the spectator may 1st, 2014
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Online edition of The Spectator.TRANSCRIPT
May 1, 2014 W W W . V S U S p E c T A T O R . c O M VOLUME 86 iSSUE 14
Inside This Issue- OpiNiONS: Pipeline a risk to Valdosta
- FEATURES: E.T. unearthed in New mexico desert
- SpORTS: Tennis freshman earns F.o.Y . honors
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This Day in
History
Bake Sale - Golden Key
International Honors society
will be hosting a bake sale
on the Pedestrian mall
today from 10 a.m-1 p.m.
Everything will be one
dollar.
Odradek - The 2013
edition of the odradek will
be unveiled today in
Psychology Auditorium
Room 1204 from 7-9 p.m.
Students will read their
work. copies of the issues
will be available along with
refreshments afterwards.
Today at VSU
Reach the peakOn this day in 1963,
James Whittaker
became the first
American to reach the
peak of Mt. Everest.
Whittaker did this with
Nawang Gombu, his
Sherpa climbing partner.
40-hour work
weekOn this day in 1926,
Ford Motor Company
became a pioneer in the
fight to adopt a five-day
work week for its work-
ers. Ford was one of the
first companies in
America to do so and
started implementing
the policy the following
August.
Source: History.com
Seniors display artwork inFine Arts Gallery
Carlin Morrison/THE SPECTATOR
The Senior Art Exhibit opened April 19 and will run until May 5 in the Fine Arts Gallery. The exhibit features the artwork of 17 VSU se-
niors.
Fall break in, Dead Day out
After months of deliber-
ation, the issue of VSU’s aca-
demic calendar for the year
2015-2016 has been resolved.
The final decision was
made by VSU President
William mcKinney last week.
The calendar will include a
four-day finals week for the
fall and spring semester, a
three-day Thanksgiving break
and a two-day fall break.
There will be no dead day
during finals week either se-
mester.
In the controversial issue
concerning the placement of
Spring Break, dr. mcKinney
sided with the Student Gov-
ernment Association over the
recommendation of the facul-
ty senate. Spring Break will
be march 14-18.
The faculty senate’s pro-
posal would have put Spring
Break from march 28-April
1. The occurrence of Spring
Break would have fallen on
the twelfth week of the se-
mester, which would be in
sync with the lowndes coun-
ty School district.
doing so would cater to
faculty, staff and students
with children attending
lowndes county schools in
regards to taking family vaca-
tions and getting child care
for smaller children.
Also, students training to
be teachers do not get to en-
joy Spring Break due to
working with students who
aren’t on their Spring Break
at the same time.
Then, when the school dis-
tricts do get their break, VSU
students have to resume their
classes.
The SGA argued that the
proposal put an unnecessary
strain on students because it
would occur late in the se-
mester.
They proposed that the
break be moved to either
march 7 or march 14.
dr. mcKinney approved of
the faculty senate proposal,
with exception of when
Spring Break would fall.
The Jimerson administra-
tion passed the torch to the
Barker administration on
monday night.
SGA President Tyler Barker
was sworn in at a ceremony in
the Student Union, which also
served as the final SGA meet-
ing until August.
Before he was sworn in,
however, outgoing SGA Presi-
dent Will Jimerson had some
final thoughts for his past year
in office.
“We started the semester
way back in August at our
first senator orientation at the
University center, where I re-
vealed the organization’s
strategic plan that aligned
with VP oshodi’s platform
‘Working for You from the In-
side out’ and my platform
‘Student Involvement: Reten-
tion, Graduation, Progres-
sion,’” Jimerson said. “We
have reached our potential
and desire to grow into all
that we are destined and de-
sired to be.”
Jimerson pointed out the
various objectives that the
SGA had and matched during
the season. Some of these ob-
jectives involved bridging a
gap between the SGA, the stu-
dent body and the administra-
tion; increasing the visibility
of the SGA; and improving
clarity of the internal and ex-
ternal workings of the SGA.
A neworderforSGA
Joe AdgieS o c I A l m E d I A E d I T o R
LaShawn OglesbyS TA F F W R I T E R
For the first time, President
mcKinney will give the State
of the University in a speech
on Friday.
mcKinney will discuss
what VSU has done in the
past year and plans for the
university in the future.
“Because Valdosta State
University’s accomplish-
ments, your accomplishments
at our university, are deserv-
ing of recognition and ac-
knowledgement, I have decid-
ed to change things so that
the entire VSU community--
its faculty, staff, students,
alumni and friends--can share
in our successes and more im-
portantly, understand the pos-
itive momentum of our
achievements,” dr. mcKinney
wrote in an email. “This posi-
tive momentum is not an ac-
cident, but rather represents
quite clearly that we are pur-
posefully moving our great
university forward in to a
very bright future.”
The speech will be given in
Whitehead Auditorium in the
Fine Arts building Friday at
1:30 p.m., and will be
streamed live at useduca-
tiontv.com.
In addition, mcKinney an-
nounced that the annual con-
vocation will change and will
no longer feature a speech
from the president.
The long-awaited move of
the ATm from the University
center to the Student Union
has been in talks again, with
the latest goal to have it ready
by the start of classes in Au-
gust.
"The ATm is going to
move to the Union,” Presi-
dent William mcKinney said.
“my hope is that when you
come back in August that the
ATm is at the Union.
“It will be a Bank of Amer-
ica ATm, just like the ATm
at the Uc now, but it will be
in a secure location."
mcKinney and his staff
aren't yet sure about where
the ATm will be placed, or
whether it will be inside or
outside of the union, but it
should be a sign of good
news to all students that the
university is looking to im-
prove some of its safety is-
sues by relocating the ATm.
