Thursday, November 3, 2011 Print Edition by Collegiate Times

E L A Y O R E L BATT BY MADDIE GORDON | features staff writer Crossing the Drillfield on a Sunday might bring you face-to-face with combat — courtesy of the EpicBattle Club at Tech, or EBCaT for short.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Using foam swords, cardboard shields and other handcrafted, soft weapons, the EBCaT engages in mock fights around campus. see BATTLE / page ﬁve

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The truth about Course Request Important Dates and Registration Information Nov. 18 - Deadline for undergraduates to request rescheduling for final exams Nov. 19 - Thanksgiving Break begins Nov. 26 - Web Drop/Add opens for Spring 2012, Course Request results available Nov. 27 - Thanksgiving Break ends Dec. 2 Last day to withdraw from a class Dec. 7 - Last day of classes Dec. 8 - Reading Day Dec. 9 - Course Request for Summer 2012 opens

Campus

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Spring Semester 2012 Fall Semester 2011

Course Request Results:

Subject ALL Subjects JENN BATES news staff writer Each semester, students must navigate the mysterious labyrinth of Web Course Request. Unsurprisingly, there are many myths bouncing around campus about class registration and how students are funneled into each class. The Collegiate Times asked students for their questions about Course Request in an attempt to debunk the myths and provide answers. Wanda Dean, the university registrar and vice president for enrollment and degree management, shed light on the truths behind the misconstrued topic.

IT MATTERS HOW SOON YOU SUBMIT YOUR CLASSES WHEN COURSE REQUEST OPENS Myth: That’s not true, but stu-

ents shouldn’t wait until the last minute because they might have problems. To register, students have to complete certain registration policy questions. Sometimes HokieSpa asks students to update emergency contact information and local addresses, or to acknowledge changes in the student conduct policy. Students shouldn’t wait until three minutes before midnight on the last day, or they may not be able to get in because it’s too close to being past the time. But there’s no advantage to doing it the first day versus the seventh day.

A COMPUTER PROGRAM PLACES STUDENTS INTO THEIR COURSES Fact: The registrar’s office uses a scheduling program reffered to as the scheduler. The program takes all of the information it receives and follows the hierarchy rules. For example, it

creates seniors’ schedules before it creates juniors’ scedules. So if a junior is asking for the same thing as a senior, the senior will have the chance to get it before the junior. It is very complex because of the number of students, conflicting times and prerequisites. However, the scheduler’s algorithm is “optimizing,” meaning it tries to place students into the course they’ve asked for before placing them in the class time they requested.

HONORS STUDENTS AND ATHLETES GET PRIORITY IN OBTAINING THEIR COURSES Fact: There is a heirarchy in the system. First are students with disabilities. Second are students who are participating in a sport that semester — not all the athletes but just the those who are participating that

Soccer hopeful for NCAA bid

see TRUTH / page two

of students get all of the classes they request

50%

of students are only one class short of their desired schedule

75%

* data from Wanda Dean, University Registrar and VP for enrollment and degree management

Passage of jobs bill by Congress still unlikely

RECORD: 12-7-1, 4-5-1 ACC NATIONAL RPI: 22 QUALITY WINS: No. 8 North Carolina, Miami, NC State LEADING GOAL SCORERS: Kelly Conheeney, 10 Shannon Mayrose, 8 Jazmine Reeves, 5 MIKE PLATANIA sports staff writer Amid Hokie football, a struggling men’s soccer team and excitement for the upcoming basketball season, the Virginia Tech women’s soccer team has been quietly having a great season. One of the most under-appreciated teams in Blacksburg, the women on the team have been playing well all year and have provided fans at Thompson Field some memorable moments. Led by first-year head coach Charles “Chugger” Adair, the Hokies have amassed 12 wins to only seven losses and one draw, including a home win over then-No. 8 North Carolina. Any team that plays in the Atlantic Coast Conference has to go through the gauntlet, as four of the top five teams in the national RPI rankings are from the ACC, while four more are also ranked in the top 25. Despite their vicious schedule, the Hokies find themselves ranked No. 22 in the nation in RPI and are very likely to be selected to the 64-team NCAA Tournament. If the Hokies don’t get selected, it’ll

MCT CAMPUS

President Obama speaks about his new job proposal Wednesday.

OBAMA STILL STRUGGLES TO GAIN SUPPORT FOR PROPOSED $447 BILLION JOBS PACKAGE TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

Forward Jazmine Reeves keeps the ball away from a UNC defender during the Hokies’ 1-0 win Oct. 23. be as much of an outrage as when the men’s basketball team wasn’t selected to compete in March Madness last year. “We’ve done all we can as far as making the NCAA Tournament,” Adair said. “We had a solid year with a few quality NCAA wins that should give us a strong case for the tournament.” The Hokies are anchored by their sophomore goalkeeper, Dayle Colpitts, who has been enjoying a great season thus far. Colpitts has kept the Hokies in many games, as she’s recorded five or more saves in seven games this season.

The sophomore fought nagging injuries early in the season, but she’s started all eight games in October and has played well down the stretch, especially in ACC matches. In October, Colpitts recorded 39 saves and posted three shutouts. Senior Brittany Michels and junior Julia Goldsworthy lead Tech’s defense. Both have started all 20 games this year and play a crucial role in setting up the offense. Michels is a wall on the backline and has helped make Colpitts’ life much easier all year. Playing a different type of defense is Goldsworthy, who is known to deliver passes to the midfield and

offense. These two veterans lead a defense that has given teams fits with its physicality and discipline. Tech’s offense has been able to score many different ways, and as a result, a large number of players have been able to find the net. Whether they’re passing the ball methodically through the midfield or putting in crosses from the wings, the Hokies have been able to average nearly two goals per game. Midfielder Kelly Conheeney leads the team with 10 goals, half of them game-winners. Forward Shannon see SOCCER / page six

