Edwards on campus today;
complimentary tickets available
Democratic vice-presidential candidate John Edwards will be on campus today in support of his and John Kerry’s campaign for the White House. The rally, which is sponsored by the University’s College Democrats and Kerry’s campaign, is scheduled from 12:30 to 3 p.m. on the East Lawn of the EMU.
Tickets are required to attend and complimentary tickets can be printed off at http://www.johnkerry.com/events/101304_eugene_or_form.php. Tickets will also be given out today outside the EMU Fishbowl from 10 a.m. to noon and can also be obtained from the Carry Oregon office, 114 E. 16th Street.
No umbrellas, bags or outside signs will be allowed at the rally.
Peter DeFazio visits campus, urges students to vote
Democratic congressional candidate Rep. Peter DeFazio spoke on campus Tuesday to kick off a massive campus effort aimed at making sure all registered voters turn in their ballots by the Nov. 2 deadline with a vote for Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry.
About 60 students attended a meeting sponsored by the College Democrats in which DeFazio warned of the devastating consequences the country, specifically young people, will have to endure if President George W. Bush is re-elected.
The war in Iraq, the ever-increasing national debt, the outsourcing of jobs, the privatization of social security and the possibility of a military draft are all issues affecting students that the Bush administration has acted recklessly on, DeFazio said.
“These are things that are absolutely unprecedented” he said, warning that things will only worsen if Bush is re-elected because getting elected for another term will not be a concern.
DeFazio criticized Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld for being “one of the most arrogant people on earth,” adding that he “should have been fired long before (the prisoner abuse scandal at) Abu Ghraib.”
The reckless acts of the Bush administration must be put to an end, and students have the power to make that happen, DeFazio said.
“You have a very powerful tool at your disposal,” DeFazio said, referring to the thousands of registered voters on campus.
“This is not a game; this is about the future of our country,” he said, encouraging all students to help in the campus get-out-the-vote effort.
The Student Vote Coalition exceeded its goal of registering 7,500 new voters, student outreach director for the Carry Oregon campaign Michelle Dixon said, with more than 1,000 being registered on Tuesday alone.
“Now they have the massive job of making sure people vote,” Dixon said.
Author to discuss book about Philippines tonight
Author Jessica Hagedorn will talk about her book “Dream Jungle” today at 7 p.m in the Knight Library Browsing Room. Hagedorn will share her views on how America has impacted the Philippines both politically as well as culturally.
“Dream Jungle” tells the story of a woman named Rizalina growing up in the Philippines and her connection to the politician who discovered a lost tribe called the Taobo.
Events coordinator Brian Juenemann said he was interested in the book as soon as he heard about it.
“I remembered when her first novel, ‘Dogeaters,’ came out; it was kind of a buzz,” Juenemann said.
“I think the fact that she is a playwright, an artist and an actor, she will be compelling to people when she speaks,” he said.
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Rachel Lee is a freelance reporter for the Emerald
