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DECEMBER 2007
ARTS & LIFE
Books
'The
Only Road North' tells of journey of faith and hope
Erik Mirandette was a sophomore at the Air Force Academy
when his story begins. He had joined intent on making
a difference in the world, and had been convinced that
he had chosen the best road to lead him to that end.
/ By Cynthia Schnitzler
Culture
Chinese
student, like so many others, adjusts to stress of living
in two worlds
When the teacher walked into the room, Rui Cao stood
up with all the other students. In China teachers are
highly esteemed, and it is not only customary, but appropriate
for pupils to show formal respect. As Cao waited for
permission to be seated, she silently dreamed about
her education. / By Miriah Griffith
Dutch
student likes Logan but longs to stock his home fridge
with beer
Pascal Coenen, an international student, said the first
thing he will do when he returns home, after a semester
at Utah State University, is "fill the refrigerator
with beer." / By Ross Davis
Multicultural
Student Services helps change negative stereotypes
It's hard to miss the ethnic minorities at Utah State.
USU has about 1,500 international students, and 4 percent
of the students are ethnic minorities. / By Kallie
Olsen
Religious
dialogue now much more open, thanks (or not) to the
Internet
When a rebuttal to a speech given at October's Latter-day
Saints General Conference was posted to the Internet
mid-November, it sparked conversation in its best light,
fire and brimstone in its worst, and highlighted the
way in which the Internet is changing the landscape
of American religious dialogue. / By Jen Beasley
Features
Column:
A woman in a wheelchair redirects a routine Saturday
morning
My husband and I have our Saturday morning routine pretty
much down. Sleep in until 10 a.m., run errands at 11,
home by 12:30. Like clockwork. What we didn't expect
on this particular Saturday morning errand run was a
two-hour delay -- right in the middle of the road. /
By Miriah Griffith
Facebook
becoming central fact of life for some college students
During a hush in her day, Jean West, a Utah State University
student and avid Facebook user, penned her life experiences
in a journal. As her eyes poured over the freshly written
words on the page, one recurring thought infiltrated
her mind: addiction. / By Sam Broadbent
Cache
Valley photographer 'a good noticer,' even with only
one eye
"We need to catch this. You're going to lose your
sight," the doctor said. Scott Smith at the age
of 24 had developed melanoma in his right eye. To prevent
the spread of the cancer his eye had to be removed.
/ By Jordan Olsen
'Halo
3' gamers destroy aliens night after night in nationwide
college fad
As the aroma of freshly delivered pizza filled the room,
Tron Arnold, Brett Bodily and Lucy Ward (a.k.a. Slut,
V and Wonder Woman) prepared themselves mentally and
physically for what would no doubt be an evening of
high spirits, competition and entertainment. / By
Jackson Olsen
Services,
opportunities for valley's disabled population abound
His speech is slow and altered. His left leg is numb
and he has to drag it behind him in order to walk. Once
a week, he attends a physical therapy session at Mountain
West in hopes to improve his mobility. / By Brittany
Strickland
USU
students provide Christmas cheer to Cache Valley families
Students walking through the Taggart Student Center
at Utah State University recently may have noticed an
added boost of holiday cheer. / By Jacob Roskelley
Alumni
association offers benefits to current students
Being immortalized in stone in the surrounding area
of the David B. Haight Alumni Center at Utah State University
is only one of the perks that comes from being a lifetime
member of the USU Alumni Association. / By Shanta'
Green
USU
bucks nationwide trend of sororities' decline
Nationally sorority recruitment numbers are going down,
but this decline is countered at Utah State University,
where sorority numbers have been on the rise since 2005.
/ By Ariel Wade
Even
horses benefit from chiropractic treatment
There's a chiropractor for horse? Yes, in fact there
is a chiropractor for most animals that are pets, and
Cache Valley is showing a growing interest. / By
McKenzie Cattani
Newton
girl and her family will visit Hawaii, thanks to Make-A-Wish
There is a 7-year old-girl whose wish is going to come
true this winter: she and most of her family are going
to Hawaii for a week. / By Stephanie Hebert
Meet
'Doc' McNeal, USU's newest Carnegie professor
Dr. Lyle McNeal describes his students as family members.
