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Friday, December 15, 2006

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Total Clips: 5

	Date	Outlet
AGROTERRORISM	12/15/2006	Newsday
Students give old texts a new life	12/15/2006	Tuscaloosa News
Recent editorials from Alabama newspapers	12/15/2006	NBC 15
Sports Briefs: Auburn probes grade changes	12/14/2006	Redding.com
Holiday food plan: Devilishly good	12/14/2006	The Daily Reflector


AGROTERRORISM 12/15/2006 Newsday		Return to Top
Jean Weese, a food scientist at AU, is quoted in this story. WASHINGTON - The common denominator was salad. Over several weeks, hundreds of people reported falling ill with diarrhea and severe intestinal distress after eating leafy green vegetables at salad bars. The time was September 1984, the place a small town in Oregon called The Dalles. It took more than a year before investigators determined that 751 people had been sickened, not by accidental contamination, but as a result of deliberate poisoning in what would be the first documented case of bioterrorism in the United States. An obscure religious sect had sprayed Salmonella typhimurium on salad bars and drinking cups in 10 restaurants in an attempt to influence an upcoming election. That was probably the first bona fide case of a biological terrorist act in the U.S. in terms of intentional contamination of the food supply, said Peter Chalk, a RAND Corp. terrorism expert. But there have been other cases of this around the world in terms of simple extortion, carried out by criminals against food companies, as well as by animal rights activists and environmental extremists. While the U.S. food supply is among the world's safest, experts say it is vulnerable to deliberate, as well as accidental, contamination - a reality brought home by the deaths of three people and the sickening of hundreds as a result of tainted spinach, tomatoes and a still-unidentified food source at Taco Bell. The country's exposure to deliberate sabotage is increasing, moreover, as a result of the centralization of the food supply, growing foreign imports and the system's oversight by a fragmented and problem-laden national safety system, in the words of a 2003 report by the Government Accounting Office. Increased preparations The threat from agroterrorism may not be widely recognized, but the threat is real and the impact could be devastating, said FBI Deputy Director John Pistole, speaking at a recent summit of law enforcement and agriculture officials. Noting that documents about U.S. agriculture, which had been translated into Arabic, were discovered in Afghan caves, Pistole said that, while the FBI had no specific intelligence regarding attacks, the absence of a communicated threat does not prove the absence of a threat. Since the Sept. 11 attacks, national response plans to agroterrorism have been prepared by agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, the FBI, the Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Stepped-up planning and surveillance have also been spurred by analyses showing growing criminal interest in biological agents. Nineteen of 27 confirmed terrorist efforts to use such agents around the world, and 40 of 56 confirmed criminal cases, occurred in the 1990s, according to a study by W. Seth Carus for National Defense University in Washington, D.C.. But many say that recent contamination episodes are proof that such plans are inadequate. What these incidents show is that the actual oversight of the food supply is questionable, said Chalk, the Rand expert. One of the major problems is that we require only self-regulation of the food processing industry and that the FDA lacks sufficient inspectors and resources to do the job. Opinion is divided Those deficiencies become magnified by the food industry's growing centralization, which could make the introduction of even a small amount of poison devastating. Two Stanford researchers published a study last year concluding that just a third of an ounce of botulinum toxin poured into a milk tanker could cause hundreds of thousands of deaths. Food poisoning and food contamination have always been with us, said Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma A Natural History of Four Meals. But it doesn't become a national story like this until it affects hundreds of people. ... If you really cared about national security and public health, you would take steps to promote decentralization of the food supply. Others, however, discount the terrorist threat. They say an attack on the food supply simply doesn't produce the shock value - or in most cases, the casualties - of crashing planes into buildings. If your intent is to kill people, then you can do it in a lot more effective ways, said Jean Weese, a food scientist at Auburn University in Alabama. Intentional food poisonings Cases of intentional poisonings of the food supply 2003 Ninety-two people fall ill after purchasing ground beef from a Michigan supermarket that was intentionally contaminated with nicotine. An employee of the supermarket was subsequently indicted for the contamination of 200 pounds of beef. 1997 Israeli settlers spray pesticides on grapevines in two Palestinian villages, destroying up to 17,000 metric tons of grapes. 1990s Before using sarin nerve gas in the Tokyo subways in 1995, which killed 12 people and sickened thousands, Aum Shinrikyo produced biological agents including botulinum and anthrax, and tried unsuccessfully to use them. The group outfitted three vehicles to disseminate botulinum toxin, according to testimony by former members, one of which was targeted at the U.S. Navy base at Yokosuka. The effort is believed to have failed because the agents were not sufficiently virulent. 1984 The Rajneeshee cult spreads salmonella in salad bars at 10 restaurants in The Dalles, Ore., to influence a local election. Health officials say that 751 people were sickened and more than 40 hospitalized. 1978 Members of a group calling itself the Arab Revolutionary Council poison Israeli oranges with mercury, injuring at least 12 people and reducing exports by 40 percent. SOURCE CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH REPORT, AGROTERRORISM THREATS AND PREPAREDNESS Copyright © 2006 Newsday, Inc.


