Professional Documents
Culture Documents
the Brown
vol. cxxii, no. 89
Thursday, OcTOber 18, 2012
INsIde
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since 1891
UCStudent fee
Council raises activities fee, talks Morning Mail overhaul
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Corporate woe
Moraff 14 calls for a more democratic U. government Page 8
Hospital cure
Court approves R.I. hospitals acquisition by for-profit chain
today tomorrow
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Donning a Brown baseball cap, clasping his hands and inclining with a slight bow, his holiness the 14th Dalai Lama of tibet took the stage before an audience of thousands of students, faculty members and Providence residents yesterday afternoon, delivering a speech titled A Global Challenge: Creating a Culture of Peace. Firstly, I want to show you my real face, he opened, taking off the hat and continuing with a series of jokes about his balding head and white hair. Despite his initial humor, his speech quickly turned to the serious matter of peace and its relation to cultural identity, scientific developments and the environment. we are the same human being, mentally, emotionally, physically, he said, explaining that when he meets new people, he feels like he already knows them. Kinship is intrinsically linked to a happy life a theme he
returned to throughout his lecture while violence only perpetuates a cycle of fear, stress and frustration, he said. to illustrate this, he pointed to the bloody history of the 20th century, which featured nazi aggression and wars in Korea and Vietnam, as well as the use of scientific innovation to bring about immense violence in the case of the atom bomb. This 21st century should be a century of dialogue, he said. his holiness stressed respectful dialogue as the most constructive foundation for peace. he called on audience members below 30, 20 and 15 years of age to raise their hands and then appealed to them as the future of this century. Above all, he emphasized the importance of cooperation. If you are being swept away by an immense wave, one individual cannot rise above that tide, his translator filled in for him. The Dalai Lama then turned to science and the environment, which he described as moral and practical issues because life / / Lama page 2
digital scholarship lab supports visual learning Website highlights in-state internships
By kiki barnes
contributing writer
his holiness the 14th Dalai Lama spoke of the need for a century of dialogue in his lecture at the rhode island convention center Wednesday.
The Patrick Ma Digital Scholarship Lab will be open for classes and individual student use in the rockefeller Library this month. Featuring 12 55-inch highresolution LeD panels, the seven-foot high, 16-foot long video wall provides high-quality imaging capability to Brown faculty and students, according to a University press release. Classes are starting to use the lab as early as this week, and the space will be open for student use later this month, said Patrick rashleigh, the librarys newly appointed data visualization coordinator, who will oversee the lab. were all used to projectors, he said, but classroom projectors get kind of fuzzy when you enlarge an image. The monitors in the lab use 24 million pixels to provide the highest resolution imaging available on campus. each of the 12 seats in front of the
display includes a cord that can plug into any laptop. The laptops display is then converted into a high-resolution image that can be shown on the monitors. There are numerous configurations capable for display, and up to 12 different computers can be projected at the same time. The sound-proof lab includes a surround sound audio system and two cameras with video conferencing capabilities. There will also be two additional touch-screen monitors that can be linked to the display or used independently, said harriet hemmasi, University librarian. Its to the extreme, hemmasi said. The lab is a state-of-the-art viewing and analytical space, she said. The display wall holds many additional uses and possibilities, such as turning microscopic images from the biological sciences into macroscopic images that are more easily observed. The wall can also be an
exhibition space for digital art. The lab can connect its display to other places on campus, such as the Perry and Marty Granoff Center for Creative Arts, hemmasi said. The library is planning to offer a prize to the student who thinks of the most creative use of the lab, hemmasi said. A timeline has not yet been set for the contest. The lab is a very flexible facility that promotes comparison, discussion and interpretation, said Andrew Ashton, director of library digital technologies. It goes far beyond. what is a library? Its not just books anymore, hemmasi said. Its a space for production, interpretation, creative use of technology and integrated technology. The idea for the lab came out of a research project in 2007, hemmasi said. Andy van Dam, professor of computer science, and Massimo riva, professor of Italian studies, were work-
ing on a digitization of the Garibaldi Panorama, she said. Measuring 4.5 feet high and 273 feet long, the 360-degree painting is one of the longest in the world, according to a 2007 University press release. Van Dam, riva, hemmasi and others viewed the digitized image on a coffee table-sized touch screen, but it was only usable by a small number of people, hemmasi said. when studying the image became difficult, they used a tV screen instead. The big screen became the receptacle, and the project became more collaborative as a result, hemmasi said. The team then came up with the idea for the Digital Scholarship Lab. Its a very collaborative space where you can work together as a class to interact with an image, rashleigh said. The library submitted a proposal to Patrick Ma P14, who expressed great interest in the / / Lab page 2
