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Volume CXXXI, Number 23 |
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News briefs
Vatican addresses sexual abuse
In meetings with American Cardinals this past week, Pope John Paul II
publicly addressed the cases of sexual abuse that are currently rocking
the American Catholic Church.
As meetings drew to a close Wednesday, the Vatican released a new set of initiatives that would aid in the removal of priests involved in sexual scandal. Proposed is a new "one strike and you're out" set of guidelines that would immediately remove priests in question from positions within the church.
House eliminates U.S. Immigration Agency
The House of Representatives voted yesterday to dissolve the Immigration
and Naturalization Service by a vote of 405-to-9.
The I.N.S. has, for a long time, been under great pressure to close down.
The events of last September 11 sparked a renewed interest in the agency,
as many feel the agency has not been effectively protecting the U.S. borders.
The I.N.S. will most likely reopen as a new government agency with new guidelines and leadership.
France stunned by Le Pen's success
National Front party leader, Jean-Marie Le Pen, beat Socialist Lionel
Jospin in the first round of the French presidential election, which was
held last Sunday.
The National Front is widely criticized for its right-wing extremist,
anti-immigrant and isolationist policies. Le Pen has been fined for racist
and anti-Semitic remarks.
European leaders have responded with statements against Le Pen's platform
and French citizens have organized protests.
Le Pen is widely expected to lose in the May 5th runoff to incumbent Jacques Chirac.
Argentina halts bank transactions
In an attempt to halt the extreme amount of withdrawals from bank accounts,
Argentine President Eduardo Duhalde instituted a moratorium on all bank
transactions until further notice.
Paychecks cannot be cashed, and many banks are not refilling their ATMs,
making it difficult for Argentines to access their money.
Shops and businesses are suffering greatly, as their normal sales have
been slashed.
Some stores are not accepting credit or debit cards, some are accepting
only exact change.
Argentines are currently unsure as to when the freeze on bank activity will be lifted.
Harvard wrestles with its own plus/minus debate
As on the Bowdoin campus, there is concern in Cambridge regarding the
intricacies of single letter grading.
Harvard is currently under weighing the impact of the B plus.
Harvard students are graded on an F to A scale, which includes pluses
and minuses. There is, however a fifteen digit numerical point scale which
accompanies each letter.
In computing academic performance, the A is worth fifteen points, the
A minus is worth fourteen, and the B plus is worth twelve.
This discrepancy between the A minus and the B plus creates a huge gap in the average grade point averages of Harvard students.