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Thursday, October 22, 2009
An independent, student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903
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COLLEGIATETIMES 106th year, issue 104
News, page 1
Features, page 7
Opinions, page 5
Sports, page 3
Classifieds, page 6
Sudoku, page 6
Police conclude Harrington ground search GORDON BLOCK news reporter Police have ended their search on the grounds near the University of Virginia’s John Paul Jones Arena for missing Virginia Tech student Morgan Dana Harrington and are now classifying the case as a criminal investigation. Harrington, a junior education major, has been missing since the evening of Saturday, Oct. 17, when she attended a concert for the band Metallica at John Paul Jones arena. Virginia State Police held a press conference Wednesday in Charlottesville to further discuss details on Harrington’s disappearance. Over 100 leads have come in to police about the case. “You pursue things as they occur,” said state police Lt. Joe Rader, who spoke at the press conference. “The timeframe is very critical.” According to Rader, Morgan left her friends to use the bathroom, and somehow ended up COURTESY OF DAN HARRINGTON outside the arena, which does not allow reentry according to its policy. Contacting her friends, Morgan Dana Harrington, a 20-year-old Rader added that Harrington told her she would either meet them or find a way home on Tech junior, went missing on Oct. 17.
Tech alerts campus of YouTube threats The university sent a campus-wide email stating that the Virginia Tech Police Department had observed a YouTube posting that was “making threats against the Virginia Tech community.” The e-mail, sent late Wednesday night, said that the Virginia State Police and FBI
were assisting Tech on an investigation. It continued to say that the comments were believed to have originated overseas. Tech Police would not yet comment on the investigation. compiled by ct news staff
[
hotline
Anyone with knowledge of Harrington’s whereabouts is encouraged to call investigators at 434-352-3467.
]
her own, which Rader said explained why her friends were not concerned after they did not meet up after the concert. According to Rader, Harrington was in the vicinity of the arena between the hours of 8: 30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. When asked whether Harrington was drunk or high, Rader said she was able to move around the arena and call friends. Harrington’s purse and cell phone were found by a passerby in a small parking lot near the arena and were turned into the UVa police Sunday morning. Rader declined to comment on calls made by Harrington or what had been uncovered through her cell phone records. Rader added that there appeared to be no signs of struggle in the area where her personal items were found. Dan Harrington, Morgan’s father said he had bought tickets for Morgan and her group
months before the show. “Metallica wasn’t necessarily her type of band, but she likes all types of music, and that was a band she wanted to see,” Harrington said. Harrington added that he and his wife Gil were in a state of shock. “As you can imagine, this is a parent’s worst nightmare, to not know where your child is,” Harrington said. Harrington said he was frustrated with the John Paul Jones Arena policy that barred reentry after leaving the venue. “It doesn’t make a lot of sense,” Harrington said. However, he was grateful for the outpouring of support that had come in following Morgan’s disappearance. “It’s just overwhelming for Gil and I to have so many people care and call us about this,” Harrington said. “The support we’ve had here has been unbelievable.” A rally for Harrington has been set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 22, at Northside High School in Roanoke, which Harrington attended before graduating at Lord Botetourt High School in Daleville, Va. The case has drawn nationwide attention,
and her story has appeared on several media outlets nationwide. Her parents appeared on cable news show “Nancy Grace” Tuesday, and a post about Harrington has been included to the homepage of the band Metallica, under the title, “One Of Our Fans Is Missing.” Harrington asked those with information to contact police. “We just want Morgan to come home,” Harrington said. The 20-year-old Harrington, who has long blond hair and blue eyes, was last seen wearing a black T-shirt with tan letters that read “Pantera” across the front, a black mini skirt with black tights and knee-high black boots. Harrington is 5 feet, 6 inches tall and weighs approximately 120 pounds. Police have set up a new 24-hour tip line for the case. Those with information about the whereabouts of Morgan Harrington can call 434-352-3467. A reward, to be set up through Crime Stoppers, will have a minimum amount of $50,000. Details for a reward will be released Thursday. news reporter liana bayne contributed to this report
Show me the money Highest salaries across Virginia Universities virginia tech
position
salary
President Dean, VTC Health and Medical Education Defensive Coordinator, Athletics Department Director, Athletics Department
$457,040 $414,000 $378,000 $362,472
Executive Vice President and Provost Dean, Darden Graduate School of Business Administration President Women's Basketball Head Coach
$706,800 $518,900 $487,000 $281,800
Charles W. Steger Cynda A. Johnson Robert E. Foster James C. Weaver
university of virginia
Tufts sets precedent concerning ‘courtesy’ SUSAN SNYDER & OLIVIA BIAGI the philadelphia inquirer Penn State sophomore Ricky Morales and his roommates worked it out themselves: If the others are asleep, it’s okay to have sex with a partner in the room. “It’s all about communication. That’s what it comes down to,” said Morales, a journalism major from Stroudsburg, Pa. But at Tufts University near Boston, students apparently weren’t able to negotiate such delicate matters so deftly. After receiving about a dozen complaints in the last several years from a student body of 5,000, the upscale private university this fall took what is at the very least an unusual step in the world of college housing: It banned in writing sex with a roommate present. While Tufts deems unwarranted sexual activity problematic enough to warrant a policy change, Virginia Tech does not seem to be experiencing any significant problems. Leon McClinton, director of residence life, said that this has never been an issue at Tech. “We do not have something that specific in our policy,” he said. Some students nationwide thought the policy sounded like a good idea. “Sex should never have witnesses. Then it’s just porn,” said Fleurette Louis-Jacques, 20, an English and French linguistics double major at Rutgers University. She and her roommate haven’t discussed the topic, she said, but added that they don’t have sex: “Seriously, not even being funny, we’re like nuns.” Most students, however, thought that a written policy was unnecessary. “Everyone here is smart enough to understand that it’s a common courtesy” to leave the room while your roommate is having sex, said Doug Mocik, a freshman English major at La Salle University, “ ... unless your roommate is a freak.” Even some who have fallen victim weren’t upset. Ashley Clark, a senior business-law major at Temple, said she once had a roommate who would have sex while Clark was asleep. Clark sometimes woke up. She thought it was “weird, but it didn’t bother me.” Then there were those who thought sex with a roommate close by was something to be celebrated. “You’ve got to get fist pounds,” said Cory Winkoff, a junior communication major at the University of Pennsylvania. He and a group of friends high-fived one another when the subject was introduced. “We’re happy when our friends are hooking up,” agreed Terry Kennedy, a junior political science major. “It’s college; it kind of happens.” Most schools surveyed have no spe-
