In the Know

TOP STORIES

About 2500 student here on U-T’s campus had sensitive information exposed online according to a Washington-based watchdog group.

U-T learned of the problem all the way back in January and immediately restricted access to the information…which included things like personal tax returns, test scores and social security numbers.

However…the Liberty Coalition says that copies of the information could be found on Yahoo search until May.

The University has said that less than 50 students were personally identifiable.

The affected students have already been notified.

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The family of a U-T student who died after a night of binge drinking at a fraternity party is announcing its settlement in a lawsuit filed against the frat and its members.

Phanta ‘Jack’ Phoummarath say was found dead at the Lambda Phi Epsilon house back in December of 2005.

Phoummarath’s parents settled for approximately four million dollars and some conditions which included having the defendants participate in an anti-hazing video. An attorney for the family says the money will be used to help fund the video and will also be used as a scholarship reward for a student who has created an anti-binge drinking group on campus.

The family filed a wrongful death suit against the Lambda Phi Epsilon national and local Zeta Chapter back in January of 2006.

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Today the Massachusetts Senate repealed a law from 1913.

The result?

Same-sex couples from out-of-state can now go to Massachusetts to get married.

Massachusetts was the first state to allow same-sex marriages more than four years ago.

While the reasons for the repeal mostly has to do with discrimination…the potential economic benefits have also been taken into consideration.

The State of Massachusetts just released a study saying that in the next three years more than 32,000 couples will get married there.

This could create more than 300 permanent jobs and add more than 110 million dollars to the economy.

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The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation is awarding a $75,000 grant to upgrade the Texas Education Agency’s student progress tracking system.

The state has already set aside $4.8 million to renovate the agency’s primary data collection system.

The decision to overhaul the system was made after the state legislature reviewed a report in 2002 that showed it was outdated.

The upgrade is said to be able to provide information that schools can use to see what’s working and what’s not when it comes to student progress.

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The Texas Public Policy Foundation unveiled its newest Web site last week - www.TexasBudgetWatch.org.

The site aims to provide government transparency to taxpayers. Following the example of State Comptroller Susan Combs and her “Where the Money Goes” Web site, TexasBudgetWatch.org is complete with spending information from up to 10 years ago and a Spend-O-Meter that provides updated information on current state spending.

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The City of Austin faces a budget deficit of over $20 million dollars.

The city’s budget office is meeting with the City Council between now and next Wednesday to discuss solutions to the budget shortfall for the upcoming fiscal period.

Results of the meeting and who will pay for the city’s deficit will become public information after next Wednesday, July 23rd.

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The Austin Convention Center hosted the state Democratic convention earlier this year. Now it will be filled once again as the liberal blogging website Netroots Nation kicks off its 2008 conference Thursday. The four-day event includes speakers such as Nancy Pelosi and Howard Dean. Bloggers on the site chose Austin as the cite of this year’s conference because of Texas’ prominent role in the political blogosphere.

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One non-profit organization is doing its part to help pass a ban on some processed meats used on school menus.

The Cancer Project launched their commercial campaign entitled “Protect our Kids” this week here in Austin. They’re trying to get deli meat, hot dogs, and hamburgers taken off school menus.

The campaign says that such processed meats cause cancer. The group has based their claims on a report conducted by the American Institute for Cancer Research and the World Cancer Research Fund.

The report itself says,”Red or processed meats are convincing or probable causes of some cancers.” They recommend that consumers avoid processed meats.

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 U-T Medical School at Houston researchers say they’ve found a way to stop AIDS from spreading. One of the reasons doctors can’t vaccinate for AIDS is that the virus constantly mutates.

But the researchers discovered a constant…the site where the virus attaches to other cells… Amino acids numbers 421-433 on g-p-120. Researcher Dr. Paul is now working on abzymes that would kill various strains of H-I-V by attacking that site.

The World Health Organization says that in 2007, more than 33 million people were living with AIDS.

Researchers intend to present supporting data from two additional studies at The International AIDS Conference on Aug. 3-8 in Mexico City. The journal article is titled “Catalytic antibodies to HIV: Physiological role and potential clinical utility”.

