Friday, Dec. 1, 2006
C a b r i n i
C o l l e g e
The Loquitur Y o u S p e a k, W e L i s t e n
Plans to increase troop levels in progress
Radnor, Pa.
Distractions lead to car accidents www.theLoquitur.com
Vol XLVIII, Issue 12
BRITTANY LIBERATORE NEWS EDITOR
BCL722@CABRINI.EDU
The United States Defense Department is considering an increase in American troop levels, according to an article in The New York Times. This increase will coincide with an addition of thousands more trainers to work with Iraqi forces. These are the plans that were considered after a review of the Iraq strategy that is already in place. Although these plans are extensive, they are predicted to be temporary. According to The New York Times, the increase in American troops, if this plan becomes a reality, would raise the troop level by approximately 20,000.
MILITARY, page 3
WHAT’S INSIDE
DAN SQUIRE/PHOTO EDITOR
Driving while drowsy or distracted can cause drivers to lose control of their vehicles resulting in serious or fatal car crashes. Driving drowsy or distracted are the two biggest accident risks on the road. KATHERINE BRACHELLI KB727@CABRINI.EDU NEWS EDITOR
After a week of partying and cramming for finals before winter break begins, Eileen Kuter, a junior biology major at Millersville University, packs her bags for her two-hour haul home to recuperate after the long school week. Kuter recalls driving in a state of drowsiness and being greatly distracted on her way home. She had no idea that her drowsy state
JASON RADKA
JNR722@CABRINI.EDU
Tattoos Page 8
SPORTS Women’s Basketball Page 13
being involved in some form of driver inattention whether it is drowsiness or cell phone use. Driving drowsy or while distracted are the two biggest accident risks on the road, according to a study from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Although no one was hurt in Kuter’s car accident, the memory of her car being slammed into a divider is one that continuously haunts her. Kuter admitted that having no transportation for almost a month did not really
DRIVING, page 3
College costs surmount inflation rates SPORTS EDITOR
FEATURES
would end up in the surprising awakening of her car being totaled because she could no longer focus on the road. After driving into a divider on the Pennsylvania Turnpike Kuter said, “I’ll never drive again when I’m that tired. It happened in the blink of an eye. Sometimes it still scares me to drive home on long car rides now.” Kuter was one of the individuals who fall into the 80 percent of crashes and 65 percent of nearcrashes that occur because of
bother her, because she feared getting behind the steering wheel of a car for almost two weeks. Drowsiness is a significant problem that increases a driver’s risk of a crash or near-crash. The NHTSA also reported that driving drowsy may be significantly under-reported in police crash investigations. “This important research illustrates the potentially dire consequences that can occur while driving distracted or drowsy. It’s crucial that drivers always be alert when on the road,” said Jacqueline Glassman, administrator of NHTSA Kuter said, “It’s so easy to become distracted while driving but now when I drive home from school I’m much more alert.” Now when Kuter drives home from school she has a friend accompany her to keep her awake, she brings a cup of coffee for the car ride and she makes sure that she is well rested. The second most common distraction for drivers is the use of cell phones. Although some states are now making it a law that an individual is not permitted to talk on his or her cell phone while driving, the number of crashes and near-crashes attributable to dialing is nearly identical to the number associated with talking or listening, according to the NHTSA.
The cost of going to college, including Cabrini, has gone up this past year faster than national inflation, which is the bad news recently reported by the College Board. The positive news is that it has gone up at a slower rate than in the past. Recently, the College Board released new data saying that costs at four-year private colleges went up two percent more than inflation. In 2005 the national inflation rate was around 3.2 percent, and the college tuition, including fees at four-year colleges, went up by 5.9 percent, more than 2 percent over inflation. Inflation is the average price increase over the course of a year. For example, if the average price for a can of soup, a bicycle and a ticket to a football game has
increased by three percent over a year, then three percent is the inflation rate for the year. The average total of tuition, fees, room and board at private colleges is $30,367. Total student aid has gone up by 3.7 percent, which is better than inflation, but federal aid has not gone up equal to inflation. Students are in awe when they see these numbers. Lauren Beck, sophomore finance major said, “Well, in some aspects it is unfair to the students because in retrospect, it costs more now to go to school than in decades before.” However, the rise in tuition helps faculty and staff in schools nation wide. Beck also said, “But for the faculty, the rises in tuition are needed to sustain their daily lives. I think that education costs should not be raised every single year, but maybe every other year.
INFLATION, page 3
DAN SQUIRE/PHOTO EDITOR
In 2005, the national inflation rate was approximately 3.2 percent affecting both public and private colleges around the nation.