cific policy on sex in a room, but many ban behavior that offends a roommate. “Our residence life guest policy prohibits guests in a room over the objections of a roommate regardless of the activity,” said Sandy Lanman, a spokeswoman for Rutgers. Visitation rules for certain Tech dorms are established. If students are found abusing those rules, they will be referred to the Student Conduct Committee. However, McClinton said that there have not been any cases this year that dealt with breaking visitation policies or engaging in unlawful sexual activity. Even religious institutions are not as specific as Tufts. Neumann College and Villanova University, both Catholic, note in their handbooks that they adhere to church teachings, which condone sex only in marriage, and that those teachings govern residence hall life. La Salle, also Catholic, requires members of the opposite sex to leave a room by midnight Sundays through Thursdays and by 2 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. “Roommate approval is required for any residential student to bring a guest to their residence/room,” spokesman Jon Caroulis said. Most schools report some complaints and said that the subject does cause some breakups, but that it was not one of the most prevalent concerns. “General disrespect for each other comes up more often than anything else,” Gage said. At Tufts, where about 2,200 students live with a roommate in university housing, no penalties are attached to the guideline, which appears as a new bullet in the campus-living handbook and was publicized last week. It reads: “You may not engage in sexual activity while your roommate is present in the room. Any sexual activity within your assigned room should not ever deprive your roommate(s) of privacy, study, or sleep time.” McClinton praised the residence staff for helping to ensure that students adhere to on-campus housing policies. He also noted that if something like this were to become an issue, it would be addressed. “We have not heard significant complaints on this,” he said, “but if the majority of students have issue on a specific topic, we will listen and provide feedback.” Meanwhile, Morales and his roommates at Pennsylvania State University will continue to handle the matter on their own. They have a backup plan if a roommate is awake in the room. “All you need to do,” Morales explained, “is send a text message to that roommate to ask them for a half-hour alone.” liana bayne contributed to this report
Arthur Garson, Jr. Robert F. Bruner John T. Casteen, III Deborah A. Ryan
james madison university Linwood H. Rose Matthew Brady Charles W. King, Jr. Arthur J. Benson
President Men's Basketball Coach Vice President, Administration and Finance Provost
$396,287 $290,000 $214,091 $174,836
compiled from the Collegiate Times Salary Database SARA SPANGLER/COLLEGIATE TIMES
Universities compete for professorial ‘rock stars’ HOPE MILES news staff writer Although Virginia’s universities attempt to attract highly qualified faculty members with attractive salaries, that salary varies across different institutions. The five highest paid employees are Charles Steger, university president; Cynda Johnson, dean of Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Bud Foster, football defensive coordinator; Jim Weaver, athletics director; and Mark McNamee, provost. “Salaries are something you use to compensate an employee; the more you can pay a person, the greater the pool of potential people you can get,” said Tech spokesman Mark Owczarski. Incentives for employees, such as salary, attract more highly qualified candidates, Owczarski said. A variety of factors influence individual salary decisions. Department heads make recommendations for the salary an employee should receive. The Dean of each college and the provost then review these requests. “Fundamentally, a college is able to offer salaries based on the resources it has and what the market can bear,” Owczarski said. For example, the highest paid physics faculty member at Tech is paid $157,050, but the physics department’s salaries start at $27,600. These differences include performance, merit increases or decreases, full- or part-
[
on the web
]
Check out www.higheredsalaries.com to see the salaries of every faculty member in different public universities across Virginia and other states.
time positions, or tenured positions. “Credentials, research and service also contribute,” said Richard Sorensen, dean of the Pamplin College of Business. “This is normal university policy.” Starting salaries are based on credentials and if the position is for a professor or assistant professor position, Sorensen said. Budgets and resources, and how they are allocated, is at the discretion of managers. Universities also have donors who give money that can add to faculty salaries through an endowment fund. To attract stronger candidates, colleges and universities try to bring in more money through state funding, tuition charges and private philanthropies. Tuition increased $203.50 for in-state students over the previous school year, some of which foots the bill for higher salaries. “When you recognize talented people who are leaders in their positions, you do what you can to keep them here,” Owczarski said. He said that schools, including Tech, strive to improve faculty salaries regularly to ensure employees do not transfer to other institutions.
“If they love Blacksburg, you wouldn’t want their salary to be a reason a faculty member goes to a different school,” he said. Owczarski also said Tech employs a number of distinguished “rock stars” that any college or university would want on its staff. “We want to encourage them to stay on the team, salary is one of the ways to do this.” At the University of Virginia, department chairs work with faculty members to establish performance goals for the year. They are then evaluated on their performance and how well these goals were met. Because of the impact of the recession, salaries at public universities in Virginia are currently stagnant. “There have been no salary increases in the past two years. Salaries are frozen in Virginia,” said Carol Wood, assistant vice president for public affairs at UVa. The State Council for Higher Education of Virginia, which advises the state government on education, has identified comparable peer group schools for all state-supported universities, including Tech. Tech’s peer group schools include Purdue and Cornell, among others. Based on SCHEV recommendations, the state government attempts to fund faculty salaries at the 60th percentile of the comparable national peer group, Sorensen said. Tech has adopted a similar faculty salary goal, but it currently lags behind at less than 40 percent of the SCHEV peer group.
Tech officially releases Windows 7 software ALLISON SANDERS news staff writer Virginia Tech’s Software Distribution made Microsoft Windows 7 Professional available to the student body today. The price of Microsoft’s latest Windows operating system is $38. The price also covers a physical copy on a disc for installation. Students who previously purchased a bundle through Software
Distribution are eligible to download the software upgrade online free of charge. The physical disc costs $7 extra for these students. Eligible students may only purchase one copy of the software, available in 32- and 64-bit variants. The listed price of the software online through Microsoft is $29.99 for a promotional student discount. However, the
physical disc is not included and is priced at an additional $13. Consequently, the $42.99 total for an online purchase through Microsoft exceeds the $38 deal offered through Software Distribution. “The choice to purchase the software through Microsoft or the university depends on each individual need,” said Patricia Branscome, Software Distribution associate director.
