Today in Print - February 16, 2011

Ask Student Government President J Hudson about the state of your University on Thursday, see p. 15 for more info

Reveille

Legacy: Former LSU baseball player Eddy Furniss reflects on time at LSU, p. 7

The Daily

www.lsureveille.com

BOARD OF REGENTS

Baseball: Tigers picked by coaches to win SEC West title, p. 9 Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011 • Volume 115, Issue 90

SUNO-UNO merger study halted after students file lawsuit Suit: Board makeup unconstitutional Sydni Dunn Staff Writer

The Board of Regents’ study to analyze the feasibility of merging the University of New Orleans and Southern University-New Orleans has been temporarily suspended

after a court order was issued Tuesday by the 19th Judicial District Court in Baton Rouge.

The order was issued after a lawsuit was filed against the Regents and Gov. Bobby Jindal on Monday.

The suit was filed by former state Sen. Cleo Fields, of The Fields Law Firm in Baton Rouge, and cofiled by Katrina Jackson, of the Law Office of Willie Hunter Jr. on behalf of seven Southern University students from the Baton Rouge and

New Orleans campuses. The lawsuit states the higher education board’s current makeup is unconstitutional, as it has no minority membership and is not representative of the state’s population.

The document calls for a temporary restraining order on the actions of the Regents, which was issued Tuesday.

The Regents’ study, called for by the governor on Jan. 18, was scheduled to be complete by its

March 1 deadline, but work cannot continue until after the scheduled Feb. 24 court hearing.

“Decisions regarding these universities’ merger are being made by a body whose membership is in violation of the Louisiana Constitution,” the lawsuit says.

The Louisiana Constitution states, “the board should be representative of the state’s population by race and gender to ensure diversity.”

The suit argues Jindal removed

all appointed racial minorities from the Board and replaced them with all white males on Dec. 17. Of the 15 appointed members, there are no racial minorities, and only four members, or 26 percent of the membership, are women.

It also states the membership underrepresents the female and black citizens’ population of the state, providing statistics from the LAWSUIT, see page 15

BUDGET CUTS

UNO chancellor search suspended Uncertain future, cuts cause delay Sydni Dunn Staff Writer SHAINA HUNTSBERRY / The Daily Reveille

A cat awaits adoption Tuesday at Project Purr’s Mall of Louisiana location. Project Purr works to save cats from euthanasia by rescuing, fostering or adopting them.

Pets’ Paradise

Statistics show increase in animal adoption in Baton Rouge, euthanasia rate down Tails are wagging in Baton Rouge.

Polk said she wasn’t shocked by the statistics in the news release.

The East Baton Rouge Parish Animal Control and Rescue Center re“We’re encouraged but not surprised,” she said. cently released statistics that show the rate of animal adopPolk said Project Purr holds adoption events every day tion is up and euthanasia has gone down. at its location in the Mall of Louisiana.

Rachel Warren According to a news release from Animal Control, She explained Project Purr has two programs — resStaff Writer 1,766 animals were adopted in 2010, up from 1,514 in cue, foster, adopt for cats pulled from shelters; and trap, 2009. neuter, return for feral cats.

While adoptions went up, the number of euthanized animals went Polk said Project Purr began neutering and returning feral cats to their down with 1,115 dogs and 469 cats euthanized in 2010 — a 29 percent original locations because killing them was inhumane and ineffective. decrease from 2009.

Polk said volunteers catch feral cats, spay or neuter them and vaccinate One reason for the decrease in the rate of euthanasia could be local or- them for rabies, then put the cats back where they found them. ganizations that proactively collect animals from Animal Control and keep Polk said so far the group has sterilized more than 600 cats in the Baton them until they’re adopted.

Rouge area, which equates to prevention of the birth of 60,000 kittens in a Peggy Polk, president of Project Purr Baton Rouge, said the group’s seven-year period. goal is to save as many cats as possible from being euthanized in shelters.

Susan Trahan, a Project Purr volunteer and foster owner to several cats, Polk said the organization has taken more than 640 cats from Animal Control since it was started last May. ANIMALS, see page 15

LSU System President John Lombardi announced Tuesday the search for a new chancellor at the University of New Orleans is temporarily suspended because of the university’s uncertain future, amid talks of a potential merger between UNO and Southern UniversityNew Orleans.

The announcement came after conversations were held between Lombardi, UNO’s national recruiting consultant and the chairman of the search committee. Lombardi e-mailed Search Committee Chairman Gary Solomon Sr. and his fellow committee members to notify them of the decision, according to a news release.

“After reviewing the status of the search process for the Chancellor of UNO, the consultants have indicated that we probably will not be able to identify a satisfactory pool of candidates until some of the uncertainties surrounding the future status, mission and governance of UNO are resolved,” Lombardi wrote.

UNO Provost Joe King will UNO, see page 15

The Daily Reveille

Nation & World

page 2

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

INTERNATIONAL

NATIONAL

STATE/LOCAL

Kyrgyzstan officials plan to shoot 10,000 stray dogs in 2011

Berkeley considers welcoming released Guantanamo detainees

Man is first convicted on recent La. movie bootlegging law

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan (AP) — Officials in the capital of Kyrgyzstan say budgetary constraints are forcing them to shoot the city’s estimated 10,000 stray dogs rather than build shelters for them.

Bishkek city hall spokesman Pavel Klimenko told The Associated Press on Tuesday that around 5,000 strays were shot last year because the impoverished Central Asian nation couldn’t afford kennels that would have cost $300,000.

He said the dogs this year are being killed in the early morning and in the evening by a team of 10 shooters and dog catchers.

Klimenko urged the world not to consider the act barbaric.

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) — The Berkeley City Council is considering a measure that would welcome freed Guantanamo Bay detainees to resettle in the college town.

The resolution set for a vote Tuesday night would invite “one or two” detainees to live in Berkeley once they are cleared of wrongdoing and released from the U.S. detention facility in Cuba.

It would also ask Congress to allow cleared Guantanamo detainees to resettle in the U.S.

(AP) — Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell says a relatively new law that aims to prevent individuals from utilizing recording devices in movie theaters was used to convict a Baton Rouge man of movie bootlegging.

Kevin Casey of the Motion Picture Association of America says the conviction is a first under the law passed by the legislature in 2005.

The attorney general’s office says 55-year-old Terry Lee Briggs was convicted Feb. 10 on six counts of unlawful operation of a recording device.

British Prime Minister finds new ally: Tabby cat to battle rats LONDON (AP) — Prime Minister David Cameron turned to a new recruit Tuesday to help fend off his foes — an ally armed with whiskers, claws and sharp teeth.

Larry, a 4-year-old tabby cat, arrived at his new home at 10 Downing Street, tasked with warding off a pack of rats seen scuttling close to the British leader’s official residence.

The former stray, adopted

MARK LARGE / The Associated Press

Larry, Downing Street’s new official rat catcher, looks out of a window Tuesday in the Prime Minister’s London residence after rats were spotted there last month.

from London’s Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, is the latest pet to be appointed Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, an unofficial pest control post.

Television cameras had captured several sightings of rats around Downing Street — a common problem in London, where the trash on sidewalks provides a constant supply of food.

“I’m delighted to welcome Larry to his new home,” Cameron said in a statement. “I’m sure he will be a great addition to Downing Street and will charm our many visitors.”

Montana gov. blocks slaughter of diseased Yellowstone bison BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer on Tuesday signed an executive order blocking the shipment of hundreds of Yellowstone National Park bison to slaughter.

The Democratic governor said he was worried the shipments could spread the disease brucellosis, now largely confined to Yellowstone’s wildlife, to Montana livestock.

Park officials had planned to slaughter potentially hundreds of bison testing positive for exposure to the disease, which causes pregnant animals to prematurely abort their young.

(AP) — Gov. Bobby Jindal said Tuesday he’ll propose no cuts in the $3.3 billion funding formula for public schools next year, even as colleges and health services are on the chopping block because of budget shortfalls.

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education is expected to vote on the 2011-12 school year funding plan this week, to divvy up money among the state’s 70 school districts in the new budget year that begins July 1.

