30 March 2007

OP-ED; GONZALES MUST GO

Gonzales Must Go

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales must resign.

His intransigence has led to some of the worst policies of the administration, resulting in damaged credibility both abroad and here at home. Since impeachment seems not to be an option for the “Commander in Chief” (much to the dismay of Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-Neb.) and most Democrats), the buck must stop at the desk of the Justice Department, which is supposed to be seen as independent of the Executive Branch’s political meddling.

Gonzales has been a sore spot in the administration from the beginning. The author of the infamous “torture memo,” he deserves a lot of the blame for the abuses of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. He advocated the use of waterboarding, stress positions and other means to “break down,” alleged terrorists for intelligence to stop future attacks. The memo also called the Geneva Conventions “quaint and obsolete.” This resulted in both false intelligence and disdain for America throughout the world.

He was an early advocate of the USA Patriot Act, a law that flew through Congress just days after the September 11 attacks. This law has been abused again and again by the FBI, NSA and other government agencies in order to break drug networks, stop bank robbers and other crimes. This was not its intended use.

In fact, according to a report released March 9, 2007, the Justice Department said in an internal audit that it found that the FBI had acted illegally to secretly obtain personal information about US citizens.

Gonzales was appointed by President Bush to replace John Ashcroft as Attorney General on November 10, 2004. He was seen then as a moderate alternative to the radical Ashcroft: Gonzales did not vocally oppose abortion or affirmative action. It was also seen as a move to give Gonzales the credibility necessary to get him a fast track to a seat on the Supreme Court.

With the revelations of the abuse of the Patriot Act and his role in the firing of US Federal attorneys for political reasons, something for which his former chief of staff D. Kyle Sampson had to resign, Gonzales no longer has the credibility he once had.

Gonzales has denied any involvement in the attorney firings, and the administration has publicly come to his defense, despite reports surfacing that they are looking for a replacement.

A story in the Sunday, March 25, 2007 New York Times said that despite Gonzales’ statements to the contrary, he was informed of the firings taking place at least twice, according to emails and other documents released to Congress, which is investigating the scandal.

“They have also fed suspicions by some Democrats that the ousters, from the start, may have been orchestrated by the White House, and most particularly, by Karl Rove, the White House political adviser,” the article said.

Gonzales said in a television interview that he delegated “a task” to his assistant, and never checked on its completion. He said he never saw documents, which was refuted by the emails, which say that he headed a meeting in his office over the firings.

The Justice Department is supposed to be in charge of investigating criminal acts by members of the Executive Branch, or crimes against it. As such, it is expected to keep a certain level of independence from the executive branch’s political work.

Democrats have been pushing to subpoena administration officials, including Gonzales and Rove, to testify publicly about the firings. The White House has strongly resisted this, instead offering private interviews not to be under oath. However, Democrats are not the only ones that want to hear from the officials, so this is not a partisan hack job by Democrats.

This week, on the Sunday morning talk shows, Republican Party leaders in Congress started to join the Democrats in the drumbeat calling for Gonzales to step down. “He [Gonzales] was going to have to have an explanation as to why he said he wasn’t involved in discussions,” said Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Penn.) on Meet the Press. “Now you have these e-mails which appear to contradict that.”

Specter was not the only one speaking on the issue Sunday morning. Sen. Hagel (R- Neb.) said he has credibility problems. “I think he’s going to have some difficulties,” he added.

This scandal surrounding the handling of US attorneys showed how blurry the line has been since the beginning of the Bush presidency. The only way for the Justice Department to ever have any level of credibility again is for Gonzales to step down, and a moderate, nonpartisan appointee to replace him.

NEWS; MANAGING EDITOR OF NY TIMES VISITS UNIVERSITY

Newspapers will continue to be printed as long as there is a profit in it, according to John Geddes, Managing Editor of the New York Times, who spoke at the University Monday night.

Geddes’ talk on “The Future of the News Industry” focused on how the New York Times is adapting to a new media environment that includes the Internet, blogs, enewspapers, citizen journalists and the decline of newspaper circulation and advertising revenues.

