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Wednesday, September 16, 2009
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COLLEGIATETIMES 106th year, issue 85
News, page 1
Features, page 2
Opinions, page 3
Classifieds, page 4
Sudoku, page 4
Sports, page 5
New facility to break ground
Knock it out
COURTESY OF THOMPSON & LITTON
Construction of the $30 million project is set to last about two years.
LONG AWAITED COURTHOUSE WILL FEATURE SECURITY UPGRADES RILEY PRENDERGAST news reporter
JONATHAN PIPPIN/SPPS
Management major Erin Mosher takes out her negative feelings on the punching bag where she attached a word she associates with hate.
Diversity activities combat racial and ethnic stereotypes DAN WAIDELICH features reporter This week the Graduate Life Center will host the Tunnel, a program designed to promote diversity awareness at Virginia Tech. The Tunnel, in its third year at Tech, is an interactive journey that strives to make participants more aware of social stereotyping and hateful attitudes. Attendees are challenged with displays and presentations about the diversity issues that can appear in the Tech community. The event is sponsored by Hokie F6, a Residence Life group that provides campus residents with social programming for the first six weeks of the school year. Matthew Grimes, assistant director of Residence Life and Hokie F6 organizer, initiated the program after observing similar “Tunnels of Oppression” programs at schools around the country, and he modified Tech’s own version
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The Tunnel
Graduate Life Center Multipurpose Room from 3 to 8 p.m. through Sept. 17
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to fit with the university’s Principles of Community. The principles are the university’s guiding values on issues of diversity and expression. One of the principles is the rejection of “all forms of prejudice and discrimination.” The first Tunnels of Oppression focused on exposing prejudice and hate throughout history. Grimes took that concept and created an event that made participants examine solutions to social problems in the Tech community. “We try to make it interactive,” Grimes said. “How can you get to know your community better? How can you appreciate differences?” Visitors will be guided around the Multipurpose Room in the GLC to
several exhibits that focus on diversity in different ways. One section provides displays about prejudice throughout history and information on the variety of stereotypes present in the Tech community, from sorority girls to corps members. Grimes and Hokie F6 do their best to make sure that the Tunnel offers something fresh each year. One of the new interactive exhibits is “Punch-out Hate.” Visitors will have the chance to write down a word they associate with hate, tape it to a punching bag, and pummel it as much as they would like. “It’s a fun event that says, ‘Remember when that happened to you, and it made you feel bad? Get rid of it right now, knock it out,’” said Grimes, with a smile on his face. “Guess Who?” is a section of the Tunnel where participants are asked to identify anonymous faces based on a set of clues about that person, such as their major or where they’re from.
The game is meant to examine the judgment calls that players make about complete strangers, said Christopher MacDonald, associate director of Residence Life. The Tunnel is the largest diversity event sponsored by Residence Life, and it attracts about 500 visitors each year. Many of these visitors are freshmen, so organizers of the event see the necessity of getting the message of diversity awareness out as quickly as possible. “We have people with different backgrounds coming to this community,” said Leon McClinton, director of Residence Life. “We want to help students become knowledgeable of the differences that are on this campus.” The success of the Tunnel is another step in promoting diversity at Tech. “We realize that Virginia Tech places a lot of emphasis on the Principles of Community that talk about respecting differences,” McClinton said. “We hope that this program will help support that.”
Nebraska game sparks downtown event CLAIRE SANDERSON news staff writer Blacksburg’s first “Downtown Tailgate” will take place this Friday in preparation for the Virginia Tech-Nebraska football game. The event is sponsored by the Downtown Merchants of Blacksburg and is meant to be a way for both Tech and Nebraska fans to have a good time, while also bringing business downtown. It will feature performer DJ Kerry Taylor, BecoBall tailgate games, the Tech Bookstore Downtown Bungee Run and Party NRV inflatable bouncers for children. There will also be a beer and wine garden set up close to the stage along College Avenue. Cheerleaders from both Tech and Nebraska will be present, and fans can participate in a “Show Your Team Sprit Contest.” The Downtown Merchants of Blacksburg is a not-for-profit group of almost 90 downtown business owners that sponsors
events designed to be fun for the community while also helping out the downtown area. The group’s largest event is Steppin’ Out, the arts and crafts street festival that takes place downtown every year in August. Laureen Blakemore, director of special events for the Downtown Merchants, is in charge of running and coordinating the Tailgate in cooperation with the Town of Blacksburg. “It’s for community, it’s for Nebraska fans, it’s for Virginia Tech fans,” Blakemore said. “It’s just a fun night before the game celebration.” While the hope is that the event will be a fun time for all, it will also serve to bring business downtown. “Everything we do is a combination of both. We try to make community events fun, and it’s also to drive foot traffic down here so everyone can see what’s here,” Blakemore said. Steve Miller, the owner of Mish Mish and a member of the Downtown Merchants, suggested
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Downtown Tailgate
Peak Sportswear, is another member of the Downtown Merchants. Bishop served on the planning committee for the Tailgate and is working with Tech to bring the cheerleaders and the HighTechs to the event. “With the Tech football games, there’s so many people coming in from out of town, and it’s a great way to promote our businesses downtown,” Bishop said. “It’s open not just for Virginia Tech fans. The out of town people from Nebraska are more than welcome to come. It’s for the fans so they know that they have somewhere to go the night before the game — and not just sitting in hotel rooms.” Another downtown business playing a part in this event is the Tech Bookstore. The Tech Bookstore is part of a chain of bookstores owned by the Nebraska Book Company in Lincoln, Neb., which has helped provide a link between the schools for spreading the word about the Tailgate.
