Community Arts

Live from Bloomington

For the 16th year, the Live From Bloomington program is offering a diverse mixture of the local bands' music through its Club Night and compilation CD. The project features country, blues, rock and roll, folk and punk music from community musicians to benefit charity.

Letters to the editor

Concert complications unforseeable City-Buskirk alliance OK Columnist in the right

Campaign finance reform needed now more than ever

A popular campaign finance reform bill that would ban congressional candidates and political parties for raising unlimited "soft money" contributions and make other changes to campaign funding faces an uncertain future in the House of Representatives today, with a final vote scheduled for no later than Friday. House support has been dwindling since the Senate passed its version of the legislation, the McCain-Feingold bill, April 2. Republican Senator John McCain (Ariz.) had made campaign finance reform, an idea that polls show is popular among American voters, the centerpiece of an unsuccessful run for the Republican presidential nomination last year. He vowed then to halt all Senate action through procedural motions until the bill he co-sponsored with Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wisc.) passed that body.

Allegiance to the Pledge

With the ruling of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance, the United States of America has adopted a new slogan: Please everyone. The first action under this new motto is getting rid of the time-old tradition of saying the Pledge in American schools. Not only is this the wrong decision, but it is ridiculous as well.

Breaking the mold:

One of their instruments is a Ford gas tank with one string. They sing about cars dying and about moving cross-country in trailers. Their music can be described as bluegrass, alternative, country, punk and metal all rolled into one frantic yet carefully crafted ball. They call themselves Split Lip Rayfield, and they're coming to your town.

Lions end Hoosiers unbeaten season

In a bid to go unbeaten through the regular season dual meets, the IU women's swimming and diving team fell to Penn State in a double dual meet for the third consecutive year.

How to feng shui

With bulky residence hall room furniture and little financial freedom, challenges exist for students who want to practice feng shui. But experts, practitioners, books and articles are full of tips to help.

Some remain empty, others get new ownership

A house sits alone and empty, a mere shadow of its former self. Pieces of the decaying façade lie on the ground. Windows are either boarded or broken. The lawn is unmowed, filled with brown clumps of grass that feebly grasp for light and water.

Searching for the right words

Infinite Justice. That's what we might be calling the war. It's a pretty tall order, but it goes right along with President George W. Bush's promise to "rid the world of evil-doers." I'm just waiting for him to stand in front of the White House, and, to the strains of thunder and lightning, proclaim that "By the Power of Greyskull, I am President He-Man."

Habib Koité kicks off Lotus Festival

Trills of approval from barefoot dancers and audience members filled the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre during every break in the music Wednesday night at the kick-off concert for the Eighth Annual Lotus World Music and Arts Festival. Habib Koité and his band Bamada switched flights, stayed in airports for hours and finally made it to Indiana in time to open the world music festival that is dancing on despite seven artist cancellations in the wake of last week's terrorist attacks. Paris Combo and the Gangbé Brass Band were set to send the music world spinning for Wednesday's special reduced-price show until they had to cancel because of travel complications. But judging from the cheers and energy from the audience Wednesday, Koité and Bamada more than filled in.

Taliban abandons Kabul

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Afghans brought their radios out of hiding and played music in the streets, savoring the end of five years of harsh Taliban rule as the northern alliance marched triumphantly into Afghanistan's capital Tuesday. Diplomats sought U.N. help in fashioning a government for the shattered country.

The best time of our lives

The alarm clock goes off. As is the case every morning, I groggily hit the snooze button, hoping in vain that the extra nine minutes of sleep I get will have a meaningful difference on my day. I only got two hours of sleep last night. Well, two hours and nine minutes. I had to study for a test, which kept me up late. Then, I attempted to go to bed. But because I am an insomniac, I failed to fall asleep. Once I finally did fall asleep, I awoke again because of a panic attack stemming from a dream I had about my test. Finally, as the first rays of the morning light stream through the window, my head hits the pillow.

Row 7 packed with rookie riders

Row 7 The majority of riders in row 7 are rookie riders looking to make their mark. Cinzano is the only team with a veteran rider, and it's looking to do as well as it did last year, when the team finished in the top 10. All of the teams are anticipating the chance to gain experience and build for the future.

Dude, where's my bike?

The bike racks full, junior Jack Yates locked his bike on a nearby chain and went to class in Woodburn Hall last year. The bike was gone when he came out. While he was in class, Parking Operations was outside, blow torching or hedge-clipping their way through his lock to confiscate his unregistered and improperly parked bike. Yates is one of many students whose bike has been impounded. "When my bike gets impounded, why should I have to pay $20 to get it out?" Yates asked.

Mayor: Plan for housing still good idea

Bloomington's mayor said Wednesday the city will try to forge ahead with a proposed nine-story downtown apartment complex just off the square. The apartments would house about 800 students. Mayor John Fernandez announced Wednesday that his office is seeking a continuance for the Melrose Apartments petition until the May meeting of the Board of Zoning Appeals. The zoning board serves as a quasi-judicial body that rules strictly on whether a project meets required conditions.

Legendary musicians come to Auditorium

City council approves clearing of sidewalks

The Bloomington City Council passed an ordinance 9-0 Wednesday requiring a clear, straight path of no less than 54 inches on downtown sidewalks.

Hip Hop Congress freestyles its way to national convention

Three IU delegates are preparing to attend the first ever Hip Hop Congress National Conference to be held May 31 through June 2. The IU delegates, chapter president Alex Fruchter, junior, treasurer Adriana Guerro and graduate student Amer Ahmed, will travel to San Jose State University and join delegates from the five other university chapters. The National Convention itinerary includes music workshops, chapter workshops, freestyle screenings and a Congress mixer. The music workshops will discuss issues such as problems in hip hop today and provide ten steps to creating music. The chapter workshops give individual chapters time to meet and develop plans for the coming year and discuss recruiting new members.

Aging like wine

Murray StreetSonic YouthDGC Records Inc.

Knight criticizes IU again

INDIANAPOLIS -- Texas Tech coach Bob Knight once again criticized IU and its administration during a lengthy television interview about his firing from the school and his new job.