UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA ASHEVILLE
The Blue Banner
Thursday, October 9, 2008
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Economic
turmoil
causes
concern
Jason Howell
Staff Writer
JDHOWELL@UNCA.EDU
As stock markets
around the world plunged
over the past two weeks
and 60 percent of respon
dents to a CNN poll said
Tuesday another economic
depression is likely, UNC
Asheville students are
among millions watching
the economy with a fear
ful eye.
“I’m not an economist,”
junior student CeCe Hue
said. “I don’t understand
all of this.”
The 21 -year-old philos
ophy major discussed what
everyone is talking about
lately; the economy. She
acknowledged she’s not
alone in her confusion.
The Dow Jones Indus
trial Average suffered its
largest point drop in histo
ry last Monday, falling 778
points. The largest bank
failure in American his
tory took place the week
before, with the collapse
of Washington Mutual.
The economy shed
160,000 jobs in Septem
ber, the worst month in
five years. Almost 800,000
jobs vanished since Janu
ary.
“I think I have a gen
eral grasp of the problem,”
Hue said. “But I’m not as
educated as I could be.”
Hue said she has a lot
of questions, the kinds of
questions Robert Tatum,
assistant professor of the
economics department
Jiears recently.
“I’ve had a lot of people
See WORRYPage 2 I
Group
fights the
death
penalty
Annika Reinert
Staff Writer
ANNIKA.REINERT@GMAIL.COM
Troy Davis received a
stay of execution on Sept.
30, less than two hours be
fore his scheduled execu
tion.
A jury convicted him in
1991 on charges of mur
der for the killing of Mark
Allen MacPhail, a police
officer from Savannah,
Georgia. Davis maintains
his innocence in the face
of execution.
Together with UNC
Asheville’s chapter of
Amnesty International,
students joined in the ap
peal for clemency.
“UNCA students have
written about 300 letters
to the Georgia Board of
Pardons and Paroles, they
See DAVIS Page 2 |
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PHOTO.s BY Jonathan wai.cv.ak - Niiw.s editor
^We can win North Carolina’
Obama speaks to 28,000 people in Asheville less than a month before election
Jonathan Waiczak
News Editor
JMWALCZA@UNCA.EDU
Sen. Barack Obama spoke
Sunday at Asheville High
School to an estimated crowd
of 28,000 people, a day after
telling The Blue Banner he
thinks he can win North Car
olina and young voters may
decide the election.
“It’s going to be a hard-
fought contest. Western
North Carolina is tradition
ally more Republican, but I
think that people are looking
at the catastrophic situation
on Wall Street and how it’s
spilling onto Main Street,”
Obama said when ques
tioned by the Banner on a
conference call for student
journalists.
Sunday’s rally was
Obama’s first stop in WNC.
Previously, the farthest west
he traveled was to Hickory
before the May Democratic
primary.
Polls show Obama in a
dead heat with Sen. John
McCain in North Carolina.
The latest poll of likely vot
ers, completed by Elon Uni
versity and released on Oct.
1, shows Obama with a .1
percent lead over McCain
for the state’s 15 electoral
votes.
“Young voters are go
ing to make the difference,
not just in North Carolina,
but all across the country.
If young voters turn out at
levels that they can turn out,
then it could end up being
the decisive voting block in
this election,” Obama said
in response to the Banner’s
question.
Sophomore student Jamie
Carpenter agreed.
“I think it will be impor
tant. I think so many more
young people will vote this
year. They seem more ex
cited,” Carpenter said.
Supporters began lining
up for the rally at 11 p.m.
Saturday night, hoping to
secure a good spot near the
stage. By 5:30 a.m., about 40
people were in line, many ly
ing on the ground in sleeping
bags to escape cold tempera
tures.
Asheville resident Amy
Kelso, 43, brought her two
young sons to the rally.
Kekso said she contacted
Obama’s civic campaign the
day after he gave a critical
ly-acclaimed speech at the
2004 Democratic National
Convention and told them
Obama “better be the next
president. (He’s) our only
hope.”
“It’s important to me for
(my sons) to see a candidate
that is as amazing as Obama
and who is going to change
their lives and make their
lives better,” Kelso said.
Officials opened the gates
around 11:30 a.m. and sup
porters continued to file
through a row of metal de
tectors and into the stadium
as Obama began to speak.