“I don’t really care about newspapers, per se,” he said. “I care deeply about the journalism they finance and deliver.”

Geddes believes that the insiders and reporters need to stop the talk of “the end of days.” “You wouldn’t know it from the last year, but the newspaper is still a pretty lucrative profession,” he said.

What makes this period in journalism unique, Geddes said, is the lack of a viable business model to cope with the new technology. However, the Times, Geddes said, “is defined by our journalism.”

The “problem” of news as a business is not new, according to Geddes. “I don’t think trying to pull us out of the commercial world makes any sense,” he said. “Quality comes at a price that may seem unsustainable, but we have to live in the same world everyone else does.”

We need to be able to report what it is like to be in the crowd, and to be able to say where it is going, he added.

During the lecture, Geddes showed the audience a copy of the New York Times on a tablet PC. The newspaper looks exactly like the print version and it is fully navigable with the click of a button, “It’s the closest thing to reading papers in print,” Geddes said.

There is nothing special about the news industry as a business, according to Geddes. “It’s a product of its environment,” he said. “It exists in constant tension with the commercial interests that support it.”

Geddes did not believe political scandal contributes to the current maelstrom surrounding the news industry. The trial of Lewis “Scooter” Libby, Geddes said, will have no impact on Washington coverage, because there have “long been cycles of pressure” between the press and the government. He said this scandal is no different from the others.

Sponsored by the Zarb School of Business, the School of Communication and the University’s Career center, Geddes has become a part of an increasingly close relationship between the University and the New York Times. Chief legal correspondent Adam Liptak spoke at the University last year.

Following the talk by Geddes, a student panel consisting of business and journalism majors asked him a series of questions on the New York Times’ role in the future of news. When asked about the adaptability of the veterans of the news industry, Geddes said that there has been surprisingly little resistance from them.

Students were supportive of Geddes’ talk. “He defended the Times well,” said John Commerford, a senior broadcast journalism and political science double major. “This is exactly what I expected from him.”

NEWS; SPECIAL ELECTION AT LEGISLATURE

Democrats retained their majority in the Nassau County Legislature Tuesday by winning a special election in the 11th Legislative District in a landslide. The election drew an extremely light turnout, with less than 3,500 votes counted after all election districts reported their results Tuesday night.

Wayne Wink, a North Hempstead town councilman, received over four times as many votes as his opposition, Lou Chisari, a Republican lawyer from New Hyde Park. The total count was 2,872 votes for Wink and 599 votes for Chisari.

The seat was vacated after a special election on Feb. 6, when Craig Johnson (D-Port Washington) was elected to the New York State Senate’s 7th District in a hard-fought election against Maureen O’Connell (R-East Williston), a registered nurse.

Johnson inherited the seat in 2000 when his mother, Barbara, died.

The election allows the Democrats to continue to control the legislative calendar, leadership and committee assignments.

It also continues the one-party control of the Nassau County Executive and Legislative Branches of government.

Wayne Wink is an alum of the University holding a bachelor of arts in political science, according to the biography on his Town Council website. He is an adjunct professor of political science at the University and a practicing attorney.

Republicans did not pursue the election as forcefully as it did the Senate election six weeks ago, citing a Democratic voting history in the district.

The entire legislature is up for reelection in November, so Wink, in order to keep his seat, must win again six months after earning it.

The district includes the Town of North Hempstead and the hamlets of Roslyn, Port Washington, Garden City Park and Sands Point.

22 March 2007

NEWS; IRAQ PLENARY SESSION (DAY OF DIALOGUE)

At the end of a long and grueling “Day of Dialogue,” the main issue of the day played itself out in the Monroe Lecture Center for a plenary session on the War in Iraq. The session was broadcast live on WRHU, so those that were in the listening area or on computers were able to listen to the event.

Titled the “War in Iraq: Where do we go from here?” it was a public forum supposed to focus on the future, but most of the dialogue was spent hashing out problems from the past and today.

On the panel were Carolyn Eisenberg, University Professor of History, Mackenzie Eaglen, Fellow from the Heritage Foundation, Leslie Cagan, a member of United for Peace and Justice and Rob Timmins, a member of the Iraq-Afghanistan Veterans of America. In addition, three veterans joined the panel for the question-and-answer session.

