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THE DAILY TEXAN Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Concealed weapons restricted at Capitol

Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900

www.dailytexanonline.com

Flying with the greatest of ease

Despite bill to allow guns on campuses, citizens cannot carry in seating galleries

By Lena Price Daily Texan Staff Though members of the Texas House of Representatives and Senate may carry legally concealed handguns into the legislature, spectators watching from the seating galleries above the floors are no longer permitted to do so.

Signs citing a section of the Texas Penal Code dealing with concealed handgun licenses were posted recently next to the metal detectors around the entrance to the House and Senate galleries.

Though guns are currently banned from the galleries of the House and Senate, the House Committee on Public Safety recently passed a bill that would allow citizens to carry concealed handguns on college campuses.

State troopers outside the galleries stop

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Registration woes draw students into community college

By Amy Bingham Daily Texan Staff Journalism junior Blair Spansel did not plan on dragging herself out of bed at 8 a.m. five days a week to learn Spanish. With nothing but early morning classes available at UT, Spansel decided that summer school at Austin Community College was a perfect alternative to a semester of pre-dawn “buenos dias.”

UT registration for the fall 2009 semester began Monday, but Spansel said she won’t be signing up for her last Spanish class at UT. “It’s cheaper, saves money and is a little bit easier,” Spansel said. “I still learned Spanish really well, and I didn’t feel like I was lacking on anything.”

Spansel is not the only student turning to ACC for more flexible schedules, lower tuition prices and smaller classes.

For the first time in its history, ACC had more students enroll for the spring semester than the fall this year. Since spring 2008, ACC enrollment has jumped 13 percent, to just over 36,600 students. Enrollment usually increases by 3 to 4 percent per year, said ACC spokesperson Brette Lea. “Clearly, the economy has people investigating the best value for higher education,” Lea said. “You

Photos by Jordan Smothermon | Daily Texan Staff

Above, Sociology freshman Brittany Elder does a flip on the EuroBungy ride as Monica Meza comes down for another bounce at the Tournaments and Events Committee’s “Hey! Come Play” event Monday night. Right, Texas Sumo Game Rental’s Damon Cortijo, a ride operator, unclips a carabiner on the EuroBungy ride.

History senior Karina Fuentes laughed as she was flung off a mechanical bull on the Main Mall on Monday evening.

Fuentes, along with hundreds of other UT students, darted through an obstacle course, jumped on a bungee trampoline and glided through the air on a zip line at “Hey! Come Play!” The Student Events Center’s Tournaments and Games Committee hosted the free event after nearly two months of planning.

“We wanted to throw it back to the old field days we had,” said Trinity Smith, student affairs administrator and committee adviser. “It’s the end of the semester. We just want the students to come out and have a good time.”

The committee has never before held an

event similar to this one, said committee chair Gabriela Alcala Murga, a math senior.

If committee members receive good feedback, they will host the event again next year, she said.

“I didn’t expect college to put events like this on,” said biology sophomore Nathan Cao. “But I really felt like having some fun on a Monday night.”

The 15-member committee also sponsors other events, including Casino Night and Family Feud.

“When I heard the event was free, I was already impressed,” said philosophy senior Taylor Paris after battling a friend on the pedestal joust. “I guess we’re all just kids at heart.”

— Viviana Aldous

ON THE WEB: Watch video of the event @ dailytexanonline.com

ACC continues on page 6A

Israeli journalist discusses elections’ impact

By Israel Perez Daily Texan Staff An Israeli journalist explored recent changes to the U.S. and Israeli governments Monday evening at the University Teaching Center.

Texans for Israel, University Democrats and College Republicans sponsored the discussion by Gil Hoffman, chief political correspondent for The Jerusalem Post.

He spoke about recent elections in Israel and upcoming elections in Iran.

Hoffman said the new Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces many challenges.

“We can only hope he can put Israel on solid ground and deal with the international economic crisis that Israel may be hit by, but also with the constant threats

of violence that Israel faces,” Hoffman said.

Netanyahu took over as prime minister last month. During his first parliamentary address, he said he would like Israel to make peace with the Arab and Muslim world, but stopped short of supporting a two-state solution, which many Palestinians are pushing for.

Last Friday, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and other Palestinian leaders urged the American envoy to the Middle East to pressure Israel to accept the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Hoffman joked that Iran’s controversial leader, Mahmoud AhMary Kang | Daily Texan Staff madinejad, has united Israelis.

Gil Hoffman, chief political correspondent and analyst for The “Sometimes I say ‘thank God Jerusalem Post, talks about the complexity within Israeli society Monday night at the University Teaching Center.

ISRAEL continues on page 2A

Hate-crime protection bill for homeless awaits ruling

By Avi Selk Daily Texan Staff The Maryland Legislature became the first in the country to extend hate crime protection to the homeless, The Washington Post reported last week. If a nearly identical bill makes it out of a state Senate committee, Texas could become the second state to do so.

The bill, introduced by state Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, would impose tougher sentences for attacks proven to have targeted a person because he or she is homeless.

“Why would anybody be against adding homelessness?” asked Michael Stoops, director of the National Coalition for the Homeless.

National hate crime laws passed in the 1990s cover attacks based on prejudices such as those against race and religion. Critics have protested efforts to broaden the laws, saying they give unfair protection to select groups and punish people for their thoughts.

The coalition advised West on his bill, which is being introduced for the second time after failing to pass in 2007.

Stoops said lawmakers have introduced similar legislation in at least nine other states, including Maryland.

“We’ve been tracking hate crimes and violence against the homeless for 10 years,” he

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NEWS

THE DAILY TEXAN Volume 109, Number 131 25 cents

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

GUNS: House

Step up for Hope Week

and Senate rules at odds with gun bill for colleges

CONTACT US Main Telephone: (512) 471-4591 Editor: Leah Finnegan (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com Managing Editor: Vikram Swaruup (512) 232-2217 managingeditor@ dailytexanonline.com

From page 1A

News Office: (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com Sports Office: (512) 232-2210 sports@dailytexanonline.com Retail Advertising: (512) 471-1865 joanw@mail.utexas.edu Classified Advertising: (512) 471-5244 classified@dailytexanonline.com The Texan strives to present all information fairly, accurately and completely. If we have made an error, let us know about it. Call (512) 232-2217 or e-mail managingeditor@dailytexanonline.com.

COPYRIGHT Copyright 2009 Texas Student Media. All articles, photographs and graphics, both in the print and online editions, are the property of Texas Student Media and may not be reproduced or republished in part or in whole without written permission.

Debbie Eynon Finley | Daily Texan Staff

Alpha Phi Alpha member Larry Chapple shares a laugh with premed junior Uchechi Azuike after the Epsilon Iota chapter presentation of the Step for Hope program on Gregory Gym Plaza on Monday afternoon.

Students performed step dance routines and gave out free “Step for Hope� T-shirts to encourage diversity on campus as they kicked off Hope Week on Monday.

Government junior Kevin Mokoli led the “Step for Hope� event, which began in 1992. “It is a way of celebrating our differences by promoting unity,� said natural sciences senior Falil Oritola. “We teach people to step, and

LAW: Hate crimes hard to prosecute, sergeant says From page 1A

CORRECTION A story in Monday’s Texan titled “Talk of secession raises questions of legality, sparks media rumpus,� should have said that Gov. Rick Perry spoke to a crowd of 2,000 people at a Tax Day Tea Party last week.

The Texan regrets the error.

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then they perform it together.�

Hope Week is sponsored by the Epsilon Iota Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc. The organization holds a variety of events and stepping performances to raise money for Hope Week, Oritola said. “We plan it with as many people as want to be a part of it,� Oritola said. “We raise a lot of money just so we can give it all away.� — Laura Ceglio

said. “We were the lonely voice for a number of them.�

Nationwide, Stoops’ group cataloged at least 774 attacks on the homeless — including 217 murders — between 1999 and 2007.

The group reported one homeless person murdered and seven others attacked in Texas in 2007.

Since then, two men have been arrested in San Antonio in November for stabbing, beating and setting fire to a 55-yearold homeless man.

Stoops said the real number of homeless attacks is probably much higher, because most po-

lice agencies, including the Austin Police Department, do not specifically keep track of them.

If the Texas bill does pass, it is unclear how many crimes could be successfully prosecuted under it. A hate crime requires prosecutors to prove not just that someone committed an assault but that he or she was motivated by prejudice. “To be honest, hate crimes are very difficult to prove,� said Sgt. Richard Stresing of the Austin Police Department.

The city accounted for only six of the 242 hate crimes Texas reported to the FBI in 2007.

Kathy Ridings, director of so-

cial services at the Austin-area Salvation Army, said she hadn’t heard of any attacks against local homeless people that would qualify as hate crimes. But she said living outdoors is dangerous enough, especially for women and the mentally ill, who are often taken advantage of. “It’s definitely unacceptable for anyone to be sleeping on the street,� she said. “But for women it can be risking their lives.�

Stoops said he wants hate crime legislation to protect all groups but that the homeless are inherently more vulnerable because they live outdoors. “If as a condition of going to

the University of Texas you were required to live on a street corner, there would be more rapes against students,� he said.

Regardless of the fate of the hate crimes bill, Texas is moving on other homeless legislation this year.

A House vote expected as early as this week could make Texas one of the first states to collect unclaimed pocket change it finds on dead homeless people to help offset the cost of their burials.

The legislation was requested

by Harris County, whose community services director, David Turkel, said the county pays about $1,000 for each homeless person it buries.

