Duke administrators consider swine flu plan, Mexico program may be affected

27 Apr 2009, Posted by Zachary Tracer in Health & Science, News, student life, 0 Comments

Updated 11:00 p.m. Monday

University officials met today to discuss plans related to the outbreak of swine flu. Among those present at the 30-person meeting were Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek, Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta and Dr. Bill Purdy, executive director of Student Health.

Moneta said the meeting allowed University officials to begin to coordinate their plans should the flu spread to North Carolina. Experts from the Medical Center also provided background on swine flu.

“We all agreed that the University’s position is to be guided by county health officials and the CDC,” he said.

After the meeting, Moneta sent an e-mail to the Duke community detailing precautions individuals can take to avoid the flu and directing students to the Centers for Disease Control Web site for further information.

The e-mail read in part:

We have engaged a comprehensive internal team with representatives from across the University and Health System that will meet regularly to assess new information and provide updates to you regarding any new developments.

At this point, there are no changes to any campus or Health System activities, class schedules or work schedules.

Study Abroad has begun discussing contingency plans for the Duke in Mexico summer program, Margaret Riley, associate dean and director of Study Abroad, confirmed in an e-mail. No students are currently studying in Mexico, which has been most heavily affected by swine flu.

“The outbreak emerged late last week,” Riley wrote. “The University is still developing its response to the situation, but [Study Abroad] will be communicating with students planning on going on the Mexico program, and their parents, specifically, and others more generally.”

Riley said no timeline has been established for when any decisions will be made regarding the program. She declined to discuss what plans the University is considering.

“We understand time is of the essence, but want to be sure we consider the various aspects and options before making any decisions,” she wrote.

The CDC issued a travel health warning Monday night urging Americans to avoid non-essential travel to Mexico due to the swine flu.

“CDC is concerned that continued travel by U.S. travelers to Mexico presents a serious risk for further outbreaks of swine flu in the United States,” the warning says.

Forty people in the United States now have swine flu, the CDC reported Monday afternoon. The (Raleigh) New & Observer reported Monday evening that there are now some suspected cases of swine flu in North Carolina.

The outbreak began in Mexico, where at least 149 people have died from the flu, the New York Times reported today.

Meanwhile, the European Union’s health commissioner said Europeans should avoid traveling to the United States and Mexico because of the flu, the New York Times reported.

Westboro Baptist Church in its own words

17 Apr 2009, Posted by Zachary Tracer in National Politics, News, 4 Comments

Since the publication of Thursday’s article about the Westboro Baptist Church coming to Duke Monday, many people have asked me for more information about the group. While I am no expert on the group, I did spend some time Tuesday interviewing a church lawyer and spokesperson, Shirley Phelps-Roper, by phone.

Phelps-Roper said she plans to be at Monday’s protest at the corner of Erwin Road and Fulton Street, and she took about fifteen minutes to explain to me the beliefs and motivations of the group. Her tone never changed, whether she was expounding on her hatred towards gays or advising me to use Microsoft Live Maps instead of Google Maps to find the location of the Monday protest.

Portions of my interview with Phelps-Roper are below.

Shirley Phelps-Roper: The thing, the act that brings us there to start with, is the godsmack, that God sent the shooter over there by Carthage, [N.C.]…. The Lord is coming, America is doomed. The time is so short, we’re not wasting any trips right now. There are students who have been taught that God is a liar. We are running fast every day all over this country…. Everywhere we’re going, we’re hitting as many places as we can get to…

The Chronicle: Will the early time of the protest and low visibility to students limit the effectiveness of the demonstration?

SP: Limit effectiveness? Oh heavens no, hun. The little rebels are going do all that “blah blah blah” mouth running… Well you understand that we have picked a busy intersection. Just because the little rebel students aren’t going to be all up running around, theres also a whole community of people who are going to drive by that location. Those people will see the signs.

TC: Why did the Westboro Baptist Church choose to protest at Duke? Why not at another school in the Triangle?

SP: We haven’t been to Duke in a while and it’s large. Look hon, here it is. Why would we not pick Duke? I’m just saying. Are those students not entitled to have even a shot at seeing what good looks like? Those children—you guys—were taught rebellion. You are in urgent, dire need of some truth.

TC: What is the message of your church?

SP: Our message is: God hates f—s. God hates f— enablers. Therefore, God hates Duke University. Therefore, America is doomed.

