The April 9th edition of The Southern Digest

STATE & NATION

U.S., russia sign nuclear pact

STATE & NATION

VIEWPOINTS

Annual Negro Leagues weekend. pG. 7

It’s not worth it. pG. 11

SU takes on rival Grambling

Nations agree to cut nukes caches. pG. 5

let’s clear the air

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FRIDAY, APRIL 9, 2010

VOL. 55, ISSUE 14

SU may scale back summer

By Breanna paUl digest OPiNiONs editOr

Due to large budget cuts and a decline in enrollment, Executive Vice-Chancellor and Provost Mwalimu Shujaa has made plans to adjust the course offerings in the Summer 2010 and Fall 2010 sessions.

If the next proposed cut of approximately $2.5 million, which will affect the 2009-2010 fiscal year, passes the budget for Southern University will have been cut a total of approximately $12.8 million since mid-year 2008.

Shujaa plans to cut the cost of the Summer 2010 Session by $400,000.

According to Shujaa, the university has been using the same summer schedule for the past couple of years. This includes when enrollment was at its highest, approximately 10,000 students, in Fall 2005 (due to Hurricane Katrina).

Since enrollment was at 7,627 in Fall 2009, course offerings need to adjust with the size of enrollment.

See Summer page 3

photo By aprIl BUFFInGton/DIGeSt

the five candidates for student government association President, from left, Langston williams, demetrius sumner, Julien singleton, terrence rubin and Koi Lomas, debated issues during tuesday’s sga debates. the general election is Monday.

Candidates state their cases in debate

By Breanna paUl digest OPiNiONs editOr

With less than a week to impress their fellow students, candidates vying for positions in the Student Government Association debated issues in a packed Royal Cotillion Ballroom Tuesday.

The candidates running for Class Senators, Class Queens, Class Presidents, Chief Justice, Vice President, Miss Southern and President introduced

themselves and stated their platforms audience, then were asked questions about issues pertaining to their specific position.

The moderator, Jason Hughes, former SGA Treasurer, former SGA Chief of Staff, former Senior Class Senator and is currently the executive director of governmental and external affairs for the SU System.

Hughes introduced the panel of judges. Heather Williams,

former Miss Southern; Ted James, graduate of Southern University and the SU Law Center; Norman Dotson, Editorin-Chief for The Southern DIGEST; Channing Donald, currently employed by the Louisiana Department Health and Hospitals and Wayne Hayden, former SGA President known as “Uncle Buck” served as panelists for the debate.

The first question for Tuesday evening’s debate was directed to the candidates for

Miss Southern 2010 – 2011

by Williams. Candidates were asked to define decorum and state its importance for the role of Miss Southern University.

Miss Southern candidate Kiara Stewart stated that having decorum means to be a role model and a Christian woman.

Miss Southern candidate Kenya Warren provided the best answer for the question.

See debate page 3

Melancon visits SU today Congressman to address current action on Capitol Hill digest News serViCe

A member of the state’s congressional delegation is set to visit Southern University today, discussing governmental issues and recent congressional action.

Congressman Charlie Melancon (D-La.) will speak to students and faculty in Room 118/119 of Higgins Hall at noon. The representative of Louisiana’s Third Congressional District will field questions from the audience.

Melancon’s district includes all or part of 13 parishes: St. Martin, Iberia, St. Mary, Assumption, Ascension, St. James, St. John the Baptist, St.

SUNNY HIGH

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Charles, Terrebonne, Lafourche, Jefferson, Plaquemines and St. Bernard parishes. The Third District is home to over 638,000 Louisianians.

A Napoleonville, La., native, Melancon has represented the Third District since January 2005.

He currently serves on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce along with two of that committee’s subcommittees — the Subcommittee on Energy and the Environment and the Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet.

Prior to his time in Congress, Melancon served in the state Legislature from 1987-1993, followed by 11 years with the American Sugar League.

INSIDE S O U T H E R N

photo By GeralD heBert/ap photo

rep. Charlie Melancon, d-La., speaks about President Obama’s plan to expand offshore oil drilling, at superior energy services in gretna.

CAMPUS BRIEFS................2 STATE & NATION.................5  A&E.............................8 NEWS.................................3 SPORTS..............................7 VIEWPOINTS....................11 U N I V E R S I T Y ,

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THE SOUTHERN DIGEST 4 - DAY WEATHER OUTLOOK SATURDAY, APRIL 10

partly cloUDy HI - 76° / LO - 53° 10% CHANCE OF RAIN

SUNDAY, APRIL 11

moStly SUnny

HI - 80°/ LO - 54° 10% CHANCE OF RAIN

Classifieds apartmentS For rent

Tired of student housing? Free rent specials.

1.866.972.5495.

hoUSe For Sale

3143 Kimberly Dr. 3 br, 2 baths. $126,200. Please call 225.505.6232.

Campus Briefs TODAY FInancIal aID alert

The Financial Aid Office is requesting that students apply for financial aid early. Complete your FAFSA as soon as possible for the 2010-11 award year. Students must file a FAFSA annually for eligibility consideration.

SUBR’s school code is 002025. Please visit www. fafsa.ed.gov to complete a FAFSA online. Students and parents should apply for PINs at www.pin. ed.gov. Your PIN will serve as your electronic signature to process the FAFSA. The preferred deadline for Summer 2010 and Fall 2010 has passed. The final loan deadline for Summer 2010 is June 11.

For more information, contact the financial aid office at 225.771.2790.

Beep meetInGS

BEEP Meetings are held every Tuesday at 11 a.m. in T.T. Allain Room 222.

These meetings are open to all majors. For more information contact Toni Jackson at 225.771.5640 ext. 222 or at subeep@ subr.edu.

peer tUtorInG

Peer tutoring is available in the Center for Student Success in Stewart Hall Room 107. Available hours are 8 a.m.-8 p.m.

Mondays-Thursdays and 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Fridays.

Follow the Center for Student Success on Twitter to see exciting upcoming events: www.twitter.com/ jaguar_nation.

BaptISt StUDent UnIon

Want to become a member of the Baptist Student Union? Want to fellowship with other students during the week?

Need a place to worship?

Need a place to attend for bible study, special events and trips? Need a quiet place to study? Need a place to relax and watch television?

