International community hopes for health care changes

By: Jeff Engelhardt

Elizabeth Reichert said America is looked to as a world leader in most cases, but when it comes to health care they are the exception and not the model.

Reichert, a native of Germany, is a professor at the School of Social Work and said one major social injustice is the 40-plus million people uninsured in the United States.

“When you look at Medicaid it seems like the country is on the right track,” Reichert said. “For some reason, the U.S. has not found a way to apply that to everyone.”

She said countries like Australia, Germany, Canada and Western Europe offer great examples of effective health care plans.

Germany’s health care plan is universal and is primarily a system that requires employees to pay half of insurance cost while their employers pay the rest, Reichert said. And unlike the American system of paying a cosign fee for every doctors visit, German citizens are required to pay a quarterly fee of 10 euros.

Though Reichert said she has never encountered problems with the system, the National Coalition on Health Care reported 47 percent of German people were fairly or very dissatisfied with the system.

The German citizens that complained about the system said their main concern was the waiting period for treatment, which could last more than 12 weeks in some instances.

German chancellor Gerhard Schroeder then passed a reform package that included charging for non-prescription drugs and ending free treatments and free taxi rides to the hospital, according to the report.

Anja Meksem, a specialist in the economic and regional development office, is also a German-native and said some people in her home country are dissatisfied with the changes.

She said her mother was unhappy the system was starting to become more privatized and feared people would start being uninsured like in America.

“The costs are starting to go up in Germany and now they have the quarterly fee, which has upset some people,” Meksem said. “I still think the German health care is much better for most people compared to America though.”

Stock market hurts university projects

By: Jeff Engelhardt

As the stock market continues to decline, so has SIU President Glenn Poshard’s amount of sleep.

Projects such as Saluki Way, which requires $83 million, have become much more difficult because of the economic state, Poshard said. The university continues to search for people to buy bonds, but with the current banking crisis, Poshard said he was not sure what to expect.

“I just don’t really sleep anymore,” Poshard said. “The university has its investments, the foundation has its investments, and I just go to bed wondering if I made the right decisions.”

Poshard said the constant changing of the stock market does not help put his mind at ease either.

On Tuesday, the market went up 200 points before falling 200 points just three hours later, he said. “You never know what to expect and that makes things worse,” Poshard said. “This has been really rough on everyone, but I remain confident we will find a way to meet our goals.”

Dean of Students Peter Gitau agreed the economy has had a negative effect on the university in multiple areas. Gitau said the decision to offer in-state tuition for non-resident students would be even more important now because of the competition from other universities and the competition for money.

The Board of Trustees was scheduled to discuss offering the Illinois tuition rate for students from Kentucky, Indiana and Missouri before the meeting was canceled Tuesday after the board learned it could not meet quorum. According to the university’s tuition estimator, cutting the tuition for the Tri-State students would save them about $6,000.

“It’s much harder to spend money now so staying close to home is important to students,” Gitau said. “I would say cost is the number one concern for students, so if we can offer an attractive price tag, we will see results.”

Blog: Many choose booze over blowout

Fans sit in the bleachers of McAndrew Stadium during the fourth quarter of SIU's 60-7 blowout of Indiana State Saturday.

By: Sean McGahan

Hundreds of SIUC students find the bottom of a beer can a more interesting sight than a Larry Warner touchdown.

Evidence of this widespread aluminum obsession could be seen in the spattering of silver across McAndrew Stadium Saturday — empty student bleacher seats.

Simultaneously, hundreds of maroon-adorning fans got red in the face several football fields away in the popular tailgating parking lot adjacent from the SIU Arena.

Although T-shirts in support of SIU football far outnumbered the ones that read “We pregame harder than you party,” football was clearly not the first priority for many of these tailgaters.

True, nearly anyone with a fraction of football IQ could have predicted the winner of SIU’s 60-7 annihilation of Indiana State. But those who equate a blowout with a bore were off base this time.

Well, at least in the first half.

That’s when nine different Salukis put points on the board through a variety of blocks, dives, trickery and botched-play redemptions.