The students themselves
should feel relieved knowing
that they can conveniently get
money without the concern of
traveling far away to the iso-
lated and, at most times, se-
cluded location of the Uc.
"I think the move for the
ATm would be a good move
to the Student Union,” Ian
Kerstanski, sophomore mass
media major, said. “It's a lot
closer and a lot more conve-
nient, and people don't have
to drive all the way to the
Uc, where there's not really a
lot of parking spots."
Zach Blake, sophomore
pre-nursing major, agrees that
the ATm move is good for the
university.
"I feel like if it was moved
to the Student Union, I would
definitely use it more often,"
Blake said. "It would be more
convenient to the university,
and all the dorms and all the
apartments around here. It
would cut down on time
(too). Right now, it's kind of
out there in the middle of
nowhere, (but at the Student
Union) it's more open and
there's more people around."
dr. mcKinney admitted
jokingly that the ATm issue
has been frustrating.
"one of the other things I
learned from this process: it
takes a lot longer to move an
ATm," dr. mcKinney said.
McKinney to give the State of VSU
ATM relocation to start
Joe AdgieS o c I A l m E d I A E d I T o R
Neil Frawley S TA F F W R I T E R
Check out the rest
on the web!Check out the rest
on the web!
Check out the rest
On the web!
Will Lewis
Editor-in-Chief
It’s weird to write some-thing in the first person.Working with The Spectatorhas caused me to grow in-creasingly comfortable withthe third person omniscienttone of a narrator, but now Iam casting that tone aside as Iadopt something more per-sonal.
Working to inform the stu-dent body has been one of themost rewarding and enjoyableexperiences I have had sincecoming to VSU. The Specta-tor has taught me responsibil-ity, punctuality and how to be“a half-inch taller than mycompetitors.”
I have dealt with the frus-trations of writing my crown-ing achievement, only to re-ceive an email the next daythat I made a blatant typo, orby being brushed off bysomeone dodging an inter-view.
Despite all the frustrationsand disappointments, I haveenjoyed working with someof the friendliest and mostdedicated students I have everknown.
On May 10, I will stepacross a stage and cross intothe professional world. TheSpectator will still be herethough, and it will continue topublish quality news and in-formed opinions.
Olivia Mclean
Managing Editor
As this semester comes toan end, I realize how fasttime really goes by. Just fouryears ago, I was a freshmanat VSU, completely undecid-ed on what I wanted to study.By the end of my sophomoreyear, I decided I wanted to bea journalist and began takingclasses in that field.
Writing for The Spectatorfor the past year and a halfhas made me a better writer,but in addition to that, it hashelped me form a bond withpeople who have an interestin journalism.
Because I studied some-thing that I have a genuine in-terest in, I am looking for-ward to venturing out into thereal world. I hope to somedaywrite for a major magazine,truly loving my career choice.
Rebecka McAleer
Multimedia Editor
To those of us at The Spec-tator, this letter is the mostheavily-pondered piece wewill ever write. I havethought long and hard aboutwhat to say. How do you sumup four years with this news-paper in 300 words? It’s notjust a job. It’s a lifestyle.
In my seven semesters onthe editorial staff, I have seenso many people come and go.I have worked for six differ-ent editors-in-chief. I haveheld two different official po-sitions, and countless unoffi-cial ones.
I’ve learned many lessonsat this job, not all of which Iwas thrilled to learn. Some-times you have to learn thingsthe hard way, the ugly way,the slog-through-the-mudway. You have to learn tokeep smiling, because it’spossible that if you don’t, noone else will.
With this, I bid ValdostaState University and TheSpectator adieu. Here’s hop-ing I never stop learning.
Joe Adgie
Social Media Editor
So one part of my journeyhas come to an end, and an-other is beginning soon. I amleaving Valdosta State, andThe Spectator, to go out intothe world of professionaljournalism.
These two years and twomonths that I have spent atThe Spectator have probablybeen the most rewarding peri-od of my entire life.
To the writers of The Spec-tator, you are the voice of thestudents. Use this voice well.
To the readers of The Spec-tator, thank you for picking usup on Thursdays. I hope wemade you smarter and moreinformed.
God bless you all, and as
the old Vera Lynn song goes,“I know we’ll meet again,some sunny day.”
Hillary Straba
Features Editor
Two years ago, I arrived inValdosta from the great coun-try of New Mexico.
Eventually, I was acceptedas a citizen both of this coun-try and of VSU, and after afew semesters I found my
place on campus—the Eng-lish Department and theSpectator.
I have worked with manygreat professors in the depart-ment, but there are a few whostand out. I would like tothank Dr. Byron Brown forhis excellent guidance, Dr.Kendric Coleman for believ-ing in my ideas and helpingme navigate the unchartedwaters of Toni Morrison’s
anti-feminism, and Dr. TedGeltner and Dr. Pat Miller forrecruiting me for The Specta-tor.
I did not expect to likeVSU, but I am thankful forthe wonderful people I havemet, especially my Spectatorfamily.
As I trade the front lawnfor the Golden Gate, I justhave one thing left tosay…the snacks were great.
Spectator prints free classi-fieds for stu dents of Val -dos ta State Uni ver si ty only.These must be no more than40 words, or a $8.00 chargewill apply. Clas si fieds forfac ul ty, staff, stu dent or ga -ni za tions, stu dent-ownedbusi ness es and the gen er alpub lic cost $8.00 for up to
40 words. Ads should besent to Spectator or de liv -ered to our of fice in 1238Hopper Hall. The dead line isMon day at 5 p.m. If paymentap plies, it should be sub mit -ted in a sealed en ve lope atthe time the ad is placed. Adsmust be ac com pa nied by thename and phone num ber of
the per son sub mit ting the ad.Ads must be re sub mit tedeach week, as nec es sary.Spec ta tor ad dress is: 1500 N. Patterson St.,Valdosta, GA 31698. Ouremail address is s p e c @ v a l d o s t a . e d u .Spec ta tor re serves the rightto reject any clas si fied ad.
