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By Nzinga TchameniTHE DAILY COUGAR

The Student Government Association recently launched the Student Savings Club, which allows students, staff and faculty to receive discounts at participating restaurants and retailers locally and nationally.

“Originally, I was contacted by Pat Moriarty, who is with the Collegiate Services Incorporated, which works to promote the student savings program on campuses across the country,” SGA President Kenneth Fomunung said.

Fomunung said the CSI typically works with student governments and approached SGA in the summer of 2009 with a proposal.

“I shared the proposal with the senate here in the student government and the reception was very positive; people were very excited about the program,” Fomunung said. “Initially, we wanted to explore other options to see if we could do it ourselves.”

Fomunung said the Student Life Committee and SGA were able to come together in a meeting and organize the campaign to get the proposal through the SGA Senate.

“It seemed like the legwork of doing it ourselves was just going to be overwhelming for the time it would have taken,” Student Life Committee member Veronica Evans said. “Also, the contracting part of it, because we would have to contract with every single business.”

Evans said the SGA chose to contract with one business, the Student Savings Club, and have them contract out to other interested businesses.

“We actually passed a resolution in the Senate to endorse this

program,” Fomunung said.Fomunung said the program is

costing the SGA $1,750 for one year. The SGA submitted a list of the

businesses that they felt students would benefit from and are frequented the most by the student population.

“I felt that in the SGA Senate, we had enough diversity in the 40 or so representatives to put together a list that refl ected the general population to some extent,” Fomunung said.

There are 45 local listings, including Berripop Yogurt and Buffalo Wild Wings. Businesses such as Avis and Blue Nile can be found under the national listings. Students can receive up to a 50 percent discount at these selected locations just by flashing their Cougar Card.

“Because it’s such a long-term program, my understanding from the CSI representative is that there are potential businesses that could join the program,” Fomunung said. “(Since) we began the effort of trying to do this ourselves, we actually had some companies that were willing to offer discounts to our students. Now that we have the program up and running, we can include those businesses on the list.

“This list has potential to grow.”Fomunung hopes to be able to

get Starbucks to join. Students, staff and faculty can

access this service by going onto the SGA Web site and clicking the “student savings” link. Certain businesses have coupons that can be printed and presented before purchase.

Most of the businesses are within a 10-mile radius of the campus.

“The beautiful thing about the program is its simplicity. All students have to do is show up at their favorite businesses (that are listed) and when purchasing

Parking matter stirs new appBy Michelle VillarrealTHE DAILY COUGAR

As parking still remains a problem on campus, a new iPhone application has been created to provide students with real-time maps of parking lot availability based on vacancy percentages.

The free “UHGuide” application was created by a group of

undergraduate computer science students for a course project that used software that focused specifi cally on the iPhone.

“This project was one of the course projects and probably the most successful one,” associate computer science professor Ioannis Pavlidis said.

The UHGuide is a utility application for students that

provides full maps of the campus with directions on how to get around either by foot or car, Twitter and weather updates and a restaurant guide. The inventing team consisted of Kaleb Fulgham, Andre Navarro, Nick Prescott and Hussain Abbasi.

“I threw out some ideas for an application and encouraged students to come up with their own

ideas of things that happen around campus and something that would benefi t UH as a whole,” Pavlidis said.

The application took four months to develop, from late August to mid-December.

Pavlidis also worked alongside research assistant professor Pradeep Buddharaju to create the Walk n’ Play iPhone application

that focuses on health and fi tness activity around the world.

“The Walk n’ Play app motivates you to be more active by calculating how many calories you burn in a day by doing normal activities,” Pavlidis said. “It also has a virtual competition that allows users around the world to compete with

School ID entitles

students to discounts at selected business

A team eff ort

The UH Army ROTC won fi rst place in the Homes for our Troops third Annual Sporting Clay Shooting

Competition on Jan. 29. Cadet James Carpenter, above, was one of six team members who shot more than 100 rounds during the competition. Erika Davila was the only cadet to shoot both clays, shown right, out of the sky with one shot.

COURTESY OF DAVID BRISENO

SGA initiates new investment plan

UH advertising students win bigBy Sabrina LloydTHE DAILY COUGAR

UH advertising students dominated the 2010 Houston Addy Awards, winning a grand total of nine awards, including four gold, two silver and three Citations of Excellence.

Seven UH students won the awards — Heather Diaz, Dwayne O’Brien, Karen Lopez, Rachel Williamson, Laura Martinez, Miriam Guessous and Owen J. Woghiren.

