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The Daily Texan Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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Senate passes bill to limit tuition increases

By Mohini Madgavkar Daily Texan Staff Caps on tuition increases are one step closer to taking effect, thanks to the state Senate’s unanimous passage of a comprehensive tuition regulation bill Monday.

The bill, introduced by state Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, would cap increases in the total academic cost of attending a Texas public college at 5 percent per year or the average of three years’ consumer price indices — whichever figure is lower.

For a Texas resident entering UT next fall, the average tuition cost hovers at about $4,500 for a full load of courses. Under the new legislation, tuition costs could not exceed $4,725 for the 2010 freshman class. In 2003, the year tuition deregulation was enacted, entering freshmen paid $2,094 per semester.

The UT System Board of Regents raised tuition by 4.5 percent for the 2009-2010 school year.

Zaffirini said the bill balanced student finances with Universi-

ty budget requirements by shifting the burden of increasing costs away from students.

“This [bill] would provide financial relief to college students and their families while recognizing the shared responsibility of the Legislature and higher education institutions to keep college affordable and accessible without sacrificing excellence,” Zaffirini said.

The bill also links total academic costs for all institutions to legislative appropriations and authorizes the Legislature to lower the

gap in the event of increased general revenue appropriations. The bill does not authorize higher education institutions to raise the cap — if a university exceeds it, the Legislature could cut its general revenue funding.

“This is intended to pressure the Legislature to keep tuition down by funding higher education appropriately,” Zaffirini said, General revenue funding is a shrinking portion of UT’s budget. In 2009, the Legislature funded 16 percent of the University’s to-

tal $2 billion budget — about $323 million. Tuition payments covered $491 million. Historically, the Legislature has provided as much as half of the University’s total budget.

Zaffirini said lawmakers have been trying unsuccessfully to reach a consensus on tuition reform since 2006. The complex bill submitted to the Legislature on Monday represented the collective opinions of more than 27 state senators, who initially proposed a

“This [bill] is intended to pressure the Legislature to keep tuition down by funding higher education appropriately.”

— State Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo

SENATE continues on page 2

21st Street Co-op expands bike shop

City elections see slight bump in early voting participation Despite increase, only 648 ballots cast at Flawn Academic Center by Sunday

Nancy Rosenthal | Daily Texan Staff

Geological Sciences senior Will Wolfe and psychology senior Thomas Butler stand in front of a bike shop at the 21st Street Co-op on Monday.

Planned to open in mid-June, the shop will serve as a project for students and community members learning to fix their own bikes.

Student says store will train cyclists to maintain, repair their own bicycles

By Rachel Platis Daily Texan Staff The 21st Street Co-op Bike Shop smells like fresh lumber as sawdust fills the air and walls stand bare.

But co-op officer Will Wolfe, a geological sciences senior, foresees walls lined with bikes, a loft stocked with tools and a shop filled with cyclists learning to fix their bikes under the guidance of trained mechanics.

The 21st Street Co-op Bike Project began in 2008 as a resource for the members of student housing cooperatives under College Houses Inc. As the shop became more popular, Wolfe proposed a plan to tear down the small shed and reconstruct a larger building suited to the growing demand.

“We’re here to teach people how to work on their bikes, how to be safe and how to keep the bikes running,” Wolfe said. “People learned about the bike shop we had for the co-op, and we began fixing two bikes a night for UT stu-

dents. We outgrew our walls.”

He drew up plans to rebuild last winter and got permission and a loan from College Houses Inc. Wolfe broke ground about a month ago, working 40 to 60 hours a week with a couple of volunteers to get the shop off the ground.

“With College Houses, our big selling point was that it’s an educational thing, something that the co-op system is all about,” said Thomas Butler, a psychology senior and chairmain of the board of directors for College Houses.

Co-op housing involves residents taking turns cleaning and cooking to produce three meals a day and providing services such as haircuts and bike repair.

“This is so much better than going to a shop that charges you $50 to fix your bike and treats you like you don’t know what you’re doing,” Wolfe said.

The shop is modeled after the Yellow Bike Project and is run according to bylaws voted on by a collective council. The Yellow Bike

What’s cooler than being cool?

Debbie Eynon Finley | Daily Texan Staff

Brad Gunter sells frozen ices from his cart on the Drag on Monday afternoon. Flavors include sour apple, pomegranate raspberry and Longhorn mango.

Project also donates bike parts and will eventually take over administration of the shop after Wolfe graduates.

The shop has raised $1,700 through donations to Austin’s Yellow Bike Project Web site and hopes to eventually collect $4,000 to offset the building and maintenance costs.

“Our main goal is to run a place accessible to the public that instructs you how to build a bike,” Wolfe said. “A bike isn’t like a car — you should be able to fix it on your own.”

Wolfe’s passion for bikes began in high school when he bought a car for $500 and saw it break down within months. He sold the car and went to Austin’s Yellow Bike Project to learn to build his own transportation.

“Austin wouldn’t be the same city without bikes,” Wolfe said. “When you know how to fix your bike, you know how to ride it.”

A grand opening party will be held in midJune, and the shop will be open two days per week during the summer.

By Pierre Bertrand Daily Texan Staff In the closing stages of early voting, county officials are expecting a slight increase in voter turnout, but at the University level, voting trends seem static.

There are 526,187 registered voters in Austin, and as of Sunday, the latest day for which county officials can provide information, only 3.05 percent of the voters had cast a ballot. Early voting started April 27 and will end at 7 p.m. today.

County officials set up a polling location on the second floor of the Flawn Academic Center.

UT students and Austin residents can vote at the location, but the station has recorded only 648 ballots cast.

That number, however, may follow a trend seen throughout the city that indicates a slight increase from years past, said a deputy registrar overlooking the polling station.

“It’s a very different world between the municipal elections and the big national elections,” said Dana DeBeauvoir, the Travis County Clerk.

“The numbers are tracking just above past May figures.”

In previous years, the number of ballots cast during early voting has fluctuated, but in the

POLLS continues on page 2

Mary Kang | Daily Texan Staff

Students pass by the early voting sign in front of the Union Building on Monday night. Only 648 people had cast ballots at the Flawn Academic Center as of Sunday.

Swine flu raises concerns for University study abroad students, faculty in Mexico

By Rachel Platis Daily Texan Staff A case in Travis County previously classified as a “probable” swine flu infection has now been confirmed, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. UT remains untouched by the swine flu thus far as classes come to an end this week.

Austin’s lone confirmed swine flu carrier is a 5-year-old student at Lucy Read Pre-kindergarten Demonstration School. Officials have closed the school until May 11.

Though University Health Services reports receiving many phone calls from students with concerns about swine flu during the first weeks of the outbreak, there have been no documented

cases of swine flu on campus.

“So far, swine flu has raised concerns on campus and has hopefully made people more open to practicing healthy behaviors, but there have been no diagnosed cases of swine flu at University Health Services,” said Sherry Bell, senior program coordinator for health services.

As some study abroad students return to school from Mexico this week, the International Oversight Committee will decide whether abroad trips to Mexico will be halted this summer. All universities in Mexico are closed until Wednesday, said Terri Givens, vice provost for the International Studies program.

“No conclusions have been reached yet, as we’re still discuss-

ing possibilities with the dean,” Givens said. “We currently have 10 students in Mexico, and they have been warned about the swine flu and have been given the option to come home if they choose.”

One UT graduate student returned to the United States on Thursday, and one staff member and one faculty member are due back on Thursday and May 17, respectively. These travelers are expected to stay off campus for the first 48 hours after their return and report to University Health Services if anything unusual occurs.

The study abroad student who returned Thursday was allowed to return to campus Monday because

FLU continues on page 2

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The Daily Texan

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

flu: Water,

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sleep can help body fight off outbreak

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 1 she had no symptoms of the flu.

“The graduate student that came back Thursday was feeling fine the last time I spoke with her,” said Lee Loden, director of Travel Management Services. “Individuals in Mexico are keeping themselves informed on what’s happening locally and are coming back because that’s when they are scheduled, not because of the swine flu.”

None of the travelers have indicated to Loden that the flu situation is dire, she said.

News Office: (512) 232-2207 news@dailytexanonline.com Web Office: (512) 471-8616 online@dailytexanonline.com Sports Office: (512) 232-2210 sports@dailytexanonline.com Life & Arts Office: (512) 232-2209 lifeandarts@dailytexanonline.com Jordan Smothermon | Daily Texan Staff

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Carolyn Trowbridge and the UT Steel Band perform contemporary music adapted for the steel drum Monday afternoon on the West Mall.

