Two years ago, Chris Pendleton earned the 2000 California State Championship and was named the outstanding wrestler of the tournament. Today, the sophomore is undefeated in 17 matches and wrestles for the No.1 team in the country.

Pendleton is still considered to be one of the best wrestlers in the country at his age, but one thing has changed over the years.

When Pendleton arrived at Oklahoma State he added an extra 30 pounds of strength to his frame. Pendleton battled in the 145-pound division in high school and now weighs in at 174 pounds.

“I had to use technique a lot growing up, because I never really was a big wrestler,” Pendleton said. “I was a small kid, my freshmen year I wrestled at 103 pounds.”

Not being physically overpowering forced Pendleton to focus on his technique if he wanted to be successful. The effort paid off — Cowboy coach John Smith labels Pendleton as one of his greatest technicians.

“By technician I mean he is solid in with his skill, he executes well and he is successful in all the positions in wrestling,” Smith said.

Pendleton is off to an incredible start, he has knocked off each of the No. 3, 4, and 5 ranked 174-pound opponents twice to give him a 7-0 record against Top 10 opponents. However, Pendleton said he will not be satisfied with two more months of training before the NCAA Championship tournament arrives.

“I need to improve my intensity and being able to go a complete match and not make the little mistakes that are allowing me to win by only one or two points,” Pendleton said. “I need to start beating people by bigger margins.”          

Pendleton said he has matured a lot since arriving in Stillwater and that he has learned something from each of his teammates.

“I have learned a great work ethic from Tyrone Lewis, mental toughness from Johnny Thompson and ‘don’t stop’ from Shane Roller,” Pendleton said. “And no matter what situation or what move you are having trouble with — someone is going to know what to do.”

During Pendleton’s freshmen year, senior Ty Wilcox suffered a knee injury and that forced Pendleton into the starting line-up, where he posted a 15-7 record. Following a short freshmen season, Pendleton redshirted his 2001-02 season and went 13-2 while wrestling in open tournaments for the Cowboys.

“I was in a good position,” Pendleton said. “When most freshmen take their redshirt year, they haven’t been to the NCAA tournament before. But I had and knew what I needed to do to be able to win it next year. I a little bit more focus over that year.”

Last week, Pendleton accepted his invitation to the 37th annual National Wrestling Coaches Association All-Star Classic, which takes place Feb. 3 at the University of Delaware. Pendleton will face West Virginia’s No. 1-ranked Greg Jones in the All-Star Classic.

“It is something I have been looking forward to for a while now,” Pendleton said. “Because you want to be the No. 1 guy.”

Drew Hill can be reached

via e-mail at

dhill@ocolly.com

Missed shots. Turnovers. Only four offensive rebounds.

After the Oklahoma State Cowgirls’ 64-50 loss to Colorado last night, there were many reasons to blame the loss on. However, with 16:34 left in the second half, OSU was only down by 33-29.

After being down by eight at halftime, the Cowgirls (5-11, 1-4 in Big 12) went on a 6-2 run, thanks to a tough Cowgirl defense. The Buffaloes (14-2, 4-1) worked the ball inside to 6-foot-5-inch center Tera Bjorkland, who scored eight of her 14 points in the second half and grabbed six rebounds. CU forward Sabrina Scott scored 13 points on the night and had 12 rebounds.

With CU working the inside game on OSU, the Buffalo hustle and height advantage was just too much for the Cowgirls.

“I’m disappointed,” said OSU head coach Julie Goodenough. “I don’t think that our kids crashed the boards very well in the first half, but when you see 6 (foot)1 (inch), 6(foot)2(inch) people in front of you, you may just decide you that can’t get in there and get the rebound.

“It’s tough. We were at quite a bit of a height disadvantage and it’s tough when you can’t get offensive rebounds over people that are 6-1, 6-2, and you’re crashing the board with 5-9 kids.”

Through the course of the game, missed shots close to the goal only put distance between the Cowgirls and CU.

“Our defense was there,” said Thia Willis, who was 3-of-4 from three-point range and had 13 points on the night. “But on offense, we got the ball exactly where it needed to be. But there were times when we weren’t patient on offense and we rushed the ball.

“We had good looks, and again, it just wasn’t our night. We do have to reverse the ball a lot, and just be real patient. We just have to take care of the ball, also. We can get it where it needs to be, and run the clock down, but we may lose it at the same time. We just have to really value the ball. That was a part of the game plan, too. Just take care of the ball. When we did shoot the ball, we did get it in exactly the right spot, but it just didn’t go in for us tonight.”

When battling a team from behind, leading scorers have to produce. Although center Trisha Skibbe averages 16.3 points per game, the junior was held to nine points.

“It’s tough, because she’s one of our key players,” Meghan Craig said of Skibbe. “Our go-to player, I guess, and we have to have other people step up and score.”

While the Cowgirls were only with in a few points of CU during various times in the game, a scoreless stretch would soon follow. Implementing new offensive sets helped OSU, but on a night when shots didn’t fall, little would help.

“We’ve added a couple of new sets to try to get some high-percentage shots,” said Goodenough. “And we’d go to those in those stretches. It’s frustrating when you go through those spurts. I felt like, for the most part, our kids weren’t rushing their shots.

“We executed fairly decent and ran our sets pretty well. For the most part, they got the shots we wanted, we just couldn’t put them in.”

Brad Blood can be reached

via e-mail at:

bradlgb@okstate.edu

The Colorado Buffaloes improved to 13-2 and 4-1 in the Big 12 conference Wednesday night by defeating the Oklahoma State Cowgirls basketball team 64-50 at Gallagher-Iba Arena. With the loss, the Cowgirls fall to 5-11 overall and 1-3 in the Big 12.

OSU freshman guard Meghan Craig started the game off hot by scoring nine of the Cowgirls first 13 points. The Cowgirls were up 13-10 at that point with 11:45 left in the first half.

The Cowgirls extended their lead to 17-12 with 10:30 left in the half, but that was the largest OSU lead of the night. OSU junior center Trisha Skibbe had four points early in the game, but had two early fouls.

“We hit some key shots very early in the ball game,” OSU coach Julie Goodenough said. “When Skibbe got into foul trouble, we took her out and that made it tough on the rest of our offense because they are used to her getting a lot of touches down low.”