McNeal, known as "Doc" to all of his students,
is on call 24 hours a day, particularly when it is lambing
season at the USU South Farm. / By Riki Richards
Century-old
barn now owned by Nibley city
In 1903 Ernest Morgan and his young family started with
the bare minimum; somehow managing to build an extraordinary
farm in Nibley that the city purchased proudly almost
a century later. / By Kelsey Koenen
Separating
elementary grades in Hyde Park brings benefits, a few
inconveniences
Traditionally, students attend three or four schools
before graduating, including elementary school, middle
school, junior high or intermediate school and high
school. So what is the reason behind the separation
in elementary? / By Angeline Olschewski
Movies
Are
we ever too old to be princesses? I was 'Enchanted'
I have a confession to make: I have fallen into the
Disney trap. More specifically the Disney princess trap.
Whew. That feels better. I've been holding that in since
I was a toddler. / By Maddie Wilson
Music
Kappa
Delta Sham-Rocks for a good cause
Beethoven once said, "Music can change
the world." Last month, around 200 students and community
members gathered in the Taggart Student Center International
Sunburst Lounge to do just that. / By Kathryn Locke
BUSINESS
Biz Features
True
Aggie Cafe caters to students with low-priced sandwiches,
textbooks
When it comes to saving students money, the True Aggie
Cafe has got that covered for books and food. /
By Christy Jensen
Cache
dairy farmers, now No. 2 in Utah, struggle with urbanization,
low prices
Mark Gibbons has been farming all of his life, just
like his father and grandfather before him. "I
can't think of anything I enjoy more than running the
ground," Gibbons said. / By Davis Archibald
Logan
weighs in othe great debate: 'Happy Holidays' vs. 'Merry
Christmas'
When customers shop at T.J. Maxx this holiday season,
they are greeted by employees wearing lanyards with
"Merry Christmas," "Happy Hanukkah," "Happy Kwanza,"
and "Feliz Navidad" written on them. / By Whitney
Schulte
News
we can use: Where's the best public restroom?
This past week, I visited several public
restrooms to find the cleanest and safest, and graded
them accordingly. / By Natasha Austin
Sportsman's
Paradise sells outdoor experiences to hunters and anglers
The Sportsman's Paradise isn't an outlet store selling
all the top rifles and fishing poles, it's the real
thing -- a paradise for sportsmen to use those items
for what they were meant for, hunting. / By Tyler
Larson
Paradise
still a haven for White family's trout farm
Trout farming isn't a common crop to find at a farm
in Paradise, but Grant White, the owner of Trout of
Paradise has been keeping it up for over 30 years. /
By Tyler Larson
Biz News
Logan
not yet caught in home crunch, but real estate experts
are wary
The real question on the market today is: Buy, sell
or hold? Economists have seen a large drop in the market
value of homes in the last 18 months, leaving homeowners
feeling hopelessly confused. / By Zane Buxton
Cache
Valley Electric working on new, larger headquarters
Cache Valley Electric's corporate office is at 919 North
1000 West, and just south is the location for its new
office building. Construction has begun on the 13,000-square-foot,
one-story building that will be finished in June 2008.
The building will be about 40 percent larger than the
current office. / By Trenton Walker
Bar
owners, smokers say Utah's impending ban is a real drag
The ultimatum has been set, and the consequences will
be high. As of January 1, 2009, all bars and private
clubs in Utah will be forced to impose a smoking ban.
