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The Diamondback,TRANSCRIPT
THE DIAMONDBACKTHE DIAMONDBACK
LIGHTS OUTTerps’ offense has been the bestin the ACC in conference playSPORTS | PAGE 8
LOSING HIS EDGEMel Gibson’s acting comebackin Edge of Darkness disappoints
DIVERSIONS | PAGE 6
TOMORROW’S WEATHER: Partly Cloudy/30s www.diamondbackonline.comINDEX NEWS . . . . . . . . . .2OPINION . . . . . . . .4
FEATURES . . . . . .5CLASSIFIED . . . . .6
DIVERSIONS . . . . .6SPORTS . . . . . . . . .8
Our 100TH Year, No. 77THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND’S INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPERThursday, January 28, 2010
Wooded Hillock may be safeUniversity in process of purchasing Washington Post plant in city
BY DERBY COXSenior staff writer
The university is close topurchasing The WashingtonPost Company’s College Parkplant, potentially saving the22.4 acres of forest known asthe Wooded Hillock near Com-cast Center originally plannedfor development.
The university had intendedto relocate university facilitiesto the Wooded Hillock in orderto clear space for the $900 mil-lion 38-acre East Campusdevelopment, which wouldbring stores, student housingand a music hall to Route 1. Butafter student and faculty outcryand resolutions opposing theplan from three separate gov-
erning bodies, the university isnow planning to purchase theclosed plant and use it for therelocation, according to a uni-versity press release.
The $12 million deal wouldstill have to be approved by thestate’s Board of Public Worksat its Feb. 10 meeting.
The plant, which is locatedon Greenbelt Road, is farther
from the university than thehillock, which was originallyselected partly based on itsproximity to the campus. VicePresident for AdministrativeAffairs Ann Wylie could not bereached for comment yester-day evening about how theincreased distance would affect The university may purchase The Washington Post Company’s
printing plant on Greenbelt Road for $12 million. STEVEN OVER-
LY/FOR THE DIAMONDBACK
Sports bar wasgiven three days tomake way for high-rise development
VarsityGrille on Rt. 1 closes
BY AMANDA PINOStaff writer
The era of trivia Wednesdays andkaraoke Fridays are over as VarsityGrille closed its doors for the last timeSunday evening.
The traditional college sports barended its run just two years afteremerging on the Route 1 scene. Andthe restaurant’s loyal trivia buffs andhappy hour crowd aren’t the onlyones surprised — the closure cameas a shock to the restaurant’s owners,as well.
Varsity Grille co-owner Jim McGin-nis said his landlord informed himlate last week the property was undercontract by a high rise housing devel-oper and he had just three days toclear the premises.
Joining the ranks of its failedpredecessors, Varsity Grille wasempty by Monday as the ownersloaded all of the televisions, wallhangings and other personal itemsinto moving trucks.
Bad business was never the prob-lem, McGinnis said, adding that therestaurant and bar had seen steady
New fund could help prevent future tuition jumpsAnnapolis lawmakers praise ‘step in the right direction’
BY KEVIN ROBILLARDSenior staff writer
The state could create a newfund dedicated to warding offlarge tuition increases if theGeneral Assembly passes legis-lation Gov. Martin O’Malleyproposed Monday.
The new fund, formallycalled the Tuition StabilizationTrust Account, would be a part
of the Higher Education Invest-ment Fund, which wouldbecome the state’s first perma-nent source of funding forhigher education under O’Mal-ley’s 2010 legislative agenda.
The fund, which draws a por-tion of the state’s corporateincome tax, theoretically workslike a bank account. A specificportion of the trust would beavailable only to prevent spikes
in tuition. It becomes flush withrevenue during economicbooms and is able to ward offdevastating cuts when theeconomy enters a recession.
“We’ve done a good job inmaking college more afford-able,” O’Malley spokesmanShaun Adamec said. “But weneed to do more to create the
THE AGENDAWhat makes up the rest ofGov. Martin O’Malley’slegislative agenda? Here aresome highlights:
Lifetime supervision ofserious or multiple-time sexoffenders.
A $3,000 tax credit forhiring unemployed stateresidents.
A reform of the state’sunemployment insurance.
More than 30 houses in thecity burglarized over break
THE COLDSHOULDER
ANNA EISENBERG
AND LAUREN YOFFE/
THE DIAMONDBACK
BY BEN PRESENTStaff writer
It’s 37 degrees outside. Snow is expectedthis weekend. And freshmen Megan Harveyand Emily Winafeld are focused on only onething: ice cream.
Harvey, a government and politics major,and Winafeld, an engineering major, said alittle cold isn’t enough to keep them fromtheir favorite dessert, which the universityhas been offering homemade since the1920s.
“I’ll eat minimal dinner so I can eat icecream,” Winafeld said. “There’s no sub-stance like it.”
Equipped with more than 30 flavors, theuniversity produces ice cream year-round, aprocess that will not slow as the wintermonths persist, administrative chef JeffRusso said.
But where production perseveres, con-sumption might not always follow. And whilethe university’s signature ice cream has itsdie-hard fans, Dairy Supervisor ClaudiaFunes said she notices a distinct drop insales during the winter.
“It’s very slow in the winter,” said Funes,who has worked at the Dairy for 16 years.She added the summer months tend to bringin different tour groups, who always make
see ICE CREAM, page 3
BY DARREN BOTELHOStaff writer
More than 30 houses in Col-lege Park were burglarizedduring winter break despite adrop in county crime and anincrease in patrolmen, PrinceGeorge’s County Police offi-cials said.
Early last week, 25 officerspatrolled College Park lookingfor suspicious activity andclues to the identity of the bur-glars who preyed on vacant
houses during the university’swinter break, said District 1Commander Maj. DanielDusseau. However, despitethe increased efforts, manystill fell victim to the crimewave.
“There is always a spike inreported break-ins when peo-ple return from break,”Dusseau said, adding thatpreventing all break-ins dur-ing the break would be
see CRIME, page 3see FUND, page 3
see VARSITY, page 3
see HILLOCK, page 2
ANNAPOLIS 2009
Traffic at the Dairy slows asweather cools down
2 THE DIAMONDBACK | NEWS | THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2010
ONLINEwww.diamondbackonline.com
TODAY
Two uni-versitieswent intolockdown inthe past twodays aftersuspiciousactivity was reported on both cam-puses.
Northwestern University issued alockdown at their Chicago campusearly yesterday. The TakomaPark/Silver Spring campus of Mont-gomery College was locked downTuesday afternoon. To find out more,check out The Diamondback newsblog, Campus Drive, atblogs.umdbk.com/campusdrive.
COLLEGE LOCKDOWNS
New radios to connect university and county policeBY AMANDA PINO
Staf f writer
University and county police willsoon be able to contact any countypolice or fire department with just aturn of a knob, thanks to about $1.5million in federal stimulus money.
The money, which came from the2009 stimulus bill, will be used toequip both police departments withnew hi-tech radios that of ficials sayare bound to improve public safety.Before, police and fire of ficials indif ferent Prince George’s Countymunicipalities were unable to com-municate with each other via radio,forcing them to instead go throughthe more cumbersome process ofcontacting each others’ dispatchersin order to track down individualresponders.
“Having communication with thecounty people as well as the widercapital region really gives us an abil-ity to operate better in an emer-gency situation,” University PoliceMaj. Jay Gruber said. “And our of fi-cers work quite closely with PrinceGeorge’s County police, so beingable to go to them directly will alsobe very helpful.”
Of the 23 towns and cities inPrince George’s County receivingthe federal Recovery Act grants, the
university received the most money— upward of $250,000, which willhelp pay for about 80 radios at a costof $3,796 apiece.
Gruber hopes university of ficerswill have the radios in their handsby April or early May.
Although the city doesn’t have itsown police force, it falls within thecounty police’s District 1 jurisdiction,which also includes Hyattsville. Thecity’s small contract police force didn’treceive grant money.
Some students applauded thenew radios, saying they could helpin the event a disaster were tostrike the region.
“On [Sept. 11] for example, per-haps the biggest problem that theemergency crews had was theinability to communicate,” freshmanbioengineering major AnthonyFouad said. “If some grand disasterwere to occur, communication is themost important thing in coordinat-ing the emergency response.”
Other students were doubtful thenew radios could ef fectively impacttheir everyday safety.
“It seems like it would be moreef ficient ... but would it really takethat much time to call one extra per-son?” junior journalism major LisaKrysiak said. “I wouldn’t necessar-ily think it would make me feel safer
to know that the police had high-tech radios.”