Students give old texts a new life 12/15/2006 Tuscaloosa News Adam Jones		Return to Top
AU is mentioned as a participant in this project. TUSCALOOSA \| Student groups at the University of Alabama have joined a national movement that has college students donating old textbooks to students around the globe. "Most college students don’t have a lot of money to donate to a cause, but everybody has books," said Lizzie Fischer, regional director for Better World Books. Three University of Notre Dame students started Better World Books in 2002, and the organization since has collected more than 3 million books from about 900 campuses. The nonprofit organization is a middleman. It collects and sorts books for established charities that serve different regions of the world. UA students chose Books for Africa mainly because Robert Boylan, who helped set-up the book drive on campus, was most familiar with the charity, he said. The books will be given to African colleges in desperate need of reading material. Those that cannot be used will be sold, and Better World Books will donate the money to buy new books for impoverished regions. So far, social work students and members of Mortar Board have raised more than 2,000 books, but that should improve as collection bins placed on campus at a few off-campus bookstores are emptied Saturday after exams. "Last week, people were hanging on to their books, so this week we should get a lot," said David Simpson, a member of the social work honor society, the umbrella organization leading the book drive for the school. Boylan, vice president of Mortar Board, said he’s been surprised at the response. Already, he's shipped 25 boxes, about 1,200 books, and most of that from a faculty drive in November. "I thought we'd get a couple hundred books, but it has been more successful than I thought," Boylan said. "People are just eager to help people." Social work groups held a book drive with Better World Books before but on a much smaller scale. This is the first year it's been campus wide. UA students plan to resume the drive when the spring semester starts in January, another busy time for students to buy and sell books, and hope to continue the drive in May and future semesters, said Caroline Woodruff, a member of the social work honor society. UA joins several other campuses in the state, including Auburn University and the University of South Alabama, in partnering with Better World Books, Fischer said. The drives are popular and successful because they seek books -- something college students desperately need at the start of a semester and desperately try to dump at the end. But also because Better World Books pays for the book drive, providing promotional material such as posters, bins, postage and even $50 for a pizza party if students think it would help, Fischer said. "We try to provide everything for the students so they don't have to re-invent the wheel every semester," she said. "If a student group was trying to do this on their own it would be very difficult." The book drive also doubles as a fundraiser with every book worth 50 cents to the organization and the groups that get the most books nationwide compete for $1,000. But the students involved said the money is secondary to the cause. "Even if we can get half the students to donate one book that's, what, 13,000 books or so," Simpson said while looking over a pile of donated books. "Imagine what that could do."
