DAILY H ELMSMAN The Independent Student Newspaper of The University of Memphis www.dailyhelmsman.com Vol. 79 No. 66 Thursday, February 2, 2012 Southern Miss. breaks 18-game losing streak to Memphis, 75-72. see page 8 Golden Eagles claw Tigers by Christina Holloway The University of Memphis head football coach Justin Fuente addresses the media on National Signing Day. Building a championship- caliber team takes time and hard work. But champion- ships start on the recruiting trail. The University of Memphis Tigers’ new football head coach Justin Fuente began that process yesterday, signing 27 student-athletes to play for the Tigers in the 2012 season. Fuente addressed two areas of concern in this class—the secondary and what he calls the “big guys,” which includes the offensive line and tight end positions. “Defensively, we were ultra- thin in the defensive backfield so we thought we had to make a concerted effort to find safe- ties and corners,” Fuente said. “Not that we just had every- thing we wanted up front, but we just felt like we were ultra-thin there and we had to address that immediately.” In 2011, the Tigers gave up an NCAA-worst 299.42 pass yards per game, including a staggering 27 passing touch- downs and 12.88 yards per completion. To help shore up the defensive secondary, Memphis added seven new- comers, including standouts Dion Witty out of Coral Springs High School in Coral Springs, Fla. and Anthony Watson out of Blinn Community College in Brenham, Texas. Witty recorded 179 tackles his senior year to go along with nine interceptions and five forced fumbles. Watson finished his season with 50 tackles and three forced fum- bles. Both players, as well as the other five defensive backfield signings, add much needed toughness and speed to a depleted Tiger secondary. On the other side of the ball, Memphis focused on the offensive line and tight end positions, signing a total of ten players to fortify the front. “We inherited very few on scholarship, so we tried to bring in as many big guys as we could,” Fuente said. “We still needed to fill out the skill positions at quarterback, wide receiver and running back, but our primary focus was in those two spots.” Kerwin Harrison, from A group of students gathers in the diverse atmosphere of the University Center to study for classes. Study shows slow decline of segregation in Memphis As Black History Month progresses, issue of the slow decline of racial segregation in Memphis has become a topic of discussion. The National Center for Education Statistics lists The U of M’s black population as 40.3 percent and 50.1 percent white and the multiracial, Asian and Hispanic student populations are 6.5 percent, collectively. Aram Goudsouzian, associ- ate history professor, said there is plenty of genuine contact between people of different races on a daily basis. “People who see racial con- nections not only tend to be good at building personal con- nections, they also become more successful and more able to understand each other’s per- spectives,” he said. College campuses are prone UM to receive $13 million if Haslam budget is approved The University of Memphis will receive $13 million of Tenn. Gov. Bill Haslam’s proposed budget of roughly $31 billion, if approved by the General Assembly this spring. Of the money allotted to The U of M, roughly 10 percent is for planning and design of a new biochemistry and biology facility and 30 percent will be received for improvements to the Lambuth campus. Sixty percent will fund major main- tenance projects on the main campus such as elevator mod- ernization, underground utility upgrades and HVAC updates. Compared to other Tennessee schools with simi- lar student populations, The U of M was given a significant- ly smaller amount of money, but University officials say the distribution of resources is fair. Middle Tennessee State University and University of Tennessee Knoxville will receive over $220 million com- bined from the budget for capi- tal improvements if Haslam’s proposal is approved. “We are not getting a raw deal,” said Kevin Roper execu- tive assistant of government affairs at The U of M. “There is a process in place with (Tennessee Higher Education Commission) and the buildings being funded were on the list prior to U of M’s buildings being funded. As funding becomes available, we will get our buildings funded next year.” U of M President Shirley Raines said the governor will make other funds available also. “A 2.5 percent salary increase requirement, which we are funded for, 55 percent and each university must make up the difference,” Raines said. “Those are the governor’s decisions based on the availability of state revenues.” While funding for The U of M’s top-priority campus proj- ects are not at the forefront of the governor’s budget, Raines is confident that money will be provided in coming years. “While few capital con- struction projects have been approved since the downturn in the economy in 2008, there is a pent-up demand,” Raines said. “MTSU and UTK have moved to the top of the rota- BY MEAGAN NICHOLS News Reporter see Budget, page 6 BY MELISSA WRAY News Reporter see diversity, page 5 see Fuente, page 7 BY BRYAN HEATER Sports Reporter Justin Fuente signed 27 new recruits for the fall season. Building from the ground up by Christopher Whitten
Transcript
DailyHelmsmanThe
Independent Student Newspaper of The University of Memphis www.dailyhelmsman.com
The University of Memphis head football coach Justin Fuente addresses the media on National Signing Day.