Probably the most unbelievable 30 seconds of the game:

• Saluki linebacker Kyle Walker (previously a special-teams-only player) blindsides ISU QB Matt Seliger for a nine-yard sack.
• Seliger is replaced by Calvin Schmidtke.
• Schmidtke is sacked by Saluki linebacker James Cloud and coughs up the ball.
• Walker picks up the ball and runs it eight yards for an SIU touchdown.
• The extra point snap misses the hands of holder Scott Ravenesi.
• Kicker Kyle Dougherty picks up the ball and scrambles right.
• Dougherty lobs up a pass to defensive lineman Jason Seaman.
• The Salukis’ first two-point conversion attempt of the season is good.

And that was less than a half-hour into the madness.

Sure, the handful of people who stayed after the Salukis went up 50-0 at the break know the second half didn’t produce much for the highlight reels.

But the hits (and any pin that were to drop) sounded much louder in the near-empty stadium.

Here are some of the highlights one may have missed:

• Warner, who had been sitting since the second quarter, asked some cheerleaders why he couldn’t get one the prizes they offered to the fans who stayed.
• When a cheerleader told him she’d give him one if he scored a touchdown, he laughed with the lead firmly at 53 points and asserted, “But I’m not going back in the game.”
• The lone player to put up four fingers entering the fourth quarter (a Saluki custom in tight games) — redshirt freshman tight end C.J. Robertson.
• Bobby Brenneisen, the freshman third-string quarterback, leading a scoring drive in his first time under center for the Salukis.
• (Fourth-string running back Jonate Govan did most of the work in the five-play, 64-yard drive, in which he rushed for 32 yards and a touchdown, and took a short Brenneisen pass 37 yards)

Other than that, the second half was about as unique as the bottom of a Busch Light.

Enjoy it while you can, because the rest of the Salukis’ home schedule should be a frigid nail-bitter.

Are all student jobs easy?

By: Christian Holt

At the Daily Egyptian, one of the main reasons people don’t stay employed is because of the amount of time the job requires takes away from one’s life.
We often spend hour upon hour in the newsroom. We are told when hired if we don’t spend a pretty significant amount of time there, we will not be any good.
It’s harsh, but true.
I never thought I would find a job on campus that I considered harder than being a reporter. However, today, when I sat in on a weekly meeting between two student staff members of Project 12 Ways and two of the faculty involved I realized how easy I have it.
My job … it pales in comparison to theirs.
These students spend so much time with their clients. The families have come to them because they have a history of abuse or neglect. These families are not easy to deal with.
The staff members go to the homes early in the morning and late at night — times considered to be peak times for stress and possible conflict.
They try to be inconspicuous, but often find themselves stepping in to keep everyone in line or attached to the children (often very young).
In the meeting I was allowed to attend today, one of the staff members noted that one of the children from her family was starting to crave attention from her.
I can’t even imagine being in my early 20s and having to watch almost every move of several different families.
These students are awesome.
While stress and the amount of time my job takes away from my personal life are the worst parts; meeting people like the ones involved in Project 12 Ways who live to make a difference is what keeps me coming back every day.

SIUC gets new RSOs

By: Jeff Engelhardt

Five new registered student organizations were approved Wednesday at the Undergraduate Student Government meeting.

The groups approved included Celtic Art Society, V-Day Task Force, Saluki Stitches, Hammer and SIUC Dairy Club.

Celtic Art Society is a group started by Wade Morrison who explained the organization’s goals to the USG. Morrison said the group serves as a forum for people wanting to learn about Celtic arts including dancing, literature and knot designs.

He said the group would also participate in the annual Irish Festival at SIUC and expects to have around 20 members to start.

V-Day Task Force raises awareness about violence against women and produces shows such as the vagina monologues, said group president Jamie Huber. She said the group also works to raise money for the Women’s Center.

Laura Hayes, creator of Saluki Stitches, said her RSO was made to help teach students interested in needlecrafts. She said the group started on facebook.com and already has 17 members.

The group hopes to donate what it creates to charity and auction items for charity.

Hammer provides students alternatives to drinking out every night and is led by Blossom Roberts. Roberts said there are plenty of students on campus who feel pressured to drink, but Hammer would offer an escape.

