VOLUME 116, ISSUE 13
CAMPUS COMES TOGETHER
Thousands join
to honor Carson
BY DAVID GILMORE,
JOSEPH R. SCHWARTZ
AND EMILY STEPHENSON
STAFF WRITERS
As the gathering in the Smith
Center burgeoned Tuesday, an
hour before the first speech
friends and colleagues drew
close to each other, some offer
ing words, others hugs.
Among the Carolina blue-clad
communin' members were 2005-
06 Student Body President Seth
Dearmin and Lynn Blanchard,
director of the Carolina Center
for Public Service.
“1 hear you're going to speak
today,” Blanchard said to
Dearmin.
“I'm going to try,” he replied.
“It's not going to be easy," she
cautioned.
“Nothing is going to be easy
today," he said.
And it wasn't.
In the immediacy of the
March 6 news of Student Body
President Eve Carson’s death,
a campus in mourning grieved
in Polk Place and organized a
candlelight vigil in the Pit.
The next day everyone dis
persed for Spring Break still
coping.
Tuesday, with two suspects
already in custody, Camlina gath
ered again, this time to celebrate
Carson's life and transition from
tragic loss to lasting legacy.
But not everyone was ready.
“Tty as I might. 1 haven't gotten
to the celebration part. For. like so
many of you, I too have been dev
astated," UNC-system President
Erskine Bowles told the crowd.
“As I told her mama and
daddy, Eve Carson made me
feel special. She made me feel
like I was important to her. Eve
Carson made me feel like 1 was
her friend, and, boy, I was."
Other administrators recalled
Carson's dedication to student
input and inclusion, her charm
and her humor.
Iraq War turns 5 amid local protests
Some call for withdrawal of troops
BY REBECCA PUTTERMAN
ASSISTANT STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
Sixty-three years ago, Estelle
Leighton asked a World War 11
soldier recovering from shell shock
to dance with her in the rec room
of a veteran’s hospital. Forty years
ago, she marched in the streets in
protest of an undeclared and pro
tracted war in Vietnam.
At 80 years old, Leighton is pro
testing again as the Iraq War reach
es the close of its fifth year.
“I could sav that I have seen
war," she said. “Kids today, they
don’t see anything."
Leighton, a member of the
national organization Veterans
For Peace, said that when she was
between the ages of 13 and 17 The
New York Times printed a daily
casualty count, and any time she
walked down 42nd Street she would
see soldiers with amputated limbs.
In the 1960 sand 19705, Leighton
said protests and public outrage
over U.S. involvement in an unde
clared war in Vietnam were louder
and more tangible than any pro
tests she has witnessed today.
“I think there was more action in
the Vietnam War; people stood up
and made statements," she said.
“A lot of people in this country
today are so bogged down and
stressed out, they don’t have the
energy. They're just happy to get
through the day.”
UNC's Students for a
Democratic Society is leading a
protest of the Iraq War today in
the Pit, but UNC history profes
sor Wayne Lee said the connection
CORRECTION
Due to an editing error,
Tuesday’s front-page story,
“News takes wide angle," incor
rectly states that UNC News
Services did not think Westboro
Baptist Church would protest.
Officials said they did not think
Westboro would protest on
campus. The Daily Tar Heel
apologizes for the error.
@ljr latlu ®ar Heel
rtjfTHMff * A 3F, f% -
,v<.;‘ '-, y .®
nHHF^HHHr
p? ♦' p Jh
H * ~
H * Mu
■ - "jta
** J Hr
DTH/DAVID ENARSON
Tuesday's “Celebration of the Life of Eve Carson’ brought community members and Carson's friends and family together in the Smith Center
to recount stories and memories of the slain student body president. Speakers encouraged everyone to lead with Carson's “Eve-citement."
DTH ONLINE:
OView images and hear
testimonials by friends,
faculty and administrators.
Friends who spoke focused
less on personal loss and more on
the excited and driven individual
who affected so many.
Aaron Charlop-Powers, a for
mer Carson roommate, said it
was odd characteristics, such as
her terrible driving and incurable
tardiness, that defined her spon
taneous personality.
