10/15/09

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THE DAILY TEXAN 1

DT WEEKEND

Dreaming of Havana Thursday, October 15, 2009

UT offers help for depressed students

By Priscilla Totiyapungprasert Daily Texan Staff Suicide represents the second leading cause of death for college students, according to the UT Counseling and Mental Health Center, a statistic they hope to combat at the University with several services and options for students who seek counseling or express concern about their friends’ mental health.

Research conducted by the University in 2006 showed 58 percent of undergraduates and 49 percent of graduate students at UT reported to have some form of suicidal thoughts in their lifetime.

“Suicide usually isn’t about death,” said Marian Trattner, the University’s suicide prevention coordinator. “It’s about relieving the pain.”

A variety of factors contribute to suicidal thoughts, rather than just one trigger event, and most people will begin to show warning signs at least a week in advance, Trattner said.

Trattner listed a visible decline in academic performance, alcohol and drug abuse, family history with suicide and undiagnosed mental illness as warning factors. Symptoms for mental illness usually begin to show during college age, although a person does not have to have mental illness to be susceptible to suicide, she added.

Other behaviors to watch for include drastic change in mood and isolation.

“Let’s say you get dinner with a friend three times a week,” Trattner said. “If your friend suddenly stops showing up and has been acting withdrawn, you should talk to them.”

Trattner said students moving away from home for the first time can have trouble transitioning as they cope with new problems without their usual support system.

Facebook can also display red flags. Students on Facebook should pay attention to status updates that follow a trend of “I’m so tired of this” and “I wish I wasn’t here,” she said.

Many times, Trattner said, people fear upsetting a friend by talking about suicide. Others are afraid to talk because of their own personal losses or out of fear that they do not know how to react to a friend who is considering suicide. Concerned students should talk to their friends about behavioral changes and directly mention suicide, she advised.

“By using the word ‘suicide,’ you’re showing you’re a safe person for them to talk to about it,” Trattner said. “Be supportive and suggest mental health counseling. We need to have a culture where it’s okay to talk about suicide.”

Student organization Active Minds works with

‘Hold me closer, tiny dancer’

Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900

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Embarking on the Great Crusade

Photos by Peyton McGee | Daily Texan Staff

Above, Brittany Williams and Brittany Limbo, members of Texas Exes Student Chapter, laugh together before the Torchlight Parade on Wednesday night.

The Torchlight Parade and Rally is an annual student event to boost school spirit before the Texas vs. OU game. Below, Members of Texas Cheer watch Texas Pom perform in front of the Tower at the Torchlight Rally on Wednesday.

Historic Torchlight Parade excites UT students for big game Saturday

By Priscilla Totiyapungprasert Daily Texan Staff Pumping their horns in the air and wielding torches, a parade of about 500 students and Austin residents marched down Guadalupe Street on Wednesday night to the sound of spirit songs at the annual torchlight parade.

Texas Exes Student Chapter held its 22nd Torchlight Parade and Rally to boost Longhorn spirit before the Texas-OU football game.

The band started chanting “Beat the hell out of OU!” to kick off the parade as the drum line played. Traveling from West 25th Street and Whitis Avenue to the front of the UT Tower, a sea of burnt orange formed on the Main Mall as more people followed the sound of the instruments and joined the crowd for the rally.

The Longhorns are listed as No. 3 and the Oklahoma Sooners No. 20 in the AP rankings.

This will be the 104th meeting between the two teams.

“I expect Colt to be on his game, offense to get back up and we’ll be running like clockwork,”

WELLNESS continues on page 2

Values trump finance when choosing college of a good fit,” said Tom AbraBy Melissa Pan hamson, Lipman Hearne manDaily Texan Staff A survey released Wednesday aging director. Other top factors suggests that many high-achiev- included students knowing that ing high school seniors make col- they could pursue a specific area lege enrollment decisions based of study, have access to a wide on the values of a university variety of majors and courses, live on campus and have access rather than on cost.

Lipman Hearne, a market- to faculty advising, Abrahamson ing company that conducts re- said. “[UT has] one of the best comsearch for universities and other nonprofit institutions, surveyed munications schools around,” said public rela1,264 high tions freshman school seniors Kelcey Bacon. online in May “My sisters went 2009. All stuhere, too, so it’s dents surveyed like a family traapplied and It’s like a family dition.” were accepted tradition.”

Business freshto at least three colleges. Those — Kelcey Bacon man Cynthia Vesaid she desurveyed had freshman lasco cided to attend combined SAT the University beI scores of 1150 cause of its highly or higher (out ranked business of 1600) and/or school and beACT composite cause of its football program. scores of 25 or higher.

Participants with SAT I scores Out of the total number of respondents, 50 applied and were of 1300 or higher were less concerned with tuition but more accepted to UT. According to the survey, the concerned with financial aid, actop factor in students’ enroll- cording to a comparison between ment decisions was which col- this year’s study and a previous lege they believed would be the study conducted in 2006.

“There is concern in the adbest fit for them.

“It’s really a set of must-haves that come together to this idea CHOICE continues on page 2

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LIFE&ARTS PAGE 12

GAME continues on page 2

Students organize against domestic violence, silence

By Melissa Pan Daily Texan Staff Diana Padilla’s best friend was trapped with a boyfriend who routinely hit her.

“She got out of the relationship before her boyfriend killed her,” Padilla, a psychology senior, said. Padilla watched as her friend went on to find a relation-

ship that was stable.

Padilla was one of the workers at the kick-off for National Domestic Violence Awareness Month, which took place Wednesday on the West Mall.

The kick-off was organized by Voices Against Violence, a pro-

ABUSE continues on page 9

Peter Franklin | Daily Texan Staff

Chassidy Shellman, a social work freshman, gives away carnations with notes describing domestic abuse cases at West Mall on Wednesday afternoon.

Online database offers insight to virus structures

By Lena Price Daily Texan Staff Viral researchers from across the country may have access to a new online database with information on a wide range of disease-causing viruses as early as December.

UT Southwestern Medical Center and the Northrop Grumman Corporation, a global security firm, received a $15.7 million grant Wednesday from the National Institutes of Health to construct a new virus database and analysis resource center. UT Southwestern will receive about $2.7 million out of the total grant money.

Richard Scheuermann, pathology professor in UT Southwestern’s Cancer Immunobiology Center, will be one of the principal investigators for the medical center.

“We want to try to bring together all kinds of information about pathogenic viruses into one resource,” Scheuermann said. “We have lot of information about the genetic makeup of viruses, but what we’re lacking is the ability to sequence that information.”

The database will compile structural information about the viruses that cause hepatitis, smallpox, SARS and other

emerging diseases.

“All of the information that is derived from experimentation will be put into this database,” Scheuermann said. “The database is designed to capture information about diagnostics and vaccines from this information.”

The database could eventually lead researchers to cures or treatments for some of these viruses by enabling them to render 3-D models and examine their protein structures.

“With these models, we can identify important interaction points between the virus and the host,” Scheuermann said. “In my opinion, these interaction points can be some of the best targets for drug treatments.”

The system will be modeled on a pre-existing database at UT Southwestern with information about the H1N1 virus. Scheuermann developed the model over the course of four years, and it helped researchers synthesize information about the virus when it was a new phenomenon.

Information on the origin of the H1N1 virus, the likelihood of patients having preexisting immunity and how it can be distinguished from the normal seasonal flu are all available in the database.

GRANT continues on page 2

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NEWS

Thursday, October 15, 2009

GAME: Rally rekindles spirit of rivalry Alexa Bourdage twirls batons at the Torchlight Rally on Wednesday.

Peyton McGee Daily Texan Staff

From page 1 said Texas Pom senior Briana Conner. “33-10, that’s what I predict.�

Other organizations at the event included Texas Wranglers, Alpha Phi Omega and Student Government.

Ahmad Brooks, former Longhorn football player and current radio talk show host on The Zone, emceed the rally.

Cheerleaders raised spirits Wednesday night by leading the crowd into the Texas Fight chant.

Speakers included Head Coach

and led an “I love Texas� chant.

Texas Tower Public Relations set up a table at the rally for their campaign to promote good sportsmanship from fans. “We want people to be respectful — keep it classy,� said sophomore Kelsey McGonigle, a member of the organization.

The organization began in the early 1960s after some unsportsmanlike behavior from Ohio State fans, McGonigle said.

The original torchlight parade and rally began in 1916 — the same year Bevo made his debut as the school mascot — on a Thursday night before a game against Texas A&M University. The rally was held in Gregory Gym before every football game in the 1940s to early 1960s. The Student Chapter of Texas Exes brought back Mack Brown, Assistant A.D. for the tradition in the 1980s to spur Strength & Conditioning Jeff on the Red River Rivalry. “College sports are more excit“Mad Dog� Madden and senior quarterback Colt McCoy, who is ing than national sports,� said atone of 16 football players listed tendee and alumnus Bryan Lym. on ESPN’s Heisman Watch. The “It’s just more fun to see the peocrowd began barking feverishly ple who went to your school take as Madden took the microphone the field.�

WELLNESS: Health center offers stress relief From page 1 the center to advocate mental health knowledge. Active Minds meets every Thursday in Parlin 206 at 5 p.m.

Emma Miller, president of the organization, said she began getting involved after losing a family member to suicide. She felt students had insufficient knowledge about the services provided on campus. “It’s important to get the word out because there’s a lot of people stressed about school and relationships, and they feel like they’re hopeless if they’re far away from

home,� Miller said. “The services at the school are easily accessible, so people don’t have to go into the city to search.�

Services include one-on-one counseling and group counseling on the fifth floor of the Student Services Building, where students can either make an appointment or walk in. The building also offers “a cool way to relax,� Miller said.

Stressed students can take a break during their day by going to the Student Services Building, which has relaxation and meditation rooms with recliners, headphones and calming music.

The University also provides the Behavior Concerns Advice Line, at (512) 232-5050, for students who are worried or bothered by the behavior of a friend, roommate or classmate.

Assistant Dean of Students Laura Hill, who oversees student emergency services, said students normally call regarding concerns about warning behaviors, such as peers who stop going to class, sleep all the time and talk about depression. Other warning signs include alcoholism and an eating disorder.

Hill said the advice line allows students to talk without dis-

closing names and provides suggestions based on each scenario. Counselors determine solutions based on how close the relationship is between the people involved and give helpful keywords to use when approaching people for whom the callers are concerned.

Along with BCAL, the University provides private counseling at (512) 471-2255, which is available 24 hours a day. The center also launched a new, interactive Web site about suicide prevention this semester called Be That One at www.cmhc.utexas. edu/bethatone.

CHOICE: Women opt for college route more than men The findings, published in 2006, did not contain sections about the missions office that the state of the effects of the economy and scholeconomy will affect the college-go- arships that were included in the ing population,� said Michael Orr, 2009 study.

