Mutterings abound amongst students and faculty about how this year seems different from prior years at the U of M. Among other hot-button issues, one of the big dilemmas affecting the atmosphere at the U is the far-too-noticeable increase in crime. College campuses and students are prime targets for petty crimes, mainly involving theft, and this past year the U has fallen victim to some disturbing crimes, most involving the threat and/or actual usage of severe physical violence. The U of M campus hosts the needs of about 50,000 students and 3,000 faculty and staff members. Everyone deserves to feel safe on campus, but how can anyone when one faculty member was robbed one afternoon in broad daylight in her office? Why is the U falling victim to such crimes, and what precautions can be taken?

The location of the U, close to many neighborhoods in the Twin Cities, is an often-appealing fact of the campus. The bus lines that run throughout and near campus make the U accessible to many, which is appearing to be both a blessing and a curse. When viewing the maps of campus crime the U of M makes available online, crime seems to be fairly even among the campus neighborhoods: Dinkytown, Stadium Village, Marcy-Holmes, and Como. Yet, all these neighborhoods sit along easily accessible bus lines that can potentially carry unwelcomed visitors.  These unwelcome visitors figured out that many college properties are old and neglected, often with poorly locked doors and easily opened windows, thus creating easy opportunities for a quick and simple robbery.

The correlation between crime and location cannot be ignored, especially when compared to statistics from other Twin Cities schools. The differences between the amount of crime that occurs at the U and at Macalaster College, a liberal arts school in St. Paul, are significant. The most recent accumulation of crime statistics available for Hamline is from 2003-2006, and these crimes were recorded from both on and nearby campus. In the total span of those years, Macalaster was only hit by 4 sexual offenses, 22 robberies, and 18 motor vehicle thefts. To give one an idea in the amount of difference in crime on the campuses, in December 2006 alone, the U was hit by 14 robberies, which is over half of what Macalaster suffered between 2003 and 2006.

This past week was Campus Safety Week, and an effort is being made to focus on these concerns. The U of M defends itself on its web site by saying they “have many resources in place to make the campus safe,” such as university police, security cameras, security escorts, security monitors and a safe ride home for students from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. on weekend nights. While this is true, and the U is lucky to have such services, is it enough? For instance, campus escorts are not trained in any sort of physical defense program by the U upon hiring. It is not a requirement to be hired that they must be sufficient in self-defense. When accompanied by an escort who has not studied any sort of defense, is not looking to go into a crime or protection field, and is not much bigger than oneself, is their presence enough to make one feel safe? Secondly, while the campus ride is an extremely convenient feature for early birds, bar close is at 2 a.m., the same time the vans stop running. This may leave many people to wander the streets, with potentially catastrophic results if they’ve been previously partying.

Campus Safety Week is emphasizing issues by creating events Monday through Friday that allow students, parents, faculty, etc. to discuss recent issues and concerns with members of the UMPD force over coffee and donuts. Students are concerned enough, and perpetuating the coffee and donut appetite of a ‘lazy cop’ was perhaps not the wisest choice of the U.

Justin Yarrington, the Assistant Program Director of the Campus Security Monitor Program, says that while he couldn’t directly explain the rise in severe crime, in the last three years crimes have gone down around the U’s campus. Yarrington said that the 150 student campus escorts are aware of the recent events, and this has caused them to take more pride in their jobs as they are aware of the significance and importance that accompanies their work. The campus escorts have a non-physical intervention policy, and most nights receive anywhere from 15-30 calls. Yarrington said he did notice an increase in calls about a week after the Super block shooting, but the distribution between calls from male and females stayed the same (with females more likely to call).

Students have had different reactions to the recent crime on campus. Many worry, others fall into the mindset that danger won’t happen to them. Juniors Teresa Logemann and Tracy Merth are two who fall into this mindset. Logemann says she realizes others are more worried than her. She feels prepared and safe, because she is careful and has taken a self defense class. Both agree that they are “cognizant of dangerous situations and avoid them” by doing such things as walking in groups at night, etc. The two agree that this is a “big city and stuff happens” and if you took precautions, you are doing all you can. Several events on campus made them temporarily nervous, but then they forgot about them. Both have used escorts, and appreciate the U’s e-mails and texts about crime. The two feel that as long as they make smart decisions they should be fine.

No matter how one feels, it is hard to ignore the recent violent crime on campus. UMPD and other organizations are doing all they can do, but it is important for students to protect themselves and others.

Starting in a few weeks University of Minnesota Libraries will open Wilson Library for 24-hour service.

Not really. But that’d be nice wouldn’t it?

Any university with over 50,000 students and claiming to be research-oriented shouldn’t leave their students with limited access to the libraries we pay for. Out of this number of students, surely there are a few left who are not simply dotting their x’s with Bachelors Degree in Whatever and actually care about reading and the investment they’re making in their own personal growth. It is these students that recognize the value of the constant library.

A 24-hour Library would most likely be used for study binges. Ideally, it would serve as the antithesis for the bourgeois construct stating that nighttime is for sleeping. In defense, the library would proclaim, “No! The night is for discussion! For knowledge! And so is the day!”

But we shouldn’t run away with ideals quite yet, they’re some matters I’m sure the regants board would like to discuss first.

One of the overlooked aspects of operating a 24-hour library is the increased expenses: electricty for the lights running through the night, wages for a staff of insomniac book keepers, reshelvers, security gaurds and maintainence crew.

If University officials are really concerned about increases in operating costs, they should first ask themselves why they’re calling the U of M a research institution without a single full-time library. The aforementioned costs need not be drastic expenditures with the right amount of planning.

Lighting in our 24-hour library should be carefully constructed; exteriors of the building should largely be left in darkness: only interiors and select study areas should be lit. Besides, the students who are navigating the cooridors of Wilson Library at 3 a.m. on a Wednesday probably have a sixth sense as to where that book is that they need.

