>> vote for BEST OF THE ’BURG through Friday at BREEZEJMU.ORG <<
Want to see your blog on our site? E-mail BREEZEOPINION@ GMAIL.COM.
Serving James Madison University Since 1922 breezejmu.org
Cloudy 53°/ 32° chance of precipitation: 20%
Vol. 87, No. 35 Monday, February 7, 2011
COMMUNITY
building
DREAMS Students help construct homes with Habitat for Humanity for local residents
By NATALIE DOHNER The Breeze
“Pow, pow, pow,” sang the hammers as nails were set in place for constructing the floor of a loft put in by JMU’s Habitat for Humanity. Sawdust flew through the air as a miter saw chewed away at wooden planks, which would soon serve as flooring for a refurbished home. “Bam, bam, bam,” pounded the Habitat team’s screwguns anchoring the boards into place. “We need half of you on the floor and the rest up top. Who’s ready to work?” asked Steve Cook, one of the build supervisors of Almost Heaven, an affiliate of Habitat for Humanity. JMU’s Habitat for Humanity was working on a brisk January morning in Pendleton County, W.Va. The -member organization divides its time and energy between two jobsites, one in Pendleton County and one in Page County, Va. T h e m a j o r i t y o f Ha b i t a t ’s m o n e y comes from donations and all contractors volunteer their hours of work. see HABITAT, page 4
Junior Jackie Cook (left) and fifth year senior KoSan Kim work at a Habitat for Humanity building project last month in Pendleton County, W. Va. PHOTO COURTESY OF NATALIE DOHNER
GLOBAL EVENTS
GOVERNMENT
Commission proposes increase to university funding By TYLER MCAVOY The Breeze
Virginia universities may get bigger, according to a bill proposed by the governor in January. Gov. Bob McDonnell introduced new legislation to increase the number of higher education graduates from Virginia by , in the next years. I n D e c e m b e r, M c D o n n e l l announced he will seek a $ million initial investment from the General Assembly to achieve this goal. The bill would increase the number of students in Virginia’s colleges and universities, specifically in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, by increasing the amount of
funding for education. Recommendations for the bill come from the Governor’s Commission on Higher Education, which studied the long-term effects of increased spending on education and the economical impact of it on the state. The commission, created last May, included appointed presidents, including JMU President Linwood Rose, and executives of top schools and businesses in the state. The committee voted in December to create framework for a bill that focused on economic opportunity, reform-based investment and affordable access for Virginia’s higher education system. see BILL, page 4
For full coverage of Sunday’s women’s basketball victory over Old Dominion University,
PAGE 9
2/7 INSIDE
3
NEWS Fighting fires
The Harrisonburg Fire Department installs preventative measures around town.
Panelists: Egypt mixes old politics with new media By MOLLY HAAS The Breeze
In a packed room late Friday afternoon, the buzzwords Facebook and Twitter held new meanings in the context of the riots in Egypt. The panel discussion, Making Sense of the Event, organized by history professor Mary Gayne and the Center for Faculty Innovation, explored the complexities of the crisis in Egypt. The discussion brought together a cross-discipline of professors from political science, communication studies, history and sociology to art history and integrated science and technology. “It’s Democracy .,” said Brian Kaylor, a communication studies professor and panelist. Facebook and Twitter are inherently democratic platforms; they give every man a voice, Kaylor said. “It’s back to everyone’s favorite, GCOM,” he said. “The medium is the message.” That power is exactly why the Egyptian government shut off the Internet last week, according to Jonathan Keller, a political science professor attending the panel event. Protestors organized a Facebook group to plan the first march on Jan. . “This started with young people,” Keller said. “They realized they could be a force for change.” Since the first protest, the gaining political revolution called for President Honsi Mubarak, who has been in office for years, to step down, something he announced he would do in September. On Feb. , Mubarak announced that his party would resign as the ruling party but not from the presidency. “Now it’s a question of how many protesters are willing to accept that date,” Keller said. “I think there are enough who are not willing to wait.” President Obama has said that he wants a transition to a new government right away, but what that actually means is unclear, Keller said. “There is no good answer,” he said. “If we push for a government in Egypt,
5
OPINION Assault investigation
A Lambda Chi Alpha alumnus is upset with Athletics’ response.
CAROLINE PRENDERGAST / CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Morgan Benton, an ISAT professor, discusses the importance of social media in political demonstrations and the Egyptian government’s ability to shut off the Internet.
we might get an anti-American government. You have to understand how thorny of a situation that is.” If the United States does not take a stand, however, the outlook is not good, said Bernd Kaussler, a political science and panelist. “Mubarak is playing Obama for a fool,” Kaussler said. “Mubarak is a shrewd statesman, he knows what he’s doing.” For years Egypt has been under a military regime. The military is involved in every aspect of Egyptian society, he said. “Everyone thanks God because the military is there, but the military does not want a new government,” Kaussler said. “I hope I’m wrong, but I’m not optimistic.” Susan Ghanem, a junior finance
7
LIFE Research done right
Local nutrition store has offered organic options for years.
major, said she understands just how dire the situation in Egypt is. “The Egyptians who spoke on Facebook are just trying to give a voice to Egyptians that are there,” she said. “That’s our home being destroyed.” Ghanem’s family is Egyptian but she was born in America; she spent last summer in Egypt. After the panel, she hoped JMU students see Egyptians more like themselves, as Americans. “People tell us ‘don’t drink’ and we riot. They are telling them not to work,” she said. “I hope people realize that just because there is fighting, it doesn’t mean that it’s crazy Arabs blowing things up. This has been building for decades.” CONTACT Molly Haas at haasmr@dukes.jmu.edu.
9
SPORTS Secret weapons
Mickey Matthews focuses on future quarterbacks and new recruits.