Gruber said the 80 radios wouldbe enough to cover all of the active,patrolling University Police of ficersand detectives. He said the radios’usefulness was not limited to majordisasters — of ficers who see a fireor car accident outside of their juris-diction would be able to respond
more quickly and ef fectively. “A good example of how it could
be useful is the fact that we’realways looking for people who havearrest or search warrants out,” hesaid. “So now an investigator canjust get on the radio if a suspect ison site.”
$1.5 million in federal stimulus money will fund the high-tech communication system
University Police officer M.A. Wittkopp’s radio will be replaced with a new 700MHz radio in the coming months. MATTHEW CREGER/THE DIAMONDBACK
the project.“This facility provides the space we
need to strategically and cost-effec-tively phase in our East Campus reloca-tion projects, minimize environmentalimpacts to campus woodlands and limitdisruption to our critical campus serv-ices,” Wylie wrote in the release.
During the past year, the StudentGovernment Association and theGraduate Student Government bothpassed resolutions against the devel-opment. Perhaps the most importantstatement against construction onthe hillock came at the end of lastsemester, when the University Senatevoted 62-12 to preserve the area.
But the hillock’s future remaineduncertain. At the time, Wylie said
there were “no good places” to relo-cate the buildings and she had “noidea” what the senate’s vote wouldmean for the site.
“I’m glad that they listened to anoverwhelming vote of faculty, staf fand students that told them, ‘No,you can’t demolish the last continu-ous forest on campus to build yourshopping mall,’” said Bob Hayes, anundergraduate university senatorfor the engineering college.
Activists have argued the site isvaluable for its environmental fea-tures, including its rare graveldeposits and native plant species.The hillock was hit by a tornado in2001, making it an even moreimportant place to study, professorshave said. At least 14 faculty mem-bers have used or plan to use thehillock for instruction, and about1,000 students per year visit the site
for class, according to informationprovided by urban forestry profes-sor Marla McIntosh.
While expressing their relief at thehillock’s preservation, Hayes andJoanna Calabrese, chairwoman of theStudent Sustainability Council, bothsaid they were frustrated the univer-sity community was not consulted inthe new site’s selection. This senti-ment dates back to the original selec-tion of the hillock, a decision theysaid did not include enough students,faculty and staff.
“I do think it’s unacceptable thatwe weren’t kept in the loop and thatnone of this information was madepublic until now,” Calabrese said.
And Hayes questioned the logic ofbuying the site as the universitystruggles to deal with a continuingbudget crisis.
Despite the deal, the fate of the
East Campus development remainsmurky. Foulger-Pratt/Argo, the uni-versity’s main development partneron the project, withdrew in Novem-ber, taking $15 million in relocationfunds with it.
Nevertheless, the university remainsfirmly committed to the project.
“The East Campus Redevelopmentinitiative remains at the forefront of ourefforts to build a world-class researchinstitution for the residents of Mary-land,” Wylie wrote in the release.
Wylie said one of the key featuresof the Post site is the flexibility, whichwill allow the university to move EastCampus facilities in phases. Thepiecemeal strategy will help to“secure developer interest ... whilecontinuing to move the entire projectforward,” she wrote in the release.
HILLOCKfrom page 1
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THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2010 | NEWS | THE DIAMONDBACK 3
sales increases since itsopening.
McGinnis said he and hisbusiness partners were plan-ning to purchase the restau-rant themselves but had diffi-culty securing financing. Afterdiscovering floodplain, or foun-dation prone to flooding bywater beneath it, on the prop-erty, their lender backed out ofthe deal, he said.
“If people want wall to wallhigh rise, we can’t competewith that,” he said. “It was adeveloper coming in andoffering a big number to takethe property, and our pock-ets are only so deep.”
Known for its sit-down
atmosphere, big screen tele-visions playing universitysports games and populartrivia and live music nights,Varsity Grille had built up astrong base of supporterslooking for an alternative tothe bar scene downtown.
Students were disap-pointed and surprised tohear the restaurant closed.
“Damn. Really? Damn,”freshman kinesiology majorJimmy Sheptock said afterhearing the news. “Corner-stone and all that is closer,but Varsity Grille was a goodchange of scenery.”
Former bartender andrecent graduate JillGiamfredi said the restau-rant was consistently packedon home game days with amix of students and alumni,and trivia night brought out
an especially diverse crowd.“All kinds of people
showed up,” she said. “Wehad a bunch of studentteams, but then we also hadfamilies that would bringtheir kids and play.”
Though he has talked tothe city council about re-opening somewhere else inCollege Park, McGinnis saidhis options are limited. Still,he hasn’t given up hope.
McGinnis said VarsityGrille’s focus on the univer-sity and their sports teamswas merely an extension ofhis own passions, and he willnever give them up.
“I love Maryland. I love thewhole campus, love thesports,” he said. “I’m a diehardMaryland fan, Terp for life.”
VARSITYfrom page 1
After a mere two years at its Route 1 location, Varsity Grille shuttered its doors and windowsafter closing up for the last time Sunday night. STEVEN OVERLY/FOR THE DIAMONDBACK
Police develop new emergencynumber, university alertUniv. is first in U.S. to shorten emergency number
BY DARREN BOTELHOStaff writer
In an emergency situation,many students may not haveUniversity Police’s phonenumber memorized or storedin their phones, but it doesn’tmatter — just dial #3333.
Because calling 911 willconnect on-campus studentswith Prince George’s CountyPolice rather than UniversityPolice, the university abbre-viated the police phone num-ber to five characters, #3333,to make it easier for studentsto remember and dial whenemergencies arise. No otheruniversity has shortenedtheir emergency number insuch a way before, UniversityPolice spokesman Paul Dil-lon said.
In line with these publicsafety efforts, UniversityPolice also created a newalert system last week, in anattempt to assuage studentconcerns about being left outof the loop when crimestrikes the city.
The university teamed upwith three cell phone compa-nies — Verizon Wireless,Sprint/Nextel and AT&T —to provide students with theabbreviated number. Anothercompany, T-Mobile, willbegin to offer the servicesometime this spring.
Dillon said students shouldbe mindful of where they areand what number is appropri-ate to use for emergencies.
He added dialing #3333anywhere off or near thecampus may not work, butmany off-campus areas areincluded in county policejurisdiction anyway.
“You shouldn’t be dialing#3333 if you are four miles
from campus — you shouldbe dialing 911,” he said.
But students concernedabout crime on and aroundthe campus should keep theirphones on, in case they needto call for help or to stayinformed about what’s hap-pening.
For the past few years, uni-versity members have beenable to receive text messagesand e-mails through the“UMDAlert” system foremergencies that pose animmediate threat to students,faculty and staff. But now,university members can signup at www.alert.umd.edu toreceive alerts of significantpolice-related activities thatmay not pose an immediatethreat to the university com-munity, such as an incidentwhere an arrest has alreadybeen made.
As of yesterday morning,about 500 people had alreadysigned up, Dillon said.
If a situation on or aroundthe campus is noteworthy,university police will notifystudents via text messageand e-mail.
Dillon said last semester’sshooting at Rugged Wear-house and the suspicious
package scare at McKeldinLibrary during the summersparked a whirlwind ofrumors and complaints thatthe greater university com-munity was kept in the darkabout both incidents.
“We wanted to help dorumor control and furtherinform people,” Dillon said.“It’s also free, and there won’tbe that many alerts sent out.We don’t have a chart listingwhat types of incidents toalert people of, but we’re notgoing to send out an alertthat a couple cars were bro-ken into.”
Standard text messagingrates apply, so some studentslike sophomore psychologymajor Melanie Kohut wouldrather save their money.
“No, I didn’t sign up. I’dlike to, but I probably won’t,”Kohut said. “I don’t have anunlimited texting plan and Idon’t want to go over.”
Other students like sopho-more criminology and crimi-nal justice major CecilyGreene want to get the mostout of their tuition money andbe informed of on-campuspolice incidents immediately.
“It’s a good idea,” Greenesaid. “I’m paying my moneyand should know about mostthings going on aroundhere.”
Dillon said that manypolice-related activities arenot a threat to individuals onthe campus, but people nowa-days expect up-to-the-minuteinformation.
“We are in an era wherepeople demand instant infor-mation,” Dillon said. “Peoplelike to be informed — it’s theway our society has evolved.”
their way to the Dairy.Sophomore mathematics
major David Berlin countsice cream as part of his per-sonal arsenal for combatingthe cold.
“It lowers your blood tem-perature,” he said. “It makesyou more impervious to thecold.”
