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(02/21/03 5:52am)
The Crimson ticket, who is running in the upcoming IU Student Association election, said it hopes to improve safety on campus by adding new emergency beacons, fixing existing ones and adding more lights in certain campus locations.\nThe plan would work to increase and maintain the emergency beacons on campus, which are outfitted with blue flashing lights and telephones. Crimson Congressional Secretary Candidate Alan Grant, a junior, said the beacons are too few and only a small number of them are working properly.\n"Many of the emergency beacons either do not light or their phones do not work," he said. "A girl looking at the blue safety lights thinking they all work feels a false sense of security."\nCrimson plans to spearhead an IUSA initiative to make students feel safe on campus.\n"Speaking as a student, I believe it is important for IUSA to cover all aspects of student life -- education, social and safety," said Crimson Treasurer Candidate Anne Eichengreen, a junior.\nThe initiative would fall upon IUSA's Department of Health and Safety, which is responsible for coordinating such projects as AIDS Awareness Week, Take Back the Night, Rape Crisis Check-off and Bike Safety.\nThe ticket must still find the best way to obtain the new beacons and lights. They would first lobby the administration for the changes to be made, Grant said.\n"Campus lighting is the responsibility of the administration," he said. "We would go through all possible channels, of course, but we would be willing to pay for them."\n"If IUSA can afford to buy a Corvette, we can definitely do this," Grant added.\nIn addition to addressing emergency beacons, Crimson would like to add lighting in "problem areas" on campus. \n"When we talked to IU students, and we asked them if there were places that they are scared to walk at night," Grant said. "Usually, they would say 'yes' and tell us about more places that need more lighting."\nSpecifically, Crimson said insufficient lighting around Ballantine Hall, behind the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation building and next to Woodburn Hall need the most new lighting. They also plan to add lights through Dunn Woods between Third Street and the Indiana Memorial Union.\n"Right now, those woods are really creepy and dark," Eichengreen said. "They are just terrifying to walk through at night."\nCurrently IUSA, Residential Halls Administration and Residential Programs and Services conduct a "night light" walk every semester with IU Police Department Lt. Jerry Minger, Dean of Students Richard McKaig and other employees of the University. Using light sensitive equipment, they determine if campus paths are adequately lit. \nAction ticket Presidential Candidate Laura Walda, a junior, led one of these walks in the past.\n"The Action group is quite concerned about the lighting on campus and certainly wishes to be an active participant in the 'night light' walk in the upcoming year," she said. "I certainly feel as if the walks are very productive, and the whole administration gets involved."\nWalda said several lights were put in last year because of the walks. However, Crimson said the current system does not do enough to ensure student safety.\n"If the walks were enough, these dark places on campus would not be there," Eichengreen said. "If there was really nothing to do, students wouldn't be telling us that these places are scary to walk through."\nCrimson's overall message is that student safety is just as important as education and that no place is worth living if its paths are dangerous to walk.\n"It's a lot easier for a woman to walk down the street at 2 p.m. than 2 a.m.," Eichengreen said. "No one should ever be afraid to walk anywhere on campus"
(02/19/03 5:26am)
A few less students will have trouble getting to their classes on time today. For the next two days, the Crimson ticket will be using their campaign vehicle to drive students to and from their homes and educational facilities. Crimson presidential candidate Casey Cox, a junior, said he believes the initiative will help his ticket get in touch with the campus and help to illustrate some of their main platform issues.\n"Most students do not get excited for an IUSA campaign, so we took the campaign to the students in a fun way," he said.\nThe red 1991 Mercury Capri, Cox's own vehicle, drove students around campus Tuesday. In addition to roaming all over campus, decked with large posters, streamers and yard signs, the political paddy wagon will be handing out free 40 oz. root beers and Crimson T-shirts.\nThe initiative comes at a time when tickets are vying harder for the attention of the student body. Those watching MTV at night will still be able to catch glimpses of Unity's campaign commercials.\n"It's hard to get around campus," Crimson Congressional Secretary Candidate Alan Grant said. "The bad weather makes more people want to get rides, and huge numbers are trying to get on the crowded buses. This is a great way to campaign and help students at the same time."\nBy giving students rides, Crimson hopes to better reveal IU to busing and parking issues. In addition to addressing the crowding of buses during the daytime, they said they believe the lack of night busing is a problem that needs attention.\nCurrently, IU Transportation Services is running two buses from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. Thursday through Saturday. But Grant said this is not enough.\n"The 'drunk bus' is very underused," Grant said. "Many people we have talked to say they may have rode once or twice, but it is very hard to find. It should be more accessible to students."\nCrimson calls for an increase in the number of night buses and for a campaign to raise awareness of its routes and schedule. They argue that safe transportation is the best thing the University can give to a social student.\n"I walked out of Kilroy's one night and it was right there," said junior Zack Ficke, recalling his ride on the late-night bus. "I didn't even know what it was or that we had them. It was crazy. People were loud and drunk -- definitely these were people that should not have been driving. But I haven't seen it on campus since."\nCrimson also hopes to use its campaign vehicle to illustrate campus parking problems. As less parking becomes available to students, more are forced to walk to and from their classes. Parking becomes even more scarce in the cold winter months, when many who may have walked to class in warmer weather begin to search for on-campus parking.\nCox said that regardless of the issues, the Crimson ticket is excited at any chance to help the student body.\n"With new buildings on the rise and parking becoming more limited, we wanted to give students another option and have fun with it," Cox said.
(02/17/03 8:58pm)
Students watching MTV's "The Real World" tonight will be witnessing a first-time occurrence in IU history. Unity, a party in the upcoming IUSA election March 4 and 5, will be airing commercials promoting their position on campus issues. \n"This is the first time this has been done in the history of IUSA," Unity presidential candidate Aaron Radez said. "There are important issues out there. This will help us to get in touch with the greatest number of people."\nIn the past, with an election code that limits all tickets to a set spending limit, television was considered too expensive a medium for IUSA campaigns to utilize. \nUnity maintains it has stayed within the spending limits for IUSA campaign expenditures, a maximum for $3,170. In producing the ads, they used borrowed equipment, including editing hardware available at the telecommunications lab. \nStill, Unity remains wary of any debate that might arise over their use of television, insisting that they are staying within the constraints of the election code.\n"There is no controversy over Unity's commercials," IUSA election coordinator Leah Silverthorn said. "As long as they don't go over their spending limits and are not breaking any University rules, they are not breaking the code."\nIn national politics, the names Republican and Democrat are as familiar as snow in winter, but imagine national politics if the parties changed each election. Welcome to IUSA, where parties often last only a few semesters, if any at all. Even the current IUSA administration, Kirkwood, will not be running for re-election. \nThis year's tickets, Action, Crimson and Unity, are all new to the IUSA election game. To win, candidates know that no matter how well their platform represents students, perhaps the most important aspect of the election is to get their name out.\nThe advertisements, which will make their premiere tonight between 9:30 and 10 p.m., are tailored for a student audience. Unity produced several commercials ranging from the more serious, highlighting their important platform issues, to spoofs of other popular advertisements, including knock-offs of Mastercard and Gap commercials.\n"They're funny," Radez said. "We sell it fresh, young, upbeat and sexy. That's how we will reach out to our market."\nAccording to Unity chief-of-staff candidate Scott Bird, extensive research was conducted before deciding how to air the advertisements. \n"To reach the MTV generation, you've got to do it on MTV," he said. "We discovered that at any given time, whenever "The Real World" is on TV, at least 10 percent of IU students are watching it."\nIn the past, IUSA candidates have done everything short of producing commercials to spread their name, including handing out flyers, buying ad space in the Indiana Daily Student and hanging banners bearing their monikers throughout campus.\n"Unity is not about maintaining the status quo," Radez said. "We don't just want to hand out flyers. We wanted to take a new approach to reach real students who are about real issues. We borrowed from campaign strategist Ed Rollins, who said, 'If it's not on TV, it barely matters."