All ads are sub ject to stan-dard ed it ing pro ce dures.Spec ta tor is not re spon siblefor mis takes due to a sub mit -ted er ror. The cat e go ries forclassifieds in clude: For Sale,For Rent, Sublease, Want ed,Room mate, Services, Per-sonnels and Help Wanted.
Roommate Wanted
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Services
Roommate Needed Immediately: $375 Rent -Includes all utilities. 1bedroom in a 3 bedroomhouse. Available NOW: Leasethrough July. Email Ashley for info: [email protected]
The Classifieds
PAge 2 | vsusPectAtor.coM N e w SMAY 1, 2014
THE SPECTATORSummer & Fall 2014Summer & Fall 2014
RecruitmentRecruitment
Or Email: Aimee Napier, Advertising Sales Manager, [email protected]
Scan Here For Position Details & How to Apply:
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May 3
Xchange Ministries pre-sents “Our Father,” an orig-inal stage play by “InvisibleMe” Drama at 8 p.m. in theBailey Auditorium. Admis-sion is free.
The play explores thethemes of faith, sibling ri-valry and life’s uncertaintywhile following the lives ofa family whose musicalband is falling apart.
May 5
Sign-up for CAB’s annualAtlanta Braves Game be-gins May 5 at 8 a.m. in theStudent Life office. Thegame will be held in At-lanta on July 6 and will beagainst the Arizona Dia-mondbacks.
Tickets are limited. Formore information, contactAlisha Stabler at [email protected].
May 6
Last Rites Study Session,sponsored by Phi Beta, willbe held from 7 p.m. to 2a.m. in Odum LibraryRoom 1160.
Students who attend willbe able to buy 25-cent cupsof coffee and get in somelast-minute studying beforeexams.
Upcoming Events
April 28
An iPhone 5 was reportedstolen from Jennett LectureHall.
A student reported his pur-ple JanSport book bag stolenfrom the lockers next to thebasketball court in the Stu-dent Recreation Center.
April 26
A driver was pulled overfor going the wrong way ona one-way street by the Col-lege Street parking lot.
April 24
A student reported thatsomeone had keyed her sil-ver Altima while it wasparked in the Oak Streetparking lot’s overnight sec-tion.
Police Briefs
Senior editors say goodbye
Happy ‘Tator Day!
Check us out on
the web at
vsuspectator.com
may 1, 2014 VSUSpectator.com | page 3OpiniOns
Opinions expressed in the spectator other than editorials are the opinions of the writers of signed columns and not necessarily those
of the spectator and its staff. all rights reserved. reprints by permission of the editors. Views in this newspaper are not necessarily
those of the Valdosta state University administration, faculty and staff.
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Online at www.vsuspectator.com
Editor-in-Chief: will Lewis Managing Editor:Olivia McLeanBusiness Manager: Kristen VarneyAdvertising Manager:aimee NapierCirculation Manager: sara turnerOpinions Editor: elan waiteFeatures Editor: Hillary straba
Sports Editor:alex tostadoPhoto Editor: Carlin MorrisonMultimedia Editor: rebecka McaleerWeb Designer: John PreerGraphic Designer:Galen ColesCopy Editor: John stephenSocial Media Editor: Joe adgie
Faculty Advisers:Dr. Pat Miller, Dr. tedGeltner, Keith warburgReporters/Photographers:stephen Cavallaro, JessicaCooke, allison ericson, ericJackson Jordan Hill, tyraMills, isaiah smart ,taylorstone, alexis waters, Christo-pher webb, Lamarcus wilker-son, Jordan Barela
Spectator Staff
Money isn’t everything.
after graduating, students
might feel that they have to
begin making money right
away. while a college degree
may create this assumption,
don’t be deceived. the value
of an opportunity to gain ex-
perience and build on your
future outweighs any dollar
amount. Unpaid internships
are a great way to achieve
this.
Get beyond the notion that
a degree equals a job, and a
paying one, too. this isn't our
parents’ generation. the job
market is flooded with degree
holding post-graduates with
good enough GPas and
enough extracurricular activi-
ties that make it hard for em-
ployers to distinguish one
from another.
so, employers need other
ways to determine the people
actually worthy of a job from
the sea of all seemingly wor-
thy candidates. the best
method is to give out unpaid
internships.
in doing so, it allows em-
ployers the chance to see who
really wants to work and who
the employer can really trust
to be a valuable asset to the
company.
You might think, "well that
makes sense, but i could still
show that while making mon-
ey, too." while that may be
true, if an employer has 20
people showing up for an in-
ternship and the employer
only expects to hire maybe
two of them, it doesn't make
sense for the employer to
throw money at people he or
she doesn't intend to hire.
But consider this: the em-
ployer can afford to pay the
two candidates that get hired
more than other workers be-
cause he or she didn't pay the
other 18 people for a full
year. the employer may be
able to give those people
$15-$20 per hour. Now add
in the factor that the employ-
er trusts you as a valuable
member of his or her staff
and that you have as good of
a first job as you're ever go-
ing to find.
the point of this is not to
say that you shouldn't take a
paid internship if you get
one. Obviously, money is
good and you should try to
get a good paying job as
quickly as you can. But at the
same time, i'm also saying
you should do what feels
right and not let money be
the reason you turn down an
awesome opportunity that
leads to something more
worthwhile for you.
think about why you
chose to come to VsU. think
about why you chose your
major, and the path that
you've dreamt about as
you've worked through all
those frustrating late nights in
the library and spent all your
money on coffee, not for the
enjoyment, but because you
needed it.
