PCC Courier, September 22, 2005

Serving PCC and the Pasadena community since 1915 State Paul Aranda, Jr Staff Writer Every day frustrated drivers across the Southland search for the best deal when it comes to refueling their vehicles. A couple of weeks have passed since Hurricane Katrina and gas prices have slowly begun to come down. Drivers may be smiling over the 40 cents that they are saving, but as they drive away they may notice that the air seems dirtier, even by Southland standards. The Air Resources Board approved a temporary regulatory amendment that would increase gas supplies while causing an increase in the amount of air pollution. The amendment will last until Oct. 31. Hurricane Katrina caused the nation to lose 10 percent of its oil Gambles with Air Quality refineries. To help ease the burden, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that they would allow states to lower their air quali¬ ty standards to make up for the lost production. State officials estimated that California would lose 5 to 10 percent of its oil supply, driving up the cost of gas throughout the state. The amendment will ease the Reid Vapor Pressure standard for gasoline produced from summer¬ time standards of 7.0 psi to winter¬ time standards of 9.0 psi. The stan¬ dard for summertime is tighter because refiners must remove volatile butanes and pentanes from gasoline blends. RVP of gasoline is a measurement of its ability to evap¬ orate. During the summer season, the RVP standard is stricter to reduce the amount of ozone that is produced during the time of increased heat. With these compo¬ nents allowed to be in the gasoline blend, the volume of available fuel will increase. Relaxed RVP standards over the next several months will have sever¬ al effects. In the direct interest of drivers, gasoline production will not be slowed which may help control cost. The amendment was not initi¬ ated to affect gas prices, only the amount that is produced and avail¬ able to drivers. Oil refiners and the stock market determine gas prices. The board stated that emissions of motor-vehicle-related hydrocar¬ bons would rise from 800 to 850 tons per day. There will be no increases in particulate matter, laime .ouner A new temporary regulatory amendment makes more gas available by easing the pro- [see gas prices, PAGE b ] duction process, but might create dirtier atmospheric conditions this fall and winter. Important Transfer Info Websites: www.assist.org www.csumentor.edu www.pasadena.edu - For further information. Important Dates: Fri., Sept. 1 6 - Wed., Nov. 30 Fall 2006 CSU and UC Application Deadlines Wed., Oct. 5 - CSULA "Rapid Pass" Day Ю a.m. to I p.m. Wed., Oct. 5 - Woodbury University 2:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Wed., Oct. 26 - University Night, 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sat., Nov. 5 - Educational Success: A Family Affair 10 a.m. to I p.m. Wed., Nov. 9 - CSULA Day at PCC 1 0 a.m. to I p.m. [See University Day Story, PAGE 3] PROTEST! Speak Out Against the War in Iraq On Sept. 24, at noon, one of the largest anti-war demonstration since the war started in Iraq will be held on the corner of Olympic Boulevard and Broadway in downtown Los Angeles. A youth and student march is part of the rally and will focus on need to use more money to fund education instead of occupation in other countries and to eliminate military recruiters in schools. The march was initiated by the A.N.S.W.E.R. coalition and will coin¬ cide with anti-war rallies in Washington, D.C. and San Francisco -Jennifer MacDonald Retired CIA Agent Speaks Engages with assessment of war practices Daniel Belis/ Courier Retired CIA analyist Ray McGovern speaks to PCC students about the build up and execution of the war in Iraq. Paul Aranda, Jr Staff Writer Students gathered in the Campus Center lounge last week as former CIA Analyst Ray McGovern spoke with students on various issues from the truth behind The Bush Administrations claims of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, to the use of torture as a tool of war. McGovern spent 27 years in the CIA, as part of his job was to pro¬ vide President George H.W. Bush with his daily intelligence briefings. He has appeared in a documentary about the Iraq War, “Uncovered” by Robert Greenwald and writes op-ed pieces for newspapers across the country. Missing the anger, rage and unruly tactics that are often associ¬ ated with anti-war activist, McGovern displayed a pleasant and engaging performance, employing honest humor to bond with stu¬ dents. The justification for war in Iraq involved claims that many in the intelligence community did not completely support. “They used corrupted intelligence that would allow the executive branch to deceive Congress,” he said. When later findings questioned the validity of the intelligence, the administra¬ tion blamed the CIA for faulty intel¬ ligence. According to McGovern, the reason we went into Iraq had noth¬ ing to do with weapons of mass destruction, or connections between A1 Qaeda and Iraq, but rather an acronym he called 'O.I.L.' He explained that the 'O' stood for oil, the T for Israel, and the 'L' for logis¬ tics. Oil is important because it is a valuable resource. As for how Israel has anything to do with Iraq, “the folks who are writing policy have a great difficulty distinguishing between what they perceive to be the strategic interest of Israel with the interest of the United States,” he said. The Logistics are permanent mil¬ itary bases in the Middle East, which would provide troops on the ground, making it easier for the United States to have a role in the policies of any new regime. Speaking about Bush's personal temperament, specifically a moment during the New Hampshire primar¬ ies for the 2000 elections where then Governor Bush was speaking to reporters about a mistake his father had made by failing to capitalize on the political capital he gained for being a wartime president. Paraphrasing what Bush told reporters, “How you become a real strong president is to become a Commander-In-Chief of a war, and so, if I become elected I am going to go ahead and prosecute this thing and gain the political capital to push forth my program.” Statements like these reveal how the administration targeted Iraq long before A1 Qaeda had ever entered the picture. 