Black history Month Mr & Miss Imani Pageant Thursday, February 17, 2011 LSU Student Union Ballroom, 7 PM

Black History Month Black Academic Perspectives Lecture Series

Wednesday, February 16, 2011 French House Grand Salon, 12 PM

DO YOU HAVE AN OCCURRENCE? Call Chase at the Student Media Office 578-6090, 9AM- 5PM or E-mail: officemanager@lsureveille.com

Watch a video of how students are being affected by budget cuts.

See photos of lights and flares on the Sharp Shooter Blog.

Join us at flickr.com/groups/ thedailyreveillephotos

Jindal proposes standstill funding for public education next year

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BMLI Informational Meeting Wednesday, February 16, 2011 Feliciana Room (Student Union) 5PM

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The Daily Reveille

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

BUDGET CUTS

page 3

TRANSPORTATION

Environ.

Covered bus stops to be built by end of summer Engineering confident in appeal Andrea Gallo Staff Writer

Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of stories looking at 34 University programs under scrutiny.

The Board of Regents, the body that oversees the state’s higher education system, labeled those programs “under-performing” Jan. 26.

Xerxes A. Wilson Staff Writer

The Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering is confident it will win its appeal against the Board of Regents’ recommendation to close the undergraduate environmental engineering program.

The University must submit to the Regents either its plans to consolidate or cut the programs or its appeal to keep the program funded by Feb. 28.

Environmental engineering professor John Pardue, who is currently working on the department’s response to the Regents’ recommendations, said the department dipped slightly below the average completion requirements last year, but is expecting to graduate its largest classes yet in the coming years.

To be considered a low completer, an undergraduate program must have, on average, graduated fewer than eight students annually in the past three academic years.

Pardue said the program dipped below the eight average but is expecting to graduate 15 students this year.

“We got ahead of this issue about three or four years ago,” Pardue said.

Pardue said the department noticed a lull in graduates and applicants and retooled the program.

Pardue said the curriculum has been revamped and the department recruited corporate donors such as Walmart, which updated and remodeled the program’s laboratories.

“This really helps with recruiting,” Pardue said. “We are actually recruiting really heavily for the program now. We were not really doing much recruiting before.”

Pardue said the program is also improving its attractiveness to out-of-state students after having the program certified in Mississippi and Alabama as Academic Common Market, which allows students from these states to pay in-state tuition when studying environmental engineering at the University because these states’ Universities do not have a similar program.

These changes have greatly increased the program’s outlook. Pardue said the program has 37 students declared in the University College and has seen its applications increase by about 40 percent.

Contact Xerxes A. Wilson at xwilson@lsureveille.com

Two covered bus stops will be added to campus by the end of the summer, according to Student Government Vice President Dani Borel.

One of the bus stops will be on the corner of South Stadium Road and Tower Drive across from the Frey Computing Services Center, and the other will be by Lockett Hall. They will be in the same style as the bus stop in front of the Journalism Building.

Gary Graham, director of the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation, worked with SG to determine budgets and future development plans. He said in an e-mail that the office will fund the bus stops and that “bus amenities and infrastructure” are funded by the student transportation fee.

Borel said more bus stops will be built by an outside company.

These bus stops will be smaller, but they will still be covered.

She said an outside company will build smaller, covered bus stops for free under the stipulation that they can advertise on them.

Those bus stops are in the design and contract phase, Borel said, but there may be a bidding process to determine which company will build them.

“What we mostly did was make the administration aware of how important it was to us,” Borel said.

Borel said she and SG President J Hudson have been asking for the bus stops since the beginning of their administration. They initially

met with Jason Tolliver, University Auxiliary Services director, and discussed plans for building with him, but budget cuts took first priority, Borel said.

They then wrote a memo and attached a legislative resolution in support of the bus stops and sent it to K.C. White, dean of students, and Kurt Keppler, vice chancellor for Student Life and Enrollment Services, Borel said.

Borel said they then looked at cost methods and found outside companies were willing to build the bus stops for free because of the advertising incentive.

Borel and Hudson said they also want a bus stop at the corner of South Stadium Drive and CEBA Lane, and Graham said he is working on a “bus hub” in this area, which will require a building to be taken down.

Graham said eventually there may be up to 10 bus stops on campus with red tiles.

“The weather here at LSU makes the covered shelters a necessity on days of inclement weather or days when it is very hot,” Graham said.

Though the bus stops will be unfinished by the time they leave office, Borel and Hudson haven’t decided if they will label bus stops as “completed” or “in progress.”

“It shows the dedication of our staff,” Hudson said of the initiative.

Contact Andrea Gallo at agallo@lsureveille.com

DAVID LYLE / The Daily Reveille

Students wait at the covered bus stop Tuesday outside the Journalism Building.

Two more covered stops should be built on campus by the end of summer.

Wednesday February 16 SHADY’S

Greek Night - Free cover for Greeks $5 mixed drink pitchers $1 shots Come have a drink, Don’t be a DiCK

Pluckers Wing Bar Mon.: $14.99 All You Can Eat Wings and $3 Pluckers Lemonades Tues.: Kids Eat Free, $3 Mexican Beers and Margaritas Wed: Trivia at 8 pm, $4.50 Mother Plucker Mugs of Bud and Miller Thurs: $15.99 All You Can Eat Wings, $4.50 Mother Plucker Mugs of Bud Light and Miller Lite, $5.50 Patron Margaritas Sun: $3 Pluckers Specialty Shots

3:00-4:00 PM - Survivor: Bush 4:00-4:30 PM - The Ramen 6:30-7:30 PM - The Ramen Repeat 7:00-7:30 PM - Making Moves Repeat 7:30-8:00 PM - The Ramen Repeat Ch 19 8:00-8:30 PM - The Ramen Repeat 9:30-10:00 PM - The Ramen Repeat

The Daily Reveille

page 4

FACULTY SENATE

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

briefly passed around ideas for possibly making Thanksgiving break a week long, and the resolution will be voted upon later in the semester.

Student Government repreCeleste Ansley sentatives presented a resolution Staff Writer regarding the concentrated study Faculty Senate cited a need period, also known as “dead for more research in its decision week,” as new business, meaning to postpone further debate on a the resolution would not be voted resolution for investing money upon. into higher education during its SG asked Faculty Senate to monthly meeting Tuesday. change the policy to say courseThe Senate also unanimous- work outside of class projects are ly passed three prohibited during resolutions at the dead week. meeting and had “This is a reopening discusvision to the cursions on topics rent policy,” said such as changes Jeffrey Wale, SG to Thanksgivdirector of acaing break and demics. the concentrated SG Sen. Scott Michael Martin study period.

Sullivan, College chancellor Senators deof Science, said bated a resolution when a professor urging increased investments in gives an assignment worth 10 higher education, presented by percent of a student’s grade durJustin Walsh, School of Art sena- ing the concentrated study period tor. and the final the following week, Joseph Legoria, Accounting a large portion of the grade is deDepartment senator, said he feels cided at the end of the semester. the Legislature and Board of ReSullivan also said the point gents are tired of hearing about of concentrated study time is to the need to increase spending give students preparation time for to higher education and that the the exam. wording implies a raise in taxes.

Faculty Senate offered many The resolution was then ideas for the resolution, such as amended to read “increase in in- allowing quizzes and graded asvestments” instead of spending. signments that help students preAs the debate on the resolu- pare for the exam, and asked SG tion continued, Chancellor Mi- to consider the ideas before the chael Martin jumped in from the resolution is voted upon. gallery of the Senate Chambers.

Martin said he does not want to go to the Legislature with a resolution showing the University needs to do more research.

“There’s a lot of homework that needs to be done,” Martin Contact Celeste Ansley at said about the resolution. cansley@lsureveille.com After Martin’s input, the Senate unanimously voted to postpone any further debate on the resolution until meeting on March 17.

The Faculty Senate also

Rachel Warren

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

Investment resolution Event supports better business in La. Networking offered delayed for research to local professionals New ‘dead week’ initiative debated

‘‘

‘There’s a lot of homework that needs to be done.’

7:20 a.m., 8:20 a.m.

Noon, 3:20 p.m.

4:20 p.m., 5:20 p.m.

Staff Writer

Business owners from across the state gathered at the Hilton Capitol Center on Tuesday for the firstever Louisiana Entrepreneurship Day. Carol Carter, associate director of the E.J. Ourso College of Business Stephenson Entrepreneurship Institute, said the reason for the event was to encourage entrepreneurship in the state.

