Controversial Class Canceled: Hooked
Controversial Class Canceled: Hooked
Controversial Class Canceled: Hooked
[email protected]
Kansan staff writer
Dan Forrest was proud of
Never a Brighter Star, the
song he composed that was
published this spring. So
when he met with choir di-
rector John Paul Johnson this
summer, he wanted to offer
the song for Holiday Vespers
this year. But the Greenville,
S.C., graduate student didnt
have to try hard to persuade
Johnson.
One of the first things he
said was that he had found
my song and wanted to use
it for Vespers, Forrest said.
Here I was coming to pitch
it, and he already had the
same idea.
Holiday Vespers is the the KU
music and dance departments
annual end-of-the-year concert.
This is the 81st consecutive year
that the event will ring in the
holiday season, making it one
of the nations longest-running
holiday concerts at a college or
university.
Besides mens basketball and
football events, this is the most-
attended event at the University
of Kansas.
Robert Douglas Helvering,
Omaha, Neb., graduate student,
said he had heard the 2:30 show
was virtually sold out, and the
7:30 show had 90 percent of the
tickets sold already.
Each show, which will be per-
formed Sunday, can seat 2,000
people.
Helvering has two pieces that
will be performed, and he will
be singing in the concert choir.
see VesPeR on Page 4a
By Frank Tankard
[email protected]
Kansan staff writer
Paul Mireckis Special Top-
ics in Religion: Intelligent De-
sign and Creationism class will
not be taught next semester,
University of Kansas offcials
announced Thursday.
Mirecki, chairman of the de-
partment of religious studies,
said in a statement that he with-
drew the course because of pub-
lic controversy about e-mails he
had posted on a yahoo.com list
server since 2003.
The list server was a discus-
sion board for the Society of
Open-Minded Atheists and Ag-
nostics, the 121-person student
group for which Mirecki serves
as faculty adviser.
My concern is that students
with a serious interest in this
important subject matter would
not be well-served by the learn-
ing environment my e-mails and
the public distribution of them
have created, he said in the
statement. It would not be fair
to the students.
The class made national news
when a Nov. 19 e-mail Mirecki
wrote was disseminated to poli-
ticians and news organizations
in which he referred to religious
fundamentalists as fundies
and said his class would serve
as a nice slap in their big fat
face.
Older e-mails came to light
when National Review, a conser-
vative political magazine, pub-
lished excerpts from Mireckis
past e-mails on Wednesday.
National Review printed one
e-mail excerpt that was Mireckis
detailed description of starting
to vomit after swallowing the
Eucharist at a Catholic church
service as a child because of the
idea that he had swallowed the
fesh of Jesus.
Chancellor Robert Hemenway
issued a statement in which he
said Mirecki made the right de-
cision in withdrawing the course
and called Mireckis e-mail
comments repugnant and vile.
He has a right to free speech,
but he has to realize the rev-
elation of his past e-mails has
tainted the environment for his
course, he said. He insulted
both our students and the Uni-
versitys public, and he misrep-
resented beliefs of KUs faculty
and staff.
Hemenway said the subject
matter of Mireckis class had no
bearing on the withdrawal of
the course.
see CLass on Page 4a
Mirecki, chairman
of the department of
religious
studies,
said in a
statement
that he
withdrew
the course
because of
public con-
troversy about e-mails
he posted on a yahoo.
com list server.
Todays weather
All contents, unless stated otherwise,
2005 The University Daily Kansan
Saturday
chance of rain/snow
Sunday
mostly cloudy
38 22
Partly cloudy
Sarah Jones, KUJH-TV
Index
Comics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6A
Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7A
Crossword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6A
Horoscopes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6A
Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5A
Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10A
First-round preparation
The Kansas volleyball
team is gearing up to
play UCLA tonight in Los
Angeles. The Jayhawks
reached this match after
receiving a suprising bid
to the NCAA Volleyball
Tournament. Page 10a
Texas wont look past Colorado on Saturday
Colorado looks to repeat its 2001 Big 12 title upset
against Texas this Saturday when the two teams
meet at Reliant Stadium in Houston. Page 10a
You win some, you lose some
Business students experience the ups and downs
of investing in the stock market as they invest
in international companies with money given to
them through the University. Page 4a
34 20 35 18
friday, december 2, 2005
VOL. 116 issue 72 www.kAnsAn.cOm
The sTudenT vOice since 1904
t beLiefS
Controversial
class canceled
Mirecki
Vespers brings holiday spirit
Vespers Holiday Concert
F Sunday, Dec. 4, 2005
FPerformances will be held at 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
FTickets are $12.50 for general admission and $10 for students and
senior citizens.
