IUSA

Seasons of Love

By Alyson Brodsy and Grace Low · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:33 p.m.

If the frenzied mob of angry soccer moms descending upon Target this past weekend like a pack of rabid bears after hibernation was any indication that the holiday season is here, a slew of secularized religious holidays are right around the corner. The tantalizing jewelry sales at Kay, the kitschy knickknacks at seasonal kiosks and even those creepy Bratz dolls are calling to your credit card: "Buy this or you will have failed as a friend, child, boyfriend, parent ..." With the apparent commercialization of Christmas, Hanukkah and the Winter Solstice, it is very easy to be jaded to the possibility of the season.

Call in the cavalry

By Alyson Brodsy and Brian Stewart · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:32 p.m.

It is always a sure sign that one neither knows nor cares about Iraq if he or she buys into the masochistic myth that the source of jihadist violence is U.S. foreign policy. Those people now counsel deference to the "wise men" who cut their teeth under George H.W. Bush, whose aversion to "foreign adventures" apparently stands in pleasant contrast with current management.

Week of the living-dead

By Alyson Brodsy · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:31 p.m.

If college is to prepare students for the cold, ravaged wasteland that lies outside the pearly Sample Gates, then there's one lesson white-collared slaves-to-be must learn during their brief tenures. Freshmen, we hate being the one to break this to you, but it's better that you learn now than have your bright-eyed optimism slowly beaten out by the University's two-by-four of disappointment over the next few years. What we are about to tell you will hurt more than learning the truth about Santa Claus: the disbelief, the anger, the betrayal. You have to stay strong because the next paragraph will expose the raw malevolence that courses through the veins of the faculty.

Bangladeshi streets patrolled amid political stalemate

By Alyson Brodsy · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:29 p.m.

DHAKA, Bangladesh -- Soldiers patrolled Bangladesh's towns and cities Sunday to end weeks of often violent opposition protests, a deployment that prompted unease over the country's democratic future.

Rumsfeld bids farewell to troops in Iraq, urges them not to quit the war

By Alyson Brodsy and Sinan Salaheddin · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:28 p.m.

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- Outgoing Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld paid a surprise visit to Iraq over the weekend and said American forces should not quit the war until the enemy is defeated.

Former Chilean dictator Pinochet dies from heart complications at 91

By Alyson Brodsy · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:28 p.m.

SANTIAGO, Chile -- Gen. Augusto Pinochet, who overthrew Chile's democratically elected Marxist president in a bloody coup and ruled the Andean nation for 17 years, died Sunday, dashing hopes of victims of his regime's abuses that he would be brought to justice. He was 91. Pinochet suffered a heart attack a week ago and underwent an angioplasty, and the brief announcement by the Santiago Military Hospital said his condition worsened suddenly Sunday. Dr. Juan Ignacio Vergara, spokesman for the medical team that had been treating him, said his family was with him when he died.

No liquor store sales this year on New Year's Eve

By Alyson Brodsy and Associated Press · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:24 p.m.

Liquor stores will be closed this year on a day that is traditionally one of their busiest -- New Year's Eve -- because the holiday falls on a Sunday.

Man severely burned in fire

By Michael Reschke · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:23 p.m.

A Bloomington man was severely burned in a fire Saturday night.

Library to adopt new, user-friendly catalog system Saturday

By Alexa Lopez · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:22 p.m.

The Monroe County Public Library will release a new catalog system Saturday. The system, Polaris, is a new Web-based catalog system will allow cardholders to access their searches from home more easily through limiting the searches by format, year of publication and even library branch, sending e-mails to inform them when something is due or when books arrive at the library. Other features include self-checkout and an option of paying fines from home. Saturday is the grand opening of the program, although beginning Wednesday people will be able to use the system by resetting their passwords and managing their accounts.

Fraternity plays Santa for the holidays

By Nick O'Neill · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:20 p.m.