(02/11/03 6:05am)
"We're going to play a little game called IU ups and downs," Aaron Radez said to the crowded room of Residence Hall Association floor governors at Collins Learning center Sunday. "When I do this," he said, putting his thumbs up in the air, "you say 'up,' and when I do this (putting thumbs down), you say 'down.' Ready?"\nThe crowd nodded with understanding.\n"Tuition prices are going," Radez began, lifting his thumbs in the air.\n"Up," spoke the room.\n"Overall college experience is going," turning his thumbs over.\n"Down," they finished.\n"Discontentment among students is going …"\n"Up."\n"The administration is going …"\n"DOWN," echoed the room.\nCurrently an IU Student Association representative for the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Ridez, a junior, is the presidential candidate for the Unity party, the most recent to announce its candidacy for the IUSA election to be held March 4 and 5.\nAs its name suggests, the party is focused on uniting IUSA with students and student groups, shifting its role from a decision-making body to one that advocates students' opinions.\n"The power of 'U' is bringing 39,000 person's ideas to the forefront," Radez said. "As a team, we will work to collaborate on things students care about."\nThe other Unity executive candidates are sophomore Lorenza Jara, vice president; Emily Rich, congressional secretary; and Rafael Davis, treasurer. According to Unity chief of staff candidate Scott Bird, the executive candidates fell into their roles unpretentiously.\n"We looked around at who was the best available and what their skill sets were," he said. "It worked out that (Radez) is the most qualified, natural leader."\nUnity does not recruit based on past IUSA experience. Members believe that student leaders who come into student government without experience, like Davis, their treasurer candidate, are most open to new ideas.\n"I've never been in IUSA, but I've learned a lot from many leadership roles I've held," said Davis, who works at the Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington. "Our uniting principle is that every member of our party has great new ideas."\nAnother reason for their desire of fresh faces is to reinforce their plans for major internal changes, the most drastic of which would involve large budget cuts. According to Radez, 76 percent of the IUSA budget, which comes directly from student fees, is spent on overhead, the cost of keeping the organization running.\n"That's not how you run a non-profit organization," Radez said. "The American Red Cross uses 9 percent of their budget for overhead."\nLarge-scale budget changes could involve cutting such "needless" expenditures as executive retreats and at least part of the $30,000 yearly advertising contract IUSA holds with the Indiana Daily Student.\nThe effects could be widespread, said Rich, who has served as an IUSA senator for family and student housing and in several RHA positions. IUSA could give the money back to students in the form of additional scholarships or as additional campus events.\n"With all that money freed up, much more would be possible for student groups and campus organizations," Rich, a senior, said. "The possibilities are nearly endless."\nAnother important aspect for Unity is the lack of a fall break for IU students, an issue they believe has exemplified IUSA's past incompetence. \n"We don't want the same inaction that has been going on for years," Rich said. "They have been proposing everything except the most obvious, easy options. There is truly no reason there is not a fall break."\nOther main platform issues include environmental affairs, such as the unnecessary use of styrofoam cups and plates and plastic utensils in food courts and basketball ticketing.\nUnity would also like to re-examine the on campus parking system, specifically its targeting of students with large, unavoidable fines.
(02/11/03 4:56am)
"We're going to play a little game called IU ups and downs," Aaron Radez said to the crowded room of Residence Hall Association floor governors at Collins Learning center Sunday. "When I do this," he said, putting his thumbs up in the air, "you say 'up,' and when I do this (putting thumbs down), you say 'down.' Ready?"\nThe crowd nodded with understanding.\n"Tuition prices are going," Radez began, lifting his thumbs in the air.\n"Up," spoke the room.\n"Overall college experience is going," turning his thumbs over.\n"Down," they finished.\n"Discontentment among students is going …"\n"Up."\n"The administration is going …"\n"DOWN," echoed the room.\nCurrently an IU Student Association representative for the School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Ridez, a junior, is the presidential candidate for the Unity party, the most recent to announce its candidacy for the IUSA election to be held March 4 and 5.\nAs its name suggests, the party is focused on uniting IUSA with students and student groups, shifting its role from a decision-making body to one that advocates students' opinions.\n"The power of 'U' is bringing 39,000 person's ideas to the forefront," Radez said. "As a team, we will work to collaborate on things students care about."\nThe other Unity executive candidates are sophomore Lorenza Jara, vice president; Emily Rich, congressional secretary; and Rafael Davis, treasurer. According to Unity chief of staff candidate Scott Bird, the executive candidates fell into their roles unpretentiously.\n"We looked around at who was the best available and what their skill sets were," he said. "It worked out that (Radez) is the most qualified, natural leader."\nUnity does not recruit based on past IUSA experience. Members believe that student leaders who come into student government without experience, like Davis, their treasurer candidate, are most open to new ideas.\n"I've never been in IUSA, but I've learned a lot from many leadership roles I've held," said Davis, who works at the Boys and Girls Club of Bloomington. "Our uniting principle is that every member of our party has great new ideas."\nAnother reason for their desire of fresh faces is to reinforce their plans for major internal changes, the most drastic of which would involve large budget cuts. According to Radez, 76 percent of the IUSA budget, which comes directly from student fees, is spent on overhead, the cost of keeping the organization running.\n"That's not how you run a non-profit organization," Radez said. "The American Red Cross uses 9 percent of their budget for overhead."\nLarge-scale budget changes could involve cutting such "needless" expenditures as executive retreats and at least part of the $30,000 yearly advertising contract IUSA holds with the Indiana Daily Student.\nThe effects could be widespread, said Rich, who has served as an IUSA senator for family and student housing and in several RHA positions. IUSA could give the money back to students in the form of additional scholarships or as additional campus events.\n"With all that money freed up, much more would be possible for student groups and campus organizations," Rich, a senior, said. "The possibilities are nearly endless."\nAnother important aspect for Unity is the lack of a fall break for IU students, an issue they believe has exemplified IUSA's past incompetence. \n"We don't want the same inaction that has been going on for years," Rich said. "They have been proposing everything except the most obvious, easy options. There is truly no reason there is not a fall break."\nOther main platform issues include environmental affairs, such as the unnecessary use of styrofoam cups and plates and plastic utensils in food courts and basketball ticketing.\nUnity would also like to re-examine the on campus parking system, specifically its targeting of students with large, unavoidable fines.