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PollS: County hopes for higher turnout

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past two municipal elections, the number of early voters has not reached above 5 percent of registered voters.

As of Sunday, there were 288 more votes cast in the Flawn Academic Center polling location than at this time last year.

The greatest number of voters in a municipal election was in 2003, when 15 percent of registered voters elected Will Wynn as mayor.

DeBeauvoir said the county is hoping to see continued interest in government and voting following the 2008 presidential election, but she said voter turnout greatly depends on the candidate’s efforts to reach the general voting population. For UT, that

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means lobbying students themselves.

Cathy Setzer, a UT graduate research assistant working for UT Votes, a non-partisan organization that focuses on voter mobilization, said students do not vote in municipal elections because they feel they do not have a stake in the race.

“Only 8 to 10 percent of the city votes, and it’s usually the same neighborhoods when it comes to city elections,” Setzer said. “My personal opinion is that candidates are not reaching out to the students.”

While students may pay more attention to national issues, they should care about local Austin politics because it is the local issues that directly affect them, Setzer said.

“Many don’t know there are

city elections going on, and that has become kind of a struggle,” Setzer said.

In the span of a couple of minutes, more than 10 people walked past Setzer on the West Mall without a glance. “When you have only 10 percent of people voting, that’s not democracy.”

Psychology junior Blair Barton said she voted for mayoral candidate Lee Leffingwell and wanted to play a part in determining who would represent the city.

Barton said that because she currently lives in the city, she is involving herself in local politics as much as possible.

“I think if you have a chance to participate, you should,” Barton said.

Some students, such as me-

dia studies graduate student Wade Ober, cannot vote in this year’s municipal election because they are not registered to vote in local elections.

Ober said he is registered to vote in his home county in Ohio, but if given the opportunity, he would vote in Austin’s mayoral race even though he never voted in his home county.

“After 2004, I got very interested in politics,” Ober said.

Ober said he has become more environmentally conscious during his stay in Austin and now feels more connected with local politics.

“Undergraduates are typically more dependent on their parents, so they don’t know how much local politics affect their lives,” Ober said.

Media hype sends conflicting messages about severity of swine flu

By Israel Perez Daily Texan Staff Constant news updates on swine flu — which the World Health Organization now refers to as the H1N1 virus — have left many wondering whether fears of an “imminent” global pandemic are rooted in truth or if the story has been overblown by

the media.

Many broadcast networks, Web sites and newspapers are guilty of over-hyping the situation, said associate journalism professor George Sylvie.

“My honest reaction is that [the news media is] trying to scare the hell out of people,” Sylvie said. “On the one hand,

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Permanent Staff

Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Leah Finnegan Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vikram Swaruup Associate Managing Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stephen Keller, Gabrielle Muñoz 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 Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Debbie Finley, Mary Kang, Nancy Rosenthal Sports Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Sameer Bhuchar, Ben Freed Life&Arts Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brad Barry Columnists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dan Treadway Page Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lynda Gonzales, Olivia Hinton Sports/Life&Arts Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nausheen Jivani Wire Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Julianne Coyne Copy Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Rachel Greene, Molly Nesbit, Doyin Oyeniyi Comics Artists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nam Nguyen, Ryan Hailey, Scott Miles, Katie Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Ryohei Yatsu, Josh Flanagan, Amelia Giller, Alex Diamond

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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they’re telling you there’s no need to panic, and on the other hand, they’re telling you to panic. That’s the mixed message we’re getting from the media.”

The situation isn’t only publicized in America. In London, the Metro, a free newspaper for subway commuters, began covering the story with the headline “Swine flu ‘could kill up to 120m’” above a picture of Mexican police wearing masks and carrying machine guns.

On 24-hour cable chan-

nels, anchors have filled their newscasts with stories of school closings and new potential cases of the virus. Sylvie said that’s to be expected because the media has a lot of time to fill during this time of year when the news cycle slows down.

“In slow days like in April or May, people are grasping to anything to sell a story. That’s the kind of media we have, in large part because they don’t have anything else to hype,” Sylvie said. “Paris Hilton isn’t in jail, and so they have to hype something.”

Sylvie concedes, however, that the information given by the news Same Price, Better Glasses & Service media is necessary to educate the public about the health risks of swine flu. But he cautions the

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media to use language more responsibly.

“Language is a double-edged sword,” Sylvie said. “It can be used to inform or to inflame.”

Associate journalism professor Maggie Rivas-Rodriguez said cable news pundits have made it seem as if the Mexican immigrant population is to blame for the spread of the flu.

“For some people, [the outbreak] becomes an opportunity for bashing immigrants,” RivasRodriguez said. “But it has the potential to become something very serious, so we need to pay more attention to health authorities — the ones who know how to contain it.”

The constant news about swine flu has tired so many people that a user on CNN’s ireport.com decided to make money out of the dissatisfaction by selling products ranging from T-shirts to thongs that read “F U H1N1” on CafePress, which provides its users with an online shop to sell their merchandise.

Sherry Bell, senior program coordinator for University Health Services, said she couldn’t say whether the media has over-hyped swine flu.

“There’s been a tremendous amount of coverage, but it has all been in the interest of protecting the public,” Bell said.

Business sophomore Jonathan Kaplan said he is disappointed in the way the news media has covered the story.

“It’s frustrating that most of the mainstream media seems to be telling us that the world is on the edge of a global pandemic, but the best advice they can give me is to wash my hands — as if I don’t do that already,” Kaplan said.

“It seems as if the media is using high levels of fear and apprehension simply to garner more ratings.”

“We are tracking all UT students in Mexico and telling them to take precautions and follow all instructions from the University.”

— Sherry Bell, senior program coordinator for health services “We have one of two students in Monterrey [who are] considering coming home,” Givens said. “We are tracking all UT students in Mexico and telling them to take precautions and follow all instructions from the University.”

The health center advocates hand washing, keeping one’s hands away from the face and throwing tissues away immediately after use.

“Based on data from the National College Health Assessment, we know that the No. 1 physical health reason that students report negative academic impact are colds, flus and sore throats,” Bell said. “This is not a very sexy thing, but it keeps students from feeling their best and performing well.”

It is also important for students to get good sleep and drink water, which keeps mucous membranes moist to fight off upper respiratory infections, she said.

“I know this advice sounds trite, but it can be more than helpful,” Bell said.

Senate: Bill

allows schools that institute tuition freeze to delay cap From page 1 variety of measures, including four-year freezes and a return to legislative control of tuition rates.

The bill contains an optional provision for a fouryear freeze; institutions that elect to freeze tuition for the length of a freshman’s four-year career would not be subject to the cap until 2010.

The bill also changes the language surrounding the 20 percent set-aside in tuition revenue dedicated to financial aid and “expresses the Legislature’s intent to develop a six-year plan for replacing with general revenue the 20 percent financial [aid] setaside for tuition increases over $6 per credit hour.”

Essentially, if the Legislature appropriates enough revenue to fund the amount, colleges will discontinue the provision but retain the option to continue it if the Legislature cannot provide the funds.

W/N P3

World&NatioN

Wire Editor: Julianne Coyne www.dailytexanonline.com

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Tuesday, May 5, 2009

T he Daily Texan

NATION BRIEFLY Rice tells fourth graders United States didn’t torture

Marko Drobnjakovic | Associated Press

A U.S. Army soldier belonging to Bandit Troop, 5th Squadron, 73rd Cavalry Regiment, briefs his Iraqi army colleagues while on patrol in east Baghdad on Friday. Iraq will not extend the June 30 deadline for U.S. troops to withdraw from urban areas despite concerns about a resurgence of violence in recent weeks, a spokesman said.

Iraq sets June 30 withdrawal date

By Robert H. Reid The Associated Press BAGHDAD — Iraq’s government Monday ruled out allowing U.S. combat troops to remain in Iraqi cities after the June 30 deadline for their withdrawal, despite concern that Iraqi forces cannot cope with the security challenge following a resurgence of bombings in recent weeks.

Asking U.S. forces to stay in the cities, including volatile Mosul in the north, would be embarrassing for Iraq’s prime minister, who has staked his political future on claims that the country has turned the corner in the war against Sunni and Shiite extremists.

The departure of heavily armed combat troops from bases inside the cities is important psychologically to many Iraqis, who are eager to regain control of their country after six years of war and U.S. military occupation.

U.S. officials played down the Iraqi decision, with Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman saying it’s up to the Iraqi government to request an extension of the U.S. presence in the cities and that “we intend to fully abide by” the terms of the security agreement.

The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, told

reporters Monday that violence had not risen to a level that would force a change in the withdrawal schedule.

Last month, however, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, Gen. Raymond Odierno, said he is worried that Iraqi forces won’t be ready to assume full responsibility for Mosul by the end of June.

