The Minaret 03/28/2013

MINARET UNIVERSITY OF TAMPA’S NEWS SOURCE SINCE 1933

THE Vo l u m e

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March,

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ut.minaret@gmail.com

Debate and Decisions Candidates Take Part in SG Forum, Polls Now Open

By JESSICA KEESEE & MIA GLATTER

Associate Editor and News Editor

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theminaretonline.com

[ ] [ ] “This is something I can promise you - dedication and leadership. For the organizations I have joined at UT, I have made sure I have become fully invested in them, before taking a leadership role in that organization.”

- Jake Loken

“We need to make a more stable constitution and we need to educate the student body in a way that doesn’t expect them to go out of their way and read the bylaws. ”

- P.K. Creedon

Donny Murray/The Minaret

Presidential candidates Jake Loken and P.K. Creedon talk about their qualifications and platforms during the Tuesday night debate.

Students gathered at Reeves Theater on Tuesday night to hear candidates speeches for the Student Government elections, which opened at 9PM the same night. Reeves was packed with students and SG Representatives in support of the candidates preparing to present their platforms.

Sophomore senator candidates

Robyn Hurrell and Molham “Mak” Krayem spoke first. Hurrell is one of the current freshman senators on SG and said, “I just want to make a better place for you guys and make sure all of your voices are heard.” Krayem said he’s running for senate because he is “passionate about making change” and plans on “taking change into his own

hands.”

Five candidates spoke for the campus wide senator positions: Katelyn Edwards, Jacqueline French, Bozhidar “Bobby” Mladenov, Sommer Sanfilippo and Nick Tran.

Edwards kept the crowd laughing throughout her speech, joking that being an Asian woman qualifies her for

the position.

French, who has been involved with SG for two years, created the campus Senate suggestion page and presents student suggestions to SG. With over 3,000 community service

See DEBATE, Page 5

UT Will Soon Be In Step With Dance Major

By YASAMAN SHERBAF

Asst. News Editor

The department of speech, theater and dance will offer a new dance major for the fall of 2013 in addition to the current dance minor.

Susan Taylor Lennon, professor of speech, theater and dance, said the dance major has been “a vision” for the department for a while; all it needed was a second fulltime professor of dance. That position was filled this year, allowing the department to move forward with the program.

“We want to prepare students for a wide variety of opportunities from opening their own dance studio to creating their own dance programs,” Lennon said. “I think it is going to be a wonderful opportunity for not just the dance community but for the general community and a lot of different departments on campus.”

Students are already looking forward to

In Other News...

the new major since its announcement.

“I am really excited that dance is becoming a major because dance is my passion and it’s something I want to pursue a career in,” said sophomore Ashley Carraway, a performing arts major.

Carraway will co-found a new dance fraternity, Nu Delta Alpha, on campus now that the dance major is being added.

“It’s all very exciting and it also means that UT is becoming a private school that can compete with major public universities,” Carraway said.

The department wants students to appreciate dance and all that is has to offer.

“Dance education is near and dear to my heart because I really think that dance can make a difference in peoples lives,” Lennon said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a professional dancer or how high your leg goes or how many turns you can do. That’s not what it’s about for me.

2 How to Protect Your Identity As A College Student

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It’s really about empowering people, giving them confidence, building certain physical strength and also about a real appreciation for other cultures through the teaching of dance in world cultures.”

There are no prerequisites to begin work in the applied dance major program.

There are no auditions to declare an applied dance major. However, a placement class must be taken when a student planning to study dance enters UT to determine the level of technique to begin technical classwork.

There’s an introductory class for students with little or no previous dance experience to get them on the path of normal dance coursework. If a student is an advanced dancer, they do not need to take a beginner dance class like ballet.

See DANCE, Page 4

Samantha Battersby/The Minaret

Dance students will be able to major in dance next fall when it has only been a minor in the past.

14 Twitter Account Allows UT Students to Confess Their Secret Crushes 18 Baseball Bashes For Six Straight Ws

News..................................2 Diversions.........................6 A+E....................................7 Opinion............................ 11

Sports..............................17

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NEWS + FEATURES

MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

MINARET

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Joshua Napier

joshua.napier@theminaretonline.com

MANAGING EDITOR Chelsea Daubar

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ASSOCIATE EDITOR Jessica Keesee

jessica.keesee@theminaretonline.com

NEWS + FEATURES Mia Glatter, Editor

mia.glatter@theminaretonline.com

Yasaman Sherbaf, Asst. Editor

yasaman.sherbaf@theminaretonline.com

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT Natalie Hicks, Editor

natalie.hicks@theminaretonline.com

Kelly St. Onge, Asst. Editor

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OPINION

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Annabella Palopoli, Asst. Editor

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SPORTS

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ONLINE

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By DOHA MADANI

How to Protect Your Identity As A College Student

Contributor

“I’ve never been to Florida! Who the hell is this?” declared Jason Bateman in his new comedy, “Identity Theft.”

The story revolves around a man, Bateman, who suddenly discovers a woman has been impersonating him in Florida – while he lives his ordinary life in Colorado. So what does he do? Go track her down to get his life back.

While the story ends up being a funny one, the question remains: Who are you?

Identity theft comes in many packages, but it is always the same at its core; someone is pretending to be you and destroying your good name, whether it’s to steal your credit score, or your money, or even just for kicks.

According the Consumer Sentinel Network, over 1.4 million complaints have been filed about identity theft or fraud. The largest group of complaints has been filed by victims who are between 20 and 30 years of age. On average, it takes about $500 and 30 hours to resolve a crime of identity fraud. So what can you do to prevent your identity from being stolen?

Safeguard Your Social “Never, ever give away your Social Security number,” declared Jane Castor, Tampa Bay Police Chief, to a group of students at the University of Tampa Student Government March General Assembly. “Even if you’re at the doctor, do not give anyone your social unless you have to.”

This is much easier said than done.

As a prospective college student, in order to even apply for admissions or scholarships, you are asked to offer up your Social Security number. In the eyes of the government, you are that number. If someone manages to get their hands on it, they can become you, and it is difficult to prove otherwise.

Last year, at the University of Tampa, the school discovered there had been a data breach – which meant that every student’s private information was accessible.

The school admitted to not being aware of how long the information was out in cyberspace, but followed up by offering all students a free oneyear service with a credit protection agency.

“I was mad that they let our socials out for a long period of time without noticing that it had happened,” said Chloe Messer, 21, junior at the University of Tampa. “They offered us the program for free. I signed up because I wanted to be aware of any charges made on my name.”

There are online services, such as Equifax.com, Lifelock.Com, TrustedID.com that will track your

ID Protection and Your Budget • Bank service: Price ranges from free to about $20 a year • Equifax.com: Starting rate is $17.95 a month • TrustedID.com: Starting rate is $10.42 a month • LifeLock.com: Starting rate is $10 a month

information and send you alerts to whenever your name has been used or a credit check has been run on your name. Most major banks, such as Bank of America or Suntrust, offer a service to their account holders to monitor identity fraud.

Don’t Be Afraid to Charge It!

Surprisingly, it might be in your best interest to use a credit card instead of your bank check card.

Many people love the convenience of online shopping, or booking hotels over the phone, but if you use your check card, you’re putting yourself at a greater risk.

“Always use a credit card for online or over the phone purchases,” advises Dawn Howell, personal banker at Suntrust Seven Oaks Branch. “You’re basically just giving up all your information to someone you don’t know. You can get your ! money back, but it takes a long time.

When you use a credit card, you can file a dispute against the charge so you don’t have to pay it.”

It’s still okay to use your debit card for all your day to day expenses, but filing a claim against a charge is much easier and quicker to dispute than a charge from your check card.

Whenever you use that handy debit card, you are immediately taking cash from your account.

A charge from a credit card company goes to a bill that you can pay later, and if you can prove you never charged it, then you don’t have to pay it.

“I’m pretty sure someone stole my debit card information from a scanner at a gas station,” said Connor Sequeria, 19, sophomore at the University of Tampa. “I noticed the next week there was a $100 charge spent at a store I didn’t go to.”

Sequeria immediately called his bank and had them shut off his card.

After that, he had to file a claim with his bank that his information had been stolen before his money could be credited back to him.

“I was pretty freaked out, but mostly mad,” said Sequeria. “It pisses me off that people steal.”

Technology: Best Friend or Worst Nightmare?

If you walk around campus, you’ll have a hard time not finding a student on their phone. Smartphone users have it all – mobile banking, credit card statements, even the ability to lock your car – right in the palm of their hands. Unfortunately, that leaves these users even more vulnerable than before.

“I don’t think they are being reckless,” said Howell. “I think they don’t know. We are an online society, and that makes it easy to commit fraud.”

Criminals can and will use phone dependency against you. Hackers can access unlocked phones in order to look at your app files, including the ones that keep your online banking information. Even worse, some people keep PIN numbers or their Social Security Number in their phones Notes app in order to remember.

One way to keep your phone safe is to keep your phone locked – or sign up for a program that allows you to wipe your phone after it has been stolen

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from a computer. “Find My iPhone” is one of many free services that can locate, lock or erase your phone’s data by using your Apple ID. “It is a pretty cool feature,” said Ghaydae Mansour, 20, sophomore at the University of Tampa. Mansour is an iPhone user, who checks in regularly with her bank’s mobile banking application. “It is really comforting to know that no one can just take your information if they have your phone.”

Open With Caution Beyond just hacking, criminals are trying to trick willing victims in to handing over their identities. There are a series of scams out there that send out fake messages about winning prizes, with a link attached. One of the more popular scams is a fake textmessage saying “You’ve won a Target gift card!”

“The texting scam is all about trying to steal your information,” said Chris Felts, Assets Protection Manager at SuperTarget New Tampa.

“They want you to click their link to claim your prize. Don’t do it. Delete it right away.”

Corporations, like Target, are not connected to these scams, and aren’t liable if you do end up giving away your information. As Assets Protection, Felts gets daily complaints about fraud from these messages.

“We can’t do anything. When you click the link, they ask you for all your information: your name, address, date of birth, and even your social,” said Felts. “It’s best to just delete it, do not even click the link.”

Constant Vigilance The best way to keep yourself protected, is to keep yourself watchful.

Always check your bank statements for unfamiliar charges. Do not give your information to anyone you cannot see, and never without a valid reason.

As a consumer of technology, your information is always going to be out there. It is inevitable, but completely preventable.

You don’t have to be a willing victim to identity theft, but if you do find yourself at risk, contact your bank and the police immediately. Or if you’re Jason Bateman, hunt that person down in Florida and ensue in some hilarious hijinks trying to turn them over to the police.

Doha Madani can be reached at Doha.Madani@spartans.ut.edu.

NEWS + FEATURES

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

Sigma Chi’s Derby Days Unites Greek Community

3

Friendly competition helps raise money for cancer research

By MIA GLATTER

News + Features Editor

For three days every year during the spring semester, the Greek community sororities engage in a fierce battle for bragging rights and the title of Derby Days champion. Derby Days is fraternity Sigma Chi’s Theme Week during which money is raised for their philanthropies Children’s Miracle Network and the Huntsman Cancer Institute.

According to the Sigma Chi Derby Days manual, “Derby Days affords each chapter the opportunity to bring honor and respect to Sigma Chi. Similarly, it is an excellent opportunity to promote brotherhood, the spirit of community service, and a positive Greek image.”

The objective of Derby Days is to win the most points through different competitions.

The main source of the competition is the hatstealing portion where brothers of Sigma Chi are assigned to a sorority and given plastic hats for girls of opposing sororities to try and steal throughout the three days.

The other competitions are the Derby Dash (another hat stealing event), a Volleyball competition and Dodgeball.

Peter Sanchez, a brother of Sigma Chi, said he believes that Derby Days is more than just a series of competition.

“Derby Days nationally is the biggest event on almost all college campuses,” Sanchez said. “In fact it is the reason why Sigma Chi raises more money than any other Fraternity when it comes to

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“It gives us a sense of unity and a solid sense of Greek life. And I mean who hates tackling someone for a hat?”

- Chardene Williams, AXO member

philanthropic work.”

He also emphasized the positive aspects that Derby Days has on the UT Greek community.

“Derby Days is an excellent opportunity to show the entire university the great work that Sigma Chi and the Greek community does when it comes to donating to great organizations.”

Sororities take Derby Day competitions very

seriously, especially the hat stealing.

Girls are known for creating cunning plans to swipe the hats from wherever they and the boys possessing them are being hidden.

Girls also escort the boys on their teams to and from classes, often guarding their dorms.

Chardene Williams is a sister of the Alpha Chi Omega sorority and she always anticipates the fierce competition of Derby Days.

“I think Derby days is really exciting because it’s when the Greek life actually gets together and is fighting for the same thing,” Williams said. “It gives us a sense of unity and a solid sense of Greek life. And I mean, who hates tackling someone for a hat?”

