Monday, September 14, 2009
Vol. 95, Issue 9
THE
DAILY
w w w. T h e D a i l y A z t e c . c o m
AZTEC
Tw i t t e r : T h e D a i l y A z t e c
San Diego State University’s Independent Student Newspaper since 1913
I N S I D E T O D AY STATE OF MIND
Drugs found in fraternity
BACK TO SCHOOL Will President Barack Obama’s speech brainwash or empower America’s youth? Page 3
SPORTS
Nicholas Santiago / Staff Photographer
The upcoming farmer’s market will be held on Campanile Walkway and host about eight to 10 vendors. The weekly event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Market taking over walkway HOME OPENER
Lindsey Martin / Assistant Photo Editor
Read about how the Aztecs beat up on Southern Utah and improved to .500 on the year. Page 5
TODAY @ SDSU Fit for Fun 5 p.m., Peterson Gym 240
This 13-week-long group exercise program consists of an hour and a half of cardio, strength, balance and flexibility training. For more of today’s headlines, visit:
www.thedailyaztec.com
CONTACT GENERAL INFORMATION 619.594.4199
EDITOR
IN CHIEF, FARYAR BORHANI 619.594.4190 EDITOR@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
CITY EDITOR, KEVIN MCCORMACK 619.594.7782 CITYEDITOR@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
FEATURES EDITOR, AMINATA DIA 619.594.6976 FEATURE@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
SPORTS EDITOR, EDWARD LEWIS 619.594.7817 SPORTS@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
STATE
OF MIND EDITOR, ALLAN ACEVEDO 619.594.0509 OPINION@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
TEMPO EDITOR, ANYA MOBERLY 619.594.6968 TEMPO@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
ART DIRECTOR, ELENA BERRIDY 619.594.6979 ARTDIRECTOR@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
PHOTO EDITOR, GLENN CONNELLY 619.594.7279 PHOTO@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
WEB EDITOR, MYLENE ERPELO 619.594.3315 WEB@THEDAILYAZTEC .COM
ADVERTISING 619.594.6977
INDEX STATE OF MIND.............................................................2 DATING & ROMANCE.................................................4 SPORTS............................................................................5 CLASSIFIEDS....................................................................7 THE BACK PAGE...........................................................8
K R I ST I N A B L A K E S E N I O R S TA F F W R I T E R
Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity has been expelled from San Diego State. In agreement with SDSU President Stephen L. Weber, SDSU Vice President for Student Affairs, James R. Kitchen, decided to expel the chapter from the campus community following a Chapter Review Panel hearing conducted by Student Affairs on Aug. 20. The fraternity had been placed on interim suspension pending the outcome of the hearing by Kitchen after the SDSU Police Department searched a house on Lindo Paseo Drive on April 17 yielded a large quantity of illegal drugs and implicated Sigma Alpha Mu members in drug sales. The fraternity was required to cease all activities and maintain all chapter-related facilities alcohol and drug-free during the interim suspension. Still, on June 10, another police search of an apartment in the Sigma Alpha Mu section of Fraternity Row found illegal drugs and evidence of drug sales. Between the two incidents, five people were arrested: three current students, one former student and one non-student. SDSU Director of Media Relations and New Media, Greg Block, said that the university has a zero-tolerance policy toward illegal substances and activities. “I think the message is that there’s no place for these types of activities on campus,” Block said. “This is a place where we want students to feel safe coming to school. We want students to learn and strive and grow and enjoy being in a college atmosphere and there’s no place in our college atmosphere for illegal drugs.” Block added that the two recent incidents were not the first for the fraternity. In fact, he said that the fraternity has a history of policy violations for more than a year. Another of its violations is serving alcohol to minors. Additionally, during Operation Sudden Fall, the campus drug bust in the spring of 2008, the university placed Sigma Alpha Mu on interim suspension and later lifted it.