Privately, some U.S. officers say they fear the Iraqis may lose control of Mosul within a few months after American forces pull out of Iraq’s third largest city, where alQaida and other Sunni militants remain active.

The U.S.-Iraq security agreement that took effect this year calls for American combat troops to leave urban areas by the end of June, with all U.S. forces out of the country by the end of 2011.

But a series of high-profile bombings has raised questions about whether Iraqi forces can assume more security responsibilities, especially in Mosul.

Nationwide, at least 451 people were killed in political violence last month, compared to 335 in March, 288 in February and 242 in January, according to an Associated Press tally.

Even in Baghdad, where violence is down sharply from

two years ago, attacks are continuing.

On Monday, two car bombs exploded almost simultaneously near the Oil Ministry and a police academy, killing at least three people and wounding eight.

Though those casualties were relatively low, the attack was significant because it occurred in a sensitive, well-guarded area in the heart of the Iraqi capital.

The security agreement allows Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to request an extension of the deadlines if he feels Iraqi forces need help. But the prime minister’s spokesman said the withdrawal deadlines, including the June 30 date, were “non-extendable.”

“These dates cannot be extended, and this is consistent with the transfer and handover of responsibility to Iraqi security forces,” spokesman Ali alDabbagh said in a statement.

Kurdish officials would prefer to keep U.S. troops in Mosul after the deadline.

“I have doubts about security and stability in Mosul,” said Kurdish politician Saadi Ahmed Pera. “Therefore, U.S forces should stay in Mosul until all the pending problems among political groups in the city are solved.”

But many other key Iraqi politicians, including the newly elected leadership in Mosul, oppose keeping U.S. combat troops in urban areas after the June deadline.

Al-Maliki, a Shiite, needs the support of the Sunni leadership in Mosul as he prepares for national elections by the end of the year.

The new governor of the Mosul area told The Associated Press on Monday that the departure of U.S. troops from the city will actually reduce violence, since much of it is directed at the Americans.

“A U.S. withdrawal will reduce the number of targets,” Gov. Atheel al-Nujaifi said.

WASHINGTON — Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told Jewish elementary school students that the Bush administration did not use illegal interrogation tactics.

Her remarks were in response to a question from Misha Lerner, a fourth-grader at the Jewish Primary Day School of the Nation’s Capital, The Washington Post reported Monday.

Rice spoke at the school Sunday before giving a lecture at the Sixth & I Historic Synagogue.

Lerner asked Rice what she thought about the Obama administration’s remarks on interrogation methods authorized by its predecessors.

Rice responded that she didn’t want to criticize President Barack Obama. But she also said that President George W. Bush assured his administration that “we would do nothing— nothing—that was against the law or against our obligations internationally.”

“I hope you understand that it was a very difficult time. We were all so terrified of another attack on the country,” she said.

“Even under those most difficult circumstances, the president was not prepared to do something illegal, and I hope people understand that we were trying to protect the country.”

81 unusual projects each awarded $100,000 by Gates SEATTLE — Can tomatoes be taught to make antiviral drugs for people who eat them?

Would zapping your skin with a laser make your vaccination work better? Could malariacarrying mosquitoes be given a teensy head cold that would prevent them from sniffing out a human snack bar?

These are among 81 projects awarded $100,000 grants Monday by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in a bid to sup-

port innovative, unconventional global health research.

The five-year health research grants are designed to encourage scientists to pursue bold ideas that could lead to breakthroughs, focusing on ways to prevent and treat infectious diseases, such as HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, pneumonia and diarrheal diseases.

The foundation said grant recipient Eric Lam at Rutgers University in New Jersey is exploring tomatoes as a antiviral drug delivery system.

Researchers at the University of Exeter in Devon, England, will seek to build an inexpensive instrument to diagnose malaria by using magnets.

Wall Street rally erases S&P 500 losses for 2009 NEW YORK — Another big rally on Wall Street has erased the losses suffered by the Standard & Poor’s 500 index this year.

The S&P 500, the market barometer preferred by professional investors, is now up 0.4 percent for 2009. Many investments like mutual funds either mirror or are measured against the index.

Gains in housing, financial and materials stocks pushed the S&P up 3.4 percent Monday. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 214 points but is still down 4 percent for the year.

Two new economic nuggets bolstered the case that the economy’s slide could be slowing and helped extend a two-month rally. Pending U.S. home sales increased more than expected to post their second straight monthly gain, while construction spending rose unexpectedly in March.

Jerry Webman, chief economist at Oppenheimer Funds Inc., said stocks are rallying because investors aren’t fearful as they were months ago that the economy is headed for the abyss.

Compiled from Associated Press reports

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4 Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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

T he Daily Texan

GALLERY

VIEwPOINT

Nonsensical care If a proposal that was pushed through the Texas Legislature last week becomes law, Texas could reduce its number of uninsured children by 338,000, down from the current dismal 1.5 million. Twenty-two percent of the state’s children are uninsured, leaving Texas with the most uninsured children in terms of both number and percentage of population.

The bill would extend the Children’s Health Insurance Program and Medicaid benefits. Families currently earning more than $44,100, the ceiling to receive CHIP benefits, would be allowed to buy into the program, and Medicaid restrictions that only allow children to receive coverage for six months at a time before having to reapply would extend that time to a full year.

The change would be funded by Medicaid money the state is expected to receive from the stimulus package. It would also only be a two-year provision.

It’s about time. This is a state that supposedly holds the family in high esteem, but what better way to tear a family apart than to allow its children to suffer?

Because it will track income only in yearly increments, critics allege the new Medicaid system will be inaccurate and could cover too many children. Imagine — too many insured children.

Families can currently make up to $22,050 — just above the poverty line —and still qualify for children’s Medicaid.

This threshold is already sickeningly low. If in the course of a year a family stumbles upon a few extra thousand dollars of income, there is no reason they should be denied a few extra months’ insurance. Furthermore, paperwork costs associated with processing six-month applications will be cut in half, saving the state thousands of dollars.

Other critics say the programs will raise the cost of private insurance.

Medical insurance in this country is a mess. Anyone who doesn’t have a full-time, salaried job is forced to pay exorbitant premiums for private insurance. Often, these private insurers, because they can use as much discretion as they please when assessing potential customers, bar most customers from their plans, regardless of how much they are willing to pay. A “pre-existing health condition” as routine as mild asthma can be cause for denial.

It simply isn’t right that lower-middle to upper-middle-class families are denied health care. It’s even more disturbing that the children of these families are denied, too. While we applaud Texas for moving in the right direction, this isn’t enough.

The long-term welfare of our state’s children should be the Legislature’s focus, not the short-term impact.

Also, the Legislature should focus on enrolling those children now eligible for benefits. The state estimates that right now 700,000 children are eligible for either CHIP or Medicaid but do not receive coverage under either plan. Reaching out to the parents of those children to inform them of their privileges is a vital step toward increasing enrollment numbers.

— Abby Terrell for the editorial board

HORNS UP, HORNS dOwN

A victory for Zaffirini Yesterday, the state Senate unanimously approved a bill that would limit the ability of a public university to increase tuition. This is great news for students at the University, who pay an average of $4,000 per semester. And whether you think regulation belongs in the hands of the UT regents or our elected representatives, measures to prevent sharp tuition hikes should be applauded. Though Senate Bill 1443 will not completely prohibit tuition hikes, it would make them more difficult. The author of the bill, Sen. Judith Zaffirini, D-Laredo, hopes the legislation will pressure the Legislature to keep tuition low by funding higher education appropriately. The proposed bill now moves to the House.

An open letter to this year’s graduates nalists in North Korea are punishable by imprisonment. So future journalists, while you may be depressed about covering Congratulations on reaching this tremendous milestone in Apple festivals in Wyoming for your first couple of years out your life. You’ve traveled a long road to get here, but your hard of school, know that it could be worse — you could have to work has resulted in a valuable degree from an esteemed uniwrite about Kim Jong-Il’s golf skills. versity. Though this is supposed to be a joyous day, the mere If the reasons above aren’t enough to make you celebrate, mention of the word “graduation” over the past few months consider that just last March, an asteroid narrowly avoided hithas conjured up words like “unemployment” and “doom.” Entering the job market now can seem like a depressing prospect ting Earth. The asteroid missed the planet by only 66,000 kilofor the many of you who have been planning on it. You’ve like- meters (the moon is only 384,000 kilometers away). If it had ly been feeling terrified about your initial foray into the real made contact in the ocean, it would have caused a tsunami that would have submerged entire cities. But the safe passage of the world. fiery, fateful rock is just one more reason to My respectful advice to you is to keep your have another drink at your graduation party. chin up, because you have plenty of chips in Class of 2009, get excited. You are entering your favor. an unsettled world at a very important time in In reality, you have While you may lament the waitlisted classhistory, and you’re doing so with a top-notch es that have forced you to extend your stay absolutely nothing to education that gives you an understanding of in college and write an even bigger check to worry about. Except how everything around you is evolving. the University, at least you earned with your the swine flu.