Building a championship-caliber team takes time and hard work. But champion-ships start on the recruiting trail.
The University of Memphis Tigers’ new football head coach Justin Fuente began that process yesterday, signing 27 student-athletes to play for the Tigers in the 2012 season.
Fuente addressed two areas of concern in this class—the secondary and what he calls the “big guys,” which includes the offensive line and tight end positions.
“Defensively, we were ultra-thin in the defensive backfield so we thought we had to make a concerted effort to find safe-
ties and corners,” Fuente said. “Not that we just had every-thing we wanted up front, but we just felt like we were ultra-thin there and we had to address that immediately.”
In 2011, the Tigers gave up an NCAA-worst 299.42 pass yards per game, including a staggering 27 passing touch-downs and 12.88 yards per completion. To help shore up the defensive secondary, Memphis added seven new-comers, including standouts Dion Witty out of Coral Springs High School in Coral Springs, Fla. and Anthony Watson out of Blinn Community College in Brenham, Texas.
Witty recorded 179 tackles his senior year to go along with nine interceptions and five forced fumbles. Watson
finished his season with 50 tackles and three forced fum-bles. Both players, as well as the other five defensive backfield signings, add much needed toughness and speed to a depleted Tiger secondary.
On the other side of the ball, Memphis focused on the offensive line and tight end positions, signing a total of ten players to fortify the front.
“We inherited very few on scholarship, so we tried to bring in as many big guys as we could,” Fuente said. “We still needed to fill out the skill positions at quarterback, wide receiver and running back, but our primary focus was in those two spots.”
Kerwin Harrison, from
A group of students gathers in the diverse atmosphere of the University Center to study for classes.
Study shows slow decline of segregation in Memphis
As Black History Month progresses, issue of the slow decline of racial segregation in Memphis has become a topic of discussion.
The National Center for Education Statistics lists The U
of M’s black population as 40.3 percent and 50.1 percent white and the multiracial, Asian and Hispanic student populations are 6.5 percent, collectively.
Aram Goudsouzian, associ-ate history professor, said there is plenty of genuine contact between people of different races on a daily basis.
“People who see racial con-nections not only tend to be good at building personal con-nections, they also become more successful and more able to understand each other’s per-spectives,” he said.
College campuses are prone
UM to receive $13 million if Haslam budget is approved
The University of Memphis will receive $13 million of Tenn. Gov. Bill Haslam’s proposed budget of roughly $31 billion, if approved by the General Assembly this spring.
Of the money allotted to The U of M, roughly 10 percent is for planning and design of a new biochemistry and biology facility and 30 percent will be received for improvements to the Lambuth campus. Sixty percent will fund major main-tenance projects on the main campus such as elevator mod-ernization, underground utility upgrades and HVAC updates.
Compared to other Tennessee schools with simi-lar student populations, The U of M was given a significant-ly smaller amount of money, but University officials say the distribution of resources is fair. Middle Tennessee State University and University of Tennessee Knoxville will receive over $220 million com-bined from the budget for capi-tal improvements if Haslam’s proposal is approved.
“We are not getting a raw
deal,” said Kevin Roper execu-tive assistant of government affairs at The U of M. “There is a process in place with (Tennessee Higher Education Commission) and the buildings being funded were on the list prior to U of M’s buildings being funded. As funding becomes available, we will get our buildings funded next year.”
U of M President Shirley Raines said the governor will make other funds available also.
“A 2.5 percent salary increase requirement, which we are funded for, 55 percent and each university must make up the difference,” Raines said. “Those are the governor’s decisions based on the availability of state revenues.”
While funding for The U of M’s top-priority campus proj-ects are not at the forefront of the governor’s budget, Raines is confident that money will be provided in coming years.
“While few capital con-struction projects have been approved since the downturn in the economy in 2008, there is a pent-up demand,” Raines said. “MTSU and UTK have moved to the top of the rota-
BY MEAGAN NICHOLSNews Reporter
see Budget, page 6
BY MELISSA WRAYNews Reporter
see diversity, page 5
see Fuente, page 7
BY BRYAN HEATERSports Reporter
Justin Fuente signed 27 new recruits for the fall season.
