Zambra offers unique flavors
■atures
■ see page 3
Sports
Tennis teams both fall in round one
■ see page 4
Graduation
The End
■ see page 8
serving tf^^University of north Carolina at Asheville Since 1982
Yolume39Issue 12 www.unca.edu!banner April29, 2004
NEWS
RIEFS
by Adam McMullin
Stajf Reporter
WWW. unca. edu!banner
tPUS CRIME
Someone broke into a Mills
dorm room April 20. The
[lown suspect(s) stole CDs.
Campus Police made a DWI
_,i on campus April 21. The
ice took the suspect, with a
jd alcohol content of .14, to
'Buncombe County jail.
CA
JNCA Chancellor Jim Mullen
med Janet Cone as UNCA’s
Athletic Director. UNCA’s
J of Trustees will approve
one’s appointment,
ione is currently Associate
iletics Director at Samford
eersity in Birmingham, Ala.
ione also served as Head
men’s Basketball Coach at
:s Hill College from 1986 and
)90 and at Western Carolina
mversity from 1990 until 1993.
Cone is expected to begin her
iOes at UNCA in mid-May.
ORfH CAROLINA
[Treat Smoky Mountain Na-
Hil Park officials say they’re ex-
mencing difficulty capturing
i|l hogs in the park this year,
he non-native animals destroy
idve plants, nuts and animals.
The National Park Service
aps about 300 each year. This
ats success rate is frustratingly
iW.
The hog team removed only 62
ogs by early April. The ancestors
t he animals are said to have
t brought from Russia’s Ural
untains more than 90 years
3 to be hunted.
srrollton, ga.
Police arrested a 12-year-old
y April 27 and charged him
^ murdering a third-grade girl
his bare hands.
he girl was found dead in tall
ds April 26. She disappeared
le riding her bike, which was
Wild near-by.
olice refuse to disclose what
ithem to the boy’s arrest or the
[s name, since he is a juvenile.
EV^ YORK
A college student who says he
ptnt eight months sleeping in a
jhfary basement has been given a
dorm room at New York Uni-
'ersity.
®teve Stanzak says he slept six
^rs a night in a basement at
f u ^'brary after he was unable
^ay a $1000 campus housing
^niversity officials learned
■ out the sophomore’s sleeping
*'?ngements when they discov-
his on-line journal about his
Jcriences.
International Red Cross
visited Saddam Hussein
phi 27. The group visited
'a am to check on the condi-
Wns provided by the United
'^tes for the ousted Iraqi leader,
^cording to U.S. Brigadier Gen-
aal Mark Kimmitt . The Inter-
l^ional Red Cross last visited
^dam in February.
Church protests “The Laramie Project” production
BY Dearborn McCorkle
Advertising Manager
Members of the Westboro
Baptist Church (WBC) trav
eled from Topeka, Kan: to
protest Western Carolina
University’s (WCU) pro
duction of “The Laramie
Project” and demonstrate at
six local churches April 24-
25.
“I had a family member
that was gay, and he died of
AIDS,” said Jada Bryson, a
UNCA undeclared fresh
man. “And in his honor, I
wanted to come (to the pro
test) just to see where the
hatred comes from and to
understand it better. I think
these people are just stupid.
They have no earthly idea
what God is really about.”
The group traveled be
tween WCU and six
Asheville churches, holding
signs with such slogans as
“God Hates Fags” and
“Matt Shephard — 5 Years
in Hell.” Westboro Baptist
Church, led by the Rev.
Fred Phelps, travels across
the United States protesting
against homosexuality and
maintains two Web sites.
“What brought us into
the neighborhood was that
down at WCU they were
playing ‘The Laramie
Project,”’ said Shirley Phelps-
Roper, WBC member.
“(‘The Laramie Project’) is
a wonderful backdrop for
our message. When Mat
thew Shephard died, we
were sitting in Topeka, and
like the rest of the whole
round world, our eyes were
on Casper, Wyo. and there
was not one voice that
would say, ‘Over here guys,
there is a God, there is a day
of judgment, and it is not
okay to be gay.’”
