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THE DAILY REVEILLEWWW.LSUREVEILLE.COMVolume 113, Issue 146 Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Senior writer Kyle Bove thanks legislators for a memorable
performance, page 13.
OPINION
Summer Edition
Collins arrested on theft chargesCRIME
MEGAN J. WILLIAMS / The Daily Reveille
Former associate vice chancellor Carolyn Collins gets into her car Monday.
PHONES, see page 11
TO THE MARKETLocal Red Stick Farmers Market helps
local producers to profi t, page 3.
To see a pullout of LSU’s run to a sixth title, see
pages 7-10.
CHAMPIONS
Getting smart
Timothy Berry said owning a smart phone has changed his life.
Berry, psychology and sociology senior, is one of many University students adapting to life with a smart phone on campus.
A smart phone is a cell phone with ad-vanced features, such as Internet access and e-mail capabilities.
“What I like about it the most is being able to set up my appointments in it and the alarm system and stuff like that,” said Berry, who owns a Samsung Black-Jack II. “It really changed my life basically.”
Berry said his smart phone becomes more of a necessity the longer he owns it.
“It’s basically one of the things that I use on a day-to-day basis that has become a part of my life,” Berry said.
James Honeycutt, com-munication studies professor, said he thinks about three students in his summer class of 30 own smart phones.
He said cell phones are a necessity, but smart phones are still a luxury to most con-sumers given the diffi cult economic times.
“It could be seen as maybe a necessity, only time will tell. Maybe in a couple of years,” Honeycutt said. “If the economy swings up,
University students, teachers fi nd different uses, needs for smart phones on campus as technology evolves
‘I never thought I
would need it. But
now that I have it, I couldn’t
live without it.’
Chloe Seydelincoming freshman,Samsung Behold
‘I mean, it’s nice to have, but I wouldn’t say I need a smart phone.’
Dan Burginmechanical engineering
freshman,BlackBerry Curve
‘It’s made my life easier
because there’s Iwn-ternet on
it.’Danny Tranbiological sciences
junior,AT&T Tilt
‘It’s defi nitely a luxury, but I need it
to keep in touch with my family.’
Emily Shieldsanimal sciences
freshman,LG View
‘I could live without it.
I’m not that dependent on it. It’s defi nitely
just convenient.’
Malorie Homesmarketing junior,
iPhone
‘It really changed my life
basically.’
Timothy Berrypsychology and sociology senior,
Samsung BlackJack II
By Robert StewartContributing Writer
A former associate vice chan-cellor who announced her retire-ment a few weeks ago has been arrested and accused of stealing more than $5,000 from the Uni-versity.
Carolyn Collins, former dean of the University College, is ac-cused of shifting money from the
LSU Summer Opportunity Pro-gram fund into her Tiger Card account for “personal purchases,” said LSU Police Department spokesman Capt. Russell Rogé.
Accounting Services notifi ed LSUPD in May about the trans-fers. In its investigation, LSUPD discovered Collins had been il-legally transferring money since 2003. Because the statute of limi-tations for some of the alleged thefts has expired, Collins is only being charged for the $5,050 transferred since 2005.
Collins was arrested and
issued a summons for theft on June 19. Her retirement is effec-tive today, according to Kristine Calongne, University spokes-woman.
In 2005, Collins transferred $1,250 into her Tiger Card ac-count, according to LSUPD. Col-lins transferred $1,200 in 2006, $1,400 in 2007 and $1,200 in 2008.
Collins’ base salary for the 2008-09 fi scal year was $153,989.
Assoc. vice chancellor allegedly took $5,050 By Kyle BoveSenior Writer
THEFT, see page 4
lsurev
eille.
comLog on to see a video of students
discussing how they use their
smart phones.
photo illustration by ANDY
SCHWEHM / The Daily Reveille
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Louisi-ana got welcome rain Monday as farmers worried about vulnerable crops and some areas considered whether to shut down fi reworks stands and order residents not to set off their own fi reworks. But rainfall was still well below aver-age, the National Weather Service forecasters said. Shreveport got about a half-inch of rain Monday, but across northwest Louisiana, rainfall probably ranged from about an inch to nearly nothing, said Gary Chatelain, a meteorolo-gist in the weather service’s offi ce in Shreveport. “So far, we’re 4½ inches behind for the year, and for the month, we’re almost every bit of that — 3½ inches,” he said. “We were doing pretty good through May. June’s been a real disappoint-ment.” Price Bundy of Ida, who grows cotton and corn, said corn ears are just starting to fi ll out and may be stunted without more rain.“For us, since it was a fairly decent
rain, we were able to turn off some of our irrigation equipment” for a day or two, Bundy said.“The bad thing is it was not area-wide. It was pretty well isolated,” he said. This time of year is also crucial for soybeans, hay and pas-tures, said Bundy’s father, John Bundy Sr. of Bundy Farms near Benton. Meteorologist Tim Destri of the weather service offi ce in Slidell said the New Orleans area is more than 10½ inches below normal — or about two-thirds the usual amount for the fi rst half of the year. Much of the New Orleans area got a good soaking, he said, but he didn’t know whether La-fourche Parish, where Parish Presi-dent Charlotte Randolph has said she might have to ban the sale and use of fi reworks, would get enough to avert that possibility. Randolph had not made a decision Monday, an aide said. State Fire Marshall Butch Browning said West Baton Rouge Parish has ordered such a ban. Browning said about 40 per-cent of Louisiana’s municipalities and fi ve parishes — St. Charles, St. Bernard, Orleans, East Baton Rouge and Terrebonne — allow only approved community fi re-works displays, barring individual sales and use.
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — Police and soldiers clashed with thousands of protesters out-side Honduras’ national palace Monday, leaving at least 15 peo-ple injured, as world leaders from Barack Obama to Hugo Chavez demanded the return of a presi-dent ousted in a military coup. President Manuel Zelaya said he would seek to return to his coun-try Thursday and reclaim con-trol of the government. He said he would accept an offer from the head of the Organization of American States to accompany him to Honduras. Across Latin America, leftist leaders pulled their ambassadors from Honduras and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said El Salvador, Nica-ragua and Guatemala would cut trade with neighboring Honduras for at least 48 hours. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez called for Hondurans to rise up against those who toppled his ally.
NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge rejected Bernard Madoff’s plea for leniency Monday, sen-tencing the 71-year-old swindler to spend the rest of his life in pris-on for an “extraordinarily evil” fraud that took a staggering toll on thousands of victims. U.S. Dis-trict Judge Denny Chin cited the unprecedented nature of the mul-tibillion-dollar fraud as he sen-tenced Madoff to the maximum of 150 years in prison, a term com-parable only to those given in the past to terrorists, traitors and the most violent criminals. There is no parole in federal prison so Madoff will most likely die there. “Here, the message must be sent that Mr. Madoff’s crimes were extraordi-narily evil and that this kind of irresponsible manipulation of the system is not merely a bloodless fi nancial crime that takes place just on paper, but it is instead ... one that takes a staggering human toll,” Chin said.
CORRECTIONS AND CLARIFICATIONS
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
The Daily Reveille holds accuracy and objectivity at the high-est priority and wants to reassure the reporting and content of the paper meets these standards.This space is reserved to recognize and correct any mistakes which may have been printed in The Daily Reveille. If you would like something cor-rected or clarifi ed please contact the editor at (225) 578-4811 or e-mail [email protected].
The Daily Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Daily Reveille is an independent entity within the Manship School of Mass Com-munication. A single issue of The Daily Reveille is free. To purchase additional copies for 25 cents, please contact the Offi ce of Student Media in B-34 Hodges Hall. The Daily Reveille is published daily during the fall and spring semesters and semi-weekly during the summer semester, except during holidays and fi nal exams. Second-class copies postage paid at Baton Rouge, La., 70803. Annual weekly mailed subscriptions are $125, semester weekly mailed subscriptions are $75. Non-mailed student rates are $4 each regu-lar semester, $2 during the summer; one copy per person, addition-al copies 25 cents each. Postmaster: Send address changes to The Daily Reveille, B-39 Hodges Hall, LSU, Baton Rouge, La.,70803.
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World leaders blast Honduras coup
Bernard Madoff gets maximum 150
years in prison
Rain across state; but overall still dry
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SNAPSHOT
GRANT GUTIERREZ / The Daily Reveille
Log on to see more pictures of the Parade Ground and Middleton Library.
See a story about the abol-ishment of the Student Health Center ‘s Speciality Clinic additional fees.
Read our blogs, including the “Eye on the Bud-get” budget cuts blog and “Dog Days” summer sports blog.
