09/25/09

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TH HE DAILY TEXAN DOUBLE COVERAGE

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‘Horns look for another ‘W’ Friday, September 25, 2009

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Engineering cuts tech, career services

By Lena Price Daily Texan Staff UT President William Powers singled out the Cockrell School of Engineering last week in his State of the University address when pointing to the tough budgetary decisions facing colleges across campus.

The school began making cuts to its Information Technology Group and Career Assisting Center in the late spring to free up money for priorities like faculty recruitment and merit pay pools.

For the 2009-10 school year, the engineering school reallocated $1.6 million — approximately 8 percent — of its $20 million op-

erating budget, which was set on Sept. 1, from the IT group and career services.

Cockrell Dean Gregory Fenves said the money cut from the IT and career service departments will be used to sustain research funding, recruit new faculty members and provide targeted merit pay increases to about a third of professors based on regular performance reviews.

“These are three of our highest priorities within the school of engineering,” Fenves said.

The IT group in the school of engineering provides students and faculty with technological support, and the career advising

office introduces students to potential employers.

State appropriations rose slightly during the spring legislative session, but lower performances from UT endowments have contributed to a flat budget across the University. Colleges across the campus are seeking to add faculty despite the tighter budget.

Because of the reallocations, the IT department saw a 20 percent reduction to its operating budget. The equipment-loan program, a service that allowed for the rental of laptops and projectors to students and faculty, was eliminated over the summer.

Student technician Chase Coney said the IT staff has dropped from 17 positions to 13 since he began working there in May. “I think everyone who uses the IT services will see a change if they haven’t already,” Coney said. “We are slightly understaffed, especially because we are in the process of training some people who don’t have as much technological background.”

Fenves said students will not notice the changes.

“The students may see some evidence of these budget reallocations,” Fenves said, “but we are trying to protect them from the majority of it.”

Like other career service centers across the University, the engineering career center has had to reconsider some of the services available to its students. Several job fairs normally held on campus for Cockrell students were cancelled this year.

Michael Powell, director of the career center, said if students notice the changes, the center has failed at its job.

“We haven’t had to cut anything,” Powell said. “But we have had to evaluate some of the workshops and events we hold. Our focus is to make sure the students are still receiving the same quality of service they always have.”

The center did not cut any counseling positions, but it was unable to fill one administrative position after an employee left.

Research will not be affected by the reallocations. The majority of research funding for the college comes from outside grants won by professors.

“Research is a central part of what we are trying to accomplish at the Cockrell School,” Fenves said. “We will also continue to recruit some of the best graduate students from around the country.”

The engineering school has obtained funding for 10 new

ENGINEERING continues on page 2

TSM supervisor Groups rededicate a ‘Dream’ steps down, citing ‘some health issues’

By Lena Price Daily Texan Staff After 15 years as the director of Texas Student Media, Kathy Lawrence announced her retirement in an e-mail to TSM staff and student managers Thursday.

“I have some health issues, and this just seems to be the right time,” Lawrence told The Daily Texan.

TSM board member and clinical journalism professor Wanda Cash said the board will discuss possibly hiring an interim or replacement director during today’s board meeting. Both Cash and Juan Gonzalez, vice president for student affairs and Lawrence’s boss, did not know why Lawrence chose to resign.

Texas Student Media consists of The Daily Texan, KVRX 91.7 FM, the Texas Travesty, the Cactus Yearbook and Texas Student Television.

Cash said all facets of TSM will continue despite the absence of a director. Until a decision is made,

Lawrence’s position will be filled by a triumvirate of assistant directors, including Frank Serpas, Merry Tillman and Jalah Briedwell.

“We expect operations to continue as usual,” Cash said. “We have good leadership in place with our student and staff managers, and all systems are go.”

Gonzalez said Student Affairs Assistant Vice President Jennifer Hammat has assisted him with TSM matters in the past. Hammat may be asked to do so again in Lawrence’s absence, he said.

“I may ask her to step up in a sort of interim role,” Gonzalez said. “She may be helping out a little more on a very short term basis.”

Gonzalez said he hopes to open up conversations with the TSM board concerning a replacement early next week.

During her time as TSM director, Lawrence fought for The Daily Texan to not come under prior

TSM continues on page 2

Sara Young | Daily Texan file photo

Kathy Lawrence, center, listens to former TSTV station manager Brandon Farmahini at a Texas Student Media board meeting last spring. Lawrence resigned as director of TSM on Thursday.

Mary Kang | Daily Texan Staff

Bobby Seale, co-founder and chairman of Black Panthers, speaks about his experience in the party at Jackson Geological Sciences Building auditorium Thursday afternoon.

By Hannah Jones Daily Texan Staff Bobby Seale, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, sat in the Oakland Auditorium in 1962 where he was first inspired

by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s powerful ideas about how to fight racism in the United States.

Nearly 50 years later, Seale got the chance to speak at the 10th Anniversary MLK Jr. Statue Rededication Ceremony on campus Thursday night.

“He was the activist of activists for me,” Seale said.

Seale spoke in the Black Power Movement class taught by professor Leonard Moore earlier in the afternoon. Seale has written several books, including “Seize the Time,” which he wrote from jail between 1969 and 1972. In

One injured after chemical spills

By Bobby Longoria Daily Texan Staff Within three hours of each other, emergency personnel responded to two chemical spills Thursday evening in the engineering area of campus.

A student was transported to University Medical Center Brackenridge with minor injuries after dropping a container at a chemical lab in Robert L. Moore Hall at about 5 p.m. A second spill occurred at about 8 p.m. at the SW7 psychology and natural sciences lab building and was cleaned up without any injuries.

Emergency Health and Safety officials, in cooperation with Austin Fire Department and the UT Police Department, responded to the incidents, which were within two blocks of each other. “[A student] put something in a container,” said AFD Division Chief Dawn M. Clopton, about the first incident in RLM. “It was

capped, and it caused the container to break, so he was [injured] with chemical [burns] and glass cuts.”

She said the container that exploded caused a domino effect, impacting other bottles under the fume hood. Two gallons of an acidic liquid were spilled, but Clopton said the substance was “not anything bad.”

AFD responded with about 35 members that later turned the scene over to Emergency Health and Safety and UTPD officials, she said.

AFD had little time to pack up and head home, because shortly before 8 p.m. a second chemical spill occurred at the SW7 psychology and natural sciences lab building.

“It was a release of a gas that is flammable and caustic,” Clopton said. “[Building clearance] depends on the concentration of the gases in there and what the gases turn out to be.”

Clopton said a diffusing bag

with an ampule holding a gas was dropped by a “person” working with it. She said no one was injured and that it would be resolved within an hour or longer.

UT spokeswoman Rhonda Weldon identified that gas as ethylene oxide.

UTPD Sgt. Wayne Coffey was on scene of the second incident and said UTPD’s strategy was to setup a perimeter, prohibiting any pedestrians or vehicles from entering the scene and to set up a command post.

“We are not exactly sure [what happened],” Coffey said. “Something to do with some janitors, some type of chemical spill.”

Two janitors who may have been involved were being held aside to check for contamination Thursday night, he said. EHS scanned the area for contamination and cleared the building once it was determined to be safe. The RLM had already been given clearance.

1963, he ran for mayor of OakKheri Henderson, agency coland and lost. director of operations, said the The event was sponsored by group worked to plan a special African-American Affairs, a stu- event for everyone, not just the dent agency within the Division black community. of Diversity and “This is for Community all people; we Engagement’s can all learn Multiculturfrom each othal Information He was the activist of er,” she said.

Center, as well Senior Larry activists for me.” as the DistinChapple, presiguished Broth— Bobby Seale dent of the UT ers of the EpsiChapter of Alco-founder of the Black pha Phi Alpha, lon Iota Chapter of Alpha Phi Panther Party said he wants to Alpha Fraternido something to ty, Inc. King was impact his coman Alpha along munity as prewith many other vious fraternity prominent black men, including members before him have.

Frederick Douglass, Thurgood “I’m coming here with open Marshall and W.E.B. DuBois. ears,” he said. “I’m trying to

‘‘

soak everything up.”

The event featured performances from UT students and groups, including the Student African American Brotherhood and Umoja.

Liberal arts sophomore and SAAB member Nick Poole recited a poem entitled “And We Remember,” emphasizing the legacy of Dr. King. Gregory J. Vincent, vice president for diversity and community engagement, and Student Government President Liam O’Rourke also spoke at the ceremony. “[King] wasn’t an idealist, he was a realist,” O’Rourke said, “He wasn’t asking anything of anyone that shouldn’t have been expected.”

MLK continues on page 2

Council OKs high-rise plan amid protest

By Alex Geiser Daily Texan Staff Despite the protests of neighbors and other Austin activists, Austin City Council passed, on first read, a developer’s plan for a 20-acre construction project along Lady Bird Lake Thursday night.

The development, proposed

by Grayco Partners, a Houstonbased real estate firm, could be the first to be approved by the City Council as an exception to the height building limitations near the water, causing concern among local activist groups such as Save Town Lake and the East Riverside/Oltorf Connection Neighborhood.

The project will include a water treatment facility, a police substation, space for non-profits and day cares, 1,200 apartments and a minimum of 30,000 square feet for commercial use, among other features. The company will

Bruno Morlan | Daily Texan Staff

Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell and Assistant City Manager Sue Edwards listen to Grayco Town Lake Investments’ application for a planned unit development for the Town Lake area. also offer $25,000 to Capital Met- should have density,” said John ro to refurbish bus stops in the Dosini, an attorney for Grayco. area and participation in Austin “It will bring the needed spark of CarShare.

“This is an area where we COUNCIL continues on page 2

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MLK: Speaker reminisces of time with Panthers

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TSM: Former director had

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Fourth year electrical engineering Mesele Bedasa listens as Bobby Seale speaks at the Jackson Geological Sciences Building auditorium Thursday afternoon.