UT associate admissions director. “As a business, we not only want “There is a spike in community to do work, but also provide origicollege enrollment during difficult nal research information,� Abrahafinancial times.� mson said about why the compaLipman Hearne also surveyed ny conducted this survey. He add600 high school seniors in 2005. ed that Lipman Hearne regularly

From page 1

does this kind of research for its specific clients.

In the 2009 study, 65 percent of its respondents were female while only 35 percent were male.

The percentage of female respondents was not representative of students as a whole at the score level required to participate in the survey but was representative of how many females attend universities, Abrahamson said.

According to Abrahamson, males actually score slightly higher than females on the SAT I and the ACT. According to a 2007 U.S. Department of Education survey, 57 percent of college

students were female, compared with 43 percent who were male.

The company contacted the study’s participants through the National Research Center for College University Admissions, a nonprofit that gives high school students’ contact information to universities through annual voluntary surveys.

The research center sent out e-mail invitations for the survey, providing three different sweepstakes as an incentive.

The research center gathers information from 5.5 million students annually, according to its Web site.

Percussion rocks campus

Jordy Wagoner | Daily Texan Staff

Elizabeth and Henry Rosenquist participate in a percussion circle in front of the Barbara Jordan statue that takes place each Wednesday; any passersby are welcome and encouraged to participate.

GRANT: Resource centers aid

disease research, remedies From page 1 Burke Squires, UT Southwestern database analyst, worked on Scheuermann’s team to develop the H1N1 database. The databases will be supplemented by resource centers at UT Southwestern. “Going forward, there will be the influenza research center, plus four new resource centers,�

Squires said. “Each resource center will represent an entire class of virus pathogens.�

Squires said he hopes the centers will eventually make UT Southwestern a hub for research on human-based pathogenic viruses. “The purpose is to support

vaccine development or diagnostic tools in any way possible,�

Squires said.

The grant was awarded two days after UT Southwestern entered into an agreement with the Seton Family of Hospitals that will facilitate biomedical research between all schools in the UT System. The recent partnership could indirectly influence the development of the database, Scheuermann said. “We are fortunate to have access to the Texas Advanced Computing Cluster and other high performance computing resources associated with UT-Austin,�

Scheuermann said. “Having these connections with other investigators will help us.�

THE DAILY TEXAN Volume 110, Number 92 25 cents

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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 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 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Reporters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Alex Geiser, Melissa Pan, Priscilla Totiyapungprasert, Perez James Photographers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jordy Wagoner, Lara Haase Life & Arts Writers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..Gerald Rich, Rene Hunyh, Jonathan Rienstra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Susannah Jacob, Layne Lynch Sports Writer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tara Dryer Copy Editors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Carloyn Webb, Gabriella Fontes, Claire Cardona, Veronica Rosalez Page Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Risa Punzalan Comics Artists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Michael Cormier, Ryan Hailey, Rachel Weiss . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Gabe Alvarez, Jermaine Affonso, Katie Smith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nam Nyugen, Amelia Giller Wire Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jacque Rauschuber Columnists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Douglas Luippold Videographer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jaemy Velaquez

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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, Lisa Hartwig Senior Graphic Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Felimon Hernandez

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Texan Ad Deadlines

10/15/09

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

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3 W/N

Wire Editor: Jacque Rauschuber www.dailytexanonline.com

WORLD&NATION T HE DAILY T EXAN

Fraidoon Pooyaa | Associated Press

Around 50 Taliban militants from Herat province handed over their weapons to the Afghan government in the city of Herat on Wednesday. This is part of the government’s peace-reconciliation program with the Taliban to help ease tensions in prepation for a runoff preseidental election.

Afghans prepare for runoff race

By Heidi Vogt The Associated Press KABUL — Afghan officials would face a daunting task in organizing a runoff presidential election before the arrival of winter — including hiring unbiased staff and securing polling stations in areas under threat of Taliban attack.

The problems are unlikely to end there. Even if the Afghans were to pull it off, there’s no guarantee that another ballot — which seems increasingly probable — would produce a reliable partner for the U.S. and its allies in confronting the Taliban-led insurgency.

Election officials are expected to rule within days on fraud allegations over the Aug. 20 election.

The vote was marred by charges of ballot-stuffing and voter coercion, mostly to the benefit of the incumbent, President Hamid Karzai.

Preliminary results show Karzai won with about 54 percent. But if the U.N.-backed Electoral Complaints Commission discards enough of the votes for Karzai, it could drop the president’s total below 50 percent. That would force a runoff with the top challenger, Abdullah Abdullah.

The electoral tumult already has thrown the country into a political crisis and cast doubt on a key pillar of the NATO strategy in Afghanistan — partnering with a legitimate Afghan government capable of winning broad public support against the Taliban and its al-Qaida allies.

President Barack Obama is try-

NATION BRIEFLY Fingerprint on artwork confirms that drawing is one of Leonardo’s TORONTO — A portrait of a young woman thought to be created by a 19th century German artist and sold two years ago for about $19,000 is now being attributed by art experts to Leonardo da Vinci and valued at more than $150 million.

The unsigned chalk, ink and pencil drawing, known as “La Bella Principessa,” was matched to Leonardo via a fingerprint and palm print found on the 13½-inch-by-10inch work.

Technical, stylistic and material composition evidence — including carbon dating — had art experts believe they had found another work by the creator of the “Mona Lisa.”

Obama calls for $250 payments to retired, disabled Americans WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama called on Congress Wednesday to approve $250 payments to more than 50 million seniors to make up for no increase in Social Security next year.

The White House put the cost at $13 billion. It would mark the first year without an increase in Social Security payments since 1975.

The $250 payments would also go to those receiving veterans and disability benefits, as well as railroad retirees and retired public employees who don’t receive Social Security. Recipients would be limited to one payment, even if they qualified for more.

Compiled from Associated Press reports

ing to decide whether to send in tens of thousands more U.S. troops and whether it is worth backing a government that has lost much of its legitimacy through corruption and alleged electoral fraud.

If the commission announces that Karzai does not have enough votes for a first-round win, Afghan law requires a runoff within two weeks. Election officials say it will take that long to prepare for a new vote.

That would push the balloting into early November — just ahead of the advent of winter, which usually begins in most of the country in the second half of the month.

In the far northern province of Badakhshan, snow already has fallen. Deputy Gov. Shams-ul Rahman said a snowstorm about two weeks ago closed many remote roads.

Once the first snows fall across the rest of the country, it will be difficult to transport ballots to and from Kabul over Afghanistan’s primitive road system, especially through mountain passes that rise as high as 10,000 feet. Many rural Afghans would probably stay at home rather than travel to polling stations in the fierce cold.

“It’s hard in cold weather to come by donkey or foot,” said Mohammad Nader Fahimi, the deputy governor of central Bamiyan province.

With a possible runoff looming, election officials have gathered materials including ballots, indelible ink and counting sheets in the capital so they can be distributed to the provinces on short notice.

Distributing ballots is only one of the problems facing Afghan authorities.

“Challenges remain, including hiring and training polling center staff and making sure people complicit in first-round vote fraud are not rehired,” said Timothy Michael Carney, a retired U.S. ambassador who runs the U.S. election support team. “And of course the important aspect of ensuring security for a possible second round.”

The Independent Election Commission, the Afghan body that runs elections, must also complete the list of polling stations. The ousted deputy chief of the U.N. mission, Peter Galbraith, complained that many polling stations for the August balloting were established in areas too dangerous for voters — simply so ballots there could be faked.

In order to minimize fraud in the second round, U.N. spokesman Aleem Siddique said the list of polling stations would be based on those that actually opened in August and where international and Afghan forces can provide security.

About 200 district field coordinators would be replaced for a runoff — some because of “complaints made against them by candidates or observers,” Siddique said Wednesday.

Finding replacements won’t be easy. The government had to scramble this summer to recruit enough poll workers — particularly women — for the August vote. It’s unclear if they would be able to fill the posts with better

qualified people.

“No one is denying the challenges that we face. But whether or not we have a second round will not be dictated by how hard it is to conduct a second round. It will decided by the mathematics of the count,” Siddique said.

But the impartiality of the U.N.backed fraud panel is now under suspicion after one of two Afghan members resigned, claiming foreigners were making all the decisions. Karzai refused to accept the resignation, but the move played into Afghan suspicions that the U.S. and its partners were manipulating the process.

Many Afghans, meanwhile, question whether a second round would be worth the effort.

Many of Karzai’s fellow ethnic Pashtuns believe the delay in proclaiming a winner is simply a ploy by the Americans to deny another term to the incumbent. Abdullah, a mixed Pashtun-Tajik, is widely seen as the northern candidate while Karzai’s family comes from the heavily Pashtun south.

Businessmen complain that their partners in Pakistan and elsewhere won’t finalize contracts because of uncertainty over who will be running the country.

“Security is not good and it is just getting worse,” said Ajmal Karimi, a 21-year-old economics student at Kabul University.

He said he’d rather see money spent on improving the country than on elections.

“People are gathering and saying, ‘We’ve voted once and we are not going again,’” said Daoud Ali Najafi, the chief electoral officer.

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Thursday, October 15, 2009

British tentatively authorize increase of Afghan troops

By Gregory Katz The Associated Press LONDON — British Prime Minister Gordon Brown pledged Wednesday to send more troops to Afghanistan if NATO and the Afghan government do more to help fight the Taliban.

Brown said his government would increase British troop levels to 9,500 — an increase of about 500 — on the condition that President Hamid Karzai reduce corruption and improve his government’s performance.

Brown also pledged to send troops only if he can provide them with the proper equipment and if NATO allies increase their contributions to the war effort.

Military experts said Brown wants to show British support for the war as the U.S. debates an increase in its Afghan troop levels and he is unlikely to call off the deployment. Brown did not specify what contributions he is seeking from NATO nations, or exactly what the Afghans must do to get the extra forces, an indication that the conditions are largely designed to put political pressure on Karzai and NATO, they said.

The increase in British troops is small and may be of mostly symbolic importance, but it will likely be welcomed by President Barack Obama as his administration ponders difficult options in Afghanistan. These include a possible increase in U.S. forces, which now number about 67,000. Britain is the second-largest force in the 42-nation NATO coalition in Afghanistan.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said the administration was pleased by Brown’s announcement. He said Brown informed Obama of his decision last week when the two leaders spoke by telephone.

“Obviously, the British people and those that serve there have borne an enormous price in ca-

sualties,” Gibbs said Wednesday. “Obviously, we’re thankful for a strengthening of the coalition, and our assessment continues. But again ... we’re happy for their increase in contributions.”