The Addys are sponsored by the Houston chapter of the American Advertising Federation, which is an association of advertising professionals encompassing all sectors in the advertising, marketing and communication industries.

“In the past, our school only won one or two awards, but this year we won nine, which is a really big deal for me and our university,” said Guessous, president of AAF-UH. “We won more awards than any other college that attended.”

Other colleges include Sam Houston State, St. Thomas University, Texas Southern University and Texas A&M.

To win an Addy, participants must submit an advertisement from a chosen category, which include print, outdoor (billboards), television, interactive, poster and campaign.

The ads are then submitted to the AAF-Houston in the fall, and the

see ADVERTISING, page 3

see PARKING, page 3

see SGA, page 3

Learning Support ServicesLearning to Learn Day

Main Level, University Center11:00 AM - 1:00 PM

Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Play our Study Skills Trivia game Have fun and win PRIZES!

Assess Your Learning Style Assess your learning style and learn helpful study methods for your style.

Reading Textbooks and Taking Notes Learn about getting the most from your class and study time. Handouts will add to your knowledge.

Information on Other Campus Offices Who will provide additional services for you!

Talk to LSS Staff Receive information about the tutoring process, LSS workshops, and Learning Strategies Counseling at LSS.

Handouts on Learning Strategies Test taking, Test Anxiety, Concentration, Writing essays, etc...

For more information callLorraine Schroeder at 713-743-5463

Learning Support Services321 Graduate College of Social Work

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SELECTEDFRESHMEN & SENIORS

National Surveyof Student Engagement

Spring 2010

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@ www.survey.uh.edu

2 ■ Tuesday, March 2, 2010 The Daily Cougar

TUESDAY

Fairy Godmother Project: 8 a.m.-6 p.m., McElhinney Hall, Room 333. The College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences and the Women’s Resource Center have teamed up with a local outreach organization, the Fairy God-mother Project, to collect prom dresses for local disadvantaged students. It’s a donation event, asking for unused dresses. For more information, contact Jennifer Palton at (713)-743-1019.

Fly-Fishing Casting Clinic: 4-7 p.m., Campus Recreation and Wellness Center. The Recreation Center is off er-ing a class for students to learn how to fl y-fi sh cast for the upcoming trip UH Outdoor Adventure has planned for students this year. Attendance costs $40. For more information, contact Sarah Galecki at [email protected]

WEDNESDAY

UH Night at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo: 4:30-6 p.m., Reliant Park. It’s UH Night at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. UH hopes students will pull on their boots, wear

Cougar red and celebrate with the UH community at The Hideout Tent, which is the white tent on the east side of the Astrodome. Cash bar opens at 6 p.m., and O’Shea will take The Hideout stage to entertain with their country-soul music at 10:15 p.m. Just before Dierks Bentley’s performance at 6:45 p.m. on the main stage, UH President Renu Khator will ride in the Grand Entry Parade. This is, the organization said, an excellent chance for students to show pride in their university, network and have fun. Students can buy tickets at www.ticketmaster.com/houstonrodeo

THURSDAY

Big Love: 8-10 p.m., Wortham Theatre, Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts. The play contains nudity and violence. Parents are suggested to accompany younger children or leave them with a babysitter. Tickets are $10 for students. For more information, contact the UH School of Theatre & Dance’s box offi ce at 713-743-2929.

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The Daily Cougar NEWS Tuesday, March 2, 2010 ■ 3

one another.”The UHGuide differs from the

Walk n’ Play application in that it specifi cally pertains to the UH campus and students.

“The utility app helps fi nd ways around campus where otherwise you would have to use a map to navigate around and physically go through parking lots one by one,” Pavlidis said.

Business major Jesus Quiros said he found the app helpful.

“I downloaded the app not thinking that I would ever really use it, but I actually found it really helpful when running late to class and trying to fi nd a parking spot,” he said. “I can see how the campus map would be really helpful to incoming freshman when trying to locate their classes.”

Pavlidis said the application only applies to the UH campus, but

a business opportunity is possible by creating the same application for other campuses. However, that is something that will be left up to students.

Texas A&M has also developed its own version of the application, but not as a course project.

“We are unique in a sense that we developed it with a school project,” Pavlidis said. “I’m really happy that projects like this happen inside the classroom at UH.”

UH President Renu Khator praised the creation of the application in a UH news release.

“We have pledged to provide our students with an educational experience that is top tier and to offer them training that is globally competitive,” Khator said. “The development of this application is a wonderful example of innovative thinking and creativity that supports top-tier student success and achievement.”

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an item, display their red Cougar Card,” Fomunung said. “That’s it. If the student should encounter a problem, they can always come to the SGA and communicate that to us.”