This weekend, members of Acacia fraternity stood in front of Wal-Mart and Kmart stores across Bloomington to collect donated toys for underprivileged kids in the community. The occasion was the fraternity's yearly philanthropic event, "Acacia Claus." Members handed out candy canes, sung Christmas carols and danced for the stores' customers as the presents piled up thanks to the generosity of the city's shoppers and the fraternity members' hard work.

Dance Marathon wins state award for philanthropy

By Tom Edwards · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:18 p.m.

The Indianapolis chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals recently recognized the IU Dance Marathon as an "Outstanding Civic Organization" with a 2006 Philanthropy Award. IUDM, which was nominated for the award by the Riley Children's Foundation, received the honor at this year's association banquet, titled "Recognizing Giving Hearts."

Chinese students appear in video about U.S. colleges

By Peter Stevenson · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:17 p.m.

Three IU students recently appeared in a video about higher education in the United States that aired in China. The students, all international graduate students from China, were filmed for short segments and two half-hour shows that aim to promote American universities.

Oncourse Wiki allows students to work on collaborative group assignments

By Brian Hettmansperger · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:17 p.m.

This year, Oncourse became a lot easier to use.

Children's choirs to sing at museum

By Michael Reschke · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:15 p.m.

The IU Art Museum will celebrate the holidays with Bloomington's St. Charles Catholic School fourth- and fifth-grade choirs. The Holiday Concert and Open House will be from noon to 5 p.m. Dec. 17, with the choir performing at 2 p.m. The St. Charles school choirs will perform under the direction of Sandra Freund and Kathy Gorr. The choirs will present a program of holiday carols featuring hand chimes, according to an IU Art Museum press release. Light refreshments will be available after the concert, with a gallery tour to follow. Nan Brewer, the Lucienne M. Glaubinger Curator of Works on Paper, will lead the tour of toy-related imagery in the first floor Gallery of Art of the Western World.

Instead of plopping on the couch to watch "A Charlie Brown Christmas" for the billionth time, use this guide to 10 of the best museums in the country and their highlights.

By Alyson Brodsy · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:14 p.m.

Smithsonian american art museum -- Washington, D.c. ADDRESS DON'T MISS: "Vaquero" by Luis Jimenez. This equestrian statue sits on a plinth outside the museum. It is a 16.5 feet tall, blue fiberglass construction and a curious mix of traditional and popular art.

Do it the gay way

By Alyson Brodsy and Teri Rosenbaum · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:06 p.m.

I arrived "fashionably early" to a party Thursday night. The apartment was vacuumed, decorated and blasting "Fergalicious" so loud that I could barely contain myself. I watched as the party's host put a padlock on his closet and questioned if he should wear the grey V-neck or the white one. Oh, this was no ordinary party.

'Frog and Toad' musical offers life lessons for all

By Yeonjoo Son · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:06 p.m.

Cardinal Stage Company's production of "A Year With Frog and Toad," nominated for three Tony Awards, will be presented at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 15, 16, 22 and 23, with matinees at 2 p.m. on the Saturday showings.

IU club brings Christmas entertainment to local children, parents, senior citizens

By Rorye O'Connor and Rorye O'Conner · Sunday, Dec. 10,2006 11:05 p.m.

Children dined with Santa and received a little "Entertainment with Love" from an IU club Saturday at the Sterling House of Bloomington.

UPDATE Hoosiers fall to Kentucky, 59-54

Saturday, Dec. 9,2006 4:07 p.m.

LEXINGTON, KY. -- The IU men's basketball team fell to 5-3 on the season after losing 59-54 to the University of Kentucky Saturday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky. The Hoosiers and Wildcats battled through 14 lead changes in the contest, 10 of which came in the first half.

Hoosiers fall to Kentucky, 59-54

Saturday, Dec. 9,2006 4:06 p.m.

LEXINGTON, K.y. -- The IU men's basketball team fell to 5-3 on the season after losing 59-54 to the University of Kentucky Saturday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.