Other students rely on icecream to keep their spirits upduring the dreary wintermonths.
“Whenever I’m feelingdown in the dumps, I eat icecream,” sophomore financemajor Paul Rowe said. “Soabout two or three times aweek.”
But unlike Rowe, not allstudents are rushing to get acold scoop of the university’sfinest.
Despite an apparent drop-off in business, Russo worksin the basement of the South
Campus Dining Hall betweensix and 10 hours a week,crafting what amounts tomore than 25,000 gallons ofice cream a year.
The ice cream is packagedand dispersed to The Diner,the South Campus DiningHall, the Dairy and at variousuniversity sporting eventsthroughout the year.
“Any time the students areon campus, the production ispretty constant,” Russo said.“Milk shakes are huge sell-
ers all year.”The frozen treat has
always attracted long lines atboth dining halls, despite thelong-standing rumor that theice cream’s fat content is sohigh it exceeds Food andDrug Administration stan-dards.
It turns out the ice cream’slegendary fat content is sim-ply that: a legend.
Russo said the rumor hasbeen popular among univer-sity students long before histime.
“There’s no truth to that,”he said.
Russo said the university’sice cream usually contains 14percent butterfat, whichgives it “a nice mouth feel.”He then compared it to Brey-ers ice cream, which usuallyweighs in at 11 or 12 percentbutterfat.
Anything less than 10 per-cent, he said, “you wouldhave to call an ice milk.”
ICE CREAMfrom page 1
infrastructure to help keeptuition predictable and pre-vent spikes.”
The tuition trust isintended is to keep collegecosts down. It attempts to pre-vent unpredictable tuitionjumps by being able to sup-plement campuses with fundswhen there’s not enoughmoney in the state’s normalbudget to keep tuitionincreases low. The bill saystuition should not grow fasterthan the state’s average fam-ily income over the previousthree years.
Some higher educationadvocates were cautiouslyoptimistic about the move.
“It’s a laudable goal, and Iapplaud it, but we need to seehow it pays out,” universitylobbyist Ross Stern said.
Del. John Bohanan (D-St.Mary’s), who chaired a com-mission that recommendedthe tuition account, said thetrust means future studentswon’t “be hit with double-digittuition increases,” like otherstudents across the nation arenow. Tuition for schools inthe University of Californiasystem, for example, is goingup by a third.
“Sometimes, [studentswill] work their butts off firstsemester and not be able tocome back second semester
because the school hit themwith an increase betweensemesters,” Bohanan said.“This is designed to avoidthose unforeseen hurdles.”
But it’s not yet clear howmuch money is needed forthe trust to have an impact orhow much of the overall fundwill be set aside for tuition.
“Clearly you’d need tens ofmillions of dollars at least,”said Sen. Jim Rosapepe (D-Anne Arundel and PrinceGeorge’s), who representsCollege Park. “It’ll take severalyears to build the fund up.”
Rosapepe and Bohananboth also emphasized makingthe fund permanent wasmerely a “step in the rightdirection.”
“For the long-term fix, weneed mandated funding forthe universities, and we needhard tuition cap,” Rosapepesaid.
Both were recommendedby the Bohanan Commissiontwo years ago, but the $700million price tag scared offlawmakers, who have repeat-edly been battling budgetdeficits. Rosapepe is sponsor-ing a bill that would imple-ment both for the second yearin a row, but with a $2 billiongap this year, he concedes ithas no chance of passage —even with half the senatesigned on as co-sponsors. Thefuture is a different story.
“I’m hopeful that as the econ-omy and revenues improve, we
can implement the rest of thecommission’s recommenda-tions,” Bohanan said.
The Higher EducationInvestment Fund was createdby O’Malley earlier in histerm but has never been onsound footing. It’s scheduledto sunset this summer unlessO’Malley’s bill passes. WhileStern warned that fiscallycautious lawmakers could beskeptical of the bill, otherswere confident.
“I think lawmakers will seethis the way the governordoes: as a way to keep collegeaffordable for working familiesin Maryland,” Adamec said.
“There’s no reason itshouldn’t pass this year,” Ros-apepe said. “The only reasonto oppose this bill is if youwant higher tuition.”
FUNDfrom page 1
impossible. “There wouldhave to be an officer sta-tioned at every property. ... Ifthere is an officer on onestreet, they’re not going tosee someone trespassing in abackyard on the street over.”
Over break, there weredays when 20 or more offi-cers were patrolling CollegePark neighborhoods,Dusseau said. Officers fromall over the county werediverted to College Park topatrol neighborhoods andidentify the culprits of thispast winter break’s rash ofbreak-ins.
City Director of Public Ser-vices Bob Ryan said,although the identities of allthe burglars responsible forthe break-ins during winterbreak are not yet known,there have been somearrests made.
“A man going door to door[checking for unlockeddoors] in the Old Townneighborhood was arrested,and another man wasarrested for trespassing inthe Knox Box area after hereturned to the area afterbeing told by police to leave,”Ryan said.
County police have alsodiscovered some of the bur-glars’ methods, Ryan said.
Some of the trespassersarrested admitted to attend-ing house parties and “cas-ing the place” before return-ing to burglarize it while theproperty was vacant duringthis past break, he said.
County police are doingtheir best to patrol neighbor-hoods and look for suspi-cious activity, but they canonly do so much, Dusseausaid.
“People need to lock theirdoors; it’s very important,”he said. “They need to shuttheir blinds at night so theirbright, big-screen television
isn’t shining through thewindow and bring trash tothe dumpster or break it upand put it in bags so peopledon’t see what you’re buy-ing.”
Dusseau said there hasbeen a great effort on thepart of city officials to curbthe annual break-ins.
In each of the past twoyears, the city allocated $1million for an increase in full-time patrol officers and off-duty county police. Sincethen, crime has decreased,Dusseau said.
“I think we have had sig-nificant improvement in Col-lege Park with this pro-gram,” he said.
According to PrinceGeorge’s County crime sta-tistics, burglaries havedecreased from 2008 to 2009by 2 percent and overallcrime by 12.2 percent.
Dusseau added that neigh-borhood watch programs arevital, because evidence disap-pears as hours pass, allowingcriminals to get away, soneighbors need to be on thelook out for suspicious activity.
“There’s a lot of goodneighbors in College Parkwho have reported peoplewalking down the streetturning door knobs and peer-ing in windows,” Dusseausaid.
CRIMEfrom page 1
“It’s a good idea.... I’m paying mymoney andshould knowabout mostthings going onaround here.”
CECILY GREENESOPHOMORE CRIMINOLOGY ANDCRIMINAL JUSTICE MAJOR
“[Ice cream]lowers yourbloodtemperature. Itmakes youimpervious tothe cold.”
DAVID BERLINSOPHOMORE MATHEMATICS MAJOR
The Dairy, a restaurant and ice cream bar on the south side of the campus, serves up scoops ofuniversity-made ice cream to students and visitors. CHARLIE DEBOYACE/THE DIAMONDBACK
“People need tolock their doors;it’s veryimportant. Theyneed to shuttheir blinds atnight so theirbright, big-screen televisionisn’t shiningthrough thewindow.”
MAJ. DANIELDUSSEAUPRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY POLICEDISTRICT 1 COMMANDER
“There’s noreason itshouldn’t passthis year. ... Theonly reason tooppose this bill isif you wanthigher tuition.”
JIM ROSAPEPESTATE SENATOR (D-ANNE ARUNDELAND PRINCE GEORGE’S )
I f you were a political Rip VanWinkle who had stopped payingattention to hot air emanatingfrom Washington during winter
break, it is time to wake up and smellthe chaos.
People are acting like the improbablevictory of Scott Brown in the Massachu-setts special election to fill the seat ofthe late Sen. Ted Kennedy handed theRepublicans an insurmountable major-ity in the Senate — 41 of its 100 seats.Like despite braving a blizzard to passhealth care reform before Christmas,the bill would need an act of God to nowreach President Barack Obama’s desk.Like cap-and-trade will never see thelight of day, and financial sector reformwould have to be acceptable to WallStreet before being passed. LikeObama should have begun his State ofthe Union by saying “American people,I hear you” and promptly turn over thepresidency to Sen. John McCain.
The problem with Obama and con-
gressional Democrats has been theirfailure to listen to the public. But themessage from the nation hasn’t beenthe anti-government hatred spewed by“tea-party” activists or the paralyzingcaution advocated by self-styled cen-trists. No, the American people demanda government that is responsive, effec-tive and empathetic — they demand tosee some of the change that was prom-ised to them.
