L7Ie 1M11cI43an BaI1j
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
michigandaily.cor
CITY TRANS ORTATION
A2 could be
next home
for bike taxis
An
says
er
If
Ima
cabs w
and t
muter
city in
Bar
Arbor
garner
busine
Pedi
taxis
vehich
from
s Ant
she wa
n Arbor resident "It must have planted a seed,"
she said.
plan would offer Pedicabs have become an inter-
national phenomenon and have
avironmentally become popular in cities like New
York, Boston and San Diego.
riendly transit Annis said she came up with
the idea to bring pedicabs to
By LARA ZADE Ann Arbor after she heard about
DailyStaffReporter a grant proposal from the Ann
Arbor Community Foundation.
igine a city that provides "It's just a cool idea, said Annis.
with three wheels, no doors "It connects with the bigger idea
eo pedals for its busy com- of non-motorized transportation,
s. Ann Arbor may be that and that's something the city has
the near future. been working on for quite a long
baraAnnis,aresidentofAnn time."
's old west side, is looking to Annis said she thought pedi-
support to have a pedicab cabs in Ann Arbor would cater to
ass open in Ann Arbor. city walkers traveling short dis-
icabs, also known as bike tances or to those who have their
or rickshaws, are pedaled hands tied up from children or
es that transport people grocery bags.
ne place to another. The costtper fully equipped cab,
na first rode a pedicab when including turn signals and seat
as abroad in Asia. See PEDICABS, Page 7A
ontroversial professor Norman Finkelstein gives a speech about the current affairs in the Israel-Palestine conflict in the Rackham Ampitheatre last night.
Prof . alters plan, talks Gaza
At event, Finkelstein
spoke about Gaza
instead of lessons
from Gandhi
By BENJAMIN S. CHASE
Daily StaffReporter
Referring to the most recent
Israeli-Palestinian conflict as the
"Gaza massacre," Professor Nor-
man Finkelstein delivered a lecture
on Palestinian-Israeli relations to
a standing room-only crowd in the
Rackham Amphitheatre last night.
At the event, which was spon-
sored by the pro-Palestinian cam-
pus group, Students Allied for
Freedom and Equality, Finkelstein
strayed from his planned lecture,
"The Israel-Palestine Conflict:
What We Can Learn From Gandhi,"
opting instead to deliver a talk he
titled "What happened in Gaza?"
Finkelstein justified his depar-
ture from the planned lecture by
saying that the Gaza conflict is
more relevant.
Finkelstein has been the subject
ofmuchdebate overthe pastdecade.
In 2000 he published a book, "The
Holocaust Industry: Reflections on
the Exploitation of Jewish Suffer-
ing," thathasbeen widelydiscussed
as it claims that the Jewish Ameri-
cans have exploited the history of
Holocaust. DePaul University also
denied Finkelstein's bid for tenure
in 2007 citing his inability to show
respect for his colleagues' opinions,
among other reasons.
The mood in the lecture hall
grew increasingly tense during the
question-and-answer session fol-
lowing Finkelstein's lecture. The
debate grew heated, with audience
members arguing with one another
and Finkelstein.
Finkelstein said the most recent
conflict in Gaza was a continuation
of Israeli military policy that has
been in place since the 1967 Arab-
Israeli War. He added that the
policy is centered on Israelis ability
to prevent Hamas, Hezbollah and
its Arab neighbors from perpetrat-
ing attacks on Israel and its settle-
ments.
"The Arabs and Arab states are
supposed to be terrified by Israel,"
Finkelstein said.
Arguing that the overwhelm-
ing majority of the world supports
a two-state solution to the Israeli-
See FINKELSTEIN, Page 7A
n ,
UNIVERSiTY BOARD OF REGENTS-
Regents will consider proposal for three
new building projects at monthly meeting
Karen Boyd, a dean of students candidate,inthe MichiganUnion yesterday
Student relations
top Boyd 'S rsume
First of three
candidates for dean
of students visited
campus yesterday
By HAVEN BASSETT
For theDaily
Karen Boyd's resum6 has some
items one might not expect from
a candidate interviewing to be
the University's new dean of stu-
dents. She has performed as the
lead singer for a Pink Floyd cover
band and played Eve Ensler in
a production of "The Vagina
Monologues."
But Boyd, who has 20 years of
student leadership experience, is
one of three finalists to take on
that job on campus. Yesterday all
University students were invited
to a meet-and-greet with the
potential dean to voice their opin-
ions and play an active role in the
evaluation process.
