The Reporter

THE REPD Seeking1 The I r u t At Stetson U n i v *>£■* X £> 1 t Volume CXIX Issue 3 Thursday, September 212DDG SGA Beats By TORI GIBBS The most recent meeting of the Student Government Association, convened at 7:01 p.m. on Wednesday, September 13 in the LBC Rinker Auditorium began with the fifty-eight present voting members taking an Oath of Office led by President Will Stoctzcr. The committee chairs and parliamentarian were confirmed by a unanimous vole, and the meeting proceeded with a welcome back message from Michel ic Espinosa. the Dean of Students and the SGA advisor. "The turnout to this meeting was great and we are still getting more applications e\ery day."' said bxecuthe Secrctar> Jessy Hoch. a junior finance major. "I know tliis \ear will be \ery successful thanks lo its strong leadership by Will and Marie and the impressive and dedicated group of senators that have joined." The meeting continued with committee reports. The Academic Affairs report provided by Chair Michael Hodges detailed a bill for professors' syllabi to be ported online which will be reviewed and edited as necessary. The Campus Lite report from Chair Jessily Ramirez included in- troduction^ of subcommittee chairs, and an announcement that the meet and greet has been changed lo October 3 from nine to 11:30 p.m. Following were reports on Community Relations from Chair Jess Lanza and food Services from Chair Gentry Mandcr. H- nancial Affairs Chair Kristina Morgan then went on lo announce the success of last Saturday's SA1-AC. which allocated $25,000. Concluding committee reports were welcomes and meeting details on Policy Reform from Chair Ke\in Winchell. Residential Hall Association from Chair Drew Glasnovich, and Social Responsibility from Chair Zib Philbin. Vice President Marie Milliard then opened the lloor to nominations for president pro temp. Nominees included Senator Will Grauel. Senator Will Collum. Senator Nick Ca\allaro. Senator Ryan Lynch. Senator Abbie Heisner, and SenaLor Peter Dzuba. After a brief discussion and \ote, Senator Will Grauel was appointed to the position. New business included proposals to modify the quiet hours and visitation policy for Greek housing, to modernize room lottery procedure, to recogni/c 9/11 contributors, and to update the campus alcohol policy. An open discussion followed concerning the changing of SGA meeting limes, which was resolved to be written as a piece of legislation. Announcements were comprised of nolifications about the Chi Alpha Boston Coffee night at T p.m. on Thursday. September 22, and about the upcoming traditional Night Cap featuring "SO's ■Night'1 this 1-riday from 10 p.m. to midnight. As there was no old business to speak of. the meeting ended on this positive note. "As far as the year goes, we will be working on a lot of issues. We have a full plate of bills coming up in Senate and we plan to continue many of our statewide, national, and international initiatives. I his year is shaping up to be one of the best in Student Government history as we really have from top to bottom a very dedicated and passionate group," said President Will Stoetzer. Confttct Tori Gibbs at tgibhs '.a s telson. edit Cavallaro Launches Sexist Campaign By Rachel Holleman This year's Student Government Association (SGA) hall senatorial election sophomore political science major Nick Cavallaro caused sexist controversy among Smith Hall residents. Cavallaro created two different posters for his campaign against six other candidates who ran for Smith Hall senator. One poster featured Cavallaro seated on a toilet holding a sign that said, "SGA, always on the job." The other poster displayed Cavallaro seated at a desk with a female in a compromising position underneath the desk. He felt that his campaign posters would be effective in gaining the students' attention and did not consider the possibility of .offending anyone in the process. "I enjoy making asinine comments," laughed Cavallaro, before pointing out that if he ever decides to run again he will use the same tactic because "funny wins." "Yo-I thought it was hilarious!" expresses freshman business major Luis Fermin. He's just as immature during the SGA meetings as he was in his campaign tactics... -Holly Meyers Freshman business major Tyler Johansson, the other winner in the Smith Residence Hall Senatorial race, does not agree with Cavallaro's strat- .egy. "I thought the posters were humorous, but did not represent what he stood for," he said. Johansson believes he won because he took the time to go door to door and remind residents about the election. Johansson felt that he was a strong candidate because he is "a social and outgoing person and people feel like they can approach me with what they want." The campaign posters were placed throughout Smith Hall. Female upper seven residents spoke out in protest against Cavallaro's tactics. They felt that it was wrong and degrading to publicly post material of that nature. The girls all wondered what Cavallaro was actually going to do for them if he was choosing to publicize himself in such an "unprofessional" manner. "I don't expect much after seeing the posters," said freshman discovery major Savana Westwood after she was asked what she expects from Cavallaro as senator of her residence hall. "He's just as-immature during the SGA meetings as he was in his campaign tactics," added freshman discovery major Holly Meyers, a running mate of Cavallaro's in the senatorial elections. Cavallaro dropped his previous position as chair of the Athletic Sub- Committee in the 2005-2006 academic school year, but states that this year he does "want to try harder." When asked about his obligations as senator of Smith Hall he said, "In actuality all I really do is make sure the shrubbery is in good condition and the bathrooms are clean." In response to the comments made by the residents of upper seven regarding his campaign strategy Cavallaro said, "If Student Government is so important to them and they take it that seriously, then they should just vote for who they want." "People