As for staffing – let’s be honest – when was the last time anyone has spoken to a library worker? They’re more introverted and useless than patrons stalking the engineering shelves. Ever since the University adopted the machinery for checking out your own books with the swipe of a card – the “Self Checkout Service” – the need for anyone’s help but our own has been abolished.

Slap someone at the reserves desk to dig into the archives for whichever random audio CD a patron might request, a person to sit at the desk near the main exit to look like he or she matters, a security gaurd or two to comfort the ailing, neurotic mind of suburban, white library patrons and someone to reshelve in an overly energetic fashion and you already have what I would call an overstaffed library.
All we really need from the University is a couple lights and open doors.

In all honesty though, I would argue that every library with a staff is overstaffed. Sure, most of our peers will never step foot in a library after they graduate to some mediocre job with their $40,000 dollar degree, but guess what – I bet they’ll still remember that B comes before E and 553 before 988. In fact, I’d go as far to bet they knew that before they were dignified sheep. We don’t need anyone to help us find books. We don’t need some snotty, lazy employee go to the ‘secret’ archive stacks to retrieve our books! All we really need from the University is a couple lights and open doors. Go ahead and keep the heat low; it keeps us awake.

What’s keeping the University from a 24-hour library? Many universities set up 24-hour libraries on a trial basis. The duration of the trials have been anywhere from three weeks to two years. Regardless, it’s an effective way to directly assess the costs of operating the libraries as well as the demand and use of the facilities overnight. Harvard’s undergraduate library, Lamont, undertook a two-year assessment period several years ago and continues to operate their 24-hour library five days a week.

But wait. Didn’t the University do something like that a few years ago? In 2007 the U kept its doors open for the second half of the year, starting in May. Unfortunately the libraries saw virtually no use during their overnight headcounts.

Whoops. I guess I was wrong about our student body. Oh wait? Which library was kept open? The Bio-Medical Library? Where the fuck is that? Do I look like I care about science? I want literature and art goddamn it. Did the University ever think perhaps they opened the wrong library for 24-hour service? Open WILSON.

The first hints of nicer weather in the current season make us Minnesotans do very strange things. There’s a special brand of optimism that we’re imbued with, a mild delusion that persuades us that temperatures that are barely above freezing qualify as “sweatshirt weather” provided the sun is up. Some brave souls were even spotted jogging in shorts during last week’s “warm snap” (quotes added because most of the country considers temperatures in the mid thirties to be incredibly cold). Perhaps some of this spring fever is making its way to the capitol over in St. Paul, because a surprising contingent of state senators have recently announced their transition to the greener pastures of civilian life. Chief among them are veritable lions of the state senate: James Vickerman, a Democrat representing District 22 and Pat Pariseau, a Republican representing District 36.

Vickerman, boasting an impressive 24 years in legislature, isn’t facing any democratic contest for reelection and recently carried 58% of the vote during his last bid for office but declined to return for the upcoming election. District 22 is prime southwest MN farm territory, and the Senator spent his extensive tenure in office representing the interests of farmers and veterans in the capitol. Current contenders vying for Vickerman’s empty seat are Kim Hummel of Jackson County and Bill Weber of Luverne, both Republicans. Hummel, a newbie to the MN political scene, comes from a background of long haul trucking and has voiced support for tax-breaks for business and fiscal responsibility in government, as well as the usual farm issues from the area. Bill Weber faced off against Vickerman for the chair back in the 2006 election.

Pat Pariseau will also end her storied 22 year career in the state senate this fall, announcing Monday that she wound not seek reelection to represent Dakota county in District 36. Pariseau is probably best know for her authoring of the controversial “Conceal and Carry “ legislation that allows handgun permits to be issued to most Minnesotans, a move that has won her the support of gun activists across the state. Pariseau has also been involved heavily in outdoors issues, although she voted to scrap the metro vehicle emissions program, a test designed to test metro-area driver’s vehicles for polluting exhaust. While the DFL hasn’t endorsed a candidate for the seat yet, the GOP field is considerably more hectic, with three candidates in the running: Bob Erickson (no, this isn’t the same one that crashed the tea party rally at the capitol a few months back), Theresa Stokes and Dave Thompson.

Stokes identifies as a conservative Republican and is entering the running with little political experience under her belt. A Farmington resident, Stokes worked in management in the private sector until her husband, a lieutenant in the Marines, was stationed in Okinawa. She moved with her family and became active in community involvement in the base, which inspired her to move into politics. As a candidate, Stokes walks the party line, emphasizing immigration control, and nuclear power as a form of alternative energy.

Dave Thompson is a bit of a bigger name in this race, popular with conservatives in the metro area for his eponymously titled show on KSTP AM1500 as well as his appearances on the local politics television show “At Issue with Tom Hauser.” Thompson ran for Minnesota GOP Party Chair in 2009 but was defeated by Tony Sutton. The candidate seeks to return Minnesota to a policy of limited government and the creation of jobs.

In addition to Vickerman and Pariseau’s resignation, Republican senator Dick Day of District 26 stepped down midterm and is to be replaced by Republican Mike Parry, who was voted in via special election in January. DFL senator Steve Murphy of District 28 has declared that he will not seek reelection, a sentiment echoed by Steve Dille, Republican, of District 18.

This winter, Minneapolitans were subjected to the usual snowstorms and their requisite snow emergencies. But residents were in for a surprise when it came to snow removal rules: a total even-side parking ban for the second half of the snow season, ostensibly implemented because emergency vehicles were having trouble navigating narrowed streets.

Whenever the city does something annoying, it’s tempting to blame it on some sort of nefarious plot, ulterior motive or government screw-up. When the snow starts piling up on the roads, a whole slew of angry speculations directed at our fair cities public services come to mind. Sometimes such complaints and innuendos are warranted, and sometimes they’re not. Here, we examine some of the most common accusations and try to get to the bottom of the issue, with a little help from Mike Kennedy, Director of Transportation Maintenance and Repair for the Minneapolis Department of Public Works.
This is Minnesota! We get snow every year. Why is this one so much worse?