You’re going to have the opportunity to piece of paper faster than Kenneth Shepherd, tell your children that you worked like hell the 95-year-old who received his engineerand made it through this great economic criing degree from the University of Missouri sis that they will likely study one day. You’ll last spring. Shepherd arrived at Mizzou in 1932, but dropped out in 1937 after failing the same speech be able to tell them about how you had the privilege of watchclass three times. Seventy-odd years later, his daughter had the ing the first minority president get elected. And you’ll be able school review his transcript, and the school discovered that be- to beam with pride as you tell them that you were old enough cause the speech course was no longer required, Shepherd’s to remember watching Bob Barker’s final show as the host of 120 credit hours were enough to grant him a degree.

“The Price is Right.”

Some graduates may declare that the collapse of the newspaPerhaps you’d be well served to take Eric Idle’s advice when per industry has rendered the journalism degree that they’ve he sang, “If life seems jolly rotten, there’s something you’ve worked so hard to attain unmarketable. Take solace in the fact forgotten, and that’s to laugh and smile and dance and sing.” that despite the decline of newspapers, there still is, and alSo graduating class, celebrate this day, because in reality, you ways will be, a market in this country for free thought, which have absolutely nothing to worry about. Except the swine flu. is not the case in countries like North Korea. Every journalist in North Korea is required to be a member of the WorkSincerely, ers Party of Korea and serve as nothing more than a governDan Treadway ment mouthpiece. Take a moment to appreciate the miracle of spellcheck, as even the smallest typographical errors by jourTreadway is a political communications junior.

To the University of Texas class of 2009,

THE FIRING LINE Cinco de Mayo We give Cinco de Mayo, the most raucous of all the ethnically centered holidays, a horns up. Even though the government allocates just one day a year to celebrating a culture that in Texas accounts for almost 40 percent of the population, a good day it is. The 21st Street Co-op hosts its annual, somewhat-naked Cinco de Mayo party in honor of the holiday, and if nothing else, it’s an excuse to drink good imported beer and eat chips and salsa. As if we don’t already do that every day.

UT System Board of Regents According to a recent report in the Houston Chroncile, Gov. Rick Perry has receieved approximately $5 million in contributions from people he has appointed to powerful government positions in the last nine years. Nearly $850,000 came from the UT System Board of Regents, and many donated large sums in the immediate aftermath of their appointments.

We praise Perry and the Regents for acting completely transparently and driving home the fact that power in the UT System is based on the depth of one’s pocketbook. We hope that one day, we too will be wealthy enough to purchase ourselves some high-ranking titles. But with the economy the way it is, perhaps Perry could offer a two-for-one deal?

Brewster Nation A quasi-political action committee called Brewster Nation has been distributing leaflets around Austin claiming that mayoral candidate Lee Leffingwell plans to charge for metered parking downtown on nights and weekends if elected. The group, which is comprised of “private citizens who support [mayoral candidate Brewster] McCracken and a more creative and productive Austin,” according to the leaflet, is anonymous and its Web site is no longer active.

With four days left until City Council elections, Brewster Nation’s last-ditch effort to bolster its candidate is nothing more than an insipid smear campaign. Leffingwell has never said that he would begin charging for parking on nights and weekends, he merely stated that he might consider such a proposition.

We respect and enjoy a good, healthy fight for an elected position, but Brewster Nation is, at best, a dishonest, last-ditch attempt to gain ground in a competitive election.

SG historically overfunded, irrelevant While on campus for the first time in many years, I picked up a copy of The Daily Texan and read with great sorrow how much money is spent on Student Government.

Back in the early ’80s, there was no Student Government at UT. Things worked great. Tuition ran around $300 for 16-hour courseload.

Then some really brilliant folks decided that UT should have student government. I believe, although he will surely deny it now, it was Mark McKinnon, the same guy who helped get George W. Bush elected, and some of his buddies.

Anyway, no one wanted SG, but McKinnon and/or his buddies ran a cartoon character for president. The cartoon won, of course, and there should not have been a SG, but the clever guys, same type of guys behind default credit swaps, invoked some procedural rule that said a cartoon character could not win and as a result UT now has a SG with $130,000 a year budget and well ... you know how much you now pay for tuition.

UT’s SG was founded as a scam and still appears to be one. Get rid of it and you all might save yourselves some dough and keep some creepy folks from using it to advance their careers.

Mike Stinson UT alum

peace, as much as others refuse to believe it, and I wanted to combat the radicalism and divisiveness that has ruined other attempts at peace.

I did not join Texans for Israel to spend my time protesting or countering protests. I joined Texans for Israel to work toward peace for my people and the land I love. I realize the only way my goal will come to fruition is if members of the Palestine Solidarity share the same goal.

If the Palestine Solidarity Committee wants to debate, let’s debate.

Let’s debate how to combat the ignorance we share about each other’s cultures and how to bring lasting peace to the Middle East. But, if all it wants is to continue the senseless argument about who is the greater evil, it will have to do it alone; Texans for Israel has much greater goals.

Harold Fisch Cultural Chair of Texans for Israel

In defense of high fructose corn syrup We read the April 28 article “Local tea company makes a sweet deal” with interest. There is a lot of confusion about high fructose corn syrup.

We would like to provide you with science-based information for future articles.

There is no nutritional benefit gained by replacing high fructose corn syrup with another caloric sweetener. High fructose corn syrup is a natural sweetener made from corn. It is functionally superior to sugar, equally sweet, has the same number of calories and is handled similarly by the body.

Audrae Erickson Corn Refiners Association president

working for peace, not conflict I recently received an e-mail from the Palestinian Solidarity Committee regarding Norman Finkelstein, a speaker they hosted.

Included was the following statement: “The Palestine Solidarity Committee was originally planning for this event to include an opposing perspective represented by another speaker. However, the pro-Israel supporters on campus were not interested in participating ... we look forward to organizing a debate for the University community in the future.”

This line is only half true. As a board member of Texans for Israel, I approached the committee to plan a joint event. After we agreed to work on a joint event, the content became an issue. We suggested a joint philanthropy or another smaller project. However, the committee insisted that their priority was a large debate. Debates generally do not bring people together; they polarize communities, the exact opposite of our goals. Due to these concerns, we decided not to co-sponsor a debate.

Since Finkelstein’s speech and his anti-Israel rhetoric, I have received many “I told you so” looks from friends. Perhaps my naivete led me here, or perhaps my intentions were simply unclear.

I did not reach out to the committee because I wanted to challenge their beliefs. I reached out to them because Texans for Israel desires

LEGALESE

SUBMIT A FIRING LINE

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.

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.

OTHER NEwS

SUBMIT A COLUMN

The last print date of The Daily Texan for the spring semester will be May 13. Tryouts for the summer term start June 3. The Texan will be relocating its offices this summer to Walter Web Hall at 2500 Guadalupe Street.

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.

UNIV P5

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News

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

NEWS BRIEFLY Scientists discuss health care at technology symposium

Mary Kang | Daily Texan Staff

At the Capitol on Monday morning, state Rep. Joe Farias and Chris Turner discuss a bill proposed by state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte that would use a lottery game to provide financial assistance to veterans.

Bill aims to supply veterans fund via lottery

By Lena Price Daily Texan Staff State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, has authored a bill that would create a lottery scratch-off game to provide more money for veterans.

All proceeds from the game would go to the Permanent Fund for Veterans Assistance.

The fund provides aid to veterans and their families as well as to local veterans organizations.

The Legislative Budget Board estimated that the game could generate up to $8 million per year.

A joint bill to do this made it out of a House committee and is awaiting debate on the House floor. State Rep. Chris Turner, DBurleson, authored the House bill.

“This bill will fulfill a promise that was made to our veterans in the last legislative session,” Turner said. “This bill will provide a reliable source of revenue for the fund that was established by the 80th Legislature but left without a funding source.”

Since its inception in 2007, the fund has only received $11,000 from the state.

Van de Putte’s bill has received unanimous support from dozens of state and local veterans organizations.

“Our veterans need assistance, and they don’t normally turn to all the nonprofit organizations in our communities,” Van de Putte said.

“But they will turn to another veteran.”