Retired Col. Christopher Langton, a senior fellow at The International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, said it is extremely unlikely that Brown will ultimately decide to cancel the deployment, even if the conditions he demanded are not met, in part because Brown has said he is responding to requests from senior military advisers.

Langton said, however, that Brown will have to make sure the troops are properly equipped and trained, as promised, or face tremendous public anger at home. The government has already been criticized for not providing enough body armor and heavy vehicles.

“That’s the one condition he must meet,” Langton said. “The others he can sort of manage.”

Brown has faced conflicting pressures at home as public opinion polls show drooping support for the war and former commanders say more troops are needed fast to avoid defeat at the hand of Taliban insurgents.

Brown appeared to dismiss an argument put forward by some in the U.S. administration that Western forces should avoid raising troops levels and limit their goals to eliminating alQaida through precise strikes by aerial drones and special forces.

“Our objective is clear and focused: to prevent al-Qaida launching attacks on our streets and threatening legitimate government in Afghanistan and Pakistan,” he said. “But if we limit ourselves simply to targeting al-Qaida, without building the capacity of Afghanistan and Pakistan to deal with terrorism and violent extremism, the security gains will not endure.”

Akira Suemori | Associated Press

British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced Wednesday that he will be sending more British troops to Afghanistan on the condition of reduced corruption and improved government performance.

OPINION

4 Wednesday, October 15, 2009

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

T HE DAILY T EXAN

GALLERY

VIEWPOINT

Hiding the facts Yesterday, Gov. Rick Perry lashed out in response to media scrutiny of his abrupt replacement of three members of the Forensic Science Commission that was scheduled to review questionable evidence that led to the Perry-sanctioned 2004 execution of Cameron Todd Willingham. Willingham was convicted of setting the fire that killed his three children, but the evidence presented in the case has been questioned by experts since before his execution.

“Go and really look at the facts of this case, not what some biased group of individuals are putting out and feeding you,” Perry told reporters, according to an article in the Austin American-Statesman. “Go look at the facts and you will find that this was an incredibly bad man who murdered his kids, and the record will stand the scrutiny.”

Incredibly, Perry tells reporters to “go look at the facts,” while he does everything he can to obscure them.

Last week, the Houston Chronicle reported that Perry’s office received a report criticizing the evidence in the case approximately one and a half hours before the execution. The report, authored by Dr. Gerald Hurst, accused investigators of making “major errors” and likened their investigation techniques to an “old wives tale,” according to the Houston Chronicle. At that time, Hurst, an arson expert with a doctorate in chemistry from Cambridge University, had already gained reknown for his role in successfully exonerating prisoners who had been convicted based on faulty arson science.

Perry chose not to issue a stay of execution in response to Hurst’s report and now is stopping media from finding out why. His office is telling the media that documents related to Perry’s review and his staff’s discussion of the Willingham case are not public, according to the Houston Chronicle. This stance is odd, considering that summaries of gubernatorial reviews of execution cases have been considered public records in Texas in the past.

These troubling facts only increase our concern about Perry’s original decision.

At the end of last month, Perry replaced three members of the Texas Forensic Science Commission — including the chairman — just days before the commission was set to meet and examine the controversial execution. The meeting was immediately canceled by Perry’s newly appointed head chairman.

The commission was planning to hear the testimony of Craig Beyler, a renowned fire expert whom they hired to investigate the case. Beyler had concluded that the arson charge was not legitimate.

In his report, he wrote, “The investigators had poor understandings of fire science and failed to acknowledge or apply the contemporaneous understanding of the limitations of fire indicators. Their methodologies did not comport with the scientific method or the process of elimination.”

But Perry maintains that he replaced the board members for no other reason than that their terms had expired.

His only response to questions about his behavior has been to call Willingham a “monster.”

Perry may be right. Willingham might have been a monster. It is even possible that the multiple experts debunking the evidence in this case are biased or mistaken. For all we know, Willingham might have been guilty. But smearing Willingham’s character is not making the evidence used to convict him any less questionable. All anyone is asking for is a change to examine the record Perry asserts will “stand the scrutiny.”

Perry’s latest comments are a distraction — smoke and mirrors to entertain his ever-growing audience while he performs some more sleight of hand. As his gubernatorial primary race heats up, this is not an opportune time for the commission to uncover that he ignored relevant evidence and sent an innocent man to his death. But the more tricks Perry uses to prevent anyone from examining the facts of the case, the more suspicious we become that there is something sinister to be discovered.

— Jillian Sheridan for the editorial board

THE FIRING LINE Why people don’t like SG On Wednesday, the Texan reported on a Student Government resolution to limit the use of laptop computers during assembly meetings. Since I did not attend the meeting, I do not know the extent to which SG officials discussed the proposal and the time they devoted to it. But as a previous candidate who ran for office and lost (fairly), and as a student who finds it hard to take interest in SG politics, just arguing a resolution as trivial as banning laptops from meetings seems superfluous.

Now I see better why people dislike SG. Instead of using the resources and power they have to deliver real change, they waste time by talking about something that has no significant influence on the lives of most Longhorns. This resolution even seems counterproductive — how many kilowatt/hours were spent, sheets of paper used and time wasted? Resources that were paid for by students’ tuition, state funding and private donations could have been better served to, say, fund a scientist who would cure cancer, train the next Nobel Prize winner in economics or at least give away some cookies at Jester.

I know most SG members care about the community, but these resolutions make people believe they don’t. A better communication strategy is needed, or people may ask themselves, “What kind of leaders will these people become in the future?” Consequently, this may perpetuate distrust in public service.

Speaking directly to SG members: You have an awesome responsibility, and your commitment should be great. I applaud the move to make representatives pay more attention during those meetings (which are kind of tedious). But it’s sad there is even a need for this proposal. Don’t you know etiquette rules? Don’t you have respect for those speaking? Do you really care? Maybe it is time for Liam O’Rourke to make the

assembly meetings more dynamic, giving the Representatives more real power, as he promised in his campaign.

A few months ago, we all competed on platforms that promised dedication to a greater cause. To some extent, we all promised change. It’s time to deliver. Citing successes in a weekly newsletter doesn’t cut it.

But change is hard to deliver, so it’s time to get off Facebook, use resources wisely and, at the very least, act like you care.

— Ludwig Barragan Latin American Studies senior

Día de la Raza I was very pleased when I saw the front page of Tuesday’s Daily Texan showing Aztec dancers celebrating Día de la Raza, an event that serves not so much as a reinterpretation or alternative to Columbus Day, but as a revelation of historical truths. It was an opportunity to educate and enlighten UT students and to honor and instill pride in members of the indigenous race, hence the word “raza.” I personally believe that Columbus Day should be abolished. If the holiday and parades are intended to showcase the best of Italy and the best of the Italian-American community, than a murderous Italian should not be the honoree. There is documented evidence that Christopher Columbus worked natives to death. He butchered those who failed to meet their quota of gold and murdered and enslaved many others, initiating the worst holocaust in world history. Italians have better candidates to represent their rich and proud heritage.

This controversial holiday should be renamed Italian-American Heritage Day. Considering that textbooks are still full of historical myths and misinformation, it is up to conscientious people to search for the truth and become knowledgeable about the intrinsic rights of indigenous peoples here in their own sacred motherland.

— Anita Quintanilla

LEGALESE

SUBMIT A COLUMN

Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan 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.

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, brevity and liability.

Attention alone is useless

By Douglas Luippold Daily Texan Columnist Americans celebrate Columbus Day in many different ways. New York City hosts a parade honoring Italian-Americans. Dallas-area children enjoy a threeday weekend, often using the opportunity to attend the State Fair. I like to honor Christopher Columbus’ historic voyage by attending class, then bitterly reading the Facebook statuses of my non-Longhorn friends who are thoroughly enjoying their much-needed fall break.

MEChA, the Movimiento Estudiantil Chicano de Aztlán — a Chicano student political-action organization — also has a unique way of recognizing Columbus’ arrival to the New World — holding demonstrations in honor of “Indigenous People’s Day” and protesting the genocide of Native Americans that followed Columbus’ discovery.

Because the group carries a reputation for extremism, one might expect a radical event, but MEChA’s campus demonstration Monday was refreshingly low-key. Campus political events are often nothing more than loud, indulgent events that make the sponsoring organizations look ridiculous and taint their ideas.

The main problem with many campus political events is that they are predicated on the singular goal of attracting attention. While exposure is a perfectly reasonable objective, organizations go about attaining it counterproductively. For example, a conservative organization recently held an event in the West Mall to protest President Barack Obama’s health care reform agenda.

Obviously, health care reform is a complex issue that invokes disputes over the role of government in private industry, regulatory and bureaucratic intricacies, and even what constitutes basic human rights.

How did the group choose to express its position?

Members dressed up as doctors and passed out apples with slogans tied to the stems under a giant banner titled “Obamacare,” or something to that effect.

Not exactly the essence of high-minded debate.

As a member of University Democrats, I am very familiar with events of this nature. A satirical, attention-grabbing gimmick is intended to draw student and media attention, which will attract like-minded students to the organization.

By that standard, the “Obamacare” event succeeded. It was impossible to walk past the West Mall without noticing the display, and if I had reactionary political beliefs, I would have been attracted to the organization.

But the achievement of those goals does not justify a tacky and patronizing display. MEChA’s Columbus Day protest demonstrates that a mature and simple event can obtain the same benefits as an ostentatious one — without the negative consequences.

MEChA’s event consisted of a woman dressed in Indian garb performing a traditional dance. In between dances, a group leader read the group’s argument over a PA system as other members distributed fliers.

MEChA’s positions are extreme. Among other things, the group calls for an organized resistance to classism and capitalism and claims to reside in Tejaztlan instead of Texas. Despite its radical agenda, MEChA was able to command the attention of students without alienating any.

And because of the sensible and levelheaded event, students were much more open to MEChA’s ideas than they would have been if members had dressed up like conquistadors or posted pictures of dead indigenous people on A-frames.

It was fitting that the MEChA event was just down the sidewalk from the statue of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose effectiveness was largely based on his ability to attract attention and advance an agenda while indisputably commanding respect. There is nothing wrong with using humor to make a legitimate point, but gaining attention must be the means to support a cause, not an end in itself.

Luippold is a government and journalism junior.

GRADUATE STUDENT VOICES

Arts students must be visibly involved

By Lane Harder Daily Texan Guest Columnist When I was in the process of applying to be a Graduate Student Assembly representative from my school, I encountered several members of the faculty, staff and administration who all made a similar remark: “I wish that more of our students would get involved in this or another similar organization at the university level.” I’m not from the School of Architecture or the College of Communication. I’m a firstyear doctoral student in the Sarah and Ernest Butler School of Music.