Join the T.J. Jemison Baptist Student Union, located at 724 Harding Blvd., across from LaCumba’s Den and the tennis courts. For more information, call 225.774.8924. loS jaGUareS latInoS

Los Jaguares Latinos, Southern University’s Spanish Club, meets Wednesdays at 3 p.m. in Room 320 of T.T. Allain Hall. If you are unable to attend the meetings but still like to participate, please send your name, contact number and valid e-mail address to SouthernUSpanishClub@ gmail.com pI Gamma mU

Pi Gamma Mu, the international honor society in social sciences,

MONDAY, APRIL 12

TUESDAY, APRIL 13

moStly cloUDy

partly cloUDy

HI - 80° / LO - 56° 10% CHANCE OF RAIN

HI - 76° / LO - 59° 20% CHANCE OF RAIN

is inviting juniors, seniors and graduate students to join. Students must be in the upper 35 percent of their class, have a gradepoint average of “B” or better and 20 semester hours in social science courses.

There is an international initiation fee $40 and an additional local chapter fee of $10. If you are interested in joining Pi Gamma Mu pick up an application from Dr. Shawn Comminey, Louisiana Epsilon Chapter Adviser, in Room 429 of Higgins Hall.

cSS SemInarS

The Center for Student Success is offering three seminars at Stewart Hall’s Lawless Auditorium in the upcoming days.

CSS will hold its “Stress Management Techniques” seminar Monday at 4 p.m., and Wednesday at 1 p.m. This seminar is designed to teach students new ways to relieve stress and reduce anxiety.

CSS’s “Getting the Most out of Your Textbook” seminar is slated for Tuesday at 2 p.m. This seminar is designed to teach students how to develop new reading techniques to improve comprehension and reduce the need to re-read subject material.

The “Working with Faculty” seminar is scheduled for Thursday at 3 p.m. SU faculty members will discuss what they really expect from students, along with discussing ways faculty

Name:

SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY

sUite 1064 – t.H.Harris HaLL P.O. BOX 10180 – BatON rOUge, La 70813 225.771.2231 PHONe / 225.771.3253 faX www.sOUtHerNdigest.COM

can help students.

APRIL 14 SenIor vISUal artS eXhIBItIon

Southern University’s Department of Visual Arts will host a Senior Visual Arts Student Exhibition April 1528 in Frank Hayden Hall.

The exhibition gallery hours will be 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily. An opening reception will be held April 14 from 6 p.m.-8 p.m.

The exhibition is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Robert Cox at 225.771.2070.

APRIL 12

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NEWS

Friday, April 9, 2010 - Page 3

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CSS giving SU students a helping hand By evan taylor digest staff writer

A hidden resource was highlighted when the Center for Student Success hosted seminars regarding a productive college experience. The Center for Student Success is located in Room 107 in W.W. Stewart Hall on Southern University’s campus.

Any Southern student has access to the Center for Student Success for tutoring, mentoring, and a list of seminars offered throughout the year.

“We recommend the Center for Student Success to students that are incoming freshmen, in seminar classes, or on academic probation but, the Center for Student Success is helpful to all students. Focusing on those skills not taught in a class,” said Nadia Gadson, Director of Center for Student Success.

Students serve as tutors, mentors, and participants in this student oriented and staff managed office. Without the

student participation the office would cease to function.

Kayla Porter, a junior nursing major from Baton Rouge serves as a tutor.

“A lot of students do not know about the great opportunities the Center for Student Success offers. It is helpful hearing a concept or section that may be difficult; from a peer. Students should stop by and ask about tutoring, mentoring, and seminars and the office staff will be happy to help,” shared Porter.

Tutoring is offered free of charge between the hours of 8 am and 8pm Monday through Thursday and 8am and 4pm on Fridays. Seminars topics and dates are posted in the office and around campus.

“I found out about the Center for Student Success in Academy last semester. A teacher can’t possibly cover every student. A mentor or tutoring experience because, you get one-on-one attention and another perspective on a

common subject,” said Chantell Landry a Nursing major from Donaldsonville.

Tutoring is available in both freshmen and upper level courses; offering opportunities to get help in group and individual sessions.

Jalisha Tolliver, a sophomore psychology major from Bogalusa said, “The use of common language and breaking down difficult subjects into simple an understandable terms are the best parts of a tutoring experience.”

The Center for Student Success also offers a peer advisement program; creating opportunities for upperclassmen to guide a incoming freshman through their first college experience.

“You have a chance to learn from your peers. The buddy system is helpful to learn more to motivate and hole each other accountable,” said Kristiana McGraw, a criminal justice major from New Orleans, when asked about a mentor relationship.

The mentor experience approaches a personal and professional relationship from one student to another.

“You can hear what you learned in class from another perspective. Comparing and building an understanding to a difficult section or subject,” said Cashaundra Anderson, a sophomore mass communications major from Pasadena, Calif.

The Center for Student Success’ mission is to provide students with support that will strengthen their academic performance and promote student success and retention.

They provide; Tutoring, Peer Advisement, Learning Assistance Programs, Student Employment Opportunities, The Early Alert Retention Program, Academic Excellence Programs, and College Transition Programs. The Southern University Student for Success is a Title III funded project.

debate from page 1 “Miss Southern University should be tasteful, classy and elegant and should represent herself and the university well,” Warren said.

Wayne Hayden asked the candidates competing for SGA President the next question.

Due to the difficulty of the question, Hayden encouraged candidates who were unsure of the correct answer to do so. The question, “How many budgets are administered by the SGA President?”

Candidate Terrence Rubin “Right now, I stand to you all as Senior Class President and I say to you, ‘I am not sure.’”

After the crowd responded in confusion and excitement, Rubin then took his seat.

Candidate Demetrius Sumner then answered the question. “There are three budgets controlled by the SGA President. There are the operating, budget and the allpurpose budget,” Sumner said.

“A portion of each student’s fees cover each budget,” Sumner continued. Sumner also stated that students are most concerned about the allpurpose budget.

After Candidate Sumner answered the question, current SGA Vice-President and SGA President Candidate Langston Williams answered the question. “There is a summer operational, fall and spring regular academic term operational budget, all-purpose and then there is a homecoming concert budget and a spring fest concert budget,” Williams firmly stated.

photo by APRIL BUFFINGTON/DIGEST

Candidates for Miss Southern, from left, Kenya Warren, Kiara Stewart, Kimberlee Ross and Diane Chavis await questions from the panel during Tuesday’s SGA debate.

After all SGA President Candidatesansweredthequestion, “Uncle Buck” announced that Candidates Sumner and Koi Lomas provided the correct answer to the question.

Panelist Norman Dotson asked candidates contending for SGA Vice-President and President, “What are your views on the recommendations from the Postsecondary Education Review Commission (Tucker Commission)? Are you in favor of the recommendations or are you not in favor of them?”

SGA Vice-President Candidate Kye Lewis stated that he knew the nothing about the topic. “However, I will read up on this topic,” Lewis promised.

