Wednesday, March 31, 2004

by Ken Patton
Gazette Reporter

Student Council Appointments Chair Saed Atshan ’06 and Campus
Relations Representative Kristin Davis ’06 are planning to resign at
the end of this semester prior to the expiration of their terms to
study abroad next fall. A similar situation occurred last spring when
Mark Hanis ’05 decided to step down from Student Council to go abroad.

The resignations create a challenging situation for next semester’s
members, when seven new Student Council representatives will be need to
be elected rather than the normal five or six. Student Council
Co-President Emiliano Rodriguez ’05 commented that the larger number of
new members will make the situation on Student Council more difficult
because it takes time for new members to learn the ropes, causing
returning members to shoulder the bulk of the work. However, he did not
think it would pose a significant problem.

To discourage people from resigning early, Student Council members
amended the constitution last semester to require students running for
Student Council positions to possess the intent to complete their
terms. Student Council strongly discourages members from resigning for
any reason, but “all we can do is hope that people are genuine about
their commitment” said Rodriguez.

Due to the importance of the Appointments Chair, Student Council has
decided to hold a special election earlier than normal this semester so
that the new Council member can learn how to handle the position this
semester from Atshan. The candidate elected will only serve on Student
Council for a single semester before the Appointments Chair is
re-elected as usual next fall.

Both students resigning this semester expressed deep regret for the
situation, with neither having intentions to study abroad when they
were elected. Davis commented that she is “really committed to Student
Council” but unfortunately discovered this semester that her “course
load would not permit [her] to go abroad in either the spring next year
or fall senior year.” Therefore, her only alternative was to go this
coming fall.

*****

by Greg Leiserson
News Editor

According to SAC bylaws, student groups can not obtain funding for
politically oriented study breaks and, for the time being at least,
that is how it will remain. As part of a larger campaign to reduce
dependence on SBC money for study breaks, Student Council
representatives had begun a dialogue with SAC members on the
possibility of changing the bylaws to allow for such funding, but the
discussions have reached an impasse.

According to Student Events Advisor Myra Vallianos ’05, in order to
be eligible for SAC funding, the committee must believe that the
primary purpose of the event is not “to promote political ideology.”
This bylaw prevented the College Democrats from being eligible for
funding for the primary watching study break held earlier this
semester. However, an event submitted by the College Democrats would be
considered for funding if it had no political component.

The episode, which caused for some tension between the two groups,
culminated in a resolution passed by SAC members at their meeting last
week expressing discontent with what was described as an attempt on the
part of Student Council to micromanage the committee. Student Council
does have the power to change the bylaws without the consent of SAC
members, but is not currently considering it as an option.

The decision to table the issue arises in part from the large
turnover expected in both Student Council and SAC membership at the end
of the semester. Additionally, Student Council member Melinda Lee ’04
expressed concern about changing bylaws “randomly within a semester,”
suggesting that it would be better to approach the issue as a new
policy for implementation at the beginning of a semester. The issue
will likely be revisited in the future, but its outcome is uncertain.
The SAC Co-Directors for next semester are Charlie Sussman ’05 and
Darshan Patel ’05. Sussman is currently a member of Student Council
which has generally supported the bylaw change, while Patel is a member
of SAC which opposes the change.

At Student Council meetings earlier this semester, SAC Co-Directors
Kristina Pao ’04 and Brandon Carver ’04 argued that SAC events are
funded on the principle that they will provide social opportunities for
the whole campus, and events that are political in nature would
discourage students of an opposing political persuasion from the
organizers from attending the events.

While some have felt it is hypocritical to maintain this policy and
yet fund the dance during the Sager Symposium, SAC members decided the
funding was justified since the dance is social in nature, and is not
focused on sending the political messages delivered at many of the
symposium’s other events. SAC also recently approved a screening of
“Cider House Rules” by the Pro-Choice Task Force, which was viewed by
some as a movie with a political agenda on abortion.

Pao declined to comment to the Gazette, writing in an email that
“while both SAC and SC have the student body’s best interests in mind,
the issue has been dropped for the time being.”

*****

* Hundreds of police in dawn raids seized half a ton of explosive
material and arrested eight men across London and south-east England
yesterday, in Britain’s largest anti-terror operation for years. Mr.
Peter Clarke, head of Britain’s anti-terror branch, told a news
conference ammonium nitrate fertilizer was discovered in a 2m high
plastic bag in a self-storage warehouse in west London. The eight men,
‘all British citizens’aged between 17 and 32, were held under the
Terrorism Act for suspected involvement in planning a terrorist attack.
An anti-terror police source said the suspects were believed to be
Muslim and of Pakistani origin. London has been on guard against a
potential terrorist attack since the Madrid blasts, which prompted
Metropolitan Police Commissioner John Stevens to warn of the
‘inevitability’ of a terrorist strike on the British capital. Home
Secretary David Blunkett said yesterday’s action was a timely reminder
of the threat Britain faced. They were detained in a series of 24 dawn
raids by 700 officers from five police forces and the security services.

* Senior American commanders and Pentagon officials are warning of
an exodus of the military’s most seasoned Special Operations forces to
higher-paying civilian security jobs. The warning comes just as those
troops are playing an increasingly pivotal role in combating terror and
helping to conduct stability operations worldwide. Evidence of a drain
of seasoned special operators, including elite Delta Force soldiers, is
largely anecdotal right now. But the head of the military’s Special
Operations Command, General Bryan Brown of the Army, is so concerned
about what he is hearing from troops in the field that he convened an
unusual meeting of his top commanders in Washington last week to
discuss the matter. Military experts are cautioning that longer and
more frequent deployments are threatening the ability of the armed
services to retain many of their best troops. Their possible exodus
comes as the size, budget and missions of the Special Operations
Command are increasing sharply. At Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s
direction, the command will now plan and execute its own missions
worldwide, with support from other regional commands, rather than act
in a largely supporting role.

