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One-hundred-thirteen years of edtorialfreedom
www.michganday.com Ann Arbor, Michigan . Vol. CXV, No. 2 x2004 The Michigan Daily
Bush and
*Kerry
square off
in debate
First presidential
debate will take place
tonight at 9 p.m.
By Donn M. Fresard
Daily Staff Reporter
The candidates will not be allowed to
address each other directly, leave their
lecterns or even use non-approved writ-
ing utensils for note-taking. But despite
the meticulously scripted format, stu-
dent political leaders say the first presi-
dential debate, which will take place at
9 p.m. tonight, will be much like tele-
vised debates of the past - that is, at
least as much about image as it is about
issues.
Tonight's debate in Florida, the first
of three scheduled between Bush and
Kerry, will focus on foreign policy. The
debate is widely expected to be a defin-
ing moment of the campaign - espe-
cially for Kerry, who analysts say has
yet to make a connection with a large
portion of the voters who are dissatis-
fied with Bush.
The debate will provide Kerry with
his best chance yet to clearly define
his position on the war in Iraq. Kerry,
who in recent weeks has dramatically
sharpened his message against Bush, is
expected to use the continuing violence
in Iraq to convince voters that Bush
has mismanaged the war and neglected
other dangers.
Bush will likely stick to the message
he has used throughout the campaign,
attempting to paint Kerry as indecisive
and weak on defense and defending the
war for bringing democracy to Iraq
College Republicans chair Allison
Jacobs and College Democrats chair
Ramya Raghavan said student interest
in the debates this year is high, and pre-
dicted that the debates would be impor-
See DEBATE, Page 9A
Filmmaker and activist Michael Moore speaks about the upcoming election and defends Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry last night at Hill Auditorium.
Moore turns up
heat in Hill
By Sarah Peterson
Daily Fine Arts Editor
Students protest filmmaker's visit
"Calm down, Republicans," said Michael
Moore, setting the tenor for sold-out Hill Audi-
torium. "They're a little ornery. They only have
a few weeks left."
The activist and filmmaker announced that
while he respects Republicans, "Bush has got to
go" and the only way for the American people to
accomplish this is to go out and vote.
The goal of the night was to reach out to col-
lege-aged students, one of the largest under-
represented groups at the polls. Moore gave out
- prizes to people who registered to vote while at
the speech, but the majority of the night was an
anti-Bush rally.
Moore talked about the catchphrases of the
Bush campaign: "Top liberal, flip-flop, you're
going to die," chanted Moore. Moore compared
the "mantra" to a bad song that gets stuck in your
head. He continued on to say that those mantras
do get stuck in your head, saying all challenger
John Kerry has is "I'm not Bush." Moore then
laughed, "This is good enough for me."
The Michigan Student Assembly, who paid
for the event using student funds, made a $200
profit and sold out all 3,500 seats in Hill Audito-
rium, according to Jesse Levine, MSA student
general counsel.
Another issue Moore discussed was the
Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ads that criti-
cize Kerry's Vietnam war record. He com-
mented on how the advertisements complained
that Kerry did not bleed, to which, after an
impregnated pause, the auditorium erupted
into laughter. Moore then offered five ads as a
"gift" to the Bush campaign. The ads sported
such catch lines as "one limb left equals cow-
See MOORE, Page 8A
Group considers commuter train to Detroit
Commuter
consensus
By Karl Stampfl
Daily Staff Reporter
* In the case of an emergency at home in Chicago, LSA fresh-
man Michael Rabinowitz would first have to hail a taxi, com-
mission it to go to Detroit, then find a flight out of the Detroit
Metropolitan Airport.
However, a study of mass transportation options between
Ann Arbor and Detroit may lead to making a trip to Detroit
simpler.
The Southeast Michigan Council of Governments General
Assembly is studying whether a rapid transit route to Detroit
would be feasible. The assembly is a private organization that
plans on behalf of local governments on the subjects of trans-
portation, economics and the environment.