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 Attention, expecting mothers! Midwives are back! Austin hospitals have been without a midwives since Seton and Brackenridge closed their programs in 2002.

Beginning in August, St. David’s North Austin Medical Center will have nurse midwives who routinely see expecting patients throughout their pregnancy and then deliver the baby naturally without medication.

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NASA set a date for the final shuttle mission. May 31st, 2010. That’s four months before the shuttle fleet retires. But they still have 15 flights left in them…Five this year, five next year, and three in 2010.

They do intend to build new crafts so that astronauts can once again walk on the moon.

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Be a doctor. Get paid up front. Spend more time with patients, and don’t mess around with insurance companies. Sounds impossible, you say? A new method of physician care - called concierge medicine - is slowly gathering momentum across Central Texas.

In the concierge system, patients pay annual fees or retainers to primary care physicians, and they receive all hours access to the doctor by phone, thorough visits, emphasis on preventative care and overall health. People in support of the concierge model say it reduces overhead, paperwork, and patient volumes so you don’t have to deal with insurance companies as much.

However, those patients who can’t afford the upfront fee are not able pay for the concierge model - mainly those who rely on Medicare and health insurance. Faced with a possible 10 percent Medicare reimbursement cut, doctors are tempted to switch from the traditional model in order to survive.

This news was brought to you by the KVRX News team

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Let’s talk about sex, baby…sex education that is!

Back in 1995, the state of Texas decided to approach sexual education by adopting abstinence-only programs. Now, over a decade later, many are challenging the current curriculum saying it’s unrealistic and counterproductive.

With teen pregnancy on the rise, can abstinence-only programs be partly to blame? Or is promiscuity and society in general the true culprit?

Be sure to join us tonight at 7pm on 91.7 KVRX Austin. Let us know what you think: should we be teaching our kids about ’safe sex’ rather than ‘no sex?’ Would it really make a difference? Give us a call at 512-495-KVRX or blog with us here at the site.

See ya tonight! And don’t forget your rubbers!

-XO-

*photo taken from Shenzhen Undercover*

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July 9th 2008

Japan hosted the Group of Eight’s most recent policy meeting.

On the docket… figuring out climate change…fighting hunger…and helping Africa.

Advocacy groups say that Africa isn’t getting as much aid as it used to. G-eight nations gave three of the twenty-five billion dollars pledged to African nations. Without addressing how to fix the sluggish economy in the U-S, President Bush spoke about squashing North Korea’s nuclear efforts. He also said even though people have been telling him not to go to the Olympics in Beijing…he’s going.

Other countries challenged the G-8 to focus on cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2020. The U-S refused to set that goal.

Leading industrial nations China, India, Mexico, Brazil and South Africa have been dubbed the G-five. They’re the ones challenging the G-8.

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Six people are dead after a group of gunmen opened fire on the U-S consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

Istanbul Governor Muammer Guler says three policemen and three gunmen were among those killed.

Police are saying that the suspects more than likely belonged to a Turkish Sunni Islamic fundamentalist group.

Guler says he has no doubt that this was a terrorist attack.

The U-S consulate was previously located in the center of Istanbul. However, after the 9/11 attacks, it was moved to a hill on the outskirts of town.

This is one of the deadliest attacks Turkey has seen since a November 2003 attack that left 58 people dead.

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Today the Senate supported a wiretap bill that would give legal immunity to phone companies that participate in the wiretapping program.

The bill also makes it easier for the government to spy on people both in the United States and abroad who may be linked to terrorism.

The plan was approved by a vote of 69 to 28.

It revised the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and amounts to the biggest restructuring of federal surveillance law in 30 years.

This legislation allows seven day period where foreigners can be targeted for wiretapping without a court order in “exigent circumstances”.

This would be if government officials say that important national security information could otherwise be lost.

The law also gives the government more time to emergency wiretap Americans…seven days instead of three…if the attorney general believes the suspect is linked to terrorism.

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The first hurricane of 2008 is officially in the books and makes its way west across the Atlantic.