By monica Perez
contributing writer
The rhode Island affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union is suing the rhode Island Department of health over new conditions in the states medical marijuana policy. The lawsuit is brought on behalf of the rhode Island Patient Advocacy Coalition, the rhode Island Academy of Physician Assistants and Peter nunes, an individual whose application to participate in the medical marijuana program was denied by the Department of health under the new policy. The new conditions, instated in June, allow only licensed physicians to authorize medical marijuana for their patients. Before the change was made, registered nurse practitioners
and physician assistants were also allowed to approve medical use of the drug. The ACLUs lawsuit seeks a court order declaring that the departments action violates multiple statutes and voiding the new conditions. The ACLU is arguing that the department violated the Administrative Procedures Act by failing to take into account the publics input before it changed the regulation, in addition to violating the 2006 Medical Marijuana Act, which legalized the use of medical marijuana in the state, said Steve Brown, director of the ACLU. In preparation for the opening of Compassion Centers in rhode Island, the department took a closer look at the newly amended medical marijuana statute and decided to prohibit nurse practitioners and physician assistants from authorizing medical marijuana to patients, said Dara Chadwick, chief of-
ficer of health promotion at the department. This is based on legal analysis of the statute. She declined to further comment on the issue. JoAnne Leppanen, executive director of the rhode Island Patient Advocacy Coalition, expressed hope that the new conditions will be overturned. She said on top of the Administrative Procedures Act, the department violated the Global Signature Authority Law of rhode Island, which states that a nurse practitioners signature may be substituted wherever a physicians signature is required. The law implies that a nurse practitioner should be able to authorize medical marijuana. nurse practitioners also function as the primary practitioners for many of the states patients and even work independently in some cases, giving them the same authority as a licensed physician, Leppann added. the health Department has
changed the law arbitrarily and retroactively, Leppanen said, and this action has wreaked havoc on the health of some of our most fragile citizens. Peter nunes, the main plaintiff of the lawsuit, had his access to medical marijuana cut off by the new conditions, Leppanen said. he had formerly acquired his medical marijuana from a nurse practitioner and is struggling to find a licensed physician, particularly due to the financial burden it represents. I think that the ACLU has a high chance of winning this case, said Steven Detoy, director of government and public affairs at the rhode Island Medical Society, which joined the lawsuit Monday. not only does the departments policy changes violate state laws, but it also interferes with the practice of nurse practitioners and physician assistants.
For many rhode Island college students, finding an internship that allows them to summer in the ocean State is a tricky endeavor. But brIdge, a new state-wide initiative launched oct. 9 by Gov. Lincoln Chafee 75 P14 and higher education leaders, is tackling that problem by helping connect students to local internships. The goal is to match rhode Island employers with talented students looking to gain valuable professional experience, according to the programs website. Through the initiatives user-friendly website, brIdge.jobs, college students and recent grads can create an account and personal profile in as little time as it takes to open a new Facebook account. Users are able to search for internships in almost any field, including journalism, engineering and health care. employers are also able to create profiles that explain the qualifications, expectations and compensation of their proposed internships. The website includes a featured internships section and even offers the option to upload resumes and send them directly to employers. brIdge is different from other internship portals like Monster.com because it is designed to link rhode Island college students with state organizations. The website is a central match mechanism for employers and college students, said Michael trainor, special assistant to the commissioner of the rhode Island Board of Governors for higher education. brIdge is truly the first of its kind, he said. The initia/ / bridge page 3
2 campus news
c alendar
TODAY 7P .m. Screening: The Lady List Art 120 8P .m. Richard III Metcalf Courtyard 7P .m. Rocky Horror Picture Show Zeta Delta Xi lounge OCT. 18 TOmORROW 4P .m. Family Weekend Piano Workshop Grand Recital Hall OCT. 19
/ / Lama page 1
depends on this blue planet, he said. If I join any political party, I will join (the) Green Party, he added, laughing. he also spoke about incorporating religious ideals such as compassion, love and forgiveness into secular thought, refuting the idea that secularism represents a disdain for religion. he added that even religious figures such as Mahatma Gandhi incorporated secular thought, in particular when Gandhi proposed a new Indian constitution. After his lecture, the Dalai Lama addressed pre-recorded questions from audience members, including professors and students from Brown and local high schools.