Seale, has only fond thoughts of King, although he never had a chance to shake his hand. While King was one of Seale’s greatest influences, other Black Panther members disagreed with his nonviolent approach to social change.

Seale explained that the Panthers did not believe in sitting back and letting police barge in on peaceful protestors. “[King] did criticize us for our self defense rights,� he said in an interview with The Daily Texan. “If we are getting shot at, I’m going to shoot back.�

Seale also did not view the Black Panthers like other radical groups, such as the Ku Klux Klan. “We never stoop to the low-level mentality of the racist,� he said.

The MLK Sculpture Project’s Web site says students began plans to erect the statue in 1987. It was finally unveiled in the fall of 1999. “We should think about UT’s role,� Vincent said. “This is a shining example of UT changing lives.�

Editor: Jillian Sheridan (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com

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Friday, September 25, 2009

Goodbye, Kathy

review by the newspaper’s adviser and oversaw the sale of the Texan printing press and the outsourcing of printing operations to the Austin American-Statesman. Under prior review, Richard Finnell, The Daily Texan’s adviser, read all stories before they were published. “The greatest achievement of my career was the elimination of prior review,� Lawrence said. “When I got here, I had no idea that practice was still going on at the University of Texas. I had no idea it was going to take 12 years to eliminate, and I was completely elated when I found out the [TSM] Board eliminated it.�

Lawrence was responsible for making sure that all the students involved with TSM had the resources they needed. “On a day-to-day basis, my job probably sounds pretty damn boring,� Lawrence said. “But every time I interacted with a student, I felt like my jobs was completely rewarding.�

Lawrence also had an active

role in last year’s renovation and renaming of the William Randolph Hearst Building, formerly the Texas Student Media Building.

Before the $750,000 donation from the Hearst Foundation in 2008, the TSM building had not been renovated since 1972. “She helped us make significant progress with the renaming of the Hearst building,� Gonzalez said. “She made plans and moved it forward.�

Although Lawrence was not involved in the day-to-day operation of The Daily Texan, Editor-inChief Jillian Sheridan said the lack of a director was disconcerting. “Especially because the media industry as a whole is so fragile right now, to be without a director makes me a little nervous,� Sheridan said.

For now, Lawrence said she will continue teaching part time at the University of Phoenix Online and will look for more job opportunities in the future. “I really don’t feel ready to put up my feet and watch soap operas all day,� Lawrence said.

COUNCIL: Possible plan would be

first to bypass local ordinance From page 1 revitalization to the area.�

Concerned citizens took issue with the height exception, explaining how this would set a precedent for future plannedunit developments. Patty Sprinkle, member of the Glendale Elementary Neighborhood Association, said even though Grayco has offered an array of community benefits, the city needs to be respected. “I feel that it’s very critical for the future of Austin,� she said. “The lake belongs to all of us, the view belongs to all of us. It sets a precedent. It opens a door, a foothold, if you will.�

The Waterfront Overlay ordinance places multiple limitations on developments in cer-

tain zones along the lake, including height restrictions, to protect the lake and increase accessibility. The Grayco development will include three buildings that exceeded the area’s restrictions.

Councilwoman Laura Morrison said the council has recently decided to grant Planned Unit Development exceptions to the Waterfront Overlay Ordinance on a case-by-case basis. If passed, the Grayco development will be the first to override the ordinance.

The Council will go through two more readings before the development is approved.

Steve Drenner, another attorney for Grayco, said at the meeting, the proposed 90-foot buildings should not be an issue, despite the 60-foot restriction. “We do not think that giv-

en our particular facts that the 90 feet in height creates a problem for the water overlay,� he said. “This project meets the very goals of the Waterfront Overlay particularly in regard to access of the lake.�

Austin resident Ed Alexander, a local activist with the Riverside Farms Neighborhood, said he was upset by the lack of public input earlier in the approval process. He said long before Thursday’s vote, there was a general understanding that city staff recommended an approval of Grayco’s proposal. “Clearly they have ignored the planning process,� he said. “I would almost call it criminal. It’s certainly not democratic.�

I want that one

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Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jillian Sheridan Managing Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Stephen Keller Associate Managing Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .David R. Henry, Ana McKenzie Associate Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jeremy Burchard, Dan Treadway, David Muto, Lauren Winchester News Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sean Beherec Associate News Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Pierre Bertrand, Austen Sofhauser, Blair Watler Senior Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Viviana Aldous, Bobby Longoria, Rachel Platis, Lena Price Enterprise Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Andrew Kreighbaum Enterprise Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hudson Lockett Copy Desk Chief . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robert Green Associate Copy Desk Chiefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cristina Herrera, Nausheen Jivani, Matt Jones Design Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Thu Vo Assistant Design Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Shatha Hussein Senior Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Taylor Fausak, Lynda Gonzales, Olivia Hinton Photo Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . May-Ying Lam Associate Photo Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bryant Haertlein, Peter Franklin, Caleb Miller Senior Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Karina Jacques, Mary Kang,Tamir Kalifa, Peyton McGee, Sara Young Life&Arts Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Leigh Patterson Associate Life&Arts Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brad Barry, Francisco Marin Jr. Senior Features Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Audrey Gale Campbell, Lisa HoLung, Ben Wermund Senior Entertainment Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Robert Doty, Mary Lingwall, Robert Rich Senior DT Weekend Writer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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fill vacated teaching slots in the school.

Tad Patzek, chairman of the Petroleum and Geosystems Engineering department, said his department needs about two or three new faculty members to reduce its student-to-faculty ratio.

Despite the changes to the IT department and career service center, Fenves said the engineering school was not hit harder by the flat University budget than the other colleges. “Everyone got the same budget increase this year, and that was exactly zero,� he said. “The pain is equally distributed between all of the colleges.�

Mary Kang | Daily Texan Staff

Caterin Sarseriemto, 4, looks at piĂąatas while her mother Marita Diaz and store owner Monica Lee speak about renting party supplies at Jumpolin, located on Cesar Chavez and Navasota on Thursday afternoon.

‘DILLO SERVICE WILL BE SUSPENDED OCTOBER 2, 2009

Issue Staff

Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Alex Geiser, Jordan Haegar, Hannah Jones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Shabab Siddiqui, Nihas Wagal Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jordy Wagoner, Shelley Neumann, Derek Stout, Jesus Montelongo Life & Arts Writers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Allistair Pinsof, Gerald Rich Videographer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Paul te la Cerra Sports Writers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jordan Godwin, Matt Hohner, Tara Dreyer Copy Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Megan Gottlieb, Carolyn Webb, Kelsey Crow Sports/Life&Arts Copy Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Vicky Ho Wire Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Emily Chandler Comics Artists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jermaine Affore, Rachel Weiss, Ryan Heiley, Michael Cormier . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Katie Smith, Amelia Giller, Gabe Alvarez Designers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Veronica Rosalez Columnists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dave Player, Meg Susong

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Director of Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jalah Goette 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 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kathryn Abbas Student Advertising Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ryan Ford Acct. Execs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Lauren Aldana, Anupama Kulkarni, Ashley Walker, Natasha Moonka Taylor Blair, Tommy Daniels, Jordan Gentry, Meagan Gribbin, Jen Miller Classified Clerks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Teresa Lai Special Editions, Editorial Adviser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elena Watts Web Advertising . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Danny Grover Special Editions, Student Editors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kira Taniguchi Graphic Designer Interns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Amanda Thomas Senior Graphic Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Felimon Hernandez

The Daily Texan (USPS 146-440), a student newspaper at The University of Texas at Austin, is published by Texas Student Media, 2500 Whitis Ave., Austin, TX 78705. The Daily Texan is published daily except Saturday, Sunday, federal holidays and exam periods, plus the last Saturday in July. Periodical Postage Paid at Austin, TX 78710.

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Texan Ad Deadlines

09/25/09

Monday .............Wednesday, 12 p.m. Thursday.................Monday, 12 p.m.

Tuesday.................Thursday, 12 p.m. Friday......................Tuesday, 12 p.m.

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THE DOWNTOWN ‘DILLOS ARE GOING AWAY, BUT DON’T DESPAIR.

Capital Metro will still have plenty of routes to choose from to get

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around Downtown. You’ve probably noticed not too many people are riding the ‘Dillos — just two per trip and only eight per hour.

That’s among the lowest ridership of all routes in the system. So we’re suspending the ‘Dillos as part of our balanced budget for the new fiscal year. To learn more, please visit capmetro.org or call the Go Line at 474-1200.

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Wire Editor: Emily Chandler www.dailytexanonline.com

WORLD&NATION

3

Friday, September 25, 2009

T HE DAILY TEXAN

Escape from Tikrit jail triggers manhunt

By Brian Murphey The Associated Press BAGHDAD — U.S. aircraft and Iraqi patrols combined in a massive manhunt Thursday after the escape of 16 prisoners — including five al-Qaida-linked inmates awaiting execution — who apparently crawled through a bathroom window in a makeshift jail on a former compound of Saddam Hussein.

The jailbreak in Saddam’s hometown Tikrit highlighted the struggles for Iraqi authorities to maintain control over an overcrowded prison system and absorb thousands of detainees turned over by U.S. forces as part of a broad security pact. At least two senior officials were fired after the late Wednesday escape.

Few details on the fugitives were provided by Iraqi security chiefs. But five were Iraqis who were sentenced to death for terrorism-related crimes and links to al-Qaida in Iraq, said a Tikrit police officer, said on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the operation with media.

The other 11 escaped convicts were jailed on charges that include kidnapping and murder, and some were awaiting sentencing, the officer said. At least one — a 19-year-old inmate — was recaptured early Thursday and the others remained at large.

A full-scale curfew was imposed on the city of 250,000 after the escape and eased before sundown on Thursday. Soldiers, however, expanded checkpoints and displayed wanted posters with photos of the fugitives. Military units also sharpened their watch on Iraq’s borders — particularly the western frontier with Syria — as the dragnet widened over sparsely populated regions

Bassem Daham | Associated Press

Iraqi police stand guard at a checkpoint in Tikrit, 80 miles north of Baghdad on Thursday. A curfew was imposed on the city after 16 prisoners escaped Wednesday night in Tikrit and the U.S. military offered sniffer dogs and conducted aerial patrols as part of the search for the fugitives. outside Tikrit.