“If we can get this lottery ticket established, it would go a long way toward helping the service organizations assist all veterans in need.”

— Roy Grona, Texas Veterans of Foreign Wars representative Roy Grona, a representative of the Texas Veterans of Foreign Wars, said that in the current economic climate it is more important than ever to make sure veterans’ assistance funds do not dry up.

“Most of the veterans’ assistance organizations deal primarily with the active duty military,” Grona said. “A lot of the time there are Vietnam veterans, or even Korean veterans,

UTPD begins preventive push against thefts in cars Police distribute fliers warning students to not leave items in plain sight

By Lena Price Daily Texan Staff As the end of the semester approaches and more students store personal belongings in their cars, the number of auto burglaries around campus will increase, said UTPD officers.

To reduce the number of thefts, officers will begin posting fliers on the vehicles of students who leave backpacks, iPods or other objects that thieves might target in plain sight.

“Some students are getting ready to go home for the summer, so they utilize their vehicles as a storage unit,” said UTPD officer Darrell Halstead. “The fliers will just be letting students know, ‘Hey, if I can see it, so can the thieves.’”

Officers have posted warning notices for almost two years. Information about what students can do to discourage thieves from breaking into their vehicles is printed on the back of the fliers.

“The first year we did this, we had a lot of students take it to heart,” Halstead said.

“They took our suggestion and started storing things in their trunks, or better yet, in their rooms.”

Last year, 634 thefts occurred on the UT campus. In 247 of the cases, the items stolen were valued at more than $200, according to UTPD’s Web site.

Marketing and radio-television-film senior Marshall Rimmer’s car has been broken into twice. The first time,

thieves took several CDs. At the beginning of this semester, they stole a GPS device that was left in plain sight.

Rimmer said a flier probably wouldn’t convince him not to leave his belongings in the open.

“A friend telling me that they had been broken into would have had the same effect,” Rimmer said. “However, I’m not

sure if the effect would have been persuasive enough to make me actually take it into consideration.”

In order to prevent thefts, Halstead said students should keep the inside of their cars clean to deter thieves.

“Things like CDs, pocket change and adapters are all things that attract thieves to cars,” Halstead said.

who are left out of the picture.

If we can get this lottery ticket established, it would go a long way toward helping the service organizations assist all veterans in need.”

Money from the fund would provide help for veterans like Jim Cook, who served in the Vietnam War and returned home with an injury. Cook built a home and business, but both burned down in a wildfire earlier this year.

“My business is coming back, and I’m building a new home,” Cook said. “But I could not have done it without the generosity of these people.”

Van de Putte said she has seen some opposition to the bill in the Senate from legislators who think the scratch-off might expand gambling or erode the original purpose of the state lottery.

“Nothing could be further from the truth,” Van de Putte said. “Studies have shown that states that have enacted this have not had any loss of funds to the original purpose to which their lottery was enacted. We are confident that the original purpose, the Permanent School Fund, would be kept whole.”

Scientists and researchers shared clinical techniques and ideas about health care Monday at the Hyatt Regency Austin hotel during the sixth annual Planet xMAP USA Multiplexing Symposium.

“The goal of Planet xMAP is to bring together leading scientists and researchers from around the world who are performing groundbreaking work in clinical diagnostics and life science research using Luminex’s xMAP multiplexing technology platform,” said Darin Leigh, vice president of sales and marketing at Luminex Corporation.

Leigh said this year’s three-day symposium would include keynote speakers, workshops and discussion groups. The symposium covers technology and how it will improve medical services.

On Monday morning, Dr. Mark McClellan, former administrator for Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, gave a presentation on the future of health care.

A special session will be held Wednesday to discuss the swine flu outbreak. Doctors have been using Luminex’s respiratory viral test to monitor the outbreak.

Luminex is an Austin-based corporation that makes and sells biological testing technologies.

“Our instruments and tests can be found in labs around the world, helping to advance scientific research and assisting in diagnosing conditions from respiratory viral infections to cystic fibrosis,” Leigh said.

— Israel Perez

Thousands of bees swarm men, dogs in San Antonio SAN ANTONIO — A group of men and dogs was stung by thousands of bees from a nearly 30-square-foot hive on Monday but no one had to be hospitalized, city officials said.

The San Antonio Fire Department and the city’s Vector Control responded around 4 p.m. after getting a call about the bees at a home.

Chris Boubel with Vector Control said usually property owners need to take care of extermination issues on their own but because the bees were attacking people and animals, city officials killed the bees and destroyed the hive.

— The Associated Press

Recycle your copy of The Daily Texan

Registration for ACC’s summer classes is open May 4–27. Apply now.

Don’t forget to check online for new fall registration dates.

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SportS

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Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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

T he Daily Texan

Title IX forces change in number of walk-ons Editor’s note: This is the third and final story in a series on Title IX and its effects on athletics at Texas.

By Ben Freed Daily Texan Staff Opportunities for women to “walk on” to sports teams used to be rare.

Thanks to an initiative mandated after a 1992 lawsuit against UT for failure to comply with Title IX, more walk-on spots have been opened up to female athletes. Because of that, some female coaches recruit walk-ons on campus.

“People find out about rowing in a variety of ways,” said novice boat captain Audrey Ullman. “I came to tryouts myself, but [varsity rowing coach] Carrie Graves walks around campus picking girls

nBA

Lakers, Cavs still favorites to compete in NBA finals

By Sameer Bhuchar Daily Texan Staff The outcome of the first round of the NBA playoffs may have been expected, but the way some of the teams advanced was not.

Houston broke a hex, Dallas stunned a powerhouse, and an unlikely Chicago team treated its fans to one of the greatest playoff series of all time against the defending champion Celtics. And that’s only half of the story.

Aside from the Cavaliers versus Pistons series, no one could have predicted the way some of these series were played. Such is the nature of the NBA playoffs.

After two weeks of frenzy, the second-round brackets have been set, and all of the matchups are once again difficult to gauge.

In the Western Conference, the must-see matchup includes the fifthseed Rockets versus the No. 1 Lakers. The Rockets ended their firstround curse, which has kept them out of the second round of the playoffs since 1997.

For Houston fans, there is one key number that should worry you: four. As in the four times that the Rockets and Lakers played this year, as in the four times the Rockets lost to the Lakers, and as in the number of wins the Lakers need to advance to the next round.

After Monday night’s win, the Rockets know they have all the weapons they need in Ron Artest, Shane Battier and Yao Ming; they just need to play with consistency.

The biggest advantage the Lakers have is Kobe Bryant, last year’s MVP. The All-Star shooting guard dominated the Rockets during every matchup this season. Battier, one of the Rockets who will try to stop Bryant, knows the task he faces.

“In my book, [Bryant] is the MVP. He’s going to be coming at Ron [Artest] and myself,” Battier said after the Rockets beat Portland.

Artest said he has less to worry about with Bryant than he did with Brandon Roy, the Trail Blazer’s young guard. He even credited Roy with being the best he has ever

NBA continues on page 7

SPORTS BRIEFLY Men’s golf team nets No. 4 seed, will host NCAA regional tourney The Longhorn men’s golf team received a No. 4 seed and will host one of six NCAA regional tournaments May 14-16 at the University of Texas Golf Club.

Stanford received the top seed in the regional, while Florida and Texas Tech are also seeded ahead of the Longhorns. Thirteen teams will compete for the chance to play at the national championship tournament May 26-30 at the Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. The top five teams and the top five individuals to finish in Austin will advance to Toledo.

Tee time is set for 8:30 a.m. on May 14. The event is free of charge and open to the public.

— Will Anderson

out and chasing them down.”

Filling roster spots is one of the few problems still facing Title IX in the 21st century. But the minor problems don’t outweigh the many positives.

Thanks to increased funding and more emphasis on women’s sports, college programs in America have produced some of the top female athletes of all time. Women’s teams have been especially proficient at UT: The Longhorns have the fifth-most NCAA women’s team championships of any school in America, despite fielding only 11 varsity women’s teams, tying for the lowest number of teams out of the nine schools with the most championships.

Texas also avoids the common

misconception that Title IX hurts men’s athletics programs. There has never been a men’s varsity sport cut at UT to comply with Title IX. The increased number of walkons in women’s athletics has been coupled with a decrease in the number of walk-ons allowed in men’s sports, specifically football.

Many in the athletics establishment resisted this decision.

Norma Cantu, a professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs, sat on the committee that heard the arguments against the implementation of Title IX in 1972.