The National Hurricane Center says as of Monday…Hurricane Bertha was 845 miles east of the northern Leeward Islands.

Bertha races towards the Caribbean with winds gusting at 75 miles-per-hour.

The hurricane center says it is still too early to predict where exactly Bertha will hit.

There are now more than a thousand people suffering from salmonella, making it the worst food outbreak in over a decade.

Although raw tomatoes are still considered to be the main culprit, the Centers for Disease Control and Protection say we should also watch out for cilantro and peppers such as jalapenos.

So far, two deaths have been associated with the salmonella outbreak-both of which have come from Texas.

Hundreds of others have already been hospitalized because of the illness.

However, the C-D-C says that for every case reported to the government, another 30 or 40 go undiagnosed or unreported.

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Former Houston congressman and Democratic gubernatorial nominee Chris Bell is expected to prepare for a Texas State Senate bid.

The Austin American-Statesman reported earlier this week that Bell will file paperwork to appoint a campaign treasurer. According to a Bell political consultant, he is leaning towards running for state senate in Texas’ 17th district - one that was recently vacated after Republican Kyle Janek left to become a lobbyist.

If Bell decides to make a bid, he will face Austen Furse, a former policy planning director for President George Bush, Sr.

Republican State Representative Warren Chisum made public his plans to reintroduce a two-year waiting period for all Texas divorces in this upcoming legislative session.

The Pampa representative unsuccessfully proposed a similar waiting period for divorces last year.

If passed in the legislature, the law would require couples who wanted to file for divorce to wait for two years or take a marriage counseling class.

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Another day, another hit for the airline industry. Regional carrier ExpressJet has announced that it will discontinue its service effective September 2.

The airline named high fuel costs as the primary reason for the move.

American Airlines told the Texas Workforce Commission that it would be laying off approximately 209 workers at Texas airports.

26 of those layoffs are to be from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

Other airports that will be hit with layoffs include El Paso Int’l Airport, San Antonio Int’l Airport, Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

The hardest hit will be Dallas/Fort Worth Int’l Airport - with 158 jobs cut.

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Johnston high school is changing it’s name…and it’s asking Austinites for suggestions.

The school didn’t meet the TAKS requirements for the fifth year in a row… so it was closed down back in May.

But the commissioner of Education reopened it… and now it needs a new name. The deadline to nominate one is July 20th.

For name guidelines go to Austinisd.org.

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Austin police are reviewing an incident that happened Tuesday at a park. A loaded Glock handgun was found by parents at Circle C Metropolitan Park in Southwest Austin. The gun was registered to an APD officer who was at the park for K-9 training. Police are investigating how the gun may have been left at the park and have already suspended use of the type of holster the officer had while the incident is under review.

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And in Pamplona Spain, 13 people were hurt in the annual running of the bulls festival.  In this video you can see at least four people get trampled. It’s crazy. The bull Run festival runs through the 14th which is next Tuesday.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7493155.stm

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And you know what, let’s not stop there. Let’s go around the whole world in 80 seconds…courtesy of CNN

Europe

. Serbia pledges to catch war criminals

. Deadly U.S. consulate gun battle ‘terrorism’

. Russia warns U.S. after missile deal signed

Asia

. World leaders avoid setting greenhouse target

. Patrol exposes Afghan risks

. Chinese police slay five in shootout

Middle East

. 21 bodies buried at Iraq school site

. Iranian shelling reported in northern Iraq

. Iraq wants U.S. withdrawal deadline

. U.S. carrier in position for Afghanistan strikes

Americas

. Extradition sought for FARC members

. Mexican comic-book character called racist

. Nazi hunters search Chile for ‘Dr. Death’

. Truck falls 650 feet; at least 46 killed

Africa

. Deadly attack on U.N. Darfur peacekeepers

. Rwandan war crimes suspect held in Germany

. Gunmen kill fourth U.N. driver in Somalia

Kenya’s finance minister resigns over scandal

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Ibiza, Spain

The Euro Show
We had to do a summer travel episode. I’m gettin’ off this continent immediately after I graduate; so, I want to find out which areas in Europe house delicious wine producers, which beaches are highly recommended and what it takes to hang out there. I haven’t really planned out the specifics of the trip…except that I’m going….And who better to help me find out more info than In The Know journalists?