Brent Grunig, the coordinator of Fraternity and Sorority Life, said that although there is intense competition, much good comes out of the money raised.

“As with all fraternity and sorority theme week and philanthropy events, Derby Days brings awareness and education to the members of the Greek community,” Grunig said. “By engaging the Panhellenic organizations in friendly and spirited competition, our local Sigma Chi chapter raises funds and awareness for their cause. The sororities involved in the three-day event look forward to the spirited activity and friendly competition to support Sigma Chi and their philanthropic efforts.”

Mia Glatter can be reached at Mia.Glatter@ theminaretonline.com

From the March 18 to March 22 reports

I Finally Found You On March 18, a faculty member reported that an unknown person had aimed a laser pointer in his direction. The source of the laser was located (Morsani Hall) and a student was referred to Student Conduct.

I Swear Officer, They Blew Away On March 20, a vehicle had an immobilization device applied for excessive violations of university parking regulations and not being registered on campus as required.

Sharing Is Caring On March 21, a student was referred to conduct for giving her student ID to others to use in violation of policy.

On Tuesday, March 26, 2013, Student Government met in Reeves Theater.

Those Crazy College Kids On March 21, a Sodexo worker reported her car was hit while parked in Thomas garage first floor. However, the striking vehicle did not leave contact information as required by law.

To The Window, To The Wall On March 22, an officer making rounds discovered damage done to a wall near the stairway of a hall, Straz Hall.

Reports compiled by Yasi Sherbaf

Voting period online and at booths for SG new representative winners starts March 26 and ends March 31 SG new representative winners for next semester will be announced April 2 Senior class formal will be held Friday, April 19 from 8-12 at the Florida Aquarium. Food will be served and there will be a cash bar.

NEWS + FEATURES 4 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET Major to prepare dancers for various career paths in dance

From DANCE, Page 1 They can go straight into advanced ballet.

A few years ago, UT dance alumna Jennifer Rosoff opened her own company called The Creative Movement Company in the greater Tampa Bay area. She teaches to mixed availability students around the county and physically challenged students. She also does flash dances and has started some afterschool programs.

“She’s deeply engaged in dance education

and she would be one of the people we’d like to work with,” Lennon said.

The department tries to bring graduates who stay in the area into the program as guest speakers, performers or choreographers. The department wants to keep the network of the community and its alumni very strong.

“I hope that new students will be attracted because of this change and that it is a major that has a real focus for application in the community,” Lennon said.

Yasaman Sherbaf can be reached at Yasaman.Sherbaf@theminaretonline.com

Lacrosse Field To Be Dedicated Friday Samantha Battersby/The Minaret

Students of all levels of dance will be able to take classes and participate in dance major.

By Victoria Cirello

News Writer

The University of Tampa lacrosse team will play its first match on the Naimoli Family Athletic and Intramural Complex following its dedication on Friday.

The dedication will begin with a ribbon-cutting ceremony followed by a speech from President Vaughn and other community leaders.

Vince Naimoli, along with other special guests, will be honored with an on-field dedication.

The former owner of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays was the lead donor to the new field.

As a business leader, philanthropist, and entrepreneur, Naimoli has been honored with various awards from the bay area including the first Bridging the Bay Award in 1996. Naimoli was also honored with another dedication of a baseball complex from his alma mater, Farleigh Dickerson University.

The new field will support UTs intramural program and the men’s and women’s lacrosse teams and soccer teams.

The stadium seats almost 2, 000 spectators and the interior incorporate team meeting rooms, concessions, and media and guest boxes.

The front plaza features open green spaces for tailgating, 200 parking spaces and a ticket booth.

The synthetic playing surface of the 90,000 square-foot field allows students to use the field year-round. The field is lined to accommodate different sports and can be converted to three vertical fields for practices.

The complex also features a one-acre park to the west of the field.

The dedication will begin at 7:25 p.m. on Friday followed by UT’s men’s lacrosse game against Rollins College.

The game and the dedication will be free and open to the public.

Victoria Cirello can be reached at victoria.cirello@spartans.ut.edu

NEWS + FEATURES

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

Candidates talk of changes they hope to bring to SG if elected From DEBATE, Page 1

hours accumulated in the last five years, Mladenov said he is running for senate because he wants everyone to work together like a family.â&#x20AC;&#x153;In Student Government I feel like I can help a large, diverse group and that just makes me feel better,â&#x20AC;? Mladenov said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;It makes me want to live and feel like my life is worth it.â&#x20AC;?

Sommer Sanfilippo, who is currently a campus wide senator running for another term, is open â&#x20AC;&#x153;to listening to ideas from fellow classmates.â&#x20AC;?

Tran said he is running for senate â&#x20AC;&#x153;to be an example.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;I want to be inspiration to you guys,â&#x20AC;? Tran said.

Junior senator candidate Michael Catipovic and senior senator candidate Matthew Luber were not in attendance.

Eve Haydt, the only candidate running for speaker of the assembly, â&#x20AC;&#x153;want[s] to make the best of UT.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t waste any time just doing the best that we can and implementing the best plans that we can,â&#x20AC;? Haydt said.

Vice Presidential candidates spoke next. Chanel Vanzant, paired with presidential running mate Patrick â&#x20AC;&#x153;PKâ&#x20AC;? Creedon, said their platform â&#x20AC;&#x153;is one that is based off of very realistic ideas and honesty at UT.â&#x20AC;? â&#x20AC;&#x153;We want to put the student back in student body,â&#x20AC;? Vanzant

said.

Trevor Hyssong, paired with presidential running mate Jacob â&#x20AC;&#x153;Jakeâ&#x20AC;? Loken, has made a commitment to be â&#x20AC;&#x153;the catalyst for changeâ&#x20AC;? for student organizations. â&#x20AC;&#x153;True Leadership is defined when you put the importance of others before yourself,â&#x20AC;? Hyssong said. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We need Student Government leaders that are committed to this principle of putting others success above personal gain. We need student leaders whose primary concern is supporting fellow Spartans, not enhancing their own resumes.â&#x20AC;?

The presidential candidates spoke next before a debate moderated by current Speaker of the Assembly Dylan Sellberg Creedon spoke of studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; level of caring in his speech. â&#x20AC;&#x153;If Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;m elected president, this isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t my student body. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s ours,â&#x20AC;? he said.

Creedon discussed change, especially in students not caring and participating enough in SG. He promised to work to re-brand SG with the goal of SG representatives wanting to go to meetings, not because they have to.

Loken said that what he loves most about UT is the diversity on campus. He believes that he can be a â&#x20AC;&#x153;diverse and understand leaderâ&#x20AC;? due to his immersion in many different cultures through much

traveling in a military family.

Loken, a current campus-wide Senator and former Sophomore Senator, promised â&#x20AC;&#x153;dedication and leadershipâ&#x20AC;? if elected. Loken said that he is â&#x20AC;&#x153;Fully invested in seeking this position in order to better the schoolâ&#x20AC;? and serve the student body.

Voting will take place between March 26-31 and winners will be announced on April 2.

Jessica Keesee can be reached at Jessica.Keesee@theminaretonline. com Mia Glatter can be reached at Mia.Glatter@theminaretonline.com

5

Donny Murray/The Minaret From Left to Right: Nick Tran, Molham Krayem, Jackie French, Eve Haydt, Katelyn Edwards, Robyn Hurrell, Bobby Mladenov, Sommer Sanfilippo are all running for Student Government Senate Positions, except for Haydt, running for speaker of the house.

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Request more information at www.ut.edu/gradinfo, or to make an appointment, visit www.ut.edu/gradvisit.

6 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

Diversions

Sudoku

The Weekend Update DinoQuest2 March 28

Lowry Park Zoo 10 a.m.

$4 plus regular park admission during park hours, $9.95 for after-hours Dino Night

Hippolytus by Euripedes March 28 - 30 Falk Theatre

8 p.m. (Fri. and Sat.), 2 p.m. (Sun.)

$15 general admission, $10 non-UT students and seniors, free for UT students, faculty and staff

When The World Was Green (A Chef’s Fable) March 28

American Stage Theatre Company at Raymond James Stadium

$39 Tues. - Thurs., $49 Fri. - Sat., $20 student advance, $10 student rush

PrintableSudokuPuzzles.net

Picture

WEEK of the

Photo by Samantha Battersby/The Minaret Men’s lacrosse prevails in the 13-9 win against MIT on March 26 at Pepin Stadium.

Tony Roberts March 29

Improv Comedy Theater Ybor City 8 p.m. $18

Art on the Water March 30

Jackson’s Bistro Bar and Sushi 11 a.m.

Free

Tampa Bay Rays (Spring Training) Vs. Tigers March 30

Tropicana Field 1:00 p.m.

$10 - $27

The Midtown Men March 30

Ruth Eckerd Hall 2 p.m.

$35 - $45

Holi - Festival of Colors March 30

UT Intermural Fields 4 - 6 p.m.

Free

Jerry Seinfeld March 30

Carol Morsani Hall at David A. Straz Jr. Straz Center for the Performing Arts 7 p.m.

$49 - $79

Arts + Entertainment

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

7

Datz Delicious to take on such a large project, they needed the space. Hence the birth of Dough.

Being from Oklahoma, I am all “There won’t be a set menu, but about comfort food. Give me some there will be everything from French fried okra and grits, and I will be set for style petit fours, opera cakes... And life. When I first ate at Datz with a few we’re having a lot of fun experimenting of my friends, I expected to walk into with doughnuts,” Suzanne said. a trendy restaurant with sleek black As opposed to Datz, which is a menus and gleaming candles. What sit down restaurant, Dough will use I discovered instead was a whimsical the grab-and-go process. It will be a gastropub that turns southern food one-stop shop for breakfast, desserts, gourmet. pastries, coffee and lunch. It will start The menu boasts a wide variety of off with a smaller selection of pastries classic southern meals like Waffles n’ and doughnuts then steadily introduce Tweet (chicken and waffles), Barry more items to the menu. I am most C’s Stuffed Meatloaf and Carolina On excited for the decadent Nutella Latté.

My Mind (pulled pork sandwiches).

Dough will also sell gourmet Appetizers like the Mac n’ Cheese chocolates hand-painted by Tampa Bites and Pretzel Bites are also popular chocolatier William Dean.

His picks. chocolates have been featured in The Behind the restaurant seating is even Hunger Games, and Whoopi Goldberg a full beer tap that rotates between at is one of his biggest customers. His least 30 different American craft brews colorful sweets come in all flavors at a time. including Apple Pie, Key Lime, While Datz has brought much success Lavender, Mandarin Balsamic, PB & J, to owners Roger and Suzanne Perry as Tropical Caramel, Mexican Mango and well as provided a local hotspot for much more.

Tampa Bay foodies, the restaurant has But chocolate is not enough. Some taken on a major business expansion of the Datz staff has recently begun plan. They are set to open Datz’s to learn how to make gelato, and younger sister, Dough, on April 8 and they are experimenting with all sorts have a grand opening on April 21. of interesting flavors like Red Bull “This was a decision thoroughly Raspberry Sorbet and Spicy Peanut based on the need for parking,” Butter. Suzanne and Roger bring in Suzanne said. “We’ve had a problem experts to make sure their staff is top accommodating our guests since we notch in every department, be it beer, opened.” wine, food or desserts.

Datz bought Kalupa’s Bakery and “Something that sets Datz apart Deli right next door to acquire its is that Suzanne and Roger are really parking spots, but they decided to use serious about producing an excellent the building as an extension to Datz. product,” said Kate Perry, marketing They spend about $15,000 a month on manager. “They go the extra mile to bread alone, so why not begin to bake train the staff. That’s not something their own bread in-house? But in order you see at every restaurant.”

The staff is not the only one that gets to learn from the pros. Datz hosts a number of food and alcohol events each month. Datz Beer Guy Kevin Reinhardt teaches classes on how to concoct homemade beer. He is even teaching a class on how to make beer cocktails on April 23. Their website updates every month with a new list of classes.

Since Datz and Dough have grown so much in popularity (Datz is currently the #2 Tampa restaurant on Urban Spoon, and Dough already Annabella Palopoli/The Minaret has about 2,500 likes on

By NATALIE HICKS

Arts + Entertainment Editor

Top Lef Photo: Samantha Battersby/The Minaret; All Photos on Right: Courtesy of Kate Perry and Datz

Datz is one of the most popular restaurants in Tampa featuring comfort food fine dining. The business will expand with a bakery next door called Dough which will feature breakfast, pastry and desserts. Dough will open on April 8, and there will be a grand opening on April 21.

Facebook), it only made sense to take under a catering division appropriately titled Dazzle. Dazzle is still fairly new since it only began in early February, but Suzanne and Kate expressed their enthusiasm toward their new business endeavor.