The price of Windows 7 as offered by the university is expected to double by the end of December when the Tech discount expires. Microsoft’s own student discount expires Jan. 3, 2010. Based on past upgrade trends, there will not be another operating system overhaul from Microsoft for at least three years, said Jon Krallman, director of information technology acquisitions.
october 22, 2009
page 2
LooP
[Sunday, October 25]
In the
Wondering what's going on around the 'burg? Check out the events of the upcoming week.
[Thursday, October 22] What: Fall Construction Career Fair Where: The Inn at Virginia Tech When: 8 p.m. Cost: Free What: Thursday Night Cosmic Bowling Where: Squires BreakZONE When: 8:15 - 10:15 p.m. Cost: $15 per lane
[Friday, October 23] What: Ballroom Dance at Virginia Tech 4th Annual Costume Ball Where: Graduate Life Center Multipurpose Room When: 7:30 - 10:30 p.m. Cost: $5 for members, $7 for non-members What: Fall Choral Showcase Where: Squires Recital Salon Where: 8 p.m. Cost: $5 general admission, $3 student/senior What: Musician Darrell Scott Where: Lyric When: 8 p.m. Cost: adult - $16 in advance/$20 at the door; student - $12 in advance/$16 at the door; children 5 and under - free
[Saturday, October 24] What: Blacksburg Brew Do (Beer Brewing Festival) Where: First & Main Town Center When: noon Cost: $20 for 10 tastings, $30 for 20 tastings in advance. Gate pricing: $25 for 10 tastings, $35 for 20 tastings. Each tasting is four ounces. All attendees receive a commemorative beer glass and full access to festival events. What: Blacksburg Rally and Canvass Kickoff w/ gubernatorial candidate Creigh Deeds and Sen. Mark Warner Where: 208 N. Main St. When: 3 - 3:30 p.m. Cost: Free What: Juggler and comedian Mark Nizer Where: Lyric Time: 3 p.m. Cost: $15 gold/$10 silver members What: Chinese Golden Acrobats Where: Burruss Auditorium Time: 7:30 - 8:30 p.m. Cost: $10 general, $7 students What: Men's Ice Hockey vs. UNC Where: Roanoke Civic Center Time: 7:30 p.m. Cost: $4 general admission, free for Tech students and children younger under 12
What: Appalachian Clogging Lessons Hoorah Clogggers Where: Graduate Life Center Multipurpose Room When: 7 - 9 p.m. Cost: Free
[Monday, October 26] What: Eoto Where: Attitudes Time: 10 p.m. Cost: $10 in advance/$12 at the door
[Tuesday, October 27] What: "Iron Jawed Angels" Screening Where: Lyric When: 6:45 p.m. Cost: Free
[Wednesday, October 28] What: An Evening with Jason Voorhees of “Friday the 13th� The Man Behind the Mask Where: Graduate Life Center Auditorium When: 7:30 - 9 p.m. Cost: Free What: Rocktoberfest w/ Emarosa and Trophy Scars Where: Squires Old Dominion Ballroom When: 8:30 - 11 p.m. Cost: $2 for students with ID, $3 for public
If you would like an event featured in our calendar, e-mail featureseditor@collegiatetimes.com with event details, including cost.
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editors: joe crandley, alex jackson sportseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES
BCS encourages weak scheduling by top teams T
here are those who still defend it, those who still promote it as superior to any other system of real football, and those who still want us to believe that “every Saturday is a playoff Saturday.” I guess they mean like Texas vs. La. Monroe. Or Florida vs. Florida International. Or my personal favorite, Florida vs. Charleston Southern. Those who defend it, promote it and want us to believe it, are idiots. And also the money-mafia. And also bowl-game bag men. But I’m not here today to rip again into the fraudulence that is college football when it comes to the ways and means of determining what in the end will be, and always has been, a bogus national champion. It is the system, the BCS system. It’s not going to change anytime soon. How then, do you “play” the system? Let us consider three cases by using the names of Mack Brown, Bob Stoops and Gary Patterson, currently the three most successful large-time college coaches of our territory. And that’s not belittling the Plains’ Pirate out in Lubbock. Coach Leach is dug-in on this issue. The others aren’t. Not necessarily. At the late October pivotal point of the college season, Brown of Texas has the most open road to a bogus national title game, with the SEC duo of Florida and Alabama as a toss-up to provide the opposition. But I’m here mainly to praise Bob Stoops, although I noticed I’m a couple of days late. My friend, Berry Tramel of “The” “Oklahoman”, does as good a job as anybody in the country in attempting to provide rational opinion when it comes to his main precinct, which is the Norman nuthouse. This week, Tramel gave a strong printed butt-pat, and stellar advice to Stoops, who has an OU team with a 3-3 record, and a stud quarterback with his shoulder busted again. Read on: “Pride still matters. Some things are more important than championships. Like honor and
self-respect. There is honor in competition. “Honor in building up your sport, instead of tearing it down. There is no honor in purchased victory or manufactured success.” Hear. Hear. Stoops got burned to the ground this season because he played a strong nonconference schedule. Well, mainly, he and OU were torched by the Sam Bradford injuries, but ... Even with another quarterback, Stoops could have played Mack Brown’s non-conference schedule, and be 5-1 right now, with only a 16-13 loss to Texas, which in BCS style points would have been more impressive, sans Bradford, than the W for Texas. With a weak Big 12 ahead of him, and if Bradford can return again, Stoops could be plotting a repeat of last season. You remember last season, when the Longhorns beat him good in October, and still got shafted (my opinion) when OU went to the bogus BCS title game because Mack had too many shrimp on his nonconference plate. In September, before the opener against BYU in Arlington, we had Stoops on the local radio show. I complimented him on being willing to man-up in the early go by playing quality opposition. He paused before answering, then said, “It’s good, but only if you win the games.” Against nationally ranked BYU and Miami, he didn’t win the games. Still, he’s doing it right. The stupid system will reward him, and has. If you win the games. Then there’s Coach Brown. Will he ever go back to those VY days of head-up against Ohio State? Why should he? The system killed him a year ago, but it is neck-nuzzling him at the moment because Texas played snoozers in September. Let it be noted, the Longhorns are mixing in a home and home with UCLA the next two years. At least that’s somebody. But Mack has already said he doesn’t think it’s worth it in the long run, not with this BSC crap. He may be right.