“The Laramie Project,” a
documentary-style drama,
recreates the efforts of play
wright Moises Kaufman
and members of his New
York-based Tectonic The
atre Project, who made six
trips to Laramie, Wyo. over
a one and a half year period
and conducted more than
200 interviews with local
residents for their reactions
to the beating death of Mat
thew Shephard, a gay uni-
SEE PROTEST ON PAGE 2
DEARBORN MCCORKLE/advertisinc manager
Many of those present at the recent pro^^st traveled all the
way from Kan., bringing their children to bear signs (above).
Local gas prices: high and rising
BY James Richards
Stajf Reporter
UNCA students can look for
ward to facing abnormally high
gas prices this summer.
“I try not to buy gas in
Asheville,” said Mary Macmanus,
a junior literature major. “I live
in Georgia so whenever I go
home I always fill up in Georgia
because it’s so much cheaper.”
Average prices in Western
North Carolina could exceed two
dollars, according to Davis.
As of April 23, the national
average for a gallon of regular un
leaded gas was $1.81, according
to AAA’s fuelgaugereport.com,
up seven cents from last month
and up 25 cents from last year.
Asheville’s average regular un
leaded gas price stands at $1.76
per gallon, up 25 cents from last
year.
“Possibly at the end of the
summer we could see a decrease,
but right now, none of the fac
tors we look at to estimate gas
price look like they’ll be going
down anytime soon, said Davis
Gas prices have soared for sev
eral reasons, according to Davis.
The Organization of Petro
leum Exporting Countries
(OPEC) has cut back production
of crude oil, reducing world sup
ply. In addition, world demand
for petroleum has increased, par
ticularly in China.
China’s booming economy
has increased demand for petro
leum based products by 25 per
cent, causing a big dip in supply,
according to Davis.
“The U.S. is one of the big
gest consumers of the oil market.
Instead we have someone buying
up everything as well, said Davis
The summer driving season
always introduces greater de-
LAURA COWAN/staff photographer
Drivers experience higher gas prices than ever. Prices are
supposed to increase this summer.
mand for gas, according to Davis.
“There are more than 15 bou
tique blends of fuel refineries have
to process for the summer to pro
duce cleaner burning summer fu
els, which hinders efficiency and in
creases the cost to the consumer,”
said Davis.
Although prices are high, in
most areas they do not equal the
prices facing the United States af
ter the gas crisis of the 1970s, ac
cording to Shirley Browning, an
economics professor. Adjusted for
inflation, Americans would pay $3
a gallon if prices reflected those of
the early 1980s.
“There is increasing uncertainty
about the continued flow of oil out
of the Middle East,” said Brown
ing. “Even with all the noise of
OPEC saying they’re going to re
duce production, the data shows
that over the last six months they
really haven’t reduced production.
They’re still pumping about the
same amount that they were be
fore.”
So where do UNCA students go
to fend off high gas prices? A sam
pling of stations along Merrimon
Ave. shows regular gas prices range
from $ 1.78 per gallon at an Exxon
in North Asheville to $1.72 at an
Enmark station near downtown.
A number of students said Enmark
has the cheapest gas closest to
UNCA.
“If I’m buying in Asheville, I go
to the Enmark,” said Ben Walsh,
a freshman political science major.
Walsh drives a 1992 Oldsmobile
Cutlass. Sierra that gets about 28
miles per gallon on the highway.
“I referee county soccer games on
weekends so I do a lot of driving.
Enmark is the only place I ever
buy.”
Other students fill their tanks
at Enmark as well, even though
their cars may get better gas mile-
age;
“I used to drive to Swannanoa
to find cheap gas,” said Lauren
Woodard, undeclared freshman
who lives off campus. She drives
a Geo Metro that gets 44 miles per
gallon and gets gas from Enmark.
