Campus BluePrint November 2010

BluePrint CAMPUS

NOVEMBER 2010

DE CR MA IMIN A RIJ UA LIZE NA ?

YES

NO

2

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

BluePrint CAMPUS

10

ONLY A PIPE DREAM?

21

MIDTERM ELECTION VOTER GUIDE

Prop 19 could lead to a budding economy for California

BluePrint’s take on the upcoming election; prepare for early voting at Morehead Planetarium or Election Day Nov. 2

24

THE COLLAPSE OF AMERICAN POLITICS Where did we go so wrong? Gilmore discusses the partisan politics throttling legislation in Congress

PLUS: 6 8 9 12 13 14 17 18

The Obama Controversy California Liberalism California Prop 23 Celebrity Endorsements BluePrint Reviews Tea Party Feminism Christine O’Donnell Third Party Candidates

20 23 26 27 28 30 31

GOP Election Strategy YD/CR Debate Highlights Economy: A Long-Term Crisis Financial Aid Campus Y’s 150th Anniversary The Food Challenge Southern Identity

acknowledgements erin becker editor-in-chief sarah bufkin, david gilmore, chelsea phipps managing editors sally fry creative director tyler tran photo editor stewart boss, carey hanlin, jordan heide, troy homesley, sam grote, molly hrudka, aamir latif, zak mathews, rachel myrick, brandon wiggins, kara williams, kelly yahner staff writers roy ellis, carey hanlin, cassie mcmillan, ainslie perlmutt design staff anne brenneman, molly hrudka, will lambeth copy editors suzanne fleishman, caitlin graham, ainslie perlmutt, renee sullender, tyler tran photographers

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

FROM THE EDITOR Hey class of 2010 and class of 2011, remember 2008?

Getting asked if you were registered to vote five times a day, Obama posters on every wall, the rickshaw to the polls? And that January, who could forget Snowbama Day? We still have a one-kilometer race to Morehead, Baracktoberfest and a costume party in the Pit. But without Obama up for election, everything just seems a little less... sexy.

Nevertheless, these elections are crucial for the direction of our country for the next two years and even beyond. Some point to the first two years of the Obama presidency and say that “Change We Can Believe In” has turned into change we could believe in. We at Campus BluePrint disagree.

As Carey Hanlin demonstrates in his analysis of the Obama administration thus far (pages 6-7), Obama’s presidency has been a resounding success legislatively if not politically. And check out the timeline at the bottom. Our president has been busy.

Health care reform and new federal finance regulations, a Recovery and Reinvestment Act that saved our national economy, new fuel standards for 2011 car models and confirmed plans for a U.S. troop withdrawal from Iraq are just a few of the things this administration has accomplished in its first two years. The elections will be viewed as a referendum on the actions of both Obama and Congress, and it is crucial that we show our support.

“Yes We Can” has become “Yes We Did.” But there is still much left to accomplish.

Midterm elections may not be sexy, but “I Voted” stickers certainly are. Do your civic duty and vote, either early at Morehead Planetarium or at the polls on Nov. 2.

Erin Becker

3

4

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

IndexCARD U.S. Representative David Price Chapel Hill (919) 967-7924 Durham (919) 688-3004 Washington, D.C. (202) 205-1784 2162 Rayburn Building Washington, D.C. 20515 http://price.house.gov

U.S. Senator Kay Hagan Greensboro (336) 333-5311 Washington, D.C. (202) 205-1784 521 Dirksen Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 http://hagan.senate.gov

U.S. Senator Richard Burr Winston-Salem (800) 685-8916 Washington, D.C. (202) 224-3154 217 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20515 http://burr.senate.gov

SAVE THE DATE MIDTERM ELECTIONS 2010 Vote early at Morehead Planetarium until Friday, Oct. 29 , or at your polling location on Election Day Nov. 2.

See page 21 for more details.

NOV

2

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

78 %

of citizens age 65 and older say they are absolutely certain to vote in the upcoming elections

32 %

of voters ages 18-29 say they are closely following campaign news

66 %

of Republicans who are “more enthusiastic than usual� agree with the Tea Party platform

7 to 1 PHOTO BY SUZANNE FLEISHMAN

Republican to Democrat spending ratio for midterm elections Sources: campusprogress.org; pewresearch.org; motherjones.com

BY THE

Numbers

5

6

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

OBAMA CONTROVERSY

THE

By Carey Hanlin

I

s Barack Obama a forward-looking, miracle-working god- ing, banks and car companies were collapsing to the ground send attempting to bring an end to inequality in America? and the unemployment rate was steadily rising. The wars in Or is he actually a Muslim socialist incarnation of the An- Afghanistan and Iraq troubled people’s minds, and Americans tichrist bent on burning America to the ground? If you asked were anxious to bring the troops back home. America was the question during the elections two years ago, the answer searching for a new direction, and Obama represented that would depend on who you asked. And today? Well, it still de- change. pends on who you ask.

Since his inauguration While MSNBC praises nearthat year, Obama has underWhen Obama took office in 2009, ly every move the president taken project after project in makes, Fox News is busy his quest for such a change.

America’s economy was failing, discussing the latest conspirWithin his first week in office, banks and car companies alike were he immediately displayed his acy theories about his true origins. While progressives intention to upend many of falling to the ground and the hail his reforms, Tea Party the Bush administration poliunemployment rate was members storm Washington cies by announcing the cloin protest of his efforts. In an sure of the prison in Guantasteadily rising. age where media coverage namo Bay and placing a ban is increasingly biased, your on torture. He announced news source increasingly dictates your opinion on politics. It plans to wind down the war in Iraq and bring troops home by begs the question: who is Barack Obama, and what does Amer- 2011. He also set new fuel standards for 2011 car models. ica really think about him?

Then the big stuff began. With the unveiling of the American When Obama took office in 2009, America’s economy was fail- Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the Obama Admin-

Obama inaugurated

January 20

Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act allows an individual to file a suit against a company for pay discrimination

American Recovery and Reinvestment Act includes tax cuts, contracts and loans to save jobs

January 29

February 13

Obama issues an executive order lifting the ban on stem cell research

March

Helping Families Save Their Homes Act alters bankruptcy eligibility and proceedings and seeks to extend the amount of available credit

9

May 20

Obama nominates Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court, the first Latina justice

May 26

2009 January 22 The president issues an executive order banning torture and planning to close Guantanamo Bay prison

February 4

February 24

Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act ensures health care for all children

Obama gives his first speech to a joint session of Congress

March 30

May 22

Omnibus Public Credit Card Accountability Land Management Responsibility and DiscloAct protects sure Act regulates rates, millions of acres of fees and charges; seeks wilderness areas better protection for those younger than 21

June 24 Supplemental Appropriations Act approves more funding for wars in Iraq and Afghanistan

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

istration hoped to avoid an economic depression by making But while these are the go-to examples for media bias on investments in infrastructure and an emerging green energy either side, they are far from the only ones. The Wall Street industry while simultaneously pouring money into other sec- Journal is another example of a publication that tends to lean tors of the economy. Through the enormously controversial right. CNN—though more neutral than many others—does Affordable Care Act, the Obama Administration set plans in mo- have a few opinionated liberal anchors such as Don Lemon, tion to cover the 46 million Americans without health insur- who seem to back Obama more often than not. ance by overhauling the entire health care system.

More recently, even some of the more traditionally “liberal” Some see the Obama Doctrine as progressive and forward- news outlets seem to have had something of a falling out with moving, while others see it as a conspiratorial attempt to so- Obama. Earlier this year, The Washington Post published an cialize the nation. These biases have become evident and even article entitled “Obama’s Honeymoon with Media is History” influential in the year and a half since Obama took office, and --and they were not the only ones to voice such a notion. they have pervaded even some of the most respected media So why is the Obama/media honeymoon ending? outlets.

The answer still depends on who But which slant is most perva- Within his first week in office, you ask. Of course, those who have sive? Many claim that the media benefited from his policies are President Obama displayed more likely to defend Obama when gave Obama an unfair advantage in the 2008 election, while others his intention to upend many the media criticizes him. More conbelieve that it attacks every move servative Americans who oppose of the Bush administration he makes. So where does this disObama’s policies or who view him crepancy come from? with suspicion may think the media policies.

The first mistake is lumping evis doing its job when challenging ery publication and news source his stances. under the single title “the media.” The fact is that news comes But when MSNBC posts that its golden child has a Voter Confrom various angles, most of which contain some bias. fidence Index of -39, clearly discontent is growing.

Of the larger news outlets in America, people almost univerDiscontent should come as no surprise, however, when the sally consider MSNBC to have the largest liberal slant and Fox “status quo” seems to have faded from all relevance in AmeriNews to have the largest conservative slant. The two stations can society and politics. Change is happening, whether Fox do differ dramatically in the approaches they take to their sto- News agrees with it or not. And it will not be easy to achieve ries. and will not be approved by everyone, whether MSNBC wants For example, even the titles differed between two very simi- to admit it or not. lar stories regarding the Obama Administration’s response to As midterm elections come and go and Obama begins his secthe oil spill crisis. While Fox News reported that the “White ond two years in the Oval Office, we will weather the storms of House Blocked Release of Spill’s Worst-Case Scenarios,” MS- change and see how America turns out on the other side. Only NBC’s headline only read that the government “failed to tell” then can we decide how fairly Obama has been treated, and the public. whether or not the honeymoon was indeed cut too short. •

Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize

October

9

First State of the Union Address

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act makes insurance mandatory under penalty of fine, allows young adults to remain on parents’ plan until age 26, provides tax cuts to small businesses meeting conditions, monitors premiums, and more

January 27

Obama nominates Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court

March 23

Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act protects investors from risky practices and the “too big to fail” banks with tighter regulation and oversight

July 21 September 14

May 10

2010 September 8 Obama delivers a speech to nation’s students telling them to stay in school and work hard

November

6

February 13

April

8

Worker, Homeownership New Strategic Arms Beginning of and Business Assistance Afghanistan troop Reduction Treaty between Act provides tax cut to Russia and U.S. seeks to surge home buyers and reduce number of nuclear businesses, extends warheads and ballistic unemployment benefits missiles each country 20 weeks more possesses; Obama and Medvedev share fries

June

Obama gives second annual back-to-school speech to nation’s youth

1

September 1

Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act prohibits foreign exchange, banking and property transactions with Iran

End of combat operations in Iraq

7

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

STILL WAVING THE BANNER OF LIBERALISM ByJordan Heide

“

My father always said that America has two religious holidays: Election Day and the opening day of Major League Baseball.”

shoulders of the taxpayers,” Stone said.

