SPORTS
LIFESTYLES
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‘Twilight’ so bad its good
Monday, November 24, 2008
Men’s basketball gets Maui invite
Serving the University of Alabama since 1894
GAMEDAY IRON BOWL GAMEDAY HITS NEWSTANDS TUESDAY
Students find on-campus holiday fun
Vol. 115, Issue 62
Holiday travel brings risk By Josh Veazey Staff Reporter A UA study reported the Wednesday before Thanksgiving 2007 as the fifth worst day for crashes in the state of Alabama in 2007. According to CARE Research and Development, of the 1,110 fatalities that happened last year on Alabama roads, 11 of them occurred over the Thanksgiving holiday.
“I’ve long thought it was particularly bad because people tend to compress their travel and there’s pretty high-traffic volume on one day of the year,” said Allen Parish, professor of computer science and director of CARE. “For Christmas, by contrast, people travel over a longer period. So you might go down to wherever you’re going a week before Christmas
see DRIVING, page 3
SAFE DRIVING TIPS: - Try to drive on four-lane highways instead of two-lane, even when traffic volume is high. - Maintain speed of traffic. - Avoid bulk of traffic, which can occur in the afternoon and early evening. - “Drive during the daytime, don’t drink, buckle up and be vigilante. I don’t know if there’s a better prescription than that.” Source: Allen Parish, professor of computer science and director of CARE Research and Development Laboratory
Up Hurricane Creek
By Victor Luckerson Staff Reporter
cashing in on the Black Friday sales at Birmingham’s Galleria Mall than actual Thanksgiving For Americans, Thanksgiving celebrations. Sophomore Saleh Alsaif is as natural as football and the American measurement sys- said he planned to study on tem. However, for international Thanksgiving Day. For students who do want to students, becoming acclimated to the turkey-carving, face- gorge themselves in the tradistuffing festivities can be tion of the holiday, though, the University does have some difficult. “My country doesn’t have programs in place to make this Thanksgiving,” said Ebrahim Thanksgiving a happy one for Al Hejji, a student from Saudi all who stay on campus. Housing and Residential Arabia. He said he planned to go to Tennessee and celebrate Communities is hosting an “Old Fashioned American the holiday there with friends. Freshman Hamad Alrajhi said he was more excited about See HOLIDAYS, page 2
BEAT AUBURN BEAT HUNGER
Bama wins food drive contest By Brett Bralley News Editor The Capstone beat Auburn University for the second year in a row in the annual Beat Auburn Beat Hunger Food Drive, raising 270,915 pounds, according to results from the West Alabama Food Bank. Auburn raised 212,195 pounds. Caitlin Looney, one of the student coordinators for BABH, said the victory is a tribute to the entire University and the Tuscaloosa community. “We were really were unsure of where we’d be this year, in terms of numbers, with the current [economic] situation,” Looney said. “But we were overwhelmed by our numbers, and Auburn, quite frankly, didn’t even get close.” BABH raised over 29,000 pounds more than what it raised last year. For the first time since 1999, the University beat Auburn last year by raising 241,336 pounds, while Auburn raised 183,017 pounds. Food donated from the University went to the West Alabama Food Bank, and donations from Auburn went to the East Alabama Food Bank. The drive, which was created by the Community Service
See HUNGER, page 2
UA weather
TODAY
INSIDE Today’s paper
Third grader gets published .................2 Opinions: Have a safe holiday road trip......4
Rainy
61º/38º
Lifestyles: Movie Review: ʻTwilightʼ..................6
Tuesday
56º/31º
Modern ensemble plays tonight .....................6
Wednesday
56º/31º
Sports: Volleyball loses to Florida .................. 10
Sunny Sunny
Womenʼs Basketball beats Hampton ............... 10
P.O. Box 870170 Tuscaloosa, AL 35487 Newsroom: 348-6144 | Fax: 348-4116 | Advertising: 348-7845 | Classifieds: 348-7355 Letters, op-eds: letters@cw.ua.edu Press releases, announcements: news@cw.ua.edu
CW | Matt Abbey The Hurricane Creek Cleanup on Saturday, sponsored by New College and Friends of Hurricane Creek, helped to revitalize the Creekʼs sensitive ecosystem. Participants removed weeds from the bank, and cleaned up trash around the site. Right: Elrond Kullmann uses his ax to make a bench on the bank of Hurricane Creek while under that watch of Sarita Brown, a senior majoring in German studies. Left: John Wathen, the Hurricane Creekkeeper, discusses his tattoo, which represents the bottom and top of the aquatic food chain at Hurricane Creek. The tattoo depicts a snapping turtle and a hydrophyte, which means “spirit in the water” in Latin.
ON-CAMPUS HOLIDAY HOURS Residence Halls: Open Wednesday through Sunday The Ferguson Center: Wednesday - 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday - 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday - 7 a.m. to midnight Saturday - 7 a.m. to midnight Sunday - 10 a.m. to midnight Student Recreation Center: Wednesday - Closes at 6 p.m. Thursday - Closed Friday - 12 p.m. - 7 p.m. Saturday - Closed Sunday - Normal schedule Bama Dining: Wednesday - Lakeside Closed, All food facilities will close at 2 p.m. Thursday - Home Zone in the Ferguson Food Court open 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. Friday - Fresh Food Co. open 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Ferguson Center Food Court open 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday - Burke Dining Hall open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Lakeside open 10:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Ferguson Food Court open 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Home Zone in Food Court 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday - Normal schedule Student Health Center: Wednesday - 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday through Saturday - Closed Sunday - 1 p.m.-4 p.m. UAPD: Open 24/7
City announces plan for Riverside amphitheater By Drew Taylor Senior Staff Reporter Students and Tuscaloosans alike will soon be treated to a new entertainment venue as the city has announced plans for an amphitheater to be built in the near future. The project is in its early stages and is projected to be complete by September 2010, said Mayor Walt Maddox in an e-mail. However, no definitive date will be determined until after the site work phase is completed in May 2009. Maddox said the idea for a project of this magnitude began in the late 1990s as the Tuscaloosa Riverfront Committee, which is part of the Citizens’ Task Force, began talking about building an amphitheater. City Councilman Lee Garrison served as a key proponent in the project as he incorporated it into the Riverfront Master Plan at the time. Earlier last week, Maddox traveled to New York City to be rated on a bond, due to the city’s need to borrow more than $14 million for the project. This would be repaid through utilizing 2 percent of the lodging tax. Maddox predicts the debt service will be $900,000 to $1.1 million per year over the next 30 years. Maddox said Friday that the city of Tuscaloosa signed Red Mountain Entertainment to run, book and promote the amphitheater. The signing would
entail training the staff and consulting the planning of booking artists. The city has also hired Davis Architects to take on the project, in accordance with the task force recommendations city council gave in August. The project will proceed by first constructing the substructure because the venue will be built over a defunct landfill. This requires drilling into 30 feet of bedrock, Maddox said, which will be a costly endeavor. After the bid for that is passed, the money left will go toward above-ground facilities. Maddox said the response to the project has been overwhelmingly positive so far and there are many good things that will come from having an outdoor facility like an amphitheater in Tuscaloosa. “We believe it will draw people to Tuscaloosa and help us fill hotels, restaurants and commercial entities,” Maddox said. “Further, it will serve as an economic catalyst for our riverfront and West Tuscaloosa.” According to an article in Nov. 17’s edition of The Tuscaloosa News, one aspect of the amphitheater that will be approached with care will be the roof, covering about 2,000 of the total 6,000 to 7,000 seats and opening up about 15,000 square feet. This would make the facility more conducive to year-round activities,
