TODAY:
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March 3, 2003
@2003 The Michigan Daily
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Vol. CXIII, No. 101
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III 11MINNIMME I I 11111111115110=1
CIA will
question
al- Qaida
operative
WASHINGTON (AP) - The CIA
wants to get inside Khalid Shaikh
Mohammed's head.
But his interrogators - CIA, FBI or
from a foreign security service -- are
working against the clock.
Mohammed's information about
impending terrorist operations and the
location of al-Qaida leaders and cells
grows more dated by the hour.
Whether the CIA can learn anything
useful from the alleged Sept. 11 mas-
termind depends on the skills and
methods of the interrogators,
Mohammed's willingness to talk and
perhaps simply time.
Captured early Saturday in a raid in
Pakistan, he is now believed to be in
U.S. custody overseas.
Of top priority during the ques-
tioning is gaining intelligence that
could help quickly disrupt attacks
being planned or lead to added pre-
cautions, American counterterrorism
officials said.
That could mean a domestic law
enforcement raid to break up a cell
ready to strike, or an increase of securi-
ty at areas Mohammed names as tar-
gets subject to imminent attacks.
Intelligence about Mohammed's activi-
ties led in part to the orange alert that
lasted most of February, counterterror-
ism officials said.
Overseas, it could mean an operation
that leads to the capture of al-Qaida
leader Osama bin Laden.
But such information is just what he
is most likely to try to keep secret, or
lie about. Still, terrorists who learn of
Mohammed's capture may alter their
plans, abandon safe houses or make
hurried telephone calls - actions that
could expose them to detection.
The only al-Qaida capture that
approaches the magnitude of
Mohammed's was that of Abu Zubay-
dah last March. Zubaydah more than
once provided information that sent
American security officials scurrying
to provide warnings to cities and sec-
See QUESTIONING, Page 3A
Feb. consumer
index fals to
nine-year low
By Lydia K. Leung
Daily Staff Reporter
Ar 'PU
Detroit residents Damien Cash-Osaze, Rishard Peterson and Erin Johnson stand in front of the Theodore Levin U.S. Federal
Courthouse during a rally in support of affirmative action Saturday in Detroit.
Affirmatie actzern supporters
makamarchiz/Detroit
Consumers had a tough time last
month as uncertainties created by a
heightened terror attack alert, possible
war with Iraq and skyrocketing oil
prices worsened the already gloomy
economy. This pessimistic outlook was
reflected by the University's Consumer
Sentiment Index, which dropped to a
new nine-year low in February.
According to final results released
Friday, the index fell to 79.9 - just two
points away from its lowest level, which
occurred in September of 1993.
The decline indicated that consumers
feel far less optimistic about the econo-
my than a year ago, when it stood at
90.7.
The drop pushed the index halfway
between its all-time peak of 112.0 and
its all-time low of51.7.
"Its middling level is sufficient to pro-
mote widespread uncertainty," Richard
Curtin, director of the University's Sur-
veys of Consumers, said in a written
statement.
According to economists, con-
sumer spending fuels two-thirds of
the United States' economy. So if
consumer confidence remains
bleak, recovery of the economy
would be hampered.
But Curtin said even if the index's
current level does not spur rapid
economic growth, the level is still
"high enough to avoid a recession-
ary downturn."
According to Friday's report from
the U.S. Commerce Department, the
economy fared better in 2002's last
quarter than previously expected.
The economy grew at a revised
annual rate of 1.4 percent over last
year's fourth quarter, doubling from
January's estimated number - but
still remained far below the 4 per-
cent growth rate of the third quarter
of 2002.
"I think the war is a
contributing factor, I
don't think it's the sole
factor. Consumer
confidence has been
down for a while."
- Nejat Seyhun
Business School professor
"Consumers anticipated that the pace
of economic growth will slow in the
months ahead, but most consumers
expect a quick resolution to the war, and
thus expect only a temporary impact on
the overall economy,"Curtin said.
"I think the war is a contributing fac-
tor, I don't think it's the sole factor. Con-
sumer confidence has been down for a
while," Business School Prof. Nejat
Seyhun said.
Besides the threat of war, oil
prices are at the highest level since
the Persian Gulf War and are caus-
ing consumers to become more con-
cerned about their financial
situation.
Seyhun said consumers might cut
back on entertainment and other
luxury spending to compensate
their extra expenditures on petrole-
um and heating oil.
Engineering junior Paul Lee, who just
returned from New York City for his
Spring Break trip, said though the eco-
nomic situation did not affect his travel-
ing plans, leisure expenses were limited
during his stay.
"I don't have much money anymore"
Lee said. "But I am not too worried
about the economy because the econo-
my is always a cycle with ups and
downs."
However, most Americans are not
as unconcerned as Lee. The Index
of Consumer Expectation - anoth-
See INDEX, Page 2A
By Carmen Johnson
Daily Staff Reporter
Poster-waving, maize-and-blue-wearing affirmative
action supporters moved their march away from the
usual activism hotspot of Ann Arbor this weekend,
showing their support in downtown Detroit for the Uni-
versity's race-conscious admissions policies. After lis-
tening to speeches near Comerica Park, Detroit
residents and other supporters marched down to the
U.S. Federal Courthouse, where the University's law-
suits against race-conscious admissions policies were
originally heard two years ago.
Declaring their reasons for defending affirmative
action, Detroit civil rights leaders, activists, members
of the clergy and college students rallied to rouse
enthusiasm of the 200-plus crowd.
