat. Northwestern University law professor Anthony Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Amato said the judge might be willing to approve the project because of Costa Ricaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s strong extradition agreement with the United States â&#x20AC;&#x201D; meaning Blagojevich could not just hole up there forever. But the decision is far from certain, particularly with a judge known for being strict. Blagojevich, who pleaded not guilty on Tuesday, has plenty on his mind without adding a TV show to the mix. Illinois lawmakers impeached him and booted him from office in January. Since his arrest, he has announced a deal to write a book, hosted a Chicago radio talk show and made the New York talk show circuit, chatting it up with everyone from David Letterman to the women of â&#x20AC;&#x153;The View.â&#x20AC;? But to people who know Blagojevich or know the business of reality TV, the idea of him appearing on â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m a Celebrity ...â&#x20AC;? isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t terribly shocking. Illinois Rep. Lou Lang, a fellow Democrat, said Blagojevich needs both money and attention, and television is a way to get them. Appearing on the show will give the out-of-work former governor some much-needed cash for his legal defense, Lang said, and it will keep Blagojevich in the public spotlight, where he can repeat his claims of being an innocent man victimized by political enemies. Blagojevich has had trouble assembling a defense team, which his attorney attributes to a lack of money.

Opponents allege bill is dispensable OKLAHOMA CITY â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Oklahoma teachers would have broader flexibility to discuss religious documents, speeches and other materials under a bill approved Wednesday by the Oklahoma Senate. The Senate voted 40-7 to approve House Bill 1756, despite concerns from some senators that the bill is nothing more than a political wedge issue. Sen. Clark Jolley, the Senate author, said the bill would allow teachers to discuss the religious context of historical documents like the Mayflower Compact and the Declaration of Independence. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I believe religious liberties in our

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MUSADEQ SADEQ /AP PHOTO

Afghan Shiite counter protesters shout slogans Wednesday in Kabul, Afghanistan. The group of some 1,000 male and female Afghans swarmed a demonstration by 300 women protesting against a new conservative marriage law. Some counter protesters pelted the women with small stones as police struggled to keep the two groups apart. The banner reads â&#x20AC;&#x153;The private laws are according the bases of holy religion of Islam.â&#x20AC;? legislation, and President Barack Obama has labeled it â&#x20AC;&#x153;abhorrent.â&#x20AC;? Afghan President Hamid Karzai has remanded the law to the Justice Department for review and put enforcement on hold. A host of Afghan intellectuals, politicians and even a number of Cabinet ministers have come out against the law. But they faced quick criticism from conservative Muslim clerics and their followers,

as Wednesdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s protests showed. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You are a dog! You are not a Shiite woman!â&#x20AC;? one man shouted to a young woman in a headscarf holding a banner that said â&#x20AC;&#x153;We donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t want Taliban law.â&#x20AC;? The woman did not shout back at the man standing a foot in front of her, but replied: â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is my land and my people.â&#x20AC;? Others were not so quiet. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;AP

State Senate OKs instruction on religious documents

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;AP

Tara Gragg

country are under attack,â&#x20AC;? said Jolley, R-Edmond. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This allows students and teachers to study these things without fear of retribution or a lawsuit on the other side.â&#x20AC;? But longtime teacher Sen. Johnnie Crutchfield of Ardmore says the bill is motivated by politics and is an â&#x20AC;&#x153;answer in search of a problem.â&#x20AC;? Crutchfield said he covered a wide range of religious issues and documents when teaching students about geography and issues in the Middle East. â&#x20AC;&#x153;You can teach about religions right now. You can teach about historical documents right now,â&#x20AC;? said Crutchfield, D-Ardmore. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Everything Sen. Jolley wants to do, you can do already.â&#x20AC;?

Jolley said the bill is an effort to be proactive about the issue. Sen. Jim Wilson, D-Tahlequah, said issues like religion in public schools are what give Oklahoma a black mark when companies consider the state as an area to locate their businesses. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I hope the business world isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t watching us right now,â&#x20AC;? he said. Sen. Andrew Rice, who opposed the bill, said most school districts in Oklahoma already are governed by Christians and that such a measure is unnecessary. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The idea that Christianity is under attack in Oklahoma schools is hard for me to swallow,â&#x20AC;? said Rice, D-Oklahoma City. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;AP

Thursday, April 16, 2009

US CARGO SHIP EVADES SOMALI PIRATE ATTACK Pirates undeterred by recent international involvement ELIZABETH A. KENNEDY Associated Press

MOMBASA, Kenya — Defiant Somali pirates fired rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons at another U.S. cargo ship on Tuesday but failed to hijack it, officials said, just days after Navy SEALs rescued an American hostage after an earlier unsuccessful hijacking. The brazen midday attack on the MV Liberty Sun in international waters off the African coast is further evidence that Somali pirates are back to business as usual. Pirates have seized four other ships with 60 hostages since sharpshooters killed three gunmen holding American freighter captain Richard Phillips. “No one can deter us,” one bandit boasted. The Liberty Sun’s American crew was not injured but the vessel sus-

tained unspecified damage in the attack, owner Liberty Maritime Corp. said in a statement Tuesday night. “We are under attack by pirates, we are being hit by rockets. Also bullets,” crewman Thomas Urbik, 26, wrote his mother in an e-mail Tuesday. “We are barricaded in the engine room and so far no one is hurt. (A) rocket penetrated the bulkhead but the hole is small. Small fire, too, but put out.” It was not immediately clear what happened next, but Urbik sent a follow-up e-mail “that said he was safe and they had a naval escort taking them in,” his mother, Katy Urbik said. A U.S. Navy destroyer, the USS Bainbridge, responded to the attack but the pirates had departed by the time it arrived some six hours later, Navy Capt. Jack Hanzlik said. The Bainbridge is the same destroyer from which snipers killed the three pirates holding Phillips captive aboard a drifting lifeboat for five days. The Bainbridge was