Out in Lubbock, The Plains’ Pirate prefers it as weak as possible in nonconference, and he has been rewarded. Then again, Mike Leach does have TCU on his schedule the next two years, even after the Frogs skunked him the last time those two teams met. Meanwhile, Gary Patterson watches this from his local perch on University Drive. He’s on the outside of the BCS money train, but the door is now slightly open after much political pressure. So Patterson has his own “system” at TCU. Schedule two schools a season from BCS conferences, then hope you pull off the double of beating big dogs BYU and Utah in conference, and don’t let any of the other Mountain West pups bite you. By the way, those two nonconference games, Patterson hopes, will produce double W’s for the Frogs, with at least one of the foes going on to win nine or so games. Impress the pollsters and computers. Pile up style points. Well, road victories at Clemson and Virginia won’t get the backend of the plan (the nine or so wins from one of the foes) this season, but TCU is still well positioned. On Saturday night, the Frogs are in Provo to play BYU. It is the best college game in the country this week. Even “GameDay”, with Kirk, Coach and them (the best pregame show in any sport) will be in Provo, which is a very rare case of ignoring ESPN and ABC money ties with BCS conferences, including the Big 12. Patterson is doing what he has to do. Mack is doing it the easy, and some will say, smart way. But Stoops? Now that’s the manly way. “Big Game Bob” may be dead, but Stoops hasn’t lost his guts, while so many others have, gelded by a system that stinks.
RANDY GALLOWAY -mcclatchy newspapers
H2Okies drop home opener
The Virginia Tech swimming and diving teams dropped their home opener to the University of Virginia at War Memorial Pool Wednesday evening. The men dropped their match 177-123 while the women lost 180-120. Mikey McDonald, Charlie Higgins and Jonathan Huss led the H2Okies with first-place finishes and Sarah Milton, Natalie West and Erika Hajnal notched first-place finishes for the women. Check out www.collegiatetimes.com for full coverage of last night’s event.
Immediate. Unfiltered. Linkalicious. 21st century news doesn't wait for a print run. The Collegiate Times regularly updates its news blog with breaking news, interesting info, guest blogs and commentary.
october 22, 2009
page 4
Hokies’ young wideouts showing potential for greatness RYAN TRAPP sports reporter Virginia Tech has been known to follow the Beamerball credo religiously — get big plays on defense and special teams while the offense does just enough to win games. Known as a run-first school offensively, Tech’s passing game has often been criticized and buried in the national rankings while the team’s stellar defense and solid run game are credited with the Hokies’ consistent success. Last year was no exception. Quarterbacks Tyrod Taylor and Sean Glennon threw for only six touchdowns while tossing up 12 interceptions. It wasn’t even until the 11th game of the season when then freshman split-end Jarrett Boykin caught the season’s first touchdown by a wide receiver. But what a difference a season makes. Taylor, now a junior, has already thrown nine touchdowns to four different receivers and is ranked sixth in the country in pass efficiency this season. Prior to Tech’s loss against Georgia Tech, Taylor had back-to-back multitouchdown games for the first time in his career, and he became the first Tech quarterback to do so since Marcus Vick in 2005. His young receiving corps, including Boykin, who is now a sophomore, sophomore Dyrell Roberts, redshirt sophomore Danny Coale and redshirt freshman Xavier Boyce, has come into its own and is now consistently proving just how much a year of experience can make. “I think a little bit of it is natural progression,” said Coale, who hails from Lexington, Va. “But we’re becoming more and more comfortable with each other, seeing what each other are seeing and as a group really trying to take advantage of the opportunities we have a little more.” And they have. Tech’s offense has improved over last year and has put up more than 30 points in four out of the seven games this season. “We just want to help the offense,” Coale said. “If we perform better, the running game will perform better, and we can work off each other ... to see that progression — it’s good. It’s a positive thing for the offense.” The unit is entering merely its second year together, as all of its members are just sophomores with the exception of Boyce. Yet, they’ve managed to establish a strong relationship on and off the field, and in doing so they have made Tech’s passing game a
legitimate threat. “It’s great,” Coale said. “I mean, it’s as great as you can get. We’re always watching film and coaching each other. It’s great when you come off the field and have three guys who know what you’re talking about.” The four receivers have pulled in at least one touchdown each this season, and they have combined for over three quarters of Tech’s production through the air. “The competition is good,” receivers coach Kevin Sherman said. “I think we’re at a point right now that if we went out there and played I wouldn’t have a problem starting any of them.” However, it’s the trio of sophomores who have emerged as Taylor’s favorite targets. Coale led the team in receptions last year and has a team-high 26.3 yards per catch to complement his two touchdowns this season. Roberts has tallied two touchdowns of his own, the most memorable of which was the game winning 11-yard strike thrown his way in the final minute of play to move the Hokies past Nebraska. But it’s been the sophomore out of Matthews, N.C., who has done the most damage through the air. “All of them can be (the go-to guy),” Taylor said. “But Jarrett Boykin has shown he can catch the ball in some difficult situations.” Boykin, the team’s starter at split end, has caught a touchdown in three of Tech’s last four games and has emerged as a legitimate big-play threat with good size and hands. With 367 yards and three touchdowns on the year, he leads the Hokies in those respective categories along with receptions. Yet Boykin wasn’t even in a starting role coming into the season. Sherman slotted Boyce as the starter at split end during the spring. “When it happened, it affected me, but I want everyone to play — as long as we all played and contribute,” Boykin said. Boykin took the demotion in stride and bounced back to re-emerge as the team’s leader at the position. “We made a change and wanted to see how he would respond, and he’s done great thus far,” Sherman said. “He’s stepped it up, and he’s making plays and being consistent.” The receivers are making their presence felt not just in the passing game, but on special teams, too. Roberts has emerged as a dangerous return threat, averaging 40.8 yards an attempt. He returned a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown in Tech’s opening game against Alabama, and last week he took one return for 58 yards and his second for 31. The effects of his success are felt as
4
To Watch Out For XAVIER BOYCE Redshirt freshman 4 catches 43 yards 1 touchdown
JARRETT BOYKIN Sophmore 21 catches 367 yards 3 touchdowns
DANNY COALE Redshirt sophomore 12 catches 316 yards 2 touchdowns
DYRELL ROBERTS Sophomore 10 catches 146 yards 10 KR, 40.8 avg 2 TDs, 1 return TD
kickers are forced to avoid the speedy Roberts. Tech has watched three kickoffs sail out of bounds in the past three games, and each of those kickoffs sparked a Hokie scoring drive. “I’m sure Dyrell is a factor (in those kicks),” head coach Frank Beamer said. “He’s dangerous.” Two years ago, Tech had arguably one of the strongest receiving corps it’s ever seen, with three receivers taken in the NFL Draft — Eddie Royal, Josh Morgan and Justin Harper. All three of those receivers had 1,000-yard careers while donning the maroon and orange. While it’s still too early to draw any comparisons, the Hokies’ coaching staff believes the potential is there in this unit for similar success. “We’ve still got a lot of growing and maturing to do, but I think all these guys have potential,” Sherman said. “But you know what they say about potential — we’ve still got to improve.”
