Is she done yet?

After Tuesday's results, it's blatantly obvious who's going to win the Democratic nomination. Obama has less than 200 delegates to secure it, which was considered mathematically impossible a couple months ago. Obama trounced Clinton in North Carolina, and Hillary narrowly won in Indiana, but not by enough.

The moment came shortly after midnight Eastern time, captured in a devastatingly declarative statement from Tim Russert of NBC News: “We now know who the
Democratic nominee’s going to be, and no one’s going to dispute it,” he said on
MSNBC. “Those closest to her will give her a hard-headed analysis, and if they
lay it all out, they’ll say, ‘What is the rationale? What do we say to the
undeclared super delegates tomorrow? Why do we tell them you’re staying in the
race?’ And tonight, there’s no good answer for that.”

- New York Times

Hillary's only hope was to round up a bunch of super delegates at the convention. According to most pundits, that possibility has faded away.

Pro-choice activist goes too far

A UW-Stevens Point student senator attempted to destroy a display made by Pointers for Life, a pro-life organization last weekend. The protest featured a "graveyard" of 4,000 crosses to symbolize the number of abortions in the U.S. each day.

Roderick King apparently saw the display, and instead of launching a peaceful protest of his own, decided to start taking down the crosses one by one.

See the video here (embedding was disabled for this one).

As someone who is personally pro-choice, I find the graveyard a little offensive. However, it's obviously a First Amendment protection for the group to protest. King had no right to destroy the display simply because he disagreed with it.

King is a prime example of why liberals are sometime stereotyped as being irrational. But it's important to note that most of us can identify a wacko when we see one...even on our own side of the aisle.

Lifting gas tax...bad idea!

Both Hillary Clinton and John McCain say they would support a three-month lift on the gas tax to help ease rising fuel costs this summer. (NY Times article)

However, Barack Obama calls the idea "pandering" and a poor, temporary solution that will only get us deeper into the oil crisis. He's dead on.

Lifting the tax will cause gas to decrease about 18 cents per gallon immediately. However, the simple laws of supply and demand come into play just as fast. With cheaper gas, more people will be willing to drive, causing more demand. This will cause prices to rise higher than they would have in the first place over the summer, likely wiping out that 18 cent break.

Because a substantial portion of this tax goes to the U.S. Department of Transportation, another question arises about our federal infrastructure. With last summer's bridge collapse in Minneapolis, can we really afford to cut costs on upkeep with our roads? Anti-big-government politicos like to criticize bureaucracy until a disaster occurs due to a lack of it.

Clinton suggests the holiday, but also says the U.S. should raise its taxes on the oil companies themselves to make up for it. It seems to me that this temporary "relief" is just a band-aid on what will definitely become the nation's worst fuel crisis since the late 70s.

The former first lady loves to talk about her experience. However, it appears that its Obama with the knack for economics, something we haven't seen from a president in decades.

Sustainability plan leads to fair trade recognition for UWO

Within the next few weeks, UW-Oshkosh will become the first in the United States to be recognized as a fair trade university.

The campus is making a commitment to the use of many fair trade products, which focuses on paying fair prices to producers and advocating higher standards for sustainability in the making of goods.

"The point is that the people raising these products should have a living wage," said David Barnhill, Environmental Studies professor.

The accomplishment is just one small part of the new Campus Sustainability Plan, unveiled

Tuesday after more than a year and a half of work. The plan outlines 12 top priorities in reducing the university's environmental impact.

"Everyone's going green," said Chancellor Richard Wells. "It seems like every time you turn around, everything's green and everything's sustainable. We really want to be doing it in a fundamental way and move forward as an institution."

The plan focuses on four main areas: operations, teaching, research and outreach. Facilities Management Director Steve Arndt is taking on the operations aspect.

One "ambitious" goal, as Arndt put it, is to become 100 percent independent of fossil fuels by 2012. That would require either remodeling or replacing the heating plant on the north side of campus.

"Sustainability is becoming part of our thinking process in how we do things," Arndt said. "The power plant is proof of that."

In the teaching phase, faculty will have the opportunity to incorporate sustainability into classrooms by either modifying courses or creating new ones.

"We hope we're going to be seeding a widespread diffusion of sustainability in courses on this campus," Barnhill said. "Hopefully most of our students will have somewhere down the line encountered the idea of sustainability."

Barnhill also looks forward to using UW-Oshkosh as a subject of research.

"We're planning to have both faculty and student research to look at what we're doing and how we can do it better," he said.

The sustainability team composed of 28 faculty and staff members, launched the effort to create the plan in October 2006. The 124-page document outlines the university's attempt to become a national leader in sustainability. Other priorities include hiring a full-time director of sustainability, performing a campus-wide energy use study and expanding the campus audit on environmental impact.

One such audit several years ago showed that the university was imbalanced in its focus on sustainability.

"We were heavy in terms of doing the work on sustainability in our operation planning, but really not focusing on the research and outreach part of it," Wells said of past practices.

