Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

_V0L-94'N°-78 Friday apr.l 20,2oo_i_ Serving the Ca rolina Community since 1Q08 WWW.DAJLYGAMECOCK.COM UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA COLUMBIA, S.C. Possible Senate Run Newspaper calls on Palms to decide by Brandon Larrabee The Gamecock Writing that USC President John Palms “clearly cannot function as both a political candidate and USC president,” a South Carolina newspaper lias said Palms must quickly decide whether he wants to run for U.S. Senate. The Greenville News is one of the first newspapers to write an editorial calling on Palms to make up his mind. The Gamecock wrote a similar editorial March 30. “University of South Carolina President John Palms cannot continue to mull his candidacy for the U.S. Senate without compromising his ability to lead the university,” the News wrote Monday. “Therefore, he should end this distracting public flirtation with politics and decide his candidacy. Quickly.” Palms faxed a letter to USC trustees March 28 saying lie was “inclined to run” for the U 5. Senate seat currently held by 98-year-old Sen. Strom Thurmond, R S.C. Thurmond has repeatedly said he would step down when his term ends in 2003. At the April 12 board of trustees meeting, Palms maintained that he would make a decision by the first week of May. He also said he might leave the university by July should he decide to run. “It is disappointing and regrettable Palms didn’t finalize liis intentions before the board’s regularly scheduled meeting recently, as some trustees had publicly wished,” the News wrote in the editorial. “Palms leaves USC hanging.” p The newspaper didn’t call on Palms to immediately resign, saying he should be allowed to remain as president for now. “A door has been left open for Palms to continue as president. That Palms has earned,” the News wrote, praising Palms’ tenure as president. But the newspaper questioned whether he could continue as president after he had decided. “Palms is savvy enough to realize lie’s inviting the ugliness of politics where it doesn’t belong. A question he must ask himself is whether he should return as a possibly less effective president,” the News wrote. The paper said Palms must decide by his self-imposed May deadline. “That should be his—and the board’s — absolute latest deadline for this important decision. If this drama drags on, Palms could effectively close the door on his returning to liis duties as president even if he should decide against running for the U.S. Senate,” the News wrote. The newspaper also noted dial Palms “has rankled some Republicans by declaring his intentions to run as a Democrat.” That, the News suggested, could compromise his ability to lead the university. The paper said Palms would now be viewed as a likely candidate for a political office whenever a high-profile position opens up. “But the reality is that even if he passes on running, it’s questionable whether he can function as president while being viewed as a candidate-in wailing by both major parties,” the News wrote. Palms see, page 2 Incubator students focus on Internet ■ Four of the five businesses selected will use Web sites by Christoph Schulz The Gamecock Businesses selected to take part in the Student Incubator Center appear to be taking advantage of the recent technology boom. Four of the ‘ I think it is not five chosen t - . complies are only being technology professional based and will * offer their about What you services over do, but having a lheI“ passion about five businesses what you do.* willreceive J $1,000 in Leslie Johnson startuP money and USC alumna getaccesst0 —office space, including Internet and telephone and fax lines, for up to two years. One of the companies, BookSmarts, will try to lower students’ costs for course materials through information empowerment. Edininglinder.com will offer a platform for restaurants to reach customers by supplying information, such as recipes and coupons, with a strong focus on the local market. G.L.U.E. (Girls Like Us Everyday) magazine will be an interactive Web-based magazine for females ages 15-27 that aims to offer a “positive” alternative to the mainstream media, with a heavy emphasis on education. And juslinsane design is a company that focuses on designing Web pages for corporate businesses at a lower price than comparable companies. Only one company won’t be based on the Internet. The fifth Incubator company is Gamehitch Outdoors, wliicli will produce the Gamehitch, a device to aid hunters in Incubator see page 2 AWARDS DAY: University honors seniors for academics, service mm • s i : •••:*<> ty * SOUIH(7\R01JNA I USC President John Palms reads the accomplishments of former Sorority Council President Tracy Bonds and former Fraternity Council President Edward Bender, both recipients of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award at the university's Awards Day. Fire department launches prevention program ■ Recall Round-Up 2001 to try to raise awareness of everyday hazards by Valerie Matchette The Gamecock The Columbia Fire Department, along with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, announced Thesday Iheir kickoff of a fire prevention program. Recall Round-Up 2001 is meant to publicize the fact that everyday items can be fire hazards. Richland County fire stations will become drop-off points for unsafe products until April 24. Columbia Fire Chief John Jansen, who spoke at the kickoff at the Laurel Street Fire Station, named several household appliances that can be dangerous. “Many products have been determined to be fire hazards — lighters, hair diyers and halogen lamps have been found to be causes of fires,” Jansen said. He added that