LUKE MASON/SPPS
Sophomore wide receiver Dyrell Roberts returns a kick during Tech’s loss to Georgia Tech on Saturday.
opınıons 5
editor: debra houchins opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES
october 22, 2009
The Collegiate Times is an independent student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903
Your Views [letter to the editor]
Ad misrepresents coal issue on campus I
would like to ask a few questions to the Sierra Student Coalition and the Sierra Club in reference to the ad on the back page of the Tuesday, Oct. 20 Collegiate Times. Is water “Too Dirty” for you? Because superheated water vapor is exactly what that picture shows leaving the parabolic structures photographed. Those structures are simply cooling towers, not smokestacks as you wish others to believe. It is very upsetting that the Sierra Student Coalition would distort that picture in order to slant the unknowing audience toward its cause. Speaking of its cause, does the Sierra Club have a plan for providing heat to the campus if it was to stop using coal tomorrow, next month or even next year? (Only about 6 percent of the campus electricity is generated by the Virginia Tech Power Plant.) What would the freshmen think if you took away their heating for the Blacksburg winter? Do you plan to build a wind farm on the Drillfield to run resident hall heat pumps? Want to solely use biofuels in our power plant? Neither is even close to coming to fruition. With our current VTPP equipment, as with any cogeneration operation, we could only burn up to 20 percent biomass because of the lower heat content and the destructive properties of the alkaline gases in biofuels. Along with the Tech Energy and Sustainability Committee,
I would love to know your plan. Let’s talk money, tuition in particular. If the Sierra Club would like to use biofuels, renovate VTPP and/or build a new heating infrastructure for the entire campus, who will pay for it? We, the student body, will. Replacing the campus heating/electrical infrastructure right now is an absurd task to undertake because of the state budget cuts and the economic downturn. Our campus is just a smallscale version of our country’s dependence on coal. I’d like to find an alternate energy source too, but it cannot and will not happen overnight. I’m a huge fan of nuclear power because of the efficiency and zero carbon emission the process entails. But try to get that past Obama’s White House. The Sierra Student Coalition wants to end coal, and that’s great. But instead of attacking the current lifeline of American energy, why don’t you provide solutions, honest interpretations of photos and an understanding of your environmental, engineering and budgetary constraints. My mom always said, “You catch more flies with honey,” so please refrain from the perversion you chose to portray in your advertisement. Just like Barack, I believe your coalition has huge potential in the future.
H. George Rau Senior Mechanical engineering major Chair, VT American Society of ME
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MCT CAMPUS
Patriotism is necessary in classes, except not really ome issues just need a nice, sarcastic rant to show how incredibly lame they are. It surprises me that some people actually think in the following manner: I am petitioning today to the entire Virginia Tech administration to make a dramatic change to the way classes are conducted here on the Tech campus. I think the classroom setting is lacking a proper ethical foundation, which in turn puts the students at a great learning disadvantage. Tech needs to follow the example set by our fine Virginia public school system and re-institute the Pledge of Allegiance before every class meeting. This assures that the students are feeling focused and united for their hour of learning pleasure. What better way to improve student morale than for them to feel as though God and country are with them as they learn? It makes me feel warm just thinking of God and Uncle Sam holding my hand wherever I go. Spreading this feeling will reduce the number of classroom disruptions. Grades will surely improve. The United University Pledge System (I think this is a good term to use in press releases) will assure less dissent in classrooms. After all, students will have just sworn an oath to “One nation, under God.” Less dissent will bring about a better learning experience for all. I was one of the complete heathens in high school who refused to say the Pledge of Allegiance. I was punished and harassed by teachers and faculty who demanded that I at least stand when the pledge was said. Back when I was a juvenile (and didn’t know better), I actually declined to stand. I have prayed for forgiveness. I apologize to the United States government for my anti-American actions. I clearly hated liberty.