(02/06/03 6:04am)
On a college campus packed with 36,000 students, hundreds of buildings and so many student policies that trying to learn just half of them would confuse a Wells scholar, knowing who is working in your interests is difficult. With the Indiana University Student Association (IUSA) election season in full swing, many students wonder why they should devote the time to choosing a ticket wisely, if at all.\nAs the IUSA election coordinator, Leah Silverthorn, a junior, knows that issues debated before the elections shape the student relationship with the university in the coming year. \n"It is important that students realize that everything the new IUSA administration does will affect them," she said. "Because we are spending students' money, it is vital to elect a ticket that will do something constructive."\nUnfortunately, many students are either unconcerned about the election result or do not know what purpose IUSA serves.\n"It's our job to tell the administration what students want," IUSA Vice President Judd Arnold said. "We make sure there is student input in every policy decision."\nActing as the voice of the student body, IUSA keeps a dialogue with campus administrators and local institutions, such as the Bloomington and IU Police Departments. According to Arnold, the student voice never goes unheard.\n"We don't make all the decisions, but we have a say in all of them," he said. "If we call up the administration or BPD and say, 'Hi, we represent the IU student body,'they're going to listen to what we have to say."\nIUSA also has a large budget, which is taken directly from student fees. With this money, their job is to oversee the existence of over 500 student groups on campus, ranging from government lobbying organizations to swing dancing clubs. Their other major job is to lobby the administration for changes on campus. Because every IU student pays dues to IUSA, every student is a member of the organization. IUSA initiatives are done explicitly for student benefit. \n"It's not high school student government," Crimson ticket candidate and IUSA Greek senator Alan Grant said. "We advocate for the student body and have the power to get things done."\nRecent IUSA campus initiatives include the free distribution of the "New York Times" and extending by two hours the closing time of the main library.\nIn its current form, IUSA was established over 50 years ago. Shortly after World War II, former IU President Herman B Wells tried to establish a student government, but the student reception was less than encouraging. Wells reasoned that the low student turnout was a result of the administration's encouragement of the organization. So after waiting several years, he came out against student government. As he expected, students began to demand that student government be re-established.\nEvery year, IUSA holds an executive debate to discuss platform issues. According to Silverthorn, the best way to decide what ticket best represents students is to attend this year's debate, Feb. 24 at 8:30 pm at the Whittenberg Auditorium in the Indiana Memorial Union.\n"We will be putting the candidates on the spot," she said. "You can read their websites all you want, but so much more comes out at the debate. You'll find out who is really serious about running student government."\nTo date, three tickets have officially applied for the IUSA election: Action, Crimson, and Unity. According to Silverthorn, more could be on the way.\nFor more information on IUSA, visit http://www.iub.edu/~iusa/.
(02/05/03 5:51am)
Now that the IUSA season is underway, more student government tickets are getting the support they need to run their campaigns. \nThe Crimson ticket, led by presidential candidate Casey Cox, is running under the motto: "True Students, True Voice, True Colors."\n"This is not just student government, it's student advocacy," Cox said. \nAs their motto suggests, the Crimson candidates' approach to student government is less about politics and more about student support.\n"We want to set ourselves apart," Crimson vice presidential candidate Grant McFann, junior, said. "We are not about to run things like it's Washington D.C. We're regular students like everyone else."\nCrimson said one of their strengths lies in their varied backgrounds. Cox, a junior, has served on IUSA as an off-campus senator, as an executive for College Republicans and as a member of Hoosiers for Higher Education, an organization created to impact Indiana legislation. \nMcFann said Crimson could not have chosen a better presidential candidate.\n"(Cox) has already had lots of experience in the kind of programs we want to affect," he said. "He's always on his game, he's organized and best of all, he's done all this stuff before."\nMcFann has served on the executive board of College Democrats and as a Commitment to Assist Student Initiatives funding board member.\n"We wanted (McFann) for his diverse background and because he is not afraid to step up to the plate," Cox said.\nThe remaining executives of the Crimson ticket are junior Alan Grant, congressional secretary, and junior Anne Eichengreen, treasurer. \nAmong his past IUSA senate service, Grant gained experience as an executive for both College Republicans and Sigma Chi, his fraternity. \nEichengreen has served as the vice president of the Pi Beta Phi sorority, an IUSF marketing committee member and as the director of mentoring for the Council for Advising Student Leadership.\n"We have goals set in three arenas: academic, social and campus," Grant said. "We want to reach people through books, beer and basketball."\nCrimson's most important initiatives cover social aspects. First, they said current student restrictions are hampering a constructive social environment.\n"Everywhere on campus it seems that the administration is pointing the finger at the students," Cox said. "Herman Wells once said, 'In the best of all possible worlds the only student rules would consist of two: Students would not be permitted to shoot any faculty members or burn any buildings.' That may be a bit of a stretch, but we believe that too many regulations and expelling too many students are problems."\nAlong these lines, Crimson said they would attempt to promote and expand a late-night bussing system to promote safety on campus.\n"It is an underused resource students have," Grant said. "Night bussing would keep students from walking and driving, currently something IUPD (IU Police Department) and BPD (Bloomington Police Department) looks down upon."\nAnother social concern involves the greek system, which has seen seven houses booted from campus in the last three years. Grant said that because of communication problems between IUSA, the greek system and an unfair alcohol policy, Crimson would like to establish a Department of Greek Affairs, which would combine representatives from IUSA, the Interfraternity Council and Panhel, which represents IU sororities.\n"We want to create a fair alcohol policy," Grant said. "Together, our three organizations would have a much stronger voice than just one."\nOn the campus front, what Crimson calls their "common sense" initiative would attempt to change some of the physical features of the University, including the establishment of a drive-up book dropoff at the library, a feature that Eichengreen said she could have used in the past.\n"I drove around for 15 minutes looking for a parking spot," she said. "I parked in an 'A' spot for two minutes to drop off a book and I had a $35 ticket waiting for me when I came back."\nThe common sense initiative would also see that the blue emergency lights on campus functioned properly, that more would be installed and also that lighting on campus would be increased in areas such as Ballantine Hall. It would also address parking problems at the School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, Main Library and Student Recreational Sports Center.\nOverall, the Crimson ticket said their ticket is the best representation of what students are at IU.\n"We are 65 regular people who came together to bring real, attainable goals to the University," Cox said.
