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NEWS

Spartans wary of Wildcats

Tom Keller
January 10, 2007

Northwestern's playbook is more complex than a Rubik's cube. Back-door cuts. Screens everywhere. A zone defense that morphs like Alex Mack. The Wildcats usually give up a lot in terms of talent — as evidenced by MSU winning 34 of the last 36 meetings between the two — but their quirky system requires a lot of extra attention in pregame preparations. And for an MSU team that's been robbed of practice time because of injuries in the last month, now is not the ideal time for distractions like that. "I think that's exactly the problem right now with them having such a unique offense and a unique defense," head coach Tom Izzo said.

MICHIGAN

Expert: Dorms safe from virus

Brendan Bouffard
January 10, 2007

Michigan restaurants have been dishing out more than just hot food and friendly service. A string of Norovirus outbreaks in the area has patrons questioning the integrity of their meals. "Norovirus is in all of us, in our intestines," said Pattie McNiel, an academic specialist for the National Food Safety and Toxicology center at MSU.

NEWS

Trials held off from jury selection

Two appointments to select juries for MSU football players facing assault charges ended with a postponement at East Lansing's 54-B District Court on Tuesday. The defense attorney for Kellen Davis and an Ingham County prosecutor are trying to negotiate a plea agreement. Mike Bell and Davis, who would have had their jury selected Tuesday, are two of four football players charged last semester in connection with three separate scuffles. Bell, a former junior reserve safety, is accused of assaulting three women outside Demonstration Hall on Sept.

COMMENTARY

Politician expresses religious right

Last week, Keith Ellison took office as the first Muslim member of Congress. During his private ceremony, Ellison was sworn in with one hand on the Muslim holy book — the Quran. And alas, the country did not crumble and fall into the hands of our opponents when the Minnesota congressman's hand rested on the Quran during the ceremony. Prior to Ellison's private ceremony, he joined his fellow representatives for a public swearing in ceremony, where no holy book was present.

NEWS

Soldier reflects on time in Iraq, Afghanistan

Thea Neal
January 10, 2007

Editor's note: Justin Day was first profiled in The State News on March 15, 2006. He doesn't look like a soldier. Landscape architecture junior Justin Day sports shaggy hair and a beard, wearing a vanilla-colored baseball cap that has clearly seen better days. The rim is ragged and the bill is wearing through, but the front bears a bright red "torii," a Japanese symbol representing a gate. Nearly five years ago, Day was using this simple sign for more than just clothing decoration.

FEATURES

Keep goals with fitness tips

Michelle Ortlieb
January 10, 2007

Caitlyn Spitz aimed high when setting her New Year's resolutions this year. The nutritional science junior vowed to quit smoking and get in shape by eating better and working out. Despite focusing on her smoking and eating habits, Spitz admitted her other ambitions have faded. "I have yet to work out because the start of the semester is so busy," she said. Several medical professionals said stories such as Spitz's are common, and they offered tips for others to keep their eye on the New Year's resolution prize. "People usually set resolutions that are too restrictive and go to extremes," said Ronda Bokram, an Olin Health Center dietitian. Frank McGeorge, emergency medicine specialist at Beaumont Hospital in Royal Oak, Mich.

MICHIGAN

New scholarship to boost state's lagging economy

Alex Altman
January 9, 2007

Improving post-secondary education opportunities for high school students remains a priority to the Michigan House of Representatives, even though political control in the House has switched. "Everybody is committed to the idea that we need to better higher education and make college more affordable," said Rep.

BASKETBALL

Spartans look to forget slow Big Ten start

Ethan Conley
January 9, 2007

Tom Izzo knew this year's team would struggle at times, but that doesn't mean he has to accept those struggles. Road losses to Iowa and Indiana put the Spartans in an 0-2 hole in the Big Ten, and Izzo is wondering what happened to the squad that played so well in the early portion of the season, when the Spartans topped Texas and hung tight with Maryland. "The last five games have not been played nearly as well as the first seven," Izzo said Monday in his weekly press conference.

NEWS

Faculty hiring not affected by Prop. 2

Sarah Harbison
January 9, 2007

MSU faculty who are worried about the implications of Proposal 2 can at least rest easy knowing it will not affect the university's hiring policy. But some are concerned about the status of MSU's inclusive reputation. The federal Equal Employment Opportunity order requires contractors to maintain affirmative action in their hiring process, and MSU is considered a government contractor because it receives federal research money. A provision in Proposal 2 states its implementation cannot interfere with eligibility for federal funds, which protects MSU's hiring process. Paulette Granberry Russell, the director of the Office for Affirmative Action, Compliance and Monitoring, told The State News on Friday that the ban on affirmative action passed by Michigan voters in November will not impact the recruitment of minority professors. "MSU's efforts to recruit for a diverse applicant pool engage in outreach in ways that encourage women and persons of color to consider employment at MSU," Granberry Russell said. "The university has stated its commitment to having a diverse workforce," she said.

NEWS

Graduate student dies in E.L. apartment

Chris Macey was the type of person who would pay a McDonald's employee $50 to make the french fries his pregnant friend craved at 7 a.m. He's the sort of friend who would clean up an apartment when someone was too sick to do it herself. And he's the kind of person who would mail Christmas cards to everyone, including friends' parents. "If you were one of his friends, he would do anything for you," said Jennifer Jungquist, a close friend of Macey since middle school. Christopher Wayne Macey II, a business graduate student known by everyone as Chris, died Thursday at his 2900 Place Apartment in East Lansing of an unknown medical cause, possibly related to the brain surgery he underwent in April after a serious car accident, said his father, Christopher Macey. Medical examiners are still investigating the exact cause of death. "He just went to bed and never woke up," Jungquist said. Chris Macey, 27, was born in Port Huron, grew up in nearby Avoca and was a 1997 graduate of Yale High School.

FEATURES

Jump start 2007 in fashion

Thea Neal
January 9, 2007

The year 2006 has been ushered out, with its trend-followers clad in multicolored polka dots and too-tanned skin. Everyone sported UGGs that served zero purpose in the recent snowless winter. Some ladies around campus donned belts around their natural waists, and everyone had their stylists cut side bangs to complement straightener-fried tresses. Indie guys wore jeans from their 12-year-old sister's closets, and unfortunately, left nothing to the imagination. The year 2006 was about '80s glam and "almost ugly" sweaters.