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ASHLEY STEPHENSON
SBP Squabbles
Not Addressing
Real Problems
I didn’t think I’d have to touch stu
dent elections until January.
Apparendy, I have miscalculat
ed.
Things started a bit earlier this year.
Usually around this time, various
chumps in Suite C or other student
groups start resigning their posts with
much pomp and pageantry to pursue
the highest office on campus, student
body president. Under normal circum
stances, you don’t hear much from
these characters until next semester -
that’s when Hamilton 100 gets plastered
with fluorescent signs featuring cute slo
gans and pictures.
I received an early holiday treat
when two candidates started in
November the SBP squabbling they
usually save for mid-January.
Bharath Parthasarathy, the pointman
for junior Eric Johnson’s SBP campaign,
claimed that SBP candidate Annie
Peirce violated Tide VI, Article VII,
Section 171 (A) (4) of the Student Code.
I’m not sure what handbook Bharath
was checking out, but in my handy
Student Code, a Tide VI, Article VII,
Section 171 (A) (4) involves two. bungee
cords, some Country Crock butter and
a Rainbow Brite doll.
At first glance, all those Roman
numerals and parentheses make Peirce
out to be a pretty nefarious character,
like Gargamel from the Smurfs. Turns
out she was hanging with some student
groups to let them know about a
December meeting she’s having where
students can voice their concerns. (I
give kudos to the Elections Board for
not taking the bait and for clearing
Peirce of the whole thing.)
There are two crimes here:
1.) Roman numerals are only accept
able when found in the tide of die
Rocky movies.
2.) Such nit-picking on the part of
Johnson and his pointman is fruitless
and earns them a “G” for ghetto.
During student elections, you learn
all these rules you didn’t know existed.
There are certain times that candidates
can call students at home, certain times
when they can knock on residence hall
rooms, certain ways they can send out
mass e-mails.
There are also lots of special rules
about where campaign signs can be
placed, when they can be put up, when
they must be taken down, and so on
and so on. I think there are also rules
about coming from the same fraternity
as all other SBPs and having a catchy
sign that looks like a beer ad.
It’s dizzying. And retarded. Elections
Board people would tell me that these
rules exist for a reason, except I don’t
really care what that reason is.
Come January when things really
heat up, or December if things continue
the way they started, the political mud
slinging between candidate think tanks
will revolve around the rules I discussed
above.
You won’t know candidate Chatty
Cathy’s platform, but you will know
that the bitch put her posters up too
damn early.
This is how it goes every year.
I think our candidates need to
remember that this is the same student
body that came damn close to putting
Brian Bersticker in Suite C instead of
Brad Matthews. And many moons ago,
a mystery candidate name Hugh G.
Rection almost ousted a real candidate
from the race.
Students don’t give a damn about
these rules. Most of them don’t give a
damn about the election -and that’s
what candidates should be targeting
when they get all hyped and indignant.
They should be fighting apathy.
It’s not like Peirce set fire to all of
Johnson’s campaign materials, or better
yet, engaged in some type of espionage
that would have stolen Johnson’s cam
paign secrets - like how “Vote for Eric”
is much more appealing to the average
voter when it’s written in blue chalk, not
pink.
Here’s a reminder to all candidates,
one which I hope they will take to heart
with the election season almost upon us:
It’s a student election, gang - not mud
wrestling (which would be a much bet
ter determinant of who should lead our
campus.)
Keep it clean, and screw the rules,
not each other.
Columnist Ashley Stephenson can be
reached at ashley2l@email.unc.edu.
UNO's AIDS Week to Feature Films, HIV Tests
From Staff Reports
UNC’s World AIDS Day Planning
Committee is set to kick off a week of
AIDS awareness today in hopes of
increasing student knowledge about the
deadly disease.
The week will begin with a film
screening documenting a fictional AIDS
character and will culminate with the
World AIDS Day Walk, a chance for the
University community to take action in
honor of real AIDS victims.
