Oregon daily emerald., January 20, 2005, Image 1

Clayton Jones challenges the offensive might of Redlands’ men’s basketball team | 13
Oregon Daily Emerald
An independent newspaper
www.datlyemerald.com
Since 1900 | Volume 106, Issue83 \ Thursday, January 20,2005
Oregon Legislature examines new
bills addressing pertinent issues
BY MEGHANN M. CUNIFF
SENIOR NEWS REPORTER
The Oregon Legislature is back in session,
bringing with it a barrage of new bills that ad
dress everything from the rise of methampheta
mine use in Oregon to the need for improved
transportation systems throughout the state.
Comprised of the State House of Representa
tives and the State Senate, the legislature con
vened on Jan. 10 for the 73rd time and has been
bustling with activity since.
Oregon’s methamphetamine problem has
risen to a new high and is spreading across the
country, pushing legislation to fix it to the fore
front of the state’s agenda, Sen. Floyd Prozanski,
D-Eugene, said.
Prozanski, who served on Gov. Ted Kulongos
ki’s Methamphetamine Task Force, said bills to
combat the illegal possession and distribution of
the prescription drugs used to make meth are ex
pected to receive bipartisan support.
Senate Bill 313, introduced by the Senate Inter
im Committee on General Government, aims at
curbing the distribution of prescription drugs
used to manufacture meth, and Senate Bill 183
allows immunity from prosecution for persons re
porting the illegal possession or trafficking of
those drugs.
Lawmakers are looking to create a system that
would allow drug distributors to notify other dis
tributors about individuals who have purchased
the maximum amount of drugs used in the man
ufacturing of meth in order to cut meth produc
tion at its roots, Prozanski said.
“If we have that type of tracking, we’ll have
some way of notifying that those individuals are
suspect,” Prozanski said.
Rep. Phil Barnhart, D-Eugene, said stopping lo
cal meth manufacturers is a crucial step for law
makers to take but the federal government must
do more to stop meth manufacturers worldwide.
“This obviously is not a state issue,” Barn
hart said. “This is a national issue and an
international issue.”
Sen. Vicki Walker, D-Eugene, said there is ex
pected to be a collective voice from states across
the country calling for federal legislation because
of how rapidly the drug is spreading.
“The people on the East Coast have finally got
ten word that this is a big deal,” Walker said.
“Now they’re experiencing on the East Coast
what we’ve been seeing for a decade. ”
Transportation issues in Oregon are also a hot
discussion topic in the legislature, and many law
makers have emphasized the state’s need for an
improved “multi-mobile system,” Walker said.
Senate Bill 71, which allows lottery bonds to be
KEY
ISSUES
THIS LEGISLATIVE SEASON
Same-sex marriage
was banned by
voters with the
passage of Measure
36, and bills are
expected to be
introduced calling
for civil unions and
anthdiscrimination
laws.
Transportation issues
are at the forefront of
many city agendas
because of the
detenorating
condition of roads
and highways and
the need for
improved bridges
and overpasses.
Land use and
development in
Oregon has come
under the magnifying
glass with the
passage of Measure
37. Legislation is
expected this year
that would clarify the
measure and its
impact on the state.
Health care coverage
in Oregon has
consistently ranked
among the worst in
the nation and
lawmakers are
searching for ways to
decrease costs while
increasing the
number of
individuals covered.
Methamphetamine
use is increasing
throughout the state
and lawmakers have
introduced bills
aimed at stopping
the illegal
distribution of
prescription drugs
that can be used to
manufacture meth.
I State forests are
expected to be a topic
of debate among
lawmakers. House
Republicans recently
announced plans to
reintroduce a bill to
double the amount of
logging in the
Tillamook and
Clatsop state forests.
Lawmakers have identified numerous
issues that are crucial to the state’s
long- and short-term development. Bills
are being drafted in hopes that these
issues can be adequately addressed
and dealt with.
Bret Furiwangler | Graphic artist
used for transportation projects, is the major
transportation legislation being examined this
year and is the key to the Governor’s Connect
Oregon program, Prozanski said.
Connect Oregon aims to make transportation
systems in Oregon “streamlined and intercon
nected and supported on a statewide basis,”
Prozanski said.
