2 Wednesday, November 13, 2002 GHB From Page 1 favor,” Mark said. Since his first dose of the drug this summer, Mark has joined clubgoers across the nation who measure their intoxication in capfuls instead of cans. He said he first heard of GHB on the Showtime show “Queer as Folk” last spring, but he didn’t see the drug firsthand until it was offered to him in a dance club months later. Mark, along with other users inter viewed for this article on the condition of anonymity, credits the appeal of GHB to its ease of use. The drug comes in powder form and is mixed with water in varying concentrations to make a col orless, odorless and tasteless liquid. The liquid GHB is then dispensed in capfuls, which usually sell for $5 to $25. Mark said he usually takes between one to three capfuls at a time. “It’s a hassle to do some drugs, but with G it’s pretty simple,” Mark said. “It’s odorless and tasteless, so you don’t really know that you’re doing it.” “Scott,” 23, who recently gr aduated from N.C. State University, said he tried GHB and GBL once each while he was in college. He said the small dose needed to feel the drug’s effects, combined with its simple administra tion, appealed to him. “It’s a little bit different than alco hol. Instead of drinking 72 ounces of beer to get a buzz, I can drink half an ounce of GHB and get the same effect,” Scott said. “It’s just a lot easier.” Both times, Scott said, he was offered the drug at house parties. He said GHB and GBL are popular because they are so easy to take. “It’s easier than drinking because all you need to take can fit in the size of an aspirin bottle,” he said. “And that’s enough for three or four people.” Though users say the drug has obvi ous appeal, GHB use can have serious consequences. “Honesdy, I don’t know why some people would put a drug with these ingredients into their body,” Glaspy said. At their mildest, the negative effects of GHB include dizziness, erratic behavior, extreme confusion or nausea. At worst, they can include coma, seizures or death. “The way people often die with the drug is swallowing vomit, aspirating vomit,” said Dr. Jerry Frankenheim, program official and chairman of the PIPI . j TJQUtRIA I Have you ever had an international TA? ‘ Have you ever been disappointed in the teaching skills of these TAs? Do you like pizza? 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Smith also said that GHB is extremely addictive and that though its effects are worse when used with another chug, it is deadly alone. “GHB can kill you by itself.” “Greg,” a 19-year-old freshman at Western Carolina University, said he stopped taking the drag after experi encing severe stomach pains.“lt just ripped my stomach up,” he said. “It just had too much of an adverse effect” Greg said he first tried GHB two years ago, as a junior in high school. “I took it at a party -a friend had it, and I tried it,” he said. “Twenty minutes went by, and it hit like a ton of bricks. “It didn’t take much. I’d hate to think what would happen if I had taken more.” Officials said one of the chief prob lems with GHB is that most people receive the drug in liquid form and aren’t aware of its concentration. “There’s no guarantee from vial to vial,” said Dean Blackburn, coordina tor of substance abuse programs for the UNC Center for Healthy Student Behaviors.“ The thing with GHB is it’s not made by a pharmaceutical compa ny. It’s never really made the same, and there’s no standard for it.” Blackburn said he counseled two UNC-CH students last year for GHB use, one male and one female. “I think, say, from this point back a few years, it was predatory,” he said of GHB’s use as a date-rape drug. “But the recreational use is now growing.” Mark also said he thinks GHB use is on the rise. Though he knows it’s dan gerous, he said he is still lured by the chug’s appeal. And for him, that appeal is worth the game of chance he plays each time he decides to take a swallow. “It’s dan gerous. I know it’s dangerous,” he said. “One time I was about to go to sleep, and I didn’t want to sleep because I was afraid I wouldn’t wake up.” The Features Editor can be reached at features@unc.edu. From Page One ELECTION REFORM From Page 1 Natalie Russell, Finance Committee chairwoman, proposed an amendment that would have maintained student government’s role in election financing. The amendment failed, which means that all students’ campaigns - not just those of low-income students - will be funded entirely by Student Congress. It is predicted that this will cost Congress about SB,OOO annually, or about 3 percent of Congress’ budget, said Tony Larson, speaker of Congress. The bill also attempts to purify the elections process by forbidding officers of the executive branch, including the SUSPENSIONS From Page 1 paling. And even though Holmes’ team fin ished second in the tournament, he did not take home one of the Spalding bas ketballs awarded to the runners-up, said