Page 5 The Lion’s Eye October 26, 2011 World & Local News Large crowd honors King's dream at memorial dedication Special To The Lion’s Eye WASHINGTON -— Al- though it was decades in the making, the dedication Sunday of the $120 million memorial to Martin Luther King Jr. prompted only a few tears and cracking voices. Mostly, those who knew the Baptist minister and other activists were jubilant at the event on the National Mall, which they said should be a catalyst for Americans to address the issues that drove King. Many speakers took note of the "Occupy Wall Street” movement and called for a better response to Ameri- cans' need for jobs and better health care. Their calls prompted eruptions of ap- plause from the tens of thousands who came to formally welcome the granite statue of King and surrounding walls with quotations from his speeches. King confidant and former United Nations ambassador Andrew Young accused the banking industry of "not using their minds" but rather "their greedy behinds." He made reference to the "Mountain of Despair" and "Stone of Hope," two key pieces on the site near the Tidal Basin. ; "There 1s still a spiritual movement that's still alive in America, and it was defined by the dream then, but it's also still being defined," Young said. "God knows there's a 'Mountain of Despair,’ and we have to hew out of that "Mountain of Despair’ a ‘Stone of Hope.' That's the message that the nation needs now." "This is a great movement moment in this country," said NAACP President Ben- Jamin Jealous, "a moment where we are fighting to ensure that all of us have access to a job, all of us have access to justice, and that all people, regardless of where they were born, are treated with human dignity." King's daughter, the Rev. Bernice King, said, "I'm hoping that when people leave here that they will be reinvigorated to make a certain adjustment so we can move our society toward that beloved community" of which King spoke "and we can move these walls of divisiveness." President Obama, in a prodding tone like the one he used at a Congressional Black Caucus dinner last month, reminded the crowd that King did not quit when the Civil Rights Act and Voting Rights Act did not end poverty and discrimination. "Dr. King ... didn't say, 'This is too hard," Obama said. "Instead, he said let's take those victories and broaden our mission to achieve not just civil and political equal- ity but also economic justice. Let's fight for a living wage and better schools and jobs for all who are willing to work. In other words, when met with hardship, when confronting disappointment, Dr. King refused to accept what he called the 'isness' of today. He kept pushing towards the 'oughtness' of tomorrow." : ] Martin Luther King III said afterward that Obama's tone was fitting. "The presi- dent ... provided the framework for the tone that I believe America needs," he said. The dedication, under clear skies and in balmy temperatures, was supposed to have been on Aug. 28, the anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington and King's "I Have a Dream" speech. After an earthquake evicted one pre-dedication event from the damaged Washington National Cathedral, and when Hurricane Irene esca- The Martin Luther King, J.r. Memorial in Washington, D.C. (Photo courtesy of washingtonpost.com) lated to a Category 4, organizers opted to postpone. Russian Tragedy Has Local Ties; Investigation continues By Dave Hoffer — Lion’s Eye Staff Writer deh5081@psu.edu It was nearly two months ago that a plane crash in Yaroslavl, Russia, carrying an entire team from Russia’s top hockey league crashed just after takeoff from Tunoshnia Airport. In an off-season that witnessed three players lose their lives, the hockey world was once again shaken by such a massive and heartbreaking lose. “Though it occurred thousands of miles away from our home arenas, this tragedy represents a catastrophic loss to the hockey world,” spoke NHL Com- missioner Gary Bettman. “Our deepest condolences go to the families and loved ones of all who perished.” In total, 45 people were on the Ya- kovlev Yak-42D plane when it crashed moments after takeoff just one mile from the end of the runway. On board were 8 crew members and 37 passengers which included the entire Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team from Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League. Only 2 survivors were pulled from the wreckage, one player and one crew member. The player Alexander Gali- mav suffered burns on 90% of his body and died 5S days later. Also perishing in the wreck was former Philadelphia Flyer Brad McCrimmon, who was the newly hired head coach of the team. McCrim- mon spent 5 years in Philadelphia in a long and prosperous career. The investigation, which is being headed by the Interstate Aviation Com- mittee with assistance from the Russian Government, has made their findings and theories public. The weather for that day was clear and sunny and has been ruled out as a possible reason for the crash. The plane was not overweight and carried suf- ficient fuel. Investigators have also found that both engines were working up to the crash. ; Eyewitness accounts and flight control data have stated that the plane appeared to be struggling to take off. The plane did not gain lift as it traveled and struck a light tower at the end of the runway. The plane continued its flight, rolling to the left and hovering at a very low altitude, and soon after crashed at the bank of the Tunoshnia River. After weeks of investigating, authori- ties have begun to shift their focus on the possibility of pilot error causing the crash. The captain of the flight