2 -The Michigan Daili -Friday January 28. 2005 NATION/WORLD Vanity tax targets plastic surgery NEWS IN BRIEF ..a $ $ ,,...4.. s . " ""' OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) - Nip, tuck and ... tax? Lawmakers trying to plump up the bottom line are considering a "van- ity tax" on cosmetic surgery and Botox injections in Washington, Illinois and other states. Plastic surgeons and their patients say the idea is just plain ugly. "It makes no sense. Where does it stop - massages, facials, teeth clean- ings?" asked Karen Wakefield, 51, who has had a nose job, dermabrasion, lipo- suction, tummy tuck and breast lift - plus a little Botox here and there. "Even having a baby is elective sur- gery," added Wakefield, an event planner in Woodinville. "Why not tax that, too?" The Washington state senator who proposed the tax said she has never gone under the knife for beauty, but wouldn't rule it out. "I, too, look in the mirror and see my mother," said Seattle Democrat Karen Keiser, 57. But she thinks cosmetic surgery patients can afford the state's 6.5 percent sales tax. She wants to earmark the money for poor children's health insurance. "We could do Botox-for-babies par- ties. It might be the new thing," Keiser said. "Anyone who can afford the money for cosmetic procedures, I don't think they would be deterred by a little sales tax. You pay it on your lipstick." The tax would not apply to recon- structive surgery for, say, burn victims or women Who have undergone mastec- tomies. In September, New Jersey became the first and so far the only state to tax plas- tic surgery, at 6 percent. The tax is pro- jected to bring in $25 million a year. "We could do Botox-for-babies parties. It might be the new thing." - Seattle resident Karen Keiser In Illinois, the state comptroller has pro- posed a 6 percent tax on cosmetic surgery to create a stem cell research institute. If the Legislature approves, the question could be put to the voters in 2006. In California, the very capital of cosmetic surgery, such procedures are tax-free. The cosmetic surgery tax is a cousin to the "sin taxes" many states slap on drinking, smoking and gam- bling during tough budget times. "In this anti-tax climate, these user- based, selective tax proposals are more palatable than broader ones," said Bert Waisaner, tax policy analyst for the National Conference of State Legisla- tures. The American Society of Plastic Surgeons frowns on this new wrinkle, calling New Jersey's law a "dangerous precedent." Seattle surgeon Phil Haeck noted that 86 percent of cosmetic surgery patients are women. Wakefield, for one, wants people to know she paid for her own nips and tucks. "I'm not married to some rich guy," she said. "I worked my butt off for this." Insider. Muslims harassed US. . ,O U.. prison SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) - Female interrogators tried to break Muslim detainees at the U.S. prison camp in Guantanamo Bay by sexual touching, wearing a miniskirt and thong underwear and in one case smearing a Saudi man's face with fake menstrual blood, according to an insider's written account. A draft manuscript obtained by The Associ- ated Press is classified as secret pending a Pen- tagon review for a planned book that details ways the U.S. military used women as part of tougher physical and psychological interroga- tion tactics to get terror suspects to talk. It's the most revealing account so far of interrogations at the secretive detention camp, where officials say they have halted some con- troversial techniques. "I have really struggled with this because the detainees, their families and much of the world will think this is a reli- gious war based on some of the techniques used, even though it is not the case," said the author, former Army Sgt. Erik Saar. Saar didn't provide the manuscript or approach AP, but confirmed the authenticity of nine draft pages AP obtained. He requested his hometown remain private so he wouldn't be harassed. Saar, who is neither Muslim nor of Arab descent, worked as an Arabic trans- lator at the U.S. camp in eastern Cuba from December 2002 to June 2003. At the time, it was under the command of Maj. Gen. Geof- frey Miller, who had a mandate to get better intelligence from prisoners, including alleged al-Qaida members caught in Afghanistan. Saar said he witnessed about 20 interroga- tions and about three months after his arrival at the remote U.S. base he started noticing "disturbing" practices. One female civilian contractor used a special outfit that included a miniskirt, thong underwear and a bra during late-night interrogations with prisoners, mostly Muslim men who consider it taboo to have close contact with women who aren't their wives. Beginning in April 2003, "there hung a short skirt and thong underwear on the hook on the back of the door" of one interrogation team's office, he writes. "Later I learned that this outfit was used for interrogations by one of the female civilian contractors ... on a team which conduct- ed interrogations in the middle of the night on Saudi men who were refusing to talk." Strip club for sale on eBay PONTIAC Arnie to win Animal of Year' award Michigan's veterinarians are honoring a 9-year-old Labrador retriever for its contribution to the physical rehabilitation of human patients. Today the Okemos-based Michigan Veterinary Medical Association plans to recognize Arnold Palmer Neslage, known as Arnie, as its Therapy Companion Animal of the Year. Arnie is a fixture at North Oakland Medical Centers in Pontiac. He was nomi- nated by Thomas Barkham of the Paint Creek Animal Clinic in Rochester and beat out 25 other candidates for the award. With the able assistance of his owner, Kay Neslage of Oakland County's Oakland Township, Arnie has shown off his medical skills on the "Maury Povich Show," served as a spokesdog for the American Heart Association in Texas and served as guest coach for 1993 national champion Texas Tech women's basketball team. "Arnie was sent here for a