“It is these quirks, trademarks.
between the American people and
the wars that America fights over
seas has been weakened since the
military switched to an all-volun
teer army.
“It’s not that no one in the
United States cares, but it’s that
fewer people are affected by it,"
Lee said.
The now five-year old coun
terinsurgency war in Iraq has
seen changing objectives and a
constantly shifting bar of suc
cess, but in Vietnam U.S. sol
diers struggled against similar
obstacles for 14 years.
While opponents of the Iraq
war advocate for immediate with
drawal of troops, others argue that
the counterinsurgency nature of
the conflict requires a longer stay.
"Given modem technology and
modern insurgent techniques, it
doesn’t take very many people to
disrupt society, to disrupt the nor
mal functioning of government in
society, so long as they're deter
mined," Lee said.
U.S. intelligence reports have
concluded that there was no offi
cial link between al-Qaida and
Saddam Hussein and the rise of
al-Qaida in Iraq, and some have
indicated that homegrown insur
gent groups can be attributed to
the U.S. occupation.
The Bush Administration has
declared Iraq to be a central front
in the Global War on Terror, and
Lee said the main challenge in
Iraq hinges on the U.S. main
taining the role of peacekeeper
without assuming the role of
online I dailytarheel.com
UNIVERSITY Three Di-Phi members
compete for a prestigious debating award
CITY County Commissioners approve
funds to educate on a proposed tax
STATE & NATIONAL "Code of Ethics
addresses study abroad practices
Serving the students and the University community since 1893
www.dallytarhee!.com
*Strangers embracing strangers.
That's what Eve was about.' mike tarrant, STUDENT BOOT VICE PRESIDENT
mannerisms and details that com
plete the beauty of her person and
make us miss her so," he said.
For many watching, it wasn’t
the content of the speeches, but
the sight of a 10,000-person,
Carolina blue sea that colored
the event in tribute.
“Since I’ve been here. I’ve never
seen the Dean Dome come togeth
er like that,” Student Body Vice.
President Mike Tarrant said after.
“Strangers embracing strang
ers. That’s what Eve was about,
bringing people together. This is
evidence that she has done that."
COURTESY OF AP PHOTO/JOHN MOORE
U.S. soldiers in Kuwait listen to President Bush's address to the nation at
4 a.m. local time March 17,2003. The war in Iraq began two days later.
agitator.
“If the counterinsurgency efforts
and the things that (Gen. David)
Petraeus is doing now continue to
succeed, at a certain point we’ll get
to that moment where we become
more of an irritant than a helper,"
Lee said.
The 2007 surge in troop levels,
along with the turning of some
Sunni tribes against al-Qaida, had
some initial success at taming vio
lence, but congressional calls for
troop withdrawals continue.
Regardless of the next president’s
policy, the strength of Iraqi security
forces will be the determining fac
tor of pulling out, Lee said.
“We have to judge their capabil
ities of the police and the army, not
just the attitude of the civilians."
Contact the State & National
Editor at stntdeskfa unc.edu .
:
' sOm? > l2
Despite the fact that many in
attendance never met Carson,
they came to honor her because
they felt bound by a shared love
for the University.
“1 didn't really know her, but I
feel like I lost someone that was
close to me because she had a
strong connection to Carolina,"
junior Hannah Choe said.
Keying on that connection,
Dearmin’s speech implored oth
ers to carry Carson’s mantle.
Still, he said later, Blanchard
was right: It wasn’t easy.
“It wasn’t tougher for me
Iraq by the numbers
► $527 billion spent so far
► 29,313 wounded service men
and women
► 3,990 U.S. military casualties
► 1.4 million displaced Iraqi persons
► 15,752 Iraqi civilians killed by
bombings
► 31,726 Iraqi civilians wounded
by bombings
► Total Iraqi civilian casualties
estimates vary from 89,000 to
655,000
ATTEND THE PROTEST
Time: 12:30 p.m. today
Location: The Pit
Info: chapelhillsds.org
Sports I page 7
UNC BASEBALL WINS
Tar Heel fielders only made one
error for the entire game to
preserve North Carolina's second
straight shutout in the match
against Princeton Tuesday.
than anyone else," Dearmin said.