For ticket information, call the Lied Center Box Offce at (785) 864-2787
or the KU department of music and dance at (785) 864-3436.
Source: Department of Music and Dance
cONcerT iNfOrmaTiON
Faculty Senate
defends intent
of the course
Prof. Paul Mirecki with-
drew his Special Topics in
Religion: Intelligent Design
and Creationism class from
the spring class schedule on
Thursday in light of contro-
versy about his motives for
teaching the class.
In response, the University
of Kansas Faculty Council
unanimously passed the fol-
lowing resolution Thursday
evening:
The University of Kansas
Faculty Council reaffrms that
academic freedom, including
the right to offer courses that
examine controversial sub-
jects, is essential to the mis-
sion of the University: to edu-
cate students and to engage
in scholarly inquiry.
Open inquiry for all citizens
is at the heart of a democra-
cy. Furthermore, the Univer-
sity of Kansas Faculty Coun-
cil acknowledges that the
academic freedom enjoyed
by the faculty also imposes
special obligations.
As stated in our Faculty
Handbook, we recognize
among those obligations that:
F The public may judge us as
scholars and educational
offcers, our profession,
and our institution by our
public utterances, and
F We have a responsibility
to be accurate, to exercise
appropriate restraint, and to
show respect for the opin-
ions of others.
Frank Tankard
Additional e-mails
further offend public
t eNTerTaiNmeNT
Lauren
Marshall, left,
Salina senior,
and Sara Koven,
right, Overland
Park senior,
prepare Monday
evening at
Murphy Hall for
the upcoming
Vespers Holiday
concert. The
show will be
performed Sun-
day at the Lied
Center.
Kim andrews/KaNSaN
hooked
t STudeNT fiNaNceS
Credit cards often
lure students
into debt
T
he credit card company
keeps calling Meghan Ve-
atch.
Her credit limit is $1,700 and
her Visa card is maxed out. The
company calls her two or three times a day to
try to collect payments, but the interest keeps
accumulating.
Ive gotten to the point where I recognize
the phone numbers and I just dont answer
it, Veatch said.
When the hard drive on her computer
crashed and she had to buy a new one, she
was broke and couldnt use her maxed-out
card, so she opened up a Dell account and
charged the new hard drive to that. Now she
cant pay that bill either.
Veatch, Wichita junior, said she was unem-
ployed for a month this summer after quitting
her job, and her parents were unable to sup-
port her fnancially.
Veatchs credit card debt and resulting f-
nancial predicament are all too common on
college campuses. According to a 2004 study
by Nellie Mae, a student loan agency, under-
graduates carry an average outstanding credit
card balance of $2,169. The study showed
that 9 percent of undergraduates are more
than $3,000 in credit card debt. Problems be-
gin when credit card companies target college
students who have little experience with fscal
responsibility and are away from home for the
frst time. Their debts spiral out of control be-
cause late fees and small minimum monthly
payments keep students repaying their debt
over a long period of time at interest rates that
can
be as
high as
30 percent.
Robert Baker,
counselor at
Consumer Cred-
it Counseling
Services, 2518
Ridge Court,
said he saw a
lot of KU stu-
dents in serious
debt and tried to
show them how
credit card debt
mounts easily.
For example, he said a student who charged
$1,000 for a spring break trip, always paid
the 2 percent monthly minimum ($20), never
missed a payment and never charged anything
else would need 15 years to pay it off. The stu-
dent would end up repaying $2,329 instead
of $1,000 because of additional interest at the
rate of 16 percent.
The average interest rate is 17 percent for
credit cards, but some retail store cards are
higher about 21 percent. When there are sig-
nifcant late fees, credit card vendors can place
users in a penalty fee category with interest rates
as high as 30 percent, Baker said. Students car-
ry cards with higher interest rates because they
dont have established credit yet.
see HooKeD on Page 2a
By Aly Barland
[email protected]
kansan staff writer
Photo illustration
by Ginny Weatherman
The majority of college
students possess credit
cards but do not pay
them off each month.
F 65 percent of college
students carry credit
card debt.
F58 percent never pay
balances in full or do
so less than half of the
time.
F50 percent charge their
cards to the limit some
or most of the time.
Source: creditcardsmagazine.com
in debt
THOugH THeY reTOOK THe Lead LaTe IN THe gaMe, the Kansas Jay-
hawks could not manage to hang on and fell to the Nevada Wolfpack
72-70. This is the Jayhawks frst loss at home this season. Nevadas Nick
Fazekas scored a career-high 35 points in the game. FuLL COVerage Page 10a
Hooked
continued from page 1a
The interest rate for frst-time
borrowers is about 20 percent.