It’s true that total snowfall this year has been relatively unremarkable; according to the State Climatology Office at the Department of Natural Resources, precipitation totals have been roughly average this year. The issue isn’t totals, though, but accumulation. Kennedy says temperatures have been low enough that snow hasn’t had a chance to melt and evaporate between snowstorms. Plows push snow onto boulevards, and there’s a limit to how high they can stack it before it starts swallowing sidewalks. This year, that capacity was exceeded. “It’s simply a matter of too much snow on the ground,” Kennedy says.

But we’ve never had a ban like this before! Actually, the even-side parking ban is a pre-arranged last-ditch measure in the city’s snow removal plan. According to Kennedy, when the plan was implemented in 1983, the even-side ban actually went into effect at the beginning of the season and lasted until April 1, regardless of weather conditions. City officials have since made it a discretionary measure. Kennedy says the ban was last invoked in February 2001 and has been used roughly once every five years.

It’s Tim Pawlenty’s fault! He cut state aid to city governments!

Kennedy says snow and ice operations are funded through the city’s General Fund, with 70 percent coming from property taxes and some revenues from state gas taxes. Both of these revenue streams have declined in the recession, as property tax collections plummet with property values and consumers drive less to save money. State government aid to the fund has seen large cuts since 2003, and snow and ice removal hasn’t been spared; the department has seen almost $1.4 million of their budget disappear, almost 16 percent of the budget.

Still, Kennedy says the department has been able, so far, to find creative ways to do more with less. One strategy has been to move some 54 formerly full-time plow drivers into a reserve force that is only called on when needed. These reserve workers are paid the same as unemployment, but retain their benefits. Kennedy says the department has also been training drivers of other city heavy vehicles, like garbage and sewer trucks, as backup plow drivers. The net result is reduced costs without reduced service, Kennedy says. “The parking ban has nothing to do with budget cuts. No matter how many plows we have, there’s still just too much snow.”

The city screwed up with the Christmas storm! It all “snowballed” from there!

This year the Twin Cities got a very white Christmas, with major snowstorms dumping 9.4 inches of snow on the city in two days. So did city officials bungle handling the storm? Kennedy doesn’t think so. He stresses that the long, slow moving storm was handled to the best of their ability. While the centers of the streets were plowed constantly during the storm, the city decided to wait until the storm ended to declare a snow emergency and plow parking lanes. This was because of the holiday, and because many residents would be out of town, unable to move their vehicles. This would have been a good call, except that overnight the snow turned to rain and then refroze, forming three to six inches of ice on roadways. In January, temperatures dropped dramatically and “the ice got bulletproof,” says Kennedy. “The Christmas storm was a factor, but it had nothing to do with the misperception of late plowing.”
Those greedy jerks in city hall are just trying to make a few quick bucks! The ban is all about revenue from parking tickets.

Tickets for violating the parking ban are $42. With citations coming in from all over the city, this has to add up to a big pot of money, right? Not so, according to Matt Laible, Communications Officer for the city. The city actually only receives about half of any given ticket; the rest goes to the state, he says. After paying the costs of enforcement, like towing and police salaries, there’s very little money left over. Any leftovers go into the general fund. “This isn’t anything that has to do with revenue generation,” he says. “We’re doing this to make sure our emergency vehicles can do their job, and it wouldn’t work if we didn’t enforce it.”

Once again, the election cycle is starting to turn on, its rusty gears sputtering and whirring to life even earlier than usual, as more and more candidates for political office are declaring their intention to run, dropping out of the race or simply saying nothing. Since the political machine is already underway, the issues politicians must address have taken shape, the big questions on a state and national level are already being asked and dodged with aplomb by both media and politician. Thankfully, the American public will begin to weed out the fringe politicians who either preach a bizarre, negative platform or those politicians who simply aren’t aware of what issues aren’t affecting the population.

That doesn’t stop some…interesting people from running, considering running or even pretending to run for political office. Here at the Wake, we received an interesting letter from a contributor who simply calls himself Smudge. According to Smudge, he wants to run for governor this November on “a tall and grassy platform.” The rest of the piece is similar in tone and weird campaign promises. However, Smudge’s pitch to the people can be used as an example of what issues are affecting the governor’s office, as well as a primer on how not to sell your image to a crowd of voters. The following is an analysis of Smudge’s open letter, as well as an explanation of what issues potential gubernatorial candidates will have to contend with come November.

S:My name is Smudge, and I want to be your governor. I want to play the game and roll the dice and throw my cards on the table and my hat in the ring. I want to lead you into a sparkling future, bereft of care and worry. I want to heal your ailments and fund your businesses and make it so you don’t have to struggle to survive anymore. I want to make life easy for you. With you, I want to share my dream. Remember, my name is Smudge and this is a chariot and this will set you free.

TM: Smudge’s opening paragraph is well written, filled with good rhetorical devices such as his promise to make it so the public doesn’t have to “struggle to survive.” His brief mentions of health care and the job economy, the issues that are widely seen as the most concerning to American citizens currently, sets a good tone for campaign promises he might make later. Unfortunately, Smudge makes a few awkward statements, especially the metaphor he uses about his campaign which will set people free.

S: My platform is a simple platform; my stance is an open stance. I will strike out at everything you despise. I will attack your ghosts and skeletons. My left hand is nicknamed Mr. Clean and my right hand is nicknamed Sir Gerhard Von Kreig, Champion of Sound! I will clap these hands together and I will bring down the rain. I will grow the corn the cattle eat. I will grow the cattle the cattle eat. I will grow the people the cattle eat, because the cattle do eat the people, technically, in a very roundabout way of things. I will feed the people! To cattle, I will feed the people!