See PLANS, page 3
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LIFESTYLES
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VIDEO GAME REVIEW | “LEFT 4 DEAD”
“Left 4 Dead” low on story, high on suspense By Kelli Abernathy CW Copy Editor The zombie apocalypse, no matter what some may wish, is not likely to happen. But everyone still has a plan, right? Just in case something did happen. If, however, watching zombie movies and playing zombie games through the years has not convinced you to draw up a method of escape, “Left 4 Dead,” released for PC and Xbox 360 on Nov. 18, will. “Left 4 Dead,” produced by Valve, runs on Source, the same gaming engine used in and “HalfLife 2” and “Portal.” The set up for “Left 4 Dead” is similar to the other games. Gameplay is in first-person view until the character is knocked down or dying. Controls are also the same and are easy for a newcomer like myself to pick up. There are four playable characters in the main game, in addition to the Versus mode that sets the four survivors against playable boss infected. Players can pick which character to
www.l4d.com Charcters in ʻLeft 4 Deadʼ defend themselves against zombies. use in both single- and multiplayer of a story to the game. The characters modes, as long as another player has are focused on surviving, which is not already selected the character. understandable, but we do not get to Each character can hold the any of learn about their personal histories or the weapons and use any of the abili- how the outbreak started. However, the attention to detail is entertaining, ties. In the main game, there are like messages scrawled on the walls four campaigns with five chapters of safe rooms where survivors passed each. Each campaign is said to last through or the way a zombie’s arm between 45 and 75 minutes, and or leg will fall off if you aim for it players gain achievements for beat- instead of the main body. Levels are linear. The goal is to get ing them as well as completing other from one safe room to the next, but feats throughout the game. Unfortunately, there is not much there are different routes that can be
taken to mix up the experience. Also featured in this game is the Director, an AI system, which instead of having set spawn points for enemies or certain items, generates them in different places for each play-through according to the player’s ability and situation. It really adds to the replay value. You might go through a hallway that was filled with zombies in one round and is completely empty the next. Suspense in this game will keep you on the edge of your seat. Zombie moans echo through hallways from all sides, not giving any clues to how close they are or how many of them are waiting for you to turn the corner. The worst are the “boss” infected. In addition to massive hordes of regular zombies chasing after you, there are five special enemies that will attack you, each with a distinctive scream that lets you know they are near. Boomers are bloated infected which explode when killed and cover nearby characters in green slime. The slime warps your vision, making it
nearly impossible to see the swarm of zombies that it always attracts. Hunters are extremely fast and acrobatic infected that will be upon you before you notice if you do not watch carefully. They can pin you to the ground, rendering you helpless until one of your teammates saves you. Smokers work in the same fashion, except instead of pouncing, they stay back and grab you with their long-reaching tongue, restricting your movement and dragging you toward them. As their name indicates, upon their death Smokers release a cloud of smoke, which restricts vision and prevents players from giving voice commands. The Tank is the largest and strongest infected, requiring the survivors to team up to defeat him. He is strong enough to throw cars and is foreshadowed by the area quaking as he nears the team. In Versus mode, one player will be chosen to spawn as the Tank; he cannot be chosen at the beginning. The Witch has the most distinctive cry, the sound of weeping echoing from the dark room where she hides. This can be heard from very far away, but eerie choir music will begin to play as the team nears her lair. She is also the only boss infected which cannot be used in Versus mode. The game advises players to sneak around her and characters
TWILIGHT Continued from page 6
drink her blood at their first encounter. But luckily he buried that s--- down deep inside. Do you see where this is going? If not, a late night encounter, in which Edward enters Bella’s bedroom, will answer any questions you might have. Bella starts trying to totally make out with him, right? But he fears he might give in to his lesser temptations, so any romantic intimacy may lead to him sucking her blood (I assume). So they spend the entire night talking, which is just as much fun. The movie’s wholesale endorsement of abstinence and repression of natural urges isn’t subtext; this is text. If you are a teenager and you have sex, you will kill everyone you love. You can apply Edward’s repression of his urges to a total sexual metaphor about the benefits of temperance and chastity (and some would argue, as I believe Alan Ball has with the HBO show “True Blood,” that this could be seen as a metaphor for homosexuality). What kind of message are we sending our kids? I’m not advocating pre-marital sex, but “Twilight” feels like the sort of “edgy” teen literature that Cotton Mather might have written, sans an ending where Edward and his heathen vampire friends were slain in the righteous name of the Lord. Why are we teaching people to repress their natural urges? Vampires are supposed to rip out throats, damn it; that’s what they do! Anything other than that, as with the noble Cullens, is almost literally a castration of the vampire mythos,
will tell you to turn flashlights off, because she will not attack unless startled. When she does attack, be prepared for a lethal strike to whoever alerted her. Overall, this is a fun game to play online with friends, but the lack of story is disappointing. Graphics and music are good and will keep you on edge, although my game starts lagging every time a large horde comes on screen, making it hard to aim. Single player mode is unmemorable — I only used it to get used to the controls before playing with others online. But that is to be expected — “Left 4 Dead” is a team strategy game, and it will take all of your efforts to escape together. I wish your team the best of luck.
‘Left 4 Dead’ Developer:Valve ESRB rating: Mature CW critic’s rating:
and it’s boring. Let’s come back around to the film. The music, from Carter Burwell, is foreboding and reminiscent of his works in the films of Joel and Ethan Coen, except here it’s used with the subtlety of, well, the film’s central abstinence conceit. The dialogue sucks (or bites? choose your preferred vampire pun). I have no idea how much was lifted from the novel, but I have my suspicions. This is all too familiar of a creative choice from director Catherine Hardwicke, the director of “Thirteen” and “Lords of Dogtown,” who has been praised in the past for directing films that “understand the teenage mind,” but keep in mind those words are often written by 50-year-old movie critics with no damn idea how the teenage mind works. Speaking for myself, it’s not anything like this movie portrays. So let’s back up. I said I enjoyed the film at the beginning of the review, and indeed I did. It is so trashy and so lame and so unintentionally funny that it goes right back around to being good again, in a “Degrassi” sort of way. It’s an easy movie to make fun of (and I won’t even get into the glittering vampire thing). So for what it’s worth, “Twilight” fans, I had a good time with this movie. Not in the way you would prefer, I am sure. I am also sure it was everything you hoped it would be, as the crowd at the midnight show completely ate it up. Since I have no clue what sort of rating to give this movie, I’ll let you choose your own. But I’ll be first in line for the sequel.
Editor’s note: The film ends with the song “15 Step” by Radiohead over the end credits. I didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry.