Penalty fees are a problem
for many students. Baker said
that 50 percent of all profts that
credit card companies make off
students were for late fees. More
than half of credit card compa-
nies charge $39 for a late pay-
ment. Its easy to miss the noti-
fcation that one has a late fee
because its on a different part of
the bill, Baker said.
Credit card companies make
contracts more diffcult than
they should, Baker said about
the small print.
You get the idea they dont
want you to read it, he said.
Veatch said she didnt even
read the terms for her credit
card contract and didnt know
the interest rate that she was be-
ing charged.
I dont understand them at
all so thats why I dont look at
them. I just thought you charge
it and you pay it back and thats
all there is to it, she said.
Veatch said
she wasnt that
worried about
her debt at frst,
but now shes
starting to feel
the pressure. She
cant go out with
friends because
she has no mon-
ey, so it has af-
fected her social
life.
The constant
calls from the
credit card com-
pany up to 11
a day serve as
constant remind-
ers that she owes
money.
Government intervention
To help debtors, the govern-
ment has required credit card
companies to raise the minimum
payments from 2 to 3 percent
per month to 4 to 6 percent. This
higher minimum payment will
help debtors pay off their debts
sooner, provided they have the
money for the higher monthly
payment.
The only
way you can
speed up pay-
ing off your
card is making
a higher pay-
ment, Baker
said. If you
can pay the
balance quick-
er you can pay
less interest.
T h o u g h
the higher
minimum pay-
ments were in-
stalled to help
debtors pay
off the debt
in less time,
the increase
has not neces-
sarily helped
students because they have to
come up with more money each
month.
Why so much spending?
Students want to live the
same lifestyle they lived before
coming to college, Baker said.
Once they begin college, many
students are independent fnan-
cially but continue to live as if
they still have support from
their parents. Students often
dont realize that the money
they are making must now go
toward rent or food rather than
entertainment and other discre-
tionary spending.
Try not to live on a cham-
pagne budget if youre a poor
student, and I know thats more
easily said than done, Baker
said.
Instead of altering their life-
styles, Baker said many students
began charging purchases to
credit cards.
Social situations made it dif-
fcult for Veatch to refrain from
spending money. She wanted to
eat out with friends, go shop-
ping and hit the bars.
In social situations is when
Im worst because I dont resist
very much, Veatch said.
Put it on the card
Students can use credit cards
almost anywhere and for almost
anything. Fast food companies like
McDonalds and Sonic now accept
plastic. Gas is a common credit
card purchase and some students
even use cards to pay for tuition.
Credit cards are versatile and con-
venient, but that convenience is a
double-edged sword.
Credit card usage has other
benefts besides convenience.
Cards take up less space than
cash and checkbooks. Having
a credit card can encourage stu-
dents to behave responsibly and
be independent fnancially, pro-
vided they monitor the use of
their cards closely and use them
only when necessary.
That was Veatchs initial plan,
but the convenience of credit
purchases led her off-track.
Veatch frst got her card three
years ago, but had it only for
emergencies. She got in a car
wreck and used the card to pay
her ticket. After that, she started
using the card for other pur-
chases and has done so for the
past couple of years.
Last spring, Veatch charged a
$500 digital camera and a $200
iPod. She said she spent money
on a number of smaller things
as well, including a trip to a
Wichita mall where she spent
$50. She had planned to pay
these purchases off with her tax
refund but ended up using that
for something else.
When Veatch quit her job with
the Kansas Turnpike Authority
in June, she was left without an
income and had to use her card
for every purchase.
While unemployed, she
charged all daily living expenses
like groceries, phone bills and
gas, which added up quickly.
Ironically, Veatch now has a
job at Pearson Government So-
lutions, a call center that advises
students about loans and fnan-
cial aid, and said she would
make payments as soon as she
could afford to.
Elizabeth Ault, Topeka se-
nior, found herself in a situation
similar to Veatchs.
Ault frst got her Visa credit
card to use abroad in Spain
when she was 16.
It didnt become a problem
for her until she entered college.
When she went back to Spain to
study abroad for the 2004-2005
school year, Ault ran up her
credit card debt to about $3,000.
Everything was much more
expensive there, Ault said.
She spent money on food,
clothes and travel. Ault said stu-
dents were in a particularly dan-
gerous situation when it came
to credit card use because they
were not adequately prepared
and they do not consider the
consequences of spending.
Were at a point in our lives
where we just want to go out and
have fun, and we dont want to
worry about things, Ault said.