At the request of local authorities, the U.S. military in the area provided search dogs and aerial surveillance, spokesman Maj. Derrick Cheng said.

Iraq’s prime minister, Nouri alMaliki, has recently boosted his

claims that Syria continues to harbor Iraqi insurgents. On Thursday, al-Maliki said chances were “nearly hopeless� to resolve disputes with Syria over claims it is providing refuge for Saddam loyalists blamed for bombings in August that killed about 100 people

in Baghdad.

Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf would not comment on the inmates’ possible links to alQaida, saying only that some of the escaped convicts are considered “dangerous.�

The breakout came about 45 minutes before midnight in one of Saddam’s former palace compounds in Tikrit, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Baghdad. Inmates were housed in a former school of Islamic studies.

Anarchists march in protest of U.S. capitalism a man in a black hooded sweat shirt threw rocks at a police car, breaking the front windshield.

Protesters broke windows in a few businesses, including a bank branch and a Boston Market restaurant.

Officers fired pepper spray and smoke at the protesters. Some of those exposed to the pepper spray coughed and complained that their eyes were watering and stinging.

Police were planning a news conference to discuss their response. Officers were seen taking away a handful of protesters in cuffs.

About an hour after the clashes started, the police and protesters were at a standoff. Police sealed off main thoroughfares to downtown.

Twenty-one-year-old Stephon Boatwright, of Syracuse, N.Y., wore a mask of English anarchist Guy Fawkes and yelled at a line of riot police. He then sat cross-legged near the officers, telling them to let the protesters through and to join their cause.

"You're actively suppressing us. I know you want to move," Boatwright yelled, to applause from the protesters gathered around him.

Protesters complained that the march had been peaceful and that police were trampling on their right to assemble.

"We were barely even protesting," said T.J. Amick, 22, of Pittsburgh. "Then all of a sudden, they come up and tell us we're gathered illegally and start using force, start banging their shields, start telling us we're going to be arrested and tear gassed. ... We haven't broken any laws."

Bret Hatch, 26, of Green Bay, Wis., was carrying an American flag and a "Don't Tread on Me" flag.

"This is ridiculous. We have

constitutional rights to free speech," he said.

The National Lawyer's Guild, a liberal legal-aid group, said one of its observers, a second year law student, was among those arrested. Its representatives were stationed among the protesters, wearing green hats.

"I think he was totally acting according to the law. I don't think he was provoking anyone at all," said Joel Kupferman, a member of the guild. "It's really upsetting because he's here to serve, to make sure everyone else can be protected. ... It's a sign that they are out of control."

The march had begun at a city park, where an activist from New York City, started it. off with a speech through a bullhorn.

"They are not operating on Earth time. ... They are accommodating the devil," he said. "To love democracy and to love the earth is to be a radical now."

The activist, Billy Talen, travels the country preaching against consumerism. He initially identified himself as "the Rev. Billy from the Church of Life After Shopping."

The G-20 summit was beginning Thursday evening with a welcome ceremony at the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Garden and ends late Friday afternoon after a day of meetings at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

Dignitaries were arriving in waves and were heading to a city under heavy security. Police and National Guard troops guarded many downtown intersections, and a maze of tall metal fences and concrete barriers shunted cars and pedestrians.

Hundreds of police in riot gear were seen massing at Phipps, but only a handful of demonstrators were there.

WORLD BRIEFLY

government statement said this week.

Concerns over chlordecone surfaced in 2007 after a French medical researcher suggested it may have affected cancer rates in Martinique and neighboring Guadeloupe. Last year, France pledged $51 million to monitor and eliminate high levels of the pesticide as it warned residents to watch what they ate and drank.

Guadeloupe already imposed a five-year ban on fishing in certain rivers and coastal areas after recording high levels of chlordecone, which was used on banana plantations until its ban in 1993.

Earlier this year, the pesticide was added to a U.N.-sponsored treaty aimed at combating highly dangerous chemicals.

Thierry Touzet, director of Martinique’s veterinary services, urged islanders to buy fish from legal vendors to avoid possible contamination.

Local fishermen decried the ban, saying it strips them of a livelihood already hurt by high oil prices and foreign competition.

It’s unclear how much the ban will affect commercial fishermen because the industry has been largely unregulated. — The Associated Press

Pesticides in French Carribean lead to ban on fishing in rivers FORT-DE-FRANCE, Martinique — This French Caribbean island has banned fishing in all its rivers and some coastal areas for the next year after finding high levels of a controversial pesticide.

Recent studies by local health officials found more than double the accepted amount of kepone — also known as chlordecone — in 96 percent of samples taken at 40 locations across Martinique, a

Attempt at smuggling illegal immigrants ends in shooting SAN DIEGO — Two men were charged Thursday with smuggling illegal immigrants in a failed attempt to rush the nation’s busiest border crossing in vans packed with suspected illegal immigrants.

One defendant, Sergio Guzman, was shot in his “lower extremities� when U.S. authorities fired on the van he was driving, according to a statement of probable cause. Guzman allegedly agreed to drive a blue Ford Econoline van with 25 people inside in exchange for free passage into the United States.

The other defendant, Jose Jaramillo, agreed to pay $4,000 to be smuggled to the country. The complaint does not detail his alleged role in the failed crossing but says he was previously arrested 28 times on immigration-related violations.

It was unknown if either man had an attorney.

Guzman was one of four people injured when U.S. authorities opened fire on one of three vans that allegedly tried to storm through the San Ysidro border crossing connecting San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico, on Tuesday, according to San Diego police. One other person was struck by gunfire, and two were hurt when the van hit a truck. None of the injuries was life-threatening.

Alberto Diaz, a spokesman for the Mexican consulate in San Diego, said one of the two who were shot was released from the hospital Thursday and the other was expected to remain hospitalized for several days. He did not know their names.

Another driver ran back to Mexico and was captured there, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. That driver will be prosecuted in Mexico.

The whereabouts of the third driver was unclear.

U.S. authorities found 58 men, 15 women and five children in the vans, all of them suspected illegal immigrants from Mexico.

Diaz said 66 have been returned to Mexico.

Authorities release inmates from Guantanamo Bay

WASHINGTON — The Obama administration says at least 6, and as many as 8, Chinese Muslims held at Guantanamo Bay will soon leave the prison for freedom on the tiny Pacific nation of Palau.

Word of the transfer came in a letter released Thursday by U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. Kagan confirmed Palau has agreed to accept all but one of the 13 Chinese Muslims, or Uighurs, who remain at Guantanamo.

The administration is trying to fend off Supreme Court review of the Uighurs’ case.

Six of the Uighurs have agreed to the transfer and attempts to persuade two others are continuing, Kagan wrote. The exact date of departure is classified, she added.

In a letter to the court, one of the 13 had not been offered a chance to resettle in Palau.

Compiled from The Associated Press

Jacqueline Larma | Associated Press

Police in riot gear redeploy after confrontations with protestors in Pittsburgh on Thursday. Protestors were against the G-20 summit.

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CONGRATULATIONS

By Daniel Lovering & Michael Rubinkam The Associated Press PITTSBURGH — Police fired canisters of pepper spray and smoke at marchers protesting the Group of 20 summit Thursday after anarchists responded to calls to disperse by rolling trash bins and throwing rocks.

The march turned chaotic at just about the time that President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama arrived for a meeting with leaders of the world's major economies.

The clashes began after hundreds of protesters, many advocating against capitalism, tried to march from an outlying neighborhood toward the convention center where the summit is being held.

The protesters banged on drums and chanted "Ain't no power like the power of the people, 'cause the power of the people don't stop."

The marchers included small groups of self-described anarchists, some wearing dark clothes and bandanas and carrying black flags. Others wore helmets and safety goggles.

One banner read, "No borders, no banks," another, "No hope in capitalism." A few minutes into the march, protesters unfurled a large banner reading "NO BAILOUT NO CAPITALISM" with an encircled "A," a recognized sign of anarchists.

The marchers did not have a permit and, after a few blocks, police declared it an unlawful assembly. They played an announcement over a loudspeaker telling people to leave or face arrest and then police in riot gear moved in to break it up.

Protesters split into smaller groups. Some rolled large metal trash bins toward police, and

NATION BRIEFLY

TSM BOARD MEETING Friday September 25, 2009 2:00 P.M. College of Communication L.B.J. Room, CMA 5.160 2600 Whitis Ave. Austin, Texas 78712

Visitors Welcome We encourage any community member who has any kind of temporary or permanent disability to contact Texas Student Media beforehand so that appropriate accommodations can be made. Anyone is welcome to attend.

OPINION

4

Friday, September 25, 2009

T HE DAILY TEXAN

Editor in Chief: Jillian Sheridan Phone: (512) 232-2212 E-mail: editor@dailytexanonline.com Associate Editors: Jeremy Burchard David Muto Dan Treadway Lauren Winchester

GALLERY

VIEWPOINT

Using a new code On Tuesday, UT’s Student Government approved a new election code that makes necessary changes to the organization’s operation.

The code now allows any UT student to apply for a position on the Election Supervisory Board, the entity that oversees campus elections processes.

Previously, the board was composed of students selected by the supervisory board chair, a position that was appointed by the SG president. Now, leaders of organizations that use the election code will choose the nine board members, and those members will then appoint a chairperson.

This policy change, while laudable, will only be effective if students who are not members of SG apply for a position on the board so they can bring an outside perspective and critical eye to an organization that has suffered under cronyism and poor decision-making.

The Daily Texan reported last spring that Election Supervisory Board Co-Chairman César Martinez Espinosa and then-SG President Keshav Rajagopalan used their official titles when sending out e-mails campaigning for executive alliance Liam O’Rourke and Shara Ma — a violation of election code in Rajagopalan’s case.

