i LoCAL/STATE The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 31, 1997 - 3 Woman arrested for negligent homicide wVeihong Zhang was arrested by the Ann Arbor Police Department yesterday for the negligent homicide of an elderly woman. One month ago, Zhang was making a left hand turn from Biel Street onto Plymouth Road and hit another vehi- cle that was going eastbound on Plymouth. The side frontal impact killed the passenger of the car going cast. The elderly woman died as *ult of injuries from the crash. Zhang turned himself in to AAPD yesterday and was arraigned later in the afternoon. Ten-foot python attacks owner A woman was bitten by a 10-foot python Tuesday, according to AAPD reports. The woman owns both the 10- Ot python and a three-foot python. When she attempted to pick up the python, it latched onto her arm and locked its jaws, refusing to free the owner. In a moment of panic, a friend pre- sent during the attack called the AAPD for assistance. As the unit was being sent to help, the python released its grip on the woman's arm. The shocked owner sustained ising and minor abrasions to the rearm of her right arm. The python was impounded by the AAPD unit. It is now leaving the city and returning to its previous owner. The owner said she believes the python may have attacked her because of recently being placed in a new environment. WCC bomb scare eancels class Early yesterday morning, Washtenaw County Community College was told that an explosive device was placed on campus, according to a WCC written state- ment. Campus safety officers evacuated staff and students from all campus buildings except the Morris * wrence building. Authorities from the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Department, the Michigan State Police and the Ann Arbor Fire Department investigated the campus for any explosive devices. No explosives were found and classes resumed at 4 p.m. yesterday. Bike injury occurs on Diag A serious bike accident occurred when a student was riding a bike across the Diag yesterday, the Department of Public Safety reports. The accident happened between the Dennison Building and the Randall Lab. The student's head was bleeding and the student sustained a broken nose. The injured person was transported to the University Hospitals' emergency *om. There were no other bicycles or pedestrians involved in the accident. Costly horse-play causes injury A person was stabbed in the arm Tuesday, DPS reports state. The sub- ject was stabbed in the left forearm by a friend. The two friends were horsing *ound when the subject was acciden- tally stabbed with a knife. The cut was minor and the subject was con- scious and breathing. The subject was taken to University Hospitals. - Compiled By Daily Staff Reporter Stephanie Hepburn Clinton adviser educates on cancer By David Bricker Daily Staff Reporter What does it mean to be a cancer sur- vivor? While some choose to hide their bouts with the disease like a lost battle with a bully, Sandra Steingraber, who spoke at Mendelssohn Theater last night, has declared war. While some cancer survivors respond to their personal tragedy with introspection, Steingraber has chosen to educate the public. In 1979, a doctor told the 20-year-old Steingraber that she had bladder cancer. Perhaps credited to her youthfulness and rebelliousness, she fought against the disease and won, then went on to get two post-graduate degrees in ecology. Steingraber, who received a Ph.D. in biology from the University, has written several award-winning books. She has been offered fellowships by many univer- sities, and was recently appointed by President Clinton to develop a National Action Plan on Breast Cancer. Steingraber said her story is one she hopes every cancer patient can tell. "The role I've carved out for myself is a kind of two-way translator," Steingraber said. "I see myself provid- ing a bridge between the cancer activist community and medical researchers. "It's not always easy,"she said. "People will come up to me during the book sign- ings and tell me these sad stories. I often don't know what to say. I feel honored." In a week of University homecomings, Steingraber returned as the inaugural speaker of the Vivian R. Shaw Lecture Series, which is dedicated to exploring issues related to women and cancer. The primary subject of the lecture was Steingraber's book, "Living Downstream: An Ecologist Looks at Cancer and the Environment." In the book, she confronts the murky research on the environmental causes of cancer. Students' Party working to fulfill election agenda By Susan T. Port 1)aily Stafi Reporter On the strength of a string olf resounding camipaign pledges, the Michigan Student Assembly's Students' Party dethroned the previous- ly unbeaten Michigan Party, and took the assembly's political reins after last spring's elections. The party that once teetered on the edge of extinction not only secured MSA's executive positions, but also won a majority of the assembly's 50- plus seats. Its candidates w ere able to do so thanks