With the help of Dough and Dazzle, Datz is certainly a force to be reckoned with. Their fan base will continue to grow on their social media sites, and with the hype about Dough, I would not be surprised if the line went out

the door during the first week. When I asked Kate to describe Datz in three words, she simply responded, “quirky, comfortable and refined.” The restaurant is certainly those things and so much more.

Datz is located at 2616 South MacDill Avenue, Tampa, FL 33629. It is open Mon. - Thurs. 7 a.m. - 10 p.m.; Fri. 7 a.m. - 11 p.m.; Sat. 8:30 a.m. - 11 p.m.; and Sun. 8:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Natalie Hicks can be reached at natalie.hicks@theminaretonline.com.

8

MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

EDM Culture Alive and Well at Ultra

By JACKIE BRAJE

Arts + Entertainment Writer

Kandi Kids, or Candy Ravers, can be found at almost any rave. Pictures of these ravers at Ultra 2013 show them adorned in their fishnets, furry boots, multi colored tutus, beaded bracelets and candy necklaces draped around their glittery necks.

As odd as it may seem, this bizarre fashion is truly a defining factor of the rave or EDM (electronic dance music) culture.

“There was a lot of skimpy clothing, neon colors and I went on St. Patty’s Day so there were a lot of green outfits too,” sophomore Gaby Dabah said.

Dabah attended the first weekend of the Ultra Music Festival. “Girls wore mostly booty shorts with crop tops and

comfortable shoes for all the dancing going on all day.”

Sophomore film major Mollie Putnam, who also attended this year’s festival, noticed similar trends.

“There were endless amounts of neon, headbands, high-waisted shorts, fishnets and furry boots as an extreme,” Putnam said. “Camelbaks and fanny packs certainly have their place at music festivals, too.”

But instead of asking, “Where’s my clothing?” people asked, “Where is Molly?”

Countless stories have been collected of people taking various drugs and doing very odd things at Ultra in the past. One of the most popular stories is of the girl who got a tad bit frisky with a tree during last year’s festival--she took the term “tree hugger” to the next highest

echelon. This year appeared to be just as wild as last year.

“My friend and I saw a man passed out on the ground who was blue, so that was frightening,” Dabah said. “There were also entertaining characters, like aliens walking around on stilts.” Perhaps “Fear and Loathing in Miami” would have been a more fitting title for the festival.

Amidst the ground-shattering bass drops, flashing lights, colorful clothing and stories catalyzed by drug use, it seems that the Ultra Music Festival had a major success for its 15th year in a row.

Where is Molly, you ask? Apparently in South Beach, Miami: home of the most colorful festival on earth.

Jackie Braje can be reached at jacquelyn.braje@spartans.ut.edu.

Top Left and Right: ULTRA 2012/YouTube.com; Shorts: Courtesy of Gabriella Guariniello/Facebook.com

Many UT students make the trek to Miami every year for the ULTRA Music Festival. While some festivals are known for their hippy fashion, Ultra is all about bright colors and as little clothing as possible. Fanny packs are welcome, too.

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

9

5K Runs More Than Just Physical Training

By SAMANTHA DELLE Arts + Entertainment Writer

5K runs are becoming trendy. They are no longer simply about physical training in order to complete 3.1 miles. These days, 5K runs incorporate creative themes and challenges that

make the experience seemingly more fun and memorable. Whereas several years ago the vision of a 5K would include just lacing up a pair of sneakers and following a course on the pavement, today’s 5Ks include innovative elements such as color packets, mud, obstacles and even zombies.

One may only speculate as to the reason behind the shift to more imaginative themes in 5K races. Most likely, it enhances the experience. It makes the event appealing for those not normally interested in running or even those typically uninterested in exercise. Interestingly, some particularly competitive races with obstacles today have become more about the bragging rights associated with finishing the event rather than the actual finishing time.

The University of Tampa hosts an annual 5K race, the Spartan Challenge 5K. It involves a beautiful 3.1-mile run around campus complete with tires to run through, hay bales to hurdle over and cargo nets to crawl beneath. The race is hosted by both the University’s Tampa Bay Alumni Chapter and the cross country team.

This year, it was held in the fall semester on Oct. 27.

Some other cool races to check out include:

Color Me Rad/Facebook.com

A girl smiles in gratitude after she finishes the Color Me Rad race in Las Vegas earlier this year.

Color Me Rad

Start the race in a white

T-shirt and you will be bombarded with splashes of blue, green, pink, purple and yellow by the time you reach the finish line. Not to worry, though. The color is merely colored corn starch and is advertised by the Color Me Rad website as being “non-toxic” and “non-rash inducing.” Registration is currently $45 for the upcoming Orlando race on April 13 and $40 for the upcoming Tampa race on May 25. The price includes a race T-shirt, sunglasses, a race bib, a donation to a local charity, swag from sponsors and a color bomb for the finale color throw. The website says it will be “the best time you’ll have all year” and “it’ll brighten your day literally and figuratively.” For more information, visit www.colormeradcom.

Warrior Dash

This intense course includes obstacles with names such as warrior roast, cliff hanger, trenches, great warrior wall, hard rain, petrifying plunge, road rage, storming Normandy and vicious valley. The 2013 date for Florida has passed, but the registration for the 2014 Florida event on Feb. 1 is $40.

Registration includes a fuzzy warrior helmet, race T-shirt, finisher medal, live music, post-race water, race bib and one complimentary beer (provided that you are of legal age). The Warrior Dash supports St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and offers incentive prizes when specific fundraising goals are met.

For more information and the complete list of the remaining 2013 race dates and locations, visit www.warriordash.com.

Spartan Race

The Spartan Race is a series of obstacle course races offered in 5K to marathon distances. The race

travels to many locations nationally and internationally with locations in Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and Mexico. The race website states that there are no course maps offered and, “Each Spartan Race strives to surprise the athlete. Preparation for the unknown is a must.” The pre-registration is not yet open for the Jan. 11, 2014 race in Orlando, and the registration fee is not yet set. However, the registration includes a finisher’s medal and a race Tshirt. For more race dates and locations offered as well as additional information, visit www.spartanrace.com.

Run For Your Lives

This apocalyptic race is perfect for fans of “The Walking Dead,” as it boasts a “zombie infested 5K obstacle course.”

Race participants are given a belt with flags representing individual health.

In order to remain alive, you must cross the finish line with at least one remaining flag. Additional health packs with flags are located on the course. As long as you finish, you will receive a medal “designating your survival, dead or alive.” Though there is a clear start and finish line, the course length is up to the participant. If you happen to make a few wrong turns, your 5K could become a 10K. Registration price depends on the popularity of the event, so sign up quickly for a better deal. The Southern Florida race, located in Hialeah, is April 27, and the Central Florida race, located in Clermont, is Nov. 16. Registration includes a performance T-shirt, race bib, medal signifying survival, admittance to the Apocalypse Party and one free beer. For more information, visit www. runforyourlives.com.

Samantha Delle can be reached at samanthadelle@aol.com.

Spartan Scarlets Prepare for First National Competition

By NATALIE HICKS

Arts + Entertainment Editor

The Spartan Scarlets are competing at the National Dance Alliance Competition, and the team could not be more ecstatic.

This will be the Scarlets’ first time competing at a national level let alone one of the top two collegiate dance competitions in the nation. In the past, they have only competed at some smaller competitions.

“We’ve been practicing since we got back from winter break at our weekly rehearsals,” Danielle Forand said, a Scarlet coach and UT graduate.

“We have rehearsals Monday and

Thursday nights, but we also expect the girls to do four-hour workouts to keep up their strength,” coach and UT graduate, Nicole Mason, said.

The competition, which takes place in Daytona, Fla., will be April 10 - 14.

Division II colleges from across the country will perform their routines in hopes of making it to finals, but the Scarlets feel confident that they have what it takes to win.

“I’m really excited because I’ve been going here for four years so this is my first time going to a huge competition,” senior and team captain Jordan Maltese said. “We’re a strong group of girls, and we have what it takes. Hopefully we come

out on top.”

Forand and Mason sent in a video qualifier last semester, and they soon received news that they could compete.

The two coaches, with the help of Maltese, quickly began choreographing a routine that would wow the crowd at Nationals.

The team mostly consists of new dancers, because many of the girls graduated last spring. Only three remain from the previous school year. However, this year’s freshman class proved to hold a lot of talent.

“We’re all a little nervous, but I’m excited to prove that we should be there,” freshman Danielle Eves said.

Student Government helped with

some of the funding, but the Scarlets also conducted their own fundraisers. After a car wash or two, they managed to gather $5,000.

“I’m a little jealous that they get to dance on stage and I never got to, but it’s an honor just to be a part of it all,” Forand said.

The Spartan Scarlets are hosting a send-off event on Monday, April 8 at the Bob Martinez Sports Center at 8:30 p.m.

Anyone and everyone is invited to watch a sneak peak of their competition routine and wish the girls good luck before they head to Daytona.

Natalie Hicks can be reached at natalie. hicks@theminaretonline.com.

Left to right: Samantha Battersby/The Minaret; Photo Courtesy of the Spartan Scarlets; Samantha Battersby/The Minaret

The Spartan Scarlets dance team is going to the National Dance Alliance Competition for the first time this year on April 10. They are competing against other Division II schools similar to UT, but they hope they come out on top.

10 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT

No Letdown with The Strokes’ ‘Comedown Machine’

By JESSICA KEESEE Associate Editor

Don’t expect another Is This It with the Strokes’ new album. In fact, if you’re expecting that, you best avoid Comedown Machine, the band’s highly anticipated fifth and final album with record label RCA. It’s a Strokes’ sound we haven’t heard before. Reviews have been highly critical of the switch up in sound, now with more ‘80s melodies, a load of synth and a new falsetto from frontman Julian Casablancas.

I admit, I miss Casablancas’ classic croon on a lot of tracks like “Tap Out” and “80s Comedown Machine.” He’s replaced it mostly with falsetto, and, although a bit jarring at times, it works with the band’s move towards more electronic sounds and synthy ‘80s bliss, similar to Casablancas’ solo venture, Phrazes for the Young. The nostalgic sound carried over to the band’s fourth album Angles and now Comedown Machine.

On the new LP, upbeat melodies like that of Is This It’s “Someday” haven’t disappeared, making Comedown Machine full of “music we can dance to” (a reference to Casablancas’ swoon in “I’ll Try Anything Once,” of course).

As futuristic as “Partners in Crime” is, one of the album’s highlights, it gives way to the sweet staccato melodies of “Someday” from guitarists Nick Valensi and Albert Hammond Jr. The bridge even has a similar beat to “Last Nite” from Is This It, as well as fiery drum beats by Fabrizio Moretti.

“Partners in Crime,” “Welcome to Japan” and “All the Time” are Comedown Machine’s standouts.

“All the Time” is the first single off the album and a return to form for the band while “Welcome to Japan” uses layered vocals like several other tracks on Comedown Machine. The

quick paced beat of the chorus and lyrics like: “Come here and go get with me/ I wanna see you Wednesday/ Come on, come on, come over,” are infectiously catchy.

The lyric “What kind of asshole drives a Lotus?” is puzzling, however, and probably the most memorable part of “Welcome to Japan.” I still can’t tell whether that’s a good or bad thing.

The sexy croon returns on the electro and mellow ballad “Chances.” The song starts up with keyboard-like guitar notes and Casablancas singing, “I waited for

ya/ I waited for ya/ I waited on ya but now I don’t” in his new favorite falsetto before switching back to classic croon.

Similar to “Glass,” an electro ballad on Casablancas’ solo effort, “Chances” is a stretch from the upbeat rock hits of yesteryear.

“50/50” starts out with a Black Keys’esque guitar solo and steady rising drum beat. The chorus is so punk rock that you almost forget you’re listening to The Strokes and confuse Casablancas’ belting with that of Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day. It’s the perfect concert

anthem that will feed energy into a packed arena.

“Tap Out” is a grower. Upon first listen, Casablancas’ falsetto doesn’t sit too well. This mellower take by The Strokes, along with other tracks like “80s Comedown Machine” and “Call It Fate, Call It Karma,” is a lot to get down on first listen. These songs are a far cry from the quick paced, guitar solo laden, garage rock hits like “Last Nite” (Is This It), “Reptilia” (Room on Fire) and “Juicebox” (First Impressions of Earth).

After a few listens, however, they aren’t so bad. “Call It Fate, Call It Karma” is highly reminiscent of Moretti’s side project, Brazilian American band Little Joy, with its muffled vocals and laid back indie island style.

Music reviewers and fans may not have taken so well to Comedown Machine but if we let Is This It stay in 2001, Comedown Machine is a true gem, showing growth and change. Radiohead constantly reinvents its sound for every album. Spoon does it too, and so does Coldplay. Who says The Strokes can’t?

Is This It will always be regarded as one of the best albums of the 2000s (Rolling Stone ranked it number two in their top 100 albums of the 2000’s, second to Radiohead’s Kid A). But that album came out almost 12 years ago.

