THE The Independent Newspaper Serving Notre Dame and Saint Mary's VOLUME 38: ISSUE 45 TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2003 NDSMCOBSERVER.COM Po riner Men's basketball tickets sell out ticketing. "Obviously, as the team By AMANDA MICHAELS student got better, demand increased News Writer considerably." Students arriving at the JACC Ofthe 11,418 seats available in Ticket Office after 1:45 p.m. yes­ the JACC, 3,200 were allocated dies terday were turned away, frus­ for student use - a number trated and fuming, after the "consistent with previous years," By TERESA FRALISH 2,800 men's basketball tickets Fraleigh said. One hundred of Assis1am News Edi1or set aside for student purchase those will be sectioned ofT for the sold out in an unprecedented band, and the rest will be distrib­ ;\ limner Notre Dame student four and a half hours. In a school uted to student athletes on game was found dead in an apparent dominated by football, 10 sales day, as per NCAA rules. suicide in Bloomington, Ind. per minute came as a pleasant In regards to Domers' com­ Saturday moming. and unexpected surprise for ath­ plaints over the 150 ticket allot­ Brian Berg, a former member letic officials. ment to Saint Mary's students of the class of 2004 from "Two years ago, we did not sell and the 30 to Holy Cross, Wheaton, Ind., had a history of out the entire allocation of tick­ Fraleigh said, "The numbers of mental illness and had been ets, and it took a whole day to do tickets given to Saint Mary's and MEGAN DAVISSON!The Observer 1mrolled in a resident treatment so last year," said Jim Fraleigh, Students line up to purchase men's basketball tickets Monday. The program for his illness in assistant athletic director for see TICKETS/page 4 tickets designated for student use were sold out In 4.5 hours. Bloomington at the time of his d1~ath, his mother Julie Berg said. Sgt. David Drake of the Bloomington Police Department said Berg's body was found Students integrate class, current events Saturday moming and police had no reason to believe foul play was involV(.ld. Priority placed on academics varies among students Berg's mother said her son was on his way to a llalloween party Friday night in Bloomington and Editor's Note: This arti­ major Eric Wooldridge said. and the opposite sex. did not return to the treatment cle is the first in a series As a result. students said "Partying. alcohol. girls and center for its nightly curfew. of three articles focusing they cannot really spend time sports are much more com­ Berg, a eomputer engineering on academic engagement focusing on material they mon topics of conversation major, participated in Notre at Notre Dame. know will not be necessary than politics or philosophy. Dame's London Program during for a test, even if they are I'm more comfortable with the fall of his junior year in 2002 By JOE TROMBELLO personally interested in the that- I like it that way," 1U1d began to show signs of what News Wri1er subject. Wooldridge said. counselors initially thought was "If I sit down to study for a Students. however, said homesickness, his mother said. Sophomore Elizabeth test [and) the professor gives they often connect material After returning to the United Webster would like to spend us something to concentrate learned in class in conversa­ States in the spring, Berg was more time reading a newspa­ on. I'm going to concentrate tions with peers to make their placed on medication and eventu­ per or a book. but she fmds on that. I don't want to clutter discussions more academic, ally diagn~ed with schizophrenia, she just doesn't have time; my brain with information which contradicts faculty per­ his mother said. when she's not in class or that is not going to be on the ceptions that most students 'The electronic signals between practicing for cross-country. exam," said Zach Goodrich. a do not often discuss academic his left-brain and right-brain she must do her homework. biology major. issues in their dorms or the short-circuit.t,-d," she said. "Some people seem to be dining halls. Berg took a leave of absence able to do it all," she said. "I Satisfaction "A lot of [my) conversations from the University for the spring feel like I'm limited." Despite this time crunch. with friends are deeper than 2003 semffiter. and oflicially with­ like many Notre Dame stu­ however, Notre Dame stu­ 'what are you doing this weekend,' " said Hobert drew in Au~-,rust. dents, Webster's involvement dents generally said they At the treatment center. Julie in both her schoolwork and remain well-informed about Gibbs, a finance/psychology Berg said counselors thought her her extra-curricular activities politics and current events