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LIFESTYLES Ryan Mazer • Editor
6
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Modern ensemble plays tonight By Josh Hedrick Lifestyles Reporter
The halls of Moody Music Building will reverberate with the works of master modern composers and original electronic compositions presented by the UA School of Music’s Alabama Contemporary Ensemble and Electronic Music performance tonight at 7:30 p.m. The concert presents an
opportunity for students to hear work from contemporary composers they would not normally get the chance to hear. “It’s a smaller ensemble that specializes in the performance of more recent music,” said Marvin Johnson, director of the ensemble. “The reason for having this ensemble is precisely to make certain that important literature that isn’t otherwise programmed is programmed.” The ensemble focuses
primarily on music of the 20th and 21st centuries and will perform pieces from three of the most renowned composers of this era. The performance includes American composer Charles Ives’ “From the Steeples to the Mountains,” Austrian Anton Webern’s “Quartet Op. 22” and Russian Igor Stravinsky’s “Octet for Winds.” “Those three composers are as important as any in 20th
century music, more important than most,” Johnson said of the composers. The performance will also feature electronic music created by members of the electronic music department. Student works include Timothy Gibbon’s “Coral Edge” and Christopher Trotman’s “Cataclysme Digital.” Also featured is distinguished faculty member Scott A. Wyatt’s piece, “of gray twilight,” composed
during his time in Illinois. “Of gray twilight” utilizes eight different channels and will make use of a surround sound system for the performance. “We have an electronic music course here, an electronic music studio and our own synthesizers and computers,” Johnson said. Both student composers made use of the equipment and produced their works in the on-
campus studio. The Contemporary Ensemble comprises the first half of the show, which takes place tonight at the Moody Music Building Concert Hall. The electronic music concludes the night. “I hope students will come with an open mind and see this as an opportunity to enrich their minds because it is literature that they won’t hear anywhere else,” Johnson said.
MOVIE REVIEW | ‘TWILIGHT’
Even the vampires are emo these days By Corey Craft Editor-in-Chief
The legendary film critic Pauline Kael once said, “Movies are so rarely great art that if we cannot appreciate great trash we have very little reason to be interested in them.” And how. This philosophy has perhaps reached its nadir with “Twilight.” Folks, I know I’m not going to change anyone’s mind with a review of this movie. You’re either on board with this or you’re not. And rest assured: “Twilight” is a terrible movie, absolutely dreadful. And yet I enjoyed it. While I won’t call “Twilight” great trash, I have this bizarre fascination with it, even if I do think some of the movie’s messages are really, really harmful (but more on that later). “Twilight” is based on the first novel in a series of teenlit romances by Stephenie Meyer. The story follows the awkward courtship between Bella (Kristen Stewart), a recent transplant to the misty Northwest from sunny Phoenix, and Edward Cullen (Robert
Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart star as Edward and Bella in nie Meyerʼs novel “Twilight.” Pattinson), an unusually pale young man who happens to be a vampire. This first film (I can’t speak for the novel, having only read the first five pages before deciding that my life didn’t
need yet another precociously intelligent teenage narrator, thank you very much) focuses on the burgeoning relationship between the two, which goes from awkward glances in biology class to undying, profound
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The romance is one of the more tautological in recent memory. Edward and Bella are totally and completely in love with one another because they are totally and completely in love with one another. It’s like “Star Wars: Episode II”; remember how George Lucas realized that, eventually, Anakin Skywalker and Padme Amidala would have to fall in love, but had no idea how human beings relate to one another, so he just kind of shoehorned that stuff in there? That’s how this whole movie feels. The two fall in love because it’s what the plot dictates. I guess I can attribute that to a complete lack of chemistry between heir-apparent brooding heartthrob Pattinson and www.rottentomatoes.com the rather wet blanket Stewart, the movie adaptation of Stepha- who proved something of a firecracker in her brief scenes in “Into the Wild,” but doesn’t love in like a week, and with the come close to that here. This brings me to the probwhole vampire thing, too. High school, as we all know, is seri- lems I have with the movie’s ous, serious business, and if themes: everyone’s so very you didn’t meet your soulmate chaste. And I know half the readerin high school biology class, ship is throwing their hands you most likely never will.
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in the air in disgust, but hear me out. The vampire mythos is inextricable from eroticism and lust. The very act of a charismatic but extremely dangerous figure who removes blood from the neck of a woman is both terrifying but shockingly intimate. This is the entire point of the vampire legend; it’s a metaphor for the “bad guy,” the sort of man women totally dig but will always, 100 percent of the time, be dangerous. So the Cullen family (including actors Peter Facinelli, as the very blond patriarch, and Nikki Reed as a randomly bitchy sister) are vampires, yeah, but they’re “good” vampires. They don’t hunt humans; they have made the choice to feed on the blood of animals. Edward admits this is sometimes difficult, as he later describes the extraordinary temptation to
see TWILIGHT, page 8
‘Twilight’
drink her blood at their first encounter. But luckily he buried that s--- down deep inside. Starring: Do you seeKristen whereStewthis is art, Robert Pattinson, going? If not, a late night encounter, which Billy Burkeinand PeterEdward enters Bella’s bedroom, will Facinelli answer any questions you might have. Bella Directed By: starts Cath- trying to erine totallyHardwicke make out with him, right? But he fears he might give in to his lesser temptaRelease date: Nov. tions, 21 so any romantic intimacy may lead to him sucking herMPAA blood (I assume). So they rating: PG-13 spend thesex entire night talking, for no whatsoever which is just as much fun. The movie’s wholesale Runtime: 122 minutes endorsement of abstinence and repression of natural CW Critic’s Rating:urges isn’t subtext; this is text. If you are a teenage and you have sex, you will kill everyone you love. You can apply Edward’s repression or of his urges to a total sexual metaphor about the benefits of temperance and chastity (and some would argue, as I believe Alan Ball has with the HBO show “True Blood,” that this could be Line: seen as a metaBottom phor for homosexuality). “Twilight” promotes the What kind of message are idea that if you have we sending our kids? I’m not sex, you will destroy thesex, advocating pre-marital of everyone you butlives “Twilight” feels like the care sort of about. “edgy” teen literature that Cotton Mather might have
The Crimson White
LIFESTYLES
Monday, November 24, 2008
7
MOVIE REVIEW | BOLT
Disney’s latest smart, but predictable By Steven Nalley Contributing Writer
However, Walton’s Rhino steals the show with hilarious feats that never cease to gain momentum at an insane rate. Walton is even more impressive in light of his rise from animator to actor via test readings of the script; Rhino’s excitement to be part of the action feels real because Walton’s excitement is real. Rhino is also part of an
intermittent, but intelligent commentary on primetime media violence, one subtle enough to evade younger viewers but clear enough to catch adults’ attention. For example, in a jailbreak sequence at an animal shelter, Rhino casually announces his intention to snap the neck of one of the employee “guards,” giving viewers terrifying and consequently gut-busting insight into
“Bolt” is one of the worthier entries in Disney’s non-Pixar animated canon, held back by occasional lapses in originality. Its key strength is its intelligent use of what mature content the PG rating and Disney would allow, augmented by one animator’s breakout performance as a voice actor. The canine title character (John Travolta) co-stars with his owner, Penny (Miley Cyrus) on an action-packed primetime TV show. Bolt believes the show’s events are real and that he actually has his character’s genetically engineered superpowers. Right after Bolt helplessly watches Penny get captured at the network’s behest, staff members accidentally ship him from Hollywood to New York. Aided by an alley cat named Mittens (Susie Essman) and his biggest fan, Rhino the hamster (Mark www.rottentomatoes.com Walton), Bolt embarks on what Disneyʼs latest non-Pixar animated film stars the voices of John he thinks is a quest to rescue Travolta and Miley Cyrus. Penny. I have no complaints about any of the voice work; even Cyrus successfully evades the trap of conflating Penny’s character with that of her wildly popular Hannah Montana. Greg Germann is notable as Penny’s agent, delivering unctuous truisms with such inhuman optimism that audiences will hate him without ever seeing his veneer shatter.
