LOCAL/STATE The Michigan Daily - Friday, April 12, 2002 - 3 CR]h4E Empty, wet purse stolen from Lloyd An empty purse was stolen in Alice Lloyd Hall after it was left in the hall- way to dry Wednesday evening, Department of Public Safety reports state. It had been soaked by the rain. Bike stolen after sitting on rack since October A bike was reported stolen from the bike rack at Couzens Residence Hall yesterday, according to DPS reports. It had been left at the racks since October. Timberland boots, Mcard stolen in dorm break-in A room in West Quad was broken into around 1 p.m. Tuesday, DPS reports state. An Mcard and pair of Timberland boots were stolen in the forced entry. DPS has no suspects. Window cracked in West Quad An unknown person cracked the glass on the southeast exterior door to Williams House in West Quad Resi- dence Hall at 4 a.m. yesterday morn- ing, according to DPS reports. Thieves dismantle vent, steal laptop A Compaq laptop valued at $2,000 was taken from a room in Mason Hall last weekend, DPS reports state. Trim and a vent were taken off a door to enter the room. DPS has no suspects. Caller reports un- conscious female on Lloyd floor A caller reported to DPS Wednesday morning that a female had passed out on the 6th floor of Alice Lloyd Resi- dence Hall's Kline House, according to DPS reports. She was transported to University Hospital's emergency room. Computer network c rds stolen from Chemistry Bldg. A caller reported to DPS that com- puter network cards were stolen from three computers in the Chemistry Building between October 2001 and March 2002, DPS reports state. There were no signs of forced entry and DPS has no suspects. Laptop taken from Graduate library A laptop computer was taken from a desk on the 4th floor of Harlan Hatcher Graduate Library around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to DPS reports. DPS has no suspects. Fire extinguisher burgled from dorm A fire extinguisher was stolen from East Quad around 3 a.m. Wednesday, DPS reports state. Man suffers dog bite but declines to file report A DPS officer inside the University Hospital spoke to the victim of a dog bite, according to DPS- reports. The victim said his neighbor's dog bit him but declined to file a report. Wallet lost during trip back to Lloyd A caller reported he had lost his wal- let sometime between 7 p.m. Tuesday and 3 a.m. Wednesday, DPS reports state. He said he had his wallet in his backpack when he left, and realized it was missing when he returned to his room in Alice Lloyd Residence Hall. - Compiled by Daily Staff Reporter Rob Goodspeed. Goodness Day celebrates kindness, fun By Christopher Johnson Daily Staff Reporter As the warm weather yesterday beckoned stu- dents to lounge on the greens of the Diag in T- shirts and sandals while the menace of pending examinations momentarily faded, the organizers of Goodness Day distributed cheerful buttons and candy yesterday to celebrate to the change in sea- sons and promote minor acts of kindness. The orange buttons, which read "Finding the time to be kind," promoted a new consideration of thoughtfulness among students. The celebration served to herald the com- ing of Spring, and event organizers couldn't have asked for better weather. "We planned this for the week before finals," said LSA sophomore Janet O'Connor, a member of the Goodness Day Planning Team. "It's just coincidental with the good weather." Goodness Day organizer to promote cheerfulness a campus, in spite of th encroaching end of the sem "We're just showing stud to be nice and how easyi O'Connor said. Business senior Dora Vi Goodness Day, also stress purpose of the event. "W friendliness on campus a together," she said. In addition to the orange ning team distributed gre gested ideas for acts of kin included walking throug smile and thanking a prof rs said they hoped nd compassion on he stressful and :ester. nities, sororities and cultural organizations, contributed to the event. Members of LSA Student Government dis- tributed free blue books and Hershey's Chocolate Kisses to those who passed for Alpha Phi. Ellen Kolasky, a member of the Public Inter- est Research Group in Michigan, said that although her organization did not plan to pres- ent a display as part of Goodness Day, the event cents how easy it is through the Diag. helped to draw the interest of many spectato it is to have fun," "Part of student government is serving the to sign a petition that encouraged the Univers community," said LSA freshman Dante Ianni, to reduce the