AP PHOTO/U.S. NAVY, LANCE CPL. MEGAN E. SINDELAR

This photo provided by the U.S. Navy on Tuesday shows the guided-missile destroyer USS Bainbridge towing the lifeboat from the Maersk Alabama to the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer, in background, to be processed for evidence after the successful rescue of Capt. Richard Phillips. carrying Phillips to Kenya when it was called to respond to the attack on the Liberty Sun. The Liberty Sun, with its crew of about 20 Americans, was carrying humanitarian aid to Mombasa, Kenya, Hanzlik said. It continued

on its way to Kenya after the attack under Navy escort, the company said. “We commend the entire crew for its professionalism and poise under fire,” Liberty Maritime, of Lake Success, N.Y., said in the state-

ment. President Philip J. Shapiro and chief financial officer Dale B. Moses declined to comment further. Katy Urbik said she was “very relieved and grateful to God for protecting him and to our Navy, and that we come from a country that can respond like that and protect our citizens.” The brigands are grabbing more ships and hostages to show they would not be intimidated by President Barack Obama’s pledge to confront the high-seas bandits, according to a pirate based in the Somali coastal town of Harardhere. “Our latest hijackings are meant to show that no one can deter us from protecting our waters from the enemy because we believe in dying for our land,” Omar Dahir Idle told The Associated Press by telephone. “Our guns do not fire water. I am sure we will avenge.” On Monday, Obama vowed to “halt the rise of piracy” without saying exactly how the U.S. and allies would do it.

Republicans criticize report on right-wing groups Assesssment claims military veterans susceptable to extremist recruitment EILEEN SULLIVAN Associated Press

WA S H I N G T O N — R e p u b l i c a n s o n Wednesday said a Homeland Security Department intelligence assessment unfairly characterizes military veterans as right-wing extremists. House Republican leader John Boehner described the report as offensive and called on the agency to apologize to veterans. The agency’s intelligence assessment, sent to law enforcement officials last week, warns that right-wing extremists could use the bad state of the U.S. economy and the election of the country’s first black president to recruit members. The assessment also said that returning military veterans who have difficulties assimilating back into their home communities could be susceptible to extremist recruiters or might engage in lone acts of violence.

“To characterize men and women returning home after defending our country as potential terrorists is offensive and unacceptable,” said Boehner, R-Ohio. The commander of the veterans group the American Legion, David Rehbein, wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano expressing concern with the assessment, which made its way into the mainstream press after conservative bloggers got wind of the analysis. Rehbein called the assessment incomplete and said it lacked statistical evidence. He said the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing by military veteran Timothy McVeigh, cited in the report, was one instance of a veteran becoming a domestic terrorist. “To continue to use McVeigh as an example of the stereotypical ‘disgruntled military veteran’ is as unfair as using Osama bin Laden as the sole example of Islam,” Rehbein said in the April 13 letter. Napolitano defended the assessment and others issued by the agency. “Let me be very clear — we monitor the risks of violent extremism taking root here in the United States,” Napolitano said in a

“To characterize men and women returning home after defending our country as potential terrorists is offensive and unacceptable.” JOHN BOEHNER, R-OHIO statement. “We don’t have the luxury of focusing our efforts on one group; we must protect the country from terrorism whether foreign or homegrown, and regardless of the ideology that motivates its violence.” Napolitano said the department respects and honors veterans and that she intends to meet with Rehbein next week after she returns from a tour of the U.S.-Mexico border and meetings in Mexico City. Glen M. Gardner Jr., national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, disputed claims that Homeland Security analysts were describing veterans as terror threats. “The report should have been worded differently, but it made no blanket accusation that every soldier was capable of being a

traitor like Benedict Arnold, or every veteran could be a lone wolf, homegrown terrorist like Timothy McVeigh,” said Gardner, a Marine veteran from Round Rock, Texas. “ It was just an assessment about possibilities that could take place.” Homeland Security says the assessments are part of a series published “to facilitate a greater understanding of the phenomenon of violent radicalization in the United States.” In February, the department issued a report to law enforcement that said left-wing extremist groups were likely to use cyber attacks more often in the next 10 years to further their cause. In September, the agency highlighted how right-wing extremists over the past five years have used the immigration debate as a recruiting tool. Between September 2008 and Feb. 5, the agency issued at least four reports, obtained by The Associated Press, on individual extremist groups such as the Moors, Vinlanders Social Club, Volksfront and Hammerskin Nation. But the references to military veterans in the recent report angered conservatives.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

US, EUROPE MULL NEXT STEPS WITH IRAN Iranian president says nation is open to talks with West WASHINGTON — Top U.S. and European diplomats met Wednesday to plan a way ahead in dealing with Iran’s suspected nuclear program, just hours after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad indicated he was willing to build a new relationship with the United States. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana met for talks on Iran just hours after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said he was open to finding new ways to deal with the United States. Ahmadinejad said he is preparing new proposals aimed at breaking the impasse with the West over Iran’s nuclear program. “With respect to the latest speeches and remarks out of Iran, we welcome dialogue,” Clinton told reporters after seeing Solana.. “We’ve been saying that we are looking to have an engagement with Iran, but we haven’t seen anything that would amount to any kind of proposal at all.” She said the six nations trying to lure Iran back to the negotiating table would have more to say in the coming days. Those countries, the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany, asked Solana last week to invite Iran to a new round of talks. “We will continue to work with our allies to make it clear that Iran cannot continue to pursue nuclear weapons,” Clinton said. “We will stand behind the sanctions that have already been implemented, and we