“It’s usually five cents cheaper than
any other place.”
Enmark keeps its gas prices
down mainly because of low over
head, according to an Enmark at
tendant who did not want his
name used. With a closet sized
monitoring station, eight pumps
and nothing else, Enmark does
not have to maintain a larger con
venient type store, said the atten
dant
“We make most of our money
selling cigarettes,” said the atten
dant. “I see over 600 customers a
day and UNCA students stand
out because they’re outgoing and
pretty bright.”
Despite the rumors, in the
competitive gas market, lower
prices do not indicate lower qual
ity gas, according to Davis.
“All gas, regardless of octane,
meets the same federal quality
standards. It’s illegal to water
down gasoline,” said Davis.
Yet, some gas may be watered
down, depending on the station,
according to the Enmark atten
dant.
“BJ’s in West Asheville has the
cheapest gas in town, but their
tanks are rusty and as a result their
gas is watered down,” said the at
tendant.
Enmark takes great care to in
sure its gas remains water free, ac
cording to the attendant. »
“It’s all computerized,” said the
attendant. “We get temperature
reports several times a day that in
dicate the level of water in the
tank. BJ’s has been around so long
but they haven’t updated their
pumps or their tanks.”
For some students, a parent’s
gas card still trumps Enmark’s
prices.
Kimberly Vestal, an undeclared
freshman, who drives an Acura In
tegra, said she buys her gas at the
Shell on Merrimon Ave. near In
terstate 240.
“I go home to Winston-Salem
once a month. I go to the Shell
. station because my parents pay for
my gas,” said Vestal. “My parents
said if gas goes over $2 per gallon
I’ll have to pay for my own gas.
I’m dreading it.”
Many local
businesses
struggle
to keep up
BY Chris Cantos
Staff Reporter
With insurance rates rising and
large corporate owned businesses
moving to the area, small businesses
may feel more financial pressure af
fecting their operations.
While some of these businesses
may find difficulty adjusting to high
insurance and corporate competition,
others may find ways to profit from
businesses like Wal-Mart moving into
Asheville and overcome increases in
insurance.
“The popular conception is that
the Wal-Marts of the world take the
small businesses that only sell on price
and drive them out of business,” said
Richard Lasher, executive director of
UNCA’s Family Business Forum.
“What they have also done is created
the opportunity for small businesses
that want to emphasize special ser
vices and special products to actually
grow and prosper.”
Offering goods and services that
businesses like Wal-Mart cannot pro
vide remains the best way for small
businesses and family-owned busi
nesses to profit, according to Chris
Bell, an associate professor of eco
nomics.
“The only way that small busi
nesses can survive is by offering some
thing that Wal-Mart doesn’t, and can
charge a higher price for it,” said Bell.
“They could offer more services, bet
ter services, more personalized service,
services that Wal-Mart cannot offer.”
Small businesses can also more
readily adapt to changes in the mar
ket and consumer interests than can
chain stores such as Wal-Mart, ac
cording to Glen Helms, an account
ing professor.
“The smaller businesses can react
quicker to changes in consumer de
mand than the larger companies
which are under a tight corporate gov
ernance structure,” said Helms.
“Small businesses can add entice
ments to attract consumers, while
that would take large corporate busi
nesses longer to implement because
of having to take dictates from their
central point of governance.”
Targeted consumers also remain a
remedy from corporate competition
and the effects of higher insurance
rates, according to Helms.
“We have always had a lot of bou
tique type stores that have catered to
higher income individuals,” said
Helms. “Asheville attracts higher in
come residents and retirees, so I still
see a place for these boutique type
stores.
“They are more high-end, but they
have been around for decades and will
continue to be around for decades
simply because of the people who visit
these types of boutique stores have
money.”
An increase in insurance rates will
bring negative financial effects to
small businesses, such as forcing them
to increase the cost of their products
and services. However, the higher
See BUSINESS on page 2