Times have changed.

Comedown Machine may not be the standout that Is This It was. It’s not an album that you instantly fall in love with after listening. It takes a few listens, but those listens reveal a pretty great collection of songs.

Now that The Strokes have finished their last album with RCA, who’s to say what will come. If it’s anything like Comedown, then there’s a lot to look forward to.

Jessica Keesee can be reached at jessica.keesee@theminaretonline.com.

‘What You Don’t See’ Radiates Pop-Punk Bliss

By JORDAN WALSH

Arts + Entertainment Writer

As the year progresses and the days get warmer, music lovers begin to collect some new tunes that will keep them occupied throughout the summer months. It takes a little something extra to make a summer album special.

It has to be fast paced, easy to sing along to, and fit to play during days at the beach and long drives. Taking Back Sunday’s Tell All Your Friends set the bar pretty high for the perfect summer album nearly 10 years ago.

Although The Story So Far’s latest album release What You Don’t See doesn’t quite reach that bar, it sure does come close. What You Don’t See is a cathartic, hard-hitting, full-throttle slice of pop-punk that will surely find its way on car stereos everywhere come June.

Musically, this is a pretty straightforward pop-punk album.

However, there’s a new level of confidence that seems to push this band to the next level. “The Glass” and “Right Here” emanate urgency from start to finish while “Empty Space” is a little more patient, growing with each chorus.

Of course, there’s nothing too out of the ordinary here, but the band has certainly made strides to enhance the brand of pop-punk that they introduced

with 2011’s Under Soil and Dirt.

While there are certainly no clunkers to be found on this record, some songs do tend to stand out more than others.

The heart and soul of What You Don’t See is most characterized by the album’s bookend songs and the three center tracks I mentioned earlier. Songs like “Stifled” and “Bad Luck” tend to get lost in the mix.

This is not to say that What You Don’t See is generic. Not in the slightest. In fact, The Story So Far’s lyrics are far better than most others in the genre. Even though they do stick to typical subject matters of relationship problems and the like, there is a more personal, introspective vibe that sets What You Don’t See above Under Soil and Dirt.

“Can’t sever the ties I made/ the knots are strong/ the framework’s laid/ no matter how many things I save/ the tangible will always be what I crave” croons singer Parker Cannon in one of the best vocal performances of the band’s career. With this sophomore full-length album, it seems obvious that The Story So Far are not messing around. From opener “Things I Can’t Change” until the very end, What You Don’t See never slows down. There are no acoustic songs, just 30 minutes of well executed pop-punk anthems.

Jordan Walsh can be reached at jordan.walsh@spartans.ut.edu.

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

Opinion

11

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Gone, Legacy Remains

By ALEX CARABALLO Opinion Columnist

The president of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez, succumbed to his yearlong battle with cancer at the age of 58 on March 5, 2013. In the history of South America, there have been a plethora of polarizing figures that have led their respective countries, none more so than Chavez. From the beginning of his tenure as president of Venezuela in 1998, he was considered a controversial figure by the global community. He was beloved by the working poor for his antipoverty programs and reviled by most western leaders for his anti-capitalist views.

For many, the view of Chavez is one of an autocratic socialist who consolidated power and redistributed the wealth in Venezuela. This view, however, is one that is entirely far from the truth.

Despite his almost solidly socialist label, Chavez was a politically complex man that won the affection of many Venezuelans for his help for the poor.

After Chavez was first elected to office in 1998, he set out to establish social welfare program such as his first signature program, Plan Bolívar 2000.

The program set aside $113 million for the Venezuelan military to go out into the streets and repair roads. The ultimate goal for the program was to build up a social welfare system that would deter poverty and move the country forward.

Despite the reputation of being a polemicist, Chavez sought to quickly build relations with many foreign countries within his first year of office. During this time, Chavez reached out to President Clinton, the International Monetary Fund and the New York Stock Exchange to help further establish trade ties and bring investors to Venezuela. Chavez was ever the opportunist to broaden his image. Later during his presidency, Chavez sought to aid the poor in other countries by offering

cheap heating oil to poor residents of both the United States and Europe.

Much of the negative view of Chavez in the United States came from Chavez’s public criticisms of America. Throughout his tenure as president, Chavez was an outspoken critic of American foreign policy, going so far as to show pictures of Afghan children killed by an American bomb on his weekly television show stating, “They are not to blame for the terrorism of Osama Bin Laden or anyone else.” This harsh criticism of American policy came at a time when President Bush publicly stated after the 9/11 attacks, “Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists.” It is not unwarranted that these criticisms made Chavez an unpopular figure in American politics.

Those criticisms cemented a starkly negative view of Chavez in the American psyche. They did not, however, harm his image at all in Venezuela. Chavez was a populist that effectively used the public in garnering popular support for many of his initiatives. The main goal for the Chavez administration was to reduce income inequality through the use of redistribution. One popular method of doing this was using government-owned Mercals which sold food significantly lower than the market price and utilized locally owned farm produce rather than international produce. While I personally believe that these forms of subsidies on the whole are ineffective, many of the poor were provided with cheap subsidized food, allowing many once hungry people to be able to afford to eat a good day’s meal.

Not all of his programs were successes as price rationing on food to stem inflation led to widespread food shortages.

That was the key towards Chavez’s political power, he knew how to placate the underclass and utilize them for political support. Despite an extremely negative international image, Chavez

was re-elected three separate times by large margins. His second reelection was pivotal as it hinged on a referendum to change the Venezuelan constitution to allow politicians to run for more than three

that the country will take. The Venezuelan constitution requires that a presidential vacancy be filled by an election within 30 days of the president’s death rather than a succession by the vice president.

Maduro was favored by Chavez to succeed him and is currently the PSUV (United Socialist Party of Venezuela) nominee in the upcoming election.

Maduro is a natural continuation of the Chavez legacy, both in terms of policy and political leadership. He favors much of the same redistributionist measures that were key policies in the Chavez administration and has been running on the legacy of Chavez himself during this campaign.

Time will be the ultimate judge on the legacy of Chavez as it will allow for a more objective viewpoint. I feel that Chavez did a great deal in reducing poverty and Flickr.com/ ¡Que comunismo! helping the least fortunate Chavez was considered a controversial figure by the global community. but his polemic style and terms. Over this time, Chavez oversaw a criticisms of the west led to his relatively large reduction in wealth inequality as negative image in the media. There are Venezuela’s Gini Index (standard measure plenty of criticisms to be made of Chavez; of wealth inequality) went from a very his administration was partially corrupt, high rating of 48.8 in 1996 to 39.02 in he led autocratically and he was entirely 2011. According to the United Nations, the too populist to effectively run a country percentage of people below the national on consensus. No politician is without poverty line decreased from 48.1 percent his flaws and Chavez certainly had many. in 2002 to 28 percent in 2008. If Chavez’s It is now up to the Venezuelan people on success is measured in alleviating poverty, how to best carry on the Chavez legacy, then he was extremely effective at doing so. either to continue down the same path Since Chavez’s death, Vice President by continuing PSUV leadership or by Nicolas Maduro has been sworn in changing course towards different policies. . as interim president, but it will be the Alex Caraballo can be reached electorate that ultimately decides the course at alex.caraballo@spartans.ut.edu

CNN Reporters Sympathize with Rapists in Steubenville Case

By BRITTNEY COX Opinion Writer

On Sunday, March 17 an Ohio judge found two Steubenville High School students guilty of raping a fellow student, 16-year-old Jane Doe. The story should end there, with two rapists being found guilty in a court of law and sentenced to time that they lawfully deserve.

However, the story became tainted and twisted with CNN’s news broadcast on the topic. CNN reporter Poppy Harlow explained how “incredibly difficult” it was to watch “these two young men –who had such promising futures, star football players, very good students –literally watched as they believed their life fell apart.” She began to pity the criminals and make them out to be the victims of this whole ordeal. Then, CNN’s legal contributor Paul Callan remarked,“Lives are

destroyed...but in terms of what happens now, the most severe thing with these young men is being labeled as registered sex offenders. That label is now placed on them by Ohio law.” And it wasn’t the life of the victim, it was lives of the rapists.

The entire news report revolved solely

around the boys, making it seem like their victim is the reason that their “bright futures” were taken away. In reality, it was completely their fault. They took advantage of a defenseless, unconscious girl, as well as filmed and posted a 12 minute video about what they were doing.

The video, which was leaked by Internet activist group Anonymous, shows the boys making jokes about the events that were later brought up in court. This evidence was enough to condemn them. Even so, she was made out to be the one that deserved punishment because she was drinking underage. But her actions didn’t invite them to harass or take advantage of her. Something is very wrong with our society when major newscasters are defending rapists.

When it comes to CNN’s news broadcast, they were right about one thing: someone’s life was ruined.

But it wasn’t the rapists’. It was the life of 16-year-old Jane Doe. On top of already being traumatized from what has happened to her, she has to be afraid of the newscasters responsible with telling the story of her justice telling the world that she ruined two others’ lives.

The CNN broadcasters were not the only one sympathising with the rapist. The case took to Twitter instantly. The tweets were things like, “Disgusting outcome on #Steubenville

UltraViolet/Facebook.com

trial. [Rember] kids, if you’re drunk/slutty at a party, and embarrassed later, just say you got raped!” “So you got drunk at a party and two people take advantage of you, that’s not rape you’re just a loose drunk slut #BiasedResults #Steubenville,” and “Steubenville: Guilty. I feel bad for the two young guys, Mays and Richmond, they did what most people in their situation would have done.” Getting angry at CNN is easy to do, but their news report was not far from what the a lot of the public was thinking. Why is that? Why is the default for all of these individuals that she was in the wrong? What has society taught us that these people feel bad for the rapists?

Society tells women that it’s their fault they were raped because of what they were wearing, how they were carrying themselves, how they looked at a guy or how much they drank. Jane Doe was told she deserved it because that’s what any boy would do in that situation.

She is told that her actions said “yes.”

As a community, people need to start standing up to this. Society has to start realizing that “no” means “no,” and that unless the word “yes” is said, it is a “no.”

Most importantly, we have to stop blaming the victim instead of the rapist. Sex is a privilege, not an obligation. The only good kind is when there is consent. If both parties are game, go ahead. If someone says no, then just stop. It’s that simple.

Brittney Cox can be reached at brittney.cox@spartans.ut.edu

12 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

OPINION

Congress, Obama to Blame for Sequestration Cuts

By LAUREN RICHEY Opinion Columnist

A Head Start Program in Fayetteville, Ark. recently announced they will have to close the children’s daycare center 13 days earlier than expected due to budget cuts, according to Huffingtonpost.com. The program is required to cut $150,000 from its operating budget by the end of September, which in turn puts over 300 children without a daycare for two weeks. Why is there the need to cut this kind of money from a program designed to benefit learning and safety for children? These kinds of budget cuts are spreading rapidly throughout the nation, ranging from a reduction of scholarships given to the children of Iraq and Afghanistan War veterans, to the closure of 149 air-traffic control towers for smaller airports, according to Forbes. It’s all due to the Sequestration Act that was initiated March 1. The act was originally initiated by Congress to break the debt stalemate in 2011, and although there’s a fine line of who’s to blame that it passed -- the president or Congress -- it turns out, it’s both.

Simply put, sequestration is a procedure dealing with the reduction of the federal government’s budget deficit, according to Auburn University’s “Glossary of Political Economy Terms.” Congress lays down an annual Budget Resolution, in order to limit government spending.

If the bills Congress passed that year exceed this limit, and if Congress cannot agree on a way to cut back the total, then sequestration takes place. Sequestration is an automatic spending cut when the government finds itself spending too much.

It is supposed to be for the benefit of the country and to keep Congress in check. So then why is everyone getting so upset about it? In theory, this is supposed to cut every agency an equal percentage of money. Congress, however, has decided to exempt certain programs like Social Security, which has caused some serious damage to the budget cuts for the agencies left, according to Auburn’s Glossary.

John Greene, author of The New York Times best-selling book “The Fault in Our Stars,” gives a little perspective. He says that when this sequestration was created, it was essentially a “ticking time-bomb,”

originally proposed by President Obama. When the time came for the sequestration to take place, there would be automatic cuts of $1.2 trillion over the course of 10 years. Yet again, here is where Congress made a stupid mistake. Half of these cuts were going to be placed on defense and half to other spending, but almost no cuts

The larger, (and some would say more important) mandatory spending programs are exempt from these budget cuts: Medicaid, VA Pension, Social Security, Civil Service Retirement and all of the programs administered by the department of Veterans Affairs, according to Richard Habiger from The Business Journal.

this time, President Obama was madly campaigning that Republicans were to blame for all budget cuts, and was calling for a compromise on their part.