Evans added that they are also looking into getting an iPhone application developed for the Student Savings Club.

The program expires Feb. 28, 2011.

“This student savings program is active in several universities in different states, and we are especially proud of this program because we are the fi rst school in the state of Texas to participate,” Fomunung said.

[email protected]

SGAcontinued from page 1

PARKINGcontinued from page 1 www.thedailycougar.com

Stay in touch.

winners are announced later in the year. Although the winners are told they have won, they are not told where they placed until the gala in February.

This year it was held at the Hyatt Regency in downtown.

“The gala was very fancy; they served us dinner, announced all the winners and took our picture,” Guessous said. “They also had a gallery that had all the winning ads on display.”

Guessous won two certifi cates of excellence. One was for an ad featuring Patron Tequila, and the other was for a billboard and magazine ad for the Mercedes SLK 350.

“For the Patron ad, I had a partner, Caroline Barerra. She was the copy writer, and I was the art director,” Guessous said. “The art director does the layout, and the copy writer writes any text that is going to be in the ad. We took the actual Patron billboards

you see around Houston and added our own little twist.”

Guessous said the Patron ad took about two days to complete, but the Mercedes campaign took longer.

“We knew how the creative process worked so it took about three weeks to make the ad happen,” she said. “We went through a lot of sketches to narrow it down.”

Guessous said having so many UH students win the award promotes the University and the work students do here.

“The biggest advantage of winning nine awards is that all the Houston professionals who attended the awards ceremony saw how UH students dominated all the different categories,” Guessous said. “Maybe in the future, they will hire more students from our school because they saw that we have a lot of creative people here. We were really trying to change the way people think about our school by doing the best job we could have done, and I think we did.”

[email protected]

ADVERTISINGcontinued from page 1

Hey, what’s happening?Check the Campus Calendar at thedailycougar.com

4 ■ Tuesday, March 2, 2010 The Daily Cougar

As U.S. Senate Democrats and President Barack Obama continue to review potential options to pass health care legislation, “reconciliation,” also known as

the “nuclear option,” is a process that has been suggested as a viable solution.

In the parlance of Congress, reconciliation is where fi libuster rules are changed to make passage of a certain bill easier by limiting debate and amendment of that legislation.

Democrats could use reconciliation to pass the proposed health care bill with less than the 60 votes necessary to defeat a fi libuster, which Republicans have pledged to do should the bill reach the Senate fl oor.

As Majority Leader Harry Reid confi rmed in his address at Obama’s health care summit, this would not be the fi rst time reconciliation has been used to pass a bill.

A Feb. 25 article on Politifact.com said that since 1981 “there have been

22 reconciliation votes, 14 of them by a Republican-controlled Congress.”

While it may be indisputable that Republicans have in fact been more active in pursuing reconciliation than Democrats, this should not be used as a distraction while Democrats get their way with a bill that voters have expressed disapproval for.

But it was Democrats hurling criticisms toward Republicans in 2005 when the GOP wanted to use reconciliation to pass a bill.

Then-Sen. Hillary Clinton stated critically at a press conference, “So (President Bush) has come to the majority here in the Senate, and basically said, ‘Change the rules. Do it the way I want it done.’”

But the hypocrisy did not end there. Reid said of the matter, “The fi libuster serves as a check on power and preserves our limited government.”

And now, when it serves his interests, Reid is encouraging use of the option to defeat the fi libuster.

Democrats are willfully choosing to

ignore the wishes of the American people in regard to an overhaul of the health care system, as they arrogantly attempt to ram an ill-thought bill through the Senate.

Hypocrisy has always been an issue for both political parties at every level of government, but now is not the time to switch ideals simply because it proves benefi cial to one party’s agenda.

The desire to use reconciliation only emphasizes the differences between the opposing parties in government. Instead of considering Republican suggestions such as letting insurers sell policies across state lines or providing tax credits to those with insurance, Democrats are taking a “my way or the highway” approach.

Elected offi cials who put their own interests ahead of their constituents’ need to seriously re-examine their priorities while they still can. They may not get a second chance.

Patrick Levy is a communication freshman and may be reached at [email protected]

Faced with a myriad of problems in the U.S., the last thing Americans want to think about these days is the global economy.

People spend their lives constantly on-edge in regard to their fi nances. What many Americans don’t realize, however, is

that this country is not the only one in the middle of a huge economic crisis.

With the value of the euro in a tailspin, Europe is dealing with its own fi nancial predicament.

Spain and Greece have been hit particularly hard in the last few months. Economists calculate Spain’s unemployment rate to be close to 20 percent, and many of them are concerned that Greece’s escalating debts are affecting other members of the European Union.