cigarette lighters without child-safety devices can cause fires, as well. Helen Cash of the Consumer Product Safety Commission said novelty lighters that look like cars or other toys can be dangerous because they attract children. The CPSC said fire deaths resulting from children playing with lighters have been reduced by 43 percent since 1994. The agency has created mandatory safety standards to make the lighters difficult for children under 5 years old to use. Halogen lamps have proven to be problematic because most are manufactured without a protective screen over the light bulb. Tissues and curtains have been known to land on top of the bulb and ignite, and children can knock the lamp over and start a fire, Cash said. According to the CPSC, halogen lamps have caused 436 fires and 35 deaths since 1992. “Any halogen lamp that doesn ’t have a protective screen over the bulb itself should be discarded,” Jansen said. Cash urged people to check their homes to see whether llrey had any of these items. “Consumers: Do some spring cleaning,” Cash said. She said it’s essential for people to perform their own checks because homes are hard for consumer advocates to regulate. “CPSC can get [dangerous products] off shelves, but homes are a challenge,” Cash said. According to Cash, older hair diyere that don’t have built-in shock-protection devices should be replaced with newer ones. She said tlie majority of hair dryers are made with the protectors, which prevents electrocution by automatically shutting off power to the appliance in case it’s dropped in water. The CPSC said people should also check the quality of the wires in their homes. The agency reported that frayed and damaged electrical wires cause about 5,700 fires and 40 deaths yearly. According to Assistant Fire Chief Bradley Anderson, the most common causes of fires in the Columbia area are electrical shorts, cooking-related accidents and children playing with lighters. Nationally, household fires cause more than 3,000 deaths and 16,000 injuries, Anderson said. Jansen summed up the purpose of the week’s activities. “We’re all here for the safety of the public,” Jansen said. Consumers can check the CPSC Web site for a complete list of unsafe products at www.cpsc.gov. The city desk can be reached at gamecockcitydesk@hotmail.com County Council Measure draws heated debate by Valerie Matchette The Gamecock Residents weighed in on a critical land ordinance issue at Tuesday night’s Ricliland County Council meeting. Council’s chambers were packed as 16 local residents waited to voice opinions on an ordinance that laid out plans'for a county conservation commission. According to Council chairwoman Kit Smith, the purpose of reviewing the ordinance was simply to move it from one section of the county’s laws to another because it was pul in the wrong section. The ordinance would give the commission the right to zone privately owned land for conservation, limiting how it can be developed and thereby lowering its value. Each resident who spoke at the meeting disagreed with the concept of the conservation commission. “First of all, I don’t believe that a commission should be given the powers that are listed in tliis ordinance,” Lily Bales of Hopkins said. She said the commission’s purpose was misleading and too controlling. “If we want to sell our land, then we ought to be able to do that — at fair market value,” Bates said. She added that average people might be taken advantage of if they don’t realize the worth of their landholdings. r-> i r-» i. . ■ i r ■*«. * _ i L.VC1J II LHOII >UUOIlUUI IlimcpiC^ClIVCVi what council was doing, saying the move would make the commission permanent when it would be otherwise approaching its scheduled expiration. She said people aren’t ready for the change because no one knows about it yet. Abraham Bellinger of the Columbia Racial Improvement Association said the conservation commission could be inadvertently targeting minority areas, such as the Lower Richland area. He said the commission isn’t concerned with economic and racial well-being because they might build parks in areas that need economic development instead. Lawrence Moore, president of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, called the commission an “attempt by council to appropriate our property.” He added that he regretted seeing County Council become involved in what he believed looked like “social or communist business,” prompting a response from Smith, who said he was “out of order” for assigning motives to council members. Moore then aoolosized. Kay McClanalian said the ordinance had taken on a “life of its own,” even though it should have expired a year after its conception at the end of the 1998-99 fiscal year. She then read thrs from the original ordinance, but was told to stop talking when her time was up. McClanalian refused and continued to read until she was forced to stop by a security guard, who covered up her microphone. McClanalian’s husband, Bill, spoke next, echoing his wife’s statements. “Tliis bill has served its purpose,” Bill McClanalian said. Because of die controversy surrounding the ordinance, councilwoman Bernice Scott made a motion to defer the item until residents’ concerns could be addressed. The motion passed 8-3. The city desk can be reached at gamecockcitydesk@hotmail.com Weather Coming Up Quote of the Day Online Poll m__ _ . I I I 1 UUAI 78 59 Saturday i 83 60 A look at faculty salaries Next Week 1 | “Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity.” — Frank Leahy Should the fraternities involved in last Thursday’s fight be disciplined? Yes: 51% No: 16% Only the Individuals who were Involved: 33% Look for next week’s question at www.dailygiunccock.com. | ;li