2 - Friday, December 4, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com . 2 - Friday, December 4, 2009 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom ~ .. MONDAY: TUESDAY: In Other Ivory Towers Off the Beaten Path WEDNESDAY: THURSDAY: Campus Clubs Before You Were Here 420 Maynard St. Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1327 www.michigandaily.com GARYGRACA DAN NEWMAN Editor in Chief Business Manager 734-647-3336 734-764-0558 graca@michigandaily.com tmdbusiness@gmai.com CONTACT INFORMATION Newsroom 0 News Tips Corrections Letters tothe Editor Photography Department Arts Section Editorial Page Sports Section Display Sales Classified Sales Online Sales fficehours:Sun.-Thurs.na.m.-2a.m. 734-763-2459 news@michigandaily.oom corrections@michigandaily.com tothedaily@michigandaily.com photo@michigandaily.com artspage@michigandaily.com opinion@michigandaily.com sports@michigandaily.com display@michigandaily.com classifed@michigandaily.com ontineads@michigandaily.com 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 EDITORIAL STAFF Courtney Ratkowiak ManagingEditor ratkowiak@michigandaily.com JacobSmilovitz ManagingNews Editor smilovitz@michigandaily.com SENIOR NEWS EDITORS: Matt Aaronson, Jillian Berman, Trevor Calero, Jenna SkoleKySn~sn SSISoe N S EDITORS: Nicole Aber, Mallory Jones, Emily Orley, Stephanie SteinbergEshwar Thirunavukkarasu Robert Soave EditorialPage Editor soave@michigandaily.com ASSOCIATE EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS: EmilyBarton, Brian Flaherty, Rachel Van Gilder ASSISTANT EDITORIA L PAGE EDITORS: Emma Jeszke, Matthew Shutler SENIORSR TS nEDIORS:Nicl uerbach, Mike Eisenstein, an KayRuh Lincoln, Alex Prosperi ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITORS: Mark Burns, Charnel Jennings, Gjon Juncaj, Ryan Kartje, Chris Meszaros, Ryan Podges DavidWatnick ManagingArtsEditor watnick@michigandaiy.com SENIORARTSEDITOR:JamieBlock,Whitney Pow SSSTseNTARTS EDITORS:Joshua Bayer,iCarolynKlarecki,AndrewLapin,avid Riva, JefSanford5Mi~onooas Zachary Meisner and photo@michigandaily.com tif Reeder Managing Photo Editors SENIORPHOTO EDITORS:Said Alsalah,ChanelVon Habsburg-Lothringen ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITORS: Max Collins,Chris Dzombak,SainWolson Angela Chih and design@michigandaiy.com Maureenttych ManaigDesignEditors Jessica Vosgerchian Magazine Editor vosgerchian@michigandaily.com KatherineMitchell CopyChief mitchell@michigandaiy.com ASSOCIATE COPY CHIEF: Melanie Fried, Adi Wollstein BUSINESS STAFF KatieJozwiak sales Manager SSORCE MNAGE:uonoMlly Twigg MRETING MANAGER Michael Shrotenboer Ryan Businski Classified Manager CLASSIFIED ASSISTANT MANAGER: Kayla LaFata Ben EnglishProduction Manager Allison Santacren LayoutManager Vivian Lee Finance Manager Brittany Morales Circulation Manager Brad Wiley Project Coordinator 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 MORE ONLINE Love Crime Notes? Getlmore onlsne richigandaily.corh/naogs/h w - FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @MICHIGANDAILY 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.