THE DAILY REVEILLEPAGE 2 TUESDAY, JUNE 30, 2009
DO YOU HAVE AN OCCURRENCE?Call Javier at the Student Media Offi ce578-6090, 9AM- 5PM
NOW HIRING BROADCAST SALES EXECUTIVESLSU Student Media is now hiring students interested in working with advertising and underwriting with KLSU & Tiger TV. Contact Emanuel at [email protected]
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Jackson’s family moved quickly Monday to take control of his com-plicated personal and fi nancial af-fairs, winning temporary custody of his three children and asking a judge to name the King of Pop’s mother as administrator of his es-tate. In documents fi led in Supe-rior Court, Jackson’s parents said they believe their 50-year-old son died without a valid will. They also made it clear they believe they should take charge of both his debt-ridden but potentially lu-crative fi nancial empire and act as permanent caretakers of his three children. Judge Mitchell Beckloff granted 79-year-old Katherine Jackson temporary guardianship of the children, who range in age from 7 to 12. He did not immedi-ately rule on her requests to take charge of the children’s and Jack-son’s estates.Beckloff scheduled a hearing for July 6 and another for Aug. 3 to consider those issues.
Jackson’s family moves quickly to
take charge
NATIONAL
THE DAILY REVEILLE PAGE 3TuEsdAy JunE 30, 2009
PLUCKERS WING BAR
Monday:$14.99 All you can eat wings and $3
Pluckers Lemonades.
Tuesday:$2.50 Mexican Beers and Margaritas.
Wednesday:Trivia at 8. $4 Mother Plucker Mugs.
Thursday:$15.99 All you can eat wings. $4 Mother Plucker
Mugs. $3 Margaritas and Pluckers Lemonades.
The sweet smells of fresh flowers, warm cinnamon rolls and dessert wine fills the air of the Red Stick Farmers Market, and makes it is easy to understand why so many people are attracted to this early morning scene.
The Red Stick Farmers Mar-ket, organized by the Big River Economic and Agricultural De-velopment Alliance brings small Louisiana family farms together to sell and educate the local commu-nity about the different crops and produce they grow on their farms every Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon on Fifth and Main streets.
“The main purpose is to pro-vide direct field opportunities for farmers,” said Darlene Rowland, BREADA director of development. “If they have to sell their produce wholesale, they’re going up against big distributors. The market pro-vides a place for the community to gather and interact with farmers. [It brings] urban neighbors and rural farmers together.”
Rowland said BREADA’s mis-sion is to support the small Loui-siana family farms and to build a sense of community between the farmers and their customers. She said the farmers market also helps the local economy.
“If you’re buying local, then it’s directly supporting a farmer who’s invested in the local com-munity,” Rowland said. “It puts the money right back into the local economy instead of supporting a huge distributor in California.”
BREADA was founded in June 1996, and the first farmers market was in November 1996. Since then, the Red Stick Farmers Market has expanded to a Tuesday market at the Unitarian Church, a Thursday market at 7248 Perkins Road and the six-day-a-week indoor Main Street Market at the Saturday lo-cation in downtown Baton Rouge. Rowland said the Saturday market is the biggest with 45 to 50 vendors setting up each week in addition to the 20 to 25 vendors inside Main Street Market.
“It makes the city a lot more sophisticated because most big cit-ies now have good farmers mar-kets,” said Mary Ann Sternberg, BREADA board member and in-ternship coordinator for the Man-ship School of Mass Communica-tion.
The Red Stick Farmers Mar-ket is the biggest gathering of local farmers, and it is the only official farmers market in Baton Rouge.
“What [the farmers market] means to a small farmer is an op-portunity to stay in the farming business,” said Copper Alvarez, executive director of BREADA. “They make a lot more money at the farmers market, and it provides them the opportunity, when they come from small areas, to reach a larger audience with their produce. We have several farmers who were about to go under, and through be-
ing able to operate in the farmers market, they were able to expand their farm and save their busi-ness.”
Alvarez said most people be-come regulars at the Red Stick Farmers Market on Saturdays, Tuesdays and Thursdays because they become hooked on the fresh produce. She said there’s a big dif-ference in taste between locally grown produce picked from the bush the day before the market and the produce in shipping for days at a time from other states.
“I try to do sustainable agricul-ture,” said Paul Davidson, owner of EquiTerra Farms in Clinton, La. “My primary thing is blueberries, but I raise lambs, goats, free range chickens for eggs [and grow] some vegetables.”
A sign at Davidson’s booth
said all of his produce is grown by organic standards, but that his farm is not certified organic because he did not want to do the bookkeep-ing or paperwork. Davidson said he has a full-time job in addition to his blueberry produce.
“[The farmers market] is a fan-tastic mechanism for local farmers to sell their produce and get market price for it,” Davidson said. “It’s a social thing ... There’s a healthy food element ... There’s a ‘help your neighbor’ element. It’s the best thing to happen to local farm-ers and the local community.”
Farmers Market expandingBATON ROUGE COMMUNITY
Business keeps money in local economyBy Mary Walker BausContributing Writer
MAGGIE BOWLES / The Daily Reveille
Vendors sell fresh fruits and vegetables, seafood, fresh flowers and seedlings for your own garden at the Red Stick Farmers Market held every Saturday on 5th and Main streets in downtown Baton Rouge.
Contact Mary Walker Baus at [email protected]
THE DAILY REVEILLEPAGE 4 TUESDAY, JUNE 30, 2009T
Campus Crime Briefs
Swine fl u vaccine developed, not ready for publicHEALTH
WEATHER
Hurricane Center gets alliance
The offi cial start of hurricane season July 1 will bring hopes of better technology and emergency responses because of the LSU Hurricane Center’s announced collaboration with the New Or-leans/Baton Rouge National Weather Service and the Gover-nor’s Offi ce of Homeland Securi-ty and Emergency Preparedness .
The partnership will allow the Hurricane Center to develop research tools for hurricane fore-casts through this partnership with NWS and GOHSEP, as well as the Institute of Marine Science at the University of North Caro-lina and the Department of Civil Engineering and Geological Sci-ences at the University of Notre Dame .
“During [Hurricane] Gustav,
it became more evident that we needed more formal coordina-tion among the universities and the NWS,” said Robert Twilley, associate vice chancellor of the Coastal Sustainability Agenda. “We had a ‘grand challenge’ meet-ing here at LSU and … one of the outcomes was to coordinate how we would exchange information so that we would provide a better product to the public.”
Gustav also revealed a need for improvement in the LSU Firefi ghter Emergency Training Institute’s hurricane response, which implemented a new hur-ricane preparedness course this summer .
“There was never really an organized formal training method for hurricanes before,” said Jeff Pardue, course coordinator for FETI’s hurricane preparedness course. “After Gustav, the state fi re marshal, Butch Browning, recognized that, and he commis-sioned us to develop this class.”
The course educates
fi refi ghters about hurricane warn-ings and notifi cations, accommo-dations and food in the case of a hurricane, operational support and mutual aid agreements with other organizations, Pardue said.
Ken Graham, the meteorolo-gist-in-charge at the NWS Weath-er Forecast Offi ce in Slidell, La., hopes Louisiana will achieve a storm surge system similar to Northern Oklahoma’s tornado re-search.
“In Oklahoma, they can … take research and quickly infuse it into operations,” Graham said. “It is quickly turned into warn-ings … that go out to the pub-lic and decision-makers to save lives. I think we can do the same thing here with surge — protect property and save lives.”
Twilley said the partnership allows the University to be a test laboratory and role model for other systems in addition to bet-ter guiding the public’s response
Collaboration to increase response timeBy Natalie RoyContributing Writer
Swiss pharmaceutical com-pany Novartis AG announced the arrival of the fi rst batch of the H1N1 virus vaccine on June 12, but it may take months to reach Louisiana, according to Jimmy Guidry, State Health Offi cer and Medical Director for the Loui-siana Department of Health and Hospitals.
The H1N1 virus, also known as swine fl u, is the fi rst infl uenza pandemic since 1968, according to the World Health Organization,
and has affected 158 Louisiana residents, including 24 cases in East Baton Rouge Parish .
While swine fl u has been generally mild, those anxious for answers about the vaccine may fi nd themselves waiting at least until fl u season.
“The process of producing the vaccine and making sure [it] is safe ... takes time,” Guidry said. “When they fi nd out how many doses they’ll have, they’ll be deciding how they’re going to distribute it, and who’s going to be recommended to receive it.”
Because fl u season in Louisi-ana normally starts around Janu-ary or February and seasonal fl u vaccines are usually given around October and November, the public
probably won’t get any answers regarding the swine fl u vaccine until this fall, Guidry said.
In the meantime, the DDH and the Offi ce of Public Health are preparing.
“We do a lot of planning around what we would do as
medical professionals if large numbers of people start getting sick,” Guidry said. “We do table-top drills with hospitals, we’ve provided some continued educa-tion at no charge to medical pro-viders so that they can learn more about this virus, all getting ready for what could be a busy fl u sea-son.”