However, Obama was not willing to compromise himself, and then began suggesting sequestration. This was all a political move. He knew that the Republicans would not be able

Children’s Bureau Centennial/Flickr.com

Budgets for many programs like Head Start, an early-learning children’s program, are being cut due to the Sequestration Act.

were made to the mandatory spending programs that were actually the center of the long-term fiscal problem in the first place. Greene gives the example, “It’s like you had a doctor tell you

[

So while these programs still continue to rake in money, random things like White House tours, Marine Air Shows and even NASA’s educational and public outreach programs

to accept this sequester proposal after the tax raises that they had just enacted, and in turn he would then win their submission. This proposal was nothing but a scare tactic, put in

Sequestration is wreaking havoc all across the country.

Congress is to blame for dividing these budget cuts unequally; Obama is to blame for proposing this idea in the first place.

that you had a slow-growing tumor in your fingernail, and you responded by saying quick! Remove my gallbladder!”

Now we see the problem, and the reason for outrage all over the U.S.

are

being virtually eliminated.

USA Today reported that the GOPled House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform released a video on March 20, criticizing the White House cancellation of tours because of the sequester, with the title, “No Leadership, No Responsibility, No Tours.” The video displays Obama playing basketball, and running with his dog, supposedly while he should be working on the country’s financial problems. Many Republicans are claiming that the White House is choosing to cut back the Secret Service personnel needed to monitor tourists in the White House so they don’t “get in the way” of all of Obama’s hard work. After watching the video, it is indeed negatively biased, and kind of a waste of time, but the idea behind it stands out. Why on earth would the government choose to cancel something as small as White House tours, and in such a public form?

Here’s what it all comes down to: initially I believed that the congressional deadlock, that Republicans seem to continue even now, was to blame for these cuts.

Going back to the supposed Fiscal Cliff crisis in February however, I discovered something else. During

]

place to gain support from the public. In February, he claimed that sequestration would be the ultimate downfall of the country, and that if Congress couldn’t agree with him, then this scary proposal would have to take place. Well now it has.

The sad part is that Obama didn’t really believe it would happen. He used this proposal as a political move, rather than a concern for the well-being of the country. He’s made his bed, and now refuses to lay in it. Now that his own idea actually took place, he’s trying to direct all of the blame at Congress. He is even going so far as punishing the American people in order to prove his point.

Canceling the White House tours was one of the first things Obama cut, publicly telling America that this was the result of Congress’s Sequestration Act. Our cherished American landmark is now offlimits to the public. People are now at risk of layoffs, pay-cuts and incredible inconveniences. America is pointing fingers at Congress for not coming to a one-sided agreement on the part of our president.

Sequestration is wreaking havoc all across the country. Congress is to blame for dividing these budget cuts unequally and causing discriminatory cuts to take place on smaller programs and Obama is to blame for proposing this idea in the first place.

Lauren Richey can be reached at lauren.richey@spartans.ut.edu

OPINION

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

13

14 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

By HANNAH WEBSTER Opinion Columnist

If you’re a fan of social networking, go to UT and don’t live under a rock, chances are that you’ve heard of a new Twitter account that is taking students’ newsfeeds by storm: UTampa Crushes.

This user encourages people to use a survey site to anonymously admit who they are crushing on (yes, using full names) by posting the confessions that are submitted to them.

Essentially, you can tell the world of Twitter that Johnny from chemistry makes your beaker boil over, and the only name we’ll see associated with it is UTampa Crushes.

A word of caution to anyone who is running to their smartphone to see if their name is there: This isn’t your grandma’s crush confessional.

The majority of the posts are raunchy and sexually graphic. The words “beautiful” and “handsome” and anything that makes you go “aww” are a rare gem on the page. You are much more likely to come across the phrase “soand-so can do whatever he/she wants to me,” or #DOMENOW. And I’m trying to keep it clean here, people. Most of it can’t be put in print.

You don’t have to scroll too far to realize that the majority of the posts are from underclassmen. If a name isn’t used, crushes are often referred to by location. Residence halls like Smiley, McKay, Vaughn and Stadium are mentioned frequently. In fact, I think I have yet to see any mention of Straz or Rescom, the dorms which house the most upperclassman.

Outside of things that are explicit yet still vaguely complimentary, UTampa Crushes has been seen posting submissions that range from sarcastic to just downright insulting—

OPINION

New Twitter Account Allows UT Students to Confess Their Secret Crushes all the while still using full names of those being talked about. It seemed like another form of cyber bullying. This is what first piqued my desire to track these people down and get their side of the story. I started making elaborate plans to get all 007 on their ass

to be not one person, but a group of people. thought, “There is NO WAY that the school Wondering about some of their more is letting this happen.” But UTampa Crushes insulting posts begged the question about thought of that, too. And so did the lawyer that how the posts were filtered. If the ones they have on staff. “We are not breaking any we are seeing are this bad, what about laws currently,” said UTampa Crushes. “We the ones that never make it to the page? have not broken school policy. Our lawyer “If we did not filter the monitors all tweets daily and if for some reason submissions we would be facing we post something we shouldn’t, it is removed.” defamation suits,” responded So how far will this thing go? It seems UTampa Crushes to questions like people could get bored of it, submissions about how they select what will will slow down, or that students could simply and will not be shared. “Many take it too far. “We do this as an entertaining of the crushes we receive never thing, but also a way for people to channel make it on Twitter. We receive their crushes,” said UTampa Crushes in many tweets talking about how explaining their purpose, expressing their students are ‘ratchet’ or ‘gross,’ desire to bring students together or give them a etc. and we won’t post those. We boost of self-confidence. “We don’t do this to have been told that ‘somebody hurt anybody. We feel that currently it can be is a rapist...but he’s hot so it’s doing more good than bad, and thus we have ok.’ We have been told that and plan to continue until we feel otherwise.” she or he ‘has herpes’ or ‘has And as for the men/women behind the STDs.’ We do not appreciate mask? It is a mix of different backgrounds, some Screenshot/Twitter.com these crushes and hopefully studying music, business and a variety of other people will receive that these subjects. They all have experience with social when luckily, they tweeted an email address don’t get posted. We are willing to remove media. I wouldn’t bother trying to track down in search for employees to tackle their ever- some posts if people ask the proper way their identity. I’ve heard five or six different growing list of submissions. I jumped on it. and they are worthy of being deleted.” answers from sources who claimed they Now admittedly at this point, I had little Suddenly, some of the posts that I’ve seen knew for sure because their friend’s cousin’s respect for whoever was running this page. don’t seem so bad. But still, there are things friend’s roommate’s friend knows them. Our At best, I was expecting school may be small, a response with massive but it isn’t THAT small. amounts of spelling I have to admit, talking and grammar errors to them did change my with an “LOL” at the opinion. I was prepared to end of every sentence hate them and their motives, instead of a period. But I but they convinced me that Screenshot/Twitter.com found myself pleasantly their intent was far from surprised, and yes, even a little humbled, at said about people that you would never want malicious. Still, I definitely don’t agree with the quality of their response. They refused to on the internet about yourself. Once it has been how some of their submitters speak about other meet with me in person in an effort to protect seen, it can’t be unseen, even if removed. It is people. We all know there is some nastiness in this their identity, but allowed me to conduct an fortunate, however, that UTampa Crushes drew school, but really, it doesn’t need to be advertised. electronic interview. One of my most pressing the line somewhere, as I can imagine other If you want to post something, try playing nice, questions was to find out whether or not users might not (such as the ones submitting kids. We all know this school could use it.

UTampa Crushes is a he or a she, but I found these kinds of things in the first place).

Hannah Webster can be reached myself again corrected when it was revealed Like me, I’m sure many of you have at hannah.webster@spartans.ut.edu

U.S. Postal Service Tries to Cut Back to 5-Day Delivery

By SAMANTHA BLOOM Opinion Writer

Besides bills, the odd magazine and newspaper clippings from my grandma, I rarely receive anything via the US Postal Service. It seemed like an outdated way of communication that is often times more hassle than it’s worth.

With e-mail, Facebook, Twitter and other social networking services, people can communicate almost instantly. Snail mail requires time (and money! Stamps do NOT come cheap!) to write, stamp and send. Often times taking DAYS to be delivered, and who has time for that?

So, naturally, it made sense to me that the United States Postal Service announced they were planning on switching to a five-day delivery service. According to huffingtonpost.com, the mail carrier service loses $25 million a day and lost $16 billion in the last year. However, this plan to cut back on costs has suffered a blow due to legislation passed by Congress requiring six-day delivery. But why require a six-day delivery week? Several polls show that a majority of the public supports ending delivery on Saturdays. As it is not directly funded by tax dollars, and is, in fact, its own business, some experts have estimated that the Postal Service could run out of money

by October, costing taxpayers more than $47 billion in bailouts, says huffingtonpost. com. If the USPS were to cut back, they would continue to deliver packages and medications for six days a week, and only the delivery of letters would be cut back a day.

However, in my hasty, number-focused research, I had entirely forgotten about the

people who make a living with the USPS. All of the research I had done was based on people who were served by USPS or passed legislation over it, but no one who was directly affected by this change. So, I went to speak to some USPS employees, who have chosen to remain anonymous and their comments on the matter changed my perspective. “By cutting out Saturday delivery, every Monday will be like the day after a holiday,” said one employee, “and usually clerks have to put in long hours on those days.” Another employee said that “by removing 17 percent of our revenue, you’re not cutting costs, you’re driving away customers.” Yet another mentioned that the only employees that might possibly support this shortened delivery week are letter carriers, since they wouldn’t have to work on Saturdays. “I’ve worked here for many years to get my Saturdays off.”

These kind people pointed me in the direction of postalreporter.com, which is a website that includes information on how employees feel about the switch to five-day delivery, which senators are for and against, and other postal-related news. From this website, I’ve gathered that a very large percent of Postal Services employees wish to keep Saturday delivery, including letter carriers. Now, the push to keep the six-day delivery period is much more understandable. Cutting the number of days in which to do essentially the same amount of work makes very little sense.

I don’t know why I had never thought of that before--perhaps I was operating under the false assumption that decreasing the amount of delivery days would somehow

decrease the amount of mail going through the system regularly. Perhaps I was convinced by the large numbers and statistics being thrown around by the political proponents of the switch. Either way, I was wrong to assume without

its schedule. “Although the spending measure maintains the six-day delivery language, it is vague and does not stop the Postal Service from altering what products it delivers on Saturdays,” says Ahmad.

I do hope that the USPS continues

dehub/Flickr.com

More USPS workers are actually in favor of keeping a 6-day delivery week for all types of mail.

taking in the opinions of those who would be affected the most, the USPS workers.

The bill is still awaiting approval from the president. Ali Ahmad, a spokesperson for Representative Darrell Issa, says that even if the legislation passes, there may still be room for the Postal Service to change

Saturday delivery. While mail is not the most modern form of communication, nor the most immediate, it’s still a very important way of sharing things with others.

Maybe I’ll start sending letters more often.

Samantha Bloom can be reached at samantha.bloom@spartans.ut.edu

THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

OPINION

15

Pope Francis Brings Hope for New Era in Catholicism

By VANESSA RIGHEIMER

will wash the feet of young inmates at a juvenile detention center in Rome.”

Over the past decade, the Catholic White smoke emerged from the Church has been under fire for cases Sistine Chapel at the Vatican on of sex abuse brought on by the clergy.

Wednesday, March 13 signaling that a Pope Francis’s genuine display of care new pope was chosen. With this new for others may help restore the image of pope, the Catholic Church is about to the Church.

When asked what changes see a whole lot of firsts. Cardinal Jorge she would like to see Mario Bergoglio is now the first with the new pope, elected Argentinian pope. He Rodriguez stated, “I also marks the first time that the think Pope Francis Catholic Church will be led by will put a special a Jesuit, known to be the more emphasis on cleaning liberal order of the Catholic the church’s image religious orders which include the regarding the sexual Dominicans and the Franciscans. abuses and the Vatican The overall feedback of the Financials. He will new Pope, who chose Francis bring transparency as his name, is for the most in the Vatican.” part pretty positive. According Other issues to the Pew Forum on Religion people are hoping & Public Life, 39 percent of Pope Francis will Catholics are Latin American, address circle around so it is obvious that the Latin the environment. In American community would his first Palm Sunday be very excited about Pope as the Pope, Pope Francis’s election. Archbishop Francis encouraged Thomas Wenski of Miami, home the crowd to live to one of the largest communities simple lives by saying, of Argentinians, acknowledges “My grandmother this in a statement on the used to say, ‘children, Archdiocese of Miami website, burial shrouds don’t by saying the election was a have pockets.’” This “great day of rejoicing here in went along with his the New World, for Pope Francis sermon that you is an American. As Blessed “can’t take it with John Paul II repeatedly told Flickr.com/Catholic Church (England and Wales) us: America is one, not North Francis, the first Argentinian and Jesuit pope, has been positively received. you” meaning that as we die we cannot take and South. And Latin America, examples [of] how humble Pope Francis material possessions with us and with the world’s largest number is.

