An Uncertain Future: Obama’s Goals in the Middle East

By Lindsay Fendt

5/18/0

President Obama’s commitment to peace within the Middle East will be tested this month with meetings with three important leaders in Washington.  Within the next two weeks the president will meet with the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, and the Palestinian National Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. 

“At the top of Obama’s agenda is to restart the Middle East peace process,” said Dr. Safia Swimelar a political science professor at Elon University. “I think he has an interest, given what he campaigned on, in trying to rectify human rights abuses and begin developing a more peaceful environment.”

According to presidential spokesman Robert Gibbs, Obama wants to discuss the future relationship between the U.S. and the region as well as action that needs to be taken to repair the relationship between Israel and Palestine.  It remains to be seen whether the talks will be successful. 

“I think Obama has a better chance than many of his predecessors,” said Alon Ben-Meir, an international relations professor at New York University. “He is very committed to the peace process, and the conditions in the Middle East are ripe for movement forward.”

While the problems in the Middle East top Obama’s agenda, the problems facing his administration are many. 

War is raging in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Israel’s new more extreme government is reversing much of the progress made between Israel and Palestine and Iran’s nuclear program is an ever-looming threat to most of the western world. 

While Iraq is the biggest issue for the U.S. in the Middle East, Obama is taking a different tactic in an attempt to combat the overarching problems in the region. 

“I think Obama has come in with a much broader context about how the world works,” said Swimelar.  “He has an understanding that if you’re going to deal with Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan and the whole rest of it you also have to deal with the Israeli Palestinian issue.  Those are all connected.” 

Following this line of thought, one of Obama’s main changes will be the relationship between the U.S. and Egypt.  Other than the meeting with Mubarak next week, Obama will also deliver a speech in Egypt on June fourth. 

“All the Arabs in Egypt have great hope in Obama,” said Ramzy Gagazy, former secretary of the Egyptian People’s Assembly. “Obama is a good man and we are welcoming.”

Whether his tactics will work or not remain to be seen. 

Back in the U.S. at Elon University in North Carolina, opinions vary wildly over Obama’s projected success, but one sentiment is shared among everyone: hope. 

“We have to have hope that things will change,” said David Wells an Elon Junior. “We definitely need to work on our relations with the Middle East.”

While the relationship between the U.S. and the Middle East is incredibly important, creating a stable environment in the region may be key in its future.

“I think we really need to look at the greater good and think about what both countries want and need,” said Lindsay Hege the Assistant Director of Alumni Relations at Elon University.

One of the largest obstacles facing the Obama administration is the newly elected Prime Minister Netanyahu of Israel. 

“The new government of Israel is not the best to be negotiating about this issue,” said Swimelar. “Netanyahu said today that he wanted to have a new process, not the two state process but something new.  The two state solution seems to be the only thing that would work, but now it may not be able to happen.”

Despite these challenges, Obama has proved unwavering in his desire to improve the conditions in the Middle East.  In his short time as president he has already sent more troops into Afghanistan, went on a tour of the Middle East and addressed the region in numerous speeches.  All parties remain hopeful that Obama will succeed where his predecessors have failed.

“The Arab world is more open than ever before,” said Ben-Meir. “If there is a time for peace talks the time is now.”

Watch Dr. Safia Swimelar Talk About the Talks

Youth For Western Civilization, a Right-Wing Student Movement, Comes to Elon

By Lindsay Fendt

5/11/0

“America’s right wing youth movement,” has made its way to Elon’s campus.  The group, Youth for Western Civilization, was founded at UNC-Chapel Hill in response to the liberal culture on campus.

 “I think the campus climate right now is insane, frankly,” said founder Kevin DeAnna. “I think it’s very important we start a counter-balance for that.”

The head of the new un-official Elon chapter, senior Anna Prevette, met DeAnna while interning at the Leadership Institute, a conservative training organization.

“I came back to campus trying to get the organization going. I met with Dean Patterson last semester who said it would take a lot longer for a group that is part of a national chapter to get approved as a campus organization,” said Prevette. “Since then I’ve been working on getting enough members and a faculty advisor for the group so the whole process can go smoothly.”

According to YWC’s website their goals are to promote Western Civilization and Western Heritage, “counter and ultimately defeat leftism on campuses,” and create a conservative subculture on university campuses.

The YWC also claims a desire to fight “radical multiculturalism,” a concept that DeAnna claims is represented in efforts by university’s curriculum to be politically correct.

“It’s not that you’re learning anything about other cultures,” said DeAnna, “it’s that you’re learning the right thing to say.  It’s this idea that the West is and always has been the source of everything bad and nothing good.  We are trying to counter that.”