might find it funny," said freshman discovery major Tabitha Arce, "but I still disagree with his method of gaining votes because it is a campaign. Peers close to Cavallaro say that his outbursts and inappropriate comments are just a part of his personality, but that ultimately he really is a "good guy". "It's kind of hard because I know Nick and I know that he's just kidding, but people who don't know him, don't know that," stated a close friend of Cavallaro's who wishes to remain anonymous. ASHER WALDRON/ THE REPORTER "Asinine comment" or grotesque campaign? They all hope that he will take responsibility for his actions this year and really step up to the plate oh behalf of Smith Hall. When asked about his future aspirations for the SGA, Cavallaro said, "I believe that I hold many of the same values as SGA Vice President Marie Villard and I hope that one day I can become as successful in SGA as she is." Contact Rachel Holleman at rhollema@stetson. edu Crist And Davis Win Respective Primaries ByCaitlin Hughes On Tuesday, September 5th-, Florida residents voted in the primary election to choose their Republican and Democrat candidates for the upcoming gubernatorial election. The Republican candidate, state Attorney General Charlie Crist, defeated Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher with 64% of the popular vote, while the Democrat candidate, Congressman Jim Davis, won with 47% as compared to Senator Rod Smith's 41%. On Tuesday, November 7th, the decision will be made as to which candidate will be replacing Florida's long term Republican Governor Jeb Bush, whose term expires this year. Hailing from the St. Petersburg/ Tampa area, Crist has been a Florida resident since the late 1950's. Throughout this time, Crist has actively pursued influential positions, under various titles, including State Senator, Florida's Education Commissioner, and Florida's first elected Republican Attorney General. Such prior experience is a main determinant behind his supporters votes, such as sophomore political science major Will Grauel, who voted for Crist over Davis. Will states, "Crist has been our Attorney General and there have been no problems with that. He plans to stick by Jeb's policies and he will actually show up and do the job. You want a person with experience, and why not the Florida Attorney General?" "' Another factor Crist has in his favor is his conservative stance. Crist is positioned against gay marriage, amnesty, and abortion, and states he will "never support tax increase." Particularly important to some voters is Crist focus on prisoners and those on probation. "People on probation have to check in once a month and often don't do so without any penalty. Crist is going to crack down on that, which is im-. portant in cases like the one involving Sarah Lynch," states junior international studies major Brittany Green. The chair for the Charlie Crist Student Coalition, sophomore political science major Jess Lanza, feels strongly about a similar issue. "One main thing for me is the legislation that Crist passed that made it mandatory for prisoners to serve 85% of their prison sentence, and that he worked to jimdavis2006.com have it passed in his first term as Senator, he said. Also hailing from Tampa is the Democrat candidate Jim Davis. Much like Crist, Davis, has been a zealous member of Florida's political system as well as our national system. Holding the titles of Congressman and the majority leader of the Florida House of Representatives, Davis has been on powerful committees including the House Energy and Commerce Committee as well as the House Budget Committee. . In these positions, he actively fought high prescription drug cost, the deterioration ofthe environment, and high budget deficit. Davis has worked towards the privatization of Medicare and Social Security, two very important issues in Florida, and led the bipartisan coalition which stopped oil companies from drilling on Florida's coast. One ofthe political 'hot' areas and perhaps one of Davis' stronger points among his supporters is the issue of the invasion of personal lives and morality. While Crist has made it clear that he is against abortion and gay marriage, Davis has advocated pro-choice with more of a focus on improving the lives of women and minorities. For many voters, it is Davis' liberal standpoint on these and other issues that gives him their vote. "My greatest fear is a government that legislates morality. I don't think that the government should tell people what to think or believe, and for that reason I'm skeptical of any conservative candidate. Furthermore, I'm very adamant about improving our educational system, and am therefore afraid of any candidate who clings to Jeb Bush's coattails. Jim Davis satisfies CHARLIECRIST.COM these two requirements, and also has a- strong record as a bi-partisan legislator. For these reasons, I plan on voting for Davis in November," states senior political science and philosophy major Kevin Winchell. As is true with every election, time can only tell who will be victorious come November 7th. Both Crist and Davis are experienced, have been described as ambitious, and have noteworthy lists of achievements. The decision will be up to the voters. Or, as some voters are planning on doing, you can take the middle road and await whatever unfolds in the next month and a half before the elections. As stated by senior political science major Melissa Pancoast, "I voted for Crist in the primaries, but I'm undecided. I want to see what comes out in the campaign process, and who plays dirty politics opposed to who shows integrity, because I'll probably support that candidate." Contact Caitlin Hughes at [email protected] Thursday's Forecast: Partly Cloudy High 89 Low 70 Weekend Forecast: Friday: Partly Cloudy Saturday: Sunny Sunday: Isolated T-Storms Hi's: 90 Low's: 72 Nicole Forbes gives suggestions for sticking around campus. PAGE C1 Opinions Sean Barth and Chris Evans report from Hong Kong. PAGE B1/B2 Katherine St. Clair spotlights Brittany Jones in Hatter Profile. PAGE D1