"We've started the process by looking at all options," said
Carmine Palombo, SEMCOG's director of transportation
planning. "We'll whittle it down to the best alternative."
One of the options is a commuter train. Another option is
Bus Rapid Transit, designed to combine the flexibility of a bus
with the comfort of a train. It would be capable of running on
exclusive transitways, expressways and ordinary streets. One
of its benefits is its cleanliness and quietness, according to the
assembly.
Nothing has been decided yet. The study will range 18
months - it began in October 2003 and is scheduled for com-
pletion in June 2005.
"We've done a regional transit study to identify corridors
of candidacy for more public transportation," Palombo said.
"The Ann Arbor to Detroit Corridor was one of those. We're
moving forwgrd with the next phase, determining whether the
costs and benefits make it feasible."
The study's public kick-off is a series of meetings open to
all citizens from Oct. 19 through Oct. 21. In the meetings, the
assembly will judge interest in local communities.
"We've heard that a number of communities are very inter-
ested," Palombo said. "Washtenaw County, Ypsilanti, Ann
Arbor, Wayne County and Detroit have all expressed inter-
est."
Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick believes his city is in an
upswing and mass transportation is a way to facilitate the
progress.
"We absolutely believe wholeheartedly in mass transit," said
Howard Hughey, Kilpatrick's press secretary. "The mayor and
Legislature believe it would make our region more competi-
tive globally. It would help grow Detroit."
Exploring how rapid transit may help local economies is a
goal of the study.
"The transit plan aims to enhance overall transportation,"
Palombo said. "But it also aims to improve the region's eco-
nomic competitiveness."
Ann Arbor residents, who number 114,000 during the school
year, would have greater access to visit and spend money in
See DETROIT, Page 9A
Public meetings will be held
to gauge community support
for increased mass trans-
portation from Ann Arbor to
Detroit
Oct. 19, 4 to 8 p.m., Washtenaw
Community College.
Oct. 20, 4 to 8 p.m., SEMCOG
office, 535 Griswold St., Suite 300,
Detroit.
Oct. 21, 4 to 8 p.m., Henry
Ford Community Performing Arts
Center, Dearborn.
Animal rights
. activist shocks with
pictures, message
ELECTIONS '04
Polls: Michigan
likely to vote for
gay marriage ban
By Allie Horevitz
and Lucille Vaughan
Daily Staff Reporters
Lecturing to a mostly sympathet-
ic audience, Paul Shapiro delivered
a controversial and heated message
yesterday: conscious consumers
should reject meat and egg products,
which are created in an atmosphere
of suffering and economic waste.
"From our very childhood we
create these myths to help us feel
better about eating these products,"
Shapiro, campaigns manager for the
animal advocacy group Compas-
sion Over Killing said, in the Pend-
lntnr inn of a .a Miaan T ~ Tn
adding that egg-laying hens are
kept in tiny cages and suffer intense
misery.
"If it was strictly about humane
considerations, I would eat a steak
over an omelet any day," he added.
However, United Egg says in
their online Egg Nutrition Center
that eggs provide nutritional contri-
butions to the diet and are afford-
able and convenient sources of food
for many Americans.
Shapiro also condemned the
dairy cow industry. "We are the
only species that not only never
weans itself but drinks milk from
another species," he said. "It's hard
t.o ti a1-f 'vina n imnaihira i
By Justin Miller
Daily Staff Reporter
New polls show a majority of Michi-
gan voters approve of a ballot proposal
which would amend the state constitu-
tion to ban gay marriage.
The Lansing-based Marketing
Resource Group reported Tuesday that
61 percent of registered Michigan voters
support a constitutional amendment to
ban gay marriage. Thirty-three percent
oppose it and 6 percent are undecided.
An earlier poll conducted by the Gal-
lup Organization showed supnort for the
61 percent of registered
Michigan voters
support a constitutional
amendment to ban
gay marriage.
don't feel threatened by it at all. I hope
that Ann Arbor will stand out and send a
message that we're tolerant here."
The Michigan numbers are slightly
higher than those in a national poll con-
I