“The state of Louisiana was built on entrepreneurship,” she said.

Carter said it’s important to include students because many will own businesses in the future.

“If we want the best and brightest, and to keep our college graduates here, we need to have an entrepreneurship environment here,” she said.

Carter said the event hosted guest speakers and networking sessions in which local business owners were encouraged to meet others from around the state.

She said the event ended late Tuesday evening with a town hall meeting where attendees could speak with an entrepreneurship panel to learn how to implement ideas in Baton Rouge.

Carter said her hopes are high for this event in the future.

“I know our chamber and state government recognize the importance of this,” she said.

Kevin Langley, a member of the SEI advisory board, was one of the event’s organizers.

Langley said he agrees it’s important for students to become interested in entrepreneurship.

“It’s showing them that it’s a real career choice,” he said.

Jill Roshto, SEI director of development, said public response to the event was encouraging.

“We knew there was a large

BLAIR LOCKHART / The Daily Reveille

Ryan A. Furby, corporate communications director for digital and social media strategies at FedEx, speaks at Louisiana Entrepreneurship Day on Tuesday.

interest in entrepreneurship in Baton Rouge, but we really see it here,” she said.

Roshto said about 300 people registered for the event and several others attended without signing up.

“It really exceeded our expectations,” she said. “It was twice as

many as anticipated.”

Roshto said another entrepreneurship event is planned for the fall, and she expects Louisiana Entrepreneurship Day to continue annually.

Contact Rachel Warren at rwarren@lsureveille.com

The Daily Reveille

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

page 5

HEALTH

AgRes College begins new fitness challenge this semester Program promotes student exercise

Q: Is a fitness challenge a good way to get freshmen more physically active?

Kate Mabry Contributing Writer

Students living in the College of Agriculture’s Residential College will be using pedometers throughout the spring in their first fitness challenge.

The students will count their steps each day throughout the semester, and the group with the most steps will win the competition.

At least 150 pedometers have been given out by the College of Agriculture, and participants for the competition, which ends April 30, include students from all seven floors of Blake Hall and the AgCollege administration, faculty, staff and student workers, said Betsy Garrison, associate dean of the College of Agriculture.

The program should prevent students from gaining weight, and in some cases, it may even help them lose weight if followed correctly, according to Sandra May, coordinator of Extension’s LA on the Move

CAMPUS CRIME BRIEFS Man pulled over for lights, caught with handgun, fake marijuana A 29-year-old University student was charged Feb. 10 with driving with no headlights and possession of synthetic marijuana and a weapon.

Michael Terry, of 39483 Old Cornerstone Court in Prairieville, was pulled over by LSU Police Department officers at 12:29 a.m. for driving without headlights on Highland and West Parker roads, said Sgt. Blake Tabor, LSUPD spokesman.

The LSUPD officer said Terry seemed nervous, so the officer secured permission to search Terry’s vehicle.

Upon obtaining permission, Terry admitted to having a Smith and Wesson .40 caliber handgun in the vehicle, which is illegal when carrying illegal substances, Tabor said.

During the search, the officer found 0.7 grams of synthetic marijuana, which Tabor said recently became illegal, and rolling papers, Tabor said. Terry was charged and booked in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison.

Students caught smoking in dorm, one charged with possession Two students were caught Feb. 11 with 4.1 grams of marijuana, two Concerta pills and drug paraphernalia at Graham Hall.

LSUPD officers were called to room 235 at 12:30 a.m. to investigate an aroma of marijuana coming from the room.

Upon entering, William Dewey, 18, of 4654 Hickory Ridge Road in Jackson, Miss., and Jon Blacklock, 18, 1011 Portrush Court in Katy, Texas, admitted to smoking marijuana in Blacklock’s room, Tabor said.

Rachel Yarabou

‘Not really.

I already walk around on campus a lot.’

undeclared junior

Ali Roussel

‘It’s a good way to get them active, and ... will definitely get them motivated.’

finance junior

Spencer Cobb

‘It’s important for freshmen to get out and do something.’

finance junior

Walking Program.

“The purpose of this fitness challenge is to help increase the physical activity of the participants and to show them that exercise is not only beneficial to one’s health, but also fun to do, especially when you have the help of friends’ motivation and a goal to work towards,” Jamie Mascari, graduate assistant in the College of Agriculture, said in an e-mail.

During the first week of the Fitness Challenge, Blake Hall’s second floor raced to first place with a combined 497,169 steps, equaling 248 miles, Garrison said.

In addition to the use of pedometers, the students will enter their

daily number of steps into the America on the Move website.

The America on the Move Foundation is a national non-profit organization. Its mission is “to improve health and quality of life by promoting healthful eating and active living among individuals, families, communities and society,” according to the foundation’s website.

AOMF offers the opportunity to participate in the program to several states in the country, and the University accepted the offer to join, said Ellen Murphy, associate director at the School of Human Ecology.

The University contributed money to the foundation, and students were given free pedometers to

watch and record their daily activity, Murphy said.

Several years ago, the AgCenter became a partner with the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, and the University put money up front to create a database to collect the number of steps from participants, May said.

“We do nutrition programs with the general public and the elderly,” May said. “We wanted to see if we could improve their nutrition and health of their family.”

Louisiana has a higher obesity rate than most other states, and pedometers can be a motivating factor to get people active, May said.

“Dr. Betsy Garrison contacted

The officers conducted a pat-down search of both men and found 2.2 grams on Dewey, Tabor said.

Before officers searched the room, Blacklock said he had marijuana and a bong, Tabor said.

Police found a silver grinder, 1.9 grams of marijuana, a pill bottle containing two Concerta pills and a black humidifier, which is similar to a vaporizer, Tabor said.

Dewey received a misdemeanor summons for possession of marijuana. Blacklock was charged with possession of marijuana, two Concerta

pills and paraphernalia and booked in EBR Prison, Tabor said.

LSUPD where he refused to take a breathalyzer test, Tabor said.

Sullivan was charged and booked in EBR Parish Prison.

Student refuses breathalyzer, receives DWI early Sunday morning A University student was charged on Feb. 13 with DWI and careless operation of a vehicle.

Steven Sullivan, 21, of 3923 Overlook Point Court, was stopped

by LSUPD at 2:42 a.m. for wreckless driving and speeding through the Hart parking lot, Tabor said.

Sullivan failed field sobriety tests before being transported to

Contact The Daily Reveille’s news staff at news@lsureveille.com

us to get her students involved in the walking program through the Fitness Challenge,” Murphy said.

“Apparently, it is as successful with her students as it has been with our clientele.”

The pedometers will make students aware of their daily activity, and organizers hope this program will increase physical fitness for some students, Garrison said.

While using the America on the Move website, students will track their steps every day. Participants have been asked to measure their normal amount of steps per day and increase the number by 2,000 steps.

In addition, they will decrease their average daily caloric intake by 100, May said.

The floor with the most number of steps will receive a prize at the end of the semester.

“We haven’t decided on anything yet, but I’d like to see a bicycle, bicycle tire pump or tennis shoes for the winning floor,” Garrison said.

Contact Kate Mabry at kmabry@lsureveille.com

The Daily Reveille

page 6

STATE

Jindal campaign fundraising report to show $9.2 M on hand

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

FUNNY PEOPLE

The Associated Press (AP) — Gov. Bobby Jindal has $9.2 million in his campaign account for his fall re-election bid, showing a continued fundraising prowess that could make it difficult for Democrats to find a challenger to jump in the governor’s race.

The Republican governor’s latest campaign finance report will show $3.6 million raised in 2010 and $12.3 million total brought in for this election cycle, said his chief of staff, Timmy Teepell, who previewed the report before it was officially filed.

Teepell called it “enough to run a good campaign.”

The report, showing Jindal’s contributions and spending from last year, is due to the Louisiana Ethics Administration Program on Tuesday, along with finance reports from all the statewide elected officials.

The reports are considered a bellwether of the strength of the officials’ re-election bids before the Oct. 22 primary election.

“We continue to be aggressive in raising the resources we need to put our message in front of the voters. I hope the voters will entrust me to serve them for a second term,” Jindal said when asked about his latest report.