SGA President Candidate Koi Lomas went into detail about the 22 recommendations set by PERC. “It will be the demise of Southern University,” Lomas stated.

SGA President Candidate Terrence Rubin tweaked some of the responses previously said by other candidates. While Candidate Julien Singleton agreed with just one of the recommendations, which will require Southern University to raise admissions standards. Candidate Langston Williams is not in favor of some recommendations proposed by PERC. Panelist Ted James, Esq. asked SGA Vice-President Candidates if they were in favor of the salaries (stipends, paid

by student’s fees) given to the SGA President, Vice-President and Chief of Staff.

Candidate Nona Stewart, who is also the current president of the Association for Women’s Studies, stated that she did not give herself a salary for her current position and is comfortable working without receiving a salary.

“Those funds can be allocated elsewhere,” Stewart said.

All full-time students with valid Southern ID are eligible to vote in Monday’s election and Wednesday’s run-off.

Additional campaign coverage will be available on the Southern Digest web site, southerndigest.com.

Summer from page 1 “We can’t operate Summer Session based on an enrollment figure that five years ago.

We can’t overspend,” Shujaa said. “We have to adjust the course offerings with enrollment, otherwise we will be overspending,” Shujaa continued.

If Southern University would have continued using the Summer School template from years ago, overspending will occur. “We will be paying more people that we need to pay. We will be offering more courses that don’t need to be offered,” Shujaa stated. “It’s going to cost us more,” Shujaa continued.

Each department was allotted a certain amount of money for the Summer 2010 Session.

The number of courses offered during the summer and the instructor’s salary must fit into each department’s budget.

To make sure each department complied with the budget Shujaa asked the Deans of Colleges to complete a form, which requires them to list the instructor teaching the course and the cost of the course. “We can’t afford to overspend,” Shujaa repeated.

Southern University is complying with budget cuts set Commissioner of Administration in the Governor’s office.

“They are basing the cuts on unexpected declines in revenue,” Shujaa said. “The state can’t afford to pay its bills because the expected revenue is not coming in,” Shujaa continued.

This process has delayed the Summer 2010 registration process. Some departments have yet to turned in their forms or they completed their forms but did not comply with the budget they were allotted. “We haven’t gotten all information from everybody yet,” Shujaa said.

Even though the form was due last week, Shujaa postponed the deadline to Tuesday, April 6; however, some departments had still not turned in their forms. The final deadline for departments to turn in their forms was Thursday, April 8 at noon.

If departments do not meet the deadline, the funds for their department will be allocated elsewhere. “We don’t have any extra money,” Shujaa stated. The deadline would allow students to register for classes for the Summer 2010 session on April 12.

For graduating seniors needing courses to graduate, students will have to make arrangements with that professor or dean. “We can’t offer a course just for one student .In the past, students have made arrangements to complete the class as independent story,” Shujaa said.

There have been hearsay around campus that SUBR will not have a Summer 2010 session; however, Shujaa firmly stated, “We are committed to having a Summer 2010 session.”

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STATE & NATION Friday, April 9, 2010 - Page 5

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U.S., Russia agree to cut nuclear arms By george jahn & jennifer loven associated press WRITERs

PRAGUE — Casting aside years of rancor, President Barack Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday signed the biggest nuclear arms pact in a generation, lacing the moment with new warnings of sanctions for an intransigent Iran.

The treaty, sealed after months of halting negotiation, is significant not just for what it does but for what it symbolizes: a fresh start for the United States and Russia, and evidence to a watching world that nuclear disarmament is more than a goal.

The pact commits their nations to slash the number of strategic nuclear warheads by one-third and more than halve the number of missiles, submarines and bombers carrying them.

That still leaves the two countries with enough nuclear firepower to ensure mutual destruction several times over, but the move sets a foundation for deeper reductions, which both sides are already pursuing.

“It sends a signal around the world that the United States and Russia are prepared to once again take leadership,” Obama said moments after he and Medvedev signed the treaty in a gleaming, ornate hall in the Czech Republic’s presidential castle.

photo by mikhail metzel/AP PHOTO

U.S. President Barack Obama, left, and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev, right, shake hands at a press conference after signing the newly completed “New START” treaty reducing long-range nuclear weapons at the Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic Thursday.

Said the Russian president: “The entire world community has won.”

The pact will shrink the limit of nuclear warheads to 1,550 per country over seven years, about a third less than the 2,200 currently permitted.

Looming over the celebration was Iran, which in the face of international pressures continues to assert that its

uranium enrichment program is for peaceful purposes, not for weapons as suspected. Six powers — the U.S., Russia, Britain, France, Germany and now China — are in talks in New York about a fourth set of United Nations sanctions to pressure Iran into compliance.

“We cannot turn a blind eye to this,” Medvedev said in a show of solidarity. But he said he was

frank with Obama about how far Russia was willing to go, favoring only what he called “smart” sanctions that might have hope of changing behavior.

Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov later elaborated by saying, for example, that Russia would not endorse a total embargo on the delivery of refined petroleum products into Iran. Such

products might be targeted in other ways, or sanctions on Iran’s energy sector might be avoided altogether to avoid running into deal-breaking opposition from Russia or China.

The nuclear arms pact now faces a ratification vote in the Russian legislature and the U.S. Senate. At home, Obama’s team is struggling to get the necessary votes, and the president himself is directly involved. He said he was confident that Democrats and Republicans would see that the treaty protects U.S. interests — an upbeat view of bipartisanship in a town where it’s been scarce.

“I feel confident that we are going to be able to get it ratified,” Obama said.

But prospects of the treaty’s ratification are still uncertain.

Democratic officials said they hoped the treaty could be ratified by the end of the year, but that the timing of the debate would depend upon the submission of technical documents accompanying the treaty.

The treaty’s ratification also would depend on Republican support, which GOP lawmakers were reluctant to extend just yet.

While Democrats hold a majority in the Senate, they are one vote shy of the 60 votes that are often needed to overcome procedural hurdles during debate. And 67 votes are needed to ratify the treaty.

States push to pay teachers based on performance By dorie turner associated press writer

ATLANTA — For parents and politicians hungry for better schools, the idea of paying teachers more if their students perform better can seem as basic as adding two and two or spelling “cat.”

Yet just a handful of schools and districts around the country use such strategies. In some states, the idea is effectively illegal.

That could all be changing as the federal government wields billions of dollars in grants to lure states and school districts to try the idea. The money is persuading lawmakers around the country, while highlighting the complex problems surrounding pay-for-performance systems.

Some teachers, like Trenise Duvernay, who teaches math at Alice M. Harte Charter School in New Orleans, want to be rewarded for helping students succeed.

