Newspapers / University of North Carolina … / April 8, 2004, edition 1 / Page 1
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AT ash EVILHeSINC ■ „ , rk-^jgto^ -V ? s Volume 39 Issue 9 NEWS RIEFS BY Terri Fisher Stajf Reporter lAMPUS CRIME !■ Campus Police received a re- iort of vandalism to a UNCA ve- ilcle in lot 1 behind Founders Hall April 2. ■ Campus Police arrested a non itiident in lot 4 March 29 for pos- ession of a concealed weapon. Po- ici later found many more weap- I ohs in the individual’s car. . i ■ Police received two larceny re ports March 29 and March 30. One ^ort invoved a stolen camera from the Karpen Hall computer lab. The olher report regarded stolen cash from an unattended purse outside of Ramsey Library. ■NDERSONVILLE I The remains of a man, later iden- tfied s Fire Chief Donald Larry Gash, were found along the Blue Ridge Parkway in a plastic container Inarch 28. Gash’s wife avoided ques tioning and was found hiding un der a neighbor’s shed April 1. Police charged her with the murder after she received treatment for exposure. The victim’s son was served with ajno-testimonial order for finger prints and photographs, over the j^eekend. itSHEVILLE ' Vandals broke four store win- J)\vs of the new Starbucks on Char lotte Street April 1, just five days after its grand opening. Many pro- ttotors feel the chain poses as a threat to locally owned and operated cof fee shops. HARLOnE : President Bush visited Charlotte’s Qentral Piedmont Community i^ollege (CPCC) April 5. He spoke on the economy and the jobs that « ll drive the future. CPCC is the gest community college in N.C. fThe Charlotte Observer reported that by the time Bush leaves Charlotte ^^day N.C. will have donated more then $3 million to his re-election 1 fmpaign. IADRID, SPAIN Five men, thought to be involved in the March 11 attacks on a Madrid subway that left hundreds of Kmmuter’s dead, blew themselves up in a police raid of an apartment fpril 3. ■ Sharhane Ben Abdelmajid ^khet was identified in the remains ®d is believed to be the ring leader of the March 11 attacks. Among the ^'idence in the crime scene were ^00 detonators and 22 pounds of otplosives. r lQ SI - Shiite Muslims in Iraq occupied police stations, propelled grenades fed overran government security in *uia April 4, one day after Shiite hiilitia women marched in the |eighborhoods of Baghdad in pro- fst of the U.S. occupation. Shiite clerk Mokrada Al-Sadr is suspected ^ the young leader who has gath- * ?red together followers who feel mericans are their enemy. Four American civilians working fct a securities company were killed }nd their bodies dragged April 1. ®nly 15 miles away, a roadside bomb left five American soldiers qead. WWW. tinea, edu!banner Kucinich speaks at Asheville voter rally BY James Richards Stajf Reporter Democratic presidential candi date Dennis Kucinich visited Asheville as the keynote speaker at a voter registration rally April 3. More than 400 people at tended. “Dennis Kucinich is there to be the thorn in the ass of the Demo cratic Party, and I think his pur- pose is to remind us what democ racy is all about,” said Molly Cra- veii, a junior en vironmental studies major, who also spoke at the rally. “He’s a visionary leader and even in a city like Asheville we need visionary leaders to come and recharge us.” Disregarding a makeshift stage, .Kucinich took his micro phone and walked into the audi ence, speaking without notes for over an hour. The crowd greeted the congressman with questions and applause. “The direction of the Demo cratic nomination has been settled, but the direction of the Democratic Party is still to be de cided,” said Kucinich. The rally served as an attempt to gather Kucinich voters for the April 17 Democratic caucuses in North Carolina, according to Gayatri Lee, a Kucinich campaign organizer. “We’re trying to make sure Dennis has the power to speak up “(Kucinich’s) vision has brought together people who want to reclaim democracy from corporate control, a vision for peace, a better economy without the unfair trading prac tices of the WTO and NAFTA, and universal healthcare.” Jana Maxey event coordinator and Kucinich campaign organizer for progressives at the Democratic Convention in July,” said Lee. “The more votes Dennis receives in these remaining primaries and caucuses, the more delegares he will bring to the convention, re sulting in a chance to influence the Democratic platform.” The rally also served to unify different progressive groups through Kucinich’s ideals, accord ing ro Lee. “Unlike —Bush, who has divided the country, Dennis is rhe real uniter,” said Jana Maxey, event co- ordinator and Kucinich cam paign organizer. “His vision has brought to gether people who want to re claim democ racy from corpo rate control, a vi sion for peace, a better economy without the un fair trading prac- tices of the WTO (World Trade Orginization) and NAFTA, and universal health care.” Attendees dotted City-County Plaza with handmade signs read ing “Fear Ends, Hope Begins” and “We are the Ones We’ve Been Waiting for.” Festival organizers led the crowd in serenading Kucinich before his speech with “America the Beautiful,” substi tuting the word “familyhood ” for “brotherhood.” Kucinich praised Ashevillians for their environmental aware ness. “You recognize that our sur vival as a people and as a planet depends upon our respect for the TOMMY greenwood/staff photographer Dennis Kucinich delivered a keynote address to a crowd of Asheville residents April 3 in City-County Plaza. TOMMY greenwood/staff photographer Kucinich fans displayed banners to show their support. air, the water and the land,” said Kucinich. “This area knows bet ter than most places in the United States about the implications of this disconnection from the natu ral world because you’re sur rounded by such natural beauty. At the same time you’ve seen the failure of our country to develop a sustainable energy policy, result ing in acid rain coming over here that’s ruining so many of the beautiful forests and streams.” Although principally focusing his remarks on the environment. Iraq and the Patriot Act, Kucinich encompassed these issues within ideals of non-violence, conflict resolution and sustainability. Kucinich proposed creating a cabinet level Department of Peace and challenged