Building from the ground upby
Chr
isto
pher
Whi
tten
www.dailyhelmsman.com2 • Thursday, February 2, 2012
ACROSS
1 “60 Minutes” personality Morley __6 Actor __ McBride9 Entertain10 “Mad __ You”12 “__-Cop”; movie for Burt Reynolds13 W.C. or Totie14 Actress __-Margret15 Actress __ Downey16 Lazy bum19 Meredith __; role for Ellen Pompeo23 Observed24 Currency in France, Italy and elsewhere25 Trigger and Mister Ed28 Actor Brian __30 Border on31 “Hart to __”32 “Dancing __ the Stars”33 “__ Attraction”; film for Michael Douglas and Glenn Close34 Leave out36 Sense of self-esteem39 Role on “Seinfeld”42 “Designing __”44 Sophia __45 Ridiculous46 One of The Three Stooges47 Freeway divisions
DOWN
1 Gilbert of “Roseanne”2 Sitcom for Sherman Hemsley3 “America’s __ Videos”4 Suffix for old, cold or bold5 Actor Stephen __6 Denver’s state: abbr.
7 Classic film for Paul Newman8 “__ Always Sunny in Philadelphia”10 Goal; purpose11 “How to __”13 “Grounded __ Life”15 “The __ Skelton Hour”17 John __ of “Touched by an Angel”18 “__ Miserables”20 Massage21 Before, in poetry22 Hither and __; in all directions25 “Hee __”26 Geisha’s sash27 In a __; mired by routine28 “__ Masterson”; Western series of old29 Historical period31 “The Cat in the __”33 Evergreen tree35 “Two and a Half __”
37 Hackman or Wilder38 Dollar bills39 HIJ followers40 One of Winnie the Pooh’s friends41 “Who Do You Think You __?”42 Actor Wheaton of “Star Trek: The Next Generation”43 “Cat __ Hot Tin Roof ”
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DOMINO’S PIZZA 550 S. HIGHLAND 323-3030No Waiting!
TIGER BABBLEthoughts that give you paws
“One of my instructors is always saying, ‘If you know this, the quiz will be easy. If you don’t, it won’t.’ She has a point.”
— @jacobmerryman
“I just did the math, and 40% of my French class skipped. Why am I here?”
— @MemphisGinger
“I looked up at one of the windows in the UC and see Jacob, Bella, and Edward staring down at me. What the heck, Memphis?”
—@SarahDoty
“Why am I the only one who laughed when my MIS teacher said TPS report?”
— @tiffanybenya
“I can only wonder what the train drivers think as they see 75 college kids try to make it across the tracks in time.”
— @AmyMurk
“So, I’m at McDonald’s and there is a U of M cop chillin’ in the parking lot. Not the only time I’ve seen it. Money well spent.”
— @therealDuVall91
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Complete the grid so that each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit 1 to 9.
Sudoku
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on the Web1. MCS to hire 1,000 teachers...
by Christopher Whitten
2. Debate surrounds harassment...by Elizabeth Cooper
3. Tigers look to take controlby Scott Hall
4. The Psychology of Queerologyby Timberly Moore
5. Bingham receives Lifetime Awardby Sara Harrison
The University of Memphis Thursday, February 2, 2012 • 3
Blue Lights in the BasementBlues Night 7:12 P.M. | UC BALLROOM
College costs don’t add up
Academics
When it comes to estimating the cost of college, sticker shock may now be replaced with sticker confusion.
Colleges and universities are now required to include a “net price calculator” on their web sites to help people figure out costs. Because of financial aid, most people don’t actually pay full price and this is supposed to offer a more realistic estimate.
Often, however, the figures aren’t realistic. Many colleges use 2009 prices because that’s what the federal template is based on. That doesn’t help students where tuition and fees have risen since then.
And schools aren’t always using the same information to estimate a price because the U.S. Department of Education doesn’t require them to. Some factor scholarships into the cost; others do not. Some factor in work study or subsidized student loans, while others include only grant money.
“The more I learn about the net calculators, the less impressed I am,” said Terri Roher, a college and career adviser for College Academy, a high school run by Broward College. “I thought it was going to be some magic bullet to really give parents great information, but it doesn’t seem to be working out that way.”
