The H.R. 3962, otherwise known as the Affordable Health Care for America Act, made it through the House in a vote of 220 to 215. The bill needed 218 votes to pass and the decision came down to the wire. The Democrats were able to rally 219 votes and were supported by Rep. Anh Cao of Louisiana, the only Republican to vote in favor of the bill.

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, commented that the passage of this legislation represents “a historic moment for our nation and for America’s families.”

Many Republicans disagree heartily, and warn that the consequences for Americans include higher taxes, increased insurance premiums and cuts to Medicare.

According to the Democrats though, the bill will be good for Americans, and the negative consequences stated by the Republicans will not come to pass. The $1.3 trillion bill will require individuals to have insurance on penalty of a fine and require medium and large businesses to provide their employees with insurance. A public option for insurance will be made available for those who do not have access to it through their jobs, and low to middle income families will receive subsidies through the government in order to purchase this insurance. The money for this will come from increased taxes on those whose income is $500,000 or more and from medical providers. The bill will also make it illegal for insurance companies to drop or deny an individual’s coverage based on a pre-existing condition or increased cost of care.

That is not all that the bill will do though. According to Pelosi, the legislation also prohibits unequal charging of men and women for the same coverage, reduces the cost of drugs for senior citizens and allows young adults to stay under their parents’ insurance coverage until their 27th birthday. Pelosi also guarantees that the bill will not add a dime to the national deficit.

There were a number of more conservative Democrats to whom concessions had to be made in order to secure enough votes for the bill to pass. The major issue concerned government funds that would go towards abortion services in the public option. An amendment was passed that would ban these funds except in cases of rape, incest or the mother’s life being in danger. This concession forced some of the Democratic representatives to have to choose between allowing what they feel is a severe restriction on a woman’s right to choose and having the whole piece of legislation scrapped all together. But the amendment passed 240 votes to 192, allowing for the passage of the whole bill.

These recent events have stirred up a lot of talk here at Southwestern, with students being on both sides of the issue.

Junior Sam Marsh stated about the bill, “While it is well-intentioned and has a few sound ideas, the bill is designed to mitigate the dysfunctions of the current system, rather than fixing the basic problems that create those dysfunctions in the first place.”

On the other side, “It is really great that our government finally got on the ball with healthcare. Although it has yet to be shown if this bill will actually do what it says and help Americans, I think that this is the right step to action. It’s about time we reformed healthcare in the U.S.,” says sophomore Kerry Spare.

The Colleges Against Cancer group is very excited about the passage of the bill as well, as it is a victory for those fighting against cancer. The American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network feels that the bill has “the potential to take the fight against cancer in this country to a new level.”

“This vote brings the country one step closer to enacting comprehensive reform that advances our mission to reduce suffering and death related to cancer,” John R. Seffrin, PhD and chief executive officer of American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, said.

Now that the bill has gone through the House, it will be up to the Senate to pass their version of it as well before the combined version can be voted on in both chambers. President Obama has said that he is confident that the Senate will pass the bill, and is quoted to have said, “I look forward to signing comprehensive health insurance reform into law by the end of the year.”

According to the Strategic Planning website, the plan has had two guiding goals since its inception: It hopes to “increase the value of a Southwestern education for students” and ” ensure the financial vitality and sustainability of the institution.” The town hall meeting allowed the opportunity to voice their opinions on the proposed direction, which included a possible name change, the possibility of a football team and east campus development. The Megaphone’s web editor, Lane S. Hill, attended the meeting and tweeted about the experience.

Tweeting live from the student body forum:

Starting.Alex Caple introducing Matt Hansen and Leah Jones. Everything will be recorded and given to representatives.

“Not a definite plan, but a vision”.

Goals of stratgic plan: increase educational value, ensure financial viability

Talking about directions: academic life, student life, reach, growth, etc.

In 3-5 years SU wants to be top liberal arts unis by focus on science, tenure, interdisciplines, paidea, study abroad, technology

Campus Life: focus on athletics (all sorts), community, diversity enrichment, student activities, res-life

Football: feasibility study being studied by alumni. Nothing has been done yet, student input will be welcomed later down the road

Visibility & Reach: name change, increased visibility

Name Change: feasibility study, examples of schools who changed their names, not a band-aid fix, taken seriously. And yes, you would be given new diplomas with new name.

Growth: 250 FTE over 5 years, partnerships, centers and institutes (center for eco-justice?), east campus visioning

East campus development: for the betterment of students, student life, education, research.

Next: student, faculty, staff input, meetings, etc, questions are beginning.

There are measures in the plan for prioritizing, looking at the feasibility, making sure things things are achievable.

How to accommodate 250 new students? Cooperative housing, special interest houses, more housing east campus, staff would address issues

Money for increased salary coming from? Tuition from students increase, there will be no cost on rest of student body

Transitioning from endowment to tuition-funded institution. That’s VERY interesting.