While this may seem as an inconsequential law to some,
there are others whose livelihoods may be at stake due
to the recently passed law. / By Tyson Smith
Home
businesses thriving in Cache Valley
For some this is the season of giving, for others it's
crunch time. Gay Jamison, business license coordinator
for Logan city, is swamped with requests and renewals
for home-based business licenses during this time of
year. / By Kelsey Koenen
NEWS
Across Bridgerland
Utah
ranked worst in nation for depression
Happy Valley may not be so happy after all. A recent
report by Mental
Health America, formerly the National Mental Health
Association, lists Utah as the most depressed state
in the union. / By Gideon Oakes
Inversions
will only get worse unless valley makes real changes,
experts say
As winter approaches, health is once again a major concern
within Cache Valley. Residents are familiar with polluted
air and inversions; they deal with them on a yearly
basis. But many are beginning to wonder how bad it's
going to get before changes are made. / By David
Buhler
Soaring
price of oil is breaking Cache Valley farmers, agent
says
The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline
at the pump is $3.06, up from $2.28 last year at this
time, according to the American Automobile Association.
The rise in fuel prices has had a dramatic effect on
agriculture, LaMar Clements, president of Walton Feed
Inc., said. / By Stephanie Hebert
Local News
Providence
'wet water' efforts will continue, spokeswoman says
Providence is growing and as it does so it will need
more water than it now has. Mayor Randy Simmons' plan
to transfer water rights from other communities was
met with considerable opposition from a group of residents
known as People for Wet Water. / By Cody Gochnour
Logan
man arrested on suspicion of prescription fraud
Matthew Lyman Brown, 25 of Logan, has been arrested
on suspicion of fraudulently obtaining subscriptions,
forged prescriptions, possession of a controlled substance,
possession of prescription substance without a prescription,
interfering with arrest and psychotoxic chemical abuse.
/ By Cody Gochnour
Drivers
urged to be cautious in winter, especially in canyons
With the winter snowstorms coming and accidents on the
rise, Cache County sheriff's chief deputy Dave Bennett
said drivers need to slow down in order to avoid sliding
off the road and hitting other cars. / By Amanda
Mears
Man
gets 45 days in jail for assault while drinking
Eric M. Swenson, 22, was sentenced Tuesday to 45 days
in the Cache County Jail for two counts of assault,
a class-A misdemeanor. / By Amanda Mears
Unauthorized
trails lead to problems in Millville Canyon
Problems caused by off-highway vehicles, including dirt
bikes, ATVs and other motor vehicles such as dune buggies,
on unauthorized routes could be a problem for Millville
residents. / By Amanda Mears
Breast
cancer patient, 24, helps organize support services
for LRH treatment center
Two days before her 24th birthday, Cassidy Bull discovered
a lump in her left breast. She was leaving town for
a week and didn't have time to get it checked, so she
brushed it off telling herself, "Breasts can be lumpy."
But she knew. This lump was different. / By Angeline
Olschewski
No
new road from Paradise to Powder Mountain, officials
say
With growing controversy surrounding the new development
proposal for Powder Mountain, many Paradise residents
are concerned as to what impact it may have on their
community. / By Tyler Larson
Sunday
beer sales OK'd by Hyrum council
The battle whether to keep Sundays dry in Hyrum came
to end Thursday with a 4-1 vote, as the City Council
passed a resolution to change the city's beer sales
ordinance. / By Dallin Koecher
Valley's
winter air pollution a serious problem, officials say
PM 2.5 is in our air at levels that are close to being
over the limits set by the EPA. The problem is compounded
by the winter cold and weather inversions. / By
Lukas Brinkerhoff
Smithfield's
library woes still unsettled
Karen Bowling, the children's librarian, said she feels
although the library is a wonderful asset to the community,
the building itself it just not big enough to serve
the needs of the area. / By Debra Hawkins
Wellsman
man arrested on suspicion of child sex abuse
A Wellsville man was arrested Wednesday on suspicion
of aggravated sexual abuse of a child. Two victims were
described as "very, very young." / By
Lukas Brinkerhoff
Man
sentenced for meth possession
Robert Craig Downs, 27, was sentenced to no less than
one year and no more than 15 for his guilty plea to
a second-degree felony charge of possession of methamphetamines.
/ By Lukas Brinkerhoff
Carlson
declared the winner in Mendon's close council race
With the new year comes a new City Council, mostly.