Chris Julian-Fralisch, the alcohol and other drug coordinator for the Wellness Center, cosponsors the group.

The SIUC Dairy Club aims to judge and raise milk cows, beef cows and swine. The club hopes to participate in competitions in Wisconsin and host its own events eventually. 

Hispanics have reason to celebrate past and future

While Latino Heritage Month is a celebration of the past, the U.S. Census shows the future is as bright as ever for Hispanics.

Hispanics are the largest minority group in the United State at 15 percent, though they only make up 3.6 percent of SIUC’s student population. Student groups such as Omega Delta Phi, Hispanic Student Council and Sigma Lambda Beta are making the recruitment of Hispanic students a top priority.

Luis Mata, president of the Hispanic Student Council, said he has seen an increase in the interest of Hispanics wanting to attend college.

“Admissions has just started a diversifying program and there has been a lot of response from the Hispanic community,” Mata said. “I think as more come to college some of these stereotypes will start to disappear.”

If the U.S. Census projected the future correctly, Mata’s hope for more Hispanic students will be fulfilled.

Here are some statistics from the census.

Population

· One out of every two people added to the nation’s population between July 2006 and July 2007 was Hispanic.

· By July 1, 2050, Hispanics are expected to constitute 24 percent of the nation’s population with more than 102 million people

· The United State has more Hispanics than Spain. Mexico is the only country that has more Hispanics.

Businesses

· By 2002, Hispanics owned 1.6 million businesses

· Hispanic-owned businesses generated $222 billion in 2002

Families, Education and Service

· 66 percent of Hispanic families have children living with married parents — higher than the national average.

· 3.3 million Hispanics had a bachelor’s degree in 2007, almost double the number from a decade earlier

· The last two presidential elections had 47 percent of the Hispanic population vote.

· The U.S. armed forces have more than 1.1 million Hispanics enlisted.

The magic in the message

If Chris Jones was a car, he would save a lot of people a lot of money at the pump.

Jones, an assistant resident hall director, ran 50 miles in 25 hours from Friday to Saturday to raise awareness about sexual violence on college campuses and money for the Women’s Center.

Jones would run two-miles every hour, on the hour, so students could join him for each individual lap. When Jones was 18 hours in at 2:30 a.m., he was still as ready to run as he was 5 p.m. the day before.

Jones said he is able to run so much at one time because of the way he fuels his body. He said he does not use caffeine or meat when preparing for a run and depends on the motivation of friends.

It was those friends that gave him an idea to further his message about the need to fight sexual violence.

Jones performed magic tricks for his friends when he was waiting to run.  He said going around to high schools doing magic shows would be one way to get the word out.

“I think you have to use your talents to reach out to people,” Jones said. “I did some cross country in high school, so I can run well. But I like to do magic too, so that could be a whole different way to let people know.”

Jones was determined to perform a card trick that just did not seem to go right anytime he tried it. But when children came into the Schneider Hall lobby, Jones always pulled his trick off flawlessly.

Jones said he would have to brush up on his magic skills, but he is used to overcoming obstacles.

He suffers from asthma and has a large scar on his stomach after having his appendix removed, but he said he never once thought about giving up on running.

Dorian Laferrara, a sophomore from Warrenville, said Jones’ personality rubs off on everyone he meets. She said whether he is trying to get his message across through magic or running, people listen.

“He is a real strong believer in mind over matter and that is something people are attracted to,” Laferrara said. “He definitely knows how to grab peoples’ attention.”

Internet: Addiction or good, clean fun?

By: Christian Holt

Internet addiction.

Honestly, I have heard this term … kind of a lot. Mostly because my dad throws around the term every time my sister gets near a computer.

Now, I always knew she probably spent too much time chatting and filling out Myspace surveys, but I never would have said she was addicted to the Internet.

I wasn’t even sure if Internet addiction was real.

You can maybe imagine my surprise when my editor told me about a class the Wellness Center has decided to offer for people who are addicted to the Internet.

So, I did what I do with almost anything else in my life — I searched it online.

Irony? I think so.

One of the first links I clicked was a quiz. Really! Online quizzes to find out if you are addicted to the Internet.