Another contributing factor to California’s financial hemorrhage is its pension policies. Government employees can retire at the age of 50 and still retain 90 percent of their peak salary. With an average life expectancy of 80 years, retirees are relying on the Santa Clara County Assessor Larry Stone government to subsidize their livelihood for three decades. has been actively involved in U.S. politics “The minimum retirement age should be raised to 65. That for more than four decades, the better would halve the financial burden on the state,” Stone said. part of which he has spent in California.

California’s reputation as a socially progressive state has sufElected as mayor of Sunnyvale in 1979, fered. The success of Proposition 8, which revoked the right of Stone’s political career prospered, encouraging him to become gay couples to marry, posed a stark contrast to California’s noran active voice in the California Democratic Party. Stone has been mally liberal tendencies. Campaigns for and against Proposition re-elected to the office of County Assessor four times. His con- 8 acquired $39.9 and $43.3 million in funding, respectively, and stituency of 1.75 million is larger than that of 13 state governors. were second only to the presidential campaigns of 2008 in terms Stone is also active on the national scene. During the 1992 pres- of monetary support. idential elections, Stone developed a close relationship with Bill California returned to its progressive ways in August when U.S. Clinton, for whom he served as a campaign advocate. He also District Chief Judge Vaughn Walker overturned Proposition 8. His worked for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton decision is subject to appeal and will not during her presidential campaign in the 2008 have any concrete bearing until the appeals primaries. process concludes.

Stone believes that California sorely needs In another realm of the liberal ethos, Calireformation. He acknowledged the founderfornia’s greatest accomplishments in recent ing condition of the domestic budget and ofyears have been environmental. Despite its fered probable solutions to restore California big cities and industries, California has one as a liberal beacon. of the lowest per-capita energy-usage rates According to California law, the legislature is in the nation. required to obtain a two-thirds majority vote “Californians are very environmentally cauto pass a budgetary amendment. This often tious,” Stone said. “The efforts of the state leads to congressional gridlock perpetuated government to preserve our natural resourcby Republican incumbents, who signed a es have demonstrated the success of envipledge upon entering office that they would ronmental conservatism to the rest of the never vote in favor of a tax increase. country.”

“Taxes are a necessary evil,” Stone said. “We But the nature of California politics, as indiLarry Stone with Barack Obama won’t be able to resolve the economic disaster cated by budget deficits and gaps in human until we begin raising taxes. Our infrastructure is collapsing, the rights like the Prop 8 vote, still leaves much to be desired. public school system is failing; the government needs to raise Stone’s solution? revenue in order to solve these problems.”

“Eradicate term limits, reform fiscal policies, constrain camOne popular suggestion for the redemption of the California paign finance and eliminate the two-thirds majority required to economy, which is suffering a $26.3 billion deficit, is decriminal- amend the state budget,” he said. izing marijuana. Yet Stone doubts that it will solve the crisis.

Stone also encourages Californians to remain averse to Tea “I’m sure it will pass, but the calamities of the current economic Party rhetoric. crisis are too large to be untangled by the legalization of mari“Tea Party advocates, such as Meg Whitman, lack the political juana alone,” Stone said. savvy to salvage the economy. They are very idealistic and posThe decriminalization of drugs, however, offers a solution to sess no tangible plan for reformation,” Stone said. the overcrowding of prisons, which imposes a heavy burden on California’s restoration relies on the adoption of fiscally liberal Californian tax payers. According to USA Today, the number of in- policies. They will generate the necessary revenue required to mates in the California prison system has increased from a mod- make back the current deficit. est 25,000 in 1980 to more than 170,000 in 2007.

California requires the liberal revitalization that it has champi“To legalize drug use would be to lift an immense weight off the oned, not just socially, but politically and economically too. •

photo by carmen stone

8

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

California Jobs or

DIRTY ENERGY?

By Stewart Boss

photo by carmen stone

photo by mei bo chan

S

ome call it the California Jobs Initiative. Others call it the Dirty Energy Proposition. Either way, California’s landmark clean air legislation is under attack this election season.

A.B. 32, otherwise known as the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, will be suspended if dirty energy companies pass Proposition 23 this November.

Because of its provisions, Prop 23 isn’t designed to “suspend” California’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction mandate. It’s designed to kill it.

If the ballot initiative passes, Prop 23 will freeze the provisions of A.B. 32 until California’s unemployment rate drops to five and a half percent or below for four consecutive quarters.

But that has happened just three times since 1980. With California’s unemployment rate currently at around twelve percent, Prop 23 would indefinitely suspend the state’s signature global warming law.

“It is very clear that the oil companies from outside the state that are trying to take out A.B. 32, and trying to take out our environmental laws, have no interest in suspending it, but just to get rid of it,” California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said at an energy forum in Sacramento.

The current law would cut California’s greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020.

Prop 23 supporters have labeled it the California Jobs Initiative. But green technology is creating 10 times as many jobs as any other sector of California’s economy.

With money pouring in on both sides, California is turning into a battleground. Industry giants like Valero Energy Corporation, Tesoro Corporation and Flint Hills Resources are bank-

rolling the controversial ballot initiative.

All three companies have pumped millions into the “Vote YES on Prop 23” campaign, yet the surprising trend in industry support is that it has come from petrochemical and fossil fuel companies outside of California.

These companies are involved because they know that what happens now in California will matter on the national agenda.

California has functioned as a laboratory testing ground for innovative environmental policy ideas and has supported alternative energy technologies. California’s policies can have a substantial impact on the national agenda.

The fate of the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 will dictate the potential for regulating or legislating on greenhouse gas emissions at the national level.

The environmental movement already received a significant blow over the summer as it became clear that, despite the BP oil spill in the Gulf, Congress would fail to act on climate and energy legislation in 2010.

If Prop 23 kills A.B. 32 in California, it may completely bury the idea of government-enforced regulation of greenhouse gas emissions in our country.

The lack of more voter support for emissions regulations indicates a crisis in environmental leadership for a state that made U.S. history with its global warming law.

Still, a broad coalition of environmental organizations, activists and green technology companies have jumped into this battle in support of the “Vote NO on Prop 23” campaign.

Data from the California Secretary of State’s office shows that by the end of September, campaign totals for fundraising had reached about $11.5 million for the ”Vote NO on Prop 23” campaign, with over half that money coming from individual contributions.

Meanwhile, the “Vote YES on Prop 23” campaign had actually raised less money at about $8.3 million. Over 90 percent of that money came from corporations.

Still, the votes will likely be close if these out-of-state energy companies continue to flex their financial muscles in the home stretch before November.

The suspension of A.B. 32 would deal a blow to California’s growing green technology economy.

Dirty energy companies see this as an opportunity to ride a wave of conservative backlash to kill the most proactive law in the U.S. seeking to reduce the effect of fossil fuels on global warming.

Prop 23 will serve as an important test of whether the public can see through the climate skepticism and skewed science that the oil industry has used to misrepresent the issues.

Here’s hoping that California voters will place scientific facts over campaign ads Nov. 2. •

9

10

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

In an interesting turn of history, California became the first state to criminalize its sale and possession, back in 1913.

Later states opposed the measures initially but finally gave into the criminalization of the drug, primarily due to pressure from the federal government and the influence of many anti-marijuana campaigns. The motives behind the criminalization of the drug are up for speculation, given that there was no data or scientific research cited during its initial banning.

While some say that it was meant as a deterrent towards the large amount of Mexican immigrants during the early 20th century, others say that it was done simply because alcohol was also banned during this time. There are other theories, but none linking the initial banning with health concerns.

In the 80 years since, though widespread anti-marijuana campaigns have been featured in schools and workplaces, recreational use of the drug has increased, leading to many new questions about its legality.

Recently, the debate over legalization Prop 19 could lead to a budding economy for California and decriminalization has reached new heights.

The Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis

By Aamir Latif Act of 2010, also called Prop 19, will be voted on in California Nov. 2. If passed, eed. Reactions to the word can been used in many diverse ways, includ- Prop 19 will allow all adults over the age include harsh disapproval, a ing textiles, fuel, construction, food and of 21 in California to legally grow the knowing nod of camaraderie, even plastics. plant and possess up to one ounce of or... a legislative discussion?

In fact, historians and anthropologists marijuana for their own personal use.

Marijuana has been around for a long claim that the first fabric ever woven by If decriminalized, marijuana will then time - consumption can be traced to al- mankind was enter the ummost 8000 years ago - and despite many derived from brella of sales In an interesting turn of attempts to counter its use, it shows ab- dried hemp regulated by history, California became solutely no sign of slowing down. weed. the state of the first state to criminalize California and It is a drug that was mentioned in the Though legal Jewish Talmud, grown by George Wash- action against thus every city marijuana’s sale and ington and remained legal around the the use of and county will possession, back in 1913. world until the 20th century. hemp was first have the power Our generation has grown accustomed taken in the to tax and reguto seeing it as the topic of many memo- 20th century, late all sales of rable movies (Harold and Kumar Go to many people are unaware that the first the drug.