to many of the party's sweeping promises. The Students' Party platform "We hai included promises to cut MSA's opera- aciutaii tional budget, ensure the tuition muCh a rate increase does 'hair and Michigan Party President Dan Serota said the assembl has ignored the student body by thiling to make any sig- ni ficant attempts at outreach. "The stronger i oiee is not from the assembly but from the student bo''y said Serota, an L.SA senior. Nagrant admitted that the assembly needs to %work on mctin the needs of students. "We haven't actually done as much as we should hax e," Nagr'ant said. "We need outreach. Serota blasted yen t d --o ne as s we nav. " to work on student the Budget Priorities Commit tee for alterinl its applica- tion process this scmestcr fbr student groups applying 10r assembly fnds. le said the committee's old practice of enacting hearings for student groups directly was more - beneficial for stu- PAUL TALANIAN/Daily Sandra Steingraber, who was recently named to a presidential commission about breast cancer, spoke at the Mendelssohn Theater last night. not ex inflation ceed the rate, SWUM a "Cancer is a bigger issue than ever," Steingraber said. "Cancer rates are rising. As they cast a long shadow over all of us, people are really starting to ask why." For Steingraber, interest in carcino- gens is more than peripheral. Her own cancer may have been caused by dan- gerous pesticides near her childhood home in Tazewell County, Ill. Her investigations revealed that more than half the families in the area had at least one member who was battling cancer or had already died from it. Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, Steingraber said, the public seems to believe that cancers are mostly caused by intrinsic, genetic factors. This misunderstanding makes communication between cancer survivors and sympathiz- ers difficult, she said. "You can't change your genes," Steingraber said yesterday. "What we can change is the environment. We put it in, we can take it out. Even those of us who have inherited so-called cancer genes might not get cancer at all." Steingraber's talents are not limited to the sciences. She is also responsible for the award-winning work "Post- Diagnosis," a collection or recollec- tion - of poetry centered around her own cancer. "She always liked to write," said Beverly Rathcke, a biology professor and Steingraber's former research adviser. "Her abilities were evident from the very beginning. She's an excellent communicator." Steingraber, who's been writing poetry since she was seven, said her art was an important emotional outlet while she was ill. "I think I needed the poetry to serve as an encoded expression of the grief, despair, and fear I was feeling," Steingraber said. What does it mean to be a cancer sur- vivor? If Steingraber is any indication, it means you can talk about it. increase outreach to students and build a stronger voice for the student govern- ment on campus. MSA President Mike Nagrant said that after six months in power, his party is heading in the right direction. He said party representatives are currently work- ing to increase student funding by cutting the operational budget and getting rid of internal wastes. Cuts included eliminat- ing four phone lines in MSA offices. "We have to be able to maintain a bal- ance by being able to function well and provide students groups with funding," said Nagrant, an LSA senior. "We cut around $2,500 out of internal spending." MSA Vice President Olga Savic said the assembly and the Students' Party are cutting internal waste while still dispensing high-level stu- dent services. "We were really sincere in the things we wanted to do," Savic said. "We cut to a bare minimum." Nagrant said a concern for the party during elections was the co-existence of both MSA and the leadership round- table, which is an advisory board that meets with Vice President for Student Affairs Maureen Hartford. He said some assembly members worried Hartford would not listen to the assembly. "We wanted to make sure MSA is the first and foremost student voice," Nagrant said. "Maureen Hartford insists MSA is the voice of the stu- dents" Campus Governance Committee - Mike Nagrant MSA President dents. This semester's "inefficiencv-eas- ily could have been avoided ii it had been handled in a proper manner:' Serota said. BPC Chair and Students' Party Rep. Karen Morgan said modifications in the application process were an attempt to make the process more efficient for students. "We tried to make the process quicker. So a group wouldn't have to wait three months to find out if they received find- ing;" said Morgan, an SNRE senior. "I like the timeline. We need to do more work to increase communication." LSA Rep. Trent Thompson said the party has fulfilled its goal of not having tuition increase more than the inflation rate. Thompson said he joined the Students' Party because he thought he could accomplish meaningful initia- tives with the party. "I thought of the Students' Party as people who actually got things