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Recent editorials from Alabama newspapers 12/15/2006 NBC 15		Return to Top
The Huntsville Times editorial is about tuition for higher education in Alabama. The Anniston Star on state taxes: First, a little cold-water realism. If low taxes stimulated the economy and produced jobs, then during the last 100 years Alabama should have had the hottest economy and the lowest unemployment in the nation. But Alabama didn't. And even though a recent study by the Public Policy Institute of New York State concluded that overall Alabama has the nation's lowest taxes per capita, no one can offer evidence that the economic good times we currently are enjoying are the result of our tax code. Quite to the contrary, when you look for evidence of what our tax policy has created you find inequity, underfunded schools, understaffed law enforcement and agencies running on a shoestring. So to argue, as Gov. Riley does, that Alabama needs another tax cut to create jobs just does not hold up under the weight of evidence to the contrary. That said, some well-targeted tax cuts could help the state in other ways. Last year the Legislature, at the governor's urging, raised the floor at which Alabama families paid income taxes from the inexcusably low $4,600, where it had been for decades, to $12,500. This was welcomed relief for our poorest citizens, but still below the federal poverty level. If the governor and Legislature wants to give tax cuts where tax cuts are needed, then bump the threshold up to $20,000. And the idea of exempting the first $10,000 of retirement income from state income taxes also has merit and should be studied. But the governor and Legislature needs to keep in mind that while these tax breaks help people today, they also take money from preparations for the future. Money from the income tax goes into the Education Trust Fund, and of all the things that contribute to jobs and prosperity, a well-educated citizenry consistently ranks first - well above lower taxes. We all understand that picking on education is just another way of taking a shot at the Alabama Education Association and its supporters in the Legislature, but in playing politics the governor needs to be careful. Taking money from education without a way to replace it (other than hoped-for job growth) is not wise. --- The Decatur Daily on state trust funds: The windfall money Alabama is to receive from the federal government expanding offshore drilling in the Gulf of Mexico won't make a major impact on the state's economy, but it still must be used wisely. The state will share an average of about $51 million per year for the next seven years with Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas if President Bush signs the bill that passed Congress on Saturday. Alabama is guaranteed $5.1 million annually, which represents about one-third of 1 percent of this year's $1.66 billion General Fund budget. If the Legislature were to divide that amount proportionally between the state's 67 counties, its impact would be even less. One of the new Legislature's first jobs will be to decide where the money goes. Congress wants the money to go to coastal counties to repair their shorelines from erosion and hurricanes. But Alabama voters amended the Alabama Constitution years ago to put oil and gas money into trust funds. The state now has three closely guarded trust funds that use dividend income to finance capital projects and for certain other uses. Hopefully, the Legislature won't finagle some way to spend the money as it comes in. Instead, legislators should use the money to continue building the trust funds, and then spend the dividends. The state was smart to create the trust funds. Legislators will be smarter if they allow them to continue growing. --- The Huntsville Times on Alabama colleges: Time was, a college education - or any formal education after high school - amounted to a luxury. It was geared toward the professions or the academic life. People who got "real" jobs didn't need it. That day has long passed. And while Alabama in the 21st century provides ample postsecondary opportunities in the form of four-year universities, community colleges and technical colleges, a dark cloud has formed over the higher-education landscape. The colleges are simply getting too expensive, and the results soon will be such that the issue must be addressed. A study released Friday by the Alabama Commission on Higher Education gave the state a failing grade in the category of providing affordable higher education. More to the point, tuition at the state's two- and four-year institutions has been rising at an alarming rate. At the University of Alabama and Auburn University, tuition increases the past two years have exceeded $1,000 per academic year. Auburn is now the state's most expensive public university. Tuition on the Plains is $5,496 for the academic year - or two semesters. Because Alabamians are on average paid less than Americans as a whole, the impact of the steadily rising tuition is significant. Low- and middle-income families must spend 36 percent of their disposable income to send a child to a two-year college. Those families must spend 39 percent of their income if the child enrolls at a four-year university. Although college officials note that tuition in this state is still below the national average, the reality is additionally problematic because Alabama's aid to college students is low or nonexistent. Students and their families often have to borrow. But at some point, if tuition continues to rise, some families will find it not only difficult to educate their children but financially impossible. The state desperately needs a form of college assistance based on need. If it isn't practical to cap tuition increases - colleges, too, must meet rising expenses - then relief must come on the other side of the equation. If the state fails to act, the consequences could be lasting. Alabama's entry into the national economic mainstream rests in great part on its ability to educate its people to qualify them for modern jobs. The education infrastructure - our multitude of two- and four-year institutions - is already in place. Now our challenge is to take steps to make sure that every qualified student gets a chance to learn a trade or a profession or acquire other skills that lead to gainful employment for a lifetime. Under the last governor, Alabama had a chance to use a state lottery to pay for college tuition for deserving students, poor or otherwise. State voters said no. And while the lottery proposal had its drawbacks, nothing has emerged to achieve the same goals. When the Legislature convenes in March and takes up a package of tax cuts, it may well want to consider whether it's more important to cut taxes in an already low-tax state or to divert money to where it's clearly needed. If we fail to educate our young people, the economic impact could be negative and long-lasting. --- The Press-Register on state's two-year college system: Taxpayers have a right to know which legislators were promised projects in their districts when the Legislature gave an extra $57 million to Alabama's two-year college system last year. The Legislature appropriated the money for a discretionary fund to be dispensed by then-chancellor Roy Johnson, who has since been fired by the State Board of Education for reasons not related to the fund. Rep. Alvin Holmes of Montgomery recently asked interim Chancellor Thomas Corts for a list of the projects, but Corts said he doesn't think the information qualifies as public information under the law. Holmes then asked Attorney General Troy King for an opinion on the matter. Corts may be acting out of caution, but he's wrong about withholding the information. Alabama's public records law says that all records produced by a government agency are public records. Granted, court rulings have limited the law's reach. Yet, taxpayers ought to know which legislators hid projects in the system's budget. They also ought to know the nature and amount of the projects. The spirit of Alabama's public records law is that government business should be conducted in the open. For years, though, some cowardly legislators have avoided the critical glare of public scrutiny by working a deception. They'll give additional funds to a state agency such as the two-year college system and tell the agency to give the money to their pet projects in their home districts. The money is called "passthrough pork." Department officials go along with the charade because they don't want to refuse a powerful legislator. Corts can't keep the Legislature from choosing to spend money that way. However, considering the scandals that have enveloped the two-year college system in recent months, he can and should publicly identify the source of whatever passthrough pork was tucked into the two-year system's budget.
