SEPTEMBER 17, 2008 | THE MEREDITH HERALD • Educating Women to Excel I VOL XXVI • ISSUE 2
KICKOFF FOR
HABITAT
(SEE PAGE 2)
2 News
, Kickoff Cefebration Held
Meredith’s Habitat.Effort
3 Events
Do You Know What
! a Convocatfdn Is?.,- • . ,
tA Science & Technology •
i Speedo Aquabeat Waterproof
f MP3 Player;
ii ■ ' ■
|5. Arts & Humanitii>s
Enter Edwin McGair
Sports ,
■ Sports Week^ndb
• A Weeke^d-'fot'Tri^
» On The_ Right JracK
7^8 Opinion &jCampu
■ No. Mprfe “Rbwer Ov
■ PallnHas WhatitT{_
■ A Chill Pepper Dream
Realized
Photo courtesy TheWusKn Chronicle
When reporter on major news
networks ask Obama about his
predilection for boxers or briefs, are
we supposed to consider it a serious
issue ^and measure it against our
does-this-help-or-hinder-my-plans-
for-the*future scale? If we are,
I guess we would have, to wait
and see which brand he prefers in
order to come to .a well-infomied
decision.. But lately the media.has
become less Obamaniacal, and these
daily style “briefs” have alWbut
disappeared. But not because
they’re devoting these last weeks of
campaigning to hot-button issues
like the economy, education or Iraq,
but because his reign as media dar
ling has been usurped by Republi-
THE MEDIA’S
SKEW ON TODAY’S
POLITICS
by Melissa Santos
Staff Writer
Many voters see this year’s historic election as a crucial, what-col-
or-wire-do-I-cut event; choose the wrong . candidate, and America
self-destructs—or continues to self-destruct, depending on your outlook.
But what is that outlook, and is it even yours? Or is it a patchwork of beliefs
stitched together from episodes of The Daily Show or the hand-me-down
politics of our parents? Unfortunately for voters, it’s becoming increasingly
difficult to come to anything more than a superficial understanding of a
candidate—and virtually.impossible to obtain a complete, factual descrip
tion of his or her policies. After all, most of our information is gleaned from
tvvo-minute news media reports.
can vice-presidential nominee Sarah
Palin. Historically, with the excep
tion of Lyndon Johnson- in 1960,
running mates haven’t mattered.
They’re essentially an innocuous
representative of their political par
ty’s platform and have minimal im
pact on the Presidential candidate’s
current rankings. At least that was
the case during the pre-Palin era.
■ This year, people are gaga over
the GOP’s “ it” girl. But why all the
fiiss, when Palin had always been on
the radar as a potential running mate
and had made it onto nearly every
politico’s short list? Because Palin
isn’t Milhouse to McCain’s Bart,
to paraphrase the VP nominee her-
See MEDIA SKEW, PAGE 2
Photo courtesy wmv.Oonteytf/sft.com
JOHN PASSACANTANDO VISITS MEREDITH
by Courtney Angers
Staff Writer
On Sept, 9, 2008, a full audience of
students, faculty, staff, and commu
nity members welcomed John Pas-
sacantaqdo in Jones Auditorium as
the first speaker for the Blue Cross
Blue Shield of North Carolina Presi
dential Lecture Series of the 2008-
2009 academic year. Passacantando
is the executive director of Green
peace, USAi. an organization that
Passacantando refers to as “Quakers
on steroids,” that is dedicated to ad
dressing environmental problems in
the United States arid finding ways
to combat them. Last Tuesday night,
Passacantando spoke to the gathered
audience about the situation of the
environment today and how we can
and are fighting to preserve it.
Passacantando began his lecture
by touching on a few of the many
success stories that Greenpeace can
claim. Some of their efforts include
protecting the whales in Alaska, tak
ing a stand against the big oil com
pany Exxon Mobil, and helping put.
polar bears on the endangered'spe
cies list. But not all of their efforts
have been so easy. Recently, Green
peace was indicted for violation of
sailing laws while protesting illegal
shipping into Miami. Passacantando
and other Greenpeace leaders knew
that a failed lawsuit could ruin the
reputation of Greeiipeace, but they
Photo coufias)' wm».aWfte-Ceacfiaa«wy.cwn
did not let this roadblock stop
their commitment to preserving
the environment.
While Passacantando’s lists
of Greenpeace’s accomplish
ments were impressive, he es
pecially invigorated the audience
when he spoke of the status of
America today: a presidency that
has given America a “bleak eight
years” concerning environmental
issues. Although he stressed non-
partisanship, Passacantando did
See PASSACANTANDO, PAGE 2
Green Tip for
the Week of
September 15
Encourage your pro
fessors to open the
blinds in classroonns
instead of having the
lights on during class.
During the 2008-09 academic
year, Meredith College’s cam
pus theme is “Sustaining our
Environment: Developing
our Greenprint.” To help the
Meredith community make
daily choices that are ben-
eficiafto the environrhent,
Angels for the Environment
have compiled a year’s worth
of tips for greener living.
To vievtf green tips from
previous weeks, visit www.
meredith.edu/campus-theme/
environmental-tips.htm.