Reading for play
A new multicultural theater group brings
diverse plays to light. Page 3
Dunkin’ D^icks
The men’s basketball team opens its season
today with an exhibition game. Page 5
httpyAvww.dailyemerald.com
Tuesday, November 6,2001
Since 1 900
University of Oregon Eugene, Oregon
Volume 103,Issue 51
it ALREADY
looks a lot like
CHRISTMAS
■The holiday season replaced Halloween
even before kids took off their costumes
By Marcus Hathcock
Oregon Daily Emerald
On Oct. 30, not a single costume, mask or trick-or
treat bucket was in sight at Valley River Center’s
J.C. Penney. Though it was the day before All Hal
lows’ Eve, the store’s appearance could have easily
been mistaken for mid-December. Green pine swags
with red and gold bows were draped over the store,
hovering above various gift boxes with red ribbons. A
lone table of small, discounted Halloween-themed
toys stood hidden in the masses of holiday gifts.
Forty-nine days remain until Christmas. And with
nearly two months to go, companies are scrambling
to earn consumers’ attention. Whether it’s looked at
with delight or disgust, many people are noticing the
early promotion of holiday goods.
“They’re just trying to make a buck,” University
senior Geoff Britton said.
. By making their stores “Christmas-y” as early as
October, Britton said companies “are just trying to
extend the season longer to weasel some more mon
ey out of something that’s good. ”
Britton said the holiday promotion blitz begins too
early in Oregon, but at least it doesn’t start in Sep
tember like it did when he lived in California.
“The holidays have been getting earlier and earlier
consistently for the past ten years,” said University
junior Kristen Campbell-Schmitt. The international
studies major said she’s not even thinking about
Thanksgiving yet, much less Christmas.
Campbell-Schmitt said the early commercial blitz
is anticlimactic to the season’s atmosphere.
“It takes away the holiday spirit in my mind. It be
comes marketing, not a holiday,” she said.
The reason for such early promotion is economic
strategy, said Del I. Hawkins, University marketing
professor.
‘ “When and how much you need to promote is an
important and risky decision,” Hawkins said. “If a
lot of bu sinesses promote early, then what it might do
is boost sales and boost the economy. ”
That, in turn, could move people back into a more
“normal” economy to survive the “emotional hang
Turn to Decorations, page 8
Adam Jones Emerald
Seeming to show up earlier and earlier each year, Christmas displays, like these at J.C.
Penney, are popping up just as Halloween merchandise is marked down.
GTFF begins contract negotiations with University
The local union
is heading into
contract talks
with hopes
of obtaining
better pay and
benefits for
University GTFs
By Leon Tovey
Oregon Daily Emerald
Graduate Teaching Fellows Federa
tion Local 3544 began contract negotia
tions Thursday with the University ad
ministration in the hopes of securing
higher wages and better benefits for the
University’s 1,200 GTFs.
The union’s current contract expires
March 31, and according to GTFF
President Ashley Overbeck, negotia
tions will probably continue at least
until early March.
The GTFF, which is affiliated with
the American Federation of Teachers,
estimates nearly 30 percent of total aca
demic instructional time at the Univer
sity is provided by GTFs. GTFs also
provide research and administrative
assistance for many professors and pro
grams on campus, and Overbeck said
she expects negotiations to go well.
“(The negotiating process) is adver
sarial by nature,” she said, “But we feel
like the administration is coming to the
table ready to work with us. ”
The average take-home wage for first
year graduate teaching fellows was
$7,315.20 for nine months in 2000-01.
According to the GTFF, that number is
only 62 percent of the average pay at
comparative universities.
However, Richard Linton, vice presi
dent for research and graduate studies,
who is handling the negotiations for the
University, said that the issue was more
complicated than simply raising the
minimum wage for GTFs.
“Many departments already pay
more than the minimum,” he said.
“With money that comes in for re
Turn to Negotiations, page 8
University
sends out
Internet
warning
■The University’s Network Services
has investigated nearly 400 cases
of copyright law violation this year
Marilyn Rice
Oregon Daily Emerald
Consider yourselves warned.
In response to the increased num
ber of University Internet users
downloading and duplicating copy
righted software, the administration
sent out an e-mail Monday reminding
them of the Computing Center’s ac
ceptable use policy.
The e-mail, sent by University
Provost John Moseley, the senior vice
president for academic affairs, also said
that all students, staff and faculty
should stop using peer-to-peer file shar
ing applications to download and dis
tribute copyrighted materials.
“It is unacceptable to download and
Turn to Internet policy, page 4
ASUO court
turns down
2 measures
■The ASUO Constitution Court
ruled against the ballot measures
because they lacked clarity
By Kara Cogswell
Oregon Daily Emerald
Two proposed ASUO ballot measures
— including one that would have barred
student groups from going to the ballot
for funding — won’t be voted on in the
November special election.
On Oct. 28, the ASUO Constitution
Court ruled that two of the four ballot
measures submitted by ASUO President
Nilda Brooklyn did not meet the ASUO
Constitution requirements for clarity.
It was the second time the court had
denied the measures. ASUO first sub
mitted them for review Oct. 23.
The deadline to submit ballots for the
special election, which will be held
Nov. 13 and 14, was Oct. 29. ASUO ex
ecutives will have to wait until the
ASUO spring election to try to put the
measures on the ballot again.
Both of the rejected measures pro
posed changes to the Clark Document, a
section of the ASUO Constitution that
governs use of student incidental fees.
One of these would have prevented
groups from putting funding requests on
the ballot.
Turn to ASUO, page 4