VAHID SALEMI/AP PHOTO

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, center, flanked by Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili, center left, and Iran's Atomic Energy Organization head Gholam Reza Aghazadeh, center right, gestures to the media after inaugurating a new facility producing uranium fuel for a planned heavywater nuclear reactor April 9, just outside the city of Isfahan. will look for new ways to extend collective action (on) Iran’s nuclear program.” Solana said he had not yet received a response from Iran to the invitation and did not speak to Ahmadinejad’s comments. Solana also met Wednesday with Dennis Ross, the U.S. special envoy concentrating on Iran policy. Officials said Ross will travel to the Persian Gulf and some of Iran’s neighbors in the region toward the end of the month to discuss new American thinking on Iran. The officials spoke on condition

of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the trip. Under former President George W. Bush, Washington had attended only one meeting with senior diplomats from Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and Iran’s top nuclear negotiator. Bush officials said the U.S. would not participate in other talks until Iran suspended uranium enrichment activities that can produce the ingredients for a nuclear weapon. But under President Barack Obama,

who is open to engagement with Iran, U.S. officials now say that condition has been dropped. U.S. officials say they may be willing to allow Iran to continue enrichment for a period of time while negotiations are underway — although they insist that a suspension of Iran’s activity remains their ultimate goal. The administration is also conducting a review of Iran policy as it gauges Tehran’s responses to the U.S. decision to return to the talks, recent encounters between U.S. and Iranian diplomats and Obama’s March video address to the Iranian people. U.S. officials say they are watching Iran’s reactions closely and that positive responses are likely to lead to a next step that would ease rules regarding contacts with Iranian diplomats abroad. “We’re willing to have a direct dialogue with Iran,” State Department spokesman Robert Wood. “If they come up with some new package with regard to their nuclear program, we’ll have to take a look and see what it is.” In a speech before an audience of thousands in the southeastern Iranian city of Kerman, Ahmadinejad said “circumstances have changed” for the prospects of engagement with the United States and over the nuclear issue. “The Iranian nation is a generous nation,” he said. “It may forget the past and start a new era, but any country speaking on the basis of selfishness will get the same response the Iranian nation gave to Mr. Bush.” —AP

Obama says he intends to ease dread over April 15 tax deadline President’s words met with skepticism as protesters denounce spending nationwide WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama declared on taxfiling day that he aims to ease the dread of April 15 with “a simpler tax code that rewards work and the pursuit of the American dream.” “For too long, we’ve seen taxes used as a wedge to scare people into supporting policies that

increased the burden on working people instead of helping them live their dreams,” Obama said. “That has to change, and that’s the work that we’ve begun.” His words were hardly met with universal applause. Across the country, protesters met at statehouses and town squares to oppose Obama’s federal spending since he took office. Organizers said they wanted to channel the spirit of the Boston Tea Party’s rebellion. “The system is severely broken, and we the people let it get that way,” said Doug Burnett of Des

Moines. “What can we do? My answer is revolution.” Outside the White House, protesters threw an apparent box of tea bags over the fence. U.S. Secret Service officers cleared P e n n s y l v a n i a Av e n u e a n d Lafayette Park near the compound and sent in a robot to inspect the suspicious package while the White House went on lockdown. The Secret Service later said the package was not dangerous. Obama also met with several working families to underscore his efforts to make the tax code more fair and less complex.

“It will take time to undo the damage of years of carve-outs and loopholes.” PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA The president noted that he’s asked his economic advisers to report back by year’s end on possible tax changes. “We need to simplify a monstrous tax code that is far too complicated for most Americans to understand but just complicated enough for the insiders who know how to game the system,” he said. He added: “It will take time

to undo the damage of years of carve-outs and loopholes. But I want every American to know that we will rewrite the tax code so that it puts your interests over any special interest. And we will make it quicker, easier and less expensive for you to file a return, so that April 15 is not a date that is approached with dread each year.” —AP

Thursday, April 16, 2009

PHOTOS: TAX-DAY ‘TEA PARTY’

ABOVE: Louella and Bill Stone of Oklahoma City hold signs in front of the Capitol during the “Tea Party” on Wednesday afternoon. Thousands attended nationwide protests to express their unhappiness over government spending. LEFT: A protester stands in front of the Capitol steps with a sign reading, “Uncle SCAMM.”

ALL PHOTOS BY AMY FROST/THE DAILY To see more from the Capitol protests, check out our slideshow online.

OUDAILY.COM

BELOW: Thousands of Oklahomans stand in front of the Capitol with signs and flags.