White Castle and Pineapple Express come laws here pertaining to the marijuana Many believe that if the use of marijuato mind) and countless popular songs. plant were actually to encourage its na shows no sign of decreasing, the state Regardless of one’s individual percep- growth. should capitalize on its sales to recoup tion of the drug’s use and abuse, recent In 1619, the Jamestown Colony leaders needed funds that were lost during the developments toward its decriminaliza- ordered farmers to use their plantations economic crisis. tion in California suggest that its future to grow hemp, due to its versatility.

Given current numbers of drug use may take another twist, providing a new Over the next 200 years, it remained a among adults over the age of 21, propochapter for a drug with a long past. legal drug, with the recreational use of its nents of the act argue that taxation alone Cannabis sativa is derived from the small and prickly bulbs slowly becoming will result in more than $1.9 billion in revhemp plant, an innocuous shrub that has more and more widespread. enue for the state of California annually.

PIPE DREAM W

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

Various studies have suggested that much of this revenue would consequently deliver significant blows to Mexican drug cartels, who according to government figures receive about 60 percent of their profits from the distribution of marijuana.

Each year America spends hundreds of billions of dollars on the war against drugs. Illegal marijuana use constitutes the largest number of arrests relating to drug related-offenses each year.

According to the National Bureau of Prisons, an overwhelming 78 percent of these are for possession, while the rest are for sale and distribution. Proponents argue that the legalization of marijuana could provide solutions for prison overcrowding while allowing for the reallocation of federal funding towards more pressing needs.

Opponents state that if legalized, the regulation of marijuana use in workplaces will become cumbersome and inefficient. Proponents directly argue that regulation of all drugs (including alcohol) has happened for decades, and thus the regulation of marijuana should prove no different.

In fact, marijuana use comes with the

tell-tale symptoms of heavy lethargy, redness of the eyes and a pungent, recognizable odor. It can be argued that significant consequences of workplace abuse would ultimately deter workplace use.

Finally, there is the oft-stated fact that no one has ever died from a marijuana overdose. It turns out that this tidbit has a significant backing: the National Institute of Drug Abuse. Its Bureau of Mortality Statistics report from 2000 showed that the deaths from tobacco during that year topped 400,000 people and deaths from alcohol topped 110,000, while deaths from marijuana were at zero.

While there are definitely health benefits relating to the use of marijuana, including its role in pain management, this is not to say that marijuana is completely beneficial. It can have adverse side effects if abused.

Marijuana does impair short term memory while one remains under its influence, and continued and frequent use will lead to permanent memory loss.

There have also been studies conducted by the National Institute of Health suggesting that smoking marijuana inhibits the blood’s immune system ability to work at its full potential, thereby linking

the drug to general poor health.

While THC in itself is not a carcinogen, the smoke that results from burning marijuana contains many carcinogens that can ultimately lead to different types of cancer.

In addition, although there isn’t much data to support or refute this argument, the notion that marijuana is a gateway drug has gained credence.

UNC math major Alexander Schmidt has an interesting perspective about the idea of marijuana as a gateway drug.

“It’s not that marijuana chemically all of a sudden leads people to become abusers of other drugs,” Schmidt said. “It’s a gradual process. People who use marijuana are usually surrounded by a number of other illegal drugs and it becomes tempting to try them, especially when the high that a person gets from the use of marijuana becomes lesser with frequent consumption.”

Nevertheless, the facts suggest that the legalization of marijuana is quickly becoming a question not of if, but of when.

Marijuana shows no signs of leaving our society anytime soon. •

HASHING IT OUT Publicpolicypolling.com surveyed 630 likely California voters to see how they plan to vote on Prop 13 this November.

Yes 47%

No 38%

Maybe 14%

47% 38% 14%

plan to vote

YES

plan to vote

NO

still UNDECIDED

11

12

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

LADY GAGA & CHUCK NORRIS

the inefficiency of the Hollywood legislator Celebrities’ time better spent in L.A. than in D.C.

By Kelly Yahner

C

huck Norris was caught in a bad romance while attempting to aid the Republican Party in 2008.

Norris’ backing of Mike Huckabee and subsequent support of John McCain in the 2008 presidential election was one of the many highly publicized celebrity political endorsements. Other celebrities such as Oprah, Matt Damon and Ben Affleck lent their support to President Obama on the campaign trail.

Not only do celebrities endorse candidates, they also support many humanitarian, charitable and even civil rights causes. A case in point is Lady Gaga.

At this year’s Video Music Awards, Gaga brought four former soldiers who had previously been discharged under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell legislation. Gaga touted the cause of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, joining forces to urge a vote in the Senate on DADT before the Congressional recess.

Less than a week later, Gaga and her “little monsters” met in Portland, Maine in attempt to appeal to Republican senators Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins of Maine, two moderates from whom Democrats were trying to garner support to bring DADT to a vote on the Senate floor.

Her speech, titled “The Prime Rib of America” focused on the hypocritical nature of DADT and the continual practice of discharging necessary and completely able soldiers due to their sexuality.

“Equality is the prime rib of America,” Gaga said, “but because I am gay, I don’t get to enjoy the greatest cut of meat my

country has to offer.”

Rather than discharging soldiers who were found to be gay, Gaga proposed a new law, saying, “Doesn’t ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ seem to be backwards? Doesn’t it seem to you we should send home the prejudice? The straight soldier who hates the gay soldier, whose performance is affected because he is homophobic? He holds and harbors hate and he gets to stay and fight for our country. We gay soldiers, who harbor no hate, no phobia, are sent home. I’d like to propose a new law, a law that sends home the soldier that has the problem. Our new law is called ‘If you don’t like it, go home.’”

Gaga and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada even played a love game of tweet exchange.

Reid personally reached out to Gaga, tweeting “There is a vote on #DADT next week. Anyone qualified to serve this country should be allowed to do so,” to which Gaga responded, “God Bless and Thank you @HarryReid, from all of us, like u, who believe in equality and the dream of this country.

We were #BORNTHISWAY.” While it is nice to see two incredibly different folks like Gaga and Reid united for a cause, their dance in the dark proved to be ineffective, as a Republican filibuster nevertheless defeated any possibility of a vote.

Gaga and Norris actually do have something in common (and it’s not their fashion sense). Their respective forays into the political realm as cause-endorsers were highly unsuccessful. It begs the question: Do celebrity endorsements actually matter?

Would you begin supporting abstinence education if Miley Cyrus were to become their poster child? How about if Bill O’Reilly began to champion the cause of

“We were #BORNTHISWAY.”

gay rights?

Just because Lady Gaga supports repealing DADT or Chuck Norris supported the campaign of Mike Huckabee doesn’t mean that their causes are any more likely to succeed.

Since individuals are limited by federal law to $2400 worth of campaign contributions to an individual candidate, it is not likely their monetary donations will make a sizeable dent in funding.

Similarly, it is not as though Lady Gaga is capable of using her meat dress to force senators to bring the vote to the floor. Despite making YouTube videos urging fans to call their senators and speaking in Maine, Gaga’s poker face did not succeed in bringing about the repeal of DADT. While celebrities may use their fame and time in the spotlight to attempt to persuade voters or elected officials to vote a certain way, rarely does a celebrity endorsement drastically change the outcome of events. The majority of fans of both Gaga and Norris were most likely already supporters of their respective causes, negating any notion that either of them brought something new to the table when publicly supporting their causes.

Even though they are not making a huge difference, it doesn’t seem like celebrities will stop endorsing candidates or causes anytime soon. Celebrities gain fame and attention when endorsing a candidate or cause. While this may seem like a good thing, the celebrity’s fame does not help in focusing the attention of voters. The focus must return to the cause or candidate at hand and not which celebrity is supporting the effort.

Until celebrity political endorsements begin to benefit their cause or candidate rather than the celebrity themselves, Lady Gaga should probably take her own advice and Just Dance. •

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

BluePrint campus

recommends

By Zak Mathews

S

tones into Schools is a fascinating story in which Greg Mortenson recounts his work building schools in remote areas of Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Mortenson, lost mountain climber turned philanthropist, continues the mission that he started in Three Cups of Tea as he expands the number of schools in Pakistan and branches into Afghanistan.

He has built up quite a team, including mujahideen and a former Taliban member, to assist him in building schools and providing scholarships to Pakistan’s brightest females. Mortenson has even broadened his work to include building a few community centers for women to allow them to associate and even educate themselves.

Unfortunately, Mortenson is the only listed author on this book. The missing David Oliver Relin was a key part of the writing on Three Cups of Tea. The writing style does not flow as easily as that of Three Cups of Tea and the story is a bit choppier. Yet the book Mortenson’s tales are so interesting, I still found it difficult

to put down. In the middle of a war-torn region, Mortenson often finds himself in dangerous and exciting situations.

Stones into Schools delves much deeper into the fundraising efforts of the Central Asia Institute, the non-profit organization Mortenson set up in order to raise and distribute funds for school construction. Mortenson hurries across the country, giving speeches to raise money and develop awareness, an effort that causes him several panic attacks.

Mortenson also discusses the 2005 Pakistani earthquake. He makes it clear the CAI did little more than assess the situation and do the best they could to restore children’s classes for devastated areas. However, Mortenson also provides great insight into the ways Western aid organizations failed terribly in offering the people what they really needed. The current Pakistani flood response is an opportunity for these aid organizations to show whether they have improved.

Even the military has taken a special interest in Mortenson. The Pentagon has required officers enrolled in graduate-lev-

el counterinsurgency classes to read the book. Furthermore, many military bases have invited Mortenson to come speak to the soldiers.

Nevertheless, the book has made me question the current U.S. strategy for winning wars. Mortenson has gained the respect and trust of the people in areas we are fighting. They welcome him with open arms to their villages and homes.