‘Bolt’ Starring: John Travolta and Miley Cyrus Run time: 96 minutes MPAA rating: PG CW critic’s rating:
how badly immersion in Bolt’s explosive world has warped Rhino’s sense of reality and sensitivity. The even more warped Bolt also gets such moments, channeling Jack Bauer when he tries the same interrogation technique on Mittens that he had used on a nameless thug in the show. Finally, the “Bolt” show itself, which introduces the film, nails the aesthetic of such prime-
time hits as “24,” “CSI” and “Alias,” from the music down to the lighting. However, when it isn’t satirizing primetime television, “Bolt” suffers from an overall lack of ingenuity. Especially concerning Mittens, its resolution will be predictable for anyone who has ever seen a Disney movie or a pet movie. It also repeats such elements as Bolt rolling out of the side of a
moving vehicle no less than three times. He meets pigeons in New York who don’t recognize him as a star only to meet more pigeons in Hollywood who do, and the first trio suspiciously resembles the Goodfeathers from the 1990s TV cartoon, “Animaniacs.” “Bolt” could be better, but it’s fun enough to entertain children and smart enough to entertain their parents over the Thanksgiving holidays.
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TODAY • Maui Invitational: Men’s basketball vs. Oregon — 11 p.m., ESPN2
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
• Women’s basketball vs. Alabama State — 6 p.m., Coleman Coliseum
• No classes — Thanksgiving break
THURSDAY • Thanksgiving
• Maui Invitational: Men’s basketball vs. Chaminade or North Carolina — 3 p.m. on ESPN2 or 8:30 p.m. on ESPN
Thursday November 24, 2008
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“We were really were unsure of where we’d be this year, in terms of numbers, with the current [economic] situation. But we were overwhelmed by our numbers, and Auburn, quite frankly, didn’t even get close.” — Caitlin Looney, a student coordinator for Beat Auburn Beat Hunger
“We believe it will draw people to Tuscaloosa and help us fill hotels, restaurants and commercial entities. Further, it will serve as an economic catalyst for our riverfront and West Tuscaloosa.” —Tuscaloosa’s mayor Walt Maddox on building the new 6,000 seat amphitheater
BIRTHDAYS We want to list your birthday here. Send your name, birthdate, year and major to cwnews@sa.ua.edu. Put “birthday” in the subject line. And look for birthday greetings from us on your special day.
THIS DAY IN ALABAMA HISTORY 1869: By joint resolution of the legislature, Alabama ratifies the Fifteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. The amendment guaranteed the right to vote to blacks, including former slaves. 1874: George Smith Houston, a Democrat, is inaugurated governor, signaling the end of Reconstruction in Alabama. In addition to defeating the incumbent Republican governor, Democrats won control of the state legislature, leading them to claim “redemption” for Alabamians from the rule of “carpetbaggers” and “scalawags.” It would be more than 100 years before another Republican would be elected governor of Alabama. Source: Alabama State Archives
EDITORIAL • Corey Craft, editor-in-chief, craft@cw.ua.edu, 348-8049 • Phil Owen, managing editor, owen@cw.ua.edu, 348-6146 • James Jaillet, production editor • Megan Honeycutt, outreach manager • Breckan Duckworth, design editor • Robert Bozeman, assistant design editor • Marion Walding, photo editor • RF Rains, assistant photo editor • Matt Ferguson, chief copy editor • Paul Thompson, opinions editor • Dave Folk, news editor • Brett Bralley, news editor • Ryan Mazer, lifestyles editor • CJ McCormick, assistant lifestyles editor • Ryan Wright, sports editor • Greg Ostendorf, assistant sports editor • Eric McHargue, graphics editor • Andrew Richardson, Web editor
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By Danielle Drago Senior Staff Reporter While most kids are still learning basic math, third-grader Levi Carpenter’s drawing was published in a scholarly medical magazine with the help of UA professor John Wheat. Carpenter’s drawing depicted differences between city and country life. Wheat, who works in the field of rural medicine, was shown Levi’s picture by Jim Ellison, a first-year medical student and 2007-2008 University of Alabama Rural Medical Scholar. Ellison’s mother is a thirdgrade teacher in a private school outside Sylacauga. When Levi read Aesop’s fable “The Country Mouse and the City Mouse,” he created a Venn diagram to show the similarities and differences of the two, Wheat said. Ellison’s mother found it interesting and showed it to Ellison, who in turn showed it to his professor. “Dr. Wheat was taken aback, simply because of the profound nature of the words the child expressed,” Ellison said. “He reacted so positively that he felt it necessary to submit the diagram for publication.” “I was struck [by] the simplicity and accuracy of this work to explain basic values that both separate and connect rural and urban folks that I asked Levi and his
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• Ashley Brand, creative services manager, 348-8042, • Carly Jayne Rullman, zone cwadv@sa.ua.edu 8 (the Strip and downtown), The Crimson White is the community newspaper of The University of Alabama. The Crimson White is an editorially free newspaper produced by students. The University of Alabama cannot influence editorial decisions and editorial opinions are those of the editorial board and do not represent the official opinions of the University. Advertising offices of The Crimson White are on the first floor, Student Publications Building, 923 University Blvd. The advertising mailing address is P.O. Box 2389, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-2389. The Crimson White (USPS 138020) is published weekly June, July and August, and is published four times a week September through April except for spring break, Thanksgiving, Labor Day and the months of May and December. The Crimson White is provided for free up to three issues. Any other papers are $1.00. The subscription rate for The Crimson White is $125 per year. Checks should be made payable to The University of Alabama and sent to: The Crimson White Subscription Department, P.O. Box 2389, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-2389. The Crimson White is entered as periodical postage at Tuscaloosa, AL 35401. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Crimson White, P.O. Box 2389, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403-2389. All material contained herein, except advertising or where indicated otherwise, is Copyright © 2008 by The Crimson White and protected under the “Work Made for Hire” and “Periodical Publication” categories of the U.S. copyright laws. Material herein may not be reprinted without the expressed, written permission of The Crimson White.
parents if I could join with him and make his research available to others in print. They agreed,” Wheat said. Ellison said he showed Wheat the drawing because of its simplicity. “I know Dr. Wheat is always looking for a better way to articulate why rural Alabama needs investment. Although when you’re a college professor and medical student you have to use data to justify your opinions, a child’s perspective does not require data. Levi addressed issues in his diagram that researchers have spent years using surveys and datasets to justify. Levi didn’t need complex statistics and datasets to know that rural Alabama needs more than the share it is getting now. Ultimately, I thought that Levi’s perspective would help Dr. Wheat make his case for rural Alabama more effectively,” Ellison said. Rural Roads is a general interest magazine for members of the National Rural Health Association, which seeks to bring voice of rural constituencies to health policies. “I was a co-author with Levi, being the ‘expert’ to answer a question in the magazine, ‘What entices young people to work in rural America?’” said Wheat. He said Levi’s drawing helped him explain the differences between urban and rural physicians.
“I must repeatedly explain why being ‘interested in rural medicine’ and being a ‘rural kid interested in medicine’ have such different implications for producing rural physicians. What separates the two are values: values which will propel a life of living in as well a serving a community that is consonant with those values. Levi hits the nail on the head,” Wheat said. The struggle between urban and rural Alabama medical has been an ongoing battle. “There is always a competition between providing for the needs of urban Alabama and rural Alabama,” Ellison said. “Not enough rural kids [are] in health professional schools to supply the needed health professionals in rural Alabama,” Wheat said. “The need will get much worse as the population ages, as more people get insurance, and urban centers, which also will have increased need and more resources, lure doctors into cities away from the rural need.” Levi’s drawing will get attention from policy makers and rural physicians alike, Wheat said. “Children are known for purity of purpose and expression,” Wheat said. “When they put their minds to issues, they command attention. In the policy arena where decisions are made, attention is half the battle.”