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SHARPE REFECTORY VERNEY-WOOLLEY DINING HALL
Lunch
Cheese Ravioli with Pink Vodka Sauce, Grilled Ham and Swiss Cheese Sandwich, Broccoli in Cheese Sauce Ham and Bean Soup, Gourmet Roast Turkey Sandwich, Swiss Broccoli Pasta, Vegan Mediterranean Stew
A recurring theme in his responses was the importance of education and of remaining connected to other people and societies. Assistant Professor of American Studies elizabeth hoover asked for advice regarding native peoples working to recover from forced cultural change. The Dalai Lama responded by noting modern cultures appreciation of individual cultures. Isolate, almost like suicide. no use, he said. he described how Scandinavian cultures have embraced modern education while maintaining a measure of traditional dress and their own language. This modern education, in conjunction with traditional linguistic and spiritual practices, are central to cultural autonomy, he said. funded the lab, hemmasi said. It was expensive, but it was a good investment of funds, hemmasi said, though she declined to provide the
traditions remind us who we are, he said, adding that writing systems are a particularly beneficial long-term method to preserve cultures. he emanated a feeling of true happiness, which was really refreshing to see, said David Chodakewitz 15 after the event. he said it was inspirational to be in the presence of such a major figurehead whose message is as powerful as it is simple. Though a closed-captioning mistake left viewers with just fuck it as his holiness transcribed final words, the Dalai Lama actually turned to humor again in his conclusion, urging the audience to spend their time thinking and discussing or, if they had been unaffected by his words, just forget. total cost of building the lab. As the data visualization coordinator, rashleigh said he will make sure the lab runs smoothly, provide expertise for the teaching aspect of the display and explore the use of visual means of communication, he said. The library plans to hire a student to help oversee and run the lab, he said. were still experimenting, and we want others to experiment as well, rashleigh said, adding that the labs website launch is imminent, and all information will be available through the University Librarys website. The production of new kinds of scholarship like visual literacy is becoming increasingly more important, hemmasi said. we have to recognize that people learn in different ways all around us. The visual and multimedia cannot be ignored.
Dinner
Vegan BBQ Tempeh, Baby Mesclun Greens tossed with Honey Dijon, Tossed Fresh Caesar Salad Baked Manacotti with Meatless Sauce, Baked Sweet Potatoes, Spinach Stuffed Tomatoes, Egg Rolls
/ /Lab page 1
project. Ma, Corporation trustee Cathy halstead and one anonymous donor
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campus news 3
ucs votes to raise student activities fee
By katherine cusumano
senior staff writer
/ / bridge page 1
tive was created to help students sort out what they want to do after graduation, introduce students to local employers and prevent the notorious rhode Island brain drain. we want to keep our brightest students here, trainor said. experiential learning is extremely valuable, trainor added. More than 80,000 students attend rhode Island colleges, and national studies show that college students who complete internships are more likely to receive job offers after graduation than their peers who do not have internship experience, according to the Providence Journal. The website is the product of three years of planning by organizations including the rhode Island Student Loan Authority, the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of rhode Island and the Board of Governors for higher education. This collaboration made brIdge available to all 11 of rhode Islands universities and colleges, public and private alike, said Daniel egan, president of the Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of rhode Island. The presidents of these institutions are very excited about the initiative and have leveraged their support, egan added. Career centers at local colleges like the Career Development Center at rhode Island College and the CareerLab at Brown have already gotten on board with brIdge. rIC has been providing internship placements for many years through its Career Development Center, wrote Jenifer Giroux, director of outreach programs at rIC, in an email to The herald. however, this new website will allow students, graduates and employers the ease of accessing and posting to the site 24 hours a day, she wrote.
