How will Minghui Yu's death be commemorated?

Swastika: symbol of hate or symbol of love?

Are education and cash incentives mutually exclusive?

How on earth do I pay my taxes?

But seriously, can I live with myself if I vote for the cowboy hat party?

...and finally, the return of Spec's housing blog, The Shaft.

Ann Coulter has written a column that somehow, someway uses the tragic death of Columbia grad student Minghui Yu to insult Barack Obama and Obama's grandmother and grandfather, whom Coulter refers to as "racist" and "worthless and lazy", respectively.

Coulter goes on to paraphrase a story about Obama's grandparents in which his grandmother wanted a ride to work and his grandfather told her she should take the bus instead. Turns out, this is because Grandma Obama saw an unfriendly black person on the bus, who frightened her. Grandpa Obama took young Barry Obama aside and explained that Grandma was a racist. Or something.

Anyway, directly following the story, Coulter proceeds to make fun of Obama for being offended by his allegedly racist grandmother. Logically, Coulter asks: "If Obama is sent reeling by the mere words of an elderly white woman, how is he going to negotiate with a guy like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? What if Ahmadinejad calls him 'booger-face'? Will he run crying from the table?"

Oh also, in the last paragraph, Coulter manages to refer to Obama's grandfather and Barack's plan to hold talks with Iran "a loser" and "stupid", respectively.

Thank you, tipster Christopher Duncan!

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In other Columbia-related news: the NYTimes captures the different views on the boy arrested in the recent death of a grad student.

The vigil at 5:30 for Minghui Yu attracted hundreds to Low Plaza today. Students from the Office of the University Chaplain handed people candles and hot cider as they heard eulogies for the promising statistics grad student. PrezBo and Dean Pinkham admitted that they did not know Yu or his family personally, but offered condolences to all those whose lives he touched, while the Chair of the Statistics Department called Yu "an academic star." The Chair of the Graduate Student Advisory Council offered an Emily Dickinson poem and noted that graduate students lead "focused, detached and solitary lives" and could perhaps "be encouraged to draw closer to each other in our community."

Funds are being raised by Columbia University Chinese Students and Scholars Association to support Yu's family and help them get visas to come to the US for the memorial services. Chaplain Davis closed with a prayer and consolation for Yu's family and girlfriend as the crowd observed a moment of silence.

-JJV and AMP

Tonight at 5:30, teachers, administrators and friends of Minghui Yu are invited to Low Steps for a candlelit vigil. Bollinger, Dean Pinkham, Statistics Professor David Madigan, Chaplain Davis and representatives of student groups will be speaking and a moment of silence will be observed.

Given recent events, Bwog placed a call to Public Safety yesterday afternoon to find out how the department is reacting to Minghui Yu's death and how they intend to make students feel more secure. [Edit: 3:24pm: Jim McShane email after the jump.]

According to Public Safety, officers do not currently patrol the area where Yu was attacked, around the Jewish Theological Seminary or the Teachers College—they are only permanently stationed at the Broadway and Amsterdam gates., "Officers were patrolling the area where Yu was attacked, both on foot and in vehicles. We have different guards at the gates and patrolling off campus," said CU spokesperson Robert Hornsby in an email to Bwog. In an email from Associate Vice President for Public Safety Jim McShane, McShane announced that in recent months Columbia has been increasing its foot patrols and that as of last night, it had added an additional patrol vehicle (those massive SUVs you see crawling around campus).

The AP is reporting that a suspect, a 13-year-old boy, has been arrested regarding the death of Columbia grad student Minghui Yu. He is reportedly being charged with second-degree manslaughter, but his name has not been released.

UPDATE (1:15 PM): According to The Daily News and Gothamist, the police now suspect that the boys who assaulted Yu did not intend to mug him. From the DN: "We don't believe it was robbery," a police source said. "It was some sort of altercation." The DN also has a witness saying that the 13 year old boasted "Look what I do to this one" before attacking Yu.
The NY Post reports that "Yu struggled with at least one of the teens, who punched him in the face, while the other kept watch, witnesses told police."
The police are still searching for the second teenager.

UPDATE (1:40 PM): The New York Times has a story up now, highlighting Yu's involvement in the Chinese Students and Scholars Association. Quote from the article: "'This area is very dangerous,' said Hyun Kim, a Columbia graduate student...'It could happen to anyone living in this area.'"

WABC TV and multiple student tipsters inform us that a grad student [not GS as previously reported] fleeing muggers at 122nd Street and Broadway was hit by a car and taken to St. Luke's with "severe head trauma." More on this as we get more information.

UPDATE (1:33 AM): Gothamist post reveals that the student was studying late in Butler before the incident. We now feel worse about this than we already did.

UPDATE (11:05 AM): The student, Minghui Yu, died last night at St. Luke's Hospital. The Daily News has the story in classic tabloid form (e.g. "The guy's body was twisted like a pretzel.") The Spec has it here. Bwog, for sorrow, hangs its head.

Update (1:19 PM): More coverage can be found here and here.

Bollinger's email after the jump