In a Wall Street Journal article published Wednesday, Desmond Lachman of the American Enterprise Institute told reporter Stephen Fidler, “If Spain is in deep trouble, it will be diffi cult to hold the euro together

… and my own view is that Spain is in deep trouble.”

According to experts from Wharton University, Latin American countries are being indirectly affected by the poor economies of Spain and the U.S.

Spain and the U.S. are home to more Latin American immigrant workers than any other country in the world, and many of those workers send money out of those countries to support their families.

As jobs in each country have dried up, less money has been fl owing into the Latin American economies, and the countries have become more volatile.

Some experts even go as far as to argue that these remittance payments have kept many Latin Americans from falling into recession, and that these indirect consequences could be catastrophic.

Many Americans have been affected by the recession, whether from a lost job, high interest rates or some other reason.

Although a majority of college students have some grasp on the country’s dire

economic situation, many of them know little about what’s going on in the rest of the world.

“I know a bit about the U.S. economy, but I don’t consider myself very knowledgeable about the global economy,” accounting junior Sana Khan said. “I would like to know more, but watching the news is just too stressful and time consuming.”

Investing time to learn about all of the bad news in the world can be exhausting, but it is well worth it. Though words such as “outsourcing” and “globalization” mean little to many people, it is important to learn how other economies affect America and vice versa.

Ideally, every UH student will graduate with a degree and job prospects.

In order to truly be successful, however, everyone needs to be knowledgeable about how his or her professions and fi nances are affected by the world.

Liz Price is a communication junior and may be contacted at [email protected]

GOP cries foul over Dems’ tactics

Knowledge of world events critical

EDITORIAL CARTOON

JASON POLAND THE DAILY COUGAR

At 7 p.m. today, the polls for the Texas gubernatorial primaries will close and while you shouldn’t have waited until the last

minute, your voices still have a few hours to be heard. Although The Daily Cougar has formally endorsed Republican Debra Medina and Democrat Bill White, voting (regardless of whom it’s for) is an important aspect of American citizenship.

If you’ve had time to update your Facebook status or tweet, you can fi nd time to vote. But if you decide not to, for whatever reason, don’t complain about the outcome — even if Gov. Rick Perry wins the Republican primary, grows bat wings, bares fangs and shoots lasers from his eyes to destroy the Houston skyline — because you didn’t care enough to give your opinion.

Young people care, right? The voter turnout for 18 to 29-year-olds in the 2008 presidential election was the second largest in American history. According to Carnegie Mellon’s The Tartan, between 22 and 24 million young Americans voted. According to an exit poll analysis by CIRCLE, a nonpartisan research center, the voter turnout of all eligible voters was between 49.3 and 54.5 percent.

But that was a national election. The turnout for Houston’s mayoral election was only 16.5 percent. That’s embarrassing.

But we don’t care, do we? We’re too busy to do our civic duty — yes, duty. Although it’s a privilege, we should feel compelled to do it — and it’s really inconvenient that we can’t cast our votes via the Internet.

One of these days, maybe you’ll be able to do just that. In the meantime, the polls aren’t that far away.

If you like this city, vote to keep the things you love. If you can’t stand it, vote for change. Or if you’re somewhere in the middle like most of us (pleased, but opportunistic and constructively critical), do some research and make a well-informed decision. You’ll be one of a select few.

If you don’t vote in a probable runoff between Perry and U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison in the Republican primary, do yourself, your family, friends and fellow Houstonians a favor and cast a ballot in the Nov. 2 general election.

STAFF EDITORIAL

Students need to make voices heard in primaries

E D I TO R I A L P O L I C Y

STAFF EDITORIAL The Staff Editorial refl ects the opinions of The Daily Cougar

Editorial Board (the members of which are listed above the editorial). All other

opinions, commentaries and cartoons refl ect only the opinion of the author.

Opinions expressed in The Daily Cougar do not necessarily refl ect those of the

University of Houston or the students as a whole.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR The Daily Cougar welcomes letters to the editor from any

member of the UH community. Letters should be no more than 250 words and signed,

including the author’s full name, phone number or e-mail address and affi liation

with the University, including classifi cation and major. Anonymous letters will not be

published. Deliver letters to Room 7, University Center Satellite; e-mail them to letters@

thedailycougar.com; send them via campus mail to STP 4015; or fax them to (713) 743-

5384. Letters are subject to editing.

ADVERTISEMENTS Advertisements published in The Daily Cougar do not

necessarily refl ect the views and opinions of the University or the students as a whole.