ISRAEL: Correspondent discusses new administrations’ impact on Middle East peace process locaust, but there is nothing like it that brings the Israeli people for Ahmadinejad,’� Hoffman closer together.� said. “It’s scary having a presiHoffman also expressed condent of Iran that denies the Ho- cern that the Iranian people

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would re-elect Ahmadinejad despite the economic crisis that has gripped the nation.

Mishal Al-Johar, co-chair of UT’s Palestine Solidarity Committee, said there is a lack of progress in the Middle East. “The new Israeli government needs to be pressured by the United States,� AlJohar said. “[The Obama

administration] is an improvement over [President] Bush, but what will actually happen remains to be seen on whether the situation for the Palestinian people will improve.�

Benjamin Freed, political activism chair of Texans for Israel and a Daily Texan sportswriter, said it was “great� to see all three pro-Israel organizations on

THE DAILY TEXAN

campus working together and that he was optimistic about how President Obama is handling the situation. “I believe that America and Israel’s shared values, as well as their mutual goals for peace and security for democracies around the world, will lead to strong cooperation between the two new administrations,� Freed said.

This newspaper was printed with pride by The Daily Texan press crew members, who will be laid off in May.

Permanent Staff

Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Leah Finnegan Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vikram Swaruup Associate Managing Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stephen Keller, Gabrielle MuĂąoz Associate Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Audrey Campbell, Josh Haney, Abhinav Kumar, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jillian Sheridan, Abby Terrell, Mary Tuma News Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lauren Winchester Associate News Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sean Beherec, Katie Flores, Lee Ann Holman Senior Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Viviana Aldous, Pierre Bertrand, Amy Bingham . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mohini Madgavkar, Erin Mulvaney, Avi Selk Copy Desk Chief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . David Muto Associate Copy Desk Chiefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robert Green, Austin Litzler, Vikkey Packard Design Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Janie Shaw Senior Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Marissa Edwards, Shatha Hussein, Lindsey Morgan, Emily Watkins Photo Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Peter Franklin Associate Photo Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kim Espinosa, May-Ying Lam Senior Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Paul Chouy, Bryant Haertlein, Emily Kinsolving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andrew Rogers, Jordan Smothermon Life&Arts Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ana McKenzie Associate Life&Arts Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andy O'Connor, Leigh Patterson, Raquel Villarreal Senior Life&Arts Writers . . . . . . . . . . . Roxanna Asgarian, Mary Lingwall, Rachel Meador, Robert Rich, JJ Velasquez Sports Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .David R. Henry Associate Sports Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Anup Shah, Colby White Senior Sports Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Will Anderson, Blake Hurtik, Laken Litman, Austin Talbert Comics Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carolynn Calabrese Web Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Erik Reyna Multimedia Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Priscilla Villarreal Associate Multimedia Editors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jenny Baxter, Juan Elizondo Editorial Adviser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Richard A. Finnell

Issue Staff

Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Israel Perez, Rachel Platis, Lena Price, Laura Seglio Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Debbie Finley, Mary Kang, Nancy Rosenthal Sports Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rishi Daulat, Dan Hurwitz, Austin Ries Life&Arts Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brad Berry, Vijay Parthasarathy Columnists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ben Miller Page Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lynda Gonzalez, Olivia Hinton Sports/Life&Arts copy editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Nausheen jivani Wire Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Julianne Coyne Copy Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alexis Mouledoux, Molly Nesbitt, Doyin Oyeniyi Comics Artists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alex Diamond, Josh Flanagan, Amelia Gilber, Ryan Hailey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Scott Miles, nam Nguyen, Katie Smith, Ryohei Yatsu Web Technician . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ashley Dillard Videographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Adam Garrett

Advertising

Director of Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jalah Briedwell Retail Advertising Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brad Corbett Account Executive/Broadcast Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carter Goss Campus/National Sales Consultant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joan Bowerman Assistant to Advertising Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C.J. Salgado Student Advertising Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Charles Moczygemba Student Advertising Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Derek Diaz de Leon Acct. Execs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Ryan Ford, Landon Blackburn, Chelsea Anaya, Jared Barker . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lauren Aldana, Ann Marie Burnett, Kathryn Abbas, Jenn Muller, Justin Santilli Classified Clerks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Teresa Lai Special Editions, Editorial Adviser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elena Watts Web Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Danny Grover Special Editions, Student Editors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Samantha Breslow, Kira Taniguchi Graphic Designer Interns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Amanda Thomas, Rodrigo Maycotte Senior Graphic Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Felimon Hernandez

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people with concealed weapons from entering. Tela Mange, a spokeswoman for the Department of Public Safety, said the signs were posted at the request of the House and Senate, but she was unsure how long ago they were placed there. “People can legally carry concealed handguns anywhere in the Capitol they want as long as there are no signs posted,� Mange said.

The concealed carry on campus bill was authored by state Rep. Joe Driver, RGarland, who could not be reached for comment.

Marsha McCartney, president of the North Texas Brady Campaign, saw a problem with the inconsistency between the bill and the signs. “It’s interesting that they want guns in the classrooms but Texans can no longer carry into the gallery of the House or Senate,� McCartney said. “It’s very curious they decided to hang these signs after all these years, and I’m not sure what prompted it.�

Biology sophomore Joseph Boudreau, UT representative for Students for Concealed Carry on Campus, said the organization is not concerned with obtaining concealed-carry rights anywhere except on college campuses. “We just think that college students right now are being deprived of their rights to self-defense on campus,�

Boudreau said.

In order to receive a concealed handgun license, citizens must be at least 21 years old, qualify to carry a handgun under federal and state laws and complete the required training.

Boudreau said it has been proven that concealed handgun license holders are among the most law-abiding citizens in the country.

State Rep. Lon Burnam, DFort Worth, strongly opposes Driver’s concealed-carry bill. “Every professional in the field has said it is a bad idea,�

Burnam said. “Professors have said they don’t want to issue F’s or D’s to student who may be carrying concealed weapons.�

Though the Legislature prevents citizens from entering the galleries with concealed weapons, Burnam said several of his colleagues carry guns onto the floor of the Legislature. “I would rather not talk about the hypocrisy of my colleagues,� Burnam said.

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T HE DAILY TEXAN

Iran president sparks walkout at UN racism conference

By Frank Jordans The Associated Press GENEVA — Dozens of Western diplomats walked out of a U.N. conference and a pair of rainbowwigged protesters threw clown noses at Iran’s president Monday when the hard-line leader called Israel the “most cruel and repressive racist regime.�

The United States decried the remarks by Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as hateful — reinjecting tension into a relationship that had been warming after President Barack Obama sought to engage Iran in talks on its nuclear program and other issues.

Ahmadinejad — the first government official to take the floor at the weeklong event in Geneva — delivered a rambling, halfhour speech that was by turns conciliatory and inflammatory. At one point he appealed for global unity in the fight against racism and then said the United States and Europe helped establish Israel after World War II at the expense of Palestinians. “They resorted to military aggression to make an entire nation homeless under the pretext of Jewish suffering,� he said.

Jewish groups lobbied heavily for a boycott of the conference, warning it could descend into anti-Semitism or other anti-Israel rhetoric, which marred the last such conference eight years ago in South Africa.

The meeting turned chaotic from the start when two wigged protesters tossed the red clown noses at Ahmadinejad as he began his speech with a Muslim prayer. A Jewish student group from France said it had been trying to convey “the masquerade that this conference represents.�

One of the protesters shouted “You are a racist!� before he and the other demonstrator were taken away by security.

Ahmadinejad interjected: “I call

Laurent Gillieron | Associated Press

European Union delegates leave the assembly room during a speech by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The speech was part of the U.N.’s Conference against Racism at the European headquarters of the United Nations in Geneva on Monday.

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on all distinguished guests to forgive these ignorant people. They don’t have enough information.�

During his speech he blamed the U.S. invasion of Iraq on a Zionist conspiracy.

At the first mention of Israel, about 40 diplomats from Britain, France and other European Union countries exited the room.

Most of his remarks were not new but their timing and high profile could complicate U.S. efforts to improve ties with Iran.

Alejandro Wolff, the U.S. deputy ambassador to the U.N., denounced what he called “the Ahmadinejad spectacle.�

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs, asked by reporters about Ahmadinejad’s remarks, replied: “Obviously, the president disagrees vehemently with what was said, as, from some of the v i d e o I s a w, s o d i d m a n y others.�

Gibbs said the United States was right to boycott the conference. Germany, Italy and at least six other countries also refused to attend the event, which began on the eve of Israel’s Holocaust Remembrance Day. “We call on the Iranian leadership to show much more measured, moderate, honest and constructive rhetoric when dealing with issues in the region, and not this type of vile, hateful, inciteful speech that we all saw,� Wolff said at the U.N. in New York.

Later, about 100 members of mainly pro-Israel and Jewish groups tried to block Ahmadinejad’s entrance to a scheduled news conference.

In a milder protest, Jewish groups outside the venue read out some of the names of the 6 million who died in the Holocaust.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Kimoon met with Ahmadinejad before his speech and said he had counseled the Iranian leader to avoid dividing the conference. Ban

later said he was disappointed the speech was used “to accuse, divide and even incite,� directly opposing the aim of the meeting. “It was a very troubling experience for me as a secretary-general,� he said. “It was a totally unacceptable situation.�

The Israeli Foreign Ministry condemned the speech and Ban’s meeting with Ahmadinejad. “It is unfortunate that U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon deemed it appropriate to meet with the greatest Holocaust denier of our time,� the Foreign Ministry said. “This matter is especially severe, as it took place on the eve of Holocaust Memorial Day.�

Ahmadinejad has been praised by some in the Muslim world for his attacks on Israel. The hard-liner has often used international forums to criticize Israel.