They assist him in his endeavors while doing their best to keep him from harm.

One man with limited resources has been able to garner so much support, appreciation and love from these people. It leaves me wondering why a large nation with plenty of resources cannot do the same. •

read more From GregMortenson.com: Greg Mortenson is the co-author of the #1 New York Times Best Seller Three Cups of Tea: One Man’s Mission to Promote Peace, One School At A Time.

It recounts the journey that led Mortenson from a failed 1993 attempt to climb Pakistan’s K2, the world’s second highest mountain, to successfully establishing schools in some of the most remote regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan. By replacing guns with pencils, rhetoric with reading, Mortenson combines his unique background with his intimate knowledge of the developing world to promote peace with books, not bombs, and successfully bring education and hope to remote communities in central Asia. Three Cups of Tea is at once an unforgettable adventure and the inspiring true story of how one man really is changing the world—one school at a time.

13

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

illustration by sally fry

14

Tea with Christine, Hillary and Sarah

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

the tea party’s

feminine

By Erin Becker

mystique

M

y grandparents have a placemat on their dining room table with a picture of every American president. Because of this, I grew up eating cereal staring down at the faces of the past and present leaders of our country. At a certain age I noticed the absence of any female faces on that mat. A question common to many minorities and women ran through my head: where are the people who look like me? Why can’t they run the country, too?

Did we miss our chance?

On the momentous occasion of President Obama’s election, many women, amidst our thoughts of “something’s really going on here” and swells of pride at our part in electing America’s first black president, had a tiny voice in the back of our heads.

The voice was thinking of Hillary and asking, “If not now, then when?”

Argentina, Lithuania, Bolivia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Chile, India: what do all these countries have in common? They, along with many other nations purportedly less sexually equitable than the U.S., have all had female heads of state. The closest we’ve come is two vice-presidential also-rans, including one most of us (on the liberal side, anyway) are trying desperately, and unsuccessfully, to forget.

Taxation without representation: the sequel Liberal women looking for political role models are not in a good place. Pollsters conclude this may be the first time in 30 years that the total number of females in Congress decreases.

We’re not quite sure how to proceed. Palin grates on our nerves, yet it was hard to watch the media drag her through the mud in 2008—mud with a decidedly misogynistic coloring.

Suddenly, in a massive turn of the tables during the 2008 election, it was liberal women and the liberal media who were questioning whether Palin wasn’t a bit irresponsible for campaigning with young children and, later, making surprisingly lit-

tle outcry about the “I can see Russia from my house”—inspired porn movie “Nailin’ Paylin.”

Perhaps some feminists were so Fired Up and Ready To Go for Obama that they lost touch with their own base. And now the Tea Party, 55% female, 100% angry, 0% bra burning, has moved into the space that those of us with “post-feminist” delusions abandoned.

There are many theories about why the Tea Party is so attractive to women. Besides the gut response to the media’s treatment of Palin (and Clinton), there is also the simple fact that though the majority of women now work, it is still more likely that women will be available during the day to attend rallies.

The original Boston Tea Party protested the British government’s “Taxation Without Representation.” And it’s certainly plausible that many women in the U.S. currently feel the same way. In the 111th Congress, there are 362 men and 73 women in the House; in the Senate, there are 83 men and only 17 women.

Women clearly lack adequate representation in Congress. And for many women, taxes are just as troubling an issue. Income tax laws punish two-income households by taxing the second income at a higher rate than if the second earner (often the woman) filed alone, making the lower federal taxes advocated by the Tea Party a cause many women are happy to rally behind.

Ms. Magazine explained this issue in a chillingly prescient 2007 article titled “A Feminist Tea Party?”

Here we are in 2010, and a Tea Party it is.

Feminine, without the -ism Third parties often provide a path to political engagement for traditionally disenfranchised subsets of the population. Fifteen of the 25 Tea Party state coordinators are women, as are six of the eight Tea Party board members who serve as national coordinators (Slate, 12 May 2010). But simply having women in leadership positions cannot replace advocating for a platform that supports women’s issues.

Feminism is inherently progressive, and the Tea Party is anything but. Sarah Palin, Christine O’Donnell of Delaware, Liz Cart-

15

16

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

er of Georgia, and other far-right female candidates all follow Palin and O’Donnell are capitalizing on our complacency. the Tea Party line of anti-comprehensive sex education, antiThe 1960s and 70s saw a fragmented but effective feminist abortion rights and anti-government funding for early child- movement that would eventually make candidacies like Hillary hood education.

Clinton’s possible. In 1960, the FDA approved the first oral conThe U.S. is not yet at the magical traceptive. In 1964, Title VII of the Civil threshold of 30 percent women’s repRights Act barred employment discrimiPerhaps some feminists nation based on race and sex. In 1968, resentation, the Inter-Parliamentary Convention in Geneva’s ideal minimum. the National Abortion Rights Action were so Fired Up and When a country achieves this level of feLeague was founded and the first black Ready To Go for Obama woman, Shirley Chisholm, was elected male representation, it often improves economically and strengthens its social that they lost touch with to Congress. In 1973, Roe v. Wade canamenities like health care, education celed anti-abortion laws in 46 states. their own base. and environmental care.

Yet the shoulder-pad-wearing womIt is clear, however, that the Tea Party en execs and Madonna rockers of the female candidates, if elected, would 1980s gave way to a 90s conservative not play this role of nurturing legislator or women-sensitive so- backlash against the modern liberated woman. In sentiment, cial planning. Nor would they do anything to advance the cause the movement—if it could be termed as such—was a direct of feminism. descendant of the women’s temperance movement and the Leah Josephson, UNC ’11 and co-chair of Vox: Voices for Planned mid-19th century Cult of Domesticity (whose tenets were Piety, Parenthood, thinks that figures like O’Donnell and Palin are Purity, Submission and Domesticity). The Christian stay-at-home adopting the language of feminism, but not its core values. mom of the late 1990s saw the house as her sphere, and the lib“These women who say they are feminists don’t support any- eral elite as a corruptive influence, forcing prophylactics on her thing feminists would value,” Josephson said. “They don’t sup- 6-year-old at the school playground and sexualizing her young port reproductive health. They say they are Mama Grizzlies, but daughter. they don’t support Head Start, don’t believe in government asIn the wake of the Bush-era housewife idealization, Palin’s sistance for poor children. There’s just no consistency there.”

Mama Grizzlies should come as no surprise. Sanger, Susan B. While Vox is busy phone banking for pro-choice candidates Anthony, Betty Freidan and a host of other women who paved and supporting feminist values like reproductive health, can- the way for all of us must be rolling over in their graves. didates like Palin and O’Donnell advocate abstinence-only sex education and, in the case of O’Donnell, even denounce masturbation.

A long way left to go Josephson worries about the effects of women supporting It is a deep irony that today’s most prominent female politisuch regressive policies. cians (the media coverage of Palin and O’Donnell far outweighs “I really think that feminism is a progressive movement and that of Clinton) are doing all they can to effectively turn back the it always has been,” Josephson said. “It’s always been about clock on women’s rights. O’Donnell calls herself the antidote to changing the status quo. It’s not about going back to traditional the “lords of the back room.” Her policies on reproductive rights values. I think it’s important to remember that these women would give those “lords” back any power they lost in the 1960s who are running are products of feminism, and now they’re go- by re-subjecting women to their own bodies. ing against everything it stands for.”

And this doesn’t even consider the inherent hypocrisy of a character like Palin. Slate lays out the tension well: “None of the contradictions got worked out: She works; she has small From Suffragette to children; she defends the traditional family although she’s probStay-at-Home ably home only one day a week. Never mind, after 20 years, conIn 1873, Congress passed the Comstock Law, which declared all servatives have made peace with [Palin’s] type, and embraced contraceptive information “obscene material.” Current-day ad- it” (Rosen, “Is the Tea Party Feminist?” 12 May 2010). vocates of abstinence-only sex education take a similar stance; The simple fact is: we are not in a post-feminist society. As classroom talk of safe sex offends their sensibilities. of September 2010, women were still earning 77 cents to each It is one thing for the Tea Party women to support lower tax- dollar men make (pay-equity.org). For black women, that drops es, but the social policies adopted by the far right are anything to 68 percent and for Latinas, 58 percent. Despite the official but equitable toward women. When, in 1914, Margaret Sanger end of workplace discrimination in 1964, thirty years later the called for the legalization of contraceptives in her publication federal government still saw the need for a national Take Your The Woman Rebel, the U.S. Postal Service banned it from the Daughter to Work Day. In the 2008 election, we discussed Clinmail. ton’s cleavage and Palin’s use of sex appeal with a vocabulary For early feminists, the link between family planning and we would never apply to a male. Equality is a long ways off, and equal rights and opportunities for women was clear. Many of us when we deny that fact, we set it back even further. now take it for granted that at a big, secular liberal arts school Feminists are as relevant as ever, but Sarah Palin is not one. like UNC we can walk to Campus Health for free condoms. Sex We can and will have a female face in that line of presidents. doesn’t have to mean pregnancy and we are no longer social But it will be despite, and not because of, women who have and structural prisoners of our own fertility. We forget this. And turned their backs on the cause. •

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

I’M NOT a

WITCH?