He is more of a people person as that we must focus on enriching our of Catholics, is, as Pope Benedict compared to Pope Benedict who was soul.

By practicing what he preaches, reminded us, a continent of hope.” characterized for being reserved.” his simple life actually helps the Besides being Latin American, Besides the fact that he is Latin environment by leaving just a small Pope Francis’s overall demeanor is American and a Jesuit, his humbleness carbon footprint.

When he was the already being noted. Many Catholics is another factor that is slowly archbishop of Argentina he took are finding him more humble and open than the last pope, Pope Benedict, who breaking away from Catholic tradition. the bus every day, lived in a small was seen as more closed off. Gretchen Rodriguez added, “Instead of washing apartment rather than the palace many Rodriguez, President of the Catholic priests’ feet in a symbolic gesture of archbishops live in and cooked his humility on Holy Thursday, Francis own meals. Chris Bain, director of Opinion Writer

Student Association at UT expressed her opinion on the new pope, “In just a few days, Pope Francis has shown simple signs that demonstrate his spiritual depth and his simplicity.

His greeting in St. Peter’s square, his request to pray for him before giving the blessing and his spontaneity are

Catholic development agency Cafod told The Guardian, “I hope he will put global poverty, climate change and environmental degradation higher up the church agenda.” While it is too early to know Pope Francis’s stance on these matters, he is already showing signs that he might lean more towards an emphasis on environmental issues.

Though the Jesuit order is known for being more liberal and practicing serving those less fortunate, it doesn’t appear that anything in the Catholic Church will change as far as same-sex marriage and abortion goes. Pope Francis has already made it known that he opposes the two, so that will be one of the traditions he will not be breaking away from.

As a Catholic, I believe those are issues that need to be at least revisited and reviewed. The fact of the matter is, there are people that are raised Catholic and will eventually come to a crossroad with their faith and their sexuality. I believe that this is an issue that needs to be at least considered and not just swept under the rug.

Pope Francis will have time to go into his reasoning and his beliefs in the coming months and years, so we will have to wait and hear him out on this.

I find myself, along with many other people, to be very excited about this fresh new face to represent the Catholic Church. I transferred from a Jesuit university and while there I took note of how much emphasis was placed on service and I believe Pope Francis will and already is, practicing what the Jesuits teach. As the great Mother Teresa once said, “Live simply so others may simply live.”

Pope Francis demonstrates this with his humble lifestyle and I think we could learn a great deal from him and maybe even see an increase of service work in the Catholic community.

Vanessa Righeimer can be reached at vanessa.righeimer@spartans.ut.edu

President Obama Urges Israel to Make Peace with Palestine

By RICHARD WHITAKER Opinion Columnist

Last Saturday President Obama concluded his strategically important trip to the Middle East with a pleasant walk through the historic city of Petra.

Although the president obviously enjoyed the ancient vistas, his trip was far from a vacation, as he travelled throughout the precarious region to take careful aim at a number of his foreign policy goals, most notably those involving Israel and Syria.

While in these rival countries he spent a great deal of time conversing with the national leaders as well as delivering speeches directed at the populace. The trip, taken as a whole, is an apparent success.

The president made the decision to accelerate a number of intensely important agenda items that he has appeared to be avoiding. Not only did he address some of the hot issues in the region, most notably the friction between Israel and Syria, but he reinitiated the process of one day possibly achieving peace in the region.

According to CNN, President Obama’s speech was focused towards the youth of the Jewish state. During this speech the president “urged” the Israeli youth to “pressure their leaders to seek peace with Palestinians.” In light of the recent turmoil between the Israelis and the Syrians/Palestinians, the president’s suggestion may seem extremely unlikely but it was still

the right move by our Commander in Chief. It accomplishes a multitude of tasks: 1) It shows the international community that the U.S. is being proactive in addressing the violence between two international groups.

2) It focuses on the youth, where an impression and potential progress might be more likely and 3) it shows the Palestinian faction that America is not solely “out to get them.”

Following the president’s speech, CNN reported enormous applause from the young Israeli crowd. These cheers reveal that although the elders of Israel may be dead set in their views towards the Palestinian population, the youth may be more forgiving and may one day be able to develop a more favorable relationship with them.

Aside from the foregoing speech and other positive accomplishments, the president may have made a serious misstep.

According to CNN, the president stated that the Palestinians deserve “a future of hope” and a “state of their own.” Of course, the Palestinians, as well as the Israelis deserve peace.

An end to this bloodshed is in both nation’s best interests, but stating that the Palestinians deserve their own national territory is both controversial and inflammatory. The definition of a “nation state” under international law requires three elements, and the most vital of those three is definable territory or land. In a perfect world,

with unlimited land, the Palestinians is “okay” to do a questionable thing. would have the opportunity to have I rebutted him by asserting that great their own national territory. However, things can be achieved cleanly without we do not live in a perfect world, and ever straying from the morale path. I land is not without limit, especially in the ancient Middle East. In order to create a new “Palestinianonly” state, land would have to be procured from other states.

Unfortunately, the tiny state of Israel, the only non-Arab state in the region is always the most likely state candidate to give up its precious acreage to the dream of a true Palestine. Perhaps, Syria might serve as the donor state for this purpose, and if so, the dream has a true future. In any case, this might not have been the best issue for our president to highlight.

Only time will tell; I certainly hope he is right and I am wrong.

The troubles existing in this particular region of the world will not end overnight, or even over the span of years. As the past millennia has indicated, this will be an issue solved one way or another over generations--this is ShmulikAlmany/Photobucket.com why Obama’s speech to the Israeli The President’s suggestion of peace is the right move. youth was such a vital move. If we are able to inspire the youth of the Middle East to seek peace, almost believe that the president is attempting everything and almost anything is to do this and this is why he has made within their reach. I recently got into the conversation public to the youth. an argument with a man who asserted Richard J Whitaker can be reached that in order to achieve a great thing it at richard.whitaker@spartans.ut.edu

16 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

OPINION

Hillary Clinton Labeled Lesbian for Supporting Same-Sex Marriage

By JAKE KONISZEWSKI Opinion Writer

Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton announced her support for samesex marriage on Monday, March 18 in a video posted on the website for the Human Rights Campaign, an advocacy group for LGBT rights. Shortly after the announcement, American Family Association radio host Sandra Rio suggested that Clinton was a lesbian.

According to Huffingtonpost. com, Rio “claimed Tuesday [March 19th] that the former Secretary of State’s recent announcement of support for same-sex marriage might hint at Clinton’s sexual identity.”

Rio believes Clinton is a lesbian because she supports gay marriage.

According to Rio’s definition of what makes a person a homosexual, I would be gay because I support gay marriage. I have never had a desire to be in a relationship with another man, so I do not think Rio’s definition of what makes a person gay is correct.

I doubt that gay people are the only ones supporting gay marriage.

This is not the first time Rio has suggested someone is gay and has expressed anti-gay opinions. Last November, during Rio’s show, she and her guest read a tweet by United Nations Ambassador Susan Rice, which read, “We will not allow the remarkable progress the UN has made on LGBT issues in the last four

years to be rolled back.” According [about Hillary Clinton’s sexuality].” gay and has led a successful career in to Right Wing Watch, Rio replied, “Is According to Michael Musto of The journalism working for CNN, ABC she straight?” I do not know why Rio Village Voice, “whisper campaigns and Channel One. Ellen DeGeneres is thinks her question is so vital. Rice’s are claiming that Hillary Clinton is another influential gay person who has sexuality does not matter. You do not Gayle King-ing her aide de camp, the a successful daytime talk show and has have to be gay to want equality for glamorous Huma Abedin,” implying been in several television shows and members of the LGBT community. that Clinton is attracted to Abedin. movies, including “Finding Nemo,” Anyone, straight or where she voices Dory. gay, can hope for Neil Patrick Harris has also equality for people had a successful television in our country. and movie career, well From what I can known for his role in gather, Rio sees “How I Met Your Mother” homosexuality as a as Barney Stinson and negative trait. I do Douglas “Doogie” Howser not see why she, or in “Doogie Howser, M.D.” anyone, would see and is also open about his homosexuality as a sexuality. Being gay does bad thing. It may not not affect their careers, nor be seen as the norm would it affect Clinton’s. for sexuality, but Clinton has gone on that does not mean record saying that the homosexuality is rumors are false. According wrong. It’s different to CNN, in an interview but different with The Advocate, she is not always a Flickr.com/Secretary of Defense said, “It’s not true, but it terrible thing. Clinton’s sexual preference is not important; it does not change anything. is something that I have Rio is not the only no control over. People one who has questioned Clinton’s I do not see why all of these people will say what they want to say.” sexuality. According to The Daily are so interested in Clinton’s sexual Clinton brings up a good point. I can Beast, Rick Morris, who worked preference. If she were gay, it would write about how people should stop closely with Bill Clinton in the past, not change anything. She has worked worrying about Clinton’s sexuality, “suggested … that Hillary Clinton hard over the past few years as senator but I cannot stop people from talking was a closet lesbian.” According and secretary of state, and has fought about it. All I can say is that I do to Huffingtonpost.com, “In her for women’s rights in other countries. not see what all the fuss is about. salacious 1995 tell-all about a sexual Even if Clinton were gay, it does Jake Koniszewski can be reached encounter with Bill Clinton, Gennifer not mean she could not do her job. Just at jake.koniszewski@spartans.ut.edu Flowers made a similar suggestion look at Anderson Cooper; he is openly

‘Equality House’ Opened in Front of Westboro Baptist Church

By JESSICA FORTE

business. “Because the home is in be ok to be gay,” says the WBC. a statement by e-mail. For a group a residential neighborhood, Jackson “It’s hard to be gay and not know so hateful and extreme, I wonder There has been a new addition in said it can’t serve as an office. But about the WBC,” says Reich. “At this why they’re still allowing the the neighborhood of the prominent it gives equality-project volunteers point, they are simply amusing and house to stand without a fight. One Westboro Baptist Church: a rainbow a place to stay if needed,” the Los no longer hurtful to me... not that I would think that they would try to painted house located directly Angeles Times reports. across the street. The house in “Such an act is a Topeka, Kan. was purchased by simple sign to someone Aaron Jackson, the 31-year-old trapped in the closet that co-founder of Planting Peace, a there are people who care nonprofit organization. According about them––and that can to their website, plantingpeace.org, make a big difference in the organization was founded for someone’s life,” says the “purpose of spreading peace in Christian Reich, president a hurting world.” “Although our of UT’s GLTSBA Pride organization operates on a global (Gay Lesbian Transgender level, we emphasize the power of Straight Bisexual Asexual one; the ability that each person Pride).

“To hear that it possesses to make a difference is an ally and not even in the world,” they explain. someone who identifies Jackson, who considers himself a as LGBT is even better.” straight ally, found the house while For a church whose looking at the street-view on Google website URL is godhatesfags.

Maps, trying to get a glimpse of the com, the Westboro Baptists infamous church. He saw that the didn’t seem too furious home across the street had a “for about the Equality House. sale” sign on the front lawn. With They released a statement donations, he was able to purchase saying, “Thank God for the Bully/Facebook.com the small home, which has been sodomite rainbow house!” Co-founder of Planting Peace painted the house rainbow colors in support of same-sex marriage. renamed the “Equality House.”

They also mentioned A page on plantingpeace.org has that there are many other rainbow wouldn’t mind them disappearing.” protest, but days have gone by and been dedicated to the household houses around the world; the The followers of WBC have there hasn’t been a single outcry saying, “The house, which is painted Equality House has only reached given the world a warped sense of from the WBC. Time will only tell. the colors of the Pride flag, will serve fame because of its location. “You Christianity. By protesting at the I am extremely glad that Aaron as the resource center for all Planting can paint rainbows on every house funerals of soldiers who fight for us Jackson made the Equality House. to maintain our religious freedom and The WBC needed someone to really holding up offensive signs that say get in their face and stand up against The Equality House is a great statement for things like “Jews are the real Nazis,” all the awful things they’ve done. peace. The WBC needed someone to really get they have gone against one of the Not only is the Equality House a great in their face and stand up against all the awful key aspects that the bible demotes: statement for peace, but the followers things they’ve done. hate. Of everything that I’ve learned of the WBC can’t do anything about it over the years from being raised in being there. The Equality House will Peace equality and anti-bullying in America, and homosexuality will a Christian household and attending keep shining bright in a neighborhood initiatives and will stand as a visual still be an abominable sin in the eyes a Christian school, it is that God poisoned by a church that runs on reminder of our commitment, as of God. God’s word doesn’t change, loves everyone, despite race, faith, hate, and I would hope that Planting global citizens, to equality for all.” just because ‘culture has moved background, and sexual orientation. Peace makes many more like it.