“They brought a lot of former football walk-ons in to talk to the committee, and Norma was very impressed by all the neat things

that they had learned from being walk-ons,” said women’s athletics director Chris Plonsky. “How to work hard, how to discipline themselves, how to communicate, how to fight through adversity. Finally, Norma just said, ‘I get it. I get that it’s an amazing experience.

I just want the girls to have that experience, too.’”

This emphasis on attracting women who might not have been involved otherwise to varsity sports has led to incredible experiences for many on campus.

“I’ve learned about a new kind of commitment, how to never give up no matter how hard it gets,” Ullman said. “Coach Graves likes to

WALK-ON continues on page 7

Brian Ray | Daily Texan file photo

Rowing head coach carrie Graves has benefited from increased walk-ons, while walk-ons for some men’s sports have decreased.

She’s back for another go

FootBAll column By colby White Daily Texan Columnist

House subcommittee addresses BCS, provides plenty of laughs in the process

May-Ling Lam | Daily Texan Staff

Senior Earnesia Williams makes a fast-break layup against texas tech on Feb. 8. Williams said she will return to the team next season, adding depth and experience to a shallow frontcourt.

Williams to use last year of eligibility to change legacy

By Will Anderson Daily Texan Staff Earnesia Williams hasn’t had enough.

The Longhorns’ starting forward, who said she was leaving the team after graduating with one extra year of eligibility, changed her mind, stating Monday that she will return for another season with Texas. Williams is coming back because she wasn’t satisfied with the way her season ended — a 71-63 loss to Mississippi State in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

“I felt like I wanted to do more in my college career,” Williams said. “I have an extra year — why not use it and see what comes out of it?”

Williams averaged 6.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game in 2009 and was a pivotal part of the team’s success, said head coach Gail Goestenkors, who refers to the 6-foot-1-inch forward as a “warrior.”

“She sets the tone for us with her passion and energy,” Goestenkors said. “I admire all that Earnie gives us on and off the court.”

But some think that Williams, who was a McDonalds All-American heading into UT, has not lived up to expectations following a knee injury in 2005.

“My goal is to win a Big 12 tournament. I really want that ring.”

— Earnesia Williams, forward “She is all business and approaches her class work, her training and her game preparation with seriousness and care,” Goestenkors said. “It’s unfortunate … that the fans and opponents cannot see all those All-America-like skills and explosiveness Earnesia possesses, since she is limited a bit due to her chronic knee issues.

I just love her approach and dedication.”

Williams arrived at UT in 2005 as part of a lauded draft class.

Williams is a senior academically but was granted another year of athletic eligibility by the NCAA because of her knee injury, which sidelined her for much of her freshman year.

That injury happened during the first start of Williams’ Longhorn career against then-No. 1 Duke on Dec. 4, 2005. With less than five minutes to go in the game, Williams took the ball on a fast-break layup but misplanted her right foot near the basket.

She fell to the ground clutching

her knee, an experience she describes as “devastating.”

“I knew it right then,” Williams said. “I didn’t want to think about it, I wanted to hope for the best, but I knew something wasn’t right.”

After the game, it was confirmed that Williams had torn her right ACL. It was the second time in her career, a fact that made it that much harder for Williams to recover.

Jody Conradt, Texas’ head coach at the time, called the injury “disappointing and very difficult for all of us.”

Williams bounced back after undergoing surgery in January 2006, starting 30 games the following year. Mobility issues limited her rebounding, but the Sapulpa, Okla., native still finished second in scoring on the team.

Since then, Williams has become a staple of the Longhorns’ inside game, and with her penchant for

WILLIAMS continues on page 7

Rep. Joe Barton is smarter than all of us.

As the economy continues to dwindle, swine flu hype sweeps the country, causing more panic than damage, and U.S. troops continue to fight wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Barton knows how to see through the fluff and focus on what we really need to be worried about.

And what is the magical issue? The BCS, of course.

Barton, R-Arlington/Ennis, and the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection let us know where their priorities lie Friday, pushing aside the many concerns of the day in order to grill four college football representatives on the madness that is their championship — and provide a few laughs in the process.

Barton, who is currently pushing a bill to address the situation, took the opportunity to use taxpayer time and crack some jokes. Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, decided to ask his questions while posed next to a University of Houston helmet in tribute to his alma mater, something any good comedian wouldn’t let go.

“Mr. Chairman, that violates House rules, but I’m not going to object,” Barton joked.

The laughs and silliness didn’t stop there.

Rep. Bobby Rush, D-Ill., the chair of the subcommittee, said BCS coordinator John Swofford is the commissioner of the “Athletic” Coast Conference (as opposed to the “Atlantic” Coast Conference) and then said Craig Thompson is the West Mountain Conference commissioner (it’s normally referred to as the Mountain West Conference).

Some of the best jokes, however, were accidents — or foolishness.

Not to be outdone, Barton suggested college football mimic its basketball counterpart.

“You could have a playoff system with 64 teams, and use every bowl that’s currently in there,” Barton said.

The idea of having a 64-team playoff is so laughable, even Alamo Bowl CEO Derrick Fox had to get in a punch line.

“We’d still be playing,” Fox joked.

Then there was the comical sound clip of Barton resorting to Red Scare tactics.

“It’s like communism,” Barton said. “You can’t fix it.”

The BCS gives the major conferences automatic bids in addition to the money that goes with them. Meanwhile, the mid-major conferences are left out like the poor. The rich get richer. Sounds like capitalism to me.

While Barton continues his role as the college football buffoon — in similar hearings back in 2005, Barton asked why the Big Ten conference had 11 teams — all we can do is laugh.

Barton didn’t know that when the BCS made its national championship game a separate event from the other four bowls for the 2006 season, it actually added two spots for teams to get access. No congressman present appeared to understand that the 11 major conferences are in the BCS but can pull out whenever they want.

And we laughed each time.

Barton’s bill would prevent the BCS from calling its title game a national championship unless it comes via playoff. The American Football Coaches Association would still be able to give a trophy to whomever they choose, and The Associated Press would still name a champion based on its own poll, making the bill virtually pointless — so pointless that it’s kind of funny.

That’s where Barton’s genius comes out. Forget actually solving any problems. That’s too hard.

Just fill a room with uninformed clowns and crack a few jokes. If the U.S. public is too busy laughing at — not with — its representatives, it can’t criticize them for not having any solutions. Even the fans like me

BCS continues on page 7

Sarah Walsh | Associated Press

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Arlington/Ennis, right, delivers his opening remarks during a House subcommittee hearing on the Bowl championship Series.

CLASS/SPTS P7

nba: Prospects high for Orlando team

taking on reigning champions Boston From page 6 played against.

Seasoned veteran Derek Fisher runs the show for the Lakers, while young guards Aaron Brooks and Kyle Lowry share duties for the Rockets. If the Rockets want to win this series, Brooks will have to be almost flawless in his fourth-quarter play, as he has been known to be a streaky shooter and a turnoverprone guard in pressure situations.

The other side of the country holds the Eastern Conference’s most interesting contest, as the second-seeded Boston Celtics face the No. 3 Orlando Magic. The Celtics just came off of a tiring, overtimeladen series against the Bulls that many did not expect. They are also playing without the heart of their team, Kevin Garnett, which make the Magic a favorite in the series.

The Magic’s weapon of choice is “Superman,” also known as Dwight Howard, the young center who gets his name because he lives above the rim. Without Garnett in the middle to help defend “Superman,” the Magic have a real opportunity to control the series.

NBA analyst and former player Charles Barkley agrees with this sentiment.

“They have Dwight Howard.

Dwight Howard is the most athletic big guy in the league,” Charles said emphatically as he argued with co-host Kenny Smith.

While many like Barkley have concluded this series in favor of the Magic, it may be tighter than they think. The Celtics failed to take advantage of their home-court advantage Monday night but will have to do so all series to contend. As Rudy Tomjanovich once stated, “Never underestimate the heart of a champion,” and if the reigning champs want it bad enough, they just may get it.

The other two series include the second-seeded Nuggets against the

From page 6 say ‘pull till you pass out,’ and I’ve learned to live by that.”

The participants, at least the novice rowers, do not ignore the opportunity offered to them.

“We talk about it every day,” Ullman said. “And before every race, we read from a book about Coach [Graves], and we talk about how lucky we are to be able to compete.”

At this year’s women’s athletics banquet, more than 200 female athletes were honored, in-

cluding stars like national high jump champion Destinee Hooker and Big 12 Swimmer of the Year Kathleen Hersey. All owed their experiences to three generations of women before them who fought for equal rights and representation.

There are still minor discrepancies in funding, and the rising rate of female enrollment at UT is threatening to again upset the “proportionality” of male to female student athletes that Title IX requires.