DAVID LIGHTMAN mcclatchy newspapers WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama stood Wednesday before an aging Washington bridge and urged a bitterly divided Congress to approve his plan to boost infrastructure spending, but the effort is likely to be blocked Thursday in the Senate. That would be no surprise to Obama, who since unveiling his $447 billion jobs package two months ago has seen his ideas rejected, largely along party lines. The partisan schism was evident again Wednesday, as both sides embraced long-held philosophical stands and saw political gain from their refusal to budge. Democrats want higher taxes

on millionaires to pay for the infrastructure plan. Republicans don’t. Republicans in the House of Representatives have led the way in passing a series of bills to provide private-sector initiatives aimed at creating jobs. Democrats vow to keep pushing the Obama package. There was little evidence that the two sides are taking serious steps to reach consensus on efforts to bring down the nation’s 9.1 percent unemployment rate. Obama, standing next to the Key Bridge, which spans the Potomac River to link northwest Washington with northern Virginia, tried to be both presidential and partisan. “Infrastructure shouldn’t be a partisee JOBS/ page two

2 news

editors: claire sanderson, michelle sutherland newseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865

november 3, 2011

COLLEGIATETIMES

Town Council candidates speak on weapons CT NEWS STAFF With Election Day coming up on Tuesday, Nov. 8, the Collegiate Times caught up with the candidates running for seats in the Blacksburg Town Council to hear their thoughts on local issues. The seven members of the Council serve staggered four-year terms and are the legislative body of the local government. The Council passes new ordinances, makes rules about land use and long-term planning, and sets all tax rates. This year, five candidates are running for three open spots — John Bush, Leslie Hager-Smith, Melvyn Jay “Mel” Huber, Paul Lancaster and Michael Sutphin. Each day this week, the CT will feature one question posed to all candidates, so readers can compare their answers and learn more about them. Today’s question deals with a law that allows pneumatic weapons on private property: The state issued a mandate saying that cities and towns can no longer restrict the use of pneumatic weapons as long as they are used on private property. Do you think the law should have been put it place or repealed?

PAUL LANCASTER

JOHN BUSH

MICHAEL SUTPHIN

LESLIE HAGER-SMITH

MELVYN JAY HUBER

I think it should be repealed. I think it should be up to the locality. That’s one thing the General Assembly likes to do, to pass a law that may be great for one locality but they think it will apply to everybody. To a person, when the current council voted on that, the town attorney made changes in the town code to accommodate that. They all voted ‘aye’ because they had to, it’s state law, but they all complained that they didn’t want to do it. This is not a town that needs a pellet gun being run around. I can see someone driving around town late at night shooting up windows. It just doesn’t make any sense to me to have it in Blacksburg.

Right now, I would have to say that it should be repealed and left to the localities. It’s interesting to me that we have basically a Republican-led General Assembly — that’s the same party that talks about local rules and local government and states being able to say what they need and what works best for them when they talk about the federal government. But we’re a Dillon Rule state, and what the Dillon Rule essentially means is that localities cannot pass their own laws if it isn’t something the General Assembly has already allowed to happen. When they passed the law that says pneumatic guns can be used in town limits, we didn’t have a choice. We had to pass it. Personally, for this town, I don’t think it’s a good idea.

I know every member of the town council voted to repeal the thing but they did that not because they wanted to, but because they begrudgingly supported it as required by state law. Virginia is a Dillon Rule State, so the relationship between municipalities like Blacksburg and the state government in Richmond is such that we can only do things the General Assembly agrees we can do. So I would have voted the same way as the town council, to allow pneumatic weapons, but I personally wouldn’t have done what the General Assembly did about them.

The real issue there is that Virginia is a Dillon Rule State. What it means is that localities cannot presume to have any authority unless the state allows them to have it. So everything from what color to paint police cars to how to handle derelict properties and whether or not we’re going to have BB guns, all of that is out of our hands unless we are given specific permissions at the state level. It’s sort of like mother may I, it’s a constant frustration and it’s costly. Whether or not we want to do something with BB guns is beside the point, we’re stuck in this system that doesn’t serve us well.

Melvyn Jay “Mel” Huber was unavailable to comment. He worked as a lawyer for 56 years with the Wagner & Huber law firm in Blacksburg. Huber has served on the Montgomery County Chamber of Commerce, the Republican County Committee and the Rotary Club. He served in the Marine Corps Reserve from 194758 and was on active duty during the Korean War. For more information on Huber, go to HuberForBlacksburg.net

Truth: Don’t wait for Drop/Add

what you’re saying // comments from online readers...

from page one

On greener tailgating: Anonymous>> I am confused - how does making towels, that will become more waste after the game, help this green effort?

Erica>> Awareness that a Sustain Lane Initiative has been started this year. Which leads to awareness of other waste reduction strategies that will be implemented at the stadium in the next few years. And just to clarify, The Sustain Lane initiative is actually another intern team’s project that is dealing directly with Lane Stadium and Virginia Tech. The intern team that developed the resources mentioned in the article and is working with the EPA is a separate intern team.

Anonymous>>

semester. Then it’s honors students and then seniors, juniors, sophomores and freshmen. Dean often hears complaints from seniors who say they didn’t get several of the classes they requested, but she said each senior is competing with all of the other seniors. For majors with a high amount of seniors who are seeking the same course, it can be difficult to get all the students in the course. It’s not a given that seniors will get everything they ask for through the scheduler.

COURSE REQUEST ISN’T THAT IMPORTANT BECAUSE STUDENTS CAN ALWAYS FALL BACK ON DROP/ADD. Myth: Course Request is vey helpful to departments that must decide how many sections of a class to provide, because it gives them information about the demand for certain sections. The departments can then

try to add sections if classes are in high demand, increasing the chance that students will get the courses they want. If you wait until Drop/Add to try and construct your schedule, you are limited to the “leftovers.”

to the very same class at a different time. That is how students sometimes get the course they asked for but maybe not at the time they asked for. The goal is to get you into the class.