Duvernay is eligible for $2,000 a year or more in merit bonuses based on how well her students perform in classroom observations and on achievement tests.

“It’s a reward for doing what we all have a passion to do anyway — making sure our kids master the skills they need in order to be successful,” Duvernay

said.

Other teachers, like Debra Gunter, a middle school math teacher in Cobb County, Ga., say teachers can’t control which kids walk into their classrooms.

“Your mother and father just got a divorce, your grandfather died, your boyfriend broke up with you: those kinds of life-altering events have an effect on how you do in class that day, through no fault of the teacher whatsoever,” said Gunter, echoing the position espoused by major teacher unions.

Some researchers have found student achievement improves when teachers get performance bonuses. Others have found no correlation.

Matthew Springer, director of Vanderbilt University’s National Center on Performance Initiatives, said the problem is that there are only a handful of valid studies, most from other countries.

“I think the jury is still out,” he said.

The push for performance pay programs dates to 1950, but has mostly failed because districts and states didn’t get buy-in from teachers and couldn’t come up with objective ways to measure performance.

School districts in most states calculate pay based on seniority and level of

photo by gerald hebert/AP PHOTO

Trenise Duvernay talks with Corey Boudreaux, 10, as she teaches fourth grade math class at the Alice M. Harte Charter School in New Orleans. Duvernay wants to be rewarded for helping students succeed. She is eligible for $2,000 a year or more in merit bonuses based on how well her students perform in classroom observations and on achievement tests.

education. For example, teachers who get master’s degrees generally get a pay bump.

In a massive survey of the nation’s teachers released in March, most said they value non-monetary rewards, such as time to collaborate with other teachers and a supportive school leadership, over

higher salaries. Only 28 percent felt performance pay would have a strong impact and 30 percent felt performance pay would have no impact at all. The survey was conducted by Harris Interactive and paid for by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Scholastic Inc.

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Fossils may fit evolutionary gap By randolph e. schmid ap science writer

WASHINGTON — Two skeletons nearly 2 million years old and unearthed in South Africa are part of a previously unknown species that scientists say fits the transition from ancient apes to modern humans.

The fossils bear traits from both lineages, and researchers have named them Australopithecus sediba, meaning “southern ape, wellspring,” to indicate their relation to earlier apelike forms and to features later found in more modern people.

“These fossils give us an extraordinarily detailed look into a new chapter of human evolution and provide a window into a critical period when hominids made the committed change from dependency on life in the trees to life on the ground,” said Lee R. Berger of South Africa’s University of Witwatersrand.

“Australopithecus sediba appears to present a mosaic of features demonstrating an animal comfortable in both worlds.”

Berger and colleagues describe the find in Friday’s issue of the journal Science.

Modern humans, known as Homo sapiens, descended over millions of years from earlier groups, such as Australopithecus, the best-known example of which may be the fossil Lucy, who lived about a million years before the newly discovered A. sediba.

Berger said the newly described fossils date between

1.95 million and 1.78 million years ago.

Some have characterized the find as a “missing link,” but that is a concept no longer accepted by science.

“The ‘missing link’ made sense when we could take the earliest fossils and the latest ones and line them up in a row.

It was easy back then,” explained Smithsonian Institution paleontologist Richard Potts.

But now researchers know there was great diversity of branches in the human family tree rather than a single smooth line.

The two new fossils were found in a pit in what was once a cave, their bones preserved by hardened sediment that buried them in a flood shortly after they died, the researchers said.

One was a female estimated to have been in her late 20s or early 30s and the other was a male age 8 or 9, according to the report. Two more have been found since this discovery, but Berger declined to detail them.

Berger said their features suggest that the transition from earlier groups to the Homo genus occurred in very slow stages.

“We can conclude that this new species shares more derived features with early Homo than any other known australopith species, and thus represents a candidate ancestor for the genus, or a sister group to a close ancestor that persisted for some time after the first appearance of Homo,” he said.

photo by denis farrell/AP PHOTO

Professor Lee Berger, of the University of the Witwatersrand, right, and his son, Matthew, left, at the reveal of one of two nearly 2 million-year-old skeletons unearthed in South Africa, at Maropeng, near Johannesburg Thursday. The fossils are part of a previously unknown species that scientists say fits the transition from ancient apes to modern humans.

But, Berger said, it isn’t yet Homo because it “doesn’t have the whole package.”

A. sediba could turn out to be a sort of Rosetta stone that helps unlock the secrets of the development of the genus Homo, Berger said, even if it turns out to be a side branch.

According to the researchers, A. sediba had an advanced hip bone and long legs, allowing it to stride like humans, but also had long arms and powerful hands like an ape. Both the female and the juvenile were 1.27 meters tall (about 4 feet 2 inches). The female would have weighed 33 kilograms (about 73 pounds) and the child 27 kilograms (about 60 pounds).

“The brain size of the juvenile was between 420 and 450 cubic centimeters (about 26.5 to 27.5

before, he said.

“It’s part of the experimentation of evolution,” said Potts, who was not part of Berger’s research team. Also, he cautioned, because there are only two examples there is no way to know if the gene pool died out or was passed along to others.

Funding for the research was provided by the South African Department of Science and Technology, the South African National Research Foundation, the Institute for Human Evolution, the Palaeontological Scientific Trust, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the AfricaArray Program, the U.S. Diplomatic Mission to South Africa and Sir Richard Branson, the billionaire founder of Virgin Group Ltd.

NAACP asks governor to look into LSUHSC

Bill would reverse license price hike

by the associated press

By melinda deslatte Associated Press Writer

A bid to reverse a $15 hike in the price of a Louisiana driver’s license sped through a Senate committee Thursday as lawmakers said they continue to hear complaints from motorists.

A new or renewed basic license now costs $36.50 for four years, up from $21.50. Lawmakers were caught unaware when the Department of Public Safety ordered the increase in February, and they’ve been battered by criticism from constituents.

“It certainly took the Legislature by surprise. It took the public by surprise,” said Sen. Joe McPherson, D-Woodworth, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee.

cubic inches), which is small, but the shape of the brain seems to be more advanced than that of Australopithecines,” the researchers reported. Our human brains are about 73 to 98 cubic inches.

While the skeletons had traits of both genuses, the researchers said they chose to classify them conservatively as Australopithecus, rather than Homo, because of their upper body design and brain size.

Potts, director of the Human Origins Project at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, noted that other examples with some Australopithecine and some Homo traits existed as much as a half-million years before A. sediba. This particular combination has not been seen

photo by arthur d. lauck/AP PHOTO

Sen. Robert Addley, R- Benton, speaks to Colonel Mike Edmonson with the Louisiana State Police during debate of a bill that would repeal a $15 fee increase for drivers licenses in a meeting of the Senate Transportation Committee at the State Capitol Thursday.