Rep. Bob Ackerman, D-Eugene, said the trans
portation bill is designed to improve the state’s
economic development by making trade and
commerce more efficient.
“It probably will be our biggest economic
development package we get out this season,”
Ackerman said about Connect Oregon.
Prozanski said interconnection within the state
is crucial for economic improvement and called
the bill “the next phase in our holistic approach to
providing transportation for Oregon.”
Legislation regarding state forests and the
amount of protection roadless areas deserve is
also expected to be a major issue, and lawmak
ers have differing opinions as to how much
the government should be involved in
policies that pertain to scientific issues such as
BILLS, page 5
Tech Thursday
Students
put lives
online for
all to see
Social network Web sites have
become popular with those
looking to connect with others
BY ANTHONY LUCERO
NEWS REPORTER
Students use the Internet and technology to
maintain their schedules — and now their
lives. A growing number of students are turn
ing to “social network” Web sites that allow
individuals to digitize their identities while
connecting them to other users who may
have something in common.
The significance is beyond just a trend.
Computer and Information Science professor
Mike Hennessy said computers are going be
yond the desktop and becoming common ac
cessories for computer users, from PDAs to
implanted, or “wearable,” computers that car
ry personal information such as medical in
formation in case of a health emergency.
Hennessy said some PDA and cell phone
users in Japan meet one another based on
mobile profiles on their gadgets, which are
shared with other people in range of that de
vice. In America, the trend is catching on and
students especially have been willing to put
their identity on the Internet through
social networks.
One example is Thefacebook
(www.thefacebook.com), a Web site where
students enrolled in one of the many site-sup
ported universities can find and befriend oth
ers with similarities. Almost every single item
added into a person’s profile is searchable —
name, location, class, interests, relationship
status — and can bring up results of other stu
dents who share similar characteristics.
This marks a big difference from earlier
Web services. Today, social networking serv
ices are decentralized so users, instead of the
service itself, find and connect to each other
on their own terms.
Other sites might be useful for cataloging
CONNECTING, page 5
Unity celebration draws
its largest crowd in years
The Black Student Union hosted an event honoring Martin Luther
King Jr. that included speakers, singing and a candlelight vigil
BY ADAM CHERRY
NEWS REPORTER
Students, faculty, and com
munity members from differ
ent backgrounds gathered to
celebrate Dr. Martin Luther
King Jr.’s legacy Tliesday night
at Gerlinger Lounge. The Mar
tin Luther King Jr. Unity Cele
bration drew about 60 people.
The event, hosted by the
University’s Black Student
Union, opened with the
singing of the Black National
Anthem, “Lift Every Voice and
Sing.” University Senior Vice
President and Provost Carla
Gary gave the keynote ad
dress. Gary stressed the need
to continue following in
King’s footsteps.
“We must never forget that
we stand on the shoulders of
those who came before us,”
Gary said. “Our obligation is
not to say ‘thank you’; it is to
be thankful in our actions. ”
Gary encouraged attendees
to make the most of the oppor
tunities and freedoms that
they have been given.
“Can we afford to
marginalize our hope and our
future?” Gary said. “Make the
most of this opportunity to
stay true to the power of hope.
Honor the dream by living it. ”
Gary added that everyone
is “each other’s keeper.”
“We don’t have to like each
other all the time, we don’t
have to agree with each other
all the time, but we must be
each other’s supporters in
every way we can,” she said.
English major Cory Mainor
was the student speaker and
MLK, page 6
IN BRIEF
'Community Conversation'
draws little response
Vice Provost for Institutional Equity and
Diversity Gregory Vincent hosted the
fourth of five “Community Conversations”
on Thesday.
The meetings are designed to allow mem
bers of the faculty, student body, classified
staff and the community to give their input
on the Diversity Action Plan, a multi-faceted
proposal intended to increase diversity on
campus. The plan has several other goals,
including increasing cultural competency
and strengthening community relations.
Tuesday’s meeting was sparsely attended
and ended a half hour early. After Vincent
presented the five points of the plan, he
opened up the meeting for comment, but
his requests for input were met by deaden
ing silence.
“We’re scheduled until 1 p.m.,” he said
when the meeting seemed to stagnate. “But
DIVERSITY, page 6