The panelists each delivered a short opening statement and then took questions from the moderators, before the audience received the opportunity to ask questions. Students, faculty and local members of the community all had the chance to ask the panel questions on policy, veterans affairs and other issues.

An attempt was made to take a question from a caller, but technical difficulties prevented it from happening.

Professor Eisenberg opened the discussion, which was moderated by two University Students, both veteran staffers of WRHU. “We all recognize the war is an immense human tragedy,” she said. “It is just a story filled with sorrow for everyone.”

Eaglen defended President Bush’s troop surge policy, though she did qualify her defense. “It was really a band-aid,” she said. “It is a way to buy time for the Iraqi government.”

When pressed on why the White House supports a government it no longer believes in, based on an internal administration memo leaked to the press, she said: “Maliki was elected; that’s who we have to deal with.”

Sharp disagreement and ideological clashes continued throughout the session. War critic Leslie Cagan thought that deception was involved in the sale of the war. “Nobody wanted us to go to war,” she said. “It never should have happened.”

“The problem must be solved as quickly as possible,” she added.

Veterans advocate Rob Timmins said that the soldiers were not conducting missions they were trained to do. “We were not trained to police the population,” he said.

A veteran on the panel agreed with this statement. “We don’t create peace, we create war,” he said.

He also said that both the people and the politicians were exploiting the troops. “We [troops] are used like a political chew toy,” he said.

All three Iraq war veterans echoed his sentiment. “Some of the things people talk about make me sick,” said one vet, who came home from his tour in Iraq to find himself homeless and begging the Veterans Administration for benefits he had earned. “Vets have to fight for the bare minimum of benefits at home.”

Fellow veteran Rob Timmins was not shocked about the vet’s problems. “This is a travesty,” he said. “Unfortunately, the outcry is not loud enough.”

The panelists did not come do a consensus on how to address Iraq’s future. Rather, they continued to assert their own talking points about the past to fit a view of the future. “Military power in and of itself cannot solve all the problems that needs to be solved,” Professor Eisenberg said.

Timmins stuck to requesting help for soldiers: “We need a new GI bill,” he said.

NEWS; WASHINGTON TRIP FOR UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

WASHINGTON—Mr. Smith took the University to Washington for an extended weekend of politics, tours and briefings. University students and faculty from the Political Science Department met with public officials, alumni and others as part of an annual field trip to Washington, D.C.

The trip takes place over four days and involves meeting with multiple officials involved in government and public policy, as well as interest groups. On Monday night, students met with University alumni and current interns in a conference to explain the University’s “Semester in Washington” program.

“We can say that not a few, in fact many, students were inspired to make a career in Washington based on this trip,” said Dr. Rosanna Perotti, the director of the trip.

According to Dr. Perotti, the annual Washington trip began in the early 1960s, when Howard Ball, a former University Professor and Supreme Court scholar, organized an interview for University students with Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black.

Professor Emeritus Herbert Rosenbaum continued organizing the trip every year, and in doing so, inspired students such as alum Phil Schiliro, who has worked as a staffer for Congressman Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) for the last twenty-five years.

Professor Rosenbaum continues to attend the trip every year, despite his retirement from the University in 1992.

Over time, the number of appointments grew. This year, there were seven meetings, including appointments with a Congressman from Illinois, an anti-global warming group and staffers at the Office of Management and Budget. Students also met with University alum William Bodde, a career diplomat and former Ambassador to Micronesia.

“We get the access from interns and alumni of the University,” Dr. Perotti said. “Sometimes we call out of the blue.”

The “Semester in Washington” internship is an unpaid program run by the State University of New York at Brockport. It offers students the opportunity to work four days per week in a Washington office while taking a class once a week and writing a research paper related to their experience. The interns come from schools all over New York State, and the University is a partner in the program.

Students can intern at any of the three branches of government, at an interest group, research institute or non-government organization. University students and alumni that have participated include a Law professor, lobbyists and staffers on Capitol Hill.