The Buffaloes went on a 19-3 run for the next 9:30 of the half. During that span, the Cowgirls only three points came off free throws.

With 1:01 left in the half, OSU senior Thia Willis hit the only Cowgirl field goal in the last 10 minutes. CU had a eight-point lead going into the break.

The game went back and forth for the first six minutes in the second half and it looked as if the Cowgirls were getting back into the game bringing the score to within 33-29.

The Buffaloes went on a 27-11 run to extend their lead to 60-40 with 5:33 left in the ball game. CU’s 20 point was their largest of the night.

The Cowgirls brought it to within 14, but it was to late as time ran out.

CU held OSU’s Trisha Skibbe to nine points overall which her season low in conference play.

“After a few years of coaching against a team, you begin to find out who some of their star players are,” Buffaloes coach Ceal Barry said. “Our players have been up against Skibbe before, know how good she is and we were able to stop her tonight because we were aware of the threat that she possesses.”

CU had four players who scored in double figures. Junior center Tera Bjorklund led the Buffaloes with 14 points, senior forward Sabrina Scott had 13 points to go along with 12 rebounds and junior guard Kate Fagan scored 10 points.

CU sophomore guard Veronica Johns-Richardson put up 12 points and pulled down four boards to lead the Buffaloes bench.

The Buffaloes out shot the Cowgirls by a 41-35 percent shot percentage and pulled down nine offensive rebounds compared to only four put up by OSU.

The Cowgirls were led by Craig and Willis, who finished the game with 16 and 13 points, respectively.

“We are getting a lot better as far as ball distribution,” Willis said. “When we got off enough shots to have four of five of us in double digits, but our shots just aren’t feeling.”

With all of the cuts in the university funding and increases in expenses, the university is proposing a considerable increase in tuition for next year.

Representatives from the university administration brought the proposal to the Student Government Association on Wednesday night to get students’ ideas about the plan.

President David Schmidly said he wanted to hear what the senators think about the tuition proposal.

Schmidly said he knows education must be affordable but students came here for a quality education and that requires resources.

Schmidly also said he wants to have an open door policy with students and student leaders. He said he wants students to come to him with questions and suggestions about what affects them.

Lee Bird, vice president for student affairs, said “[Budget cutting] is a phenomenon happening around the country.”

According to the Big 12 Tuition and Fees study from the University of Missouri, the University of Kansas and Kansas State University are projected to increase tuition about 21 percent. Major universities in Texas are projected to increase tuition about 14 percent and the University of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University are projected to increase tuition about 8 percent starting in fall 2003.

The proposal brought before the Senate includes projections for a 10, 15 or 20 percent tuition increase. Twenty percent would make the university break even with all the cuts that have been made, Bird said.

A 20 percent increase would not hurt the majority of students much and would not go over what federal financial aid can cover for students with exceptional need, Bird said.

OSU students pay $1522.95 per semester for in-state tuition and fees. A 20 percent hike would boost this number to $1,985.35, according to the proposal based on 15 credit hours per semester.

The proposal also includes six new student fees to cover new or increasing costs within the university.

The new campus security fee of $0.70 per credit hour would pay for a new security package including an escorting service for students walking across campus at night and more lighting around campus.

It would be an entire package, not just a new escorting service, Bird said.

Many people have become concerned because of the off-campus hostility between OSU students and the students of Langston University, she said.

A career services fee of $50 is required of graduating seniors, but the new fee would be $2 per credit hour for all students, not just seniors. The program would also be extended to all students in any class for help with deciding on a major and future profession.

The new student academic services fee would be $25 per semester and cover increasing costs in that area of the different colleges.

A classroom renovations fee would be $7.50 per hour starting with incoming freshman only and applying to every incoming class after that. The fee would cover renovations of buildings sorely in need.

A new library facilities improvement fee is proposed as $3 per credit hour to cover renovations on the Edmon Low Library.

“We should pour money into the library renovation because everyone uses it,” said Sen. Mike Kibbe, representative of the Off-Campus Student Association.

Sen. Sarah Conrad, representative of the College of Arts and Sciences, agreed.

“The library is the center piece of our university,” she said.

The final fee in the proposal is a library electronic resources fee of $3 per credit hour that would cover the subscription to online databases and research programs available to students on the computers at the library.

Lisa Brunton can be reached via e-mail

at lbrunton@ocolly.com

The months I have spent in Stillwater have been one wacky science experiment after another. Take for instance last week. This girl walked by, wearing some forgettable outfit she probably got at the mall. She said to her pal, “I can’t believe how gay it is that we have to buy all these books!” “I had so much I wanted to do this semester, and this dumb class will keep me from it with all these gay books!!!“

This incident caused a flashback to November of 2001. I was standing in this lecture hall at MIT talking to world renowned political dissident Noam Chomsky, about some things he had lectured on. We were asking him a bunch of questions, and his wife came up to the group. She seemed excited in an I’m ready to get going sense. “Okay everyone, Professor has a busy day tomorrow, we have to go now.” She had done this before, as it worked well. In a matter of seconds the waters parted, Noam and his wife headed out, and so did we.

Then, this gorgeous brunette girl who had attended the lecture, clad in a ridiculously classy brown wool sweater and this real nice looking dark-taupe plaid mini, on top of these dark opaque tights (oh man, those opaque tights). I don’t remember the shoes (I think I don‘t really ever look at peoples shoes) because she spoke, saying something far too perfect . She turned to her friend, referencing the recently departed Chomsky’s and said:

“Wow! Can you imagine what it would be like to be married to someone like that!” She had this look on her face that was just too cute. So, this past weekend, for some reason, I went with a friend to that crappy bar across from Coney Island. I forget the name of it, but it’s the one where the media typically goes to do it’s war approval surveys.

Anyway, of course, I see old dopey girl there, jamming to some hip alternative music (Blink 182, Goo Goo Dolls, Nickelback, Lit, Sum 41, Jimmy Eat World, or Third Eye Blind, hard to tell which) chillin’ with this dude wearing a plaid shirt and a crazy frayed bill cap. Now, I am not going to say something as ridiculous as “they don’t hate us for our freedom, they hate us because we complain about having to read a bunch of books and instead go chill at crappy bars that call Shiner an import.” That would be pointless.