Most Muslim delegations in Geneva declined to comment, but Pakistan delegates said the protesters were wrong to interrupt Ahmadinejad. “If we actually believe in freedom of expression, then he has the right to say what he wants to say,� Ambassador Zamir Akram told The Associated Press. “There were things in there that a lot of people in the Muslim world would be in agreement with, for example the situation in Palestine, in Iraq and in Afghanistan, even if they don’t agree with the way he said it.�

While the speech was interrupted several times by cheers from the large Iranian delegation, it may not be well-received among many others in Iran, which is suffering from high inflation and unemployment partly as a result of its global isolation. Many have criticized Ahmadinejad, who is up for re-election in June, for spending too much time on antiIsrael and anti-Western rhetoric and not enough on the country’s economy.

OPINION

4A Tuesday, April 21, 2009

T HE DAILY TEXAN

Editor in Chief: Leah Finnegan Phone: (512) 232-2212 E-mail: editor@dailytexanonline.com Associate Editors: Audrey Campbell Josh Haney Jillian Sheridan Abby Terrell Mary Tuma

GALLERY

VIEWPOINT

Lousy lending Logical fiscal lore goes that one’s student loan burden should never be more than what he or she can realistically earn one year out of college. Given that most pending graduates in the class of 2009 don’t expect to make much, this rule of thumb points to a crisis for the many of us saddled with student loans.

Short of paying back our loans for us, President Barack Obama has devised a way to help students in the future by streamlining the process of loan procurement. According to The New York Times, approximately three-quarters of student loans under the Federal Family Education Loan Program — which oversees Stafford loans, PLUS loans and Federal Consolidated loans — are facilitated by private lenders. Per Obama’s recommendation, FFELP and, ostensibly, private lending outlets would be eliminated and all loans would be made directly from government to student, which would mean less hassle — and money spent — for students charged with repaying loans and more money for the federal loan program overall, since private lenders often rely on government subsidies to function.

Obama’s plan might pose a problem for our campus, the financial aid office of which has long been entrenched in the practice of promoting private lending entities. Last year, the UT Office of Financial Aid approved loans with 114 different private lenders. “Students can select any lender that participates in the FFELP loan program for their federal loans,” Supervisor of Loans and Accounting Christine Gauger said in an e-mail. Gauger said that the program gives students more flexibilty in choosing who they borrow from and allows students to keep their loans in one place, often simplifying the repayment process.

In the past, Gauger noted, private lenders were more attractive to students because they offered perks like repayment incentives, but such favors have largely been discontinued.

Today, private loans can come at a high cost to students.

In an economy fraught with uncertainty, students’ best interests are not at the top of private lenders’ agendas, the lobby of which has a formidable presence in Washington, D.C. Moreover, the private lending industry has a pocked record — especially at UT. In 2007, a Daily Texan investigation into the UT financial aid office’s relationship with private lender Student Loan Xpress sparked a national scandal when it was discovered that the office had been accepting bribes from the company in exchange for promoting their services. Similar investigations by national news outlets and government officials across the country revealed comparable corruption.

Students would benefit if UT cut ties with the questionable private lending industry, but that doesn’t seem like a plausible possibility — mainly because of computer software. According to Gauger, the University has a custom-built system to handle loan processing, and adapting Obama’s proposal would require the system to be rewritten.

Our financial aid office received a long-overdue makeover after the Student Loan Xpress scandal came to light. But its remaning ties to the private lending industry are troubling. We urge the University to permanently sever these cords. Students deserve better than what we have — and if that means rewriting a computer program, so be it.

— Leah Finnegan for the editorial board

THE FIRING LINE More Horowitz hot air Last Saturday, the Wall Street Journal published a column by David Horowitz about his April 9 visit to our campus in which he referred to Iranians for Peace and Justice, one of the co-sponsors of the protest, as supporters of Hamas and Hezbollah.

Of course, IPJ does not support Hamas or Hezbollah, and this is just another drop in the giant bucket of lies attributable to Horowitz and was, like many things he says, not based on any kind of fact-checking, evidence-gathering, question-asking or any kind of remotely coherent thought process. IPJ’s mission, as stated on our Web site, is simply to promote cultural and political awareness about Iran and the Middle East. We take no official stance regarding politics, except that we are pro-peace, pro-justice and wish to make the issues known and provide a forum in which to discuss them.

By using his voice and influence to knowingly spread untruths about people that result in anger and mistrust, Horowitz is being counterproductive and anti-peace. IPJ is not about that.

Adam Dean Cameron Middle Eastern Studies senior Iranians for Peace and Justice member

Missing a faith The Texan felt it worthy of student attention that “Local religious leaders meet to discuss faith during economic strain.” (April 16). The article reports that “Three religions were discussed at the event: Judaism, Islam and Christianity.” The article then proceeds to present quotes from only two attendees, presenting perspectives of two of the three faiths. I’m not sure by what standards of journalism this would mean anything other than the ommitted perspective is irrelevant and not worth students’ time.

No comment needed, really.

Hany Ramadan Computer sciences graduate student

SUBMIT A FIRING LINE E-mail your Firing Lines to firingline@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be fewer than 300 words. The Texan reserves the right to edit letters for brevity, clarity and liability. We regret that we cannot publish all letters.

LEGALESE

SUBMIT A COLUMN

Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the editorial board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.

The Daily Texan welcomes submissions for guest columns.

Columns must be between 500 and 700 words. Send columns to editor@dailytexanonline.com.

The Texan reserves the right to edit all columns for clarity and liability if chosen for publication.

Free speech, no matter what tenure at DePaul University, ostensibly for his “demeaning attacks” on vocal opponents, most notably law professor Alan

By Mary Tuma Dershowitz. Controversy surrounding the denial stems from Associate Editor the nature of Finkelstein’s work, which is heavily critical of Israel, Zionism and supportive of human rights in Palestine, which are apparently points of contention at DePaul UniversiIn light of the protests during conservative writer David ty, supposedly an institution of academic freedom.

Horowitz’s recent lecture and the upcoming visit from politAs if from a page of Horowitz’s recent tome “One-Party ical scientist Norman Finkelstein, it seems appropriate to ex- Classroom,” the faculty and administration at DePaul found amine the oftentimes hypocritical nature of Finkelstein’s work failed to reflect their peracademic freedom. sonal values and decided his marginal and Moral outrage can transform the most docradical ideas were too much of a liability. ile of us into passionate protestors. A healthy The move ignited a student sit-in and hunIf we, as students and and necessary facet of democracy, dissent ger strike, testaments to the students’ desire citizens, seek to enjoy is the lifeblood of politics. Yet, combating for intellectual diversity. those who limit academic and intellectual Rather than celebrating and applauding genuine intellectual freedom by revoking their right to dissent professors’ diversity of ideas, even if those freedom, it becomes proves hypocritical and, more importantly, ideas are controversial, offensive or inflamimperative to defend counterproductive. matory, as in the case of Finkelstein, penalI’m vehemently opposed to conservative izing them severely tarnishes the reputation authors, scholars author Horowitz’s views, but as a proponent of the University and damages the universiand professors of free speech, I restrained myself from proty learning experience. whose opinions and testing his right to advocate his beliefs — Those who seek to silence controverhowever misguided and inconsistent they sy stand equally guilty of suppressing free perspectives differ may be. speech as those, like Horowitz and some from our own.

If we, as students and citizens, seek to enDePaul administrators, who seek to extend joy genuine intellectual freedom, it becomes First Amendment rights only to those who imperative to defend authors, scholars and share similar ideology, effectively promotprofessors whose opinions and perspective ing a climate of fear for radical thought. Alradically differ from our own. though begrudging at the least, it is only The price of intellectual freedom should come with no strings with this mutual acceptance that we can govern, teach and attached; yet as in the case of Finkelstein and other professors write progressively. across the nation, this is merely a far-reaching ideal. In 2007 Tuma is a journalism senior. the former assistant professor of political science was denied

OBJECTIVE OBSERVATIONS WITH ... BENJAMIN MILLER

Chapter 42: Burn it ... and weep?

It’s difficult to go anywhere without overhearing people dis- ly will provide news so profound and interesting that the concuss the imminent collapse of the newspaper industry, though suming public will unwittingly find themselves foregoing the this may be only indicative of where I spend my time. These Internet and purchasing a paper version, lest the death of the pessimists claim that newspapers aren’t making enough mon- integral object render access to the internet inert. While other ey from the Internet to counteract the lost paper sales, and forms of media also run many of these stories, there is nothing because hardly anyone reads at all anymore, there seems to that makes someone look quite as smart as holding a newspabe little hope for preserving the historic institution. Though per telling about the death of this or that institution. this notion sounds valid enough, it overlooks several imporOf particular importance are newspaper stories about the tant tactics the newspapers have at their disposal to ensure deaths of competing forms of news media, creating an air of their survival. nefarious intention and untrustworthiness of the non-printed The first reason the newspaper industry word, as well as spreading unfounded and won’t fail is that it is too busy publishing vague rumors of poor financial footing. Thus, “The Death of Newspaper” stories. Because the public will grow to distrust television and so many think that the newspaper is dying, the Internet, based on obscure examples and Newspapers aren’t they are irresistibly attracted to more news apocryphal testimony, until it has no choice the only things stories about it, especially in the print mebut to choose newspapers as the lesser of dying, for anything dium that is experiencing the decline. As an evils. Hey, if it works for political candidates, added benefit, whenever a newspaper pubit can work for the newspaper industry. that will ever die is lishes its “last issue,” the nostalgic public Another reason why newspapers will soon technically in the will likely purchase so many issues of memsee a resurgence of popularity is the “green” process of dying. orabilia that the newspaper will recover from movement. People concerned about reducing its financial straits and continue publishing, their carbon footprint will forego electronic being rescued temporarily from bankruptcy methods of receiving news that involve foul by almost reaching it. Of course, the paper production of greenhouse gases for the much will inevitably return to its state of impending bankruptcy, af- greener newspaper, the only medium that can be physically reter which the entire process will begin again in a never-end- cycled and that requires no electricity to operate. ing cycle.

