LA VIDA Y LA MUERTE
QUEENS’ COURT
Graciela Iturbide’s book and exhibit portray her unconscious preoccupation with death
Volleyball sweeps weekend series against Louisiana competition
SEE TRENDS PAGE 6
SEE SPORTS PAGE 12
DEFENDING THE FIRST AMENDMENT SINCE 1911
WWW.UNIVERSITYSTAR.COM
OCTOBER 31, 2006
TUESDAY
VOLUME 96, ISSUE 28
Texas State early-voter count outweighs UT’s, proportionately By A. N. Hernández The University Star During the two-day early voting on campus last Wednesday and Thursday, 898 people cast their ballots in the LBJ Student Center. The number was less than early voter turnout for 2004 and 2005. “In 2004, we had about 1,000 a day in the two-day early voting on campus and it was a presiden-
tial election,” said Joyce Cowan, Hays County elections administrator. “It seems like people tend to vote more in presidential elections,” than gubernatorial ones.” Although the on-campus sites are open to any registered Hays County voters, Cowan said the majority of participating voters were students. She said she is happy students are exercising their right to vote. “I think people need to give
students more credit; they are voting,” she said. “They are like anyone else — when they choose to cast their vote, they will. “I am trying to figure out why some people wouldn’t go to the polls and I think with students, it’s a little hard,” Cowan said. “They are spending a lot of time on studies. They aren’t really studying school boards, city council, etc.” Cowan said students may
think they have to vote on every issue on the ballot, but she said this is not so. “Go and vote. Your vote is going to count,” she said. “You don’t have to vote on everything, just vote.” Sam McCabe, Associated Student Government czar of student registration, said Texas State’s early voter turnout compared well to that of the University of Texas.
“The interesting thing about UT is they have a week of voting and we only have two days. We had around 900 votes on campus and I think this shows Texas State is very willing to participate in the voting process,” he said. Karl-Thomas Musselman, UT government senior, said 2,155 votes were cast within the week of on-campus voting, Oct. 23 though Oct. 29. This number,
Advocates against execution march in Austin By Eloise Martin The University Star AUSTIN — As Walter Reed followed protestors down Congress Avenue, he spoke of his son, Rodney, who was convicted of rape and murder and has been on death row since 1998. “He is innocent. I just keep that on my mind,” Reed said. “We have been fighting since day one.” Reed was one of approximately 300 participants who gathered Saturday for the seventh-annual March to Stop Executions. This year’s march, themed “Innocent People Have Been Executed,” focused on inmates currently on death row and those who have been executed in the past whose families maintain their innocence. The national event highlighted three men who have been executed and who protestors feel with new evidence, could now be found innocent: Cameron Willingham, Ruben Cantu and Carlos De Luna. Willingham was charged in 1992 for the murder of his three children and was executed in 2004. Ruben Cantu was convicted for murder in 1985 and was executed in 1993. Carlos De Luna was convicted for a robbery-slaying in 1983 and was executed in 1989. In his last statement, which can be found at the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Web site, Willingham said he was innocent. “The only statement I want to make is that I am an innocent man, convicted of a crime I did not commit. I have been persecuted for 12 years for something I did not do,” he said. Protestor’s gathered on the steps of the Governor’s Mansion before the march. Stefanie Collins, member of anti-capital punishment group Campaign to End the Death Penalty, addressed the crowd from the steps while wearing a shirt depicting President George W. Bush, which read, “Wanted for murder.” She said the government is in debt to the family members of those executed. “What does the state of Texas owe them for taking these people’s relatives away from them?” she asked.
Monty Marion/Star photos LOUD AND CLEAR: University of Texas graduate student Bryan McCann, member of the Campaign to End the Death Penalty, marches with fellow protestors down Congress Avenue Saturday in Austin to call to an end to capital punishment. PUT IN WRITING: Protestors holding signs condemning the death penalty crowd the sidewalks surrounding the Governor’s Mansion Saturday afternoon in Austin.