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When: Friday, Sept. 18, 6-9 p.m. Where: Downtown Draper Road and College Avenue
the idea for the Tailgate. The town of Christiansburg held a successful tailgate for last year’s game against Georgia Tech, and Miller wanted to try having one in Blacksburg. After considering and adopting the idea, the Downtown Merchants decided to have the tailgate especially for the Nebraska game. “We decided to do Nebraska because last year the people that went out to the Nebraska game said that the folks at Nebraska were just so welcoming and cordial that we thought maybe we could repay the hospitality for the Nebraska people, and we’ve reached out trying to get some of them to come down,” Miller said. Travis Bishop, owner of High
Jerry Diffel of the Tech Bookstore said the Tailgate will bring fans from both teams together. “I like the concept because Nebraska was so kind and welcoming when we went there, it’s just nice to do the same here in Blacksburg,” Diffel said. The Tech Bookstore’s main contribution to the Tailgate is the First Downtown Bungee Run. “The bungee cord is at your back, and you can try to run for a touchdown,” Diffel explained. The Downtown Tailgate is also going to be a Green Event, as described by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality. “We’re doing most of our advertising online or by word of mouth to reduce paper waste, and our food vendor in the festival will not be using Styrofoam,” Blakemore said. “We’re making less of a bad impact on the environment, hopefully. It’s part of our commitment to being as green as we can downtown.”
Construction on the new Montgomery County Courthouse breaks ground Friday after nearly 15 years of planning and close to $30 million of county money. The project will consist of creating a four-story county courthouse, a new parking structure, renovating the old courthouse to become a public safety building and a two-story addition to the county jail. The old courthouse, located in downtown Christiansburg on the blocks between First, Pepper, Franklin and East Main Streets, was designed in 1975, but was not put into use until 1979. The building itself has become a source of concern for members of the county court system because of the outof-date security standards. The new building will offer upgraded security measures. “The construction contract was approved in August by the Montgomery County Board of Supervisors,” said Ruth Richey, a county spokesperson. “The building will have extensive security features to safely transfer inmates from jail to the courthouse.” The architecture firm that submitted the design for the new courthouse is Thompson & Litton, while the bidding for the construction job went to DeVere Construction Company out of Alpena, Mich. “Anytime projects like this are in the public sector it’s exciting,” said Jack Murphy the project manager for T&L. “It takes a lot of compromise to get an end result. But the bidding market is very good right now, and the low bid was 20 percent below the county estimates.” According to Murphy, contractors working on projects in this area are not typically located so far away. However, the bid submitted by the Devere Company beat out 11 other bids, including bids from Kenbridge Construction and BurWil Construction. Initially, Montgomery County had allotted for around $30 million in construction costs alone, but received a bid for $19.1 million. The county is estimating, after including the costs of the other projects and finalizing renovations, the total cost to be $30 million. New security features include an underground tunnel creating independent routes for the public, inmates and staff from the jail to the courthouse. There will also be a single point of entry for the public with full security screening, different courts on each level and card access with camera surveillance for staff entry. The main purpose of the tunnel is to transfer inmates from their holding cells to either holding rooms where they await trail, or to elevators that will bring them directly to their respective courtrooms. “This provides a way to separate the public, staff and inmates from each other,” Murphy said. “It will also provide heating to the building as a better means of energy management.” Energy efficiency is another selling point of the new county building. “Most architects feel that it is practically our responsibility to embrace environmental efficiency in whatever we design,” Murphy said. “Certain features of the new building will be specifically for energy efficiency but we are not pursuing a specific (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification.” Some of these practical sustainable designs include a roof garden and sustainable heating systems, according to Richey. The parking structure will be two stories and hold 137 spaces. The additions to the jail and the courthouse construction will be done in approximately 2 years. “This project has been a long time coming,” Murphy said. “But ultimately it will be a good project for the county.”