No, quite the opposite. My point is that, with so many other important events transpiring, we need a sense of humor. It is extremely important that we take advantage of Stillwater‘s idiosyncrasies. This is a great place to do some thinking.

There are a lot of decisions that need to be made on our parts. The way we come to our conclusions are linked to the way we live, keeping an open mind (me included) and coming to conclusions through the thought process that are suited to the way we all think individually. Have fun while you are at it.

People all around were speaking French — this wasn’t so horrific. French-speaking commuters filled the plane. The anxiety for this trip to the United States was exaggerated.

However, stepping onto the plane in Paris and getting off in New York City presented two different worlds.

“I didn’t understand all the signs or the directions,” said Greg Rouault, an international student from Paris. “Some confused me. Everything looked so different.”

Three years later, Rouault said much has transformed in his life. The expressions of shock are not as frequent. The shock of American culture has worn off with his adjustment.

Looking at Rouault, it is difficult to tell he is a foreign student. No visual clues reveal he is different than any other American college student. Nothing in his wardrobe suggests he is, but other subtle hints reveal his French nature. Clues such as his light skin and quiet demeanor are examples.

For Rouault, an OSU senior, American culture is just becoming natural. Rouault is one of thousands of foreign students on the OSU campus who have had to gradually adjust to the culture of the United States. The culture shock of the experience continually affects his perception. Culture shock is a feeling of confusion a person often has when leaving a familiar place and moving to an unfamiliar one.

Numerous international students face the surprise of culture shock and subsequent issues, like maintaining F-1 status. The issues related to these students are often not addressed and result in future problems, according to “Crisis Management.”

The book’s list of example issues includes difficulty in cultural adjustment, transportation issues, racial intolerance and discrimination practices.

Rouault was recruited for the OSU track team.

Holidays are normally predictable for most students; they understand what is being celebrated or observed. However, Rouault’s first Thanksgiving was a fresh tradition; he ate with his track teammates. They explained the reasons for the celebration. He commented on the team becoming like family to him.

“People are really helpful, but still very individualistic,” Rouault said. “Teachers are very accessible with office hours, (there are) none in France.”

Another international student, Akiko Miki from Japan, agreed with Rouault.

“People are kind in Stillwater, and it’s not crowded here,” said Miki, biology sophomore.

Statistics for OSU reveal enrollment of international students has increased the past three years. An estimated 525,000 international students are on U.S. campuses, according to “Crisis Management.”

OSU is home to more than 2,100 such students, according to the International Students and Scholars office.

According to an “International Student Data Comparison,” the vast majority of OSU’s international students are allowed to reside in the United States by maintaining their F-1 status.

As an F-1 resident, a student is admitted to the United States for a “duration of status,” according to “Maintaining Your F-1 Status.”

“Crisis Management” states that international students, on average, spend three to five years in the United States. Essentially, students are permitted to stay contingent upon fulfilling requirements.

Of the 2,100 international students on campus, nearly 89 percent are classified under this criterion, according to “Maintaining Your F-1 Status.” Penalties resulting from violation of the requirements include either applying for reinstatement, voluntarily leaving the United States or deportation.

The governmental regulations that must be followed to maintain legal status include maintaining a valid passport and attending the university the INS has authorized an international student to attend.

Also, students must complete an official immigration transfer form, obtain a new I-20 form whenever changing a degree level and not work off-campus unless first authorized by the INS, according to the document.

“Crisis Management” addresses adjustment concerns by encouraging universities with international students to provide regularly scheduled visits with counselors.

The book suggests other services such as a contact list of ministers, mental health professionals and community events should be made available to international students to aid in their transition.

A survey conducted by the “Journal of Educational Sociology” concluded that international students liked having a broad selection of extra-curricular activities and disliked inadequately planned activities for foreign students.

“Crisis Management” states many international students do not have a U.S. driver’s license, which results in the problem of transportation for international students to attend activities.

The book encourages advisers to include sessions on racial intolerance and discrimination as essential elements in orientation programming. Students should be made aware they might become the target of racial slurs and that such remarks are products of ignorance and insensitivity.

Consequently, anger and shock are appropriate responses, but physical actions against such remarks are completely inappropriate, according to the book.

With the increasing attendance of international students each year at OSU, a devoted effort to these issues is particularly important for the students’ well-being and the university’s future.

“Crisis Management” stresses an amplified focus on these issues is needed whenever enrollment of international students increases.

Rouault said he plans to graduate this semester with his marketing degree. However, he intends to stay in the United States and further pursue his education by entering the MBA program.

Miki said she would like to remain in the United States after completing her education. She said one reason is that she has adjusted to women not being subject to as many rules in the United States as they are in Japan.

Erica Hightower, an international business graduate student, recently returned from Pakistan. Her evaluation of culture shock contrasted Miki’s.

Her experience discouraged her. She was not allowed to speak freely and had to gaze downward in the presence of men.

“I had to lose my individualism,” Hightower said. “I couldn’t be myself. I was forced to adhere to the customs of the society.”

There are cultural differences requiring adjusting to for any student in a foreign country. “Crisis Management” stresses that with the help of friends and other students the transition is made easier.

“The anxiety building up for my trip to the United States was not exaggerated,” Rouault said.

Matt Hutson can be reached via

e-mail at news@ocolly.com

At the risk of sounding pessimistic, we are screwed. Our country, way of life and quite possibly the bulk of human existence is screwed, primarily because we have a “leader” that doesn’t want to stop playing policeman.

To put it colloquially, Iraq and North Korea are royally hacked off at us because we keep trying to inject Western culture into their societies by, among other potentially irritating practices, telling their governments what to do.

   Nuclear weapons are never the answer, and the thought that there are countries out there thumbing their noses at internationally-recognized treaties and agreements on the matter is disturbing.

However, we also don’t have the right to go in and tell Saddam that he’s a poor excuse for a leader and needs to pull out the nukes from under his bed, nor can we be so self-righteous with our North Korean dealings.

We have our own little weaponry cache, even if we don’t like to own up to it, and as proud owners of said arsenal, we are not in a position to throw the proverbial first stone.

