NOT SO SWIFT: Carrie Underwood sweeps CMA awards, Taylor walks away emptyhanded npage 5
Wednesday n April 21, 2010
POISED FOR POSTSEASON: MSU softball up to bat for playoff showing npage 7
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Two students know the hardships of having a husband away at war Lauren Wood Entertainment Editor
A police officer stands outside Hastings following a shooting that left five wounded in the store Tuesday. (Photo by Brittany Norman)
It is a 7,878-mile flight from Texas to Afghanistan. But to junior Lisa Moore, it can feel worlds away. She is an army wife. Her husband Chris is currently stationed in Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan for his yearlong deployment. “Chris deployed on Valentine’s Day this year,” Lisa said. “It is just another day to us and we really don’t celebrate it, so it wasn’t that big of a deal. Plus, I couldn’t even be there when he deployed because he was in Hawaii.” Lisa was only 15 when she met Chris. He was a friend of Lisa’s sister when the two were introduced July 5, 2005. “He went to college with my sister and she traded me to him for a sandwich,” Lisa said, a proud smile stretching across her face. Lisa’s sister wanted a sandwich that the 18-year-old Chris had just made, but he wanted something in return. She gave Lisa to him and immediately they hit it off. A quick three years later, the Seymour resident proposed and Lisa began planning the wedding. “When he proposed, I was so excited that I forgot to say yes. I just kissed him and he looked at me and said ‘so is that a yes?’” The couple was married in October of 2008, while Lisa was a freshman at MSU. Lisa admitted it was the worst idea she’d ever had. “I juggled planning a wedding, studying for tests and getting adjusted to college,” she said. “It was difficult handling all of the stress.” Over a year later, the 20-year-old has never regretted marrying a military man. “I think I married him sooner because of it,” she confessed. The couple had originally planned
One killed, 5 wounded by gunman Chris Collins Managing Editor
A lone gunman went on a shooting rampage inside a Wichita Falls bookstore late Tuesday night, wounding five people before driving to a nearby bar where he gunned down the doorman. The names of the victims, suspect and deceased had not been released by press time. The first call for help came from Hastings Books, Music & Videos at 9:25 p.m. The call from Toby’s
See SHOOTING on page 3
Deutschland studies await MSU students Chris Collins Managing Editor
German students have been attending Midwestern through the business and engineering schools for some years, but now MSU students are getting the chance to return the favor. This summer, three students have traveled to Germany as part of the university’s foreign exchange program. “Frankly, I brought that here because I had connections with German universities,” said program supervisor Dr. Frederike Wiedemann. MSU students already have the opportunity to participate in exchange programs in England, Spain and France. Now Germany has been added to the list. “The president would like our students to study abroad,” she said. “The difficulty is our students don’t speak foreign languages. So they need to find programs taught in English.”
See WIVES on page 4
(Top) Kaja and Cole Salsman are reunited upon his return from a tour of duty in Iraq. (Photo courtesy) (Bottom, left to right) Lisa Moore’s husband Chris is currently stationed in Afghanistan. (Photo courtesy) They stay in touch through letters, phone calls, texts and the Internet. (Photo by Julia Raymond)
See EXCHANGE on page 3
ACTing out for autism awareness
Time for a new New Deal? Chris Collins Managing Editor
The recession Americans are suffering through poses a threat to our economic way of life, but also grants an opportunity of change. Dr. David Kennedy, chair of history at Stanford University, discussed how the current fiscal situation relates to the Great Depression when he spoke at Akin Auditorium Tuesday. The venue was packed for the speaker, who talked for about an hour. “The big question is how our
crisis compares to the 1930s,” he said. He said President Obama isn’t in as deep as Franklin Roosevelt was when he was elected. When Roosevelt entered office, the countries unemployment stood at 25 percent. Today ours is about 10 percent. Also, the country’s gross national product was down 50 percent in Roosevelt’s day, while ours currently is up five percent. These may seem like comforting facts, he said, but Americans should stay wary. “Some people may think we’re
not so far down as our fore bearers were,” Kennedy said. One difference that gets overlooked when relating the two scenarios is the budget deficit. The deficit is the 1930s was $431 million, about four percent of GNP. Ours is about $1.4 trillion, about 10 percent of GNP. “The national debt is twice as large as it was during the Great Depression,” Kennedy said. Though the Depression left a huge monetary, social and psychological gash in 1930s America, it brought with it progress.
See LECTURE on page 3
Chris Collins Managing Editor
Dr. David Kennedy (Photo by Julia Raymond)
Samantha Spangler is a little different than most MSU students. When she was 15 years old, she was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome, a high-functioning form of autism. Autism is a developmental disorder that affects the brain’s communication and social skills. Spangler said growing up with autism was difficult, but has learned to adapt. Now she helps others understand and deal with the disorder. She participated in a discussion session for the Autism Conference of Texoma last weekend, the second time it has been hosted at MSU. Over 155 people participated in the all-day event with about 30 exhibitors.
See ACTon page 3