[ nation & world headlines ] AFGANISTAN
More troops likely needed in Afganistan WASHINGTON — Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday that the U.S. “probably” needs to send more troops to Afghanistan to support the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai, which he called a large part of the problem there. Appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee as part of his chairman reconfirmation, Mullen asked the public for more time to consider whether to send more American troops. His mixed messages appeared to reflect the Obama administration’s difficulty defining a strategy for Afghanistan amid declining political and public support, mounting U.S. casualties, evidence that Karzai rigged his re-election last
month, pervasive official corruption, a resurgent Taliban and halfhearted assistance from neighboring Pakistan. If Karzai is re-elected, as appears likely, and the outcome is seen as illegitimate, it could further undercut domestic support for the Afghanistan war, and leave the White House hitched to an unpopular leader in Kabul. The administration is contemplating sending more troops to Afghanistan, and Mullen said that while the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal, won’t request more troops for another two weeks, he already thinks the war will require more troops based on a 60-day assessment that McChrystal submitted last month. nancy a. youssef, mcclatchy newspapers
CLIMATE CHANGE
Can US, China compromise on climate talks? WASHINGTON — The U.S. and China should be able to agree on energy cooperation projects that reduce greenhouse gases and lead to a successful outcome at international climate talks in Copenhagen in December, two U.S. climate insiders said Tuesday. Former Sen. Timothy Wirth of Colorado, who’s been meeting with climate negotiators from other countries in his role as the director of the United Nations Foundation, said the two countries won’t agree on how much each side should cut emissions and shouldn’t get bogged down trying. Instead, he said, they should talk about energy efficiency, renewable energy, new possibilities for shale gas and other areas of cooperation. “There’s a whole menu where we can agree without getting into an ideo-
logical-purity discussion of who reduces how much,” Wirth said. “Let’s grab those opportunities and make them the core of the Copenhagen outcome.” Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said the U.S. and China “are really going to set the tone for the international climate change dialogue. The crucial question is can we together forge a partnership that’s capable of acting boldly enough to prevent a climate catastrophe.” The U.S., the developed world’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, and China, the biggest source in the developing world, together contribute about 40 percent of global warming pollution. The two countries have been meeting to try to find common ground before the international talks. renee schoof and margaret talev, mcclatchy newspapers
ECONOMY
Bernanke: Tough times to linger for now WASHINGTON — The deep recession that’s gripped the U.S. economy by the throat since December 2007 is “very likely over at this point,” Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Tuesday. However, Bernanke painted a picture of an underperforming economy well into next year as he fielded questions after a speech at the Brookings Institution, a center-left research center in the nation’s capital. “From a technical perspective the recession is very likely over,” Bernanke said, cautioning that unemployment is likely to remain high. “It’s still going to feel like a very weak economy for some time, as many people
will still find that their job security and employment status is not what they wish it was. So that’s a challenge for us and all policymakers going forward.” What follows may not feel much like recovery, Bernanke cautioned, because structural problems in the U.S. economy are likely to resurface. There will be economic growth during the rest of this year, “but the general view of most forecasters is the pace of growth in 2010 will be moderate, less than you might expect, given the depth of the recession, because of ongoing head winds.” kevin g. hall, mcclatchy newspapers
2 features
editors: topher forhecz, teresa tobat featureseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865
september 16, 2009
COLLEGIATETIMES
Two local business owners dish on what it takes to be an entrepreneur JOYCE KIM
U2’s latesttourhas eco-friendly‘Edge’
features staff writer
GREG KOT After turning the corner between the Newman Library and Squires Student Center, College Avenue and downtown Blacksburg can be seen in an array of small, local businesses in the distance. The tired-looking buildings that house these businesses each tell a different story. It may be in the way its battered display signs hang across the storefront or in the revealing cracks in the window displays. Looking from left to right, there is a rich sense of diversity in the kinds of stores that Blacksburg offers. Forbes.com rated Blacksburg as the “No. 10 Best Small Place For Business and Careers,” which shows that there is a chance for entrepreneurs who make their way here. But still the question remains: How exactly can someone start a small business in such a small region of 19.4-squaremiles? “Small shops have a uniqueness of experience that it provides,” said Anju Seth, Pamplin professor of management and head of the department of management. Well-established businesses such as Souvlaki have found a winning combination of experiences that they provide their customers, Seth said. By serving Greek cuisine including pita wraps, tiropita and falafels, Souvlaki has been able to provide a certain demand for customers other business have not since it was founded in 1982. Manager of Souvlaki Mike Buchanan started working at the restaurant during his undergraduate years at Virginia Tech. He believes that, because of his employees who are constantly at the storefront interacting with the customers, his business has succeeded. He said knowing each customer by their food order makes each client feel welcome and seems to be a special ingredient to the restaurant. Hooptie Ride, another established local business, has also been developing lasting relationships with residents and especially students. Ken Jones, Hooptie Ride manager, bought this business a year ago
chicago tribune
LUKE MASON/SPPS
Souvlaki’s manager Mike Buchanan stands in the restaurant he started working in as an undergraduate at Virginia Tech. He said having his own business gives him the freedom of being his own boss. from the original founder, David Robinson. Robinson started the service as a school project because he felt a need to provide a clean, safe mode of transportation for the community. He wanted to provide an alternative to drinking and driving, but also do it in style by driving around in customized automobiles with names like the Mystery Mobile and the Hokey Hustler. Jones said they try to make it an enjoyable experience you can remember so that it is not just a “normal” ride home. If a freshman started taking the Hooptie Ride and had a pleasant experience, then trust can be built
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Small shops have a uniqueness of experience that it provides. ANJU SETH PAMPLIN PROFESSOR OF MANAGEMENT AND HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT
over the next four years so that even as an alumni, he or she can come back for this service. Having your own business is a taxing challenge as long hours must be put in each day. Jones, for example, works seven days a week for 60 to 80 hours. “There is always something to do
and you have to wear lots of different hats,” Jones said. However, there are the benefits to managing a business. Buchanan boasted that he has the freedom of being his own boss and making the decisions. He also said that having something to call your own is very rewarding. Having a business in a college town also means that there is a bit of a turnover every year as businesses lose customers who have graduated from Tech, but they then have the chance to welcome new students. Buchanan said that once they are able to pull in the new students, a relationship might be forged that can last through the next few years.
