1 he Blue lianner — Seizing the I’niwrsin ot Noith ("arolinu at . Vshe\ille sinee lySi
Thursday. April
Pet of the Week
more aggressive, according to
Friedman.
“We get a lot of pit bulls and pit
bull mixes,” said Friedman, who
also names rottweilers and dober-
mans as common sights in animal
shelters. “Those are the typical
breeds that have a tendency to be
possessive or loyal to an owner.
It’s easy for them to be trained
into being protective and there
fore vicious and aggressive
toward people.”
Irresponsible owners like
Dino’s contribute to this mis-
I
conception,
Friedman.
“Pit bulls
stigma that
according to
definitely have a
they are mean,
unfriendly and hate other dogs,”
Friedman said. “But that’s real
ly not true of their breed.”
Many urban legends regarding
pit bulls exist, according to
Understand-A-Bull, an informa
tive pit bull Web site found at
http://WWW.understand-a-
bull.com. One myth is that pit
bulls’ jaws lock after a bite,
making removal of the dog dif
ficult. Another is that pit bulls’
jaws shut with a higher pressure
and greater force than other
breeds, according to the Web
site. The site lists scientific
experiments which disprove
both myths.
These misconceptions, along
with irresponsible pit bull own
ership, cause many states to
approve legislation against
owning pit bulls, according to
Friedman.
“Because of the bad reputation a
lot of states have put bans on even
owning them,” Friedman said.
“We don’t have any laws like that
in North Carolina right now,
which is good.”
Many states passed bans against
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6
Not a lot of people want to
adopt an 11-year-old dog.
And he’s a pit hull, so he’s got
two strikes against him. But
he’s been our favorite.
(iuiNN Friedman
assistant manager of
Ashc\ille I lumanc S(x;iet\'
on a leash.”
Adopted animals like Dino,
especially ones with negligent
past owners, usually appreciate
their new owners more because
of their history, according to
Friedman.
“1 think Dino is going to try to
be really, really good,"
Friedman said. “I think Dino
definitely has really .settled into
his surroundings and just wants
to go home and lay on the
couch.”
In addition to gaining man
ners. Dino also gained a few
healthy pounds during his year
long stay, according to
Friedman.
“He was skin and bones
when he came in,” Friedman
said. “Now he’s fat and chub
by, and has gained muscle.”
Though Dino packed on
plenty of muscle to play
around, he prefers to hang out
around the house, according to
FTiedman.
“He’s got a lot of energy
now, but at the same time he
really just wants to be a couch
potato,” Friedman said. “He
would be good for the family
who isn’t that active. He’s
owning pit bulls, according to
Understand-A-Bull. The site lists
bans, if applicable, for each state,
as well as what the ban entails.
Breed specific legislation, which
often includes pit bulls, exists in
several states, according to the
Web site.
Punishing irresponsible own
ers instead of their pets ensures
a better future for the breed,
according to Friedman.
rarely offers
but made an
Dino, accord-
SlIANNA ArNKY - STAM' PlKmXiKAI'llF.K
Dino, an 11-year-old pit bull has lived at the Humane Society for
the past year. He was abused by his previous owner.
The owner was finally Friedman.
owner was finally
charged in February for animal
abuse and went to jail,”
Friedman said. “So we were
really excited about that, too.”
Despite his troubled past,
Dino changed during his stay
for the better, according to
“He’s definitely learned a lot
being here,” Friedman said.
“He picked up really quick. He
had no manners at all when he
first came here. You could bare
ly walk him on a leash. Now he
knows he has to be good to walk
pretty old.”
The shelter
older animals
exception with
ing to Friedman.
“Normally Dino would not
have been made available
because of his age,” Friedman
said. “We evaluate dogs based
on the amount of space we have,
their age and their temperament.
Because of his age, he wouldn’t
normally be put up for adoption.
But because he’s been here for
so long and everybody loves
him so much we had to.”
Green Games
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6
ii.
u
99
Many people are unaware
of the impact of their
choices and the only way
to create change is to
educate them.
Sarah Solaka
sophomore environmental
ehemi.stry student
exact right temperature; it’s
the bigger picture of fossil
fuels and climate change.”
Students should be more
mindful of their environmen
tal impact, according to Ryan
Mayette, junior environmen
tal studies and economics stu
dent.
“College students of today
are going to be the leaders of
tomorrow, so instilling good
energy consumption habits,
big or small, will have a great
impact on. the planet and the
future,” Mayette said.
Green Games serve as a per
sistent reminder of these
habits, according to Mayette.
“As people get wrapped up in
busy schedules, especially
toward the end of the semester,
things like environmentalism
slip their minds,” said Nick
Ladd, environmental studies
and philosophy student.