done," said Thompson, an LSA junior. "That's why I ran with them." LSA Rep. Rich Kovacik, who ran with the Students' Party this past spring, said the main goal for the party during the elections was to bring the government closer to the students. "This is the first time in a long time that the University of Michigan has had a government that is responsible and open to the student body," Kovacik said. "I haven't seen the assembly work better." Bi-partisan sentiments shown throughout Ann Arbor By Peter Meyers Daily Staff Reporter In many ways, Ann Arbor is divided along twisting partisan lines. While the Ann Arbor City Council holds a Democratic majority, Mayor Ingrid Sheldon is a Republican. Representatives from the two major parties both pointed out major interest groups in the electorate whose votes are almost a guarantee of success for one party or the other. For the Republicans, long-time vol- unteer Ginny Johansen said the student vote was always an obstacle. Students, she said, tend to vote Democratic, and lately their turnout has been higher. "I think, frankly, that's certainly been the case since the election moved from April to Fall," Johansen said, noting that since 1995, city elections have been held in November. Previously, city elec- tions were held in April. Johansen said that since students are in town more often during November, student turnout in the fall has been much higher. Democrats, on the other hand, point to business interests as a force that aids Republicans. The Chamber of Commerce in particular is always Republican, said Douglas Scott, chair of the Ann Arbor branch of the Democratic Party. At present, two of the three Republicans on City Council are partial or full owners of their own businesses. "The party is particularly key (at get- ting out the vote) when there is no pres- idential campaign," Scott said. Local parties function in much the same way as national parties, in that they provide support services for the candidates. Johansen said major services include mass phone calls to voters and prospec- tive donors, and sending volunteers door-to-door. In the 3rd Ward, for example, Johansen said Republican candidate Edward Koster had about 30 regular volunteers. Third-party candidates said they are at a disadvantage at amassing volun- teers. Michael Enright, LSA sopho- more and candidate for the 4th Ward, said he had only five or six volunteers to help him with his campaign. Johansen said that although many GOP volunteers are "just regular sup- porters of the Republican Party," anoth- er important source of volunteerism in local elections is the candidates' per- sonal friends. City elections are small enough, she said, that the number of friends a candidate has could make a noticeable difference. Another factor in the campaign is the amount of financial contribution a can- didate receives. Scott described an elaborate fund-rais- ing network for the Democratic Party. "We have different levels of mailing lists, different levels of activists," Scott said. Scott said there are two groups of Democratic donors in Ann Arbor. There are about 400 regular donors, he said, and an additional group of 200 "spe- cial" donors who are known to be more generous. Johansen said a decent campaign for city council required about $5,000- 6,000. Enright said he was not able to raise that much money. Libertarian Party members from the city and around the state have given him about $900. NEED A HALLOWEEN COSTUME? CHECK OUT TODAY'S FRIDAY FOCUS ILIL- L1 mNI A What's happening in Ann Arbor this weekend FRIDAY U "Halloween/Costume Party and Mixer," Sponsored by The African American Alumni Council, Sheraton University Inn, 3200 Boardwalk Rd., 10 p.m. U "Male Idols of the Japanese Cinema," Movie screening, Sponsored byThe Center for Japanese Studies, Natural Science Auditorium, 7 p.m. U "Mishne Torah Chug for Grad Students," Sponsored by Hillel, Hillel, 1429 Hill St., 8:30 a.m. U "Scott Turner Lecture Series: The Ichthyosaura: Old and New Perspectives on Marine Reptiles of the Mesozoic," Lecture, Snonsored hv The Denartment of The Student Alumni Counc il, Ingalls Mall. SATURDAY U "Alpha Kappa Psi Tailgate," Sponsored by Alpha Kappa Psi, 851 Tappan, 10:30 a.m. J "Cider and Doughnuts," Sponsored byThe Inter-Cooperative Council, ICC office, 337 . William St., 12 m. U "HIV/AIDS Testing," Sponsored by The HIV/AIDS Resource Center, HARC Offices, 3075 Clark Rd., Suite 203, Ypsilanti, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. U "Late Night Sober Sensation: Basketball & Volleyball -rnan."..h I n fcr h r na U "Weekly Rummage Sale," Sponsored by The Kiwanis Club of Ann Arbor, Kiwanis Building, 200 S. First St., corner of Washington, 9 a.m- 12 .m. U "Wine Tasting," Sponsored by The Ann Arbor Jaycees, Valley Ranch Club House, 1315 Oak Valley Dr., ,6:30 p.m. SUNDAY O "Seekers Meeting," Sponsored by .The Ann Arbor Society of Friends, Meetinghouse, 1420 Hill St., 7-9 p.m. U"Sunday Worship," Sponsored by Laymen's Evangelical Fellowship, Ann Arbor YM A, Zonta Room, 10 a.m. I r I