Barbara Jones, a graduate student in
the School of Social Work, said the walk
Packin' Up and Movin' Out
The Undergraduate Library is scheduled to close for extensive repairs and renovations Dec. 19, forcing students to relocate to Davis Library. All books and resources will
be temporarily relocated to Davis and the Wilson Library annex. The Undergrad will be completely gutted and given an all new floor plan to maximize space.
Book Air Elevator Study Book
freshman library introduction classes v ' ( * eo terminals terminals
carrels
Plans Before and During Highlights of the New
Construction Floor Plan
■ Construction will start during Winter Break and is being funded by money ■ The new floor plan will feature more windows and more quiet space with
from the $3.1 billion higher education bond package. new study rooms.
■ During construction, nonprint materials and books will be moved to Wilson ■ The book stacks will be much smaller, allowing for more chairs and tables.
Library. The circulation desk and reserves will be moved to Davis. „
■ There will be an addition of new computers, including an electronic
■ Davis will become nearly a 24-hour library after construction begins. classroom and laptops available for check-out.
Makeover to Close Undergrad
By Joanna Housiadas
Staff Writer
Although studying might not be UNC stu
dents’ favorite pastime, the Undergraduate
Library provides many with a cozy setting to
deal with this necessary evil.
But the Undergrad won’t be a homework
haven for much longer.
Starting Dec. 19 at 5 p.m., the Undergrad
will be closing its doors for a round of exten
sive renovations that will not be completed
until nearly the end of 2002.
“We’ve been planning for these renova
tions since 1995,” said Diane Strauss, associ
ate University librarian for public services.
“The process has had its fits and starts, but it
is finally happening."
Renovations will include anew hands-on
classroom for instruction on using the Internet
to do research as well as group study rooms.
Academic Technology & Networks will
also relocate its services from the basement of
Davis Will Increase Hours, Security
By Joanna Housiadas
Staff Writer
When the Undergraduate
Library’s extensive repair and
renovation process begins Dec.
19, the system of operations at
Davis Library will experience a
few modifications of its own.
Most noticeable of these
changes include an increase in
the library’s hours of operation
beginning Jan. 9, according to
Bad Weather Slows Holiday Travel
The Associated Press
Busy airports, congested roads,
crowded trains, and wet, foggy weather
in some parts of the country Sunday
made the trip home that much longer
for Thanksgiving travelers.
With the Air Transport Association
predicting a record 2.24 million passen
gers, airport officials across the nation
had prepared for the worst.
“They’re all coming back at the same
time,” said Nancy Casdes, spokeswoman
for Los Angeles International Airport.
She said 205,000 passengers were
expected Sunday, up from the estimated
195,000 to 200,000 on the day a year ago.
In the morning, fog at San Francisco
International Airport forced cancella
tion of 20 flights and delayed others up
to two hours.
Most delays at Logan International
Airport in Boston were about 90 min
utes, with longer holdups on some
flights between the city and the West
Coast, New York and Chicago.
sums up the week’s activities. “The walk
is the goal of the week’s events and
we’re trying to promote that on our
campus."
A screening of the film
“Philadelphia” will be held at 6 p.m.
today at the Wesley Foundation, located
at 214 Pittsboro St Attendees are invited
to participate in a discussion to take
place after the screening.
Students, faculty and staff also are
encouraged to attend a discussion
Tuesday night tided, “For Men Only/For
Women Only - Everything You Ever
Wanted to Know About HIV and AIDS
Wilson Library to a lower level of the
Undergrad.
Anew reserves reading area will allow stu
dents to access reserves materials, with a vari
ety of texts available online. Anew study
lounge for students also will be included in
the facility’s floorplan.
Officials are welcoming the construction
because renovation proposals for the library
have been in the works since 1998. Originally
submitted to the N.C. legislature as a capital
improvement proposal, plans were not
approved until the following year.
Plans then were stalled by the statewide
funding needs after Hurricane Floyd devas
tated eastern North Carolina in September
1999. All capital improvement projects not
already under way were put on hold until fur
ther funds became available.
But the improvements can now go forward
after the recent passing of the $3.1 billion
higher education bond referendum, which
will provide $9.8 million for the Undergrad
associate University librarian for
public services Diane Strauss.