U2’s “360 Tour,” which made its North American debut Saturday at Chicago’s Soldier Field, is a good old-fashioned stadiumrock extravaganza. The numbers are staggering: Three 90-foot-tall custom-built stages containing a 54-ton cylindrical video screen and 500 personnel are being hauled around the country by a fleet of 189 trucks and buses. In addition, the band is expected to pile up 70,000 miles jetting around the world by the time the 2-year tour concludes in 2010. In part because U2 and its singer Bono have been outspoken on numerous social and political causes, the band drew criticism during its European tour for the environmental impact of such a massive undertaking. Carbonfootprint.com, a company which assesses environmental damage, estimates the tour will generate 65,000 tons in carbon emissions. David Byrne blogged, “Those stadium shows may possibly be the most extravagant and expensive (production-wise) ever: $40 million to build the stage and, having done the math, we estimate 200 semitrucks crisscrossing Europe for the duration. It could be professional envy speaking here, but it sure looks like, well, overkill, and just a wee bit out of balance given all the starving people in Africa and all.” The band says it’s not ignoring those concerns. In an interview with the BBC, guitarist The Edge said, “It’s probably unfair to single out rock ‘n’ roll. There’s many other things that are in the same category but, as it happens, we have a program to offset whatever carbon footprint we have.” The Edge was vague on details, perhaps because the program is in its early stages. But U2 does have an envi-
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It’s probably unfair to single out rock ‘n’ roll. There’s many other things that are in the same category but, as it happens, we have a program to offset whatever carbon footprint we have. THE EDGE GUITARIST
ronmental plan in place for the tour, which includes having tour promoter Live Nation pay for programs to offset the carbon impact, according to an environmentalist working with the tour. Earlier this year, U2 and Live Nation hired greening company MusicMatters and EFFECT Partners to accompany the tour and work on cutting emissions and other damaging side effects of staging big rock concerts. Already, said MusicMatters Chief Ewxecutive Michael Martin, the tour has cut the number of vehicles by 10 percent. Other changes include having tour staff use canteens instead of disposable water bottles. Venues such as Soldier Field are being encouraged to use everything from environmentally friendly soap and toilet paper to offering discount parking for hybrid vehicles. At the end of the tour, Martin and his team will offer a handful of proposals to the band and promoter about how they can offset the environmental damage. “There are myriad options at myriad price points, from $8 a ton to $25 a ton, in projects they can fund around the world to offset the carbon footprint,” Martin said. “Proceeds from the tour will be used to pay for these projects, which shows commendable responsibility on their part.”
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opinions 3
editor: debra houchins opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES
september 16, 2009
The Collegiate Times is an independent student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903
Your Views [letters to the editor]
Make Blacksburg transportation a major priority
T
oday, the Active Commute Celebration on the Drillfield marks the middle of Virginia Cycling and Pedestrian Awareness Week. Cyclists are learning about bike registration and safety, Blacksburg Transit riders are picking up copies of the latest schedule, and U Car Share members are finding out how to register and unlock a vehicle. In an era with more students bringing their cars and trucks to campus and parking spaces moving farther from academic and residential buildings, we need to do all that we can to reduce traffic and ensure that everyone can find a way to campus and downtown Blacksburg. Not everyone can take a bus to work or ride a bike to school, but we must increase opportunities for those who can and do. In 2008, the American Public Transportation Association found that a person who forgoes a personal vehicle in favor of a bus or metro pass saves an estimated $8,700 each year. If more Blacksburg residents ride the bus, fewer vehicles will be on the road, reducing the town’s carbon footprint. What’s more, a community that promotes walking and cycling is a healthy one. Blacksburg already has an extensive network of sidewalks and greenways, but we can always do more to expand them and create pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods. Bike lanes cover much of Blacksburg, but we still lack
a fully connected bike path and “share the road” loop in our historic downtown. Our local elected officials must not only continue public support of BT but also expand service in selected areas, including our commercial centers and student neighborhoods where service nears capacity. As with any type of growth, Blacksburg must take longrange planning into consideration. Many of my colleagues at Virginia Tech commute from Roanoke, Floyd and Giles. Some take the SmartWay bus as a low-cost way to travel to and from Roanoke, and others search for carpool and vanpool opportunities. They also benefit from RIDE Solutions, a regional ridesharing program developed by the New River Valley Planning District Commission and the Roanoke Valley-Alleghany Regional Commission. Recognizing that the town’s workforce lives throughout Southwest Virginia, Blacksburg should also support the expansion of regional Park-and-Rides. In 1904, the Huckleberry line first connected Blacksburg and Christiansburg by rail. Designed and built in part by an engineering professor and his students, the railroad revolutionized travel in and out of Blacksburg. Although our community has grown, our technology has changed, and our understanding of how this technology impacts our environment has improved, the university and the town still have the talent to find transportation solutions for a new century.