Turns out, I am not addicted — I am a normal Internet user. Thank goodness.

So, I kept looking. There are all kinds of scholarly articles, definitions and support groups to be found.

Bloomfield College, in New Jersey, even had a particularly interesting comparison to drug dealers and software developers.

Basically, this program could be kind of cool. I give kudos to the Wellness Center for keeping up with the times to help keep SIUC students healthy.

Vincent Hardy, vice president of the Undergraduate Student Council, said he thought it was good.

Clarifying, of course, that he meant the program, not the addiction itself.

“Obviously someone must have asked for some help or something,” he said.

Who is paying the price of neglect?

By: Brandy Oxford

Assistance programs are available. Veterinarians are sympathetic. Bob Barker reminded every Price is Right viewer to do it.

Still, every year sees me giving flea baths to an abandoned, pregnant dog or bottle-feeding a stray kitten on my bathroom floor. I find them abandoned on the road or in the woods, helpless.

Sometimes their negligent owners care just enough to call.

“I couldn’t afford to get her fixed,” they tell me.

As I jump in a car I haven’t paid off to pick up these cast off pets and look at the red light on my gas gauge, I think, “I can’t afford this either.”

Thursday, as I listened to Karen Mullins, manager of the Humane Society of Southern Illinois, talk about how hard it is for her and her co-workers to euthanize animals day after day, I once again found myself cursing those inconsiderate pet owners who don’t bother to spay or neuter their pets.

The Murphysboro facility receives an average of 250 animals a month, but those numbers often top 400, Mullins said. Currently, their euthanasia rate is 90 percent, she said.

Mullins said there simply aren’t enough no-kill animal shelters to handle the constant influx of unwanted animals.

“Spaying and neutering is so important and a lot of people just don’t get it,” Mullins said. “I’m always about the spaying and neutering. You just never get used to euthanizing.”

The society’s Pennies for Pets program offers $35 spay and neuter vouchers on the first business day of each month.

“We open at noon, but people start lining up a few hours before because they are a hot commodity,” Mullins said. “Once we’re out of that 30 vouchers, we’re out for the month.”

Through the program, which is funded entirely by donations, the society matches the price of each voucher turned in to participating veterinarians.

“When we reimburse the vet, we’re actually paying $70,” she said. “We don’t make a penny off of that. There may be months that we don’t have it because we don’t have the funds.”

This program is one of many meant to assist in reducing the animal population through ways other than euthanasia.

If you can’t afford to spay or neuter a pet, don’t get one. If you already have one, call your vet, call shelters, find a way to stop perpetuating this cycle because you can’t afford a litter of puppies or kittens either. Save rescue workers like Mullins the heartache of watching another good pet die

Greeks make presence known

By: Christian Holt

I have only been at SIUC a short time.

Not even two years.

However, what was almost immediately apparent was the lack of Greek Life on campus. Images from schools like U of I — where the Greek parties are almost infamous — were all that swarmed my mind.

Why was it that a school with such a party reputation didn’t even have a strong Greek community?

Then “beat lists” were handed out at the beginning of the semester and one of mine was Greek Life. It was kind of a relief because it seemed like a beat that would produce a decent amount of stories usually with decent photos (always good news for a reporter).

Almost immediately, however, Andy Morgan, coordinator for Greek Life at SIUC, started going on and on about how many more members each fraternity and sorority had recruited.

It seems like they must have really worked hard to get numbers up this year. It also seems like they have found what works best for SIUC’s campus.

For the panhellenic sororities a formal recruitment still works the best. But, they took away a $20 entry fee, which, in the past, tied down women who were interested in rushing.

Now, the women are free to check out the sororities and not spend any money to do so.

For the men however, a one-on-one approach has worked the best.

In April 2007, the Interfraternity Council sponsored an event for its members called “Phired Up.”

The speaker at the event told the men how important it was to spend time with a person.

Morgan said the guys were encouraged to talk to someone, make friends with them and say, “Hey, wanna join?”

In any case, the Greeks have figured out how to best deal with what they have available to them.

For more information concerning Greek Life at SIUC check out the Daily Egyptian online.