When college students charge
food and drinks they can be dis-
appointed down the road when
they have nothing to show for
their purchases, Baker said.
All they are left with is the bill.
Cards on campus
Students are easy targets for
credit card companies because
many universities allow solicita-
tion on campus. Its the frst time
away from home, and students
are for the most part fnancially
inexperienced when it comes to
using credit cards.
A U.S. Public Interest Re-
search Group study found that
students who obtain credit
cards from companies soliciting
on campus have higher unpaid
balances than others.
According to PIRG, the aggres-
sive marketing, combined with
students lack of fnancial experi-
ence and education, often leads
to serious debt. In the survey of
undergraduates by Nellie Mae, 56
percent of those with credit cards
obtained them at age 18 and re-
ported direct mail solicitation as
the primary way of selecting the
credit card company.
Nearly 300 colleges and uni-
versities have banned credit card
solicitation on their campuses.
The University of Kansas still
allows it but does not specifcally
contract with any company, ac-
cording to Todd Cohen, associate
director of University Relations.
In 2002, Student Senate pe-
titioned to prohibit credit card
solicitation on University prop-
erty, citing credit cards as a ma-
jor factor in student debt and
arguing that credit card vendors
had no part in the universitys
academic mission.
continued on page 3a
2A The UniversiTy DAily KAnsAn friDAy, December 2, 2005 sTUDenT finAnces
The University Daily Kansan is the student newspaper of the University of Kansas. The first copy is paid through the student activ-
ity fee. Additional copies of the Kansan are 25 cents. Subscriptions can be purchased at the Kansan business office, 119 Stauffer-
Flint Hall, 1435 Jayhawk Blvd., Lawrence, KS 66045. The University Daily Kansan (ISSN 0746-4962) is published daily during the
school year except Saturday, Sunday, fall break, spring break and exams. Weekly during the summer session excluding holidays.
Periodical postage is paid in Lawrence, KS 66044. Annual subscriptions by mail are $120 plus tax. Student subscriptions of are
paid through the student activity fee. Postmaster: Send address changes to The University Daily Kansan, 119 Stauffer-Flint Hall, 1435 Jayhawk
Blvd., Lawrence, KS 66045
KJHK is the student
voice in radio.
Each day there
is news, music,
sports, talk shows
and other content
made for students,
by students.
Whether its rock n roll or reg-
gae, sports or special events,
KJHK 90.7 is for you.
For more
news, turn
to KUJH-
TV on
Sunflower
Cablevision
Channel 31 in Lawrence. The student-
produced news airs at 5:30 p.m., 7:30
p.m., 9:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. every
Monday through Friday. Also, check
out KUJH online at tv.ku.edu.
Tell us your news
Contact Austin Caster,
Jonathan Kealing,
Anja Winikka, Josh Bickel,
Ty Beaver or Nate Karlin at
864-4810 or
[email protected].
Kansan newsroom
111 Stauffer-Flint Hall
1435 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 66045
(785) 864-4810
media partners
et cetera
Jared Soares/KANSAN
College students are inundated with credit card offers, which makes it easy for them to acquire cards and accumulate debt.
The average amount of
credit card debt has risen
$290 from $1,879 in 1998
to $2,169 in 2004, but this
is still a $579 decrease
from the 2000 high of
$2,748. From 2000 to 2004,
the overall number of
students carrying cards
with balances over $1,000
declined, lowering the
average amount of credit
card debt.
Joshua Bickel/KANSAN
Older students are more
likely to carry credit
cards than freshmen and
typically rack up more
debt.
F 91 percent of fnal-year
students have a credit
card.
FOnly 42 percent of
freshman do.
F56 percent of fnal-year
students carry four or
more cards.
FOnly 15 percent of
freshmen do.
FFinal-year students car-
ry an average balance
of $2,864, while fresh-
men carry an average
balance of $1,585.
Source: Nellie Mae
class comparison
Source: Nellie Mae
Students want to live
the same lifestyle they
lived before coming
to college, Baker said.
Once they begin
college, many students
are independent fnan-
cially but continue to
live as if they still have
support from their
parents. Students often
dont realize that the
money they are making
must now go toward
rent or food rather than
entertainment and other
discretionary spending.
student finances friday, december 2, 2005 the university daily Kansan 3a
Seeing multiples
Seeing multiples
Seeing multiples
SEEING MULTIPLES
made easy with the
Weekly Specials
yours to keep on the back of every Jayplay
WE LOVE OUR KANSAN.
People deep in debt often receive multiple calls
from credit card companies each day and
become reluctant to answer the
phone.