Michael Sutphin Town Council candidate ’06 alumnus, communication
Foreign policy relies on health care outcome T
here are some Democratic legislators who are squabbling over health-care secret supporters of the Taliban? Are some Republican legislators in cahoots with Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? I’m dead serious when I ask those questions, as we pass another anniversary of 9/11. President Obama must make critical decisions this fall about policies toward Afghanistan, Pakistan and Iran — decisions forced on him early in his term because of wrongheaded policies by the previous administration. Eight years after the twin towers fell, militant Islamists in all three countries are on a roll. They think the United States is on an economic and political downslide. Fearful at first of Obama — because of his global appeal — they now sense he may be done in at home by his own party, and by sharp Republican opposition. “Both the internal and external signs of this Western liberal democracy show that it’s approaching defeat and collapse,” said top Ahmadinejad aide Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi last week, echoing past comments by his boss. I believe Hashemi is wrong. But psychology figures powerfully in the unwillingness of Iranians (or the Taliban) to compromise — and we are giving them good reason to believe they are winning. A U.S. president who fails on his signature issue — health care — won’t have the strength and public support to deal with new challenges by Islamists. He will be seen at home and abroad as seriously weakened. Yet neither party seems much bothered by this threat. Among Democrats, many liberals are so mesmerized by their allegiance to one provision of health care or another, that they fail to consider the consequences to an Obama presidency of failure. Many Democrats also doubt Obama’s policy on Afghanistan. But I believe he can still make smart choices about troop levels, provided he isn’t fatally wounded first by the politics of health care. Yet such wounds are just what some Republicans hope to inflict. Republican Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina put it bluntly: “If we’re able to stop Obama on this (health care) it will be his Waterloo. It will break him.” Never mind that the stunning challenges Obama faces regarding the Taliban result from eight years of neglect of Afghanistan by the previous president in favor of Iraq. “President Bush had eight years to build up an Afghan army, to invest in agriculture and jobs there, and he didn’t do it,” says Ahmed Rashid, one of the world’s leading experts on the Taliban. And never mind that Republicans like Sens. Lindsay Graham and John McCain are supporting the president on the Afghan issue. The lure of the DeMint scenario seems to have blinded much of the GOP to the dan-
gers that slash-and-burn politics pose to our policy abroad. So, for those Democrats and Republicans whose narrow focus puts our foreign policy at risk, let me lay out those dangers: As our top military brass have bluntly said, things are getting worse in Afghanistan. I needn’t remind you this is the country in which the 9/11 tragedy was hatched. Afghan Taliban are gaining ground, Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda still plot inside their Pakistani safe haven, and Pakistani jihadis are trying to destabilize a country with nukes — and to provoke a war with India, which also has nuclear arms. Any U.S. hope of improving the situation requires a reversal in the current victor mentality of Taliban adherents. The U.S. military hopes to achieve this by demonstrating our commitment to secure and aid Afghans, even as we train up the Afghan army to replace us. If the Taliban is convinced of our commitment, chances rise that we can peel off mid- and low-level members who are in the fight for money or jobs. But if the Taliban believe we, and Obama, are weak, they will refuse to bargain. Similarly, so long as Iranian leaders believe that our democracy is approaching collapse, they will feel confident in refusing to negotiate about their nuclear program and flouting Obama’s September deadline for them to do so. The same top Ahmadinejad aide who predicted America’s fall said Iran will not even talk about halting its uranium enrichment program. This leaves Obama with two choices: trying to rally the U.N. Security Council around new sanctions, which will be made all the more difficult if the world perceives him as failing at home; or turning to military action. His options might expand if he were strengthened at home. So legislators on both sides of the aisle should start thinking beyond their narrow self-interest. If Democrats fail to find a health-care compromise they may doom their president’s foreign policy, and their own reelection chances. They will certainly be helping the Taliban, by undercutting Obama’s ability to craft a policy that could save Afghanistan. If Republicans adopt the South Carolina approach — don’t fight on policy, fight to destroy Obama — they’ll undercut national security. Shouting “You lie” — the words of South Carolinian Joe Wilson — is easy and cheap. But do Republicans really want to give Ahmadinejad a boost?