That hasn’t affected the

From page 6 hustle plays, it’s become a common sight to witness her No. 00 flashing through groups of players to grab a loose ball or deflect a pass.

She especially excelled down the stretch in 2009, averaging 14 points through the teams’ three post-season contests.

“I tried to pick up my game at the end [of the season] and be more productive for my team,” Williams said. “I was scoring a little more.”

Williams is optimistic about this summer and the coming season and is able to focus on conditioning and training instead of just rehab.

“This will be the first summer I’ll really be able to train hard,” Williams said. “I want to be able to rest my knees, but I will be staying busy.”

Williams will be a welcomed return. With the departures of Aubry Cook and Ashley Lindsey, Williams joins freshman Ashley Gayle as the only forward with significant playing time. Texas will also have help from junior Kristen Nash and recruit Cokie Reed. Reed, despite being a consensus topfive high school prospect, is half of UT’s 2009 recruiting class — a fact that will not be lost on the Horns.

Still, Williams contends that Texas has more than a fight-

seventh-seeded Mavericks and the No. 1 in the East, the Cleveland Cavaliers, versus fourth-seeded Atlanta. If anything, these series may be the easiest to predict.

The Nuggets are too potent of an offense for Dallas. Chauncey Billups, one of Denver’s leading scorers, only had six points in game one, but Denver still won 109-95.

The Hawks, like the Mavericks,

also face an uphill battle. Atlanta will have to contain 2009 MVP Lebron James if they want to pull off one of the biggest upsets in NBA history.

The NBA has been driving the mantra into our heads for the past few months, but maybe there’s some truth behind the 1 idea that the playoffs are “where amazing happens.”

on l y

ing chance in 2010 and much of that is due to Williams’ own tenacity.

“My goal is to win a Big 12 tournament,” Williams said, a feat the team hasn’t accomplished since 2004. “I really want that ring.”

Williams, who is set to graduate with a degree in education this May, plans to begin work on a master’s in kinesiology in the fall. She hopes her legacy will be that of someone who gave it all for her teammates.

“That could have been my senior season,” Williams said. “I didn’t like how it ended. I want to be able to say that I did what I came to do.”

bCs: Government sidestepping bigger concerns From page 6 who actually want a playoff system will be left with nothing to say.

And the final joke is on us.

We had to come to grips with the fact that this representative is more comedian than congress-

man. You got us again, Barton.

For an extra dose of misdirection, and what was surely a calculated attempt at a sound bite, Barton made the pun every headline writer has made over the past few years, saying the BCS should take the “C” out of its name.

CLASSIFIEDS

E! FRE

women’s athletics department, though: Texas has again established itself as a national standard that other universities measure themselves against.

This past year the women’s athletics department boasted 26 All-Americans, two Big 12 conference championships and three top-five national finishes.

Nearly every varsity team finished in the top 25 nationally in its respective sport.

“We’re better than we’ve ever been,” Plonsky said. “And we’re still building.”

Jack Dempsey | Associated Press

Mavericks forward Dirk Nowitzki sits on the bench late in the fourth quarter of the Denver Nuggets’ 109-95 victory on Sunday.

THE DAILY TEXAN

uns ad irne for onl ad s

Walk-on: Law forces a shift in men’s programs

Williams: Senior will be essential to team’s game

Classifieds

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Tuesday, May 5, 2009

“Call it the ‘BS’ system,” Barton said.

The remark only got light laughter from those in attendance. He might have received more of a response had he not fumbled the joke’s delivery.

Maybe he should stick to his day job — or lack thereof.

3B

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The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation 500 Seventh Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10018 For Information Call: 1-800-972-3550 For Release Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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Puzzle by Allan E. Parrish

33 City in New York’s Mohawk Valley 34 “Frost/___,�

2008 nominee for Best Picture 35 Listerine target 39 Tubular pasta 41 Yawn inducer 42 Melville’s obsessed whaler

43 Driving force 44 Deutschland denial 49 Bottom-of-thebarrel stuff 50 Great blue expanse 51 River of Rome 52 Author Jong

53 Is in the market for 55 Like most car radios 56 Oliver Twist’s request 57 ___ Cruces, N.M. 58 Handful for a baby sitter 59 Itinerary word

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

Annual subscriptions are available for the best of Sunday crosswords from the last 50 years: 1-888-7-ACROSS. AT&T users: Text NYTX to 386 to download puzzles, or visit nytimes.com/mobilexword for more information.

Online subscriptions: Today’s puzzle and more than 2,000 past puzzles, nytimes.com/crosswords ($39.95 a year).

Share tips: nytimes.com/wordplay.

Crosswords for young solvers: nytimes.com/learning/xwords.

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ENT P9

Quartet bonds over booze, beats

CD: Cover album could ‘breed hate’ From page 10

By Mary Lingwall Daily Texan Staff Between the popular extremes of indie music — where reverb-heavy garage rock reigns supreme — at one end and electro-pop dominates the other, a wide void has emerged where post-punk bands like Joy Division and The Libertines used to be. Over the past year and a half, Austin’s Wine and Revolution has forged its own unique niche in the city’s indie scene by reviving the oft-overlooked post-punk aesthetic.

But it’s not to say that Wine and Revolution’s music is predictable or passe. By combining a punk foundation with elements from rockabilly, garage and mid-’60s mod rock, Wine and Revolution adeptly evades classification as retro.

Wine and Revolution was born more out of jam sessions between friends than an organized effort to form a band.

When future band members Ian Graham, Robert Baldwin, John Fulcher and Jason Sullivan were casually drawn together by shared interests in skateboarding, punk and metal music and various other “recreational activities,” none of them knew that within months they would become one of the most buzz-worthy emerging bands in Austin.

“We just started jamming together a little over a year ago,”

Hatebreed For the Lions

al bands, with growling vocals, wall-of-sound song structures and enough distortion to make James Hetfield cry. The reference fits, especially considering one of the songs Hatebreed covers is “Escape” from Metallica’s Ride the Lightning. Overall, these are the kinds of tunes the band covers throughout the entire album, from Misfits and Sepultura to Agnostic Front and Slayer.

That’s why Lions fails. The band takes no artistic leaps, and simply recreates songs we’ve all heard before.If Hatebreed really wanted to try the cover album route — which it simply shouldn’t have done in the first place — it would have been prudent to take a cue from Between the Buried and Me and branch out just a bit from its normal sound. Doing Evanescence’s “Bring Me To Life” would totally be ballsy and unexpected. Instead, Hatebreed created a generic disc that will no doubt breed hate.

— Robert Rich

WHAT: Wine and Revolution with Smoke and Feathers WHERE: Club DeVille WHEN: May 15

Courtesy of Wine and Revolution

Austin-based post-punk band Wine and Revolution will likely expand its fan base during a Midwest tour this summer. said bassist Baldwin. “We’re like this baby band, but we’ve forced ourselves to get comfortable by playing show after show after show.”

Wine and Revolution’s debut EP, Edward the Magnificent, definitely showcases the ease and comfort with which these musicians operate. Defined by catchy riffs, a superb attention to detail and smart lyrics, Edward the Magnificent does not sound like the work of relative newcomers. But the maturation of the band’s talent hasn’t been easy. “[In the studio] we had to dissect everything, and that’s a pretty quick way to realize what works and what doesn’t,” Bald-

win said.

“Yeah, and you realize what sucks!” laughed lead singer Graham. “But maturity definitely comes with listening to your own stuff over and over again … we’re still changing even now.”

The band’s first show in Austin was equally indicative of Wine and Revolution’s fastpaced coming-of-age story. The band opened for one of 101X’s “Homegrown Live” showcases in front of about 100 guests — a rare debut experience for any unsigned band.

“It was a surprisingly good show,” Graham said. “All of the people there were really supportive, and we got a lot more

shows from it.”

As persistent at performing as Wine and Revolution is, the band’s notoriety comes not from its mere presence but rather from the originality of the music it creates.

Graham constructs lyrics that are not only emotionally accessible but are also carefully crafted poetic verses. Allusions and vivid imagery pervade Wine and Revolution’s work, but the literary astuteness doesn’t weigh the music down with pretension. At its heart, Edward is an album about free spirits growing up amid industrial life and encountering first love, loneliness, and whimsical dreams.

What started as a musical experiment between friends who found themselves, as Baldwin recounts the story, “drunk and sick on words” at a bar together, has become one of Austin’s best kept secrets. But with a recently purchased tour van and dates at venues throughout the Midwest all summer, time is quickly running out before Wine and Revolution’s popularity spreads beyond the confines of the 512.