Diversity section language: diversity is high priority, address needs as money would allow, plan taken from Diversity committee

Athletic center priority: high priority, first initiative, lots of people raised hands for this.

Concerns: weight room machines old, no school spirit, athletics and diversity, fixed athletic facilities,

Name change destroys tradition (lots of people against name change), lack of a track, endowment -> tuition scholarship concerns

Increased scholarships, bettering Commons nutrition, sustainable methods and nature preserves, more name change concerns and funding concern

More athletic center concerns, weight rooms concerns, locker room concerns, field house, football team concerns, sex ratio.

Football team had about even approval/disapproval, academic improvement is online, transfer student concerns, athletic equipment obsolete

School spirit initiative, more competitive whether its football or debate, study abroad concerns, football scholarships concerns

Gender neutral housing (has to go to University Council then faculty, then president Schrum, then trustees who will decide), feminist studies concerns

Getting rid of sexism or racism, decrease in alumni support, name change bidding war, athletic center concerns - faculty problem too

Follow through concerns, email Matt Hansen or Leah Jones for specific questions, StuCo will send out key points, leave comments on plan website (or here. -Ed)

For more information about the strategic plan, please pick up this week’s Megaphone or visit the official strategic planning website.

Angel Tree is a program sponsored by the Salvation Army. The Salvation Army is a Christian organization whose mission is to preach the word of God and to provide resources for basic human needs to those who require assistance. The Angel Tree program benefits local Austin-area children who have at least one parent who is incarcerated.

This event is on going through the month of November.

According to Randi Spencer, a junior and member of Phi Lambs who was working the Angel Tree concourse table this week, being a part of the Angel Tree program is great because “it’s all for the kids and being able to help facilitate [the kids receiving gifts] is fun!”

There are tables set up in the concourse during lunch and dinner where there are lists of kids from which to choose. If you are interested, you can stop by and talk to one of the ladies working the table and they will explain the process to you. Or, you could just read it here.

There are lots of kids to choose from – boys and girls ranging from infancy to 11 and 12 years old. You can sift through the mounds of names and pick a child who catches your eye. They all have a few wish-list items listed on a card with their name on it. For example, Manuel is nine and he really likes football and needs some new shoes this year. All of the kids have wish-lists similar to these.

If you find a child you would like to sponsor, you ‘adopt’ that angel from the concourse table. By ‘adopting’ this child’s wish-list, you are pledging to put thoughtful effort into choosing and purchasing age-appropriate items which are similar to the ones on the list. No one is expected to buy a Wii for a child this season!

Anyone who ‘adopts’ an angel from Angel Tree is encouraged to bring back two toys and one article of clothing unwrapped. The ‘unwrapped’ part is important because the Salvation Army will screen gifts for appropriateness once Sigma Phi Lambda returns them all. All gifts will then be distributed to the families just in time for the holidays!

Want to sponsor a child but feel like it could be expensive? That’s what student Natalie Thaddeus, a junior, first thought.

But she told me that she believes a “good idea would be to go in and ‘adopt’ an angel with your mom or your cousin Samantha or with your roommate. That way, you still get to help out a child in need and you give your wallet a break”.

If you have any questions about Angel Tree, what it is all about, you can contact Brooke Blomquist.

In an interview Caperton gave the media this week, he stated, “For too long kids have been fooled into thinking that the Pythagorean theorem will actually help them or that words like ‘mendacious’ and ‘perspicacious’ could actually be used in speech without making them look like total pretentious d-bags. Well, guess what kids? We were fooling you the whole time.” Caperton was there with his wife who comforted him as he bawled over how his company lied to the nation for over “100 freaking years.” He said, “I’m so sorry I made kids think that knowing the formula for the volume of a sphere would ever help them hook up and get laid while in college, which is the only reason why to go in the first place.”

After several hours of answering questions, Caperton revealed a sample BEER test to a select group of college-bound high school seniors and said, “Everybody get your Keystone Lights out. It’s time to see if you all are going to be good college students.”

The BEER was reportedly in works for over 10 years. In regards to the contents of the test, students are still required to bring calculators but that is only for the portion that requires the test-takers to calculate how much money has been tallied up to make a few beer runs. Furthermore, there will still be a reading assessment featured, but this is reportedly only to “read beer labels.”

The test is no longer measured out of 2400 either. Caperton stated his grievances over the former scoring system when he asked, “Why the hell did we put it at 2400 and each section at 800? That means losers could score in the hundreds, which is a number that can make them feel good about themselves.” To counter this misrepresentation, College Board just uses labels to be more accurate. Students that hold their liquor well, along with knowing every brand of vodka, dancing well and reciting the alphabet backwards while drunk are given the label “totally effing awesome.” The other levels, ranked from best to worst are as follows: “standard frat boy/sorority girl,” “average partygoer,” “nondescript casual drinker,” “guy/girl you have to watch after they passed out to make sure they don’t die,” and of course, “the roommate you wish you never had.”

