Western Front - 2006 January 20

              THE WESTERN F R O N TS
WESTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY An independent student newspaper serving the campus community since 1970. ISSUE 4, VOLUME 136
Baker reopens after record weekend
Unprecedented
amount of snow falls
over weekend
BY PETER JENSEN
The Western Front
After a historic snowfall closed the Mt.
Baker Ski Area during the Martin Luther King
Jr. holiday weekend, it reopened Wednesday
to the delight of Western students who ski or
snowboard.
The ski area received more than nine feet
of snowfall Friday and Saturday, making it too
dangerous to open for business, but pleasing
those who suffered through the area's sparse
snow season and frequent closures last year, ski
area spokeswoman Gwyn Howat said.
"In some places, you would be up to your
arms in snow," Howat said about the weekend's
snowfall.
Heavy snowfall made the area susceptible
to avalanches, and the area's avalanche
crews worked through the holiday weekend,
deliberately triggering avalanches with
dynamite to make the area safe to open
Wednesday, Howat said.
The area also had to wait for the snowfall
to harden, which occurred Monday when rain
softened the snow and then froze overnight, she
said.
Western senior and snowboarder Kurt
Hildahl, who went to the ski area Wednesday,
said the heavy snowfall was a mixed blessing.
"I didn't like that it was closed for five days
and over the weekend," Hildahl said. "It was a
bummer, but getting snow is never a bad thing."
see CLOSURE, page 5
JARED YOAKUM / THE WESTERN FRONT
Western junior Sean McKillop lays down in some late afternoon powder
at Mt. Baker Ski Area on Wednesday.
Heavy snow
creates dangerous
conditions
BY MOLLY MALONEY
The Western Front
The treacherous weather conditions at
the Mt. Baker Ski Area have claimed the
lives of three people this season, two of
which died in the past 10 days.
The two men who died most
recently both fell into tree wells while
snowboarding.
Michael Jackson, executive director of
the Alpine Safety Awareness Program, an
organization that educates students about
the risks associated with alpine sports, said
a tree well is where the branches on a tree
stop snow from falling in and around the
tree trunk. The snow pack builds around
the trees, a hollow space gets bigger and
deeper, creating the tree well.
Sedro Woolley resident Nathan
Rawhouser, 30, died of anoxic brain
damage and hypothermia Jan. 14.
On Jan. 9, Bellingham resident
Matthew Aaron Chase, 31, died of anoxic
brain damage, due to a lack of oxygen
to the brain, Whatcom County Medical
Examiner Dr. Gary Goldfogel said.
British Columbia resident Trinity
J. McQuair, 21, was the first to die this
season at the ski area Nov. 27, from open
cranial trauma after falling off a cliff
while skiing, Goldfogel said. He said
toxicology reports revealed alcohol and
see AVALANCHES, page 5
House to vote on student loan cuts in February
BY BORIS KURBANOV
The Western Front
Western freshman Tekleweini Melashu, an
Ethiopian immigrant who relies on student loans
to attend college, will likely pay more after the
Senate passed a bill Dec. 21 that will raise the
interest rates on student loans.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed
the bill Dec. 19 before the Senate passed it a
slightly different version 51-50 on Dec. 21,
according to the Library of Congress. The
House will revote Feb. 1.
Melashu tore a knee ligament last quarter
while participating in soccer intramurals,
adding $500 in medical expenses to his already
limited budget.
With loans and bills, the injury was another
financial burden he didn't need, he said.
Melashu said he is concerned the bill will
leave him with even more school-related debt,
making it difficult to continue pursuing his health
and physical education degree.
"I have about $5,000 in student loans,"
Melashu said. "If I don't get these loans at a rate
where I could pay them off, I will either drop out
or transfer."
Clara Capron, director of the financial aid
office at Western, said the measure would cut
$12.7 billion in federal student aid to help slow
the growth of federal spending, such as the war
in Iraq and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, over the
next five years while increasing interest rates on
student loans, Capron said.
Melashu said he plans to move back to
Ethiopia after graduating to help citizens receive
proper medication and health care.
"It's important that I receive a degree and
help out the poor in my country," Melashu said.
"Completing my education is also important
where I come from."
The interest rate on student and parent loans
— now both variable rates at 5.3 percent and 7.9
percent — will become fixed, at 6.8 percent and
see AID, page 3
CHRIS HUBER / THE WESTERN FRONT
Western freshman Tekleweini Melashu takes notes in a math class
in Bond Hall on Jan. 11.
ROCKIN'WEEKEND
The All-Nighters performs at the
Rogue Hero and Typical Ace per­forms
at the Pickford Dreamspace.
ACCENT, PAGE 8
CHILD'S PLAY
Western athletes spend time
off the field coaching for local
youth teams.
SPORTS, PAGE 10
LOOK OUT AMERICA
The Rubicons, the sexier, badder
cousin to Neoconservatives, aim
for the top spot.
OPINIONS, PAGE 13
WEATHER
Saturday: Showers
Hi: 44 Low: 34
Sunday: Cloudy
Hi: 46 Low: 32
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