YouTube blocked
in Thailand crackdown for showing a video that insulted the country's
beloved monarch.
Sitthichai Pookaiyaudom, the minister of information
and technology said that YouTube turned down a request to remove a 44 second
video that showed graffiti like elements painted over a slideshow of
photographs of 79 year old king Bhumibol Adulyadej.
One part of the clip juxtaposed pictures of feet all
over the king's image in a culture where feet are considered extremely dirty
and offensive with the Thai national anthem playing in the background.
According to Sitthichai, thousands of people have
complained to the government to complain about the video. "People who create
these (Web sites) are abusing their rights and clearly don't mean well for
the country," said Sitthichai. "We have closed many and will continue to."
But Julie Supan, a spokeswoman for YouTube said "We are
disappointed that YouTube has been blocked in Thailand, and we are currently
looking in to the matter."
Thailand has no comprehensive law over the internet but
since 2006, it has blocked around 32,612 "illicit" Web sites.
Intern
at National Archives pleads guilty Denning
McTague, a 40-year-old intern at the National Archives and
Records Administration plead guilty to stealing government
property.
In his time as an intern McTague would sneak Civil War
documents out of the building in a pad of paper. In total
he stole 164 documents dating from 1861-1865.
Among the documents stolen were telegrams including
troop weaponry and the document issued by the War Department
announcing Abraham Lincoln's death to the troops, as well as a
letter from cavalryman James Ewell Brown Stuart.
Of the 164 documents McTague tried to sell 150 online
and was able to sell roughly half of those.
Currently all but three of the documents have been retrieved;
and some of the sales were made overseas.
As part of his responsibilities as an intern McTague
was responsible for ordinance records from 1816-1907.
McTague was organizing documents in order to prepare for the
150th anniversary of the Civil War.
After pleading guilt to theft charges McTague was
released on $25,000 bail and his sentencing is scheduled for
July 12th at this time.
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Professor Bob Lawson has been working on
a movie script
while he's been off campus this semester. Two
cast members
are already signed up.
HEALTH AWARENESS
The GMO Debate- How
this concerns your health.
Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) is an organism
that is produced using the process of gene splicing.
Certain genes are incorporated into the organism in order
to regularly produce desirable traits. One of the first GMO
foodstuffs was the development of Flavr Savr Tomato.
These tomatoes were genetically engineered to have cell
walls that would not break down. The result was tomatoes
that would not soften as the ripened and could be shipped
across the country without damage.
There are many
who argue the safety of these foodstuffs.
Although there has been testing those that argue say that
there has not been enough. The long term effects are
relatively unknown as to the health effects of GMOs.
Already though 60-70% of food products in grocery stores are already genetically modified.
Others
worry
about the environmental effects of GMO
crops. The GMOs can spread to and interbreed with
natural organisms. The effects of this fro the future are
unknown.
Monsanto, a
major manufacturer of GMOs, argues that the
foodstuffs are safe and can provide nutritional benefits by
adding vitamins to organisms that naturally lack them.
Supporters of GMOs also argue that they
will reduce the
cost of food production and provide food for starving
nations.
We
always welcome your questions
and comments. You can contact us at exchange@franklinpierce.edu.
Drop us a line
and let us know
your thoughts. This
week's managing
editor is Dena Sutton.
Exchange Staff photos.
*Last
week we said we weren't going to use this tagline, but who
knew we'd get another slushstorm?
visitors
CAMPUS NEWS
Read about what's
happening on campus:
The second annual
Day of
Disability Awareness will be held on April 19th. DODA
will give students an opportunity to live the life of a disabled
person for a day.
The annual Spring Softball Tournament
will be held Sunday April 29th. The application deadline is due
to Northfields Activity Center on Tuesday, April 24th.
Seniors who participated
in Community
Service events are asked to contact the Community
Service office so they can receive cords of recognition.
Fast
Friends Greyhounds in Keene is looking for volunteers from the
Franklin Pierce community to help socialize abandoned
dogs in need of human companionship to bring them
one step closer to finding a permanent home.
Student Senate votes in favor of Medical Amnesty Protocol
for FPC students. Would eliminate some sanctions
when calling for help in drug and alcohol incidents.
Women's Lacrosse gets their
first victory in 41 tries in a
spring break win over SUNY-Morrisville.
SENIOR EXPERIENCE
Senior
Experience explores each of FPC's majors for you through
the perspective of a senior who is living it. This week:
How many members of Generation Dinosaur know about creating
their own Google
homepage,
where they can customize news, weather and other information
that appears on the page? Fewer still are likely to
know about
Netvibes,which some argue is much better because of "effortless
customization, mammoth collection of feeds and modules, and
all-around good looks." In the endless task of
educating dinosaurs about the possibilities of the internet,
you might also suggest they take a look at
Protopage,
which some contend is even easier to customize than Netvibes.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
Doggie Yoga
Yoga, like all physical activities, can at times have
participants walking away dog tired. . . but as of recently that
phrase has taken on whole new meaning as participants are
actually walking away on four legs. At the Seattle/King County
Humane Society, and other similar establishments around the
country, "doggie yoga" classes are a reality and the trend is
slowly gaining momentum.
Brenda Bryan, who teaches traditional yoga as well as the new
class for both dogs and humans at the Humane Society, says the
dogs react to the gentle energy in the room, and it serves as
quality bonding time for them and their owners. Though the dogs
are positioned into gentle poses of their own and also massaged,
providing the same relaxing physical benefits as it does for
humans, their primary role in the class is serving as a sort of
yoga prop for their owners who remain in constant physical
contact with their companions while assuming traditional yoga
positions. "We've been having a lot of fun with this," said
Bryan, who continued on to describe how her dogs run over when
she starts to unroll a yoga matt without any insistence on her
part.
As this new trend is spreading nationwide, educational programs
are taking notice as well. Groups such as the University Nevada
Las Vegas Education Outreach are now offering courses in
Innovative Pet Therapy, where humans can learn how to apply
first aid care, and perform massages in addition to yoga.
YouTube blocked
in Thailand crackdown for showing a video that insulted the country's
beloved monarch.
Intern
at National Archives pleads guilty 
have
participants walking away dog tired. . . but as of recently that
phrase has taken on whole new meaning as participants are
actually walking away on four legs. At the Seattle/King County
Humane Society, and other similar establishments around the
country, "doggie yoga" classes are a reality and the trend is
slowly gaining momentum.