Thursday
©2003 The Michigan Daily
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Vol. CXIII, No. 129
One-hundred-twelve years of editorialfreedom
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Iraqis celebrate end of Saddam's rule
4 Looting breaks out in
Baghdad while combat
continues in the North
BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - Their hour of free-
dom at hand, jubilant Iraqis celebrated the col-
lapse of Saddam Hussein's murderous regime
yesterday, beheading a toppled statue of their
longtime ruler in downtown Baghdad and
embracing American troops as liberators.
* "I'm 49, but I never lived a single day. Only
now will I start living," said Yussuf Kazim, a
mosque preacher. A young Iraqi spat on a portrait
of Saddam. Men hugged Americans in full com-
bat gear, and women held up babies so soldiers
riding on tanks could kiss them.
Iraqis released decades of pent-up fury as U.S.
forces solidified their grip on the capital. Marine
tanks rolled to the eastern bank of the Tigris
River; the Army was on the western side of the
waterway that curls through the ancient city.
Looting broke out in the capital as Iraqis, shed-
ding their fear of the regime, entered government
facilities and made off with furniture, computers,
air conditioners and even military jeeps.
"We are not seeing any organized resistance;'
said Navy Capt. Frank Thorp at the U.S. Central
Command. "The Iraqi military is unable to fight
as an organized fighting force." And Maj. Gen.
Buford Blount III, commander of the Army's 3rd
Infantry Division, told reporters that "the end of
the combat phase is days away."
At a Pentagon briefing, Defense Secretary
Donald Rumsfeld said Saddam "is taking his
rightful place" alongside such brutal dictators of
the past as Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin and Vladimir
Lenin.
And while Rumsfeld and other American offi-
cials cautioned that combat may lie ahead, Iraq's
U.N. ambassador told reporters that "the game is
over, and I hope peace will prevail." Mohammed
Al-Douri's comments to reporters in New York
were the first admission by an Iraqi official that
Saddam's forces had been overwhelmed.
There was continued combat in cities to the
north, though, where government troops were
under attack from U.S. and British warplanes.
The scenes of liberation in Baghdad and cele-
brations in scattered other cities unfolded as the
Pentagon announced that 101 American troops
had died in the first three weeks of Operation
Iraqi Freedom. Eleven others are missing and
seven listed as captured. The British said 30 of
their troops were dead. There are no reliable esti-
mates for Iraqi casualties, although an Army
spokesman said 7,300 prisoners had been taken.
See WAR, Page 2A
U.S. presence leads tofjoy, hesitation
By Emily Kraack
Daily Staff Reporter
As American troops took Baghdad yesterday,
the day became an impromptu holiday for many
Iraqi Americans. Hundreds of people celebrated
in the streets of Dearborn, a predominantly
Arab Michigan city - people honked car
horns, waved American and Iraqi flags and held
celebratory signs.
Iraqi American students on campus
expressed relief and happiness at the news.
Laith Alattar, an LSA and Music senior,
drove to Dearborn to be a part of the celebra-
tion. "It's crazy. It's emotional, really emotion-
al," he said. "Everyone knows everyone today.
It's just like what's happening in Iraq, on a
Granhoim 4
allies, critic
look back (
first 100 da:
By Dan Trudeau
Daily Staff Reporter
smaller scale."
The fall of Baghdad prompted Alattar, an
Iraqi-American Shiite Muslim, to speculate on
the future of Iraq. "It seems obvious to me that
today has been a victory for America and Iraq;'
he said. "It's the beginning of (Iraqi citizens')
freedom."
LSA freshman Calvin Kattola said all Iraqi
Americans are celebrating today. "You will not
find any Iraqi Americans who are opposed to
this war," he said. "The people who do oppose
the war are the Iraqis in Iraq who are misin-
formed or are just too scared to say otherwise."
But LSA freshman Sayf Al-katib, a Sunni
Muslim born in the United States, said he
thought celebration was premature. "I'm
relieved but I don't know if celebration is how I
"It seems obvious to me
that today has been a
victory for America and
Iraq~
- Laith Alattar
LSA and Music senior
feel;' he said. "I guess I would have to wait a
little bit until I celebrated. It's more of a sym-
bolic taking over right now."