In Florida, for example, the sticker price for most public universities is roughly the same: about $20,000 a year. But the net prices on the calculators—which were required to be on the school’s websites by Oct. 29— can vary greatly.
Florida Atlantic University’s calculator says a high school senior whose parents are in a high income bracket would pay $15,821. That includes some merit aid, but not Florida’s Bright Futures scholarships. And the figures are from 2009;
at the state’s public universities, tuition and fees have gone up 15 percent a year since then.
That same student is quoted a net price of $9,580 from Florida State University, which includes Bright Futures. But that figure, using 2010 data, also includes student loans and work study, which are not factored in on most calculators.
The most up-to-date net price comes from the University of Florida, which estimates the cost at $16,800. UF’s calculator uses 2011 student data and asks for a variety of personal information, such as taxable income of both the student and parents, as well as a student’s grade point average and test scores.
“I don’t think you would be able to compare prices,” said Robley Ritter, UF’s assistant financial aid director. “This would definitely cause confusion, especially if some schools are using 2009 information.”
Some schools have the time and resources to develop up-to-date calculators, while others must rely on what is freely available from the federal government, said Jane Glickman, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Education.
“Depending on the size, complexity and academic calendar of an institution, this will result in an inconsistency that can’t be overcome,” she said.
Despite their flaws, the calculators can still be useful, said Diane Cheng, a research associate for the California-based Institute for College Access & Success, which advocates for college affordability.
Cheng said that previously, all people had to rely on was the sticker price. Families usually couldn’t get financial aid information until after the student had been accepted into a school.
“Even having a ballpark estimate will be helpful,” she said.
BY SCOTT TRAVISMCT
www.dailyhelmsman.com4 • Thursday, February 2, 2012
OPEN 24 HOURSWiFi Hotspot
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Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney engaged in a skirmish over the middle class with President Barack Obama’s campaign Wednesday, a preview of a clash that could dominate a fall campaign between the two.
Fresh from a major win in Florida and heading West for a Nevada vote Saturday, Romney said he would focus on help-ing the middle class, as the rich could care of themselves and the poor already had a safety net.
“I’m not concerned about the very poor,” the former Massachusetts governor said on CNN from Florida on Wednesday morning before he flew off to Minnesota and then Nevada.
“We have a safety net there. If it needs repair, I’ll fix it. I’m not concerned about the very rich. They’re doing just fine. I’m concerned about the very heart of America, the 90-95 percent of Americans who are struggling.”
But Romney’s tax plan could raise taxes for lower-income families and would give big tax cuts to millionaires. Obama’s campaign seized on the part about not needing to do any more to help the poor, using it to portray Romney as insensitive to the poor.
“So much for ‘We’re all in this together,’” Obama campaign manager Jim Messina tweeted.
“Gov. Romney hasn’t pro-posed a single idea to help the struggling middle class or working poor,” Nevada state Senate Majority Leader Steven Horsford added in a conference call arranged by the Democratic National Committee to “wel-come” Romney to Nevada.
Later, in remarks aboard his campaign plane, Romney renewed his support for auto-matic increases in the federal minimum wage to keep pace with inflation. Business groups and most Republicans widely oppose that. Romney has held that stand since he ran for gov-ernor of Massachusetts in 2002, arguing that it would take the issue out of political debate and provide desirable stability.
The exchange came as Romney emerged as the clear front-runner for the Republican nomination after winning the Florida primary Tuesday. He and his three rivals rolled West on Wednesday, as the campaign headed into a three-week stretch in states that Romney won in 2008: caucuses Saturday in
Nevada, Tuesday in Colorado and Minnesota, and Feb. 11 in Maine.
Missouri will hold a nonbind-ing primary Tuesday that’s real-ly just a straw poll; its delegates will be selected at caucuses in March.
Romney campaigned
Wednesday in Minnesota and Nevada. Gingrich, a for-mer speaker of the House of Representatives, campaigned in Nevada. Former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania cam-paigned in and around Denver. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas cam-paigned in Nevada.
Politics
Romney’s remark on poor draws attack from Obama campaignBY STEVEN THOMMAMCT
“Governor Romney hasn’t proposed a single idea to help the struggling middle class or
working poor. ”
— Steven HorsfordSenate Majority Leader
Send us your thoughts@dailyhelmsman.