Mayor Michael Morgan and Councilman Jon Hardman thanked
council members Leslie Larson, Allen Gardner and RoseAnn
Brandley at last month's council meeting, the last of
the year. / By Cody Gochnour
Effort
to ban smoking on TSC patio is moving along
A petition to ban smoking on the Taggart Student Center
patio and other popular smoking places on Utah State
University campus was signed by over 1,000 students
in spring semester this year. Since then, not much action
has been taken. / By Miriah Griffith
Cache
Rendezvous for December 6, 2007: Belly dancing, St.
Nick and holiday treats
It's the final Cache Rendezvous of 2007, and we will
take a look at an interesting, ancient, Middle Eastern
art form: belly dancing. We also have an interview with
the one and only Saint Nicholas, and yes, it is the
real Santa Claus. Find out how to make a common holiday
treat even more tasty (and even more fattening). We
also have some tips to keep your stress levels down
during this busy time of the season. / Producers:
Jessica Hyde and Matt Jensen. Anchors: Chris Garff and
Kevin Peterson.
Excessive
drinking -- six Bacardis in an hour -- a risk for many
USU students
The party picks up speed as the drinking starts getting
more out of hand. Students are drinking beer and shots
of whiskey like they're water. / By M. Kathryn Hanberg
Providence
woman draws jail sentence for stalking
A 19-year-old woman was sentenced to 33 days in the
Cache County Jail after being charged with stalking,
a class-A misdemeanor, after incidents that occurred
around August of this year. / By Bria Jones
ATV
News for December 3, 2007: Travel tips, basketball,
and skiing
A-TV News takes a look at USU's most popular holiday
service project and gives you some travel tips to help
in having a safe and efficient holiday. Kenny Reid covers
all of last weekend's basketball action and tells you
which of Utah's ski resorts are already open for business
in A-TV Sports. / Anchors: Megan Tschida, Jessica
Walker, Kenny Reid. Producers: Blake VanTussenbrook,
Heidi Kulicke and Rich Epperson.
Largest
donation in USU history
The Utah State University College of Business
received nearly $26 million from Jon M. Huntsman Monday
at a ceremony held in the Taggart Student Center. /
By Riki Richards
NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL
NEWS
Utahns
watching, waiting for Supreme Court ruling on DC guns
"The biggest Second Amendment court battle in history
is about to begin. One that will have a huge impact
on you, your children and every other American gun owner
for generations." These are the words of National
Rifle Association Vice President Wayne LaPierre in reference
to the upcoming Supreme Court decision on District of
Columbia vs. Heller. / By Kimberly A. Hinckley
OPINION
Benazir
Bhutto, RIP
Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan's former prime minister and
the first woman to lead a Muslim nation, is dead. And
the world is poorer for her passing. / By Leon D'Souza
Freshmen:
Listen up
The next time you visit your college campus, freshmen
of Utah State University, try to notice what we veteran
college students have been noticing for years: There
are a disproportionate number of you young pups walking
about. / By Jake Williams
Grandma's
100th birthday reminds us that time is short -- but
we all have today
I recently took a trip to Florida to visit
my grandmother for her 100th birthday. While it was
great to be able to head south for a few days and enjoy
the sunshine and the warm weather, it was kind of unfortunate
that it was the weekend right before finals week. /
By Cynthia Schnitzler
A
world free of nuclear weapons
Nuclear weapons today present tremendous dangers, but
also an historic opportunity. U.S. leadership will be
required to take the world to the next stage -- to a
solid consensus for reversing reliance on nuclear weapons
globally as a vital contribution to preventing their
proliferation into potentially dangerous hands, and
ultimately ending them as a threat to the world. /
Reprinted with permission of the Wall Street Journal
Grandma
turns 100, still visits the 'old people' on Sundays
Last weekend my grandma turned 100 years old. People
look at me funny when I say that. They ask, "You mean
your great-grandma?" And I have to smile and shake my
head. "Nope. My grandma." / By Cynthia Schnitzler
Christmas
presents come from the strangest people
In your family, Christmas presents probably come from
Santa Claus, Uncle Larry, or maybe Baby Jesus. In mine,
they come from April Norman. / By Jen Beasley
A
wee rant on inflatable yard decorations
I don't remember reading about the Abominable
Snowman attending the birth of our Savior, worshipping
next to a shepherd, but that is the scene portrayed
on the lawn of a home on 200 North. / By Angeline
Olschewski
What
I learned in college
I've ordered my cap and gown and sent out my announcements.