Arndt said that the energy study should show which areas of campus need a reduction in usage. Another time to cut energy use is during winter and summer breaks.

"We're going to try to consolidate and shut down different things when there's no one around," he said.

Students help cast for popular game show

Four UW-Oshkosh students recently got the chance to say "Deal or No Deal."

No, they weren't contestants on the popular NBC game show, but they did get to determine which hopefuls would inch closer to that fate. Students Kyla Morris, Ryan Wing, Nicole Klein and Randi Smalley were production assistants for a day for casting directors of the show.

"There were people who tried to get your attention by singing or coming up with rhymes, but we based our decisions on just being genuine and having a good personality," Morris said.

The open casting call was April 2 at the Bay Park Square Mall in Ashwaubenon, with callbacks on April 3. Morris was asked to return for the second day to assist NBC executives with determining potential finalists.

Those trying out had 20 seconds to impress the assistants enough to move on to a second round, where the actual casting directors would take a look at them. Most used the time to tell something interesting about themselves.

Wing said that there were thousands of candidates, so the short time limit was understandable. "It doesn't seem like that much time, but when you're actually telling something I think your personality can show through in 20 seconds," he said. "If they really wanted to be on the show, I think they could make it work."

Contestants on the show, which is hosted by comedian Howie Mandel, pick from 26 briefcases containing different cash amounts. The more high numbers that are kept in play the better, with the top prize being $1 million.

Wing said that there was a long line and that some had to wait up to several hours to audition. "Personally, if I was the one trying out, I would've been a little upset to have to wait seven hours, and then I only get 20 seconds (to audition)," he said. "But I understand the fact that they had over 5,000 people there trying out that day."

Radio-TV-Film professor Doug Heil helped set the students up with the opportunity. The assistants asked contestants about their personality and questions such as what they would do if they won the million dollars.

Morris said the experience was extremely valuable to her, as she wants to become a producer at some point in her career. The junior is actively involved in a variety of projects within her major.

"Seeing the organization on what happens before it gets to the show time and to see how much goes into picking one contestant for the show totally helps," she said. "I got to learn how they pick the people, what they consider and all the questions that are involved."

Wing, a senior who wants to be a sports broadcaster, estimated that he personally went through more than 600 people and worked about 12 hours. The doors closed at 4 p.m., but NBC executives kept seeing those in line for five hours after that.

He also said that although that particular area of the entertainment industry isn't something he's going into for a career, the day was a great experience overall.

"It helped me a lot to learn the process of casting because that's always an opportunity I could pursue if I chose to," he said. "It taught me how that side worked, which was interesting."

Morris said that the experience also opened the door for the students to meet with professionals in the field. "All of the production assistants had the opportunity to get (casting directors') contact information after the gig was over," she said.

The process to appear on the actual show is long, so Morris said she has no idea if any from the casting call will make it through. After the first two rounds on Tuesday, there was a third round on Wednesday where casting directors made their final decisions on who would be considered.

"It could take up to a year for them to hear anything once they make it past round three," Morris said.

Empty storefronts have potential but no tenants

Four years after a fire that vacated its top floor, University Plaza still remains largely vacant.

"We get inquiries on the space every week, so there's interest in it," said Ryon Savasta of Sara Investment Real Estate LLC, which owns the property.

On Aug. 13, 2004, a fire at a sandwich shop called Hungri's caused massive damage to the second floor and roof of the two-story building. The restaurant never returned to the location near the intersection of High Avenue and Wisconsin Street.

The Middleton-based company spent $1.5 million remodeling the property in 2006, but has still been unable to fill the top floor. The French Quarter and Nikos Gyros occupy the bottom level. Savasta said that many prospective tenants, especially national chains, seem hesitant to count on students for a majority of their business because many of them are not in the area the entire year.

"I think that anyone who has gone to school in a college town realizes that there's huge foot traffic there, but the national (chains) see students as more of a transient population," he said. "It's been harder for them to see the benefits of being close to campus."

UW-Oshkosh senior Brad Williams said the building is in a good location and that several types of businesses could be successful there. "There should be more adult hangouts in the campus bar area," he said. "It would be kind of unique to have that kind of bar, like more of a downtown bar. You don't see many older people at the college bars, so it's kind of a weird change in demographics."

Williams said that those seeking a more relaxed bar experience may have trouble finding it with the current lineup of campus bars.

"It's all very predictable what you're going to find at the college bars," he said. "It's the same people over and over with the same level of drunkenness no matter what night of the week."

However, student Dan VanDenEng said that there are enough bars already in Oshkosh and that a strip club would probably draw in the college crowd. "It would also boost employment for certain students," he said.

Savasta said there has been an array of different businesses looking to move in, including restaurants, a hair salon, two gyms, a tanning salon and an office looking to relocate from Main Street. He also said that the "safest" place for businesses to open is near a major highway, like Highway 41, or else on Main Street where there are a lot of vintage storefronts.

"We're kind of in between those two markets," he said.

The sinking economy may also be a factor.