The board was also criticized when it imposed a draconian punishment on Phillip Tau and Sarah Michelle Stearns, candidates for president and vice president, when the name of a popular Facebook group, “Texas did beat OU 45-35, lest we forget,” was changed to “VOTE PHILLIP AND SARAH MICHELLE FOR SG President and VP! :).” Tau and Stearns denied any involvement with the name change but were hit with a $100 fine and were suspended from campaigning for two days, which would have prohibited them from attending the SG debate. The punishment was lessened when Tau and Stearns appealed the decision to the judicial commission.

The new election code now limits the judicial commission to settling disputes only about the SG constitution. Appeals to the board’s decision will now be directed to the appellate court, which consists of a faculty member and two UT law students.

The code also defines “campaigning” and “endorsing” in an attempt to prevent a repeat of the controversy that arose in the spring.

“Endorsing is expressing your or an organization’s support for a candidate,” said University-wide Representative Alex Ferraro at the meeting. “Campaigning is directly soliciting votes for a candidate. Endorsing usually falls under campaigning, but not all campaigning is endorsing.”

Organization members in leadership positions can show support for candidates, but only if they include a disclaimer stating that their views do not reflect the views of the organization.

But these reforms to the code and constitution are not without flaws. There are no built-in consequences for SG and Election Supervisory Board officials who violate the election code. When this point was addressed at the SG meeting, University-wide Representative Carly Castetter said the president, for example, could hypothetically be impeached. We would feel more confident, however, if the possible consequences were enumerated in the code. SG failed to even pass a resolution condemning Rajagopalan’s violation of the election code last spring, which would have been the legislative equivalent of a slap on the wrist. It seems unlikely that SG members will take it upon themselves to impeach any erring member.

We hope that an influx of skeptical outsiders will help prevent and punish election code violations in the future, but without willing students, the efficacy and impartiality of the new board will be compromised.

— Lauren Winchester for the editorial board

GALLERY

Fighting discrimination right direction and a bill that must be passed.

Currently, federal law provides legal protection against employment discrimination on the basis of race, Amid criticism from the LGBT community that the sex, religion, national origin, age and disability — but Department of Justice and Congress have largely ig- not sexual orientation or gender identity. In 29 states, it nored LGBT concerns since the election of President Ba- is still legal to fire employees based on sexual orientarack Obama, both the House and the Senate have intro- tion, and in 38 states it is still legal to fire someone for duced a bill to forbid workplace discrimination based being transgender. Texas, unsurprisingly, does not curon gender identity and sexual orientation. The House rently provide any means of protection against discrimEducation and Labor Committee heard testimony ination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

Wednesday on the Employee Non-Discrimination Act The city of Austin does not require that companies (ENDA), which is currently pendthat submit bids for city contracts have ing in the Senate. If passed, the bill LGBT non-discrimination policies in would become the first federal ban place, and while UT prohibits discrimon employment discrimination of ination on the basis of sexual orientaLBGT workers in the private section, the University does not offer dotor (religious organizations exmestic-partner benefits for employees.

While the social empted). Such protections are alThe LGBT community needs ENDA. climate of the ready available to employees of Though much work would remain the federal government. for LGBT activists if such an encomU.S. would not The first bill that targeted dispassing and significant bill passed, it drastically change crimination on the basis of sexual would add to the current encouraging immediately if orientation was introduced in Conclimate in the private business sector. gress in 1974, with the first using While the social climate of the the bill passed, the current “Employment Non-DisU.S. would not drastically change it would serve crimination Act” title introduced immediately if the bill passed, it in 1994. Until 2007, gender identiwould serve as a crucial step toas a crucial step ty — whose inclusion continues to ward eradicating discrimination. toward eradicating stir controversy — was excluded “We’ve found that inclusive nonfrom the provision and ultimately discrimination policies and equal discrimination. dropped in past bills in an attempt benefits are the essential first step toto ease their passage through Conward cultivating a productive and engress. The current version of ENDA gaged LGBT employee,” said Daryl is thus extremely significant.

Herrschaft, director of the Human The bill has garnered attention in Rights Campaign’s workplace outpart because of its focus on several high-profile LGBT reach project. “But they are not the last step.” issues, including the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” and More important than an enforceable law, ENDA the continuing fight for marriage equality. Additional- would provide legitimacy of sexual orientation and ly, a recent report by the Human Rights Campaign, an gender identity in American politics. This would mark LGBT lobbying group, found that, despite advances in the first time gender identity has been federally recogemployment policies at major U.S. corporations, a ma- nized in any regard, and along with LGBT individuals, jority of LGBT workers continue to experience a range transgender individuals would gain political respect. of struggles arising from sexual orientation and gender Hopefully, in the process, ENDA can open the door identity issues. to additional discrimination concerns that risk being hit Considering the present drive of the gay rights move- by the door on the way out. ment, coupled with increasingly visibility and continSusong is women’s and gender studies sophomore ued discrimination, ENDA is a significant step in the

By Meg Susong Daily Texan Columnist

Address overcrowded busses THE FIRING LINE Let police focus on important tasks The strangest thing happened to me on the way to a meeting the other day. I was riding my bike up the big ramp to the education building and I heard a shrill whistle, the kind cowboys use in the movies to turn cows from cliff edges.

I looked around for the cow. I heard the whistle again. A cop was staring at me from about 50 yards away. I stopped and looked back, confused. He pointed at my bike, making walking motions with his fingers. Oh. Walking on the sidewalk. Right. I walked up the deserted ramp, passing another biker pedaling the other way.

“Watch out,” I said. Seconds later, a whistle.

Leaving the meeting, I turned east toward the football stadium, passing Gregory Gymnasium.

It was noon, and students were everywhere doing the cellphone-lemming-walk-to-class-

LEGALESE

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. All Texan editorials are written by the editorial board, which is listed in the top right corner of this page.

without-ever-watching-where-I-am-walking walk. Three undergraduate women quite literally stepped into traffic directly in front of me.

I braked hard enough that my rear bike tire left the ground. The car behind me chirped rubber while stopping. I stared at the women. Absorbed in their phones, they still hadn’t seen me. No cow whistles. No cops. They walked right past me into the traffic going the other way. I get it, though: There are tens of thousands of us. There is neither room nor time for roads and sidewalks.

Only about 200 cars actually fit on central campus. Kick them out completely. Let the other 51,289 of us get from class to class biking and walking however we like. The undergraduate pedestrians are doing that already anyway, ticketless. Release the cops from bike duty. Let them focus on preventing assaults (62 in 2008), thefts (611), DWIs (191) and rapes (2).

— Josh Holland American studies graduate student

SUBMIT A COLUMN Have someting to say? Say it in print, and to the entire campus community. The Daily Texan Editorial Board welcomes submissions for guest columns. Columns must be between 500 and 700 words. Send columns to editor@ dailytexanonline.com. The Texan reserves the right to edit all columns for clarity and liability if chosen for publication.

By Dave Player Daily Texan Columnist It’s the last thing you want to see on a rainy weekday morning: an orange and white UT shuttle packed full of students zooming right past you without so much as a pumped brake. What was once a rare occurrence has become all too common this semester, especially on the system’s West Campus bus route, on which students are likely to find longer waits, more crowded buses and occasional fly-bys when buses are already too crowded to stop and let anyone else on.

The West Campus bus route snakes through the neighborhood, making seven stops before returning to drop off students across campus. According to Capital Metro, which runs the UT shuttle service, four buses currently operate on the route during peak morning hours, making it the sixth-most-used UT shuttle in terms of the number of buses simultaneously en route.

Over the years, Cap Metro has made adjustments to the number of buses on specific routes to addresses fluctuations in ridership. Over the past five years, for instance, the number of buses serving Intramural Fields and Far West routes has risen. Why, then, have the overflowing West Campus buses not been addressed?

One possible explanation is the sudden influx of new apartment complexes into the neighborhood and with them, a dramatic boom in the area’s student population.

In September 2004 the city revised the zoning codes for West Campus to allow buildings to exceed the previous three-story limit. This change has opened the door for the construction of such new corporate developments as The Block, The Quarters on Campus and Jefferson apartments, all of which have multiple properties in West Campus. Since 2004, 20 new complexes have gone up, each with hundreds of bedrooms, bringing in hoards of

students to their closest West Campus bus stop. What may have been an adequate number of buses in past years, or even this past spring, is suddenly not.

The West Campus shuttle is not the only bus route feeling the crunch of the now densely populated neighborhood. The popular Cap Metro Eating and Entertainment Bus, or “E-Bus,” which shuttles students to and from the downtown district on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, has increased in popularity in recent years. The service operates a West Campus route that has also come to feel the strain of too many passengers and not enough buses.

With the neighborhood student population not expected to dip anytime soon, adjustments must be made. Cap Metro is a taxpayer-funded municipal entity that works to serve the public transportation interests of local citizens. As such, the organization often seeks community input in order to provide the most effective and efficient service possible. The question then becomes how best to voice those concerns to a large government bureaucracy.

Luckily, as members of the UT community, we have a vessel for that expressed purpose: Student Government.

SG first initiated the push for the E-Bus, which began service back in 2002. The popular program was the byproduct of student involvement in SG, which engaged Cap Metro and the Austin Police Department.

As an organization, SG is fundamentally limited by the amount of support and involvement it receives from the student body. The E-Bus initiative was a prime example of students voicing their concerns and actively taking control of their own quality-of-life concerns.

Hopefully, it can happen again — before we miss the bus.

Player is a plan II honors junior

5 UNIV

E-mail: photo@dailytexanonline.com Phone: (512) 471-8618 www.dailytexanonline.com

EXPOSURE

5

Friday, September 25, 2009

T HE DAILY TEXAN

poise

&perfection

Hailey Wegner, a 13-year-old contestant, waits for her mother after the preliminary to the Texas United America Pageant held in The Woodlands, Texas. As for many contestants, this was Wegner’s first pageant.