In the beginning of last school year, Guidry said the DDH and OPH also conducted mass vaccination drills, which will help them if the vaccine does become available.
But preparations for the Stu-dent Health Center are being put on hold until more information is provided, said Dr. Timothy Honigman, Health Center Chief
of Medical Staff.“We’ve been doing the same
fl u vaccination program every year,” Honigman said. “And al-most every year we give out the same number of fl u shots ... so we haven’t done anything to pre-pare [for a busier fl u season] just yet. We’ve been in preparation for a bird fl u pandemic for several years and have a protocol, so that preparation has sort of helped us with [swine fl u] coming around.”
Honigman said the Health Center is waiting for the FDA to approve the vaccine and make it available to the public before making any decisions.
“A swine fl u strain will
LA hospitals await FDA approvalBy Natalie RoyContributing Writer ‘‘
‘The process of producing the
vaccine and making sure [it] is safe ...
takes time.’Jimmy Guidry
medical director for Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals
FLU, see page 11
The University College is made up of students who haven’t been admitted to a degree-grant-ing senior college yet. It is the largest academic college on cam-pus.
The LSU Summer Oppor-tunity Program, run through the University College, is designed for incoming freshman and al-lows students to take classes and develop study skills before their fi rst semester in college.
Collins was employed at the University for more than 25 years and was LSU’s fi rst black dean of an academic college. She served as Chair of the Diversity Com-mittee of the National Academic Advising Association from 2003 to 2005 and was also part of the 21-member chancellor search committee in 2008.
MAN SHOT AT UNIVERSITY CRESCENT APARTMENTS
A 22-year-old man was shot and seriously injured at the Uni-versity Crescent Apartments at 4500 Burbank Drive on Sunday at about 2 a.m., according to Casey Rayborn Hicks, East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Offi ce spokeswoman.
When deputies arrived at the scene, EMS had already taken the 22-year-old victim to a local hos-pital.
Witnesses told the deputies two men in a brown truck followed the victim from Mike’s Daiquiris & Grill after an argument between the victim and two other people in the bar’s parking lot.
The victim eventually stopped at the University Crescent Apart-ment’s parking lot and got out of the car. Then one of the men in the truck shot him.
The brown or tan Ford truck with gold writing covering the en-tire rear window — possibly with the word “commercial” — was last seen headed east on Burbank.
MAN ARRESTED FOR DWI A man unaffi liated with the
University was arrested on June 26 at about 2 a.m. for driving while in-toxicated and careless operation of a motor vehicle.
Nicholas F. Phillips, 19, of 5324 Dickens Drive, Baton Rouge, caused a minor car accident on Highland Road near South Campus Drive, said LSUPD Spokesman Capt. Russell Rogé. There were no injuries, and Phillips failed a fi eld sobriety test.
A breath alcohol test registered Phillips at .174, Rogé said.
Phillips was booked in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison.
THEFT, from page 1
Contact Kyle Bove at [email protected]
PREP, see page 11
Former LSU guard Marcus Thornton won’t have to travel far to fulfill his dream of playing profes-sional basketball.
The 2008 Southeastern Confer-ence Player of the Year was traded to the New Orleans Hornets in exchange for second-round draft picks in 2010 and 2012 during Thursday night’s NBA draft.
Thornton looked as though he would be playing pro ball in South Florida for about 15 minutes when the
Miami Heat drafted him 43rd overall, but the Hornets quickly made the deal that brought the former LSU star and Baton Rouge native to the Big Easy.
Thornton isn’t guaranteed a ros-ter spot as a second-round pick, but he’s already well-adapted to his sur-roundings if he should happen to se-cure one.
“The great thing for him is he’s so close to family, so he’ll have that support,” said LSU men’s basketball coach Trent Johnson. “It’s also great for LSU because our fans will be able to see him and watch him progress.”
Thornton has played nearly his entire career in southeast Louisiana, with the exception of a two-year stint at Kilgore Community College in Kilgore, Texas, before enrolling at
LSU.“I watched him in the NCAA
tournament, and he definitely turned it on,” said Tommy Schroepfer, com-munication studies sophomore. “He showed me he’s a better player than I thought he was.”
Adding Thornton to the roster could be a big boost for a team many fans said needs shooters, with veteran forward Peja Stojakovic missing 20 games last season because of a back injury.
“Peja’s getting kind of old, and Thornton won’t be afraid to shoot the ball like the rest of the team is,” said Trey Rodrigue, incoming freshman. “The only problem is he’s so short,
SportsTHE DAILY REVEILLE
TUESDAY, JUnE 30, 2009 PAGE 5
FANTASTIC MEN’S BASKETBALL
Kentucky looms overSEC hoopsonce againCalipari,’Cats boast No. 1 recruiting classBy David HelmanContributing Writer
It’s a foreign concept for the Southeastern Conference to focus on anything but football during the dog days of summer.
But it’s an idea SEC fans may have to get used to with John Cali-pari taking the open job at Kentucky and bringing his No. 1 recruiting class with him.
The Bluegrass State is in a hoops-induced furor with four months until the start of basketball season, as the Wildcats return first team All-SEC forward Patrick Patterson as well and add two of the nation’s top 10 recruits in point guard John Wall and center DeMarcus Cousins. Journal-ists and fans alike consider Kentucky a preseason top-5 team after missing the NCAA tournament for the first time in 18 years.
As a testament to the big, blue shadow that now looms over the con-ference, all 12 SEC coaches fielded questions about Kentucky during a coaches teleconference Monday.
“You’re asking me questions about [Kentucky] in June, so that says everything about what people expect,” said Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury.
Log on to lsureveille.com to read about some of the other points the SEC coaches discussed Monday.
Contact David Helman at [email protected]
Dean, Mitchell, Ochinko, Schimpf reflect on rollercoaster three years together at LSU from tough times to a national title
PATRICK SEMANSKY / The Associated Press
[Top left] Junior infielder and left fielder Ryan Schimpf, [middle left] junior designated hitter Blake Dean, [bottom left] junior first baseman and catcher Sean Ochinko and [right] junior outfielder Jared Mitchell were all key members of the Tigers’ 2009 national championship run. All four were drafted in this month’s Major League Baseball draft and could be leaving LSU.
Four young players came to Baton Rouge more than two years ago when a new age of LSU base-ball was just beginning.
They were members of Paul Mainieri’s first freshman class as the Tigers’ coach, and all four of them have seen significant playing time since their first season.
And after winning the Col-lege World Series on Wednesday, Blake Dean, Jared Mitchell, Sean Ochinko and Ryan Schimpf — four key juniors that helped put LSU back on the national map — have possibly played together in an LSU uniform for the last time.
Mainieri said while he’s un-sure whether any of the four will return, they will always be part of LSU baseball — even if their stay is done.
“It’s kind of an end of a little bit of a mini era there with them leaving,” Mainieri said. “But their legacy is firmly established.”
The four juniors, all starters on LSU’s championship team, were selected in the Major League Base-ball First-Year Player Draft on June 9-11. They were all drafted within the first 11 rounds of the 50-round draft after building impressive re-sumes during their Tiger tenures.
They have combined for 122 home runs, 535 RBI and a .313 ca-reer batting average while starting 675 of 719 games in which they played.
Dean was a 2008 All-Amer-ican and a 2009 First Team All-Southeastern Conference member, and he and Ochinko made the 2007 SEC All-Freshmen team. Schimpf was a Second-Team All-SEC selec-tion in 2009, and Mitchell was the
By Robert StewartContributing Writer
DAVE WEAVER / The Associated Press
TED KIRK / The Associated Press
NATI HARNIK / The Associated Press
Former Tiger could be Hornets’ hometown heroNBA
Thornton, Collison provide youth, depth
BILL HABER / The Associated Press
The Hornets introduce former LSU guard Marcus Thornton (left) and guard Darren Collison (right) to media Friday after acquiring both during Thursday’s NBA draft.
JUNIORS, see page 6
By David HelmanContributing Writer
THORNTON, see page 6
LSU Juniors’ Career StatisticsPlayer
AverageHome runs
RBI
Dean.34444190
Mitchell.29520100
Ochinko.29920110
Schimpf.31738135
Combined Totals: .313, 122 home runs, 535 RBI
4
THE DAILY REVEILLEPAGE 6 TuEsdAy, junE 30, 2009
No. 23 overall pick in this year’s MLB draft — the first Tiger taken in the first round since Aaron Hill in 2003.
But team success was limited for LSU in the quartet’s freshman season.
The Tigers went 29-26-1 in 2007, missing both the SEC and NCAA tournaments. Dean was the leading hitter on that team with a .316 batting average, 46 RBI and seven home runs.