STUDENTS RARELY GET THE CLASSES THEY REQUEST. Depends: Out of the 23,743 stu-

IF YOU REQUEST MORE CLASSES, YOU HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF GETTING THE ONES YOU WANT. Myth: HokieSpa won’t let student’s

dents who participated in Course Request for Spring 2012, 50 percent will get everything they’ve asked for. About 75 percent will end up only one class short of their desired schedule. The scheduling program is designed to honor students’ requests, meaning it prioritizes placing students in a course before placing them in their preffered class time. The goal of the scheduler is to give you a complete schedule. For example, if the class a student requests is full or conflicts with something else, the scheduler is going to move them

overload classes, or take more than 19 credits in a semester or seven in a summer session. And requesting more classes will not give students a better chance because the program simply runs on an algorithm, and students are competing with other students.

INFORMATION SUBMITTED FOR COURSE REQUEST GOES INTO SOME VOID AND POPS BACK OUT IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS. Fact: As soon as Course

Request week is over (this semester it ended on Oct. 25) the information registrar’s office runs all the information through the scheduler. When that is complete, the office has preliminary schedules for all students and sends the results out to departments. Individual departments are given several weeks to look over the results, which show the demand for each course and how they can respond to that demand. If there are far more requests for a class than there are seats, departments may try to create more class sections if it has the resources. Departments can then send the information registrar requests back to add sections to the timetable. Once the timetable is adjusted, all requests are run through the scheduler again, creating the schedules students actually see.

This makes no sense...the point is that VT creates over 18 tons of waste/game. How is making and selling a towel helping to solve this problem????

Jobs: Obama frustrated with partisanship

Anonymous>>

from page one

Anonymous>> “Eventually, the idea is that Hokie fans purchase a towel and bring it to games to create a wall in the stadium. In the future, the towel will be available in different shades of gray, so when students hold it up in the stands it will give the allusion of a building.”Good luck w/ that!! You can’t even get people to wear the right color at an “EFFECT” game, what makes you think they will remember to bring your “eco towel” to a game???

Erica>> Around 1000 have sold and it’s the first year they’ve been offered. Which means they are going to catch on pretty quickly

san issue,” he said. He quoted President Ronald Reagan in citing infrastructure initiatives as “an investment in tomorrow that we must make today.” Obama asked, “Since when do we have Republicans voting against Ronald Reagan’s ideas? There’s no good reason to oppose this bill, not one, and members of Congress who do, who vote no, are going to have to explain why to their constituencies.” At one point, he ridiculed Congress for digressing by debating smaller matters, such as a House measure reaffirming the nation’s “In God We Trust” motto. “That’s not putting people back to work,” Obama said. “I trust in God, but God wants to see us help ourselves by putting people back to work.” Republicans insisted they’re eager to create jobs, too, and urged Obama to stop campaigning and reason with them. “While the president is out doing campaign events all over the country, what he could do is to actually come to Washington and be focused on trying to help pass bills that would create a better environment for job creation and help put the American people back to work,” said House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio. Senate Democrats’ infrastructure package would be funded by a 0.7 percent surtax on millionaires.

crime blotter

create jobs by taking certain steps that don’t need congressional approval. Wednesday, he announced a series of steps, including directing the Transportation Department to expedite $527 million in grants to help rebuild infrastructure; establishing a special team to expedite the environmental review of certain projects; and making the application process for the next round of federal loans for major projects easier. Obama’s plan to speed the award of loans to state and local governments for large-scale transportation projects has good job-creation potential, transportation experts say. The program now gets $112 million, but legislation pending in Congress — with substantial bipartisan support — could boost that sum to about $1 billion. The $1 billion loan program is part of a larger, twoyear, $109 billion surface transportation funding bill. It’s seen by both sides as less politically motivated — and has been far less publicized — than Obama’s package, and is seen by lawmakers as necessary to help pay for crucial infrastructure projects back home. The $60 billion Democratic infrastructure plan, on the other hand, is considered a highly political proposal, one where Republicans could get political mileage by denying the president a victory — and Obama and the Democrats can cultivate voters by championing the extra spending and the tax on the wealthy.

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V I O L A T I O N - A F F I D A V I T

date reported

time

offense

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10/21/2011

8:40 p.m.

Follow-up to Harassment

Burchard Hall

Inactive

10/24/2011

2:30 a.m.

Follow-up to Burglary

Pritchard Hall

Inactive

10/31/2011

10:39 p.m.

Possession of Marijuana/Drug Paraphernalia

Duckpond Drive

Cleared by Arrest

10/31/2011

10:39 p.m.

Possession of Marijuana/Drug Paraphernalia

Duckpond Drive

Cleared by Arrest

10/31/2011

10:39 p.m.

Possession of Schedule 1 Narcotic

Duckpond Drive

Active

13216540656465514

Duh...It helps by making people feel good about themselves for thinking that they are doing something.

“It (asks) millionaires and billionaires to contribute just a little bit more than they do now. A little bit more,” said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev. “It was paid for,” Obama said Wednesday of his package, “and yet they said no. The truth is the only way we can attack our economic challenges on the scale that’s needed is with bold action by Congress.” Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky found the Democrats’ plan misguided. “It’s not exactly a state secret that Republicans — and yes, some Democrats — don’t think we should be raising taxes right now on the very people we’re counting on to create the jobs we need to get us out of a jobs crisis,” he said. “And yet the one thing that every single proposal Democrats bring to the floor has in common is that it does just that.” The Rebuild America Jobs Act being debated by the Senate would spend $50 billion in immediate investments on highway, transit, rail and aviation projects. An additional $10 billion would help establish a national infrastructure bank that would help fund a number of projects. No one expects Democrats to succeed Thursday. “Every Democrat knows it’s not going to pass,” said Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va. Then why bother? “We get people focused on an issue where we can bring people together,” explained Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn. Obama in recent days has insisted he can help

opınıons 3

editors: scott masselli, sean simons opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES

november 3, 2011

The Collegiate Times is an independent student-run newspaper serving the Virginia Tech community since 1903