Davis will offer 24-hour ser
vice with the exception of Friday
nights from 10 p.m. to 10 a.m.
and Saturday nights from 10 p.m.
to 11 a.m.
Davis will also see other
changes over the Winter Break.
Strauss said the process of
moving much of the Undergrad’s
resources to alternate locations
on campus will occur before Jan.
“Considering the weather, we’ve
been very lucky,” said Jose Juves,
spokesman for the Massachusetts Ports
Authority.
It was easy sailing for other travelers
despite the threat of cancellations due to
labor strife. Mechanics for both United
and Northwest Airlines, which also had
some delays and cancellations, are seek
ing new labor contracts.
United Airlines said there had been
66 cancellations - 49 of them related to
maintenance - out of 2,300 flights sys
temwide.
No major delays were reported at air
ports in Miami, Adanta and Seatde. And
travelers were pleasandy surprised by
the lack of loilg lines at Boston’s Logan.
At Albany International Airport, vol
unteer “ambassadors” and a group of
local gospel singers were enlisted to
calm travelers’ nerves. By afternoon, the
flight boards were filling with delays as
rainstorms covered much of the
Northeast.
Sleet and freezing rain affected trav-
News
But Were Afraid to Ask.” It will be held
7 p.m. to 8 p.m. in 111 Murphey Hall.
A screening will be held Wednesday
night for the film “And the Band Played
On.” The event, which will take place at
7:45 p.m. in 103 Bingham Hall, is spon
sored by Queer Network for Change.
Free, confidential walk-in HIV tests
will be offered to students from 5:30
p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday night in
the Student Recreation Center.
Also beginning Wednesday, informa
tional materials will be available from
representatives from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
through Friday in the Pit
renovations. “The Undergrad is in dire need
of renovation. If this bond hadn’t passed, we
would have been in dire straits,” Strauss said.
She said the library also will ask for $5 mil
lion in private funds. “If we are successful (in
raising the private funds), some of the money
will go into an endowment, and the rest will
be invested in new furniture for the building,”
Strauss said.
Due to the current condition of the
Undergrad, plans call for a complete overhaul
of the existing structure - all that will remain
standing are its walls.
Once the building is gutted, it is estimated
that construction will take about 18 months to
complete.
Between Dec. 20 andjan. 9, all Undergrad
services will come to a halt and will not
resume until afterjan. 9, when most will con
tinue in temporary locations such as Davis
Library and the Wilson Library annex.
See UNDERGRAD, Page 4
9.
Most services will be relocated
to Davis, although some will be
housed in the Wilson Library
annex.
“We’ve explored lots of possi
bilities concerning the
(Undergraduate) library’s distrib
ution of services (during the ren
ovation period),” Strauss said.
“We feel the way we finally decid
ed to distribute the services and
collections is best.”
elers in New England.
More than 60 accidents -some with
serious injuries - were reported on the
Maine Turnpike, Interstate 295 and
other major highways.
In New Hampshire, state police said
more than 30 accidents had been report
ed by early afternoon on black-ice-coat
ed highways.
Freezing rain also wreaked havoc on
Rhode Island roads, where dozens of
wrecks resulted in about 15 injuries.
In Pennsylvania, at least 19 people
were injured in a 50-car pileup on
Interstate 81.
Amtrak spokeswoman Cecilia
Cummings said there were no major
delays or problems on its rail lines.
“We’ve taken precautions,” she said.
“In the Northeast alone, we added 40
extra trains to our service.”
A record 38.9 million Americans - 4
percent more than last year - were
expected to travel at least 100 miles
from home for the holiday, according to
the American Automobile Association.
Organizers of the week will be comb
ing Franklin Street on Thursday night as
the “Safer Sex Squad,” handing out HIV
and AIDS information and educational
materials to the community.
The Great Hall will house a display of
the Names Project AIDS Quilt begin
ning Monday and continuing through
Friday. The Residence Hall Association
is sponsoring the display.
The week’s events will conclude
Friday with the third annual World
AIDS Day Walk at 2:30 p.m. The walk’s
course will begin on South Road and
loop around campus to Memorial Hall.