tournament organizer Wallace Simpson. Simpson said he asked Johnson to play to help drum up publicity for the tournament. “As far as I’m concerned, both these guys were just trying to help a good cause and raise money for cancer research,” he said. “No one ever asked us (about possible violations) or assumed that it would be a problem.” The additional publicity might be the reason for the suspensions. Simpson said former UNC standout Joseph Forte played in the tournament in 2000 and 2001, but Gallo said he was not aware of Forte’s participation. Gallo said the compliance staff regu larly sends out informational e-mails called “Ram Rules” to athletes to remind them about certain NCAA reg ulations. He said the staff sent one such e-mail dealing with outside competition rules during the spring semester. Regardless, Johnson said, he didn’t understand what types of competition were off-limits. “If we made a mistake, it was an hon est one and done primarily because we neglected to ask our coaches or compli ance staff for prior permission,” he said in the statement. “We certainly regret not having done that.” The Sports Editor can be reached at sports@unc.edu. Campus Calendar Today 11 a.m. - The Red Cross Club is sponsoring blood drive until 4 p.m. Please contact donors@unc.edu. Sljr Sally Car Hrel RO. Box 3257. Chapel Hill, NC 27515 Kim Minugh, Editor, 962-4086 Advertising & Business, 962-1163 News, Features, Sports, 962-0245 One copy per person; additional copies may be purchased at The Daily Tar Heel for $.25 each. © 2002 DTH Publishing Corp. All rights reserved Choose to have your own dedicated Internet line & quiet study lounges. 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WHAT YOU RECEIVE YOUR NEXT STEP I • Round-trip ticket For more information, email or phone: yang (van um§ • Free housing at Beijing University and train travel from Prof. William O’Donnell, University of Memphis Guilin. Beijing to Shenzhen E-mail: chinapgm@cc.memphis.edu ’ Zhu-.:-'- ■■ • Free faculty housing and some meals. Shenzhen Phone: 901 678-4584 office 901 857-2930 cell 'Xi U2 ' . apartments have air-conditioning, telephone, and TV. Or visit our website: http://www.chinaprogram.org •fc.V-'X/lcL i Married couples can be accommodated. .. . Sh ‘ ,n ; ,u ‘ n - Stipend RMB 3.500 per month (approx $425) plus *’ n<? (x*egßsnß; RMB 4,000 bonus in June * Paid 3-week vacation at Chinese New Year in January/February > i . , L ah* Student Body President Jen Daum and Speaker of Student Congress Tony Larson sponsored the campaign finance reform bill. student body president, to endorse or participate in a campaign for any candi date. This sanction dso was extended to members of Student Congress by the passage of a hotly contested amendment ENERGY From Page 1 the campus’s new science complex, which is under preliminary construction. UNC’s Energy Sustainability Task Group has committed to outfit the building with solar panels if the money becomes available. SEAC members said UNC spends SSO million a year on energy, about two thirds of which comes from coal -a major concern expressed by the students. Paul Cox, a representative for SEAC’s Green Energy Campaign, said that if the referendum was on the ballot, students, who have a responsibility to protect the environment, could choose where their energy comes from. But some Congress representatives were concerned that student funds would be taken off campus and put to uses that LAPTOPS From Page 1 the student body. “It could be a person of college age dressing to look like a stu dent,” he said. On Oct. 3, a laptop computer was stolen from the Undergrad, and the video surveillance system provided a fuzzy picture of the suspect, Daniel said. The man’s picture closely resembles the physical description of the Undergrad robber, he said. On Oct. 22, a laptop was stolen from Lenoir by a suspect with a similar phys ical description, reports state. Daniel said the most recent victim’s physical description of the suspect could play a major role in solving the three 1:30 p.m. - The Orange County Chapter of the American Red Cross and the UNC School of Nursing are sponsoring a blood drive until 6 p.m. Please contact Amy Brenneman at abandnc@email.unc.edu. All donors will receive a coupon for a free Chick-fil- A sandwich and a coupon worth $5 off Domino’s pizza. 