Block said that the expulsion isn’t directly related to Operation Sudden Fall and compared the two events to “apples and oranges.” “Each incident is reviewed on its own merits over the course of time and disciplinary actions, if they need to be taken, are taken for each incident,” Block said. “These latest, because it was involving the dealing of illegal narcotics, took it to a whole nother level and that’s just not something that’s tolerated on campus.” Tyler Taylor, who became the president of Sigma Alpha Mu in the summer, said that the university’s decision was unexpected. “It’s shocking. It’s like you’ve been devoted to something for so long and then it’s gone,” Taylor, an international business senior, said. “It’s like losing a big part of your life; and then, afterwards, you’re wondering what you’re going to be doing next.” Taylor said the decision was fair, but he believes the punishment was too harsh. The expulsion revokes recognition of the fraternity on campus as an organization for at least four years. The national fraternity can apply for reinstatement after the end of the Spring 2013 semester. While no one was available for comment at the fraternity headquarters, Taylor said he believes they will apply to be reinstated in the future. The chapter has already filed an appeal for a lesser punishment. He said that it seems like the greek community is continually blamed for wrongdoings. “It’s not just the Greeks; (drugs are) everywhere,” Taylor said. “I hate to say this, but it’s college.” Block agreed that some may “point a finger at the Greek system,” but argues they should not. “This should not be seen as an indictment of the Greek system. It’s an unfortunate situation that’s happened. It’s not something that we like to do or that we take lightly, but it is something that would happen again if others choose to engage in these types of activities,” Block said. “There are a lot of good people in the Greek system and fraternities and sororities do a lot of good things for our campus and for our community. I think that should be understood and people should remember that.”
Vendors will sell food and wares at farmer’s market R E E M NO U R S TA F F W R I T E R
To support and promote a more sustainable lifestyle, San Diego State’s Aztec Shops, in partnership with the Enviro-Business Society and the Green Love Board of Associated Students, is organizing a weekly farmer’s market throughout the fall semester. Starting Sept. 17, the farmer’s market will take place every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Campanile Walkway. The goal of the farmer’s market is to provide a variety of vendors who all support sustainability in order to reinforce the “green” message, R.D. Williams, director of Campus Relations and Commercial Development for Aztec Shops, said. The vendors will offer a mixture of products including locally grown fresh produce, prepared food to take home and readymade food items that will be served on sustainable plates and eating utensils, he said. “We want this farmer’s market to be more than just buying food,” Williams said. “We want to spread the message about sustainability.” Instead of having to drive to a grocery store, the farmer’s market will serve as an accessible and sustainable alternative for students to get food, Williams said.
Although the main focus of the farmer’s market is food, vendors selling other types of merchandise and non-profit organizations promoting sustainability will participate in the event as well, according to John Rosselli, management senior and vice president of On-Campus Networking of the Enviro-Business Society. The farmer’s market is a test for the fall semester and it will continue until early December. Both Williams and Rosselli said they are hoping to gather enough support for the farmer’s market to continue it throughout the upcoming spring semester as well. Williams said the farmer’s market will start with eight to 10 vendors, but the goal is to increase that number to 20. The more successful the farmer’s market event is and the bigger it becomes, the more vendors will want to participate at SDSU, he said. “My biggest worry is that it’s going to go really well in the beginning and then slow down,” Rosselli said. “I’m optimistic that it’s going to be a great event.” Rosselli said they want a lot of feedback from students about what vendors they would like to see at the farmer’s market so it can be successful. Students can give their input at the EnviroBusiness Society’s booth, which will be present during the farmer’s market, he said. Students should be advised that vendors at the farmer’s market will accept payments of cash only.
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS San Diego Police are investigating an alleged sexual assault after a female was found in the backyard of a residence early Friday morning. According to a San Diego State Police Media Bulletin, the victim said she was at a party at the Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity house and was sexually assaulted outside the house’s backyard fence. The victim said she fell down the hill
from College Place into a backyard on Tierra Baja Way, where she was found crying and not wearing any clothes. According to the report, the suspect is a white male who was rushing the fraternity. Calls to the San Diego Police Department were not immediately returned.
—Compiled by City Editor Kevin McCormack