In my experience, students of the fine and performing arts do not tend to be as active in their respective universities as do students from other disciplines. This is probably for a number of reasons. Students in the arts often get saddled with a high number of hours, even as firstyear students, before officially declaring a major. If they did not assume this early course volume, the thinking goes, they would be a bit behind their peers once they declare their major. Then, as undergraduates, they get used to taking up residence in the ivory tower of the music building (or art, or drama, or dance, or theatre) where, in addi-

tion to coursework, they take private lessons and rehearse in ensembles. This commitment of time and resources makes campus-wide involvement a bit prohibitive.

This mindset probably carries over into graduate school. Having been unaccustomed to universitylevel involvement as undergraduate fine arts majors, taking up the student government mantle most likely does not seem like a natural progression. However, at the graduate level, the time taken up by our respective artistic disciplines is certainly matched or exceeded by graduate students in other disciplines — what with research, internships and jobs added to the mix.

I think it would be tremendously useful for students in the College of Fine Arts (especially the graduate students) at UT to make their presence known through more campuswide involvement. We as creative and performing artists have to advocate for our own interests. We have to be involved in order to have a presence and a spot at the table so that we may present our ideas. By extension, the advocacy of the graduate student interests of our peers from other schools in the University is in our collective self-interest.

This is why the Graduate Student

Assembly in particular is an important body at this University. Because it is made up of graduate students, it works to make our experience a better and more complete one, and it has the ear of University policy makers, the city of Austin, and the state of Texas.

Further, many graduate students (particularly those of us at the doctoral level) will probably be employed by colleges and universities during our careers, so getting to see the gears of a university turn through the lens of a student advocacy organization is certainly educational.

The student body would do well to explore the riches offered by the College of Fine Arts. They include the Performing Arts Center and the Blanton Museum of Art. Art exhibitions, plays, operas, ballets, recitals, and concerts by world-class artists as well as our own students are produced regularly and frequently.

Fine and performing arts students are an integral part of life at UT, and I hope that the university continues to benefit from the tireless work put into bringing the passion of various disciplines to life.

Harder is a doctoral student in the College of Fine Arts.

5 UNIV

Thursday, October 15, 2009

5

NEWS

For family in need, house offers fresh beginning

By Perez James Daily Texan Staff Construction workers, lawyers, family and friends packed into the house they built for Tamika Nobles and her family at a dedication ceremony Wednesday.

Volunteers from Habitat for Humanity and the Austin Bar Association spent countless hours constructing the new home on Towbridge Circle.

Founded in 1976, Habitat for Humanity is a nonprofit Christian ministry that works with volunteers to build and restore houses for families in need. The organization relies on volunteer labor and donated materials, according to the group’s Web site.

Legal Build, a collaboration between the Austin legal community and Austin Habitat for Humanity, worked to raise money as well as walls for the Nobles’ home.

“This was extraordinary, rewarding and an uplifting experience for Tamika,” said Mishell Kneeland, Texas assistant attor-

Tamika Nobles holds her 9-month-old niece, Zanaiyiah, at the dedication of her Habitat for Humanity house as Ofelia Estrada, one of the site leaders, tearfully reads a speech. Tamika worked 400 hours for Habitat to be eligible to receive the newly completed home for her and her teenage children.

ney general and chairwoman of Legal Build.

According to Habitat’s Web site, each new homeowner in-

‘‘

It’s a blessing to see this and help to grow a better community.”

— Michael Willard executive director, Austin Habitat for Humanity

vests hundreds of hours of their own labor into their house and helps build other Habitat houses. Nobles worked on her house for 400 hours.

Nobles was overwhelmed with emotion at the dedication. A representative from the Capital Area Food Bank presented Nobles with a traditional housewarming gift of a basket containing wine, bread,

salt and a candle.

“This is the best house in the history of Habitat for Humanity,” Nobles said.

According to the Habitat Web site, the organization is dedicated to “eliminating substandard housing and homelessness worldwide and to making adequate, affordable shelter a matter of conscience and action.”

“It’s a blessing to see this and help to grow a better community,” said Michael Willard, executive director of Austin Habitat for Humanity.

Nobles and her extended family and friends came together to celebrate the new home.

“It feels good to have one more house behind us and a family having the opportunity to have a place of their own,” said construction project manager Jesse Porter.

In keeping with tradition, Nobles passed on her hammer to the next family to receive a Habitat house.

“Now, I have something I can call my own,” she said.

Photos By Jordy Wagoner | Daily Texan Staff

Lonnie Harris and Regie Nobles hold up a piece of wood as their mother, Tamika Nobels, ceremonially saws through it, representing the groundbreaking of her new Habitat for Humanity home.

6 S/L

6

NEWS

Thursday, October 15, 2009

Careful where you park Free hugs for UT students

City encourages drivers not to fall for scams, look for fair-sponsored areas

pany refunded most people who filed complaints in a timely manner, but after their insurance company dropped the towing company and the permit was revoked, the last of the complaints were not honored. A towing company must be insured to operate.

This year, the transportation regulation department, the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation and the Dallas Police Department have teamed up to help monitor the area.

“They are going to be keeping their eyes on tow trucks in the area,” Titlow said. The team will be checking passing tow trucks for proper operating permits.

Parking enforcement will make sure that large signs designating parking are visible and attendants at each lot will carry

The department regulates towing operations and vehicle storage facilities for the state. In addition to the trucks themselves, tow truck operators are now reBy Alex Geiser quired to be licensed. Operators Daily Texan Staff are given criminal background After more than 60 cars were checks, and most are required to illegally towed during last year’s complete continuing education Texas-OU game, the City of Dalprograms to renew their licenses. las is making increased efforts to “These are classes that go over prevent wrongful towing near safety so they keep their skills at the State Fair grounds. the highest level possible,” StanLarge red and white signs will ford said. mark safe parking lots around Meranda Cohn, spokeswomFair Park in Dallas this Saturday an for the City of Dallas, said for the football game. city officials tested this enforceAt last year’s game, some drivment and investigative team in ers were flagged into private lots January for an event at the Cotand paid people posing as attenton Bowl. She said the new prodants. Wreckers then came and cess proved successful as there towed the cars to vehicle storage were no complaints of wrongful facilities. towing. “ T h e y There have were towbeen no inciing cars off dents at Fair of properThey are going to be keeping their eyes on tow Park since the ties [towing fair opened trucks in the area.” companies] two weeks ago, didn’t have — Gary Titlow, project managaer either. contracts Instead of f o r, ” s a i d driving to the Gary Titlow, Cotton Bowl, project manci ty offi ci al s ager for the urge crowds to Dallas Transportation Regulation a personal permit. Titlow urges ride the Dallas Area Rapid TranDepartment. “They forged some drivers to check for towing signs sit rail system. Dallas has recentalong streets and in other private ly opened the green line, which of the contracts.”

Most of the wrongful tow- lots before parking, as vehicles runs on special hours this weeking was done by Lone Star Auto blocking the right of way will be end for the fair and the game.

Services, a Dallas-based towing towed.

For the majority who will be Susan Stanford, spokeswom- driving, however, Cohn advises company. The company received the majority of complaints and an for the Texas Department of to first look for parking in lots on the transportation regulation de- Licensing and Regulation, rein- the actual fairground. She said partment revoked the company’s forced how important it is for parking would be $10 in these fans to pay attention to where lots, while many private lots will permit to operate, Titlow said.

Titlow said the towing com- they park this weekend. be charging up to $15.

bring smiles on the Drag

‘‘

Say goodbye to a good night’s sleep

Photos by Lara Haase | Daily Texan Staff

Tara Savony, a student at Austin’s Paul Mitchell Partner School, offers free hugs to passersby along with many of her classmates on the West Mall on Wednesday. Oscar Perez, one of the owners of the school, said they were out supporting the Free Hugs Campaign because “one act of kindness like a free hug can make a difference in someone’s life.”

45 students from school of cosmetology publicize while spreading the love

In the months prior to Mann’s my share,” said John Paul DeJoria, campaign, he said he suffered chairman and CEO for the school. from feelings of depression and The campaign aims to counter loneliness until he got a hug from the lack of communication between a stranger, according to the Web people. The idea is to reach out to site. people and to let them know that

By Perez James “I went out to a party one night there are people who understand Daily Texan Staff The Free Hugs Campaign, a so- and a completely random per- them and that they are not alone.

“We are out here to make some cial movement that promotes giv- son came up to me and gave me a ing free hugs to strangers in pub- hug,” Mann told Australia’s Who [people] feel good, [and] by giving hugs it lic places, made may brightits way to Ausen up sometin’s Paul Mitchone’s day,” ell Beauty School I felt like a king! It was the greatest thing said beauon Wednesday. that ever happened.” ty school stuStudents of the dent Amour National Cosme— Juan Mann, founder Davidson. tology Academy Davidson promoted the said commuschool by standnication with ing outside the people is at a University Co-op magazine last year. “I felt like a disconnect and there is a lack of sooffering hugs to passersby.

The campaign began with Aus- king! It was greatest thing that ever cial connection and human contact in the world. tralian Juan Mann, who decided happened.”

About 45 students from the Paul School owner Laura Valdez said to reach out to strangers by offering hugs to them. Mann gave out Mitchell school offered up free the promotion was a good way to the first hugs in the Pitt Street Mall hugs on the Drag for students, pro- reach out to the community, “We are out here to let the comin Central Sydney on June 30, 2004, fessors and other passersby.

“I think the whole world needs munity know that they are not according to the Free Hugs Web free hugs, and I am here to receive alone,” Valdez said. site.

‘‘

Peyton McGee | Daily Texan Staff

Two Quarters on Campus residents, both ACC students, stand in front of Grayson House after the early morning fire forced them out on the street for about an hour Wednesday morning.

During early-morning hours usually reserved for all-night study sessions and downtown pub crawling, more than 120 apartment residents stood outside, looking through flashing red and yellow lights as firefighters rushed into the building.

The high-rise fire alarm at The Quarters’ Grayson House on 22nd Street between Pearl and Rio Grande streets alerted Austin Fire Department members and apartment residents at 1:18 a.m., Wednesday morning.

“There was a fire in the trash chute, it was cut out by the sprinkler system that did what it was designed for,” said AFD Battalion Chief Richard Thompson. “Undetermined cause — just water on the first floor, no injuries.”

He said the incident was minor and that AFD members were preoccupied with sweeping water out of the flooded first floor.

“Luckily, there is no damage in our rooms,” said Ilana Diamond, a journalism and Middle Eastern studies senior. “The fire alarm

went off, and I grabbed my computer and left.”

AFD responded with more than 30 firefighters and eight vehicles.

The Austin Police Department was on scene, taping off the entrance to the building and herding the crowd of confused students.