MCT CAMPUS

With Gaddafi gone, Libya now has a chance to thrive

Our Views [staff editorial]

Nutter opts out of debate T he Virginia state Senate debate between Dave Nutter and John Edwards that was slated for Nov. 2 has devolved into a question and answer session with Senator Edwards. Nutter, his opponent, has chosen to not accept the invitation. A week from the election, this is an unfortunate outcome for the 21st District, but the blame is difficult to pinpoint. The obvious choice would seem to be Nutter, who actually chose not to participate. Makes sense — at least at first. But many have argued the debate was sponsored mostly by organizations that are politically aligned with Edwards, implicitly or explicitly. While the Libertarian Club, which is often linked with the Republican Party, is a listed sponsor of the debate, so are the LGBTA and Beyond Coal. Both organizations explicitly lean to the left of the political spectrum. Likewise, Virginia21, though non-partisan, lobbies for higher education benefits and therefore may be more aligned with Edwards than Nutter. To Nutter’s campaign manager, this all sets a dangerous stage for the Republican. He may not be able to prove any intended malice, but a week before the election, he is not going to risk letting his candidate get caught off guard by a question. More importantly, Nutter would be taking a risk by taking questions from groups he does not claim to support. As he desperately tries to defend his position on an issue, he will have to be compared to his opponent, who merely has to agree and vow to use the office to support the

cause. Of course, none of this should be construed as imputing excessive partisanship or bias upon any of the sponsoring organizations, at least beyond the extent to which they accept such charges. But even if Beyond Coal and the LGBTA sincerely desired a fair debate, Nutter would still be foolish to participate. Unless these organizations forego the questions that are of central importance to their members and mission statements, Nutter will always be on the defensive. Furthermore, if the organizations did forego such questions, they would be doing a disservice to their own members. Lastly, consider the one organization whose politics are definitively aligned with Nutter — the Libertarian Club. This is something of an oddball, since the club’s views do not fit nicely within Nutter’s Republican Party allegiance. Even here, Nutter would have to expect some ideological and policy pushback if he were to participate. In hindsight, the groups that organized the debate should have done a better job ensuring a better balance of sponsoring organizations. Because they did not, Virginia Tech misses out on hosting an important debate in the run-up to the election. However, hopefully voters on both sides of the aisle will be in attendance to talk with Edwards. This organizing mishap should not deter Tech students from using this as an opportunity to involve themselves in civil discourse and local politics. - the editorial board consists of sean simons and scott masselli

Thursday, Oct. 20, breaking news tickers around the world flashed the same shocking sentence: Former Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi killed in gunfight. Although short, the implications of this initial report were endless. In the blink of an eye, the future of an entire country became unclear. With the oppression that existed in all facets of the Libyan government and economy now lifted, all that remains is hope and possibility. This sense of hope was the main goal behind the creation of the revolution-seeking group that began openly protesting against Gaddafi and his supporters. This event was not only widely covered by media around the world, but it was praised. Even when Gaddafi’s attempts to stifle the movement resulted in the use of lethal force, the activists continued their efforts. The progress these protests signified was immense. In Libya, these people were referred to as rebels. Everywhere else, they were citizens in pursuit of happiness and freedom. Gaddafi had created a quasi-socialist government in his 42 dictating years. He used fear as one of his most effective strategies in controlling his people — flaunting his army’s power wherever he could. The quality of life for the citizens caught in this tyrannical society was extremely low. One other fact, however, was a little less expected — Libya’s economy was the most prosperous in all of Africa. Before the civil war that ensued as a result of the resounding unrest, per capita gross domestic product in Libya was much larger than any other African country at about $14,000, according to David Rosenberg of the Jerusalem Post. This figure is comparable to many eastern European nations. This is an impressive feat considering how downtrodden Africa’s economies are as a whole. The reason for this success was the bountiful natural deposits of oil located beneath Libyan soil. This resource accounted

for almost all of the country’s national exports. When the unrest began, oil production was slashed drastically, and Libya’s entire economy suffered greatly. This is purely a result of a lack of product diversity — a fundamental necessity for a country’s stable economic growth. Take the U.S. for example, which has many different sources of industry and income within its borders, including agriculture, mining, and just about anything you can buy at a store. If the goods American citizens purchase are not produced within the country, they are imported and then U.S.-based companies distribute them. The businesses doing the producing and distributing at home are usually publically or privately held companies that the federal government has no ownership of. Now imagine if 95 percent of the U.S. economy depended on the big automobile companies that requested government bailouts. This is a similar scenario to what Libya is currently facing, only without the bailout. Gaddafi instated many restrictive policies that granted him total control over what little industry Libya had to begin with. Now that he is no longer in power, the stranglehold has been released, but Libya is left without a sound foundation on which it can resurrect a steady economy. Therein lies the true challenge for the Libyan people. Libyan citizens are celebrating this victory in the streets of their country, but to me, the celebrations are premature. Yes, the dethroning of Gaddafi is certainly a triumph, but it is only the first of many steps that will have to be taken to morph Libya into the democratic institution its people so openly hunger for. First, the government will have to be completely reformed before any sort of work on the economy can begin. The Libyan people need a new environment created by a governing system that actually functions for the good of the people. By the people, for the people — sounds familiar doesn’t it?

It begins with appointing a new and improved leader with democratic ideals. There is no such thing as direct democracies in the modern age, with Switzerland being closest to such a system, so the people of Libya will never be able to transform their country without a figurehead to carry out the actions they themselves would implement. This renewed government must also actively promote innovations to international, as well as domestic, commerce; in forming new ways to cultivate goods and materials for exportation. This would solve the problem of diversification in addition to opening new trade possibilities with external countries, allowing for expansion in foreign affairs. It is also very important for the new government to only be utilized in the creation of businesses at most, so that a relapse into old habits can be prevented. I try not to be pessimistic about Libya’s future. However, the world has seen tyrannous dictators overthrown time and time again, only to be replaced by leaders with similar agendas, creating an inescapable vortex of oppression. No matter how painfully cliche the phrase is, it’s unfortunately true: History loves to repeat itself. Libya finds itself locked in an incredibly volatile situation that will have significant impact on not just its future, but the future of many nations around the world, including the U.S. Despite the looming problems, the possibilities for Libya and its citizens are boundless. The once-locked door to prosperity is finally open. Now it’s just a matter of the Libyan people taking the necessary steps to walk through it as one.

