In a tiny corner of the University of Arizona campus, someone is trying to make a difference in the world.

Well, make that some people - a group of people who are deeply committed to making the world a better place to live.

Their daily tasks include compressing tons of cardboard, collecting bags of aluminum and distributing containers to different campus buildings.

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City hopes to find "common ground"

UA freshman Jeff Knepper, who lost his left eye after being by a "less-lethal" beanbag during the Fourth Avenue riots April 2, is filing a $3 million claim against the city of Tucson.

Though the claim, filed Thursday, is the first step in a potential lawsuit that would begin in September, it is unlikely the case will go to trial, said Knepper's attorney, Carl Piccarreta.

"Statistically, 95 percent of cases don't go to trial," Piccarreta said.

Thanks to the contributions of Michael Wright, Richard Jefferson, and Gilbert Arenas, the UA men's basketball team made it to the finals of this season's NCAA Tournament, where they lost to Duke.

If the Knight Commission had its way, these three players could also have cost UA an opportunity to go back to the NCAA tournament in the next couple of seasons.

The Commission, which was originally formed in 1989 and is mainly composed of current and former college presidents, aimed their criticism of college athletics to three areas - academic performance of student-athletes, the amount of money that athletic departments and programs are spending to field competitive teams and the commercialization of college athletics through endorsements and television contracts.

Courage seems to be in short supply on Capitol Hill these days. Republicans in Congress - especially the Senate - have been appearing a bit hesitant to speak out for the ideas they believe in. Maybe they're still in a state of shock over the Jim Jeffords situation, but that's really no excuse. House and Senate Democrats have always been better at politics than the GOP, pulling on the heartstrings of their constituents in order to create a more powerful federal government and keep themselves in office. Recently though, it's almost as if Republicans have given up trying to convince people that