AFD vehicles began to leave the area around 2:20 a.m., concluding that the fire was minor and did not cause any structural damage that would require the displacement of residents.

— Bobby Longoria

A student at Austin’s Paul Mitchell Beauty School hugs a passerby on Guadalupe Street on Wednesday afternoon.

Perry calls executed prisoner ‘a monster,’ denies possibility of error in conviction

By Kelley Shannon and Michael Graczyk The Associated Press A man put to death in 2004 for killing his three children was “a monster,” and suggestions that he may have been innocent are antideath penalty propaganda, Gov. Rick Perry said Wednesday.

Cameron Todd Willingham’s convictions were upheld several times before he was put to death, and recent media reports looking into whether Willingham may have been innocent glossed over evidence that showed he murdered his children, Perry told reporters after addressing Texas Association of Realtors members at a luncheon.

“Willingham was a monster.

He was a guy who murdered his three children, who tried to beat his wife into an abortion so that he wouldn’t have those kids. Person after person has stood up and testified to facts of this case that quite frankly you all aren’t covering,” Perry said.

Willingham was convicted of capital murder for the 1991 deaths of his children, 2-year-old Amber and 1-year-old twins Karmon and Kameron. Prosecutors said he set fire to the family’s Corsicana home while the children were inside.

Forensic scientists have called into question arson evidence used to convict Willingham, who maintained his innocence until his death. John Jackson, the Navarro County prosecutor who argued the case, still believes Willingham is guilty, but acknowledges it would have been hard to win a death sentence without the arson finding.

The governor has been criticized for replacing members of the Texas Forensic Science Commission just before they were to review a new report critical of the arson science used to convict Willingham.

If the evidence ultimately proves Willingham did not kill his children, it would be the first known wrongful execution in Texas.

Perry dismissed suggestions he

was trying to influence the commission’s findings, calling the commission members’ replacement a matter of “process.” He said capable new members of the panel will move forward with the investigation.

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, Perry’s rival for the Republican nomination for governor in 2010, has said that while she supports the death penalty, she disagrees with Perry’s decision to replace the commission members.

She told The Associated Press on Wednesday in Houston that Perry should have allowed the panel’s investigation to go forward to ensure that Willingham was in fact guilty.

“I don’t have the facts. I’m not taking up for Mr. Willingham because I have no idea. I’m taking up for the process, for the criminal justice system in our state,” Hutchison said.

Hutchison, repeating a point her campaign has been pressing for days, said Perry’s actions were heavy-handed, much like his deci-

sion to replace appointees on university regent boards who didn’t back him.

“I think the majority of Texans believe the death penalty is an appropriate punishment for the crimes that are the state law for the death penalty. I think every one of the people who believe in the death penalty would want to know we are using DNA evidence and the best technology in all the fields to determine if a person is rightfully convicted,” Hutchison said.

Hutchison’s campaign issued a statement saying Perry’s handling of the commission has given liberals ammunition to discredit the death penalty.

A state fire marshal, now deceased, and a local fire investigator ruled the Willingham case was arson. The investigator stands by the findings.

But a Baltimore-based arson expert hired by the Forensic Science Commission to study the case, Craig Beyler, concluded that the

arson findings were not scientifically supported and that investigators at the scene had “poor understandings of fire science.”

Beyler blasted Perry late Wednesday, accusing the governor of “unethical” behavior in the case, The Dallas Morning News reported. Beyler said via e-mail that the governor had a conflict of interest because he approved Willingham’s execution.

“His failure to recuse himself is both unethical and injurious to the cause of justice,” Beyler wrote in a note intended for the Forensic Science Commission and forwarded to several reporters with his permission.

Beyler, a contractor to the state commission, called on the new appointees to step down and seek the reinstatement of the people they replaced. He could not be reached to elaborate, the newspaper reported.

Perry’s spokeswoman, Allison Castle, said the comments called into question Beyler’s report and

his motives.

“This statement demonstrates that he was never an objective scientist looking only at forensic facts,” Castle said. “He clearly had another agenda.”

Perry said he wanted to remind the public of all the facts in the case, not “one piece of study that everyone is glomming onto and saying ‘Ah-ha.’”

“Getting all tied up in the process here frankly is a deflection of what people across this state and this country need to be looking at,” Perry said.

At trial, Willingham’s wife, Stacy, testified for him during the punishment phase, denying he ever hurt her. Acquaintances, however, said she told them he’d beaten her several times, even while she was pregnant.

The commission doesn’t have the power to rule on Willingham’s guilt or innocence, but was expected to release a report next year on the validity of the arson investigation.

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SPORTS

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

7

Thursday, October 15, 2009

T HE DAILY T EXAN

Veterans look to become leaders for new players for

By Will Anderson Daily Texan Staff Te x a s c o a c h R i c k Barnes can’t remember the last time he had a senior class.

“I don’t know how long,” Barnes said. “It may even go back as far as 2002.”

Wi t h D a m i o n James, Justin Mason and Dexter Pittman deciding to return for their final seasons, Barnes is hoping their experience will lead to more productivity on the court. “ I ’ v e b e e n re a l l y pleased with the leadership of those guys and the way they have embraced the younger players,” Barnes said. “These guys have been through it, they know what it’s gonna take.”

The Big 12 named James to the All-Conference preseason team and extended honorable mention to Pittman. In 1,614 minutes last season, the two combined

894 points and 513 rebounds.

“We took it upon ourselves to become leaders,” Pittman said.

“We know w h a t w e ’ r e working for, and that’s a national championship.”

Summertime, and the livin’s easy Over the summer, a number of professional basketball players who used to be Longhorns returned to campus to take classes, work out and bestow some wisdom on the current Texas team.

Royal Ivey of the Philadelphia 76ers, T.J. Ford of the Indiana Pacers and Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder all participated in pick-up games with the Texas players.

“Kevin told me to always work harder than everyone else,” said freshman Avery Bradley. “It was really fun.

A good learning experience because they helped me out a lot.

They showed me some NBA moves and some college ways to score.”

Ivey is a point guard for the 76ers, but taught “Big Man” Pittman some new tricks.

“I know the pro-scouts want to see me screen-and-pop and do different kinds of things, so [Royal] was teaching me the basics of that,” Pittman said.

Offense wins games, but defense…

With six returning starters and seven incoming players listed as either guards or small forwards, Barnes knows that this year’s squad has all the offensive tools to score — which is why he said the main focus through the first three weeks of practice will be on the defense.

“We want to be a transition team, we want to get up and down the floor, but the biggest thing will be defensively,” Barnes said.

E v e n t h o u g h Te x as made it to last year’s NCAA tournament, the team had the No. 111 scoring defense in the country, giving up an average 65.6 points.

“To be honest with you, we feel like, right now, we can go out and play offensively with anybody,” James said. But, he added, the team needs guys

“who can lock down and play great [defense].”

Brown finally on campus J’Covan Brown is finally a Longhorn. It has been a long and tenuous journey, but after being cleared by the NCAA in mid-August, Brown is practicing with the team and ready to compete for a spot on the floor, a year after he originally planned to join the lineup.

“We’d have loved to have had him here last year, he would have made a difference,” Barnes said. “He was extremely loyal to us from the beginning, and we’re just happy that he did what he had to do to get himself in a position to get here.”

B ro w n w a s d i s missed from the Port Arthur Memorial High School team during his senior season and has not played organized basketball in two years. He was supposed to come to Texas in the fall of 2008, but was not granted eligibility by the NCAA because of academic issues.

During that time, Brown stayed in the Houston area, practicing his basketball and trying to get his grades up. He was granted eligibility two days before the start of classes this year.

“I put all that behind me. Now, I’m just a new person,” Brown

said. “If it don’t kill me, it just makes me better.”

N o w, B r o w n is finally a part of the team. Barnes counts him among a group of talented incoming guards, but knows Brown has some catching up to do.

“Not being here this summer set him back,” Barnes said. “From a physical standpoint, he’s behind ... But he’s trying. The next couple of weeks will be important for him.”

against France and had to spend a month rehabbing it, but said he never second-guessed his decision to play for Turkey.

“You always want to play for your national team,” Balbay said.

Bejarano decommits

Last week Daniel Bejarano, a native of Phoenix, Ariz. and a verbal commit to the Texas class of 2010, rescinded his pledge to the Longhorns and announced that he would attend the University of Arizona instead.

Bejarano is a 6-foot-5 swingman The international and the No. 57 Dogus Balbay, the player in the naLonghorns’ Turktion, according to ish national, got to the recruiting Web experience a slightRivals.com Besite Rivals.com. ly different summer jarano had origithan his teammates. nally committed For a month, Balbay to Texas, but played for Turkey’s after his fabasketball team as ther was shot they competed against and killed in the top countries in June, he deEurope. cided he “International basketwanted ball is kind of differto stay ent. When I play closthere, my role er to is kind of differhome ent,” Balbay said. to be “But you see your friends again near his family. and play with them.”

“This is where I belong,” BejaBalbay actually broke his shoot- rano said. “I feel this is where my ing hand going up for a rebound dad would want me to be.”

Left, Pal Chuoy. Center, Paul Chuoy. Right, Stephen Durda

VOLLEYBALL

FOOTBALL COMMENTARY

Gameday makes Dallas trip despite lack of buzz Even with slow starts, Texas and OU have much up for grabs

Bruno Morlan | Daily Texan Staff

Texas’ Destinee Hooker goes up for the ball in last Saturday’s contest against Oklahoma. Hooker played a pivotal role in defeating Kansas.

Longhorns hold on to perfect record with Jayhawks win Texas dominates Kansas to extend victory streak to 22 straight matches

By Chris Tavarez Daily Texan Staff This is starting to get a bit redundant for the volleyball team: another match, another win.

The only variation is in the extent to which Texas dominates.

On Wednesday night, that variation was somewhere between complete and total as Texas (130, 8-0) rolled into Lawrence, Kan. and swept the Jayhawks (9-8, 2-6) in three straight sets.

The first set of the match was nearly all Texas, which at one point went on an 11-3 run before finally sealing the victory on two kills by junior outside hitter Juliann Faucette. The second set was much closer, though.

Texas started out the set in the unfamiliar position of being behind early, but a three-spot of kills by senior outside hitter Destinee Hooker helped pull the Longhorns out of the early deficit and put them back in the driver’s seat at 9-7. Texas would give up the lead once more, though, as Kansas would take back over at the midway point with a 13-12 advantage. But another big Longhorn run led by Faucette and Hooker would put Texas back up 20-16 before another Hooker killing spree would end the set

at 25-22.

After the break, Hooker would continue her domination of Kansas with another three-spot of kills to put Texas up 7-1. Sophomore middle blocker Rachael Adams’ three kills and two blocks fueled another big 12-1 Texas run to set the Horns up for their third set win of the night 25-12.