DAVID LEVITT -regular columnist -sophomore -economics major

Collegiate Times Editorial Staff Editor in Chief: Zach Crizer Managing Editor: Lindsey Brookbank Design Editors: Danielle Buynak, Victoria Zigadlo Public Editor: Justin Graves Web Editor: Sarah Watson News Editors: Claire Sanderson, Michelle Sutherland News Reporters: Josh Higgins News Staff Writers: Erin Chapman, Meighan Dober, Abby Harris, Elizabeth Haydu, Cody Owens, Mallory NoePayne Features Editors: Chelsea Gunter, Patrick Murphy Features Reporters: Nick Smirniotopoulos Features Staff Writers: Courtney Baker, Torie Deible, Dane Harrington, Kevin McAleese, Andrew Reily Opinions Editors: Scott Masselli, Sean Simons Sports Editors: Matt Jones, Zach Mariner Sports Reporters: Michael Bealy, Nick Cafferky, Courtney Lofgren, Josh Parcell Sports Staff Writers: Eric Avassi, Zander Baylis, Alyssa Bedrosian, Cody Elliott, Taylor Hay, Alex Koma, Ashleigh Lanza, Brian Marcolini, Cody Owens Photo Editor: Daniel Lin Special Sections Editor: Liana Bayne, Nick Cafferky Public Information Director: Dishu Maheshwari Training Director: Kelsey Heiter Copy Chief: Spenser Snarr Copy Editors: Debra Houchins, Nora McGann Layout Designers: Nadia Groome, Kaitlyn Kicia, Bethany Melson, Matthew Ryburn Online Director: Jamie Chung Collegiate Times Business Staff Business Manager: Philipp Kotlaba Student Publications Photo Staff Director of Photography: Paul Kurlak Lab Manager: Austen Meredith College Media Solutions Ad Director: Brandon Collins Asst Ad Director: Matt Freedman Account Executives: Johnson Bray, Kevin Jadali, Alyssa Brown, Brian Dickson, Janssen Claudio Inside Sales Manager: Mario Gazzola Assistant Inside Sales Manager: Adam Shata Office Manager: Kayley Greenday Assistant Account Executives: Alex Perry, Kacie Nolan, Jordan Peugh Creative Director: Casey Stoneman Asst Production Manager: Colleen Hill Creative Services Staff: Danielle Bushrow, Michael Craighead, Alyssa Morrison, Molly Vinson Voice your opinion. Readers are encouraged to send letters to the Collegiate Times. 365 Squires Student Center Blacksburg, VA, 24061 Fax: (540) 231-9151 opinionseditor@collegiatetimes.com All letters to the editor must include a name and daytime phone number. Students must include year and major. Faculty and staff must include position and department. All other submissions must include city of residence, and if applicable, relationship to Virginia Tech (i.e., alumni, parent, etc.). All letters should be in MS Word (.doc) format, if possible. Letters, commentaries and editorial cartoons do not reflect the views of the Collegiate Times. Editorials are written by the Collegiate Times editorial board, which is composed of the opinions editors, editor-in-chief and the managing editors. Letters to the editor are submissions from Collegiate Times readers. We reserve the right to edit for any reason. Anonymous letters will not be printed. Have a news tip? Call or text 200-TIPS or e-mail newstips@collegiatetimes.com

Touring Egypt shows poverty, a different way of life Editors note: Bryce Stucki visited Egypt recently for a little more than a week to work in development. This is the first of a series of columns on his journey.

hen I went to Tahrir square in Cairo last week, I saw no protesters, but rather plenty of T-shirts for sale. “I am Egyptian,” “Free Libya!” “I Love Egypt” and “People Power, Not the People in Power” were just a few of the slogans adorning the clothing. “You like these, my friend?” I would hear when I was staring at a display too long. To talk about Cairo you must talk about merchants you will encounter the moment you exit the airport. “Taxi, my friend? Taxi?” Same when you exit your hotel, walk up the street, or enter a museum — even when you’re getting in a taxi. “Taxi, my friend? Taxi?” Some vendors are sneakier. Try to cross a major street and

some friendly soul will appear to shepherd you across. On the other side, he will explain he is an artist, and you will feel charity welling up within you. Pretty soon you will be in his print shop, and you will wonder: Since when did artists get their prints made in China? Other times, a young man will want to give you his business card, which, unfortunately, is back in his shop. Well, that’s not too out of the way, so why not? And you won’t mind paying for the cup of tea he offered you either. After all, he’s getting married tomorrow, and he has kids to look after. “I’m getting annoyed by it,” I told my professor near the end of my stay. He had arranged for me to come and put me in one of the nicest hotels in the city — certainly the nicest hotel I’ve been in. “If you want to do development,” he said, “you can’t let these things irritate you too much.