TC: Do you think Duke students will be receptive to your message?

SP: [laughter] Well, that depends on what you mean by receptive. Do I think they are going to like it? No. They’re going to respond the same way they do all over doomed America—they’re going to reject the word of God…. How many drunken spewing sprees do you need in a lifetime? The prophet, the apostle, his name was Peter, and he said it kind of like this: “You’ve wasted enough of the days of your life chasing after this nonsense. The lord is coming.”

LIVE BLOG: Durham and Duke Police speak at graduate meeting

16 Apr 2009, Posted by Zachary Tracer in Crime, News, 0 Comments

And that’s a wrap. Brought some cookies back to the Chronicle office for the staff. Look for the full write-up tomorrow.

6:34: Had a chance to ask Capt. Smith about demands placed on police by Trinity Heights party house complaints.

“I run about anywhere from 7 to 9 patrol cars to cover my entire district. So at any given time, there is probably not a car in Trinity Heights. We’re running everything from a larceny call, to a wreck to a crime in progress. When someone picks up my phone and says there’s a loud party over here—does that get a police resp? Yes. I would not say it has increased patrol in that area. Has it increased a perception of a problem in that area? Yes, it has.”

6:19: Dailey says students should take the initiative and use Crime Mapper and other resources to investigate housing before they decide where to live. DPD can’t tell people that some areas of Durham are more or less safe than others.

6:03: DPD officer recommend Crime Mapper for tracking crime in Durham. Williams says students should follow crime on the DUPD website. Dailey also mentions using Twitter or Facebook to get out information.

5:51: DPD generally reports crimes committed against Duke students to the University, Capt. Smith said.

5:36: There are four students here, including myself. The meeting is being held outside BioSci 111. Attendees include: Larry Smith, DPD district 2 commander, John Peter, DPD district 3 commander, Dave Williams, crime prevention manager for DUPD, Dean Sue, and several student affairs staffers.

5:32: Officials from the Durham (DPD) and Duke (DUPD) police departments are scheduled to speak at a townhall meeting for graduate students this evening. According to an email from GPSC President Alethea Dunca, DUPD Chief John Dailey will be at the meeting along with commanders from Durham police districts two and three. So far, there are no graduates in the room for the 5:30 meeting, but at least one person is setting up food outside.

While waiting for the meeting to start, why not learn more about Dailey from this Chronicle Q&A?

Or perhaps you’re interested in reading about a scam artist who targeted graduate students and other residents, raising concerns about safety-related communication between graduate students and University administrators.

The security concerns of graduate students were also thrust into the spotlight last year after the slaying of graduate student Abhijit Mahato.

Richard Wagoner resigns as CEO of General Motors at Obama’s behest

29 Mar 2009, Posted by Naureen Khan in Alumni, Breaking News, National Politics, News, 0 Comments

Duke Trustee Richard Wagoner resigned today as chairman and chief executive of General Motors at the request of the Obama administration, several news outlets reported.

Wagoner served at the helm of the America’s largest automaker since 2000. His departure comes the day before President Obama is set to unveil his plan to rescue the struggling industry and appears to be “part of a broad agreement with the Obama administration to funnel more government aid to the ailing auto giant,” the New York Times reported.

Two years ago, Wagoner delivered the commencement speech before 2007 graduates, in which he reflected on his experience at Duke (Trinity ’75) and at G.M.

Read full coverage about his resignation from:

The full story will be available in tomorrow’s Chronicle.

U2 to visit Triangle, play Duke?

25 Feb 2009, Posted by Andrew Hibbard in Concert, Music, Playground, 1 Comments

So maybe No Doubt isn’t going to be the biggest thing to come to the Triangle in 2009. The N&O’s On the Beat blog is reporting that Irish rockers U2 might be making a stop at Duke’s Wallace Wade football stadium this fall in support of their forthcoming release No Line on the Horizon (March 3). According to MyNC, the performance to the Triangle would be Bono and co.’s first in over 25 years. The last time a band played Wallace Wade was the Rolling Stones in 2005. David Menconi’ post at the N&O makes it sound like the band is definitely trying to work out a deal, but it remains to be seen whether the University’s athletic department will agree to it.

Word from Duke’s athletic department is that the date the band wanted wouldn’t fit between football home dates.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m proud of the turn around Duke football has made, but U2 is a way bigger draw than any ACC football team. Cancel a game if need be.