The Rice Thresher, Vol. 97, No. 6, Ed. 1 Friday, September 25, 2009 Page: 6 of 20
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6 n NEWS
the Rice Thresher
Friday, September 25,2009
A glimpse inside Houston's mayoral race
PHOTOS BY | AM IS LIU/THRESHER
With a little more than a month until elec-
tion day, four mayoral candidates debated
with each other at the Rice Memorial Center
Wednesday night.
The hour-long mayoral debate, entitled
"The Latino Voice," was hosted by the
Houston Association of Hispanic Media
Professionals and the Office of Multicul-
tural and Community Relations within the
Office of Public Affairs. Candidates Peter
Peter Brown
Houston City Council Member
On whether law enforcement should
be involved in enforcing immigration:
There will be no racial profiling and no
discriminatory policing. The Houston
Police Department has its hands full
in enforcing the law and fighting and
preventing crime. However, we need
to cooperate with other agencies and
law enforcement like the Harris Coun-
ty Sheriff's office and ICE to deal with
criminal activity.
On tax increases during his term
as mayor:
No. I believe we can do more with less.
In the solid waste department, we cut
their budget 4 percent, and they're ac-
tually doing more.
Brown, Gene Locke, Roy Morales and Annise
Parker ((ones 78) fielded questions from a
media panel made up of members of the lo-
cal Hispanic press and moderator Art Rascon,
from ABC-KTRK television station.
Candidates had 30 seconds to two minutes
to answer each question from the panel as well
as a question posed by another candidate.
Among the dozen students in atten-
dance was Myles Bugbee, president of Rice
Roy Morales
Harris County Dept. of Education Trustee
On whether law enforcement should
be involved in enforcing immigration:
I will not allow any police officer to pro-
file a hard-working, law-abiding citizen,
but I will allow HPD to enforce the immi-
gration law under the 287 G program.
On tax increases during his term
as mayor:
No. I will not raise taxes; in fact, I am
going to lower your taxes. We're going
to do that by effective audits in every
department. I am also going to lead by
example and take a pay cut, and am also
going to make sure every senior execu-
tive level in the departments takes a pay
cut as well.
Young Democrats, who said the debate was
a great opportunity for students to meet
the candidates.
"We really think Rice students are chal-
lenging the stereotype of political apathy
on campus," Bugbee, a Hanszen College
sophomore, said.
Kevin Bush, vice president of Rice Young
Democrats, said the candidates could have
touched on issues that would affect the Rice
Gene Locke
Partner, Andrews Kurth LLP
On whether law enforcement should
be involved in enforcing immigration:
I don't believe it is appropriate for our po-
lice department to make inquires of immi-
gration status at a stop. I do believe that
once the person is arrested and in custody
you would run a check on citizenship just
as you would run a check on outstanding
warrants.
On tax increases during his term
as mayor:
No.
campus, such as the expansion of Houston's
METRO light-rail system and job creation.
"It's difficult for Rice students to get en-
gaged in a Houston-specific political race
because I think a lot of them aren't reg-
istered to vote here," he said. "Nonethe-
less, it's still important for Rice students
to at least learn about Houston politics."
— Cindy Dinh
Annise Parker
City of Houston Comptroller
On whether law enforcement should
be involved in enforcing immigration:
I would not authorize any police officer to
ask anyone on the street on their normal
course of their duty [about] their immigra-
tion status. If, however, you are arrested
and taken into custody, you should expect
to have that question asked and have your
immigration status fully investigated.
On tax increases during her term
as mayor:
No. I don't think there will be a tax increase,
and the city of Houston has just done a l-per-
cent, across-the-board cut. We are also delay
ing hirings and big-ticket purchases, includ-
ing the purchases of three helicopters for the
police department.
Director of acclaimed Electric Car speaks on vehicle's resurgence
By Scott Norgaard
Thresher Staff
The solution to the economic crisis
may not lie in bailouts, but in electric-
powered cars. Chris Paine, writer and
director of the 2006 documentary film
Who Killed the Electric Car?, spoke to
an audience of 90 at the Dore Com-
mons in the James A. Baker III Insti-
tute for Public Policy on Monday about
electric cars and their feasibility in the
STUDENT ASSOCIATION MINUTES
The following were noted at the most recent meeting of
the Student Association on Sept. 21.
■ Parliamentarian Jonathan Stewart announced that the deadline for
club registration is Oct. 1. Clubs will lose all privileges if they fail to
register.
■ There will be a Committee on SA Constitutional Revisions that will
study and restructure the constitution. Applications are online at
sa.rice.edu.
■ Barbara and David Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center Representa-
tives Tina Villard and Elizabeth Slator hosted a question-and-answer
session about tomorrow's Rec Center opening. The building will be
almost triple the size of the former Autry Gym and will boast brand-
new equipment. (For a list of the new Rec Center's features, turn to
page 8.) The 50-meter Olympic-size pool is one month behind sched-
ule, but everything else will be ready to use upon opening. Everyone is
encouraged to attend the grand opening today.