In Tonight’s show we’ll talk about fun locations in Spain, the practical things you should consider when you travel to these places, and whether you can really bring back absinthe.

Listen to In The Know tonight from 7-7:30 p.m. on 91.7FM or listen.kvrx.org

-V

In case you missed the show, or would rather DL it into your mp3 player, here it is.

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 ITK A EUROTRIP: SPAIN : Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

4 hosts.  One Show:  In The Know

Now you can listen to the unedited glory that aired on the humpday before Independence Day.

Revel in the Adventure.  The Ambition. The Trivia.

 

 American: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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A new national report from the Allstate Insurance Company shows that Austin drivers are 35 percent more likely to be in an accident than the national average – over ten percent more likely than drivers in Houston, Dallas or San Antonio. Allstate looked at insurance claims for the 200 largest cities in the country and compared it to the national average. The report also showed that Austin drivers have accidents most frequently among other Texas drivers – an average of one collision every 7.4 years.
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Those of you who don’t exercise while listening to In The Know, take heed! The Texas Department of State Health Services says that students’ fitness levels decline with each year they spend in public schools. A recent survey finds that 35 percent of Texas students are obese. Younger grades tested relatively better than the older ones, with 32 percent of girls and 28 percent of boys in third grade considered in the best shape among their peers. Those numbers drop by 12th grade, where 8 percent of girls and 9 percent of boys share that same distinction. The Austin Independent School District aims to combat these figures with more structured physical activity required in all levels of schooling.
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The Capital Metro board approved a policy Monday that would allow for transit to Austin suburbs. The plan would give suburban commuters more transportation options with the rising price of gas and would require each city to pay for the full cost of any buses and rail provided by CapMetro.
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Apparently that smell around campus, yeah, it isn’t pot.

An assessment conducted by the American College Health Association this spring shows that nearly 13 percent of students polled admitted to smoking marijuana occasionally over the course of a month. Almost one percent of those asked said they smoked pot every day.

But U-T-P-D Officer William Pieper says although marijuana is commonly seen on campus, alcohol is more prevalent.

According to police reports, there have been ten drug-and alcohol related citations and arrests made within the past couple of weeks.
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Joe Horn was acquitted earlier this week for shooting and killing two burglars who were robbing his neighbor’s home. Horn, an AT&T retiree, saw two men breaking into his neighbor’s home in November. Horn called 911 and then ran out with a shotgun to confront the burglars as they headed towards his home.

The two men were identified as Houston residents Hernando Torres and Diego Ortiz, two convicted criminals from Columbia who had entered the country illegally. They were found with a sack containing $2,000 and jewelry taken from Horn’s neighbor’s home.

Members from Horn’s Pasadena community wanted him to face charges for the shootings. Supporters said Horn was legally protected under the Texas Penal Code, which justifies the use of deadly force to protect property. After looking at the evidence and hearing testimony, a Grand Jury cleared Horn of all charges.
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Attention all college students with loans: put away your Ramen!

It was announced this week that the interest rate for Stafford loans has decreased from 6-point-8 percent to 6 percent.

Rates will continue to decrease over the course of four years until they hit 3-point-4 percent.

The new cuts are a part of a piece of legislation signed into law by W last year.

In order to fund the interest rate cuts, Congress will slash federal subsidies to private lenders who provide loans and grants.

The Stafford Loan is one of the more popular need-based loans that students can take out.

The law also increases the Pell Grant by 490-dollars. Nearly 5 million students are awarded that grant every year.

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Watermelon. A cheaper Viagra? Is that why Mom said we weren’t supposed to eat the black seeds? Well, hold the Bar B Q Sauce and Pass the watermelon, boys. Researchers are saying that watermelon has an amino acid called citrulline in it. Citrulline relaxes and dilates blood vessels. Just like Viagra. How it works: citrulline is converted into arginine which is a precursor for nitric oxide which dilates the blood vessels. Sha-wing!
Four ounces of watermelon has about 150 milligrams of citrulline. That means it would probably take about three-eight ounce glasses daily of melon juice for three weeks to see a difference in performance. So this Fourth of July, if you’re munchin’ on watermelon, expect to see fireworks in the sky… not your pants.