GUEST COMMENTARY Submissions are accepted from any member of the UH

community and must be signed with the author’s name, phone number or e-mail

address and affi liation with the University, including classifi cation and major.

Commentary should be kept to less than 500 words. Guest commentaries should not be

written as replies to material already printed in the Cougar, but rather should present

independent points of view. Rebuttals should be sent as letters. Deliver submissions to

Room 7, University Center Satellite; e-mail them to [email protected]; or fax

them to (713) 743-5384. All submissions are subject to editing.

THE DAILY COUGARE D I T O R I A L B O A R D

Ronnie Turner, Editor in ChiefMatthew Keever, Managing editorPatricia Estrada, News editorHiba Adi, News editorPhillipe Craig, Sports editorRobert Higgs, Sports editorTravis Hensley, Life & Arts editorAlan Dennis, Opinion editorJarrod Klawinsky, Special projects editor

OPINION COMING WEDNESDAY: How would tort reform hurt America’s health care system?

EDITOR Alan Dennis E-MAIL [email protected] ONLINE www.thedailycougar.com/opinion

Patrick Levy

Liz Price

The Daily Cougar Tuesday, March 2, 2010 ■ 5

EDITOR Travis Hensley E-MAIL [email protected] ONLINE www.thedailycougar.com/life_arts

LIFE+ARTS COMING WEDNESDAY: See the success one UH student is baking up

COURTESY OF WIKICOMMONS

Coinciding with the Baha’í month of Ala, members of the faith will begin their 18-day fast to mark the start of a new year.

OUT AND ABOUT

GLOBAL heads back to prom

Baha’i faith starts fast

Album more value than shock

By Kendra BerglundTHE DAILY COUGAR

In a nation where we are so used to instant gratifi cation, today marks the fi rst day of the fast for the people of the Baha’i Faith religion. It’s a time in which believers of the Baha’i faith abstain from food, drink and even cigarettes and coffee for the period of sunrise to sundown.

At fi rst, it seems simple — just skip lunch. But for the Baha’is, fasting is much more than skipping a meal for 19 days. The reason for the Baha’i fast is to discipline the soul; it is detachment from material needs in an attempt for spiritual progress.

Baha’is are followers of Baha’u’llah in the same sense that

Christians are followers of Jesus Christ. They believe that religion is progressive and that all religions lead to the same God; they just came in different times of history.

In his holy writings, Baha’u’llah said, “Fasting is the cause of awakening man. The heart becomes tender, and the spirituality of man increases. This is produced by the fact that man’s thoughts will be confi ned to the commemoration of God.”

However, for Baha’is and many other religions that fast, fasting is not just about abstaining from food and drink; there is a spiritual fast, as well. Those who fast also abstain from selfi sh passions, desires and traits that are animalistic in nature. The

fast is a time for spiritual purifi cation. The purpose of fasting is to remain holy and become in tune with your personal relationship with God; it is a period of prayer and meditation. Fasting is a symbol and reminder to be devout and faithful to God.

The Baha’i fast is an individual obligation. Baha’is who reach the age of maturity, 15, are required to fast. They fast for 19 days beginning on March 2 and ending March 20. Those who are exempted from fasting include the elderly, women who are pregnant or nursing, the ill and children under the age of 15. Since a Baha’is’ relationship with God is very personal, the fast, too, is private and special. Baha’is are humble and modest when fasting; both are

attributes that refl ect the spirituality Baha’i’s feel when fasting.

After sundown on the fi nal day of the fast, the Baha’is celebrate their New Year, Naw-Ruz, which is Farsi for New Year. They celebrate with a large feast and fellowship with other Baha’is, along with reading from the holy writings of the Baha’i Faith.

Along with the Baha’i fast, there are other religions that fast too. A lot of Christians are observing Lent right now, and Muslims observe Ramadan in August.

In essence, whether you believe in a God or not, spiritual cleansing is something we all should do, and fasting is a great way to do so.

[email protected]

By Quintin ColemanTHE DAILY COUGAR

Shock Value II, producer/rapper Timbaland’s newest album released in late 2009, shows his producing prowess with a 13-track release featuring contributing artists such as Justin Timberlake, Drake and Katy Perry.

The end result is an overall good album, despite some questionable collaboration choices.

This isn’t the fi rst time Timbaland (real name Timothy Mosley) has collaborated with others. Along with 2007’s Timbaland Presents Shock Value, he has produced for artists such as Missy Elliot and Nelly Furtado. He was also part of a rap duo named Timbaland and Magoo.