Imagine how terrible it would be to have to pledge allegiance to Germany, Japan or the United Kingdom. Our soldiers died so that the people of this great nation can continue saying oaths of allegiance to a better country: the United States of America. Refusing to say the pledge was the equivalent of me spitting in the face of all the soldiers who died to keep our nation free. Truly I can never atone for my actions. The very best I can do is hope to spread the Pledge of Allegiance to universities nationwide. This is a very personal fight for me. It starts right here at Tech. The very first step is to put flags in all of our classrooms. Some antiAmerican faculty at Tech may not immediately like the idea of saying the Pledge of Allegiance in classrooms. However, I’m very sure I can sell them on the idea of having more flags all around Tech, especially in our classrooms. Seeing Old Glory in the corner of every room is sure to soften the heart of anyone who dissents with the ideas I espouse. The very sight of the American flag brings about images freedom to the mind of anyone who sees it. That piece of fabric sitting in classrooms is more than a piece of fabric — it’s a piece of fabric that means something. Having flags in classrooms is sure to cut down on acts of terrorism, converting anyone with anti-American values to good patriots. After all, the values that The Flag embodies turned a heathen like me into a true American. I once was lost, but now I’m found. I once was essentially cutting the head off Lady Liberty by not standing for the Pledge. I was once a person who basically punched Uncle Sam right in his bearded face. Now I’m the type of person who wishes to become more like these wonderful icons. I
owe it all to being forced by my high school teachers to accept freedom and to say the Pledge without complaint. By not saying the Pledge in classrooms here at Tech, we are sending a terrible message to the students. We are telling them there is no God or law in our classrooms. Who is in charge if not God and government? The Anarchists. Our classrooms are ruled only by pure anarchy. I ask the university faculty why it is that they hate God and country so much. I demand to know why they love anarchy, and why they refuse to help me rebuild our nation. We need to bring American values back to the youth of this country. We can begin doing that right here at Tech by bringing the Pledge of Allegiance back. What type of Big Brother world are we advocating where people don’t swear oaths of allegiance to the state that provides for them? I wake up every morning and say the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag I have hanging next to my bed. Doing so rouses me and prepares me for a day of being a productive member of society. I hope that the Tech community will join me in demanding that our faculty hear the call of God and state and swiftly reinstate the Pledge in our classrooms. Doing so is the only hope this nation has in putting glue in the cracks that have divided us. This glue can only come from changing the hearts of our nation’s youth.
CHAD VAN ALSTIN -regular columnist -senior -communication major -president, Libertarians at Tech
‘Worshiped’ doesn’t describe treatment of great minds I
am not quite sure of my fellow columnist Vincent Guida’s point in his column, “People should consider what or whom they think of as God” (CT, Oct. 21). He continually makes errors and underhanded remarks about groups of people the author seems to have an issue with. I would like to address and add my own comments to his beliefs on religion. Mr. Guida claims that people are making poor choices about whom they worship — treating humans, ideas, institutions and other “material” things (perhaps excluding ideas) as “supernatural beings” or a “golden calf” based on his observations. Examples are given such as great science thinkers (Einstein, Newton and Darwin), President Obama (obviously upset about the Nobel Prize win) and the technological Web that we enjoy today, while stressing that we should “give serious thought before choosing (a god).” I am unfamiliar with how a Nobel Peace Prize winner is chosen, but I am certain that they looked at things done since his premature nomination. Coincidentally, there was an article about this very topic by Gabi Seltzer about the reasons for the peace prize win, so I would ask for Mr. Guida to perhaps read that column for arguments for his win and to look at past Peace Prize winners and their accomplishments that resulted in an award. According to NobelPrize.org, a recipient of the award is one who “during the preceding year ... shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and
promotion of peace congresses.” The award is not without its controversy, specifically in recognition of Yasser Arafat, Mikhail Gorbachev, Jimmy Carter and Henry Kissinger from names that I recognize. Surely he has done at least as much as one of these men in line with the criterion. I too am not convinced he is the best candidate, but it definitely does not deserve the passive aggressive remark, especially usage of “messiah” to belittle the person. On his remark about worshipping great scientific minds, I would better understand him if he had given a definition for what he considered worship. I haven’t seen any altars, rituals or silly practices done hoping to offer praise to these people. They deserve praise and applause for their achievements, and we are indebted to their hard work, but is anyone really worshipping them? Maybe I am taking Mr. Guida’s position too seriously, and he is urging us to not put so much trust and hope into scientific accomplishments instead of a true deity, like Zeus. The scientific method has only given us longer life spans since the invention of modern medicine and the ability to make this small world smaller through simple international communication that has allowed humanity to break the struggle for survival. This, in turn, opened up time to expand on the arts and gave us the only reliable method for understanding the universe — hardly a thing to put trust in. I would also like to address the complete and utter inaccuracy of his claim that Darwin believed “white European men (to be) the superior species.” This is most likely because
“
On his remark about worshiping great scienticfic minds, I would better understand him if he had given a definition of worship. I haven’t seen any altars. rituals, or silly practices done hoping to offer praise to these people.
of a misunderstanding of the full title of his famous book, “On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection,” or the “Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life,” later shortened to “The Origin of Species.” The mentioning of “favored races” does not mean the superiority of one race of man over another, but the characteristics of natural selection favoring animal species in certain environments and the adaptations that occur from natural selection. Darwin had quite the opposite viewpoints on the relationships between human races. He said that it is “absurd to talk of one animal being higher than another” as said in Anthony Flew’s “Darwinian Evolution”: “... there seem to be absolutely no grounds for pillorying Darwin as a racist. On the contrary ... he shared ... principled hatred ... for Negro slavery.” I understand Mr. Guida’s intention in these remarks. He intends to show that these thinkers have weaknesses, which should lower them from their godly status, though he does make a horrid, though common, mistake on his assessment of Darwin’s views
on race. But another reason why I disagree with this angle of approach is that these thinkers are not worshipped. They are admired for their brilliance and works, and they are treated as the “rock stars” of science. Think about the Intel commercial, which has the employees swooning over the coinventor of the USB port. He is portrayed like a celebrity walking down the office in style, signing things and such. The commercial then reads, “Your rock stars aren’t like our rock stars,” or something to that effect. That is an exaggeration of how these thinkers are viewed by the scientifically interested. We might also find their writings inspiring as we might another author who writes moving literature, such as Richard Feynman’s wonderful books, but the “worship” ends there. They are treated no differently than any other major historical figure that aligns with our viewpoints and pulls on our heartstrings. Unless it’s extremely subtle, and I am too blunt to find it, I can’t even find an instance of it on the Internet that isn’t attached to some creationist’s tirade against “evilutionists.” The same is true with worshipping our gadgets — nothing close to it ever happens. If Mr. Guida wished to state that we are perhaps too dependent on technology, then he might have a point, but the use of worship has an entirely different connotation on today’s relationship with new technologies. With Mr. Guida’s wish that “when picking a God, one should give serious thought before choosing,” we are in agreement. Perhaps one might go
so far as to say, “when picking a god or no god at all,” but perhaps that was implied. I will assume he is of the Judeo-Christian belief system while asking, has Mr. Guida given the same thought he wishes of us? He obviously has an issue with worshipping things, people, ideas or institutions, which may have some flaw or have done some action they deemed reprehensible, so the same standards should be applied to his beliefs. In the Old Testament, or the Torah if he is Jewish, it is too easy to find detestable things done or required by his god, but what about that which is only asked of by his god? He says that his god asks for nothing, but I disagree. He asks for your belief in him, and it is claimed that he has a free gift for those who believe in him, and this gift is free to take. He freely gives salvation and only asks for your faith? Is that all? There must be a catch. And the catch is eternal punishment for not partaking in his gift. What once was a gift is now as free as saying, “I will give you a house, shelter and food for life if you only do “A” for me. And if you don’t, then I shall make sure your life is not one worth living, nor those of your friends and family.” What at first sounds to be a simple exchange is now not so free of a decision, but one pressed by fear. So does Mr. Guida give enough thought to whom he worships?