Yes, the United Nations is the title sponsor of the Iraqi inquisition, but as we are all aware, the U.N. has of late, become a puppet of the United States government, squarely placing the financial burden of this foreign policy fiasco in the making on the shoulders of the American taxpayers.

   There have been protests and petitions, even an LBJ-inspired television ad against the situation. However, how successful have they been?

Yes, it is important to register our dislike for this or any situation, but many of the politicians that supposedly work for us have made it clear that their votes belong to interest groups.

A group of disgusted actors pleading for peace can easily be dismissed as aging, overacting hippies. Protesting college students can be dismissed just as easily as ignorant punks needing something other than tuition or the price of beer to whine and moan about.

An old friend of mine at Rice sent me an anti-war petition this weekend, inspired by 25 Congresswomen walking out of a vote concerning Dubya’s war powers.

Although over 125 women had signed it by the time I received it, the impact it will make is at best, minimal, as women are still viewed by many political higher-ups as a second-rate, often uninformed minority group.

Although the original ad is a memorable slice of American history, I question just how effective the new ad is, as it is a mere remake (and we are all aware of the potential “suck” factor for sequels) and the added images water down the message’s impact.

   Stanley Kubrick’s satirical gem “Dr. Strangelove (or how I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb)” showed the world just how easy it is to trigger a nuclear war.

Although the current situation is not quite that simplistic, we aren’t too far from hearing “We’ll Meet Again Some Sunny Day” if we do not back down and not give other potential nuclear powers any further reason to want to wipe our smug obese country off of the map.

First CBK-sports colly of the rainy-snowy season, so much to say, so little time. Let us reflect on the past, if only for a moment.

To begin let us thank the sporting gods for the defeat of Miami. Although I was on a jet somewhere over Wales when it took place, I couldn’t be happier, for only Notre Dame ranks higher in gridder hatred than the dubious ‘Canes. Plus, my friend Hunter now lives in Ohio and was able to easily bandwagon it straight onto the ‘Eyes, who obviously have/had it.

Next, let us all thank Senor Woods, who — not surprisingly to me, but apparently to many — decided to stay at Poke State. I think this was the wisest of moves. Let us all collectively knock wood — no pun, no pun — and pray that nothing happens to him, for good things happen to people who make the right decisions, and although it’s only football, it is still football. God bless Rashaun for his decision.

Finally, although — no matter what anyone says — the shot didn’t get off in time, let us thank our cagers for the most exciting 40-sum performance in recent memory. I hate defensive basketball, but the display Oklahoma was textbook. Period.

Now for something completely different…

I won’t devote much more space to this subject after this column, but I can’t resist writing about it at the moment. If World Cup ‘02 gave me a supple taste of soccer — from now on, futbol — then two weeks in Europe sucked me into the futbol-mad world. While I generally despise diversity, multiculturalism and the like, futbol is one place where I can lustily embrace it as the sportsman’s whore, for that is certainly what it is.

On Dec. 28, I bore witness to the best one could ask for — a Sunday double-header which included Liverpool-Newcastle and Arsenal playing, well, I can’t remember who they played. All these teams are vying for, among other things, the Premiere Cup, a piece of hardware akin to the Lombardi Trophy, a piece of hardware which is decided every spring at Wembley Stadium a.k.a. home of the Monsters of Rock concert.

There is nothing so sweet as being in a pub watching a team like Arsenal which is in first place battling it out in hopes of keeping atop the field. The pub — 98 percent men, the few women either wives, fiancées, or — like Jennifer — travelers, is silent, keenly attuned to the several televisions, the roars and sighs like waves sponsored by the Moon Corporation, perfect in their collective ebbs and flows.

We drank and drank and drank, and the three of us — none whom had played futbol — quickly figured out when something big was either happening or about to happen.

On a side-note, after the games were over, NFL games came on, at which point a majority of the pub had gone to greener pastures, but there were still quite a few fans in attendance.

So after getting to see the games, I got my biggest pleasure from reading the papers. Many of you know about David Beckham — he’s the one who’s married to Posh Spice — but the papers over there follow these guys like hawks.

Occasionally we’ll get seedy — non-crime related, of course — gossip about American athletes, but nothing could possibly compare to the social lives of said ballers. Not only do we get the bizarre quotes after the game (“He dived!”), but we get all the juice on the behind the scenes stuff.

Who’s banging who, who bought what, who lives where, all that goody-goody stuff that makes sports more than just a bunch of overpaid goons knocking balls around and what-not.

So, in suma, what’s the whole point?

Because futbol appears to be the national sport of everywhere but here, it’s much easier to get into when one is anywhere but here. In America, we have an amalgam of sports to choose from, whereas elsewhere there is futbol, rugby and the other international sports such as horse-racing, golf, tennis and the like. What has been learned?

Well, not much really. But I can’t wait for World Cup Futbol in ‘06. No doubt, no doubt.

Ciao.

So please tell me I was hallucinating when I read in yesterday’s paper (“OSU students protest…” Jan. 21) that Earl Mitchell, associate vice president for multicultural affairs, compared our current movement toward aggression to German i.e. Nazi i.e. The Big Bad aggression in 1939.

Please tell me a representative of this school – albeit in a position that has the influence, vision and direction of a spastic kangaroo – did not make a comparison that would link G.W. with Hitler and America with Nazi Germany.

Please tell me that either this newspaper drastically quoted him out of context – well, paraphrased, it wasn’t a direct quote – or please tell me that he is packing his crap into a box today and looking through the want-ads for a new job.

Mitchell was one of a few keynote speakers at Tuesday’s peace rally in front of the library, though one would judge by such inflammatory statements he forced himself back into a world where he was chucking rocks at National Guardsmen. Fortunately, I only had about 10 minutes to give to the rally for had I stayed for festivities such as Mitchell’s statements I might have been chucking rocks myself (and thereby writing this from jail).

“But what about freedom of speech?”

What about it? Ask Trent Lott about freedom of speech. I consider Mitchell’s statements no less appalling than the ones that cost Lott his leadership position. Mitchell is in a quasi-influential position funded by taxpayer money. He can say whatever the hell he wants when he’s not receiving a paycheck from people who expect him to be, um, well, er, what the hell does the VP for multicultural affairs do, exactly? Slather poster board with non-toxic paint depicting people of all colors joining hands around the triumphant arc of a rainbow?   

