Community Arts

Chicago lawyer writes war novel

CHICAGO -- Author Scott Turow's father served as a field surgeon in a medical unit during World War II, but his stories about that experience stopped flowing before his son reached his teen years. Now Turow -- whose work as an attorney has often inspired his best-selling legal thrillers like "Presumed Innocent" -- has used his father's conflicted views about war and courage as the jumping off point for his latest novel, a foray into historical fiction called "Ordinary Heroes."

They dressed that way so we wouldn't have to

Uptown almost perfect, except for service

Rumor has it that the Uptown Café is one of the hot spots in Bloomington. Located just off the square in the heart of downtown, the café, better know as Uptown, is recognized for its great food and personable atmosphere. Taking advantage of the beautiful weather, we sat in the restaurant's outside seating.

Jordan River Forum

I would like to thank Kacie Foster for her Nov. 3 article "Forum aims to reduce 'casual racism' on campus." As mentioned in the article, the Facebook can be a great tool to promote student interaction on campus but not when some IU students create groups such as "We hate Asian drivers." This illustrates the need in our community to actively promote the value of diversity on campus.

Finito to Scalito

Dear Judge Alito (or shall I say "Scalito"?), It seems I have caught you at a very momentous time in your life. Early next year you will begin your hearings for appointment to the Supreme Court. While you are, no doubt, a highly accomplished jurist (you have written about 300 rules and participated in about 1,500 cases), I have some concerns, especially regarding the potential reversal of Roe v. Wade.

Old paths, same story

It was a strange sight. They were children, probably dressed in some of the nicest clothing they own. They had violins and guitars and awkwardly screeched out string notes, as many of us probably did in third grade.

Why France matters

By the time this column goes to print, it will have been two weeks since violent protest demonstrations began in Clichy-sous-Bois, a Paris suburb. The spark that caused the riots was nominally the death of two young men on an electrical substation, but since then, the burnt hulks of cars and injured civilians have become symbols of the North African Muslim underclass living in France. People across France and around the world are asking, "How do we stop the riots?" But before the last of the fires is extinguished, they will also be asking "Why?"

Sunday schooling

My earliest memories of Catholic Mass are of the organ playing "Ave Maria" and a large soprano belting out the words as if God himself were listening. All the while, the 5-year-old me in a hand-me-down corduroy suit folded Sunday bulletins into Chinese fans. Yup, I was the bored kid in church; the one who turns around and makes weird faces at everyone as they try to pay attention to the Mass. That was me then, and, well, things pretty much haven't changed.

Trying to solve IU's parking problem

The University is planning a parking garage for the corner of Atwater Street and Fess Avenue. In an ideal world, everyone would be able to walk to class and nobody would need to worry about parking. We don't live in that ideal world, though, and it's good to see the University accounting for that. Now, we realize that this parking garage is probably going to mainly benefit faculty and graduate students.

Commission to sponsor talk about religion's role in politics, public life

The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission will sponsor a discussion on the role of religion in politics at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 401 N. Morton St. The event is titled "What Would Dr. King Do? -- On the Role of Religion (Conservative and Progressive) in American Politics and Public Life." The meeting will give the community a chance to discuss the issue of how much influence religion should have on politics and the separation of church and state, said Craig Brenner, special projects coordinator for Bloomington Community and Family Resources. The panelists can use Martin Luther King Jr. as an example of a person who had to balance his religion with politics, he said.

Maggie Moo's to reopen as deli

Maggie Moo's ice cream shop on Third Street near College Mall has closed and will reopen as the delicatessen City Deli. Bill Hobbs, owner of Maggie Moo's, attributed the closing to low revenue. "We tried desperately to keep it open, but the market for ice cream is very small; the market for food is a lot bigger," Hobbs said. Sophomore Melissa Hudson said she was surprised to hear the shop is no longer open but said she wasn't too worried about it affecting her future ice cream decisions.

Hoosiers enter Big Tens with No. 3 seed

It's been 365 days since the IU men's soccer team lost to Michigan State in the Big Ten men's soccer tournament. The Hoosiers said they want to win this weekend's Big Ten tournament with hopes of securing a top-four seed in the NCAA tournament. Any top-four seed guarantees a team home field advantage until the College Cup.

High levels of PCB discovered at site in Bloomington

A site contaminated with toxin has been located in the back yard of an abandoned home near Clear Creek in Bloomington. The site, located on Fluck Mill Road, about 10 miles southwest of IU, is much smaller than the infamous sites in Bloomington.

Time to shine

Friday, as I sat amid the belt buckle-busting, "big boned" representatives from practically every news outlet in Indiana, I saw something I never thought I'd see. A much maligned Hoosier player received a pass on the left wing, put the ball on the floor, flew through the air and slammed it home with Vince Carter-like authority. I was puzzled. The player was quick, confident and even explosive. The player was ... Sean Kline?

Kline to start for injured White tonight

If there is a blessing to the injury of sophomore forward D.J. White, it's the timing. Just two days after the announcement that White will miss at least six weeks with a broken foot, the No. 23-ranked Hoosiers welcome the Division II University of Indianapolis Greyhounds for their final exhibition game. Fifth-year senior Sean Kline will take White's starting position after scoring 13 points in IU's last game against St. Joseph's College (Ind.).

Judith Miller leaves New York Times

NEW YORK -- Judith Miller, the New York Times reporter who was first lionized, then vilified by her own newspaper for her role in the CIA leak case, has retired from the Times, the paper announced Wednesday. Miller, who joined the Times in 1977 and was part of a team that won a Pulitzer Prize in 2002 for reporting on global terrorism, had been negotiating with the paper for several weeks about her future.

IU student pushes for U.S. 'Department of Peace'

Something just clicked in Christy Campoll's head when she heard about it. The Department of Peace: What a great idea, she thought. Then Campoll, an IU student, decided she had enough money from a college loan to be able to attend the Department of Peace conference in Berkeley, Calif., last year to learn how to push that idea along. However, she has just started building support here in Bloomington, and that was evident in the four people that attended an informational meeting Oct. 17 at the Monroe County Public Library. Even if it might take a few more tries to get it right, with hundreds of other activists like her doing the same thing all over the country, she hopes support for the creation of the Department of Peace will grow until it finally passes.

Suicide attackers strike hotels in Jordan, killing 57

AMMAN, Jordan -- Suicide bombers carried out nearly simultaneous attacks on three U.S.-based hotels in the Jordanian capital Wednesday night, killing at least 57 people and wounding more than 300 in what appeared to be an al-Qaida assault on an Arab kingdom with close ties to the United States and a common border with Iraq. The explosions hit the Grand Hyatt, Radisson SAS and Days Inn hotels just before 9 p.m. One of the blasts took place inside a wedding hall where 300 guests were celebrating. Black smoke rose into the night, and wounded victims stumbled from the hotels.

IMU voted best place to lay your head

Along with having a social life, studying and sleeping rank high on collegiate "to do" lists. The University population has spoken, and the library and the Indiana Memorial Union have been ranked as the Best in Bloomington for studying and sleeping on campus, respectively. Sitting in the lobby of the Herman B Wells Library, sophomore Katrina Babin simultaneously listens to her iPod and translates her Arabic homework as she waits for her professor.

Herman B Wells library isn't just for late night studying anymore

The musty books. The harsh, overhead lighting. The allure of getting caught. Apparently, the Herman B Wells Library gets IU students hotter than campus in August. In this year's Best of Bloomington poll, the Best Facebook group was "I Would Totally Have Sex in the Library," and the Library won "Best place to Make Out."