Saturday, July 4, 2026

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NEWS

weekend box office top 10

1. "Head of State," $13.50 million 2. "Bringing Down the House," $12.48 million 3. "The Core," $12.05 million 4. "Basic," $11.51 million 5. "Chicago," $7.21 million 6. "Dreamcatcher," $6.64 million 7. "Agent Cody Banks," $6.42 million 8. "Piglet's Big Movie," $4.93 million 9. "The Hunted," $3.62 million 10. "View From the Top," $3.52 million Source: Nielsen EDI

NEWS

top 10 albums

1. "Get Rich or Die Tryin'," 50 Cent, Shady/Aftermath. (Last week: 1) 2. "Come Away with Me," Norah Jones, Blue Note.

NEWS

Affirmative action on trial

Washington - Rallying in front of the Supreme Court building, about 220 MSU students joined thousands of fellow college students, professors and activists Tuesday morning to show their support for the University of Michigan's admissions policies. The Supreme Court began hearing two cases charging U-M with discrimination because it takes race and ethnicity into account in its admissions.

MSU

Faculty member voice for diversity

Colleagues of Gilbert Williams knew the telecommunication professor as a strong voice for minority issues.Known as Gil to his friends, he died March 26 at age 51 after a battle with Lou Gehrig's disease."There have been very few people of color in the telecom department," said Professor Bella Mody, who worked with Williams for 17 years.

COMMENTARY

Unfair fight

The unfortunate reality of war is that citizens not directly involved in conflict sometimes lose their lives.

FEATURES

New brand of humor to take Riverwalk stage

It's not everyday the death of a friend's fiancee can bring laughter to a Lansing theater.Fans of English sitcoms might want to check out "Absent Friends," premiering this week.The play is written by English playwright Alan Ayckbourn and is about Colin, who's fiancee has just drowned.

MICHIGAN

Temporary extension keeps Amtrak running

After weeks of negotiations, Amtrak and the Michigan Department of Transportation have reached a temporary deal allowing the railway to continue operating its two state-funded train lines for at least the next three months.Amtrak officials and department representatives settled the deal in a conference call Monday, with both sides agreeing to a three-month contract setting Amtrak's funding level at $1.425 million through July 1.Department spokeswoman Stephanie Litaker said the deal provides the Legislature more time to pass a bill lifting a $5.7-million cap in state funding Amtrak annually receives, while still securing Michigan's passenger rail service."This deal is somewhere in between," Litaker said.

NEWS

SPARE rally hurt by class conflicts, weekend riots

Students Protecting And Representing Education, or SPARE, held a rally today on the steps of the Capitol building.The rally, which drew crowd of about 50 students from schools across the state, was attempting to gain support for higher education - as schools face possible cuts upward of 6.5 percent.But the rally had low student turnout because of class conflicts, confusion with a special bus route and the actions of a disorderly crowd this weekend - all of which hurt the cause of SPARE, officials said.For more on this story please see Thursday's edition of The State News.

COMMENTARY

ASMSU benefits from endorsements

MSU's undergraduate student government is different than most of its relatives. We have a bicameral student government and award special seats to minorities and interest groups.

NEWS

Council to seek strict punishment for participants

If East Lansing officials get their way, those convicted in Sunday's riots won't be allowed to set foot within 2,500 feet of any state-funded university campus for at least a year. Eight people - including six MSU students - were arrested for disorderly conduct and city officials are pursuing others involved.

NEWS

Police: Tear gas necessary despite bystander presence

As officers continue to defend the decision to use tear gas to disperse crowds of rioters and bystanders Sunday, some students maintain police went too far. Police released more than 135 canisters of chemical ammunition on campus and in the city, attempting to disperse more than 2,000 revelers who took to the streets after the MSU men's basketball team's Elite Eight loss to Texas.

SPORTS

Men's tennis takes on Michigan

The MSU men's tennis team hosts intrastate rival Michigan today, marking the 100th meeting of the schools. 74th-ranked MSU (10-9 overall, 1-3 Big Ten) is looking for a reversal of fortune against the 61st-ranked Wolverines (5-9, 0-4). The Spartans have lost seven of their last eight dual meets and are on the losing side of a 17-81-1 all-time record against U-M.

COMMENTARY

Affirmative action case needs support

This is very hard for me to say, given that I've been a Spartan my entire adult life, but the times call for it. Go Michigan! To those who disagree with its policies, I'd simply like to add: if we all started out on a level playing field, there would be no need for affirmative action anymore.