was Andrei Solontsev, an experienced pilot. His first officer, Sergei Zhuravlev, was also expe- rienced but did not have quite as much flying time as his captain on Yak planes. On September 19, the final transmis- sions from the voice and data record- ers were released to the public. In the released data, the plane was found to have inconsistent air speed with the engine out- put. This combined with the fact that skid marks were found on the runway have lead many to speculate that the plane may have had been braking during takeoff. Investigators have ruled out the possibil- ity that the emergency brake was in use at the time. Russian pilot Magomed Tolboev believes that miscommunication of the pilots may have be a factor. He stated that with the inconsistent speed and marks left behind, one of the pilots may have tried to abort the takeoff while the other forged ahead. This momentary miscommunica- tion might explain the lack of lift which caused the plane to overshoot the runway and strike the light tower. On October 10, investigators began to simulate the break- ing theory and are currently collecting data on the simulations. The only survivor of the crash was flight engineer Alexander Sizov. Sizov has been interviewed since the crash and has stated that the plane had no problems previous to the flight. An Update on the Egyptian Elections By Robert Ripson — Lion's Eye Staff Writer rlr283@psu.edu In the September 28th issue of the and around Tahrir Square where the call Lion’s Eye, I reported about Egypt’s call for freedom had originated. for freedom by protesting and succeed- In an interview conducted by Mag- ing in ousting their long time ruler Mr. gie Michael of the Associated Press, the Mubarak. Since February, 2011, the "Christians claim that they were trying to Egyptian military has been in charge of conduct a peaceful sit-in to raise aware- the country and I expressed concerns ness of the crisis that was developing. that democracy may not take hold in Then plain clothed thugs arrived and Egypt. One of the reasons given was that historically once a military government has held power for extended period, the likelihood of relinquishing that power decreases exponentially as each day passes. It still seems to be the case in Egypt. However, the twist here is to where the military’s sectarian allegiances lie. Dur- ing the weekend of October 8-9, 2011, there were clashes between Christians and Muslims. Christians who make up approximately ten-percent of the total population of Egypt have claimed that Muslims were responsible for recent attacks on local churches. This action led to reprisals and riots that took place in was dispatched which only acerbated the situation. At one point an armored car sped through a crowd and struck a number of people and tossed them into the clashes that occurred. Once the military arrived, a strange twist in the sectarian discord took place. Both Muslim and Christian elements who witnessed this vehicular onslaught, joined together and turned against the military. This reaction to the military presence seems to indicate a growing mistrust of the ruling military govern- ment. = pi Le L Ee ID TAR ra Se attacked the protesters. Then the military the air. Twenty-four people were killed in Saudi Arabian Women Gain the Right to Vote By Matt Rodgers - ‘Lion's Eye Staff Writer mmr 187@psu.edu Saudi Arabia stunned the world when King Abdullah announced that women were granted the right to vote, and seek office. The right to vote has been stick- ing points in societies across the globe. Women, in some states, have been the last class to be granted the “privilege” to vote. Today, most countries have no dis- crimination against women voting. But, in countries where religion plays a key role in the governance, women are left without - the right to vote, among other numerous laws that dictate their lives. King Abdul- lah’s announcement was both applauded and laughed at. Amidst the tensions in the Islamic world over the past year and the rise of discontent among women, especially in Saudi Arabia, Abdullah chose this spec- trum as a proverbial olive branch of help to quell any such rebellious sects from acting against the Monarchy. Proponents of the ruling see it as one step in a long process toward equality for women in Saudi Arabia. The ruling was applauded by the United States and most members of the United Nations. On the other hand, some Muslim based govern- ments have laughed at the Saudi ruling, a ——.-—,k Lh ELSE ATP rs with others taking offense by Abdullah’s ruling. The Koran, which is used as a tool for governance by a lot of Middle East countries, can be interpreted many dif- ferent ways. Iran has almost gone to the extreme of looking upon their neighbor as no longer being a country. Either way, skeptics on both sides warn to bide your time. Saudi’s ruling on women’s right to vote has a somewhat odd twist to it. First, and most glaring, is that women will not be allowed to vote until the next election cycle, which is in 2015. Part of the Kings ruling also allows women to run for local council (Shura) posts as well. All signs point towards an equal representative community government. But, things may not be what they seem on the outside. Right now, women in Saudi Arabia are not allowed to drive a car, if they have no husband they must hire a chauffeur. At the same time Islamic law states that women’s faces must be veiled while in public. Not being able to drive may hamstring some electorates, but not being able to show their faces leaves a pretty tall mountain to climb in garnering votes. Ri —————-—=————ES—————— BR ——
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