Months of preparation lead to a single day of competition for the young women who participate in beauty pageants. Workshops educate contestants about proper makeup, attire and stage etiquette. Traditional pageants aim to build the self-esteem of young women by emphasizing morals, personality and talents. Throughout the pageant process, contestants’ mothers play an integral role in preparing their daughters for competition. The winner of each pageant earns a crown and represents the title for one year.

— Sara Young

Above, Krista Garvis stands backstage to regain composure as the pageant comes to an end. Left, Contestants practice stage etiquette with a fashion consultant at a pre-pageant workshop.

Pageant directors and former contestants often bring their daughters to workshops and competitions to expose them to beauty pageants.

Top, 15-year old Shelby Davenport prepares backstage with her mother for the “evening wear” segment. Middle, 13-year old contestant Kayla Coleman rehearses an opening dance routine minutes before the pageant begins. Bottom, Jen Burnes is crowned winner of the “Mrs.” division at the finale of the pageant.

6 S/L

6

NEWS

Friday, September 25, 2009

Public transportation gains popularity, saves gas

By Nihas Wagal Daily Texan Staff Record-breaking use of public transit in 2008 caused Texans to save 115 million gallons of gasoline, equal to the amount consumed by 200,600 cars in one year.

Capital Metro experienced a 69 percent increase in usage during the summer, said Capital Metro spokeswoman Misty Whited. She said the increase is due to the better-than-average weather Austinites experienced during the summer. “During summer months, gas prices also tend to be higher, and with the way our economy is, people are taking approaches to save money by using public transit,� Whited said.

In 2008, increased national transit ridership saved more than 4 billion gallons of gasoline, which is the equivalent of the fuel that nearly 7.2 million cars — almost as many passenger cars that are registered in Florida — consume in one year, said Gerri Witthuhn, a spokeswoman for Environment Texas.

According to the statewide citizen-based environmental advocacy organization, a number of initiatives are being taken by major cities throughout the state to

‘‘

During summer months, gas prices tend to be higher, and with the way our economy is, people are taking approaches to save money by using public transit.� — Misty Whited Capital Metro spokeswoman

reduce private vehicle usage and increase public transit. San Antonio is looking to increase ridership with its Smart Way San An-

tonio transportation plan. The plan will examine different city corridors in order to implement high-capacity transit.

Environment Texas is also pushing for full provisions of CLEAN TEA, or the Clean, Low Emissions, Affordable New Transportation Equity Act. The legislation, proposed by Sen. Tom Carper, DDel., would reinvest 10 percent of money saved from climate bill allowances into clean transportation efforts that will save oil and reduce emissions. “Since America has the greatest number of cars per capita in the world, and the use of those cars is contributing to one-third of the global warming pollution our country emits, it is refreshing to know that more Texans are turning to public transportation. Green transit connects our communities, boosts our economy and helps protect our environment,� Witthuhn said. “In order to increase these benefits, our Kari Rosenfeld | Daily Texan Staff congressional representatives must increase federal investment Suede Kam rides the bus to class Thursday afternoon. She uses public transportation to save money, time in the public transit system.� and to stay dry on rainy days.

Austin’s tourism remains steady in shaky economy Federal analysis report indicates that city ranks well with competition

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By Jordan Haeger Daily Texan Staff While Austin’s tourism economy is not invincible, it is maintaining stability compared to the rest of the country.

The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis released a report Wednesday demonstrating the slowing decline of tourism spending across the country. While the national numbers still aren’t climbing, they aren’t falling as quickly as in the first quarter of 2009.

After falling 8.9 percent in the first quarter of this year, national figures on travel spending dropped by only 1.4 percent in April through June, according to the report. “While Austin is not exempt, we have been able to maintain some stability,� said Beth Krauss, spokeswoman for the Austin Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Austin attracts about 19 million visitors annually and earns $3.5 billion on tourist spending, according to a 2006 Convention and Visitors Bureau report.

Austin hotels are not at full occupancy, but they’re doing better than hotels in competitor cities like Phoenix, Denver and Dallas, Krauss said.

Hotels citywide are 65 to 68 percent full compared to 72 to 75 percent in previous years. “We’re only down 7 or 8 per-

cent, while our competitor cities are down 10 or 20,� Krauss said.

Like Austin, competitor cities attract a lot of business conventions, Krauss said.

One reason for the higher hotel occupancy is Austin’s smaller size, Krauss said. “We’re a smaller city so we don’t have as many downtown hotel rooms – it’s easier to fill them,� Krauss said.

Alvin Cantu, the general manager of Texas Rowing Center, said his business hasn’t seen a drop in customers. Most of Cantu’s customers are Austin residents, he said, but the number of tourists visiting the center hasn’t decreased. “It’s been great actually,�

Cantu said. “It’s been our best years.�

Michael Danks of Austin Duck Adventures said his clients are about half tourists and half Austin residents. He said the number of clients has remained steady.

Krauss said Austin’s affordability is the reason the city has been able to maintain a stable level of tourism, particularly in the compact downtown area that allows people to walk instead of paying for transportation.

Austin has a great convention center and high-tech hotels, which is why it is an ideal destination for business meetings and conventions, Krauss said. “When AIG crashed, people were cancelling meetings everywhere, but not in Austin,�

Krauss said.

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Kari Rosenfeld | Daily Texan Staff

Esther Van Hout guides a tour group around the Capitol on Thursday morning. Van Hout said that she has not noticed any change in the number of tourists at the Capitol and thinks it could be due to its free admission and educational value.

7 SPTS

SPORTS

Sports Editor: Austin Talbert E-mail: sports@dailytexanonline.com Phone: (512) 232-2210 www.dailytexanonline.com

7

Friday, September 25, 2009

T HE DAILY TEXAN

Derek Stout | Daily Texan file photo

PREVIEW FRIDAY

Freshman Bailey Webster and senior Ashley Engle prepare for a set a few weeks ago against Iowa State. Webster, Engle and the Longhorns will seek Texas’ first win in Lincoln, Neb. this weekend since 1988.

Horns begin conference games without handful of valuable playmakers

Texas swimming and diving open season with Orange-White Classic

By Laken Litman Daily Texan Staff The Longhorns will have to turn all of their injuries, inexperience and mistakes into positives if they want to survive the weekend.

The Texas women’s soccer team (3-5) begins Big 12 play

By Tara Dreyer Daily Texan Staff The University of Texas men’s swimming and diving team will hold its annual Orange-White Classic today at 3 p.m. at the Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center. This will be the first chance fans will have to take a

SOCCER continues on page 8

SWIM continues on page 8

Paul Chouy | Daily Texan file photo

Sara Young | Daily Texan file photo

Richards heads to old stomping grounds with young, ambitious team

Longhorns look to end Nebraska’s 82-game winning streak at home

By Shabab Siddiqui Daily Texan Staff The only thing bugging the Texas women’s golf team right now is the flu.

“We have a couple players feeling a little under the weather,” said head coach Martha Richards. “Normally, I don’t travel six, but this way we can be safe.”

The Longhorns tee off today at the Mason Rudolph Invitational

By Jordan Godwin Daily Texan Staff As the second-ranked Texas women’s volleyball team heads into Nebraska, they are reminded that it’s been a while since Texas won in Lincoln — a long while.

So long that in his eight seasons as Texas’ head coach, Jerritt Elliott has never won in Cornhusker territory.

“We want to play in some

GOLF continues on page 8

Derek Stout | Daily Texan Staff

Sara Young | Daily Texan file photo

Above left, captain Erica Campanelli looks up to pass as she takes possession of the ball. Above right, UT swimmer freestyles in 2008’s Orange-White Classic. Bottom left, Megan Rosenfeld takes a swing at the Duramed Cougar Classic. Bottom right, Juliann Faucette spikes the ball in their most recent home game. These four UT teams will all show their competitive edge in this weekend’s myriad of events.

V-BALL continues on page 8

Thanks to Baker, UT fans enjoy their Saturdays at DKR

Weekend Previews

By Matt Hohner Daily Texan Staff Editor’s note: This is the first in a series profiling the people that work behind the scenes to make the game-day experience at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium possible.

Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium set a stadium and Big 12 Conference record this past Saturday with 101,297 screaming fans packed in the stadium.

What those fans probably do not know about, however, is the hundreds of people and their intense efforts which are required to make a Saturday game-day experience

memorable.

Jim Baker, Texas’ associate athletics director for events and operations, ensures that record crowds can enjoy Longhorn games. Baker oversees it all: groundskeeping, maintenance, suite operations, ticket operations, conJim Baker struction, security and concessions. He’s everywhere in and around the stadi-

SOCCER

WEEKEND: Texas (3-5) at Oklahoma

um, and more than likely, you have never seen him.

“I stay organized as much as I can,” Baker said. “[I'm] just trying to anticipate your problems and making sure everybody has the information they need to provide a successful game day.”

It’s the small things that Baker worries about. His responsibility is to make sure all the little pieces are accounted for and fit into the larger equation of everything that makes game days relaxing.

Toilet paper stocked in the bathroom? Check — Baker does that. Enough workers to serve con-

MEN’S SWIMMING

WOMEN’S GOLF

TODAY: Annual Orange-White

WEEKEND: Mason Rudolph

WHERE: Lee and Joe Jamail

WHERE: Vanderbilt Legends

(5-3-1); Texas (3-5) at Baylor (4-1-2)

Classic

Norman, Okla.

WHEN: Today and Sunday at 7 p.m,

Texas Swimming Center WHEN: 3 p.m.

WHERE: OU Soccer Complex

cessions at the stand? Check — Baker makes sure of that. Security to ensure your safety? Check — Baker takes care of that.

A primetime game like against Texas Tech last week, creates added chaos for Baker — chaos which requires a lot of coordination.

Baker likes to arrive eight hours before kickoff on Saturdays while staying for a couple hours after the final play of the game.

“Game days are always hectic days,” Baker said. “The first game is usually the most hectic, and as we go in it gets a little smoother.”

