2 - Friday, December 4, 2009
The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com .
2 - Friday, December 4, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom ~
..
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In Other Ivory Towers Off the Beaten Path
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TOP LEFT LSA sophomore Firas Shalabi writes a letter to state leg-
islators Monday to help stop the construction of coal plants near the MORE ONLINEA
Great Lakes (AARON AUGSBURGER/Daily). ABOVE James McNa- For more of
rara (center), an apprentice at Herb David Guitar Studio, works on a phos
ukelele Wednesday (JAKE FROMM/Daily) TOP RIGHT Ann Arbor the week go to
resident Phil Karroll protests the war in Afghanistan on the corner of hat
E. Liberty and Fifth Streets Wednesday (JAKE FROMM/Daily)
CRIME NOTES CAMPUS EVENTS & NOTES
MCard stolen Carhartt taken Lunchtime Charity formal Texas police found a batch,
of ecstasy pills in the
WHERE: Michigan Union WHERE: University Hospital discussion WHAT: A formal with music shape of President Barack
WHEN: Wednesday at about WHEN: Wednesday at about and dance. All proceeds will Obama's face during a traffic
9 a.m. 8:10 p.m. WHAT: A lunchtime discus- go to the World Wildlife Fund. stop Monday, CBS.com report-
WHAT: A student's MCard WHAT: A male employee's sion called "Jews, Food and WHO: Michigan Union ed. Police spokesman Lenny
was stolen from the first floor Carhartt coat was stolen after it Sustainability: What do these Ticket Office Sanchez said the tablets look
study area after it was left was left unattended in a room, have in common?" WHEN: Tonight from 8 p.m. like a "vitamin for kids.'
unattended for15 minutes, University Police reported. WHO: Hillel to 12 a.m.
University Police reported. There are no suspects. WHEN: Today from 12 to 1 WHERE: Michigan Union The new Med Grow
Finance finance@michigandaily.com
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The MichiganDaly(IsSN0745-%7)is published Monday through Fridayduringthefallandwine
terms by students at the University of Michigan.one copy is avalable free of charge to allreaders.
Additionalopiesmaysbepicadupattheaiy'soffietor2.Subscriptionsfor faterm,startingin
September, viaU.s.mail are $110. Winter termJanuary through Apri) is $115, yearlong (September
through Aprilis t19.University affliates are subject to areduced subscription rate.on-campus
subscriptionsforfaterm ares.Subscriptionsmusibe prepaid.Theichiganiysamember of
lIn 6ssociated PressandThe Associated CollegiatePress.
0
There are no suspects.
Earrings lifted
from gift shop
WHERE: University Hospital
WHEN: Wednesday at about
2:25 p.m.
WHAT: Three pairs of ear-
rings were stolen from the
University Hospital gift shop,
University Police reported.
There are no suspects.
Plasticlifted
WHERE: Central Campus
Recreation Building
WHEN: Tuesday at about 10
p.m.
WHAT: Two female students
reported a credit card and two
student IDs stolen after they
were left unattended on the
benches in the swimming pool
locker room, University Police
reported.
p.m.
WHERE: Dana Natural
Resource Building.
Ashkenazi food
symposium
WHAT: Zingerman's Zack
Berg will discuss the evolu-
tion of Jewish cooking at
Schmooze's Ashkenazi food
symposium.
WHO: Hillel
WHEN: Tonight from 7:30
to 9 p.m.
WHERE: Rackhaps Gradu-
ate School
Cannabis College . in
Southfield, Mich. offers
Scrabble club a six-week curriculum . in
the history and horticul-
meeting ture of cannabis for $475.
>>FOR MORE, SEE OPINION, PAGE 4
WHAT: Scrabble club meets
to play every Friday.
WHO: Michigan Union Bil-
liards
WHEN: Today from 3:30 to
5:30 p.m.
WHERE: Tap Room, Michi-
gan Union
CORRECTIONS
0 Please report any error
in the Daily to correc-
tions@nmichigandaily.com.
Jeff Peckman, a self-
described entrepreneur,
gathered 4,000 valid sig-
natures to place the creation
of an Extraterrestrial Affairs
Commission on Denver Colo-
rado's ballot, Los Angeles
Times reported. The city panel
would promote "harmonious,
peaceful, mutually respectful
and beneficial coexistence."
0
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Love Crime Notes? Getlmore onlsne richigandaily.corh/naogs/h w -
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Congress worries about
Obama's plan for Pakistan
.
Obama and
Congress recently
approved a $7.5B
Pakistan aid package
WASHINGTON (AP) - Fac-
ing the prospect of more Ameri-
can deaths in Afghanistan as
the war escalates, lawmakers
lashed out at neighboring Paki-
stan on yesterday as an unreli-
able ally that could spare the
U.S. its bruising fight with al-
Qaida if it wanted.