By Sam Grote

J

ust like many Americans, I have interest groups. That is right, America. Not only will O’Donnell become extremely frustrated fight for you, but she will fight against the very organizations with the leadership in Washing- she founded and participated in for the past two decades. She ton, and have desperately looked will fight against herself. for someone to confide in. SomeNow this might be a little confusing to some of you. You might one who will fight for the American be asking yourself how she will lobby for her own interests, people, someone who represents while at the same time denying and opposing her lobbying. the true Judeo-Christian values on This might pose a problem to her mere mortal Democratic which this country was founded. challengers, but O’Donnell has “dabbled into witchcraft.” Her Someone like Christine O’Donnell. first date was on a satanic altar (giving new meaning to a Now, I know what you are think- “date from Hell.”) So, contrary to liberal belief, O’Donnell is not ing. You have read all the leftist pro- psychotic because she practiced witchcraft. Rather, she is just paganda smearing her campaign, showing her sheer determination to fight against herself for the but let me show you the real O’Donnell. O’Donnell is a single sake of the American people.

41-year-old who believes in having traditional families, limited With the dire situation of the American economy, O’Donnell government and more freeis the obvious choice in the dom for all Americans- unless, Delaware election. According to O’Donnell is a single 41-year-old her TV ads, she believes in comof course, you want to have an abortion or you are gay. (Never who believes in having traditional mon-sense solutions to deficit mind her lesbian sister.) reduction. One example is the families, limited government and extension of the Bush tax cuts, As a youth, O’Donnell founded an organization called SALT. No, more freedom for all Americans- which, as we all know, has althis is not the Strategic Arms ready led to unprecedented job unless, of course, you want to Limitation Treaty limiting nuclecreation (3 million jobs in eight ar weaponry. With her Savior’s years, compared to the 21 milhave an abortion or are gay.

Alliance for Lifting the Truth, lion in Clinton’s eight years).

O’Donnell was focused on But, more importantly what she perceived to be a more harmful type of explosion as O’Donnell does have experience with debt problems. In fact, it she toured the country reciting her anti-masturbation agenda. took her only nine years to repay $4,823 to Farleigh Dickinson O’Donnell also became a dedicated spokeswoman for the University to receive her degree. Using some advanced mathConcerned Women for America. The group, according to their ematical calculations, if our federal debt is 1.4 trillion dollars, homepage, is “the nation’s largest public policy women’s or- then it should take only 2,612,477,358 years for O’Donnell to balganization with a rich 28-year history of helping our members ance our debt crisis and get this country back on the right track. across the country bring Biblical principles into all levels of pubWith O’Donnell in Congress, I can sleep soundly knowing my lic policy.” great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-(you So, after decades of advocating and lobbying for an America get the point)- grandchild will live out the American dream... unmore in tune with her own interests, what is it that has made less of course he or she is a homosexual, atheist, or just really O’Donnell decide to run for the U.S. Senate? Well, according to likes to masturbate. • her own website, O’Donnell is running for office to fight special

17

18

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

NOT INVITED THIRD PARTIES VOICELESS IN MIDTERM ELECTIONS

By Brandon Wiggins

A

midst all the debate about this year’s upcoming Congressional elections, one group rarely mentioned in conversation is the nation’s third parties. The only third parties with membership over 100,000 are the Libertarian Party, the Green Party and the Constitution Party. However, even these “major” third parties still have little impact on the national stage.

Currently, neither the U.S. Senate nor the House of Representatives have sitting members of any third party in office. The only members of Congress who are not Democrats or Republicans are both registered as Independents (Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Joe Lieberman of Connecticut). According to the Libertarian Party’s official website, there are only 157 Libertarians nationwide holding elected office, 119 of whom hold what are considered to be non-partisan offices. Similarly, the Green Party only has 141 national office holders.

This trend of a weak third party presence seems certain to continue past the elections in November. On the New York Times website, where readers can look up projections for the victors in the upcoming elections, there are no projections for any third party candidates to win seats in either the House or the Senate.

George Rabinowitz, a Burton Craig Distinguished Professor of political science at UNC, thinks that the impact of third parties in this election could actually be diminished because voters this election season are “agitated and want to have an impactful vote” instead of casting their votes for a candidate they know will not garner enough support to win the election.

Historically, third parties have had a difficult time making serious inroads into the U.S. electorate. This is mostly due to institutional obstacles like the fact that America runs on a pluralitybased election system. In this system, the candidate who wins the most votes (even if they do not have a clear majority) wins the election.

This contrasts with other countries that have a proportional representation system, where the number of seats in Parliament is distributed amongst all the parties, based on what percentage of the vote they receive. Another obstacle is ballot access laws, which are often written by both the Republican and Democratic parties to make it difficult for third parties to get on the ballot or to receive public funding.

Nate Silver, an editorialist known for his statistical analysis of political races, noted that “a third-party candidate would probably need to win an outright majority of the electoral vote in order to be elected- a plurality would send the race to the

House- and that could be difficult in an era when many states are reliably Democratic or reliably Republican. Also, the third-party candidate would probably not be allowed to participate in debates unless he or she had already achieved at least 15 percent in the polls, which could create something of a Catch-22 for a candidate looking to improve his or her visibility” (New York Times, 4 October, 2010).

An interesting twist in the typical role of third parties in the upcoming election is the Tea Party movement. The Tea Party has already made waves in primary elections thanks to the victories of Tea-Party-backed candidates, most notably Rand Paul in Kentucky and Christine O’Donnell in Delaware. At the time of her victory, O’Donnell was the eighth Tea Party candidate to defeat a Republican Party establishment candidate in the primaries.

Many Tea Party advocates have stressed that the Tea Party is an independent movement, unaffiliated with either major political party. However, 54 percent of self-identified Tea Party members also identify themselves as Republican, with 60 percent saying they usually or always vote Republican. More noteworthy is the fact that even though some 41 percent of Tea Partiers identify themselves as Independents, nearly three in four described themselves as conservative, with 39 percent describing themselves as very conservative. Additionally, the Tea Party’s followers are predominantly white and elderly, demographics that tend to lean Republican.

Given these statistics, it is difficult to view the Tea Party movement as little more than an offshoot of the conservative base in this country. Rabinowitz regards the Tea Party as a part of the Republican Party, rather than a genuinely new third party.

Rabinowitz views the Tea Party as a return to the Republican Party’s focus on economic issues, rather than the focus on social issues which has been dominant since the Reagan years. This transition is necessary, he believes, for the Republican Party to maintain its viability in the long term. Even still, he says the Tea Party movement will struggle in the general elections, because they are so radical that many voters will have a hard time trusting them to be involved in the government.

Ultimately, while the upcoming midterm elections are sure to bring about a lot of change, it is doubtful that any genuine third parties will be able to make a serious impact on the American political landscape. •

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

ON THE RISE a look at a few tea party candidates v

Joe Miller, nominee for Senate in Alaska

Ken Buck, nominee for Senate in Colorado

Dan Maes, nominee for Governor in Colorado

Marco Rubio, nominee for Senate in Florida

Rand Paul, nominee for Senate in Kentucky

Rick Scott, nominee for governor in Florida

Sharron Angle, nominee for Senate in Nevada

Raul Labrador, nominee in Idaho’s 1st District

Mike Lee, nominee for Senate in Utah PHOTOS FROM POLITICO.COM

19

20

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

T NOT YOUR

AVERAGE

TEA PARTY What The GOP is Doing to Get Ready for the 2010 Election

By Chelsea Phipps

he Republican Party didn’t know what they were getting into with the Tea Party. This has become glaringly apparent with the Party’s latest darling, Christine O’Donnell. During her campaign this past summer, she made the bold claim that, “America is now a socialist economy. The definition of a socialist economy is when 50 percent or more of your economy is dependent on the federal government.”

This is certainly an interesting definition of socialism.

O’Donnell is the candidate who won the Republican Senate primary in Delaware against the GOP candidate Mike Castle and who is now running against Democrat Chris Coons for the seat. The fact that there is little chance that O’Donnell will take the seat in November brings up important implications for Republican strategy this election.

While candidates often present extreme views during the primaries to attract more of their party’s base, they normally gravitate toward the center of the political spectrum before the general election to appeal to independent voters and voters from the opposite party.

As a Tea Partier, O’Donnell represents a more extremist conservative faction. Her inability to appeal to moderate Democrats makes her election to the U.S. Senate a slim possibility.

“The Delaware Senator race sums it all up,” Georg Vanberg, an associate professor and director of graduate studies in the UNC department of political science, said. “Castle would have won, but the Tea Party movement within the party was strong enough to elect O’Donnell. At the same time, the Tea Party probably cannot attract enough centrist voters to create a majority in the general election. So for the Republican Party as a whole, balancing the need to be centrist but not to lose the support of the Tea Partiers is a tricky problem.”

The Republican Party faces a difficult task while strategizing for the November elections. They need to find a way to use rhetoric that will appeal to moderate Democrats who could be potential swing voters without alienating the Tea Party members by moving too much to the center.

They’re also dealing with vote splitting as Tea Party candidates take votes away from mainstream GOP candidates.

“Most of the excitement on the Republican side is coming from the Tea Party element and they don’t like the convergence to the median,” Jason Roberts, an associate professor at UNC specializing in American political institutions with an emphasis on the U.S. Congress, said. “The challenge is to keep the Tea Party excited enough to go vote, while keeping the moderate voters.”

While the Tea Party is the major source of energy for the conservative side in the elections this year, the Democrats could potentially stand to gain from the factions within the GOP. “The Democrats are trying to paint all of these people as being too far right and extreme and scary,” Roberts said.

Perhaps in response to this tactic on the part of the Democrats to radicalize the Right, House Republican Leaders revealed a 21-page “Pledge to America” on September 23 that lays out their agenda should they gain control of Congress in November.

While the document’s main focus is the economy, a line in the preamble reflects their views on social issues by indicating that they intend to honor families, traditional marriage, life and the private and faith-based organizations that represent what they consider the core of America.

“Part of the Pledge to America is to try to come up with centrist-sounding proposals,” Vanberg said. “From the other perspective, you want to move to the center, but you also want to move your opponent off the median. They’re trying to portray what the Republicans are trying to do as more in the center, and then trying to portray the Democrats as being radical with issues like health care reform and immigration.”