Mainieri gave the roster a face lift that offseason — 15 players who still had collegiate eligibil-ity remaining didn’t return to the team.
The 2007 freshman class was whittled down from 12 players to seven. But Dean, Mitchell, Ochinko and Schimpf all made the cut.
“It’s been a roller coaster,” Mitchell said. “Coach Mainieri implemented this program, got the right guys to come in here, charac-ter guys that were going to work hard. It shows the kind of guys, the character we have here, from going
where we were two years ago to where we are now.”
That infamous season ended May 19, 2007 — 772 days ago for those who are counting.
But Schimpf still remembers it.
“It’s fun to see how much we’ve progressed. It really seems like yesterday that we were fresh-men playing at the old Box, going through a pretty rough season,” Schimpf said. “It was just good to see how we transformed into a great team.”
And what changed the Tigers’ fortunes? Mainieri redirecting the players’ attitudes, according to Schimpf.
“It was just the character of the team. He kind of had to change us attitude-wise and just had to make us a little more dedicated,” Schimpf said.
Mainieri said while his pre-decessor, Smoke Laval, recruited those four players to LSU, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t “love them to death.”
“I committed myself to them as freshmen. And I bit the bullet,
and I knew it was going to create some hard times,” Mainieri said. “Because I showed such faith in them, they showed great loyalty to me. I knew we could fight through those tough times … I knew they were tough kids, and I knew I had a little bit of toughness too and that eventually this team was going to be going in the right way.”
The group got through the tough times, as Mainieri predict-ed. Their sophomore campaign brought much more success, with a 49-win season and LSU’s first trip to Omaha since 2004.
And then came the national championship junior season.
“He’s done everything and more for this team, from the coach-ing and the X’s and O’s part of it, to putting together a great core group of guys, to instilling the right frame of mind on and off the field,” Mitchell said of Mainieri.
Mainieri said he’s not positive what any four players will decide regarding their futures, but he has a hunch he’ll see Dean back in an LSU uniform next season. Dean was drafted in the 10th round by
the Minnesota Twins.“Maybe Dean will be back.
You know, we’ll see,” Mainieri said. “It would be good for him to be honest with you. He would be to the 2010 team what Louis Cole-man was to the 2009 team.”
But even if all four leave, will any of them stop talking to one an-other other once they start playing professionally?
Not a chance.
“All of them are in my phone. All of them will always stay in my phone, and we’re always going to keep in contact,” Mitchell said. “It’s just been a fun ride. They’re going to be some of my closest friends for life.”
and that could hurt his playing time.”Adel Alizadeh, civil engineer-
ing senior, said Thornton and Darren Collison, the Hornets’ first-round se-lection from UCLA, could add some needed depth to the bench.
“The Hornets seem to only have one player playing well on any given night, and it’s usually Chris Paul,” Alizadeh said. “They need depth, so I think it’s great they signed Thorn-ton.”
Thornton could be one of several LSU heroes to eventually play NBA basketball in New Orleans, along with names like Brandon Bass and Pete Maravich.
Many fans hope the addition of a
local favorite could garner interest in the Hornets after what some consider a lackluster season.
“I just hope Baton Rouge people support the Hornets, and an LSU player could help that,” Rodrigue said.
Rodrigue and friends Trey Pre-jean and Michael Harang, Lafayette natives, said Thornton could “expand the fanbase” if he plays well.
“I love that about sports,” Schroepfer said. “It’s great to find a hometown guy to pull for, and I’d definitely go watch [the Hornets] more.”
Alizadeh said Thornton could help pull LSU fans to the Hornets’ bandwagon, just as 2006 SEC Player of the Year Glen Davis has won over
some locals to the Boston Celtics.“With the Celtics, people just
want to see ‘Big Baby,’” he said. “And I think you’re going to see that happen for a lot of people here.”
For Thornton, Johnson said the focus is to stay grounded and be will-ing to work.
“He’s got to deal with a lot of ex-pectations and try not to worry about everyone else, because Marcus loves to try and take care of everybody,” Johnson said. “He and Collison have a real chance to make an impact.”
BILL HABER / The Associated Press
Former LSU guard Marcus Thornton (right) shakes hands with Hornets general manager Jeff Bower (left) on Friday in New Orleans.
Contact David Helman at [email protected]
THORNTON, from page 5
JUNIORS, from page 5
Contact Robert Stewart at [email protected]
PAGE 7PAGE 7TUESDAY, JUNE 30, 2009
PATRICK SEMANSKY / The Associated Press
Senior pitcher Louis Coleman carries a national championship fl ag onto the fi eld Thursday in front of fans.
PATRICK DENNIS / The Associated Press
Baseball coach Paul Mainieri celebrates Thursday in Alex Box Stadium the day the team returned home from Omaha, Neb. LSU won the College World Series for the sixth time in school history by defeating Texas.
PATRICK SEMANSKY / The Associated Press
Sophomore outfi elder Leon Landry autographs a T-shirt for 14-month-old Ethan Smith and his father, Blake, on Thursday during a celebration for the baseball team at Alex Box Stadium.
GLORYDAYS
THE DAILY REVEILLE
THE DAILY REVEILLE Tuesday, June 30, 2009PaGe 8
After an early Monday night struggle that included senior ace Louis Coleman giving up five solo home runs in the early going of game one, the Ti-gers battled back to tie the game with two outs in the ninth inning on an RBI single by sophomore second baseman DJ LeMahieu.
Freshman center fielder Mikie Mahtook, whose first four at bats included three strikeouts and grounding into a double play, drove in the game-winning run in the top of the 11th inning to give the Tigers a 7-6 victory.
“The older guys told me ... to be patient be-cause I would still have a chance to come up and get a big hit,” Mahtook said of his early at bats. “So I kept my head up, and I got the base hit.”
The courageous performance by the Tigers drew some compellingly positive reviews from the team’s skipper, Paul Mainieri.
“That was the most courageous, never-say-die resolve I have ever seen out of one of my teams in my 27 years of coaching,” the South-eastern Conference Coach of the Year said.
But the Tigers knew heading into game two their season was still far from over.
Game1
2GameTexas’ stellar freshman right-
hander Taylor Jungmann decided to take the game into his own hands, go-ing the complete nine innings while striking out nine Tigers en route to a 5-1 victory Tuesday night.
The loss snapped a season-high 14-game winning streak for LSU.
“It was a frustrating night for us,” Mainieri said.
The Tigers’ only run in the game came on an error by Texas shortstop Brandon Loy, allowing junior right fielder Jared Mitchell to score.
Texas had two solo home runs in the game.Mainieri and his club were not ready to say die, as one
more game remained in the college baseball season.“We have a chance to play for the national champion-
ship with our Friday night starter on the mound,” Mainieri said of sophomore right-hander Anthony Ranaudo, who would start game three.
3GameFueled by a first inning, three-run homer by Mitchell and a five-run sixth inning, the Tigers’ offense showed how potent it could be and as it had been all season, in an 11-4 victory against No. 1 seed Texas Wednes-day night. The victory sent the Tigers to a dog pile in front of the pitcher’s mound at Rosenblatt Stadium and gave LSU it’s sixth national champion-ship in 19 seasons.
“We’ve been so consistent all year,” said LSU sophomore catcher Micah Gibbs. “We knew that we would be able to come back [from the loss], and that’s exactly what we did today.”
Fittingly, Coleman showed the resolve he had his entire career as a Tiger in the win, closing out the final two innings of the game to send Texas back home in tears.
“It couldn’t have felt any better,” Coleman said.
ERIC FRANCIS / The Associated Press
Sophomore second baseman DJ LeMahieu reacts after hitting a game-tying two-run double in the ninth inning of game one of the College World Series.
TED KIRK / The Associated Press
LSU Coach Paul Mainieri approaches freshman outfielder Mikie Mahtook (8) and sophomore outfielder Leon Landry (6) after LSU beat Texas, 7-6.
ERIC FRANCIS / The Associated Press
Texas pitcher Brandon Workman watches the Tigers celebrate their 11-inning victory from the Longhorns’ dugout after closing the game.
photos by TED KIRK / The Associated Press
[Above] From left to right, Ryan Schimpf, Blake Dean, Derek Helenihi, Tyler Hanover and Matty Ott watch the last out of ninth inning. [Right] Texas pitcher Taylor Jungmann threw a complete game, leading the Longhorms to a 5-1 win.
NATI HARNIK / The Associated Press
Sophomore pitcher Anthony Ranaudo strikes out a Texas batter in the first inning of the final game.
TED KIRK / The Associated Press
Junior outfielder Jared Mitchell watches his three-run home run sail out of the park in the first inning.