“We’ve all been going through
this together, but I can assure you
it was the toughest thing I’ve ever
done in my life."
Difficult as it was for friends
and colleagues to speak,
Blanchard said the memorial was
an appropriate celebration.
“People found the courage to
say things.” she said. “To be able
to say that, you have to think that
Eve’s spirit was with them."
Contact the University Editor
at udesk@ unc.edu.
First-term priorities
fuel Dole approval rate
BY CAROLINE DYE
STAFF WRITER
As U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole, R-
N.C., gears up for her first re-elec
tion campaign, three main issues
continue to dominate her work:
immigration, military develop
ment and health care.
As an incumbent with approval
ratings near the 50 percent mark.
Dole has a good chance at earning
a second term.
A Feb. 19 Public Policy Polling
analysis revealed significant
leads over the contenders for the
Democratic nomination, N.C. Sen.
Kay Hagan. D-Guilford, and busi
nessman Jim Neal.
Dole led Hagan 50 percent to
33 percent and Neal 50 percent to
29 percent.
Fellow first-term senator, U.S.
Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., has
sung praises of his colleague's
performance.
“Dole's a rock star. Sen. Dole
has done a wonderful job of rep
resenting North Carolina," he said
in an interview with The Dailv Tar
Heel.
“She’s probably going to have
very little problem in this elec
tion cycle, and she’s got a tremen
dous list of accomplishments and
involvement that she can run on."
Immigration enforcement
Dole’s involvement has been
most prominent in immigration
issues, particularly the 287 g pro
gram, a statewide partnership
between local law enforcement
this day in history
MARCH 19,2003 ...
The women's lacrosse team had a
close game on its hands against
New Hampshire until they went
on a 4-1 run in the final 15 min
utes of the game to win 9-3.
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19, 2008
Election
change
under
review
Bill simplifies
student elections
BY MEGAN HANNAY
STAFF WRITER
Student elections laws could
become simpler if Student
Congress approves a bill to elimi
nate some of the complexities.
If approved, the bill would get
rid of some rules that restrict can
didates’ actions during the four
weeks of campaigning.
Student Congress Rep. Val
Tenyotkin will introduce the new
bill at Tuesday’s Congress meeting.
Under the current elections laws,
candidates can address students
publicly 21 days before the election
but are not allowed to use materials,
such as fliers or A-frames, until two
weeks before the election.
The new bill would allow can
didates to publicly campaign and
use materials as soon as the Board
of Elections certifies their petitioas
—l9 days before the election.
Private campaigning is defined
as one-on-one conversations, while
public campaigning is speeches
and large debates.
“It’s not rocket science, but it’s
pretty confusing for someone who's
not familiar with the Code," Board
of Elections Chairman Mitchell
Capriglione said, noting that he likes
the idea of less confusing rules.
Tenyotkin said eliminating
materials restrictions would be
easier to enforce and would be
easier for candidates to follow.
"We’ve spoken to some of the
old members of Congress and old
members of the executive branch.
SEE ELECTIONS, PAGE 4
I!
Sen. Elizabeth
Dole, R-N.C.,
has focused on
immigration,
health care and
military
development.
and federal immigration officials.
Eddie Caldwell, executive vice
president of the N.C. Sheriffs’
Association, said that last year Dole
notified the association of her work
with federal immigration officials.
That work led to the creation of a
statewide partnership between N.C.
officials and federal authorities.
287 g, the central part of that part
nership, uses federal resources to
screen those who have been arrested
in order to uncover previous crimes
or immigration violations.
“The idea is not to see how
many people we can arrest; it's to
discourage bad behavior," said Ron
Woodard, director of N.C. Listen,
an anti-illegal immigration group
based in Cary.
“She’s trying to point out that
people should obey the law," he
said. “We have a generous legal
immigration policy, but we just
can't take everybody."
287 g received a boost on March
13, when the U.S. Senate approved
an amendment sponsored by Dole
that will provide $75 million to
expand the program.
However, the program has its
critics.
SEE DOLE, PAGE 4
weather
altfV Rainy
H72.L47
index
police log 2
calendar 2
sports 7
games .... 7
opinion 8