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Now, despite the fact that this show is our Ode to America show, we’d like to keep you up to date with what’s going on around the world. Fasten your seat belts, because we’re going around the world in 80 seconds. Courtesy of CNN…

Europe
· Prince William aids $80m drug smuggling bust
· UK waits for Parliament to ban Hezbollah supporters
· Russian president unveils anti-corruption plan

Asia
· State of emergency declared in Mongolia
· Police seize 9 terror suspects in Indonesia
· Japan’s stock index, Nikkei, in longest downward slide since 1965

Middle East
· Stones vs. water cannons at Egypt-Gaza border
· Hezbollah agree to prisoner swap with Israel
· Jordan’s king to visit Iraq
· Iraq: Deal would end contractors’ immunity

Americas
· General opposed to Chavez slogan released
· McCain talks trade in Colombia
· Cuba says U.S. behind protests for July Fourth
· Police ‘torture’ videos cause uproar in Mexico

Africa
· Namibia to sell black rhinos, other wildlife
· Defiant Mugabe blasts West, tells Britain to ‘hang’
· Nigeria pushes talks to halt oil attacks
· Zimbabwe overshadows Africa summit

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Forget the hot dogs and the hamburgers, what you need is a big bite of In the Know kids! Join us this week as we celebrate our nation’s birth. Can you believe that the U-S-of-A is 232 years old?! Man, have we come a long way since then…or have we?

Tonight we will be talking about what it means to be an ‘American.’ Over the past few years, many people (particularly minorities) have been deemed ‘not American’ enough by today’s society–but why is that? What makes a good American? Does one have to be overtly patriotic to be considered a true American?

What about your three hyphenated-American ITK hosts? Are we any less American because of that hyphen? Let me just add that Vanessa, Abhinav, and I were all born in the U.S.–does that make a difference?

We’ll also talk about what we at ITK consider to be the TOP THREE events that have shaped the U.S. over the years. Perhaps the Civil War? the Civil Rights Movement? WWII?

All this and more on tonight’s show. Be sure to join us at 7 PM on 91.7 KVRX Austin. If you would like to participate in our little extravaganza, go ahead and give us a call at 512-495-KVRX or blog with us here on the site! See you tonight. Don’t forget the fireworks!

-XO-

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Giant 15,000 pound tree graces UT campus

How many workers does it take to plant a tree?

At the University of Texas it took at least 25 people and 50 spectators.

That’s because the live oak tree they planted weighs about 15,000 pounds.

A crane lifted the tree over six stories into the AT&T Education and Conference Center courtyard Saturday.

The 25-foot tall, 25-feet wide tree was selected because it looks like a classic hill country oak.

It took three months to get the tree ready for the move and almost a full morning to put it in place.

“It’s slow moving, very tedious, very specialized. And we definitely don’t want to drop it,” Ann Coleman, a landscape architect said.

The tree cost about 30,000.

It will sit in the third floor of the conference center.

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The Senate couldn’t decide what to do about gas prices and climate change…so they went home to blow stuff up.

Both parties have gone home for the 4th of July holiday, leaving tax breaks and renewable energy production documents in the chamber.

Really dispelling that “do-nothing” Congress nickname, guys.

Not saying that Congress did nothing this year.

There was that stimulus package.

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Archbishop Raymond Burke heads up the Vatican Supreme Court now.

As of yesterday, he is the first American to hold the position.

The Archbishop from St. Louis is the one who denied communion to John Kerry because Kerry supported the right to abort.

What about the right to say, “No father, I have not sinned.”

It’s hard enough to walk a few miles in sneakers.

But Neil Sauter crossed the state of Michigan…in stilts.

Two months and six stilts later, Sauter had travelled 830 miles.