One current student is spending this semester interning for Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) in her Senate office. Another is interning for Congressman Donald Manzullo (R-Ill.), who met with the students.

Students overwhelmingly enjoyed the experience of being in Washington. “This trip allowed us to experience government,” sophomore Christina Martin said.

Amanda Scheffer, a sophomore, agreed. “This trip has put the idea of working in politics in my heart again,” she said. “The professors have inspired me.”

Politics were not the only benefit to the trip, according to Chris Pergola, a junior. “Not only do you get to witness and experience things tourists would not normally see in Washington, you get to meet students and make friends at the University you might not otherwise have done,” he said.

15 March 2007

ALBUM REVIEW; ARCADE FIRE- NEON BIBLE (NOT PRINTED IN CHRONICLE)

Arcade Fire- Neon Bible
Merge Records
3.5/5

Montreal’s Arcade Fire has taken on a new enemy: everyone else. The debut, Funeral, tackled topics such as loss, introspection and the death of a loved one. This time around, on Neon Bible, the lyrics are just as bitter, but the blame is placed squarely on society.

Brashly sung lyrics such as, "Don't wanna live in America no more" define the sentiments of this album. Win Butler blasts all the trappings of a luxurious life in this Western world of ours. He takes shots at consumerism, commercialism, religion, government, reality television and MTV.

By looking outward, the music also takes on a different role. Arcade Fire has now learned to channel their music into a tool of malevolence and bitterness.

The songs now build and release, driven mostly by guitar and drums, whereas Funeral would climax over epic soundscapes of piano and strings. This is not to say that the strings and keyboards are gone, but they are now used more economically, for a completely different approach.

On the track "(Antichrist Television Blues)" the band channels Bruce Springsteen better than the Killers ever could, this could be the sonic "Born to Run,” but a lyrical counterpart to “Let Down” from Radiohead.

“No Cars Go,” a reprise from the eponymous debut EP, would be an ideal album closer, flourishes and all, but the band wanted to have its cake and eat it too, with “My Body is a Cage.”

“Cars” shows a glimmer of hope even after all the bitterness, but the band chose to revel in its own depression over the world surrounding it.

“What have you done to me?” Win Butler asks, almost pleading to the listener. The real question is, why are they telling us something that’s been said so often already? This, of course, is left unanswered.

NEWS; SUOZZI STATE OF THE COUNTY

MINEOLA, Mar. 13—Nassau County Executive Thomas Suozzi announced a “2020 Vision for Nassau County” in his annual “State of the County” address Tuesday at the County Legislative and Executive building. The announcement concentrated primarily on property tax and quality of life issues to affect the county for the next 13 years.

Suozzi said major progress was made since he took office in 2002, but that the work was unfinished. “We will make sure the County Government continues to be run smoothly and at as low a cost as possible,” he said. “But just because we have managed the County well and county property taxes have remained stable, doesn’t mean people are satisfied.”

Suozzi pointed to not raising property taxes since 2003 as evidence of progress and development. “Nassau County is now the only county in New York State that has not raised taxes for four years in a row,” he said.

To combat the property tax issue, Suozzi called for the consolidation of “our over 400 separate governments to reduce costs and improve service.” He also expressed support for Governor Spitzer’s efforts to combat waste in Medicaid, and expected the funds recovered from Spitzer’s plan to be provided to the county for property tax relief purposes.

Suozzi said that the many levels of government left voters confused and uninformed as to whom and for what they are paying taxes and electing officials. “I am quite certain that fewer people vote in special district elections than will vote tonight on American Idol,” he said.

In order to conduct the business of consolidation, Suozzi asked the legislature to approve an allocation of $500,000 to “develop a blueprint.” Governor Spitzer assigned a special advisor to help the County at the task. New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli will do the same, Suozzi said.

Suozzi announced a plan to grow the tax base in the County by advocating the development of communities in order to relieve the burden on residential taxpayers. “Tonight, I am calling upon our town supervisors and our city and village mayors to come together to agree upon the top ten targeted areas for planned smart growth between now and 2020,” he said.

