Monday, April 7, 2008

Today’s Response
Middle Tennessee State University

The tragedy of TB

The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that nearly five percent of new cases of tuberculosis around the world are resistant to two or more drugs. Epidemiologists estimate that 40,000 new cases of a new type of drug-resistant TB pop up each year, and it has been found in 45 countries. This new strain takes $15,000 worth of drugs to treat. Dr. Stephen Wright, biology, says, “This respiratory disease is due to a bacterium and an active, untreated infection can be fatal. Most cases can be successfully treated, but treatment may require six months or more.” The WHO says there are about nine million new TB cases each year. About 1.6 million people die from the disease, second only to AIDS in deaths resulting from infectious illness.

Contact Wright at 615-898-2056.
smwright@mtsu.edu

From the bottom up

Is Washington Post reporter Robin Wright being too optimistic when she finds hope for Middle East peace in the work of grass roots activists using cell phones in Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, Morocco, Iraq and the Palestinian territories? Dr. Karen Petersen, political science, says, “Grass roots efforts to bring Palestinians and Israelis together are not new; and, while these efforts can change individuals, they do not generally have much impact behind those involved. Also, the media in the region, especially the Palestinian media and Hezbollah, tend to push an extremely radical agenda. So I am not optimistic that these activities will change the regional culture or even forestall what appears to be an impending renewal of violence.”

Contact Petersen at 615-494-8662.
kpeterse@mtsu.edu

The fight against violence

To generate awareness of the ongoing problem of violence against women, the June Anderson Women’s Center will present the annual Clothesline Project April 14-17 and “Take Back the Night” on Tuesday, April 15, on the MTSU campus. The Clothesline Project is a display of T-shirts decorated to symbolize fear, anger or other emotions associated with sexual assault. These T-shirts will be displayed Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the KUC Knoll. “Take Back the Night,” which is slated for 6-9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 15, is an evening rally that will feature concerned members of the campus community and the community at large speaking their minds on the issue of violence against women during an open microphone segment. The rally will be followed by a brief march on campus and a candlelight vigil.

For more information, contact the June Anderson Women’s Center at 615-898-2193.
jawc@mtsu.edu

TR EXTRA

ASSALAM ALAIKUM—The Muslim Students Association (MSA) at MTSU is turning part of its celebration of Islamic Awareness Week (April 7-10) into a tribute to a cherished friend whose life’s work embodied the group’s philosophy of interfaith cooperation and understanding. Today, April 7, from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., the MSA will staff an information table for Islamic Awareness Week and conduct a bake sale on the Keathley University Center knoll to raise money for the MTSU Art Department Scholarship Fund in honor of Dr. Lon Nuell. The 68-year-old art professor and faculty adviser to the Jewish student organization, Hillel, died March 12 of a massive stroke. To learn more and to find out about the rest of the week’s activities, contact Dr. Saleh Sbenaty at 615-494-7667 or ssbenaty@mtsu.edu or MSA President Nida Shirazi at nfs2c@mtsu.edu.

LOOKS AT BOOKS--The American Association of University Women, Murfreesboro Branch, will hold its annual book sale today and tomorrow, April 7 and 8, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Keathley University Center outside Phillips Bookstore. The proceeds of the AAUW book sale fund scholarships for two MTSU students each semester. Every dollar raised goes directly into the scholarship fund. For more information, send an e-mail to AAUWbooksale@mtsu.edu.

TELL ME A STORY--The Education Resource Channel (local Channel 9) at MTSU will begin a five-part series titled “Adventures in Storytelling” today, April 7. It will be repeated for the next six days. The second program will start April 14 and repeat for the remainder of that week, and so on. Each program in the series will be about 45 minutes long. The “Adventures in Storytelling” series has won the Parenting 2006 Media Award, DVD of the Year from Creative Child magazine, a Telly Award, the Dove Foundation Seal of Approval, and the Film Advisory Board Award of Excellence. For more information, contact Gail Fedak at 615-898-2740.

THE MIND BOGGLES--Sita Diehl, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness for the state of Tennessee, will speak on “A Closer Look at the Mental Health/Ex-Patient Movement in Tennessee” at 12:40 p.m. Wednesday, April 9, in Room 211 of Peck Hall. This event is free and open to the public and is sponsored by the Department of Political Science. For more information, contact Dr. Sekou Franklin at 615-940-8232 or franklin@mtsu.edu.

RAD-ICAL!--A series of six Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) classes will be offered at no charge every Thursday through May 1 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the MTSU police training room located at 1412 East Main Street. The class will be open to all female MTSU students, faculty and staff as well as to the general public. A workbook/training manual will be provided to each student. Enrollment is limited. For more information or to enroll, call MTSU RAD Instructor David Smith at 615-692-2424.