Paul Bart Mall Cop PG 12:45 3:10 5:15 7:25 9:45

Push PG13 12:50 3:05 5:10 7:20 9:55

Coraline PG 12:55 3:00 5:05 7:15 9:40

Benjamin Button PG 12:30 4:00 9:20

Slumdog Millionaire R 12:50 4:30 7:30 10:00

Bedtime Stories PG 7:00

Hotel For Dogs PG 12:35 2:50 4:55 7:10 9:35

NO KAPPA SIGMA AT UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA

The Kappa Sigma Fraternity has placed this ad in your student newspaper to provide notice that any groups of students representing themselves as the Kappa Sigma Fraternity have no authority to operate a fraternity or fraternity chapter under the name “Kappa Sigma” at the University of Oklahoma, or elsewhere in the Norman community. Kappa Sigma Fraternity closed its chapter at the University of Oklahoma on 12/30/2008. No group operating on campus in the name of Kappa Sigma has the authority to do so. No group of students is authorized to use the name Kappa Sigma or the service marks of Kappa Sigma on the campus of the University of Oklahoma or in the Norman community. Only chartered chapters and members of Kappa Sigma are authorized to operate a chapter and use the distinctive marks of the Fraternity. Kappa Sigma welcomes any information for any and all sources at the University of Oklahoma identifying such unlawful conduct. Please contact Kappa Sigma Fraternity Headquarters at 434/295-3193.

THIS WEEKEND AT HOME »

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Steven Jones, sports editor dailysports@ou.edu • phone: 325-7630 • fax: 325-6051

Women’s tennis vs. Baylor at noon Saturday Softball vs. Texas A&M at 2 p.m. Saturday, noon Sunday WOMEN’S GYMNASTICS

OU EYES SHOT AT NATIONAL FINAL Sooners must place in top three of today’s session to advance to Friday’s team final

NO. 12 PENN STATE UNIVERSITY (19-6) 2008 PLACEMENT: DID NOT QUALIFY • This will be Penn State’s first appearance in the NCAA Championship since 2005. • The Nittany Lions defeated the University of Nebraska, which is hosting the NCAA Championship in Lincoln, for the last qualifying spot at the Southeast Regional Championship on April 4. Kindler on Penn State: “Nothing to lose, that’s what I say for Penn State. I think they’re going to go out and compete very well.”

KELSEY WITTEN The Oklahoma Daily

Balance beam will be key if the women’s gymnastics team is to advance to the program’s first-ever Super Six national championship final, head coach K.J. Kindler said. The No. 8 Sooners meet five of the country’s best teams in the first session of the first round of the NCAA Championship this afternoon in Lincoln, Neb., where they hope to advance to Friday’s team final. In order for OU to place in the top three in its session and advance to the Super Six, Kindler estimates the Sooners need to score at least a 49.30 total on beam. “We have to hit beam,” Kindler said. “Not stay on the beam, hit beam. From a coaching standpoint, if that happens, I would find it interesting if we didn’t move forward [to the Super Six].” Although the Sooners have been ranked among the top five beam teams this year, mistakes in the past three competitions, including the Big 12 Championship and the NCAA Northeast Regional, have kept them below their potential on that event. Junior Hollie Vise said talent and depth in the beam lineup have not been the problem. “When we do intrasquads, we’re all capable of going 9.9 or higher,” Vise said. “I guess we just have some nerves in the meet, and it’s thrown one or two of us off. We’re just hoping all of our preparation comes together in one weekend.” If it does, the 2009 Sooners could be the first squad in program history to qualify to the Super Six, where the national champion is decided. Kindler said she believes OU has had Super Six potential ever since she took the head coaching position three years ago, but said some key factors are in place this year. “Our team chemistry is very good right now,” Kindler said. “Our leadership is good. Our consistency is good. I think those three things can really make the difference on a team.”

SESSION TWO TEAMS NO. 2 UNIVERSITY OF UTAH NO. 3 UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA NO. 6 OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY NO. 7 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-LOS ANGELES NO. 10. UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS NO 11. UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS

KEY OU PERFORMERS FRESHMAN MEGAN FERGUSON EVENTS: BARS AND BEAM On competing in her first NCAA Championship: “I’ve never even had the opportunity to watch an NCAA Championship. This will be completely new for me. I know to expect a lot of good gymnastics. I don’t know what it’s going to be like actually being in the action and everything.”

SOPHOMORE NATALIE RATCLIFF EVENTS: VAULT AND BEAM

NATALIE RATCLIFF

AMY FROST/THE DAILY

Junior Kristin Smith performs on the balance beam Jan. 30 against Minnesota. The Sooners will compete at the NCAA Championships this afternoon in Lincoln, Neb.

SESSION ONE OUTLOOK NO. 1 UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA (22-1) 2008 PLACEMENT: 1ST • Head coach Suzanne Yoculan will retire at the end of this season after 26 years with the Gym Dogs. • Yoculan led Georgia to an NCAA record of nine national titles and 33 NCAA individual champions during her tenure. • The Gym Dogs have won the last four NCAA team titles. • They were recently upset by No. 3 Alabama in the SEC Championship, which was their only loss in an otherwise perfect season. Kindler on UGA: “A phenomenal team but not out of anyone’s reach. They lost SECs to Alabama, so they are vulnerable, and honestly in the last three years, I don’t know that any coaches would have said they were vulnerable. I think this year is going to be a little bit more of a battle for them.”

NO. 4 LOUISIANA STATE UNIVERSITY (21-5) 2008 PLACEMENT: 5TH

• Head coach D-D Breaux is in her 34th year with the Tigers. • In 2008, LSU advanced to the Super Six for the first time in program history. • LSU defeated No. 5 Florida by less than a point in the regular season. Kindler on LSU: “[The Super Six] was a huge step for their program. Coming into this year, it just depends where their mentality is. Are they satisfied with last year? Will there be a lot of pressure to make it again? Gymnastics at this point in the game is very mental. We’re all at the pinnacle of our athleticism right now, what comes into play are the brain games.”