“Rachael continues to get better,” said head coach Jerritt Elliott. “We are trying to get her the ball more and for us to be successful we really need to have that balance.”

While Adams was the highlight of the final set, Hooker stole the spotlight for the match with 18 kills.

“She keeps growing as a player,” Elliott said of his All-American. “Leadership-wise, she came out and led the team and ignited its fire. She is a special player. It is nice to know that we have someone that can take over a match.”

The win improved Texas’ alltime record over Kansas to 26-4, and is its 22nd-straight regular season victory, the program’s thirdlongest in its illustrious history.

“This was a good win on the road,” Elliott said. “I thought as the match got going we got better, especially in game three. We made some good adjustments against a good road opponent in the Big 12 and that is what we need to do.”

By Chris Tavarez Daily Texan Columnist If you don’t know why there’s all of this hype around this upcoming game that’s not even in Austin, get out from that rock you’ve been living under and get acquainted to the glorious world of the Red River Rivalry.

That being said, the hype around this game isn’t quite what people were thinking it would be when the preseason rankings came out.

In August, it was expected to be a grudge match between two of the top teams in the nation — No. 2 versus No. 3 in a national championship elimination game.

Texas would be out for revenge after it got shafted by the BCS, and Oklahoma would be trying to prove that it belonged in that BCS title game, despite what their Red River Rivals may say.

Now that we’re in October, though, the game is a bit different. Texas’ lackluster play this season has dropped it down in the rankings and has people questioning the legitimacy of this team. Oklahoma has already suffered two losses and has dropped all the way down to No. 20, thanks in part to a near season-ending injury suffered by Heisman quarterback Sam Bradford.

While this game may not have all the sizzle people were expecting in September, it’s still one of the marquee games of the college football season. This is still Texas and Oklahoma we’re talking about, and a lot, like always, will be on the line.

Fortunately for Oklahoma, its two losses came early in the season. While those blemishes most likely knocked the Sooners out of the national title hunt (barring any 2007 LSU-esque occurrences), they still have as good a shot as anyone to win the Big 12 if they run the table – starting with the Longhorns.

Texas, on the other hand, still has all of its goals well within reach. An undefeated record and a 2-0 start in conference play mean the Longhorns are still in complete control of their destiny. If they can keep that goose egg in the loss column, Texas will play for the crystal ball in January.

But as this weekend’s game

Caleb Miller | Daily Texan Staff

Texas quarterback Colt McCoy visits with College Gameday’s Chris Fowler and Lee Corso after last year’s Red River Rivalry game that saw No. 5 Texas beat No. 1 Oklahoma 45-35. College Gameday decided to make the trip back to Dallas this Saturday for the much-anticipated rematch of Heisman finalists. is showing, the intensity of this rivalry goes far beyond the records of the two teams, the implications of the game and the play on the field. This rivalry is what it is because of one thing: the fans.

I mean, sure the absurd number of All-Americans on the field, the Heisman trophy race that’s on the line and conference and national title implications have something to do with it, but the fans are the lifeblood of this impressive showdown.

They are what makes this rival-

fans, who would go the Torchlight Parade and Rally – a Texas tradition held the Wednesday before OU weekend to send the players off to Dallas? Who would crowd the streets of Dallas showing their school pride wherever they go? And who would fill that iconic stadium?

It’s the Longhorn and Sooner faithful that make the Cotton Bowl the focus of college football every year, providing that famous split down the 50-yard line, with burnt orange on one side and crimson on the other.

While this game may not have all the sizzle people were expecting in September, it’s still one of the marquee games of the college football season. This is still Texas and Oklahoma we’re talking about, and a lot, like always, will still be on the line.

ry all that it is. The fans are the ones that fuel the fire, talk all the smack, (especially in this politically correct era where no one wants to say the wrong thing and the rival quarterbacks are best friends) fill the stands and provide the atmosphere that draws a national audience every year.

After all, if it wasn’t for the

And just as the fans make this one of the most anticipated games every year, it’s the loyal college football maniacs who make College GameDay one of the most anticipated shows every Saturday in the fall. This week, the show, which is becoming almost as much a fixture of the State Fair as Big Texas himself, will make its second ap-

pearance in as many years at the Red River Rivalry and its second at a Texas football game this season.

But the atmosphere on Saturday will be different than any other the show has seen or will see, all season long. Instead of being in the heart of some picturesque college campus with a crowd that is made up of nearly all home-team fans, the backdrop will be the great State Fair of Texas and a 50-50 split between Texas and Oklahoma fans.

So the cameras won’t be panning out to the beautiful fall foliage and perfectly manicured lawns typical of most institutes of higher learning at this time of the year. Instead, the College GameDay faithful across the country will be seeing a sea of pavement and colored tent tops peddling everything from corn dogs — an invention of the Texas State Fair and the original fried food — to fried butter, the newest heart attack-inducing goodie to come out of the fair.

So make sure to get out to the fair early to catch the show and eat some corn dogs and wash them down with some (fried) coke. Then follow Chris Fowler and the gang into the stadium to watch as Lee Corso dons the headgear in front of more than 90,000 fried-food-stuffed fans starving to watch one of the best college football games of the year.

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Thursday, October 15, 2009

WOMENâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S SWIMMING

ALLď&#x161;şDECADE

Squad ready to dive into action Tight ends look Wyoming diver Stephanie Ortiz plunges into the pool at the Texas Invitational.

The Longhorns placed second in the meet last December.

Paul Chouy Daily Texan file photo

By Tara Dreyer Daily Texan Staff Texasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s swimming and diving team will begin their regular season with a dual meet at Missouri today at 6 p.m.

This will be head coach Kim Brackinâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first trip to Missouri for a dual meet. Brackin likes to use the meets earlier in the season to move people around and see how the team is developing.

She puts a little more pressure on the younger competitors to step it up in the events. â&#x20AC;&#x153;For example, [I may] not have Kathleen Hersey in the 200 fly, but a freshman in there or a sophomore,â&#x20AC;? Brackin said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;But you have to be cautious because Missouri is a good team and you never want to be playing catchup in the middle of the meet.â&#x20AC;?

Brackin believes the Orange-

White intrasquad meet, which took place Friday, helped prepare the team for the upcoming season. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I think we saw some really good individual racing. What I really enjoyed watching, though, was the upperclassmen playing a mentor role with the younger kids. Which made me feel really good about where the team as a whole is progressing,â&#x20AC;? Brackin said.

GO HORNS!

She was also pleased with how the Orange team handled the meet. The White team won the first six events, but the Orange team continued to fight through every race until the meet was over. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something our team needs to get a little bit used to.

We tend to be a better back-half team,â&#x20AC;? Brackin said.

In preparation for the regular season, Brackin has been looking for good racing skills, but hasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t spent a lot of time working on those skills yet. The team has mainly been working on developing aerobically in the pool. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re not spending a lot of time on starts and turns and that kind of stuff, but we still expect to see some pretty decent quality there,â&#x20AC;? she said.

The teamâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s goals going into the regular season include returning with another Big 12 Championship and bringing back a national championship, or at least improving from last yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fifth place finish at the NCAA Championships. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We will look to have our freshmen be an important roleplayer in the outcome of our season,â&#x20AC;? Brackin said.

According to CollegeSwimming.com, Texasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; freshmen are ranked as the second best in the nation.

Texas returns 18 letter-winners, including 10 All-Americans from the 2009 squad.

Sophomore Kathleen Hersey, who was a 2008 Beijing Olympic finalist in the 200m butterfly and the 2009 Big 12 Swimmer and Newcomer of the Year, returns. Other returning standouts are fellow sophomore Katie Riefenstahl, who earned All-American honors in the 200 backstroke, sophomore Leah Gingrich, who added an AllAmerica finish in the 200 butterfly, and sophomore Shelby Cullinan who had All-America finishes in the 3-meter and platform diving events.

Tomorrow, Texas will compete in the Big 12 relays at 9 a.m. in Missouri where the league schools will compete in relays in all four strokes. Last year, Texas claimed the relays with 102 points, while Texas A&M took second with 98 points. The win was the Longhornsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; first at the Big 12 relays since 2005.

Brackin said A&M is Texasâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; biggest threat in the Big 12 and in the NCAA. Outside of the Big 12, Arizona and Georgia look to be powerful teams. â&#x20AC;&#x153;They have what I consider to be probably their best team.

And they are hungry to earn back the title,â&#x20AC;? Brackin said.

for final spots on All-Decade team

By Dan Hurwitz Daily Texan Staff The Longhorns have produced three elite tight ends over the past 10 years who have contributed immensely to the success of Texas football and have gone on to put up numbers for their respective NFL teams.

David Thomas Based on stats, Thomas is the best tight end to ever play for the Longhorns. The current New England Patriot set records at Texas for most receptions, touchdowns and yards by a tight end.

Thomas had two of the most reliable hands to ever find their way to the 40 Acres, which helped Vince Young and the 2005 Longhorns win the national championship. Thomas had a gamehigh 10 receptions for 88 yards in the BCS Championship Game against USC. Thomas was named to the second team All-Big 12 in 2004 and 2005.

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tailgate party Presented by

Jermichael Finley

Despite only playing at Texas for two years, Finley left his mark on the 40 Acres, and had he stayed for two more years, he would have likely broken all receiving records by a tight end. From 2006 to 2007, Finley was one of the favorite targets of Colt McCoy, catching 75 passes, good for third alltime by a Longhorn tight end.

He had five touchdowns and 947 career yards before getting drafted in the third round by the Green Bay Packers in 2008.

Finleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s career game came in Bo Scaife 2007 against Oklahoma when Scaife is among the few he caught four passes for 149 Longhorns who have ever been yards and a touchdown. Finley fortunate enough to be at Tex- was named Big 12 Honorable as for six seasons as his Long- Mention in 2007.

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horn career lasted from 1999 to 2004. Scaife suffered from injuries throughout his time at Texas but still managed to have 75 career receptions, five of which were for touchdowns. He also had a big impact on the running game as he blocked for Cedric Benson. Scaife was selected to the first team All-Big 12 in 2004.

Jermichael Finley, left, celebrates with Quan Cosby after a touchdown against Oklahoma in the 2007 Red River Rivalry.

Stephen Durda Daily Texan file photo

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9 CLASS

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NEWS

Thursday, October 15, 2009

ABUSE: Personal stories have big impact Study shows men inclined to neglect aid for depression From page 1

gram organized by the UT Counseling and Mental Health Center.

Program coordinators, workers and volunteers passed out 2,000 carnations attached to stories of Texans who died in 2008 because of domestic violence.

In front of an arch of purple balloons, students read aloud some of the stories, discussed the warning signs of abusive relationships and gave spokenword performances.