"Sometimes the business plans don't really pan out when they start crunching the numbers," he said. "There's been interest, but it has just been slow. With the economy slowing down like this, people are looking for more of a sure bet."

According to VanDenEng, he would like to see another place in Oshkosh to see live music or a place where students could go to get a lot of food for a small cost.

"They should have some place with a buffet," he said. "We need something cheap for college students."

Savasta said that retail outlets tend to have more doubts about the location than restaurants.

"There's a lot of food in that area, so obviously that's a big draw," he said. "In terms of a retailer, what I've been told is that they're looking for something that's a little more stable in terms of consistent population."

Williams said that in light of recent events, perhaps a shrine honoring Brett Favre would be appropriate.

"I think that we have college students who appreciate the man and grew up watching him, and they would like a place to go, kind of like visiting a tombstone," he said. "It'd be a place where Packers' fans join together and take a look at one of the greatest legends in football."

Update: Since this story appeared in the Advance-Titan in March 2008, Polito's Pizza has moved in to the top floor of University Plaza.

Students sell themselves for cash

In Oshkosh there is a place where dozens of people sit in rows, hooked up to machines that drain them of their bodily fluids.

It's all part of a process called plasmapherisis, which separates the yellowish liquid part of the blood, known as plasma, from the red blood cells. Donors at BioLife Plasma Services can donate up to twice a week, making some money at the same time.

"It's a nice way to earn a lot of extra bucks," said Lisa Sullivan, 21, a UW-Oshkosh senior who has been donating for about eight months. "It's kind of relaxing once you get used to it."

Because the body can easily replenish itself of plasma, donating is a fairly healthy procedure, Dr. John Swanson of the Student Health Center said.

"There really is no significant health risk," Swanson said. "(Machines) spin out plasma and give you back the red blood cells. The body rapidly manufactures the things in plasma like the proteins and all that plasma covers."

On a routine visit, donors must answer a series of questions regarding risky behavior that may disqualify them from donating.

Prospective donors should note that if they have recently gotten a tattoo, they must wait 12 months before giving plasma. The same goes for those who have spent more than 72 consecutive hours in jail.

Then, clients are weighed and given a blood test to make sure their protein and iron levels are high enough to donate. After that, the actual donation process begins.

"The first couple times, it took me awhile to get used to it," Sullivan said. "Where I am now, it's just super easy, and to tell you the truth, I barely feel it."

On the initial visit, donors must pass a physical to make sure they are eligible. This includes being checked for illnesses and previous risky behavior. After that, the donation process begins.

Staff members place needles in donors' veins with tubes that are hooked up to an automated machine. After collecting the blood, the machine spins out the plasma in a centrifuge, and red blood cells are pumped back into the donor's body.

This process is repeated several times until enough plasma is collected for a successful donation. The machine uses three minute intervals to collect the plasma, with two additional minutes taken to return the red blood cells.

BioLife pays $20 on the first visit per week and $30 on the second. The money is put on a card that donors can use like an ordinary debit card. The debit system recently replaced the company's old method of giving out cash.

"I think I like it better because then I never see the money," Sullivan said. "If they just gave me cash, I'd probably spend it right away."

Sullivan recently went to Jamaica using some of the money she saved from giving plasma, and plans to use what she has saved this time for spring break.

Swanson said that the process is completely safe. "For most people, there is no risk," he said. "(The equipment) has all been sterilized, so there's no way that you can get HIV or Hepatitis by donating plasma."

However, the doctor also said that having veins poked so often could cause some concern.

"The downside is that kind of like a drug user, after a while the veins can get kind of hard and they can collapse down a little bit," Swanson said. "It might be a little more difficult that if you got sick and needed to have an intravenous line inserted, it would be a little more difficult to get into those veins. That could be one mild hazard."

Another concern is that because BioLife pays for plasma, it may take away prospective blood donors. One must wait eight weeks after donating blood before being able to give plasma. Corey Foster, a sophomore at UW-Oshkosh, has been giving blood for the Red Cross since she was 17. She donates every time there is a blood drive on campus.

"I have thought about donating plasma, but didn't because I had no way to get there and I would not be able to give blood as often," she said. "The fact of getting paid (for plasma) has tempted me, but I feel like I am doing more good by donating blood."

Swanson said that it's a choice students have to make between the two. "On the one hand, for students who need money, it's a nice way of making money," he said. "But on the other hand, donating blood is one of those moral things that we probably need to do."

BioLife warns that donors who do not eat healthily or drink enough fluids before donating run a higher risk of getting sick afterward. However, Swanson said that he hasn't seen that correlation with students coming in to the Health Center.

"There are a lot of things that happen to us that just happen to be coincidental," he said. "Nobody knows if those two things are necessarily related."

According to BioLife, collected plasma goes to help those suffering from hemophilia and other diseases that don't allow the body to easily replenish plasma. It's also used to treat burn and shock victims.

Sullivan said it's also good to know that she is helping people in the process.

"It's nice to help some people who really need it," she said. "I also study while I donate, so I might as well help some people and make some money while I study."