NO. 5 UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (10-6) 2008 PLACEMENT: 4TH • Florida won its fifth consecutive regional title April 4 in the North Central Region Championships. • Florida defeated OU in the regular season opener 196.500–195.075 on Jan. 9 at Florida.

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JUNIOR HOLLIE VISE EVENTS: BARS AND BEAM

On the Sooners’ shot at advancing to the Super Six: “It’s something we know we’re capable of. Almost every year the same teams make it. We want to push into those top teams. “It will be hard, but it’s just the next goal that we have.”

HOLLIE VISE

SENIOR JESSICA KINDER EVENTS: BARS AND FLOOR

NO. 9 STANFORD UNIVERSITY (20-5) 2008 PLACEMENT: 3RD • Placed third to UCLA and Oregon State in the PAC-10 Championships. • Stanford will compete in Olympic order (vault, bars, beam, floor), often considered the best order, during session one. Kindler on Stanford: “Very talented. Lots of big names on that team. Strong contenders. Consistent.”

JESSICA KINDER

On being a leader: “I’m just excited overall to be a senior and be a leader on the team. Maybe the freshmen and underclassmen have a little bit of nerves. I like to show them you can just relax and have fun out there.”

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• Florida competed against only 16 teams this season, compared with the more than 25 met by LSU. Kindler on Florida: “A little bit hampered by injuries. I always think that obstacles bring out the best in teams. “So, I think they definitely have had some obstacles in the road this year, but those could actually bring them together as a team. I feel that team chemistry is huge when going to a meet of this level. We’ll have to see if those things bring them together or tear them apart.”

O n t h e s e ss i o n o n e teams: “We do have a really hard session. I’m not worried. I know what my team is capable of. If we do what we can do, we have a really good chance of making it. You can’t worry about if you’re going to make it. You just do your best and the rest will happen.”

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Thursday, April 16 2009

MEN’S GYMNASTICS

SOFTBALL

OU looking to take national title No. 9 Sooners’ opportunity to defend national championship begins today CLAIRE BRANDON The Oklahoma Daily

ELIZABETH NALEWAJK/THE DAILY

Junior second baseman Amber Flores hits a grand slam in the bottom of the fourth inning during Wednesday’s matchup against Oklahoma State at the OU Softball Complex. The Sooners beat the Cowgirls 8-1.

Flores leads OU past OSU Seniors’ grand slam lifts Sooners to 14th straight Bedlam victory AARON COLEN The Oklahoma Daily

The 15th-ranked OU softball team continued its streak of dominance against rival Oklahoma State on Wednesday night, winning 8-1 for its 14th straight Bedlam victory. Head coach Patty Gasso said the team played with more energy than normal in the rivalry game, almost too much so at the start. “This team was very amped, and absolutely ready to play,” Gasso said. “They were so ready to play that we were trying to hit three-run bombs with nobody on base.” The Sooners (32-13, 9-4 Big 12) blew the game open with some timely home runs in the third and the fourth innings. In the third inning with sophomore left fielder Haley Anderson on second base and two outs, the Cowgirls walked senior first baseman Samantha Ricketts intentionally to get to freshman designated player Katie Norris. Norris made them pay by hitting

an RBI single to put the first run of the game on the board. Junior catcher Lindsey Vandever followed Norris with a three-run home run, her seventh homer of the year, to make the game 4-0. “We are carrying a lot of momentum as an offense so when you feel it as a team you just have confidence in everyone,” Vandever said. The game had a special significance to Norris, who is from Stillwater. “This was an exciting night for Katie, a nervous night, it was a lot of things for her,” Gasso said. “She did a fantastic job of battling to get her base hit and RBI.” The Cowgirls responded with a run of their own in the top of the fourth inning when catcher Ashley Boyd hit a solo home run, but the OU offense wasn’t done yet. In the bottom of the fourth the Sooners exploded once again with four more runs. Sophomore outfielder Krystle Huey, Anderson, and freshman infielder Evan Sallis all singled to load the bases. Junior second baseman and national player of the year finalist Amber Flores came to the plate with one out and hit a grand slam to extend the Sooners’ lead to 8-1. “For Amber the bottom of the

lineup did a good job getting on for her and creating some pressure on their pitchers,” Gasso said. The grand slam was Flores’ teamleading 13th of the season. Flores also leads the team in RBIs with 49. She said the atmosphere helped her and the whole team in the game. “The crowd was unbelievable tonight, and I was excited for the opportunity to play in front of my family,” Flores said. Senior pitcher D.J. Mathis started for OU and gave the team a strong performance, only giving up one run and four hits in 5 1/3 innings of work. “D.J. was fired up, she threw very well,” Gasso said. “It was probably one of the better games she’s had. She had a nasty change-up working that kept them very off balance.” The Sooners now look ahead to an important series against Big 12 adversary Texas A&M. Freshman pitcher Allee Allen came in to relieve Mathis in the top of the sixth. Allen threw 1 2/3 innings, faced five batters and struck out two, giving up no runs. The Aggies dropped out of the top 25 in the national rankings this week. The two teams will face off on at 2 p.m. Saturday and noon on Sunday.

AMY FROST/THE DAILY

Senior Chris Brooks competes on the still rings during the meet against Texas held in McCasland Field House Jan. 31. The Sooners outscored their opponent 349.050 to 304.950.