“The only thing 1 don’t
like is that I have to drive
by this golf course. It looks
really nice, and my staff
won’t let me play, so I’m go
ing to have to come back to
Asheville,” he joked at the
beginning of a speech that
focused primarily on health
care and the economy.
With temperatures hav
ing warmed and the sun
beating down on the crowd,
a campaign worker handed
out water to crowd members
standing in the front row. Po
lice estimated about 22,()(K)
people crammed into the sta-
Obama, above, speaks on tbe economy. Below, Obama shakes
bands with supporters who began lining up Saturday night.
dium, with 6,()()() stuck out
side as Obama spoke.
While waiting for Obama
to appear before the speech,
many in the crowd mistak
enly began clapping and
cheering when a black Se
cret Service agent who re
sembled Obama at a distance
stepped out from behind two
blue curtains .set up to ensure
the candidate’s pre-speech
privacy.
Obama shook hands with
supporters and paused mo
mentarily as he approached
the stage to lift up a baby
handed to him by a crowd
member.
Following the speech,
Obama again shook hands
with supporters in the front
row. Secret Service agents
formed a protective bub
ble around the candidate
as crowd members shoved
toward him and crushed
against each other trying to
shake Obama’s hand.
Obama stayed in Asheville
after the rally and prepared
for Tuesday’s presidential
debate at the Grove Park
Inn. On Monday, he stopped
by 12 Bones Smokehouse in
West Asheville to pick up
Online editor Jason Herring
contributed to this report.
See Page 3 for addi-
lunch.
Mayor Terry Bellamy and
state Sen. Kay Hagan, who is
competing with Sen. Eliza
beth Dole for Dole’s senate
seat, met with Obama before
the event.
Obama campaigned with
running mate Sen. Joe Biden
in Greensboro a week before
coming to Asheville. He has
visited North Carolina more
than 30 times since kicking
off his presidential campaign
in early 2007.
Michelle Obama spoke at
UNCA before the May pri
mary. Neither McCain nor
running mate Sarah Palin
campaigned in WNC, al
though Palin spoke Tuesday
at a rally at East Carolina
University.
“On Nov. 4, you and 1 are
going to turn the page, not on
talking about the economy.
We’re going to turn the page
on the disastrous economic
policies of George W. Bush
and John McCain,” Obama
said.
UNCA
loses $1
million in
funding
Cassidy Culbertson
Staff Writer
CJCULBER@UNCA.EDU
Significant state-
mandated spending cuts
slashed nearly $1 million
from UNC Asheville’s
budget this year
Chancellor Anne Pon
der met with the Student
Government Association
on Oct. 1 to explain the
budget changes.
“We are managing this
with as much kindness
and compassion as possi
ble,” Ponder said. “We are
managing this responsibly
during pretty turbulent
times.”
During the meeting.
Ponder emphasized the
university’s commitment
to maintaining a stable en
vironment for faculty, staff
and students.
Officials said they in
tend to protect employee
benefits, student employ
ment and financial aid
potentially affected by the
cuts.
Ponder mentioned pre
vious budget cuts, like
those during the 2(K)1-
2002 school year.
“We know how to deal
with this. We’re practiced
in doing a lot with a little,”
she said.
Slashing the budget fur
ther would likely result in
the largest budget cut the
university has ever en
dured, according to Pon
der.
Current Impact
The budget is $52 mil
lion. Of that, $42 mil
lion pays salaries and
employee benefits, leav
ing just $9.7 million for
non-personnel expenses.
The remaining budget sup
ports the university’s four
divisions. Financial Aid
and Campus Operations,
Alumni and Development,
Academic Affairs and Stu
dent Affairs.
The Athletics Depart
ment operates as a separate
entity, and is not funded
the same way as the four
divisions, according to
Mcrianne Epstein, UNCA
director of public informa
tion.
“We are trying to do
this so the impact on stu
dents would be very mini
mal,” John Pierce, Vice
Chancellor for Finance &
Campus Operations said.
About $1.3 million
of the remaining budget
funds scholarships and fi
nancial aid, which Ponder
said the university will
maintain.
About $5.3 million dol
lars of the operating budget
goes to every supply imag
inable, from computers to
vacuum cleaner bags.
Cutting $1.3 million of
that isn’t possible. Ponder
SeeBUDGETPage2I
News
Photos from
Obama Rally
Page 3
Arts and
Features
Food for
Thought
Page 8
Weather
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