Quote of the Week:
“That's the problem with drinking, I thought, as I poured myself a drink. If something bad happens you drink in an attempt to forget; if something good happens you drink in order to celebrate; and if nothing happens you drink to make something happen.”
–Charles Bukowski, American poet/novelist
Fact of the Week:
In September of 1986, four hijackers took control of a plane in Pakistan. The plane was headed from India to New York, with scheduled stops in Pakistan and Germany. While in Pakistan, the four men dressed as airport security, drove a van across the tarmac, and boarded the plane. Their hope was to divert the plane to Cyprus and Israel to pick up Palestinian prisoners.
Neerja Bhanot, a 22-year-old Indian flight attendant, recognized the attempt as a hijacking and shouted out the code; her fellow flight attendant entered it in, alerting the pilots and authorities. When the terrorists boarded the plane, they found the cockpit empty--the pilots had escaped. They demanded a new pilot, and when they didn’t receive one, they shot a passenger in the head and dumped his body onto the tarmac. When they still didn’t get a pilot, they demanded the passengers’ passports so they could begin shooting Americans.
Bhanot cleverly hid all American passports, claiming no Americans were on board. She continued to serve sandwiches and beverages, keeping her passengers calm while waiting for the situation to de-escalate. Finally, after seventeen hours, the power on the plane cut out and the terrorists began to fire their guns.
Amidst the bullets, Bhanot pulled open the emergency exit and ushered out passengers. Tragically, she was shot and killed, her last act protecting three children from bullets. In total, 20 people died and more than 100 of the 360 people on board were injured. The four hijackers were sentenced to death, but later had their sentences reduced to life in prison. In 2008, they were let free.
Bhanot became the youngest and first woman recipient of the Ashoka Chakra award, India's highest civilian decoration for bravery. One of the children she saved later became a pilot.
All That’s Interesting and Panam.org contributed to this article.
News Update:
This week we’ve recapped two stories in Florida, a state rife with controversy. First, a fraternity at the University of Miami closed following chants of raping women. And second, University of Florida students protested the hiring of a new president.
U Miami Frat Shut Down Following Chants of Rape:
Video leaked showing Sigma Phi Epsilon chanting about rape. Photo via PK News
Sigma Phi Epsilon of the University of Miami has been shut down after members chanted about raping women and what they’d do to their corpses, CBS Miami reports. A leaked video shows a rowdy group of students at an off-campus party engaging in the chant. Subsequently, some individuals made allegations that the fraternity also spiked drinks.
According to CNN, “University of Miami Senior Vice President for Students Patricia A. Whitely released a statement saying the school ‘continually communicates a clear set of policies and expectations to all of our Greek organizations that are designed to encourage a safe, healthy, and positive experience for UM students.
‘The University received allegations the Sigma Phi Epsilon chapter violated university policy and participated in behavior that is inconsistent with the values and expectations of the university community and their national fraternity. We have partnered with Sigma Phi Epsilon for 73 years, and we support their decision to close the chapter effective immediately.’"
The decision to which Whitley refers was the unanimous vote by Sigma Phi Epsilon’s National Board of Directors to revoke the charter of the chapters at the University of Miami. It is unclear yet if the school will take any disciplinary actions against the students.
University of Florida Students Protest New President:
A list of seven hundred candidates for the new President of the University of Florida has been whittled down to one: Republican Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska. Sasse, who was President of Midland University in Nebraska before his election to the Senate in 2014, condemned the Surpeme Court’s 2015 decision to allow same-sex marriage.
Sasse was scheduled to host three open forums at the school and left one of them about 15 minutes early, according to the Independent Florida Alligator. At that point, about 300 protesters entered the ballroom where the event was taking place.
The protestors called Sasse homophobic and racist, the Independent Florida Alligator reported. CNN obtained a video showing the students chanting, “Hey hey. Ho ho. Ben Sasse has got to go.”
The University of Florida did not comment on Sasse’s visit to the school. Sasse is set to replace Kent Fuchs, “who is leaving the position after eight years to become a professor at the school,” CNN reported.
CBS News and CNN contributed to these articles.
Sports Update:
UCLA Women's Soccer. Photo via Pac 12
UCLA Women’s Soccer remains the only team—men’s or women’s—with an unblemished record. The Bruins are 13-0 and have an impressive resume, with 2-1 wins over then #2 Duke and #1 UNC in September. They’ll face a big test this weekend when they take on #9 Stanford on Friday.
Reigning champions Florida State (9-1-2) fell in the rankings from #3 to #4 after losing 4-0 to #17 Notre Dame. It is FSU’s first loss of the season while Notre Dame earned their 11th win (11-2) and jumped to #6 in the rankings. UNC and Alabama are tied for #2 in the rankings, while Northwestern rounds out the top five.
On the men’s side, Wake Forest dropped its second straight game and fell to #10 in the rankings. The Demon Deacons (10-2) were #1 in the country when they lost 3-2 to #4 Duke two weeks ago. They were then shut out by #7 Syracuse this week, slipping to #10.
Washington—the reigning finalist—retains its position atop the poll, with a 1-1 tie to Air Force back in September the only blemish on its 11-0-1 record. Number 2 Kentucky (8-0-2) and #3 Duke (8-0-3) remain undefeated, while Marshall and Syracuse complete the top five.
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