Newspapers / Meredith College Student Newspaper / Sept. 1, 2004, edition 1 / Page 5
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Page 5 September 1,2004 CAMPUS NEWS Semester’s opening convocation, “A Look at Iraq,” expands on 2004 summer reading selection PIPER PETROCELU Staff Writer More than six hundred Meredith students and staff paciced the Jones auditorium on Monday August 23, 2004 to take "A Look at Iraq". Most of the students attending had participated in the Summer reading pro gram, and had read Anne Garrels' "Naked in Baghdad". This convo cation presented addi tional views of what goes on inside Iraq. Invited to speak were Dr. Randall W. Williams MD, J. Scott Merrill, Captain Jennifer Vault, and Jay Price. Dr. Williams, whose obstet rics tfmt"'"gynecology practice is here in Raleigh, volunteered alongside 30 American and British physicians assisting Iraqi physicians to rebuild their health This Summer’s Read: NAKED IN BAGHDAD: The Iraq War as SeenbyNPR's Correspondent by Anne Garrels care system. Dr. Williams indicated that Iraq has the highest infant mortality rate out side of Africa. As part of his presentation, he brought photos of some hospitals he had visited, and emphasized the lack of basic supplies even within the "better" hospi tals. Infection is preva lent amongst mothers giving birth, in large part due to poor disinfection of medical instru ments. Whereas in the United States, medical intitutions sterilize instruments in caval cades and utilize single use disposable equip ment, disinfection in the maternity wards of some Iraqi hospitals amounts to a bowl of Betadine. J. Scott Merrill did not visit Iraq person ally, but brought with him the story of what his Become a Part of MeredithREADS Literacy Program What? You are invited to join this read-aloud story sharing Program! Share multi-cultura children’s books with the same child each week Where? On-site at local elementary schools Powell, Washington; Olds, and Joyner) or childcare centers When ? Choose a 2-hour block of time between 9:00 AM-3;00 PM, Monday and Friday How? Training by Motheread is required. Student Trainii^; Wed., Sept. 1, 2004, Common Room or Thurs., Sept. 9, 2004, Dogwood A 5:30-7:30 PM Register online at: ht^p:/AvwwjneredidLedi]/studeiilsA^]unteer/nieredid)readsiilm company, RTi International, is doing to •help Iraqis establish their new system of gover nance. RTI’s current project involves restor ing basic services, and facilitating participation of the Iraqi people. Some Iraqis have lived most of their lives under the rules of a dictator. Decisions made prior to the war were made at the top, and RTI is working with Iraqi officials to estab lish new decision processes at the local and neighborhood levels. RTI is also working to establish the ground rules for a process we often take for granted in our democracy: Voting. Hopefully the Iraqi peo ple will soon be able to choose officials that rep resent their interests and goals for the future. Captain Jennifer Bault served as an Air Force intelligence Officer in Qatar. Her duties involved the brief ing of Cl 30 pilots before and after missions to Iraq and surrounding coun tries. Her unit also pro vided supplies and trans portation for soldiers, political figures, and journalists. Back-to-back deployments for herself and her husband meant that her son had only one parent at home for the first year of his life. Jay Price brought us the news from Iraq as an embedded reporter for the Raleigh News and Observer. During his first trip he reported on the US Army's 82nd Airborne Division in central Iraq, and later returned with another unit to the town of Fallujah. He parallels the thoughts of Anne Garrels with the reminder that when reporters are embedded, they can only report on what they see. He shared the day-to-day stories of the soldiers and the conditions under which they serve. The heat, the dust, and the non-stop level of aware ness become a way of life for many. Overall the con vocation was well received and offered stu dents individual views from people in the Raleigh community who had visited Iraq. However, feedback from students indicates that respondents were look ing for a more interactive discussion of issues sur rounding the war in Iraq. A Meredith senior, (name withheld), major ing in Pre-Law and English, took exception to Captain Bault’s asser tion that most Iraqis like us, and that terrorists come from outside Iraq. Said this senior, "Muqtada al-Sadr is from Iraq. He's a Shiite. He has thousands of fol lowers and they're not all coming from outside Iraq". Most Meredith respondents would have liked to have had more of an opportunity for questions and discus sion, and look forward to Anne Garrels and her visit to the Meredith campus later this semes ter.
Meredith College Student Newspaper
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Sept. 1, 2004, edition 1
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