Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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urww.dailygamecock.com : FRIDAY, OCTOBER 29,2004_ Since 1908 IN THIS ISSUE ♦ NEWS % Pictures speak to student’s ambitions SG Senator has more than 100 pictures of himself with world leaders. Page 3 ♦VIEWPOINTS Bush needs dose of reality Michael Bergarrd a student from the Univ. of Nebraska debate the accomplishments of ‘W’. Page 4 ♦ THE MIX Resident ghosts Maria Charles digs up dirt on a number of USC’s storied spooks. Page 5 ♦ SPORTS This could be a close one The Gamecocks and Volunteers get ready for what should be another nail-biter. Page 8 WEATHER - ♦TUESDAY n High 82 Low 61 Low 62 FOR EXTENDED FORECAST. SEE PAGE 2. INDEX Comics and Crossword.7 Classifieds.10 Horoscopes.7 Letters to the Editor.4 Online Poll..4 Police Report.2 USC political groups push agendas ' I ■ Members of student organizations work around the clock as Election Day approaches By JACOB DAVIS STAFF WRITER Members of Republican and Democratic organizations on campus are coming out in full force with events designed to give their candidates the upper hand. With only three days left before the election, tension is high across campus. “I don’t plan on sleeping much in the next 72 hours before the election, but it will be worth it after Bush and DeMint win,” Franklin Buchanan, co-chairman of the College Republicans and fourth year political science student, said. Republicans across campus have put together events during the past few weeks to encourage students to get out in force behind President Bush and the other Republicans running for office this year. The group has been giving constant volunteer support at the state GOP headquarters on Lady Street, where volunteers have been making phone calls and stuffing envelopes for the Bush campaign. College Republicans were also on hand a few weeks ago when the “Reggie the Voter Registration Rig” was at a home football game. “It was a hit, and we registered a ton of voters,” Buchanan said. The Republicans will also be on hand at the Tennessee game Saturday, passing out literature, stickers and making their presence felt with signs. This follows up on the “Flush the Johns” event that was held on the Pickens Street Bridge on Wednesday, where a reported 500 students participated in showing their support for Bush. These events lead up to what the College Republicans are billing as “one of the largest precinct walks the state has ever seen” Sunday, where volunteers will canvass the local community to get out the Bush vote. The Republicans are also holding a Greek competition to see who can collect the most volunteer hours. At last count, Sigma Ni* led Kappa Sigma by three hours and SAE by six hours. Green Party adviser David Whiteman said the Green Party at USC had held a town hall forum several weeks ago where their presidential candidate, David Cobb, and state candidates had attended. “We’ve been a part of four or five election forums, and we’re just encouraging people to think more broadly, and not be so focused on the two major parties,” Whiteman said. The Green Party is on ballots statewide for the first time this year and they are running six local candidates, including Leslie Minerd, who has a chance to be elected Water and Soil Commissioner. “I think our members have done an excellent job. We’ve hosted a presidential candidate, we’re running candidates that we expea to win, but our work continues on. We want to continue to promote the Green Party platform of social and ecoriomic justice, ♦ Please see CAMPAIGNING, page 3 « NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK Daniel Stetson, a first-year print journalism student, campaigns for the College Republicans. HALLOWEEN EbkT i-_:_:_-i—______I JASON STEELMAN/THE GAMECOCK Desia Trutsdal, a member of the Laura Park Boys and Girls club of the Midlands, plays a game at the Sigma Chi booth at Trick or Treat with the Greeks. GREEKS & GOODIES ■ Fraternities and sororities hold second annual Halloween festival By SHANA TILL THE GAMECOCK Spider-man, Wolverine and Raggedy Ann rarely make an appearance on USC’s campus, but Thursday night’s Trick or Treat with the Greeks brought them together to enjoy fall’s most frighteningly festive holiday. USC s fraternities and sororities offered candy, ice cream and games as part of their second annual Halloween festival. Held at the Greek Village on Blossom Street, the festivities included a carnival from 5 to 6 p.m. and trick or treating at Greek houses from 6 to 7 p.m. The Office of Greek Life has coordinated the event with the Boys and Girls Club of Columbia the past two years, and this year received the additional help of the Fraternity and Sorority councils. About 100 children from the Boys and Girls Club attended the carnival, and children of USC’s faculty and staff members were also invited. Residence Life director Tim Coley brought his daughter, Anna, who dressed as Cinderella, to partake in the evening’s dose of ghouls, ghosts and goodies. “We came last year and had a great time, so we wanted to bring Anna back,” he said. All fraternity and sorority chapters participated by dressing up in costumes, handing out candy and creating carnival games. A few of the games included bowling with pumpkins, pie throwing and a beanbag toss. Philanthropy chairman Richard Cunningham said the festival had plenty of goodies for all of the Spider men and princesses. “We were able to fill the entire back of my truck with candy,” he said. Zeta Tau Alpha member and first year electronic journalism student Burgess Rodgers dressed up as Raggedy Ann for the festival. “I love working with kids, and I know this means