the crowd to work towards “making war archaic.” He described the economic and environmental benefits of a sus tainable, fair trade economy. “I liked his strategy a lot more than Ralph Nader’s because he’s See kucinich on page 12 Community forum questions Constitution BY Amanda Edwards Staff Reporter UNCA hosted a tri-partisan public discussion about the rel evance of the Constitution in today’s society at the Owen Con ference Center March 30. “The Constitution is relevant today as it pertains to the origin and preservation of our rights,” said Trevor Carr, a junior philosophy and history major and member of Students for Democracy and Peace. Buncombe County Libertarians cosponsored the forum with Stu dents for Democracy and Peace, a new student organization. “In general, the separation of church and state and the preserva tion of privacy rights are at stake,” said Carr. Moderated by Nelda Holder, president of the Asheville-Bun- combe County League of Women Voters, the forum included com mentary from panelists who were representatives for the Democratic, Republican and Libertarian Parties. The discussions began with a short biography about each party representative, then the panelists considered ideas in which adher ence to the Constitution could re- TYLER BREAUX/staff photographer From left to right: Fern Shubert, Bruce Elmore, Nelda Holder and Michael Badnarik participated in the forum at UNCA. solve current social issues. The majority of Americans don’t understand the purpose of the gov ernment as defined by the Consti tution, according to Michael Badnarik, a Libertarian representa tive, and candidate for the Liber tarian Party presidential nomina tion. “Before we can answer the ques tion if the Constitution is relevant or not, we have to ask ourselves what purpose the government serves,” said Badnarik. “According to the Constitution, the only valid purpose of government is to pro tect your rights, and in order to un derstand what that really means, Americans really need to under stand the difference between rights and privileges. The important con cept here is that a privilege is some thing that’s granted to you, and it can be taken away at any time by whoever gave you that privilege. “It’s important for you to under stand that rights and privileges are opposite, the same as true and false.” Badnarik, a computer consult ant, grew up in Indiana and moved from California to Texas for politi cal reasons concerning gun control issues. In his presidential platform, the number one priority in relation to gun issues will be to oppose the government’s requirement to fill out paperwork and supply photos and fingerprints in order to exercise the right to bear arms. “I have a right to keep and bear arms,” said Badnarik. “Why would I be required to get permission to exercise a right? How many people have filled out a government form that allows you to go to church on Sunday? You would consider it ab solutely ludicrous to ask the gov ernment for permission to exercise your religion, and I feel that it is equally ludicrous for the govern ment to expect me to carry a per- • » mit. Carr said he agrees that certain rights are in danger of violation, but said he disagrees with Badnarik’s statements against gun control. “Mr. Badnarik made an insane argument for carrying concealed handguns without a permit using a strict constructionist interpreta tion of the Second Amendment, the right to keep and bear arms,” said Carr. “He argued for the ab solute rights of the individual even at the expense of the community. Extreme strict constructionist in terpretations of the Constitution can be hurtful.” The only types of rights that See forum on page 12 April 8, 2004 Murder blamed on post-war trauma BY Chris Cantos Staff Reporter After murdering a fellow infan try member in Columbus, Geor gia last July, a U.S. Army soldier blamed the incident on post-trau matic stress related to serving in combat missions in Iraq. Military personnel and psy chologists question the stress re lated disorder, wondering how the effects of war could possibly lead a person to barm another individual in the future, and if the disorder could be used as a legal defense. “The average person with post- traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) does not commit crimes like (mur der),” said Pam Laughon, psychol ogy professor. “Many people walk around with PTSD and don’t do anything. But violence was a part of the soldier’s particular experi ence, so that might have the ten dency to translate over inro their world.” Post-traumatic stress disorder in volves experiencing a traumatic situation combined with intense fear or threatened death, which produces symptoms of irritability, outbursts of anger, difficulty con centrating, and/or exaggerated startle response, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourrh edi tion. “PTSD usually arises after a re ally stressful event,” said Jennifer Meadows, junior psychology ma jor. “Its symptoms can be anything from hallucinations or flashbacks, to physical anxiety or arousal with reminders of the event.” Although events such as natural disasters, terrorism, and rape could cause PTSD to develop in an indi vidual, people who experienced war and combat situations develop the disorder more often than with the other traumatic situations, accord ing to Laughon. “Military combat is definitely a stressor that could lead to PTSD,” said Meadows. “In that sense, (sol diers) are more prone to (PTSD).” Despite the conditions of war that could lead to the development of PTSD, Army officials claim the disorder does not occur in soldiers as much as people believe. The Army attempts to prevent such dis orders through psychological screenings upon the return of sol diers from combat, according to a USA Today article. “The military gives you all kinds of counseling before you leave and when you get back,” said specialist Kenneth Curtis, an Army National Guard light wheel vehicle me chanic. “They give you debtiefings that help, and there are plenty of people you can talk to about the stress.” Army officials claimed that in cidents similar to the murder of the infantry soldier do not occur often. Similar situations among soldiers who fought in Iraq are rare, accord- See trauma on page 12
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