While many of these tactics are unethical or, at the very Because the public might eventually get wise to such a re- least, prey on the stupidity of the American consumer, they petitive scheme, the newspaper industry has a variety of oth- are necessary steps in order to preserve an industry that emer tools to keep itself alive in valiant defiance of free market ploys hundreds of thousands of workers, who would be left forces. Newspapers aren’t the only things dying, for anything unemployed should the era of newspapers finally end. It is that will ever die is technically in the process of dying. Thus, our moral imperative to preserve these jobs no matter the cost, “The Death of America,” “The Death of the U.N.,” “The Death and with the above mentioned tactics, newspapers will never of Feminism,” “The Death of Masculinity,” “The Death of ‘The die. Or, if all else fails, there’s always fire insurance fraud.

Death of’ stories” and all the other pieces about the demise of Miller is a women’s and gender studies freshman. everything our society holds dear or thinks about occasional-

5A UNIV

5A

NEWS

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

APD budget plan Notre Dame to switch to Gmail system will cut positions, reduce overtime Students lobby for free Google e-mail services over more costly options

Despite staff shortages, department postpones upcoming cadet class

By Avi Selk Daily Texan Staff Cutting the number of high-ranking officers, letting officers work less overtime and no longer letting free security for private events are among the ways the Austin Police Department plans to save more than $5 million in 2009, as falling tax revenues put pressure on budgets citywide.

APD has already cut about $1.2 million in overtime pay from this year’s budget and plans to double those cuts by the end of the year, according to the department’s budget reduction plan.

One of the department’s 22 commander positions has already been eliminated and police plan to downgrade two more commanders to lower-ranked positions, saving a total of more than $500,000.

Police expect to save nearly $300,000 by eliminating various temporary positions, and reducing its Christmas Day staffing. Another $100,000

NEWS BRIEFLY Chevron donates $1 million to UT’s geosciences school A $1 million donation from Chevron will support core research facilities at the Bureau of Economic Geology, one of the largest research units on campus.

Scientists study materials of geological cuttings at the bureau, which is also the research facility for the Jackson School of Geosciences. “This particular gift will contribute to the infrastructure and operations of the bureau, allowing the collections to remain publicly available,� said school spokesman J.B. Bird. “Through donations of cores and cuttings by groups such as Chevron, the bureau has amassed the largest publicly available collection of cores and cuttings in the U.S.�

would be saved by redeploying 10 full-time employees to support staff.

A department policy of waiving fees for policing private events will also come to an end, saving an estimated $100,000.

The department has pushed its next cadet class, which was scheduled to begin last month, to September. The delay could save the department $1.4 million but may also leave it short on patrol officers next year.

The department is currently short 19 patrol officers, a number that Assistant Police Chief Al Eells estimates would grow to about 70 by the time new recruits graduate in May 2010.

But the department doesn’t know exactly how many officers will quit, retire or be fired. If the department loses more staff than expected before the rookies are ready, it might put officers from other details on patrol duty.

Other cuts are still possible. Eells said the department has a plan to eliminate its community liaison department if it needs to make further cuts. “Our budget process is very fluid,� he said.

The gift came after Chevron’s $1.2 million donation to UT last year. In 2007, Chevron gave the bureau $3 million in core materials and support. “Chevron’s gift is extremely generous because it’s hard for these libraries to maintain their collections,� Bird said. “This will allow collections to remain publicly available to students who use core facilities for dissertations and master’s theses.�

The rocks are useful in discovering new energy resources and looking at global climate change. “The rocks tell a different story about each generation,�

Bird said. “Today, the Barnett Shale is the hottest geology formation in the United States because it’s generating an enormous natural gas field.

Rocks are a way to discover new energy sources.� — Rachel Platis

The University of Texas at Austin

By Israel Perez Daily Texan Staff The University of Notre Dame has decided to outsource its commercial sudent e-mail in favor of a free alternative: Gmail.

Notre Dame decided to look for alternatives after the vendor of its student e-mail program cut off key portions of its service, said Kathryn Rose, program manger for enterprise initiatives at the university. “When we started looking at student usage of our Legacy email system, we found that a good portion of our student body was forwarding their Notre Dame mail to another service,� Rose said. “When we started looking at solutions, we ended up finding out that Google was really the stronger candidate.�

She said Google outranked all other e-mail services in the number of students forwarding to it by 10to-1. The student body campaigned heavily for Google over costly alternatives such as Microsoft Exchange, which would have cost the university $1.5 million, Rose said.

In addition to e-mail, Google provides Notre Dame students with an online calendar, document and spreadsheet programs similar to those of Microsoft Office and free text messaging and voice calling service.

Google groups these programs for colleges and universitites under Google Apps Education Edition. The same programs are also available free for individuals.

Rose said students seem to like the switch, especially because Google also provides support through Notre Dame’s Web site, such as how-to videos and

French sophomore Lucia Pacheco works on a school assignment Monday night at the Flawn Academic Center computer lab. Many students at UT choose to use alternative e-mail providers as opposed to university webmail.

Emily Kang Daily Texan Staff

discussion groups. “[Students] have responded very positively [to the move],� Rose said. “Our customer satisfaction from students for e-mail and calendaring service increased 36 percent.�

A transition to Google Apps for faculty and staff has been discussed, but no plans have been made, Rose said.

UT uses its own Web-based mail

service for students that allows email to be forwarded to accounts such as Gmail. The University also provides Microsoft Exchange for faculty and staff, according to the University’s Information Technology Services Web site.

Technology service officials could not be reached for comment.

UT business sophomore Jonathan Kaplan forwards both his

Texas and business school e-mails to his Gmail account. “Not only do I think it’s convenient to check one e-mail account instead of three, because I check my e-mail multiple times a day, but also because I’ve had my Gmail account for several years before coming to UT,� Kaplan said. “Linking them all together allowed me to keep it simple.�

Mother’s journey prompted by health care shortage Community clinic calls for greater citizen role in accessibility reform

By Rachel Platis Daily Texan Staff Between April and June, Kathie McClure is traveling to 17 southern states to raise awareness about health care shortages.

McClure, an Atlanta lawyer, started the Bandwagon Tour last year to bring attention to the nation’s health care shortage. The tour made a stop in Austin on Monday. “With the economy falling

apart, health care is falling apart as well,� McClure said. “With people’s salaries being cut, those health care cuts we experience out-of-pocket are chewing up more and more of our budgets.�

The People’s Community Clinic hosted five speakers on Texas health care to teach Austinites how to work with the federal government to pass health reforms that guarantee accessibility and affordability, said Kymberlie Quong-Charles, coordinator for the Texas Voice for Health Reform project. “There is a lot of talk in Washington, D.C., about what the

government can spend but not about what families can afford,�

Quong-Charles said.

McClure has a child who has epilepsy and another who lives lwith type 1 diabetes, which prompted her Bandwagon Tour.

She has spoken to thousands of working people about health care and has seen a dramatic worsening of the situation for most people, she said. “Texas is particularly egregious when it comes to health care. I give it an F,� McClure said. “They have one of the largest percentages of people who are living without health

coverage.�

More than 40 percent of Texans didn’t have coverage for a period of six months or more between 2007 and 2008, she said, and 20 percent of children go without coverage.

Her Web site, votehealthcare. org, advocates education on the issue. “In America, you used to be able to work hard, have a job and take care of your family,� McClure said. “This is not true anymore when it comes to health care and when you can be financially devastated just by paying your premium.�

6A S/L

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UNIVERSITY

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Important issues unite college democrats

By Rachel Platis Daily Texan Staff College Democrats from around the state gathered on the Capitol grounds Monday morning to advocate for the issues they believe affect them most.

The rally wrapped up a Texas College Democrats convention held this weekend that focused on tuition regulation, voter ID lesiglation and a bill that would allow concealed carry on college campuses. The event also featured keynote speaker state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio. Texas College Democrats is an umbrella organization for Democratic clubs in colleges across the state. “We turned out to vote for these legislators, and now we’re here to hold them accountable,� said College Democrats President Tory Lauterbach. “Now is the perfect time to turn Texas blue. We’re fighting the good fight and the right fight, in my opinion.�

Lauterbach said gun control is important because it can dramatically change college life. “We as students fight for safe campuses, so the last thing we want to do is bring guns onto them,� Lauterbach said. “If you can imagine a world in which a fistfight escalates into a gun fight, you can understand why we are here.�

Van de Putte addressed increasing tuition rates at UT and across Texas. “Tuition in just four years has doubled at UT-Austin, and this is the case all over the state,� Van de Putte said. “This is a prescription for disaster and a squeeze on middle-class Texans.