I can endure many things (“many things” would include the fact that we even have a VP for multicultural affairs or, for that matter, an office of multicultural affairs), but gonzo comparisons while preaching to the converted in a public forum by an academic bureaucrat is not one of them.

Maybe I’m a bit of a fascist here, and a hypocrite to boot. It wouldn’t take a clever person to point out that I have a tendency to say things which may or may not be construed as a bit outlandish. At the same rate, I’m a columnist – it’s my job.

However, Mitchell’s comments only serve to strengthen the thoughts of not-exactly-dovish, not-exactly-hawkish types such as myself that peace activists are nothing more than a bunch of left-wing kooks who will say whatever they can get away with so long as they’re not interrupted. It reinforces the position held by myself and a slew of moderates that the peace/antiwar movement as it stands today is really an anti-Bush movement, an anti-America movement, an anti-capitalism movement, an anti-industry movement and an anti-Semitic movement. If this is your thing, just say it.

However, if you’re an “educator,” please remember that your words make deep impressions on students who want and need to believe in something. Use your office wisely.

Mitchell should be reprimanded, demoted, or – better yet – fired. We don’t need leaders with tongues wagging of idiocy.

Ciao.

Some may think it’s ludicrous to spend nine hours of a weekend cramped inside a packed car, traveling 560 hard charging, round-trip miles away from home, dropping $30 worth of gas money, another frugal $10 for nibbles and meals along the way, all while hoping to find time for a precious two hours of sleep before returning to the motions of the real world early the next morning.

Take into account a $15 ticket for admittance to a concert with four bands on the bill, and that’s a total of $55 and 13 non-refundable hours of life in exchange for, at best, 50 minutes of live music from a headlining act.

This is how I spent my day off school on MLK Day — and it couldn’t have been any better.

Logic would tell me to play my cards conservatively and stay close to home on the holiday, only venturing out for the most essential of tasks, maximizing the lone holiday of the spring semester. But logic does not account for the thrill of speeding down the open road in a car full of raucous friends bursting with energy to engage in something as simple and routine as watching a group of guys play with guitars and drums on a rusty old stage.

My excessive overreaction and dramatization is probably a bit overbearing, my apologies, but after the Finch concert in Dallas on Monday night, I’m convinced that there is no possible way one can go wrong by traveling short or long distances to check out a beloved band.

The kitschy cliche that “life is just a series of moments” may actually apply with truly arresting and memorable results in the case of an affecting, out-of-town concert. Every music fan, serious or casual, has a group of CDs that hit home with every spin, regardless of the time or situation. In that case, no excuses should be accepted if given the opportunity to catch the act live. If one is truly attached to a work of music, the series of moments, brilliant and average, coming at a concert will be a sequence etched into memory for a long while.

Each time that CD spins, images of those moments will pop back to mind, and in that moment, the journey is justified.

So, drive wherever the music calls. Pack the car with friends, forget the real world for just one night and escape to the sounds of whatever music moves you. Just drive, stand, watch, listen, return and remember.

Let’s talk about profanity. Let’s talk about those nasty little words that, upon your mother’s hearing them come out of your eight-year -old mouth, would turn her face red and send her angry feet and legs to chase you around the house while she tries to beat you with a wire handled fly swatter.

What makes profanity…well, profane? It seems that the bulk of words that are called profane either stem from the body or its varying functions, or the Bible. That’s an interesting combination.

What can or could make the body and its parts profane? It seems that we can talk about the body’s parts and use the “proper” terminology without being seen as vulgar by others. It’s when we are deviant and vary from these culturally accepted terms and create our own slang terms; that’s when we get in trouble.

We also have slang words for our slang words that were previously noted as “profane.” If society deems one slang word unacceptable to be seen in literature or on television, then we cleverly devise another word to mean the exact same thing as the aforementioned banned slang word. With this new slang word, are we not still saying the exact same thing that our previously prohibited word was?

Perhaps the new word sounds cleaner and is less offensive to the eye when read. Though it may mean the same bloody thing that the other word meant, it is now socially acceptable to use this term in public places and around your great grandmother.

With these taboo words comes censorship. Apparently, we are told by censorship boards that the restriction of words and thoughts is done with the public’s greater protection in mind, which is a huge steaming lumpy load of uncastrated male bovine fecal material expunged from the alimentary canal.

The Bible also gives us many of our present day curse words. I’m sure that wasn’t the various author’s (nor God’s) intentions, but nonetheless, it has happened. This mostly shows the mutation of a word to fit a society’s desired intentions. The Bible says to avoid filthy communication, but doesn’t tell us what that means. What words, by biblical standards, can we not say?

What are the functions of profane words? If you are out in the woods looking for a squirrel to snack on and instead stumble and fall down a hill, you’ll probably curse. When you find that, at the bottom of this hill, you’ve landed on a porcupine, you might let out many tainted words.

Profanity appears to fulfill several linguistic needs. It seems that we curse when we are irritated, angry, incredulous about stupidity, relieved, and for many other reasons.

The construing of one word or another into having more profane meaning than another seems to be a linguistics problem. It can be nothing more than a classic semantics game. If you say a word that means the same thing as a socially accepted curse word, are you not saying the exact same thing with only another word? If you say “red”, you aren’t meaning “black.” If you say “crap”, you are, however, saying a word with the same meaning and connotations as one of our socially accepted terms having or carrying profane meaning.

It’s just a big game. We are told that we can say this word but not that one. We are told to hold this belief but not that one. There are boards of stiff-backed people that tell us what is acceptable or unacceptable for us to partake of, view, or hear.

Can you tell that I don’t believe in forced censorship?

Stop me if you’ve heard this one. A straight-laced, well-to-do guy is engaged to a straight-laced, well-to-do girl. He then meets a free-spirited woman who shows him what he has been missing and they fall in love.

“A Guy Thing” is just another of the countless films that uses this simple plot to reel the young girls into the theaters. They in turn drag their boyfriends to see it.

The film stars Jason Lee as Paul, the groom-to-be who has never taken a chance in his life.