TRUDY RUBIN -columnist, mcclatchy newspapers
MCT CAMPUS
We need to be conscious of what we accept as truth D
uring President Barack Obama’s speech on health care last week, Representative Joe Wilson (R-SC) yelled out, “You lie!” while Obama himself was trying to address rumors on whether illegal immigrants would get publicly funded health care. Even if we ignore the absolute rudeness of this outburst, we still need to answer the question of “Who is really lying?” This is not the only recent example of two completely separate realities being pushed on us. This summer’s death panel rumors, largely amplified by a careless media, did little to offer us a serious debate on a very important issue. We often find that such misdirection hurts progress and is better quickly weeded out for more important issues. The likelihood that a major politician would plan the murder of anyone’s grandmother is about as likely as your grandma being abducted by aliens. And yet, so many people take it for granted that mythical “death panels are part of some great liberal conspiracy” while correctly dismissing UFO kooks out of hand. We owe it to ourselves, as well as to our fellow citizens, to be careful about what we believe and to not trust any one source. If we want to continue to improve our society, we need to find out the truth so that we may have an honest debate. We should never be afraid to fact-check our politicians. Normally, we rely on the media to help us in our quest for the truth. However, with the modern day media, we often find that online sources such as blogs, tweets and partisan Web sites make up a large part of our news diet. There is no standard mode of operation in this new environment, and quality is extremely variable. Making it worse is that traditional media will often take sources from online blogs in order to prove their points, but in doing so
they are subject to whatever standards are represented from the online world. Even without the “new media,” the 24-hour news cycle creates a thirst for sensationalism that can often hurt integrity. Add to this the fact that in today’s media marketplace there is a thirst for partisan news that has created a market for “Fair and Balanced” media outlets whose programming is anything but. To be clear, this happens on both sides of the aisle, and while it might feel good to listen to someone who agrees with your bias, it is our job to keep them honest. As concerned citizens, we need to be ever vigilant that we are not just buying into a view that agrees with us just because it agrees with us. If we spend all our time watching Fox News, we should take some time to watch MSNBC occasionally. However, that does not mean that all points of view are equal. Often we find that news organizations wish to provide the appearance of a story and will frame debates between guests in such a way so as to imply that both sides have a valid point of view. And this would make sense in many political debates where the debate is philosophical in nature, but it also gives unnecessary airtime to conspiracy theorists, such as the birthers, who believe that Obama was not born a citizen. It is not likely that there will be a change in the news culture any time soon, so it is left to us to use our minds to verify any claims that may be put forward. Of course, Google and Wikipedia are helpful, but in using them we are often left unsure about the validity of the sources used. There are two major sites respectively on both sides of the aisle that try to fact check the media and our politicians: Politifact.com and Factcheck.org. Politifact, run by the St. Petersburg Times, does a great job of looking into statements made by
both sides of our political spectrum. To keep the left at bay, Politifact keeps an Obameter, which measures about 500 different campaign promises that Obama made on the campaign and tells whether he has acted upon, compromised or broken any. Politifact has done a wonderful job of debunking statements made by the birther movement and tracking lies and rumors made about the health care reform proceedings. Factcheck is a project out of the University of Pennsylvania, which is best known for its verification of Obama’s birth certificate. While Factcheck did come to Obama’s aid in this instance, they have never shied away from pointing out the spin that can come from the left, too. So who was actually lying last week? Well, it seems to actually be a pretty clear-cut situation. Checking both the sites above we find that Obama is telling the truth and that Representative Wilson was in fact lying. It seems that in this case many of the bills being debated are very explicit about not providing health care for illegal immigrants, and this is also true of the version that the Obama administration is backing. Even if you were on the side of health care reform in this debate, the point is worth verifying. Politics is about persuasion, and it is the job of the politician to sell his point of view. Even if we agree with the basic philosophy of our public servants, we should always do some basic fact checking — it is for our good and for the good of our nation.
PATRICK BUTLER -regular columnist -graduate student -computer science -Young Democrat
A ‘ rsenic in our cultural KoolAid’: Music throughout college D
o most people sing lyrics from songs they like as they walk around campus or am I the only one? I used to have an iPod, but I broke it. I have a hand-held AM/FM radio that I use from time to time, but for the most part I simply keep a couple of songs in my head throughout a given day. If I am feeling tense and angry I might whisper a few lines from Exodus’s “Now Thy Death Day Come”: “When you see my demon eyes, it’s too late to apologize. ... The gates of Heaven have been shattered, the wings of angels torn and tattered.” If I am feeling rather jovial, then perhaps some Van Morrison is more fitting: “And Sam Cooke is on the radio, and the night is filled with space, and your finger tips touch my face.” Most people have music collections consisting of a minimum of about 1,000 to 2,000 songs with any number of artists and albums. Technology has turned the music industry on its head, but what has it done to society? Judging by the thumping bass coming from the apartment above mine, I can safely say very little. Music is a mystical, beautiful art that touches us on a deep personal level more so than any other art form. Unlike a Dali painting or a David Lynch film, music needs little explanation. Our natural reaction to what we hear is our own interpretation. The artist is trying to convey something that the listener eventually catches on to and accepts or rejects in turn for his or her own feelings of the music. Truly this is the most accessible and available art form we have in our society. And yet, it feels like someone has dropped arsenic in our cultural KoolAid. If it is not obvious by how I write,