Now think about what you
want when you graduate. Do
you really want to put all that
to waste by taking the first
job you get, even though it's
not in your best interest? You
wouldn't pick your college
like that. You wouldn't pick
your degree like that. so do
you really want to choose the
next 30-45 years like that?
“My first
thought
was it's a
nuclear bomb, we're dead,"
Kim Krajniak said in a 1994
New York times article.
"No words could ever tell
you how frightening it was.
“My sliding glass door
was like an oven. People
were running out in their un-
derwear. it was bedlam.
People running and falling,
kids naked. i felt like an ani-
mal running scared for my
life."
On the morning of March
23, 1994, a texas eastern
transmission gas pipeline
erupted next to an apartment
complex in edison, New
Jersey. the chaos that en-
sued resulted in $25 million
in damage and left 128 fam-
ilies without homes.
Now, texas eastern
transmission’s parent com-
pany, spectra energy Corp.,
wants to build a pipeline
that will cut straight through
Valdosta’s backyard.
spectra energy is engaged
in a joint venture with Nex-
tera energy to construct the
$3 billion sabal trail
pipeline.
the pipeline will stretch
474 miles across the south-
east with 196 of those being
in Georgia. it will also un-
dercut the Green swamp in
central florida, an area that
provides a significant
amount of drinking water to
the florida aquifer.
“My mom and dad taught
us that we are the caretakers
of our land, and i feel if we
don’t protect our land pro-
tect our water and our
ecosystem we’re going to
lose it,” roselyn Beasley
Bridges, property owner in
Mitchell, worth, Colquitt
and Dougherty counties,
said in an interview with the
albany Herald. “every per-
son in this region who turns
on a faucet and gets a glass
of pure, clear drinking water
should thank God. and that,
more than anything, is what
i feel is at stake here.”
transporting natural gas
over land is a serious gam-
ble. since 1994 there have
been 39 fatalities, 188 in-
juries and $1,216,973,783 in
damage due to 1,541 inci-
dents across the country, ac-
cording to the U.s. Depart-
ment of transportation
Pipeline and Hazardous Ma-
terial safety administration.
But area residents might
feel safer if spectra energy
has a sparkling safety
record, right?
too bad it doesn’t. the
texas eastern transmission
pipeline has had 21 inci-
dents which resulted in one
injury and over $8 million
in damages. thirteen of the
incidents occurred because
of external corrosion, ac-
cording to the PHMsa.
these are unfortunate sta-
tistics for a company that
claims its “pipeline facilities
are cleaned to minimize in-
ternal corrosion and main-
tain high-flow efficiency.”
with spectra energy’s
spotty safety record and the
nearly 500 miles of precious
ecosystem that the sabal
trail pipeline will cross, the
risks are just too great.
Valdosta does not need to
celebrate the 20-year an-
niversary of the edison
pipeline explosion by allow-
ing the responsible company
to drag another pipeline
through the country.
instead of another
pipeline, it is time the com-
munity made a demand for
less archaic forms of energy.
fracking, a method that
involves injecting fluids un-
der high pressure into the
ground to break up shale
rock, poses a major health
risk to residents in drilling
areas.
a health survey released
by the southwest Pennsylva-
nia environmental Health
Project reported that people
who lived near drilling sites
in washington County,
Pennsylvania, reported ex-
periencing nausea, abdomi-
nal pain, breathing difficul-
ties and nosebleeds—symp-
toms that could be caused
by toxins released in the
drilling process.
fracking is also responsi-
ble for high levels of
methane and other carcino-
gens found in drinking water
near drill sites. Methane
rates can measure as much
as 17 times the normal limit
in affected areas.
so who are we really
helping by allowing this
pipeline?Corporate giants like
spectra and Nextera have alot to gain from transporting1 billion cubic feet of natur-al gas a day, but can theplanet sustain the constantinsanity of milking finite re-sources for profit?
VsU students, find your
voice. write to your local
state representatives, and let
them know that it is time to
usher in a new age of re-
newable energy.
This editorial was written by a member of the editorial staff and it expresses the general opinion of the Spectator.
Our point of view...
Pipeline a risk to Valdosta
Paid internships unneccessary People PollWhat are your summer plans?
Willie Lawrence
senior
computer information
systems major
“i plan on taking a course in maymester
and working for the rest of the summer
and preparing to graduate in December.”
Samekh Ward
freshman
business management major
“i plan on working and going to
California to meet up with my best
friend.”
istration
e
ing
rease
fety.
Will Roberts
senior
communications major
“i plan to find a job because i’m
graduating in May.”
Neil Frawleys ta f f w r i t e r
Cameron Smith
junior
computer information
systems major
“i plan on working this summer and
taking summer classes.”
It will also under-
cut the Green
Swamp in central
Florida, an area
that provides a
significant amount
of drinking water
to the Florida
aquifer.
Check out the Video People Poll online at: youtube.com/ValdostaSpectator
Do you think your voice is being heard on campus?