RICARDo B. BRAzzIEll / The Associated Press
Texas catcher Cameron Rupp, left, stares at the field after the Longhorns’ loss.
THE DAILY REVEILLE PAGE 9TUESDAY, JUnE 30, 2009
DAVE WEAVER / The Associated Press
Players dog pile after senior pitcher Louis Coleman struck out the final Texas batter.ERIC FRANCIS / The Associated Press
Baseball coach Paul Mainieri exchanges hugs with players after winning his first, and LSU’s sixth, national championship.
DAVE WEAVER / The Associated Press
LSU players thank fans Wednesday night after winning the deciding game of the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.ERIC FRANCIS / The Associated Press
Players rush out of the dugout to celebrate after the team defeated Texas, 11-4.
ERIC FRANCIS / The Associated Press
Junior outfielder Jared Mitchell is greeted by Blake Dean and Mikie Mahtook after he scores on a three-run homer in the first inning of Wednesday’s game three.
Celebration seemed to be a theme this season for LSU.
From the preseason No. 1 ranking to opening up a brand new stadium to the celebration in Alex Box Stadium just a day after the Tigers captured their sixth national championship, Baton Rouge and the Tiger faithful have been cheering since the start of LSU’s baseball season Feb. 20 against Villanova.
But it wasn’t just the fans cheering.As shown by these pictures, the team enjoyed numerous
joyous moments as a group, ending in the best way pos-sible — on top of the college baseball world.
THE DAILY REVEILLE TUESDAY, JUNE 30, 2009PAGE 10
GRANT GUTIERREZ / The Daily Reveille
An LSU fan holds up a sign asking for a new “Intimidator” for the new Alex Box Stadium. Coach Paul Mainieri asked Athletic Director Joe Alleva if a new sign was in order, and Alleva responded with resounding yes.
TED KIRK / The Associated Press
LSU fans, spelling out G-E-A-U-X T-I-G-E-R-S, cheer on the Tigers in the stands of Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Neb. on Tuesday night during game two’s loss to the Longhorns. Many students stayed until the Tigers won.
GRANT GUTIERREZ / The Daily Reveille
Coach Paul Mainieri holds up the NCAA Championship trophy Thursday in Alex Box Stadium to the approval of fans.
THE DAILY REVEILLE PAGE 11TuEsdAy JunE 30, 2009
PHONES, from page 1
by utilizing and developing these research tools.
“Even though we have a sys-tem in place for this hurricane season, we already know what needs to be improved for next year,” Twilley said. “When you have that kind of dialogue with the clients and the users, it really helps you focus your research agenda. That’s a very important benefit from this partnership.”
FETI will also benefit from the partnership by being able to respond more quickly during a hurricane, Pardue said.
“The more accurate [the NWS] can be, the more prepared we can be,” Pardue said.
The FETI course is first tar-geting fire departments in the area below I-10 and I-12, and FETI has successfully delivered the course 18 times to 194 fire-fighters, Pardue said.
“There have been … noth-ing but positive statements [about the course],” Pardue said. “It re-vealed that [fire departments] are not … prepared. Now they know what to do and the steps they need
to take.”But while Pardue said FETI
is content with the improvement in their hurricane response, Twil-ley and Graham said there is room for improvement within the storm surge forecasts, as well as other areas.
“We need to improve on dis-tinguishing the single message or map and how … to deliver it,” Twilley said. “Also, Louisiana’s levees … and structures’ eleva-tions are inaccurate. Next year, we want to improve … elevation so that we have better grids.”
Graham added precision to the list of improvements, which would hopefully lead to more ac-curate pinpointing of effected ar-eas and less people evacuating.
“I think the partnership is a lot of hope,” Graham said.
And Twilley agreed. “I think every year is better,”
Twilley said. “I think we’ll see some improvement this year… and want storm surge to follow that improvement.”
Contact Natalie Roy at [email protected]
PREP, from page 4
either be included in the regular flu vaccine in the fall or ... pro-duced separately and given in conjunction with the regular flu vaccine,” Honigman said. “And when [the vaccine] does become available, we’ll have it.”
But the availability and fu-ture distributors of the vaccine are mainly dependent on how much of the vaccine is produced, Guidry said.
“If we had large numbers of the vaccine ... we can go through the health care process and ... several markets,” Guidry said. “If there’s not a lot of the vaccine available, it will probably [be dis-tributed] through the government [to] people who are most at risk of getting deathly ill. The CDC usually gives a protocol on who should get the vaccine should that happen.”
Another determinant of when the vaccine will become available is the swine flu itself.
“If you look in past history, one [pandemic] in 1918 came out in the spring then waned ... in the summer,” Guidry said. “But then
it came back with a vengeance in the winter. That’s ... why we’re watching this virus. Most experts feel that ... we’re more than likely [to] see resurgence in the winter. The question is if it’s going to be just a mild flu like it is now or a virus that ... has mutated to where it causes more disease.”
If the swine flu mutates, the scientists who worked to create the current vaccine will be “back to square one,” Guidry said.
But both Guidry and Honig-man wanted to remind people that the vaccine is not necessary for most people, so there is no reason to panic if the vaccine is not ob-tained by flu season.
“People don’t take common illnesses seriously until they see something new like [swine flu],” Guidry said. “There are things around that are probably more deadly that they don’t pay nearly as much attention to. So the main thing is that they keep themselves informed, don’t panic and ... fol-low [health officials’] advice.”
then it’ll go from being more of a luxury to a necessity.”
Honeycutt owns a new iPhone 3GS, which he has had for about a week. He said the features he likes about his iPhone are e-mails, read-ing the news and the ability to zoom in and out on screen.
One feature he also touted is the GPS, which he says is a less popular, but “critical,” application.
“Let’s say you’re in New Or-leans and you get lost,” Honeycutt said. “That fear of crime can be al-leviated because of the GPS. It could actually enhance maybe the idea of psychological security with that.”
Danny Tran, biological scienc-es junior, has owned the AT&T Tilt smart phone for about a year.
Tran said he has grown “pretty dependent” on his smart phone be-cause he can use it in place of a com-puter for certain tasks.
“It’s made my life easier be-cause there’s Internet on it, so when-ever I want to look up show times or something to a movie, I can just pull out my phone,” Tran said.
Malorie Holmes, marketing junior, has an iPhone she got as a Christmas gift last December. She said she isn’t as attached to her phone as Berry or Tran, but she said it has made her life easier.
Holmes said the only thing she doesn’t like about her iPhone is she hasn’t been able to get multimedia messages.
“Apparently with the new soft-ware, you’re supposed to be able to, but I just haven’t figured that out,” she said. “I don’t think it’s a neces-sity. It’s definitely a luxury. I could live without it. I’m not that depen-dent on it. It’s definitely just conve-nient.”
Chloe Seydel, an incoming freshman and Samsung Behold own-er, primarily uses her smart phone for entertainment.
“There’s so much I can do on it,” she said. “I love having music on my phone. I never thought I would need it. But now that I have it, I couldn’t live without it.”
But while Seydel enjoys her phone’s features, she said her life hasn’t been changed because of it.
“There’s definitely stuff I don’t use. I never use Bluetooth. I barely even know what that is,” Seydel said. “It’s just a phone. You make calls on it.”
Honeycutt said some people consider a smart phone more of a toy than a requirement.
He said stereotypes about me-dia usage have led people to believe smart phone users can become ad-dicted to their device.
Dan Burgin, mechanical engi-neering freshman, is a smart phone user who doesn’t find his BlackBer-ry Curve indispensable.
“Some of the features I don’t use,” Burgin said. “Just having a cell phone is more of a necessity ... I mean, it’s nice to have, but I wouldn’t say I need a smart phone.”
Honeycutt said many people today are intrigued by smart phones because of the technological genera-tion in which we live.
“Human beings adapt,” he said. “Throughout evolution, there’s been adaptability. And so now we’re adapting to technology.”
FLU, from page 4
Contact Robert Stewart at [email protected]
Contact Natalie Roy at [email protected]
OpinionPAGE 12 TuEsdAy, JunE 30, 2009
THE DAILY REVEILLEThe Daily Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Daily Reveille is an independent entity within the Manship School of Mass Communi-cation. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, paper or University. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to [email protected] or delivered to B-26 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must have a contact phone number so the opinion editor can verify the author. The phone number won’t be printed. The Daily Reveil-le reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration without changing the origi-nal intent. The Daily Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author. Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Daily Reveille’s editor-in-chief, hired ev-ery semester by the Louisiana State University Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.
EdITORIAL POLICIEs & PROCEduREs QuOTE OF THE dAy
“Your greatest wealth is health”
VirgilRoman poet
Oct. 15, 70 B.C. — Sept. 21, 19 B.C.