One of the good points of the album is the production behind

it. As Timbaland is a producer, that shouldn’t be surprising. What is surprising is the wide range of rhythms present. For example, the song “Ease Off the Liquor” begins with a techno beat, moves into a small break in the middle of the song with a jungle beat and then transitions into a Latin vibe for the latter half of the song. It should be noted that this is the only song where no contributor was credited. For the other songs on the album, the beats fi t the style of the respective artist on the track.

Another good point is that the majority of the songs were up-tempo. With the exception of the last track, “Timothy Where You Been,” there are no slow songs on the album.

A negative issue with Shock Value II involves some of the collaborations that may have the listener ask why they’re on

the album. As mentioned earlier, the songs fi t the artists, and the concept works for their benefi t, but it falls fl at in some cases. The songs “We Belong to the Music” with Miley Cyrus and “If We Ever Meet Again” with Katy Perry are prime examples of where it doesn’t work. The former has a pop beat in the song, and the latter contains a pop/rock hybrid beat. Their styles would work fi ne on their respective albums but feels out of place on something that primarily consists of bass heavy songs.

Another negative lies with the lyrical ability of Timbaland on this release. He doesn’t show the extent of his lyrical skill, except on the songs “Say Something” and “Timothy Where You Been.”

Some songs that should be sampled before buying the album would be “Say Something” featuring Drake, “Morning After

Dark” featuring Nelly Furtado and “Ease Off the Liquor.” These songs are the three strongest on Shock Value II and they provide a good feel for what the album has to offer. “Say Something” has the contributor that brings the most to the table, “Morning After Dark” is another collaboration between Timbaland and Furtado that is good but not as strong as their 2006 collaboration on the song “Promiscuous.” “Ease Off the Liquor” shows off what Timbaland can produce when he’s not fi tting a beat to a particular artist.

Overall, Shock Value II is a strong album. Even with a lack of decent rhymes from Timbaland and some out-of-place artists and styles, the production and the high energy of the songs outweigh the negatives.

[email protected]

In late January, the University’s largest gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender student organization, GLOBAL, began planning for a new

event in its semester lineup. It’s called the Rainbow Prom,

and it’s almost here. With festivities set for Saturday,

the Rainbow Prom is an old GLOBAL idea fi nally brought into being by the group’s dramatic upsurge in membership.

With attendance to weekly meetings up several fold over the past few years, GLOBAL now has the activity to enlist the aid of UH’s administration in the form of fi nancial assistance, room accommodations, concessions and even entertainment.

“I met with the funding board ... to get costs reimbursed. Not everything’s been fi nalized yet, but the meeting seemed to go very well. For food, I requested sushi, Chick-Fil-A, salads from Chili’s, other veggie-friendly items, etc,” said Phill Stout, president of the UH chapter of GLOBAL. “We defi nitely have a karaoke machine and I think we can get a DJ.”

If funded by the university, which is likely the case, this show of support for GLBT students would be just another brick in the wall for UH’s consistently and increasingly gay-friendly attitude. Just this year alone, our school has taken numerous strides in acknowledging and protecting these students, even going so far as to put “Pride” signs across the entire campus. While the Rainbow Prom may lack the glamour and severe intoxication of a traditional prom, UH’s support for the student-run activity could also be tinged by symbolic meaning for students who traditionally have less than ideal high school experiences.

With food, music and lodgings all lined up, there is only one embarrassing detail left to cover: decorations. The proposed style of the Rainbow Prom is set to be simply rainbow colors, with the room divided into different individual colors. As actual decorations won’t be put up until the day of, anyone who wants to contribute to the effort should visit www.uh.edu/global.

Estimated attendance for the event is somewhere around 100. Attendees are free to bring their friends, but as the Rainbow Prom is using University space and resources, it is meant for students only.

According to GLOBAL’s Web site, the party is scheduled to last from 8 p.m. to 1 p.m., which either means that GLOBAL is the most hardcore student group on campus, or it’s a typo. Either way, the enthusiasm of the group and its highly motivated offi cers promise to make the Rainbow Prom a night splendor and gaiety. Just remember that when you see the live goat, it’s time to leave.

[email protected]

ThadSweigart

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6 ■ Tuesday, March 2, 2010 SPORTS The Daily Cougar

BASEBALL

Cougars hope to exploit Owls’ early-season woesBy Tristan TippetTHE DAILY COUGAR

The Cougars will play rival Rice at 4 p.m. today at Reckling Park.

After getting swept by Texas State at the start of the season, the Cougars almost made up for it last weekend by winning two- out-of- three against Santa Clara, improving the team’s record to 2-4 for the early season.