9-11 only made it easier for them to execute their agenda, McGovern said. On the role of torture in fighting terrorism, McGovern gave students several reasons why many intelli¬ gence professionals believe it doesn't work. “First, you can never be sure no matter how you torture some¬ one, if they are telling the truth. Second, it gives the country a terri¬ ble name in the rest of the world. Third, it endangers the troops, if they get captured they get tortured, and fourth, it's wrong damn-it, tor¬ ture is wrong,” he said. Quoting his favorite statesmen, Edmund Burke, “The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who remain neutral in times of crisis.” It was the activism of students across the country that helped put an end to the Vietnam War, he said, adding that the way out of Iraq was through the actions of students. AS.Creates Katrina Fund Don Martirez Staff Writer A PCC Disaster Relief Account has been estab¬ lished by the Associated Student Board to consolidate the efforts of the PCC community in assisting the vic¬ tims of Hurricane Katrina. “Now that the A.S. has approved what we're going to be doing campus-wide, the donations must run through the A.S.,” said Stephen Juarez, A.S. President. Many different groups and individuals on campus started collecting funds for hur¬ ricane relief the week of the storm. Lancer Radio held a raffle for an iPod, and Dr. Jane Hallinger of the English depart¬ ment matched class donations dollar for dollar. “ I know that individual clubs acted a little bit quick¬ er than the board but there are certain rules that we still need to follow,” Juarez said. “ We don't want random students going around campus collecting money and saying, 'Hey, we're here for Katrina, give us a couple of bucks.'” Now that the A.S. is taking charge, members of the PCC community can donate relief funds without con¬ cern over where the money is really going. “The peo¬ ple that are collecting money are A.S. board members,” said Juarez, “They have a badge stating their name and title, so that it is someone they can trust.” Individuals can also make a donation directly to the Disaster Relief Account by making a deposit at the student bank. Just simply have your cash or check ready and state that it's for Katrina relief at the window. “Everything that is being collected has to be put on deposit in the student bank so that it can go to Red Cross,” said Juarez. However, arrangements can be made if an individual wishes to direct their donation to an organization other than the Red Cross. The A.S. has a variety of ways of col¬ lecting relief funds, which will be an ongoing effort for the rest of the semes¬ ter. Board members will be taking dona¬ tions in the classrooms, maintaining a donation outside in the Quad, and hosting -concerts that will feature stu¬ dent-affiliated bands. The A.S. is well on its way to reaching its $5,000 goal for Katrina. “We won't stop when we reach our goal,” said the A.S. president. “They need all the help they can get.” The first two concerts, held Sept. 13 and Sept. 15, along with personal donations totaled $1,622 for the first week of collections. Kris Calnon/ Courier Permit Prices may Increase Natasha Khanna Staff Writer If you thought a dollar a day parking was expensive, wait until next year when it could cost $2. Daily parking fees might increase as early as next year, said Peter Hardash, vice president for administrative services, who is overseeing a study to see if there is a need to double the cost of daily parking permits. “We are not looking to raise the price of semester permits, only the daily permits,” Hardash said. According to Hardash, daily permit purchases have increased while semester permit purchases have remained more or less the same since the new parking struc¬ ture, Lot 5, was completed. This means that semester permit pur¬ chases have not increased while the number of parking slots has increased from 4,100 to 6,100 with the addition of parking lot 5. Students who park on campus fewer then four days a week save money buying daily permits rather than the $64 semester permit. Hardash said that this might be why semester permit purchases have not increased. “We would rather the students bought semester permits than daily permits,” said Interim Chief of Police Frank Scialdone, one of the proponents of the study. “We have a problem on campus. There is a big cost in maintaining the permit dispensing machines. A lot of the machines are out of date and require parts that are not even made anymore.” The study will compare the daily permit costs in other Southern California community colleges. For example, a daily permit costs $5 in Santa Monica City College. “We want to make sure that we are in the same general ball park as the other [community colleges], Scialdone said. “If we were to propose a raise in [daily] permit fees, it would be used to pay for parking construction, parking safety and maintenance,” Hardash said. He added that more money might be needed to pay for parking safety and cadets in the upcoming fiscal years.“Our No.l concern for students is safety,” said Hardash, explaining that a lot of the money would be used to pro¬ vide safety within the parking struc¬ tures. Once the study is completed, any proposed fee change would go to the Associated Students board for approval. If approved, the meas¬ ure will move on to the board of trustees who will make the final decision. “Whatever the findings are, we'll think it through and come up with a decision,” said AS presi¬ dent Stephen Juarez, “but we will take into consideration the other costs students have.” If approved by everyone, the price increase could be in effect by the beginning of next fiscal year, July 1,2006.