It's looking like I'm going to pass all my classes this
semester which will give me exactly 120 credits. So,
as long as I finally take all six CIL exams this week,
I'm graduating from college. / By Manette Newbold
Fight
encroaching adulthood - make a snow angel
I don't know what stopped me mid-stride to stand there
but I was glad I did. As I stood there and watched the
snow wafting down around me I remembered the excitement
I used to feel as a child when it snowed. / By Stephanie
Hebert
If
the world were a MySpace chatroom, monkeys could run
it
I used to naively believe that humanity was good and
decent and more intelligent than the world gives credit.
/ By Whitni Webb
Memories
of my long-awaited white Christmas
As a child, each year I hoped for one thing when it
came to the holidays -- a puffy and powdery "white
Christmas" -- and each year, that never happened.
Then, finally, when I was 11 years old, my wish came
true. / By Brittany Strickland
Goodbye
Aggies, it's time to move on
Four assignments, three after I turn this one in, and
two final exams left. The countdown is on with two weeks
left in my Aggie career. / By Michael Sharp
Bah!
Snow turns the world into crippled guppies sliding around
The situation being what it is, snow is foreign, strange
and frightening to me. So I deal with my unfamiliarity
with the snow in the same way most Western minds deal
with things that are strange -- I build up a blind hatred
and condemn them without any knowledge or context, cultivating
an impossibly irrational paradigm regarding all things
white and powdery. / By David Baker
SPORTS
Cache
Valley almost un-American in its lack of rabid sports
fans
Maybe we don't eat, breathe and sweat sports every second
of our lives, but there is something intrinsically attractive
about the world of athletic competition. / By Jake
Williams
USU
gym rats fight the trend of college students' weight
gain
Tate Secrist, also a USU student, wakes up every day
at 8 a.m. to begin his daily routine. Secrist attends
classes for the first few hours of the day, followed
by a take-out lunch from his favorite fast food joint,
which he usually eats with his girlfriend. Then he finishes
his day off with sitting behind a desk crunching numbers
and figures for an insurance brokerage. The sweat from
his day comes from stress and too many stairs. /
By Sam Broadbent
Whatever
sport you choose, getting exercise is critically important
"It's easy to say 'no' to yourself," said USU Professor
Dr. Richard Gordin, "but it's harder to say 'no' to
a group of people that are depending on you." /
By Cody Gochnour
Go
skiing, go snowboarding -- just get out and play in
the snow
I'm so glad that it finally snowed. I don't care for
freezing temperatures unless there's snow. Somehow,
for me, the snow makes the negative temperatures worth
it. / By Cynthia Schnitzler
Cycling
in Cache Valley: A fan's guide to the best rides
If you're into scenery and exercise but aren't ready
to tackle the mountains, these routes may be for you.
/ By Paul W. Larson
Rowdy,
die-hard fans help give Aggies an edge in Spectrum
"You you you you you suck!" can be heard echoing
across the Spectrum at USU home games, taunting the
opposing team. / By Renae Cowley
Sled
dogs training hard, even if only in mud, for K9 Challenge
The fourth annual K9 Challenge dog sled race, Jan. 17-19,
will begin at the Sinks at the top of Logan Canyon trail
head and travel up to 100 miles along the Wasatch-Cache
National Forest. / By Justin Badger
Eating
disorders on the rise for female athletes
Many girls feel the pressure to look thin. Some become
obsessed with losing weight taking drastic measures
to reach perfection. Eating disorders in female athletes
are becoming more common. / By Crystal Degen
Critical
Mass rides Logan streets to call attention to bikers
and their rights
Although Critical Mass mostly happens in big cities
such as New York and Salt Lake City, members of the
USU cycling team Cole Gibbons and Jonathan Kidd thought
Logan could benefit from such an event because of the
lack of bike lanes around the valley. / By Christy
Jensen
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