We’ve heard the cries of you and your parents.�

On the voter ID bill, she said young people should be empowered to vote, not burdened by it. “The future belongs to these young Texans,� Van de Putte said. “It is not

ACC: Adviser warns

students against transferring classes From page 1A

Nancy Rosenthal | Daily Texan Staff

Rachael Kelly expresses her concerns about allowing handguns to be carried on public campuses in a note for Gov. Rick Perry at the Capitol on Monday. Kelly drove from Amarillo to attend a Texas Democrats rally earlier in the day. only our duty to listen, but to listen seriously.�

Andy Jones, a government junior and Texas College Democrats spokesman, took on the role of organization president on Monday. “I applaud everyone here today for their courage to say, ‘This is what I believe in, this is what I stand for, stand with me today,’� Jones said. “It’s not about Obama. It’s about continuing to advocate for your community.�

One group of students at the rally had driven five hours Friday through traffic and rain from UT-Pan Ameri-

can in Edinburgh. “We wanted to make sure that we’re not forgotten,� said physics graduate student Kayleigh Garcia. “You deserve a voice, wherever you’re from.�

Texas College Democrats has chapters at 34 colleges across Texas, 17 of which were chartered this year, including one at UT-Pan American. “With 26 counties in our region, ours is the only chapter of College Democrats,� said UT Pan American chapter president Amber Arriaga, a political science and psychology senior. “It’s important to bridge

the gap between politicians and our generation.�

The College Republicans of Texas will also hold a rally at the Capitol this week. “I generally believe that these types of events give legislators insight into what students want, particularly on such issues on tuition relief and the gun bill,� said College Republican spokesman Colin Harris, a government senior. “I see the voter ID bill as more of a universal policy. However, as citizens, it’s important to make our voices heard on anything.�

can’t walk into a class without having at least one student who’s there because of the economy, either being retrained to be more marketable in the workforce, or realizing it’s less expensive and trying to get the best value.�

Chemistry senior Tanner Monroe said he took his lower-division government, history and economics classes at a community college for one reason — “It’s cheap!�

Instead of paying more than $1,800 for a three-hour class at UT, students can pay $162 for three hours at ACC if they are Texas residents and live in the ACC district.

Students who live in Travis County; Austin, Round Rock or Del Valle Independent School Districts; or the cities of Austin, Leander or Manor are considered in-district because a portion of their property taxes partially funds ACC. Richard Mattingly, the assistant dean for student affairs in the UT College of Education, said many education students take their history and government requirements at a community college. “It’s a financial issue,� Mattingly said. “The price is definitely right, and if it’s a course that’s not going to impact your major, then why not?�

Government adviser Nathan Vickers said transferring government courses from a community college can be tricky and that quite often, students get confused and enroll in courses that do not count toward their six hours of mandatory government courses. Lea said ACC has counselors and advisers to help students make sure their credits will transfer.

Psychology and pre-med junior Jeffrey Conyers said he did not even consider taking his government requirements at a community college. “It’s easier not to,� Conyers said. “I’m already registered [at UT], so why go through the trouble?�

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SPORTS

B

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Sports Editor: David R. Henry E-mail: sports@dailytexanonline.com Phone: (512) 232-2210 www.dailytexanonline.com

T HE DAILY TEXAN

BASEBALL

No. 2 Rice at No. 5 Texas

Texas firing on all cylinders for visiting Owls

By Laken Litman Daily Texan Staff The Longhorns are movin’ on up because they finally got a piece of the pie — the hot-handed, inthe-zone kind of pie, that is.

Texas (29-8, 12-6 Big 12) has won 10 straight games, and after this past weekend’s sweep of Oklahoma, the team jumped four spots to No. 5 in the latest Baseball America Top 25 poll.

“We are happy with the success we’ve had so far, but I think our guys know that this isn’t the end and it doesn’t stop here,” said senior pitcher Keith Shinaberry.

“We gotta keep building on the success we’ve had so far.”

Texas was No. 1 in the land earlier in the season but lost its top

ranking after a 6-3 loss to Rice, which was immediately followed by a three-game sweep at the hands of Kansas. Now that the Horns are back in the spotlight, they don’t plan on letting it get to their heads.

“It’s exciting to be ranked No. 5,” Shinaberry said. “But we know that the rankings really don’t mean a whole lot until the end of the year. We were ranked No. 1, and that didn’t really pan out well for us, so this time around the guys aren’t really paying attention to the polls as much.”

One of the reasons the Longhorns are so hot right now is senior pitcher Austin Wood, who was just named Phillips 66 Big

12 Pitcher of the Week. This is the fourth time — but the first as a senior — Wood has been given this honor. The award is much deserved after he helped UT go 5-0 last week, throwing six innings in four appearances, striking out nine batters and surrendering just two hits and two walks.

“It doesn’t surprise me one bit,” Shinaberry said. “He’s been tremendous for us. He’s put in the work to really deserve it, and he’s got the numbers to show for it this year. So it really doesn’t surprise me, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he won it every week for the rest of the season.”

But the biggest improvement for the Horns is on offense. Shinaberry explained that tonight,

TUESDAY: No. 2 Rice (27-10, 11-4 Conference USA) at No. 5 Texas (29-8, 12-6 Big 12) WHERE: UFCU Disch-Falk Field WHEN: 6 p.m.

No. 2 Rice (27-10, 11-4 Conference USA) will see a different Longhorn team than the one they saw earlier in the season when they beat Texas in Houston.

“We got punched in the mouth against Kansas and we really kinda rallied back and are a brandnew team that [Rice] is going to face,” Shinaberry said. “I mean, the pitching has been consistent,

OWLS continues on page 2B

Jeffrey McWhorter | Daily Texan Staff

Lefthander Austin Wood was honored as the Phillips 66 Big 12 Pitcher of the Week. Wood has played a major role in Texas’ 10-0 streak.

Young catcher calling shots for Horns

MMA COLUMN

By Colby White Daily Texan Columnist

UFC’s White an anomaly among pro sports execs, gives abnormal apology

ting early in the signing period.

“I always knew I wanted to go to Texas ever since I saw the school,” she said. “I took a few unofficial visits to other schools to appease my parents, but in my mind I knew where I was going from the start.”

Lancaster also credits former Longhorn tennis player Courtney Zauft as one of the main reasons she chose UT. Zauft graduated last year and had been one of Lancaster’s practice partners since eighth grade.

“I begged Sarah to come to UT since I wanted to have the chance to play in a team environment with her,” Zauft said.

The coach at Texas who recruited her, Jeff Moore, retired two weeks after she verbally

Imagine that David Stern is doing everything he can to ensure a Lakers-Cavaliers matchup in the NBA Finals, yet somehow the Kobe-LeBron face-off every fan wants to see never comes to fruition.

Now imagine Stern apologizing for it afterward.

Imagine that Bud Selig is setting up baseball’s hype machine to promote a Yankees-Red Sox battle in the playoffs, but a smallsalary, small-market team smashes the party and leaves fans without their hoped for rivalry.

Now imagine Selig at a press conference podium telling the world he’s sorry.

Seem a bit awkward? A league’s commissioner apologizing because his product could have been better doesn’t seem plausible.

Unless it’s Dana White.

Saturday’s Ultimate Fighting Championship 97 main event featured Anderson Silva, the sport’s best pound-forpound fighter, doing his routine against Thales Leites only to hear the Montreal crowd begin to boo only minutes into the bout.

There is no question of Silva’s skill in the ring, but the downside is that that he’s tough to watch. He circles his opponent, waiting for an opening to unleash a highlight-reel knockout.

Meanwhile, the audience falls asleep.

Scared of Silva’s striking power, Leites fell to the ground every time Silva attacked in an attempt to make the fight into a grappling contest.

The result was five rounds of non-action that left Silva with a unanimous decision and the few fans who stayed awake, bored out of their minds.

What was the response from White, president of the UFC? “I apologize. I personally apologize for what happened tonight,” White said after the fight.

“You guys know, this isn’t what the UFC was built on, and this isn’t the way the fights usually go.”

If apologizing to the fans wasn’t out of character enough for the leader of a professional sports league, White reportedly sat down to talk with Silva and his manager, Ed Soares, after the post-fight news conference in an attempt to give them a piece of his mind.

Silva’s problem isn’t winning.

The win gave him the record for consecutive victories in UFC with nine. Silva’s problem is drawing a crowd. This is the second straight fight at which Silva has put an audience to sleep, with his last fight against Patrick Cote featuring two yawn-inducing rounds followed by Cote landing funny after a kick that tore the meniscus in his knee.

It is not lost on White that his best fighter is also the least entertaining.

TENNIS continues on page 2B

WHITE continues on page 2B

Peter Franklin | Daily Texan Staff

Sophomore catcher Amy Hooks steps up to the plate against Stephen F. Austin University on Feb. 6. Hooks earned the everyday starter spot this season and has thrown out 61 percent of opposing players who attempted to steal a base this year.

Hooks spends time off the field with head coach Clark to raise level of catching game

By Dan Hurwitz Daily Texan Staff When going to baseball tryouts as a freshman in high school, Amy Hooks was immediately told that she couldn’t play.

It was not because she wasn’t capable of playing with the boys, but be-

cause she was not one.

After playing Little League with the boys in Mesquite, Hooks’ former teammates petitioned to the school to allow her play baseball. But a friend suggested that she make things easy and just play softball.