consumption of energy. ilensky, director of the community service coordinator for LSA- "It's definitely bringing people out to t ed the lighthearted SG. "We took part so people can relax before Diag who are willing to stop by to see wh e want to increase finals and so we can give back for what we we offer," she said. nd bring diversity take in student fees." Many students agreed the event encourag The Alpha Phi sorority organized a water kind acts among others throughout the day. buttons, the plan- toy game, rewarding participants with candy "I've had more people open doors forn en cards that sug- and predictions of their fortune according to and more random people say hello," L dness. Possibilities their performance. senior Dara Frank said. ;h campus with a "We thought it would be fun. It's good for "I just like buttons and orange is n essor for an inter- philanthropy, it makes people feel good and favorite color," LSA freshman Tony Rose we get to skip class," said Music junior thal said, adding that he appreciated t s, including frater- Megan Johnson, vice president of recruitment greater sense of kindness on campus. ACLU encourages political dissent as a patriotic action ors ity he hat ged me SA my en- the esting lecture. About 50 si tudent group By Soojung Chang Daily Staff Reporter A skit featuring the characters Lady Liberty, one of the founding fathers, "General Attorney" John Ashcroft, Bill O' Rights and a pint-sized "Dubya" opened this year's annual meeting of the Washtenaw County Branch and the University's Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union yesterday. A panel of speakers that included ACLU Legal Director Michael Steinberg, University history Prof. Martha Jones, United Auto Worker Health Safety Spe- cialist Luis Varquez and Heidelberg Project artist Tyree Guyton spoke on the need for political dissent. "Dissent is easy and can be done in many different ways," Washtenaw ACLU board member Mary Rave said. "The important thing is to speak out so they can't say that everybody agrees with them." Steinberg, who spoke about the legitimacy of dissent, said speaking out against injustice is an American tra- dition. "In times of crises, it is even more important for citizens to dissent when the government is doing wrong," he said. "Dissent is not antipatriotic. ... That's the point we're trying to make." Steinberg referred to recent post-Sept. 11 events that have raised concerns about the civil liberties of Arab- Americans. The ACLU recently filed a suit to open the high-pro- file Rabih Haddad case to the general public. Haddad, a local Muslim leader, is being held on a visa violation, while officials investigate the Global Relief Founda- tion, a charity he co-founded, for possible links to ter- rorism. The union also created the Know-Your-Rights Hot- line for people of Middle Eastern and Arab descent who received letters requesting interviews following the terrorists attacks. It is also investigating potential lawsuits involving complaints against racial profiling people of Arabic descent. Rave said they tried to put together a program that would get more people to come to their annual meet- ing, where they nominate members for board posi- tions. "in times of crisis, it is even more important for citizens to dissent when the government is doing wrong." - Michael Steinberg ACLU Legal Director "It's a very exciting program all about dissent as an act of patriotism," said Ellen Rabinowitz, president of the Washtenaw County ACLU. "It is a topic that I think is important to the times." Varquez, who directed the opening skit, said theater has a long history as a tool for expressing dissent. The cast of the opening skit sang parodies about Attorney General John Ashcroft and President Bush as Bill O'Rights was literally stripped of his rights by the "General Attorney." Lady Liberty, played by Rave, saved the day by striking down the General Attorney and driving away Dubya. Guyton said he used art to show dissent with his Hei- delberg Project in Detroit. "I went out and decided that I would change my com- munity myself," Guyton said. He converted an aban- doned building into a highly controversial work of art that the city is trying to shut down. "These things speak to people at some unintellectual level and it's very powerful," he said. "(Guyton's) art deals with social and political issues that we're facing today," said Jenenne Whitfield, execu- tive director of the Heidelberg Project. Rave said the ACLU is a watchdog for the state legis- lature and the