HOLIDAYS Continued from page 1
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Professor helps third grader get published in rural health magazine
Thanksgiving” in the lobby of Rose Towers. The event, now in its fourth year, involves food, film and fun. “Here at Rose Towers we try to get international students incorporated into campus life,” said Mary Thornton, community director for HRC. “We want them to get not just
the American experience but the Alabama experience.” Students will be able to enjoy turkey, pumpkin pie and an assortment of other Thanksgiving staples catered by 15th Street Diner in a midday meal. After the meal they will engage in some games and watch “It’s A Wonderful Life” to get into the holiday spirit. Thornton said last year’s screening of “A Christmas Story” was very popular. “The program allows international students to get a sense of what this holiday is about,” said Alicia Browne, associate director for information and communication for HRC. Thornton said the event was a good opportunity for students who could not celebrate at the homes of friends or faculty. With the Iron Bowl just two days after Thanksgiving and all residence halls staying open, more American students may be present at the Rose Towers event than in years past. “It might be a different kind of flavor,” Browne said. Elsewhere on campus, the Ferguson Center’s Home Zone will be selling Thanksgiving meals from 12 to 3 p.m. for $5.99. In addition, the film “Tropic Thunder” will be played at the Ferguson Center at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
HUNGER Continue from page 1
Center, is in its 15th year and takes place during the four weeks leading up to the Iron Bowl. This year, it kicked off Oct. 20 and lasted until Friday. UA students will volunteer at the West Alabama Food Bank to help sort food donated, according to a UA News release. Individual and student organization winners in the drive will be announced next week, the release said.
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Monday, November 24, 2008
Ryan Wright • Editor
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WOMEN’S CROSS COUNTRY
Vaughn to compete in NCAA Championships By NiCarla Friend Contributing Writer
Freshman Sara Vaughn will be representing the Alabama woman’s cross country team in the NCAA Championships, which will be held today in Terra Haute, Ind. Vaughn qualified after finishing third in the NCAA South Regional Championship, hosted by the University of Tennessee, where the team finished in eighth place, its best finish since 1999. Vaughn’s finish was the ninth best finish in the history of
the course. But this isn’t the only record Vaughn has set since she put on the Crimson Tide jersey. The Tulsa, Okla., native from Union High School has been one of the top runners on the team since her arrival. At the 20th Annual Crimson Classic hosted by Alabama, Vaughn beat a personal best time with a finish of 17:17:95. In the following meet, the Loyola Lakefront Invitational held in Chicago, Vaughn finished first out of all her teammates. Vaughn was the front runner at the 20th annual Chile
Pepper Festival and set the record for the fastest finish in a 6k run in school history. At the SEC Championship meet in Starkville, Miss., she received All-SEC and All-SEC Freshman honors. Now Vaughn will have to stand alone as Alabama’s lone qualifier, and although she is nervous, she is also very confident in her abilities. “I am a little nervous,” Vaughn said. “I’ve been looking at the different times online and the different teams. I just want to have a positive attitude, and I want to
do the best that I can. I don’t really have any expectations. It’ll be my first time at like a huge, huge meet, so I feel a little nervous, but I also feel like I’m confident enough to compete.” Head coach R a n dy Hasenbank has no doubts that Vaughn is ready to compete. “I am sure that she will have some nerves, but she is a confident person — she will do a great job of getting ready mentally,” he said. “Physically, she is ready.” The team is also very supportive of Vaughn.
VOLLEYBALL
Volleyball falls to No. 14 Florida 3-0 Calli Johnson Nets Five Blocks Against Gators UA Athletics GAINESVILLE, Fla. | The Crimson Tide volleyball team dropped a 3-0 match Sunday to No. 14 Florida at the O’Connell Center. With the loss, the Crimson Tide dips to 15-13 on the season and 8-11 in the Southeastern Conference. The Gators improve to 23-3 overall and 17-2 in league play. Florida won the first two sets by a score of 25-16 and finished off the match with a 25-20 win in the third set. Junior Brooks Webster had eight of Alabama’s 22 kills, and sophomore Calli
Johnson had a hand on all five of the Tide’s blocks. Sophomore Alyssa Meuth scooped up a team-best nine digs in the match. Alabama jumped out to a 5-1 advantage in the first and held the lead until the Gators produced a 6-1 run to take the 11-10 edge. Florida began to distance itself with four consecutive points going up 19-14, and ended the set outscoring the Tide 6-2. In the second, Alabama got on the board first with an attack error by Colleen Ward. On the next play, Ward delivered a
kill to tie the score 1-1. A Tide attack error gave the Gators the lead on the ensuing point that they would fail to give up in the set. Alabama stayed within two until Florida pulled away behind the efforts of a 6-2 run. The Tide would, once again, put up the first point of the set off an attack error by the Gators. Florida countered with a 7-1 run over the next couple of minutes. Alabama fought back to get within two of the lead at 12-10, but the Gators managed to stay in front to take the set and the match. The Tide returns home this week for its final regular season contest when it hosts Mississippi State on Friday. Opening serve is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the CAVE.
Tide opens play in Maui By Greg Ostendorf Assistant Sports Editor
Freshman Michael Dunigan has emerged as one of the top freshman in the country The Alabama men’s bas- averaging 13 points and eight ketball team arrived in Maui rebounds per game. Similar to Alabama, Thursday to compete in the EA Sports Maui Invitational. Oregon lost an early game to The Crimson Tide will begin a mid-major opponent when play Monday at 11 p.m. when the Ducks fell in overtime to Oakland. The team bounced they take on Oregon. Oregon lost to Mississippi back to knock off UC Irvine State in the first round of the on the road Friday night. If Alabama can beat Oregon, NCAA Tournament last year. The Ducks are led by guards the Tide will most likely face Tajuan Porter and LeKendric No. 1 North Carolina, who Longmire, who are both aver- opens play against the host school Chaminade Monday aging 15 points per game.
Women’s Basketball defeats Hampton 69-60
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night before Alabama and Oregon take the floor. On the other side of the bracket, No. 8 Texas takes on St. Joseph’s and No. 9 Notre Dame will face Indiana. All games will be televised on the ESPN family of networks, with the Tide’s opener on ESPN2. Alabama will be making its fourth appearance in the state of Hawaii. The Tide holds an 8-1 record on the islands, winning the 1987 Hawaii Pacific Thanksgiving Tournament and the 1991 Rainbow Classic.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
HAMPTON, Va. | Sophomore Katie Hancock and freshman Ericka Russell combined for 29 points to lead Alabama over Hampton 69-60 Saturday at the Hampton University Convocation Center. With the win, the Crimson Tide improves to 2-1 on the season, while the
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country competition. “I’d just tell them to keep at it, keep training hard, and there will be some days when you don’t feel like running, but just push through and have an attitude of a champion and just know that everything you do will bring you just one step closer [to your goals],” she said. “I’d really just tell them don’t lose the passion for running, because once you lose the passion then it’s hard to train. So just keep up the training, have fun and keep believing in yourself.”
