Monday Newsbreak: 3/3

The largely internationally-ignored area of western Sudan called Darfur, in a war of independence, has seen the stalling of plans for peace talks, due to unreasonable bickering among the leaders of the involved parties. And, as usual, in these situations, it is the innocent poor masses who have to pay with death, famine, disease, terror, and dislocation. Now, it appears, the Sudanese government is working in concert with janjaweed militias in brutally staging attacks there. The latest report is that the janjaweed destroyed the Darfur town of Suleia. So I ask, why is Africa "hands-off" when situations like this occur (see also Congo, Rwanda, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Zimbabwe, and so on) but if something happens in Europe (like Kosovo or Bosnia), it's an international crisis necessitating NATO's military involvement? I believe that, looking back at this time in history, there will be many who will point to the neglect of Africa's welfare as perhaps the worst tragedy of the times.

--Anxious to move up to a more prestigious ranking among American colleges, and too stingy to hire new professors, University of Florida President Bernie Machen (you know, the one with a multi-million dollar salary) has decided instead to drastically cut back on both freshmen and transfer admissions to the University in order, in a roundabout way, to decrease faculty-to-student ratios. When I see businesses starting to cut back like this, it usually signals the beginning of their decline and ultimate failure. The way to grow is to invest, stupid!

--The University of Florida men's basketball team stands in danger of missing the NCAA Championship Tournament this year, due to a weak pre-conference schedule and then average success during the SEC's regular season. That's O.K. with me, though. The Gators had no starting seniors, and their leading scorer, Nick Calaithes, is a freshman! They still have a chance at the "big dance", but even if they don't make it, they're a shoo-in for the National Invitation Tournament. Considering that they had no starters returning from last year, Florida has done an exceptional job this year!

--Robin Herbst and Julie Miller have written an intriguing book titled The Cheap Book: The Official Guide to Embracing Your Inner Cheapskate. This book, apparently largely tongue-in-cheek, is nevertheless supposed to give out a lot of pointers for saving money in the ever-tightening economy we are going through. I think I'll go down to my local bookstore to take a look at it. But I may just stand there reading without purchasing it, wanting to stay true to the book's spirit! Who knows, if the authors catch wind of my example, they may just want to include it in the book's next edition (but I want a free copy if they do)!