TM: This paragraph is the beginning of Smudge’s downfall as a viable political candidate. Modern science doesn’t support Smudge’s claims that he can summon rain by clapping his hands together. His claims to feed people to livestock would also turn off most, if not all, potential voters.

S: My platform is a hopeful platform; my tongue is a necktie knot. I want you to have a favorite television show. I want you to be able to watch your favorite television show at the same time each week! I want to share with you messages from my associates while you watch your show. They have many things they wish for you to have; my associates feel as though they can make your life better. They can make your life better, you just have to allow my associates to do their work as you do your work, unhindered and unfettered and free of bother and concern. I want you to have emotional connections to the people you watch on your television screens. I want you to cry when they cry and laugh when they laugh. My associates and I feel that you would be much happier involved in the lives of the characters on the television screen than trying to repair your own life and your failing relationship and your lack of work and your own lack of worth and just sit right down and watch your television screen.

My platform is a tall and grassy platform. I will paint my tongue and teeth and toenails green for you! I will make responsible decisions regarding our future. I will make sure we keep regarding our future. I will always put the future first! I will invest in new breeds of corn and flowers that grow big red blossoms out of the bodies that we put in the cornfields to rot. I will reuse every plastic bag. I will ban the production, import, and distribution of plastic bags! I will revolutionize the shipping industry with the first cargo ship that burns no fuel! We will row it, Minnesota! We will row that great, grey ocean liner! There will be hundreds of us working together in the belly of a rusty whale. We will all row that boat together, because that boat is being rowed for all of us. And we will name it after Marilyn Monroe! We will resurrect the corpse of Duluth and make a modern ghost. We will be the bones and we will be the muscles and we will row the boat together! We must ignite Duluth, we must set it ablaze!

TM: Smudge’s attempts to destroy Duluth wouldn’t help the state’s economy, contrary to his earlier campaign promises. However, his attempts to highlight alternative fuel research reflects state incentives and initiatives such as the grants provided by the University of Minnesota’s Initiative for Renewable Energy and Environment that research biofuel and bioenergy projects among other things. One of the more interesting projects funded by the U of M is an attempt by University researchers to take large amounts of algae, which can be farmed for their lipids, or natural fats and oils among other molecules, which can then be converted to biodiesel. This project received $290,000 for a three-year project which is scheduled to end by July of this year.

S: I will build trains for you. I will connect each important city with a train. Smaller communities will be given pamphlets on how to cope with the fact that they are not important to Minnesota. We will connect the train to Rochester, and here we will cure your ailments! Oh, Minnesota I want to make you healthy! We will run tests on you. Sometimes we will run fifty tests. Sometimes we will run one hundred tests. But we will always medicate you. Under my leadership, all medical procedures are free. We will inject you for free. We will give you Dialysis for free. We will operate to amend any malformations in your internal and external organs for free. I will kill your children and your children will become corn and flowers and the cattle will eat the corn and we will eat the corn and the cattle and the cattle will eat us and it will all be a wonderful circle of life and I promise you that! But you will be cured! You will be in perfect health. With our help, you will be perfect. The medicine will make you perfect. Perfect. We will make your body the way you wish it were made. I want you to look exactly how you want to look. I want you to be a five foot seven inch Mediterranean woman who fits against every other body like a sheer piece of fabric. I want you to be a Russian man who has eyes that do all the talking for him. I want you to look perfect. I want you to look perfect for free, because everybody deserves to get what they want.

TM: While Smudge’s rants about health care all but ensure his campaign would be dead in the water, other health care plans are currently in the works in the state legislative chambers. The expiring General Assistance Medical Care program and MinnesotaCare program are part of the focal point in the latest political struggle between Governor Tim Pawlenty and a largely DFL-controlled state legislative branch. As of last week, Gov. Pawlenty vetoed a plan which would have maintained the GAMC plan, which covers adults who make less than $8,000 and families that make less than $10,000 annually. Pawlenty had already vetoed funding for the GAMC plan last year, leading to the stripped-down version that both the state House of Representatives and the Senate passed legislation on in February.
Because the GAMC is set to expire on April 1, more than 32,000 people are going to be switched to Minnesota Care this week, a plan which has higher income limits for its participants, as well as access to services like hospice care, pregnancy-related care, physical and occupational and speech therapy. However, Minnesota Care won’t allow participants to have health care provided by employers who pay for at least half of their insurance premium. In other words, it may be more expensive for the low-income families who are currently covered under the expiring GAMC plan. Minnesota Care is only available for permanent residents of the state as well, so homeless people who have GAMC will most likely not have access to hospital care through the Minnesota Care plan.

On top of this, Smudge clearly doesn’t seem to pay attention to state demographics : 729,000 people of color lived in Minnesota as of 2005, according to the State Demographic Center. That population is projected to have increased to 891,000 or almost 20 percent of the population. By claiming that Smudge wants people to be Mediterranean or Russian, he is ignoring much of the civil rights legislation passed over the past 50 years as well as the current demographic trends, which project the state’s population of people of color will grow to more than 1.7 million people by 2035. Of course, actual state demographic data will be put together during this year’s census, and the projected growth of the state’s population will certainly change because of this.

S: I never want to see you working. I always want to see you at work. Everything should be effortless, but you must always be working. You may watch your television shows and enjoy your leisure time, but you must always be working at having a good time. I like leading people who have a strong commitment and a strong work ethic and that means that you should always be working. I want to lead you. I want you to be working all the time. Remember that you should never be doing anything for yourself and you should always do things for other people. This is a simple rule and will be observed as law. If you follow this simple rule, you will never have to struggle with anything else. I will pay for everything. If you give your life to me as constant work, I will give you all the money you need to live. You will never be charged rent because I will pay your rent. You will never go hungry, because I will send you groceries made by several of my associates. I will allow you to do your work from your home. I will deliver all goods and services directly to your door. You will never have to leave your house again. You will never leave your house. You will never have to leave.