TRACK AND FIELD BRIEF COLE NAMED ATHLETE OF THE WEEK

MEN’S TENNIS

Sooners get convincing win over Wichita State, 6-1 JAMES ROTH The Oklahoma Daily

The men’s tennis team faced Wichita State this afternoon at the Headington Family Tennis Center in Norman, and the Sooners won convincingly, 6-1. The win showed OU’s resiliency as it followed a close loss to Oklahoma State, 4-3 on Saturday. With the win, the Sooners improved to 12-8 on the year. The Sooners jumped out to an early lead against the Shockers, winning all three doubles matches and were able to take the doubles point. The Sooners continued their solid play in the singles matches as well. They won five of the six singles matches, and every Sooner who won was able to take care of his opponent in two sets. The Sooners will now look ahead to their final match of the regular season; it is also the Sooners’ last conference match in the Big 12 before heading into the Big 12 championships on April 24. The Sooners will take on Texas Tech at 1 p.m. on April 19 in Lubbock, Texas.

The No. 2 OU men’s gymnastics team looks to defend its national title this weekend at the 2009 NCAA Men’s Gymnastics Championship at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minn. “Hopefully all the teams will be ready to go at it and have a great competition,” head coach Mark Williams said. “Our intention is to be familiar with the surroundings and not be intimidated by going in there to compete for a “Our intention is national championship.” to be familiar with The Sooners will compete the surroundings tonight at 7 p.m. in the qualification. The qualifier consists and not be intimiof two sessions, with the top dated by going in three teams from each session there to compete advancing to the finals. OU will compete in session for a national two against No. 3 Illinois, No. championship.” 6 Ohio State, No. 7 Minnesota, No. 10 Illinois-Chicago and HEAD COACH MARK No. 11 Iowa. Earlier this season, the WILLIAMS Sooners defeated Minnesota and Stanford at a meet in Minneapolis. “We competed at Minnesota, put it on a neutral floor for both Stanford and ourselves,” Williams said. “I was encouraged by the competition we had there earlier this year, where we did well.” Team and all-around finals are set for Friday at 7 p.m. Individual national champions will be decided at the event finals Saturday at 7 p.m. OU won its eighth national championship last season, earning them the most titles of any OU athletics program. Under Williams, the Sooners have won five national titles since 2002.

AMY FROST/THE DAILY

Senior Sergey Avdeyev hits a forehand against the Wichita State Shockers Wednesday afternoon at the Headington Family Tennis Center. The Sooners handily beat the Shockers, 6-1.

Senior sprinter Leslie Cole was named the Big 12 Female Athlete of the Week Tuesday. Cole received the honor after a week in which she won the 200 and 400-meter dash Saturday at the John Jacobs Invitational. In the 400-meter race, Cole broke a 14-year-old meet record. Tuesday marked the second time in Cole’s career that she received the honor. Cole’s times of 22.99 and 52.28 LESLIE seconds in the 200-meter and 400- COLE meter races respectively, also qualified Cole for the 2009 U.S. Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Currently, Cole ranks No. 1 in the conference in the 200-meter and second in the 400-meter, and third in both events nationally. Track and field will be in action next in Fayetteville, Ark., for the John McDonnell Invitational. — Daily Staff

OUDAILY.COM »

Check out video from the Q&A with Chuck Klosterman online.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

Luke Atkinson, L&A editor dailyent@ou.edu • phone: 325-5189 • fax: 325-6051

« ‘I LOVE’ REVIEWS OUDAILY.COM

Check out the review of the studentproduced film “OU, I Love You” online at OUDaily.com

Q&A WITH CHUCK KLOSTERMAN EDITOR’S NOTE: The Daily’s Adam Kohut interviewed Chuck Klosterman during the second day of his visit Wednesday.

WHAT MAKES A GOOD INTERVIEW SUBJECT? The best interview subjects are people like Marilyn Manson; people who like being interviewed, who almost see themselves as a, you know, journalist as much as musicians in a weird way. The process of being part of the media is as much what [Manson’s] career is as is music. But in a way that’s less interesting because I know he’s doing it consciously. The most interesting people are the ones who are the least sort of self-conscious, and that’s really rare. Bono was very interesting, but here again not because he was not self-aware, but because he was actually the most aware of everything he does. What I’ve found over time is that the best people – at least in music – to interview are people who have just made their first record, or who are at the very end of their career. People who are making their first record don’t really know what their persona is yet, usually. You get somebody at the end of their career, like Robert Plant, they don’t really care anymore what the perception is, and they feel like they can be more honest and more forthcoming.

AMY FROST/THE DAILY

Chuck Klosterman, author and columnist, speaks in Dale Hall Tuesday night on subjects ranging from pop culture to sports and today's media. One of the first things Klosterman said was, "Is Blake Griffin here?"

DO YOU ALWAYS ASK YOUR TOUGHEST QUESTION FIRST DURING AN INTERVIEW? I gave an interview one time where I said

that a lot of people save their difficult question, their bomb question or whatever, for the end [of an interview]. And I used to always ask it in the beginning, because I thought it kind of created this interesting creative tension. But much to my surprise, awareness of that is now everywhere. It seems like very often now when I do interviews, people assume I’m going to ask some crazy question up front. So now I do the opposite. Because they think I’m going to ask a hard question right away, I actually ask a kind of middling question. They, in their mind, think, “Well, this was his hard question?” and then they immediately relax.

