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June 23, 2006Carolina in the News
Here is a sampling of links and notes about Carolina
people and programs cited recently in the media:National Coverage
Edwards Says U.S. Should Set Out to Eliminate Poverty
The Washington Post
Former senator John Edwards (D-N.C.), sketching out themes for a possible 2008 presidential campaign, said yesterday that the nation should set a goal of eliminating poverty over the next three decades and seek to reclaim the moral high ground internationally by starting to withdraw forces from Iraq. ... In his 2004 campaign, Edwards talked about an America divided between haves and have-nots, and after leaving the Senate he helped establish a poverty center at the University of North Carolina.
Related Link: http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/news/politics/14879964.htmPotential Democratic candidates for president say nominee must relate to the middle class
The Associated Press (National)
Democrats thinking hard about a White House bid warned party activists on Thursday that a viable 2008 nominee must be able to relate to middle-class voters on faith, national security – even NASCAR. ... The 2004 vice presidential nominee and former North Carolina senator has made eliminating poverty his signature issue since the last campaign. His official title is director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Throughout his speech, he called poverty “the great moral cause of our time.”
Related Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=10000103&sid=astiRiJBcr3Y&refer=usNew state law doubles student-driving hours
The Chicago Tribune
The number of hours Illinois teenagers must drive with adult supervision before getting a license doubled from 25 to 50 under a measure that became law Thursday, a move some safety advocates hailed while cautioning it doesn't go far enough. ... "There's not one whiff of evidence that shows that 50 hours is enough," Rob Foss, director of the Center for the Study of Young Drivers at the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center, said earlier this year when the legislation was passed.
Are you a guinea pig?
Gannett News Service
As Hilary Williams hung from her seatbelt in the overturned wreckage of her truck — legs broken, colon ruptured and lung bruised — blood oozed from torn arteries and veins. ... “It has to be done carefully,” says Nancy King, a University of North Carolina ethicist who says corporate sponsors of trials don't always want to make key study information public. “It is so terribly easy to cut corners and say this doesn't matter as much and we will just put some notices in the newspaper. It makes me concerned.”
Regional Coverage
Liquor law that lets drinks flow in Currituck also has revenue pouring in
The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk)
Mixed drink revenue has nearly quadrupled in Currituck County since 2002, when a local vote allowed restaurants and bars to sell liquor by the glass. ... In 2001, before mixed drink sales, Currituck County had 174 cases of driving while intoxicated resolved in court, according to statistics from the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Center. In 2002, that number rose to 217. In 2003, the total was 256 and 2004, it dropped slightly to 245. No totals were available for 2005.
State & Local Coverage
Edwards urges pullout from Iraq
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Former U.S. Sen. John Edwards called Thursday for the United States to immediately pull 40,000 troops from Iraq and leave the country altogether within 12 to 18 months. ... Edwards, 53, now is director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law.
Related Link: http://www.journalnow.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=WSJ%2FMGArticle%2
FWSJ_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1149188688599&path=&s=John Edwards Says Wife Is Cancer-Free
The Associated Press (N.C.)
Former North Carolina Senator John Edwards has good news to report about his wife -- she's cancer-free. ... Edwards now heads the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Blood drive yields 860 usable units
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The 18th annual Carolina Blood Drive, held June 6 at UNC-Chapel Hill's Dean E. Smith Center, yielded 860 usable units of blood. The event, one of the country's largest blood drives, attracted 784 people, including 139 first-time donors.
UNC News Brief: http://www.unc.edu/news/briefs/2006/062206.htmUNC Dental School Teaching Students to Look at More Than Just Cavities
WRAL-TV (CBS, Raleigh)
A dentist can do more than just check teeth. The mouth could be considered a window on a person’s overall health. Dr. Allen Mask talks with Dr. Valerie Murrah, chair of the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Dentistry’s department of diagnostic sciences and general dentistry, on how dentists use oral screenings to check for problems such as leukemia.