Not too long ago, Loyola
Law school issued a memo to
its students outlining what not
to wear to work-study jobs.
apparently, this memo ticked
off a great deal of the
school’s female students and
caused a big enough uproar
for the story to spread nation-
wide.
the problem with this
memo is that it only ad-
dressed females, not males. in
my opinion, this is an act of
sexism. the memo listed
things such as “no low cut
shirts” or “stiletto heels.”
there was nothing in this
memo about crooked ties or
pants with no belts or even
sagging pants. there was
nothing in the memo about
men keeping their hair pre-
sentable or their facial hair
tamed. there was nothing in
this memo addressing any-
thing about male dress codes,
which makes it seem as
though a female’s appearance
matters more in the work
place.
women are constantly wor-
ried about their looks and
bodies. they are judged by
appearances in all industries
of business, from law school
to modeling.
women are also measured
by their looks. Being attrac-
tive gets you more respect
than if you are not up to soci-
ety’s beauty standards.
according to research by
Daniel Hamermesh, the top
one-third of attractive females
earn about 10 percent more
annually than those in the
bottom sixth percentile.
i think the school should
have done a better job of not
making it so shockingly obvi-
ous whom they were target-
ing.
i feel embarrassed for the
female law students. they al-
ready have the odds stacked
up against them by being fe-
male in a primarily male in-
dustry. Not only will they be
paid less than their male col-
leagues, but now they need
memos sent out to remind
them that cleavage is inappro-
priate.
if you’re in law school and
don’t already know that
cleavage is not professional, i
don’t know why you’re there
in the first place. i’m sure
these women are smart
enough to know how to dress
by now.
these are not high school
teenagers; these are ambi-
tious, intelligent women. i
only hope that one day
women will be judged on
their work ethic, not their
choice of apparel for the day.
Previously seen on
www.vsuspectator.com
Law school issues sexist memoTyra Mills
s ta f f w r i t e r
PAge 4 | vsusPectAtor.coM MAY 1, 2014OpiniOns
people born between 1980
and 1995, the millennials, are
thought of as selfish, lazy,
spoiled and narcissistic.
that’s what some employ-
ers have to say about us.
they think our parents do
everything for us. they think
we don’t work hard. they
think we shouldn’t be told
we’re special.
past generations don’t
agree with workers being
praised or rewarded for the
hard work that they do. But
it’s good to have an initiative
to work.
it’s important to take pride
in the job we do. it’s also im-
portant to be noticed for the
hard work that we do.
Baby boomers think it’s
shameful that we have
changed the work environ-
ment to be more relaxed. em-
ployers are annoyed by the
fact that we love casual fri-
days, nap pods and free
donuts for breakfast.
the baby boomers genera-
tion thinks that because we
grew up in a time where
everyone was a winner or
everyone was special, we’re
dysfunctional. we expect
things to be handed to us and
aren’t willing to work for a
promotion.
they think we live with
our parents because we de-
pend on them. if a 20-year-
old lives with his or her par-
ents, it’s because he or she is
poor. we don’t live with our
parents because it’s fun, we
live with them because we’re
fighting to break through the
job world and support our-
selves.
people say we keep our
technology glued to our
hands. what’s wrong with
being connected to others?
we can talk to someone or
find a piece of information at
a moment’s notice.
when did it become a bad
thing to not take your life as
seriously as your parents
did? why can’t we wait a lit-
tle longer to start a family?
sure, it may sound selfish,
but we learn from our par-
ents’ mistakes. we don’t want
to sacrifice our family for our
job only to be laid off and di-
vorced.
we have taken on a terrible
economy, rising college tu-
ition and high unemployment
rates.
we are financially aware
and doing our best to combat
our financial problems by
working hard and trying to
make it as fun and easy as
possible.
Catch up with the times,
baby boomers. stop com-
plaining and evolve like we
are trying to do.
Baby boomers, catch up with the millennials
as graduation approaches,
the craft stores in the area
will begin to get a rush of
college students getting pre-
pared to participate in the
tradition of decorating their
graduation caps. some
schools have initiated a ban
on the popular college tradi-
tion. so the question is,
should graduates be allowed
to decorate their grad caps or
is it tacky?
to me, the decorated grad-
uation caps are not tacky. in-
stead, they express each
graduate's individual person-
ality; although it is generally
the females that participate in
this tradition.
i can understand where the
schools' bans on the decorat-
ed caps are coming from. i
can see that they want the
graduates to have a sense of
uniformity and of them all
being one. However, at this
stage, aren't students learning
that expressing their individ-
uality would be beneficial to
themselves?
some would also argue
that the students have paid
for the caps and gowns, so
they should be allowed to do
what they’d like to the caps.
the decorating of the grad-
uation caps has gained na-
tional attention. the website
Buzzfeed even has an article
devoted to the different way
graduates can decorate hats,
as well as an article about the
best graduation cap designs
they have seen.
with all this national atten-
tion, it seems as though those
schools banning the decorat-
ing of caps would be more
comfortable letting their
graduates decorate.
the crowd most likely en-
joys looking down on the
graduates and seeing all of
the different designs that the
graduates have been able to
create on the top of a simple
fabric and board cap.
i say, ignore the tackiness
and allow the graduates to
show their creations.
i, for one, am extremely
happy that VsU allows its
students and graduates to ex-
press their individuality by
designing a one-of-a-kind
graduation cap.
Decorated graduation caps express students’ individuality
Semester comes to end
Summer arrives as stressreliever for students
it’s finally here; the mo-
ment every VsU student has
been waiting on—the end of
the semester.
this part of the year is best
described as
bittersweet.there is the week
of finals approaching, stu-
dents graduating, going home
for the summer, and transfer-
ring for the next school year.
although the end of spring
semester entails a few good-
byes, there are still two
months of no school to em-
brace.
this should be the time for
students to relax and get into
activities that are hard to en-
gage in during the school
year.
for students who missed
out on spring break vacation,
take advantage of a school-
free summer and plan a
soothing trip away.
to those students looking
to enrich their finances, make
this summer a productive one
by filling out a few applica-
tions to a variety of places.
anything is possible, and
effort goes an even longer
way when there is nothing
but time to invest.
However, use summer to
help maintain time manage-
ment and stress for the next
school year. UCi.edu’s arti-
cle, “stress and the College
student,” describes the statis-
tics of stress in the average
college student through a
conducted survey at UCLa.
thirty percent of the fresh-
men class agreed to being
stressed a great deal of the
time, and 38 percent of the
college women stated that
they were frequently over-
whelmed.
stress can lead to alcohol
abuse, eating disorders and
depression. according to the
same article, a national col-
lege health survey rates 10
percent of college students
that have been diagnosed
with depression.
the stats may not be ex-
tremely high, but their exis-
tence period results in major
issues.
don’t waste the summer
upholding stressful situations.
instead, find peace within the
break and adjust on a mental
level that best fits.
remember, you deserve it!