So she did.

Hooks never looked back, and she has since become the everyday catcher for the Longhorns.

Not only does she catch, but she also calls the pitches — something rare in collegiate softball or baseball.

Only a sophomore, Hooks has already earned the trust of head coach

Connie Clark to decide which pitches she wants to be thrown to her.

“Amy built into that a little bit last year,” Clark said. “She would sit right by me in the dugout and watch the charts, and we would try to talk through

HOOKS continues on page 2B

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Amateur star helping tennis team

Lauren Gerson | Daily Texan Staff

Texas’ Sarah Lancaster chose to focus on tennis in high school and has excelled at the college level.

By Rishi Daulat Daily Texan Staff Sarah Lancaster’s picture could be next to the word “athlete” in the dictionary.

She excelled on the varsity basketball team at Alamo Heights High School in San Antonio, leading her team in scoring as the starting point guard. She ran track and broke the school’s record in the 400-meter run and the mile relay.

She was a key component in helping her tennis team win the 4A State Championship.

And those achievements are just from her freshman year.

Realizing she had to pick one sport if she wanted to play on the college level, Lancaster decided to focus on tennis and left high school to attend the Elite TNT Tennis Acad-

emy in Conroe.

“I’ve been playing tennis longer than any other sport,” Lancaster said of her decision.

The risky move paid dividends for her tennis game, as Lancaster earned national rankings of No. 2 in the USTA Girls 16 division and No. 11 in the USTA Girls 18 division.

At age 17, however, Lancaster suffered two stress fractures in her back while in Arizona for a winter supernational tournament.

“Something did not feel right with my back,” Lancaster said. “I pride myself on being really tough, so I didn’t retire; I just knew that the pain was unbearable, and I couldn’t keep playing through it.”

Despite the injury, Texas heavily recruited Lancaster, and she rewarded the school’s efforts by commit-

2B SPTS

2B

SPORTS

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

TENNIS: Lancaster a force for Texas From page 1B committed, but Lancaster remained dedicated to UT after talking to the new coach, Patty Fendick-McCain.

Lancaster moved back to San Antonio for her senior year and re-enrolled at Alamo Heights.

Her sole goal was to get into the best shape possible so she could be ready for collegiate tennis, and she again participated in basketball, track and tennis.

“I had to ask Coach Patty if she was all right with me playing three sports since I ran the risk of getting hurt again, but she was all for the idea,” Lancaster said.

Lancaster did not suffer any injuries during her senior year, and she once again shined in all three sports. By the end of her high school career, she was ranked as the top tennis player in Texas.

Lancaster started off her career at Texas playing at the fourth singles spot for the Horns but later found her niche at sixth singles. During her

SPORTS BRIEFLY After three-save effort, Wood receives Big 12 pitching honor Longhorn southpaw Austin Wood was named the Phillips 66 Big 12 Pitcher of the Week on Monday after he helped Texas to a perfect week, including a threegame sweep of No. 10 Oklahoma.

Wood had three saves in six innings last week, allowing two hits and two walks.

It is Wood’s fourth time being honored by the conference and his first of the 2009 campaign. It is also his first time being named pitcher of the week as a closer.

— Will Anderson

Surgery successful on three football players, trainer says Three Texas football players

freshman year, she posted an astounding 10-0 mark in conference play, going 18-13 overall.

She picked up right where she left off the next year, with a 21-4 record playing at both the fifth and sixth singles spots.

“I got off to a great start my sophomore year and really got used to winning, which in turn helped me confidence-wise,” she said. “I love the college team atmosphere and always want to feel like I’m helping contribute to the team.”

With so little room for improvement, Lancaster has still managed to better her record with a 10-0 conference record and a 17-2 overall mark this season.

Former teammate Zauft credits her success to Lancaster ’s determination and focus.

“Her mental game is so strong,” Zauft said. “It’s almost like she puts on blinders and just blocks everything off outside of the court.”

Lancaster uses a workmanlike, counter-punching style of play that leaves her opponents questioning how long they

can last on the court without wilting.

“I’m extremely competitive and am willing to stay out there as long as it takes to win a match,” she said.

Cristina Moros coached Lancaster during her senior year of high school and now runs Austin Tennis Academy. Moros heads out to as many UT matches as she can and has seen Lancaster play the last three years.

“She makes her opponents work tirelessly just to win a single point, and on top of that she makes so few unforced errors,” Moros said. “She has learned to handle the pressure very well, all while becoming a quiet leader.”

“Lancaster earns the victory” has been a frequent phrase in the women’s tennis press releases this season, and the No. 32 Texas tennis team, the second-seeded team in the Big 12, needs to impersonate her fighting spirit if it hopes to capture the upcoming Big 12 tournament championship and advance in the NCAA tournament.

have had successful arthroscopic surgery this spring, according to head athletic trainer Kenny Boyd.

Sophomore safety Blake Gideon and senior linebacker Jared Norton both had surgery on their right shoulders, while junior quarterback Sherrod Harris an operation on his left knee.

Gideon started all 13 games last season and is expected to reprise the role of starting left safety in 2009. Norton started in seven of 13 contests, finishing with 54 tackles, while Harris appeared in 2008’s season opener. All three are expected to report to preseason training camp on Aug. 8.

— WA

to increase the visibility of the volleyball team, which finished as the No. 4 squad in the nation last year.

Texas Volleyball Students will try to help raise attendance at home volleyball matches, which are usually held at Gregory Gym. According to one of the founders, the group will also try to buy tickets for and transport students to the Texas A&M game in College Station. Texas Volleyball Students will be working with other organizations like the Longhorn Hellraisers, Texas Cheer and the Longhorn Band to “create a fun, loud, entertaining environment for players and fans alike,” said founder Matt Portillo.

The group’s first meeting is scheduled for Wednesday at 4 p.m. in Gregory Gym at the same court on which the volleyball team plays its home contests. Head volleyball coach Jerritt Elliott will be speaking to prospective members.

— WA

Students create spirit group to support Texas Volleyball A new student spirit group has formed to support the Texas volleyball team. Created by three University students, the group is seeking

Karina Jacques | Daily Texan Staff

Sophomore Chance Ruffin winds up against UIC in a game on Feb. 20. Ruffin retired 10 of 27 batters faced in the series opener against Oklahoma on Saturday.

OWLS: Progress has Horns confident From page 1B but this time I think that they’re going to see a powerful offensive team that might give them some problems.”

Another way Texas plans to give Rice some problems is by rotating through its pitching staff.

“We’ll throw a couple different arms at them and try to keep them off-balance,” Shinab-

erry said. “It gives our pitching staff the opportunity to throw against a quality offense and see what we need to work on.”

Texas will take on No. 2 Rice at 6 p.m. at UFCU DischFalk Field. The Owls have been ranked in the top five of most national polls since the beginning of the season. They are 8-2 against ranked teams, including four wins against top-10 oppo-

nents. Two wins were against teams that were ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time, one of which happened to be Texas.

“Rice has turned into one of our rivals in the baseball world for UT,” Shinaberry said. “But we are going to take it one game at a time like always and play each game like it’s the national championship. We won’t hold anything back.”

HOOKS: Sophomore ‘clicks’ with Barnhill From page 1B everything.”

The work of a catcher is considered one of the toughest jobs in the sport, but in determining what pitch is going to be thrown, Hooks has to act as a coach as well.

And the only way she learns to improve is through experience.

“I learn over the years with the coaches calling the pitches and seeing what they see,” Hooks said.

“And now just calling my own stuff and seeing what’s working is part of the game for me.”

Hooks has a long scouting procedure before each game.

After the coaching staff gathers all the information on the opposing lineups, Hooks and her battery mate meet and discuss each player’s strengths and weaknesses.

Since remembering the tendencies of nine batters is not the easiest task, Clark cuts her catcher some slack and writes out a cheat sheet that Hooks wears around her wrist.

The scouting continues during the game as adjustments are continuously made.

“She and I work closely before each game,” Clark said. “We continuously update [the scouting report] throughout the game and put our heads together.”

Hooks and Longhorn ace Brittany Barnhill have spent plenty of time working together, as Barnhill has pitched in 35 of Texas’ 48 games.

“[Hooks] has become … a great mind behind the plate.”

— Brittany Barnhill, pitcher “We work well together, and we have that click,” Hooks said.

“It’s easier for us to go at it rather than someone from the dugout. I can see a little more of what the hitter is doing up there.”

Having that “click” may also have something to do with the two being roommates their freshman year, enabling them to get to know each other off the field.

Barnhill has become comfortable with Hooks’ calls and shares the credit of her Big 12-leading 22 wins this year. “[Hooks] has become a great player and a great mind behind the plate,” Barnhill said.

But not all great minds always think alike.

“Sometimes I will shake her off, but that is only because of me,” Barnhill said. “If I am not confident with a certain pitch I am throwing that day, I might shake [the call] off.”

Another job that Hooks does well as catcher is calming down her pitchers, Barnhill said.

“We are both pretty laid-back

in everyday life, so on the field, if anything gets a little crazy she will come out,” she said. “If we just have to laugh, we just laugh it out.”

With 26 games decided by two runs or fewer, it is important for Hooks to have a relaxed attitude.

“She’s a complete goofball, but when it is game time, she’s got that game face on, and she knows how to get after people,” Barnhill said.

The trust that Clark and Barnhill have in Hooks makes it seem like she’s been a catcher her whole life. However, Hooks played shortstop throughout the beginning of her athletic career.