TM: Here, Smudge’s ideas on job recovery would in all probability fail if they were ever implemented. However, Smudge can rest easy knowing that the state department of Employment and Economic development is projecting a decrease in job losses and a stabilized job market by the end of 2010, citing an up-and-down job market and a slow recovery as reasons why monthly job losses will decrease in size and job gains will be more and more prevalent. Although the job market won’t rapidly recover in the near future, it’s made enough of an impact to decrease the amount of home foreclosures in Minnesota by 12 percent last year.

S: Now do you see what I want for you? I tried to make myself quite clear. I want you to be happy. I want what is best for you. I want you to live and be happy about your life. I want to put the future first. I want you to give your lives to me. I want to hold them in my hand I use to hold my pens and cigarettes. My name is Smudge and I am a chariot and I will set you free.

TM: Yes, this letter was actually sent to us. No, we didn’t make this person or this letter up. Although it is unlikely that Smudge will make a serious attempt at running for governor(heck, we don’t even know his real name or whether he’ll refine his campaign promises to propose solutions that would be economically and democratically feasible) Smudge’s light-hearted attempts at making the Wakies laugh serve to remind us that running for political office means studying up on the issues. While the election is still early, and there are most definitely hot-button policies that will crop up later in the summer and into the fall, at least Smudge could identify some of the bigger concerns the state has and make proposals based on them. Hopefully, we won’t have to find out whether he could debate in a clear and sane matter with other gubernatorial candidates.

As spring semester gets underway, plans are being put together for this year’s installment of the University of Minnesota’s annual Spring Jam event, albeit with more tension and preparation this time around. The now-infamous Spring Jam 2009 proceeded as usual until riots broke out late Saturday, April 25, and continued into the next day. About 500 students took to the streets in Dinkytown on the 1300 and 1400 blocks of 7th Ave. Revelers set several fires, trashed houses and cars, and disrupted traffic throughout the area, resulting in a riot squad of more than 70 police officers descending on the neighborhood, tear gas, rubber bullets and all. Eventually order was restored and no one was seriously injured. Needless to say, Spring Jam is going to be a lot different this year.

Blame for the riots has been scattered in several directions, with some placing responsibility on the police for inappropriate conduct in controlling the parties earlier in the day, while others were quick to point out that a major planned part of Spring Jam festivities, a set by Brooklyn Hip-Hop artist Talib Kweli, was canceled just before he was to perform. Still others point fingers at campus newspaper The Minnesota Daily’s front-page headline, “No Party Patrol for Spring Jam” earlier in the week as encouragement to students. Regardless of who shoulders the blame, the University’s planning committees are painfully aware of the mayhem that can arise when jubilant college students, newly found warm weather and that old demon, alcohol, combine, and are taking added precautions to keep campus safe this time around.

Dan Wolter, the U of M’s news service director, speaking on behalf of Vice Provost for Student Affairs Jerry Rinehart is quick to point out that the Spring Jam events occurring on the University’s campus proper were “peaceful and orderly”, and that the Spring Jam planning committee is attempting to focus more events in the campus area this time around. Spring Jam’s events will take place over a three-day period rather than a week long one as in 2009. The main Saturday night concert will still take place over in Riverbend Commons, behind Coffman Union on April 23, with the kick-off event on Thursday night.

“The idea is to put more focus on the events taking place on the nights that have been a challenge last time around,” says Wolter, “The goal being to attract more students to the events happening on campus.”

As important as it is to provide young minds with entertainment and stimulation, the real legwork in riot-prevention usually comes from keeping those young minds from raising hell, and Wolter has confirmed with the help of UMPD Chief Greg Hestness that police presence will be ramped up for Spring Jam 2010. Plans are underway for “additional patrols, as well as extra details,” according to Wolter, as well as police splitting shifts in order to get more officers on duty in the area. The troubles surrounding Spring Jam 2009 started surprisingly early for Dinkytown, with reports of drunken and unruly behavior as early as 5 p.m., and Wolter claims the UMPD are taking this into account.
“Last year’s altercations were surprisingly early in the evening, [we’re] increasing policing around and on campus earlier in the evening as well,” he says. It’s important to note that last year’s riots also occurred outside of official UMPD jurisdiction, but Chief Hestness and the team has been communicating frequently with the Minneapolis Police to better patrol the surrounding areas.

It remains to be seen whether or not the City of Minneapolis’ newly passed Social Host Ordinance will have any effect on Spring Jam 2010’s festivities as well. With the new law making it a misdemeanor for homeowners/tenants to host parties where underage people are present and drinking, party houses will likely be more careful of whom they let in. It also seems probable that the UMPD will be looking to crack the whip about the new law by the time April rolls around and Spring Jam seems the perfect time to make a bit of an example. Spring Jam will always be a hell-of-a-party, but you can expect more Police and stiffer penalties this time around, so it might be a good idea to give the rager a raincheck come April 24.

The State Legislature, which reconvened February 4, wants to change the way the state budget is balanced. Any bills that increase the deficit will be discarded immediately. Not only are they looking for bills to help solve the state budget, but they are also asking the people of Minnesota for ideas on how to solve the budget crisis.

In a move rarely seen before, the State Legislature will be taking up to six of the best reform and redesign ideas submitted by state residents and put them into a Citizen Redesign Bill that will receive a hearing before a committee of the House of Representatives. This will be a way for the people of Minnesota to have more of a direct impact on what happens with our tax money.

In order to be a part of this change, the state legislature is asking citizens to “pick an area of state or local government and then come up with an idea that will improve the quality of service or increase results while at the same time lowering costs,” according to the state House of Representatives web site.