Editorial Board
THE DAILY REVEILLE
JERIT ROSERELLEN ZIELINSKI
MATTHEW ALBRIGHTTRAVIS ANDREWS
SCOTT BURNSSKYLAR GREMILLION
EditorManaging EditorColumnistColumnistColumnistColumnist
FRASCATI, ITALY — Regional DiviDe
The North/South tensions prev-alent in America can also be found more or less for similar reasons in Italy. Apparently, the lackadaisi-cal lifestyle of Southern Italians is viewed less favorably by Northern-ers, who make no secret of their con-tempt for lazy Southerners.
Sound familiar?In fact, Siesta — the equivalent
of a daily “nap time,” in my under-standing — is major part of Italian daily life.
TRanspoRTaTionMore often than not, buses and
trains were on time, but there was still frequent unreliability and depen-dence brought on by public transpor-tation. This stark contrast with Amer-ican culture was perhaps the largest downside of European culture. But with gas prices in Europe sometimes almost triple the cost of American gasoline, there is no alternative.FooD
Of course, one can’t speak of Italy without mentioning the food. While the Italians are famous for
their culinary talents — and rightful-ly so — it goes without saying that
their restaurants lack American variety.
F u r t h e r , air condition-ing and ice were rare in many restaurants, and because Italian servers rely on salaries rather
than tips, dining out usually involved poorer service than that found in
American restaurants.But not to belittle the amazing
Italian cuisine and culture, one major aspect of Italian life that might never catch on in America is health and fit-ness.sTeReoTypes
“You can charge it. You’re American.”
This pervasive stereotype of the American consumer was a common marketing tool for Florentine market salesmen and the single most insult-ing thing I’d heard since I’d been in Italy.
But stereotypes wouldn’t be stereotypes if they weren’t true. I charged a brand new leather jacket — one that I might wear twice — to my credit card and was out the door.
He was a hell of a salesman.
Daniel Lumetta is a 22-year-old mass communication senior from Metairie.
Daniel lumettaColumnist
Similar but foreign routines exist cross-culturally
Contact Daniel Lumetta at [email protected]
As President Obama begins to strongly push for health care reform, the nation is steeped in controversy.
Republicans — and many Americans in general — are funda-mentally opposed to the most basic ideas at the root of his proposed so-lutions. Republicans fear the bill, which would fundamentally alter the health care landscape by introducing a national health-care plan, pushes the nation towards socialism.
One of their biggest issues with the plan is money — how, conserva-tives ask, can Obama possibly plan to pay for such sweeping “reforms?”
It’s an undeniably legitimate question.
By all accounts, the plan for health care reform will cost a huge amount of funding, as much as a trillion dollars. With the nation al-ready under a colossal deficit, many believe the amount paid for reform may simply be too steep.
Obama and his supporters obvi-ously believe it is needed, and they are proposing some innovative solu-tions in an attempt to come up with a way to fund the programs.
One of these solutions is an in-novative take on an old strategy — create another sin tax.
“Sin taxes” are nothing new. They are essentially taxes on items that are traditionally considered “sin-ful,” such as alcohol or cigarettes. Such taxes provide government fund-ing while simultaneously discourag-ing less than admirable behavior.
The novel part of the proposed tax is what it would affect — soft drinks.
Proponents of a soda sin tax ar-gue that taxing soft drinks to pay for health care reform just makes sense. First, the tremendous amount of soft drinks purchased daily would mean a huge revenue stream.
Secondly, taxing soft drinks — and thereby likely reducing their consumption, in the same way pre-vious sin taxes have — is a kind of health care reform in and of itself. Soft drinks have undeniably nega-tive effects on consumers’ health and contribute to the obesity epidemic that is our nation’s ultimate health crisis.
But the soda tax is unlikely to succeed. Obviously, such a tax would be wildly unpopular and dif-ficult or impossible to pass. In addi-tion, the research indicates such a tax might do little or nothing to actually limit consumption and would pay
but a fraction of whatever mammoth health care overhaul eventually so-lidifies.
But even if the soda tax fails, it brings up an important point.
No matter how much mon-ey is thrown into reforming our health care system, those reforms will be meaningless if they do nothing to correct the unhealthy be-haviors that plague Americans.
The biggest issue is obesity. By any standard, obesity is an epidem-ic in this country, and the resulting health problems are largely respon-sible for the stresses we are seeing in the system.
Unfortunately, correcting the lifestyles that lead to obesity on any meaningful scale is a difficult task.
One solution is to discourage consumption of unhealthy foods — such as sodas — by taxes. If a na-tional health care plan is created, then some propose that it would re-quire obese people to pay more.
The arguments for forcing those
who practice unhealthy behaviors to pay more for health care are similar to those for the soda tax — it would simultaneously discourage unhealthy behaviors while providing additional revenue. Besides, it only seems fair that those with unhealthy lifestyles pay more, since they are more likely to require service.
However, these negative incen-tives do have some drawbacks.
First, obesity is more prevalent among lower-income families. As any college student knows, healthy eating often requires time, effort and money that many Americans simply cannot afford. Imposing fur-ther financial burdens may not just be ineffective, but actually counter-productive.
Second, although obesity is cer-tainly influenced by unhealthy be-havior, genetic factors do favor cer-tain individuals. Is it fair to require people with a genetic disposition to-wards weight gain to pay more?
The most fair solution would obviously account for genetic fac-tors, but such a system would be ripe for abuse and likely impossible to create in the first place.
But the complexities involved with penalties for unhealthy behav-
ior don’t end there. What constitutes unhealthy behavior? Should smokers pay more under a government health program? Should those who do not exercise?
Should college students who party on the weekends have to pay more for their government health in-surance?
These are all questions that need to be answered. In addition, a stan-dard for determining the degree of these penalties would be difficult to implement.
The problem with health care reform isn’t only whether to create government-sponsored health insur-ance. Even if the political capital can be mustered to create such a pro-gram, significant effort will need to be put into solving these questions.
And it’s important that everyone pay attention — because the solu-tions could have significant impacts on American lifestyles.
Matthew Albright is a 20-year-old mass communication sopho-more from Baton Rouge.
Government considers penalties for unhealthy behaviors
TRAVEL
NIETZSCHE IS DEAD
matthew albrightColumnist
Contact Matthew Albright at [email protected]
The University is a magical place.
OK, maybe not in the stifling heat, but try hard to think back to the good ole’ days —spring or fall.
You may not recall your fondest memories during these time periods because of schoolwork, but I’m talk-ing about the weather.
Try to remember the first day you walked outside and could breathe again, free from the oppressive heat.
Perhaps you decided to en-joy the good weather on the Parade Ground. It’s the perfect location for a game of ultimate frisbee or pick-up flag football.
It also provides a nice place to relax and eat or study as you remem-ber why you loved LSU in the first place.
Some brave souls are still perse-vering in the heat, but if you are like me, anything is a better option than
being outside during the day, includ-ing studying.
B r u s h i n g up on my studies has never been a strong point of mine, but being distracted in the attempt to do so is something I mastered long ago.
And believe it or not, Middleton Library is the perfect place for pro-crastination.
It also holds some of the Uni-versity’s most precious history. And I don’t mean the books — I mean the graffiti on the desks.
Next time you are “studying,” I encourage you to look under the desk you’re at, or on the walls of your cu-bicle. More than likely, messages from your forebearers surround you.
They may be profane or pro-found, but it’s probably much more entertaining than whatever is in your book.
Ellen Zielinski is a 21-year-old com-munication studies major from Ba-ton Rouge.
If you aren’t out enjoying the heat, try the librarySNAPSHOT
ellen ZielinskiManaging Editor
Contact Ellen Zielinski at [email protected]
Opiniontuesday, June 30, 2009 PaGe 13
THE DAILY REVEILLE
Television audiences have been obsessed with multiple births for years now.
Early on it was just a wacky family with a set of quintuplets featured on the evening news. When reality TV became hugely popular, viewers were treated to constant recordings families with up to 15 children.
While at this point it may seem like trash TV, these families are reflections of what US fertil-ity used to be and are also perfect negatives of what it has become.
For those who haven’t had the urge to watch TLC or some-how avoided national TV news, Jon and Kate Gosselin, The Dug-gars and The Octomom are peo-ple that are all famous for having a mess of kids.
But stopping after two or three kids would have been un-common a century and a half ago.
Families were significantly larger In those days, and it’s easy to think that people were just having more kids, but that’s an incredibly simplistic and incor-rect view. Population fertility is a complicated and somewhat frag-ile affair that has deep implica-
tions for society.Population fertility isn’t just
how many babies people are hav-ing — it’s actually an indicator of a population’s growth and sus-tainability.
The most common measure of fertility is the general fertility rate. The rate is composed of the number of children born in a year divided by the female population aged 16 to 49 — which is the es-timated number of viable moth-ers.