6 p.m. - The Wesley Foundation will host dinner and a discussion on ser vice. After a short discussion, boxes for Operation Christmas Child will be assembled. The event will be held at the Wesley Foundation at 214 Pittsboro St. proposed by Student Affairs Committee Chairwoman Carey Richter. “We are different from other student organizations,” said Aaron Hiller, stu dent body vice president. “We are the only student organization on campus that has to remain, by mandate, objec tive. The fact of the matter is political offices have been and will continue to be abused without this safeguard.” Members also debated how much can didates for Congress could spend on cam paigns. An amendment from Rep. Will Dupont suggested a limit of SSO, which was a compromise between the previous $75 and the proposed S2O. The amend ment failed, setting the limit at S2O. The bill also lowers the amount of money the student body president and would not directly benefit students. Controversy arose over where the power would be generated and how much of it would benefit UNC students. In the proposed plan, power would be generated off campus by N.C. Green Power and sent to a power grid. UNC would be one of the recipients of the energy from the grid, while student fees paid to the power company would be invested to create a collateral base for renewable energy. This collateral would in effect create a market and ensure funding for future green energy projects. Finance Committee Chairwoman Natalie Russell said the resolution was “fundamentally wrong in using student fees to create a market.” The power grid would provide power not directly for UNC but for the Chapel Hill community, and representatives were hesitant to let fees be spent in a way crimes. Without the facial image, it would have been hard for anyone to positively identify the thief, he said. “We have been working on the inves tigation, but we haven’t located the guy,” Daniel said. “Now that (the victim) has a face shot, we think the combina tion of the face shot and the video image will trigger someone’s memory.” About 10 larcenies involving laptops have been reported to University police this year, Mclntyre said. When this number is compared with about 60 lap top larcenies last year, the University is on pace to improve, he said. Although there is no proof, Mclntyre would not rule out the possibility that this suspect was involved in other laptop thefts. “I’m not sure about the other ones, but in any of them that the computer just across from the Carolina Inn parking lot. 7:30 p.m. -The Black Student Movement will face off with Duke’s BSA and N.C. State’s AASAC in 101 Greenlaw Hall in a soul and hip-hop battle titled “Brown Suga: Can You Prove That Hip Hop Is the Love of Your Life?” Thursday, Nov. 14 11 a.m. - The Red Cross Club is hosting a blood drive in the Student Union until 4 p.m. Appointments are encouraged. Contact donors@unc.edu. 6 p.m. - The Carolina Association OlLtc laily ular Heel Carolina Athletic Association president candidates can spend from SSOO to S4OO. This bill is not helping just poor can didates, it also ensures that candidates are accountable for the funds spent, said Rep. Jennifer Orr. “The student body will have better knowledge of how the campaign is being ran.” Also mandated by the legislation is an increase in the amount of signatures a potential candidate must gather to run - ensuring that students who receive cam paign money are serious. For example, candidates for student body president will have to receive 800 signatures instead of 500, the previous minimum. The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu. that might not directly benefit students. The passage of the bill was met with applause from many in the room. But during debate on a bill to create a Renewable Energy Special Project Committee should the referendum be approved, Student Body President Jen Daum noted that the figure of $192,000 - the total generated by the $4 hike - was inaccurate. She said that with summer school prorated fees, the actual total could be closer to $300,000. Speaker Tony Larson said members could reconsider the resolution with a two-thirds majority in light of Daum’s remark. But the matter was not reconsidered before adjournment Student Body Vice President Aaron Hiller said the students had spoken. “Put it on the ballot,” he said. “Let them decide.” The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu. walked away, he is a good suspect” To prevent future robberies, Mclntyre suggests that students do not leave their laptops unattended on cam pus for any amount of time. Although thefts might be down, students still have to be careful with their computers, he said. “When a couple-of-thousand-dollar piece of equipment is lying around, the opportunists will walk off with it,” Mclntyre said. Anyone with information who can assist in locating or identifying the sus pects can call Crimestoppers at 942-7515 or UNC investigators at 966-2120. Callers may remain anonymous. The University Editor can be reached at udesk@unc.edu. for Black Journalists proudly presents J-School Mixer 2002. CABJ invites you to meet, eat and mingle with some of the many journalism and mass communica tion organizations on campus in 33 Carroll Hall. Come out and explore the many opportunities available to journal ism majors of all sequences, as well as non-journalism majors. Point of Interest UNC Dance Marathon Dancer Recruitment is all this week. Apply to be a dancer online at http:// www.uncmarathon.org.

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