He is marrying Karen, played by Selma Blair, whose is equally lame and tame.

On the night of his bachelor party, he drunkenly hooks up with one of the dancers and wakes up the next morning with her in his bed, minus her underwear.

Thinking he has cheated on his fiancee a week before his wedding, Paul takes comfort in the fact that he will never see the Tiki dancer again.

Of course, that isn’t the case and his one-night stand turns out to be Karen’s cousin Becky, played by Julia Stiles.

Paul and Becky get to know each other better while they dodge getting blackmailed by Becky’s cop ex-boyfriend with a “steroid rage problem.”

In order to get their dirty pictures back, Becky and Paul break into his apartment and get trapped in the shower trying to escape an attack dog.

Paul soon recognizes the fact that he has always played it safe and this realization culminates at the altar before saying “I do.”

Lee, whose comedy is wasted in the movie, seems awkward and out of place as a suit and tie kind of guy. Perhaps this is because Lee, before becoming an actor, was a professional skate-boarder who was anything but a 9 to 5 man.

The film’s best scenes include Paul battling with crabs he got from a toilet seat (apparently it’s true). Another finds Paul dealing with an indiscreet pharmacy cashier and waltzing with the graceful dance instructor, which is benign except for the fact that he’s an overweight, old man.

The funniest scene in the movie revolves around the rehearsal dinner. The chef, a.k.a. the pharmacy kid, is cooking the meal, including gravy with a “special ingredient” that makes the party a little more loose and enjoyable for everyone, especially the uptight in-laws.

Stiles, known more for her roles in Shakespearean tragedies like “Hamlet” and “O,” finds herself in a comedic role.

The film gives Stiles all the best lines and her straight, dry delivery makes the character funny and believable.

The subplot of Becky’s ever-changing employment becomes lost and is never explained or resolved.

Blair, it seems, is stuck playing prissy, uptight WASP women. She is just a character to be played off of and she has no real personality. The audience has no reason to root for or against her.

Have no fear, she isn’t left broken-hearted. When Paul expresses his feelings of doubt, his best man and brother finally expresses his.

Throughout the film, Paul, who initially is honest and hardworking, although nerdish, is forced to lie, steal and cheat in order to not get caught lying, stealing and cheating.

Stiles, who is actually 21, is playing a much older woman and the fact that she is kissing the 32-year-old Lee can become a little creepy if one thinks about it too much.

Overall, the film is so predictable that 30 minutes into it, the audience knows what is going to happen in the last 15.

Not that “A Guy Thing,” doesn’t have any redeeming value. The underwear jokes can be satisfying and how can crabs not be funny?

Gig Grade: 5.0 out of 10

Sara Plummer can be reached via e-mail at splummer@ocolly.com

Lots of turkey, ham, dressing and other holiday fixings can take a toll on a student’s body.

Getting back into the swing of things after winter break can be extremely difficult.

The coldness of the season can give people a great excuse not to go outside and exercise. There are many great ideas students can use to keep healthy and fit during these long winter months.

Mary Talley, activities coordinator for the Wellness Center, had some recommendations for exercising in the winter months.

“If you use the weather as an excuse, then you are never going to exercise because it will always be too cold or too hot in Oklahoma,” she said. “Having some flexibility in your workout schedule and planning back-up activities can also help students to keep a steady workout plan.

“Basically, doing some sort of cardio workout three to five times a week such as walking indoors or out, jogging, biking or swimming will help to keep you in shape,” she said. “Also, two to three times a week doing some strength training can help a whole lot.”

In addition to working out, Elizabeth Lohrman, director of nutrition services, said keeping a healthy diet is extremely important.

“Students should eat plenty of fruits and vegetables,” Lohrman said, “and try not to eat and study, because your body does not sense that you are satisfied while you are concentrating on other things.

“If you absolutely have to have that snack to comfort you, take a break or drink some sort of tea or carbonated water to keep you satisfied until your next meal,” she said.

On campus, some of the residence hall dining areas offer health food options. They are starting a new program putting a logo on foods that are considered healthy.

Lohrman said there are basic rules in order to keep a balanced diet.

“Try not to skip breakfast, select balanced meals, plan for lunch and snacks, try not to eat too fast or too much and plan to include one new food each week,” she said.

For students living on campus, it can often be hard to keep a well-balanced diet when all they have to cook with is a microwave.

“Eat(ing) cans of fruit, ready-made veggies and salads, healthy frozen dinners and sandwiches are good as long as you balance them out with (fresh) fruits and vegetables,” Lohrman said.

“Make sure you control your portions. For example, one sandwich instead of two.”

Some students find creative ways to keep in shape during the winter months.

Jamie Johnson, human development and family science sophomore, and Malissa Rylander, interior design sophomore, said they use their television to keep in shape.

“We do the Pilates tape every night and try to eat healthy meals as much as we can,” Johnson said.

“When it gets warmer outside, we will probably start walking or doing some outdoor activities, but right now it is too cold,” she said.

Some students may feel that they are not capable of making their own exercise and meal plans.

The Wellness Center offers personal trainers, nutritionists and many other programs for students.

The center also offers many free exercise programs and aerobics classes such as cardio-kickboxing, body pump, step, resist-a-ball, abs and buns, hip hop, take a breather and many more.

Students can get the schedule and sign up for these classes in the campus recreation center at the Colvin Annex from 6 a.m. until midnight.

“It’s all about progress, not perfection,” Lohrman said. “Set small, specific and realistic goals.”

Lindsay Hughes can be reached via e-mail at news@ocolly.com

In the wake of a Oklahoma Supreme Court ruling against a mandated English-speaking Oklahoma, another state representative is pushing for English as Oklahoma’s official language.

Rep. Ron Kirby, D-Lawton, proposed the bill to the Oklahoma House of Representatives.

House Bill 1020 will be considered after the Legislature convenes Feb. 3, Kirby said.

“This bill is a preemptive bill. … There is nothing in the bill to prohibit the teaching, speaking, translation or use of other dialects … it is for official business in the state of Oklahoma,” he said. “There is nothing discriminatory in this bill.”

There is no way to know how much is too much when dealing with different dialects and languages, Kirby said.

“Currently we are providing the driver’s examination in Spanish,” he said. “The question is where do we stop … Do we next provide everything in every dialect?