COMPARE YOURSELF TO A BAND OR MUSICIAN BASED ON YOUR LEVEL OF NOTORIETY. Wow. That’s a very difficult question, because if I pick somebody too successful, then I seem arrogant and a prick. If I pick somebody who’s not successful enough then it seems like false humility, and that’s even worse – nothing’s worse than somebody pretending that the have no notoriety if they do. Purely a level of notoriety. Ryan Adams, I don’t know. He’s very prolific, some people love him, some people hate him. I’m in the same situation. We make a lot of bad decisions, we’re kind of weird. That’s a very hard question, though. You can read the full interview online at OUDaily.com. Adam Kohut is a professional writing senior.

STAFF COLUMN

A day with Chuck almost surreal It’s 6:05 p.m. Tuesday and I’m sitting in the welldecorated lobby of the La Quinta Inn just northwest of Interstate 35 and Lindsey Street, thinking exclusively about the bizarre social construct that I was potentially moments away from entering. Specifically, I’m seated in a semicomfortable chair with a floral pattern and limited view of the adjacent hallway, something I’m very unhappy about. I have no desire to pull the chair away from the table so as to directly face said hallway (as that would prove awkward MATT for anybody walking down it), nor do I CARNEY have any desire to seat myself upon the logical seating option (the sofa), as it directly and proximally faces a computer screen currently being navigated by a 40-somethingyear-old woman. This would also prove awkward. “Hi, my name’s Matt, I’m here to take you to the car,” I practice saying in my head. I decide that this sounds stupid. What if he thinks so too, and gets offended or something? I look at my hands and they’re shaking, they’re actually shaking. I focus my gaze on the partially-glass wall separating me from where my favorite writer is moments from standing. I focus on this wall for so long that I lose focus on it, instead wondering what it would be like to actually carry on a dialogue with an entity I previously knew to exist as merely words on a page. Then he entered the lobby. “Hi, my name’s Matt,” I said, offering my hand to the fair-haired man whose presence I’d anticipated for

months. “Chuck,” he simply responded, nodding his head and appearing genuine. For a fleeting moment, I stared Chuck Klosterman directly in the face while he shook my hand. It seemed almost surreal. “Well, if you’ll come this way I’ll show you to the car,” I managed, proud that I’d managed not to drool all over his white Nikes. “Okay,” he said. It’s a very strange situation, riding in a car with a human being whose work you’ve poured over, but never actually met. This was the situation I found myself in Tuesday, as we (the three representatives of the journalism college) drove Klosterman from the hotel we’d arranged for him to his scheduled speaking engagement (that we’d also arranged for him) at Dale Hall. There were so many questions I wanted to ask. I’d even prepared a couple in hopes that I might sound interesting to him, though the four of us just end up sitting in extremely awkward silence punctuated by shallow conversation about the source of the college’s money and why Georgia’s and Texas’s spring football game had been broadcast on ESPNU and OU’s game had not. It was during this quiet lull and his subsequent lecture at Dale that I came to realize that meeting my favorite writer wasn’t all I’d imagined it to be and more. Don’t get me wrong, his evening discussion proved engaging and fascinating (it was definitely one of my highlights from this academic year), and it was truly cool to actually finally meet the guy who wrote all those things that entertained, challenged and influenced me for the last three years, but there was just something bizarre about

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the whole ordeal. The voice I imagined when I read “Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs” and “Downtown Owl” and his audible voice were different from each other. This was no surprise, as the latter is reality and the former my personal interpretation of that reality, but for whatever reason I just hadn’t accounted for it. In retrospect, I think that I’d imagined the experience would involve me holding a copy of one of his books in my hand while asking him about the creative process and his personal opinions. Stuff like, ”How many times did you actually listen to this album before you sat down and wrote about it?” and “Do you really think that Jeff Tweedy is an unpretentious semi-genius?” Maybe I’m just overly-obsessive. Regardless, getting to meet my favorite writer was profoundly cool, even if I didn’t get to grill him about his writing. Maybe the next time he drops by Norman I’ll offer to take him to O’Connell’s and be old enough to buy him a drink. Matt Carney is a professional writing sophomore.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

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POLICY The Oklahoma Daily is responsible for one dayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s incorrect advertising. If your ad appears incorrectly, or if you wish to cancel your ad call 325-2521, before the deadline for cancellation in the next issue. Errors not the fault of the advertiser will be adjusted. Refunds will not be issued for late cancellations. The Oklahoma Daily will not knowingly accept advertisements that discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, religious preference, national origin or sexual orientation. Violations of this policy should be reported to The Oklahoma Daily Business Office at 325-2521. Help Wanted ads in The Oklahoma Daily are not to separate as to gender. Advertisers may not discriminate in employment ads based on race, color, religion or gender unless such qualifying factors are essential to a given position. All ads are subject to acceptance by The Oklahoma Daily. Ad acceptance may be reevaluated at any time.