Ginny Weatherman/
KANSAN
continued from page 4a
In response, Provost David
Shulenburger recommended the
current policy stating that credit
card solicitation is not allowed
on campus during the week be-
fore and the two weeks follow-
ing the frst day of each semes-
ter. Credit card providers must
also give students information
on responsible credit card use.
The Universitys policy meets
the minimum requirements out-
lined by the Kansas Board of
Regents.
Vendors can appear on cam-
pus only if sponsored by a stu-
dent organization. Students
from the sponsor group must
accompany any outside com-
mercial entity at all times on
campus.
The company is required to
give back to the student group
in some way, often monetarily.
Ruben Perez, director of Stu-
dent Involvement and Leader-
ship Center, said that in the year
and a half that he had been di-
rector no credit card companies
had come to the campus.
The only time a credit card
company had shown interest
was during the period that the
University bans solicitation, so
it has not been an issue while he
has been director, Perez said.
Students also get a lot of direct
solicitation by mail. Diana Rob-
ertson, associate director of stu-
dent housing, said the University
had no control over mail deliv-
ered to on-campus housing.
Although the University
doesnt give out student ad-
dresses to commercial entities,
Assistant to the provost Jean-
nette Johnson said companies
could use student directories as
a way to fnd students mailing
addresses.
Knowledge is power
Jennifer Cook, branch manager
of Commerce Bank in the Kansas
Union, said that student credit card
debt was becoming a big problem.
To help students avoid that debt,
her bank conducts a seminar called
Banking 101.
Cook said the seminar was
intended to educate students
about banking and credit card
use.
We go over how you can
choose them; some of the things
you should ask about them,
Cook said.
Students will have enough
debt coming out of college, and
they dont need the additional
debt incurred from irresponsible
credit card usage, Cook said.
Taking its toll
Credit card debt is not the only
kind of fnancial stress that stu-
dents face. They must also wor-
ry about student loans and daily
living expenses, said Pam Botts,
associate director of Counseling
and Psychological Services.
They
use credit
cards to try to meet
their everyday needs, Botts said.
That quickly adds up and then
it becomes a circular problem as
those credit card debts climb.
Credit cards provide the illu-
sion that its easy to buy things
without thinking ahead about
the consequences of spending,
Botts said.
What students dont realize is
how quickly that adds up and how
hard it is to pay off, she said.
CAPS counsels students for
whom credit card debt is a tre-
mendous cause of stress, she
said. Theyve become buried in
credit card debt and then dont
have the resources to get them-
selves out.
Where to turn
Jo Hardesty, director and
managing attorney for Legal
Services for Students, said she
counseled students who were
unable to keep up with paying
bills or handle the minimum
payments.
Hardesty said students
charged daily expenses, like eat-
ing out with friends, instead of
reserving the card for emergen-
cies. Using a credit card makes
it diffcult to monitor how much
money is being spent and how
quickly the debt adds up.
Its kind of out of sight, out
of mind, she said.
Students are more vulnerable
because it seems like free mon-
ey and they are just starting to
learn about handling their own
fnances, she said.
Partly the problem stems
from the fact that theyve never
done it before, Hardesty said.
Hardesty said she thought it
was better for students to seek out
credit card companies than for
companies to seek out students.
Getting back control
To help students deal with
their debt, Legal Services for
Students takes several differ-
ent approaches, depending on
the situation at hand.
They try to negotiate with
creditors to lower interest rates
or close the account entirely.
Sometimes they assess whether
bankruptcy is an option.
What we try to do is make a
realistic assessment, show them
what options there are and as-
sist them in working with the
creditors, Hardesty said.
Students in trouble can turn
to fnancial counselors like
Baker and Hardesty, but others
like Ault rely on parents for as-
sistance. Ault said that she was
lucky to have her parents help
her pay off the debt she accumu-
lated.
Next time they said they
wont bail me out, Ault said.
Veatch had some words of
wisdom for other students with
credit cards.
My parents always taught me
that you dont want to charge
anything unless you know you
can pay it off immediately, she
said. Dont spend money you
dont have.
Edited by Erin Wisdom
and Jayme Wiley
Though numbers have dropped since 2001, many students still have
credit cards, and those who do often carry more than one.
Students with credit cards 1998 2000 2001 2004
Percentage of students with credit cards 67% 78% 83% 76%
Average number of credit cards per student 3.5 3.0 4.25 4.09
Percentageof students withfour or morecards 27% 32% 47% 43%
Source: Nellie Mae
debt over time
4a The UniversiTy Daily Kansan friDay, December 2, 2005 news
Get ready for the
Beakend
on The recorD
F A 20-year-old KU student
reported to the KU Public
Safety Offce a theft of a
Trek bicycle and a cable lock
between 1:30 and 4 p.m.