(02/03/03 5:23am)
The IU Student Association election season is starting up again with students forming tickets and recruiting others to join them. The Action ticket, led by IUSA presidential candidate Laura Walda, said she hopes that their diversity will appeal to students on campus.\n"We want the students to talk to us, and we are listening," said Walda, a junior. "The best thing about Action is our diversity. It's our strongest attribute."\nBesides being a member of IUSA Congress, Walda has served as an honors advisory board member and as vice president of IU College Democrats.\n"She has so much background. She's the perfect candidate for our party," said junior Liz Weikes, Action ticket candidate for vice president. Weikes, currently the IUSA Congressional Speaker of the House, believes IUSA's main responsibility is to the students' needs.\n"It is our responsibility to support the students, advocate for the students, and give back to the students," Weikes said. "Everything else should be secondary."\nRemaining executive candidates for the Action ticket are sophomore Sam Patel for congressional secretary and senior Eric Butterbaugh for treasurer. \nPatel has acted as the assistant director for the Student Judicial Program, and served as an off-campus representative in the IUSA congress. Butterbaugh, a Wells scholar, currently holds a greek seat in IUSA. As a member of Pi Kappa Phi fraternity, he received the 2002 Greek Man of the Year award and represented his fraternity in Little 500.\nRich in campus experience, Action supporters believe they are the most qualified to act as the link between the students and administration.\n"We need to know what the students want, what is feasible in the eyes of the administration, and to find a common ground between them," Butterbaugh said.\nInstead of a campaign focused on one or two issues, Action is maintaining their "diversity" platform, hoping to accomplish many things for IU students in the next year. First, they would like to establish a landlord review for all potential renters on campus.\n"We feel that landlords are taking advantage of students in Bloomington," Weikes said.\nAction's program would call for the invitation of local landlords to campus to give advice to potential renters and also to create public brochures to aid students attempting to find suitable housing.\n"When I moved out of the dorms as a sophomore, I had no idea where to look," Patel said. "Students need to be better informed of housing opportunities."\nAction also wants to address student-ticketing issues for athletic events. In addition to addressing the basketball ticket package incident, in which students' 10-game ticket packages were cut to six or seven games, Action hopes to attain better seating for students at athletic events.\n"There is no reason for students to go to a football game if they have to sit in the end zone," Walda said.\nAction believes students should have more input as to where they sit and how those seats are allocated.\nGreek issues are also a concern of the Action ticket. However, they believe the first step is to create better communication.\n"It is not our place to intrude on the procedures of the greek community," Butterbaugh said. "What we want is for greeks and to tell us what we can do for them."\nOther goals of the Action ticket are to create a book exchange among students and to give more money back to the student body.\n"We want to create 10 new scholarships of about $2,500 each," Walda said. "It is completely feasible for us to do this."\nOverall, the Action ticket believes the diversity of their ticket and the enthusiasm of their candidates make their ticket the best on the ballot.\n"I really hope everyone takes this opportunity to speak out," Butterbaugh said. "If you've ever had a problem with the University, here's your chance to try to change things. I guarantee that if you approach any ticket, not just ours, they'll listen to what you have to say and act on it"
(01/22/03 4:56pm)
U.S. Congressman John Hostettler denounced the country's war-like mentality and hinted at possible repercussions of the country's involvement in Iraq in the IU College Republicans' first meeting of the year Tuesday.\n"In the past, America has been passive to a fault," he said. "Now Congress has effectively punted their responsibility to declare war to the president."\nHostettler said the consequences of this war are too much for America to become involved. In particular, a pre-emptive strike could have several drawbacks.\n"If we go to war with Iraq, it will set a precedent that could echo through history," Hostettler said. "America will lose some of its moral high ground if we become an aggressor nation."\nOver the course of an hour, Congressman Hostettler, serving in his fourth term representing Indiana's 8th District, answered questions from the crowd in the West State Room in the Indiana Memorial Union ranging from the potential war in Iraq to the workings of income taxes.\nIn the past, Hostettler has served in leadership roles in conservative organizations within the House of Representatives, including as chairman of the Congressional Family Caucus and on the steering committee of the Republican Study Committee. For IU College Republicans, Hostettler is the embodiment of what a congressman should be.\n"He is an old fashioned conservative," said junior Angel Rivera, the group's president. "He's small government and pro-life, and he's a very independent thinker. Anyone who works for him will tell you that no one tells him how to vote."\nBy not accepting any campaign contributions from groups who hold political interests, Hostettler can afford to be a free thinker.\n"He votes strictly for what is best for the 8th district." Rivera said.\nHostettler voted against the resolution that gave President George W. Bush the power to declare war on Iraq, a course of action few Republicans repeated. \nHostettler also illustrated that if India and Pakistan were on the brink of war, the U.S., trying to hold peace talks between them, would have put itself in a precarious situation. \n"Those nations would need only look 'across the table' to see an America that has just gone halfway around the world to initiate conflict," Hostettler said. "With their own enemy testing nuclear missiles in their respective backyards, we would not have a moral leg to stand on."\nThe Indiana congressman described other potential problems if a war in Iraq occurs, including the limits to U.S. military power. \n"Nine active duty divisions were required to remove Saddam from Kuwait in 1991," he said. "Right now we have 10 active duty divisions."\nHostettler also spoke at length about state issues, including the Indiana budget crisis and the futures of college students. \n"Indiana has not fostered an economic climate that can compete with other states," Hostettler said. "We have lost 120,000 jobs that should be there."\nHostettler is concerned about young people who have a vested interest in the state. Indiana, being one of 12 states which have lost jobs in the past four years, is in danger of losing increasing numbers to the "brain drain," a pseudonym given to describe the departure of college students from the state due to a sluggish job market. This prospect troubles Hostettler, a lifetime Indiana native who graduated from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in 1983.\n"When my 16-year-old son graduates from college when he is 23, I don't know if the same opportunities I had in Indiana will be there for him," Hostettler said.\nYouth remain a major focus for the congressman, who has a history of engaging young people in politics since his first campaign in 1994. A 23-year-old even ran his latest campaign.\n"John Hostettler believes in young people," Rivera said. "Many (IU College Republicans) have been involved in his campaigns."\nSophomore Exton Cordingley said he agrees with many of Hostettler's views.\n"He summed up the precise problems in Iraq and North Korea well," he said.\nHostettler believes that IU students, like Cordingley, can play a major role in politics.\n"The College Republicans at IU have always been an oasis for me," he said. "Young people represent our future. You just need to give them a good reason to get involved"
(01/17/03 5:51am)
Protesters and activists in the abortion battle are preparing for Jan. 22, which marks the 30th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision. On campus, student groups are planning initiatives to spread their views on the highly controversial issue.\nAbortions have been legal in the United States since 1973, when the Supreme Court ruled that a woman's right to an abortion falls under her right to privacy protected by the 14th Amendment.\nIU Students for Life will be cooperating with the Monroe County Right to Life in a candlelight vigil and a walk to the Knights of Columbus memorial Sunday at 5 p.m.\n"It's been 30 years too long," IUSFL member senior Cherry Blattert said. "We're hoping that people will see abortion for what it is -- the death of a baby."\nConversely, IU's Campus for Choice (CFC) will be holding its own initiative in conjunction with the Roe v. Wade anniversary. The group will be giving out information at the Indiana Memorial Union Commons desk from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Sunday as well as handing out pamphlets and prophylactics on campus.\n"It's one of the main political issues affecting young people, especially young women," Campus for Choice President Rebecca Bartlett said. \nBartlett believes government is beginning to stray away from pro-choice views, especially in Indiana.\n"It's important to get involved. Indiana has many controversial restrictions on clinics, so this is an issue where your vote really counts," Bartlett said.