Although there are few members nationwide, the organization has already made a controversial splash.  In April former congressman Tom Tancredo, YWC’s honorary chairman, appeared on UNC’s campus and was greeted with protests and violence.

Tancredo’s speech revolved around the DREAM Act, a recent law that would give illegal aliens in-state tuition to college.  The event was shut down after a brick was thrown through a window where the event was being held.  The protestors had signs with statements such as “no one is illegal” and chanted “shut it down no racists in our town.”

This event is not the first time the YWC has been accused of promoting racism.  According to the website Southern Poverty Law Center, a group that monitors hate groups, some of the YWC’s missions are “suspect.”

Non-member students at UNC have also expressed their concern about the group in a recent Fox News article, and upon hearing about the presence on Elon’s campus, students here also expressed their concerns.

 “When they say ‘Western identity’, it’s pretty obvious they’re not talking about African-Americans or Latinos – they’re talking about white people,” said Daniel Shutt, president of Elon’s chapter of College Democrats. “This isn’t a group about conservative politics, this is about white people who are uncomfortable with minorities.”

The YWC has fiercely worked to dispel these claims.  Prevette said there is even a member with a Pakistani background at Vanderbilt’s chapter.

“This is not a ‘white power’ group, a hate group, or a battle or the races like critics would like to claim,” said Prevette.  “This group is about how individuals view the issues that face traditional, western culture and anyone can embrace them no matter their race.”

While the group is gathering attention nationwide, the support on Elon’s campus is still minimal.  In order to become an official chapter of YWC, Elon’s chapter will need at least four dues paying members, the ability to host speakers and a bank account among other requirements.  Prevette hopes that with the right leadership, the group can gain this status soon.

“Our country is heading down a slippery slope and away from traditional values. By enlightening other college students before they venture into the real world, this organization can hopefully impact the future of our nation via higher education,” said Prevette.

“Math Tools for Journalists”: Finding Volume Measurements

By Lindsay Fendt

5/11/0

In chapter 11 of “Math Tools for Journalists,” Kathleen Woodruff Wickham explains the importance of volume measurements.  Journalists often need to use simple math to calculate the approximate volumes for various stories.  Volume can tell you how much of something is used or needed in a variety of scenarios.

The first type of measurements Wickham explains are liquid volumes.  There are many conversions required when talking about liquids because of the metric and standard systems, and also because of the variety of different types of measurements. Making these conversions is simple by using division or multiplication.

Measurement	Equivalent
2 tablespoon	1 fluid ounce
½ pint	8 ounces or one cup
1 pint	16 ounces or two cups
2 pints	1 quart
2 quarts	½ gallon
4 quarts	1 gallon
1 U.S. standard barrel	31.5 gallons
1 U.S. gallon	4/5 Imperial gallon
British or Canadian barrel	36 imperial gallons

 

Wickham also explains how to calculate the volume of a rectangular solid.  This can be accomplished by multiplying the length of the shape, the width and the height.  This is useful building stories that require the calculation of an area.

Practice Problems

1) Sam is writing a story about a rectangular building being constructed in the middle of the city.  The building is going to be occupying a block that is 100 feet by 100 feet and will be 100 feet tall.  What is the volume of the building?

100 x 100 x 100 = 1,000,000 feet

2) There was record-breaking heat in London today.  Many people died of heat exhaustion and you need to report on it.  It was 44.8 degrees Celsius, what was the temperature in Fahrenheit?

(1.8 x 44.8) + 32= 112 degrees Fahrenheit

3) The city is selling a portion of their land in order to increase revenue the land is 100 feet by 200 feet.  What is the area of the land?

100 x 200 = 20,000 feet

4) A drunk driver was arrested after a car crash where 2 people were killed.  You are writing a story about it and need to calculate how fast the driver was going.  The driver was never clocked, but a friend saw him leave the bar at 11 P.M. and the crash occurred at approximately 11:30 P.M. 55 miles away.  How fast was the car traveling.

55 miles ÷ .5 hours = 110 MPH

‘Math Tools for Journalists’: Understanding Stocks and Bonds

By Lindsay Fendt    

5/6/09

            In the seventh chapter of “Math Tools for Journalists” Kathleen Woodruff Wickham explains how to interpret stocks and bonds.  Businesses are an important are of investigation for many journalists and as many companies main source of investment is through stocks and bonds they are important to understand.