Wednesday from Eaton
Hall. The bicycle is valued
at $400. The cable lock is
valued at $20.
FA 19-year-old KU student
reported to the KU Public
Safety Offce a theft of some
paint brushes and other art
supplies between 4:30 Nov.
22 and 1:45 Monday from
the Art and Design Build-
ing. The items are valued at
$572.
on campUs
F Latin American Solidarity
is holding a Latin American
food festival at 6 p.m. Satur-
day at Ecumenical Christian
Ministries, 1204 Oread Ave.
The cost is $7. Proceeds
will beneft disaster relief in
Guatemala.
FThe Department of Music
and Dance is putting on the
81st Annual Holiday Vespers
concert at 2:30 p.m. Sunday
at the Lied Center. Tickets
can be purchased at the
Lied Center box offce at the
price of $10 for students,
children and senior citizens
and $12.50 for the general
public.
campUs
A 22-year-old KU student was
booked into Douglas County
Jail on a charge of lewd and
lascivious behavior Wednesday,
according to jail records.
Hamm posted a $1,000
bond and was released, the
record states. A 23-year-old KU
student reported he observed a
man masturbating in Anschutz
Library between 11 and 11:20
a.m. Oct. 26, Capt. Schuyler
Bailey of the KU Public Safety
Offce said.
The man was found and in-
terviewed by police Oct. 26. He
was issued a notice to appear in
court Wednesday, Bailey said.
Steve Lynn
t School of buSineSS
Overseas investments
boost classs earnings
By GaBy Souza
[email protected]
Kansan staff writer
Millions of dollars are on the
minds of the students in the
Applied Portfolio Management
class, but they cant personally
spend one cent of it.
The fnance class taught in
the School of Business teaches
students about the basics of in-
vestments and the stock market
by using real money to invest in
the stock market.
The classs investments
equaled $200,000 in 2001; but
in August, the investments met
the $1 million mark. Since then,
the amount has tapered off,
keeping it just under the $1 mil-
lion mark.
You like to think you have
the winning formula, but in the
stock market, you can never be
sure, said Catherine Shenoy,
assistant professor and director
of the class since 2001.
The money made from the
investments each semester is
turned over to the next semes-
ters class for its investments.
The class recently took money
out of its earnings to donate
$16,000 to a basketball scholar-
ship. This has contributed to the
investment funds staying under
a million dollars as well.
The class was one of a dozen
in the country when it began in
1994. KU alumnus Kent McCar-
thy started the class by donating
$200,000 to be invested in the
stock market.
McCarthy, who is the presi-
dent, owner and founder of
Jayhawk Capital Management,
based in Kansas City, Kan., be-
came the classs frst instructor.
He remains an executive lectur-
er, fying in from his homes in
Nevada and California to help
the class with its projects.
About 30 percent of the classs
investments are in international
companies, and the class has
made great strides by investing
in Chinese companies.
The class got this piece of ad-
vice from McCarthy. Two of the
invested companies are China
Green, a vegetable company,
and Golden Meditech, which
provides medical supplies to
Chinese hospitals.
The classs largest invest-
ment is in a company called
Interceramic. Based in Mexi-
co, the company produces ce-
ramic tile. Half of its sales are
in the United States and half
are in Mexico.
The class meets once a week
and is about one-third graduate
students and two-thirds under-
graduate students.
Brian Conklin, Shawnee Mis-
sion senior, said he enjoyed
the mix of students because it
helped to drive the discussion.
Conklin said the class was
challenging, the memory of be-
ing singled out in class by an in-
timidating Kent McCarthy still
in his memory.
Its pretty upsetting, but you
learn from what hes saying, he
said.
Conklin sees himself working
in the fnance department of a
large company in the future. But
even if its not exactly what he
wants to do, he said he was still
happy to have taken the class.
You cant be in business and
not understand how companies
buy and sell, he said.
Edited by Jayme Wiley
By Mark Vierthaler
[email protected]
Kansan correspondent
As the semester winds down and
students spend increasingly more
time indoors studying, not only
does bar attendance trail off, so
does the sanity of those hunkered
down in front of their textbooks.
Across campus, conversations can
be heard informing others of their
complete lack of personal plans.
But students should take
breaks, if only to avoid chucking
a couple hundred dollars worth
of books out the window. For
those looking for a break, but
still wanting to feel as if theyre
studying, there is a solution: in-
dependent flms. What better
way to relax, yet still feel like you
are working your mind in some
way other than staring at the in-
gredients to a bag of chips?