"They don't seem to want a
strategic relationship," New
Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob
Menendez said of the govern-
ment in Islamabad. "They want
the money. They want the equip-
ment. But at the end of the day,
they don't want a relationship
that costs them too much."
A crucial ally in fighting the
al-Qaida terrorist network, Paki-
stan is also a major recipient of
U.S. aid. President Barack Obama
and Congress recently approved
a $7.5 billion aid package for eco-
nomic and social programs in
Pakistan in a bid to strengthen
the civilian government there.
.ut many in Congress have
grown skeptical that Islamabad
is doing all it can to drive out
al-Qaida forces hiding along its
mountainous Afghan border.
Those doubts reached a new
pitch this week after Obama's
announcement that he will
send 30,000 more U.S. troops to
Afghanistan by next fall, with the
anticipation that they would start
coming home in July 2011.
Obama has not said whether
or how the troop buildup would
accelerate attacks on the terror-
ist network hiding in Pakistan.
The U.S. has previously relied on
drone-launched missile strikes,
and those operations are classi-
fied.
"It is not clear how an expand-
ed military effort in Afghanistan
addresses the problem of Taliban
and al-Qaida safe havens across
the border in Pakistan," said Sen.
Richard Lugar, the top Republi-
can on the Senate Foreign Rela-
tions Committee.
Rep. Ike Skelton of Missouri,
a leading conservative Demo-
crat, said Obama's strategy was
the nation's best shot but that
Pakistan could end the war if it
wanted.
"Conversely, if Pakistan wdre
to return to old habits of sup-
porting the Afghan Taliban, the
war may be almost impossible to
win," he said.
Obama has sought to assure
lawmakers - and the rest of the
world - that he sees Pakistan
inextricably linked to Afghani-
stan. In his speech on Tues-
day, the president said both
governments were "endangered"
because of al-Qaida.
"The stakes are even higher
within a nuclear-armed Pakistan,
because we know that al-Qaida
and other extremists seek nucle-
ar weapons, and we have every
reason to believe that they would
use them," he said in his speech
from West Point.
Testifying for the second day
on Obama's new war plan, the
president's chief military and
diplomatic advisers said Pakistan
was a critical component of the
strategy.
"We have a lot of work to do
in trying to convince them that
we're not trying to take over their
country, that we're not trying
to take control of their nuclear
weapons, and that we are actual-
ly interested in a long-term part-
nership with them," said Defense
Secretary Robert Gates.
Several Democrats, including
Menendez and Sen. Russ Feingold
of Wisconsin, have threatened to
withhold their support for more
money for the war, although law-
makers said it was unlikely that
Congress would try to block the
deployments. Instead, members
from both parties say they want
to find a way to pay for the troop
increase that won't add to the
deficit.
In a press conference yester-
day, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi
said she did not support a pro-
posal by Wisconsin Democratic
Rep. David Obey that would have
imposed a war tax on most Amer-
icans.
Pelosi, D-Calif., said the first
step should be an all-hands brief-
ing to Congress by Obama's top
advisers.
"We have to handle it with
care, listen to what they pres-
ent, and then members will make
their decision," she said.
The results of the billions in
U.S.. aid to Pakistan have been
mixed. While the army has taken
on the Pakistani Taliban, it has
failed to go after Afghan Taliban
leaders who base their operations
in the tribal areas in the border
region. At the same time, anti-
Western sentiment in Pakistan
has grown.
Many Western officials and
analysts believe Pakistan is play-
ing both sides - accepting U.S.
money to crack down on mili-
tants while tolerating the Afghan
Taliban in case the radical Islam-
ic movement gains control in
Afghanistan once the American
troops withdraw.
Officials estimate there are
500 al-Qaida fighters and 50,000
Taliban militants in Afghanistan
and Pakistan.
For its part, Pakistan has
been cautious in its response to
Obama's plan. In London yes-
terday, Prime Minister Yousuf
Raza Gilani declined to endorse
the U.S.-led troop increase and
said his government needs more
information.
Gates said he initially opposed
the idea of a troop increase
because he feared it would make
the U.S. footprint in Afghanistan
too heavy. He said he also was
hesitant to set a timeline on when
troop withdrawals would begin.
But he said he was ultimate-
ly convinced by Gen. Stanley
McChrystal, the top U.S. com-
mander in Afghanistan, that the
size of the force was less impor-
tant than the mission troops
would be given. His colleagues
also convinced him that setting a
date to start withdrawals would
help encourage the Afghans to
take more responsibility, Gates
said.
Secretary of State Hillary Rod-
ham Clinton today will take the
administration's case for esca-
lating the war to NATO's top
council, where McChrystal will
attend a foreign ministers meet-
ing. Clinton said she expects the
allies to make new troop con-
tributions in the 5,000 to 7,000
range.