The general rate isn’t the most precise measure of popula-tion fertility, but it does give an idea of how a population is repro-ducing. Furthermore population reproduction is most effectively viewed in the context of death.
A population’s number of births must exceed the number of deaths to truly increase. The number of births and deaths have been close to even in the US since the Baby Boom, but that wasn’t always the case.
Like many popular urban myths the family, life history and fertility of our recent ancestors is a bit cloudy.
We’d all like to believe that large families lived together in
handmade cabins and had their meals around a fire. Within that mythic structure, people only seemed to die in wars.
But that’s just not true. Back in those days, people died pretty frequently.
Histor-ic evidence from France and the U.S. shows par-ents often died shortly after their children reached matu-rity and older generations rarely existed in the same time frame as younger ones. Most children never met their grandparents in this time period.
The idea of having large families wasn’t about lust, acci-dents and the heady musk of an unwashed lover — it was a war of attrition waged against nature.
But that was the olden days. Those days are long gone and we no longer really worry about pop-ulating the country through sheer numbers and hoping that our kids make it to 30.
Infant mortality in the mod-
ern world is fairly stable, outside of developing nations. Children born in the US have an excellent chance of making it to old age.
Even though the world is a much safer place for kids than it was 150 years ago, replacement fertility is still a major issue, but the situation has changed a bit.
In fact, it’s flipped complete-ly.
Developed countries don’t have to worry about kids dying anymore — they have to worry about children not being born at all.
For many years now the number of births in the U.S. has remained fairly constant and maintained replacement levels. But the levels in Western Europe have dropped well below replace-ment.
The reasoning behind these drops are fairly complicated and, according to most demog-raphers, involve later marriages, increased cohabitation among couples, a shift in family focus from children to adults, and the widespread and easy acquisition of contraceptives.
The point is people are hav-ing less kids than before, which
brings me back to the Duggars, Jon and Kate and the Octomom.
The media seems to treat these people as circus freaks. And they are “freaks” to some extent.
They all stand out because they have a larger number of children than what is considered normal today.
For me, the issue of whether they should be on TV is nearly ir-relevant.
These families are great ex-amples of the way ideas about something as fundamental as fer-tility can shift and change over time.
It’s important to be reflexive about our lives and social world. Even the simplest things are not what they seem.
After all once the zombie apocalypse comes and mankind is forced to repopulate, our families may look just like Jon and Kate’s — hopefully without the snarky comments and fertility drugs.
Skylar Gremillion is a 26-year-old sociology graduate student from Plaucheville.
Skylar GremillionColumnist
SOCIALLY SIGNIFICANT
Contact Skylar Gremillion at [email protected]
TV multiples illustrate changes in U.S. fertility
Dear Louisiana House of Representatives,
I just wanted to say thank you. Not for helping find a way to reduce cuts to higher edu-cation and health care, but for something much more important — your resolution honoring rap-per Hurricane Chris.
On Wednesday, the Shreve-port native and Godson of Rep. Barbara Norton even performed his hit “Halle Berry (She’s Fine)” on your floor, a spot typically reserved for the democratic pro-cess.
The video of Chris’ rap is bouncing around the Internet like a beach ball at an LSU football game, and plenty of ridicule is being thrown your way. But don’t worry, it’s not like you had any-thing better to do during those 10 minutes. I mean, we’re only in the middle of a financial down-turn, and critical funding deci-sions were in your hands.
And don’t listen to The Ca-jun Boy on New York’s wildly popular blog “Gawker,” who wrote, “unparalleled in the his-tory of American political cor-ruption is the backwards collec-tion of scoundrels, scallywags, hooligans, rascals and charlatans collectively known as the Louisi-ana State Legislature,” after post-ing the video. He’s just jealous he
didn’t get to see Chris’ exclusive performance in person.
What you did was great for Louisiana’s image. Just when I thought the country looked at you as mere political laughing stocks, you decided to add being hip-hop connoisseurs to the mix, taking a few minutes to listen to rap music instead of those bor-ing bills. There was only one day
left in the session, and the budget was still up in the air — but hey, so were your hands.
In all seriousness, while Hurricane Chris is enjoying suc-cess — he’s had the No. 5 single in the country and will be per-forming at the BET awards to-night — the Legislature is not the place — and the day before the tumultuous 2009 session ends is
certainly not the time — to honor him.
Thanks to Youtube — have you heard of this Web site? — thousands of people have seen your hip-hop blunder, making Louisiana the butt of jokes once again.
So thanks for the embarrass-ment. I can’t wait to cover the Legislature next spring. Can I
make a suggestion, though? I say we just postpone Voodoo Fest and have it at the Capitol next session. We’ll sell T-shirts. It’ll be great.Sincerely,Kyle
Thanks, Legislators, for making La. a laughing stockEYE ON THE BUDGET
Kyle BoveSenior Writer
BEST AND WITTIEST
Photo courtesy of KING FEATURES SYNDICATE
Contact Kyle Bove at [email protected]
Classifi edsPAGE 14
THE DAILY REVEILLE
TUESDAY, JUNE 30, 2009
Announcements Employment Housing Merchandise Transportation Services
To place your ad: Cost: Deadlines:
Visit www.lsureveille.comand click on classifieds
35 cents per word a dayPersonals Free for students
12 noon two school daysprior to the printpublication date
FIREWORKS SALES SOUTH OF CAMPU 10-15.00/hr June 25-July 4th Free meals Must work July 4th fl exable hrs. call Ken or Cindy 225-288-0928
NOW HIRING Hampton Inn & Suites I/10Reiger Rd. Front Desk clerks needed.
Dependable individuals may apply in person. Address is 11271 Reiger Rd. Baton Rouge, La
70809 225.751.4600
CERTIFIED SCIENCE TEACHER The Baton Rouge International School is looking for a
certifi ed science teacher for upper elementary and middle school for the 2009-2010 school
year. Please send your resume at [email protected].
CERTIFIED KINDERGARTEN TEACHER The Ba-ton Rouge International School is looking for
a certifi ed Kindergarten Teacher for the school year 2009-2010. Please send your resume at
BABYSITTER NEEDED Responsible sitter needed every Friday 6am - 4pm for 18 month and 6 week old girls. Will pay $10/hour. Exp preferred. Email info to rolindepage@gmail.
com.
PARKVIEW BAPTIST PRESCHOOLPreschool Teachers needed fl ex days
no degree required 293-9447
DON’T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY!Now hiring for all positions at the following
locations:JEFFERSON 7615 Jefferson Hwy Baton Rouge
70809PERKINS ROWE 7707 Bluebonnet Blvd. Baton
Rouge 70810“Flexible schedules & Benefi ts for Full Time
Associates”Please apply in person during regular restau-
rant hours.Equal Opportunity Employer
STUDENT & SUMMER WORKLocal BR company expanding Fast!
**$15.00 Base/appt**Flexible SchedulesNo experience nec
Customer sales/ svcAges 17+
Apply NOW:225-927-3066www.collegestudentwork.com
PLUCKERS WING BAR Now Hiring All positions for Summer and Fall.
Make great Money in a fun working enviro-ment.
Apply at 4225 Nicholson
TEMPORARY WORKERS NEEDED! EARN SUM-MER MONEY!
LSU’s Public Policy Research Lab is now hiring survey researchers! Must have a clear speak-ing voice, be friendly, willing to communicate with people over the phone, and to follow set procedures. Pay is competitive, $7-9/ hour. Flexible hours! Great place to work! Prior
experience a plus but not required. Part-time
and full-time work available.Contact Kathryn Rountree, Operations Man-ager, [email protected] to set up an interview
SEEKING ENTHUSIASTIC STUDENTS who love working with children for local after school
program. MWF or T Th 1:30-5:30 Now hiring for Fall semester. Call 975-0131 Please leave
a message.
SMALL LAW OFFICE seeks part time runner/courier; fl exible hours, willing to work around school schedule, dependable transportation
required. Call 225.298.0770
SURVEY TAKERS NEEDED: Make $5-$25 per survey. GetPaidToThink.com
STUDENTS NEEDED TO work with children / adults with disabilities. Several positions,
various hours. One position available on LSU campus. Apply: St. John the Baptist
Human Services, 7732 Goodwood, Ste A-1 225.216.1199
ISDS MAJORS wanted for HelpDesk and Programming positions. Email resume to hr@
bankers-bank.com
!BARTENDING! Up to $300/Day. No Experi-ence Necessary. Training Provided. Age 18+
OK 1-800-965-6520 xt127
754 FALL CREEK/LSU3bdrm,2bth-3yrs old. Granite, wood and ce-ramic make this a great place to live. Fenced yard,2 patios. $215,000. Gertrude Cramer
Remax R. E. Group 225.773.6025
TIGER MANOR CONDOMINIUMS. UNITS READY FALL 2009!! Brand new 1, 2, and 3 bedroom units for sale starting at $124,900. Ask about our Guaranteed Buy-Back Program!! 3000 July St. 225-346-5055 www.tigermanor.com Loca-tion. Location. Location... Start Living.