            Wickham begins by discussing the stock market and how to understand the symbols and language used when talking about the stock market.  When someone buys a unit of stock they buy a small portion of a company.  The value of stock is determined by a variety of factors including supply and demand, publicity and future projections of the company.  Another way investors purchase stock is through mutual funds, which are companies that invest money in stocks for profit.  When someone buys a share of a mutual fund their money is invested for them and they receive a profit based upon how well the people in the mutual fund company invested their money.

            Within the realm of finance are many abbreviations and jargon that is often foreign to journalists.  Wickham explains in detail how to read a typical stock table that is often recreated in newspapers.  The 52-week high/low shows the highest and lowest price of a given stock.  In the next column is the actual name of the stock, which is an abbreviated version of the company name.  Next comes the Div column, which stands for dividend and indicates the most recent amount of money paid out to stockholders per share.  The PE column stands for price/earnings ration and is the stock price divided by the earnings over a year.  The next column is the last column, which is the most recent price of the stock.  The final column is the amount of change the stock experienced in that day compared to the last day.

            Wickham then moves on to discuss bonds, which are low risk investments with a set interest rate.  Investors buy a bond at a certain price and then receive interest on that bond each year.  Investors can also sell bonds, if they have an immediate need for cash, for a lower price than they purchased it for.  This changes the current yield of a bond.  To calculate the current yield you take the interest rate multiply it by the face value and divide it by the price.

            Lastly Wickham discusses market indexes.  The first market index she mentions is the Dow Jones industrial average.  The Dow Jones takes information from key stocks to give an overview of the entire stock market in any given day.  Wickham next mentioned NASDAQ, which stands for the National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations.  NASDAQ lists the prices of more than 5,000 stocks so that the prices of all stocks are available to the public.

Practice Problems

1) Joe Schmo buys a stock for $500.  The original stock was purchased for $800 and has a 5% interest rate.  What is the current yield of the bond.

(5% x $800) ÷ $500 = 8%

2) Bob is a hired assasin.  Each assasination costs him $150 in “materials” and he charges $5000.  What is Bob’s Gross Marigin. (The amount of personal remorse Bob experiences cannot be determined by the information given in this problem.)

$5000 – $150 = $4850 Profit

3) Sally is trying to interpret a poll for a story she is writing about the amount of money people spend on movies.  One person in the poll spent $500.  The total standard deviation was $100 and the mean was $350.  What is their Z-score?

($500-$350) ÷ $100 = 1.5 z-score

4) Arnold is writing a story about a corrupt politicians recent purchase of a mansion.  The property was assessed at 25% of the original rate and the house was appraised as being worth $ 1 million.  What is the assessed value of the house?

$1 million x .25 = $250,000 

 

Elon University Holds Lupe Fiasco and Girl Talk Concert

Lindsay Fendt                                                                                                                                 5/01/09                                                                                                                                        

Elon University’s Alumni Gym took on a different appearance Friday night at the school’s annual spring concert.  In place of the usual small group of athletes stood a massive glowing crowd of 2,500 swaying in unison to the sounds produced from a small plastic-wrapped computer.

The Concert

The source of this strange site was Elon’s Student Union Board’s annual spring concert, and the men behind the music were Girl Talk, a mash-up artist, and Lupe Fiasco, a rapper.

“We tried to kind of change up the genre of music from what we’ve had in the past,” said Lauren Leonard, the stage chair of SUB. “Normally we’ve had rock singer songwriter people and we wanted to cater to a larger crowd and hopefully get a bigger audience.”

 The plan worked.  More than 2,500 tickets were sold to the show compared to just over 700 to last year’s show of Sister Hazel and Matt Nathanson.

“I’m excited to see this. It’s probably a show I wouldn’t have seen on my own,” said Elon student Molly Costigan, “I was almost afraid that less people would come but from what I am seeing it seems like there are more people.”

The Challenges of a Bigger Concert

The larger crowd also brought along some new challenges for SUB.

“With a larger concert we’ve faced different challenges in terms of security,” said Leonard, “but we’ve worked through all of them.”

Part of Lupe Fiasco’s contract stipulated that no video recording devices were allowed, this combined with the larger amount of people made for longer security lines.  The lines wrapped around the sidewalks in front of the gym, and some waited for as long as 2 hours.

With bigger bands also comes bigger ticket prices.  Although tickets for students were only $20 in advance, compared to the $25 last year,  the $27 door price was still too expensive for some.  Many students elected to attend the university’s Electric Ensemble’s free outdoor concert earlier in the day instead.

“It is just too expensive,” said Melanie Walsh an Elon sophomore at the outdoor concert. “Especially while this is free and it’s so nice outside.”