While playing club ball during the summer, there was a game in which the regular catcher was unable to play.

“There was a mishap with the catcher in summer ball, and I said, ‘I think I can do it,’ and now here I am catching for the Longhorns,” Hooks said.

Since taking over as the everyday catcher this season, Hooks has thrown out an impressive 61 percent of base runners attempting to steal and has improved offensively as well, raising her average more than 80 points from last season.

“She is just about as loose as they come,” Clark said. “We talk about having a loose intensity.

Certainly we want the team to be disciplined, but with as many games as we play, you better be having a good time as well.”

WHITE: UFC president of a different vein From page 1B “I can honestly tell you that I’ve never put on an event that I was embarrassed to be at until tonight,” White said. “I want to publicly apologize to all the fans.”

White isn’t perfect. He’s rude and can’t seem to control his temper at times. His recent profanity-laced tirade against a re-

porter was uncalled for, didn’t feature much to dispute the reporter’s claim and was both homophobic and misogynistc.

But when it comes to putting on the best show for his fans, White has his priorities straight.

He may offend half of his fan base in an event’s buildup, but they won’t complain about the fight.

It’s something that every

league should take note of. Stern saying sorry every year the Spurs took a title would without a doubt draw the ire of the Spurs’ higher-ups. Every small market would rise up and riot if Selig outright admitted the league office wasn’t rooting for them. Silva himself was disturbed by White’s comments, but White has the fans’ interests in mind.

Even when a fighter does not.

3B CLASS

3B

LIFE&ARTS

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

IN STORES THIS WEEK

Oh No Not Stereo 003 Combining the angst of Sugarcult with that one electric guitar riff that somehow made Andrew W.K. famous and mixing in a few emo-inspired screams and poppy falsettos, Oh No Not Stereo’s latest album, 003, is almost an accomplishment in that it successfully throws together everything that was once tolerable in popular music. Nevertheless, it is a failure for turning an alreadytired rock style into over-produced mush.

As if the early 2000s weren’t bad enough the first time around, Hollywood’s Oh No Not Stereo has unearthed the sound that made Something Corporate famous, except this time it’s not only obnoxious, but cliched as well.

003 is a 50-minute trip back in time. With lyrics that span the cornucopia of trite decade-old pop rock themes like “With my soul in my hand and my heart on my sleeveâ€? and “sit in the blood and let your eyes flood, just don’t let go ‌ I owe it all to you,â€? coupled with repetitive, vainglorious power-ballad backbeats, there are few redeeming qualities to be found amid the wreckage of 003.

Actually, there is one redeeming quality — the last 14 seconds of 003’s ninth track, “Brothers.� These 14 seconds feature a catchy piano arrangement and some tasteful snapping. But lest we forget, Spoon did that better — six years ago!

If you just didn’t get enough of the spirit that brought us boys in eyeliner and skin-tight girl jeans singing in rhyming couplets about high school anxieties during the reign of Boys Like Girls and The Used, then by all means, go pick up 003.

But if you’ve managed to escape that era, spare yourself this rehashing. — Mary Lingwall

Tinted Windows Tinted Windows

Ruby Coast, a quintet of 20-somethings from Ontario, Canada, artfully captures the essence of young adulthood on its second EP, Projectable Collections.

With wistful vocals, the twinkling of keyboard and xylophone chords and jangly yet detailed guitar riffs, Collections is an exuberant riot of hypnotic indie pop.

The opening track “More than Television� sets the tone of the album at upbeat but equally laid-back, featuring a pulsating backbeat and the sparkling details of a tambourine, a xylophone and lead singer Justice McLellan’s sweet yet pained voice.

The song’s lyrics slyly comment on coming-of-age angst with lines like, “stating my opinion has never been so hard, but I try not to make it up or start a contradiction.�

The aesthetic stamp of the album’s producer, Dave Monks, best known as Tokyo Police Club’s front man, is obvious throughout the album.

Complete with the quintessential bouncy TPC intro riffs, the tendency to break into onomatopoeia and the screeching of “Oh!�s, Collections is steps away from sounding derivative. But instead of copying TPC, Ruby Coast has taken Monks’ arrangement style and attention to detail in a new, more whimsical direction.

A consistently entertaining six-song EP, Collections hits only one sour note — the use of obnoxious bird calls in the hook of “Brittle Bones.� Incongruous and strange, the bird calls are easily made forgivable by the foot-stomping, sing-a-long fun on the rest of the album. — ML

Magik Markers has been incredibly prolific for the last few years, cranking out dozens of small-run CD-Rs every month.

The dark, tangled, experimental rock of those documents is certainly rewarding, but it seems the duo always saves its best material for its major label releases. Like 2007’s Boss, Balf Quarry presents an incredibly concentrated, fully developed selection of songs.

Dark and gritty, Balf Quarry exposes the cracks in rock music. There are recognizable song forms throughout the album, but they’re always being molested by feedback squeals, disturbing atmospherics and Pete Nolan’s free drumming explosions. Front woman Elisa Ambrogio is beginning to further embrace the feminine singing style she explored on Boss, but even her prettiest melody is undercut by twisted, haunting lyrics.

Though Balf Quarry covers a lot of new ground for the group — the slightly tropical “7/23� and the upbeat Casio-pop of “Psychosomatic,� for instance — there are plenty of classic Magik Markers tracks. “Don’t Talk in Your Sleep� is the band at its most rough and powerful, as a deep bass line does everything it can to cover up an aching feedback squeal. Ambrogio rises to the occasion, returning to her snarling, sinister vocal style and reminding us that “a lovin’ woman can have the devil’s face.�

Combining the punch and consistent quality of Boss with the spontaneity and fractured development of more freeform releases like last year’s Gucci Rapidshare Download, this album is, like any Magik Markers live show, visceral, immediate and completely unpredictable. — Brad Barry

In theory, Tinted Windows is a “whodathunk-it� kind of supergroup. Comprised of Taylor Hanson (the pretty one), Fountains of Wayne’s Adam Schlesinger, exSmashing Pumpkin James Iha and Cheap Trick drummer Bun E. Carlos, the band plays the kind of unabashed power pop you’d expect from a group with ties to Hanson and Fountains. Here’s the shocking part — it’s actually pretty good.

Rumors spread like wildfire over the last few months about the group, but no one believed it existed until the album’s first single, “Kind of a Girl,� surfaced.

Talk then switched to the unlikely nature of such a band. Surprising or not, Tinted Windows is very real, and its serious about what it does.

Overall, the album presents nothing groundbreaking. Were it not for the musicians involved, the album would probably be instantly overlooked and tossed aside.

That’s not entirely a bad thing, because the respective personalities of those involved do make for some interesting fodder.

But what of the album? One thing’s for sure — it won’t change your life. There are no epiphanistic moments, but it will keep you entertained. The disc is full finely polished pop tunes with vicious hooks and a catchiness so infectious that you’ll be spreading it to all of your friends within minutes of listening.

Tinted Windows’ debut is the kind of accessible pop that the producers of “American Idol� only wish they could create. Perhaps that’s because it’s music made by real musicians. After all, an album can be mainstream and still be good — just as long as the artists know what they’re doing. — Robert Rich

1

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STUDENTPAYOUTS. COM Paid Survey Takers Needed In Austin. 100% FREE To Join! Click On Surveys.

PARADIGM IS HIRING Paradigm is accepting applications for Store Help for the Summer and Fall Semester 2009.

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810 Office-Clerical PARALEGAL CLERK TRAINEE near UT. Will train. Create form documents, assist clients, obtain state records, fax, file, proof. Flexible hours, casual dress. PT $11, FT $12-12.50 + benefits. Apply online, www.

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FULL-TIME SUMMER CLERKS Assists with filing, copying, faxing and other general clerical duties as needed. Must be very familiar with personal computers, general office equipment and ten key. Reliability and punctuality required. Works 40 hours per week. Position is temporary, for the summer only. Salary $8.00 per hour. All applications must be received by 1:00 p.m. CST May 1, 2009. To receive an application and complete job description call 512/4271562, visit our website at www.texasbar.com/jobs or come by 1414 Colorado. 512-427-1485

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For answers, call 1-900-285-5656, $1.49 a minute; or, with a credit card, 1-800-814-5554.

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BOOK REVIEW

Tuesday, Ap

Virgil’s quiet character brought to life

Ursula Le Guin tells story of heroine, Lavinia, who struggles with patriarchy

By Mary Lingwall Daily Texan Staff Virgil’s “Aeneid” is incontestably one of the greatest works of literature in the Western cannon.

Beautifully lyrical, meticulously constructed, epic poetry that evokes emotion during even the most gruesome of war scenes, Virgil captures Aeneas’ tragic adventures of almost 3,000 years ago in a voice that, to this day, inspires awe in each new generation of readers.

Throughout the 12 books that make up the “Aeneid,” we see a man fully equipped with human guilt, rage and virtuous piety be challenged and remolded with every twist and turn of his story’s epic plot. But there are other characters that pepper this work — characters whose ethos and pathos were overlooked in Virgil’s original.

Ursula Le Guin, one of con-

Taking the story of a woman who was known only as daughter, wife or mother of kings, “Lavinia” delves into the heart of a character we have thus far only known tangentially.

temporary literature’s most fertile minds and prolific creators, delves into one of the most marginalized figures of the “Aeneid” in her most recent novel, “Lavinia.” In Virgil’s epic, Lavinia was little more than a name on the page. (That’s not to say that Virgil’s original should have included Lavinia’s tale — his poem was called “Aeneid” for a reason.)

