news@michigandaily.com NEWS The Michigan Daily - Friday, February 13, 2004 - 3 CAIPmus 'Medshovelers' volunteer to clean driveways Students rally in support of V-day Information about Valentine's Day will be presented today at noon on the Diag, at the V-Day rally. The rally will consist of activities such as poetry, music and dancing. All proceeds will go to SAFE House as well as other international charities. SAFE House is also receiving funds from showings of the Vagina Monologues, a series of narratives about women's sexuality, will take place at the Power Center in two shows Sunday, one at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets will be $10 each for stu- dents and $15 for community mem- bers. Proceeds will go to SAFE House. History journal to hold meeting in Tisch Hall History students interested in writing for the Michigan Journal of History should meet at 7 p.m. at 1024 Tisch Hall Sunday. This jour- nal is aimed at publishing history papers of University undergradu- ates. Because the meeting will be held after hours, the building is only accessible through the Diag entrance of Haven Hall. Pierpont Commons brings Mardi Gras to North Campus The famous New Orleans celebra- tion of Mardi Gras will go north Sunday to Pierpont Commons from noon to 3 p.m. The celebration will include cos- tume making, storytelling, Zydeco music, dancing and Mardi Gras crafts. A parade, with people in costume will circle the Commons. The unusual celebration is being spon- sored by the Pierpont Commons Arts and Programs. The concert will be performed by the tuba and euphonium ensemble at 3 p.m. near the School of Music at Britton Recital Hall. IASA to perform dance program in competition The University's Raas Core and Indian American Student Associa- tion will perform a program of Indi- an Raas dance, "Dandia Dhamaka," competing with college teams from across the nation tomorrow at 6:30 p.m. The dancing style originated in ancient times in the northwestern Indian state of Gujarat as part of the Navrati festival that honors Hindu goddesses. The dance involves rotating cir- cles of elaborately dressed male and female singing dancers and gestures with decorated rods. The Michigan Theater will sell tickets for $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Lecture explores sexuality among Greeks, Romans Classical Studies Prof. Lauren Caldwell, and English 125 teacher who lectures about gender and sexual- ity in Greece and Rome, will speak Tuesday at 4 p.m. in Lane Hall. This lecture will analyze how ancient Greek and Roman physi- cians interpreted biological changes in female puberty. It will also explore such avenues as female sex- uality and the age of female matri- mony through the use medical analysis. Jazz festival to feature ensemble concerts, clinics A free jazz festival will take place from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. tomorrow at the Earl V. Moore School of Music building. The annual event will feature per- formances by 20 high school and col- lege ensembles as well as clinics lectures and master classes. Registration for the event is availed at www.music.umich.edu. The School of Music is sponsoring the event. Students can donate blood at mediail Ilibrarv By Koustubh Patwardhan Daily Staff Reporter Medical School student David Lee remem- bered watching his grandfather struggling to shovel 10 inches of snow last winter. Seeing that, Lee was inspired to do some- thing to help senior citizens struggling through another cold winter. For the past two months, Lee, and many of his Medical School colleagues, known as the Medshovelers, have been devoting their pre- cious time to helping senior citizens clear their driveways of snow. In all, there are more than 70 volunteers divided into eight teams. Each group is assigned the house of a sen- ior citizen, and every time there is a snow accumulation of more than two inches team leaders rally their members to shovel the driveways and walkways outside the senior's home. Lee said he made the groups large because everybody cannot show up each time, and this way if even a few people show up then the job is still relatively easy. Joel Escobedo, a University Medical School student and Medshoveler, said it is "very rewarding to help people who by shov- eling would have put themselves in danger for falls, hypothermia, and other related ill- nesses." "Ultimately, the hope is to prevent snow- related injuries among the elderly" Lee said. The response has been overwhelming. Medshovelers receive many telephone calls and e-mail requests from senior citizens for shoveling, Lee said. He added that there are more than 20 sen- iors who have asked for help but cannot receive it because the group does not have the necessary resources in terms of shovels and manpower to meet the necessary demand. "I like it, they're great" said Don Zellar, 76, a senior who has been helped by this group. "They did as good of a job that any- body can do, and not only did the front side of my house but also did the backside for me." Escobedo said he joined the organization because it was a great way to help seniors and at the same time be somewhat related to the medical profession. "By shoveling their driveways and walk- ways we might indirectly prevent unnecessary visits to the doctor," he said. Jonie Hsiao, a Medical School student and volunteer, said she joined the organization because she was interested in helping out the elderly. "Ultimately, the hope is to prevent snow-related injuries among the elderly:" - David Lee Medical