brIdge is also an effective tool for young entrepreneurs and new businesses. Smaller companies can often get lost in the swarm of major internship search sites, but brIdge aims to simplify the process of promoting internships, said Adrian van Alphen, rISLAs employer relationship and internship development manager. he provides tips, sample profiles and resources to new businesses to help make their profiles clear and impressive. Adam Leonard 10, the programs manager, said small businesses have a difficult time becoming visible on internship boards, especially if they lack a human resources department. he said he believes that with a rhode Islandspecific program, these businesses can develop close relationships with the academic institutions and use the states small size to their advantage. Furthermore, brIdge helps to assure students that the internships are safe and high-quality by visiting the individual businesses and getting a better idea of what the student will be doing during their time there. All companies are required to meet certain criteria before they are able to advertise their profiles, van Alphen said. This initiative is a great way to cultivate the entrepreneurial spirit of talented rhode Island students, he added. Since its launch, the initiative has proved to be a breakthrough for many state schools. At rIC, responses from administrators and students has been overwhelmingly positive, Giroux wrote. The CareerLab will provide more information for students through email and social media as employer presence begins to increase on the site, Jim Amspacher, career advisor and coordinator for Careers in the Common Good, wrote in an email to The herald.
The Undergraduate Council of Students passed a proposal for a student activities fee increase from $214 to $290 per year at its general body meeting last night. The proposal, which would augment the Undergraduate Finance Boards budget by approximately $465,000, will be presented today to Margaret Klawunn, vice president for campus life and student services, said Alexander Kaplan 14, chair of the Student Activities committee and a herald staff writer. At the moment, the University can only afford to fund 70 percent of student groups financial needs, Kaplan said. Compared to peer institutions, student groups at Brown receive significantly less funding for example, tufts Universitys equivalent of the Brown Concert Agency receives approximately $25,000 more a year, he added. The increased student activities fee would merely allocate some funds from the potential tuition hike by the Undergraduate resource Council toward student activities, said Undergraduate Finance Board Vice Chair Daniel Pipkin 14. Pipkin also emphasized the value of student opinion in University decisions. Student opinion is extremely important, he said. Its really dynamic, its really cool. every year, as the number of student groups increases and inflation takes its toll, the UFB has a smaller pool of funds to provide to individual groups, he added. UCS also proposed a student activities consumer price index, which will account for these factors through an almost systematic percent increase, Pipkin
at its meeting Wednesday night, the undergraduate council of students gave an update on its ongoing process to revamp morning mail. said, adding that such a system alleviates the need to go back and forth every year. The index means that UCS will only need to re-examine the fee every three years, Kaplan said. The vote in favor of the resolution occurred after an executive session during which general body members deliberated on the issue. This session was invoked because UCS could not spend two weeks on the resolution, which is normally their protocol, said treasurer Sam Gilman 15. Parliamentarian and UCS-UFB liaison Gregory Chatzinoff 15 also mentioned the six-year UFB spring budget report that will be released Friday. The report lists the funding trends for the top 30 UFB-funded Category 3 student groups from 2007 to 2012. The Admissions and Student Services Committee is in the process of an overhaul of Morning Mail, said Abby Braiman 15, the committees chair. The goal is to make the long list more legible and less skimmable, she said events will be recategorized from the vague events and announcements to more specific headings, and clicking will take the reader directly to each sub-heading. The Council is also trying to get University administrators to do a Gangnam Style video, said Kyra Mungia 13, communications chair. to close the meeting, President Anthony white 13 mentioned the UrC open forums nov. 7 and 8, which will aim to stimulate discussion about the student activities fee proposal. The next UCS meeting will feature two young alumni trustees of the Corporation, the Universitys highest governing body.
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le t ter
correc tions
An article in wednesdays herald (Congressional candidates spar over unemployment, Medicare, oct. 17) incorrectly stated that the candidates debating were vying to represent rhode Islands second congressional district. In fact, rep. David Cicilline 83, D-r.I., and former State Police Superintendent Brendan Doherty are running to represent the states first congressional district. A caption in tuesdays herald (MakerBot printer transforms 2-D images into plastic models, oct. 16) incorrectly implied that objects in the corresponding photo were created by a MakerBot. In fact, the objects were not created with a MakerBot and in most cases could not be made with one. The herald regrets the error.