Jessica Cookes ta f f w r i t e r
Jessica Ingrams ta f f w r i t e r
MCT campus
Photo Illustration by Carlin Morrison and Sierra King
Jordan Hilla s s t. o p i n i o n s e d i t o r
Donald Sterling stirs up controversy
OddEven
PAge 5 | vsusPectAtor.coMFeaTureSMAY 1, 2014
in 1987, an urban legend
was born.
it was reported that 14
trucks of atari products were
taken from a factory in el
Paso, texas to a landfill in
alamogordo, New Mexico.
the legend revolved
around the failure of one
particular game: “et: the
extraterrestrial.”
Zak Penn, writer of “the
avengers,” was intrigued by
this tale and decided to take
a crew of diggers to the
New Mexico desert in
search of the discarded
games.
the game was a rush job
by the gaming company
back in 1982 and was a com-
plete flop despite selling
over 1.5 million copies.
the game failed because
of its difficulty and design.
two to three million car-
tridges remained unsold,
which cost atari about $100
million.
Penn is working with
Xbox entertainment Studios
to direct the first film in a
documentary series that will
examine major milestones in
technology. the e.t. excava-
tion will be featured in the
first film of the series.
in april, crowds of movie
and game enthusiasts gath-
ered in the New Mexico
desert to see if the legend
was true. But thanks to
strong winds and desert heat,
not many stayed for the du-
ration of the dig. after dig-
ging though the trash for
hours, they finally found the
first cartridge.
“i feel pretty relieved and
psyched that they actually
got to see something," Penn
said as the rest of the car-
tridges were being pulled out
of the ground.
James Heller, the man who
was asked to get rid of the
games back in 1987, never
thought he would hear about
his landfill of cartridges until
he was invited to the dig.
“i never heard about it
again until June 2013, when
i read an article about e.t.
being excavated,” James said
in an interview with NPr.
the documentary that
Penn is directing is still be-
ing filmed and will exclu-
sively air on Xbox one. No
release date has been an-
nounced.
E.T. unearthed in
New Mexico desert
Spec Techwith Joseph Albahari
for movie studios, sum-
mer is the biggest time of
the year. Blockbusters filled
with superheroes, sequels
and superstar a-list actors
will fill theaters for the next
four months. to help you
decide what you want see
or skip, here are some of
the biggest films of the
summer. it shouldn’t come
as a surprise that a super-
hero flick is the first on the
list.
The Amazing
Spider-Man 2
May 2
adbtly named director
Marc Webb returns to direct
the follow-up of the 2012
hit.this time Spidey faces
multiple foes like electro,
Green Goblin and rhino as
he tries to protect New York
City, all the while uncover-
ing the mystery of his par-
ents’ demise.
Neighbors:
May 9
Husband and wife, played
by Seth rogen and rose
Byrne, have just moved into
suburbia and have to deal
with the crazed antics of a
fraternity who just moved
next door, all the while
dealing with their newborn
baby. Nicholas Stoller
(“forgetting Sarah Mar-
shall”) directs.
Godzilla
May 16
Godzilla is back on the big
screen and with a
vengeance after the previ-
ous dud Hollywood install-
ment. there isn’t much
known about the plot other
than Godzilla is wreaking
havoc, but what else do you
need to know? ultra-talent-
ed Bryan Cranston from the
beloved Breaking Bad se-
ries stars and brings imme-
diate credibility to the
screen.
X-Men: Days of Future
Past
May 23
director Bryan Singers
combines the original X-
Men cast with their coun-
terparts from X-Men: first
Class (the origin story of
the X-Men). the film is
based on the popular comic
book story in which
Wolverine is sent into the
past in order to prevent a
terrible event that dooms
humans and mutants.
Maleficent
May 30
disney produces an origin
story of their own, with the
backstory of the events that
led to the iconic Sleeping
Beauty. angelina Jolie
seems to be the perfect
choice to play the villainess
witch.
22 Jump Street
June 13
Jonah Hill and Channing
tatum reprise their roles
from the hilarious 21 Jump
Street as undercover cops.
this time they’re sent to
college to take down a new
drug dealer.
Transformers: Age of
Extinction
June 27
the series gets a much-
needed boost of change
with Mark Wahlberg taking
over as a hard working fa-
ther whose family gets
caught up in the never-end-
ing war between autobots
and decepticons.
Think Like a Man Too
June 27
the couples are back for a
wedding in Las Vegas, but
their mischievous adven-
tures lead to possible derail-
ing of the big event. Stand-
up-comedian-turned-top-
comedy-actor Kevin Hart
and the rest of the cast re-
turn for the sequel to the
surprise breakout hit.
Deliver Us from Evil
July 2
this thriller is based on the
true accounts of a New
York police detective who
investigates a series of pos-
session with the help from a
Priest. director Scott der-
rickson (“Sinister,” “the
exorcism of emily rose”)
has had some mild success
in the horror genre.
Dawn of the Planet of
the Apes
July 11
the sequel to the prequel is
set ten years after the
events of the simian plague.
Caesar and the rest of his
apes are threatened by the
human survivors and con-
tinue their war against hu-
manity.
Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtles
August 8
Leonardo, donatello,
Michelangelo and raphael
battle the evil Shredder
with help from their sensei,
Splinter and a human ally,
april, played by Megan
fox.