"Race should be discovered and developed as a char-
acter," said the Rev. Wendel Anthony, president of the
Detroit branch of the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People. "Our legacy isn't
going to a university, it was building the university for
everyone to enjoy," he said, referring to the added
admission points given to athletes or for students with
a legacy.
The national organizer for the Coalition to Defend Affir-
mative Action and Integration and Fight for Equality By Any
Means Necessary, Shanta Driver, also spoke before the
crowd, pushing for a national march on Washington on April
1 - the day the Supreme Court will hear the University's
admission policies lawsuit.
U.S. Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Detroit) also
urged supporters to march before the Supreme Court.
"Change comes from the bottom, from the people to the
leaders," she said. "You have to force leaders to act."
See MARCH, Page 3A
I
Scientists find 'stem cells' in breast cancer
Discovery could explain
current treatment failures,
introduce better methods
By Katie Glupker
Daily Staff Reporter
Researchers are excited about the possible
cancer treatments that could result from a
recent discovery of a new type of cells.
The University Comprehensive Cancer
Center unveiled the cells, which are simi-
lar to stem cells in human breast cancer,
last week. In a written statement, internal
medicine Prof. Michael Clarke called it a
"very promising lead."
Cancer researchers are learning that only a
small number of cancer cells actually go on to
form malignant tumors. "These tumor-inducing
cells have many of the properties of stem cells,"
Clarke said. Stem cells show promise in many
areas of medical research because of their abili-
ty to duplicate themselves. Clarke added that
the stem cell-like cells found in breast cancer
"make copies of themselves ... and produce all
the other kinds of cells in the original tumor."
The identification of these tumor-causing
cancer cells will be the starting point for
the development of more effective cancer
treatments. Since researchers now know
these stem cell-like cancer cells are the
most dangerous, they can target those cells
for elimination.
This changes the focus of much cancer
research and also provides medical profession-
als with an explanation as to why current treat-
ments for breast cancer sometimes fail. "The
goal of all our existing therapies has been to
kill as many cells within the tumor as possi-
ble," said Max Wicha, oncologist and director
of the UMCCC, in a written statement. He
added that the current treatments have been
ineffective because they target "the wrong
cells with the wrong treatments ... if we are to
have any real cures in advanced breast cancer,
it will be absolutely necessary to eliminate
these cells," he said.
Wicha explained how new cancer treatments
will be different because of this discovery. "For
the first time, we can define what we believe
are the important cells - the cells which deter-
mine whether the cancer will come back or be
cured," he said, "Before this, we didn't even
know there were such cells."
Wicha and Clarke said they are hopeful that
the discovery of these cells in breast cancer will
lead to similar findings in other types of cancer,
and ultimately, answers about how cancer
develops in the human body.
Wishing you were here
College Dems win
nation honor
By Elizabeth Anderson
Daily Staff Reporter
The University of Michigan College Democrats
received a national honor last week when they were
named the College Democrats of America Chapter of
the Year. This award is given to one College Democrats
chapter each year, out of several hundred college chap-
ters nation wide.
This year, the University's chapter beat out applicants
from schools such as Harvard University, New York Uni-
versity and George Washington University. The award was
based on activities that occurred during 2002.
Last year, the University College Democrats mem-
bers organized several events with many high-profile
speakers, including Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm
and U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Evan Bayh
(D-Ind.). College Democrats member and LSA senior
Michael Simon said the University's chapter showed
strength in the diversity of events.
"I think (the College Democrats of America) were
particularly impressed that we brought in all five
Democratic gubernatorial candidates to speak on cam-
pus," Simon said. "We also held a big rally before the
elections. All the state-wide Democratic candidates
came to speak on campus."
The College Democrats also co-sponsored an event
Pledge of
Allegiance
case refused
by court
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - Rebuffing
the Bush administration, a federal appeals
court Friday refused to reconsider its rul-
ing that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance
in public schools is unconstitutional
because of the words "under God."
The case could go next to the U.S.
Supreme Court.
Attorney General John Ashcroft con-
demned the decision and said the Justice
Department will "spare no effort to pre-
serve the rights of all our citizens to
pledge allegiance to the American flag."
But he stopped short of saying the admin-
istration will appeal to the high court.
In June, a three-judge panel of the 9th
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 2-1
that the words "under God" amount to a
government endorsement of religion and
violate the separation of church and state.
The ruling was attacked by President
Bush, Congress and many others, and the
Bush administration asked the full 9th Cir-
cuit to reconsider.
Only nine of the 24 active judges on the
9th Circuit backed that move.
The June ruling, which applies to the
nine Western states the court covers, had
been put on hold until the full court
reviewed it.
It was not immediately clear when
the ban might take effect for the mil-
lions of public school students in those
states: Alaska, Arizona, California,
Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Ore-
gon and Washington. Appellate rulings
take several weeks to take effect, to
give each side an opportunity to
appeal.
The challenge was brought by Sacra-
mento atheist Michael Newdow, who
objected to his 8-year-old daughter's lis-
See PLEDGE, Page 3A
BRETT MOUNTAIN/Daily
A sunbather lounges under an umbrella in Gulf Stream, Fla. last
week where temperatures reached the high '80s.
TuNY UING/Daily
A case deciding the constitutionality of the Pledge of
Allegiance may be headed to the U.S. Supreme Court.
I 1 See DEMOCRAS, Page 3AR