In office since 2008, Jindal has no announced competitors so far, though several Democrats — including wealthy contenders who could help finance their own campaigns — are rumored to be considering a possible campaign as the governor’s approval ratings have dipped.

The sign-up period for the race is in September.

“We’re not going to be complacent. We’re not going to take anything for granted,” Jindal said.

The governor’s fundraising pace slowed slightly from 2009, when he had raised $5 million as he crisscrossed the country and held at least three dozen fundraisers in different states. Last year, he attended fewer than a dozen outof-state fundraisers for his own campaign.

That’s because he was mired in the Gulf oil spill disaster throughout the summer.

He later spent most of the midterm election cycle stumping for candidates in other states and raising cash for GOP causes and organizations expected to help build his profile nationally. Doing so didn’t necessarily create dollars for his own campaign account.

Still, Jindal has nearly reached his fundraising total from his 2007 race, when he had collected about $13 million. He spent $11 million on that campaign, with much of the money raised in the final months.

The governor has denied he is running for anything besides reelection this year, but he has traveled the country extensively in the last three years to raise money for himself and other Republicans.

He has tapped into an extensive

SHAINA HUNTSBERRY / The Daily Reveille

ADAM VACCARELLA / The Daily Reveille

Gov. Bobby Jindal speaks Jan. 31 at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center.

network of GOP fundraising and consulting firms that could help launch future political campaigns on a national stage.

Other campaign finance reports for the 2010 fundraising period included: —Treasurer John Kennedy raised the most among statewide elected officials after Jindal. Kennedy’s report showed him raising more than $1 million in the last year and ending the period with $1.4 million in the bank. Although Kennedy has been publicly critical of several of Jindal’s budget proposals, the Republican treasurer insists he is only running for reelection.

—Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne, a Republican, showed $146,538 on hand, after running a special election to get the job. Dardenne took office in November and left his previous position as secretary of state.

—Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, who recently switched

to the GOP, reported $466,854 in his account, most of it raised in the last year.

—Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon, a Republican, reported $404,795 in the bank.

—Agriculture Commissioner Mike Strain, a Republican, reported $186,459 in his campaign coffers.

—Former Gov. Kathleen Blanco, a Democrat who left office in 2008, still has more than $2.1 million in her campaign account.

She spent $208,764 in the latest reporting period, including thousands in donations for Democratic candidates and the state party. She contributed to Caroline Fayard’s failed bid for lieutenant governor and Charlie Melancon’s lost election for the U.S. Senate. She also gave $26,500 to the Louisiana Democratic Party.

Contact The Daily Reveille’s news staff at news@lsureveille.com

Adrian Wintz, mass communication freshman, auditions for a spot in LSU’s Last Comic Standing on Tuesday. “I hate how toilet paper companies call their product bath tissue,” Wintz joked. “It sounds too fancy and elegant. It’s a product designed to clean up your [butt].”

See a video about Last Comic Standing auditions at lsureveille.com

Today in sports: Softball takes in Southeastern Louisiana at 6 p.m. at Tiger Park

Sports

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

Living Legend

Former Tiger Furniss finds calling post-stardom Rowan Kavner Sports Writer

“It would kill some men to get so close to their dream and not touch it. They’d consider it a tragedy,” Ray Kinsella said to Dr. Moonlight Graham in “Field of Dreams.”

Graham, a minor league player who was called up to a professional baseball game but never got an at-bat, responded, “If I’d only gotten to be a doctor for five minutes — now that would have been a tragedy.”

Few athletes are able to make a difference outside their respective sport — former Tiger Eddy Furniss was one of the few.

The 6-foot-4-inch, 220-pound first baseman was more than an imposing figure. Thirteen years after his final college game, Furniss is still the all-time Southeastern Conference leader in hits (352), home runs (80), RBIs (308), doubles (87) and total bases (689).

Those numbers put him third in total bases, fourth in home runs and doubles and fifth in RBIs in the history of college baseball.

“He was loved by his teammates and respected as a competitor,” said former LSU coach Skip Bertman. “Fans would get on him wherever we’d go but by the third game would be standing and clapping.”

Furniss won three SEC titles, went to three College World Series and won two national championships in 1996 and 1997.

He received the Dick Howser Trophy in 1998 as college baseball’s most outstanding player, hitting .403 with 28 home runs and 76 RBIs. “I had this irrational certainty that I was going to get a hit every time I went to the plate,” Furniss said.

Even greater than his athletic prowess was his ability to give all it up. Furniss did something most athletes would never dream of doing. He walked away before he FURNISS, see page 11

page 7

SWIMMING & DIVING

Swimmers attempt to best diving success Trepp strives for individual title Albert Burford Sports Contributor

photo courtesy of STEVE FRANZ / LSU Sports Information

Former LSU first baseman Eddy Furniss, now a doctor, gears up for a grounder in the 1997 College World Series.

The diving segment of the 2011 Southeastern Conference Championships left LSU in fourth place on the men’s side and eighth place on the women’s side.

Now it’s time for the LSU swimming team to continue the effort in Gainesville, Fla., when the SEC Swimming Championships start today.

Points earned by swimmers will be added to the divers’ scores for a final score Saturday when the championships wrap up.

The SEC Swimming Championships bring some of the strongest competitors in the country together for one meet.

“The top four teams here are all in the top 10 in the country,” said LSU swimming coach David Geyer. “There is no other meet like this in the country as far as the atmosphere, teams and crowd.”

But LSU doesn’t lack talent.

Senior Jane Trepp heads into the championships with the No. 2 time in the country in the 50-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly.

Trepp is the top seed for the 100yard butterfly in the championships and second seed for the 50-yard freestyle.

TREPP, see page 11

SOFTBALL

Busy Tigers battle Southeastern Heyward shines as hitter, base stealer David Helman Sports Contributor

At the rate it’s going, the LSU softball team will have shaken the rust off after just two weekends.

No. 18 LSU (6-0) is just five days into its season, and the Tigers have already played three doubleheaders with two more to come at week’s end.

“It’s just the way it is. We have to jam so many [games] in to get ready for conference play,” said LSU coach Yvette Girouard. “We’re already 6-0 after just three days.”

After so much softball, the prospect of playing just one game seems like a break. LSU hosts its first midweek game of 2011 tonight, with Southeastern Louisiana (3-2) coming to Tiger Park at 6 p.m.

Midweek games have been an Achilles heel for the Tigers in recent seasons — something Girouard attributed to her experimental tendencies.

Heading into the second week of the season, Girouard said she might rearrange things to give some younger players, like freshman outfielder Alex Boulet and freshman utility player Jacee Blades, a chance to contribute.

“Blades might play some infield so we can get her some more at bats. We might try to get Boulet

some at bats,” Girouard said. “Those are some kids that can really run and help us, so we might do that.”

Girouard also noted the motivation factor for in-state schools playing against Louisiana’s most high profile program.

“They’re always going to be excited to play here,” Girouard said.

“Sometimes we can’t match that intensity.”

Based on LSU’s fast start, those may not be concerns this time around. The Tigers pounded the opposition by a combined total of 41-8 during opening weekend.

The Tiger lineup, which Girouard fretted over during the team’s media day last week, delivered a SOUTHEASTERN, see page 11

BRIANNA PACIORKA / The Daily Reveille

Freshman outfielder Simone Heyward looks at a pitch during one of the Lady Tigers’ wins Saturday. Heyward, the team’s leadoff hitter, stole six bases this past weekend.

The Daily Reveille

page 8

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Jones lends enthusiasm, energy to Lady Tigers “I’m not a big scorer, but I find other areas where I can help my team out, whether it’s defending or rebounding or just getting players open,” she said. “I do need to make better decisions on Rachel Whittaker passing the ball. Sometimes they Sports Writer tend to get deflections on the ball, Courtney Jones’ father ad- or I try to force the pass to where mits he initially underestimated it’s not open.”

Cleveland said Courtney’s his daughter’s basketball abilimajor downfall is overanalyzing. ties.

“She tries so hard and tries But the Midfield, Ala., native found her way into the gym to do everything,” he said. “She’s on Saturday mornings with her unselfish. ... She’ll make a pass father, Cleveland. She had a shot when she should make a shot, and to learn the game in elementary when she gets to the free throw line she gets so tense. I have to school.