BRIAN ROPER -regular columnist -senior -physics major -astronomy minor
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features 7
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october 22, 2009
COLLEGIATETIMES
Country musician visits Lyric The real ‘fat cat:’ 44-pound
feline goes on media tour
DAN WAIDELICH features reporter Darrell Scott returns to Blacksburg to fill the Lyric with his Nashville, Tenn., sounds and laid-back personality. The award-winning songwriter will share his own brand of strippeddown country and Southern rock with the theater’s Friday night crowd. Scott began his career as a session musician in Nashville and has since performed his own music around the world. His songs have been covered by some of country’s biggest acts, such as Garth Brooks, Tim McGraw and the Dixie Chicks. Scott spoke to the Collegiate Times over the phone about how to write songs, the importance of live music and Blacksburg’s best cup of coffee. COLLEGIATE TIMES: Have you spent any time in Blacksburg or southwest Virginia? DARRELL SCOTT: Yeah, I have actually. This will be the fourth time I’ve played Blacksburg. I really like it. It’s a great town with all the restaurants and little coffee shops. A lot of places don’t have that. CT: Do you have a favorite cup of coffee in town? SCOTT: There’s a place around the corner from the Lyric. I can’t remember the name, but I know if I go out the backstage entrance and around the corner it is right there. They have some really good coffee there. CT: Your last album has been out since 2008. Are you still touring to support it or have you started opening up your set lists? SCOTT: Well, I’m not one to really support an album. It’s interesting you should ask that. If I’m doing like a record release then I’ll play straight from the album, but most nights I have a very loose set list, and I let it breathe. I like to see where the night might take me, or what the audience is enjoying. So there will be a song or two from the new stuff, but I don’t let that box me in. CT: When did you start playing music? SCOTT: Early on. I come from a musical family. My dad would play in bars and at dances and stuff, and my brothers and I would back him up. Music was always part of my life growing up, and it all started there. CT: You moved around a lot as a kid. You were born in Kentucky, raised in Indiana and California, and you went to college near Boston. What effect did that diverse upbringing have on your music? SCOTT: Well it wasn’t an effect on the music so much as the writing. I went to Tufts University for literature and poetry. But I was a bit older when I started. I was 23 when I started college, and I wanted to be there. I was focused. So I have that very academic background as a writer, and that has shaped the way I write songs. CT: You have had a lot of songs covered by different artists, some of which have gone on to become huge hits. Is that flattering? SCOTT: It really is. The Dixie Chicks did a song of mine, “Long Time Gone,” which was huge. At the time, they were the biggest thing around. This is before all that Bush stuff happened, but it was great to see the song take off like that. CT: Do you have a favorite cover? SCOTT: I love that one, “Long Time Gone.” It’s kind of interesting because it’s written from a male perspective, and they kept that in the song. Patty Loveless also did a really good one with “You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive.” She does it with so much honesty and raw emotion. It’s
KAREN LANGLEY the philadelphia inquirer
PHOTO COURTESY OF SCOTT SIMONTACCHI
Darrell Scott, who is coming to the Lyric on Friday, has written songs covered by country music stars Garth Brooks and the Dixie Chicks. really good. CT: You started a blog called “New Moon, New Music,” which gives listeners access to your recent live performances. What was your inspiration? SCOTT: The blog is letting me get more music out (to) the listeners. Somewhere along the line, someone decided that the recorded album version of a song is the way it’s supposed to sound. Is that true? I think that playing a song live is this whole different, worthy experience. And if someone can’t make it out to a show to hear that, the blog is letting them enjoy that live experience. CT: So you love playing live shows? SCOTT: Every show is different, and the songs are never quite the same. The shows are never the same. You know which songs will work, which jokes will work and you can shake it all up. Listening to an album offers that one perspective. Blacksburg is a local gig for me because I just have to drive up from Nashville, so maybe I’ll bring my guitar and banjo, but also a mandolin and Dobro. Maybe I’ll play piano if they have one at the Lyric. That spontaneity is the best part of live performance. CT: You host songwriting workshops every once in a while. What is your advice for the aspiring writer? SCOTT: I do these workshops, and people come in, and I tell them that we’re not there to write hit songs. In college I was always told (to) “write what you know.” I had that drilled into
[ ] check it out:
See Darrell Scott at the Lyric Theater, 8 p.m., Friday, October 23. Adult: $16.00 in advance $20.00 at the door Student: $12.00 in advance $16.00 at the door Children 5 and under Free
me, and that’s my advice. If you stick to what you know and avoid chasing the charts, then you will have a really honest song. That’s where I’m coming from. CT: In 2005, you helped your father, Wayne Scott, record his debut album. He was 71 at the time. How did that project come about? SCOTT: My dad was a true musician. He just happened to have a family to take care of, and that kind of took priority. But he always was playing, and I just finally said to myself that he should have the shot. I learned a lot from him. He was influenced by guys like Hank Williams and Johnny Cash. I knew how to make him comfortable and what kind of people I needed to get around him to make this thing work. There were times he would look at me and say, “Why are you doing this?” In the end, it was just a fun, good time with my dad, and we came out with a great album.