It’s a bit like raising children. If you expect the child to behave a certain way and he doesn’t, you yell at him. You are a bad parent. “But if you change your expectations, and you start understanding why people act the way they do, then you won’t get mad, and you can help. Otherwise you will be doing development economics, not development.” Tourism contributed to 6 to 8 percent of the Egyptian economy during the late 2000s, which is roughly the share of healthcare in this country or of construction before it slowed down. Cairo, with the pyramids, Egyptian Museum and Saladin Citadel, is the primary destination. But the Jan. 25 revolution and continued violence in the city have slowed tourism significantly. Imagine what would happen if healthcare collapsed in this country. Look at what has happened

with construction. One might begin to understand why bargaining has become more intense. In Cairo, not only do most street vendors seem to be selling the same things, they also seem to be saying the same things — “This is Egyptian price,” “You are a winner,” “Real Egyptian cotton” and “I don’t like to bargain.” Although they don’t profess to like it much, bargaining is their livelihood. The per capita gross domestic product in Egypt of $6,000 in purchasing power is a little more than one-eighth of the U.S. In Blacksburg, that would get you an apartment room with only about $100 a month for food — no insurance, no car, no computer, no new clothes or shoes, no eating out and no entertainment. It’s also likely that street vendors are below the $6,000 line. It seems easy for us to forget

the amount of suffering and poverty in the Middle East. We seem fixated on areas in Africa and Asia, but people in Cairo feel suffering, hunger and pain the same as anyone. And Cairo is one of the worst cities in Egypt. TheU.N.’sHumanDevelopment Index places it as one of the worst regions in Egypt to inhabit, and its poor are some of the poorest in the nation. So the next time you see rioting in a Middle Eastern country, the next time you pass someone asking for money, or even the next time someone try to bargain with you, try to understand where they are coming from. Then you will be practicing development, not development economics.

BRYCE STUCKI -regular columnist -senior -economics major

Student Media Phone Numbers Collegiate Times Newsroom 231-9865 Editor-in-Chief 231-9867 College Media Solutions Advertising 961-9860 The Collegiate Times, a division of the Educational Media Company at Virginia Tech, was established in 1903 by and for the students of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. The Collegiate Times is published every Tuesday through Friday of the academic year except during exams and vacations. The Collegiate Times receives no direct funding from the university. The Collegiate Times can be found online at www.collegiatetimes.com. Except where noted, all photographs were taken by the Student Publications Photo Staff. To order a reprint of a photograph printed in the Collegiate Times, visit reprints.collegemedia.com. Subscription rates: $65 semester; $110 fall/spring. The first copy is free, any copy of the paper after that is 50 cents per issue. © Collegiate Times, 2011. All rights reserved. Material published in the Collegiate Times is the property thereof, and may not be reprinted without the express written consent of the Collegiate Times.

november 3, 2011

Regular Edition

NUMBERSEARCH

Locate the list of numbers in the number bank in the number grid.

0683 1453 2784 6839 1546 8623 1405 5063 9888 4321 9654 7327 7659 9114 8232 9645 2351 8765 0197 0206 6009 DOW N 1 In what way 2 Hasn’t settled yet 3 Beginning trumpeter ’s sound 4 “Gimme a Break!” star Carte r 5 Sandinist a Daniel 6 In whatever way possibl e 7 Banks with an Emmy 8 “__ and a bottle of rum! ” 9 Stereotypical deal-making site 10 Was angry to the max 11 Odor 12 Buy more Time, say 13 Site of a 55Across removal 24 Aloe __ 26 911 respondent 27 Play or room follower

THE YEARBOOK OF

Today’s Birthday Horoscope: You don’t need to open your eyes to see. There’s so much to discover with your imagination. It’s a good time to play with long-term plans. There’s no time for judgment when you’re on fire and super productive. Let go, and really create.

page 4

By Jeff Chen

category “Greek Alphabet” Have a set of words you want to see in puzzles section? Email your lists to ctadsproduction@gmail.com.

UNSCRAMBLER

maamg

eagmo

lapah

theat

tadel

iasmg

VIRGINIA TECH

word

Unscramble the letters to solve the

m a l

ACROSS 1 Schmooze, as with the rich and famous 7 Baseball’ s Cobb et al. 10 Fabled loser 14 Hooters’ hangout 15 __ Kippur 16 Quite angry 17 Money to burn 18 Pi follower 19 Musical quality 20 Canonized pope known as “The Great” 21 Spoken thumbsup 22 Feds concerne d with counterfeits

11/3/11 23 Top-level URL ender 25 Donkey’ s bray 27 “Oopsy!” evoker 31 “How silly __! ” 32 State emphatically 33 Legendary Bruin 35 Words with a sig h 39 __ Bel l 40 Phantom ’s rival, in “The Phantom of the Opera” 42 Nobel Institute city 43 Lay to rest 45 NBA ’s Magic, on scoreboards 46 Actress Lena 47 Settles the bill

49 Fixed charges 51 Washingtonbased warehouse club 53 Hubbub 54 Pakistani language 55 Barbecue morsel 57 Less polite 61 Dark film genre 62 Nickel source 63 Cat also known as the dwarf leopard 65 Quarterback Flutie 66 “__ the land of the free ...” 67 “Check that out!”

28 Nobelist Pavlov 29 Breakaway group 30 2007 Iraq War strategy 34 Little one hopping across today’s puzzl e 36 Ginger and Mary Ann’s hom e away from home 37 Nobelist Wiesel 38 Crime bosses 41 Major in astronomy? 44 Yoga student ’s roll 48 Nighttime bash 50 Acknowledgment of a witty rejoinder 51 Sing like Bing 52 Hatred 54 Annul 56 North Atlantic hazard 58 Oscar __ Renta 59 North Carolina university 60 Cheer 64 WBA decision

Wednesday’s Puzzle Solved

68 Bar buyer’s words 69 Bar barrel 70 Treating maliciousl y

11/2/11

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Check out tomorrow’s paper on page 5 for the answers!

IN THE LOOP Friday, Nov. 4

What: LUNICE - sponsored by Three Olives Vodka and Red Bull (free product will be given away at the bar) Where: Awful Arthurs When: 9 p.m. - midnight Cost: cover 21+ - $7, 18-20 - $10

What: Alpha Sigma Phi’s Livestrong Philanthropy Feat PHIVE from Jersey Shore, 18+ all night Where: Awful Arthurs When: 9 p.m. - 2 a.m. Cost: $5 donation What: 13th annual Pamplin Student Leadership Conference Where: The Inn at Virginia Tech Skeleton Conference Center When: 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. Cost: free

What: Black Twig pickers Where: Gillies When: 7 p.m.