Suozzi highlighted the Nassau County Hub (which includes the University, the Nassau Coliseum and the surrounding areas) and downtown Village of Hempstead as the two most important areas. “We need to agree on the remaining 8 locations,” he added.

Suozzi described how to implement his development plan: “We need more office space with good paying hi-skilled or hi-tech jobs, more affordable and diverse housing with nearby walkable retail, shops and restaurants. We need more sports, entertainment and tourism opportunities.”

He announced an ambitious “Healthy Nassau” initiative as a part of his “2020” vision. Suozzi said he wants to make Nassau County the healthiest county in the country by 2020.

Suozzi said the greatest health problems are associated with a lack of exercise, bad diet and smoking. He endorsed a proposed state authorized tax on cigarettes, modeled after the tax already in place in New York City.

He announced an initiative by local officials across the country to “[prepare] local communities nationwide for the impacts of global climate change” by investing in alternative energy and reducing greenhouse emissions. Suozzi also called for preservation of the remaining open land in Nassau County, as well as implementing the County’s first Comprehensive Water Resources Management Plan in over 30 years.

In his response, Minority Leader Peter J. Schmitt (R-Massapequa) said that the County Executive is too busy poking his head into the business of local and national government rather than focusing on county issues. “Leave Disney World to Disney and Master planning to Master planners,” he said. “I have three words for you, do your job.”

Schmitt referenced an article in Tuesday’s Newsday about a single-family residence that contained 28 tenants, including a child and a convicted violent sex offender, as proof that the Executive was not doing his job. “Clean up your own Department of Social Services which is responsible for this disaster.”

Legislators were divided by party lines in their reactions to the issues raised in the speech. ‘“Healthy Nassau is something that will impact lives in real ways,” said Legis. Jeff Toback, (D-Oceanside). “The Republicans should get behind it because some things take years to evolve, but this can be immediate.”

Legis. Dennis Dunne (R-Levittown), University alum, agreed with Schmitt. “Clean up what we have here,” he said. “Take care of yourself first. Consolidate our own taxes.”

09 March 2007

OP-ED; PAYOLA'S OFFICIAL END

Payola Sees an Official End

Agreements were made between broadcasters of four major radio broadcasters and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) over a scandal that has wracked the industry for years. That scandal is payola, and its influence over radio stations. This scandal was so widespread that it required action first by former New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer before the FCC would step in.

Payola is the practice of record companies paying money for the broadcast of records on music radio. It is illegal in the United States, but according to the U.S. Code Title 47, Chapter 5, “In any case where a report (payment) has been made to a radio station… an appropriate announcement shall be made by such radio station.” This means full disclosure of the sponsorship by labels for radio stations, and that the play of the song cannot be recorded as a “spin,” or play, on air for reporting purposes.

Record labels were Spitzer’s primary target while in the Attorney General’s office. The “Big Four” —Universal Music Group, Sony BMG Music Entertainment, the EMI Group and the Warner Music Group — signed settlements out of court totaling more than $30 million to stop the practice. CBS Radio and Entercom, two companies that settled with the FCC Monday, also settled cases with Mr. Spitzer’s office for a combined $6.25 million.

Clear Channel Communications, CBS Radio, Entercom Communications and Citadel Broadcasting all signed an agreement to pay a total of $12.5 million to the FCC in fines for accepting bribes, gifts and entitlements for playing songs on their radio stations. These companies are the largest radio station owners in the nation, which means they have a tremendous influence over the flow of musical content across the country. All the companies also signed a separate agreement pledging to play music from artists not signed to the four major record labels.

The companies would accept bribes through a loophole in the U.S. Code, which allows for the use of “indies,” or independent promoters (not to be confused with independent record labels,) to accept funds on behalf of the broadcaster, enabling them to still accept payment without having to disclose sponsorship. The “indies” would funnel the money to broadcasters, and “General Managers” would choose playlists, not the deejays themselves. This deal will purportedly stop that practice.

The broadcasters, of course, love the deal. They can now claim that both the scandal is behind them and that no explicit violations were found, just as Andrew W. Levin, Clear Channel’s executive vice president and chief legal officer did. In essence, they save face while the practice continues unabated.