The Undergrad’s entire non
print and book collection will be
relocated to the annex behind
Wilson, where they will only be
accessible via paper and elec
tronic retrieval requests.
Remaining library sources,
including reading reserves, elec
tronic reserves, the browsing col
lection and current
Undergraduate Library subscrip-
See DAVIS, Page 4
y
DTH/SEITON IPOCK
Senior Carl Hubbard returns a volley to his brother Joe at Fetzer Gym
on Sunday evening. The two participate in the Tar Heel Squash
club that plays matches against the Duke and N.C. State squash dubs.
Monday, November 27, 2000
A reception with speakers and refresh
ments will follow at Polk Place. Students,
faculty and staff who wish to participate
in the walk are asked to register at 2 pm.
Friday at the Bell Tower.
Krista Park, an employee for the
Center for Healthy Student Behaviors,
said her involvement in the committee
stems from her background in sex and
HIV counseling.
“W’ere trying to bring awareness to
campus and remind people that HIV
and AIDS is still out there,” she said.
“Participating in active outreach is a
means of helping people leam.”
Professor Aids
White House
In Transition
Professor Terry Sullivan is helping lead White
House 2001, a project designed to help the
new administration get a solid head start.
By Scott Brittain
Staff Writer
A UNC political science professor is taking on the task of
smoothing the White House’s administrative transition for the
new president of the United States - whomever that might be.
Terry Sullivan is the associate director and a founder of
White House 2001, a project designed to aid the new president
in his transition into the White House and to help the new
administrators learn their jobs before they start them.
Between the election and the inauguration, the president
elect must fill 14 Cabinet posts, choose the White House staff,
write an inauguration speech and set a $l.B trillion federal
budget Sullivan said the responsibility of White House 2001
is to alleviate some of the resulting worries.
“There have been attempts in the past by other scholarly
organizations; all have been uniformly unsuccessful,” Sullivan
said. “Most of the other programs have delivered the infor
mation (current White House administrators) have (to new
administrators) the day after the election, which is really too
late. Trying to learn your job while on the job at the White
House is like trying to sip water from a fire hose.
Sullivan said the goal is to help new appointees and staff
understand what will be expected of them and what chal
lenges they might face so they can hit the ground running in
January - instead of stalling government while they learn die
ropes, as have many administrations before them.
Sullivan saidlhe election controversy in Florida has caused
problems in his organization because it is harder to train admin
istrators whose transition time has been shortened. “We’ve been
working with both transition teams,” he said. “It does make a
difference; a truncated transition (period) is not a good thing.”
White House 2001, which is an extension of the Presidency
Research Group, an arm of the American Political Science
Association, also helps screen candidates for the various posi
tions in the executive branch. Sullivan said a big part of the
work was getting the new employees the official security clear
ance they need to access government information.
Sullivan, who teaches graduate courses about Congress and
the presidency and undergraduate courses on the American
government at UNC, began part-time work on this project in
1997 and has devoted all of his time to it since fall 1999.
Sullivan said he wants to improve the system of presiden
tial transition. “We thought it was important to better the pub
lic condition, and there is no better public condition than to
make sure the White House gets off to a good start”
White House 2001 Director Martha Kumar, a political science
professor at Towson University in Maryland, praised Sullivan’s
efforts. “(His) work is crucial for the project because he’s been
important in managing what’s gone on,” Kumar said. “Sullivan
was very much a part of the development of the project”
Kumar said it is important to set down a list of responsibili
ties for the new administration. “When people come into the
White House, there’s no (guideline) paper there,” Kumar said.
“We need to help those new people out Most offices are pret
ty bare, and the idea here will let people know how their offices
have worked over time and help them make that transition.”
White House 2001 also solicits the help of political science
professors from universities all over the nation, which Sullivan
said adds legitimacy to the project.
“I think it’s an obligation of faculty at a public university
to get involved,” he said. “One of the reasons I and the direc
tor got involved was because we felt it was important for aca
demics to get involved with their expertise."
The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu.
SIBLING RIVALRY
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