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ter-screening offensive (Deans screened letters without telling students, Sept. 7, 2009); and the departments were given a mandate to enforce writing standards (writing requirement oversight to be shifted to departments, oct. 7, 2009). Throughout that time, one thing was clear: There were no plans to require all students to take a w course, and even Dean Bergeron stressed that students would not be expected to take a specific course to satisfy the writing requirement. By the following year, it looked like things set so distinguishable that you can sometimes identify someone as having gone to Brown simply by sharing a short conversation with them. Browns curriculum is something to celebrate and brag about. And yet our recent history is fraught with Deans of the College who just dont get it. Former Dean of the College Paul Armstrong, who stepped down in 2006, fought to pollute our grading system with meaningless pluses and minuses before backing down in the face of student protest and a column penned by we dont have space to explain the drawbacks of mandatory course requirements. Magaziner and Maxwell did that more than 40 years ago, far better than we ever could. And it really doesnt need much explaining for this audience. every day, members of our community explain the values of curricular freedom to others: Brown applicants to their nervous parents, Brown students to their jealous peers and Brown alums to their skeptical coworkers. Thats whats so upsetting: Dean Bergeron has caused Brown to cede tremendous ideological ground in the name of a questionable methodology that we rejected long ago. Do we think that Brown should stay the same way forever? Absolutely not. But legitimate change at Brown cant come in the form of dictates from the dean or the CCC. At Brown, the curriculum is owned by the students and the faculty the students because they designed it and fought for its implementation, and the faculty because the academic power is fundamentally vested in them. The function of the dean is to run Browns undergraduate college within the parameters of that curriculum, not to hunt for ways to change it. Brown is a place for activist students, not activist deans. Its time to undo the ill-conceived changes made over the past year and to have an inclusive campus dialogue about the state of Browns curriculum, how its working and how it might work better. matt Gelfand 08 is the president and executive director of the open Jar Foundation, presenting this column on its behalf. he can be reached at matt@openjar.org.
Legitimate change at Brown cant come in the form of dictates from the Dean or the ccc. at Brown, the curriculum is owned by the students and the faculty.
had calmed down. But this year it started again in earnest, with a clarified writing requirement including wrIt courses (U. clarifies writing requirements, March 8), and now the updated wrIt-course mandate, which requires students either to take a wrIt-designated course or upload proof of writing improvement in their last four semesters through other means.(Changed requirement calls for second wrIt course, Sept. 25). how did we get here? Its simple: Brown has a dean problem. The new Curriculum is the best thing about Brown. Its what makes the place stand out from a crowded field of elite institutions. Its the reason why most students choose Brown. Its Browns greatest weapon in student recruiting. It attracts and nurtures a special sort of independent thinker a mindIra Magaziner 69 P06 P07 P10 and elliot Maxwell 68 P06, architects of the new Curriculum. And now we have Dean Bergeron, who reintroduced course caps and prerequisites in the guise of technical change the implementation of Banner and who has now led the effort to close our open curriculum. For how much she touts the excellence of Brown students and alums, Bergeron must not have a very high estimation of our intelligence. or so we gather from her attempts to veil her changes to the curriculum with unsupported claims about the spirit of the curriculum. These new terms do not represent any change to the requirement, she claims. They represent a better way to carry out what the requirement has always implied. Better according to whom? we dont think Brown students are buying it.