In terms of drawing in voters with strong policy proposals, the Pledge to America sacrifices substance in favor of vague statements about tax cuts and reducing spending without clear explanations as to how this will be done.

“They’re trying to have moderate, more encompassing policies, but have words in it that the Tea Party activists may interpret differently so they’ll support it,” Vanberg said. “Being vague about specifics is a deliberate strategy to appeal to people throughout the spectrum, so that people can fill in the blanks with whatever they want. They’re trying to have their cake and eat it too.” •

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

ORANGE COUNTY

DEMOCRAT VOTERS’ GUIDE U.S. SENATE

U.S. HOUSE DISTRICT 4

Elaine Marshall

David Price

Richard Burr

B.J. Lawson

N.C. SENATE

COUNTY COMMISSIONER DISTRICT 2

Ellie Kinnaird

Earl McKee

DISTRICT 23

N.C. HOUSE

SHERIFF Lindy Pendergrass

Bill Faison

DISTRICT 50

Joe Hackney DISTRICT 54

Verla Insko DISTRICT 56

WHEN & WHERE

{

Vote early at Morehead Planetarium Monday-Friday - October 18-22 - 9am to 5pm Saturday - October 23 - 9am to 1pm Monday-Friday - October 25-29 - 9am to 5pm NO voting on last Saturday - October 30 at Morehead

21

22

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

ORANGE COUNTY

DEMOCRAT VOTERS’ GUIDE appeals court judge 1st Choice: Cressie Thigpen

Judge Thigpen has recently been appointed by the Governor to fill the vacant Wynn seat. A Democrat, he has been a trial attorney for 35 years, a special Superior Court Judge and President of the State Bar. www.judgecressiethigpen.com

2nd Choice: Stan Hammer

Mr. Hammer has practiced law for 23 years as both a public defender and as a litigator, including many cases before the NC Court of Appeals and Supreme Court. A Democrat, he has served as a Superior Court Mediator and conducted Legal Education programs at Wake Forest University (1997-2008). www.hammerforjudge.com

3rd Choice: Harry E. Payne, Jr.

Mr. Payne had a private law practice for many years. He served ably as State Labor Commissioner (8 years), as a state legislator (12 years) and Chairman of the NC Employment Security Commission (7 years). A Democrat, he currently is Manager of Compliance for the NC Office of Economic Recovery and Investment. www.payneforjudge.com

3

important things to remember: Vote for the judges - Even if you vote a straight ticket, you need to flip your ballot to vote for judges Vote for all the commissioners - If you don’t vote a straight ticket, you still need to vote for all three Orange County Commissioners no matter your district.

Vote for three different judges in the instant run-off Voting for the same person three times does not increase their chance of winning.

For more information on voting Democrat, check out this PDF http://bit.ly/bCBWd5

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

v

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE YD/CR DEBATE Debaters from the Young Democrats and the College Republicans gathered in New West to discuss issues ranging from the economy to foreign policy to whether George Bush can be blamed for the NCAA investigation into Butch Davis’ Tar Heels. Campus BluePrint liveblogged and members of both organizations livetweeted. Check out some highlights below.

TWEETS leestorrow @UNCGOP and @UNCYoungDems both support the repeal of #DADT- #unc #ydcrdebate wwestmor “are you going to blame bush for everything” - no. only the things that are his fault. So yes actually. #ydcrdebate MikelStiffler ‘economics, that’s my citation’ -Anthony Dent, GO CR! #ydcrdebate traviscrayton “Who was the party that ran us into a trillion dollar deficit?” Damn right, David Murray! #UNC #ydcrdebate wwestmor RT @abgilmore91: @UNCGOP There’s a difference between a passionate opening statement and disrespecting the setting of a formal debate #ydcrdebate zachdex #ydcrdebate was great fun. channeling lady thatcher: always in style.

LIVEBLOG OPENINGS [7:37:11 PM] Anthony Dent opens for the CRs. Dent views the election as a referendum on the merits of the Obama administration’s last two years. Dent’s verdict: a failure. Oddly he proves this by offering a laundry list of Obama’s accomplishments, from health care to student loan reform.

[7:41:16 PM] David Murray opens for the YDs. Murray argues for the Democratic Party as a logical extension of Obama’s community organizing and draws a parallel between FDR, Civil Rights and the current issues we face.

Obama’s first two years were a trade-off between political sacrifice and doing the right thing for America: reinvigorating jobs and passing an unpopular health care reform to benefit the 46 million uninsured Americans.

TAXES [7:47:43 PM] Amit Rao of YD with the best one-liner thus far: we don’t believe in a smaller government or a bigger government, we believe in a better government.

IMMIGRATION [8:33:59 PM] When asked about illegal immigration, Zach Dexter of the CRs supports a free exchange of people, as well as goods and services, across the borders. But he paradoxically wants to seal them...

CLOSING [8:44:18 PM] We can’t reward a blatantly irresponsible GOP, says Rao. Vote Democratic on Nov 2nd.

23

24

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

THE COLLAPSE OF

AMERICAN POLITICS

By David Gilmore

T

here was a time when people who went into politics did so with their country’s best interests in mind. They realized that in a democracy, the legislative process was one of compromise, of giving and taking, of tit for tat. Intense debate did exist and elections were bitterly contested, but by and large politicians did what they had to if it was best for the country, even if it was unpopular at home.

That time is long gone. Washington, D.C. has become a stagnant cesspool filled with selfish, power-hungry politicians on both sides of the aisle pandering to ignorance and prejudice, unwilling to compromise on even the most basic legislation to keep our country moving forward. And the people that suffer most from the partisan impasse are ordinary Americans who

wake up every day to see their country fall even more behind.

The U.S. today faces some of the most alarming and challenging issues in its history. The government not only has to deal with a battered economy, high unemployment and two wars, but must also address problems like immigration reform, climate change, terrorism, an excessive dependence on oil, the prospect of a nuclear Iran, a faltering Israeli-Palestinian peace agreement and the detrimental impact of the Gulf oil spill.

At some point, our country will have to face even more difficult long-term issues, including fixing the educational system, crumbling infrastructure and entitlement reform, among many more. The only way we can deal with these issues is through a united, effective government that is willing to tackle the problems head on. The way it looks now, none of those will be addressed soon.

The fundamental problem with the government’s inability to do anything is in the nature of politics itself. Instead of compromising, many of today’s politicians prefer to vote against anything that won’t help their chance at reelection.

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

v“They have not made one single effort to work in a bipartisan fashion.”

PHOTO BY ROBERT SCOBLE

“They have not made one single effort to work in a bipartisan fashion.”

Many Republicans have been particularly adept at using this limiting the potential for cooperation. Recent efforts by South strategy, preferring to rail against any legislation proposed Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham to co-write a bill on climate by congressional Democrats so that they can say they voted change with Democratic Senator John Kerry led him to be cenagainst President Obama’s wishes. This united opposition – sored – twice. Olympia Snowe, the Republican from Maine who aided mightily by the filibuster – may work to win elections in initially favored the health care reform bill, quickly changed her November, but it has severely limited Congress’ ability to pass opinion after receiving brutal criticism from right-wing consercrucial initiatives like immigration reform. Had the Democrats vatives around the country. not possessed an overwhelming majority, it is unlikely that proDemocrats, too, have been guilty of fostering partisanship. The posals like health care reform would have passed.

Congressional majority that the party enjoyed after the midterm What is troubling is that some leaders elections in 2006 hampered many of want to foster this hatred of the other The fundamental President Bush’s proposals in his final side for their own political gain. Sarah two years in office, and many Democrats problem with the Palin, Christine O’Donnell and others have been loath to work with Republihave risen to prominence by criticizgovernment’s inability cans on key issues. Republican leaders ing every move that President Obama indignant about the Democrats’ to do anything is in the were makes and portraying him as an outsidefforts to pass health care legislation er with no ties to the real America. nature of politics itself. despite the lack of Republican support.

Media figures like Rush Limbaugh and “It’s not that we won’t cooperate,” SenaGlenn Beck worsen the situation by promoting a conspirato- tor John McCain said in an interview in March. “They have not rial view of the Obama Administration and casting doubt on his made one single effort to work in a bipartisan fashion.” intentions for the country. The Tea Party movement has helped But Democrats would disagree, stating that Obama’s appeals polarize the political atmosphere even more with its loud, brash for bipartisanship on health care and other major initiatives and usually misinformed attacks on Democrats and liberals. have been largely ignored by the Republican minority. Critics The fierce ideological debate between Democrats and Repub- have pointed out that efforts to make the stimulus and health licans has caused both sides to appeal to their bases and take care bills more palatable for Republicans ended up watering positions that are simply not sustainable and in some cases down the two bills without attracting any substantial Republitotally ludicrous. How are you supposed to balance the budget can support. and decrease the deficit while promoting massive tax cuts and Regardless of who did what, though, it is apparent that the refusing to cut military or entitlement spending? potential for cooperation in the future is limited. Much of the The constant desire to oppose anylegislation that has gone through Conthing President Obama proposes led gress in the last two years has succeedEach party becomes every Republican in the House to vote ed due to Democratic supermajorities no on the stimulus bill, even though in both the House and Senate. more ideologically most independent economists pointed This could change drastically after the extreme and less willing midterm elections, when Democrats out that the bill was necessary to stave off an economic depression. may lose much of their advantage. That to compromise.