Watch Girl Talk On Tour video by JP Coakley

Retro Concert Rocks Elon University

By Lindsay Fendt

5/1/09                                                                        

Elon University’s usually peaceful and quiet Young Commons was turned into an outdoor rock concert today as crowds gathered for the Electric Ensemble’s Retro Rock Performance.

The program featured music from the ’70s and ’80s and drew a large crowd of Elon students and Burlington residents alike.

“I read about it at the school website,” said Burlington resident Denise Andrews, a social coordinator. “We thought it would be fun to hear the music.”

What is the Electric Ensemble

The Electric Ensemble, unlike Elon’s other music ensembles, focuses on popular music styles and live music production.  It was created in fall of 2008 by music professor Todd Coleman

“I created the ensemble to provide additional performance opportunities for majors in the B.S. in music technology program who played instruments outside the “mainstream” of classical music,” said Coleman.

Their performances include both male and female vocals.  It also features guitar, bass and drums. 

The electric ensemble also allows students the opportunity to compose their own songs and to arrange a set list.

“The ensemble also provides an opportunity for students to learn more about live sound reinforcement, mixing and monitoring,” said Coleman

The ensemble has performances at the end of each semester.  Last semester’s performance focused on the late MTV era.  The Retro Rock Performance was their last performance of the year.

“Playing in the Electronic Ensemble is such an amazing experience,” said keyboard and guitarist Stephen Dimuzio. “You are playing music you love with all sorts of talented people.  You can’t go wrong.”

The Joys of Low Cost Entertainment

Students also enjoyed the opportunity to get outside for some entertainment free of charge.

“It’s a good way to do a picnic dinner,” said Elon sophomore Kristen Feeney, “ and its free!”                                                                                                       

Watch The Electric Ensemble Play the End of Crazy Train    

                                                                                                             

Elon University’s Reactions to Obama’s First 100 Days

By Lindsay Fendt                                                                                                                                    

5/1/09                                                                                                                                                      

In his first 100 days as president Barack Obama has guaranteed the close of Guantanamo Bay in a year, signed the Bush administration’s restrictions on stem cell research out of existence and sent 17,000 troops to Afghanistan.  He also sparked huge political debates in Washington and elsewhere with his $787 billion dollar stimulus plan.

Photo from freedigitalphotos.com

 

Elon’s Perceptions

 While protests about tax increases can be seen throughout the country, people at Elon University seemed more reflective of the Bloomsberg Press’s nationwide poll that found an overall 68% approval rating for the president.

In an informal poll of 20 people around Elon’s campus, most respondents were apathetic, but the 30% who were not all had positive remarks about Obama’s actions.

“I think Obama has done a great job in his first 100 days,” said Rachel Cieri an Elon Junior. “He started doing things right off the bat.”

Elon student Mandy Bowman agreed that Obama had accomplished many good things but also expressed concern with some of his actions.

“ I am a bit baffled as to why he sent 17,000 troops into Afghanistan,” she said. “ I thought he was going to start cutting down on the violence not having a surge.”

Despite the great number of changes from the new president most respondents denied knowing anything about Obama’s actions.

“I’m really the wrong person to ask,” said one respondent. “I am completely apathetic.”

Watch Elon’s Associate Dean of Students Respond to Obama’s First 100 Days

 

Carolina String Duo Captivates Audiences at Elon University

By Lindsay Fendt

4/27/09

When you think of a classical string concert, you may imagine violins, cellos or violas, but what about banjos and guitars?  With the Carolina String Duo that is exactly what you get.

The Carolina String Duo, made up of Elon University music faculty, Kevin Dollar and Carey Harwood, performed Monday night in Yeager Hall presenting a variety of music ranging from the 14th century to today.

A Different Concert Experience

The duo was originally created by the professors as a means for combining their two vastly different guitar interests.

“We decided we wanted to do a different kind of concert for the classical stage,” said Harwood, who began playing the guitar afte he collapsed his lung in high school. “A little bit of a history lesson and little bit of a variety show, combing all of the types of music we like to play.”

While the show was first and foremost a concert, Harwood provided interesting histories about the music and the composers while the duo tuned before each song.  These stories ranged from the unfortunate death of one composer from mushroom poisoning to the invention of banjo parlor music.

Two Unique Band Members

Both members of the duo bring their own interesting types of music.  

Dollar represents the more classical approach to guitar, playing the steel string, electric and gypsy jazz guitar.  His experience is more geared towards chamber music and traditional jazz music.  

Harwood on the other hand is experienced in instruments such asthe lute, banjo and mandalin as well as the guitar.  Looking at the stage Harwood had an entire rack full of various instruments, while Dollar simply had two different acoustic guitars.