For Paul Marquart (DFL), state representative for district 9B, reforming the state budget deficit is the “top priority.” This is a good attitude to have considering that Minnesota will be confronting a $1.2 billion budget deficit for this year alone, and a $5.4 billion deficit in the next two-year budget cycle. This budget deficit is expected to cost Minnesota another 70,000 jobs in the coming year. Because of this, our state legislature is hoping to come up with initiatives that will both curb this and put Minnesota back on the right track.

Reform for the legislature will not be easy. There are stacks of reports, dating back more than a decade, of failed redesign efforts that can attest to that. These reports were expected to make government more efficient, but instead took up space on shelves. Marquart, though, believes that this time will be different.

“Now is the time,” Marquart said at a news conference for the Bipartisan Redesign Caucus earlier this year. “I’m confident if we mix ideas with leadership, we’ll have a formula for success.” None of the Republicans on the legislative committee showed up, however, so Marquart was left preaching about bipartisan spirit with only part of his team in attendance.

On the surface, bipartisanship, seems like a good idea. However, earlier this week Republicans attempted to introduce a plan that would reduce corporate income tax in the name of job creation. This is something that, although most DFLers agree should be done, the DFL majority voted it down. Their reasoning for turning it down was unclear, but it will definitely leave the Republicans feeling spited.

Paul Marquart is not unfamiliar with asking the public for help. Three years ago, as a chairman of the House Committee, he asked the public for their thoughts on how best to handle taxes, and received hundreds of replies. The best proposals were sent to the House floor, and one passed.
The redesign caucus will meet on various Tuesdays throughout the legislative session. The first one is scheduled for 12:15 p.m. Feb. 16.

You can submit your ideas through their coment line 651-297-8391 or 800-551-5520 and at www.house.mn/redesign/.

As of press time, the Minneapolis City Council’s new “social host ordinance” simply awaits approval from Mayor R.T. Rybak to make it a misdemeanor to host gatherings where underage persons possess or consume alcohol. Whether that threat will actually affect the habits and safety of underage drinkers remains to be seen. One thing is for certain, however. Most students hate the idea.

“It’s not fair to anyone to make it so you are responsible for someone else’s choices,” Shana Conklin, a first-year law student, says. The potential $1,000 fine or 90-day jail sentence for violating the ordinance, she says, is “ridiculous.” “The city’s just trying to raise money because it’s in a budget crisis,” Conklin says.

The Minnesota Student Association, the university’s undergraduate student government, showed its skepticism of the ordinance by voting down a resolution to support it on Jan. 26.

“I think that the City Council is ridiculous in thinking that this ordinance will reduce underage possession and consumption of alcohol,” Kris Schwebler, who spoke against the resolution, says. “It will just increase police’s efforts to punish people for drinking, instead of focusing on more important issues like campus safety.”

Drake Nimz, who led the opposition to the proposed resolution within MSA, agrees. “Many MSA members believe passing the ordinance will actually increase binge drinking,” he says. “Students would still drink, but instead of going out to house parties and being around experienced drinkers who could tell if they’d had too much, they’d drink in smaller groups in the dorms and that could be dangerous.” The ordinance might also scare off partiers from calling for help for someone needing medical attention.

And it will create problems for the many households in which both of-age and underage students live. Because the law charges adults—anyone over 18—for hosting events at which underage individuals—anyone under 21—can consume alcohol, it punishes those aged 18 to 20 in whose homes alcohol is consumed. “So if someone who’s 21 has his buddies over to drink, his underage roommate would have to leave,” Nimz says.

There are reasons, of course, for the ordinance to have been proposed and passed by the City Council. The rejected MSA resolution to support it, introduced by Paul Buchel, cites a rise in alcohol-related crimes and neighborhood association complaints in recent years as motivation to increase efforts to combat underage drinking. Ward 2 Council Member Cam Gordon, who represents the University of Minnesota area in Minneapolis and who proposed the ordinance, cited similar concerns when he first introduced the idea.

While recognizing the problems caused by student drinking, the MSA anti-ordinance contingent believes that there are other options for dealing with them. Nimz says the new law is overkill: citations for noise violation and minor consumption should accomplish most of the same goals. Schwebler wants better education for students on the dangers of drinking.

The ordinance, which was passed with a unanimous vote of 12-0, will take effect later this month, once it is signed by Mayor R.T. Rybak. It is designed only to punish the hosts of parties that knowingly serve alcohol to underage teens.

Art history senior Austin Hinkle thinks the ordinance is right to hold hosts partly responsible for problems with underage drinkers. “The people that host parties obviously know if people are drinking underage, and if the party gets busted then the host should get in trouble for not kicking them out before it got busted,” he says.

Despite that belief, Hinkle still says he won’t be deterred from hosting parties by the new ordinance. Neither will recent graduate Cody Zwiefelhofer, though he does say he would be more concerned about the noise level of a party. Of the ordinance, he says, “It’s a good way to try and scare young kids into not throwing parties, but that doesn’t make it any less silly.”

There were air canons and circuit-bent Gameboys. There was The Game of Life, a two dimensional cellular automaton (a computer program that makes calculations based on rules. When this program is run, it shows a visual representation of the calculations; it creates mathematical, abstract animation). There were guitars made out of cigar boxes, a life-sized version of the game operation, and a three dimensional printer. I was in a warehouse packed from the entrance to the exit with onlookers talking with DIY engineers about their homegrown constructions and sipping complementary coffee, and this was the inaugural exhibition of the Twin Cities Maker.

Twin Cities Maker is an organization in the Metro Area devoted more to building than buying. ??I like stop motion animation like Nightmare Before Christmas,?? Steffin Griswold, one of the members of Twin Cities Maker, said to me while explaining how he animates using stop motion, ??but I?d rather make something a little less polished, a little more like Fantastic Mr. Fox.?? He gestured toward a large, green piece of fabric on which was standing a twelve inch figurine of a diesel-punk inspired, female character. She was supported with an aluminum stand also wrapped in the same green felt. ??I can?t afford a professional, lit green screen, but I can afford a twenty dollar piece of felt.?? It was February 13 and Steffin Griswold and I were speaking at Twin Cities Maker?s Minne-Faire at their newly opened studio, The Hack Factory, located at 3119 E 26th street.