then I will come out and say it: I don’t get out much. The times I have gone out and enjoyed the more poignant moments of college life I have observed a horrendous trend. Wherever the beer flows like wine, the music sucks. I hate “party” music. I hate even calling it music. It’s not music; it’s an abortion for my ears. Call me a decent human being with a soul, but I like to share music that means something to me with the people that mean something to me. I would never punish my friends with atrocious music even though society tells me to do differently. Who is responsible for this, and why haven’t we beaten him with sticks by now? Baffling, I know, but wait — it gets better. Virginia Tech is not a new school. It is located in a region rich in Appalachian music. Here comes the kicker, we have our own radio station. We have over 20,000 students, and the Blacksburg music scene is on life support. For the record, I blame football. Screw football; rip down Lane Stadium and sell the rubble on eBay as remnants of the Berlin Wall. I digress, that is another topic for another day. The point is, people don’t have to listen to garbage when they are at a party or walking to class. You don’t have to listen to what commercial radio plays or what is popular. I am reminded of a story worth retelling. I was working on an engineering presentation with two other aspiring engineers. We had finished up the work and were just talking about whatever came up in conversation. Another guy in the group was playing some music off of iTunes, and I asked him if I could browse his library. He agreed, and I began exploring. I saw Kelly Clarkson, the Beatles, ABBA and,
for the most part, nothing too special. As a matter of fact, I believe most guys would have been embarrassed to have Kelly Clarkson on their hard drive, but this guy was not. Then I saw the album that made up for anything even remotely “girly.” It was “Abigail” by King Diamond. I could not believe it. The greatest heavy metal concept album was in the same library as ABBA. Here was someone who enjoyed popular music and also took the time to explore beyond the mainstream. Before I forget what I’m doing talking about music, let me ask again: Do you sing in your head or whisper song lyrics as you go about your day? If not, then why not? “Fall into me, the sky’s crimson tears, abolish rules made of stone” — beautiful lyrics by Slayer. You don’t have to hold it in. If you want to sing to yourself you can. It’s okay. I won’t laugh, I swear. It is good to have passion. It makes us human to feel love, terror and excitement. Enjoy your humanity. Better yet, enjoy it while you are sober. Be your own agent of change. “Pierced from below, souls of my treacherous past.” You can do it. “Betrayed by many, now ornaments dripping above,” you know the words. Get ready — you can only read it once before you know how it ends. Here it is: “Raining blood! From a lacerated sky, bleeding its horror, creating my structure. Now I shall reign in blood!” Solo. Thunderclaps.
VINCENT GUIDA -regular columnist -sophomore -WUVT staff -industrail systems engineer
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Blacksburg High’s soccer Olhovsky vaults with the nation’s best stars stay local for next level RYAN TRAPP sports reporter
ED LUPIEN sports reporter If you plug in driving directions for Thompson Field to Blacksburg High School in Mapquest, the total distance will read just under two miles. That’s about as far as the men’s soccer program had to go to recruit three of its players. Junior midfielder Albert Alwang, sophomore defender Jeremy Williams and freshman midfielder/ forward Alistar Moore all graduated from Blacksburg High School and are members of the 2009 team. Although each of their careers are still taking shape, all three have already been praised by Tech men’s soccer head coach Michael Brizendine for their skills on the field and their impact on the local area. “It’s good to have some local kids
on our squad who are also contributing on the field,” Brizendine said. “Moore has done a good job. Alwang is becoming a leader. Williams put in some serious minutes with us last season, and he was kind of in and out.” All three players do not deny that the decision to play in their hometown for an Atlantic Coast Conference program was a pretty easy one. “I had been coming to Virginia Tech games since elementary school, so it was kind of a dream,” Moore said. “I looked at other schools, but I committed to Tech pretty early. Once I knew there was an offer from Tech, it was pretty much a done deal.” Moore, the youngest of the three, said he consulted Williams a few times about the atmosphere and comfort level of playing on the team. “I’ve been around them for the past few years on the high school team,”
JONATHAN PIPPIN/SPPS
Midfielder Albert Alwang graduated from Blacksburg High in 2007.
Moore said. “It definitely helped my decision knowing they were comfortable here and having a good time.” Albert Alwang, although a junior, is also playing in his first season as a Hokie after transferring from University of North CarolinaWilmington, where he originally chose to play after he received the promise of playing time. He said the decision to make the change was an easy one after spending a semester away from Blacksburg. “It just wasn’t a good fit for me in terms of academics, money and soccer,” Alwang said of UNC-W. Alwang also noted that it felt good to return to Blacksburg and play in front of his father, who attends every home game. Reuniting with two of his former teammates was also a plus. “They’ve played on my team throughout high school,” Alwang said of Moore and Williams. “Even when I played Junior Varsity, Jeremy was on my team and also on my club team. We’re good friends — we all hang out with each other outside of soccer.” The junior, who emphasized academics as the main influence for his decision, is also content that his issue of playing time has, at least for the moment, been put to rest. “Soccer isn’t everything right now, but I came back with the idea that I thought I could play here, and right now I’ve been playing,” Alwang said. “I’ve started every game and played every minute so far, so I can’t complain at the moment.” Although the players compete within walking distance from their former stomping grounds, their contact with the high school and its personnel is quickly evaporating. Jeremy Williams is the most experienced of the three, having appeared in nine contests last season. Since he joined the team, his interaction with his former head coach, Shelley Blumenthal, has been minimal. “If I see him I talk to him, but with everything going on I don’t have much time,” Williams said. Moore, similarly, has seen college as a major step forward. “I have not been back to the high school yet since I’ve graduated,” Moore added. “I’ve kind of moved on.” Despite the deterioration of communication, the players are well aware of where they are — home.