For Rent Pheasant Run Crossing Townhome For Rent 2012-2013. 4 bdrm. 2.5 baths. Refurbished. www.techtownhomes.com, techtownhomes@comcast.net

Art Day

w Ne ic s Mu

7-9 AM - Appalachian Sunrise 9AM-12PM - Grayson Saussure’s Language of Phonk 12-2PM - Do You Right with Adam and Mike 2-3:30PM - The T-Coch Rock Block 3:30-5 PM - Ian Moore

Order yours today www.bugleonline.com

What: Naturally Sharp Presents: One Night Stand Where: Graduate Life Center Auditorium When: doors open 7 p.m., show 7:30 - 9 p.m. Cost: $5 in advance or at the door

What: The Stereofidelics w/ Levi’s Gene Pool sponsored by WUVT, 18+ Where: Gillies When: 10 p.m. Cost: no cover

Jaz

5-7 PM - Alex Simon’s Box of Wonders

What: Robin and Linda Williams. and Their Fine Group Where: Lyric Theatre When: 7:30 p.m. Cost: $10 students, $20 adults

What: Stevan Jackson Where: Gillies When: 7 p.m. Cost: free

Today’s Radio Schedule xed M i cs Dis

Sunday, Nov. 6

Saturday, Nov. 5

Thursday, Nov. 3

Week ending Oct. 28, 2011

WUVT “5 Minute” News at 5 PM lty

cia

7-9 PM - Phelonious Funk

e Sp

9 PM-12 AM - The Rare Groove

rt ht A Nig ty cial Spe

12-2 AM - Travis Brown 2-4 AM - The Briscoe Inferno 4-7 AM - Mixed Discs

xed M i cs Dis

Top tracks

( ) Last week’s ranking in top five

We Found Love • Rihanna

(1) 1

Sexy and I Know It • LMFAO

(2) 2

Someone Like You • Adele

(3) 3

Pumped Up Kicks • Foster the People

(4) 4

Moves Like Jagger • Maroon 5

(5) 5

weekend 5

editors: chelsea gunter, patrick murphy featureseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES

november 3, 2011

Battle: Club members relive childhood with mock ﬁghts from page one

“It’s pretty much a bunch of people getting together with homemade foam weapons and reenacting fights,” said Stewart Buttefield, the EBCaT president. “It’s a way to relieve stress and just have fun on the weekends.” EBCaT practices a variation of liveaction role playing, also known as LARPing. The club focuses less on the role playing and costume aspects and more on the fighting, Butterfield, a senior business information technologies major, said. Ryan Marlow, the EBCaT treasurer, agrees. “It’s LARPing without the role-play,” Marlow, a senior computer engineering major, said. “(Other clubs) are more serious, and so the difference between that and EBCaT is that we are not trying to be serious.” EBCaT was founded in November 2008 after Marlow and his friends encountered a group of people dressed as robots. Marlow, a freshman at the time, ran back to his residence hall to gather up an army to fight the robots. “We all brought our Nerf guns out. Then we scoured campus and found (the robots) outside between D2 and West End. We all just surrounded them and began shooting them with our Nerf guns,” Marlow said, “We conquered the robots that night.” After the battle was over, Marlow tried to set up another meeting with the robots, but they were unresponsive and refused to break character. However, Marlow and his friends were hopeful. “We set up this big Facebook event, ‘Robots vs. Humans,’ and we waited at the Drillfield, but they didn’t show up,” Marlow said, “We were like, ‘Whatever, let’s just fight each other.’” Marlow said a group of eight to 10 guys decided to continue to meet and battle it out around campus. Thus, EBCaT was born. Although it has only been an official club for three years, EBCaT’s Facebook group boasts more than 130 members.

“Its hard to gauge how many people will come out,” Butterfield said. “But the average turnout (for a battle) is usually 20 to 30 people.” EBCaT engages in different styles of battle, including team battles, capture the flag and “kill a king,” in which the teams have to figure out who is the king on the opposing team and “kill” that person. A hit to the chest constitutes immediate death, Butterfield said. A hit to a limb results in the loss of its use. Two shots to the same limb causes death as well. Head and crotch shots don’t count. “If you die, you lose a life. (After losing a life) you go back behind battle lines, count to 10 and you can do that for as many lives as you have. After that, you’re just out of the battle,” Butterfield said. Battles are typically pretty quick — lasting only five to 10 minutes. However, they can last as long as 20 to 30 minutes. At its inception, EBCaT members fought with plastic light-sabers, Nerf guns and weapons made out of cardboard. Now, members make weapons by using PVC pipes, fiberglass rods, foam pads and pool noodles. “We gradually progressed to more foam-based weapons. It’s safer, and we have more weapon regulations now,” Butterfield said. Safety is a priority for the club after Marlow chipped two teeth during a battle in which he was struck with an exposed piece of PVC pipe. “After that incident we were like ‘OK, we need to be a little more safe. We need to have safety regulations with our weapons,’” Marlow said, “So we’ve tried to be pretty strict about that. We don’t want any repeats.” The supplies to make epic battle weapons can be purchased at Walmart and cost about $15 to $20; three to four swords can be created from that purchase. “It’s relatively cheap and not too hard to make,” Butterfield said, “It takes a

SASMIT SHRESTHA / SPPS

Members of the Epic Battle Club at Tech gather on the Drillﬁeld for combat. EBCaT meets every Sunday with their foam-based weapons. certain degree of skill — like cutting straight lines.” Some members model their weapons after those seen in movies or video games. Spears and short swords are Butterfield’s weapons of choice. Other weapons include, nunchucks, hammers, spears and shields. “How good you are on the field is definitely dependent on the weapons

you use,” Marlow said. A successful battler needs good coordination, agility and the ability to swing a sword and make a hit, Butterfield said. But for inexperienced, first-timers, he said it is important not to just charge out onto the field. “Keep calm, have a level head and pay attention to what’s going on around you because it can get chaotic

out there,” he said. Amid the commotion, however, the team’s members have formed friendships. “For the members that have been around for more than a year, it’s almost as if we’re sort of a brotherhood — almost like a fraternity,” Marlow said. But at the same time, the club is inclusive, he added. “Becoming a

member is as easy as showing up to one battle and saying, ‘This is fun, I’m going to come back sometime,’” Marlow said. Overall, Butterfield and Marlow said EBCat is a laidback club for students to unwind. “All of us are kids at heart,” Marlow said. “We’re just trying to live out our childhood fantasies of playing with swords.”