World Cup is bonanza for firms targeting Hispanics
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Abel Hernandez made a special trip to support his home team on Wednesday. While the rest of Raleigh was preparing to salute the Carolina Hurricanes in a parade downtown, Hernandez and about 70 other fans gathered in a North Raleigh parking lot to pull for Mexico in its World Cup contest against Portugal. ... In 2004, Hispanics had a $9.2-billion impact on North Carolina economy, according to a January study from UNC-Chapel Hill's Kenan-Flagler Business School that examined Hispanic financial impact on North Carolina. The same study predicted that their economic impact could increase to $18 billion by 2009.
UNC News Release: http://www.unc.edu/news/archives/jan06/economicimpact010306.htmHispanics in crashes lead DWI stats
The Wilmington Morning Star
Hispanic drivers involved in motor vehicle crashes are more likely to be intoxicated than members of other ethnic and racial groups, according to statistics compiled by state researchers. The study by the Highway Safety Research Center at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill was based on information from law enforcement agencies.
Woman goes without food for a cause
The Herald-Sun (Durham)
Thousands of Sudanese go hungry in Darfur refugee camps. One local woman has decided to starve along with them to understand and bring attention to their cause. ... Her intent may be honorable, but the damage to her body from the fast might be irreversible, said Donald Spencer, a physician at UNC Hospitals and director of operations in family medicine.
Blessed be the bloggers
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
The election of the Rev. Frank Page as president of the Southern Baptist Convention last week may have been historic in one key way: It marked the first time that a major religious group opted for an upstart candidate on the strength of a technological innovation -- the blog. ... When Marcie Cohen Ferris, a professor of American studies at UNC-Chapel Hill, came out with her book on Southern Jewish cooking, "Matzoh Ball Gumbo: Culinary Tales of the Jewish South," she started a blog too. Jewish women have been particularly active on the blogsphere. The Velveteen Rabbi and Jewesses with Attitude are examples.
Floating ideas instead of checks
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
North Carolina's top bank regulator is championing a new way for banks to work with people who have poor credit. ... With that in mind, First Charter officials are consulting with consumer advocates from the Durham Center for Community Self Help and the Center for Community Capitalism, part of the Kenan Institute at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Stuffed schools may halt projects
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Orange County leaders might have to halt residential construction if a 10th elementary school in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools district isn't open by August 2008. ... Projects that could be affected by a moratorium include the town-led condominium and retail projects on Chapel Hill parking Lot 5 and Wallace Deck, the redevelopment of the ArtsCenter shopping center in Carrboro, and Carolina Commons, a planned affordable housing project by UNC-Chapel Hill.
A title on the line (Letter to the editor)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Not to take anything away from the Stanley Cup champion Hurricanes, but if you want to watch a bunch of real North Carolinians compete for a championship, tune in to the College World Series this weekend, where the UNC-Chapel team will play in a best-of-three national championship series.
One waives rights to act as own lawyer
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Mohammed Taheri-Azar is accused of driving a rented SUV through the UNC-Chapel Hill campus, striking nine people, in March. On Wednesday, the 23-year-old UNC-CH graduate said in court that he intends to plead guilty to all charges of attempted murder and felonious assault.
Issues & Trends
Suit up, Mr. Bowles (Editorial)
The Charlotte Observer
If you live in North Carolina, get ready to pay $5.2 million this fall so students from other states can play sports and study at our state universities. ... This is a battle worth fighting, and Erskine Bowles, president of the University of North Carolina system, ought to suit up and fight it.
PAC's boost (Letter to the editor)
The News & Observer (Raleigh)
Your June 18 article "UNC law helps athletics more than scholars" did not examine a driving force behind the law, the Citizens for Higher Education PAC (political action committee). Comprised of N.C. State University and UNC Chapel Hill boosters, the PAC gave $195,000 to legislators in the first quarter of 2006 alone and $346,000 during the 2004 election cycle. In
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