2008-09-12

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THE BG NEWS Friday

September 12, 2008 Volume 103, Issue 14 WWW.BGNEWS.COM

CAMPUS

The Boston Public Health Commission attempts to stop smoking on campus by limiting cigarette sales | Page 3

PULSE

Wii exercise a hit or miss?

Nintendo released Wii Fit last May, but is it making a splash with consumers? The Pulse hopes to find out | Page 7

Stop the War on Drugs

FORUM

Options abound for out-of-town voters By Hannah Sparling and Becky Tener The BG News

No smoking on campus, please

Columnist Kyle Schmidlin writes that choosing to use drugs is a personal choice, and if used responsibly, are not damaging the community | Page 4

Hard work finally pays off

With Election Day right around the corner, students are thinking about how to make their votes count. Because the University is home to students from all over the country, many students vote using absentee ballots. But for some, voting absentee is harder than it sounds. Absentee voters have to remember to get an application, fill it out and also send it back in without losing it, said College Democrats President Steve Currie. “It requires a lot more work on the voter’s part,” Currie said. Freshman Melinda Puehler said the absentee process is confusing to her, especially since she has never done it before. “I kind of forget how,” Puehler said. “I’ve been told in government class, but I just don’t really remember.” Another problem with absentee voting is people either forget about the deadlines or are too lazy to follow through with the process, Puehler said. Other students, however, have no problem with absentee voting. Senior Britnie Allen voted

absentee for the first time last year without any difficulty. “I had no clue what to expect and it was really easy,” Allen said. Junior Brian Fisher said voting absentee is easier and more convenient than voting on Election Day. “After you download and mail in the request form you’ll get the ballot and you just mail it in,” he said. “It’s so simple.” College Republican Chair Quinten Wise said absentee voting is very important because it allows students to support their local candidates and issues. “[Voting Absentee] keeps you connected with your community, and that’s extremely important,” Wise said. “Doing an absentee makes voting more personal.” Options also exist for those students who would rather vote in Wood County rather than filling out an absentee ballot. Freshman Patty Laycock was already registered in her hometown but reregistered in Wood County when she came to college. “I didn’t want to deal with remembering to fill out the absentee,” she said. “I’ll just go and do it in November.” For those who are registered in

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See VOTING | Page2

ILLUSTRATION BY EMILY GRANATA AND JEFF HOUNSHEL

New organization OSGA hopes to look out for students

ODD NEWS

After spending a lot of time and money and working hard in school, columnist Alison Kemp is finally ready for her departure to Austria | Page 4

An Australian minister is forced to resign three days after being sworn in for dancing in his underwear at a Parliament party | Page 6

SPORTS PEOPLE ON THE STREET WEATHER

BG football heads off to face Boise State. The sports section dissects both sides of the field to see who will come out on top | Page 9

Where were you and what were you doing when you found out about the World Trade Center?

AMISH JMA Grad Student, Finance

“I was in India, and I heard about it on the news.” | Page 4

TODAY Rain High: 76, Low: 63

TOMORROW T-Storms High: 75, Low: 63

Johnnie L. Lewis

By Kate Wiggeringloh Reporter

In and right back out

ALAINA BUZAS | THE BG NEWS

The Boise State Analysis

ESTABLISHED 1920 A daily independent student press serving the campus and surrounding community

FLAVORFUL: Diversity Boutique owner Erin Norman decided to open her own shop to “add flavor” to the Bowling Green community.

Diversity Boutique offers students a unique style By Courtney Flynn Reporter

Five years ago, the quaint town of Bowling Green was introduced to the unique clothing store Diversity Boutique by a graduate student at the University. Erin Norman, owner of Diversity Boutique, opened the store at 101 N. Main St. while simultaneously working on a business marketing project for her master’s degree in Event Planning.