\nSince the 2000 election, Republicans have succeeded in pushing some pro-life legislation, the most notable being the Partial-Birth Abortion Act, which passed in the House of Representatives but not the Senate.\n"(Anti-choice) ideas have been crystallized by the government in recent years, since the Republican takeover of Congress and the election of President Bush," Bartlett said.\nFor IUSLF, however, the changes are too few.\n"If murder is illegal, then abortion should be, as well," IUSLF President Melody Kanney said. "A baby is a person, it's just not as developed as the rest of us."\nThough they differ in their outlook on abortion, organizations IUSFL and CFC have much in common. Similarly run, each organization holds weekly meetings for core members and periodic mass meetings, often featuring guest speakers. Both will be encouraging members to write letters to the IDS and other newspapers in conjunction with the Roe v. Wade anniversary. In the past, both groups have participated in campus events such as "Take Back the Night" to support women's issues. When IUSLF brought the Genocidal Awareness Project to IU in the fall of 2001, CFC was even there to protest against it.\nYet through the debate, both sides agree abortion must stay at the forefront as an issue in America.\n"People just need to talk about it with friends, relatives -- people who agree or disagree about it," Kanney said. "Once people begin to think about it, then they can decide whether it is right or wrong"
(12/10/02 5:26am)
Not everyone in Bloomington is against I-69.\nIU students formed a new organization in favor of an interstate route through Bloomington Thursday. The group, called Students for Interstate 69, provides students who would like to see the interstate through Bloomington with an opportunity to get involved in this controversial issue. Roughly 100 students have joined Students for I-69.\n"Those in favor of I-69 represent a silent majority," said senior Terry Record, Students for I-69 foundation committee chairman. "But our voices are almost drowned out by a small but vocal minority."\nRecord, an Evansville native, has long contended with the state highway system in the southwest part of the state, a road system that he believes is inadequate. He said an interstate is a necessary step to improve southwest Indiana and Bloomington.\n"I-69 is long overdue for Indiana," Record said. "It is necessary for the future of our state."\nThe organization believes that the interstate highway is vital to the future economy of southwest Indiana and Bloomington. \n"It would help stop the 'brain drain,'" Record said. "Every year thousands of Indiana college graduates leave the state due to a lack of quality jobs. According to the 2000 census, Indiana ranks 32nd in the nation in per capita income. Indiana's rural communities have fallen seven percent from the national average, as well."\nAnother major aim of Students for I-69 is preserving the safety of Bloomington students. The organization is troubled over the lack of measures the state has taken to ensure safety on the current road system.\n"Students need safe transportation to the University," Record said. "Thousands of students every year literally play 'Russian-roulette.' For every 100 million miles logged on the road, there are four times fewer crashes on interstate highways than on two-lane state roads."\nEnvironmental activists, led by the Hoosier Environmental Council, support an alternate interstate route through Terra Haute US-41 and I-70, which they claim to be less harmful to the environment as well as more economically sound.\nRecord disagrees on both accounts.\n"As an organization, we would not advocate a route that would damage environmental regions that are cherished by the state," he said. "US-41 would have to be rebuilt from scratch, and that would displace all the homes and businesses that currently use that road. We favor a process called 'threading the needle' that would take the interstate through Bloomington and still avoid the Hoosier National Forest and other important environmental areas."\nThough the organization is campus-based, much of their efforts are media based. \n"We are a debate organization," Record said. "We are simply advocating the voices of many students who agree that I-69 through Bloomington is the best thing for Indiana. In short, that I-69 through Bloomington is the shortest, safest, and most economical option, and that Indiana's infrastructure development depends on it."\nLocal environmental activist and journalism professor Steve Higgs disagrees.\n"This is the most environmentally destructive piece of policy that I've seen in 20 years of covering the environment and government. It's outrageous, and the public must put a stop to it."\nHiggs said the Indiana Department of Transportation environmental impact study, reviewed by the Environmental Protection Acency, clearly shows that a Bloomington route is substantially the most environmentally destructive and most costly.
(12/06/02 5:31am)
Relationships between college students and faculty members need to improve, according to a national survey. \nThe 2002 report by the National Survey of Student Engagement says that above half of all undergraduate students have never worked with faculty members on activities other than class work. Also, 41 percent of first-year students and 26 percent of seniors have never discussed coursework with their professors.\nThe study was piloted at IU by NSSE Director and the Chancellor's Professor of Higher Education George Kuh and other colleagues in 1999.\nThe study surveyed 135,000 first-year and senior students at 613 colleges. Its findings represent a need for colleges and universities to find ways of improving their student experience, Kuh said in a press release. \n"The idea came out of the college ranking systems," he said. "The rankings in magazines do not necessarily reflect the whole of student life. For example, just because a university has a huge library does not mean all its students are checking out the books."\nNSSE Assistant Director John Heyek agrees.\n"A school's academic reputation as judged by others says very little about the extent that student-faculty interaction and a supportive environment characterizes a campus," Heyek said.\nAccording to Kuh and Heyek, the most surprising findings dealt with transfer and international students. Transferees were found to be less likely to "engage in educational practices that research has shown to be associated with high levels of student development and learning," while students from foreign countries were found to be more willing to participate than those from the United States. \n"With transfer students it may have to do with the character of the individual. More likely, it just takes them a longer time to get adjusted," Kuh said. "Colleges spend vast amounts of time and money improving the experiences of their first-year students, yet it is all up to the transfers to figure it out on their own."\nThe NSSE report also found that a "worrisome gap" exists between the amount of time students spend preparing for class and what faculty members say is needed. \n"One strand of reasoning is that students have never studied as much as faculty says they should," Kuh said. "One thing we know for sure is that students do not study two hours for every one hour in class like many professors say they should, and most of them still get good grades."\nMany colleges are already using the study to better their faculty and student relationships.\n"Over 300 schools subscribe to the study," Heyek said. "Any improvements that teachers can do as part of a class or outside the class that can increase the level of active learning would be a good thing, and surprisingly, many of these areas can be increased with little to no cost."\nHeyek believes the survey has a clear implication for college students.\n"Those who are more actively involved in their educational experience both in and outside the classroom, tend to get the most out of their college experience," Heyek said. "It is important that students remember this simple message"
(11/25/02 4:38am)
According to Indiana Chief Justice Randall T. Shepard, the way judicial electoral campaigns are being run is detrimental to our judicial system. \nChief Justice Shepard's speech at IU Thursday evening, "Judges and Elections are like Oil and Water," focused on the difficulties faced by candidates and voters in judicial elections. IU College Republicans sponsored the event, which drew over 200 people, including members of the Indiana Supreme Court, to the Willkie Auditorium.\n"We have many speakers come to campus, but not many are in the judicial branch," said junior Alan Grant, a member of College Republicans. "Chief Justice Shepard is not your typical politician. He is very well respected statewide, and we knew he would draw a diverse audience."\nShepard was elected Chief Justice in 1987 by the Judicial Nominating Commission when he was 40, making him the youngest Chief Justice in United States history. He has been re-elected three times since. \nShepard began his speech citing the difficulties citizens have voting a judicial candidate. Often, when voters do not recognize either candidate on the ballot, they will either vote for their party or leave the ballot blank, Shepard said. \n"If you track how many people go into the voting booth on Election Day there is almost a 25 percent drop in votes from the congressional to the judicial elections," he said.\nJudge is an unclear position to the public, Shepard said. A judge's visibility is often diminished due to the nature of the job. Judges do not take a direct part in the creation of laws, and their contributions are often overlooked.