Students to dance, raise money for Roanoke children’s clinic features reporter Dance fever is about to hit Virginia Tech — and for a good cause. Benefitting the Children’s Miracle Network, Dance Marathon is holding its first annual event in Squires Colonial Ballroom this Friday. Those looking to bust a move can do so from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. to raise money for Carillion Children’s Clinic in Roanoke, Va. The clinic is just one of 170 children’s hospitals around the country that the Children’s Miracle Network donates funds to. But Dance Marathon will truly be helping the children who gain from the funds. Five children, ages four to eight, who have received treatment from the clinic, will be at the event with their families. Danielle Betchel, Dance Marathon’s co-director, emphasized the importance of spending time with the children. “My main focus that this event offers versus anything else is that you get to see the families and hear their stories. That is the whole reason we are doing this,” the junior management major said. “Just that intrinsic benefit to know, ‘Hey, this little boy is who I am helping out.’” The children, along with participants, will learn a portion of a larger dance routine each hour. At the end of the night, everyone will perform it together, said Stephanie Simms, co-director. The organization’s goal is to spread the word about the hospital and respond to it needs, said Simms, a senior human nutrition, foods and exercise major.

“They lose so much money every year that they have to get through funding from the Children’s Miracle Network or they wouldn’t be able to treat the children,” she said. Betchel elaborated on the event’s fundraising capacity. “(The Children’s Miracle Network’s) two goals are to raise as much funds as possible for research and helping families pay their hospital bills,” the junior management major said. “It is the only charity event nationwide that 100 percent of the money raised goes to the hospitals.” The organization received donations from the university, the Campus Alcohol Abuse Prevention Center and the PanHellenic Council, totaling more than $2,000. While the event is heavily focused on fundraising efforts and supporting the children, the environment is built upon excitement. In addition to the dance routine, several performers will be providing entertainment, including the High Techs, Juxtaposition and Dance Company at Virginia Tech. Simms compared the profile of Dance Marathon to Relay 4 Life, arguably one of the most popular service events at Tech. “The similarity (to Relay) is that it is a one-night event. There is going to be entertainment and food, which is all the same as Relay. You also pay the $10 to sign up and get a T-shirt,” Simms said. Despite being quite similar on the surface, Dance Marathon offers a much different environment than that of Relay, since it is solely focused on children, she said. However, it has yet to make a similar impact on campus. But Simms and Betchel have high hopes

for the event’s future in the community. “Since this is our first year, our number one problem is motivating people to go. Everyone knows about Dance Marathon, but taking that extra step to sign up is where we have fallen short,” Betchel said. But she isn’t worried. The goal for this year is to make the organization known on campus and build for the future. There are currently more than 100 people signed up, which does not include the executive committee or people who will sign up during the last week. Simms expects around 200 people at the event — a promising number for its first year. Students can still sign up at DanceMarathon.org.vt.edu. Registration fees are $10 online and $15 on the night of the event.

......radio for

everyone

word UNSCRAMBLER

NICK SMIRNOTOPOULOS

solutions: “Classic Novelists” 1) Twain 2) London 3) Heller 4) Salinger 5) Doyle 6) Melville

LIVE AT GILLIES 153 COLLEGE AVENUE

NOVEMBER 4th 9:30-12:30AM

6 sports september 23, 2009

B editors: matt jones, zachpage mariner sportseditor@collegiatetimes.com/ 540.231.9865 COLLEGIATETIMES

november 3, 2011

Soccer: Tech should advance

hanging on to last seaon’s basketball memories? check out the CT’s basketball preview for 2011-12 this Friday

FILE 2011 / SPPS

TREVOR WHITE / SPPS

(Top) Ashley Manning defends a UNC player. (Bottom) Jazmine Reeves tries to shake a UNC defender.

NCAA TOURNEY HISTORY: Appearances: 4 Record: 2-4 FINISHES: 2004: First Round, 2-1 L, William & Mary 2008: First Round, 2-0 L, BYU 2009: Regional Semiﬁnals, 4-1 L, Portland 2010: First Round, 3-0 L, Dayton

NCAA TOURNAMENT APPEARANCE WOULD BE FOURTH STRAIGHT FOR VIRGINIA TECH SENIORS from page one

Mayrose isn’t far behind with eight, and she’s been a fantastic force coming off the bench. Between their multiple attacking styles and depth, the Hokies have been able to stretch the back of the net consistently. However, they have struggled to score against top teams such as Duke, Wake Forest and Virginia. Forward Jazmine Reeves, the team’s leader in assists, recognizes this needs to change if they want to succeed moving forward. “We have been doing so many great things that are leading to so many great opportunities, but we just can’t put that finishing touch on it,” Reeves said. “It is just going to come down to concentration.” With plenty of strength at all positions, the women have put themselves in a good position to make the NCAA Tournament, and they will be

hungry to prove that they deserve to be considered one of the ACC’s elite teams. Throughout October, the Hokies traveled to Durham, N.C. to take on Duke twice, each time returning on the losing end of 1-0 result. Goldsworthy is confident that much can be learned from their losses. “We have a very positive attitude, to just slip up for a minute or two in the beginning and to fight back to give Duke one of our best games this season is promising,” she said. “To get 15 shots on the No. 1 team in the ACC was a positive for the offense, even though we couldn’t capitalize on one.” Although they lost their last two games, the Hokies know they can hang with top competition after their win against North Carolina and having come so close against Duke twice. The Hokies play an exciting style of “The Beautiful Game” and have the ability to make some noise in the NCAA Women’s Soccer Tournament.