Box office turns up the
heat with summer sizzlers
from Valdosta, the New
Natives are raising the bar for
local music.
the local band released
their first full-length, self-ti-
tled album in december.
the band was founded by
Jeffrey Haineault, junior
computer science major, who
was the former drummer for
the band Ninja Gun.
in 2011, Haineault recruit-
ed taylor Patterson, senior
deaf education major, on
drums; Jackson dean, junior
computer science major, on
guitar; and Joe Martin on
bass. the original band name
was trailer of tears, but they
changed their name to New
Natives in 2013.
New Native’s music is full
of energy and is reminiscent
of artists like the Police,
Weezer, Smashing Pumpkins
and Buddy Holly.
“We grew up listening to
all of those bands, and they
influence the music that we
write,” Haineault said.
“there was a period where
we all became obsessed with
British invasion bands like
the Zombies, the Kinks and
the Beatles. We are also real-
ly huge fans of classic power
pop music. We really love
music from all eras.”
Web rewind: Local artist
releases full-length albumHillary Straba
f e at u r e S e d i t o r
Chris KesslerS ta f f W r i t e r
To read the full
story and other
web-exclusives,
visit us @
vsuspectator.com
Page 6 | vsusPectator.com may 1, 2014SportS
Another freshman on the
2014 tennis team attracts the
attention of coaches and
players from the entire divi-
sion, shedding light on the
Lady Blazer tennis program
for the second time in the last
three years.
Sabrina Schmidt showed
her strength throughout the
entire season and her hard
work paid off with the ac-
complishment of being
named Gulf South Confer-
ence Freshman of the Y ear.
“i was surprised,” Schmidt
said. “i didn’t expect that,
but i was happy of course.”
Schmidt started playing
tennis with her father, Armin,
at the age of 10 while living
in her hometown of Ne-
unkirchen in Bayern, Ger-
many.
“We kept playing every
day because it was a lot of
fun for me,” Schmidt said.
“He taught me a lot.”
As soon as she hit the clay
court, Schmidt began to play
tennis on a regular basis, of-
ten playing with her three
younger sisters; especially
her sisters Serme and Saman-
tha.
the three played together
until Serme and Samantha
turned 14 years old, as Sabri-
na’s passion for tennis gradu-
ally started getting more in-
tense.
Her father quickly became
her biggest supporter, en-
couraging her to push harder
to accomplish her goals.
“He always goes to tourna-
ments with me no matter
what,” Schmidt said. “He
coaches me and he plays
with me.”
While tennis was becom-
ing a major part in her life,
Schmidt later admired the
work of Maria Sharapova
and Ana ivanovic. these
players stand out to her be-
cause of their aggression and
passion, along with their
feminism.
As Schmidt continued to
play in Germany, tennis
agencies were in contact
with VSU head coach John
Hanson, encouraging him to
bring her to Valdosta.
“From what i can tell she
loves it here,” Hanson said.
“She does great in the class-
room, everyone on the team
loves her, and she’s just a
good girl.”
the freshman was not
used to playing doubles
when she first started, as
most freshmen aren’t. But
she quickly adapted.
the more she played, the
more she got used to it and
gradually made her way up
to the No.1 doubles team for
the Lady Blazers, playing
alongside of Michelle Fisch-
er. together, the two ended
the season with a record of
10-5.
“She has kind of an all-
around game, still has to
work on doubles, but her
doubles has improved dra-
matically,” Hanson said.
Along with her doubles
skills improving, Hanson no-
ticed her quickness and pow-
er enhancing as the 2014 sea-
son came to an end.
“You can tell right away
that she has had a lot of ex-
perience playing tennis and
tournament tennis,” Hanson
said.
With a huge transition
from one country to another,
Schmidt had many things to
get used to. one of which
was playing on hard courts
and not clay courts.
“i just grew up with (clay
courts),” Schmidt said. “it’s
different, but i still like it.”
Schmidt definitely adjusted
perfectly fine to the hard
courts, as her statistics for
the season show.
the freshman showed
every opponent from this
season that she is the domi-
nant player, with a record of
15-2, losing only one match
to Armstrong Atlantic’s Car-
olina prats-Milan, and not
finishing the other against
West Florida’s Kat Dikosavl-
jevic.
“Singles and doubles are
both for the team; you play
for yourself but you also play
for the team,” Schmidt said.
Her accomplishment in
winning almost all of her
matches this season lifted her
to the top 25 on the Division
ii rankings, ending the sea-
son at No.15 after the Gulf
South Conference tourna-
ment.
Schmidt went from mess-
ing around with the tennis
ball and racket with her dad
to accomplishing a major
goal for freshmen in D-ii
tennis.
“Sabrina has been a fantas-
tic addition to the team this
year,” Hanson said. “She has
improved every day since the
day she got here and she’s
going to be a factor before
it’s all over in division-ii ten-
nis.”
Lia Armistead
S p o r t S W r i t e r
VSU German student
adapts to hard court
Courtesy of Sky Neary
Sabrina Schmidt earned 2014 Gulf South Conference Freshman of the Year honors. Schmidt went 10-5 in doubles matches this season.
Tennis freshman earns F.O.Y. honors
OddEven
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SudokuANSWERS
Softball looks to winninth overall GSC title
The No. 20 Valdosta state
(36-12, 16-9) softball team
begin their Gulf south Con-
ference tournament with two
games today at 11 a.m. and
1:30 p.m.
The Lady Blazers face off
against the West Georgia
Wolves (25-26, 11-18) to
kick off the tournament.
Matchups between the
Wolves and Blazers this sea-
son have included additional
interest in regards to sluggers
Nicole Yancey, uWG’s senior
infielder, and Courtney
albritton’s, Vsu’s junior out-
fielder, battle for the lone
GsC career home run title.