And raised more than 64-thousand dollars for cerebral Palsy.

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A-T-&-T is moving their headquarters to downtown Dallas.

The telecom giant’s home base is in San Antonio right now.

It’s taking more than 700 workers along for the move.

The San Antonio Economic Development Foundation says they didn’t see it coming.

The company had been asking for more non stop flights to New York and other large cities… But D/FW had more…

When it’s all said and done, AT&T will be the second largest company in the D-F W area.

More than 5,000 tech jobs will stay in San Antonio.

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This week on In the Know, we are asking you once more: What would you do?

Last week’s show concerning ethical dilemmas was so entertaining that we have decided to come back to this topic.

For instance, what would you do if the person you were seeing revealed to you that they were transgendered? Would that be a reason to call it quits? Also,  if you were driving on a lone road and saw someone pulled over on the shoulder, would you get down to help them?

Join us tonight, Wednesday, at 7 pm on 91.7 KVRX Austin.  512-495-KVRX is our # in the booth.  You can also blog with us here on the site and let us know what you think.  We’ll check the blog while we’re on the air.
What would you do if a good-looking ITK host asked you to please blog with us? I think you know the answer to that one!

-XO-

[photo courtesy of UConn’s Women’s Center]

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U-T’s student government met yesterday to talk about stuff they want to do next year. About 25 students, including SG reps, showed up to the meeting. They didn’t come to any conclusions except that they intend to talk about health care and tuition sometime soon.
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City Council is changing the curfew (for minors) from 10PM to 11PM. They get an extra hour for their shenanigans now.
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The governor’s mansion is going green. The air conditioners and other mechanical systems that were being put in before the big blaze, were ruined when firefighters were putting out the fire. Rick Perry says he’s all about it. No word on how much it will cost taxpayers.
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Flooding in the Midwest continues as water broke through an Illinois levee and caused two bridges over the Mississippi River to close Tuesday. The floods have caused billions of dollars in damage, according to FEMA. Residents further south along the Mississippi are expecting more flooding as the cresting river moves downstream.
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The Republican Party of Texas will donate 15-hundred dollars it received to lease a booth at its state convention last week.

The vendor to whom the booth was leased to has come under fire for selling a button that reads, “If Obama is President, will we still call it the White House?”

Texas Republicans spokesman Hans Klinger says he and others consider the pin to be distasteful and believe it contradicted the purpose of their convention.

Klinger says the vendor will no longer be allowed to sell at any other state Republican events.
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A Muslim woman says that she and another woman were refused seats behind Barack Obama because of their head scarfs.

Hebba Aref says that she and the other woman were attending Obama’s rally in Detroit on Monday when the groups they were with separately were invited by volunteers to sit behind the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee.

Aref says that’s when volunteers then told both parties that women wearing hijabs, the traditional Muslim head scarves, were not included in that invitation saying it was “a sensitive political climate.” Members of both groups eventually declined the invitations.

An Obama spokesman has issued an apology on behalf of the campaign and says the actions go against the senator’s commitment for unity.
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Senator John McCain is pushing for the U.S. to end its ban on offshore oil drilling to increase domestic oil production. The Republican presidential hopeful addressed the country’s oil needs Tuesday by saying federal restrictions should be lifted to allow for exploration of the nation’s oil reserves. President Bush has expressed a
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Internet users all over the world are still downloading the newly released version of Firefox.

It came out yesterday after three years in the making.

The web browser’s new features allow for more customization, like add-ons and extensions. It has an “Awesome Bar” that learns your browsing habits, tags and site history. Firefox 3 also promises to run faster and provide better security.

Firefox even tried to set a Guinness World Record for the most software downloaded in 24 hours.

Though they hit a snag yesterday when their servers crashed for two hours because of too much traffic on the web site.

More than 8 million people downloaded Firefox 3 after a single day…but the company is still waiting to hear whether they made the world record.
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AT&T and TWC are beginning to charge heavy users once they hit a bandwidth mark. That sucks.
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Tonight is also a full moon. …A full moon is where we get the term lunatic from. It was used to describe people who acted strange on a full moon

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