purpose - to help people," Neslage told The Daily Oakland Press. "We're thrilled that he has been recognized for what he does best." Arnie is an anchor to his young patients, who send a steady flow of mail to the Neslage home. UNITED STATES Rain, snow, freezing rain fall across U.S. Rain, freezing rain and snow moved over a wide swath of the Plains, while rain showers and mountain snows developed in the Southwest and southern Rockies. Wind chill readings dipped far below zero across parts of the Northeast and New England. Scattered snow developed over Kansas and Nebraska, while scattered rain showers and isolated thunderstorms were found across Texas. The northern Plains, upper Midwest and northern Mississippi Valley remained dry and partly cloudy. In the East, partly cloudy to mostly sunny skies prevailed, along with bitter cold. Wind chill readings ranged to near 25 below zero across the Northeast and New England. Rain showers and mountain snow moved across the Southwest and southern Rockies; scattered rain also was reported in the Pacific Northwest. Yesterday's temperatures in the Lower 48 states ranged from a morning low of 30 below zero in the New York towns of Saranac Lake and Watertown, to a midday high of 81 degrees in Vandenberg, Fla. DES MOINES No winners in Powerball, Rolling Cash lotteries None of the tickets sold for the Powerball game Wednesday night matched all six numbers drawn, which were: 5-32-43-47-48. Players matching all five numbers and the Powerball would have won or shared the $10 million jackpot. The prize goes to an estimated $12 million for Saturday. Tickets that match the first five numbers, but miss the Powerball, win $100,000 each, and there were 2 of those. They were sold in: Nebraska, Pennsylvania. There were no Power Play Match 5 winners. Meanwhile, in Ohio, The Rolling Cash 5 jackpot is growing to $124,000 for the next drawing tonight. There were no Rolling Cash 5 game tickets with the correct combination for the $110,000 drawing yesterday night. R AMALLAH, West Bank Abbas bans Palestinians from carrying arms The new Palestinian leadership yesterday banned civilians from carrying weap- ons and indicated it will appoint a new security minister known for his tough stance against militants - clear signsof seriousness about reining in violence, an Israeli precondition for peace talks. The Palestinians came in for praise from Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who said yesterday that conditions are right for a breakthrough toward peace. Before the weapons ban was announced, Sharon said he was "very satisfied" with the actions of new Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas, who has been pressing hard for a declaration by militant groups of a halt to attacks against Israel, ending four years of bloody violence. - Compiled from Daily wire reports, yes we didn't make them up this time MARKET UPDATE CLOSE CHANGE ZS E CROATIA 1861.99 +16.3 BVSP BRAZIL 24,030.09 -500.01 SSX SWAZILAND 154.71 0 Climax Gentleman's Club in Delmont, Pa., shown here in a photograph taken on July 5, 2002 is being sold on the Internet auction site eBay. The club is billed as the world's only drive-through strip club, and bidding started at $299,000 this week Pregnant wo-man survives, after. truck falls on her car el CLEVELAND (AP) - A truck slid off an interstate overpass and plunged about 35 feet to the highway below, smashing the car of a pregnant woman who eventually managed to free herself and wasn't seriously hurt. "I'm healthy. I'm sore and stiff. The baby's fine," Anna Martinez told NBC's Today Show yesterday. Martinez, 25, of Cleveland Heights, said she wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry when she saw the truck slide off the Interstate 71 overpass and fall toward her car on state Route 176 near downtown. "Well, there's an element of the ridiculous about a semi flying through the air and landing on a car," she said. "It is kind of funny. It's not something you'd think would ever happen. It was just so random. And the other part of it is I was really terrified and I wanted to cry." Martinez, who is five-months pregnant, made an emer- gency call from her cell phone about 1 a.m. Tuesday and told a dispatcher: "A semi flew off of the interstate and landed on top of me!" "I did slam on my brakes and tried to avoid it," she said. The truck smashed her car's roof and demolished the rear of her Honda Accord. She was wearing a seat belt, which would not release in the wreckage. Martinez called her husband to tell him she was trapped and smelled gasoline. She eventually freed herself and spent about 15 hours at a hospital. She recalled she was not sure how to react. "I saw a truck falling from the sky and sparks flying from it," she said on Today. "That part was definitejy in slow motion and so was the impact. My first thought was, 'Is this real?' It didn't seem like something that really hap- pens, outside of movies. I thought, 'Oh my God!' 0 I E iicl Ygttn ttil '0 www.michigandaily.com The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by students at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may be picked up at the Daily's office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $105. Winter term (January through April) is $110, yearlong (September through April) is $190. University affiliates are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must be preoaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press. NEWS Tomislav 'The Slav' Ladika, Manag 763-2459, news@michigandally.com EDITORS: Carmen 'Roxetta' Johnson, Emily 'Crazy Muffin' Kraack, Jeremy 'Kerry's Bitch' Berkowitz STAFF: Andrew McCormack, Naila Moreira, Kristin 'I love covering MSA' Ostby OPINION Zac Peskowltz, Old Manag 763-0379, opinion mlchigandally.com ASSOCIATE EDITORS: Daniel Adams, Jennifer Misthal Bing Editor Bing Editor 0i Hiring needs for summer associate Medtronic is the world's leading medical technology company, providing lifelong solutions to people with chronic disease. i