\n"Most often, judges don't get recognition for their decisions," Shepard said. "The lawyers get most of the attention in cases."\nOne of a judge's major duties, unlike a typical politician, is to have an open and fair mind that is willing to judge each case uniquely. Shepard said it is difficult for voters to make a decision based on these qualities in larger elections.\n"Judicial elections work well on the local level when voters have a fighting chance of actually getting to know the candidate," he said.\nAs a result, the outcomes of many judicial elections are based on money spent, Shepard said. However, it is difficult for judicial candidates to focus on specific issues through advertisements. As a result, judges often resort to hollow claims and unreasonable promises to win voters.\n"We end up making all the same claims," Shepard said. "Name me a county where they don't say 'Judge so-and-so is tough on criminals.' Judicial elections hurt our system when candidates begin saying things like 'I don't parole criminals' or 'I won't make plea bargains.'"\nThese promises take away judges' ability to be fair in the courtroom, Shepard said. For example, a judge who has promised not to plea bargain might sentence someone deserving of a lesser punishment to a long prison term so that no confidence would be lost with the voters.\n"Judges who make radical promises to win elections are forced to make radical decisions," Shepard said. "Unfortunately, an effective judicial election campaign is fun to watch, but it is very bad in the courtroom for citizens looking for fair judication."\nThough Shepard sees problems in judicial campaigns, he said he still believes in the electoral process.\n"I love elections," he said. "They are too important for me to degrade. The system has served our country well for a long time, but (judicial candidates) are not better off using campaign systems that emulate the other two branches."\nShepard is one of many speakers invited by IU College Republicans to campus.\n"His appearance in Bloomington is greatly appreciated by campus administrators, local attorneys, and the IU community," said Derek Molter, IU College Republicans Events Director. "Any time someone of such prominence comes to campus, it reminds us that IU is a place where leaders at all levels in all areas can engage in issues of the day"
(11/22/02 5:27am)
Sleeping outside under the stars. Sounds almost romantic in a way, but what if it was not a choice?\nMembers of the Indiana Student Public Interest Group spent a night in Dunn Meadow with nothing but cardboard boxes, a few tattered blankets and the clothes on their backs Wednesday. The purpose of the event, called a "Sleepout," was to raise awareness during this National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week.\n"We want IU students to be aware of INPIRG's mission," said senior Kristin Richards, INPIRG Campaign Coordinator for Hunger and Homelessness Week. "The best thing about sleepout is its visibility."\nFor INPIRG, a campus organization where students "get a chance to face up to society's big problems and take action," the event is just one step in the initiative to fight hunger and homelessness. Interns and volunteers for INPIRG have also sponsored fundraising campus events, wrote letters to congressmen, and worked at local shelters and kitchens.\nAccording to INPIRG's Web site, 3 million people in the United States sleep in cars, under bridges, in shelters and on the streets. \nAnd one person dies from hunger-related causes every 40 seconds.\n"Our goal is to make people more aware of the facts," Richards said. \nCurrently hunger is a daily problem for 27 million Americans, many of whom are homeless. Over 30 percent of homeless people are families, and the average age of a homeless person is nine years-old.\nFrank Hall, Program Director at Mother Hubbard's Cupboard, a non-profit food pantry, spoke to sleepout participants at the night's outset. Hall, an IU graduate residing in Bloomington, works to combat hunger and homelessness locally.\n"Bloomington has a homeless population," Hall said. "Lots of them live out of their cars or vans. Sometimes they can seem almost invisible, but they're there."\nSophomore Mark Seger was surprised when he saw the sleepout participants in Dunn Meadow.\n"I really didn't know what they were doing there," Seger said. "I felt kind of bad walking back to my house when they were sleeping in the cold in those boxes. You just don't see that kind of thing usually"
(10/30/02 4:41am)
Imagine you are a working, soon-to-be parent, both you and your spouse have jobs, and neither of your employers will give a leave of absence. If they do, that leave is unpaid. Do you quit your job to stay at home or put the child in daycare? Both alternatives are usually difficult and expensive, and they place a heavy burden on working parents.\nNow imagine a system that would pay working parents to stay at home with their small children for a full 13 months and provide affordable daycare for children.\nBelieve it or not, there is a country where these benefits are a reality.\nBeginning Tuesday, the Labor Studies Department will be offering a five-week course on Gender and Labor Studies in Sweden. Students will be welcome to join through next week.\nThe class will be taught by Per Nordahl, a visiting scholar and director of the Institute for Immigration Studies at Vaxjo University in Sweden. Nordahl, who speaks perfect English, is eager to teach IU students about beneficial policies regarding working parents in Sweden.\n"The mission is to give an understanding of how this situation came about," Nordahl said. "It would be beneficial to ground some of these good ideas into the students."\nThe Swedish government taxes 30 to 55 percent of income to pay for these programs. In return, most parents are able to spend at least the first two years at home with their newborn children. Government subsidies to daycare centers make it possible for parents to enroll a child at a maximum of $70 a month. The Swedish population mostly supports these policies.\nIn the United States, a third of workers do not qualify for their employers' childcare programs due to an inadequate amount of working hours or years on the job, said Lynn Duggan, assistant professor in the Division of Labor Studies. Also, most small businesses do not have childcare programs.\n"Nowhere in the Constitution does it require employers to give working parents anything," Duggan said. "In other countries, people believe they have the rights to benefits we would not dream of having the rights to."\nHaving experienced the Swedish system, Nordahl is confident that the class, though only five weeks long, will intrigue his students.\n"These programs represent another kind of quality," Nordahl said. "It is like a community. It is also important to get perspectives from other places and their societies. Diversity should be a blessing and not a burden or problem."\nThe class, L290/390, Gender and Labor Studies in Sweden, is joint-listed with Gender Studies as G302.
(10/18/02 4:41am)
A panel of IU School of Law professors and graduate students raised reform questions as they discussed their views on the U.S. capital punishment system Wednesday evening.\nThe panel discussion at the IU School of Law, "Is the Death Penalty 'Broken?'" was part of the week-long series "The Death Penalty: Two Views," which included Tuesday's forum at the IU Auditorium featuring Sister Helen Prejean, controversial author of the best-selling book "Dead Man Walking." \nThe event featured Professor Joseph Hoffmann, the key speaker and moderator for the panel, Professor Craig Bradley, Professor Steve Heyman, graduate student Deborah Shepler and graduate student Ken Washington. Each speaker was given time to discuss their views on an aspect of the system; they then answered audience questions.\nHoffmann, an capitol punishment expert, who recently testified in the Illinois death penalty reform effort, suggested the system is in a transient state with almost all of the 38 states still executing prisoners suggesting reform. \n"In the U.S., we are reaching an unprecedented crisis of confidence with the death penalty," Hoffmann said.\nHe cited recent statistics indicating a drop from 90 to 60 percent in approval rates for capital punishment. The rate drops below 50 percent if the question is modified to include reparations to victim's families or an alternative sentence of life without parole, Hoffmann said.\nThe panel emphasized the importance of correct convictions in death penalty cases.\n"Execution of the innocent is the one issue that unites death penalty advocates and opponents," said Bradley, a former Washington D.C. prosecutor. He said since death penalty reform in the 1970s, no evidence has surfaced proving an innocent person has been executed by a state.\nHoffmann agreed, but admitted that errors occur often in other parts of the process, citing the Leibman Study, which found that sentences are lowered or charges are dropped in 68 percent of death penalty cases.\n"Any system designed by humans has a risk of error," Hoffmann said. "Even if we have no proof that an innocent person has been executed, we shouldn't wait for that to happen. What we need to ask is how to diminish the risk, and how much risk are we willing to tolerate?"\nLowering the risk of mistakes was Bradley's main point. He suggested new jury criteria for the execution of a death sentence. Currently, a jury must ask if a defendant is guilty "beyond a reasonable doubt." Bradley's suggested adding a requirement of finding a defendant guilty "beyond all doubt" after conviction before recommendation of the death sentence.\nStill, the panel agreed that no amount of reform is enough to wholly solve the death penalty issue.\n"We could have the best criminal justice system in the world, but we're still going to have horrible crimes," Hoffman said. "We'll still have to face the question of capital punishment"
