Special Projects

Wright discusses Gaza flotilla

Retired U.S. Army Colonel and former U.S. diplomat Ann Wright addressed an audience of approximately 50 students, faculty and community members on Sept. 9 to discuss her opposition to the the violence used by Israeli Navy to seize the six ships of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla on May 31. Wright was a passenger on Challenger 1, a small yacht in the flotilla. The event was hosted by the Baker Institute Student Forum. Wright resigned from her post as a diplomat after the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and is now a peace activist who spends her time protesting the government's current policies in the Middle East.

PRC a cloaked facilitator of KTRU sale

When I came to Rice, I thought of KTRU as one of the most exciting aspects of student life. I admired the station's unique sound: distinctly local, born from a collaboration between community members and students and the collective love of music. Recently, that community was undercut by a unilateral decision, hidden from the public even when public interests were involved; the University of Houston is, after all, a tax-payer supported institution.KTRU's space on the FM dial has been valued at $9.5 million, but what's the real price? The loss of an independent voice, one of Houston's only radio outlets for local artists and Rice's status as one of the few remaining tier-one schools with a student-run radio station. The behind-the-scenes brokering of the sale by an organization called Public Radio Capital, a branch of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, shows the loss of KTRU to be the latest casualty in a countrywide shift toward radio controlled by business interests.

Powderpuff begins with shock and excitement

While many were focused on watching college football or preparing to "get their rox off " at Lovett College last Saturday, the long-awaited kickoff of the 2010 powderpuff season took place at Field 7, with Duncan College opening against Jones College on Friday night. However, the main tussle of the week belonged to Wiess and Baker Colleges. Game of the Week: Baker 13, Wiess 7

Golf has rough start, now travels to Arlington

Looking to get off to a fast start for their fall campaign, the golf team stumbled to a 13th-place finish at the Sam Hall Intercollegiate, hosted last Monday and Tuesday by the University of Southern Mississippi at the Hattiesburg Country Club in Hattiesburg, Miss. Despite their performance, Rice's improvement throughout the event gave cause for optimism. This year's version of the golf team features two freshmen hoping to replace some of the production of last year's seniors, Christopher Brown (Baker '10) and Michael Buttacavoli (Martel '10), and Jade Scott, last year's Conference USA freshman of the year, who transferred to Texas A&M University following the spring season. Head Coach Drew Scott knew replacing the talent would be a difficult task, and the first round of the Sam Hall Intercollegiate only confirmed his suspicions.

Resolution passes with flying colors

The Student-Administration Relations Resolution, known by some as the "KTRU Resolution" gained the approval of the Student Association at their weekly meeting last Monday. During that meeting, the members of the SA called for a motion to vote via roll call on the resolution, and after some debate, it passed unanimously.Two weeks ago, one of KTRU's music directors, Kevin Bush, composed the resolution and introduced it to the SA after learning about the university's decision to sell KTRU's broadcasting tower, license and frequency to KUHF. According to Bush, a Duncan College junior, the resolution aims to safeguard and maintain the integrity of student organizations in the future. It said that the Student Association disapproved of KTRU being sold without the student consultation and called for a written commitment from the administration that the secretive procedure would not become a precedent for other student organizations.

Pakistan floods cause unprecedented loss

18.7 million people affected. 20 percent of the country &mdash the size of Florida &mdash inundated. $43 billion (24 percent of Pakistan's GDP) in total damage. More than 2,000 people killed. These numbers only begin to give a sense of the suffering caused by flooding in Pakistan. As United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki- Moon said, "I have witnessed many natural disasters around the world, but nothing like this."However, while flood waters surge south, foreign aid merely trickles into Pakistan. This lack of support engenders severe long-term consequences, such as the rise of the Taliban, the destruction of Pakistan's already fragile quasi-democratic government and the collapse of their fledgling economy.

Sports notebook: Soccer coach leaving Rice

Soccer Head Coach Chris Huston is leaving Rice, effective immediately, Director of Athletics Rice Greenspan announced on Wednesday. Huston had served as head coach since 2001, the first year of the program at Rice. Associate Head Coach Nicky Adams will take over as interim coach upon Huston's departure.

A look into the Wiess Master's House

If you have ventured to the southern edge of campus, you may have noticed the green fencing and construction going on behind Wiess College. Construction on the new Wiess masters' house started in February, with move-in scheduled for December this year. As the first LEED-certified masters' house on campus, the home incorporates an open floor plan for entertaining as well as a number of green features.Wiess junior Charlie Dai said he was pleased with the direction the house is taking.

Classic flicks: Wadleigh's Woodstock

For those of us without relatives or friends old enough to remember the "Summer of Love" of 1967, we have Woodstock. The Summer of Love kicked off one of the greatest cultural moments in our nation's history - the hippie revolution - which effectively came to a close with the Woodstock Festival in 1969. A huddled mass of 500,000 hippies made the trek to Bethel, N.Y. to watch 32 different musical acts perform over three days of "peace and music." After working previously as cinematographer on several underground films, Michael Wadleigh finally - and for the only time in his career thus far - experienced commercial success with Woodstock, making $50 million from a movie with a budget of $600,000.

Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:

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This week's Editorial Cartoon

Letters to the Editor

To the Editor:The administration's comments on KTRU's failure to pass a blanket tax increase are misleadingly bleak and lacking in context ("President David Leebron responds to Thresher staff editorial, student and alumni concerns over KTRU sale," Aug. 27). First of all, it's important to remember that blanket tax increases are notoriously difficult to pass, since they require a supermajority. For example, the Green Blanket Tax for RESET required two years of hard lobbying to pass; it failed in 2009 and passed in 2010. Secondly, a blanket tax increase vote is not the same as a popularity contest. Students may vote "no" not because they dislike or disapprove of an organization but because they think it is doing a good job with the money it already has.

9/11 victims' families need to stop being coddled

As the reasons given for opposing the planned Cordoba House mosque in New York City have become increasingly incoherent and shrill, the one consistent appeal has been to the pain which the mosque's location will allegedly cause the relatives of those killed in the 9/11 attacks. Indeed, even if they've agreed on nothing else, supporters and opponents of the mosque seem to have agreed on the importance of taking the views and feelings of those relatives into consideration. To take just one example from the supporters' side, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach calls on the mosque's developer to poll victims' relatives for their views because he says theirs is the opinion that really matters. He also said of the former World Trade Center that it is utterly inappropriate to build anything on that cemetery without the consent of the families. But why should so-called 9/11 families be entitled to any special consideration on this or any other issue? Why do people flinch when "9/11 families" are invoked and go to such lengths to show that they are indeed taking these families' feelings into account? The death of a family member is neither a credential nor a qualification and losing a family member in a terrorist attack no more qualifies one to comment on the building of a mosque than losing a family member to cancer qualifies one to practice oncology - or worse, to tell others where they can and can't practice oncology. Inherent in this undue deference is the suggestion that what matters is not the content of an opinion, but rather the person offering the opinion. What sentiment could be more troubling? Those who demand deference to their opinions based on who they are rather than what they've said do not deserve it, and those who would offer them that deference do not deserve to be taken seriously.

Volleyball returns from West Coast discontented

While the California sunshine may have brought temporary smiles to the volleyball team, it still left unsatisfied after a 1-2 performance in the Asics Classic that was hosted by Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif. In Rice's first match against Pepperdine last Friday, the Owls lost the first set 25-20 and lost a hard-fought second set 25-22. The match ended quietly with a 25-15 loss by Rice in the third and final set and giving the Waves a 3-0 win.

Veg Out: Platters at Pasha

Just a 15 minute walk from anywhere on campus, Pasha Turkish Restaurant is perfect for hungry Rice students looking for a rib-sticking ethnic meal on weeknights or during the weekend. And, as it turns out, it's also not a bad place for omnivores to take their vegetarian friends, or vice versa. Meat eaters will find a full array of entrees without condemning their vegetarian companions to yet another plate of wilted iceberg lettuce. Nearly all of the appetizers on Pasha's menu are vegetarian or vegan, and the large Pasha Meze platter - a mouth-watering selection of cold appetizers that includes hummus, babaganush and eggplant salad - is big enough to serve as an entree.

Sports Notebook: Soccer splits games out on the West Coast

Last weekend, the soccer team traveled to the Bay Area to play a pair of matches against the University of California at Berkeley and the University of San Francisco.On Friday evening, Rice faced off against No. 19 Cal, the first ranked team the Owls have faced all season. Almost immediately after the opening of the match, the Bears proved why they have earned their ranking, scoring in the fifth minute of the match. With hardly any time for Rice to rebound, Cal again scored off of a penalty kick in the 10th minute. In the 11th minute, the Golden Bears had extended their lead to 3-0 with a direct free-kick by forward Alex Morgan.

Women's Cross Country 2010

Even though every other Conference USA women's cross country team began their seasons last week, the Rice cross country team stayed in Houston last weekend to keep training. That decision by Head Coach Jim Bevan exemplifies the team's decision this year not to rush anything. After redshirting four upperclassmen in 2009 for a variety of reasons, this year's team aims to bring a full-force squad into postseason competition. Rice should have no problem this year bringing a loaded squad to most meets, considering that the team lost only one senior, Claire Shorall (Duncan '10), to graduation. That means the team will not be lacking in depth.

New hours at Brochstein Pavilion disappointing

It's 9 p.m. on Thursday night, and if you are like many Rice students, you have a problem set due tomorrow and are just about ready to sit down to take a look at it. As you walk toward the lonely confines of Fondren Library for the rest of the night, the overwhelming need for a cup of coffee hijacks your mind. But before you head over to Brochstein Pavilion to prepare for your night in the stacks, be forewarned that the administration is no longer interested in catering to your needs.We at the Thresher, along with much of the student body, were shocked to learn that with the start of the new semester came dramatic cuts in the operating hours of a commonly used study and meeting area (see story, page 4). But the decision to reduce hours does more than give Coffeehouse larger profits in late-night hours.

Brochstein hours reduced

As of the first day of classes, late-night studying at the Brochstein Pavilion is no more. A recent change in policy this summer means that the Pavilion will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. The Pavilion previously closed at 10 p.m. during the week, while the weekend hours have not changed. The Pavilion opened in April 2008 as a gathering space for students, faculty, staff and visitors. The week it first opened, the Pavilion was open for 24 hours a day, as its grand opening corresponded to exam week for students. The hours of the Pavilion fluctuated as the building became a central part of campus.