In the 2008 election, voters rebuked aRepublican party that had shepherdednearly a decade of disaster filled witheconomic inequality, gross mismanage-ment and needless bloodshed.
But winning the election wasn’t the
ultimate goal. The goal was to accom-plish something. In that regard, Democ-rats have failed, aided by an obstructingconservative minority. When govern-ment is so desperately needed to stabi-lize the economy, incentivize job cre-ation, mend a broken health care sys-tem and create more opportunity forthe middle class, Democrats have beencomplicit in a Republican plot to makegovernment fail. The response to thepresident’s bipartisan overtures at thebeginning of his term where virulentprotests filled with rabid accusations ofHitler-esque fascism. Draping them-selves in conservative robes wonDemocrats little or no Republican sup-port on any legislative initiative of note.
The string of setbacks now presentsan opportunity to Obama and hisDemocratic allies: an occasion to bebold and dramatically rewrite the nega-tive political narrative.
Obama and Congress must show acapacity to lead and to govern, and that
requires fulfilling promises. There willbe no electoral reward for delay, inac-tion or retreat from the values and prin-ciples that got Obama elected. Resultsare what can save Democrats. Thisentails health care being passed even ifit requires the use of parliamentarymaneuvers such as reconciliation. Pop-ulism cannot be surrendered to theRepublicans who will simply use it forpolitical gain. Efforts to increase jobcreation and continue to stimulate eco-nomic activity should be watered down,and calls for spending freezes and moretax cuts should be acquiesced withoutsomething in return.
One defeat does not end a movementor stall a presidency. Change alwaysfaces large hurdles, but it’s about time tojump over a few of them. Listen to theAmerican people: The time to act is now.
Matt Verghese is a graduate student inpublic policy. He can be reached [email protected].
Opinion4 THE DIAMONDBACK | THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2010
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T his being my last semester atour fine little establishment,and thus the home stretch ofmy always-enlightening Dia-
mondback contributions, I thought itmight just be time for me to go aheadand find myself a niche.
Being the youngest of five and thefrequent recipient of the short end ofthe proverbial stick, I have grown togarner a certain admiration for life’slittle underdogs. There’s just some-thing special about those tenaciousfew who have been repeatedly kickedin the crotch by circumstance and yetfind a way to soldier forth. You can’ttell me you didn’t cheer for that autis-tic kid in New York who dropped likeeight 3-pointers in a high school gamea few years back, or that you didn’t atleast feel for Conan O’Brien when hegot royally dicked by NBC last week.Let’s face it: We all love to root for thelittle guy.
So since I’ve already wasted myword count setting up this little beauty,I’ll get right to the point. My Under-dog(s) of the Week are the fine menwho make up the elite squad of CollegePark cab drivers.
If you make as many bad decisionsas I do, you surely have your favoritecab driver’s number saved in yourphone. Of course, that number is savedunder “ride home” or “cab” since gen-erally the student body of College Parkviews their cab drivers as nothing morethan a silhouette in a smelly box thatwill get you home after you have con-sumed a few dozen garbage buckets.However, the next time you flop yourway into one of these cabs with thestrange person you’ve been making outwith all night, remember that cab driv-ers are human beings, and actuallymost of them have some pretty amaz-ing stories.
Maybe it’s because I so frequently
find myself going home alone, butover the last few years I have taken thetime to get to know some of these late-night heroes of transportation, and letme be the first to say they deservesome respect. A majority of the laborforce in the College Park cab industryis made up of men who have immi-grated from different parts of Africa tofind steady income for their families.A lot of these guys are not even able topay for their families to join them inthe states and must send money over-seas to feed their kids. Maybe it’s justme, but I think it kinda sucks thatthese guys are sacrificing so much,
and we repay them by making out anddry humping in their back seats whilewe ignore the fact that there’s anotherperson in the car.
I know some of you are thinking, “Sowhat? There are plenty of shitty jobs inthe world, why are these guys special?”Well, I suppose they’re not, but theseguys chose to work from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.so that we don’t have to drive drunk andcrash into Applebee’s — in my book,that’s a pretty honorable thing. Theywork in a place where half of their busi-ness is taken by buses, Nite Ride anddummies who think they can walkhome safely in College Park. So kids,please go out and do the awful thingsthat we all know you’re going to do, butwhen it’s time to catch a ride home,remember that cabbies are people, too.
Mike DiMarco is a senior English major.He can be reached [email protected].
Cab drivers: Getting their fare share
A few years ago the university was ranked one of the top 20 ugliestcolleges in the country by CampusSqueeze.com. This badge ofshame had far less to do with the university’s Georgian architectureas it did with the surrounding area. With congested traffic and
decrepit liquor stores, College Park is far from paradise. However, if univer-sity officials get their way, things could get much worse.
Currently, the university and the University System of Maryland are ques-tioning whether a Maryland Court of Special Appeals ruling in June, whichexempted Johns Hopkins University lacrosse games fromBaltimore admissions and amusement taxes, could beapplied to this university. Such a ruling would exempt theuniversity from as much as $550,000 in annual city taxes. Ifthe court agrees, then the city of College Park would onlyreceive $5,000 from the university a year, according to Dis-trict 2 Councilman Bob Catlin, depriving the city of much-needed revenue at a time when municipalities are strug-gling in the grips of a recession.
Although we generally support efforts by university offi-cials to save hundreds of thousands of dollars, trying to become exempt fromthe amusement tax would be insulting to the city and short-sighted.
There’s a chance they would lose the case. State law says admissions andamusement tax may not be imposed on the gross receipts if they are usedexclusively for education purposes. The fact of the matter is that most of themoney made from athletic events goes right back to the Athletics Depart-ment, not a general university fund like at Johns Hopkins.
Some factors the court considered in making their decision were that allstudents at Johns Hopkins are required to take a physical education course,more than 50 percent of the student body participates in some type of athlet-
ics and the university-owned athletic field is available to the community aswell as students for use. Anyone who has ever tried to get a game of two-handtouch going in an empty Byrd Stadium knows this isn’t the case here. If theuniversity plans to argue such, then serious changes must be made to howthe Athletics Department operates.
Despite these discrepancies, there is a broader moral factor to this situa-tion. The university does not live in a bubble. The ability of College Park tofunction directly affects the university and students’ lives. It must not be for-
gotten that city taxpayers spend thousands each year onservices that protect students, manage traffic after gamesand keep College Park functioning.
The city still has far to go, and progress would be dramat-ically hindered if more than half a million dollars wasreduced from the city’s revenue.
Some members of the city council have been hostiletoward the university, describing it as a “gorilla.” But thishostility is bred by such self-interested and duplicitousbehavior on the university’s part. If the university does find
a way to exempt itself from these taxes, the council should challenge the deci-sion in the state’s Court of Appeals.
No prospective student or faculty member wants to come to a universitysurrounded by crime and disorder. To block room for improvement would bereckless to current students’ well-being as well as to the future of the univer-sity. Before university officials attempt to cut more than half a million dollarsfrom the city’s revenue, they should remember that the city that whizzes bytheir windows during their evening commute is called home by thousands ofstudents. And while it may not be paradise, it’s far from Skid Row. Let’s keep itthat way.
Staff editorial
Our ViewThe university should feelobligated to help support
College Park, despite a potential tax exemption.
PPOOLLIICCYY:: Signed letters, columns and cartoons represent the opinions of the authors. The staff editorial represents the opinion of The Diamondback’s editorial board and is the responsibility of the editor in chief.
Obama: Create policy, not panic
MIKEDIMARCO
Why do you alwayshate on Thirsty Turtleso much?
This is my last semes-ter at the university,and I would like to setthe record straight
about something: I love Thirsty Tur-tle. It’s one of my favorite collegeinstitutions, right behind The Dia-mondback and Chicken Rico. I real-ize going to Cornerstone Grill andLoft is really mature, going to TheMark Lounge is really classy, goingto Washington is for people who arereally 21 and not going to the bars isreally edgy, but Thirsty Turtle isreally awesome.
We need to be honest with our-selves about why we love the univer-sity. It’s not for diversity, athletics,academics or location. It’s becauseour school is simply collegiate asf–––. We go to a huge state schoolwith a real campus. Kids are just try-ing to have a good time. And if wehappen to get a degree somewherealong the hazy journey, I guess wewouldn’t throw it away. When theymake movies such as Animal Houseor Van Wilder, I feel like I am beingpersonally saluted. Why thank you.Yes, I agree, college is sweet, and Igo to one.