courts. She said they defend people whose rights are threatened as well as hold lobbies and educational programs. "Many people don't really understand what the Bill of Rights really is. ...What it does is defend the minori- ty from the majority," she said. BRENDAN O'DONNELL/Daily Harvest Mission Community Church member and LSA Junior Peter Shim makes cotton candy on the Diag as part of Goodness Day yesterday afternoon. Paraysis victims Cl Think First addrt*ess spinal cord injuries By Kylene Kiang Daily Staff Reporter Romulus resident Todd Hammons suffered a spinal cord injury 13 years ago in a diving accident. He said back then he was known as a "wild man" at parties. "As a 19-year old, I thought I knew everything - but the truth was I knew absolutely nothing in terms of brain and spinal cord injury. Once you injure them, it doesn't leave you," Hammons said. People ages 15 to 24 are most at risk for spinal cord injuries, as nearly 20,000 people suffer from them every year, said Laura Zang, coordinator for the Ann Arbor Think First program, a group that promotes injury prevention aware- ness to middle and high school stu- dents. Zang and Hammond gave stu- dents a glimpse into life with paral- ysis as part of a Students Take On Paralysis event last night at the Michigan League. STOP is a non- profit student group that seeks to promote awareness of spinal cord injury prevention through campus events and community service. Zang's presentation elucidated the medical ramifications of spinal cord injuries. Fifty percent of all spinal cord injuries result in quadraplegia and more than half of those injuries are accompanied with some form of trauma to the brain, she said. "We still don't know how to trans- plant neural tissues to cure these injuries.... The good news is that most of these injuries are preventable," Zang said, adding that simple precautions such as consistently wearing seatbelts or bicycle helmets increase a person's chances of surviving injury by 20 times. Zang said the majority of brain and spinal cord injuries result from automobiles, bicycles, playing sports and swimming pool-related accidents. "Young people are constantly put- ting themselves in harm's way - especially in the presence of drugs and alcohol," she said. After spending six months in reha- bilitation and another year in outpa- tient rehabilitation, Hammons said his unwillingness to give up has been a constant since his accident. "I found a ton of patience I never knew I had," he said. Hammons gave the audience a candid account of his daily routine while stressing the importance of safety precautions. "I never thought it could happen to me. I want people to know that it could happen to anyone," he said. Being able to positively influence others through awareness is some- thing he fully enjoys, he added. "I get joy out of it, but at the same time, there's still a lot of pain." THIS WEEK IN The Michigan Daily HISTORY aril 12, 1955 - Dr.Thomas Francis, Jr., announced that the Salk Polio Vaccine was between 8 and 90 percent effective.As the announcement was made at the University's Rackham Lecture Hall, reporters called the Daily, who had two stories typeset and ready to roll.With- in 10 minutes of the official announcement, they were selling a special edition on the steps of the Student Publications Building.The Daily was the first newspaper to report on the suc- cess of the vaccine. Daily reporter Lee Marks wrote,"There is no doubt that the fight against polio is nearing an end. Children can definitely be innoculated successfully against the crippling effects of paralytic polio, Dr. Francis' report proved." WANT T.PEN JOURNALISTIC BRILLIANCE? CALL. 76-AILY OR E-MAIL US AT sUMM ERNEWS.2002 @UMICH.EDU iU Correction: Department of Public Safety Officer Mark West and his dog Brutus, a two-year-old bengian malinois recently added to DPS' staff, were incorrectly identified in a caption on page three of Wednesday's Daily. Also, Jessy, the name of DPS' two-year-old German shepherd, was spelled incorrectly in a story on page three of Wednesday's Daily. THE CALENDAR What's happening in Ann Arbor this weekend FRIDAY "Medicine as a Bridge to Peace In the Middle East"; Lecture by Amy GoIdstein. Noon-1 p.m.. the Department of Geo- logical Sciences, Lecture by Catherine Johnson, 4 p.m., 1538 C. C. Little Building of Music, 8 p.m., Britton Recital Hall, School of Music SUNDAY "Getcha Laugh On"; Spon- SERVICES Campus information Centers, 764-INFO, info@umich.edu, or www. umich.edu/nfo SSAI eWi,, 76WALK. .... ...