The University of Memphis Thursday, February 2, 2012 • 5
to legal and cultural barriers such as high school dropouts, teen pregnancies and incarcer-ation rates for black students, Goudsouzian said.
“It’s foolish to say that all racial segregation is gone,” he said.
In the past 40 years, Memphis has seen the rates of white-black segregation slow-ly decline from 68.8 percent in 1980 to 62.2 percent in the
present, according to Brown University sociology professor John Logan. There has been no change in segregation in the Hispanic and Asian com-munities within the past four decades in Memphis, he said.
The ratio of white to black segregation is higher in Memphis than the nation-al average of 56 percent, but Logan said African Americans remain the most segregat-ed group out of other racial groups.
“The main cause of this is because of the various racial inequalities in small neighbor-
hoods, which are tied to differ-ences including crime rates and the quality of schools,” he said.
Logan said though racial integration is shown in the workplace, public transporta-tion and shopping, the excep-tion is in neighborhoods, where he said is “so closely related to a person’s preferred walks of life.”
Susan O’Donovan, associate chair of the history department at The University of Memphis, moved to Georgia from Washington in 1970 and said prior to her arrival there she
had never seen segregation. “It really shocked and hum-
bled me,” she said. “Nowadays, I see more racial integration and I believe this is the way we need to go.”
O’Donovan said she views people dividing from each other because of skin color as nothing more than “a re-enact-ment of the Jim Crow era.”
“The South is not alone in having to figure out how to shed this toxic past because these are all national issues and problems,” she said. “Segregation is manmade; it also can be un-manmade.”
green fee submit a proposal and/or idea for funding for the 2012-2013 funding cycle
THE GREEN FEE COMMITTEE IS ACCEPTING PROPOSALS AND IDEAS FOR GREEN FEE FUNDS FOR THE 2012-2013 FUNDING CYCLE. PROPOSALS AND IDEAS MAY BE SUBMITTED BY ANY UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS FACULTY, STAFF OR STUDENT, OR BY AN ACADEMIC OR ADMINISTRATIVE DEPARTMENT.
proposals actually seek funding from the green fee and should fall within one of the following categories:
• energy & utilities (electric, gas, water, etc.) • local generation (renewables - solar, wind, etc.) • alternative fuel (hybrid vehicles, bio-diesel projects, etc.) • other (environmental recycling, etc.)
educational initiatives will also be considered.
the person(s) and/or department(s) submitting a proposal must be capable of managing the funds in a university account and actually carrying out what is needed to fulfi ll an accepted proposal.
ideas are simply your thoughts on how the green fee could be spent. you do not actually need to be able to carry out your envisioned idea.
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS AND IDEAS IS MONDAY, FEB. 20 @ 4 P.M.
to submit proposals and/or ideas, go to:https://saweb.memphis.edu/sforms/greenfee/
SolutionsYou’re
verywelcome.
diversityfrom page 1
“The main cause of this is because of the various
racial inequalities in small neighborhoods, which are tied to differences including crime rates
and the quality of schools.”
— John Logan Sociolgy professor at Brown University
Send us your thoughts @dailyhelmsman. You’ll be glad you did.
www.dailyhelmsman.com6 • Thursday, February 2, 2012
tion list. We hope next year the three major projects we want to have funded—the Biology and Biochemistry Research Building, the Community Health Building, as well as the Music Center—will receive attention as others roll off the list.”
A funding formula is used to decide the amount of money each university receives and money is dispersed based on this formula, Raines explained.
“The funding formula dif-fers by the type of university, we are a doctoral research uni-versity with a high research classification, so we receive proportionally more than other colleges, but not as much as UTK, which has a very high research classification,” she said.
The U of M’s state appro-priations have been reduced the past four years, according to Deborah Becker, director of
budgeting at The U of M.“We will have another
reduction of state funds for (Fiscal Year 2013) The Governor’s budget is recom-mending an allocation for Higher Education to recognize improvements to educational outcomes,” she said.
The amount of money The U of M will receive in the future will be contingent on a number of factors, Raines said.
“Whether we receive a larger amount in coming years will depend on our capital con-struction requests, fundraising for matching funds for those projects, the research level, the retention progress towards degree and graduation rates,” she said.
Raines said she is hopeful that with time the budget for higher education will increase.
“I am always eager to get more from the State’s bud-get, but given the economy is improving, it is my hope that the Governor’s budget for higher education will improve in the next year,” she said.