They were just a bunch of people building in their garages until January 1, when the Twin Cities Maker officially formed and rented out a warehouse. The Minne-Faire was designed both as a fundraiser for the group and as a announcement to the Metro area of their existence. I had been circling the fair for a half-hour, picking up tidbits from conversations between exhibitioners and the people standing on the other side of the table from them. There was no unifying aesthetic except for an enthusiasm for all things handmade. Mr. Griswold was standing near the entrance to the Hack Factory in front of a table filled with characters for his animation and the tools he uses to build them. I saw he had a cyborg baby and two wolves on the table, and I stopped and began to speak with him. Around us were onlookers peering onto the tables lining the walls. To our left was a man who had built a 1000 watt wind turbine and to our right was a table full of movie prop replicas. There was a man selling handmade, hemp bracelets in the back and across the room from him was the Game of Life; there was an exceptional volume and diversity among both onlookers and DIY exhibitioners.

Steffin explained to me how he builds each of his characters over adjacent conversations and the occasional beep from the life-size game of Operation: he first builds a K?NEX-like aluminum skeleton, then he wraps that skeleton in small gauge wire. He creates a body using a polymer clay, Sculpey, which can be baked in a conventional oven to harden instead of a kiln. He then fabricates clothing, glues on fir, and paints their faces. ??Because she?s a bi-ped,?? Steffin points to the character on his green screen, then points to the stand supporting her, ??I needed to make her support. With high end animation you?ll see characters with big feet, that?s because they have bolts in their feet. When they?re making it walk, they bolt one foot to the floor to support the character. I have smaller feet on my characters, so I built this stand to hold them upright while I?m animating them walk. Then I just wrapped it in more felt from the screen so I can edit it out with Photoshop and After Effects.??

He spoke to me further about how he integrates live footage with animation by using the green screen. I thanked him, and walked toward the back of the warehouse where Tim Kaiser was setting up the instruments he built for a performance later in the evening. I stopped and stared at the three- dimensional printer, it was making a honeycomb of hexagons. I thought about all the information Steffin Griswold and the other exhibitioners at the fair had told me. Within thirty minutes at the Minne-Faire I learned a way to make stop motion animation, how to build a battery-charging wind turbine, and how to make a replica of a lightsaber. Instead of selling me a How-To book or teaching a class and making me pay, The Twin Cities Maker makes by hand the things they want and they are willing to share that information with anyone who is interested. I stared at the three-dimensional printer for a while longer and thought about the potential of a community of builders and learners. I wanted people to use lawn mower engines and boat propellers to build go-karts, then drive that to work. And I smiled at this notion and I walked to the back of the warehouse and saw Tim explaining to an onlooker how he built his electric cello while he was surrounded by a glow of sine waves on screens on his homegrown orchestra of musical machines. I stood, watched, and listened to him explain the bridge of his cello and play odd notes to demonstrate. Occasionally there was a buzz from Operation in the front that could be heard louder than the voices in the Hack Factory.

Try something new. Do something different. Change someone’s life. The Twin Cities are home to thousands of nonprofit organizations seeking volunteers to help them make a positive effect on the community. No matter the cause, there is an organization that exists for each person, all he or she needs is the desire to get involved.

The following nonprofits are some of the more unique organizations in the Metro area, but there are plenty of other causes to dedicate time to.

Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio (CLUES):
Minneapolis Contact: Angela Severson, 612-465-8081, aseverson@clues.org
St. Paul Contact: Teresa Ortiz, 612-379-4222, tortiz@clues.org

CLUES works to enhance the quality of life in the Latino community. While CLUES provides a range of social services, the educational department courses are central to this organization. CLUES supplies instruction for classes on citizenship, literacy in both Spanish and English, English language learning, and computer literacy. In 2009, CLUES aided a total of 620 adult learners, with 154 volunteers and 20,900 recorded student-learning instruction hours. The organization is “helping both students and teachers improve their lives,” according to Angela Severson, the program coordinator of CLUES. Overall, individuals are given an opportunity to overcome barriers in an environment that is safe, supportive and successful.

CLUES is currently looking for ESL Classroom assistants, administrative volunteers, One-to-One Tutors, Children’s Program Teachers, and Computer Teaching Assistants. The organization is in the middle of their classroom semester, but at the end of March will be looking for volunteers to teach ESL classes. The time commitment and availability is relatively flexible, but to become an ESL teacher, CLUES asks for a 10-week commitment. Spanish language skills are not required.

The Lab: Youth, Truth, Empowerment
Contact: Mallory Haar, (651) 744-1002
www.thelabspps.com

The Lab is a unique special education program of St. Paul Public Schools that serves students who have emotional behavioral disorders. Using four modalities, including poetry, visual arts, technology and experiential wellness, the Lab empowers youth to express themselves in creative ways. Students develop skills for success within compelling arts and wellness activities. The Lab uses different strategies of expression, including podcasts, photos, videos, and blogs in order to help kids explore the arts and better the community.

The Lab is currently looking for volunteers who would like to share their creativity either in a one-on one setting as a mentor, or as a facilitator/co-facilitator of a small group. Projects can be anything from teaching guitar to yoga instruction to photography. Time commitment and availability varies.

Northside Arts Collective
612.767.2141
info@nacarts.org

The mission of the Northside Arts Collective is to unite, enrich, and advance the Northside community through the arts. By creating a network of artists and local organizations in the area, the Northside Arts Collective is able to support and encourage artists as well as the local community. In order to generate neighborhood involvement, the Northside Arts Collective actively coordinates local events, exhibits, and collective art projects.