Sadly, the Equality House won’t on.’ It’s not okay to be gay, it never It is surprising that the only Jessica Forte can be reached be able to conduct a large amount of was ok to be gay, and it never will action the WBC took was releasing at jessica.forte@spartans.ut.edu

Opinion Writer

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THE MINARET | MARCH 28 2013

Sports Tennis 7-0 in March

17

Matthews Grooves Along, Team Keeps Rolling

By DREW WYCOFF Sports Writer

Imagine playing in a heated tennis match, anticipating a serve from your opponent. You drop into your athletic position, racket across your body, bouncing back and forth on the balls of your feet.

You stare at your opponent, bouncing the ball in preparation for her serve.

Then a car passes by blasting the “Cupid Shuffle.” As the server tosses the ball to begin her serve, you start dipping your shoulders and adjusting your bounce to the lyrics, “To the right, to the right.” You return the serve and win the point. You weren’t aware you were dancing, and only hear about it after the match. For Kelsey Matthews, a University of Tampa tennis player, this was once a reality.

“Kelsey leads the wobble and Harlem Shake for us at practice too,” said women’s tennis Head Coach Al Dufaux. “With the team’s practice music was playing during the interview, she couldn’t help but move to the beat even while answering questions despite being ‘nervous’”.

Dancing mid-match may seem unorthodox, but as a sophomore transfer with a 12-3 record playing for a top-15 Division II program, Matthews, 19, is all business on the court. On the contrary, Matthews is a competitor in all senses of the word.

She started tennis at age seven but placed soccer and basketball first. She always continued tennis though and gave up soccer for tennis in high school with basketball still her priority. In high school, she won numerous awards in tennis and basketball including being named FirstTeam All-State in tennis by the Ohio Tennis Coaches Association.

Arguably even more impressive is how her competitive nature extends off the court. As an entrepreneurship major at UT, Matthews and doubles partner, freshman

Lindsay Nochowicz, entered and won the CREATE (Creating Real Entrepreneurial Actions through Education) competition for her [Matthews] and her mom’s website idea, College Bids Pass it On. The website is in its fruition and will be launched mid-April. She hopes advertising loyalties will be collected soon after and Matthews’ mom, Karen, has even thought up an advertising strategy for UT: decking her daughter’s car out with ads. “Yup, I’m going to be that girl driving around campus with advertising on my car,” laughed Matthews.

Her mom now resides in Florida after moving from Ohio and her Dad, Mark, lives back in Ohio with her older brother,

Nathan. Matthews describes the divorce which happened in her eighth grade year as one of the hardest points in her life. She transferred to an all-girls academy during her freshman year as a result. “It was one of those points where everything was going wrong so I needed to change something,” she said.

She later transferred back to her old school where she amassed the majority of her awards and came to accept the divorce.

“I learned it was better for the both of them,” Matthews said. She remains close with both her dad and brother who both have heavily influenced her tennis career.

Her brother, 24, played tennis competitively and her dad teaches tennis professionally.

Profiles: Tampa Tennis Kelsey Matthews, Sophomore • Hometown: Cincinnati, Ohio

• 13-3 in singles matches this season

• Tranfer from the University of Indianapolis

• 14-2 in doubles alongside Lindsay Nochowicz

Thashia Garcia, Sophomore • Hometown: Caracas, Venezuala

• 9-3 in singles matches this season

• 10-6 last season as a freshman at UT

• 6-4 in doubles this season alongside Chloe Pereira

Al DuFaux, Head Coach • 104-169 overall record at UT

• UT Tennis at 13-3 so far in 2013

• NCAA Tournament appearance in 2006

• Coached at Gaither High School previously

Her earliest tennis memories are of her dad taking her to the court to volley.

Matthews describes her decision to pick UT after a year at the University of Indianapolis as similarly tough as her high school transfer. “I had to leave my brother and Dad behind,” she said adding, “Leaving the girls [teammates] behind was hard too.” But with her mom’s impending move to Florida looming, her visit to UT sealed the deal. “Yeah just like every other kid, as soon as I visited [UT] my mind was made up,” she said laughing.

Since the transfer, she has fully adapted and immersed herself into her team and the UT community. “These girls have almost become my sisters,” said Matthews on her teammates. Her and her doubles partner, Nochowicz, have developed an undeniable chemistry echoed by their 133 record. Even during the interview, as her partner walked over, the duo broke out in laughter.

“I have never been a confident doubles player and never really had a constant partner until now,” said Nochowicz. “[Now] I know who my partner is going to be every match and I feel more confident in doubles, and it helps that Kelsey is really good and our styles complement each other.”

“Playing as a doubles team requires synergy, and that’s something that they have and coaches look for,” added coach DuFaux.

The Spartans have achieved the programs highest ever ranking at midseason at No. 15. Even more impressive is the fact that their conference, the Sunshine State Conference, has no team ranked lower than No. 20 in the nation.

With two years left in her career in UT, Matthews denies a future in tennis past college. “I don’t know,” Matthews said laughing, “I’ll probably just be one of those USDA moms cheering for my kids.”

Drew Wycoff can be reached at dwycoff@spartans.ut.edu.

Garcia Impacts UT On and Off Tennis Court

By J.P. HANEY Sports Writer

Thashia Garcia doesn’t need to be a professional athlete. Garcia aspires to one day be a diplomat and honorably represent her home country of Venezuela on a global scale.

With a 9-3 record in the 2013 season and a career record of 18-9, Garcia has proven herself to be a force to be reckoned with on the tennis court, while she has also proven herself to be an outstanding individual off the court, with her commitment to representing the University of Tampa and giving back to the community.

Currently, she is on a four-game winning streak and continues to excel on the court.

Then again, her overall success is not a surprise to anyone that has been following her career to this point. As a 16 and 18year-old, Garcia captured Venezuelan national championship singles and doubles titles.

According to UT Women’s Tennis Coach Al DuFaux, Garcia is an extremely hard worker.

“Thashia has a ton of internal motivation,” Coach DuFaux stated. “She is internally motivated to succeed and does extra work on her own by hitting tennis balls and knows what it takes to succeed.”

From a young age Garcia always knew she wanted to play sports. After successful years of playing basketball and volleyball, she ultimately decided that tennis was her favorite sport.

“I like making the choices myself,” Garcia stated as to why she ended up choosing an individual sport. “It is a beautiful thing that you can play an individual sport, but practice with a team in college.”

Aside from sports, the sophomore International Business and Finance major enjoys traveling around the world and exploring new cultures.

Thus far, Garcia has visited 36 countries and visits, on average, seven countries per year. Thashia explained that she travels because it helps her adapt to certain situations, as opposed to being affected by them.

In only her second year here at UT,

Garcia has made quite the impact on campus. When she is not spending time on the tennis court, studying, or going to class in the John Sykes College of Business, Thashia dedicates herself to giving back to the community.

She has been a part of organizations such as UNICEF and is also a UT Ambassador.

In the fall of 2012, Garcia was selected as UT’s representative for the Sunshine State Conference about women in sports.

Even though Garcia has won national championships in her home country, her proudest moment is every time she receives the opportunity to wear the University of Tampa tennis uniform. According to her, she loves the idea of representing her school with pride and honor. Garcia acknowledges that her tennis career may be over at graduation; however, she will not forget all that tennis has taught her.

“I will always include tennis throughout my life,” Garcia explained. “While I do not see myself as a coach, I would like to pass on what I have learned to others.”

Andy Meng/ Tampaspartans.com J.P. Haney can be reached at Thashia Garcia is among three international students on the UT tennis roster. johnpatrick.haney@spartans.ut.edu.

18 MARCH 28 2013 | THE MINARET

SPORTS

Baseball Bashes For Six Straight Ws

Casey Budd/ The Minaret

Freshman David Heintz has four wins in four starts and has posted a 1.99 ERA thus far.

By JOSIAH KACHELMEYER Sports Writer

With a 7-4 victory over defending NCAA Division II champs West Chester University last Tuesday, the University of Tampa baseball team approached the halfway mark of their 2013 campaign with confidence.

The Spartans came out ready to prove that they are serious contenders this year.

In what was a tight game the whole way through, UT out-hit West Chester just enough to come away with the win.

Head Coach Joe Urso saw the victory as a definite confidence builder for the team

as they enter the second half of the season.

“Any time you have a chance to play the defending national champions you get excited,” Urso said. “Our guys came out and played well. I was real happy with the way everything progressed, with the starting pitching and the bullpen, to get that ‘W’.”

The team followed up their big win on Tuesday with a 9-7 victory over Franklin Pierce on Wednesday, and a double-header sweep (4-1, 17-3) of conference foe Rollins on Saturday. The Spartans took the third game of the series against Rollins to win their sixth in a row and 11th of their last 12.

UT enters the second half of the season at 7-2 in the Sunshine State Conference.

They are just half a game up on longtime rival Florida Southern College (6-3).

Although the two teams have not yet met this season, and FSC has a sub par overall record of 12-14, Coach Urso has had his eye on them.

“Florida Southern has more titles than any other team in Division II baseball,” said Urso. “They have always been our rival, it doesn’t matter what their record is, or what our record is, and we both know when we play each other every year because the guys get excited for the rivalry.”

UT must wait until April 5 to meet their rivals, which is when they kick off a three game series.

One big reason the Spartans have been so successful this year is the hitting of Tyler Ding. Batting .408 through 27 games, the junior utility player has been consistent at the plate. Coach Urso is not surprised by the development of Ding has a hitter.

“I think he’s always been a great hitter going back to his high school days,” said Urso. “He’s hitting to the opposite field really well, and he’s in a good groove right now.” In addition to being the team leader in batting average, Ding is tied for the team lead in hits (31), and is among the team leaders in RBI’s.

“I just think I’m getting lucky,” Ding said with a smile when asked what he attributes to his success this year.

Not to be outdone by Ding and the offense this season, the Spartans pitching staff has been another huge component to their success. A strong starting rotation, led by freshman David Heintz who is 4-0 with

a 1.99 ERA, is complemented by a reliable bullpen. Mike Adams (Jr.) has been a very trustworthy option for Coach Urso out of the pen so far.

“Adams has been real solid for us; he’s thrown a lot of strikes, he has a really good curveball, and he’s done a really good job all around,” said Urso.

He went on to say just how important having both quality starting pitchers as well as a talented bullpen is.

“Great teams are built around their pitching staffs. Coach Militello has developed a system where these guys are like a minor league team in the sense that they’re on a pitch count,” said Urso. “This helps to not just rely on the starters, but to also develop a strong bullpen; most DII teams don’t have that.”

Even with success to this point, Adams realizes that there are still some things to work on moving forward.

“We’re giving up a lot of 0-2 hits, so when we’re ahead in the count we definitely need to improve upon that,” the reliever said.

Coach Urso pointed out that although playing well, his squad needs to develop even more of a killer instinct.

“When we get chances to put teams away we need to do that,” Urso said fiercely.

“When the bases are loaded, we need to be able to get that extra hit to separate the score more.”

UT baseball will attempt to continue their win streak while on the road for the next couple weeks, including a three-game series at Barry this weekend.

Josiah Kachelmeyer can be reached at josiah.kachelmeyer@spartans.ut.edu.

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19

USA Drops The Ball Again In WBC

By GRIFFIN GUINTA Sports Writer

What do Mexico, the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico all have in common? (No, it’s not the fact that they all are Spanish speaking countries). All of these nations triumphed over the highly touted United States squad at this year’s World Baseball Classic.

To some, this comes as no surprise, as it is a widely known fact that baseball in the Caribbean and other Latin countries has been strong for quite some time.

However, fans of Team USA could have never predicted that their starstudded lineup would present such a dismal showing in the tournament; posting a 3-3 record overall and failing to make it past the second round.

We certainly can’t blame the roster selection committee this year, which was often the core problem in years past.

Despite having a track record of bringing mediocre teams to the event, the head honchos of team USA corrected their mistake and selected a handful of top notch athletes to the team.

Bolstered by players such as reigning Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey, Gio Gonzalez, the Nationals’ trusty ace, and former MVP Ryan Braun, this roster was more talented than ever before.

In addition, legendary manager Joe Torre was appointed head coach of the squad and brought his wide array of baseball knowledge to an already

experienced dugout. On paper, this team was primed for success. They had all the components needed to be a contender: experience, solid management and home field advantage for all of their games.

So why the early exit? Some analysts argued that plain and simple, the US team just didn’t really care too much about dominating the competition. If that was the case though, why show up to play at all?

Even if it wasn’t a big deal to the multimillion dollar athletes participating on the team, there is still a huge pride factor involved.

There’s something to be said about officially being the number one baseball team in the world. I mean come on, our soccer team isn’t bringing home the World Cup anytime soon, so shouldn’t we at least try to be the best at something we’re relatively good at?