Mary Arredondo, De Luna’s sister, spoke on the steps before the march. She said her brother’s execution was a case of mistaken identity. “Nobody believed him; nobody cared,” Arredondo said. “I want his name to be cleared.” After speaking to the crowd, Arredondo slipped a letter under the governor’s fence, asking him to reopen the investigation that convicted her brother. A letter from Eugenia Willingham, Cameron Willingham’s stepmother, was also slipped under the fence as the crowd chanted, “The whole world is watching” and “Governor Perry you can’t hide. We charge you with homicide.” As the crowd prepared to be-
gin their march down Congress Street, Jeannine Scott, whose husband, Michael, is serving a life sentence, thanked those who attended and encouraged them to continue their efforts. “Our system is broken, and it is not going to fix itself overnight,” she said. “We have to make sure that everybody in this city hears us.” The 10-block march stopped traffic and Austin residents who were attempting to cross the street. Barkley Dominey, Austin resident, said he feels the death penalty is in practice because of society. “The way I see it is, if they stop See MARCH, page 4
By Zandria Avila The University Star As simulated gunfire echoed through the wind, 10 cadets from Texas State’s Army ROTC Squad 3 immediately hit the dirt covered with cacti and rocks. “100 meters,” one cadet whispered, estimating distance from the enemy. Approximately 45 cadets from Texas State Army ROTC’s Bobcat Platoon participated in a field training exercise held Friday and Saturday at Freeman Ranch. After several hours of classroom training, the cadets were prepared to engage in the Deleigh Hermes/Star photo weekend’s exercises. LIKE THE GOOD OLD DAYS: Cadets sit in the tall grass of Free“The cadets were taught the Army 5-Paraman Ranch while studying their maps Friday afternoon for the graph Tactic,” said Maj. Andy Sanchez, military science professor. “This teaches them how to individual Land Navigation exercise. After extensive classroom take a position, analyze it and issue a plan to training, the cadets learned how to navigate without the use of their peers.” modern day electronics.
Today’s Weather
87˚/54˚
See VOTES, page 4
ASG picks new options for tram system name By A.N. Hernández The University Star
Field training teaches ROTC real-life navigation skills
Sunny
like Texas State’s early voter turnout, is down from the past two years. Musselman, also the tech director for the 2006 Travis County Democratic Coordinated Campaign, said the “convenience” of on-campus voting sites appeals to students. “At a university with a population of 50,000 and more than
Precipitation: 10% Humidity: 54% UV: 6 High Wind: WSW 6 mph
Two-day Forecast Wednesday Partly Cloudy Temp: 76°/58° Precip: 30%
Thursday Showers Temp: 70°/ 51° Precip: 30%
The day began with a briefing on environmental hazards by Cadet Sgt. Maj. Stacy Rader. “OK, listen up. Some of the wildlife you may encounter out here are bobcats and mountain lions,” Rader said. “There is also poisonous vegetation, poison ivy and poison oak. You can identify it by the yellowish-pinkish color on the leaves.” Cadets became familiar with the terrain through Land Navigation exercises Friday night. Land Navigation is a mission that requires cadets to plot points on a map using only a protractor, pencil, map and their wits. It was an individual mission and the cadets were prohibited to speak to their comrades. Jacob Burlinson, Bobcat Platoon senior cadet, supervised the mission. “They are supplied with items needed in a real-life mission on foreign land,” Burlinson, See ROTC, page 4
After a half-hour committee debate, the Associated Student Government decided Monday on five options for the renaming of the Tram system. The five names ASG recommended are the Texas State Tram, TxTram, Bobcat Bus, Bobcat Tram and a fifth no-name option that would have the Texas State logo and other university advertisements. Students will be able to vote for their choice online or in The Quad on Monday and Tuesday as part of this year’s fall referendum. “Last spring the students voted on the referendum for a new fleet of buses and I think this is the ideal time,” said ASG President Kyle Morris. During his presidential report, Morris blasted an article that appeared in Thursday’s The University Star regarding the types of candidates speaking to ASG. The article addressed concerns from candidates who are not clients of the political consulting firm McCabe, Anderson and Prather (M.A.P.), who felt ASG was getting a lopsided view of local races. Morris specifically called out Wesley Mau, Republican candidate for district attorney and current chief assistant district attorney in Hays County. “I have a suggestion for Mr. Mau: Please come speak with us about your concerns before you make comments to the media,” he said. Morris said that would have been the respectable thing to do. Morris said it is the job of a candidate to seek opportunities to call attention to their campaign and that he did not have the time to go out and seek candidates to speak to ASG. “There has not been a single candidate who’s asked to come here who has ever been turned away,” Morris said. Morris said he fully endorsed Sherri Tibbe, the Democratic candidate for Hays County District Attorney. He said The Star’s article, coupled with Tibbe’s desire to create a new channel of communication between Texas State and the district attorney’s office, led him to his public endorsement. Later, ASG heard four pieces of legislation. The first proposal calls for a 4 percent reduction in Texas State’s anticipated 10 percent tuition increase, because it would make the cost of a Texas State education more manageable. The second proposal supports the proposed $4 increase in the medical service fee at the Student Health Center and calls for more flexible payment options when funding increases are necessary in the future. The third proposal supports the university’s $2 increase in the computer-service fee. Finally, the fourth proposal urges the San Marcos City Council to pass an ordinance requiring all leasing agents and landlords to notify potential leasers and renters of zoning restrictions before a contract is finalized.
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