And yes, Rihanna is clearly exploiting an issue which causes plenty of pain and suffering, because it is undeniable that violence towards anyone, especially someone whom you are supposed to love, is a problem that needs to be addressed, not made profit from. Rihanna said in her interview that she decided to speak now about the tumultuous relationship because she realized that many little girls look up to her, and she needs to be a good role model and teach them that putting up with domestic violence is not right. I am not belittling the message that she is pretending to transmit, but my question is, why did she just realize that she is a role model? And why did the publication of this realization have to occur the same week that she was set to release her album? It is all too coincidental, and she is obviously using the publicity of her assault to produce more sales of her album.

And it was exactly the publicity of her assault that saved her from continuing this destructive relationship with Brown. There were reports of her having put up with his violence on previous occasions, but it was not until a severe assault occurred and was publicized that she was forced, due to public pressure and the possibility of her contract being dropped, to end her relationship with him. Unlike most people facing domestic violence, Rihanna profited monetarily from ending her relationship with Brown. This does not imply that she should never have left him, it merely points out the fact that Rihanna seems to be profiting from the publication of this assault the most that she can profit. And considering how serious domestic violence is, these actions of her are simply immoral.

Unfortunately, most people will not stop to consider her actions, and will buy her songs, and watch her shows and not think about the serious repercussions of her long silence on domestic violence. They will only rejoice as they listen to her new singles. Never mind the fact that after the publication of the assault she suffered, plenty of young girls posted on message boards the fact that they thought she deserved what she got, or that they still thought that Brown was a good man. Never mind the fact the fact that Brown has managed to semi-salvage his career because of her long silence. Rihanna, clearly, deserves all the attention that she and her album are getting.

“These were the worst conditions I have ever seen,” proclaimed head coach Francie Larrieu Smith.

Nonetheless, the race went on and the runners persevered, fighting mud and sinister desires to quit along the entire trek.

The men’s team finished 10th just behind UT-Tyler and ahead of Hendrix, equaling the school’s all-time best finish at regionals. The men were led by senior Daniel Rudd, who finished 39th out of 194 with a time of 28:50, four spots out of All-Region. Following Mr. Rudd’s tracks closely was sophomore Zach Freeland with a time of 29:05, whom senior Josh Gideon chased to finish in 29:40. First-year Thomas Bobbitt and junior Allen Smith rounded out the top five with times of 30:13 and 30:19, respectively.

There were some scares (for myself) after the race, however, when Bobbitt had to be carried over to the training grounds and treated with medicinal Gatorade to relieve his suffering of extreme heat exhaustion. “After the race I was just really dizzy, but slowly I became number throughout my entire body and less able to breathe.”

Luckily, one of our very own trainers was able to get Bobbitt back on his feet. With the season over, the men’s team is now able to drink soda, but missing those 6 a.m. runs.

Recently, in a game against Brigham Young University, University of New Mexico soccer player Elizabeth Lambert threw punches, tackled players and pulled an opponent to the ground by her ponytail. And the only time she was called by the officials was for mouthing off on an unrelated call. She has since been suspended for her behavior, but it is clear that she was taking out her frustration at her team’s lack of success on the other team’s players, instead of focusing her energy on contributing to her team’s play.

But, last year, in the playoff game between Central Washington and Western Oregon, a player from WOU hit a homerun and after rounding first, collapsed with a leg injury. Unable to continue, she didn’t want the hit counted as a single, or to be counted out if her teammates helped her. Then two of the players from CWU asked the official if they could help her round the bases. As there was no rule against it, the official allowed Mallory Holtman and Liz Wallace to carry Sara Tucholsky around the bases, touching each base for her first career home run. In doing so, they contributed to their own elimination from the playoffs, and the end of their season.

Holtman said of her gesture, “She hit it over the fence and was in pain, and she deserved a home run.”

Stories that make national news make good examples and are usually either the worst or the best. Overall, I would hope that college athletes would be well enough led to be good sportsmen. At the professional level, it is generally accepted that the people who make it to that level will have an inflated view of self-worth to begin with and will have their faults mocked as much as their successes praised. The college level ranges from Division I football, where each week the stars are discussed at length and hidden away by their coaches, to Division III cross country, where players often go unnoticed and unappreciated, competing for their love of the game. I believe it is at the smaller level that you see sports playing a positive role more than at higher levels, because the attention is not on them to just win at any cost. The sportsmanship of players at higher levels is often good, but can be quite negative. That is one of my favorite things about playing sports in Division III.

This leads to athletes that graduate with concern for those around them, who will usually work well in a group and advance any team well. The ability to lead and be led is one of the many ways that sports allows athletes to be versatile, and the organization it takes to be a full-time student as well as an athlete is certainly valuable. What is speaks to us as a culture is that at close, personal levels we generally play fair, and it is rewarded with success. However, the professional athletes of business have always been just as selfish and whiney as the worst football stars. Who blames each other and refuses to take responsibility more than banking leaders at corporations such as AIG? Maybe Tony Romo? TO? Hard to say.