McPherson is proposing to strip the authority the department used to raise the price — and refund the money to anyone who’s paid the increase since March 8. His committee agreed without objection to the idea, sending the measure to the full Senate for debate.

If the bill passes, it will create a nearly $14 million hole in the department’s budget next year.

Gov.BobbyJindal’s2010-11budget

proposal includes the license cost increase, so scrapping the price hike would force lawmakers to make cuts either to the public safety department or elsewhere to rebalance the budget.

McPherson and other members of the committee said they’d work to find money to fill the gap in the Department of Public Safety, which funds the Office of Motor Vehicles and the Louisiana State Police.

SHREVEPORT — The local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People has sent a letter to Gov. Bobby Jindal asking that he look into complaints of discrimination against black employees and the quality of patient care at LSU Health Sciences Center in Shreveport.

In the letter dated March 30, chapter President Lloyd Thompson says complaints to his office over several months allege hospital administration creates hostile working environments for blacks and promotes employees based on race. People also complain they are left in the waiting room for hours and sometimes days before being treated and say hospital officials are disrespectful, the letter states.

Thompson questions whether the Louisiana State University Board of Supervisors offers proper leadership and oversight for its patients and staff.

“We are concerned about

the employees, but I’m more concerned about the quality of care for the poor people who utilize that facility,” he said.

“Yes, I think the discriminatory issue is something he needs to look at, but the patient care has got to be first and foremost. We need to know where is the line drawn where you make sure what you are doing is right.”

Hospital officials declined to comment on the letter, saying it addresses a legal matter not yet resolved.

“Therefore, in keeping with our policy that we do not comment on litigation, we will have no further comment at this time,” said Elaine King, spokeswoman for LSUHSC. The call for political intervention came in February after a Caddo Parish jury deadlocked on a decision in the wrongful termination suit of Dr. Culbert O. Simpkins. He was head of the trauma department at LSU Hospital in Shreveport and was terminated in 2006.

SPORTS Friday, April 9, 2010 - Page 7

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Jaguars gear up for key series By morris dillard digest SPORTS writer

Throughout the Southern University men’s baseball team recent rough stretch, there has been at least one silver lining —division rival Grambling State hasn’t done much better either.

As poorly as SU has played in this month, the club still finds itself just tied for firstplace behind Texas Southern in the Southwestern Athletic Conference standings.

However, the time to watch the scoreboard after a loss and hope for the best is quickly coming to an end. That’s because the Tiger are coming to Baton Rouge this weekend to kick off the annual Negro League Classic.

“It’s an exciting weekend to have that happen,” said head coach Roger Cador. “There are so many people who never experienced it but heard about it, now they can come out and see.”

Last season, SU wore the

crown of the classic, totaling 47 runs to 18 in a three-game weekend series.

“It’s a huge weekend battle because it’s an in-state rival and it’s a team we always like playing,” Cador said. “But more than anything, we need to win because it allows us to stay in first place.”

SU (8-12, 6-3) will be playing two games knowing that a loss means dropping a game in the standings. They also know that this week is the perfect time to take their fortunes into their own hands.

After the loss to the University of New Orleans Tuesday night, stating that SU needs to start hitting the ball better is quite an understatement. SU has been held back by struggling to close out games.

For this reason, SU allowed UNO to score their final six runs on five hits late down the stretch to surrender to an 11-5 defeat at Lee-Hines Field, also

SU, GSU to honor Negro Leagues By morris dillard digest SPORTS writer

photo by april buffington/digest

Southern pitcher Chase Richard warms up during practice Thursday.

The Jaguars take on rival Grambling State in a key three-game SWAC Western Division series at Lee-Hines Field.

for UNO to claim their second overall victory over SU this season.

GSU (9-15, 5-4) might be just what the SU offense needs to

snap out of it. GSU sport a 7.64 ERA and have allowed more than 50-plus runs previously against opponents steered at the bottom of the conference.

Woods back, better than ever to start Masters AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Tiger Woods played like the last five months never happened.

Even more surprising, he felt that way, too.

No longer the same person after he was caught cheating on his wife, Woods looked every bit the same golfer Thursday when he opened with a 4-under 68 — his best first round ever at Augusta National — that left him only two shots behind 50-year-old Fred Couples on an extraordinary opening day at the Masters.

It just didn’t seem that way to Woods.

Standing on the first tee, looking down a fairway lined with thousands of spectators curious to see how he would respond to a sex scandal that shocked the world, Woods didn’t flinch.

“It felt normal,” he said. “Try to hit a little fade off the first tee, try to take something off of it and make sure I got it in play.

That was about it. From there, I just went about my business.”

Indeed, he was the same Tiger.

He pledged to control his emotions on the course, yet there was little change. Woods twirled his club after a good drive, slammed it after a few bad ones. He pumped his fist after making the first of two eagles and sunk to his knees when he missed a birdie putt on the 16th that slowed his climb up the leaderboard.

And just like always, he complained about not making enough putts.

“Otherwise, it could have been a very special round,” Woods said.

Yet it was special in so many ways.

Couples, who played a practice round with Woods on Monday, sauntered along in tennis shoes and no socks and shot a 6-under 66. It was his best score ever at the Masters and made him the oldest player to be the outright leader for any round.

“I never really thought about what I was shooting,” said Couples, who already has won three times this year on the 50-and-older Champions Tour.

“It was a fun day for me. I still think I can play, and if I putt well I’ve got to be some kind of factor in my mind.”

Tom Watson, at 60 the oldest player in this Masters, picked up from his amazing ride at last year’s British Open with a bogey-free round of 67 that left him tied with Lee Westwood, Phil Mickelson, PGA champion Y.E. Yang and K.J. Choi.

“My goals were to play better than I’ve played in the last five or six years, and I achieved that — for the first round,” Watson said.

“I’m playing pretty well. I’ve said I have to play better than 90 percent to be successful on this golf course.”

Still, this day was always going to be about Woods.

He had not hit a competitive shot in 144 days, since winning the Australian Masters on Nov. 15 for his 82nd victory around the world. A four-time Masters champion, he has never come to Augusta National with so much uncertainty — about his game, and mostly how fans would respond to a player whose impeccable image had been shattered by tawdry tabloid tales of sex.

The patrons were on their best behavior, as expected at the most polite tournament in golf. Augusta National can’t control the perimeter of the course, however, and a couple of planes toted banners that poked fun at Woods — one for his pledge to get back to Buddhism (“Bootyism,” the banner said), another mocking claims he needed therapy as a sex addict.