During the informal lunch,
students were invited to discuss
campus issues with Boyd. After,
students were encouraged to
submit comments and feedback
online to have a say in the nar-
rowing of finalists from three to
one, according to an article in the
University Record.
If Boyd gets the job, it won't
be the first time she has worked
closely with students. As the
senior associate dean of student
life at the Georgia Institute of
Technology, she influenced stu-
dent ethical development and
provided leadership to student
activities, including Greek Life
and media services, according
to a biography released by the
University.
Boyd is also the former presi-
dent and conference chairperson
for the International Association
for Student Conduct Administra-
tors, an organization that aims to
set conduct standards for higher
education institutions. She'll also
be the chairperson for the Associ-
ation for Student Judicial Affair's
See CANDIDATE, Page 7A
Three renovations
expected to cost an
estimated $9.9M
By LINDY STEVENS
Daily News Editor
AtThursday'smeetingofthe Uni-
versity Board of Regents, the board
will discuss three new campus con-
struction projects up for approval.
The meeting is set to begin at 3 p.m.
in the Regents' Room of the Flem-
ing Administration Building.
The first project the board will
consider is a $2.1 million reno-
vation to the Residential College
Auditorium in East Quadrangle.
The 11,300-square-foot renovation
will provide updates, to the tech-
nology, lighting, stage and seating
areas. The remodel also includes
plans for accessibility updates to
meet codes and standards outlined
in the Americans with Disabilities
Act. Funding for the project will
come from the College of Litera-
ture, Science and the Arts, donor
gifts aid the University's General
Funod.
A $1.2 million, 8,300-square-foot
renovation to the Environental
and Water Resources Engineering
Building will also be discussed at
Thursday's meeting. Home to labo-
ratories, classrooms and offices for
the Department of Civil and Envi-
ronmental Engineering, the Col-
lege of Engineering will provide
funding for the project.
The Regents will also be asked
to approve a $6.6 million replace-
See REGENTS, Page 7A
BY THE NUMBERS
$2.1 MILLION
Residential College Auditorium in East
Quadrangle
$1.2 MILLION
Environmental and Water Resources
EngineeringBuilding
$6.6 MILLION
600 feet of underground tunnels in the
Eiag and 125 feet of piping in [orch Hall
MI H IG A N S eT UrDeE NrT AuSSyEtMeBLY
MSA pushes dorms to offer Saturday night meals
Plan would cost
an estimated
$300,000 or $30
per resident
By JENNA SKOLLER
Daily StaffReporter
The Michigan Student Assembly
passed a resolution at last night's
weekly meeting to address the lack
of Saturday night dining options in
University residence halls.
The resolution states that MSA
will write a letter to University
Housing, the Residence Halls Asso-
ciation and The Michigan Daily
emphasizing the assembly's sup-
port for keeping at least one dining
hall open on Saturday nights. It was
authored by LSA Reps. Timothy
Bekkers and Virat Gupta and Busi-
ness Rep. Alex Serwer,
It also said MSA will continue to
work with RHA to gather student
feedback and assess the feasibility
of implementing this option.
According to the resolution, it
would cost an estimated $300,000
per year for the University to keep
one dining hall open on Saturday
nights. This averages out to about
$30 per year for each resident hall
resident.
Bekkers said the resolution
would help students who are strug-
gling financially by providing more
inexpensive meal options.
"It's a pretty big social justice
issue also, because I think (closed
dining halls) hurt the people who
can least afford to be here at this
school already," he said.
Though the resolution passed
29-3, there was some opposition
from Residence Hall Association
President Ashley Londy. She said
that MSA's involvement might not
be the most effective way to imple-
ment Saturday night dining and
stressed that RHA will discuss the
issue Thursday
"I don't think it's necessarily the
most effective way when the man-
ager of dining says to get anything
done needs to come through RHA,"
See MSA, Page 7A
WEATHER k I H:23
TOMORROW LU 1"
GOT A NEWS TIP?
Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail
newsonmichigandaily.com and let us know.
NEW ON MICH-IGANDAILYCOM
'U' baseball player on Golden Spikes watch list
THEGAME.BLOGS.MICHIGANDAILY.COM
INDEX
Vol. CXIX, No.97
02009 Thr Michgn Ig
michigondaily.com
NEWS... . . . 2A CLASSIFIEDS...........
O PIN IO N ...........................4A SPO RTS................
ARTS.. . . ..5A THE STATEMENT....
.6A
.8A
... B
I