Megaphone (Georgetown, Tex.), Vol. 95, No. 09, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 7, 2000 Page: 2 of 8
eight pages : ill. ; page 21 x 14 in. Digitized from 35 mm. microfilm.View a full description of this newspaper.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
y V
2 December 7,2000
News
Mideast conflict continues
Continued from Page 1
Until the twentieth century, Pal-
estine more often described a region 0
than a place with specific boundar-
ies. Derived from what the Greeks
and Romans deemed “Land of the
Phillistines,” “Palestine” referred
to an ancient people who were con-
temporaries of Biblical Israelites as
early as the 12,h century B.C.
In 1920, Palestine gained polit-
ical borders for the first time in
nearly 2(HK) years following the
collapse of the Ottoman Empire in
World War I. Following World War
II, the United Nations ordered the
partition of Palestine into a Jewish
state and an Arab state in Novem-
ber 1947. and the end of the British
mandate by May 1948. The Arab
powers of the Middle East rejected
the partition plan, and shortly after
Zionist leader David Ben-Gurion
declared Israel a state on May 14,
1948, military forces of Egypt, Iraq,
Syria, Transjordan, and Lebanon
invaded the new country.
By July 1949 Israel had driven
off the invasion. It then estab-
lished borders similar to Palestine
undfer the British mandate, joined
the United Nations, and was rec-
ognized by more than 50 govern-
ments around the world.
However, territorial questions in
Israel still provoke historical debate
and violent turmoil. Furthermore,
Jerusalem - whose “ownership”
is a volatile component of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict - con-
tains the sacred landmarks of
religions besides Judaism, whose
histories are all deeply rooted in
this holy site.
In 312 A.D, Roman Emperor
Constantine converted to Christi-
anity and Jerusalem became a des-
tination for Christian pilgrims. The
early Christian church rallied large
followings in Jerusalem, whose
doctrine and belief system is still
practiced by many Palestinian
Christians. Interestingly enough,
about 1/3 of Israel’s drinking
water is provided by the Sea of
Galilee, a region Jesus conducted
most of his early ministry in the
New Testament.
In 691, Muslim Arabs built the
Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem
where they believed Mohammed,
Islamic spiritual leader, halted
on his journey to heaven. Fur
thermore, “in the early years of
Muhammad’s message Jerusalem
was the holy site which Muslims
faced in their prayers,” accord-
ing to Secretary of the Islamic
Research Academy Michael
Andrews.
Though religious/political
demonstrations and violent
clashes continue in Israel, peace
negotiations are currently under-
way among Israeli and Palestin-
ian government leaders.
Tuition raise inevitable
Continued from Page 1
The endowment has not grown
oei the last few years and fewer
new dollars are coming in. In order
to maintain a solid financial base,
those new dollars will be coming
from a higher tuition.
Anderson also spoke more about
the competitive reasons for rais-
ing tuition, saying that "we use
other institutions as our check-
marks. I bis helps the University’s
profile, and helps to attract stu-
dents and faculty.”
When asked if there is a connec-
tion between a high price tag and
high quality in a University, Ander-
son replied.
People do iook ai Ihe cost oi
schools, and public and private col-
leges and universities, and then
make their own independent judg-
ments.
A more expensive school would
somehow seem to have a better
academic program than a school
that costs less than most private
schools.
Senior Sylvia Mayer said that
Oates discusses
literary themes
in her opinion “if our school was
more cautious with the waste of
electricity, such as lights left on in
classrooms and at night, and the
waste of watering the lawns during
mgn sunpoint times of the day, per-
haps we could conserve a little.”
Sophomore Jeff de Jong says, “I
would have to transfer to another
school if our tuition had a substan-
tial increase. Even with my schol-
arships, a higher tuition is out of
my affordability range.”
A budget for the next fiscal year
has been submitted for approval,
but the numbers are not finalized.
However, there will be a tuition
increase and Anderson suspects
that each year will bring another,
smaller, increase as well.
Congress develops new
election reform proposals
Christina DeNardo
Daily Orange (Syracuse U.)
(U-W1RE) WASHINGTON,
D.C. - lawmakers wasted no time
filing election reform bills Tuesday
as the House and Senate returned
to the nation’s capital for the first
time since last month’s still-unre-
solved presidential election.
“Despite over 200 years of elec-
tions, we vote as if we still live in
the 19th century,” said U.S. Sen.
Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), who
sponsored one of the bills. “I cast
my first ballot nearly 30 years ago,
and the way I voted that first time
and the way I voted Nov. 7 is
exactly the same way.”