I used to think I wanted to go to asmall liberal arts school where Icould hang out with kids who sharemy burning passion for jazz andsmoking cigarettes in fingerlessgloves. Then I spent my first semes-ter feeling sorry for myself for nothaving $200,000 at my disposal.What I know now is that I want to bein a place where the first week ofclasses means a week of free exces-sive drinking on fraternities’ dimes.If there is someone on this planetwith “The Situation” written above aChevy Chase card drawn on theirabs at a basketball game trying towin 100 bucks, I want to be there.
Thirsty Turtle is like a microcosmfor everything we love about this uni-versity. People are pretty good-look-ing, and if not, it doesn’t really matterbecause we’re pretty drunk. Thegirls who go there are overtly youngand overtly DTF. My fake ID had nohologram, was expired, said I was 32and featured a strange Latinawoman. Sometimes the bouncerswill laugh, but they will always wel-come you with their warm heartsand huge arms. I bet you could showthem a Post-it note with the number21 on it, and you’d be cash. Andwhere else can you go besidesYouTube to hear “LOL Smiley Face”played twice in a row?
This is what we came here for.This is what it means when we saythese are the best years of our lives.Sure, I’ve made some jokes atThirsty Turtle’s expense, but it’sonly out of love (and insecuritybecause I know at heart I’m barelycool enough to hang out there).
More than all of the other bars onRoute 1, Thirsty Turtle has all themakings of a good time. So yeah, wemake out in public sometimes whenwe go there, and sometimes wethrow up on each other afterwards.But haters go home. Fear the Turtle.
Esti Frischling is a senior Englishmajor. She can be reached [email protected].
ESTIFRISCHLING
Q:A:
Editorial cartoon: Jenna Brager
Un-amused
Address your letters or guestcolumns to the Opinion Desk [email protected]. All lettersand guest columns must besigned. Include your full name,year, major and day- and night-time phone numbers. Pleaselimit letters to 300 words. Pleaselimit guest columns to 600words.
Submission of a letter or guestcolumn constitutes an exclusive,worldwide, transferable licenseto The Diamondback of thecopyright in the material in anymedia. The Diamondbackretains the right to edit submis-sions for content and length.
AIR YOUR VIEWS
MATTVERGHESE
UNDERDOG(S) OF THE WEEK
Advice:Comingclean onTurtle
Born today, you are alwaysquick to take advantage ofopportunities as they arise,
and while this often puts you atleast a step ahead of the competi-tion, always be aware that you arealso in danger, just as often, offorging ahead without the properor requisite preparation. It is es-sential that you are, wheneverpossible, actually as ready forthings as you think you are; confi-dence alone isn’t going to do it foryou — though it can separate youfrom those who come in secondwhen all is said and done.
You know how to take full ad-vantage of modern technologyand other advances of the infor-mation age. You enjoy all kinds ofcommunication, and it is likelythat you will keep up with ad-vances in technology — if only be-cause you see it all as gadgetrythat is fun to play with on a dailybasis.
Also born on this date are SarahMcLachlan, singer; Barbi Benton,model and actress; Susan Sontag,writer and director; Jackson Pol-lock, artist; Alan Alda, actor;Arthur Rubinstein, pianist.
To see what is in store for youtomorrow, find your birthday andread the corresponding para-graph. Let your birthday star beyour daily guide.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 29
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18) —You may be introduced tosomething new and intriguingby someone who has an air ofmystery about him or her.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20) —You run the risk of being spreadtoo thin at this time — unlessyou take someone up on his orher offer to take something offyour plate.
ARIES (March 21-April 19) —The overall mood may not be asbright and eager as it might be,but you can do much to improvethe group outlook of thosearound you.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) —Don’t leave certain things un-done before heading out on ajourney of discovery. Closure isvaluable.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20) —Friends and loved ones may ex-press their concern about a re-cent decision you made underpressure. Is it too late to changeyour mind?
CANCER (June 21-July 22) —You’re facing a situation thatthreatens to get out of control ifyou don’t do what you can tostop one or two current trends.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) — It’s agood day to make plans withthose who share your outlookand ambition. The hardest de-cision will be who is actually incharge.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) — Themore frank you can be with
those who are not completelyfrank with you, the more youcan salvage a situation that isalmost past saving.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22) — Re-sist the temptation to help afriend through a difficult situa-tion by doing or saying exactlywhat he or she fears.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21) — Anew and exciting adventure be-gins, and you’ll want to do allyou can to be at the forefront,leading the way.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)— You may feel as though youare backed into a corner at thistime, but those around you canhelp get you out of trouble inthe nick of time.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) —You’re likely to learn two im-portant lessons — one fromsomeone much younger thanyou are, and the other fromsomeone much older.
Copyright 2010United Feature Syndicate, Inc.
ACROSS1 Aquarium fish6 Part of the range10 Feline foursome14 Serviceable15 Doggie treat16 Adams or
Brickell17 Make void18 Cement section19 Dutch colonist20 Skimpy22 Dig frantically24 Si, to Jacques26 Postponed action27 Punk hairdos31 Furtive32 Forebodings33 Fortunate36 Dot-com dream39 Hi’s comic-strip
wife40 Physicist
Nikola —41 Harsh criticism42 June bug43 Search party44 Designer
— Simpson45 Pol. party46 Vegged out48 Quays51 Barbecue extra52 Gold Rush
phenomenon54 Equipped59 Isolated
60 Put up shingles62 Propeller arm63 Date in March64 Genuine65 Hold sway66 Library sound67 Reply to a
schoolmarm68 Wheel shafts
DOWN1 Pacific island2 “The — Reader”3 — colada4 Advantage5 Some pastels6 Dict. notation7 Tenn. gridders8 Pass a law9 Kearney’s place10 Stony11 Mud brick12 Use, as power13 Arid21 Hearty laugh23 With skill25 Capri and Skye27 Give shape to28 Melville title29 Immediate
successor30 Ques. response34 Seagoing initials35 Ring up sales36 Holly shrub37 Bleached-out38 Approved
40 DJ’s countdown (2 wds.)
41 Rx monitor43 Freighter
destination
44 Math course45 Most plucky47 Brain scan,
for short48 Teak and oak
49 Whets50 Pledged52 Brief interruption53 We, in Cannes55 Mr. Trebek
56 Locomotive must57 Perimeter58 Cub Scout groups61 Gender abbr.
COLD SNAP JUSTIN COUSSON
L O A F A V E S H O S T SA B B E L A N A E P C O TW O O L C U E S L E A V EN E U T R O N H A I R N E T
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T U N D A U N TF I N E S S E U P G R A D EE V E N T N E R O I B E GT A S T E V A I L C R A GE N T E R S P C A H A L O
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FRIDAY
R.J. BENTLEY’S RESTAURANT• DOWNTOWN COLLEGE PARK
R.J. BENTLEY’S RESTAURANT • DOWNTOWN COLLEGE PARK
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Happy Hour 4-7 pm:$2.50 Bud & Bud Light 16 oz.Drafts, 1/2 Price Appetizers
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Stoli, Jack Daniels, CaptainMorgan, $4 Jagermeister
$3 Absolut, $3 Jim Beam,$2 Domestic, $2 Coors &
Miller Lite, $2.50 Bacardi
TODAY’S HOROSCOPE SPONSORED BY:
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THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2010 | THE DIAMONDBACK 5
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Fill in the grid so thatevery row, everycolumn and every 3x3grid contains the digits1 through 9.
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Classif iedCCAALLLL 330011--331144--88000000 TO PLACE YOUR AD, OR BY EMAIL: [email protected] BY FAX: 301-314-8358
DIAMONDBACKONLINE.COMAll Classifieds & Classified Display ads will run online at no additional charge.
CLASSIFIED DISPLAY ADS• Larger Type • Sold In 1” Increments • One Column Wide • $33.00 Per Column InchRATES
35¢ per word $3.50 minimumALL CAPITAL LETTERS........35¢ extra per wordBBoolldd lleetttteerrss..............................70¢ extra per word
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DEADLINESThe deadline for all ads is 2PM,two business days in advance of publication.
SPECIALRun the same classified or classified display ad 4 consecutive days and get 5th day FFRREEEE!!
OFFICE HOURS9:30AM – 4:30PM Monday – Friday3136 South Campus Dining Hall
vmA
FREE FITNESSKICKBOXING
&YOGAWEEKFebruary 1-5Mon.-Fri. starting 7 pm sharpFree kickboxing handwraps to first 25 students to RSVP.Opportunity for big brother/big sister mentor dream team auditions.Must call 301-585-8622 to RSVP. Free shuttle.