(10/16/02 10:30pm)
Groups on both sides of the death penalty issue talked amongst each other and openly shared their ideas without argument at the IU Auditorium Tuesday evening. \nFor IU Chemistry Professor George Ewing, organizer of "Two Views: The Death Penalty," there is only one thing to say: Mission accomplished.\nThe forum, sponsored by the Union Board and featuring Thomas Perkins, Indiana deputy attorney general, and Sister Helen Prejean, author of the death row book Dead Man Walking, was never tailored as a debate. Instead, each speaker spoke to a half-filled auditorium about their roles within the issue and afterwards answered questions. Chancellor Sharon Brehm began the evening by thanking Ewing, IU Criminal Justice Professor Marla Sandys and Poynter Center Director David Smith for their organization of the Two Views series.\nAt the forum, Prejean, who speaks throughout the United States, told many stories of her experiences since she began her prison ministry in 1981. Her accounts both entertained and touched the audience as she attempted to expose the many flaws within the death penalty system. Though she is against the death penalty, Prejean was still sympathetic to the families of murder victims.\n"I can understand why anyone would want to execute murderers," she said. "Morally, we struggle with the death penalty because we can't hear about the horrible deaths of innocent people without feeling outrage."\nPrejean, a Catholic nun, spoke of the Bible and forgiveness. She urged that even though the crimes may be deplorable, repentance is always possible.\n"We are all worth more than the worst thing we have ever done in our life," Prejean said. "You've got to ask yourself, 'Could I pull the switch? Could I give the injection?' If you say 'no,' then there's a part of you who is not okay with it."\nPerkins, a 1991 IU graduate, spoke at length about Indiana's capital punishment system, hailing it as the "best in the nation." \n"It is important that people understand what goes into the process of the death penalty," Perkins said. "What people think will have a great effect on what will happen in the future."\nHe focused on the complex process of trying, convicting and executing a criminal, a process which can often take from 10 to 20 years. Perkins also touted Indiana's representation of death penalty defendants, calling to attention the mandatory experience and competence of defense attorneys in death penalty cases. \nHe also said that a state's capital punishment policy is a reflection of the people's will.\n"It would be easy to repeal the death penalty laws," he said. "People need only vote for legislators and prosecutors that do not support it…but rest assured that the scrutiny we give to the process is necessary to ensure that the most lasting of punishments is reserved for the most heinous of crimes."\nThe speakers ended with the question and answer period, moderated by Brehm. Perkins gave his view on the need for the United States to keep capital punishment when 113 countries have abolished it.\n"It doesn't mean the U.S. is wrong," he said. "The difference is we get to decide. We allow the states to plot their own courses"
(10/10/02 4:50pm)
An unprecedented series will begin at IU this Friday thanks to one man's vision and lots of help from the IU Bloomington community. After almost a year of planning, IU chemistry professor George Ewing has brought to Bloomington "Two Views: An Engagement of the Community on the Death Penalty," a series that will study both sides of the controversial issue. The series will run from Oct. 11 to 18, encompassing several events including a forum featuring Sister Helen Prejan, author of the book "Dead Man Walking."\nEwing's interest in the death penalty began when he attended a memorial for Gary Burris, a death row inmate, after his execution. Ewing recalls that many people there were distraught at Burris' execution, and he listened as they told him stories of Burris' tragic upbringing, horrible crimes and eventual recovery while in prison.\n"The people there loved him," Ewing said. "He was a redeemed man. He became a constructive member of his society, and I thought, 'Why are we killing this guy?'"\nEwing soon became involved more with the issue, but he noticed a lack of interest. The turning point came after attending a vigil in Indianapolis where he protested with 20 other people.\n"This is an issue that affects everyone," Ewing said. "I thought 'Why aren't there 200 or 2,000 people?' I had to get more people engaged."\nOver the next year, Ewing approached several campus and community organizations with his idea for a series about the death penalty. Many were interested in helping.\n"The whole thing happened because so many people were willing to participate," Ewing said.\nFinding participants was only part of Ewing's battle. He also considered ways to present the issues. Ewing said the format of the series is a novel one. Although he is an abolitionist, he decided to forego arguing for the elimination of capital punishment and present both sides of the issue instead.\n"From the very early on, we wanted to purge the word 'debate,'" Ewing said. "A debate is when there are two teams, you have supporters for them, and you want one team to win. We want to draw people in to let them hear the issues, and when they leave they will know more about the issues than when they came. I think the truth is enough to change people's minds."\nThe series' featured event, a forum featuring Sister Helen Prejan and Tom Perkins of the Indiana Attorney General's Office, will not be a debate between two sides. Each speaker will give their own presentations and answer questions from the audience.\nMarla Sandys, associate professor of IU's Criminal Justice Department and an orchestrator of the week's events along with Ewing, has heard Sister Helen speak.\n"She is a phenomenal speaker," she said. "She tells incredibly funny and compelling stories. She can find the humor and compassion in anything, even on death row."\nAlthough he works for the Attorney General, Tom Perkins has been invited because of his expertise in the criminal justice system, not necessarily to give an opposing view.\n"He's the guy that tracks death penalty cases in Indiana," Ewing said. "There will probably be two people executed by the end of the year, and he'll probably oversee those."\nThough they each represent different parts of the death penalty issue, neither speaker is being recognized as being representative of either side of the argument.\nSandys credited the Union Board for their coordination of the forum.\n"I don't know if we could have gotten it accomplished otherwise," she said. "The Union Board students really took a vision and made it happen."\nAnother main attraction is Lucinda Devlin's "The Omega Suites," a photography exhibit at the SoFA gallery in the Henry Hope School of Fine Arts, Ewing said. \n"George came and asked if we could find anything appropriate for the show," Dana Sperry, associate director of the SoFA gallery, said. "Then he showed me the book with Lucinda Devlin's pictures. They were great. A lot of people have probably already seen some of her work and not known it."\nBoth Ewing and Sperry said they are extremely fortunate to have booked Devlin, whose work has been featured in many places in the United States and Europe, including the Venice Biennial.\n"She shows so much all over Europe. We're very glad to have her here," Sperry said. "She doesn't believe her work is pro or anti-death penalty. She believes the work speaks for itself. By leaving you alone with the instruments of death you are confronted by it in that context."\nThe disturbing yet ambiguous nature of Devlin's photographs fit well with the theme of the series. Ewing said the eeriness of the pictures, largely comprised of modern death chambers and instruments, represent how it is impossible to make capital punishment more humane.\n"That's kind of a creepy argument," Ewing said. "What's the difference? You're still taking a life."\nThough the forum and gallery highlight the series, there are many more events planned for the week. Showings of "Dead Man Walking," the movie based on Sister Helen Prejan's book of the same title, will be shown at the Whittenberger Auditorium. An open mic night will be held at the Runcible Spoon Café for opposing sides to give their viewpoints on the death penalty. The IU law school will be hosting a panel discussion, "Is the Death Penalty 'Broken?'" Presentations will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Church on Fee Lane featuring members of Bloomington's faith community. The series ends on Oct. 18 with "Celebration of Life," a musical and dancing performance. Still more events will be held in classes, local high schools, libraries and bookstores throughout the week.\n"We're trying to attract a wide audience," Ewing said. "If someone is interested in the legal aspects, we have events at the law school. If you are interested in the spiritual aspect, you could go to the Unitarian church. If you enjoy the debate, come to open mic night at the Runcible Spoon." \nEwing added, "I don't know if it's ever been done this way before.\n"There is no point in having these issues raised unless you can have persons of all persuasions there to listen to you. Otherwise, it's a waste of time."\nA full schedule of events can be found at www.twoviews.org. Questions for the forum with Sister Helen Prejan and Tom Perkins must be sent ahead of time to debates@indiana.edu by Oct. 13.