The increasingly partisan ranks of both means that Democrats and Republiparties has abetted the polarization of cans will have to work together – to American politics. As ideologues on both sides wage a ferocious compromise – in order to do what is best for the country. rhetorical war against each other, they deride anyone who does And to do this, Republicans and Democrats will have to put not hold a similar opinion – including moderates within their down their ideological pretenses and find logical, practical soown party. lutions to the nation’s many problems. This includes making These “partisan superfans” thus alienate less knowledgeable decisions that may not be popular at home with voters but that voters from becoming involved in politics. The result is that each in the long-term serve our country’s interests. • party becomes more ideologically extreme and less willing to compromise. Moderate Republicans like John McCain have moved to the far right of the political spectrum, increasingly

25

26

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

LONG TERM

CRISIS The worsening economy and growing unemployment rate affect businesses and families alike. This year’s elections are sure to reflect the struggle to move forward.

By Kara Williams

T

he unemployment rate in the U.S. is currently at 9.7 percent and some 14.8 million people are unemployed, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. As the global financial crisis reaches its two-year anniversary, the effects of a downtrodden economy and relatively high unemployment rates across the country are still affecting the average American family.

This will inevitably be a major issue in the 2010 midterm elections. Whether you think the financial crisis has come about through government mismanagement or business mismanagement, an average unemployment rate of 9.7 percent is definitely worthy of concern. As of August, North Carolina’s unemployment

rate was also 9.7 percent. the table and buy their children essential In a statement in The Wall Street Jour- clothing, something needs to be done. nal’s article “US Unlikely To See Big Drop The New York Times reported that In Unemployment By 2014,” Goldman even budget department stores such Sachs’ chief U.S. economist, Jan Hatzius, as Walmart have become too pricey for said, “It’s going to be many years before some, and shopping at chain stores such you get back to anything close to full as Dollar Tree and Family Dollar has inemployment.” creased for family essentials such as We must then look at unemployment packaged foods and toiletries due to the as a long-term problem requiring a long- tightening of weekly budgets. term solution. Job creation will be a key Unemployment has also had vast ramicomponent of refications in health strengthening the care and mediWe must look at economy.

These cine. Often, private unemployment as a jobs should be in health insurance is sustainable indusan additional benlong-term problem tries.

Infrastrucefit for employees requiring a long-term and their famiture, research and development and lies, but without a solution. alternative enerstable income or gies, for examjob security, it beple, promote positive and progressive comes more financially difficult to purchange that will benefit the U.S. in both chase separately. the short and long term.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, There is huge potential for both “green between 2008 and 2009 the number of jobs” and renewable energies in this uninsured U.S. citizens increased by 16.7 country. Wind, solar, biomass, geother- percent to nearly 51 million people. An mal and hydroelectric energy are all vi- estimated 6.5 million people were no able sources of power in different parts longer covered by private health insurof the U.S. and would not only create ance and just as many had lost their emmore jobs, but would be more environ- ployment-based health benefits, accordmentally friendly, as well. ing to the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Many large corporations have downIronically, the people who are most sized their managerial departments likely to need health insurance are and reduced those who are the number of Clean energy would not u n e m p l o y e d hours per week and without only create more jobs, for “full-time health benefits employees.” and those livbut would be more Other employing in poverty environmentally friendly. who cannot ees have been turned into afford health part-time or contract workers to give insurance. This is problematic in a councompanies, both large and small, more try with a weak public health system, flexibility in their human resources. This whose economy is also still recovering has helped businesses retain their staffs’ from a financial crisis. knowledge and skills while lowering Unemployment is not just about busitheir operating costs—namely staff wag- nesses and individuals. It is about famies—but there can be dire consequences lies and the struggles they face and the for employees if they are dependent on impact the U.S. economy will have on a full-time wage and suddenly cut to future generations of young Americans. three days per week.

Obama’s stimulus package and the bailThe financial implications of unemploy- outs of the financial industry and the ment among families are wide-reaching. auto industry were a step in the right Not only do families have less dispos- direction, but it is now time to take the able income, but there is less cash to next substantial step in economic reallocate to basic needs. When formerly form to address the buildup of decades middle-class families are unable to make of economic problems. It starts with your their mortgage payments, put food on vote in the 2010 midterm elections. •

Campus BluePrint | October 2010

where did all the

MONEY go?

By Troy Homesley

I

s college really worth it? A founder- vulnerable to a life of debt. ing economy and rapidly increasing As tuition rates increase, so do the tuition rates are two of the many number of loans and the amount of fedreasons why this question is increas- eral aid available. ingly relevant to students at UNC and According to the NCPA, “rising govaround the country. ernment subsidies have increased the According to the National Center for quantity of education demanded. This Policy Analysis, tuition at American uni- means that the rising cost of a college versities has been increasing faster education is due in large part to the than inflation for the past 30 years. increased financial aid available rather The NCPA states that since 1980, aver- than any general improvement in eduage tuition and fees at private universi- cation.” ties increased by 175 percent, and tuition While tuition rates are steadily rising, and fees at public universities increased there is also evidence that the value by an astonishing 220 percent. of a college degree is growing. AccordThe NCPA found that much of this ing to a report by the College Board, spending goes outside of the class- workers with bachelor’s degrees make room. From 1976 to 2000, the ratio of an average $21,900 more than those teachers to stuwith only a high “Managing a college dents remained school education. virtually stable In recent years, the career should be like while the ratio of pay premiums for managing a financial non-teaching staff those with bachmembers to stuelor’s degrees over portfolio.” dents doubled. those with only a Michael Crosno, high school diploMoney spent on CEO of MyEdu.com ma have continued the educational aspect of college is to increase. decreasing while extra costs go toward Michael Crosno is the founder and creating a better “college experience.”

CEO of MyEdu.com, a free website that For example, spending on student helps students plan their schedules, services at public research universities buy textbooks and graduate on time. He like UNC increased 20.1 percent, while points out that future projections reveal instructional spending rose a mere 10.1 that most new jobs will require a colpercent. lege degree.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of “The impact on a young adult’s life Education is taking a proactive role to from achieving a college degree continensure that prospective students know ues to be meaningful. According to the about new options for federal student Department of Labor, 65 percent of all aid and has devised a strategy to raise new jobs created in the next ten years awareness about the availability of fed- will require a college degree, and this eral student aid. number is expected to increase,” Crosno The financial reform bill includes the said. creation of a new model for oversight Amidst increasing tuition, financial of private student loan providers. The aid reform and the evolving workforce, oversight group, called the Financial how does a student maximize his or her Protection Bureau, will focus on ensur- potential? How do they make sure the ing that private loan providers will not money and time spent on college cretake advantage of students. ates the optimal advantage?

In the past, the problem with private One answer is to take advantage of student loans has been variable inter- the area where the majority of this new est rates without caps, leaving students money is being spent.

Invest in the “college experience.”

Get involved with groups on campus funded by the university. Go to free events that you may never again have the chance to attend. Become involved with a club or intramural sports.

All of these are things you have to pay for through student fees anyway, so you might as well take advantage of them.

Maximizing your potential also means using the academic resources that you are paying for so you can graduate on time. Use the immense collection of resources and information, talk to professors and get help from advising, career services and even third-party services like MyEdu. “Managing a college career should be like managing a financial portfolio,” Crosno said. “You make an investment and you expect a return. You invest in college and you expect to earn a degree. Both require data and tools to be successful.”

America’s education system is quickly becoming one of the most expensive in the world. Tuition rates continue to rise and the amount of money spent on education is going up more slowly than money spent on the “college experience.” All the while, America’s young people have not kept up with world standards academically.

“Fifteen years ago, the United States was ranked number one when measuring the percentage of people between 24 and 35 with a college degree. Today, we are ranked twelth and expected to decline further over the next five years,” Crosno said.

The effects of this decline will be all the more significant in our increasingly interconnected world.

“The economy is a global economy,” Crosno said, “and will only become more so in the years to come. If this country is going to remain competitive on global basis, we must reverse this trend.” •

27

28

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

15

CAMPUS Y CELEBRATES

By Rachel Myrick

T

o incoming first-years at UNC, the concept of a Y building on campus may be slightly confusing. Elizabeth McCain and Marjorie Betubiza, co-presidents of the Campus Y, find it humorous that some UNC students assume the Y is an exercise facility.

“We welcome everyone. If you’d like to come and do exercise here, you can run the stairs in the back,” McCain said.

Located on Cameron Avenue across from the Old Well, the Y is a place of action, but not necessarily of the physical sort. Contrary to some first-year misconceptions, the Campus Y is a socialjustice hub that houses a number of different student groups committed to activism and service.

“The [Campus Y] is a ‘we’ oriented organization. It’s not an individual organization … It’s more than just a place that you work; it’s a lot about where your friends are and where you come to hang out,” McCain said.

Fall 2010 is a particularly poignant semester for the Y. It is the celebration of 150 years of social justice work. The 150th Anniversary, held from Oct. 15-17, was a weekend-long event designed to

150

commemorate the history of the Cam- with a very rich history. [The commitpus Y and create bridges between the tees] focus on anything from human past and present. The festivities were rights to environmental rights to workco-sponsored by the UNC Division of ing with animals to having friendships Student Affairs, APPLES Service Learn- with the elderly to tutoring kids from ing and SCALE. lower economic status,” McCain said.

One of the many team members inThis “rich history” McCain speaks of volved in coordinating the 150th Anni- has encompassed a plethora of soversary is Swathi Sekar, a recent UNC cial justice movements over the past graduate and the few decades.