On the ground, the gallery was mostly positive, with a few exceptions.

“He doesn’t have the right character and integrity to represent golf,” Larry Isenhour said. “That’s why I came out early this morning to applaud Jack Nicklaus.”

Nicklaus, the six-time Masters champion, joined Arnold Palmer as an honorary starter. The two old rivals hit the ceremonial tee shots to open the Masters, and chairman Billy Payne said, “The 2010 Masters is now officially begun. Have fun.”

And they did.

Clouds moved in quickly and kept the sun from baking out the greens, and some of the hole locations allowed for birdies. The low scores weren’t a surprise, only the names next to them.

Watson had two birdies in three holes to put his name on the leaderboard and bring back memories of his magical run at Turnberry last summer when he missed an eight-foot putt on last hole of regulation and then lost in a playoff at the British Open.

He never went away this time, never made a bogey and wound up matching his best score ever at Augusta.

“I don’t know if you can put an age on how anybody is playing, but he’s playing like one of the best players in the world right now,” said Steve Marino, who played with Watson, as he did in the third round at the British.

Mickelson came to the Masters for the first time without having finished in the top five all year, but he looked as comfortable as ever, particularly on the back nine with an eagle-birdie-birdie stretch that put him atop the leaderboard at 67.

“I do love this place,” Mickelson said. “I don’t have to be perfect. I can miss a shot and still recover. It relaxes me when I go down Magnolia Lane.”

Westwood, Europe’s top player, had only broken 70 twice in his Masters career until running off seven birdies for a 67.

Almost everyone knows that Jackie Robinson was the first African-American to break Major League Baseball’s color barrier. However, little have given much thought as to how Robinson became noticeable to major league scouts before eventually signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

That route, the Negro Leagues, holds a place in the history of the national pastime along with a place on the Southern University baseball schedule.

This weekend, Southern and Grambling State pay homage to the Negro Leagues by wearing replica jerseys during the rivals’ three-game series. Southern will don the home white jerseys while Grambling will wear the road gray uniforms.

“They shaped and helped form how people see blacks in America,” said head coach Roger Cador. “Those people took a lot of abuse to make things better for what is happening now.”

The throwback jerseys inform and enhance the awareness of Negro League baseball. Minor League Baseball is supplying both teams with the uniforms.

“Each team will wear a sample of the cities that were once a part of the Negro League,” said Cador.

Last season, SU won each of the three games in the classic.

Now, the club will get a chance to redeem the success with another series sweep.

Read the

at WWW.

southern digest .com

arts & entertainment Page 8 - Friday, April 9, 2010

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Play pays tribute to Katrina victims By billy washington digest a&E editor

The Department of Speech and Theatre and the Lacumba Players of Southern University paid tribute to victims of Hurricane Katrina by performing a play entitled, “Katrina’s Footprints” which debuted Wednesday night at Frank Hayden Theatre.

Written by Niesha Bentley, Bashirah Perine, Professor Aileen Hendricks and Marlana McCants, “Katrina Footprints” was developed from interviews with natives of Louisiana, particularly from the New Orleans region, who experienced and survived during the initial stages and aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Victims of Katrina were in attendance to view the opening of “Katrina’s Footprints”.

Lester and Karen Triche, along with their daughter Chelsea Triche, thoroughly enjoyed the play.

“I think the cast was superb and did an excellent job,” said Lester Triche.

The Triche’s were affected by Katrina in 2005. Their home and community was destroyed which led them to move to Zachary where they have been living since 2005.

“I think they (the cast) worked hard and got in tune with their characters,” added Karen Triche.

Act one included four scenes. Scene one and Scene two illustrated the “happenings” in New Orleans before Katrina hit. These

scenes focused on the mind frame people had before the event took place. Many people were not concerned of hurricane Katrina because people have lived through hurricane Andrew and hurricane Betsey.

The elderly in particular were the ones who didn’t want to evacuate New Orleans because of those previous experiences.

Ms. Mazie’s character, an elderly woman who resided in Ninth Ward, decided to stay during the hurricane. She eventually died because she had no one to take care of her. People offered her a ride, but she refused because her heart was in New Orleans. Before the death of Ms. Mazie, she told Jamal, a hardheaded adolescent of the community, to return home after having a heated argument with his mother over cleaning the house. Jamal refused and wandered about.

Scenes three and four setting were five years after the event. It began with members from Ms. Mazie’s neighborhood visiting the community to check out the devastation. Ms. Mazie’s spirit was still around them and people knew she didn’t want to leave because she loved New Orleans so much. Jamal’s mother, Ms. Peaches, bumped into one of Jamal’s friends and vented about not seeing Jamal in five years. During the conversation, a tour was being conducted.

The people who conducted the tours were not interested in the people of the devastation that occurred but the money the touring companies were pulling in

Perry’s new movie good, but not his best By billy washington digest a&E editor

Tyler Perry has done it again with “Why Did I Get Married Too,” which debuted last weekend and grossed in a cool $30 million during the opening weekend.

“Why did I Get Married Too” is the sequel to “Why Did I Get Married?” which was released in 2007. Tyler Perry has been consistent with his presence in the movie industry since 2005.

He has produced and wrote nine movies over the five-year span. The only movie Perry did not star in was “Daddy’s Little Girls,” a 2007 film that starred Gabrielle Union and Idris Elba.

Tyler Perry is also an astute businessman and is usually heavily involved in his work. He has directed all movies except his debut 2005 movie “Diary of a Mad Black Woman.”

“Why Did I Get Married Too” had the same main characters as in “Why Did I get Married?” TP movies are known for stomach twisting drama and this movie was definitely filled with drama.

The four couples reunited for

their annual one-week reunion at an island resort in the Bahamas.

The beginning of the movie looked as if everything would go well during the trip; even through drama queen Angela (Tasha Smith) sparked drama with the airport before departing with her buff, athletic and chiseled abs husband Marcus (Michael Jai White). The real drama begins with the unwelcoming and surprising entrance of Michael (Richard T. Jones) who is the ex-husband of Shelia (Jill Scott).

It seemed that Mike’s intention was to start mess, but further throughout the movie the audience finds out that Mike has cancer and he wanted to redeem himself from all the turmoil and abuse he put Shelia through in the past. This scene was actually taken from a scene from Perry’s “House of Payne” sitcom.

