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An independent newspaper
Readyforthe road
The Oregon men's basketball team gears up for a
two-game road swing through L.A. PAGE 7
Analyzing abuse
The Substance Abuse Prevention Program will run
seminars examining causes of drug abuse. PAGE 3
January 24,2001
Volume 102, Issue 79
Weather
TODAY
high 50, low 40
Xiao-Yu Fan, a volunteer with the Chinese Student Association, will dance for the Chinese New Year Festival on Sunday.
A New Year’s far from home
Though
separated
from family
and cultural
traditions,
Chinese
students will
gather with
friends to
celebrate
the new year
By Lisa Toth
Oregon Daily Emerald
Instead of setting off fire
crackers and eating special
food to celebrate the Chinese
New Year with his family to
day, Scott Wu will be attend
ing Business Administration
399 and Japanese 102.
In America, there is no break
for this holiday, but in China,
the winter break for students
would be centered around the
Chinese New Year.
“We have a break like it’s
Christmas in America,” said
Lisa Tsai, co-director of the
Chinese Student Association.
“Parents don’t have to
work.’’The 12 years in the Chi
nese calendar are named for
animals of the Chinese zodiac.
The year 2001 falls under the
year of the snake, which signi
fies a year of preparation for
potential hardships and diffi
culties.
This will be Wu’s second
Chinese New Year in America.
He said the festivities for 2001
that he would normally enjoy
in his home country of Taiwan
differ significantly from the
way he will be celebrating the
holiday in Eugene.
If he were home, Wu said
he would get together with
his entire family at his grand
parents’ house in Taipei for a
special dinner the night be
fore the Chinese New Year,
similar to New Year’s Eve in
America. Wu said another
treat would be a visit from his
aunt and uncle who live in
Taichung.
Wu’s grandmother, mother
and aunts would prepare holi
day dishes such as chun-gin,
vegetables and seasoning
Turn to New Year, page 4
WISTEC refuses
compensation
■The museum plans to close despite the
University’s offer of financial redress, which it says
would allow WISTEC to stay open
By Lindsay Buchele
Oregon Daily Emerald
The Willamette Science and Tech
nology Center decided to close Tues
day after 35 years of providing science
and math to youths in Eugene.
The closure came as a result of Mon
day night’s Eugene City Council deci
sion allowing the University to build a
bus transit station on a parking lot that
WISTEC currently uses to produce
revenues, WISTEC Executive Director
Meg Trendler said. WISTEC, a non
profit organization, depends on that
revenue for a hefty portion of its oper
ating budget.
University officials argue that the
museum should be able to stay open
with the compensation they offered for
the next five years, an amount based
on past revenue projections.
“We made a commitment to replace
the parking revenue until the year
2006 when discussions began last
fall,” said Dan Williams, vice presi
dent of administration for the Univer
sity. “We were offering slightly over
$200,000, and I have trouble under
standing how this wasn’t enough to
keep the museum open.”
Trendler argues that the amount of
fered by the University is not enough
for the museum to stay open, and has
officially rejected its offer. Trendler
said the University’s offer should have
covered costs through the year 2007,
which would have amounted to
$300,000.
The University began allowing
WISTEC the use of the parking lot next
to Autzen Stadium three years ago,
and let the museum make money by
charging people to park there during
University football games. Now, the
University wants the lot back in order
to continue with its expansion of the
stadium.
Turn to WISTEC, page 3
ii WISTEC
has known
since last
fall that we
wanted the
lot back,
and it's not
accurate or
fairfor
them to
make the
University
seem re
sponsible
[for the
museum
closing].
Dan Williams
vice president
of administra*
tion
Wrangling over Insurgent puts PFC process on hold
After extended
debate, the
Programs
Finance
Committee
passed The
Insurgent’s
budget but
placed it in a
holding
account
By Emily Gust
Oregon Daily Emerald
After more than an hour of debate,
the ASUO Programs Finance Commit
tee approved a budget for The Insur
gent, but no one seemed satisfied with
the decision.
The budget was approved, but the
money was placed into a holding ac
count until certain legal questions are
answered, which left both Insurgent
contributors and PFC members discon
tent.
About 40 students and faculty mem
bers crammed into the EMU Board
Room Tuesday night in anticipation of
debate over The Insurgent’s funding.
Questions circulated for the past
week over whether The Insurgent
broke laws after it printed a four-page
pullout from the Animal Liberation
Front. The pullout, which detailed
ways to break into laboratories, was
placed next to a page that listed
names of several biologists and re
search scientists who conduct tests
on animals.
If The Insurgent -had broken laws,
the question was whether that fact
would impact its funding.
PFC members were especially wor
ried about legal issues — specifically
whether passing or denying The In
surgent’s budget could lead to legal
action regarding the incidental fee
system.
But they were also concerned about
whether printing such material would
disqualify The Insurgent for incidental
fee funding, which requires that a pro
gram contribute to the cultural and
physical well being of University stu
dents.
Associate biology professor Bill
Roberts asked whether The Insurgent
was living up to its mission state
ment, which includes following state
laws, when it printed an A.L.F. pull
out that he thought clearly advocated
arson.
The debate that ensued revolved
around several different issues, but
the recurring question was whether
the PFC had a right to determine The
Insurgent’s budget by judging its con
tent.
Political science major Alan Tauber
pointed out that the Clark Document,
which governs how incidental fees
should be divided, states that the PFC
must limit itself to the question of cul
tural and physical development.
Several audience members voiced
their support of The Insurgent and its
role in contributing to their well being.
Some pointed out that other publica
tions on campus have printed inflam
matory editorial material, yet none of
them have been de-funded.
The seemingly endless debate
prompted PFC member Aaron Week to
propose a middle ground: granting the
group its money but placing it into a
holding account.
Even though he suggested the com
promise, Week voted against his own
motion. He said he wished there
would have been another way to re
solve the issue, but he simply didn’t
Turn to PFC, page 5