REDUCED 3/3 CONDO, LSU CAMPUS Gated: 3/3 1700SF Reduced to $195,000 Almost
New. The Gates At Brightside. 1.5 from campus. Income producing while your student
lives free. 407-353-0564 Susan
WALK TO LSU 1 and 2 BR FLATS and TH, pool, laundry center. University View Apartments on West Parker. Call Hannah 767-2678. NO
PETS.
WALK TO CAMPUS 1Br, 2Br, and Townhomes. Starting as low as $400.00. www.lsu-westchimesplace.com 225.346.4789
VERY Nice new construction 1B/1BR condo near campus. Granite & ceramic tile through out. Working security gate. $800 per month.
Call or email - [email protected]
832.266.8935
TIGERLAND 1 & 2 BR fl ats and TH. wdfl oors, pool
w/s paid $525 -$725 225.615.8521
TIGER PARK LSU. 1 and 2 Br. TH. pool. $525 to $700 call 766-7224 225.892.8517
TIGER MANOR CONDOMINIUMS. UNITS READY FOR FALL 2009! Brand new 1, 2, & 3 bed-rooms available. Reserve your unit today! Walk to class! 3000 July St. 225-346-5055. www.tigermanor.comLocation. Location. Location... Start Living.
SUMMERWOOD VILLAS Preleasing for summer and fall. Spacious 3BR/2BA condo, gated community, w/d, encl. garages, lakefront units. From $1300/mo. Free rent! Call Christie at Latter & Blum Prop. Mgmt.
225.297.7857
SUBLETER NEEDED 1b/1b townhouse, close to LSU, $740. Call 225.717.0700
NEW CONSTRU CONDO APARTMENTS Afford-able, New, Nice 2&3BR Units on Range Ave in
Denham Springs 276-3134
LSU AREA, 2 bedroom 1 1/2 bath TownHome with W/ D, no pets, $650/ month. 225-802-
1961 or 225-612-8273
LARGE HOUSE 4 brm/2ba 2200.ft. $1600mo. dep.req.great location
318.573.5102
HOUSE FOR RENT 2 BR 2 BA off College Dr. $1000 deposit. $1000/mth for 12 mth lease
225.928.1035
HIGHLAND ROAD 3 br 2 ba $950-$1300 225.769.1079
GATED FAMILY COMPOUND: 12 MIN AVAIL-ABLE AUGUST 1ST: 4 br/3.5b Country Home
in a gated family compound on a working sugar cane plantation. Central H/A, ceil-ing fans through-out, satellite dish, W/D,
stove, refrigerator, dishwasher and disposal included. Open front porch and back brick
patio. Some furnishings provided at no extra cost, if needed.
$2,000/month (225) 753-4304, 505-6161 225.753.4304
FOR RENTNEW TWO BEDROOM TWO BATH CONDO;
RENT IS $1,100.00 PER MONTH; 9 FT. CEIL-INGS, CERAMIC TILE FLOORING, ALL APPLI-
ANCES INCLUDING WASHER/ DRYER IN UNIT; CONVENIENT TO CAMPUS, INTERSTATE AND
SHOPPING 225.413.9800
FOR RENT IN Brightside Estates 3BR/2B Condo Gated, Pool, Volleyball court, on
bus route, 3 parking spaces call or email at [email protected] call 225.266.9063
CHATEAU DU COUR IN TIGERLANDLarge 2 BR 1 B in gated complex..772-2429
mckproperties.com
BRIGHTSIDE PARK TOWNHOMES.Pre-leasing for summer and fall. 2br 2.5 bath pool, w/ d. $900/ mth $500 dep. 955-6480
southlandpropertiesinc.com
ARLINGTON TRACEReserve yours now for Summer/Fall ’09.
2bed/2.5 bath - $1,300/monthly3bed/3.5 bath - $1,650/monthly
All appliances included. Dean Flores Real Estate 225.767.2227
225.767.2227
3 BED/3 BATH ON BRIGHTSIDE $1650/Month, Free Maid Service!
2405 Brightside on LSU Bus Route Arlington Trace Condos
Parking for 3 & All Appliances [email protected] 310.989.4453
2BR - 4119 BURBANK Available soon. www.lsubr.com for pictures and fl oor plan. 445-
0039. $650. No pets.
1BR UNF WALK TO LSU Les Petites Apts 3313 Iowa St w/stove, fridge, central A/C 9275495
225.766.0679
1BR STUDIO Walk to LSU $395-$475. Water/Sewer/Gas included. 2BR wood fl oors $550.
Call McDaniel Properties 225.388.9858
1 BR ON BURBANK -FROM $475 www.lsubr.com for pictures/ fl oorplan. 4065, 4243,
4118 Burbank. $300 deposit. No pets, not even visiting. Leave a message. 978-1649
1 BR APT. WALK TO LS U ! ON SITE MGR 769-7757 / 978-3123 / 767-4128
*LAKE BEAU PRE’ TOWNHOMES*Reserve your place now for Summer/ Fall ’09.
2br/2.5b - $1300/ mo. 3br/3.5b - $1650/ mo.
Featuring Clubhouse with Pool, Tennis Court, Gym. All Appliances Included.
Dean Flores Real Estate 225.767.2227
ROOMMATE NEEDED FOR 3BR HOUSE Looking into getting awesome house on Harwich (near
Brightside). Need third roommate for rent. $450/ month, $433 if by July 1st. Contact
Igor: 225.773.0577
ROOMMATE NEEDEDMale grad seeking roommate to share
2BR/2.5B Lake Beau Pre Condo Only $575 INCLUDING UTILITIES!!
Gated, Pool, Gym, Tennis Court 225.247.0567
ROOMMATE NEEDEDMale grad seeking roommate to share
2BR/2.5B Lake Beau Pre Condo Only $575 ALL UTILITIES INCLUDED!!
Gated, Pool, Gym, Tennis Court 225.247.0567
ROOMMATE NEEDED Seeking roommate for 2BR/2.5B condo in
Lake Beau Pre’. Only $550 plus utilities!
Gated Community featuring luxury pool/ ja-cuzzi, game room, tennis courts, media room,
gym, and only 2 miles from LSU. Email [email protected] for more detailS
ROOMMATE NEEDED!!!
Female roommate needed. Partially furnished 2100 sq. ft. condo. 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths.
504.722.1372
HOUSE OFF HIGHLAND RD. Female needs two female roomates for 09-10
year. New house, built last year.Fabulous 3BR house off Highland, less than 1 mile from campus. Your own BR and Full
Bath!$450/ mo each. Call Jim Talbot
(225) 927-2114
STILL SEEKING SUGRAMAMA Sexy 22yo s/w/m looking for an attractive, adventurous cougar 25-42 years old. Do not be shy! I will make your dreams come true. Tell me about
yourself when you take me out for lunch! [email protected]
HEY! You always seem to be walking to your car as I am walking to class. Last week you actually waved at me (I think it was at me!). This has been going on for quite a few weeks, but we both get “surprised” looks on our faces
every time we see each other. Say “Hey!” next time we pass.
LOOKING FOR MY MATCH to fi ll the little open-ing in the jumbeled sock drawer of my heart.
White female who is into snake charming, chainsaws & sealing envelopes with hot wax. Seeking male companion with high ACT score,
high cheekbones and high self esteem. No Weirdos PLEASE!
LSU GUY Looking for love in all the wrong places.
Finally decided to put this up here. I’m 22 going to graduate next May. I need a sweet
girl who is content being herself. I like movies, going out to dinner, traveling, and of course
LSU Football. [email protected]
GIRL NEEDED FOR laundry and creation of tasty ice cream treats
SEEKING CHARITABLE, outdoor loving indi-vidual. Must love animals and the occasional hiking or camping trip. Drop me a message at
HighpointingForAmerica.org
SEARCHING 4 SOULMATE 20yo Asian guy seeking masculine guy 18-23 to date. Races open. I’m a sweetheart! tigerboy1988@gmail.
com
PREGNANT?? We are a happily married couple waiting to adopt a precious baby! We
want to help you in EVERY way throughout your pregnancy. Please contact us to view our
profi le! 225.235.4088
Help Wanted
For Sale
ForRent
RoommateWanted
Personals
Miscellaneous
THE DAILY REVEILLE PAGE 15TUESDAY, JUnE 30, 2009
THE DAILY REVEILLEPAGE 16 TuEsdAy, junE 30, 2009