The DA 03-01-2013

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THE DAILY ATHENAEUM

“Little good is accomplished without controversy, and no civic evil is ever defeated without publicity.”

da

Friday March 1, 2013

Volume 125, Issue 108

www.THEDAONLINE.com

A REVOLUTION IS BORN

4,289 ballots cast is an increase of more than 50 percent

how it was won President/Vice President Campione/Seebaugh 2,543 Guy/Mucino

By Carlee Lammers

1,679

City editor

Board of Governors 1. Jacob Evans 2.Spenser Wempe 3. Morgan Riddle 4. Anthony Braxton 5. Stephen Scott 6. George Capel 7. John Williams 8. Adam Carte 9. Renzo Diaz 10. Chris Nyden 11. Joy Wang 12. Katie Heller 13. Evan McIntyre 14. Blaine Blankenship 15. Afsheen Misaghi

2,294 2,287 2,227 2,180 2,177 2,163 2,158 2,136 2,104 2,097 2,091 2,057 2,053 2,031 1,909

1,761 16. Molly Callaghan 1,590 17. Sara Zuccari 1,499 18. Liz McCormick 19. Jason Cohen 1,489 1,482 20. Matt Elder 21. Rob Gill 1,436 22. Justin Fanok 1,418 1,416 23. Haven Williams 1,415 24. Mohammed Amin Afshari 1,402 25. John Barringer 26. Holden Hudson 1,382 1,332 27. Paul Garton 1,309 28. Daniel Harris 28. Victoria Vini 1,309 1,291 30. Joe Reidy

Athletic Council 1. Ashley Morgan 2. Dillon Tucker

2,330 2,176

3. Clark Douglas 4. Hillary Wolford

1,653 1,570

Join the conversation. Tweet us your thoughts about the SGA elections.

@dailyathenaeum

Mel Moraes/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM

SGA president-elect Ryan Campione, right, and vice president-elect Benjamin Seebaugh, left, react to the announcement of the vote totals.

Campione, Seebaugh lead Revolution to election sweep by bryan bumgardner associate city editor

In a clean sweep, The Revolution was elected to be the 2013-14 West Virginia Student Government body. After a record voter turnout of 15.41 percent, every member of The Revolution ticket was elected. The election results were announced by precinct last night in the food court of the Mountainlair, showing The Revolution receiving overwhelming support from all voting locations, including Health Sciences, Evansdale and Downtown campuses. “We picked this ticket out of the entire student body, the best of the best,” said vice-president elect Benjamin Seebaugh. “The fact that we had a record year (for voting) and then to have swept the election – it clearly shows our supporters supported our philosophy and our mission as a whole.”

patrick gorrell/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM

Members of THE Party look on during Thursday’s announcement of the election results.

Seebaugh said a full-ticket victory was looking to the future only mois a good opportunity for The Revolu- ments after the announcement. He asked the student body to hold tion’s governors. “We’ve build such a cohesive his ticket to a high standard. group,” he said. “It’s going to be a pro“Hold us accountable,” he ductive year.” President-elect Ryan Campione see sga on PAGE 2

Abdullah brothers give lecture By meghan Bonomo Staff writer

The NFL’s Abdullah Brothers, Hamaza and Husain, spoke out on their journey as African-American, Muslim professional athletes and hoped to change the misconceptions of their religion. The West Virginia University Center for Black Culture and Research, which Tyler Herrinton/THE DAILY ATHENAEUM has hosted events throughHamza and Husain Abdullah speak during Thursday’s lecture in the Mountainlair out the month of February ballroom. to celebrate Black History

Month, the Muslim Student Association and the College of Physical Activity & Sport Sciences teamed to present the Abdullah Brothers. Hamaza Abdullah has been in the NFL for seven years and spent time in Tampa Bay, Cleveland, Denver and most recently, Arizona. His brother has put in four years all with the Minnesota Vikings. Both brothers said they have decided to put their professional football careers on hold to pursue a higher

calling. In order to satisfy one of the five pillars of Islam, the brothers took a journey, first to speak at mosques across the country and onto fulfilling their Hajj. “It is the most difficult pillar,” Hamaza said. “It is said in the Quran that if you have the means, the health and wealth to do it, do it, and we kind of fell into that category.” While realizing taking a year off of football could put

see lecture on PAGE 2

Event to raise money for Nicaraguan coffee cooperative by emily cotter correspondent