every so often, we hear that x percent of Americans dont know their own congressman. we are then supposed to nod sagely and share a chuckle about dumb, ignorant Americans. But here at Brown, our lives are mostly run by the Corporation, and we generally have no idea who they are. Fifty-two people rule this University. Forty on the Board of trustees, 12 on the Board of Fellows, which combined hold essentially all governing power. So out of the 52 people who guide our destiny, how many would you guess are executives in the financial industry? take a minute. relax. Go someplace where you can sob quietly in peace. this is, in fact, the number of people on the Corporation from the financial industry: twenty-six. twenty-six of the 52 people that run our lives are employed by a grim assortment of hedge funds, mutual funds, banks and venture capital firms. twentysix of them. twenty-six. Add in three more people from law firms. All of them corporate. one is with Skadden, which Vault.com ranks the third-most prestigious law firm in the world and wall Streets most powerful law firm, with annual revenue of $2.17
three-quarters of the Corporation are very wealthy people with the perspective of very wealthy people. the 1 percent is the 75 percent. this isnt some random fluke in a system where one gets on the Corporation by writing Brown a big check, power is essentially bought. Its plutocracy in its rawest, most hideously pure form. the point isnt that the super-rich have nothing to offer. to the contrary, they are likely to be very good at keeping money rolling into this University, and Im sure
Its not surprising that we as students are generally apathetic toward the Corporation. After all, students have no power, and its a big leap to engage with something when you have no power. Its a bizarre, autocratic system, but its one more easily ignored than changed. Its just the way it is and the way it has always been. And so, inevitably, tuition keeps rising as the business-friendly sciences keep expanding and the University is run mainly as a tool of corporate America. But it doesnt have to be this way. we
daily herald
the Brown
By steven michaeL
contributing writer
house speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, will bring same-sex marriage legislation to a vote in the house in 2013, according to his spokesman.
By isobeL heck
contributing writer
wPrI poll results released oct. 1 show that 56 percent of rhode Island voters are in favor of same-sex marriage and only 36 percent are in opposition. These numbers represent historic highs and lows, respectively, in rhode Island, and same-sex marriage supporters said they feel that the movements building momentum is finally supported by statistics. A February poll showed 50 percent of rhode Islanders supported same-sex marriage, while 41 percent opposed it. The most recent poll represents an 11 point widening. These polls reflect what weve seen on the ground for the past two years, said ray Sullivan, campaign director for Marriage equality rhode Island. were excited, and were certainly pleased, but were not surprised. The same-sex movement has been steadily gaining support in past years but has experienced hold-ups in the state legislature. In 2010, house Speaker Gordon Fox, D-Providence, who is openly gay, supported a same-sex marriage bill but ended up deciding that it was not im-
mediately feasible. In a blow to same-sex marriage supporters, he shifted his support to a civil union bill in April of 2011. Gabriel Schwartz 13, co-coordinator of Browns Queer Political Action Committee, said while the civil union bill was a step in the right direction, it is still discriminatory. The poll is helpful because it shows what we have been trying to prove, he added. rhode Island is a Catholic, blue-collar state, and this hasnt always been okay. At Brown, students are actively pushing for a same-sex marriage bill by supporting candidates in favor of same-sex marriage and by volunteering with MerI, Schwartz said. Bennett Knox 15, another co-coordinator of the Queer Political Action Committee, said while the poll is encouraging for the upcoming presidential election, the Sept. 11 primaries were the more important race in rhode Island. over half the candidates who would support a same-sex marriage bill won their primary battles, two in the Senate and seven in the rhode Island house of representatives. Its going to be a long haul, even if we do get the legislature, Knox said. were hoping the polls like these will give us the tools to do this, as initiative for people to sign up. If the poll is used correctly, it could be a very good thing, Knox added. The danger is that if you spread it around to the wrong people, it could frighten people against (it), and it could be counterproductive. But it is an encouragement, and it is encouraging for those fighting for their views to be backed. The current level of support for samesex marriage in the General Assembly is unprecedented, Sullivan said. And once legislators reconvene in January, a same-sex marriage bill may move forward quickly with the speakers support, he said. Should I be re-elected, I am committed to bringing marriage equality legislation to a vote in the house early in the 2013 session. I believe we will have the necessary votes to pass marriage equality in the house. The results of the wPrI poll confirm my belief that this is an issue gaining great momentum and acceptance in rhode Island, wrote Larry Berman, Foxs spokesman, on behalf of the speaker, in an email to The herald. The bill would also have support from the states top leader. The governor has backed the issue prior to now, and continues to do so, said Christine hunsinger, director of communications for Gov. Lincoln Chafee 75 P14. The Speaker intends to propose the marriage equality bill, and the governor would back it.