10 -The Michigan Daily - Monday, May 1, 2000
CLINTON The President's plan includes allowing con-
Continued from Page I sumers to determine what information can be
exchanged between two companies; banning the
vacy is not jeopardized by technology in areas of use of medical records against individuals in cases
individual financial and medical records. of health coverage, mortgages and credit; protect-
"The same genetic code that offers hope for ing personal consumer information; and ensuring
millions can also be used to deny health insur- access to records and correction of errors.
ance. The same technology that links distant Among other issues concerning the President is
places can also be used to track our every the widening gap between the rich and poor
move online," Clinton said adding that "we because of limited access to technology.
can't let breakthroughs in technology, break "Just as we had to close the industrial divide in the
walls of privacy." 20th century, we must now close the digital divide in
the 2 1st century," Clinton said, later adding that "we economy grow. Thankfully, in our digital cc
have to make the Internet as common as telephone that is simply not true anymore. It is now pos
usage" grow an economy and improve an environr
The environment - particularly global warm- the same time," Clinton said.
ing and greenhouse emissions poses another The President added that he is encos
threat, said the President, as technology rapidly Congress to adopt legislation for research and
advances into the 21st century. opment and to offer significant tax incent
The President mentioned the negative conse- developers of products that emit less gree
quences of depleting water levels, using the Great gases and to the people who buy them.
Lakes as an example. "You can have all the computers and
"Many people still believe that we must choose ... money in the world and if we squander God
between preserving our environment and making the ronment it won't be worth very much," he s
AAFD cites frat
house for fire
code violations
ottomy
sible to
ment at
uraging
d devel-
ives to
nhouse
all the
's envi-
aid.
YOU KNOW THAT FRIEND
WHO ALWAYS SAYS,
By Anna Clark
Daily Staff Reporter
Seven months after a fire raged
through the basement of the Sigma Chi
house on Washtenaw Street, causing
more than S20000 in damages, the fra-
ternity was again forced to vacate the
building - this titne for multiple fire
code violations.
Removed fire doors, missing fire
detectors, holes in walls and doors,
empty fire extinguishers and electri-
cal wiring in contact with water were
among the violations, said Ann
Arbor fire inspector Kevin
Scarbrough.
"The operating computer for the
alarm system was also tampered. with
- the building system wasn't in oper-
ation at all. It was simply an unsafe
place to be," Scarbrough said.
About 35 residents of the house were
asked to leave last Tuesday afternoon,
but temporary repairs to the house
allowed fraternity members to move
back into the house by the following
evening.
Separate tickets were issued to both
the Sigma Chi president and vice-
president.
Scarbrough said that although
immediate repairs were a "temporary
fix," students could stay safely in the
house.
"The situation was mostly reme-
died," he said.
"It was enough that they're able to
stay there safely, although more thor-
ough repairs will be done this sum-
mer."
Quick repairs included the patching
of the holes in the building. The base-
ment, the site of last fall's fire, had
been re-exposed, but was closed up
agatn.
The AAFD was alerted to possible
problems at the Sigma Chi house by the
ABC Alarm Company, which services
the fraternity. The alarm company told
fire officials that the system in the house
was not responding.
Members of Sigma Chi could not be
reached for comment, but Scarbrough
said their reactions to the situation were
"what you'd expect."
"They weren't exactly pleased," he
said.
"We disrupted their residence at a
Fraterneties have a
higher risk of fire
death, compared
with other
university iving
environments,
very inconvenient time. But we did-
n't pick the time - we had to address
the situation when we became aware
of it"
Last September's fire at Sigma Chi
resulted from candles used for light in
the basement.
At the time, Ann Arbor Fire
Marshall Scott Raynurn praised the
fraternity for following fire safety
codes.
Be said the house was in "great
shape, with only some very minor
violations."
In a report issued by the College
Fire Safety Forum - a group of offi-
cials examining fire safety at col-
leges and universities - fraternities
were highlighted as having a higher
risk of fire death, compared with
other university living environments
including sororities and residence
halls.
This is due to "poor maintenance of
housekeeping" and "more frequent
risky behavior."
Scarbrough said some departments
in the AAFD are pushing for more
fire education programs for the
University in general and fraternities
specifically.
"The AAFD Fire Prevention
Division has requested additional per-
sonnel, for four years, to address these
and other educational concerns," he
said.
"These requests have not been a
city-wide priority up -to this fiscal
year.
Sigma Chi members have been liv-
ing in the building while renovations
are done to their own house on State
Street.
The building formerly housed the
now-disbanded Phi Delta Theta fra-
ternity.
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