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Universal Crossword Edited by Timothy E. Parker April 16, 2009

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ACROSS 1 Stay just out of sight 5 Bingo item 9 Oak fruit 14 Once again 15 Assert 16 One not user-friendly? 17 ___ de gallo (Mexican salsa) 18 Neighbor of Sonoma 19 Chancel fixture 20 Free from defects 23 Tolkien tree-creature 24 A bit pretentious 25 Choir members 29 Fellow 30 Married Italian woman 31 Weaponless at a pat-down 34 Box-spring support 36 Cork source 37 Really hale 41 Brain wave record (Abbr.) 42 Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s good when they meet 43 Places for 19-Across 44 Bitterly harsh 47 Part of a Morse code letter 48 What tennis balls are packaged in,

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typically 49 Act as a henchman 51 Calendar abbr. 54 In fine fettle 57 Bow application 60 Electricity conductor, often 61 Something that might come to a head? 62 Amid 63 Smell 64 Exclamation of sorrow 65 Ridges of windblown sand 66 Oculistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s piece 67 Ancient musical instrument DOWN 1 Discontinuance 2 Square in Manhattan 3 Prepare a movie for TV 4 Tae ___ do 5 Household warbler 6 Nautical cry 7 Catch up on oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s debt 8 Blah 9 Digitalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s counterpart 10 Contact a radio show 11 Table dropping 12 Alternative to Zenith or JVC

13 Clause connector 21 Intimidate 22 Andrew Lloyd Webber musical 26 Golden beer? 27 Obliterate 28 â&#x20AC;&#x153;Land ___ alive!â&#x20AC;? 29 Young lady in a square dance 30 Insolence 31 Flimflam 32 Freeloader 33 Enthusiastic 34 Put in harmony 35 â&#x20AC;&#x153;A Shropshire ___â&#x20AC;? 38 It might set off alarms 39 Aristideâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s land 40 Choose 45 Process, as sugar

46 Human and extraterrestrial 47 Yields 49 Stage whisper, perhaps 50 Title of nobility 51 Strangely 52 Understandable 53 Display poor sportsmanship 55 Base runner? 56 I-XII place, perhaps 57 X-ray unit 58 Cassowary kin 59 Tom, to the piper

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Thursday, April 16, 2009

WEEKEND UPDATE

Planning your weekend activities? The Daily’s Life & Arts staff puts together a list of our favorite activities happening this weekend.

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MORE MAHER Bill Maher, star of the

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documentary “Religulous” and HBO’s “Real Time,” will perform at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Brady Theatre in Tulsa. Tickets are $45.

BATTER UP

The Norman Public Library will be hosting a demonstration at 5 p.m. today on make the equipment necessary to play “stickball.”

▲ FREE FLICK

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Free screenings of “Revolutionary Road,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, will begin at 4 , 7 and 10 p.m. and midnight Friday in Meacham Auditorium.

UK MAESTROS

Manchester Orchestra and The City Lives will perform at 7:30 p.m. tonight on the East Lawn of the Oklahoma Memorial Union.

ALSO IN MUSIC OU grad Justin Witte will have a release party for his new CD “Projections & Reflections” at 10 p.m. tonight at The Deli. Galapagos will play at 10 p.m. Friday at The Deli. Dorian Small will play at 10 p.m. Saturday at The Deli.

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THE CIRCLE OF LIFE

Disney’s award-winning musical “The Lion King” will begin its month-long run at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Civic Center in Oklahoma City. Tickets can be purchased at mytickeoffice.com.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

ODD NEWS BRIEFS STOLEN CHIHUAHUA PUP RETURNED TO NY STORE WITH NOTE

BIG GOVERNMENT AP PHOTO/AL GRILLO

Donna Millwood and Sue Easterly, not seen, hold up a sign that reads “Our government has gotten too big for its britches “ as hundreds of tea party tax protesters gather outside the Federal building in Anchorage, Alaska on Wednesday.

BELLMORE, N.Y. — A stolen $3,000 Chihuahua puppy has been returned to a Long Island pet store with an apologetic note. Nassau County police say they haven’t identified the man who took the 14-weekold dog back Tuesday to Worldwide Puppies & Kittens in Bellmore, just east of New York City. Store manager Christina Ingoglia (in-GOH’-glee-uh) says the man ran away after dropping off the pup in a shoe box. She says he left a note saying the puppy’s abductors were sorry they stole it and didn’t have the money to buy it.

TEXAS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GETS NOISE CITATION SAN ANTONIO (AP) — A fed-up Texas homeowner has gotten a noise citation issued against his neighbor — an elementary school. Police in suburban Universal City say they had to issue the citation after Butch Armstrong complained about the noise coming from Olympia Elementary School during the school’s Family Fitness Day on March 20. —AP

CAMPUS NOTES TODAY SCHOOL OF MUSIC The School of Music will host a Sutton Concert Series performance with OU Jazz Bands at 8 p.m. in Catlett Music Center. OU LAB THEATRE OU Lab Theatre will present “The Dada Play” at 6 p.m. in Old Science Hall.

FRIDAY OU LAB THEATRE OU Lab Theatre will present “The Dada Play” at 6 p.m. in Old Science Hall.

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POLICE REPORTS Names are compiled from the Norman Police Department and OUPD. The reports serve as a record of arrests, not convictions. Those listed are innocent until proven guilty. AGGRAVATED DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE William Ryan Olson, 22, Creekside Drive, Tuesday PERSONAL INJURY WHILE UNDER THE INFLUENCE Thomas John Schleigher, 47, East Lindsey Street, Monday MUNICIPAL WARRANT Thomas Page Dancy, 22, 201 W. Gray St., Tuesday Jermaine Antonio Gresham, 20, 1103 Biloxi Drive, Monday David Leon Hickok, 44, 300 S. University Blvd., Tuesday, also public intoxication Jeremy Wayne Lamb, 32, 6655 E. Rock Creek Road, Tuesday Ashley Danielle Sutterfield, 21, 201 W. Gray St., Tuesday INTERFERENCE WITH OFFICIAL PROCESS Timothy David Griffis, 19, 1200 W. Lindsey St., Tuesday PUBLIC INTOXICATION Lisa Lynne Salas, 44, 300 Hal Muldrow Drive, Monday