As much as the big broadcasters love the deal, the independent labels, and those that lobby on their behalf, hate it. The agreement, which they signed, requires that the radio companies will broadcast the equivalent of 8,400 half-hour segments of music from independent artists between 6 a.m. and midnight any time of the week during the year. However, they see the deal as insufficient, feeling as if it is insignificant punishment for meta-conglomerates that will continue to shut independent voices out.

Payola dates back to the beginning of rock and roll. Alan Freed, an early disc jockey, and the man who coined the term “rock and roll,” saw his career end because of payola. Dick Clark avoided scandal by cooperating with authorities and selling his stake in a record company. Why would things change now?

The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) works in concert with these labels and broadcasters to enforce a landscape in which independent thoughts, ideas or actions are shut out and shut down. The RIAA has recently accused a highly promoted mix-tape artist, one touted by many hip-hop acts and used by major labels, of copyright infringement. DJ Drama was arrested late in the afternoon of Jan. 16 by a SWAT team from the Fulton County Sheriff's Office. They came with a warrant on the grounds that they had violated the state's Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations law, or RICO, a charge often used to lock up people who make a business of selling drugs or breaking people's arms to extort money, according to the February 18, 2007 New York Times.

Recently, the RIAA has targeted college students for illegally downloading music, which they claim is a dire threat to the business of record companies. The industry should be more concerned with the decrease of compact disc sales because of legal downloading from services such as iTunes, which has seen a huge jump in sales, especially in the form of single tracks, as opposed to full-length records. By preoccupying itself with petty scandals of downloading by students in their pajamas in their dormrooms, the record companies are missing the ball on a huge opportunity, and a potential boon for business.

All of this comes back to a couple simple facts: music is nothing more than organized sound, and to prosecute for the infringement of acquiring sound is ridiculous. To accept payment for specific songs is a form of propaganda; claiming that only certain songs are fit for play is just plain idiotic. But the control of the minds of the nation is at stake! Don’t allow for a few companies, and their zealous executives, to tell you what you should and shouldn’t listen to. Ask questions, demand answers and get music by any means necessary.

MUSIC REVIEW; BRIGHT EYES LIVE AT BOWERY BALLROOM

Bright Eyes f/ A. Bondy and Craig Wedren
Grade: B+

Omaha, Nebraska is a city one would not expect an artist to call his hometown, but indie-wunderkind Conor Oberst, and his band, Bright Eyes, do so proudly. The quavering, unsure voice with the soulful lyrics of a modern day Bob Dylan entertained hipsters and sensitive folk alike at New York’s Bowery Ballroom for two nights as part of a small US tour to promote a new EP, Four Winds, and an upcoming full-length, Cassadega.

The shows were sold out within a minute of the on-sale, which was through Ticketmaster-subsidiary Ticketweb. Oberst has actively and vocally protested against Clear Channel, the media conglomerate that is closely allied with Ticketmaster, saying that its structure and status as the largest the world's largest promoter and marketer of live entertainment makes it impossible for independent bands and artists to tour.

Anticipation for the set was as widespread as it is for the release of the record, which will see an early April release. The indie-rock community may have to hand Oberst over to the masses, though, because the voice quavers no more.

The 100-minute, 16-song set comprised mostly of newer songs pulled from the Four Winds EP, of which he played all six tracks. The folk-y, roots-rock and countrified sound for which Bright Eyes is known is beginning to mature. Oberst now sings on-key, his music is uniformly relevant and his lyrical content continues to metaphorically be political, personal and emotional all at once.

Two openers preceded Bright Eyes: A. Bondy, a solo artist with an acoustic guitar and a harmonica sounded like he was Oberst’s protégé. His introduction was unique: “I’m six pellets into a mescaline trip,” he said. “Let’s see how this goes.” He instantly had the small crowd’s applause.

The second opener, Craig Wedren, is another singer-songwriter, but he had a band around him, though no one in attendance seemed to like him. He kept promoting himself as a “film” musician—he writes scores for movies, such as Reno 911: Miami. However, the crowd seemed not to care, his band’s sound seemed both generic and unoriginal and his presence was unwelcome on the stage, as everyone was anticipating Bright Eyes.