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“The ladies are very proud of Sara,” Hasenbank said. “They, more than anyone else, know what it takes to get to the NCAA Championship. They respect her accomplishment.” Vaughn acknowledges her team as one of the main attributes of her success. “I really love training with them,” she said. “They are a really good group of girls, and it’s just been really nice to train with each other and help each other.” Vaughn also imparted advice to other women who hope to succeed in cross
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Lady Pirates drop to 0-3 overall. “This was a big win for us,” said head coach Wendell Hudson. “Hampton is one of those teams you have to be careful of. They shot really well from the free-throw line and did the things they needed to do at the end to get back in it. We’ve got to learn to relax and just play our game. I’m glad we were able to come out here and win our first road trip of the season.” The score was close early on with Hampton holding the lead until the 12-minute mark. Alabama was up for just over three minutes before the Lady Pirates took it back. The Tide would contest again and grab hold of the lead with just under seven minutes to play in the half. Alabama distanced itself with a 13-0 run over less than three minutes and went up by as many as 17 before the break. In the second half, the Lady Pirates attempted a comeback late with 11 straight points, but the Tide held strong and remained composed to come out with the win down the stretch.
For the game, Alabama shot 41.1 percent from the floor while holding Hampton to just 32.3 percent. The Tide outrebounded the Lady Pirates 51-42 and forced 23 turnovers. One of the highlights of the game was the play of newcomers Carmen McCoy, Kayla Robinson and Russell. McCoy had four points, three rebounds and one steal in 14 minutes of play, and Robinson added two points and four boards in six minutes. Russell collected 14 points, 12 of which came from beyond the arc. “Ericka did a great job scoring for us tonight,” added Hudson. “You never know from night to night who is going to be a shooter for us, and she definitely stepped up in the game. I think Carmen and Kayla also did a great job. These three true freshmen really stepped up tonight, and I am proud of their performances.” Alabama returns to the court Tuesday when it takes on Alabama State at Coleman Coliseum. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m.
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NEWS
DRIVING
traffic in the traditional places and more traffic out on the road,” Parish said. “Instead of doing the 9 to 5, they start traveling at 2 and Continued from page 1 they’re out on the highway somewhere.” However, more rural driving means more — there’s not one single day that people tend accidents and more severity in accidents. to travel. ” “Rural crashes tend to be more severe, Though many factors play a role in Thanksgiving accidents, Parish said the most because they tend to be higher rates of speed,” important consideration is simply traffic Parish said. “Also, a lot of rural highways are volume — people have a short time window two lanes, and so you run into issues with in which to travel to where they plan to be head-on collisions and things like that.” CARE reported that in 2007, 49 percent of Thursday. “Historically, people would only travel on crashes occurred on two-lane roads. Also, if a crash Wednesday, because they only had Thursday “On a typical day, traffic volume is high- occurs in a rural area, it and Friday off,” Parish est 4 to 6 pm. I would guess that win- is made worse because said. “Now, Wednesday dow is going to increase on either side, there is usually a longer ambulance response has kind of become a so instead of 4 to 6 pm, it’s probably time. holiday too, but even more like 2 to 8 pm.” For safer driving, now, people tend to travParish stressed findel on Wednesday.” — Allen Parish, professor of computer science and ing four-lane highways Parish said he thinks director of CARE to drive on, preferably another potential probinterstates. lem with this is a sub“If you look at all stantial number of people setting out after work on Wednesday the crash statistics, two-lane highways are and driving at night, increasing chances of just much more dangerous than four-lane driver error, running into an animal and highways, even when the traffic volume is running into a drunk driver. As with any higher out there,” he said. Parish pointed out many GPS systems will holiday, drunken driving increases during Thanksgiving, and people typically wait until yield directions based on four-lanes and interstates despite shorter possibilities because of night to drive drunk. Thanksgiving means more long-distance safety, and sometimes because they are also driving and driving through rural areas, and quicker when traffic is factored in. As for speed, Parish said the best rule of this has both positive and negative implicathumb is to keep pace with prevailing traffic. tions. “If you’re going 15 to 20 mph faster than the For one, this spreads out traffic within a city like Tuscaloosa so that there’s less of a rest of traffic, that’s a risk. But everyone’s been driving down the interstate, and all the sudrush-hour concentration. “On a typical day, traffic volume is high- den you’re up on a car faster than you realize, est 4 to 6 p.m., I would guess that window is because they’re going half your speed — that’s going to increase on either side, so instead of pretty dangerous too,” Parish said. Another important consideration is avoid4 to 6 p.m., it’s probably more like 2 to 8 p.m.,” ing the bulk of traffic, which Parish believes Parish said. Also, traffic within a city will be thinner occurs in the afternoon and early evening. Most of Parish’s advice on safer driving, howaltogether. “Those people that would normally be ever, evokes common sense. “Drive during the daytime, don’t drink, sitting out in Tuscaloosa out at the Lowe’s intersection out on Skyland [Boulevard] and buckle up and be vigilant,” Allen said. “I [Interstate] 359 might be out on some rural don’t know if there’s a better prescription highway instead, so you might find less than that.”
as opposed to Verizon Wireless Music Center in Pelham, which has no roof. The Verizon Wireless Music Center is the largest outdoor music venue in the state, seating more than 10,000 people. In the article, Maddox said majority of events would cater to around 1,000 people, such as banquets, graduations and per-
Celebrate Appropriately!
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The CW offers safe traveling tips (more importantly, something to read while you’re in line at the airport) Airplane travel: Check means no — One percent of luggage is lost annually, and while that may seem like a small number it can be a big deal if you’re a part of it. If you do happen to lose your bag, make sure to call the airline immediately. Also help prevent this by putting your own tags on luggage if you do decide to check it. Pack light — This goes hand in hand with checking bags, packing a light bag can prevent any last minute checks where the airline tells you there is not enough space for carry on. It also prevents you from being “that person” who struggles for 15 minutes. The early bird gets the worm — Or in this case the best seat on the plane. Airlines like Southwest Airlines have their seats on a first-come, firstserved basis. Also, if you get put on standby, the first person to arrive is the first person to get the seat. Besides, Thanksgiving is one of the busiest travel holidays of the year, so the lines have a good chance of being ridiculous. Show up early because it’s better to wait an hour in front of your gate than an hour in security. Listen here — if you don’t feel like being serenaded by the screaming toddler in the seat in front of you, I would suggest bringing your mp3 player — of
UA students are at the core of consideration. “It will have a greater impact on students than any other demographic because it will host nearly multiple shows a year that include big name acts,” Maddox said. As the project moves along past the design stages, Maddox said the city will be in talks with the University about potential collaborations with various University functions, such as University Programs and Athletics.
Dave Folk if you’re a caveman, bring your CD player. Get some reading material — Stock up before you get to the airport on your favorite magazines or a new book. While talking to Eddie the 40year-old accountant next to you for three hours may be fun, he’s a lot less likely to tell you about his mother getting her hip replaced if you’re engulfed in your GQ. Car Travel All pooled up — Carpool, carpool and carpool. If someone lives remotely close to you, head up with them; not only will it save on gas, but it’s much safer riding with a buddy than going solo. Plus, it helps ease congestion on the roads. Check your car — Check the tire pressure, oil level and get
any funny sounds fixed before making the journey; after all, you don’t want to be the person broken down on the side of the road while everyone passes by. Make a mix CD or get an mp3 player adapter — Nothing’s worse than driving through Mississippi (kidding, but seriously, your radio stations stink there). It’s also a damper going somewhere far away and losing your favorite radio station 30 minutes out. Get sleep — Be well rested the day before, because not only does Thanksgiving bring out a ton of traffic, but it also brings out the worst drivers ever. Heck, you might even be one of them, so stay sharp and get a healthy night of sleep. Don’t drink before and get some good food in your stomach.