UMACWorld8120 Georgia Ave.Silver Spring, MD
20910
EMPLOYMENTCUSTOMER RELATIONS REP.Great Pay, Flexible Hours!
Small financial firm near Bethesda Metro.Excellent communication & analytical
skills. $13/hour (negotiable higher based on performance). PT or FT. Email resume:
MEDICAL RECEPTIONIST. Laurel outpa-tient physical therapy. Evenings, Monday, tuesday, Thursday 4:30-8:30 (varies) starting ASAP. [email protected] or fax :301-498-0009
Veterinary Assistant for evenings and Satur-day mornings. Silver Spring, MD. 301-439-9444.
Free fitness kickboxing and yoga week. Free shuttle. RSVP 301-585-8622.
Part Time
THE DIAMONDBACKis searching for a few individualswho like to stand out in a crowd. Must enjoy a competitive environ-ment & be interested in making an unlimited amount of money. 10-15
hours a week. Those interested please stop by 3136 S. Campus
Dining Hall, 9:30-4:30.Hiring & Trainingfor Spring 2010
Position close date 1/29/10.* On Campus *
Mad Scientists!Up to $35/Class Hr.
Instructors needed to lead fun after-schoolscience clubs for kids in Metro area ele-
mentary schools. Experience working with kids a plus and MUST HAVE A CAR. Flexi-ble PT opportunity. Must be available at least 2 days/ week (M-F) by 2 p.m. Paid training. Science background NOT re-
quired. $25-$35 per program hour.
Mad Science301-593-4777
www.madscience.org/DC
PT Employeeneeded for small veterinary prac-
tice in Bethesda. Job includes mixed duties: veterinary assistant
and receptionist work. Fax re-sume to Lauren at 301-564-0985.
The New York Deli in College Park is hiring Delivery Drivers, Cashiers and experienced Sandwich Makers. Please call 301-345-0366 or email to [email protected] for an interview.
ATTENTIONFRESHMEN & SOPHOMORESPAID ADVERTISING
INTERNMaryland Media is now hiring two
interns. Flexible hours 5-10 per week.Send resume to
[email protected] 1/29/10.
*On Campus*
UNIVERSITY OFMARYLAND MASCOT
Think You Have What it Takes to be Testudo?Contact Jamie L. Little TODAY
for tryouts this [email protected], 202-438-0499
EMPLOYMENTP/T Administrative Assistant
Graphics co. seeking energetic, organizedperson to handle accounting and secretar-ial duties. Experience with QuickBooks a plus. Located in Laurel. Email resumes to
[email protected] or fax 301-776-7338.
WANTED RECEPTIONIST — Close to UMD, Bladensburg, full time, great pay, must have good phone skills, computer & typing skills required; contact Traci 301-779-9116.
Help wanted. Part-time office work. Macin-tosh computer skills a must. Page layout skills a must. Own transportation a must. We have flexible hours 2-3 days a week. Please contact Brenda Boice at 301-627-0900.
Office AssistantTakoma Park company seeking self-motivated
individual to support small sales office. Business experience preferred. Must be multi-task oriented & dependable. Proficiency with Microsoft Office.
Excellent telephone skills. Flexible F/T or P/Tweekday hours.
Resume to: [email protected] include hours available.
See HundredsOf Different
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www.diamondbackonline.comClick on “Job Listings” in our
navigation bar.
Help wanted, part time, $10 to $15 per hour. Event marketing staff partners. Make extra money working at local malls on weekends. Transportation provided if needed. On cam-pus contact [email protected] by email.
Cashier/Lottery AttendantHiring immed. Flexible hours. CLOSEDSUNDAYS. Nice environment, family
owned & operated liquor store for over 50 years. Students encouraged to apply. Must be 18 yrs. Call EASTGATE, located
on Greenbelt Road, 301-390-6200.
STUDENTPAYOUTS.COM. Paid survey tak-ers needed in College Park. 100%. Free to join. Click on surveys.
Earn Extra MoneyStudents needed ASAP. Earn upto $150 per day being a mys-
tery shopper. No experience re-quired. Call 1-800-722-4791.
Bartending! $250/day potential. No experi-ence necessary. Training provided. 1-800-965-6520 x 116
CHILD CAREChild Care/Driver. Seeking junior or senior for two or three afternoons a week from 3 - 6:30. Must have own car. $15/hour. Reply to [email protected].
SEEKING STUDENT WHO LOVES KIDS!Part time nanny in Silver Spring to care for 3 and 1 yr old boys. Child care experience, re-liable, loving, strong references, car/driving ability required. Please email resume [email protected]
Before and after care needed for 7 year old girl in College Park. Contact Mom at 301-996-7857.
DRIVER NEEDED Spring semester for 16 year old. Mon., Wed., Thurs. – pick her up at school in Rockville at 3:30 p.m. & bring her home to downtown Silver Spring. Some later pick-ups. Good driving record & car neces-sary. $15 per hour plus expenses. Call Irene at 301-563-6476 or [email protected].
CHILD CAREWanted: Sitter for our 5 year old twins. 2:30-5:30 weekdays, more hours possible. Close in Silver Spring. Experienced, reliable, loving, legal to work, good driver, great refer-ences. Please contact Steve or Lynne: 301-920-0416.
Silver SpringNeed afterschool sitter for 3 school-agedchildren 2x/week. Pick up from school,
supervise homework/play, some driving toactivities. 3:00-6:00, Tuesday and Thursday.
Need own car, excellent references. $13/hour.Call/e-mail Naomi: 202-292-1712,[email protected].
Part-time Nanny needed after school for 2 school-aged children. Possibly evenings. Summer hours available. Please email [email protected].
FOR RENTWALK TO CAMPUS. Houses and apart-ments. 6807 Baltimore Avenue - 5 bed-rooms, $3750. 7007 Dartmouth Avenue - 5 bedrooms, $3750. 7409 Columbia Avenue - 4 bedrooms, $2995. 4502 Guilford Road, Apt B - 2 bedrooms, $1650. 4502 Guilford Road, Apt C - 3 bedrooms with walkup attic, $2200. 301-699-1863. Visit dunnrentals.com for more information.
HOUSE – Early decision – special price for Spring. 301-392-5205; [email protected].
BIKE TO CAMPUS. 5718 Vassar Drive — 5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 2 kitchen, washer, dryer, ac. $2600. 301-699-1863. Visit dunnrentals.com for more information.
College Park Area — Quiet, elegant, (un)fur-nished studio apartment. Dishwasher, washer, dryer, a/c. All utilities included. $675. [email protected] or 703-715-6200.
CONDO FOR RENT — Beltsville. Spacious 3 bedroom/2 bath, balcony, pool, close to campus, walk to stores. Available February. $1400/month includes utilities (or $500/room). Nick 301-357-1355.
5 Bedroom House2 baths, 2 kitchens. Pawnee Street,
Adelphi. Less than 1 mile from UMD. Bike to school or walk to shuttle
stop. $500 + utilities. 240-421-0900,[email protected].
REDUCED PRICE. Negotiable. 1 bedroom sublease. UNIVERSITY VIEW. Patricia. 301-367-7555. [email protected]
ROOM. EASY WALKING DISTANCE. $450. All girl house: 2 full baths, washer/dryer. Parking. 301-502-8328.
ROOM FOR RENT. Located at 8307 Poto-mac Ave., College Park. Available now. Close walk to campus. $500/month. Call 301-509-7874.
Furnished 2 rooms with private bath. Both for $639. Internet, cable, bike to campus. Fe-male or graduate preferred. 301-699-8155.
Private home. Basement for rent. Cable, internet, private bath, refrigerator, micro-wave, laundry. All utilities included. $700. Non-smoking. 301-792-9385.
Rooms for rent in house. 1-2 bedroom w/shared bath. Close to public transportation and UMD. No pets. Available immediately. $440 per room plus shared utilities. 301-775-8088.
OLD TOWNCOLLEGE PARK– REDUCED RENT –
Knox Rd. east of Rt. 1. One &two bedroom garden-style apart-ments. Website: JESAPTS.com.
Walking distance to campus. Call J.E. Smith Corp.: 202-582-8824.
Evenings/ weekends call Vic: 202-489-7040.
Nice 2 bedroom Knox Box apartments for Fall 2010. 301-918-0203.
FOR RENT
REDUCED PRICE3 lovely rooms available now in
5 room girls house. Washer/ dryer/rec room. 2 full baths, easy
walking distance to campus.Call Liz now: 301-502-8126.