“She’s always been a head- tell her to settle down and breathe strong kid,” Cleveland said. “I let or you’ll have an aneurysm.”

Courtney said nerves were an her start doing the drills with me ... technique-wise, she just had it initial factor in the Auburn game.

“When I came out there I in her. She put down the debuwas pretty nervous ... I really tante balls and stuck with it.”

Jones, now a junior, came to wasn’t finishing shots,” she said.

LSU ranked as one of the top 20 “I decided to put more into playforward prospects in the country ing defense and getting stops

by HoopGurlz.com. She has pri- around the basket, and I got more marily come off the bench, start- relaxed.”

Courtney reached double ing 24 of 88 career games played, but the enthusiasm she brings to figures in four earlier games this season, includthe court does not ing consecutive go unnoticed.

18-point efforts “Courtney against Louisiana is an energizer, Tech and Prairie a spark plug,” View A&M in said LSU senior December. It was guard Katherine her first career Graham. “When game with doushe comes on the ble figures in recourt, you see a bounds, eclipsing tremendous enher previous caergy boost with Cleveland Jones reer high of nine. the team. That’s a Courtney Jones’ father LSU coach good formula for Van Chancelany team to have, a player we can look forward to lor contemplated starting Jones against Kentucky, but he said the coming in.”

Jones stepped up in LSU’s coaching staff was split on the ishome game Feb. 10 against Au- sue. Courtney eventually scored burn, recording her first career seven points and three rebounds double-double with 11 points and in 20 minutes off the bench.

“The greatest misnomer 11 rebounds in 26 minutes off the about coaching is that it’s who bench.

Jones said she has a knack starts the game,” Chancellor said. for “anticipating the flow” of the “It’s who finishes the game.”

Cleveland said LSU was on game, although she said her passCourtney’s mind since age 7, ing can be shaky.

Junior forward gets first double-double

‘‘

‘She’ll make a pass when she should make a shot. ... She gets so tense.’

EMILY SLACK / The Daily Reveille

Junior forward Courtney Jones dribbles downcourt during the Tigers’ 55-52 win against Auburn at the PMAC on Thursday.

when a stuffed LSU Tiger was one of her precious possessions.

Back in Midfield, population 5,635, Cleveland said Courtney is a celebrity.

“She’s an icon here in Alabama,” he said. “I had a guy stop me the other day to say he knew Courtney when she was a baby.

I can go to my hometown and they’ll be like, ‘Give me a Courtney Jones jersey.’”

Courtney said her idol is Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant. Her father encourages her to remember Bryant’s leadership under pressure when she tries to undertake too much.

“I love that man,” Courtney said of Bryant. “I have a pair of his shoes, and I watch all his games.”

Follow Rachel Whittaker on Twitter @TDR_Whittaker

Contact Rachel Whittaker at rwhittaker@lsureveille.com

The Daily Reveille

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

page 9

WOMEN’S TENNIS

Lady Tigers travel to New Orleans in search of first win Team has dropped all doubles matches Hunt Palmer Sports Contributor

A pair of losing streaks are on the line Wednesday in New Orleans.

The LSU women’s tennis team, mired in a three-match skid to begin the 2011 season, travels to the Big Easy for the second time in two weeks to take on Tulane (2-4) at 2 p.m.

The Tigers (0-3) faced Texas Tech in the New Orleans Hilton on Feb. 2 in a match moved from W.T. “Dub” Robinson Stadium due to inclement weather.

LSU dropped the match to the Red Raiders, 5-1.

The Tigers, winless on the season, can point to a startling

photo courtesy of STEVE FRANZ / LSU Sports Information

Junior Whitney Wolf returns a shot in pratice. Wolf is looking to help the Lady Tigers win their first match Wednesday against Tulane.

0-6 start in doubles as the root of their struggles.

“We had match points against [Texas] A&M in No. 1 doubles,

and we were up in No. 3 doubles, and we were up against Rice,” said LSU coach Tony Minnis.

“One thing we emphasized all

BASEBALL

LSU tabbed preseason No. 1 in West Florida picked to finish first overall

Michael Lambert Sports writer

Southeastern Conference baseball coaches aren’t fazed by the youth of LSU’s baseball team this season.

The Tigers, who welcome 18 new players to the squad, were voted to finish first in the SEC West in the annual preseason coaches poll.

“You certainly like to have the respect of your peers, but it doesn’t really mean anything,” said LSU coach Paul Mainieri.

LSU earned 63 out of a possible 66 points to finish ahead of Arkansas in the West.

“We do have a good core group of guys,” Mainieri said.

“We did have the No. 1-ranked recruiting class.”

Auburn, division winner in 2010, is predicted to end the season third.

Florida was the unanimous pick to win the SEC East. The Gators were SEC Champions last season after a 22-8 record, and they enter the year as the No. 1 team in the Baseball America poll.

“They’ve got a lot of things going for them,” Mainieri said.

“Certainly it would be shocking if they weren’t picked No. 1.”

DAVID LYLE / The Daily Reveille

LSU shortstop Austin Nola practices batting before a scrimmage Tuesday. The Tigers were picked to win the SEC West division in the preseason coaches poll.

LSU sits 22nd on the Baseball America poll and will open the 2011 campaign Friday night against Wake Forest in Alex Box Stadium.

“You get what you earn on the field,” Mainieri said. “You’re not going to start the game with an additional run.”

Preseason polls haven’t always nabbed the correct winners.

LSU was selected to win the West in 2010 coming off a national championship season, but the Tigers finished fifth in the division.

The 2008 team had the opposite experience. LSU was predicted to finish fifth in 2008, but

ended up first in the SEC West.

This year’s team has an influx of fresh faces, but they do return experienced players such as juniors shortstop Austin Nola, outfielder Mikie Mahtook and infielder Tyler Hanover.

“There’s a lot of tradition at LSU,” Mainieri said. “People expect LSU to be in the hunt every year. Hopefully at the end of the year we’ll be at the top.”

Follow Michael Lambert on Twitter@TDR_Lambert.

Contact Michael Lambert at mlambert@lsureveille.com

week is that we weren’t doing a very good job of serving and returning. Until you get to the point where you can actually get the point going, you’re going to have trouble.”

Minnis’ squad has competed respectably in singles play, splitting the six matches in each of their last two outings. But the doubles losses have proven too difficult to overcome in the 4-3 defeats at the hands of Rice and Texas A&M. Another thorn in the Tigers’ side has been the odometer.

To open the spring season, LSU has traveled to Charlottesville, Va.; New Orleans; Houston and College Station, Texas.

The team now faces trips to New Orleans and Dallas before taking their home court for the first time on Feb. 26.

With constant travel and

chilly temperatures, the practice schedule has been drastically altered.

“We went pretty much a month where we we’re all over the city trying to figure out what we’re going to do,” Minnis said.

“With the last couple of days we’ve had ... the consistency that comes with being able to practice should pay.”

Minnis hopes practice benefits are coming at just the right time.

“It’s definitely a rivalry,” said Minnis of the Tulane match.

“We know they’re going to be up for us. We’ve just got to be ready to play.”

LSU won last season’s tilt at the “Dub,” 4-3.

Contact Hunt Palmer at hpalmer@lsureveille.com

The Daily Reveille

page 10

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Low-key commitment anticipating a promising Tiger future Isaac recovered after knee surgery Mark Clements Sports Contributor

John Isaac didn’t waste any time with his college decision.

The Pickering High School shooting guard committed to LSU on March 9, 2009, and hasn’t looked back.

“I’ve always wanted to be a Tiger,” said Isaac, who committed early during his sophomore season. “I just went ahead and did it then so I can get all that stuff out the way.”

The Leesville native averaged 18.5 points and 11.5 rebounds per game and was named First Team All-District 4-2A his sophomore year.

He recorded 20 double-doubles in 33 games and four tripledoubles that season, which excited coaches early on about the young athlete’s future.

“With guys like John, it’s not a hard evaluation,” said LSU coach Trent Johnson. “At that time we thought there was no question he had the chance to be a special player.”

Interest began pouring in for Isaac from schools across the country like Texas, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Clemson, Ole Miss, Kentucky and Kansas, but Isaac chose to stay close to home.