“Well, he’s finished second at the NCAA Championships twice, although it remains to be seen where he will ultimately wind up.” said Dave Cianelli, director of track and field. “He has to be considered as one of the best athletes we’ve had at Tech.” Senior Yavgeniy Olhovsky has turned heads at the collegiate level his entire career as a Hokie. A native of Isreal, Olhovsky is a three-time All-American and has matched the record for the highest finish by a Hokie in the pole vault by finishing second in the 2008 NCAA Outdoor Championships. OLHOVSKY This summer, Olhovsky was given an even grander stage to showcase his talent when he earned the honor of representing Israel at the International Association of Athletics Federations World Championships in August. Olhovsky cleared 17 feet and 8.75 inches to finish 16th in Group A of the preliminaries, falling short of the 18-0.250 mark needed to qualify for the finals, but he rose to the occasion in competing in one of the biggest venues of his sport. “It was my first time at the world competition,” Olhovsky said. “It was the biggest competition I’ve participated in so I didn’t do so well. Competing here, I expect myself to win, but there I was at the bottom of the list.” But it was a very impressive list Olhovsky found himself at the bottom of — competing against the likes of 2008 Olympic gold medalist Steven Hooker and the United States’ Olympic representative Derek Miles. “I plan to return to the Worlds in two years and hopefully do much better,” Olhovsky said. Tech’s track staff fully expects this to happen. It’s already seen Olhovsky improve from the 17-4.75 he jumped his senior year of high school to the indoor track school record of 18-0.25 he set in February. “He already holds the school indoor record and certainly has the ability to be close to a 19-footer
before he’s done at Tech, a feat only accomplished by half a dozen or so men at the college level,” Cianelli said. Olhovsky was born in the Ukraine, but at a young age he and his family immigrated to Israel where he grew up. He hoped in coming to the U.S. that he would find a school with a strong vault program where he could continue to grow as an athlete. Tech was that school. “He e-mailed one of our coaches with interest,” Cianelli said, “which is not unusual. We’ve had several international students in our program, although none from Israel. But that’s really how it all got started.” Bob Phillips, the Hokie pole vault coach, used to vault for Tech in the late ’70s and early ’80s and set the school record in the indoor and outdoor vault while competing at Tech. The 1980 All-American was a four-time NCAA national qualifier and also a member of the U.S. National Team that took on Great Britain in 1984 and competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials in July of that year. Phillips has been coaching the vault team at Tech for the past 23 years and has been pumping out successful athletes during his tenure, coaching vaulters to 20 conference championship titles — making Tech a very strong program nationally. Phillips knew Tech had someone special when Olhovsky e-mailed him explaining his interest in the school. “He isn’t the biggest vaulter we’ve seen — he’s only around 5’11” — but he is one of the fastest vaulters I’ve coached,” Phillips said. “It’s his best attribute as a vaulter.” Philips puts Olhovsky and Tech’s other vaulters through four different workouts during training. They’ll typically do gymnastic exercises, weight lifting and running in addition to the pole vault training he does with them. But Olhovsky has more on his plate than just that. Back home, Olhovsky also trains under Israeli vault coach Bavel Kogan while he continues to strive towards his dream of becoming a world-class pole-vaulter. “Back in Israel, they demand much more of us, and the training is harder,” Olhovksy said. “Here we are considered student athletes; there we
are considered professionals.” The discipline and maturity he has received with competing under those high expectations have translated to a great deal of success here in the U.S. and at Tech. “He’s a very dedicated young man and a very gifted student athlete,” said Cianelli. “And it’s shown as he’s now probably one of the top two or three collegiate vaulters in the country.” As of now, Olhovsky wants to continue to develop so he can vault for his remaining three semesters at Tech and be competitive in the national arena. Coach Phillips has tremendous confidence that Olhovsky will be able to do just that. “He has an excellent work ethic, on the track, in the weight room, in the class room,” Phillips said. “If he keeps it up, I think he has a really good chance to represent Israel in London for the 2012 Olympics.”
yavgeniy olhovsky pole vault 2008 Outdoor Runner-up at the NCAA Championships Second in ACC Championships Height - 16’ 8.75” Cleared 17’ 5” to win at Duke Invitational 2008 Indoor All-America with fifth-place effort at NCAA Championships Height - 17’ 8.5” Runner-up at ACC Championships Height - 17’ 4.5” Cleared 17’ 4.5” to win at Penn State National Invite Fourth place at Virginia Tech Last Chance meet Height - 17’ 7.75” 2007 Indoor Eighth place at VT Challenge as unattached competitor
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september 16, 2009