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NEWS

Iowa State swallows up U Rice Krispie Treat record

Rachel Wright
April 24, 2001

MSU’s reign over a “Snap Crackle and Pop” concoction has been usurped.And Iowa State University has snatched the title.MSU’s record for the world’s largest Rice Krispie Treat fell Saturday when Iowa State’s marshmallow treat weighed in at 2,500 pounds - 500 pounds more than the Spartans’ 1997 record-breaker.Steve Sullivan, a spokesman from Iowa State, said the school’s mission was not to beat MSU - but instead to honor alumna Mildred Day.“So it really didn’t matter who held the previous record because we would have done this anyway,” Sullivan said.Day, who died in 1996, was a Kellogg’s employee, and is said to have been one of the creators of the first prototype of the cereal-marshmallow treat that has gained worldwide popularity.In fact, most obituaries published when Day died credited her with inventing the snack, Sullivan said.Iowa State’s masterpiece - which secured a place in the next edition of the Guinness Book of World Records for the world’s largest Rice Krispie Treat - used 818 pounds of cereal, 1,466 pounds of marshmallows and 217 pounds of butter.There was one stipulation with all the cereal used.“What was funny is that we had to open all the boxes, and they all had a prize,” Sullivan said.

COMMENTARY

Marriage is not just legal union

If we subscribe to the ideas that John La Fleur suggests are correct in his column, we may find ourselves in a scarier, more unfortunate situation than what already exists by not allowing homosexual marriages. The way that marriage was described to me for as long as I can remember is that it is an institution for which people who love each other can live together with certain benefits and recognition - such as a joint tax situation or health benefits. Never was it described to me as “a legal union from which children are born.” The idea of marriage for the purpose of procreation is ridiculous.

COMMENTARY

Union for U

The members of the Graduate Employees Union should be congratulated for their hard work in solidifying their collective bargaining victory. Graduate employees appointed as teaching assistants went to the polls Thursday and Friday to vote on whether they wanted to be represented by a union.

NEWS

Missing student found dead

Jeremy W. Steele
April 24, 2001

It’s been nearly a year since MSU graduate student Michelle Salerno disappeared from East Lansing. Monday, her family learned of her whereabouts. Salerno, who would have received her master’s degree in speech therapy in May, was identified as the body found Friday in an Ohio landfill, an autopsy confirmed Monday. She was last seen June 29. “The last year’s been pretty much a nightmare,” said Patricia Rizzi, Salerno’s mother.

MSU

State improves in math

Nicole Jacques
April 24, 2001

Although there may still be future problems to solve, educational leaders considered variables that have made Michigan measure up in math education on Monday.More than 150 professors, teachers and researchers from across the state attended The Complete Equation: The Michigan Mathematics Success Story, a convocation held at the Kellogg Center to celebrate a decade of K-12 math education improvement.Participants reflected on recent math reports including the Third International Mathematics and Science Study-Repeat, or TIMSS-R - a study allowing states and school districts to see how their math and science programs rank globally.Michigan eighth-graders performed best among the 13 states th make the nation more competitive internationally.

COMMENTARY

Freedom of speech is for everyone

In response to the letter written by Anthony Kendall (“Original messages were offensive,” SN 4/20), I would just like to say that on a campus containing diverse people with equally diverse beliefs, sensitivity to differences is vital. Freedom of speech is also vital and some will say that where the two conflict, there is no right or wrong solution.

MICHIGAN

Awards honor residents, U

Jamie Gumbrecht
April 24, 2001

Rollie Ledebuhr’s family knew. His friends knew. His colleagues knew.But when the 48-year city resident realized he was the only one who didn’t know he was being honored at Monday’s 14th annual East Lansing Crystal Awards, he began to cry.“I’ve always felt happy because the community accepted me when I was just a darn old dairy farmer,” he said, barely able to hold onto his engraved crystal bowl.

COMMENTARY

Columnists ideas were outdated

The First Amendment gives us the marketplace of ideas. Even the ignorant have their say. Reasonable citizens sort out the arguments and come to a decision on issues based on this dialogue. In John La Fleur’s “market,” the produce is rotten.

SPORTS

Tennessee high school player forced to stay

Eric Mckinney
April 24, 2001

Elgrace Wilborn’s hopes of playing basketball at MSU next season are over. The 6-foot-8 power forward from Springfield, Ohio, will not be released from his National Letter of Intent at Tennessee, said Tennessee head coach Buzz Peterson. “We’ve talked with Elgrace,” he said.

COMMENTARY

ASMSU shouldnt govern yearbook

As both a student and a fan of the First Amendment, I am glad to see that the battle over whether ASMSU will gain editorial control over the Red Cedar Log finally ended with a defeat of that proposal. There were some important legal concerns in the content of the bill that would allow ASMSU editorial control of MSU’s student yearbook; these concerns involved both First Amendment issues and problems relating to MSU’s anti-discrimination policy.

MICHIGAN

E.L. Council to review budget

Jamie Gumbrecht
April 24, 2001

The East Lansing City Council will continue discussing revisions to the 2001-02 budget at today’s work session. Council members are working to eliminate a proposed $325,000 dip into the city’s savings to cover recent increases in health care and recreational project costs. Another work session will be held Tuesday to discuss budget changes before it is finalized on May 15. During the April 10 work session, council members raised questions about possible ways to add revenue or cut costs. East Lansing Finance Director Gary Murphy said he hopes to provide more answers for the city council tonight. “These are just possibilities,” he said.

COMMENTARY

Infiltration story full of inconsistencies

Am I missing something or have others also noted an inconsistency in the administration’s explanation of police infiltration of Students for Economic Justice? On the one hand, MSU police Chief Bruce Benson responded to a Freedom of Information Act request for records and notes of the undercover operation by saying he destroyed them because they were no longer necessary. On the other hand, in grasping for straws to justify police spying on a legitimate student organization, President M.