(09/27/02 5:50am)
The IU Cycling Club concluded competition Monday at the NCAA Track Nationals in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. where they took 2nd place. \nSenior Jenn Wangerin defended her status as one of the nation's top collegiate riders by winning the women's 2K and points races. Other individual champions included freshman Josh Weir in the men's sprint and freshman Rahsaan Bahati in the men's points race. On the team side, IU won the coed race, Italian Pursuit. \n"We really came together as a team," Wangerin said. "It's the end of the season, so it's competitive, but it's also relaxed. Everyone is happy. It's a celebration."\nBahati's victory in the men's points race became the highlight of the weekend. Though the event is won individually, it is very much a team race. \n"It was the most exciting event I've ever seen," Wangerin said. "We finished first, third and fifth. It sealed second place for our team (overall). I was almost getting teary-eyed."\nOther team members said they agreed. \n"The points race was awesome," Hawkins said. "Even the judges and announcers were shaking our guys' hands after it was over."\nSenior Jason Mount, president of IUCC, also rode in the race. \n"I have never worked with a team that worked so well together," he said. "We rode a perfect race. To get three guys on the podium -- that's amazing.\n"We dominated," Mount added.\nThe second place finish is the team's best since its return to track nationals last year.\n"Considering this was the first time we've had a track nationals team in a while, second place is amazing," Wangerin said, "and we were so close, only 40 points away. We're definitely happy."\nJunior Jen Hawkins said the losses that created the 40 point differential were very close. \n"Forty points isn't much, and some races were so close that we only lost by a few feet,"\nshe said. "Jason (Mount) figured out that in a sense we only lost by about one second."\nMarian College, which has won the event three years consecutively, prevailed in the overall competition, but the IU team challenged them greatly. Hawkins said he knew the importance of cycling at Marian College. \n"Riding is a varsity sport at their school," she said, "so they can recruit and give money and scholarships to their team. IUCC is a club team, so riders don't get special benefits."\nMount said he knew that the odds favored Marian from the weekend's start. \n"To win the championship with seven riders, as we had, we would have had to ride a perfect weekend, and then hope that some things just fell our way," he said. "For example, if Penn State would have edged out Marian in the team pursuit, that's a lot of points there. We might have won. I think we rode to 98 percent of perfection, and the other two percent was things out of our control."\nWith the track season finished, many team members are resting. The next major series of cycling events, the fall cycling series, will start soon and team members have choices to make.\n"I'm definitely taking a break from the bike," Hawkins said. "I'll probably just do some cross training for the road season in February."\nThough the track season is over, IUCC looks forward to next year. The team is already working on improving their chances. \n"I'm hoping we can get more women interested in cycling at track nationals," Hawkins said. "If we had more women this year besides Jenn (Wangerin) and I, IU definitely would have won it."\nMount agreed. \n"You can take a strong men's team and do well, but to win, you need a good women's team. We had the best woman there in (Wangerin), but Marian had numbers. Our goal is to win next year"
(09/19/02 4:55am)
When people hear the words "Bloomington" and "cycling" in the same sentence, they habitually think "Little 500." However, this annual event, which perpetuates IU's fabled "greatest college weekend," is far from the only race cyclists prepare for in this town. \nThis week, the IU Cycling Club is sending seven of its members to represent IU at the National Track Cycling Championships, Sept. 20-22, at the Brian Piccolo Velodrome in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.\nIUCC has existed on campus since 1988 and is a member of the Midwest Collegiate Cycling Conference. \n"It's more than a club," senior Jason Mount, president of IUCC, said of their involvement, "it's a club sport." \nThough they are traveling to Florida this weekend for the track championships, one need not be a champion rider to join the club, which consists of about 100 riders hailing from all skill levels. \n"[IUCC] is open to everyone, beginners to professionals," Mount said. "Categories range depending on distance of the race and intensity."\nLikewise, a cycling background is not a requirement. \n"I rode recreationally a little throughout high school, but I essentially started cycling with IUCC," senior Jenn Wangerin said. Wangerin has since been instrumental in leading the Roadrunners to the women's Little 500 title each of the past two races. Similar stories abound from other members. \n"I met so many cyclists here in Bloomington, they encouraged me to start racing, and so I did, and I basically have fallen in love with the sport ever since," junior Jen Hawkins said. "Jason [Mount] is one of the people that got me into cycling and encouraged me to start racing." \nMount acknowledged the club's diverse recruiting strategy.\n"We encourage anyone of any skill level to come out and ride. It's a lot of fun coming to these competitions with 100 other people," Mount said. "You branch out, meet others, and get involved on campus, too." \nAs a result of IUCC's open policies, most new riders have taken to the sport easily. \n"The best way to get into racing bikes is to jump in and get your feet wet," Wangerin said. "There's a lot of cyclists on this campus because of Little 500, and I encourage them to try collegiate cycling…I've also had tons of fun, met lots of people, and have done some traveling around the country."\nIn her time with IUCC, Wangerin, a top finisher at the NCAA Track Nationals in past years, recalls many unforgettable experiences. \n"Finishing the collegiate national road race in Burlington, Vt. this past spring was inspiring," Wangerin said. "The course was very difficult. It included two mountain passes, and I was so tired when I finished that I couldn't stand up. The view at the top of the mountain was spectacular." \nThough the club, which is a division of Recreational Sports, has its own independent schedule and funding, its membership is invariably tied to May's Little 500 race.\n"All the top guys from the Little 500 teams ride, but it's relaxed, too. You can go to any of the races you want to," said sophomore Josh Beisel, an avid Little 500 rider and IUCC member. "If you like racing competitively, IUCC is the place to be, and if you can hang with the pack, you're good to go." \nIUCC's national squad has high hopes for this year's championships. Though IUCC has been historically competitive on a national scale since its inception at IU in 1988, it has not won the track nationals since the early nineties. This year's team, consisting of Mount, freshman Rahsaan Bahati, freshman Josh Weir, senior Kevin Vanes, sophomore Simeon Commissiong, Wangerin and junior Jennifer Hawkins, hopes to break that trend.\n"We're diverse and very powerful," Mount said. "Although we're moderate in number we're a very deep team."\nEvents for this weekend's races are divided among the three days, the first two days encompassing the individual and team races, the third day for the points races. Awards are given for individual events, and the best overall team at the end of the weekend is given the coveted team championship.\n"Nationals is always more competitive than any other race, and I think we have one of the best teams there. It says a lot if you can come back a national champion," freshman Rahsaan Bahati said.\nAlthough IU fell short of the team championship last year, there many were outstanding performances that the team can build upon this weekend in Ft. Lauderdale. But Wangerin is confident this year's team is stronger than last.\n"I'm looking forward to defending my national championship titles in the 500 meter time trial, individual pursuit, and the points race," she said. "We are definitely in the running for a team championship title too."\nIUCC can be contacted at cycling@indiana.edu.