“There is nothing to prohibit the state from disseminating information in any language,” Kirby said. “This simply means if you have any official business it will be filed with the government in English.”

He said nothing in the bill says individuals should not learn other languages or study other cultures.

“I am introducing the bill on behalf of the Spanish club in Lawton,” he said.

“Whatever the state of Oklahoma does in its official capacity should be in English … pure and straight forward … there is nothing clandestine to it.

“I do not see where people have any opposition to the bill,” he said. “I don’t see where everybody sees it as a big horrible bill.”

Tim Huff, manager of the Oklahoma State University International Student and Scholars office, said, “The bill is a vast improvement over its predecessor which was voted down and unconstitutional in ‘97. The fact that they are not trying to exclude other languages and cultures is the improvement.”

Huff said he feels the bill promotes the importance of foreign culture on the lives of Americans.

“I also believe that our instruction should be in English and everyone should be proficient,” he said. “I also think that everyone should study a second language and culture. It is imperative to our success in the 21st century.

“From an economic prospective, I am not sure how restrictive this bill could end up being on the state. There are over 6 billion people in the world and only 280 million in the United States.”

With the majority of the world’s population outside the boundaries of the United States, “it seems a little unrealistic that we can expect everyone everywhere to understand our language when we have done so poorly to others,” Huff said.

Marieta Petrova, English literature international student, said, “I think English is the official language of the country. If you live here and study here, then you should be able to read and communicate in English.”

Andrew Williams can be reached via

e-mail at awilliams@ocolly.com

A current debate that is going on in the state of Oklahoma concerns the establishment of English as our official language. This is a measure that is mainly being considered in order to save the state money. The state is having a few money troubles following several of its larger, more expensive projects such as the building of the dome on the Oklahoma capitol.

If passed, the measure would enable the state to print some of their documents in only one language instead of several. Money could also be saved by firing translators that serve the state’s needs.

It is worth questioning this proposal’s motives when you consider the cost of pushing a bill through the legislature. Supposing the bill is really just about saving money, why is the state spending the money to get it passed? Lobbyists and lawyers have to eat, after all.

Some are worried about the precedents that such a bill might have, such as the adoption of “English-Only” initiatives that other cities have employed in their school systems’ curriculum.

Many people have said that such a change might force the non-English speakers to learn the language by providing them with an incentive. Many Americans feel that it is the immigrants’ responsibility to learn the language and not our own.

In a related issue, the Tulsa World reported on Wednesday that Hispanics have outnumbered blacks as this state’s largest minority population.

Many Hispanics come to Oklahoma because we have a reputation for being a good place to raise a family. We also have the largest American Indian population in the nation, and many tribes have languages of their own as well. A bill which officializes English and rules out all other options may alienate other people.

We must ask ourselves where the burden really lies when we consider this issue. The burden will fall squarely on the shoulders of foreigners. Still, the costs of the measure might not outweigh the benefits, but perhaps this is not the best stance for a country that was mostly made from immigrants.

In the final report scheduled to be released at noon today the National Transportation Safety Board sites pilot error and electronic failure as the cause of death for the 10 Oklahoma State University employees and students who died in January, 2001.

In a statement from one of the victims’ families, “The National Transportation Safety Board determined that the probable cause of this accident was the pilot’s spatial disorientation resulting from his failure to maintain positive manual control of the airplane with available flight instrumentation.

“Also contributing to the cause of the accident was the loss of AC electrical power during instrument meteorological conditions.”

Paul Slam, representative from the NTSB, would not comment on the findings of the organization or on the content of the report as a whole.

Zane Fleming, father of Nate Fleming, said, “We conducted our own investigation, and we paid for it ourselves. … The findings that we got back from our research team were exactly the same probable cause as the NTSB found.

“Even though it is more bad news, family- and friend-wise, it validates the work we are doing and helps us to think we are headed in the right direction to find out what we want to find out,” Fleming said.

The media relations department at OSU would not comment on the NTSB report or Fleming’s findings. 

The university released a statement detailing its plan for reviewing the situation:

“Oklahoma State University is reviewing the nine-page letter and 67-page report from the National Transportation Safety Board concerning the cause of the plane crash that killed 10 members of the OSU basketball program on Jan. 27, 2001.

“No report can mitigate the loss of 10 men or comfort 10 families who lost a son, father, husband or brother. Our sympathy and support for these families continues as we approach the second anniversary of the accident.”

Fleming said the travel policy now in place is a good comprehensive policy.

“As long as it is enforced, it will be a good travel policy for all the student athletes who come through the university,” he said. 

This policy was not in effect when the 2001 plane crash occurred.

“It was not enforced prior to the crash,” Fleming said. “If more care would have been taken, this crash could have been avoided and all those men would be with us now, but that is the way things happen.”

OSU officials issued a similar statement concerning the current travel policy at the university:

“In the months following the tragedy, OSU worked with national transportation experts, athletic officials and family members to develop a model policy for collegiate team travel. That policy is in effect at OSU today and was presented to the National Association of Collegiate Athletic Directors last summer.”

Fleming reiterated the extreme feeling of loss resulting from losing a family member and said, “We are sick about it, but positive things have happened since the crash. We all have found joy and are all moving forward. We still have the goal in mind to get to the bottom of this, but the report being finished helps to validate our cause.”

The bottom line in this case is clear, he said, “This did not have to happen. … All those men were innocent.”

Although cruelty toward animals is not widespread in Stillwater, it needs attention as more people have started adopting pets.

“Every year we register two or three cases of animal cruelty in Stillwater,” said Mary Dickey, Stillwater Police Department Animal Control Unit superintendent.

According to Oklahoma Statute 1695, cruelty toward animals includes willful or malicious torture, beating or mutilation of any animal in subjugation and depriving such animals of food, drink or shelter.

The main job of the Animal Control Unit of Stillwater is to investigate cases of animal cruelty and abuse.

“Most of the calls we receive are about checks on animal welfare,” Dickey said.

Most cases of animal cruelty they experience are of starving or improperly sheltered animals, she said.

The most serious cases of animal cruelty in Stillwater have been killing a dog by starvation and knifing a calf, though the cow survived the assault, Dickey said.

