IUPD

Technology stocks take sharp dive

Investors appear to have lost their love affair with technology and Internet-related stocks, marked by the nearly 35 percent drop from its high in March of this year. Technology bellwethers such as Yahoo!, Intel and Lucent Technologies have been hit especially hard by the continued sell-off.

Raise the Roof bolsters homes for winter

Soaring fuel costs and plummeting temperatures of an Indiana winter will soon force residents to do all they can to bolster their homes for the harsh months ahead. But for the 12,000 people in Monroe County the U.S. Census Bureau reports are living below the poverty line, preparation for the harsh months ahead can be difficult, even impossible. One Bloomington program developed to fight the onslaught of winter was last week's second annual Raise the Roof program. Organized by the city's Housing and Urban Development department, Raise the Roof employs area volunteers to help needy residents by fixing up homes and tuning furnaces at no cost.

Mystery author leads writing workshop at local Barnes & Noble

The world's largest writing workshop started out small Saturday in Bloomington. Just two writers appeared at the Barnes & Noble at 218 E. Third St. for the start of what was, according to Barnes & Noble, the 'world's largest' writing workshop. Co-sponsored by Writer's Digest Books, the workshop took place at 2 p.m. in 500 Barnes & Noble bookstores across the country. Brown County native Michael Newton, author of crime novels such as "Armed and Dangerous: A Writer's Guide to Weapons," "The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers" and "Century of Slaughter," led Bloomington's workshop. Newton, who has had 165 books published, is best known for his true crime novels.

A pitiful rallying call

Millions of Americans are asking the same question: When will this campaign be over? As much as I'm supposed to enjoy all of this politicing, I sympathize. How much more can we read into Al Gore's sighs? How many more times do we want to talk about George W. Bush's boyish charm? Is it doing us any good to hear repeatedly from one candidate that the other candidate's prescription drug plan requires seniors to crawl naked under barbed wire on their way to the pharmacy?

Teammates turned rivals

They played on the same grass field for the last time in 1997, when the men's soccer team lost to UCLA in the NCAA Final Four in Richmond, Va. They left behind a 23-game winning streak crushed by the Bruins in a triple-overtime loss. Chris Klein, went on to a professional soccer career with the Kansas City Wizards after the 1997 campaign. Dema Kovalenko stayed at IU for the 1998 season, when the Hoosiers won their fourth NCAA championship. He then left school a year early and joined the Chicago Fire in 1999.

Gore's plan offers targeted tax cuts

America's priorities can be determined by how we decide to spend our collective resources. This year's election highlights the key distinctions between how Democrats and Republicans spend our money. Democrats support targeted tax cuts focused on our national priorities, such as education and health care, just to name two.

Conflict requires U.S. leadership

In Israel and Palestine, the situation might get worse before it gets better. Israel confirmed Sunday that a soldier was kidnapped by a militant Islamic group.

Jordan River cleanup efforts expand

Saturday, while many students were anticipating the start of the IU-Michigan football game or enjoying the unseasonably sunny weather, about 35 students spent almost two hours in different sections of campus picking up trash and debris from the Jordan River and recording the condition of the riverbanks. Led by Penney Waggoner, coordinator of the Council for Environmental Stewardship, the group focused on returning the natural beauty of the Jordan River to a state of ecological health and balance. The group stressed the importance of the river as an animal habitat.

Illustrating African culture

More than 150 students and faculty gathered Friday evening at the International Center to celebrate African Unity Night. The free event, sponsored by the African Languages Program, included skits, poetry reading and African pop music by local group AfroHoosier International.

Power out, students left waiting

Electrical power at Collins Center went out at 8:37 p.m. Saturday and won't return until tonight at the earliest, said Donald Burks, Physical Plant utilities coordinator. "All of our clocks are frozen at that magic hour," said Sara Ivey Lucas, Collins residence manager.

Lecture to honor late professor

For 30 years, James P. Holland served IU as a biology professor and recruiting and interim dean of the Graduate School. Known as Jim to his friends, faculty and the over 11,000 students he taught, his career with IU ended March 24, 1998, when he died of cancer.

Events raise awareness

The gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community wrapped up a week of celebration and education Saturday as the annual Gay Pride Week drew to a close. The week mainly focused on Wednesday's National Coming Out Day, but all the activities were aimed to bring a greater awareness of GLBT issues to the IU community.

Moliere production hits mark

The classical French playwright Moliere wrote formulaic moral satires. In "The Misanthrope," he heaped scorn on self-imposed alienation. With "Tartuffe," he set his crosshairs on hypocrisy. In the waning years of his life, he decided to take on the pitfalls of hypochondria. And so, he penned "The Imaginary Invalid," just staged by the Monroe County Civic Theater. It ran through Sunday at the Bloomington Playwrights Project, 308 S. Washington Ave.

Words keep women poets in touch

They use rhythm and meter but make no music. They paint a vivid image without a canvas and breathe life into characters without a story. They are the Five Women Poets, a group with a 26-year tradition of writing poetry. The women have monthly meetings at members' houses and an annual public reading. At 8 p.m. Saturday in a small studio in the John Waldron Arts Center, 122 S. Walnut St., they read poems to an audience of about 50. After each of the six poets read their selections, the audience created a riot of applause that far exceeded one's expectations of 100 hands.

Eroticon not a meat market

F riday night, I lost my Eroticon virginity. In doing so, I had to overcome two years of fear of the event. But I subscribe to the theory that it is necessary to fling yourself in your phobia arena in order to overcome it. During my freshman year, still fresh off the boat from the affluent Bible-belt Texas sensibilities of my upbringing, I heard about Eroticon and was frankly disturbed. Of course, what I heard was not a truthful representation of the event, but rather a doozy of a freshman rumor about the sanctioned orgy, complete with sex rooms and mattresses on the floor.

The ghost of Eroticon past

Garter belts, naked butts and G-strings, oiled abs, flesh and flesh and flesh lubricated by sweat, undulating, touching, pressed together to music and separated only slightly by silk, leather, velvet and lace. Psyches lubricated by alcohol. Social mores broken by desire. Kissing, fondling, grinding hips and long fingernails, long legs and long hair. Eroticon wasn't freaky enough.

Around the Game

Fencing club prepares for season, success

The IU Fencing Club is preparing for another year of captivating sword fighting with high expectations for a good season.

Israeli Consulate informs students

As 20 students sat huddled together Wednesday at the Helene G. Simon Hillel Center, they were only a phone call away from learning more about the conflict in the Middle East.

Fundenberger's formula: right place, right time

Jet fuel, he says. Jet fuel powered Matt Fundenberger, a senior forward on the men's soccer team, to his third-career hat trick Sunday against Michigan. In a 7-0 victory, Fundenberger showed flashes of quickness, scoring three goals in the first 26 minutes of play and assisting an another.