School student and Medshoveler She added that in the fall she had helped rake leaves for the elderly. But she said she thought that snow shovel- ing would be more appropriate for students because "it takes much more brute force and energy." She said that when she went to college in Baltimore she would hear on the news that many seniors died of heart attacks because of the strain caused by snow shoveling. Students..question new tax hikes for tobacco, alcohol You have been warned. By Victoria Edwards Daily Staff Reporter Gov. Jennfier Granholm's budget for Fiscal Year 2004-05 could lead to two taxes increases - one on cigarettes and the other on alcohol. The budget, announced yesterday, calls for a 75 percent increase in the cigarette tax, causing a raise from $1.25 to $2. This would make Michi- gan's cigarette tax the second highest in the country, after New Jersey. The liquor tax would rise from 65 to 74 percent, excluding beer and wine. Students expressed mixed reactions on the tax markups, which will not only attempt to raise revenue but also to decrease the number of smokers in the population. "It's not going to stop smokers because it is an addiction. I have friends who order stuff from the Internet to get around the tax, people have their ways," said LSA sophomore Chelsea Kaiser. School of Music freshman Jamie Cooper echoed Kaiser's beliefs that the tax would not force students to quit these habits. "No, I think it'll make peo- ple work just that much harder at their job (to cover the tax)," Cooper said. LSA junior Sharon Kim also said the tax would be ineffective in curbing stu- dents habits. "If people want to smoke they will do it, even if they have to pay more," said Kim. "Also, I think alcohol is a big part of college life, the tax wont deter students from doing it." But although this tax won't stop people from smoking, it will make many people bitter and unhappy, Kim said. "I don't think it's a good idea. I think it's kind of crappy. People will be very unhappy about it. I don't smoke but my friends do and they'll complain about it. It seems like a desperate means to get money from people in the state," Kim added. But there were positive responses to the tax as well. LSA senior Andrea Peinado said that as long as the money is used constructively she is in support of the proposed taxes. "If the money is gong to fund something useful I guess it's OK," Peinado said. School of Music freshman John Rouah also said that although there were advantages fiscally for the state, in other avenues the tax was ineffective. "It's a brilliant idea if the main goal is to raise money for the state. But if the goal is to lower the number of abuses and death (from) the substances it's pointless. It will just make people work that much harder to make a couple extra bucks to smoke," Rouah said. Still, Peinado expressed doubt that this tax would deter anyone from smok- ing or drinking. "People will drink regardless and smoke whether or not there is a tax. Maybe it is different with college kids, though, because they don't have the money," Peinado said. - Daily Staff Reporter Michael Gurovitsch contributed to this report. ALu OLSEN/Daily Flyers attached to bike racks outside Mary Markley Residence Hall warn that bikes will have to be relocated before students leave for Spring Break to make way for a construction project to the School of Public Health complex. Correction: A story on Page 1A of yesterday's Daily should have said that eight out of 10 members of the Panhellenic Association executive board received a vote of no confidence. Please report any errors in the Daily to corrections@umich.edu Human rights activist Juan Mendez of Argentina speaks in the University's Advanced Study Center yesterday. In his lecture encouraging students to become activists, Mendez recalled his experiences during the 1970s, when he was imprisoned for one and a half years by the Argentinian government. SHUBRA OHRI/Daily coming soon! Sibling's Weekend March 12-14, 2004 www.umich.edu/-rha ............................................. RHA and Relay For Life present: A Yost Skate Niot February 19, 2004 10p-12a $5/person All proceeds benefit the American Cancer Society For more info or to start a team for Relay: www.acsevents.org/relay/mi/uofm Human rights activist recounts life under military dictatorship By Marie Handfheld For the Daily Even after being tortured from Argentina's military dictator- ship in the 1970s for advocating human rights, activist Juan Mendez describes his career and life with modesty. "I was just part of my generation. We all wanted to change the world, and I decided to use what skills I had to help," Mendez said before an audience of 30 people in the University's Advanced Study Center yesterday. "It was a time of great social upheaval, and I saw it not only as a con- tribution, but a duty." past violations into the open for the victims, as well as punish- ment for those responsible in the form of criminal prosecution. Mendez cited the importance of treating each country's situ- ation as unique, but he added that he believes there is a funda- mental universality inherent to what he called the human rights movement. "I don't think it is more important for my family to know what happened to me while I was in prison than it is for a mother in Rwanda to know who ordered the execution of her son and why" Mendez said. Although the lecture attracted a diverse audience of faculty and community members, student attendance was low. 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