Fair Trade 2.0 will be hosting the FirstHand Cafe Night at Mountain People’s Cooperative tonight at 6:00 p.m. to benefit La Hermandad, a Nicaraguan coffee cooperative. The event will provide freshly brewed FirstHand coffee, snacks and baked goods from the Venerable Bean, the vegan bakery operated out of the Mountain People’s Cooperative. “FirstHand Cafe Night is very similar to our coffee hours we have every Friday in Brooks (Hall,) but we do it at (Mountain People’s) Coop in order to increase our community involvement,”

said Tyler Huling, Fair Trade 2.0 president. “We really value our relationship with them.” One hundred percent of the profits from the FirstHand Cafe Night will be given directly to La Hermandad for income diversity projects. For farmers, diversity of income is paramount. Any insect, drought or disease can drastically affect a farmer’s yield. When farmers are dependent on one crop and that crop fails, the family suffers. This one income pays for their home, education and food. Currently, a fungus known as Hemileia vastatrix, known for causing coffee rust, has

spread throughout much of Central America, including Nicaragua. Many coffee farmers, especially organic farmers, have suffered an extreme loss in the amount of coffee available. La Hermandad has suffered a 30 percent loss. Geography student Mikaela Roselius, a member of Fair Trade 2.0, visited La Hermandad last summer with a few other West Virginia University students. “For me it was my first exposure to the work that Fair Trade 2.0 and FirstHand do,” she said. “I learned a lot about things I never even really considered.” Her favorite part was meeting the residents of La

Hermandad. “They took really good care of us,” she said. “They didn’t have much to give, and yet they gave us all they had.” The members of the coop may not have many material things, but they have a sense of community with the earth. For instance, rather than growing different crops in designated sections, they grow them together to better increase their yield. “By growing the bananas in with the coffee, it actually helps put water back into the ground for the coffee,” Roselius said. “It was cool to see how that very much goes into their lifestyle as well.” Roselius said Fair Trade

36° / 25°

KEEPING PROMISES

THE DA’s YOUTUBE CHANNEL

INSIDE

Now that the SGA election is over, it’s time to focus to on key issues. OPINION PAGE 4

In addition to our print coverage, The Daily Athenaeum posts videos on YouTube at http://youtube.com/dailyathenaeum.

SNOW SHOWERS

News: 1, 2, 3 Opinion: 4 A&E: 6, 7, 8 Sports: 9, 10, 12 Campus Calendar: 5 Puzzles: 5 Classifieds: 11

Election sees increased turnout

CONTACT US Newsroom 304-293-5092 or DAnewsroom@mail.wvu.edu Advertising 304-293-4141 or DA-Ads@mail.wvu.edu Classifieds 304-293-4141 or DA-Classifieds@mail.wvu.edu Fax 304-293-6857

2.0 has a very intimate relationship with the farmers of La Hermandad. “We’re not just this other group in America – we’re actually part of the co-operative. They consider us family, and they want us to be a part of what they’re doing,” she said. Like the bananas and the coffee, when the members of La Hermandad and Fair Trade 2.0 work together, they can bear even more fruit. Tonight’s event will run from 6-8 p.m., and the event is not limited to University students. There is no cover charge but the suggested donation is $1 per cup of coffee.

ON THE INSIDE The West Virginia women’s basketball team will host top-ranked Baylor Saturday in the team’s final home game of the season. SPORTS PAGE 9

danewsroom@mail.wvu.edu

The 2013-14 West Virginia University Student Government Association election saw a more than 50 percent increase in votes cast this year, making it the highest voter turnout in recent years. According to an official summary report, of the 27,829 eligible voters, 4,289 WVU students took to the polls this week. Elections committee cochair Josh Harrison said he attributes the high turnout to the candidates campaign strategies and efforts by the election committee. “I like to think the increase in media coverage from all sides and what we’ve been able to do with the new machines and both campaigns. I’ve told both of them many times that they are the ones that help us get voters out,” he said. According to the report, Ryan Campione and Ben Seebaugh of The Revolution swept the election by receiving 2,543 votes, which comprised 60.23 percent of the total turnout. Christian Guy and Andrea Mucino received 1,679 votes – 39.77 percent of total turnout. In last year’s election, 9.6 percent of the student body voted in the SGA election. This year, the polls saw 15.41 percent of eligible voters turnout. Harrison said the increase excited him as he believes it shows an increased student involvement. “In one year, it’s a big jump,” he said. “It makes me very happy because last year I think people were just really apathetic, and that’s what really hurt turnout more than anything else. There was just a lot of apathy and just not a lot of interest from the student body in student government.” Harrison said he believes students should show interest in SGA, and he believes this year’s election turnout is a step in the right direction. “This is the same as politics in general. Regardless of if you care or not, politics are going to affect your life. They make policy; they set (an) agenda for the year, they decide what projects are going to happen in terms of student involvement,” he said. “It’s really important. If you care about being a student here you should care about these leaders.” President-elect Ryan Campione said he attributes the turnout to the simplicity of the new process and efforts put forth from both parties. “It’s spectacular. The very first thing I have to say is we didn’t do it alone. Both parties put in a phenomenal amount of effort, hard work and dedication throughout the whole campaign. Voter turnout has to be attributed to both of them,” he said. “The new process has been easily one of the most efficient, painfree, student-friendly service we’ve ever had.” Campione said he hopes the turnout for this year’s SGA election will spark students’ interest in

see vote on PAGE 2

ROCK CHALK ROAD TRIP The West Virginia men’s basketball team will travel to Lawrence, Kan., Saturday for a matchup against No. 5 Kansas. SPORTS PAGE 9


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