Budgetfrom page 1
Another senior student-athlete at the University of Memphis looks to receive the honor of being named the recipient of the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award.
Brittany Carter, senior guard for The University of Memphis women’s basketball team, is one of 10 finalists for the award. Carter would join senior women’s soccer player Lizzy Simonin, who won the award for Division 1 women’s soccer for the 2011 season.
The Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award is a national award given to senior student-athletes in 10 NCAA sports each year who show outstanding character and leadership on the court, in the classroom and in the community.
“Brittany Carter is one of the finest basketball players in the country,” Lynn Parks, assistant athletic director said. “She is an incredible athlete and she is worthy of the award.”
A media committee selects
the finalists, while fans choose the winning athlete.
The award honors student-athletes for their commitment to the community, as well as their commitment to stay in school and excel in the classroom.
Carter is working on a sec-ond degree after receiving a bachelor’s in criminal justice last May.
Consideration for the award requires athletes to be active in the community, be in good aca-demic standing, be competitive and display outstanding charac-ter on and off the court.
“Carter always is the first to volunteer for team projects,” said Tammy DeGroff, assistant media relations director at The U of M.
Fellow coaches selected her as the preseason Player of the Year in Conference USA. She has also won player of the week once this year and is on
the watch list for the Naismith award for the best college bas-ketball player sponsored by The Atlanta Tipoff Club.
“The Lowe’s award consists of leadership, academics, and sportsmanship and Brittany has all those qualities,” said head coach Melissa McFerrin. “Brittany Carter is the Lowe’s award.”
BY BRYAN HEATER & KENDRA HARRISNews Reporters
Carter named finalist for Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award
Basketball
“Brittany Carter is the Lowe’s award.”
— Melissa McFerrinHead basketball coach
The University of Memphis Thursday, February 2, 2012 • 7
International
Kathleen High School in Lakeland, Fla., possesses the skills to give the Tigers an immediate threat at the tight end position. In his senior season, Harrison posted 22 receptions for 370 yards with two touchdowns. His 6-3, 225 lb frame provides size for Memphis.
The offensive line will add size as well. Mammoth line-man Markeith Minnick, 6’6”, 295 lbs., out of Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va. and Antonio Foster, 6’4”, 300 lbs., out of Northeast Mississippi Community College in Booneville, Miss., bring size and strength to the offensive line.
Also joining the Tigers will be highly touted quarterback Will Gross from local high school Melrose, and Texas Tech transfer Jacob Karam. Before suffering a season-ending knee injury during his senior season in 2011, Gross passed for 1,200 yards and 22 touchdowns. Despite that injury, he was named the Offensive Player of the Year. Karam was delegated to a backup role at Texas Tech, but he threw for 3,291 yards and 38 touchdowns his senior season at Friendswood High School in Friendswood, Texas.
“I’m really excited about these kids,” Fuente said. “These kids are good kids and they want to be here. I feel like we hit on what we needed to do and I’m really excited about that.”
Fuentefrom page 1
The U.S. military plans to change the focus of its Afghanistan mission from combat to training local forces by the end of 2013, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Wednesday, appar-ently accelerating the timeline for Afghan forces to take over secu-rity responsibilities from NATO troops.
Panetta’s comments to reporters traveling with him to Brussels—where he was sched-uled to attend a meeting of NATO defense chiefs beginning Thursday—marked the first time that a top Pentagon official had stamped an earlier end date on the decade-old U.S. combat mis-sion in Afghanistan. However, U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan at least through 2014, when all NATO combat forces are
scheduled to withdraw from the country.
“Hopefully by the mid- to lat-ter part of 2013, we’ll be able to make a transition from a combat role to a training, advise and assist role,” Panetta said. He added that this “doesn’t mean we’re not going to be combat-ready,” but rather that the U.S. and other internation-al forces will no longer be in “the formal combat role we’re in now.”
The announcement appeared to be an effort to assure a war-weary American public—in an election year—that the Obama administration was charting a clear exit from Afghanistan. But it was also about semantics: By calling the U.S. troops deployed in Afghanistan trainers, not com-bat forces, it suggests that their
mission will involve less fighting and the U.S. will suffer fewer casualties.
