Author: emz006

International

• The Obama Administration reassured German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Oct. 23 that the United States was not monitoring her cell phone. While the German government did obtain evidence that suggested otherwise, the White House reiterated that it “is not monitoring and will not monitor” their communications, said White House spokesman Jay Carney. This latest allegation followed another allegation made by French President Francois Hollande that the NSA spied on thousands of French citizens. (Reuters)
• Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will stand trial for alleged bribery. He is accused of paying a left-wing senator over three million Euros to defect from his own party to Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party. The defection resulted in the collapse of the government and elections that returned Berlusconi to power. (BBC Europe)
• On Oct. 23, Pope Francis suspended German Bishop Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst, otherwise known as the Bishop of Bling. Pope Francis ordered the bishop to vacate the Diocese of Limburg immediately while a final decision still has not been made yet. The decision came in the wake of the German Bishop reportedly spending lavish amounts of money, including $20,000 on a bathtub.  (ABC News)
• The United States suggested that Iran could retain limited nuclear enrichments capabilities for non-weapons purposes under controlled conditions, a view that is not shared by a number of other Middle Eastern States. Saudi Arabia and Israel are among the states that have expressed disapproval of the American stance. Top Israeli and American officials have called for the complete dismantlement of Iran’s nuclear program since the enrichment process started in 2003. (Washington Post)

National

• Early on Oct. 21, New Jersey became the 14th state to legalize gay marriage. Governor Chris Christie dropped his appeal of the judicial decision. Judge Mary C. Jacobson of New Jersey’s State Supreme Court ruled in September that New Jersey had to allow same-sex marriage after the Supreme Court decided in June that same-sex couples had access to the same federal benefits as heterosexual couples. (New York Times)
• The U.S. Navy was rocked by a bribery scandal earlier in the week involving a foreign defense contractor, a Navy commander, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service senior agent. The company, Glenn Defense Marine, is accused of overbilling from tugboats to fuel sewage disposal. They are also accused of providing prostitutes and tickets to a Lady Gaga concert in Thailand. (Washington Post)
• Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the deceased Boston bombing suspect, has been implicated in a triple murder. The murders took place on Sept. 11, 2011, in which the victims had their throats slashed, their bodies covered in marijuana and thousands of dollars in cash. Documents were filed on Monday in preparation for the trial of his younger brother, Dzhokhar. (AFP)
• Two separate attacks at schools took place this week, one in Nevada, the other in Massachusetts. In Sparks, Nevada, a seventh grade student shot killed Michael Landsberry, a math teacher at the school who was also a former Marine and member of the Nevada National Guard. The shooter also wounded two students before taking his own life. In Danvers, Mass., teacher Colleen Ritzer was found dead in a wooded area behind her school. Police have charged Phillip Chism, 14, as an adult in his alleged involvement with Ritzer’s death. (ABC News and The New York Times)

Ethan Zubkoff
Assistant News Editor

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has approved the air quality plan for the construction of a tire incinerator to be located 10 miles from the University campus on Sept. 27.

National Gypsum Company, located in White Deer Township, and En-Tire Logistics LLC, a subsidiary of the Emmanuel Tire Company headquartered in Baltimore, Md., will construct the project. The proposed plant would generate about seven megawatts of electricity.

National Gypsum will consume most of the electricity generated by the incinerator. The balance will go to the Pennsylvania Power & Light grid.

“It should not have any more impact than burning coal or something else–probably less,” Norman Emmanuel, CEO of Emmanuel Tires, said.

Only one other facility like this is operational in the United States today, Associate Professor of English Alf Siewers said.

A group of 160 University faculty members signed a statement, dated Sept. 6, 2013, expressing their opposition to the construction of the tire incinerator. Siewers wrote the statement along with Assistant Professor of Civil & Environmental Engineering Kevin Gilmore and Associate Professor of Geography Duane Griffin.

“Studies have shown that tire-derived fuel (TDF) incinerators release toxic chemicals into the air,” the statement said.

Other faculty members who signed the statement include Dean of the College of Engineering Keith Buffinton, Department Chair of History David Del Testa, Department Chair of Civil and Environmental Engineering Thomas DiStefano, Department Chair of Political Science Andrea Stevenson Sanjian, Department Chair of English Ghislaine McDayter, Director of the Campus Greening Initiative Dina El-Mogazi, and Department Chair of Mathematics Tom Cassidy.

“These were faculty members supporting the opposition to the tire burner,” Siewers said, and not a position taken by the University.

Several members of the local community have also expressed concerns about the possible environmental impact of the proposed incinerator.

“It is one mile exactly from the entrance of the plant to the entrance of White Deer Elementary,” Pete Mackey, a resident of White Deer Township, said.

Emmanuel said that he sees no risk in the incinerator’s proximity to the elementary school saying he would have “no problem” with an incinerator being built near his children’s school.

“We are not doing something to harm people; money is not worth that,” Emmanuel said.