Room. $400 includes utilities, internet, Di-recTV. Close to UMCP. 301-237-2829.
4 bedroom, 2 bath Adelphi house. Near UM shuttle route and grocery store. $1600/group or $450/person, plus utilities. Non-smoking. No pets. Available now. 301-935-5387.
WALK TO CAMPUS. 7203 Rhode Island Ave: 8 bedrooms, 2 kitchens, $4950. 4801 Calvert Rd: 7 bedrooms, $4900. 410-798-0713.
BeltsvilleClean, furnished single room in house.
Independent entrance, private bath, freezer and microwave, utilities included. Close to Costco, Ikea, laundromat, CVS, etc. 8 min. by car to UM. Interested call 301-346-0243
or email [email protected].
SERVICESDISSERTATION EDITING — Theses, pa-pers. Wordprocessing. Style manual experts. 301-474-6000 Anytime.
RUSSIAN tutoring for all levels by a retired professor. Native speaker. Reasonable rates. Call 301-213-4194.
FAXSERVICESend / Receive
Local /Long-Distance
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DiamondbackBusiness Office
3136 South Campus Dining HallPHONE: 301-314-8000
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RUSSIANTutoring for all levels by aretired professor. Native
speaker. Reasonable rates. Call 301-213-4194.
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JAKE SULLY WANTS TO DRINK YOUR BLOOD?Starring in the film with the highest foreign box office gross of alltime can have its perks. Sam Worthington, the Australian tough
guy who was relatively unknown before starring in JamesCameron’s Avatar, has been cast as Dracula in the iconic vampire’s
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REVIEW | EDGE OF DARKNESS
BY TREVOR RUBENFor The Diamondback
Where there should have been more of MelGibson (Signs) beating the crap out of people,there was father-daughter mushiness. Fromthe start, Edge of Darkness struggles to find astory worth telling and an effective way to tellit. Is it about a man’s quest to avenge the mur-der of his daughter as the trailers would haveyou think? Or did director Martin Campbell(Casino Royale) use all that setup to explore aperson’s psyche as he approaches theinevitable end?
Throw an overcomplicated conspiracy theoryin the mix, and you get a movie trying to do toomuch and succeeding at too little.
Gibson plays Detective Thomas Craven who,in search of his daughter’s murderer, uncovers aconspiracy involving a big bad corporation, thebig bad government and big bad nuclearweapons. Craven is the honorable, hardenedcop with a sensitive side shown through love forhis daughter.
Gibson does not do sensitive well, as wit-nessed in the monumental disaster What WomenWant. In Edge of Darkness, his relationship withhis daughter is unable to evoke emotion — theirentire bond comes off as scripted and at oddswith itself.
In the beginning, they are weirdly close withone another, as there is no mother figure in thepicture. But it soon becomes apparent Cravenhas had nothing to do with his daughter’s life for
quite some time. It seems odd that they wouldbe so close and his memories of her have notchanged, even after they have grown apart.
When Gibson turns into an ultimate badassduring the occasional action sequence, hebrings back the Lethal Weapon vigor that shothim to stardom in the first place.
Tracking those two sides of Craven — par-ent and badass — provides a definite structurefor the movie as a whole. Whenever Craven ismourning, having flashbacks or dreamsabout his daughter or talking to hallucinationsof her, the movie drags like a 20-ton boulderthrough quicksand.
When he goes all Martin Riggs with a noth-ing-to-lose mentality, you will jump out of yourseat and glue your eyes to the screen. It really isa joy to watch Gibson go rampant and make hisenemies look weak and pathetic, particularly in
the final 20 minutes. The grand finale is surpris-ingly satisfying despite a lackluster buildup.
Unfortunately, sporadic switches betweenslow, talky sections and brisk violence areunsettling, making it hard for the viewer torelax and slip into a particular mindset. Sure,it’s fun to watch some chick get smashed with acar out of nowhere, but it jolts you out of thedrama of the moment.
In addition to that, a large majority of the nar-rative is used to explain the conspiracy, whichnever needed to be more complicated than badguys selling weapons. Or even just bad guys.All we needed was someone for Craven to killby the end.
When Craven is at his most violent, themes of
mortality pop up, asking the viewer what he orshe would do if there was nothing to lose and adrained hourglass. Complimenting this angle isa stellar, if underused, performance by Ray Win-stone (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of theCrystal Skull).
Winstone plays Jedburgh, a mysteriousman hired to “clean up” the mess the evil cor-poration created. Jedburgh has similar issueswith mortality that Craven faces, though hestands on the opposite end of the moralityspectrum as a hired gun instead of an honor-able cop. He is witty but horribly jaded, muchlike The Comedian from Watchmen. The worldis a joke to him.
Without missing a beat, Jedburgh proves tobe the most dynamic and flat-out entertainingcharacter in the movie. Having his eyesinspected by a doctor, he asks if there is a soul“in there.” Yet he is nothing but a side-story.What a shame.
In the end, Edge of Darkness does not haveenough guns and punches to overcome its pit-falls. The pace is unnerving, the entire father-daughter relationship is botched, and the plot isnothing more than a vehicle to observe Gibsonand Winstone. Simply put, too many scenes dragout pointless details when there is stillvengeance to be had.
Over the Edge Mel Gibson’s first leading role in morethan seven years isn’t worth the wait
Mel Gibson plays a grieving father out for vengeance in Edge of Darkness. COURTESY MOVIEWEB.COM
MOVIE: Edge of Darkness | VERDICT: 1/2
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halfcourt offense, as a turningpoint.
Since then, the team hasn’tshot less than 45 percent in anygame except in an overtimeloss to Wake Forest. In fiveACC games, they’ve knockeddown an astounding 52 percentof their 3-point attempts.
And impressively, 19 of theteam’s 28 field goals in Tues-day’s 81-59 win against Miamicame off assists.
“We’re following coachWilliams’ system, and we’rewinning games,” guard GreivisVasquez said. “Before, weweren’t playing together, in myopinion. Now, our chemistrysays a lot about our team.”
After his team’s third
straight double-digit confer-ence win, Williams said it wasjust a matter of time before anexperienced offense figuredout how to play.
He noted forward Dino Gre-gory’s return from suspensionprovided more continuity tothe unit. With Gregory out,forward Jordan Williams was
forced to learn the offensewhile contributing major min-utes. Adding Gregory, aplayer with experience in thesystem, offered GaryWilliams a chance to spell Jor-dan Williams without hurtinghis offense.
In the past few games, theTerps have jumped out earlyand adjusted to playing withbig leads, which puts moreemphasis on longer, clock-wasting possessions.
Still, they have found ways toturn them into good shots andeasy baskets, which hasallowed them to extend theleads.
For a team that blew severalsecond-half leads in the middleof last season, the Terps’ 67percent second-half shootingin Saturday’s 24-point winagainst N.C. State and 55 per-
cent second-half shootingagainst the Hurricanes aremajor positives.
“We can’t back off from theway we’re playing,” GaryWilliams said. “Some nightsthe shots will go in. We’ve beenshooting the ball really well.And as long as we continue topass the ball well, we’ll getgood looks.”
And the 21st-year coachdoesn’t see any reason whythat success can’t continue —especially if players such asMosley continue to trust theoffense and keep firing.
“We’re good enough shoot-ers to make those shots thatwe’re making now,” Williamsadded. “They’re the shots thatwe want to take, and hopefullythey keep falling for us.”
OFFENSEfrom page 8
EFFICIENT ATTACKMIAMI, TUESDAY: 81-59 WASSISTS: 19FIELD GOALS: 28
N.C. STATE, JAN. 23: 88-64 WASSISTS: 16FIELD GOALS: 29
BOSTON COLLEGE, JAN. 16: 73-57 WASSISTS: 17FIELD GOALS: 28
WAKE FOREST, JAN. 12: 85-83 LASSISTS: 18FIELD GOALS: 28
FLORIDA STATE, JAN. 10: 77-68 WASSISTS: 14FIELD GOALS: 29
1990s. The two coaches runsimilar offensive schemes, andthat connection, paired with thegeneral “family feel” shown bythe coaching staff, is what forti-fied Smith’s decision.
“We know each other, andwe know the type of people weare,” Comp said. “I thinkTyler sees that and says,‘Well, that’s the kind of peopleI want to be around — goodpeople, family people and justhave a real passion for thegame of football.’”
Evaluators have marveledat Smith’s arm strength anddelivery, as well as his size.