“LSU was always the school he wanted to go to, and LSU is where I wanted him,” said Isaac’s mother, Delilah. “He’s happy, and I’m happy.”

But his bright future took a dark turn.

‘There was Isaac tweaked knee in no question his the summer of he had the 2009, making chance to a move to the basket while be a playing for the special S h r e v e p o r t Louiplayer.’ based siana Select Trent Johnson AAU team in Orlando, Fla. LSU men’s T h e basketball coach 6-foot-4-inch, 210-pounder underwent surgery in September of 2009 and again in August to repair a torn ACL. “You hate to see young people get surgeries ... but we were very supportive,” Johnson said. “I don’t back away from my commitment to young men, and he showed a lot of toughness coming back after surgery.”

Isaac said Johnson and his staff were supportive during recovery and never lost faith in his ability.

“He gave me a call the next day and told me ‘It doesn’t matter, we’re still going to be interested in you, and we still want you to be a Tiger,’” Isaac said. “I felt really good about that.”

Isaac said he got out of the hospital and hit the ground running with his rehab.

Eddie Thomas, who has coached Isaac since middle

photo courtesy of DANIEL GREEN / The Leesville Daily Leader

Pickering High School guard John Isaac dribbles past a defender Nov. 27. Isaac, who tore his ACL, says he is at full strength.

school, complimented Isaac’s work ethic and said he never questioned the future Tiger’s commitment and dedication to the recovery process.

“He’s very committed,” Thomas said. “I’ve come up here on the weekends and opened the weight room up for him many times.”

Isaac’s hard work is paying off. Not only has he been a starter on the school’s varsity team since seventh grade, but in his junior season Isaac earned a first-string

job on the defensive line of the Red Devil football team.

“Last year, playing [basketball] without him, it was difficult,” said Thomas, who is also an assistant coach for the Pickering football team. “I did try to talk him out of [playing football], but Coach Johnson was all for it.

He expressed that he likes him to play as many sports as he [can].”

Isaac is only playing one sport under Johnson, who called his future pupil “exactly what we need.”

Isaac signed with LSU in November, along with forward Johnny O’Bryant.

O’Bryant committed to LSU on Oct.14.

Contact Mark Clements at mclements@lsureveille.com

The Daily Reveille

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

TREPP, from page 7

FURNISS, from page 7

ever made it past Double A ball in the minor league system.

It wasn’t to sulk after five injury-plagued minor league seasons or to wallow in self-pity about a dream that faded. It was to focus his energy on a new vision.

He wanted to be a doctor like his father, who worked more than 300 miles away in Nacogdoches, Texas, but attended every weekend series at LSU while Furniss was a Tiger.

“I saw how people approached him in town, how much difference he made in peoples’ lives,” Eddy Furniss said. “He saved their mother or their kid. He saved lives. You can’t put a price on that.”

Furniss married his high school sweetheart, Crystal, who was with him through every tough decision, from LSU to the ‘I always minor league afwanted to filiates of the Pirates, be a small Pittsburgh Oakland Athletics town and Texas Rangdoctor.’ ers.

She said she Eddy Furniss remembers when Furniss realformer LSU first baseman ized his true passion. In 2002, he called her before a baseball game in Shreveport while he was playing for the Rangers’ Double-A affiliate.

Crystal said she was worried because she never received phone calls from him before games. He proceeded to tell her he was released, and he felt relief rather than sorrow.

“He knew it was time,” she said.

“He started studying for the MCAT and started medical school and never looked back. I think this was his calling, and baseball was an avenue and a path but not what he was meant to do.”

Furniss, a three-time Academic All-American, had the grades to achieve that goal.

He went to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth to complete his medical residency, the same facility his father attended. Furniss was one of only seven in his class of 215 to choose family medicine, the same profession his father selected.

“I chose it because I felt I could do the most good for the most people, and I had a good example in my father,” he said. “I always wanted to be a small town doctor.”

Furniss was inducted into the College Baseball Hall of Fame in July 2010 and continues to practice medicine in Nacogdoches.

He has three children and has coached his 7-year-old son in baseball for three years.

“That’s really how I get my joy out of baseball now,” Furniss said.

“I have not missed playing baseball.

I don’t want that to sound bad, but I really played for so long and so hard.”

Though he has left Baton Rouge, he isn’t forgotten. LSU coach Paul Mainieri asked junior shortstop Austin Nola why he wore the No. 36, an unusual number for a shortstop.

“He said, ‘That’s because Eddy Furniss wore No. 36, and I want to be like Eddy,’” Mainieri said.

Follow Rowan Kavner on Twitter@ TDR_Kavner.

Contact Rowan Kavner at rkavner@lsureveille.com

page 11

DAVID LYLE / The Daily Reveille

Freshman pitcher Meghan Patterson, Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week, pitches during the Lady Tigers’ 10-2 win against Louisiana Tech on Sunday.

SOUTHEASTERN, from page 7

team batting average of .368. Three juniors — infielder Anissa Young, infielder Juliana Santos and outfielder Ashley Langoni — combined to provide 18 RBIs. “The whole team is really working,” Santos said. “I think we produced from one through nine.”

Of particular prominence was freshman outfielder Simone Heyward, who sparkled in the leadoff spot vacated by former senior Kirsten Shortridge.

“I came out here and did what I was supposed to,” Heyward said.

“There are things I can still work on, but that comes in time.”

Heyward batted .412 for the weekend, knocking two triples and scoring 11 runs. She also frustrated opposing pitchers, stealing six bases during the course of the weekend.

“I hit second ... and four or five times she was on third already with

no outs,” Santos said. “As long as I make contact, she’s going to score.

She’s very dynamic.”

The Tigers’ pitching staff was dynamic in its own right, as LSU’s three pitchers combined for a 1.26 ERA. The best performance of all came from incoming freshman Meghan Patterson, who posted a 2-0 record and a 0.54 ERA on the way to being named Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week.

“The freshmen did awesome,” Santos said. “Patterson did absolutely amazing for us, and all the pitchers pitched great.”

Despite the early success, Girouard said Wednesday’s lineup won’t be the final edition. Two of LSU’s seniors, infielder Jessica Mouse and outfielder Ashley Applegate, are still injured and not ready for action.

Contact David Helman at dhelman@lsureveille.com

A Trepp win would be the first SEC individual championship for a Lady Tiger swimmer since 1997.

“We expect a good meet from Jane,” Geyer said. “But we have strong athletes in all of our events.”

Sophomore Andrei Tuomola, a member of the SEC 2010 AllFreshman team, will look to lead the No. 22 men’s side in Gainesville. He is third in the SEC in the 100-yard breastroke, fourth in the 50-yard freestyle and seventh in the 100-yard freestyle.

Seniors Hannes Heyl and Clint Hallum are also looking to score points for the Tigers. Heyl ranks fifth in the conference in the 100-yard butterfly, while Hallum is the team leader in the 200-yard individual medley, the 400-yard individual medley and the 200-yard breastroke.

Hallum enters the meet with the SEC’s 10th-fastest 200 individual medley time.

Freshman Cari Blalock will look to be one of the Lady Tigers backing Trepp’s efforts. Blalock holds the seventh-fastest time in the SEC for the 200-yard butterfly.

“We seem loose,” Geyer said

after the first day of practice. “I hate to sound overconfident, but I think we’re going to get some outstanding results.”

The events will begin with preliminaries Wednesday morning and continue through Saturday night’s finals.

Contact Albert Burford at aburford@lsureveille.com

The Daily Reveille

Opinion

page 12

THE BOTTOM LINE

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

Cancel the Tampocalypse: o.b. tampons get pricey A shortage of o.b. tampons beginning last fall created a black market for the health product, selling for upward of $100 on eBay in recent months. o.b. derives its name from obstetrics and gynecology or OB/ GYN because the brand is allegedly developed by these doctors.

I’m skeptical about its origins, but the brand has attracted a surprisingly large cult following, Devin Graham both because of Opinion editor its unique origin and its lack of an applicator, which many women claim makes the brand both “green” and more compact.

It’s no surprise then, that when the brand started to disappear off the shelves last fall, some women around the nation began to panic.

In similar situations, when a product disappears or goes into demand faster than suppliers can produce, prices go through the roof, and black markets are common.

