Column: Tightening belts

"The cheerful days of spring have finally arrived. Birds are chirping, the sun is shining and the weather is even warming up. But, all that tends to be forgotten during the post-Spring Break weeks, which are characterized by high stress - the thought of exams, papers and job searches constantly looming."

I definitely share these feelings. With about a month left before graduation, it is hard not to worry about leaving Lehigh and getting a job. Now I am caught between trying to enjoy each and every day of the rest of the semester and rushing through school work, job searches, etc.

These days everyone is so busy, but it is important to step back every now and then and think about what's important.

ATM scam extracted card and pin information

More than $43,000 was stolen from two Bethlehem banks because of a skimmer (a removable device that scans and stores credit card information) was attached to the banks' ATM's. Criminals who are yet to be fully identified, attached the skimmers to the card slot, where it read the card's magnetic strip. They also installed surveillance cameras to record pin numbers. Although the banks refunded their customer's money, ATM users are still at risk.

With the recession, it is likely we will see incidents like this continue in the future. Local investigator Rob Toronzi said ATM users should be very careful. "If there is something that protrudes out of the card holder, pull on it hard," Toronzi said. "If it comes off, then it is a skimming device. If all else fails, when you are putting in your pin number, just hide the pin number."

Toronzi advised people to look at images of skimming devices on the internet to educate themselves and to keep a close eye on their account balance.

Lehigh to take on No. 2 Auburn in N.J.

Congratulations to the girl's basketball team for making it to the NCAA Tournament! Although Lehigh ultimately lost to the No. 2 seeded Auburn Tigers, it was really exciting to see one of our teams finish such a successful season. It was also fun to see Lehigh being covered by the media and discussed on ESPN.

http://media.www.thebrownandwhite.com/media/paper1233/sections/20090320Sports.html

Hit-and-run leads to brief chase, ruined student car

I couldn't believe that someone would wreck a parked car and just drive away, especially on a busy street like Webster. The article quoted two students saying they and their friends ran outside when they heard the crash. The witnesses called 911 took down car's license plate information. It is still unclear who committed the hit-and-run, but is good to hear Lehigh students are looking out for one another.
It will be interesting to see if the next issue of the Brown and White reveals if the police found the suspect. This case is just one of the many crime stories that have appeared in the B&W lately. Do you think we need more police supervision off campus?

http://media.www.thebrownandwhite.com/media/storage/paper1233/news/2009/03/20/News/HitAndRun.Leads.To.Brief.Chase.Ruined.Student.Car-3676705.shtml

Lost Boys of Sudan tell stories of escape, success

The Lost Boys of Sudan (Northeastern Africa), who came to speak at Lehigh last Thursday said they grew up in refugee camps in Africa when they lost their parents to a (now) 20-year-civil war between the mostly Christian southern part of the country and the Arab northern part. The speakers said there is still no peace or democracy in Sudan.

Although the men that spoke were lucky enough to come to the US and make a living, many still struggle to escape violence and death. This talk reminded me of the film "Invisible Children;" a documentary about Sudan's neighbor Uganda and its people's efforts to escape violence. Children often sleep in the streets to escape The Lord's Resistance Army, an anti-government terrorist group that often forces children to kill innocent people (including family). "Invisible Children" is unbelievable and disturbing; it really puts life in perspective and makes day-to-day stresses and "problems" seem so trivial.

Link to part of video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnqAdV40QTE&feature=related

B&W articel: http://media.www.thebrownandwhite.com/media/storage/paper1233/news/2009/03/13/News/Lost-Boys.Of.Sudan.Tell.Stories.Of.Escape.Success-3670066.shtml

Despite drug violence, many travel to Mexico

With all the the media coverage on Mexico's drug wars, I would think that some students would have decided not to go to Mexico for spring break. But, according to Molly O'Neill's B&W article, students didn't let the U.S. Department of State's travel warnings. Do you think this is because trips had already been planned? Would we have seen a decrease in students traveling to Mexico if the news broke last semester, when most people were still planning trips?

http://media.www.thebrownandwhite.com/media/storage/paper1233/news/2009/03/13/News/Despite.Drug.Violence.Many.Travel.To.Mexico-3670060.shtml