In the news
WORLD
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan – Female Islamic students wearing black burqas kidnapped an alleged brothel owner and held her prisoner at their seminary in the Pakistani capital, as part of an anti-vice drive in defiance of the military-dominated government.
In a separate sign of growing extremism in Pakistan, pro-Taliban militants firing rockets attacked a northwestern town and kidnapped the principal of a school where they had tried and failed to recruit students as suicide attackers.
Your turn
The Commonwealth Times has long suffered from poor quality and apathy. I realize that apathy is rampant among the VCU student body; however the student body newspaper should not be allowed to suffer from such apathy.
What are the problems with the CT? Where should I begin? From the crossword puzzle that is as pathetic as it is disproportionately large to the lack of actual reporting on events at VCU.
Sports in Brief
BASEBALL
The Rams won the first two games of the series with Wagner, 16-6 and 10-9. The victory in game one was sparked by an eight-run second inning. Saturday’s game was much tougher. VCU found itself down 9-6 in the bottom of the ninth, but came up big with three runs in the inning and the lone run in the 10th to steal the win.
Middle-innings performance lifts Rams
VCU scored three runs in the third and fourth innings to overcome a big third inning by Wagner to defeat the Seahawks 8-5.
The victory gives the Rams their first season-sweep since taking all three games from Fordham last month.
After three scoreless innings, Wagner broke the ice with three runs in the top of the fourth.
The CTube
There are a lot of second-rate tall bike videos on YouTube. For instance, many filmmakers don’t seem to grasp that they want to keep the person riding the tall bike framed in the shot, leaving them with two options: a) Have the person ride around in tight circles, or; b) Jog after the tall-biker, jarring the viewer with shaky, “Blair Witch Project”-style camera work.
Weird News
Money for babies
A legislator in Texas is proposing that pregnant women who are considering abortion be offered $500 in exchange for not ending their pregnancy.
Republican Sen. Dan Patrick, a conservative radio talk show host, said the money might convince women to have the baby and give them up for adoption.
Modest Mouse: Worth the wait
After multiple push-backs of the album’s release, Modest Mouse finally delivers their fifth full-length album.
If you like Modest Mouse, you will most likely enjoy “We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank,” released March 20.
I could easily stop there, but that wouldn’t do justice to what I consider a stellar delivery from this indie-turned-mainstream band.
‘Carmina’ is coming
Back by popular demand, the Richmond Ballet is reviving one of its most beloved ballets, “Carmina Burana,” for its Studio 2 performance. The show runs March 27 to April 1 at the Richmond Ballet’s Studio Theatre on 5th and Canal streets.
The show began to sell out so fast, the company added two extra dates, April 3 and 5.
From the president
At the senate meeting last Monday, VCU’s head librarian John Ulmschneider made a presentation about some exciting changes at Cabell library. Because SGA has been strongly advocating for better library furniture, an extra $300,000 has been allocated for furniture replacement.
Your Turn Letters to the Editor
In the weeks heading into spring break, most students are overly stressed for midterms and projects, wanting only to survive the gauntlet and unwind into a week of relaxation. Some students take on another level of stress and run for the Student Government Association, most notably the executive branch (president, vice president, and executive director).