a lot to them. You can see it on their faces,” she said. Little trick-or-treaters Tevin McCary, 9, and Daniel Bickley, 8, V enjoyed the ice cream and gummy worms. Other trick-or-treaters preferred the handfuls of candy they collected. “My favorite part is the candy,” said Konstance Wright, 10. “And I got to throw a pie in someone’s face.” Delta Upsilon member and first year international business student Toby Clarkson said he enjoyed participating in this year’s Trick or Treat with the Greeks. “I’m glad to have the opportunity to interact with the kids and know they’re having fun,” he said. The Office of Greek Life felt the carnival and trick-or-treating was a great way to give back to the community, said Associate Greek Life director Erica James. “Service is a major component of Greek life, and we’re glad to provide an opportunity for safe trick-or-treating,” she said. The weather warned of storms and lightning, but didn’t deter little monsters and ladybugs from enjoying a ♦ Please see TREAT, page 3 Pharmacy merger irks some students ■ Group feels USC trustees were misled on reasons for joining MUSC pharmacy school By KEVIN FELLNER THE GAMECOCK Now that the USC Board of Trustees has approved the merger of its pharmacy school with the one at MUSC, some students are still determined to show their opposition. Students who established www.protectpharmacy.org in April to urge administrators to proceed cautiously when considering any potential merger say they are still left with questions about how much influence USC faculty members and students will have in the new school. “I think the Board of Trustees was strongly misled,” Bryan Mayer, a fourth-year pharmacy student, said about the merger with the Medical University of South Carolina. Opponents want USC to maintain independent accreditation, its own admissions process and a dean that reports only to the > USC administration. The plan is to seek single accreditation only after an integrated curriculum, developed by faculty members from both schools, is implemented for all students; an executive dean is hired with a dean at each campus reporting to him or her; and a single admissions process is implemented with students having the choice of which campus to attend. “The research aspects of both universities ought to be joined together. The academic aspects need to be left independent,” Mayer said. Third-year professional pharmacy student Bryan Amick, who also helped lead the student protest, said students and faculty members he talks to are also disappointed with the merger agreement. Several students and faculty members wouldn’t comment for this article, but several admitted that supporters ate hard to find, especially among alumni. College of Pharmacy Dean Farid Sadik openly supported the merger at the board meeting Oct. 22 after saying in April that he wanted to have more discussion with administrators before proceeding. “We are going to continue to make our voices heard. There are a lot of decisions that are still to la® made,” Amick said, adding that faculty members plan to consult students when designing the integrated curriculum. Vice President for Research Harris Pastides proposed last week that ' faculty members and administrators from both schools comprise a conflict resolution board to address student concerns as they arise. Pastides said USC’s pharmacy dean will report to the new executive dean, who will report to both universities’ boards of trustees, but will still have interaction with USC’s administration for issues specific to this campus. As for accreditation, Pastides said the merger will take a long time so as to ensure the curriculum for the students’ ♦ Please see MERGER, page 3 Alcohol enforcement teams earn accolades for Midlands project By IRA M. KLEIN THE GAMECOCK South Carolina’s Alcohol Enforcement Teams, the police program working to crack down on underage drinking in Five Points, was recognized with awards from the U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday. Two awards were presented to the local police forces — the 2003 Exemplary Award for Innovative Programs from the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention and the 2004 Law Enforcement Partnership of the Year. The enforcement team is South Carolina’s first multi-jurisdictional task force to combat underage drinking, said Blake Daniels, public relations director for LRADAC-The Behavioral Health Center of the Midlands, which sponsors and organizes the team. The enforcement team was founded in May 2002 as a partnership between local law enforcement agencies, businesses, civic groups, school officials and parents. Besides working to curb underage drinking, the enforcement teams also help to ensure bars and stores properly request customers’ identification. “We just had an instance last night, which Sheriff Lon talked about in his speech at the ceremony, in which we sent Undercover 17- and 18-year-olds into bars to try to purchase alcohol. Most of them were able to do so within a matter of minutes. This just goes to show the extent of the underage drinking problem in the community at USC,” Ernie Ellis, director of USC’s Law Enforcement Division, said. The enforcement team project consists of six police forces: the Irmo, Chapin, Lexington and USC police departments, as well as the Lexington and Richland county sheriff s departments. Jack Claypool, director of LRADAC, hosted the ceremony. “AETs do more than just enforce laws,” Daniels said. “We also do sobriety checkpoints, party policing and community awareness.” The ceremony was in connection with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s Red Ribbon Week during ♦ Please see AET, page 3