One flm of note is Tom Stop-
pards Rosencrantz and Guil-
denstern are Dead, the 1990
flm now on DVD.
Adapted from the 1970s play by
the same name, the movie features
Gary Oldman and Tim Roth, both
famous Indie stars in their own
rights, as the lead characters: Ros-
encrantz and Guildenstern. Based
on two minor characters in Wil-
liam Shakespeares Hamlet, the
plot focuses on a different view
point of the now famous story, of-
fering up a bizarre and disjointed,
yet thoroughly hilarious movie.
Deigned as theater of the bi-
zarre, the movie follows in the
footsteps of the play with favors of
Waiting for Godot, the two main
characters expounding on such
ideas as the decisions of fate, why
they are what they are and why
nobody gets their names right.
The movie makes perfect
non-sense. Long rambling
monologues on the part of Guil-
denstern are immediately shot
down in a poof of illogic, offer-
ing comedic relief throughout
a play that is always one step
away from being a tragedy.
With scenes of the classic
Shakespeare play throughout,
those who enjoy the Bard, who
have a passing understanding of
the play, or who were ever forced
to read it in high school English
class will get an extra kick out of
inside jokes within the movie.
But the movie can still be enjoyed
without a background in Hamlet.
Richard Dreyfuss rounds out
the cast as The Player, also a
minor character from within
Shakespeares play. The only
character who seems to have a
full grasp on what is happening
around him, The Player offers
the stark reality to the unreal
fantasy that the two main char-
acters seem to live in.
This movie is masterfully
adapted by the playwright to the
screenplay. Although the begin-
ning of the movie starts out slow,
it eventually picks up the pace. Its
slightly cerebral, so dont plug this
in and expect something mindless,
however it is incredibly entertain-
ing and is worth a nice break from
studying. Besides, if you feel like
youre doing something smart, you
can feel less guilty about those un-
attended Statistics homework.
Edited by Erick R. Schmidt
Class
continued from page 1a
This unfortunate episode
does not in any way diminish
our belief that the course should
be taught, he said. It is the role
of the University to take on such
topics and to provide the civil,
academic environment in which
they can be honestly examined
and discussed.
Andrew Stangl, president of
SOMA, said the remarks that ap-
peared in National Review were
taken out of context by people
searching through Mireckis past
posts with the intent of show-
ing that he was biased against
Christianity and unft to teach a
class on intelligent design.
This shows the dedication
theyre going to, to ruin or dis-
credit Dr. Mirecki, he said. We
had assumed the comments
were between the list serve.
State Rep. Brenda Landwehr
(R-Wichita), vice chairwoman of
the Kansas House of Represen-
tatives appropriations commit-
tee, said the incident called into
question the integrity of the Uni-
versity. She said legislators would
likely discuss the class when they
return to session Jan. 9.
I still think the University
should be accountable, both the
chancellor and the professor, to
respond to legislators during the
session about this course or any
other courses there are issues
with, she said.
Edited by Becca Evanhoe
Vesper
continued from page 1a
He has had his works played in
Carnegie Hall and other illustrious
venues on the East Coast when he
attended Westminster Choir Col-
lege in New Jersey for his under-
graduate degree, but he said he was
still enthused for Vespers.
Im as excited about this as
anything. Especially since so
many regional musicians will be
featured, he said.
This years program features
three works composed by KU
graduate students, including
Forrests song, which will be
performed by the KU Symphon-
ic Choir and Orchestra.
The KU Symphonic Choir is
composed of choir members from
the University Singers, Mens
Glee Club, Chamber Choir, Con-
cert Choir, Womens Chorale and
Womens Glee Club.
Other groups scheduled to
perform are the Celebration
Ringers from the First United
Methodist Church in Lawrence;
Sharim Netzim, KU Hillels
A Capella group; and the KU
Chamber Choir. They will per-
form holiday classics, such as
Joy to the World, Chanu-
kah, O Chanukah and Sleigh
Ride. Against the Grain, a KU
mens barbershop quartet, also
will perform seasonal favorites.
Candace Bailey, Lawrence
junior, has performed twice for
Vespers as a choir member. She
said this event was important
for many reasons. Its the only
time the entire department puts
on a show. And its also always
it is well-attended.
Edited by Nate Karlin
By John Jordan
[email protected]
Kansan staff writer
Students and panelists used
the analogy of a parent giv-
ing money to a college student
to discuss the Taxpayer Bill of
Rights, TABOR, Thursday night
at the Kansas Union.
Proponents say students
will spend more wisely if they
are given less money to spend.
The other side says its better
to look at the frivolous items
that students spend money on
rather than create a blanket cut
that would affect the amount of
money students can spend on
tuition and books.