ESPN.com rates Smith as afour-star recruit. In his seniorseason, Smith threw for 3,130yards, 32 touchdowns and 11interceptions. He also led theWarriors to an 11-1 record anda second straight ColonialLeague Championship.
Comp described Smith as a“mentally as well as physicallytough competitor” who knowshow to read a defensive cover-age with ease. He also saidSmith’s calm demeanor is oneof his best attributes.
But even with the expecta-tions, Smith has managed tostay humble.
“I just want to learn asmuch as I can and compete as
much as I can,” Smith said.“We’ll see. It’s a lot to learn —the offense and the tempo toget used to. I’ll go down anddo everything I can to play,but whatever happens, hap-pens. And I’ll just keep work-ing hard through everything.”
With the departure of sen-ior Chris Turner, next year’sTerps will have questions atthe quarterback position.Jamarr Robinson will be thepreseason favorite to earnthe star ting job, with DannyO’Brien and C.J. Brown notfar behind. Coach RalphFriedgen often compli-mented O’Brien and Brown,both freshmen, throughoutthe fall.
That could bode well forSmith’s development.
In his entire high schoolcareer, Smith lost only sixgames, in part because of hisnatural leadership ability — avital quality to have at thequarterback position.
He hopes that quality, alongwith his comfort level comingin, will enable him to havemore success.
“I’m not used to losing, andI don’t like to lose,” Smithsaid. “Being a quarterback,you have to be a leader, andyou have to give that [win-ning] mentality to the wholeoffense.”
to focus on a quick start.The Terps have faced sig-
nificant early deficits in eachof their four conferencelosses this season. Theytrailed N.C. State by 20points before halftime.Against North Carolina, anearly Tar Heel lead swelledto as much as 11, and againstMiami, the Hurricanes’greatest lead was 15. Dukealso held an 11-point advan-tage before the Terps closedthe gap.
“Starting out aggressiveand being ready to play, wecan’t dig ourselves in holeslike that against all this greattalent,” Frese said.
“When you have thechance to take the crowd outof the game, it makes it thateasier down the stretch,”Bjork said.
Which Virginia Tech teamthe Terps will square offwith tonight is anyone’sguess.
The Hokies led by asmany as 23 points in a 79-64stomping of preseason ACCfavorite and then-No. 10North Carolina on Jan. 14.
But one week later at No.6 Duke, they hit barely aquarter of their shots enroute to a 69-38 loss.
The veteran Hokies, ledby forward Utahya Drye(11.8 points per game), havemanaged to stay afloat in theACC with a rather ordinarybrand of play.
The team doesn’t standamong the top three or bot-tom three in most of themajor offensive or defensivestatistical categories in con-ference play.
“They’re really experi-enced with juniors and sen-iors on the roster who haveplayed through the wars -—just a team that’s playingreally well,” Frese said.
It’s a reality the Terps willhave to face tonight, even ifno one expected them to.
“With preseason rank-ings,” Frese said, “a lot ofpeople don’t know whereteams will be at.”
SMITHfrom page 8
“Before, weweren’t playingtogether, in myopinion. Now, ourchemistry says alot about ourteam.”
GREIVIS VASQUEZTERRAPIN POINT GUARD
Guard Dara Taylor and the Terps will face a Virginia Techteam that was predicted to finish last in the ACC tonight inBlacksburg, Va. JACLYN BOROWSKI/THE DIAMONDBACK
HOKIESfrom page 8
Terps vs. Virginia TechWhere: Blacksburg, Va.When: Tonight, 7 p.m.
Radio: WMUCsports.com
8 THE DIAMONDBACK | THURSDAY, JANUARY 28, 2010
SportsRead Terrapin Trail for more info
Check out Terrapintrail.com for more on the men’sbasketball team’s dominant ACC start and a rundown offormer Terp football players who will be participating inpre-NFL Draft events.
Terps’ offense flyinghigh during hot streak
Terps’ guard Sean Mosley is shooting 58.8 percent from the field this seasonand is part of a squad that is leading the ACC in a number of importantoffensive statistical categories. JACLYN BOROWSKI/THE DIAMONDBACK
Men’s basketball team using improvedhalfcourt offense to dominate ACC opponents on way to 4-1 conference start
BY ERIC DETWEILERSenior staff writer
Even during a hot shooting startthis season, Sean Mosley heard afamiliar refrain after several offen-sive possessions each game.
Whether it was from a teammatewho had passed him the ball orcoach Gary Williams on the sideline,the message was roughly the same:“Why didn’t you shoot?”
The Terrapin guard realized thatwhen he and his teammates pass upopen looks in Williams’ patented flexoffense, it hurts the team.
Lately, the rugged 6-foot-4 sopho-more hasn’t heard that frustratedsentiment nearly as much.
For Mosley, that was the first cluethat the Terp offense has kicked intohigh gear.
For the rest of the ACC, it’s thegaudy statistics and blowout victo-ries the Terps have registered dur-ing a run of six wins in seven games.
Keyed by a more patient, fruitfulhalfcourt offense, the veteranTerps have surged to the top of theACC standings. In conferencegames, they’ve jumped to the top or
near the top of nearly every offen-sive category.
“Everything is on one page, andeverybody’s clicking,” said Mosley,who is shooting nearly 60 percentthis season. “When a guy’s open,he’s shooting it and making it.”
Scoring hasn’t really been a prob-lem for the Terps throughout theseason. They cracked the 70-pointmark in each game this seasonexcept for November losses toCincinnati and Wisconsin on back-to-back days at the Maui Invitational.
But often, the Terps struggledearly in wins against mid-majoropponents before using theirdefense and athleticism to pour iton late.
In recent weeks, the team’s scor-ing has been more consistent thanksto hot shooting and better produc-tion out of the flex.
Several Terps have pointed to theteam’s Jan. 3 blowout win at UNC-Greensboro, a game in which theybounced back from a home loss toWilliam & Mary with a more con-certed effort to go inside and run the
Terps head toVirginia Tech inneed of a winTerp women havelost 3 straight
BY JONAS SHAFFERStaf f writer
It was potential that got the Ter-rapin women’s basketball teamfirst-place votes in the league’spreseason poll. And it was a lack ofit that had Virginia Tech voteddead last in the same poll.
But near the end of the firstmonth of conference play, nei-ther side has realized the expec-tations heaped upon them. TheHokies (12-7, 2-3 ACC) aren’tplaying like the worst team in theleague. And the Terps (14-6, 2-4),who travel to Blacksburg, Va.,tonight for a crucial mid-seasonmatchup, have shown onlyflashes of the team someexpected to see at this point.
“Sitting at 2-4 right now in theconference, we really need to getback in the race a little bit,” guardLori Bjork said. “This is a goodopportunity to do it. We know wecan win, but it’s going to be toughany time on the road.”
In a season full of firsts for ayoung Terps squad, tonight willmark another unusual moment forthe team. No player on the teamhas ever played at Cassell Coli-seum during her college career.
“Every time we go to a dif fer-ent venue, we’re playing anentirely new team in a new envi-ronment,” coach Brenda Fresesaid. “The only way to getthrough it is to go through theexperience.”
Before the Terps can get tooaccustomed to their new sur-roundings, however, they’ll need
COUNTDOWN TO NATIONAL SIGNING DAY | SIX DAYS
see HOKIES, page 7
Smith seeks ‘family’ feelingBY JAKOB ENGELKE
Staf f writer
For quarterback TylerSmith, the decision to attendthis university was an easy one.
Smith, who committed tothe Terrapin football programlast May, said he knew wherehe wanted to continue hisfootball career immediatelywhen he stepped foot on thecampus for a recruiting visit.
“I just felt comfortable withMaryland, and I knew that’swhere I wanted to be,” Smith
said. “I figured, whykeep going throughthis process and goingthrough interviewswhen I knew what Iwanted to do andwhere I wanted to be?”
The 6-foot-4 com-mit from Wilson AreaHigh School in Eas-ton, Pa., said theTerps’ current quar-terback situation, aswell as the campus’s proxim-ity to Baltimore and Wash-ington, played into his deci-
sion. But ulti-mately, familiaritywith the Terps’coaching staf f wasthe major factor.
Bret Comp,Smith’s high schoolcoach, was a team-mate of Terp offen-sive coordinator andhead-coach-in-wait-ing James Franklinat East Stroudsburg
University during the early
TYLER SMITH TERRAPIN RECRUIT
see SMITH, page 7
see OFFENSE, page 7
1 The Terps’ rank inscoring offense, scoringmargin, field goalpercentage, 3-point fieldgoal percentage andassist-to-turnover ratioin conference play.