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Sports Briefs: Auburn probes grade changes 12/14/2006 Redding.com		Return to Top
AUBURN, Ala. -- Auburn University President Ed Richardson said an internal investigation determined that a faculty member changed students' grades, including those of some athletes, during 2002-2004. Richardson said in a statement Wednesday that Auburn will work with the Office of the Provost to determine "the appropriate corrective steps" against the professor. The grade changes involved only a small number of students, and few of them were athletes, according to the spokesman. The New York Times has reported that at least one grade change at Auburn involved a student-athlete who was able to maintain eligibility when his grade in a directed-reading course was changed from incomplete to an "A" in 2003. Brazil pitches for 2014 pitch TOKYO -- Brazil is a candidate to host the 2014 World Cup. Ricardo Teixeira, president of the Brazilian Soccer Confederation, presented Brazil's letter of intention Wednesday in Tokyo, where many FIFA officials have gathered for the Club World Cup. As part of FIFA's continental rotation policy, the 2014 championship is set for South America. The 2010 Cup is scheduled for South Africa. Warriors great Arizin dies at 78 PHILADELPHIA -- Paul Arizin, an early pioneer of the jump shot who led the Philadelphia Warriors to the 1956 NBA championship and was chosen one of the 50 greatest NBA players, died Tuesday night at his home in suburban Philadelphia. He was 78. STORY TOOLS E-mail story Comments iPod friendly Printer friendly More Pro Sports Niners come of age 24-14 Sports Briefs: Dec. 15, 2006 Boston's yen for Matsuzaka fulfilled Despite losing two years in his prime to the Korean War, "Pitchin' Paul" forged a sensational pro career on the strength of his jump shot, a recent evolution of the game. Arizin perfected the style playing on slippery gym floors and averaged 22.8 points in his 10-year career. He was inducted into the basketball Hall of Fame in 1978. Davenport takes maternity break LAGUNA BEACH -- Three-time major champion Lindsay Davenport is pregnant and will miss at least the start of the 2007 tennis season. Davenport and her husband, Jonathan Leach, are expecting their first child in early summer, according to a news release issued Wednesday by her agent, Tony Godsick. There was no indication in the release whether or not the 30-year-old Davenport plans to play professionally again. Model Barbaros raise $115,000 KENNETT SQUARE, Pa. -- The animal hospital where Barbaro is being treated has picked up a donation of nearly $115,000, thanks to model sales of the Kentucky Derby winner. New Bolton Center, a large animal hospital in suburban Philadelphia, accepted a $114,710 check Wednesday from Breyer, a New Jersey-based company that has made model horses for more than half a century. Burton rides full NASCAR schedule ASHLAND CITY, Tenn. -- Former Daytona 500 winner Ward Burton landed a full Nextel Cup ride Wednesday, signing a deal to drive the State Industries-sponsored No. 4 Chevrolet for Morgan-McClure Motorsports.