The Student Legislative Aware-
ness Board set up the panel because
the issue pertains to students by af-
fecting how much money could
come to the University of Kansas.
TABOR ties increases in state
spending to population growth
and infation. Kansas wouldnt
be able to spend more than its
population growth each year,
plus the rise in the costs of living
if legislators pass the bill.
Alan Cobb and Jim Mullins
from Americans for Prosperity
argued in support of TABOR,
and State Representative Tim
Owens, (R-Overland Park) and
Jim Ward, (D-Wichita) spoke
against the measure.
The four panelists, two for
TABOR and two against, spoke
and answered questions in heat-
ed tones about the controversial
issue in front of more than 30
students in the Kansas Unions
Big 12 room.
Mullins said TABOR was nec-
essary to make the state legisla-
tors curtail spending and force
them to learn to make tough
decisions.
We have a spending prob-
lem, Mullins said. The legisla-
ture doesnt have the cajones to
stop it.
Ward, who spoke against
TABOR, countered Mullins by
saying that the answer to con-
trolling spending wasnt to put
a straight jacket on the amount
legislators can spend.
Edited by Nate Karlin
Legislators debate
taxpayers rights
Argue how to
limit funding
The fnance class
taught in the School of
Business teaches
students about the
basics of investments
and the stock market
by using real money
to invest in the stock
market.
t legiSlation naTion
RICHMOND, Va. Insulting
alumni and donors probably
isnt the best way to show that
you are trying to improve your
universitys national profle, as
the president of the University
of Richmond has found.
During a state of the
university speech in Octo-
ber at the private liberal arts
college, William E. Cooper
discussed the schools efforts
to become more academically
competitive by attracting more
talented students.
The entering quality of
our student body needs to be
much higher if we are going
to transform bright minds
into great achievers instead of
transforming mush into mush,
and I mean it, he said.
He later apologized for his
remarks and said they were
misinterpreted.
Some alumni remain sup-
portive of Coopers vision, but
he has come under fre from
many others, who are calling
for him to step down and are
threatening to withhold contri-
butions until he is gone. At a
recent home basketball game,
some Richmond fans wore
buttons proclaiming, Mush-
heads Unite.
The Associated Press
Student charged with
inappropriate behavior
Richmond offcial
insults alumni, donors
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2, 2005 WWW.KANSAN.COM PAGE 5A
OPINION
OPINION
Guest Column
Guidelines
Maximum Length: 650 word limit
Include: Authors name; class, home-
town (student); position (faculty
member); phone number (will not be
published)
Also: The Kansan will not print guest
columns that attack another columnist.
Editorial board
Elis Ford, Yanting Wang, Joel Simone, Dan
Hoyt, Anne Weltmer, Julie Parisi, Nathan
McGinnis, Josh Goetting, Sara Garlick,
Travis Brown, Julian Portillo, David Archer
Submit to
Kansan newsroom
111 Stauffer-Flint Hall
1435 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 66045
(785) 864-4810 [email protected]
SUBMISSIONS
The Kansan welcomes letters to the
editors and guest columns submitted
by students, faculty and alumni.
The Kansan reserves the right to edit,
cut to length, or reject all submissions.
For any questions, call Austin Caster
at 864-4810 or e-mail opinion@kansan.
com.
General questions should be directed
to the editor at [email protected].
Letter Guidelines
Maximum Length: 200 word limit
Include: Authors name and telephone
number; class, hometown (student);
position (faculty member); phone num-
ber (will not be published)
TALK TO US
Austin Caster, editor
864-4854 or [email protected]
Jonathan Kealing, managing editor
864-4854 or [email protected]
Joshua Bickel, managing editor
864-4854 or [email protected]
Matthew Sevcik, opinion editor
864-4924 or [email protected]
Sarah Connelly, business manager
864-4014 or [email protected]
John Morgan, sales director
864-4462 or [email protected]
Malcolm Gibson, general manager, news
adviser
864-7667 or [email protected]
Jennifer Weaver, sales and marketing
adviser
864-7666 or [email protected]
THE CROSSWORD CAN WAIT
Its a bird, its a plane, its a decent person!
All
Free
for
Call 864-0500
Free for All callers have 20 seconds to speak about any topic
they wish. Kansan editors reserve the right to omit comments.
Slanderous and obscene statements will not be printed.
Phone numbers of all incoming calls are recorded. Instant
message the Free for All at udkfreeforall.
Christ-missing the point
Good news, Free for All. My girlfriend just called to tell
me that shes not pregnant. Hurray for the Pill!