Yancey finished the regular
season with 60 career home
runs, setting the record since
hitting her 58th against the
Blazers two weekends ago in
Carrolton, Georgia.
albritton finished the regu-
lar season with 57 career
homers, a feat she accom-
plished in a series against the
Wolves, as well. While she’s
still chasing Yancey for the
GsC mark, albritton did
break the Vsu school record
with her 57th home run. The
record was previously held
by former teammate and cur-
rent assistant coach Marti Lit-
tlefield.
Vsu is the No. 2 seed in
the tournament, behind the
second best team in the na-
tion, alabama-Huntsville (39-
7, 23-6). The Chargers ended
the regular season winning 20
of their last 22 games, which
included a three game series
sweep of the Blazers and a
win over No. 4 North Geor-
gia.
The possibility of the Blaz-
ers finally getting over the
hump to defeat uaH in the
GsC tournament will not
only give the team an ample
amount of confidence going
into the national tournament,
but add another record to the
squad’s history. Vsu has
won five straight GsC tour-
nament titles, a GsC record.
The Blazers are looking to
win their ninth title, also a
GsC record. The Blazers are
currently tied with the Charg-
ers with eight all-time GsC
Championships.
albritton was awarded her
third consecutive conference
player of the year award yes-
terday. Only one other player
has won the award their first
three seasons of playing—
stephanie pinto (uaH 2004-
07), the previous record hold-
er for all-time conference
home runs.
albritton was joined by
three other teammates as a
part of the all-conference first
team. seniors shelby altman
and Briana Hancock receive
the award for their second
time, while freshman infield-
er Chelsea Canara was also
named to the list.
This season’s GsC tourna-
ment is hosted at Heritage
park in Cullman, alabama.
Each team in the tournament
will play two games today
and two games tomorrow.
There will be one or two
games played on champi-
onship saturday depending
on tournament technicalities.
The shorter university
Hawks (36-10, 22-5) won the
GsC regular season champi-
onship, but are ineligible for
postseason play until the
2014-15 season.
Follow rashad on Twitter:
@jeff3006
Rashad Milligans p O r T s W r I T E r
The Blazers are set to enter the Gulf South Tournament today. VSU has won the past five tournamnets
and eight titles overall.
Blazers on All-GSC Team
Junior Courtney Albritton:
.445 BA, 21 HR, 51 RBI’s
Senior Shelby Altman:
.390 BA, 19 HR, 61 RBI’s
Senior Briana Hancock:
17-5, 2.77 ERA, 161 K’s
Freshman Chelsea Canara:
.346 BA, 34 RBI’s, 9 XBH’s
The crab jokes started
flowing like warm garlic but-
ter Wednesday. Take your
pick:
Free seafood u. Free
squid u. Claw and Order.
Case of the Crabs.
Does the Heisman Trophy
now wear a crab bib?
If football doesn't work out,
will Winston get a job on
"Deadliest Catch?"
Even the state's secretary
of agriculture chimed in on
Twitter with the suddenly
popular #FreshFromFlorida
hashtag. adam putnam is a
Gator, but the laughter wasn't
limited to Gainesville. Nor
should it have been.
Jameis Winston's crab fest
was room-service comedy
that veered into the semi-sur-
real. Was there really a sher-
iff's department press confer-
ence over a $32.72 crab leg
heist?
at least this one didn't fea-
ture state attorney Willie
Meggs trying to explain why
his office couldn't charge
Winston with a crime. The
hometown cops were appar-
ently far more interested in
the crab's story than that al-
leged sexual assault victim's.
This little spree one cer-
tainly won't go down as a
major addition to Winston's
rap sheet. Or as peter Warrick
said, "It's not like he shot the
president."
sorry, I couldn't resist.
along those lines, Warrick
was busted for taking
$244.38 worth of clothes in
his infamous Dillard's shop-
ping spree 15 years ago. at
least Fsu superstars have
gotten less greedy over the
years.
If you believe Winston,
greed had nothing to do with
it. He simply started day-
dreaming or going his
through his coupons and for-
got to pay on the way out of
publix.
Only he knows the truth.
Just as only he and the un-
named coed know what really
happened that night in De-
cember of 2012.
I don't mean to insinuate
that just because Winston
would steal a meal, he would
commit sexual battery. But
this latest brush with the law
makes you wonder just who
is Jameis Winston?
"all that talk about God &
you stealing Crab legs,"
tweeted alabama receiver
amari Cooper.
Winston comes off like a
happy charmer. But beneath
the perpetual grin, is he care-
less, absent-minded, mischie-
vous, entitled, callous, devi-
ous, lucky, unlucky or crimi-
nal?
at the very least, he's a
dope. Winston's previously
been questioned about a BB
gun battle and stealing soft
drinks at a Burger King.
None of which will get him
on "america's Most Wanted,"
but it certainly suggests he
needs to grow the heck up.
He's the Heisman Trophy
winner, for christ’s sakes.
Winston can't sneeze in Talla-
hassee without 10 strangers
immediately offering him a
Kleenex. He knows wherever
he goes – bars, Burger Kings,
grocery stores – all eyes will
be on him.
Except at publix, apparent-
ly. The biggest man in town
waltzed out carrying a hot
meal. Nobody noticed, in-
cluding Winston.
"Youthful ignorance," he
said in a statement.
Maybe so.
But for all of Wednesday's
yuks, it's getting harder and
harder to just laugh these
things off.
David WhitleyM C T C a M p u s
Commentary
Need Help Before Finals? Call Today!
PAge 7 | vsusPectAtor.coMSportS
MAY 1, 2014
Blazers closing in on record sixth straightGSC tournament title this weekend
Famous Jameis gets grief:The Heisman winner was given a citation for seafood theft
VSU Athletics
PAge 8 | vsusPectAtor.coM MAY 1, 2014