Last week, red flags symbolizing the warning signs of abusive relationships were posted in Gregory Gymnasium. Heather Davies, the programming and counseling specialist at Voices Against Violence, said the flags were part of a project that started in 2008.

Most people passed by the West Mall at Wednesdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s kickoff without pausing, although some stopped to receive flowers. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It hits home with everyone,â&#x20AC;? said student coordinator April Oviedo. â&#x20AC;&#x153;However, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a stigma of â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Oh, thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s not going to happen to me.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;â&#x20AC;?

According to a 2002 poll by the Texas Council on Family Violence, 74 percent of all Texans reported that they, a family member, and/or a friend have experienced domestic violence. The same poll indicated that 75 percent of Texans said they would call the police if they experienced domestic violence but that only 20 percent actually did when they or a family member was faced with domestic violence. â&#x20AC;&#x153;The battle against this stigma is a constant battle on campus,â&#x20AC;?

Davies said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re fighting this day, month day, 2008 stigma with education.â&#x20AC;?

Some students helping out at the kick-off had personal experiences with dating violence or sexual assault. ISE RT NaTsurvivor,â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I consider ADVE myself DE Sacha said pre-nursing JaS !

R TUAsenior U O TION Y cobson-Choate.

Z I N RGAshe was sexually asShe Osaid saulted three times, twice by an acquaintance, before she turned 18. â&#x20AC;&#x153;I hope I can use the negative for a positive by empowering others,â&#x20AC;? she said.

A theatre performance organized by Voices Against Violence called â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Would YOU Do?â&#x20AC;? takes place Wednesday from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Will C. Hogg Building, Room 1.120. Another interactive theatre performance co-sponsored by the Services for Students with Disabilities, Sigma Phi Omega and Voices Against Violence takes place Oct. 27 from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Utopia Theater.

Sara Young | Daily Texan Staff

Lynn Hoare, theatre for dialogue specialist with Voices against Violence, hands a carnation to public relations junior Jill Diedrich to raise awareness about domestic abuse. Voices against Violence is a Counseling and Mental Health Center program that addresses relationship/dating violence, sexual violence and stalking.

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By Alex Geiser Daily Texan Staff Societyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s inattention to menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vulnerabilities might pose a problem to their mental well-being, said Michael Addis, a psychology professor at Clark University at a talk Wednesday.

Addis explained the dangers of ignoring the mental state of men Wednesday evening as part of a series organized by the Center for Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s and Gender Studies. Addisâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; talk focused on depression in males and of the inherent challenges in identifying when a man is depressed. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m convinced that gender is the most complicated social process out there,â&#x20AC;? Addis said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Men are not thought of as gendered beings.â&#x20AC;?

Addis said a pervasive problem in society is its acceptance of men as masculine figures coupled with the inability or refusal to address their intrinsic emotions. Women more openly discuss depression, among other mental and physical states, while men refrain.

Addis attributes this to the societal meaning of masculinity and a manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s fear of appearing feminine when he does express his personal feelings.

Addis has found increased rates of violent crime and substance abuse with decreased rates of reported depression, anxiety and seeking help for mental and physical health problems among men when compared to women. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Perhaps we are not as good at detecting depression in men,â&#x20AC;? Addis said, pointing out potential shortcomings in his research.

Addis and his team conducted a study in which they presented male subjects with information and discussed it with them in a motivational, and somewhat indirect, way.

The survey gauged menâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s levels of depression and recorded what they cited as the cause.

The team initially hypothesized that by blaming their depression on outside forces like genetics, men would be more comfortable reporting it. Likewise, they thought if a man were to blame himself for his depression, this would be somewhat emasculating and prove more difficult to admit openly.

The results, however, countered their expectations.

Men proved less likely to report depression when the cause was organic or genetic. Greg Beaulieu, a counseling psychology graduate student, said the counterintuitive nature of the results was very telling. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Men want to be in control, even if itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s something negative,â&#x20AC;? Beaulieu said.

Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, assistant professor of performance as public practice, said he was most interested in the unexpected results and was somewhat surprised to learn that a manâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s control of his physical and mental state took precedence over his pride.

Addis and his team plan to explore depression and masculinity in individual races to create a more comprehensive study. They recently received a grant to look at Latino men and depression, a study for which interviews have just begun.

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

Jordy Wagoner | Daily Texan Staff

Marlon Bailey, a psychology graduate, gets a carnation from Voices Against Violence representative Kelvin Hypolite, a third year chemical engineering major. Since October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, each carnation bore the story of different victims of domestic violence in Texas.

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11 ENT

Food and wine event celebrates anniversary Austin Museum of Art’s La Dolce Vita festival benefits art education

By Rene Hunyh Daily Texan Staff This Thursday will mark the 20th Anniversary of the La Dolce Vita food and wine festival.

Hosted by the Austin Museum of Art, all of the event’s proceeds directly benefit AMOA’s education programs such as family labs, teacher workshops and art school scholarships.

Every year, more than 1,500 visitors unite in support of the arts and appreciation of food and wine.

Though the tickets are a bit steep – $100 each – the event offers guests a taste of local refinement. Attendees can sample from more than 70 local vendors showcasing their specialty items.

These vendors include Perla’s Seafood and Oyster Bar, Delysia Chocolatier, Becker Vineyards and Tipsy Texan.

When they enter, visitors will receive a food plate, a wine glass and three marbles to vote for their favorite vendors: a green marble for their favorite restaurant and a red and white marble for their favorite red and white Texas-made wines.

La Dolce Vita was voted “Best Food Event” by The Austin Chronicle Restaurant Readers Poll in 2008.

“The grounds around Laguna Gloria differentiate La Dolce Vita from the other Austin food events,” said Project Development Manager Nikki Sabo, in ref-

erence to the festival’s location.

“It’s a beautiful setting for an evening of tasting food and wine ... and being among other art lovers and culinary connoisseurs.”

The festival will recreate parts of the famous 1960s Federico Fellini movie “La Dolce Vita,” with a “Trevi Fountain” and roaming actors in costume.

Adding to the ambiance is the on-site Laguna Gloria Italian villa, built in 1916 and modeled after Lake Como-style houses.

Both the villa and its surrounding garden hold tremendous history. In 1943, owner Clara Driscoll gave Laguna Gloria to an arts group to turn the estate into an art museum. But, Driscoll did not leave an endowment to take care of Laguna Gloria before she died, making charity events vital to its survival, said Visitor Relations Specialist Judy Smith.

In light of the event’s 20th anniversary, 20 pairs of wine glasses designed by local artists will be auctioned off.

Many of these artists had never worked with wine glasses before, but each individual was still able to apply their own artistic flair to the medium.

Participating artist Ryan Coover described the process he took to create his “Wine Angel” as fabric formwork.

“I let the fabric, plaster and gravity dance together to create the final form,” Coover said. “It’s something I learned in my work with watercolors. I do my best to give back to the community, and fundraisers through the arts are easy and fun to do.”

POST: Small, cheap book

allows for more readership chase if the readers already have the other books and are dying to But the consequently cheaper add this one to their collection. But price (less than $14 on Amazon) al- for those who don’t fit into this catelows for more people to access the gory, perhaps “Confessions on Life, book, creating a larger audience Death and God” is best appreciated and awareness of Warren’s project. by flipping through its pages durIn all, the book is worth the pur- ing a quick trip to the bookstore.

From page 12

LUCY: Local costume boutique

gears up for Halloween season Around Halloween, the place crawls with babies (and their parscabs, small capsules of fake ents), hipsters and excitable employblood for discreet, on-stage use ees. For the season, Lucy increases and mint flavored fake blood for its staff from 20 people to 100. Who use around the mouth. works the Halloween season?

The staff at Lucy’s recom“Oh, you know, the usual – stumends against ingesting the dents, people seeking temporary mint-flavored blood in any mea- work, parents,” said one employee. surable quantities, but a few The store also has extended hours drops around the corners of the beginning Oct. 17: Monday-Saturmouth suffices to alarm a by- day 10 a.m. – 9 p.m., Sundays 11 stander a few feet away. a.m. – 9 p.m.

From page 12

ROCK: Co-star offers health advice From page 12

at night,” McBrayer said. “Then I’m like, ‘Oh, daddy needs a nap!’ and Carlock confirmed that fa- That’s where the Diet Mountain mous comedienne Betty White Dew comes in, and all is well.” (“The Golden Girls”) will guest For sleep-deprived college stustar along with standup comic dents, McBrayer recommended Jeff Dunham. that anyone staying up late and Despite all the big names and wanting a bite to eat should grab awards, McBrayer promised to a bowl of cereal. keep delivering the same great “It’s good for you, it fills you character, even though it requires up and depending on what kind copious amounts of energy. you get and you get a dose of “Sometimes I just have to have bran in there, too.” a lot of caffeine to be that peppy at “30 Rock” premieres Thursday ungodly hours in the morning or night on NBC at 8:30.

Jack McBrayer plays Kenneth in NBC’s awardwinning show “30 Rock.”

Courtesy of NBC

11

LIFE & ARTS

Thursday, October 15, 2009

BALLET: Small company is ‘supportive’

Tamir Kalifa | Daily Texan Staff

Jamie Lynn Witts and Beth Terwilleger prepare for their daily warm up class before rehearsing for “The Nutcracker.” When not working for the company, Witts teaches aspiring young dancers at the Ballet Austin academy.

From page 12 summer program for Ballet Austin trainees. She said that she has adapted well to the city and the company, praising her fellow members and instructors.

“That’s probably one of the best things about this company, it’s a really supportive environment,” she said. “Though we’re a small company, one of the reasons we have the ability to do something like ‘Swan Lake’ is because everyone is very structured and goal-oriented.”

Company manager Eugene Alvarez said Witts’ progress during her time with the company has

been exciting to follow.

“Jaime has been in the company for a while now and she’s been great to work with,” he said. “Her artistic growth has been great to watch.”

Witts said that she especially likes performing with Ballet Austin because it provides her the opportunity to experience both classical and contemporary works.

“I like doing more contemporary things and especially new work,” she said. “I like the creative process a lot.”

One of her favorite performances was “Light/The Holocaust & Humanity Project,” choreographed by the company’s artistic

director Stephen Mills.

“Everyone went through a lot of education, it was a really in-depth process,” Witts explained. “It was something really meaningful.”

The company performs five main productions throughout the season, and in March they will begin working with finalists from the New American Talent dance competition. The competition, created by Mills, allows all major professional dance publications and choreographers to submit work in hopes of reaching one of three finalist positions. The finalists then come and work with the company members for two weeks to teach them the pieces. After the

company performances, audiences will vote for the competition’s winning choreographer.