Honestly, we go nuts over some pretty crazy stuff. Today it’s tampons, but it wasn’t long ago our own

LSU-Alabama football game tickets weren’t worth a cup of coffee. Elmo, with his tickle-me tendencies, embarrassed many a people in his day.

In fact, it seems the things we obsess over the most are usually ridiculous.

Imagine, if you will, that you are some form of intelligent life looking down on our little blue planet. Imagine your surprise when you saw how we hoard things like toys and tampons, disrupting our lives, economy and sanity over the most mundane parts of our life.

You’d have to assume our lives were empty and our aspirations absolutely pathetic, but that would be too harsh. We can’t help ourselves, it seems, from taking something rather tame and innocuous and devoting our full attention to it.

And so was the case during the Dutch Golden Age when in February 1637, the price of a tulip’s bulb reached its peak. Ten times the annual wage of a skilled worker could buy anyone who desired it a thing like a single, lonely bulb.

It is considered one of the first recorded times when we went absolutely crazy and in our frenzied desire, coveted small idols that stand to represent higher ideals: our pride,

our desire to appear rich and high class and least of all, our desire to own the object itself.

So it’s not surprising that when our o.b. tampons disappeared mysteriously from the shelves, the black market for tampons formed, and with it, an economic bubble.

In an attempt to get some numbers on the whole situation, and see just how pricey the tampons got, I went to the market — metaphorically, of course.

Using historical prices of o.b. tampons on eBay, I tracked the price per tampon from Dec. 22 through Feb. 15.

Several interesting things showed up.

First of all, we can see a faint increase in prices in the several weeks, leading to their eventual decline. It’s not a perfect bubble, but they retail at around 17 cents, and we see a peak on Jan. 14 at 80 cents per tampon.

That’s huge.

Interestingly, this came after Johnson and Johnson’s announcement on the o.b. website Jan. 10, which stated the brand was now shipping. “There may be a delay of a few days or weeks,” they cautioned, “but we are working with retailers

to restock store shelves as soon as possible.”

The statement relieved concerns that the brand had been discontinued, but prices continued to rise.

On Feb. 3, the o.b. website displayed a new message stating proudly that the brand was restocked in online retailers like Amazon and Soap.com, as well as brick-andmortar locations like Walmart.

Around this time, the average price was only slightly higher than the retail, and with its return to a reasonable price, the bubble was mostly over. Strangely enough, though, people still continued to pay high prices for tampons on eBay. In the end, it doesn’t really matter what you paid for your favorite health item, ladies. It’s back, and as one woman’s tweet so eloquently exclaimed: “My lady parts rejoiced.”

Devin Graham is a 21-year-old business management senior from Prairieville. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_dgraham.

Contact Devin Graham at dgraham@lsureveille.com

o.b. TAMPON PRICES OVER TIME

SHOW ALL COMMENTS

As usual, the Opinion Section of our website, lsureveille.com, has been absolutely buzzing with reader comments. Check it out today, and let your voice be heard.

Regarding Bryant Garcin’s letter to the editor, “Global Warming is a controversy in itself,” readers had this to say: “The ‘experts’ also proclaimed in the ‘70’s that our world was entering an ice age and humans were not long for the planet. Google it.

This was just 35 yrs ago. The same ‘intellectual elitists’ read scientists now rally behind ‘manmade global warming’. I agree with the writer..... nobody has any credible evidence ‘global warming’ is remotely the result of human activity.”

-Anonymous “A little surprising that the commenter giving Bryant an F+ didn’t bring up anti-skeptic book author Ross Gelbspan, who began hammering the idea that the media was giving ‘unfair balance’ to skeptic scientists around 2004-5, despite any real evidence to back up THAT claim, apart from a reference to the Boykoff brothers’ study, which itself referred to Gelbspan to back up its similar claim (see ‘The Boykoff / Gelbspan circle in the con-senseless global warming media coverage’ http://www.freedompub.org/profiles/blogs/but-wait-theres-morethe).

And as I offered in another article on this, in 200+ discussion segments about global warming on the PBS NewsHour from 1996 to the present, only 3 gave any substantial time to presenting the skeptic’s side of the underlying science. Talk about one side dominating the issue..... (see ‘The Left and Its Talking Points’ http://www.americanthinker. com/2010/07/the_left_and_its_talking_point.html)” -Russell C “Great article Bryant. The previous 2 sheeple need to learn to think for themselves.”

-Anonymous “Keep learning, Bryant, because you’re clearly not getting it yet! You don’t even make a point in your letter - which side of the debate is ‘dominating the rhetoric’?

You never tell us! You barely even make an argument, let alone back up any of your vague claims with facts.

I give this letter an F+ PS: global warming is for real.”

-Anonymous

graphic by DEVIN GRAHAM / The Daily Reveille

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The Daily Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Daily Reveille is an independent entity within the Manship School of Mass CommuniEditorial Board cation. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, Sarah Lawson Editor-in-Chief paper or University. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to opinion@lsureveille.com or delivered to B-26 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must have a contact phone Robert Stewart Managing Editor, Content number so the opinion editor can verify the author. The phone number won’t be printed. The Daily ReveilStephanie Giglio Art Director le reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration without changing the origiSteven Powell Managing Editor, External Media nal intent. The Daily Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author.

Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Daily Reveille’s editor-in-chief, hired evDevin Graham Opinion Editor ery semester by the Louisiana State University Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.

Contact The Daily Reveille’s opinion staff at opinion@lsureveille.com

Quote of the Day

“By the way, the point between rationality and what we would call the irrational is a very difficult point to establish.”

Leo Ornstein

American composer Dec. 2, 1892 — Feb. 24, 2002

The Daily Reveille

Opinion

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011

PRESS X TO NOT DIE

page 13

Humans go against IBM supercomputer on ‘Jeopardy!’

It’s a modern-day John Henry story.

For those unfamiliar with the folktale, John Henry was a big, tough, steel-drivin’ son of a gun who worked on the railroad (all the livelong day).

He was the best, but when the railroad owner hired a steam engine to replace his Adam Arinder Columnist workers, Henry challenges the owner to a contest.

Henry bet he could drive more railroad spikes into the ground faster than the steam engine.

As the folklore goes, Henry beat the machine — but, unfortunately, died as he was victorious.

Today wraps up the “Jeopardy!” IBM Challenge.

A three-day tournament pitting two of the greatest “Jeopardy!” players — 74-day champion Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter, the highest monetary winner in

“Jeopardy!” history — against a new challenger named Watson.

Watson is an artificial intelligence program developed by IBM and designed to answer questions posed in natural language.

However, it’s more complicated than it sounds.

Watson isn’t connected to the Internet. He can’t simply Google the correct answer.

Instead, Watson comprises 2880 POWER7 processor cores and 16 terabytes (or 16,000 gigabytes) of RAM — most lowend laptops come equipped with about two gigabytes of RAM. While Watson can’t see or hear anything, he competes on “Jeopardy!” by having the questions fed to him in a text file at the same time host Alex Trebek reads the question aloud to the human players.

Watson then breaks down and analyzes the question, processes thousands of algorithms and picks its top answer before buzzing in.

All in under two seconds.

Basically, it’s thinking.

The interesting thing about “Jeopardy!” questions is they are rather “punny.”

What makes Watson’s technology so impressive is it is frequently able to decipher the puns and still come up with the correct answer.

Puns aside, he also has to be able to fully understand the English language.

Essentially, Watson’s engineers had to “teach” Watson the meaning of words.

For example, you could say a politician runs for office — or you could say a sprinter runs a race.

The same word, “runs,” has two different meanings, so the engineers had to make Watson clever enough to decipher the meaning of the word.

Unfortunately, Watson can’t always get it right.

In practice rounds, Watson didn’t just miss questions — it was nowhere close.

One clue began with, “This non-dairy substance…” and Watson’s response was, “milk.”

Also, on Monday’s show, Jennings rang in to a clue and answered “1920s,” but was incorrect.

However, Watson also came up with “1920s” as his top answer and proceeded to ring in after Jennings to also miss the question.

The tournament is taking place in the Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, N.Y. The actual Watson sits in this facility, next door to the auditorium hosting “Jeopardy!”

Watson fills an entire room surrounded by two enormous refrigerating units to keep it cool.