Train Travel Seriously? — Why’re you taking the train? Stop it and join the future, cowboy, and buy a ticket on one of those metal birds in the air.
Greyhound Travel If you for some reason decide to hop on the ol’ hound as we in the biz (first time travel writers) like to call it I have this advice for you: don’t. Why would you pay to sit with a group of strangers for a long period of time? On top of that you might be decapitated. I’m serious it happend to some Canadian this year. So, take a Canadian’s advice and don’t lose your head, eh.
Obama team promotes massive economic recovery plan By JIM KUHNHENN Associated Press Writers
and aggressively to rescue the plunging economy, demanding swift passage by Congress of WASHINGTON | President- a massive two-year spending elect Barack Obama signaled and tax-cutting recovery proSunday he will move urgently gram.
Obama’s plans, outlined by his transition team on television talk shows, could put aside his campaign pledge to repeal a Bush tax cut for the wealthy.
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formances by musical acts. With these figures, Maddox said he hopes to have six to 10 sellout-type events per year. “With 6,000 seats, we won’t be able to get The Eagles or Tom Petty, but we could get Steve Winwood, The Black Crowes, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Hank Williams Jr., so that’s what we’re going for,” Maddox said in an interview with The Tuscaloosa News. With a number of factors to consider in the design of the facility, Maddox said that
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OPINIONS
Monday, November 24, 2008
Paul Thompson • Editor
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OUR VIEW
Drive safely, be careful and Roll Tide
Tomorrow marks the last day of class before the Thanksgiving holiday. Historically, the days around Thanksgiving pass all other holidays as the biggest travel days of the year. In Tuscaloosa, crimes of opportunity increase as students leave town, and we want you to be safe over the break. So, if you’re leaving, make sure you remember to lock your doors, close your windows, blinds and curtains and leave an inside light on. You could have a friend who is staying check on your place from time
to time, too. If you live on campus, the same rules apply. Lock your door, turn out your lights, close your blinds and lock your window. More crimes are simply opportunistic, and if you make it more difficult for criminals to get in, odds are they’ll move on. No matter where you live, it’s a good idea to take your most valuable items with you or store them in a safe place in town. When you do go to leave, make sure you drive carefully, and follow all regulations if
you’re flying. The editorial board of The Crimson White wishes you and your family a safe and happy Thanksgiving holiday, and we hope to see you back safe when we resume print on Dec. 1. Don’t forget to watch the Crimson Tide take on the Auburn Tigers in the 2008 Iron Bowl on Saturday at 2:30 on CBS, and don’t do anything we wouldn’t! Our View is the consensus of The Crimson White’s editorial board.
MCT Campus
Pandora’s cabinet? I certainly had an interesting time watching Barack Obama fill many of his cabinet positions last week. To say that I was surprised would be — perhaps — the understatement of the year. Already, despite his probably false messages of “hope” and “change” for America, Obama has wormed his way in with the biggest Washington insiders in the country. His cabinet might as well be a who’s who of Democratic Party elites. Just look at his choices for these positions. (All taken from reports on Fox News.) Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State; Bill Richardson, Secretary of Commerce; Tom Daschle, Secretary of Health and Human Services; Eric Holder, Attorney General; Janet Napolitano, Secretary of Homeland Security; and Rahm Emmanuel, White House Chief of Staff. See what I mean? None of these people are real “outsiders” like Obama branded himself during his campaign. I mean, I’m not asking Obama to pick Republicans for his cabinet — I’m not even asking him to pick one, even though that would bode well for the country — but I am questioning if he is keeping his campaign promises to those who voted for him. Just look at these folks, surely I’m not the only one to have noticed this. Take Hillary, for example.
Paul Thompson What on earth does she know about being the President’s chief foreign officer? She may have traveled, and she was First Lady for a few years, but those are hardly qualifications, especially to succeed someone so talented and capable as Doctor Condaleezza Rice. In case you were unaware, Rice is a PhD of international relations. Can Hillary claim anything like that? Obviously not. That choice speaks volumes about Obama, though. Look further; Bill Richardson, Obama’s Secretary of Commerce. Richardson has no relevant experience in “promoting American business interests abroad” as the Associated Press defines his new position. Richardson has never even been a businessman. Guess who he’ll be succeeding — Carlos Gutierrez, a man who worked his way from the bottom
up to the President and CEO’s office of Kellogg. Starting to notice a pattern here? I am. Take Tom Daschle. Arguably one of the most liberal members of the Democratic Party, Daschle spent many years in Congress working on committees like the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry. How close is that to Health and Human Services? Well, for Obama, that’s just as tangentially close as the rest of his future cabinet members’ previous careers, and therefore good enough. Look even further down the roll at Eric Holder, who was Deputy AG during the Clinton years, and was instrumental in securing the Bill Clinton pardon of Marc Rich. Rich, who is not an American citizen, was indicted by then-US Attorney Rudy Giuliani in 1983 on charges of tax evasion and illegal trading with Iran. On Bill Clinton’s last day as President, he pardoned Rich, citing Holder as a primary reason for doing so. I thought Democrats liked taxes, so what happened? Rich was a wealthy man who would not pay his taxes, (ignoring his unscrupulous trading activities) why not let the indictment stand? I’ll tell you why. Marc Rich appeals to liberals like Bill Clinton, Eric Holder and
— apparently, by association — Barack Obama. Rich is a coward, a fugitive, a criminal and an associate of Iran (all qualities that Democrats revere.) That must be why Clinton acceded to Holder’s demand for a pardon for his “hero” of sorts. The current Governor of Arizona, Janet Napolitano, actually opposes building a boarder fence in her state in order to protect her state, as well as the rest of the country. Even according to CNN exit polls, voters trusted John McCain to protect the country more than Obama, and now he chooses someone who refuses to protect her own state? Besides, it isn’t like she has any experience with terrorism or national security. I know I’ll be sleeping more soundly. Thanks Barack. You know, or not. Look, the point I’m trying to make here is that Obama is not keeping his promised to those of you who were duped into voting for him. I don’t want Obama to pick a bi-partisan cabinet, and I’m not asking him to. He should do what he thinks is best, but I’m here to tell you, and you can quote me on this one, his “vision” is not the right one. This isn’t over just yet. Paul Thompson is the opinions editor of The Crimson White. His column regularly runs on Fridays.