“One of Mr. Mills’ major goals for Ballet Austin is to integrate choreographic interests,” Alvarez said.

Between rehearsing and teaching, Witts seldom has much free time outside of the studio, but said she uses weekends to relax, run errands and spend time with her fiance, company member Frank Shott.

Still, Witts doesn’t seem to mind the grueling schedule. Instead, she says that pushing herself in preparation for a performance is what she finds most rewarding.

“That’s what I love most about this job, performing.”

12 LIFE

LIFE&ARTS

12

Thursday, October 15, 2009

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

T HE DAILY T EXAN

Dancer tiptoes into ballet role

BOOK REVIEW

‘PostSecret’ releases anticipated new book

By Layne Lynch Daily Texan Staff PostSecret.com’s uniqueness and creativity make it a rare bird.

On Oct. 6, “Confessions on Life, Death and God,” the new book by Frank Warren, was released after a near two-year wait since his last book, “A Lifetime of Secrets.”

The series also includes three other books: “Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives,” “My Secret” and “The Secret Lives of Men and Women.”

Warren, the man behind the online phenomenon, started his project in 2004.

Handing out an estimated 3,000 blank postcards with very simple instructions: Confess a secret, express it creatively and mail it to the listed PostSecret address.

Warren had no way of knowing the popularity “PostSecret” would find.

Warren spread his message by handing the instructional postcards out in places from subway stations to the jackets of library books. Then, he waited.

Weeks later, the responses started pouring in from all over the world.

Now, five years later, the Web site and books have created an open art forum that allow for the celebration of anonymity.

Flipping through Warren’s books, readers take in a score of secrets from all over the country – some funny, some sad, some heartwarming, some inspiring and some that just seem too odd

to be true.

Each of the previous books followed a central theme, but would often stray from it. At times, postcards would be included that Warren clearly just found too interesting or bizarre to leave out, despite their relative insignificance to the rest of the book.

But in the new book, “Confessions on Life, Death and God,” Warren’s approach was slightly different. The central theme seems to be consistently followed throughout, but with that said, look at the title of the book: Doesn’t it pretty much encapsulate everything?

Still, the genius of this book is that through its broadness, it has a humanizing theme; one that Warren described in his first book.

“We all have secrets: fears, regrets, hopes, beliefs, fantasies, betrayals [and] humiliations,” he wrote. “We may not always recognize them, but they are a part of us.”

The one problem with this book compared to the others in the “PostSecret” series is its smaller stature: it is a fraction of the size of the others. Consequently, it has fewer secrets. And while the other books are more enjoyable to sit down with and read over a period of time, this one can be skimmed in less than an hour.

The two-year wait for the book may have brought about unreal expectations.

POST continues on page 11

BOOK REVIEW

Social experiments lay groundwork for new book

By Jonathan Rienstra Daily Texan Staff A.J. Jacobs’ life reads like the idea behind a sitcom.

Devoted to testing out seemingly every idea that comes into his head, Jacobs’ latest book, “The Guinea Pig Diaries” chronicles a year of the author’s life in which he subjects himself to nine “experiments.” These include outsourcing his life to India, crashing the Academy Awards and, of course, public nudity.

Jacobs fills his writings with self-deprecating humor and a self-awareness that lends itself well to his work. These are ridiculous actions born from the mind of a guy who decides, “Hey, what would happen if I followed George Washington’s ‘110 Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation’ and wrote about it?”

Jacobs has made a living doing this — his previous two books are about reading the entire Encyclopedia Britannica and living a year according to the laws of the Bible. He knows that what he’s doing is slightly insane, but

some of his ideas, such as telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth for a month (see the chapter “I Think You’re Fat”) actually seem worthwhile.

Most of what Jacobs gleams from these social experiments helps to make him a better person. He realizes that we get more done when we focus solely on one task instead of checking Facebook while watching football and ordering pizza. Not that any of that is particularly productive anyway, but doing each one individually actually is more efficient.

“The Guinea Pig Diaries” is a humorous collection of essays from a man who is comfortable making his life uncomfortable for the sake of a story. Among the most interesting chapters are the ones where he approaches every decision as a rationality test and the opening chapter, in which he impersonates his sons’ attractive nanny on a dating Web site. Both serve up some revelations as he realizes that a) being a beautiful woman isn’t all it’s cracked up to be and b) apricot flavored toothpaste is best.

It should be noted, and Jacobs realizes this, that his wife Julie is a saint with the patience of a god.

It’s obvious that soulmates exist if someone puts up with a man who is constantly conducting these kinds of experiments. The last chapter, “Whipped,” gives her some vindication as she has the power to make Jacobs do whatever she wants. Foot massages and plenty of flowers ensue.

Credit Jacobs for a book that is funny, humble and lightly philosophical. “The Guinea Pig Diaries” is enjoyable and quick.

At just more than 200 pages, it leaves the reader wanting more, which is always a good thing for an author.

Tamir Kalifa | Daily Texan Staff

Jamie Lynn Witts warms up with the Austin Ballet dance company prior to rehearsing Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker.” Witts will be dancing the role of the Snow Queen for the company’s 47th annual performance of the Russian ballet this winter.

By Audrey Campbell Daily Texan Staff A pile of pink pointe shoes lie on the floor next to Jaime Lynn Witts as she stretches in preparation for a rehearsal.

In a black and green leotard, a white tutu and soft pink tights, she and fellow company member Christopher Swaim effortlessly glide across a studio floor to Tchaikovsky’s celebrated “Snow Pas De Deux.”

Witts, who has been a member of the Ballet Austin company for the past six seasons, will be dancing the role of the Snow Queen in the company’s production of “The Nutcracker”

this Christmas.

“This is my third year to dance as the Snow Queen,” Witts said.

“It’s fun though, it’s really challenging and I like it.”

Witts and her fellow Ballet Austin performers are used to challenges by now, attending daily morning warm-up classes that begin with exercises at the barre and move on to floor work. Dancers, sporting classic chignons, are dressed in an assortment of tights, leotards and workout wear as they take instruction on improving posture and movement.

“At the company level, it’s really about refining the smaller

points of your technique,” Witts explained.

After a difficult class, the group splits up — first taking a break to rebandage blistered toes with the help of sports tape, then pairing off to use the rest of the day rehearsing for upcoming roles. Witts spends half of her time rehearsing and half teaching classes for the ballet’s academy.

“Teaching, for me, definitely provides a different perspective on things,” she said. “I just kind of got thrown into it, but I really enjoy it, especially the younger students. Teaching them how to do something for the very first

time is really interesting.”

The academy classes, housed in Ballet Austin’s rehearsal space downtown, offer programs for aspiring students ages three and up. Ballet Austin’s Butler Community School also hosts a wide variety of dance and fitness courses throughout the year including pilates, yoga, tap and conditioning. The classes are open to anyone interested, regardless of previous dance experience.

Originally from Bucks County, Penn., Witts moved to Austin when she was 18 to attend a

BALLET continues on page 11

‘Lucy’ promises cheap costume finds

By Susannah Jacob Daily Texan Staff Lucy in Disguise with Diamonds, a South Congress costume fixture, is like when the seven-year-old version of yourself convinced your parents to visit Party City before Halloween.

But forget about that inevitable letdown. At Lucy, it’s all there.

Divided into four departments — costumes, vintage accessories, jewelry and the party room — the store meets the needs of any costume seeker. The store’s stocking approach — we-don’t-take-stuffdown-we-just-put-new-stuff-ontop-of-the-old stuff — satisfies a broad-minded consumer.

Because most costumes, shoes and hats at Lucy’s are available to rent, the clothes have an unmistakably vintage look. For the most part, the originality of the costumes available makes up for this.

The footwear, primarily gogo boots and heels with a lot of chunk factored in, is housed in a large closet that looks as if it would belong to Carrie Bradshaw, had she been a drag queen embracing life as a recessionista (sweat stains and scuff marks galore).

The rental system does offer a friendly alternative to the steep costs of some costumes. Why in the world would you pay $179 for a “Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego” red trench coat, when you could rent it for only $34?

Lauren Gerson | Daily Texan Staff

Roland Denison, a seasonal employee at the South Congress costume shop Lucy in Disguise with Diamonds hangs up costumes for the upcoming Halloween holiday.

While the store offers almost everything for rent and sale, some items are exclusively one or the other. A yellow tag indicates an item is for both sale and rental. A red tag — on hosiery, wigs and delicate costumes that would raise sanitation issues if rented — means for sale only.

Some items, like a complete set of large, mascot-sized, “Seven Dwarfs” costumes, are irreplaceable, so they are for rent only.

To rent a costume, you pay the

rental price plus a deposit equal to the amount of the remainder of the for-sale price. When you return the costume, you get your deposit back. The rental price listed on the tag gives you one night.

Right now, Lucy offers a Halloween special: The rental price and a half (and the normal deposit) allows you to take the costume home through Nov. 1 (Some deluxe costumes, such as the mascots, are excluded from this offer).

The store takes fake blood very seriously.

Sold in the party room — along with masks, bloody body parts of varying degrees of believability and makeup — an attendant explains the subtle differences among the five or so fake blood products offered. You may buy a bottle of standard fluid fake blood, a gel fake blood that congeals to create convincing

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ON THE WEB: Video profile of Lucy in Disguise @ dailytexanonline.com

Award-winning ‘30 Rock’ returns for fourth season

By Gerald Rich Daily Texan Staff The acclaimed comedy series “30 Rock” returns tonight for its fourth season.

Despite its perpetually midlevel ratings, the series has won three consecutive Emmy Awards for “Outstanding Comedy Series.”

The first episode chronicles an NBC page strike lead by the sweet-yet-naive southern-accented page, Kenneth (Jack McBrayer).

Although he has never participated in a strike, McBrayer feels confident about his sense of justice.

“Every now and then, I get a little bee in my bonnet when I smell a perceived injustice,” McBrayer said in an interview with The Daily Texan. “I speak up to the powers that be until they stick a pacifier in my mouth and I go to sleep.”

“30 Rock” ended last season with a star-studded performance for the fictitious organ donation

drive, “Kidney Now!” After network executive Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) meets his biological father (Alan Alda) and discovers he is ineligible to give his father a kidney, Jack hosts a massive benefit concert spoofing “We are the World” with Norah Jones, Clay Aiken, The Beastie Boys, Elvis Costello and Sheryl Crow, to name a few.

“I didn’t even have to work that day, and I put on my page uniform just so I could meet them,” McBrayer said.

The show may not top that number of big names with the premiere episode tonight, but executive producer and writer Robert Carlock expressed hope that one day they could equal the scope of that episode.

The newest season does offer a number of returning and new guest stars. Fan favorites like Steve Buscemi and Will Arnett will appear within the first two episodes. Additionally, McBrayer

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