■ Treasurer Tiffany Wu presented this year's SA budget. The money has
been allocated in the following manner: Ads, $1,550; Campaign reim-
bursements, $430; Committees, $500; Events, $750; Gifts/Awards,
$225; Meetings, $1,750; NSR Program, $1,140; Officer Supplies &
Copies, $200; Retreats, $150; T-shirts, $1,000; Unanticipated costs,
$1,000. In total, $8,695 was appropriated.
■ Stewart requested that voting members of the SA who plan to miss a
meeting send a proxy to the meeting and notify the Executive Council
in advance.
■ Secretary Philip Tarpley announced the beginning of the planning
stage of a university-wide T-shirt sponsored by the SA. The goal is to
have the shirts ready for distribution by late November. A partially-
subsidized schedule should be available soon, Tarpley, a Brown Col-
lege sophomore, said
The SA will meet Monday, Sept. 28 at 9 p.m. in the Farnsworth Pavilion.
For GSA minutes and the SA fall retreat minutes, be sure to visit
www. ricethresher. org.
future U.S. economy.
Despite his film's title, Paine sug-
gested that the electric car is not dead,
just a stifled innovation that, as public
opinion shifts in its favor, has just be-
gun to reach the mainstream.
Paine's lecture, "How Many Light
Bulbs Does it Take to Plug in an Elec-
tric Car?", focused on the difficulties
car companies have encountered in
the past with electric cars, and pro-
vided a brief outline of what he be-
lieves to be the future of electric car
technology. Paine's talk covered his
observations in making his documen-
tary, which sought to address why ef-
ficient electric cars, particularly GM's
EVi, were repossessed and destroyed
by car companies in the 1990s. The
film analyzes the different elements
behind the electric car's downfall, in-
cluding Big Oil's involvement, govern-
mental policy and consumer choices.
Paine began by explaining why
consumers have typically been hesi-
tant to adopt the electric car. The docu-
mentary mentions that electric car
manufacturers have noticed a stigma
in regard to electric cars and have thus
run into marketing resistance.
One of the consumers' main com-
plaints, Paine said, is that the battery
capacity is too low and that electric
cars subsequently don't have enough
battery life for sufficient traveling. Ac-
cording to Paine, advancements in
the battery markets in the last decade
have proven to be promising. He also
said that an energy-density increase
in today's batteries has helped attract
capital to electric vehicles.
Getting the consumers to change
their habits is difficult, Paine said. He
credits cars like the Prius and other hy-
brids for helping to sway public opinion
in favor of alternative technologies.
"Once you start driving these Pri-
uses or hybrids, you think about elec-
tricity," he said. "As we move into this
new world, thinking about how many
kilowatt hours it takes to go a certain
distance is helpful,"
However, electric cars still have
ground to cover in the design process.
LOGAN BECK/THRESHER
Chris Paine, director of Who Killed the Electric Car?, visited Rice to discuss the
future of electric vehicles, a future that recent events leave him optimistic about.
In addition to the traditional social
stigma associated with them, car man-
ufacturers must also address the range
of electric cars, which is still years be-
hind that of gas-powered cars.
Despite these setbacks in the elec-
tric car industry, Paine said he thinks
there may be hope for the future of
electric car technology with consum-
ers' changing attitudes and their en-
thusiastic reception of hybrid cars.
"At the Frankfurt and Detroit Auto
Shows, the electric car was the dar-
ling," Paine said. "Every time you go to
Detroit, you get the sense that there is
a lot of movement for the electric car."
Governmental policy may also
be moving in favor of the electric car.
Paine said President Barack Obama
aims to get one million plug-in hybrid
electric vehicles on the road by 2015, a
goal Paine thinks may help in the pro-
motion of the electric car.
Taking his message to heart,
Paine said he has gone to great
lengths to reduce his environmental
impact. He has owned an electric car
for 12 years, and has solar panels at-
tached to his house.
Wiess College sophomore Rebecca
Jaffe said after attending Paine's talk,
she thinks there may be a future for
electric cars.
"1 think with everyone getting
excited with everything green, that
there is more willingness to have
them," Jaffe said.
However, she said the electric car
may seem impractical to some con-
sumers who often take their cars on
extended drives.
"People are still going to be driving
long distances," Jaffe said. "Having to
have two cars [for one journey] might
not be feasible."
Overall, Paine said that he sees the
battle over electric cars as a thorny issue.
"When you change something as
fundamental as the cars we drive and
make them healthier, that is better for
the world," Paine said.
Paine is creating a new documen-
tary, Revenge of the Electric Car, which
is scheduled to be released in 2011. Au
dience members were shown an exclu
sive trailer of the new documentary.
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Michel, Casey. The Rice Thresher, Vol. 97, No. 6, Ed. 1 Friday, September 25, 2009, newspaper, September 25, 2009; Houston, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth443170/m1/6/: accessed July 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Rice University Woodson Research Center.