Preparation for game day

Women’s Championship

Club, Franklin, Tenn.

WHEN: Today and Saturday at 8 a.m., Sunday at 7:30 a.m.

doesn’t happen overnight. Unlike a typical college kid cramming before an exam, Baker must plan year-round for the football season and examine what areas need improvement and what already works well.

Baker, having been at Texas for 19 years, is not new to the program. He has endured countless Saturdays and numerous stadium renovations to make Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium one of the finest college football venues in the nation.

“Our facilities are as good as [anybody's] now,” Baker

VOLLEYBALL

SATURDAY: No. 2 Texas (8-0,

3-0 Big 12) at No. 6 Nebraska (9-3, 2-1 Big 12) WHERE: Nebraska Coliseum Lincoln, Neb. WHEN: 1 p.m.

said. “When I got here in 1991, they weren’t very good. It’s certainly in the top three. I think we’re as good as anybody. Everything we’re doing is for the athletes; we’re trying to give them the best of everything. That’s our job, and that’s what we’re here for.”

It’s not the “The Jim Baker Show,” though, as he doesn’t take all the credit for everything that occurs on Saturdays.

“It’s the University of Texas athletic department and the guys who work for me who get the job

DKR continues on page 8

WOMEN’S CROSSCOUNTRY

TODAY: Texas A&M-Corpus

Christi Islander Splash WHERE: West Guth Park, Corpus Christi WHEN: 6 p.m.

8 SPTS

8

SPORTS

Friday, September 25, 2009

SWIM: Annual

meet serves as warm-up for UT From page 7 look at this year’s team.

The Orange-White Classic is the first competition of the year in which the team is divided in half in order to compete against each other. “We try to split the team as evenly as we can so that it’s competitive,� said Kris Kubik, the men’s swimming and diving assistant coach who will announce the event.

For each event, they pair the athlete who they think will finish first with the person they think will finish third. The swimmers whom they think will finish second and fourth will compete against them on the other team so that each event is as competitive as possible.

The team will participate in all of the same events that they will face during the regular season, so the Longhorns will get an accurate look at the team they have. “So basically, it’s a dress rehearsal of what’s to come later in the year,� Kubik said.

This meet will help prepare the swimmers for their major dualmeet season that starts in January. In January, they will compete against the defending national champion, Auburn University, to whom Texas finished second last year in the NCAA Championship. Along with Auburn, Texas has Georgia and Arizona on the schedule for January, and in February, the Longhorns will face Texas A&M and SMU. “[The Orange-White Classic] is our initial groundbreak meet: a) to familiarize the new comers to what college dual meet should be like, and then b) for everyone to race and kind of get a feel for college competition,�

Kubik said.

At the event, fans can see about 13 swimming events, the 1-meter diving event, the 3-meter diving event, and then a freestyle relay to conclude the meet.

Teams will be scored, and a winner will be declared.

Among the swimmers competing today are Olympic gold medalists Ricky Berens and Dave Walters, Olympic finalist Scott Spann and two-time Big 12 Champion diver Matt Cooper.

Kubik says the team is very close day in and day out throughout the year as teammates, but during this event they will not like each other depending on what team they represent. “The orange team is definitely a team, and the white team is definitely a team. And then‌ [after the meet concludes] we sing ‘The Eyes of Texas,’ and then we are once again the University of Texas swimming team,â€? Kubik said.

Peyton McGee | Daily Texan file photo

Junior Niki Arlitt heads the ball in the team’s first home game against TCU. After sitting out for the last three games, Arlitt is healthy and ready to play this weekend.

SOCCER: Team sees Big 12 games as new season From page 7 tonight as it travels to Norman to face off with heated rival Oklahoma (5-3-1). Despite the season’s rocky start in playing nonconference opponents, conference games are seen as the real start of the season. “There’s no easy game in the Big 12,� said junior captain Erica Campanelli. “But I think more than focusing on a particular game, we’re focusing on us as a team because we haven’t gotten off to the best start. Conference [play] is a whole new chance for us, and we’re going to get to be able to build off from where we left off in nonconference play and hopefully turn this around into a great season.�

After playing Oklahoma to-

she has played with and against a number of players from Oklahoma and Baylor back during her precollege club days. “It’s always fun to face old opponents and teammates,� Campanelli said. “They know a little more about you, and you know a little more about them, but whether you know them or not when you step on the field, you’re not going to act like you know them.�

Although the Longhorns have more numbers in their losses column, they have been going back to their drawing board and learning from their mistakes all week. “Every time we give up a goal, we go back and watch the film to see where we made a mistake,�

Campanelli said. “Keeping posses-

sion is a big thing we’re working on [as well as] taking advantage of scoring opportunities. We’ve been good at creating [scoring opportunities], but we just need to finish.�

The Longhorns have been putting in an exceptional amount of work to make up for the absence of players due to injury. The team’s losses aren’t coming from a lack of skill, mentality or work ethic but rather a lack of experience on the field. “It’s not easy,� Campanelli explained about the team’s progression and winning games. “The freshmen were thrown into the fire very, very quickly, but they’ve done a great job. We’ve just got to start getting results as a team now.�

Seven out of the 11 starters are

GOLF: Texas to face top-ranked teams in Tennessee From page 7 in Nashville, Tenn. and will compete in a tightly contested field.

The tournament, located at the Vanderbilt Legends Club, features a surfeit of ranked opponents including the nation’s top four teams — Arizona State, USC, UCLA and Oklahoma State. “This is just an outstanding field,� Richards said. “It’s just about an NCAA [end-of-the-year tournament] preview. With a young group, we just need to go play hard.�

The three-round, 54-hole tournament also shapes up to be a homecoming of sorts for Richards, who spent seven years as head coach for Vanderbilt before spending the last two at the 40 Acres. Richards guided the

night, the Longhorns will head to Waco for another conference game at Baylor (4-1-2) on Sunday. After the way things have started for Texas, it’s not ideal for the first two conference games to be away. The Longhorns’ first two games of the season, however, were at home, and ended in a win and a loss.

One thing the Longhorns can definitely look forward to, heading into the weekend, is the return of their first teammate off the injured reserve list. Junior Niki Arlitt, who was out for three games due to a concussion, will be back in the lineup just in time for the first two conference games.

Another perk for this weekend is the anticipation of facing exteammates. Campanelli explained

732-2211

9041 Research Blvd., Suite 240 (Austin) Hwy 183 @ Burnet Rd., above Black-Eyed Pea

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previously post-seasonally ab- men Madison Pressel, Desiree sent Commodores to four NCAA Dubreuil, Katelyn Sepmoree and tournaments, including an SEC Haley Stephens all made their Championship and a school-best college debut with Pressel leadfifth-place finish in the NCAA ing the team with a 5-over-par Championship, 221 at the end of both in 2005. the tournament. “It’s fun for “I think they I want to see us come did a great job,� me to coach on a golf course that Richards said. “I in here and shoot I know really think Madison some good numbers.� well,� Richards had one bad hole said. “I get to see — Martha Richards the entire tournaa lot of people ment. For a lot of head coach them, it was the I know. It’ll be fun to have this first time they young group played 36 holes with a lot of energy competing of golf in one day as well as playout there.� ing in a shotgun setting. I thought The Longhorns are coming off we were able to settle down as a a top-10 finish in their last tour- team.� nament, the Duramed Cougar Along with the freshmen, the Classic in Charleston, S.C. fresh- team travels senior Shannon Fish

‘‘

SPORTS BRIEFLY Women’s cross-country team travels to Corpus for meet Today, the women’s crosscountry team ventures to Corpus Christi to compete in the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islander Splash, their second meet of the year. They look to continue the trend of early-season success.

On Sept. 5, the team opened the year with its fifth straight Texas State Invitational win. All nine of the team’s runners placed in the top 10, and senior Allison Mendez, sophomore Anne Jones and freshman Jenny Swan took first, second and third place, respectively.

Texas hopes to mirror its last Islander Splash finish in 2007, where it took first-place honors.

Among the eight runners competing for UT will be returning senior leaders Allison Mendez, Betzy Jimenez, Lauren Salisbury and Asia Myrland. The latter three runners were statistical leaders for the Horns last season. In addition to its veteran experience, the team will heavily rely on freshmen Jenny Swan and Melissa Mahoney as well as sophomores Anne Jones and Ginny Simon to give them a boost in today’s meet. — Ryan Betori

and sophomore Nicole Vandermade. Vandermade started off slow before shooting a teambest 3-under-par 69 in the second round and finished tied for 45th. “Her mentality is to keep competing,� Richards said. “I think she’s always trying to build on every thing and get better. She’s also excited about the energy this team has.�

Richards goal for the weekend is for her team to compete. “I want to see us come in here and shoot some good numbers,�

Richards said. “What I really love about this group is that they love to compete. And in golf, it’s difficult because everyone’s trying to win, but it’s really about us playing the best golf we can. It’s really got to be about us stepping up to the plate and taking care of our business.�

VďšşBALL: Longhorns have

advantage over Huskers From page 7 adverse situations and see how our team responds,� Elliott said. “We’ll definitely get that at Nebraska with their crowd. It is obviously a big task, and they have a long winning streak in the Coliseum.�

As it turns out, it’s been a long while since any team won in Nebraska. Their 82-match win streak dates back to 2004.

But Texas’ Lincoln blues dates back much further than that.

Nov. 4, 1988 was the last time Texas had a victory over Nebraska in Lincoln. Only four Horns were even born in 1988.

Texas is 2-19 all-time in Lincoln, but the Longhorns will have the upper hand Friday.

Texas won its last match 3-1 in November, and this season features a very nontraditional Nebraska team.