Of course, commanders will point out that there’s no such
thing as a non-combat soldier, and U.S. troops continued to suf-fer loses in Iraq when the mission there switched from combat to what the Pentagon dubbed an “advise and assist” role.
It wasn’t immediately clear
whether the announcement would lead to an accelerated withdrawal of U.S. forces. From the 90,000 U.S. troops current-ly stationed in Afghanistan, the
Pentagon plans to draw down to 68,000 by the end of September —far more than most think would be needed to train.
Panetta told reporters that the administration still hadn’t determined the number of trainers needed.
The U.S. decision comes one week after French President Nicolas Sarkozy surprised NATO
by announcing that France would end its combat mission in 2013, a year ahead of schedule, following the killings of four French soldiers by an Afghan soldier they were training. Panetta told reporters that the U.S. decision wasn’t relat-
ed to France’s.The decision also appeared to
contradict findings in the latest classified National Intelligence Estimate on Afghanistan, report-ed by McClatchy Newspapers last month, that indicate secu-rity gains won since last year’s 30,000-strong U.S. troop surge may be unsustainable and that the Taliban leadership still had designs on ruling Afghanistan.
Panetta on Wednesday shrugged off the NIE findings, which the White House and top U.S. commanders also have disputed.
“Without question, there has been significant improvement in the security situation on the ground,” Panetta said. “The Taliban has not been able to regain any of the lost territory. They haven’t conducted a successful operation to regain territory. We continue to weaken them.”
BY DAVID SARNOMCT
U.S. mission in Afghanistan to end next year
Bird is the word. Follow us!
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“Without question, there has been
significant improvement in the security situation
on the ground.” — Leon Panetta
U.S. Secretary of Defense
www.dailyhelmsman.com8 • Thursday, February 2, 2012
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The Southern Miss Golden Eagles lost 18 straight games to the Memphis Tigers, including a number of heartbreakingly close losses in recent years. But they finally got the Memphis monkey off their backs with a 75-72 victory last night in Hattiesburg, Miss.
Chris Crawford’s career-high 23 points and Will Barton’s 15 weren’t enough to take down a Southern Miss team determined to finally end their long, tor-mented run against Memphis. Joe Jackson added 14 and Antonio Barton scored 10.
The Tigers got off to a bright start, opening a 16-4 lead early on, but five quick points pulled the Golden Eagles back into the game, and it was close ever since.
After Southern Miss hit two free throws to go up by four with 37 seconds remaining, Jackson went coast-to-coast for a layup, cutting the lead down to two. He then stole the ball on the inbound play and was fouled, giving him a chance to tie it at the free throw line.
He made his first, but missed the second. Wesley Witherspoon went up to tip it in, but it wouldn’t fall and the Tigers were forced to foul, leading to two more successful free throws by the Golden Eagles. Jackson found D.J. Stephens down low for a dunk with less than 20 sec-onds left and then had to foul once again with 8.3 seconds left.
Former Memphis commit Darnell Dodson calmly stepped to the line and hit both shots before Crawford’s poten-tial game-tying three-pointer missed as time expired, hand-
ing the Golden Eagles their first win over the Tigers since Jan. 10, 2004.
“All you can ask for is oppor-tunities to either tie or win the game,” head coach Josh Pastner said. “We had opportunities—we just didn’t convert—didn’t take care of business on a couple opportunities and we couldn’t get some stops late.”
Free throws made a big difference in this game, with
Southern Miss getting to the line ten more times and mak-ing 11 more than Memphis. The Tigers also missed the front ends of one-and-ones a few times, depriving them of extra free throws.
“The biggest thing is they made free throws,” Pastner said. “You’ve got to give them credit. We put pressure on them and they stepped up and made free throws down the stretch.
We lost the game on some little things. We didn’t do the job on a couple of little things and that came back to bite us in the butt.”
Memphis outshot Southern Miss 56.3 percent to 41.1 per-cent, but was dominated by the Eagles on the glass. Southern Miss outrebounded the Tigers by 13, 36-23, and pulled down 16 offensive rebounds to just three for Memphis. Southern
Miss scored 13 second-chance points and limited the Tigers to just five.
Memphis falls to 15-7 (6-2 C-USA) on the season, while Southern Miss improves to 20-3 (7-1) and takes sole possession of first place in the conference.
“We’ve just got to do our job,” Pastner said. “No need to hit the panic button. We’ve just got to come out Saturday and regroup and get a ‘W.’”