All of the couples seemed to be happy on the outside but behind the glitz and glamour, the characters were depressed, held secrets from one another and much insecurity among them began to develop.

photo by trevor james/digest

Actors perform a scene from “Katrina’s Footprints” during its Wednesday debut at the Frank Hayden Theatre.

was significant. Ms. Peaches and Jamal’s friend both expressed their feelings on the topic. Scene four began with a classroom setting. An African teacher was very dedicated to serving students of the area because of her experiences in Africa; however, the students were not trying to hear what she had to say. Students gave their perspective about school and prayer and felt that they would never amount to anything; therefore, they walked out of class. The devastation of Katrina shook up the foundation to a lot of people’s faith and faith conflict occurred during this period because many lives were lost and many families are currently not united.

Act two began with a town hall meeting with a few elected officials of the Gulf Coast, including Mayor Babineaux.

Leaders from the community including Ms. Peaches, the pastor and his wife, teachers, and policemen, were all in

attendance to expresses some powerful words of concernment. The overall message behind this scene illustrates the constant concern of the people always getting the “runaround” from elected officials. It has been five years since the devastation and elected officials were and are, to this day, moving at a slow pace to recover and restore families. The last two scenes involved the church. This scene expressed the power of having faith. Ms. Peaches was in turmoil for five years because she thought she would never see her son again, but during a church service, at a renovated church, Jamal enters and hugs his mother passionately and reunites with his siblings. Jamal was in Tennessee with his girlfriend.

The whole play gave off a hurricane whirlwind of emotional twists, but by having faith in God lead those, who survived, through the turmoil and chaos.

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business & technology Friday, April 9, 2010 - Page 9

States target payday lenders By jonathan j. cooper associated press writer

PHOENIX — When Jeffrey Smith needed some quick cash to pay a medical bill, he turned to a payday loan store near his home outside Phoenix.

He eventually took out a string of payday loans and fell into a vicious cycle in which he would call out sick from work so he could drive all over town to pay off loans and take out new ones. The experience left him in bankruptcy, lying to his wife and fighting thoughts of suicide.

Stories like Smith’s and a growing backlash against payday lending practices have prompted legislatures around the country to crack down on the businesses.

In the most severe case, Arizona lawmakers are on the verge of shutting down the entire industry in the state. A law took effect in Washington this year capping the amount of payday loans and the number that a borrower can take out in a year. And in Wisconsin, lawmakers are locked in a heated battle over whether to regulate the industry.

Payday lenders say they are providing an important service, especially in a dreadful economy where people are short on cash.

Detractors say the industry preys on desperate people with annual interest rates that routinely exceed 400 percent.

Industry recovery under way By barbara ortutay ap technology writer

photo by ross d. franklin/ap photo

Arizona state Sen. Debbie McCune Davis, D-Phoenix, right, a strong opponent of the payday loan industry, talks with Sen. Leah Landrum Taylor, D-Phoenix, on the senate floor during session at the capitol Wednesday in Phoenix. Davis, a key foe of the payday loan industry, said she believes other lenders, including credit unions, will step up to fill the void, but says the industry can operate under the 36 percent “usury’ cap, as attempts to reauthorize the payday loan industry failed in both houses of the Arizona legislature on Wednesday, as the industry operates on a temporary exemption from Arizona’s 36-percent interest rate cap, but that exemption ends on June 30.

“It’s sort of like a twisted person that’s standing on the street corner offering a child candy,” Smith said. “He’s not grabbing the child and throwing him into a van, but he’s offering something the child needs at that moment.”

Payday loans are short-term, highinterest loans that are effectively advances on a borrower’s next paycheck.

For example, a person who needs a quick $300 but doesn’t get paid for two weeks can get a loan to help pay the bills, writing a postdated check that the store agrees not to cash until payday. The borrower would have to pay $53 in finance charges for a $300, two-week loan in Arizona — an annual interest rate of 459 percent.

Payday loan stores are ubiquitous in Arizona, especially in working-class neighborhoods of Phoenix where the businesses draw in customers with neon lights and around-the-clock hours.

Payday lenders in Arizona several years ago were granted a temporary exemption from the state’s 36 percent cap on annual interest rates. The exemption expires June

30, and the industry says the interest cap is so restrictive that it will have to shut down entirely.

Bills that would have kept the industry alive languished in the House and Senate, and the year’s third and final attempt was pulled Tuesday amid a lack of support.

Consumers frustrated with the economy “look for a dog to kick” because they’re angry with the financial institutions they blame for the Great Recession, said Ted Saunders, chief executive of Dublin, Ohiobased Checksmart, a payday lender that operates in 11 states including Arizona.

“They want to find a villain,” Saunders said. And opponents “have done a good job of painting a big X on my back.”

Payday lending opponents say the industry depends on trapping some borrowers in a cycle of debt where they continually renew their loan or take out new ones because they can’t afford to pay the debt while still covering their daily expenses.

Eventually, the fees can surpass the value of the initial loan so the lender profits even if the borrower defaults.

NEW YORK — A new report on information technology provided further evidence that an industry recovery is under way, with U.S. spending now expected to grow faster than previously believed.

Forrester Research now expects information-technology spending in the U.S. to grow by 8.4 percent this year, to $550 billion. That is up from its January forecast, of a 6.6 percent increase compared with 2009.

The better outlook is helped by higher spending on comunications equipment than Forrester previously expected, accompanying the ongoing rebound in computer and software purchases.

The worldwide tech market, meanwhile, will grow by 7.7 percent as measured in U.S. dollars, to nearly $1.6 trillion. This is slightly lower than Forrester’s previous forecast of a 8.1 percent growth. That’s because the Greek financial crisis weakened the euro and strengthened the U.S. dollar, Forrester analyst Andrew Bartels said.

Technology spending looks to have hit bottom in the third quarter of 2009 and started to turn around late in the year, according to Forrester.

As expected, technology spending in the fourth quarter were “generally level with or slightly higher than the same period in 2008 — clear evidence that the downturn is over and that renewed growth has started,” Bartels said in Thursday’s report.

‘Mind-reading’ software showcased By samantha gross associated press writer

photo by mary altaffer/ap photo

Wendy March demonstrates Sens, a concept mobile experience which shares context information on phones in the form of animated avatars during an Intel open house in New York. Software that uses brain scans to determine what items people are thinking about was among the technological innovations showcased Wednesday by Intel Corp., which drew back the curtain on a number of projects that are still under development.

NEW YORK — Mind reading may no longer be the domain of psychics and fortune tellers — now some computers can do it, too.

Software that uses brain scans to determine what items people are thinking about was among the technological innovations showcased Wednesday by Intel Corp., which drew back the curtain on a number of projects that are still under development.

The software analyzes functional MRI scans to determine what parts of a person’s brain is being activated as he or she thinks. In tests, it guessed with 90 percent accuracy which of two words a person was thinking about, said Intel Labs researcher Dean Pomerleau.