There are numerous ways to get involved in this organization because of its size. Whether as an artist wanting to engage in the community or someone who believes in art as a means of social change, the Northside Arts Collective always has opportunities available in which no time commitment is needed.

Food Not Bombs

http://www.myspace.com/minneapolisfnb

http://www.foodnotbombs.net/

Too often the relationship between caregiver and receiver in the world of social justice work is obscured by the bureaucratic red tape that it often takes to keep a major charitable cause afloat. It’s quite refreshing then to find a locally run grassroots cause with a concept so wonderfully humanistic, even though it is an activist cause. Food Not Bombs is an organization that takes on the most basic human need, hunger, and combats it at the level of the community.

The Minneapolis chapter, like all Food Not Bombs chapters, is not an official nonprofit, but more of a highly focused community effort. The organization secures donations of food from local restaurants and farms for their meals that are currently scheduled three times weekly. The group currently meets on Tuesdays and Sundays at 6 p.m. at their “No Pines” house on the NW corner of 33rd Street and Pleasant Avenue in South Minneapolis. They hold their largest meal on Wednesdays at 6:30 p.m. in the basement of the Walker Church at 3104 16th Ave. S. At these meetings volunteers will cook hot meals with a variety of options and serve them to anyone who chooses to show. Volunteers wishing to get involved simply show up early to the meals and ask to help out.

A word of warning may be in order to any prospective volunteers: FNB often comes under suspicion by police because of the national organization’s affiliation with more militant leftist causes, so this may be a volunteer opportunity more suited to the student not afraid of a little civil disobedience from time to time. The cause can be incredibly rewarding however, as Minneapolis student and FNB volunteer Katie Thornton cites the organization’s commitment to breaking down the walls between charity giver and receiver as an inspiring experience. “We all eat together, it’s a real community process and wonderful to see,” Thorton says. She also cites the program’s teachings for a newfound cooking ability as well as more efficient use of her food resources at home.

Land Stewardship Project
(612) 722-6377
www.landstewardshipproject.org

Volunteers interested in activist movements such as Slow Food, rather than food distribution programs, need look no further than the Land Stewardship Project. The project was formed in 1982 as a means to help connect farmers and the urban and suburban consumers that they provide for, as well as promote ethical agricultural practices and develop sustainable communities. The organization focuses on supporting small, family-sized farms and gardens that practice sustainable agricultural methods to preserve the area’s food, water, and wildlife.

Through the distribution of a newsletter, an online information database, and regular classes and workshops, the LSP seeks to educate its members on the practice of sustainable agriculture. Much of the information deals with the basics of starting up a farming operation in both a profitable and environmentally responsible manner. The LSP also organizes meetings between farmers, as well as events such as farmers markets, where urban students get the chance to shake the hand that feeds them as well as purchase ethically grown produce at the peak of its freshness.

The organization requires a one-time membership fee of $35, which can be donated through their website or at their Twin Cities location at 821 E. 35th Street in South Minneapolis. Volunteers can help set up local classes, farmers markets, and participate in local community organizing toward the LSP’s goals.

Amicus
612.348.8570
www.amicususa.org

Having an open mind and really wanting to connect with people is what Amicus is looking for. A unique nonprofit, Amicus is an organization that creates alliances between communities and inmates, ex-offenders, and juvenile offenders, in hopes of building stronger and safer neighborhoods and making successful transitions for those leaving prison and going back into the community.

The most popular way to get involved with Amicus is to participate in the “One to One” program. Once matched with an incarcerated individual that has similar interests, the volunteer visits the inmate and talks about anything, from books and movies to life inside and outside of prison. As a volunteer, it is a year-long commitment; a friendship is being formed, after all.

Steve Nelson, director of communications for Amicus in Minneapolis, says “I think the one thing people should know about Amicus and those we serve is that it’s just common sense to give ex-offenders a second chance. Giving a second chance isn’t soft on crime. It’s smart on crime.” Besides, doesn’t everyone deserve a friend?

Sojourner Project
952-351-46062

http://www.sojournerproject.org/

The Sojourner Project is a support line and shelter for women and children that are victims of domestic violence. Sojourner works to empower battered women, promote healthy communities and eliminate domestic violence. Not only does the Sojourner Project provide a safe haven, they also have community advocacy programs, outreach and education programs. Sojourner has been helping the Twin Cities area since 1977, and assists over 1,000 mistreated women and children every year.
Volunteers can help the Sojourner Project by working as crisis phone support, working in the shelter, or becoming involved in the community outreach programs. The outreach programs raise awareness of domestic violence in the area as well as provide information on what to do if you or someone you know has been abused. Sojourner provides the proper training and education to volunteers to spread awareness and help those that have experienced violence in the home. By helping the Sojourner Project, volunteers can help women and children take steps to leaving a life of violence and feeling safe once again.

American Swedish Institute
612.871.4907

http://www.americanswedishinst.org/ASI/Volunteer.html

As a nonprofit with a great history, the American Swedish Institute is a great place to volunteer. For about 50 years, the ASI has been working to preserve the Swedish culture that is overwhelmingly present in the Twin Cities. This “hidden gem” helps connect generations and better understand traditions that would otherwise be lost in the Swedish community. Experiencing these interactions and helping others network can inspire a greater understanding of one’s heritage and encourage one to become a more involved global citizen.

Volunteers can work in the museum office, assist the curator, be a greeter and tour guide, or even work in the museum shop. The ASI likes to hire a variety of volunteers, with diverse backgrounds and friendly dispositions. Being Swedish is not a requirement either—anyone can get involved.
Jenn Stromberg, the communications/marketing coordinator at the ASI, says, “one of the greatest things about working at the American Swedish Institute is experiencing the way this organization reaches out to and collaborates with various organizations, schools and people in the community.”