“They want to burn 100 million pounds of shredded tires per year. They are not burning or storing whole tires. Their plan is to truck in 18 wheelers everyday of shredded tires and burn the shredded tire,” Mackey said.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency and American Lung Association of Pennsylvania have already issued letters expressing concern about the now approved air quality proposal.

A petition on Change.org, entitled “National Gypsum: Keep your ETL tire incinerator out of our community,” currently has approximately 350 signatures. There is also a Facebook page called “Stop the Tire Burner.”

Residents of White Deer Township will be able to appeal the DEP decision by Oct. 25, Mackey said.

On Oct. 16, Siewers and Visiting Assistant Professor of History Jennifer Thomson will organize a group of faculty and staff to oppose the tire burner.

“We hope to reach out to the environmental club to see if there is student interest,” Siewers said.

Ethan Zubkoff
Assistant News Editor

International

• American forces conducted twin raids in Libya and Somalia on Oct. 5. In Libya, Army Delta Force soldiers captured Anas al-Liby, the terrorist suspected of assisting in the bombing of the American embassies in Africa 15 years ago. In Somalia, Navy SEALs failed in capturing their target, Ikrima, a suspected terrorist operator there who is suspected of planning attacks against Kenya. (BBC and Reuters)
• Clashes escalated between Egypt’s military government and its Islamist opponents. On Oct. 6, Egyptian security forces shot and killed 53 protesters. On Oct. 7, three attacks took place against the government, which included a drive by shooting that killed six, the detonation of a car bomb that killed three police officers, and an RPG attack that damaged a satellite transmitter. (The New York Times)
• Nobel Prize announcements started this week. The committee announced on Oct. 9 that three scientists based in the United States, Martin Karplus, Michael Levitt and Arieh Warshel, won the prize for chemistry for their work in creating advanced computer models that simply complex chemical interactions and create new drugs. On Oct. 8 the committee announced that François Englert of Belgium and Peter Higgs of Britain won the prize in physics for the discoveries on how subatomic particles acquire mass. Americans James Rothman and Randy Schekman and Thomas Südhof of Germany won the prize for Physiology or Medicine for their work on traffic-control systems for cells. (CBS News and The Washington Post)
  
• The Italian Coast Guard continued to find the bodies of African refugees who sought asylum in Europe. The ship capsized last week off the coast of the Sicilian island of Lampedusa, and was carrying 500 people from Eritera. The Coast Guard raised the death toll to 250 with about 155 surviving. (The Telegraph and Bloomberg Business Week)

National

• Chaos engulfed Washington D.C. on Oct. 3 as a driver, Miriam Carey, tried to drive through a barricade to the White House and then led police on a fatal chase towards Capitol Hill. Carey, who had her one-year-old daughter in the car, was the only fatality; a Secret Service agent and Capitol Hill police officer were both injured. Lawmakers in Congress applauded the police for their actions as the lock-down was lifted. (The Chicago Tribune)
• A man who set himself on fire on the National Mall passed away last week. Although it did come in the wake of the federal government shutdown, it was not politically motivated. John Constantino, 64, suffered a long battle with mental illnesses. (The Washington Post)
• President Barack Obama nominated Janet Yellen as Federal Reserve Chairperson when Ben Bernanke’s term is over. Yellen, 67, currently the Federal Reserve’s number two, would be the first women to hold the position. Her nomination is pending Senate approval. (Reuters)

State

• Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett apologized for equating gay marriage to marriage between a brother and sister on a televised interview on Friday, Oct. 4. “My words were not intended to offend anyone,” Corbett said in a written apology released less than six hours after the interview. “If they did, I apologize.” (The Morning Call)

Brianna Marshall and Gigi Flynn
Writers

The University’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is hosting the Bucknell Business Pitch Competition for students interested in presenting ideas for new businesses.

“The goal of this event is to inspire student entrepreneurs here in the Bucknell community and give them an opportunity to prepare and practice a business pitch–a critical skill to have when launching a venture,” Steven Stumbris, director of the SBDC, said.

The competition is open to all University students who have an interest in business or entrepreneurship. Entries may be submitted individually or by a group and must include a five-minute presentation that creatively markets the business idea and plan. A private panel will judge the presentations during the preliminary round on Nov. 4.

The pitches will be judged based on multiple criteria, including innovation, comprehensiveness, and professionalism. Additionally, contestants can earn “bonus points” for using social media forums such as the Bucknell SBDC Facebook page and #BizPitch13 on Twitter.

BizPitch is now in its second year. Last year’s competition featured approximately 57 student entrees and $3000 total in prize money.

The SBDC is a federally funded resource on campus that provides free consulting to both students and members of the local community.

“We are a resource to those who want to start a business,” Stumbris said.

The SBDC organizes dinners for students with businessmen and businesswomen to talk about their respective experiences. It is celebrating its 35 year at the University this year.  

University students are encouraged to attend the final event on Nov. 18 in the Terrace Room. Applications for the Bucknell Business Pitch Competition are due by Oct. 18.