Despite winning the series, head coach Rayner Noble still has high demands for his players.

“All I’m looking for is guys that want to compete, and aren’t overcome by the moment,” Noble said.

Still under .500, the Cougars did show some encouraging signs, particularly with their bats. They managed 40 hits for 27 runs, ending with a .308 batting

average for their series against the Broncos.

“When you get pitches up in the zone, and their pitchers fall behind in the count,” Noble said, “those are conditions where you should be able to hit.”

UH fi rst baseman and pitcher Matt Creel had an extraordinary series, hitting .600 and driving in eight runs.

Creel attributed much of his

success to the players earlier in the batting order.

“When everybody else gets hits,” Creel said, “it gives you a lot more power at the plate.”

The Cougars aren’t alone in their early season struggles, as the Owls (3-4) started the season 0-4 before winning their last three at Reckling Park.

Today’s meeting will be the 150th between the schools, with

Rice leading the series 81-69. Rice went 4-1 against UH last year, taking two of three games at Cougar fi eld, as well as the sole game played at Reckling Park.

After facing Rice, the Cougars will participate in the Houston College Classic at 3:30 p.m. Friday at Minute Maid Park against Missouri.

[email protected]

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The Daily Cougar COMICS & MORE Tuesday, March 2, 2010 ■ 7

TODAY’S CROSSWORDCOUGAR COMICS Find more daily strips at thedailycougar.com/comics

TODAY’S SUDOKU

How to playEach row must contain the numbers 1 to 9; each column must contain the numbers 1 to 9; and each set of 3-by-3 boxes must also contain the numbers 1 to 9.

ACROSS 1 Orange-red

mineral 5 Basso Simon — 10 Taj Mahal site 14 Pre-college 15 Armor defect 16 Liverpool chap 17 Saga in verse 18 Beadwork, e.g. 20 Shaggy fl ower 22 Heavy 23 Low-budget fi lm

(hyph.) 25 Musher’s vehicle 26 Above the hori-

zon 27 Half of “deux” 28 Perry’s creator 32 Bit part 33 Full range 35 Grime 36 Genetic strand 37 Rights-movement

word 38 Aah’s companion 39 Down Under

rockers 41 Cut drastically 43 BBs 44 Fluctuate (hyph.) 45 LPGA star Se Ri — 46 Craggy abodes 48 Arrogant 50 Billowed 51 Scattered about 54 Small change 55 Chess match 57 Bluff er 61 — -de-camp 62 Whammy 63 Move gingerly 64 Ran, as colors 65 Over-publicized 66 Gloating

DOWN 1 Get a load of 2 Yodeler’s perch 3 Letter before

sigma 4 Get rid of 5 Reverberating 6 Oater classic 7 Very small 8 Goal 9 Cast-iron cooker 10 Rubs against

11 Degree holder 12 Widespread 13 Business letter

abbr. 19 So-so grade 21 Festive night 23 Wild pony 24 Aristocratic address 25 Ignores 26 Matrix 27 Boat made of

skins 29 Rent-sharer 30 Came into view 31 Social mores 34 Adventurer —

Quatermain 40 Included 41 Popeye’s food 42 Like some houses 43 Sporty socks 47 Urn homophone 49 Grass beard

50 Have a hunch 51 Wild guess 52 Hard work 53 Primitive 54 Felon, in cop-speak 56 Very, in Veracruz 58 “— — Woman”

(Reddy tune) 59 Sun Devils sch. 60 Gas-pump abbr.

© 2009 UNITED FEATURE SYNDICATE INC.

Previous puzzle solved

Previous puzzle solved

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22

23 24 25

26 27 28 29 30 31

32 33 34 35

36 37 38

39 40 41 42 43

44 45 46 47

48 49 50

51 52 53 54

55 56 57 58 59 60

61 62 63

64 65 66

T W A A S S O C H U E SM A R C L A U R A O N A NA L E C T I B E T A L S OS E N E G A L S C A R I E R

P R I S M H U S T L EG R A T E R A D A G EN U R S E S E A L R A M SU T E T H I S T L E S A CS H A Q A N T E K E A N U

U M B E R D I P P E DS A F A R I O W E N SA G I L I T Y R E G I M E NT O N I A E S O P L E G OE R A T T A S T E O M A RD A L Y S H E E N N O D

Dim Sum by Ho Yi Lau

Limbo by Paulo Aninag

UC Arbor, Room 32D713/743-2777

www.uh.edu/ucaf

HOURS OF OPERATION

Cash, Checks, Credit Cards, andCougar Cash accepted.

Monday – Friday10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Saturday11:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.