However, creating the boutique was not only a school project for her. “Boutiques add flavor to a small town,” Norman said. “I wanted to bring something to BGSU and the community.” The idea of bringing flavor to the small town of Bowling Green came from Norman’s traveling experiences, which range from Alabama to California, along with places in Europe like Germany and the Netherlands. Norman initially got the

Fast food offers cheap deals for the expense-conscious consumer By Dru Sexton Reporter

Everyday it seems like another fast food restaurant has jumped onto the $5 deal bandwagon. But roughly less than a year ago, deals like this were only a figment of people’s imaginations. Subway started offering the $5 foot long deal to “try and sell as many foot longs as possible,” Manager of the East Wooster Street location Jennifer Perry said. Subway planned to end the deal May 11 this year, but instead decided to make eight of its sub sandwiches into an exclusive $5 foot long menu, she said. Included on the menu are the Meatball Marinara, Cold-Cut Combo, Spicy Italian, Veggie Delight, Blackforest Ham, Oven-Roasted Chicken Breast, BLT and Tuna subs. Josh Harris, a shift manager at Pizza Hut said restaurants are doing what they can to try

“It is a cheap alternative to a more expensive menu.”

Josh Harris | Pizza Hut manager and help offset the surge in fuel prices and the increasing economy. “It is a cheap alternative to a more expensive menu,” he said. According to Harris, Pizza Hut has recently added the buy three or more Pizza Mia pizzas for $5 each to its menu. The pizza’s consist of a sweeter sauce with lighter toppings, and are expected to be a permanent edition to the regular menu. “It’s nice, because with the rising economy prices, they provide a cheap and satisfying meal at a good price for students and for America,” said senior Joel

See FAST FOOD | Page 2

idea for the boutique while she was traveling to college towns with the American Cheer Association. “I liked how these college towns I was visiting had somewhere for students and community members to shop and express themselves,” said Norman. “[But] I benefited most from the European trips to places like the Netherlands and Germany in the way that I was

See BOUTIQUE | Page 2

Meeting the needs of University students just got a whole lot easier. Through the use of Ohio Student Government Association — a new, yet very important organization — students involved with the association hope to seek reform to make the lives of Ohio students easier. OSGA is a collection of Ohio’s 13 four-year public institution’s student governments. Recognized by the Governor’s office, OSGA is a student advocate association working with the State and Federal Government to ensure that the needs of students are met. As an independent combined representation of student governments working for the betterment of students at Ohio public universities, OSGA takes the power of Undergraduate Student Government and makes it stronger on a state and national level. Not only do they work directly for the students, but OSGA also participates in student democracy. “We realized we didn’t only want to advocate, but we also

Chair of OSGA

Nick Gamero Internal Chair

wanted to study [the] best practices among student governments,” Chair of OSGA Johnnie L. Lewis said. Although OSGA is not made up of all of Ohio’s universities, the organization still effectively coordinates and helps students strive for higher education reform, as well as provides an avenue for sharing best-practices and innovative initiatives. Through conference calls every other Friday at 1 p.m. with Chancellor Fingerhut’s office, OSGA works to bring more money back to the students at Bowling Green State University. “I’m responsible for setting

See OSGA | Page 2

Due to budget cuts, Rec Center creates new fees By Michelle Bosserman Reporter

Although routine Rec Center users will not see any difference in the lockers used to hold their belongings, their wallets might. New locker policies at the Rec Center now require students to pay a one-time semester fee for use of a locker, which states that half and full size lockers are available for a semester price of $10 and $20, respectively. Sophomore Robert Froman visits the Rec often and is unhappy with the fee. “I feel like it’s a big inconvenience that should be included in tuition fees,” Froman said. According to fliers around the Rec titled “Ammunition for Handling Patrons,” policy changes are due to last year’s low enrollment and excessive money loss due to stolen and laundering towels. “We actually almost lost the Pro Shop,” said Graduate

Assistant of the Pro Shop and Special Events Patrick Edwards. “The Rec Sports branch of Student Affairs made cuts so we had to make cuts.” According to Edwards, every 100 students is roughly $1.2 mil-

lion and enrollment this year is down 1,000 students. “We’ve gone to extra lengths to be able to keep this place and make sure it is a smooth

See REC | Page 2

ENOCH WU | THE BG NEWS

LOCK ‘EM UP: New fees at the Rec Center now include a one-time semester fee of $10 for a half-sized locker or $20 for a full-sized locker.

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