On Tour

The duo has traveled through much of the Southeastern United States performing for audiences at schools as well as concert halls.  In the past month they have played at the Tennesee Guitar Festival, a benefit show for the Alamance Arts Council and the Music Academy of North Carolina Guitar Festival.

“My favorite thing about the duo is that it gives us a chance o do a less formal, fun concert in a setting that sometimes takes itself too seriously,” said Harwood. “I really love to play all these instruments, and I hope this duo helps people understand why they’re so cool.

Math Tools for Journalists: Understanding Federal Statistics

By Lindsay Fendt

4/26/09

Inflation, GDP and unemployment are terms heard everyday in the news, especially in today’s recession.  One thing, however, is often unclear: where do these numbers come from?  The fourth chapter of Kathleen Woodruff Wickham’s book “Math Tools for Journalists” explains how the government derives these statistics, as well as how to report them accurately.

Governmental Agencies

Wickham begins by talking about the government agencies responsible for many national statistics, The Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Bureau of Economic Analysis.  Updated statistics can be found every month on both agencies websites and the Bureau of Labor Statistics even offers a CPI calculator for calculating inflation. 

Unemployment and the Labor Force

Unemployment rates are among the most important measurements of the health of an economy.  These rates are compiled from a group of 60,000 households surveyed once a month.  The actual number is based on several numbers that are ascertained from these surveys.  The first is the labor force.  The labor force is the number of people over the age of 16 who have worked or searched for a job in the past month.  Those people who have looked for a job but have not worked are unemployed.  The employment rate is calculated by taking the number of unemployed people dividing it by the labor force and then multiplying this number by 100. 

Wickham also points out some of the flaws of the unemployment rate.  Firstly, people are only considered unemployed if they have no work at all, but a person may not have a job that offers them enough hours.  The unemployment rate also does not include discouraged workers, or people who have tried so long to find a job, have not succeeded and have given up.  Wickham explained that each of these flaws can make an interesting story if either of these situations is prevalent in the area being written about.

 

Inflation and GDP

The second pair of statistics calculated by the Bureau of Labor Statistics is the inflation rate and the Consumer Price Index.  The CPI is based off of the price increases of select items.  The number is then compiled into a number over 100.  The amount over 100 represents the percentage increase since 1984.  By taking the current CPI subtracting last month’s CPI, dividing the entire number by last month’s CPI and then multiplying by 100 you can calculate the inflation rate. 

Another important number is the Gross Domestic Product.  This is calculated by adding the total consumer spending on goods and services, investment spending, government spending and the net exports.  This number is very significant because it is the best reflection of the condition of the economy.

 

Practice Problems

1)    The American labor force in January of 2009 was 138 million people, the amount of unemployed people was 6 million.  Calculate the unemployment rate?

(6 million ÷ 138 million) x 100 = 4.35% 

2)    John Smith scored a 75 on his media writing exam 23 other people took the test and 5 scored the same or lower then him.  What is John’s percentile ranking?

5 ÷ 23 = 21st percentile

3)    9 million teenagers are infected with an STD each year.  There are 28 million teenagers in America what percentage have STDs?

9 million ÷ 28 million = 32%

4)    In AP style which numbers are expressed in numeral forms and which are expressed in words?

Numbers at the beginning of a sentence, numbers greater than 9, million, billion.

 

 

 

Jazz Ensemble and Ballroom Dance Team Host Jazz Night

By Lindsay Fendt

4/17/09

Today Elon University’s McKinnon Hall was transformed from a dull and lifeless conference room into a vibrant dance hall with live jazz music. 

In a joint effort Elon’s Jazz Ensemble and the competitive ballroom dance team, Flight of the Phoenix, held the music event, which features dance lessons followed by a jazz performance. 

“The competitive ballroom dance team has been around for quite a while,” said captain Jamie Gorsuch.  “We have been trying to increase the prevalence club on campus so we were thrilled when the jazz ensemble asked us to come out.”

 

A Community Event

Students and Burlington residents alike came out to learn the dance steps for salsa and swing.  The flight of the phoenix members took the crowd through all of the steps before putting on music and allowing them to try it out.

Beverly Arthurs, a Graham resident and former professional dance teacher, came out after seeing the event on Elon’s cultural calendar.

“We know Elon and how good the band is and we wanted to be a part of it,” said Arthurs. “I still love to dance, even today.”

While this is the last jazz concert of the semester, the entire wind ensemble is playing their last show on May 12.  The ballroom dance team also has open dance lessons every Friday night.

Watch the Dancing and the Jazz Ensemble Performance