Campus Y direcIn the 1960s, “I got involved mostly tor of student iniCampus Y because I was constantly the tiatives. helped chalchallenged by everyone.” lenge the Uni“The purpose of the 150th is to versity ban on exemplify what the Y has been through. communist speakers and promoted A lot of that is going to be done through free speech on campus. The following the exhibits and the ongoing activities decade, the Y led an anti-war movement that are happening in this building to protest the Vietnam War. The Campus throughout the weekend. In addition to Y also took a stance against apartheid that, it’s also to highlight what kind of in South Africa in the 1980s and worked social justice work is being done today to promote environmental awareness by students, by community members, in the 1990s. by panelists that we’ve invited from Many of the current faculty and stuother parts of NC,” Sekar said. dents heavily involved with the organiThe Campus Y houses about thirty com- zation were pulled into the Campus Y mittees and special projects, all dedicat- at some point during their first year on ed to various aspects of social justice. campus. Sekar, for instance, was drawn “The Y is an umbrella organization to the Y by getting involved one of the

From Left to Right: “Y-NOT”; Co-Presidents of Campus Y, Elizabeth McCain and Marjorie Betubiza, Outside Campus Y

50

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

29

YEARS

committees, HOPE (Homeless Outreach Poverty Eradication), during the second semester of her freshman year. She eventually worked her way up to the executive board and now is on staff.

“I got involved mostly because I was constantly challenged by everyone because I felt like everyone was doing such exceptional things. It forced me to really continuously strive for something,” Sekar said.

McCain and Betubiza followed similar trajectories. Betubiza got involved with Advocates for Human Rights her freshman year and served as co-chair of the committee during her sophomore and junior year. McCain started working with the Y during her first year at UNC as well.

“When I went to interview for a position during [my first year], I knew I wanted to get involved whether or not I got in … I think that the people are really what makes this place awesome.

Something’s always happening,” McCain said.

One of the core objectives of the Campus Y 150th is to forge a connection between past and present. As a result, a lot of the events revolve around conver-

sations between students and alumni.

“I’m inviting myself to all the mini reunions because for me that’s where the most exciting people are. A lot of people spent a lot of time building strong relationships with different committees. I would love to be a fly on the wall and see those interactions and see people reconnect,” Betubiza said.

One of the highlights of the weekend was a creative presentation of oral history. “The Record Speaks: UNC’s History of Social Justice” took place in Gerard Hall, hosted by Dr. Bill Ferris of the Folklore Curriculum at UNC. “Current Y students are going to be performing by creatively presenting Y histories collected over the past year.

It’s a chance for current students to perform or present incredible interviews that have been done by past Y leaders, involved in significant events in the Y’s history,” Sekar said.

Other key events during the weekend included a series of discussions co-led

by Campus Y committee members and alumni, an alumni dinner at the George Watts Hill Alumni Center, a keynote speech by environmental advocate

Majora Carter and a brunch discussing strategies for the future of the Campus Y. “One thing that I am looking for is to give the Y kind of a unified presence on campus. During times of women’s empowerment or the Vietnam War or big justice related movements, the Y was the center of [campus] and had a significant presence on campus as an entity.

All of our students do such incredible work but it is in a lot of ways disjointed.

I don’t see that as a bad thing; I just see it as something that could be improved on,” Sekar said.

While the anniversary will be a chance to look back at the past, Campus Y committees also hope to use this event as a means to project into the future, for each individual project and for the Y as a whole.

“When something has a really long history, it gives people an opportunity to situate themselves within that legacy,” Betubiza said.

“The Y is 150 years old … and [you] get to embrace part of that history, situate yourself in that context. This is a part of a much larger thing.” •

PHOTOS BY RENEE SULLENDER

a

From Left to Right: Members discuss Human Rights Global Citizenship and Service Learning during Campus Y’s 150th Anniversary

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT?

THE REAL FOOD CHALLENGE mobilizes Carolina Dining Services

By Molly Hrudka

T

he Real Food Challenge is taking college campuses across the nation by storm. With consumers, producers, the environment and the community in mind, the movement aims to mobilize students in support of fair and sustainable food.

Sophomores Suzanne Fleishman and Sara Skelton spend hours in Lenoir Dining Hall calculating the sustainability of food served to students by Carolina Dining Services. As pioneers of the movement at UNC, they are working toward developing a Real Food Calculator, a tracking system for dining hall purchasing, on UNC’s campus. UNC is one of several schools developing their own Real Food Calculator, a project of the Real Food Challenge.

Tabulating data on the origins of dining hall food, how it is grown and prepared and how far it is transported, Fleishman and Skelton group food into green (a clear fit with sustainable practices), yellow (use caution), and red (no way) categories, depending on how well it fits the Real Food Challenge’s definition of real food.

“The goal is to have 20 percent of food in the dining hall to be sustainable,” Skelton said.

This is a lofty goal, especially for such a large university, as meeting the requirement to be considered real food is a challenge.

“I didn’t realize how multifaceted the food movement is. As involved as I have become I’ve realized how complex it is, how many world issues have to do with food,” Fleishman said.

In fact, in order for food to be considered “real” by the Real Food Challenge, it must fit into two of four categories: localand community-based, fair, ecologically sound and humane.

Supporting local- and community-based food does more than benefit the farmers involved with production.

“Instead of those dollars traveling through a longer chain it stays in the community,” Fleishman said.

PHOTO BY SUZANNE FLEISHMAN

30

UNC is trying to increase its use of organic and local food in the dining halls Most of the humanitarian issues revolve around the fair treatment of animals in meat production. Pasture-fed (grass-fed) beef or food that is Food Alliance Certified are prominent examples of the type of products the Real Food Challenge supports.

In order for food to be “fair,” everyone involved in its production and consumption must be treated fairly. Not only does this include farm laborers, but it also includes the consumers themselves.

For example, it is well known that heart disease and diabetes have strong links to fatty foods typically eaten in most parts of the US. “How are we being fair to each other when we’re allowing people to eat what we eat?” Fleishman said.

Environmental issues also play an im-

portant role in determining what constitutes real food. Irresponsible irrigation methods and heavy pesticide use negatively influence the sustainable production of food. Instead of expensive and soil-depleting chemicals that cause unhealthy runoff into America’s streams and rivers, Fleishman suggests that “there are natural ways to get rid of pests” that fit with the parameters of growing real food. These include planting trees known to be natural pest repellents near cropland or using environmentally friendly pesticides.

While the 20 percent goal put forth by the Real Food Challenge is ambitious, Skelton and Fleishman hope that by developing the Real Food Calculator, Campus Dining Services will be better able to meet that goal. •

Campus BluePrint | November 2010

REDEFINING the SOUTH

By Sarah Bufkin

I

n an anthropology seminar at UNC, balizing world began to interfere in the they will reject the South and its history seven students debate what being late 1900s. But the future of its cultural in favor of an identity that it not tied to a Southern means and how that iden- identity can only speculated. specific geographic location but instead tity is changing in the face of a globalAs more people, corporations, move- to an occupation, a political affiliation, a izing world. Six of the students are either ments and ideas from different places hobby, or a religious organization. first- or second-generaround the world By detaching identity from its sense This diversity is ation Southern; they come into contact of forced and localized place, globalism and their families with the South, the also allows individuals to choose from the face of the have immigrated to generally accepted a multitude of spheres of meaning and changing South the South from an inidentity for what it connectivity, which has the potential to credibly diverse range to be South- devalue Southern space in favor of global and has been driven means of places, including ern is increasingly movements, religions, and groups.

St. Louis, China, New mostly by the forces contradicted. A girl Although one can argue for the disEngland and India. can grow up reading avowal of Southern identity, I counter of globalization.

Only one student, Faulkner and going that the Southern identity may become who eats oysters and fishing in the salt more complex and individualized under ribs on St. Simon’s Island every Fourth of marshes on the weekends, study English the pressure of global influences, but it July, has a family that can be considered at the University of South Carolina, live will not be destroyed by it.

Southern in the traditional sense. And yet in Japan for three years, and then settle While individuals may choose to aseach of the people considers themselves down in Miami to teach at a prep school— sert their identity primarily through other a Southerner. and still identify as Southern. A boy can contexts, such as religion, politics, or proThis diversity is the face of the chang- grow up in inner-city Atlanta listening to fession, many still hold that they have ing South and has been driven mostly by Lil’ Wayne, love sweet tea, write an essay a southern identity as well, one that is the forces of globalization. In globaliza- on being gay and a Christian, and love augmented by the new facets of their tion, the South finds the means for the football—and still identify as Southern. personalities and of their searches for most consequential shift in identity that Given that people are more mobile than meaning. it has experienced since the Civil War and ever before and that they have direct acThis process, rather than erasing the Reconstruction solidified its regional ex- cess to cultures, reliregional identity, ceptionalism in the late 1800s. But will gions, and neighborbroadens it through Southern identity the wide range of its the South open itself to the world or will hoods half the world may become more people’s collective it recoil against the intrusion of global in- away through the fluences?

Internet, the South experience. complex and Anthropologist Dr. James Peacock pro- has been forced into Grounded globalindividualized poses one potentiality: grounded global- contact with a greater ism insures that the ism, which refers to the tension between wealth of experience. is no longer under the pressure South globalization and the inherent human Due to this cycle of an identity that is desire for stability in their neighborhood. globalizing and the of global influences, culturally exclusive This concept is the keystone for his argu- subsequent readjustand enriches it by albut it will not be ment that regional cultures will eventu- ment, Southern idenlowing the individual destroyed by it. ally transition from the old oppositional tity must stretch its to personalize what structures to new frameworks of integra- framework to accomthat identity means. tion and pluralism through the vehicle of modate this new diversity. And with this At the end of the day, although the way globalism. growing acceptance of diversity within in which the South perceives itself has The South has a past of opposition one’s own experience comes an accep- changed, the South can still say, “I am and racial divide. The region coalesced tance of diversity within a society. the South.” • through common economic interests Some may argue to the contrary, that in the 1700s and early 1800s, rebelled by introducing new cultures, identities, against the nation and then suffered de- values, and theories on the role of the infeat in the Civil War, and then suffered un- dividual in society, people will lose conder the burden of its history until the glo- tact with their Southern identity. Instead,

31

This publication was paid for at least in part by UNC student fees