......radio
for everyone
New Jersey’s feline darling would be better called Prince Chunky, according to a veterinarian who examined the 44-pound stray this morning on “Live with Regis and Kelly.’’ But the modified title is unlikely to take hold now that shelter officials know Princess Chunky’s real name is Powder, as “foster mother’’ and Camden County Animal Shelter volunteer Deborah Wright of Sicklerville, N.J., told the show’s hosts. Shelter officials received a call from the owner, a senior citizen who lost her home to foreclosure and is now staying with friends. Because of her circumstances, the owner said she was “very sad” she could no longer care for the 44-pound cat, shelter executive director Jennifer Andersch said in a telephone interview Thursday morning. Powder’s owner, who Andersch would not name, was able to find a home for the cat’s brother — a big cat who is still “not nearly as chunky as Chunky,” Andersch said. The cat formerly known as Chunky tipped the scales — literally. Cat scales can only measure to 25 pounds, so shelter workers used a dog scale to determine its weight, which falls only two pounds short of the Guinness world record for heaviest cat. Andersch said the shelter has received hundreds of calls about the cat and at least 20 formal applications to adopt Powder. The new details of Powder’s past emerged at the start of the cat’s biggest day yet. The fat feline — only two pounds shy of the Guinness world record — will follow its Thursday morning appearance on “Live with Regis and Kelly’’ with spots on other national TV shows. “We in the media love a 44-pound cat,” co-host Kelly Ripa said as she petted Powder’s white hair. It has been quite a catwalk for Powder, found wandering the patio of a Voorhees, N.J., apartment complex Friday and now staying in Manhattan’s posh Le Park Meridien, courtesy of TV producers. The pussycat’s sex had been a subject of debate. Animal shelter employees named the cat “Captain Chunk” but soon decided it was
JOHN COSTELLO/PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER
“Powder” is two pounds shy of holding the record for the fattest cat. female. “Princess” was selected as a better courtesy title, and foster mom Wright tweaked the pet’s title so it became known as “Princess Chunky.” After the owner claimed the cat was male, Andersch decided a vet would need to make the final call. “Is it possible this cat is so dang fat that even though everyone’s looking at it things are hidden?” she said before the show. “It’s possible. We keep looking at this cat’s behind and it looks like a girl to us. But nothing looks really normal on this cat.” The vet who examined Powder live on national TV said he was confident the cat was male — “He’s like you and me,” he told Regis Philbin. “Live with Regis and Kelly’’ picked up Wright, her teenage niece and Princess Chunky Thursday night in a limo to bring them to New York, where the cat and Wright will also be interviewed Friday with Fox New York and MSNBC. “I don’t know anything about New
York,” Wright said. “I couldn’t believe it.” Friday’s schedule includes a “Good Morning America’’ appearance and a CBS show. Wright did a live radio chat Thursday with a program in London. The media frenzy may be affecting the white and orange domestic cat’s claim to fame. “With her not eating because she’s nervous, I bet she’s lost a few ounces,” Wright said before the show in a phone interview. “But she loves the attention.” Powder goes up for adoption Saturday when the state-required seven day waiting period for owners to contact the shelter ends. “She’s just a sweetheart,” Wright said. “Whoever had her before did take very good care of her.” The fat cat has seen a veterinarian to get her rabies shots but will have a more extensive appointment to check for thyroid conditions when she returns from her appearances.
october 22, 2009
page 8 MARY ANNE CARTER -features reporter -junior -collects vintage hats
Totally ‘wicked’ costumes for women
D
ispensing any regard for the law, the weather or the stare of unassuming bystanders, students of every social group unite on Halloween for a celebration of the female form. Marked by excessive cleavage, translucent apparel and bare butts, most costumes appear to be constructed from no more
Spider Web: Because if You Spread Eight Legs, You’re Bound to Catch Something Although gruesome costumes are always noble, they aren’t the most popular among the college audience. Meet halfway with this spider web dress that flaunts your inner gore and your outer “whorr-or.”
than a few napkins and require even less creativity. Plagued by the stale “Naughty Nurses,” “Sexy Sailors,” “Seductive Stewardesses” and “Racy Referees” of years past, Halloween has become a predictable parade of fishnets and unlikely professional-wear. Stand out from the crowd with racy-but-not-lacy costumes that
boast your creativity and sense of humor along with your bosom. Easily constructed from things you probably already own, each of these three costumes can be thrown together almost as fast as they will inevitably be taken off. Check in next week for the final Halloween DIY.
Skeleton: The Classic Boner Bone all night with this sexy skeleton dress. Constructed from an oversized tank top stitched down the sides and worn as a dress, all you need is white fabric paint and a clue about anatomy.
YOU WILL NEED: - Oversized black tank top
YOU WILL NEED: - Oversized black tank top (as modified in skeleton costume)
- Needle and thread - White fabric or acrylic paint
- Synthetic spider web - Safety pins - Spider memorabilia: paper cutouts, plastic critters, etc.
HOW TO: Put on tank top, wrap spider web around it until desired effect is achieved. Pin in place and add spiders.
HOW TO: Pin and stitch down the sides of the tank top so that it is formfitting. Lay flat, stuff with newspaper and sketch a skeleton’s rib cage and pelvic area with white paint. Fill in, let dry and prepare to get your bones jumped.
Christmas Tree: For the Festive “Ho Ho Ho” Everyone with a knack for fashion knows the trends are decided seasons in advance. Flaunt your keen sense of style and God-given gifts with this Christmas tree ensemble that will have guys pining to dig through your stockings.
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- Stretch fabric - Synthetic garland
- Star ornament or card stock cutout
HOW TO:
Hir
- Christmas ornaments, Christmas lights, bows, etc.
ing !
- Safety and straight pins
For the tube dress, wrap a piece of green stretch-fabric around yourself inside out, pinning in place so that it is as tight as possible. Sew along pins, trim away excess material and turn right-side out. Cut at desired length. Put on the tube dress and wrap yourself in garland. Pin in place. Add strands of lights if desired, make sure plug is accessible and can be plugged into outlet at the party. Avoid spilling drinks and sloppy kissers. Decorate like you would any tree, glue the star to a headband and keep in mind that ornaments can make great earrings. 365 Squires Student Center • 231 9870