Tuesday, February 6, 2001

Tuesday, February 6, 2001
Volume 5, Number 74

NEWS IN BRIEF

SPORTS IN BRIEF

WEATHER FORECAST

Today: Partly sunny in the morning, cloudy in the afternoon. Highs 40 to 45.
Does anybody else find the term “winter storm warning” just a bit redundant?

Tonight: Mostly clear. Lows 25 to 30.
It’s the winter. That’s what it does.

Tomorrow: Mostly sunny. Highs in the mid and upper 40s.
And this just in: A summer heat warning will be in effect from June to August.

TODAY’S SHARPLES MENU

Lunch: Open face turkey-ham sandwich, curly fries, *vegetarian chili, open face vegetable sandwich, French cut green beans, mixed vegetables
**Asian chicken salad bar

Dinner: Catfish with creole tartar sauce, corn pudding, *broccoli-mushroom stir-fry, tomatoes provencal, brussel sprouts
**Cajun bar

NEWS REPORT

1) Campus quickly covered with snow

At 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Wharton courtyard still had what looked like three different snowball fights going on simultaneously. After a week of early spring-like weather, Swarthmore was hit hard on Monday with a winter storm the likes of which haven’t been seen in years. But after a few hours of inconveniences, many students made the most of the situation, leading to some interesting spectacles.

“I witnessed some snow flirting. These two girls were throwing snowballs at these two guys. Then, the guys tackled them and the girls stuffed snow down the guys’ jackets. It was almost snow sex,” one freshman said.

“It was a total snow orgy,” added Joey Genereux ’01.

After an early-morning drizzle that looked mostly innocent, around noon the raindrops turned into extremely large snowflakes that fell to the ground at the speed of rain and stuck to the ground even quicker. Within a few hours, about four inches of pure slush had enveloped the campus, and it kept falling even faster than the Facilities staff could shovel it away.

“I’ve never seen snow come down this hard before,” said Andrew Scarborough ’04.

A handful of afternoon and evening classes were cancelled, as well as the men’s and women’s basketball games. Many faculty members also left campus as soon as they could, anticipating a rough ride home.

But once the snow stopped falling, as they say, the kids came out to play.

Dannie Silverman ’04 reported pure glee at the opportunity to use his new snow boots for the first time, while Justin Crosby ’04 spent part of his evening taking pictures for his mother in Texas.

Many students braved the slushy conditions to go sledding, though the recent project on the paths from Parrish and McCabe to Sharples that made them less steep also made them less ideal for sledding.

Still others felt the need to point fingers. Said Ryan Budish ’04, “I think this was God punishing Swarthmore for the bad Daily Gazette weather jokes.”

– Jeff Heckelman & Jeremy Schifeling

Remember to check out our winter storm photo gallery at http://www.sccs.swarthmore.edu/org/daily/specials/blizzard2001/index.html

2) World news roundup

President Bush brought his plans for a $1.6 billion tax cut to American families yesterday, saying “no American should pay more than a third of his income to the federal government.” The plan, if implemented, would be retroactive to January 1st and would save the average family of four $1,600, according to administration figures. Democrats attacked the proposal, arguing that it would disproportionately help the wealthy while regenerating the American economic deficit.

William D. Baker, 66, an ex-forklift operator for Navistar International Corp., opened fire at the company’s manufacturing plant in the Chicago suburb of Melrose Park yesterday, killing four employees before committing suicide. Baker was about to be imprisoned following his recent conviction on employee theft charges. Four other workers were injured in the shootings, with one left in critical condition.

Despite Prime Minister Ehud Barak’s warnings that the election of political rival Ariel Sharon would immerse Israel in a devastating war with its Arab neighbors, Israelis appear ready to vote for the Likud leader as polls open today across the country. Barak, himself, has been unable to prevent violence over the last five months in which Arab-Israeli conflict has made the headlines almost everyday. Sharon, who has kept a low profile leading up to the polls, has amassed a 20 point lead in the race while promising “peace with security.”

3) Campus events

“On China” Scott Arboretum Lunch Lecture
by Jeff Jabco, Director of Grounds
Scheuer Room, 12:00 p.m.

Job Search Strategies Workshop
Trotter 301, 4:15 p.m.

“Rebeldes Con Causa: Rock and Countercultural Politics in 1960s Mexico”
by Eric Zolov, Franklin and Marshall College.
Trotter 203, 4:30 p.m.

Wage Policies and Practices at Swarthmore
Hicks Mural Room 312, 8:00 p.m.

Film: “American Photography: A Century of Images, Part I”
Kirby Lecture Hall, 8:00 p.m.

Community Leadership Program Informational Meeting
Kohlberg 116, 9:00 p.m.

Argentine Tango Lesson
Upper Tarble, 9:30 p.m.

SPORTS UPDATE

1) Basketball games postponed

Both the men’s and women’s basketball games, scheduled against Drew and Bryn Mawr respectively, were cancelled due to dangerous weather conditions. The men’s game has been rescheduled for next Monday, February 12th, while the women’s game has yet to be rescheduled.

2) World sports roundup

In their first game since the Jan. 27th airplane crash that killed two players and eight of their traveling companions, the Oklahoma State men’s basketball team beat Missouri 69-66. Gallagher-Iba Arena, where the Cowboys play, was filled with flowers and notes of play, while the team observed a moment of silence for their fallen teammates.

Svetlana Abrosimova, the star center of UConn’s women’s basketball team, is scheduled to have foot surgery this Wednesday, ending her 2001 season. Abrosimova, who leads the team in scoring, was injured in a fall while playing against rival Tennessee on Feb. 1st.

Though the quality of the XFL’s inaugural games this past weekend was often said to be quite low, America’s interest was decidedly high. Saturday’s game recorded a remarkable 10.3 Nielsen rating on NBC while the 4.2 rating UPN scored on Sunday outdid the NHL’s All-Star game on ABC.

3) Today’s and tomorrow’s contests

Today:

Badminton vs. Albright, 7:30 p.m.

Tomorrow:

Women’s basketball vs. Johns Hopkins, 6:00 p.m.
Swimming vs. Washington, 6:30 p.m.
Men’s basketball vs. Johns Hopkins, 8:00 p.m.

QUOTE OF THE DAY