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Holiday food plan: Devilishly good 12/14/2006 The Daily Reflector Faith Dawson, Atlanta Journal Constitution		Return to Top
AU nutrition professor Robert Keith is quoted in this story that continues to appear in media outlets across the U.S. Atlanta If the five golden rings you crave come from Krispy Kreme, your diet probably goes into a downward spiral during the holidays. Fall and winter bring out the baked goods, the invitations and the eggnog. But maintaining good eating habits is still possible, even around a holiday potluck and an open bar. Linda M. Bell, a human-resources specialist from Hampton, Ga., says she once gained 6 pounds over the holidays through eating large portions. Later, after having a baby, she resolved to take the weight off for good. Now, even though her office turns into one long baked-goods buffet at year's end, Bell carefully chooses her meals and fits those choices into her dietary plan. No food is off-limits, but "it's very difficult" to stay focused, she says. "I plan what I'm going to eat. I'm very conscious of what I eat and how much I eat," she says. She's kept the weight off for five years, using workplace nutrition and weight-management classes as inspiration. Most people don't gain more than 1 or 2 pounds during the holiday season, but a slow, gradual weight gain adds up over the years, says registered dietitian Marisa Moore, an Atlanta spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. If you eat a slice of cake, don't panic or give up. One splurge won't ruin your diet. The key is to enjoy yourself sensibly. LOST ON THE WAY Be careful not to fall prey to common diet slip-ups. Diet trap: The slice of cake you ate doesn't count because you already exercised that day. Why: Dietitian Marisa Moore says exercise doesn't perfectly offset food servings. Your power walk may have burned only 150 calories, while the cake weighed in at 500 calories. Diet trap: You starve yourself all day to "save calories" for your big splurge later. Why: That's bad, says registered dietitian and Auburn University nutrition professor Robert Keith. You'd probably end up eating more to make up for the missed meals, even more than if you had eaten three balanced meals that day. Diet trap: The buffet is full of high-calorie foods, so you stick to the small appetizers that are passed around on trays. Why: Just because it's small doesn't mean it's light; some bite-size treats have 100 calories each. And since you'll be talking and drinking, you might not pay attention to how many you eat. AT THE BAR Know what you're drinking. A 5-ounce glass of dry wine has about 120 calories; beer and light beer have about 150 and 100 calories per 12-ounce serving; and hard liquor has about 90 calories per 1 1/2-ounce serving (about a shot glass). Liqueurs, especially cream-based ones, can pack a punch of 100 calories or more per ounce. Drink white wine rather than mixed drinks. Cocktails with mixers like orange juice or regular soda increase the caloric damage. Remember that all wineglasses aren't equal. Some parties without a bartender might offer only oversize goblets or, worse, 16-ounce cups, tempting you to fill them up. Alternate each drink with diet soda, plain water or club soda with a splash of fruit juice. Club soda has no calories. Tonic water and ginger ale have about 120 per 12-ounce can. TIP • Choose a small plate at the buffet and fill it two-thirds full with fruits and vegetables. AT HOME • If you want to contribute to a potluck meal, bring a healthy dish so you have at least one diet-friendly choice. • Substitute low-calorie liquids or foods such as applesauce for the oils in baked goods that you make at home. • Slice small servings or prepare mini versions of foods like muffins or quiches. IN THE OFFICE • Don't eat just because food is sitting there. Wait until you're hungry. • Ask yourself whether a splurge is worth it. If it's worth it, cut calories elsewhere or add 10 minutes to your exercise routine every day. • Measure a small serving for yourself instead of letting someone give it to you. AT THE BUFFET • Review the whole buffet before you start eating. That way you can limit yourself to foods you like or foods you want to try. • Choose small plates rather than dinner-size plates. • Start with vegetables and lean protein. • Try to measure serving sizes carefully. Fill your plate with at least two-thirds fruits or vegetables. • Stand far away from the buffet table while you eat. • Go back to the buffet only if you're still hungry. • At the carving station, skip the mayonnaise and /or the bun. • Go to the pasta station (where you can choose fewer, healthier ingredients) rather than eat prepared pasta that's already set out in the chafing dish. IN RESTAURANTS • At group dinners, try to consume only one of the following: an appetizer, a drink, bread or dessert. • Read the restaurant's online menu — including preparation and nutritional information — beforehand. • Choose your entree before you get there. (This trick also works when you're on the go. Knowing the calorie count of a fast-food sandwich might discourage you from eating it.) • For preset menus, request sauces on the side, light dressing or vegetable substitutions. Or ask the waiter to serve you half the meal and box the rest.
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