"Beautiful" was the word LSA senior Paul
Gabrail used to describe the sight of American
troops entering Baghdad. "All the things we
See STUDENTS, Page 8A
Also yesterday, Iraqi U.N. Ambassador Mohammed AI-Douri declared "the game is over" for Saddam.
Students write loved
td Ia
ones S -tone in raq
By Emiy Kraack
Daily Staff Reporer
Some students on campus who have friends or
relatives serving in the military in Iraq have been
spending a little extra on postage lately. As the war
in Iraq nears the end of its first month, lines of
communication between soldiers and their friends
at home consist almost completely of packages and
written letters.
LSA freshman Shawn Sinacola said she has not
received a letter from her best friend, Pfc. William
Fischer, since he left the base he was stationed at in
Kuwait, though she has continued to send him let-
ters. Fischer is currently involved in fighting in
Iraq. Sinacola said she keeps her letters to Fischer
upbeat. "I don't talk about the war" she said. "I
recall a lot of memories for him."
Sinacola was hesitant to reveal what Fischer had
written to her. "I don't know, maybe Marines aren't
supposed to say that they're scared," she said.
LSA sophomore Cara Anne Kircos has friends
stationed in Iraq, Turkey and South Korea. She said
that while she receives e-mails and letters from
friends in Turkey and South Korea, communication
from Iraq has stopped.
Kircos said she lets her friends choose what they
want to write about. "I really let them decide - if
there's something on their mind, they're going to
tell me," she said. "If they need to talk, they need to
talk. That's what being a friend is about."
Gary Lillie, a Vietnam War veteran, said it
doesn't surprise him that letters have stopped
coming from Iraq because soldiers do not have
the energy or time to write. He said a Veterans of
Foreign Wars organization sent him a package
while he was serving in Vietnam and he doesn't
remember responding.
"I never did go to that VFW to thank them for
See LETTERS, Page 8A
One hundred days have passed since Gov. Jennifer
Granholm took office on New Year's Day with promises
of innovation and growth for the state of Michigan. While
Granholm has been generally well received by the public,
there is debate about whether the governor has lived up to
her initial promises.
While critics say crippling budget shortfalls of $1.7 bil-
lion and a lack of organization have hindered Granholm
from pursuing the innovative approach she promised, the
governor insists that balancing the budget has been a tri-
umphant accomplishment that has established a foundation
for her future agenda.
"Anyone who looks at the governor's budget proposals can
see where her policies are and where her priorities are. Her
budget laid the framework for the policies she's putting in
place," Granholm spokeswoman Liz Boyd said. "We're very
proud of the first 100 days."
Boyd cited new prescription drug programs and the
restoration of the K-12 foundation grant as examples of pro-
posals within the governor's budget that illustrate her com-
mitment to families and education. The proposed drug
program would extend the health care benefits for citizens
on Medicaid, while the K-12 grant offers resources for
underfunded public school systems.
However, Republicans in the state Legislature are not as
optimistic about the course set so far by the Granholm
administration.
State House Speaker Rick Johnson (R-LeRoy) said the gov-
ernor not only lacks clear stances on policies, but also has
See GRANHOLM, Page 8A
JASON COOPER/Daily
Students protest outside the Michigan Union to support divestment from the
Caterpillar Corporation yesterday.
Studentsdemand
new 'U' di*.vestment
By Carmen Johnson
Daily Staff Reporter
Students shouting, "divest from
Cater-killer" - referring to the Cater-
pillar Corp. bulldozers used by the
Israeli army - rallied on the steps of
the Michigan Union yesterday. Pro-
moting awareness of their campaign
for the withdrawal of University invest-
ments in Caterpillar, Students Allied
for Freedom and Equality members
marched to the Diag holdinga banner
reading "Free Palestine."
Focus on Caterpillar's bulldozers
which students say are used as weapons
and tools for home demolition in the
occupied territories - increased after
American peace activist Rachel Corrie
was killed by a bulldozer last month.
SAFE encouraged students to write
University President Mary Sue Cole-
man, asking her to use the school's
investment as leverage to pressure
Caterpillar, with the hope of ending its
sale of bulldozers to Israel.
But University spokeswoman Julie
Peterson said she is unaware of any
official requests sent directly to the
University calling for divestment.
"University policy in regards to
divestment issues sets a high bar to
make a decision," Peterson said.
