Check Inside For:
Vinyl records go for another spin in the music industry, page 9.
OPINION Special Mardi Gras crossword puzzle, page 16.
TIGERS AT BAT SEC coaches predict Tigers to repeat as champs, page 5.
THE DAILY REVEILLE Volume 114, Issue 91
WWW.LSUREVEILLE.COM
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Jindal: No new cuts for higher education By Xerxes A. Wilson Senior Staff Writer
AFTER the PARTY
Lent allows Christians to refocus after holiday
JAMES WEST / The Daily Reveille
[Top] Michael Richard, history senior, distributes ashes Wednesday at Christ the King Church. Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of the Lenten season for Catholics. [Bottom] Rev. Than Vu meets with churchgoers after mass Wednesday.
On Ash Wednesday, many have to plan meals better, so it Christians trade their beads and makes me slow down,” he said. Mardi Gras bellies for religious “It’s easy to watch too much TV to sacrificing and where you don’t By Mary Walker Baus fasting in honor have much time of the season of to read. It does Contributing Writer Lent. become a sacri“The purpose [of Lent] is for fice whenever March Madness and spiritual renewal,” said Rev. Matt LSU baseball are on TV.” Lorrain, parochial vicar of Christ People giving up food or bevthe King Parish and Catholic Cen- erages are common sacrifices, Lorter. “It’s the preparation for Easter, rain said. He said he saw many stubut it also serves as an annual re- dents give up Facebook last year. treat to allow Catholics to redediThis year, Joshua Nezianya, cate themselves to the practice of international studies sophomore, is their faith.” giving up MySpace. He said he is Lorrain said he’s sacrificed Episcopalian, but he practices Lent television and fast food for Lent because he likes the challenge. during the last 20 years. LENT, see page 19 “By not having fast food, I
The University received a boost last week as Gov. Bobby Jindal announced that his fiscal budget for the year included no new cuts for higher education. This is the first step in navigating the state’s billion-dollar budget shortfall for the next year, but the University still may see program cuts and reformations during the coming months. The University has absorbed $43 million in cuts during the last two years. Chancellor Michael Martin said this was the best possible outcome in this stage in the allocating process. But higher education isn’t out of danger yet. The governor’s budget will ultimately have to pass in the legislature, likely after amendments. “There is a long, long distance between whatever the governor says he prefers and what comes out the end of the legislature,” Martin said. Last year the governor proposed $219 million cuts to education. After passing through the legislature, the budget was edited to include substantially fewer cuts to higher education. Martin said he wants to see both zero additional cuts proposed in the BUDGET, see page 19
CRIME
Man impersonates LSU police officer in Student Union By Ryan Buxton Senior Staff Writer
An unidentified man who claimed to be an LSU Police Department officer and robbed a student on campus remains at large, and police are asking for help in identifying the suspect by releasing pictures of the man in a broadcast e-mail Wednesday. The suspect approached people at the Student Union on Jan. 30 and claimed to be an out-of-uniform LSU police officer, according to the broadcast e-mail. The suspect asked the victims
for identification and instructed them to remain in their vehicle. He then walked away with the victims’ driver’s licenses. The incident was reported the same day, said Kevin Scott, LSUPD spokesman. Police waited to notify the University community until it had conducted an investigation. “We didn’t want to send anything out preemptively,” Scott said. “We wanted to wait until our leads were exhausted.” The incident was not classified as an emergency because there was no imminent threat or weapon involved, Scott said.
“[The suspect] could have very well done it again, but we had patrol officers respond, canvas the campus and try to locate the person, but we came up empty,” Scott said. All LSUPD officers carry an official identification card, which students should ask to see if approached by an out-of-uniform officer, Scott said. “We’ve exhausted all of our leads,” Scott said. “We’re trying to get the community to help us.” photo courtesy of LSUPD
Contact Ryan Buxton at rbuxton@lsureveille.com
A man suspected of impersonating an LSU police officer walks around the Student Union on Jan. 30. LSUPD is asking the students to be on the lookout for the man.