* President Chen Shui-bian vowed to go forward with plans to write a
new Constitution for Taiwan within two years, a move China has said
could compel it to seize the island by force. In his first interview
since his re-election on March 20, Mr. Chen also said China’s ‘one
country, two systems’ formula would never be accepted by Taiwan – a
‘sovereign country’ governed by a president – since it could not even
work well in Hong Kong, which is only under a chief executive. Mr.
Chen’s remarks signaled his refusal to commence cross-strait
negotiations under Beijing’s terms although his approach has created a
deep division in Taiwanese society and caused unease in Washington. But
Mr. Chen said a new Constitution would have nothing to do with Taiwan’s
independence. Instead, he said, it would aim to deepen democratic
reforms and improve governance by lowering the voting age, adding new
human rights guarantees, reducing the size of the legislature and
settling other disputes that have left the island’s government
gridlocked.

* US President George W. Bush’s Republican Party has admitted an
oversight in a voter survey which labeled Thailand and the Philippines
as harboring and aiding terrorists. ‘The questions on the survey should
probably have been vetted better,’ Mr. Carl Forti, spokesman for the
National Republican Congressional Committee, said on Monday. The
question targeting two of the United States’ strongest allies in Asia
was included in the National Republican Congressional Committee’s Ask
America 2004 policy survey, one of the party’s fund-raising
initiatives. It had asked: ‘Should America broaden the war on terrorism
into other countries that harbor and aid terrorists such as Thailand,
Syria, Somalia, the Philippines, etc?’ Officials from Thailand and the
Philippines said they were puzzled by the question pertaining to
terrorists since Mr. Bush’s administration had praised them for their
role in the anti-terrorism war. Philippine President Gloria Arroyo,
reacting to news reports on the question on Monday, said she would urge
her foreign office to demand an apology for the ‘unfair and baseless
accusation that we belong to a list of countries harboring terrorists’.
Asked whether the party would tender an apology as demanded by Mrs.
Arroyo, Mr. Forti said the party had not been contacted by the
Philippine authorities. ‘The survey has already been done for this year
and changes will be made prior to next year,’ he said.

*****

Department of Modern Languages and Literatures Bilingual Poetry:
Chinese Fairy Tales
McCabe Coffee Bar, 4:15 p.m.

Alumni Office Career Dinner
Bond, 6:00 p.m.

Study Abroad Informational Meeting
Science Center 199, 7:00 p.m.

Chocolate Seder
Martin 210, 7:00 p.m.

French Film Festival Conclusion: Ni pour ni contre
Kohlberg 115, 7:30 p.m.

Jonathan Franzen Reading
LPAC Cinema, 8:00 p.m.

SWIL Star Trek Episodes
Hicks Mural Room, 9:00 p.m.

Feminist Majority Meeting
Parrish Parlours, 9:00 p.m.

Film Society Screening
Science Center 101, 10:00 p.m.

———-
* Creative Writing Study Break *
LOVE and WORK
Hosted by Ourstory

Wednesday, March 31
Parrish Parlors, 9:00-10:00 p.m.

Bring paper and pen! Bring ideas and works in progress.
-come do some fun writing activities
-explore issues of love and work in your daily lives
-get ideas and be inspired
-take a break!
-enjoy snacks and refreshments
-students, faculty, and staff are welcome!

If you have art/writing submissions, come drop them off!
Ourstory is accepting submissions until Thursday, April 1!
Please campus mail/email your submissions to Casey Lee (clee3).

Ourstory is the Swarthmore College literary and art publication on
diversity.

*****

SPORTS UPDATE

Swarthmore’s baseball team fought their way to an 8-6 victory over
Muhlenberg yesterday afternoon; the game only lasted seven innings due
to darkness. This win ends the Garnet’s four game losing streak.

Jared Leiderman ’05 took the mound for Swarthmore for all seven
innings, and only two of the six runs the team allowed were earned.
Jody Fisher ’05 knocked in two of the Garnet’s runs. Ian Adelstein ’07
and Carlton Davis ’04 combined for five of the Garnet’s runs. The lead
changed hands a few times, and Swarthmore ran into a little trouble in
the seventh due to poor visibility but were able to hold on for the
victory.

The team returns to action on Friday for a rematch at Muhlenberg
beginning at 3:00 p.m.

*****

The softball team fell to Ursinus 2-0 and then tied them 2-2 in the
second game of a double header at home yesterday. Emily Remus ’06 took
the loss in the first game, allowing five hits and only 2 runs over
seven innings. Sam Brody ’05, Kelly Siano ’07, and Danielle Miller ’06
garnered the only hits for the Garnet.

In the second game, the score remained tied at zero until the fourth
inning, when Ursinus struck with two hits and one unearned run. The
same would happen in the top of the fifth inning. The Garnet tied the
game in the bottom of the inning when Mary Mintel ’05 scored Brody and
Valerie Maulbeck ’06, but the game was called because of darkness.

The Garnet will face Wilmington at home on Thursday; the action will
begin at 3:30 p.m.

*****

Today:
Women’s tennis hosts Bryn Mawr, 3:30 p.m.

Tomorrow:
Softball hosts Wilmington (double header) 3:30 p.m.
Women’s lacrosse at Washington, 4:00 p.m.

*****

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“Half of the American people have never read a newspaper. Half never
voted for President. One hopes it is the same half.”
–Gore Vidal

*****

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