The revolution will be computerized
A college student has been pinpointed as the culprit of last week’s hack into Gov. Sarah Palin’s personal e-mail account. David Kernell, 20, of the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, is allegedly being held responsible for pulling the virtual wool over Yahoo’s eyes and hacking into Palin’s account.
The hack revealed that Palin was conducting state business on her personal e-mail account, as well as exchanging cyber-prayers with friends to gather strength in the face of negative press.
Kernell, who is the son of a Democratic state representative, described his hack on a message board as “easy.” Kernell functioned under an anonymous handle which had previously targeted Scientology Web sites.
We salute Kernell for planting the seed of nonviolent Internet revolution into the minds of tech-savvy twenty-somethings nationwide. And we applaud Palin who, unlike her running mate, knows how to use e-mail.
Airing grievances
Students and staff at Texas Christian University are among the first to officially criticize the Higher Education Act during a recent public hearing.
The act, which was renewed for the first time in a decade, greatly increases the red tape schools must navigate in order to run efficiently. According to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, TCU’s chancellor, Victor J. Boschini, Jr., aired the school’s concern that the act will elevate their expenditures and bog down staff with tedious reporting
requirements.
Similarly, officers at the school worry that the law’s more stringent limits on preferred lenders will create a roadblock for financial aid offices trying to help students. And Catherine L. Coghlan, TCU’s assistant director of institutional research, expressed fear that students will be forced to choose classes based on textbook prices because of the legislation’s professed book cost caps.
Determination of regulations for the act will extend into the next president’s term, but as we see it, whoever wins in November will be welcomed to the White House by a hamper full of dirty educational laundry.
Poor Pell Grants
Recent economic downturns have resulted in an announcement made by Bush administration officials to Congress that the nation’s most important federal aid program could be up to $6 billion short this year.
The administration also declared that the loss may have to be made up for through an addition of $6 billion in taxpayer funds next year. Created in 1972, the Pell Grant has long provided a helping hand to college students in need of financial aid. As of July 31, 800,000 more students than last year had applied for the grants, but without the necessary funds, many will not be able to afford higher education costs.
According to a recent New York Times article, nine out of 10 recipients of the Pell Grants come from families with an income of less than $40,000 per year. As tuition rates increase, so do the number of students attending college and applying for financial aid. In order to ensure the continued success of future generations, we believe it will be up to individual colleges to push the next administration to work together with Congress in order to lessen the financial hardships students are facing.
Viva el mercado libre!
After dodging hurricanes, investigative journalists and one particularly unreceptive UT-Brownsville president, the poor public servants over at the Department of Homeland Security have hit yet another wall.
According to The Texas Observer, Cemex, a huge building supply provider based out of Monterrey, Mexico, will not sell any concrete to the U.S. government for the construction of the border wall. And, as Cemex is the largest concrete company in the U.S., that means any concrete would have to come from Houston or as far away as Colorado, according to one Homeland Security official.
While it is not certain that this move was the result of any political motivations, it is hard to imagine why else one of the largest concrete providers in the world would be wary of entering into a lucrative government contract.