Oberst has hired, for the first time, permanent members to join the band. Bright Eyes used to be a project that featured Oberst, and included his friends from Omaha. The band now features; Daniel J. McCarthy on bass, Mike Mogis on banjo, mandolin, pedal steel guitar and electric guitar, Anton Patzner on violin, and Maria Taylor on drums.


Bright Eyes’ songs were all well received by the capacity crowd. He played one track, “Make War,” from his sprawling release Lifted. Introduced as a “country song, though I’m not from the ‘country,’” the song features a twang that far surpasses the level of his traditionally folk sound. In addition, he played a some rarities, including a song from a split CD he did with Britt Daniel of Spoon called “Spent on Rainy Days,” which was the heaviest song in the set.


Some of the quieter moments were aided by guest-musician M. Ward, who played a huge part in the EP, including singing credit on “Smoke Without Fire,” and some speculate that he had a role in the songwriting on Four Winds. He came out and played on two tracks of the main set, and the entire three-song encore.

01 March 2007

NEWS; MIDDLE EAST DISCUSSION AT UNIVERSITY

The conflict is by no means new, and people are entrenched on both sides of the ideological spectrum, but Wednesday, the crowd attending the lecture by Zachary Lockman, Professor of Middle East Studies at New York University, was primarily one-sided.

The University’s new Center for Civic Engagement, alongside with The Long Island Alliance for Peaceful Alternatives and the Long Island Teachers for Human Rights has sponsored a series of lectures on the International Scene. Lockman spoke at the Gubhardt Cultural Center Theatre Wednesday on “The Israel/Palestinian Conflict.”

The Professor spoke to a near-capacity crowd at the Theatre. “I’m sure we could not get anything near a crowd of this size at NYU in the middle of a school day,” he said.

Lockman spoke from what audience members saw as a “pro-Palestinian” perspective, much to their dismay. Lockman’s speech focused mostly on historical context for current relations. “I think it is fair to say, without too much exaggeration, at this moment in time, relations between Israelis and Palestinians are in one of the worst states that they have been in quite a long time,” he said. “There have been few periods that have been more difficult than the present.”

After the lecture, there was time for questions, which most used as time for comments and speeches, with one person even accusing the University of bias because there was not an opposing voice onstage. “Why not have someone here debate this gentleman’s obvious pro-Palestinian biased presentation?” he asked.

University professors responded. “The University is a place for a variety of different points of view,” one said. “You should listen here respectfully.”

Lockman said the Arabs see hypocrisy in US-Israeli policy concerning the Palestinians, and by extension, Iran. “The US and Israel have said there are preconditions: you have to do x, y and z,” he said. “The Palestinians don’t get to impose preconditions on Israel; they don’t get to say, ‘I’m sorry, we won’t negotiate with you until you recognize the right to a Palestinian state and you let all the refugees back.’”

"To impose preconditions on one side, and not the other side, seems to me a recipe for continued violence,” Lockman said.

Lockman saw more hypocrisy in a boycott of talks by Israelis. “This boycott has been justified on the grounds that Hamas refuses to recognize Israel, and refuses to renounce the use of violence against Israel,” he said. “There is a little bit of an irony here…because Israel has refused to recognize the right of the Palestinians to a state of their own, and Israel has certainly never renounced violence.”

Lockman attributed this phenomenon part of the reason for Hamas’ electoral success in the most recent Palestinian legislative elections. “Hamas is an Islamist party, it advocates a properly Muslim state in Palestine,” he said. “A lot of Palestinians voted for it who didn’t share its view of religion in politics…Hamas said we will negotiate, but only as equals.”

Lockman sees the impending death of the moderate Kadima party, a coalition of officials from the Labor and Likud parties, which former Prime Minister Sharon founded before a stroke left him in a coma. “There is a sense of real unhappiness of the political class,” he said. “With [Sharon] gone, with much less competent politicians in charge and with the, sort of, collapse of [the platform of ‘unilateral disengagement,’] what is the basis for this party?"