“Having the physical presence
of these events and the general
atmosphere of Greenfest helps
bring that to the floor
grounds.”
Though some are passionate
about environmental activism,
Leigha Dickens, sophomore
physics student and a co-chair
of ASHE, said activists should
be mindful of their approach.
“If people see you doing
something just because it’s the
right thing to do, and for no
reason other than that, they’ll
think harder on that action than
if you try to breathe down their
throats about how they ought to
do it,” Dickens said.
Some environmental activism
goes overboard, but being
environmentally conscious is
The UNC system is the
largest customer for
electricity out of the state
government, so we have
the opportunity to make
a huge imp(H t.
Nick Ladd
environmental studies
•Student
Jessica Ely the- Staff Pmotooraphek
Stickers were put on light switches all
over campus, providing students a
constant reminder to conserve.
easy, according to Nick
Salomon, senior literature stu
dent.
“I recycle as much as I can,
keep my lights off most of the
time, hardly use air condition
ing or heating, run the mini
mum amount of water for
showers and brushing teeth and
try to avoid non-reusable prod
ucts when possible,” he said.
Little things help substantial
ly, according to Dickens.
“I’m drying my clothes on a
drying rack, which saves me
from sending a couple of dol
lars down the drain by using
the somewhat ineffective dry
ers,” Dickens said. “I flip off
the study room lights, keep the
window closed and the thermo
stat set to the middle, and I’m
going to try to turn the heat
down on showers.”
Promoting environmental
activism is less difficult in
Asheville, according to
Dickens.
“I came from a small town in
North Carolina where even get
ting otherwise good people to
recycle was inordinately diffi
cult,” she said. “Compared to
that, Asheville is extremely
open and environmentally
conscious.”
Environmental studies
Professor Christina Jones
said students should set
positive examples of envi
ronmental lifestyles to per
suade others.
“The energy that supplies
the UNCA campus comes
primarily from coal-burn
ing power plants,” Jones
said. “Burning coal greatly
contributes to Asheville’s
air pollution problems, and
mining coal is environmentally
destructive as well.”
The schools in the UNC sys
tem share an environmental
responsibility, according to
Ladd.
“The UNC system is the
largest customer for electricity
out of the state government, so
we have the opportunity to
make a huge impact in our
local area and through out sis
ter schools,” Ladd said.
Ultimately, it comes down to
individual responsibility,
according to Solaka.
“Although UNCA is proud to
be North Carolina’s most ener
gy-efficient state institution,
there is always, always room to
improve,” Solaka said. “That
comes down to individuals
making responsible decisions.”
'A A
Dancini^
CONTINUEDVtToM I"! ,1 r
lot of exercise during the class,
many members of the women’s
basketball team use break dancing
as a way to work out.
“The concept for one ol out
pieces is called b-ballin and it is a
tribute to the women's basketl'.all
team,” Adams said.
While many memheis of the
class would deserihe.their activ i
ties as “break dancing. ” Adams
prefers to use the tei in “breakin."
“The word ‘break dancing' is
considered by pioneers of b hos
ing (another term for 'breakin')
to be a sytiibol of the ineoui
manipulation of hip hop.' saitl
the 31-year-t)ld dance instmc!oi.
Although Adams said that
‘hreakiti’ is often a male doini
Dated dance form, you would
never be able to tell by watching
his class. The class, which p>eets
every Friday, is entirely made up
of women.
“It’s a b-girl class." saiti .’'..lair
Altenderfer. member of [: la.d'
Kru.
For .Schrader, the class ..d
women indicates UNC’ Ashevilh'
male students maintain a certain
attitude about dance.
“1 think in spite of the fact iliat
b-boying started out as a gii\
thing, a lot of guys arc afraid ol
dance," the instructor said.
According to the program
director, who has been leaching
at UNC’ Asheville for more ilian
20 years, this altitude is l idn ii
Ions.
“Despite the apparent liberal
ism of our students, the guys
here are pretty conservali\i-. "
Schrader said. “When guys do
dance, they are assumed to he
effeminate. This is stupid
because, if nothing else, dance is
a great way to meet girls. "
i.
.-1^ r* *
W-
Chances aie you'll never tell your kids about that killer summer you spent in a classroom. So go
ahead, live a little and learn a lot this summer with UlilCG's online summer session classes.
MAY 16-JULY 26
7^ampus
OHURE COURSES I HEGIEFS UNCG
K’i
ASHE meets Thursdays at
6:30 p.m. in Highsmith 104.
For more tips on conserving
energy, visit
http://orgs.unca.edU/ecology/g
reengames/tips.htm.
• , •
• •
• •
• •
• •
t •
':