In writing “Lavinia,” Le Guin seeks neither to attempt to outdo Virgil nor to declaim Aeneas’ provocative importance as a character. Rather, according to Le Guin’s afterword to the novel, “Lavinia” is “a meditative interpretation suggested by a minor character in his story — the unfolding of

a hint.”

In Virgil’s original, Lavinia is an Italian princess destined by prophecy to marry a foreigner and birth a new race. Virgil’s Lavinia was a character of steadfast loyalty to herself and her family, but Virgil’s tale treats her with emotionally sterile language and her character has little more than ephemeral beauty and an absent personality.

The story of Lavinia’s soul in Virgil’s “Aeneid” is silent.

Le Guin’s finely structured first-person prose adeptly captures Lavinia’s unique story and successfully draws Lavinia from contingency to center stage. Taking the story of a woman who was known only as daughter, wife or mother of kings, “Lavin-

ART: Band mixes with Aguilera From page 6B for Christina Aguilera’s new album. Ladytron shies away from the pop that Aguilera embraces, making electronic-rock beats that sound like something out of this time.

Wu said it was fun working with Aguilera and that she is receptive to their style. Nonetheless, Ladytron has a few songs left over from Velocifero to consider as part of the band’s next album.

ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFLY ‘Today’ anchor will soon visit Iraq, Afghanistan war zones NEW YORK — NBC “Today” show news anchor Ann Curry is heading to two war zones this week.

She is traveling to both Iraq and Afghanistan to report on how the wars are being reshaped under the administration of President Barack Obama. Her reports are to air on both the “Today” show and NBC’s “Nightly News.”

NBC would say little about her specific reports, except that she will be given some unprecedented access. She may also try to do some reporting in Pakistan.

Curry has been a real globe-trotter. Since the beginning of 2008, she’s been to Darfur four times, tried to climb Mount Kilimanjaro and been to the Congo, Serbia, Pakistan, Japan, China and France.

—The Associated Press

Recycle your copy of THE DAILY TEXAN

“We actually had quite a few songs left over from that, which we kind of set aside for another album,” Wu said. “It’s all pretty much written — we just need to develop it a little bit more.”

It’s hard to tell how long bands will stay alive, and for Wu it’s just as uncertain whether he will play with Ladytron for the rest of his life.

He likes films by directors like Michelangelo Antonioni, Alejandro Jodorowsky and

WHAT: Ladytron WHERE: Stubb’s Bar-B-Que WHEN: Tonight, 7 p.m.

TICKETS: $25 Stanley Kubrick, and he envisions working on film soundtracks if anything happens to the band.

“The best music, for me, and the best films are the ones in which you don’t really know what’s going on,” Wu said.

ia” delves into the heart of a character we have thus far only known tangentially.

With an award-winning talent for both creative science fiction and feminist historical nonfiction writing, Le Guin’s interpretation in “Lavina” is as entertaining as it is thought-provoking. Le Guin majestically weaves together Lavinia’s story, combining otherworldly encounters between Lavinia and Virgil himself with a historically acute rehashing of Lavinia’s role in the founding of the Roman people and culture.

“Lavinia” is a gripping work of pseudo-historical fiction, and Le Guin’s treatment of Lavina as a heroine is complete and multidimensional. From the first page to the last, Le Guin engrosses readers in the realities of womanhood in patriarchal society, uncovering meaning in a previously meaningless role. Le Guin accomplishes all of this retelling while staying artistically true to her story’s original author and his epic story of war and the human condition.

TALENT: Boyle deemed ‘symbol of hope’ From page 6B of this was staged? Every second of the YouTube video drips with performance — with her choice of song and the way her accent dramatically drops, this could be the climax of a movie. “I dreamed a dream” would work well as a stirring motif.

The way the narrative is set up, you’d expect this goofy, dowdy woman to fail completely. Then she hits those first few perfect bars. The payoff is massive. This is why people

love reality television.

Imagine the disbelief that the sneering girl in the audience must have experienced as Boyle sang her first lines. Even as Boyle’s voice rose above the baying crowd and commanded them to their feet, this poor girl will forever remain a footnote in this story, akin to Cinderella’s stepsister. Her crime isn’t so great, really, but the punishment for her transgression is disproportionately severe: As long as Boyle remains in the public eye, this girl will symbolize mean-

spirited people everywhere.

Boyle has been appropriated in these bleak times as a symbol of hope but, ironically, is now a prisoner of typecasting.

She must, unlike a host of jazz and opera stars, at least temporarily remain famous as the unattractive woman who can sing.

Notwithstanding this virtually unprecedented level of instant global fame, Boyle might never transcend her status as a reality TV star.

And yet, for so many of us, she already has.

6B LIFE

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Tuesday, April 21, 2009

LIFE&ARTS

Life&Arts Editor: Ana McKenzie E-mail: lifeandarts@dailytexanonline.com Phone: (512) 232-2209 www.dailytexanonline.com

T HE DAILY TEXAN

Ladytron’s album art abstract, refreshingly creative

Courtesy of Ladytron

By Raquel Villarreal Daily Texan Staff Ladytron is not an explicit band. Its lyrics don’t come in the sleeves of its albums (if you still buy the physical ones, anyway), and the band’s album covers always feature abstract pieces of art. But Ladytron’s deep, electronica-infused sound, tinged with whimsical vocals, is impossible to miss. “I think if you explain something too much in detail in music or even in other things like film, you give the game away, then things lose their appeal,� said keyboardist Reuben Wu. Wu also contributed to the writing and production and designed the cover art for 604, the band’s first album release in the U.K. The subsequent covers were done by friends from the band members’ hometown of Liverpool, and the latest cover for the album Velocifero was done by installation artist Eli Sudbrack, the mastermind behind the collective Assume Vivid Astro Focus from Brazil. The cover features the four band members seemingly floating within a maze of black and white stripes.

Sudbrack and Ladytron met in Liverpool when Sudbrack was planning an installation for the Tate Liverpool art gallery. Sudbrack invited the band to play during the show’s opening. “We ended up playing a gig inside that installation, which was really amazing,�

Wu said. “We’ve never done anything like that before.�

It was not the only time Ladytron would collaborate with other artists; the band is currently writing and producing songs

The cover art for Velocifero, Ladytron’s latest album, was done by installation artist Eli Sudbrack, who met the band in Liverpool.

ART continues on page 5B

TV COLUMN

Susan Boyle proves to audiences that Britain’s really got talent Meek-looking woman sings her heart out; critics contend it may be staged

By Vijay Parthasarathy Daily Texan Staff There is in this world perhaps one person who cringes in horror every time the name Susan Boyle crops up in conversation. That person is the young lady in the crowd who made a face when Boyle admitted on the now-seminal YouTube clip of “Britain’s Got Talent� that she dreamt of being a professional singer.

Funny thing is, if you were among the first few million (out of the 30 million so far and counting) to have encountered the video, you could not have possibly expected much from this nervouslooking woman of 47, who had, a moment earlier in the clip, thrust her pelvis as if to prove her age was “just one side� of her.

But her plain looks and lack of glamour are not what, as many have suggested, make us presume Boyle must be spectacular-

The way the narrative is set up, you expect this goofy, dowdy woman to fail completely; then she hits those first few perfect bars.

ly talentless. It’s the thin speaking voice, the thick Scottish accent and the complete lack of guile in her eyes that make us assume that she wouldn’t be able to sing like she did.

This certainly seems to work as a generalization. Boyle gave us the impression that she was one of those sweet, well-meaning people who listen too closely to the indulgent praise of their friends, but really — we know better than to say they are truly gifted, right?

What is interesting about Boyle’s performance is that she didn’t attempt to mimic Elaine Page, which is something you might have expected of a person with a strong voice but little ex-

posure to the entertainment world beyond karaoke. As the music begins, somehow Boyle-the-amateur transforms into Boyle-the-professional, but it isn’t entirely without her knowledge, as some observers have condescendingly assumed.

Her social skills were lacking, but Boyle, who sang in her church, had evidently anticipated those looks of disbelief and was confident about her delivery. Fortunately for her, there was no slippage between her own self-evaluation and Simon Cowell’s opinion of her — which brings us to the theatricality of the moment.

Did the judges know what to expect beforehand? How much

TALENT continues on page 5B

Andrew Milligan | Associated Press

Susan Boyle, whose performance on the television show "Britain's Got Talent" wowed the judges, gives a thumbs-up at her home in Blackburn, Scotland.

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ENTERTAINMENT BRIEFLY Oprah pulls show marking Columbine anniversary CHICAGO — Oprah Winfrey decided Monday to pull an already-taped episode of her talk show that was to mark the 10th anniversary of the Columbine High School massacre.

The episode, “10 Years Later: The Truth about Columbine,� was to air on the Monday anniversary of the massacre in Littleton, Colo., that killed 12 students and a teacher. “I decided to pull the Columbine show today. After reviewing it, I thought it focused too much on the killers,� Winfrey wrote on Oprah.com and her Facebook page. A similar message appeared on her Twitter feed.

Columbine Task Force lead investigator Kate Battan, FBI special agent Dwayne Fuselier, Dave Cullen — author of the book “Columbine� — and Columbine High School principal Frank DeAngelis had taped the episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show.�

Winfrey said a program about a mother released from prison would run in place of the Columbine piece. —The Associated Press