"Divesting is a substantive process."
Ann Arbor resident Yumm Elkhoja
said she joined the rally because she
does not want students to forget the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict during the
war in Iraq.
"By divesting, it's symbolic that we
are not going to support these bulldoz-
ers that are used to kill unjustly,"
Elkhoja said. "Regardless of who is
dying, we cannot support an invest-
ment that helps pay for the bulldozers."
Benjamin Cordani, Caterpillar rep-
resentative for social responsibility,
11 See CATERPILLAR, Page 8A
COMBATING
DEPRESSION
By Victoria Edwards
Daily Staff Reporter
Last Sunday, a female student at
Alice Lloyd residence hall took desper-
ate measures against depression when
she swallowed 25 anti-depressant pills
and was rushed to the emergency room.
But many ways to alleviate such
depression exist. Psychology Prof.
Susan Nolen-Hoeksema said several
factors cause depression to emerge dur-
ing the college years.
"The stress of being away from the
social support system of the family and
friends triggers depression in people.
This is especially true if they have a
vulnerability to it," Nolen-Hoeksema
said. "People with bouts of depression
as teens especially, are likely to get
depressed in college."
She added that most serious mental
illnesses such as bipolar disorder and
schizophrenia surface between the
years of 18 and 24. This increased
likelihood of mental illness can result
from genetic predisposition coupled
with the stress of college, as well as
network.
An LSA sophomore who wished to
remain anonymous said that she con-
sidered suicide last November when
her friends distanced themselves from
her just as she was facing an over-
whelming school schedule.
"The broken social circle was a
huge factor in the depression, but it
also dealt with classes - they were
very hard. ... I was working at the
cafeteria as well, which was a physi-
cally demanding job for me. Other
things that factored into the depres-
sion were that I didn't value myself.
When something bad happened I'd
always blame myself. And my friends
made me feel worthless," the sopho-
more said.
She said it got to the point that she
was crying every day. She said she was
constantly angry with herself and her
friends.
"When I woke up in the morning I
would just want to go back to sleep.
Every day was a freaking ordeal" the
sophomore said.
She said it was at that point that she
Dean searches may
reach closure soon
By Jeremy Berkowitz
Daily Staff Reporter
Photo Illustration by NIC''A'ZARU/Dai'y
Most serious mental illnesses such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia surface
between the years of 18 and 24, Psychology Prof. Susan Nolen-Hoeksema said.
to herself.
"I was thinking about slitting my
wrists or jumping off the roof of my
dorm. That is when I decided to seek
counseling at (Counseling and Psycho-
logical Services) at the union," the
sophomore said.
CAPS is a counseling center that is
run exclusively for University students.
CAPS director Todd Sevig said that
because the staff only interacts with
well. They can empathize with what it
is like to graduate and go back home.
As a result they feel that their counsel-
ing - intensely focused on the student
demographic - is unique, he said.
"The overall mission is to support
students in their emotional lives and
try to help them in the academic
pro'ess. And at the same time trying
to help them be emotionally healthy,
and maintain good relationships with
Exactly one year ago, Shirley Neu-
man announced her decision to
become provost at the University of
Toronto after three years as LSA dean.
Today, her former position has yet to
be permanently filled.
But sociology Prof. James House,
chair of the 11-person advisory com-
mittee charged with finding a new
dean, said the search timeline was
delayed because the offices of presi-
dent and provost remained without per-
manent occupants until last fall.
"It's very difficult to move forward
to be the dean of LSA, because they're
going to want to know who they're
going to be working with," House said,
explaining why the search committee
began work last October.
House said he plans for the commit-
by the end of the month to University
Provost Paul Courant, who will submit
his final recommendation to the Uni-
versity Board of Regents.
"I would be guardedly optimistic
that we have a known person by some-
time in May," House said.
He said the list submitted will be
diverse - including internal and exter-
nal candidates, members of underrep-
resented minority groups and faculty
from a variety of disciplines. With the
University's race-conscious admissions
policies being debated by the U.S
Supreme Court, diversity is a high pri-
ority for the University in all areas
especially administration.
"The proportions of starkly under-
represented groups in the academic
institutions decline more or less as you
move up the hierarchy," House said.
Faculty members have expressed
mixed feelings about the search.
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