Said Sen. Robert Torricelli, who
introduced a competing bill: “What
occurred in this election simply
must never happen again.”
Legislation introduced by
Schumer and Sen. Sam Brown-
back (R-Kan.) provides the Fed-
eral Elections Commission - the
agency that enforces election laws
- $10 million to conduct an in-
depth, one-time study of current
and possible election methods.
Some of the ideas the FEC
will analyze include mechanisms
already in place in other states,
such as voting by computerized
machines, mail and the Internet.
The Commission would also look
into changing ballot designs and
the time and place of voting.
“This is not a federal mandate
of election standards,” Brownback
said. “We provide the means to
states to implement the changes
that they deem are most fitting for
their needs.”
Later that day, Torricelli and
Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.)
announced their attempt at bipar-
tisan election reform legislation.
Their bill wduld establish a per-
manent four-member commission
within the FEC to study current
voting systems and make periodic
recommendations for improving
elections. The House version of
the McConnell-Torricelli bill was
introduced by Rep. Steve Rothman
(D-N.J.).
Both bills’ establish matching
funds for states to modernize their
voting systems.
The Schumer-Brownback leg-
islation provides $250 million -
McConnell-Torricelli allots $100
million. Schumer acknowledged,
however, that replacing outdated
and problematic voting machines
across the country could cost about
$1 billion.
“I don’t think theirs will have
the support of the localities that we
do," said Schumer, referring to the
McConnell-Torricelli bill. "They
set up a whole new structure. They
tear apart the FEC and put it back
together. We’re not trying to do
anything grandiose here.”
But McConnell s position as
chairman of the Senate rules com-
mittee should ensure that his bill
receives prime attention. The con-
troversial punch card system, which
may have caused some Florida bal-
lots to not register votes, was devel-
oped by Thomas Edison in 1900.
It is used by 32 percent of local-
HOG
ities, more
system.
In New York City, 40-year-old
lever machines broke on Election
Day, and there was no one avail-
able to fix them, leaving many to
stand in line for hours, said Bar-
bara Bartoletti, legislative director
of the New York state League of
Women Voters.
“Many people threw up their
hands and didn’t vote,” Bartoletti
said.
“This is not acceptable,”
Schumer added.
“In the face of declining turnout
and lack of interest in the political
process, we simply cannot afford to
have outdated voting systems that
are so cumbersome and frustrating
that they discourage people from
voting altogether,” he said.
Other bills introduced regarding
voting reform:
- Reps. Curt Weldon (R-Pa.) and
Matt Salmon (R-Ariz.) will intro-
duce a bill Wednesday regarding
military absentee ballots. The bill
responds to the more than 1,000
military absentee ballots that were
rejected in Florida this year because
of a lack of postmark or witness
signature. It would also require that
all military ballots be counted, as
long as there is no evidence of j
fraud.
- Rep. Ed Markey (D-Mass.),
along with Rep. Alcee Hastings
(D-Fla.,) and several other biparti-
san lawmakers, recently introduced
a bill that would require uniform
poll closing times in national elec-
tion.
A quick note: This is my last attempt at news editor before taking on editor-in-chief, as our
beloved Josephine has left us for the land of beautiful blbnde men with accents.
Continued from Page 1 ing.
sley, is intriguing to Oates because
of the dual identities he or she must
develop, while often repressing the
actual self in unhealthy and harm
till ways.
"It’s amazing what America
does to its celebrities," Oates said
in her evening lecture, "lake Mar-
ilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley also
ascended to a kind of deranged
celebrity very rapidly, bemuse he
was so involved and encapsulated
m his celebrity identity. He literally
puffed up his body by ingesting,
drugs, food and drink as a punish-
ment for the ideal he had created,
and smothered this other self."
Notable in Oates' work is her
characteristic voice techniques,
where she must often disguise her
own voice.
"I try to get into the voice of
the subject, and put my own self
aside," she said during a classroom
discussion. "The only time I talk
in my own voice is when I write
essays and reviews. And I like to
teach so much because it allows me
to speak on my own and not have
this mediated voice which is some-
"It is usually a somewhat ele-
vated voice, but sometimes it’s a
very colloquial voice with a good
deal of vernacular and occasional
profanity, things that I don’t use in
my own speech. The American ver-
nacular voice is especially interest-
Oates also discussed her emo-
tional attachment to her writing.
“The strange thing about being
a writer is that the text is there, but
then behind it is the psychological,
physiological, and spiritual anguish
of the person who wrote it,” she
explained in her evening lecture.
“If we look at our own writing too
carefully, we remember some of the
emotional experiences that we had
writing it. That makes me a little
nervous, especially when reading
pieces like Blonde."