At 9-3, Nebraska is off to its worst start in decades. Last weekend, they lost to Texas A&M in College Station for a rare Big 12 Conference loss. De-

spite their shortcomings, the Cornhuskers still rank sixth nationally. “It’s still Nebaska, and it’s still a huge rivalry,� said senior libero Heather Kisner. “We’re ready to go up there for an exciting game and compete.�

Wanting that first victory in Nebraska, Elliott is stressing to his players that Nebraska can’t be underestimated. “Nebraska is never weak,�

Elliott said. “They always have players that can play very well and can beat anyone on any given night. They play with a lot of confidence at home, and they will have a great crowd.

It’ll be sold out, and it’ll be very loud from the moment we step into that gym.�

Still, Texas’ coach is optimistic that his team will end its Nebraska losing streak and give the Cornhuskers their first home loss in over five years. “I think we’re a better team,�

Elliott said. “We’ll see how good we are once we face some adversity in Nebraska.�

freshmen, but because so many of them have had to step up and log a lot of minutes, the team doesn’t really see their freshmen as freshmen anymore. “I don’t think freshman, sophomore, junior, senior means anything to our team anymore because we’ve all played so many minutes with the injuries we’ve had,� Campanelli said. “That’s actually one great thing we’ve gotten out of it ... that every single person all the way down the bench has gotten significant minutes.�

The Longhorns will play the Sooners tonight at the OU Soccer Complex in Norman, Okla at 7 p.m. and the Bears on Sunday at the Betty Lou Mays Soccer Field in Waco at 7 p.m.

DKR: Football

game day is no game for Baker From page 7 done,� Baker said. “They are the ones doing the heavy lifting, and we have a great staff that do excellent work and love their job.�

For Baker, along with Athletics Director DeLoss Dodds, Saturday is a working business day. Like any other business, the two want to provide a product that will keep the customers coming back. “We gotta compete against other people,� Baker said. “If we can’t do everything we can for people such as park and get here to do their thing, then they might not come back. [Dodds] has that foresight to do everything we can for our fans and patrons to make it as best as we can.�

One of Baker’s biggest obstacles to overcome is the security and safety of the campus and spectators of the 40 Acres. “When you got a small city of 100,000 people here, you’re going to have problems,� Baker said. “Game day is all about responding to problems.�

Baker has seen it all during his tenure here. “When Ricky Williams broke the [rushing] record, the electricity around the stadium was unbelievable,� Baker said. “It was after the five years of mediocre football and him breaking the record and winning the Heisman. So that A&M game was pretty special.�

But at least recently, the newly installed FieldTurf has made Baker ’s job a bit easier. “We’ve gotten green,� Baker said jokingly. “We don’t have to water it as much, or fertilize it, put pesticides on it. With Bermuda [grass] when October hits, it goes brown. We used to spray paint the grass green to make it look good.�

Baker has seen everything from toilet overflows to spectator injuries to the cricket invasion of 2007, but he and his band of workers are the reason why the stadium is always as ready to go as the Longhorn football team is on game days.

9 CLASS

9

UNIVERSITY

Friday, September 25, 2009

University staff attempts to avoid influenza spread

By Jordan Haeger Daily Texan Staff The UT Staff Council informed staff members Thursday to stay home if they are infected with influenza. “One of the most dedicated things you can do for the University right now is to stay home if you’re sick,� said Julien Carter, associate vice president for human resource services.

The council held a forum to advise its members on how to prevent and treat the seasonal flu as well as the H1N1 virus in the fall.

Carter advised staff not to return to work for at least 24 hours until after their fever breaks.

With the start of the fall semester came an increase in the spread of all forms of the flu, said Dr. Theresa Spalding, associate director of University Health Services.

This reflects an increase in influenza — especially the H1N1 virus — that college campuses are experiencing all over the United States, Spalding said.

H1N1 and the seasonal flu have the same symptoms, including fever and a cough, Spalding said. The H1N1 flu strain is one most of the population has never been exposed to, she said.

People who had asthma, cardiovascular disease, were morbidly obese or pregnant made up most of the deaths caused

by H1N1 in 2008, Spalding said.

People with autoimmune disorders are also at a greater risk.

Staff members can apply for emergency leave after they have returned to work if their sick leave for the year won’t cover their absence, Carter said. Another solution is staff members can work from home through telecommunication, he said.

The University has a set of uniday, month day, 2008 form written plans to deal with

Anne-Marie Huff | Daily Texan Staff

Dr. Theresa Spalding, associate director of University Health Services; Julien Carter, associate vice president of human resource services; Bob Harkins, associate vice president of campus safety and security, and Dennis Nolan, assistant director of the office of Environmental Health and Safety, address questions and concerns during the UT Staff Council’s forum on influenza and H1N1.

1 infectious disease outbreaks, said Bob Harkins, the associate vice president for Campus Safety and Security. In the event of a large

outbreak, such as last year ’s late. But the possibility of closing flu, but we have plans for that,�

HIN1 pandemic, Harkins said the University exists. he said. school closures are not practical “We do not anticipate any cloUHS has requested 13,000 dosLASSIFIEDS because students won’t self-iso- sure of the University with this es of an H1N1 vaccine from the

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Campus NewsISE vet wary of health care changes

at nonprofit luncheon

By Shabab Siddiqui Daily Texan Staff John Stossel, a 19-time Emmy Award-winning correspondent, gave his opinions about President Barack Obama’s health care reform to a group of about 200 at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center Thursday.

Stossel, a former ABC 20/20 co-anchor who recently took a job with Fox Business Network, is a self-proclaimed supporter of

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for the much-debated health care reform bill in Congress. “President Obama says the current system is unsustainable, and he’s absolutely right,� Stossel said. “Not that Obama-care is better. Obama-care will accelerate health care inflation.�

While most of the attendees applauded Stossel’s stances, one Houston-based doctor said some patients who work full time cannot afford health care.

When asked if Obama’s proposed health care bill was harmful, Stossel said although some of the parts of the legislation were “well-intended,� he dismissed the notion that it would do any-

thing to change the current health care system.

Earlier this month, Stossel resigned from his half-decade-long post on ABC to start his own show, called “Stossel,� on the Fox Business Network. “I just wasn’t free to do these stories that I wanted to do,� he said. “While health care was going on, they were doing stories on the Jackson family week after week. I just couldn’t stand the climate anymore. I was very lonely.�

Caleb Miller | Daily Texan Staff Stossel is also a best-selling author of the books “Give Me John Stossel speaks at a luncheon held at the AT&T Executive Center a Break� and “Myths, Lies and on Thursday. Stossel criticized President Barack Obama’s health care Downright Stupidity.� plan, though he acknowledged that the current system is broken.

Contact Joan at 512-232-2229 or email joanw@mail.utexas.edu

CLASSIFIEDS THE DAILY TEXAN

UNS AD IRNE FOR ONL d wor

free-market enterprise. He emphasized during his speech the need to put health care back in the hands of private industry, an opinion that opposes Obama’s proposal that would create a government-supported system to compete with private insurance companies.

The luncheon was hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a nonprofit with goals “to promote and defend liberty, personal responsibility and free enterprise,� according to its Web site.

Stossel elaborated on his most recent television special, “Sick in America,� stating his opposition

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ADVERTISING TERMS There are no refunds or credits. In the event of errors made in advertisement, notice must be given by 10 am the first day of publication, as the publishers are responsible for only ONE incorrect insertion. In consideration of The Daily Texan’s acceptance of advertising copy for publication, the agency and the advertiser will indemnify and save harmless, Texas Student Media and its officers, employees and agents against all loss, liability, damage and expense of whatsoever nature arising out of the copying, printing or publishing of its advertisement including without limitation reasonable attorney’s fees resulting from claims of suits for libel, violation of right of privacy, plagiarism and copyright and trademark infringement. All ad copy must be approved by the newspaper which reserves the right to request changes, reject or properly classify an ad. The advertiser, and not the newspaper, is responsible for the truthful content of the ad. Advertising is also subject to credit approval.

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11

LIFE&ARTS

Friday, September 25, 2009

FACES: Local offers

free rides at night, by appointment From page 12 ly go further. Guys see it very pragmatically, but to girls it’s just like a novelty. It’s really nice to take someone who really needs a ride, but for the most part it’s taking someone from, like, the West Mall to the UTC. I really do like it when I get the opportunity to take someone further, like one time I took someone from Jester to 33rd and Guadalupe.

I give rides at night because I’m really concerned about people walking home at night by themselves. One dude ran up to me; he was dripping with sweat.

And he said, “Oh, my God. I was literally just praying that you would show up, and I know you don’t give rides at night, and I just heard your bell…”

I said, “What’s the problem?” and he said, “This girl just called me, she needs help on her calcu-

lus homework.” I was like, “This is an emergency, hop on.” I took him really far and the whole way I was giving him the pep talk.

I once built a bike and had it for, like, a week, and I took it to a restaurant, and then I left to go buy some tickets and came back, and the bike was gone.

The week that followed was the worst week of my life. One day I was walking, and this guy was on the bike. I walked over to him — wasn’t even mad — and just said, “I think we understand each other,” and he got off and walked away.

If you want a ride, whistle.

Actually, that wouldn’t be loud enough, don’t do that. Just say, “Hey, ‘free rides’ guy.” Or Facebook me. I do appointments. I love appointments because peoPeyton McGee | Daily Texan Staff ple always expect you not to show up.

Spencer Scorcelletti plays piano in his room on Wednesday. “Music, for me personally, is the most important thing in life,” Scorcelletti said.

REVIEW: ‘Modern intuition’ thwarts

DANCE: Profession

gravity of film’s outdated obstacles requires blend of art, lifestyles From page 12 understand that Keats is a man of substance — what that substance is, she doesn’t quite know.

As Brawne, Cornish carries this section of the film. Her soft features juxtaposed against her discerning eyes allow her character to play both the socialite minx and the love-stricken woman.

Whishaw gives an adequate performance, but his faraway glances cannot hold a candle to Cornish’s nuanced character.

But while watching them come together is enchanting, watching them torn apart is merely trying.

As obstacles mount, both Keats and Brawne grieve the loss of

love, but the obstacles seem meager to the modern intuition. All you need is love, right? I understand it was a different time, but tradition just doesn’t mean what it once did. All in all, the separation is long and painful, but more the former than the latter.