Similar to how computers used to fill an entire room in the 1950s but were considerably less powerful than modern-day cell phones, it blows my mind to consider that in less than 50 years, people will be able to hold the computing power of Watson in their hands.

Although the special spans three days, only two full games of “Jeopardy!,” which includes Jeopardy!, Double Jeopardy! and

Final Jeopardy!, will be played with segments of Watson’s origin and development intertwined within.

After the first two days, one full game of “Jeopardy!” has been played.

The results after the first two shows (or one full game of “Jeopardy!”) are Jennings at $4,800, Rutter at $10,400 and Watson with a commanding lead of $35,734.

These totals will be added to today’s final round with the winner taking home $1 million.

The type of computing power out there is scary.

Let’s just hope Watson sticks to answering “Jeopardy!” questions and isn’t the beginning of a real-life Skynet.

Adam Arinder is a 21-year-old communication studies senior from Baton Rouge. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_aarinder.

Contact Adam Arinder at aarinder@lsureveille.com

CAMPUS-RESIDENT ALIEN

What is classical and what is popular? It doesn’t matter A friend’s comment on my last column about the marketability of stupidity got to me.

This friend of mine from Colorado saw the link to the column on my Facebook and replied: “Why not write about something smart? Why not write about something you love?”

So I’ve decided to write about music again.

Obviously, music would fit both parameters my friend suggested. I love music, and good music always teases our minds in a positive, constructive way that no other form of communication manages to do.

But some concepts involving the way music is made and distributed to the public are stale and outdated, leaving the intelligence out of the equation.

There’s a broken boundary between what’s called classical music and its apparent opposite — popular music — that’s hard to distinguish.

This isn’t the first time I’ve said there are only two types of music. In every genre, whether it’s classical or pop, music can be separated into two categories: good and bad.

That feels weird to say, because music should be good by definition.

So something is wrong when good classical music and the major ensembles that perform it, as well as the institutions supporting them, start to lose their funding and core structures.

There’s a wonderful artist and an interesting personality on

campus this week that can bring some light to the subject. Pianist and radio-television show host Christopher O’Riley is a resident artist in the College of Music and Dramatic Arts for this academic year, and he will play with the LSU Symphony this Friday.

He’s mostly a classical Marcelo Vieira pianist, but as Columnist a fan of rock music — especially the band Radiohead — he records and often performs his own arrangements of the band’s songs.

It’s a smart way to show the classical music audience that a popular style can be enjoyed in a classical way, as opposed to the sometimes faint efforts to show the larger audience that classical music also has value.

Classical music does have value — although the merit of music isn’t related to whether it’s classical or popular. If you are not willing to sit and listen to music without judging it, it’s going to be hard to appreciate.

But then again, that’s true for many other things in life. We start to realize, quoting O’Riley, that, “a talent for listening is often merely an attitude of openness.”

Defining music as classical or popular should not affect the way people get interested and listen to music, nor should musicians always think that what they do is good and should be appreciated.

The way music is browsed, webcasted and transmitted everywhere is at least a good clue that the way we incorporate music and the multiple options we have of comparing different styles and interpretations of music has changed — and is changing.

Pedro Huff, a Brazilian cellist and great friend of mine, once said something on a TV show in Brazil that goes along with the kind of prejudice that insistently overruns the world of music and stifles its social and cultural potential. The

host asked: “So, playing classical music demands much more preparation, it involves much more education, right?”

The surprising answer, at least to the interviewer, was no.

“If you want good music,” he explained, “if you are a musician of any genre of music, and you want to deliver something that is good to the audience, you’ve got to work, practice, study. It doesn’t matter if it’s classical music.”

We could talk about this simple yet complicated truth for

hours. But it doesn’t prove itself until you go to a concert and see it happening.

Marcelo Vieira is a 33-year-old jazz cello graduate student from Brazil. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_MVieira.

Visit the New Spin Zone ops blog at lsureveille.com.

Contact Marcelo Vieira at mvieira@lsureveille.com

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The Daily Reveille

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011 ANIMALS, from page 1

said she has placed 11 cats in loving homes since she first began working with the group two months ago.

Trahan said she got involved with Project Purr because she’d been doing something similar on her own.

“I had 17 cats. Some were sick, some with one eye. I was doing my own rescue thing,” she said. “And then I got involved with Peggy.”

Malinda Chesne, a Yelp!BR volunteer, said the organization is similar to Project Purr in that volunteers pull dogs from Animal Control shelters.

Chesne said most dogs in shelters are held for six to 14 days before being put down.

Chesne said the group vaccinates and spays or neuters each dog before finding it a home.

She said volunteers have pulled about 700 dogs from shelters since Yelp!BR first started.

One organization working to make a difference that doesn’t show up in the statistics is local group Cat Haven.

UNO, from page 1

serve as acting chancellor and provost for the time being, according to the release.

Lombardi said the search consultants remain optimistic about attracting candidates for the position once the “uncertainties are resolved.”

Though the search process is temporarily suspended, he said the committee and the consultant will remain on standby.

“Although we would have preferred to move more expeditiously, the long-term interests of UNO are paramount, and we believe this is the most prudent action,” Lombardi wrote.

Lombardi referenced the Board of Regents’ study to analyze the feasibility of merging UNO and SUNO as one uncertainty.

Year

2010

2009

2008

2007

Number of euthanasias in E.B.R.

6,023

8,527

8,774

N/A

Number of adoptions, rescues and redemptions in E.B.R.

3,416

2,436

1,953

1,721

Bob Citrullo, executive director of Cat Haven, said the organization is different from those like Project Purr and Yelp!BR. “It’s a good thing, what they’re doing,” he said. “But we do our part to stop it before it gets there.”

Citrullo said the organization, which was founded in 1999, accepts pets from owners rather than collecting them from shelters.

He said offering a reliable place for owners to leave their pets ensures the animals’ health and well being.

“Once they’re in shelters, they get in that high-stress environment, and their immunity goes down,” he said. “We’ll hopefully “After conversations with the search consultants and the chair of the search committee for the UNO chancellor, it appears prudent to suspend the activities associated with the search until the end of the legislative session,” he wrote.

The Regents’ study was suspended on the same day — after a lawsuit was filed on behalf of seven Southern University students from Baton Rouge and New Orleans against the Regents and Gov. Bobby Jindal. The suit states the higher education board’s membership is unconstitutional, as it has no racial minority representatives and only four women members.

Contact Sydni Dunn at sdunn@lsureveille.com

source: Animal Control and Rescue Center news release

offer the public a healthier, more socialized animal.”

Citrullo said the organization also takes in stray cats, but volunteers are more cautious about them than those surrendered by their owners.

“When someone brings in an animal that has nowhere else to go, they know they’ll be safe,” he said.

Citrullo said the shelter has adopted out more than 5,000 cats since it was started in 1999.

Citrullo said he believes the group’s progress will continue.

Contact Rachel Warren at rwarren@lsureveille.com

page 15 file a federal suit against the state for denial of equal access to education 2010 Census. for blacks if fighting legislative ac“The failure of the appointing tion did not work. authority to follow the Constitution“Having just received the lawal mandate and suit this morning, the appoint a Board Board of Regents is which reflects currently reviewing the state’s race the document, and as and gender popin common practice ulation results when dealing with in the Board’s litigation, will not be inability to take making any comments any official acat this time,” Regents tion regarding spokesperson Meg any proposed Casper said Tuesday in merger unless an e-mail.

Meg Casper and until it is The Regents hired Regents spokesperson properly constithe National Center tuted,” the suit for Higher Education reads.

Management Systems, a ColoradoThe lawsuit followed a series based consultant, to assist in the of negative comments from the New merger analysis on Jan. 28. AccordOrleans area regarding the potential ing to the contract agreement, the merger. state agreed to pay NCHEMS up to At a Jan. 26 forum centered $99,000 to complete the study by its on discussion of the merger, SUNO deadline.

Faculty Senate President and former SUNO Chancellor Joseph Bouie said Contact Sydni Dunn at legal action would be the school’s last resort. Bouie said SUNO would sdunn@lsureveille.com

LAWSUIT, from page 1

‘‘

‘The Board of Regents is currently reviewing the [lawsuit] and ... will not be making any comments.’

page 16

The Daily Reveille

Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2011