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Releasing a cover album is always a risky move for any band, whether the group is as prepubescent as the Jonas Brothers or as overrated as U2. At first glance, cover albums signal a lack of creativity, like the group can’t think of anything new on its own, so the fallback is to cover a bunch of old tunes just so it can get an album out. Couple that with the fact that most cover albums are complete garbage (see Queensryche’s Take Cover), and it’s no doubt that most people are skeptical when news of such an album comes out.

But sometimes, it works, such as on Between the Buried and Me’s 2006 album The Anatomy Of. The album found the band taking an eclectic group of songs (by bands from Soundgarden to Pink Floyd and Blind Melon) and refurbishing them with its signature progressive metal sound. The album was full of bold moves and risky compositions, all of which paid off. The same can’t be said, however, for Hatebreed’s For the Lions.

The group committed the No. 1 cover-album faux pas, choosing songs that sound exactly like their normal tunes. Not the most technically impressive band in the world, Hatebreed makes its living like most met-

9

Life&Arts

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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ENT P10

Life&Arts

10

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

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

T he Daily Texan

Traditions, recipes color Cinco de Mayo

Children enjoy festivities during Cinco de Mayo, a celebration of the Mexican army’s defeat of the French in 1862.

One hundred and forty-seven years ago today, a vastly outnumbered Mexican army defeated the French for control of the Republic of Mexico. But because Mexico relinquished its power to the French only a year later, Cinco de Mayo has always been a celebration of only a temporary freedom.

Tonight there will be parties, especially around the Second Street district, where Lambert’s and La Condesa will provide free food and drinks. An afternoon of free barbecue, tacos, roasted corn and margaritas, plus live music by Los Bad Apples, Charanga Cakewalk, Cinefuegos and DJ Chicken George, will also be in order.

But the truly Mexican way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo is to spend some time cooking or visiting with family and friends. The following recipes have been enjoyed in our families for years and will certainly incorporate themselves into your diet, regardless of your cultural ties. (OK, maybe not if you’re French). — Ana McKenzie and Raquel Villarreal Harmony Reforma Daily Texan Staff

Raquel’s Entomatadas Ingredients • 1 kg of tomatoes • 1 onion • 1 package queso fresco • 40 tortillas • 2 tbsp. oil • 1/2 tbsp. salt

raquel’s entomatadas Though I was born and raised in Mexico and have eaten entomatadas throughout my life, I never tried making them until I came to Austin for college. And when I did, I instantly felt like I was having dinner at home, watching a telenovela on the TV in the kitchen while the rest of the family arrived at our home.

To make entomatadas on your own, start by chopping the tomatoes and onion into medium-sized pieces and put them in a blender. Add a little water and blend until liquid. Add about a half a tablespoon of salt. Put this sauce in a pot and warm it on medium heat until it boils. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until the excess

water evaporates, which should take about 10 minutes. Look for a rich consistency.

While the sauce is cooking, crumble all of the queso fresco into very small pieces.

When the sauce is ready, grab a pan and pour oil in it. Put the pan over low heat and wait until the oil is hot. Put a tortilla in the oil, frying each side for about 20 seconds, just so it grabs the fried flavor but remains soft for bending into a taco. Immediately after you’ve fried it, put a dab of queso in the middle and roll it into a taco. Do this with all the tortillas and queso.

When you’re done, pour the tomato sauce on top and garnish with a little extra crumbled queso.

Ana’s salsa and fideo If smell is the sense most associated with memories, then my grandmother’s salsa and my mother’s fideo remind me of my childhood.

I can still see my grandmother, tirelessly peeling tomatoes and peppers as she prepared a salsa that perfectly accents almost any dish, Mexican or not. And every time I go home, I look forward to seeing my mother, who, with masterful skill, eyeballs the seasonings to add to her fideo, a pseudo soup that is my version of meat and potatoes.

To make the salsa, put tomatoes and serranos on separate skewers and rest skewers and the whole, peeled garlic clove on a cookie sheet.

Put the cookie sheet in the broiler and roast each side of the tomato and serranos until the skins start to blacken and peel. Leave the oven door open to monitor the progress.

Take the cookie sheet out of the oven and let the ingredients cool off. Peel most of the skins off the tomatoes and serranos (I suggest using gloves to peel the peppers, but if you don’t have gloves, make sure to thoroughly wash your hands and avoid touching your eyes for a few hours). Put all of the ingredients in a blender and pulse until you reach

Salsa ing

Ana’s Sa ls

redi

ents • 4 Rom a tomato es • 2-4 ser ran • 1 garlic o peppers clove

Fideo in g

redi

ents • 1 box v ermicell i • 3 tbsp. oli • Tube o ve oil f tur ground b key or e • 4-6 gar ef (optional) lic cloves • 1 white or yellow onion your desired consistency. Add small amounts of water to make the salsa more liquidy. You can also add cilantro or salt.

To make the fideo, put the oil in a deep pan and brown the vermicelli over medium high heat. Take the vermicelli out of the pan and saute turkey or beef until light brown.

Chop four to six cloves of garlic (depending on how much you like gar-

a and Fi

de o

• Salt (op tio • Cilantr nal) o (option al) • 1 heapin g tb or beef b sp. of chicken oulillon • 1 tbsp. ground c umin • 1/2 tp. bla • 1 can R ck pepper otel lic) and one white or yellow onion.

Saute the onions until they are glossy and then add the garlic, meat, can of Rotel, bouillon, cumin and black pepper. Stir ingredients and then add the vermicelli. Pour enough water into the pan to cover the contents.

Let it boil for about 25 minutes, or until the noodles are soft. Enjoy the fideo with sliced avocados or corn tortillas.

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Though it’s lumped in with the recent wave of lo-fi punk music, Seattle’s Intelligence has crafted an album that offers more than distorted, trebly riffing. While there are certainly punk elements throughout Fake Surfers — noisy guitars, thick, smarmy bass riffs and shouted vocals battle for attention — those sounds, along with an infectious, youthful attitude, are applied to a much more diverse collection of musical styles.

Surfers haphazardly switches from dark, drum-machine dirges to sunny, careening pop, yet somehow the scuzzy songs fit together. This bizarre coherence is best witnessed toward the end of Fake Surfers during a string of three of the album’s best songs. The run starts with the slow build and release of “Thank You God for Fixing the Tape,� a raucous journey through the theological musings of a teenager by way of a hooky, repetitive vocal line. This dense piece disintegrates into a ramshackle, country-fried cover of Wounded Lion’s “Pony People,� complete with thick organs and acoustic guitars. From there, things move in a more tropical direction with “Singles Barge,� which takes those acoustic strums and drags them through the sleazy territory that the title hints at.

Though diverse and episodic, Fake Surfers is held together by tottering, fun-seeking experimentalism. Laced with falling keyboard plunks, warped tape loops and doubled vocals that often spin out of control, the songs are packed with a sense of joyous adventure. But, even with all of this miscellany, the listener is never ostracized. There is a fair share of messing around on Surfers, but Intelligence always knows when it’s time to tighten up into a punchy, compact pop song.

Each track on Fake Surfers is strong, boisterous and on the verge of collapsing in a heap of analog tape fuzz. With a gleeful, exciting energy and incredibly catchy songs, Intelligence completely embodies the atmosphere and unbridled energy of summer. — Brad Barry

Isis Wavering Radiant When I discovered Isis’ third record, Panopticon, during my senior year of high school, I thought I had found the perfect record. It was the quintessential mixture of brutality and subtlety — something I could both headbang and chill out to in one session. Isis also knew how to transition seamlessly between loud and soft, something Opeth occasionally had trouble with. Wavering Radiant is the Los Angeles-by-way-ofBoston quintet’s fifth record, and it shows a continued interest in ambient textures and post-rock composition.

The keyboard has always played a more textural role in Isis’ music, but on Radiant, the sound comes into greater prominence.

There’s some Tangerine Dream-ish mellotron on “Ghost Key� and “Stone to Wake a Serpent� that fluidly complements the direction of the guitars. The organ on the song “Hall of the Dead� resembles Growing’s guitar drone, strangely enough. Overall, the guitars have a little more heft than they did on the previous album, but don’t expect an ocean-like wall of sound.

One interesting thing about Radiant is that vocalist/guitarist Aaron Turner sounds older on this record. His growls are deeper and his clean vocals are more drawn-out and mournful, as if the constant touring has been catching up with him. Well, you don’t get that well-earned road wear overnight — Lemmy sure didn’t. More power to Turner.

If you thought that the band peaked with Celestial, Radiant probably isn’t going to appeal to you. Fans who dig the new direction will find the new album rewarding. — Andy O’Connor

CD continues on page 9