There’s a lot to like in “Bright Star” — Cornish’s near-perfect performance, Campion’s wonderful insights into falling in love.

But as the film reaches its climax, it feels forced. The tears flow out of characters we don’t relate to anymore. We wish them the best in their troubles but don’t quite know what the fuss is about.

From page 12 her work as an artist.

The ‘90s saw Escobar ’s decision to start a family, quit dancing with other companies and create her own work. Unlike many dancers who leave the profession when they have children, Escobar integrated her family into her work and brought her children backstage and to rehearsals.

She created original works for the performance groups M’word!, Reza Abdoh’s Dar a Luz and the Nuyorican Poets Cafe, among others.

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Panel appeals to comic book writers

By Gerald Rich Daily Texan Staff The Undergraduate Writing Center isn’t just for those lastminute revisions on papers. Tonight the center will host a panel in its “After Hours” series on comic book writing.

“Yes, we help students with papers, but our larger mission is to establish a stronger community of writing,” said e v e n t m o d e r a t o r A n d re w Friedenthal.

The panel will include four writers and essayists: Matthew Sturges (the award-winning “Jack of Fables”), Alan J. Porter (historian/writer), Paul Benjamin (“Marvel Adventures” and video games) and Rick Klaw (“Geek Confidential: Echoes

from the 21st Century”). Additionally, most of the writers are local Texans.

Comics have been around since the early 1900s and saw their first boom during World War II. Since then, the genre has evolved and reflected numerous cultural zeitgeists in its pages.

One of the most noticeable examples is Batman’s shift toward the darker, gritty Dark Knight.

Previous incarnations featured simple stories of the masked hero fighting crime.

But the ‘80s saw growing radicalism abroad as well as the punk renaissance. That’s when Frank Miller and Alan Moore stepped in and rewrote the comic, completely shifting it from the “biffs” and “pows” of yesteryear to a lone vigilante

engaged in urban warfare with criminals.

Besides appealing to comic book fans, the UWC hopes the panel will draw in a variety of different writers.

“It’s probably most akin to playwriting or screenwriting,” Friedenthal said. “You’re writing a visual language.”

Unlike those other mediums, though, comic books are unique. Their writing is bound to separate frames rather than uninterrupted visuals. It’s then up to the audience to actively read and unite these distinct bits of information.

Despite these differences, the most important thing Friedenthal suggests to all aspiring writers is that they write about what matters most to them.

12 LIFE

LIFE&ARTS

12

Friday, September 25, 2009

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

T HE DAILY TEXAN

Cyclist in tandem with students ‘Bright Star’ fails MOVIE REVIEW

By Robert Rich

Peyton McGee | Daily Texan Staff

Every morning, Spencer Scorcelletti wakes up at the “House of Guys,� a self-described “fauxternity� that sits at the corner of MLK and Rio Grande Street. He gets out of the lofted bed he built and exits via a pole stretching from floor to ceiling — also built by him. He gets ready, exits the house and takes a deep breath before mounting the tandem bike he rides to school. He’s the “free rides� guy, energetically riding around campus day and night offering rides to needy students.

When he talks, it’s clear he’s capable of hitting it big, discovering the next important philanthropic project that changes the world. And like all great initiatives, you have to start with a little freedom.

I was the only person in the house, and I was just so bored. One of my roommate’s brothers had a tandem bicycle, and he left it at the house. I got to thinking about how bored I was and how fun it would be to fix up the bicycle — because it was broken — and just ride around town and ask people if they wanted a ride home, because it’s funny for one person to be on a tandem bicycle.

After I fixed it, it just hit me: free rides. I got on there and rang that bell and said, “Free rides,� and the whole sort of philosophy was made known to me.

It’s totally pointless; it’s stupid, I know. I’ve given about 120 or so rides. That’s less than, like, a thousandth of a percent of campus. But everybody sees it — half of campus at least. I can’t tell you how many people have come up to me and said, “You just made my day.� The philosophy is to spread this idea of freedom and break people out of their shells.

I feel like everyone around us is always on their cell phone or always texting, and it bothers me. We’re surrounded by beautiful, attractive, funny people. We’re at the right age, and we’re sitting here, and we’re not enjoying each other.

No tips accepted. No sexual favors; that’s disgusting. I’ve been offered both. I think if I ever did accept them it would be, for example, to buy a helmet — but someone already donated one. All my passengers have to wear the helmet. I care a lot about my passengers.

I give slightly more rides to girls, but guys usual-

Spencer Scorcelletti, a Czech language and literature senior, stands in front of the House of Guys on Wednesday. Scorcelletti offers free rides to students around campus on his tandem bicycle.

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FACES continues on page 11

to shine in telling tragic love story

By Robert Doty Daily Texan Staff “Bright Star,� written and directed by Jane Campion (“The Piano�), chronicles the tumultuous love affair of John Keats (Ben Whishaw), the Romantic poet, and Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish), a bold, intelligent woman who lives next door.

It’s a tragic love story about the rigid social codes of the era.

But all the conventions of etiquette, traditions, archaic yeses and no’s fail to resonate in our age in which “love conquers all.� We understand the impediments in an intellectual sense but cannot integrate them into our emotions. In the end, we see the wreckage but can’t grasp how inevitable it all was.

A poor man with no commercial skill — yes, even then poetry made no money — Keats lives off the good graces of his wealthy friends, eager to

promote his poetic ambitions, while simultaneously caring for his ailing younger brother. One friend in particular, Charles Brown (Paul Schneider), allows Keats to live and write with him. It is at Brown’s summer home where Keats first encounters the married Brawne.

On first meeting one another, they mix like oil and water.

Keats considers Brawne a hollow socialite, and Brawne, ever the realist, deems poetry to be an exercise in vanity. However, watching Keats care for his dying brother convinces Brawne to look deeper.

Watching these two fall for one another is a wonderfully enthralling dance. Brawne regards Keats with an inquisitive eye; he is unlike anything she has seen before, and she has the innate intelligence to

REVIEW continues on page 11

Courtesy of Apparition PathĂŠ Distribution

“Bright Star,� a drama based on the romance between 19th-century poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne, opens today.

Artist best known for ‘Fame’ continues exploring dance

By Rachel Meador Daily Texan Staff There is something about Mbewe Escobar that is both comforting and intimidating. Her slender figure and perfect posture reveal her profession at a glance. She exudes a sense of calmness and wisdom that makes her audience feel at ease.

Her face is striking and, for many, familiar but difficult to place. To dance students and faculty, she is a woman to be admired for her work as a performer, teacher and choreographer, but to the average pop culture consumer, this graduate student is a living piece of the dance film that has served as the template for all others: “Fame.� “It happened at the perfect time.

It came out of a moment in our performance history and the dawn of the AIDS epidemic,� Escobar said. “All this history that doesn’t apply anymore.�

The remake of the 1980 film chronicling an aspiring teenage performer’s journey through an arts high school comes out in theaters today. Escobar is most commonly known for her role of 16-year-old Phenicia, the best friend of main character Coco, but her work off camera is what distinguishes her as an artist.

After 30 years in dance, Escobar made the decision to explore her deep interest in dance history and the anthropology of movement and performance at UT, and she’s currently seeking her master’s degree in performance as public practice at UT. Escobar was born in Honduras where dance was a part of her family life. They immigrated to New York when Escobar was 6 years old, but her family kept the tradition of movement a central part of life in the United States. “In my culture, family comes together frequently to strengthen bonds, celebrate milestones, to play music, eat and dance,� she said. “But our gatherings are especially important when we come together to remember our ancestors.

Honoring meant dancing.�

After a couple of years in college, Escobar dropped out.

Shelley Neuman | Daily Texan Staff

Mbewe Escobar, dance graduate student, played ‘Phenicia’ in the original 1980 version of the movie Fame. “I just couldn’t continue where I was,� she said. “I realized that I just had to dance. Dance as a theatre art was unacceptable to my family — it was primarily a spiritual practice for us, and they expected me to become a doctor or lawyer. Once I made the decision to pursue dance I was really on my own.�

In the mid-1970s, Escobar was introduced to Loremil Machado and Jelon Vieira by theatre friends.

Credited with introducing the explosive Afro-Brazilian martial arts dance form, capoeira, to Western audiences, Machado and Vieira were in residence at The Clark Center for the Performing Arts in New York.

They invited her to work with them, and she spent 10 years in the company as a performer, teacher and rehearsal director. At the same time, Escobar began her formal dance training after meeting Louise Roberts, the center’s director, and receiving a scholarship to study there. “It was an important opportunity for me,� Escobar said. “I was not frustrated to begin my training at 20. I was motivated, curious and ambitious to make up for lost time.

I worked endlessly.�

At the Clark Center, Escobar met Marjorie Perces, who served as her mentor outside of her demanding classes. Perces suggested Escobar continue training at the Alvin Ailey American Dance

Center. Perces introduced Escobar to Ailey, one of the most well-known and respected men in dance, who made it possible for her to enter the school. �Mr. Ailey asked me what I wanted to do,� Escobar said. “He said, ‘Do you want to be a dancer and be used or be an artist and create?’ At the time, I couldn’t understand completely, but it revealed itself to me.�

In 1978, she was approached

by Louis Falco, choreographer for the then-upcoming film “Fame,� about being in the movie. She didn’t even audition. “When my family understood that I was in a feature film, they realized that I was doing something significant,� Escobar said. “It was a level of professionalism they could relate to.�

Though she loved working with Falco, Escobar recalls clashing with director Alan Parker. “There is a dilemma when one thinks of oneself as an artist, not just an entertainer, and has personal standards� Escobar said. “I wanted to do the best job I could on ‘Fame,’ but there were social expectations I did not want to be a part of.�

Much of Escobar’s work was left on the cutting room floor.

With the film complete, she hid in the concert dance world for several years, focusing fully on

DANCE continues on page 11