In adherence to the theme of
Southwestern’s literary series,
Oates described her own profession
as a writer, and what surviving in
any profession requires.
“To be in a profession, you have
to have a sense of history, to be
aware that time keeps moving, and
that the craft itself changes,” she
said.
“Writing, specifically, is an
attempt to deal with fantasies. At
times, it's rather harrowing and
draining, and a lot of psycholog-
ical anxiety is caused by writing
novels. All art is completely sub-
jective, and the demand of an artist
is not merely to produce pictures,
but unique work that bears his indi-
vidual insight.”
Presently, a student/faculty
Advisory Committee is discussing
the next author visit for the second
year of Southwestern’s “The Writ-
er's Voice” series.
In the news
- The struggle for the U.S.
presidency drags on, though
the future looks dim for Dem-
ocrat Al Gore. Today, the Flor-
ida Supreme Court will hear
from both Gore and Repub-
lican George W. Bush, but
legal experts predict that Gore’s
appeal will be to no avail.
- Following a shooting attack
on Israeli diplomats at its
embassy in Amman, Jordan’s
capital; Israel began evacuat-
ing families of the diplomats.
Despite the bombing, Israel is
attempting to avoid heightening
the tension with Jordan.
- Texas broke its own record
for number of executions in a
year, with the lethal injection ot
Garry Miller becoming the 38th
person to be executed this year.
Of Texas’ 237 executions
since the records began in 1930,
150 have been since Governor
George W. Bush took office.
Two more executions are sched-
uled during the remainder of the
year.
- According to a new study
by University of Michigan pro-
fessor Theresa Welbourne, com-
panies that have women in top
management positions tend to
be healthier and wealthier than
their male-dominated counter-
parts.
- Duke University decreed4
that same sex commitment cer-
emonies will now be allowed
in its famous' Gothic chapel
Though many applaud the uni-
versity’s decision, others con-
test that Duke is violating the
rights of religious students.
- Wednesday, a decorated jet
named “Panda One” shuttled
iwo panda bears from China to
the Dulles International Airport
in Washington DC.
The two bears, Mei Xiang
and Tian Tian, will be trans-
ported via a secret route from
the airport to the National Zoo,
where they will be acclimated to
their surroundings before being
exhibited to the public in Janu-
ary.
- Hazelnuts could just be
the power behind cars of the
future.
t According to a university
professor in northern England,
hazelnuts could produce the
hydrogen need for the electric
current for electric cars.
- Destiny’s Child was named
Billboard’s Artist of the Year.
Other artists to receive acclaim
were Creed for Rock Artist of
the Year, ‘N Sync for Album of
the Year and the Dixie Chicks
for Country Artist of the Year.
Sisqo nabbed six prizes, includ-
ing Male Artist and New Artist
of the Year.
If you’re interested in good
music, however, see the Mega-
phone staff’s selection on page
four.
^ MEGAPHONE
m
CHANCE^
FOR
prAf
COFFEE
WlVTMt ,f» * Jfl Vi-f • { ' ' ' 1 * T"
J__M -
i^k Arl
r« >
fe
fc . .j,
Editor-in-Chief
News Editor
Asst. News Editor
Features Editor
Opinions feditor
Arts & Entertainment Editor
Asst. Arfs & Entertainment Editor
Sports Editor
Photo Editor
Josephine Hodge
Jennifer Getson
Tolly Moseley
Scott Rocher
Alan Suderman
Sara Gray
Lindsay Dold
Manuel Jovcl
Sarah Meyer
Writers Tolly Moseley
Lacy Klosterman
Sara Springfield
Bonnie Casson
Cris. Roach
y t.
Megaphone is the official, student-run newspaper of Southwestern University in
Georgetown, Texas. It is published every Thursday when classes are in session.
Please send submissions to SU Bos;7444, Georgetown, TX 78626. For more
information call (512),863-1347. Placement of advertisements from campus oiga*
f nizations will be printed contingent upon the availability of space. The views
j expressed herein do not necessarily express-the views of SU, its faculty, its trust-
ees, or its administration. All submissions must be approved by the editors
of the Megaphone and are subject to editing to accommodate brevity and
clarity. No article will be printed if it is not accompanied by the real name
and title of the author. Upon request, the author’s name can be withheld.
Comic Joi Lakes
■M-:
r-----
l*-''„‘..:vs# A'fjK. I*
-
IP ■
„ ,
1
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Megaphone (Georgetown, Tex.), Vol. 95, No. 09, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 7, 2000, newspaper, December 7, 2000; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth634186/m1/2/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Southwestern University.