Western Front - 1999 November 2

              TUESDAY, November 2,1999
Front Western Washington University Volume 110 Issue 11 Bellingham, Washington
student ALF damage estimate increases
activities Investigators searching for evidence, subpoena to be issued
funding
increases
By Jertni Odekirk
The Western Front
The Associated Students
Activities Council is evaluating
funding requests more critically
this year.
Wary of running out of funds
as it did last year, the council has
worked with groups to reduce
requests before presentation to
the council, asking more ques­tions
about goals and financial
needs and directing groups to
other funding sources, said Amy
Finkbonner, A.S. vice president
for Activities and Activities
Council chair.
"We're trying
to make sure we'll
have enough
money when the
next group
comes,"
Finkbonner said.
The council
grants funding for
. * programs, confer-
Finkbonner e n c e s and equip­ment
for groups the A.S. recog­nizes
— ranging from the
Residence Hall Association to the
Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Trans-gender
Alliance to the
Badminton Club. The Activities
Council also gives clubs $50
when it recognizes them.
When evaluating requests,
Finkbonner said she looks at how
many people they will impact.
"What we are looking for the
most is what will bring the great­est
benefit to the student body,"
she said.
The number of requests this
See ACTIVITIES,'page 4
By Kristen Moored
THE- WESTERN FRONT
In comparison to other Animal
Liberation Front attacks, Miller
• Hall was not hit that hard, said
Dave Doughty, assistant
University Police chief.
Doughty, head of the investi­gation,
said" the total damage
has increased to $15,000 and
could rise.
Doughty has been in contact
with the University of
Minnesota, which was attacked
by the ALF in April, causing $2
million in damage.
"From the international
standpoint, this is a big deal;
however, there have been bigger
events on campus," Doughty
said. "The Miller Hall fire that
occurred last year affected more
students directly than this did."
This event is not to be taken
lightly, Doughty said, because of
the number of psychology stu­dents
that were affected, though
he said it could have been worse.
A subpoena from University
Police are pending for KIRO-TV,
Seattle for possession of the
ALF's videotape of the Miller
Hall break-in, Doughty said.
Three days after the event in
Minnesota, almost all the ani­mals
were found in a ditch —
dead.
Doughty said he found that
ironic, considering the ALF
wants the animals to have a bet­ter
living environment.
Police have received no infor­mation
about what happened to
the animals taken from
Western.
Although no specific individu­als
have been identified, the
search continues.
The FBI is being used as a
police resource.
The FBI has the option to
charge the perpetrators with
domestic terrorism when they
are caught.
March against violence
Soren Velice/ The Western Front
Western students and community members marched in the third annual Walk Away From Violence Saturday as part of
National Domestic Violence Month. About 60 people began the march on the corner of Railroad Avenue and Champion
Street and ended at Boulevard Park, where marchers gathered for a Party for Peace, a violence education event.
Protests rise as WTO conference approaches
By Kristen Hawley
THE WESTERN FRONT
Seattle will be in the interna­tional
spotlight, attracting gov­ernment
officials, trade experts
and protesters for the World
Trade Organization Ministerial
Conference.
The conference, in session Nov.
30 through Dec. 3, is a meeting of
representatives from more than
150 WTO member nations to dis­cuss
international trade policies.
It is the third ministerial confer­ence
since the WTO's creation in
1995.
According to its official Web
site, the WTO is an international
governing body designed to pro­mote
fair global trade. It consists
of representatives from member
nations who negotiate disputes
between countries that feel unfair
trade is occurring.
"Free trade is generally a good
See WTO, page 4
Chris Goodenow/The Western Front
A WTO protester, who would not reveal a true name, stands
at the corner of Lakeway and Lincoln shouting to motorists.
Student vote may
increase tech fee
By Sarah Crowley
THE WESTERN FRONT
This spring, students will
once again vote whether or not
to increase the Student
Technology Fee.
This year, a committee led by
Vice President of Academic
Affairs Rafael Castaneda and
Western administrators will
decide if a $10 increase to the
current fee will be proposed.
"You see the benefits (of the
technology fee) in the class­room
and in how students get
their education,". Castaneda
said.
He said the committee may
not vote to increase the fee this
year, but if it does the proposal
will be on the ballot this
spring.
Last year students voted
down a proposal to increase
See TECH, page 4
IN THIS ISSUE
Viking football wins
The Vikings won then-seventh
consecutive game
and now have hopes to
make the playoffs. Next
game is 1 p.mv Saturday at
Civic Field. .
See story, page 8.
Fishermen discuss
possible 1-696 effects
Local com­mercial
fish­ermen
talk
about the
possibility of
1-696 that
bans most
commercial
fishing in Washington state.
See story, page 6.
FRONT ONLINE
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