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(Lower Level, University Center)

March 1 - 7This Week on the UC Fun Floor

Shasta’s Now Accepts Cougar Cash!

HOURS OF OPERATIONMonday - Friday

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11:00 a.m. - 9:00 p.m.Sunday

4:00 p.m. - 9:00p.m.

UC Lower Level713/743/4947

Partially funded by SFAC and your UC Fee.

Try our new coffee roast! “Katz’s Best” (now on a rotating basis)

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Tuesday 3/2

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Friday 3/5 SPB Fridays30% OFF with UH Student ID & SPB Tag

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Monday 3/1

Faculty/Staff Bowling League6:00PMThursday 3/4

Plan to attend our Career Choice Seminar:

TUESDAY, MARCH 9 2010@ 7PM

at the Beverly Hills/ChallengerLocation:

11111 Beamer Houston, TX 77089

The Pasadena ISD Teacher Certification Program is offering Career Choice Seminars for anyone

interested in becoming a Texas certified teacher. Potential candidates must have a bachelor’s

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The application deadline for the 2010-2011academic year is May 14, 2010

The seminars will provide an opportunity forpotential candidates to learn about our program

and the areas of certification offered.

Teaching Opportunitiesin Pasadena ISD

For more information, please call:

(713) 740-0029also, visit our website at:

www.pasadenaisd.org/atcp

UC Arbor, Room 32D713/743-2777

www.uh.edu/ucaf

HOURS OF OPERATION

Cash, Checks, Credit Cards, and Cougar Cash accepted.

Monday – Friday10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Saturday11:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Sunday2:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.

Partially funded by SFAC and your UC Fee.

Tuesday, March 2, 2010Celebrating Texas Independence Day

with Dollar Cones!

Ya’ll stop on by!

8 ■ Tuesday, March 2, 2010 SPORTS The Daily Cougar

CONVENIENT TRUTHS

Commish trying to put NHL on ice

Less than fi ve years ago, hockey was dead in the U.S.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, along with the league’s

owners, decided that their sport could survive

a lockout when they were unable to come to terms on a new collective bargaining agreement with the Players’ Association.

Several tentative years after a new agreement was reached and the league resumed play, Bettman is yet again doing his part to kill off interest in the NHL.

Up until about noon Sunday, the 2010 Olympic Winter Games were mostly forgettable; Shaun White’s coach cursed on television, Apollo Ohno won some more bronze medals, and Americans learned that Lindsey Vonn and Julia Mancuso aren’t exactly BFFs.

All that changed, however, when the puck was dropped in the men’s gold medal hockey game.

The hour-and-8-minute prizefi ght showcased some of the sport’s best talent in one of the most memorable hockey games of the past decade.

In a release Monday, NBC offi cials said that 27.6 million viewers in the U.S. watched the game live. Even more impressive, however, was the viewership in Canada, where 16.6 million people — around half of the country’s population — monitored the contest.

To put this into perspective, according to the NHL, less than 12 million people tuned in to watch Game 7 of the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals.

Before the men’s Olympic hockey games had begun, Bettman said in a Feb. 18 press conference that the NHL would not commit its players to the 2014 Olympics because doing so would hurt the league fi nancially.

“This costs us money, this

disrupts our season, and we’re here (only) because we think it helps our game,” Bettman said.

I must not be the genius that Bettman is, because I fail to see how advertising the league’s premier players to 44.2 million people is a bad thing.

In fact, it seems that had Bettman been just a little bit smarter, he would have correctly valued this as a rare opportunity to promote the NHL virtually free of cost. Instead, he decided to sit back and criticize the Olympics for hindering the NHL’s success.

During his tenure as commissioner, Bettman has managed to alienate a loyal fan base, lose a network TV contract and push the league further back into obscurity.

Hockey is truly a great sport. I will always count going to my fi rst hockey game at age 3 and watching the San Jose Sharks take on the Hartford Whalers (R.I.P., Mighty Whale) at the dilapidated Cow Palace just outside San Francisco as one of the great memories of my life.

There’s an exhilaration and beauty that comes with watching hockey that no other sport provides. A jaw-dropping play or a bare-knuckle brawl is always just around the corner.

But if Bettman continues managing the NHL with a disdain for success, it won’t be long before he runs the league into the ground.

The owners need to kick Bettman to the curb and fi nd someone with an IQ that can’t be counted on two hands to run the NHL.

If they don’t, it may not be long before curling takes over as the unoffi cial fourth major sport in the U.S.

Sadly, many people wouldn’t see that as a bad thing.

[email protected]

Alan Dennis