In a way, this year’s USA World Baseball Classic team reminds me of England’s national

soccer team. England is the hottest destination for the world’s top soccer players, just like the United States is the pinnacle for professional baseball athletes. In most World Cups, England’s national team roster is usually loaded with stellar players, much like this year’s US baseball team.

Yet in the past few tournaments, England has failed to live up to their hype and left many hometown fans shaking their heads at the Brits’ lousy performances.

Critics often claim that despite the fact that the USA and England have the best leagues in the world in their respective sports, a majority of the players that come to play in these prestigious leagues hail from other nations.

Statistics, though, prove otherwise. In the MLB alone, the number of American-born players clocks in at around 72 percent, according to ESPN. In terms of the Premier League (England’s Pro League), English footballers make up a majority of the league, at about 60

percent, according to Daily Mail. Based on these facts, we know there is plenty of homegrown talent to choose from here in the US, and that we have highest number of Americans playing in the top professional league.

Ultimately though, the team with the “best players” doesn’t always win, and that rings true in every sport. Factors such as team chemistry, collaboration and luck each play vital roles in any kind of competition.

Point is, just because a team has the flashiest and most decorated players, it doesn’t translate to instant success.

However, one would think that a team with multiple superstars, experienced coaching and a bevy of resources at their disposal would be able to squeak out a few more W’s in a tournament like this, especially in a sport that isn’t terribly popular outside of the Americas.

I don’t think any Americans are “crushed” by the USA baseball team’s underwhelming act this past month, but I truly believe that baseball fans expected more. As the World Baseball Classic grows more and more popular, the USA needs to demonstrate that they are the golden standard for baseball excellence in the future.

Perhaps a younger, more energetic lineup would remedy their tournament woes. (Cough Cough, Mike Trout and Bryce Harper.)

Griffin Guinta can be reached at griffin.guinta@spartans.ut.edu.

15-Seed Florida Gulfcoast Headlines Sweet 16

By CONNOR ANTHONY Sports Writer

March Madness has begun, destroying every bracket in its path. With over 8.5 million brackets entered on ESPN.com, only 1200 were left perfect after the first day. By the second day, that number was down to only two. Now none remain.

Though there have been a fair share of upsets, the biggest upset wasn’t in the NCAA tournament at all.

Kentucky, coming fresh off a 2012 championship, had a season from hell to put it lightly. Everything that could go wrong did go wrong, including top recruit Nerlens Noel tearing his ACL and being lost for the season.

The Wildcats finished the season 2111. This disappointing season only got them into the NIT (not in tournament, tournament).

Just as their luck would have it, the number one seeded Wildcats were eliminated in the first round by eighthseeded Robert Morris 59-57.

But back to the main tournament, and so far madness is the only appropriate word to describe it. No. 15 Florida Gulf Coast started it off with the first big upset, when they took down No. 2 Georgetown, 78-68.

President Obama went against his alma matter when picking his bracket, but Houston Rockets point guard Jeremy Lin did not. This paid off for Lin, when No. 14 Harvard upset No. 3 New Mexico.

Once Georgetown and New Mexico’s hearts collapsed, the dominoes started to fall. No. 4 Kansas State was upset by a tough team from Philly, No. 13 La Salle, which only 6.1 percent had this upset predicted.

Big 10 champion Wisconsin was

knocked out as quickly as they got into the tournament at the hands of the SEC Conference Champion No. 12 Ole Miss.

But after a weekend of basketball, only three No. 1 seeds are left battling.

Gonzaga saw their spectacular season end in the second round.

The Bulldogs finished the season as the number one rated school in the country, for the first time ever.

Unfortunately, once March comes around, the regular season doesn’t matter anymore. Gonzaga lost to Wichita State 76-70, thus ending their excellent season.

With the third round coming to an end, there will be a little hiatus until the Sweet 16, which will take place March 28 and 29.

With three No. 1 seeds and No. 2 seeds still alive, it seems that the top dogs aren’t going down easily.

There aren’t many small schools left, but Florida Gulf Coast and La Salle will definitely be considered the underdogs, going into the Sweet 16.

Florida Gulf Coast is the team causing the most noise, as they punched their ticket to the Sweet 16 by defeating San Diego State 81-71 in a dunk-filled, exciting contest.

They’ll be playing in-state rival No. 3 Florida. With all country watching them, they’re not going to be able to sneak up on anymore teams.

La Salle also got into the Sweet 16 by defeating Ole Miss 76-74. La Salle lucked out, and because No. 1 Gonzaga lost, they will be playing No. 9 Wichita State.

What makes this tournament truly spectacular, is that no tournament in history has had two teams seeded 13th or higher make it into the Sweet 16.

This is also the first year a No. 15

Indiana Publc Media/Flickr.com

Indiana enters their Sweet 16 matchup against Syracuse averaging almost 80 points-per-game, good for third in the country. They’re led by Cody Zeller (right) and Victor Oladipo (left).

seed has made it to the Sweet 16, and most of the country will be rooting for the team from Fort Myers to beat the big bad Gators.

The most likely upset alert will be during the Louisville/Oregon matchup.

Rick Pitino had to watch rival John Calipari cut down the nets last year, as he could only watch from his sofa.

With Calipari on the sofa this year, Pitino would love nothing more than to practice his scissor cutting technique.

Oregon is a team that most ESPN experts say not to bet against. They are rated as No. 12 seed despite beating

UCLA in the Pac-12 championship game.

Louisville is going to need to watch their backs if they want to live to see the Elite Eight.

Though it’s anyone’s tournament, I believe that Indiana will come out victorious when all is said and done. The combination of Victor Oladipo and Cody Zeller is just so nasty, that they should be the favorites as of right now.

However they’re facing Syracuse in the Sweet Sixteen next week, which should prove to be a thriller.

Connor Anthony can be reached at connor.anthony@spartans.ut.edu.

MINARET

Tennis Profiles [17]

UT’S SOURCE SINCE 1933

SPORTS

St. Pete Native Wins 200K

By NATHAN KROHN Sports Writer

David Tuthill sat at the poker table in quiet excitement, adjusting to the new reality that he just won $223,197 in a poker game. Tuthill was the last man standing at the World Series of Poker circuit at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, Nev., taking home the biggest pot in his professional career.

“It felt amazing,” Tuthill said over a phone interview. “Going to school for a year and a half and sort of draining my savings… I finally feel financially secure now.”

For Tuthill, and many like him, it all started in 2003 when ESPN aired its first World Series of Poker event, won by Chris Moneymaker, an accountant from Tennessee who had obtained a seat after winning a $39 online tournament.

“I was in eighth grade sitting at home watching Moneymaker win it all,” Tuthill explained, “it just really got me interested in everything.”

While the World Series of Poker had been around since the 1970’s, it didn’t begin to gain popularity until ESPN aired the 2003 event, which was broken down into made-for-TV hour-long episodes that featured several new cameras that engaged the viewers at home.

“At that same time online poker was also beginning to get big,” Tuthill said, “the game of poker really started to take off.”

Tuthill, a St. Petersburg native who’s broadcast several University of Tampa sporting events, began playing online poker shortly after and saw his success begin to escalate in high school.

“I started seeing success when I was a junior or senior in high school,” Tuthill said. “I have kind of a one-track mind, I enjoyed doing it so that’s all I did.”

In 2009, while in Aruba for a tournament, Tuthill became close with a group from Portland, Ore., including Stephen Bokor.

“I met David the first or second night at the tournament, we were at the same table,” said Bokor. “I kept going all in and he kept matching me. We started talking, partied a little bit, after about nine days we had gotten really close. David had the idea of throwing a poker house together with five or six of us in Portland.”

In the fall of 2009, Tuthill dropped out of the University of Central Florida and moved to Portland to play poker full time.

“Malcolm Gladwell says you’ve mastered something after playing for 10,000 hours,” Tuthill said. “I just played all day every day in Portland. I got a ton

3

And Out

A brief rundown of Spartan sports

American Baseball [19]

Lax Looks to Win Out

By PAIGE SHALLCROSS Sports Writer

Photo Coutesy of David Tuthill

David Tuthill, 24, shows his winning hand in Las Vegas last month. Tuthill has broadcasted several UT sporting events on Tampaspartans.com.

better.”

Bokor, who now rooms with David in Tallahassee Fla., dropped out of Western Oregon University also to play poker full time.

“We all made each other better when we were in Portland,” Bokor said. “Talking about hands, playing hands, talking strategies. There’s so many different ways to play the game, we all got so much better.”

Bokor, like Tuthill, was watching Moneymaker in the 2003 World Series of Poker and became intrigued with the game.

“I started off playing with dimes and pocket change,” Bokor reminisced, “then moved up to $20. It became a weekly thing, friends would come over and we’d have games.”

Bokor, now 24, continues to play full time, traveling around the United States playing in tournaments. He is currently on an all-time high, recently winning a career high $155,000 in Pompano Beach, Fla. “I’m taking poker more seriously than ever before,” Bokor said. “I want poker to be my main focus right now, school later.”

For Tuthill, it was a different approach.

He returned to FSU to pursue his degree in social sciences and currently has two semesters until graduation.

“Poker is certainly not what I want to do for the rest of my life,” Tuthill said. “I could support myself doing it but I want

No. 7 Softball [19-8, 7-5] The University of Tampa’s softball team lost two out of three in a crucial SSC matchup against Barry this past weekend. With four series left against the bottom four teams of the conference, the Spartans have a golden opportunity to improve their conference record.

to start a family, finish my degree, maybe start a business. Poker will always be a fall back if need be.”

Tuthill says he is fortunate to have family and friends who have supported his playing career, one of which is his other roommate, Aaron Lorenz.

Tuthill and Lorenz go all the way back to kindergarten orientation. When they attended different high schools, the two lost contact but reconnected when Tuthill’s father bought Lorenz a plane ticket to see him play in Las Vegas.

“It was completely out of the blue,” Lorenz said. “I think he kind of wanted me to see what David was up to. We hung out in Vegas and have been close ever since.”

Lorenz doesn’t play poker but is more than familiar with Tuthill’s ups and downs.

“I think I’ve seen him a total of two hours since he won the $220,000; he’s been playing non-stop,” Lorenz said. “But I know no matter how much he’s up or down, he’s gonna be the same guy. That’s just who he is.”

Tuthill says that at 24 he is much more responsible with his winnings than when he was younger but that won’t stop him from having a little fun with the $200,000 bump to his bank account.

“I bought an Ipad and a Tempur-Pedic mattress,” Tuthill said. “I’m probably also gonna have some big parties, you know, being in Tallahassee and all.”

Nathan Krohn can be reached at nathan.krohn@spartans.ut.edu.

After their tightly played 8-7 victory over Wheeling Jesuit last week, the University of Tampa’s lacrosse team is looking to maintain momentum and finish with a strong regular season.

Currently the Spartan team is 4-1 in conference and 6-4 overall. Even though they have had a few losses this season, Coach Whipple does not see this as something to be worried about.

“Our schedule has improved from last year so we’re playing tougher opponents,” said Head Coach Rory Whipple. “We have had some difficult overtime losses like Dowling who was ranked No. 6 in the country at the time. Really it is just a matter of the fact that I think we are playing really strong defensively and we just need to start scoring more goals.”

Defensive player Eric Dance and fellow offensive teammate Greg Griffo agree with Coach Whipple and add that they are ready to come back for the games coming up.

“I don’t believe anything is going on with the team even though we have had a few losses,” said Dance. “Recently we have been playing some really tough teams and we have started a little late.”

Even with the losses this season, the lacrosse team’s goal is to finish the season strong and play strong in the conference playoffs.

“We are just looking to win out,” said Griffo. “If we win the rest of the regular season games and conference then we have a shot at playoffs and that is our ultimate goal; making it to playoffs and continuing to do well from there.”

To prepare for the remaining games ahead and the conference championship, the team is continuing to play hard and to focus on the little things that can really make them a strong component to play against.

“I think we are just trying to keep to the same goals from before,” said Dance.

“To make the NCAA’s and keep working as hard as we have and keep on turning up in practice, bringing that intensity and just to keep on working.”

Coming from the offensive side, they are hoping to tighten play up and focusing mentally.

“Ultimately our goal is to not lose another game this year,” said Whipple.

Tampa next plays this Saturday at LenoirRhyne.

Paige Shallcross can be reached at paige.shallcross@spartans.ut.edu.

No. 3 Baseball [24-4, 7-2]

Golf

The Spartans destroyed Rollins by a combined score of 37-8 this past weekend en route to the sweep. They have now won six straight games and 11 of their last 12. UT is in control of their own destiny. The team will travel to Barry this weekend for a three-game series.

The men’s golf team came in sixth place at the Florida Tech Invitational last Tuesday. Senior Taylor Noel tied for second place, finishing just one shot off of the leader. The women’s team finished in 17th last weekend at the University of Cincinnati Invitational last weekend.