major. "My friends and I talk son was progressing well and. as leave little time for much else. through conversations with a lot about philosophy in gen­ a result. was beginning to gain Students often said that. peers, rather than outside eral." more independence. although they would like to media or reading. They also Jessica Campbell, a senior She said she was confident the keep up more with current said the level of intellectual­ biology major, said she likes treatment center - which she events, politics and the news ization on campus satisfies how she and her friends from d1~cribcd as the lx~t in the region through reading outside them, in contrast to faculty science classes can discuss -would help her son. sources, the academic and concerns about the lack of the material outside of the '"l11ey had actually enrolled him extra-curricular rigors of undergraduate academic classroom. to start taking a class at Indiana Notre Dame can prevent engagement outside of the "With [my] pre-med University," she said. "lie had a them from having the time to classroom. friends, we are always ana­ job. lie was on the road to recov­ do so. Some students said that lyzing what's going on with ery." "Nearly everyone is con­ conversation among their our bodies - !Uld it's so cool sumed with classes, clubs peers often focuses on sub­ see DEATH/page 4 and jobs," junior theology jects such as sports, alcohol see ACADEMICS/page 4 Student participation historically low in municipal elections municipal, or local, elections his­ only recently devoted part of their polling places, dates and times By LAURA VILIM torically have the lowest voter daily news to election coverage, that voting is available and the News Wri1er turnout. There is also a particu­ but even this information is typi­ intricacies of absentee ballots. larly low percentage of young cally not enough for a voter to Several students interviewed on adults who vote in their local make an informed decision about campus were unaware that elec­ Municipal elections for such elections, especially for those who a particular candidate. In addi­ tions were being held today; oth­ offices as mayor. city council and arc enrolled in college or working tion, even with access to informa­ ers were unfamiliar with the city clerk will be held in counties in a job away from home. tion about the candidates, it is term "municipal elections." Many across the nation today, despite For students at Notre Dame, difficult to motivate students to s_tudents said they know that the fact that such races in non­ several factors contribute to this vote in elections in a town they elections are held every first presidential election years tend to lack of participation in municipal office is usually limited to local now call home only three months Tuesday of November, but decid­ receive low voter turnout. elections. According to assistant newspapers, a resource tha,t few out of the year. ed not to vote in this particular Of the three levels of elections professor of political science students have access to while liv­ Another factor that keeps stu­ race. that are held in the United States Louis Ayala, coverage of the ing hundreds of miles from home. dents from the polls is the gener­ -municipal, state and federal- politicians who arc running for Local television stations have al lack of information about see ELECTIONS/page 4 ------------------------------------------------------------------~--------------------------------, page 2 The Observer+ PAGE 2 Tuesday, November 4, 2003 INSIDE COLUMN QUESTION OF THE DAY: WILL YOU BE VOTING IN TODAY'S ELECTION? linpossible dreain? We can't get enough of it. We want it every day and once we get a taste, we just want more. We get it around the clock -in the morning, after­ Nikki Vllllfane Rachel Manley Erin Carney Caroline Connor Debbie Hornacek Angelina Zehrbach noon and our big dose at night. Junior Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Sophomore Junior You'd better Farley Hall know darn well Farley Hall Farley Hall Farley Hall Farley Hall Welsh Family Hall what I'm talking about, eh? "Eeeee?!" "Wh-what ··No_,, "No, I did not "Had I known "Who's Well, without there was an running?" further hemming election?" get my absentee and hawing over ballot in time. ,, election? Oh the matter, I yeah, Gore all might as well the way.,, confess it's sleep. Have you ever met someone Will Puckett who said they IN BRIEF needed to sleep LESS? I don't Production believe I have, Kati Koestner, a rape preven­ and I doubt you tion activist, will talk to students have either. today at 9 p.m. in the Carey Unless, of course, you're a close Auditorium of the Hesburgh personal friend of a giant panda.