“Cruelty toward animals could also include not giving them clean conditions to live and keeping them out in unsuitable weather,” said Sandra Rodriguez, forestry graduate student.

For instance, she said if she leaves her pet birds outside in this weather, they would die because they are not used to the cold weather.

Originally from Colombia, Rodriguez has maintained two cibra finches (birds) as pets for the past 10 months.

For many people, animal cruelty is not a serious issue.

“Animal cruelty is not just toward your pets; it could be even related to non-domesticated animals,” Rodriguez said.

While in Colombia, Rodriguez worked on a project that concerned street dogs, which received government funding.

When they presented the project, people laughed at them as they talked about neutering and foster homes for street dogs, Rodriguez said.

Aaron Christensen, international studies graduate student, said cruelty toward animals such as cats would involve pulling their tails, skinning them or starving them.

Christensen has two kittens and six goldfish as pets.

“I see people leaving their pets out in the cold and rain here, neglect them and just give them enough food. I would consider even this as animal cruelty,” Christensen said. “Why have pets if you cannot take care of them?”

One does not have to invest much to take care of their animals.

“I don’t have to take much effort in taking care of my pets,” Rodriguez said. “I just change their water and food everyday.”

Rodriguez recently bought a nest made specially for finches.

Christensen said he keeps his pets around him all the time.

“They keep me company, and I give them love and attention,” he said.

He said it is difficult to estimate the time and effort he takes to care for his pets.

They are a part of his life, he said.

Animal cruelty is also ambiguous.

“One has to distinguish between treatment which is abuse and treatment which is corrective,” said T.R. Krishna, industrial engineering graduate student.

Krishna said if he beats his dog mercilessly, then it is cruelty but if he slaps the dog to prevent him from doing something wrong, it could be a corrective measure.

Rodriguez said, “Some people may feel keeping birds in prison is being cruel to them, but if I let them free, they will die as they won’t find their own food.”

Dickey said the animal control unit receives several calls about people who don’t take their dogs out for a walk or don’t play with their pets, but this cannot be classified as animal cruelty.

Domestication of pets may also involve some cruelty toward them.

Dogs or cats are neutered or spayed, and that involves cruelty as we interfere with their natural lives, Christensen said. Even a simple act like declawing a cat incapacitates it to defend itself outside the home.

Cruelty toward animals and cruelty toward humans are related.

In a 2000 research project, Arlene M. Fulton, a child development specialist from Oklahoma State University, found that animal abuse was directly related to violence and other problems facing children and families.

Fulton reported that violence against animals occurred where there were instances of sexual violence against female partners, children and siblings.

“There is no difference between cruelty toward human beings and cruelty toward animals,” Rodriguez said.

If someone behaves cruelly toward animals, then Rodriguez said she doesn’t expect the person to be polite to humans as well.

In an instance of animal cruelty, the best thing to do is call the police.

“If I see an animal being abused, I would immediately call the cops, as talking to the perpetuator of abuse would be useless,” Krishna said.

Rodriguez said it is better not to talk to the person, as the person who is violent to animals may be violent to people also.

Dickey said, “When we receive a call, we first decide if it falls under the definition of animal cruelty and prosecute the case accordingly.”

The punishment for offenders includes a $100 to $200 fine, the case may go to the district attorney’s office or it could be considered as a felony or misdemeanor and treated accordingly, Dickey said.

The offenders can also be sentenced up to five years of imprisonment, Dickey said.

Christensen said keeping pets teaches people to be kind and caring.

Rodriguez agreed.

“I cannot help it but I do judge people the way they behave with animals,” she said.

Editor’s Note: This is the third in a four-part sexual health series.

Contracting HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, sounds like a death sentence, but for some people, eating healthily and following a strict medication regiment added years to their life.

“I have known people who have lived 20 years with the disease,” said Michelle Green-Gilbert, division director of information for the HIV/STD service of the Oklahoma State Department of Health.

In Payne county, 17 HIV cases and 46 AIDS cases were reported in 2002, according to the OSDH Web site.

About 4,000 HIV and AIDS cases were reported statewide in 2002, Green-Gilbert said.

HIV is a virus that invades and destroys cells in the immune system, which lowers a person’s resistance to infections and cancers, according to “Instructions for Patients.” AIDS is the secondary immunodeficiency syndrome caused by HIV.

However, an HIV-positive diagnosis does not mean that it will develop into AIDS right away, according to “Common Questions and Answers About HIV/AIDS and Other STDs.” It has not been determined whether everyone with an HIV infection will develop AIDS.

Only the HIV-positive persons who get sick with specific illnesses will lead doctors to an AIDS diagnosis.

“There are well over 30 diseases that a doctor will use when he is diagnosing someone with AIDS,” Green-Gilbert said.

HIV-related symptoms include night sweats, prolonged swollen glands, white spots in mouth and unexplained weight loss, according to “Common Questions and Answers.” However, these symptoms are also common to other conditions.

In addition to the HIV infection, symptoms of AIDS include recurrent pneumonias and unusual infections, progressive shortness of breath, cervical cancer and tuberculosis, according to the book.

HIV is transmitted through sexual activity including anal, vaginal and oral intercourse and can be transmitted by direct contact with semen, vaginal secretions and blood of an infected person, according to the book. Sharing needles, occupational exposure like needle sticks or cuts and blood transfusions can also infect a person.

Mothers with HIV can infect their baby during birth and breast feeding, according to the book. However, HIV is not spread through food, water, insects, air or casual contact with other people.

Having more than one sexual partner increases the risk of contracting HIV and other STDs, and having another STD can increase a person’s chance of contracting the virus, according to the book.

For people who are diagnosed with HIV, the Payne County Health Department has a booklet that lists resources for the Oklahoma City and Tulsa areas where people can receive treatment, said Darlene Albrecht, coordinating nurse for PCHD.

“When they get their results, a disease intervention specialist will tell the person the results and offer referrals,” Albrecht said. “We have counselors for people that we’ve tested who are positive.”

The University Health Center also provides testing for STDs, and the test results always remain confidential, said VonDa Moore, University Health Center registered nurse.

Bethany Krottinger can be reached via e-mail at bkrottinger@ocolly.com