Merging labor with love
Well, folks, we beat Auburn. No, not in football … yet. We beat them for the second year in a row in our annual Beat Auburn Beat Hunger food fight. We garnered about 270,000 pounds of food to their 212,000. So, we really laid the hammer to ‘em; the Yellow Hammer you could say. But, to me the bottom line is that these two fine institutions of higher learning just raised almost half a million pounds of food for the hungry in this state. This competition has been a booming success since its inception in 1993. Year after year, Alabama’s chief collegiate rivals have not only fought for dominance on the football field but also for dominance in philanthropy. This year, both schools (and their tremendous student bodies) can pat themselves on the back for a job well done. See, the beauty of this event is that it encourages, in a fun and competitive way, two schools to give. Giving is something that’s been discounted in modern society. We’re a “take” culture. We like getting gifts and being comfortable and living luxuriously. Too often we don’t take time to think of the millions of our fellow citizens who struggle daily to put food on the table or gas in their cars to get to work — that
Ian Sams is — if they’re fortunate enough to have a job. In an economy like the one we’re faced with today, hunger, homelessness and joblessness skyrocket. On Friday, the Birmingham Business Journal released a story discussing how Alabama’s unemployment rate has gone up two and a half percent in just over a year, to a five-year high of 5.6 percent in October 2008, a number that will continue to climb in the coming months. California’s unemployment rate is up to 8.2 percent, while Michigan’s has grown even higher to a startling 9.3 percent; and if the Big Three fail, expect that number to jump into the high
teens. The crushing nature of homelessness is no more evident anywhere in America than in New Orleans. Earlier this year, that great American city’s homelessness rate rose to 1-in-25. That’s higher than most cities, but on average 1-in-400 Americans are homeless. That, too, is a statistic surely to rise as the number of jobless citizens increases. So, where does this apply to us and our astounding victory in the Beat Auburn Beat Hunger food fight? Well, this week most of us will gather around our familial dining room tables and give thanks for the many blessings we have. We’ll indulge in turkey and dressing and pies. We’ll enjoy the comforts of family and friends, and there’s nothing wrong with any of that. In fact, part of our giving thanks ought to be for the thousands of students, faculty, staff, and members of two fine Alabama communities that have given so much food to local shelters. Now, maybe homeless families or families with faltering incomes can enjoy a Thanksgiving dinner, too. So this week, as you sit down to that Thanksgiving dinner, remember those in need our society. Try to empathize with them. Ask your mom or dad if
they know of any churches or soup kitchens you can volunteer at on Thanksgiving night to serve the homeless. Then give thanks for your families and your friends. If you believe in God, thank Him for your blessings and the bevy of gifts he’s bestowed upon you. Think of your situation, even if it’s crummy, and then think of the millions of people across the world that have it worse than you, and promise yourself to do something to help at least one of those people. At the end of the day, politics and economics won’t wholly change our society. People will. We need to veer our culture back to one of giving. It’s been said the most sacred and precious thing you can give someone other than your love is your labor, and that when you combine labor with love you’ve made a truly great merger. So, this holiday season and in the months to come, let’s display that truly great merger to our neighbors in need. The competition may be over, but the fight to quell our state’s and our nation’s woes has only begun. If we keep up this spirit of giving, I know we’ll have a much happier and truly gratifying Thanksgiving. Ian Sams is a sophomore majoring in political science. His column runs on Mondays.
A thoughtful Thanksgiving Ah, Thanksgiving — a highly anticipated break from classes in the middle of the finals season. For many, Thanksgiving break provides an opportunity to go home for an extended period of time, reconnect with family and friends neglected during the hectic school year, and eat some delicious, home-cooked food. By this time in the semester, we’ve all been working hard, keeping our noses to that proverbial grindstone. If you’re from out-of-state, three days isn’t long enough to spend time with your family. But the University’s academic calendar is for a different column. Going home always reminds me of the things for which I am thankful. Sometimes I don’t realize how weird it still is being away from home for so long during the school year until I go home for a long break. It’s so easy to fall back into the habit of being at home with my parents. Last week, however, a group of students brought attention to another issue that will stick with me this holiday season — the genocide in Darfur. On Wednesday, Apwonjo, a student organization focused on raising awareness about issues in Africa, sponsored Action for Africa, a day organized to bring attention to the genocide and suffering in Darfur. According to the UN undersecretary-general, in the past six years no less than 400,000 people have been killed in the region. The Web site savedarfur.org says more than 2.5 million people have been displaced, living in refugee camps in neighboring countries. No home to go back to. Family killed or scattered hundreds of miles. Genocide. On December 9, 1948, the United Nations approved the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which established “genocide” as an international crime that UN countries are obligated to prevent and punish. Genocide, as defined by the UN, “means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: killing members of the group; causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; deliber-
Callie Corley
ately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.” Imagine living in a country where you’re hunted because of who you are — not discriminated against, but literally hunted and killed — because you belong to a certain ethnic group. It’s happened in the past. American historian Lucy Schildkret Dawidowicz, who specializes in Holocaust and Jewish history, estimated 5.9 million Jews were killed during the Holocaust. The international community rose up against Hitler in defense of those being killed. What about now? I’ve heard and read about Darfur before, but not until I started writing this column did I put it into context that I could understand. The things I’m thankful for are the same things the citizens of Darfur are having taken away from them – family, friends, home, life. A friend of mine who is a member of Apwonjo told me about events the group was planning. She said the most important part of making a difference is getting people to the events and educating them. The people in Darfur, she said, feel like no one thinks or remembers them, that no one sees their struggle. In the spirit of the holidays, and because most of us have a plethora of things to be thankful for, think about those who wake up everyday thankful they made it through another night.
Callie Corley is a senior double majoring in political science and journalism. Her column runs on Mondays.
WE WELCOME YOUR OPINIONS Editorial Board
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Letters to the editor must be less than 200 words and guest columns less than 500. Send submissions to cwopinions@gmail.com. Submissions must include the author’s name, year, major and daytime phone number. Phone numbers are for verification and will not be published. Students should also include their year in school and major. For more information, call 348-6144. The CW reserves the right to edit all submissions.
The Crimson White
NEWS
Monday, November 24, 2008
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UA receives grant to expand museum By Valerie Cason Contributing Writer The University received a $200,000 challenge grant from The Kresge Foundation to be used to renovate and expand the Jones Archaeological Museum at Moundville Archaeological Park. Assistant Director of Communications Advancement Susan Bishop said the University must raise $1.2 million for the project through the “Our Students.
Our Future.” capital campaign in order to receive the grant. The “Our Students. Our Future.” campaign has a goal of $500 million that includes $250 million for student scholarships. The campaign has raised more than $537 million since 2002 and will conclude in June 2009. “Since the challenge from The Kresge Foundation must consist of private gifts, our focus will be finding those individuals, foundations and
corporations who are interested in preserving the unique and ancient history at the site,” Bishop said. Director of Moundville Archaeological Park Bill Bomar said the importance and significance of the park is that Moundville is arguably the most significant cultural heritage site in Alabama. The museum houses artifacts and interpretive exhibits providing information on more than 60 years of archaeological
investigations. “As a part of the University of Alabama, the park provides important and unique opportunities for education, cuttingedge scholarly research and public service,” Bishop said. She said the development of new exhibits for the Jones Archaeological Museum at Moundville will enable people to interpret and disseminate data from decades of research in new ways that bring the culture of the ancient Moundville
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Left: Jim Shaddox, President of Friends of Hurricane Creek, explains how to test the water at Hurricane Creek. Upper right: Will Jones, a senior majoring in computer animation, uses a device to remove insidious weeds that are harmful to the ecological diversification of Hurricane Creek. Lower right: An abandoned toilet is a potent symbol of the environmental turmoil that hinders Hurricane Creekʼs development as a sound ecosystem. CW | Matt Abbey
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people to life. “An added benefit is the impact that the University of Alabama will have through this project on economic development through heritage tourism in the state’s impoverished Black Belt region,” Bishop said. Bishop said the University of Alabama Museums Board of Regents, as well the subcommittee of that group, the Museums Capital Campaign Steering Committee, have been
spearheading the efforts for the campaign for Moundville. “They encouraged us to seek out foundations [that] were a fit for our project,” she said. Bishop said funding from The Kresge Foundation is very competitive, and careful planning and much effort was required to submit a favorable grant request. The Archaeological Museum is currently closed for renovation but will reopen in spring 2009.