Eventually, the technology could help the severely physically disabled to communicate. And Pomerleau sees it as an early step toward one day being able to

control technology with our minds.

“The vision is being able to interface to information, to your devices and to other people without having an intermediary device,” he said.

For now, the project’s accomplishments are far more modest — it can only be used with prohibitively expensive and bulky fMRI equipment and hasn’t yet been adapted to analyze abstract thoughts.

The system works best when a person is first scanned while thinking of dozens of different concrete nouns - words like “bear” or “hammer.” When test subjects are then asked to pick one of two new terms and think about it, the software uses the earlier results as a baseline to determine what the person is thinking.

The software works by analyzing the shared attributes of different words. For example, a person who is thinking of a bear uses the same parts of the brain that light up when he or she thinks of a puppy or something else furry. A person thinking of a bear also shows activity in the amygdala — home of the fight-or-flight response.

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VIEWPOINTS Friday, April 9, 2010 - Page 11

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Let’s clear the air I’M JUST ASKING STATEMENT

I’M JUST ASKING is for entertainment purposes only. These remarks do not represent the opinions of the DIGEST staff, Southern University or the Office of Student Media Services.

1. Who didn’t go to the debate Monday?

2. Who felt like they were sailing to America with Kunta Kinte?

3. How come no ushers passed out those fans with funeral home advertisements or Martin Luther King on them?

4. Did Uncle Buck really try to stunt on one of the candidates?

5. Or was it the other way around?

6. Who doesn’t know because they couldn’t hear through all of the unnecessary hooping and hollering?

7. Who saved up all of their book voucher money for their campaign?

8. Who saw the tags on one of the SGA president candidates outfits?

9. Will they be returning it and buying a new one with the stipend they claim they aren’t giving to themselves?

10. How come one of SGA VP candidates didn’t know what the Tucker Commission was?

11. Didn’t the DIGEST publish an editorial on that last Friday?

12. Wasn’t the website given as well?

13. So are we really a little paper?

14. Did anyone see one of the candidates for Miss Southern cry?

15. Doesn’t one of the campaigns for Miss Southern remind you of the Mile High Club?

16. Who did she get that idea from? Tiger Woods? Jesse James maybe?

17. Who noticed the mic went out everytime one of the SGA president candidates went to speak?

18. Who thinks the mic had it out for him?

19. Who was secretly hoping one of the candidates would trip and fall going up and down the stairs?

20. Did one of the candidates say “a predominantely HBCU?” —BONUS QUESTIONS— 21. If it’s already an HBCU, doesn’t that make it predominately black?

22. Who got scared when “Miss I’ll make sure you leave this flight satisfied” yelled into the mic?

23. She still in that box?

24. Why is there a group to vote for certain candidates on Facebook?

25. Isn’t Facebook a media outlet?

26. Who thought Beyonce was going to come out with Lady Gaga during the debate when they stepped off stage?

Smoking cigarettes is a touchy subject to discuss. I hope I do not step on anyone’s toes while conversing about this serious topic. With that said…

How many people do you know smoke cigarettes? Do their clothes, cars and home reek of that horrible odor? Are their voices hoarse? Are they constantly leaving functions or work to go outside to smoke?

How much of their paycheck do they spend on buying cartons of cigarettes?

I just do not understand why someone would smoke a cigarette knowing good and well about the complications tobacco and nicotine does to your body. I know we all have seen the pictures of black lungs in elementary school. Don’t we all want pretty pink lungs and not crusty black ones? Also, cigarettes are VERY expensive!

Why would you waste so much

BREANNA PAUL money into a habit that can kill you and your loved ones? Just think about how much a person who smokes 1-2 packs a day spends…that adds up to about $25 in just one week? That’s a full tank of gas for me!

During one season of Big Brother, a contestant brought numerous cartons of cigarettes to the Big Brother house.

Everyone who watches the show knows how stressful the game is. So naturally, a person who smokes 1-2 packs a day is going to need more than that to cope with the stress of the game. Towards the end of the game, the contestant smoked

all of his cigarettes and it started to affect his game. The next elimination he was voted off. Can you imagine being that close to all of that money then having it all be a waste of time because you ran out of cigarettes?

If a person is going to put all kinds of toxins in their bodies, they should at least have the decency to not smoke cigarettes by doorways. I don’t know about you all but when I leave a building, I’m looking forward to the burst of fresh air I’m about to get when I open the door. But instead, I’m greeted with smoke and nicotine and not fresh air. I’m very sensitive to smoke so it causes me to start hacking. Then I get a weird look from the smoker.

Um hello, maybe I wouldn’t be hacking if you weren’t polluting my pretty pink lungs. BRCC has “smoker zones” – maybe SU should get those as well.

(HINT, HINT!) Oh and another thing, it’s fine to smoke in your car, but please dispose of your little ashes in the ash trays that the car companies so kindly put in your car. Don’t flick them out your window or blow smoke out your window, like you are cool for that matter. This causes people like me who like to drive with their windows down enjoying the fresh spring breeze to have to roll up the window, waste gas and run the air conditioner because you decided to flick your ashes and blow your smoke into the fresh air.

I understand smoking is an addiction, but aren’t there hotlines, patches, gums, smoke-less cigarettes and support groups to help one cope with the addiction?

I mean I’m sure everyone would be happy with a FRESH campus?

SUBMISSIONS POLICY

The Southern DIGEST welcomes letters from readers commenting on current issues and other matters of general interest to the SU family and public. We set aside this space to publish these letters for others to enjoy. This newspaper is not responsible for individual opinions expressed on its editorial and opinion pages. The Southern DIGEST reserves the right to edit any contributions and or reject them without notification. Authors are encouraged to limit the length of submissions to 300 words. Letters should not include libelous statements. Offensive and personal attacks will not be permitted. The DIGEST will not print “open letters” addressed to someone else. All contributions must be type written, signed and must include the author’s address and phone number. Unsigned letters will not be printed. Southern University students should include their majors, hometowns and year in school. When referring to specific DIGEST articles, please include the date and title. All materials should be directed to the editor in chief of The Southern DIGEST, P.O. Box 10180, Baton Rouge, La. 70813. Materials may be delivered by hand to the DIGEST office located in Suite 1064 Harris Hall or can be e-mail to digest@subr.edu.

Editorial policy

Staff editorials represent the opinions of the author and the majority opinion of the Southern DIGEST Student Editorial Board, which is comprised of the student staff of editors and columnists. The Southern DIGEST provides an open forum to educate, inform and enlighten the students, faculty and staff at Southern University, Baton Rouge, La.

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