● monday,
october 15, 2012
● serving
texas a&m since 1893
● first paper free – additional copies $1 ● © 2012 student media
thebattalion
Autumn Rizzo — THE BATTALION
Reflections of violence International students balance western culture with unrest in Libya, Egypt
Professors extend commentary on protests Annabelle Hutchinson
Molly Livingstone Special to The Battalion
W
rapped in a black and white striped hijab and donning a white blouse and jeans, sophomore biology major Rowana Mohamed sang along to a Taylor Swift song delicately playing in the background of a coffee shop. Mohamed has learned to adapt to two different cultures, two different countries and two different political systems. Her two worlds merged when her home country of Egypt was introduced to democracy after a violent revolution.
“Egyptians never cared about politics before,” Mohamed said. “Everyone silently hated [the previous government], but felt they couldn’t do anything about it.” Mohamed said the path to democracy was anything but easy and even
affected her decision about where she would attend college. “It was really scary. [After the revolution began,] I wasn’t even considering going to college in Cairo. In Cairo, there was chaos,” Mohamed said. “We weren’t even sure if Egypt was going to be a country in a few months. My mom would call home all the time to make sure everyone was OK.” Mohamed said nothing too catastrophic happened to her family, but it was still a time of uncertainty. “When there are no rules, you really don’t know what is going to happen,” See Unrest on page 4
Bush School expands Middle East studies Nina Ewing The Battalion Texas A&M’s George Bush School of Government and Public Service will expand its study of the Middle East over the next four years, primarily from a regional security perspective. In July, the Levant Foundation of Houston donated $1 million to establish a research endowment, fellowship and professorship at the Bush School. “This has been an important decision for us because [the program] is not
so much an area studies program as it is a focus on security issues,” said Samuel Kirkpatrick, executive associate for academic affairs and management at the Bush School. “Our focus is always going to be, because of President Bush’s tradition, on national security, on international security and on relationships between countries.” As part of the Bush School’s efforts to strengthen Middle East studies, Mohammed Tabaar, professor of International Politics of the Middle East,
joined the faculty this fall. Tabaar was born and raised in Iran and has a Ph.D. in comparative politics and international relations from Georgetown University. While earning his Ph.D., Tabaar was also a journalist for the BBC World Service and a professor at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs. “In my course, I focus on the See Bush School on page 4
The Battalion
T
he Middle East regained the attention of the world when deadly protests erupted in response to the “Innocence of the Muslims” video.
The video coincided with the attack on the American consulate in Benghazi, Libya, on Sept. 11, which resulted in the death of American Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three members of his staff. Middle Eastern unrest and constant political alterations have led to Western attention in the field as well as in the classroom. Texas A&M’s Bush School of Government and Public Service, for example, has subsequently begun expanding its course studies of the Middle East. Revolution’s beginning The Arab Revolutions, commonly referred to as The Arab Spring, sparked in Tunisia in December 2010, after a man set himself on fire to protest his lack of opportunity and the police’s disrespect toward the public. The revolts spread like wildfire in the Middle Eastern
Manziel, A&M outlast Louisiana Tech, 59-57 Mark Dore
Tyler Hosea — THE BATTALION
ustin City Limits, the premier music festival for Texas’ capitol city, began Oct. 12 and featured performances from an eclectic line-up of musical artists, including The Black Keys, Neil Young, Jack White, Florence + The Machine, AVICII, M83 and The Shins. Next year’s Austin City Limits festival will occur on two weekends, Oct. 4-6 and Oct. 11-13.
Pg. 1-10.15.12.indd 1
See Protest on page 4
football
Capitol concerts
A
desert. These protests forced longtime autocratic rulers from power in Egypt, Libya, Tunisia and Yemen. In Egypt, former president Hosni Mubarak, was forced to step down from power in February 2011 after 18 days of massive public demonstrations. Since then, there has been a power struggle between Egypt’s president, Mohamed Morsi, and the military within Egypt. Professor analysis Larry Napper, former U.S. ambassador and senior lecturer at the Bush School, said Morsi gained more political power over the military, especially in August, when he forced the retirement of his defense minister and other prominent military leaders. “It would appear for the present that Morsi has been
The Battalion Billed as a high-octane shootout featuring two Top 25 teams with Top 10 offenses, those who stayed awake into the night to see the finish between Texas A&M and Louisiana Tech might call that an understatement. The Aggies clinched a 5957 victory with less than a minute remaining, recovering a Louisiana Tech onside kick after a failed two-point conversion attempt that would have knotted the game. Redshirt freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel’s season to date has sparked talk of outside consideration for the Heisman trophy, annually awarded to the nation’s best player. The Manziel-forHeisman movement may have gained traction Saturday as the quarterback accounted for six
touchdowns and broke his own SEC and program records for single-game total yardage with 576 yards. A&M head coach Kevin Sumlin said Manziel’s performance was indicative of his growth as a passer. “He threw some good balls tonight,” Sumlin said. “I think he is improving as a passer and obviously he keeps the defense on their feet and that is what he has been doing.” The Aggies needed every one of Manziel’s touchdowns. A 27-point first half lead went up in smoke as the Louisiana Tech offense that sputtered early found its legs. Manziel’s only interception of the night — his third of the season — was gathered in and returned short six yards for a Bulldogs touchdown that brought the See Shreveport on page 3
10/15/12 12:41 AM